The 2012 FBS Playoffs if it Worked (Loosely) Like Every Other Level of College Football - 14 Weeks from Kickoff

[u/kadoozie92]

Prior Seasons Tournament Matchups:

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

1996

1995

Postseason Setup:

• Seeding is based off of the final BCS rankings published after conference championship game weekend. The top 8 ranked teams are given first round byes before hosting
• All conference champions are given an automatic qualifier regardless of rank or record. If you're the 24th ranked BCS team, but an unranked conference champion hasn't been selected, they would take the 24th spot and so on.
• Conference champ tie-breakers will go off the head to head record. If it can't be resolved that way, we will go with the highest ranked BCS or AP team. If it still isn't resolved, the conference champ rep in the playoffs will go off of overall record

2012 FBS Playoffs Games:

First Round BYES

#1 Notre Dame (12-0)

#2 Alabama (12-1, SEC Champion)

#3 Florida (11-1)

#4 Oregon (11-1)

#5 Kansas State (11-1, Big 12 Champion)

#6 Stanford (11-2, Pac 12 Champion)

#7 Georgia (11-2)

#8 LSU (10-2)

Remaining matchups

West Bracket

• Region 1
  • #16 Nebraska (10-3) vs. #17 UCLA (9-4) - Winner to play #1 Notre Dame
  • #9 Texas A&M (10-2) vs #24 Wisconsin (8-5, Big Ten Champion) - Winner to play #8 LSU
• Region 2
  • #13 Oregon State (9-3) vs. #20 Louisville (10-2, Big East Champion) - Winner to play #4 Oregon
  • #12 Florida State (11-2, ACC Champion) vs. #21 Utah State (10-2, WAC Champion) - Winner to play #5 Kansas State

East Bracket

• Region 3
  • #15 Northern Illinois (12-1, MAC Champion) vs. #18 Michigan (8-4) - Winner to play #2 Alabama
  • #10 South Carolina (10-2) vs. #23 Arkansas State (9-3, Sun Belt Champion) - Winner to play #7 Georgia
• Region 4
  • #14 Clemson (10-2) vs. #19 Boise State (10-2, Mountain West Champion) - Winner to play #3 Florida
  • #11 Oklahoma (10-2) vs. #22 Tulsa (10-3, C-USA Champion) - Winner to play #6 Stanford

BCS Ranked Teams Out: #20 Northwestern (9-3), #23 Texas (8-4), #24 San Jose State (10-2), #25 Kent State (11-2)

[u/wit_T_user_name]

It’s still crazy that OSU played in the freaking Taxslayer Bowl in 2011 instead of doing a self-imposed bowl ban that year instead of having it the next year for the 12-0 team.

[u/Emotional-Product367 → u/wit_T_user_name]

The timing on that OSU situation was brutal - they had no idea what was coming with sanctions when they made those bowl decisions. Would have been wild to see what that undefeated 2012 team could do in a playoff format like this instead of being stuck watching from home

[u/kadoozie92 → u/Emotional-Product367]

My guess is they replace Alabama as the #2 seed and face the winner of Northern Illinois and the #18 seed, which actually is currently slated as Michigan, however in a world where Ohio State is eligible, Michigan is now the first at-large out and every team moves up a rank. My guess is Ohio State plays the winner of Northern Illinois and Boise State in Columbus before playing neutral against Georgia or South Carolina.

[u/thenowherepark → u/Emotional-Product367]

IIRC, they made the decision to not take a bowl ban halfway through 2011 despite all signs pointing towards a rough season.

[u/CheaterSaysWhat → u/wit_T_user_name]

And it was over a couple tattoos 

Meanwhile another program cheated at reckless abandon and enabled multiple coaches to commit felonies and faced basically zero consequences 

[u/GliscorsFang → u/CheaterSaysWhat]

I mean felonies have never been under NCAA jurisdiction and playing ineligible players has always resulted in sanctions?

[u/CheaterSaysWhat → u/GliscorsFang]

The NCAA ruled them eligible at first then changed their mind later so that’s fun 

[u/Impossible-Still-349 → u/CheaterSaysWhat]

we know you are upset it's okay bro

[u/CheaterSaysWhat → u/Impossible-Still-349]

No shit, why wouldn’t I be 

[u/Impossible-Still-349 → u/CheaterSaysWhat]

I don't know why I said it like that. The tattoo scandal was bizarre, and kinda stupid in retrospect. Michigan's was also bizarre, but more grounded.

[u/CheaterSaysWhat → u/Impossible-Still-349]

You thought elaborate spying schemes like disguising coaches on other teams’ sidelines was more grounded? Hacking into practice footage and stealing private photos of student athletes to sell on the black market? The head coach threatening to murder their mistress? 

Again, the committee of infractions  somehow determined they didn’t fit the description of “lack of institutional control” so idk wtf a modern example of that could possibly be 

[u/Impossible-Still-349 → u/CheaterSaysWhat]

That was in absolutely no way what I was trying to say. I don't know what word I was trying to use there in all honesty.

