Wolverines need help for shot at BCS title game
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By Mark Snyder
The Detroit Free Press
Posted on Mon, Nov. 20, 2006
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Though many will try, predicting the final poll results of the Bowl Championship Series might be futile.
Two games remain for both No. 3 USC and No. 4 Florida before the final poll is released Dec. 3. They are expected to be No. 2 Michigan's primary competition to join Ohio State in the national title game - and most pollsters have said their minds will remain open, especially entering Saturday's matchup between No. 5 Notre Dame and Southern Cal in Los Angeles.
And since human voters make up two of the three polls that will decide who gets the final berth in the Jan. 8 game at Glendale, Ariz., that's significant.
The USA Today coaches' poll of 63 voters and the Harris Interactive poll of 114 media representatives, former players and coaches, does not release individual results until the season is over. Some spoke Monday, though, about how they voted recently.
Northern Illinois coach Joe Novak kept Michigan at No. 2, even after watching the Wolverines' 42-39 loss to Ohio State.
"To me, in my heart, I think Michigan's the second-best team in the country," Novak said. "Southern Cal still has two to go and two pretty good football teams they're going to play. Anybody who votes will have to re-evaluate at that time. But right now, Michigan played very well, (losing by) three points to that team in that atmosphere. Right now, I still think they're No. 2. We'll re-evaluate, but I'm not sure I'll change my mind."
His Mid-American Conference counterpart, Ball State coach Brady Hoke, who lost to the Wolverines earlier this year, also said he voted Michigan No. 2.
"I take the responsibility pretty seriously," Hoke said, "and try to do as good a job as I can voting everything objectively."
Some of the voting may be affected by a participant's location.
"We voted for SC second," San Jose State coach Dick Tomey said. "I think they're the second-best team. But the whole thing is going to come out in the wash. If SC wins their next two, I think they're second. But if they don't, all bets are off and anything can happen."
All the coaches contacted Monday said the prospect of a rematch was a nonfactor in their voting. They said they're voting strictly on results and how a team performs. U-M's Lloyd Carr, Notre Dame's Charlie Weis and Ohio State's Jim Tressel have votes in the USA Today; USC's Pete Carroll and Florida's Urban Meyer do not. (Michigan State's John L. Smith and Central Michigan's Brian Kelly also have votes.)
The voters in the Harris poll have one advantage over their coaching counterparts who participate in the USA Today poll: Many of the Harris voters have time on Saturdays to watch large portions of multiple games.
College Football Hall of Famer Jim Mandich, who played at Michigan from 1967-69, is a Harris poll voter and had no question about where to rank the Wolverines.
"I would love a rematch and Michigan is clearly No. 2 and deserves a rematch," Mandich wrote in an e-mail.
But his vote isn't immune to change.
"Will I be influenced by the outcome of USC vs. ND? Yes, very much so," he wrote.
Earle Robinson, a sports talk-radio host at WKAR in East Lansing, would not reveal his Harris poll vote but said, "There's a lot of value playing the No. 1 team so close and that's why I would guess (Michigan) didn't fall any further than No. 2."
Former Ohio State coach Earle Bruce, one of the Harris poll voters, said he listed Michigan, USC and Florida as Nos. 2, 3 and 4, respectively.
"It's simple, I think (Michigan) is the second-best team in the country now," Bruce said. "If USC runs the table, they've got a problem. I will look at the score of the USC-Notre Dame game to see if it comes close to what Michigan has. I understand Florida still plays Florida State and personally I think the strongest league in the country is the SEC, but the two strongest teams in the country are Michigan and Ohio State."
Ohio coach Frank Solich, a voter in the USA Today poll, wouldn't reveal his rankings, but said: "Once you have that one loss under your belt, nothing's guaranteed at that point."
© 2006 KRT Wire. |
