The Greatest Rose Bowl That Never Was

Seems like even the staunchest BCS bashers are okay with the Auburn and Oregon National Championship Game. Part of me is disappointed that the pro-TCU ranting wasn’t anywhere nearly as loud as the pro-Boise State was prior to their loss to Nevada. I think that is because deep down, pundits know TCU recruits better athletes, has a championship history, and has “sold-out” to the BCS by agreeing to join the Big East.

But I digress. There should be outrage about the BCS this year, and it’s not being written about because it is a non-AQ doing the screwing. You see all the bitching and moaning about the BCS made an impact on the BCS team selection guidelines. The revision came in 2009 and it makes the Rose Bowl automatically select a qualified non-AQ team if the Rose Bowl loses a team to the National Championship Game. That is how we ended up with TCU playing Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.

That clause that sent TCU to Pasadena just happened to rob us of a traditional Pac-10/Big Ten Rose Bowl, which this season would have matched Stanford and Wisconsin, the 2 most exciting teams in College Football not named Auburn or Oregon. Not that TCU and Wisconsin isn’t a good matchup, but considering TCU showed defensive vulnerability late in the season against San Diego State, the Badgers may run all over the Horned Frogs. 

Which matchup would you rather see? Vote on the poll on the right!

It wasn’t just the Rose Bowl that was affected; the TCU selection trickled down to give us unexciting matchups in the Fiesta Bowl (oklahoma vs UConn) and the Orange Bowl (Virginia Tech vs Stanford). Under the old provision we would have likely ended up with the following matchups: Rose Bowl – Stanford vs Wisconsin, Fiesta Bowl – oklahoma vs TCU, and Orange Bowl – Virginia Tech vs UConn, the Sugar Bowl and National Championship Game remaining the same. All of which would have been more evenly matched!

Oh well, all we can do now is sit back and enjoy the bowls. And to enjoy the Bowl Season even more, I invite you to join the Kanan Sports Bowl Pick ‘Em game. To join simply go to http://y.ahoo.it/F8ddHadi and sign up with your Yahoo account, no password is necessary.

Pro Football Predictions - Week 14

UFC 124 Predictions

-Kanan

Understanding Ohio St President Gordon Gee

“If you think otherwise, then stop reading. You’re too naive to save.”

Can somebody please tell me how Dan Wetzel’s convoluted article about how Ohio State President Gordon Gee’s comments regarding Boise State and TCU not deserving to play for the National Championship ends?  I stopped reading right where he told me to stop, and not a moment too soon as his argument is about as confusing as he claims the BCS to be.

Not really, the man just assumes entirely too much.  Let’s forget about his assumption that he is right and if you disagree, well he just doesn’t want to hear from you, and look at what Mr. Gee said. 

Gordon Gee points out, from his experience having been a president at both a Big Ten and an SEC school, that those teams have to go through a gauntlet (slight exaggeration, but okay) and that every week they play very fine schools.  He further states his belief that if you don’t play a comparable schedule, then you don’t deserve a spot in the National Championship game.  He does make the very offensive mistake of calling Boise and TCU’s opponents Little Sisters of the Poor, which I just found out doesn’t even have a football team.

Dan Wetzel interprets this as: “Gee clearly has no idea what he is arguing about, or for, let alone how the BCS formula works, why it exists or how a playoff could actually operate.”  Bold stuff!  “Gee may think he’s arguing for the BCS, but he’s actually arguing against it.”  Really? Tell us more Captain Extrapolation!

See you can go from “I disagree” to “You’re stupid and you don’t know what you’re talking about,” but that’s a pretty shitty thing to do if you are over the age of 18.  Nowhere in Mr. Gee’s statements can we really gauge his grasp on the BCS or its formula. 

To me his statements are not much different than when Nick Saban said on National TV (minute 2:45 on) that, and I’m paraphrasing, it is not about the quality of team that Boise and TCU have, but consideration has to be given to the difficulty of what others have to go through to get to a 12-0 record.  Or as Dan Wetzel would put it: Nick Saban has no idea what he is arguing about, or for, let alone how the BCS formula works, why it exists or how a playoff could actually operate.

