Colt McCoy BCS Championship Postgame Interview

Last night’s BCS Championship game lived up to its billing. Not because Colt McCoy led his team to victory on a white horse, or not because of Mark Ingram’s Juggernaut-type performance. Both went out early in seemingly unfortunate situations. But the constant twists and turns forced other players to rise to the occasion.

We’ve all seen Tim Tebow react to similar situations with intensity, emotion and class.

You can always expect the same from Colt McCoy. Best of luck next year, buddy.

Peter Thamel of the New York Times reflects on The Agony of Colt McCoy.

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That Just Happened — Starbucks Sells Out To Survive

Nothing new. They already do it in Malaysia.—–

Did you ever imagine the day when a specialty coffee shop would start selling breakfast? I don’t mean the complimentary sugary confections we’re all used to…but breakfast. That day hath come. Starbucks announced that beginning on March 3, 2009, it would pair a drink with one of two new breakfast sandwiches.

“Welcome to Starbucks. How may I help you today?”

“Yeah…lemme get a…a Siren Sausage Sandwich and a tall caffe latte…non-fat, no whip, double trouble…no, no…make that a black eye…and half caf.”

By obscure comparison, the Amazon Kindle is like a Jonas Brothers album. You don’t know anyone that owns one, yet somehow Amazon can’t keep them on the shelves. Now the Kindle 2 is being released on February 24, 2009. It’s about as thin as a magazine, boasts a 25% increase in battery life, and can hold over 1,500 books. How many college kids would rather have this than lugging around ten 20-lb. text books in their backpack?

Courtesy ESPN

A-Roid, Ster-Rod, A-Fraud, Agent Orange (nice tan)…the nicknames are flying after ARod’s interview with Peter Gammons on ESPN. Orange you glad you told the truth, ARod? Smart move.

Speaking of orange…the Texas Longhorns got a commitment from another McCoy this week…Case McCoy. According to InsideTexas.com, the younger brother of Colt McCoy will play join the ‘Horns squad. No word yet on whether or not he will be accompanied by an attractive girlfriend that will sit with his parents at the games.

Along the college recruiting lines…it seems things get more and more ridiculous each year. Recruits are being treated like kings before they even step foot on campus. The result? They often develop an attitude of entitlement. South Carolina recruit, Alshon Jeffery, was told by head coach Steve Spurrier that he could keep his #2 jersey digit.

The problem? It’s retired.

Sterling Sharpe donned the number while he attended the University of South Carolina. Sterling is opposed to the idea. Don’t give in, Sterling! You’ll just add to the growing attitudes of entitlement among college recruits. Just a piece of the spectrum of college recruiting’s thin gray line.

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Final AP Poll Leaves Utah Hangin’

While it appeared that Utah was the compassion play for the AP poll going into last night’s BCS National Championship game, they will have to settle for #2.

After a rather sloppy title game, I was even more convinced that an undefeated Utah would receive more momentum to climb to #1 in the AP poll. I should have known better… Utah was precluded from any chance in hell of being crowned the champion since the beginning — thanks, Bowls Contrived in September.

Some sports writers agree with me.

James Lang/US Presswire—-

USC ruined its chances early by losing to Oregon State as did Texas by losing in the final seconds to Texas Tech. Too many ‘what ifs’ and question marks. Each of the top 4 AP poll teams — Florida, Utah, USC and Texas — has an argument for the #1 spot. But how can you deny an undefeated Utah that beat top tier teams the top?

Florida, of course, finished #1 in the AP poll after edging out the Sooners last night. But the contest was tied early in the 4th quarter, 14-14. Florida bounced back late in Tim Tebow fashion (with help from Percy Harvin, of course). He turned a prosaic contest into a poetic display…putting his team and the crowd on his back and wielded it like a true Heisman-deserving college football player would. He took the ball under his wing a couple of times and he didn’t hesitate to lay the hammer down on Sooner defenders. Regardless, the game as a whole was blah. Can you settle for a champion that resulted from such an odd contest of two ‘powerhouses’?

