November 3, 2009

Just For The Fun Of It...

by RYAN O'LEARY
Assistant Editor

We’ve heard it, and it’s almost assuredly true. If Notre Dame wins the remainder of its regular-season games, it will most likely manage to climb the eight spots needed to reach the top 14 of the BCS standings, the magic mark for eligibility in one of the major bowl games (Fiesta, Orange, Rose or Sugar).

Winning at Pittsburgh (currently No. 13) in two weeks, plus beating three other teams (Navy, UConn and Stanford) that have a decent amount of computer respect, should do the trick – but just in case, here’s a handy guide to help Irish fans determine who to root for elsewhere in the final weeks.

By the way...if a game isn’t mentioned, the general rule is this – root against any ranked team, with the exception of Notre Dame opponents (USC, Pittsburgh, Stanford, et cetera).

November 7
UConn at No. 5 Cincinnati: Probably not a major deal either way, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt to make that game with the Huskies in three weeks look more appetizing. If Cincinnati doesn’t win the Big East, it would probably get passed up in favor of Notre Dame for a BCS bid, but a second loss (besides Pitt on December 5) would assure it. Plus, it’s hard to root against UConn after everything that team has been through.
Pull For: Connecticut
Importance (1-10): 2

The Irish would benefit from playing a ranked Stanford team in the regular season finale.

No. 8 Oregon at Stanford: It’s really pointless to root against Oregon at this point, since they’ve got the inside track to the Pac-10’s Rose Bowl slot either way – but again, it’s all about opponent street cred, and having the Cardinal ranked in the top 25 when that regular-season finale rolls around might be nice.
Pull For: Stanford
Import ance (1-10): 2

No. 24 Oklahoma at Nebraska: We all know the Sooners don’t deserve a BCS bid, and there’s almost no way they can climb back in – but given how much the pollsters seem to adore them, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Pull For: Nebraska
Importance (1-10): 3

No. 15 Houston at Tulsa: Yes, we all know that the Cougars are fraudulent, but their schedule doesn’t offer many more chances for them to get exposed. This might be one of the best. The only reason this one isn’t a bigger deal is because Houston is likely out of luck anyway – a max of two teams from non-BCS conferences can qualify in one year.
Pull For: Tulsa
Importance (1-10): 5

No. 9 LSU at No. 3 Alabama: The SEC can’t get a third team into the BCS mix, so there’s no point in caring about this game – except that LSU’s mere presence in the top 14 takes up a spot that might hurt the Irish later. Always play it safe.
Pull For: Alabama
Importance (1-10): 4

No. 11 Penn State at No. 16 Ohio State: Pick your poison – if you’re anything like me, you despise both of these teams. With Iowa a near lock to take the Big Ten’s Rose Bowl spot and face Oregon, it’s critical that both PSU and OSU lose again to get bumped from BCS consideration as a potential second team from their league. It really comes down to this – Ohio State already has two losses, and with Iowa and Michigan following on the schedule, there are more chances for the Buckeyes to drop one later.
Pull For: Ohio State (yes, I know it hurts)
Importance (1-10): 9

November 13 (Friday)
West Virginia at No. 5 Cincinnati: With two losses and a weak schedule, the Mountaineers aren’t a threat to catch Notre Dame from behind, and again, it’d be helpful if Cincinnati lost twice, just in case.
Pull For: WVU
Importance (1-10): 3

November 14
No. 4 Iowa at No. 16 Ohio State: The Hawkeyes are harmless at this point, at least as far as Notre Dame is concerned – and they can push the Buckeyes completely out of the discussion.
Pull For: Iowa
Importance (1-10): 6

Idaho at No. 7 Boise State: The Broncos aren’t playing for the national title regardless – and if they lose a game, they could easily be bumped from one of the at-large BCS spots, thereby making life much easier for the Irish. This isn’t a likely upset, but it’s at least possible enough to keep an eye out.
Pull For: Idaho
Importance (1-10): 3

Stanford at No. 12 USC: This may be the one exception to the “root for USC to win” rule – the Irish won’t really be helped as much by losing to a top-10 USC team as they would be by beating a top-20 Stanford team. When in doubt, cheer for the team that can still be of use to you. Plus, a third loss for the Trojans would essentially eliminate them from BCS discussion and make it much harder for the Pac-10 to snatch an at-large bid.
Pull For: Stanford
Importance (1-10): 6

No. 14 Utah at No. 6 TCU: Conventional wisdom dictates that you’d root for Utah, since TCU likely won’t drop below Notre Dame in the rankings either way. But only one of these teams can be BCS-eligible anyway, and neither is a lock unless they’re unbeaten. The Utes already have a loss. As far as the BCS standings go, they’re just a placeholder.
Pull For: Utah
Importance (1-10): 2

