A win is a win, but a loss is not a loss, at least not when it comes to college football.
Because of the short season, lack of playoff structure and hyper-interested fan bases, a single blemish on the schedule can seem like the end. No conference title. no national championship. Just Holiday Bowl Hell and Citrus Bowl Suffering.
After an upset-filled week five, fans of Florida, Georgia and USC certainly seem to think the sky is falling (well, at least those on blogs and message boards). Even the supposedly more "sober-minded" mainstream media have begun the "they're-completely-screwed, OK-maybe-not, but-no-really-they-are" talk about the Gators, Bulldogs and Trojans.
Premature. All of it.
To be clear, all of these programs will face a much more difficult road to a theoretical national title than they would have had they won this past weekend. In fact, barring a bizzaro-crazy season like 2007, the margin for error has probably been reduced to zero. But over? No, not with one loss.
In the nine full seasons since the BCS was formed, three teams have won a national championship with at least one loss. All have come since 2003, including the last two straight (Florida in 2006 and two-loss LSU in 2007).
The sample size is too small to say with any certainty, but I believe the days of a handful of hegemonic programs -- Miami, Nebraska, Florida State, USC -- easily racking up undefeated seasons year after year may be over, at least for the time being. Call it an era of mini-parity, perhaps. But that's just my opinion, and it's certainly very debatable (particularly if you're an Oklahoma or Alamabama fan right now).
Let's look instead at the quantifiable reality, the here-and-now:
It's quite possible (likely, even?) that we'll see at least one one-loss team in the BCS Championship this year.
True, there are still 13 undefeated teams remaining in the six BCS conferences. But they are highly concentrated. Every team in the Pac 10 and ACC already has at least one loss. Two teams each remain in the Big 10 and Big East. And there are a combined nine undefeated squads in the Big 12 and SEC. After the Highlander-like "There can be only one!" struggles play out in those conferences, we'll be left with a maximum of five undefeated teams from BCS leagues.
And that's just a maximum. Given their recent histories and remaining schedules, it's easy to imagine Northwestern and Penn State of the Big 10 losing at least one game. Same goes for burgeoning Big East newcomers South Florida and Connecticut.
That leaves the SEC and Big 12. Because these leagues have two divisions and end-of-season championship games, only one undefeated team can emerge from either. Again, based on recent history and the non-stop brutality awaiting teams in each league, it's hard to imagine a team running the table in both.
The point is, it's far too early to write a one-loss team out of the national championship picture. Yes, things just got harder for Florida, Georgia and USC. The Gators and Bulldogs face the afforementioned brutal SEC schedules; the Trojans have the opposite problem with few quality games remaining in a down Pac 10.
But all three still control their own destinies for conference titles, the SEC teams by virtue of their losses coming against West-division foes. And if they can get back to their winning ways and run the table, any of them could still end up back in the bigger picture.
One final note: For their part, non-BCS conferences have five undefeated teams still standing, but only Utah, BYU and Boise State are ranked in the top 25. BYU, ranked seventh in the coaches poll, would seem to be the most serious threat to crash the BCS, but a title shot would be unprecedented and very much a long shot.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Heisman Watch Week 6
(1) Tim Tebow, QB, Florida, Jr.
(2) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
(3) Charles Scott, RB, LSU, Jr.
(4) Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma, Soph.
(5) Graham Harrell, QB, Texas Tech, Sr.
Moreno is dropped from the list this week because of Georgia's pathetic effort against Alabama this week and because he was unable to do anything at all against their defense. Harrell is averaging nearly 400 yards passing per game against garbage defenses, but he's mostly here because no one else really warrants a spot yet, although Jeremy Maclin is getting very near the list as well. One TTU loss and Maclin pops on the list.
Tebow is also very near to losing the top spot... Florida was unfairly dropped in the polls this week, and he will have plenty of big games in which to redeem his repeat chances....
(2) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
(3) Charles Scott, RB, LSU, Jr.
(4) Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma, Soph.
(5) Graham Harrell, QB, Texas Tech, Sr.
Moreno is dropped from the list this week because of Georgia's pathetic effort against Alabama this week and because he was unable to do anything at all against their defense. Harrell is averaging nearly 400 yards passing per game against garbage defenses, but he's mostly here because no one else really warrants a spot yet, although Jeremy Maclin is getting very near the list as well. One TTU loss and Maclin pops on the list.
Tebow is also very near to losing the top spot... Florida was unfairly dropped in the polls this week, and he will have plenty of big games in which to redeem his repeat chances....
Sunday, September 28, 2008
A final, desperate plea
In the aftermath of yet another terrible Huskies loss, I have a desparate plea to make of Coach Willingham (before he's fired of course). News came down last night that QB Jake Locker has a broken thumb on his throwing hand, D'Andre Goodwin has a rib-cage injury that may keep him out at least a month, and David Freeman, one of a few bright spots on offense this year, has an ankle injury. Finally, Donald Butler, an outside linebacker, was also injured. So, there are some clear structural problems that go far beyond being 0-4 on this team. Plus, we have the 118th ranked defense, giving up 507 yards per game, better than only SMU in all of Division I football.
With this in mind, my plea is this: MOVE JAKE LOCKER TO SAFETY OR LINEBACKER. Locker is the ultimate competitor, and I'm certain he'll do anything to get himself on the football field. Plus, Locker played safety in high school, is 6'3" and close to 230 pounds. He's got plenty of speed for either position, seems to have the strength and field smarts, and could make an impact on a unit that is down-right awful.
On another note, Locker has continued to fail to improve his ability to hit long passes accurately, and while his short passing has improved, he still seems unwilling to go to the underneath receivers. Ronnie Fouch is a much less talented passer, but had pocket prescense, made accurate throws, and displayed very strong field awareness. In short, Fouch may possess less natural tools than Locker, but seems to have ALL of the necessary intangibles needed to be a great college quarterback.
So, let's make this experiment for the rest of the year to get Locker on the field and let him have an impact. We can still toss him in at RB and possible on kick returns at times, so he will still do some things on the offensive side of the ball, but he can also contribute defensively. And in the interim, we get to find out what our backup QB has while he simultaneously gains valuable experience in Pac-10 play and builds a rapport with UW's young receivers.
Besides, the season is already over, so let's just experiment and give anything that might possibly help a shot.
With this in mind, my plea is this: MOVE JAKE LOCKER TO SAFETY OR LINEBACKER. Locker is the ultimate competitor, and I'm certain he'll do anything to get himself on the football field. Plus, Locker played safety in high school, is 6'3" and close to 230 pounds. He's got plenty of speed for either position, seems to have the strength and field smarts, and could make an impact on a unit that is down-right awful.
On another note, Locker has continued to fail to improve his ability to hit long passes accurately, and while his short passing has improved, he still seems unwilling to go to the underneath receivers. Ronnie Fouch is a much less talented passer, but had pocket prescense, made accurate throws, and displayed very strong field awareness. In short, Fouch may possess less natural tools than Locker, but seems to have ALL of the necessary intangibles needed to be a great college quarterback.
So, let's make this experiment for the rest of the year to get Locker on the field and let him have an impact. We can still toss him in at RB and possible on kick returns at times, so he will still do some things on the offensive side of the ball, but he can also contribute defensively. And in the interim, we get to find out what our backup QB has while he simultaneously gains valuable experience in Pac-10 play and builds a rapport with UW's young receivers.
Besides, the season is already over, so let's just experiment and give anything that might possibly help a shot.
Fire Ty Now
Alright, I've had enough.
I've had enough of being the dogs of the Pac-10 instead of being the DAWGS leading the PAC.
