Anyone who follows college football this year knows that the two best conferences in the land were the Big 12 and the SEC. It's been that way most of the year and with one week to go in the season, the SEC has the #1 and the #4 teams in the land with Alabama and Florida. The Big 12 is even more impressive with 3 teams in the Top 10 including Oklahoma at #2 and Texas at #3.
The coming weekend will feature the SEC Championship Game, and the winner of the Florida/Alabama match up will almost certainly represent the SEC in the BCS Title Game in January. This weekend will also see the Big 12 Championship Game. And the winner of that game should be their opponent, right?
Except it's gonna feature the wrong 2 teams. Texas, Texas Tech and Oklahoma all play in the Big 12 South. They are all 11-1. Texas lost to Texas Tech. Texas Tech lost to Oklahoma. Oklahoma lost to Texas. But because of the alignment of the Big 12, Oklahoma (remember, they lost to Texas) will play Missouri (9-3) of the much weaker Big 12 North for the Big 12 Championship.
Hopefully Oklahoma will crush Mizzou this weekend to avoid a potential BCS Mess. Because if they lose...well, what the fuck happens then? Will Texas move up to #2 in the nation without having won their own conference? Will USC, who only has to play UCLA (4-7) this weekend, vault past Texas putting them into the BCS Championship Game? What if they lose? Does that open the door for #6 Penn State? Or undefeated #7 Utah?
This is one of those years that the current BCS situation won't result in the two best teams in the nation playing against each other. I just know it. Especially with 3 of the best teams playing in the same division in the same conference. It just begs for a playoff situation. And then there are Utah, Boise State and Ball State all finishing the regular season undefeated. What about them?
I think we are going to see Florida vs. Oklahoma in the BCS game. I hope we do. But it could be Alabama vs. Texas just as easily. And that would be a shame since Texas didn't even get to play in their own conference's Championship Game.
Feh.
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19 comments:
Until there is some type of playoff system, there will always be doubters of the National Champion. TT lost out due to their implosion but it's a shame that they will play in a non-BCS bowl when many teams that they could beat handily will play in bigger bowls.
Evyl - TT is easily one of the best teams in the country. The loss to OU as awful, but each one of those three teams lost to one of the other. No way, right now, to tell which team is better. No way.
Tha's just fucked up. I remember a few years ago Auburn went 13 & 0, but WEREN'T recognized as National Champions, A team that had lost once became National Champs. Personally, I hope Florida kicks the shit out of the Crimson Turd this weekend.
As a long-time Auburn fan, of course I'm with Heff. Especially when it comes to Florida whacking Alabama.
That being said, the way this stupid BCS system is right now, the SEC champion should be in the pseudo championship game no matter how many losses they have.
Somewhere, in an old history book, I found out that in the past, it wasn't about who was top of the heap, it was all about doing your best and having pizza and beer with the opposing team after the game.....seriously...I looked it up.
Heff - Me too! I don't know how that team lost to Ole Miss. They just seem so dominant right now.
ajooja - Except that this year the Big 12 was just as good, if not better. We'll see how it plays out.
Bruce - There are still rivalries like that now. But the big boys play to see who is number 1 in all the land. Nothing wrong with that either.
i cant even come up with a witty comment about this. college football does nothing for me.
I am at a loss for a witty comment too, mainly because i have no clue what you are talking about!!! I did not understand one word you wrote in this post!! To me it makes no sense!!
Please, your next post should include talk about manicures and shopping!!! Oh, recipes too!!!
Thanks!!!
Slyde - that's why you will always be merely half a man.
Michelle - I'm sorry, I didn't understand a word of your comment.
This shit is a mess.
Hook 'em Horns!!!!
Wow. I didn't know you spoke Mandarin? (Get it, see what I did there, don't know football, so I intimated that you were speaking another language? Subtlety is the soul of wit, not brevity. Obviously.)
Poopie - Grrr. I generally don't care about Big 12 football. But, for some reason, I hate the Longhorns. Don't know why.
Faiqa - I speak many languages. Often badly. But I can count to 10 in like 8 different tongues. Just so you know, in football it's "Hut1, Hut2, Hut3, etc...". Good to know, right?
ok Earl-this could be a deal braker for you and me. My son and I are huge Longhorn fans and we don't care how they get there just as long as they get there!