I guess we’ll have to.

BCS National Championship Game in 3D
It appears that some viewers have already posted their thoughts of the game on AVS Forum. Despite some minor technical difficulties, there was a resounding “WOW” amongst the crowd. There were those that thought that 3D sports broadcast technology is not ready for prime time.

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Hey, BCS. Thanks For Nothing.

The BCS has been busted again. So what now?

The Million Dollar Band may have shown the Utes Marching Band how it’s done, but the Utah football team has induced vertigo causing more BCS turmoil. After spanking the Crimson Tide 31-17, the Utes improve to 13-0 on the season.

Should they be #1?

Why not? They played like the #1 team suffocating Alabama’s offense with eight sacks, three turnovers, and held the Tide to just 36 rushing yards (they averaged over 196 per game this season). And Utah executed impeccably on offense — including some risky 3rd and long trickery to keep a drive alive late in the game — thanks to the leadership of the unsexy Heisman shoulda been, Brian Johnson.

The unfortunate part is that they won’t be voted #1 in the final BCS poll. Of course, that’ll be Florida or Oklahoma. Perhaps Utah will earn the ultimate respect from the AP…right?

Probably not. Of the 4 non-BCS teams that have gone undefeated through bowl games (Utah did it twice, Boise State in 2006, Marshall in 1999 and Tulane in 1998), Utah achieved the highest AP poll rank after their win over #20 Pitt in 2004. Even though the Sooners were throttled by USC 55-19 in the Orange Bowl, they still finished above the [undefeated] #4 Utah Utes.

What they’ve done is seal their spot as the #2 team in the nation.

What about Texas? Given the poor play of the Big Ten in the bowl games (currently 1-5 in bowl games), we’ll assume the ‘Horns pull it out…handily. Why shouldn’t they be #2?

While I absolutely despise the USC Trojans, they certainly deserve a voice for the #2 spot after putting Nittany Lions to sleep for the season in the Rose Bowl.

Whatever happens on January 8th, I can’t possibly be satisfied. The BCS was nothing but a contrived championship format that rewarded the current darlings. Wait. Or was that the Heisman? Nevermind. Regardless, the BCS (Bowls Contrived in September) blew it again…it’s incredible, it’s sickening, it’s time for change.

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The BCS Hath Spoken…

Does Texas deserve a piece?

…but will the Longhorns have the last word?

There’s no doubt that the matchup selected by the BCS will be an interesting one. Oklahoma and Florida have been laying waste to its opponents over the last few weeks. The anticipation is similar to that of a Kimbo Slice match and may not be decided until the last seconds wind down. The last such bout should be fresh in our minds when USC and Texas met in 2005.

So, Texas beat OU. Yeah. We know.

Regardless of this redundant claim, the result (45-35) plays into the equation going into the bowl season. Regardless of who the BCS National Championship Game winner may be, perhaps the AP voters would view a Texas beating of Ohio State as deserving of a #1 spot.

The last time this happened was in 2003 when USC and LSU shared the national champion spotlight. USC finished #1 in both the AP and Coaches’ Polls, but the computers punished USC for having the weakest schedule giving LSU and Oklahoma a shot at the BCS title. Despite LSU’s defeat of OU in the Sugar Bowl, the AP poll stood firm in its decision to crown USC its National Champion.

The difference this year is that Texas is ranked third in the human polls going into the Fiesta Bowl. Both place the Longhorns in the #3 slot. However, the computer polls give Texas a .1500 margin over Florida. The result is a tiny .018 margin in the BCS poll between the Gators and the ‘Horns.

1. Oklahoma, 0.976
2. Florida, 0.948
3. Texas, 0.930
4. Alabama, 0.844
5. USC, 0.821
6. Utah, 0.785

USC and Utah will have to settle.

PLAYOFFS? Regardless of all the arguments that exist for or against a playoff system, the most salient factor has to be which teams are chosen. Maybe the BCS is good for one thing after all. Is it fair to select the 8 teams with the BCS poll? What about conference champs? Although some teams may be left out, those teams that feel they should vie for the title will have their day.

