Tag: Texas Longhorns (Page 13 of 18)

Latest Bowl Predictions: Oklahoma vs. Florida in title game

CBS Sportsline.com has unveiled their latest bowl predictions and they have Oklahoma meeting Florida in the national title game.

Tim TebowBCS National Championship: Oklahoma vs. Florida
Comment: It all comes down to the BCS. With Oklahoma’s thrashing of Texas Tech and a victory over Oklahoma State next week, we predict the Sooners will be the highest ranked team in the Big 12 South and earn a spot in the conference title game. All it would have to do is beat Missouri to earn a spot in the BCS National Championship game. If Texas is ranked higher than the Sooners when the BCS is released, then Texas would be predicted to earn this spot. As for the other team … we predict Florida will beat Alabama in the SEC Championship game, setting up a No. 1 Florida vs. No. 2 Oklahoma in Miami for the national championship. Florida would be playing for its second BCS title in the past three years, beating Ohio State two years ago. Oklahoma would be playing in its fourth title game in the decade.

Fiesta Bowl: Texas vs. USC
Comment: With Oklahoma going to the BCS Championship game, the Fiesta Bowl will use its replacement pick to take another Big 12 team. Even though Texas Tech beat Texas, if the Longhorns are ranked in the Top 4 of the BCS, they are guaranteed a spot. With its other selection it takes at-large USC, which will only have one loss and ranked in the top 10 of the BCS.

The rest of their predictions: Alabama vs. Utah (Sugar Bowl); Oregon State vs. Penn State (Rose Bowl) and Boston College vs. Cincinnati (Orange Bowl).

Compared to last year, these matchups would be awfully dull outside of the title game and the Fiesta Bowl. Not saying the games would be bad, but the matchups leave something to be desired.

That said, an Oklahoma-Florida or Texas-Florida title game would be absolutely fantastic.

Alabama not unanimous choice for No. 1

While they remain undefeated, the Alabama Crimson Tide aren’t the unanimous No. 1 team in the nation according to some voters.

Alabama Crimson TideAlabama, which was idle this weekend, retained the top position with 56 of 61 first-place votes. The Crimson Tide are the only remaining undefeated team from one of the six conferences with automatic BCS tie-ins.

Third-ranked Florida, an easy winner over The Citadel, claimed the last No. 1 vote. The Gators will square off with Alabama in the Southeastern Conference championship game in two weeks. If both can handle their in-state rivals over Thanksgiving weekend, the winner is sure to claim one spot in the BCS championship game.

Hmm. How can an undefeated Alabama team not receive 61 of 61 first place votes? I thought the BCS system was set up so that a clear No. 1 and No. 2 would be determined?

Nobody should be surprised that ‘Bama didn’t receive all the first place votes, because it’s still unclear at this point if they are truly deserving. Everyone wants to point to Florida’s loss to Ole’ Miss as proof that the Gators shouldn’t be ranked No. 1, but in the back of many people’s heads they’re not so sure that Urban Meyer’s team isn’t the best team in college football. The same could be said for Oklahoma, which absolutely crushed Texas Tech over the weekend and got four first place votes. And what about Texas? They lost to Tech on the final play of the game and beat Oklahoma, yet received no first place votes.

The system is a mess, which is a dream scenario for supporters of a playoff, because it proves that the BCS doesn’t work.

OU crushes Tech – BCS standings turned upside down

In one of the most lopsided games of the 2008 college football season, No. 5 Oklahoma waxed No. 2 Texas Tech 65-21 on Saturday night, essentially proving that the Red Raiders were a tad overrated.

I loved Tech going into this game and backed them as a team that still wasn’t getting enough credit. I even bought into the small hype that they should be the No. 1 team in the nation instead of Alabama. Apparently was wrong, like, way wrong.

This wasn’t just a bad night for the Raiders – the Sooners were just flat out better in every phase of the game. It was easy to see that OU was going to put up some points. Not only is the Sooner offense one of the best in the nation under Heisman hopeful Sam Bradford (14 of 19 for 304 yards, 4 TDs), but the Tech defense is also nonexistent.

But for the Sooner defense to hold Tech to only 21 points is simply amazing. No team in the nation (besides maybe OU) was running its offense better and more efficiently than the Raiders were. And OU made Tech look like they were in their first spring practice of the year.

This obviously throws a massive kink in the BCS rankings, which is fantastic for fans that want a playoff in college football. What team is the best in the nation? Can you honestly say it’s Alabama? Can you honestly say it’s not Oklahoma? What about Texas, who, oh-by-the-way beat Oklahoma earlier this year but lost to Tech on the final play of the game. What about Florida? The Gators lost Ole’ Miss, but are playing their best football of the season right now and have a date with ‘Bama in the SEC Championship Game coming up.

The BCS is getting what it deserves with OU’s win – complete anarchy. Everything is a mess right now and their little computers don’t have a clear-cut answer (not that they ever do). A playoff would be absolutely great for a season like this.

Week 12 College Football Primer

Top 25 vs. Top 25
Tim TebowNo. 25 South Carolina at. No. 4 Florida, 3:30 PM ET CBS
After they were shocked by Ole’ Miss and turned in a lackluster performance in a win over Arkansas, the Gators trounced LSU, Kentucky, Georgia and Vanderbilt in convincing fashion. Nothing against the three teams ranked higher, but Florida might be the best team in college football right now. Tim Tebow has resurrected his Heisman candidacy after rushing for five touchdowns and accounting for 424 total yards in the Gators’ 51-31 win over the Gamecocks last year. But Steve Spurrier’s squad has been one of the hottest teams in the nation over the past couple of weeks. The rotation of Stephen Garcia and Chris Smelley at quarterback has lifted South Carolina and the defense has played inspired. This is a better matchup than most think, although it’s highly possibly that Florida could roll with how well they’ve played over the past month. Expect the Gators to use this as another statement game leading up to their huge battle with Alabama in the SEC Championship Game December 6.

Upset Watch:
Maryland TerpsNo. 16 North Carolina at Maryland, 3:30 PM ET ABC
The Terps have clearly been a different team at home than on the road where they’re 4-0 and averaging 25.5 points per game as opposed to 1-3 and 11.75 PPG on the road. Maryland has also won five straight against ranked opponents the past two years and still control their own destiny in the ACC Atlantic. Three wins in their final three games would send the Terps to the ACC title game, which is amazing considering this was the same team that got drubbed 31-0 by Virginia. If Maryland is going to pull off the upset they’ll need to get Da’Rel Scott and Davin Meggett going in the running game because putting the ball in the air against the Tar Heels is a risky proposition. UNC has one of the best ball hawking defenses in the nation and has forced opponents into mistakes all season. If the Terps play things close to the vest offensively and rely on their defense to win the game, an upset could be in the making.

Other notable games:
Mississippi State at No. 1 Alabama, 7:45 PM ET
It’s highly unlikely the Tide lose focus against a 3-6 Mississippi State team, but the Bulldogs did pull off one of the better upsets of the year when they crushed previously No. 13 Vanderbilt 34-3.

No. 3 Texas at Kansas, 12:30 PM ET
The Longhorns try to keep in the national title hunt while the Jayhawks look to end the season as quickly as possible.

No. 10 Georgia at Auburn, 12:30 PM ET
This is one of the more underrated rivalries in the SEC.

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