Double-A Zone

Add Boise State and give Mountain West an automatic BCS bid

2009-01-06T19:03:32Z

The success of Utah and other Mountain West Conference football programs over the last couple of seasons got me thinking about whether the conference deserves to be considered for a seventh automatic BCS bid.

Under the current BCS system, six conferences (ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-10, SEC) get automatic bids to fill the 10 BCS game slots, with the other four teams as at-large selections. Frankly, the Mountain West has a legitimate argument to be included with the automatic qualifiers, especially if it added football power-Boise State as the tenth team in the conference.

Since its inception in 1999, the conference has been trying to distinguish itself from the Western Athletic Conference (the majority of the Mountain West's teams came from the WAC). It's been a long road for the Mountain West, although Utah's recent BCS bowl game wins (over Pittsburgh in the 2005 Fiesta Bowl and Alabama in this year's Sugar Bowl) have certainly helped the conference make its mark.

But it's not only Utah that has enjoyed regular season and postseason success. The Mountain West went 6-2 against the Pac-10 this season (the Pac-10 went 5-0 in its bowl games this year). In the last two bowl seasons, the conference has combined for a 7-3 record in its bowls.

Yes, I know these numbers are all about the specific matchups, and in many of the bowl games, the league's teams didn't face top-tier competition. Nevertheless, these records indicate the Mountain West's football teams can compete with the "big boys." The Mountain West's 7-3 mark over the last two years doesn't look so bad when you put it next to the Big Ten's 4-11 bowl record during the same two seasons.

While one could justify Mountain West's inclusion as an automatic BCS bowl conference in its current nine-team formation, the argument is certainly enhanced if it brings in Boise State as the league's tenth team. Over the last couple of years, there have been rumors about this possibly occuring in the near future (or even adding three total teams to make 12 Mountain West league members).

Everybody knows about Boise State's smurf-turf blue field and dramatic win over Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. But it's more than that. The Broncos win a lot (a combined 35-4 record over the last three seasons), and they would certainly help legitimize the Mountain West even more on the national level.

If Boise State was a Mountain West member-institution this season, the league would have four teams ranked in the top 16 in the BCS standings, including an undefeated Utah squad that will most likely finish in the top four when the final rankings are released. Sounds like a BCS-automatic-bid-worthy league to me. Doesn't it to you?

To be honest, though, it seems unlikely the league will be given an automatic BCS bid in the near future because of the money factor. Why would the existing six BCS conferences want to include the Mountain West, made up of mostly small-market schools? Additionally, after the recent Orange Bowl, where the matchup between Virginia Tech and Cincinnati drew the lowest BCS bowl game ratings in history, the last thing the current BCS conferences would want is to lock-in another automatic qualifier each year.

So, what do you think? Does the Mountain West deserve a guaranteed spot among college football's elite each year?

]]>

Pitt tops basketball rankings for first time in history

2009-01-06T18:43:50Z

Pittsburgh's men's basketball team is the new No. 1 ranked team in men's college basketball after North Carolina and Connecticut's losses over the weekend. On Saturday, Pitt defeated then-number eight Georgetown on the road. But the Panthers probably shouldn't get too comfortable with their ranking - the rugged Big East schedule (currently with nine teams ranked in the top 25) will make it tough for everybody. How many league losses with the Big East champion have this year?

Impressive Wake Forest road win at BYU

2009-01-06T17:56:59Z

During a busy sports weekend that included the NFL playoffs, you might have missed Wake Forest's win at BYU on Saturday night. Why is this noteworthy? Well, before this home loss, BYU was basically unbeatable at home with a 53-game home winning streak, which was the longest in the nation. In a conference where North Carolina and Duke get most of the headlines, don't forget about the Deamon Deacons in March.

Record-breaking Division II women's basketball game

2009-01-06T15:27:07Z

Last night was just another Monday night in Abilene, Texas. Or maybe not.

It's not everyday when Abilene Christian's women's basketball team beats Texas Woman's University 147-143 in quadruple overtime. This game broke a NCAA record for most combined points, most points by a losing team, most combined points in overtime (112) and most points by one team in overtime (Abilene's 58). Texas Woman's Renee Renz led all scorers with 63 points in a losing effort. Yikes, this would be a tough loss to handle.

Jaguars assistant named head coach at Yale

2009-01-06T14:07:31Z

Tom Williams, a defensive assistant coach with the Jacksonville Jaguars, will be the next football coach at Yale. Williams replaces Jack Siedlecki, who retired after 12 seasons. Williams will be the first black football coach at Yale and the second in Ivy League history. He began coaching as a graduate assistant under Bill Walsh at Stanford.

