01-03-08 Joshua B Huber

Miami, Fl. - The entire week in Miami was about as roller coaster-like as it gets. Not only did the Virginia Tech beach party almost turn disastrous for a couple defensive starters, but the weather in Miami took a major turn on New Years Day............a 45 degree turn. Not only was it 88 degrees when we started the New Year's Eve festivities in South Beach, the sun was shining, the sky was Carolina Blue, and you could not locate a cloud for miles and miles. Waking up ready to attend the Orange Bowl pressers on the 1st, I stepped outside in my sandals and shorts and about had a heart attack with what i felt. I raced back inside and turned on the Miami version of the Today Show, and it informed me in the bottom right hand side of the screen that it was 9:16 AM and 43 degrees.

Just to make sure my eyes weren't deceiving, I grabbed my FedEx Orange Bowl Media jacket and stepped back out side. I couldn't see any blue sky or sun because the clouds were so thick and grey. The wind was howling and the rain was sputtering about. This was Miami, Florida, and this was the biggest 12 hour temperature drop in the county (Dade County) in 40 years.

As the Kansas and Virginia Tech fans arrived in Miami on New Years Day and the 2nd of January, they were also welcomed, not to a tropical paradise, but to weather typical this time of the year of where they just left. This was going to turn out to be a home game for both teams, and I dont mean both teams get to wear white.

For the last month, the Kansas coaching staff, players, and fans have all had to deal with the national media pinning a big cupcake on their logo. Missouri should be the Orange Bowl rep from the Big 12, not Kansas. Missuori played a much better schedule, and even played in the conference championship game, falling to Oklahoma by 3 touchdowns 38-17. These are some of the things that were eating away at Kansas all month long. No one seemed to be talking about how Kansas had won 11 games for the first time in team history, went 7-1 in the conference, scored over 44 points per game, and even pinned 76 on Nebraska alone. Is it Kansas' fault that their schedule happened to NOT include Texas or Oklahoma this year? The nation should be thankful that the Jayhawks didn't play either of those two teams this year, because then we'd be talking about a Kansas vs Ohio State national title instead of the Orange Bowl and Va Tech. Texas was just as much as a fraud this year as Boston College was, and we all saw what West Virginia did to Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.

To say this Kansas team doesn't deserve a BCS game coming from a major conference at 11-1 is just ludicrous. If they played in Conference USA, the WAC, or Mountain West, well then I may take offense to them stealing a spot in the BCS, but they came from the BIG 12. A BCS Conference, and they lost only once all year.

You say their schedule was weak? Yeah they slaughtered their non-conference opponents, but they didn't play any weaker of a schedule than Ohio State. They played Central Michigan, Southeast Louisiana, Toledo, and Florida International. Ohio State played Youngstown State, Akron, Washington, and Kent State. Both teams played a D-1AA school (SE Louisiana and Youngstown State), both played 2 MAC schools (Akron, Kent State, Toledo, and C. Michigan), and then Ohio State played Washington (who was 4-8 this year), and Kansas played Fla International. The only difference in their schedules is the fact that Kansas played a bowl team in their non-conference (Central Michigan lost to Purdue 51-48 in Motor City Bowl), and Ohio State did not.

Yes, this was the perfect year for Kansas to play a cupcake non-conference schedule knowing that they were dodging both Texas and Oklahoma this year. For the young team they are, they hoped to win 8 or 9 games this year and get a bowl game. BUT........they were better than that. They started 11-0, and set up a showdown with Missouri for the spot in the B12 title game. Missouri led most of the way and Kansas came back at the end only to watch it slip away. They lost by 8, their only loss of the season, in a dank and dismall Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri.

Missouri went on to get crushed in the B12 Championship Game by Oklahoma, and thus leaving the Kansas Jayhawks looking more appealing to the BCS. The 11-1 record, the high scoring offense, and overlooked defense. The Jayhawks have been known to travel very well to bowl games, and the Tigers should have just played better against Oklahoma. I dislike when teams have the chance to control their own destiny, and blow it, then complain about where they end up afterwards.

Kansas is too small, too young, havent played anyone, and it all boils down to who shows up to Dolphin Stadium on January 3rd.