Destination Tempe

On Sunday the University of Iowa Football team accepted a bid to play in the Insight Bowl located in Tempe, Arizona. Iowa's opponent will be the Missouri Tigers from the Big XII conference. This is the first time the border state universities have played one another since 1910.

The Insight Bowl will be played at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University. Game time in the desert will be 7pm (PT) on ESPN. Announcing the game on tv will be Sean McDonough and Matt Millen. The game can also be heard on the Hawkeye Sports Network with Gary Dolphin and Ed Podolak.

This will be Iowa's first post-season appearance in the state of Arizona. Iowa fans will be well-represented on Mill Avenue as the Phoenix Iowa Club is the largest club in the nation. Arizona is also a popular winter destination for many Iowa snowbirds.

Expansion Talk - Kansas

When Turner Gill took over the reigns of the Kansas Football program in December of 2009 he listed his priorities: Recruit, beat Missouri, win the Big 12 North, win the Big 12 and by doing so, the Jayhawks would be playing for the National Champsionship. Now before Gill has the opportunity to be on the sidelines of Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, the timeline to acheive those priorities has been accelerated.

National reports have Nebraska joining the Big Ten as early as Friday resulting in an impolosion of the Big 12 Conference. Most of the schools in the Big 12 South will be engulfed by the Pac 10 along with Colorado. That leaves some of the universities in the Big 12 North to fend for themselves. Kansas will be among them.

Gill became a Jayhawk after a successful playing career at Nebraska. He took the job at Kansas after building a bad Buffalo team and turning them into a conference champion. He had earned the right to do the same thing at a BCS conference school. Kansas gave him that chance, now those priorities he set forth seven months ago may not occur.

Kansas isn't the only school in jeopardy of becomming a nomad on the college landscape. Kansas State, Iowa State are also looking for a new home, and the possibilities available aren't enticing. The Big East is one rumored home, but how will Olympic Sports at the midwest schools be able to travel to such remote locations as Storrs, CT. In football once these teams are done playing one another, their closest opponent will be Cincinnati.

Another home could be the Mountain West. Perhaps a bit more geographically-friendly to these schools, but now these one-time BCS conference schools become a mid-major. And the basketball programs of these institutions lose credibility as they would be only a few years removed from playing for the title of the nation's best league.

Now these "left-overs" fromt he Big 12 will be searching for a conference that best suits them. They will be looking for a chance to prove themselves, much like Turner Gill has been doing for the last few years.

College Football Week 14

The season has come to a close and Iowa's destination and opponent have been decided. The Hawkeyes take on the Champion of the ACC and will play their first opponent from the conference since the 1992 Kick-off Classic where they met the Wolfpack of North Carolina State.

The BCS was set up to determine the top two teams to play for the National Championship. This year it pits the #1 Alabama Crimson Tide, champions of the SEC against the Champions of the Big 12, #2 Texas Longhorns. There are three additional undefeated teams that will have a chance to claim a stake for the national title. Boise State, Cincinnati, and TCU--all Champions of their repsective conferences.

I am one who is in favor of the bowl process, but not necessarily the BCS. Many advantages to both, but choosing a true national champion this way will have problems. As for one who is against a play-off my solution is hypocritical, but this is how I would do it.

The regular season is important and the fact that each game means something needs to be preserved. However an eight-team playoff is the way to go. The NCAA BB tournament has 65 teams and there is still debate as to who should be the 65th team. How often does an 13 seed win the national title. Never.

My playoff would start the week of Thanksgiving. On that weekend the conference championships would be played. The conferences are responsible for deciding who their champion is. Whether by a one-game championship or by criteria based on standings. For example Ohio State is the Champion of the Big Ten based on their record and victory over Iowa. They received the Rose Bowl birth. The Big 12 and SEC are among various conferences with one game to decide. Teams that are included in the playoff are champions of the BCS conferences (Big Ten, ACC, Big 12, SEC, Pac 10, Big East) as well as the highest rated teams from among of pool of Notre Dame and other independents, and champions of the WAC, MAC, Big West, C-USA, SunBelt, etc.

The following weekend would be the first week of the playoff with the semi-finals played the week after. Then the championhsip game would be played days after New Year's at a rotating spot, decided upon by the bowls.

Those teams who are "bowl-eligible" can then begin to plan on their destination as determined by the conference tie-ins. There should not have to be the wait to decide Northern Illinois playing South Florida in Tornoto. If this process were to occur this year, the bracket would be as follows.

#1 Alabama
#8 Georgia Tech

#4 TCU
#5 Boise State

#3 Cincinnati
#6 Oregon

#2 Texas
#7 Ohio State

Once teams are defeated, they can be placed into their bowl tie-ins. For example, Ohio State, with a loss to Texas, would then go on to play in the Rose Bowl against Oregon, who based on seeding, would lose to Cincinnati. The remaining top ten BCS teams could then be placed as at-large teams in the current BCS bowl system. You may find some of the same bowl pairings as are scheduled for January of 2010, but the decision on who should play for the title will be decided on the field.

