Professional football tiebreaker model proves more exciting for fans
When was the last time the University of South Carolina football team participated in an overtime game? It was October 27, 2007, a 27-24 loss to the Tennessee Volunteers. Since then, USC has not been forced to participate in the poorly arranged extra period known as NCAAF overtime. The tiebreaker in college football is atrocious, and reform is necessary.
Let’s define quickly what the point of overtime is. After a game where two teams come out and perform equally for more than 60 minutes, a victor must be determined. It’s not logical to play one game for 60 minutes and then start over to determine the victor with different rules, but that’s what we see in college football. An extra-allotted time should be put into place that most closely mirrors that game to allow one of the teams to separate themselves as the winner.
When looking at overtime rules in professional sports in the U.S., including baseball, basketball, soccer and the NFL, there is a strong attempt to continue the actual rules and process of the game into overtime. The NHL and MLS must use shootouts to speed up the game, but they use an overtime period before going that route. College football prefers to jump right into an overtime system that changes the game completely. It’s worse than penalty kicks and shootouts.
In 1996, the NCAA Rules Committee decided to change the rules to something resembling the current overtime system. If you believe for any reason this is an intelligent group of individuals, understand ties were still permitted in college football before the 1996 season.
Allowing ties would actually be a better system than the current overtime arrangement. At least that says the teams competed equally and will be credited as such. Changing the system and rewarding a potentially undeserving team a win is what’s actually happening.
Currently, overtime removes much of special teams from the game with no punting, returns or battle for field position. Each are invaluable staples in football. We have a system where strong red zone offenses and defenses thrive. Teams built to play football with strong special teams and big play receivers are disadvantaged.
Fortunately for the NCAA Reform Committee, reform is simple because a perfect template exists.
A system comparable to the NFL playoff system should be adopted. It begins like an actual football game with a kickoff, where each team is guaranteed a possession unless the receiving team scores a touchdown immediately. Imagine that: a system that requires special teams and field position battles the length of the field. A system set up for big plays including an 80-yard walk-off touchdown pass from Tim Tebow. NCAA: That’s excitement — not your broken, poorly constructed system.