Posts Tagged ‘Select 17’
Posted by Brett Kincaid on November 12, 2012
Texas A&M simultaneously pulled off its biggest win as a member of the SEC and former member of the Big XII last weekend. The Aggies and redshirt freshman superstar quarterback Johnny Manziel rocked the college football world by beating then-#1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. In doing so they cleared the path for Kansas State to play in the BCS Championship Game. All the Wildcats have to do is take care of business this weekend at Baylor then at home against a resurgent Texas Longhorns team two days after Thanksgiving. Kansas State emerged as the #1 team in the latest BCS standings, but they have to settle for the #2 spot in most polls – including this week’s BlogHawgs.com Select 17, where Oregon reigns supreme after picking up 6 of the 9 first place votes.
The Ducks looked strong once again on Saturday at Cal. They host Stanford this weekend in another late-season test. The Civil War awaits Oregon the following week, then a date in the Pac-12 Championship Game against either UCLA or USC. Meanwhile Notre Dame responded to its lackluster performance last week against Pittsburgh by knocking off Boston College on the road. The Irish head back home to take on Wake Forest this weekend before ending its regular season in the Coliseum against Southern Cal. Notre Dame has won ugly – key word, won – but will be tested by the Trojan offensive machine.
The SEC has six teams in this week’s BCS top 10 but none of them in the top three. Two teams have to lose before the SEC champion can realistically get a shot a seventh straight BCS crown. All three teams ahead of Alabama and Georgia (also sitting with one loss and a spot secured in the SECCG) have challenging games remaining, and one slip up could open the door just enough for the nation’s most powerful conference to once again appear in the last college football game of the season.
To the numbers…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Oregon |
150 |
2 |
| 2 |
Kansas St. |
147 |
3 |
| 3 |
Alabama |
125 |
1 |
| 4 |
Notre Dame |
121 |
4 |
| 5 |
Georgia |
120 |
5 |
| 6 |
Florida |
100 |
6 |
| 7 |
LSU |
90 |
7 |
| 8 |
Texas A&M |
87 |
14 |
| 9 |
Florida St. |
82 |
8 |
| 10 |
South Carolina |
69 |
11 |
| 11 |
Ohio St. |
65 |
10 |
| 12 |
Clemson |
58 |
12 |
| 13 |
Stanford |
47 |
16 |
| 14 |
Oklahoma |
30 |
15 |
| 15 |
Oregon St. |
21 |
13 |
| 16 |
Nebraska |
20 |
17 |
| 17 |
Louisville |
15 |
9 |
Others Receiving Votes: UCLA 13, Louisiana Tech 8, Texas 6, Rutgers 3
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, College Football, Georgia Bulldogs, Kansas State Wildcats, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oregon Ducks, Select 17, Southern Cal, Texas A&M Aggies | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on November 6, 2012
The road to football Armageddon has been cleared thanks to late game heroics by Alabama and Notre Dame, a gritty home win by Kansas State, and a dominant offensive road performance by Oregon. As noted last week, all four teams have limited challenges remaining. This week, though, Bama has a suddenly tough game against Texas A&M and their high-powered offense. How will the Tide respond after an emotional win in Baton Rouge? Notre Dame travels to Chestnut Hill to face Boston College in the Catholic Bowl. Will their luck finally run out this weekend after two near/should-have-been losses at home in the past month? Kansas State hits the road this week to take on TCU, which has struggled quite a bit in its first season as a member of the Big XII. And Oregon hits the road again, this time heading to Berkeley to take on an unraveling Cal team.
If Alabama was playing on the road again this week, I’d be tempted to call for the Aggie upset. They run a completely different offense than Bama has seen this year and are playing with a ton of confidence right now. I’ll take the Aggies and 2 touchdowns (the line is currently Bama -13.5) but Bama to win. Notre Dame hasn’t looked very good offensively, but Boston College is pretty bad. The Irish should get to 10-0 this weekend. Kansas State needs to watch out for a road letdown, but TCU’s defense – usually its strength – is one of the worst in the country this year. Bill Snyder should pick up another road win in his magical season back in Manhattan. Oregon looks to be the safest bet for a win, even if it’s on the road. The Ducks gave up a ton of points to Southern Cal, but they can easily score enough to beat a 3-7 California team with what most believe is a lame duck coach.
