For the past 2 weeks, Cal fans were all atwitter over the prospect of playing Texas in the Holiday Bowl, and gaining some vengeance for the Great Rose Bowl Snub of 2004.
One of the unexpected outcomes yesterday, though, threw a monkey wrench in those plans. Houston’s loss made them no longer BCS-worthy, which lets the Big 12 send two teams to the BCS (OSU and KSU), which moves everyone else up a notch in the pecking order. So it looks like we’re going to get Iowa State or Missouri instead…two teams we have absolutely no history with or grudges against.
I’ll probably go, anyway. Anyone else planning on going to a bowl game?
You didn’t have to. I treated Oklahoma State and Alabama equally.
Oklahoma State managed to beat 4 out of the top 5 teams in the Big 12 - all but themselves.
Alabama managed a pathetic 1 win out of the top 5 teams in the SEC.
4 > 1
The stupidest thing about the rematch is that Alabama was probably boosted over Oklahoma State because they lost close to LSU. Alabama’s schedule sucks. They did next to nothing in their own conference, which they lost. But… they welcomed LSU into the Alabama stadium and didn’t lose by much! Wow, that’s an automatic ticket to the BCS title game! Surely we don’t need to let any other team have a shot.
LSU vs Oklahoma State and Alabama vs Stanford would have been very interesting games. Of course, if Team SEC lost they would just say they didn’t really care about the game because it wasn’t an SEC opponent.
Just like heavily favored “surefire winner” Alabama did when they got stomped into the grass by Utah.
I’ve generally not had the disdain for the BCS that most college football fans do, but I don’t ever want to hear “Every game counts!” again. A fucking do-over for Alabama? Horseshit.
I’m sorry, but a championship game pits the two best teams against each other. That’s what happened. I’m mystified as to why a “do-over” is something that is complete anathema to people. The two best teams happened to be in the same division of the same conference.
In 2008 USC finished 12-1, ranked #2 in the coaches’ poll. They blew out #5 Ohio State, #5 Penn State, #21 Cal, #23 Oregon, Stanford, and Notre Dame. Their only loss was on the road at Oregon State.
Those conference road games can be a killer.
LSU rolled into Alabama this year and beat them in their own house. That Alabama was able to keep it close does not prove they are a great team.
Alabama’s schedule was absolutely pathetic. They beat only 1 of the top 5 teams in their own conference. For that matter, they only had one good win all year, and that was against a team which itself was heavily overrated.
LSU vs Oklahoma State and Alabama vs Stanford would have been interesting. Interesting is not what Alabama fans wanted after sneaking through a year without playing anyone, just like they crept away after getting murdered by Utah, hoping that nobody would remember (and they haven’t).
“Interesting” is a shitty reason to kick the #2 team out of a championship bid. Alabama held the #2 spot, and took care of its business against Auburn. As impressive as Okie State looked against OK last night, it was not going to be enough, because the decision turned on one thing: the quality of the teams’ loss. Bama lost (at home; big deal, home is no sanctuary in the Bama-LSU matchup. Never has been.) by a field goal in overtime to the undisputed #1 team in the country. Okie State lost (on the road) in overtime against a horrible 5-loss team.
Sure, on the road you say. In overtime, you say. The latter just makes it worse. No way Iowa State should have been able to take Oklahoma State to overtime, much less beat them.
I agree with your first sentence. That would be the matchup I’d want to see. Because of the reasons articulated here and elsewhere, I’d like to see the SEC champ take on the Big 12 champ. Great offense against great defense and let the best team win.
However, the BCS is not geared to automatically match up that way. Based on the voters and computers, Alabama is the second best team in the country. I personally think they are, also. Isn’t Oklahoma State ranked like #107 in defense? Out of how many I-A teams? There’s hardly a team in the country with a *worse *defense! They are not as well-rounded as Alabama. So, when comparing two 1-loss teams, that comes into play (as does the nature of the loss, where Alabama also gets the edge.)
And Alabama/Utah? That was like 3 years ago, dude. Has no bearing on the discussion of who’s number 2 in 2011.
No, it’s turning on Arkansas being ranked 6th in the BCS and Auburn 25th. The margin between Bama and Ok St. was only .0086.
And I keep bitching about Arkansas being ranked too high, but it’s honestly just the vagaries of the poll system. They started the season #15, which was totally reasonable, and stuck around while other teams ranked ahead lost and slid into the #3 spot before the LSU game (of course, for some reason, they barely fell after losing that game, as did Alabama, while Oregon lost at LSU and fell 10 spots). Looking at the rankings, the only teams I can make a case for being ranked ahead of Arkansas are Kansas St. (who Arkansas will be playing in the Cotton Bowl, interestingly enough), and maybe Boise St. If Arkansas had finished a spot or two lower, and Ok. St.'s loss had occurred earlier in the season, I bet Ok. St. would have made it to the championship game. And when I compare Alabama and Oklahoma State subjectively, I find what happened to be pretty bogus.
If every win counts, then so does every loss. OK State’s loss is far, far worse than Bama’s. There are a billion ways to spin statistics, but this is the one that matters to me.
Not to mention that Alabama held the #2 spot. Oklahoma State would have to have done something extraordinary to actually kick an established #2 team out of its spot. Since Bama did what it needed to do in monkey-stomping Auburn, that bar was always going to be very, very high.
IMO, Teams can only play the teams that are their schedule. when you are comparing one loss teams, I think the first tie-breaker ought to be the teams that they lost to.
Ok State lost to a team that lost to 6 other teams.
Bama lost to a team that DID NOT lose.
Stanford lost to a team that lost twice (to the top team and to a top 10 team, unofficially)
I think it is perfectly legitimate to ranked both Bama and Stanford ahead of OkSt.
And I’m sure you’ve always been a proponent of letting teams like Boise State, TCU, Hawaii and Utah a few years ago, etc. with no losses play for the National Championship. After all, teams can only play the teams that are [on] their schedule…
I am SEC football fan, but I cannot stand Alabama. They are definitely one team that I root against. My allegiances go to Auburn, Florida, and Arkansas.
And I do have some connection to OK State. A very good friend of mine is former OK State baseball player and was on their football team for awhile. I hold no animosity towards them at all.
And I really dislike Nick Saban, I put him on the same page as John Calipari in CBB.
I think Bama is a much better football team than OK State.