Championship Game?
Ok, forget the BCS/playoff debate, forget the rankings, computers, etc etc. I'm interested in one thing--do you think the winner of tonight's game, subjectively of course, is the best team in college football this year?
There is a school of thought that says Utah, due to the Alabama victory and record, is the best team. To me, no f-ing way for a number of reasons, but I digress.
I think the tonight's winner is the best team, do you? If not who?
January 8th, 2009 at 4:01 PM ^
I think Florida's the best team in the country, but I'd love to see them play USC. Those two are the ones that have impressed me the most.
In unrelated news, I'm waiting for class to start and Mike Milano just walked by.
January 8th, 2009 at 5:50 PM ^
c'mon yo.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:02 PM ^
Because I get your point, but the evaluation is, subjectively, "who had the best season", not "who is the best team," right?
And yes, I think whoever wins tonight can safely say they had the best season. No idea if it makes them the best team (which would involve me imagining, hypothetically, who would win if USC played UF, OU played Utah, etc.).
No idea of Utah would beat UF and OU, and tonight's game won't tell me. But, partly based on opportunity (Conference championship games, and BCS favortism), whoever wins tonight can safely claim to have the season's best resume.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:04 PM ^
Yes, absolutely. I think the BCS picked the right two teams. This is the best possible matchup for the title.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:05 PM ^
Florida. Tebow's leadership will play a huge role in the Gators victory
January 8th, 2009 at 4:06 PM ^
I don't know who the best team is but personally I wanted to see Florida vs. USC in the MNC game. However, if I had an AP vote I would vote Utah number one regardless of tonights outcome.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:08 PM ^
It depends on their gameplay. If we see a 10+ turnover game with a final score in the single digits for both teams, certainly not. If one team solidly kicks the living shit out of the other, in a low-to-no turnover, low # of penalty, legit ass kicking, sure, they deserve to be the best team. If its a middle of those two choices, or if the ref's are insanely inept, or anything else, I will still have to wait and see.
January 8th, 2009 at 4:15 PM ^
The Best team or the best season is the argument I have with the polls, and the BCS in general.
I think the best team is USC, although I think the winner of the game tonight has had the best season.
I think USC is partly to blame for the Big Ten's apparent downturn in the national media. I think sending our best, or sometimes 2nd!! best team to play the most talented team in their backyard just isn't fair. Because I think only one or two teams could give them a challenge period.
Who is the best team, the team who had the best season or the team who is the most talented performs the best.
Who had the better season last year the Giants or the Patriots?
However since this is college football and its mythical anyway, I think Utah's deserves some consideration. They played a BCS type schedule this year on par with Penn State, who I believe if they finished undefeated they would be national champs. Could they beat USC...no, but I don't think Oklahoma could beat USC either, UF would have a shot.
January 8th, 2009 at 6:55 PM ^
The Giants/Patriots SuperBowl is an example of what I hate about the NFL playoffs. The Giants were neither the best team, nor had the best season. They got hot late, had a few lucky breaks in the big game, and suddenly they are the champion despite sucking it up for the bulk of the year.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:39 PM ^
And what do you propose instead of the playoff system?
January 8th, 2009 at 8:47 PM ^
Yes, mtxgoblue, all these folks think voting, or arbitrarily choosing 2 teams, or asking witch doctors, or whatever will somehow determine the "best team".
The fact that every (hyperbole) other sport at every other level uses playoffs is apparently just a minor contradiction for them.
EI
January 8th, 2009 at 4:35 PM ^
everything else aside. when USC feels like showing up, they are the best team in the country
January 8th, 2009 at 4:51 PM ^
Especially in the post season (though maybe that's a function of playing a home rose bowl game every year). Really wish there was a 6 or 8 team playoff so we could see who really is the best right now.
January 8th, 2009 at 5:36 PM ^
USC is, in my opinion, the best team in the country. I think Florida is a solid #2, and I think tonight we'll find out if their defense has really improved from last year or if it's still vulnerable to an aggressive aerial attack like we saw in the Citrus Bowl. Oklahoma, on the other hand: you can't be that poor on defense to be #1; there's just way too much drop-off from USC's unit to theirs. And Texas, well Texas is comparable to Ohio State, and we saw what the Trojans did to them.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:36 PM ^
When I feel like showing up, I can leap tall buildings in a single bound!
The fact you had to include that discailmer means USC is NOT the best team under any conditions (the best team ALWAYS shows up).
January 8th, 2009 at 5:09 PM ^
Utah.
Maybe there are better teams out there, but Utah has the best argument.
If Oregon State can beat USC, why can't Utah?
If Ole Miss can beat Florida, why can't Utah?
If Texas can beat Oklahomo, why can't Utah?