Georgia made up a lot of ground this weekend, narrowing the gap between them and Notre Dame to just one point in our poll. The Bulldogs play their annually rivalry game with Auburn this week, needing only a win against the pathetic War Damn Eagle Tigers to cinch the SEC East. A Bulldog win coupled with another lackluster Irish performance against a lousy team could knock Notre Dame down to a peg despite their undefeated record. Despite having 4 teams in the Top Ten, the SEC is just one Alabama loss from being a long shot to play for its 7th consecutive BCS championship.
To the numbers…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
Oregon |
142 |
2 |
| 3 |
Kansas St. |
137 |
3 |
| 4 |
Notre Dame |
113 |
4 |
| 5 |
Georgia |
112 |
6 |
| 6 |
Florida |
100 |
7 |
| 7 |
LSU |
89 |
5 |
| 8 |
Florida St. |
83 |
8 |
| 9 |
Louisville |
81 |
9 |
| 10 |
Ohio St. |
70 |
10 |
| 11 |
South Carolina |
62 |
12 |
| 12 |
Clemson |
61 |
11 |
| 13 |
Oregon St. |
45 |
13 |
| 14 |
Texas A&M |
42 |
16 |
| 15 |
Oklahoma |
31 |
17 |
| 16 |
Stanford |
28 |
14 |
| 17 |
Nebraska |
10 |
NR |
Others Receiving Votes: Louisiana Tech 7, UCLA 7, Rutgers 2, Texas 1, Luck of the Irish 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Big XII, College Football, Georgia Bulldogs, Kansas State Wildcats, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oregon Ducks, Polls, SEC, Select 17 | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on October 30, 2012
Are we really entering the 10th week of college football? My, my time drags when you’re not having any fun at all. I feel like the season should be over by now. After their second Little Rock meltdown of the season, it appears the 2012 Arkansas Razorbacks feel about the same way. Sitting at 3-5 with four games left on the schedule, Arkansas needs to win at least three games against Tulsa, South Carolina, Mississippi State, and LSU in order to even qualify for a bowl game this year. The Hogs will certainly be sizable underdogs at Columbia and Starkville, and again at home against LSU the day after Thanksgiving. Arkansas is actually laying 7 points at home this week to Tulsa (any takers?), but winning any of the other games would be considered an upset by anyone. The point: Arkansas will very likely miss a bowl game for the first time since 2008. The Hogs also missed post-season play in 2004, got to the Las Vegas Bowl in 2000 (losing it to finish with a 6-7 record), and missed bowl games in 1996 and 1992. Presidential election years have not been kind to the Razorbacks.
Other teams – like Alabama, Oregon, Kansas State, and Notre Dame – have no such problems. All four remain unbeaten this year, and all four could definitely end the season undefeated. The Crimson Tide and Ducks both face big challenges this weekend, though. Alabama must travel to Baton Rouge to take on LSU, while the Ducks fly south to take on Southern Cal. The Fighting Irish is on let-down alert when they host Pitt on Saturday afternoon, while Kansas State has revenge on its mind Saturday night when Oklahoma State comes to the Little Apple.
Kansas State has the easiest path to perfection. If they can get past Okie State this weekend, they have road games left against TCU and Baylor, and Texas in Manhattan to end the season. After this weekend Notre Dame has a similarly weak field ahead of it with only a road trip to Southern Cal the real danger along with dates against Boston College and Wake Forest on its schedule.
The current #1 and #2 in the Select 17 poll have the most difficult schedules remaining. If Bama passes a huge test this weekend, they get a dangerous Texas A&M squad before slowing down with Western Carolina and Auburn before the SEC Championship Game – against either Georgia or Florida. Oregon plays three times on the road in the final four weeks. They’re at USC this weekend, then at Cal, home for Stanford, and at Oregon State for the annual Civil War. If they survive that schedule, they plan the Pac-12 Championship Game, likely against Southern Cal (again) or UCLA.
As you have probably realized at this point, the two teams with the clearest paths to Miami both avoid a conference championship game. If both Notre Dame and Kansas State finish undefeated, you can bet a one-loss SEC or Pac-12 champion will not make the BCS Championship Game – to the delight of many and murderous rage of many more. The good news, at least for people like me, is that this nonsense all comes to an end in the 2014 season when the 4-team playoff format finally helps college football settle its business on the field.
