USC is win away from title game after jumping Michigan in BCS

Team Infidel

Forum Spin Doctor


http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/16103926.htm



RALPH D. RUSSO

Associated Press

NEW YORK - Southern California is a win away from returning to the national title game.
The Trojans moved into second place in the Bowl Championship Series standings Sunday, passing idle Michigan on the strength of a 44-24 victory over Notre Dame and closing in on a matchup with undefeated Ohio State in the title game.
USC plays crosstown-rival UCLA on Saturday and a victory would likely lock up the Trojans' third consecutive appearance in the BCS title game. The Trojans have already locked up the Pac-10's automatic BCS bid, but playing in the Rose Bowl would be a letdown for USC this season.
"I think we're a pretty good team right now," USC coach Pete Carroll said after beating Notre Dame. "We'll play anybody, anywhere."
First-place Ohio State has already sealed up its trip to Glendale, Ariz., for the Jan. 8 championship game. The final BCS standings and bowl pairings will be announced next Sunday.
Michigan managed to hold onto second place after losing 42-39 at Ohio State, but the Wolverines' lead over USC was razor thin.
USC's convincing victory over the Fighting Irish helped the Trojans increase their cushion over Michigan in the coaches' poll and Harris poll, and boosted USC's computer rating ahead of the Wolverines'.
USC's BCS average was .946. Michigan's was .922.
The polls make up two-thirds of a BCS average and the computer ratings account for the other third.
Florida, which plays in the Southeastern Conference title game against Arkansas on Saturday, is in fourth place with an average of .890. The Gators need a win and USC to stumble against UCLA, but even then it will be a close call between them and Michigan for the second spot in the title game.
LSU is fifth, followed by Louisville and Wisconsin.
Unbeaten Boise State moved up to eighth place and will become the second team from outside the original BCS conferences to play in one of the four big-dollar bowl games. The Broncos will likely receive a bid to the Fiesta Bowl.
Arkansas is ninth and can earn the SEC's automatic bid by beating Florida.
Notre Dame dropped five spots to 10th place, which means the Fighting Irish are no longer in position to earn an automatic BCS bid. They needed to be in the top eight for that to happen. However, Notre Dame remains eligible to receive an at-large bid by finishing in the top 12. And if the Irish are eligible, they're a great bet to get picked by either the Rose, Sugar or Orange.
USC lost last year's championship game 41-38 to Texas at the Rose Bowl and won the 2004 national championship with a 55-19 victory over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.
Three years ago, the Trojans missed out on the BCS championship game, but won the AP's part of the national title by beating Michigan 28-14 in the Rose Bowl.
That three-year run, during which the Trojans lost only two games, was powered by quarterback Matt Leinart and tailbacks Reggie Bush and LenDale White. Those guys, and a host of other Trojans from last season's team, are in the NFL now.
John David Booty has stepped in at quarterback, receiver Dwayne Jarrett has developed into the offense's biggest star and USC's defense has been one of the best in the country.
And if the Trojans can make it eight consecutive wins against UCLA, it's USC vs. Ohio State for the national title.
 
This is BS, why should a win over an overhyped Notre Dame team that has lost its only two meaningful games of the season catapult USC into the number two spot? Michigan's only loss was by three points on the road against the number one team in the nation, USC's loss was to unranked Oregon State. Not that any of this matters, the team that should be sitting at number two is Florida, who has only one loss in the toughest conference in college football, the SEC. Michigan and especially USC are playing in conferences that are having rather lack luster seasons. The top three in the Big Ten, Ohio State, Michigan and Wisconsin only have a combined two losses, but it's a long ways down from there, the drop in the Pac-10 is even greater where you have USC with one loss and everyone else way behind. If Florida wins the SEC title they, not Michigan or USC) should be sitting at number 2. Either way I think it is a moot point, Ohio State is going to light up whomever they get matched up against, it may take them a guarter or two to get going since they will have had 50 days off since their last game, but they are simply a phenomenal team this year. I say this knowing that I was right last year when I said, all year, that Texas was going to beat USC.
 
