I'll tell you, this sure is better than a playoff! Who wants to see exciting games, anyway?No, let's have a joke of a "selection show" and then we can sit around for a month and then let teams play for mythical titles and have 32 of 33 bowls (97%) mean positively zero.
Awesome.
Let's start with the BCS bowl games, though, followed by some miscellaneous thoughts.
BCS National Championship Game -- Texas versus Alabama, 1/7/10
First, why must this be dragged out to January 7 now? You're more than a month past the final games of these two teams and that's only true because they played conference championship games (which, curiously, are okay and don't impact studying, fans traveling, etc., while a playoff would hinder these things).
Anyway, Texas looked pedestrian on Saturday and Alabama looked dominant. Truth is, Nebraska's defense is very good and Florida was only as good as they were because Tebow was willing them to wins. They were exposed for what they are -- a top five team, but not the best team in the country. This game will be closer than people think right now as long as Colt McCoy and Mack Brown don't forget what a clock looks like. I sincerely hope Texas pounds Alabama so that SEC sycophants shut their pie-holes for a while. The SEC is like any other conference this year -- deal with it.
Orange Bowl -- Iowa versus Georgia Tech, 1/5/10
Yawn. Seriously, who cares besides Iowa and G-Tech supporters? And this is a marquee bowl game, we're told. BCS and all. Yes, it's very nice for these programs to make a BCS bowl and it reaps millions for their programs and conferences. But for those who like meaningful football? Georgia Tech was a great story until they fell on their faces against a mediocre Georgia team. Sure, they won the ACC title game against unranked Clemson, but isn't that like winning your rec league softball tournament? It's fun and your family cheers for you, but does it matter? No.
And Iowa was another great story until the roof collapsed on them, they lost two of three end the season and Stanzi ran the ole "Roll out unprotected in the end zone and then fold your knee sideways" play.
Fiesta Bowl -- TCU versus Boise State, 1/4/10
You suck, BCS. Seriously, you're a bunch of ladies bicycle seats. You've probably heard this argument already, but my first thought was what a bunch of bullsh-t. This is a clever strategy by the BCS to further marginalize these programs. This way, neither of them can beat a big boy and make the BCS looks stupid. Last year, Utah beat Alabama. In 2007, Boise beat Oklahoma. So here's a solution -- have them play each other and you accomplish a couple things:
1) You'll have one less undefeated team making a claim they should have had a shot.
2) You can trivialize the winner's record by still pointing out they haven't played a big timer.
3) You can pretend this is "what everyone wants" by having two undefeated teams play each other.
Of course, one might argue that having TWO BCS bowl games pitting undefeated teams kind of further underscores the point that this could be a perfect playoff scenario. But they'll keep their fingers in their ears and keep squawking that there's "no perfect solution" and since there is no perfect solution, we shouldn't even try to do what practically everybody who has ever loved college football wants. Awesome.
Sugar Bowl -- Florida versus Cincinnati, 1/1/10
Will Florida care? I think yes, since Tebow is probably pissed and wants to run someone over by sixty. Unfortunately, Chattanooga isn't available. Cinci got jobbed, of course, since you can't even claim they're from a non-BCS power conference. And if anyone thinks Brian Kelly shouldn't be considering going to Notre Dame, keep in mind his team has gone 12-0 playing in a BCS conference, they played out of conference teams in the Pac Ten (at Oregon State) and Big Ten (home vs. Illinois) and pounded many quality opponents (i.e., 47-15 over an 8-4 Rutgers team)... and yet still don't get to play for the title. Can you blame coaches for wanting to go where they might be able to get into the biggest games? Games that, you know, matter for more than a payday for your school?
Rose Bowl -- Ohio State versus Oregon, 1/1/10
Two 10-2 teams in one of the few bowl games left with any semblance of the "tradition" we hear so much about. For those bitching about OSU representing the Big Ten poorly in BCS games, well, you can't blame Purdue this year, as our boys gave OSU their only Big Ten loss. Somebody needs to step up and knock these guys off their Big Ten champs pedestal or else we should all shut up.
Which Oregon shows up? This school hasn't won the Rose Bowl since, if you can believe this, 1917. They'll have to be up for this game, especially considering this is probably the only BCS bowl game for which it is not a letdown for the two participants. Think about that, BCS defenders. Aside from the National Championship game, who else got what they wanted out of this vaunted bowl system?
Miscellaneous Bowl Thoughts
Bobby Bowden and his 6-6 Florida State team gets to go to the flipping Gator Bowl -- a Jan 1 bowl game in Florida -- against West Virginia. I have no problem with WVU being there, but Florida State jumped a number of more deserving teams....obviously. And this is just a frreaking shravesty. Because the old man is being forced out, now we're going to pretend we're sad to see him go? And we're going to just make up the rules as we go? I guess we can, since it's a meaningless bowl system. Go for it! Too bad Joe Tiller didn't have more national attention -- maybe he could have asked for a bowl game in his final season despite not deserving it. What a joke. Have fun being rolled by WVU, Bobby. If you even know what's going on anymore.
Minnesota and Iowa State will play in the Insight Bowl on New Year's Eve in the only bowl matchup featuring not one winning team. How awful. I know there are lots of bowl slots, but come on. This shouldn't happen.
Notre Dame decides not to play in a bowl game. The initial reaction here is that they're too snooty and are above Little Ceasars Bowls and the like. While their alums and "fans" no doubt do indeed believe this, I don't think this is the primary reason for not going. It's likely got a lot more to do with what all bowl games have to do with -- money. As in, UND doesn't make enough to make going to one of these tiny bowls worth it. Of course, it would be a windfall for these tiny bowls because people would actually watch, in the hopes that UND could lose to a MAC team. Oh well. Jimmy Heisman has declared for the draft, anyway. I wonder what that magician (with his sparkling 16-21 record at UND) will do in the NFL. Did he declare for the draft from the NFL Hall of Fame?
