Big Ten Football 2011

Discussion in 'Football' started by WarrenWallace, Aug 22, 2011.

  1. ElJefe

    ElJefe Moderator
    Staff Member

    Feb 16, 1999
    Colorful Colorado
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I've beaten as many Top 25 teams as Virginia Tech did this year.

    Props to you, however, for being the first person that I've see who isn't a Hokies fan defend the absolute screwjob that K-State got. Hell, even the Sugar Bowl mucketymucks simply came clean and said that it was down to the fact that Hokies fans travel well.
     
  2. AMBreakers

    AMBreakers Member

    Boston Breakers, Boston Univ. Women's Soccer, Norwich City, Charleston Battery
    Jun 21, 2010
    Connecticut
    Club:
    Boston Breakers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The SEC was down this year, no question. Still there were six good teams- LSU, Bama, Ark, SC, UGA, and Miss St (whose record wasn't 2-10, they were ranked in preseason top 25 and lost to all of the teams on the list before them.) Arkansas is favored by 8.5 points over Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl. Georgia would be favored over Baylor. There is a reason for this. I know Bama didn't play SC or Georgia, but Miss St, Tenn and UF sure did...the teams with "losing records" that Bama played and beat- badly. And Bama would have played SC or Georgia if not for a very unique set of circumstances that kept them out of the conference championship game. Look at it this way. If Bama was in any other conference- any other division- than the SEC West, they would have almost certainly gone undefeated. They had the misfortune of being in the same division as the #1 team in the country. They actually played LSU in the regular season unlike Ok St, so they had more margin for error than Ok St. Same with Oregon, because they played LSU also. Still...if Ok St, Wisconsin, Stanford, Oregon, Clemson or maybe even Boise had gone undefeated, Bama wouldn't have gotten a rematch! All they had to do was beat Iowa State!

    The Big 12 was supposed to be stronger than the SEC this year. What happened? A&M disappointed, Oklahoma lost several players to injury and stumbled down the stretch. Ok St was really the only strong team in the end. Baylor beat TCU by 3 at home. K State beat Miami by 1. Bama beat Penn St (better defense!) by 16 on the road (PSU scored a touchdown at the very end when the game was already over.) Ok State barely won two of their games and didn't really play defense. Yet they still had an opportunity to get in the championship over a superior Bama team. All they had to do was beat Iowa State!

    There are plenty of non SEC teams out there capable of beating the SEC's best in one head to head matchup. Oklahoma State is one of them. In any other year, Bama would have lost more than one game and they would have gotten a shot.

    And if you're going to compare schedules, look at the schedules of the teams on their schedules. Then you'll get an accurate picture.
     
  3. Twenty26Six

    Twenty26Six Feeling Sheepish...

    Jan 2, 2004
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Sadly, the BCS is a bit of a joke when Michigan and Va. Tech make it into the Sugar bowl.

    I feel bad for Arkansas, Michigan State, and Boise State.
     
  4. AMBreakers

    AMBreakers Member

    Boston Breakers, Boston Univ. Women's Soccer, Norwich City, Charleston Battery
    Jun 21, 2010
    Connecticut
    Club:
    Boston Breakers
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    If Oklahoma State really deserved to be in the BCS title game as a 1 loss team, then people would have been saying that RIGHT AFTER they lost to Iowa State. And that did not happen.

    Think back to the middle of the season. The CONSENSUS was that Alabama would get a rematch if everyone else lost a game. Nobody disputed the fairness of that then!

    When this sentimentalism comes up all of a sudden because the mass perception is anti-BCS at all costs, I'm always going to be skeptical.

    Look at the schedules more closely. The teams with losing records on Bama's schedule played much tougher schedules than the teams with winning records on Ok State's schedule. Fact.

    You can advocate for a playoff all you want, but under the system we have they got it right.

    Bama played and lost to the other team playing in the championship game, which Ok St did not do, and based on Bama's margin of victory against other teams, they would have easily won the division and the conference had LSU not been there. Despite this, Ok State was STILL given a shot to get in over Bama. All they had to do was go undefeated. And they didn't. This is how the voters look at it- claim an "SEC bias" if you want but it isn't so.
     
  5. stanger

    stanger BigSoccer Supporter

    Nov 29, 2008
    Columbus
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Since I really don't know you at all i don't know if you are an Alabama fan, LSU fan, or just an SEC fan, but the statement above tells me all I really need to know.

    Using the regular season as a playoff system, you really think getting a second chance at playing a team that already beat you once is fair? I have skimmed your rambling excuses on why you think this, that and the other justifies two teams playing for a second time in the NC is the right thing but I can tell you that this is the beginning of the end.

    The first time these two teams played it was the textbook example of a horrible game. By all means, show me that again.

    Yes, I heard your excuse that they were both "playing not to lose" and "this time it will be different". Right. You know this how??

    All your ramblings are total crap and by continuing to post it seems like you are trying to convince yourself.
     
  6. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    +1

    Only AMBreakers can expand a simple "I like this pageant and I like it this waaaaay" into War & Peace...
     
