Tuesday, November 18, 2008

BCS and Conference Bias

How soon we forget about Boise State and their amazing upset of Oklahoma in the BCS a few years ago. I thought a win like that would validate these other conferences and the level of football that they play, but here comes bowl season around the corner again and the media is doing it's part to make sure that Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Texas and the other big guns are in the bowl games and the right ones are in the Championship. If I hear one more time that Florida is the best team in the NCAA, I am going to puke. It's because people constantly say that, and sports analysis is such a copycat business that the votes start to sway towards Florida. (Again proving that ESPN has too much power). If they were the best team in college football, they would not have lost to Mississippi, who by the way is 6-4 (3-3 SEC).

The other thing that gets in the way of the BCS being a successful system is the conference bias. It is absolutely a joke that Cincinnati, UConn or West Virginia or whoever will represent the Big East in a BCS Bowl this year. Can't common sense step in and say, wow, that conference sucks and no one from it belongs in a prestigous bowl. How about the ACC too? Unranked Maryland is probably going to get that bid when it's all said and done and take their 3 losses into the BCS while Boise State heads to the Doesn't Matter Bowl. The Big Ten and Pac-10's insistence that they be affiliated with the Rose Bowl will end up being a game between Oregon State and Penn State, which by the way already happened this year and it was a 45-14 Nittany Lion rout. Then when Oregon State goes to the Rose Bowl, everyone's favorite darling, USC will get an at-large rather than Boise State, who already proved they can play with the big boys, if they're ever given the chance. Ohio State has stunk up the whole national stage lately, that they should get a 3 year ban from the BCS, but, even with two losses to two other BCS teams, they are projected to sneak in once again and get blown out once again.

If the season ended today, this should be the BCS Bowl Games..

National Championship - Alabama vs. Texas Tech
Fiesta Bowl - Oklahoma vs. Utah
Sugar Bowl - Ball State vs. Penn State
Rose Bowl - USC vs. Texas
Orange Bowl - Florida vs. Boise State

The only one loss team sitting out would be BYU, but they can't really gripe because they didn't win their conference. Utah did. Those are some good looking matchups. David vs. Goliath. Established coaches vs. up and coming coaching stars. Storylines that excite people. It has it all! But it doesn't follow the "rules" of the BCS, or should I say the bias of the BCS.

6 comments:

Scottage Cheese said...

You're telling me that there is going to be two non-BCS teams in the BCS Bowls? I can see Utah, but not Ball State.

I also can't see Oklahoma being in the Fiesta Bowl. If they beat Texas Tech(2) this weekend, they will flip flop (5 for 2 rankings). If OU loses to TT this weekend, then OU would drop to the Orange...I would think. And TT would play Florida...of course.

I see nothing wrong with two teams from the same conference playing in the Fiesta Bowl either (OU & TT). Michigan and OSU came close to that two years ago for the Championship Bowl.

Kosi said...

I know there is a lot of room for change with the games of the coming weeks. I was more interested in the 10 teams that deserved to be in, moreso than the matchups.

Why shouldn't Ball State earn a trip there. What does it matter? The Orange Bowl matters about as little as the GMAC Bowl or whatever the MAC Champion goes to when you get right down to it. Why can't there be two non BCS teams in their. If not Ball State, then who? Ohio State? Oklahoma State? Missouri? Michigan State? How do you choose from all these major conference teams with two losses? Choose the undefeated team and see if they can hold their own against the big boys.

K said...

How dare you take a swipe at "The Chosen One's" team. Tim Tebow is a god. Did you know he circumsized some kids in a foreign country. He and Tyler Hansborough are the 2 greatest/grittiest/hard-working/intense players in all of college sports. I wish ESPN would just show highlights and games of those 2 all day long. They could call it ESPNTT (Tyler and Timmy.) Oh that's right, they already do it.

I think the non-BCS schools kind of took a hit last year with Hawaii getting thumped by Georgia. As a society we have very short-term memories. All anybody remembers about that BS-OSU game is some guy proposed to a cheerleader. The only way to solve this is with a playoff, but with the evil empire ESPN purchasing the rights to the BCS through 2014 it doesn't look like this is going to happen. Why couldn't they have a 8 team playoff with the top 4 teams getting home field for the first round? The next round would take place at 2 of the BCS sites (rotating every year) with the losers of the first round filling out the other BCS Bowls and then there could be a +1 championship game in the 5th BCS game (also rotating).

Kosi said...

I've heard a lot of good playoff ideas, and I would want that above anything else in some form.

It just isn't going to happen unfortunately. So we have to deal with only one game that matters every year.

Scottage Cheese said...

I don't know. I am all for the small guy making it big time. But Ball State? They play in a confernece that is filled with lack luster opponents. If they got a crack at a BCS Bowl, they would get blown out of the water. Unless of course if they are paired with the Utes (what is that anyways?). Then you would have two pass-crazy offenses going toe to toe.

I understand your reasoning. But like K said, Hawaii pretty much cost the BSC a lot of street cred by matching them up with the Bulldogs last year.
Utah could hang, but certainly not Ball State. Even if Letterman suited up.

Did you guys see the new Texas coach who is heir apparent? The four-letter network did a break down on the guy. He makes 450k a year as an assistant. By simply having the tag slapped on him as successor, he gets a 550k raise. Sweet. I'm in the wrong line of work.

Scottage Cheese said...

It has now been one week since you last updated. C'MON ON!