2014 NCAA Football Thread

[OnWis97]

Good luck, Jim Harbaugh.

He doesn't need luck. He's already building a powerhouse team.

I hope so. College football is more fun when Michigan is good. I just hope he doesn't wear out his welcome too fast. It would be nice to see ~10 years of Meyer -vs- Harbaugh.

I hate Ohio State with a burning passion, but with the Buckeyes playing well and my Wolverines starting a new era, I would love to have a rivalry with both teams playing well. It feels like some of the hate had been lost in the rivalry durring the previous era of U of M football. Harbaugh is absolutely the right fit for the coach to reignite this rivalry, and I look forward to many great Michigan-Ohio State battles in the near future.

I don't love 'em either (though after Tressel is gone, I can stomach 'em)

But think about how irrelevant the Big Ten looked a few months ago. Last night was great for the Big Ten. The hiring of Harbaugh was great. While the bowl record was only 5-5 (6-5 counting OSU with two wins), OSU over Alabama, Michigan State over a National Title contender, and Wisconsin over Auburn were good. And I know December/January results tend to be over-played regarding what happens in the subsequent fall but I kinda think the Big Ten needed this. I know Wisconsin needed that after 59-doughnut and its new status as "Stepping Stone U."

[pianoknight]

IMO, stat of the game was OSU's four turnovers and still managing a 22 point win. Oregon is damn lucky that 2 or 3 of those weren't extra Buckeye touchdowns. Instead of 42-20, we could have been looking at 63-20, which is about the same magnitude that Oregon throttled the Seminoles.

Turnovers are always the x-factor and while Oregon played this game well, they were just constantly overpowered by Ohio State, especially in the second half when Elliott ran wild.

Solid effort, Oregon, but the only Ducks who are clutch in title games are coached by Gordon Bombay.

[HedleyLamarr]

Looks Oregon's "play us tough, and we fold like paper" reputation will remain intact. Congrats to Ohio State! Funny that the conference that most media types ignored and teased is the one who has a team standing tall at the end.

The conference is still hot garbage, but Ohio State was a great team. And damn did they get hot. Their last three games are ungodly.

Solid effort, Oregon, but the only Ducks who are clutch in title games are coached by Gordon Bombay.

...and Randy Carlyle.

[infrared41]

Looks Oregon's "play us tough, and we fold like paper" reputation will remain intact. Congrats to Ohio State! Funny that the conference that most media types ignored and teased is the one who has a team standing tall at the end.

The conference is still hot garbage, but Ohio State was a great team. And damn did they get hot. Their last three games are ungodly.

I don't know if I'd go that far. There's still a ways to go but the Big Ten got a nice start on the road back to respectability this season. It's still not top to bottom great, (then again, Indiana did knock off the SEC East champs this season) but the B1G is hardly the laughing stock it had been over the past 10 years or so.

This much I do know. My team exorcised all of it's demons this season.

[Lee Noire]

It's kinda funny to think back to November 29th now and remember how Ohio State was on the verge of playoff exclusion due to perceived weakness after Barrett's injury. Boy, that would've been a mistake, wouldn't it?

Would it have been a mistake? Switch TCU and Ohio State and we'd all be saying the same stuff. Half would say they got it right, and the other saying there should be more teams in the dance. We really have no way of knowing.

[pianoknight]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

[Lee Noire]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

[LEWJ]

Sorry, I posted this on the Sports Logos Thread and it wasn't the place for it:

I guess I'm a little bit peeved. Everyone is saying "Congrats to the Buckeyes, they deserved to be here and they proved it." But in the next breathe, people say "Well, Alabama was overrated all year. Their defense was no where near as advertised." Then after last night, people are saying "Well, Oregon didn't look like themselves. They didn't play their normal style of football." Now people are saying "Well, TCU would have been a better Championship game." Where does the discrediting end?

Why is no one just saying "Damn it... No more excuses. Ohio State is the best team in the country. End of discussion"? I look at this team and in their last 3 games, they've played 3 completely different style teams. Wisconsin was a dynamic, running team. Alabama was a brutal, physical, pro-style team. Oregon was a fast paced, up tempo, gimmick team. They faced the 3 finalist in the Heisman Trophy voting, all at 3 different positions. So its not like it was all running backs and Ohio State had great run defense. It was a QB, WR, and RB. The Buckeye defense was thought to be the weakness in every one of these games, yet thet adapted and overcame 3 different offenses.

