College Football Week 3 Awards (2016) September 19, 2016
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arizona State, Baylor, Bobby Petrino, Brian Kelly, Butch Jones, BYU, Cal, California, Clemson, college, Colorado, Cornhuskers, David Cutcliffe, Ducks, Florida, Florida State, football, Georgia, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Houston, Idaho, Iowa, Jim McElwain, Jimbo Fisher, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi State, NCAA, Nebraska, North Texas, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ohio U, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, P.J. Fleck, Paul Chryst, Rice, Sean Kugler, South Carolina, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas, Texas State, UMass, UTEP, West Virginia, Western Michigan, Wildcats, Wisconsin
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 3] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES Wish I were him: Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Glad I’m not him: Jimbo Fisher, Florida State
Lucky guy: Paul Chryst, Wisconsin
Poor guy: Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Butch Jones, Tennessee
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: P.J. Fleck, Western Michigan
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Kirk Ferentz, Iowa
Desperately seeking … anything: Sean Kugler, UTEP
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Clemson (defeated South Carolina State 59-0)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Wisconsin (defeated Georgia State 23-17)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Appalachian State (lost to No. 25 Miami 45-10)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Ohio U (lost to No. 15 Tennessee 28-19)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Louisville (blew out No. 2 Florida State 63-20)
Dang, they’re good: Louisville
Dang, they’re bad: Virginia
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Texas
Did the season start? Iowa
Can the season end? Idaho
Can the season never end? Ohio State
GAMES
Play this again: Cal 50, No. 11 Texas 43
Play this again, too: Nebraska 35, No 22 Oregon 32
Never play this again: No. 5 Clemson 59, South Carolina State 0
What? Nebraska 35, No 22 Oregon 32
Huh? Cal 50, No. 11 Texas 43
Are you kidding me? No. 10 Louisville 63, No. 2 Florida State 20
Oh – my – God: North Dakota State 23, No. 13 Iowa 21
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 3, pre-week 4)
Ticket to die for: No. 11 Wisconsin @ No. 8 Michigan State
Also: No. 12 Georgia @ No. 23 Ole Miss
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: BYU @ West Virginia
Best non-Power Five matchup: Georgia Southern @ Western Michigan
Upset alert: No. 5 Clemson @ Georgia Tech
Must win: No. 19 Florida @ No. 14 Tennessee
Offensive explosion: Cal @ Arizona State
Defensive struggle: South Carolina @ Kentucky
Great game no one is talking about: Oklahoma State @ No. 16 Baylor
Intriguing coaching matchup: Jim McElwain of Florida vs. Butch Jones of Tennessee
Also: David Cutcliffe of Duke vs. Brian Kelly of Notre Dame
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 6 Houston @ Texas State
Why are they playing? Mississippi State @ UMass
Plenty of good seats remaining: North Texas @ Rice
Week 3 Take-aways:
After a lull of marquee match-ups last week, we the fans were treated to more great games this week. Watching two top ten teams in Florida State taking on Louisville is no better way to kick of the week’s massive slate of game. One-sided though the game may have been, it remained engaging in seeing the vaunted Seminoles lose by such a huge margin. Bravo, Cardinals!
Much hype has ensued in the wake of Texas defeating Notre Dame during the opening weekend. “Texas is back” has been an oft-repeated mantra. Their loss on the road to Cal calls said mantra into question. Only in the ensuing weeks, when the Longhorns play more of their respectable opponents, namely, Oklahoma State (whom they play next week), Oklahoma, Kansas State, Baylor, Texas Tech, West Virginia, and TCU will that mantra be either confirmed or denied.
Just to get this off my chest, who would have anticipated that the Kentucky – New Mexico State game would have been the offensive explosion that it turned out to be? An exciting game ensued, to be sure, but allowing a Sunbelt team to score 42 points on them is not the most ringing endorsement of the Wildcats’ defense. If these shadows remain unchanged, this does not bode for when UK enters the conference part of its schedule.
But all that aside, there were many sublime matchups this week. Oregon lost on the road to Nebraska in a game that went down to the wire. Texas lost to Cal in the same manner. As mentioned earlier, Louisville vs. Florida State was a marquee, top-ten matchup, until the Cardinals proceeded to obliterate the ‘Noles. The games in the 3:30 (EDT) time slot seemed, on paper, to be a respite before the bigger games ensued in the evening, but even they quickly became intriguing. In addition to the Ducks-Cornhuskers game, an improving Colorado gave Michigan a good fight before the Wolverines finally decided to start playing football. Ole Miss threatened to knock Alabama off its top spot in the polls. The evening time slots treated us fans to Texas-Cal, Michigan State @ Notre Dame, Ohio State @ Oklahoma (it has been a while since those two powerhouses butted heads), and BYU put up a great fight against UCLA. A great day for the game, when one tallies up the results and the moments.
Next week will frankly not measure up compared to this week and to week 1, but one cannot expect every week to deliver matchups like this. That said, some good conference games await us, as well as some tasty pre-conference games from power five teams across the board. Week 4 may not be as strong as week 3, but plenty of interesting games await us in any case!