Lowest ratings ever for BCS bowl game

2009-01-05T20:16:15Z

The Orange Bowl between Cincinnati and Virginia Tech drew a 6.1 overnight rating, down 23% from a 7.9 for last year's Sugar Bowl. The 6.1 overnight is the lowest ever for a BCS Bowl, falling below the previous record low of 7.6 for the 2007 Orange Bowl between Louisville and Wake Forest.

What does Utah do now?

2009-01-05T19:57:03Z

The Utes are the only team in college football that doesn't have to explain away a loss.

No. 7 Utah completed a perfect season by routing No. 4 Alabama on Friday night in the Sugar Bowl (which was practically a home game for Alabama), 31-17.

After an undefeated season and a dominating performance, don't they have a stake in the National Championship title?

Kurt Kragthorpe of The Salt Lake Tribune says "this Utah team delivered the biggest victory in school history and the most meaningful performance ever by a team outside the six power conferences in the Bowl Championship Series."

I agree with him.

I also think Utah deserved to be ranked higher than No. 7.

Why didn't they get more respect before the Sugar Bowl win? Arguing the Utes play in a non-BCS conference isn't a good enough excuse.

Utah's 13-0 season included four wins over ranked teams, capped with a blowout win over a team that dominated the SEC, and was unbeaten and ranked No. 1 before losing to Florida in the SEC Championship game.

Since 2003, Utah's record is 59-16, and they have won eight consecutive bowl games, the longest streak in the nation.

During FOX's pregame show, analyst Barry Switzer didn't give Utah a chance saying, "Utah doesn't have a player on the team that coming out of high school would have been recruited by Alabama."

Oops.

After the game, most commentators quickly jumped on Utah's bandwagon, but stopped short of saying they deserved the No. 1 ranking.

Utah's Head Coach Kyle Whittingham begs to differ.

After the game Whittingham said, "I know where I'm voting us. I'm voting us No. 1. End of story."

Agreed.

Does Utah (13-0) deserve the No. 1 spot? Or should it be awarded to the winner of the Florida (12-1) and Oklahoma (12-1) game on Thursday?

]]>

Hockey game gets impressive ratings

2009-01-05T18:40:42Z

The NHL's outdoor game on NBC on Thursday at Wrigley Field had the NHL's best overnight regular-season television rating in nearly 13 years.

Maybe the NHL should only be played outdoors?

Big Ten in bowl games

2009-01-05T17:17:41Z

The Big Ten isn't having the bowl season it was hoping for. This year, the league is 1-5 in bowl games. It's been a rough for few years for the league: 9-19 over the last four years, and losers of five consecutive Bowl Championship Series games.

Tonight, Ohio State battles Texas at 8 p.m. in the Fiesta Bowl. We'll see if the league's luck can change.

Fired for interviewing?

2009-01-05T16:33:24Z

ESPN is reporting, "Boston College Head Coach Jeff Jagodzinski has been told he will be fired if he interviews for the head coaching vacancy with the New York Jets, which is scheduled for today, according to sources." Jagodzinski has been coaching at Boston College the past two seasons, and previously worked as an NFL assistant coach.

Coach Wooden talks about life and death

2009-01-05T15:53:52Z

Legendary coach John Wooden, who won 10 national basketball championships at UCLA, sat down for an interview about his life with Steve Greenburg of the Sporting News

Bowden returns to coaching

2009-01-05T15:26:59Z

After resigning resigned in mid-season at Auburn in 1998, Terry Bowden is a head coach again. Bowden accepted the head coaching job at North Alabama. The Lions are a Division II powerhouse. They have four consecutive seasons with at least 10 wins and are coming off a national semifinal appearance.

Tressel holds Pryor out of interviews

2009-01-05T14:31:13Z

Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel left his starting quarterback and center at the hotel while the rest of the lineup attended the Fiesta Bowl pre-game press conference. The reason? Tressel told the New York Times, ""Getting through a season of what it takes to prepare for a ball game, it is tough to be the starting center, it is tough to be the starting quarterback," Tressel said. "It is tough to be in your first year of having study hall and tutors and mentors and advisers and all different things. When you can use some time elsewhere, we've just felt that's the growing process we would use."

Is this really an issue fans care about or just the media whining about not having anything to write about?

Videos, final wrap-up from our Indiana Basketball Extravaganza

2009-01-02T06:01:37Z

From December 19-22, the Double-A Zone experienced the unprecedented Indiana Basketball Extravaganza. On our journey, my colleague Ryan Powell and I saw 11 men's and women's Division I, II and III college basketball games around the state of Indiana. As promised, we have created two videos that take you through our trip, both of which can be found below.

