Nine Weeks Into The College Football Season: It's That Time Again!

Once again its time for the BCS Championship "Ghouls and Goblins" to cast their spells, and inflate their Ego by telling us all the reasons an undefeated Big East Team, an undefeated Big Ten team, (except Ohio State, Penn State, or Michigan), or one of those other teams from a 2nd rated conference, do not deserve to play for the National Championship.

It happens every year this year is no exception.

All the network college football gurus, most of who have ties to the SEC, PAC-10, Big-12, ACC, or the Big-10, will fill up your Saturday morning sports shows with dozens of opinionated reasons why a 12-0 Cincinnati or a 12-0 Iowa should not play for the National Championship.  It's the same every year.  Sometimes I think they just roll over to past years scripts from November and use those as their "copy".

Last time I looked at the FBS Standings it included 11 conferences and 3 independents.  Never, have I seen any annotations’ or asterisks’ identifying one conference having more entitlements than another.

These FBS conferences have fallen victim to more breakups than David Letterman and his Interns.  No seriously, The BCS (whomever that is, I get conflicting reports) has chopped the division almost by half.  The self-proclaimed college football gurus, have taken an additional slice out of that BCS pie.  The BCS divides the division in half allowing only six out of the eleven conferences to receive automatic births for BCS Bowl games.  The other five, well, they get to vie for no more than one spot.  So the BCS has in fact taken Division 1 college football and created a new separate entity; The BCS Conference.

Now, this network guru’s have shelved the BCS plan and want more.  They have a special team bucket that includes the perennial powerhouses of college football.  These teams have been placed on such a high pedestal or bucket that these guru's believe a two loss team that comes from that bucket is truly more deserving of National Championship fame than an undefeated Big East or a “BCS Division 2 team”.  You see there are no Big East or “BCS Division 2” teams in that bucket.  As a matter of fact the teams in that bucket only include: Six from the Big-12, three from the Big-10, eight from the ACC, four from the Pac-10, and anyone from the SEC except a Vandy, and the Mississippi's.  Yep that's their "bucket-list".  It doesn't matter what type of "out of conference" schedule a Florida, Oklahoma, or Ohio State plays.  They are deserving of a home in the special bucket, therefore, allowed an extra loss or two.  They have tradition, which has to count for something, right?

So what has happened to Division 1 college football since the BCS?  Division 1 (FBS) has become in fact three separate divisions.  Being of very competitive nature, I do not understand why the "snubbed" conferences continue to put up with or allow it.  Imagine a 3 or 4A High School being told, "You can play in division 4A, but, do not qualify to play for the championship."    Now I'm not stupid I know the five letter word that sits in the back of the mind of the Presidents at each and everyone of these non-championship-eligible schools.  "Money", a subject that I know rests at the top but I refuse to tackle.

Could it be time that these schools formulate a plan to break away from the self-proclaimed elite and start a new division?  A division in which there is no biased rankings, and no bucket-list for the honor to play for national champion.  It is given strictly to those who deserve it.

I never recall the intensity of these debates in the pre-BCS era.  Yea there was no specifically named championship game. But there was always a National Champion, based strictly on number one in the final polls.  Remember 1988 two independents Notre Dame and West Virginia battled for the National Championship at the Fiesta Bowl?  Would this or could this happen today?  Could an undefeated Navy and an undefeated Notre dame (Yea, I know they play each other) play for the National Championship under the BCS and Bucket List Regime?  I think not.

I was one of the proponents of trashing the polls for a better system.  The BCS is not what I had in mind.  We still have polls, therefore a biased result.  It shouldn’t take a rocket scientist to devise a point system for game play that rewards everyone the same for wins against FBS opponents, plus a bonus system for wins by a defeated opponent.  Wins against FCS opponents could be given a smaller value, however, no bonus points for wins by that defeated opponent.  Now, before you jump all over me, I know something as simple as previously described would never ever pass the keepers of the bucket-list, unless maybe substantial bonus points were awarded for being part of that list.  I believe a ranking system can be much simpler than what is currently in place with the BCS.  A point system used during the season would be a gigantic step to making the College Football Ranking system fair.

