AN ALTERNATE UNIVERSE
By Danny Reagan / Abilene, Texas
There's a good story on Statesman.com this morning about the Longhorns and how they should focus on an Associated Press national title and forget about the BCS.
Shoot, we might consider that "giving up" out here in West Texas where Colt McCoy hitched up his bootstraps, but I admit the odds are astronomical that Texas will get back into the BCS championship game.
One of the six undefeated teams will fall tonight, two don't really "matter" to the BCS (Rutgers, Boise State), and someone has to lose the Michigan/Ohio State game.
That would leave two undefeated teams that the BCSazoids would count, and the Longhorns would be out in the cold.
Conventional wisdom has the Buckeyes and the Mountaineers playing for the BCS championship.
But - and there's always a but - I've done the math, and of the top 10 teams in the nation, eight of them could finish 10-2 and two could finish 11-1.
In this theoretical universe, those two 11-1 teams would be Michigan and Texas. BCS math or not, 11-1 would have to trump 10-2, right?
To boil down the hypothetical details quickly so you can start your scoffing, after the Ohio State Buckeyes whup up on Illionois this week, they go to Northwestern and are upset. Disheartened, they are easy fodder for the Wolverines the following week. Oh the humanity! And, I almost forgot, the week before, Michigan is upset at Indiana.
After West Virginia beats Louisville tonight, they lose at Pitt and later at Rutgers - a team that is really motivated to impress the 'Zoids.
Louisville also loses to Pitt, and Auburn loses to Alabama in the regular season finale. Couple that with a loss by Florida to the Seminoles, a loss by Tennessee in one of their four remaining games, and all that remains is the left coast.
Easy enough. USC beats Notre Dame but falls to UCLA, and California loses to the Trojans.
There, everyone got that straight? Good.
Here's the rub ... Texas has to win out against Oklahoma State, Kansas State and a very good Texas A&M team that will get extra motivation by the resurgence of the bonfire three days before the big matchup.
Most teams would consider 2-1 a good record during that stretch.
We'll see if Texas - with a quarterback who has exceeded everyone's expectations and will win the hypothetical Freshman Heisman Trophy - is most teams.
(CLICK HERE to comment upon this crazy theory)
Comments
Colt has my permission to call himself "Horse-Colt." He has done better than many, including me, gave him a chance of doing as a follow-on for VY. I think OState is lucky not to catch him late in the year of his first starts for UT, now that "The Offensive Group" (here read Greg Davis)has been TOLD to "trust Colt"
Hook Em, Horns!!
Go "Hoss-Colt!"
Posted by: Fred Harwell | November 3, 2006 8:18 AM