To the rankings…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
Oregon |
138 |
2 |
| 3 |
Kansas St. |
137 |
3 |
| 4 |
Notre Dame |
121 |
6 |
| 5 |
LSU |
108 |
5 |
| 6 |
Georgia |
106 |
13 |
| 7 |
Florida |
93 |
4 |
| 8 |
Floirda St. |
84 |
10 |
| 9 |
Louisville |
81 |
14 |
| 10 |
Ohio St. |
68 |
12 |
| 11 |
Clemson |
61 |
15 |
| 12 |
South Carolina |
48 |
NR |
| 13 |
Oregon St. |
38 |
7 |
| 14 |
Stanford |
29 |
NR |
| 15 |
Mississippi St. |
28 |
11 |
| 16 |
Texas A&M |
26 |
NR |
| 17 |
Oklahoma |
17 |
8 |
Others Receiving Votes: Boise St. 10, Louisiana Tech 9, Southern Cal 4, Texas Tech 4, Rutgers 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks, BCS, College Football, Kansas State Wildcats, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oregon Ducks, SEC, Select 17, USC | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on October 15, 2012
The more things change, the more things stay the same. While the S17 looks quite different in most spots this week, #1 Alabama and #2 Oregon continue to reign supreme. Once again the Crimson Tide swept up all 9 first place votes, extending their streak to 7 consecutive weeks as the consensus Number One team in all of college football. With an off week the Ducks held steady as a unanimous #2 selection. With losses by South Carolina and West Virginia - and boy howdy, what a loss – the rest of the Top Ten saw significant changes. Kansas State‘s road win at Norman looks more and more impressive after the Sooners gashed Texas in the Red River Rivalry Rout on Saturday. Meanwhile traditional powers Florida and Notre Dame moved into discussion as legitimate national title contenders. Out west, Oregon State remains unbeaten and Southern Cal continues its march back to BCS discussion.
While we’re still several wins away from it happening, Arkansas finally looked like a preseason Top Ten team this weekend. If this offense – and more importantly, defense – continue to show up each week, the Hogs may end the season back in the rankings. The teams that have beaten Arkansas have a combined record of 21-3, and those three losses came by a combined total of 11 points. While the Hogs have no claim of being an elite team, we can take some solace in knowing all the losses have come to accomplished football teams.
Without further ado, your Week 8 Select 17 college football poll:
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
Oregon |
144 |
2 |
| 3 |
Kansas St |
129 |
5 |
| 4 |
Florida |
124 |
6 |
| 5 |
Notre Dame |
107 |
7 |
| 6 |
LSU |
98 |
10 |
| 7 |
Oregon St |
91 |
8 |
| 8 |
South Carolina |
72 |
3 |
| 9 |
Oklahoma |
70 |
17 |
| 10 |
Southern Cal |
59 |
11 |
| 11 |
Ohio St |
58 |
9 |
| 12 |
Florida St |
52 |
13 |
| 13 |
Louisville |
46 |
14 |
| 14 |
Mississippi St |
45 |
15 |
| 15 |
Georgia |
44 |
12 |
| 16 |
Clemson |
30 |
16 |
| 17 |
Rutgers |
20 |
NR |
Other Receiving Votes: West Virginia 19, Cincinnati 8, Texas A&M 6, Texas Tech 3, Pete Kozma 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks, BCS, College Football, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Oregon Ducks, Select 17 | 4 Comments »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on October 9, 2012
Huge changes in this week’s Select 17 poll here at BlogHawgs.com. Alabama and Oregon continue to control their own destinies, but now we can add South Carolina and Florida to that list – along with Kansas State and West Virginia – while removing LSU and Florida State. This was the first big weekend of major upsets, although Florida over LSU is just a marginal one on paper. The big winner, though, was clearly West Virginia. The Mountaineers went into Austin, Texas, and took out the bluest of the blue bloods in their first Big XII road game. Geno Smith, fresh off his video game-like performance against Baylor, cemented his status as Heisman Trophy front runner while Mount Pleasant (IA) High School graduate Dana Holgorson has emerged as the “next big thing” coach in America. Jeff Long, please take note.
