College Football Week 14 thread.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Mostly because of how Florida has destroyed its opposition since the Ole Miss loss. If they beat down Alabama, the last thing the Big 12 really wants is a split national championship as the AP will most likely crown Florida when they blow out the opponent in their BCS game.

Plus Ole Miss did finish 8-4. Bama only beat them 24-20 in the waning moments. They weren't exactly awful. And trust me, I hate the SEC, but UF has rolled people.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I hope so. If that happens, I have a sneaking suspicion that voters might shift USC into the title game, particularly if they hammer UCLA as I believe they will. Then, I'll feel really bad for Cartman and other Texas fans.

I dunno that USC will get in still. Texas won't lose anything as far as SOS because they'll have already beaten Mizzou, who would be the Big 12 champs. Plus, it might also lead voters to right their wrongs if OU lays an egg, and give UT what they deserve.

[Dr. Sak]

Sorry EF27 but USC does not deserve to get in, Penn State deserves to get in before USC does. Penn State crushed Oregon State then beat a full strength Ohio State team in Columbus. The Nittany Lions are the only team in the top 10 to beat a Top 10 team on the road.

[Vegas Vic]

Originally Posted by cartman

As a Texas fan, this sucks. The team came within, literally, one second of having an undefeated season, and beat both of the teams that will play for the Big 12 championship by at least two scores. For OU to get the nod by just a few thousands of a point is tough to take.

I would feel the same way if the roles were reversed.

In the end, I think that it came down to looking outside the round robin of the three teams tied for first.

OU ended up with home wins against #11 TCU (35-10), #13 Cincinnati (52-26), and beat #14 Oklahoma State (61-41) in Stillwater. Texas had two quality wins, both in Austin: #17 Missouri (56-31) and #14 Oklahoma State (28-24). Texas Tech had one quality win in Lubbock: #14 Oklahoma State (56-20). It should be noted that OU was the only one that had a quality road win in that list.

[Matthean]

The funny thing is if 'Bama gets beat by Florida by something like 1 point, they would have the best argument of any one loss team since they only lost by 1 to the #4 ranked team in the country on a neutral field.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

Sorry EF27 but USC does not deserve to get in, Penn State deserves to get in before USC does. Penn State crushed Oregon State then beat a full strength Ohio State team in Columbus. The Nittany Lions are the only team in the top 10 to beat a Top 10 team on the road.

PSU plays in the Big Ten. The Big Ten constantly shits the bed in BCS games. Something tells me PSU would not get a lot of 1st or 2nd place votes by proxy.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Matthean

The funny thing is if 'Bama gets beat by Florida by something like 1 point, they would have the best argument of any one loss team since they only lost by 1 to the #4 ranked team in the country on a neutral field.

Ding ding ding.

That's why if Mizzou wins, Bama has a shot if it's a close game.

Now if USC loses to UCLA somehow, I think Bama could really get in.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

PSU plays in the Big Ten. The Big Ten constantly shits the bed in BCS games. Something tells me PSU would not get a lot of 1st or 2nd place votes by proxy.

Ohio State shit the bed in BCS games the past two years. The only reason Illinois was in there was because the Rose Bowl wanted the Big 10-Pac 10 game. In 2005 Ohio State and Penn State won BCS games.

Anyway that shouldn't matter one bit...it's 2008 not 2007...2006. We should be looking at what happened this year...not what happened last year, or in years past.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

Ohio State shit the bed in BCS games the past two years. In 2005 Ohio State and Penn State won BCS games.

Anyway that shouldn't matter one bit...it's 2008 not 2007...2006.

It shouldn't, but you know it does.

It isn't just OSU though ..

See Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, etc.

The Big Ten has been pretty awful in the BCS as of late, and that is something that will get held against a Big Ten team who has a shot at sneaking into the BCS Title Game.

[Dr. Sak]

One more reason to hate Ohio State.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Mostly because of how Florida has destroyed its opposition since the Ole Miss loss. If they beat down Alabama, the last thing the Big 12 really wants is a split national championship as the AP will most likely crown Florida when they blow out the opponent in their BCS game.

