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redneckgaijinFirst the observation.
For the last three years, Boise State's football team has been a legitimate contender for the national championship... anywhere except the BCS system, which is rigged to favor the richest colleges (and thus secure to them the revenues from the largest and most important bowl games).
In a fair world, there would be a playoff system, like in high school and professional sports. However, in those leagues the rulemaking authority creates and regulates the leagues and conferences. In college football, the leagues and conferences preceded the NCAA- indeed they created it. It has to obey the colleges, not the other way around. It is extremely unlikely that any true playoff system, or more important a redistricting of conferences to make them more equal, will ever happen.
The example of Boise State, and to a lesser extent Utah and TCU, does mean an unending string of bad press for the so-called BCS conferences. The situation of haves and have-nots and the rigged system that separates them is a perpetual annoyance and embarrassment to the big schools. They must have some incentive, if not to actually address the problem, to at least shut them up for a while.
For Boise State, this might actually present a solution: namely, apply for a transfer out of the Western Athletic Conference and into either the Pac 10 (which has ambitions of becoming the Pac 16) or the Big 12 (which next year drops to 11 teams with Colorado going to the Pac 10).
I doubt it'll happen, but it would accomplish two things for Boise State's program. It would guarantee them a schedule that the pundits would respect- no more playing Fresno and New Mexico State. And it would give them a shot at a guaranteed BCS bowl slot- something it doesn't have now. The BCS conferences, on the other hand, would be able to prove that their system really does work- programs that consistently produce superior teams could look forward to inclusion in the BCS system. (And, at the same time, once Boise's on the inside, a lot of the argument for redistricting or playoffs gets silenced.)
Anyway... that's my thought. On to the first serious (if the word can be used) look at this year's Stupor Bowl contenders.
For those who don't know, the Stupor Bowl is my hypothetical matchup of the two worst Division 1-A college football teams, based on worst win-loss record, in a last hope to salvage something from their season. The only hard and fast restrictions: each of the two teams must come from a different conference, and neither team may have won their final regular-season game. As a general rule I give preference to those teams which, from size or history, ought to have done better than they did.
A couple weeks ago I took a quick look at which teams were eligible, just to have the list. Since then some teams have been fortunate enough to get off that list, so here's a bit more in-depth look at who's left, by conference.
BCS CONFERENCES
ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE
DUKE (1-6) - Duke may be a perpetual basketball power, but they're a perpetual football punching bag. Even in the weakest of the BCS conferences, this school can only achieve a win against a I-AA school (Elon). The only two remotely close losses they've had were against almost-as-bad Wake Forest and Maryland. To make things worse, they don't have any real "weak sister" matchups remaining on their schedule; their best hope for a second win would be against 3-4 Virginia on November 6.
BIG TEN CONFERENCE
MINNESOTA (1-7) - The perpetual punching bag of the Big 10, Minnesota merely continues a long string of lousy play. Three of their four remaining games are against Top 25 teams, including undefeated Michigan State. Their only hope, however bleak, for win #2 is against the University of Illinois November 13.
PACIFIC 10 CONFERENCE
WASHINGTON STATE (1-7) - There was, believe it or not, a time when Washington State was, if not great, at least respectable on the gridiron. Those days are long gone. That said, their best remaining hope of a second win is against 3-4 Arizona State next Saturday.
NON-BCS CONFERENCES
CONFERENCE USA
MEMPHIS and MARSHALL (both 1-6)
Marshall, not all that long ago, had a program that BCS teams feared, with the threat of being a "BCS buster" and making it into those treasured high-dollar bowl games. Memphis, on the other hand, has reeked pretty consistently all along. These two teams play one another on November 13, so at least one of these two will have to get that second win and thus escape Stupor Bowl shame.
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
AKRON (0-8) - One of the two remaining perfectly unvictorious teams in Div. 1-A football, and thus one of the two front-runners for Stupor Bowl dishonor. (Which is a shame, because I just like the name, "Akron Zips." Yes, their team is the Zips.) Despite this, they have two legitimate chances to win still on their schedule- against Ball State (2-6) on the 6th and Buffalo (2-5) on the 20th.
EASTERN MICHIGAN (1-7) - One of the Stupor Bowl honorees (ha) last year, Eastern Michigan managed this year to scrape up a win against Ball State. Western Michigan and Buffalo (on the 13th and 20th respectively) offer the best chance for a second win.
BOWLING GREEN (1-7) - Of these three teams, Bowling Green has the strongest schedule remaining. To give hope to fans (if any), I should point out that since this is the Mid-American Conference, this isn't exactly saying much- the four teams Bowling Green has remaining on the schedule have a combined record of 14 wins, 17 losses. Their best chance to get out of the Stupor Bowl is to defeat 2-6 Central Michigan next weekend.
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE
NEW MEXICO (0-8) - Just barely missed the Stupor Bowl last year, but this year they seem bent on making a run for the cellar of college football. In order to remain perfectly dreadful, though, they've got two 2-6 and one 3-5 team to get by, though, so it's not a lock yet by any means. The other team just has to out-bungle them.