I've had enough of watching a defense get run all over as if it had more holes than a slice of Swiss cheese.
I've had enough of missed tackles.
I've had enough of dropped passes.
I've enough of Jake Locker's overthrows.
I've had enough of a lack of anything resembling anger from this program.
I've had enough of losing ten games a year every year for many years.
I've been your most passionate defender Ty. And you've done some good things here, no one can question that. You've cleaned up the mess left in the aftermath of the WORST coach in all of college football, Neuweisel. But you haven't been able to move beyond the basebuilding, not even against bad teams.
So I'm finished with you.
I don't enjoy making this statement at all, and I do not make it lightly. I wish it wasn't the case, but at this point it's simply unavoidable.
It's time to fire Tyrone Willingham immediately.
I've had enough of being the dogs of the Pac-10 instead of being the DAWGS leading the PAC.
I've had enough of watching a defense get run all over as if it had more holes than a slice of Swiss cheese.
I've had enough of missed tackles.
I've had enough of dropped passes.
I've enough of Jake Locker's overthrows.
I've had enough of a lack of anything resembling anger from this program.
I've had enough of losing ten games a year every year for many years.
I've been your most passionate defender Ty. And you've done some good things here, no one can question that. You've cleaned up the mess left in the aftermath of the WORST coach in all of college football, Neuweisel. But you haven't been able to move beyond the basebuilding, not even against bad teams.
So I'm finished with you.
I don't enjoy making this statement at all, and I do not make it lightly. I wish it wasn't the case, but at this point it's simply unavoidable.
It's time to fire Tyrone Willingham immediately.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Inevitable
You knew it would happen. Maybe you didn't think it would be off of a bye week following a big win. Maybe you thought it would be against a slightly better team. But you knew, someday, somewhere, somehow... USC would play down to a lesser opponent.
They do every year. They did tonight against Oregon State.
Sometimes, the mighty Trojans have been able to wriggle off the hook. Some years its due to their overwhelming talent, others due to awful miscues by opponents. Oregon State (and its prematurely celebratory fans) certainly provided USC with enough opportunities.
But McKnight and Sanchez are not Bush and Leinart and the Trojans could not capitalize on the Beavers' mistakes. So USC, barring a 2007-like oddity, has played itself out of the national picture once again.
Maybe you didn't think it would happen tonight. But don't act surprised.
They do every year. They did tonight against Oregon State.
Sometimes, the mighty Trojans have been able to wriggle off the hook. Some years its due to their overwhelming talent, others due to awful miscues by opponents. Oregon State (and its prematurely celebratory fans) certainly provided USC with enough opportunities.
But McKnight and Sanchez are not Bush and Leinart and the Trojans could not capitalize on the Beavers' mistakes. So USC, barring a 2007-like oddity, has played itself out of the national picture once again.
Maybe you didn't think it would happen tonight. But don't act surprised.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
How quickly we forget
Saying that our news media sometimes has a short memory is not too bold a statement. I interviewed Frank Deford for an article in my college newspaper some time ago, and of all the things he said, one in particular stuck with me. To paraphrase, "Something that happened 10 years ago is always better than something that happened 50 years ago." I think that sums it up nicely.
But even I was shocked when I began seeing headlines like this one pop up:
"No. 4 Florida winning in new ways"
Apparently, people are concerned about Florida's offense, which is presently ranked just 86th in the country and is admittedly a shadow of what it was last season. But is winning with defense and special teams, as the 3-0 Gators have done so far, really all that new? Isn't that how Florida won a national title in 2006 just two years ago?!?!?
Let's examine. Though the 2006 Gators were 19th nationally in total offense, they broke 30 points just three times in the regular season -- all against non-conference, non-BCS competition. Their two most memorable scoring outbursts came in the final two games -- 38 against Arkansas in the SEC Championship and 41 against Ohio State in the title game.
Throughout the regular season, the Gators thrived on defense (6th nationally in total defense) and special teams. Looking at some of their tougher SEC games, the pattern becomes evident:
Sept. 30 -- Ahead just 14-13 in the fourth quarter at home against Alabama, the Gators use two interceptions and a fumble recovery to seal a closer-than-it-looked 28-13 win.
Oct. 7 -- Everyone remembers the Tebow jump pass, but the Gators were actually outgained this day by LSU, 318-288 in total offense. With the score tied at seven in the second quarter, the Gators caught a break wehn JaMarcus Russell fumbled on the Florida one-yard line. The next seven Tiger posessions ended thusly: Interception, halftime, blocked punt, missed field goal, made field goal after a drive stalled inside the 30, interception, interception.
Nov. 11 -- Despite piling up 401 yards of total offense, the Gators had scored just 17 points. Worse yet, South Carolina had shredded the Florida defense for 410 yards and 16 points and was set up to attempt the game-winning 48-yard field goal. But defensive end Jarvis Moss got his meaty paw on Ryan Succop's attempt, preserving the Gator victory and a berth in the SEC championship. It was Moss' second blocked kick -- and the Gators' third -- in that game alone.
There are other examples -- holding Tennessee to minus-11 yards rushing and winning the turnover battle, calling a clutch fake punt call on fourth-and-ten from their own 15 against Arkansas. The offense with its two-quarterback rotation, wide receiver rushes and zany trick plays got the attention, but the offense didn't carry the Gators in 2006.
This year's defense isn't as good as the 2006 team, which featured NFL prospects galore. But the Gators so far are winning in familiar, and most certainly not "new," ways.
But even I was shocked when I began seeing headlines like this one pop up:
"No. 4 Florida winning in new ways"
Apparently, people are concerned about Florida's offense, which is presently ranked just 86th in the country and is admittedly a shadow of what it was last season. But is winning with defense and special teams, as the 3-0 Gators have done so far, really all that new? Isn't that how Florida won a national title in 2006 just two years ago?!?!?
Let's examine. Though the 2006 Gators were 19th nationally in total offense, they broke 30 points just three times in the regular season -- all against non-conference, non-BCS competition. Their two most memorable scoring outbursts came in the final two games -- 38 against Arkansas in the SEC Championship and 41 against Ohio State in the title game.
Throughout the regular season, the Gators thrived on defense (6th nationally in total defense) and special teams. Looking at some of their tougher SEC games, the pattern becomes evident:
Sept. 30 -- Ahead just 14-13 in the fourth quarter at home against Alabama, the Gators use two interceptions and a fumble recovery to seal a closer-than-it-looked 28-13 win.
Oct. 7 -- Everyone remembers the Tebow jump pass, but the Gators were actually outgained this day by LSU, 318-288 in total offense. With the score tied at seven in the second quarter, the Gators caught a break wehn JaMarcus Russell fumbled on the Florida one-yard line. The next seven Tiger posessions ended thusly: Interception, halftime, blocked punt, missed field goal, made field goal after a drive stalled inside the 30, interception, interception.
Nov. 11 -- Despite piling up 401 yards of total offense, the Gators had scored just 17 points. Worse yet, South Carolina had shredded the Florida defense for 410 yards and 16 points and was set up to attempt the game-winning 48-yard field goal. But defensive end Jarvis Moss got his meaty paw on Ryan Succop's attempt, preserving the Gator victory and a berth in the SEC championship. It was Moss' second blocked kick -- and the Gators' third -- in that game alone.
There are other examples -- holding Tennessee to minus-11 yards rushing and winning the turnover battle, calling a clutch fake punt call on fourth-and-ten from their own 15 against Arkansas. The offense with its two-quarterback rotation, wide receiver rushes and zany trick plays got the attention, but the offense didn't carry the Gators in 2006.
This year's defense isn't as good as the 2006 team, which featured NFL prospects galore. But the Gators so far are winning in familiar, and most certainly not "new," ways.