All are conference champions, seeding is based on BCS and this would include many interesting match-ups. Iowa fans would be disappointed with me as the Hawkeyes perhaps would not be traveling to Miami, instead Orlando. And yes, this 10-2 team is more deserving of a bowl greater than the Capital One Bowl, but it places the importance on winning your conference.

March Madness

With the clocks shifted to allow more daylight, Colin has decided to take advantage of it by practicing his jump shot in the driveway. He did acknowledge that he and Daddy were on the same team, Drake, and we were taking on Michigan. Of course we won and tomorrow we will take on Illinois as well as Tubby's Team.

However there is someone in Long Beach, California who doesn't believe Title IX should include one sport.

And other financial issues have hit the state of Michigan.

Finally, the last two days have shown outstanding

basketball. The NCAA Tournament is remembered for its last-second shots and heroic play, but I hope it can match the excitement the last two days have brought. Syracuse and UConn played to six OTs, then the Orange turned around after last night for another OT win against West Virginia. Kansas falls to the #9 seed, Baylor and then Baylor defeats Texas tonight to advance to the Big 12 Champsionship game. Oklahoma is defeated by Oklahoma State with controversy to end the game. The final 2.3 seconds did not start giving the Sooners two opportunities to win-each missed.

College Football Week 14

The Big Ten may have 11, but it's not as screwed up as the Big 12--I'm looking for some one's take on the Big 12 South. What did Texas do to lose the right to play for the championship? Their only loss is at Lubbock on a last second play to Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are also tied for the league lead, but lost badly at Norman. Oklahoma's one loss is to Texas, by ten points on a neutral field. The argument for the BCS is that the regular season is the playoff. Then Texas beat Oklahoma and the Longhorns should be on their way to play for Missouri and beat them for a second time this year. Sure, I'd rather see Oklahoma play for the conference and national title, but Texas has earned the right more than the Sooners.

Georgia drops the ball--Not only have the Bulldogs underachieved against the top teams of the conference, and now state, but the Georgia Radio Network may have had the biggest disappointment of the day. On a day that found in-state rival Georgia Tech win for the first time in seven years over the Bulldogs, but it was disappointing to hear (or not hear) the in-game ceremony for former Georgia radio announcer of 43 years, Larry Munson. At the end of the first quarter Munson was brought to the field to be honored with a video tribute in front of the sell-out crowd. However for those of us listening to the network that so many had enjoyed his calls, we were treated to the usual three minutes of commercials. What made Munson famous were his calls on the radio, and for the network that he worked for not to listen in and sell-out to advertisers was uncalled for.

Big Ten, not Penn State thanks Oregon--Oregon's win in the Civil War over in-state rival Oregon State will most likely send the Southern California Trojans to play in the Rose Bowl for the fourth consecutive year. Had the Beavers won, they would've received the invite to play Penn State and USC had gone to another BCS bowl game. Penn State would've been heavily favored over Oregon State in a re-match the Nittany Lions won by 31 in week 2. But it will be a home game for the Trojans and look for another USC win over the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl.

Faster, Stronger, Bigger Ducks--Did anyone else think it was a men versus boys match-up between Oregon and Oregon State. The Ducks were faster, stronger and bigger than the conference leading Beavers. Oregon State looked more like the team we've seen over the last five years than the team that beat Southern Cal.

Bowl Predictions--My bowl predictions with one week to go. Look for the Big Ten to lock their teams in this week.

Rose Bowl--Penn State v USC
Fiesta Bowl--Ohio State v Texas
Capital One Bowl--Iowa v Georgia
Outback Bowl--Michigan State v South Carolina
Alamo Bowl--Northwestern v Missouri
Champs Sports Bowl--Minnesota v North Carolina
Insight Bowl--Wisconsin v Kansas

The Capital One is very interested in bringing the Hawkeyes back to Orlando. The match-up with Georgia would showcase two of the best running backs in college football. Shonn Greene of Iowa and Knowshon Moreno of Georgia. The Outback is another possibility for the Hawkeyes and look for LSU to be the opponent if Iowa lands here. South Carolina also has a large fan following, but it wouldn't be necessary if Iowa is invited to Tampa. LSU has a bigger name and will be a good draw for ESPN.

Finally, I'm watching the Bears and the Vikings while writing this up. It sure is nice to see the retro uniforms of Minnesota. Except for them playing indoors, these unis are reminiscent of the Bud Grant, Purple People Eaters era of the 70s and 80s. Or where have you gone Tommy Kramer?

College Football Week 9

As you may have read, the Iowa Hawkeyes had the week off which allowed me to watch some football. However we took in a FCS game involving schools who do not offer scholarships, Drake and Davidson.
The ladies who grace this page belong to Washington State. We must honor them as it takes much to cheer on a team that holds try outs for the quarterback position. Typically a team who has lost any chance at post-season play looks forward to the last game of the season. But the Cougars' last game is at Hawaii. Win or lose, who wouldn't be looking forward to that. Let's hope these ladies get to make the trip.

