BCS National Championship

[JD]

You have to be happy Kelly is staying in Eugene.  It will be interesting to see what NCAA infractions are coming, but the Ducks are loaded for next year.

Indeed I was Chicos, I don't think the infractions will be too harsh, otherwise i highly doubt Chip would be returning.  Chip made a few comments on Sunday night that Oregon has cooperated fully with the NCAA, and is an open book.  I'm hoping this will lessen the punishment, and praying there isn't a bowl ban next year.

I think Oregon can give Bama a run for their money, and can't wait to see them both next year in Pasadena.

[MerrittsMustache]

Alabama dominating Notre Dame doesn't make every other team in the SEC better.  SC, LSU, and Florida all looked very mediocre coming out of their bowl games.

ND looked very mediocre coming out of their games against Pitt, Michigan, Michigan St, Purdue, BYU and USC.

LSU and Georgia nearly beat Alabama and A&M did beat them. ND was completely overmatched and weren't even competitive. Best-case, ND would be the fifth-best team in the SEC this season but I really don't see them beating Florida or SCarolina. They're just too fast.

[LAZER]

ND looked very mediocre coming out of their games against Pitt, Michigan, Michigan St, Purdue, BYU and USC.

LSU and Georgia nearly beat Alabama and A&M did beat them. ND was completely overmatched and weren't even competitive. Best-case, ND would be the fifth-best team in the SEC this season but I really don't see them beating Florida or SCarolina. They're just too fast.

So LSU loses its bowl game to an ACC school, Florida gets destroyed and embarrassed by a lowly Big East school, and SC barely wins against a 5 loss Michigan team, yet there is no way ND could ever compete with those schools?  If ND had Georgia's schedule they would have gone 12-2 as well.

(note: Just to be clear, I hate ND with a burning passion.  I despise them)

[jesmu84]

ND looked very mediocre coming out of their games against Pitt, Michigan, Michigan St, Purdue, BYU and USC.

LSU and Georgia nearly beat Alabama and A&M did beat them. ND was completely overmatched and weren't even competitive. Best-case, ND would be the fifth-best team in the SEC this season but I really don't see them beating Florida or SCarolina. They're just too fast.

At no point in the last few weeks did I think ND ever really had a shot at beating Bama last night. However, how different would LSU, GA, A&M games have been if Saban had 30 days to gameplan?

Not only was Bama too fast, but they were too strong as well.

[MerrittsMustache]

So LSU loses its bowl game to an ACC school, Florida gets destroyed and embarrassed by a lowly Big East school, and SC barely wins against a 5 loss Michigan team, yet there is no way ND could ever compete with those schools?  If ND had Georgia's schedule they would have gone 12-2 as well.

(note: Just to be clear, I hate ND with a burning passion.  I despise them)

Who cares about bowl games? A lot of teams use them as glorified practices to get ready for next season. I'm talking about games that actually mattered.

Georgia basically played Alabama even over the course of a game and probably should have beaten them. Same goes for LSU. What gave you any indication that ND could play with Alabama for even a half, let alone an entire game?

ND barely beat Purdue (6-7) at home. ND barely beat BYU (8-5) at home. ND needed some help to beat Stanford (12-2) at home. ND needed 2 bad calls to beat Pitt (6-7) at home. ND had ugly wins against Michigan (8-5) at home and MSU (7-6).

Don't get me wrong, ND had a great season but they're were a 9-3 caliber team that got some breaks and went undefeated. Eventually, they were exposed.

[LAZER]

Who cares about bowl games? A lot of teams use them as glorified practices to get ready for next season. I'm talking about games that actually mattered.

So you think Florida just didn't care about the Sugar Bowl?

[mu03eng]

So you think Florida just didn't care about the Sugar Bowl?

No since at least two of their players declared for the draft in the post-game locker room.  Seemed generally pretty apathetic to me.

[NavinRJohnson]

So you think Florida just didn't care about the Sugar Bowl?

You think they did care about it? This is a team that prior to the loss to UGA had designs on a national championship. You think they gave a rip about a completely meaningless exhibition game against Louisville?

That in a nutshell is why the BCS is so stupid. One game matters. The rest are just plain pointless.

[LAZER]

You think they did care about it? This is a team that prior to the loss to UGA had designs on a national championship. You think they gave a rip about a completely meaningless exhibition game against Louisville?

That in a nutshell is why the BCS is so stupid. One game matters. The rest are just plain pointless.

