College Football Awards Week 12 (2017) November 19, 2017
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Akron, Arkansas, Badgers, Baylor, Boston College, Bruins, BYU, Central Florida, Charlie Strong, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Clemson, Dave Clawson, Egg Bowl, Florida, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, Frank Solich, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Jim Harbaugh, Jim Mora, Kansas State, Kentucky, Kevin Sumlin, Kilane Sitake, Kirk Ferentz, Longhorns, Louisville, Matt Luke, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Navy, NC State, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ohio U, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Paul Chryst, Purdue, Scott Frost, South Alabama, South Carolina, South Florida, Stanford, Syracuse, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, UCF, UCLA, UConn, USC, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington, Washington State, Wisconsin, Wolfpack
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 12] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Paul Chryst, Wisconsin
Glad I’m not him: Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
Lucky guy: Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Poor guy: Matt Luke, Ole Miss
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Frank Solich, Ohio U
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Dave Clawson, Wake Forest
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Kirk Ferenz, Iowa
Desperately seeking … anything: Kilane Sitake, BYU
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Louisville (defeated Syracuse 56-10)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Mississippi State (defeated Arkansas 28-21)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Illinois (lost to Ohio State 52-14)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Navy (lost to No. 8 Notre Dame 24-17)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Northwestern (defeated Minnesota 39-0)
Dang, they’re good: Ohio State
Dang, they’re bad: South Alabama
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Iowa
Did the season start? Oklahoma State
Can the season end? Tennessee
Can the season never end? Oklahoma
GAMES
Play this again: Texas A&M 31, Ole Miss 24
Play this again, too: Kansas State 45, No. 13 Oklahoma State 40
Never play this again: Florida State 77, Delaware State 6
What? Akron 37, Ohio U 34
Huh? Wake Forest 30, No. 19 NC State 24
Are you kidding me?? Kansas State 45, No. 13 Oklahoma State 40
Oh – my – God: Purdue 24, Iowa 15
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 12, pre-week 13)
Ticket to die for: No. 9 Ohio State @ Michigan also: No. 1 Alabama @ No. 6 Auburn
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: none
Best non-Power Five matchup: South Florida @ No. 15 UCF
Upset alert: No. 2 Clemson @ South Carolina also: No. 8 Notre Dame @ No. 22 Stanford
Must win: Indiana @ Purdue also: No. 9 Ohio State @ Michigan
Offensive explosion: No. 14 Washington State @ No. 18 Washington
Defensive struggle: Florida State @ Florida
Great game no one is talking about: Louisville @ Kentucky
Intriguing coaching matchup: Scott Frost of Central Florida vs Charlie Strong of South Florida
Who’s bringing the body bags? Baylor @ No. 12 TCU
Why are they playing? Florida Atlantic @ Charlotte
Plenty of good seats remaining: UConn @ Cincinnati
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Vanderbilt @ Tennessee
Week 12 Random Thoughts:
Today yielded no earth-shattering upsets. How could it, with so many highly-ranked teams inexplicably engaged in body bag games so late in the year? Nevertheless, some interesting upsets did ensue. Pathetic Akron took down perennial MAC contender Ohio U, for example. Kansas State defeated Oklahoma State on the road. Unranked Wake Forest (now 7-4, surprisingly) upset No. 19 NC State, putting a blemish on an otherwise impressive year for the Wolfpack. Even more amazingly, Purdue went on the road to play Iowa, a game where nobody, least of all yours truly, gave them a chance to win, and yet they did anyhow. Don’t ask how the same team that embarrassed Ohio State by the worst margin in more than two decades could lose two weeks later at home to a lesser team. There is no rational explanation.
Texas earned a great win, on the road, over West Virginia. Two weeks ago, the Longhorns gave a pitiful offensive performance against TCU, and offered only a middling performance in their win over Kansas last week. Naturally, this turn of events gave the Longhorn faithful cause for concern. Whether these concerns are no longer valid remains to be seen. But adjustments were clearly made, to the point where Texas was able to win, convincingly, in a tough environment, against a favored team. Looks like progress, and the Horns are now bowl-eligible to boot. Next week they close the regular season at home against Texas Tech, which will be a decent test to see if they can maintain their current level of performance.
Remember my earlier speculation about Purdue’s bowl chances having evaporated? Wad that thought up and toss it out the window. Purdue’s surprising upset over Iowa – on the road, no less – has given their season a new life. Don’t ask how this came to pass. Be all that as it may, this upcoming week, both Purdue and in-state rival Indiana shall play each other for two things, not just one. Not only will they play for the Old Oaken Bucket trophy, but also for bowl eligibility. No telling the last time the stakes were that high for the two teams.
Every season, there is always a surprise or two. One such this year is Central Florida, who currently undefeated and ranked first in the All-American Conference East Division. At a current rank of no. 15, head coach Scott Frost seems to know what he is doing. This is the same Scott Frost who was the capable, tough, dependable quarterback who led Nebraska to a share of the national title with Michigan in the 1997 season. After several years as a back-up QB in the NFL, he gradually worked his way up the ranks in coaching. With a relatively easy schedule remaining, the Golden Knights could remain undefeated going into the ultimate conference showdown at season’s end. Then, they face 9-1 South Florida, led by Coach Charlie Strong. Surely that is to be one of the most intriguing of coaching matchups of the year!
Shout-out to Notre Dame for wearing very cool-looking, throwback-inspired uniforms during their game against Navy. I sincerely hope that more teams with gold in their school colors have the good sense to copy those nice-looking gold pants that the Irish wore this week.
Just several weeks earlier, Louisville could not beat Wake Forest or Boston College. Now, they seem to have turned things around. Their 56-10 walloping of Syracuse is a sure sign the Cardinals are playing back to form, and are doing so just at the right time, as they take on in-state rival Kentucky this upcoming week.
UCLA just fired Jim Mora, Jr. Ironically, the Bruins lost last night to cross-town rival USC by a respectable margin, 28-23. But the powers that be in Westwood clearly did not like the direction the program was headed. Mora helped create high expectations for the Bruin faithful, but sadly failed to deliver (UCLA is now 5-6). Then again, the school is only partially committed compared to USC, or to any other program that is determined to compete for a national title. Firing the current head coach shall thus not solve this systemic problem.
With Wisconsin’s win over Michigan, the Badgers continue their undefeated streak and are on a certain course to represent the Western Division in the Big Ten championship. All Ohio State has to do is beat Michigan this upcoming week for the rights to butt heads with the Badgers. My scenario for the best possible playoff scenario thus continues, but more pratfalls remain.
The best game on Thanksgiving is not played in Detroit or Dallas. No, rather it is usually the “Egg Bowl,” the annual Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State grudge-match that shall once again kickoff on the evening of the fourth Thursday in November. Let us enjoy it, and God Bless America!
