# College Football November and early December 2009 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 3, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183 "2009-11-03T18:27:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 19
**Author:** ![Rucksinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/898d66/32.png) [@Rucksinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rucksinator)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/361 "2009-12-07T05:32:51Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > ESPN reported this morning > > Oregon/OhSU > Fiesta TCU/BSU > Sugar UF/UC > Orange GT/Iowa > BCS Bama/Tex > > If this scenario pans out, the two “flies in the ointment” play each other, and the winner will not get the respect that it desperately wants. They still don’t beat an “established” BCS team No shit. I want to know who is to blame for this. Instead of two good games, we get one that nobody cares about. All of these “non-big-6” schools hope for a perfect season so that they can get into a major bowl to prove their worth against the best of the Big 6. Then when 2 make it, they get pitted against each other. It’s like you and your sister crashing a big party at the Playboy mansion, and then you have to spend the whole night dancing with her. ---
**Author:** ![Rucksinator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/898d66/32.png) [@Rucksinator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rucksinator)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/362 "2009-12-07T05:35:35Z")
> [@Carmady](#): > > Should have been Cincy vs TCU and Florida vs Boise State. > > But the bowls wanted to avoid: > > 1. Boise State beating Florida, which would have looked incredibly bad for the BCS. > > 2. The Cincy/TCU winner would have basically been a co-champion. Good grief, these conspiracy theories are really nutty. 1. Yeah, because the BCS suffered so much when Boise State beat Oklahoma a few years ago. 2. I don’t understand what you’re saying here. Do you mean with the winner of the 'Bama/Texas game? ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/363 "2009-12-07T06:37:18Z")
Speaking of conspiracies, I’ve already read on several forums how, somehow, the officials gave the game to Bama yesterday. :smack: Riiiiight. Alabama didn’t beat the living snot out of Florida. The officials gave them the game. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/364 "2009-12-07T11:14:27Z")
Alabama is a damn good football team. They will likely win it all. And, if there was a playoff, they’d probably win it all in that too. Probably. We think. Maybe. But…Texas is a really good football team too. TCU is a really good football team too. Cinicinnati is a really good football team too. Boise State is a really good football team too. What a shame we’ll never know who the best was, while we arbitrarily hand the trophy to the winner of Alabama/Texas. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/365 "2009-12-07T14:33:13Z")
I think the bowl matchups have more to do with geography than any conspiracy theories. A lot of the top teams this year don’t have large national fan bases. The Arizona Fiesta Bowl took TCU/Boise because they have the best chance of selling tickets to 2 Western schools. The Sugar could have probably taken any of the teams knowing that Florida and Tebow’s last college game will sell the tickets. Still, Cincy isn’t going to be a draw anywhere outside of the Midwest. Ga. Tech is another school without a large fan base. Still, large Big Ten schools can sell out any bowl game so matching them up with Iowa makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/366 "2009-12-07T16:27:20Z")
It’s probably good to keep in mind that the Prime Directive of the bowl committees isn’t to provide a good game; it’s to put butts in the seats and bodies in the hotel beds. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/367 "2009-12-07T17:06:09Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > It’s probably good to keep in mind that the Prime Directive of the bowl committees isn’t to provide a good game; it’s to put butts in the seats and bodies in the hotel beds. Which, to anybody, should underscore the ridiculousness of the bowl system. Oh, and to anyone who argues the ‘academic argument’, well, all the DII and DIII and DI-FCS schools manage to do it. As do all those same schools when March Madness hits (many schools are on quarters, and finals for the winter quarter hit right around then). And for those players, 99% of them won’t play football on Sundays after college, so they NEED their degree. I will watch the games because the football itself is good, but I have never been able to get emotionally invested in college football, since it’s just stupid the way the season ends. I don’t get upset over losses (I’m a Buckeye ‘fan’), I smile when they win, but the passion will never be there because of how dumb the season structure is. I mean, I think there will be some very good games this bowl season…it’ll be fun to watch. But there will be nothing to wash the bad taste out of my mouth that there will be at least two undefeated teams at the end of the year, and possibly three. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/368 "2009-12-07T19:14:44Z")
