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Kicking it off with my ideal choice, the 5+1+2 x 5 model.  You have 20 bowls, divided into 5 tiers.  At each tier you have the best available from each conference (as determined by standing/CFP ranking), plus the best available Group of 5 champ.  Then you play the bowls in ascending tiers, with the top tier doubling as an unseeded (for the bowl round) playoff

I think this makes games relevant all the way through the season, even if you are out of the race, if you are playing for a tangibly better bowl.  It also clearly tiers the bowls, both by participants and date.  And it makes all of the Group of 5 championship game for a bowl game.

DECEMBER 24	.
MUSIC CITY		PENN STATE (7-5) vs. Tennessee (7-5)
ALAMO		PURDUE (8-4) vs. Kansas State (7-5)
DECEMBER 25
POTATO		Virginia Tech (6-6) vs. Northern Illinois (9-4)
HAWAII		UCLA (8-4) vs. WISCONSIN (8-4)
DECEMBER 27
COPPER		#21 Arkansas (8-4) vs. Iowa State (7-5)
LAS VEGAS		MINNESOTA (8-4) vs. Utah State (10-3)
DECEMBER 28
TANGERINE		#25 Texas A&M (8-4) vs. Miami (7-5)
HOLIDAY		#24 San Diego State (11-2) vs. Arizona State (8-4)
DECEMBER 29
LIBERTY		#19 Clemson (9-3) vs. #20 Houston (11-2)
INDEPENDENCE		#16 Oklahoma (10-2) vs. #22 Kentucky (9-3)
DECEMBER 30
GATOR		#15 IOWA (10-3) vs. #18 NC State (9-3)
SUN		Washington State (7-5) vs. UTSA (12-1)
DECEMBER 31
COTTON		#9 Oklahoma State (11-2) vs. #14 Oregon (10-3)
PEACH		#17 Wake Forest (10-3) vs. #23 Louisiana (12-1)
JANUARY 1
OUTBACK		#10 MICHIGAN STATE (10-2) vs. #13 BYU (10-2)
CITRUS		#6 OHIO STATE (10-2) vs. #8 Ole Miss (10-2)
ROSE		#2 MICHIGAN (12-1) vs. #11 Utah (10-3)
ORANGE		#3 Georgia (12-1) vs. #12 Pittsburgh (11-2)
FIESTA		#4 Cincinnati (13-0) vs. #7 Baylor (11-2)
SUGAR		#1 Alabama (12-1) vs. #5 Notre Dame (11-1)

Next is 2004, being the last year of the 4 bowl BCS with a matching calendar to this year.

DECEMBER 14	.
NEW ORLEANS		#23 Louisiana (12-1) vs. Western Kentucky (8-5)
DECEMBER 21
CHAMPS SPORTS		Miami (7-5) vs. Central Florida (8-4)
DECEMBER 22
GMAC		Central Michigan (8-4) vs. UAB (8-4)
DECEMBER 23
FORT WORTH		UTEP (7-5) vs. Kent State (7-6)
LAS VEGAS		#13 BYU (10-2) vs. Oregon State (7-5)
DECEMBER 24
HAWAII		Air Force (9-3) vs. Marshall (7-5)
DECEMBER 27
MPC COMPUTERS		Boise State (7-5) vs. East Carolina (7-5)
MOTOR CITY		PENN STATE (7-5) vs. Northern Illinois (9-4)
DECEMBER 28
INDEPENDENCE		Kansas State (7-5) vs. Mississippi State (7-5)
INSIGHT		Arizona State (8-4) vs. SMU (8-4)
DECEMBER 29
HOUSTON		Nevada (8-4) vs. Liberty (7-5)
ALAMO		WISCONSIN (8-4) vs. Iowa State (7-5)
DECEMBER 30
CONTINENTAL TIRE		#17 Wake Forest (10-3) vs. #20 Houston (11-2)
EMERALD		San Diego State (11-2) vs. Army (8-4)
HOLIDAY		#14 Oregon (10-3) vs. #16 Oklahoma (10-2)
SILICON VALLEY		Washington State (7-5) vs. Fresno State (9-3)
DECEMBER 31
MUSIC CITY		PURDUE (8-4) vs. Tennessee (7-5)
SUN		MINNESOTA (8-4) vs. UCLA (8-4)
LIBERTY		UTSA (12-1) vs. Utah State (10-3)
PEACH		#18 NC State (9-3) vs. #21 Arkansas (8-4)
JANUARY 1
OUTBACK		#15 IOWA (10-3) vs. #22 Kentucky (9-3)
COTTON		#9 Oklahoma State (11-2) vs. #25 Texas A&M (8-4)
GATOR		#5 Notre Dame (11-1) vs. #19 Clemson (9-3)
CAPITAL ONE		#8 Ole Miss (10-2) vs. #10 MICHIGAN STATE (10-2)
ROSE		#6 OHIO STATE (10-2) vs. #11 Utah (10-3)
FIESTA		#4 Cincinnati (13-0) vs. #7 Baylor (11-2)
JANUARY 3
SUGAR		#3 Georgia (12-1) vs. #12 Pittsburgh (11-2)
JANUARY 4
ORANGE		#1 Alabama (12-1) vs. #2 MICHIGAN (12-1)

