NCAA Football 2023 Season Megathread
Figured I would get this thing started since a mod still hasn’t changed the title of the 2022 thread. Let’s just start over. Fresh starts are good and this is a fresh new season.
This is the last college football season with the 4 team playoff format. Next year starts the 12 team playoff. It’s been an ok run. Most of the semi final games weren’t very good aside from a few notable ones like uga/ou, Ohio st/uga, and Oregon/fsu for the lulz.
I don’t know if this is an unpopular opinion but from a pure enjoyment perspective I enjoyed the bcs era more. Even with my team getting left out of a title game once in 2004. More chaos (see 2007), more controversy, and it felt like college football in its purest form because one game can ruin your season. Every game mattered and everything was still mostly regional before all the conference expansion. Was obviously pre NIL. Not saying players weren’t getting paid but I much preferred it being under the table heh. (Insert cam newton joke here)
This is also the last year of the conferences as we know them. Sec adds OU and Texas next year. B1G adds usc, ucla, Oregon, and Washington. Am I missing a team? I can’t keep up with this ****. Big 12 adds ucf, byu, Cincy, Houston and some leftover pac teams. The pac 12 or 4 whatever it’s gonna be called is dead. Done. Who the **** knows what’s gonna happen to the remaining teams. Kinda sad but it is what it is. Money rules all. People hate change but none of this is ever permanent. I think eventually these conferences will just get so big and ridiculous we will come full circle and teams will be sorted by region again and it’ll be something like it was in the past.
Anyway, I digress…
Top 25 pre season poll
Week 0 games.
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Saturday 8/26
2:30 — Navy vs. Notre Dame (in Dublin) — NBC/Peacock
5:30 — UTEP at Jacksonville State — CBS Sports Network
7 — UMass at New Mexico State — ESPN
7 — Ohio at San Diego State — Fox Sports 1
7:30 — Hawaii at Vanderbilt — SEC Network
8 — San Jose State at USC — Pac-12 Network
9 — FIU at Louisiana Tech — CBS Sports Network
Not a great slate but who gives a ****. It’s football legoooooooooooooooooooooo
School wouldn’t do it, due to bowl $.
Coaches wouldn’t want to, due to extra practices allowed.
Can’t speak for the players, but it’s pretty likely that there are enough that would want to play for the opportunity and experience.
I’m fine with players opting out if they choose. It’s an exhibition game. Who cares?
Under what basis is a bowl game an exhibition? It counts towards a team’s standings and stats for players also count.
If you meant meaningless because it’s not a playoff game then the overwhelming majority of the games are meaningless and no point to any of it.
Not a good look for FSU and as usual the committee got it right.
I mean yeah, like literally everybody said. There isn't a single serious person who had anybody other than UGA as #1 on the power rankings at the end of the year, but them's the breaks
I have sympathy. You can only play the "prove them wrong" card so many times. The whole second half of the season people said UGA didn't belong, and they "proved them wrong" by winning anyway. Then Travis got hurt and everybody said FSU was dead and FSU "proved them wrong" by winning the conference . If you keep pr
I don’t think struggling to beat Louisville proves anyone wrong
hypothetical question
tomorrow after feats of strength confirm southern priorities over education
and the mitten state is seen getting wool pulled over their very eyes yet again
how you betting 'bama texas 2.0?
Are you saying they aren't one of the four best teams with one or no losses? They lost to Bama in the same scenario a couple years ago and titled. Conference championship games are not de facto playoff games as the same scenario proved two years ago. Losing them does not eliminate you when you are an undefeated dynasty.
A couple of years ago was not this year though. Not sure why you would say that "Losing them does not eliminate you when you are an undefeated dynasty" when that's not only what actually happened but also what everyone expected to happen.
Bama vs Georgia was a game where both teams operated under the assumption that they would be in if they win and out if they don't win. At the time of the game, Washington was already in, Texas had already won and Michigan was a huge favorite over Iowa. Georgia knew they would drop behind Bama if they lost to them so their only potential path to the playoff with a loss would have been a Michigan loss ideally combined with a FSU loss. If that's not a de-facto playoff game I don't know what to tell you.
A couple of years ago was not this year though. Not sure why you would say that "Losing them does not eliminate you when you are an undefeated dynasty" when that's not only what actually happened but also what everyone expected to happen.
