The SEC and the Big XII have done nothing but dominate college football this season.
They dominate the polls, grabbing seven of the top spots in the AP Poll.
Their quarterbacks dominate the competition, putting up numbers usually reserved for a video game.
And finally, they have dominated college football analysis with the never-ending “which conference is better” debate.
Well, this week we will give some attention to the other BCS conferences. With the Heisman Trophy months away and the BCS picture just forming in our minds, let us cast aside the SEC and the Big XII, and show some love to the other four card-carrying BCS members.
Unfortunately, the other BCS conferences appear to be vying for a different title. The Big Ten, ACC, Big East and Pac-10 are clearly trying to achieve the “least valuable BCS conference” honor. What other rational explanation could explain these conferences’ new standards of ineptitude?
I understand. Not everyone can be the best. Someone has to finish last. But which of these conferences has earned the right to be called the worst? Here is the breakdown of the four second-class conferences that reside in the BCS.
Pac-10
The Pac-10 scores all over the board when it comes to the overall conference rankings.
At the top, they boast one of the best programs in all of college football with USC. The Trojans, however, have been merely very good this year, instead of their typical dominance. Without USC factoring heavily into the national title picture (although they aren’t out of it yet), the rest of the Pac-10’s flaws shine more clearly.
Their most noticeable blemish? The state of Washington.
Washington and Washington State have one combined win between the two schools. Washington State has given up 60-plus points four times this year, and their one win came at the hands of football powerhouse Portland State. After Washington’s most recent loss, the school announced head coach Tyrone Willingham would not be returning next season, and the possibility of not winning a game this year becomes more probable each day.
In between the state of Washington and USC there lies a sea of mediocrity. The Pac-10 only boasts one other team in the top 25 besides USC — No. 23 Oregon — and the Ducks have yet to win a big game all year.
Football fans across the country are lucky many of these west coast games don’t play on TV, because after USC, there is not much else to see.
Big Ten
Of the four “other” conferences, the Big Ten can lay claim to being the most successful. Penn State and JoePa are in the middle of the national title race. Ohio State boasts one of the most exciting freshmen in the country with Terrelle Pryor, and Minnesota’s remarkable turnaround are all pluses in the Big Ten’s favor.
But predictable and boring games bring this conference’s rating down. The script is easy to follow. Penn State beats everyone. Ohio State beats everyone but the Nittany Lions. There are no classic upsets and no high-scoring, Big XII-style shootouts to draw in national viewers.
Furthermore, the failures of recent powers Wisconsin and Michigan this season make the conference appear weak, regardless of how other teams have improved.
Befitting its Midwestern status, the Big Ten conference is simple. Penn State will win, Ohio State may excite, and the rest is just background noise.
ACC
This conference’s claim to fame is extreme mediocrity. I mean really, really mediocre teams. It is the “Everybody Loves Raymond” of football conferences.
The ACC has three teams in the top 25 — Florida State, North Carolina and Maryland — but those are just the teams that are hot right now. Next week, we could see Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech and Virginia just as easily. The only thing that is certain about the conference is each week will be a crap shoot, and someone’s quarterback will get injured (seriously, count the amount of QB injuries in the ACC; it is startling).
Adding to the conference’s humiliation is the great school of Clemson. The Tigers came into the season with the preseason ACC quarterback of the year Cullen Harper, and NFL talent abounds at the “skill” positions. Well, Clemson has released head coach Tommy Bowden and ridden Harper’s golden arm to a 1-3 record in the conference. The Tigers’ humiliation reflects on the conference as a whole: failed expectations after too much hype.
Big East
While the previous three conferences could all lay their own special claim to the “worst BCS conference,” the Big East is definitively leading the race for this special honor. At the top, the Big East is the worst. At the bottom, the Big East is the worst. And in between, the Big East is … well, you get it.
The Big East has one team — No. 24 South Florida — in the top 25, and USF has only posted a 1-2 record in conference. How does a conference that is guaranteed a BCS bowl have only one team in the top 25?
And in the cellar of the conference we have Syracuse. The Orange — they even have a horrible nickname — have a 1-6 record with their one win coming over Northeastern.
Besides putrid teams, the Big East has failed spectacularly on many levels this season. Of the 36 Big East victories this season, not a single one came over a current top 20 team. Talk about fattening up on cupcakes. Even more devastating on the national scale, West Virginia — by all accounts the conference’s flag carrier — has flopped twice this season, and failed to produce the offense that made the Mountaineers famous. There is not a single thing the conference can point to with pride this season.
The four “other” BCS conferences have failed to stop the hype of the Big XII and the SEC, but they have each contributed to college football in their own special way. While the Big East is leading the race, there is still time for these other conferences to step down and take the least valuable crown.