ShareThisThis will forever be remembered as the Year of the Scandal in college football.
From the seedy off-season revelations involving several University of Miami football players and convicted Ponzi schemer Nevin Shapiro that resulted in multiple player suspensions and a self-imposed bowl ban ...
To the memorabilia fiasco at Ohio State that led to the early departure of quarterback Terrelle Pryor, player suspensions and the firing of revered coach Jim Tressel ...
To the worst imaginable scandal, a child sex-abuse case that rocked Penn State University to its core and led to the disgraceful firing of legendary coach Joe Paterno ...
The year will go down for all time as the most tumultuous season ever.
Never have there been so many players, coaches and fans dying to ring out the old and ring in the new -- and not just because of the scandal fallout.
Once again, the Bowl Championship Series managed to stir up plenty of angst, particularly among Boise State and Oklahoma State players and fans.
For the second consecutive season, Boise State was left out of the BCS bowl picture altogether, despite its 11-1 record and Top 10 ranking. And OK-State was denied a deserving opportunity to play for the national title.
For Boise, ringing in the new won't happen until the 2013 season when it joins the Big East, along with San Diego State, Houston, Southern Methodist University and the University of Central Florida.
The Big East champ gets an automatic BCS bowl bid, so Boise's chances of getting snubbed after a season as it has the past two years will be practically nil.
For Oklahoma State, ringing in the new, unfortunately, can't happen soon enough.
College football's power brokers -- university presidents and BCS conference commissioners -- must first break through their pigheaded obstinacy and formulate some type of a playoff system.
Even a plus-one would be a lot more fair than the current poll- and computer-driven system of determining who gets to play for the national title.
No. 1 LSU would be playing No. 4 Stanford; No. 2 Alabama would be playing No. 3 Oklahoma State; and the winners of those games would meet in the BCS title game.
Boise would still have its beef, but OK-State and Stanford would have no qualms, and when it was all over, no one would be squawking about the national champion -- not after it beat two of the top four teams in the country at season's end.
Boise and Kansas State's rancor over the Sugar Bowl matchup between No. 11 Virginia Tech and No. 13 Michigan is understandable; both felt they were more worthy of a $17 million BCS bowl payout. If the decision were based solely on rankings, the seventh-ranked Broncos and eighth-ranked Wildcats would be right.
Fairness aside, Michigan-Virginia Tech still holds plenty of interest, probably a lot more than a Boise State-Kansas State matchup would generate.
The Unbalanced Line likes the Wolverines by a touchdown, primarily because of their dynamic playmaker/quarterback Denard Robinson.
When it comes to quality matchups and BCS bowl worthiness, there's probably a lot more overall discontent with the Orange Bowl game between a pair of three-loss teams, No. 15 Clemson and No. 23 West Virginia. Look for Clemson to win handily.
The other three BCS bowls feature great matchups -- none better than the rematch between LSU and Alabama in the Jan 9 BCS title game.
The call: Running back Trent Richardson carries 'Bama to a reversal of fortune, 20-16.
The Jan. 2 Fiesta Bowl game between Oklahoma State and Stanford promises to be an aerial extravaganza featuring two of the nation's best quarterbacks, the Cardinals' Heisman runner-up Andrew Luck and the Cowboys' Brandon Weeden.
With arguably the best receiver in the country, Justin Blackmon, as his primary target, Weeden and OK-State get The Unbalanced Line's nod, 44-38.
The Jan. 2 Rose Bowl matchup between No. 5 Oregon and No. 10 Wisconsin also features a couple of top-flight quarterbacks. Wisconsin's Russell Wilson has a little better overall passing and rushing stats, but Oregon's versatile Darron Thomas engineers the Ducks' speedy spread offense superbly.
Two of the nation's best running backs -- Wisconsin Heisman finalist Montee Ball and Oregon's LaMichael James -- add even more intrigue and make the game a really tough call: Oregon, 38-35.
Four non-BCS bowl matchups on Jan. 2 are also worth watching:
In the Outback, No. 17 Michigan State is a field goal better than No. 16 Georgia, 27-24; No. 9 South Carolina handles No. 20 Nebraska, 31-20, in the Capital One; Ohio State's defense gets the better of Florida, 24-20, in the Gator; and in the Ticketcity Bowl, No. 22 Penn State overpowers No. 19 Houston, 27-17.
In the Jan. 6 Cotton, No. 6 Arkansas has too much offensive firepower for Kansas State; the Razorbacks win handily, 34-17.
You can nitpick about a few matchups. But really, what's to complain about?
Let's just be thankful it's bowl season. Hopefully, it will help settle some of the unrest, at least for the time being.
(Contact John Tucker at jtucker(at)unionleader.com. For more stories visit scrippsnews.com)
(E-mail John Tucker at jtucker(at)unionleader.com)
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