And let’s keep an eye on Oregon State. The Beavers have ripped off two conference road wins in addition to knocking out Wisconsin in an early preseason game. After a punchy Wazzou visits this weekend, they go to Provo to take on an injured BYU squad before hosting Utah the following week. If Oregon State can navigate those three and avoid a let down, they would travel to Washington at the end of October as an unbeaten Top Five team. Could it be that Pac-12 football is alive and well? With the Ducks, Oregon State, and Southern Cal all occupying spots in the Select 17 this week and Stanford knocking on the door, even us Southern boys appear to be impressed with West Coast football this season.
To the poll…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
Oregon |
144 |
2 |
| 3 |
South Carolina |
132 |
7 |
| 4 |
West Virginia |
128 |
6 |
| 5 |
Kansas St. |
111 |
8 |
| 6 |
Florida |
108 |
11 |
| 7 |
Notre Dame |
89 |
10 |
| 8 |
Oregon St. |
65 |
16 |
| 9 |
Ohio St. |
62 |
13 |
| 10 |
LSU |
59 |
3 |
| 11 |
Southern Cal |
56 |
12 |
| 12 |
Georgia |
41 |
4 |
| 13 |
Florida St. |
40 |
5 |
| 14 |
Louisville |
37 |
NR |
| 15 |
Mississippi St. |
36 |
NR |
| 16 |
Clemson |
32 |
15 |
| 17 |
Oklahoma |
31 |
17 |
Others Receiving Votes: Stanford 17, Rutgers 14, Texas 11, Cincinnati 6, Texas A&M 4, Louisiana Tech 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, College Football, Dana Holgorson, Geno Smith, Oregon Ducks, Oregon State Beavers, Polls, Select 17, West Virginia Mountaineers | 1 Comment »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on September 10, 2012
For their second consecutive trip the Alabama Crimson Tide will travel to Fayetteville as the unanimous #1 team in college football. They enjoy that status from the Associated Press, the USA Today/Coaches’ Poll, and the all-important BlogHawgs.com Select 17 poll. Unlike 2010, though, they will not face a Top 10 team in Arkansas. Instead they will face an unranked Razorbacks squad in 2 of the 3 major polls after Saturday’s loss. Only the nation’s sports information directors coaches had the Hogs in their rankings at #21 this week.
While we obviously have all spent quite a bit of time focusing on the Meltdown on Markham, there were several upsets in college football this weekend. Wisconsin lost on the road at Oregon State, Nebraska fell at UCLA, and Oklahoma St. got run over in the desert by Arizona. While all of those are more excusable losses on the road than the Hogs stunner in Little Rock, all three schools fell out of the Select 17 along with Arkansas.
Elsewhere in the poll, the top five teams stayed in place this week. LSU, Southern Cal, Oregon, and Georgia all followed the Tide this week. The Razorbacks’ loss allowed Michigan State to enter the Top Ten this week. The Select 17 welcomes four new schools in Kansas State, Texas, Ohio State, and Stanford to this week’s rankings. We also had some first-timers appear in this week’s Others Receiving Votes section.
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
LSU |
140 |
t2 |
| 3 |
Southern Cal |
137 |
t2 |
| 4 |
Oregon |
122 |
4 |
| 5 |
Georgia |
114 |
5 |
| 6 |
Florida St. |
102 |
7 |
| 7 |
Oklahoma |
94 |
t8 |
| 8 |
West Virginia |
91 |
t8 |
| 9 |
South Carolina |
85 |
10 |
| 10 |
Michigan St. |
75 |
13 |
| 11 |
Clemson |
66 |
12 |
| 12 |
Virginia Tech |
40 |
15 |
| 13 |
Kansas St. |
33 |
NR |
| 14 |
Texas |
26 |
NR |
| 15 |
Michigan |
25 |
16 |
| 16 |
Ohio St. |
18 |
NR |
| 17 |
Stanford |
14 |
NR |
Others Receiving Votes: TCU 13, Nebraska 11, Florida 7, Louisville 6, Arizona 2, UL-Monroe 1, Abject Pain & Despair 1, I Was “Right” Guy 1, Coaches Who Hire Their Goomar 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks, College Football, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oklahoma State Cowboys, Select 17, Wisconsin Badgers | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on September 4, 2012
Apparently none of the AP, USA Today, or ESPN Power Rankings voters have listened to the experts on vaious Arkansas message boards this week. While work must be done to shore up the defense – especially the secondary – Arkansas dominated an inferior team en route to a 3-TD win on Saturday. That was good enough for the Hogs to jump South Carolina and Oklahoma in the AP poll and move up to #8 in the nation. The Hogs held their ground at #10 in the USA Today/Coches’ Poll, and Arkansas inched into the Top Ten in this week’s ESPN.com Power Rankings, switching places with South Carolina.
