Change of Heart
I hate to continue harping on it, but I've got to. I was right. All of the experts were wrong! Early last week, I wrote about the possibilities of Boise State jumping back over TCU. There was not a single "expert" who would even entertain the possibility, saying it was a nice ride for Boise State, but it is over. Now it looks more and more likely to happen. Pretty much every expert is now calling it a foregone conclusion (Desmond Howard is the first one to hurt his knee jumping from bandwagon to bandwagon). The final kick could come the last weekend of the season: Boise State gets to play its final game against Utah State, and Hawaii gets to play UNLV. With wins for the Rainbows and Broncos, the comeback would be solidified. The worst part about it is that TCU may even get left out of a BCS game because of it. Barring any major upsets, Boise State, ACC champ, Big East champ, 2 Big Ten teams, 2 SEC teams, 2 Pac 10 teams, and 1 Big XII team will make the BCS, which means no room at the inn for the Horned Frogs. What a shame to follow up a 12-0 regular season with a 12-0 regular season and not make a BCS game. TCU's best hope lies in a Big Ten shake-up, leaving only 1 Big Ten team going to a BCS game. All I know is that at least two top 10 teams will likely get left out of a BCS game, and TCU is very likely to be one of them.
Texas-Sized Politics!
After a couple of run-up-the-score games early in the year, TCU finally got hit by kharma. It eventually gets you every time. After claiming to never run up the score, Gary Patterson now takes his lobbying to ESPN Studios to try to convince people his team is better than their most recent effort. He tells them to look at the stats, not the scoreboard. If he wasn't such a jerk the past few seasons, I would probably feel sorry for the guy. I've watched his starters in with less than 5 minutes to go in too many blowouts to care that his team is getting the shaft.
Sparty? Really?
After Ohio State starting off as #2 in the country and losing only one game on the road to a top 10 opponent and Wisconsin rattling off 83 points in a single game, Michigan State actually looks like it has a great chance to represent the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl. Currently it is a 3-way tie at the top, in which case the team with the highest BCS ranking represents the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl, which would be Wisconsin. However, if it ends up a two-way tie and one of the teams is Michigan State, they will probably win the tie-breakers. After all of the talk about the quality of the Big Ten this season, Sparty might represent them in the Rose Bowl! This is a team that struggled against a Sun Belt team, needed OT to beat Notre Dame, and lost by 31 points just a week and a half ago. Well done, Big Ten. This is a reminder of why they are going to 12 teams and having a Championship Game: so they can be represented by someone who didn't luck out because of an easier conference schedule. Michigan State is a good team, but could you imagine them in the Rose Bowl against a great team like Boise State, TCU, or Stanford?
Who Needs the Top 5? Or Expensive TV Packages?
For a Saturday in which only 1 team in the top 5 will play, there sure are a lot of intriguing matchups to catch this Saturday, most of which are available through basic network channels or with an internet connection through most major service providers. Games are all available on ESPN3.com unless other network specified: Pitt at South Florida, Wisconsin at Michigan, NC State at UNC, Ole Miss at LSU (CBS), Ohio State at Iowa (ABC or ESPN3), Virginia Tech at Miami, Army vs. Notre Dame (NBC), Arkansas at Mississippi State, Florida State at Maryland (ABC-Regional or ESPN3), USC at Oregon State, Oklahoma at Baylor, and Nebraska at Texas A&M (ABC-Regional or ESPN3). If you would like to catch any of these games and do not have access to ESPN3.com through your service provider, give me a call and I can get you a login (if you know me and have my home phone number).
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