14 comments:
Quick little story... was up in Boise visiting in-laws this past week. Saw that Boise State TV ad for tickets for last Saturday's game versus NM State. So I took a family member to the game and he enjoyed it, but it was kinda boring since BSU had locked up the conference, NMSU had no passing game, and everybody was just kinda going-through the motions.
But here's the thing. Their stadium holds 34-35K fans. They didn't sell out. Not close. It was an announced 32,000 and that seemed high. Ticket prices were a very respectable $45/pop for 15 yard line seats with a good view. BSU is the only show in town up there. There wasn't even any snow for skiing.
It made me curiously angry. I guess I always defended teams like BSU or Utah or TCU, but it's hard for me to want to back them in bowl selection or anything else when their own fans don't attend their games. Their fans cry out in righteous anger that they are being slighted, but if you have the 6th best team in your backyard and you only show up for big, nationally-televised games? Well, sorry, don't cry about your bowl invites.
Thanks for the story, Chris... that is interesting and I think you make some good points.
However, the Jacksonville Jaguars cannot sell out a game this year... they had 40K there for an NFL game that mattered yesterday. Their stadium can hold 80K. So they're a disappointment in that regard. However, if they have a good enough record, they still get to participate in a meaningful playoff.
My point is, the college system stinks. How good or bad your fans are should have no bearing on how good your team is perceived to be. It's so ludicrous that we even have to have this discussion.... if fan excitement and sellouts drove NCAA basketball, Duke would win the title every year.
I hate this system with all my hate.
oregon played Penn State in the '95 Rose bowl, ironically another undefeated team that got screwed...
J-
I agree with you completely on this post. I may have missed it, but you did leave out one point to consider - #3 and #4 aren't playing each other in a game. Cincinnati and TCU should be playing to determine who really is #3 at the end of the season. This system hurts my head.
That said, I will watch both the Fiesta and the Sugar bowls as I think they will be good games.
You make some good points about what's wrong with the current system, but what sort of alternative do you want? Obviously, you want some sort of playoff, but how would it work within the bowl system, if at all? Are we going to go from a system in which 60 teams make the postseason to a system in which only 8 or 16 make it? Will lower tier bowl games like the Insight continue to exist? What about venerable institutions like the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl? As I said, I don't disagree with your points about fairness and the quality of matchups, but it's hard to fully agree without knowing the alternative.
I tend to think an eight-team playoff, with the first two rounds at the end of the regular season on campus sites and the championship played during bowl season, would be a way to make things more fair and to preserve the bowl system. I just don't think college football will throw the bowl system out entirely. I would like a fairly decided championship, but I also enjoy all of the college football viewing that the bowl season provides.
I would go a step further with the playoff idea and say that you cannot make the playoffs unless you are a conference champion. Half of these major conferences have a conference championship game anyway. if you don't win your conference you don't deserve to be a national champion. Period. Make it an 11 team playoff with byes to the top 5 conference champions (Kind of like the Big Ten tournament's first day), everyone else in a first round playoff
John, I think most reasonable proposals would keep most of the lesser bowls ... they would be the equivalent of the NIT.
Eh. A tournament that includes Troy and East Carolina but doesn't include Florida? One of the reasons the NCAA Basketball Tournament has flourished is because the NCAA recognized that leaving out top 10 teams that lost their conference to another top 10 team was hurting the Tournament.
8 team tournament.
takes only 2 games to get down to the final two, then just place these teams in bowls.
the two left standing at the end of the playoff go to NC, then place the remaining six in the rose bowl, sugar bowl, fiesta bowl.
EASY.
And if people are concerned about teams playing through finals and such then just eliminate bye weeks and limit the season to 11 or 12 games.
Hell, you're playing another 6 games with this system! That's MORE money! More tickets more tv coverage, everything. It simply makes too much sense.
The bowls can stay. ALL of them. Will it really hurt the bowls that they are the little brothers to the NC game? Aren't they already?
Again I resort to the NCS aka Div I-AA. 16 team tournament, with 11 auto-conf bids, and 5 at-large. They also still have bowl games on the outside, such as the Southern Classic.
A none-BCS team shouldn't have to hope for a Cincinnati, and Texas loss in order to see a championship game when they are undefeated and have similar strength of schedule.
Well, the Bayou Classic is different; the SWAC chooses not to participate in the playoffs. (I wonder how much of that was originally their choice.)
And there are only 8 automatic bids. (The Ivy doesn't participate either, and the Big South, Great West, Northeast, and Pioneer Conferences don't have automatic bids.)
But the point is well made: 16 spots for 100+ teams, moving to 20 spots next season (the Big South and Northeast get automatic bids and two more at-large bids will be added).
I was very disappointed in the Boise State vs. TCU matchup. My ideal would have been TCU winning over Florida (which I absolutely think would have happened, the Frogs are damn good this year), and Boise State over Georgia Tech. I only wanted this to watch the BCS try and defend the system after that. Then if Cincy beat Iowa in the remaining BCS game we have 4 undefeated who I think each would have a legitimate case for the title (especially if the actual title game is a blowout). Sadly, they put Boise State and TCU in the "Separate but Equal" Bowl. Shameful.
What if Cinci destroys Florida and Texas eeks by Alabama? Is there another split national title?
I know they think it's awesome that we debate things like this, but it's really not awesome that we have to dream of what it MIGHT be like.
SO much for the bowls not interfereing with academics...
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/football/ncaa/12/08/alabama.classes.ap/index.html
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