Photo: Michael Conroy, AP
The picks of must watch games the have been real real
good, so it's worth checking in here to see what might be
a good suggestion. Last week all of the the suggestions
had some merit in one way or another, and now that the
BCS rankings are right around the corner, you can expect
the games to get even more competitive.
Check out these games:
1. Notre Dame vs Stanford - This game is going to say quite
a bit about the winner and help one of these tow make a
huge leap in the first BCS numbers for 2012. Notre Dame
has trailed ONCE this season, Don't miss it !
2. Texas vs Oklahoma - Always a good one to begin with,
and now the winner can really benefit form a victory against
a high ranked opponent. Let the Red River flow.
3. South Carolina vs LSU - This could crush LSU's season
or make them relevant again, and it's time for us to see is
Spurrier's Gamecocks performance last week was the real
deal or just a fluke.
Honorable Mentions:
Syracuse vs Rutgers
Texas A&M vs La. Tech
Fresno St. vs Boise St.
Now that most of the college football world outside of
the LSU Alabama folks are annoyed at the snooze fest
that was the BCS Championship game, is it time to turn
the page on this 13 year old experiment?
You can't say that we didn't give it a shot. I have
been a big proponent of an eight team playoff system,
but at the very least don't you think we should at
least do a four team playoff? BCS School or not, it's
time to level the playing field. Don't tell me it's
about money either. A playoff system would be a huge
windfall for college football and its teams.
While they're at it, it's also time for those policemen
known as the NCAA to make the schedules so that all the
whining, griping, complaining, and moaning can stop about
strength of schedule. Strength of schedule is an issue
in every league, sometimes the teams in your division are
stronger than the teams in other divisions, and you have
to play them at least twice as much, those are the breaks.
The Yankees are dealing with it right now, so did the
Philadelphia Eagles this year, and so on and so on.
Who won last night? I don't know and I don't care. Why?
Because unlike most people who did watch, I didn't have
enough faith in THIS system that the rematch was gonna be
anymore exciting than the original snooze fest.
Tweet Don't Believe In Plays, Believe In Players - Al Davis
It's January the 2nd and if we scroll back the
calender about twenty years or so, all of the bowl
games would be done by now. For some people this
is day is a good day, for others, well, it's a
different. The BCS has made things very different
indeed. No more voting for the National Champ, or
isn't there? I mean they still vote, only thing is
the computer smooths out more votes from more voters
and adds a formula now, makes it kind of fancy and
all scientific and stuff.
Though it's always been about money, it is much more
so now. Seventy teams, play in thirty five bowls,
and most of them are just giant infomercials with a
game thrown in to keep you watching in the interim.
The Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl?, San Diego County Credit
Union Poinsettia Bowl?, The Meineke Car Care Bowl?,
The BBVA Compass Bowl, Really? So when do we get
The "Jimmy learns to tie his shoelaces Bowl"?, or
more realistically the "Eat at Tony's Pizza Bowl"?
What is this Pee Wee, where there are no losers, so
everyone has to play in a Bowl game so no one gets
there feelings hurt? I wish it were that easy.
My father in law still gripes about when Penn State
had to share a National Title with BYU because of
the split with the Coaches Poll and the AP Poll or
something like that. He wasn't entirely wrong, even
if I do disagree with him on some level, but I get
his point, but that is just another example of how
the NCAA has never, and still doesn't get it right
when it comes to the Football part of the equation.
Business wise it seems to be earning just fine, but
if the players try and make a nickel the schools all
of sudden start to hear the words "Death Penalty"
The season grows longer and longer, more "Bowl" games
are added, more sponsorships are obtained, but no
playoffs are added. Why? Because these are "Student
Athletes" that's why. But it's ok to make them play
deep into January, make the schools money with no
"real" compensation for them and banish them from
playing if the make a dime from the celebrity?