Big Ten Scary Possibility I--Penn State (9-0) looks at the possibility of going undefeated and not play for the national championship. Alabama and Texas are ranked ahead of the Nittany Lions. If each team continue to win, they will earn their spot in the BCS Title Game. This wouldn't be the first time the Nittany Lions will have been subbed a chance to play for the title. 1993 was the most recent time as Penn State defeated Oregon in the Rose Bowl. As long as Penn State win out (at Iowa, vs Indiana, vs Michigan State), odds are Texas or Alabama losing at least one game. Having talked with some at State College today, they feel confident in winning their next three.

Big Ten Scary Possibility II--If Penn State loses one of their next three games, and Minnesota wins out (vs NWestern, vs Michigan, at Wisconsin, vs Iowa), the Gophers would get the automatic bid to the Rose Bowl. Penn State and Minnesota do not play each other this season, and it comes down to the Big Ten tiebreaker sending the Gophers to Pasadena.

Big 12 Rugged Schedule--Texas continues a brutal stretch this week travelling to Lubbock and face #7 Texas Tech. Tech recently scored 63 at Kansas. This battle may be the first to 50 wins. Tech is in the middle of their own rugged schedule. Last week at Lawrence, KS, this week Texas, next week Oklahoma State, followed by a trip to Norman, Oklahoma.

College Football Week 7

The adjacent pictures tells it all from Ann Arbor. Rich Rodriguez may be able to get the storied Michigan football program back to national prominence, but it is suffering some very low times. For the first time in 25 attempts a Mid American Conference school has beaten the Michigan Wolverines. Toledo pulled off what many would consider an upset when a Michigan Field Goal went wide left with four seconds to play. It is hard to say when the next victory will come for the Maize and Blue. They have yet to face Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan State and Minnesota. Yes, Minnesota. There are no easy teams left on the Michigan schedule. They must go 4-2 to be bowl eligible and keep their consecutive bowl streak of 33 alive.

The National Title should be decided between representatives of teams in the Big 12 and SEC. Each have had schools hold the #1 spot in the polls and the top tens have been dominated by schools from these conferences. Texas is the current holder of the top spot and with wins over their next three opponents will solidify their spot. It begins this week with Missouri, followed by Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. Those three teams have a combined one loss among them. That loss came this past week when Missouri fell to Okie State.

Who is the worst football team in Division I? While Syracuse has been losing, the Orange has had least made games competitive. They held a lead in the fourth quarter against Pitt two weeks ago, and lost 17-6 at West Virginia this past Saturday? There are many contenders such as Washington and I saw first hand how poor Indiana can be. But my vote goes to Washington State. They gave up 66 points to Oregon State over the weekend and 42 of those came in the second half. It has gotten so bad for Wazzu that current students have been asked to audition for the role of scout team QB. Whoever played that role this previous week may look to be a starter soon, that is if they prepared the defense for what 66 points would look like.

Goodbye Tommy Bowden. Too bad you couldn't schedule your father more.

UPSET!!!

Last night Oregon State beat the #1 team in the land, the University of Southern California Trojans. I wrote earlier USC would not be beat and would land in the title game. That dream is over. There is much football to be played, but there are too many teams that will qualify for the BCS Champsionship Game and USC's performance on national television against a 1-2 team will not be forgotten by the pollsters.

We have elminated Ohio State and USC from title talk at this time, and one more team may be eliminated as well after this weekend. #3 Georgia has more on the line as they host #8 Alabama. The Bulldogs cannot afford to be upset at home on national television if they want to keep their title hopes alive.

Oklahoma has the tendency to be tripped up at some point during the season. They have a favorable schedule hosting Kansas and Nebraska, travelling to Dallas to play Texas in the Cotton Bowl, while finishing the regular season at Oklahoma State. Watch out there. The Cowboys have tripped up the Sooners before. The favorite team from the Big 12 North to face them in a title game is Missouri. The Tigers have to go to Austin for a showdown with the Longhorns and to Lincon to meet Nebraska. They meet Kansas in Kansas City to finish the year. I predict the Tigers to lose at least once, if not twice as well as in the Big 12 title game.

Take a look to the Big Ten. The Conference is down, but two undefeated teams have a chance. Penn State has road trips to Purdue, Wisconsin and Ohio State. The Nittany Lions will go down to two of those three. Wisconsin has the meat of their schedule in front of them. The next three weeks the Badgers will travel to Ann Arbor to meet the Wolverines, then come home to play Ohio State and Penn State. Two weeks after that is another home meeting with Illinois. I believe they will win all four, but in between Penn State and Illinois is a trip to Iowa City. That is a trap game and we'll see how Bielema's Badgers will stay grounded for this boarder battle.

The SEC will have a team in the BCS Title Game. This is the best conference for college football in 2008. Florida has two tough games, LSU in the Swamp, and Georgia in Jacksonville. They are my favorite to be playing for the national title.

Tonight's upset was exciting and it sets up another weekend of great college football. However this is the last upset of week 5. Oklahoma will not be tripped up by TCU, and if Illinois beats Penn State, is that a surprise? Post your thoughts and keep it clean.