Bama vs Georgia was a game where both teams operated under the assumption that they would be in if they win and out if they don't win. At the time of the game, Washington was already in, Texas had already won and Michigan was a huge favorite over Iowa. Georgia k
You're not telling me anything. I'm the one who picked the final four perfect, declaring FSU eliminated and Bama in even before the FSU took the field for their bowl game ... and also showed who should be in and why (Georgia in and Washington out). I agree that the Bama/Georgia loser was going to be eliminated by the committee, but not that they should have been. Some value 13-0 over 12-1 regardless, I guess, even with a 45-2 run with both losses to Bama. Washington would be 9-3-ish in the SEC and nowhere near a CC game. And thus probably the GOAT mini-dynasty in the history of the game doesn't get to vie for a super rare threepeat. That aspect of it is bogus, is mainly what I'm saying. I knew who was in and won my bet. Oh well, next year the problem would be completely avoided. Bad timing.
The good news is that the 12 team playoff starts next season and no matter how good the 1st team left out of that is, it will never be bad enough for us to care too much.
A couple of years ago was not this year though. Not sure why you would say that "Losing them does not eliminate you when you are an undefeated dynasty" when that's not only what actually happened but also what everyone expected to happen.
Bama vs Georgia was a game where both teams operated under the assumption that they would be in if they win and out if they don't win. At the time of the game, Washington was already in, Texas had already won and Michigan was a huge favorite over Iowa. Georgia k
Is Georgia one of the best four teams? If they are, under what rubric are they left out? Is it: "Well, this year the conference championship in the SEC was an elimination game, even though in the past conference championships were no such thing." LOL.
Actually, as it was noted in some posts a while back, the committee got it wrong.
The decision to "project" how FSU would do and then not include them in the top 4 was fine. They were ranking teams as to where they were at the moment. And yes while it sucked for FSU, the rules allowed the committee to take into consideration injuries.
Where the committee screwed up imo is ranking FSU 5th. You go best team, best team, best team, best team, then sympathy vote FSU as "most deserving" and then best team, best team. etc. What??
Georgia was a 19 point favourite when the FSU/GA game was announced.
The committee was ok with ranking teams under one set of of parameters, and basically hoped that the nation would understand their logic, and then told the nation that FSU was better than GA - something that none of them could possibly have believed. Not a single member of the committee could have honestly thought FSU was better than GA.
So, imo the committee could have well left FSU as 4th, because they already proved on the same damn day that they had no problem knowingly ranking a team wrong, and not just a little bit wrong, but insanely wrong. So, if you are open to manipulation for optics, then why not keep FSU at 4th....
Actually, as it was noted in some posts a while back, the committee got it wrong.
The decision to "project" how FSU would do and then not include them in the top 4 was fine. They were ranking teams as to where they were at the moment. And yes while it sucked for FSU, the rules allowed the committee to take into consideration injuries.
Where the committee screwed up imo is ranking FSU 5th. You go best team, best team, best team, best team, then sympathy vote FSU as "most deserving" and then best te
Only the top 4 matters, giving FSU the 5th spot was a little participation trophy. The 5th spot and $5 buys you a cup of coffee.
Given the nature of this season the playoffs actually started earlier this year
OSU vs Mich, Wash vs Oregon, and Alabama vs Georgia were in first round
Texas and FSU had to win and have the results of other games go right. Texas got in as bonded shelter puppy
Given what happened the committee got it right.
Because the selection committee decided they shouldn't be in.
If you want for the selection committee to do what you want them to do, raise a couple billion and buy ESPN.
Okay, I see. The subject is who should be in, and your point is the teams that are in are the ones that should be in because they are the ones that are in. This brilliancy no doubt because you have no better point.
Only the top 4 matters, giving FSU the 5th spot was a little participation trophy. The 5th spot and $5 buys you a cup of coffee.
Given the nature of this season the playoffs actually started earlier this year
OSU vs Mich, Wash vs Oregon, and Alabama vs Georgia were in first round
Texas and FSU had to win and have the results of other games go right. Texas got in as bonded shelter puppy
Given what happened the committee got it right.
I agree those three games were the equivalent of play-in games for OSU, Michigan, Washington, Bama, and Georgia. Oregon not quite, as Georgia would have gone over them both with one loss, pretty sure. I don't see how to just forget who and what Georgia is even for teams with the same record. It remains true: 12-1 > than 13-0, many times. All in all under the system they picked who they had to pick, and I guess the SEC would be out if FSU was healthy.
