Top 25 Programs of the BCS Era

[smilesid]

When TCU and Utah started playing in a real conferance every week they started losing. Neither made a bowl this year.

And I can name a dozen big budget schools that had the same thing happen to them. Notre Dame, for example, was great and then had ten years of mediocrity. That is precisely the problem, a championship is about the quality of the team in that year, not what they did a year later or a year before. So TCU isn't good now, well, they lost, what, about 6 NFL players off of that 2010 team. Same with Utah, and Boise in their undefeated years.

Only in football do fans argue conference affiliation, historical records, statistical breakdowns, and base judgments on beauty contest rules. In every other sport, people say, "how good is the team?"

 

[WhiteMamba]

When TCU and Utah started playing in a real conferance every week they started losing. Neither made a bowl this year.

they are learning the hard way.

 

[BamaTee1]

No, this year, Boise wasn't good at all. But, for the sake of argument, take the 2009 team that went undefeated. Could they have beaten those top teams you listed? Actually they did, dismantling Oregon and holding them to a single score in a game that they vaunted Duck offense didn't get a first down until halfway through the 3rd quarter. This same Oregon team went to the Rose Bowl. The 2010 TCU team beat Wisconsin. The 2008 Utah team beat Alabama. So there is ample evidence to say that in a given year, one of these schools can indeed be good enough. But we'll never know, will we? The whole point of a sport is to give everyone a fair chance. In basketball, every year we get a Butler, Davidson, Gonzaga, or some other low budget team that makes a big run, even makes the final game. This is true in every sport on earth, except one: college football. Everyone is so convinced of pedigree and budget instead of talent and record that it is virtually impossible to even find out whether or not Cinderella is worthy of the Prince.

The fact is that all of the top schools only play their conference slates which include any number of easy games plus a non-conference slate that loads up on home games against easy marks. So even the best schools will only play half of their games against top competition.

So how is a team like Boise any different?

You did exactly what I asked you not do! You gave me the 4 or 5 games over a 7 year period. You want to know why I knew you would have to? Because that is all there is to give! You even had to use some other teams. You took the best Boise years and are comparing it annually using a one game sample size. Perfect example is what was said earlier, Utah and TCU are fighting to play .500 ball in a power conference. The same teams who easily won 11 or 12 games annually for quite a stretch. Coincidence?

You're also comparing a basketball tournament to football? Let me give you a little example. I could get out there and throw it up from 3 point range and knock it down and maybe get real hot. In football I would die! Plus that same type format, if possible for football(which is not) would totally take out the Boise's who might can win one game but would get destroyed in a tournament format!

Smiles, what little Boise has done is great and you should be proud but like I've said before, because the little junior golfer won the city jr championship on the municipal course does not make him ready to take on the PGA tour players on a major championship course! OK?

 

[TexasExes98]

You did exactly what I asked you not do! You gave me the 4 or 5 games over a 7 year period. You want to know why I knew you would have to? Because that is all there is to give! You even had to use some other teams. You took the best Boise years and are comparing it annually using a one game sample size. Perfect example is what was said earlier, Utah and TCU are fighting to play .500 ball in a power conference. The same teams who easily won 11 or 12 games annually for quite a stretch. Coincidence?

You're also comparing a basketball tournament to football? Let me give you a little example. I could get out there and throw it up from 3 point range and knock it down and maybe get real hot. In football I would die! Plus that same type format, if possible for football(which is not) would totally take out the Boise's who might can win one game but would get destroyed in a tournament format!

Smiles, what little Boise has done is great and you should be proud but like I've said before, because the little junior golfer won the city jr championship on the municipal course does not make him ready to take on the PGA tour players on a major championship course! OK?

Damn good comparison relating to BSU's program and conference. To give you an example just how shitty the MWC is, even TCU would have had a good record this year in that shit conference.

