The read-option pass is cheating, here's why

Wow. Just wow. I suppose it wouldn’t be fitting if we didn’t send the BCS off with some insanity, right? What should have been a simple formula – undefeated Alabama plus undefeated Florida State equals title game – has now been turned into college football’s version of the Schrodinger equation. If Ohio State wins or loses… if Auburn/Missouri wins… if Oregon hadn’t laid an egg at Arizona… the possibilities are maddening. Let’s start from the top.

Auburn stunned Alabama, topping its own miracle from a week prior versus Georgia in one of the sport’s all-time most unexpected twists: a missed field goal return touchdown to win the game with no time left. The loss effectively eliminated the Crimson Tide from the title chase and vaulted the surprising Tigers into a position to potentially sneak into the BCS Championship. Ah, but Missouri will have something to say about that, as the other Tigers (there are far too many of them in the South) completed a one-loss campaign themselves and would be the next team up with a win over Auburn in the SEC Championship.

Oklahoma State has to be kicking itself for the early loss to West Virginia, as that’s the only thing keeping the Cowboys from making this race even more confusing. OSU is likely too far back to make a push even with a win in the Bedlam game. Alabama only fell to fourth in the polls, but sandwiched by Auburn and Mizzou the Tide have no realistic shot at redemption. Had one of the two-loss Pac-12 schools (Oregon, Stanford and ASU) not lost a bad road game (UO to Arizona, Stanford to Utah, ASU to Notre Dame), all three could have made a claim as well.

That leaves us with Florida State and Ohio State, both undefeated and in the national championship game with wins in their respective conference title bouts. There’s some question as to whether a one-loss SEC champ will or should jump the second-ranked Buckeyes, but the current BCS standings don’t indicate that will happen. OSU has a large enough lead on Auburn that even if the Tigers beat Missouri they won’t jump the Buckeyes. And that’s the way it should be. I’d be the first person to say the Big Ten is bad; I trumpeted it earlier than anyone last season and maintain this is the worst the league has even been. But the difference between power conferences is far smaller than SEC homers would have you believe. The Big Ten, down though it may be, isn’t the MAC. Going undefeated in a power conference will and should always be important.

Now, if Ohio State (or FSU) loses, we could be in for a whole mess o’ trouble. It’s possible the top three teams in the BCS could all go down on the final day of the season, setting up an insane Alabama – Missouri matchup for the title. That would also re-emphasize what’s so horrible about this system. But fear not – such a scenario is unlikely in the extreme. The most boring ending is the most probable. As for Auburn AD Jay Jacobs, who began stumping after the Iron Bowl for a “one-loss SEC champion” (wonder who he’s talking about?) to be included in the BCS title game: be careful what you wish for. We may very well see a one-loss SEC team in the national championship, but if karma swings back the other direction this week it’s going to be Mizzou. (For his part, Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said the same thing about a "one-loss Big Ten champion," though I have to believe on some level he was trolling Jacobs.)

Outside of the chaos atop the polls, rivalry week provided us with a smorgasbord of minor delights and wild finishes. The Egg Bowl produced a shocker when Mississippi State upended Ole Miss in overtime. LSU survived – barely – the Battle for the Golden Boot on a late bomb, Fresno State saw its undefeated season go up in smoke at San Jose State and Oregon pulled out an insane Civil War. That was before the weekend started. Saturday saw Ohio State escape at Michigan, Duke do the same at North Carolina, Auburn win a thrilling Iron bowl, Georgia knock off Georgia Tech in double overtime, Baylor survive TCU and Missouri put down Texas A&M. Yet despite all that, we still have no idea who will play for the national championship or in most of the BCS bowls. What a way to end the season.

Top 25

1) Florida State

Now I look brilliant for having kept the Seminoles on top all season. I actually expected to drop them to second following an Alabama win, but the best laid plans, eh? FSU has been the nation’s most dominant team in 2013 by a wide margin and should have little trouble with a Cinderella Duke team this week. The Blue Devils have scraped by the past month and are a great story, but they’re facing a demon in cleats in Charlotte. I expect the ‘Noles to put an exclamation point on this season with a dominant win.

