2010 College Football

[Paelos]

Big debate during the pregame/halftime is if the Big East deserves an auto-bid 

[ghost]

I can't wait to see a Maryland versus Syracuse BCS game  


Edit:  well, that was an absolutely awful weekend of football.  I would be a big fan of getting rid of that 12th game or making it a conference game.  Boo.

[Paelos]

There were some shining moments in that mess.

Wiscy running over Michigan, VA Tech showing Miami why they are going to win the ACC, Purdue taking Michigan State to the wire, and the Miss State v. Arkansas Double OT thriller.

[01101010]

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/11/23/no-quit-in-joepa-coaching-legend-wants-to-return-in-11/

Joe Paterno signed a contract with Satan that stated specifically that Joe will die upon retiring or getting fired as a head coach... Joe gives Satan the finger for one more year.

[Paelos]

Is it wrong for me to just not care if he dies on the field since he refuses to admit he's not the head coach anymore? The program is headed into a severe spiral with his toadies at the helm. Coaches are recruiting against him being there because it's such a farce, Michigan, Wisconsin, Michigan State, and now Nebraska are all getting stronger in the conference, and he will not go away. I fully believe that the longer this goes on, the more likely you are to see a Penn State team like we saw at the beginning of the last decade: 5-6 wins, maybe 4th or 5th in the conference, and losing in bowl games if they go.

[01101010]

Umm... Auburn? WTF is up?

Any bets as to if Bama runs up the score if they are still stomping Auburn's nutsack in the 4th?

[Abagadro]

Heh. So much for that.

[01101010]

Heh. So much for that.

lmao.. talk about a tale of two halves. Tide looked lost after coming out of the tunnel. Surprised Saban is collected as he is.

[Chimpy]

Woo I get to watch a decent team play from home.

Oregon game is streaming on ESPN3.

EDIT: Hah, Todd Blackledge is the color commentator.

[Abagadro]

HAHAHAHHAHHHAHAHA. Suck it Tater Zoobs!

[01101010]

HAHAHAHHAHHHAHAHA. Suck it Tater Zoobs!

This.

[Muffled]

Goddamnit Alabama, the Horned Frogs needed that win from you.  Alright, South Carolina, slap Clemson out of the way and get ready for Dec. 4th.  You're their last hope.  Forgot about Oregon State, can't write that game off as won by any means.  Still though, counting on SC.

[01101010]

Goddamnit Alabama,

And this.

Of course, now that Boise is in the bathtub with a box of razorblades, I can feel somewhat better about Saban giving the Iron Bowl away.

edit: interestingly enough, every article I have read on Oregon says they are a second half team - slow start and power shift in the 3rd quarter. Auburn runs pretty much the same way in all the games I watched this season. The NC game between the two second half teams - well I am curious now.

[ghost]

Goddamnit Alabama, the Horned Frogs needed that win from you.  Alright, South Carolina, slap Clemson out of the way and get ready for Dec. 4th.  You're their last hope.  Forgot about Oregon State, can't write that game off as won by any means.  Still though, counting on SC.

Seems as though counting on SC lite for anything in football is asking a bit much.

[Chimpy]

edit: interestingly enough, every article I have read on Oregon says they are a second half team - slow start and power shift in the 3rd quarter. Auburn runs pretty much the same way in all the games I watched this season. The NC game between the two second half teams - well I am curious now.

I have watched 2 Oregon games this season, they are like two different teams first/second half. And the fourth quarter Oregon is just ridiculous. It is not so much that their offense explodes (though they are explosive) as their Defense really turns it up a couple notches in the second half.

[ghost]

Oregon's offensive style really wears opponents down as the game goes along, too.  That really contributes to their explosiveness. 

[Abagadro]

[Chimpy]

Oregon's offensive style really wears opponents down as the game goes along, too.  That really contributes to their explosiveness. 

Don't get me wrong, their offense is great. But their defense gets way too little credit for just how good that team is overall. Their defense was on the field A TON last night in the first half, and they still came out and turned it up to 11 in the second half. The conditioning of their entire team is just amazing.

[ghost]

Oregon's offensive style really wears opponents down as the game goes along, too.  That really contributes to their explosiveness. 

Don't get me wrong, their offense is great. But their defense gets way too little credit for just how good that team is overall. Their defense was on the field A TON last night in the first half, and they still came out and turned it up to 11 in the second half. The conditioning of their entire team is just amazing.

Oh, no doubt their defense is pretty good-  you don't get to be number one by being a slouch.

[Paelos]

TCU, you're doomed. There is absolutely no way a SC team pulls an upset on Auburn. My guess is they will be 10 point underdogs in that game at the least.

It's Auburn v. Oregon, and frankly I think that's the best matchup we could get in the BCS Championship game. Let me point out how much the other projected BCS bowls are going to suck this year.

