Anthony Beers, Staff Writer
In college football the ultimate goal is to win the BCS title game. In order to play in the title game, teams must be ranked either number one or two. The concept is simple, but the means on how teams get favorable rankings is sometimes questionable. Rankings are determined through polls voted by college football experts and computer selection methods. They change each week and ob-
viously the higher ranked a team, the better.
Any team with a record of at least 6-5 qualifies for a bowl game. The better the record, the better the bowl game, and the more money a team has a chance to win for their university. This BCS system has been in existence since 1998, but it was recently announced in June that by the 2014-2015 season, the top four teams will compete in a playoff system to determine who gets the most funding for their university and win the championship. This sign of change is something a lot of fans have different opinions on.
Some fans believe that having a tournament similar to how the NFL determines who gets to go to the Super Bowl is more exciting. Not to mention it may mean more media attention and more fans viewing the games. The real question is at what point does it become too much for the kids? A lot of college students are going to universities solely to play football and not focusing on their education.
In fact, earlier this season, third string quarterback Cardale Jones of Ohio State tweeted, “Why should we have to go to class if we came here to play FOOTBALL, we ain’t come to play SCHOOL, classes are POINTLESS.” This is an alarming perspective that college football players often attain due to the fact that they have so many privileges purely because they play football for the school. Egos start to develop and students can use their football skills to avoid really having to get a proper education.
Would extending a four-team playoff to an actual tournament make college football bigger than it should be? At what point does it become too much pressure, too much attention for something that’s supposed to be purely about school pride? It’s a controversial topic but the real question is who comes first, the players or the fans? Creating a deeper tournament in which teams are seeded could allow upsets, more benefits to undefeated teams, and less confusion as to who purely is the best team or deserves to play. These are all factors that will make college football more entertaining for the fans.
The players should come first and right now, judging by Cardale Jones’ tweet, things are out of control. College football players need to be able to focus on class first then the football. Furthering the intensity of college football would only create more egos and reasons for college football players to think that they, “ain’t come to play school.” Let’s not forget controversies such as when Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor were in college acting as examples of how players could be using their fame to make profit on the side at such a young age.
The BCS has its flaws, but making college football a tournament would allow more popularity to the sport, meaning more money for the sports media and more money for the universities. However, they’d be sacrificing the most important fundamental of college—the education of the students.
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