No. 15 Houston at Central Florida: Maybe the last good chance for the Cougars to fall on their face. Maybe George O’Leary will do something good for Notre Dame after all.
Pull For: UCF
Importance (1-10): 3

Michigan at No. 21 Wisconsin: The Badgers are probably a non-factor either way, since the Irish will almost certainly pass them up by beating Pitt. But it doesn’t hurt to pile on, especially if it makes that Notre Dame loss in Ann Arbor look a little better.
Pull For: Michigan
Importance (1-10): 5

No. 17 Miami at North Carolina: With Virginia Tech out of the way, Miami can still sneak in as the ACC’s second BCS team behind Georgia Tech. A third loss would completely wreck that possibility.
Pull For: UNC
Importance (1-10): 5

No. 18 Arizona at No. 20 California: The Wildcats still have to play Oregon and USC, so their BCS goose is essentially cooked. Cal has fewer roadblocks, and will likely be looking ahead to its game at Stanford a week later.
Pull For: Arizona
Importance (1-10): 5

Texas Tech at No. 19 Oklahoma State: One of the last good chances to eliminate the overrated Cowboys...because let’s be honest: if Oklahoma does it later on, then the three-loss Sooners would probably move past Notre Dame back into the top 5. It’s better to have someone else do the dirty work.
Pull For: Texas Tech
Importance (1-10): 3

November 21
No. 8 Oregon at No. 18 Arizona: Time to undo any love the Wildcats would get from beating Cal the previous week.
Pull For: Oregon
Importance (1-10): 3

No. 9 LSU at Mississippi: The Rebels aren’t catching the Irish from behind, so they might as well do some good and take this battle of overrated SEC teams so that LSU is completely out of the picture.
Pull For: Ole Miss
Importance (1-10): 3

No. 11 Penn State at Michigan State: Just in case the Nittany Lions aren’t out of the mix yet, here’s a chance at a daily double for Notre Dame – knock Penn State out of the BCS conversation, and give a boost to Sparty’s profile in the process.
Pull For: Michigan State
Importance (1-10): 7

No. 16 Ohio State at Michigan: See above. If the Buckeyes haven’t dropped that third game by this point, it’s imperative that the Wolverines take care of them.
Pull For: Michigan
Importance (1-10): 7

No. 20 California at Stanford: You’re getting the idea, right? It’s a very, very big week for Notre Dame opponents.
Pull For: Stanford
Importance (1-10): 8

No. 24 Oklahoma at Texas Tech: The Sooners are like the BCS cockroach – they can’t be killed off. It’ll take a fourth loss to ensure their doom, and it’d be better to have it here.

November 27 (Friday)
Nevada at No. 7 Boise State: Wouldn’t it be fun to see the Broncos’ perfect season derailed at the very end by a team that Notre Dame beat, 35-0? I sure think so.
Pull For: Nevada
Importance (1-10): 5

No. 13 Pittsburgh at West Virginia: When in doubt, always pull for the Irish opponent. Notre Dame isn’t going to fall behind a team that it beat.
Pull For: Pittsburgh
Importance (1-10): 3

November 28
No. 17 Miami at No. 25 South Florida: The Bulls can’t really get in the way of a top-14 spot for Notre Dame. The Hurricanes can – and this might be the best chance to stop them.
Pull For: South Florida
Importance (1-10): 8

No. 19 Oklahoma State at No. 24 Oklahoma: The hope is that both of these fraudulent teams will have lost again before this...but if not, it’s probably more important to get the Cowboys a third loss than to pin a fourth on the Sooners.
Pull For: Oklahoma
Importance (1-10): 2

Arkansas at No. 9 LSU: Just to make sure the Tigers get buried, since SEC teams always seem to get an extra life. Besides, Ryan Mallett seemed like a cool kid to me, even before he left Michigan hanging last year.
Pull For: Arkansas
Importance (1-10): 3

No. 14 Utah at BYU: I knew there was a reason I wanted the Utes to knock off TCU earlier – because they’ll have a shot to pick up a second loss in Provo.
Pull For: BYU
Importance (1-10): 3

December 5
No. 5 Cincinnati at No. 13 Pittsburgh: This will likely be the de facto Big East Championship, and the loser probably isn’t getting in to the BCS mix. Wouldn’t you rather see an Irish opponent take that spot? (Besides, I’m really, really sick of hearing about Brian Kelly.)
Pull For: Pitt
Importance (1-10): 6

There’s a good chance none of the above games will really matter – if the Irish win out, they’ll make the top 14. If they don’t, then a BCS game isn’t part of the conversation anyway.

But it’s always more fun when you have other teams to cheer against along the way – and as luck would have it, that’s the only useful purpose that the BCS system actually serves.

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