College Football Week 2 Awards (2016) September 12, 2016
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Akron, Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Bob Stoops, Brett Bielema, Brian Kelly, BYU, Cincinnati, Clemson, college, Darrell Hazell, Florida, Florida State, football, Gamecocks, Gary Patterson, Iowa State, Kalani Sitake, Kent State, Kentucky, Kyle Whittingham, Louisville, Mark Dantonio, Mark Stoops, Michigan, Michigan State, NCAA, Nebraska, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, SEC, South Carolina, Stanford, TCU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, UCLA, USC, USF, Utah, Virginia Tech, Wildcats, Will Muschamp, Willie Taggert, Wisconsin, Wyoming
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(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 2] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES Wish I were him: Kyle Whittingham, Utah
Glad I’m not him: Kalani Sitake, BYU
Lucky guy: Brett Bielema, Arkansas
Poor guy: Gary Patterson, TCU
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Willie Taggert, South Florida
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Mark Stoops, Kentucky
Desperately seeking … anything: Darrell Hazell, Purdue
TEAMS Thought you’d kick butt, you did: No. 3 Florida State (defeated Charleston Southern 52-8)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: No. 2 Clemson (defeated Troy 30-24)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Akron (lost to No. 10 Wisconsin 54-10)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Nicholls (lost to Georgia 26-24)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Nebraska (defeated Wyoming 52-17)
Dang, they’re good: Michigan
Dang, they’re bad: Kentucky
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Oklahoma State
Did the season start? Northwestern
Can the season end? Miami, OH
Can the season never end? Wisconsin
GAMES
Play this again: Arkansas 41, No. 15 TCU 38
Play this again, too: Utah 20, BYU 19
Honorable Mention to play again: South Carolina 13, Vanderbilt 10
Never play this again: No. 20 Texas A&M 67, Prairie View A&M 0
What? East Carolina 33, N.C. State 30
Huh? Arkansas 41, No. 15 TCU 38
Are you kidding me? Illinois State 9, Northwestern 7
Oh – my – God: Central Michigan 30, No. 22 Oklahoma State 27
Told you so: Arizona State 68, Texas Tech 55
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 2, pre-week 3)
Ticket to die for: No. 2 Florida State @ No. 10 Louisville
Also: No. 3 Ohio State @ No. 14 Oklahoma
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: UCLA @ BYU
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 6 Houston @ Cincinnati (Thurs.)
Upset alert: Auburn @ No. 17 Texas A&M
Must win: Iowa State @ TCU
Offensive explosion: No. 22 Oregon @ Nebraska
Defensive struggle: No. 1 Alabama @ No. 19 Ole Miss
Great game no one is talking about: Pitt @ Oklahoma State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Mark Dantonio of Michigan State vs. Brian Kelly of Notre Dame
Who’s bringing the body bags? South Carolina State @ No. 3 Clemson
Why are they playing? Ohio U @ No. 15 Tennessee
Plenty of good seats remaining: Monmouth @ Kent State
They shoot horses, don’t they? Georgia State @ No. 9 Wisconsin
Week 2 Take-aways:
After such a spectacular opening week in college football the previous Saturday and surrounding days, this weekend was a considerable let-down. The noon timeslots were mediocre, save for the decent matchup of Penn State vs. Pitt. The 3:30 timeslots were positively atrocious, where the best game was arguably Kentucky vs. Florida, and that game turned out to be a 45-7 blowout in favor of the Gators. All the good games were crammed together in the evening, where I found myself wearing out my TV’s remote by switching around to the games of Arkansas @ TCU, Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech (at the Bristol, Tenn. Motor Speedway), BYU @ Utah, and occasionally South Carolina @ Mississippi State.
After this mediocre lineup of games for this week, one thing that has festered for a while has become even more clear. Two teams that continue to suck with overpaid coaches who are out of their depth are both Darrell Hazell of Purdue and Mark Stoops of Kentucky. The latter is another case, apparently, of where the only Stoops brother who has the skill set to be a legit head coach at the big boy level is Bob, not brother Mark. We might recall that the other brother, Mike, flamed out at Arizona. Concerning brother Mark, who apparently has had all these great recruiting classes while at UK, lost to lowly Southern Miss last week and this week was demolished by a recovering Florida, 45-7. His predecessor, Joker Philips, went 13-24 (4-20 SEC) after three seasons. Stoops is currently 12-26 (4-21 SEC) after the second game in his fourth season of tenure at UK. The Kentucky faithful would do well to ask themselves: is this progress?
The former had only one good year at a middling MAC program (Kent State), and the powers that be at Purdue were suckered in by this limited success to offer him the Purdue job, paying him $2.2 Million annually, or about $1 Million more than his predecessor, Coach Danny Hope. Hazell is thus far 7-30 since the 2013 season at Purdue, while Coach Hope went 22-27 in four seasons there. Doing that math, that amounts to paying an addition $4 Million for 15 fewer wins. For an athletics department that ostensibly prides itself on operating in the black, those numbers simply do not add up. Moreover, it makes one wonder how much better Hope would have performed had he been given those extra resources that Hazell currently enjoys (meager as they still are compared to true big boy programs).
Meanwhile, on a totally unrelated note, Mississippi State gave the impression that they have righted the ship after their embarrassing upset at home last week to South Alabama. They defeated South Carolina this week, 27-14. Conversely, the loss on the part of the Gamecocks’ gives those who doubt the wisdom of the hire of head coach Will Muschamp further credibility.
All this aside, there are some outstanding matchups awaiting us this upcoming weekend, namely:
Michigan State @ Notre Dame; Texas A&M @ Auburn; Pittsburgh @ Oklahoma State; Oregon @ Nebraska; Alabama @ Ole Miss; UCLA @ BYU; Houston @ Cincinnati (Thurs. evening); USC @ Stanford; Ohio State @ Oklahoma; and of course, Florida State @ Louisville, which could potentially be the best game of the year thus far. I for one am already chomping at the bit, especially for the latter game!
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 9 Awards November 2, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: 1982, Al Golden, Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Bears, Bobby Petrino, Bulldogs, BYU, California, Central Florida, Charlie Strong, Cincinnati, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Gus Malzahn, Hawaii, Houston, Iowa State, Jeff Brohm, Jim McElwain, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Mark Helfrich, Mark Richt, Memphis, Miami, Mike Leach, Mike Riley, Navy, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, San Jose State, South Carolina, Stanford, Syracuse, TCU, Temple, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Todd Graham, UCF, UNLV, Utah, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington, Washington State, Western Kentucky
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One of a few missed calls during the hap-hazard, yet incredible, 8-lateral kickoff return finish my Miami in yesterday’s game. Paging Cal-Stanford 1982: you now have competition.