2) Ohio State

Well, it shouldn’t have come to this, but everyone else worthy lost so the Buckeyes are in a “win and you’re in” situation. OSU has been less than dominant this year but so was the 2002 squad that upset Miami (FL). There’s no telling how a team will perform if put in the right situation. Of course, to earn that chance the Buckeyes will need to beat a tough Michigan State team. Were I Urban Meyer, I’d be very concerned with this matchup. If the Spartans turn this into a slugfest they can absolutely win.

3) Missouri

Tops on my list of contenders if Ohio State falls is Mizzou. I had some harsh words for the Tigers earlier in the year but they’ve made me a believer and their resume outdoes Auburn’s by a hair. There’s nothing so impressive as the Alabama win, but Missouri’s overall performance has been slightly more impressive and the loss (South Carolina) is a lot better. Everyone is jumped up on Auburn right now, so the opportunity is there for this team. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see Mizzou crowned SEC champs.

4) Auburn

First of all, luck. Auburn got it last game against Georgia and again against Alabama, as the Tide missed four field goals, including the fateful last-second return. As I’ve said many times, Auburn is no doubt a much-improved team from the start of the year, though the absurd level of fortune the team has had this month is a bit ridiculous. The Tigers want to be in the BCS Championship, but they’d do well to focus on this week’s game before looking ahead. Much better teams than 2013 Auburn have been tripped up in the final week of the season.

5) Alabama

It’s frustrating to only drop Alabama to fifth, but the only other option is Oklahoma State and I can’t honestly say I’d take the Cowboys over the Crimson Tide. Alabama outplayed Auburn in the Iron Bowl and would have won had any one of a multitude of bad breaks gone its way. That’s sports, though. This team will have to be content with a consolation BCS bowl (I think we all remember how that turned out last time) and the knowledge that five straight titles, not just three, were mere inches away.

6) Oklahoma State

Bedlam for the Big 12 title. OSU wouldn’t have it any other way. Oh, what might have been, though, had the Cowboys figured out their quarterback situation sooner? Just as in 2011, the fans in Stillwater will be left wondering after a single loss keeps this team from playing for the ultimate prize. As for Oklahoma, OSU should be able to handle the game at home. OU is no doubt talented but has been exceedingly erratic this year. Along with Clemson, the Sooners are my current favorite “team to never bet on in a big game.”

7) Stanford

Talk about regret. Stanford can share Oklahoma State’s woes. If not for that now-baffling loss at Utah and the slip-up in L.A., the Cardinal would be playing for the national championship, despite having no offense to speak of and a defense that really doesn’t look dominant against anybody but Oregon. I’m not afraid to say I have no idea where this team is; Stanford can look fearsome one moment, utterly inept the next. The rematch with ASU is going to be very, very interesting.

8) South Carolina

Just as I anticipated, the Gamecocks made it five straight over Clemson and dealt another blow to the ACC. I’m almost sad that this SC team isn’t playing for the SEC title, because I have no doubt it would be a great game against Auburn. Alas, that Tennessee loss. Still, you can’t deny what Steve Spurrier has done here. After seemingly plateauing a couple of seasons ago, Carolina has taken the next step to becoming an all-around elite team. Now the Gamecocks just need to play like one for a full season.

9) Michigan State

All I have to say is, Ohio State better be ready. This is not a defense to be trifled with. The Spartans had another dominant Big Ten win Saturday, completing their conference schedule by winning every game by double digits. That’s incredible. While it’s true that OSU has a higher caliber of playmakers than MSU is used to seeing, this team also plays better D than any the Buckeyes have seen. OSU’s defense, on the other hand,  might not be good enough to completely shut down Sparty’s average attack. Should be a fun game.

10) Oregon

Well, that Civil War certainly was… something. Ignoring the fact that the Ducks were 90 seconds from one of their worst losses in the past decade, 10 wins is a great achievement. However, Oregon fans are forgiven for panicking a little after the way the season ended. The UO we saw over the past month looked nothing like the heavyweight that swaggered through the first two-thirds of the season. Oregon will need to figure some things out to win in the bowl game. Just showing up won’t cut it.

11) Baylor

Really, Baylor? That’s not the way to make people think the Oklahoma State blowout was a fluke. TCU has been a decent team at times this year but barely escaping Fort Worth isn’t going to win over anyone. The Bears can still clinch a share of the Big 12 title with a win over Texas this week, though they’ll need Oklahoma State to lose to be assured of a BCS game. I’m not so sure we won’t see a retread of the OSU game; Texas is quite talented and will be out to claim state superiority.