With regard to your second point, I can't think of anything the Big 12 would want more than having two teams play in the BCS title game.

On the first point, since Florida lost to Ole Miss on September 27, they have beaten:
5-7 Arkansas 38-7
7-5 LSU 51-21
6-6 Kentucky 63-5
9-3 Georgia 49-10
6-6 Vanderbilt 42-14
7-5 South Carolina 56-6
Division I-AA The Citadel
8-4 Florida State 45-15

Over the same period, Texas has done the following:
Beat 5-7 Colorado 38-14
Beat 11-1 Oklahoma 45-35
Beat 9-3 Missouri 56-31
Beat 9-3 Oklahoma State 28-24
Lost to 11-1 Texas Tech 39-33
Beat 4-8 Baylor 45-21
Beat 7-5 Kansas 35-7
Beat 4-8 Texas A&M 49-9

Oklahoma:
Beat 4-8 Baylor 49-21
Lost to 11-1 Texas 45-35
Beat 7-5 Kansas 45-31
Beat 5-7 Kansas State 58-35
Beat 8-4 Nebraska 62-28
Beat 4-8 Texas A&M 66-28
Beat 11-1 Texas Tech 65-21
Beat 9-3 Oklahoma State 61-41

Don't see a ton of difference in the "destruction." Florida has a better defense, but in truth, they haven't faced the kinds of offenses Texas and Oklahoma have faced. Both Texas and Oklahoma have better wins, though Bucc is correct that that gets evened up a bit if Florida beats Alabama. That takes you to losses, I think. Florida's is worse. If we ended up with multiple one loss teams, they would be my odd team out.

[st.cronin]

I think I would've gone with Texas, simply because their loss was on the road whereas OU's was at a neutral site. Still, as I've said before, once you lose, you give up the right to complain about being left out of the championship picture. This isn't like an undefeated Auburn getting left out.

I do blame the Big 12 - having the BCS ranking as a tiebreaker is unbelievably stupid. They should go with the tiebreaker the Big 10 uses, and go with the team that's been away from the game the longest - which would reward Texas Tech.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

You guys are just trying to make me feel better about the loss to Kansas.

Nothing will do that. I just sat there in the snow staring at the clock after Washington scored and trying to convince myself that we didn't leave too much time on the clock.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by SackAttack

You guys are just trying to make me feel better about the loss to Kansas.

I'm confident in your ability to lose

(j/k- this actually feels eerily familiar to 2003 with Kansas State knocking off Oklahoma)

SI

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

PSU plays in the Big Ten. The Big Ten constantly shits the bed in BCS games. Something tells me PSU would not get a lot of 1st or 2nd place votes by proxy.

Because, again, this is a good reason to vote for one team over another this year.

SI

[RedKingGold]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

I hope so. If that happens, I have a sneaking suspicion that voters might shift USC into the title game, particularly if they hammer UCLA as I believe they will. Then, I'll feel really bad for Cartman and other Texas fans.

Haven't read the rest of this thread yet, but I doubt that will happen.

USC is so far behind Texas in the computers that I doubt blowing out a 4-7 UCLA will make enough of a difference. Probably the only way USC gets in is if they're a unanimous #1 (which won't happen due to the result of the Alabama-Florida matchup, whomever wins).

[Cuckoo]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

I'm sure OU will lay an egg vs Mizzou, I wouldn't worry.

No, no... You forget. OU will probably win over Missouri and then lay an egg in the title game.

I kid, as I tremble inside at the possibility.

[RedKingGold]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

It shouldn't, but you know it does.

It isn't just OSU though ..

See Illinois, Michigan, Ohio State, etc.

The Big Ten has been pretty awful in the BCS as of late, and that is something that will get held against a Big Ten team who has a shot at sneaking into the BCS Title Game.

Unfortunately, this is true. Once PSU lost a game, they were effectively eliminated from title contention mainly because of the national view of the Big Ten. In fact, I doubt that a 1-loss PSU would get in over a 2-loss Texas/Florida/Oklahoma because of this.

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

One more reason to hate Ohio State.

Fortunately, this is true as well.

