Is the SEC that good?

[donovan]

Soccer is one of the best sports to watch on TV. You see the whole field and can watch plays open up.

Wresting, my mother dressed up in hat and gloves in the late 40's, maybe 50's and took me to see live Gorgeous George. He threw out these pins that were like large gold colored hair pins, he called Georgie Pins. I still have one, it is in my cigar box, Roi Tan, of treasures I like to look at periodically.

[Spence]

Soccer is one of the best sports to watch on TV. You see the whole field and can watch plays open up.

Wresting, my mother dressed up in hat and gloves in the late 40's, maybe 50's and took me to see live Gorgeous George. He threw out these pins that were like large gold colored hair pins, he called Georgie Pins. I still have one, it is in my cigar box, Roi Tan, of treasures I like to look at periodically.

I wrestled. Not the kind on TV. I still like watching the real version.

[armchairqb]

From a parity standpoint, the SEC is good this year. As a whole, I believe they've dropped a notch from last year.

The Pac 12 is a noticeably a more competitive conference this year than last year. I also give the ACC credit for moving up a notch.

C-USA is so intent on having seemingly any football team that's in a major market, regardless how bad it is. The MAC and Sun Belt teams that get tie-ins could beat the top C-USA teams H2H in bowls this year.

If I rated the conferences this year:

1. SEC
1A. Pac 12
3. ACC
4. Big 12
5. B1G
6. AAC
7. Mountain West
8. (tie)C-USA, MAC, Sun Belt, the top ten FCS teams

[Eric]

The MAC is having some depth problems, but overall I don't think that's bad with this conference. Quick turnarounds for programs that gain more experience are commonplace. A few years ago, too much depth was the problem where most of the conference was mediocre. This year, the top half is good and the bottom half are terrible. UMass, Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan, and Miami are some of the worst teams in the country. Usually every non-BCS conference has only one of those duds, but the MAC has four and then Kent State, Akron, and Central are bad in their own right.

C-USA I think has a bright future, just not immediately bright. The AAC stole their best programs, but they still have Marshall and Southern Miss to build around as cornerstones with UTSA, Old Dominion, and Charlotte all probably being smart long-term additions. I think Old Dominion and UTSA won't take long at all to get to the top rung of the new C-USA. UTSA is almost there considering that they're in contention to play for the C-USA championship. They're eligible to win the conference title but not eligible for a bowl game, so with a win against North Texas and Louisiana Tech and a Rice loss to Tulane, I believe UTSA would win the four-way tiebreaker.

[Cane from the Bend]

However, I do not believe Tulane has either the talent or confidence, not to mention (though I am) field awareness, that it will take to beat Rice.

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[Eric]

I honestly think Tulane is a fluke. As far as I remember, North Texas and ECU really had them beat and they beat the worst Tulsa team in the last decade 14-7. The QB play has gotten really spotty for them. I believe they were intercepted on four consecutive passes against Florida Atlantic.

[Cane from the Bend]

I'm beginning to believe Ohio was a fluke last year.

Bowling Green is running them into the ground, just like Buffalo did last week.

Ohio buried themselves with a 35 point deficit at the half ... and they can't score.

Game over, before the 3rd quarter even kicks-off.

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[Eric]

Ohio is really playing terrible football right now. They got blasted by Buffalo this week and now Bowling Green is taking them to the woodshed. They've been one of the more consistent programs under Solich, but they've basically played themselves out of a bowl bid with the last two performances. The way the at-large scenarios are shaping up, the MAC won't have as many openings as there were last year.

I'm more surprised by Buffalo getting steamrolled at the half. 28-0 Toledo? Wow. I really thought Buffalo was turning a corner. The schedule was soft for them to go on this 7-game winning streak, but the offensive line can't handle Toledo, which is a bit surprising. Licata not handling the pressure, dropped passes, and bad coaching (they allowed a TD with 10 players on the field) has contributed to this beatdown.

[Eric]

Well, I spoke too soon. Buffalo started doing laterals with NINETEEN SECONDS on the clock. As often happens, you sometimes fumble the ball away with all of those exchanges and moving parts. Buffalo was right on the sidelines and they could have stepped out for another play, but Toledo recovered the ball on the 10 yard line and almost returned it for a touchdown. Absolutely asinine decision. You start doing that with no time on the clock. You have to be kidding me. One of the stupidest things I've seen all season.

It's now 31-0 at the half.

[Cane from the Bend]

This is a bad night for the MAC ...

Prior to last week, these games looked to deliver some interesting competition.
After last week, it left us with an idea of what to expect, from which teams.
(Ohio, possibly having been off their game, hoping for a chance to rebound)

Tonight, Bowling Green looks to be playing at a high level, even though it is Ohio's horrible playing that is making Bowling Green seem that good.

Buffalo, beating Ohio the way they did, shows that Ohio simply was that bad, as Toledo is dismantling the Buffs every move.

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[Cane from the Bend]

Though, I do not believe we will learn anything from the Miami OH at Kent St. game ---Ball State @ Northern Illinois could be very telling, tomorrow night.

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[Cane from the Bend]

That last touchdown Toledo scored was entirely too easy . . . Buffalo wont be able to show any attempt at a comeback, because their defense is completely over matched.

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[Cane from the Bend]

Well, now, it look as if I may have jumped the whistle on that call.

One good stop, and 2 touchdowns later, Buffalo is starting to find something.
Toledo has to not make the conservative mistake. They have to keep scoring.
Otherwise, they will set up the stage for a Buffalo comeback.
And that would crush this team in the coming weeks.

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[Eric]

They're all set now. Another TD run from 50+ yards out with the back not even getting touched. Maybe Buffalo was just flat tonight, but I can't say they looked even remotely impressive. I was thinking about scouting them a little bit more before bowl season so I could get an idea of whether or not I'd take them if/when they get selected. I might be scarred from tonight when that time comes

[Eric]

Well, another long TD for the Bulls. Still a two-score game though.