College Football’s Shame

So the sports media was all atwitter today because Notre Dame had become BCS-eligible by beating Stanford.  That’s right, an impressive seven-point win over the now below-.500 Cardinal.  The Irish needed a touchdown with less than a minute left to overcome a one-point deficit and keep their Fiesta/Orange/Sugar Bowl hopes alive.  Now, despite standing eighth in the latest BCS rankings, it appears almost certain that Notre Dame will be headed to a BCS bowl game.  It’s just another sign that it’s more important to “travel well” and have a “national fanbase” then to win games.

The BCS may draw the most criticism when there’s controversy over who should play in the title game, so assuming form holds we should avoid that nauseating debate this year.  The truth is, without a playoff system there’s no way for any system to handle three unbeaten teams, or anything but two unbeaten teams really.  Still, the hidden controversy is the fact that every year undeserving teams end up making tens of millions of dollars by sneaking into the big money BCS games while other, better, more deserving teams end up in second-tier bowl games.

This happens for two reasons.  The first is that the BCS has promised automatic berths to the winners of the ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-10, and SEC.  Last year, the argument was that the Big East, without Miami, Virginia Tech, and now Boston College didn’t deserve an automatic berth.  9-1 West Virginia has managed to quell those cries, though I would point out that their schedule leaves much to be desired.  They beat Wofford, Maryland, and East Carolina out-of-conference and got hammered by Virginia Tech.  Beyond that, all they did was take advantage of a weak Big East.  For that, they get millions?

But it’s not just the Big East.  The dirty secret of college football is that most of the Big Six teams aren’t that good.  Look at the Big 12.  Or, as I call it, the Big 1 and the Little 11.  I defy you to find a team outside of Texas with a single quality win out of conference.  Here’s what you might find.  A home win by Iowa State over a 7-4 Iowa team.  The vaunted Texas Tech Red Raiders?  Their out-of-conference schedule consisted of Florida International, Sam Houston State, and Indiana State.  Still, they’ll coast to a quality bowl because they play in the Big 12.  Sure, they got absolutely destroyed by Texas, but at least they beat Baylor!  The Big 12 is notorious for this.  None of the teams schedule any tough out-of-conference games, and then rely on the conference’s reputation to carry them through.  Because of this, I credit Texas for going on the road and playing (and beating) Ohio State this year.  While their in conference schedule was far from demanding, they did go undefeated and deserve their shot at USC.

So this brings us back to the big problem.  Most folks (including me) would argue that USC, Texas, Penn State, and LSU (assuming they beat Georgia in the SEC Championship Game) deserve their shot at the big money.  I really don’t think West Virginia does, and I remain underwhelmed by Virginia Tech.  Who did they beat this year?  In their one true test, they got destroyed by Miami.  At home.  But at least if those six made the BCS games, I could soothe my conscience by saying that they lost, at most, one game, and won their conference.  It’s the two at-large bids that are so troubling.

The first appears certain to go to the Irish.  The belief exists that inviting Notre Dame to your bowl game ensures massive ticket sales and ratings.  This may not be as true as it once was, but clearly Notre Dame has a national, devoted following.  It’s a shame that the reasons Notre Dame will get invited to a BCS bowl game have nothing to do with people thinking they’re one of the top eight teams in college football, but that’s the system we have in place.

For similar reasons, I expect to see Ohio State get the other at-large bid.  Despite going 9-2, the Buckeyes also look like a good bet to bring in big money.

So who’s left on the outside looking in? 10-1 Oregon.  The Ducks’ only loss came to consensus #1 USC.  They’ve played a tougher schedule than West Virginia or Virginia Tech, and come away with the same record.  Still, unless someone above them slips, it’s hard to believe that they’ll get an at-large bid over Notre Dame or Ohio State.  If they could move into the BCS top 6, they’d be guaranteed a spot but that looks unlikely to change if the teams above them win out.  As a former West Coast resident, I’ve gotten used to seeing the Pac-10 get the shaft, both in the BCS and in the media in general.  Recently, Sporting News magazine wrote that the Big 12 is a better conference than the Pac-10.  Even if you concede that USC and Texas are equal (which I don’t agree with), the two next teams in the Big 12 are 9-2 Texas Tech (who I already covered), and the 7-4 Colorado Buffalos.  The same Colorado team which lost 30-3 to Nebraska yesterday.  Ok, so maybe Nebraksa’s the third best team.  Except they lost to Kansas by 25.  The Pac-10 meanwhile has the 11-0 Trojans, the 10-1 Ducks, and the 9-1 UCLA Bruins.  Yes, UCLA will likely lose to USC next weekend, but still, 9-2 is a bit better than 7-4.  It’s not just this year.  California was left out last year, while in previous years Oregon and Washington have been denied chances at the National Championship.

What’s the point of this rambling monologue?  Nothing much, other than that while I absolutely love college football, I couldn’t hate the current system more.  At least under the pre-BCS system, no one pretended to be acting in the best interest of college football.  The bowls tried their hardest to get teams who would sell tickets, and the Rose Bowl always featured the Pac-10 champ against the Big Ten champ.  Nostalgia is a wonderful thing.