Fiesta Follow-up

To good not to post:

That's all folks...

It's been a great season of college football- Nebraska wins their bowl game, Ohio State loses theirs and moves up in the polls (?), Cat really takes "jumping on the bandwagon" to a new level (you did know that you didn't have to move- that there wasn't actually a physical bandwagon to jump onto?), and everybody hates the BCS (well, everyone except Tebow fans).

It's also the end of our "picks league", and Terry "proved it on the field", taking both the regular season and the bowls scoring championships.
It was surprising that such a Godly man would hog the spotlight and win the picks championship as well. Some people... :)
Congrats to Amanda, who's 20-14 was the best overall picks percentage, and to Nate, who wins the Scott Strawn award.

Well, that was interesting. What say we do this again next year?

Owen Five/Three

In all the excitement about Florida's win, let's not forget one thing:

Since their championship, Oklahoma is 1-5 in BCS games
Three of those losses were in BCS Championships- one being a 30 point blowout
One of the other losses is considered one of the greatest upsets of all times
The other was a blowout against a team that was a significant underdog
Coach and program are 1-3 against top rival in the last four years.

"Big Game Bob" has got some 'splaining to do. Although, I guess it's not "Big Game Winning Bob".

I'm really looking forward to the "Oklahoma doesn't deserve any more BCS Championship shots" and "Slow-klahoma" commentary that ESPN and the national media are sure to publish in the coming weeks. You know, like the ones pointing to tOSU after their second BCS championship loss?

Yup, looking forward to it, but not holding my breath.

Math: Not just for nerds anymore...

... says the guy married to a math major.

Congratulations to the Florida Gators for their impressive victory over Oklahoma.

Today, it's time for "fun with the Transitive Property". This post is in honor of the great Trevor Schultz, a proud Seattle Pacific University grad who always compiled this list for me.

So, we know who's #1 (hint, they're undefeated), but there's discussion of a split title. After tonight's game, I can't help but agree, and hope that you'll join me in supporting the 1-11 Idaho State Bengals as the co-champs with the Utes.

You see, their only win was against Sacramento State

who defeated Eastern Washington
who finished their season with a win over Weber State
who beat Montana in the regular season (lost the rematch)
who fell to James Madison in the playoffs
who were beaten earlier by William and Mary
victorious over New Hampshire
who upset Army
who triumphed over Eastern Michigan
who felled Central Michigan
who beat Western Michigan
who handed Illinois an enormous upset
after they had defeated Louisiana Lafayette
who ended Middle Tennessee State's season with a loss
but MTS found success against Maryland
who also defeated Clemson
winners against South Carolina in their huge rivalry game
yet the Gamecocks managed to beat Mississippi
the only team to defeat the Florida Gators.

And for those people who still believe that U$C would have an argument because they are "playing their best at the end of the season"- ISU's sole win was the last game of the year.

In addition, Eastern Washington (see above) beat Weber State, who lost to Cal Poly, who defeated San Diego State, who finished off their year by beating UNLV, who defeated Utah State, who counted Hawaii as one of their three victories, who conquered Fresno State, who defeated UCLA, victors over Stanford, Oregon State's opening loss. The Oregon State that beat U$C.

Oh, and Texas fans? Remember that you lost to Texas Tech, who was pounded by Mississippi, who... well, you know the rest.

Fun, huh? Makes about as much as fun as the other formulas we use.

Yale Yeah!

Quick update to the Coaching Carousel

Other than producing George W. Bush and the Skull and Bones, Yalies have another thing to be proud of-

They've just hired the first African American head coach in the Ivy League. (ht Jen)

Go Bulldogs!!

Fiesta Thoughts

8- 11 point underdogs
National media expecting "another BCS blowout"
Playing a team that is a dropped interception away from playing in the National Championship Game
With a true freshman at QB
Gashing the #2 run defense for 203 yards, including 100 yards from Beanie
Missed FG, 2 missed extra point opportunities
Dropped interception by a defensive lineman
Beanie out for most of the second half
Veteran QB (who should have won the Heisman) needed a last minute drive and a missed tackle to win

And still- Ohio State lost by 3 on a neutral field to a team that beat the #1 team in the country by 10 on a neutral field.

I can live with that.

Not happily, and I wish the 28 seniors (especially those who chose not to go to the NFL) could have had a better outcome for their final game.

But I'm excited about things to come.

O! H!

The Road To Perdition

Continuing our conversation about recruiting, especially after Saturday's Army All American Bowl.

We've already talked about how strange all of the attention that these young adults receive can seem, but that's just the beginning. There's the recruiting process, facilitated by the Universities themselves (or their representatives).

If you've watched any cheesy movies from the 80's or 90's, some of this might sound familiar to you. For me, this issues is one of ways I got introduced/interested in big-time college sports: before beginning my Master's program in Lexington, I read Raw Recruits (re: the Kentucky scandal). Granted, that was about basketball, but it changed the way I look at athletics.

