Official College Football Thread

[WHarris1]

I'm not saying that the Rose won't pick Illinois, but a Georgia - USC matchup is a lot more intriguing than Illinois - USC. I think when all is said and done, the Rose will stick with tradition, but there is nothing forcing them to do so.

Actually if LSU goes to the ship the Rose would have to get permission from the Sugar to select Georgia, or something along those lines, which will not happen.

[Chisoxfn]

It's virtually assured.... Their other choices are ASU (they don't want a Pac 10 conference game), Hawaii (No chance), Kansas (Hawaii of the midwest), WVU (coming off a loss to Wanny).

 

The only danger is if UGa is in the championship. OSU will be one, giving Rose the first replacement pick... and the most lucrative matchup would be LSU-USC, which might be better than the championship game)

Those are the two best teams in the country right now (OU would be the 3rd best). I would not want to play USC right now, I really think they'd beat anyone they'd play.

[shipps]

Those are the two best teams in the country right now (OU would be the 3rd best). I would not want to play USC right now, I really think they'd beat anyone they'd play.

USC might sleep on my Illini brethren.

[Chisoxfn]

USC might sleep on my Illini brethren.

Jeff, I hope the Illinis play USC so I can see the Illini get the absolute s*** kicked out of them. The Big 10 was so bad this year, its a joke that they'll have 2 BCS teams (Illinois is not deserving of a BCS bid). I am also completely against OSU in the National Championship game but I will at least admit with 1 win and the fact that they were top dogs most of the season that I really can't say that Virginia Tech deserves to be in the game ahead of them.

 

I think USC and LSU are better teams but both have 2 losses to OSU's 1. Bottom line, OSU should be in there. I don't think they are that good but they won the games and they now get the reward of getting a national tv beatdown.

[shipps]

Jeff, I hope the Illinis play USC so I can see the Illini get the absolute s*** kicked out of them. The Big 10 was so bad this year, its a joke that they'll have 2 BCS teams (Illinois is not deserving of a BCS bid). I am also completely against OSU in the National Championship game but I will at least admit with 1 win and the fact that they were top dogs most of the season that I really can't say that Virginia Tech deserves to be in the game ahead of them.

 

I think USC and LSU are better teams but both have 2 losses to OSU's 1. Bottom line, OSU should be in there. I don't think they are that good but they won the games and they now get the reward of getting a national tv beatdown.

Dude this is not the powerhouse USC of all the yesteryears,the big ten was down but so are all of the other conferences with the exception of the SEC.If Stanford can beat USC along with Jim Harbaaaaaw, Illini has a pretty damn good chance with the playmakers they have(Benn,Mendenhall both to be first rounders eventually).

[aboz56]

USC has no claim to be anywhere significant. They had their chance and lost two games and one was at home to Stanford. I'm tired of hearing about how great and talented they are. They choked.

[Chisoxfn]

Dude this is not the powerhouse USC of all the yesteryears,the big ten was down but so are all of the other conferences with the exception of the SEC.If Stanford can beat USC along with Jim Harbaaaaaw, Illini has a pretty damn good chance with the playmakers they have(Benn,Mendenhall both to be first rounders eventually).

And a QB that can't throw the ball. USC's defense is quicker and better than any defense in the big ten (yes...that includes TOSU) and there offense is faster and far more athletic than any offense in the big ten. I should note that I think Illinois has quite a few very good athletes, but I don't think they have enough good football players to win (especially at the QB position where Juice is far too one dimensional to beat a USC team that is fully capable of both putting up points and stopping the opposition from putting up points).

 

No doubt USC choked massively to Stanford and they weren't playing football like they currently are. Right now USC is playing awesome (the defense is healthy and they have John David Booty healthy and it is making a major difference). Oh and you guys need to remember this is all coming from one major USC hater. USC's other loss was a tough loss to the best team in the country at the time (in the hardest place to play in the country...ie Oregon).