This.

[Geoff]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

Teams outside the Power 5 have a shot, it's just easier to get a spot if you're in a Power 5.

[pianoknight]

Exactly. And the Big XII lacking a CCG hurts them. Maybe not as much as a team from the Sun Belt, but it's a disadvantage.

[dfwabel]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

That basically starts on this weekend with a process which goes to a general vote in April.

[IceCap]

Sorry, I posted this on the Sports Logos Thread and it wasn't the place for it:

I guess I'm a little bit peeved. Everyone is saying "Congrats to the Buckeyes, they deserved to be here and they proved it." But in the next breathe, people say "Well, Alabama was overrated all year. Their defense was no where near as advertised." Then after last night, people are saying "Well, Oregon didn't look like themselves. They didn't play their normal style of football." Now people are saying "Well, TCU would have been a better Championship game." Where does the discrediting end?

Why is no one just saying "Damn it... No more excuses. Ohio State is the best team in the country. End of discussion"? I look at this team and in their last 3 games, they've played 3 completely different style teams. Wisconsin was a dynamic, running team. Alabama was a brutal, physical, pro-style team. Oregon was a fast paced, up tempo, gimmick team. They faced the 3 finalist in the Heisman Trophy voting, all at 3 different positions. So its not like it was all running backs and Ohio State had great run defense. It was a QB, WR, and RB. The Buckeye defense was thought to be the weakness in every one of these games, yet thet adapted and overcame 3 different offenses.

Because people like to talk about this sort of thing and everyone agreeing on that one point would make the discussion really short. Jeez. Enjoy the OSU win and be happy. Enough with the Ohio/Cleveland persecution complex.

[CubsFanBudMan]

Congrats to the Buckeyes.

ESPN's way to early top 25 for next season:

1. TCU

2. Ohio State

3. Baylor

4. USC

Just whittling it down to the playoff field.

So... no ACC or SEC. Yeah, that will go over well. ESPN is doing this now so when they argue that 3 SEC teams should be in the playoff (like they did this year) they can point to this and assure everyone that they are unbiased.

TCU has no claim this year, because Baylor would have been the pick if the Big XII stuck with its one true champion motto and not waffled when TCU was 3rd with Iowa State left on the board. No upside there.

[Lee Noire]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

That basically starts on this weekend with a process which goes to a general vote in April.

So I took a look at that, and there are spots where it says "all division 1" a lot. All meaning all, or all meaning the power 5?

[pianoknight]

FCS

FBS

FAS?

F'ng Almighty Shekels?

[dfwabel]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

That basically starts on this weekend with a process which goes to a general vote in April.

So I took a look at that, and there are spots where it says "all division 1" a lot. All meaning all, or all meaning the power 5?

"All Division I" will the same as it does today.

However, on Saturday, the Power 5 Conferences will have their own private business meeting, apart from the other Division I schools to discuss their own issues. The structure of the Division i Board of Directors also changes in that it goes from 18 members (11 of which were Presidents/Chancellors from FBS playing schools) to 24 (5 from the Power 5; 5 from the Group of 5 FBS conferences; 5 from FCS, 5 from non-football Division I schools; 1 sitting AD, 1 student-athlete (non-voting); 1 faculty rep; 1 SWA (Senior Womens Admin.).

It is part of the new NCAA legislative structure which should take full effect in April 2016

[pianoknight]

Digging the Nike poster for OSU.

(On mobile, can't embed)

http://i.imgur.com/OTCSX2h.jpg

[Lee Noire]

TCU made their bed in the "One (or Two) True Co-Champions" conference, so all the bellyaching about them being worthy is silly.

Either the Big XII gets more teams and/or a CCG -OR- they can just keep quiet about the selection committee's choice. Trust me, in some future year the ACC Champ or SEC Champ or whomever will get left out. 4 slots, 5 conferences (and yes, ugh, The Irish).

That last sentence caught me. So are they really crowning a Division 1...ahem...FBS champion in which only 5 of the conferences are in play? That seems kinda messed up. NCAA should just create a new tier with only those 5 if that's the case.

That basically starts on this weekend with a process which goes to a general vote in April.

