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Which SEC Team Will Win The BCS Title?
Published by MoonDog on September 3, 2009
And so it begins, another college football season kicks off tonight with a schedule of games that includes three of the nation’s top 25, featuring a matchup between No. 14 Boise State hosting No. 16 Oregon.
Now that this four-month long journey towards a BCS national championship is underway, it’s time to begin the debate over which teams have the best chance of earning a berth in the title game in Pasadena.
But of the 121 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision, which among them truly have a legitimate chance at winning a championship?
If the 12-year history of the BCS tells us anything, the chances of a team representing the Southeastern Conference making an appearance in the championship game would be a safe bet.
The Florida Gators, the defending BCS national champions, won their second title in three years when they defeated Oklahoma this past January.
The Gators win also marked the third straight season a team from the SEC won college football’s ultimate prize. SEC teams have a 5-0 record in BCS championship games, easily outdistancing all other BCS conferences.
Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Southern California, Alabama and Ohio State are the teams receiving the most attention as potential national champions, but there’s solid reasoning supporting the hype for those teams.
The top three – Florida, Texas and Oklahoma – all return Heisman Trophy candidates at quarterback, led by the Sooners Sam Bradford – last year’s Heisman winner – and Florida’s Tim Tebow, the 2007 Heisman winner.
Mix in Texas quarterback Colt McCoy and the 2009 Heisman Trophy would appear to be a race among those three.
With talented quarterbacks leading their teams, the Gators, Longhorns and Sooners figure to be the favorites to make an appearance in Pasadena on January 7, 2010.
Southern California can always be considered a candidate to win the BCS title, easily having the most talented team in the nation – at least on paper – and playing in the less than rugged Pac-10 Conference.
Despite their talent, the Trojans have lost key conference games in the past two seasons that ultimately kept them out of the BCS championship game.
As the 2009-10 season begins, USC will put their BCS title hopes on the shoulder of freshman quarterback Matt Barkley.
While Barkley is very talented, freshman quarterback’s usually aren’t part of a recipe for success, as we saw last season with Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor.
Speaking of the Buckeyes, their chances of reaching Pasadena could rest on the outcome of their game with USC when the Trojans travel to Columbus on September 12.
Ohio State will look to avenge their embarrassing defeat to the Trojans last season when USC crushed the Buckeyes 35-3.
Alabama was undefeated and No. 1 in the nation last season for nearly a month before losing to Florida in the SEC Championship game.
Coach Nick Saban has rebuilt the Crimson Tide into a contender for the SEC and BCS championships by signing some of the best high school football players in America over the last two years.
Despite their personnel losses, Alabama has more than enough talent to regain what many believe is the Tide’s rightful place atop the college football world.
That process will begin on Saturday night when Alabama faces No. 7 Virginia Tech in a nationally televised game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta.
Oklahoma has appeared in more BCS title games than any other team in college football, but of their four trips the Sooners have only one national championship to show for it, winning their first BCS title game appearance at the 2001 FedEx Orange Bowl.
Oklahoma has a competitive schedule this season, opening against No. 20 BYU on September 5. The Sooners must also navigate their way through the tough Big 12 Conference, with road dates against No. 25 Kansas and No. 24 Nebraska.
The Sooners also face No. 9 Oklahoma State and they’ll square off against No. 2 Texas in the annual Red River Shootout on October 17, a game that should determine both teams’ BCS national championship fates.
Regarding the Longhorns, perhaps no team in the nation is better suited to break the SEC’s stranglehold on the BCS championship.
Texas’ schedule isn’t too challenging outside of their games against Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Kansas. With Missouri and Texas Tech being weaker this season than last, the Longhorns talent and depth should propel them into the BCS title game.
So if not Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, USC, Alabama or Ohio State, which teams might make a surprise trip to Pasadena?
The SEC always has several candidates, and this year there may be as many as three teams other than the Gators and Crimson Tide that could work their way into the BCS picture.
LSU is very talented and will look to improve on last season’s disappointing 8-5 record. The Tigers path will be difficult though, with road games against No. 13 Georgia, No. 4 Alabama and No. 8 Ole Miss.
LSU must also face the top-ranked Gators in Baton Rouge on October 10, perhaps the biggest challenge Florida will face this season.
Virginia Tech is another legitimate contender for the BCS championship. The Hokies have a very difficult start to their season, playing No. 5 Alabama, No. 24 Nebraska, No. 21 North Carolina and No. 15 Georgia Tech before the end of October.
If the Hokies can manage to stay undefeated through the first eight weeks of the season or perhaps suffer only one loss, they should win their remaining four games, potentially win the ACC Championship game and earn a berth in the BCS national championship game.
Of all the teams being mentioned for the BCS national championship, no one seems to be talking too much about Penn State. The Nittany Lions could have the easiest path to Pasadena more than any team in the nation.
Penn State faces only two ranked opponents this season and both of those games will be played at Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions will play their usual cream puff non-conference schedule before they face No. 22 Iowa on September 26.
Penn State won’t face another ranked opponent until Ohio State visits on November 7, a game which should decide the Big Ten Conference championship.
What about BYU, TCU, Utah and Boise State you ask?
While last season much controversy surrounded Utah’s omission from the BCS national championship game, the Utes will have a much more difficult task this season being among the teams mentioned for a trip to Pasadena.
Of the three ranked opponents Utah will face this season, all three are on the road, with the Utes visiting No. 16 Oregon, No. 17 TCU and No. 20 BYU.
Boise State is among the sexy picks of the experts, but the Broncos don’t have a snow balls chance of making it to Pasadena. Boise State faces one ranked opponent all season and the remaining WAC schedule will prove to be a cake walk.
If the Broncos were going to have a shot at earning a BCS title game berth, they would have to face a much tougher schedule to garner the support of the voters.
Of all the teams from outside the big six BCS conferences with a shot at making it to Pasadena, BYU is the team that could earn a trip to the Rose Bowl.
The Cougars face a tough schedule this season, playing four ranked opponents and all of them at home. BYU will host No. 3 Oklahoma, No. 18 Florida State, No. 17 TCU and No. 19 Utah.
If the Cougars could manage to navigate their way through their schedule undefeated, they might capture enough votes to make a BCS title game appearance.
In the end, all of this may prove to be academic. The SEC has won three straight BCS championships for a reason, and that reason is because they have the best teams in college football.
After the conference championship games are played in early December, Florida and Texas should be sitting atop the BCS standings.
The Gators and Longhorns will square off in Pasadena on January 7, 2010 for all the marbles, with the Gators winning their second straight BCS national championship.
Similar Posts:
- 2009 Heisman Trophy Candidates
- Sooners Win Makes BCS A Mess
- Texas, Penn State Show Who’s Boss
- SEC, Big 12 Battles Help Penn State, USC
- SEC Epitomized Parity In College Football
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Daily Toke: I live the same way I type...fast and with lots of mistakes. | Hail Mary Jane on Fri, 4th Sep 2009 07:29
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