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Sunday, November 14, 2010

Not the BCS - Nov 14

...and we're back.

As the Husker game approached last night, there was a lot of reason to be excited. Auburn was in a fight with Georgia, and Penn State had jumped out to an early lead on Ohio State. Either upset would surely move my beloved Skers up a spot in the polls.

Alas, the upsets didn't hold and there is little movement in my version of the BCS. Feast your eyes....

1. Oregon - Really wish Cal had something for them in the 4th quarter. All the Golden Bears needed was a FG to steal the victory, but it wasn't to be. Now the Ducks get a bye week before facing Arizona (please, upset, please) and then finish with the Civil War rivalry game at Oregon State.
2. Auburn - Their win was maybe a little more impressive than Oregon's, but with all the controversy around Cam Newton, I imagine this whole season will eventually get wiped off the map, including a potential Championship and Heisman Trophy (a la Reggie Bush). Maybe locking up the SEC West will make them a little lazy facing Alabama in 2 weeks.
3. Boise State - Jumps back ahead of TCU in my mind after the Horned Frogs struggled this week. This probably won't happen in the real BCS, but all the Broncos on the blue field can do is keep winning and hope for help from above...in the polls I mean.
4. TCU - Another team that started Saturday a little sloppy but managed to get it together by halftime. Then San Diego State came storming back in the 2nd half, outscoring TCU 21-6 and almost pulling off a major upset and comeback victory. TCU had a comfortable margin on Boise in the BCS and will probably stay #3.
5. LSU - Played UL-Monroe or Lafayette or something. Don't get me wrong, the Huskers play these kind of teams too, but we do it at the beginning of the year as a warm-up. Frustrating to see SEC teams doing it this late in the season (like Auburn last week) and basically taking it as a 'bye' week to get ready for the last few games. I had hopes for Mississippi to give LSU a run next week, but the Rebs looked terrible against Tennessee yesterday. Only Arkansas can wreck LSU's BCS hopes now.
6. Wisconsin - 83 points against Indiana is a lot...especially on the road. I had Nebraska here previously, but 2 underwhelming victories the past 2 weeks are cause to give the Badgers the spot. They still have 2 tough Big Ten opponents left with the hilight reel Michigan and this week's upset special Northwestern. There's still hope for Husker fans.
7. Nebraska - As mentioned, we haven't been impressive the last 2 weeks. A botched fake PAT against Iowa State and some stout defense against Kansas keep us with 1 loss and in the top 10. I double Nebraska will get back to 7 unless there are some other surprise drops. Perhaps the team I've got below us will dip enough to make a difference. TAMU next week could be trouble.
8. Stanford - Looked sloppy against Arizona State and didn't put it away until 5 minutes left in the game. They were 6 in the real BCS, and look for them to drop a spot after that performance. I doubt they'll fall 2 to 8th as I have them, but I've had them here previously, so I don't feel bad.
9. Alabama - Looked good against Mississippi State. They get that pseudo-bye week against Georgia State next week in preparation for Auburn. I guess I'm suddenly okay with this type of scheduling so hopefully Bama brings it against the Tigers. The Tide is still fighting for an at-large BCS spot, but need help in the form of Arkansas beating LSU if they're gonna get it.
10. Ohio State - After giving up 2 quick scores to Penn State, it looked like the Buckeyes were in trouble, but then the defense turned it on, and they rolled the Fighting JoPa's the  rest of the way. They still have to battle the recently embarassed Iowa Hawkeyes and then finish up with the used-to-be-a-rivarly Michigan Wolverines. Buckeyes have owned Michigan for a few years now, so Iowa is the only real challenge left. The Buckeyes are also trying to get one of the BCS at-large bids, but could vault into the Rose Bowl if Wisconsin gets upset.

In my mind, the BCS Games will likely play out as follows:

Championship
TCU v. Oregon

Sugar
Alabama v. Boise State

Orange
Virginia Tech v. Pittsburgh

Fiesta
Nebraska v. Auburn

Rose
Stanford v. Wisconsin

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