It's weird, but PSU-USC Rose Bowl matchup was the ultimate best case scenario when PSU lost the chance to get to the title game.

A win over USC would hopefully untarnish the harm that two tOSU's losses did. However, a loss would probably relegate the Big Ten to Big East status.

[RedKingGold]

I'd also like to point out, though, that this Penn State class is currently 3-0 in bowl games, with wins over ACC, SEC, and Big 12 teams.

Also, the Spread HD is a better matchup against USC and PSU actually does have some speed with its wideouts (unlike Ohio State).

Ohio State would've probably put up a much better show against USC with a ten-start Terrell Pryor and a healthy Beanie Wells. Funny how people forget that Ohio State went into the USC matchup on the road with one-hand tied behind their back.

[Cuckoo]

Originally Posted by Vegas Vic

I would feel the same way if the roles were reversed.

Agreed. As much as I hate Texas (and I'm not sure there's a way to quantify it ), it would be a rough day for me if OU was in their place. Just no right answer to this one unfortunately.

I don't hate the BCS as most people, and I know I'm in the minority, one of those generally against a playoff system (primarily for the reason that there's no one-size-fits-all solution). But the BCS sure doesn't solve a lot of problems in seasons such as this.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by st.cronin

I think I would've gone with Texas, simply because their loss was on the road whereas OU's was at a neutral site.

I won't bellyache too much because OU finished ahead of Texas in the computers and that's better than winning over the clueless voters. I agree, it's not the best way to settle your divisional champion but sadly it's better than using point differential or any nonsense like that.

Originally Posted by st.cronin

Still, as I've said before, once you lose, you give up the right to complain about being left out of the championship picture. This isn't like an undefeated Auburn getting left out.

Generally, this is true. Of course, it's not completely true because there are four undefeated FBS teams and only one of them will make the title game -- if that.

Once you lose you should also lose the right to argue that you're better than some other loser.

[Jas_lov]

I hate OSU but I'm glad they got a BCS bowl bid because it moves the Hawkeyes up a spot. They should play in a New Years Day bowl game now, probably the Outback where the kickoff is 5 AM on New Years Day. If Ohio State is playing a decent opponent they'll probably get blown out anyway and I'll enjoy that just as much as Michigan's downfall.

[Swaggs]

Semi-related, but who will be the B12 First Team QB?

I'm guessing this may be the greatest single season set of quarterbacks in NCAA history:

Bradford has thrown for 48 TDs. Harrell has 41. McCoy has 32. Daniel has 34. Reesing has 28. And 4 other guys have over 20. The worst TD/INT differential is +5 and ten of the 12 starters are at least +12.

Either this is the greatest collection of collegiate quarterbacks in one conference ever or the B12 plays horrendous defense. It will be interesting to see how well the B12 BCS teams do against quality OOC teams to see if the league is absent of great defensive talent or if these are just some really amazing offensive teams and QBs.

[ISiddiqui]

However, a loss would probably relegate the Big Ten to Big East status.

The Big East that keeps winning BCS bowl games?

Besides, a close loss wouldn't harm the rep of Penn State.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by digamma

Don't see a ton of difference in the "destruction."

Point differential in those games:
Florida +266
Texas +161
Oklahoma +191

There appears to be a decent bit of difference there. Of course one can make the argument that Big XII teams have a stronger SOS, though according to computerized SOS measurements, it isn't that much more.

[Vegas Vic]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Either this is the greatest collection of collegiate quarterbacks in one conference ever or the B12 plays horrendous defense. It will be interesting to see how well the B12 BCS teams do against quality OOC teams to see if the league is absent of great defensive talent or if these are just some really amazing offensive teams and QBs.

Oklahoma 52, #13 Cincinnati 26: Bradford throws for 395 yards and 5 TD's.

Oklahoma 35, #11 TCU 10: Bradford throws for 411 yards and 4 TD's.

So, there might be something more to this than the "horrendous defenses" in the Big XII.

[Young Drachma]

For all of those bowl haters, there are two more bowls added this year. The Washington, D.C., based EagleBank Bowl and the St. Petersburg Bowl, to be played at ugly Tropicana Field, home of the AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays.

