Official 2010 College Football Threak

[RedLantern]

It bugs me that people talk about how crappy the pac-10 is when most people hardly ever see pac-10 teams play. They might see highlights on espn or a game recap, or the occasional nationally televised OOC game, but the truth is that Pac-10 games are simply difficult to watch on eastern time.

Is the typical east-coast football fan going to stay up until 10pm or later and then watch (with interest) any pac-10 game? unlikely. Heck, given that they all have their own teams that they follow, even the early pac-10 games that are played at 4 or 7 eastern time are not likley to be watched because they will conflict with SEC games.

In contrast west-coast fans get a much better view of the rest of the country's football teams. When we wake up at 9am here on saturday all the east-coast games are already on. It's easy to watch those games with interest when our own pac-10 games are on later in the afternoon. It's also more likley that we will be sober enough to really take stock of what is what in those games. All in all, west-coast football fans are likley to have superior personal knowledge of college football than the average east-coast football fan.

 

[FLMountainMan]

Horrific stat that no one but me will care about - FSU's defense, in it's 12 games against FCS opponents last year, forced a total of 14 three-and-outs. 1.16 three-and-outs per game. Against Jacksonville State, in the rain, at home, we forced five.

 

[bdeuce22]

holy ****. that's really bad. i assume by "we" you mean FSU. so they had 1/3 of their 3 and outs in one game against a supremely inferior team.

 

[FLMountainMan]

Originally Posted by bdeuce22

holy ****. that's really bad. i assume by "we" you mean FSU. so they had 1/3 of their 3 and outs in one game against a supremely inferior team.

Well, Jacksonville was our D1AA (or whatever it's called now) opponent, and we managed five against them. In the other twelve games, we managed fourteen. I recall at least two games where we never forced a punt (the Georgia Tech game was especially egregious).

And yeah, I know it's lame for me to say "we", but I grew up a Seminoles fan, earned a bachelors and two masters there, and live a mile away from campus, so I say "we"

 

[bdeuce22]

no worries. i saw "we" in reference to Michigan State, my alma mater.

 

[runner-guy]

Originally Posted by MrG

On the bright side, at least we agree that the Big 10 is a buncha douches.
Douches who won two BCS bowl games last year and have 3 teams in the top 15 of the AP poll (granted Wisconsin is usually a fraud).

 

[runner-guy]

Originally Posted by FLMountainMan

Well, Jacksonville was our D1AA (or whatever it's called now) opponent, and we managed five against them. In the other twelve games, we managed fourteen. I recall at least two games where we never forced a punt (the Georgia Tech game was especially egregious).

And yeah, I know it's lame for me to say "we", but I grew up a Seminoles fan, earned a bachelors and two masters there, and live a mile away from campus, so I say "we"

Rome had a really good interview with Bobby Bowden the other day. It will be interesting to see how Jimbo Fisher does.

 

[MrG]

Originally Posted by RedLantern

It bugs me that people talk about how crappy the pac-10 is when most people hardly ever see pac-10 teams play. They might see highlights on espn or a game recap, or the occasional nationally televised OOC game, but the truth is that Pac-10 games are simply difficult to watch on eastern time.

Is the typical east-coast football fan going to stay up until 10pm or later and then watch (with interest) any pac-10 game? unlikely. Heck, given that they all have their own teams that they follow, even the early pac-10 games that are played at 4 or 7 eastern time are not likley to be watched because they will conflict with SEC games.

In contrast west-coast fans get a much better view of the rest of the country's football teams. When we wake up at 9am here on saturday all the east-coast games are already on. It's easy to watch those games with interest when our own pac-10 games are on later in the afternoon. It's also more likley that we will be sober enough to really take stock of what is what in those games. All in all, west-coast football fans are likley to have superior personal knowledge of college football than the average east-coast football fan.

I think this is an interesting point, but I think it overstates the interest of the average west coast fan in watching football from 2500 miles away at 9:00 on a Saturday morning.

Moreover, it overestimates the 4:00pm sobriety of a guy who has been watching football since 9:00am.

Also, we watch three games a day at my house on Saturday. The most a west cost fan could possibly watch would be five, and this assumes he has nothing else to do on Saturday/no games run longer than three hours. So at best the west coast fan will be able to watch two more games than an east coast fan, and that assumes the west coast fan watches football nonstop all day Saturday. I just don't think the difference is as meaningful as you're making it out to be. Do west coast fans know more about west coast football? Sure. But the idea that they "are likley to have superior personal knowledge of college football than the average east-coast football fan" just doesn't pass muster.

Originally Posted by runner-guy

Douches who won two BCS bowl games last year and have 3 teams in the top 15 of the AP poll (granted Wisconsin is usually a fraud).

at ignoring the fact that the SEC also won two BCS bowl games last year, including the NC, and picking "top 15" because it's the only way to make it look like the Big 10 had more ranked teams than the SEC. I could just as easily have picked the top five, which sported two SEC teams and only one Big 10 team.