Week 5 Preview
A lot of fantastic games coming up this weekend again. For the sake of time, I’ll just give a thought or two about each and a prediction. Too many to get too in depth, although one or two contests certainly warrant a little special treatment this week.
(24) TCU AT (2) Oklahoma – Sooners are the best offensive team in the country. Oklahoma 49, TCU 21.
Mississippi AT (4) Florida – Gators roll again. Florida 38, Mississippi 21.
Mississippi State AT (5) LSU – LSU gets one week to recover from the tough road win at Auburn before they go through murderer’s row and we find out what these Tigers are really made of. LSU 42, Mississippi State 14
(9) Wisconsin AT Michigan – The Wolverines are rebuilding, and the Badgers are on of only two decent Big 10 squads this year. Wisconsin 32, Michigan 24.
(22) Illinois AT (12) Penn State – Nittany Lions are the best team in the conference by FAR as of today. Penn State 45, Illinois 24.
Tennessee AT (15) Auburn – Auburn and Tennessee both have to recover off tough losses. If this one goes south for the Vols, it could be a very long season. Auburn’s D and the home crowd are enough in this one. Auburn 27, Tennessee 19.
Maryland AT (20) Clemson – Clemson seems to be back on track, but Maryland is wildly erratic so far. Clemson 32, Maryland 12.
(25) Fresno State AT UCLA – UCLA is one of the 3 worst teams in the Pac-10. Fresno State is one of the best teams in the WAC. Fresno State 27, UCLA 10.
North Carolina AT Miami – The Tar Heels will be without Yates in this one, and Miami shows signs of having more talent in this year. Miami 26, North Carolina 23.
Colorado AT Florida State – Florida State will have to regroup after a tough loss to Wake Forest. They’ll get the job done. Florida State 31, Colorado 23.
Virginia Tech AT Nebraska – Nebraska is quietly off to a strong start. Virginia Tech is loudly off to a poor start, although they helped themselves with a nice win against North Carolina last week. Home field wins this one. Nebraska 32, Virginia Tech 28.
Stanford AT Washington – NO PICK HERE because I am frightened at what that might portend for this game. Suffice it to say that this is Willingham’s biggest game as UW football coach, and I am rooting for him as hard as I possibly can. The home crowd will be an asset. The question here will be Washington’s inexperience at the skill positions against Stanford’s solid defense. If Washington can move the ball effectively, this should be a positive outcome for the Huskies.
Minnesota AT (14) Ohio State – The Buckeyes had better be on the upset alert this week. After a crushing defeat at the hands of USC last week, they’ll come out flat again. This team is on its way to a disappointing year, but they’ll have enough against the Golden Gophers. Ohio State 20, Minnesota 17.
Purdue AT Notre Dame – The Fighting Irish are looking semi-decent again this year, but my gut tells me that Charlie Weis will find a way to blow this. Purdue 30, Notre Dame 24.
(8) Alabama AT (3) Georgia – We come to the game of the week. A good old fashioned SEC barnburner should be in store for college football fans across the nation when Georgia breaks out the black jerseys to take on the Crimson Tide this Saturday. The Bulldog offense has sputtered at times early in the season, and this game marks the beginning of what is almost certainly the hardest schedule in the nation. Alabama has looked solid early in the year, but they haven’t had a test like this yet, and are inexperienced all over the football field. John Parker Wilson, while experienced, is not exactly the best of game managers. Georgia’s defense will make some plays in this one, even if Stafford and Moreno and company can’t get much going against a stout ‘Bama defense. This one goes down to the wire, but the Bulldogs will pull out a critical victory in the first of a string of Top-10 opponents. Georgia 27, Alabama 23.
There you have it football fans, Week 5 in a nutshell. Please feel free to tell me how wrong I am when everything comes crashing down on these picks when the real games are played. So far, it’s been an exciting season, and I fully expect Week 5 to continue to ramp up the excitement as we start getting into conference play in earnest. Enjoy the weekend!
(24) TCU AT (2) Oklahoma – Sooners are the best offensive team in the country. Oklahoma 49, TCU 21.
Mississippi AT (4) Florida – Gators roll again. Florida 38, Mississippi 21.
Mississippi State AT (5) LSU – LSU gets one week to recover from the tough road win at Auburn before they go through murderer’s row and we find out what these Tigers are really made of. LSU 42, Mississippi State 14
(9) Wisconsin AT Michigan – The Wolverines are rebuilding, and the Badgers are on of only two decent Big 10 squads this year. Wisconsin 32, Michigan 24.
(22) Illinois AT (12) Penn State – Nittany Lions are the best team in the conference by FAR as of today. Penn State 45, Illinois 24.
Tennessee AT (15) Auburn – Auburn and Tennessee both have to recover off tough losses. If this one goes south for the Vols, it could be a very long season. Auburn’s D and the home crowd are enough in this one. Auburn 27, Tennessee 19.
Maryland AT (20) Clemson – Clemson seems to be back on track, but Maryland is wildly erratic so far. Clemson 32, Maryland 12.
(25) Fresno State AT UCLA – UCLA is one of the 3 worst teams in the Pac-10. Fresno State is one of the best teams in the WAC. Fresno State 27, UCLA 10.
North Carolina AT Miami – The Tar Heels will be without Yates in this one, and Miami shows signs of having more talent in this year. Miami 26, North Carolina 23.
Colorado AT Florida State – Florida State will have to regroup after a tough loss to Wake Forest. They’ll get the job done. Florida State 31, Colorado 23.
Virginia Tech AT Nebraska – Nebraska is quietly off to a strong start. Virginia Tech is loudly off to a poor start, although they helped themselves with a nice win against North Carolina last week. Home field wins this one. Nebraska 32, Virginia Tech 28.
Stanford AT Washington – NO PICK HERE because I am frightened at what that might portend for this game. Suffice it to say that this is Willingham’s biggest game as UW football coach, and I am rooting for him as hard as I possibly can. The home crowd will be an asset. The question here will be Washington’s inexperience at the skill positions against Stanford’s solid defense. If Washington can move the ball effectively, this should be a positive outcome for the Huskies.
Minnesota AT (14) Ohio State – The Buckeyes had better be on the upset alert this week. After a crushing defeat at the hands of USC last week, they’ll come out flat again. This team is on its way to a disappointing year, but they’ll have enough against the Golden Gophers. Ohio State 20, Minnesota 17.
Purdue AT Notre Dame – The Fighting Irish are looking semi-decent again this year, but my gut tells me that Charlie Weis will find a way to blow this. Purdue 30, Notre Dame 24.
(8) Alabama AT (3) Georgia – We come to the game of the week. A good old fashioned SEC barnburner should be in store for college football fans across the nation when Georgia breaks out the black jerseys to take on the Crimson Tide this Saturday. The Bulldog offense has sputtered at times early in the season, and this game marks the beginning of what is almost certainly the hardest schedule in the nation. Alabama has looked solid early in the year, but they haven’t had a test like this yet, and are inexperienced all over the football field. John Parker Wilson, while experienced, is not exactly the best of game managers. Georgia’s defense will make some plays in this one, even if Stafford and Moreno and company can’t get much going against a stout ‘Bama defense. This one goes down to the wire, but the Bulldogs will pull out a critical victory in the first of a string of Top-10 opponents. Georgia 27, Alabama 23.