Wetzel actually gets to something that sort of resembles a point at around the 17^th paragraph when he says that the reason Gee is actually arguing against the BCS is because the system would, and could be about to, let a 12-0 WAC (or MWC) team play for its National Championship game, which is exactly what Gee is against.  BUT THEN WHAT IS THE BCS OUTRAGE ALL ABOUT?!

If the BCS system is capable of allowing teams like Boise or TCU to play for the National Championship then it is not systematically excluding any team.  The system is designed to make it difficult for them to get there, but that is a fair compensation for playing weaker schedules.  Yay, I got to my point in the 9^th paragraph!!!!  But I won’t ask you to stop reading, even if you disagree with me, because I got more to say.

The actual outrage should, of course, come from undefeated teams that are left out of the National Championship game.  This outrage, however, cannot come from any undefeated team.  Nick Saban is correct in saying that consideration should be given to teams whose path to 12-0 is inherently difficult (read: teams from AQ conferences and Notre Dame).  A playoff system is unfair in that it rewards teams for having weak schedules, not only by making it easier to go undefeated, but by keeping those players in better physical condition by the end of the season.  The only team that can be legitimately outraged is the 2004 Auburn Tigers.

Wetzel believes that money is the reason a playoff system hasn’t been implemented; he believes that wealthy bowl organizers want to continue to profit handsomely, even at the expense of the schools.  He’s right, but who is being naïve now?  Money just so happens to be the reason for EVERYTHING! 

Blaming something on the power brokers behind the scenes is just a very cheap way to gain support for your argument.  Hey, that Kanan guy is only writing this because he makes money if people click on ads on his blog!  Oh wait, so does Wetzel, only he makes more, so he’s the evil one!

Yes, bowl organizers are making a lot of money, and I will agree that requiring schools to purchase seats at face value is egregious, but the fact is that the bowl system has not always been the cash cow it now is.  Indeed College Football history is littered with failed bowls.  To think that a playoff system will be by its very nature a fair one where nobody profits more than anybody else, is, well, naïve.

College Football Predictions - Week 13

Pro Football Predictions - Week 12

-Kanan

Why a College Football Playoff is Unfair

Using a playoff system to crown the College Football National Championship would be just as unfair as critics of the current BCS system accuse it of being.  The cover story in last week's Sports Illustrated looked to expose the money trail leading to those so-called power brokers who are blocking the implementation of a playoff.  The article echoed the popular belief that the BCS system is unfair because it allows for the possibility of an undefeated team to be excluded from playing for the National Championship.  A proposed playoff system in which teams from all conferences, not just the major AQ ones, can compete for the National Championship rewards teams playing  the least challenging schedule at the expense of those facing a more competitive field.

Critics of the BCS, like the authors of the article, argue that the importance of regular season games in the current system should mean that every team's wins should be valued equally.  That means that in the scenario where Oregon, Auburn, Boise St., and TCU all go undefeated, not allowing all four teams to play for the National Championship is unfair.  Because football is a violent sport that takes a gruelling toll on the body of players, those that are given the most opportunities to rest and avoid contact will have an advantage over those who don't. 

During last week's game between Boise State and Idaho many of Boise's starters were no longer playing by the beginning of the 4th quarter, for a team like the Broncos this has been the rule not the exception.  Boise gains two very big, and very overlooked, advantages: they rest players and they provide valuable experience to back-up players.  Compare that to Auburn's situation: while the Tigers have the opportunity to rest players during a few non-conference games, they also play the bulk of their schedule against SEC opponents, widely accepted to be the toughest, most physical teams in College Football.  Is it fair that a fresh and rested, comparatively speaking, Boise State be given the opportunity to eliminate a bruised Auburn squad en route to the championship game?

Despite the immense talent inequalities found throughout College Football, it is reasonable to believe that the top 30 or so teams are capable of winning one game against a higher ranked opponent.  Given that parity it is unfair that teams can keep their players in peak physical condition throughout the season due to lack of competitiveness.

