I Voted for Utah

 

I wrestled with my AP ballot from the moment Utah drilled Alabama 31-17 in the Sugar Bowl on the night of Jan. 2 until the end of Florida’s 24-14 BCS title-game win over Oklahoma Thursday night.

What tipped me to Utah was when I entered Carver-Hawkeye Arena late Thursday afternoon, and a Per Mar security person said “Mike, you’ve got to vote for Utah.”

“OK, I will,” I said, and proceeded to watch bad basketball and then file a column on it. I had ample time to listen and then watch to the second half of the Gators-Sooners game.

It’s a good thing that Per Mar guy didn’t tell me to throw eggs on the court or drop a thousand thumbtacks on the steps leading to the arena floor, huh?

All right, before this goes any further – I made up my own mind. And I admit a Florida blowout of Oklahoma would have made it harder to hit the “send” button when I e-mailed my Utah-No. 1 pick to New York late Thursday night.

If Florida were to play Utah next week, would I bet on the Utes? No.

So what? I wouldn’t bet on Florida were it to play USC next week, but I ranked the Gators second and the Trojans third. We’re voting on a season of work, and I like what UF did slightly more than what USC accomplished.

Utah’s season was perfect. I don’t think you can do better than perfect, especially when the perfect run ended with an utterly fabulous performance against an Alabama team that was ranked No. 1 in the nation for five weeks.

Did the Utes play Florida’s schedule. They did not.

Did they get upset at home by anyone the way Florida fell to Ole Miss? They did not.

Would they be able find any SEC teams who would schedule home-and-away series with them? They would not.

The only reason Utah isn’t the national champion, as far as we’ll ever know from now until nothing remains in Salt Lake City but, uh, salt, is that it never got the chance to play for the title.

This isn’t a Mid-American Conference or Sun Belt Conference team that ran the table and finished with a win in a Motor City or GMAC Bowl, both of which are seeking government bailouts.

No, this is a team from the Mountain West Conference, which won six of eight games against the Pac-10 this season. It’s a legit league, one that deserves a place at the BCS trough. Not that the six greedy-pig BCS conferences will ever start sharing with others. 

By the way, Iowans, I had the Hawkeyes 16th. That may actually have sold them a little short. Had they won one more game, I think you could have made a loud argument to have them at 10th or 11th in the final rankings.

Ifs and buts. Like what if Utah had played Florida …

My top 25 ballot:

1.       Utah

2.       Florida

3.       USC

4.       Texas

5.       Oklahoma

6.       Alabama

7.       TCU

8.       Penn State

9.       Ohio State

10.   Boise State

11.   Oregon

12.   Mississippi

13.   Texas Tech

14.   Georgia

15.   Oklahoma State    

16.   Iowa

17.   Virginia Tech

18.   Cincinnati

19.   Oregon State

20.   Missouri

21.   Pittsburgh

22.   Northwestern

23.   California

24.   Michigan State

25.   Rice

 

Thanks to Utes, 2009 is Off to a Great Start

A day that had a rather severe start for yours truly is having a wonderful finish.

You get up at 3 a.m. (Iowa time) to get to the Tampa airport for the first of three flights that get you back to Cedar Rapids, two of them on American Eagle planes that would make sardines claustrophobic.

That was after eight days on the road, and eight nights of not getting one decent night of sleep. Maybe that came from staying in a hotel that was too close to an airport. Or too close to a freeway. Or too close to a Waffle House.

But the first blast of Midwest winter air felt great as I stepped outside The Eastern Iowa Airport. Tomorrow, it will probably feel like winter. Which is less than great.

So I got home, settled in, turned on the tail end of the Cotton Bowl, and fell asleep. I completely missed the Liberty Bowl, which was intentional. I slowly came to with the Sugar Bowl on in the background. I’d see Utah was ahead, and assume I was dreaming. Especially when it was 21-0.

Then I woke up, and naturally Alabama clawed back to 21-17. Yecch.

But the Utes got even tougher, and held on to vanquish the Crimson Tide.

I love this for two reasons. One, Alabama Coach Nick Saban is a joyless mercenary. Every game his teams lose is good for sports and the planet.

Two, I had Utah No. 5 in my latest AP Top 25 ballot. No one in the AP panel had the Utes any higher. I had them above USC and Penn State, and caught grief from fans of both because of it

But look at me (and Utah) now, my babies! That’s a Top Three team at the worst, the end. At 13-0 with wins over bowl-winners Oregon State and TCU, and now this disposal of the vaunted Crimson Tide in New Orleans, which is in SEC country.

Utah took its BCS bowl invitation and rubbed the power conferences’ faces in it. Just like Boise State did two years ago.

I’m under no obligation to put the winner of the Florida-Oklahoma BCS title game No. 1 on the final AP ballot next Thursday night. I probably will, anyhow, unless it’s a lousy game.

But let’s see what Texas does against Ohio State first. I may vote Texas No. 1. Or USC. Or, dare I say it, Utah.

Utah 31, Alabama 17. Such dire predictions for 2009 have been issued in many circles, but the year is fabulous so far.