Goodbye BCS: Let's fix this mess

Since it appears the BCS is about done for, the question is what the replacement should be. Sure, about everyone agrees that an 8 team playoff is in order, but how do you get those eight teams?

These should be the eight "best" teams based on record. And their records must be comparable, which means that schedules have to be balanced.

Therefore I propose that we utilize a system similar to the Premier League in soccer. Take the top 32 teams and organize them into four divisions of eight teams. Each team will play seven division games, three at home, three away, and one at a neutral site. Division play will take place in October and November with one 'bye' week for each team. The two top teams will always play each other at a neutral site and this will be in the last week of division play. The four teams with the best division records will draw the top four seeds in the tournament. Tie breakers will be straightforward and objective because of the common schedules.

Teams can schedule the remaining five regular season games as they wish. They can play their regular conferences, traditional rivals, powder puffs, or whatever. The remaining four tournament teams will be chosen by an impartial selection committee based on the total record, which includes division and nondivision games. Any team in the country is eligible for an at-large bid. The selection committee will also seed the at-large teams against the division winners.

The eight teams will play a three round elimination which will provide seven "bowl" games. Division winners will receive first round bowl births nearest their home locations.

At the end of the season, the four teams with the worst division records will be 'relegated' or dropped from division play (along with any teams undergoing suspensions). They will be replaced by teams chosen by the selection committee.