Rule Change: FBS conference divisions are optional

[CondorCat]

A rule change by the NCAA Football Oversight Committee has made FBS conference divisions optional.

Conferences will now be allowed to put their two best teams in their Championship Games without the need to split into divisions.

The PAC 12 has already announced it will do this in order to maximize their CFP chances.

Will the other conferences follow suit, perhaps eliminating divisions?

There is lack of division parity now. In the BIG 10, the East has won every year since going to East/West divisions. In the SEC, the West champ has won the championship game in 14 of the last 15 years.

By the year 2023, we could be looking at conference scheduling changes. Rotating round-robin? Pod System? Round-robin with a fixed number of permanent rivals and the rest rotating yearly?

With new college football rule change, divisions could become a thing of the past

The NCAA voted to eliminate a requirement for conferences to have divisions in order to hold a conference championship game.

sports.yahoo.com

 

[rye48]

Doesn't matter one way or another Bama Will be Protected !

 

[bluecoon1]

Unless they manage to get NIL under control, there’s probably going to be less than a dozen teams capable of competing for the national championship. I can see the entire landscape shifting and people losing interest knowing your team can’t compete against rosters filled with 4 and 5 star athletes bought by the powerful schools. That will hurt TV deals which will force a shift in conferences down the road. College sports as we know it is dead if something isn’t done.

To summarize, who gives a shit if they take away conference subdivisions.

 

[bthaunert]

I still feel like with 16 teams, the pod system with 4 pods works best. Allows you to play every team every other year and home games with every team at least every 4 years.

In order to maintain balance, they could reevaluate the pods every 4 years after the rotation is done.

 

[JHB4UK]

The problem with pods is that you cannot group 4 teams, and all will be happy with the same 3 'permanent' rivals.

Kentucky and Tennessee are rivals who should probably play every year. Tennessee also has a more prominent historic rivalry with Alabama. Kentucky and Alabama have no historical rivalry.

Each team has rivals that cannot easily be matched up with 3 others.

Plus, the awkwardness if 4 pod "winners" at the end of the season. What 2 play for SEC CG? Just picking best 2 records wouldn't be acceptable to anyone. What if someone has 2nd best record in a pod, and has a better record than anyone else, including other 3 pod "winners"?

Nah. KISS. 16 team conference. Play 3 permanent rivals, individually assigned team by team. Rotate 6 opponents. Best 2 teams of a 9 game sched w/l play for SEC CG. Boom. Done.

 

[kb22stang]

Unless they manage to get NIL under control, there’s probably going to be less than a dozen teams capable of competing for the national championship. I can see the entire landscape shifting and people losing interest knowing your team can’t compete against rosters filled with 4 and 5 star athletes bought by the powerful schools. That will hurt TV deals which will force a shift in conferences down the road. College sports as we know it is dead if something isn’t done.

To summarize, who gives a shit if they take away conference subdivisions.

So you're saying that if you implement a capitalist system then all resources flow to few from the many?

 

[Cat06]

So you're saying that if you implement a capitalist system then all resources flow to few from the many?

That is not what a capitalist system provides. If you are going to go political, do it right please.

 

[StubbornPenny]

Unless they manage to get NIL under control, there’s probably going to be less than a dozen teams capable of competing for the national championship. I can see the entire landscape shifting and people losing interest knowing your team can’t compete against rosters filled with 4 and 5 star athletes bought by the powerful schools. That will hurt TV deals which will force a shift in conferences down the road. College sports as we know it is dead if something isn’t done.

To summarize, who gives a shit if they take away conference subdivisions.

I mean, even before NIL there were far less than 12 teams capable of a title
Bama, Georgia, LSU, Florida, Clemson, Ohio St. Everyone else is just a sometimes contender.

 

[vhcat70]

Nah. KISS. 16 team conference. Play 3 permanent rivals, individually assigned team by team. Rotate 6 opponents. Best 2 teams of a 9 game sched w/l play for SEC CG. Boom. Done.

Yep. Nothing else comes close.

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

To summarize, who gives a shit if they take away conference subdivisions.

I never thought I would say this, but I am just about at the same point you are.

Congress and the court system screw everything they touch up, but it is hard to believe they could screw it up this bad this quick.

 

[SaguaroCat]

No pods. Just cycle through the teams as much as possible. If take want to play each other every year, they can. But just because Auburn and Alabama want to keep a rivalry, doesn't mean Kentucky should be forced to play South Carolina every year.

Each team can play up to two teams every year if they want. So Alabama can play Tennessee and Auburn. Alabama can cycle through the rest of the SEC in the other 7 games. Kentucky rotates through them 9 games a year. If every 8 years it means we play LSU 6 times and Alabama 5, so be it. I'd prefer a minor off balance than getting stuck with an every year rivalry that does not exist.

 

[JHB4UK]

Oh and I have no doubt in my mind with the new setup we will be made the permanent 'rival' of one of the superpowers in the SEC in our 3 games.

For history sake I'd rather it be Georgia. but being assigned to Bama or LSU or Oklahoma won't surprise me at all. We, UK, is viewed as a lesser program. Along with Vandy, Mizzou, S Carolina, Miss St. The 'powers' will demand that they get a break, for the good of the SEC. and yearly have a game against a historically lesser program.

