Barking Carnival — Blog — ESPN's College Football Power Poll

Here’s how ESPN ranks them.

1 Florida
2 Texas
3 Oklahoma
4 USC
5 Alabama
6 Ohio State
7 Virginia Tech
8 Mississippi
9 Penn State
10 LSU
11 Oklahoma State
12 California
13 Oregon
14 Georgia
14 Boise State
16 Georgia Tech
17 TCU
18 Notre Dame
19 Nebraska
20 Florida State
20 Iowa
22 North Carolina
23 Brigham Young
24 Miami (FL)
25 Kansas

Commentary:

A power poll suggests that you are rating the overall quality of a team without confounding factors like schedule, road games, bowl tie-ins (and likely conference opponent), homefield advantage, or the basic psychology that tells us that if a team is 7-0, hey, they must be really good.

The psychology is interesting.

If Team X loses three games by a total of 10 points to the top three teams in CFB, they’re probably a Top 20 power poll team, irrespective of their 0-3 record.

Similarly, if Team Y beats the three worst teams in CFB by a comfortable margin of victory they haven’t necessarily proven anything. Most people accept this intellectually yet are still incapable of filling out a true power poll because “it doesn’t look right” to have 0-3 Team X ranked ahead of or even comparably to 3-0 Team Y.

I’m not a person overburdened with this characteristic.

Here’s mine:

1. Florida
2. Texas
3. USC
4. OU
5. Ohio State
6. Alabama
7. Ole Miss
8. Georgia
9. California
10. Virginia Tech
11. Oklahoma State
12. LSU
13. Notre Dame
14. Georgia Tech
15. North Carolina
16. Penn State
17. Miami
18. Arkansas
19. Iowa
20. Nebraska
21. Florida State
22. BYU
23. Clemson
24. Oregon
25. Southern Mississippi

I think Florida has a clear separation from the pack. I also believe that spots 2-9 don’t have much space between them. I also know that by mid-year, I’ll revisit this post and laugh at some of my assumptions.

I’ll explain where I have significant divergence.

Bullish:

Georgia is a better team than is being given credit, but their schedule is rugged. They play five of my Power Teams – all ranked #18 or better. Cox will be sufficient at QB and their talent is stashed in places that the media don’t readily pick up on.

Arkansas doesn’t feel sorry for Georgia. They’ll take their lumps early and they have a brutal road slate (@ Florida, @ Alabama, @ LSU, @ Ole Miss – are you kidding me?), but you’ll see them acquit themselves pretty well in most of those tough games. No one will want a piece of a 7-5/8-4 Arkansas team in a bowl if the Hogs can stay healthy. The risk here is that they simply get physically abused by the SEC West and injuries don’t allow them to hit their late season stride.

Miami. See Arkansas. My primary concern is that they fold mentally if they start 1-3. A 7-1/8-0 finish down the stretch is more than plausible if they’ll keep up their effort level.

My Southern Mississippi pick is contingent on the health of WR DeAndre Brown. In addition to the pleasure of antagonizing all of you. If he can get out of his protective boot before the opener, the Southern Miss skill players are top notch and diverse. Their non-con in Lawrence will be interesting.

Notre Dame. I know. I know. It’s real simple: Clausen emerges, he has elite talent at WR/TE, the entire OL is back and better. As for the defense, some of the younger guys can actually run a little. This team will be comparable to the 2005 Irish and I think Weis has realized that college kids require actual development.

Bearish:

Boise St. ESPN has them rated #14. I have them unlisted. I could care less if they beat San Jose St. Oh, how I pray that UC-Davis or Utah St will test them. Look deeper: one of the most inexperienced OLs in CFB, an undersized QB playing behind them, a front 7 devastated by graduation. Folks are making lazy assumptions here. No thanks.

TCU. I didn’t rank them, though they’d probably come in between 25-30. They’re significantly down from last year. They’ll do OK against a weak slate and earn a reputation ranking, but that’s not what power polls are about.

Oregon. No defense, minimal returning OL, great skill position talent. Oklahoma State lite. A lot of people are penciling automatic victories in for them against middle of the pack Pac 10 teams – UCLA, Stanford, Oregon St – but it won’t be so. Their game with Boise will be an interesting battle of inflated perceptions with the winner emerging perceptually – and falsely – as “legit.”

Penn State. They return two OL starters, lose all of their dynamic receivers, and lose their entire secondary. I understand it’s the Big 10 and that they have an incredibly favorable schedule, but that doesn’t change the baseline quality of this team. Pollsters see recognizable quality names at QB, RB, LB and assume that all will be well. I need convincing.

Virginia Tech. I’m only three spots off from the ESPN poll, but Virginia Tech has incredible flame out potential. Tyrod Taylor could be one of the Vick brothers – in every sense – and elevating last year’s bad offense is on his shoulders.

Where am I off?

Where am I right?

Article Tags:

College Football, Polls, Top 10, Top 25

88 Responses

PB @ BON said:

August 10th, 2009 at 11:06 pm

Like your list a lot. Too many agrees to list here.

In the quibble category, did you mean to throw a ‘State’ behind North Carolina? Probably not, and I do love their lines on both sides of the ball, but… I’m not in love with any of their running backs and they lose a lot of talent at wideout. I see them struggling to get 6 too often. Of course, it’s the ACC…

All that said, I really am pretty bullish on NCSU. Love Wilson, obviously — Owen Spencer, too — and if their O-Line is respectable, they’ll score plenty. Andre Brown graduates, but I liked Jamelle Eugene better anyway. On the defensive side of the ball, they’ve got Willie Young and a strong DL, and loads of experience in the back seven.
flamingmonkeyass said:

August 11th, 2009 at 3:10 am

I agree with you on Penn State. They’ll get their wins against a very weak Big 10, and then promply get destroyed by whatever team they draw in their bowl game.

I think you’re way off base on USC. All the rumors floating around the internets is that the Barkley kid is going to take the starting spot from our man Aaron by the end of August. I know they have 2,487 five star running backs they can throw at people, but I just can’t get behind the idea of a true freshman stepping in at QB and not struggling. Especially in that pro style offense of the Trojans, which frankly has struggled at times with some pretty good upper classmen captaining the ship. I think USC beats Ohio State largely because I think the Bucks are a little over-rated and also because Carroll seems to excel in getting his team to play amazing when they’re the underdog (perhaps because it so rarely happens); and also because I think he’ll take a more conservative approach into that game that will actually bolster their offense. However, I expect them to drop at least a couple of games against the Pac 10. The defense in that confrence has slowly been getting better and better and the coaches have gotten it out of their head that the best athletes have to play on offense all the time. I don’t like USC’s chances against Cal or on the road against the Ducks.

Good list overall though.
Parlin Hall said:

August 11th, 2009 at 4:11 am

“In the quibble category, did you mean to throw a ‘State’ behind North Carolina?”

Obviously the Barkers don’t plan to let Scipio forget Chris Collins anytime soon.

Maybe he meant “South Carolina”?
n-ea said:

August 11th, 2009 at 4:45 am

LSU shouldn’t be ranked any lower than 6 and they should probably be higher. They are ridiculously talented this year, they just need a QB to step up much like USC. I don’t know Arkansas well enough to disagree with you, but that just doesn’t seem right. Also, your point about Boise St applies for Southern Miss too.
hiphopopotamus said:

August 11th, 2009 at 4:55 am

No Kansas? Blasphemy!
JoePa said:

August 11th, 2009 at 5:07 am

Good call on Penn St. I can’t understand the love they are getting. Have these people not looked at their depth chart? Don’t they lose something like 15 starters from last year’s team that was run out of the Rose Bowl by half time?
jinx said:

August 11th, 2009 at 5:13 am

I disagree with the Florida and then everyone else argument. The main reason they beat OU last year is no longer their team. We’ll see how they replace Harvin, if they can. They tried Rainey and some others at that position last year and no one fit the bill. If Tebow is forced to throw, the Gators are beatable.
TaylorTRoom said:

August 11th, 2009 at 5:28 am

It seems to me that 2009 USC is Bizarro 2009 OU. OU lost its OL, but returned their stud QB and 9/11 on defense. USC lost its stud QB, and 9/11 on defense. I have to think they drop some. Remember, the last game USC was an underdog in was in 2003 (seriously). They haven’t really had adversity yet, and may see it this year.

