Deseret News | What others are saying: We're No. 1! chant may be replaced by 'Who isn't?'

Reader comments
What others are saying: We're No. 1! chant may be replaced by 'Who isn't?'

TC | 8:38 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Utes are # 1 - end of discussion.

Buckeye Fan | 8:42 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

The BCS is configured as it is for one reason only: to keep the non-BCS conferences out of the title game. They do not want the football equivalent of a Villanova or UNLV to be the football champion and dilute we they maintain is the superiority of the BCS conferences.

Frank at THE GAME | 9:01 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

The Fex Bowl, the Rose Bowl and the Fiesta Bowl all became irrelevant once the number 1 team in the country finished off Alabama in the Suagr Bowl. Texas barely knocked an unworthy opponent in Ohio State; Southern Cal barely knocked off Penn State. Florida and Okalhome are playing on past reputation (although thank you Urban Meyer for given Kyle all those tips on how to anniliate Alabama).

The Utes are inquestionably the number 1 team in the country; the ONLY team with an unblemished record.

If the AP can't see this fact then they are as blind as the BCS.

Saban needs to hand back his "coach of the year" trophy, so that it can awarded to the real coach of the year, Kyle Whittingham.

GO UTES!

Comments continue below

For Blind Frank | 9:21 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

I'm worried about what the math department at the U is teachind these days. Tell me Frank, what are the differences between 31-17 and 38-24?

Did the Utes "barely knock off an unworthy opponent" in Alabama, or did the Trojans "finish off" Penn State?

You can't have it both ways bud.

Anonymous | 9:29 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Im sure everyone would agree with the notion that the BCS has a stronghold on college football. What about ESPN? They just invested how many millions of dollars for the rights to air the BCS games and im sure they love the controversy that comes with it because more people will watch/listen to their shows. I think ESPN is just as much to blame as the BCS. They dont want to lose their investment in the BCS and will do what it takes to keep the current system in place.

Re: Frank | 9:43 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

And not only was it the same 14 point difference as the Utes' win, but they ran up to a monstrous lead in the 2nd quarter, just as the Utes did in the 1st quarter.

Utes' #1 - the jokes on you | 11:12 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

BCS ï¿½ big capitalistic system. They do not care who is #1, just how to generate cash for there executives, but shareholders count too. But customers (fans) and employees (teams) donï¿½t matter or even need to have a say in the process. The BCS just laughs and walks away with all the money as fans and teams shout at each other ï¿½weï¿½re #1ï¿½. It immoral, but not illegal, and until something is done about it from a legal stand point the ï¿½robber baronsï¿½ will pillage the system for all they can. A playoff system makes sense not profit for those that run the BCS ï¿½ do really think they will ever just voluntarily give up that profit?

Re Re frank | 11:20 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

USC should not be in the title discussion at all.

Richie | 11:17 a.m. Jan. 7, 2009

As a USC Alum naturally I think the Trojans should be number 1, but as a long time resident of Utah I have a hard time bad mouthing Utah. As far as the Southeast Conference is concerned they have always been over rated. Way back in 1968 the Trojans went into bear Bryants backyard and kicked his Crimson tide all over the field (with a future felon of America by the name of Simpson). Then they went north to Oregon and lost a senseless game. Guess who was the National Champion. Why Alabama of course.

True UTE | 12:00 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Why should USC not be in it? If you throw out USC then all of the top ten should be out. The other thing is USC had their one loss way before the others and should be ranked higher but it coms down to stupid rankings not head to head play. I had people explain over and over to me that Utah had no chance to win and I would try to explain head to head contests that said it was possible but they would not listen. Now that Utah has one these people explain that we got lucky with their injuries and suspensions etc. (ad noseum) Do I think the Utes could beat Oklahoma, Florida, Texas , USC. I do not know for sure and neither does anyone else but give me a chance to find out.

are you serious?? | 12:08 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

YOu ute fans must be drinking the same kool-aid as the byu fans, because no way should you be number one. First of all your conference is weak and if oyu guys were in the SEC or pac 10 you would finish 5th int he conference or worse. YOu guys had a great performance against alabams. But let's not get carried away. USC would of destroyed ALabama or any team fo that matter.