So our 3 will be something like Tennessee, Mizzou, & LSU. Bama will get Tennessee, Auburn, & Vandy.

 

[dallasg23]

Unless they manage to get NIL under control, there’s probably going to be less than a dozen teams capable of competing for the national championship. I can see the entire landscape shifting and people losing interest knowing your team can’t compete against rosters filled with 4 and 5 star athletes bought by the powerful schools. That will hurt TV deals which will force a shift in conferences down the road. College sports as we know it is dead if something isn’t done.

To summarize, who gives a shit if they take away conference subdivisions.

Though I agree with the NIL statement, there’s only been a dozen teams capable of competing for NC the last 20 years.

 

[Jtf2217]

No pods. Just cycle through the teams as much as possible. If take want to play each other every year, they can. But just because Auburn and Alabama want to keep a rivalry, doesn't mean Kentucky should be forced to play South Carolina every year.

Each team can play up to two teams every year if they want. So Alabama can play Tennessee and Auburn. Alabama can cycle through the rest of the SEC in the other 7 games. Kentucky rotates through them 9 games a year. If every 8 years it means we play LSU 6 times and Alabama 5, so be it. I'd prefer a minor off balance than getting stuck with an every year rivalry that does not exist.

I'd like to keep our whipping boys (USC/Mizzou) thanks 😊

 

[vhcat70]

Oh and I have no doubt in my mind with the new setup we will be made the permanent 'rival' of one of the superpowers in the SEC in our 3 games.

For history sake I'd rather it be Georgia. but being assigned to Bama or LSU or Oklahoma won't surprise me at all. We, UK, is viewed as a lesser program. Along with Vandy, Mizzou, S Carolina, Miss St. The 'powers' will demand that they get a break, for the good of the SEC. and yearly have a game against a historically lesser program.

So our 3 will be something like Tennessee, Mizzou, & LSU. Bama will get Tennessee, Auburn, & Vandy.

From an overall strength of schedule view, I don't think it much matters who your permanent rivals are - 2? 3? - because if they're weak the other 6/7 have to be relatively stronger & vias versa. There will be no way to dodge strength.

 

[vhcat70]

I'd like to keep our whipping boys (USC/Mizzou) thanks 😊

I predict and have predicted we get TN/V/MO. Not a big revelation. But given they are on the weak side of average, think what the other six will be like. Hint: not very weak at all.

 

[Jtf2217]

I predict and have predicted we get TN/V/MO. Not a big revelation. But given they are on the weak side of average, think what the other six will be like. Hint: not very weak at all.

I'm almost assured myself we are definitely getting BAMA. Probably UGA too

 

[Dddjdd]

I’d actually like to keep Tennessee because I hate them and wouldn’t mind keeping Florida too. Some of our best games under Stoops have been against Florida. Those two plus like Vandy sounds pretty good to me

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

Well I think this sucks but why shouldn't it, college football has gone down the drain. Anytime the 2 best teams are determined by people sitting behind a desk and have no experience in a sport selecting the 2 best teams they are voting who they are told to vote.

 

[bthaunert]

The problem with pods is that you cannot group 4 teams, and all will be happy with the same 3 'permanent' rivals.

Kentucky and Tennessee are rivals who should probably play every year. Tennessee also has a more prominent historic rivalry with Alabama. Kentucky and Alabama have no historical rivalry.

Each team has rivals that cannot easily be matched up with 3 others.

Plus, the awkwardness if 4 pod "winners" at the end of the season. What 2 play for SEC CG? Just picking best 2 records wouldn't be acceptable to anyone. What if someone has 2nd best record in a pod, and has a better record than anyone else, including other 3 pod "winners"?

Nah. KISS. 16 team conference. Play 3 permanent rivals, individually assigned team by team. Rotate 6 opponents. Best 2 teams of a 9 game sched w/l play for SEC CG. Boom. Done.

I think your solution has the same results as mine as far as playing the same 3 teams annually and all other teams every other year. I’d have no issues with what your proposing vs what I did and as you say, it helps get 2 teams for the SEC championship.

 

[Grumpyolddawg]

The only fair way to have 4 pods is have 4 tiers and assign each team to a tier. The issue will be who decides who is in each tier.

Tier 1 Bama, UGA, 0U, ATM

Tier 2. UK, UF. OM, LSU

Tier 3. Arky, AU, Texas UT

Tier 4 SCarolina., Vandy. State, Missouri.

Put one from each Tier in each pod. Schools could have input into which pod, bus SEC office makes final decision.

Vandy will be in the weakest division because of them

 

[gojvc]

Though I agree with the NIL statement, there’s only been a dozen teams capable of competing for NC the last 20 years.

Is it even that many?

 

[vhcat70]

The only fair way to have 4 pods is have 4 tiers and assign each team to a tier. The issue will be who decides who is in each tier.

Tier 1 Bama, UGA, 0U, ATM

Tier 2. UK, UF. OM, LSU

Tier 3. Arky, AU, Texas UT

Tier 4 SCarolina., Vandy. State, Missouri.

Put one from each Tier in each pod. Schools could have input into which pod, bus SEC office makes final decision.

Vandy will be in the weakest division because of them

What do these pods accomplish in your mind?