Downside Up on the Gridiron

For years, parity was the universal beacon of hope in the NFL. Teams could swing from a 5-11 season to the playoffs in a twelve month span. Any Super Bowl participant could routinely find itself in a midseason tailspin a few weeks after raising a banner to the rafters. Chaos reigned week-to-week, as doormats frequently beat heavily favored foes.

Meanwhile, college football was the domain of powerhouses. One or two big-time programs (often involving the letters U, S, and C) would earn a lofty preseason ranking and remain entrenched atop the polls. Each week, a new foe would fail miserably to end their perfect records and at the end of the season, one unbeaten champion remained.

So isn't it interesting that this fall, college and pro football decided to trade places?

The NFL now features the defending champion Colts and the seemingly invincible Patriots both unbeaten through Week 7. The prevailing story around the league is their Nov. 4 matchup and whether the winner (which most presume will be New England) can go 19-0. The entire focus of this NFL season is now on two teams that are head-and-shoulders above the rest. Those other 30 squads? We'll let Mel Kiper Jr. worry about them next April.

As for college football, parity has been one stunner after another this year, with top 5 teams dropping like flies. No powerhouse is safe and only a fool would make any presumptions about who will win the national championship at this point. The new mantra is "Any Given Saturday."

As unusual as this season has been for both college and pro football, I think both sports are better for it. With so many bad quarterbacks, disappointing running backs (Lord help you if you drafted Shaun Alexander in fantasy) and mediocre coaching this year, the NFL could use a few bright spots. The Pats/Colts rivalry features two recent champions with Hall-of-Fame quarterbacks and star power all around. This match-up is clearly the NFL's best foot and it's more than happy to put it forward.

As for college football, it's about time the traditional powers got knocked off their pedestals. Depth and competitive balance will increase the popularity and quality of play in college football, just as it did in the NFL for so many years. The sport will only grow with surprise upstarts like South Florida, Appalachian St. and (ahem) Stanford getting their moment in the spotlight. Let's face it-- the nation could only take so much of that damn USC fight song.