Jay | 12:35 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

'are you serious??'--

You really think that the ACC, the Big East, or even the PAC 10 are stronger conferences then the MWC? You are dead wrong. MWC teams tear apart every PAC 10 team that they play against. And the Big East? Give me a break. There is absolutely no reason that the Big East or the ACC should have an automatic bid to the BCS and not the Mountain West. Even ESPN has said that this year the MWC was the fourth toughest in the nation (or was it third?)

Serious - Oh yes Conference? | 12:40 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

I think USC is in the discussion, but you want to talk about conferences this year? Utah's "weak" conference was 6-1 regular season against the PAC-10 and the common USC-Utah opponent beat USC and lost to Utah. Don't "conference" me!

To: are you serious | 12:42 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

you seriously think that Utah would have been 5th in the pac 10 and the the mountian west is weak. First of all Utah beat Oregon state a week after they beat USC. They were still flying high and Utah brought them back to reality. Second the Mountain West was 6-1 versus the pac 10 this season. Before you start mouthing off you should check the facts and it would help if you ever watched the games.

Jay | 12:42 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Here is the answer:

The only way for the BCS to save itself is to have them take over the scheduling for all of their schools. BCSï¿½s rationale for keeping the system the way it is, is that the BSC keeps the regular season meaningful and that every game counts. We see this year (and in 2004, and in 2006 with Boise St.) that is obviously not true. Their reason for keeping the Utes out of the Championship game is that our schedule isnï¿½t as strong as Floridaï¿½s or Oklahomaï¿½s. If the BCS really means what they say (that their system makes the regular season matter) then they should control the scheduling for all BCS schools. Teams like Alabama would NEVER schedule a team like Utah, BYU, or Boise St. on their regular season schedule because they might get beat and be out of the running for the title. A playoff is obviously the best choice. But, since we know that wonï¿½t happen for a while, in the meantime why not have the BCS handle the non-conference scheduling for teams? That would solve it.

Football Fan | 12:42 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Ok so Utah soundly handled Alabama. This doesn't mean that they should be #1 over Texas, USC, Oaklahoma or Florida. All it means is that they are right up there at the top. Nothing can be resolved without a playoff setup so please Ute fans, enough of the "We should be #1". You talk how these other top teams shouldn't be #1 because of there win/losses when you guys bearly beat Oregon St. and TCU all but gave you the game(That was not as much of a win as a favor given by TCU). Could you guys be #1, it's possible, but please don't say it like your were robbed of the #1 ranking, that's rediculous.

Ute on the Hill | 12:52 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Are you serious?? your logic is pathetic. If these Utes (with their same coaches) played the current Alabama team with their coaches 10 times THE UTES WOULD WIN 7 or 8 of those games! Speed kills, and obviously not all SEC teams have it (although Florida will show theirs tomorrow night), clearly not this 12-2 Bama squad. Maybe next year TIDE fans.

magnus | 1:14 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Mark my words, within 5 years there will be an NCAA sponsored tournament for DI FBS college football. Pressure is mounting on all sides, polititians are applying pressure for the Justice Department to step in both on state and federal levels.

The winds of change are blowing...

Personally I would like to see an 8 team tournament, NCAA sanctioned, and sponsored much like the current Bowl games are. The rest of the Bowl system would remain intact, kind of like the NIT tourney in B-ball.

There would be no automatic conference bids.

The top 4 teams determined by a ranking system similar to the BCS system would be automaticaly in.

The last four spots would be "at-large" spots determined as follows:

Any conference champion, from any conference, ranked in the top 12 in the standings is in. (I think we need to keep the traditional importance of conference play) if there are more than 4 then the lowest seeded is out if there are less...

Any reamaining spots would be filled by the highest ranked, non-conference champion.

So this year...

Oklahoma vs Boise State
Florida vs Penn St
Texas vs Utah
Alabama vs USC

Now that's a National Championship.

We're #1??? | 1:55 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Which team claiming to be the #1 team in the nation beat a UNM team that was 4-8 13-10, by a fieldgoal?

Which team need poor clock management by OSU to pull out a victory?

Which team needed a freshman kicker from TCU to miss 2 FGs inside the 30 to get the W?

This is the best team in the country? Come on, get real.

Utah played great in the Sugar Bowl, but they were not the 2004 Utes, and definately not the #1 team in the country, and voters know this.

Why get your hopes up?

