As usual, the BCS has produced BS. While unbeaten Ohio State is a no-brainer pick for the National Championship Game, who they'll play is mired in controversy. If there's anything more predictable than BCS controversy it's the accompanying call for a college football playoff. While it's probably true that a playoff will never happen, fans and pundits speculate away. I've read so many arguments for and against a playoff system. I love college football and my only worry is that a playoff system will "fix" what isn't broken: the do-or-die regular season. However I think an intelligently designed playoff system can give teams a fair shot at a title and still preserve the importance of the regular season. Here's how my system would play out if the season ended Saturday.

Sunday, November 26, 2006: Selection Sunday I
The top 16 in the BCS are revealed today and fans can start salivating over the great matchups. With a 16-team playoff, the first round will be played on campus and will give the top 8 a huge reward for their regular season performance. Here are the games that will be played on Saturday the 9th:

Orange Bowl Bracket
#16 Tennessee at #1 Ohio State
#9 Arkansas at #8 Boise State

#12 Oklahoma at #5 LSU
#13 Rutgers at #4 Florida

Rose Bowl Bracket
#14 Virginia Tech at #3 Michigan
#11 Auburn at #6 Louisville

#10 Notre Dame at #7 Wisconsin
#15 West Virginia at #2 USC

In the Kris Playoff System, the winners of these games will advance to a quarterfinal round bowl game. What bowl games? Obviously the big three of the four BCS bowl games will host the national championship and semifinals. The bowls will go on a rotating system every year to determine which bowl hosts the championship game and what bowl is relegated to a quarterfinal. The rest of the quarterfinal games will be hosted by three of the lesser bowls. The powers that be can determine those bowls however they want, but would most likely pick the bowls with the biggest payouts. For the sake of geographical diversity, however, let's assume that the Capital One, Holiday and Cotton Bowls will host the second round, at least this year.

Saturday, December 9, 2006: The Sweet Sixteen
For two weeks the hype has been building in places like Columbus, Boise, New Orleans, Louisville and Madison. At last, the first ever NCAA Division 1-A playoffs are ready to kick off. Starting at Noon on the East Coast, college football fans are treated to full day of the country's best teams going head to head. When the dust settles, Ohio State, Boise State, Oklahoma (in the upset of the round), Florida, Michigan, Louisville, Wisconsin and USC are headed to the bowls. On a side note, I attend the Wisconsin/Notre Dame game, "Jump Around" to stay warm and have a few cocktails to celebrate the glorious victory.

Sunday, December 10, 2006: Selection Sunday II
Representatives from the four quarterfinal round bowl games gather to choose the matchups. The BCS bowl, this year it's the Sugar Bowl, always gets first pick, while the other three bowls choose in a yearly rotating order. The Sugar Bowl quickly takes what looks to be the most competitive game, Oklahoma vs. Florida. The Capital One bowl gets #1 Ohio State vs. Cinderella Boise State, while the Cotton Bowl has Michigan vs. Louisville and the Badgers and USC are headed to sunny San Diego to play in the Holiday Bowl.

Saturday, December 23, 2006: The Great Eight
After completing final exams, the nation's best football-playing student athletes are ready for some football. With two weeks to prepare, students and alumni descend on the bowl sites in record numbers. Disneyland is overrun by potatohead wearing Boise State fans. Bourbon Street is teeming again with thirsty Sooners and Gators. Wolverines & Cardinals hook up in Deep Ellum and a certain Badger fan has yet another excuse to take in the incredible natural beauty of La Jolla, California.

In the Capital One Bowl, the clock strikes midnight for Boise State. Away from the blue, blue turf of home, they suffer their first loss of the season. Oklahoma continues to roll and takes out their second SEC team of the tournament. Michigan smothers Louisville in the Cotton Bowl. And, in the biggest upset of the tournament so far, USC's pass offense meets their match in Wisconsin's secondary. On the other side of the ball, the Trojans can't stop a rejuvenated P.J. Hill and are shocked by Wisconsin. W00T!

Monday, January 1, 2007: National Semifinals
As a new year dawns, the new era of college football continues to draw rave reviews. In a nod to tradition, the national semifinals are played on New Year's Day. In the Orange Bowl, Ohio State gets into a running match with Oklahoma, eventually winning 45-42 when Oklahoma misses a last-second field goal. In Pasadena, it's Big Ten vs. Big Ten as Michigan and Wisconsin stage a rematch of the Big Ten opener. This time, however, things are a little bit different as Wisconsin's backs and receivers have a full season's experiences behind them. With the offense humming, Wisconsin pulls out to a 21-10 lead at half and eventually wins 21-17. In Columbus, fans burn mattresses, cars and rip on Lloyd Carr. In Madison, fans drink, storm State Street and smash a few windows. Nothing says "Big Ten Victory" like a good old fashioned riot!

Saturday, January 13, 2007: National Championship Game
With Ohio State a 14 point favorite, the nation's pundits are asking "how did this happen?" Angry callers to sports radio shows are demanding reforms in the new playoff system to prevent teams from states that start with a "W" and end with a "sin" that didn't win or finish second in a conference without a championship game and weren't ranked in the initial AP or Coaches Poll from making it into the field. Wolverine fans unironically insist that Michigan got "screwed" by having to beat Wisconsin twice in order to get another shot at Ohio State. On the Fiesta Bowl field, however, Wisconsin puts up a gallant fight. A P.J. Hill fumble breaks a scoreless tie midway through the second quarter. After that, Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith connects with Ted Ginn just before the half for another score. But after the Wisconsin band's rousing halftime performance of Swingtown ("O Sucks!"), the Badgers come out fighting. John Stocco throws one TD to Luke Swan and runs a quarterback sneak, a la Darrell Bevell, for another to tie the game with just under 7 minutes left. However, the Buckeyes prove their mettle with a long, time consuming drive in which they connect on both a third and long and a fourth and inches before Smith runs in for a TD. With just over two minutes left, Wisconsin stages a furious rally that comes up short with an incomplete pass from the Ohio State 8-yard line as time expires in a game for the ages.

Ahhhh, now isn't all of that better than arguing about computer rankings for the next month?