This [USAToday graphic](http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2009-final-coaches-ballots.htm) give the final coaches ballot. It is interesting to see how each of the coaches voted, this year I don’t see as many abnormalities than i have in previous years. Charlie Weatherbie of La-Monroe voted Texas #4, the only coach to rank them that low. Brian Kelly of Cincy voted his team #1, Bama #2, Tex #3. I think if I was in his situation, I would have made Texas #5, lowest of the undefeated teams. Dan Mullen of Miss St ranked Cincy #6. ---
**Author:** ![AdmiralCrunch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6f9a4e/32.png) [@AdmiralCrunch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AdmiralCrunch)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/369 "2009-12-08T02:50:32Z")
No real complaints with the BCS Bowl Selections this year. TCU/Boise is a rematch of a good Poinsettia bowl last year, and the computers have TCU(.840) and Boise(.780) ranked below the big AQ teams in contention. I’ve been saying for the last 3 years that the WAC and MWC need to play a champ vs champ game on title Saturday to give a SoS boost to the victor, or at the very least let Boise State into the MWC. Texas(.920) over Cincinnati(.930) is the slightest margin possible, so it’s not really a travesty one way or the other. The Bearcats had a shot at changing a lot of minds with a convincing win on Saturday, but both Texas and Cincy squeaked by, leaving the human polls unchanged. Matching them with Florida(.910) seems fitting. Like with instant replay, I’d have liked to see Cincy get in on computer rankings, but there’s not indisputable evidence to overturn it. Add in that Texas originally had a beatable Arkansas on their schedule, and didn’t expect Oklahoma and Texas Tech to be unranked busts, and I’m OK with this verdict. GT/Iowa: Not really sure what to make of this one, other than unbridled enthusiasm for a Jackets victory. (Jimmy James Voice) Rose Bowl: What a lackluster year for both conferences. Either USC was a fluke, or this one’s not gonna be close. Predictions: Bama, TCU, Cincinnati, GT, and Ohio State. ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/370 "2009-12-08T06:13:59Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > This [USAToday graphic](http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/2009-final-coaches-ballots.htm) give the final coaches ballot. That’s 10 kinds of awesome. Some things I’ve noticed so far: [ul] [li]Pitt came within a point of knocking off #4 Cinci and Bobby Bowden doesn’t even have them in the Top 25. Two coaches have them as high as #11. That’s the biggest disparity I’ve seen so far.[/li][li]Bob Stoops ranked his 5 loss Oklahoma ahead of 8-3 Oklahoma State & Houston.[/li][li]Rick Stockbill of Middle Tennessee has 7-5 South Carolina ranked 18th.[/li][li]Jim Harbaugh is represent’n for the PAC-10 putting his own Stanford Cardinal, Oregon State, and Arizona (each sitting at 8-4) 12th, 13th, and 14th respectively.[/li][/ul] I was hoping to find a coach that rated their own team lower than they ended up in the ranking but didn’t find any, though a couple rated their own program exactly where they ended up (Jeff Tedford at Cal and Jim Tressel at Ohio State). ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/371 "2009-12-08T14:27:27Z")
> [@AdmiralCrunch](#): > > (Jimmy James Voice) Rose Bowl: What a lackluster year for both conferences. Either USC was a fluke, or this one’s not gonna be close. au contraire…I think it was an excellent year for the Pac-10. It was a bad year for USC. ---
**Author:** ![ReuvenB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@ReuvenB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReuvenB)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/372 "2009-12-08T15:31:52Z")
My friend and I are planning to go to the Orange Bowl this year, but are holding off on buying tickets as last year before the game prices for upper level tickets (with a face value of $95) reached $20. Do you guys think it’ll happen again this year? ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/373 "2009-12-08T15:46:55Z")
> [@ReuvenB](#): > > My friend and I are planning to go to the Orange Bowl this year, but are holding off on buying tickets as last year before the game prices for upper level tickets (with a face value of $95) reached $20. Do you guys think it’ll happen again this year? Have you check out [the wiki page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Orange_Bowl) for the 2009 Orange Bowl. The BCS game was in Miami last year as well. That could have hurt local ticket sales. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2009, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/374 "2009-12-10T15:54:32Z")
Just started a [Bowl Season thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=11872336#post11872336). And I am looking for interest in a SDMB bowl pool. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2010, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/375 "2010-01-08T05:14:28Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally Posted by Oakminster > How long before we forget this BCS silliness, and just award the National Championship to the SEC Champion? > [@jsc1953](#): > > You know, I actually am OK with Alabama, and agree that the SEC is usually pretty good. But God I hope Bama does **another** BCS face-plant this year, just so I can post a link back to this one. And the scoreboard says: Alabama 37 Texas 21 That 4 Consecutive SEC/BCS Champions. :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183.md?page=18)