So that makes for 34 total bowl games (counting the national championship) giving half of the teams in college football a chance to play in the postseason.

Not march madness, but hey...the number of teams is up there.

[sooner333]

I don't think the Big 12 has any more horrendous defenses than the SEC. Big wins for Alabama and Florida include Georgia and LSU, two teams that have pretty average defenses (especially considering the hype regarding those teams at the time of the win...especially LSU for Florida).

[terpkristin]

Ew, a bowl game in DC?

I pity the teams that get to play in our craptastic winter weather.

/tk

[Young Drachma]

Originally Posted by terpkristin

Ew, a bowl game in DC?

I pity the teams that get to play in our craptastic winter weather.

/tk

The EagleBank Bowl: Washington, D.C.'s First NCAA-Sanctioned, Post-Season Bowl Game

It's Navy (and next year, Army can be eligible) versus the 9th best team in the ACC, provided they're bowl eligible. Other tie-ins are Mid-American Conference, Conference USA, or the Big Ten Conference as a replacement if the ACC and/or Navy aren't bowl eligible.

Besides, weather isn't as bad as the bowl in Boise.

[Senator]

HORSESHIT!!

Will the BSC ever do this justice? C'mon Obama, I voted for you to fix this!! Don't let this happen anymore!

[terpkristin]

Ew. RFK? Ew.
9th best ACC team? How often would it happen that the 9th best team in the ACC would be bowl-eligible, I wonder? (Just looked it up, this year only Virginia and Duke finished with less than 6 wins, so I guess it's eminently doable).

Still. DC in late December? RFK in late December? Even though it's local, if Maryland went, I probably wouldn't go.

/tk

[terpkristin]

Originally Posted by Dark Cloud

Besides, weather isn't as bad as the bowl in Boise.

Can't say much to the weather in Boise, but the idea of going to watch a football game in the cold/windy/icy/icky/gross weather that is DC in late December makes me cringe. If it were snow, it'd be one thing, but that's the one thing it's guaranteed NOT to do.

/tk

[sooner333]

Originally Posted by st.cronin

I do blame the Big 12 - having the BCS ranking as a tiebreaker is unbelievably stupid. They should go with the tiebreaker the Big 10 uses, and go with the team that's been away from the game the longest - which would reward Texas Tech.

Beside the fact that I think that is a bad way to determine a conference champion, we would still be in a similar mess if it was the case. Oklahoma and Texas would be neck and neck and the politicking would continue until next week to determine who would play Alabama-Florida (or in this scenario an OU-Texas re-match would be more likely since the voters would have OU and Texas closer and Florida would still be behind in the computers). Whether that would be fair to Texas Tech or not is another question, but Texas Tech wouldn't get the respect for beating a 9-3 Missouri team to get back to #2, especially if that were the tiebreak procedure and people felt that Texas Tech won on technicality.

[Dr. Sak]

I forget where I heard this yesterday but there are rumors that the Fiesta Bowl might "take one for the team" and pick a Utah vs Boise State matchup.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

I forget where I heard this yesterday but there are rumors that the Fiesta Bowl might "take one for the team" and pick a Utah vs Boise State matchup.

At OSU's expense I hope.

That'd be a fun game to watch but I am fairly sure people wouldn't actually watch it.

I'd sure as hell be glued to the TV though.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by terpkristin

Ew. RFK? Ew.
9th best ACC team? How often would it happen that the 9th best team in the ACC would be bowl-eligible, I wonder? (Just looked it up, this year only Virginia and Duke finished with less than 6 wins, so I guess it's eminently doable).

On the other hand, this is the only time during divisional play in the ACC that nine teams finished bowl eligible. But that's the bowl's advantage, as it seems like they have contingencies in place that would cover them in the absence of an ACC team. Sort of lets get claim that 9th team ahead of other "at-large "bowls if one happens to be available .

[DeToxRox]

Dola .. Utah vs Boise might have more appeal to the Fiesta then some might think. It's a risk, but I am sure plenty of people would trek from Idaho and Utah to go to the game, and add to the fact you can market it as the only BCS game matching two unbeaten teams, and you might be able to draw a good rating.

