Party Crashers

Six months ago the "powers that be" voted to abolish the BCS system as we know it and move toward a playoff.  That new structure begins with the 2014-2015 season which gives the BCS folks a couple more years to see just how screwed up they can make things - and boy are they taking this opportunity seriously.

A system that was designed to reward the best 8 or 10 teams in the country with more money, higher-profile bowl games and the prestige that goes with it has failed so miserably that you would barely recognize one of the games.

The national championship game is fine.  #1 vs. #2.  Just as it should be.  Oregon and Kansas State will play in the Fiesta Bowl.  Perfect.  #4 and #5.  Florida is ranked 3rd and they're in as an "at-large."  No problem.  Stanford is ranked 6th and won the PAC-19 or whatever.  All good.  The top 6 teams are in.  The next 5, however, are not.

Never mind for a moment that Florida State has two losses and is ranked lower than 5 teams who will NOT get a BCS game.  At least Florida State won one of the "real" conferences.  Never mind that Louisville is ranked 21st in the latest polls or that the Big East really doesn't belong among the "real" conferences.  They, also, won an automatic spot fair and square.  Never mind that Ohio State was ineligible this year and instead we got an unranked Wisconsin team as the Big Ten champions even though there are two Big Ten teams ranked higher than Wisconsin.  Again, the Big Ten champs get a spot.  Those automatic qualifying conferences get a representative.

No, this post is about the final at-large selection.  Congratulations to the folks in Miami who get the #12 Florida State Seminoles versus the #15 Northern Illinois Huskies. Wake me up when that grease fire has been put out.

You see, it seems that the BCS has an obscure clause to allow a team like Northern Illinois to crash the party.  IF a non-qualifying conference has a conference champion that is the highest-ranked team among non-qualifiers... IF that team is ranked in the top 16 in the BCS poll... and IF that team is ranked higher than one of the automatic qualifying conference champs (in this case Louisville AND Wisconsin fit that bill) then this little upstart team gets a BCS bid.  It's hilarious, really.  You can only allow a joke team in if ANOTHER joke team is already in via a weak conference title. 

I've heard a LOT of complaining about this selection, but it really wasn't a SELECTION.  The rules made it so that Northern Illinois HAD to be taken.  So probably the rule is bad, I get that.  But part of the problem here is that it should never have happened because Northern Illinois shouldn't be ranked anywhere near the top 16. 

I'm not hating on the Huskies here.  If they had gone undefeated this year, they'd have a really good claim.  But they didn't.  They lost to Iowa - one of only two teams from real conferences that they played this year.  Iowa was one of the worst teams in the Big Ten, finishing 4-8 overall and 2-6 in the conference.  The other team from an automatic conference that NIU beat?  Kansas.  The Jayhawks went 1-11 this season.  This Northern Illinois team also squeaked out a 1-point win over Army (2-9 this year).

Voters in the human polls are dropping the ball here.  This "selection" doesn't happen if Northern Illinois is ranked 17th.  How can you possibly think that a team that had to score in the final five minutes in order to beat Kansas and Army and who LOST to Iowa is a top 15 team nationally?  Because they won the MAC?  They needed two overtimes to beat Kent State to do it.  Depending on which source you use to calculate strength of schedule, Northern Illinois either played the 100th or 123rd toughest schedule this year.  Laughable.

There's another BCS rule out there that says that you can't take more than two teams from the same conference.  Too bad for the teams ranked 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th since they're all from the SEC.  And too bad for Oklahoma who would have been the next logical at-large selection due to that rule.  But Georgia is the team that gets the worst of it here.

The Georgia Bulldogs are ranked #7.  They battled Alabama in the SEC Championship game and came up about 6 feet short as time ran out on the 2-yard-line going in for the winning score.  They were that close to playing for a national championship and now they get the Capital One Bowl.  Why?  Because of some obscure rules that never really made sense, but it's not until you see them in action that you understand the true damage they cause.

