Readers talk Jolie's 'do, college football playoff

	It's a hairdo like this that makes you question whether Angelina Jolie is really better off as a brunette ... Radar Magazine
	That and the fact that Charlize Theron has gone from blonde to black and hasn't experienced any dropoff. Dark Horizons

The other day I wrote a column in which I stated that college football, and its method of determining a champion, is satisfactory to me. To illustrate my point I used the example of Angelina Jolie being better as a brunette (her natural hair color) than as a blonde (her Life or Something Like It color), even though blondes always seem to draw more attention.

The very next day, something occurred that rocked my faith in my assertion. What happened? I spotted the cover of Radar magazine: Scary is right. Then, compounding my newfound ambivalence, I saw a promo for Aeon Flux, in which Charlize Theron goes from blonde to raven-haired with no apparent dropoff.

So, yes, I'm a little shaken in my beliefs -- about Jolie, that is. I'm still rock-solid about college football being fine just the way it is.

Since that column was posted, approximately 200 letters have filled my inbox from all over the country, as well as Mexico and Panama. Never have I gotten such a response on a story, which tells me either 1) college football is alive and well or 2) some of Jon Wertheim's readers aren't paying attention.

Really, 200 letters (none, regrettably, from an "Ange in Hollywood.") The breakdown? A little more than half of you (let's say 54 percent) agreed with me, while the rest just as staunchly defended the position that the sport needs a playoff.

About the letters:

Thank you to everyone who wrote. I appreciate that you take the time to do so. The shorter your letter, the better the chance that I will reply.

I'm keeping all the e-mails. I'm filing away the "Pro-playoff" replies. I've already printed out the "Amen, brother" e-mails and have taped them to my bedroom ceiling. They're fun to wake up to, although I am concerned about the smudge marks on the mirror.

Herewith, the best of the "My Favorite Brunette" e-mails, along with my rebuttals (the privilege of having your own column):

Well said, and I've often said that the day a fan from a team in the hunt says "It was just one game" is the day all that is great about college football will die. I'm a 'Bama fan and I'd rather see us screwed than see a playoff system.
-- Jason, Sardis, Ala.

I'm with you, Jason. And now that the Crimson Tide and Florida State have agreed to play in 2007, I can almost guaran-damn-tee you that should 'Bama go 12-0 two years from now, they'll be in the BCS title game. In fact, I'm penciling them in as my preseason Nos. 1 and 2 on guts alone.

Sorry, John, your logic is flawed. Flawed argument one: A playoff would not pitt No. 1 vs. No. 2.
-- Thomas, Simi Valley, Calif.

I just love this because it's the only time all season we'll read "pitt No. 1" in a sentence.

You absolutely nailed it. I love the importance of every single regular-season college football game. I love the fact that a team with national title aspirations can't really afford to lose even ONE game, let alone a few. I love the fact that I'm compelled to clear my schedule to watch Texas-Ohio State on a Saturday night in September.
-- Bill, Hollis, N.H.

I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts. I love that -- oh, I'm sorry. When Harry Met Sally is on TBS right now.

The whole comparison to March Madness is terrible. Apples and oranges, my friend. Apples and oranges.
-- Rudy, Tempe, Ariz.

Rudy is taking issue with my comparing the number of times The Associated Press Nos. 1 and 2 met in the NCAA hoops final as opposed to the BCS championship game. I'll grant Rudy that AP does not stand for "Absolutely Positive." I'll take him one further: I promise not to compare the NCAAs to the BCS if he promises not to insist that college football needs a playoff by using March Madness as an example.

You appear to be a young man. Have you ever considered serious work?
-- Nick, Chicago

I spent a summer unloading 18-wheelers filled with UPS packages -- in a warehouse in Phoenix. Now that was work.

Using your logic, the Super Bowl did not yield a true NFL championship last year ...
-- Douglas, Houston, Texas

People, people, people. This isn't sports imperialism. The NFL is fine as it is, and March Madness is fine the way it is. I don't want to change the NFL. What gets me is why NFL people are so eager to make college football conform to their standards (what I like to refer to as the "Mike & the Mad Dog Effect," wherein someone confesses to being 'not much of a college guy', but then pontificates on how it could be better).

Have you noticed something about NFL fans? Almost every one of them I meet is in a fantasy league. You know why college football isn't big on fantasy leagues? Because the games themselves are satisfying enough. NFL fantasy league types remind me of that Seinfeld episode where George Costanza has to eat while having sex. The sex just isn't enough for him any more.