Want an 8-Team Playoff? Root for Notre Dame to Get into the Playoff Over the Big 12

Notre Dame remains 4th in the college football playoff rankings, though one could argue the Irish are in TCU’s spot last year: They’re not in control of their own destiny, and are waiting to get passed down the stretch by undefeated Oklahoma State or 1-loss Oklahoma.

There are five major conferences. Last year, only one – the Big 12 – was left out of the playoff. TCU and Baylor were bypassed for Ohio State in the final week. Which conference will get omitted this year? If Notre Dame, which remains fiercely independent, sneaks in, two conferences will be left out to play in a meaningless bowl game. Right now, it looks like the Pac-12 and the Big 12 would get shafted.

Want an 8-team playoff sooner rather than later? Root for Notre Dame to elbow out the Oklahoma schools and the Pac-12 winner.

Let’s start here:

1. If the Big 12 is snubbed again, not only will the league have to finally start scheduling some real non-conference games (yes, they are set up years in advance) but they also may have to re-think the idea of a conference Championship game. One year, maybe chalk it up to disrespect. Two years in a row? Yikes.
2. Check out the Playoff revenue distribution. The playoff snubs are costing conferences millions.
3. The recruiting trail will be fun if the Big-12 gets left out again. Coach to recruit: “All things being equal, our conference has a better shot of getting into the playoff every year. This isn’t me talking, the committee has made that clear.”

You know where this is headed: 8 teams. It makes the most sense. The five conference champs get in, and then you open the door for a mid-major to sneak in with an at-large bid, such as Houston this year. March Madness is the best month of sports because of the possibility that David could slay Goliath. Imagine this year: Houston in a 1st round game against Ohio State. That’s former OSU offensive coordinator Tom Herman against Urban Meyer.

Currently, one could argue that realemstemcally, only semx teams are premmaremly emn the demscussemon for the playoff: Ohemo State, Alabama, Clemson, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and Notre Dame. Yes, UNC could beat Clemson; yes, Iowa could topple Ohemo State; yes, Floremda could stun Alabama. All those teams wemll be double-demgemt underdogs. Theoretemcally, they could wemn out and would get emn. But those teams aren’t emn the demscussemon because good luck femndemng someone to confemdently predemct an upset.

When you’re looking at eight teams getting into a playoff, you have about a dozen teams who can extend their season. Stanford vs Notre Dame then essentially becomes a play-in game, rather than the game being all about the Irish. TCU and Baylor, each with one loss, would still be alive to sneak in. Michigan State and Michigan would be battling for an at-large spot. Iowa currently cannot get in with a loss to Ohio State in the Big 10 title game. In an 8-team playoff, if Iowa had one loss and it was by three to Ohio State … do the Hawkeyes have an at-large argument? Certainly.

How is expanding the number of teams that could capture the title a bad thing? And I don’t want to hear, “Michigan State isn’t worthy of a National title.” (When going this route, please only compare college football to the NFL, as they have comparable season lengths. Basketball and baseball do not.) The New York Giants snuck into the playoffs as a Wild Card team in 2007, and nobody had them “worthy of a Super Bowl.” They defeated the unbeaten Patriots to capture the Super Bowl.