If I'm not mistaken, the SEC and Big 10 had the same number of teams ranked in the last AP Poll. The AP Poll is all voters, though, so let's look at how things shake out when teams actually play games.

Bowl records for the last five years:
2009-10 SEC - 6-4, Big 10 - 4-3
2008-09 SEC - 6-2, Big 10 - 1-6
2007-08 SEC - 7-2, Big 10 - 3-5
2006-07 SEC - 6-3, Big 10 - 2-5
2005-06 SEC - 3-3, Big 10 - 3-4

So for the last four years the SEC has sent more teams to more bowl games, and maintained a higher winning percentage, than the Big 10. We have to go back five years for the Big 10 to win in either one of these categories, and even then both conferences had the same number of wins, the Big 10 just sent one more team.

Oh, and let's not forget that the SEC has won the last four BCS National Championships and six total. The Big 10 has won one. Ever.

So, yes, the Big 10 might be a better conference than others. However, it's certainly not better than the SEC, and that's the one I've been defending.

 

[runner-guy]

Originally Posted by MrG

So, yes, the Big 10 might be a better conference than others. However, it's certainly not better than the SEC, and that's the one I've been defending.

I know they're not better than the SEC. No other conference is. But they're getting better, especially with Nebraska coming in next year.

 

[MrG]

Originally Posted by runner-guy

I know they're not better than the SEC. No other conference is. But they're getting better, especially with Nebraska coming in next year.

Dammit! So I just spent a bunch of time convincing you of what you already knew.

Well, I'll just consider it a public service to any other Big 10 fans who might show up and wonder about SEC-Big 10 disparity.

I agree the Big 10 is on its way up, but I think it's heavily contingent upon Nebraska returning to winning consistently. If the Nebraska of old shows up in the Big 10 it will be a huge help, but that's a big "if" right now.

 

[FLMountainMan]

Originally Posted by runner-guy

Rome had a really good interview with Bobby Bowden the other day. It will be interesting to see how Jimbo Fisher does.

Frankly he and his staff can't be much worse than Bowden's last year. Fistfights between coaches in the locker room, coaches asking the press what the score was at the half, Georgia Tech joking about running the same four plays the entire game, etc....

Bowden's a class act, but so is my grandmother. I wouldn't want either one coaching my football team right now.

 

[runner-guy]

Originally Posted by MrG

Dammit! So I just spent a bunch of time convincing you of what you already knew.

Well, I'll just consider it a public service to any other Big 10 fans who might show up and wonder about SEC-Big 10 disparity.

I agree the Big 10 is on its way up, but I think it's heavily contingent upon Nebraska returning to winning consistently. If the Nebraska of old shows up in the Big 10 it will be a huge help, but that's a big "if" right now.

I realize the SEC is a frickin' powerhouse and that's just the way it is. Nebraska should be really interesting. The conference is trying to create a rivalry for Nebraska with either Wisconsin or Iowa. I guess they're seeking some farming state rivalry or something. All the controversy now is how the conference kept Michigan-Ohio State the last game of the year. Some people say it's tradition and should stay the last game. Others say it ruins the rivalry because they are in different divisions and if they both make the championship game the regular season matchup will be even more meaningless.

 

[bdeuce22]

I have been loving listening to 97.1 and all the fans complaining about the OSU-Michigan game. give me a break. At this rate, Michigan won't have to worry about that game meaning anything for 5+ years. Dick Rod has completely set the whole program back 3 years at a min.

The Big 10 made this game a sham now because the outcome has no bearing on divisional standings. so if OSU has clinched it's division, it will play scrubs.

 

[runner-guy]

Originally Posted by bdeuce22

I have been loving listening to 97.1 and all the fans complaining about the OSU-Michigan game. give me a break. At this rate, Michigan won't have to worry about that game meaning anything for 5+ years. Dick Rod has completely set the whole program back 3 years at a min.
You're right. Michigan is way far away from winning a Big 10 Championship anyway. I love Michigan football, but I have a bad feeling it's going to be more of the same unacceptable play this year. Especially with Michigan playing Notre Dame, Penn State, and Ohio State on the road and playing MSU and Iowa in consecutive weeks.

 

[bdeuce22]

The schedule is in Michigan's favor this year, but I still don't think even if they win the games they should, it'll save Rich Rod. On paper, they should beat Uconn, Mass, BG, Indiana, Illinois and Purdue, but they will botch a couple of these games, maybe this weekend.

He needs to beats a ND, MSU, or Wisc. to keep his job this year. The make it or break it streak is the MSU, Iowa, PSU games back to back. If they go 0-3 in that stretch he is done.