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 9] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Jim McElwain, Florida
Glad I’m not him: Gus Malzahn, Auburn
Lucky guy: Mark Helfrich, Oregon
Poor guy: Mark Richt, Georgia
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Jeff Brohm, Western Kentucky
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Charlie Strong, Texas
Desperately seeking … anything: Mike Riley, Nebraska
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Oklahoma (defeated Kansas 62-7)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Texas A&M (defeated South Carolina 35-28)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Vanderbilt (lost to No. 18 Houston 34-0)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Purdue (see below)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Tennessee (defeated Kentucky 52-21)
Dang, they’re good: Florida
Dang, they’re bad: UMass
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Pitt
Did the season start? Arizona
Can the season end? UCF
Can the season never end? Houston
GAMES
Play this again: No. 9 Notre Dame 24, No. 21 Temple 20
Play this again, too: Oregon 61, Arizona State 55 (3OT)
Never play this again: Arkansas 63, UT-Martin 28
What? North Carolina 26, No. 23 Pittsburgh 19
Huh? Miami 30, No. 22 Duke 27
Are you kidding me? Purdue 55, Nebraska 45
Oh – my – God: Iowa State 24, Texas 0
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 9, pre-week 10)
Ticket to die for: No. 4 LSU @ No. 7 Alabama
Also: No. 5 TCU @ No. 12 Oklahoma State
Make it a Trifecta: No. 17 Florida State @ No. 3 Clemson
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: (none)
Best non-Power Five matchup: Navy @ No. 16 Memphis
Upset alert: No. 13 Utah @ Washington
Must win: Duke @ No. 21 North Carolina
Offensive explosion: Cincinnati @ No. 18 Houston (also TCU @ OKST)
Defensive struggle: Syracuse @ Louisville
Great game no one is talking about: Penn State @ Northwestern
Intriguing coaching matchup: Todd Graham of ASU vs. Mike Leach of WSU
Who’s bringing the body bags? Vanderbilt @ No. 11 Florida
Why are they playing? BYU @ San Jose State (Friday)
Plenty of good seats remaining: Hawaii @ UNLV
They shoot horses, don’t they? Kansas @ Texas
Week 9 Take-aways:
First it was Michigan State’s blocked punt that they recovered and ran back for a score with 0:00 left on the clock to beat rival Michigan in the Big House (they were behind prior to said score). Last week was followed up by Georgia Tech’s fantastic finish, whereby they blocked a Florida State field goal attempt at home, ran it back for a score and thus broke the tie as time expired. This week, the Miami Hurricanes – fresh from both a devastating home loss to Clemson and the subsequent firing of head coach Al Golden – made an eight-lateral play on a kickoff return that harkens directly back to Cal-Stanford 1982, for the game-winning touchdown, over then-ranked Duke, on the road. Three weeks in a row, three fantastic, historic finishes.
Well, sort of. There were tons of blown calls on that play, including an illegal block in the back (or two), and at one point, one of the lateralling players for Miami had his knee already down before he tossed the ball sideways. The overlooked calls were so blatant that the ACC suspended the officiating crew the following day. Could it be that the game result itself be overturned? We shall all have to stay tuned.
Bobby Petrino must be beside himself. Despite his able coaching, his players made mistake after mistake on the road against Wake Forest. Yet somehow they managed to barely win. Despite consecutive wins, this performance is not a sustainable path. Something must be done for the team to improve so as to win sustainably. An infusion of discipline would be both a quick and effective remedy.
Poor Mark Richt. Despite all the success he has had at Georgia, he just cannot get over the hump. A statistic during the debacle of a game against Florida (the Gators thumped the rival Bulldogs 27-3 at this year’s World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party in Jacksonville) showed that Richt is 5-15 against ranked opponents during his tenure at UGA. Moreover, he is 5-9 against Florida, despite being 141-51 overall. The first stat alone indicates that he has peaked during his tenure at Georgia, that he has gone as far as he can with that program. Some new, dynamic blood in Athens, Ga., would perhaps finally help get the Bulldogs to consistent dominance of the SEC East, while Miami, Richt’s alma mater, has a head coach opening just waiting for a rock-solid fellow such as he. If such a scenario were to play out, it could benefit both parties concerned, the latter particularly, with a fresh start.
What on Earth has happened to Arizona? Early in the season, we anticipated they would be a factor in the Pac-12. Last night, they embarrassed themselves on the road at Washington, after coughing up the game to Wazzu the previous week. The Wildcats will not have much time to lick their wounds, either, as next week they take on USC, followed by Utah the week after, and the week after that they close the regular season against rival Arizona State, possibly with a 5-7 at this rate (they are current 5-4, and 2-4 in the conference).
