Every year thousands of Division 1A football players shed blood, sweat, and tears during the long off season in hopes of bettering themselves as football players. Countless hours are spent in meetings, on practice fields, and in the weight room getting ready for that first game. For seniors it may be the last time they play competitive football and they want nothing more than a shot at a national championship, but with the current BCS system this may not be a possibility. Players will give everything they have on that football field, but for what reward? The current system needs to be replaced because it does not do quality football teams justice. The only fair way to crown a true national champion is through a playoff system. A playoff system has proven to be extremely successful in both collegiate and professional sports. Something needs to be done to put an end to this ridiculous controversy. .
The BCS system uses a computer rankings system that formulates things such as, wins and losses, strength of schedule, and quality wins to decide the top 15 teams in the country (www.bcs.org). According to bcs.org, "The current BCS system has done what it is meant to do, place the two best teams in the country against each other year in and year out." How can they claim this when in 2001 a Brigham Young University team went undefeated during the regular season and found itself not ranked in the top 15 teams according to the BCS. What are these players playing for if they have absolutely no chance of a national championship? Instead, teams such as Notre Dame were given BCS bowl bids, despite have two losses in the regular season. The reason behind this is money. Each team selected into the BCS is given between ten and thirteen million dollars to share with their conference, depending on the revenue generated from the game (espn, College Football Gameday, 2003). Notre Dame is the most storied football school and has an incredible fan base, and by inviting them to a BCS bowl, attendance will be up along with TV ratings, therefore creating a larger revenue.