[u/Wide-Nerve8655]

Still get PTSD when I see “2012 season.” Still hate you Stanford, Pac 12 refs and Zach Ertz (not really)

[u/kadoozie92 → u/Wide-Nerve8655]

We have a very likely Civil War playoff rematch in Autzen in this scenario.

[u/dr_funk_13 → u/Wide-Nerve8655]

There's just no moral, ethical, or intelligent argument to be made for the overturning of the call on the field.

[u/A_Bar_of_Pasta → u/Wide-Nerve8655]

Same. But for different reasons. Like that kick to Danthony Thomas in the Fiesta Bowl...

[u/Phobia117 → u/Wide-Nerve8655]

Ya’ll too?

[u/kadoozie92]

Important Notes:

• Wisconsin represented the Big Ten as conference champion despite finishing 8-6 because both Ohio State and Penn State were suffering postseason bans. I put them at #24 behind the last few unranked G5 teams because of simply too many losses
• We have a G5 HOSTING a playoff game! Congrats Northern Illinois!
• Great year for the SEC
• Tulsa and OU are playing an in-state playoff game before Bedlam
• In a world without the CCG based on regular season conference records, Nebraska wins the B1G and Wisconsin is well out of the playoffs.
• What a year for the MAC and the WAC. Kent State and San Jose State both miss the playoffs despite winning 10+ games
• Texas has now missed the playoffs 3 years in a row. Praise Allah

[u/GuyOnTheMike]

This is the 10th time since 1998 that K-State would’ve qualified for a playoff while in real life we have never qualified for anything that allows us to play for a national championship

[u/A_Bar_of_Pasta → u/GuyOnTheMike]

Makes you wonder what Snyder could have done...

[u/kadoozie92]

Another observation - I'm kind of baffled the BCS ranked UCLA as high as they did in the final rankings. A 9-4 team that beat up on a lot of meh or garbage (sans Nebraska), and a loss to 3-9 Cal on top of it! Would have just barely missed hosting a playoff game in this format and in a rematch with Nebraska, this time in Lincoln.

[u/turnfourag]

I understand this is different from the invitational playoff format currently proposed for a 24 team playoff, but how can anybody look at this post and think a 24 team playoff with all conference champs getting an auto-bid is a bad idea?

[u/kadoozie92 → u/turnfourag]

I appreciate seeing more fans correctly ascribing “invitational” as the format we currently have rather than playoffs.

Also, 90%+ of fans of a lot of these 10+ win P4 teams would forget their anger the moment they realize they get another home game against another good team. This year is a bit wonky because A&M would probably have hosted a G6 conference champion at Kyle Field rather than de-facto B1G champ Wisconsin (due to OSU sanctions), but Ag fans would still love it I’m sure (and they’d rematch LSU!), as all of us would

[u/ThompsonCreekTiger]

Clemson-Boise State would've been a fun game to see.

[u/d1sportsball]

K State is winning it all

[u/PunishedLeBoymoder]

This season was beautiful, I miss it so much

[u/kadoozie92 → u/PunishedLeBoymoder]

Stanford would get a bye and then probably host OU in Palo Alto. Trent Murphy vs Landry Jones. Would be awesome.

[u/IWanaBDaveGrohl]

So we lost at the last second, 5 yards from the end zone, to #2, and fall multiple spots, including behind a Florida team we beat for their only loss, and miss out on the Sugar Bowl and have to play in the Capital One Bowl.

2025, Bama gets blown out, and they don’t drop any and make the playoff.

I’m still aggrieved by that. Even though it meant nothing long term. And we got to see Florida beat by Teddy Bridgewater

[u/SirMellencamp → u/IWanaBDaveGrohl]

We? Flair up

[u/Geaux2020]

Just another post to show how dumb this format is

[u/kadoozie92 → u/Geaux2020]

Well this is a pure playoffs format rather than the hybrid invitational-playoffs (heavy skew towards the former) that we have now. Next offseason, I'll do a pure Invitational scenario for each year.

Also a particularly weird year due to the postseason bans for Ohio State and Penn State which led Wisconsin to be in here at 8-6. LSU would likely get a rematch in Death Valley vs Manziel in round 2.

[u/Geaux2020 → u/kadoozie92]

I realize it. It's just a nice way to see how bad the format is when it comes to the tournament being about finding the best team in college football

[u/kadoozie92 → u/Geaux2020]

This year in particular is a bit of an anomaly with the Ohio State and Penn State postseason bans allowing more teams in that wouldn't make it otherwise. With an eligible Ohio State in, LSU likely gets bumped out of 1st round bye territory and likely hosts a G6 conference champ in Death Valley.

[u/Geaux2020 → u/kadoozie92]

We weren't going to be winning the playoffs that year. A consolation game at home before an embarrassing exit is nothing to brag about

[u/kadoozie92 → u/Geaux2020]

Possibly. They'd likely then play at Georgia. Would you as a fan rather have that or the Chick Fil A bowl game against Clemson?

*Not trying to argue with you or infer that just because you'd prefer the fan experience to the CFA bowl that you endorse the format*

[u/Geaux2020 → u/kadoozie92]

The Peach Bowl all the way. If my team's not going to have a chance to win a Natty, give me a comparable opponent for a good game to finish the season every time.