On Monday, Jan. 20, the Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 34-23 to win the College Football Playoff National Championship. This result capped off a dominant run for the Buckeyes, in which they rattled off wins over Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and finally Notre Dame by a combined score of 145-75. However, under the old playoff format used until this season, Ohio State would not have been given a chance to compete for the national championship.
Ever since the late 1930s, the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship has been contested via March Madness, a famous tournament that has now expanded to give roughly the best 64 teams in the nation a shot at the National Title. Because of the single-elimination format, there have been numerous upsets and underdog runs, but when the dust settles, a champion is crowned. College Football, on the other hand, has not provided such a conclusion to fans.
The NCAA has never officially recognized any team as the Division I champion, instead leaving external polls or ranking to declare a champion at the end of the season. This has been problematic over time. From the late 1800s to 1992, a title game played between top teams at the end of the season was never guaranteed, with the best teams being randomly invited to play in various bowl games following the conclusion of the regular season. This l...Read More.
