NFL News NFL News, Reports and Updates
No matter who wins the College Football Playoff championship game Monday night, be prepared for detractors to offer the following data points:
“But they lost to Northern Illinois!” will be a popular refrain in the case of a Notre Dame win, noting that no national champion had ever suffered as embarrassing a loss.
Meanwhile, should Ohio State deliver coach Ryan Day’s first national title, get ready to hear plenty of moaning and groaning about how it diminishes the regular season that a two-loss team could win the national title after finishing fourth in the Big Ten.
Let’s go ahead and offer a simple and straightforward prebuttal for any attempts to diminish the first champion of the 12-team playoff: Stop this nonsense.
Either Ohio State or Notre Dame will not just be a worthy champion, but one that deserves special recognition for surviving a gauntlet of four high-intensity, physical playoff games — something no team in the history of the sport has faced.
Deserving? You better believe it.
At some point, after this playoff format has ingrained itself into the consciousness and no longer feels like something new, let’s hope this conversation disappears forever.
OPINION: College Football Playoff expansion rescued Ohio State, Notre Dame, and we’re better for it
OPINION: Ohio State just one win from rewriting its narrative for good
Every other team sport has managed to crown its champion through a multi-round playoff without arguing about what-ifs or questioning whether the winner really deserved to be there in the first place. It’s time for college football fans to get on board and let the sport’s previously misguided ethos remain in the past.
For decades and decades, college football stood apart because it valued the veneer of perfection rather than a series of tournament tests that reveal a team’s true…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/why-ohio-state-notre-dame-110839662.html
Author : USA TODAY Sports
Publish date : 2025-01-16 11:08:00
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.
