We'll touch on it later but the whole college football/BCS controversy has given us a headache and quite honestly, we don't feel like talking about if for a while.
Not to worry, though, dear readers.... we've asked the Substitute to give us his thoughts on the matter and also his take on the possibility that the USC Trojans may be leaving the Coliseum to play their home games at the Rose Bowl, current home of their archrivals, the UCLA Bruins.
Outside of a semester studying abroad, the Sub' has been to pretty much every home USC game there at the Coliseum since childhood so he will have a unique perspective on this matter. (Picture here was taken by our guest poster from the game against the Bruins on Saturday)
Ladies and Gentlemen, The Substitute aka Mongo.....
For this college football fan, three dominant themes crept into mind during the final football Saturday for 2007:
1) The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. As you may be aware, USC has threatened to pull up stakes and travel its football team 10 miles up the highway to the Rose Bowl if the Coliseum Commission fails to make certain concessions. Rather than getting involved in the politics, I spent my 4 hours in the Coliseum during the UCLA game looking around at various spots of incredible sports moments: the Mary Decker-Slaney tripping in the '84 Olympics, the Garo Yepremian whiff kick during the clincher for their perfect season that has become a staple blooper moment, the site of the Great Wall of China during the Dodger tenure at the stadium (BTW -- A Dodger-Red Sox charity game is scheduled for the Coliseum in March); the spot where Bo Jackson's hip finally gave out; the end zone where Hollywood Henderson put an exclamation mark on a Cowboy NFC Championship in a driving rainstorm by dunking the ball over the goal post; the field where UCLA's Jackie Robinson and Kenny Washington ran wild for early Bruin teams; And, of course, the Coliseum's dominant theme of Trojan teams running roughshod over the entirety of college football since the 1930's. And all for the low low cost of about $500,000 originally! No stadium before, since, or ever will match the history made under the Peristyle. Move to more "plush" digs?? We hope not.
2) The BCS Mess. As the final two pieces came spilling out of the puzzle (rather than falling into place) on Saturday night it was a stunner to hear the first reports of USC not getting the next best team available after Big 10 Champ Ohio State slid into the BCS title gme, but was instead getting a Big 10 also-ran. What for? Since the Rose Bowl sold its soul to the BCS 8 years ago, why go through with the charade of "tradition" in getting a Pac 10 - Big 10 matchup when, 1) The said tradition dictates that it is the Pac 10 champion v. the Big 10 champion (not a Big 10 also-ran), and 2) The Rose Bowl existed for decades at its inception without a Big 10-Pac 10 matchup being mandated. Why the Rose Bowl Committee wouldn't instead take the next best matchup is beyond me.
3) The tilted field that is the race for the national championship to begin with. Think of this: Even before the first ball is tee'd up for kickoff on Labor Day Weekend, half the teams in college football are in effect eliminated from national championship contention. In a year when teams with 1 or even 2 losses are selected to play for the national championship, can someone give me an estimate as to when it is likely that a school from a non-BCS conference is going to get the votes for a title game appearance?
All that said... can't wait for next September!!
- The Substitute
1) The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. As you may be aware, USC has threatened to pull up stakes and travel its football team 10 miles up the highway to the Rose Bowl if the Coliseum Commission fails to make certain concessions. Rather than getting involved in the politics, I spent my 4 hours in the Coliseum during the UCLA game looking around at various spots of incredible sports moments: the Mary Decker-Slaney tripping in the '84 Olympics, the Garo Yepremian whiff kick during the clincher for their perfect season that has become a staple blooper moment, the site of the Great Wall of China during the Dodger tenure at the stadium (BTW -- A Dodger-Red Sox charity game is scheduled for the Coliseum in March); the spot where Bo Jackson's hip finally gave out; the end zone where Hollywood Henderson put an exclamation mark on a Cowboy NFC Championship in a driving rainstorm by dunking the ball over the goal post; the field where UCLA's Jackie Robinson and Kenny Washington ran wild for early Bruin teams; And, of course, the Coliseum's dominant theme of Trojan teams running roughshod over the entirety of college football since the 1930's. And all for the low low cost of about $500,000 originally! No stadium before, since, or ever will match the history made under the Peristyle. Move to more "plush" digs?? We hope not.
2) The BCS Mess. As the final two pieces came spilling out of the puzzle (rather than falling into place) on Saturday night it was a stunner to hear the first reports of USC not getting the next best team available after Big 10 Champ Ohio State slid into the BCS title gme, but was instead getting a Big 10 also-ran. What for? Since the Rose Bowl sold its soul to the BCS 8 years ago, why go through with the charade of "tradition" in getting a Pac 10 - Big 10 matchup when, 1) The said tradition dictates that it is the Pac 10 champion v. the Big 10 champion (not a Big 10 also-ran), and 2) The Rose Bowl existed for decades at its inception without a Big 10-Pac 10 matchup being mandated. Why the Rose Bowl Committee wouldn't instead take the next best matchup is beyond me.
3) The tilted field that is the race for the national championship to begin with. Think of this: Even before the first ball is tee'd up for kickoff on Labor Day Weekend, half the teams in college football are in effect eliminated from national championship contention. In a year when teams with 1 or even 2 losses are selected to play for the national championship, can someone give me an estimate as to when it is likely that a school from a non-BCS conference is going to get the votes for a title game appearance?
All that said... can't wait for next September!!
- The Substitute
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2 comments:
I hate hacks. "The Substitute" needs a Freshman Comp refresher course. His style is bland. His points, pointless. If his latest entry to BWD was 1 page, it was a page too long. - Mongo
Mongo, for a moment I thought that comment was from Brother Rick.
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