USC, Pete Carroll Have Never Benefited from the BSC Process
Recently, USC head coach Pete Carroll has spoken out against the BCS basically calling it unfair and unclear on how it works. Fans and broadcasters have railed against the BCS in the past, but it’s nice to see a high profile head coach speak up on the matter. Unfortunately, many in the media are dismissing his statements as sour grapes since USC seems unable to earn it’s way into the BCS title mix with 3 or 4 weeks left to go in the season. Even if they end the season with only one loss, they’re still likely to miss out because of the perceived dominance of the Big 12, and the SEC to a lesser degree. Penn St. is sitting happy with an unblemished record, and if they continue the season without defeat, they will no doubt represent the Big Ten in the title game. But if the rest of the season plays out as expected, their opponent will be one of many one loss teams in the current top 10. This, of course, is the ultimate dilemma that plagues the BCS every year. How does one decide who is most deserving to make a title game appearance?
That’s a much larger topic than I’m prepared to discuss at the moment. I’m more disturbed at the claims that USC has benefited from the BCS process in the past. This is completely false, and I think the media is forgetting some crucial points in this argument.
Fact: USC has appeared in the BCS title game twice since the BCS began. In both cases, they went undefeated to earn their way in.
Fact: LSU has also made 2 appearances in the title game. In both cases, they’ve had at least 1 loss. They had 2 losses in in 2007.
Fact: Oklahoma has also made 2 title game appearances…each with at least 1 loss in the regular season.
Fact: Florida made the 2007 title game with a single loss.
The point: The BCS isn’t a factor for BCS teams that go undefeated during the regular season. It only plays a roll when there is only one or no undefeated BCS teams to select from. Therefore, Miami, Ohio St., and USC have not benefited from the BCS in seasons where they went undefeated on their way to the title game.
Oklahoma benefited when they appeared in the 2003 title game with 2 losses ahead of a 1 loss USC team. The same goes for Florida, LSU and any other teams who were magically selected amongst a host of other single loss teams to play for the BCS title.
This may seem like a small distinction, but it’s an important one to note if the media is going to suggest that Pete Carroll or any other coach is now speaking out against a system from which it has benefited. That’s a fair claim against Les Miles, Urban Meyer or Nick Saban if they were to make such statements, but give coach Carroll a break.
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