Time for me to sound like I'm 90 again, and tell you
about how I used to walk to school barefoot in the
snow uphill both ways when I was a kid, but the truth
of the matter is that I would rather go back to the
pre BCS days when all the Big games were played on
Dec 31st, January 1st, and you might, might have a
game on Jan 2nd due to scheduling, than the crap I
see today. Knowing that the Championship game is on
January 9th now only to find out that in another ten
years it will probably be scheduled around the last
week of January is just getting annoying. If the
NCAA wants football 11 months a year then they should
just say so, make EVERY game a bowl game, and don't
use a wins and loss column in the standings so no one
gets their feelings hurt. They should also makings
sure that all games a distinct sponsor attached to
them so that we know what we should buy beforehand.
As some unknown author once put it: "If you don't stand
up for something, you'll fall for anything."
Tweet Don't Believe In Plays, Believe In Players - Al Davis
I know it sounds like I might be nitpicking a little bit,
but when did San Diego, Boise, Idaho, or even Texas get
categorized as "East"? Yes you can go ahead and tell me
that in the NFL the Dallas Cowboys are in the NFC East,
but that is a completely different scenario. I also
won't be too harsh on the "BIG EAST" conference because
this news is still fresh, and won't blame them for taking
these schools on either. I mean who can pass at the chance
of some BCS Bowl money when you see how consistently good
Boise State is year after year. I also won't bee too harsh
because they were pretty much pushed to make this move in
light of all the teams that left the conference and went
elsewhere, but can we please work on a new name?
I know, I know, Conference USA would be the perfect name,
but unfortunately it's already taken, as is the American
Football Conference (AFC), and so is the National Football
Conference (NFC), but how about the "Coast to Coast"
conference? or the "Come One Come All" Conference?
Maybe they can put an exploratory committee together and
research it a little bit.
Teams have changed conference this year more often than some
call girls change undergarments, but this is the NCAA's fault
just like everything else. Instead of being only concerned
with how much punishment to dish out for whatever infraction
they inappropriate, why don't they divide these teams up
geographically, and find some fair to share those Trillions?
Oh wait, they haven't figured out how to solve this whole
BCS bowl thing yet, have they?
Well, at least Boise State, Houston, and SMU will provide a
little football excitement to a usually dull and boring
Big East football conference.
Football, football, and more football, was the theme
last week, and yet again not all these games are worth
tuning into, but we have a few that are definitely
worth a look to say the least. Here goes:
1. Southern Miss vs Houston
This ranked opponent can give Houston a tiny BCS boost
2. Iowa St vs Kansas St
K St can't afford another flop in a BIG spot at home
3. Texas vs Baylor
Can Baylor assert there hold on the state of Texas here?
4. Georgia vs LSU
Experts don't give Georgia a chance, I hope they're wrong
5. Oklahoma vs Oklahoma St.
Is there enough room for the both of them in that state?
6. Wisconsin vs Michigan St
Wisconsin has been waiting for a little payback
Football, football, and more football, and yet not all
these games on Thanksgiving Friday are worth tuning
into, but these games are definitely worth a glance
at the very very least.
1. Houston v Tulsa - at #8 Houston is still flying under
the radar at can improve their position if anyone falls
2. Nebraska v Iowa - Iowa can really put a nice cap on
their season. Nebraska has been fairly disappointing
3. Arkansas v LSU - This one can be an instant classic,
or a real dud if the Razorbacks don't show up for this.
Saturday is sure to hold some more gems, but let's start
with these to wet our appetite.
This is becoming a weekly feature I'm enjoying,
so I thought that since everyone is either
waiting for the LSU Alabama game or sick and
tired of the hype machine heading into it, that
I might point out a couple of other games of note
you might be interested in taking a peek at.
1. Michigan at Iowa
Iowa Coach Kirk Ferentz never makes these games easy
2. Stanford at Oregon State
Does Stanford take advantage of an Alabama/LSU loss?
3. Cincinnati at Pitt
Can Cincy keep their first ranking in the Post Kelly era?
4. South Carolina at Arkansas
#10 at #8, this is big for both teams
5. Kansas St at Oklahoma State
Can K State recover from last weeks debacle?
6. Oregon at Washington
Can Oregon keep their BCS title hopes relevant?
There's alot of talk around the huge match up
this weekend between Alabama LSU, the rest of
college football seems irrelevant, well I don't
think that's true, and some have gone too far.
Join me in my 1st edition of a new feature
called "Mad Stork Minute"
Don't Believe In Plays, Believe In Players - Al Davis