  7. ElJefe

    ElJefe Moderator
    Staff Member

    Feb 16, 1999
    Colorful Colorado
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You must get your consensus from the callers to the Paul Finebaum show.

    IF THERE ISN'T A REMATCH IT'S AN ANTI-SEC CONSPIRACY PAWWWWWWWL
     
  8. Twenty26Six

    Twenty26Six Feeling Sheepish...

    Jan 2, 2004
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Actually, people were saying this. People were on the Okie State wagon right up until Oklahoma started shitting the bed in the Big 12 by losing to TT and then Baylor.

    If Oklahoma had beaten Tech and Baylor, I think the Cowboys would definitely be in the title game.

    ...which is coincidentally what I hate about the system. Your schedule is dependent on what everyone does in every game, and when you blow a team out, you actually hurt yourself, because they look worse by comparison.
     
  9. Catracho_Azul

    Catracho_Azul Member+

    Jun 16, 2008
    New Orleans
    Club:
    Corinthians Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Honduras
    I love that show.. lmaoooooo Every Monday you got that stuttering guy.

    B-b-b-b-but P--p-p-p-PAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWLLLLL

    especially since he's anti-LSU.. Heh.
     
  10. CyphaPSU

    CyphaPSU Member+

    Mar 16, 2003
    Not Far
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    For obvious reasons, this is the first time I've ever experienced a football coaching search for my university. It's chaotic. The epitome of the hysteria is all the blogs and message boards where people track all the movements of aircraft going in and out of State College--trying to guess who might be on the plane based on where they're coming from.
     
  11. CHICO13

    CHICO13 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Oct 4, 2001
    SECTION 135
    Club:
    The Strongest La Paz
    Nat'l Team:
    Bolivia
    Can totally relate. Went thru it 4 years ago with Rich Rod and again last year with Brady Hoke. Michigan fans were even tracking the Domino's plane Dave Brandon was using to fly around the country. :eek: :D
     
  12. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Auburn's 2003 plan to fire Tommy Tuberville and bring Bobby Petrino in without informing Tuberville --or admins at Louisville-- was exposed this way.

    Alabama fans out on Tarmac Recon saw Auburn's president, its most influential trustee and the AD board a private jet owned by the trustee's bank. They noted the tail number, found out the jet was headed to Louisville and wondered why. They contacted other Alabama fans stationed in Kentucky, who were able to continue the investigation and then inform the media.
     
  13. stanger

    stanger BigSoccer Supporter

    Nov 29, 2008
    Columbus
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    It was like that when Coop was fired here as well. People kept wondering why Don Scott Field had a plane coming in from Youngstown.

    It was a little different with Meyer. We all thought he was the hire back when Tress resigned.
     
  14. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I get that. Urban's on a plane to Columbus, you know why, and you know the job's probably his to turn down. I'm still wondering what happened to Notre Dame being his "dream job", tho. No diss towards OSU, but I'm almost sure he said that somewhere about the Irish.

    IMO, the Auburn thing was particularly amusing to be because unlike your Tress from Youngstown (it was watched and reported by buckeye fans), these were Tiders spying on Auburn. Around here, it's not something that happens only when a coach is being hired- these people arrange their lives around monitoring the activities of each other's athletic departments. Then they cawl Pawl Fahnbawm.
     
  15. HardHatMike

    HardHatMike DOOOOOOOOM!

    Traktor Nebraska
    Aug 31, 2005
    Lincoln, Nebraska
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Urban wasn't on a plane to Columbus. He's lived there since he left Gainesville.
     
  16. stanger

    stanger BigSoccer Supporter

    Nov 29, 2008
    Columbus
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    He bought Herbie's house in Arlington.;)
     
  17. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I don't think anyone in the Big Ten will have to worry about PSU getting back to being simply a top-tier program after they read today's USA Today.

    If there are any PSU grads willing to answer the following... exactly how much dropoff in the school's academic reputation (whatever it may be, I don't know for certain) has there been since Paterno arrived? I'm trying to make sense of USA Today's "rethinking emphasis on football" headline, written as if the non-football students are suffering academically because of the community's appreciation for the football program.
     
  18. CyphaPSU

    CyphaPSU Member+

    Mar 16, 2003
    Not Far
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The article is ludicrous and gives the absolute wrong impression of the state of things. I have not the foggiest clue where this all coming from. There was no academic such drop-off since Paterno; as truthfully as it can be put, the exact opposite is true--and that is not hyperbole.

    Paterno is famous for putting forth the message of what he called the "grand experiment." That was his belief that it is possible to have a high-performing football team competing for championships on the field that is composed of players who are also high-performers in the classroom. That was Paterno's vision for Penn State, and I'd say he quite succeeded at executing it, demonstrating that the experiment is indeed possible. This past academic year, Penn State graduated 87% of its football players (amongst the very top schools at the FBS level). The reality is, academic achievements of the Penn State football program rank right at the top in the nation for FBS programs. Here is the Time Magazine article about it. To some it up, Penn State has long had a reputation for emphasizing academics with its athletic programs--and Joe Paterno was the central figurehead in that goal.

