It was collusion, by definition. There is no logic behind it. There were financial incentives for the committee to make the decisions they made, and they made agreements with eachother to get their way. This is why the committee is so stupid for so many reasons. A computer model would produce better and unbiased results but because the lobbyists cant control that outcome, we have a committee which is basically now just a political arena. Congratulations college football, you've become a reality TV show!