Miami- After two seasons, we really don’t have evidence that Shannon is a good head coach yet, right? I guess we’ll find out one way or the other this season (I’m pessimistic about him).
ColoradoAg said:

August 11th, 2009 at 5:39 am

You’re spot on with Notre Dame. People have laughed at me all summer when I have told them they are virtually a BCS lock this year. They will be favored in every game except one (USC). 2-loss ND teams always find their ways into the BCS picture, but this ND team actually has legitimate talent. No more excuses for Weis’ gunt.
jinx said:

August 11th, 2009 at 5:46 am

A follow up to my “who replaces Harvin” question. Apparently they are looking to starting cornerback Joe Haden to fill that role now. He is athletic no doubt.

As a secondary Gator fan I know that they must fill that role to stay on top.

Haden Adds New Dimension
BatesHorn said:

August 11th, 2009 at 6:05 am

I want to get on the Mississippi band wagon, but….

Houston Nutt.
BrickHorn said:

August 11th, 2009 at 7:04 am

If Team X loses three games by a total of 10 points to the top three teams in CFB, they’re probably a Top 20 power poll team, irrespective of their 0-3 record.

Similarly, if Team Y beats the three worst teams in CFB by a comfortable margin of victory they haven’t necessarily proven anything. Most people accept this intellectually yet are still incapable of filling out a true power poll because “it doesn’t look right” to have 0-3 Team X ranked ahead of or even comparably to 3-0 Team Y.

See Rout 66.
CloseToJumping said:

August 11th, 2009 at 7:41 am

I don’t agree on Georgia. In fact, it makes me laugh when you guys bring them in, and this site loves them, especially when peppering the thoughts with “They’ll beat OSU and no one will expect it. Georgia is great on the road under Richt and Gundy is weak at home against solid foes.” And such.

Georgia has an excellent, depth-laden OL, but it is yet again already dealing with injuries. They have AJ Green. They have talent on defense.

Great.

Joe Cox is fucking terrible. I’ve seen him several times, including the Auburn game a few years ago. If the guy is actually still starting by conference play, I’ll be surprised.

That defense that people laud played like Texas circa 1997 at times last year. I think the respect is too easily applied to them for this season.

You have a displeasure with Oklahoma State that bears all the hallmarks of someone who has gotten to close to the subject they’re studying. I don’t love them, but I don’t put Ohio State, Cal, Georgia, or Ole Miss ahead of them. They have experienced talent at critical positions on both sides of the ball and they’re going to be as well coached as they’ve ever been. Gundy is excellent on offense and Young, while older the srr50, is terrific.

Ohio State against any 12 teams is not a top 10 power team, sorry. They faced significant losses at WR, TB, OL, LB, DB. They have good, but not great talent. They would be the 4th best team in the SEC or Big 12 this season.

Cal is a proximity infatuation for you. I like them too, but I do not understand how they can be viewed as a top 10 against any opponent program. Maybe you like Riley more than me. You’ve no doubt seen them more. I expect them to give the Pac 10 conference a good shot at a 2nd BCS team, and maybe they beat USC, but I don’t like them against every team.
eric said:

August 11th, 2009 at 7:50 am

I’m not sold on Nebraska. Sure, the Big XII North is full of question marks, but NU got clobbered in Lincoln by a mediocre Mizzou team last year, does Zac Lee make them that much better?
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:38 am

PB:

Thanks, man. I really like NC State a lot. They just missed my cut. It’s also O’brien’s third year as HC and that’s generally when you can see program improvements come to the fore. The problem is that it’s the ACC and when you throw together 9 teams that range from above average to good, I find differentiation difficult.

Seeing NC State play in the ACC title game would shock me not at all.

flamingmonkey:

I hear you on USC. However, Corp will be the guy – until or if he throws the job away in a game situation. Carroll likes to create a sense of panic around an untested incumbent to force them to keep their edge. He did this with Leinart and Booty as well.

USC will reload on the DL – the easiest place to slide in talent and get immediate production without a ramp up period.

The running game will be outstanding, too.

I don’t disagree that USC will drop a Pac 10 game and have predicted as much here. That’s more because I think more highly of the middle tier of the Pac 10 and California than most nationally.

Thanks for your input.
ScoobySanchezJr. said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:41 am

I could have swore you were the guy that said Kansas has the most talent in the Big 12 North and only didn’t pick them because of schedule. Now you list NU at 20 with no mention of KU? What ticks?
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:47 am

n-ea:

LSU’s talent is an uncovered flame to a moth. They’re ridiculously talented, but also ridiculously dumb. That’s as self-destructive a football team as you’ll find in terms of dumb penalties and blown coverages.

For all of that talent, LSU has lost 7 games over the last two years. At some point, a team’s quality is how they play – not how they look walking out of the tunnel.

hiphop:

#26 my friend. I need to see some OL and DL play before I rate them higher.

jinx:

Forget the offense. No question on Harvin being the difference maker. I’m not a big fan of the Indestructable Team mythos and Florida isn’t that, but for me it all starts with their defense. They have layers of quality, great depth, and quality coaching. That insulates them from many of the unknowns that even Texas, OU or USC has.

Bates:

Agreed. Nutt does concern me. But I like Snead’s late season development, their skill guys like McCluster and Hodge and the secondary will be more experienced to go with a very good DL. They just look really solid – a tribute to Ed Orgeron’s recruiting, more than anything.
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:48 am

Scoby:

Kansas has the most skill talent in the North -by far. The OL and DL make me uneasy.
HenryJames said:

August 11th, 2009 at 9:10 am

flamingmonkey:

Ha. I thought you were addressing CloseToJumping until I scrolled up.
n-ea said:

August 11th, 2009 at 9:48 am

Scipio, you’re making me defend LSU, which makes me as happy as opening up my nephews dirty diaper bin. I try to be objective though so here’s my take.

Yes, LSU lost 7 games in the last 2 years, but they went 12-2 in 07′ and won a National Title…not bad. So we’re really talking about there 8-5 season last year in which they had a QB that threw 13TD’s and 16 INT’s. Even worse than Colt’s 22 TD to 18 INT 07′ campaign. Our 10-3 07′ season would have been 7-6 at best if we played in the SEC that year.

I’m willing to give LSU a pass on last year due to Perriloux getting kicked off and leaving a huge whole at QB for them. As far as them being a full retard team, maybe so, but I think they had much bigger problems last year. I think Jordan Jefferson and/or Russell Shepard will be a big improvement, plus I think some other guys from there 08′ and 09′ classes will have big years.

Schedule wise they’ve got 4 really tough games and 2 more that are decent. We’ve got 2 really good ones and 1 or 2 decent ones depending on how nice you’re being. If they lose 2 or less, I’ll feel vindicated. Like you said, throw the schedules out in power rankings, this is about how good a team is. Similiar to there 07′ season when they were a lot better than a 1 loss Buckeye team.
hiphopopotamus said:

August 11th, 2009 at 9:56 am

Your concerns are shared. But 13 spots lower than Notre Dame and any spots lower than Southern Miss is a little too cautious.
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 10:36 am

hiphop:

Don’t ever question me on my blog or I will write a post mocking Angus Quigley.
coach callahan said:

August 11th, 2009 at 10:46 am

n-ea, most of LSU’s coaching talent left for Lincoln at the end of the 2007 season.
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 10:59 am

Taylor –

Good Bizarro OU analogy. I would argue it’s much easier to get immediate production from talented young DL and LBs than OL.

Shannon is suspect as a coach, but I firmly believe that if he can keep the locker room together, Miami will jell and finish the year on a tear.

closetojumping:

Good points all, except for the stupid ones. Let me address:

Joe Cox sucking is par for the course in the SEC. He’s no Mike Hartline! Richt does OK when the spotlight is off. I expect Georgia to be a 10-3 team, but a very good 10-3 team. As opposed to last year’s 10-3 pile of crap. It will show qualitatively in their play.

You would place Oklahoma State at #6 or #7? You ignorant slut. Pettigrew was the key to their 3rd and 7 – not Dez Bryant. He was also the key to their 1st and 10 running the ball on the edge. Eliminate Pettigrew and surround Dez Bryant with closetojumpings at WR and you’ve got an offense that will destroy bad and average competition but will fall off a performance cliff when they encounter a real secondary. Zac Robinson is a creature of play action and if you create traditional passing situations for him, he struggles.

