The BCS is ruining college football. - cougarguard.com — unofficial BYU Cougars / LDS sports, football, basketball forum and message board

Cali Coug · 10-27-2008, 05:29 AM

I am sick of this. The BCS has ruined the regular season of college football, at least as much as they possibly could. They have destroyed non-conference games, to the point where the actual college football season largely begins in week 4 or week 5 (there are a handful of upsets which are fun, and maybe 1 or 2 good matchups non-conference in the first 5 weeks, but that is about it).

Take a look at the top 25. Who have those teams played non-conference? Who has the best non-conference win in the top 25? Off the top of my head, it is likely OU v TCU. I believe only 5 teams in the top 25 have a non-conference loss (again, because they don't play good non-conference teams, not due to the greatness of the top 25). Those teams are TCU (OU), tOSU (USC), Michigan State (Cal), Oregon (Boise State), and UConn (North Carolina). The Pac 10, coincidentally, has been involved in 3 of those games, largely because the Pac 10 is about the only major conference to still play big non-conference games (something I think they regret this year and may not repeat in the future).

The BCS does not reward big non-conference games. It encourages a risk-averse strategy, ala Hawaii, which teams, including BYU, are buying into. The SEC has always had that strategy, as has the Big 10, by and large. It has spread to everyone else (to a lesser extent with the Pac 10).

Who is the best non-conference win against for the Big 12? Likely OU v TCU. Colorado beat WVU, but that isn't great. Missouri beat Illinois (also not real impressive anymore). That's about it.

Who is the SEC's best win non-conference? Georgia over ASU? Florida v Miami? South Carolina v NC State? Alabama v Clemson? That's it. None of those are impressive.

How about the Big 10? Michigan State v ND? PSU v Oregon State? Wisconsin v Fresno State? That's it. Seriously.

The Big East? Definitely South Florida v Kansas. WVU beat Auburn (decent, not great). Uconn beat UVA and Baylor (neither are great wins). Louisville v Kansas State (not great at all).

The ACC? They have done better than the others above. It is likely Maryland v Cal. Then you have VT v Nebraska, or Florida State v Colorado? North Carolina v ND? Georgia Tech v Mississippi State? Wake v Mississippi? Some decent wins, and all around far superior to the others listed.

And then there is the Pac 10: USC v Ohio State, USC v Virginia, Cal v Michigan State, Oregon v Purdue, UCLA v Tennessee. USC v Ohio State is good, the others are ok, not great.

There are very few great matchups anymore non-conference. It is a real shame.

Weeks 1-5 are almost exclusively [BCS team] v [directional very bad school]. The voters have already decided who is good and which conferences are great before the season begins.

I hate the BCS.

Give me a 16 team playoff. The first round is at the higher seeded team's stadium. The second round could be a continuation of the seeds with teams going to bowl games to play, or the seeds could be ignored for the 2nd round and the bowls could pick their best matchups, with bowls picking in a predetermined order. Then the final 4 play it out in 2 prestigious bowls, with the title game to follow. The top 16 teams could even be determined by a BCS-type formula. Rather than just SOS being a factor, they could separately factor in non-conference SOS to encourage risk taking.

Rather than feeling like a season is a bust for another top 15 finish (and maybe a reward of the Armed Forces Bowl), I could hold open hope for a slot in the top 16 and a chance at a magical run (however unlikely). Biggest and best event of the year!

10-27-2008, 05:29 AM	#1
Cali Coug Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 5,996	The BCS is ruining college football. I am sick of this. The BCS has ruined the regular season of college football, at least as much as they possibly could. They have destroyed non-conference games, to the point where the actual college football season largely begins in week 4 or week 5 (there are a handful of upsets which are fun, and maybe 1 or 2 good matchups non-conference in the first 5 weeks, but that is about it). Take a look at the top 25. Who have those teams played non-conference? Who has the best non-conference win in the top 25? Off the top of my head, it is likely OU v TCU. I believe only 5 teams in the top 25 have a non-conference loss (again, because they don't play good non-conference teams, not due to the greatness of the top 25). Those teams are TCU (OU), tOSU (USC), Michigan State (Cal), Oregon (Boise State), and UConn (North Carolina). The Pac 10, coincidentally, has been involved in 3 of those games, largely because the Pac 10 is about the only major conference to still play big non-conference games (something I think they regret this year and may not repeat in the future). The BCS does not reward big non-conference games. It encourages a risk-averse strategy, ala Hawaii, which teams, including BYU, are buying into. The SEC has always had that strategy, as has the Big 10, by and large. It has spread to everyone else (to a lesser extent with the Pac 10). Who is the best non-conference win against for the Big 12? Likely OU v TCU. Colorado beat WVU, but that isn't great. Missouri beat Illinois (also not real impressive anymore). That's about it. Who is the SEC's best win non-conference? Georgia over ASU? Florida v Miami? South Carolina v NC State? Alabama v Clemson? That's it. None of those are impressive. How about the Big 10? Michigan State v ND? PSU v Oregon State? Wisconsin v Fresno State? That's it. Seriously. The Big East? Definitely South Florida v Kansas. WVU beat Auburn (decent, not great). Uconn beat UVA and Baylor (neither are great wins). Louisville v Kansas State (not great at all). The ACC? They have done better than the others above. It is likely Maryland v Cal. Then you have VT v Nebraska, or Florida State v Colorado? North Carolina v ND? Georgia Tech v Mississippi State? Wake v Mississippi? Some decent wins, and all around far superior to the others listed. And then there is the Pac 10: USC v Ohio State, USC v Virginia, Cal v Michigan State, Oregon v Purdue, UCLA v Tennessee. USC v Ohio State is good, the others are ok, not great. There are very few great matchups anymore non-conference. It is a real shame. Weeks 1-5 are almost exclusively [BCS team] v [directional very bad school]. The voters have already decided who is good and which conferences are great before the season begins. I hate the BCS. Give me a 16 team playoff. The first round is at the higher seeded team's stadium. The second round could be a continuation of the seeds with teams going to bowl games to play, or the seeds could be ignored for the 2nd round and the bowls could pick their best matchups, with bowls picking in a predetermined order. Then the final 4 play it out in 2 prestigious bowls, with the title game to follow. The top 16 teams could even be determined by a BCS-type formula. Rather than just SOS being a factor, they could separately factor in non-conference SOS to encourage risk taking. Rather than feeling like a season is a bust for another top 15 finish (and maybe a reward of the Armed Forces Bowl), I could hold open hope for a slot in the top 16 and a chance at a magical run (however unlikely). Biggest and best event of the year!