There you have it football fans, Week 5 in a nutshell. Please feel free to tell me how wrong I am when everything comes crashing down on these picks when the real games are played. So far, it’s been an exciting season, and I fully expect Week 5 to continue to ramp up the excitement as we start getting into conference play in earnest. Enjoy the weekend!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Knoxville wrapup
If you want to experience something close to Stokholm Syndrome without actually getting kidnapped, go to Knoxville, Tenn. on a football weekend as an opposing fan. You might not actually feel like you're sympathizing with your "captors" after you leave, but you'll at least outwardly appear to be doing so.
That's because, at nearly every turn, you'll find yourself involuntarily singing or humming "Rocky Top." You'll catch yourself doing it and quickly stop. But sooner or later, you'll drift off into thought only to be awoken by a faint voice that sounds strangely like your own singing, "Rocky Top, you'll always be, home sweet home to meeeeeeeeeee..."
It's sort of like going to Costa Rica and coming home with a weird tropical disease. But in reality, I came away from my first true SEC weekend with a few more thoughts than that. I share them with you (in abridged form) now.
Knoxville and the pregame environment
My only mental imagery of Knoxville prior to this past weekend was of Neyland Stadium and the World's Fair site, as depicted in a mid-90s episode of The Simpsons. I came in with a blank slate and was pleasantly surprised -- what I saw of the town was pretty nice (bonus points for the cleanest Waffle House EVAR). I didn't get to see much of the downtown, but Cumberland Avenue was a pretty solid college strip, even if its layout was predictable to the point of being formulaic. I was surprised, however, about how subdued the pregame environment was. It certainly doesn't help that the Vols are a bit down this year following last year's SEC East championship. In fact, the Tennessee fanbase almost seemed scared. I don't mean that in a mocking way because I've been there before and it's no fun. But the Vols fans seemed more tentative than I would have expected, perhaps because they expected (and ultimately got) a blowout. I was also surprised to learn that the schools undergraduate enrollment is just north of 20,000. Even with a hearty influx of Florida fans, there just didn't seem to be enough people out on Friday night to enter "holy shit this is crazy" territory. The tailgate scene on Saturday was expansive but scattered due to the urban layout of the area. Regretably, I did not catch a glimpse of the Vol Navy, but nearly all of the Tennessee fans I bumped into for more than a passing moment were genuinely nice. I'm sure that's different for Florida weekend when the Vols are rolling, but this time around, the level of douchebaggery was pleasantly low.
The stadium
From a natural-setting standpoint, Neyland is right near the top. Again, that's sort of an "eye of the beholder" statement, but I've been to many of the other purported beautiful stadiums, so I feel comfortable saying that. The actual inside of the stadium is stunning. It's cool-looking, huge and relatively comfortable, and the double-decks all the way around trapped in a lot of noise (you know, for the 20 minutes of real-time or so when the outcome was in question). Despite the size, however, the sightlines were good. Here's a view from our upper-deck seats:
Neyland, however, has three huge strikes against it. First, the stadium's setting means its down a river bluff and hemmed in by buildings, making the immediate tailgate scene miniscule. Second, for all the beauty around it, the stadium itself looks like an erector set from the outside. Last, and most importantly, the concourses (at least nearly every one I walked on) were unforgivably small. A stadium that seats 107,0000-plus should not have six-foot wide bottlenecks. But despite these drawbacks, I still came away impressed.
Final thoughts
I'll skip a game recap mainly becuase I'd prefer to address the actual football themes at another time. But I got the sense throughout the weekend that I wasn't seeing Knoxville, Neyland or the Vols fans in their full glory. While it certainly was a great time for all the Gators who made the trip, it was something else entirely for those wearing creamsicle Orange. You could feel the latent doubts and frustration on Friday night and Saturday morning, and all the negative energy came out in torrents of boos during the game. The maelstrom is growing around Fulmer, and it was perhaps never more evident than on Saturday. In the end, it would have been nice to see the full craziness of the place, but I had a great time nonetheless.
That's because, at nearly every turn, you'll find yourself involuntarily singing or humming "Rocky Top." You'll catch yourself doing it and quickly stop. But sooner or later, you'll drift off into thought only to be awoken by a faint voice that sounds strangely like your own singing, "Rocky Top, you'll always be, home sweet home to meeeeeeeeeee..."
It's sort of like going to Costa Rica and coming home with a weird tropical disease. But in reality, I came away from my first true SEC weekend with a few more thoughts than that. I share them with you (in abridged form) now.
Knoxville and the pregame environment
My only mental imagery of Knoxville prior to this past weekend was of Neyland Stadium and the World's Fair site, as depicted in a mid-90s episode of The Simpsons. I came in with a blank slate and was pleasantly surprised -- what I saw of the town was pretty nice (bonus points for the cleanest Waffle House EVAR). I didn't get to see much of the downtown, but Cumberland Avenue was a pretty solid college strip, even if its layout was predictable to the point of being formulaic. I was surprised, however, about how subdued the pregame environment was. It certainly doesn't help that the Vols are a bit down this year following last year's SEC East championship. In fact, the Tennessee fanbase almost seemed scared. I don't mean that in a mocking way because I've been there before and it's no fun. But the Vols fans seemed more tentative than I would have expected, perhaps because they expected (and ultimately got) a blowout. I was also surprised to learn that the schools undergraduate enrollment is just north of 20,000. Even with a hearty influx of Florida fans, there just didn't seem to be enough people out on Friday night to enter "holy shit this is crazy" territory. The tailgate scene on Saturday was expansive but scattered due to the urban layout of the area. Regretably, I did not catch a glimpse of the Vol Navy, but nearly all of the Tennessee fans I bumped into for more than a passing moment were genuinely nice. I'm sure that's different for Florida weekend when the Vols are rolling, but this time around, the level of douchebaggery was pleasantly low.
The stadium
From a natural-setting standpoint, Neyland is right near the top. Again, that's sort of an "eye of the beholder" statement, but I've been to many of the other purported beautiful stadiums, so I feel comfortable saying that. The actual inside of the stadium is stunning. It's cool-looking, huge and relatively comfortable, and the double-decks all the way around trapped in a lot of noise (you know, for the 20 minutes of real-time or so when the outcome was in question). Despite the size, however, the sightlines were good. Here's a view from our upper-deck seats:
Neyland, however, has three huge strikes against it. First, the stadium's setting means its down a river bluff and hemmed in by buildings, making the immediate tailgate scene miniscule. Second, for all the beauty around it, the stadium itself looks like an erector set from the outside. Last, and most importantly, the concourses (at least nearly every one I walked on) were unforgivably small. A stadium that seats 107,0000-plus should not have six-foot wide bottlenecks. But despite these drawbacks, I still came away impressed.
Final thoughts
I'll skip a game recap mainly becuase I'd prefer to address the actual football themes at another time. But I got the sense throughout the weekend that I wasn't seeing Knoxville, Neyland or the Vols fans in their full glory. While it certainly was a great time for all the Gators who made the trip, it was something else entirely for those wearing creamsicle Orange. You could feel the latent doubts and frustration on Friday night and Saturday morning, and all the negative energy came out in torrents of boos during the game. The maelstrom is growing around Fulmer, and it was perhaps never more evident than on Saturday. In the end, it would have been nice to see the full craziness of the place, but I had a great time nonetheless.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Heisman Watch Week 4
1) Tim Tebow, QB, Florida, Jr.
2) Knowshon Moreno, RB, Georgia, Soph.
3) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
4) Charles Scott, RB, LSU, Jr.
5) Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma, Soph.
Charles Scott is rocketing up my board, especially with what he was able to do against Auburn's defense this past week. 132 Yards and over 6/carry is pretty impressive against probably the second best defense in the nation (only to LSU). Only two conferences represented here... should tell you something, those two conferences are MILES ahead of everyone else right now.
2) Knowshon Moreno, RB, Georgia, Soph.
3) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
4) Charles Scott, RB, LSU, Jr.
5) Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma, Soph.
Charles Scott is rocketing up my board, especially with what he was able to do against Auburn's defense this past week. 132 Yards and over 6/carry is pretty impressive against probably the second best defense in the nation (only to LSU). Only two conferences represented here... should tell you something, those two conferences are MILES ahead of everyone else right now.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Dispatches from Knoxville, 9/19/08
10:14pm - First UT Fan I met is actually really nice.
10:24pm - Lines in Knoxville are long.
10:37pm - This is easily the most redneck bar I have ever been in and I get the impression that it isn't even a real local bar.
10:59pm - They play Rockytop at least once every fifteen minutes.
12:23am - We will see how bad it is tomorrow but so far Knoxville is way more not batshit crazy than one would imagine.
In case you haven't figured it out yet, these are dispatches from Knoxville, Tennessee, by my co-author here. We'll be posting such information throughout gameday tomorrow, as we are on-site at the Florida-Tennessee matchup for this week.
10:24pm - Lines in Knoxville are long.
10:37pm - This is easily the most redneck bar I have ever been in and I get the impression that it isn't even a real local bar.
10:59pm - They play Rockytop at least once every fifteen minutes.
12:23am - We will see how bad it is tomorrow but so far Knoxville is way more not batshit crazy than one would imagine.
In case you haven't figured it out yet, these are dispatches from Knoxville, Tennessee, by my co-author here. We'll be posting such information throughout gameday tomorrow, as we are on-site at the Florida-Tennessee matchup for this week.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Week Four Preview
Week Four in major college football should rival a pretty fantastic slate of games from Week 3. The Pac-10 will get a chance to redeem itself as a conference on Saturday, with one or two very difficult games coming up. Meanwhile, the SEC season gets started in earnest on Saturday, with one spectacular game, and another matchup that could prove to be a trap for an SEC Titan.
(3) Georgia AT Arizona State – The Sun Devils look to make up for a shocking loss last week, but will have to do it against a Georgia squad playing west of the Mississippi for the first time in years. ASU may be getting Georgia at the right time, as the offense looked out of sync against a solid South Carolina D last week, but it won’t matter. Bulldogs roll. Georgia 45, ASU 21.
(4) Florida AT Tennessee – The Vols have a chance to redeem an ugly loss at UCLA with an upset win over Florida here. Tyler Crompton looked like he had all the talent in the world, but none of the confidence or field awareness needed from a great QB. The defense for Tennessee should keep this one moderately close, but don’t expect the Volunteers to have enough to get the job done. Florida 31, Tennessee 17.
Boise State AT (17) Oregon – An interesting matchup here, with Oregon QB Justin Roper on the shelf for at least a few weeks. Boise State isn’t what it used to be, but there is still plenty of talent in the program. Jeremiah Masoli can run, but can he pass? Fortunately for the Ducks, the game is played at Autzen. Oregon 34, Boise State 31.
(18) Wake Forest AT (24) Florida State – Both teams head into this game on a roll (probably the only two squads in the entire ACC that can say that). Florida State is finally rid of Drew Weatherford, and seems to have transitioned seamlessly into a 2 QB system with Christian Ponder and D’Vontrey Richardson splitting time and combining for 8 TD passes to 0 INTs. Wake Forest sports one of the best defenses in the ACC, and has that grind-it-out, get results mentality that it always seems to have. This one should be a good one, and might decide the final outcome of the ACC in 2008. Slight edge to the Seminoles, because of the home crowd and the athleticism at QB. Florida State 32, Wake Forest 23.
(20) Utah AT Air Force – Air Force is always an interesting team. Utah has high hopes for an undefeated season, but this is one of the biggest tests remaining for the Utes. We’ll see quite a bit of running out of the wishbone and/or like formations in this one, and it should be a nail-biter down to the end. If Air Force can slow Utah’s passing attack early on and stay ahead in this one, the Falcons will take it. On the other hand, if Utah can get out front by 10 or more points, Air Force will have a hell of a time getting back into the game. My money’s on the former outcome. Air Force 31, Utah 28.
(6) LSU AT (10) Auburn – Without question, the game of the week. Auburn plays at home, coming off a measly 3-2 victory over Mississippi State last week. LSU comes into this game very untested at QB and WR, but with an experienced defense and offensive line, plus the best stable of running backs in the SEC. LSU hasn’t won at Auburn in 10 years, and the crowd will provide the Tigers of Auburn with a definite advantage in this one. However, Auburn’s offense has been absolutely anemic, managing an average of just 21 points against the likes of Louisiana-Monroe, Southern Miss, and Mississippi State. Ultimately, Auburn’s deficiencies on offense will be fatal in this one. LSU will rotate RB’s Charles Scott, Richard Murphy, Keiland Williams, and Stevan Ridley. Taken together, this is too much backfield prowess for even a stout defense like Auburn to handle. LSU wins a battle of attrition on offensive strength. LSU 23, Auburn 10.
Other interesting games include West Virginia AT Colorado on Thursday night. Enjoy the great slate of games this weekend.
(3) Georgia AT Arizona State – The Sun Devils look to make up for a shocking loss last week, but will have to do it against a Georgia squad playing west of the Mississippi for the first time in years. ASU may be getting Georgia at the right time, as the offense looked out of sync against a solid South Carolina D last week, but it won’t matter. Bulldogs roll. Georgia 45, ASU 21.
(4) Florida AT Tennessee – The Vols have a chance to redeem an ugly loss at UCLA with an upset win over Florida here. Tyler Crompton looked like he had all the talent in the world, but none of the confidence or field awareness needed from a great QB. The defense for Tennessee should keep this one moderately close, but don’t expect the Volunteers to have enough to get the job done. Florida 31, Tennessee 17.
Boise State AT (17) Oregon – An interesting matchup here, with Oregon QB Justin Roper on the shelf for at least a few weeks. Boise State isn’t what it used to be, but there is still plenty of talent in the program. Jeremiah Masoli can run, but can he pass? Fortunately for the Ducks, the game is played at Autzen. Oregon 34, Boise State 31.
(18) Wake Forest AT (24) Florida State – Both teams head into this game on a roll (probably the only two squads in the entire ACC that can say that). Florida State is finally rid of Drew Weatherford, and seems to have transitioned seamlessly into a 2 QB system with Christian Ponder and D’Vontrey Richardson splitting time and combining for 8 TD passes to 0 INTs. Wake Forest sports one of the best defenses in the ACC, and has that grind-it-out, get results mentality that it always seems to have. This one should be a good one, and might decide the final outcome of the ACC in 2008. Slight edge to the Seminoles, because of the home crowd and the athleticism at QB. Florida State 32, Wake Forest 23.
(20) Utah AT Air Force – Air Force is always an interesting team. Utah has high hopes for an undefeated season, but this is one of the biggest tests remaining for the Utes. We’ll see quite a bit of running out of the wishbone and/or like formations in this one, and it should be a nail-biter down to the end. If Air Force can slow Utah’s passing attack early on and stay ahead in this one, the Falcons will take it. On the other hand, if Utah can get out front by 10 or more points, Air Force will have a hell of a time getting back into the game. My money’s on the former outcome. Air Force 31, Utah 28.