I agree and disagree with you on a few points and here we go.

1. Yes, I wouldn't mind seeing Florida play Ohio in the BCS championship, because I think they would have a better shot at it than USC...
2. Ohio State will kick USC's ass in the BCS championship.

Now... I disagree with you because..
1. The Trojans were in the right place at the right time to get to the #2 slot.
2. West Coast football gets NO respect from anyone on the east coast.
3. USC has the toughest football schedule than ANY.. and I repeat ANY university in the nation.
4. The BCS is not the only poll they are second in... ie.. AP and Coaches.

Yes, USC lost a game to Oregon.. oh well. It dropped them to where they were and then everyone else above them lost a game which put them back at 2nd. :cen: happens and sometimes it's all about timing, timing, timing.. because if they remained undefeated and lost to ND, they wouldn't be #2 anymore, Michigan would be. But it just worked out that they lost a game earlier than the rest.

USC has an awesome program, whether you want to admit it or not. You have to give them props even though that they haven't looked as good as they have in the past 4 years, but they don't have anymore Carson Palmer's, Matt Leinart's, or Reggie Bush's. They do however have a "team" and that is more important than a bunch of superstar standouts.

SO.. should they be there... BCS, Coaches and AP says yes. Suck it up dude and drive on....

Plus we can still screw it up... we play UCLA this week.

Oh, and yes, I can be critical about my team and not feel bad about it. I am suprised they have only lost 1 game this year. Either way, OSU is in a league all it's own this year.

P.S. and about Texas.. :cen: happens... We blew it.. Oh well.

P.P.S. I worked at USC as a professor for 3 years. I love the school and the team

FIGHT ON!
 
Either way, D-IA needs a playoff system, preferably 16 teams but at this point I'll take eight teams. I'm a Big Ten fan myself but I'll admit that the SEC has been and still is by far the toughest conference in college football, top to bottom it is the strongest conference, teams that finish with three losses in SEC conference play would run the table in most of the other conferences, including the Big XII and ACC.
 
we are talking USC, not the whole conference.. so I will take your response as acceptable to my response on USC being #2
 
Conferences should be taken into account when deciding which one loss team is the best, if Florida finishes the season at 12-1 they should get a chance to go up against Ohio State in the title game. Compare the two conferences, the SEC has four ten win teams, the Pac 10 has one. The SEC has five teams in the top 25, three in the top 10, the Pac 10 has two teams in the top 25. Of the six BCS conferences the Pac 10 has the fewest teams in the top 25, the WAC has as many teams as Pac 10 in the top 25.

As for the toughest schedule, Ohio State played and beat the #2 team in the nation twice already, after this saturday Florida will have played three top 10 teams, where as USC will have narrowly escaped with three win by less than one score against Arizona State, Washington and Washington State, those three are far from powerhouses.
 
dude. USC has the hardest schedule in the NCAA.. period.. maybe not the hardest conference, but the hardest schedule, and when you compute that, those are the facts. Plus a Win is a Win.. I am sorry you feel cheated, but neither you or I have anything to do about the BCS, AP or Coaches poll. And yes, USC escaped some close calls., but they still won.
 
Florida had a much tougher schedule than USC, as I mentioned before, Florida plays three top ten teams, USC one and Ohio State played the #2 ranked team in the nation twice. As for the "a wins a win" argument, no, it doesn't work like that, if a team can be boosted by a big win over a supposedly good opponent then it should be hurt by a close call over an opponent it should have crushed, it applies to everyone else, why not USC?
 
and every team we played out of the PAC - 10, Nebraska, Arkansas and Notre Dame, we beat with absolutely no problem whatsoever.

Either way, we are still #2 and Florida is #4 and it wasn't up to either of us.
 
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