BCS = Bullsh*t Crying Syndrome?

I feel that the BCS topic deserves a thread of its own.

I am a die hard Texas fan. I bleed orange from every porous of my body. As my cohort JD has pointed out (see comments on my last post) I am constantly accused of being a homer. In some instances, I would agree with him. Being an arrogant, egotistical graduate of The University of God in Austin can make one appear that way.

However, I think that I have a legitimate gripe with the BCS rankings. So, let me qualify my statements from earlier today.

"The SEC is the toughest conference in college football." Says who? The media, preseason polls, and history? That's awesome...but show me how it relates to present times.

Bama had a decent year last season. This year, they are winning the easy games and losing the tough ones. Losses include a nice margin to Florida and by ONE POINT to Arkansas. (The Big 12's version of KSU/OSU: Shows up fighting a few years out of every decade and puts up a fight for one game but that's about it.)

Georgia dropped out of the rankings this week. They escaped a winless Colorado team by ONE POINT, lost to Tenn. handily and dropped a game to conference dweller Vandy. Georgia is a team that ALWAYS gets ranked in the top 15 and flutters through the season. (And post season as evidenced by the whipping they took from WVU during bowl season) I do not understand why they consistently get ranked so high. (The Big 12's version of Texas A&M: Look good to great in out of conference play but cannot consistently beat the conference elite or win bowl games.)

Florida lost a squeaker to an Auburn team avenging their stunning loss to Arkansas the week before. They also escaped a Tenn. team by ONE POINT. (A pattern forming here?) Florida, like Georgia, has a history of getting their ranking and falling the second half of the season. (The Big 12's version of Texas Tech: May beat a conference elite from time to time but have 2-3 conference losses at the end of the year.)

LSU has lost two games to the best teams on their schedule...yet they are #18 in the BCS rankings? I know that beating the powerhouses of LaLa, AZ, Tulane, Ole Miss and UK is impressive, but you cannot go 0-2 in conference and expect respect. LSU had an amazing year in 2003 but have consistently lacked the drive to follow through to the end. (Big 12's version of Oklahoma: Good to great at times, beats their rivals but fails to close it out.)

Auburn lost a stunner to, at the time, unranked Arkansas. They barely escaped a 2-loss LSU team at home. They beat Florida and that is a good quality win. However, Auburn is a team that ALWAYS gets a high preseason ranking, deserved or not, and is inconsistent on whether or not they can sustain it. (Ex: 2004 was great for Auburn but they were ranked #2 in 2003 and ended up losing 5 games) Auburn has looked very beatable this year. (Big 12's version of Texas: Flashes of greatness but does not always capitalize on their talent)

Tennessee is a team that I cannot argue much against. They have beaten the teams that they are supposed to and only lost to Florida by one point. But, Tennessee also falls in the category of unpredictable. (Big 12's version of Nebraska: Rise up and the history is strong...but how many times are they going to be labeled as "rebuilding"?)

Arkansas is a team that will jump up from time to time but does not get the credence of being a real threat. (Big 12's version of CU: Upsets teams from time to time but is rarely a true conference power and is never favored to win the conference title.)

The rest of the teams from both conferences offset each other as no real threats. (Although Mizzou and ISU sometimes rise up as one-trick ponies)

If I have been unfair, please let me know. I understand that some of the SEC teams have titles from 20 or 30 years ago, richer history and have been intact as a conference longer. But, what I'd like to know is why these teams are always ranked above their Big 12 counterparts in the preseason? Especially considering that the BCS title game features a Big 12 team more often than not. The preseason rankings do in fact matter when a 6-1 Mizzou or a&m team can miss the top 25 while their same to worse record SEC counterparts are sitting pretty in the Top 10. The rankings are a starting point for coaches that do not have enough time to watch every Top 25 team play to rank their opponents. I've never seen a coach's poll come out in week 2 that puts Duke in the Top 10 because they are 1-0 while LSU gets beat by the Citadel. However, I have seen a #17 Big 12 team replaced by an SEC team. The out of conference games are on par, so what about the SEC makes them stiffer competition? In fact, the Big 12 has 4 one-loss teams to the SEC's 3 at the present time. Two of those losses came against the #1 and #2 teams in the country. Where's this huge gap?

The SEC played a total of ONE road game out of conference...At Memphis...Please read that a few times...

Now, to the rankings...

I have zero issues with Ohio State or Michigan. In my opinion, these are the 2 best teams in college football. I have little issue with USC because they are unbeaten despite their struggles. I have slightly more issue with WVU, but they too are unbeaten and it is not their fault that the Big East isn't a strong conference.

I take issue with Auburn for the simple fact that they were beaten by an unranked team in conference. I also take issue with Florida for the simple fact that they are 1-1 against any challenges including a conference loss. If WVU is in the top 5, I do not feel that Louisville should also get the nod. I take MAJOR issue with ND being ranked ahead simply for the fact that they were embarrassed by the #3 team in the country by a larger margin that Texas was by the #1 team. ND has also struggled against 2 other teams, GT and MSU, which is the equivalent of Texas struggling against Oklahoma and Baylor. (Which they didn't) Frankly, I'm tired of the media love that goes to the Irish while Texas isn't supposed to win without Vince Young.

But, stranger things can happen in the BCS era. However, I find it VERY interesting that 6 out of the 8 teams ranked higher than Texas will play each other before the season ends. (Auburn/Florida already happened.) I'm not saying conspiracy, but that is pretty parallel to ratings don't you think?

And I have the microfilm to prove it.