# 2015 College Football Omnibus Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 30, 2015, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398 "2015-08-30T16:01:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 29
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/561 "2015-12-01T05:54:04Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Considering that not all teams are not going to a bowl game, no I don’t think going to a bowl game is a participation trophy. Correct. It’s more like a Good Conduct medal. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/562 "2015-12-01T14:25:05Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > Here are the 5-7/5-6/4-7 teams in four-year APR order: > Nebraska, 985 > Kansas State (5-6), 976 > (tie) Missouri, 976 > San Jose State, 975 > (tie) Minnesota, 975 > Illinois, 973 > (tie) Rice, 973 > Texas (4-7), 958 > UTEP, 954 > Louisiana-Lafayette (4-7), 953 > Old Dominion, 951 > East Carolina, 950 > Buffalo, 948 > Kentucky, 945 > South Alabama (5-6), 943 > Georgia State (5-6), 940 > Florida International, 933 [The NCAA has confirmed that they will be selecting 5-7 teams in 4-year APR order.](http://www.ncaa.com/news/football/article/2015-11-30/ncaa-football-council-approves-process-allow-5-7-teams-bowl-games) With Missouri’s announcement that it will not be seeking a bowl bid, this means that Nebraska and Kansas State are guaranteed bowls; if either South Alabama or Georgia State lose on Saturday, both San Jose State and Minnesota get in (if SA and GS both win, there will be only one spot left, and I am assuming that the NCAA will let whatever bowl has the last spot decide which of the two to take, and my guess is Minnesota, especially as SJS has enough trouble getting fans to watch home games); if SA and GS both lose, then the final spot goes to either Illinois or Rice. Of course, this assumes that all of these teams will accept bowl bids. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/563 "2015-12-01T14:39:37Z")
[UCF hires Oregon OC Scott Frost as its new head coach](https://ucf.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1832195). This is a surprise; actually, a shocker. Frost has no ties to Florida (the closest he has is being Nebraska’s starting QB when then 1-AA UCF traveled there in 1997) and his name never came up in the media. Much as I hate Chip Kelly, I can’t say I’m not excited to see some variation of his offense installed here. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/564 "2015-12-01T16:04:13Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > I consider Florida to be a weaker matchup than Houston, quite honestly. That may or may not be true, I couldn’t say, but there is more prestige to beating an SEC team. ETA: And more respect for losing to an SEC team, too. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/565 "2015-12-01T18:30:31Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > [UCF hires Oregon OC Scott Frost as its new head coach](https://ucf.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1832195). This is a surprise; actually, a shocker. Frost has no ties to Florida (the closest he has is being Nebraska’s starting QB when then 1-AA UCF traveled there in 1997) and his name never came up in the media. Much as I hate Chip Kelly, I can’t say I’m not excited to see some variation of his offense installed here. Well, congratulations. Sorry to see him go. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/566 "2015-12-01T19:07:17Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > 1. Ohio State > 2. Michigan State > … > 3. USC > 4. Notre Dame > > … > It’s not a mistake that tOSU is back above Michigan State; their win over Michigan was big enough that the system sees them as too superior to MSU for the head-to-head factor to come into play … I see head to head is still ignored, and in the case of MSU/OSU apparently it is deliberate. I mean, why play the games at all if the system can determine who’s better? And while I’m on my soapbox, I’m getting a kick out of Buckeye fans here in Ohio complaining that Alabama’s best win is over 3 loss LSU and, therefore, should be ranked lower. Irony!!! ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/567 "2015-12-01T19:33:27Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I see head to head is still ignored Nothing new about this; in 1993, Notre Dame beat Florida State, only to lose to Boston College the following week (both of those were their only losses - and both were Notre Dame home games), and Florida State finished #1 to Notre Dame’s #2. ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/568 "2015-12-01T20:32:42Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#): > > I see head to head is still ignored, and in the case of MSU/OSU apparently it is deliberate. I mean, why play the games at all if the system can determine who’s better? > > And while I’m on my soapbox, I’m getting a kick out of Buckeye fans here in Ohio complaining that Alabama’s best win is over 3 loss LSU and, therefore, should be ranked lower. Irony!!! Oh damn, I did miss the ND-USC thing. Re Sparty-Brutus, I’m not really prepared to defend that particular result. It’s very close, and any number of tiny tweaks to the system could push it the other way, but the main factor is that MSU is viewed as having an easier conference schedule because it got to play Purdue, the last-place team in the Western Division. But (as you may remember!) it also played fourth-place Nebraska, while tOSU got the fifth and sixth place teams. So I would say this is a case of the system getting it wrong. Michigan supporters may disagree! I will note, though, that for their six common opponents (all of whom they both beat), tOSU’s total point differential was +164, while MSU’s was “only” +106. I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but you have decreased the amount of confidence I have in the critical thinking skills of Buckeye fans. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/569 "2015-12-01T21:14:26Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > [UCF hires Oregon OC Scott Frost as its new head coach](https://ucf.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1832195). This is a surprise; actually, a shocker. Frost has no ties to Florida That is going to be a problem, at first, but then Florida is a talent hotbed and he could build the program as fast as O’Leary did. UCF must have sold the job to him that way. No, Ohio State isn’t going to the playoffs. If there were 8 teams in it, maybe, but there aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2015, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/570 "2015-12-01T22:06:38Z")
Here’s an interesting wrinkle in the Bowl selection process. If Baylor beats Texas this weekend and OU stays in the top 4, they will automatically qualify for one of the New Years Six bowls, the Sugar Bowl, regardless of their final ranking. Thanks to the tie breaker mechanics that the Big XII implemented in the offseason, that without last year, the Bears had to be co-champs with TCU. With win against Texas they will be in a 3 way tie with OSU and TCU for 2nd place in the Big XII. See [here](http://www.ourdailybears.com/baylor-bears-2015-football-season/2015/11/29/9814894/big-12-tiebreaker-sugar-bowl-bid-procedures-explained-tcu-baylor-oklahoma-state?_ga=1.191104813.686791203.1448892295) for an explanation of these tie breaker rules. Interestingly, if Baylor had beaten OSU by a higher margin, TCU would win the tie breaker and go to the Sugar Bowl. As the way the tie breaker shakes out, you look at the net margin of victory between the 3 teams head to head games, and the one with the worst margin falls out, then you look at head to head between the remaining two. I expect that the Big XII may want to revisit these tie-breaker rules due to the perverse outcomes. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/571 "2015-12-02T04:30:56Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > That is going to be a problem, at first, but then Florida is a talent hotbed and he could build the program as fast as O’Leary did. UCF must have sold the job to him that way. > > No, Ohio State isn’t going to the playoffs. If there were 8 teams in it, maybe, but there aren’t. If Alabama or Clemson loses they are in. Florida or NC are probably not making the jump. They’d have to win impressively to do so. Stanford can easily jump OSU if they win by enough. So OSU probably needs them to lose or win in less than impressive fashion. Long shot but it’s possible ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/572 "2015-12-02T04:49:58Z")
Too bad the Ducks lost three games with their starting QB out with injury. They’ve beaten both the contenders for the Pac-12 championship, and are probably the best team in the conference. I’m not even sure Stanford is the second best; they were extremely lucky to win over Wazzu, on a missed FG in a pouring rain that stifled the Coug’s offense more than the Stanford defense did. I kind of hope they don’t get into the top four, because they will be embarrassed. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/573 "2015-12-02T14:28:46Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > Too bad the Ducks lost three games with their starting QB out with injury. They’ve beaten both the contenders for the Pac-12 championship, and are probably the best team in the conference. I’m not even sure Stanford is the second best; they were extremely lucky to win over Wazzu, on a missed FG in a pouring rain that stifled the Coug’s offense more than the Stanford defense did. I kind of hope they don’t get into the top four, because they will be embarrassed. I don’t think we need worry about that, which is too bad because I’m a big fan of Chaos. I think this weekend is going to go exactly to form: Oklahoma, B1G Winner are locks; and Alabama and Clemson will win easily to wrap up the other 2 spots. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/574 "2015-12-02T14:43:21Z")
