Shattered dreams
Cal’s dream season ended Sunday by lethal injection of Bowl Championship Series reality.
The Bears won 10 games, pushed top-ranked USC to the brink, and finished the regular season at No. 4 in the Associated Press and coaches’ polls. But in the only standing that matters — the BCS, which combines the human polls with six computer rankings — Texas jumped over Cal into fourth Sunday and earned the guaranteed bid to one of the four BCS games.
Instead of playing in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1959, the Bears (10-1) are headed for the Holiday Bowl in San Diego on Dec. 30.
Instead of playing Michigan, the Big Ten champion, they will face Texas Tech, which tied for third in the Big 12’s South division.
“We feel we got snubbed, so we’re going down there to make a statement,” Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers said.
After returning to campus early Sunday morning following a 26-16 victory at Southern Mississippi, the Bears reconvened at Memorial Stadium to watch the BCS pairings revealed on television. They left with long faces and sunken eyes.
“Their sights were set on the Rose Bowl, as the program’s sights were set on the Rose Bowl,” Bears coach Jeff Tedford said. “I felt we did enough to earn that.
“I don’t feel any anger. I don’t know what to say about it. Sometimes life is unfair. But when you’re fourth and the only team you lost to is No. 1 in the country, there seems to be some injustice there.”
He’ll get no argument from Rodgers, who was the only Cal player available for comment. Rodgers expressed frustration with the BCS system and criticized Texas coach Mack Brown for soliciting votes on air last week after the Longhorns’ victory over Texas A&M.
“I thought it was a little classless how Coach Brown was begging for votes,” Rodgers said. “I think a team’s record and the way you play should speak for itself, and you shouldn’t have to complain about the BCS system. Coach Tedford isn’t going to, although he’s frustrated just like we are. I think we’re a bigger team, classier than that.”
But if any team feels Cal’s pain, it’s Texas. The Longhorns were left out of the BCS last year despite a 10-1 record and a No. 5 ranking. They probably would have met the same fate this season if Cal had handily defeated Southern Mississippi. But the Bears’ narrow victory — they led by one point midway through the fourth quarter — caused them to lose votes in both the AP and coaches’ polls.
“If yesterday’s game was the game that turned everybody’s head, that’s sad,” Tedford said. “It’s about the whole year.”
USC No. 1 start to finish
Southern California and Oklahoma ended the regular season the same way they began it in the Associated Press Top 25: The Trojans are No. 1, and the Sooners No. 2.
It’s the first time Nos. 1 and 2 stayed the same from the AP preseason Top 25 through the final regular season poll, though the Sooners shared second with Auburn for one week.
USC (12-0), the defending AP national champions, received 44 first-place votes and 1,599 points in Sunday’s media poll, the last one before bowl games.
Oklahoma (12-0) padded its lead over No. 3 Auburn and gained ground on USC, receiving 14 first-place votes and 1,556 points.
The Tigers (12-0) received seven first-place votes and 1,526 points. Last week, the Tigers and Sooners were separated by just 10 points.
No. 4 California dropped to 1,399 points, compared to 1,410 last week. Utah stayed at No. 5.
In the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll, USC, Oklahoma and Auburn are the top three. Cal is No. 4, but its lead over No. 5 Texas shrunk from 48 points to five.
In the AP poll, Louisville is No. 7, followed by Georgia, Virginia Tech and Boise State.
Hawaii tops Michigan State
Chad Owens caught four touchdown passes, including three in the second half, and Hawaii rallied to defeat Michigan State 41-38 Saturday night in Honolulu to earn a berth in the Hawaii Bowl on Christmas Eve against Alabama-Birmingham.
Owens finished with 13 catches for 283 yards.
In a thrilling showdown that featured 1,134 yards of offense, the Warriors (7-5) came back from a 28-14 halftime deficit behind the play of Timmy Chang.
The NCAA career passing leader was 29 of 49 for 416 yards. He also scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter as Hawaii.