College Football Awards Week 5 October 4, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Al Golden, Alabama, Arkansas, Baylor, Bobby Petrino, Boilermakers, Boise State, Brian Kelly, Cal, California, Cardinals, Charlie Strong, Cincinnati, Clemson, college, Colorado State, Cotton Bowl, Dabo Swinney, FIghting Irish, Florida, Florida State, football, Gators, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Horned Frogs, Hugh Freeze, Hurricanes, Illinois, Iowa, Jim Harbaugh, Jim McElwain, Jim Mora, Kansas, Longhorns, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisville, Mark Richt, Matt Rhule, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi State, N.C. State, NC State, NCAA, Nebraska, New Mexico State, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Pat Fitzgerland, Purdue, South Carolina, South Florida, Steve Spurrier, Syracuse, TCU, Temple, Texas, Tigers, Troy, UCLA, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
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Clemson triumphed over Notre Dame in what was perhaps the most thrilling game of the season thus far. Mandatory photo credit: Joshua S. Kelly of USA TODAY Sports
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 5] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Glad I’m not him: Al Golden, Miami
Lucky guy: Bret Bielema, Arkansas
Poor guy: Mark Richt, Georgia
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Jim Mora, UCLA
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Matt Rhule, Temple
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss
Desperately seeking … anything: Steve Spurrier, South Carolina
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: TCU (defeated Texas 50-7)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Michigan State (defeated Purdue 24-21)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Texas (lost to No. 4 TCU 50-7)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Purdue (lost to No. 2 Michigan State 24-21) T
hought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Iowa (defeated North Texas 62-16)
Dang, they’re good: TCU
Dang, they’re bad: Louisiana-Lafayette
Can’t Stand Prosperity: Ole Miss
Did the season start? Georgia Tech
Can the season end? Wyoming
Can the season never end? Clemson
GAMES
Play this again: No. 12 Clemson 24, No. 6 Notre Dame 22
Play this again, too: Arkansas 24, Tennessee 20
Never play this again: No. 4 TCU 50, Texas 7
What? Tulane 45, UCF 31
Huh? Iowa 10, #19 Wisconsin 6
Are you kidding me? No. 12 Clemson 24, No. 6 Notre Dame 22
Oh – my – God: Arizona State 38, No. 7 UCLA 23
Told you so: Louisville 20, N.C. State 13
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 5, pre-week 6)
Ticket to die for: No. 10 Oklahoma vs. Texas in the Cotton Bowl
Also: No. 13 Northwestern @ No. 18 Michigan
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Syracuse @ South Florida
Best non-Power Five matchup: No. 25 Boise State @ Colorado State
Upset alert: Miami (Fla.) @ No. 12 Florida State
Must win: Wisconsin @ Nebraska
Offensive explosion: No. 23 Cal @ No. 5 Utah
Defensive struggle: Illinois @ No. 22 Iowa
Great game no one is talking about: No. 21 Oklahoma State @ West Virginia
Intriguing coaching matchup: Pat Fitzgerald of Northwestern vs. Jim Harbaugh of Michigan
Who’s bringing the body bags? No. 3 Baylor @ Kansas
Why are they playing? New Mexico State @ No. 14 Ole Miss
Plenty of good seats remaining: Portland State @ North Texas
They shoot horses, don’t they? Troy @ Mississippi State
Week 5 Take-aways:
What a weekend for college football! The grand irony is that this week left more questions than answers.
What a game it was in Clemson, S.C. Notre Dame came to town ranked No. 6 in the nation. The Tigers were ranked twelfth. ESPN’s Gameday crew was there. A massive rainstorm persisted throughout the day and night. Fans watching on national TV witnessed the team descend the hill in “Death Valley” to take on the highly-ranked Fighting Irish. Mistakes were made on both sides: typical ups-and-downs of a thrilling contest between highly-ranked teams. In the end, the Tigers triumphed.
But all of this ought not to obfuscate that Brian Kelly has built a strong program in South Bend. Were they overrated at No. 6? Definitely. Are they still a tough team? Definitely.
Tennessee lost yet another heartbreaker, this time to Arkansas. It was a close contest throughout the game, but the same problem continues to plague the Vols: they have yet to learn how to close a game, which is to say, they need to learn to stop blowing leads late in games.
Steve Spurrier dropped yet another game to a low-standing team in the SEC. Is it too early to say that the wheels might be coming off the program? Will Spurrier eventually have the fortitude to fall on his sword and thus clear the path for the program to be lead in a new direction?
Worse yet is the condition of the Texas Longhorns, who just got drubbed by TCU in Fort Worth, 50-7. Yes, Coach Gary Patterson has gradually built up a super-strong program over the years, but is the lack of quarterback play on the part of the Longhorns the only thing that explains such a debacle, or is it something more systemic than who is the head coach?
Oh, and this slump could not come at a worse time, as Texas takes on Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl next week.
The Cincinnati Bearcats have given us two good Thursday night games in a row, and in the process, have walked away with two wins. The most recent one was home over the Miami Hurricanes. There has already been grumbling around Coral Gables that Al Golden has not brought the Canes back to the level of prominence that the faithful would like to see. Is losing to UC a fireable offense, in culmination of this lack of expected progress?
How does one explain Michigan State’s lackluster performance at home against weak Purdue? The Boilermakers were just a field goal away late in the 4th quarter from tying the game in regulation. Have the Boilers improved that much in just one week since losing a near-gimme game the previous contest? Regardless, it will be very interesting to see if Purdue can sustain any sort of improvement as the season progresses.
Ole Miss was rolling after defeating then-No. 3 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. The Rebels thus proved that they were both a tough team to reckon with and a team that could win on the road in a hostile environment. And yet, when they ventured into The Swamp to play Florida, they laid an egg. Yes, the Gators are improving week-by-week under the able leadership of Jim McElwain, but this alone cannot explain such an embarrassing defeat. Perhaps Coach Freeze did not have his men fully prepared, or, a critical mass of the team decided to take the game off, thinking it would not be as challenging as playing Bama. Such are the vicissitudes of college football, where 19 and 20-year olds are susceptible to such emotional roller coasters week to week that can negatively affect their level of play. It is a problem that coaches do not have to deal with in the pros, thankfully.
On a bright note, Bobby Petrino has his Louisville Cardinals slowly improving. Yes, they got their first win in a body bag game at home against Samford, but then they won, on the road, against a decent NC State team, in the rain. If that is not improvement, can somebody tell me what is?
