If you are part of the college football media or fans of the game complaining today because of last night's latest rankings by the College Football Playoff Committee the you are just like the family who vacations to Walt Disney World in July and complains that it's hot and the parks are crowded(just assume it's a non-pandemic world).
What did you expect?
The problem here is you are not getting what the committee is doing and yet every year and every week we get the same whining and complaining about who is ranked where and what team got screwed and the how little guy has no chance.
"I can't believe they are charging $130 for a one-day pass to the Magic Kingdom"
And yet we keep coming back. You are not watching less college football because UCF, Cincinnati, Coastal Carolina or anyone else outside the Power 5 is getting no chance to make the final four. Oh, it's easy to jump on social media or do a podcast and rip into the committee for Cincinnati dropping in the rankings while not playing while other brands moved up by not playing. It has happened before and it will continue to happen. The committee has made it clear that the Knights, Bearcats and anyone else from a Group of 5 league will need 3-5 years of winning 13 or 12 games and maybe, just maybe we will give it serious thought. Is that fair? Life is not fair and the committee is not supposed to use previous years success in determining the ranking of a team in the current season. But they do.
"The wait for Space Mountain is how long? Three hours?"
Ohio State is going to get in if they beat Northwestern and the number of games they played is not a factor. If it was the committee would have already taken that into account in the ranking of the Buckeyes. Is Space Mountain the best roller coaster in the world? No. but the image and history of the ride gives it the benefit of the doubt, just like Ohio State is getting the benefit of the doubt.
"The hot dog is good but is it really worth $9?"
If you are trying to figure out why Iowa State, with two losses, is ranked ahead of unbeaten teams and others with one loss- sure you can throw out the loss to Louisiana and the committee will counter with their "ingredients" of beating Oklahoma and Texas and the committee chairman will impress you that he remembered the leading rusher on their team. For years, college football media members wondered if the committee would ever consider a two-loss team for the playoff, well?
"We got Fast Pass but it says we can't do the ride until 9:30p"
Yup, Florida lost to a bad LSU team and fell one spot. How is that possible? And think about this, there are 13 members of the playoff committee and that means at least seven had to agree that the Gators drop of one spot made sense? But does it make sense? Does any of this make sense? You are overthinking this, not the committee.
"Why are we sitting here on Main Street spending so much on food and candy and the parade doesn't start for three more hours?"
Controversy is good for the business of college football. Controversy draws interest. Controversy works. How fun would it be if everything was predictable? When that Disney character in the parade walks over to high five your kid at 10:45p during the Main Street Electrical Parade and you have your iPhone taking pics and videos it made the trip worth it rather than jumping online to look at pictures instead of actually being there.
The great Roy Kramer, who guided the sport into the world of the Bowl Alliance and Coalition and then into the BCS said the greatest thing for college football was not just playing games on Saturday but all the controversy about polls and who is number one that people debated Sunday through Friday. Kramer, the former SEC Commissioner, felt the media and fans arguing all week and all season was the greatest marketing tool for the sport and he was right.
If you thought a made-for-television event, where a group of people influenced by a TV network spending billions on the event would not give you controversy every week then you are the guy who thinks paying $35 for that Goofy hat and thinking it looked good all day at the park on your head.
This is NOT about getting the teams that DESERVE to be in the final four. Who knows the answer to that? There is not a set of guidelines like the NFL to make the playoff in college football. The moment anyone decided that a committee of humans with a memory bank and a built-in bias would not produce the system you are watching says more about your expectations.
This is a soap-opera with weekly drama. It works. It sells. And the reality is whoever the pick you will watch. You will whine on social media or write a long blog(like this never ending one) how bad the committee got it and how you would change the system. But this isn't changing, nor is the price of the ticket to that theme park. It will never be cool with no humidity in mid-July at Disney and there will always be a line on the rides you want to go on just like the College Football Playoff Committee will always disappoint you week after week and year after year...
Final thought: Pilots and co-pilots eat different meals on long flights in case one is tainted.
Photo Credit: Getty Images