It's that time of year again. The annual debate about the BCS standings. Who should and who should not be ranked. Included in this debate is what in the world to do with Boise ST and TCU. I may be old school or a littlie biased but Boise and TCU shouldn't even be in the argument. Now before all you BSU/TCU believers roll your eyes and say"Fazende's lost his mind again", let me make my case.
First, the darlings of ESPN,ABC, and most media "experts", blue field Boise St. (10-0 6-0). "Sure they play in a small conference but look at their marque wins outside the conference" is the case most frequently used for BSU. OK, let's look at their "marque" non-conference wins:
First Virgina Tech. Yes the always overrated and over ranked Hokies who begin every season top 10, lose their non conference games then regroup in that tough Coastal Division of the vaunted ACC. BSU received the earliest Christmas gift in history from Frank Beamer in week one when his team had the ball and the lead with less then two minutes to play and BSU without timeouts. Intead of three runs up the middle and punting with seconds remaining, he calls for a sweep on second down when his oh so well coached RB runs out of bounds stopping the clock. On third down, displaying Milesian clock management skills, Beamer calls for a pass which falls incomplete, again stopping the clock, leaving well over a minute to play. To their credit, BSU, led by QB Kevin Moore, thanked Frankie boy for his early good tidings by marching down the field and scoring the winning touchdown. VaTech came back strong after the loss promptly losing to James Madison University. That loss alone eliminates this as a "marque" win for BSU.
Second BSU marque win: Oregon ST. Why? Because they happen to play in the Pac 10. OSU had lost to TCU in week one and has followed the BSU loss with losses to 4-6 Washington and UCLA and 2-9 Wash St on their way to 5-5 with two games remaining. Though OSU plays in the BCS conference PAC 10, even BSU believers must concede beating them can hardly be considered marque.
Next marque match up: 10-1 #19 Nevada. Please. Nevada's 10-1 record against the likes of Eastern Washington, Idaho and Utah State impresses only those trying to make an argument for BSU's high ranking.
These marque wins were sandwiched by wins against such blockbuster programs such as Wyoming, Toledo and New Mexico St.
Now 11-0 TCU. The "thinking man's" pick. "Nobody is talking about TCU and their impressive run, they get no love!"
Stop! Now!
TCU "marque" wins:
Oregon State: read above
Baylor: Gave up an average of 48 points in their 5 losses includung 55 and 53 to Oklahoma St and Oklahoma respectively. But they did beat powerhouses like Sam Houston St, Buffalo and 5-6 Texas in the midst of their worst season in the Mack Brown era.
Utah: proud owners of wins against the likes of San Jose St, Wyoming and Colorado St. After losing to TCU, Utah got spanked by Notre Dame 28-3, erasing any luster TCU mat have gained by beating them.
"But these two programs can't help who they play, plus they beat everyone on their schedule by lopsided margins". You're making my point. They play a weak schedule year after year, never take the Florida St route of real tough non conference foes then whine about lack of respect at the end of the season.
If these schools could possibly go through a schedule that opens up with the usual pancakes then play in a row, Kentucky, at Alabama, at Arkansas, La Laf, at Tennesse, at LSU then close with an in state arch rival and still remain unbeaten, or even once beaten, then I would gladly show them the love so desperately covet. That's a typical SEC, PAC 10 or Big 12 schedule. That's why a one loss SEC,PAC 10 or Big 12 school should jump the likes of unbeaten BSU/TCU.
Let me put it this way.
Next season Mississippi St announces they are joining the CUSA West division with Tulane, UTEP, Houston, Rice and Tulsa. They add Wake Forest, Cincinnati and Vanderbilt, three BCS conference schools, to their non conference schedule. They run the table. They demand to be included at the BCS feast. Would all those BSU/TCU backers be on that Bulldog bandwagon?
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Sunday, November 7, 2010
One Great Weekend
You work all week. Look forward to the weekend. Then something comes up and the weekend is partially or totally shot. Then there are weekends like the one I just had.
Friday: Brother Martin defeats Jesuit 28-27. My son plays in the band so it's always fun to watch the game and listen to the band play. Martin takes their band seriously and they practice very hard to make the games entertaining. There's a special moment after each game when the team gathers in front of the band as the fight song is playing, they hold their helmets above their heads in salute to the fans and band for their support as the fans applaud in apprecitation of a valiant effort. It's what's great about high school football. Oh, the game? Electric. Martin's star player, Dante Butler rushed for 267 yards and 3 touchdowns. The game was filled with lead changes and hard hitting, these rivals left it all out on the field in a great high school football game. Walking with my son to the car after the game, a lady dressed in Jesuit attire noticed his band uniform and graciously complimented the Martin band and congratulated him on their win. It demonstarted the class and mutual respect of these two traditional insitutions.
Hornets 96-Heat 93. During the Martin game, with frequent updates from my first son and eyeballing espn.com on my Blackberry, I was able to enjoy the Hornets extend their fast start to 5-0 by beating the next dream team, the Lebron, Dwayne and Bosh show.