(6) LSU AT (10) Auburn – Without question, the game of the week. Auburn plays at home, coming off a measly 3-2 victory over Mississippi State last week. LSU comes into this game very untested at QB and WR, but with an experienced defense and offensive line, plus the best stable of running backs in the SEC. LSU hasn’t won at Auburn in 10 years, and the crowd will provide the Tigers of Auburn with a definite advantage in this one. However, Auburn’s offense has been absolutely anemic, managing an average of just 21 points against the likes of Louisiana-Monroe, Southern Miss, and Mississippi State. Ultimately, Auburn’s deficiencies on offense will be fatal in this one. LSU will rotate RB’s Charles Scott, Richard Murphy, Keiland Williams, and Stevan Ridley. Taken together, this is too much backfield prowess for even a stout defense like Auburn to handle. LSU wins a battle of attrition on offensive strength. LSU 23, Auburn 10.
Other interesting games include West Virginia AT Colorado on Thursday night. Enjoy the great slate of games this weekend.
DeSean Jackson: It's 4:59 somewhere
DeSean Jackson loves to party and he a'int waitin' 'til no five o'clock. DeSean gonna get this shit started NOW, playa!
OK, so DeSean's Leon Lett moment technically happened in an NFL game, but we include it here because Jackson was responsible for one of the most memorable college plays in this decade -- in a good way that time.
But we also include it for anyone who follows college recruiting, this play seemed familiar. (Not saying that's us, because, you know, recruiting's creepy and such.) It's almost as if we've seen this before... Nah.
OK, so DeSean's Leon Lett moment technically happened in an NFL game, but we include it here because Jackson was responsible for one of the most memorable college plays in this decade -- in a good way that time.
But we also include it for anyone who follows college recruiting, this play seemed familiar. (Not saying that's us, because, you know, recruiting's creepy and such.) It's almost as if we've seen this before... Nah.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Falling behind: The Pac
Week three certainly delivered a few lessons. One of these was not the fact that I'm frequently WRONG when making predictions. You already knew that. Instead, the most important development of the week was the disastrous performance of the Pac 10 Conference.
Fairly or not, the Pac 10 in recent years has been thought of by much of the country as "USC and the Nine Dwarfs." This week served to further that notion. USC lived up to its reputation by delivering a high-profile beating to Ohio State. The rest of the league lived down to its rep by delivering performances ranging from lukewarm and uninspired to abysmal.
Here's a recap of each team's week three, listed in order of last year's conference standings:
USC: The Trojans dominated Ohio State 35-3, rendering all the preseason hype about this game as just that. When the Buckeyes faltered -- a touchdown called back due to a holding penalty and a subsequent missed field goal while down just 14-3 -- USC responded by swiftly and mercilously crushing any hope of an Ohio State victory. Capitalizing on opponent's miscues in such a fashion is a trait championship teams must have, and the Trojans showed it on Saturday. If this team keeps up that kind of intensity throughout Pac 10 play -- which for the record it hasn't done throughout pretty much the entire Pete Carroll era -- then no one in the conference will come close to catching this giant.
Arizona State: Lost at home to UNLV, 23-20 in overtime. Forget whether the Sun Devils were looking ahead to Georgia. Even with a sluggish performance they should have dominated the Rebels. As SMQ -- er, Dr. Saturday -- put it, nothing jumps out in the box score. It looks like ASU simply lost to UNLV. That's scary enough in itself, but with big, bad Georgia coming to town next week, the Sun Devils now must fight and claw to stave off a tailspin.
Oregon State: The only team other than USC to handle its business this week, the Beavers rudely dispatched Hawaii 45-7. Of course, this victory would have been much more impressive but for two things. First, these are not your slightly older brother's Hawaii Warriors, as evidenced by a mere 53 points through three games. Second, Oregon State entered the week 0-2 and off of embarassing defeats at Stanford and Penn State. Still, the Beavers get credit for performing to expectations.
Oregon: Won -- barely -- at Purdue, 32-26 in overtime. Assuming the Ducks can keep winning (and based on their health and experience at quarterback that is very much an assumption) this may end up being a mere footnote in an otherwise solid season. This was, after all, a win on the road against a BCS opponent. But the Ducks didn't assert themselves as the head of the Pac 10's upper middle class. Sure, they gashed the Boilermakers for 307 yards on the ground, but they gave up 180 rushing yards to Purdue's Kory Sheets and needed a missed field goal at the end of regulation to even make it to overtime.
UCLA: The most embarassing Pac 10 defeat this week -- and that's saying something -- was reserved for UCLA. Certainly there's no shame in losing to a tough BYU team in Provo. But 59-0?!? There's little more to be said beyond that. Except for those unfortunate Bruins who trekked to the Beehive state to watch this debacle, most UCLA fans probably sighed, turned off the TV in the second quarter and wandered to the beach. Fans in Tennessee, on the other hand...
Arizona: If ever there were a week for Arizona to gain some momentum under Mike Stoops, this was it. The setup was so good: Every other conference team (except USC) suffers varrying degrees of FAIL while the Wildcats quietly improve to 3-0. But Peter Bean knows what he's talking about: Mike Stoops loses football games -- this one at New Mexico, 36-28. It doesn't help that Albuquerque at night is a weird place. The Lobos used a halfback pass in the first quarter to seize momentum and, for much of the second half, this one wasn't as close as the final score indicates. More of the same so far for the Wildcats.
Cal: Blame the start time, blame the heat, blame whatever you want. Cal rolled up 400+ yards in the passing game yet somehow still managed to be dominated by Maryland. Again, the final score of 35-27 doesn't indicate how badly the Bears were outplayed. Quite frankly, Maryland looked like the better team -- and not just on that particular day. That's a credit to the Terps but a most disconcerting thought for Berkely. Going into this game, the ACC's 2008 credibility looked to be on its last legs. This game helped put the Pac 10's rep in a similar position -- at least in my eyes.
Washington State: We knew the Cougs were going to be bad this season, but I had Baylor pegged as an automatic win going into this season. Instead, Wazzu was bulldozed 45-17 and gave up 217 rushing yards on just 11 carries to Baylor's freshman quarterback, Robert Griffin. Not that it impacts the league's image overall -- the Cougars were widely expected to be a last-place team -- but Wazzu is now in jeopardy of going winless if it can't beat I-AA Portland State.
Stanford: Lost 31-14 at TCU. This is about right. In fact, this loss would probably have gone unnoticed had it not been for the league-wide week three disaster. The Cardinal kept it close for awhile and went into halftime tied 14-14, but all the second-half points belonged to the Horned Frogs. Stanford managed just 193 total yards. TCU is a tough non-conference opponent and the Cardinal were not expected to win this game. But if Stanford is to capitalize on any residual momentum from its surprising opening-night victory over Oregon State, it will have to make hay in the upcomming weeks against San Jose State and...
Washington: After UW's 55-14 loss to Oklahoma, it, as they say, is all over but the crying for the Huskies. Questions of "if" have become questions of "when." Ty Willingham will be fired. The team will finish below .500. Tyee Club boosters will sit on their private docks, sip Merlot and gently shed tears into Lake Washington. It didn't have to be this way. Washington could have scheduled Idaho, San Jose State and Northwestern Montana Technical College in non-conference play and had a prayer at bowl eligibility -- particularly with the aforementioned state of the Pac 10. But Washington was stuck playing world beaters like Oklahoma, who on Saturday looked every bit as good as USC (at least when playing UW). Just another reason, that the Pac 10 is in trouble.
Fairly or not, the Pac 10 in recent years has been thought of by much of the country as "USC and the Nine Dwarfs." This week served to further that notion. USC lived up to its reputation by delivering a high-profile beating to Ohio State. The rest of the league lived down to its rep by delivering performances ranging from lukewarm and uninspired to abysmal.
