Comments on: Ohio State vs. LSU http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/ The Ultimate College Football Blog. OK, maybe not. Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:00:36 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3-RC1 By: The Orange Man http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-61 The Orange Man Sun, 09 Dec 2007 02:48:45 +0000 http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-61 I'm not necessarily arguing that LSU isn't the 2nd best team in the nation. My main beef is that pollsters apparently decided this past weekend that they were, when the weekend before they had apparently decided that they weren't that good. If LSU really wasn't the #7 and were really the #4 team in the nation before Missouri and West Virginia lost, then they should have been voted that way. To go "oops! Do over!" is disingenuous. I’m not necessarily arguing that LSU isn’t the 2nd best team in the nation. My main beef is that pollsters apparently decided this past weekend that they were, when the weekend before they had apparently decided that they weren’t that good.

If LSU really wasn’t the #7 and were really the #4 team in the nation before Missouri and West Virginia lost, then they should have been voted that way. To go “oops! Do over!” is disingenuous.

]]> By: Mathew Badeaux http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-60 Mathew Badeaux Sat, 08 Dec 2007 23:33:25 +0000 http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-60 Georgia Didn't make it to the Championship in the SEC which LSU won and the SEC is the toughest conference in college football by a long shot. Probably every team in the SEC with the exception of Vanderbilt and Ole Miss would be in Hawaii's position in that conference.....Va Tech was beat by 41 By LSU........USC just isnt the USC of the past face it America...All teams that were knocked out of top spots were done so convincingly LSU is undefeated in regulation and has only been defeated in overtime nobody has convincingly BEAT the tigers LSU has the credentials for the game if you ask a lot of people they should be there before OHIO St. who only lost one game and has a Weak Scedule opinions may differ but as far as i can see the only teams that should be considered for the title game are LSU OHio St. and Oklahoma Georgia Didn’t make it to the Championship in the SEC which LSU won and the SEC is the toughest conference in college football by a long shot. Probably every team in the SEC with the exception of Vanderbilt and Ole Miss would be in Hawaii’s position in that conference…..Va Tech was beat by 41 By LSU……..USC just isnt the USC of the past face it America…All teams that were knocked out of top spots were done so convincingly LSU is undefeated in regulation and has only been defeated in overtime nobody has convincingly BEAT the tigers LSU has the credentials for the game if you ask a lot of people they should be there before OHIO St. who only lost one game and has a Weak Scedule opinions may differ but as far as i can see the only teams that should be considered for the title game are LSU OHio St. and Oklahoma

