Whether the bowl games should continue, or be replaced by playoff games, has been a hot topic for college football fans since bowl games heightened in popularity during the ’50s.

The NCAA Division 1 football uses the BCS system to determine the National Champion. The system is unique in comparison to other college sports. Instead of having all teams compete in a playoff tournament, they assigned a bowl game. Which bowl game each team goes to is decided by a system of polls answered by experts and formulas that determine the top two teams in the nation.

“I’d rather watch bowl games than [wait through] playoffs,” said junior Veronica Aguilar. “All the playoff games would take too long.”

From the first Rose Bowl game in 1930 to the 35 games schedule for 2010, people have taken opposing stances on the Bowl Game vs. Playoff controversy.  Bowl games are more popular among coaching staffs in the NCAA, while many fans fight for playoffs. Fans would prefer that teams play a variety of other teams for the National Champion title, whereas coaches would prefer the opportunity to prepare to face off against just one team rather than generically planning for a larger quantity of games.

“Playoffs would be way better, because there would be more games [to watch],” said junior Sam Halle.

Bowl games sometimes take the excitement, and the possibility of a big upset, away from a team’s post-season experience. The excitement of a tournament is exemplified every March, when madness breaks out all across America for the NCAA Men’s Division 1 Basketball Championship, dubbed March Madness.

For both football and basketball, it takes a month to determine the National Champion team. The difference is that basketball teams take part in a month’s worth of games leading up to the National Championship. College football is different because bowl games do not feature a process of elimination leading up to the National Championship; instead, the two teams featured in this game are chosen based on regular season play, not a knock-out tournament.

While 68 other teams get to play in bowl games, they have no chance of advancing past that bowl. This differs from what players who advance to the National Football League will see in post-season play, as they also use a knock-out tournament to decide the winner of the championship.

However, it’s pretty apparent that no matter how the champion is decided—through bowl games or a playoff tournament—college football fans will be rooting for their favorite teams regardless.

“All of the teams are doing well this season,” said junior Michael Kenefick. “I hope it’s going to be a good one.”