I see 4 ranked in the final poll with 2 wins and 2 losses. http://lsu.rivals.com/rankings.asp?Year=2005&Team=TEXASTECH
And if that had happen would Shula still have been fired? If that team was really THAT good, how did Shula go from being a coach who could put a NC caliber team together to one who was a piss poor stop gap in just one season? The signs of getting hyped beyond its capabilities were all over that team. The D was great, but the rest...., I will let Terry explain it to you so you will not think it is just AU bias.
You just answered a thought I just had. UT was in the top 20 when we played, 17, and after that loss their season when to...well, let's just put it this way. Fulmer was heard saying, "Where am I going and why am I in this basket?" Auburn didn't finish in the top 25 so I don't know how to rank them. We disagreed at the time of the Cotton Bowl, but the Tx. Tech team was good that year. Again, falling back to what I said earlier. The defense was great that year, the offense middle of the pack in the SEC. South Carolina...gave Georgia and Florida runs. Beat UT and Florida that year, didn't they? Seems like they only lost to UGA by 3...
Texas Tech has been one of the most overrated teams in the nation the last 10 years(#2 behind Notre Dame). Yes they have had an explosive offense scoring many points joined by a french toast defense that gives up almost as many points as an NBA team. No way they should ever beat an SEC team, the fact that they were favored shows how weak Bama was in 05.
If you look at that hypothetical, you can only base the answer on what Moore did with DuBose after the SECC and the BCS bid only to lose control of the team in 2000. Despite the two regime's being different, the root causes were very much identical. FWIW D, the decision on Shula was made by a lot right after the Auburn game when it became more widely known how poor of a plan he put together in preperation for you guys. Some have said, "it was Croom that got Shula the job, and Croom that got Shula fired." It's not the truth, but the loss to MSU was pretty much the breaking point for the writers of Bama sites to call for his head. Hell, the news media in the state were still saying that "Shula won't get fired." Again for Stars, the offense was average. Defense and special teams were very good, defense great.
Conversely, holding that explosive offense you've mentioned to 10 points is a statement in itself. Deceks opinion would be good here since he's in that part of the country. Believe you me, I remember very clearly 3 of the '05 games were won with FG's...just as I firmly state it was the defense that kept that team from be a 7-5, 8-4 type year.
Once again, great D and an offense that caught a break on the ball that bounced before the long catch and run. The fact that you couldn't generate an O against the TTU defense, well, that tells me a lot. I have seen too many TTU games to think they are a defensive force (They did have, however, some hitters). I know all the LSU folk are saying, "An AU guy pointing out an officials mistake?" I do say, I didn't think the Bama D would shut down TTU like it did. I saw TTU put points up against some very good teams that year. I will not discount Bama's D that year.
Just remembered this, which I find a bit ironic considering... Before that game, I said the only way for us to be TTU was to have the DB's play a lot like Saban had his DB's playing at LSU...close to the line, bump off their routes, etc. Do you remember what paper it was in Tx. that forecasted TTU to put up 50+ in that game...was it the paper out of Dallas?