College Football Awards Week 9 (2017) October 30, 2017
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, B1G, Ball State, Baylor, Big Ten, Boilers, Boston College, Bulldogs, Butch Jones, Central Florida, Charlotte, Coastal Carolina, David Shaw, Florida, Florida State, Gamecocks, Gary Patterson, Gator Bowl, Gators, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Houston, Iowa, Iowa State, Irish, James Franklin, Jeff Brohm, Jim McElwain, Jimbo Fisher, Justin Fuente, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Mark Dantonio, Mark Richt, Miami, Miami (Florida), Miami Hurricanes, Michigan State, Mike Riley, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Old Dominion, Oregon State, Penn State, Purdue, SMU, South Carolina, South Florida, Southern Miss, Stanford, Steve Addazio, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Toledo, UCF, UMass, Urban Meyer, Virginia Tech, Washington State, West Virginia, Will Muschamp
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 9] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Urban Meyer, Ohio State
Glad I’m not him: James Franklin, Penn State
Lucky guy: David Shaw, Stanford also: Mike Riley, Nebraska
Poor guy: Jeff Brohm, Purdue
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Gary Patterson, TCU
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Steve Addazio, Boston College
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Jim McElwain, Florida
Desperately seeking … anything: Jimbo Fisher, Florida State
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: UCF (defeated Austin Peay 73-33)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Stanford (defeated Oregon State 15-14)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Baylor (lost to Texas 38-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: North Carolina (lost to No. 8 Miami 24-19)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Boston College (defeated Florida State 35-3)
Dang, they’re good: Georgia
Dang, they’re bad: Baylor
Can’t Stand Prosperity: TCU
Did the season start? Louisville
Can the season end? Florida State
Can the season never end? Ohio State
GAMES
Play this again: No. 6 Ohio State 39, No. 2 Penn State 38
Play this again, too: Northwestern 39, No. 18 Michigan State 31, 3OT
Never play this again: Toledo 58, Ball State 17
What? Houston 28, No. 17 South Florida 24
Huh? Northwestern 39, No. 18 Michigan State 31, 3OT
Are you kidding me?? No. 6 Ohio State 39, No. 2 Penn State 38
Oh – my – God: No. 25 Iowa State 14, No. 4 TCU 7
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 9, pre-week 10)
Ticket to die for: No. 1 Alabama @ No. 19 LSU
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Western Kentucky @ Vanderbilt
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 15 UCF @ SMU
Upset alert: Texas @ TCU also: No. 18 Stanford @ No. 25 Washington State
Must win: No. 13 Virginia Tech @ No. 9 Miami
Offensive explosion: No. 8 Oklahoma State @ No. 11 Oklahoma State
Defensive struggle: Florida @ Missouri
Great game no one is talking about: No. 25 Iowa State @ No. 22 West Virginia
Intriguing coaching matchup: James Franklin of Penn State vs Mark Dantonio of Michigan State
Also: Justin Fuente of Virginia Tech vs. Mark Richt of Miami
Who’s bringing the body bags? UMass @ Mississippi State
Why are they playing? Southern Miss @ Tennessee
Plenty of good seats remaining: Charlotte @ Old Dominion
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Coastal Carolina @ Arkansas
Week 9 Random Thoughts:
The Ohio State-Penn State game was one that certainly lived up to its hype. Its implicit billing as the game of the year certainly was that, with stakes no less high than a possible playoff berth on the line. Buckeyes are now ranked No. 3 and have the opportunity to control their own destiny. Three out of the four remaining games are going to be challenges, however. Iowa is up next (remember, they took Penn State down to the wire), followed by Michigan State (a deceptively deadly team as of late), a potential break with Illinois, with Michigan (self-explanatory) to cap off the season. Urban Meyer needs to keep the team focused these next four weeks for a trip to Indianapolis for the B1G championship.
In the meantime OSU, ditch those grungy-looking all-gray uniforms. They looked horrible.
Few things are as distasteful as seeing your team blow a 4th-quarter lead. Purdue did just that at home against Nebraska. First they embarrassed themselves in a defensive struggle on the road against lowly Rutgers, now this. This upcoming week’s game against Illinois is surely a winnable one, but then again, that’s what we all thought about Rutgers and Nebraska a couple of weeks ago. Worse yet, Northwestern has been resurgent as of late, and Iowa is as competitive as ever. Indiana might still be a winnable game, and thus it is not reasonable for the Boilers to emerge at season’s end 5-7, which is a still a step in the right direction from the disaster that was the Darrell Hazell era.
As predicted, Texas got well on Baylor. The respite will not last, as next game they face TCU, arguably their toughest opponent of the year, in Fort Worth, no less. Moreover, the Horned Frogs will be quite angry after just losing – unexpectedly – their first game of the year to newly-ranked Iowa State.
Let us hold our horses about Notre Dame. Yes, they have only one loss, to current No. 2 Georgia, no less, and their strength of schedule is formidable. But they’re also enjoying a senior-laden offensive line with a limited offense. Furthermore, the Irish have yet to face two of their toughest opponents not named Georgia. In two weeks they face a resurgent Miami Hurricanes, and they close out the season on the road at Stanford. Eastern Timezone teams tend not to fare very well on the road against West Coast teams. Just sayin’. In the meantime, cool the hype on Notre Dame until their season concludes.
Speaking of Georgia, they rose to the occasion yet again this year by handily defeating Florida. In recent years, the Bulldogs have struggled in their annual rivalry games against the Gators. This time, the Dawgs kept that unpleasant past in the rearview mirror. Seemingly treating it like any other game, they went into the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville and took care of business, so much so (42-7) that Jim McElwain might be in danger of losing his job. Now ranked No. 2, they potentially control their own destiny. But next game up is South Carolina, a potential trap game, as Will Muschamp has coached the Gamecocks to a surprising 6-2 start. Moreover, the remaining three games after that – in order, Auburn, Kentucky, and Georgia Tech – each offer their own unique challenges. If the Bulldogs remain in playoff contention, they shall have to earn it.
Oh, and Tennessee lost…again…this time to another rival of sorts, Kentucky. As of this writing, officials at the University of Tennessee are contemplating Butch Jones’ tenure. Many of us are wondering what has taken them this long to get to this point, let alone giving Jones the ax.
College Football Awards Week 7 (2017) October 15, 2017
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas State, Auburn, Baylor, Bobby Petrino, Boston College, Bronco Mendenhall, Butch Jones, BYU, Cal, California, Charlotte, Clemson, Dabo Swinney, Dino Babers, East Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Gus Malzahn, Idaho, Iowa, Jim McElwain, Justin Wilcox, Kansas, Kansas State, Longhorns, Louisville, Mark Dantonio, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Navy, North Carolina, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Red River Shootout, Showdown, Sooners, South Carolina, Syracuse, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Tigers, UAB, UCF, UCLA, UMass, UTEP, Virginia, Washington, Washington State, Will Muschamp, Wisconsin
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3K5x1eRfaw
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 7] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Justin Wilcox, Cal
Glad I’m not him: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Lucky guy: Dino Babers, Syracuse
Poor guy: Jim McElwain, Florida
Desperately seeking a clue: Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Bronco Mendenhall, Virginia
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Gus Malzahn, Auburn
Desperately seeking … anything: Butch Jones, Tennessee
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Oklahoma State (defeated Baylor 59-16)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Clemson (lost to Syracuse 27-24))
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Baylor (lost to No. 14 Oklahoma State 59-16)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Purdue (lost to No. 7 Wisconsin 17-9)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Cal (defeated No. 8 Washington State 37-3)
Dang, they’re good: Ohio State
Dang, they’re bad: UTEP
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Washington State
Did the season start? Louisville
Can the season end? North Carolina
Can the season never end? Georgia also: Alabama
GAMES
Play this again: No. 12 Oklahoma 29, Texas 24
Play this again, too: Texas A&M 19, Florida 17
Never play this again: Arkansas State 51, Coastal Carolina 17
What? West Virginia 46, No. 24 Texas Tech 35
Huh? LSU 27, No. 10 Auburn 23
Double Huh? Arizona State 13, No. 5 Washington 7
Are you kidding me?? Cal 37, No. 8 Washington State 3
Oh – my – God: Syracuse 27, No. 2 Clemson 24
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 7, pre-week 8)
Ticket to die for: No. 19 Michigan @ No. 2 Penn State
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Idaho @ Missouri
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 20 UCF @ No. Navy
Upset alert: No. 19 Michigan @ No. 3 Penn State also: Kansas State @ No. 10 Oklahoma
Must win: Louisville @ Florida State
Offensive explosion: Oregon @ UCLA
Defensive struggle: Iowa @ Northwestern
Great game no one is talking about: Kentucky @ Mississippi State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Jim Harbaugh of Michigan vs. James Franklin of Penn State
Who’s bringing the body bags? Kansas @ No. 4 TCU
Why are they playing? Idaho @ Missouri
Plenty of good seats remaining: Georgia Southern @ UMass
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? UAB @ Charlotte
Week 7 Random Thoughts:
The Red River Shootout Showdown did not disappoint. In recent years, the matchup has often turned into a lopsided affair in favor of Oklahoma. Not this time. The unranked Longhorns held their own against the Sooners this time, with a game full of excitement and drama (see the game summary at the top of the page). The main takeaways are that Oklahoma is still strong enough to be a legitimate top-10 team, while the Longhorns have proven that their dramatic win over Kansas State last week was no fluke. Indeed, they keep improving, which is a sign of a well-coached team.
