My post won't be much different Kaos's. Maybe it will be. I didn't go to the Music City Bowl.
Bowl Season Thoughts
- Or really watch much football in general. Just couldn't get interested. Didn't want to be. You know what? I was a lot happier for it. Hung out with family, did projects around the house, watched some HBO shows I had been wanting to see.
- When I did try to watch a little football? I was reminded again and again why I shouldn't. Turned on the beginning of the Camellia Bowl to see one of the first games. Just to get into the Christmas spirit, and of course there was a comment made by an announcer about how Joey Jones, head coach of South Alabama, played for the Bear and learned so much about building a top program from his days at the University of Alayadayadasplooge fuck that.
- Didn't watch another snap until I saw that LSU and Notre Dame were tied at 28 in the 4th. Thought that looked interesting and had some time. Great ending except I missed the very end. Notre Dame's about to kick a field goal for the win and what do I see scroll across the bottom of the screen? Jim Harbaugh's been hired by Michigan. And here's a quote from Nick Saban about the hire following the breaking news. Click. Fuck that. Saw the end score on my phone.
- Watched a few plays of the Georgia-Louisville game. Nick Chubb is a fucking beast. That was kinda cool to watch. Happiness growing.
- Watched Auburn. What's there to say? Same shit all year. Good potential all over the field but just boneheaded mistakes all around. The worst mistake of the game? Gus's play calling at the end. What in the blinding squirrel fuckhead nuttery was that shit? Although, watching the replay, if that one guy hadn't sniffed out the play and caught Marshall by his leg, Marshall walks in for a touchdown.
- When Wisconsin won, I told myself to be done with it. Oregon-Florida State would be whatever and Alabama would blow out Ohio State and eventually beat someone for the NC. Saban would frown as everyone continued to jizz all over his face. The San Francisco 49ers would hire Rex Ryan and Saban would be given a 15 minute segment on ESPN to express his thoughts on it. Derrick Henry would be handed next year's Heisman and Amari Cooper would skip an NFL career and just give his Hall of Fame speech in Canton.
- But I watched Oregon-Florida State, and it was great. THAT was good college football. That's what I fell in love with so many years ago. Was it a blowout? Yeah. But blowouts are good sometimes. Especially when there's a story. And there was a great story - Jimbo and Jameis are the most nefarious villains CFB has seen since the 1980s Hurricanes. And they went down hard to a team that no one has respected east of Denver. And I like Mariota. Not as good as they say he is. But he's pretty damn good, and he seems like a good guy. And they stomped five new assholes in the Seminoles. That was a program destroying blowout. That was a "How do we get up for winter conditioning?" kind of obliteration. That was a "Yeah, it's spring practice, but I can't get over how bad the Ducks pecked our eyes out" kind of ass whooping.
- I told myself to not watch Alabama, but I did. Until Alabama jumped up 21-6. I said fuck that and went on to something else. Took down our Christmas decorations, danced with my wife, took my dog for a walk. Checked the score a few hours later thinking I would see Alabama up 42-6 and it was 35-28 and Alabama had the ball. I said, "Don't watch that shit. Don't do it. Alabama has the ball and is going to win 37-35 after Ohio State runs backwards with one second left in the 4th."
- But I did, and I was glad I did. I finally got to see Alabama lose. A real loss too. Not a Texas A&M loss. Not even an Auburn loss. It was almost better. I didn't get the satisfaction of feeling the Auburn win, but that was one of the best Alabama losses I've seen since 2007.
- Because despite what they may say and whatever excuses they may have, they got beat like a normal team gets beat against a good football team. I don't know how to qualify or quantify that statement, but maybe you get it. There was nothing heroic about it. Nothing special or surprising. It was just a run-of-the-mill loss in a meaningful game with no excuses included. And it ended Alabama's aspirations. Shut it down. Just like everyone else experiences just about every year.
- I can firmly say that I am excited about the championship game. I haven't felt this way in a long time. There's no personal vestment in it. No SEC pride to cheer for (2006, 2007, 2008). No rival team to cheer against (2009, 2011, 2012). No Auburn to stress about (2010, 2013). Just two college football teams playing each other for the trophy.
