The week two bye didn't hurt the Rams in 1999!!!!You really want to take the chance of having a week 1 bye?
The week two bye didn't hurt the Rams in 1999!!!!You really want to take the chance of having a week 1 bye?
Ears Whitworth would like a word with you.....It was the same during the DuBose and Shula years, Bama's lowest point in its history. They were like vultures, clawing and scratching for every conceivable win, even every extra TD or ignominy they could heap on them.
Not quite so far with Auburn....Bama beating their brains out goes back 100 years.
Coach Saban would like a word with you:Bama would have to sink into the abyss for 50 years before they would let up. Bama has a winning record against every program in the SEC home and away. Something like 24-9-3 even in Baton Rouge - one of the most incredible records in sports.
This practice is definitely an unfair advantage than needs to be addressed. Bama needs to turn up the volume - it makes a difference.
As far as Ears (It was only 3 years), of whom I am very much aware, I was thinking of the 10 years from '97-'06 when Bama lost more games than any other 10 year period. Of course they played more. (Bama has never had a losing record in any 10 year period in its history.)Ears Whitworth would like a word with you.....
Not quite so far with Auburn....
Coach Saban would like a word with you:
"Just so everybody knows, we did research on the last five years of all other 11 teams in the SEC and how they did when they had a bye week, and their record is 29-29," Saban said. "I'm not saying I'm right and you're wrong, but the statistics kind of prove that it's not an advantage or disadvantage to have a bye week. It probably depends a lot on the circumstances."
Greg McElroy:
Is the bye week issue overblown?
"Absolutely," Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy said. "I think bye weeks are totally overblown. They can be a blessing or a curse. We answered this a lot at (SEC) Media Days.
"I think a lot of times if you're playing well going into the bye week, it can really kill your momentum and ruin everything that you've done up to that point.
"When you're not playing so well and you're kind of struggling and don't really have an identity, I think a bye week can be an absolute blessing. You get to re-evaluate things, similar to what we had against Tennessee last year."
Josh Chapman:
"We rest on Sunday," Alabama junior nose guard Josh Chapman said. "We can't use them having a bye week as an excuse."
My problem with the whole thing is this: I DO think it is an absurdity that ANY team INCLUDING Auburn would have to play six opponents with an extra week to prepare. But this whole paranoia thing reeks of excuses. College football to me is a beautiful sport that often brings out the worst in some normal people (and I'm not even talking about Harvey Updyke, either).
====================
If you lose to someone? Simply allege without any proof that they're paying players.
Don't like some other team? Point out their arrest record of players and ignore your own (as if every coach in the world can micro-manage to that extent)
Lose a game to a team with an off week? Ignore the turnovers and penalties and blame it on people hating you and making you play teams with an extra week.
Lose a game to a team you feel you should beat (e.g. Ole Miss)? Imply the loss was undeserved because you committed five turnovers (uh, what about crediting the other team for forcing five turnovers?)
Lose a game and increase the pressure for playoff selection? Attack the schedules of teams rated ahead of yours as if they have total control over it (it isn't Ole Miss fault that Boise St wasn't any good last year)
And by all means shout 'conspiracy' as loudly and often as you can - after all, nobody can DISPROVE it now, can they?
Jeesh!!!
Completely agree. 100% without reservation. The mere APPEARANCE of selective application is a problem.
Yeah, the situation is unique. Perhaps the only way to do it (other than your recommended B1G solution) is to.......literally.......have the entire SEC off for a week at the same time.
The networks would NEVER go for that one. In fact, you could do the same thing week by week, the Big Ten off one week, the Pac 12, etc. There would still be football but one conference would be absent.
But like I say - the ptb will NEVER go for that with the SEC. Never.
You are right in that it can't happen. Can't happen because the four Eastern Division schools that play end of year ACC rivals will NEVER agree to play those games in weeks 1-4. Neither will their ACC rivals.Can't happen...all four OOC must be in week 1 through 4. You could get a bye in week 1 of SEC play though...unless they also say that everyone has to play that week then byes start. But I think the preference would be for byes in week 1 of conference play over before the SECCG.
Bye weeks are good if your team has been on a long stretch and need a rest, but I'd agree that they can be a curse if your team is dialed in and has the big mo going for them. UGA has had a bye before the Jax game for many years and it hasn't really helped them! [emoji3]
Ha! I was looking over a larger body of work, but I agree the recent trend has been for both to be off.You're being quite selective with that argument.
2015 - both teams off
2014 - both teams off
2013 - both teams off
2012 - neither team off
2011 - both teams off
2010 - Florida off, Georgia vs Kentucky
2009 - Georgia off, Florida vs MSU
2008 - Florida vs Kentucky, UGA vs LSU
2007 - Georgia off, Florida vs Kentucky (UGA wins)
2006 - Florida off, UGA vs MSU
2005 - Florida off, UGA vs Arkansas
So going back ten years (plus this year that hasn't been played yet, so 11)
Both teams have either been off or had a game Six times.
Georgia alone has been off while Florida played a game twice (and seriously - does playing UK or MSU before your biggest game even count most years?)
Florida alone has been off while Georgia played a game THREE times (and that third time Georgia played defending national champion LSU fwiw)
The evidence does not support the thesis.
BTW, Selma is one of a few people in the world with HSAM (Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory) and has been on 60 Minutes. He remembers anything he saw or noticed since he was a kid. He can give you as large a body of work as you can digest. He's not looking it up; he's doing it from memory...Ha! I was looking over a larger body of work, but I agree the recent trend has been for both to be off.
Wow! Thanks for the warning! [emoji3][emoji106]BTW, Selma is one of a few people in the world with HSAM (Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory) and has been on 60 Minutes. He remembers anything he saw or noticed since he was a kid. He can give you as large a body of work as you can digest. He's not looking it up; he's doing it from memory...
I agree, it just screws both Alabama and the team that took the early the bye.To discuss #2 - Saban prefers to have the bye just after the middle of the season. Says that he wants it when the team needs rest to get physically ready for the second half of the season - essentially breaking the season in half (physically). If they bye comes too early, your team could wilt down the stretch with all of those SEC games in a row and no break.
This would require a little bit of research. I don't count teams like Charleston Southern or GA State coming off a bye as even being in the discussion.Questions, not really looking for answers just wondering.
1) Is there anything out there that shows the success of teams playing numerous teams coming off byes, in a single season? It seems that it would get tougher with each game in which an opponent had extra rest. What about back to back games with teams coming off byes?