 

[Gator]

No, this year, Boise wasn't good at all. But, for the sake of argument, take the 2009 team that went undefeated. Could they have beaten those top teams you listed? Actually they did, dismantling Oregon and holding them to a single score in a game that they vaunted Duck offense didn't get a first down until halfway through the 3rd quarter. This same Oregon team went to the Rose Bowl. The 2010 TCU team beat Wisconsin. The 2008 Utah team beat Alabama. So there is ample evidence to say that in a given year, one of these schools can indeed be good enough. But we'll never know, will we? The whole point of a sport is to give everyone a fair chance. In basketball, every year we get a Butler, Davidson, Gonzaga, or some other low budget team that makes a big run, even makes the final game. This is true in every sport on earth, except one: college football. Everyone is so convinced of pedigree and budget instead of talent and record that it is virtually impossible to even find out whether or not Cinderella is worthy of the Prince.

The fact is that all of the top schools only play their conference slates which include any number of easy games plus a non-conference slate that loads up on home games against easy marks. So even the best schools will only play half of their games against top competition.

So how is a team like Boise any different?

Your problem is that in your mind, beating a highly ranked team equates to proof that the winner is a "good" team. In the BCS era, teams that ended the season ranked in the AP top 10 lost 22 times to teams that DID NOT HAVE winning records.

1998 #9 Georgia Tech lost to (3-7-0) Boston College
1998 #2 Ohio St. lost to (5-6-0) Michigan St.
1999 #4 Wisconsin lost to (2-8-0) Cincinnati
2001 #6 Oklahoma lost to (3-7-0) Oklahoma St.
2002 #8 Iowa lost to (6-7-0) Iowa St.
2002 #5 Oklahoma lost to (5-6-0) Texas A&M
2003 #9 Washington St. lost to (4-7-0) Notre Dame
2003 #9 Washington St. lost to (5-6-0) Washington
2004 #10 Virginia Tech lost to (4-6-0) N.C. State
2005 #6 LSU lost to (4-6-0) Tennessee
2005 #9 Notre Dame lost (4-6-0) Michigan St.
2007 #10 Boston College lost to (5-7-0) Maryland
2007 #2 Georgia lost to (5-6-0) South Carolina
2007 #8 Oklahoma lost to (5-7-0) Colorado
2007 #10 Texas lost to (4-7-0) Kansas St.
2007 #3 USC lost to (3-8-0) Stanford
2007 #6 West Virginia lost to (4-7-0) Pittsburgh
2009 #9 Ohio St. lost to (4-7-0) Purdue
2011 #3 Oklahoma St. lost to (5-7-0) Iowa St.
2011 #6 USC lost to (5-7-0) Arizona St.
2011 #10 Wisconsin lost to (5-7-0) Ohio St.
2013 #8 South Carolina lost to (4-7-0) Tennessee

Thus, you have presented THREE data points which illustrate your point but here are 22 data points (7 x as many times) that show that beating a Top 10 team DOES NOT equate to being a "good" team. How can you be sure that the three data points that you presented ARE NOT merely data points 23, 24, 25 in favor of MY argument?

 

[FSUmanager]

It's funny, fans from the great state of fla want to be recognized as something special, yet they're only left with this mess..
Corrine Brown - Go Gata (with Subtitles) - YouTube

Ummm...You need to rephrase the bold. That would be FLORIDA FANS. I do not see any FSU or Miami fans on here bitching. What is the real point anyways? The OP posted his opinion based upon the criteria he chose. This is all subjective anyways.

 

[smilesid]

Damn good comparison relating to BSU's program and conference. To give you an example just how shitty the MWC is, even TCU would have had a good record this year in that shit conference.

Gee, I've never ever known a conference to win anything. It's individual teams in that conference that win or lose. Now, one can compare records, but we all know that conferences can and do cook the books. The SEC, for example, set up the in-conference games to favor the power teams, they play one "traditional" team from the other division and only one round robin team. Then they play one decent team OOC, and three cream puffs. So no one can really tell how good the "conference" is anyway, all one has is perception, opinion, and lots of marketing. Otherwise, please explain the unending parade of FCS and last place low budget teams, almost all played at home.

All I can say is that over the years, when those "lousy" MWC teams play SEC teams, the result has often been a win for the MWC team, especially if the game is on a neutral field or a home and home. But of course, since that flies in the face of your opinion, you fail to mention it.

