The "other argument" appears to be the "body of work" or "merit" award, which lends itself to Notre Dame playing in the 2013 BCSNCG instead of Oregon, Texas A&M, etc. In a playoff, ND may have gotten in (because of a good season, which you want to reward and that's fine) but would have been eliminated in an earlier round of the playoffs. A team that lostone or two games (aTm, Bama) but persevered and even improved may well be the best team at the end of the season. This is, to me, the better scenario. To me the "best team" is the team that, if put on a neutral team, would beat every other team. In your scenario ND deserved to be in the title game, but I do not think they qualify as the "best team"... a playoff system would more accurately determine the best team. Will upsets happen? Sure. It's okay in basketball. Why not football too?