Re: Magnus | 2:04 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Expand your tournament to 16 teams, it's just one more week of play. By the way, what's with the mention of Boise State in your original eight. This years game was a defensive thriller to the end, but face it, they lost to a better opponent, 'The Horned Frogs.' The fantastic finish against Oklahoma is in the past. Their '08 schedule was weak and the WAC opponents mediocre at best. Troy

Celebrate Utes, But Get Real | 2:10 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

The win over Alabama was sweet. The rest of the Utes season does not account for much. MWC is a football wasteland. If the Utes played every week in a real conference they would wouldn't be undefeated.

Re: We're # 1 | 2:31 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Are you joking? I challenge anyone to look at the past "so-called" champions for the last 5 years. Every team has had close calls with more than one game on their schedule. That's how the ball bounces. For Utah, they got every bounce they needed this year.

They crushed ALA and all the SEC bandwagon...which was awesome! Coaches in Provo could take notes on how to get things done and be a bit more creative in the game.

Utah has every right to claim the #1 spot for themselves...they did everything they were asked to do. Now go back and listen to your Hall & Oates records before posting another lame comment.

Circular Logic | 2:36 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

and illogical, biased SOS comparisons

Penn St > Oregon St > USC > Penn St
Utah > Oregon St > USC

Texas > Oklahoma > Texas Tech > Texas

Alabama > Ole Miss > Florida > Alabama
Utah > Alabama > Ole Miss > Florida

bottom line
Utah 13-0, beat 4 Top 25 teams, lost to NOBODY!
Oklahoma 12-1, beat 4 Top 25 teams, lost to 1 Top 25 team
Florida 12-1, beat 4 Top 25 teams, lost to 1 unranked team
Texas 12-1, beat 4 Top 25 teams, lost to 1 Top 25 team
USC 12-1, beat 3 Top 25 teams, lost to 1 Top 25 team

Ranked according to record against their best five opponents
1 Utah 5-0 (also beat Air Force)
2 Texas 4-1 (beat Oklahoma)
3 Oklahoma 4-1 (lost to Texas)
4 Florida 4-1 (lost to unranked Ole Miss)
5 USC 4-1 (only beat 3 ranked opponents)

Give it up for the Utes! | 2:35 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

So much yapping. The Utes are undefeated. They beat 'bama without looking back. Say what ever you want, but Utah did what no other team did. No doubt in my mind who's #1.

True Blue | 3:19 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

BYU should be ranked in the top 10 if Utah is going to ranked #1. We live right off the field so miracles can happen on the field.

to "we're #1" | 3:19 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Have you done the same analysis to the other teams stating their claim to #1?

Also, it doesn't really matter what you say... the utes won the games... it's my understanding that missed field goals are just that missed field goals, if tcu was better they would have made the field goals, also, they had a four point lead but their defense did not stop the utes, the utes drove down the field and won the game... also lets say tcu makes one or both of those field goals who's to say utah wouldn't have scored sooner and more often... i seem to recall a situation where louie could have tried a long field goal but because of time and score utah decided to punt... you see there is a flaw in you logic... if you change one play during the game then it changes every play after that... same with osu and byu, take away a hall pick and every play changes and not just in favor of byu...

and regarding osu's mismanagement of the clock doesn't that arguement really prove that utah is better because they did not make the same mistakes.

Utah 13-0 says it all.... undefeated!!!!!

Are You Kidding me | 4:18 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Are you kidding me? USC barely beat Penn State???? USC shouldn't be in consideration???? USC is the best team in the nation. Their defense is outstanding and there speed on offense is vey good. They would be anybody. We all know USC has one fluke game every single year. They crushed Ohio State, who Texas barely beat. Pete is right to say they probably would have won 5. They come to play against the big schools. USC is number one. UTAH deserves to be up there too. They are good. And i'm a BYU fan. I think however that they would lose to Texas, USC, and Florida. Alabama too on most nights.

magnus | 4:58 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

@ Re: Magnus

By the rules I stated Boise St would be in, it had nothing to do with personal love for Boise St. They finnished 9th in the BCS standings and won the WAC, so they would be in over #7 Texas Tech who didn't win their conference.

I would prefer 8 team tourney for a couple of reasons.

First is because I do believe the college football regular season is one of the greatest in all of sports, every game matters. Even with just an eight team tournament I think the regular season should be shortened to 11 games. It's easy to say "it's just one more week" but I think every week you add diminishes the tradition of win-every-week-or-die competition in College football.