I've got no idea if they cared or not to be honest, but I think a lot of those players probably did and would take pride in a BCS win after barely being preseaon ranked. It's also a garbage argument to say a team is great and then when they get their asses kicked you just chalk it up to "it didn't mean anything".

[MerrittsMustache]

I've got no idea if they cared or not to be honest, but I think a lot of those players probably did and would take pride in a BCS win after barely being preseaon ranked. It's also a garbage argument to say a team is great and then when they get their asses kicked you just chalk it up to "it didn't mean anything".

They cared when the game started, though not as much as Louisville, but then they got behind by a couple of scores and packed it in. There's a big difference between losing by a large margin and getting completely dominated. Louisville came out really fired up and wanted to prove that they belonged in a BCS bowl. Florida had their sights set on the NCG so there was obvious a bit of a letdown being in the Sugar Bowl. Florida was able to move the ball but they turned it over 3 times and they were only outgained by 50 yards. It's also worth noting that Charlie Strong was the D coordinator at Florida and recruited a lot of their current players. Florida is a better team than Louisville and if they played 10 times at a neutral site, Florida would probably win 7 or 8 of those games.

If Bama and ND played 10 times at a neutral site, Bama would win all 10. They outgained ND by 227 yards, scored TDs on 6 of their first 8 possessions, ND didn't put together a drive of more than 40 yards until midway through the 3rd quarter and that drive was aided by 2 questionable calls by the officials. It wasn't like ND turned the ball over a lot or gave up a flukish TD or had someone get hurt and the game got away from them. They were physically dominated from start to finish.

[real chili 83]

ND didn't put together a drive of more than 40 yards until midway through the 3rd quarter and that drive was aided by 2 questionable calls by the officials. It wasn't like ND turned the ball over a lot or gave up a flukish TD or had someone get hurt and the game got away from them. They were physically dominated from start to finish.

ND's whole season was aided by questionable calls by the official.  I remember brent Mushpucker calling ND's season "magical".  It was magical only from the sense that the ref's lined up and gave them the games against Purdue, Stanford, and Pittsburgh at a minimum.

[LAZER]

I get that Alabama is better than ND, I'm arguing where ND would stack up in the rest of the SEC and I think they would have been just as good as the other teams at the top and it most likely would have come down to scheduling and who and where they actually played.  I just don't buy into the notion that every team in the SEC is automatically better than everyone just because they play in the SEC.  It's the best conference because they have the most good teams, but that doesn't mean no other teams can succeed in it, hence what A&M did this year with what is truly a Big12 team.

Also, fwiw if UGA beat Bama, ND would have opened as a ~3pt favorite over UGA.

[Lennys Tap]

They cared when the game started, though not as much as Louisville, but then they got behind by a couple of scores and packed it in. There's a big difference between losing by a large margin and getting completely dominated. Louisville came out really fired up and wanted to prove that they belonged in a BCS bowl. Florida had their sights set on the NCG so there was obvious a bit of a letdown being in the Sugar Bowl. Florida was able to move the ball but they turned it over 3 times and they were only outgained by 50 yards. It's also worth noting that Charlie Strong was the D coordinator at Florida and recruited a lot of their current players. Florida is a better team than Louisville and if they played 10 times at a neutral site, Florida would probably win 7 or 8 of those games.

If Bama and ND played 10 times at a neutral site, Bama would win all 10. They outgained ND by 227 yards, scored TDs on 6 of their first 8 possessions, ND didn't put together a drive of more than 40 yards until midway through the 3rd quarter and that drive was aided by 2 questionable calls by the officials. It wasn't like ND turned the ball over a lot or gave up a flukish TD or had someone get hurt and the game got away from them. They were physically dominated from start to finish.

+1. Everyone "prepares" and everyone "tries" to win their bowl games. At least they think they do, but if one team (Louisville) is excited and one team disappointed (Florida) to be there it can affect the outcome. The one and only bowl game where both teams have the ultimate and same goal is the BCS Championship.

Last night's game was utter domination. Alabama was too big, too fast, too skilled and too well coached for the Irish. 42-14 doesn't begin to tell how one sided it was. How bad was it? The gap between Alabama and Notre Dame was every bit as wide as the one between ND and a really bad (think Indiana or Army bad) low level D1 team. Stunning.

[jesmu84]

How bad was it? The gap between Alabama and Notre Dame was every bit as wide as the one between ND and a really bad (think Indiana or Army bad) low level D1 team. Stunning.

What does that say about the Big Ten and all the teams from that conference that ND beat?

[LloydMooresLegs]

I would just be the under (43), and if you can find 10, take the points.