Here is the previously-posted content from our extravaganza. You can find pictures from our travels scattered throughout these entries:

Preview, origin of idea and schedule for games

Day 1 live blog (games at Indiana State and Conseco Fieldhouse for Trine/Anderson)

Day 2 live blog (RCA Dome demolition; games at Indianapolis, Butler, Conseco Fieldhouse for Davidson/Purdue and Notre Dame)

Day 3 live blog (games at IPFW and Ball State)

Day 4 live blog (Milan, IN visit; games at Southern Indiana, DePauw and Indiana)

Final reflections from the extravaganza

Day 1 and 2 video:

Day 3 and 4 video:

]]>

Double-A Zone: 2008 Year in Review

2008-12-31T16:40:12Z

As 2008 comes to a close, the Double-A Zone takes a look back at some of our favorite stories.

What are some of your favorite stories from the Double-A Zone in 2008?

Indiana basketball extravaganza: 11 college games in four days

The Double-A Zone will carry the coverage every step of the way through a live blog and Twitter updates. We created two videos that take you through our journey around the state of Indiana. Full story

Changing the complexion of intercollegiate athletics
Few times in our lives are we able to mark an iconic and historic moment of transformation. Last night was one of those nights. But let us not forget that that Barack Obama did not stand alone as he addressed thousands of supporters in Chicago. Small acts of bravery and courage--a white basketball team playing a black basketball team in secret during the age of segregation; a black woman refusing to give up her bus seat--stood with him. These moments made President Obama possible. Full story

What Do You Love About College Sports?
My mother used to tell me that there are no calories on your birthday, so the law of syllogism seems to imply that Valentine's Day is also exempt from waistline expansion. Therefore, I have thoroughly enjoyed three Snickers bars, a handful of Hershey's Kisses and a box of Sweethearts so far this morning. The Chunky Monkey ice cream is waiting patiently in my freezer. Thanks Mom for the tip on no-calorie days. Full Story

What Drugs Should We Test For?
A story in Tuesday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution focused on the tragic death of a Georgia Tech baseball player and the revelation that his death resulted from morphine toxicity. The article examined the NCAA's and Georgia Tech's drug-testing policies and inferred that the athlete played the odds that he wouldn't get caught because he knew he wasn't likely to be tested. Full story

Do fantasy sports threaten student-athlete amateurism?
This football season marks the first time names have accompanied student-athlete statistics in fantasy games. In the past, fantasy producers, including NCAA broadcast partner CBS, were permitted to use only the statistics and numbers of student-athletes. In making the change, fantasy Web sites cited a June court decision, which held that Major League Baseball did not own player names and statistics and both could be used by companies operating fantasy leagues. Full story

Should coaches be held responsible for student-athlete academic performance?
It is normal to see coaches get fired when their teams struggle on the playing field. But have you ever heard of a coach getting terminated because of student-athletes not performing well in the classroom? Full story

24 hours with South Carolina State's football team
College football fans usually get to know their favorite student-athletes strictly based on their jersey number and on-the-field performance. This weekend, I had the unique opportunity to meet a group of student-athletes based on their individual personalities away from football. Full story

Live blogging the brackets
Reminder. We will be live blogging mock selections for the Division I Men's Basketball Championship from 1:30 p.m. until the bracket is completed in the wee hours of the morning. Sportswriters from across the country will be at the national office in Indianapolis today to go through the same process that the Men's Basketball Committee will experience next month. Stay tuned to see how the bracket unfolds and submit any questions you want answered as we go along. Full story

Should athletics departments test for nicotine?
We often hear about athletics departments and professional teams testing their athletes for performance-enhancing drugs and these tests make sense. But, have you ever heard of a school investigating its student-athletes for nicotine? Full story

Are there too many bowl games?
Maybe. This year, counting the BCS championship game on January 8, there are 34 bowl games. That means 68 of the 119 Division I teams are playing in a bowl game. Are teams being rewarded for a good season played? Maybe. Full Story

Resignation renews concerns over minorities in coaching
With Sylvester Croom resigning on Saturday, there are now only three black coaches at the 119 major college football programs -- Miami's Randy Shannon, Buffalo's Turner Gill and Houston's Kevin Sumlin. It is the lowest number of black head coaches since 1993 and marks a sad regression in the opportunities extended to minorities in high-level, high-profile athletics jobs. Croom was the first black head coach in the SEC. Full story

]]>