What We Learned From The Bowls

Another college football season has come to an end, another SEC team has been crowned the National Champion, another undefeated team didn't get a chance to play for the title.  So what did we learn from the 35-bowl game orgy over the past few weeks?

New Mexico Bowl, BYU vs UTEP - We learned that UTEP showed why 6-6 teams don't deserve a bowl berth over an 8-4 Temple team who would have made a better showing than the disinterested Miners.

Humanitarian, Northern Illinois vs Fresno St - We watched the Huskies make a statement for the MAC in routing the Bulldogs and Fresno Coach Pat Hill has to wonder why he can't beat non-automatic qualifiers in bowl games...

New Orleans, Troy vs Ohio - ...and then Ohio turned around and handed all that good feeling for the MAC that Northern Illinois got earlier in the day by getting blown out by a Sun Belt team.

Beef 'O' Brady, Louisville vs So Miss - We saw that Coach Charlie Strong might be able to do good things with Louisville...until a bigger program lures him away.  And for those on the west coast, we found out what a Beef 'O' Brady was (a family-friendly Irish Pub-themed restaurant that doesn't serve hard alcohol.  Not very Irish-authentic in my book if you don't have whiskey).

Las Vegas, Boise St vs Utah - We reaffirmed that Boise State was a pretty damn good team this year and got the shaft from the BCS by being relegated to the Las Vegas Bowl.

Poinsettia, San Diego St vs Navy - We learned that San Diego State was very good under Coach Brady Hoke.  So good, in fact, that Michigan decided he was the person to turn their program around.  Aztecs...say, "Hello" to obscurity again.

Hawaii, Hawaii vs Tulsa - We saw a team from Tulsa apparently avoid the $1 Mai-Tai's and come to play football, destroying a 10-win Hawaii team.

Little Caesars Pizza, Toledo vs Florida Int'l - We saw that two schools most people don't care about can still play one hell of an entertaining game.

Independence, Air Force vs Georgia Tech - We watched two option teams cause televisions across the country to turn off as they played a snoozer of a game.

Champs Sports, West Virginia vs NC State - We learned that Tom O'Brien still knows how to win bowl games, whether it's at Boston College or at North Carolina State.

Insight, Missouri vs Iowa - We learned Iowa wasn't as bad as they appeared this year and Missouri wasn't as good as they seemed this year. 

Military, Maryland vs East Carolina - We learned that Maryland thinks they can get a better coach than Ralph Friedgen (who won 9 games this year).  Ummm, Maryland?  You're not National Championship caliber and haven't been for a long, long time.  Enjoy the 8-to-9 win seasons and a coach who loves your school.

Texas, Baylor vs Illinois - We watched Ron Zook win a bowl game.  Let that sink in.

Alamo, Oklahoma St vs Arizona - We learned that Oklahoma State was pretty good and that the Pac-10 was extremely top heavy.

Armed Forces, SMU vs Army - We watched a bunch of players who won't ever play beyond the collegiate level beat an offensive guru.

New Era Pinstripe, Kansas St vs Syracuse - We learned that a crew of officials can take all the joy out of an incredible comeback and cost a team a chance for a miracle ending.

Music City, North Carolina vs Tennessee - We watched the Volunteers again lose a game at the end on a crazy play with far too many people on the field (was that a Stanford trombone player down at the 5-yard line?).  The second best bowl game of the year, in my opinion.

Holiday, Nebraska vs Washington - We learned that a team who wants to be there (Washington) can beat a team who doesn't care about being there (Nebraska).  The biggest embarrassment of the bowl season.

Meinke Car Care, Clemson vs South Florida - Too little, too late for Clemson as the late game scores only made it appear close.  The Bulls completely dominated the Tigers.

Sun, Miami vs Notre Dame - If this was the mid-80's, this would have been a great game.  In 2010, not so much.  And how far has Miami QB Jacory Harris regressed?

Liberty, Georgia vs UCF - The second biggest embarrassment of the bowl season.  Two field goals for an SEC team?  UCF deserved this game and Georgia was awful.

Chick-fil-A, South Carolina vs Florida St - Stephen Garcia went back to being Stephen Garcia and the Seminoles took advantage of all those turnovers.  Of course, losing Marcus Lattimore on the first series of the game didn't help things for the Gamecocks.