12) Arizona State

Where is the team that slopped its way to a loss to Notre Dame? Where’s the squad that got embarrassed at Stanford? ASU is scorching, winning its last seven since the debacle in Arlington. The Sun Devils now get to host Stanford in the rematch by virtue of a superior conference record. Up until recently I would have said the Pac-12 title game would go about the same as it did in Palo Alto, but I’m not so sure now. ASU has looked great lately and the Cardinal have been pretty up-and-down.

13) Clemson

Ugh. I can’t say I didn’t see that coming. Clemson continued its frustrating trend of finishing off a successful ACC campaign with a dud against South Carolina in the finale. It doesn’t seem to matter where the game is played or how good either side is; Carolina just has this team’s number. The Tigers can kiss another BCS berth goodbye, which is a strangely disappointing footnote on the otherwise brilliant career of Tajh Boyd. He’s the best QB in program history, yet could never beat SC.

14) UCF

Central Florida survived yet another harrowing battle, this time with rival USF. The Knights have clinched a share of the AAC title, though by my understanding they’re still not a lock to take the league’s BCS bid. The other big game in the conference (Cincinnati – Louisville) could potentially force a tie, though I would think UCF would still be the highest-ranked AAC squad even with a loss. Central should beat SMU this week regardless, but there’s some weird ways this could go.

15) LSU

LSU ended the season with a performance that more or less summed up what the year has been like: decent, but not great. While a loss to an Arkansas team winless in SEC play would have been disastrous, the Tigers did very little wrong overall in 2013. They were merely victims of a tough conference and a couple (Georgia, Ole Miss) close games. The Alabama/Texas A&M back-to-back demonstrated exactly where this team is: a step below elite, but a step above average.

16) Louisville

It’s probably a good thing Louisville lost to UCF, because otherwise we would have had to listen to Cardinals homers squawk this week about how UL isn’t getting any respect as a legit championship contender. They’re not; close games against the likes of Kentucky, Rutgers and Memphis don’t evoke feelings of sympathy from anyone. The Teddy Bridgewater Heisman campaign has also been strangely silent despite the fact that he’s still projected to potentially go first in the draft (which seems high to me).

17) Oklahoma

Moving to a conference championship game-less schedule has made Bedlam a lot more fun since the bye week was added. You know what else has made the Bedlam game more fun? The fact that OSU has started winning. Rivalries are always better when they’re between equals and the battle for Oklahoma is no exception. I’m skeptical about OU again; the consistent inconsistency makes the Sooners one of the least dependable bets in all of football. Playing on the road won’t help either.

18) Northern Illinois

Cheers went out from DeKalb when Fresno State went down, but NIU needs to take care of its own business first. Bowling Green is really good, as I said before the season when I predicted this matchup. The Falcons’ defense is allowing only 243 yards and 11 points per game in conference play, easily the best in the MAC. BGSU is one of seven teams in the entire country (and the only mid-major) allowing fewer than 300 yards per game. There’s not another MAC team in the top 50 defensively; safe to say, this is the best defense NIU will have seen all year.

19) UCLA

Well, well. Look who decided to pick up the pieces. I had been down on UCLA for weeks leading up to the ASU loss and I assumed the Bruins would crumble after losing the South. Instead, they dusted themselves off and delivered their best win of the year over their arch-rivals. A three-loss campaign is pretty good these days in Westwood, so I think the UCLA faithful better take it. The Bruins did well to re-up Jim Mora's deal in the light of the recent Washington news..

20) Duke

I will freely admit to being one of the people who hates all things Duke during basketball season, but this is such a great story you’d have to have a heart of stone to feel unaffected. Duke (yes, Duke!) is headed to the ACC Championship after knocking off rival North Carolina to wrap up a 10-win regular season. That’s already the most wins in a single season in Duke history and there’s still two games to play. The ride probably comes to an ignominious end against FSU, but this has been a storybook season for the Blue Devils.

21) Wisconsin

That was… unexpected. Wisconsin’s run to indignation over not being invited to a BCS bowl ended out of nowhere with a stunning home loss to Penn State, a team still unable to play in the postseason due to NCAA sanctions. The Badgers are now relegated to a lower-tier bowl, which hurts but is probably a more reasonable destination for how good this team really is. While the finish is disappointing you have to consider the season a success considering the uncertainty surrounding the program after the coaching change to Gary Andersen.

