Two, the point isn’t that SEC teams are worn down at the end of the season, it is that on a week-in, week-out basis the caliber of opponents is significantly greater than the Big 10/11. You may trip up early (see UGA, UF) or late, but when you consistently play tough teams, it will eventually happen. OSU folks seem to think that my argument is an insinuation that the buckeyes are a terrible football team. Far from it. If that were the case, by implication, any SEC team with a loss in conference play would be a terrible football team.

You’re first three points (and your only point in your second comment) ignore the main thrust of my argument. Bowl games should not be given any sort of weight in this discussion (remember, we are talking about whether or not OSU would/could ever find itself down 31 at the half against an SEC school). Were Boise State and WFV really better than Oklahoma? A VY led Texas better than USC? Play those games 10 times and see what happens. One offs with weeks to prepare aren’t representative of a season. And that’s the main difference. SEC teams play a season of bowl games against SEC opponents, if you will. The Big 10/11 does not.

I’ll give you credit for the 2002 game and season. Try to remember what my point is. It would be asinine to argue that OSU has never fielded a great football team, but that’s not the issue. But your comment about the Miami team being better than any SEC champ is so subjective, it’s pointless.

I’ll take that bet, name your price.

One more point, regarding our conference opponents…the Big Ten has had 2 teams since 2005 who have went 12-1, didn’t play for a National Championship, won their BCS bowl game against southern teams (Arkansas and Florida State), and suffered their only loss in B10 conference play.

Penn State in 2005
Wisconsin in 2006

The honest truth is that the two wins over Ohio State have been the lone bright spots for the SEC in the last couple of bowl seasons.

Sure there is that Auburn win over VT and Nebraska, each by a couple of points. Or that Georgia win over Hawaii. Or LSU over Miami and ND.

But what about the losses that get swept under the rug? Michigan over Florida; Wisconsin over Arkansas; Mizzu crushing Arkansas; Penn State over Tenn; etc. etc. etc.

You should be thanking Ohio State, not bashing Ohio State. Especially when you think about this…if Ohio State sucks so bad and it’s the only real bright spots for the SEC in the last two bowl seasons, what does that really say about the SEC?

I forgot, Kentucky beat FSU…never mind what I said….EEEESSSS EEEEE SSSSSEEEEE rules.

Your argument is chalk full of holes.

1. That “other” conference you are speaking of, has a winning record against the SEC. In fact, if you take out Ohio State’s miserable bowl record against the SEC, the rest of the Big Ten has a damn fine record against the so called best conference in the country…go look it up. So you argument that we don’t play ANYONE on the same level is bunk.

2. Ohio State, specifically, in addition to playing against conference opponents who have a winning record against the SEC, plays at least 1 very solid BSC opponent every year, with the exception of last year. Home and home with Texas and future games scheduled against USC, Miami, VT, OU, and Tenn. So if our in conference schedule isn’t enough to provide solid competition, the OOC schedule provides a good test. This year, we failed, but failed on the road, without the best running back in the country, and with what now appears to be our backup quarterback playing most of the game.

3. Beating an SEC team for the NC is not a requirement to be awarded the BCS NC. Remember, there was a time when an SEC champion lost to a Big Ten runner up…and then there was a time when the SEC champ, a team that was considered to be the best SEC team of all time, was taken behind the woodshed by Nebraska.

4. The SEC is riding a wave right now and that wave is based on the explosion of coaching salaries, coaching changes, the BCS, and the revenue generated by TV contracts. It won’t last forever and the bubble will eventually burst.

5. With regards to playing a real season and beating an SEC team for the NC…we did better than that in 2002…we played 14 games and won all of them, which included beating a Miami team that was riding a 34 game win streak and who beat 2 SEC teams like a drum that year. Make no mistake, that Miami team was one of the best teams in our era…better than any SEC champion in the last five years. Much better. Just look around in the NFL at all of the players from that team that are playing in the league.

“Even the Buckeyes have never been down 31-0 against an SEC team”

This might be because OSU plays in another conference. I’ve got no excuse for how badly we performed in that first half, but I feel pretty damn sure that if you faced real competition on a week-in, week-out basis, your buckeyes would know what 31-0 feels like. Go ahead a flash your stats from the last 2 NCGs; you’re pissing in the wind. Until you play a real season and beat an SEC team for the crystal, the rest of us are going to continue to regard you as just the biggest fish in a very small pond.

Name the Interstate exit and Waffle House parking lot.

Btw, no referee’s allowed. The sword of Damocles is a “Bear” of a burden.

Georgia’s biggest problem in that game was a bad gameplan on offense and the complete lack of a pass rush. The penalties didn’t help, but those can be overcome. The latter is the lasting concern as far as I can tell. Still, it was a big problem the first half of last year and was corrected. The Alabama game was a damn sight better than the Tennessee game last year and they recovered from that too. Basically, reading too much into one game is silly. LSU also looks like the only team left on the schedule with the kind of talent on the lines of scrimmage that Alabama has. I’m taking a wait and see approach.

Not that the Gators are more than a two man show either, but Georgia was bad, you know?

Injuries mounting, self-doubt mounting, fundamentally unsound football team in many ways?

@10 – Rewatching the game yesterday (one of the most painful experiences I’ve had), I was actually pretty pleased with how our young center, Ben Jones, did against Mt. Cody. I’d say the matchup was a draw; the problem was that Stafford apparently didn’t trust his line to hold up, because their are several plays where he abandons the pocket even when it’s holding up just fine.