Posted by AlCheez on 10/18/2013 7:20:00 AM (view original):
You're hanging your hat on a resume of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Northwestern? Want to look at that again? If those are all obvious quality wins, then I think that A+M would have more than 2.
You can't be objective here, so stop pretending that you are. You yourself already admitted that the SEC is a far better conference, so since both teams did nothing in the non-con, how is a 1 loss team from the SEC "easily" less deserving than an undefeated OSU team? A+M's top couple wins would be better than anything OSU has in that scenario, and the meat of their conference schedule is also tougher, though not necessarily anything to write home about. And their loss would be to a team that no one in their right mind thinks OSU would be undefeated after playing.
LSU will likely be 9-3 in that scenario (Georgia, Bama, A&M). Best wins would be Florida and TCU (the other 3 non-cons are UAB, Kent St., and Furman).
Missou no idea what they will end up but right now Georgia is their only quality opponent (the 4 non-con games were Murray State, Toledo, Indiana, and Arkansas St.). If Missou is unbeaten at the time of the A&M that would be a monster win for A&M either way the worst I see Missou right now is 9-3 (losses to SC, Florida, & A&M). Good to great win depending on what Missou actually does.
Next best win on A&M's schedule would be Auburn. Auburn has a bunch of tough games left (Bama, A&M, Georgia). I reasonably see them at best 8-4. Auburn's non-con victories are Washington St., Arkansas St., W. Carolina, and Florida Atlantic.
Not exactly a whole lot different than
Wisconsin who likely finishes 10-2, Michigan probable 9-3, Northwestern probable 8-4, and Nebraska or Michigan St. (probably 10-2 or 9-3 going into the game) in the Big Ten title game.
And yes I believe Ohio State would lose to Alabama though if the game was in Columbus I think it would be pretty darn close, so I'm not really holding that loss against A&M, but if you want them to jump an unbeaten champion from the Big Ten, they better darn well have played a gauntlet schedule and A&M did not do that.
I don't disagree much with Mike in this: if there are multiple unbeatens these teams would all be ahead of Ohio State this year: Alabama/Missouri, Oregon/UCLA, and Clemson/FSU (Baylor might be, and Loiusville, Fresno St., and N. Illinois would not be) I just disagree that 11-1 A&M would be. That schedule just doesn't deserve that distinction.