I’m going to answer these in a second, but Cincinatti and Iowa are BCS teams, not mid-majors, and we all really need to stop treating them like second-class citizens.

If there are two 10-win Pac-10 teams they should both go to the BCS above a 10-win ND team. But they won’t. Don’t expect more than one Pac-10 team in the BCS in the near future. Those people hate (envy?) us.

I’m really excited to develop my new idea. TwistNHook is TwistNHook in a TwistNHook Presents TwistNHook Presentation, The Intentionally Bad MicMan. This should be good.

Bee Tee Dubblez, thinking of a new tagline:

TwistNHook: Tastes Like Failure!

Thoughts?

Chancellor don’t hate us!

BERKELEY – Chancellor Robert Birgeneau expressed his support for Intercollegiate Athletics at Cal following a vote of the UC Berkeley Academic Senate recommending that the department become financially self-sufficient.

The resolution, passed by a majority of the 160 UC Berkeley faculty who voted at Thursday’s senate meeting, recommends that the Chancellor end institutional support for Intercollegiate Athletics, move to develop a viable plan to make the department self-supporting and present it at the senate’s spring meeting.

“Although it is advisory, we will, of course, take very seriously the Academic Senate’s recommendation and will consider the most effective way to move forward,” Chancellor Robert Birgeneau said. “We are very concerned about this year’s shortfall and are already working on containing Athletics deficits. We share the Academic Senate’s goal of achieving a self-supporting athletics program, although that will take time to realize. We must maintain our commitment to gender equity and equal competitive opportunity for our female student athletes, both as a matter of law and to honor our campus commitment to equity and inclusion. I believe that a strong athletics program brings many benefits to the entire university. I am very proud of all our student-athletes, both men and women, and the enormous contributions which they make to the life of the campus.”

The non-binding resolution also recommends that the Academic Senate establish a Senate Intercollegiate Athletics Oversight Committee composed solely of faculty members. The final tally was 91-68 of those in attendance out of more than 1,500 faculty on campus who are voting members of the senate.

Mens BBall beats Chico:

BERKELEY – The No. 12 California men’s basketball team hit the court for the first time in the 2009-10 season, defeating Chico State, 84-42, in an exhibition game Thursday night at Haas Pavilion. Senior guard Patrick Christopher paved the way for the Golden Bears, notching a game-high 16 points on the night.

Christopher shot 6-for-8 from the floor, was a clean 2-for-2 from the free-throw line and snagged three rebounds.

Sophomore guard Jorge Gutierrez also hit double figures in scoring, tallying 11 points. On the boards, senior forward Jamal Boykin led all players with 12 rebounds. Boykin was Cal’s leading rebounder last season.

The Bears connected of four of eight three-point attempts, with Christopher making two out of three. Senior guard Jerome Randle was 1-for-1 from behind the arc, while senior forward Theo Robertson made one of his two attempts.

Cal’s defense clamped down on the Wildcats. Chico State only shot 28.6 percent (16-56) from the field for the game, and made only three of its 18 three-pointers.

The season opener is set for Monday, Nov. 9, when the Bears welcome Murray State at 8 p.m. at Haas Pavilion.

Bosko and the Prophet receive honors:

BERKELEY – Cal junior offensive lineman Mark Boskovich and junior linebacker Mike Mohamed have been selected to the 2009 CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 8 First-Team. All student-athletes selected to the First-Team in one of the nation’s eight districts in the University division are placed on the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration.

Boskovich is a Political Science major with a 3.73 cumulative GPA, while Mohamed is majoring in Business Administration and has a 3.43 GPA. Both players earned Academic All-District honors for the first time but had previously been honored academically by the Pac-10 as members of the conference’s All-Academic First-Team in 2008. Mohamed was also a Pac-10 All-Academic honorable mention choice in 2007.

On the field, Boskovich has played in seven games with two starts at left guard in 2009.

Prophet to potentially receive honor:

BERKELEY – The All Sports Association announced Thursday that Cal junior linebacker Mike Mohamed is among the nominees for the 2009 Wuerffel Trophy. The honor is presented annually to the Football Bowl Subdivision player that best combines exemplary community service, with academic and athletic achievement, and is named after former Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel from the University of Florida.

The 2009 Wueffel Trophy finalists will be announced on Nov., 11, 2009 and distributed to the award’s National Selection Committee for voting. Formal announcement of the winner will occur on Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2009. Presentation of the 2009 Wuerffel Trophy will be at the All Sports Assocation’s 41st Annual Awards Dinner on Feb. 19, 2010, in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

Mohamed was also selected to the 2009 CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District 8 First-Team on Thursday for the first time in his career. All student-athletes selected to the First-Team in one of the nation’s eight districts in the University division are placed on the national ballot for Academic All-America consideration. He is majoring in Business Administration and has a 3.43 cumulative GPA. He had previously earned Pac-10 All-Academic First-Team honors in 2008 and was an honorable mention Pac-10 All-Academic choice in 2007.