January 8th, 2009 at 5:45 PM ^
I don't think you can really get a good idea of how good a team is against an opponent from one game either. Would OS beat USC 5 times out of 9? Would Ole Miss beat Florida 4 out of 7? Texas and Oklahoma may actually be a decent series, but the other two, in my opinion, are just statistical happenstance. The teams that won may or may not be better teams. I would argue that Ole Miss and OS aren't better teams, but are just good teams that managed to win the one game they played.
If anyone has the most proof they are the best team, its Oklahoma. They played what many of us would call the toughest schedule. Does Utah deserve a shot at playing them? Certainly. Can we say Utah is better than them, I haven't seen it.
January 8th, 2009 at 5:36 PM ^
I think Utah is a very good team that has a great set of coaches and game plans extraordinarily well. Having said that - the two best teams in the country are Florida and USC. A game between the two of them would have been great for the 'Ship. I am unsure about Utah's speed (even though they clobbered Alabama). I think Utah would give both those teams a good game, but I just couldn't see Utah beating USC on a neutral field.
I think USC is the best team out there this year to be honest. But Florida will win this game, and that will be that. Oklahoma is a good team but Florida is too fast for them I think. I just see a game very similar to what WVU did to Oklahoma last year.
January 8th, 2009 at 5:48 PM ^
I also think USC is the best team in the country. I think Florida is next (which is why I think they will win tonight). I would like to see UF play USC, but I think USC has just too much power not to win. Too bad their conference was weak, because they are the best team this year.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:06 PM ^
I don't think, Utah has a argument if you are talking the best team. Some of their wins against very mediocre teams were very close.
However, if your talking who has had the best season, the Utah does have a very solid argument.
January 8th, 2009 at 8:10 PM ^
wow she like killed the National Anthem, could have gotten someone better to sing geez.
January 8th, 2009 at 9:32 PM ^
that did what it is supposed to - win its games. Therefore, it's the number one team. At the end of the season it's resume is just as good as Florida's. Plus, an important point - it didn't lose at home in September.
Imagine if the NFL adopted the BCS formula - it would have picked New England against the Giants again, because that is what the sportswriters perceive is the matchup of the two best teams. Never mind that Tennessee has a better record.
January 8th, 2009 at 9:44 PM ^
...think back to 1997. The scenario - Michigan was 11-0, Nebraska was 11-0 and Tennessee was 10-1. Nebraska played Tennessee and defeated them in the Orange Bowl.
I realize the bowl system was different back then, but imagine if we were all having the argument that Nebraska and Tennessee should play for the national title because we like their schedules more, and we like Peyton Manning and Scott Frost better than Charles Woodson (you better believe Kirk Herbstreit would have buried Woodson). This, despite an undefeated Michigan team sitting out there that defeated 3 ranked teams (Washington St., Ohio State, and Penn State) in the final polls.
Well, Utah is also undefeated. And also has defeated three ranked teams (TCU, Boise State and Alabama).
Maybe imagining the BCS screwing the 1997 Wolverines will give us all a little more empathy for the undefeated Utes in 2008. They are #1.
January 8th, 2009 at 9:51 PM ^
#1 in our hearts #3 in the program...
January 8th, 2009 at 9:52 PM ^
Love your avatar and the quote by Churchill by the way.
January 8th, 2009 at 9:53 PM ^
The problem with this argument: we played a tougher schedule than Nebraska. Our SOS was about 20th in the country.
BTW, what do you mean by "you better believe Kirk Herbstreit would have buried Woodson?" Herbstreit was employed by ESPN at the time and in fact, I think he was a big supporter of Woodson's candidacy.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:01 PM ^
A tougher schedule didn't matter to the coaches that year who voted Nebraska #1. And, the AP vote only had us up 2 first place votes on Nebraska. Aren't the human votes very important to the BCS? I realize 1997 doesn't line up well with 2008 but it's worth putting Michigan in Utah's spot and seeing if we would accept it. I think not.
I don't care what Herbstreit said in 1997. Or today. Or ever. The fact that he CAN sway voter opinion as to which teams should play where just proves the joke of the college football ranking system. He, as one of the figureheads, and an tOSU grad to boot, therefore deserves my scorn. I will shoehorn any argument against the man I can into any argument it is feasible to do so.
January 8th, 2009 at 10:05 PM ^
Herbie always talks Michigan up to benefit UOS IMO. It's a win-win; if they beat M, then they deserve the best bowl bid they can get, if they lose, their loss came to a good M team...
January 8th, 2009 at 10:12 PM ^
No, you've got it backwards. We won the AP vote by a mile, while NU won the coaches' poll by two votes. It's very likely that without Tom Osborne's retirement, we'd have swept the polls.