Fight On!
When was the last time USC was 4-0, with 3 road wins, and ranked 18th in the country? They won at Hawaii, beat Virginia out of the ACC, won at Minnesota out of the Big Ten, and won a conference road game. 3 of the 4 were double-digit wins. I'm not saying they should be ranked higher, I'm just wondering how they are ranked below Iowa, whose resume contains zero road wins, zero impressive wins, and a loss: this is still USC, even if Kiffin is at the helm.
Big Ten Scheduling (Again)
The Big Ten is 20-2 against unranked non-BCS FBS opponents. They are 9-1 against FCS opponents. They are 7-4 against BCS conference opponents, including Notre Dame: 1-3 against ranked BCS conference opponents, and 6-1 against unranked BCS opponents. Those 6 wins are: Iowa State, Connecticut, Notre Dame (twice), Vanderbilt, and Arizona State. It's questionable that any of those teams will make bowl games, but it's pretty sure that none of them are going to win a conference title. The lone win against a ranked opponent was #2 Ohio State beating #16 Miami at home.
The conference's 3 best wins are Miami and Notre Dame twice, once scoring in the final minute of the game to win and once converting on a fake field goal in OT to win. The conference also sports double-digit losses to Notre Dame, Toledo, Northern Illinois, and FCS South Dakota.
Most conferences in America sport better wins, and a better collection of losses too. But most conferences in America don't know the recipe for getting 6 teams ranked like the Big Ten does: schedule patsies and just win, baby. Oh wait, the SEC has figured the recipe out too, just without completely watering-down the schedules: play great football, beat quality opponents on big stages (including bowl games), oh, and win the National Championship 4 years in a row.
The Big 10 is overrated every year in football and basketball because their area has more votes than other areas.
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