Speaking of well-coached teams, the opposite can sadly be said for Louisville. The Cardinals were stronger earlier in the year than they are now, having just lost in a shootout, at home, to lowly Boston College. Bobby Petrino has done nothing to address his team’s deficiencies from last year. His skill position personnel are still young, and he has not done a thing to address his weak offensive line play. Depending on your star quarterback to carry the team in every phase of the game is no way to go through life, sir. Nor is it recommended to try to mold said star quarterback into another Aaron Rogers when he is clearly Michael Vick 2.0 instead.
Poor BYU. They’ve had such a rough year. At 1-6, perhaps they could catch a break this upcoming week when they play 1-6 East Carolina. Then again, the Pirates might be thinking the same thing.
Meanwhile, where did Michigan State come from all of a sudden? They had a few lackluster wins earlier in the season, and lost rather badly to Notre Dame (who, in the Spartans’ defense, was ranked at the time), 38-18. But then they turned around and beat top-10 Michigan, in the Big House, no less, and now win convincingly, on the road, in inclement weather, at Minnesota. How can Mark Dantonio not be considered one of the best coaches in the business? These past several years, he has consistently done more with less. Moreover, the team is clearly better now than they were earlier in the season, which again, is one sign of a well-coached team. Part of the secret to his success? The Spartans have this new thing called a running game, which so many teams these days sorely lack.
This upcoming week, the moments we have all waited for are about to commence with Michigan about to take on Penn State. Yes, it will be one of the key clashes of Big Ten Titans, and two things shall be ascertained. One is whether or not Michigan can bounce back from losing the Paul Bunyan Trophy to Michigan State. The other is whether or not Penn State belongs in the top five nationally. It will also be a nice warmup for an even more enticing matchup (Ohio State vs. Penn State) later this month.
Speaking of teams that keep improving as the season progresses, Purdue deserves a mention. Yes, they lost, but it was on the road, at Wisconsin, ranked 7th nationally. The loss was quite respectable, only 17-9. One would think that the formidable Badgers would have defeated the unranked Boilermakers by at least two touchdowns, but Purdue fought hard to ensure that did not happen. Now the Boilers enter the easy part of their schedule. To wit, they have yet to play, in order: Rutgers, Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern, Iowa, and Indiana, all of which are winnable to varying degrees. Indeed, the biggest question mark that remains on the schedule is Iowa (they did take Penn State to the wire, after all), but aside from that, they could theoretically win out. Time will tell, but focus and consistent effort on their part shall make it so.
Remember last week about South Carolina entering the brutal part of their schedule? So far they have handled it with aplomb, upsetting Tennessee, in Knoxville, in a low-scoring affair, 15-9. Next week they face Vanderbilt at home, at game that appears increasingly winnable as time progresses (could it be that the Commodores defeating Kansas State earlier this year was just some weird fluke?). Forget Georgia, however, as they remain as strong as ever, continuing to roll their opponents. But Florida is something of a question mark. Yes, they have been good enough to win most of their games thus far, but this time, they were not quite good enough to win at home, narrowly losing to Texas A&M. Maybe it was those god-awful uniforms that cursed them. Maybe the Gators deserved to be cursed for wearing them. Oh, and forget South Carolina beating Clemson. Not happening; not at this rate, even after the Tigers lost at Syracuse (which, again, OMG). All that aside, the Gamecocks could theoretically finish the season at 7-5, if not 8-4. Perhaps I misjudged Will Muschamp’s ability to coach after all. Perhaps I should at least reserve judgement until the regular season concludes.
Speaking of Tennessee, after losing at home to South Carolina, it’s a safe bet that Butch Jones’ hot seat just got hotter. No time to lick their wounds, either, as the Volunteers take on hated Alabama next week. At this rate of Tennessee’s spotty [at best] performance, beating Kentucky at month’s end is not a given. LSU won’t play dead for them come mid-November either. In short, Tennessee has talent, but they’re a mess, and Jones has proved incapable of cleaning up after himself. A 6-6 finish could be enough to turn Jones’ hot seat into an ejection seat.
