Sports
Column: Florida earns its national crown
Congratulations are due the Florida Gators.
They showed amazing teamwork, talent and resilience in winning their second consecutive NCAA basketball title just about a week ago.
The Gators came from a No. 6 national ranking to defeat a highly touted Ohio State team to wind up the three-week tournament.
It’s a shame the NCAA won’t allow a sixth-ranked football team to earn a spot in a national championship game.
By using the tournament as the basis of claiming a crown, basketball coaches are allowed the luxury of scheduling better games during the regular season, battle testing their teams and building fan interest.
Obviously, conferences plan the bulk of most teams’ schedules in both sports. However, with the knowledge your team can play itself into a position of strength in postseason competition, basketball coaches can let their players face stiff competition and treat their fans to better games against high-profile programs, a situation non-existent in college football.
Last season, Florida tangled with Ohio State early in the year. Duke took on several tournament teams prior to opening ACC play.
Why?
Because Billy Donovan and Mike Krzyzewski both know they can get better looks at how their players will react against quality competition and, even if they lose, they can still get back to the top.
Other than an occasional anomaly, like the Texas-Ohio State home and home series the last two years, there are not many competitive college football games during a season, relatively speaking, outside conference rivalries.
You see football games like powerhouse Texas taking on North Texas, a Division I wannabe, at best, or Miami battling Central Florida. Games the big names will never lose. And you see them because in a 12-game season, coaches can’t afford losses, or even close wins, when their sport’s national crown is decided by a computer and ballots from voters who, in many cases, don’t get a chance to see all the teams they vote for.
Imagine if other sports handed out their championships instead of playing them out on the field or court.
At the end of a grueling 162-game major league baseball schedule, instead of taking the teams with the best records and seeding them in a tournament-type playoff system, sportswriters and computer programmers got together and voted on the two best teams.
That would be the one way the Rangers would have a prayer at making the World Series, but one would have to wonder if the national title would ever go to the best team.
How about in the NFL?
All 30 teams play a 16-game slate, then at the end, it boils down to the teams who make the league the most money are perennially voted into the Super Bowl.
That’s what happens in NCAA football.
Oh, they threw a bone to the mid-majors last year when they allowed Boise State into a BCS bowl game. But the Broncos’ win over NCAA darling Oklahoma won’t sit well with the upcoming postseason schedulers.
The select few, Texas, Oklahoma, Miami, USC, Ohio State, Michigan, you know the list, will always have the inside track to the national title bowl, sometimes justifiably.
By why not give a No. 6 team, like the NCAA basketball champion Florida Gators a chance by adding a postseason tournament to football?
I’ll tell you why.
The NCAA elitists in Austin, Miami, Ann Arbor, Los Angles and Columbus don’t want to share the bowl dollars.
And, sadly, that’s not likely to change.
Congratulations to the UF basketball team.
You earned your national title.
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WHS wrestlers place second in district meet, nine headed to regional tourney
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Dollar signs with Waxahachie college
When Brock’s Rebekah Dollar entertained the idea of playing volleyball at the collegiate level, her decision was uncertain.
Then Hank Moore stepped in, and once the two talked, Dollar’s choice of school was confirmed.
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WC baseball goes 3-0 over the weekend, starts season 5-1
The Weatherford College baseball team enjoyed a productive weekend on the road, sweeping Lon Morris in Jacksonville, and beating Bossier Parrish in Shreveport.
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Parker County Sports Schedule - Week of Feb. 8
Tuesday, February 9
Boys Basketball
Weatherford at Richland, 7:30 p.m.
Springtown at Aledo, 7:30 pm.
Peaster vs. Millsap, 7:30 p.m.
Brock vs. Chico, 8 p.m.
Poolville vs. Tolar, 8 p.m.
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Local briefs - Feb. 7, 2010
Lady Roos beat Haltom in district match
Staff Report
Weatherford improved to 9-2 in District 3-5A with a 56-41 win over the Haltom Lady Buffs, Friday. Building a six-point lead by the end of the opening period, the Lady Roos held the lead and pulled away in the final quarter with a 14-7 scoring edge.
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Abilene momentum hands Roos district loss
At the opening kick at Roos Stadium Friday, Weatherford took control with well-thought movement and crisp passing, dominating possession of the ball against the Abilene Eagles.
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Roos drop district match to Haltom
Trailing in the bottom half of District 3-5A, the Weatherford Roos were looking to boot rival Haltom from their third-spot perch.
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Matlock inks intent at Arkadelphia school
When Weatherford’s Cory Matlock was searching for the ideal college experience, he wanted something similar to his hometown with facilities tailored towards his future studies. What he found was Ouachita Baptist University.
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Abernathy ends LOI hunt at Angelo State
Weatherford’s Dakota Abernathy has always been an outdoorsy kind of guy. That mixed with football provided Angelo State University as Abernathy’s new home.
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Williams inks, headed to Southern Conference
ALEDO — The Southern Conference, nestled in a five-state region in the deep south, is where Aledo senior Michael Williams plans to reside the next four or five years. Williams signed a letter-of-intent to play football and attend classes at Samford University, Wednesday.
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WHS wrestlers place second in district meet, nine headed to regional tourney