Saturday: LSU 24-Alabama 21. After working early Saturday morning, I hustled back to get in front of my Sony 46 HD to watch the LSU game with my favorite football crew, me. Cozied up on my sofa with Blackberry in hand for game-texting, I got to see Les Miles exorcise the demons of the ghost of Nick Saban. With incredible play calls in the second half, timely execution from the offense and a return to dominence from the defense, LSU gave Miles the biggest win of his tenure. Yes, bigger than the BCS, for this was all his. No Saban players, no Saban shadow. Miles has finally...finally escaped the gorilla of Saban for evermore. He is now 2-2 against his predecessor and is tied for the most wins over bama by an LSU coach. Tied, that is, with Saban who was 4-1 against bama.
Still Saturday: Dinner with the Mrs. Started with corn and crab soup, Italian salad followed by an incredible ribeye and a side of mashed potatoes. The shrimp etouffe subbing grits for rice on the wife's plate was breathtaking. Coffee and pecan pie drinched in caramel sauce still haunt my tasebuds.
Hornets defeat the Bucks to go 6-0.
Sunday: Saints 34-Panthers 3. The Saints followed last week's huge performance with another, getting on top of Carolina early and often then finishing with yet another dominant deffensive outing. The offense showed they are starting to find their rythmn. The bye comes next week at a perfect time as players nicked up can heal their wounds and prepared for the stretch run.
Sunday evening: Dinner at R&O's then off to the brilliant Rain. A tribute to the Beatles. I have five kids, The two oldest listen to Lil Wayne and Jay Z. My three youngest are into the Beatles. Go figure. Watching a 17,14 and 12 year old standing, clapping and chearing the Beatles and seeing the joy on their faces was like Christmas morning. Rain was as magnificant as advertised. It was as if the actual Beatles were onstage. A magical ride from their Ed Sullivan appearance through Sgt Pepper then Abbey Road. All songs played to perfection along with costumes and stage show to match.
Arrived home just in time to watch my oldest son's live report from Charlotte, NC where he was covering the Saints game for Fox 8 sports.
Still Sunday...late. Bedtime. As with all great things, this weekend has come to an end, but since it was so eventfull, I should be good for a while. At least until next weekend.
Life is good.
Friday: Brother Martin defeats Jesuit 28-27. My son plays in the band so it's always fun to watch the game and listen to the band play. Martin takes their band seriously and they practice very hard to make the games entertaining. There's a special moment after each game when the team gathers in front of the band as the fight song is playing, they hold their helmets above their heads in salute to the fans and band for their support as the fans applaud in apprecitation of a valiant effort. It's what's great about high school football. Oh, the game? Electric. Martin's star player, Dante Butler rushed for 267 yards and 3 touchdowns. The game was filled with lead changes and hard hitting, these rivals left it all out on the field in a great high school football game. Walking with my son to the car after the game, a lady dressed in Jesuit attire noticed his band uniform and graciously complimented the Martin band and congratulated him on their win. It demonstarted the class and mutual respect of these two traditional insitutions.
Hornets 96-Heat 93. During the Martin game, with frequent updates from my first son and eyeballing espn.com on my Blackberry, I was able to enjoy the Hornets extend their fast start to 5-0 by beating the next dream team, the Lebron, Dwayne and Bosh show.
Saturday: LSU 24-Alabama 21. After working early Saturday morning, I hustled back to get in front of my Sony 46 HD to watch the LSU game with my favorite football crew, me. Cozied up on my sofa with Blackberry in hand for game-texting, I got to see Les Miles exorcise the demons of the ghost of Nick Saban. With incredible play calls in the second half, timely execution from the offense and a return to dominence from the defense, LSU gave Miles the biggest win of his tenure. Yes, bigger than the BCS, for this was all his. No Saban players, no Saban shadow. Miles has finally...finally escaped the gorilla of Saban for evermore. He is now 2-2 against his predecessor and is tied for the most wins over bama by an LSU coach. Tied, that is, with Saban who was 4-1 against bama.
Still Saturday: Dinner with the Mrs. Started with corn and crab soup, Italian salad followed by an incredible ribeye and a side of mashed potatoes. The shrimp etouffe subbing grits for rice on the wife's plate was breathtaking. Coffee and pecan pie drinched in caramel sauce still haunt my tasebuds.
Hornets defeat the Bucks to go 6-0.
Sunday: Saints 34-Panthers 3. The Saints followed last week's huge performance with another, getting on top of Carolina early and often then finishing with yet another dominant deffensive outing. The offense showed they are starting to find their rythmn. The bye comes next week at a perfect time as players nicked up can heal their wounds and prepared for the stretch run.
Sunday evening: Dinner at R&O's then off to the brilliant Rain. A tribute to the Beatles. I have five kids, The two oldest listen to Lil Wayne and Jay Z. My three youngest are into the Beatles. Go figure. Watching a 17,14 and 12 year old standing, clapping and chearing the Beatles and seeing the joy on their faces was like Christmas morning. Rain was as magnificant as advertised. It was as if the actual Beatles were onstage. A magical ride from their Ed Sullivan appearance through Sgt Pepper then Abbey Road. All songs played to perfection along with costumes and stage show to match.
Arrived home just in time to watch my oldest son's live report from Charlotte, NC where he was covering the Saints game for Fox 8 sports.
Still Sunday...late. Bedtime. As with all great things, this weekend has come to an end, but since it was so eventfull, I should be good for a while. At least until next weekend.
Life is good.
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