Second, how many times in 20 years to you think a team not ranked in the top 5 or 6 would even have a shot at winning a national champoionship tournament? Take basketball, MarchMadness is awesome and cinderellas make great stories, but in the last 20 years nobody lower than a 4 seed has won the tournament. Football is even more selective, every year there are only a handfull of truly elite teams.

Playoff | 5:50 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

11 Conferences = 11 Teams automatic in Tourney. Win your conference and your in. The next 5 are at larges. That way even the podunk schools at least have a chance to win the National Championship.

TexasTransplant | 6:18 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Recommended reading: Rick Reilly's excellent piece on the ESPN website -- a representative example of arguments made by those advocating that Utah is the "real" national champion.

I am a Big-12 guy (grew up in Texas and attended a Big-12 school). However, the Utah team that played in the Sugar Bowl would have beaten the Texas team that played in the Fiesta Bowl (probably by more than 14 points). In fact, before the bowl selections were made, several commentators correctly opined that Utah would match up better against Texas than it would against Alabama. The Texas victory over Ohio State is not even close to being as impressive as the Utah win over Alabama. Re: USC's claim on #1 ï¿½ USC has a loss, Utah doesnï¿½t, and Utah beat the team that beat USC. If Florida beats Oklahoma then the case for Utah as #1 is strengthened -- Florida trailed Alabama until the later part of the fourth quarter and won by 11 (vs 14 for Utah). If Oklahoma beats Florida badly then both sides of the Utah vs Oklahoma for #1 argument can make a legitimate case. But, this Big 12 alum says Utah deserves it more.

can't find it | 6:44 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Where am I supposed to find the article CAN YOU HANDLE THE TRUTH on ESPN?

Utes are undefeated | 8:41 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

...but not even in the picture to be number 1. At least 5 teams are better. Sadness on the molehill!

magnus | 8:43 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Look for Rick Reileys face next to Bill Simmons about halfway down the front page. The headline was "Can you handle the truth?" but I don't think that was the title of the article.

Who isn't #1 | 9:52 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

TDS!!!

Who is #1? The UTES!!!

this is nonsense | 10:57 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Like the idea Jay. I don't even want to get on my soap box with all of this. But lets be honest if Oklahoma, Florida, Texas, USC, or anybody for that matter in a BCS conference played the exact same schedule, team for team, as Utah did this year and went undefeated they undisputedly would be crowned national champs! Their strength of schedule can't even be an issue in the argument. All teams slip and have a close game here and there (ex. USC, Texas, Florida, Oklahoma)but when you still find a way to win that says something, because in the end winning is all that matters and Utah is the only team who did it. No doubt the other teams have their argument towards the title, but I still see a number higher than 0 in their loss column and that you can't argue.

LittleSnoozy | 10:57 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Oh, this "Utes are #1" rambling is really getting old. They are going to end up #3 at best. Expectations for anything else is nothing more than a fantasy Ute fans. It's a good thing the Utes didn't have to play Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, USC, Ohio State or Penn State. They would have got spanked big time.

Anonymous | 11:18 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

"Oh, this "Utes are #1" rambling is really getting old. They are going to end up #3 at best. Expectations for anything else is nothing more than a fantasy Ute fans. It's a good thing the Utes didn't have to play Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, USC, Ohio State or Penn State. They would have got spanked big time."

New Year's day you would have put Alabama on that list, too. Utah could have beat anybody this year and it's criminal that they don't get a shot at the championship.

To: LittleSnoozy | 11:31 p.m. Jan. 7, 2009

Ask any Alabama fan or player if they think Utah could handle Florida. They'll tell you Utah could hang with them.
The players and fans in Alabama said that Utah handled them from start to finish. Florida had to come from behind and still had a chance to make it a game at the end. It wasn't even close. And ask anybody on the Alabama team - it wasn't a fluke. Utah would beat them 7 out of 10. That wasn't even a neutral field.

This Utah team could easily beat Texas or Ohio State (NO passing game) or Penn State (Big Ten - are you kidding??). I like Utah's chances against USC and Oklahoma - though USC's defense is very tough and Oklahoma's passing game is very tough. They'd probably be harder games than Florida or Texas for the Utes.

