Tonight’s the night.
No, I’m not singing that Genesis song. Although there is a song running through my head right now, it has absolutely nothing to do with this post. (Think, Freddy Fender – on second thought, don’t!)
Tonight is the night for:
Tonight: ESPN will release the first @CFBPlayoff rankings at 7:30 pm ET. Who's In? #CFP25 pic.twitter.com/qTTv6uR26n
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) October 28, 2014
That’s right. The first rankings from the College Football Playoff Committee will be released tonight. Much like the now-defunct BCS (Bowl Championship Series), the rankings will give us a peek in late October at which teams have control of their own destiny for the national championship. And, much like the BCS, there will be this:
In barely more than 24 hours, we'll be getting the first CFP Top 25. Then, in the time it takes to tweet, we'll have our first controversy.
— Chuck Carlton (@ChuckCarltonDMN) October 27, 2014
As I and many others have stated, the chaos that was associated with the BCS “still reigns“. There are still many key games to be played. Most of the criteria centering around these new CFP rankings has to do with games yet to be played: team records, strength of schedule, head-to-head, conference championship. USA Today’s George Schroeder asks, “With the season only two-thirds complete, does it matter at all which teams populate the top of their poll right now?”.
He’s right. Rankings before it’s all played out only breed controversy. Controversy leads to the “what if” game. What if Arizona runs the table in the Pac-12? What if Mississippi State and Florida State both lose in the regular season, but win their conference championship game? What if LSU, with their strength-of-schedule down the stretch, runs the table? What if there’s a team with two losses that wins their conference championship game?
Oh, and, what of undefeated Marshall?
Questions, questions, questions. Controversy, controversy, controversy.
Yes, there will be controversy. Social media and message boards will make sure of it. Some fans and media will get their panties-in-a-bunch and call for committee members to resign. But, hey -if there wasn’t controversy, would college football be where it is today – the #2 sport in this country behind NFL (in my opinion)? I think not.
So, grab some popcorn and your favorite beverage and enjoy the show tonight. Then throw on some Freddy Fender while you watch the “show” unfold on social media and message boards too.
Wasted days and wasted nights…
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