College Football Playoff Praised After Debut, But Seriously, Let's Talk About an 8-Team Playoff

After all the griping, whining and complaining most of us did following the unveiling of the College Football Playoff's top four teams on December 7, it turned out well for the committee and the final team that made it in.

What did they get right?

First, Florida State's ranking.

Under the old BCS system, the Seminoles would have been given the No. 1 ranking and probably would've played No. 2 Alabama for the title. No. 2 Oregon was the better team, and a turnover-filled second half sealed Florida State's fate, losing 59-20.

Second, Ohio State was a good choice, after all.

Sure TCU will continue to make their case, especially after their 42-3 throttling of Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl on New Years Eve, but the Buckeyes just kept getting better as the season progressed, and knocked off No. 1 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and now have a chance to win their first national title since the 2002 season.

Most probably predicted the standard No. 1 vs. No. 2 title game between Alabama and Oregon after the playoff bracket was announced. But this is what happens when you have a playoff. Get the best two teams into the National Championship game. The Buckeyes and Ducks have been two of the best teams in the nation since their losses.

While the Rose and Sugar Bowl's both averaged over 28 million viewers each on ESPN, some of the other "New Years Six" bowls proved to be entertaining as well.

Michigan State came back from 20 points down to defeat No. 5 Baylor in the Cotton Bowl in the final seconds, TCU humiliated Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl, and Mississippi State fell to Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

For the first time in a long time, we saw the Peach, Fiesta, Orange, Cotton, Rose and Sugar Bowls all played on New Years Eve and New Years Day. Usually, these bowls were spread out in a six-day period during the BCS era.

With these great bowls and some of the outcomes we saw, why are we not talking more about an 8-team playoff for, at the latest, the 2016 season?

If you took the top eight teams and made a bracket, hypothetically, it could have been done this way:

New Years Eve

Cotton Bowl
3 Florida State vs. 6 TCU:
-This would have been the Horned Frogs chance to prove their worth in the playoff. They probably win this matchup in a shootout. 

Orange Bowl
4 Ohio State vs. 5 Baylor:
-Baylor, like TCU, felt like they were robbed of a spot in the top four. The Bears would have chance to fave the Buckeyes, the team that slid into the fourth spot after their blowout win the Big Ten Championship.

New Years Day

Sugar Bowl
1 Alabama vs. 8 Michigan State:
-The Buckeyes were able to beat the Crimson Tide. The Spartans might face a tougher task in beating Alabama, but you never know. The Big Ten has had a great bowl season.

Rose Bowl
2 Oregon vs. 7 Mississippi State:
- Prescott vs. Mariota? Not as good a Winston vs. Mariota, but it's a matchup of two good quarterbacks. The Bulldogs probably get beat by multiple touchdowns in this one, though.

Everyone loves the NCAA Basketball Tournament because of the unpredictable outcomes and upsets that come with it. An eight-team football playoff adds that element. Ohio State beating Alabama came as a surprise to many. Most were not giving the Buckeyes a chance, especially when they had a third-string quarterback starting against the Crimson Tide.

Many have praised the playoff after its debut on New Years Day. Let's make it twice as good in the future. Expand to eight, and do it soon.