"The gods of the NBA have decided that they want stars to be stars, but defense makes the college game more of a team sport, " says Dave Odom, who coached Duncan at Wake Forest.

WSJ: NCAA Final Four: Kentucky's Anthony Davis Looks to Break the Curse of the College Superstar

The following season, the College Football Playoff will launch the first-ever four-team playoff for the sport's top division, which is made up of 10 conferences and four independent teams, the most prominent of them Notre Dame.

WSJ: BCS, College Football: Goodbye, 'BCS'; Hello, 'College Football Playoff'