ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Things on your mind....

Raymond from Tucson, Ariz., writes: USC defense did not allow a TD? I thought CAL scored a passing touchdown that was called back for an "ILLEGAL MAN DOWN FIELD" penalty. Please clarify. If I recall instant replay showed no down lineman down field combined with no number of a player given by the ref. Just because the refs took away the TD on what I think was a BAD call doesn't really mean the USC defense kept CAL out of the endzone. The final box score will reflect that CAL did not score a TD but the reality is CAL did score a TD that was taken away by a ZEBRA. Please clarify.

Ted Miller: Got lots of e-mails about this and USC receiver Patrick Turner's "catch."

As for the penalty that killed the Cal TD: Correct call.

The Bears lined up incorrectly. This clear explanation comes from Michael Lev's USC blog:

The Cal receiver at the far left of the formation did not initially position himself at the line of scrimmage. When he realized he needed to move up, he didn't get set before the ball was snapped. The receiver, therefore, became the ineligible man downfield."

As for Turner's catch, it was close. Should have been reviewed. Wasn't. Smart for USC to rush the PAT unit on the field. Unfortunate for the Cal folks to not react quickly enough to challenge the play. And another bad moment for Pac-10 officials.

Clark from Dallas writes: I am a Wildcat alum but my question concerns USC. Most fans don't understand it, but when my Wildcats are out of contention, I root for Pac-10 success, which normally means USC. My question is regarding one possible "title game" scenario for USC. According to Herbstreet, the winner of the SEC Champ game (Bamma or Florida) is in the title game. And whomever wins the Big 12 South, assuming that team beats Mizzou in Big 12 Champ game, is in the title game. But what if Mizzou knocks off that team? Would the BCS select the Big 12 South #2 team, USC, or some other school?

Ted Miller: That's the $17 million question. The BCS system will select the top two teams in the final BCS standings. Period. So it depends on how the pollsters -- two-thirds of the vote -- and computers react. If, say, Missouri beats undefeated Texas Tech in the Big 12 title game, then that's how Texas could end up in the national championship game. My guess is, however, things stack up at the end, a one-loss Big 12 South team will nip a one-loss USC team.

Glenn from Los Angeles writes: Ted, i'm headed up to Berkeley for the USC/Stanford game this weekend. I think we can all assume USC will keep the Trees from scoring double digits. That being said, what would you like to see out of USC's offense on Saturday? Coach Carroll seems to pick and choose different players ever week to give 100 yard games to. Who do you think it's going to be this week? P.S. ... any bars or restaurants you want to recommend?

Ted Miller: Guessing you're staying in Berkeley but headed to Palo Alto for the Stanford game, right? Folks on Telegraph Avenue might give you funny looks if you start asking how to get to Stanford Stadium.

As for the game, Stanford ranks last in the Pac-10 in pass defense. I expect Pete Carroll will draw a smiley face by that in his notebook.

As far as restaurants, I stayed in Oakland two weeks ago and had great dinners at Levende East and B Restaurant, which are across from each other on Washington St. Both have good bars.

If you're looking for college flavo, perhaps some of our friends who read the blog can offer suggestions.

Konce from Albany writes: Ted, did I read another nat'l story correctly that stated that the vaunted SEC is 1-3 against the mighty Cowboys of Wyoming under Joe Glenn? Inneresting, veeeery inneresting.

Ted Miller: You did read that correctly after the Cowboys put the clamps to Tennessee on Saturday, but, Konce, those other two wins were over Ole Miss and nobody in the SEC would ever pretend Ole Miss is a good team... would they, Florida?

Josef in Oakland writes: If Cal wins out are they headed to the Holiday Bowl?

Ted Miller: Only if Arizona loses a game.

Edmo from Berkeley writes: Why are fans of teams with winning records booing their teams at home (Cal, Oregon). It seems that expectations are to get 5 yards a carry, complete 70% of your passes and shut out opponents. Has college football fandom just gotten out of control with its expectations? The BCS hunt is actually making the sport less fun for those of us who certainly hope for a National Championship, but now have to endure the gripes, whining, and booing from home fans.

Ted Miller: I don't like it but, hey, it's a free country, right?

Fans are just angrier and more demanding these days. I don't know if you can blame the BCS. It seems to me it's more a cultural shift -- talk radio, Internet message boards, Pac-10 blogs, instant gratification technology -- that has made being a sports fan a more intense, adversarial experience.

Ken from Gainesville writes: I posed the question to a friend, barring any unforeseen losses near the end of the season, it would appear that the SEC champ is a lock for the national title game, with most people looking at the winner of the Big 12 South as the other fixture in the game. However, assume Mizzou beats either Texas/Texas Tech/Oklahoma and chaos ensues. BCS voters have expressed before (Michigan in '06) that any team playing in the BCS title game must have won its conference. If Mizzou were to pull the upset, that would eliminate 4 of the top 5 teams in one fell swoop, leaving USC as the next in line for BCS glory. But again, another question arises: If Oregon State wins out, will they not be Pac-10 Champs over USC? I guess my question boils down to how they crown the Pac-10 champion, if there are two one-loss teams, does the team with the head-to-head victory take the crown or is there a shared title?

Ted Miller: Not sure SEC champ is a lock. If, for example, Florida loses to Florida State and then beats Alabama in the SEC title game, the two-loss Gators wouldn't play for the title.

If you're saying that if things hold true to form, then, yes, one-loss or undefeated SEC champ is a lock.

As for USC and Oregon State: If both win out, they, technically, tie for the championship -- USC's media guide will bellow "SEVEN CONSECUTIVE PAC-10 TITLES!" in 2009.

But Oregon State would win the head-to-head tiebreaker and go to the Rose Bowl.

But USC still could end up as an at-large BCS team -- and, yes, the Trojans could end up in the BCS title game even if Oregon State earns the Rose Bowl berth.

Jeff from Creswell, Oregon: Ted - you think the Rose Bowl committee is trying to get in touch with Tonya Harding to see if she can mastermind a "hit" on Quizz, in hopes of derailing the OSU train to the Rose Bowl?

Ted Miller: Funny... but I actually think the Rose Bowl would embrace Oregon State considering USC is local and doesn't bring a large number of tourists into town AND the Trojans have played in the game four out of the past five years.

Edogg from Corvallis, Ore., writes: Yo Ted, Word on the street is you're finally going to visit Reser to watch the beavs play. Good luck and don't have too much fun watching the greatest show in oregon.

Ted Miller: Edogg, I am so there.