Oh, My…
…this has been a brutal playoff season for the Big 12 South, which nearly went 0-3, with Tech and Oklahoma State going down, and Texas on the verge of defeat, in what was supposed to have been the premier conference division in the NCAA this year (the much weaker Big 12 North has done just fine, though in minor bowls).
The Longhorns saved a little pride for our conference, though, with a late touchdown pass from McCoy to Cosby that lifted Texas to a 24-21 victory in the Fiesta Bowl (it didn’t hurt that Beanie Wells, who was killing Texas in the first half, got injured and didn’t play much at all in the second half). It was not a convincing victory, but a victory nonetheless…now, if Oklahoma can hold off Florida in the BCS title game Thursday, we can further avoid embarrassment..damn, if only my Red Raiders had won! But that’s the breaks…
UPDATE 10:55 p.m.: Of course, it’s the much-maligned PAC-10 that went 5-0, but with the exception of the USC Rose Bowl victory, those were pretty weak bowls, too. However, USC did beat Penn State convincingly enough to convince some that they are the best team in football, and I don’t feel the Longhorns did the same tonight. They are a top 5 program this year, and they’ll probably end up #2 or #3, depending on how the pollsters feel about USC – and about Utah, which was very convincing in beating an admittedly overranked Alabama team that never was really #1 even though they held that spot for five weeks simply by avoiding losing. In my mind, with the Alabama win and a perfect 13-0 record, Utah can make a very plausible case for being the best team in the country. For Florida or Oklahoma to avoid being looked on as imposters, they need to win by a convincing margin…as for my Red Raiders, #2 in the country six weeks ago, #7 going into Friday, well, I’ll be surprised if they finish higher than #12, and they may go as low as #15…
Time to divide the title into three pieces. USC has already claimed one, as has Utah. There’s one left, so who wants it? Florida? Oklahoma? I’d say UT didn’t exactly stake much of a claim on it tonight.
Agree with you Mark….Glad Texas won, of course, but despite Mack Brown’s proclamations (which is all part of the job), Texas really didn’t make a case for being the best team in the country. Certainly a top 5, but they just squeaked it out over Ohio State, and had some ugly goings in the first half. Utah seems to have the best argument among the also-rans. I hope Tech can finish high in the polls. They had a great year by any measure.