It has become a total cliché this time of the college football season to begin to clamor for a playoff system. So I'm not going to waste anyone's time discussing the down sides of the bowl system and the benefits of a playoff.
Instead, I'm here to finally offer college football fans a solution to eliminate the bowl structure and finally get a playoff system in there: an Iowa-TCU national championship matchup.
This would at last be the end of the college bowls. No more controversy, no more pointless bowl games for No. 3 teams; the system would finally change.
Why is that? Because if Iowa and TCU matched up, the outcry from sponsors, advertisers and television networks would finally be enough to overturn the system. We all know hollering from coaches, players, sportswriters and fans doesn't do anything. But when the source of income is unhappy, that's when things start to change.
Imagine the possibility of an Iowa-TCU matchup for the BCS national title. Even Fox couldn't hype that one up.
""Ricky Stanzi, Andy Dalton, it's the BCS national championship game!""
The ratings would obviously take a nosedive. What company's going to want to spend the big cash on an ad during a game only people from Iowa and Fort Worth are watching?
For the dollars these networks and corporations sink into this game, there's no way they would accept a paltry matchup like this one. These are the people in power; these are the ones who can squash the terrible bowl system and institute that much-needed playoff.
This Iowa-TCU clash may not be the most likely, but it's more probable than you think. What needs to happen for this dream game to materialize?
Obviously the first step for both these teams is running the table. For TCU it should not be a problem. The Horned Frogs' only challenge is a home game against Utah, but it's still a contest TCU will enter as double-digit favorites. TCU's remaining three opponents, San Diego State, Wyoming and New Mexico, boast a combined 8-16 record.
Iowa's task will be tougher. The Hawkeyes won't have a problem with Minnesota or Northwestern, but they do have to go to Columbus, Ohio, to face the No. 16 Buckeyes. Not easy, but doable.
When you're dealing with the BCS, only half of the battle is what you can do. The other half is what teams around you do.
Both these teams are undefeated, with Iowa sitting at No. 4 in the BCS standings, while TCU is No. 6.
The rest of the top six are No. 1 Florida, No. 2 Texas, No. 3 Alabama and No. 5 Cincinnati. All these teams need a hiccup or two for the Hawkeyes and the Horned Frogs to vault to the top-two in the standings.
No one believes in the Bearcats, and neither do I. They'll either lose in two weeks to West Virginia or when they close out their season at Pittsburgh.
The next three are tricky, because their powerhouse reputations mean keeping them out of the BCS will be especially tough.
This is particularly true for Alabama and Florida, as we know how much the media loves the SEC. It'll take a lot by both these squads to keep a southern team out of the title game, but it can happen. These two teams are lined up to play each other in the SEC championship, guaranteeing at least one loss for either the Gators or the Crimson Tide.
Alabama hasn't impressed me much; let's have them lose to LSU, or maybe Auburn upsets them. Then the Tide defeat the Gators, and both those teams are no longer undefeated. After that, it's up to the pollsters to penalize them for losing and reward Iowa and TCU for not faltering.
That leaves Texas, perhaps the greatest roadblock to the Iowa-TCU showdown.
The Longhorns do not face one ranked squad the rest of the way. Sadly, the greatest regular season tasks for Texas will be against Kansas and at Texas A&M, two teams with meager 5-3 records this season.
That leaves the Big 12 championship game. Can Kansas State continue its surprising campaign by knocking off Texas? Maybe Nebraska can close the regular season on a high note, qualify for the game and down Texas.
Call it a long shot, but it's all we have left now. The best thing that can happen to doom a bowl system is mayhem, and that's what we'd get with an Iowa and TCU title game.
Money talks, and college football listens. When the money doesn't like the way things are, those things will change.
What's your solution to the BCS? E-mail Scott at kellogg2@wisc.edu.
