Gee, What A Surprise.

Yesterday I asked you to send me you thoughts on the BCS Championship Game situation. I should have expected the two things that resulted.

First, fans of the four teams cited strongly believed that their team would be in the top two.

Second, neutral fans (fans who didn't identify themselves a being for or against a particular team) lined up as follows. Most believe West Virginia is in and Georgia is out. They were split between Missouri and Ohio State with a slight majority (about 60%) favoring the Buckeyes.

Third, there were a few delusional individuals that still insist that BSC 5, 6, and 7 teams will mystically leap over Ohio State and Georgia. (Don't know what you're smoking guys but don't send the fumes my way)

Lastly, the group of Ohio State haters who didn't really care about the question posed but preferred to spend their time telling me why the Buckeyes don't deserve to be back in the BCS Championship Game, no matter what happens this weekend.

Discounting the ones from Michigan (can't write so good when you have to use a keyboard instead of a crayon, can ya?) and Florida (who's 9-3 and finished 3rd in the SEC East?) their arguments fall into two main categories. First, OSU's schedule was too soft and second, the Buckeyes don't deserve another shot after last year's disaster.

Let's look at the second point first. Last year's game was exactly that, last year's. The seniors and some of the juniors are gone and new players have stepped up to play. This team lost a lot of talent and under the cloud of a 41-14 loss could have had a terrible season. Instead, they outperformed every preseason prediction. The work done by this year's team has been exceptional and each and every member deserves a trip to the Rose Bowl or the BCS Championship Game.

So now you will say that their success is due to the soft schedule. OK, let's look at that as well.
Ohio State ranks 46th in Strength of Schedule, well behind Georgia and Missouri, but two places ahead of West Virginia. Face it Mountaineers, the only teams you beat that are currently ranked in the BCS top 40 are Cincinnati (#23) and Connecticut (#26). Your one loss was at the hands of mighty (and unranked) South Florida.

Georgia, despite it's higher Strength of Schedule ranking lost to 6-6 South Carolina (at home) and at #14 Tennessee. Missouri probably has the most impressive resume with wins over #5 Kansas and #15 Illinois, their only loss being at #9 Oklahoma.

How do the Bucks stack up? Well their one loss was at home to #15 Illinois but they had quality wins over #18 Wisconsin as well as #30 Michigan and #31 Penn State, both on the road. As for their out of conference schedule, these are set up years in advance when no one could predict that Washington would be in a down year.

Ultimately, any of the four teams at the top (along with one or two more) are well qualified to play in the BCS Championship game. Am I partial to Ohio State? You Bet. Will I present a somewhat biased view of the situation? Sure, but then again, it is my column.