“Class time” is being ignored anyway - the NCAA is scheduling more and more weekday games, as far as I can tell. Although it may be worth pointing out that the winning school in a 16-team playoff could end up with a 15- or 16-game season. That’s a little much.
Oh, I agree. I was just trying to present the 16 team playoff without sparking all the old saws against it. Certainly, you are right about class time - I would argue that most of the arguments against a playoff don’t make much sense when analyzed.
Think so? I guess reasonable people could differ on whether that’s too many games in one season for student-athletes. As I noted above, however, Division I-AA already does it. To win, their champion plays 15 games.
Also, I know that basketball and football are not really comparable when it comes to the toll on the players - but it’s worth noting that D-I basketball players play over 30 games in a season. Baseball players play something like 60.
While I definitely think that we want to look hard at the total number of games under a playoff system, I don’t think we want to throw out the whole concept because there might be an extra 2 or 3 games for the champion / runner-up.
And I would agree with that.
Nor do I; I support a playoff because the BCS is a joke. But I do think that a four-team playoff would be fine, or maybe six with byes for the top two. There is a very obvious number one team this year. There are only disputes about who is number two.
There’s a rule in place prohibiting more than two teams from any single conference from entering the BCS. The Big Ten has UM and OSU and the SEC has UF and LSU.
Oh, and my picks:
Ohio State - Nobody has stopped Smith this year.
Michigan - Because I’m a Michigan fan.
LSU - The Irish have no defense. None.
Louisville - Wake Forest? Really?
Boise State - I think this one will be much closer than most expect, plus Peterson won’t exactly be fresh coming off a break this long.
OK, lets talk Boise State a bit. Allow me to throw in a touch of reality. (My information was gathered at the BSU website, feel free to verify or catch any errors I may have made)
Boise State does not deserve to be in the National Championship game. They do not belong in a BCS bowl game at all.
Now, Boise State is to be commended. They have a great program at the level at which they compete. When they try to mix it up with teams from the BCS conferences, the results ain’t so hot.
Over the past four seasons (2003 through 2006, inclusive) BSU has played seven games against teams from BCS conferences. Their record in these games is 2-5, with both wins coming against Oregon State.
The highest ranked BCS team that BSU has played over this time frame is #13 Georgia in 2005. That turned out Georgia 48, Boise State 13.
BSU’s biggest bragging point is going 2-2 vs. Oregon State over the past four years. That shouldn’t qualify as an admittance slip into one of the nation’s top five bowl games, but somebody decided that it should, so Boise State is in this year.
If BSU wants to be included in the process, they should first have to schedule and actually beat some ranked teams from BCS conferences. Until that happens, BSU doesn’t have an argument for being in a BCS bowl game.
Boise State should just take pride in what they actually have, which is a damn fine program that dominates at its level. Trying to be something you’re not doesn’t work for people or football teams either.
Oklahoma will win the Fiesta Bowl by as much as Oklahoma wants to win it by. Look for the Sooners to get ahead about 35-0 and then call the dogs off.
I agree with everything else you said, John, but I’m not so sure about this. Whatever else they may not have, Boise State does have an offense. I’m not so sure that Oklahoma is going to completely blank them. If Ian Johnson gets rolling, look for BSU to score a few points (more if Zabranksy doesn’t get “big game jitters” like he did against the Dawgs a couple of years ago).
On the other side, though, whether or not Peterson plays, I think that Oklahoma will score 40+ points. Thompson is playing lights out (something I never expected to see). Between Malcolm Kelly and Allen Patrick, the Boise State defense is going to have their little blue smurf hands full.
All in all, the Fiesta Bowl is a trap for Oklahoma. If they win, so what? If they lose, then they suck and they lost to a team from a crappy conference AND they’ve failed to represent their own conference. However, I think Stoops will bring his A game to this bowl to set the stage for next year.