We're Number 2!

If LSU, Bama, and OSU were 11-0-1 and ALABAMA tied LSU OSU tied Iowa St. We agree that it would be Bama-LSU?? This is no different.

 

I'm sure everyone knows this, but keep a close eye on the AP poll today. Although I doubt that Alabama will beat LSU in Round 2, the AP poll could at least set up the possibility of a split national champion heading into things. That will make for an added layer of drama should OK. State win its bowl game and then wait.

 

The skids have been greased for this rematch since the overnight ratings came back from the first LSU-Alabama game. Don't bother arguing merit. It's a close call, BTW, but that doesn't matter.
The current bowl tie-in and BCS setup looks almost sure to result in a very dull bowl season, capped by a dull BCS title game (rematches are almost always duller than their originals). Those Orange Bowl ratings should be outstanding.

 

One thing I keep seeing, and which to me seems like revisionist history, is that in 2006 Michigan didn't get another shot at Ohio State because "it already had its shot."

I guess that was arguably the subtext, but Florida was a slam-dunk pick based upon the quality of its wins. When you lined up the schedules of the two one-loss teams, Florida just had way more quality wins than Michigan. It wasn't even a close argument. Michigan's only argument was that it had the better loss.

I don't think Oklahoma State's schedule is so much better than Alabama's that it's the same situation.

But that's kind of beside the point. The main thing is that I don't think that people are remembering the justification for Florida over Michigan correctly.

 

I think Florida got in bc Auburn didn't in '04. There was no way the SEC champ wasn't getting a shot again.

 

Losses against teams that needed a last-minute TD to beat Northern Iowa: OSU 1, Alabama 0.

 

No. It's just that Alabama's body of work was complete before this week. OSU's was not. OSU's body of work IS now complete and a win in bedlam, to borrow a Miles phrase, is a "significant piece" to its body of work.

 

To me, this is the really valid justification for leaping Oklahoma State, not to game the system and avoid the rematch.

 

Somebody defended Alabama to me this morning by telling me that Alabama couldn't help it that its schedule was week and it did the best you could possibly do against the schedule short of beating LSU to go to 12-0.

I told him he must be a Boise State fan.

 

Sadly, this is true. Voters want brand names in the big game, and Oklahoma State really isn't one.

There has never, ever, ever been a team in the BCS championship game that wasn't a traditional power. Ohio State, Nebraska, Miami, USC, Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama, Texas, Florida State, Florida, etc. etc.

Oklahoma State doesn't fit that mold, so it makes their resume irrelevant.

 

Virginia Tech?

Or did the Vick factor overcome that, i.e. if this was Oklahoma State with Barry Sanders, it's different?

 

http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7314536/oklahoma-state-cowboys-get-last-word-bcs-debate

Good column by Maisel.