Games That Shaped College Football Bowl Season 2008

While a lot of people on TV and at the big media outlets will try to make you believe that the conference championship game or the feature game of the week in prime time were the games that defined the postseason, digging not so deep we found a series of games that had a much bigger effect across the entire landscape of the postseason.

While I will be sending out my entry forms for my free bowl picking contest in the next few days, there is some homework that will undoubtedly be done when people are making their choices. While teams' records are sometimes an indication of the quality of the team and season some have had, I am finding this to be the case a lot less often.

I read no less than 20 articles during the first few weeks of the season regarding cupcakes. I even read one about calling them candy bar names (really fresh clever stuff by the way). But while we laughed at the time, no one is laughing now.

While we hoped these would go away, looking at the facts, they aren't. The facts point to most teams having at least two cupcakes on the schedule in the future.

While I will be doing a follow-up, as I barely scratched the surface on the meaningful games we don't even remember, I concentrated on games that padded schedules, though I threw in a few key losses just to keep it interesting.

In any event, as we hear the announcers and networks gush on about the tradition of the bowls, let's remember how we got to these games and matchups. Trust me, you aren't going to be reading about any pageantry and glorious wins they want you to believe it took to get there.

Stanford 36, Oregon State 28: Aug. 28, 2008

In a game of horrendous calls, where Oregon State was yet to find out their identity and Quizz Rodgers wasn't even on the radar, this year's Rose Bowl was decided before we even hit September, as a Beaver win in this one would have gone a long way towards giving them the Pac-10 championship and a Rose Bowl berth.

Memphis 31, Nicholls State 10: Sept. 20, 2008

Tommy West's Memphis Tigers finished the season 6-6. Had they not had this I-AA cupcake, do they even make the grade? Many stats people eliminate stats from games against non D-I teams, but apparently the bowl selection committee doesn't.

I guess this is what they talk about when they say rewarding a team for a great season. If the Tigers lose this one (they are double-digit dogs), they finish with a losing record anyway.

Notre Dame 21, San Diego State 13: Sept. 6, 2008

San Diego State stormed into South Bend as 20+ point underdogs after losing the prior week at home to Cal Poly. This game was nip and tuck all the way, and the Irish trailed at halftime. ND pulled it out in the end, and this went a long way to their 6-6 finish, making them bowl eligible.

If they lose to Hawaii, Notre Dame is just another bowl team that finishes the season with a losing record.

Florida Atlantic 29, Louisiana-Monroe 28: Oct. 25, 2008

FAU was down as much as 21-0 in this one and scored an improbable TD with 20 seconds left to go to pull out the squeaker. The Owls finished 6-6 after a 1-5 start which featured games against Texas, Minnesota, Michigan State, and a final play, one-point loss to Middle Tennessee State.

Kentucky 38, Norfolk State 3: Sept. 6, 2008

Another 6-6 team that makes a bowl by beating a I-AA team—pretty sad in this case. I've been as big a Rich Brooks fan as there is, but on top of this travesty is that the Wildcats' two SEC wins were by a combined two points.

South Carolina 23, Wofford 13: Sept. 6, 2008

While the Gamecocks finished 7-5, this one spares the "mighty" SEC the embarrassment of having a New Year's Day Bowl team with a 6-6 record. The Gamecocks enter this game with a full head of steam, losing their last two games against archrivals by a combined 67 points and their QBs throwing 24 interceptions this season.

Clemson 45, Citadel 17: Sept. 6, 2008, and Clemson 54, South Carolina State 0:  Sept. 20, 2008

Take your pick, or even better, both. Clemson goes 7-5, including these two I-AA games, and gets a New Year's Day Bowl game when it's tied with other teams who didn't play any cupcakes at all or played just one. I'm mad at Clemson all over again. What a joke.

Read about more meaningful 2008 College Football games.