College Football Week 4 Awards September 29, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Alabama, Arkansas, Arkansas State, Art Briles, Auburn, Baylor, Brent Musburger, Bret Bielema, Brian Kelly, Butch Jones, BYU, Cal, Central Florida, Cincinnati, Clemson, college, Dabo Swinney, Darrell Hazell, East Carolina, Eastern Kentucky, Eastern Michigan, EKU, FIU, Florida, football, Gators, Georgia, Horned Frogs, Hurricanes, Jim Mora, Kentucky, Kliff Kingsbury, Louisville, LSU, Mark Helfrich, Memphis, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, N.C. State, NCAA, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Purdue, Rice, San Jose State, SEC, Sonny Dykes, South Carolina, Southeastern Conference, Steve Spurrier, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Tech, Tigers, UCLA, UMass, Utah, Virginia Tech
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Tennessee lost a heartbreaker to Florida this past Saturday. They shall continue to lost more close games until they learn how to close, so to speak. Photo by John Raoux of the AP.
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 4] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Jim Mora, UCLA
Glad I’m not him: Bret Bielema, Arkansas
Lucky guy: Jim McElwain, Florida
Poor guy: Butch Jones, Tennessee
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Gary Patterson, TCU
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Sonny Dykes, Cal
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Mark Helfrich, Oregon
Desperately seeking … anything: Darrell Hazell, Purdue
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Baylor (defeated Rice 70-17)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Oklahoma State (defeated Texas 30-27)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: UMass (lost to No. 6 Notre Dame 62-27(
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Texas (lost to No. 24 Oklahoma State 30-27)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Iowa (defeated North Texas 62-16)
Dang, they’re good: UCLA
Dang, they’re bad: Purdue
Can’t Stand Prosperity: BYU
Did the season start? Auburn
Can the season end? Arkansas State
Can the season never end? Utah
GAMES
Play this again: No. 3 TCU 55, Texas Tech 52
Play this again, too: Florida 28, Tennessee 27
Never play this again: No. 4 Baylor 70, Rice 17
What? East Carolina 35, Virginia Tech 28
Huh? Kentucky 21, No. 25 Missouri 13
Are you kidding me? Michigan 31, No. 22 BYU 0
Oh – my – God: No. 18 Utah 62, No. 13 Oregon 20
Told you so: Memphis 53, Cincinnati 46
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 4, pre-week 5)
Ticket to die for: No. 6 Notre Dame @ No. 12 Clemson
Also: No. 13 Alabama @ No. 8 Georgia
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Miami (Fla.) @ Cincinnati
Best non-Power Five matchup: Air Force @ Navy
Upset alert: No. 24 Oklahoma State @ Texas
Must win: Arkansas @ Tennessee
Offensive explosion: Texas Tech @ No. 5 Baylor
Defensive struggle: South Carolina @ Missouri
Great game no one is talking about: Louisville @ N.C. State
Intriguing coaching matchup: Kliff Kingsbury of Texas Tech vs. Art Briles of Baylor
Also: Dabo Swinney of Clemson vs. Brian Kelly of Notre Dame
Who’s bringing the body bags? Purdue @ No. 2 Michigan State
Why are they playing? Eastern Michigan @ No. 9 LSU
Plenty of good seats remaining: FIU @ UMass
They shoot horses, don’t they? San Jose State @ Auburn
Week 4 Take-aways:
Tennessee lost a heartbreaker on the road to Florida, thus continuing a losing streak to the Gators that started in 2005. Earlier in the season, they lost another heartbreaker at home to Oklahoma. What is so heartbreaking about both of these losses is that the Volunteers were in the lead for most of the game, until blowing the lead late in both games. Butch Jones is continuing to improve the program, gradually bringing it back to its blueblood status in the conference. But they’re clearly not there yet, and shall not be “there” until they learn to “close the deal,” which is to say, they must learn to finish the games strongly. It is still early in the season, so still time to salvage things.
Speaking of salvaging, Steve Spurrier seemed to have salvaged things reasonably well when his team beat a deceptively good Central Florida squad. Next week, though, they travel to a Columbia, Mo., to take on a similarly-ailing Missouri Tigers team, in what one can easily surmise is a must-win game for both.
Why are both aforementioned teams ailing? They both lost to Kentucky, for goodness sake!
Speaking of UK, given that the Wildcats have W’s over both the Gamecocks and the (Mizzou) Tigers, and they face a relative cupcake in the EKU Colonels this Saturday at home (a quasi-body bag game), the possibility that they could become bowl-eligible in the brutal SEC is not a remote one. Granted, they face a brutal stretch after the EKU game, facing, in order, Auburn, Mississippi State, Tennessee, then Georgia, but then have a two-week respite with Vanderbilt and then a gimme with Charlotte before concluding the season against improving Louisville. It could be a 6-6 year, which, for UK, is an improvement.
Utah and Michigan started the season playing each other. Though the former beat the latter convincingly, both teams are rolling right now. Funny how that works out.
TCU beat Texas Tech in a high-scoring game that went down to the wire. The Horned Frogs are supposed to be a top-five team, so how does one account for this narrow victory in a shootout? Let us not forget that this TCU team also squeaked by Minnesota at the beginning of the season. Are the Frogs overrated? The upcoming home game against a gradually-improving Texas team could be a referendum.
The only regretful thing about this delightfully intriguing matchup between Notre Dame and Clemson is that Brent Musburger will not be calling the game!
College Football Week 2 Awards September 15, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Air Force, Akron, Alabama, Arkansas, Army, Auburn, Bobby Petrino, Boise State, Bowling Green, Bret Bielema, Brian Kelly, Bronco Mendenhall, Buffalo, BYU, Clint Bowen, Colorado, Colorado State, Duke, FIU, Florida, Florida Atlantic, Gamecocks, Georgia Southern, Georgia Tech, Hawaii, Houston, Idaho, Iowa, Jim McElwain, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Malik Zaire, Mark Dantonio, Memphis, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, NC Central, Nevada, Nick Saban, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Pittsburgh, Pyrrhic, South Carolina, Steve Spurrier, TCU, Tennessee, Toledo, UCLA, UConn, Urban Meyer, USC, Western Michigan
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The color coordination in the stands at Neyland Stadium, with 102,000+ fans on hand, was amazing to behold. Photo by Jackson Lalzure of Getty Images.