College Football Awards Week 6 (2017) October 9, 2017
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Auburn, Big XII, Bobby Petrino, BYU, Cardinals, Charlotte, Clemson, David Bailiff, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Gamecocks, Gary Anderson, Gators, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Hurricanes, Iowa State, Jeff Brohm, Jim Harbaugh, Jimbo Fisher, Kansas, Kansas State, Kent State, Lincoln Riley, LSU, Mark Dantonio, Marshall, Maryland, Memphis, Miami, Miami (OH), Michigan State, Mike Norvell, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Missouri, Navy, NC State, Nittany Lions, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Old Dominion, Oregon, Oregon State, P.J. Fleck, Penn State, Pitt, Pittsburgh, Red River Shootout, Showdown, South Carolina, Spartans, Stanford, Syracuse, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Tech, Tulane, Tulsa, USC, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, Wolfpack
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 6] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
Glad I’m not him: Jimbo Fisher, Florida State
Lucky guy: Jeff Brohm, Purdue
Poor guy: Jim Harbaugh, Michigan
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Mike Norvell, Memphis
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma
Desperately seeking … anything: Gary Anderson, Oregon State
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Ohio State (defeated Maryland 62-14)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Clemson (defeated Wake Forest 28-14)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Kansas (lost to Texas Tech 65-19)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Wake Forest (lost to No. 2 Clemson 28-14)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Tulane (defeated Tulsa 62-28)
Dang, they’re good: Ohio State
Dang, they’re bad: Rice
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Oklahoma
Did the season start? Florida State
Can the season end? East Carolina
Can the season never end? Penn State
GAMES
Play this again: Michigan State 14, No. 7 Michigan 10
Play this again, too: Texas 40, Kansas State 34 (2OT)
This merits a second look, too: No. 8 TCU 31, No. 23 West Virginia 24
Never play this again: No. 10 Ohio State 62, Maryland 14
What? LSU 17, No. 21 Florida 16
Huh? No. 24 NC State 39, No. 17 Louisville 25
Are you kidding me?? Michigan State 14, No. 7 Michigan 10
Oh – my – God: Iowa State 38, No. 3 Oklahoma 31
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 6, pre-week 7)
Ticket to die for: No. 12 Oklahoma vs. Texas in the Red River Shootout
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: BYU @ Mississippi State
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 25 Navy @ Memphis
Upset alert: Georgia Tech @ No. 11 Miami also: Utah @ No. 13 USC
Must win: Oregon @ No. 23 Stanford
Offensive explosion: Texas Tech @ No. 23 West Virginia
Defensive struggle: No. 10 Auburn @ LSU
Great game no one is talking about: Florida State @ Duke
Intriguing coaching matchup: P.J. Fleck of Minnesota vs. Mark Dantonio of Michigan State
Who’s bringing the body bags? Missouri @ No. 4 Georgia
Why are they playing? Charlotte @ Western Kentucky
Plenty of good seats remaining: Miami (OH) @ Kent State
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Old Dominion @ Marshall
Week 6 Random Thoughts:
These past couple of weeks, there were not that many upsets. This week made up for that in quality if not for quantity. Favored Louisville choked on the road at NC State. Unranked LSU beat the Gators, in the Swamp, and in a defensive struggle, by a single point. ACC cellar-dweller Syracuse beat respectable Pitt. To cap things off, unranked Michigan State defeated Michigan, in a dramatic 14-10 finish (wait, that’s still a thing in 2017?), in the Big House, no less. What a week.
South Carolina defeated Arkansas in a game that could have gone either way. The Gamecocks should enjoy the win while it lasts, because the remainder of their schedule is brutal. In order, they shall play: Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Georgia, Florida, Wofford (huh?), and close out the season at home versus Clemson. Aside from Wofford, the Gamecocks could lose every one of those games. Yes, that is to say that even Vandy is iffy since they beat Kansas State earlier this year.
Given how hyped Florida State was coming into the season, and the potential regard in which they are still held in the eyes of most fans, is it valid to consider No. 13 Miami’s win in Tallahassee an upset, or simply a comeuppance to an overrated team?
Texas might have turned a corner with a win in double-OT over Kansas State, a team never to be taken lightly and capable of running the tables on the northern schools – what few remain — in the Big XII. With this key win for the Horns coupled with Oklahoma’s embarrassing upset at home to Iowa State this week, it will make next week’s Red River Shootout Showdown all the more unpredictable.
Maryland has proven that they’re a decent team. Not great, but decent. Nevertheless, they came into Columbus, Ohio, and Ohio State demolished them, 62-14. Nothing like a body-bag game (in hindsight) for homecoming. All kidding aside, could it be that the Buckeyes have solved their identity crisis on offense? We’ll know for sure by the end of the month when they butt heads with Penn State.
Speaking of whom, Michigan will have ample opportunity for redemption for this week’s upset loss at home when they take on the Nittany Lions on Oct. 21. It only takes one loss on Penn State’s part for the Big Ten race to become very, very interesting.
College Football Awards, Week 2 (2017) September 11, 2017
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Arkansas, Art Briles, Auburn, Baylor, Big 12, Big XII, Bobby Petrino, Brian Kelly, Bronco Mendenhall, Buckeyes, BYU, Cal, Charlotte, Clemson, Dabo Swinney, Dino Babers, Duke, Eastern Kentucky, Eastern Michigan, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Gus Malzahn, Horned Frogs, Idaho, Jeff Brohm, Kansas State, Kentucky, Kirby Smart, Lincoln Riley, Louisville, LSU, Matt Rhule, Miami Hurricanes, Middle Tennessee, Mississippi State, Morgan State, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nicholls, North Carolina A&T, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Randy Edsall, Razorbacks, Rutgers, San Jose State, Sooners, Syracuse, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Toledo, Tulsa, UConn, Urban Meyer, USC, Utah, Utah State, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 2] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Lincoln Riley, Oklahoma
Glad I’m not him: Urban Meyer, Ohio State
Lucky guy: Kirby Smart, Georgia
Poor guy: Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Urban Meyer, Ohio State
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Jeff Brohm, Purdue
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Dino Babers, Syracuse
Desperately seeking … anything: Matt Rhule, Baylor
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: No. 19 Kansas State (defeated Charlotte 55-7)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Kentucky (defeated Eastern Kentucky 27-16)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: San Jose State (lost to Texas 56-0)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Nicholls (lost to Texas A&M 24-14)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Duke (defeated Northwestern 41-17)
Dang, they’re good: USC
Dang, they’re bad: Baylor
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Ohio State
Did the season start? Texas A&M
Can the season end? New Mexico
Can the season never end? Oklahoma
GAMES
Play this again: No. 15 Georgia 20, No. 24 Notre Dame 19
Play this again, too: Utah 19, BYU 13
Never play this again: Utah State 51, Idaho State 13
Close call: No. 3 Clemson 14, No. 13 Auburn 6
What? Middle Tennessee 30, Syracuse 23
Huh? New Hampshire 22, Georgia Southern 12
Are you kidding me?? Eastern Michigan 16, Rutgers 13
Oh – my – God: No. 5 Oklahoma 31, No. 2 Ohio State 16
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 2, pre-week 3)
Ticket to die for: No. 3 Clemson @ No. 14 Louisville
Also: Texas @ No. 4 USC
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Oregon @ Wyoming
Best non-Power Five matchup: Utah State @ Wake Forest
Upset alert: No. 10 Wisconsin @ BYU
Must win: No. 23 Tennessee @ No. 24 Florida
Offensive explosion: Tulsa @ Toledo
Defensive struggle: No. 12 LSU @ Mississippi State
Great game no one is talking about: Purdue @ Missouri
Intriguing coaching matchup: Bobby Petrino of Louisville vs. Dabo Swinney of Clemson
Also: Randy Edsall of UConn vs. Bronco Mendenhall of Virginia
Who’s bringing the body bags? Georgia State @ No. 4 Penn State
Why are they playing? Mercer @ No. 15 Auburn
Plenty of good seats remaining: North Carolina A&T @ Charlotte
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Morgan State @ Rutgers
Week 1 Take-aways:
This week leaves us with more questions than answers. For one, Louisville had fewer penalties against North Carolina than they did against Purdue. All well and good, but is that enough improvement at this rate to be ready for Clemson at home next week? Regarding the TCU-Arkansas game, are the No. 23 Horned Frogs that good, or are the Razorbacks that mediocre? The Auburn-Clemson game was a surprising defensive struggle. What was the bigger surprise: that Auburn’s defense held the Tigers to only two touchdowns, or that Auburn’s offense – supposedly a specialty under head coach Gus Malzahn – could only muster a measly six points? Moreover, what does this portend for Auburn’s offense during the rest of the season?
The shocker of the week was Oklahoma’s upset over Ohio State in Columbus. The question becomes, are the Sooners that good, or are the Buckeyes overrated? Ohio State has plenty of NFL-potential bodies on both sides of the ball. What accounts for their lackluster offense this game, and their defensive collapse in the 4th quarter? Actually, there is an answer. The Buckeyes are currently experiencing an identity crisis on offense. Until they get that cleared up, they’ll continue to fail to play up to their potential this season, and that will be a genuine shame.