Here's a recap of each team's week three, listed in order of last year's conference standings:
USC: The Trojans dominated Ohio State 35-3, rendering all the preseason hype about this game as just that. When the Buckeyes faltered -- a touchdown called back due to a holding penalty and a subsequent missed field goal while down just 14-3 -- USC responded by swiftly and mercilously crushing any hope of an Ohio State victory. Capitalizing on opponent's miscues in such a fashion is a trait championship teams must have, and the Trojans showed it on Saturday. If this team keeps up that kind of intensity throughout Pac 10 play -- which for the record it hasn't done throughout pretty much the entire Pete Carroll era -- then no one in the conference will come close to catching this giant.
Arizona State: Lost at home to UNLV, 23-20 in overtime. Forget whether the Sun Devils were looking ahead to Georgia. Even with a sluggish performance they should have dominated the Rebels. As SMQ -- er, Dr. Saturday -- put it, nothing jumps out in the box score. It looks like ASU simply lost to UNLV. That's scary enough in itself, but with big, bad Georgia coming to town next week, the Sun Devils now must fight and claw to stave off a tailspin.
Oregon State: The only team other than USC to handle its business this week, the Beavers rudely dispatched Hawaii 45-7. Of course, this victory would have been much more impressive but for two things. First, these are not your slightly older brother's Hawaii Warriors, as evidenced by a mere 53 points through three games. Second, Oregon State entered the week 0-2 and off of embarassing defeats at Stanford and Penn State. Still, the Beavers get credit for performing to expectations.
Oregon: Won -- barely -- at Purdue, 32-26 in overtime. Assuming the Ducks can keep winning (and based on their health and experience at quarterback that is very much an assumption) this may end up being a mere footnote in an otherwise solid season. This was, after all, a win on the road against a BCS opponent. But the Ducks didn't assert themselves as the head of the Pac 10's upper middle class. Sure, they gashed the Boilermakers for 307 yards on the ground, but they gave up 180 rushing yards to Purdue's Kory Sheets and needed a missed field goal at the end of regulation to even make it to overtime.
UCLA: The most embarassing Pac 10 defeat this week -- and that's saying something -- was reserved for UCLA. Certainly there's no shame in losing to a tough BYU team in Provo. But 59-0?!? There's little more to be said beyond that. Except for those unfortunate Bruins who trekked to the Beehive state to watch this debacle, most UCLA fans probably sighed, turned off the TV in the second quarter and wandered to the beach. Fans in Tennessee, on the other hand...
Arizona: If ever there were a week for Arizona to gain some momentum under Mike Stoops, this was it. The setup was so good: Every other conference team (except USC) suffers varrying degrees of FAIL while the Wildcats quietly improve to 3-0. But Peter Bean knows what he's talking about: Mike Stoops loses football games -- this one at New Mexico, 36-28. It doesn't help that Albuquerque at night is a weird place. The Lobos used a halfback pass in the first quarter to seize momentum and, for much of the second half, this one wasn't as close as the final score indicates. More of the same so far for the Wildcats.
Cal: Blame the start time, blame the heat, blame whatever you want. Cal rolled up 400+ yards in the passing game yet somehow still managed to be dominated by Maryland. Again, the final score of 35-27 doesn't indicate how badly the Bears were outplayed. Quite frankly, Maryland looked like the better team -- and not just on that particular day. That's a credit to the Terps but a most disconcerting thought for Berkely. Going into this game, the ACC's 2008 credibility looked to be on its last legs. This game helped put the Pac 10's rep in a similar position -- at least in my eyes.
Washington State: We knew the Cougs were going to be bad this season, but I had Baylor pegged as an automatic win going into this season. Instead, Wazzu was bulldozed 45-17 and gave up 217 rushing yards on just 11 carries to Baylor's freshman quarterback, Robert Griffin. Not that it impacts the league's image overall -- the Cougars were widely expected to be a last-place team -- but Wazzu is now in jeopardy of going winless if it can't beat I-AA Portland State.
Stanford: Lost 31-14 at TCU. This is about right. In fact, this loss would probably have gone unnoticed had it not been for the league-wide week three disaster. The Cardinal kept it close for awhile and went into halftime tied 14-14, but all the second-half points belonged to the Horned Frogs. Stanford managed just 193 total yards. TCU is a tough non-conference opponent and the Cardinal were not expected to win this game. But if Stanford is to capitalize on any residual momentum from its surprising opening-night victory over Oregon State, it will have to make hay in the upcomming weeks against San Jose State and...
Washington: After UW's 55-14 loss to Oklahoma, it, as they say, is all over but the crying for the Huskies. Questions of "if" have become questions of "when." Ty Willingham will be fired. The team will finish below .500. Tyee Club boosters will sit on their private docks, sip Merlot and gently shed tears into Lake Washington. It didn't have to be this way. Washington could have scheduled Idaho, San Jose State and Northwestern Montana Technical College in non-conference play and had a prayer at bowl eligibility -- particularly with the aforementioned state of the Pac 10. But Washington was stuck playing world beaters like Oklahoma, who on Saturday looked every bit as good as USC (at least when playing UW). Just another reason, that the Pac 10 is in trouble.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Week 3: Is This Anything?
I'm an unapologetic David Letterman fan, at least when it comes to the (now largely irrelevant) late-night wars. Leno is consistently higher in the ratings, but something about Letterman just kills me. Always has and still does, even though he's probably lost a step (or five) in recent years.
One of his recurring bits in recent years, "Is This Anything?" is a perfect example of something Letterman does that shouldn't be funny -- and probably isn't, in reality -- but something that cracks me up nonetheless. The bit is also a strong metaphor for week three of the college football season.
For those who watch Leno, Kimmel or didn't even realize CBS aired programming that doesn't involve Verne Lundquist, here's a two-sentence synopsis of the setup: A screen lifts up and a group of performers does something interesting, inane or something in between. Letterman and Paul Shaffer then discuss whether what they just witnessed was "anything." Observe:
There you have it. After two weeks of I-AA's, the UL-U Pick'em and MACrificial lambs, the curtain is going to go up and a group of performers is going to do something interesting, inane or something in between. We, the college football fans, will have to determine whether what we have just seen is anything. Of course, what we decide will be based off of fleeting glances seen through our imperfect, subjective eyes. But at least it's better than staring at the curtain, wondering whether there's substance to all the hype.
On this week's games, Letterman style.
No. 13 Kansas at No. 19 South Florida
Friday, 8 p.m. EDT, ESPN
Will we see anything? Yes. Imagine racing home on a Friday night to watch Kansas play South Florida. If you had done such a thing in 2002, you'd be labeled a loser and immediately dumped by your significant other, assuming you even had the modicum of social skills required to get one in the first place. Flashforward to 2008. You, college football fan, probably still yell "WOOOOOO!!!! FOOT-BAWW!!!" when confronted with a complex social situation, but you are not a loser for watching this game. Both of these programs have the "burgeoning upstart" lable, but only one will have the opportunity to stay undefeated into October and inspire the obligatory "Is ____ a new power?" stories from lazy football writers. For my money, this team is USF. But I don't gamble. I digress.
No. 23 Cal at Maryland
Saturday, Noon EDT, ESPN
Will we see anything? No. Most people seem to think that Cal will roll Maryland for an easy victory. With apologies to my Terp friends, this wouldn't prove much about Cal given the present state of the ACC and the growing firestorm around Ralph Friedgen. A close Golden Bear victory -- particularly if the game gets sloppy -- might have more to do with jetlag and a 9 a.m. PDT start time. Simply put, short of an outright Maryland victory, we won't learn enough about Cal in this game to make the muddled Pac-10 picture any clearer.