College Football Predictions - Week 12

Pro Football Predictions - Week 11

-Kanan

How the Heisman was Lost

Cam Newton will not be this season’s Heisman Trophy winner.  It may seem hard to believe given that he is widely considered to be the frontrunner for College Football’s most prestigious award.  Unfortunately for Newton, he must overcome two very difficult obstacles to win the Heisman: he must carry Auburn to an undefeated season, and more importantly, he must be acquitted in the court of public opinion of all wrongdoings during his recruitment from Junior College.

Despite being ranked in both pre-season polls (#22 AP, #23 Coaches) there is no denying that Auburn has been the surprise team of the season, few outside the plains thought they would rise to the verge of a National Championship bid.  There is also little doubt that Cam Newton is responsible for Auburn’s success this year, he means more to his team than any other one player means to his team, the very definition of Most Valuable Player. 

Newton is currently projected well ahead of Boise State’s Kellen Moore and Oregon’s LaMichael James, both of whom are merely considered to be the best players on otherwise still very good teams, in the Heisman race.  Moore, and James to a certain extent, have something Newton doesn’t, and that is victories over their best regular season opponents.  Even though Auburn boasts victories over very good Arkansas and South Carolina teams, their biggest game remains the season-ending Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa.  With today’s prisoner-of-the-moment sports media, it is almost impossible for a player to lose late in the season and still get the votes needed to win the Heisman.  It is not impossible for Auburn to go through the season undefeated, but their most difficult test looms, and off the field distractions will make Auburn’s remaining games significantly more difficult.

Undefeated or not, Newton’s biggest obstacle in the Heisman race will be the allegation that his father sought payment from Mississippi State to get him to commit to the Bulldogs.  Unfortunately the right of ‘Innocent Until Proven Guilty’ is not one that Cam Newton will benefit from, not just because of the recent Reggie Bush incident, but just as importantly because of his own actions.  Newton’s arrest and criminal charges for possession of a stolen laptop while at Florida hurt his personal character.  Allegations of academic cheating during his time as a Gator don’t help either.  Whether it is fair or not, Newton’s previous troubles will make Heisman voters, and the public at large, hesitant to believe Newton’s innocence in any wrongdoings. 

During the 11/11/10 episode of College Football Live on ESPN, the host mentioned that 80% of Heisman voters in the company still plan to vote for Newton.  John Tamanaha of NBC Sports argues that rumors should be left off the Heisman equation when considering Newton.  Both are very noble sentiments, and the right thing to say, however when it comes to player eligibility, a requirement to win the Heisman, allegations and rumors are extremely relevant and deserve consideration, especially when the NCAA and even the FBI have launched investigations.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the Heisman Trust refuses to accept votes for Newton to avoid a future Bush-like embarrassment.

It is a shame because in terms of on-field performance Cam Newton is the best Heisman candidate.  Kellen Moore will likely win the Heisman.  Moore’s Broncos are all but guaranteed another undefeated season, however TCU is next-in-line should Auburn or Oregon lose.  Boise State will likely not be invited to play for the National Championship and the sports media will give the Heisman to Moore as consolation.  In the case they do end up playing for the National Championship, the sports media will blitz them with awards, including a Heisman Trophy for Moore.  LaMichael James, for all his amazing talent, will continue to be perceived as a cog in the very powerful machine that is Oregon’s offense.  Fortunately for James nothing cures a Heisman snub like a National Championship.

College Football Predictions - Week 11

Pro Football Predictions - Week 10

NBA Predictions - Week 4 (Lines Not Available)

Boxing Prediction

-Kanan

How Strong is the SEC?

I don’t think Boise State deserves to play in the National Championship game, and frankly I’m not too comfortable with the idea of TCU doing so, though I prefer them over Boise.  This is the fight I’ve been preparing for since the pre-season rankings were released, and now consensus in the sports media (led by ESPN) is that a WAC or MWC schedule has nothing to do with whether a team deserves to play for the Championship.  Arguing that the quality of a College Football team is not dependent on the quality of it’s conference is not only wrong, but it also contradicts the idea that SEC teams merit special considerations because of their schedule.

