I wouldn't write off Kansas State after one poor year. They had a 6-6 year a few years back and rolled off a few 11 win seasons in a row afterwards. Just last year the North had a great season finishing with two 10-win teams plus an 8-win Missouri team. Lots of things change in one year and it would not surprise me to see the North be a lot better (not as good as they were, but better) next season. Not to mention that A&M will likely be improved and Tech will have to be better since they will have a real QB (not Cumbie) next year. Of course, none of these (except potentially KSU) are on Texas and OU's level, but it's definitely still a strong conference even in a down year. SOS needs to go back directly into the BCS. Had this happened, Auburn would likely be in the title game and Texas would have passed Cal long before this week, if Cal would have ever even been ahead of Texas at all.
Just a little something more about the Pac-10 The teams finishing 4-10th in the PAC-10 have almost the same winning percentage as the 4th-9th(only 9 teams) of the SUN-BELT, 40% to 37%. Big X 4th-10th finished at %48. Big XII 4th-10th had %53 (but 6 of the worst 7 teams are in the north). SEC 4th-10th finished with 52%. What this means is that without CAL, USC's conf SOS is roughly the same as North Texas's conf SOS (Az State has just 1 more win that UNT's toughest conference opponent, Troy). What a joke.
Good post, but one thing you need to remember about the BCS is that TV markets are important. California with 38 million people is bigger than LA, MS, AL, AR, TN, and KY combined. USC by being in Los Angeles is in a market of 12 million people. Even if you split their fan base with UCLA that's still 6 million people, more people than LA, MS, AR, KY, and AL. SEC teams are hurt in the BCS because they are in smaller states. The one big state in the SEC is Florida and that gets split with the ACC. SEC expansion really didn't do much for tv. SC and AR are small states. The ACC added MA, and strengthened themselves in FL and VA and in the Wash. DC tv market. The BCS bowls as long as we have this system will look toward TV. A 9-2, MI, OSU, PSU, and maybe even WI, IL, IA, and MSU will get the nod over some 9-2 SEC teams based on tv ratings. College football is still a regional sport and many casual sports fans in bigger markets who make ratings bananzas are more likely to tune in to see USC, ND, MI, OSU, and second banana big ten teams over teams from smaller states.
BB ... Ya gotta have Faith, man The Auburn and LSU programs are headed in two directions ... say "last hurrah" for AU ... and they aren't good enough to win a NC this year, IMO & the opinion of most in College FB ... ... Psychology 101 ... This AU "SHAFTING" could work extremely well for an SEC team next year :wink: ... where a climate of political correctness and fairness could sway voters if a tight race is there ... just a thought I agree 100% ... the rich get richer and the poor get poorer ... so where does that leave LSU ... I'll tell you where ... With a reputation for the best Defense & Recruiting in America ... and a NC reputation and a spot cemented in the Top 3 for the next several years ... something no one else in the SEC will have ... Say Saban SEC "Dienasty" 85 times really fast ... once for each player on scholarship at LSU ... same as the rest of America ... it all comes down to recruiting and coaching ... and LSU is there ... period. One of those four selected is much healthier than the rest, and one of those programs is headed for the back of the bus ... or trailer ... as the cupboard is bare in 2005 ... Will they all finish in the Top 25 in 2005 ... we'll see :hihi: Both Disagree & Agree ... college FB pollsters, coaches and the media (experts may be a bad choice of words here) acknowledge winners of the mythical Recruiting National Championship and reward teams accordingly ... this is why USC ... in a talent rich LA area ... has risen from nothing these past 5 years ... & USC has only 1 peer at the top in recruiting ... LSU IMO, LSU's overall recruiting has been the best in America ... this millenium LSU vs. USC ... people want to see this game ... it's just a matter of time Saban has already kicked Stoops azz ... so, in a tight race ... this will be locked into the minds of the voters ... Ya' gotta have faith ... we're on the doorstep of something really special at LSU ... 1 really good QB away from flattening the SEC every year ... National Championships are won in February ... and Saban has 2 of 'em under his belt this millenium & one in the box for January ... That's 3 NCs ... Mythical & Real How many does Stoops have :wink:
You nailed it, BB. USC and OU have already been penciled in as 1-2 in next year's pre-season poll. As long as they win out (and your point is that they can't help but win out) there's not a damn thing any other program can do to muscle their way to the top.
Growing up, I always followed the SEC 1st, and Big Ten 2nd--love the tradition of both conferences. I would agree with you on the Big Ten having some horses to enter into the BCS race, but I think Ohio State is going to be on the decline--at least they should have scholarships taken away after all of the investigations of Tressell are done. So I think they slip....or at least remain where they are now--around a 3rd or 4th-place Big Ten team. Wisconsin looked REAL good early on, then they just fell apart....badly. Next season I think Michigan, Iowa and Wisconsin will again battle for the Big Ten title. Good luck.....NEXT SEASON!!!! Tell Tate not to show up for the Capital One game!
Even with our "pussy" OOC schedule, the NCAA ranks the Auburn schedule as the 10th toughest in the land. OU is 22 and USC is 28 (or vice versa, not sure). With our brutal conference schedule bringing us up in the SOS category, what is the incentive to schedule a tougher OOC slate?
Funny, cause the BCS (more important) has auburn at 22, OU at 14 and USC at 19. http://www.geocities.com/rtell/SOSF.html
Just illustrates the problem with the system. Let's get some uniformity here. The NCAA is the governing body for DI college football, so why not utilize their numbers?
Incentive? How about winning 12 out of 12 games and watching the BCS National Championship game from the comfort of your own homes this January? If that's not incentive, I don't know what is! I'm not saying you have to fill your OOC dance card with Oklahomas, USCs or Miamis every single season. Georgia scheduling even a moderate mid-major like Memphis or UAB is better than going the Georgia Southern route, and I don't think having to beat the Blazers is going to be the difference between beating or not beating Florida in October. :dis: Honestly, I think you're seeing a slight SEC backlash here among voters as you hear more and more muttering about the SEC's "soft" OOC schedules; one way to quell that is to hike up your pants, roll up your sleeves and go out and win some tough OOC games every once in a while. Florida plays Fla. St. regularly and LSU gets a home and home against OU, likely to start in 2007. You guys had the stones to schedule USC but I guess that didn't turn out too well, eh? :wink:
