An Interesting Twist

[emmitt01]

Listening to the ticket Craig miller brought up a good point (surprising I know). With the big xii being at 10 teams now teams like Texas will actually have to play somebody in OOC. With nebraska leaving (a potential top 5-10 team) that's one less potential "quality" win. This is especially true if it's close at the end of the season and there is no longer the big xii title game to provide that bump. All it takes is for aTm, osu, and/or tech to be "down" one season and all of a sudden the "tough conference" mythis out the window...especially if Nebraska is having a good season in the big 10. If Texas runs through the big xii, Georgia runs through the sec (with a title game win), and Michigan navigates the big 10...how do you justify Texas in the top 2? Couldn't you justify a one-loss sec team who wins the sec title game over an unbeaten OU with a cupcake OOC schedule? I really think the rush to increase their money piles (which AMAZINGLY outweighed the need to align themselves with the academics of the cal schools) may actually hurt the big xii schools.

[gangrene]

Listening to the ticket Craig miller brought up a good point (surprising I know). With the big xii being at 10 teams now teams like Texas will actually have to play somebody in OOC. With nebraska leaving (a potential top 5-10 team) that's one less potential "quality" win. This is especially true if it's close at the end of the season and there is no longer the big xii title game to provide that bump. All it takes is for aTm, osu, and/or tech to be "down" one season and all of a sudden the "tough conference" mythis out the window...especially if Nebraska is having a good season in the big 10. If Texas runs through the big xii, Georgia runs through the sec (with a title game win), and Michigan navigates the big 10...how do you justify Texas in the top 2? Couldn't you justify a one-loss sec team who wins the sec title game over an unbeaten OU with a cupcake OOC schedule? I really think the rush to increase their money piles (which AMAZINGLY outweighed the need to align themselves with the academics of the cal schools) may actually hurt the big xii schools.

I don't think there is any doubt that the Big 12 - 2 and without a championship game is a much weaker conference. It may not be clear to the Texas administration now but it's certainly clear to the UT alumni and fans, and it will be clear in the polls and the BCS computers as well. To Texas' credit, they have scheduled some tougher OOC games in Ohio State, TCU, Arkansas (not what they used to be) in the recent past and have BYU and UCLA already on future schedules. Still, they will definitely need to keep the OOC schedule filled with winning programs and hope they don't catch those programs on down years when they play them. One tough OOC game per year may not be enough to keep them in contention for a national title.

But I really think this hurts a school like Texas Tech more than any other. Tech's OOC schedule is always a true cake walk and, up until now, they've been relying solely on the quality of the Big XII teams to keep themselves relevant in the Top 25. The last time Tech played a decent OOC team was in 2006 and they lost to TCU 12-3. Since then, they've stuck to scheduling OOC games against teams like Northwestern State, Eastern Washington, Massachusetts and North Dakota. They open this year against SMU but I bet they wouldn't have scheduled them if they knew they'd be coming off of bowl win.

[Army of Dad]

Listening to the ticket Craig miller brought up a good point (surprising I know). With the big xii being at 10 teams now teams like Texas will actually have to play somebody in OOC. With nebraska leaving (a potential top 5-10 team) that's one less potential "quality" win. This is especially true if it's close at the end of the season and there is no longer the big xii title game to provide that bump. All it takes is for aTm, osu, and/or tech to be "down" one season and all of a sudden the "tough conference" mythis out the window...especially if Nebraska is having a good season in the big 10. If Texas runs through the big xii, Georgia runs through the sec (with a title game win), and Michigan navigates the big 10...how do you justify Texas in the top 2? Couldn't you justify a one-loss sec team who wins the sec title game over an unbeaten OU with a cupcake OOC schedule? I really think the rush to increase their money piles (which AMAZINGLY outweighed the need to align themselves with the academics of the cal schools) may actually hurt the big xii schools.

That scenario seems very unlikely. Michigan and Georgia at the top of their conferences!? Had you said Florida and Ohio State however...

Edited June 15, 2010 by Army of Dad

[MeanGreenTexan]

That scenario seems very unlikely. Michigan and Georgia at the top of their conferences!? Had you said Florida and Ohio State however...

It all depends on what the pre-season polls say. Say Texas starts out ranked #5 and 3 teams ahead of them lose one game during the year, then Texas will be #2 and play for a NC. That's all that matters. The SOS in the big twelveten is still strong enough to keep the computer scores high.

[Rudy]

It all depends on what the pre-season polls say. Say Texas starts out ranked #5 and 3 teams ahead of them lose one game during the year, then Texas will be #2 and play for a NC. That's all that matters. The SOS in the big twelveten is still strong enough to keep the computer scores high.

Not necessarily. All it would take is UO having an average year, which they have been prone to do, and the rest of the Big Twelveten not having stellar years, which is very possible. If all of those schools do not have a great OOC record or strong SOS, Austin U may not be in the title game.

Or at least I can pray for this.

[emmitt01]

It all depends on what the pre-season polls say. Say Texas starts out ranked #5 and 3 teams ahead of them lose one game during the year, then Texas will be #2 and play for a NC. That's all that matters. The SOS in the big twelveten is still strong enough to keep the computer scores high.

Uhhh nope. Let's take bama for instance. This season they will robably state out top 4. They play Penn state in OOC. That's far better than ucla or wyoming who Texas is playing. Even IF alabama lost to florida in the regular season they would leapfrog Texas after playing and winning the sec title game. The big xii literally sold their soul on this one.

[untgeorge]

The PAC10 champ and the Big10 champ have consistently made it to title games without a conference playoff.

[emmitt01]

The PAC10 champ and the Big10 champ have consistently made it to title games without a conference playoff.

And they were stronger than this configuration of the big xii this year (had to beat a heavy IC schedule those year) and/or no undefeateds existed in the stronger conferences.

But don't take my word for it. Texas' schedule in the all-mighty big xii ranks according to Phil Steele as the #62 most difficult. Three whole spots ahead of Utah state and behind powerhouses San Jose state (43) and Wyoming (42).

Edited June 16, 2010 by emmitt01