For years now there seems to be only one thing that College Football analysts and commentators unanimously agree on: the Southeastern Conference is hands down the premier conference in College Football.  That belief went as far as to vault a 2-loss LSU team from #7 to #2 and into the BCS Title Game after winning the SEC Championship against an unranked Tennessee team.  As of right now there are three SEC teams in the Top 10, however the likelihood of an undefeated team coming out of the SEC is slim; only Auburn remains unbeaten with a trip to Alabama still on their schedule. 

If the SEC is indeed the best conference then it follows that a win versus an SEC opponent carries more significance than a win versus a WAC or MWC team. The idea of equality is nice, but not all wins are created equal, and that is what fuels rankings, both human and computer.  Yet the sports media insists on measuring teams based on the 'eyeball' test!  

I don’t believe the SEC is the best conference this season, my pick is the Pac-10, but it is a toss-up for second best conference between the Big Ten and SEC.  An SEC win should remain more valuable than than a WAC win.

Saying that a team like Boise State deserves to play for the National Championship regardless of their schedule, after years of insisting on the idea of the SEC’s superiority, makes about as much sense as “Keep Your Government Hands Off My Medicare!”

College Football Predictions – Week 10

Pro Football Predictions – Week 9

NBA Predictions – Week 3 (Lines Not Available)

Boxing

-Kanan

College Football Mid-Season Review

I am the only Texas fan I know who wasn’t outraged at the release of the initial BCS standings, which placed oklahoma at #1.  It is a gut reaction, of course, you never want to see your rival succeed and be ahead of you.  The reason I wasn’t surprised was because I’ve seen this movie before, in fact, the sooners have been ranked #1 in the BCS more weeks than any other school, yet they have only won one National Championship in four tries.  The story goes like this: ou beats Texas in the Red River Shootout, Texas then goes on to finish the season in stellar fashion, boosting the sooners’ rankings, so weirdly enough ou being ranked #1 is a compliment to Texas.

The other reason I’m not upset about oklahoma being ranked #1 is this: Have you seen the Oregon Ducks lately?  Oregon simply looks better than any team in College Football, period.  The Ducks are not just doing it on offense, they are also playing very good defense, and while Stanford is their only ‘major win,’ they still have to face very good teams in Arizona and USC, as well as Oregon State, who pollsters insist is a top team.  Even an undefeated oklahoma will have trouble holding rank over an undefeated Oregon.

Boise State is quickly becoming a victim of their weak schedule, at least in the poll that matters.  The press is going to have a heck of a time justifying ranking a 1-loss Nevada team just so the Broncos have another ranked victory, but they will nonetheless try.

Why is Boise State ranked ahead of TCU?  Right, because they beat them last year, but this is a new season and TCU has played better teams in the Mountain West.  That will change if they beat Utah, who isn’t getting any press love because they sold out and are moving on to the Pac 12.  It’s no surprise TCU is considering a move to the Big East, which makes about as much geographic sense as them being in the Mountain West.  My guess is, if the Big 12 survives, they’ll join the Big 12, but my guess is also that the Big 12 has about 3 more years of life.

I still very much believe Michigan is on the right track and will upset Ohio State this year.  Even in their losses their offense has been amazing, people calling for Rich Rod’s job clearly aren’t remembering what his West Virginia teams were about.  The Big Ten is surprisingly deep this year, but the way Iowa is playing, they will run the table.

Auburn is the biggest surprise in the SEC, well maybe second biggest after what’s happened to the Gators.  Cam Newton is a tremendously talented player, unfortunately, it often seems like he’s the Tigers’ only offensive weapon, his Heisman stock hinges on him being able to keep Auburn undefeated.  Alabama is still the best team in that conference, it will come down to the Iron Bowl to determine the champion.  Thankfully the computers will vault a 1-loss Bama team over Boise, TCU, or Utah.

The ACC and Big East remain nationally irrelevant, which isn’t very surprising.  Florida State looks good one week and lousy the next, but they’re still on track to reclaim the ACC, and boost ou’s ranking while at it.

