NCAA Football

The Unthinkable Happens: #1 and #2 Both Fall

Posted Dec 01, 2007 11:48PM By Ryan Ferguson (RSS feed)

Filed Under: Georgia Football, Kansas Football, LSU Football, Ohio State Football, Virginia Tech Football, West Virginia Football, Big 10, Big 12, SEC, BCS, Missouri Football

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WVU loses to Pitt.

No, that can't be correct. Did that really happen?

Why, yes. I did not just hallucinate that. A 4-TD underdog beats West Virginia in Morgantown in a game that no one, and I mean no one thought they could win.

Un-freaking-believable.

Oh, and by the way: #1 Missouri just fell to Oklahoma. That's less of a shock; Oklahoma was favored.

But no matter how you slice it or dice it, #1 and #2 both fell. Again.

So now you have the ultimate BCS nightmare: total disarray, total chaos. This is what the anti-BCS anarchists are always dreaming of. Now, it's here.

BCS standings:

1. Missouri 11-1 11-2 (lost to #9 Oklahoma)
2. West Virginia 10-1 10-2 (lost to unranked Pitt)
3. Ohio State 11-1
4. Georgia 10-2
5. Kansas 11-1
6. Virginia Tech 10-2 11-2 (beat Boston College, now ACC Champion)
7. LSU 10-2 11-2 (beat Tennessee, now SEC Champion)
8. USC 9-2 10-2 (beat UCLA)
9. Oklahoma 10-2 11-2 (beat #1 Missouri)
10. Florida 9-3

You ask me, I think it's rather obvious what should happen.

Ohio State?

Tressel comes up roses again -- but gets to turn them down. Ohio State is #1 yet again and will play in the BCS title game for the second year in a row. Congratulations, Buckeyes.

Georgia?


It's just tough luck for #4 Georgia that they didn't get a chance to represent the SEC East in the SEC Championship game. The way LSU played -- and the way Georgia finished their season -- you'd have to think they would have had at least as many opportunities to win that game as Tennessee had. If they had managed to do that, there would be no debate: Georgia would be playing for a BCS Title. But that's pure fantasty at this point. Based on recent events, I don't see Georgia remaining at #4; while they sat idle, #7 BCS LSU beat another ranked team and won a conference championship.

Kansas?

Forgive me for saying this, Kansas fans, but a 1-loss Kansas appearing in the title game will not happen for two reasons. One, their schedule was far too soft for any voter to take the Jayhawks seriously. Two, they didn't win their conference, much less their division. I can't see too many voters keeping Kansas' ranking intact. Expect Kansas to drop.

Virginia Tech?

Here we encounter our first pingings of the geiger counter as we approach BCS meltdown: Virginia Tech meets most of the voters' requirements for a title game appearance. They're ACC Champions. They have only two losses. And at #6, they should slide neatly into position at #2 to play for a BCS title. One problem: they were demolished by LSU early in the season. And I do mean demolished: they lost 48-7. That's just Va Tech's unlucky draw to get the Tigers in this year, of all years.

LSU?

Ding-ding-ding. Written off for dead just hours ago, the 2-loss Tigers, in my view, will most likely get the nod due to a long list of factors: they're SEC Champions, they beat Va Tech as previously mentioned, they have the "inertia" of an expected title appearance, and despite how bad they've looked at times they still look like the best 2-loss team in the country, particularly when they're healthy. After all, they did win an SEC championship despite playing their backup QB and with a rash of injuries throughout the roster. And I think the public would love to see another Big Ten/SEC matchup for the national title.

USC?

Nope. Lost to Stanford. Sorry, that's the worst loss, by far, of any team in the Top 10. This will not be overlooked and USC is not likely to jump anyone except perhaps West Virginia.

Oklahoma?

This is an interesting one. Yeah... what about Oklahoma? They're a two-loss team, like LSU. They're the Big 12 conference champion. They look the part. Biggest problem? Their two losses both look bad. They're only two weeks removed from losing to Texas Tech, although starting QB Sam Bradford was concussed for the majority of that contest. Losing to lowly Colorado early in the season is also an ugly mark on their record. Still, I'd feel better about Oklahoma playing Ohio State than Kansas or Virginia Tech.

Hawaii?

Get real. Call me when Hawaii starts playing D-IA football.

Final call?

I think this one's too close to call definitively, but I think voters are going to put LSU, two losses and all, into the BCS title game to keep Tressel and the Buckeyes honest.

That's a game I'd really love to see. How about you?

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