By Hook or Crook, Longhorns in Title Game

College football writers Ivan Maisel and Pat Forde touched on something in a podcast posted today on ESPN.com that just hasn't sat right with Homerism ever since Saturday night's incredible finish in the Big 12 championship game.

Both mentioned that they were irked by the responses of Texas coach Mack Brown and quarterback Colt McCoy when asked about the wild series of events in the game's final moments. Me, too.

Why? Hard to say.

For the record, although there may be some questions about the rules surrounding what is and is not reviewable, I think the replay showed that one precious second did remain on the game clock when McCoy's throw landed out of bounds. It's better to get that call right than to screw it up.

(I'll leave my general views on the use of replay for another time.)

What I think rubbed me the wrong way was the manner in which McCoy and Mack defended themselves afterwards. Both seemed to think there should have been no doubt that they had been wronged by the initial call on the field, when, in fact, it was far from an open-and-shut case.

Texas certainly won the game fair and square. However, Brown and McCoy nearly combined to commit one of college football's greatest gaffes. It wasn't without some great fortune that the Longhorns maintained their shot at the national championship. Yet, I don't recall hearing anything of that nature.

Then, there was this bit of presumptuousness from Mack when asked how thought the final BCS standings would shake out: "We were told for the last three weeks if we won, we'd be in the game. We did that."

Told by whom, exactly? The BCS fairies?

Of course, such obnoxiousness is easier to take from a team that has actually earned something.

The Longhorns definitely have a case that they should be playing for all the marbles. But what makes their argument any better than that of TCU, Cincinnati or Boise State?

We're talking about a team that's best victory came at overrated Oklahoma State. A team that scored its best non-conference win of the year at 6-6 Wyoming. (Or a home win against 8-4 Central Florida - I can't decide.) A team that played 10 of its 13 games inside its own state borders.

TCU went on the road to Clemson and won. Cincinnati beat Oregon State in Corvallis. As underwhelming as Boise's conference games may have been, the Bronocs beat Pac-10 champion Oregon.

In the end, though, this year's final BCS rankings perfectly captured the true inequity of college football today: You're either born into the elite, or you're not. Achievement is secondary.

As Mack has been "told," all UT had to do was coast through the regular season and its off to Pasadena. In the BCS world, a big name's best bet is to make it as easy as possible to avoid losing. Let the other teams around you knock themselves out.

Pollsters had a chance to make a statement and reward a team that really tried to prove its worth. Apparently, though, showing what you're really made of is for the little guys.

Blatant Homerism Weekly Power Poll: Week 14

1. Alabama
2. Cincinnati
3. TCU
4. Texas
5. Boise State
6. Florida
7. Oregon
8. Georgia Tech
9. Ohio State
10. Iowa