The SEC Dominance is Over
- That ultra-tough division never-before-seen in college football? The SEC West of 2014? Overrated. Horribly overrated.
- Those Mississippi schools supposedly taking over the SEC? Nope. Same ole shit. Bo Wallace throwing (oh yeah, I watched a lot of this one too and it was good) 3 interceptions and looking like a greased up orangutan climbing up a water slide was no different than Jevan Snead in 2008 and 2009. Masoli in 2010. Mackley in 2011. Hell in 2012 when Freeze was supposedly turning the program around, the only reason they made a bowl game was because Auburn was having its worst season in its history.
- Same thing with Miss State. Caught a bunch of teams off-guard and at the right time with a great schedule. Were wins LSU (especially early this season), Auburn, Texas A&M, and Arkansas really worth a shit this year? The Auburn win was probably the only one to brag about, but even then, Auburn had some seriously uncharacteristic flaws with not being able to score in the red zone four times in one half.
- Alabama? Back to normal. Blake Sims was saved by having Amari Cooper to throw it to 122 times. Sorry, that was just the amount of times he made the catch. God knows how many times he threw it to him. He was saved by having the fat ogres on their defensive line stop most teams from running the ball. Lane Kiffin is not some maniacal genius terrorizing the SEC.
- LSU? Big problems there. That offense has been putrid for years and they just lost the DC that produced a few championship caliber defenses.
- Texas A&M? One of the most undisciplined teams in the country. Kevin Sumlin's "swagger" philosophy is going to put him right there with Gene Chizik in the history book.
- Arkansas? Probably a real threat. I don't like Bielema. I think he plays a boring style of football. But he sticks to his guns and had his team improve throughout the season, never letting them give up despite starting the year as the bottom dweller in the conference.
- Miss State? Ole Miss? No different than ever. 4-5 losses each next year easily.
- The East? Tennessee? Ha. Florida? With McElwain as coach? Missouri? Haaaaaa. Kentucky? Vanderbilt? South Carolina with Spurrier's senile bullshit? Georgia?
- I could see the SEC missing the playoff next year unless Auburn or Alabama fix some glaring holes.
The Playoff
- Last year the BCS championship game would be Alabama vs. Florida State. Florida State would be #1 - MAYBE #2 if the computers dropped them but probably not. Alabama would be #2. Oregon, Ohio State, TCU, and Baylor would be sitting outside being told that a traditional Rose bowl between the Pac 12 and Big 10 was just as good.
- The playoff this year really tarnished the BCS. What a fucking sham that era was. How many teams could have competed for and won the trophy if they had just been given a shot? Kansas State in 1998? Miami in 2000? Oregon in 2001? Georgia in 2002? USC in 2003? Auburn in 2004? USC in 2007? TCU, Boise State in 2009? TCU in 2010? Oklahoma State in 2011? Oregon, Kansas State in 2012?
- But the playoff really tarnished itself as well. The committee doesn't know anything. I used to not like the playoff idea. I really hated expanding it to 6 or 8 teams. But I think it's a must. Everyone thought Ohio State getting in was a sham because they were on their 3rd string quarterback and TCU was blowing out everyone. That was accurate for TCU. TCU should have been in over Ohio State. But Ohio State beat #1 Alabama. Florida State despite being undefeated was ranked 3rd but barely put up any kind of fight against Oregon, which is something many people expected because outside of being undefeated and having a 2013 trophy, they hadn't looked any good all year.
- But 8 teams probably won't happen. Maybe that would be too many. How would the logistics work? Christmas day is the first round. New Years day is the second round. January 12th is the third?
This is the End
- Pretty much all over now. One more game to go. I'm not watching the Frog Stomper Putt-Putt bowl tonight or the Jack-in-the-Box Hot Dog bowl this weekend.
- But hey. Signing day is just around the corner. One month away from a reminder that Alabama is going to be back in the driver's seat again next season.
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