It'd be ballsy to do, and in the end, I say it won't happen, but it's intriguing.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

I forget where I heard this yesterday but there are rumors that the Fiesta Bowl might "take one for the team" and pick a Utah vs Boise State matchup.

LOL! I doubt that if they had the opportunity for a Texas vs. Ohio State matchup!

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

LOL! I doubt that if they had the opportunity for a Texas vs. Ohio State matchup!

Agreed .. but if Mizzou wins the Big 12 title, I can see where that might become a more probable scenario.

Edit to add that Ohio State still isn't that good of a team, and would probably get run by Texas. Texas has too much firepower for OSU to make it a game imo.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

LOL! I doubt that if they had the opportunity for a Texas vs. Ohio State matchup!

Im not disagreeing with you at all. But the thinking was that whoever plays Utah and Boise State will not draw well. So put them both in one game and bite the bullet. That would allow a Texas vs Ohio State or whatever in another bowl.

Don't shoot the messenger, I am just going on what was said.

[Buccaneer]

I can hear it now. We're #9! We're #9! Why not just let everyone play a 13th game if they're going to reward mediocracy that much.

[st.cronin]

Originally Posted by Dark Cloud

For all of those bowl haters, there are two more bowls added this year. The Washington, D.C., based EagleBank Bowl and the St. Petersburg Bowl, to be played at ugly Tropicana Field, home of the AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays.

So that makes for 28 bowl games, plus the five BCS bowls (counting the national championship) giving half of the teams in college football a chance to play in the postseason.

Not march madness, but hey...the number of teams is up there.

I like all the bowls. It looks like Wisconsin will end up in the Champs Sports Bowl, probably against Florida Stae. The hometown (New Mexico) bowl will likely be Nevada vs. Colorado State. Nevada travelled pretty well last year, and I would expect Colorado State to be an OK draw, so it should be a solid crowd.

[DeToxRox]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

Im not disagreeing with you at all. But the thinking was that whoever plays Utah and Boise State will not draw well. So put them both in one game and bite the bullet. That would allow a Texas vs Ohio State or whatever in another bowl.

Don't shoot the messenger, I am just going on what was said.

Well, Boise is probably not going into the BCS.

They only have to take Utah. Not any non BCS team that qualifies, just the top one.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

but I am sure plenty of people would trek from Idaho and Utah to go to the game

So that covers about 1k tickets for the game, who are you planning to sell the rest to?

[digamma]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Point differential in those games:
Florida +266
Texas +161
Oklahoma +191

There appears to be a decent bit of difference there. Of course one can make the argument that Big XII teams have a stronger SOS, though according to computerized SOS measurements, it isn't that much more.

I started after Florida's loss, so if you go back one more week, Florida gets their loss, so they go down a bit, Texas has a 40+ point win over Arkansas and Oklahoma has a 35-10 win over TCU, so your gap narrows.

I guess in my mind there's not much difference between a decisive 30-40 point victory and a 50-60 point victory. Destruction factor = about even.

So, that takes us to better wins and better losses. Florida's best win is over Georgia. Both Texas and Oklahoma have at least two wins (probably 3) better than that one. And their losses are better. Just telling you how I would vote.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

I forget where I heard this yesterday but there are rumors that the Fiesta Bowl might "take one for the team" and pick a Utah vs Boise State matchup.

I'd probably be more likely to watch that than some of the other matchups being floated out there.

[ISiddiqui]

So, that takes us to better wins and better losses. Florida's best win is over Georgia. Both Texas and Oklahoma have at least two wins (probably 3) better than that one. And their losses are better. Just telling you how I would vote.

And I've had Florida at #1 for about a month or so, so that's how I would vote .

[st.cronin]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

I'd probably be more likely to watch that than some of the other matchups being floated out there.

+1

There was also a rumor that the Motor City Bowl was trying to woo Boise State, to match up with Ball State.

[Young Drachma]

Originally Posted by st.cronin

+1

There was also a rumor that the Motor City Bowl was trying to woo Boise State, to match up with Ball State.

Seems like a downgrade for the Broncos.