FINAL POLL finally POSTED ... on PAGE 4!

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

I'd like to hang out with Kirby Smart at Dreamland.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

I hope you are right. I just see the shit storm coming when the Big Ten, Big 12 or ACC champion gets shafted over a second-place SEC team. I don't think that would be fair at all.

In the long run, it's going to cause schools to shy away from playing challenging intersectional games that (gasp) they could possibly lose.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

If strength of schedule is a factor for the committee, and it's been said it will be, that won't happen.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

Why the sigh? Do you not think Alabama was one of the four best teams in the country last year?

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

As a small conference school fan, I have for years rooted for maximum BCS chaos at season's end. I want to see a true playoff system evolve. Therefore, I hope that this season produces five more or less equally qualified conference champions and that a school with a credible case for being in the playoff gets left out. I will get maximum schadenfreude value if the school that didn't make the cut has a long tradition and a large fan base, a school like USC, Michigan, or Oklahoma.

As to "challenging intersectional games", it will take about one conference champion who does not make the cut because they played a body bag game instead of a game with some stature to break that up. All that does is up the ante on the "every game on the schedule is important" meme. If you play Georgia State and don't make the cut, maybe you should try to schedule Miss St. next season. Or Ohio State. I have a lot more respect for scheduling Ohio St. and losing than I do for stomping a mud puddle into Florida International.

I hope for a 16 game playoff including all the conference champions, filled out with deserving at larges. Seed them, match them up, and then play it out. Sure, the Sun Belt champ will get slaughtered, but much like making the NCAA basketball tournament, appearing will be an achievement. The school and conference will make money and the players will have memories and bragging rights... and if once in a while you get an Appalachian State/Michigan type upset, everyone will love it except the fans of the upset school.

And don't give me the time and extra games argument. Look at the schedule for NCAA baseball and tell me that the NCAA gives a crap about the time student athletes miss. We're talking 16 schools, and that gets cut in half weekly. I bet the teams involved, if offered the choice, wouldn't blink at the extra practice and travel involved, not if weighed against a national championship.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

Since the other three divisions have 16-team playoffs already, I believe that will be the natural evolution of this playoff unless the SEC gets its way and the big conferences bolt from any NCAA supervision. I don't believe the SEC has thought through the possible consequences of such an action. The NCAA is a useful fig leaf for big money college sports.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

Greed and hunger for power make people do stupid things.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

I am definitely down for what ever you poll folk suggest.

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll? A discussion

OK, back from a few days in Montana and one of the best concerts I've ever experienced ...

... if we're going to have a poll this season, we need to get rolling. The first game for I-A teams (well, kind of ... it's Georgia State) is three weeks from tonight.

SO, anyone who's interested in voting in the 2014 SportsJournalists.com college football poll:

1. Send me a PM by SATURDAY, AUG. 23, listing your preseason top 25.

2. Commit yourself to voting every week after the second weekend of games in October (Oct. 11). In other words, the first in-season poll will be posted MONDAY, OCT. 13. (there are a bunch of key games that weekend)

Qualifications for being an SportsJournalists.com poll voter? Enjoyment of and knowledge of college football.

I know we've got some regulars who are ready to roll, but newcomers are most definitely welcome. While we take the voting seriously, and I try to tally and post the results as professionally as possible, this is supposed to be for fun and to generate discussion.

The BCS is dead, but they haven't pulled the plug on SportsJournalists.com's supercomputer yet, so let's get this year's preseason poll rolling!

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll. VOTERS WANTED!!!

"Is there anybody out there?"

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll. VOTERS WANTED!!!

How many people are in this year, Coco?

 

Re: SportsJournalists.com college football poll. VOTERS WANTED!!!

Sorry, but I'm not going to have the time to vote this year. But I look forward to Coco's weekly musings on it.