GatorsFirst
Gator Fan
Written by Chris Canada
Wednesday, 25 November 2008
The Oklahoma blowout of Texas Tech muddles the Big 12 picture, and the wildest action is still in the ACC race. Some conference pictures are extremely clear, and others are still not. The title game, of course, could still swing wildly, as we saw last year. And just projecting the 10 BCS participants (regardless of who goes where) is no easy task. See below for how we feel this weekend’s action will impact the BCS...
These are not necessarily what we want to happen, but what we think will happen:
BCS Championship:
James: Florida v Texas. I said it before, and I’ll say it again: if predicting Florida as BCS champs is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Texas is still ahead of OU in the BCS, as they have a lead in the computers. I also think that voters will realize they BEAT THE SOONERS by 10, and lost to Tech in the last second at Lubbock.
Chris: Florida v. Oklahoma. As I’ve said for the last few weeks, I still have Oklahoma jumping both Texas and Florida in the BCS rankings. A win on the road this week against #12 Oklahoma State will assuredly close the gap of .008 points behind Texas, specifically in the computers. If there is a 3-way tie in the Big-12 South, then the tiebreaker is final placing in the BCS ranking. Florida crushed Citadel last weekend, but got hurt by playing D-II team. However, they still have Florida State on the road this week, and will have a conference championship game against a possible #1 team if Bama takes care of business in the Iron Bowl this weekend.
Rose Bowl:
James: USC v Penn State. Penn State clinched this bowl in impressive fashion, and has to be considered a long shot for the National Title game. I don’t know if it’s my head or my heart pulling for Oregon to beat Oregon State, but when that happens USC will win the Pac-10 and be locked in here.
Chris: Oregon State v. Penn State. Another traditional Rose Bowl matchup. I didn’t see Oregon State winning out their remaining games, but they’ve proven me wrong and they lie one win away from the Rose Bowl with a victory over Oregon at home this weekend. They will gain the automatic Pac-10 bid due to their victory over USC earlier in the year. This game would be a rematch of an early season matchup when Penn State destroyed Oregon State 45-14 in Happy Valley. I think this game would be MUCH closer.
Fiesta Bowl:
James: Ohio State v Oklahoma. Yeah, Oklahoma is good. I think they keep rolling and beat Oklahoma State, though it’s noteworthy all the games between the top Big 12 South teams have been decided by home field. If that trend holds, Texas Tech wins the Big 12 South, but has a lot of ground to make up to get into the National Title game, and I think they’d still end up here. And we’d have the ‘team in the National Title game that couldn’t win it’s conference’ all over again. This should be fine with you if you’re a playoff guy. I’m not, so it bothers me.
Chris: Texas v. USC. If Texas barely misses out of the championship picture, and Oklahoma is the team that will claim the #1 spot, then Texas would be the easy Big-12 replacement pick for the Fiesta Bowl. As the retainers of the first at-large selection, the Fiesta Bowl would be delighted to pick a USC team that will lose out on the Rose Bowl to Oregon State. This sets up a rematch of the 2005 Rose Bowl title game. The real losers in this scenario are Ohio State, who finished 10-2, and tied for the Big-10 title, only to finish SECOND again. I’m can’t lie and tell you I’m not smiling while writing this…
Sugar Bowl:
James: Alabama v Cincinnati. I still think, as uninteresting as Cincinnati is, there’s no way a non-BCS gets chosen ahead of them. But I guess we’ll find out. Every other year, the non-BCS team has been the last choice of the bowls, and it has to do with TV ratings and fan bases and everything else.
Chris: Alabama v Utah. Alabama will be the easy replacement choice after losing Florida to the BCS championship game. There is not one other eligible team that will have the credentials of a 12-1 Alabama program. The Sugar Bowl committee will then have a tough choice between an undefeated non-BCS team or a two-loss Big East champion. I think they would be better off with Utah than Cincinnati, so they’ll be my pick. Utah’s convincing win over BYU this weekend in the Holy War made this decision a bit easier.
Orange Bowl:
James: FSU v. Utah. I think FSU beat Georgia Tech in the ACC title game (neither, it should be noted, has clinched). Utah has now clinched the “non-BCS team in a BCS game” slot, and is destined for Miami.
Chris: Virginia Tech v. Cincinnati. For the second straight week, there was a major shake-up in the ACC. With Miami crapping the bed this weekend the ACC is wide open. Boston College clinches the Coastal division with a win over Maryland at home this weekend, else FSU goes. Also, Virginia Tech clinches the Atlantic division with a win at home over Virginia, else Georgia Tech goes. I now believe the winner of a Boston College/Virginia Tech title game will determine Orange Bowl selection. In my opinion, Virginia Tech will win the rematch and make it down to Miami. With Cincinnati’s win over Pittsburgh this past weekend, they would need a win over Syracuse or a West Virginia loss in either of their remaining two games to clinch the division. They will not be a wanted commodity and thus will be the last at-large pick.
Any Thoughts???