UNLV (1-7) - One win... against New Mexico. Yeah. They face two of the three teams New Mexico has hopes against, though, so it's not impossible.
SUN BELT CONFERENCE
(note: THE WORST CONFERENCE IN BOWL DIVISION FOOTBALL. I mean it- if every single team in this conference were bumped down to Division 1-AA, not a single one would be missed.)
WESTERN KENTUCKY (1-6) - The other 2009 Stupor Bowl selectee actually broke its 26-game losing record yesterday, not just beating but trouncing University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The alumni will probably be happy with that, but to be completely clear of the Stupor Bowl they'd still need a second win...
NORTH TEXAS (1-6) and FLORIDA ATLANTIC (1-5)
... and Western Kentucky plays these two teams over the coming two weeks. Those two games are vital for all three of these teams, since a victory meansdinner at Cici's Pizza, coach's treat elimination from Stupor Bowl contention.
Quick note: I read that North Texas has just fired its head coach after racking up only six wins in three and a half seasons. Whatever else you say about the decision, you can't say it was premature, can you?
WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
SAN JOSE STATE (1-7) - Yet another perpetually sucky team- but this year more so than usual.
NEW MEXICO STATE (1-6) - A past Stupor Bowl selectee.
Guess which two teams play each other Saturday? Two teams enter, one team leaves... with an L.
There you go- fifteen teams remaining... oh, you want rankings? OK, from worst to least sucky:
1) AKRON (0-8)
2) NEW MEXICO (0-8)
all others with 1 win
3) WASHINGTON STATE (BCS school, win against I-AA, no close defeats)
4) DUKE (BCS school, win against I-AA, 2 close defeats)
5) NEW MEXICO STATE (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, no close losses)
6) UNLV (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, no close losses)
7) SAN JOSE STATE (non-BCS school, win against I-AA team, EXTREMELY hard schedule, 1 close loss)
8) MEMPHIS (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 1 close loss)
9) MARSHALL (non-BCS school, past history of excellence, win against I-A team with winning record, 1 close loss against Top 25 school)
10) MINNESOTA (BCS school, win against I-A, 2 close defeats)
11) WESTERN KENTUCKY (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
12) EASTERN MICHIGAN (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
13) NORTH TEXAS (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
14) FLORIDA ATLANTIC (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
15) BOWLING GREEN (non-BCS school, past history of excellence, win against I-A team, 3 close losses)
There's your standings for the time being. See you for more Stupor Bowl action next weekend...
For the last three years, Boise State's football team has been a legitimate contender for the national championship... anywhere except the BCS system, which is rigged to favor the richest colleges (and thus secure to them the revenues from the largest and most important bowl games).
In a fair world, there would be a playoff system, like in high school and professional sports. However, in those leagues the rulemaking authority creates and regulates the leagues and conferences. In college football, the leagues and conferences preceded the NCAA- indeed they created it. It has to obey the colleges, not the other way around. It is extremely unlikely that any true playoff system, or more important a redistricting of conferences to make them more equal, will ever happen.
The example of Boise State, and to a lesser extent Utah and TCU, does mean an unending string of bad press for the so-called BCS conferences. The situation of haves and have-nots and the rigged system that separates them is a perpetual annoyance and embarrassment to the big schools. They must have some incentive, if not to actually address the problem, to at least shut them up for a while.
For Boise State, this might actually present a solution: namely, apply for a transfer out of the Western Athletic Conference and into either the Pac 10 (which has ambitions of becoming the Pac 16) or the Big 12 (which next year drops to 11 teams with Colorado going to the Pac 10).
I doubt it'll happen, but it would accomplish two things for Boise State's program. It would guarantee them a schedule that the pundits would respect- no more playing Fresno and New Mexico State. And it would give them a shot at a guaranteed BCS bowl slot- something it doesn't have now. The BCS conferences, on the other hand, would be able to prove that their system really does work- programs that consistently produce superior teams could look forward to inclusion in the BCS system. (And, at the same time, once Boise's on the inside, a lot of the argument for redistricting or playoffs gets silenced.)
Anyway... that's my thought. On to the first serious (if the word can be used) look at this year's Stupor Bowl contenders.
For those who don't know, the Stupor Bowl is my hypothetical matchup of the two worst Division 1-A college football teams, based on worst win-loss record, in a last hope to salvage something from their season. The only hard and fast restrictions: each of the two teams must come from a different conference, and neither team may have won their final regular-season game. As a general rule I give preference to those teams which, from size or history, ought to have done better than they did.
A couple weeks ago I took a quick look at which teams were eligible, just to have the list. Since then some teams have been fortunate enough to get off that list, so here's a bit more in-depth look at who's left, by conference.
BCS CONFERENCES
ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE
DUKE (1-6) - Duke may be a perpetual basketball power, but they're a perpetual football punching bag. Even in the weakest of the BCS conferences, this school can only achieve a win against a I-AA school (Elon). The only two remotely close losses they've had were against almost-as-bad Wake Forest and Maryland. To make things worse, they don't have any real "weak sister" matchups remaining on their schedule; their best hope for a second win would be against 3-4 Virginia on November 6.
