Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, Oregon and Georgia all recently won major conference championships and clinched key berths in 4 of the next 5 coveted BCS bowl games. Here’s how his wins have changed my Top 25 Poll ranking for week 14 of college football.
1) Alabama (13-0): Beat last year’s national champion Florida 32-13 to win the SEC Conference Championship and the right to play Texas in the National Championship Game. There’s a reason Alabama has been ranked #1 for the past 7 consecutive weeks. Now you know why; the Crimson Tide players are better than the Gator players this year.
2) Texas (13-0): Almost got upset with a tenacious Nebraska defense, but used 1 second on the clock to kick a 46-yard field goal to win the Big 12 Championship, 13-12, and the right to play. Alabama in the National Championship Game.
3) Cincinnati (12-0) – Came from a 21-point deficit to beat Pittsburgh 45-44 to win the Big East Championship, and will face Florida in the Sugar Bowl. I like Cincinnati’s powerful, wide-ranging offense and unbeaten record, but not their defense. On the other hand, Florida’s outstanding defense gave up 32 points to Alabama.
4) Texas Christian (12-0) – Won the Mountain West Conference title and will now face undefeated Boise State (13-0) in the BCS Fiesta Bowl. Marks the first BCS game with two middleweight teams.
5) Boise State (13-0) – Won the Western Athletic Conference title and will now face undefeated Texas Christian in the Fiesta Bowl.
6) Florida (12-1): Lost the SEC title game to Alabama 32-13 and forfeited the right to defend its national title. Will takes on undefeated Cincinnati in the BCS Sugar Bowl. Florida fans, please shut up. There’s a difference between wanting to win, playing to win, thinking you’re going to win, and winning. Nuff said.
7) Oregon (10-2): Won the fight against Oregon State 37-33 to win the Pac-10 Conference title and a trip to the BCS Rose Bowl to face Ohio State. It played much tougher competition than the Atlantic Coast Conference and even the Big Ten teams.
8) Ohio State (10-2): Won the Big Ten title and will face Oregon in the Rose Bowl. It played much tougher competition than the Atlantic Coast Conference teams.
9) Georgia Tech (11-2): Beat Clemson 39-34 to win the Atlantic Coast Conference title and will play Iowa in the BCS Orange Bowl.
10) Iowa (10-2) – Runner-up in the Big Ten to Penn State, but beat the Nittany Lions head-on, and the Hawkeyes take their best defense to the Orange Bowl against Georgia Tech.
11) Penn State (10-2) – Runner-up in the Big Ten to Iowa. Will face Louisiana State in the Capital One Bowl, the next most prestigious bowl game after 5 BCS bowl games.
12) LSU (9-3) – Finished as runner-up to Alabama in the SEC West. Will faces Penn State in the Capital One Bowl.
13) Pittsburgh (9-3) – He gave Cincinnati everything it wanted and more before it lost to the Bearcats 45-44 in the Big East title game. Will faced North Carolina (8-4) in the Meineke Car Care Bowl game. Pitt should have deserved a better game of bowling.
14) Nebraska (9-4) – Received little attention as the Cornhuskers struggled earlier in the year to find an offense that could win games. Cursed close to upsetting Texas for the Big 12 Conference title. It will face Arizona (8-4) in the Holiday Bowl. This should be an excellent bowl game because these are two very worthy teams with much better-than-average defenses: Nebraska ranks 11th nationally in total defense and Arizona 22nd out of 120 major college teams.
15) Oregon State (8-4): Gave Oregon all it could handle in the Pac-10 title game before losing, 37-33. The Beavers are a dirty, mean team that headed to the Las Vegas Bowl to face Brigham Young (10-2). It tells you something when a 10-2 team faces an 8-4 team in a bowl game. The Cougars better make sure they bring their helmets to this one, otherwise the Beavers might just leave them for fools.
16) East Carolina (9-4) – Overcame Houston (10-3) for the United States Mid Major Conference Championship, 38-32, and earned a trip to the Liberty Bowl to face Arkansas (7- 5), the team absolutely no one wanted to play in the SEC. Arkansas led Georgia to the max, beating Texas A&M, Auburn, and South Carolina, and lost 3 road games to Florida, LSU, and Mississippi, all by just one field goal. Oh! This should be very interesting for East Carolina; there is no doubt that it will be interesting for Arkansas.
17) Stanford (8-4) – Could be the second best 8-4 team in the country. He played the toughest schedule 19 in his rise back to national recognition. Will faces Oklahoma (7-5) in the Sun Bowl. Oklahoma might be the best 7-5 team in the country.
18) Brigham Young (10-2) – Was runner-up to TCU in the Mountain West Conference. Will faces Oregon State (8-4) in the Las Vegas Bowl.
20) Utah (9-3) – Finished third behind TCU and BYU in the Mountain West Conference. Will faces California (8-4) in the Poinsettia Bowl.
21) California (8-4) – The season’s top yo-yo candidate – posted wins against UCLA, Arizona State, Arizona and Stanford, and heavy losses against Oregon, Southern California, Oregon State and Washington. Will faces Utah in the Poinsettia Bowl; two teams that deserve each other.
22) Houston (10-3): Lost to East Carolina (9-4) in the Conference USA championship game, 38-32, despite having the most explosive scoring offense in the nation. The fact that the Cougars are relegated to play the Air Force (7-5) in the Armed Forces Bowl shows what the people who really count think about Houston.
23) Southern California (8-4) – Most surprising power slide of the season, losing to Washington, Oregon, Stanford and Arizona. The Trojans had at least 11 BCS wins and bowl game appearances for 7 straight years, the most successful soccer program in the country during the streak that was snapped this year. Will faces Boston College (8-4) in the Emerald Bowl. If USC doesn’t beat Boston College, its image will take another big hit.
24) Central Michigan (11-2): beat Ohio (9-4), 20-10, for the Mid American Conference Championship, and will face Troy ((9-3), the Sun Conference Champion Belt, at the GMAC Bowl.
25) No other team impresses me enough to deserve my 25th spot. Fill in your own favorite because it doesn’t make a nickel difference to me.
This is not my last Top 25 poll for this season. The next and final one will be posted after the National Championship Game between Alabama and Texas on January 2. 7. Until then, enjoy all 34 bowl games.
Copyright © 2009 Ed Bagley