November 27, 2009

Olin Buchanan
Rivals.com College Football Senior Writer

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USC was overrated, and there is no doubt about that.

The Trojans were fourth or higher in almost all the preseason polls. Three losses on their record prove they were ranked too high.

Coach Pete Carroll's teams had posted at least 11 victories and finished in the top five in each of the previous seven seasons, so some felt the Trojans would just keep rolling. Clearly, USC's past success was factored into the preseason rankings.

And some would charge that with two games left in the regular season, USC still is getting a boost from its reputation and past success. Although the Trojans are teetering on the edge of the top 25, there is one school of thought that USC shouldn't be ranked at all.

So, are the Trojans still benefiting from past success? Are they overrated? Those are questions to be answered in this week's mailbag.

Too much respect?

Without question, USC's reputation helps. But the Trojans deserve to be ranked solely on their merit this season.

USC (7-3) is ranked 24th in the AP poll, 22nd by the coaches and 20th in the BCS standings. Of the 120 teams in the FBS ranks, only 18 have fewer losses. That alone should justify the Trojans' rank.

But there is more. One of USC's losses came to Oregon, which is now ranked 10th. No shame there. The Trojans also beat Big Ten champ Ohio State, which is ranked ninth; Oregon State, which is ranked 16th; and California, which is ranked 21st.

In fact, USC is one of just six teams with victories over teams currently in the AP top 10. Two of those teams (sixth-ranked Boise State, which beat No. 10 Oregon, and No. 19 Miami, which beat seventh-ranked Georgia Tech) are ranked ahead of the Trojans.

N.C. State (4-7), which beat eighth-ranked Pittsburgh, and Purdue (5-7), which beat Ohio State, are two of the others.

The sixth team with a victory over a top-10 opponent is Stanford (7-4), which is unranked in the AP poll.

Stanford defeated No. 10 Oregon. The Cardinal also beat USC, so if there is any outrage, it should be that Stanford isn't in the Top 25.

But don't use that to disparage USC. The Trojans' total body of work really isn't bad.

Of course, more is expected at USC, and this season has been disappointing. But that's because USC has higher standards than most. Just because the Trojans haven't reached those standards this year doesn't mean they're unworthy of being ranked. It just means they're better than about 100 FBS teams instead of 115.

Rivalry worries

More needs to be added to the scenario to answer that question.

Let's say your scenario plays out and Texas stays unbeaten. Then, the BCS will have to find an opponent for the Longhorns. That would depend on who else is undefeated.

The guess here is an unbeaten Cincinnati would play Texas in the championship game. The Big East champion Bearcats would have an impressive late-season victory over Pittsburgh as well as a non-conference win over Oregon State. In most cases, an undefeated team will trump a team with a loss.

But if Pittsburgh beats Cincinnati, a one-loss Alabama team likely would face the Longhorns. In that scenario, the victory over previously unbeaten Florida would be enough to boost the Tide into the title game.

A debate would come from west of the Mississippi River. A compelling argument would be made that an undefeated TCU should go to the championship game rather than a team with one loss. After all, if not this year, when? But I just don't think the system will allow that. In that scenario, I believe the SEC champion would get the votes in the human polls and wind up ahead of an undefeated team from a non-Big Six conference.

I'm not saying that's right. I just believe that's the way it is.

Bowden's boys

Well, the University of Miami is named for a city and the Hurricanes have done all right. Besides, UNA's national championships were not won in FBS/Division I-A but rather in Division II.

Of course, I realize it's also likely you were just trying to get North Alabama mentioned. In that case, good job, Chuck.

Same rules

Absolutely. For the most part, the overtime period is played just like the first four quarters. A touchdown, fumble or blocked kick can be taken back for a score.

Geography help

Although there are 15 bowl games played in stadiums that serve as home fields for teams in the regular season, none of them involve SEC schools.

But there obviously are several bowls played within states that are represented in the SEC, and some of those games can include SEC teams. Those bowls include the Music City in Nashville, Tenn., the Independence in Shreveport, La., the Chick-fil-A in Atlanta, the Outback in Tampa, Fla., the Capital One in Orlando, Fla., the Papajohns.com in Birmingham, Ala., the Liberty in Memphis, Tenn., the Sugar in New Orleans and the Orange in Miami.

It would be naive to suggest that the close proximity doesn't provide some edge to the SEC teams playing in those games. That's often brought up when discussing the past two national championships, which LSU won in New Orleans and Florida won in Miami.

Sure, those teams might have had an edge. But don't forget that in 2006 Florida destroyed Ohio State in Glendale, Ariz., and Texas defeated USC in the 2005 Rose Bowl, so proximity can't be used to explain the SEC's success in bowl games.

After all, Michigan beat Florida in the 2007 Capital One and Iowa beat South Carolina in the Outback last season. And don't forget Ole Miss defeated Texas Tech in last season's Cotton Bowl - in Dallas. If proximity wasn't a factor in those games, then why assume it was a factor in those that SEC teams won?

And while it's true Pac-10 teams generally beat their Big Ten counterparts in the Rose Bowl, couldn't the reason be the Pac-10 teams just are better? Why can't the same be assumed for the SEC teams?

I do hear from fans who suggest that some bowls should be held in northern climates so teams from the Sun Belt (the region, not the conference) would have to play in ice and snow. But isn't that saying northern teams can't win unless they're helped by inclement weather?

I'm not buying that. Again, Michigan in '07 and Iowa last season proved that wasn't the case. And so did Ohio State when it defeated Miami in the 2002 national championship game in Arizona.

Don't look for excuses. Just look for wins.

Olin Buchanan is the senior college football writer for Rivals.com. He can be reached at olin@rivals.com.
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