If the college football fairy is reading, please let Alabama lose big, ditto for Clemson. Then have Michigan State win convincingly, putting Iowa out and opening the door for Ohio State. Have MSU and OSU in different semis and win, then MSU wins the final. What could be better than beating Ohio State? Beating them twice in one year! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/575 "2015-12-02T15:13:56Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > [UCF hires Oregon OC Scott Frost as its new head coach](https://ucf.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1832195). This is a surprise; actually, a shocker. Frost has no ties to Florida (the closest he has is being Nebraska’s starting QB when then 1-AA UCF traveled there in 1997) and his name never came up in the media. Much as I hate Chip Kelly, I can’t say I’m not excited to see some variation of his offense installed here. Heard him on the radio this morning. I was wrong: he was a journeyman special teamer in the NFL and spent one year with the Buccaneers (2003) as a backup safety. He said Mike Tomlin, Raheem Morris and Ronde Barber are still very close friends. > [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > That is going to be a problem, at first, but then Florida is a talent hotbed and he could build the program as fast as O’Leary did. UCF must have sold the job to him that way. He was on the radio this morning with one of the local talking heads/newspaper columnists (Mike Bianchi) and he said more or less exactly that. He had recruited a speed guy (Nelson something) from Daytona to play at Oregon and was basically salivating at the number of athletes he’ll have to choose from down here. He also said some comforting things about his planned tenure here (since a lot of people are assuming this is just a stepping stone to the Nebraska job) though obviously with coaches that’s generally just hot air, and he confirmed that he’ll be installing the Kelly offense. He also specifically mentioned that he wanted to talk to the old coaching staff before making calls outside, because he wanted to retain as much of a tie to the prior era as possible. I thought that was nice. The only thing he didn’t say was anything about George O’Leary. I thought it would have been nice to give a shout-out to the guy who built the program into something Frost considered worth taking over. Still, that’s a minor gripe, all things considered. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/576 "2015-12-03T01:45:25Z")
> [@treis](#): > > If Alabama or Clemson loses they are in. Florida or NC are probably not making the jump. They’d have to win impressively to do so. Being the champs of major conferences would be enough. There were some surprising jumps last year, if you’ll recall. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/577 "2015-12-03T01:48:47Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > He also said some comforting things about his planned tenure here (since a lot of people are assuming this is just a stepping stone to the Nebraska job) though obviously with coaches that’s generally just hot air That’s how I see it. > [@](#): > > he confirmed that he’ll be installing the Kelly offense. I’d be more impressed by his installing the Kelly _talent_. > [@](#): > > He also specifically mentioned that he wanted to talk to the old coaching staff before making calls outside, because he wanted to retain as much of a tie to the prior era as possible. I thought that was nice. Also hot air. This year’s guys failed as miserably as it is possible to fail - they actually got sadder under the interim guy. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/578 "2015-12-03T01:54:48Z")
More on the coaching carousel: Sonny Dykes is either looking to leave Cal, or looking for leverage on his contract extension talks. He has definitely interviewed for the Mizzou job, and is rumored to have also been in contact with South Carolina. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/579 "2015-12-03T02:06:21Z")
Mark Richt is going to Miami almost the day after getting fired at Georgia. Good for the Canes. ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398/580 "2015-12-03T02:27:03Z")
And the pool of quality coaches for South Carolina keeps getting smaller and smaller. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398.md?page=28) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2015-college-football-omnibus-thread/729398.md?page=30)