re: Why not 2017?

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How? Ask Penn State what winning a conference championship did for them. Ohio State still went to the playoffs.

It certainly didn't hurt Ohio States chances.

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Take a look at that 2017 schedule again for UGA... now compare it to tOSU's 2016 schedule.

Ohio State notable wins: Michigan (ranked 6th as of week 15 - before bowl season), Oklahoma on the road (7th), Wisconsin on the road (8th)

Suffice it to say that ours looks a little more Iowa 2015 than Ohio State 2016.

UGA notable games in 2017:

@Notre Dame - maybe? They'll likely be fairly hyped going into the game.

@Auburn - Golden Child new QB supposed to be the cure to Gus' woes... if it works out then catching them late in the season and pulling out the W could look pretty good... but no guarantees that Gus isn't already fired by the game next year either if it doesn't go well

@UF - probably the next biggest game on the schedule if everything goes "right" for UGA. It's also possible that this is the best team on the schedule. Thus losing it, won't do much for our chances

Beyond that, it's a mushy puddle of Miss St, @Tenn, South Carolina... We just don't have the luxury of losing UF and getting a pass in my opinion. In years past, we would have gotten deference just due to general strength of schedule, but the East is so far down, the only way you make it to the CFP is either undefeated with a close loss to Bama in the SECCG (and enough less interesting teams out there) or win it IMO.

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A one loss SEC team would have a better chance of going to the playoffs than a two loss team...or even a one loss team with that last loss being in the championship game. The championship game loss is just too fresh in the voters minds to send them to the playoffs.

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Bad assumption is bad. This statement is likely only true if that one loss SEC team is from the west right now. Example Bama wins SEC, LSU or Auburn wins everything else on their schedule but loses to Bama in a 1 score game. Lone exception I can think of right now would maybe be UF, and only if Florida State is very good in a season (unlikely, but South Carolina has similar possibility with Clemson, but would have to be in a good west rotation year for them). Our Ga Tech rivalry game doesn't do us any favors there.

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Ok. We disagree. I guess I just want to have a shot at the National Championship more than you two do. I know this sounds obvious, but apparently you two do not grasp that you cannot win the National Championship if you are not in the playoffs.

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I fully grasp this. I'm explaining to you why your hypothetical scenario doesn't work. Additionally, *even* if it did work, we certainly wouldn't get the OSU treatment and get to avoid Bama. I can all but guarantee you that the committee would say "they didn't play Bama, so we're ok with that matchup". Almost only scenario we avoid Bama in first round of CFP would be if they were a 3 seed somehow (or not in it... ).

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Which do you think Ohio State would have preferred? Getting beat by Penn State, but going to the playoffs....of beating Penn State and not going to the playoffs.

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Not grounded in reality... OSUs win resume determined getting in. Beating Penn State would have been a win more condition. I suppose they could have beat Penn St, then lost in the Conference championship game, but pretty sure that even then, they likely still get in as a one loss team with the wins they had. If you're magically re-inventing the schedule to make the hypothetical happen, what's the point. I think they take the season with wins over the 6, 7, and 8 ranked teams and keep recruiting at the level their at. The entry in the CFP clearly didn't do shite for them... 31-0

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Go to the playoffs means, money, prestige, recruiting...do you think recruits care if you beat Florida more than playing in the playoffs?

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If anything, that CFP performance was embarrassing, possibly making the committee less likely to take non-conf champion again anyways.

Ultimately, missing Bama in the SECCG to likely see them in the CFP is just robbing Peter to pay Paul... You want to be the best, you're going to have to start by not being afraid of the best.

For Kirby and UGA to start competing for SECCG/CFPs every year, we essentially need to win these 4 games every year: Florida, Tennessee, Auburn, South Carolina. If you do that, you would have to lose 2 games to some combination of Missouri, Kentucky, Vandy, and a rotating west team in order to miss Atlanta. The reality for Bama, the list is almost shorter. The 2 "must win" games are LSU and Auburn... after that, who is scary? Occasional threats from a Mississippi school or aTm/Arky, but the reality is cover the first 2 and the others you should be able to strictly out talent in most years.

The other key to those 4 teams that we play every year? Typically they make up some of our top competition for recruits, whether they're attempting to come into the state to poach or we're doing the poaching in their area. Win those matchups and recruiting should continue to pace ahead as well.

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Bad assumption is bad.

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Not a bad assumption. There is precedent. Remember when we won the east, lost to Alabama and Florida went to the Sugar Bowl? 2012 still sticks in my craw. However, the Sugar Bowl is not the playoffs....and I am glad in that scenario that we went to the SECCG, but it does point out hat not going to the SECCG worked out for Florida.

As for the schedule? I think Miss St, Auburn and Florida will have very good records. I mean, Ohio State went to the playoffs with pretty weak records before, so it certainly didn't hurt them.
However, my scenario was merely speculation and those arguing against the scenario is changing it. Getting back to my original scenario...which way do you think we would have a better chance of making the playoffs? Losing to Alabama in the SECCG, or losing one game...not going to the SECCG? no team has ever gone to the playoffs with 2 losses, and we haven't gone through a season undefeated since 1980.