And, unfortunately, it's still a part of the process many places. Let's look at a few examples:

• Willie Williams was a highly touted athlete from Miami, who in 2004 kept a diary of his recruiting visits. Some of the things included: Lobster, steak, private jets, nightclub visits, cheerleaders.
• Oregon's 2004 treatment of their recruits was so extravagant that it made the NCAA change it's protocol. Again, private jets and lobster make an appearance.
• This past week, news regarding Jamarkus McFarland's process (which included U$C, LSU, and primarily Texas and OU) emerged. Female hostesses, Hummer limos, daily contact, wild parties and allegations of underaged drinking and drug usage seemed to be a part of his experience.

Seems pretty obvious what the values being exemplified here are. Remember, these are 17 and 18 year old young men, being courted by institutions of higher education. Places where young adults are supposed to be developed in ways that will make them better people, not just use them to further the interests of fans and coaches. Places where "learning" is supposed to be preeminent- What do you think each of these young men learned from these experiences?

While it may be that these are all isolated situations, it's seems that turning young adults into a commodity may be an issue even at those places where nothing of this sort has appeared. For instance, two well known institutions have recently taken more commitments from recruits than they appeared to have openings for- are the opportunities valid, or will they come at the expense of another young adult who no longer serves the program?

We'll wrap this up next with an overview of what College is supposed to be about, and if these young adults are benefiting in this way.

Well, Duh.

All those attempts to "protect the tradition, heritage, and honor of the bowls"? The "real reason" according to some, that we can't have a playoff?

Yeah, it's not working. Lowest Orange Bowl ratings ever.

And have we really reached a point in society where everybody needs a trophy, rather than an honest-to-goodness playoff? Let me remind you why commissioner of BcS John Swofford most recently said we can not have a playoff in college football. We have to protect the great bowls.What great bowls? Has he been watching? We have, for another year, been treated to mostly junk bowls.

Yeah, but you knew that already.

Bowl-pocalypse

I'm getting killed in our bowl picks league, and lost big points today. But it just goes to show how amazing this time of year is for college sports.

Just an observation: U$C crushed Penn State (as expected). And, also as expected, the "Trojans deserve to share the national championship" noise has started. "We just blew out a team with only one loss, we're arguably the best one loss team in the country".

See, here's the problem with that: Utah. Utah is undefeated, and just upset one loss Alabama at (essentially) home. Oh, and Utah is from the Mountain west, who also saw BYU beat UCLA by more than 40, and Utah beat Oregon State. You know, the Oregon State that handed U$C their only loss?

Things to remember: Championships can be overrated, and I've given you a solution to this thing.

Oh, and U$C? Here's a suggestion: 1) Beat teams that you're supposed to (cough- Beavers, Cardinal, Bruins).

Until then? You know your cake hole? Shut it.

For fun:

Utah>Alabama>Mississippi>Texas Tech>Texas>OU
and
Utah>Alabama>Mississippi>at Florida

The Games Before the Games

I work at an institution of Higher Education, and I love college sports. Even so, sometimes I have to remind myself that these two things interact quite frequently.

It's easy to forget that the huge, fast, amazing athletes we see on the picture box are also 20 year old young men who are still maturing and learning what it means to be an adult. And while they are recipeints of a great opportunity, they also are challenged by the pressure of balancing a college experience with a full time job preparing to perform on the field. Add this to the idol worship and the pressure that comes with being a BMOC, and it amazing that there aren't more instances where an athlete snaps.

I also find myself troubled by the attention that we in American culture pay to young adults; and not just those who run a sub 4.6 40 yard dash. We spend inordinate amounts of time watching Brittany Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Jonas Brothers, or Miley Cyrus rocket to fame and then burn out, and that's a bit odd. Again, these are not even college students when they show up on our radar- they're kids. With our infatuation with youth culture, it's no wonder that shows like "To Catch A Predator" are necessary.

I bring this up because this weekend sees the big High School All Star football games: the Army All American Bowl (on NBC) and the Under Armour Game (on ESPN). While I will watch, and am interested in some of the in-game annoucements that recruits will make, there's something about the whole process.

There are whole institutions and organizations dedicated to watching and grading 15, 16, and 17 year olds as they perform athletically, and some of the verbiage used ("fluid hips", "great hands", "solid lower body") would interest Chris Hansen. Another aspect of this industry is having the "experts" call, email, text message, and interview these young men about their college choices.

Please hear me correctly- I do not think that anyone involved in the recruiting tracking process is doing it for the wrong reasons. I just wonder about the bigger picture: these folks are providing a service, and there are people who are willing to pay for this information. And that's what is a bit odd- that there is a market for this information, that there are people around the counntry who are that interested in 15-17 year olds that they probably haven't met or ever will meet. For the record- I can name the 5-6 recruits that Ohio State is still strongly pursuing, so I'm in this boat as well.

I'll be following up on this with some perspective about the means that colleges will take to be sure they win these "recruiting wars", as well as a look at some of the "results" that we see from this process.