I go with 7 teams and give the top seed a bye.
#1 Clemson ACC
#2 Oklahoma Big 12
#3 Georgia SEC
#4 Alabama - At-large
#5 Ohio State Big Ten
#6 USC PAC 12
#7 Highest Rated G5 team if they are ranked in the top 15. UCF. If not in top 15, Wisconsin is the next at-large.
This leaves incentive for a strong schedule and winning to get the bye.
Neutral Site bidding for the three Quarter-final games.
If you are going this way, stick with 8 teams. Why should you give the top seed the added advantage of having an extra week of rest? You'd have an extra team that would otherwise have not been considered.
I do get the point that in football, there are huge disparity in talent levels between the upper echelon teams and the rest. Playing an eight team or sixteen playoffs may only slightly change the trajectory of the eventual national champion. It leaves the door open for a UCF or another up and coming team that have an unusual run. But, it may also put more drama, interest, and excitement. Football is more tougher than basketball logistically. You have considerably more moving parts to plan and execute around.
The reality is that the top 10-20 teams nationally get the bulk of the top echelon athletes. If you look at football history, there are teams that rise to prominence and stay there. Others fade away. Teams like Wisconsin become consistent, but never quite break it to the next higher tier level. Alabama has dominated under Nick Saban
So, yeah mindful of this reality, we need to keep the rest of the college football world happy with all the conference titles and Bowls. But, leave the door open for an Oregon in the Chip Kelly era to raise some excitement.
The historical record gives a clue that there will be shifts in who will be a dominant power. Some by tradition that self-perpetuate getting top level recruits. Many are from areas of recruiting hotbeds. Nebraska through its affiliation with the Beg 8 and by prevailing eligibility standards.
I am sure as the population centers shift due natural or man-made disasters, job trends - we'll see a changing of the fortunes of college football teams. Stuff like green house warming, more intensive worsening weather patterns like super hurricanes continuing in high frequency of occurrences, continuous flooding of coastal areas, worsening and frequent wild fires, volcanic eruptions, major earthquakes, expanding sinkholes swallowing up a big chunk of a State, plagues, Kim Jung Un & Dennis Rodman, yet to be named diseases, etc..., Some may be brought down by criminal indictments. Did I cover everything possible?
Between 1940 through 2016, Minnesota has won three national titles. It may be entirely possible that there may be more, but I will long be part of recycled material on the ground.
National Football Champions Since 1940:
2016 Clemson
2015 Alabama
2014 Ohio State
2013 Florida State
2012 Alabama
2011 Alabama
2010 Auburn
2009 Alabama
2008 Florida
2007 Louisiana State
2006 Florida
2005 Texas
2004 Southern California
2003 Louisiana State, Southern California
2002 Ohio State
2001 Miami (Fla.)
2000 Oklahoma
1999 Florida State
1998 Tennessee
1997 Michigan, Nebraska
1995 Nebraska
1994 Nebraska
1993 Florida St.
1992 Alabama
1991 Washington, Miami (Fla.)
1990 Colorado, Georgia Tech
1989 Miami (Fla.)
1988 Notre Dame
1987 Miami (Fla.)
1986 Penn St.
1985 Oklahoma
1984 Brigham Young
1983 Miami (Fla.)
1982 Penn St.
1981 Clemson
1980 Georgia
1979 Alabama
1978 Alabama, Southern California
1977 Notre Dame
1976 Pittsburgh
1975 Oklahoma
1974 Southern California, Oklahoma
1973 Notre Dame, Alabama
1972 Southern California
1971 Nebraska
1970 Nebraska, Texas, Ohio St.
1969 Texas
1968 Ohio St.
1967 Southern California
1966 Notre Dame, Michigan St.
1965 Michigan St., Alabama
1964 Alabama, Arkansas, Notre Dame
1963 Texas
1962 Southern California
1961 Alabama, Ohio St.
1960 Minnesota, Mississippi
1959 Syracuse
1958 LSU, Iowa
1957 Ohio St., Auburn
1956 Oklahoma
1955 Oklahoma
1954 UCLA, Ohio St.
1953 Maryland
1952 Michigan St.
1951 Tennessee
1950 Oklahoma
1949 Notre Dame
1948 Michigan AP
1947 Notre Dame
1946 Notre Dame
1945 Army
1944 Army
1943 Notre Dame
1942 Ohio St.
1941 Minnesota
1940 Minnesota
Source:
http://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/college-football-national-championship-history