It would have been a better game if Oregon had played 'Bama, but I still think that offensive line and bull dog running backs would have killed the Ducks.

People who major in English should get used to being poor.

My approach was all wrong to what happened. I saw this as some kind of opportunity to sneak a championship after Johnny Football - who had committed at one point to Oregon - paid the Ducks back by beating Alabama. I was influenced by that story line. "Johnny Football Gives School He Jilted a Championship!"

At that point, I also feared Kansas State more than Notre Dame, so I was hoping Kansas State would lose - and they did just before the Ducks/Stanford game.

I believe the Ducks would have rolled Notre Dame, and still do. But it's wrong to take the approach of wishing for a lesser opponent. Just let it happen and if you beat the best, you beat the best. It's one thing to wish other teams will lose to give you access to the Big Game, but if you're trying to line up a weaker opponent, you're asking to get hurt by life, and boy, did I get dinged by this.

Meanwhile, I'm not saying it would have been easy, but if somehow Alabama and Oregon were the only undefeated teams, I still think the Ducks would have done a hell of a lot better than last night's contest - and may have even won. We'll never know though.

I hold no grudge against Stanford. Heck, they knocked the Ducks out before back in the Joey Harrington era, in a game where the Ducks got not one, but 2 punts blocked. Go Stanford. I think Phil Knight should be every bit as proud of them as the other school he attended - Oregon.

Oh well. My comedian friend in Florida did make a good observation: From the time Kansas State lost their first game, to the end of the Oregon/Stanford game, the Oregon Ducks were the #1 team in the land. At least Oregonians have that.

Just because you are not number one does not make you a loser. And the way rankings are determined in college football is whacked (USC preseason #1, really??). But good job Ducks! Congrats to Stanford for a great season and way to go Beav's for giving Corn Valley something the look forward to besides a Duck loss. And English Majors...if you want to read books stay home and make room for some more science and math majors.

Without an injury to Matt Barkely at USC (who as it turns out was the only piston that was actually firing in that engine), I don't think Notre Dame even gets to this game.

Everyone forgets that USC lost to ND, but it wasn't a loss by that much. And then USC gets drilled by a weak Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl, and looked completely clueless while doing it.

I'm not a big one for applying the distributive property of math to football, but it follows that if USC was as much of a train wreck as we saw on December 31 after a full month to prepare for Ga Tech, that Notre Dame wasn't very good and only got through their schedule by the skin of their teeth.

That being said, Alabama is a very good football team, and probably would have blasted Oregon as well. Meanwhile, "The Nacho" overplayed his hand with the NFL money folks, and has to reap what he sewed this spring when the NCAA Infractions Committee blooms.

"the Ducks would have been no. 1."

I'm not seeing them get past Alabama. This year's Alabama didn't even look as good as last years and they are in their own league.

I know, if ND had stayed undefeated it'd be a non-issue.

If Notre Dame's alumni were a little stronger they'd still be voted #1.