Alabama will remain No. 1, but Oklahoma is expected to jump Texas and move into the No. 2 spot when the Bowl Championship Series standings are released Sunday, according to Sam Chi, the BCS Guru.
If Sam's projections hold true, Texas is getting hosed. The one-loss Longhorns hung the only loss on the Sooners, beating them by 10 points
on a neutral field. But we're talking BCS, where winners and losers are not always determined on a field.
What can Mack Brown do for you, Longhorn fans? He has a vote in the coaches' poll and Oklahoma counterpart Bob Stoops does not. What's to prevent Brown from voting the Sooners No. 25 in the poll and Texas No. 1? Nobody would know, because the coaches' votes are not made public until after the BCS title game.
In 2004, Brown successfully lobbied voters to put the Longhorns ahead of California, earning Texas a berth in the Rose Bowl. It was a profitable move by Brown, who earned a $50,000 bonus for getting his team into a BCS game.
Boise State is another team on the outside looking in. Only one non-BCS team can make the field of 10, and Utah has clinched that spot. Utah is projected to be No. 6 in the BCS standings and Boise State No. 9. Go to the BCS Guru for the projected top 15.
The possibilities for a disastrous finish are endless, and Sam helped sort it out in a 9:24 podcast, which you can listen to by clicking here.
Wiz podcasts are also available for download on iTunes. Click here to go to our link on iTunes or search the iTunes store for "The Wiz of Odds." For a complete list of all podcasts on the site, click here.
By your logic, if Texas is getting hosed, Texas Tech must be, too. The one-loss Raiders handed the Longhorns their only loss.
You can't sort out the Big 12 South without ranking either OU, UT or Tech ahead of a team it lost to. Like a four-sided triangle, it's not possible. There's no argument in head-to-head; if you want to keep Texas ahead of Oklahoma, you have to go in another direction.
Posted by: Dr. Saturday | November 23, 2008 at 06:43 AM
How in the heck does Texas Tech not fall below Utah in the AP poll. Utah destroyed 48-24 over then #14 BYU, and Texas Tech who was #1 gets worked 65-21 but is still ahead of Utah??
What gives
Posted by: jeremy | November 23, 2008 at 10:56 AM
He's right....head to head is totally circularlogic. Like Dr. Saturday said in his article...TT beat UT, UT beat OU, OU beat TT...none of those statements is more true than the other.
Posted by: nb | November 23, 2008 at 11:41 AM
Three problems right now for Texas Tech. First, it is buried behind Oklahoma and Texas in the BCS and has no realistic shot of getting to the Big 12 title game. Second, its nonconference schedule was not as demanding as OU or Texas, so the computer rankings will hammer away. Third, teams that play in title games don't lose in November by 44 points.
Posted by: The Wiz | November 23, 2008 at 11:52 AM
OK, I just read Dr Saturday's post (I have nothing but respect for his work). While the argument makes sense on the surface, it's not going to work with the BCS computers.
Texas Tech had to go undefeated because it played two I-AA teams in nonconference play (Eastern Washington and Massachusetts). The Red Raiders get hammered on the computer rankings because of that, as they should.
Just think how this could have been different if Texas Tech would have played LSU to open the season. Tech decided to play E. Wash. and LSU got Appalachian St.
Posted by: The Wiz | November 23, 2008 at 12:12 PM
Your BCS guru is wrong, for like the 10th week in a row. Texas is #2.
As for who is getting hosed...look at the non-conference. Texas played...who? Rice and Florida Atlantic are the only bowl teams. Texas Tech played TWO I-AA teams. OU beat two top 15 teams in TCU and likely Big East champ Cincinnati.
This site calls out the SEC for playing nobody in the nonconference...how about a little love for OU for getting the job done out of conference?
Posted by: Sean | November 23, 2008 at 05:09 PM