Since my final paper will be on the BCS and this is the 10th year of the BCS, I thought it would be appropriate to take a look back at the controversy. These will be some of the main reasons why people have issues with the BCS. Now some of these examples ended up working out the way the BCS picked it and wanted it to work out.. But it doesn't mean that bit was definitely the correct decision and they would still very much be considered controversies. So enjoy the list of the top 10 BCS Controversies from its first 10 years.
10.2005. Notre Dame gets a berth into the Fiesta Bowl with a record of 9-2 while Oregon settles for the Holiday Bowl despite a 10-1 record.
This is one of the biggest controversies when it comes to the BCS. The fact that the schools with all the hype will be the ones claiming the BCS at-large bids. No school can get more hype in college football than Notre Dame. In addition, it was Charlie Weiss's 1st year as the Irish head coach after being the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots Super Bowl winning teams. Notre dame got all the hype it needed when it knocked off #3 Michigan and came so very close to knocking off USC the top ranked team in the country. It was very obvious Notre Dame would get an at-large bid. Oregon had been a surprise throughout the season. Their only loss had come at the hands of USC as well but they did beat 3 ranked teams that season. Notre Dame went on to get beat by Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl pretty badly 34-20 raising question marks as to whether they were as good as the media made them out to be. They did get bailed out by Oregon falling to Oklahoma 17-14 in the Holiday Bowl. Does that necessarily mean Oregon wasn't deserving of a BCS bid? I don't think that can be determined from that loss but it's obvious that west coast schools that aren't USC tend to get passed over almsot all the time when they're deserving.
9. The 2007 season in general.
It's hard to think that there was ever as big of a mess not just in college football but any sport as there was last season in college football. It was the first time that we saw no BCS schools go unbeaten in the regular season. We also saw the last 2 weeks the top 2 teams both go down in each of those weeks. #1 LSU lost their regular season finale to Arkansas in triple overtime as this was the Tigers 2nd triple ot loss of the season. In addition 2nd ranked Kansas fell to #4 Mizzou. The next week top ranked Mizzou lost to Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game while #2 West Virginia got upset at home by unranked Pitt. The controversies occured when Ohio State who was idle for the final 2 weeks climbed from #5 in the polls to #1 although they did end up with the fewest losses of a BCS school with one. As for LSU who lost their regular season finale still went on to win the SEC title game and jumped from #7 to #2. They surpassed Georgia who was #4 and felt they had a claim at the title game. Georgia, however did not get to the SEC title game so that was the reason they did not go. Also LSU not only surpassed the Bulldogs in the polls but surpassed Virginia Tech who was ranked ahead of them previously. And while LSU only beat a decent Tennessee team by 7 in the SEC ship, Virginia Tech beat a solid Boston College team in the ACC Title Game pretty convincingly. LSU surpassed them most likely because they blew the Hokies out in week 2 48-7. LSU would go on to beat OSU 38-24 in the championship and become the 1st 2 loss team to win a national title. Considering I've pretty much lost track of typing these points a bunch of times, it shows you how much of a mess the BCS was last season. It's something that has never been seen before in a college football season.
8. 2006. Florida goes to the BCS Championship over Michigan
2006 saw rivals Ohio State and Michigan ranked 1 and 2 for most of the season. And in their annual end of the regular season showdown the Buckeyes won a close 42-39 contest. It was Michigan's 1st loss of the year and they felt that they had earned the right for a rematch in the BCS title game. But not only did people not want to see 2 teams from the same conference in the title game, they didn't like the fact that they had just faced each other as well. As a result Florida jumped Michigan in the standings and then went on to shock the Buckeyes in the title game 41-14. Michigan would go on to fall in the Rose Bowl to USC 32-18. While this worked out for college football, was there any legitimate reason that Michigan couldn't have gone to the title game? It's a question that doesn't have a definite answer and that's what the main issue really is.
7. 2004. Texas jumps Cal in the polls the final week to go to the Rose Bowl while Cal settles for the Holiday Bowl.