22) USC

The Trojans’ hot streak was snapped by a rebounding UCLA team. However, the more important news is that USC apparently has a new head coach: Washington’s Steve Sarkisian. This is a strange hire to me, though I’ll address it more in detail later. For this season, SC is still in line for a decent finish thanks to a nine-win effort and can kick off the Sark era feeling good with a strong effort in the bowl. However, after the Lane Kiffin flameout, it’s understandable to be skeptical about the future of USC football.

23) Texas A&M

Two weeks ago Johnny Manziel was supposed to win the Heisman with strong showings in A&M’s final two games. I predicted the Aggies would lose both, not because Manziel isn’t good but because aTm hadn’t beaten anyone. The Aggies’ claim to fame was a close loss to Alabama. It’s still their biggest win of the season, so you can guess how the past two games have gone. Against two good defenses, A&M’s “unstoppable” attack managed just 31 total points. This squad ends the year an entirely unremarkable 8-4.

24) Notre Dame

Notre Dame has had a couple of bad losses (Michigan, Pitt), but the quality wins are evident. I’ll even give this team credit for a close loss to Stanford; after all, the Cardinal are playing for the Pac-12 title. This season could be viewed as a failure after 2012’s improbable run, but taking into account the amount of close wins last year I’d say 8-4 is pretty good. That’s about what the record should have been last season without all the crazy breaks. Of course, that does bring up some questions about what Brian Kelly is doing with all that talent.

25) Fresno State

The dam finally broke. I said earlier in the year Fresno’s defense had to improve if the team wanted to play in a BCS bowl. For a time it did and the Bulldogs seemed destined for a perfect season, but over the past few games teams had begun to score more and more effectively on Fresno. Friday was the ultimate meltdown performance against a quality San Jose State offense and great QB in David Fales. The Mountain West title is still there for the taking, but this is obviously a disappointing loss.

Pac-12 Report

It was an utterly bizarre week for the Pac-12, both on the field and off. The games predicted to be blowouts were nail-biters, the ones expected to be close were snoozers and then USC started the coaching carousel two weeks early by hiring Steve Sarkisian away from Washington. I’ll say the exact same thing about Sark that I did about Ed Orgeron a couple of weeks ago: he’s good, but USC could have had better. Why would the Trojans settle for another former Pete Carroll assistant (especially after it worked out so well last time) when the job is so much better than that?

Orgeron reportedly resigned in protest upon being offered a high-paying assistant coach position, which isn’t surprising. True or not (I’d side with “not”), Orgeron had clearly come to believe his performance had earned him the USC head coaching position. Unfortunately, the history of interim coaches successfully taking over at their schools (in the long term) is spotty at best (see West Virginia and Bill Stewart). USC did the right thing by not settling for Orgeron – that is unquestionable. But Sarkisian? That’s settling too, in the naive hope than a “Carroll man” can return the program to those halcyon days. Those days aren’t coming back. The conference has improved around USC and no one is winning seven straight titles again. Orgeron didn’t “deserve” the job, but he has a right to be upset at the way this played out.

As for the games… it was another delightful Apple Cup, as WSU took a first-half lead and then watched as Washington methodically took control over the next two quarters. It felt a little like the 2012 game, but without the brilliant Cougars comeback. Give UW credit for locking down this time. Unfortunately the excitement over breaking the seven-win ceiling has to be tempered by watching the coach bolt for greener pastures, but in general the Huskies should be proud of the win. WSU is headed for a lower-level bowl, but is still obviously thrilled to be back in the postseason.

The Civil War was absolutely bonkers, with both teams showing little interest in competent defense or taking care of the ball. Oregon managed to pull it out with a clutch drive in the final minute, but let’s not sugar-coat it: this game was largely a disaster by UO. Had Victor Bolden not scored so quickly on the Beavers’ previous drive, OSU likely would have won on a last-second field goal. Playing such a tight game with this OSU team is inexcusable for the Ducks and shows just how far removed – mentally and physically – Oregon is from the buzzsaw that started 8-0. To their credit, the Beavers showed no fear against this defanged UO defense, mixing in a nice balance of runs and passes to keep the game within a single score throughout. There have been some shameful OSU performances this year, but this wasn’t one of them.

