BCS Shakeup

The BCS standings changed over the weekend with some great games and a few upsets.

Here's a recap.

Auburn, by way of a come from behind win over arch rival Alabama, became the new #1 ranked team in the BCS standings on Sunday. Down 24-0 in the second quarter, Auburn quarterback Cam Newton once again resurrected a stagnant offense to life by accounting for all 4 of the Tigers touchdowns. Defensively, All-American defensive tackle Nick Fairley overpowered the Crimson Tide interior linemen and wreaked havoc on quarterback Greg McElroy and shut down the pass offense completely.

Auburn now faces South Carolina for the SEC championship. A victory by the Tigers will give them a birth in the BCS title game.

Although Oregon defeated Arizona 48-29 over the weekend, the Ducks are now ranked 2nd in the latest rankings. The PAC-10 champs now must play rival Oregon State to end the regular season at 12-0 and gain a birth in the BCS title game.

TCU remains the #3 ranked team this week after finishing off a perfect regular season campaign. The only chance the Horned Frogs receive a title shot is for either Auburn or Oregon to lose.

At #4, Stanford finishes with an 11-1 mark and is in line to play in the Rose Bowl. The Cardinal have the slimmest of hopes of playing in the BCS title tilt by way of both Auburn and Oregon losing. Even at that, Stanford may be too far behind to get to the 2nd spot in the BCS.

At #5 this week are the Wisconsin Badgers. The Badgers wound up in a three way tie for the Big Ten title with Ohio State and Michigan State, but essentially were crowned conference champions by finishing the highest in the BCS standings. Wisconsin, along with Stanford, is playing the best football in the country and is worthy of its BCS bid.

Of course the one major upset was Nevada upsetting then #4 Boise State, dashing any hopes the Broncos had of playing for the national championship.

Now that the final weekend of the season is at hand, and some conferences to be decided, we will have a clear picture of which teams will play for the BCS title and which others will play in BCS bowl games.

I can't wait!

Dick

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Oklahoma Leads The Initial BCS Standings

The initial Bowl Championship Series (BCS) standings were released on Sunday evening with the Oklahoma Sooners ranked #1 followed by the Oregon Ducks, Boise State Broncos, Auburn Tigers, and the TCU Horned Frogs rounding out the top five.

As we know, the BCS formula is derived by the the AP poll, USA Today Coaches poll, the Harris Interactive poll, and a series of computer rankings in which strength of schedule is a key component. More information can be obtained at the official BCS Website.

Of course, the first BCS standings means nothing to how the final standings will be. Every week until the conference championship games are played, the standings will change and there are a number of huge games this weekend.

The top ranked and undefeated Sooners face a stiff road test Saturday at Columbia, Missouri to play the undefeated and #11 Missouri Tigers. In another battle of unbeaten teams, #4 Auburn plays host to #6 LSU Tigers in a huge SEC war while #5 TCU plays an always tough Air Force squad at home.

Other games with BCS importance include the #13 Wisconsin Badgers, fresh off defeating former #1 Ohio State Buckeyes, traveling to Iowa City, to face the #15 Iowa Hawkeyes in a huge Big Ten match up. Another key Big Ten game has the #8 and 7-0 Michigan State Spartans traveling to Evanston, Illinois to face a formidable Northwestern Wildcats team losing only once in six tries. Finally, in a key Big 12 showdown, the undefeated #14 Oklahoma State Cowboys is at home against the #16 Nebraska Cornhuskers, who were upset at home by the Texas Longhorns last weekend.

Say what you will about the BCS. I personally feel a playoff system is best but for now this is what we have. So let's enjoy the games this weekend and may your favorite team win!

Dick

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It's That Time Again --- College Football Commences

That time of year has arrived --- Labor Day weekend barbecues, autumn around the corner, baseball pennant races going down the stretch, the NFL season draws neigh, and for many this is the beginning of the college football season.

Starting Thursday night September 2nd, the chase for the BCS title commences with eighteen games, including two involving teams with National Championship hopes as Ohio State, the #2 ranked team in the Associated Press poll plays host to Marshall and The University of Miami, #13 playing a home game versus Florida A&M. While the home teams should win handily, these games will set up a battle between the two powerhouses in week two.

Another couple of tilts with significance are The 15th ranked University of Pittsburgh Panthers traveling to Utah to face the The University of Utah Utes and the 14th ranked USC Trojans traveling to face Hawaii.

The reason why I bring up the Trojans is that there is a possibility, albeit remote, that USC could win all their games and finish as the AP National Champions. Remember that USC is ineligible to play in the BCS title game under NCAA sanctions for knowingly allowing boosters and others to aid players, namely Reggie Bush, and other transgressions under former Athletic Director Mike Garrett. A split championship? That is what the BCS is suppose to negate.

Over the weekend there are two huge games with BCS title implications. The #24 Oregon State Beavers hit the road on Saturday night to face 2009 BCS party crashers TCU Horned Frogs, the 6th ranked AP team. Then Sunday evening, The other non BCS power Boise State Broncos, the AP's 3rd ranked squad, go to Blacksburg, Virginia to face perennial powerhouse and 10th rated Virginia Tech Hokies.

To think this is week one of the college season! That's not a bad group of opening games!

Whether you have a favorite squad, be it Ohio State, Notre Dame, Texas, defending champion Alabama, or any other team, I think this season will be as exciting as any we've seen in recent memory. Let's sit back, relax, and enjoy opening weekend.

Time for kickoff!

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