Jim Young is fantastic, but he needs the bodies in the secondary to make it happen. He doesn’t have them. Our entire second unit would start for OSU back there.

Ohio State will be better than last year if they’ll hand the ball to Terrelle Pryor and get out of the way. I was at the Fiesta Bowl. He’s the real deal. I grant you that I’m counting on the notion that Jim Tressel won’t nestle the offense in his labia, but he has shown the ability to turn over the offense to a QB who will take care of the ball. Pryor does that.

I may be guilty on a Cal proximity infatuation. This is true. My check against that is the fact that Cal’s backs are outstanding, the secondary is superb, and this is perfectly in keeping with Tedford’s talent cycle at Cal. When Cal has a solid defense, they overperform. They’re only two LBs stepping up away from being a 17ppg defense – which will win a lot of games.

I’m also counting on Kevin Riley throwing for 2900 and 25-10, and making plays with his feet without spazzing, but we’ll have to see.
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:02 am

n-ea:

LSU’s national championship is a farce exceeded only by BYU’s 1985 debacle. But you know that.

That said, I appreciate reasonable disagreement and we’ll set our over/under at 2 losses.
Colorado 1990 said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:21 am

LSU’s national championship is a farce exceeded only by BYU’s 1985 debacle.

Hi!
Nik said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:34 am

Your complete omission of Big East representation is very telling…and I agree. I have heard several people say that Rutgers will be the team to beat in the conference. When that is the case, you know your conference is in trouble.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:42 am

“LSU’s national championship is a farce exceeded only by BYU’s 1985 debacle. But you know that.”

Only two losses in the SEC is nothing to sneeze at. Athletically speaking, LSU has a noticeable talent edge over Texas and any other team in the B12.

Texas in the SEC would average three to four conference losses a year, that is until Texas adjusted to SEC play and picked up more talent. Texas as it is today would be only above average in the SEC, if even that.

As a measure of the strengths of the conferences, when is the last time an SEC team has lost when they have had the chance to compete in the MNC? And aside from UT’s last second win over USC, when is the last time a B12 team has won in a MNC game when they have been given the opportunity?

Look at the style of the wins. The SEC has always won in a dominating fashion. No last second miracle wins or once in a life time players needed for the SEC to dominate consistently.
ScoobySanchezJr. said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:46 am

Kansas has a deep DL with quite a bit of experience returning and some potentially exciting new players. I don’t think DL will be a weakness.

The O Line is a legit question, though you do basically have 2.5 returning starters (Sal Capra played about half the time, but that ain’t necessarily a good thing). The thing about the OL is Jean Shorts Todd compensates for OL mistakes with his scrambling abilities. The KU line was not great last year and still put up a ton points, at least when they weren’t playing Texas.

I also think they started solving secondary problems the last fourth of last season and it will be solid. The biggest question comes from the LB spot.
kenneth said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:47 am

I was just thinking this morning that what college football really needs is more polls.
n-ea said:

August 11th, 2009 at 11:59 am

Callahan:

You mean the same coaching staff that let Arkansas rush for over 385 yards and 5TD’s with national title implications at stake? Next game Arkansas was held to 164 yards and 1TD by…Missouri (granted Ark turned the ball over 5 times that game).

All I’m saying is I don’t understand why everyone thinks Les Miles is such a horrible coach. I know he’s smug and participates in some shady recruiting practices, but as far as running the program, he’s done well at both Ok St. and LSU.

Scipio:

The 07′ season was just plain weird with every team tripping on their dick at least twice (except KU and HAW, who didn’t beat anyone worth mentioning), but ultimately, I do think they were the best team that year and deserved the title.
Bartoncreek said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:04 pm

I would have Va Tech, Ok. State and LSU ahead of Georgia, Ole Miss and Alabama. We get to find out real quick on Okie State and Georgia and I think Georgia gets rolled. I really like the playmaking ability of Va. Tech and LSU’s QBs and with another year of maturity to go with what should be solid defenses make them tough.

For some reason there seems like a big drop from 12 to 13. Not sure if that’s because I see Notre Dame at 13 and immediately think overrated. Although I too think ND will be good this year. I like Miami more than most and would have them higher. I would also have Kansas in instead of Nebraska. I am the rare person that thinks the North comes down to CU or KU. Idiot, savant, or both?
CloseToJumping said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:07 pm

I always enjoy the SEC guys making an appearance to tell us how mediocre we’d be in their conference. I wish we could play Big 10 teams in national title games. We had to settle for what was considered the greatest team of all time by many going into the game we won. Oh well.

LSU’s 2007 national title is worthless outside of a 9 state region. That region includes Florida and 8 states that have a collective IQ below that of Tara Reid’s fake tits. Perhaps the dumbest, most corrupt group of humans in the English speaking world, and they never fail to reinforce that on an ongoing basis.

Scipio–

The QB doesn’t matter in a pro-style offense with limited TB talent as support? Ok.

I understand the Pettigrew thinking, I just view their success/failure as fundamentally related to that this season.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:18 pm

Yes, and I alway like to watch the feminine, yeast infection allergic reactions of oversensitive, effeminate, insecure blog writers. Geez, talk about being unable and unwilling to put your money where your mouth is and back what you say in public. No balls is thy name.
Random Vanderbilt alum said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:18 pm

“LSU’s 2007 national title is worthless outside of a 9 state region. That region includes Florida and 8 states that have a collective IQ below that of Tara Reid’s fake tits. Perhaps the dumbest, most corrupt group of humans in the English speaking world, and they never fail to reinforce that on an ongoing basis.”

HEY!
n-ea said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:30 pm

3 MNC in a row:

Texas and OU would easily hang with any team in the SEC. I’m sure our down/rebuilding years would be magnified worse than they are now because the SEC is a deeper conference from top to bottom. I and most others will give you that.

You’ve failed to miss my point about a 2 loss LSU team this year. I’m saying that is really good considering there schedule and I will be “vindicated” for saying that Scipio under-power ranked them at 12 considerably.

If you think the talent gap between any SEC school, OU and Texas is that big, you also fail. NFLer’s for:
Texas: 45
LSU: 51
OU: 38
Florida: 41

Finally, EABOD for your comments about our 05′ national title and the SEC’s style of wins. FLA nor LSU whipped OU for there NC’s. If they call Addai’s incompletion a fumble, it’s possibly a different outcome. If Florida doesn’t get a goal line stand after OU just ran it up and down the field or a sloppy turnover right before the half…at the goaline, it’s probably a different outcome. Yes, FLA and LSU whipped one dimensional Ohio State teams.
76 in a row said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:32 pm

“3 MNC in a row”? That’s what you want to brag about? What about the 76 straight SEC titles that have been won by SEC teams? Now THAT’S impressive.
PatronSaint said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:33 pm

Of course the University of SEC has won three straight national titles. How can anyone compete with a team that gets to start 132 players on both offense and defense?
Phenomenal Smith said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:36 pm

I still don’t get all the Nebraska love.

Your rankings of Southern Miss and KU make for an exciting Sep 26 matchup. I really don’t expect KU to lose that one, but I didn’t think they’d lose to USF either.
Scipio Tex said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:47 pm

I don’t get my Nebraska love either, truthfully. I’m having a lot of trouble differentiating past #20.
Houstonearlers said:

August 11th, 2009 at 12:56 pm

“Only two losses in the SEC is nothing to sneeze at. Athletically speaking, LSU has a noticeable talent edge over Texas and any other team in the B12.

Texas in the SEC would average three to four conference losses a year, that is until Texas adjusted to SEC play and picked up more talent. Texas as it is today would be only above average in the SEC, if even that.”

First, the Big 12 South is better than the SEC East and far better than the SEC West.

Second, LSU lost to two unranked teams in 2007.

In the road leading up to the title they played 3 teams that ended up in the top-25. A 3 loss Va Tech team (#9), a 4-loss Auburn team (#15), and a 4-loss Tennessee team (#12).

Is that supposed to be impressive?

Third, Texas has had no trouble handling SEC teams. And we own your flagship program Alabama (7-0-1).
Phenomenal Smith said:

August 11th, 2009 at 1:04 pm

I’m having a lot of trouble differentiating past #20.