He has been obsessed with the Horns since he as a baby and wore a Texas hat all the time. His room is completely pimped out with all Longhorn gear from his bed spread to a huge Longhorn logo on his bedroom ceiling. His dream is to attend the University of Texas when the time comes.
Didn't President-Elect Obama just say in an interview that the college national championships system should be changed??
It's ok cuz, I still love ya anywhoo-(as you say)
Unsaid in all of the wailing and gnashing of teeth regarding the BCS is the fact that the almost neurotic need to have a #1 has placed an artificial constraint on everything. I hate to say it, but when the sportswriters were the bulk of the people being polled to see what was #1 in theland life was much simpler. And they certainly didn't do any worse than the BCS!
Here are my two cents on the subject of the BCS.
When we talk about the BCS we need to realize two things:
1. The BCS was a huge improvement over using polls at the end of the season to figure the number one team in the nation. Besides different polls crowning teams national champions there was no guarantee that the number one and two teams in the nation leading up to the bowl games would even play each other. The championship game that we get now at least gets the top two teams to play against each other.
2. The BCS was devised to make the hard decision about what the top two teams are. In the case that there is a clear cut number one and number two all the polls and the BCS will agree and all is good in the land. However the BCS was made so that when there isn't an obvious matchup for the championship game. This means that when the BCS is most needed is when it has to make the tough decision about who are the best teams. So when the BCS is the most useful it will be criticized the most because it is there to pick only two teams. There really is no "win" situation for the BCS because somebody will always feel like they are getting left out.
Now I would much rather have a playoff system, as would much of the civilized world, however I doubt it will happen since there is just too much money tied up right now. Even an act of God (or Obama, whichever comes first) will probably not break the BCS logjam.
However if we do go to an 8 team playoff system we need to keep one thing in mind to keep it from becoming a pissing match. The point of the playoffs is to crown a single champion. And the point of the regular season is to be number one going into the playoffs. If we get to thinking that all our team needs to do is get into the playoff so that they can get a shot at the championship we will just fall down the slope of "well we are ranked 9 but are better then #8, we should get in too!" We can not, no, must not, think this way. We should think that the top 4 teams deserve to get into the playoffs, and the next for teams taken are there just in case there is some dispute about the top 4 teams. So the #8 team that got into the playoffs doesn't deserve to be there, it just got lucky.
If you liked this comment check out my blog. (Translation, I'm just gonna repost this comment over on my blog.)
Candy - sorry for the deal breaker, but I hate all things Boston too! ;)
RW - Say what you will, but the BCS has worked a bit better than the olden days when the sportswriters picked the #1 team. Consider a five year stretch from the glorious early days of the 1970's when the sportswriters decided it all:
Year National Champ
1970 Nebraska 11-0-1 (AP, FWAA)
Ohio State 9-1 (NFF - tie)
Texas 10-1 (UPI, NFF - tie)
1971 Nebraska 13-0 (unanimous)
1972 USC 12-0 (unanimous)
1973 Alabama 11-1 (UPI)
Notre Dame 11-0 (AP, FWAA)
1974 Oklahoma 11-0 (AP)
USC 10-1-1 (UPI, FWAA)
So who were the National Champs in those years? 71 and 72 are easy because those were dominant teams that went undefeated. But the other three years? Each team has a good claim to it, and in fact all of the teams are recognized as National Champs by most. Co-National Champs? Bleh!
And this scenario played itself over and over again until the BCS was set in place. (And, ahem...even once after it was set up). But overall, they tend to get it right.
It's these nightmare scenarios where it COULD go wrong that drives guys like me nuts. And that is both agonizing and delicious.
Ookami - I generally agree, but this year the logjam at the top of the Big12 South is causing too many headaches. Each of the 3 teams has 1 loss to one of the other 2 teams. So how do you pick the one that "won" that division? That's right...the one with the highest BCS standing. THAT is where I call bullshit. Oklahoma is a great team. But Texas and Texas Tech deserve the same shot.
I agree that all three teams from the Big 12 south should get a shot, that is why I would like to have a playoff system where the top 8 teams make it in.
I'm posting this after the BCS games have been decided... Excited to see Utah playing in the Sugar Bowl this year against Alabama.
For years, I've always thought the BCS was the "Good ol boys" club that only selected teams, regardless of their record, would only get to play. Changes over the last few years have helped break up some of this, but there still some exclusiveness to the whole thing.
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