(Note: All rankings are current AP [week 2] unless otherwise noted.)
COACHES
Wish I were him: Mark Dantonio, Michigan State
Glad I’m not him: Steve Spurrier, South Carolina
Lucky guy: Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Poor guy: Brian Kelly, Notre Dame
Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Bobby Petrino, Louisville
Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Bronco Mendenhall, BYU
Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Bret Bielema, Arkansas
Desperately seeking … anything: Clint Bowen, Kansas
TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: No. 2 TCU (defeated Stephen F. Austin 70-7)
Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: No. 6 Auburn (defeated Jacksonville State 27-20 in OT)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Idaho (lost to No. 8 USC 59-9)
Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t: Akron (see: Oh – my – God)
Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did: Memphis (defeated Kansas 55-23)
Dang, they’re good: Michigan State
Dang, they’re bad: Kansas
Can’t Stand Prosperity: South Carolina
Did the season start? Louisville
Can the season end? Army
Can the season never end? Michigan State
GAMES
Play this again: No. 19 Oklahoma 31, No. 24 Tennessee 24, 2 OT
Play this again, too: No. 5 Michigan State 31, No. 7 Oregon 28
Never play this again: No. 2 TCU 70, SFA 7
What? Georgia Southern 43, Western Michigan 17
Huh? BYU 35, No. 20 Boise State 24
Are you kidding me? Houston 34, Louisville 31
Oh – my – God: Toledo 16, #18 Arkansas 12
Told you so: Minnesota 23, Colorado State 20 (OT)
NEXT WEEK
(rankings are current AP (post-week 2, pre-week 3)
Ticket to die for: No. 14 Georgia Tech @ No. 8 Notre Dame (no, really!)
Also: No. 18 Auburn @ No. 13 LSU
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Colorado @ Colorado State
Best non-Power Five matchup: Memphis @ Bowling Green
Upset alert: No. 19 BYU @ No. 10 UCLA
Must win: No. 15 Ole Miss @ No. 2 Alabama
Offensive explosion: Nevada @ No. 17 Texas A&M
Defensive struggle: Florida @ Kentucky
Great game no one is talking about: Pittsburgh @ Iowa
Also: No. 23 Northwestern @ Duke
Who’s bringing the body bags? Air Force @ No. 4 Michigan State
Why are they playing? UConn @ No. 22 Missouri
Plenty of good seats remaining: Buffalo @ Florida Atlantic
They shoot horses, don’t they? NC Central @ FIU
Week 2 Take-aways:
The best example of a Pyrrhic victory took place when Notre Dame barely pulled it out over Virginia. In the process of the game, Coach Brian Kelly likely lost his QB Malik Zaire to a broken ankle and shall likely be out for the rest of the year (he went down late in the 3rd quarter). ESPN is currently replaying the incident online. It is not for the faint of heart.
Honestly, even though Ohio State shut out Hawaii 38-0, I thought that they Rainbow Warriors would have lost by at least two more touchdowns. Perhaps Urban Meyer called off the dogs early in the 3rd quarter in order to save his players from unnecessary wear, tear, and risk. If so, smart move. Perhaps Hawaii beat the spread?
Steve Spurrier lost to Kentucky for two consecutive seasons for the first time ever, this time at home. Last year, we established by November that the Gamecocks were a team that blew 4th Quarter leads. The Wildcats were one of the teams to whom South Carolina blew one of those leads. But what about this year? Perhaps Spurrier is not getting the players anymore. If so, perhaps at age 70, the Ol’ Ball Coach might want to start planning is exit strategy. After all, Hatin’-Ass Spurrier only works if he is winning games. If he loses games, then the trash talking becomes a worthless, annoying schtick.
On the other hand, can Kentucky be THAT good? They shall have a solid test to show how good they are against a rebuilding Florida under new HC Jim McElwain, a former assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama who got things rolling at Colorado State.
The Volunteers gave a valiant effort at home but in the end could not overcome the defensive halftime adjustments the Sooners made. But it was a good, exciting, competitive game. The new uniform designs thanks to Nike was a nice, fitting touch. But was even more visually stunning was the color-coordinated alternating orange and white checker pattern among the fans throughout the stands – very impressive, despite the loss.
The Oregon @ Michigan State game is certainly a game that lived up to its hype. The Spartans are stronger than at any year I have watched them in my lifetime (for reference, I am 35). Not even Nick Saban’s strong MSU squad from the 1999 season seems to be as rough and tough as this bunch. What Mark Dantonio has built in East Lansing in an era that has favored the warm-weather programs is nothing short of amazing. Better yet, it is not a fluke, but rather the product of steady building and improvement. Last season, the Spartans upset Baylor in the Cotton Bowl, and the season before that, they upset a heavily-favored Stanford Cardinal in the Rose Bowl. Again, given the incredibly competitive nature of the game, where most marquee recruits hail from the Sun Belt and prefer to stay in warm-weather environs, the success that Mark Dantonio has reaped at Michigan State is astounding.
College Football 2015 Quick Preview September 3, 2015
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Akron, Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas State, Auburn, Baylor, Bethune-Cookman, Bobby Petrino, Boise State, BYU, Central Michigan, Clemson, Colorado State, Eastern Michigan, Elon, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Southern, Gus Malzahn, Houston, Idaho, Kevin Sumlin, LA Monroe, Louisville, Marshall, Miami (Fla.), Miami (Ohio), Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Nick Saban, Norfolk State, North Carolina, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ohio U, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Old Dominion, Paul Chryst, Presbyterian, Purdue, Rutgers, SavannahState, SMU, South Carolina, Southern Miss, Stanford, state, TCU, Tennessee Tech, Texas, Texas State, Todd Graham, UConn, UNLV, USC, Utah, UTSA, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Washington, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, Western Michigan, Wisconsin, Wofford
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Atlanta bolsters its stature as one of the epicenters of college football by being the host city for arguably the best game of Week 1. Photo by Paul Abell, USA Today Sports.
