Last night, I had already written half of a blog post that I was intending to add this morning when I heard about this week's BCS standings. As you've likely heard by now, Stanford still trails undefeated LSU and Oklahoma State, as well as one-loss Alabama, in the BCS rankings. Despite watching Alabama lose on Saturday at home in a game in which they could barely complete a pass or kick a field goal, the BCS has determined that the Crimson Tide is superior to a Stanford squad that has yet to lose a game and has had only one team come within 25 points of beating them (USC last weekend). While I usually try not to post emotion-filled rants about why things suck (and, believe me, with the BCS that's often very difficult), I need to get a few thoughts down before this coming weekend when this all likely becomes moot because a) Stanford beats Oregon and jumps Alabama or b) Stanford loses to Oregon and falls out of the National Championship picture altogether.
First, I'll address the obvious: In sports, a team that doesn't lose a game should win its league. Stanford is not only part of the NCAA and FBS football, but it's also a BCS conference school. All of the (in my mind ridiculous) arguments that have been used against undefeated schools in the past, including Boise State, TCU and Utah in recent years, shouldn't apply to the Cardinal. While Stanford's schedule admittedly isn't as rigorous as that of an SEC team like Alabama, they're still playing solid, major conference competition on a weekly basis. And, not only are they playing them, they're destroying them. Saturday's game against Oregon State might have been the Cardinal's sloppiest performance of the 2011 season, and they still won by 25. They passed a very difficult road test at USC, winning in overtime, and manhandled a previously ranked Washington team at home. It's not Stanford's fault that the Pac-12 isn't stellar this year. If LSU and OKST run the table as well and Stanford gets left out as the third wheel, I could live with that. But the Cardinal getting bumped out by a one-loss Alabama team would, in my mind, eliminate any shred of credibility that the BCS has left.
Next, there's the absurd notion that because the LSU-Alabama game was close, the two SEC titans must be the two best teams in the country. In response, I'll first point out that the two worst teams in the country would probably play a close game, so the fact that Alabama only lost by three to mighty LSU suggests that LSU might not be as dominant as people think as much as it suggests that Alabama still might be the second best team in the nation. Before the game, commentators were talking about how, if LSU and Alabama played a classic game, the loser would still very much remain in the National Championship picture. Well, Saturday night's game was close, but it was far from a classic. The contest was marked by sloppy play on both sides, inconsistent offense and pathetic special teams. Based on Saturday night, it appears that both LSU and Alabama are far from complete teams primed to roll over any challenger in the National Championship game. Why must we assume that a 9-6 overtime game proves that these teams are the country's top two? Isn't it at least possible that Oklahoma State and Stanford are not only better than Alabama, but better than both of them?
Last, the argument that really drives me crazy is one I heard this morning from a friend who suggested that if Stanford played Alabama or LSU, they might put up a couple touchdowns but they'd probably allow 40+ points. What about Saturday night's SEC showdown suggests that either of these teams could score 40+ on Stanford? I understand that both team's have top defenses, but you don't need a team of future NFL stars to make most of the plays that the LSU and Alabama defenses were making on the opposing offenses. LSU couldn't complete a pass down field (other than the two that Tigers quarterback Jarrett Lee threw directly at the Alabama secondary), and Alabama's offense tried to get way too cute with an option pass that was intercepted. Why couldn't Stanford load up against the run, force these inconsistent quarterbacks to throw and make a few big defensive plays? It might not be likely, but by placing Alabama ahead of Stanford the BCS is unjustly taking it out of the realm of possibilities.
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