Now the MWC as a whole did seem a bit weaker this year, I'll give you that. But again, that's because the individual teams weren't that good, not the conference.

 

[BamaTee1]

There's that template!

 

[WhiteMamba]

There's that template!

i think he has 4 or 5 that he has saved. all pretty much the same thing.

 

[Rather Be Fishin']

List looks good except for a few minor tweeks.

Ohio State, Texas and USC should be ranked higher than Oklahoma. In my honest, professional opinion.

 

[smilesid]

Your problem is that in your mind, beating a highly ranked team equates to proof that the winner is a "good" team. In the BCS era, teams that ended the season ranked in the AP top 10 lost 22 times to teams that DID NOT HAVE winning records.

Wow, that is one of the lamest, most convoluted use of stats I've seen, and I've seen some lame ones. Let me get this straight, in 14 years of games by the top 10 teams each year (that's 140 since you can't do math), in 1680 possible games (140 x a typical 12 game schedule) you found 22 exceptions? Blow me over with a feather, that is a freak bounce exception in games played by 18-22 year old kids, a percentage of less than 1.3% of the time.

Someone willing to dig that deep to bolster one's argument, no offense, doesn't have an argument.

I have a better idea, let the champions of every d-1 conference actually play each other. Let's find out who is good and who really isn't. It's good enough in every other sport, well, at least every other sport played on the planet that I'm aware of, why not college football?

 

[WhiteMamba]

Wow, that is one of the lamest, most convoluted use of stats I've seen, and I've seen some lame ones. Let me get this straight, in 14 years of games by the top 10 teams each year (that's 140 since you can't do math), in 1680 possible games (140 x a typical 12 game schedule) you found 22 exceptions? Blow me over with a feather, that is a freak bounce exception in games played by 18-22 year old kids, a percentage of less than 1.3% of the time.

Someone willing to dig that deep to bolster one's argument, no offense, doesn't have an argument.

I have a better idea, let the champions of every d-1 conference actually play each other. Let's find out who is good and who really isn't. It's good enough in every other sport, well, at least every other sport played on the planet that I'm aware of, why not college football?

ya thats fair. So a scrub MAC, or Mtn WAC, or Sunbelt team can make a playoff and a major conference runner up can sit out of the playoffs.

Lets see, Clemson, Oky, Oregon, Bama, S Carolina, Ohio all would be out. Not to mention handfuls of other more deserving teams.

Arky State, Ball State or is it Bowling Green?, Fresno all would be in....

Isnt even worth considering.

 

[Gator]

Someone willing to dig that deep to bolster one's argument, no offense, doesn't have an argument.

Now I see why you post superficial comments - too much trouble to dig.

 

[Rather Be Fishin']

Now I see why you post superficial comments - too much trouble to dig.

 

[4down20]

The best team Boise St has had was in 2010. But that team lost to Nevada by a FG. Does that mean Nevade was better than Boise St? Fuck no.

 

[Mistaken4193]

Why dont Fresno and Boise St grow a sack and join the PAC 12. Make that bitch a PAC 14. I guarantee you neither will win more than 3 conferance games.

 

[TexasExes98]

Why dont Fresno and Boise St grow a sack and join the PAC 12. Make that bitch a PAC 14. I guarantee you neither will win more than 3 conferance games.

Unfortunately for BSU, they really do bring nothing to the table. Awful TV market, overall weak athletic program, weak academics, 30K seat high school stadium, awful in state talent which offer no recruiting grounds, etc. Doubtful any major BCS conference will offer an invite.

 

[TheLonestarDUCK]

Unfortunately for BSU, they really do bring nothing to the table. Awful TV market, overall weak athletic program, weak academics, 30K seat high school stadium, awful in state talent which offer no recruiting grounds, etc. Doubtful any major BCS conference will offer an invite.

Plus neither school meets the academic requirements to join the PAC.

 

[Wishbone]

List looks good except for a few minor tweeks.

Ohio State, Texas and USC should be ranked higher than Oklahoma. In my honest, professional opinion.

Did your insiders tell you that? Still swinging from OU's nut sack I see.

 

[The Crimson King]

wouldn't say bama's #1