Questions aside, let us take a glance at the Big XII Conference. Simply put, they’re looking good right now. The Sooners are rolling after their huge win over the Buckeyes. Oklahoma State has two wins with impressive margins. TCU embarrassed Arkansas on the road today. Kansas State won convincingly, even though it was a body bag game. West Virginia is playing quite strongly right now, though a body bag game against Delaware State next week will obviously be meaningless. It all adds up to a conference that is playing well and giving the rest of college football cause for notice. The ironic weak links are Baylor and Texas. Concerning the Bears, it would only stand to reason that Matt Rhule has not forgotten how to coach. The turmoil surrounding the player sexual assault scandals, the sudden firing of Art Briles, and the havoc wrought by Hurricane Harvey have all combined to take a serious toll on the program. Baylor looks shell-shocked right now, and it will be interesting to see if Rhule, who brought Temple to respectability, can keep things afloat at a program with greater potential but higher expectations, too.
Speaking of Hurricane Harvey, that might also account for Texas A&M has not been playing up to their potential, as well as for Texas’ gigantic miscue against Maryland last week. After all, many players for these two programs, as well as for Baylor, have come out of the Houston area, which is still reeling in the wake of the hurricane damage and the residual flooding damage. The latter of which alone has for longer-lasting implications than the former. Let us all pray for those who have been afflicted by that terrible storm, as well as for those who are being afflicted by Hurricane Irma in Florida. As the floodwaters recede and the area rebuilds and moves forward in general, perhaps the morale of the aforementioned Texas teams shall improve, along with their performances.
Speaking of Hurricane Irma, that storm shall leave implications long into the season, given all the games that have already been postponed. One notable example is No. 16 Miami vs. No. 10 Florida State. That game would have been one of the best of the upcoming week. Little doubt lingers that they’ll find a time to reschedule such a matchup that is A) a heated, in-state rivalry, and B) a game with conference standing implications. If both teams keep playing to their potential, perhaps both will be ranked even MORE highly by the time they finally butt heads. Let us stay tuned the rescheduling on Oct. 7!
One final note about an overlooked game for the upcoming week: Ole Miss at Cal, which kicks off at 10:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time. While both teams are currently unranked, it does not matter, for it’s always a treat to watch SEC vs. Pac-12 matchups!
College Football Week 6 Awards 2016 October 9, 2016
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Army, Auburn, B1G, Baylor, Big Ten, Bret Bielema, BYU, Charlie Strong, Charlotte, college, Darrell Hazell, Florida, Florida International, Florida State, football, Houston, Hugh Freeze, Hurricanes, Illinois, Kansas, Kansas State, Ken Niumatalolo, Kevin Sumlin, Larry Fedora, Louisiana Tech, Louisville, Lovie Smith, LSU, Mark Dantonio, Mark Richt, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Navy, NC State, NCAA, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Purdue, Red River Shootout, Rutgers, Stanford, Tarheels, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Tom Herman, UMass, USC, UTEP, Virginia Tech, Washington, Washington State, Wisconsin, Wolfpack
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6esU0P8FRc
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 6] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Glad I’m not him: Charlie Strong, Texas
Lucky guy: Darrell Hazell, Purdue
Poor guy: Lovie Smith, Illinois
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Tom Herman, Houston
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Ken Niumatalolo, Navy
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Larry Fedora, North Carolina
Desperately seeking … anything: Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Michigan (defeated Rutgers 78-0)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: TCU (defeated Kansas 24-23)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Rutgers (see above)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Kansas (see above)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Auburn (defeated Mississippi State 38-14)
Dang, they’re good: Washington
Dang, they’re bad: Rutgers
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Houston
Did the season start? Texas
Can the season end? UTEP
Can the season never end? Texas A&M
GAMES
Play this again: No. 8 Texas A&M 45, No. 9 Tennessee 38
Play this again, too: No. 23 Florida State 20, No. 10 Miami 19
Never play this again: No. 4 Michigan 78, Rutgers 0
Close call: TCU 24, Kansas 23
What? BYU 31, Michigan State 14
Huh? No. 23 Florida State 20, No. 10 Miami 19
Double-Huh? Washington State 42, No. 15 Stanford 16
Are you kidding me? No. 25 Virginia Tech 34, No. 17 North Carolina, 3
Oh – my – God: Navy 46, No. 6 Houston 40
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP, week 6 rankings until further notice)
Ticket to die for: No. 1 Alabama @ No. 9 Tennessee
Also: No. 2 Ohio State @ No. 11 Wisconsin
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Mississippi State @ BYU
Best non-Power Five matchup: Navy @ East Carolina
Upset alert: Kansas State @ No. 20 Oklahoma
Must win: No. 17 North Carolina @ No. 10 Miami also: Stanford @ Notre Dame
Offensive explosion: UCLA @ Washington State
Defensive struggle: Northwestern @ Michigan State
Great game no one is talking about: USC @ Arizona
Intriguing coaching matchup: Hugh Freeze of Ole Miss vs. Bret Bielema of Arkansas
Also: Larry Fedora of North Carolina vs. Mark Richt of Miami (FL)
Who’s bringing the body bags? Kansas @ No. 13 Baylor
Why are they playing? Lafayette @ Army
Plenty of good seats remaining: Florida International @ Charlotte
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? Louisiana Tech @ UMass
Week 6 Take-aways:
Nothing like the remnants of a hurricane to throw game plans out of whack. In September of 2002, for example, the remnants of a tropical storm descended on Louisville, and a Thursday night game between an unranked Cardinals team and No. 5-ranked Florida State became one to remember. The rain seemed to level the playing field to the point where the underdog Cardinals upset the highly-favored Seminoles in overtime.
This time, Hurricane Matthew wreaked havoc with records and schedules alike. In the case of the LSU @ Florida game, it has been postponed with no make-up date set as of now. The Georgia @ South Carolina was postponed for just one day. In the state of North Carolina, both games played as scheduled, and with surprising results. The NC State Wolfpack help visiting Notre Dame to just three points (!), allowing their only 10 points to prevail in the game. In nearby Chapel Hill, the No. 17 Tarheels were also held to three points, while the No. 25 Virginia Tech Hokies nevertheless managed to score 34 in the downpour.
Meanwhile, with Texas, it was the same result, different day, this time to their most bitter rival in Oklahoma. The game was high-scoring, 45-40, showing once again that the Longhorns’ defensive issues have yet to be resolved. Indeed, Texas had given up a total of 620 yards (!) of offense in that game. The hotseat upon which Charlie Strong has found himself has just gotten even hotter.
Where has Michigan State’s offense gone? First they score only six points in a debacle against Wisconsin, then they lose on the road to lowly Indiana. Now, they managed to score only two touchdowns at home against BYU. Mark Dantonio seemed to have the program rolling, what with a playoff berth last year. After a team like that, surely some rebuilding would have been in order, to be sure, but this? All of us are left scratching our heads.
Don’t look now, but Stanford is in free-fall. What I surmise is that injuries have taken their toll. Unlike other major programs, Stanford lacks the depth of talent in their back-ups that other teams would take for granted. This is the proverbial gap in the armor of a school where academics are taken as seriously as they are with the Cardinal. Might it stand to reason that Notre Dame secretly suffers from the same handicap?