 

This season I feel the Big 12, SEC, and Pac 10 were all pretty solid conferences. Big 12 in the sense that I don't buy into the Kansas and Missouri being horrid teams. I think all three are good teams, with Mizzu being a very good team (top 10 for sure, Kansas a top 10 this season due to it being a down season in college football and OU being a legitimate top 5 team that had one awful loss thanks to there QB going down). SEC has LSU (who is ridiculously talented and didn't really have a bad loss, problem is they had 2 losses), Florida (they are quite good), Tennessee (legit top 15 team), and Georgia (down the stretch Georgia has been a top 4 team and deserve there ranking every bit). The Pac 10 has ASU (who is not quite a top 10 team, but for sure a top 15 team thanks to a strong defense; I'd actually say ASU and Illinois are similar in that neither one is a complete team in my mind but both are solid but unable to compete against the premiere teams), USC (i already made my case) and at this point they no longer have Oregon and Cal but for most of the season both of those teams were legit top 15 teams (Cal absolutely collapsed around mid-season, but when USC played Cal, Cal was still a good team, same with Oregon who was the best team in the country two weeks ago).

 

The Big 10 has Ohio State, who is a legit top 10 team, borderline top 5 team who happened to play an easy schedule (not there fault that the conference was down this year) and due to other teams taking s***s they were able to get the National Championship bid (again I don't fault them, it just happened to work out for em). Michigan is a talented team but injuries to Henne/Hart and just an overall negative vibe from the App State game makes them no better than Top 20 (and that may be a stretch). Wiscy is a borderline top 25 team (they are a decent team, but not a good one). Illinois is the 2nd best team in that conference and after that I really dont' think you have anyone very good (Indy is the next best team and they are completely bowl worthy and a top 35 team but come on, just look at the conference, that isn't strong).

[Jenksismyhero]

And a QB that can't throw the ball. USC's defense is quicker and better than any defense in the big ten (yes...that includes TOSU) and there offense is faster and far more athletic than any offense in the big ten. I should note that I think Illinois has quite a few very good athletes, but I don't think they have enough good football players to win (especially at the QB position where Juice is far too one dimensional to beat a USC team that is fully capable of both putting up points and stopping the opposition from putting up points).

 

No doubt USC choked massively to Stanford and they weren't playing football like they currently are. Right now USC is playing awesome (the defense is healthy and they have John David Booty healthy and it is making a major difference). Oh and you guys need to remember this is all coming from one major USC hater. USC's other loss was a tough loss to the best team in the country at the time (in the hardest place to play in the country...ie Oregon).

 

This season I feel the Big 12, SEC, and Pac 10 were all pretty solid conferences. Big 12 in the sense that I don't buy into the Kansas and Missouri being horrid teams. I think all three are good teams, with Mizzu being a very good team (top 10 for sure, Kansas a top 10 this season due to it being a down season in college football and OU being a legitimate top 5 team that had one awful loss thanks to there QB going down). SEC has LSU (who is ridiculously talented and didn't really have a bad loss, problem is they had 2 losses), Florida (they are quite good), Tennessee (legit top 15 team), and Georgia (down the stretch Georgia has been a top 4 team and deserve there ranking every bit). The Pac 10 has ASU (who is not quite a top 10 team, but for sure a top 15 team thanks to a strong defense; I'd actually say ASU and Illinois are similar in that neither one is a complete team in my mind but both are solid but unable to compete against the premiere teams), USC (i already made my case) and at this point they no longer have Oregon and Cal but for most of the season both of those teams were legit top 15 teams (Cal absolutely collapsed around mid-season, but when USC played Cal, Cal was still a good team, same with Oregon who was the best team in the country two weeks ago).

 

The Big 10 has Ohio State, who is a legit top 10 team, borderline top 5 team who happened to play an easy schedule (not there fault that the conference was down this year) and due to other teams taking s***s they were able to get the National Championship bid (again I don't fault them, it just happened to work out for em). Michigan is a talented team but injuries to Henne/Hart and just an overall negative vibe from the App State game makes them no better than Top 20 (and that may be a stretch). Wiscy is a borderline top 25 team (they are a decent team, but not a good one). Illinois is the 2nd best team in that conference and after that I really dont' think you have anyone very good (Indy is the next best team and they are completely bowl worthy and a top 35 team but come on, just look at the conference, that isn't strong).

