John Rohde, sports columnist

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David Stanley Ford

Is the Big 12 what we thought it was?

By John Rohde    Comments Comment on this article229
Published: January 1, 2009

SAN DIEGO — We thought we knew Big 12 football.

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We thought we knew potentially four of the nation’s top 10 teams resided in the Big 12 South

We thought Missouri was a more-than-respectable fifth-place team.

We thought we were in the midst of unprecedented Big 12 pride.

After the conference’s first two bowl games, what do we think now?

Missouri was fortunate to beat a fellow journalism school Monday night, outlasting Northwestern 30-23 in overtime at the Alamo Bowl.

After being a preseason Heisman Trophy favorite, it appears Tigers senior quarterback Chase Daniel will have to venture north of the American border if he wants to continue playing football.

Oklahoma State was manhandled in the second half Tuesday night in a 42-31 loss to Oregon at the Holiday Bowl.

The Cowboys got beat up, and in a convincing manner.

Wide receiver Dez Bryant suffered a sprained knee, quarterback Zac Robinson had a separated shoulder, and everyone’s ego was battered and bruised.

Had Bryant and Robinson remained healthy, perhaps OSU would have won. Perhaps.

Both the Tigers and Cowboys were expected to win, but didn’t.

Makes you wonder what to expect from the Big 12’s big three.

Can Texas Tech take care of business against Mississippi in the Cotton Bowl on Friday?

Can Texas dispose of Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl next Monday?

And what to make of the BCS national championship game between Oklahoma and Florida one week from today?

Does the Big 12 truly warrant consideration as the nation’s top conference, or is that just a bunch of hooey?

OU is a 3-point underdog to the Gators and is the only Big 12 team not favored to win its bowl game.

Kansas was an 8½-point favorite against Minnesota in Wednesday night’s Insight Bowl. Missouri was favored by 12½, OSU by 3½, Texas Tech by 4½ and Texas by 8.

Poor performances from Missouri and OSU unquestionably turned up the heat on Texas Tech, Texas and OU.

Pay heed to how fellow conference teams fare in other bowl games, and don’t let anyone try to convince you otherwise.

The maligned Pacific-10 Conference undoubtedly feels better about itself after what the Ducks did, and the manner in which they did it.

(Two things the Cowboys should stress during the off-season: Becoming more physical, and learning how to tackle. Both are rather significant aspects of the game.)

We thought we knew Big 12 football in 2008.

Unless OU, Texas and Texas Tech step up big-time, we might discover we knew nothing at all.

We are now in 2009.

Last year brought new hope for Big 12 football, but the first week of a new year could bring new doubt.

John Rohde: 475-3099. John Rohde can be heard Monday-Friday from 6-7 p.m. on The Sports Animal Network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1.

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David Stanley Ford


Related Topics: Sports, Football, College Athletics, College Football, Bowl Championship Series