Ticket City, Texas Tech vs Northwestern - Ahhh, the high point of the Big Ten's New Year's Day.  Northwestern came storming back from a huge deficit to make it close.  And that's the highlight for the Big Ten on Black Saturday.

Outback, Florida vs Penn St - Five interceptions by your starting quarterback will make anyone older and Joe Paterno doesn't need that. Big Ten 0-2.

Capital One, Alabama vs Michigan St - You thought you deserved the Rose Bowl bid, Sparty?  How about Alabama pulling their starters with TEN MINUTES left in the third quarter?  Big Ten 0-3.

Gator, Mississippi St vs Michigan - Big Ten hits rock bottom as the second Michigan school of the day is absolutely trounced by a mediocre offense.  Coach Rich Rodriguez maybe had a chance for one more year with a win or a close loss.  This blowout assured him of getting fired.

Rose, TCU vs Wisconsin - The best bowl game of the year, in my opinion.  TCU rose up and completed the Big Ten's perfect day by knocking off the big, powerful Badgers from Wisconsin.  TCU and their fans were gracious and joyous at the Rose Bowl experience and were the class of the bowl season.  Also, the helmets with the Horned Frog holding a rose in his teeth was the best of the year.  And those TCU cheerleaders...definitely Top 5.  And Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee....who is it that plays the Little Sisters of the Poor?  After your conference's outstanding New Year's Day showing, you may want to keep your cake hole shut and maybe schedule some non-cupcakes out of conference so that when you play real teams, you might put up a fight.

Fiesta, Oklahoma vs Connecticut - Yay! The Sooners won a BCS Bowl game!  And no one cared.

Orange, Stanford vs Virginia Tech - We saw that a blowout can still be entertaining when a team is performing as well as Stanford did at the Orange Bowl.

Sugar, Ohio St vs Arkansas - We learned, as if we didn't already know, that the almighty dollar drives the NCAA, as the "Tattoo Five" are allowed to play in the bowl game but are suspended for the first five games of next season.  Coach Tressel lost a lot of respect in my book for not standing up to the Sugar Bowl, Ohio State and the Big Ten and suspending those players for the game.

GoDaddy.com, Miami (OH) vs Middle Tennessee State - Danica Patrick on the sidelines isn't a bad thing.

Cotton, LSU vs Texas A&M - An entertaining game absolutely ruined by the terrible Fox announcers.  These guys have no clue how to call a college football game and just need to go away.  And the Cotton Bowl needs to be back on New Year's Day and part of the BCS.

BBVA Compass, Pitt vs Kentucky - We learned that a team who loses it's coach, but still wants to play for him, can still get it done.  Here's hoping Pitt wises up and realizes the problem wasn't Coach Wanstache, but that it's AD Petersen (contact Nebraska for references).

Kraft Fight Hunger, Nevada vs Boston College - We learned that Kraft's most important food product for fighting hunger, at least in order of mention, is Oreos.  And then Macaroni and Cheese.

BCS Championship, Auburn vs Oregon - We reaffirmed that when tempo teams have almost 40 days off between games they play a sluggish, stop-and-start game that while close and exciting lacked the pop and sizzle these two teams displayed throughout the regular season.  And we'll learn in the coming years, if Auburn has to vacate this title and all their wins from this year, will they give the title to Oregon since they only lost on a last second field goal (not like Oklahoma's historic blowout loss to USC where you couldn't give the trophy to the Sooners without everyone laughing hysterically).

The Happiest Time of the Year (Part 2)

Well, the regular season has ended and now the second "Happiest Time of the Year" has begun with the College Football Bowl Season underway (for those not sure of the first "Happiest Time of the Year", it's when the college season begins).

The first three bowl games gave very little for college football fans to cheer about (unless you are a fan of BYU, Troy or Northern Illinois) as all three were blowouts and never competitive.  Fortunately, the Beef 'O' Brady Bowl between Southern Miss and Louisville provided a much closer game and some hope that the rest of the bowl season is going to give us compelling games and exciting finishes all leading up to the climactic showdown between Auburn and Oregon in what will hopefully be a legendary game.