Meanwhile, the Toilet Bowl, B1G edition, is fast upon us next week when Rutgers and Illinois butt heads. How it works with these bottom-of-the barrel matchups is that the loser is branded with the ignominy of being the worst team in the conference for this year. The winners consolation is that they can point at said loser and say, “See? At least we’re not as bad as those guys.” Be quiet, Illinois: you have no right to complain about this designation. You lost to Purdue.
As things now stand, Washington is in the driver’s seat for the Pac-12 North, and Tennessee’s loss to Texas A&M could potentially complicate things in the SEC East. Meanwhile, Louisville’s strength of schedule could potentially be compromised with Houston’s unexpected loss to Navy. That said, their big win over Florida State remains of considerable quality with their upset win over host Miami. Perhaps these two upsets might cancel each other out in that arcane regard. We shall see, as the stakes increase as the new month of October progresses.
College Football Week 1 Awards (2016) September 6, 2016
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, ANZ Stadium, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Army, Auburn, Bob Stoops, Bronco Mendenhall, Butch Jones, BYU, Charlotte, Clemson, college, Colorado, Derek Mason, Florida State, football, Georgia, Hawaii, Houston, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Mark Helfrich, Michigan, Mike MacIntyre, Mississippi State, NCAA, North Carolina, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Olympics, Oregon, Penn State, SEC, South Carolina, South Dakota State, South Florida, Stanford, Sydney, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Tigers, Tom Herman, Troy, Tulane, UCLA, UConn, USC, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Will Muschamp, Wofford
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Texas defeated visiting No. 10 Notre Dame in a wild game, 50-47. The game was one of many excellent games to kickoff the 2016 college football season (photo by Getty Images)
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 1] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES Wish I were him: Tom Herman, Houston
Glad I’m not him: Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
Lucky guy: Will Muschamp, South Carolina
Poor guy: Derek Mason, Vanderbilt
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Butch Jones, Tennessee
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Mike MacIntyre, Colorado
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Les Miles Desperately seeking … anything: Willie Fritz, Tulane
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: No. 19 Louisville (defeated Charlotte 70-14)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: No. 13 TCU (defeated South Dakota State 38-31)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Hawaii (lost to No. 7 Michigan 63-3)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Appalachian State (lost to Tennessee 20-13).
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Western Kentucky (defeated Rice 46-14)
Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad: Tulane
Can’t Stand Prosperity: LSU
Did the season start? Oklahoma (also: Mississippi State)
Can the season end? Hawaii Can the season never end? Louisville
GAMES
Play this again: Wisconsin 16, No. LSU 14
Play this again, too: Texas 50, No. 10 Notre Dame 47
Honorable Mention to play again: South Carolina 13, Vanderbilt 10 Never play this again: No. 7 Michigan 63, Hawaii 3
Say what? Southern Miss 44, Kentucky 35
WHAT? Texas A&M 31, No. 16 UCLA 24
Huh? No. 15 Houston 33, No. 3 Oklahoma 23
Double-huh? Texas 50, No. 10 Notre Dame 47, 2OT
Are you kidding me? South Alabama 21, Mississippi State 20 Oh – my – God: Wisconsin 16, No. 5 LSU 14
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 1, pre-week 2) Ticket to die for: Arkansas @ No. 12 TCU
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: BYU @ Utah
Best non-Power Five matchup: Northern Illinois @ South Florida
Upset alert: Virginia Tech @ No. 14 Tennessee
Must win: (take your pick)
Offensive explosion: Texas Tech @ Arizona State
Defensive struggle: South Carolina @ Mississippi State
Great game no one is talking about: Penn State @ Pitt
Intriguing coaching matchup: Bronco Mendenhall of Virginia vs. Mark Helfrich of Oregon
Who’s bringing the body bags? Troy @ No. 2 Clemson
Why are they playing? Nicholls State @ No. 9 Georgia
Plenty of good seats remaining: Army @ UConn
They shoot horses, don’t they? Wofford @ No. 18 Ole Miss
Week 1 Take-aways:
What a fantastic opening week for college football. It was billed going in as the greatest opening week in the history of the game, and the games themselves did not disappoint. Two Top Five teams went down to defeat, the most teams where that has happened at the season’s onset since 1972.
On paper alone the matchups were very intriguing. To wit: No. 15 Houston played No. 3 Oklahoma at home – in NRG Stadium, no less. No. 22 North Carolina played No. 18 Georgia in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta (Peach Bowl preview, anyone?). No. 16 UCLA journeyed to Texas A&M to play the Aggies. No. 5 LSU made the trek up to Wisconsin to play the Badgers – in historic Lambeau Field. Indeed, this was the first time his legendary venue hosted a college game. Later in the day, No. 1 Alabama faced off against No. 20 USC in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Later still, No. 2 Clemson came to Auburn to throw down with the [War Eagle] Tigers. While those two big game were going on, out west, BYU journeyed down to Glendale, Ariz., to play a neighbor to the south in Arizona.
On Sunday, Notre Dame played the Texas Longhorns, in Austin (nominally ACC vs Big XII), and on Monday, No. 11 Ole Miss played No. 4 Florida State (SEC vs ACC), thus adding two more highly marquee matchups two an incredible, extended opening weekend.
If that’s not enough, the previous week, Hawaii played Cal…in Sydney, Australia. The venue for this game was ANZ Stadium, the new name of the stadium used to host the opening/closing ceremonies and the track and field events for the 2000 Summer Olympics.
Whom do we have to thank for this magnificent opening to the 2016 season of college football? Most likely we have the Playoff Committee to thank. They re-worked the formula for selecting teams. The BCS formula left teams way too cautious. One loss likely meant being out of the hunt for a national title. Better therefore to pad the record with an easy win. We the fans suffered with lousy non-conference matchups as a result. When the switch was made from a BCS selection to a four-team playoff, the formula was modified to the point where one loss would not mean the end of the season for those who were in the national title hunt. Conversely, the new formula put a stronger emphasis on strength of schedule. It was a win-win-win. The first “win” is in the form of teams being more free to schedule good games before the conference portion of their season than during the BCS era. The fans reap the second win with great games (see: this weekend). The third win is, as mentioned before, if you have a tough, strong schedule, one loss will not necessarily dash your season’s aspirations.
Good thing, too, because many commentators have dubbed this Saturday the “Day of the Dog”…the underdog, that is. Texas A&M knocked off No. 16 UCLA in overtime at home. Fifteenth-ranked Houston beat No. 3 Oklahoma by 10 points. Even more stunning was Mississippi State missing a last-minute field goal…at home…to lowly South Alabama. Of course, the unranked Wisconsin Badgers upset the No. 5 LSU Tigers in a close game, 16-14. The following evening, the unranked Longhorns knocked off the 10th-ranked Fighting Irish at home, 50-57, in a second overtime, no less.
Apropos of nothing, here is a philosophical question for you: which is more pathetic; that Tulane could only score seven points on Wake Forest, or that Wake Forest could score only seven points on Tulane?
Regardless, what a stupendous weekend for college football. Fans should treasure it for a long time to come!