Field hockey beats Davidson:

STANFORD, Calif. – Natalie Nurnberg’s 84th-minute strike gave California a 2-1 sudden victory over Davidson in overtime in the first round of the NorPac Tournament on Thursday night at Stanford’s Varsity Field Hockey Turf. The Golden Bears, who improved their record to 7-10, move on to a quarterfinal game against Radford (10-9) at 4 p.m. on Friday. Cal is the conference tournament’s No. 2 seed in the West; Radford is the No. 1 seed in the East.

Nurnberg, the NorPac West Offensive Player of the Year, now has a team-high eight goals on the season. The junior forward leads the Bears in points with 23.

“We had a breakaway, maybe a two on one or three on one, and got into the right side of the circle,” Cal head coach Shellie Onstead said. “The defense got back enough that Nat didn’t have a good pass, so she just took a shot at net, and it went in. It was a good goal.”

The Wildcats, the East’s No. 3 seed, fell to 6-12 and will play UC Davis in a consolation game at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

Cal outshot Davidson, 15-6, but Christa Goeke made 10 saves to keep the Wildcats in the game. Cal’s Maddie Hand made five saves.

“She did great,” Onstead said of Goeke. “Given we’ve had a little trouble putting it in this year, it was tough.”

After a scoreless first half, Davidson’s Annie Evans, with an assist by Claire Perry, struck in the 52nd minute to put her team up 1-0.

Cal forward Claire Dougherty, a redshirt freshman, scored her second goal of the year when she redirected a shot off a penalty corner, scoring at the far post in the 59th minute and tying the game at 1-1.

2) Iowa, right? They own the H2H over Penn State and tOSU would have 2 Big Ten losses

Women’s tennis doubles continue in tourney:

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – No. 4-ranked California women’s tennis sophomore Jana Juricova and No. 18-ranked junior Marina Cossou each claimed victories in the opening round of singles matches at the 2009 Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) National Indoor Tennis Championships at the Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center, Thursday, Nov. 5, to advance to the round of 16. The two Golden Bears will continue play at approximately 10:30 a.m. ET on Friday, Nov. 6, with singles quarterfinal matches set for 5:30 p.m. ET.

The fourth-seeded Juricova drew No. 13 Reka Zsilinszka of Duke in the opening round but turned her away in two sets, 6-4, 6-1, to set up a round-of-16 match against No. 25 Kristi Boxx of Mississippi. Cossou faced unseeded and unranked Holly Cao of Harvard, who put up a fight, before she came away with a 7-5, 6-4 win to move on. Cossou will take on No. 11-ranked Yasmin Schnaak of UCLA in the round of 16. Cossou and Schnaak faced off on Oct. 4 in the Cal Nike Invitational gold-flight final with Schnaak coming out on top with a 6-0, 6-3 victory in Berkeley. Previously, Cossou took out Schnaak in the Pac-10 Championship singles quarterfinal in a three-set victory in May this year.

Women’s tennis doing something at ASU too, Im confused:

The California women’s tennis team will complete fall individual tournament play at the 15th Annual Arizona State Thunderbird Invitational this weekend (Nov. 6-8) at the Whiteman Tennis Center in Tempe, Ariz. One of six Golden Bears will have the opportunity to become the fifth consecutive Cal player to capture the Thunderbird singles crown. Players from host ASU, Boise State, Michigan, Ohio State and San Diego will be joining the Bears in the desert for the 32-player tournament.

Action begins at 8:30 a.m. MST each morning. Round-robin doubles matches take place first on Friday, Nov. 6. The singles bracket will also play out and determine a consolation winner. The Bears will send senior Kasia Siwosz; sophomores Stephany Chang and Catalina Visico; and freshmen Tayler Davis, Annie Goransson and Nelly Radeva. Complete results and schedules will be posted at the conclusion of each day on www.thesundevils.com.

Mens Gymnastics ranked #2:

BERKELEY – The California men’s gymnastics team earned a No. 2 ranking in the preseason coaches poll, it was announced recently. The Golden Bears had four first-place votes for second place in the country, according to the Troester coaches’ preseason poll.

“It’s good to start the season with a top ranking,” Cal head coach Barry Weiner said. “Hopefully we’ll finish the year with an even better one.”

Despite losing four letterwinners, including NCAA individual champion Evan Roth, the Golden Bears welcome six newcomers and a solid core of 12 experienced returners. Tops on the list of lettermen are senior national team members Glen Ishino and Kyle Bunthuwong, who traveled with the U.S. delegation to the Japan Cup this summer.

Cal also brings back 2009 All-Americans Jim Kerry and Bryan del Castillo. Of the freshman, Swiss national team member Dennis Mannhart and U.S. junior team member Donathan Bailey could make the an impact right away.

Last season, Cal had 13 top-10 individual finishes, marking the first time since 1959 that a Cal team has achieved this feat and only the second time in program history. The Bears finished 2009 at 17-8 overall, one of the best records in recent school history.

