College football is a flawed system that's being solved through capitalist logic, but there's a more organic structure that makes more sense and would provide a better experience and product for everyone (except a few dozen millionaires).
The four-team playoff and 40 additional bowl games are awarded to teams that qualify from this pool:
Some teams are abandoning traditions that are a century long so they can chase TV money, leaving behind an uneven distribution.
*Oregon State and Washington State will play Mountain West schedules in 2024.
With more restrictions on the runaway greed and more sensible streaming solutions, college football could maintain its rich history and regional roots.
Building on some of the implicit structures that have emerged with "sister" conferences, they could double down with European football-style promotion/relegation between conference tiers.
And we could build a ladder from junior college to power five, and keep the American dream alive. Here's what I would do.