Surprise, Surprise
by Grady Clapp on Dec 6, 2009 8:02 PM PST
in General College Football
19 comments
So: it's Alabama vs. Texas for the National Championship. Fortunately we don't have a plus-one model to sort out the other undefeateds, because that would lead to "bracket creep", an unfortunate dermatological condition affecting the face and neck, and presenting with hives and multiple pus-filled lesions. There is no known cure.
But that's not what I'm mad about tonight. I'm mad that the Big Ten, for the 9th year out of 12 in the history of the BCS, has received two bids. Now, you're probably not going to find a better final at-large candidate than Iowa this year, even though they lost to Northwestern and their best non-conference win by far came against an above average Arizona team. One of the downsides to placing ten teams in BCS games is that you'll get the occasional weak team in. This year it's Iowa.
Two conferences have been consistently steadfast and incredibly stubborn in defending the BCS and the Bowl system: the Pac-10 and the Big Ten. For the Big Ten, the reason is clear: they make a ton of money by receiving multiple bids every year. They have had the most BCS appearances of any conference now with 21. Two more than the more highly-touted SEC, and now seven more appearances than its partner in BCS-related crime, the Pac-10.
So, Larry Scott and Pac-10 university presidents, take note: you're defending a system that has taken a substantial money and notoriety away from your conference over the past decade and funneled it to another conference with only one more university among its members. Does that really seem like something you should be fighting for?
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If there's one thing exciting to watch, its Big-Ten football!
All the offense, the creative playcalling, and the lack of predictability on both sides of the ball! I think they should’ve had THREE teams in the BCS! Penn State has been scintillating to watch this year and should’ve been in a bigger bowl!
Just imagine what theyll do once they get around to legalizing the forward pass.
by thecassino on Dec 6, 2009 9:43 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
Blasphemy!
CougCenter WSU's second main blog
by Craig Powers on Dec 6, 2009 9:57 PM PST via mobile up reply actions
I bet there isn't a conference out there that has been more consistently screwed by the BCS
I don’t even really get why. It seems like bad business sense to target one market at the expense of another. I need a marketing major to explain this strategy to me.
Lets see another undefeated bowl year for the Pac10.
We'll have to wait and see
if the Pac 10 getting was getting screwed because of poor leadership from uw grad Tom Hanson or if the Pac 10 is really worse or has a bad business model, etc…
I think it is possible that things could change with the new commish.
I meant it was a bad strategy for the BCS
I don’t see the benefit in alienating a large portion of your audience. They have already made it clear that there is no way a mid-level conference can get into the national championship, and that there has to be a down year in the SEC and/or the Big 12 for anyone else to get in. They are very shortly going to cost Boise State its fan base when the fans realize that, regardless of how good they are or how many wins they get, they will never get a shot.
by displacedcoug on Dec 7, 2009 10:34 AM PST up reply actions
I don't agree with your premise then
Remember that each conference and each conference school is in it for themselves. The SEC could not care less about the Big 10 or the Pac 10. If ratings are down for the Big 12, the Big East would have a collective yawn. If Boise State fans stopped going to games, the Pac 10 would not care and probably celebrate. Remember the schools only care about themselves.
Besides, there are not enough fans in Boise to make a difference in ratings points for any network. There are in LA, SF, Seattle, etc. Money is what drives the bus and Boise St while a nice story, doesn’t have enough fans to drive any bus.
Boise State travels well to bowls, I believe
But there’s this quote about the 2007 Fiesta Bowl:
“However, the presence of Boise State, a non-BCS school, quite possibly led to some of the lowest TV ratings ever for a BCS game. Of the 37 BCS bowl games played through the 2006 season, only two received lower ratings than this game—the 2005 Fiesta Bowl, the only other BCS game up to that time to feature a non-BCS school; and the 2007 Orange Bowl, which featured two non-traditional BCS-conference teams in Louisville and Wake Forest.”
I guess I just assumed that the BSU-OU game was a financial success.
It was the game everyone I knew cared about the most, and I was going off of that rather than actual data. I apologize…
by displacedcoug on Dec 7, 2009 11:12 AM PST up reply actions
No need to apologize
What you wrote has some merit in theory, just not in reality. Why is the NBA & TV networks ecstatic when the Lakers are in the finals, because the population equals huge ratings. It’s the same for NEPatriots or Giants/Jets in the NFL or the Dodgers or Yankees in baseball. Big markets = big ratings = big money.
It is the same reason that the teams in the Pac 10 do not want BSU (or Utah previously) in the Pac 10. They do not bring the population bases or national TV ratings.
Yeah, I was just thinking that the large amounts of people who hate those teams
counter-balance the fans of those teams. I forgot that, if you put the yankees on TV, you will not only get the yankee fans, but also the people who want to watch them lose. People are going to watch the national championship hoping texas wins, just to screw up the BCS.
By the way, I don’t care how many teams remain undefeated this year, the only way to get a playoff system would be for people to stop watching the national championship. That would force the BCS to implement a playoff to increase revenue. The same as any problem on TV, you vote with your remote.
by displacedcoug on Dec 7, 2009 11:48 AM PST up reply actions
smu
wsu beat smu and smu is going to a bowl game.
what gives with the pac-10 and its bowl games … osu is going to las vegas ( some reward ) and usc to the bay area ( talk about no attendance ) & cal to san diego ( will cal fans travel ? )>>>
Idaho made it to a bowl game – congraduations to rod and the vandals !!!!
Did you say plus one?
Might Grady and I actually be able to almost agree on an NCAA post season format?
I am curious to what people think because it has a bearing on WSU's future
In alphabetical order, the Pac 10 coaches are Pete Carroll (USC), Dennis Erickson (ASU), Jim Harbaugh (SU), Chip Kelly (UO), Rick Neuheisel (UCLA), Mike Riley (OSU), Steve Sarkisian (uw), Mike Stoops (UA), Jeff Tedford (UC) and Paul Wulff (WSU).
In order 1 through 10, what “coach and his staff” is one (the best), what coach and staff is two (2nd best) and so on until you get to ten (worst)? And if you have time, tell why you put each coach in that order.
I'll give it a shot in a bit
But I’ll give you a sneak preview. One of these things is not like the others….
Based on what I think will happen in the future
1. Chip Kelly – Offensive genius that can recruit athletes at Oregon and run whatever he wants
2. Jim Harbaugh – Rebuild complete, but don’t expect him to stay much longer
3. Pete Carrol – He’s still up there with his ability to recruit. A non-freshman QB will help next year
4. Mike Riley – Dynamic offense with athletes all over the place. Actually is able to recruit, too
5. Mike Stoops – Decent year at AZ, but still gets outcoached quite a bit
6. Jeff Tedford – Can’t turn talent into wins and always seems to screw big games
7. Steve Sarkisian – Took the athletes he had and turned it into what last year should’ve been had Locker stayed healthy (plus a win or two)
8. Dennis Erickson – I just don’t see it with him, but maybe it’s just me.
9. Rick Neuheisal – UCLA is gonna run him out of town at some point. Just doesn’t seem to have it
10. Paul Wulff – Hasn’t proved anything so he stays here until he does.
Overall: Well, I think you’ll see some of these coaches getting scooped up in the coaching carousel (specifically Harbaugh). 1-5 were easy in my mind and could be in any order. 6-9 is more of a wash where you could throw anyone anywhere. Wulff, at this point, is trailing the pack by quite a bit. There’s a ton of talent in the league, though.
Not to be a super heavy-handed moderator
But this seems way, way off topic. It would be best if this were explored in, say, a separate FanPost. Thanks for understanding.
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