Colorado rallied to make the game interesting against Utah, but the Utes’ early lead and overall superiority eventually won out. It’s hard not to look at this game (and season) as a win for both teams. Utah is no doubt disappointed about missing out on a bowl, but the program demonstrated that it could still compete and hold its own in the Pac-12 despite a litany of injuries and unlucky losses. Keep in mind that the Utes nearly beat OSU and UCLA and were a few big plays away from a seven- or eight-win season. That’s a success to me. Colorado should likewise be proud of taking the “WSU step,” for lack of a better term. Just as Wazzu had to evolve from losing games big to losing them close (before finally winning), CU pulled itself out of the conference cellar in 2013 with a series of hard-fought losses in Pac-12 play. The Buffs eclipsed woeful Cal and hung with Arizona, Utah and UCLA for three quarters. There’s a little light at the end of the tunnel in Boulder.

Stanford managed to put away Notre Dame, though in typical Stanford fashion it wasn’t nearly as dominant a performance as it should have been. In this game the Cardinal actually held a large yardage edge – not always the norm for this team – but self-destructed with turnovers and allowed the Irish to cut the lead to four through three quarters. I was somewhat surprised by the result considering how badly (one assumes) Stanford wanted this game after the officials gave ND the victory in South Bend last year. It’s possible the Cardinal were simply looking ahead to the Pac-12 Championship, but they’ll need a better effort to beat Arizona State a second time.

The final two games were the ones most expected to provide excitement, yet both the South showdowns turned into bores (for the unaffiliated fans, that is). UCLA played possibly its best game of the season, locking down USC’s red-hot offense and scoring impressively on the Trojans’ talented D. Had the Bruins not played so poorly in the first half against ASU, they’d be headed back to the conference title game now. ASU continued its outstanding streak by dropping nearly 60 on Arizona to lock up home-field for the Stanford rematch. That’s where we’ll go now.

Everyone is saying the same thing: this won’t be a repeat of the thrashing Stanford laid on the Sun Devils in September. I agree. That game was early in the season, at Stanford and featured an ASU squad still finding its way against a very confident (and healthy) Cardinal team. Particularly defensively, Stanford dominated that contest, using its powerful front seven to hem in all the option and option-like actions ASU favors. However, Kevin Hogan also played very well, completing 11 of 17 passes with a pair of first-half TD strikes. ASU looked absolutely stunned at the Cardinal’s physicality and trailed by margins of 29-0 and 39-7.

Things have changed as the year has gone on, though. Hogan has been inconsistent as the Cardinal’s signal-caller. At times, opponents have moved the ball effectively on the ground against Stanford. Taylor Kelly has continued to improve at QB for ASU and has an arsenal of reliable weapons around him now, something Hogan does not. What’s more, the Sun Devils have changed as a team since that first meeting. The defense has forced turnovers to feed the explosive offense, as we saw in the UCLA showdown. Overall ASU is playing with a higher level of confidence than we saw from the shell-shocked team that took the field in Palo Alto.

Defensively, Stanford still has the edge over ASU. The Cardinal are designed to stop Oregon, and what is ASU if not Oregon with a weaker passing game and running game? Kelly, for all his good qualities, cannot make the same throws as Marcus Mariota (particularly downfield). When Stanford is on offense, though, it’s a different story. ASU has the personnel in the front seven to do what Oregon could not – slow down the ground game – and could potentially take advantage of the Cardinal’s erratic passing game by snagging picks. Even if Stanford slows the tempo down effectively, the game should be a lot closer than it was the first time around.

In the end, though, I still have to go with Stanford. I’ll look foolish if ASU wins, but this is the kind of game the Cardinal always seem to win. Everyone is questioning them. They’ve been up and down and haven’t looked impressive. ASU is on a hot streak and hosting the game. It all seems to point to a revenge win for the Sun Devils. So of course Stanford will win. As hot as ASU has been lately, Stanford is still the more talented team where it matters: the lines. A Sun Devils upset wouldn’t shock me, but I can’t ignore Stanford’s track record in this type of game.

Heisman Watch

Lost in all the insanity this weekend was the question, “Who on earth is going to win the Heisman?” I predicted last week that reliable A.J. McCarron would probably engender the most late support from voters, but that was before Alabama lost the Iron Bowl. Just to make sure it was no fluke, Marcus Mariota and Johnny Manziel further devalued their prospects last week by losing/playing poorly. Some have suggested Arizona RB Ka’Deem Carey, which is a decent choice but not my favorite. Carey is really good, but the QB position is so much more important in today’s football than the RB. That leaves us with Boston College RB Andre Williams (just no – he’s not better than Carey) and… Jameis Winston.

