Tuesday, on Tim Brando’s talk show, West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck, a member of the first College Football Playoff Committee, made a statement that’s going to be discussed throughout the coming season:
Oliver Luck tells @TimBrando the CFP committee is using "best" and "shying away from using 'most deserving'" when picking the top 4
— Patrick Netherton (@PTNetherton) July 29, 2014
What is the importance of this statement? The most precise answer at the present time is that we just don’t know. That’s not a sexy answer or the one a lot of fans might want, but it’s the best one.
Yes, Luck’s statement probably means that the eye test will matter more than data, at least if history is a guide. However, the emphasis on a “best” team could also mean the following, as Bleacher Report’s Barrett Sallee pointed out:
CFP saying "best" over "most deserving" disguises the bigger issue. Can't take the "best" and have a stated emphasis on conf. champs.
— Barrett Sallee 🇺🇸 (@BarrettSallee) July 29, 2014
Sallee wrote more about this topic in a piece from last week:
ICYMI from last week, I hit on that contradiction in the CFP selection committee's stated goals http://t.co/S85UbsmcK7
— Barrett Sallee 🇺🇸 (@BarrettSallee) July 29, 2014
Let’s speak plainly about this heated and very central issue in college football: We all have our leanings, hunches and suspicions. We’re going to continue to carry our hopes and worries through the season until college football’s first “Selection Sunday” on Dec. 7 at 12:45 p.m. Eastern time.
Yet, in the end, this is not a massive, entrenched system, one blending several computer formulas with many dozens of poll votes. This is about “one dozen plus one,” otherwise known as the 13 people that will select the final four in college football. These 13 people could choose to act in an enlightened way, or they could choose to act in an unenlightened way. History serves as a guide, but not as a determinant or guarantee of what will happen.
Luck’s comment certainly rates as news. What kind of news? We’ll just have to wait and see.
What — were you expecting certainty and clarity in a discussion about college football’s postseason?