Click here to view the original article
Wednesday, 25 November 2008
The Oklahoma blowout of Texas Tech muddles the Big 12 picture, and the wildest action is still in the ACC race. Some conference pictures are extremely clear, and others are still not. The title game, of course, could still swing wildly, as we saw last year. And just projecting the 10 BCS participants (regardless of who goes where) is no easy task. See below for how we feel this weekend’s action will impact the BCS...
These are not necessarily what we want to happen, but what we think will happen:
BCS Championship:
James: Florida v Texas. I said it before, and I’ll say it again: if predicting Florida as BCS champs is wrong, I don’t want to be right. Texas is still ahead of OU in the BCS, as they have a lead in the computers. I also think that voters will realize they BEAT THE SOONERS by 10, and lost to Tech in the last second at Lubbock.
Chris: Florida v. Oklahoma. As I’ve said for the last few weeks, I still have Oklahoma jumping both Texas and Florida in the BCS rankings. A win on the road this week against #12 Oklahoma State will assuredly close the gap of .008 points behind Texas, specifically in the computers. If there is a 3-way tie in the Big-12 South, then the tiebreaker is final placing in the BCS ranking. Florida crushed Citadel last weekend, but got hurt by playing D-II team. However, they still have Florida State on the road this week, and will have a conference championship game against a possible #1 team if Bama takes care of business in the Iron Bowl this weekend.
Rose Bowl:
James: USC v Penn State. Penn State clinched this bowl in impressive fashion, and has to be considered a long shot for the National Title game. I don’t know if it’s my head or my heart pulling for Oregon to beat Oregon State, but when that happens USC will win the Pac-10 and be locked in here.
Chris: Oregon State v. Penn State. Another traditional Rose Bowl matchup. I didn’t see Oregon State winning out their remaining games, but they’ve proven me wrong and they lie one win away from the Rose Bowl with a victory over Oregon at home this weekend. They will gain the automatic Pac-10 bid due to their victory over USC earlier in the year. This game would be a rematch of an early season matchup when Penn State destroyed Oregon State 45-14 in Happy Valley. I think this game would be MUCH closer.
Fiesta Bowl:
James: Ohio State v Oklahoma. Yeah, Oklahoma is good. I think they keep rolling and beat Oklahoma State, though it’s noteworthy all the games between the top Big 12 South teams have been decided by home field. If that trend holds, Texas Tech wins the Big 12 South, but has a lot of ground to make up to get into the National Title game, and I think they’d still end up here. And we’d have the ‘team in the National Title game that couldn’t win it’s conference’ all over again. This should be fine with you if you’re a playoff guy. I’m not, so it bothers me.
Chris: Texas v. USC. If Texas barely misses out of the championship picture, and Oklahoma is the team that will claim the #1 spot, then Texas would be the easy Big-12 replacement pick for the Fiesta Bowl. As the retainers of the first at-large selection, the Fiesta Bowl would be delighted to pick a USC team that will lose out on the Rose Bowl to Oregon State. This sets up a rematch of the 2005 Rose Bowl title game. The real losers in this scenario are Ohio State, who finished 10-2, and tied for the Big-10 title, only to finish SECOND again. I’m can’t lie and tell you I’m not smiling while writing this…
Sugar Bowl:
James: Alabama v Cincinnati. I still think, as uninteresting as Cincinnati is, there’s no way a non-BCS gets chosen ahead of them. But I guess we’ll find out. Every other year, the non-BCS team has been the last choice of the bowls, and it has to do with TV ratings and fan bases and everything else.
Chris: Alabama v Utah. Alabama will be the easy replacement choice after losing Florida to the BCS championship game. There is not one other eligible team that will have the credentials of a 12-1 Alabama program. The Sugar Bowl committee will then have a tough choice between an undefeated non-BCS team or a two-loss Big East champion. I think they would be better off with Utah than Cincinnati, so they’ll be my pick. Utah’s convincing win over BYU this weekend in the Holy War made this decision a bit easier.
Orange Bowl:
James: FSU v. Utah. I think FSU beat Georgia Tech in the ACC title game (neither, it should be noted, has clinched). Utah has now clinched the “non-BCS team in a BCS game” slot, and is destined for Miami.
Chris: Virginia Tech v. Cincinnati. For the second straight week, there was a major shake-up in the ACC. With Miami crapping the bed this weekend the ACC is wide open. Boston College clinches the Coastal division with a win over Maryland at home this weekend, else FSU goes. Also, Virginia Tech clinches the Atlantic division with a win at home over Virginia, else Georgia Tech goes. I now believe the winner of a Boston College/Virginia Tech title game will determine Orange Bowl selection. In my opinion, Virginia Tech will win the rematch and make it down to Miami. With Cincinnati’s win over Pittsburgh this past weekend, they would need a win over Syracuse or a West Virginia loss in either of their remaining two games to clinch the division. They will not be a wanted commodity and thus will be the last at-large pick.
Any Thoughts???
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