You won big if you were talking about the under for just Bama!

[LAZER]

What does that say about the Big Ten and all the teams from that conference that ND beat?

Those 3 Big Ten schools had a combined conference record of 12-12, so actually not that much. Now if it was Michigan, OSU, and PSU or Wisconsin or Nebraska you might be able to draw a better conclusion.  It probably, if anything, says more about the Pac 12 (USC/Stanford) and the Big 12 (Oklahoma).

[tower912]

ND took the schedule they had and ran the table.   Sure, they could have lost 3 games, but they didn't.   They beat 3 B1G schools, two Pac1? schools, and Miami.   Yup, they got trounced on the big stage by a better team.   But you simply can't denigrate their regular season. 

[brewcity77]

ND took the schedule they had and ran the table.   Sure, they could have lost 3 games, but they didn't.   They beat 3 B1G schools, two Pac1? schools, and Miami.   Yup, they got trounced on the big stage by a better team.   But you simply can't denigrate their regular season. 

They did what they needed to do, but when they struggled to beat the likes of BYU and Pitt, and the controversial manner in which they barely beat Stanford made it pretty apparent they were never as good as their record indicated. The only possible hope I saw for them was remembering an Ohio State team that also didn't seem very good based on season results and still overcame Miami in the title game.

The Irish did what they had to do in the regular season, but Monday's result was about as foregone a conclusion as ever you'll have in a game of that magnitude. They were never a legitimate title contender. The SEC Championship was more important than the BCS Championship was.

[MU B2002]

Favorite or not, UGA would have crushed ND the same way Alabama did. Also if ND plays the same schedule as uga they lose to SC, FL, Bama, at minimum.

[MerrittsMustache]

They did what they needed to do, but when they struggled to beat the likes of BYU and Pitt, and the controversial manner in which they barely beat Stanford made it pretty apparent they were never as good as their record indicated. The only possible hope I saw for them was remembering an Ohio State team that also didn't seem very good based on season results and still overcame Miami in the title game.

The Irish did what they had to do in the regular season, but Monday's result was about as foregone a conclusion as ever you'll have in a game of that magnitude. They were never a legitimate title contender. The SEC Championship was more important than the BCS Championship was.

Ohio St. is a good comparison but let's also remember that the Buckeyes were helped immensely by a questionable PI call in the Miami game. Granted, it was late and they were actually in the game but still.

If nothing else, this season proved that sometimes the "eye test" is right.

[Blue Horseshoe]

Favorite or not, UGA would have crushed ND the same way Alabama did. Also if ND plays the same schedule as uga they lose to SC, FL, Bama, at minimum.

I'll spot you SC and Bama, but FL embarrassed themselves against Louisville.

[ATL MU Warrior]

The Irish did what they had to do in the regular season, but Monday's result was about as foregone a conclusion as ever you'll have in a game of that magnitude. They were never a legitimate title contender. The SEC Championship was more important than the BCS Championship was.

Point me to somewhere you said this before the game was played and I'll give it some credence.  Easy to say after the fact. 

[MerrittsMustache]

Point me to somewhere you said this before the game was played and I'll give it some credence.  Easy to say after the fact. 

I realize this was directed at brewcity but I pointed out that ND was not a legit title contender in this thread on January 7, 2013 at 1:37pm.
Typically teams that get as many breaks as ND has gotten this season have their bubble burst at some point. Let's face it, ND is a 9-3 team that lucked their way to 12-0. It's one thing to play poorly and need a couple breaks to sneak past Pitt or Purdue. It's another to try to do that against the defending national champs.

Credence me!

[Lennys Tap]

I realize this was directed at brewcity but I pointed out that ND was not a legit title contender in this thread on January 7, 2013 at 1:37pm.
Typically teams that get as many breaks as ND has gotten this season have their bubble burst at some point. Let's face it, ND is a 9-3 team that lucked their way to 12-0. It's one thing to play poorly and need a couple breaks to sneak past Pitt or Purdue. It's another to try to do that against the defending national champs.

Credence me!

Allow me to be the second to congratulate you.

[real chili 83]

I realize this was directed at brewcity but I pointed out that ND was not a legit title contender in this thread on January 7, 2013 at 1:37pm.
Typically teams that get as many breaks as ND has gotten this season have their bubble burst at some point. Let's face it, ND is a 9-3 team that lucked their way to 12-0. It's one thing to play poorly and need a couple breaks to sneak past Pitt or Purdue. It's another to try to do that against the defending national champs.

Credence me!

Cubed.