1993, under the Bowl Coalition

DECEMBER 17	.
LAS VEGAS		#23 Louisiana (12-1) vs. Northern Illinois (9-4)
DECEMBER 24
JOHN HANCOCK		Kansas State (7-5) vs. Miami (7-5)
DECEMBER 25
ALOHA		#16 Oklahoma (10-2) vs. Fresno State (10-3)
DECEMBER 28
LIBERTY		#22 Kentucky (9-3) vs. Army (8-4)
DECEMBER 29
COPPER		Iowa State (7-5) vs. Utah State (10-3)
DECEMBER 30
HOLIDAY		#13 BYU (10-2) vs. #15 IOWA (10-3)
FREEDOM		#24 San Diego State (11-2) vs. UCLA (8-4)
DECEMBER 31
INDEPENDENCE		UTSA (12-1) vs. PURDUE (8-4)
PEACH		#18 NC State (9-3) vs. #21 Arkansas (8-4)
GATOR		#17 Wake Forest (10-3) vs. #20 Houston (11-2)
ALAMO		Arizona State (8-4) vs. MINNESOTA (8-4)
JANUARY 1
HALL OF FAME		#10 MICHIGAN STATE (10-2) vs. #19 Clemson (9-3)
CITRUS		#3 Georgia (12-1) vs. #6 OHIO STATE (10-2)
FIESTA		#12 Pittsburgh (11-2) vs. #14 Oregon (10-3)
CARQUEST		#25 Texas A&M (8-4) vs. WISCONSIN (8-4)
COTTON		#5 Notre Dame (11-1) vs. #7 Baylor (11-2)
ROSE		#2 MICHIGAN (12-1) vs. #11 Utah (10-3)
ORANGE		#8 Ole Miss (10-2) vs. #9 Oklahoma State (11-2)
SUGAR		#1 Alabama (12-1) vs. #4 Cincinnati (13-0)

Well you'd have to get into changing the polls, which I'm not doing.   Those would be the top two available teams. And one year later Florida and Florida State rematched in a similar situation, when #2 ASU was locked into the Rose Bowl

Kicking it off with my ideal choice, the 5+1+2 x 5 model.  You have 20 bowls, divided into 5 tiers.  At each tier you have the best available from each conference (as determined by standing/CFP ranking), plus the best available Group of 5 champ.  Then you play the bowls in ascending tiers, with the top tier doubling as an unseeded (for the bowl round) playoff

I think this makes games relevant all the way through the season, even if you are out of the race, if you are playing for a tangibly better bowl.  It also clearly tiers the bowls, both by participants and date.  And it makes all of the Group of 5 championship game for a bowl game.

DECEMBER 24	.
MUSIC CITY		PENN STATE (7-5) vs. Tennessee (7-5)
ALAMO		PURDUE (8-4) vs. Kansas State (7-5)
DECEMBER 25
POTATO		Virginia Tech (6-6) vs. Northern Illinois (9-4)
HAWAII		UCLA (8-4) vs. WISCONSIN (8-4)
DECEMBER 27
COPPER		#21 Arkansas (8-4) vs. Iowa State (7-5)
LAS VEGAS		MINNESOTA (8-4) vs. Utah State (10-3)
DECEMBER 28
TANGERINE		#25 Texas A&M (8-4) vs. Miami (7-5)
HOLIDAY		#24 San Diego State (11-2) vs. Arizona State (8-4)
DECEMBER 29
LIBERTY		#19 Clemson (9-3) vs. #20 Houston (11-2)
INDEPENDENCE		#16 Oklahoma (10-2) vs. #22 Kentucky (9-3)
DECEMBER 30
GATOR		#15 IOWA (10-3) vs. #18 NC State (9-3)
SUN		Washington State (7-5) vs. UTSA (12-1)
DECEMBER 31
COTTON		#9 Oklahoma State (11-2) vs. #14 Oregon (10-3)
PEACH		#17 Wake Forest (10-3) vs. #23 Louisiana (12-1)
JANUARY 1
OUTBACK		#10 MICHIGAN STATE (10-2) vs. #13 BYU (10-2)
CITRUS		#6 OHIO STATE (10-2) vs. #8 Ole Miss (10-2)
ROSE		#2 MICHIGAN (12-1) vs. #11 Utah (10-3)
ORANGE		#3 Georgia (12-1) vs. #12 Pittsburgh (11-2)
FIESTA		#4 Cincinnati (13-0) vs. #7 Baylor (11-2)
SUGAR		#1 Alabama (12-1) vs. #5 Notre Dame (11-1)

