As the over-glorification of the Miami-Florida State rivalry played on TV, I thought, "Didn't this use to be fun?"

Tthe pageantry is still there -- former Hurricane Edgerrin James and NBA Finals MVP Dwayne Wade were sideline spectators -- but no one can say that the game is as good as it used to be.

Remember the days of the three "wide rights" and the track meet, shoot-out type games between the schools? It's another instance where television is ruining one of the greatest rivalries in sports.

Arguments could be made that excitement is down, not because of TV, but the fact that the talent level isn't as high. But it is obvious. The blame for the sloppy, low scoring and boring games hangs squarely on the schedule makers and the NCAA.

Playing the game during the first week waters down the rivalry between the teams.

Some could say, the act of moving the game was in direct response to the invention of the ACC Championship game in 2005. They feel the regular-season game would lose its luster if the teams played a rematch so close to the first game.

That argument is as flawed as the BCS.

The SEC conference has a title game. So does the Big 12. And that hasn't stopped those conferences from keeping their most popular rivalry games in the usual slots.

If moving games was such a good idea, why not move the Red River Shootout between Texas and Oklahoma to noon on the first week? Florida and Georgia can play at 3:30 p.m., slip Ohio State-Michigan in, and, of course, the 'Canes and 'Noles could meet in the nightcap.

Sure, that would be a tremendous day of football, but that's all hype.

Let's face it: the first games in every college football season are always turnover- and penalty-filled affairs where you flip channels by the second quarter. That would almost never happen during Week 8.

That is what makes these rivalries great. Each possession and turnover could make or break a season. That was what Florida State and Miami used to have before the game was bumped up six weeks.

Each year, Miami and FSU not only battled for bragging rights, but there were usually national championship implications. The fact that this game meant so much nationally made the tension greater and the games that much better.

The NCAA needs to put the game back on in October, where it belongs.

Game of the Week

Sorry Penn State fans, but the Nittany Lions first match-up with Notre Dame since the 1992 "Snow Bowl" doesn't make the cut. Saturday's college football titans are playing in Austin, Texas as the No. 2 Longhorns and No. 1 Buckeyes meet in the game of the week.

Last year's game reminded us how good Texas quarterback Vince Young could be in a big game. Young out-played Troy Smith and Justin Zwick in a 25-22 game. Luckily for the Buckeyes, and the rest of the nation, Young has relocated to Tennessee.

This time around, it's the Longhorns who have a question mark at quarterback. Freshman Colt McCoy replaces Young, and he has plenty of help behind him. Wide receiver Limas Sweed and running back Selvin Young give Texas enough firepower to stay in the game, but it won't be enough as Smith will establish himself as the top Heisman candidate.

Ohio State 31, Texas 17