The question of who plays whom in college football is a lot trickier than it sounds. It drove the last wave of conference realignment, and it may come roaring back next month, with the NCAA leadership deciding whether to offer its five power conferences more autonomy, since conference commissioners have threatened to break away from the NCAA if the new governance structure is voted down.

What a "Division IV" in college sports would look like is still anyone's guess. But two Ohio State sports researchers have an...