"[H]eck, I'll be happy if they lose to Oklahoma by less than 21 points."

As you might imagine, I'm pretty happy. BYU beat Oklahoma by one point on Saturday, though they should have won by a lot more, the way both teams were playing. I couldn't sleep very well on Saturday night, just thinking about it all and saying to myself over and over: "BYU just beat Oklahoma. BYU just beat Oklahoma."

Of course, now BYU has the same problem they had last year, which was supposed to be better for this year: unrealistically high expectations. Now everyone expects them to run the table and actually contend for not just a BCS game, but the national championship (I've read a few national stories that mention this as a possibility). Going undefeated is a tall order for anyone - even the teams that do win national championships generally lose a game or two along the way. I just hope the Cougars can keep down the cockiness, remember to have fun, continue to see themselves as an underdog instead of a team with a target on its back. No matter what happens from here on out, this is going to be a fun season.

Which leads me to want to post just a few of the reasons why college football is my favorite sport.

1. There are lots of teams - so many even I can't keep track of them all. What this means is that with all the games going on, something awesome is bound to happen.

2. College players aren't as good as professional players. What this means is that any team can beat any other given team. Turnovers and mistakes and lack of speed or technique are common in college football and that keeps it interesting. Even when it's my team who fumbles the ball just before crossing the goal line (as BYU actually did on Saturday), I'm frustrated, but it sure does mix up the game.

3. Cool mascots. Where else are you going to find Boilermakers, Longhorns, Horned Frogs, and Hokies (whatever a Hokie is)?

4. Turnover. From year to year, teams don't stay the same - they lose players to graduation and the NFL, which means there's always someone new to root for or against, or to get to know. It builds loyalty to a team, not to a player.

5. The system sucks. I'm going to try not to rant too much against the BCS this year. Really, I'd just like to see them do away with the automatic-qualifying-conference thing altogether and just give the automatic bids to the top six conference champions, regardless of who they are. Sure I'd like a playoff (but if there were a playoff, would Oklahoma be as nervous as they are now?), but railing against the system and rooting for the little guys is really one of the fun things about it all.