I’m torn on who I want to win. And you can add ECU to the scenario as well. Do we want Cincy to win out? Do we want Cincy to lose a game to have the championship moved to Houston? If Cincy loses a game, they fall hard in rankings. And when we beat Cincy, will beating a one loss Cincy team at home, will that be enough to jump over everyone and go to a NY6 bowl? I’m not sure it would. However, if Cincy wins out, and we go up to Cincy and beat them at their house when they are ranked #5 or better, I think that would bump us up and over all the other G5 schools and we would go to a NY6 bowl.
So, what do you guys think? Is it better for Cincy to lose a game and have the championship here, or to have an opportunity to beat Cincy at their place when they are ranked in the top 5? I would love to see the championship game here, but that would mean Cincy would have lost either to SMU or ECU, or heaven forbid, both.
The AAC has been pretty good to us. It would be kinda funny if we did beat Cincy and keep the AAC out of the college playoffs, with both teams leaving. AAC would be ticked off, and Cincy would be ticked off as well, and could possibly start a rivalry between UH and Cincy in the big 12.
Cincy, going to the Big 12 with us and SMU just rubs me the wrong way. Plus, it would take some of the shine away if Cincy loses today for our champ game considering they’ll probably be playing for a spot in the playoff. How good would it be to go up there and ruin their season in front of their fans?
It’s more important to UH that Cincy be undefeated when we play them for the AAC title.
That’s pretty obvious on many levels.
Hosting an AAC title game is literally nothing compared to what is really at stake here.
The real concerns are the perception of the new big 12, the perception of the UH (and Cincy) program, and frankly the $ associated with a new media contract for the new Big12.
We (UH) are very clearly best served by going to a top 5, 12-0 Cincy to battle as an 11-1 team ranked in the teens.
In that scenario, win or lose, the UH brand is best served, now and in the future.
I agree with xDC. I want UH to play as highly ranked a team as possible in the CCG. So, I want Cincy to win today and next week. Then, as an 11-1 team hopefully ranked in the teens in the CFP rankings, we go to Cincinnati and beat them in the CCG.
SMU to lose today and ECU to beat Cincinnati next week. Option 2:Cincinnati wins out and we beat them in Cincinnati. Best of AAC then both 1 loss teams.
Excruciatingly selfish. The only benefit is being able to attend the game. UH gets more out of it if we play an undefeated top 5 Cinci team, both this season and in the future.
In Fact, it is very likely that an 11-1 Houston loss to a 12-0 Cinci is better than a UH win here against an 11-1 Cinci.
We are less likely to jump UTSA and San Diego St. by beating a Cinci team that just “proved” to the eyes of the CFP that they were overrated by losing to SMU or ECU.
So we could win conference and not get the NY6 bowl.
If we beat an Undefeated, Top 5 Cinci at Cinci we are a close to guaranteed the NY6 as you can be with the crooked CFP in charge.
If we lose to an undefeated Cinci there is a chance they get into the playoffs. That actually does benefit us in the long term as it shows the future Big 12 will have teams that are playoff quality coming in, but also that would give us the best bowl in the American lineup as we would slide into the bowl role of the Champion. The same bowl we would go to if we beat a tarnished Cinci here at home.
I agree that we probably need Cincinnati to win for us to have any chance of moving up significantly in the rankings if we beat the Bearcats. Plus, I always want SMU to lose!
I want us to have the best chance of winning the conference title. Even if we have to beat SMU or ECU twice at TDECU. S. Miss didn’t give a poop that they cost the conference money by beating us in 2011 so I don’t care if UC getting into the playoff or not. Hosting them at home should be a lot easier to win the CCG then on the road. Go Mustangs and Go Pirates next 2 weekends!!