CFN was smart enough to put Mizzou at #20.
ponderos said:

August 11th, 2009 at 1:09 pm

FLA nor LSU whipped OU for there NC’s. If they call Addai’s incompletion a fumble, it’s possibly a different outcome. If Florida doesn’t get a goal line stand after OU just ran it up and down the field or a sloppy turnover right before the half…at the goaline, it’s probably a different outcome.

Florida and LSU had decided home field advantages, too, playing in Miami and New Orleans, respectively. Might not have made a difference in Miami, but I definitely think it would have in the Sugar Bowl.
srr50 said:

August 11th, 2009 at 1:21 pm

Texas as it is today would be only above average in the SEC, if even that.

Then I guess it’s really good that we aren’t in the Pac 10 since they are 10-7 against the SEC this decade.
Bartoncreek said:

August 11th, 2009 at 1:28 pm

The SEC has never lost to a non-SEC team in conference play. A non-SEC team will never beat an SEC team in conference play. Ever. Talk about dominance. ROLL SEC!!! GEAUX SEC!! I’m proud to be a SEC SECer!!!
n-ea said:

August 11th, 2009 at 2:02 pm

Ponderos,

With all due respect, I don’t really buy that arguement and it seems to come up a lot. Inside the stadium it’s split half and half when you get a team that travels like OU. I don’t think USC had a significant advantage over us in the Rose Bowl, it was just cool that we beat them in there own backyard where they outnumbered us outside of the stadium.
ponderos said:

August 11th, 2009 at 3:16 pm

n-ea. I was at the Sugar Bowl. The crowd was not half and half by a long shot.
hiphopopotamus said:

August 11th, 2009 at 6:29 pm

Angus Quigley is a saint! You leave him out of this.
bigdukesix said:

August 11th, 2009 at 7:21 pm

The SEC has never lost to a non-SEC team in conference play.

Get this: The SEC is the *only* conference whose teams have never lost to a non-SEC team in conference play. That’s damn impressive.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 11th, 2009 at 7:55 pm

Yep, that’s what I love about America. The red, white, and blue guarantee of freedom of speech (of course, up to a point, that’s in the fine print) and the freedom to express one’s opinion. I was beginning to lose faith in the red, white, and blue nature of this here site. Your reaffirmation of red, white, and blue values makes me want to jump up, cry out for joy, sing Yankee Doodle Dandy, and go and vote for something, anything.

The SEC is a better conference (the best in the land by far) and LSU has more outright athletic talent than UT and the gap is not even that close.

Close to Jumping: No you Horns do not want to play B10 teams in MNC games. Not with the heart attack inducing ways in which you play them in big games. Haven’t they always been miracle come back games against the lousy (as you implied) B10 teams. Didn’t OSU last year show how much trouble a decent D could give against your one-dimensional, speed challenged O and we all know the B10 does not play D with near the same speed and physicality as the SEC.

n-ea: the amount of players in the NFL is one reflection of talent level, but remember, LSU has only been back and rebuilt since the Saban years, which is recent. Also, the odds are that LSU players and SEC players in general pan out in the NFL better than those from UT and the B12. Quality is just as important as quantity. With regards to the NFL, the SEC leads against all other conferences, by far, in both departments, both quality and quantity.

And you are trying to defend OU, the losers of 5 straight BCS games. The best team in your conference losing 5 straight should be a reflection of the overall talent of that conference. Also, OU went into both MNC games with, reputedly, the best and greatest O’s ever seen in CFB (mainly cause they play in a conference with no defensive speed or physicality) and what happened both times in the MNC games when they went up against an SEC defense. Their scoring average dropped by 90% both times, like clockwork. I just do not see how OU’s losses were flukes. They were physically beat up in both MNC games.

The SEC is the only conference with a team with 2 BCS MNC’s, and they have two of them, with all four coming with the last five years. How can anyone not believe that the SEC, right now, is heads and shoulders better than the B12 or any other conference.

Texas, and no B12 team, has the speed or the physicality to compete in the SEC on a regular, week in and week out basis right now. With the exception of your corners and one safety, Texas does not have the speed, the outright athleticism, or the physicality to keep up and compete at a high level in the SEC. Right now the top teams in the SEC would bury Texas.
bigdukesix said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:11 pm

You write like a six-year old.
flamingmonkeyass said:

August 11th, 2009 at 8:35 pm

*Yawn*

Sounds like someone’s been listening a little too much to the talking heads over on ESPN.

“The SEC doesn’t have these kinds of offenses.” – Will Muschamp.

Would you be so kind as to let Florida, LSU, Georgia and Tennessee know that Texas obviously doesn’t produce that kind of talent and speed that SEC country does so they’ll kindly stop recruiting our fucking state so much?
CloseToJumping said:

August 11th, 2009 at 10:05 pm

So the LSU squad of wizards has talent above and beyond that of Texas, but 40% of their roster consists of guys from Texas that we didn’t recruit. That sounds plausible.

I can make random condescending statements on the Internet without any basis in fact or research myself. I prefer some research and fact, though, but I’m pretty good at it either way. I’ll try a few.

Jarrett Lee wasn’t recruited by Texas and would not have made it on the field without 4-5 injuries. He was one of the worst QBs statistically that a title winner has ever fielded, and the worst that any has ever fielded in the year following the title. Nevermind that that title is valued on the level of Les Miles’ Twitter ponderings.

How about another one – the second best SEC team in the conference last year was roughly buttfucked by a Baytown, TX kid and his compadres out of Utah this past January in a manner that has cheating fuckhead Bear Bryant rolling over in his grave and shouting for justice from his cheating 6th level of Hell for being a sorry, worthless human being outside of being able to buy football players.

Maybe another? How about the consideration that Florida was the 2nd best team to beat OU on a neutral field last year by double digits. Percy Harvin was the only reason UF won that game and without him this year, Rainey and Co. won’t be enough to insulate Meyer from having Tebow exposed as the big-nosed, camera hogging fraud that he is.

The SEC has a great contract with ESPN and every person with less than the standard count of teeth of within a 9 state region has their collective back, but for the rest of country, there is not much to admire about the conference except it’s ability to cheat with impunity.
eric said:

August 12th, 2009 at 7:37 am

Solipsistic SEC assholes almost make me want to root for OU in BCS games. . . almost.
Scipio Tex said:

August 12th, 2009 at 9:05 am

That was a quality tirade, ctj. Nicely done.
Vasherized said:

August 12th, 2009 at 9:12 am

I liked the Bear Bryant rant.
n-ea said:

August 12th, 2009 at 9:30 am

3 MNC in a row:

First off, you’re arguing a point I (and most others are in agreement on). From top to bottom, the SEC is a deeper/better conference. I’m not arguing that.

You’re arguement is that OU’s failures in BCS bowls and Texas skin of your teeth wins in BCS bowls are because our talent is not up to par with the elite teams in the SEC. I’m calling BS on that.

I didn’t say the Lsu or Fla wins were flukes. I’m just saying those games could have gone either way. The scores were 21-14 and 24-14 were the scores respectively in those games. You are acting like they were run off the field both games and couldn’t even compete. Thats simply not true, and remember that those were the best teams from the SEC.

Let’s play this game since you’re so fond of playing the look at the “style” of wins…between 2 totally different teams…in different years. Texas hung 45 on OU last year so logically: we both beat OU by 10 points and Texas scored 45 and Florida only managed 24; Texas is better than Florida and would have beat them by 21 points….

There’s a problem, you can’t do that. Each week is different. Each year is different. Matchups can be crucial. Injuries can be crucial. Turnovers, penalties, mistakes, coaching, play calling, practice, etc., are all crucial.

My point is, the best team (or in a lot of cases two fairly evenly matched teams) anything can happen. I don’t think OU’s losses are a reflection of a team that didn’t belong in the MNC games, nor do I think you’re argument that most SEC teams have way more talent (in terms of quality and quantity) than Texas or OU is even remotely true.

If you throw the past decades Texas and OU teams in the SEC, they would contend for SEC championships almost every year. Over the past decade, Fla and Lsu have had very comparable talent, outside of that we have more talent than any one else in the SEC. If the NFL numbers don’t prove it I don’t know what will b/c that is by far and away the most objective way to measure talent. Both teams coaches are very good too and would adapt to the style of play.

Sure, TX and OU would lose more games each year if they played in the SEC due to the parity, but so would every other team.

