I can come up with an argument for a different "4th team in" last year , but it certainly isn't a conspiracy.
The way to fix this, at least to really minimize the chance that a team that could win is by using the EPP , Esso's Playoff Plan,
- Take it to 8 teams. - Force each power conference to send their Champion (let the conferences choose how that is determined, but that criteria must be known before the season ) - Force the top 2 ranked independents to play a game on championship week before the selection show. - Use the committee to select the top 3 non-Power 5 teams to fill out the field - seed the teams based on the AP poll