This year the rules cost Georgia (or Oklahoma) about $12 million.  That's the difference in payouts between a BCS bowl and where the Bulldogs and Sooners will land.  But more than that, you've cheated the players, coaches and fans.  Moreso than ever you're creating the culture that WHO you play doesn't matter... just don't lose.  Why would good teams want to schedule other good teams?  It makes no sense anymore.  So get used to teams like Texas A&M scheduling teams like Division I-AA Sam Houston State.  It's better to play the sisters of the poor and get your wins than to test yourself against better competition... and that sucks.

Luckily this will all be over soon.  But in the meantime we have to suffer through #12 vs. a dubious #15 in one of the sport's premiere contests while the teams ranked 7th-11th are left scratching their heads.  Brutal.  There's only one year left, guys.  Change some rules and try and get it right once.  That would be a great way to go out.

Lance, France & Bicycle Pants

It's official.  Lance Armstrong never existed.  At least that's what the world of cycling would have you believe.

Lance has been stripped of his seven Tour De France titles, a lifetime ban has been imposed, and the cycling big wigs couldn't be happier about it.  They've been waiting for this day for a long time.

Let's be clear here.  Lance did it.  He doped.  He cheated and I'm not excusing that here.  But I do find it interesting how in this case the cycling world is laying the hammer down in a before unprecedented way.  Why?  Because Americans aren't supposed to win out there.  Plain and simple.  Before Lance came along, only one American had emerged victorious at the Tour De France in the 100-year history of the event.  That was Greg LeMond and he had to overcome attacks from his own TEAMMATE to get it done.  That teammate being a Frenchman.

As far back as anyone can remember there have been cries in Europe that Lance Armstrong was cheating.  This man had the audacity to come over here and WIN?  The Euros wanted blood - both literally and figuratively.  He was tested more than most lab rats and nobody can provide a single failed sample.  It's the reason Lance can walk away from all of this shaking his head and throwing up his hands.

The thing is, though, EVERYBODY did it.  The official Tour De France record book will now read "no winner" for 1999-2005.  Why not just give it to the guy who finished second you ask?  Well, he's also tied to doping.  Yes, all seven years.  No, not the same guy.  In fact, 20 of the 21 top finishers from those seven years have SOME sort of link to doping. 

Spaniard Alberto Contador won the Tour in 2009 and 2010.  In that last race Contador tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs DURING THE RACE.  That title was supposedly re-assigned to a guy from Luxembourg, but Contador is still listed as winner of both races on the Tour's official website.

Denmark's Bjarne Riis is still listed as the 1996 winner even though he admitted to doping for that Tour after the fact.

In fact, only one other person has ever actually had his title stripped and taken out of the record book.  That would be American Floyd Landis.  And the punchline?  They gave THAT title in 2007 to Contador (he of the previously-reported failed drug test.)

It's pretty simple, really.  If your crime is that you cheated, there will be some sort of consequence, but mostly a slap on the wrist.  If your crime is that you're AMERICAN and you cheated?   Off with his head!

Imagine someone walked up to you in your 20's and said "everyone you're in competition with in your life is cheating.  Here's a pill.  It's the same one they're all taking.  It's illegal... but if you take it, all of your dreams will come true."  No matter what your calling in life.  Take this pill and you'll be the Super Bowl MVP.  Take this pill and you'll be Bob Costas.  Take this pill and you'll be a rock star... or the world's best golfer... or the creator of the iphone.

Again, I'm not saying this excuses the behavior, but can you honestly say you wouldn't think about taking that pill?  When the cycling world is faced with that question, just about everyone takes the pill - and there really isn't even anyone denying that fact.

Cycling is a mess and everyone is cheating.  Some, however, are treated differently.

When they announced their decision, Pat McQuaid (the head of cycling's governing body) said, "Lance Armstrong has no place in cycling and he deserves to be forgotten in cycling."

The problem for McQuaid is that Armstrong fits in PERFECTLY with cycling... well, except for one small detail:  he's American.

OUch: A History Lesson

As the horror unfolded at the Cotton Bowl on Saturday, my brother-in-law stood next to me jumping out of his skin.  He couldn't believe what he was seeing in his second trip to the Red River Rivalry, and I think he was equally perplexed at how stoic I was - the biggest Longhorn fan he knew wasn't going crazy and yelling at the field.  I just stood there with a dazed look on my face because as awful as it was... I had seen it before.

