ESPN's Stephen A. Smith stands firm on flawed College Football Playoff system, uses Ohio State as scapegoat

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith was not a fan of the College Football Playoff's first round over the weekend.

Smith, a host on "First Take," passionately said the postseason format needs to be significantly changed moving forward. The playoffs comprise 12 teams, with four conference champions earning a first-round bye and an at-large Group of Five team making the field. This includes teams getting to host first-round playoff games, as was the case for Ohio State, Penn State, Notre Dame and Texas.

With the Buckeyes' 42-17 win against Tennessee, which arguably served as validation for coach Ryan Day's ability to win games that matter, Smith is frustrated that a rematch of an October Oregon Ducks victory against Ohio State will take place in the Rose Bowl instead of the national championship next month.

"What we have now is, Ohio State beats down Tennessee, and now they gotta go up against Oregon, who's the No. 1 team in the nation, in the quarterfinals," Smith said. "Last time we saw them against each other in Oregon earlier in the season, they beat Ohio State 32-31 in the last minute of the game. Everybody was looking forward to that [rematch] as a potential national championship matchup if Ohio State had handled their business."

Although Ohio State came away victorious, Smith still criticizes Day for not living up to expectations over the last few seasons.

"He's now 67-10 as a head coach [at Ohio State]," Smith said. "That's a phenomenal record. We know he can coach his butt off. Here's the reality: Jim Tressel won there, Urban Meyer won there. When Ryan Day got the job, they hadn't won a national championship [since 2014]. They hadn't won the Big Ten since 2020, and you got four straight losses to Michigan. When you get the Ohio State job, your job is two-fold: beat Michigan and make sure you compete for national championships."

Smith was puzzled by Day's 13-10 loss to Michigan when factoring in a $20 million NIL roster and 11 NFL-caliber players on the same team.

"What possible excuse do you have?" Smith asked of Day. "Not winning. Not beating Michigan. Not winning a Big Ten title and not competing for a national championship."

For now, Day attempts to continue his revenge tour with an upset against Oregon, which, in some respects, may put him back in the good graces of the college football community, including national pundits like Smith.

The Rose Bowl commences on New Year's Day, with kickoff set for 5 p.m. ET.