BIG TEN CONFERENCE
MINNESOTA (1-7) - The perpetual punching bag of the Big 10, Minnesota merely continues a long string of lousy play. Three of their four remaining games are against Top 25 teams, including undefeated Michigan State. Their only hope, however bleak, for win #2 is against the University of Illinois November 13.
PACIFIC 10 CONFERENCE
WASHINGTON STATE (1-7) - There was, believe it or not, a time when Washington State was, if not great, at least respectable on the gridiron. Those days are long gone. That said, their best remaining hope of a second win is against 3-4 Arizona State next Saturday.
NON-BCS CONFERENCES
CONFERENCE USA
MEMPHIS and MARSHALL (both 1-6)
Marshall, not all that long ago, had a program that BCS teams feared, with the threat of being a "BCS buster" and making it into those treasured high-dollar bowl games. Memphis, on the other hand, has reeked pretty consistently all along. These two teams play one another on November 13, so at least one of these two will have to get that second win and thus escape Stupor Bowl shame.
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
AKRON (0-8) - One of the two remaining perfectly unvictorious teams in Div. 1-A football, and thus one of the two front-runners for Stupor Bowl dishonor. (Which is a shame, because I just like the name, "Akron Zips." Yes, their team is the Zips.) Despite this, they have two legitimate chances to win still on their schedule- against Ball State (2-6) on the 6th and Buffalo (2-5) on the 20th.
EASTERN MICHIGAN (1-7) - One of the Stupor Bowl honorees (ha) last year, Eastern Michigan managed this year to scrape up a win against Ball State. Western Michigan and Buffalo (on the 13th and 20th respectively) offer the best chance for a second win.
BOWLING GREEN (1-7) - Of these three teams, Bowling Green has the strongest schedule remaining. To give hope to fans (if any), I should point out that since this is the Mid-American Conference, this isn't exactly saying much- the four teams Bowling Green has remaining on the schedule have a combined record of 14 wins, 17 losses. Their best chance to get out of the Stupor Bowl is to defeat 2-6 Central Michigan next weekend.
MOUNTAIN WEST CONFERENCE
NEW MEXICO (0-8) - Just barely missed the Stupor Bowl last year, but this year they seem bent on making a run for the cellar of college football. In order to remain perfectly dreadful, though, they've got two 2-6 and one 3-5 team to get by, though, so it's not a lock yet by any means. The other team just has to out-bungle them.
UNLV (1-7) - One win... against New Mexico. Yeah. They face two of the three teams New Mexico has hopes against, though, so it's not impossible.
SUN BELT CONFERENCE
(note: THE WORST CONFERENCE IN BOWL DIVISION FOOTBALL. I mean it- if every single team in this conference were bumped down to Division 1-AA, not a single one would be missed.)
WESTERN KENTUCKY (1-6) - The other 2009 Stupor Bowl selectee actually broke its 26-game losing record yesterday, not just beating but trouncing University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The alumni will probably be happy with that, but to be completely clear of the Stupor Bowl they'd still need a second win...
NORTH TEXAS (1-6) and FLORIDA ATLANTIC (1-5)
... and Western Kentucky plays these two teams over the coming two weeks. Those two games are vital for all three of these teams, since a victory means
Quick note: I read that North Texas has just fired its head coach after racking up only six wins in three and a half seasons. Whatever else you say about the decision, you can't say it was premature, can you?
WESTERN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
SAN JOSE STATE (1-7) - Yet another perpetually sucky team- but this year more so than usual.
NEW MEXICO STATE (1-6) - A past Stupor Bowl selectee.
Guess which two teams play each other Saturday? Two teams enter, one team leaves... with an L.
There you go- fifteen teams remaining... oh, you want rankings? OK, from worst to least sucky:
1) AKRON (0-8)
2) NEW MEXICO (0-8)
all others with 1 win
3) WASHINGTON STATE (BCS school, win against I-AA, no close defeats)
4) DUKE (BCS school, win against I-AA, 2 close defeats)
5) NEW MEXICO STATE (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, no close losses)
6) UNLV (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, no close losses)
7) SAN JOSE STATE (non-BCS school, win against I-AA team, EXTREMELY hard schedule, 1 close loss)
8) MEMPHIS (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 1 close loss)
9) MARSHALL (non-BCS school, past history of excellence, win against I-A team with winning record, 1 close loss against Top 25 school)
10) MINNESOTA (BCS school, win against I-A, 2 close defeats)
11) WESTERN KENTUCKY (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
12) EASTERN MICHIGAN (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
13) NORTH TEXAS (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
14) FLORIDA ATLANTIC (non-BCS school, win against I-A team, 2 close losses)
15) BOWLING GREEN (non-BCS school, past history of excellence, win against I-A team, 3 close losses)
There's your standings for the time being. See you for more Stupor Bowl action next weekend...
