Dave Revsine, writing at ESPN.com, sums up the BCS situation nicely: “it still looks like we have two options for the BCS title game: the Michigan-Ohio State winner vs. USC, or the Michigan-Ohio State winner vs. a team to be determined by mass chaos.”
Heh. Well, really, that’s a win-win situation for me. I love USC … and I also love mass BCS chaos!
Trying to make order out of (potential) chaos, Every Day Should Be Saturday looks at the nonconference record of each major conference — a measurement which makes the Big East look pretty darn good — and wonders, “why is there some sort of question regarding whether an undefeated Big East Champion should go the title game? … I’m not arguing the Big East is the best conference, just that running through the conference slate undefeated in the Big East is worthy of a Championship game bid.”
Don’t tell that to the GameDay crew, though. According to Heisman Pundit, “Talk continues on ESPN Game Day about how a one-loss SEC team should ‘definitely’ be taken over a no-loss Big East team. What’s more, only a one-loss team from the SEC should be considered to jump over an undefeated team.” The Pundit rather reasonably asks:
I have an idea. How about these talking heads look at the schedules of the teams on a case-by-case basis at the end of the season and then determine who is worthy? Would that be too hard? Is that too much to ask?
If it turns out that Auburn or Florida had a tougher schedule overall, then fine. But it is certainly not a fait accompli.
Why, of course it’s a fait accompli! Georgia (preseason #14, now #25 — and shouldn’t be ranked at all) and Alabama (preseason #24, now unranked and unvoted-for) are just as good as we originally thought they’d be! As is Florida opponent Florida State (preseason #10, now unranked and unvoted-for). And the fact that Arkansas, whom Florida does not play, has turned out to be one of the SEC’s best teams, doesn’t need to be taken into account at all, in assessing the Gators’ schedule. Nor is it necessary to consider that the Big East is much stronger than we expected back in August. Nope. Things are exactly as we thought they were… the SEC rules, everyone else drools… I know this is true because ESPN told me so…
P.S. It’s required by the BrendanLoy.com Bylaws that, whenever we discuss Auburn’s schedule, I mention that Auburn’s non-conference schedule included — all at home, of course — Arkansas State, Tulane and Buffalo.
Buffalo.
Thank you, that is all.
|
Categories: College Football
|
October 27th, 2006 at 12:55:11 pm
And the fact that Arkansas, whom Florida does not play
Speaking of fait accompli, don’t count your SEC championship games until they’re hatched…there’s a pretty fair chance that the matchup you mentioned as not being played may well be played for a BCS berth.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:01:12 pm
Hmm… good point.
October 27th, 2006 at 2:57:00 pm
I think the first cut should be anyone with a I-AA team on their schedule. Play a directional school, and you are out of luck.
October 27th, 2006 at 3:17:45 pm
Southern California is a directional school, right?
October 27th, 2006 at 3:44:11 pm
Ahhh, “team to be determined by mass chaos”. I like the sound of that.
I’m thinking that an unbeaten Big East team should DEFINATELY go in front of a one loss SEC team. However, I’m not convinced that an unbeaten Big East team is a fait accompli. (Its the word of the day, kids!)
The three unbeatens all play each other in the coming weeks, and Louisville and WVU both play a decent Pitt team that I think COULD beat one of them. Pitt is also playing at home for both games, and the WVU game is a rivalry game, which can change the dynamic some years.
Backyard Brawl! Also, go Rutgers!! Should Rutgers run the table against two nationally ranked opponents, do THEY go? And how unfair would it be to the Scarlet Knights to say “look, we’re sorry, but we are going to go with a traditionally good school instead of you.” It would expose the fact that the current system favors traditional powerhouses, and has no room for new programs to shine.
October 27th, 2006 at 4:43:09 pm
There’s no way an undefeated WVU/Louisville/Rutgers should be left out in favor of a one loss SEC school, if they’re the only undefeated left other than the OSU/Michigan winner. The Big East, like it or not, is a BCS conference, and an undefeated champ of that conference shouldn’t be left out of the national championship game, unless there are more than 2 unbeatens.
–[ack, cough, cough that’s tough from an SEC apologist such as me]–
October 27th, 2006 at 4:43:27 pm
Wake up and smell the grits. None of the wins by any BE team is impressive. If you were to be on the sideline or booth for games involving WVU/BSU/UL/PITT/SUNJ, you would notice a pronounced increase in athleticism once you did the same at UA/UF/LSU/UT. It isn’t even close.
Ask any competant D-1 coach which roster he would prefer - perfect BE team or SEC one-loss champ.
It is an open secret (if not truism) that awarding BYU the MNC was the greatest travesty in history. Ask any of the ink-stained/byte propagating senior cfb journalists. I have asked and to a person, they acknowledge that BYU team to be the weakest (along with Clemson) ever.
It is rare to have such a consensus amongst the cognescenti, but it is there. The argument this year isn’t “which school has played the best schedule?” It is, rather, who would be prohibitively favored in a one-on-one match-up?
October 27th, 2006 at 7:18:39 pm
Suck it Brendan. You know that Buffalo rocks the BCS.
October 27th, 2006 at 9:47:10 pm
Oh, I’m not saying that I think the best team from the Big East is any better, or could beat the best team from the SEC on any given Saturday (although WVU did kinda punk Georgia last year in the Sugar), but if they run the table, and no one else other than OSU/Michigan does, I find it hard to deny them a chance to play for a title.
October 27th, 2006 at 10:26:58 pm
It always amuses me that a gentleman attending law school at a university that manages to schedule EVERY SERVICE ACADEMY (gee, can’t the Coasties take up football!), along with North Carolina and Stanford (arguably the two worst teams from the BCS conferences this year) can mock anyone’s schedule. Yes, Auburn has scheduled a few less than impressive teams this year, but ND’s schedule is hard to top. I guess instead of joining a conference, they have decided to play for the Commander in Chief trophy.
October 27th, 2006 at 10:54:51 pm
The Big East trio of Louisville, Rutgers, and West Virginia have played just well enough that I’d say any one of them would have to be in the title game ahead of a one-loss team or Boise State. Still, if those teams were in any other BCS conference, my bet is they’d each have one loss by now — and possibly two by the end of the season.
October 28th, 2006 at 1:45:31 am
Matt, it might also point out that Notre Dame regularly plays USC and Michigan, and who could have guessed that Stanford would tank so badly this season? Sure they aren’t as great as Domer’s tend to think they are, but they also aren’t as bad as people like you do.
October 28th, 2006 at 5:58:50 am
The problem is that the polls are based on opinions of each voter. What they base their opinion on is made up of their favorite criteria and their personal bias. What the BCS needs is a rule that if there are two, and only two, undefeated teams from BCS conferences (and Notre Dame) then they will play in the Championship game. If this sets up an unsavory matchup then maybe it can be thrown in that they have to be a conference champion.
October 28th, 2006 at 12:09:41 pm
Matt - the Coasties have a football team. My b-in-l was required to sit through many freezing games. They’re just not any good, that’s all.