No matter what system is chosen, there will be some degree of unfairness. So, once President Obama figures out how to repair our economy, next on the agenda should be the college playoff proposal. I’m all ears.

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BCS Standings: OU Leapfrogs Texas

The integrity of the BCS has once again sparked a wildfire of incendiary debates. If any year calls for change, it has been 2008. I don’t even think Danica McKellar (or Winnie Cooper if you prefer) can decipher the logic math behind BCS computer rankings.

In the final regular season BCS poll, Oklahoma has jumped Texas for a spot in the Big 12 Championship game against Big 12 South’s Missouri. Looks like their 45-35 campaign was fruitless.

1. Alabama, .9713
2. Oklahoma, 9351
3. Texas, .9223
4. Florida, .8851
5. USC, .8076
6. Utah, .7844
7. Texas Tech, .7805
8. Penn State, .7373
9. Boise State, .7034
10. Ohio State, .6340

So what does this mean going forward? Why bother to offer a prognostication? Now parity truly comes into play. If Florida manages to beat ‘Bama, will they leapfrog Texas despite the sizeable BCS average margin the ‘Horns hold over the Gators? Or will Texas get their chance to prove themselves against the Sooners once more?

Personally, I’d love to see an all-Big 12 BCS title game. But an SEC/Big 12 matchup would be nice too…a chance to establish once and for all — which conference is the best conference?

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Big 12 BCS Barn Burner

Gosh, I love alliteration.

With the final weeks of college football upon us, excessive dissection and misguided predictions have troubled many fans. I blame it on the pick ‘em. I’m running through my picks last night with one of my friends. Since I’ve racked up a 65%+ success rate the last 5 or 6 weeks against the spread, all of a sudden I’m the guru. (Excuse me a sec…I’m gonna finish eating my piece of humble pie).

As I explained each of my picks for this weekend (where in the hell did Georgia Tech come from, BTW), the gerbils in my head started running at alarming speeds.

Could there be an all-Big 12 BCS Championship Game?

Yeah. I was sure of it. Let’s assume OU ruins Texas Tech’s spotless season…or they don’t…whatever. If the Big 12 Champion is OU, Texas, or Tech with a 12-1 record (OU still has to play Oklahoma State) and Florida loses to FSU but beats Alabama, the National Championship game could be all Big 12, right? Lest we forget LSU made it in last year with 2 losses. So, who’s to say the computers won’t like Florida enough to leapfrog one of these Big 12 teams for a shot at the title?

I’ve been arguing with my friends about the possibility of an all-Big 12 BCS Championship game. Forget it’s improbability. I’m just asking “is it possible”. Sure. But the explanation above wasn’t good enough for them especially with the two-loss Florida caveat. So this guru decided to consult the real BCS guru: Chris Dufresne of the Los Angeles Times.

I won’t take the time to qualify the guy. I mean [1] he writes for the L.A. Times, [2] trust me, or [3] read this BCS article. I shot Chris a quick email to get his take. His scenario is this:

A three-way tie at 11-1 in the Big 12 South — which means OU beating Texas Tech and then all three teams winning their last games — could do it. Let’s say OU goes to the Big 12 title game versus Mizzou based on highest BCS ranking. Now you have Texas and Texas Tech each at 11-1 waiting in the wings. Missouri with two losses beats Oklahoma in Big 12 game.

Meanwhile in the SEC, Florida loses to FSU next week but beats Alabama in SEC title game. Now, the likely title game is Texas vs. Texas Tech…second and third in Big 12 South.

Chris also added that “the big thing is that since the BCS just altered its own rule that prohibits three teams from one conference playing in the BCS, in my scenario Missouri, Texas, and Texas Tech can all be in BCS games. Mizzou would go to the Fiesta Bowl as auto qualifier.”

Wow. I think my gerbils are dead…resting maybe. Seriously, though…that is a much better explanation. We’ll find out if any of this analysis is worth anything starting tomorrow. Parity is a bitch.

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