Like the NFL, the NCAA also has playoffs, but NCAA football differs slightly from basketball. While basketball's playoffs closely resemble professional leagues, football uses an invitation-based system for bowl games.
In North America, many large stadiums are bowl-shaped, hence the term "bowl games."
So how does the invitation system work? It's based on NCAA rankings and the standings within each conference.
The NCAA has numerous divisions and conferences, but the regular season consists of only twelve games, nearly half of which are against conference opponents. This means teams from different conferences might not face each other for years, making it difficult to rank teams solely by win-loss records.
In a single season, there might be multiple undefeated teams, and as many as seven or eight teams with only one loss. Thus, the league uses two authoritative polls along with a computer ranking system that factors in team records, strength of schedule, performance metrics, and more to produce the national rankings for each season.
Then, postseason invitations are extended based on these national rankings and the outcomes within each conference.
In 2006, the NCAA underwent a major reform, adjusting the playoff system to divide it into two parts: the bowl games and the national championship.
First, the bowl games.
In 2016, there were 40 bowl games across different levels of the NCAA, with 80 teams participating in the postseason. Among these, six major bowl games stood out: the Sugar Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Rose Bowl, Orange Bowl, Cotton Bowl, and Peach Bowl.
Each bowl has its own tradition. For example, the Sugar Bowl traditionally features the Southeastern Conference (SEC) champion, while the Fiesta Bowl features the Big 12 champion, the Rose Bowl pairs the champions of the Pac-12 and Big Ten, and the Orange Bowl typically involves the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion.
Second, the national championship.
The top four teams in the NCAA rankings advance to the national championship playoffs, which are played in a knockout format with two rounds: the semifinals and the final. The semifinals are played as bowl games—this year, the Fiesta Bowl and the Peach Bowl serve as the semifinal venues.
In other words, the winners of the Fiesta Bowl and Peach Bowl will advance to the national championship game, where they'll compete for the title.
This year, the Fiesta Bowl features the ACC champion Clemson University against the Big Ten champion Ohio State University—a showdown between the second- and third-ranked teams in the nation.
The Peach Bowl features the SEC champion Alabama (the Crimson Tide) against the Big 12 champion Washington University—a clash between the top-ranked team and the fourth-ranked team.
Since these four teams are competing for the national championship, other bowl game invitations are adjusted accordingly.
For example, the Orange Bowl.
Typically, it would pit the ACC champion against the Big Ten champion. But with both teams heading to the Fiesta Bowl for a shot at the national title, their places are filled by the second-place teams: Michigan and Florida State, who will now compete for the Orange Bowl championship.
In terms of NCAA rankings, Michigan is ranked sixth, and Florida State is ranked eleventh, but they still received invitations to the prestigious Orange Bowl.
The other bowl games followed similar patterns.
Each bowl has its traditions, and some prefer to invite teams from specific conferences. So, even if the first- and second-ranked teams from that conference go to other bowl games or the national championship, the third-ranked team from that conference might still be invited to a top-tier bowl, even if their national ranking isn't as high.
In short, the invitations to bowl games are largely controlled by the organizers, with the NCAA rankings serving as a reference.
This often results in unexpected situations. For instance, a team ranked ninth nationally might miss out on a top-tier bowl and end up in a lower-tier one, while a team ranked sixteenth might land in a major bowl.
This year was no exception.
The most shocking and unexpected development involved the Louisville Cardinals, led by Lamar Jackson.
At one point in the season, Louisville was ranked third in the NCAA, and Jackson was the overwhelming favorite to win the Heisman Trophy. However, they stumbled at the end of the season, losing two crucial games they couldn't afford to lose. Even though Jackson bounced back with two wins to close the season, Louisville fell to fifteenth in the rankings.
Despite this, Jackson and the Louisville Cardinals were expected to remain in the spotlight, but reality turned out differently. Not only did they miss out on the ACC championship, but they were also overshadowed by their conference rivals, Clemson and Florida State. In the end, they found themselves heading to the Citrus Bowl.
Not the Orange Bowl, but the Citrus Bowl.
In the Citrus Bowl, Jackson would face another defensive powerhouse, the LSU Tigers—the same team that nearly stopped Lance earlier in the season.
LSU's season had been filled with ups and downs. Despite having a talented roster, they struggled with bad luck and couldn't find the formula for success. Ranked nineteenth in the NCAA, they didn't receive an invitation to one of the top six bowl games and were sent to the Citrus Bowl instead.
Jackson was bewildered by how his season had turned out.
He had dreamed of facing off against Lance in the national championship and winning both the title and the Heisman Trophy. But now, he didn't even have the chance to compete against Lance. Instead, Lance and Deshaun Watson were heading to the national championship, and Jackson had lost control of the Heisman race.
In a daze, Jackson could still hear Lance's words echoing in his mind:
"Let's see you make it to the national championship."
Jackson had planned to defeat Lance on the biggest stage and claim the Heisman in the process, but now he didn't even have the right to stand in front of Lance.
As it turned out, the joke was on him.
How had things ended up like this?
But the nightmare wasn't over.
In the Citrus Bowl, LSU's defense rose to the occasion, suffocating Jackson and his offense throughout the game. The rising star found himself completely lost.
Final score: 29–9.
LSU claimed the Citrus Bowl title, ending their season on a high note, while Jackson, who had burst onto the scene earlier in the season, left empty-handed, his season ending in disappointment.
But did anyone care?
No, not really.
After the loss, Jackson had expected to be bombarded with questions from reporters, asking him endlessly about Lance and Watson—questions that had become tiresome. But as he looked around the player's tunnel and saw only a few reporters, he actually felt a pang of disappointment. Was this normal?
Meanwhile, where was Lance?
"Lance, are you planning to enter the draft?"
"Lance, who do you think is Alabama's biggest challenger in the national championship?"
"Lance, do you think this year's championship game will be a repeat of last year?"
A crowd of reporters, cameras, and microphones surrounded Lance, making it impossible for him to move as he stood near the team bus.
Looking around, Lance was stunned. "Wow, so many people."
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Powerstones?
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