The Iron Bowl was killer for Heisman voters, who could have taken the easy way out had McCarron led Alabama to another undefeated season. It would have been a “legacy” Heisman, certainly not the first of its kind, and everyone would have pretty much been okay with it. But now? It HAS to be Winston. Not only is he already the runaway winner with his own performance, all the other potentials have essentially played themselves out of contention. It’s really hard for voters (and me) to support a player with a pending criminal case, but Winston hasn’t been charged. At this point he has to win. All we can do is hope it doesn’t come back to haunt us.

Random Thoughts and Observations

USC got the ol’ coaching game started before the regular season even ended. As always, the team that makes the first move sends aftershocks around the country. The fact that it was USC that found its man first is, once again, surprising. But I’ve already been over how I think the Sarkisian hiring was questionable for SC. Instead, let’s look at what it means for Washington. First, there’s the humiliation factor: no school wants to be seen as a “stepping stone,” especially one with a history as proud as UW. However, once that initial shock wears off, I think Huskies fans are largely at peace with this.

For as much as he did to bring the program out of the Dark Age, Sark never won more than seven games (until this past weekend’s Apple Cup), never beat Oregon (a HUGE problem) and never vaulted UW back into the national conversation. Sure, at one point this season the Huskies were 4-0 and ranked in the top 15, but they promptly lost three straight in progressively uglier fashion and were never heard from again. Sark is a good coach, but I think UW fans can live without him. At this point, there’s no reason to settle for middling records any longer. The next hire should affirm that.

So who should it be? Washington is no doubt an excellent and attractive job, but there are some drawbacks. The Pac-12 has gotten better. Seattle is tucked away in the Pacific Northwest, which can be a hindrance. The recruiting turf is good but not great. A lot of coaches from “lesser” programs (Gary Pinkel at Missouri, Chris Petersen at Boise State) are somewhat entrenched in their positions and might not want to leave for the potential of greater things at Washington. UCLA’s Jim Mora was tempting given his ties to UW, but UCLA locked him up quickly with the Washington job vacant. There’s also the usual list of top assistants (current defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox, if he doesn’t leave with Sark) to look at. Choices abound. Whomever the Huskies end up with, you can be sure it will send even more ripples across the country.

The end of the regular season is upon us and players around the country gave their all to be included in the final Stanzi standings. As with the Heisman, I will give out the award before the bowl season, but this final weekend still counts. We got one last Double Stanzi this week, as Notre Dame’s Tommy Rees and Stanford’s Kevin Hogan combined for four INT’s, though Rees was the "loser" due to Stanford actually winning the game. Here are this week’s winners and the finalists.

Marcus Mariota, Oregon

Opponent: Oregon State

Performance: Two INT, threw game-winning TD pass

Blake Bortles, UCF

Opponent: USF

Performance: Two INT, one FUM, threw game-winning TD pass

Kevin Hogan, Stanford

Opponent: Notre Dame

Performance: Two INT, led clinching drive to end game

2013 Stanzi Awards Finalists

Devin Gardner, Michigan: 2

Keith Wenning, Ball State: 2

Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M: 2

Blake Bortles, UCF: 2

Fantastic news: UCF’s Blake Bortles has leapt onto the short list with a three-turnover performance against rival USF. Even better: Bortles is the only one of the four finalists to play this week, meaning HE COULD COME FROM BEHIND AND STANZI THE STANZI!!! That’s the Stanziest thing I’ve ever heard! This could be legendary.

One a more serious note, there’s been a very frustrating trend this season in college football. Or rather, college football officiating. The triple option pass, a play that’s become quite in vogue over the past few years, reached critical levels of usage in 2013. On the contemporary variation of the play, the QB runs a traditional read-option in the backfield, then keeps the ball and heads toward the sideline before passing to an open receiver just before crossing the line of scrimmage. Auburn used such a play to tie the game in the fourth quarter against Alabama. The problem is that the play is completely illegal.