 

This is what cracks me up about trying to pick the best conference. How do we know the SEC was good? How do you know the Big 12 was solid? Seems to me the big 12 is just as good as the big ten - a couple of "top" teams (even though only one team truly proved its better - OU) and the rest were crap. The SEC was the same way. Rankings mean diddly crap because at the beginning of the year the SEC had some highly ranked teams, who then played and beat up each other. So even if Team A sucks and beats Team B who also sucks, if Team B happens to be ranked then it looks like a "good loss" to a "good team." With no reference whatsoever, its hard to compare conferences and decide who is better - unless there's a top matchup, like a Texas-OSU, in the non-conference part of the schedule.

 

And after this season I'm officially just as good at predicting how good/bad teams are than the "experts." I think this season more than any other has proven that there are no "dominant" programs - with the reduction in scholarships more talent is going to mid-level teams, opening up more and more chances to beat "top" teams.

[Rex Hudler]

This is what cracks me up about trying to pick the best conference. How do we know the SEC was good? How do you know the Big 12 was solid? Seems to me the big 12 is just as good as the big ten - a couple of "top" teams (even though only one team truly proved its better - OU) and the rest were crap. The SEC was the same way. Rankings mean diddly crap because at the beginning of the year the SEC had some highly ranked teams, who then played and beat up each other. So even if Team A sucks and beats Team B who also sucks, if Team B happens to be ranked then it looks like a "good loss" to a "good team." With no reference whatsoever, its hard to compare conferences and decide who is better - unless there's a top matchup, like a Texas-OSU, in the non-conference part of the schedule.

 

And after this season I'm officially just as good at predicting how good/bad teams are than the "experts." I think this season more than any other has proven that there are no "dominant" programs - with the reduction in scholarships more talent is going to mid-level teams, opening up more and more chances to beat "top" teams.

 

Very simply, I have seen both conferences in depth. The SEC is much better than the Big Ten this year. The depth of the SEC is what sets it apart.

[thedoctor]

i'm as big of an illinois fan as anyone but they would struggle to keep it within two touchdowns against usc.

 

still, i don't really care. all of this is just more validation for zook on the recruiting trail. they will continue to add top-notch talent and improve as a program.

 

i know there was a lot of skepticism here regarding zook's ability to lead the program. if they end up in the rose bowl this year, i'd have to think that some of the "zook can't coach" stigma would be put further to rest.

[danman31]

USC has no claim to be anywhere significant. They had their chance and lost two games and one was at home to Stanford. I'm tired of hearing about how great and talented they are. They choked.

What, and everyone else didn't too? Everyone's consensus #2 is LSU and they lost to 2 unranked teams, that's nothing spectacular either.

 

It goes back to the argument of eliminating preseason polls because LSU was going to get first crack at every opportunity. Maybe if people reevaluated things they would have been different. There's really nothing that sets any of the 2 loss teams apart. There is no clear cut argument because everyone f***ed up. If Hawaii would have at least dominated Washington I would have tried to argue them over LSU, but they should have lost their game so I can't make that argument.

[Rex Hudler]

What, and everyone else didn't too? Everyone's consensus #2 is LSU and they lost to 2 unranked teams, that's nothing spectacular either.

 

It goes back to the argument of eliminating preseason polls because LSU was going to get first crack at every opportunity. Maybe if people reevaluated things they would have been different. There's really nothing that sets any of the 2 loss teams apart. There is no clear cut argument because everyone f***ed up. If Hawaii would have at least dominated Washington I would have tried to argue them over LSU, but they should have lost their game so I can't make that argument.

 

LSU lost two games in triple OT. They kicked the crap out of Va Tech. I'd say that sets them apart from the other teams.

[danman31]

LSU lost two games in triple OT. They kicked the crap out of Va Tech. I'd say that sets them apart from the other teams.

