Monday, November 21, 2016

College Football Relegation - 2006

This is the second entry in my series on relegation in college football.

Today, we look at 2006. 

A simpler time. A time of Pooka shell necklaces. Sideburns. Hollister. Old Spice body spray. Coors Light.

Miami took a big step back this year, going 6-6 in the regular season and then narrowly defeating Nevada in the Micron PC Bowl in Boise on a Chavez Grant interception. Chavez Grant. A name I hoped to never type again. 

I watched that game on one of the last nights I ever spent in Wisconsin, spending half the night with my recently un-casted left ankle soaking in a hot Epsom salt bath while it was -15 degrees outside. I would soon thereafter have a full on 80s movie level meltdown at a party on a farm (wish I was kidding) in which I told everyone they wouldn't see me until I moved back and bought the factory they all inevitably would end up working in just to shut it down, Bain Capital style.

Something about Coastal Elitism probably fits in here ___________.

Anyway, here's how the relegation would have gone:

ACC - Arkansas State
Big East - Akron
Big 10 - Toledo
Big 12 - Iowa State
Pac 10 - Stanford
SEC - Mississippi State

Mississippi State a long time member of the SEC makes it 2 years and 2 relegations for the state of Mississippi. Tulsa stays in the SEC, while Boise and TCU keep their spots in the Pac 10 and Big 12.

One of the things that was most interesting about this project was taking a look back at how bad some of these teams were. Stanford, probably the 2nd or 3rd best program of the last 5 years, was EASILY the worst team in the Pac 12 in 2006. There's a reason they eventually had to hire Jim Harbaugh, whose previous head coaching experience was at the University of San Diego...and that's it.

Meanwhile, Akron, Toledo and Arkansas State all go immediately back down. Remember how I said Arkansas State was a product of its environment and earned a fluky promotion? I was right. Even playing in the Sun Belt in real life in 2006, they ranked 113th in the nation in F/+. They were bad in real life and I projected them as winless in the ACC.

And the promotions:

Conference USA- Houston
MAC - Central Michigan
Mountain West - BYU
Sun Belt - Ole Miss
WAC - Hawaii
At Large - Oklahoma State (also in the mix: Southern Miss, Ohio, Utah)

In the Expansion Draft, the SEC strikes first and brings Ole Miss back. The Big 10 stays true to its footprint and takes Central Michigan. The Big 12 reclaims Oklahoma State, while the Big East...a conference that had been cognizant of the impact of TV markets since it expanded to include Miami and Pitt in the nineties...expands to Houston, a Top 10 TV market. The Pac 10 takes BYU, and the ACC, bringing up the rear, is saddled with Hawaii. Woof.



Imagine THOSE road trips. It's early, but I think it is safe to say that we are already beginning to see the ACC as the Greater Fool in these relegation transactions.


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