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Ya John, your right. The Pac-10 is the best and the SEC, Big 12 and every other conference is terrible. What a non-biased article to base an opinion on.
Jacob, Kansas - Jan 4, 2009 at 11:27 am
http://blog.oregonlive.com/ducks/2009/01/no_disrespect.html
John, Houston - Jan 4, 2009 at 1:32 am
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Dux, some of what you think is true, but do you think Utah would make it year in and year out in the Big 12 South, SEC or PAC-10? I don't think they would, but they certainly would have given UF or OU a good game IMO.
Jacob, Kansas - Jan 3, 2009 at 11:29 pm
"Good job Utah, way to expose the SEC for what it is - overrated..." *** Actually JT, what was exposed was that Utah was underrated. Oh they were given a nice ranking due to the media trying to create a story, but no one in the media really gave them a chance when it came to playing Bama. Utah is a GOOD team. The could be competitive year in and out in most BCS conferences. The difference between Utah or Boise State and an Oklahoma State program that is starting to make some noise in the Big 12, is depth. They have similar talent overall at the ones. But when you start to get down to the twos and threes, the talent level really drops off.
Dux, Albany - Jan 3, 2009 at 9:05 am
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I guess the media is going to promote that dominant Mountain West defense like they do the SEC defenses. Good job Utah, way to expose the SEC for what it is - overrated. Utah 31 Bama 17. So, can we expect an article on SEC not being what we most thought it was? Forgot to mention that the Outback Bowl, Iowa 31 South Carolina 10.
J.T.(I), Norman - Jan 2, 2009 at 11:10 pm
Stephen/Cypress - Don't mind steve/sparks aka goatboy he just can't help himself.
Zorg, Fhloston Paradise - Jan 2, 2009 at 8:40 pm
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jeff, midwest city - Jan 2, 2009 at 8:27 pm
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The powerhouse Big XII south is now 0fer 2. The puny little north is Threefer 3. Kind of ironic. I had planned on rooting for Ohio State, but now, I dunno.....
Glad I don't gamble, I'd lose my overstuffed rear.
And, I promised my wife when OU plays Florida, I will not scream and swear at the TV. Right.
LSU buddy called me a while ago, talking trash about how good the SEC is looking in the bowls....of course, that was before Utah took the 3 TD lead over 'bama.....
Gary H., Jones - Jan 2, 2009 at 8:10 pm
Steve, I'm not a moronic Floridian. I'm actually an OU fan who happens to live in Texas. I just see OU for what they really are and have been for the past several years. They can't play with the big boys outside of their own conference anymore. In fact, they haven't both before and after their last NC in 2000. I actually hope OU wins. It would put them back at the top again and erase many doubts that most people have had about them for some time now. OU will not drill Florida by 35 points. If anybody gets drilled, it's more likely to be OU, not Florida. But how I wish OU would win by that much.
Stephen, Cypress - Jan 2, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Dux, Albany - Jan 2, 2009 at 7:10 pm
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"And if Saben had not complained about having play Texas, he would have gotten his pussy ass whipped. As it stands Utah will send him home to mama's breast." Yeah, just like he did at LSU when they played in OU in the Sugar Bowl, right Stevie the Goat Boy?
Patrick, Edmond - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:53 pm
Jacob, Tech showed some signs of life, but yeah for the most part they looked bad. I really don't think it is because the SEC is so superior to the Big 12 any more than I think the PAC10 is superior. The name of the game anymore is parity. There are about three or four schools in each of the power football conferences that consistently field teams that with a little bit of luck can be in the thick of things toward the end of the year. Each of these conferences then each have a handful of teams that have decent enough programs to, on any given year, ruin the chances of one or more of those three teams and then also make a great run themselves every 4 or 5 years. My beef with most SEC fans and some Big 12 fans, is that they completely fail to recognize that there is actually some decent football played west of the Rockies. Most years, the PAC10 has a high OOC winning percentage while playing tougher OOC schedules that most of the traditional powers and still even media darlings USC get jobbed by the BCS. It is time for a playoff.
Dux, Albany - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:45 pm
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Stephen in Cypress, What are you? Another moronic Floridan out on a week end pass? OU will drill FU, Probabably by 35 or more points. And if Saben had not complained about having play Texas, he would have gotten his pussy ass whipped. As it stands Utah will send him home to mama's breast.
steve, sparks - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Dana, nobody I know has ever accused Tech of having a good defense, just an offense that would score enough to make up for it. I don't see how an SEC team allowing 34 points says good defense. Ole Miss beat Florida at Florida so I don't think it's too big a shock that they beat the #7 team in the country after beating the #1 or #2 team depending on which poll you look at. Tech's D did give up 65 to OU so you can guess there are some holes there.
chris, estherville - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Dux I agree with the Tech comment. In general, it is tough to compare any conference unless we have some sort of playoff. Tech got killed, some because of Ole Miss playing better and maybe some because they didn't really care to be there. But, man that looked bad. Ole Miss played like they did against UF, and Tech played like they did against OU. Bottom line.
