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Well, Texas did its job. Barely.

With their close-call victory in the Big 12 Championship Game, the Longhorns stayed in the Top Two, and ensured that Cincinnati (or worse, TCU) would not have their egos (and probably some limbs as well) crushed in the National Championship Game; and ensured we wouldn’t have to complain about a Big East nobody (or worse, a non-BCS conference nobody) making the National Title Game.

"[The Texas Longhorns] ensured that Cincinnati (or worse, TCU) would not have their egos (and probably some limbs as well) crushed in the National Championship Game.

Then one of the BCS’ own bowls screwed the whole thing up.

Let’s look at the matchups:

ROSE: Oregon vs. Ohio State
I’m all for this. The Rose Bowl maintains its identity as PAC-10 meets Big 10 whenever possible, and I believe that’s the way it should be. What can I say, I’m a traditionalist.

SUGAR: Florida vs. Cincinnati
This was actually the “worst-case scenario game” I envisioned had Texas somehow lost in theBig 12 Championship. Basically, my thought was, “Take UF’s dismantling of the Buckeyes three years ago and double it, and that’s how badly Florida would have crushed UC.” Now, it’s just an interesting matchup. It still won’t be close, and UC’s chest-thumping will still end by the second quarter… but it’s still an interesting matchup, for some strange reason.

ORANGE: Iowa vs. Georgia Tech
I think this will also be an interesting matchup. I might have taken Penn State over Iowa, if not for the Hawkeyes beating PSU this year. On the ACC end, surely I would have thought one of the Big East transplants would have had the ACC title by now. I’ll watch this game.

TITLE GAME: Alabama vs. Texas
The two best teams in college football will meet for the undisputed National Championship of NCAA Division I-A… nope, wait a minute. Flag on the play.

FIESTA: Boise State vs. TCU
No comment, except:

Are these fools in the BCS trying to sabotage their own system?

"You’re guaranteed one unbeaten team who is going to whine, call their senator and pursue some sort of government panel to analyze and determine how unfair the BCS is."

If the BCS’ divine mission is to pit the top two teams in football and come up with an undisputable National Champion, then why put two other unbeaten and unworthy teams together in the same game?

Now, no matter what happens in the National Championship Game, you’re guaranteed to have one unbeaten team who is going to whine, call their senator and pursue some sort of government panel to analyze and determine how unfair the BCS is. As if the government doesn’t have enough to worry about.

Put Boise State against Georgia Tech and TCU against Iowa, and we don’t have a problem. Well, Boise State might still prevail, but Tech would have a better shot at beating Boise State than Iowa would, so that’s my reasoning.  Lets’ face it… TCU wouldn’t stand a chanceagainst either one.

Then again, this probably isn’t all the BCS’ fault. The bowls (other than the Rose) still have their picks. Fiesta Bowl officials were probably just thrilled they get two unbeaten teams… no matter how dubious those teams are. Given, Boise State at least has a track record in the BCS, but wow… talk about no respect. “Hey Broncos, here you go, we’re handing you the easiest route to 14-0, but you’re not going to be any closer to National Title contention. Or respect.”

I know it’s weird, but I kinda feel for Boise State. Yes, their schedule is terrible, but dozens of major programs -- including Ohio State you may recall – apparently are too scared to pick up the phone to call BSU Athletics Director Gene Bleymaier and help him fill the open spot on his schedule for 2011. OSU even has an open spot itself. It’s pretty simple, Buckeyes. Boise State takes the loss, they’re out of contention. That’s what the BCS conferences want, right? To have BCS bowls all to themselves?

I am thankful, however, for the fact that Ohio lawmakers (most of them, anyway) are wise enough to realize that getting involved in the BCS-vs.-Playoff controversy is not the best use of their time. Apparently, this is not the case everywhere in Washington. As it turns out, a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee will apparently meet on Wednesday to consider a bill that would keep the BCS from marketing the National Championship Game as a championship game, without a playoff… some sort of “truth in advertising” drivel.

Aside from pointing out the sheer idiocy of the U.S. Government running something it has absolutely no business in, my response to that is this:

"It's just Cincinnati, Boise State, and TCU. These are not teams that we need to make a federal case out of."

