It was in 2000 and it was brilliant. They I believe had 32 teams and it used actual bowl locations for the playoffs. They called it the Bowl Playoff System or something like that. I want that one in. Not a 16 team cap.
I'm not sure if the deal they made with the BCS is the reason it is gone, but I always played with that mode and man was it fun.
So please, please, please, EA,
BRING BACK THE BOWL PLAYOFF SYSTEM!
Don't just put in playoffs, give us the one you used back in 2000. Great mode. Even more, you could start your dynasty off as a bowl dynasty and then switch to playoffs the next year or after a few years. Great feature I really would love to see return.