Utetopia!
By Bob
1/11/2009 11:21:00 PM
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 Congratulations Utah on college football perfection. While Utes have a right to be upset that the corporate title and the total vote from 65 members of the media didn't go their way, they should take pride in an unmatched accomplishment. Tim Tebow has been ESPNelevated to superhuman status, but the Utes did something he and no one else did. Win their games. In retrospect, Utah may have gotten more attention and a higher ranking had they dropped a game to a lesser opponent and then had Quarterback Brian Johnson make a speech promising to play hard from then on. That Tebow has heart!
More and more knowledgeable fans are realizing that while the BCS Championship game winner gets a banner saying so, they're far from being an undisputed title holder. We could have saved a lot of trouble the last two seasons by only allowing the SEC to play football. If losses to less than stellar squads aren't going to be punished because the conference has great PR, there's really no point for others to try. This season saw Florida fall to a four-loss Mississippi squad. While the Rebels had a great season by Oxford standards, losing to Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, South Carolina and Alabama far from makes them a legitimate force. Therefore the Gators lost at home to an average opponent without penalty. They finished in a four-way tie for the second lowest number of losses in major college football and were widely declared as tops. A year earlier LSU won the BCS with a two loss record that included falling to five-loss Kentucky. The Tigers couldn't beat Kentucky, saw two teams finish with better records and a half dozen with the same number of losses, and they were deemed champs.
Something needs to happen and I don't think a playoff is the answer. The Utahs of the world would often get shutout of a playoff because SEC and other major conference teams with a couple losses would be deemed more deserving. What I envision is an easy fix. College football needs to look to the sport of boxing. Multiple widely recognized titles is the answer this year and every year. Right now four teams deserve championships, and no one deserves undisputed status. In years where a clear champ earns it, all belts go to that team.
Therefore, I’m honored to announce the winner of football’s PBS Championship. The inaugural season-ending Papa Bert Standings have Utah as the National Champions. Congratulations! The university should feel free to hang signs and banners declaring so, but just like the television network with the same moniker, you will be asked to pay. Texas won the SS (sippin' seat) National Championship. Southern Cal, congrats on being SDH (sneaky drinking headquarters) National Champs. Players and fans of these three schools may not be as thrilled as if they had the BCS or AP titles, but these initials can have the same power. Just like boxing, it only takes a short time for someone holding a new belt to have others lining up and wanting it. No disrespect to the Gators. They had a great season, but if you hold the title in one boxing organization, you're often ignored by the others. If you think college football being like boxing is ridiculous, realize it's already mainly in the hands of judges (pollsters/computers when no KO occurs) and cancel your ESPN pay per view package.
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Best Conference To Bed
By Bob
10/20/2008 7:25:00 AM
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It's hard to escape all the best conference in the nation talk. It's an annual season-long discussion that generates countless television reports, radio talk rants and online posts. Who cares??? If you've ever chanted S-E-C instead of the name of your team you are D-U-M-B. A passionate Auburn fan would much rather see Bama winless instead of undefeated, despite the latter serving as some silver lining in a cloudy season.
I agree the Southeastern Conference is usually the best, but I disagree with what seems like the majority of the college football nation just blindly accepting it as so every year. This year, the Big 12 does have a great argument. With the Big 12 South having four of its six members in the top eight of the first Bowl Championship Standings of 2008, there should be no arguing the toughest division in the nation.
I point out the SEC because so many of its fans are extremely passionate about the best conference claim. It's the fans of the mediocre teams that whine the most about conference pride. "We're 6-6, but we play in the toughest conference." Guess what, you're 6-6 because you're not very good. "Our league bowl record is awesome." Wow, the 5th best SEC team beat the Sun Belt champ. Shocker! I'm sure Vegas had it as an even line. When Florida won the 2006 championship, they did, not the conference. Florida has the same number of titles in the last decade as two other schools in the sunshine state, and the Gators and Seminoles have two overall to Miami's five in the last 25 years. That makes history a pointless angle, while also solidifying Florida as the frontrunner to win the ever popular best state in college football discussion.
"But top to bottom?" Does anyone really believe the Wildcats, Gamecocks, Commodores, Volunteers, Razorbacks, Croomdogs, Rebels and Tubertigers are tough this year? None of those eight would be guaranteed a title if they switched conferences. At best they would bring another good but not great squad to the good but not great conferences. The ACC could take any of them and still be a league where it seems no members want the hassle of a conference title game appearance. If they all joined the WAC, Boise State would still be in the run for that conference's crown and would still be tough to beat on their home blue turf.
Where the SEC differs from the ACC, Big East and other lesser leagues is at the top. The Gators and Tide are clearly at the elite level this year, with LSU and the Richtdogs in the conversation while seeming to be on the second rung of the national ladder. But none of it matters because by year's end only one of them can possibly claim a crystal trophy named after whatever company can still afford to buy the BCS hardware naming rights. Besides, the best conference this year is clearly the Mid American. That's because Florida defeated the defending champion LSU Tigers, Ole Miss beat Florida, but lost to Wake Forest, who lost to Navy, which lost to Ball State. That's right, undefeated Ball State. M-A-C, M-A-C, M-A-C!!!
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