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I suppose this all went roughly as expected. After all, what should we have expected after putting all control over college football in the hands of a handful of bureaucrats? Were we expecting the little private school with the superior résumé to jump the traditional power with a massive hype machine? Were we expecting an undefeated team to be given the benefit of the doubt over a team that runs up the score and maligns others in every press conference?
Nah.
We now live in a world where the rules are made up and all that matters is how much a team can get 13 men (and a woman) in suits to like them every week. Only three of those men have coaching experience, and two of the three have B1G ties. We now live in a world where those 13 people have obvious favorites and will move the metaphorical goalposts however necessary to justify their flawed logic. Do you have the best loss? Have you beaten top 25 Minnesota? Have you beaten Minnesota with a winning record? Do you have a lot of money and a large fan base? Do you pass the eye test (the nature of which is still ambiguous)?
13 people and their obvious fallibility are ruining the game that we love. The teams benefitting most (TCU and Ohio State) simply don't care. The one getting screwed (Baylor) doesn't have the size, money, or influence to force anyone else to care. We're in a system that's much more dangerous than the BCS ever was, because while the BCS had shambly tendencies, it also never had an agenda.
/rant
Lady Bears vs. Texas-Pan American Tonight
The Lady Bears take on Texas-Pan American (Edinburg, TX; Student body of 20,000) tonight at 7 p.m. in the Ferrell Center. After their loss to Kentucky on the road the Lady Bears have been on a roll, and Dekeiya Cohen has been putting on a great show as a true freshman.
In Memoriam: UAB Blazers Football, Bowling, and Rifle Teams
A terrible thing happened yesterday. Per decision of President Ray Watts and the Alabama Board of Trustees, the University of Alabama at Birmingham shut down its football, bowling, and rifle programs. The justification for the move was the fact that the university spent millions of dollars subsidizing the programs every year, but there are reports that fundraisers and donations were shut down and denied by the school, and that Paul Bryant, Jr. (the president of the Alabama Board of Trustees) had campaigned for the death of the program based on a longtime grudge once held by his father.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Cell phone video from inside the meeting where UAB president informed the players. Grainy, emotional, sickening. <a href="https://t.co/AZTe1lrPTW">https://t.co/AZTe1lrPTW</a></p>— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) <a href="https://twitter.com/slmandel/status/540002850685075456">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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UAB, bowl eligible for the first time, was showing potential for the first time in years. They have a bright young head coach in Bill Clark. They were planning to build an indoor practice facility and renovate their stadium.
It is the last year that Bryant will serve on the board, and it is believed that he shares his father's distaste for Gene Bartow, founder of UAB Athletics, over a cheating allegation from 1991.
If money killed UAB, that's a shame. If politics killed it, that's a tragedy. Rage against the dying of the light, Blazers.
Media on the Baylor Bandwagon
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>CFP ranking reaction column: More PR, and more points Saturday, for wronged Baylor <a href="http://t.co/PRmLu6XlKc">http://t.co/PRmLu6XlKc</a></p>— Pat Forde (@YahooForde) <a href="https://twitter.com/YahooForde/status/539974249193041920">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Since the committee clearly thinks Alabama is best in country why should they even play Missouri? Who wins a h2h matchup doesn't matter</p>— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/joelklatt/status/539952903675314176">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>TCU fans keep hitting me with the "but they lost by 2 TD to WVU" well if you want to compare games check out OU for each.</p>— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/joelklatt/status/539954841859018752">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Using Committee logic last year Alabama would have played FSU in Nat Champ Game because Bama loss to Aub was better than Aub loss to LSU</p>— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/joelklatt/status/539958657618690048">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>I mean you can't make this up...this is from CFB Playoff Committee media guide...LOL <a href="http://t.co/kuRUXair2G">pic.twitter.com/kuRUXair2G</a></p>— Joel Klatt (@joelklatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/joelklatt/status/539970238578585600">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>This week's Pregame Huddle is up early. I make the case for Baylor over TCU. <a href="http://t.co/e7z8Q48oqk">http://t.co/e7z8Q48oqk</a></p>— David Ubben (@davidubben) <a href="https://twitter.com/davidubben/status/539960603691847680">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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He also makes the case for TCU and explains why Bob Bowlsby is ridiculous. David Ubben would make a better playoff committee than the playoff committee.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>“I propose we eliminate head-to-head results as tiebreaker & replace it with a series of arbitrary factors that favor us.” TCU fans tonight</p>— Clay Travis (@ClayTravisBGID) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClayTravisBGID/status/539964140413276160">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Are you real? RT <a href="https://twitter.com/figmo65">@figmo65</a>: TCU lost to BU by 3 on the road. That makes it the same as a tie. TCU’s a better team then BU.</p>— Clay Travis (@ClayTravisBGID) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClayTravisBGID/status/539947100209811456">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Just admit it, CFP committee: It's all about the eye test <a href="http://t.co/T6iMtdkYUX">http://t.co/T6iMtdkYUX</a></p>— Matt Hayes (@Matt_HayesSN) <a href="https://twitter.com/Matt_HayesSN/status/540011933999456256">December 3, 2014</a></blockquote>
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