Every P5 fan should read this ...

[UCFBS]

I've never seen an article break it all down to the point no one can deny we shouldn't be top 10, and possibly higher if we win this weekend, and how we've regressed -- badly -- from the BCS era.

"Perfection Isn’t Enough for College Football’s Underclass"
- https://www.theringer.com/2017/12/1/16723918/ucf-knights-college-football-playoff-group-five

The article is extremely accurate and very detailed. E.g., the non-BCS v. BCS era results ...

"Even though only power leagues were guaranteed slots in BCS bowl games, the non-power teams that fought their way onto that stage went 4-2 against power-conference opponents. (You can bump that record to 5-2 to include UCF’s aforementioned Fiesta Bowl win over Baylor, although the American was given an automatic BCS berth for that year only.)"​

And the current realities so few in the P5, let alone CFP committee, will listen to ...

"While the playoff system is generally regarded as a massive improvement over the BCS, it’s worth noting that the BCS system, which equally balanced computer rankings and human polls, gave non-power-conference teams a fair shake. Utah, then in the Mountain West, was ranked sixth when it won the 2005 Fiesta Bowl and when it beat Alabama in the 2009 Sugar Bowl. TCU, also then in the Mountain West, was ranked third when it won the 2011 Rose Bowl. And despite the historical underdog narrative, Boise State (no. 8) was ranked higher than Oklahoma (no. 10) entering the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. The computers had no bias against teams from lower-profile leagues, because they ranked teams based on cold, emotionless algorithms.
Taking a peek at the six computer ratings systems used during the BCS era, we see that they would have loved UCF in 2017. The Colley Matrix has the Knights ranked third. The Anderson-Hester ratings have them second. The Wolfe ratings have them first. Taking both computers and human polls into account, UCF would be ranked eighth right now, with an opportunity to move even higher after championship weekend." ​

And the Truth ...

"But it’s now become clear that access to the championship has actually thinned over time. Before the BCS, it was possible for then-independent programs like Miami and Pittsburgh to establish dynasties. During the BCS era, power conferences had a stranglehold on the system, but the computers could still vault a strong non-power-conference team into the top five if its résumé was good enough. But people—specifically, people with a vested financial interest in downplaying the abilities of non-power-conference teams—can now keep teams like UCF down and way out.​

And the advertising fraud ...

"They throw the little guys a bone to buy their participation in the system, and then they get to claim that the College Football Playoff is open to everybody.

And that, really, is what upsets me. The playoff embraces the concept that anybody can win—its website claims that “every FBS team has equal access to the College Football Playoff based on its performance,” and ESPN’s ad for this year’s playoff features a claymation Louisiana-Monroe fan with an airhorn proudly proclaiming that “all 130 teams!” have a shot."​

Pretty much the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

The G5 shouldn't sue over anything ... except false advertising. ESPN really opened up a liability for themselves there. I just hope we win out, and win our NY6 game, to add to that.

 

[Square Knight]

 

[80'sKnight]

That ESPN ad really pissed me off.

 

[UCFBS]

That ESPN ad really pissed me off.

I think that's the biggest liability in all of this.

I.e., the CFP committee could honestly admit, even say, legally, they have no obligation to include any team they don't want. They could even admit they know G5s can schedule, at most, two (2) P5 programs/season, and don't consider AP/Coaches Poll ranked teams in G5 conferences to count, resulting in the impossibility of a G5 ever reaching the playoffs.

But the second ESPN put "all 130 teams" -- and in marketing no less, marketing is what really gets some companies, because it can be legally binding -- they introduced a huge liability. Especially since it's only four (4) teams, and they are marketing that all 130 teams can reach that 'final four.'

 

[SiberianKnightmare]

You don't need to win the lawsuit. You just need to argue the case in court so it reaches the media and becomes a hot topic of discussion. Then public opinion and pressure is the catalyst for change.

 

[UCFloridaTech]

G5 athletes should kneel during the national anthem**


(**severe sarcasm)

 

[smhowla]

Or give the top two G5 programs a shoe into the play off picture as wild cards. Even if they are home games on P5 turf. Atleast it gives G5 teams the chance to do it.