BCS, NCAA Football, NCAA Football Bowl Games NEWS
Think The Utah Utes Want a Playoff?
Published by MoonDog on January 4, 2009
Utah dominated No. 4 Alabama on both sides of the ball in Friday’s Allstate Sugar Bowl, especially on the defensive line as the Utes piled up eight sacks against the Crimson Tide en route to a 31-17 victory.
Utah QB Brian Johnson was the MVP of the Allstate Sugar Bowl
With the win, Utah (13-0) completed their season as the only undefeated FBS team and assured themselves of a top 4 finish in both polls.
Perhaps the Utes consider their win over the Tide as bittersweet, unable to play against Florida, Oklahoma or USC in a national playoff to determine college football’s champion.
The arguments in favor of a playoff will grow louder from Salt Lake this week, as the Utes will watch either the Sooners or Gators hoist the BCS championship trophy on January 8.
Utah proved they would have been a legitimate contender for the national championship by defeating a strong list of opponents.
Unlike Hawaii’s appearance in the Allstate Sugar Bowl last year after going undefeated against a weak schedule, Utah was a team that took care of business against a tough schedule and earned their way into a BCS bowl.
Utah opened the season with a win on the road against Michigan and later defeated Oregon State, the only team to hand USC a loss this season. Utah also beat ranked opponents TCU and BYU on their way to winning the Mountain West Conference.
While many non-BCS conference teams aren’t given much hope against their BCS conference opponents in bowl games, recent history has shown the parity that exists in college football.
Utah Head Coach Kyle Whittingham
This is the second time Utah has completed a season undefeated, last accomplishing the feat in 2004 when Urban Meyer was coaching the Utes.
After their victory in the Fiesta Bowl against Pittsburgh, Meyer left to take over at Florida and defensive coordinator Kyle Whittingham was promoted to guide Utah.
In his four seasons as head coach, Whittingham has compiled a 37-14 record and Utah has won all four bowl games they’ve played.
After the game Friday, Whittingham adamantly stated he was voting his team No. 1 in the coaches poll. Regardless of which team captures the BCS national title on Thursday night in Miami, Utah will be left to wonder if they could have beaten either Florida or Oklahoma in a playoff format.
For non-BCS teams that don’t get an opportunity to win a national championship under the current BCS system, a playoff would eliminate undefeated teams like Utah from being left out of the national championship discussion.
Regardless if you’re in favor of a playoff or not, fans of college football will continue to debate the merits of a playoff system to determine a national champion.
But If teams like Utah aren’t given a chance to compete on the field – where national titles should be decided – then we’ll be left to wonder if the best team won.
Just ask Alabama if Utah should have a chance to play for the national title.
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Matt on Mon, 5th Jan 2009 00:45
Well said. I’m probably biased as I’m a MWC guy(Colorado State), but I’ve watched just about every Utah game this season and I firmly believe there’s not a team they can’t beat. They made me even more of a believer against Alabama of course, and TCU is no slouch, one of the best defenses in the country. This is why we need a playoff system!
NESW Sports Evening Headlines 1-5-2009 | NESW Sports, Sports Videos on Mon, 5th Jan 2009 17:17
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