Fix the Fan Line

I’m fully aware that I haven’t been posting near as frequently as I was a month ago.  With Penn State continuing to win and now with the most-recent BCS polls having been released, it seems that all the Fan Line can talk about is the rankings and why they’re right or why they’re wrong.

They’re Right!

“All Penn State had to do was schedule a decent opponent that wasn’t Coastal Carolina or Temple. They would be No. 1 if that would have happened.” - November 4, 2008

We’ve killed the strength of schedule point on here.  Everybody plays their “cupcake” (where has that term gone?).  Oregon State is in the hunt to win the Pac 10.  Ohio State was BCS #9 when Penn State played the Buckeyes.  Michigan State could quite possibly be Top 15 in the BCS by the time Penn State plays that Spartans.

“How could Penn State be No. 3? Oklahoma could put their second-string team in and beat them handily.” - November 4, 2008

Maybe they should have played those second-stringers against Texas?

They’re Wrong!

“These BCS rankings are a joke. The Big 12 cannot play defense, and USC always seems to lose their focus and are never a major player. Penn State should be ranked No. 2 in these rankings ahead of an offensively minded Texas Tech squad.” - November 4, 2008

It really doesn’t matter right now.  If Texas Tech didn’t jump Penn State, but then proceeded to beat Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, and win the Big 12 Championship game… they would have jumped Penn State eventually.  Why not now?

“How can you possibly jump five spots in the rankings ahead of a team that is undefeated, just because that team was off?” - November 4, 2008

See above.

“I cannot believe that Texas Tech jumped from 7 to 2 after barely beating Texas at home. Penn State should be No. 2. The BCS just made a big mistake.” - November 4, 2008

See above.

“Congratulations to Texas Tech for beating Texas in an instant classic. That, however, does not justify their jumping of five spots ahead of Penn State.” - November 4, 2008

See above.

“Alabama has only one win against a ranked team this year, the same as Penn State. The only reason they are ranked ahead of them is because of an opening win against a highly overrated Clemson team. These rankings are garbage that make no sense.” - November 4, 2008

Good job.  Somebody read their Black Shoe Diaries.

“I am done with college football until a playoff system arrives.” - November 4, 2008

Don’t hold your breath.

“A 2-year-old could make a better system for determining a national champion.” - November 4, 2008

OK.  Then what’s your system?

They Don’t Matter!

“As a Penn State fan, I would like to thank the BCS for keeping us ranked No. 3. This guarantees that we will not be playing in a trap game, rather, the team will be playing their hearts out on every play for the rest of the season.” - November 4, 2008

“Guarantees” scares me, but in general, I agree.

On this note, I received this statement in an e-mail from the Penn State Alumni Association yesterday: “Official Penn State Bowl Tour” Planned - With the Nittany Lions’ hard fought victory over the Buckeyes, Penn State fans know JoePa’s 2008 team is going to a BCS bowl-and hoping that it will be the BCS Championship Game. But whether it’s Miami on Jan. 8, Pasadena on Jan. 1, or somewhere else, the Penn State Alumni Association is already planning the “Official Penn State Bowl Tour.”

Do we really know that? Hmmm.

“Penn State fans need to realize that the rankings right now do not mean much. It is where you are in another month. That is when it matters.” - November 4, 2008

Thank you.

You’re Wrong!

“Penn State fans, you should be lucky that the BCS doesn’t factor in strength of schedule anymore. Penn State would be ranked No. 5 if that were the case.” - November 4, 2008

Strength of schedule is in there, my friend.  It’s built into the computer rankings, and that’s why Penn State is ranked No. 4 (computers) instead of No. 2 (humans).

I can’t wait for tomorrow!  Bring on another day of endless and meaningless BCS banter, strength of schedule arguments, hypothetical bowl game matchups and outcomes, and additional nonsense.  It’s going to be great.

“This is a question for the Fan Line. Why would Penn State, who is 5-0, be ranked No. 6 in the country and Connecticut, who is also 5-0, barely in the top 25? I think I know the answer, but give it to me anyway.” - October 1, 2008

Oooh, you think you know the answer.  You’re a confident little bugger aren’t you?  It reminds me of playing along with Jeopardy at home.  I think I know the answer, but I’m going to let the television genius tell me anyway.  Better him making a fool of himself than me, right?

College football polls are a very difficult thing for many people to understand.  In short, a college football poll is a subjective ranking of football teams compiled from the opinions of a collection of individuals who are charged with the responsibility of estimating which teams are the best.

So, it is the perception of a group of pollsters that Penn State has a better football team than Connecticut.  That’s why the Nittany Lions are shown at #6, and the Huskies are shown towards the end of the Top 25.

Where would they get this crazy notion?  Let’s take a look.

You’re correct.  Both teams are currently 5-0.

The key difference is that many pollsters are still skeptical with UCONN.  Admittedly, neither PSU nor UCONN played anything that resembled a strong non-conference schedule.  Still, UCONN didn’t survive their non-conference schedule with nearly the same ease as the Nittany Lions.  A 12-9 win over Temple isn’t going to turn many heads.  A 31-28 win over Baylor won’t do much more.

Time will tell, and Connecticut will get their chance to earn some respect.  It starts this weekend when they will travel to North Carolina to face a team that beat the Hurricanes in Miami a week ago.  Later in the season, they’ll travel to South Florida to face a team that could be ranked in the Top 10.

There’s far too much football left to be played to get overly concerned with who’s who in the polls.

How’s that for an answer?  I’m sure that’s pretty close to what you were thinking.

“The only reason Joe Paterno promoted the Temple game was because he wanted someone to go. If everyone knew it was going to be a 40-point blowout, no one would want to go.” - September 22, 2008

I can’t believe Joe deceived me.  I wish I would have known that Penn State would beat Temple by 40.  I never would have been there.

Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter who Penn State plays or how good or bad JoePa says the opponent will be.  At least 100,000 will congregate in Beaver Stadium.