Regardless - the point is - we'll never know. Fortunately, Utah played against the team who was ranked #1 the longest - and they whooped them. Utah beat the team that beat #1 USC.
Utah beat four teams in the top 25. Florida beat 2. Enough said.

re: are you serious?? | 12:08 a.m. Jan. 8, 2009

PLEASE! To say the MWC is a weak conference when it went 6-2 against the PAC 10 is really saying something. Fact: Utah has beaten two teams that will finish in the top 10 (Alabama and TCU). Fact: Utah has beaten two teams that will probably be ranked (BYU and Oregon State). Fact: Utah beat Oregon State who beat USC, and who would've probably won the PAC 10 if their running back wasn't injured for the Oregon game.
Fact: Utah has no losses.
The SEC stinks this year as well. Florida has two wins over currently ranked teams (Georgia and Alabama). They also have a loss to Mississippi. Alabama has two wins over currently ranked teams (Georgia and Mississippi), and has losses to Utah and Florida. Georgia is the next best team, and their only ranked win is over Michigan State. They almost lost to SC, and they did lose to Georgia Tech. Mississippi is the next best team in the SEC, and they have losses to SC, Vandy, and Wake Forest in addition to Alabama. Sorry, but the SEC doesn't look very intimidating this year.

Sandy, Utah | 12:23 a.m. Jan. 8, 2009

I'm from Utah, and I think Forida is actually the best team in the nation, not the utes. People say Florida has a loss, but look at the loss. It was one point!! A missed field goal would have changed that game. Utah was 2 missed field goals from losing to TCU and Oregon State.

Florida would destroy Utah, let's be honest here. Although I think Florida is the best team in the country, I'm cheering for Oklahoma, but I think its a losing cause.

To Sandy, Utah | 1:43 a.m. Jan. 8, 2009

You may be right. I don't know if utah would beat florida. I think they'd have a chance, but the point is that they don't GET to take that chance. I would be satisfied if some team could prove that they were better than utah. However, no one has and so utah, being the only team that hasn't had another team prove that they are better on the field, should be national champs. That they won't be is just wrong.

How many? | 7:23 a.m. Jan. 8, 2009

How many of the teams in the top 10 would be undefeated had they played Utah's schedule? Texas, I'd say yes! Florida, I'd say yes! Oklahoma, I'd yes! Texas Tech I'd say yes! Boise State, I'd say yes! Even USC who did lose to Oregon State, I'd say yes! They would not look past OState if it was one of their "hardest" marquee opponents! There are several other possibles to consider as well. Penn State, maybe? Ohio State, maybe? Missouri, maybe? And then there's Alabama. They probobly could, many think they proved they can even beat themselves!

Utah had a GREAT season! Won everygame on the schedule! Beat some quality opponenets! Utah fans can harass BYWho with legitamate claims of glory! But National Champs?

re: How many? | 12:40 p.m. Jan. 8, 2009

and your OPINION is more valid than anyone else's opinion because....???

gotta laugh at your totally clueless reasoning

let's see:

USC would be undefeated if they played Utah's schedule even though USC's only loss was to a team that Utah beat???

hmmm

"Elite" teams shouldn't have to count losses to "lesser" teams because they didn't take them seriously???

hmmm

I mean, the "elite" teams are superior to everyone on their schedule and couldn't possibly lose to the "lesser" teams and even if they did, that shouldn't count because the "elite" team wasn't really trying???

hmmm

You should go to work for a politician. With spin like that you'd have the media constantly bamboozled!!!

Add your comment

Comments are monitored. Any comments found to be abusive, offensive, off-topic, misrepresentative, more than 200 words or containing URLs will not be posted.

Words Remaining

E-mail address: For internal use only. We may want to contact you to publish your comment (not your e-mail address) in the newspaper or for a separate story idea.

Follow us on facebook

Deseret News ski school

Reader comments
What others are saying: We're No. 1! chant may be replaced by 'Who isn't?'

Add your comment

Utes knock off rival Aggies

Protesters get legal vs. Phoenix Temple

BYU would like friendlier rivalry

Letters: Trump card for believers

Letters: Rushing to judge Palin

BYU would like friendlier rivalry

Boys basketball rankings

BYU would like friendlier rivalry

Is talking about religion taboo?

BYU would like friendlier rivalry

Reader comments What others are saying: We're No. 1! chant may be replaced by 'Who isn't?'

Add your comment

Reader comments
What others are saying: We're No. 1! chant may be replaced by 'Who isn't?'