The Rematch/No Rematch Thread

[lvbuckeye]

BCS bylaws:

After completion of the selection process as described in Paragraph Nos. 1-4, the Conferences and Notre Dame may, but are not required to, adjust the pairings taking into consideration the following:
A. whether the same team will be playing in the same bowl game for two consecutive years;
B. whether two teams that played against one another in the regular season will be paired against one another in a bowl game;
C. whether the same two teams will play against each other in a bowl game for two consecutive years; and
D. whether alternative pairings may have greater or lesser appeal to college football fans as measured by expected ticket sales for the bowls and by expected television interest, and the consequent financial impact on Fox and the bowls.

a regional NC game is the LAST thing that the BCS wants...

 

[OSU_Buckguy]

a regional NC game is the LAST thing that the BCS wants...

the first thing that the bcs wants is for ohio state to play usc. this nc game would pit the two best programs of the last five years. the game would likely be hyped as a possible changing of the ephemeral guards. surely, it would be mentioned ad nauseum that carroll coached at ohio state, though briefly. moreover, the two teams play in a home-and-home series in 2008 and 2009, creating a possible tiebreaker that would be another "game of the century."

 

[lvbuckeye]

the first thing that the bcs wants is for ohio state to play usc. this nc game would pit the two best programs of the last five years. the game would likely be hyped as a possible changing of the ephemeral guards. surely, it would be mentioned ad nauseum that carroll coached at ohio state, though briefly. moreover, the two teams play in a home-and-home series in 2008 and 2009, creating a possible tiebreaker that would be another "game of the century."

you hit the nail on the head. i am a HUGE Southern Cal fan for the next two weeks.

 

[OSU_Buckguy]

you hit the nail on the head. i am a HUGE Southern Cal fan for the next two weeks.

even if our team weren't playing in the nc game, i'd be a huge usc fan saturday. if i were to compare the disdain that i have for scum with what i have for notre ame, you know, i would have to say nd. yes, that it is sacrilege. so be it. i don't like tsun, but i respect them. neutered lame? i don't like them, and i have no respect for them. give me one year of overachievement and perhaps i'll reconsider. perhaps.

i can't guarantee that i'll squeeze blood from that turnip, though.

 

[lvbuckeye]

i was setting my abhorence for all things ND aside for the moment.

 

[WaitingforKickoff]

I'm hoping either SC beats ND or LSU loses to Arkansas. I really don't give a hoot about whom we play in the NC, as long as it's not Michigan.

 

[OSU_Buckguy]

you hit the nail on the head. i am a HUGE Southern Cal fan for the next two weeks.

even though i want for ohio state to play usc, i'm still oscillating between what i think is right and what i think is good. on one hand, the two best teams deserve to play each for the national championship. why should the second-best team be punished for being in the same conference as the best team? on the other hand, whatever the outcome of the rematch, there will be a metallic aftertaste. when we win both games, those left out (arkansas/florida and/or usc) will argue that it was unfair that they didn't get a shot and that the championship is less or not valid. personally, i don't care what other teams and their fans think; ohio state is the best team. end of story. that being said, it would be awfully nice to be recognized as such by nearly everyone. if ohio state were to lo... lo... lo... sorry. the second proposition does not compute.

also, just how sure are we that scum is the second-best team? i know, i know... it's all but obvious that they are. though, if you take away the two aberrant snap fiascoes, the score differential likely would have been 10 or more points. sure, we don't know that. all things before being equal, even a single good play for a team could result in a loss for that team, just as a single bad play instead could result in a win. i don't currently have the capability to test parallel universes. it's just a thought.

what i'm attempting to claim is that another team deserves the chance to prove that it's better than michigan and also better than ohio state. we simply don't know if michigan is only 3 points inferior to ohio state, whatever that means. what we do know is that ohio state was better than michigan today. it is also reasonable to think that without the two errant snaps, ohio state's victory margin would have likely been greater. thereby, scum's position as the number-two team is in greater doubt.

when you compare losses to losses; that is, scum's loss to usc's loss to florida's loss to arkansas' loss; scum's appears to be the best. however, if we rate teams just by margins of victory/loss and teams played, the argument that rutgers is better than ohio state (because of respective games versus illinois), reveals blatant absurdity. osu beat scum by 3, and scum beat ball state by 8. are we 11 points better than ball state?

anyway, it's still tremendously difficult for me to have watched today's game and not conclude that scum is the second-best team.

 

[Steve19]

Michigan had their chance.

Next.

 

[UpNorthBuckeye]

Rematch: November 2007, Ann Arbor.

Not this year.

What I THINK will happen: ND vs OSU in the championship.

What I HOPE happens, USC vs OSU in the championship game.

So if Michigan goes to the Rose Bowl and whomps USC or Arkansas or Florida, they will still end up the #2 team. And if Wisky can kick the snot out of someone, the Big Eleven might have three #1 teams in the top 5 at the end of the year. I know Wisconsin's schedule wasn't that tough, but they ARE 11 and 1. LSU looked crappy last night winning in OT. Florida has looked crappy and I guarantee won't win big against Florida State.

We should be SO happy scUM did not win last night, or else we would have heard all about winning one for BO and Carr's redemption and all that crap. Man I can't wait to go to work on Monday!

