It’s crazy how the 5 and 6 seeds have an easier path to the semifinals. Yes, they didn’t get a bye, but they got to host a game (which weren’t close) and then get an easier opponent in the quarterfinals than the 1 and 2 seeds. If conference champions were given an automatic bid but not a first-round bye, and chalk prevailed in the first round, the quarterfinal matchups would have looked like this:

    •    Oregon vs. Indiana

    •    Georgia vs. Tennessee

    •    Texas vs. Ohio State

    •    Penn State vs. Notre Dame

This setup would give real value to the #1 seed and avoids giving the #5 and #6 seeds an advantage, unlike the current format. If this isn’t addressed, the #1 seed will continue to get screwed year after year.