College Football Rankings: Why TCU Should Be No. 1 in the Final Polls
The final Associated Press college football poll took form last night after the National Championship concluded, and it was released to the national public this morning.
As expected, the Auburn Tigers finished No. 1 in the poll after completing an undefeated season and claiming their first national title in 53 years.
But Auburn was not alone as the only undefeated team in college football this year. There sitting at No. 2 is TCU, who finished the regular season undefeated for a second straight season, including a 21-19 victory over Wisconsin in this year's Rose Bowl.
Well, after going 13-0 and winning their BCS game, shouldn't the Horned Frogs have some claim for being ranked No. 1?
I'm going to break down 10 reasons why TCU's outstanding season should lead to them being ranked No. 1 in the final polls.
10. Best Defense in the Country
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Statistically, TCU had the best defense in all of college football this year.
The Horned Frogs held opponents to only 19 points per game this season, which so happened to be Wisconsin's final total when TCU defeated the Badgers in the Rose Bowl.
TCU only allowed three teams to score 20+ points on their defense this season, while holding opponents to under 230 total yards per game.
Those type of stats to go along with an undefeated record have to be worth something, right?
9. Constantly Jumped in Polls
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This season, for some unexplainable reason, both TCU and Boise State were leaped in the rankings a combined 23 times. This is despite both teams combining for a 25-1 record this season.
The Horned Frogs were in the position where one could have very easily said, "well if they finished undefeated from here on out, according to where they're ranked now, they should get the chance to play for a national championship."
At yet, for some odd reason, that chance never came. Instead, the Horned Frogs played in the Rose Bowl against a very good Wisconsin team, handled their business and left with a victory, just like they did in every other game they played in this season.
8. Beat the Big Boys When It Mattered Most
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TCU plays in the Mountain West Conference. So be it. That will be changing soon, but for this season, it was a reality.
The Horned Frogs added Oregon State and Baylor to their non-conference schedule, two solid opponents that added some muscle to their strength of schedule. They won convincingly against both of them.
They played Utah midseason when both teams were undefeated and ranked in the top 10. They humiliated the Utes in a blowout victory.
Then they got the chance to meet Wisconsin, the best team to come out of one of the nation's best conferences, and they beat them as well.
Six of their 13 wins were against bowl teams. With that said, it's pretty tough to make the argument that they didn't play anyone.
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7. Stick To Your Word
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Bill Hancock, the well-known BCS executive directior, has consistently said when talking about the BCS system that "every game counts."
Then, Mr. Hancock, please explain to TCU and the college football world that if the Horned Frogs finished with a perfect 13-0 record, and if each of their games counted, why are they not ranked No. 1? And even more importantly, why did they not get an equal chance as Auburn and Oregon to play for a National Championship?
6. Auburn Did Not Play Perfectly in Their Victory; TCU Did
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Going into the National Championship game, I thought to myself that the only way TCU could even have a slight chance of being No. 1 when it was all said and done was if both Auburn and Oregon didn't play particularly well in the title game, resulting in a close finish.
Well, guess what, that's exactly what happened.
The two teams combined to commit four turnovers and 11 penalties. It was a good game as far as the scoreboard goes, but this was not the most cleanly played football game. There were missed tackles, poor passes and just sloppy play at times all over the field.
On the other hand, TCU beat Wisconsin in a clean, pretty close to flawless fashion. The Horned Frogs did not turn the ball over once, and only committed four total penalties for just 20 yards. They looked like a National Championship team in their victory. And I'm certainly not saying they would have looked that good against Auburn or Oregon, because who knows if that would be true? What I am saying is that they looked that good against a great opponent in Wisconsin, and should have been looked at as being ranked No. 1 in the final polls.
5. They Were Undefeated...Again
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TCU finished undefeated in the regular season for the second consecutive year. If you finish the previous regular season undefeated, return the majority of your starters and finish the season undefeated from start to finish again the following year, how aren't you ranked No. 1?
The Horned Frogs were given a schedule, told "here is who you play" and simply went out and beat every one of those teams, most of which came in dominant fashion.
That right there is worthy of a No. 1 ranking.
4. Mountain West Represent
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The biggest knock against TCU has been that they don't play anyone that's any good, right?
Well, take a look at how each conference fared in bowl games this season. Right at the top, with a 4-1 record and the best winning percentage of any conference in college football, stands the Mountain West Conference.
And this isn't the first time that has happened, as the same story was true last year as well. In fact, if you look over the records of all the conferences in bowl games for the past four years, the best is still the Mountain West.
3. Ranked Ahead of Both Auburn and Oregon in Preseason Polls
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So TCU was ranked No. 6 heading into the season, which was ahead of both Auburn and Oregon.
TCU did not lose a single game all year, yet it somehow finished the regular season ranked behind both of them. How can that be?
Being ranked ahead of Auburn, winning all its games and beating Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl should be enough to not get jumped in the rankings.
2. Played Nearly Flawless on the Biggest Stage
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Simply put, TCU looked like a No. 1 ranked team in its Rose Bowl victory over Wisconsin. The Horned Frogs did not turn the ball over once, only committed four penalties and senior quarterback Andy Dalton completed 65 percent of his passes and looked extremely efficient, something he has done his entire career at TCU.
All the doubters had their shot to see TCU play a national powerhouse on national TV in the grand daddy of them all, the Rose Bowl. And TCU proved all those doubters wrong, beating the Badgers in a game that many expected them to lose.
Every opportunity they've had this year, TCU showed that it could win no matter the opponent. I'm not saying it could have beaten Auburn, but until they play, who really knows?
1. It Would Help Create a Playoff
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TCU finished the year undefeated. The Horned Frogs won the biggest games they've played. They have all the ingredients and necessary accomplishments to be college football's No. 1 ranked team.
But the main reason why they should be is that if if they were ranked No. 1 in the final polls, it would put an end to this controversy so there would never be an argument again who should and shouldn't be No. 1. It would make people realize that college football desperately needs to ditch the BCS and develop a college football playoff system.
This would put an end to any controversy, because whatever team is the best will win through a playoff system. Just like it is in any other sport. And just like it should be in college football.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
