So the BCS championship game is on tonight. The matchup between Florida and Ohio State is generating a number of (amusing) articles about two sport/all sport schools. Some of them just happen to be total fiction not based any kind of factual evidence. Jason over at What's Bruin Dawg, flaged one of the more asinine articles that has been written to date (by some guy named Mike Celizic at MSNBC.com), which is filled with doozies like this:
That's because so few schools have what could be called mega-programs that try to dominate not just in one or two sports, but in all sports. Historically, such programs have been concentrated in the Big Ten. Elsewhere, there's a clear division of talent: UCLA plays basketball, USC plays football; the ACC plays basketball, the SEC plays football, and so on.
Well, of course, that is just total nonsense. And Jason shreds him here:
First off Mike, your assertion is patently ridiculous. By 'all sports', do you just mean men's football and men's basketball? Because by any reasonable standard, UCLA dominates in pretty much every sport they play. But, there's no need to let pesky 'facts' get in our way. Let's just concentrate on what the media has told us for years: UCLA just wins basketball, and that's it.
Moreover, Mike also goes on to write this displaying his total lack of knowledge of NCAA athletics (outside the world of the Big-10):
In fact, only six schools that I could find have even won even one of each championship. Those are: Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Maryland and Arkansas. It's telling that the first four in that list all belong to the Big Ten, the conference that more than any other emphasizes excellence in all sports.
He obviously is not have been paying any attention to the Pac-10, which features the top-3 programs (UCLA being at top) among schools with most NCAA championships. More on this from Jason:
Mike! Where the hell are you getting your data? Where's UCLA on that list? What, the 1954 National Title we won in football doesn't count because we're not from the Big Ten?! What sort of fact-checking process do you employ?
Regardless, I thought I would do a little checking - if UCLA was such a 'basketball' only school, how close did they get to capturing a football title during their magical basketball run in the 1960s and 1970s?
The answer, it seems, is as close as Florida is right now.
While there are not exact parallels between the current college football landscape and the previous setup (expecially in the 1960s), it is fairly certain that had UCLA defeated USC in the 1967 Cross-Town Rivalry (a game billed as "The Game of the Century" at the time), Tommy Protho would have successfully completed the unthinkable: UCLA, that 'basketball-only' school, would have held both the football and basketball men's national titles in 1967. Additionally, UCLA had much the same chance again in 1969 - again losing to USC in the Battle for the Victory Bell.
Thanks again Jason to for setting the record straight. BTW, also from his blog, here is an interesting comparison between the UCLA and Georgia Tech football programs, which I recommend all of you to read.Regardless, I thought I would do a little checking - if UCLA was such a 'basketball' only school, how close did they get to capturing a football title during their magical basketball run in the 1960s and 1970s?
The answer, it seems, is as close as Florida is right now.
While there are not exact parallels between the current college football landscape and the previous setup (expecially in the 1960s), it is fairly certain that had UCLA defeated USC in the 1967 Cross-Town Rivalry (a game billed as "The Game of the Century" at the time), Tommy Protho would have successfully completed the unthinkable: UCLA, that 'basketball-only' school, would have held both the football and basketball men's national titles in 1967. Additionally, UCLA had much the same chance again in 1969 - again losing to USC in the Battle for the Victory Bell.
UCLA is a two sport school no matter how much the media tries to pigeon hole it as a basketball-only school. We have written on this topic again and again. There is a reason why you see so much passion here about the state of our football program, because people care about the grid iron at UCLA as much as they do about basketball.
And, if you need more evidence on why UCLA is a name program in football check out the ratings from the Emerald Bowl. The Emerald Bowl had higher ratings than the Holiday Bowl, coming up with the fourth highest ratings of all bowl games leading up to New Year's Day, finishing behind Texas and Georgia's bowl games. The UCLA brand name matters. Too bad we have Karl Dorrell, who is degrading it year after year.
And, speaking of whom, DD will be submitting their Dump Dorrell petition to Dan Guerrero today.
If you have not signed the petition, make sure you sign it and share it with anyone you know who loves Bruin football.
GO BRUINS.
BTW, who are you guys rooting for in tonight's game? Let us know if there is an interest in an open game thread, and we will put one up.
GO BRUINS.