All I can say is that there’s very little that seperates (either way) TX/OU from the SEC’s top two teams on almost any given year this past decade. If you can’t see that, I pity you.
n-ea said:

August 12th, 2009 at 9:38 am

Also, LSU never had to “rebuild” after Saban left. There recruiting never dropped off. Check your facts before you spout something off that sounds right but isn’t true.
LonghornScott said:

August 12th, 2009 at 9:58 am

Currently, The Big 12 South is better top to bottom than either division of the SEC.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 12th, 2009 at 10:33 am

After this I will quit beating this dead horse. Four MNC’s in five years alone should speak for itself. How you CFB experts can come with all these other superfluous stats, facts, and figures, and plainly ignore the most obvious fact of them all, the elephant in the room, is beyond me? I believe that is what is known as a lack of objectivity and a homer bias. Even a butt ugly, orangutan looking baby is beautiful in its gap toothed, ape faced momma’s eyes.

I will just add this and let it rest:

Close: LSU cherry picks Texas. Texas does not cherry pick Louisiana and could not pull a top recruit from that state to save its life. If Texas does not recruit those recruits, it certainly is not due to a lack of talent on their part. In general, those recruits turn out every bit as talented, if not more so, than their counterparts at UT. Lafell will certainly go higher in the draft than Shipley and higher than any other WR from Texas since RWilliams and LSweed. Black will go higher than any UT OL lineman in a long time.

About Jarret Lee, don’t know if he will pan out or not, and I do not know why Texas did not recruit him, but the talent is there. Not saying he is a better QB than Colt right now, but his potential upside is greater than Colt’s. He is bigger, has a better arm, has a natural soft touch (rare in a strong arm, he is able to throw a beautiful deep ball while still being able to throw the out on a rope), and has that Marino like, quick release. Take away the poor play, the inexplicable int’s, and the poor decision making and the kid looks like a young Marino, at least his style of throwing the ball. Give him some slack. He was a fish playing against legit D’s in the SEC, a place where you do not have all day to throw or disgracefully wide open receivers running around all over the place to toss a gimme pass to. Also, remember, he has the misfortune of being coached by an idiot like Les Miles. If Jarret can get the mental aspect of the game down, he will be a high NFL prospect, a far better one than Colt in my opinion.

n-ea: the points margin is not always a totally accurate reflection of what really happened in the game. OU in both games was physically beat up by both SEC teams. That should be more telling about who the better team was, moreso than the score. Sure, with a couple lucky breaks and flukes, OU could have come out on top, but that would not be the case in the majority of times. Probably the margin of victory could have been larger if the SEC teams were interested in that and in running up the score. I think they were more interested in just winning the game.

How can anyone ignore OU’s five straight BCS losses? That fact and stat more than any of the others you boys can pull out of your asses to prove otherwise, should confirm that the strength of the OU program has been largely overrated for a while. How can anyone deny this fact? How can any other stat or fact override and neutralize five straight BCS losses in a row? And that by the unquestionable top team in your conference for the past decade.

Bama, FU, LSU, and Georgia are the top teams in the SEC and are as good or better than either UT or OU, year in and year out. Ark (don’t know about them, but I figure they are on their way up), Ole Miss, Auburn, and S. Carolina are all very solid teams. If in the B12, they would consistently be equivalent to the 3rd best team after UT and OU.

Tenn is a legit program and belongs among the top teams. Lack of talent was not why Tenn was losing. I expect them to be as talented, if not more so, than either UT or OU, in short order. Cheating up to the hilt, with the petal to the metal, with no remorse, guilt, fear of embarrassment, or fear of punishment is all the wake up pep a program like Tenn needs to right itself in short order.

Now you take a schedule playing teams like this, year in and year out, and with the killer difficulty of away games in the SEC (as we all know), and the difference between playing in the soft, top heavy B12 vs. the SEC is like night and day. Texas in the SEC would be shellshocked by the difference for its first couple of years in the conference, if such a scenario ever were to happen. That seems to be the most reasonable conclusion to come up with, given the way things are as of right now.
shockthenation said:

August 12th, 2009 at 10:39 am

“After this I will quit beating this dead horse. Four MNC’s in five years alone should speak for itself”

Texas and USC have both won a title each in the last 5 years but I agree that 4 out of 5 sounds better.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 12th, 2009 at 10:41 am

Okay, 4 out of six, what is the difference? Isn’t this what is called splitting hairs?
Misterserious7 said:

August 12th, 2009 at 10:51 am

3 MNC in a row speaks of “a lack of objectivity and a homer bias” on our part and then goes and post that pile of crap^^^^^^?!?!

Jarret Lee has more upside than Colt McCoy if only Lee could stop “the poor play, the inexplicable int’s, and the poor decision making”. Great argument! 3 MNC in a row could be the next Einstein if he wasn’t so freaking stupid.
LonghornScott said:

August 12th, 2009 at 11:17 am

The shell-shocked argument is laughable. The SEC defenses would have trouble preparing for Texas and Oklahoma’s offensive styles on a week timeline.

Teams have around a month to prepare for bowl games… that’s a big advantage to the defenses and a big part of the reason that Florida was able to hold OUs offensive output down in last years championship game. On a week in week out basis during the season, OU and UT would wreak shit in either SEC Division.

And if by “cherry pick” you actually mean picking the cherries that are looking to get paid then we are in complete agreement.
Bartoncreek said:

August 12th, 2009 at 11:53 am

Jarret Lee has the upside of a dumb, slow, inaccurate, turnover prone meathead.

Our backup QBs go on to star in the SEC. Sherrod Harris would probably start for 8 teams in the SEC. He may never take a snap in the Big 12. Matt Nordgren would have made John Parker Wilson look like the slow, below average, shit QB that he is. Your starting QBs would have trouble breaking the 3 deep at most Big 12 schools. Unless Mack gave them an and or an or on the depth chart for bleeding for the program.

But yeah, the 6 NFLers we will roll out on D this year wouldn’t have a chance in hell of playing for an SEC team. NFL teams routinely take 2nd stringers off SEC teams over Texas’ scrubs. Forget that the 2005 defense had 9 NFL players starting for it. I mean seriously, what good is a nickel package that has 5 guys now starting in the NFL in the SEC when their QBs throw like girls and run like old men with emphysema.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:03 pm

I suppose upside could also refer to mental grasp, unfazability, and character, but generally it refers to the physical gifts an athlete has. Raw athleticism speaking only and not with regard to the other intangibles, Jarret Lee is a better pro prospect than Colt. He has more god given tools to work with, assuming he ever learns to harness them.

If UT or OU were apart of the SEC, where you get play them year in and year out, why would such an offense be hard to prepare for. You will have seen it before. Also, from the MNC game, it just looks as if the FU defenders out-athleted the OU players moreso than it was about scheme. Refer to the goal line stops and the Bradford int’s. Those plays were made by superior athletic efforts by the FU players. Also, how is not having enough time to throw and being dominated at the line of scrimmage a result of scheme. FU’s DE’s were in Bradford’s face within 3 seconds of every play. OU’s overrated tackles could not stop them all game long. All this was not a result of scheme. It was about raw superiority in athleticism.

And let us not forget, if Auburn had not been gipped in 2004, there is a very good chance that the SEC would have won the last 5 out 6 MNC’s. Does this sound better to you all? That 2004 Auburn team was bad ass and certainly much better than the OU team that went on to lose (of course) and get blown out by USC. How’s that for splitting hairs?
Misterserious7 said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:15 pm

True, you’re no longer splitting hairs. You’re simply putting out wild-ass speculation.
LonghornScott said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:29 pm

Well let’s see… you have an offense that’s based on fast pace and exploiting defensive mistakes through alignment and matchups. I will grant you that Florida was the best defense OU faced last year and probably the most athletic. The month of preparation mitigated a lot of advantages that OU had in their regular season matchups.

Also you are confusing your imaginary scenarios. You say that OU and UT would be “shell-shocked” if they were put into the SEC but then turn around and say that there’s no reason that SEC defenses would struggle against them because they would see them year in year out.
CloseToJumping said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:46 pm

The take on Jarrett Lee alone by this guy is worth his presence. Holy shit that was funny. Keep posting, man.

SEC homers that want to laud their defenses and then defend their offenses accordingly never get tiring to me. I like to run into them at bars and such. Jevan Snead wasn’t going to start here, but Colt McCoy probably wouldn’t be playing ahead of Jarrett Lee. Terrific.