I think I like this idea but I'm curious about a few specifics:

• Would the post-bowl playoff be four teams?  
• Would bowl losers be excluded?
• How, specifically, would playoff participants be selected post-bowls?  

As I see it, and assuming a 4-team post-bowl playoff you'd have three strata:

• Teams that could automatically get in by winning their bowl (Bama, M, UGA, Cincy, ND).  ND is included here because they are the first team out AND they are playing one of the teams that is "in" so with a win they effectively take Bama's spot.  
• Teams that have a shot with a win (tOSU, Baylor, Ole Miss, OkSU, MSU, Utah)*
• Everybody else

*Teams that have a shot are based on best case scenario which works out as follows:

• Bama/ND winner is in.  
• M, UGA, and Cincy are in if they win but if one, two, or three of them lose that opens up additional spots.  
• #6 tOSU is in if they win and one of M/UGA/Cincy loses.  
• #7 Baylor creates a spot by beating Cincy but that spot *MIGHT* go to tOSU if they also win.  
• #8 Ole Miss knocks out tOSU by winning but is probably still behind Baylor so they need either Utah to beat M or Pitt to beat UGA.  
• #9 OkSU would be behind the Bama/ND winner, the Cincy/Baylor winner, and the tOSU/Ole Miss winner but could get in if Georgia and Michigan both lost.  
• #10 MSU is same as OkSU except that they also need OkSU to lose.  
• #11 Utah creates a spot by taking out Michigan but would still be behind the Bama/ND, Cincy/Baylor, and tOSU/Ole Miss winners so they would also need Pitt to beat UGA.  

Ie, the Utah to the Playoff scenario is as follows:

• Utah beats Michigan
• Pitt beats Georgia
• OkSU loses to Oregon
• MSU loses to BYU (these last two *MIGHT* not be necessary because Utah's upset win over #2 Michigan might leap-frog them ahead of OkSU and MSU)

In that case the four CFP entrants would be:

• The Bama/ND winner
• The Cincy/Baylor winner
• The tOSU/Ole Miss winner
• Utah

No, the 4 BCS bowls are the playoffs

Ah, ok. So it is basically 5+1+2 but with an unseeded first round. Ok.

No, the 4 BCS bowls are the playoffs

Ok, so now I thought I understood it but then I ran into more confusion.  

Clarification:  
As I understand it you are using 5+1+2 at each level so first the playoff is seeded:

• All five P5 Champs (Bama, M, Baylor, Utah, Pitt)
• Highest ranked G5 Champ (Cincy)
• Two at-large so the next to highest ranked teams (UGA, ND)

At the next level you have the two 12/31 bowls (Cotton, Peach) and the two non-CFP NYD bowls (Outback, Citrus).  At this level we have the next best from the categories so:

• The highest ranked remaining team from each P5 conference (tOSU, OleMiss, OkSU, Oregon, Wake)
• The highest ranked remaining G5 (BYU)
• The next two highest ranked remaining teams (MSU, Louisiana?)

Louisiana is where I'm getting confused here.  Wouldn't the next highest ranked team be #15 Iowa?  

Then the next level should be the 12/29 and 12/30 bowls and should be the next best from the categories so:

• The highest ranked remaining team from each P5 conference (IA* or ??, 

Ok, I'm lost.  

I *THINK* that part of the source of my confusion is that I'm using rankings and it looks like you are using league records, right?  I guess that would be ok because the two at-large spots in each tier would make up for any glaring issues there.  What do you do for the at-large spots once you run out of ranked teams?  

Also the Louisiana thing?  Why are there two G5's in the second level?  

I don't mean to be pedantic.  I really do like this idea but I'm a bit confused about the specifics.