OT: D1

[Chuck Norris]

This is ugly. FSU better put up about 40 in second half if they want in the CFP.

As is, they'd get lit up.

In the end I think they’re going to make it. Undefeated Power 5 conference champion. And at least their backup QB should be back in time for the playoff. Last spot comes down to Texas, Bama or Georgia.

[IUPbigINDIANS]

If the ACC game continues along like this, I’m not sure how anyone could argue that Florida State is one of the four best teams if they win. It really sucks Jordan Travis got hurt, but I don’t want to watch this team in the playoff.

This is ugly. FSU better put up about 40 in second half if they want in the CFP.

As is, they'd get lit up.

[Chuck Norris]

All I know is that all but guarantees that Ohio State is out, which at this point is all I’m rooting for. There’s no way Michigan loses to Iowa. If Florida State loses, I think the final bid will go to Texas, and even Georgia still has an argument. Chaos!

If the ACC game continues along like this, I’m not sure how anyone could argue that Florida State is one of the four best teams if they win. It really sucks Jordan Travis got hurt, but I don’t want to watch this team in the playoff.

[Chuck Norris]

Lou-A-Vol defense playing incredible. Their offense is horrendous.

They lost to Pitt. How on earth did they only lose one other game?

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Noles 3
Louisville 0

Half

[IUPbigINDIANS]

Lou-A-Vol defense playing incredible. Their offense is horrendous.

[EyeoftheHawk]

The most interesting thing that could’ve happened has happened. Do Bama and Georgia both get in? Could they both get left out? What if Florida State finds a way to beat Louisville? Texas looks awfully good.

And I’m ready to watch my new favorite team, the Iowa Hawkeyes, pull off a 6-3 shocker over Michigan.

All I know is that all but guarantees that Ohio State is out, which at this point is all I’m rooting for. There’s no way Michigan loses to Iowa. If Florida State loses, I think the final bid will go to Texas, and even Georgia still has an argument. Chaos!

[IUPbigINDIANS]

The most interesting thing that could’ve happened has happened. Do Bama and Georgia both get in? Could they both get left out? What if Florida State finds a way to beat Louisville? Texas looks awfully good.

And I’m ready to watch my new favorite team, the Iowa Hawkeyes, pull off a 6-3 shocker over Michigan.

Over/Under is 8.5 lol

[Chuck Norris]

The most interesting thing that could’ve happened has happened. Do Bama and Georgia both get in? Could they both get left out? What if Florida State finds a way to beat Louisville? Texas looks awfully good.

And I’m ready to watch my new favorite team, the Iowa Hawkeyes, pull off a 6-3 shocker over Michigan.

[IUPNation]

The Oakland Academy should be in the BIG. Hillbilly High should be in the SEC.

[TheBigCat2192]

Speaking of realignment in that sense... There was a documentary about this a few years ago, discussing all major realignment items that started after Virginia Tech and Miami left the Big East for the ACC. It was fascinating. There was a ton of chaos in the 2007 football season that ended with Pitt upsetting #2 ranked West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl. Had West Virginia won, there are many theories that suggest that the Big East would have survived and lasted (at least for a while) in the landscape of that version of college football. Miami and VT were a big blow to their brand, but many forget that some of those little programs in the Big East had played some good football in stretches.

Rutgers had a pretty magical run when Greg Schiano was coaching there during that era. Louisville, at the time, was one of the best teams in the country. The success of Cincinnati is pretty well documented. Pitt was ranked in the Top 10 for much of 2009. South Florida was THE story for a while too and had multiple seasons where they were highly ranked. There was all that and I didn't even mention how good West Virginia was under Rich Rod at that time. People remember the Big East as a laughingstock. They had stretches where multiple teams were actually pretty darn good.

The documentary captured that despite some real and legitimate success, as well as some highly ranked programs, it felt like the conference's best (and only) chance to win a BCS Championship was with WVU in 2007. When they were knocked out of that game, it set off a firestorm that occurred a few years later. Many believe that had WVU beaten Pitt, and then won the national championship, the conference would have survived. And if the conference hadn't, it would've been WVU going to the ACC with somebody else, not Pitt and Syracuse. It's interesting to look at how certain dominoes impacted things down the road.

There were other examples they used with other conferences as well which were interesting, but the theme was that the Big East collapsing (because WVU didn't win a national championship in 2007) was the major event that triggered realignment.

They actually talked about how the money which could've been given out to member schools, and to the conference, had WVU won, could have changed things greatly. They actually could have been in a position to add teams and potentially been one of the leagues that lasted.

If Pittsburgh upset #2 West Virginia today it would probably only change their CFP seed instead of knocking them out entirely. One of my biggest gripes with the CFP is that it’s really cheapened upsets and rivalry games. Unrelated to the conference alignment but this is the first good chance I’ve had to use that game as an example.

[IUP24]

Subjectively I look at the Big Ten adding Rutgers as the straw that broke the camel’s back for modern realignment. Most of the other P5 moves in my lifetime were additions that the conference and schools could sell to their members/fans as adding someone who strengthened them right away (like PSU to the Big Ten, the ACC poaching Miami and VT from the Big East, and Utah+TCU moving up), someone who fit them culturally (Mizzou and A&M to the SEC), or a bounceback candidate who could conceivably do both (Nebraska to the Big Ten). I can even see an elevator pitch for the Big Ten buying on Maryland athletics (they’d had success before and had some hope to get out of their money issues through their Under Armor relationship) even though they don’t fit geographically. Rutgers completely ruined that idea. Their athletic program is garbage and on pure merit they probably belong in the MAC or maybe C-USA. But they’re “in” a big media market and a recruiting hotbed so they got to jump up to the big boy leagues and ride the TV deal gravy train anyways.

