Problems need solving. Thus, the BCS needs solving. It’s time for the Legionnaires to come together to create the solution. It’s time to work out the issues and make a playoff feasible enough that university presidents nationwide will do an about-face from the excuses and accept that the BCS was stillborn and isn’t ever going to come to life.

To get things started, some of the issues that need ironing out are:

1. What to do with the bowls? There are some details here beyond just the matter of their continuing existence. How do you time a playoff and existing bowls? Should they overlap or not? Do you use the big bowls as part of the playoff or just sack them?
2. How many teams should be in the playoff? What (or who) will determine the teams that get in and which teams play each other?
3. How big can a playoff be without compromising the regular season?
4. How will the money work? We’ve got to solve the issues of revenue distribution to teams and conferences, television rights, team travel and other expenses, sponsorship guidelines and rights, and that’s just the beginning…
5. When should the playoff take place? The main issues here are schools holding finals, maintaining an amiable relationship with NFL by not stepping on Big Brother’s broadcast toes, weather concerns tied to where the games will be played, etc.

I expect this discussion will last a few weeks at least, so everybody do your homework and bring solid ideas. The winds of change are blowing heartily now and we must seize the opportunity to add our collective voice in bringing The Machine down!

Pardon the above French, but after seeing some of the piece combinations and other atrocities from some notable schools this season, a revisitation of the subject is in order. I am appalled at the flagrant lack of sense by some of these programs. Uniforms that were previously teetering on the edge of yuck have now been flung so far over the line that we need to publicly humiliate their creators:

• Louisville’s normal uniforms at home and on the road are an attempt-at-modernization-gone-wrong, but still bearable. The all-reds are jarring at first, then your eyes adjust and everything is fine if you have a strong stomach. Then they had to come out with all-black duds that completely ignore the fact that Cardinals are red. Did anyone see Louisville’s grotesque pairing of the red jerseys and black pants last weekend? How does that even happen? Who gets paid to come up with these atrocities?
• Boise State’s visual assault on mankind has been mentioned on this site before, but without a good picture. Brace yourself, then take a look at this and this. Now they will showcase their ugliness for the entire nation to behold in agony at the Fiesta Bowl. Here’s hoping some of that BCS money will go towards a uni redesign.
• TCU displays ugliness in subtler ways, like the little white triangles around the neck and sleeves. The Horned Frog logo on the helmet could be ranked in the top-10 ugliest helmet logos. That grey, squatty frog looks not the least bit imposing, but quite comical. Mixing purple and black was never a particularly striking look, either. They might as well be called the TCU Internal Hemorrhages.
• Wyoming is an easy target. Brown almost never works anyway, but when paired with anything remotely yellow, even the most straight-laced observer will have a hard time not snickering like 14-year-old. It started ugly, evidence by these throwbacks, and has remained ugly. The Pokes even tried to modernize the color combo a few years back, ignoring the obvious rule that you can’t pull of brown and yellow EVER. Nothing will help fix this.
• Illinois has just plain ugly uniforms, as well. When orange gets that artificial, nothing good will ever come of it.
• Clemson has made the same mistake as Illinois, occasionally bustin’ out the all-orange look. When the colors get that intense, it helps to throw in a little white to spare the eyes. The all-blues (can’t find a picture, but I know they exist - if you find a pic, please send to me), or any of the blue pieces, should be burned immediately.
• Virginia Tech probably captains the All-Ugly-Colors Team. The degree to which these bad boys are ugly is directly proportional to the degree of orange that makes it into the kit. For evidence, I present this photo. Notice that the RB doesn’t look that bad, but the QB in the background with the orange undershirt looks hideous. Notice also how the orange socks destroy the relatively tame road kit. With white in the mix, both of those are only average-bad, but the Hokies couldn’t resist taking it too far (a recurring theme among these distinguished institutions) and busted out too much maroon.
• Oregon. That’s all I have to say and everyone automatically knows what I’m talking about. Nike’s money does weird things to people’s brains. Here’s the infamous preseason unveiling shot, plus a closer shot of the black kit. Let us give thanks that neither the white or yellow helmet actually made it onto the field.

Alright, Legionnaires. Rank your top 5 and post them here. Points will be awarded based on rank and a special ceremony/post will honor our distinguished Top 3.