Now that the dust has settled I hear my friends and fellow fans calling for Mack Brown's head and saying things like "I thought there was no way we were capable of being THAT bad."  Those people simply haven't been paying attention.

Since the 2000 season Texas has lost to Oklahoma by 38 or more points FOUR TIMES.  Yes.  In those 13 games the Longhorns are only 3-10 and four of them were as bad or worse as what you saw on Saturday.

Let's put that into a little bit of perspective.  Since the Longhorns first ran out onto a football field in 1893 they have lost games by 38 points or more just 18 times.  Ever.  They've played 1,275 games.  And four of those 18 have happened recently... and to the same team.

I know what you're thinking: it goes both ways.  Actually, in this case it doesn't.

The 2005 Texas team bound for a National Championship beat the Sooners by 33.  That matched the biggest blowout for our side in the series' history.  The Horns also beat OU by 32 in 1970 - another national championship season.  Not bad, but those are the best teams in our history laying down a thumping.

So Texas has never beaten Oklahoma by more than 33 points and they needed to have the best team in the country to do it.  Oklahoma has beaten Texas by more than 33 points nine times.

Texas is still well ahead of OU all-time, being on the better end of a 59-43-5 overall record, and while style points don't count in the win column, they certainly help to shape public opinion.  It can be easy sometimes to brush off a bad day and stare straight ahead like I was doing on Saturday, but a little indignation may be ok this time.  It's important to look at the history... so that you don't unwittingly repeat it.

By the way, the worst loss the Longhorns ever suffered came in 1997 when UCLA came into Austin and laid down a 66-3 thumping on Texas, a game forever known on the 40 acres as "Rout 66."  John Mackovic was fired at the end of that season.

The Replacements

This is NOT going to be a blog about one play.  Yes, the Packers took it in the shorts last night - and yes, that SHOULD be the straw that breaks the llama's back (the camel is on a work stoppage.)  But the truth is that bad calls happen even when there are good referees on the field.  This was not the first game ever to be decided by a ridiculous human error nor will it be the last.  In fact, the chances are that a month from now we'll barely be hearing anything about Monday night's game.  Unless, of course, the Seahawks and Packers both end up 9-7 and tied for the final playoff spot.  When Seattle goes to the postseason based on a head-to-head win we'll be seeing that play more than the Zapruder film.

This blog, however, will be cruising at an altitude of 35,000 feet - looking at the bigger picture... and let me tell you, this ain't the Mona Lisa.  The first few weeks of the season the players have put up with the replacement referees.  Some have even enjoyed the new freedom they've felt knowing that they can launch themselves at opposing players with very little chance of drawing a flag.  Talk about a Patriot missile.  However, with as much as the NFL blows hot air about their newfound dedication to player safety, it's not hard to imagine a time when the player's association just won't put up with it anymore.

You see, the typical NFL player knows the risks.  He knows that injury may be right around the corner, but he got where he is by putting it all on the line for that one elusive thing that can't be taken away from him: wins.  He's willing to take a chance with his body to secure the W.  But if even THAT can be taken away... well, Houston Texans, we have a problem.

So far the players union has played this pretty close to its vest.  But you just KNOW that at the next collective bargaining session the NFL is going to hear about this.  "Oh, you're working hard for player safety are you?  What about in 2012 when you pulled a bunch of guys out of the Lingerie Bowl to referee the best athletes in the world?"  And that's not even the worst-case scenario.  One real injury and out comes the lawsuit for negligence.  It may not be possible to kill the mighty NFL, but you sure could wound it a bit.

Roger Goodell is taking the sports world's highest-equity product and putting it at risk.  I know he's trying to take a hard line and show that he's in charge, but he's betting the credibility of the sport on the idea that nobody will really care about the officials.  When Drew Brees (the nicest guy on the planet) starts to issue pissy tweets, you are losing that wager.