Rose - Wisconsin v. TCU - This will be the first legitimate top 10 opponent TCU has played this year. Utah doesn't count. Love em, but they fell hard and fast.
Orange - VA Tech v. UCONN - The Orange Bowl is going to slit their wrists unless FSU pulls the upset. The last time VA Tech was involved, tickets were going on Ebay for $1 to the Orange Bowl.
Sugar - Ohio State v. Arkansas - Arkansas beating LSU really screwed this one up. I hate Ryan Mallet and I think Ohio State has a large advantage in that matchup.

The only really badass matchup? OU/Nebraska v. Stanford in the Fiesta Bowl. A year after taking one for the team by being forced to take Boise and TCU, they get the best matchup of the BCS bowls.

[SnakeCharmer]

Way to shit the bed in the second half, Bama.  Yeah, you had some injuries in the game.  But you're supposed to be loaded with 4 and 5 star recruits.  There's NO excuse for the intensity drop off coming out in the 3rd.  So what if you had some bad breaks (Ingrams fumble, Richardson dropping a TD pass, McElroy getting hammered and fumbling inside the 5) and left 21 points on the field that would have had you up at least 42-7 going into the half.  The lack of intensity and motivation and going into eat the clock mode was all on the coaches.

If Saban would allow his offense to move into the 21st century and not go ultraconservative with a lead, there's no telling what he could accomplish while at Bama.

[caladein]

TCU, you're doomed. There is absolutely no way a SC team pulls an upset on Auburn. My guess is they will be 10 point underdogs in that game at the least.

It's Auburn v. Oregon, and frankly I think that's the best matchup we could get in the BCS Championship game. Let me point out how much the other projected BCS bowls are going to suck this year.

Rose - Wisconsin v. TCU - This will be the first legitimate top 10 opponent TCU has played this year. Utah doesn't count. Love em, but they fell hard and fast.
Orange - VA Tech v. UCONN - The Orange Bowl is going to slit their wrists unless FSU pulls the upset. The last time VA Tech was involved, tickets were going on Ebay for $1 to the Orange Bowl.
Sugar - Ohio State v. Arkansas - Arkansas beating LSU really screwed this one up. I hate Ryan Mallet and I think Ohio State has a large advantage in that matchup.

The only really badass matchup? OU/Nebraska v. Stanford in the Fiesta Bowl. A year after taking one for the team by being forced to take Boise and TCU, they get the best matchup of the BCS bowls.

Fiesta can't have Stanford as their free spot goes to the Big East this year.  Under a Oregon vs. Auburn BCS Championship it's:

Rose: TCU (lost Pac-10 champion, must take the non-AQ qualifier) vs. Wisconsin (Big Ten)
Orange: Florida St. or Virgina Tech (ACC) vs. ?
Sugar: Arkansas (traditionally best record SEC when it loses SEC champion) vs. ?
Fiesta: Oklahoma or Nebraska (Big 12) vs. UConn or West Virginia (Big East)

Assuming TCU stays at BCS No. 3, that leaves the last true automatic bid as the BCS No. 4 team, probably Stanford.  The last spot could be any team left in the BCS Top 14, not from the SEC or Pac-10 (as both conferences would be maxed out).  The biggest available draw would probably be Ohio State.

Edit: As for the match-ups, the Rose Bowl looks like a good game no one will give a shit about.  Arkansas vs. Stanford or Ohio State looks pretty good too.  The other two are routs waiting to happen.  Maybe WV could make a game of it, if they get in, but it's probably TV ratings death regardless.

[01101010]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5861059

Tells a bit of a story on the bowls if all goes as planned. The primary reason I link is for this nugget of, IMHO, bullshit:

Should the Cardinal finish at No. 5 or lower, the Gator Bowl could cite Stanford's small fan base and choose a weaker Big East champion or any other at-large team from among the top 14 schools in the BCS standings.

Never about the football team, it's about how much money that team can bring with them to the game. Meh.

[ghost]

Love it or hate it, money is what made college football the spectacle that it is today. 

I do think Stanford could at least muster a decent crowd for a BCS game, however. 