SEC QBs this year will be:

Florida – Tebow – 3rd round NFL fullback going to the Patriots as a brotherly pick-up by Meyer’s boy Bellichik (sic).

Ole Miss – Snead – A solid NFL prospect likely to be taken in the 1st round in the upcoming draft. A good, not great, college QB that got beat out as a Freshman by the most accurate passer in NCAA history at Texas.

Miss State Scrub – I don’t even know who starts for MSU this year. It doesn’t matter. This player would not be on the depth charts at a single school in the Big 12 besides CU.

Arkansas – Ryan Mallett – This lumbering buffoon from Texas was passed on by UT. He has a cannon for an arm and dead tree trunks for legs. Probably perfect for Petrino’s offense if he can stay healthy. That’s a big debate.

LSU – Jefferson or Lee – This debate is probably more interesting when the topic is American politics. As a debate about QBs at LSU, who cares? Neither one is worth a shit and neither one would be starting for a single Big 12 team.

Alabama – Whether Greg McElroy or Star Jackson or Star Jones, this designated hander-offer couldn’t hold the jock of Zac Lee or Austen Arnaud, the 11th and 10th best Big 12 QBs respectively.

Georgia – Joe Cox – Sucks worse than your posting takes, 3 in a Row. I’ve seen this guy play and I am pretty sure he’s mentally retarded.

Kentucky – Mike Hartline – Wow.

Tennessee – Jonathan Crompton – As things twist sideways during this fall of discontent for Lane Kiffin and the shell of the program formerly known as Tennessee, I fully expect Kiffin to publicly blame his QB and Phil Fulmer’s recruiting as the reason for their demise.

South Carolina – Stephen Garcia – If this guy could play as well as he could talk shit and fuck up, he’d be decent. Instead he’ll be another mentally broken QB of the Spurrier era, probably quitting in midseason and heading back to Tampa with his tail tucked between his legs.

Vanderbilt – Who cares? This program is worse than Baylor.

Auburn – Kodi Burns – He’s a poor man’s Jordan Jefferson. Talent wouldn’t piss on this guy if he were on fire. It hates him that much.

So basically, the SEC and its cesspool of offensive miscreants has 3 serviceable QBs playing in the entire conference this year. 2 of those guys are from Texas and couldn’t make it or weren’t selected to make it at Texas. The 3rd is one of the biggest frauds that the sportsmedia world has ever perpetrated on us, but I’ll give him to you.
whoopspat said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:50 pm

LSU – Jefferson or Lee – This debate is probably more interesting when the topic is American politics. As a debate about QBs at LSU, who cares? Neither one is worth a shit and neither one would be starting for a single Big 12 team

That was a great post all the way through, but the politics quip is the best part.
Scipio Tex said:

August 12th, 2009 at 12:52 pm

I want to parachute you into a Mobile, AL sports bar with a copy of Phil Steele, C rations, and an entrenching tool.
n-ea said:

August 12th, 2009 at 1:22 pm

Your claim of objectivity is laughable and your comprehension skills suck. Maybe you’re just trying to get a rise out of everybody, but I’ve met many of you SEC dipshits in bars and the conversation is always the same, so I take it that you actually believe the crap you’re saying.
n-ea said:

August 12th, 2009 at 1:29 pm

Great work CTJ
The Dane said:

August 12th, 2009 at 2:46 pm

Scip – I always enjoy your posts. Keep up the good work.
Curious what you would say in response to this quote from Muschamp:
“I always feel like playing as a freshman is harder by position when you get closer to the ball, because it happens faster. The bodies are bigger. When you’re on the perimeter, as a wide out or a corner, a lot of times your athleticism can take over. The ball is in the air a little longer and you have a chance to really react and let your athleticism take over as opposed to instinctively playing the game. An inside player, those are tough to play as freshmen, but we’re going to do it.”
Nordberg said:

August 12th, 2009 at 3:00 pm

Not to disagree with Muschamp, but I know I’m more comfortable with a freshman DT or DE than aCB or safety.
Scipio Tex said:

August 12th, 2009 at 4:42 pm

The Dane:

I’ve seen more successful freshmen corners than DTs.

But I haven’t seen many of either.
EastSideHorn said:

August 12th, 2009 at 5:56 pm

“Bama, FU, LSU, and Georgia are the top teams in the SEC and are as good or better than either UT or OU, year in and year out. Ark (don’t know about them, but I figure they are on their way up), Ole Miss, Auburn, and S. Carolina are all very solid teams. If in the B12, they would consistently be equivalent to the 3rd best team after UT and OU.”

Wow, just wow.

Alabama is one year removed from going 7-6, and 6-7 the year before that, and yet is better than ou and ut “year in and year out.”?! Mississippi is “consistently” equivalent to the third best Big 12 team, yet is one year removed from going 3-9 (ouch). Auburn? Seriously? Fucking Auburn? A 5-7 record with one of the worst offenses in the history of football. Same goes for Tennessee. Sorry, but this is absolutely ridiculous.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 12th, 2009 at 6:41 pm

“Holy shit that was funny. Keep posting, man.”

I was going to let it rest. What is self evident is self evident, but, since you made the request, I will oblige.

“you are confusing your imaginary scenarios”

Not really. However, I am awfully impressed by your efforts to appear insightful and smart. It’s just that you need everything tangibly spelled out for you. The implication was that the SEC is a tougher league. When one team moves from a weaker conference to a tougher one, it is reasonable to assume that they would be the ones struggling, and not the other way around. Whatever advantage UT or OU may have with their schemes will be more than offset by the more physical D’s and O’s they will face in the SEC.

Look at how the Texas offense looked against OSU. Not all that efficient. Anyone else notice how slow the Texas O looked against the Buckeye D. Yes, UT won but barely to a team led by a fish QB. The Buckeye offense physically manhandled the UT line. This is a B10 team we are talking about. If Pryor could have thrown the ball worth a shit, OSU would have won the game and would have been the better team.

Remember when Texas moved up from the SWC into the B12. Texas struggled the first few years and it took a few years for them to catch up to the level of play in the better conference. I believe that same would apply if Texas ever moved into the SEC. Why wouldn’t it? And don’t give me the b.s. about higher rankings these days. We all know they don’t mean all that much when it comes to a power poll.

Also, you can talk all day and night about schemes. I still say: how much of scheme do you really need when your line dominates to the point where you can stuff two goal line, point blank attempts and when you are in the damn QB’s face within 3 seconds every damn play. Let’s not even get into how the FU’s DB’s overmatched OU’s WR’s. Didn’t FU just man up with them?

Close, there is more to a football team than just the QB position. For god’s sake, LSU won a MNC with Maulk as QB. But the B12’s superiority in the QB department is far from certain, as you seem to be casually assuming. Yes, I am aware of all the media hype and the numbers, but who cares about all that. It really means nothing. My god, what QB in the B12 didn’t throw for at least 60% completion rate and how many of threw for over 70% last year. It was not just Colt. Even no talent Joe Ganz lit it up against B12 D’s, and, no, Joe Ganz would not have had a chance to start for any SEC teams outside of the bottom dwellers. The SEC play demands a more talented QB’s than a Ganz. He would never see the field in the SEC.

I think more QB’s from the SEC will make it into the pro’s than from the B12. Talent wise, the SEC QB’s have the upper hand over those in the B12. A good chunck of the QB’s in the SEC are from Texas by the way and, let us not forget, they were, in general, more highly rated and recruited coming out of high school than the QB’s from Texas who chose to stay in the B12. It is far fetched to believe that if those listed SEC QB’s had had the opportunity to play against last year’s B12 D’s, they also would have enjoyed 60 to 70% completion rates, if not even higher.

Numbers and hype in college doesn’t necessarily correlate to talent. Look at Chase and Graham and their outrageous record setting numbers. The NFL showed you how much respect they had for them, their numbers, and the B12 D’s by not choosing to draft them at all. Hell, they chose to draft Mcgee, an option QB who barely threw the ball at all, over those record setting guys. By the time, most of those QB’s you listed graduate along with those in the B12, I believe that the “Stephen Mcgee” principle will be applicable, even with the inclusion of Colt and Bradford. I will try to remember to come back and rub it in your face, Close, after all this happens. The odds are certainly in my favor.