So much for the Sky is Falling crowd…
Similar to the national polls the Select 17 voters rewarded Arkansas with a season opening victory, imperfect as it was. The Hogs moved up one spot from #7 to #6 thanks in large part to Oklahoma’s less-than-convincing win over UTEP late Saturday evening. (For the record, I have not been a Sooner believer all year. I have them at #15 on my ballot, down one spot from last week.) The national polls also jumped on the Select 17 bandwagon, crowning Alabama as the #1 team in the land. The Crimson Tide picked up all 9 first place votes in our poll. With Western Kentucky waiting in the wings, it seems very like the Tide will roll into Fayetteville as the #1 team in the nation for the second consecutive time. If Arkansas holds up its end of the bargain, we will once again be treated to a battle of Top Ten teams at Reynolds Razorback Stadium one week from Saturday.
Elsewhere in the Select 17, Michigan slides all the way to #16 based on their performance against the aforementioned Crimson Tide. Southern Cal and LSU enter Week 2 tied for the second spot in the polls after dueling destructions of Hawai’i and North Texas, respectively. Oregon and Georgia round out the Top Five this week. Both Virginia Tech and Oklahoma State enter the rankings after victories in Week One. To the surprise of no one, Arkansas State did not pick up any votes this week.
To the numbers…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
1 |
| t2 |
Southern Cal |
138 |
3 |
| t2 |
LSU |
138 |
2 |
| 4 |
Oregon |
124 |
4 |
| 5 |
Georgia |
110 |
5 |
| 6 |
Arkansas |
103 |
7 |
| 7 |
Florida St. |
92 |
8 |
| t8 |
Oklahoma |
81 |
6 |
| t8 |
West Virginia |
81 |
12 |
| 10 |
South Carolina |
68 |
10 |
| 11 |
Wisconsin |
60 |
11 |
| 12 |
Clemson |
59 |
14 |
| 13 |
Michigan St. |
53 |
13 |
| 14 |
Nebraska |
37 |
15 |
| 15 |
Virginia Tech |
19 |
- |
| 16 |
Michigan |
18 |
9 |
| 17 |
Oklahoma St. |
13 |
- |
Others Receiving Votes: Texas 11, Ohio State 10, Stanford 7, Kansas St. 3, Louisville 3
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, AP, Arkansas Razorbacks, BCS, College Football, ESPN, LSU Tigers, SEC, Select 17, USA Today, USC Trojans | 10 Comments »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on August 20, 2012
It’s finally here: the long-awaited BlogHawgs.com Select 17 Preseason Poll
Like most college football fans, we bitch and moan about college football polls only to find ourselves scouring the numbers as soon as they’re released. To make things even worse, we added our own poll to the collective noise when we launched our blog in 2009. After three full seasons, I’m convinced we’re better at this than the national media could ever hope to be.
Looking at the 2012 preseason rankings, ours closely resemble the poll already released by the Associated Press and the Coaches’ Poll. Because we understand the SEC better than most, our group astutely selected Arkansas ahead of South Carolina given the Hogs domination of the Cocks over the past several years. As a group we are more skeptical of Oklahoma and Florida State than most national voters. Both schools typically receive preseason acclaim yet fail to match that adoration with wins on the field. They play Lucy to national writers’ Charlie Brown every season. Not at BlogHawgs; while they both enjoy preseason Top 10 status both are also on very short leashes. The slightest waver will knock the Sooners and the Seminoles back to also-ran status.