Speaking of realignment in that sense... There was a documentary about this a few years ago, discussing all major realignment items that started after Virginia Tech and Miami left the Big East for the ACC. It was fascinating. There was a ton of chaos in the 2007 football season that ended with Pitt upsetting #2 ranked West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl. Had West Virginia won, there are many theories that suggest that the Big East would have survived and lasted (at least for a while) in the landscape of that version of college football. Miami and VT were a big blow to their brand, but many forget that some of those little programs in the Big East had played some good football in stretches.

Rutgers had a pretty magical run when Greg Schiano was coaching there during that era. Louisville, at the time, was one of the best teams in the country. The success of Cincinnati is pretty well documented. Pitt was ranked in the Top 10 for much of 2009. South Florida was THE story for a while too and had multiple seasons where they were highly ranked. There was all that and I didn't even mention how good West Virginia was under Rich Rod at that time. People remember the Big East as a laughingstock. They had stretches where multiple teams were actually pretty darn good.

The documentary captured that despite some real and legitimate success, as well as some highly ranked programs, it felt like the conference's best (and only) chance to win a BCS Championship was with WVU in 2007. When they were knocked out of that game, it set off a firestorm that occurred a few years later. Many believe that had WVU beaten Pitt, and then won the national championship, the conference would have survived. And if the conference hadn't, it would've been WVU going to the ACC with somebody else, not Pitt and Syracuse. It's interesting to look at how certain dominoes impacted things down the road.

There were other examples they used with other conferences as well which were interesting, but the theme was that the Big East collapsing (because WVU didn't win a national championship in 2007) was the major event that triggered realignment.

They actually talked about how the money which could've been given out to member schools, and to the conference, had WVU won, could have changed things greatly. They actually could have been in a position to add teams and potentially been one of the leagues that lasted.

[Ship69]

Maryland and Rutgers (in theory) were also targeted to expand the brand in to two major markets (NYC and DC). Now, whether that has worked or not is debatable.

You're right. The Yankees aren't the Yankees without the Royals.

Maryland is, to me, the great mystery of P5 football. They are literally in the epicenter of D1 recruiting nirvana. They just have done a horrible job keeping all the studs home. Aside from Florida and Texas, that may be the most fertile recruiting ground in the country (DMV).

Maryland in football reminds me of Illinois in basketball. Illinois usually has a ton of players in the NBA and some great high school talent, but they can't keep any of them at home. I've lost count of the number of Illinois players I've seen starring at other colleges outside the state. The classic was when Illinois lost Jon Scheyer to Duke even though Scheyer's high school coach, Dave Weber, was the brother of Illini coach Bruce Weber at the time. Scheyer, of course, recently replaced Coach K at the helm of the Blue Devils.

As for Maryland football, how do you play Michigan as tough as anybody in the league, give Ohio State fits for three quarters, and sandwich those two games around losses to Illinois and Northwestern? Terp football is, indeed, a mystery.

[Ship69]

Subjectively I look at the Big Ten adding Rutgers as the straw that broke the camel’s back for modern realignment. Most of the other P5 moves in my lifetime were additions that the conference and schools could sell to their members/fans as adding someone who strengthened them right away (like PSU to the Big Ten, the ACC poaching Miami and VT from the Big East, and Utah+TCU moving up), someone who fit them culturally (Mizzou and A&M to the SEC), or a bounceback candidate who could conceivably do both (Nebraska to the Big Ten). I can even see an elevator pitch for the Big Ten buying on Maryland athletics (they’d had success before and had some hope to get out of their money issues through their Under Armor relationship) even though they don’t fit geographically. Rutgers completely ruined that idea. Their athletic program is garbage and on pure merit they probably belong in the MAC or maybe C-USA. But they’re “in” a big media market and a recruiting hotbed so they got to jump up to the big boy leagues and ride the TV deal gravy train anyways.

Maryland outside of football has been very competitive in the league with several championships. Rutgers was strictly a move to get eyes in that market, although whether that has happened is certainly debatable. I think you can certainly argue that Boston College and Syracuse in their present iterations aren't bringing a lot more to the table for the ACC than Rutgers is bring to the B1G. The Rutgers men's basketball team actually has been pretty good the past couple of years, and they supposedly have a top recruiting class coming in. Their football program is still nothing to boast about, but at least they're showing signs of a pulse under Schiano.

[TheBigCat2192]

Maryland and Rutgers (in theory) were also targeted to expand the brand in to two major markets (NYC and DC). Now, whether that has worked or not is debatable.

You're right. The Yankees aren't the Yankees without the Royals.

Maryland is, to me, the great mystery of P5 football. They are literally in the epicenter of D1 recruiting nirvana. They just have done a horrible job keeping all the studs home. Aside from Florida and Texas, that may be the most fertile recruiting ground in the country (DMV).

Subjectively I look at the Big Ten adding Rutgers as the straw that broke the camel’s back for modern realignment. Most of the other P5 moves in my lifetime were additions that the conference and schools could sell to their members/fans as adding someone who strengthened them right away (like PSU to the Big Ten, the ACC poaching Miami and VT from the Big East, and Utah+TCU moving up), someone who fit them culturally (Mizzou and A&M to the SEC), or a bounceback candidate who could conceivably do both (Nebraska to the Big Ten). I can even see an elevator pitch for the Big Ten buying on Maryland athletics (they’d had success before and had some hope to get out of their money issues through their Under Armor relationship) even though they don’t fit geographically. Rutgers completely ruined that idea. Their athletic program is garbage and on pure merit they probably belong in the MAC or maybe C-USA. But they’re “in” a big media market and a recruiting hotbed so they got to jump up to the big boy leagues and ride the TV deal gravy train anyways.