College Football Predictions – Week 8

• #7 Michigan State -6 at Northwestern – Spartans could be caught looking ahead to Iowa next week, but I doubt it.
• #4 Auburn -6 over #6 LSU – Auburn has proven a tough place to play, and LSU is a team that should have 2 losses.
• #15 Iowa -6 over #13 Wisconsin – The Badgers played great against the Ohio State, but I expect them to be hung over and lose big to Iowa.
• Texas Tech -3 at Colorado – I expect the Red Raiders to give a nice farewell gift to Colorado and win big.
• #11 Missouri +3 over #1 oklahoma – ou’s defense, despite their shutout of Iowa State, isn’t great, I expect Mizzou’s balanced offense to give them trouble.
• #16 Nebraska -6 at #14 Oklahoma State – Nebraska’s defense will contain the Cowboys, and Martinez will bounce back and have a big game.
• Miami -6.5 over North Carolina – UNC’s off field issues will finally catch up to them and the ‘Canes will win big.
• Georgia -4 over Kentucky – The Wildcats beat South Carolina, but Georgia is much improved with AJ Green back, they should cruise on this one.
• Notre Dame -7 at Navy – The Irish are not losing again this season, Navy is not as good as it has been the past couple of years.
• Penn State -9.5 at Minnesota – Minnesota just fired their coach, that usually leads to a big loss.

Pro Football Predictions – Week 7

• Steelers -3 over Dolphins – Pittsburgh is just too good.
• 49ers -3 over Panthers – San Francisco finally got their win, and Carolina will have to wait for theirs.
• Seahawks -6 over Cardinals – Seattle looks better than expected and plays much better at home.
• Bears -3 over Redskins – Cutler will be back in form and Chicago will begin winning again.
• Cowboys -3.5 over Giants – Desperate times call for desperate measures.

UFC 121 Prediction

• Brock Lesnar over Cain Velasquez – He may have survived Carwin, but he will dominate Velasquez.

NBA Predictions – Week 1 (lines not available)

• 10/26 Miami over Boston – No way the Heat start with a loss.
• 10/26 Portland over Phoenix – Trailblazers will be in rare, full health mode, and the Suns begin life after Stoudemire.
• 10/27 Dallas over Charlotte – Homer pick
• 10/27 Denver over Utah – I’m not expecting much out of the Jazz without Boozer.
• 10/28 Orlando over Washington – The Magic will keep up with the Heat until their first matchup… the next day.
• 10/29 Dallas over Memphis – Dirk’s first 40 point game of the season, bank on it!

-Kanan

Perception is Reality

It’s getting harder and harder to be a fringe sports conspiracy-theorist when the AP makes it so obvious that they won’t rest until a non-BCS team is crowned National Champions, preferably Boise State.  

The inconsistent and fickle nature of the AP pollsters is at its most blatant in their latest poll, in which, as predicted by yours truly, Oregon State is ranked #25.  Why is that odd?  The Beavers did look good in their losing effort against TCU, surely they looked great in their second game… oh wait, they had a bye last week!  Keep an eye on Fresno State, who are being set up to be ranked by the time they travel to Boise in November.

At least the AP is willing to adjust rankings according to on-the-field performance regardless of record, as shown by moving a very-impressive 2-0 Oregon to #5 and dropping 2-0 Florida to #10 after slow starts.  That is commendable, except for the fact that Boise St, who eeked out a win versus Virginia Tech, remained at #3, even after FCS James Madison University defeated the Hokies... IN BLACKSBURG!  Instead they threw votes at James Madison, and rightfully so, the Dukes have 1 more win than the Broncos.  Clearly it is more important than ever that Oregon State is perceived as a big time opponent.

Perception is reality, and that is as true for a College Football team as it is everywhere else.  The sport is absolutely littered with programs that are perceived to be bigger than they actually are.  Teams with accomplished pasts who maintain decent records year-after-year, but are never really National Championship contenders, I call them the Atlantic Coast Conference, and you want them on your schedule to pad the number of ‘quality’ wins.

The ACC is full of Notre Dames!  We just don’t see it because they play each other and none of them actually manages to sink to the bottom.  Think about it: Florida State gets demolished by oklahoma, Miami cannot hang with Ohio State, Georgia Tech gets beat by Kansas!  Virginia Tech’s loss to JMU shattered their team’s perceived quality, something that won’t affect Boise until the BCS polls are released, because the computers can actually see past the ACC aura.