Women’s Swimming defeats Fresno State:

BERKELEY – California topped Fresno State, 166-111, in a Thursday-afternoon dual meet at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The Golden Bears improved their record to 2-0, while the Bulldogs fell to 1-7 after the nonconference meet. Cal, the defending NCAA and Pac-10 champion, won all 16 events. Bears senior swimmers Lauren Boyle and Heather White and sophomore Shelley Harper won two individual races each, with Boyle winning the 500-yard freestyle in an NCAA B-qualifying time of 4:50.33 and claiming the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:49.39. Cal divers also won the one-meter and three-meter springboards in their season debut.

Cal head coach Teri McKeever previously coached both the Fresno State men’s and women’s teams.

“We’re just super appreciative that Fresno State came up and swam us,” Cal assistant coach Kristen Cunnane said. “Teri used to coach there, so it was a big deal for her. I thought Heather White, as a senior, just did a nice job racing. Shelley Harper is really stepping into her second-year role nicely.”

White won the 200-yard breaststroke (2:19.30) and 200 individual medley (2:02.65), while Harper won the 1000 free (9:58.65) and 100 breaststroke (1:05.55).

Cal freshman Caitlin Leverenz finished first in the 200 butterfly with an NCAA B-qualifying time of 1:59.69. Sophomore teammate Sara Isakovic also swam the 200 fly in an NCAA B-qualifying time (1:59.86), though the 2008 Slovenian Olympian didn’t place as she swam her race as an exhibition.

1. Suppose Boise and Oregon State were to finish as the 2nd or 3rd best teams in the country. Who would you send to the title game?

Boise State. Strength of schedule and conference are all theoretical. When it comes to choosing the top two teams, it usually comes down to who has the better record and a hypothetical of who could beat whom. In this hypothetical scenario, Boise State has the better record and has a head-to-head victory. This is a BCS nightmare, but if Oregon finishes with only one loss and Boise State is undefeated and somehow, the other undefeateds lose, we’re in trouble.

2. If Penn State beat Ohio State and Ohio State beat Iowa, who would go to the Rose Bowl?
Ohio State, 100%. The Big Ten tiebreaker rules in a three way (heh) tie would give it to the team that did not play a Division 1-AA team all year.

3. If Cincinnati, Iowa, Boise or TCU finish the season undefeated, should they get passed over by a 1 loss Big 12/SEC/Pac-10 champion for the national title?
Cincy and Iowa, 100% no. I discussed this in an earlier thread, with respect to LSU, but under no circumstances should a one-loss BCS team jump an undefeated BCS team for the title game, no matter what the hypothetical perceived strengths of the conference are. That would be another BCS disaster. Boise State and TCU are a little more complicated. As mentioned above, Boise State cannot and should not be jumped by Oregon if they finish in the top three. If Oregon loses again, then enough arguments could be made about strength of schedule to exclude Boise State, but TCU is a toss-up. They shouldn’t be passed up, especially given how Utah performed against Bama last year, but they will be.

4. Suppose the Pac-10 has two 10 win teams at the end of the season. Do they both deserve BCS bids over a 10 win Notre Dame team or an undefeated mid-major? More importantly, will they both get it?
Deserve? Yes. Will they? No. If Notre Dame is eligible for a BCS game, they WILL get it. Chase the money, baby.

5. Let’s say there’s an upset in the Big 12 or ACC title games. Does a 9-4 Kansas State team and a 12-1 Texas team both deserve BCS bids, and will they both get it? Would an 8-5 Clemson team and a 11-2 Georgia Tech team both deserve BCS bids, and will they both get it?
This is too hypothetical a hypothetical scenario. A 12-1 Texas should and would most likely get it. Georgia Tech’s situation really depends who the other candidates are. If TCU and Boise State are both undefeated, the second non-BCS team SHOULD get it, but may not, even if GTech isn’t a huge ratings draw either.

6. If it comes down to TCU, Cincinnati, Iowa or Boise as the only undefeateds and everyone else had two losses, who would you put in the title game?
Cincy – Iowa. Sorry, they are still BCS teams. I respect TCU and Boise State and hate the BCS hegemony, but this is how it has to happen.

7. Let’s say, like last year, every team in every big conference had one loss. Since Oregon had its loss earliest in the season, would you put them in the national title game?
Strongly depends who the other candidates are and when the losses came. If the other one-loss candidates are conference championship losers (say a 12-1 Texas), then absolutely not. If it’s a one-loss LSU that wins the SEC, I’d have a hard time believing Oregon could jump them. Too hypothetical.

For question 1, I have to agree with Rishi. Regardless of whether Oregon has improved, it’s hard to see them leapfrogging Boise State because of the head-to-head record.

As for the rest of them… this is the part of college football I find most irritating, and you didn’t ask for anyone’s pet rants about playoffs.

But I will say this: Notre Dame can go to hell and a non-BCS bowl. In any order they choose.

1. Oregon
3. Yes.
4. Yes. Yes.
5. No. Yes. No. Yes.
6. SEC Winner versus Oregon.
7. Oregon v. Alabama.

Our tailgating thing is up. They used like 2% of what we wrote and now all the commenters hate us.