College Football Awards, Week 10 (2023) November 6, 2023

Posted by intellectualgridiron in Sports.
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COACHES
Wish I were him:  Nick Saban, Alabama

Honorable mention:  Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State

Glad I’m not him: Brian Kelly, LSU

Lucky guy: Steve Sarkesian, Texas

Poor guy: Chris Klieman, Kansas State

Desperately seeking a wake-up call: Luke Fickell, Wisconsin

Desperately seeking a P.R. man: Jedd Fisch, Arizona

Desperately seeking sunglasses and a fake beard: Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame

Desperately seeking … anything:  Dino Babers, Syracuse

TEAMS
Thought you’d kick butt, you did: Oregon (defeated Cal 63-19)

Thought you’d kick butt, you didn’t: Tulane (defeated East Carolina 13-10)

Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you did: Purdue (lost to No. 3 Michigan 41-13)

Thought you’d get your butt kicked, you didn’t:  East Carolina

Thought you wouldn’t kick butt, you did:  James Madison (defeated Georgia State 42-14)  

Dang, they’re good: Alabama
Dang, they’re bad:  Arizona State

Can’t Stand Prosperity:  Air Force

Did the season start?  Oklahoma
Can the season end?  Middle Tennessee

Can the season never end?  Oregon

GAMES
Play this again:  No. 22 Oklahoma State 27, No. 9 Oklahoma 24

Play this again, too:  Memphis 59, South Florida 50

Never play this again: No. 17 Tennessee 59, UConn 3

What?  Army 23, No. 25 Air Force 3

Huh?  Arizona 27, No. 24 UCLA 10

Are you kidding me??  No. 22 Oklahoma State 27, No. 9 Oklahoma 24

Oh – my – God:  Clemson 31, No. 15 Notre Dame 23

NEXT WEEK

rankings are current (week 11)
Ticket to die for:  No. 3 Michigan @ No. 11 Penn State

Honorable Mention:  No. 10 Ole Miss @ No. 3 Georgia

Best non-Power Five vs. Power Five  matchup: none

Best non-Power Five matchup: Wyoming @ UNLV

Upset alert: No. 17 Tennessee @ No 12 Missouri

Must win: No. 17 Tennessee @ No 12 Missouri

Offensive explosion: No. 20 USC @ No. 6 Oregon

Defensive struggle: Pittsburgh @ Syracuse

Great game no one is talking about: Texas State @ Coastal Carolina

Intriguing coaching matchup:  Lane Kiffin of Ole Miss vs Kirby Smart of Georgia

Who’s bringing the body bags?  Tulsa @ No. 21 Tulane

Why are they playing? UConn @ James Madison

Plenty of good seats remaining: Sam Houston State @ Louisiana Tech

Plenty of good seats remaining, SEC Edition:  Vanderbilt @ South Carolina

They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?  Holy Cross @ Army

Week 9 Thoughts:

Oklahoma State vs Oklahoma

The Bedlam Series went to hiatus on a high note in Stillwater.  Plenty of drama, mistakes, and big plays to go around on both sides of the ball, with the Cowboys, in the end, giving their hated rival a massive sewage burger to eat as the Sooners are departing for the SEC next year.  It is the sort of game fans would dream of to transpire in T. Boone Pickens Stadium.

Texas vs Kansas State

This game was the week’s upset alert, and the suspicion almost came true.  Granted, the Longhorn’s backup QB Maalik Murphy is but a freshman, but one cannot thrown even two INTs against a tough team like Kansas State and expect to win the game.  And yet, Texas did, by the hardest.  It helped that the defense came through with the game on the line in OT, making a key stop on 4^th down with a sack to KSU QB Will Howard.  It also helped that Texas did a decent job of establishing the running game through stretches of the game, with 230 yards and two rushing touchdowns.  But going forward, Murphy needs to work on his completion percentage and turnover prevention.

Tennessee vs UConn

Looks like the Volunteers got their annual November SEC body bag game in early this year, since most of the rest of the conference will be getting theirs in come the 18^th instead.  Commendably, on that day, Tennessee plays Georgia, so at least there will be one game in the SEC worth seeing that weekend.

Louisville vs Virginia Tech

Granted that the Hokies are not very strong this year, but it is impressive nevertheless how the Cardinals demolished them all the same.  It is shaping up to be one memorable year as Jeff Brohm’s inaugural season as head coach of his alma mater.

USC vs Washington

That a memorable shootout occurred in Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is no surprise.  That Trojans QB Caleb Williams was not able to win despite a nearly-flawless performance was tragic.  We can blame USC’s inept defensive coordinator for the bulk of the losses up to now, but this time, to be fair, it is hard to overcome the formidable Huskies QB Michael Penix Jr.

Other games:

One thing to notice was the small upsets throughout the Big Ten this week.  Indiana upset Wisconsin at home; Illinois pulled out a win on the road against Minnesota; and Michigan State, despite their self-inflicted disarray, managed to upset Nebraska.  What does one want to bet that one of those losing teams anticipated taking home an “L” that week?  Looks like Luke Fickell, P.J. Fleck, and Matt Rhule are also looking for sunglasses and a fake beard right now.

Looking ahead to Week 11: 

Penn State vs Michigan

The Wolverines roll into Happy Valley to take on the Nittany Lions.  This will be Michigan’s first real opportunity to prove they belong in the top three, if not the No. 1 spot.

Tennessee vs Missouri

This game could determine the solid No. 2 in the SEC East after clear leader Georgia.

Georgia vs Ole Miss

This is the other “ticket to die for” of the upcoming week.  The Rebels have quietly worked their way up the rankings to No. 10.  Granted, there is often a considerable discrepancy in talent between teams of those respective rankings, but this will be a good test for both squads.

Utah vs Washington

As good as Utah’s defense is, it will likely be not enough to contain Washington’s offense.

Oregon vs USC

Poor USC.  First they lose a heartbreaking shootout at home to Washington, now they have to travel up to Eugene, where their defense is likely to receive its worse pommeling yet (and that’s saying something).  But now that Lincoln Riley has axed his feckless DC Alex Grinch, perhaps the Trojans’ D might see some gradual improvement.

Duke vs North Carolina

One of the most venerable rivalries in the ACC is about to commence its latest football edition.  With two good teams this time around, it’s likely to be a good one.