Dan Wishengrad wrote:Danny, I think you could make your argument more effectively by using source material that doesn't come straight off of "Gator blog", a site not many people outside Gainsville would view as objective and non-partisan. If we are talking about strength of schedules (and NOT actual strengths of football teams), consider the non-conference games that the top SEC teams have scheduled for 2007:
Current consensus #1 LSU: Middle Tennessee State, Louisiana Tech, Tulane. WOW, now I am REALLY impressed! Certainly no cupcakes on THIS list.
Defending National Champ Florida: Western Kentucky, Troy, Florida Atlantic. Way to go out on a limb, Gators! But weren't there any high school teams willing to give you a 4th non-con game?
South Carolina: Louisiana-Lafayette, South Carolina State. Man, that Spurrier sure is one gutsy dude setting up so many non-con games against all these dangerous traditional football powerhouses.
Your argument belittles the Sagarin computer picking the Pac-10 schools as all playing the toughest schedules. The "echo" effect" you cite is a valid point, even I'll admit. And I'm sure almost 100% of the regular readers of "Gator blog" will agree with your overall argument. But can't you also concede that the Pac-10 schools regularly schedule non-con games against much more worthy opponents than you SEC guys, and that the Pac-10 itself is a much stronger conference TOP-TO-BOTTOM than the SEC is?
Finally, let's compare the three SEC non-conference schedules above with Washington's: at Syracuse, Boise State, Ohio State, at Hawaii. Three of the four were ranked teams in the pre-season poll, and the fourth (The Orangeman) play in a decent conference and could have reasonably expected to be a good team when the game was scheduled. Syracuse turned out to be a bad team this year, and the Huskies went into the Carrier Dome and "smoked em" (thanks for the verbage). Of course Syracuse DID go to highly-ranked Louisville and pull out a huge upset, so maybe SU isn't so terrible after all. Washington is in 9th place in the Pac-10, winless in conference games. The Hawaii game was actually added only last year to give the Huskies an extra game, and the Warriors were expected to be a solid team in '07.
I believe that you must measure a conference by comparing the weakest teams in it, and not just the strongest teams at the top. SEC vs Pac-10? No argument which is the stronger conference... well except maybe from the readers of "Gator Blog", that is.
did you read the article? I admittedly posted something from a gator blog that would perhaps offset Sagarin's stiffy for the pac 10. I thought it was a pretty well presented analasis of his ratings.
I swear we had this exact arguement in like december of last year about you pumping up the sagarin ratings and how the sec doesn't schedule well out of conference.
and just like last year you added those witty comments you are famous for but leave off the marquee ooc opponents from every example you cite to support your arguement:
virginia tech @ LSU
Florida State @ Florida
USC @ North Carolina
Clemson @ USC
I applaud the PAC 10 for their aggressive out of conference scheduling. (a lot of them need it to prop up their weak conference schedules)
I'm also fine with how the sec schedules (UF re-news it's rivalry with miami next year FYI). Between divisional play and a conference championship game, it is guaranteed that the two best teams will play each other. There is no lucking-out and not running into USC in the SEC if you are a contender.
Please just state for the class that you actually belive the pac 10 had the 10 toughest schedule in the country last year...
is a lie...because they did. I love trick plays and last second heroics as much as the next guy. But you can't claim Doug Flutie's hail mary in the 80's was as much skill...as it was luck that fails more than it works.
