Remember the BCS? Don't. The College Football Playoff starts this fall and it will be different. Much different.
There are a number of differences between the BCS (may it rest in peace) and the College Football Playoff. Most notably, a four-team playoff instead of a two-team BCS title game.
This explains some of the nuances in the College Football Playoff, but one of the biggest adjustments will be how teams are selected for the major bowls -- formerly known as BCS bowls and now the College Football Playoff's "New Year's Six" bowls.
The 13-member selection committee will not only provide the final Top 25 rankings, but will determine which teams go to which New Year's Six bowls that do not have conference tie-ins. In other words, you'll see fewer bowl reps on campus wearing tacky blazers because they have no control over who comes to their bowl. That's right: no control over what team plays in their bowl. Nada.
The selection committee will determine who plays where. Another big change: Bowls can no longer skip teams in the rankings to pick a lower-ranked team that travels better. The bowl teams will be selected based on the highest-available ranked team.
There are some other differences if you're really interested.
However, perhaps the most significant change will be how much each year will impact which teams make the New Year's Six bowls. To put it in perspective, below are the 2013 final BCS standings. Using those rankings, here are the projected bowl matchups.
Even though the rankings are identical, there are huge differences in which teams play where based on whether it's the first, second or third year of the playoff.
The 2013 final BCS standings:
1. Florida State
2. Auburn
3. Alabama
4. Michigan State
5. Stanford
6. Baylor
7. Ohio State
8. Missouri
9. South Carolina
10. Oregon
11. Oklahoma
12. Clemson
13. Oklahoma State
14. Arizona State
15. UCF
If the above rankings were the Selection Committee's rankings after this season, this is how the New Year's Six bowls would look for the bowl rotation in each of the next three seasons of the College Football Playoff:
Year 1 (after 2014 regular season)
SEMIFINALS
Sugar Bowl: 1. Florida State versus 4. Michigan State
Rose Bowl: 2. Auburn versus 3. Alabama
The No. 1 seed would not be placed at a competitive disadvantage from a crowd perspective and will be placed in the semifinal bowl closest to its campus, if possible. So FSU goes to New Orleans instead of Pasadena.
NON-PLAYOFF NEW YEAR'S SIX BOWLS
Orange: 12. Clemson (ACC) versus 7. Ohio State (Big Ten/SEC/ND)
Cotton, Fiesta and Peach: 5. Stanford, 6. Baylor, 8. Missouri, 9. South Carolina, 10. Oregon, 15. UCF (Group of 5).
The selection committee would have to pair the at-large teams in the Cotton, Fiesta and Peach and create the best and most compelling matchups. The highest-ranked available teams make the cut along with the highest-rated champion from the Group of 5 conferences (AAC, C-USA, MAC, MWC and Sun Belt). My guess:
Fiesta: Stanford versus Missouri
Cotton: Baylor versus Oregon
Peach: South Carolina versus UCF
You could easily swap Oregon and Stanford or Missouri and Baylor. Neither decision would be right (or wrong), but this is one example of how tough it will be for the selection committee when making these matchups.
What stands out in this model: Where's Oklahoma? The Sooners were ranked No. 11 in the final poll and just missed the cut (no longer will bowls be able to skip higher-ranked teams to pick a lower-ranked team that will travel better). So OU, which had the most impressive bowl win in 2013 against Alabama, would not have even had the opportunity to play in one of the CFB Playoff major bowls if the system had been in place. Even though Clemson ranked lower than OU, the Tigers get a bid to the Orange Bowl because of their tie-in to the ACC. Clemson was the highest-ranked available ACC team.
Year 2 (after 2015 regular season)
SEMIFINALS
Orange: 1. Florida State versus 4. Michigan State
Cotton: 2. Auburn versus 3. Alabama
The No. 1 seed would not be placed at a competitive disadvantage from a crowd perspective and will be placed in the semifinal bowl closest to its campus, if possible. So FSU goes to Miami instead of Arlington, Texas.
NON-PLAYOFF NEW YEAR'S SIX BOWLS
Rose: 5. Stanford (Pac-12) versus 7. Ohio State (Big Ten)
Sugar: 6. Baylor (Big 12) versus 8. Missouri (SEC)
Fiesta and Peach: 9. South Carolina, 10. Oregon, 11. Oklahoma, 15. UCF (Group of 5) The selection committee would have to pair the at-large teams in the Fiesta and Peach. My guess:
Peach: South Carolina versus UCF
Fiesta: Oklahoma versus Oregon
Like Year 1, the matchups are pretty obvious based on geography.
What stands out in this model: This year, No. 12 Clemson gets left out. The Rose (Pac-12 versus Big Ten) and Sugar (Big 12 versus SEC) are contracted to take the highest-ranked teams from their respective conferences. That leaves only three at-large teams, compared with five in Year 1.
Year 3 (after 2016 regular season)
SEMIFINALS
Peach: 1. Florida State versus 4. Michigan State
Fiesta: 2. Auburn versus 3. Alabama
The No. 1 seed would not be placed at a competitive disadvantage from a crowd perspective and will be placed in the semifinal bowl closest to its campus, if possible. So FSU goes to Atlanta instead of Glendale, Arizona.
NON-PLAYOFF NEW YEAR'S SIX BOWLS
Rose: 5. Stanford (Pac-12) versus 7. Ohio State (Big Ten)
Sugar: 6. Baylor (Big 12) versus 8. Missouri (SEC)
Orange: 12. Clemson (ACC) versus 9. South Carolina (SEC/Big Ten/ND)
Cotton: 10. Oregon (at large) versus 15. UCF (Group of 5)
The selection committee doesn't have much to do -- other than putting out its Top 25 final rankings. That's because the Rose (Pac-12 versus Big Ten), Sugar (SEC versus Big 12) and Orange (ACC versus highest-ranked available SEC, Big Ten or Notre Dame) bowls are all determined by conference affiliation. That means there will be only one at-large team and it faces the Group of 5 champion.
What stands out in this model: Based on contractual agreements, the Orange gets stuck with a Clemson-South Carolina rematch. Also, with three of the four non-playoff bowls aligned with their specific conferences, that leaves only one at-large team. So every third year of the playoff, the highest-ranked at-large team will always play the Group of 5 champion (unless it's in the national semifinals) at the Cotton Bowl.