With that in mind, I am finally ready to make my National Championship prediction: Oregon, and a split title if the Ducks don’t play Boise St. or TCU and one of them wins a BCS game (likely against the other).  Winning at Tennessee won’t be Oregon’s marquee win, they have a very challenging Pac-10 schedule ahead that includes going to #25 Oregon State, but it showed that they could win on the road in a very rough environment.  Not so much Rocky Top and the Vols as much as the massive thunderstorms that actually delayed the game.

My predictions did improve drastically last week; I managed to go 7 for 11 against the spread in College Football and 6 of 9 against the spread for the NFL’s opening weekend.  College Football picks definitely made my weekend as I had the distinct pleasure of having 2 of my fantasy teams play against Arian Foster… it still hurts :(

College Football Predictions – Week 3

• Cal -3 at Nevada – Nevada can score in bunches, but so can Cal, who will be looking to showcase their stuff on National TV in this Friday game.
• Kansas St -4 over Iowa St – This game is being played at Arrowhead, not only a neutral field, but a neutral state, the Cyclones were absolutely shut down last week and I don’t expect them to bounce back against a very good K-State team.
• #2 Ohio State -30.5 over Ohio – Another game at home for the Buckeyes?  They’ll do to Ohio the same thing they did to Marshall.
• Maryland +10 at #21 West Virginia – The Mountaineers showed a lot of toughness coming back against Marshall last week, but they also showed a lot of vulnerabilities.  Maryland’s defense will keep them in the game, take the points.
• Georgia -2 over #13 Arkansas – This is a gut call, all signs point to Arkansas and their potent offense, but I think they’ll be looking ahead to Alabama and Georgia will be looking to bounce back from their tough loss at South Carolina.
• USC -12.5 at Minnesota – Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me, but please do not fool me a third time, USC!  Actually this prediction is based more on how bad Minnesota has played.
• Baylor +21.5 at #5 TCU – Before you think this is an emotional pick, it’s not, and I fully expect TCU to win, especially at home.  Baylor is not as anemic as they’re being made out to be, they’ll score enough.
• #4 Texas -3 at Texas Tech – They’re hoping to win, we’re expecting to win.
• Florida State -10 over BYU – The Seminoles will be looking to bounce back from that nasty loss last week; BYU just doesn’t seem as good as last year.
• Notre Dame +3.5 at Michigan St – These games are always close, I expect the Irish to win.
• UTEP -16 over New Mexico St – If Buckram plays, UTEP will win big, if he doesn’t play, they’ll still win by a good margin.
• #15 Auburn -7 over Clemson – There’s no question the Tigers will win this one, hands down!
• #18 Arizona (pick) over #10 Iowa – Iowa won by 10 last year at home, I expect the Wildcats to be looking for revenge at home this year.

Pro Football Predictions – Week 2 

• Packers -14 over Bills – Green Bay is going to light up the scoreboard in their home opener against a much weaker Buffalo team.
• Falcons -7 over Cardinals – Atlanta lost a tough one at Pittsburgh last week, I expect them to bounce back.
• Seahawks +3.5 at Broncos – Seattle looked very good last week against the 49ers and Denver is not as good.
• Titans -5.5 over Steelers – Steelers had a hard time putting the Falcons away last week, Tennessee has the weapons to put them away.
• Chargers -7 over Jaguars – San Diego will be looking to redeem themselves in their home opener.
• Cowboys -7.5 over Bears – Pretty please?
• Texans -3 at Redskins – I don’t think Houston will make as many mistakes as Dallas, the defense that rattled Manning will have fun sacking McNabb.
• Raiders -3.5 over Rams – St. Louis kept it close against the Cards last week, but eventually they lost and Oakland is a better team than Arizona.

-Kanan

Save Us, Boise State!

A recent Yahoo!Sports column laments the backlash against Boise State from fans of automatic BCS conference schools due to the Broncos' prominent position in the pre-season polls (3rd in the AP, 5th in the Coaches').  It argues that Boise State's predicament, which could put them in the BCS title game should they once again go undefeated, is in fact a result of the so-called broken BCS system.  As I understand it, the article is basically saying we (BCS supporters) deserve to have the National Championship 'crashed' for not having a system that gives every team a fair chance to win.