Another glorious season of college football is about to commence. Come the evening of Thurs., Sept. 3, teams will have kicked off the most exciting three months in all of sports (four if you count the bowl game postseason), and come late Monday evening, the fans, analysts and pundits alike shall have had a look at whether or not the preseason rankings are worth any count.
What is particularly attractive about this particular opening weekend is that, unlike in some years past, there is a critical mass of high-stakes games from the beginning. Sure, the body-bag games abound as they usually do during Week One. However, there are many high-ranked teams that are about to butt heads with other ranked teams, or teams that are near-ranked and hungry for respect from the voters.
From the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Classic in Atlanta, to an incredibly delectable home opener for Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., to a Carolina border war Thursday evening, to a revenge game for Urban Meyer & Co. in Blacksburg, Va., on Labor Day evening, this weekend has it all. Below is thus faithfully submitted a list highlight and lowlight games on which to keep a fan’s eye. Enjoy, and God Bless America!
Ticket to die for: Auburn vs. Louisville in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff in Atlanta; possible Texas @ Notre Dame, too.
Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five matchup: Western Kentucky @ Vanderbilt; BYU @ Nebraska
Best non-Power Five matchup: UNL @ Northern Illinois; Ohio U @ Idaho
Upset alert: Texas @ Notre Dame; TCU @ Minnesota (don’t laugh);
Must win: Ohio State @ Virginia Tech; Purdue @ Marshall
Offensive explosion: Arizona State @ Texas A&M
Defensive struggle: BYU @ Nebraska
Great game no one is talking about: South Carolina vs. North Carolina in Charlotte; Michigan @ Utah; Washington @ Boise State; Stanford @ Northwestern
Intriguing coaching matchup: Gus Malzahn of Auburn vs. Bobby Petrino of Louisville and Paul Chryst of Wisconsin vs. Nick Saban of Alabama; Todd Graham of Arizona State vs. Kevin Sumlin of Texas A&M
Who’s bringing the body bags? Baylor @ SMU; Akron @ Oklahoma; Mississippi State @ Southern Miss; UTSA @ Arizona; Michigan State @ Western Michigan; Texas State @ Florida State; Wofford @ Clemson; LA Monroe @ Georgia – and that’s the short list!
Why are they playing? Savannah State @ Colorado State; Oklahoma State @ Central Michigan; Norfolk State @ Rutgers; Arkansas State @ USC
Plenty of good seats remaining: Villanova @ UConn; also, Presbyterian @ Miami (Ohio); also Old Dominion @ Eastern Michigan;
They shoot horses, don’t they? Bethune-Cookman @ Miami (Fla.); Georgia Southern @ West Virginia; Tennessee Tech @ Houston; Elon @ Wake Forest
The College Football Bowlgame Breakdown for 2014-2015 December 17, 2014
Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.Tags: Air Force, Alabama, Arizona, Baylor, BC, Belk, Birmingham, Boca Raton, Boise State, Boston College, Bowl, Bulldogs, Butch Jones, Central Florida, Central Michigan, Chick-Fil-A, Clemson, college, Colorado State, Cotton, Dana Holgersen, Detroit, East Carolina, Fiesta, Florida, Florida Atlantic, Florida State, football, game, Gator, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Hawkeyes, Heart of Dallas, Idaho Potato, Illinois, Independence, Iowa, Lafayette, Las Vegas, Louisiana Tech, Louisville, LSU, MAC, Mark Dantonio, Marshall, Miami, Michigan State, N.C. State, NCAA, Nevada, New Orleans, Nick Saban, North Carolina, Northern Illinois, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Orange, Oregon, Owls, Peach, Pinstripe, Rams, Rose, Russell Athletic, Schnellenberger, South Carolina, St. Petersburg, state, Sugar, TaxSlayer, TCU, Tennessee, Texas A&M, UCF, Urban Meyer, Utah, Utes, Volunteers, Western Kentucky, Western Michigan
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The 2012 New Mexico Bowl between Arizona and Nevada turned out to be a thrilling, high-scoring affair. Let us hope that when the Wildcats line up against Boise State in this upcoming Fiesta Bowl, we the fans will be treated to similar fireworks!
Yes, folks, we are but a few short days away from looking LIVE at a bevy of bowl games. This plethora of postseason pigskin contests will span two weeks and change, and we will likely be satiated with college football, at least until the Spring games in April. So, here is a break-down of what not to miss, and a few that you’d like to miss, but will not be able to help yourselves just the same.
Ticket to die for: Oregon vs. Florida State in the Rose Bowl, Thurs., Jan. 1. Actually the real ticket to die for is the playoff championship game held a week later, but the semifinals must be played first to determine who plays then. Fair enough, you say, but what about Bama vs. the Buckeyes in the Sugar Bowl? That’s a good one, to be sure. But in the minds of most fans and commentators, the Ducks vs. the Seminoles seems to have just a slightly greater degree of sex appeal, that’s all.
Best non–Power Five vs. Power Five match–up: Utah vs. Colorado State in the Las Vegas Bowl, Sat., Dec. 20. For one, this might be the only worthwhile bowl game to watch on the first day of the post–season. For another, there are actually a few other decent match–ups to keep one’s eye on as said post–season unfolds, namely Illinois (wait, they’re in a bowl this year?) vs. Louisiana Tech in the Heart of Dallas Bowl and N.C. State vs. Central Florida in the St. Petersburg Bowl (wait, what happened to it being called the Beef O’Brady’s Bowl?), both on Fri., Dec. 26. Indeed, the latter line–up might be cause to reconsider who merits the “best” distinction. The reason I say that is, with the Rams’ coach having bolted to take the Florida job (who can blame him for taking such a prestigious post?), nobody knows what sort of team will show up to face the Utes.
