Posted on 11/21/2005 12:45:25 PM PST by indcons
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Southern California and Texas remain the top two teams in the BCS standings and only an upset in one of the final two weeks will prevent the two storied programs from meeting in the Rose Bowl on January 4 for the national championship.
The Trojans (11-0) had a close call this past weekend with a 50-42 victory over a tough Fresno State squad, but they'll have this week off before facing city rival UCLA on December 3.
The Longhorns (10-0), meanwhile, had their final bye this past Saturday and will play each of the next two weeks. First up will be the annual showdown with Texas A&M on Friday and then a trip to the Big 12 title game on December 3.
The final BCS standings will be released on December 4.
As of Monday, Southern California is still atop those standings with a BCS average of .9807, down from last week's .9829. Texas, meanwhile, gained some ground and has an average of .9791, up from last week's .9771.
Should one of those teams falter, Penn State, LSU or Virginia Tech would be ready to take a Rose Bowl spot.
Penn State is third in this week's BCS standings with an average of .8900. The Nittany Lions earned a share of the Big Ten title with Ohio State, but will represent the conference in the BCS thanks to a victory over the Buckeyes earlier this season.
LSU is fourth in the BCS and Virginia Tech is fifth. LSU controls its destiny for a berth in the SEC Championship game, while Virginia Tech can do the same in the ACC thanks to Miami-Florida's stunning loss to Georgia Tech this past Saturday.
Miami dropped from third in last week's BCS standings to ninth this week.
If Virginia Tech beats North Carolina this Saturday, the Hokies would play Florida State for the ACC title. An LSU victory over Arkansas this week would put the Tigers into the SEC title game against Georgia.
The champions from the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East, Pac-10 and Southeastern Conference make up six of the eight teams in the four BCS games -- the Rose, Orange, Sugar and Fiesta Bowls. The other two spots go to at-large teams.
One of those at-large berths will likely be Notre Dame, which needs only to beat Stanford this coming Saturday to lock up a BCS berth. The Irish, who stand eighth this week in the BCS, would then have the requisite nine wins to qualify for one of the BCS bowl games.
The BCS system uses a pair of human polls -- the Harris Interactive and the USA Today -- as well as six computer rankings. Each poll counts one-third toward the overall score, while the average of the computers completes the formula.
The College Football Data Warehouse (http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/rankings/all_time_conf_rankings.php) says the SEC is #1 of all-time, ahead of the Big 10. Most bowl rankings (best winning percentage in bowls from year to year -- although the SEC has faltered for about two years) I've seen list the SEC as well. The SEC was not up to par this year -- LSU, Auburn, and Georgia were strong. Alabama has a strong defense and no offense, but is usually strong. Add to the mix the fact that Tennessee and Florida are usually strong but stunk this year. Few conferences can come up with six teams that natch the performance of those six over the last fifteen or twenty years. That said, my personal opinion is:
The PAC-10 is the most underrated conference each year. Because their games are on television late, if at all, in the Midwest and East, nobody sees these teams. They play sophisticated offensive sets and seem to have great team speed. However, I don't think they field more than three or four teams in a given year up to the standards of the SEC's "normal" Big Six.
Year in and year out, Nebraska is the most over-ranked team at the beginning of the year. Don't they hold a record for losing the most bowl games in a row against ranked opponents? Don't they hold a record for most consecutive losses when ranked in the Top 20, losing to ranked teams lower than them in the Top 20? Don't they hold the record for years in a row finishing lower in the AP poll than they started they started the season? That said, when Osborne recruited (or endured) criminals, he put together two of the best college football teams in modern history. Also, Nebraska has the SEC's number, with something like an 18-2 lifetime record against the SEC. For years, however, Nebraska fattened up against pitiful Big 8 opponents, with one game against Oklahoma, then was beaten in its bowl game.
The Big 10, overall, is the most over-rated conference. Why? Because people still remember (a) football when it was played by guys with Slavic last names and dominated by the Big 10, (b) football when the racist and backwards SEC didn't have Black players and the Big 10 was superior to the SEC, and (c) all the statements made by sport journalists who graduated from the Big 10. Remember all of the hype about the Rose Bowl when it was meaningless? When it consisted of the Big 10 sending out a patsy to get pounded by the PAC 10 on an annual basis?
The most improved conference over the last eight years has been the ACC. Look at their bowl records, look at the improvement of their record against traditional SEC and other opponents, etc. I'm not looking at this year's changes -- with Virginia Tech, Miami, Boston College, etc., although that just improved the conference more.
He's a great athlete and what I call a great "college player," but I don't think he's got the tools to be a great NFL back. He's too flashy for the NFL game, and doesn't have that tackle-to-tackle presence that even small NFL runners like Tiki Barber have.
Agree with that, and after watching USC-Fresno, it was obvious that the officials were calling the game a lot closer on Fresno than they were on USC. USC got a lot of no-calls, including a key one on a Bush punt return, when the refs didn't "see" a blatant block in the back.
I'll take those two human polls and trophy over your computer trophy any day.
How could I leave a Temple Owl out of this PING
That makes as much sense as your other posts.
One thing that hurts the SEC is that alums are so unforgiving, that a coach is under so much pressure to win and win now. It drives away potential coaches.
I'm disappointed in the Gators, sure. But there are some in the Gator Nation that already want to run Urban Meyer out of town, that's just nuts. (Even though sometimes I do wish we had the Old Ball Coach back, then I saw their game against Clemson, and then I thought we'll be fine with what we have).
Fresno St has proven over and over again that they belong. Their "Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime" motto isn't an empty slogan. They now have a problem scheduling anyone in BCS conferences. If the SEC had any balls they would schedule Fresno St, but they are too busy playing the Louisianna Tech School for the Blind during their non conference schedules!!! I say this and I hate Fresno St with a passion, because of past transgressions involving my beloved New Mexico Lobos, but I respect the hell out of what they are able to do.
It's a first year and they are horrible. Watch their recruiting and record rise.
However, I have a hard time taking a team seriously when Pete Carroll is their head coach. We got to see him for a while with the NY Jets, and I swear that guy couldn't coach his way out of bed in the morning.
I will admit one point Yes I will agree that the Women are Outstanding... What a bunch knockouts ;-)
Typical sour grapes, but I expected nothing else. Yall sure were lobbying hard to get in the BCS game in 2003. When the numbers didn't add up in your favor, you decided it didn't matter anyway and the AP poll was the "real" championship after all. LMAO.
Did you learn VCR repair with that course in smack?
Boy with that kind of logic I dont know how I can disagree with you??
3,000 yard passer (returning Heisman winner and 35-1 record)
TWO 1,000 yard rushers (including this years Heisman winner)
TWO 1,000 yard receivers (including next years Heisman)
Plus 21 turnover margin!
Two NAtional Championships in a row!
Yes I have seen them play they are impressive, but not in the same league as USC. PERIOD
The one in the first row, number five from the left, is absolutely stunning...
The USC cheerleaders are way down this year. They're not even close to the hottest in the conference (UCLA and Oregon). Put them up against a real pom squad (UTs) and you see how overrated they really are.
I honestly haven't watched Reggie Bush enough to argue one way or another. He does seem to have the pass catching ability that helps running backs in the pros. I tend to think that QB's (i.e. Ryan Leaf) tend to always win the biggest disappointment in the draft award. Running backs generally make the transistion better.
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