College Football is broken indeed, but it has nothing to do with the fact that teams from six conferences and Notre Dame are the only ones with a 'clear' path to the Championship game.  The problem IS NOT the BCS!  The real problem is that the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) is littered with teams that do not belong there.  Boise State clearly is not one of those teams!  Most of the teams in its current conference, the WAC, are (except for Fresno St.).  Their next one, the Mountain West, is only slightly better with BYU and Utah leaving the conference.

Pre-season polls are the other major problem with college football because they influence the opinion of the human polls throughout the season, doing things like giving the Broncos a fast track to the title game should they remain undefeated.  I believe, however, that a more even field allows the pre-season polls to better correct themselves.

The upcoming conference re-alignments provide the perfect opportunity to correct whats ailing the game, let's get rid of the teams that do not belong.  This improves the quality of the game all around, we not only get a more accurate championship game, we get a better season all around!  It also gives teams that are unable or unwilling to invest the resources it takes to be competitive in FBS to actually be competitive in another division.  There would be absolutely no backlash to Boise State playing for the National Championship if their schedule wasn't littered with the Utah States and NMSUs of the world.

This is not to insult teams in mid-major conferences, but there is an extremely high level of delusion out there regarding teams' ability to compete.  Sure Boise State and Utah can compete with and beat teams from BCS conferences, but why is it that pro-playoff BCS bashers always seem to forget that Hawaii was slaughtered by Georgia in the Sugar Bowl?  I'm not going to list which teams I think should be cut from FBS, that's obviously the hard part, but I'm not proposing a drastic cut, going from 120 to 100 schools would make a big difference.

An even more awesome solution would be to cap it at 100 and promoting champions from other divisions while dropping bottom feeders on a regular basis, the way many soccer leagues function.  Like that would ever happen!

Bottom line: I don't think BCS supporters deserve to have Boise State crash the championship game to teach us a lesson in fairness.  I think playoff proponents deserve to have Boise State in the championship game, maybe even against a team from that other media darling, the SEC.  The result will hopefully shut them up for a couple of weeks.

A college football playoff is a popular idea, and that is because the sports media wants to condense the sport into a neat little package that can be sold to the masses every December the way March Madness is sold.  Real college football fans: Texas fans, Alabama fans, Florida fans, USC fans, Ohio State fans, Michigan fans, Boise State fans, and all other fans that have something to root for other than their bracket, think a playoff system is a bad idea.  The college football season is the most perfect season in sports because every game matters.

Week 1 Predictions:

• #2 Ohio State -28.5 over Marshall - OSU had an opening day scare last year against Navy, but they're coming out of the gates to prove they belong at #2, Marshall lost 52-10 at Va Tech last year, a good comparable. 
• #15 Pitt +3 at #24 Utah - Pitt has a hell of a team, they're my pick to win the Big East
  
• #14 USC -22 at Hawaii - 22 points is a real bargain here, HI can't score like they once did
• #4 Texas -30.5 over Rice - UT playing a home game at Reliant Stadium
• Michigan -3 over UConn - Rich Rod's redemption year begins
• Mizzou -11.5 over Illinois - Last year Missouri crushed Illinois on the road in their 'transition' year, I expect them to be better this year
• #16 LSU (pick) over #18 UNC - Expected to be a close game, LSU wins on home field advantage
• Northwestern -5.5 at Vanderbilt - Vandy has a new coach, Northwestern has a very good one
• #12 Wisconsin -20.5 at UNLV - Wisconsin is another team that starts the season with something to prove
• Texas Tech -14 over SMU - SMU is a team on the rise, but I think Tech approaches this game as a must win to start the Tuberville era
• #6 Virginia Tech +2 over #5 Boise State - If someone's tired of hearing about how great Boise State is and how they're going to the championship game, its Va Tech.  I do think its a close one.

And I know what I'm talking about, because I briefly walked on the smurf turf before a groundskeeper politely asked me to leave :)

-Kanan