The controversy here was mainly due to Texas coach Mack Brown's public lobbying for the polls to give Texas a BCS at-large bid after not getting to a BCS game the previous year. Both Texas and Cal were 10-1 and both very deserving. Most of the time, Cal maybe would have gotten it because they were a Pac-10 team and the Rose Bowl typically tries to stick to Big 10 v. Pac-10. But with Vince Young as their qb, this Texas team was much more hyped than Cal. As a result of the lobbying, Texas passed Cal in the polls and went to the Rose Bowl. Cal settled for the Holiday Bowl despite only 1 loss on the season. Texas would go on to win an extremely exciting Rose Bowl beating Michigan 38-37 while Cal maybe still reeling from being passed over fell to Texas Tech in the Holiday Bowl 45-31. Again, though this is another example of how unless you're USC it hurts you playing on the West Coast.
6. 2004. 3 BCS schools go unbeaten and overall 5 schools finish unbeaten.
As much as we complain about who's more deserving between different 1 or 2 loss teams, how do you decide who's more deserving when there's more than 2 unbeatens. Utah and Boise State were the 2 non BCS schools that went unbeaten (sound familiar?) but the main controversy was 12-0 Auburn being left out of the title game. USC was number one the whole season and after what had happened to them the previous year (hint this will come up later in this list) they were the best and they were probably owed what happend to them. Oklahoma was once again in the middle of controversy. They went 12-0 and were number 2 and went to the title game for the 2nd straight year. But Auburn felt that they should have a shot. Again I don't know what the right answer was. USC went on to dominate OU in the title game 55-19 while defeated Va. Tech in the Sugar Bowl 16-13 and finished 13-0. This is the only year where there were more than 2 BCS schools that finished undefeated.
5. 2000. # 3 FSU goes to the title game over #2 Miami despie losing to Miami during the season.
FSU may have been 12-1 but when you're behind Miami in the polls in addition to losing to them it should be simple. But the fact is that FSU was one of the most popular college football fan bases and that was the reason they got in over Miami (Josh, if you're reading this sorry but you know it's true). It's also not like Miami's loss was a bad loss either. In fact their only loss was to 10-1 Washington (my how things have changed) which even gave the Huskies a claim that they could be in the title game. FSU didn't help themseleves when they lost to Oklahoma in the title game 13-2. Miami and Washingtin both had no trouble in their bowl games. As a result of this, there was a quality win bonus added to the BCS which would give teams like Miami and Washington more credit if they beat a top 10 team.
4. 2001. Nebraska at #4 in the polls goes to the title game.
Nebraska was unbeaten going into their last regular season game. But they got killed by Colorado 62-36. As a result they didn't make the Big 12 title game. Colorado would go on to win the Big 12 Title and finish #3 in the polls. In addition one loss Oregon was #2 in both polls. However, at the time, the BCS didn;t take into account time of loss so despite being ranked #4 in the polls, they ended up #2 in the BCS. As a result they went on to the title game while Oregon and Colorado went on to face each other in the Fiesta Bowl. Nebraska got killed by Miami 37-14 in the title game while Oregon dominated Colorado 38-16. This didn't end up as the only year where time of loss wasn't factored in (another hint for later in the list).
3. 1998. Kansas State was #3 in the BCS but didn't make a BCS game.
I know, doesn't make any sense right? How do you finish #3 in the polls but not make a BCS game. Granted they did lose a close Big 12 Title game to Texas A&M but we're not talking about the championship here. This also was the 1st year of the BCS so there was a lot that needed to be worked out (not that there still isn't) but nothing about this makes sense. #4 Ohio State and #8 Florida got the at-large bids over K-State. As a result, however a new rule was implemented. From then on, the #3 team in the BCS standings is assured of going to a BCS game (makes sense, makes so much sense I don't know why that wouldn't have been a rule the 1st year). K-State ended up going to just the Alamo Bowl and losing to Purdue. But that was clearly not the Bowl they should have been in. Note: Even though this new rule was based off of them, the next year they got passed over yet again for a BCS berth despite being 6th in the BCS standings.
2. 2008. Big 12 three way tie.
This may have been more the fault of the Big 12 than the BCS but the controversy still continues. Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech all finished in a 3 way-tie for the Big 12 South lead. OU killed Tech, Tech beat Texas and Texas beat OU. But Tech's loss eliminated them from any title contention since OU beat them 65-21. So it was truly between the Longhorn and the Sooners. But Tech being tied still forced the Big 12 to go to the BCS standings to determine who would represent the Big 12 South in the Big 12 title game. The week before Texas was ahead of OU. But despite that and despite the fact that the Sooners only loss of the season was to Texas, the Sooners 4th straight 60 point game, allowed them to surpass Texas in the BCS standings and go to the Big 12 title game. Their 5th straight 60 point game, which was a record, allowed them them to rout Mizzou in the Big 12 title game and go to the BCS championship. The controversy here is #1 the fact that Texas beat OU head to head but still finsihed behind OU. And #2 how the Big 12 used the BCS standings to determine the division tiebreaker. They are now considering changing this. Also, the fact that OU was the highest scoring team in college history gave them more hype in the media which was most likely a big factor as to why they will face Florida in the title game and why Texas has to settle for facing Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl. I guess we'll see how this will turn out.
