By William Armstead
Determining which teams deserve to make the College Football Playoff (CFP) has been a hot topic, and is every year. Right now, the committee has the playoff formatted to where the top five ranked conference champions automatically earn a spot. Usually, the four Power Five champions are the highest ranked, which leaves one spot left for a Group of Five (GO5) champion to make it in.
That team was Boise State last year and both Tulane and James Madison [JMU] this year. However, it seems these teams are just not able to compete once the playoff rolls around.
We saw it last year with Boise State, where they just could not keep up with Penn State. This year, JMU went down 48-13 to Oregon by the third quarter. As for Tulane, they had already lost to Ole Miss 45-10 back in September, and the playoff was no different. They lost to Ole Miss again in the playoff, 41-10.
With these blowout losses, analysts and fans are wondering what would have happened if Notre Dame or Texas had been selected, or only a two-loss SEC team in Vanderbilt. It is believed that these teams would have put up a better fight and made the first round more exciting for viewers.
The committee allowing for Group-of-5 champions to be part of the playoff brings the aspect of smaller teams upsetting powerhouses into the mix, similar to how upsets happen in March Madness. However, basketball and football are different, and that concept does not work the same between the two sports. The blue chip recruits, NIL money, and top-level coaching are just too much for the GO5 teams in football to handle. Putting these teams in the playoff may be doing more harm than good for them.
The idea of establishing a playoff for the Group of 5 allows them to be competitive and will still give them national television exposure and attention, just like if they were in the normal CFP. Winning GO5 playoff games would still attract good recruits as opposed to getting blown out in the first round of the now CFP, which could deter recruits from attending that school.
The FCS has its own playoff, which is extremely popular and always have exciting games. That is the exact route that should be taken to GO5 schools. This would then open the door for a few at-large bids for the main CFP from Power Five conferences, where those teams may be a bit more competitive.
People will not just be expecting a blowout when they turn the game on in a GO5 playoff. It will also benefit all of the schools. The GO5 teams will still be competitive, and the bigger Power Five teams do not get bashed for beating up on a team not as good as them.