Before I begin, let me say, this blog was written by Ted Miller of ESPN.com. He is the site's Pac-10 blogger and is very well respected. I reccomend you check out some of his work:
I know the blog is fairly long, but it is a great read, and very knowledgable.
Anyway's, here is the blog:
Stanford is better than your team because it's got a better quarterback than your team. Stanford is better than your team because your team hasn't shut out three BCS conference opponents this year. Stanford is better than your team because its offensive line would make your defensive front cry uncle. Stanford is better than your team because it's ranked eighth in the nation in scoring offense and 11th in scoring defense, and no other BCS conference team can match that.
And, finally, Stanford is better than your team because its coach can kick your coach's butt.
Stanford is 11-1 playing against the nation's eighth toughest schedule in the nation's toughest conference, according to the highly respected Sagarin Ratings. Its only loss came at Oregon, which is No. 1 in all the major polls and No. 2 in the BCS standings.
Ewwww. Yuck. Heads just exploded everywhere outside the West Coast.
Are we being intentionally provocative and just a bit disingenuous? Yes. Why? Because those who follow Pac-10 football get to be provocative and disingenuous at this time every year because you get so much lunkheaded and disingenuous analysis that questions the quality of the nation's toughest conference.
No, we are not saying the Pac-10 is the nation's "best" conference. It's the toughest because it plays by different rules, and Stanford's stunning success playing by those rules sets it apart.
- The Pac-10 plays nine conference games, which no other conference does. That means five more defeats are guaranteed to be scattered throughout the conference every season, thereby making it a mathematical fact that it's more difficult to become bowl eligible in the Pac-10 than any other conference.
- The Pac-10 plays the most challenging nonconference schedule among the BCS conferences. Not only has it played six top-17 teams in the current BCS standings, it played five of them all on the road. And that list doesn't include Iowa, Texas, Notre Dame, Tennessee and BYU.
That combination of nine conference games and tough nonconference scheduling also leads to this: No Pac-10 team played fewer than five road games this year. Seven played six -- including Oregon and Stanford -- and USC played seven.
Contrast that with other top-10 BCS programs: Auburn (four road games), Wisconsin (five), Ohio State (four), Arkansas (four), Michigan State (four), Oklahoma (five) and LSU (four).
If you don't believe playing two fewer road games a season is a huge advantage, you know nothing about college football.
This is a long setup to this: Stanford critics point out it has only beaten three teams with a winning record. That sounds like a meaningful critique. But again reference the bullet points above.
Then consider this: There are 19 other bowl-eligible BCS conference teams that are 6-6 or 7-5. How many would not be bowl eligible if they played an extra conference game, another road game (or two), one fewer nonconference patsy and one more tough nonconference game?
Arizona State likely will finish tied for seventh in the Pac-10 if it loses Thursday at Arizona. Yet the Sun Devils were good enough to push Wisconsin to the brink before losing 20-19 on the road.
UCLA will finish ninth in the conference if it loses to USC on Saturday. Yet the Bruins were good enough to beat Texas and Houston. Sure, those teams fell well short of preseason expectations, but which team finishing second to last in a BCS conference has a better nonconference resume?
In other words, 5-7 in the Pac-10 is much different than it is in the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and ACC. That's what the non-biased Sagarin Ratings take note of when it rates the Pac-10 ahead of other conferences.
And that's what Stanford emerged from -- with a 22.5-point average margin of victory.
Of course, proving the quality of Stanford is only part of the issue. Most who aren't blinded by fandom recognized early on that the Cardinal were an elite team. But it's also fair to say that the Cardinal is not an elite team in terms of attendance, which is why Stanford might not have received a BCS bowl berth if it hadn't climbed to No. 4 in the BCS standings, which earned it a guaranteed spot.
It's worth noting that Stanford fans turned out last year for the Sun Bowl, which set a stadium and game record with 53,713 fans in attendance.
