Scott Rabalais' column in the Advoctae this morning points out some real problems for the loser of the SEC championship game. LSU especially could get a royal screwing and be left out of the January bowl games, mostly because of the Outback Bowl's reluctance to take a team west of Alabama. They apparently prefer a 7-4 South Carolina over a 10-2 LSU. The SEC needs to step for this one and not let the bowls engineer the bowl succession to the detriment of the league. LSU-Georgia loser could be victim of bowl unfairness By SCOTT RABALAIS Advocate sportswriter If college football's bowl system were about fairness, then Notre Dame wouldn't get a BCS bid just because it's Notre Dame -- 10-1 Oregon would be going to the Fiesta Bowl instead. If the bowls were about fairness, then 10-1, No. 3-ranked LSU wouldn't have to worry about falling past one of the Southeastern Conference's Jan. 2 bowls to the Peach or (is it possible?) the Independence Bowl if it loses Saturday's SEC Championship Game to Georgia. But the bowls are not about fairness. They are about selling tickets and pulling down plum TV ratings. And if you are not what they are looking for, you may get the cold shoulder no matter what your résumé looks like. Potentially, if LSU loses the SEC Championship, the Tigers could be staring at a string of bowls that arguably all have someone else they would rather invite. Read the rest of the story
Not having an at-large BCS bid this year from the SEC (thanks undeserving Notre Dame) is going to give the Indy Bowl a better team than they deserve.
Quite frankly, only six teams from the SEC will be going to bowls again this season in spite of the fact that there are SEC tie-ins with 8 different bowl games. Sugar Bowl: 14 million Capital One: 5.18 million Cotton Bowl: 3 million Outback Bowl: 2.75 million Peach Bowl: 2.2 million Independence Bowl 1.2 million Houston Bowl 1.1 million Music City Bowl 780K I can understand how a team would not be invited back to the same bowl two years straight. And I can understand how a fan base can be burnt out on going to the same state over and over again. The first slot goes to the BCS Sugar. The loser of the SEC CG should be guaranteed a slot among the next 3 highest payouts. The next team should be the team not in the SEC CG with the best overall record in conference play in either division. The next team should be the team with the best overall record in conference play in the other division. Then the next best record...etc. My pecking order: LSU-Georgia winner LSU-Georgia loser Auburn South Carolina Alabama Florida Then scratch the repeats: Georgia went to the Outback Florida went to the Peach LSU to the Cap One Alabama Music City Auburn to the Sugar South Carolina - Holtz withdrawl
After not getting an SEC team and having to seek out Miami of Ohio last year, I'd say the Independence Bowl deserves a 7-4 South Carolina or maybe even an 8-3 Florida.
I think I'll have to agree to disagree with you on that. Having been to that game a couple of times, I'm not altogether convinced they deserve a bowl. And if they do, certainly not one w/ SEC tie-ins. Maybe Sun Belt or the Big XII.:hihi:
The Capitol One unofficially commited to Auburn and the Outback is keen on South Carolina. Spurrier will pull crowds in Florida.
