2011 BCS Bowl Season: 5 Teams That Got Better Than They Deserved

Just like every year, the bowl season really screws some teams and gives others a shot they don't deserve. For the most part, it's because of the system, but there are a few corrupt bowl committees who look for flash and name brand over actual performance. 

This year's postseason hasn't even begun yet, and here we are complaining about our bowl game. That may sound whiny, but perhaps there is something to be evaluated with the way things are done. If people keep ignoring our claims, then we get to keep on complaining. 

Therefore, with no further interruptions, we take a look at the five squads who got pampered a bit in the bowl selection process. 

Washington

Washington has the pleasure of traveling down to San Antonio to face Baylor this postseason in a game that should not be happening. The Huskies came in at 7-5 (5-4) in their conference and third in the Pac-12 North. For some reason, the Alamo Bowl wanted Washington for the Pac-12 No. 2 spot.

Now, obviously Oregon and Stanford are out of the picture, which leaves USC, UCLA, and Washington. USC is not bowl eligible so it comes down to either the Huskies or the Bruins—and they took the Huskies? UCLA won the Pac-12 South by default and played Oregon for the Pac-12 Championship. Washington should have never gotten such a good bowl game after UCLA got screwed into the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl just a few minutes up the road in San Fran. 

Texas

Now, I know this is going to be construed the wrong way, but the Longhorns shouldn't be in the Holiday Bowl. This is more about Missouri than it is about Texas, I promise you. 

Texas is a good team, yes, but they placed No. 6 in the Big 12 while Mizzou cam in as No. 5. The Tigers are stuck playing in Shreveport, LA, while UT grabs the spot in San Diego was reserved for none other than the Big 12 No. 5 squad. 

This is a classic case of brand recognition, and UT won. 

Notre Dame

The Fighting Irish finished the season valiantly, going 8-4 in a season that was supposedly lost early on. Their placement in the Champs Sports Bowl is ridiculous though. The spot they take up is held for the Big East No. 2 squad, but instead Notre Dame fills it. 

The Irish deserve a good bowl, yes, but this is just another case of brand recognition. When it comes to a battle over Cincinnati, the Big East No. 2 team, or Notre Dame, you take Notre Dame. Ironically, Cincy is the last place Notre Dame's Brian Kelly headed up. 

Houston

The Cougars get to take on Penn State in the TicketCity Bowl up in Dallas. The matchup is an excellent one and should be heavily watched by viewers. However, did the bowl committee here miss the C-USA Championship? Houston didn't win it, Southern Miss did.

The Golden Eagles are instead down in Hawai'i for the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl against Nevada. The C-USA Champs deserve a lot more than just that and they certainly deserve to be playing in a bigger bowl than Houston, whom they crushed in the C-USA Championship. 

West Virginia

The BCS is really dumb. I've been saying this for years, but when a team like West Virginia gets to head to one of their renowned Bowl Games and have a season like they've had, it's truly depressing. I know there is an automatic bid for the Big East, but seeing how bad they've been as of late, things need to change, quickly.

The Mountaineers have no business being in the BCS when squads like Arkansas, Kansas State, Georgia and Michigan State are left out. It's truly one of the biggest mysteries of the college football world, and it needs to be solved and fast.