But the Cardinal this year also has two of the biggest drawing cards in the country, for ticket sales and TV ratings: quarterback Andrew Luck and coach Jim Harbaugh. Those two will attract not only college football fans, but also NFL fans who are curious about the top-rated college quarterback and a coach who is on a lot of wish lists -- college and pro.
The honest truth is that we do not know if Stanford is better than your team. We just typed that to make you mad. Sorry.
What we do know is Stanford belongs. It has earned a berth in a BCS bowl game because it is an elite team.
And what we suspect is the Cardinal will have proven that when the bowl season ends.
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Comments (51) Add A Comment
What if my team is Oregon or Auburn?
Outlaw...
Ball Ground, GA
Total Comments (39929)
If it's Oregon, no comment.
If it's Auburn, the article still applies.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
Auburn will murder Oregon.
Can't really argue for my real team even though beating Tech made up for the 6 losses as far as I'm concerned.
Split the rivalry series.
Beat Tennessee and Tech, should have beat Florida, and was blown out by Auburn.
Outlaw...
Ball Ground, GA
Total Comments (39929)
Oregon > Auburn.
Nice blog.
Assassin: Simile…
Total Comments (32925)
I can't say Stanford is better than Oregon, seeing as to how Oregon beat Stanford.
But I can say they are better than Auburn.
Don't challenge me to a TD on it though. I hate doing TD's based entirelyoff speculation.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
"And, finally, Stanford is better than your team because its coach can kick your coach's butt."
-- What happens when Harbaugh goes to Michigan!?
DetroitFan*: It Is?!
Total Comments (31072)
Stanford's gonna have to find one bad **** coach.
But that's not happening, so, no worries.
But in all seriousness, yea, I could see him dumping us for Michigan.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
This coming off-season is going to be a hectic one if Rich Rodriguez is left for dead. Because everyone knows who Michigan would be going after...
DetroitFan*: It Is?!
Total Comments (31072)
Your out of your mind.
wildbill21475
Total Comments (831)
How so?
Auburn beat an overrated LSU team. They squeezed by Bama, in an extremely lucky fashion, they did beat Arkansas by double figures, although I would contend that Arkansas would beat them if the two played today.
Fact is, Auburn's schedule looks much more impressive on paper than it really was. They're multiple wins vs "top 25" teams, was more a result of playing in a conference in which teams like Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia in an off year were able to make bowls. Put those 3 teams in the Pac-10, and I doubt any of them make a bowl, simply because of the extra conference game system.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
Woah woah woah. MSU's game against FAU was TECHNICALLY a road game. It was at least an hour away from home. They even wore away jerseys!
And did Stanford play the powerhouses of Northern Colorado or Western Michigan? I don't think so.
MSU > Stanford.
Veovis
In A Snowbank, MI
Total Comments (787)
That's usually why I watch college football - draftable players.
(Un)
Inferiority Complex Group, FN
Total Comments (16642)
lol
(Un)
Inferiority Complex Group, FN
Total Comments (16642)
What if my team posesses the ability to beat a team with 8 or more wins?
giftedkid527
Jacksonville , FL
Total Comments (322)
Stanford is clicking right now!
I would love to see Stanford vs Arkansas....2 1st round draft picks fighting for respect!
Stanford barely beat USC...they should be 10-2
Jeff Hostetler
Gainesville, FL
Total Comments (413)
That's as ridiculous as me saying Auburn should be 9-3 because they barely beat Clemson, Alabama, and LSU.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
Ryan Mallet > Luck
Total Package
El Paso, TX
Total Comments (387)
Good one. I laughed so hard I fell out of my chair.
OM: 2010 Champs
San Jose, CA
Total Comments (5583)
I'd love to see Mallet break both his legs. What a pile of d0uche that turd is. Hopefully he'll be the next Ryan Leaf.
Veovis
In A Snowbank, MI
Total Comments (787)
"what if" Spartacus had a Piper Cub. That's about as relevant as "my (your) team."
smart alec
Total Comments (1064)
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