Guerry Clegg: Looking back at the almost-done college football season
Some final -- or maybe almost final -- thoughts on the college football season. ...
Another bowl season is just about in the books and what a let-down.
Thanks to the College Football Playoff management committee's stubbornness, the two biggest games aside from the national championship game drew a collective yawn. TV ratings for the two semifinal games -- Clemson-Oklahoma and Alabama-Michigan State -- were down 38 and 36 percent respectively from a year ago.
The two blowouts, with Clemson winning by 20 points and Alabama by 38, didn't help and were beyond anyone's control. Playing on New Year's Eve, though, was a mistake. This is not hindsight. The CFP was questioned about the decision as far back as last February.
"We reviewed it and rejected it," Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott told ESPN back then. "We like the concept that we've developed for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Going forward, we think that's the right model for college football."
Their original goal was commendable. They wanted to restore the luster to playing on New Year's Day, which was why they created the New Year's Six, a rotation of the Peach, Sugar, Cotton, Fiesta, Orange and Rose bowls. Three games on New Year's Eve, three on New Year's Day.
But to play two of the three biggest of those games on New Year's Eve, when many people have other players, just doesn't make sense.
One criticism is that there are too many bowl games. Perhaps so, but that has nothing to do with the lackluster big games. Twelve of the minor bowl games were before Christmas, and six more were played the day after Christmas. Did it really hurt anything that Georgia State and San Jose State played in the AutoNation Cure Bowl?
Some also say that it underscores the need to expand the playoffs to eight or 16 teams. But doing so would make the other bowl games seem even more irrelevant than they already do.
A couple of what ifs
What if Chad Kelly had transferred to Georgia instead of Ole Miss?
No, this scenario was never in play. But it's not that far-fetched, either. Mark Richt and Jim Kelly, Chad's uncle, were college teammates at Miami. Certainly if Richt had known this time last year that his quarterback issues would be as severe as they became then he would have made different decisions.
Kelly would have been a good fit for Georgia's offense. The Bulldogs probably would have won the SEC East. In fact, it's very possible that the Bulldogs would have finished 11-1. Would they have beaten Alabama? Probably not. The turning point of the game was Alabama's touchdown off a blocked punt, which had nothing to do with the quarterback play. But the Bulldogs might have made it a little more respectable.
That embarrassment, along with the Florida loss -- and the bizarre decision to stick with third-string quarterback Faton Bauta -- sealed Richt's fate.
If Richt doesn't get fired, then Kirby Smart probably winds up at South Carolina, and Will Muschamp stays put at Auburn, unless Smart would have hired him.
What if Carl Lawson stayed healthy all season?
Auburn was a completely different team with Lawson on the field. Just look at the first and second halves of the season opener against Louisville. Auburn went from dominating to barely hanging on. One can make the argument that Lawson's injury exposed Auburn's lack of depth on defense. That doesn't change the fact that Lawson might have been the one player the Tigers could least afford to lose.
Lawson probably wouldn't have made a difference against LSU. But he might have given the Tigers enough of a boost to beat Mississippi State, Arkansas and Ole Miss. They were that close to going 9-3 and probably playing in the Citrus Bowl.
Finally, here's my final top 10. This isn't based on resumes. For one thing, some teams get better and some get worse. Stanford is much better than it was when it lost to Northwestern. Also, schedules are not equitable. So going 9-4 with, say, Tennessee's schedule is better than going 11-3 with North Carolina's schedule. It's just my opinion of which teams are better right now.
1-2: Alabama-Clemson winner and loser.
3: Stanford. I think the Cardinal could beat anybody.
4: Ohio State: Maybe the most talented team in the country.
5: Oklahoma: This is where it drops off.
6: Houston: Peach Bowl win over Florida State made a believer of me.
7: Ole Miss: Rebels easily could be 11-2.
8: Notre Dame: Irish's three losses were to Clemson, Stanford and Ohio State.
9: Michigan: Another team that probably should have been 11-2.
10: Tennessee: Vols finally learned how to finish tough games.
This story was originally published January 2, 2016 at 3:56 PM with the headline "Guerry Clegg: Looking back at the almost-done college football season ."