Colt’s numbers are impressive, but not so much when three or four other QB’s, and one like Joe Ganz, is within the ball park of your stats. Kind of like the Mcgwire and Bonds home run numbers. Would have been more impressive if other people around them were not also hitting homers at record setting paces, if they had been the only ones. For baseball, chalk it up to steriods and the era they played in, moreso than any historic level of talent they may have had.

Not trying to diminish Colt’s accomplishments, but given the ridiculous numbers that the other B12 QB’s put up, all of whom went undrafted, why couldn’t the same be said about Colt and his numbers and stats?
3 MNC in a row said:

August 12th, 2009 at 6:46 pm

“Wow, just wow.”

Talking about the present going into the future. Not about the past decade. SEC dominance is a recent phenomenon (for the past 6 to 7 years) and I believe it is here to stay from here on out. Every year, the conference gets stronger and stronger relative to other conferences. Look who has been winning all the MNC’s lately.
dick said:

August 12th, 2009 at 7:09 pm

“Remember when Texas moved up from the SWC into the B12. Texas struggled the first few years and it took a few years for them to catch up to the level of play in the better conference.”

This is just awesome. Not “Jarrett Lee has a higher ceiling and better physical tools than Colt” awesome, but awesome nonetheless.
eric said:

August 13th, 2009 at 8:26 am

3 MNC

I can’t tell if you’re actually defending the SEC, or doing a brilliant parody of a typical SEC troll. I can understand arguing that Texas or OU may have trouble with Florida, Georgia, LSU, or Bama in the Saban era. That’s at least plausible. But to say “Ole Miss, Auburn, and S. Carolina are all very solid teams. If in the B12, they would consistently be equivalent to the 3rd best team after UT and OU” indicates that you’re not coming to this debate in good faith.

Off the top of my head, Mizzou alone has beaten SC in a bowl game, owned Ole Miss, and embarrased Arkansas. This by a team that is consistantly dominated by OU and Texas and all during your 6-7 years of SEC donminance.

That’s why arguing with someone like you is like beating your head against a wall, because “no 1st tier team from another conference could compete with the class of the SEC, and 2nd tier SEC teams would sweep aside their counterparts in the other power conferences, because that’s just the way it is. Thus God/Bear Bryant has decreed it and thus it is. What’s that? Actual games that have been played? Sorry can’t hear you, lalalala. Better athletes, lalalala. Jarret Lee > Colt McCoy, lalalala.” Its laughable.
Houstonearlers said:

August 13th, 2009 at 10:29 am

Our 2005 team would have shit stomped any of the recent SEC champs.

And the game against 2007 LSU — who lost to two unranked teams and did not face any teams who finished in the top-10 prior to “earning” a spot in the BCS (and only 3 ranked teams) — would have been over about 8 minutes into the first quarter.
3 MNC in a row said:

August 13th, 2009 at 11:45 am

No, Eric, it is not parody, unless the truth and reality themselves happen to be a parody (and sometimes, most times, I do wonder about this).

I understand that there are some arguments against the strength of the second tier level of SEC teams, but I believe there are more arguments in their favor. Yes, some have lost bowl games and some have had recent poor records, but rather than looking at one isolated aspect of a program, look at the program overall to determine their strengths.

You guys keep harping about bowl losses here and there, but the fact is that the SEC consistently dominates in its bowl games. If you wish to solely place such a premium on bowl games, then what does last year’s bowl results say for the B12. It was not just one fluke loss by one team. The whole Southern Division, the so called toughest division in CFB, tanked and flopped. If not for UT’s last second win over OSU, it would have gone an embarrassing 0 for 4 in its bowl games.

The only reason why the B12 looked decent in its bowl results was because the North division was fortunate enough to be matched up with a bunch of patsies in their games. Even then, most of them still struggled to win. Hell, Mizzou was barely able to hold off and beat a god awful Northwestern team. What does the bowl results suggest about the B12 last year, especially when you combine the poor showing with the fact that not one of the B12 teams played anyone from out of conference who was worth a shit? It seems to suggest that the rankings of the B12 last years were extremely over-inflated, a result and by-product of playing and winning against a bunch of patsy teams. Just look at who UT plays in its non-conference games. UT categorically refuses, and will always refuse, to play anyone decent or dangerous in its non-conference schedule. UT’s non-conference schedule is typically a joke, but, ironically, compared to the typical non-conference schedule of the rest of the B12, it actually turns out to be one of the most difficult ones in the conference. Until their bowl games, the B12 as a whole plays no one of merit, as a matter of policy it seems.

Mizzou may have had some success against S. Carolina and Arkansas, but who really believes that Mizzou, at present or in the long term, will be a better program than a S. Car, Ark, Aub, or Ole Miss. I understand that some of these programs may have struggled in the past, but, at present and going into the future, these programs make more money, have more support, and are on firmer foundations than any other programs in the B12 other than UT and OU (would add A&M, but who knows with them. They have always had the resources and have never been able to do anything with them).

I thought Ole Miss last year, at the tail end of the year, was a better team than OU and would have likely beaten them in a head to head match up. Last year’s Ole Miss team was legit. No reason to believe that anything will change this year or in the near future. Houston Nutt is an excellent coach.

Arkansas sucked last year, but who doubts that they will be back to being at least decent and decent in the SEC is typically better than 3rd in the B12.

Auburn is a traditionally strong program. I understand they struggled last year, but what program in the B12, aside from UT and OU, could be legitimately placed above them. You could say Nebraska, but, if I was a betting man, I’d take the future prospects of Auburn over that of NU. With all the money now driving the CFB game, the days of NU dominance in CFB are over.

Much the same could be said for S. Carolina. They have a really talented team, had a very talented D last year. Only being stuck in the SEC keeps people from noticing all the talent that they have. Again outside of UT and OU, no B12 team comes close to them in overall talent level.

What team in the B12 is the third best team? It should be A&M or NU, but they are all down, and their future prospects, while good, are less certain than those of above second tier SEC programs. Is it Tech? Don’t make me laugh. Is it Okie Lite? Again, don’t make me laugh? Any of the Northern programs? You mean the overrated one which barely managed to hold off Northwestern last year? Again, don’t make me laugh. You see, the B12 is undebatably a top heavy conference. Right now, after UT and OU, there is no one else of true merit in the conference, and, aside from A&M or NU coming back, the future propects of one coming into existence is extremely doubtful. The B12 has an inherent issue and problem with demographic imbalance.

Now, does all this sound like a parody? Prehaps, but, if so, whoever ever said that life or reality itself was not joke or a parody? So you see, to call all this a parody does not necessarily make it unreal or untrue.
Tim's Bleeding Vagina said:

August 18th, 2009 at 6:53 am

when did tim start rooting for the SEC?
Teon McCoy said:

August 18th, 2009 at 7:02 am

“Much the same could be said for S. Carolina. They have a really talented team, had a very talented D last year. Only being stuck in the SEC keeps people from noticing all the talent that they have. Again outside of UT and OU, no B12 team comes close to them in overall talent level.”

Shit like this is ridiculous.
Kafka said:

August 18th, 2009 at 7:36 am

Re: the success of frosh CBs versus frosh DTs, the difference is speed versus strength. There are a lot of freshman CBs who are fast enough to stay with NCAA receivers. In Texas you find quite a few CBs who are well coached in high school.

At DT, the important physical qualities are size and strength. Few frosh are big and strong enough to play DT. Most need to get stronger in the weight room for at least a year before they are ready for hand to hand combat with the 300 pounders on the OL.

Humans get fast before they get big and strong. Humans lose their speed before they lose their strength.
Twitter Trackbacks - Barking Carnival » Blog Archive » ESPN’s College Football Power Poll [barkingcarnival.com] - Topsy said:

August 18th, 2009 at 7:48 pm

[...] Barking Carnival » Blog Archive » ESPN’s College Football Power Poll http://www.barkingcarnival.com/scipio-tex/espns-college-football-power-poll – cached page A power poll suggests that you are rating the overall quality of a team without confounding factors like schedule, road games, bowl tie-ins (and likely conference opponent), homefield advantage, or the basic psychology that tells us that if a team is 7-0, hey, they must be really good. — From the page [...]
Barking Carnival — Blog — Tracking Baylor, Foresight Wizardy, & Other Quickies said:

September 7th, 2009 at 1:21 pm

[...] contributions. Perhaps not. Okie State looked very good against Georgia, and that pleased me, as I enjoyed discussions on the matter in the offseason. The defense looked solid, although we’ll see how Bill Young handles the Big 12 spreads with 3 [...]