1. 2003. USC denied title game shot then earns split national championship.
This was the first time that there were no unbeatens and since then there has been plenty of seasons we've seen this. LSU, Oklahoma and USC all finished with 1 loss. Oklahoma had been unbeaten and #1 the whole season. But in the Big 12 title game, they were routed by Kansas State 35-7. This gave LSU the number 2 ranking and while it should have opened the door for USC especially since in both polls USC was number 1 and Oklahoma was number 3 OU still was at the top of the BCS and USC was number giving the Sooners a trip to the title game and not the Trojans. LSU would go on to beat OU in the title game 21-14 while USc beat Michigan 28-14 in the Rose Bowl. As a result LSU automatically won the Coaches poll but USC was #1 in the AP poll. This was the only time in the history of the BCS that there was a split national championship. Something that the inclusion of the BCS was supposed to prevent. This is still the controversy that has annoyed me the most. How Oklahoma could still have gone to the title game when they got hammered by a 3 loss Kansas State team in the Big 12 title game made absolutely no sense to me. They need to take into account how late in the season the loss was. But the fact was OU that year got all the hype as they were #1 all season and Jason White won the Heisman. USC on the other hand was a surpise as they didn't expect Matt Leinart to be even better than previous USC qb and previous Heisman winner Carson Palmer. This was far and away the biggest controversy and to this day I still say they screwed up by putting Oklahoma in the title game over USC.
Honorable mention: 2007. Kansas gets a BCS bid over Mizzou despite being below them in the BCS and losing to them.
2007: Illinois going to the Rose Bowl. Need I say more?
2006: Auburn despite being the only team to beat Florida and beating LSU doesn't get a BCS bid while LSU does. Both finished with 2 losses. This is more the fact that only 2 schools from a conference can make a BCS game. This also happened with Wisconsin who only had 1 loss but had Ohio State and Michigan as top 2 most of the season. Factors like that resulted in a very overrated Notre Dame team going to the Sugar Bowl and getting pounded by LSU 41-14.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Major free agent signings
Let's start with the most obvious. Yankees reach preliminary agreement and are on the verge of signing CC Sabathia to 7 year $161 million contract making him the highest paid pitcher in history. Was anyone really surprised? This is what the Yankees do. Throw as much cash at a new superstar every year. Normally it doesn't ultimately improve them as a team. I'm not saying that will change. But they obviously addressed a major need of theirs, starting pitching. Sabathia, if nothing else will be a solid starter for them. However, I think the season he had with the Brewers is gonna just add to the already tremendous amount of pressure on him. As the younger and whinier (if that's a word) Steinbrenner will basically be expecting that type of performance from him on a consistent basis. And if he doesn't deliver, there could be hell to pay. Not just from hank but obviously the New York media as well. Maybe he won't be under quite as much pressure as A-Rod was when he became a Yankee because he's a pitcher. But the fact that he'll be making 23 mil a year it'll be plenty of pressure. the sad thing is the Yanks might not be done as apparently they're still making a play for Burnett.
The Mets sign K-Rod to 3 year $37 million deal. I think the one reason the Mets should be grateful for the Yankees is the fact that the Yankees completely overshadow the fact that the Mets tend to spend a lotta $ on star players as well. Just not like the Bronx Bombers do so maybe it's slightly overshadowed. But they do and it ultimately hasn't worked out well for them. But this time going for K-Rod was exactly the move they needed to make. If they had someone half as decent as K-Rod in their pen, they would have won the East and we would have seen a different champion crowned this year (still not the Cubs though). I don't think there's much reason to be skeptical because what else were they supposed to do. A talented team is going to waste again if they don't make this move. If K-Rod doesn't have a record breaking season last year, then the Angels don't win 100 games last year. This is gonna be a huge asset to the Mets and one that could finally allow them to come out on top over the defending champs in the East.