    The university's overall academic reputation has been growing for decades. It is a giant research institution.
    • It's an AAU member
    • The top ranked university in the country for job recruitment (I was always told my PSU diploma looks really good to employers, only to find out I really was being told the truth); Wall Street Journal rankings
    • Ranked 7th in research libraries for North America
    • Ranks as top engineering school for aerospace and defense recruitment
    • National Science Foundation ranks PSU #1 in funded materials research (which is cool, because I had an NSF grant for a research position there after I graduated)
    • Its World Campus is ranked #1 for online institutions
    • College of Business is ranked 15th among all US and international business schools (4th among publicly supported schools)
    • Included in Newsweek's Top 50 Global Universities
    • Ranked 6th in Awards for Basic and Applied Research by the US Defense Department Contracts and Grants
    • Trains a large percentage of the world's meteorologists

    And so on, and so on, and so on. More statistics here if you're bored.

    I really do think that a famous football program acts as an advertisement for a university's brand and even positively affects a school's academic standing--not the other way around. The reason is that it gets the basic message across the country about the school's existence. More students apply, a bigger pool of academic talent flows in, more money comes in, more alumni graduate, more funds for university expansion open up, a greater diversity of faculty talent immigrate, etc.

    As an alumnus, I'm a bit baffled by Erickson's statements that do not seem to jive with a lot of the good that has built up over the years as it actually stands today (I'm thinking it's a poorly constructed PR tactic); but the article seems to go beyond what he says and gives a characterization of the university that essentially flies in the face of the facts. But, that would not be a first for the media.

    Besides, there were articles that came out today with interviews of the personnel on the coach search committed that painted a slightly different picture. The committee is not only looking for a candidate who will uphold Paterno's legacy of prioritizing education for the student athletes, but someone who will flat out win football games. According to the committee, that is still a must.
     
  19. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Thanks for the quick and honest reply. It seemed to me that maybe Erickson was trying to respond to all the people who want to poke a sharp stick at players who 1) never raped anyone and 2) never played a single down for PSU during Sandusky's tenure, and as a result, he tried to paint PSU before his arrival as a football-first institution in the mold of some programs that win a lot of B(C)S titles. I was pretty sure this wasn't the case, and was baffled by the article.
     
  20. CyphaPSU

    CyphaPSU Member+

    Mar 16, 2003
    Not Far
    Club:
    Philadelphia Union
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks for responding. The whole "de-emphasizing" thing is really peculiar. Look at today's reactions in USA Today from those in the Penn State community (including academic faculty) to these comments from Erickson. I'm fairly certain they say as the vast majority of Penn Staters think. We'll see if he clarifies things, because part of me thinks the previous USA Today article may have been a little loose in how it filled in between the lines of what Erickson originally said.
     
  21. Twenty26Six

    Twenty26Six Feeling Sheepish...

    Jan 2, 2004
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Why is this so hard, BCS?

    * January 1st
    Pac12 Champ vs. B1G Champ in Rose Bowl.
    Big12 Champ vs. At-Large/AQ in Fiesta Bow.
    SEC vs. At-Large/AQ in Sugar Bowl.
    ACC vs. Big East in Orange Bowl.

    * Winners play in semifinal on January 9th

    * Those winners play in final on January 16th

    * Start the season 1-week later.

    * Take away 1 non-conference game for teams in conferences that have championship games.

    Am I missing something?
     
  22. stanger

    stanger BigSoccer Supporter

    Nov 29, 2008
    Columbus
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I think the issue all along isn't that it isn't possible because it is. The lower divisions seem to have no problem with it.

    The issue is selling tickets to the semis and final. Let's say I travel to the Sugar for OSU's bowl game, am I really going to travel the next week to wherever the semi final is? Nope. It would be an either/or.

    You can help that by making the semis and final at the home field of the higher ranked team. If the semi was in Columbus I am sure there would be no problem getting 110,000 to buy tickets, same in Ann Arbor. I would LOVE to see LSU play a game in Columbus in January! (Or any SEC team play in the snow and cold EVER)

    But then we have a devalued bowl system.

    Just for clarification, I am with you 26. It shouldn't be that hard.
     
  23. Twenty26Six

    Twenty26Six Feeling Sheepish...

    Jan 2, 2004
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    That's a good point. I did not think of that, and it seems to be the primary motivator for all the bowls (ticket sales).

    Although, I think just about anyone would buy tickets to the final. The semifinals might be a bit tougher to sell.
     
  24. galaxyfan03

    galaxyfan03 Member

    Jul 4, 2001
    Glendale, California
    Club:
    Los Angeles Galaxy
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Not bad...however, I'm not so sure the Big East deserves an automatic bid anymore. IMO their bowl results prove this.

    I also agree with Kirk Herbstreit...NO bowls for 6-6 teams or teams with losing conference records. That would eliminate needless bowls & reduce the cluttered schedule!
     
  25. CHICO13

    CHICO13 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Oct 4, 2001
    SECTION 135
    Club:
    The Strongest La Paz
    Nat'l Team:
    Bolivia
    Needless Bowls still pay out money to the schools and generate revenue thru advertising of whatever cockamamie product they're pushing and at the end of the day that's all that really matters to the schools and the NCAA.
     

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