15

Georgia number one in coaches poll
By HenryJames on August 1st, 2008
27

The Big 12 is now the best conference in college football
By BRAGGonUT on September 17th, 2008
21

blogpoll – Preseason – 2009
By admin on August 23rd, 2009
36

Early College Football Betting Lines
By Trips Right on June 30th, 2009
8

New number one in the coaches’ poll
By HenryJames on September 2nd, 2008

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Sailor Ripley commented on the blog post Nike U in Turmoil 1 minute ago

Aren’t the building some sort of super duper hoops arena? Most expensive ever bilt or something?

Who will the get? Mark Few?
srr50 wrote a new blog post: Nike U in Turmoil 18 minutes ago

10 weeks ago, Oregon played in the Rose Bowl as Pac 10 champions. Since their loss to Ohio State, the program has been in some kind of bizzaro parallel universe where every headline concerns a player arrest, a firing, or now a resignation.

Mike Bellotti, the Duck AD and former head coach earlier this week
Luke commented on the blog post First Round: Clemson Tigers 2 hours, 29 minutes ago

Prescient comment, Doc.

I think we learned today that no team is really a mirror image of Missouri, even if Clemson is about as close as it gets. Unless you have significantly better/more talented athletes, if you try to run with the Tigers, you will lose. This team is so much fun to watch in games
srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 2 hours, 43 minutes ago

Good to see that Tom Penders still believes in the weave offense. Maryland finally figured out that if you pass quickly, the middle is always open.

37-29 Maryland late in the first half.
Luke wrote a new blog post: Previewing Jimmer and the Cougars 2 hours, 44 minutes ago

Kansas State is going to be under a lot of pressure tomorrow night in primetime at the Ford Center.

Not only are the Wildcats the favored #2 seed going against #7 seed BYU, but if the Wildcats lose, they may sentence hundreds of boys to nonstop harassment from all the kids who think that “Jimmer” was

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Ibas water bottle wrote a new blog post: Georgia Tech post mortem 2 hours, 56 minutes ago

We came up short.

Credit to Georgia Tech they worked the ball inside where they had the advantage and played great D on the perimeter. Matt Pilgrim is the most athletic big man we’ve had in years around here and he was irrelevant. When we tried to drive they collapsed like Chris Farley on a

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Phenomenal Smith commented on the blog post First Round: Clemson Tigers 3 hours, 32 minutes ago

Doc, the turnovers seemed to do the trick – there were great big chunks of time when Mizzou didn’t even have to get into a half court offense.

Great to see Ramsey have such a good game and pretty stifle Booker. As Euclid said during the game, even when Mizzou doesn’t play well
dick commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 4 hours, 11 minutes ago

“Also because those other teams gave great effort almost every game. This team’s effort was questionable. Dumb and lazy, not a good combo…..”

This is what made this season so bizarre for me. This has never been a problem for Barnes’ teams. But I actually questioned this team’s heart and desire to play together
srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 4 hours, 25 minutes ago

Travis Ford spent the 2nd half channeling his inner Rick Barnes — lot’s of standing around on offense while one player tries to generate something off a ball screen — then taking a forced shot.

So the Big 12 goes 5-2 in Round One.
skymonkeyhorn commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 4 hours, 29 minutes ago

This is the worst coached team ever in Barnes era. Period.
Worst defense over the whole season,
Offense sucked big time and the bench coaching was horrible, ransom’s attitude was better then the coach’s overall this season.
Trips write up pre and post better then the game plan and O schemes.
Hell we could have
srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 4 hours, 33 minutes ago

advertisers think they will probably get some deals for the additional 32 games that would be added. The feeling is that an ESPN would disount rates somewhat, since they already have a dual revenue stream — advertising dollars and subscription fees.

It’s all about content for ESPN — even mediocre content.
dick commented on the blog post FLV March Madness First Round Bets 4 hours, 35 minutes ago

a great first round of the tournament from an excitement standpoint, very mediocre from a gambling standpoint.
srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 4 hours, 51 minutes ago

Ga. Tech — last in the ACC in free throw shooting at 64% — 13 for 13 tonight.
srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 5 hours ago

A poll of media buyers from the major agencies overhwhelmingly showed that advertisers believe that the NCAA will expand, and the tournament will join the BCS on ESPN.
whiskey wrote a new blog post: The week in news- Pariahs, Malcontents and Power Hour 5 hours, 3 minutes ago

In the midst of March Madness, St. Patrick’s Day, house guests, nice weather outside and a host of other distractions I still managed to come across quite a few interesting college football stories this week. Here we go.

Mike Leach and Craig James were apparently in the same room this week and nobody wrestled. Bummer. Leach

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srr50 commented on the blog post March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 5 hours, 15 minutes ago

Anderson finds out what going to the paint is like when there is a big who knows how to defend the low block.
srr50 wrote a new blog post: March Madness Open Thread Part Deaux 5 hours, 24 minutes ago

So far on Day Two, no buzzer beaters, but there was the obligatory #12 over #5 with Cornell thumping Temple 78-65, but the Ivy League school was everyone’s “inside” pick for an upset. Still the day hasn’t come close to generating the action that Thursday had.

Today
#5 Texas A&M 69 #12
Patrick Bateman commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 5 hours, 49 minutes ago

I wasn’t trying to say they quit. They just didn’t play hard a lot of the time. Lazy = lack of effort. Example, our transition defense was about 75% effort and 25% stupidity. We loafed down court a lot. The kids didn’t like to lose so they would fight back,
Patrick Bateman commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 7 hours, 22 minutes ago

This the most disappointing team because our talent level is higher than those others.

The DGib/Buckman team was the least talented, barely, after the injury to LaMarcus and Tucker’s suspension.

Last year’s team was the hardest to watch. Just watching AJ Abrams, who I don’t hate as much as most, run around like a
uthookem commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 7 hours, 28 minutes ago

Agreed on Damo being my favorite Longhorn basketball player, I wish him all the best.

This was definitely the worst, by far.
Trips Right commented on the blog post Texas Hoops vs. Wake Forest: Post Mortem 8 hours, 42 minutes ago

Don’t have time to address each and every comment now, but I wanted to say thanks to everyone for contributing to the site this season. It’s made it a lot of fun to follow a team that’s tough to watch at times.

Also, I wanted to thank you for the kind words as
Hiphopopotamus commented on the blog post Big Dance: Day Two 8 hours, 43 minutes ago

And that’s all she wrote…relatively boring day so far. A&M out to a nice early lead.

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Art Vandelay commented on the blog post Texas Hoops vs. Wake Forest: Post Mortem 8 hours, 46 minutes ago

Trips,

Great work all year long. Love the passion. The fact that you kept writing these (even around the birth of a child), is fantastic, shows your commitment, and is a little freaky. :-)

I think you showed great restraint in this post. It would have been easier to “go off” on Barnes.
ghostofagroundgame commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 8 hours, 46 minutes ago

Second awesomest thing — Magnus gets his woman to go to Hooters with him.
Hiphopopotamus commented on the blog post Big Dance: Day Two 8 hours, 53 minutes ago

Missouri going to hang on…

Sconsin clinging to a 2 point cushion

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BrickHorn commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 9 hours, 6 minutes ago

Are there any women who are not skanks at any place on 1960?
Hiphopopotamus commented on the blog post Big Dance: Day Two 9 hours, 7 minutes ago

Make that a 1 point Wofford lead with 4+ to play…

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Hiphopopotamus commented on the blog post Big Dance: Day Two 9 hours, 14 minutes ago

Pitt rolling Oakland.

Purdue holds on against Siena…I missed it in my bracket, but I’m actually happy for them.

Missouri pulling away from Clemson (68-60) with 7 to play…knew I should have never bet on Oliver Purnell, even if it was against this Missouri team.

Amazingly, game of the day so far might be Wisco/Wofford – 2

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ghostofagroundgame commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 9 hours, 17 minutes ago

I ain’t talking about the girls Brick.
BrickHorn commented on the blog post Barnes worst team 9 hours, 20 minutes ago

The girls don’t wear jorts at Hooters. They dress like Richard Simmons.

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