Having had a day to process the BCS selections, I must admit I’m somewhat torn. I would certainly agree with ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit that Ohio State fans couldn’t have asked for a better script- a chance to play for the crystal football against another SEC opponent. What better shot at redemption for last January than knocking off LSU in what is essentially a home game for the Tigers?
On the other hand, I personally feel Bob Stoops and Oklahoma should be in this game, but the media has absolutely bent over backwards to ensure that LSU would get in the game. They were perched at #1 twice and couldn’t hold on, and had to eke out wins over Florida, Auburn and Alabama. While I think this is mostly a testament to the media’s love affair with the SEC (they’ll die if Tim Tebow doesn’t win the Heisman), I honestly wonder if they’re not just trying to do something nice to help the city of New Orleans. In no way am I trying to make light of the tragic flooding in the area, but what else would give that city a lift than to have their collegiate hometown heroes win the national championship in their own backyard?
Buckeye Nation better just be ready for a repeat of 2002, when all you heard for 40 days was how Miami was going to absolutely roll OSU in Tempe. If Jim Heacock turns the “D” loose and Todd Boeckman doesn’t do anything dumb, I like Ohio State’s chances. This LSU team is nowhere near as good as that Hurricane bunch was in 2002.
I became curious if any other national title winner or contender ever gave up 45 or more points in a game, like the Tigers did TWICE this year. Well, here are the results. Again, these are teams that were named national champs in one of the two major polls, as well as teams who played and lost in the BCS championship game since 1998. I looked for any game where the eventual champs or runners-up gave up more than 30 points-
1950- Oklahoma beat Nebraska 49-35
1962- Southern Cal beat Wisconsin 42-37 (Rose Bowl)
1970- Nebraska beat Oklahoma State 65-31
1971- Nebraska beat Oklahoma 35-31 (#1 vs. #2 “Game Of The Century”)
1976- Pittsburgh beat Duke 44-31
1982- Penn State lost to Alabama 21-42
1984- BYU beat Wyoming 41-38
1988- Notre Dame beat Miami, FL 31-30 (“Catholics vs. Convicts” classic)
1990- Colorado tied Tennessee 31-31
Colorado beat Missouri 33-31 (infamous “fifth down” game)
Georgia Tech beat Duke 48-31
Georgia Tech beat Virginia 41-38
1993- Florida State lost to Notre Dame 24-31
1994- Nebraska beat Wyoming 42-32
1996- Florida beat Alabama 45-30 (SEC title game)
1997- Nebraska beat Missouri 45-38 (Matt Davison’s lucky carom)
1998- Tennessee beat Syracuse 34-33 (opening day shootout)
1999- Florida State beat Georgia Tech 41-35
2000- Oklahoma beat Kansas State 41-31
Oklahoma beat Texas A&M 35-31
2003- USC beat Hawaii 61-32
USC lost to Cal 31-34 (triple overtime thriller)
2005- USC beat Fresno State 50-42
Texas beat USC 41-38 (national title game in Rose Bowl)
2006- Ohio State beat Michigan 42-39
So only twice has a national champ or BCS runner-up given up 42 points in a game. Should LSU pull it off against the Buckeyes, they’ll be not only the first BCS champion with two losses, but also the only one in college football history to have given up 50 points in a game. As Jim Rome would derisively say, “Outstanding!”
Even if I weren’t a hardcore Ohio State fan, I wouldn’t be drinking the LSU Kool-Aid. It will be interesting to see how the Les Miles/Michigan soap opera might play out during the run-up to January 7th. Glenn Dorsey is banged up and D-Coor “Bo” Pelini is a lame duck, so there will be plenty of storylines surrounding the Tigers for the rest of the month. And believe it or not, whomever comes out on top will be the very first two-time national champion under the BCS formula. The Buckeyes also join Florida State and Oklahoma as the only schools to land in the title game 3 times.
So let’s get the awards ceremonies completed and lean into the bowl season!
I’d love to hear your thoughts on any of the above rants. Feel free to send me a note to Joe-S-U@buckeye50.com.
Editorial: 2007 Regular Season Ends - 2
By Joe-S-U
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December 4th, 2007
