Holistically I would agree with your assessment. For me though, I believe the top end of the G5 is closing the gap on the middle/top of the P5s over the past 5 years. Look no further than our own conference and how much more competitive our conference has become over that time frame. With that being said I believe a second undefeated G5 or even a one loss G5 would have the same rate of success against the elites as the 3 loss P5s. The thing is we will never get to see it play out. It is easy to fall back and say that the P5s are better and deeper than their G5 counterparts and to an extent that is true but outside of the SEC what conference really DESERVES more than 1 representative? Not the ACC as of late, definitely not the Pac12, not the Big10, not the Big10.ah59396 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 09, 2021 11:51 amI sort of agree with this. Historically though, once you get to the 10-15 spots you start encountering 2 & 3 loss teams. Would we see a 3 loss SEC team at 12 over a second undefeated G5? Maybe?NavyApp wrote: ↑Wed Jun 09, 2021 7:31 amTHIS!!!! The truth of the matter is when the playoff expands to 12 teams you will see G5s drop in the rankings, regardless of merit. Like you mentioned the polls are controlled by the p5 so they will make sure they have 11 of the 12 seats at the table. This is not about deciding the "best" team on the field it's about increasing revenue by incorporating more blue blood fan bases in this charade.NeersBy90 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 09, 2021 7:10 amThis would effectively maintain the status quo unless they change the selection process (which I don't see them doing). The rankings they use for the CFP are decided on by the committee which is more or less comprised exclusively of P5 pundits. If they control the rankings, any G5 school (except MAYBE the AAC Champ) would be lucky to get a bid without a guaranteed spot.sixtoes9134 wrote: ↑Wed Jun 09, 2021 4:48 amSeems to me the most fair would be the top 12 teams in the country as of the last poll after all the conference championships have been played.
Either way, if there’s a shot to be there I’m excited. People want to yell “cartel” but honestly, what’s more impressive:
Going undefeated in the Sun Belt
Or
Going 8-2 in the SEC
If App got to do both I know which one I’d pick. Which is why they deserve more slots.
So what holds the upper echelon of G5s back in claiming those 6 at large bids? Scheduling and perception. What has been a hot topic from middle of the pack P5s with faux dreams of championship? They don't want to schedule G5 games anymore because it "hurts their strength of schedule" but really it's they don't want the fall out of losing to what they perceive as an inferior opponent. So opportunity for G5 programs to prove their worth is dwindling (look no further than how hard it is for us to schedule our own instate P5 teams), our conferences are dismissed as weak, so basically it's an impossible hill to climb. A team from the SEC could get shellacked 3 times, not win their division and still have a greater chance at being in the top 12.
So again your points are true and I agree with you, but the system is stacked against G5 programs and has been for a long time. This would just be the cherry on top.