So I took a look at that, and there are spots where it says "all division 1" a lot. All meaning all, or all meaning the power 5?

"All Division I" will the same as it does today.

However, on Saturday, the Power 5 Conferences will have their own private business meeting, apart from the other Division I schools to discuss their own issues. The structure of the Division i Board of Directors also changes in that it goes from 18 members (11 of which were Presidents/Chancellors from FBS playing schools) to 24 (5 from the Power 5; 5 from the Group of 5 FBS conferences; 5 from FCS, 5 from non-football Division I schools; 1 sitting AD, 1 student-athlete (non-voting); 1 faculty rep; 1 SWA (Senior Womens Admin.).

It is part of the new NCAA legislative structure which should take full effect in April 2016

Got it. Thanks.

[infrared41]

Sorry, I posted this on the Sports Logos Thread and it wasn't the place for it:

I guess I'm a little bit peeved. Everyone is saying "Congrats to the Buckeyes, they deserved to be here and they proved it." But in the next breathe, people say "Well, Alabama was overrated all year. Their defense was no where near as advertised." Then after last night, people are saying "Well, Oregon didn't look like themselves. They didn't play their normal style of football." Now people are saying "Well, TCU would have been a better Championship game." Where does the discrediting end?

Why is no one just saying "Damn it... No more excuses. Ohio State is the best team in the country. End of discussion"? I look at this team and in their last 3 games, they've played 3 completely different style teams. Wisconsin was a dynamic, running team. Alabama was a brutal, physical, pro-style team. Oregon was a fast paced, up tempo, gimmick team. They faced the 3 finalist in the Heisman Trophy voting, all at 3 different positions. So its not like it was all running backs and Ohio State had great run defense. It was a QB, WR, and RB. The Buckeye defense was thought to be the weakness in every one of these games, yet thet adapted and overcame 3 different offenses.

Because people like to talk about this sort of thing and everyone agreeing on that one point would make the discussion really short. Jeez. Enjoy the OSU win and be happy. Enough with the Ohio/Cleveland persecution complex.

FWIW, Buckeye Nation thinks of our Cleveland contingent as our "slow" cousins. They aren't exactly the part of the family that we like to draw attention to.

Also, I've read every NCG article, wrap up, etc. than I can get my hands on and not one of them has so much as mentioned the stuff he's talking about. Everything I've run across has been nothing but complimentary. Hell, half of them are saying things like "is this the beginning of an Ohio State dynasty?"

[DarkJourney]

Congrats to the Buckeyes.

ESPN's way to early top 25 for next season:

1. TCU

2. Ohio State

3. Baylor

4. USC (YEAH RIGHT! I DON'T THINK SO)

5. Oregon

6. Michigan State

7. UCLA

8. Georgia

9. Clemson

10. Alabama

11. Ole Miss

12. Notre Dame

13. Arizona

14. Auburn

15. Arizona State

16. Wisconsin

17. LSU

18. Georgia Tech

19. Florida State

20. Boise State

21. Arkansas

22. Utah

23. Tennessee

24. Oklahoma State

25. Minnesota

Out of all the early top-25 lists for 2015, I think ESPN's is probably the worst. Just too many over and underrankings there to sit well with me. While not perfect, I think the best early top-25 I've read so far has been USA Today's. Gives tOSU their rightful due as a strong returning champion while also fairly acknowledging every other team's strengths and weaknesses.

1. Ohio State

2. Auburn

3. TCU

4. Stanford (main major quibble)

5. Alabama

6. Baylor

7. Florida State

8. Michigan State

9. Ole Miss

10. Oregon

11. Arizona State

12. Clemson

13. Southern Cal

14. Georgia

15. Arizona

16. Boise State

17. UCLA

18. Missouri

19. LSU

20. Wisconsin

21. Oklahoma

22. Notre Dame

23. Georgia Tech

24. Oklahoma State

25. Nebraska

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/2015/01/13/early-top-25-2015-college-football-ohio-state-auburn-tcu-oregon-alabama-florida-state/21517063/

Being a Bay Area sports fan, but not a Stanford fan, that kind of surprised me too. I guess they're figuring Stanford's schedule kind of favors them. They get Arizona, UCLA, Washington, Oregon, Cal & Notre Dame all at home. Their only tough road game is at USC. They also avoid Arizona State.