At the top of the poll, defending national champion Alabama returns as the preseason #1 team in our survey. The Crimson Tide has a tough road ahead, but as it is often said – “To be The Man, you gotta beat The Man.” Arkansas gets its chance on September 15, 2012, at Reynolds Razorback Stadium. LSU starts the year at #2 just as they ended the 2011 season, but the Tigers may be even better than 2011 now that they have a quarterback that can both run AND throw. If the Tigers coaching staff can just keep him away from trouble, LSU could be in Miami next January playing for another title. Southern Cal and Oregon occupy the third and fourth position in the poll, showing that even SEC folks respect what is happening on the West Coast. Both teams look like legit contenders for college football’s biggest prize. Georgia rounds out the Top 5 but not by much. With no SEC West heavyweights on their schedule, a single loss could cost the Bulldogs mightily.
We’re inside 2 weeks, football fans. It’s almost here. Without further ado, here’s a look at the Select 17:
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
| 1 |
Alabama (4) |
147 |
| 2 |
LSU (3) |
138 |
| 3 |
USC (2) |
125 |
| 4 |
Oregon |
115 |
| 5 |
Georgia |
107 |
| 6 |
Oklahoma |
103 |
| 7 |
Arkansas |
100 |
| 8 |
Florida St. |
85 |
| 9 |
Michigan |
77 |
| 10 |
South Carolina |
75 |
| 11 |
Wisconsin |
70 |
| 12 |
West Virginia |
63 |
| 13 |
Michigan St. |
45 |
| 14 |
Clemson |
28 |
| 15 |
Nebraska |
21 |
| 16 |
Stanford |
18 |
| 17 |
Ohio St. |
17 |
Others Receiving Votes: Virginia Tech 14, Texas 7, Texas A&M 7, Florida 4, Kansas State 4, Oklahoma State 4, TCU 2, Boise St. 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razrobacks, College Football, Florida State Seminoles, Georgia Bulldogs, LSU Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, Preseason Polls, Select 17, USC Trojans | 6 Comments »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on January 10, 2012
As quickly as it arrived, the college football is now officially a memory. After three months of regular season games and a month of bowl games, Alabama has emerged as the BCS champion. The Crimson Tide also claimed the top spot in the BlogHawgs.com Select 17 after dispatching LSU in relatively easy fashion last night in New Orleans. My intent was to vote for LSU in the top spot if the Tide won a close game, but Nick Saban’s ferocious defense made it easy to vote Bama #1 this morning.
As for the Arkansas Razorbacks, they received a bit more love here than in the national polls – to no one’s surprise I’m sure. The Cotton Bowl champs finished 11-2 on the year, ranked #4 in our final poll. Two road losses to #1 and #2 teams in the country are the only two black marks on the Razorback record this year. Expectations are already set very high for 2012, especially if Tyler Wilson returns for his senior season in Fayetteville.
It was a lot of fun to provide these rankings each week again this year. Thanks to our voters and readers for making it worthwhile. We’ll be back this fall to track another SEC-dominated college football season.
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
Alabama (9) |
153 |
2 |
| 2 |
LSU |
144 |
1 |
| 3 |
Oklahoma St. |
133 |
4 |
| 4 |
Arkansas |
125 |
6 |
| 5 |
Oregon |
120 |
7 |
| 6 |
Stanford |
106 |
3 |
| 7 |
Boise St. |
94 |
9 |
| 8 |
South Carolina |
91 |
13 |
| 9 |
Michigan St. |
64 |
12 |
| 10 |
Wisconsin |
62 |
10 |
| 11 |
Michigan |
61 |
17 |
| 12 |
USC |
50 |
14 |
| 13 |
Baylor |
46 |
NR |
| 14 |
TCU |
36 |
NR |
| 15 |
West Virginia |
23 |
NR |
| 16 |
Kansas St. |
20 |
16 |
| 17 |
Oklahoma |
19 |
15 |
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks, BCS, College Football, LSU Tigers, SEC, Select 17 | 3 Comments »
Posted by Brett Kincaid on November 21, 2011
It all comes down to this.
For the first time since 1969, the Arkanas Razorbacks have a chance to knock off the #1 team in the country on the season’s final game and ensure the Hogs spot in the National Championship game. The closest thing we’ve seen in these parts since The Big Shootout was 1988, when the #8 Hogs lost at #3 Miami (yet another heartbreaker) in a game that could have inserted Arkansas into the title discussion. However, that was long before the BCS guaranteed a matchup of #1 v. #2 for all the marbles. While there is still a bit of gray area here, a win over the #1 team in the land on the last weekend of the regular season should just about sew up the bid to the BCS Championship Game.
