Top 25

College Football

Final 2012 Top 25

1.      Alabama, 13-1, 2
2.      Oregon, 12-1, 4
3.      Notre Dame, 12-1, 1
4.      Georgia, 12-2, 5
5.      Texas A&M, 11-2, 7
6.      Ohio State, 12-0, 6
7.      Stanford, 12-2, 9
8.      South Carolina, 11-2, 11
9.      Florida State, 12-2, 13
10.    Florida, 11-2, 3
11.    Clemson, 11-2, 15
12.    Kansas State, 11-2, 8
13.    Louisiana State, 10-3, 10
14.    Louisville, 11-2, 24
15.    Northwestern, 10-3, 18
16.    Oklahoma, 10-3, 12
17.    Nebraska, 10-4, 23
18.    Vanderbilt, 9-4, 21
19.    Utah State, 11-2, 22
20.    Texas, 9-4, NR
21.    Oregon State, 9-4, 15
22.    Northern Illinois, 12-2, 20
23.    Michigan, 8-5, 17
24.    Wisconsin, 8-6, 19
25.    Baylor, 8-5, NR

OUT: Southern Cal (25) and UCLA (16) 

VOTES:  Boise State, Oklahoma State, UCLA, San Jose State, Penn State, Cincinnati, Arizona State, Tulsa, Michigan State, Texas Christian and Arkansas State.

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

BAMA runs wild/Photo By MIKE SEGAR/REUTERS
 

For all the fanfare leading up to title matchup over two traditional power, the game was over almost before it began.  Alabama was able to push the Notre Dame front seven around and run the ball down the throat of the Fighting Irish, and that was the ball game.  Bama won the line of scrimmage decisively on both sides, and Notre Dame could not generate anything measurable on offense.

Yes, the officials got in the way of the Irish early, but it would not matter, thankfully.  This was a whipping, but this is not about a Notre Dame team that did not belong; this was about an Alabama team, that when focused and on game, are stout and the class of the college game.

Nick Saban and The Crimson Tide have won three of the last four titles, matching the run Nebraska had in the mid 90's.  Credit the Tide, who have earned your respect.  Sadly for the rest of us, stopping this runaway train anytime soon seems unlikely.  Sweet Home Alabama!

Oh, by the way, ESPN's Brent Musburger, who made news a few years back sounding off on the beauty of the FSU Cowgirls, got into some hot water again last night as he went off on how hot Alabama quaterback AJ McCarron's girlfriend, former Miss Alabama and Auburn alum Katherine Webb is.  In the aftermath, Miss Webb is becoming a household name, with her Twitter account growing exponentially in followers.  I have to admit, Musburger is right on target regarding Miss Webb; she is absolutely stunning.



BOWLS

Duke fumbled twice inside the Cincinnati 5, and gave the game away.....Baylor is on a winning streak and jumped all over a decent UCLA team behind Nick Florence.....Va.Tech roared back and dunked Rutgers in the Russell Athletic Bowl in Orlando..... Minnesota played well, but could not stop Texas Tech....West Virginia, a major disappointment, were physically beaten by Syracuse in a snow storm Pin Stripe Bowl... Texas unleashed Alex Okafor, got some big plays and shocked Oregon State.....Michigan State got a late kick to beat TCU...Vanderbilt controlled NC State and is a sleeper for 2013.....USC failed to show up, as many expected, and got taken out by Georgia Tech as the preseason number one Trojans limped home failing to not only finish in the final AP Top 25, but even receive votes.....In the best bowl game, Clemson got LSU at the gun.  Clemson coach Dabo Sweeney said the Tigers fought for every blade of grass out there, and he was nothing short of correct.  It was hard fought, and this much needed win for Clemson could pay later dividends.....Okie State bombed outclassed Purdue....Northwestern beat SEC Miss. State and are better than most think...Wisconsin fought hard, but could not stand up to Stanford in the end....Florida failed to take Louisville seriously and paid the price, getting stung in New Orleans which will leave a lingering bad taste in the mouth of Gator nation....Oregon ran all over K-State and smothered KSU's Collin Klein...Johnny Football and A&M bombed Oklahoma in the Cotton, and one has to wonder what has become of once powerful OU under Bob Stoops.....Ole Miss is emerging and dumped Pittsburgh.

In the Outback Bowl in Tampa, South Carolina got by a Michigan team that came to play. In a play late in the game, in perhaps the worst example of poor officiating we have sadly been witnessing recently, the officials awarded Michigan a first down when everyone but the three blind mice could see the Wolverines were short.  Take a look:




Many teams did not have the stomach to overcome a bad call late in a game, as witnessed after a Nebraska fumbled driving late in a tie ball game with Georgia over in Orlando.  But do not include the Gamecocks and Jadeveon Clowney in that discussion, because when the zebras dealt them a body blow, the Cocks took it out on their opponent.  In a truly outstanding individual play, take a look as South Carolina's Clowney take matters into his own hands.



Hope your team is not on the Gamecock schedule next fall, beacuse blocking this guy may be a mountain even Alabama cannot handle.  Needlesss to say, Clowney will be 2013 preseason All America and the favorite for the defensive player of the year, if not the Heisman Trophy.