And now the ex-Cub watch. Kerry Wood signs with Cleveland for 2 years. Didn't catch how much he'll be making. Obviously Wood never achieved his potential as a starter for the Cubs but he ended up becoming a decent closer. Apparently, the Cubs felt it was time to let him go and move on a move which upset a lot of Cubs fans. While ultimately the memory I'll have from Wood is what could have been, I hope he does well in Cleveland and the fact is this could very well be a solid signing for them. I think this Indians team will be a team to watch out for this season as they will be getting healthy. The Sox have already gotten rid of a lot of their outfield as well as the awful Vasquez. The Twins will be competitive again but I don't think anyone was impressed by their performance last year. So I think Cleveland especially getting Carmona back will be solid and the signing of Wood will ultimately help them. However, while he might not be on the Cubs anymore, the Sox fans will definitely still hate him since he is on the Indians.
The Mets sign K-Rod to 3 year $37 million deal. I think the one reason the Mets should be grateful for the Yankees is the fact that the Yankees completely overshadow the fact that the Mets tend to spend a lotta $ on star players as well. Just not like the Bronx Bombers do so maybe it's slightly overshadowed. But they do and it ultimately hasn't worked out well for them. But this time going for K-Rod was exactly the move they needed to make. If they had someone half as decent as K-Rod in their pen, they would have won the East and we would have seen a different champion crowned this year (still not the Cubs though). I don't think there's much reason to be skeptical because what else were they supposed to do. A talented team is going to waste again if they don't make this move. If K-Rod doesn't have a record breaking season last year, then the Angels don't win 100 games last year. This is gonna be a huge asset to the Mets and one that could finally allow them to come out on top over the defending champs in the East.
And now the ex-Cub watch. Kerry Wood signs with Cleveland for 2 years. Didn't catch how much he'll be making. Obviously Wood never achieved his potential as a starter for the Cubs but he ended up becoming a decent closer. Apparently, the Cubs felt it was time to let him go and move on a move which upset a lot of Cubs fans. While ultimately the memory I'll have from Wood is what could have been, I hope he does well in Cleveland and the fact is this could very well be a solid signing for them. I think this Indians team will be a team to watch out for this season as they will be getting healthy. The Sox have already gotten rid of a lot of their outfield as well as the awful Vasquez. The Twins will be competitive again but I don't think anyone was impressed by their performance last year. So I think Cleveland especially getting Carmona back will be solid and the signing of Wood will ultimately help them. However, while he might not be on the Cubs anymore, the Sox fans will definitely still hate him since he is on the Indians.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Ranking the 5 majors sports leagues from best to worst
It's interesting to see just what sports think are better than others. A lot of it is based off of solely what their favorite sport is and sometimes people just love college sports more than pro. I was bored and I was trying to think how I would rank these from best to worst. And I realize my opinions are very different from when I was younger. But anyway from best to worst, these are what I think the order should be.
Best-NFL football
It's probably the anticipation of waiting to see the games played every Sunday. And maybe at times it was the fantasy football aspect as well. Whichever reason, the NFL is the most exciting sport. With only 16 games and each team playing just once a week, the regular season is much more exciting than an 82 game basketball season and a 162 game baseball season. These are the games I look forward to watching the most. Not to mention the playoffs being one loss and you're done. And of course the Super Bowl is the biggest spectacle and the most watched event not just in sports but in comparison to anything. Bottomline is an off year in the NFL is still much better than a typical year in the NBA or MLB.
2nd best-NCAA basketball
This is mainly due to March Madness. I think the combo of the NFL regular season and the Super Bowl give the NFL a slight edge. But March Madness alone almost makes up the difference. Pretty much by like junior high I would skip school on the first 2 days so I could watch all the games I could. And if it isn't awesome enough already, March Madness on demand is literally the greatest invention. Now you can watch more than just the game on tv. You can see all of the games that are being played. This is honestly a very close call in my mind. Anyone who likes college bball better than the NFL I definitely understand. Either way, these are definitely the best 2 sports.
In the middle-NCAA football
This would probably be number one if it wasn't for the BCS. I can't put a sport in the top 2 that has a horrible system of determining who goes to the championship. In addition, it just keeps finding more ways to screw up. Everything else about college football is great. A lot of the conference races are exciting and the race for the Heisman is always a highlight. That's why the BCS is so frustrating as college football could definitely compete with the top 2 sports without it. But as I said the BCS drops it to 3rd.
