GMAC Bowl - not quite right...

[BelieveNBG]

I said from day one that the GMAC bowl should not have picked UT until the outcome of the championship game. NIU whipped UT on their home field and UT gets a bowl...go figure??? Some will argue that UT has a better record. Well, I am only going to look at the regular season record. You can't count the MACC game, because UT didn't play that game... . Looking at the regular season UT is 8-3, while NIU is 7-4, so it appears UT has played the better season. Well, look at that the schedules. UTs OOC games were Fresno and Temple. NIUs OOC games were Northwestern and Michigan. There's your 1 game difference. NIU gave Michigan a scare and took Northwestern to the wire with a chance to win that game. NIU further proved they were the better team by beating UT in their house convincingly.

Funny thing is Amstutz tells his players if they beat us they will get a bowl. He then later tells the paper he knew nothing, but was only hoping. I believe he had a little heads up and he definitely knew they would get that bowl. How many times did the announcers say everytime when UT was on t.v. that the 2nd bowl did not have to choose the loser of the MACC game? They also never missed an opportunity to talk about how UT travels well.

We may not care now because this is happening to NIU, but if BG whips UT and goes to the title game and then has to watch UT get the bowl, it will not sit well with anyone around here. The MAC needs to fix this for the good of the every team in the MAC. If the GMAC wants to pick early prior to the MACC game, they should be forced to pick one of the teams competing in that game. If they want someone else, they should have to wait to see if the team like Akron loses and is not bowl eligible and then they can pick who they want.

I just know I hope BG is never in NIUs shoes.

[factman]

You forgot that Toledo also played D-1AA Western Illnois in their opening game!!!

Does that prove it doesn't pay to have a good/competitive OOC schedule?

[BGSUfalcons]

You forgot that Toledo also played D-1AA Western Illnois in their opening game!!!

Does that prove it doesn't pay to have a good/competitive OOC schedule?

I was thinking something similar. The casual fan is going to see 8-3 and
7-5 and assume the 8-3 team is better. The casual fan has no idea who Toledo and NIU played. I think the bowl games understand this and, therefore, focus on the overall record (in addition, of course, to name recognition and how well a team travels).

[Flipper]

UT is more visually appealing than NIU because they throw the ball around and their questionable (at best) defense is likely to give up as many points as the offense scores.

If you look at from the standpoint of which team is actually a better football team, there's no question NIU is...they proved it emphatically

[BelieveNBG]

I think the bowl games understand this and, therefore, focus on the overall record (in addition, of course, to name recognition and how well a team travels).

Right...the bowls are capitalizing on the lack of knowledge of the casual fan. Their excuse is that UT has the better record when we all know they really were looking at the $$$. Last year, NIU didn't travel too well. That may not have helped their cause, but I still think the better team should get the bowl and NIU was better than UT.

[BGGrad01]

NIU shouldn't be mad at UT, Rick Chryst, or the GMAC Bowl, they should be mad the NCAA for allowing I-AA wins to count toward the 6-win requirement (assuming that the exemption is used). The following 6-win and probable bowls teams each beat a I-AA team this year:

NC State over Eastern Kentucky
So. Florida over Florida A&M
UConn over Liberty
So. Miss over McNeese St.
Memphis over UT-Chattanooga
Houston over Sam Houston State
Mizzou over Arkansas State
Kansas over Appalachian State
BYU over Eastern Illinois

That's 9 teams that are going to get rewarded with bowl spots for playing weak competition. There are 2 more teams that are sitting on 6 wins with 1 of them being over Temple. I believe that Northern deserves a bowl bid over at least 6 of those teams, but they're gonna be sitting at home this bowl season. I hope we're never in a similar spot.

[MACMAN]

Its a Bowl game. There is more at work than meets the eye. I would venture to bet that if BG had won the game and not gone to a MACC we would have been picked this year.
DId you see the stands lastnight? I feel badly becasue I will bet if akron plays memphis, memphis will bring more people than akron.
remeber while the guise is that bowls are for the teams, they are realy for making money, this could be why the DEC 1st updated bowl projections still had BGSU in the motor city bowl. now imagin if toledo and bg got bowls and neither went to the MACC game. It could happen, MACC has no garutee bid from what I have read.