I agree those three games were the equivalent of play-in games for OSU, Michigan, Washington, Bama, and Georgia. Oregon not quite, as Georgia would have gone over them both with one loss, pretty sure. I don't see how to just forget who and what Georgia is even for teams with the same record. It remains true: 12-1 > than 13-0, many times. All in all under the system they picked who they had to pick, and I guess the SEC would be out if FSU was healthy.
My guess is that the SEC was always going to be in
And if need be possibly Alabama and not Texas (yes I know Texas is 3)
Come on bro. They weren't even the best team in both years they won it all. They needed major injury luck to get by Bama in 21 and Ohio State in 22. And btw I'm not hating. In sports it's still a major achievement to even be good enough to get in a position where luck can take you over the top. I mean if I were a Georgia fan I would not give two shits about being lucky. They still ****ing did it. But calling them any kind of goat dynasty is taking things too far.
As far as 2023, what is there really to talk about. They played nobody all year. Their schedule was a joke. Then they played one real team and they lost. **** the power rankings or whatever the advanced stats say. When you essentially play a 1 game schedule and you lose you're ****ing failures and deserve no mercy.
True their schedule was strangely, maybe uniquely weak for the SEC of modern vintage, and that works against them. But we know who they were, or maybe you don't. When UNLV in hoops had a weak schedule, we knew who they were anyway. And beating playoff and near playoff teams by 60, yes, is a slight indicator. I mean we are just Nick Saban away from a 48 game winning streak and a slew of titles for Georgia. But maybe Saban's teams aren't anything special either.
Bunch of stupidity in this thread.
We could go to just ranking teams by analytics and declaring the best team #1 but then no one would watch the games or pay $$$ to go to games because it would be stupid. The whole fun of playoffs is that sometimes a mediocre team ]luckboxes a championship to the delight of their supporters. It's like gambling. Sometimes you idiots win a hand even though you play like crap.
Dawgs are the best team of course but they ****ing lost to Alabama. Are they still better than Texas and UW? Of course. But they ****ing lost to Alabama.
FSU got jobbed because they didn't lose ... They luckboxed it and got denied anyway. It's like losing with quads. They will never recover.
A much better system would be for the NCAA to have like six tiers with relegation and promotion at end if each season. Bowls could be a secondary trophy. So you'd have the top tier with UGA bama OSu PSU Michigan one of fl, aub, tn, etc. Nebraska would be in tier four fighting to get to tier three.
Best indicator for winning is still wins.
Come on bro. They weren't even the best team in both years they won it all. They needed major injury luck to get by Bama in 21 and Ohio State in 22. And btw I'm not hating. In sports it's still a major achievement to even be good enough to get in a position where luck can take you over the top. I mean if I were a Georgia fan I would not give two shits about being lucky. They still ****ing did it. But calling them any kind of goat dynasty is taking things too far.
They are much more comparable to 2014-2019 Clemson than any of the GOAT dynasties. Even just looking at the past five years neither of the 2021/2022 UGA teams would be favorites over 2020 bama or 2019 LSU and would be flipping at best against 2018 Clemson who annihilated a bama team with Tua/J. Jacobs/Harris/Jeudy/Waddle/D. Smith/ruggs and didn’t need injury luck to do so
Is Georgia one of the best four teams? If they are, under what rubric are they left out?
The rubric is resume. They are not one of the four best teams among the several with legitimate claims to compete in the CFP. Four best does not and has never meant sort_by_Vegas. The tiebreakers for "comparable" teams are conference championships won, strength of schedule, H2H, and outcomes against common opponents. They win none of those against the teams that were selected.
The committee, in essence, told FSU that wins don’t matter. So what incentive did the players have to play the game?
Wins and losses should matter, the best teams don’t always win and/or make the playoffs. Was FSU one of the best 4 teams in the country? No. Did they deserve to be in the playoffs based on their record? Absolutely.
Just a bunch of suits trying to make themselves relevant.
Okay, I see. The subject is who should be in, and your point is the teams that are in are the ones that should be in because they are the ones that are in. This brilliancy no doubt because you have no better point.
The point is that you are the only one arguing that Georgia should have been in.
As GoldenBears mentioned not even Georgia fans thought they should have been in. If you want a team in that nobody else wants in, the only way for that is to run the show yourself.
Also if you believe that Georgia would have been in over Oregon I don't know what to tell you.