Offensive linemen are not allowed to move past the neutral zone on any passing play, lest they incur an “ineligible receiver downfield” penalty. The neutral zone on a play from scrimmage is defined as the length of the football past the line of scrimmage. That’s generously defined as one full yard. Officials in recent years have allowed a three-yard “cushion” for linemen engaged with defenders, but that’s a cop-out to give offenses even more of an advantage. There’s no wonder defensive backs are routinely flying up to tackle QB’s on these plays, only to see the ball go over their heads; they think it’s a run play because offensive linemen are several yards downfield blocking for the initial read-option. For some reason refs have entirely ignored this rule in 2013.

ESPN’s David Pollack addressed the issue earlier in the season. As a former linebacker Pollack is particularly sensitive to rules that favor offenses, and I’m inclined to agree with his assessment that allowing linemen that leeway is flat-out “cheating.” The reason the ineligible receiver rule exists is to prevent exactly what offenses are now doing: faking runs by having linemen drive block downfield, then throwing the ball on play-fakes that are much more effective when, by rule, a forward pass should no longer be an option.

I’ve ragged on Baylor some this year, but this highlight video against Oklahoma demonstrates what legitimate pass blocking on play-action option plays looks like. Notice how, throughout the game, Baylor’s linemen curl back, even though the initial look of the play is that of a run. Contrast that with this Oregon – Arizona tape. Although it wasn’t the reason UO lost (they just didn’t show up), Arizona repeatedly took advantage of the current (incorrect) interpretation of the rule, such as on the touchdown pass that begins at 1:12. Watch for where the linemen are when the ball is released. The NCAA needs to clean this up. Offenses already have far too many advantages in today’s game.

Next week: the end of the regular season. You never know what’s going to happen in conference championship games, which makes them all the more fascinating. What was intended to be the AAC’s de facto title game, Louisville at Cincinnati, has been relegated to also-ran status thanks to UCF’s undefeated run. The Knights can officially claim the league’s BCS bid with a win at SMU. My Bowling Green over NIU pick is already on the record. I’ll take Marshall over Rice on the road in the Conference USA Championship; the Thundering Herd just have too much offense. Oklahoma – Oklahoma State and Texas – Baylor will decide the Big 12 title, but I’ll pick OSU to end the drama early with a win in Bedlam.

The slate gets really good late in the day starting with the SEC Championship. Both Missouri and Auburn can make a claim (though not a great one) to be in the BCS title game with a win. Both Tigers have vastly exceeded expectations in 2013 with magical runs. I’ll go with Mizzou in a minor upset. Auburn just beat Alabama, but we all know AU was fortunate to win that game as well as the prior game with Georgia. I’ve doubted Missouri too long and been burned by it. My reasoning is similar with Stanford, which I explained in-depth in the Pac-12 section.

My expectations for the ACC Championship are not high, as I’ve already said. I love what Duke has done this year, but FSU is a juggernaut. The Seminoles will simply overwhelm the Blue Devils. Things will be different in the Big Ten Championship, where we get an unexpected heavyweight tilt between Ohio State and Michigan State. I have too much respect for Ohio State to pick the upset outright; despite the fact that the Big Ten is indeed down, the Buckeyes really are quite good. However, OSU had better be on red alert. Without a dominant ground threat the OSU passing attack can look very ordinary and Michigan State excels at stopping the run. The Spartans really excel at everything on the defensive side, which is what makes them so dangerous. The problem is the offense. Although MSU has put up improving numbers over the course of the season, the team hasn’t faced anyone nearly as talented as OSU. While I could certainly see the Spartans winning, I think the Buckeyes will eventually prove to be too much.

The nightcap of the regular season (though we still do have Army – Navy) is Utah State at Fresno State in the inaugural Mountain West Championship. I’m still not sure how USU got to the title game sans Chuckie Keeton, but the Fresno loss last week was about the worst thing that could have happened from the Aggies’ perspective. An undefeated Bulldogs team could have conceivably come in overconfident and gotten into a dogfight (no pun intended). Now that Fresno is out of a BCS bowl, though, USU won’t be getting overlooked. At home (a nasty place to play), even with less to play for, the Bulldogs should win.

In just a few short days we’ll know where everyone is headed in the postseason and which coaches should be nervous about getting fired before the start of next year. As always, the year has flown by. Will Championship Week brings even more thrills? How could it not? Tune in next week for the season recap and crowning of the first Stanzi.