[Jacobs4Heisman]

Its a Bowl game. There is more at work than meets the eye. I would venture to bet that if BG had won the game and not gone to a MACC we would have been picked this year.
DId you see the stands lastnight? I feel badly becasue I will bet if akron plays memphis, memphis will bring more people than akron.
remeber while the guise is that bowls are for the teams, they are realy for making money, this could be why the DEC 1st updated bowl projections still had BGSU in the motor city bowl. now imagin if toledo and bg got bowls and neither went to the MACC game. It could happen, MACC has no garutee bid from what I have read.

I may be mistaken, but I'm under the impression that the MAC Champ has to go to one of the two tie-ins. If the GMAC doesn't take the champ, I think the MCB has to.

[BelieveNBG]

It could happen, MACC has no garutee bid from what I have read.

Yes, the MACC does get an automatic bowl. It's only the second bowl slot that is not automatic. As for BG, if we had beaten UT, we would've been in the MACC game, so they would've been justified in us getting the bowl. UT was not in the MACC game and they lost to NIU.

[UK Peregrine]

First, the 1-AA argument should be largely irrelevant. NIU played a 1-AA team (Tennessee Tech) as well. So UT and other NCAA teams had no advantage on them by playing a 1-AA because NIU did the same thing.

Second, BG was taken as the GMAC Bowl representative last year and as we are all aware, we did not win the MAC. If there we're five extra at-large bowls available again this year, I'm sure NIU, BG and Miami would all be considered, in addtion to UT and Akron. In fact, the GMAC selected Miami in 2003 before they had locked up the MACC and after we lost in the MACC, we were left wondering if we or NIU would get the MCB. It's just how it works. The GMAC is not under any obligation to take the MAC champ. In fact they dont even have to take a MAC team if they ever chose to do so.

Lastly, if we take care of business and beat UT in the last agme of the year, I bet UT is sitting home while we are in the GMAC again and NIU is in the MCB regardless of whether the win or lose against us. If NIU should be upset at anyone other than themselves for not beating Akron, my guess is BG would be on their short list because UT's win over us essentially catapulted them to the GMAC.

Hopefully, the Toronto Bowl comes to fruition and this remedies the MAC's current situation when it comes to getting both MACC teams into a bowl.

[San Diego Falcon]

The MAC needs to fix this for the good of the every team in the MAC.

How? If they're too impotent to keep ESPN from pre-empting their games for pre-season college BB in Nov, what makes you think they're strong enough to re-negotiate the contract terms with a bowl committee?

[transfer2BGSU]

Funny thing is Amstutz tells his players if they beat us they will get a bowl. He then later tells the paper he knew nothing, but was only hoping. I believe he had a little heads up and he definitely knew they would get that bowl. How many times did the announcers say everytime when UT was on t.v. that the 2nd bowl did not have to choose the loser of the MACC game? They also never missed an opportunity to talk about how UT travels well.

Conspiracy theory?

I'm disappointed that Northern isn't going to get a bowl game and I believe they deserve one over Tommy and the TU squad. Northern played tough against two little eleven teams and finally beat TU (and did it at the Glass Bowl). One of TU's W's was against a D-IAA squad and they did not fare well in OOC games. They bitched at us when we played IAA teams so right back at'em.

But the GMAC folks did not ask me. My hope is that TU represents the conference better than they have their last few bowl games. Seeing them on SportsCenter for the wrong reasons should be a concern for the conference.

[orangeandbrown]

If we were in NIU's position, we'd be really hot. We were really hot when we thought that exact thing was happening to us in 2003. As for last season, it doesn't really compare, because everyone knew that 5 MAC teams were going to a bowl. This year its likely just two.

