Urban is gone? According to the first few mins of this podcast I listen to he's done. Cannot verify. Take it for what it's worth.
I've been thinking of this 4 vs 8 team playoff and have 2 ideas and tbh I'm not sure how well they'd work.
6 team playoff scenario:
#1 and 2 get first round byes. The conf chammpionships act as a defacto "first round" so there is still something to shoot for all season. The 6 spots go to the power 5 champs and a wild card. Committee has no say over the conf champs getting in but would rank them and pick the wild card. Only way ND gets in is to join and win a conf or hope the committee puts them in.
The largest drawback I can see is, as was kind of mentioned in that podcast, if Pitt had beat Clemson or NW won last weekend they would be in over the better team on a fluke. It could be said that team is playing better at that point, but I don't fully know if I like that scenario.
In the end I think 6 is the way to go even with the committee making the picks 100% but I like the conf champs getting the go ahead because it makes those games mean something again. If Saban wanted to he could've sat his entire starting squad to guarantee no injury or penalty preventing them from playing in the playoffs and still got in. If conf champ was the for sure he wouldn't. Again, this is all highly theoretical. I know Saban wouldn't have done that last week...although Tua wouldn't have gotten hurt if he had.
8 team playoff scenario:
This makes for a LONG playoff for a bunch of kids all for the sake of fans. I would suggest shortening the reg season by eliminating cupcake OOC teams. I know it would take awhile to take affect since schedules are made years in advance but if everyone played in conference only and a shorter season we could have a longer playoff.
Downside to this is smaller teams don't have a chance to upset someone and get themselves in the limelight. They kind of wouldn't have to though. With an 8 team playoff UCF gets in anyway.
I don't know if it will ever change or how but I'd like to see SOMETHING better than what we currently have.