And speaking of legendary...the Big Ten's announcement of their new divisions, Legends and Leaders was met with the derision it properly deserved.  Who did the research on this and who was the committee that thought this was a good idea?  Legends and Leaders?  Why not just call them Douchebags and Tools, since that what the rest of the NCAA conferences think of those names.  North and South couldn't work?  East and Midwest?  How about Lakes and Plains?  No, the forward thinking Big Ten had to come up with something no one could have seen coming and then are surprised that they got slammed for how stupid the names are and are already considering changing them after the inaugural season.

But with the discussion about how stupid the division names are, people are missing the other inexplicable reveal from the announcement.  The new conference logo.  Okay, Big Ten.  When Penn State joined the conference, you kept the name and reworked the logo to have an 11 hidden in the words Big Ten.  But now that Nebraska has joined, and you have twelve teams, you can't keep calling yourselves the Big Ten.  Is counting not a requirement for entrance?  Does the word "ten" have some other meaning that only you're aware of?  And while I see the "1" being used as an "I" in the logo, where is the "2" for the twelfth team?  Is the "G" supposed to be a "0"?  I'm confused by what you're trying to do.  Rename those divisions as soon as possible, burn all the merchandise you made up with those names, fire the people responsible for them and get your conference name changed to something with a 12 in it or do it like the SEC, where the number of teams can change but your name stays the same.  If you need help with this, send me an e-mail...I'm happy to help.

The Top 10

A shake up in the Top 10 with the losses by Boise State and LSU.

1. Oregon - Still unbeaten, took Arizona behind the woodshed and the information coming out about Cal faking injuries to slow down the Ducks offense makes that close score in my eyes more of an aberration than a real solution to the Oregon offense.  The Civil War against Oregon State is always tricky, but the Ducks look like they're going to get their shot.
2. Auburn - Incredible comeback against Alabama (and 'Bama should have been up by almost 40) but the questions still linger about Cam Newton.  The NCAA's decision regarding his eligibility is going to open a Pandora's Box in the future.  Many others have written about what this means and the double standard that the NCAA has with SEC schools already.  I think USC has a legitimate beef to go after the NCAA with the sanctions they imposed on them for Reggie Bush's parents taking money if Auburn gets to still keep going when Cam's dad is whoring his son out to the highest bidder.  In a just world, South Carolina will destroy Auburn this weekend by 17 or more.
3. TCU - They're unbeaten, they're smoking people and they have an outside shot at the title.  Their move to the Big East is interesting and while it gets them into an automatic qualifier conference for football, how's that travel going to work out for swimming, track and field, baseball, volleyball, etc.?  If the Mountain West could have hung on to BYU and Utah as well as TCU, the MWC would be looking at taking the Big East's automatic berth away with Boise State, Nevada and Fresno State coming in next year.
4. Wisconsin - You put up 70+ points three times in a year, you're going to get noticed.  The Badgers are destroying everybody and hopefully with get the opportunity to play...
5. Stanford - The Cardinal are a hard-nosed team on offense and defense and a Rose Bowl against Wisconsin would make the Big Ten and Pac-10 extremely happy.  If Stanford gets hosed out of a BCS berth because they "dont' travel well", it will just further prove how corrupt the system is.  Don't we want to see the best teams play on the field?
6. Boise State - So close.  Less than probably three feet away from having the field goal that gives them the win after the spectacular Kellen Moore to Titus Young pass-reception.  And for those of us that despise the BCS system, they were our best hope.  Nevada played a hell of a game in the second half and the Broncos dropped passes that should have been caught that ended drives and their kicker is probably beating himself up daily.  The real tragedy is with the terrible bowl tie-ins, Boise is going to end up in some pre-New Year's Eve bowl and everyone will think they're not that good because they couldn't get to a New Year's Day bowl.  Yeah, that fourth place ACC vs fifth place SEC team will certainly have better teams than Boise State.
7. Michigan State - They beat Wisconsin and didn't get a shot at Ohio State.  Unfortunately, they had that absolute Justin Beiber suck job against Iowa.  On a neutral field, right now, the Badgers beat Sparty.
8. Arkansas - Big win against LSU, they play in the SEC and they're on a roll. 
9. Virginia Tech - Ten wins in a row and they have a shot for a 12-win season after dropping the first two games of the season.
10. Nebraska - You're here for this week, Cornhuskers, but it's tenuous and Oklahoma can take your place with a win in the Big-12 title game.