 

[coastalbuck]

I was against a rematch before the game. Still am. I'd rather play USC, Florida or the domers. However, the second best team I've seen this year lost in Cbus yesterday. I don't see my opinion on that changing in the next few weeks. As an OSU fan, I don't want to see a rematch. As a college football fan, if I want to see the two best teams go at it, I've got a problem! (at least its a good one to have! )

 

[Taosman]

Why reward them for losing?
And it is like saying our winning was the same as losing?
How f**ked up is that?

 

[Taosman]

We're going to play USC!
Just watch.

 

[DocJohn]

Honestly, no. I do NOT agree that scUM is the second best team right
now.

They did NOT get 4 full quarters of :osu:ur "A" game last night.
They got:
1st Qtr: A-(3.7)
2nd Qtr: A+(4.3)
3rd Qtr: C-(1.7) (this would an "F" w/o AP's 56 yd gash and some decent D)
4th Qtr: B (3.0)

That avgs out to a B, B+(3.175) for the game.

scUM didn't "force" a 3-and-out on that first 2nd half drive. We dropped
2 passes, short-hopped 1 and punted -poorly-31yrds.
(BTW, AJ had his WORST game of the year IMO...maybe we should have
punted a couple times last week on 1st or 2nd down? ).
Grateful for the "gift", scUM rides cry-baby Hart in for an easy score.
Next came the only "forced" TO of the game - the pick. With a short field
(:osu:ur 30), the weenies do manage to "storm" all of THREE YARDS to
score the first 3 points off a TO against us all year. This is followed by the
SECOND bolt of lightening into the teeth of that vaunted ("Best in 1-A since
1959?") run-D. That AP bolt and the following D-STOP, are the ONLY things
that prevents a Failing grade for the Qtr.
We go 3&out - a penalty, ANOTHER dropped pass, and the scUM D actually
showed up for one play. A mediocre punt gives the baby-blues the ball at
their 34. On 3rd and 1, Llllloyd displays one of his patented "brain-farts" by
deciding to throw the INT to Jenkins. And THEN, even after the "tOSU
definition of indisputable"{ref: my post in the Illinois thread} is once again
applied, Llllloyd shows he is testicularly challenged (ie "no balls") and punts.
Not to be outdone, we close a 3rd Qtr of clinical ineptitude with the first
of two inexplicable, un-forced, bad-snap turnovers, leaving the weenies on
:osu:ur doorstep at the 9 yd line. Three plays later - 2 plays into the 4th -
POT-Against "balloons" to 10.

Now I ask you. Did the wolvies pull themselves off life-support and get
back into this game with great defense, brilliant playcalling and/or halftime
adjustments? Or did we pull them back, kicking and screaming, with a Qtr
full of self-inflicted wounds?
Sorry Mikey(Hart), you guys don't deserve another shot. You are right
about one thing though. A rematch would be a lot different. With 50 days
to heal and for JT to add a few dozen pages to an already voluminous
playbook, you are very likely to see TWO halves of :osu:ur "A" game. Be
afraid. Be VERY afraid. You played a nearly flawless game (zero TO's).
You clearly brought your "A" game, got most of the breaks (officiating),
accomplished TWICE what 11 other teams could not - convert turnovers
into points. Props for the effort and thanks for a Game for the ages. But
even with the "gift" of the 3rd Qtr, your 4 Qtrs weren't good enough to
beat :osu:ur 3.

Here's how I see it (Or how I would LIKE to see it)
1. We get the Florida/Arkansas winner (SEC CCG): When we wax either one
by 3 TD's or more, the incestuous love affair that is the SEC will be exposed
for what it is.
2. TTUN goes to the Rose Bowl and, playing with the same passion and
effort they gave us, blasts USuCk, at home, into the depths of the Pacific.
Hence officially, difinitively ending the so-called "Trojan Dynasty".
3. After getting pasted by the only two teams on their so-called schedule
with a pulse(TTUN and USuCk), the Leprechaun Neutered Lambs are served
up as the main course to a very deserving 11-1 Whisky.

Of course, for this to pan out, I only need one more upset in a season-ending
rivaly game. I have just become a Bruins fan.

A 1, 2, 3 Big Ten finish sounds infinitely preferable to any potential rematch
result, doncha think?

 

[Best Buckeye]

meeech may or may not be the 2nd best team. They had their chance, in fact they have had one a year for the last 3 years.
Bring on Fla. or USC
:osu:

 

[BuckeyeBill]

I personally think that a regular season rematch should NEVER be allowed in the championship game. It should be written into the BCS bylaws. As it is, college football rankings are highly incestuous. Most teams ranking come from games they play within a narrow conference, we get very little measure of how the conferences stack up. The number of OOC games doesn't come close to answering that question. Look how Louisville, Rutgers, and West Virginia are getting so much respect in the media (by way of the polls), yet most of us seriously doubt the Big East's chances against a real conference. Is the SEC really as good as the media projects? Or for that matter, are we really as good as we think? The notion that you are matching up the two best teams is an illusion anyway. There really is no good way of truly identifying the two best teams. So let them earn their way in. Michigan has had their shot, so let the next challenger have theirs.

And BTW, yes, I was at The Game, and it was UFB!