This week you will hear all sorts of theories and predictions. The anti-SEC sentiment will be loud, so prepare yourselves. Do not get distracted. As we learned this weekend, winning is the most important thing out there. If you win, you advance in the discussion. The biggest lesson to be learned from this weekend – one of the best college football weekends in recent memory – is this: Anything can happen. Arkansas could definitely beat LSU. Auburn could definitely beat Alabama. Or the favorties could just as easily roll this weekend, eliminating much of the debate.
It’s a holiday week. Don’t let Brad Edwards, Kirk Herbstreit, and the other national blowhards ruin your Thanksgiving. If the #3 team in the nation beats the #1 team in the nation – at their house – on the final weekend of the regular season, it’s a pretty safe bet that the #3 team will punch a ticket to the title game. Winning takes care of everything. Enjoy your family and let Bobby Petrino worry about getting the Hogs into the program’s biggest game in 47 years.
I’d be remiss at this point not to mention the death of redshirt freshman Garrett Uekman. This
young man’s passing is a sobering reminder of how delicate life is. Personally I take it as a reminder that this thing we love, college football, is but a piece in the greater puzzle of life. It is a reminder for me to choose to celebrate the fact that Arkansas is in position to play for a title rather than to worry about what others may think. We often forget to enjoy these moments because we spend so much energy worrying about “What’s Next?” when we have no control over it. Rest in peace, Garrett.
One thing we do control here at BlogHawgs.com is our weekly Select 17 poll. For the first time all season, the top 3 teams are unanimous by all voters. We may have been ahead of the curve compared to our national colleagues, but it’s nice to see them all catch up. Oklahoma proved to be a fraud, Oregon showed it was flawed, and Oklahoma State said, “Oh my, God!” after taking it on the chin in Ames, Iowa, last Friday night. Stanford, OSU, Boise State, and Virginia Tech are all lurking, waiting on the SEC West to fail. Of that group, Stanford and Oklahoma State pose the biggest threat to disrupting an all-SEC party in New Orleans. If Alabama wins the Iron Bowl, though, it’s hard to imagine anyone getting into that game that doesn’t reside in the country’s toughest football division.
To the poll…
| Rank |
Team |
Votes |
LW |
| 1 |
LSU (9) |
153 |
1 |
| 2 |
Alabama |
144 |
3 |
| 3 |
Arkansas |
135 |
5 |
| 4 |
Stanford |
119 |
8 |
| 5 |
Oklahoma St. |
112 |
2 |
| 6 |
Virginia Tech |
111 |
9 |
| 7 |
Houston |
90 |
10 |
| 8 |
Boise St. |
81 |
11 |
| 9 |
Oregon |
77 |
4 |
| 10 |
Michigan St. |
59 |
13 |
| 11 |
Georgia |
55 |
12 |
| 12 |
Oklahoma |
50 |
6 |
| 13 |
USC |
48 |
NR |
| 14 |
Wisconsin |
44 |
15 |
| 15 |
South Carolina |
38 |
14 |
| 16 |
Kansas St. |
30 |
17 |
| 17 |
Michigan |
14 |
NR |
Others Receiving Votes: Clemson 12, Baylor 5, Penn St. 1, TCU 1, Tulsa 1
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Posted in Sports | Tagged: Alabama Crimson Tide, Arkansas Razorbacks, BCS, College Football, Garrett Uekman, LSU Tigers, SEC West, Select 17 | 8 Comments »
Texas A&M simultaneously pulled off its biggest win as a member of the SEC and former member of the Big XII last weekend. The Aggies and redshirt freshman superstar quarterback Johnny Manziel rocked the college football world by beating then-#1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. In doing so they cleared the path for Kansas State to play in the BCS Championship Game. All the Wildcats have to do is take care of business this weekend at Baylor then at home against a resurgent Texas Longhorns team two days after Thanksgiving. Kansas State emerged as the #1 team in the latest BCS standings, but they have to settle for the #2 spot in most polls – including this week’s BlogHawgs.com Select 17, where Oregon reigns supreme after picking up 6 of the 9 first place votes.