Picks for Nov. 27th Games

3-0-1 last week and the season record is up to 20-15-2.

Central Florida -26 at Memphis - Memphis is playing better, though that's a relative term based on how bad they were for most of the season.  Unfortunately for the Tigers, Central Florida comes in with a chance to have a 10-win season with a win here and a win in the Conference USA championship game.  The Knights put the Tigers out of their misery early.

at Ohio State -16.5 Michigan - The Buckeyes still have a shot at the Big Ten championship and now with Boise State's loss and with the help of some upsets, have a chance to move further up in the standings and could end up in the BCS Title game *shudder*.  Michigan will put up some points, but they still don't play defense and the Buckeyes will win again.

North Carolina State -2 at Maryland - The Wolfpack have the opportunity to get to the ACC Title game with a win against the Terrapins.  The experience of NC State quarterback Russell Wilson will be the difference in a close game.

Picks for Nov. 20th Games

Another 2-2 week, running the season record to 17-15-1.

Ohio State -3 at Iowa - I'm still not convinced the Buckeyes have beaten anyone with a steady pulse this year, but Coach Tressel owns Iowa and the Hawkeyes are reeling after seeing their potential dream season crumble over the last few weeks.

Tennessee -9 at Vanderbilt - Where did this Volunteer team come from?  They stuggle to score more than twice a game for weeks, then get 24 against South Carolina and break 50 against Memphis and Mississippi.  Don't know if they'll get to 50 against the Commodores, but they'll win by double digits.

Stanford -6.5 at Cal - Stanford has beaten Cal once in the last eight tries.  Those Cardinal teams weren't very good and the Bears were pretty good.  Now, Cal isn't very good and Stanford is really good.  After the close win against Arizona last week and the tough loss to Cal last year, look for Harbaugh to keep the hammer down against their rivals.

Wisconsin -4 at Michigan - The Wolverines have played three teams this year who play some defense - Michigan State, Iowa and Penn State.  They lost all three by 10 or more.  Take the Badgers to keep rolling towards a BCS game.  They won't get 83 this weekend, but they'll get over 40 against that porous Michigan defense.

Week 11 Top 10 and Thoughts

Everyone in my Top 10 won last week, but there's a little shake up near the top.

1. Boise State - The Broncos have done everything they've been asked to do this year.  They traveled all the way across the country to take on Virginia Tech in a virtual home game for the Hokies and beat them.  They beat Oregon State by more than TCU beat the Beavers.  They have destroyed every other team on their schedule, just like they were supposed to.  There have been no close games, no scares, no struggling to get by a lesser team.  They play offense, defense and special teams.  They're my number one.
2. Auburn - The Tigers jump from #4 to #2 with the big win over Georgia, with all the distractions surrounding the program and Cam Newton.  Auburn at this point is "all in" with Newton and hoping the NCAA drags their feet like they always do when it comes to these kind of things and that they get their shot at winning a National Title.  Who cares if they take it away in two years or 5 years?  On the field, they'll be considered the champions. 
3. Oregon - The Ducks take a tumble in the polls and while some might see it as a great way of getting by a team when they didn't have their "A-Game", Oregon was exposed by Cal.  And the Bears aren't that good.  Oregon never got things going and only scored one offensive touchdown after rolling everyone else.  The Ducks need to get back to business or Arizona or Oregon State will knock them off (and doesn't it happen every year that Oregon blows a game they shouldn't?).
4. TCU - San Diego State is better than people think (and are a bad call away in the last minute from beating Missouri and being 8-2).  But the Horned Frogs need to do what Boise State does and beat the teams they are supposed to beat by a lot. 
5. Stanford - Still the best one-loss team in the country but the gap narrowed a bit this past weekend with the close win over Arizona State.
6. Wisconsin - 83.  Let that sink in for a second.  83 points against a Big 10 team.  Admit it people, the Big 10 isn't that good, and I'm a Big 10 fan.  Still, the Badgers are a pretty good team and a Wisconsin vs Stanford Rose Bowl would be a great slobber-knocker of a game.
7. LSU - The Tigers beat another late SEC out of conference cream puff.  These games just hurt your cause, SEC fan.  Yeah, you have all these teams winning 7+ games and put 9 teams in bowl games, but when you play four cupcakes out of conference and don't travel more than 400 miles for any game and don't go above the Mason-Dixon line once the weather turns cold and all you have to do is win two conference games to be bowl eligible...well, really, how good is your conference?
8. Nebraska - Hold their ground, just barely over Oklahoma State, but they did beat the Cowboys head-to-head.
9. Oklahoma State - The victory over Texas would have meant a lot more if it was achieved in the last four or five years when the Longhorns were good, but OSU is still a dangerous team that will probably get matched up against a team in a bowl game that can actually play defense and get beaten.
10. Michigan State - Had a bye week last week.  Have another bye this week (though they do have to scrimmage against Purdue).