“Hey guys, how's it coming with the health-care reform, the War on Terror, creating jobs, and making sure that the economy recovers so that real people might actually retire on time?”

It's just Cincinnati, Boise State, and TCU. These are not teams that we need to make a federal case out of. No offense, Bearcat fans, but UC is just not ready. The Buckeyes were not ready against Florida or LSU, either, but they had to find out the hard way. Then again, learning against Florida won’t do the Bearcats’ egos any favors, either.

All that having been said, I personally would support an eight-team playoff. However, I do not want to completely get rid of the bowl system, so I would personally pitch having some sort of a hybrid of the two. I guess my main conundrum is, what do you do with the BCS bowls? Obviously, we would probably have to sacrifice the tradition of the Rose Bowl -- which honestly would disappoint me -- because either one or both of the Big 10 and Pac-10 champions would probably be in the playoff bracket somewhere. There are a lot of questions that would have to be resolved. I don’t have the perfect solution, and would never claim that I do. However, it’s for the NCAA and/or the BCS to decide. The government has better things to do.

"We have to accept that the BCS is a painfully flawed system."

We have to accept that the BCS is a painfully flawed system. However, even under those circumstances, the BCS did its job this year. Period. The two best teams in college football will meet for the National Championship, two sideshow teams that think they're the best will meet in the Fiesta Bowl, and the Cincinnati Bearcats will put up a good fight for about 20 minutes against the Florida Gators.

Random Notes
In what I consider to be lateral move at best, former Cincinnati Bearcats coach Brian Kelly will take over the reins at the once-great football program at Notre Dame. Some have obviously disagreed with me in saying it is a lateral move... after all it's Notre Dame.  While It is true Notre Dame is a good brand and a merchandising machine, but Notre Dame is not the program that it once was. Sure, it's good for Coach Kelly that Notre Dame has all of its home games televised on NBC, but quite frankly, I would bet Charlie Weis would have preferred to have had a few of those games blacked out this year. My prediction is that Brian Kelly will feel the same during the 2010 season, before taking the Irish to a minor bowl in 2011.
I'm not saying this to be mean, I'm simply being honest. Brian Kelly has a lot of hype around him for leading the Bearcats to an unbeaten season. The best comparison I can think of is June Jones, who led the University of Hawaii to an unbeaten season before making, yes, a lateral move from Hawaii in the WAC to Southern Methodist in Conference USA. Lo and behold, SMU is in a bowl game this year at 7-5. It can happen.
Notre Dame has struggled ever since Lou Holtz left. Maybe Brian Kelly is the guy who can turn Notre Dame into a winner again. And who knows? Three seasons from now, I bet we'll all be laughing when “Dr. Lou” predicts Notre Dame will make the National Championship Game, like he did this year. Will we still be laughing if he's right?

Worst Bowl Game? Really? Last week, some guy at Fox Sports ordered this year's college football bowl games from worst to first. His pick for the worst… the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl in Detroit on December 26, the matchup between the Ohio Bobcats and the Marshall Thundering Herd. I will say, as an OU alum, I was offended at first. Now, I can't say OU is a BCS caliber team, and Marshall is only now starting to win again since leaving the Mid American Conference. But, seriously? This game is a worse bowl game than Rutgers - Central Florida in the St. Petersburg Bowl, or the SMU - Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl?
Then I saw what his top two games are: the Armed Forces Bowl (Air Force-Houston) and the Fiesta Bowl (Boise State vs. TCU). Yes, he actually has the Unbeaten Wannabes Bowl ranked above the National Championship Game. I’ll freely admit I’m biased here in defending the Bobcats, but those picks are ridiculous.
(By the way, Buckeye fans, he picked the Rose Bowl 6^th)

Tags: alabama crimson tide, boise state broncos, bowl championship series, brian kelly, cincinnati bearcats, college football, fiesta bowl, florida gators, georgia tech yellow jackets, house energy and commerce committee, iowa hawkeyes, lou holtz, marshall thundering herd, notre dame fighting irish, ohio bobcats, ohio state buckeyes, orange bowl, oregon ducks, pasadena, playoff, rose bowl, sugar bowl, texas christian horned frogs, texas longhorns, title game