From Deseret News archives:
U. should play just one more
We'll never know.
That's what's wrong with the inexplicable, nonsensical, ridiculous, maddening Bowl Championship Series.
With Saturday's 35-7 Fiesta Bowl victory over an outmanned, outclassed team from Pitt, the Utes closed the season unbeaten, untied, unchallenged and unfinished — as in there's still unfinished business they'll never resolve.
College football is the only sport in the world in which a team can complete a season unbeaten without winning the championship. It's happened 15 times in the past four decades of Division 1-A competition.
The Utes deserve to play another game. No matter what happens in the remaining two BCS bowl games, nothing will be settled. There will be more than one unbeaten team remaining — and as many as three. Each can make a claim for the title, albeit unofficially.
After daring to dream aloud last summer about an unbeaten season, the Utes did just that. They not only won every game, they won them all big. The average score: 45-19. Their closest game: two touchdowns. Their next closest game: Three touchdowns. Employing the freshest offense since the creation of the West Coast offense, they overwhelmed opponents with creative schemes and talent. (Memo to Atlanta Falcons: Imagine this offense with Michael Vick at the controls.)
Nothing could stop the Utes. Not even the distraction of losing their head coach and seven assistants to Florida and Nevada-Las Vegas while preparing for the Fiesta Bowl, including their offensive coordinator. Not even the distraction of having a couple of their star players hint that they might leave school early for professional football. Not even the pressure of performing on the national stage for the first time.
The Utes pretty much yawned their way through the season. Did they ever even have a tense moment? Texas A&M, North Carolina, Arizona, Air Force, BYU, Pitt — they all got treated the same: badly.
The Utes turned the Fiesta Bowl into a dog. Surely, BCS officials were huddled in their dark corners somewhere whispering to one another, "Gee, these guys really are good." Pitt had no business being in the game, and while we're on the subject, why does the BCS grant automatic berths to conference champions, which put Pitt in the Fiesta Bowl and Michigan in the Rose Bowl ahead of more deserving teams and derailed more sensible matchups, such as Utah vs. Auburn. If the BCS is not going to utilize a playoff system, can't it at least dump the automatic berths and rely solely on the nutty poll system it keeps touting?