Jacob, Kansas - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:05 pm
If Florida manhandles OU, which most expect (other than people in Oklahoma), the Big 12 is definitely going to look very pathetic compared to the SEC. If OU looks unprepared again, OU fans may be praying for Denver to take Stoops off their hands.
Stephen, Cypress - Jan 2, 2009 at 6:03 pm
serious what can they brag about, that they held tech to 34 points? IF that happened to OU, or Texas they would be saying their defenses sucked. Old Miss played a great game. They don't normal play that good, but any given Sunday, or in this case Friday. A team can get wrecked.
TY , OKLAHOMA CITY - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:24 pm
All you guys (I assume guys) out there make good points even the anti OU types. This was a good chat line during the Texas Tech disaster. Let's hope both Texas and OU win their games to restore the Big 12 pride this year.
William, Fairfield - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Im not sure how happy they can be when Tech done to them what they have done to everyone else, even though they had a bad game. Give Old Miss some credit, they hung 31 on Florida. they wouldn't have scored as much if it wasn't for players falling down, and Mike making some very bad play calls.
TY , OKLAHOMA CITY - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Texas Tech, another shining example of Big 12 defense.
Dana, Tacoma - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:17 pm
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Ty, I for one did not say much about the Mississippi defense but did say Harrell was not himself today. What most of us are talking about is the lack of defense Texas Tech played today. No wonder OU scored 65 on them with the offensive team they have. Texas should have also but did not. The OU/Florida game will be something to see. I don't think Florida can get that many stops on OU unless Bradford and company do the same thing Harrell and his mates did today. However, Florida will score on the OU defense unless something drastic happens to get the defense to play lights out on every down. Texas Tech, today, just made a lot of SEC fans happey and say "I told you so" about the Big 12 defenses. Saying that it still takes a pretty good team to score 60 plus points five games in a row.
William, Fairfield - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:13 pm
that's the worst game tech has played all year, give Tech some credit they didn't get stopped, now they couldn't stop them either but neither could Florida. Give Tech there credit, even though they had a bad game they still put over 400 yards of offense on one of the so called best defenses in the land.
TY , OKLAHOMA CITY - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:11 pm
or maybe you guys didn't watch the game if you think getting 461 yards of offense put on you is good defense.
TY , OKLAHOMA CITY - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Look you people watched the game. Old Miss couldn't stop Tech, Tech stopped Tech. You have to give Old Miss credit though, they won the game. They were better then I give them credit for, but Tech throw all over them, all game. So all of you people talking about how good the sec defenses are they got ripped just like everybody else. But like I said, Old Miss won. we need to have and Big 12 sec challenge, oh that right I beleive the sec declined that challenge. Credit where credit is due, good win for Old Miss.
TY , OKLAHOMA CITY - Jan 2, 2009 at 5:01 pm
"Sterling, the blown call on the onside kick at Oregon cost OU the chance to run out the clock..." *** No question, OU got completely jobbed on the call. In all of the mess and the capitulation by the PAC10 afterwords and the idiotic calls from the coach and AD at OU for Oregon to forfeit the game though, just made OU and their fans look silly. The proper call was that the UO player interfered with the opportunity of the OU player to field the ball by making contact with him inside the 10 yard boundary, but that can't be used to overturn anything on replay. The replay was unclear as to whether an Oregon player touched the ball before the OU player. The ball was on the turf and an Oregon DB fell on it. I believe it was Chung. Afterward he said he actually had possession of the ball while he was down, either way, the whistle had blown before the ball squirted out and the OU player grabbed it at the end. Again, since the play had been ruled dead and possession had been awarded, the rules at the time did not allow anything to be overturned by replay. The call was blown and then could not be fixed. As for the pass interference call, if it is the play I am thinking of, holding would have been the proper call whether the ball was tipped or not. If memory serves there was contact with the receiver passed the 5 yard limit before the ball was even in the air. The thing that everyone seems to lose sight of is that despite the completely blown call, Oregon still had to score 2 TD's in 72 seconds. OU failed to stop them. OU failed to convert a field goal to win the gam at the end. OU got jobbed on a crucial call just as any team can. In 2001 failure of the officials to call interference when an Oregon up back signaled a fair catch on a pooch kick. As a result, Stanford recovered a loose ball and went on to take the lead and keep Oregon from an undefeated season. It cost the Ducks a spot on the NC title game. Funny, you didn't see Oregon fans posting all over the boards about his mistake. The reason? Even with instant replay, calls still get blown at crucial times in the game. Sometimes they go your way, sometimes they don't. There was more than 59 other minutes of football that were played that day. Like OU, Oregon failed to respond to the adversity of a bad call and ended up losing the game. But hey, at least Stoops has now an excuse for NEVER scheduling another home and home with a PAC10 team again.
Dux, Albany - Jan 2, 2009 at 4:59 pm
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