Then again, this is the mystery that shrouds most bowl game line–ups.
Best non–Power Five match–up: Marshall vs. Northern Illinois in the Boca Raton Bowl on Tues., Dec. 23. So Florida Atlantic is going to host a bowlgame? Apparently they’re good for something after all. Sorry, Owls, but things haven’t been the same since Coach Schnellenberger retired. The Huskies won the MAC decisively in Detroit, while Marshall has been a strong non–Power Five team all year long, notwithstanding almost coughing it up to the La. Tech Bulldogs recently.
Upset alert: Oklahoma vs. Clemson in the Russell Athletic Bowl, Mon., Dec. 29. This is the safest upset to predict because whereas the Tigers are ranked (No. 17), the Sooners are not, and Clemson’s postseason performance is unreliable, right, Dana Holgersen?
Must win: Ole Miss vs. TCU in the Peach Bowl, Wed., Dec. 31. The winner of this game will be the team that is the least disappointed to be there after having much higher aspirations during the regular season. A win here will also help them salvage some consolation from not having lived up to said aspirations.
Offensive explosion: Boise State vs. Arizona in the Fiesta Bowl, Wed., Dec. 31. At least, this match-up has a good a chance as any to rack up some points. The Wildcats and the Broncos both have been fairly adept at that this season, after all. The bonus in this game is that there is great potential for snazzy colors in the team uniforms on both sides of the ball!
Defensive struggle: Boston College vs. Penn State in the Pinstripe Bowl, Sat., Dec. 27. Neither team really lit up the scoreboard this year, did they? Add cold weather on top of that (it will be played in Yankee Stadium, after all), and that is likely to put a further damper on offensive output.
Great game no one is talking about: Iowa vs. Tennessee in the TaxSlayer Bowl on Fri., Jan. 2. This used to be called the Gator Bowl for the previous 67 years, fyi. What makes this game so good is that the Hawkeyes have been very quietly winning a critical mass of games this year, while the Volunteers are a year away under Coach Butch Jones before becoming really good. Translation: this is a closer match–up than most SEC fans would be willing to acknowledge.
Intriguing coaching match–up: Nick Saban of Alabama vs. Urban Meyer of Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl, Thurs., Jan. 1. This is a no–brainer. They’re arguably the two best coaches in the business, no what it takes to win, and both of multiple national championships under their belts. Moreover, the two have gone head–to–head before when Meyer was coaching at Florida. This oughtta be a good one, folks!
Who’s bringing the body bags? LSU vs. Notre Dame in the Music City Bowl, Tues., Dec. 30. The only way this game is remotely competitive is if the Tigers just lie down for most of the game, for the Irish have been exposed time and again as overrated frauds late this year.
Why are they playing? Florida vs. East Carolina in the Birmingham Bowl, Sat., Jan. 3. The only reason in any known universe that these two programs would be playing each other in a bowl game is because the Gators are that far down as a program at the moment.
Plenty of good seats remaining: Western Michigan vs. Air Force in the Idaho Potato Bowl, Sat., Dec. 20. Nothing against Western Michigan and the fine year they have had (by MAC standards, at least). Nothing against Air Force, because they’re the troops. But still, it will be in frigid Boise, Idaho. Unless you’re going there to ski, why bother being anywhere near there this time of year?
They shoot horses, don’t they? Nevada vs. Louisiana–Lafayette in the New Orleans Bowl, Sat., Dec. 20. Yes, I know, these past 13 years, the New Orleans Bowl has been the traditional kick-off game for the bowl season, but let us be honest: this strikes us as only a slightly better–than–average non–Power Five early season match–up. Do I lie?
That said, an honorable mention for pointless match–up is Toledo vs. Arkansas State in the GoDaddy Bowl (played in Mobile, Ala.) on Sun., Jan. 4.
Red–and–Black Special: Louisville vs. Georgia in the Belk Bowl, Tues., Dec. 30. These two teams seem too good for the Belk Bowl. Still, the bowl itself has managed to climb its way up the prestige ranks a bit over the course of a decade. It must be the sponsor: “Belk Bowl” has far better ring to it than “Continental Tires Bowl”. Yes, that’s what it used to be called. Honest!
Most exotic location: Central Michigan vs. Western Kentucky in the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl on Wed., Dec. 24. Do not adjust your screens, for you read that correctly. Yes, there is now a bowl game in the Bahamas (Nassau, specifically), an obvious “first”. Let’s hope the teams have the opportunity to enjoy things and live it up a bit.
Two great programs in a so–so bowl: Miami vs. South Carolina in the Independence Bowl, Sat., Dec. 27. Maybe after these two proud programs get down knocking heads, the bowl game will be a bit less so–so, and more reminiscent of recent times when the likes of LSU and Notre Dame slugged it out (1997) or when Mississippi State and then–Big XII rep Texas A&M duked it out in a blizzard (2000). It already has made us forget the less–than–memorable match–ups of the past few years.
The explosive offense meets the immovable defense: Baylor vs. Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl, Thurs., Jan.1. Plus, there will be lots of green! Seriously, though, the Bears have put up scorching numbers on offense, but the big knock against them has constantly been, whom have they played this year? On the other hand, Michigan State has proven themselves to be a force with which to be reckoned after upsetting Stanford in the most recent Rose Bowl. Lesson learned: Mark Dantonio and the Spartans are not to be taken lightly.
Consolation game: Mississippi State vs. Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl, Jan. 1. Similar The Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, if Mississippi State wins this, it will be because they overcame their disappointment of not making the Top 4 in the playoffs. With that said, when was the last time that the Bulldogs have made it to such a prestigious bowl game? Certainly not in my lifetime!
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