The series of BCS bowl games is right around the corner. The five annual bowls features some intriguing match-ups as the #1 LSU Tigers take on the #2 Alabama Crimson Tide in the National Title game, two teams from the same conference and even the same division. Another interesting match-up is the Fiesta Bowl, which features the #3 and #4 teams in the country, OSU Cowboys and Stanford Cardinal. These two games should produce the new #1 and #2 teams in the country, but a true number one would be clear if the winners of these two games played each other to produce a true National Championship in Final Four fashion, after all Oklahoma State barely missed out on a title game berth. The rest of the BCS games don't pack as much punch; the Rose Bowl features the #6 Oregon Ducks against the #9 Wisconsin Badgers, the Orange Bowl features the #14 Clemson Tigers against the #23 West Virginia Mountaineers, and perhaps the worst match up, the Sugar Bowl, features two unworthy "at-large" bids, the #13 Michigan Wolverines against the #17 Virginia Tech Hokies. The Sugar Bowl points out exactly why the BCS system should be eliminated: there are five teams ranked ahead of Michigan and seven ahead of the Hokies that did not recieve a BCS Bowl bid, including the smaller rivals to the Wolverines, the MSU Spartans. Michigan State earned a higher ranking than the Wolverines and won their division, but since they almost nearly won the BIG 10 title game only to come up short, they earn a bid in the Outback Bowl. It seems to me that the only way to resolve the BCS and cure the obvious money factor that prevents smaller schools such as Boise St. or even Michigan State is to establish a top 8 team playoff system. #1 will play #8, #2 will play #7, #3 will play #6, and #4 will play #5 (almost like the seeding for March Madness). More games and more anticipation for a champion and even an upset will make millions of Americans watch a new BCS playoff system. Many schools are left out since larger market college teams may be invited, but more games is more money and even if a school such as Ohio St. is in the top 8 and becomes a true champion, that is equivalent to 3 standard BCS game earnings for the school. The BCS is already open to a top 8 system since the independent Notre Dame is invited to a BCS bowl as long as they finish in the top 8. Just because they don't have a conference, they have more lee-way. I feel that all non-big 6 schools should be treated like Notre Dame if the current BCS system were to stand. Boise St. finished #8 in the AP polls this year, but instead of being chosen for the Sugar Bowl, they were invited to the Maaco Las Vegas Bowl against an inferior ASU team. The current BCS system is flawed since they don't invite rightful college football teams, so the current system of playing five BCS bowl games should be eliminated. With a playoff BCS system, the top 8 college football teams will be invited to play in a seven game tournament, which would eliminate the money factor for college football and produce a true National Champion.
I understand that a Duck isn't the scariest animal of them all, but these new Nike Pro Combat Uniforms for the Oregon Ducks in the Rose Bowl are frightening. The good guys at Nike have given the Ducks tons of interesting uniforms, but a Darth Vader-esque jersey with wings on the helmet and a big "O" on the back don't seem to fit into the Rose Bowl theme. Look at the Wisconsin Rose Bowl jersey for example. Adidas decided to put a "rosy" pattern on the numbers. There's nothing scary about it, but then again, there doesn't have to be. Perhaps both teams thought that a different jersey would change their previous fortunes in the Bowl (Oregon lost to Ohio St. in 2009 and Wisconsin lost to TCU last year), but only one team can win "The Grand-daddy of them all".