Honestly, I'm surprised.  I didn't think it would be this obvious.  I thought this would be like asking high school teachers to lecture at a university.  Sure, they may not be fully qualified, but they'll study up and it won't be that bad.  Apparently this was more like asking my dentist to perform a heart transplant.

Goodell needs to bring the true healers back in before he finds himself facing a malpractice suit.

It may cost him some of that higher ground he thinks he's claiming, but a real leader is one who knows when it's time to compromise.

It's time.

What's Next? The 13th Man?

A funny thing happened in Aggieland this summer:  Texas A&M got better.

Not the current team.  No.  I have a feeling they'll be waiting a long time in College Station for "better" on that front, but the Aggies' list of PAST accomplishments has blossomed in their time away from the Big 12.

Those of us who have been close to the Ags for a while now are quite familiar with their lone national championship.  It came in 1939 and TAMU is quite proud of it... as they should be.  The Aggies were ranked #1 by more polls and outlets than any other team that year.  A reminder of that glory adorns the wall outside the stadium in big, bold letters along with their conference titles.  Here's a look:

But this is where things get interesting.

Tomorrow the Aggies will play their first game in the SEC and they'll do so as 3-time national champions.  This year's "wall of fame" looks a little different, doesn't it?

Looks like history has suddenly been quite kind to our friends in maroon.

How can this be?  Well, in the early years there wasn't a central publication to declare a national championship.  In 1919 Harvard, Illinois, Notre Dame and A&M were all ranked #1 at the end of the year depending on where you looked, but Harvard and Illinois had the most love and conventional wisdom shares the title between those two schools.  Notre Dame, for all of their history and love for winning, does NOT claim a title for 1919.  The Aggies do.  Now.

In 1927 the Aggies didn't receive a national title nod from ANY publication, but they're claiming it anyway.  You see, the Sagarin ratings have them on top.  Never mind that Jeff Sagarin wasn't even BORN yet.  He went back and did his statistical research on that year and determined that Texas A&M was the best team.  This is like Tom Cruise declaring himself an Oscar winner because Roger Ebert went back and watched and thought Cruise was really good in Jerry Maguire.

But the Aggies are having a little bit of a problem with street cred right now in their new conference, so what the hell?  Put it on the wall.

It doesn't end there.  The Aggies fired up the old flux capacitor and won two more Big 12 titles over the summer, as well!  Whoop!

Take 1997 for example.  The Ags won the Big 12's south division and went to the Big 12 Championship Game against Nebraska and it was a blowout!  Oh wait.  The Aggies were the ones blown out.  They lost 54-15 in the conference title game, but they're etching 1997 into the wall anyway.  I guess for the division part?  Hard to say.

In 2010 it's even worse.  A&M ended the season in a 3-way tie for the south division.  They finished 3rd in that 3-way tiebreaker and didn't even GO to the conference title game.  Who cares?  Throw it up there!

I hoped that if anything would come out of this move to the SEC it would be that finally the Aggies would be able to shake the giant inferiority complex that they had within their state.  Apparently, it's gotten even worse. 

Texas A&M is literally re-writing history just so they'll look (at least a LITTLE bit more) like they belong in college football's premiere conference. 

This would be funny if it weren't so sad... and it would be nice fodder for ribbing our neighbors here in our great state if it weren't so embarrassing for our great state.

Come on, Aggies.  You talk so much about tradition and honor.  Manufacturing tradition is hardly honorable.  Quit worrying so much about history and concentrate on MAKING history.

That's what TRUE champions do.

Parade of Nations

At one of the world’s newest stadiums in one of the world’s oldest cities, more than a thousand athletes began the final steps of what is for many a lifelong journey.  Representing your country at the Olympics is more than a dream – it’s life-changing.  The overwhelming majority of these patriots have no chance of coming home with a medal… and they don’t care.  They were winners the second they stepped in front of the world last night.