College Football Week 11 Awards: the Night of the Living Upsets Edition November 16, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Art Briles, Auburn, Baylor, Bayou Bengals, Bears, Bob Stoops, Boise State, Boston College, Bulls, Cardinal, Charlotte, Clemson, David Shaw, Doc Holliday, Ducks, FIU, Florida, Houston, Hurricanes, Idaho, Indiana, Jim Harbaugh, Kentucky, Kyle Flood, Les Miles, Living, Louisville, LSU, Mark Dantonio, Mark Helfrich, Marshall, Memphis, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Mike Gundy, Mississippi State, New Mexico, Night, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Owls, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Razorbacks, Rice, Rich Rodriguez, Rutgers, SMU, Sooners, South Florida, Southern Miss, Stanford, TCU, Temple, Texas A&M, Tigers, UCLA, Upset, Upsets, Urban Meyer, USC, Utah, Utes, Washington State, Wildcats
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The Oregon-Stanford game was a classic matchup of speed vs. power. In the end, Stanford ruined their chances of a playoff berth with two 4th-quarter fumbles. This was but one of many upsets that night which could lead to considerable chaos in the rankings. (AP photo/Tony Avelar)
(Note: All rankings are current CFP [week 11] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES Wish I were him: Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
Glad I’m not him: Art Briles, Baylor
Lucky guy: Mark Helfrich, Oregon
Poor guy: David Shaw, Stanford
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Doc Holliday, Marshall
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Les Miles, LSU
Desperately seeking … anything: Kyle Flood, Rutgers
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Texas A&M (defeated Western Carolina 42-17)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: No. 15 TCU (defeated Kansas 23-17)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Miami (lost to No. 23 North Carolina 59-21)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Purdue (lost to No. 18 Northwestern 21-14)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Southern Miss (defeated Rice 65-10)
Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad: SMU
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Baylor
Did the season start? LSU
Can the season end? Miami (FL)
Can the season never end? Oklahoma
GAMES
Play this again: Oregon 36, No. 7 Stanford 34
Play this again, too: No. 14 Michigan 48, Indiana 41
Never play this again: Marshall 52, FIU 0
What? South Florida 44, No. 22 Temple 23
Huh? Arizona 37, No. 10 Utah 30, 2OT
Double-Huh? Oregon 36, No. 7 Stanford 34
Are you kidding me? No. 12 Oklahoma 44, No. 6 Baylor 34
Oh – my – God: Arkansas 31, No. 9 LSU 14
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are week 11 CFP as of right now)
Ticket to die for: No. 6 Baylor @ No. 8 Oklahoma State
Also: No. 13 Michigan State @ No. 3 Ohio State
Honorable mention: USC @ Oregon
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Georgia Southern @ Georgia
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 21 Memphis @ No. 22 Temple
Upset alert: Boston College vs. No. 4 Notre Dame
Must win: UCLA @ Utah
Also: No. 12 Oklahoma @ No. 15 TCU
Offensive explosion: Baylor @ Oklahoma State
Defensive struggle: No. 17 Mississippi State @ Arkansas
Great game no one is talking about: Louisville @ Pittsburgh
Intriguing coaching matchup: Mark Dantonio of MSU vs. Urban Meyer of OSU
Who’s bringing the body bags? Charleston Southern @ No. 2 Alabama
Why are they playing? Idaho @ Auburn
Ditto: Florida Atlantic @ No. 11 Florida
Plenty of good seats remaining: Rice @ UTSA
They shoot horses, don’t they? Charlotte @ Kentucky
Week 11 Take-aways:
Henceforth let this day, the 14th of November in the Year of Our Lord 2015, be known as the Night of the Living Upsets. The daylight hours proceeded with each favored team either comfortably sailing by, or at least no worse than slipping away from the occasional close shave. Then the evening hours descended, and everything seemed to be suddenly turned on its ear.
To wit:
Nobody thought that Arkansas had a chance against LSU. After all, the Razorbacks were having a mediocre-at-best season, sub-par in any case. Moreover, Arkansas had only defeated LSU in Baton Rogue just once in the past 20 years. On the other side of the coin, the Tigers – the Bayou Bengal variety – have been playing very strongly, despite a drubbing to an increasingly dominating Alabama squad. Yet the Hogs took it to the Tigers, in Death Valley, and did so in dramatic fashion, winning 31-14. As an aside, the Hogs now have their fourth straight win, having started the season 2-4.
Meanwhile, out on the west coast, a marquee matchup in the Pac-12 took place in Stanford, where the Oregon Ducks took on the Cardinal – formerly the Indians – in a classic match of contrasts, speed vs. power. Speed ended up winning by default in the end, narrowly, 38-36. Ironically, it was not Oregon’s speed that killed Stanford as it was the Cardinal’s two inopportune fumbles late in the fourth quarter. Otherwise, they surely would have won the contest.
In the heart of Texas, Oklahoma came in to Waco to take on Baylor in a rain-soaked showdown. To the surprise of many, the Bears’ high-powered offense was kept in check the entire game. Not coincidentally, the Sooners actually played real defense, unlike all the Bears’ previous opponents, but it was still a tough fight throughout the game. The triumph was nevertheless that of the Sooners, 44-34.
Elsewhere in the southwest, the high-flying Utah squad ventured to Tucson, Ariz., to take on the Arizona Wildcats. Rich Rodriguez must have been ready for the Utes’ arrival. His team was surely hungry for a big win, for they, muck like Arkansas in the SEC, have had a mediocre season at best. In the end, the Wildcats triumphed over the Utes in 2OT, 37-30.
A near-upset occurred, as Houston barely survived Memphis, 35-34. Those Tigers (as opposed to the LSU, Auburn, or Clemson ones) were in the lead most of the game. The Cougars very gradually gnawed away at the lead in the second half to eventually snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Even then it took a missed field goal on the part of Memphis to finalize the outcome.
Yet another near-upset occurred in Bloomington, Ind., as the Indiana Hoosiers almost knocked off Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines. Only a couple of freak big plays towards the end of regulation in Michigan’s favor saved Harbaugh’s bacon that game, as it put the game in OT where the better talent was able to prevail (which it did, 48-41).
An under-the-radar upset came in the form of South Florida – a nobody the entire season – up-ending No. 22 Temple, 44-23. Remember, this is the same Temple team that played fourth-ranked Notre Dame tough the entire length of that contest. Indeed, they almost upset the Irish. Now the Bulls have decisively beaten/upset the deceptively tough Owls. Oh my.
Another overlooked upset was New Mexico upsetting Boise State in Boise, Idaho, no less, 31-24. It took a stop just four years shy of the goal line on the part of the Lobos, with 0:00 on the clock, to ensure the outcome.
Yet another under-the-radar upset was so only because it was out on the west coast, and very late at night, even by Central Time standards. Unranked Washington State defeated No. 19 UCLA, 31-27, in Pasadena, no less. The win came on a Hail Mary pass that was completed in the end zone in the final seconds, giving an incredible night full of drama one incredible exclamation mark.
Those of who paid attention to the team schedules knew that this November would be a month of separation. What we did NOT anticipate was that so much, er, separation, would occur so soon in the month, and on one night alone. The real kicker? At only halfway through November, more separation (chaos?) is yet to come!