Sets them apart by slim margins though. Who cares if they lost in OT? Everyone wants to see LSU in there because they think they are the best when they struggled all season long and haven't dominated since Va Tech. I'm not arguing against them going necessarily, but I think it's foolish to write off other teams and simply hand it to LSU because 'they lost in OT' like that matters.

[fathom]

Illinois is going to the Rose Bowl.

[Jenksismyhero]

Very simply, I have seen both conferences in depth. The SEC is much better than the Big Ten this year. The depth of the SEC is what sets it apart.

 

Well i'm glad you figured it out!

 

Seriously though, depth is meaningless when you're talking about who the top few teams are. I agree the Big Ten drops off significantly after the 4th or 5th team, but so? That doesn't take away from the top teams. The play the schedules they are given. When an SEC bottom dweller like Mississippi State can get a couple of big wins, that tells me enough. That's like Northwestern beating Penn State or Wisky, traditionally strong programs in the Big Ten.

 

I think its a travesty that LSU is going to the NC. Give me a team that dominated most of their games, even with a loss or two, versus a team that squeaked by half their season and could easily be about 7-5 or 8-4.

[maggsmaggs]

Illinois is going to the Rose Bowl.

yeah they are, and hopefully mizzou gets to the Orange Bowl against Va. Tech. It would be a much better matchup than against Kansas.

[shipps]

i know there was a lot of skepticism here regarding zook's ability to lead the program. if they end up in the rose bowl this year, i'd have to think that some of the "zook can't coach" stigma would be put further to rest.

Well thats what Iam worried about.Now that Zook has proven he can coach along with being a notoriously good recruiter he will go elsewhere ala Bill Self.Everytime a coach has good success at Illinois he will eventually leave to a bigger name school no matter what the sport.Illinois is a step stool to bigger and better things,I hate to say.

[maggsmaggs]

Well i'm glad you figured it out!

 

Seriously though, depth is meaningless when you're talking about who the top few teams are. I agree the Big Ten drops off significantly after the 4th or 5th team, but so? That doesn't take away from the top teams. The play the schedules they are given. When an SEC bottom dweller like Mississippi State can get a couple of big wins, that tells me enough. That's like Northwestern beating Penn State or Wisky, traditionally strong programs in the Big Ten.

 

I think its a travesty that LSU is going to the NC. Give me a team that dominated most of their games, even with a loss or two, versus a team that squeaked by half their season and could easily be about 7-5 or 8-4.

In the same breath though, LSU could easily be undefeated still.

[Rex Hudler]

Sets them apart by slim margins though. Who cares if they lost in OT? Everyone wants to see LSU in there because they think they are the best when they struggled all season long and haven't dominated since Va Tech. I'm not arguing against them going necessarily, but I think it's foolish to write off other teams and simply hand it to LSU because 'they lost in OT' like that matters.

 

Ummm, isn't the point to find separation to pick the right two teams even if it is small?

[Buehrle>Wood]

Illinois is going to the Rose Bowl.

 

Yeah, saw it on the Sun-Times early this morning. They took down the story since then though.

[danman31]

Ummm, isn't the point to find separation to pick the right two teams even if it is small?

Yeah, I'm just saying it's bad when you are using 'they lost in OT' as an argument.

[thedoctor]

Illinois is going to the Rose Bowl.

 

[IlliniKrush]

i'm as big of an illinois fan as anyone but they would struggle to keep it within two touchdowns against usc.

 

still, i don't really care. all of this is just more validation for zook on the recruiting trail. they will continue to add top-notch talent and improve as a program.

 

i know there was a lot of skepticism here regarding zook's ability to lead the program. if they end up in the rose bowl this year, i'd have to think that some of the "zook can't coach" stigma would be put further to rest.

Agree with this 100%

[AssHatSoxFan]

bowls are shaping up as BCS: LSU v tUSO, Rose: USC v. Illinois, Orange: WVU v VaTech, Sugar: Georgia v Hawaii, Fiesta: OU v KU

[greasywheels121]

It looks like it's going to be IU and Oklahoma State in the Insight Bowl in Tempe, AZ on New Year's Eve.