We were able to grab some quality shots of TCU’s celebration tonight. We’ll post them up tomorrow, but for now, we leave you with this shot of the entire team.

We’d like to thank you guys for reading the blog. Be sure to come back next Tuesday night for a live blog of the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl. It should be another great one.

Update: We’ve uploaded our photos from the Poinsettia Bowl. They are available here.

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What’s college football without a rankings controversy? A sport that borders on perfection. But here we are, yet again, talking about an enormously controversial set of rankings. Every season, we talk about how great a playoff system in college football would be. But until something is done about it (I’m looking at you, Mr. President-Elect), all of these talks are in vain.  

Today, Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel made his annual plea for a 16 team playoff, something that I feel strikes a perfect balance of 1) Giving everyone a fair shot and 2) Keeping the regular season relevant. Part of the reason we love college football is because of the weekly upsets that can doom a season. So, without further ado, here’s a few comments of mine about Wetzel’s proposal.

Small Conferences Need Love Too: I think this proposal does a good job of rewarding winners of small conferences. Would teams like Ball State, Troy and Tulsa be the bells of this ball? Definitely not, but at least they’d get invited. If schools like Missisippi Valley State can get a shot (however impossibe it is) at cutting down nets in March Madness, then the winners of small conferences should get the opportunity to get smacked by a BCS powerhouse.

It Keeps The Bowls Intact: I liked Wetzel’s idea of allowing better seeds to host a playoff game or two. It rewards the top seeds for good seasons, just like any professional playoff system. But for those bowl junkies out there, why not play the quarterfinals at the traditional BCS bowl venues? Under this proposal, how’s Bama-Penn State at the Orange Bowl sound? Or USC-Florida at the Rose Bowl? And if you really love the Papa John’s Bowl, what’s stopping non-playoff teams from continuing to play in the lesser bowl games?

Wrap That Tourney Up, B! Bowl season is too damn long. I don’t like waiting a week after New Years to see a winner crowned in college football. Lets begin this hypothetical tournament next weekend, the week after conference championship games. Opening round games on December 13, quarterfinals on December 20, semifinals on December 27 and the championship game on January 3. That was easy. 

Is it really that hard? We all know how much people love March Madness, but something like this would blow March Madness out of the water. How many more seasons need to be cheapened by the bowl games before something like this becomes a reality?

These are a collection of thoughts I’ve had about the world of sports the past few days.  None of them really deserve a full length article, so they’re all just kinda thrown together here.

I’m not quite sure what the Dodgers are trying to do with their offer to Manny Ramirez.  It’s rumored to be two years for $45 million.  I understand the concept of low balling to start of negotiations, but I get the feeling that Scott Boras is going to do to that offer what manager Lou Brown did to Roger Dorn’s contract in Major League, that is, take a piss on it.

Major League Baseball should probably take away the San Diego Padres right to call themselves a major league organization.  The only players who matter in San Diego (Jake Peavy, Adrian Gonzalez, and Trevor Hoffman) have all indicated that they have at least some interest in playing elsewhere because the team apparently has no plans to try to win.

These reports that MLB would never let Mark Cuban buy the Cubs are somewhat troubling to me.  If he is the highest bidder (which is probably a safe bet) why not let him buy the team?  Apparently Bud Selig is afraid of having an owner who will have the guts to stand up and say how bad he sucks as a commissioner.

It’s probably a safe bet to say that if Nick Saban went to Washington he could make the Huskies a contender within 3 years, right?  It’s also probably safe to assume he isn’t going to stay at Alabama for too long, he doesn’t exactly strike me as the loyal type.

I’m wonder what sort of golf karma is going to hit this idiot.  Here’s a guy who has recorded five hole-in-one’s in one week, something bad has to happen to him on the course right?  He must have had the worst bounces ever seen to man for the past 10 years in order to deserve recording a hole in one five times in one week.

* I’m struggling in this column, so I wouldn’t call these best bets

Last Week: 2-2
Season: 13-19

Kansas -1.5 over Texas Tech: Okay, so Tech is undefeated. But we’ve seen this before. This is a bit of a sandwich game for the Red Raiders, who are coming off a rivalry win at A&M and getting ready to host Texas next week. But they better not sleep on Kansas, who always come to play at home. Texas Tech’s pass defense is in the 100s, which sets up nicely for Todd Reesing. Look for Tech to get exposed…again.

Colorado State -9 over San Diego State: The “bet against the Aztecs” train rolls on week after week. SDSU is coming off arguably the worst performance in the program’s history, losing 70-7 to an average (at best) New Mexico team. Chuck Long has been given a vote of confidence by the athletic department, but has the team quit on him?

Ohio State +2 over Penn State: Can you remember the last time the Buckeyes weren’t favored at the Horseshoe? Me neither. The Buckeyes showed they’re still a force to be reckoned with last week, destroying Michigan State in East Lansing. I’d love to see Penn State win, but I think the Buckeyes take this one in a defensive battle. 

Illinois -3 over Wisconsin: What happened to Wisconsin? A team pegged as a co-favorite to win the Big Ten is sitting at 0-4 in conference play so far this year. Their quarterback play has sucked and even the once-reliable defense is lousy. Juice Williams and Co. torched this defense last year, I expect something similar to happen this time around.

*Until I get back to winning weekends, I’m giving up the “Best Bets” title. 

Last Week: 1-3
Overall: 11-17

Ohio State -3 over Michigan State: I hate the Big Ten and therefore, I’m not a fan of Ohio State. But while the Buckeyes struggle against athletic competition from superior conferences, their grind-it-out style is right at home in the Big Ten. It comes down to stopping MSU running back and Heisman candidate Javon Ringer, who has already surpassed 1,000 yards. I think they’re up to the challenge.

Colorado -3.5 over Kansas State: Colorado got a tough draw to open conference play by facing Texas and Kansas, but I still think they’re an up-and-coming team. As for Kansas State, they’ve done nothing to impress me. Beating Texas A&M isn’t an accomplishment. In fact, it’s one of the easiest things to do in D-1 athletics. 

Texas Tech -21 over Texas A&M. Speaking of those Texas A&M Aggies, have you seen them play this year? It’s not pretty. Tech had a scare last weekend against Nebraska, so I don’t see them coming out flat again. A&M has allowed 100 points over their last two games…and now Michael Crabtree comes into town. See ya. 

New Mexico -14 over San Diego State. The good news for Chuck Long’s Aztecs is quarterback Ryan Lindley might be back under center. The bad news? Everything else. The Aztecs haven’t beaten New Mexico in seven years and they’ve only covered one time in that span. Against a defensive line absolutely destroyed by injuries, New Mexico will wear down SDSU with their effective running game.