Thoughts on Week 10:

Okay, Auburn.  You're obviously putting all your chips in on Cam Newton and either hoping there's just a bunch of smoke and no real fire or you're hoping that the NCAA moves as quickly as they usually do in these cases and you'll get the invite to the BCS Championship Game and get your National Championship.  In the event that the Tigers do go to the BCS title game and then are found guilty of paying Mr. Newton to come play for them, I think a great penalty for Auburn (and the SEC, because you're dirty in this too) would be to have to pay back all of the money that the school received from the BCS appearance...and all the money that was given to the other teams in the conference because of the appearance would also have to be paid back by those schools as well.  There is no reason they should be able to keep that money, since it was illegally attained.  Pay it back and give it to the team and conference that was next in line to go.

It gets cold on the plains.

Continuing on Auburn and Cam Newton...If Cam's father was shopping his son's services around to the highest bidder, and Auburn ended up paying for a player, the NCAA has no choice but to drop the guillotine and give the Tigers the "death penalty".  This isn't Reggie Bush's parents getting money, a car and a house for his parents for future earnings.  This is a university paying a player to come to their school to play football.  I'm in favor of the athletes getting paid; they generate millions of dollars for the school.  But it's currently against the rules, and an example needs to be made.  Auburn's program would need to be killed and everyone has to go...from the athletic director to the head coach to the assistants to the waterboys.  NCAA...either you're serious about these violations or you're not.

On a positive note, congratulations to Army, Air Force and Navy for all becoming bowl-eligible in the same year for the first time ever.  Also, congratulations to South Carolina for winning their first ever SEC East Championship; which really doesn't mean anything, unless you're a long-suffering Gamecocks fan.  And for that particular older gentleman that I met outside the stadium before that heartbreaking loss to Kentucky, who travels with his wife and another couple around the southeast to cheer on the Gamecocks, I hope you are able to get tickets to Atlanta and get to celebrate an SEC Championship.

That's all for now.  And at this time of year, be thankful for the MAC...allowing their to be college football from Tuesday through Saturday each week.

Picks for Nov. 13th Games

A nice week last ime out, going 3-1 and taking the season record to 15-13-1.

Stanford -5 at Arizona State - The Cardinal are the best one-loss team in the country and they'll show it Saturday against the erratic Sun Devils.  Stanford wins this one by 20.

Oregon -19.5 at Cal - Cal has won all four of their home games by at least 28 points.  Oregon has had trouble in the past when they go to Berkeley.  It doesn't matter.  Oregon gets up big early and with Bears starting quarterback Kevin Riley out for the season, the Ducks will have no problem covering the number.

at Kentucky -14 Vanderbilt - Kentucky becomes bowl eligible with a win today.  Vandy is just hoping to get through the rest of the season without any more season-ending injuries.  Wildcats roll, fans celebrate and then get ready for basketball season.

at Oklahoma -14.5 Texas Tech - Yes, the Sooners looked bad against Texas A&M last weekend. But now they're at home, where they are a completely different team over the last few years.  Texas Tech showed some signs of life against Missouri last week, but this week they roll over and play dead again.