]]> By: SpikeT http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-45 SpikeT Mon, 03 Dec 2007 15:25:50 +0000 http://football.calculusman.com/2007/12/02/ohio-state-vs-lsu/#comment-45 Excellent commentary. The 'correction' we saw after Saturday's games is disturbing. Voters have seen clearly now (and last year) that they can will a championship game match up if want it and that is dangerous, especially as the influence of media is considered. Regardless of a voter's background (coach, former coach, former player, etc), most if not all are influenced by the media. If you hear ESPN commentators say week in and week out that a particular team is great, even if you've seen them a bit here and there and weren't impressed, you'll be swayed toward thinking that what you've seen was not the norm. LSU is a enormous example of this this season. They were lauded in the media from the beginning of the season as the team of the year. Their defense was dubbed as immovable. And despite their living on the razor's edge, they were continually praised. Even when LSU's astounding defense got progressively more and more suspect throughout the season, we didn't hear significant criticism. Those who picked them at the beginning of the season (ESPN!!!) as the golden child continued to be impressed. Now to LSU's credit, there is something to be said for finding a way to win, no matter the margin, and that's especially true in the rough and tumble SEC. That being said, we really need to look in the mirror and ask some questions when we find ourselves impressed with a last minute win against a very, very mediocre Alabama team (see losses to Florida State and LA Monroe as proof of mediocrity), 2 overtime losses (yes, losses!), and a defense so 'stingy' that lets an offense like Auburn's drive straight down the field in the final 5 minutes of the game to take the lead...at home...at night...at a place called "Death Valley" where 'nobody' can be expected to win. I never thought the BCS was perfect, but so long as 3 or 4 teams couldn't play against each other at the same time, it was never going to be. It only allowed for 2 teams in its 'playoff' and so there would almost always be controversy. But I've now been won over the side that says it is deeply flawed and broken. When, at the end of the season, the previous week's polls no longer matter, we've got a problem. I don't pretend to know who are the best 2 teams this season, but I am certain of this: beating a #16 ranked team in an evenly matched game wouldn't have launched #7 to #2 in any other week of the season unless 5 out of the 6 teams ahead of #7 were all defeated...and even then a loss might not drop them below #7 team moving up. It only did so this time because voters decided (or let it be dictated to them) long ago that LSU should be there. Many results -- Sooners, Trojans, or Bulldogs -- would've been fairer than LSU. (Even the Mountaineers, Hokies, Jayhawks, and Warriors have arguments that they could win a playoff.) And yet here we are with a broken system where prognosticators have more of a say than the players on the field. I have nothing against LSU except that they shouldn't get to play for the national championship because they were the predetermined team. And just for the record, beating Ohio State will tell us nothing about their ability to beat Georgia, Oklahoma, or USC at this juncture in the season -- they might win the BCS Championship game but that hardly makes them national champions in this season. My enthusiasm for college football just took a hit. It was an amazing season like none other and sadly I'm left, like many, feeling like I got the short end of the stick. From now on I'm forced to understand and accept that this system, so influenced by the media, really is a beauty contest from start to finish designed to help media feel good about their own preseason predictions and biases. Silly me, I thought it was about football. Excellent commentary. The ‘correction’ we saw after Saturday’s games is disturbing. Voters have seen clearly now (and last year) that they can will a championship game match up if want it and that is dangerous, especially as the influence of media is considered. Regardless of a voter’s background (coach, former coach, former player, etc), most if not all are influenced by the media. If you hear ESPN commentators say week in and week out that a particular team is great, even if you’ve seen them a bit here and there and weren’t impressed, you’ll be swayed toward thinking that what you’ve seen was not the norm. LSU is a enormous example of this this season. They were lauded in the media from the beginning of the season as the team of the year. Their defense was dubbed as immovable. And despite their living on the razor’s edge, they were continually praised. Even when LSU’s astounding defense got progressively more and more suspect throughout the season, we didn’t hear significant criticism. Those who picked them at the beginning of the season (ESPN!!!) as the golden child continued to be impressed. Now to LSU’s credit, there is something to be said for finding a way to win, no matter the margin, and that’s especially true in the rough and tumble SEC. That being said, we really need to look in the mirror and ask some questions when we find ourselves impressed with a last minute win against a very, very mediocre Alabama team (see losses to Florida State and LA Monroe as proof of mediocrity), 2 overtime losses (yes, losses!), and a defense so ’stingy’ that lets an offense like Auburn’s drive straight down the field in the final 5 minutes of the game to take the lead…at home…at night…at a place called “Death Valley” where ‘nobody’ can be expected to win.

I never thought the BCS was perfect, but so long as 3 or 4 teams couldn’t play against each other at the same time, it was never going to be. It only allowed for 2 teams in its ‘playoff’ and so there would almost always be controversy. But I’ve now been won over the side that says it is deeply flawed and broken. When, at the end of the season, the previous week’s polls no longer matter, we’ve got a problem. I don’t pretend to know who are the best 2 teams this season, but I am certain of this: beating a #16 ranked team in an evenly matched game wouldn’t have launched #7 to #2 in any other week of the season unless 5 out of the 6 teams ahead of #7 were all defeated…and even then a loss might not drop them below #7 team moving up. It only did so this time because voters decided (or let it be dictated to them) long ago that LSU should be there. Many results — Sooners, Trojans, or Bulldogs — would’ve been fairer than LSU. (Even the Mountaineers, Hokies, Jayhawks, and Warriors have arguments that they could win a playoff.) And yet here we are with a broken system where prognosticators have more of a say than the players on the field. I have nothing against LSU except that they shouldn’t get to play for the national championship because they were the predetermined team. And just for the record, beating Ohio State will tell us nothing about their ability to beat Georgia, Oklahoma, or USC at this juncture in the season — they might win the BCS Championship game but that hardly makes them national champions in this season.

My enthusiasm for college football just took a hit. It was an amazing season like none other and sadly I’m left, like many, feeling like I got the short end of the stick. From now on I’m forced to understand and accept that this system, so influenced by the media, really is a beauty contest from start to finish designed to help media feel good about their own preseason predictions and biases. Silly me, I thought it was about football.

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