Now, think about the numerous possibilities of who will be playing for the 2009 National Championship.  I can see the holders of the coveted “bucket” starting to squirm.  There are seven unbeaten teams with anywhere from three to five games remaining.  Only three of the seven reside in the “bucket”  

Florida or Alabama will have a loss after the SEC championship.  I feel strongly that Alabama will fall from the rank of unbeatens this weekend when they play a hungry LSU squad.  Florida who has the weakest schedule left of all unbeatens, in my opinion will lose to a one loss LSU team in the conference championship.

Boise State has five games remaining and my prediction crystal ball does not see them finishing the season without a loss.  TCU from the Mountain West has four games remaining one against an overlooked Utah Team.  TCU's dream season ends at the hands of the "Utes"

That leaves three.  Texas, who in my opinion has the best chance of finishing the season undefeated.  With four regular season games left, their toughest competition being an under-achieving Kansas team.

Iowa, The Big Ten team who does not reside in the "gurus" bucket is currently undefeated with nine wins and three to go.  In the middle of the remaining three sits Iowa's stiffest challenge of the year.  They have to travel to Columbus to take on the two loss Buckeyes.  Ever here the phrase “the buck stops here.”  Well “here” will be Columbus Ohio for the Hawkeye’s.

Last of the seven with the toughest schedule remaining is the Bearcats of Cincinnati.  Their remaining four games are home against UConn, WV, and Illinois.  Then the "cats" finish the season on the road in the “Burgh”.  If they run the table and finish unbeaten by finishing off a two or three loss WV and a one or two loss Pitt, there is no one in the country that can convince me they don't deserve a shot at that coveted National Championship.  But remember the bucket; guess what the Bearcats can't be found in there. 

However, as in the past, this topic seems to work its self out in the final weeks.  I'm fairly certain there will be a handful of upsets.  The question for each team is not when but against whom.

The network gurus' will then try to convince you, with self-proclaimed “expert” opinions, oh you won’t see any concrete facts or stats to back up their claim that a one or two loss Florida, Alabama, LSU or even a one loss PAC-10 team belongs and deserves a title shot more than an undefeated Cincinnati, Iowa, Boise or TCU.  I would love to see the papers rattle and the screaming that will take place if two of those four are the only unbeatens.  What in the world of “BCS-dom” would happen?

There will be those that say it doesn't matter, Cincinnati or one of the other four are not in the same league as a one or two loss SEC or Big-12 team.  It would be interesting to see the polls.  I for one believe as I have said throughout this article, unbeaten teams belong and deserve to be playing for the National Championship.  But, we will have to wait and see who lies in the bottom of the "bucket".

Below are my top 18 after last week’s games.  Compiled strictly by my formula and free of any bias from this author.

Be well and God Bless.

PLACE	SCHOOL	CONF	WON	LOST	PTS	AVERAGE
1	Texas ...............	B12s	8	0	109	13.63
2	Alabama .............	SECw	8	0	105	13.13
3	Iowa ................	B10	9	0	114	12.67
4	Florida .............	SECe	8	0	100	12.50
5	Texas Christian/TCU..	MWC	8	0	97	12.13
6	Cincinnati - OH .....	BE	8	0	96	12.00
7	Oregon ..............	P10	7	1	93	11.63
8	Boise St - ID .......	WAC	8	0	92	11.50
9	LSU / Louisiana St ..	SECw	7	1	89	11.13
10	Houston - TX ........	CUSAw	7	1	86	10.75
11	Pittsburgh - PA .....	BE	7	1	86	10.75
12	Ohio St .............	B10	7	2	96	10.67
13	Georgia Tech ........	ACCc	8	1	95	10.56
14	Utah ................	MWC	7	1	84	10.50
15	Penn St .............	B10	8	1	94	10.44
16	U S C/Southern Cal...	P10	6	2	81	10.13
17	Notre Dame - IN .....	Indp	6	2	77	9.63
18	Miami FL ............	ACCc	6	2	74	9.25