It appears so, now that the Big Ten seems to be seriously debating a plus-one model that would play semifinal games on college campuses with a national title game at a neutral site.
Late Monday afternoon, the Chicago Tribune reported that:
“(The Big Ten) is not only ready to listen to proposals regarding a national four-team football playoff, league and school officials are kicking around an intriguing idea.
“Sources told the Tribune that a Big Ten plan would remove the top four teams from the BCS bowl pool and have semifinal games played on the college campus of the higher seed. That would do away with the facade of “neutral” sites such as New Orleans, Miami and Pasadena, Calif., and ease travel concern for fans.
The championship game then could be bid out, like the Super Bowl.
The concept of the Big Ten even entertaining playoff proposals seemed laughable as recently as two months ago. But in the wake of a low-rated BCS title game that satisfied few outside the Southeastern Conference footprint, the conference is ready to study and contribute ideas.
“We have to listen to the fans; we cannot be tone-deaf,” said Northwestern athletics director Jim Phillips, who chairs the Big Ten’s Administrators Council. “The Big Ten is open and curious.”
Little surprise that Phillips is on the leading edge of it; he’s an aggressive, forward-thinking guy, somebody you could see as a Big Ten commish in 15 years.
At any rate, if the Big Ten — long a stick in the mud on this issue — is ready for a plus-one, expect the rest of college football to happily look at the semifinal-on-campus model. It’d make for great theater, if at times some interesting field conditions.
Still — close your eyes and picture Oklahoma at LSU and Michigan at USC on some Saturday night in December. That’s some good eatin’, right there.
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Never…not going to happen. The SEC will always be agin’ it.
Why? They could have had three of the four teams in this year.
Besides the SEC proposed a plus-one model back in 2008. They’ve been a long supporter of the idea.
YUP, where it’s ONLY 4 teams, The SEC will put in 8!!!!!!!!!! They LOVE BENDING THE RULEBOOK LIKE A PRETZEL!!!!!! In HEISMAN, NATIONAL TITLES, RECRUITING, VIOLATIONS. Did I miss anything?????
Its progressive, there needs to be change.
hellooooooooooooooooooooo Why you Brain Dead NU Fans don’t listen is beyond me. YOU CAN’T FIGHT POLITICS!!!!!!! It’s OBVIOUS, T-Borings dad pays BO his $3 mill a year. Barney, is a FENCE RIDER, just like Shawn Watson was!!!!!! Bo isn’t going anywhere, The chancellor of NU, PREPICKED his puppet (Bo).
Interesting idea. Football is an all-weather sport. I’d like to see if LSU melt down in 10-degree B1G weather.
Yea, just like the Corncobs find a way to do……Oh, wait, that was in warm weather Orlando where the coach did is mad clown act….
How about the Michigan Cockroaches, beings Mich, got walked all over again in a bowl game. That’s why I picked cockroaches, beings every bowl game you get stepped on!!!!!!!
progressive? that code for soshulist. i listen to am talk radio.
Big 10 is desparate for anything…………..if it happens it will be Michigan or Ohio State hosting….funny thing that the Corncobs choose to go to the Big 10 only while the Big 2 were in down years……….well..Michigan is back and we know how Urban recruites….. Hey Boo Boo…how many Ohio and Michigan Pennsylvania kids did you recruit……….what a stupid move on the part of the Corncobs to go big 10…oh wait, I remember, you couldn’t beat TEXAS!!!! Ha Ha Ha…. Happy Trails Losers…
Wow, and just how many times did Ohio State embarass you??? We won’t forget, Mich went to a BIG bowl game and CHOKED like the rest of the BIG did. Oh wait, how many National Titles does Mich have?? Is that 1 or 2? WOW, that beats NU, we only have 5, and our rival OU has 9. WOW that’s more National Titles that the ol so OLD BIG has ALL TOGETHER!!!!! You idiots fired your last coach, because you didn’t want to get your butts kicked by a team that’s struggling as well…lol. It still didn’t do SQUAT for you in your CONSTANT MICH BOWL LOSSES!!!!! Your 1 man team, got their 1 butts kicked in a bowl game…… again. Like that’s something new. If NU is a loser, WE learned from the BEST LOSERS IN BOWL GAMES,…. THE BIG 10!!!!!!! Now what did you say….LOSER!!!!!….lol
Commenting at 4:09 and 4:13am on a CFB blog post in a city for which you’re not a fan of the home team? Yes, there is a loser here, and it’s you.
Funny
Oh don’t get on Sucky too much. he had just gotten off his job cleaning urinals at the airport.
And Lil’ Herbie, also, couldn’t defeat Boomer Sooner and Texas Tech, too.
Then throw in the absoltue fact, that Lil’ Herbie mens college basketball and mens baseball SUXed against the likes of Texas, Oklahoma, Okie S.U., Texas Tech, Baylor, Kansas, Missouri, Texas A&M and Iowa St. too.
Sooka has a point………..the big slow is dying.
If there was any hope for the future Husker football teams contending for a playoff spot, then I’d be interested. Unfortunately, Bo Pelini will never ever get us there. Next year will be the same old stuff. You know Bo truly believes the team is on the verge of greatness. Truth be told, they’re not even close to greatness. Big blowouts, no depth, no talent at QB. Too bad for Tommy Armstrong, he will transfer next year after watching TM flounder and fumble games away while he never gets a shot. TM’s dad must be paying Bo under the table. I predict Bo talking about using Armstrong at DB before long. What a 3 Mil. a year joke! Armstrong would be a star QB anywhere else. Too bad we won’t hear from him for at least two more years, if ever.
Bo is a legend
This proposal makes more sense than playing another game after the New Year’s day games. Playing on college campuses also solves the problem of fans having to make long trips possibly three times at the end of the season. (conference playoff, semifinal, final) I think the Big 10 conference should consider letting the highest rated division winner have the conference playoff at their stadium. This gives the Big 10 a better chance of advancing their best team to the final four.