2012 College Football

[RollTrackTake]

DP you were dead on in your analysis. ND having a freshman QB certainly didn't help. I wonder why Brian Kelly didn't go to Tommy Rees early. Yeah you want your freshman QB to learn but you may not get another title shot any time soon.

[r2473]

Originally Posted by Dedans Penthouse

Imma go with 'Bama - 37 , ND - 13

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You were SO far off DP. You obviously know nothin' 'bout football......

[volleygirl]

Originally Posted by Dedans Penthouse

Favorite - Pts. Underdog - (over/under)

Alabama -10 - Notre Dame (41)


Imma go with 'Bama - 37 , ND - 13

____________

Dedan,

heck of a prediction. Yours was probably the closest I saw. I thought Bama would win but not like that. I had 50 on them but if I had the view of the game that you did, I would have bet my house on it.

[norbac]

Honestly can't say I was that surprised with the result. This was a ND team that was lucky to even get there. Should have lost to a 6-7 Pitt team, had a tough time against Purdue and BYU, and even got a tough game from a freshman QB-led USC team. Shame Oregon couldn't keep up its end of the bargain. Still think Bama would have won, but it would have been closer than ND me thinks.

[mikeler]

Originally Posted by volleygirl

Dedan,

heck of a prediction. Yours was probably the closest I saw. I thought Bama would win but not like that. I had 50 on them but if I had the view of the game that you did, I would have bet my house on it.

Very good prediction.

Originally Posted by norbac

Honestly can't say I was that surprised with the result. This was a ND team that was lucky to even get there. Should have lost to a 6-7 Pitt team, had a tough time against Purdue and BYU, and even got a tough game from a freshman QB-led USC team. Shame Oregon couldn't keep up its end of the bargain. Still think Bama would have won, but it would have been closer than ND me thinks.

Agree with this.

[BigServer1]

I thought Alabama would win by 14...Should have doubled that.

Simply didn't expect ND to get owned so badly on Defense. I anticipated a tougher 1st half, ultimately leading to Bama wearing down the Irish and running away with it. I was wrong. Could have easily been 63-0 I think if Alabama had been so inclined.

Here's my issue with Notre Dame...Even when they don't pass the eye test, they get the benefit of the doubt. Their schedule this year wasn't the gauntlet people expected. Michigan and MSU were down. They struggled with Pitt, BYU and Purdue. Their best win was a controversial OT win against Stanford, before they switched QBs to Hogan (who went undefeated as a starter and beat 4 ranked teams).

I think it was clear to most people who watched the games that ND wasn't the best team in the country, or even #2, but they "beat the system" and so they got to go to Miami. They could easily go 11-1 next year and be right back in this same spot with some help from voters (who LOOOOVVVEEEEE the Irish), and in a four team playoff I could see them being a mainstay, simply based on their fan base and history.

ND's History in BCS Games:

2001 Fiesta Bowl: Oregon State 41, Notre Dame 9
2006 Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State 34, Notre Dame 20
2007 Sugar Bowl: LSU 41, Notre Dame 14
2013 BCS Title Game: Alabama 42, Notre Dame 14

Their closest game was a 2TD loss to Ohio State. They just don't belong in these type of games.

One interesting note: For all the talk of "ND equals ratings", as if it's some justification of voting them into these games, the ratings from last nights game were a 15.7, which was up from 2012's title game, but down from Oregon-Auburn's 16.1 from 2011. Highest overall rating was USC/Texas in 2006 which got a 21.7 overnight.

[Kevin T]

I'm not so sure ND's arse-chewing last night won't hurt recruiting. They may have been better off with a close regular season loss and maybe play a tighter game against a lesser opponent in a lesser BCS bowl. Bama was a dog and ND was the rag doll in it's mouth. ND thought they had a plan but like Mike Tyson used to say, "Everyone has a plan against me until they get hit". The Irish were outclassed in every area of the game. I believe one of the announcers said the SEC's average margin of victory in BCS championship games was 34-17. But like Big just mentioned, I think Bama could have scored 1-2 more times if they wanted. It's funny, because Brian Kelly looked like he'd been hit during the halftime interview...he knew it was over and wanted to throw in the towel.

By the way, I think we all know Dedan's day job now...professional bookie.

[BigServer1]

Originally Posted by Kevin T

I'm not so sure ND's arse-chewing last night won't hurt recruiting. They may have been better off with a close regular season loss and maybe play a tighter game against a lesser opponent in a lesser BCS bowl. Bama was a dog and ND was the rag doll in it's mouth. ND thought they had a plan but like Mike Tyson used to say, "Everyone has a plan against me until they get hit". The Irish were outclassed in every area of the game. I believe one of the announcers said the SEC's average margin of victory in BCS championship games was 34-17. But like Big just mentioned, I think Bama could have scored 1-2 more times if they wanted. It's funny, because Brian Kelly looked like he'd been hit during the halftime interview...he knew it was over and wanted to throw in the towel.