[caladein]

That's what it's always about, but that quote is only half-correct.  Stanford, if it's not in the BCS Top 4 (but still Top 14), would drop into the first at-large pool.  As of now that pool looks like:

• Auburn - BCS Championship berth as No. 1.
• Oregon - BCS Championship berth as No. 2.
• TCU - Automatic BCS bowl berth to the Rose Bowl (as Pac-10 or Big Ten champion is playing in BCS Championship Game) as a non-AQ conference (MWC) champion ranked No. 12 or higher.
• Stanford - Automatic BCS bowl bid because TCU used the non-AQ conference champion provision for their automatic bid so the automatic bid for No. 3 falls to the No. 4 spot (if it is in an AQ conference).
• Wisconsin - Rose Bowl berth as Big Ten co-champion with highest BCS ranking.
• Ohio State - At-large bid eligible.
• Arkansas - Likely selected for the Sugar Bowl, otherwise at-large bid eligible.  (Traditionally, the Sugar Bowl takes the SEC team with best record when the SEC champion plays in the BCS Championship Game.  They're not required to take anyone specific though, unlike the Rose Bowl.)
• Michigan State - At-large bid eligible.
• Oklahoma - Fiesta Bowl berth if Big 12 champion, otherwise at-large bid eligible.
• LSU - At-large bid eligible if and only if Arkansas not selected for a BCS bowl.
• Boise State - At-large bid eligible.
• Missouri - At-large bid eligible.
• Nebraska - Fiesta Bowl berth if Big 12 champion.
• Oklahoma State - At-large bid eligible.

Assuming a lack of huge upsets this should be the list going into bowl season.  Nebraska probably drops a bit if it loses to Oklahoma, but it's unlikely to be replaced by anyone who could get an at-large bid.  Next in line would be an ACC champion Virgina Tech, a virtually-ineligible Alabama (I have a hard time seeing the Sugar Bowl skipping both LSU and Arkansas for 'Bama), and Nevada.  There are actually more mutually-exclusive bids, but there should only be one slot open as there's very little risk of anyone leapfrogging the Cardinal.

If that happens (by say, Wisconsin) Stanford would be in a scrum with Ohio State/Michigan State, Boise State, and Missouri/Oklahoma State/Non-Big 12 champion Oklahoma for two spots.  Ohio State's a big draw so they're in (and make Michigan State ineligible for the other).  I think Stanford stays ahead of the Big 12 schools, but not by much.

Overall though, it's not so bad this year, aside from the ACC and Big East stinking up the place, as the other eight slots are likely to come from the BCS 3-10.

[Paelos]

Fiesta can't have Stanford as their free spot goes to the Big East this year.

That's true, except the Orange Bowl picks first and could take the Big East champ. The Fiesta defaults to either Stanford or the Big East champ AFTER the Orange picks one or the other. Something tells me that the Orange Bowl would rather roll the dice with an East Coast team, but who knows. It all depends on who actually wins the Big East, given the clusterfuck that it is.

[Nevermore]

Looks like TCU will be announcing today that they'll be joining the Big East.  That puts the scorecard at:

Pac 10: gets Utah and Colorado
Big 10: gets Nebraska
Big East: gets TCU
Big 12: loses Nebraska and Colorado
Mountain West: loses Utah, TCU and BYU; gets Boise, Fresno, Nevada and Hawaii (?)
WAC: will they even still be around?

The Big East obviously needed this for football but it's going to make the basketball conference even more unwieldy.

[ghost]

They should just give the MWC an auto bid to the BCS.  Hell, they can't be worse than the Big East has been lately. 

[Paelos]

They should just give the MWC an auto bid to the BCS.  Hell, they can't be worse than the Big East has been lately. 

They are going to take the auto-bid away from the Big East the first chance they get when it comes up for review in 2014.

[Nevermore]

Except all of TCU's stats will count for the Big East, not the MWC, when the review takes place in 2014.

[Paelos]

Except all of TCU's stats will count for the Big East, not the MWC, when the review takes place in 2014.

Won't matter. TCU won't maintain the records they do when they play over there. The BCS (specifically the Orange Bowl) is getting really tired of the Big East and the lack of money they are adding to the pool.

[Ingmar]

You know, I hate Stanford, but it is so fucked up they aren't going to the Rose Bowl. Arghghghgh stupid BCS I hate you.

[Chimpy]

It is weird that the Rose Bowl doesn't get the PAC-10 #2 when the #1 is in the national championship game. That was how Illinois got in a couple years back because OSU was in the title game.


In a semi-related note, my mind boggles at how Oregon could slip to #2 in the computer rankings by winning handily against a team in the top 25.

[Paelos]

It is weird that the Rose Bowl doesn't get the PAC-10 #2 when the #1 is in the national championship game. That was how Illinois got in a couple years back because OSU was in the title game.

That game prompted the rule change. It was the season that gave us Hawaii v. Georgia, USC v. Illinois, West Virginia v. OU, and Kansas v. Virginia Tech

[Rasix]

In a semi-related note, my mind boggles at how Oregon could slip to #2 in the computer rankings by winning handily against a team in the top 25.

Auburn beat a better team.  

The tail end of this season for Arizona is just making me sigh endlessly.  The worst part is that you can see how talented we are; all signs are just pointing to "poorly coached".