Big Ten Media Days begins with College Football Playoff format discussion

With the beginning of the Big Ten Media Days, a lot is being discussed. Commissioner Tony Petitti opened up the festivities on Tuesday, signaling how tantalizingly close USC is to hitting the gridiron again.

Among the topics that were discussed, the potential of how the College Football Playoff format will look moving forward was of particular interest.

In terms of what the structure itself would potentially look like, as Petitti mentioned, a lot of factors are being taken into consideration. There realistically aren't likely to be too many people satisfied with the outcome at first. The commissioner did mention, though, that once whatever is ultimately agreed upon plays out, fans tend to focus on the games and their excitement for the postseason matchups.

Getting there, however, is going to take some work to do.

What ultimately needs to be a part of any final decision are two important aspects. One, teams need to be rewarded for scheduling some of the more difficult out-of-conference games. That is something that has to weigh more in the equation, even in a loss, than simply stuffing the non-conference portion of the schedule with penciled-in wins.

Second, whichever teams prove, through their play on the field, that they are most deserving of a spot, need to have a path to make it to the CFP. This seems like a no-brainer, but it is far from reality. Instead, the politics and games behind the curtains are factors that play too much of a role in the current system.

Needed end result from Big Ten Media Days

Teams, particularly from the SEC, act with an assumed arrogance, believing they are entitled to something that truly wasn't earned through the merits of what is actually achieved during the games themselves.

Especially with the unbalanced scheduling, having a system that rewards teams for taking a chance and that also lets any team, regardless of which conference, reap the benefits of what was earned throughout the course of the regular season has to be at the forefront of such conversations.