In case you missed it in print, this was my preseason “Pig Skinny” column:
I’ll Place Money That One of These 10 Teams Will Win the BCS Championship
(You Get Everybody Else and Texas)
Sorry, Longhorns. The schedule is too tough, and the quarterback situation is going to be worse than you think, especially in the first half of the season. That being said, that’s exactly how this list was compiled: talent level balanced against the favorability of the slate. The race for the glass football is wide open this year, and I predict that nobody finishes the regular season undefeated (click below for Top 10 and first-month analysis)…
1. Ohio State
2. Oklahoma
3. Auburn
4. USC
5. West Virginia
6. Notre Dame
7. Iowa
8. Miami (Fla.)
9. LSU
10. Cal
BCS Bowl Predictions
BCS Championship (Fiesta 2): Ohio State vs. Oklahoma
Sugar: Auburn vs. Notre Dame
Orange: West Virginia vs. Miami (FL)
Rose: USC vs. Iowa
Fiesta: LSU vs. Cal
BONUS PICK
Holiday: Texas vs. Arizona
Well, now that it’s been a month, only one of my 10, Miami (Fla.), is certainly out of it. Some of you might wonder about Florida, who have looked great early, but I still say their schedule is entirely too tough to overcome. Undoubtedly, the UT fans among you are scoffing at my picking Oklahoma to play Ohio State, but even though OU got jobbed at Oregon, you can’t count them out just yet. If they run the table and have only the one bullshit loss, I’m saying they are in, with a possible Heisman Trophy winner and some sympathy points. The real problem with the Sooners so far has been the defense, but they may be gelling at just the right time. We’ll find out for sure in two weeks in Dallas against UT. The only other thing I’m willing to hedge on at this point is that Arizona probably isn’t going to the Holiday Bowl. Let’s go ahead and change that pick to Oregon, but UT looks like they are still headed in that direction. At best to the Cotton Bowl. Granted, Texas looked good on paper and on the scoreboard in their 37-14 win over Iowa State on Saturday, however, if you take a closer look, it wasn’t that impressive. From the start, the Cyclones blew, handing the Horns fantastic field position on their first two possessions thanks to a terrible punt and an even more terrible punt snap which resulted in a safety. Ergo, Texas was up 16-0 very early. Minus the shotgun start, Texas managed a paltry 21 points the rest of the game, while looking suspect in the secondary and not showing much in the way of downfield passing on offense. Plus, possibly losing senior DE Brian Robison is a big deal, especially with Oklahoma and Adrian Peterson coming up in two weeks. I’m sticking to my guns on this one and saying Texas will lose at least three in the regular season, one of which will be to Oklahoma. An interesting note: This is the first time in Bob Stoops’ seven seasons at OU that they have a bye going into the Texas game. Including Big 12 Championship games, the Sooners are 11-1 after a regular season bye week under the Bob.
This article appears in September 22 • 2006.