Early national champions

[Baphomet3]

Key match-ups this weekend:

#21 OSU vs. #13 OU in Bedlam rivalry game - could push OU well into the top 10 or continue to shake things up.

#7 LSU vs. Arkansas - should be a throw-away game but the way LSU starts nothing's in the bad here.

#5 Oregon vs. #15 Oregon St. rivalry game - huge match-up. Oregon is angry and eager to prove it was a fluke loss.

#4 Florida vs. #10 Florida St. rivalry game - this is even more up-in-the-air with huge implications on the line.

#8 Stanford vs. #17 UCLA should be very evenly-matched between two teams that are peaking at the right time.

We've also got #11 vs. #12 as well as #1 ND's last real test of the season (as mentioned above).

[XFactah416]

Well, here's how I see it now.

Alabama / Georgia is a defacto national semifinal game. My money is Alabama going away decisively (say by 10 or so) but maybe Georgia can do it? I suspect a boatload of errors from Aaron Murray next Saturday, but IF Aaron Murray can play well then Georgia can definitely hang with Alabama.

Notre Dame wins tonight: book the ticket, easy, no controversy.

if Notre Dame loses tonight: Stanford looks like they're going to beat UCLA, but if UCLA does manage to mount a comeback and then Oregon beats UCLA in the Pac 12 title game, I can definitely see Oregon jumping Florida. Oregon is already ahead in the human polls that matter (so there would be no real reason to drop Oregon behind Florida especially given 2 more ranked wins on Oregon's resume) and the computers are the only reason why Florida has the slight edge in the BCS at the moment.

Of course, if Stanford wins, nuke everything and Florida would be in the title game IMO with a Notre Dame loss, but it would be interesting to see if the humans would conspire to keep Florida out of the title game. The computers love Florida so there's no worry there. I think Kansas State is just going to be on the outside looking in after TCU's upset loss. That win over Texas would've looked a lot sexier with a #11-#12 Texas rather than most likely a low 20 Texas.

[limelight543]

You should ban yourself for being a moron.

Wish u took the ban bet damn getting rid of a idiot would be awesome

[XFactah416]

Well, no real drama left.

Notre Dame vs Alabama / Georgia winner.

(Although on paper if you ask me Florida has a way better resume then either of Alabama / Georgia, but that's the BCS for ya.)

[Straight_Crown]

I think Florida, Alabama, and Georgia are all more deserving than Notre Dame. ND had maybe 2 nice wins all year. And went down to the wire or OT with 4 or 5 unranked teams. And because they refuse to play in a conference, they get to jump straight to the title game, while other teams have to play possibly their toughest game of the year in their conference championship game. Idk, I just haven't been impressed with ND all year, and I've seen most of their games. And this month and a half wait from the end of the season to the BCS bowl games is the most unnecessary thing in sports. Bowl games should start the week after the conference champ games, with the BCS games starting the week after.


EDIT: I worded that wrong. I'm not sure if Florida, Alabama, and Georgia are more deserving than ND, but I do think all 3 of them are better than Notre Dame.

[Baphomet3]

This could be the year we NEED though, if we want mass outcry for a playoff system.

Alabama, again, even with a BAD home loss, against an independent ND team with one "good" win (OU lost twice at home this year, and only won by 4 pts. in OT at home vs. #21 OSU this weekend - which, incidentally, was a fantastic game).

So, that's the national championship game? Yeesh . . .

[XFactah416]

I think Florida is the most deserving out of the SEC.

Alabama is clinging to a win over LSU and what happened last year as why they are #2 in the country.
Georgia is clinging to a sloppy win over Florida and that's it in terms of substance.
Florida's resume includes a LSU win, a Sourh Carolina win, a Texas A&M win, and now a Florida State win. Granted, FSU may not be that good, but they still are ranked top 15 in the BCS.

Notre Dame also owns a win over Stanford, albeit unimpressive (like almost all of their wins this year).

[Baphomet3]

The way LSU has looked against mediocre teams (repeatedly squeeking out 4th quarter wins) is astonishing. They've played better when they needed to, but they might be the most over-rated top 10 team in the nation and could EASILY be a 4 or 5 loss team. They beat S Carolina by 2, beat Auburn by 2, beat A&M by 5, and came from behind to beat Old Miss (terrible) and Arkansas (fucking terrible) by 6 and 7 respectively. I can't find "reliable" rankings that go that low, but basically they beat #42 and #54 by one touchdown each.

Four of their wins were come-from-behind scores in the final seconds of games they were losing, sometimes losing big. I mean, you give up 35 points to Ole Miss and then, without blinking an eye, keep repeating this line about how elite your defense is . . . sorry bros, the party is over. LSU is really good at being less tired than you are in the 4th quarter, and aside from that I'm not terribly impressed.

Sheer fucking depth and some dumb luck is the only thing seperating LSU from an absolutley catastrophic season.

[ocmmafan]

Notre Dame is plenty deserving of a title shot. They played Oklahoma and USC on the road, beat Stanford at home and ended up playing 8 bowl teams plus Miami. They were unranked and passed everyone along the way. You can look back at every team and question them after the fact, but ND went 12-0 against a pre-season schedule that looked impossible. Hell, USC was the pre-season #1. Next year will be cool with a 4 team playoff and the eventual 8 team playoff is probably 4-5 years away.

I think we see Bama dominate Georgia this weekend. Bad match-up for Georgia as they won't be able to control the clock, run effectively and the QB lacks the mobility to extend plays. All this talk about going "up-tempo" against Bama is not what can beat them - you also need a QB who has some mobility. The Georgia QB doesn't look very nimble of foot and I doubt their defense can win them this game.

I'll say Alabama 31 Georgia 7. Anyone see Georgia pulling off the upset?

[Baphomet3]

Notre Dame is plenty deserving of a title shot. They played Oklahoma and USC on the road, beat Stanford at home and ended up playing 8 bowl teams plus Miami. They were unranked and passed everyone along the way. You can look back at every team and question them after the fact, but ND went 12-0 against a pre-season schedule that looked impossible. Hell, USC was the pre-season #1. Next year will be cool with a 4 team playoff and the eventual 8 team playoff is probably 4-5 years away.

I think we see Bama dominate Georgia this weekend. Bad match-up for Georgia as they won't be able to control the clock, run effectively and the QB lacks the mobility to extend plays. All this talk about going "up-tempo" against Bama is not what can beat them - you also need a QB who has some mobility. The Georgia QB doesn't look very nimble of foot and I doubt their defense can win them this game.

I'll say Alabama 31 Georgia 7. Anyone see Georgia pulling off the upset?

ND's argument for the title game is as good as anyone's. Unless we start pulling out Herbfreak's "smell test" and "eye test" and make subjective statements about talent and depth and prestigue, they've got the resume and the record to satisfy most critics capable of satisfaction.

In terms of Bama's weaknesses, you hit the nail on the head. Georgia or LSU or traditional "stand & bang" SEC teams are not going to match-up well. Spread offense, mobile QBs, up-tempo play calling, versatility . . . they're going to struggle. A&M absolutely proved that and it'd be interesting to see them cope with Oregon, K State, or ND who all have some elements of this. I *feel* like ND might not be the most dangerous team for Bama to face in the title game, but I wouldn't shjt myself if it turned out to be a nail biter, either. If ND's QB gets going he can certainly deliver "Johnny Football" style problems for the Tide who, especially early on, looked COMPLETELY lost and on the verge of a humiliating blow-out against A&M.