How come no one is giving us a shot at the BCS?

1. If Alabama loses, it is their first loss and only loss, and it will be to a top 5 team.
2. If Florida loses, they might miss the Sugar Bowl, but remember UGA was their last year and so the Bowl may take them over us.
3. Texas Tech
4. USC
5. Texas
6. Penn St, Ohio St and/or Mich St
7. Some craptastic ACC team
8. Cinn
9. Utah
10. Boise St.

Because we got manhandled by both Florida and Alabama. Presuming they both win out, the winner will go to the BCS Championship game and since the Sugar Bowl would have first selection due to losing the SEC Champion will likely take the next highest ranked SEC school, which would be the loser of the SEC title game. After that, the BCS has the two teams per conference limit which would exclude any other SEC team from getting in. The only way to throw a wrench in this would be for the Citadel, FSU, and Alabama to beat Florida (highly unlikely scenario). Even if Alabama lost to Auburn and beat Florida they will still get the Sugar Bowl nod as SEC champ and I have to believe a 2-loss Florida team would be ranked higher than a 2-loss Georgia team based on the head to head. In that scenario, Florida would get any at-large BCS bid before Georgia. Maybe a 2-loss Alabama team that loses to both Auburn and Florida would be ranked lower than Georgia in the final BCS, but I believe in that case (assuming the standings today hold up) that the Pac-10 will get two bids (Oregon St and USC), the Big 12 will get two bids (Texas and the Oklahoma/Texas Tech winner), Big East Champ, Acc Champ, Penn State/Michigan State winner, SEC Champ and most likely runner up, and Utah will hold the 10 BCS bids. Of course, if Oregon State loses or Missouri were to win the Big 12 would put a huge wrench in everything but as it stands, Georgia is way on the outside looking in.

They can put us up against this year’s “cinderalla” type team and justify it by telling the opponent they get a top notch SEC team, and telling UGA we get a hot opponent. They play it like they expect a great thriller. But you either get a) Hawaii slaughtered or b) the embarrasment in a game such as West Virginia where they can feel justified in not giving UGA street cred.

Until UGA wins the big games – this trend will continue. Big games next year – all of them. We have to dominate lesser opponents, and win the big games. The press will give you one ‘surprise close game’ – but isnt going to give you much support for – well, barely getting by against kentucky and auburn and getting your butt handed to you against Florida and Alabama.

Assuming there are no upsets—-and it would take a major upset for either of the top two teams in the S.E.C. to lose—-Alabama will be no worse than 12-1 after the S.E.C. championship game, Florida will be no worse than 11-2 after the S.E.C. championship game, and Georgia will be no better than 10-2 after the S.E.C. championship game. In other words, the Bulldogs almost certainly won’t have a record as good as the loser of the S.E.C. championship game, to whom Georgia will have lost head-to-head.

The Missouri example is a good one. The Tigers should have gone to a B.C.S. bowl. That the system is unlikely to compound last year’s injustice by perpetuating it this year is to the B.C.S.’s credit. The loser of the S.E.C. championship game deserves the Sugar Bowl more than Georgia does.

IMHO, the current 9-2 ledger the Dawgs own is not as impressive as it appears. The BCS is not lost on the fact that UGA had two golden opportunities to cement their position as a BCS bowl contender against Bama and the Gators. Not only did we lose those games, but we lost big (say what you want about final score against Bama; you just don’t let a team get up on you by 4 scores to nil at home…in the first half). Couple that with anemic defensive performances against teams like Kentucky and Auburn and the writing is on the wall. I think the true fan in us will always ponder the “What if” scenarios in hopes that things will fall our way. But it should say something about our value as a team to the BCS when are reduced to such scenarios. When the Dawgs win out (I won’t say if because I’m forever the optimist), we’ll take our 10-2 team to the Capital One Bowl and will play a worthy opponent (Stewie Mandel has us playing Michigan State; I’m interested to see if Willie can get the boys up to stop Mr. Ringer).

. . . It would take a blowout in the SECCG and a truly dominating performance against Tech (considering how unimpressive we’ve been thus far, a drubbing akin to the GT-Cumberland game might almost be good enough to salvage our deservedly flagging reputation). As I understand it, bowl selection committees take momentum into account when selecting teams; for instance, I was under the impression that our run against Auburn and Tech to close out 2006 secured us that Peach Bowl berth. So if the SECCG loser loses big (we’re talking “vs. Georgia” big . . . ouch, that’s painful to say) and we massacre Tech 222-0, we might have a long shot at it.

Thinking about it now, it would tickle me to no end for Bama to stomp Florida and for the Sugar Bowl to take us over them. Not expecting it to happen, though. Besides, it’s becoming an SEC tradition to close out your season by stomping tOSU in a bowl game, and somehow I think it would be more satisfying to play a worthy opponent close in a top tier bowl than be the fall guys for the “BCS buster” game for the second year in a row.