For the next two weeks you’ll see extraordinary people do extraordinary things.  This would be a wonderful time to take a break from America’s Got Talent or the swamp show du jour.  You want reality TV?  How about the flag-bearer from Iraq with tears in her eyes as she marches her teammates through the stadium while at home her country re-builds it’s war-torn cities?  She’s not alone.  Contingents from Syria, Libya, Egypt and Afghanistan are also enjoying this respite from a reality that is nothing like Jersey Shore.

Women in Saudi Arabia can’t vote.  Women in Saudi Arabia can’t even drive.  But for the first time in history, women in Saudi Arabia CAN compete in the Olympics.  Two of them are in England right now creating a new reality for future generations.

Oscar Pistorius is a sprinter from South Africa – a sprinter without feet.  He had his legs amputated below the knee as a baby.  He runs with prosthetics, and for the first time a man like this is just too good for the Paralympics.  Inspirational for sure, but there are some who say that he actually has an ADVANTAGE with his carbon blades instead of feet.  He’ll fight the reality of prejudice and ignorance over the fortnight.

France's Laura Flessel-Colovic is at the Olympics for the fifth time.  She had her 40th birthday last year, but the joy on her face as she carried her country's colors made her look 18.  Denisse van Lamoen is taking a break between law school and her exams to chase the first archery medal in the history of Chile.  Bolivia's Karen Torrez nearly drowned as a child and committed herself to conquering the water.  She'll compete in swimming's 100-meter freestyle.  For so many of these athletes standing on the podium is far from realistic.  They'll travel across the world for a two-minute performance.  And then?  You guessed it - back to reality.  The thing is, it's the people they'll meet... the experiences they'll share... the honor they feel that make the hours, days, weeks, months and years of hard work worth the sacrifice.

204 countries are represented in London this year.  81 of them have never had an athlete bring back a medal.  Yes, some of the best of the best will come home decorated in gold, silver and bronze, but the beauty of the Olympics is that it doesn’t matter what color you leave with… it’s the colors you’re wearing when you get there that are the source of all that pride.  And THAT is the best reality of all.

Back to School

It was March of 1996.  Jon Kitna was graduating from college and leaving his football days behind.  He had won an NAIA championship as the quarterback for Central Washington, but guys like that just don’t have a professional career ahead of them – so Kitna did what he always knew he’d do: he applied for a job at his old high school.

Lincoln High in Tacoma had just lost their longtime coach.  The man who had mentored Kitna through high school was retiring and Jon could think of nothing better than to work hard to fill those shoes in a place he loved.  But then a funny thing happened… the Seattle Seahawks asked Kitna to come to training camp.  It was probably just a stop gap.  The Seahawks most likely just needed an extra guy to run some opposition plays and figured a hometown kid would do nicely.  The thing is, though, this kid was pretty good.  Seattle gave Kitna a spot on the scout team for the 1996 season.  Lincoln High would have to wait a year.

Kitna then got signed to play in Europe where he became World Bowl MVP.  Then it was back to the NFL as a backup, then as a starter… and 16 years later Jon had started 124 games, thrown for nearly 30,000 yards and made more than $30 million in the sport’s premiere league.  The wild ride came to an end as a backup in Dallas last year when a back injury forced Kitna to call it quits.

Jon will turn 40 later this year and he lived the dream: a solid NFL career and able to retire young as a multi-millionaire.  But here’s the thing – he still hasn’t lived THE dream.  Kitna has been quoted as saying “the NFL wasn’t supposed to happen.”  So Jon is going back to the beginning.  Just days after his official retirement Kitna applied at Lincoln high school for a second time.  This time he took the job.

Jon Kitna is now a football coach and math teacher back where it all started.  He shows up at 7am every morning, leaving his playbooks behind for lesson plans.  Sure, some of the circumstances have changed.  He always brings breakfast for his students and when he saw that the weight room for the football team hadn’t been updated since he was on the team, Jon paid $50,000 out of his own pocket to buy new equipment.  But in the ways that matter most, Jon Kitna hasn’t changed a bit.  "We don't believe that we've been given all we've been given to just enjoy a comfortable life," he says.  You could say that Jon got lucky 16 years ago, but right now it’s hard to imagine anyone luckier than the kids in Mr. Kitna’s first period algebra class.