[BelieveNBG]

Second, BG was taken as the GMAC Bowl representative last year and as we are all aware, we did not win the MAC. If there we're five extra at-large bowls available again this year, I'm sure NIU, BG and Miami would all be considered, in addtion to UT and Akron. In fact, the GMAC selected Miami in 2003 before they had locked up the MACC and after we lost in the MACC, we were left wondering if we or NIU would get the MCB. It's just how it works. The GMAC is not under any obligation to take the MAC champ. In fact they dont even have to take a MAC team if they ever chose to do so.

This year vs. last year are not the same. Last year, GMAC came to UT to offer us the bowl. We lost and they stated they would not give us the bowl over the teams competing in the MCB, unless another bowl slot became open. The MAC signed an agreement for a third bowl. Knowing that no team from the title game would be without a bowl, we then got the GMAC bowl. I am sure of this and I even checked the dates. The MAC got 3rd bowl one day and the very next day we got GMAC.

Also, it was pretty clear that the MCB bowl wanted the title winner. Miami preferred the Indepence bowl, since they had already done the GMAC bowl the prior year. That meant we were the next attractive team from the MAC. Notice that the GMAC bowl did not even want NIU last year.


While we were left wondering in 2003, NIU did not get the bowl...we did because we made it to the MACC and the MCB decided it would not be fair to invite the team that lost to us and did not represent the West. The MCB also stated this year that if Western made it to the title game and lost, they would still take Western. They said they could not see a team in the title game not being chosen and a team that didn't make it there being chosen. The MCB bowl likes to do what's right. They knew they wouldn't take Akron this year if they lost, because they would not even be eligible. The GMAC bowl likes to go for the better crowd and could care less about what's right.

[UK Peregrine]

This year vs. last year are not the same. Last year, GMAC came to UT to offer us the bowl. We lost and they stated they would not give us the bowl over the teams competing in the MCB, unless another bowl slot became open. The MAC signed an agreement for a third bowl. Knowing that no team from the title game would be without a bowl, we then got the GMAC bowl. I am sure of this and I even checked the dates. The MAC got 3rd bowl one day and the very next day we got GMAC.

Also, it was pretty clear that the MCB bowl wanted the title winner. Miami preferred the Indepence bowl, since they had already done the GMAC bowl the prior year. That meant we were the next attractive team from the MAC. Notice that the GMAC bowl did not even want NIU last year.


While we were left wondering in 2003, NIU did not get the bowl...we did because we made it to the MACC and the MCB decided it would not be fair to invite the team that lost to us and did not represent the West. The MCB also stated this year that if Western made it to the title game and lost, they would still take Western. They said they could not see a team in the title game not being chosen and a team that didn't make it there being chosen. The MCB bowl likes to do what's right. They knew they wouldn't take Akron this year if they lost, because they would not even be eligible. The GMAC bowl likes to go for the better crowd and could care less about what's right.

The point is not to compare this year to last year, or compare to two years ago. It was used as an illustrative point that the GMAC can do whatever the hell they want, regardless of bowl availability from the remaining MAC teams. From what I've seen, the GMAC bowl is under no contractual obligation to take the #1 or #2 MAC team, that's the MCB's contract. The MCB doesn't do what's "right", they do what their contractually obligated to do and that is to take the #1 or #2 MAC team from the MACC. They are not some altruistic bowl that wants the best for the MAC, despite what it means for them. They simply want the best team they can field according to their contractual obligation to the MAC. To make them out any differently is wrong IMO. Hell, the GMAC doesn't even have to take a MAC team. They could very well put a ConUSA and a WAC team in the game and leave the MAC high and dry, even though I don't believe they have ever chosen to do so since the MAC became affiliated with them. Sure its upsetting if you're NIU, but they have no one to blame but themselves for not winning, just like BG can only blame themselves for not beating UT. MAC teams have to work within the conference's existing bowl contracts, that it. There is no fair - or right or wrong - its just how buisness is done with the MAC's bowls.