As the Penn State Nittany Lions prepare to compete in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl against the Clemson Tigers, a matchup that would've seemed like the National Championship Game – or at worst, a New Year's Six semifinal – if presented to fans back in August, there are 12 other teams preparing to take part in the 12th edition of the College Football Playoff.
It took just one year of the 12-team format for everybody to realize just how flawed the system was. Sure, it's still a bit problematic, with two presumed blowouts on tap this Saturday in Eugene and Oxford due to the inclusion of two Group of Five teams in this year's bracket, but it's still better than it was a year ago, when the top four conference champions were guaranteed first-round byes.