Not quite the worst-NBA
This is where most people will disagree with me. But this is where my personal preference comes into play. Because with Michael Jordan playing, the NBA was the greatest thing to watch. It was the first sport I got into. And it was the most I've ever enjoyed sports. Since MJ retired (from the Bulls not the Wizards) it has gone completely downhill. But partially because bball is my favorite sport and no matter what I find my most loved and hated teams in basketball more than anything else, I still prefer the NBA over baseball. My favorite current athlete is in the NBA, Dwyane Wade as is my most hated athlete, Kobe Bryant. I still have a lot invested in the NBA and while I realize it doesn''t touch any of these other sports, there's still a lotta reason to like it.
The worst-MLB
Maybe a lot of this is frustration of my favorite team having the longest streak of not winning a title in any sport. But even with that, baseball is the sport that can get me bored quicker than any other sport. I'm not overlooking the aspects that make it great. But now it seems very tainted with the steroid scandal. In the last couple of years, it's gone way downhill for me and it at times has taken a lot of effort to get back into it. That plus it doesn't help that we haven't had an entertaining World Series in 6 years. I think when the World Series has been boring for that long, it makes it even more difficult to want to keep watching it. I'm also one of the few people that doesn't obsess over opening day. It's just so meaningless. there's 162 games. I can't get interested till the summer. A lot of people love baseball and don't get me wrong I have nothing against it. But of the 5 major sports, it's definitely my least favorite.
Best-NFL football
It's probably the anticipation of waiting to see the games played every Sunday. And maybe at times it was the fantasy football aspect as well. Whichever reason, the NFL is the most exciting sport. With only 16 games and each team playing just once a week, the regular season is much more exciting than an 82 game basketball season and a 162 game baseball season. These are the games I look forward to watching the most. Not to mention the playoffs being one loss and you're done. And of course the Super Bowl is the biggest spectacle and the most watched event not just in sports but in comparison to anything. Bottomline is an off year in the NFL is still much better than a typical year in the NBA or MLB.
2nd best-NCAA basketball
This is mainly due to March Madness. I think the combo of the NFL regular season and the Super Bowl give the NFL a slight edge. But March Madness alone almost makes up the difference. Pretty much by like junior high I would skip school on the first 2 days so I could watch all the games I could. And if it isn't awesome enough already, March Madness on demand is literally the greatest invention. Now you can watch more than just the game on tv. You can see all of the games that are being played. This is honestly a very close call in my mind. Anyone who likes college bball better than the NFL I definitely understand. Either way, these are definitely the best 2 sports.
In the middle-NCAA football
This would probably be number one if it wasn't for the BCS. I can't put a sport in the top 2 that has a horrible system of determining who goes to the championship. In addition, it just keeps finding more ways to screw up. Everything else about college football is great. A lot of the conference races are exciting and the race for the Heisman is always a highlight. That's why the BCS is so frustrating as college football could definitely compete with the top 2 sports without it. But as I said the BCS drops it to 3rd.
Not quite the worst-NBA
This is where most people will disagree with me. But this is where my personal preference comes into play. Because with Michael Jordan playing, the NBA was the greatest thing to watch. It was the first sport I got into. And it was the most I've ever enjoyed sports. Since MJ retired (from the Bulls not the Wizards) it has gone completely downhill. But partially because bball is my favorite sport and no matter what I find my most loved and hated teams in basketball more than anything else, I still prefer the NBA over baseball. My favorite current athlete is in the NBA, Dwyane Wade as is my most hated athlete, Kobe Bryant. I still have a lot invested in the NBA and while I realize it doesn''t touch any of these other sports, there's still a lotta reason to like it.
The worst-MLB
Maybe a lot of this is frustration of my favorite team having the longest streak of not winning a title in any sport. But even with that, baseball is the sport that can get me bored quicker than any other sport. I'm not overlooking the aspects that make it great. But now it seems very tainted with the steroid scandal. In the last couple of years, it's gone way downhill for me and it at times has taken a lot of effort to get back into it. That plus it doesn't help that we haven't had an entertaining World Series in 6 years. I think when the World Series has been boring for that long, it makes it even more difficult to want to keep watching it. I'm also one of the few people that doesn't obsess over opening day. It's just so meaningless. there's 162 games. I can't get interested till the summer. A lot of people love baseball and don't get me wrong I have nothing against it. But of the 5 major sports, it's definitely my least favorite.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)