Maize and Blue. Very Blue.
Oddly enough, there are those who are upset about Michigan's football team playing in the Rose Bowl, rather than in the Mythical National Championship Game.
Or is that the National Mythical Championship Game?
Or does it matter, anyway?
At a national level, Gene Wojciechowski and Pat Forde seem to think so.
At a more parochial level, Mitch Albom and Bob Wojnowski really seem to think so.
Me? Not so much. Michigan had their chance to beat Ohio State and failed. Why give them a second chance rather than give Florida a first chance? No reason that I can think of.
In the dozen or so years since college football first started down the path of pretending to have a system for determining a "national champion" there have been a dozen or more teams that have made noises of getting jobbed, overlooked and/or hornswoggled.
Two really were, and neither is this year's Michigan team.
Penn State in 1994 was screwed by the fact that Joe Paterno rested his defensive regulars at the end of a blowout win over Indiana, and gave up a couple of late touchdown passes. That team didn't lose to anyone and wouldn't have lost to anyone that year, but Nebraska was given the "national championship." The fact that those two didn't actually play was probably the final straw that put us on the current track of pretending to have a system for determining a "national champion."
The other was the 2004 Auburn team that lost to no one all year, yet had to watch two other teams play for the "national championship." Now granted, both those teams (USC & Oklahoma) were also undefeated, and if Auburn had played instead the one that was left out would have been on this short list. But Auburn has an even greater right to make noise because one of those teams they were forced to watch (Oklahoma), got the crap kicked out of them by the other, 55-19.
I suspect that Auburn felt they could have done better.
Maybe Michigan will feel that way this year if Florida gets waxed in the Mythical National Championship Game. If so, well, they'll be in good historical company.
If Florida should win, of course ... well, I guess Michigan will have even more to bitch about, won't they?
Or is that the National Mythical Championship Game?
Or does it matter, anyway?
At a national level, Gene Wojciechowski and Pat Forde seem to think so.
At a more parochial level, Mitch Albom and Bob Wojnowski really seem to think so.
Me? Not so much. Michigan had their chance to beat Ohio State and failed. Why give them a second chance rather than give Florida a first chance? No reason that I can think of.
In the dozen or so years since college football first started down the path of pretending to have a system for determining a "national champion" there have been a dozen or more teams that have made noises of getting jobbed, overlooked and/or hornswoggled.
Two really were, and neither is this year's Michigan team.
Penn State in 1994 was screwed by the fact that Joe Paterno rested his defensive regulars at the end of a blowout win over Indiana, and gave up a couple of late touchdown passes. That team didn't lose to anyone and wouldn't have lost to anyone that year, but Nebraska was given the "national championship." The fact that those two didn't actually play was probably the final straw that put us on the current track of pretending to have a system for determining a "national champion."
The other was the 2004 Auburn team that lost to no one all year, yet had to watch two other teams play for the "national championship." Now granted, both those teams (USC & Oklahoma) were also undefeated, and if Auburn had played instead the one that was left out would have been on this short list. But Auburn has an even greater right to make noise because one of those teams they were forced to watch (Oklahoma), got the crap kicked out of them by the other, 55-19.
I suspect that Auburn felt they could have done better.
Maybe Michigan will feel that way this year if Florida gets waxed in the Mythical National Championship Game. If so, well, they'll be in good historical company.
If Florida should win, of course ... well, I guess Michigan will have even more to bitch about, won't they?
posted by dgags @ 3:55 PM
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