By the way, I think we all know Dedan's day job now...professional bookie.

Yeah ND's plan sucked, if they had one at all. So much talk about Brian Kelly being "one of the best coaches in college football" and how he's in that upper echelon of coaches...I just don't buy it. He's done a nice job at ND to get them winning games, but he isn't in the same league as Saban, not even close.

The bolded part is just wild. The fact that this league hasn't just been winning these title games, they've largely been dominating them. If anything, it makes me feel a hell of a lot better about Oregon losing 22-19 on a last second Auburn FG in the 2011 Title game.

I agree with the idea that this could hurt recruiting, but I don't think it matters either way. I feel like every year you've got ND in the top 5-10 of recruiting classes and yet they can't win a big game. I remember Charlie Weis was a "recruiting master", and he brought in so many blue chippers, people started talking national titles (sigh). We all know how that turned out.

What I don't understand is how teams like ND, Michigan, FSU and others always get top classes, but it doesn't translate to wins in big games, or in some cases (like Texas these last few years) poor seasons overall. It can't all be about coaching...Can it?

[r2473]

Originally Posted by Dedans Penthouse

Imma go with 'Bama - 37 , ND - 13

____________

They got a name for the winners in the world
I want a name when I lose
They call Alabama the Crimson Tide
Call me Deacon (Irish) Blues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A0wGO3c2T8

[topsltennis]

Originally Posted by r2473

They got a name for the winners in the world
I want a name when I lose
They call Alabama the Crimson Tide
Call me Deacon (Irish) Blues

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A0wGO3c2T8

Roll Tide!

[Dedans Penthouse]

Originally Posted by Kevin T

By the way, I think we all know Dedan's day job now...professional bookie.

Tell ya what amigo, I'll lay 8-to-5 odds that I'll be presiding over the wedding of volleygirl and r2473 ..... courtesy of the powers invested in me by the great state of intoxication


Notre Dame: after you're done picking up your jocks, please report back to South Bend to pick up your consolation prizes:






in ND's defense:
Big Server .... it looks and sounds like you could use an out-of-the-freezer Bailey's Irish Cream (topped with a Jamison 'floater'). Great cure for football angst

Seriously, seeth all you want but you have to admit that...well, there it was: staring the Ducks right in the face: Ducks vs. Bama for all the marbles. I recall USC laying 50+ points on them?....hmmm, wonder what the 'Bama Big Boy Co. of Warmack, Jones et al upfront might've done? .... remember: ND wasn't even ranked in September and they did win a lot of 'big games' to get to where they ended up--it's not their fault they didn't lose prior to January. Just sayin' - regards.

[BigServer1]

Originally Posted by Dedans Penthouse

in ND's defense:
Big Server .... it looks and sounds like you could use an out-of-the-freezer Bailey's Irish Cream (topped with a Jamison 'floater'). Great cure for football angst

Seriously, seeth all you want but you have to admit that...well, there it was: staring the Ducks right in the face: Ducks vs. Bama for all the marbles. I recall USC laying 50+ points on them?....hmmm, wonder what the 'Bama Big Boy Co. of Warmack, Jones et al upfront might've done? .... remember: ND wasn't even ranked in September and they did win a lot of 'big games' to get to where they ended up--it's not their fault they didn't lose prior to January. Just sayin' - regards.

I'm not saying we deserved to be there over ND, not this season. Doesn't take anything away from how embarrassing it is to see ND get blown out in these games every time they get there.

As for the USC game...Yeah, they scored 51 points. A few things...Our defense was so banged up at that point, we had four freshman playing the majority of the game on the D line. USC played the best game of their season, hands down. They played like a team with the talent (offensively) to be worthy of the #1 ranking. USC also deflated the balls to help their passing offense. No idea how that actually affected anything, but they cheated and still lost by 11.

BTW, Oregon allowed 20 points per game on defense in the 2012 season (including the Fiesta Bowl). All the rep for Oregon being "terrible" defensively is ridiculous, especially when you consider the fact that for the first half of the season, the 2nd and 3rd string defenders played the entire second half. There was a stat looking at defense when the score was within 28 points, and Oregon ranked 3rd behind Alabama and ND in yards per play. It's a misnomer.

The Oregon defense did something that no SEC team could do in 2010: Marginalize Cam Newton for 4 quarters. An Auburn team that averaged nearly 43 points against vaunted SEC defenses scored just 22 against Oregon.

After all that...Do I think Oregon beats Alabama the title game this year? No. But do I think the outcome is in question for longer than 5 minutes? Yes. I do think that Oregon would have put up a better fight.

[Power Player]

Real Playoff system desperately needed.