College Football Week 10 Awards November 9, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona State, Art Briles, Baylor, Bob Stoops, Butch Jones, BYU, Charlotte, Clemson, Colorado, Dabo Swinney, Darrell Hazell, Duke, Eastern Michigan, Florida, Florida State, Gary Patterson, Houston, Justin Fuente, Ken Niumatalolo, Kentucky, Kevin Sumlin, LSU, Mark Dantonio, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, Navy, Nebraska, North Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Rutgers, San Jose State, Stanford, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Tigers, UMass, UTSA, Vanderbilt, West Virginia
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(Note: All rankings are current CFP [week 10] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Glad I’m not him: Gary Patterson, TCU
Lucky guy: Butch Jones, Tennessee
Poor guy: Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Ken Niumatalolo, Navy
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Justin Fuente, Memphis
Desperately seeking … anything: Darrell Hazell, Purdue
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Michigan (defeated Rutgers 49-16)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: BYU (defeated San Jose State 17-16)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Colorado (lost to No. 11 Stanford 42-10)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Vanderbilt (lost to No. 10 Florida 9-7)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Oklahoma State (see below)
Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad: Purdue
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Memphis
Did the season start? Texas A&M
Can the season end? Rutgers
Can the season never end? Clemson
GAMES
Play this again: No. 1 Clemson 23, No. 16 Florida State 13
Never play this again: Arkansas 63, UT-Martin 28
What? Auburn 20, No. 19 Texas A&M 10
Huh? Navy 45, No. 13 Memphis 20
Are you kidding me? No. 12 Oklahoma State 49, No. 8 TCU 29
Oh – my – God: Nebraska 39, No. 7 Michigan State 38
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current CFP (post-week 10, pre-week 11)
Ticket to die for: No. 10 Oklahoma @ No. 4 Baylor
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: BYU @ Missouri
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 25 Memphis @ No. 16 Houston
Upset alert: Oregon @ No. 8 Stanford
Must win: Pittsburgh @ Duke
Offensive explosion: Memphis @ Houston
Defensive struggle: Kentucky @ Vanderbilt
Great game no one is talking about: Texas @ West Virginia
Intriguing coaching matchup: Art Briles of Baylor vs. Bob Stoops of Oklahoma
Who’s bringing the body bags? Kansas @ No. 13 TCU
Why are they playing? Western Carolina @ Texas A&M
Plenty of good seats remaining: UTSA @ Charlotte (also: UMass @ Eastern Michigan)
They shoot horses, don’t they? North Texas @ Tennessee
Week 11 Take-aways:
Two quick notes. One, it might time to put the expression “[I]t’s time to put “Clemsoning” to bed” to bed. “Clemsoning,” if you’ll recall, refers to the Tigers usually choking (horribly at that) in big games. They always coughed it up to the then-stud teams of the ACC, especially Florida State. A few years ago, they went to the Orange Bowl to play West Virginia, and lost…horribly! That was early January of 2012. By the time the Tigers – at No. 12 — returned to the Orange Bowl two years later, this time to play No. 7 Ohio State, the situation was considerably different. In what cannot be ignored as a statement game, Clemson beat the Buckeyes 40-35, and have not looked back since. Now they currently sit at the top of the College Football Playoff poll. Bully for them!
The other quick take-away is that it is now November. Teams are what they are at this point in the season. But more to the point, these next few weeks, including this past weekend, will be one of separation. Teams that were hitherto unbeaten – or at least ranked in the top ten – will now start to butt heads. Separation shall thus ensure (read: Alabama’s dominating win over LSU). Indeed, it hath already begun. What a glorious month of college football this shall become!
College Football Week 3 Awards September 24, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Air Force, Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Arkansas State, Boise State, Bret Bielema, Bronco Mendenhall, BYU, California, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Colorado, Colorado State, Florida Atlantic, Georgia, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Hugh Freeze, Idaho State, Illinois, Jim Harbaugh, Jim Mora, Kentucky, LA Monroe, LSU, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Mike Riley, Missouri, Nebraska, Nick Saban, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Pat Fitzgerald, Rutgers, South Carolina, Southern, Stanford, Steve Sarkesia, Steve Spurrier, TCU, Texas, Texas Tech, UCF, UCLA, UConn, USC, Utah
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 3] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES Wish I were him: Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss
Glad I’m not him: Nick Saban, Alabama
Lucky guy: Jim Mora, UCLA
Poor guy: Mike Riley, Nebraska
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Bret Bielema, Arkansas
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Steve Sarkesian, USC
Desperately seeking … anything: Steve Spurrier, South Carolina
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: No. 12 Oregon (defeated Georgia State 61-28)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: No. 4 Michigan State (defeated Air Force 35-21)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Idaho State (lost to Boise State 52-0)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: UConn (lost to Missouri 9-6)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: North Carolina (defeated Illinois 48-14)
Dang, they’re good: Georgia
Dang, they’re bad: Rutgers
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Georgia Tech
Did the season start? Arkansas
Can the season end? Idaho State
Can the season never end? LSU
GAMES Play this again: No. 10 UCLA 24, No. 19 BYU 23
Play this again, too: Cal 45, Texas 44
Never play this again: Arkansas State 70, Missouri State 7
What? Colorado 27, Colorado State 24 (OT)
Huh? Texas Tech 35, Arkansas 24
Are you kidding me? No. 15 Ole Miss 43, No. 2 Alabama 37
Oh – my – God: Stanford 41, No. 6 USC 32
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 3, pre-week 4)
Ticket to die for: No. 9 UCLA @ No. 16 Arizona
Also: Tennessee @ Florida
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Boise State @ Virginia (Fri.)
Best non-Power Five matchup: Cincinnati @ Memphis
Upset alert: No. 24 Oklahoma State @ Texas
Must win: UCF @ South Carolina
Offensive explosion: No. 3 TCU @ Texas Tech
Defensive struggle: No. 25 Missouri @ Kentucky
Great game no one is talking about: No. 18 Utah @ No. 13 Oregon
Intriguing coaching matchup: Bronco Mendenhall of BYU vs. Jim Harbaugh of Michigan
Who’s bringing the body bags? Southern @ No. 7 Georgia
Why are they playing? La. Monroe @ No. 12 Alabama
Plenty of good seats remaining: Florida Atlantic @ Charlotte
They shoot horses, don’t they? Kansas @ Rutgers
Week 3 Take-aways:
I thought that Notre Dame was supposed to lose to Georgia Tech after the Irish lost their starting QB last week.
Louisville is, without a doubt, the best 0-3 team in college football by far.
Last week, I noted about Steve Spurrier is on thin ice. After losing so horribly to Georgia (as good as the Bulldogs are), it has become clear that he and the Gamecocks have no quarterback play, and recruiting seems down overall. If he is wise, he shall start planning his exit strategy. Now. Moreover, the South Carolina administration needs to start finding a good replacement coach after season’s end. Now.
Who would have thought that Florida vs. Kentucky would be a defensive struggle? This guy did, but this this guy is still in disbelief that it was. That said, the true surprise defensive struggle was Mizzou vs. UConn. The Tigers must have decided to take a week off.
The game of college football has changed so quickly that it is starting to marginalize defensive-minded coaches. This is the biggest reason that the Alabama Dynasty has some to an end. It is not anybody’s fault per se, it is simply that the current rules and the trends have combined in a way to render defensive-minded coaches at a disadvantage. That being said, Nick Saban does himself zero favors by not attracting a good enough quarterback on account of his refusal to modernize his offense. The Tide’s other skill personnel are exemplary, to be sure. They are just pedestrian – at best – at the most important position on the field.
intellectualgridiron 