[NU Sports] Is the Big Ten overrated?

[Sanford_Stein at rush.edu]

It is clear that the long layoffs hurt Big Ten teams in bowl games.

Here's how I would like to see the problem solved -- yes, I know it will 
never happen:

Have an 8-team playoff, with the championship game held on New Year's Day,
the semi-finals held 7-12 days earlier (depending on  when New Year's 
falls), and
the quarter-finals held 7 days before that.  The existing BCS bowls could 
rotate
who gets the finals and semi-finals -- the other three quarter-final games 
could also
be rotated, or 3 second-level bowls could be invited to join the mix.

The main counter-argument is that this will somhow sully the "bowl 
tradition".
That's a crock -- this year only 2 of the 5 BCS  bowl games were played on
New Years' Day, and the season went until January 8.  Is it any less of a 
break
in "tradition" to play the Sugar Bowl on December 23 rather than January 
3?
Other second-level bowl games could still be played on New Years Day, as
a warmup to the big one.  And the "student-athletes" (and the fans that 
follow
them) would be done with their seasons and back in class for the start of 
the
winter session.

I would miss the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, but although we happened to
get a good Big 10/Pac 10 matchup this year, that tradition has been shot 
to hell
by the BCS nonsense anyway.

                                        SS