No. 16 Oregon at Purdue
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. EDT, ABC
Will we see anything? Maybe. Staying with a Pac-10-on-the-road theme, Oregon travels to West Lafeyette, presumably to hasten the arrival of the inevitable midseason Boilermaker collapse. (Copyright, Joe Tiller. All rights reserved.) But Purdue has a chance to keep this close, if for no other reason than the homefield advantage and quarterback Curtis Painter. If Oregon handles Purdue, we'll at least know the Ducks are serious about being the best team not named USC on the West Coast. Anything short of that and the jury's still out.
No. 2 Georgia at South Carolina
Saturday, 3:35 p.m. EDT, CBS
Will we see anything? Yes. About both teams. Georgia has the most brutal schedule in the nation from here on out, and they'll need to look like a menacingly efficient killing machine for me to believe they can navigate it without one or even two-plus losses. They need to dispose of the Gamecocks and look smooth doing it. South Carolina, on the other hand, needs to show that its not going to roll over and die following its upset loss to Vanderbilt. The Gamecocks don't need to win, but they need to show some fight -- along with something resembling consistent quarterback play -- to prove that this won't be just another "would-be breakout year." With the stakes high for both sides, we should get to see both teams at full throttle (well, hopefully, in South Carolina's case).
Michigan at Notre Dame
Saturday, 3:43 p.m. EDT, NBC
Will we see anything? No. If only becuase neither of these teams IS anything at this point. Two months from now? Maybe. But both teams are still such mysteries that a strong showing by either won't necessarily prove a readiness to exit the wilderness and rejoin college football's elite. This should be the most lackluster meeting between these two teams in a long, long time. Is it still too late for NBC to pick up Utah-San Diego State?
No. 5 Ohio State at No. 1 USC
Saturday, 8 p.m. EDT, ABC
Will we see anything? Oh goodness, yes. I still believe that this contest will be a de facto elimination game. The loser, while still being favored for a BCS berth via a conference title, should be all but out of the running for a "national title." This is particularly true for Ohio State -- for well-documented reasons that shall be left unsaid -- but barring a repeat of 2007, even the Trojans will be hard-pressed to convince poll voters to forget a loss in its lone marquee non-conference game. (Please note that Virgnia and Notre Dame do NOT qualify as marquee oponents.) Even if we learn nothing about either team, we still should, by default, know a lot more about the national landscape by Sunday morning.
No. 10 Wisconsin at No. 21 Fresno State
Saturday, 10:30 p.m. EDT, ESPN2
Will we see anything? Yes and no. Yes for Wisconsin, winning a night game in Fresno -- by any means and final score -- would be an impressive accomplishment. The Badgers don't have to look good, just survive. For Fresno, no. Certainly beating a ranked Wisconsin team would be a feather in the Bulldogs' collective cap, but we've seen that movie before. Besides, Fresno has yet to win an outright WAC title under Pat Hill, much less make a realistic run at the BCS. The road to doing so this year is fraught with peril, and Wisconsin is just step number two on that journey. Don't get me wrong, a win would announce the Bulldogs to the nation as a team to be reckoned with. But they have zero margin for error nationall and in the WAC, meaning we might not get a final opinion on this team's fortunes until a November 28 trip to Boise.
One of his recurring bits in recent years, "Is This Anything?" is a perfect example of something Letterman does that shouldn't be funny -- and probably isn't, in reality -- but something that cracks me up nonetheless. The bit is also a strong metaphor for week three of the college football season.
For those who watch Leno, Kimmel or didn't even realize CBS aired programming that doesn't involve Verne Lundquist, here's a two-sentence synopsis of the setup: A screen lifts up and a group of performers does something interesting, inane or something in between. Letterman and Paul Shaffer then discuss whether what they just witnessed was "anything." Observe:
There you have it. After two weeks of I-AA's, the UL-U Pick'em and MACrificial lambs, the curtain is going to go up and a group of performers is going to do something interesting, inane or something in between. We, the college football fans, will have to determine whether what we have just seen is anything. Of course, what we decide will be based off of fleeting glances seen through our imperfect, subjective eyes. But at least it's better than staring at the curtain, wondering whether there's substance to all the hype.
On this week's games, Letterman style.
No. 13 Kansas at No. 19 South Florida
Friday, 8 p.m. EDT, ESPN
Will we see anything? Yes. Imagine racing home on a Friday night to watch Kansas play South Florida. If you had done such a thing in 2002, you'd be labeled a loser and immediately dumped by your significant other, assuming you even had the modicum of social skills required to get one in the first place. Flashforward to 2008. You, college football fan, probably still yell "WOOOOOO!!!! FOOT-BAWW!!!" when confronted with a complex social situation, but you are not a loser for watching this game. Both of these programs have the "burgeoning upstart" lable, but only one will have the opportunity to stay undefeated into October and inspire the obligatory "Is ____ a new power?" stories from lazy football writers. For my money, this team is USF. But I don't gamble. I digress.
No. 23 Cal at Maryland
Saturday, Noon EDT, ESPN
Will we see anything? No. Most people seem to think that Cal will roll Maryland for an easy victory. With apologies to my Terp friends, this wouldn't prove much about Cal given the present state of the ACC and the growing firestorm around Ralph Friedgen. A close Golden Bear victory -- particularly if the game gets sloppy -- might have more to do with jetlag and a 9 a.m. PDT start time. Simply put, short of an outright Maryland victory, we won't learn enough about Cal in this game to make the muddled Pac-10 picture any clearer.
No. 16 Oregon at Purdue
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. EDT, ABC
Will we see anything? Maybe. Staying with a Pac-10-on-the-road theme, Oregon travels to West Lafeyette, presumably to hasten the arrival of the inevitable midseason Boilermaker collapse. (Copyright, Joe Tiller. All rights reserved.) But Purdue has a chance to keep this close, if for no other reason than the homefield advantage and quarterback Curtis Painter. If Oregon handles Purdue, we'll at least know the Ducks are serious about being the best team not named USC on the West Coast. Anything short of that and the jury's still out.
No. 2 Georgia at South Carolina
Saturday, 3:35 p.m. EDT, CBS
Will we see anything? Yes. About both teams. Georgia has the most brutal schedule in the nation from here on out, and they'll need to look like a menacingly efficient killing machine for me to believe they can navigate it without one or even two-plus losses. They need to dispose of the Gamecocks and look smooth doing it. South Carolina, on the other hand, needs to show that its not going to roll over and die following its upset loss to Vanderbilt. The Gamecocks don't need to win, but they need to show some fight -- along with something resembling consistent quarterback play -- to prove that this won't be just another "would-be breakout year." With the stakes high for both sides, we should get to see both teams at full throttle (well, hopefully, in South Carolina's case).
Michigan at Notre Dame
Saturday, 3:43 p.m. EDT, NBC
Will we see anything? No. If only becuase neither of these teams IS anything at this point. Two months from now? Maybe. But both teams are still such mysteries that a strong showing by either won't necessarily prove a readiness to exit the wilderness and rejoin college football's elite. This should be the most lackluster meeting between these two teams in a long, long time. Is it still too late for NBC to pick up Utah-San Diego State?
No. 5 Ohio State at No. 1 USC
Saturday, 8 p.m. EDT, ABC
Will we see anything? Oh goodness, yes. I still believe that this contest will be a de facto elimination game. The loser, while still being favored for a BCS berth via a conference title, should be all but out of the running for a "national title." This is particularly true for Ohio State -- for well-documented reasons that shall be left unsaid -- but barring a repeat of 2007, even the Trojans will be hard-pressed to convince poll voters to forget a loss in its lone marquee non-conference game. (Please note that Virgnia and Notre Dame do NOT qualify as marquee oponents.) Even if we learn nothing about either team, we still should, by default, know a lot more about the national landscape by Sunday morning.
No. 10 Wisconsin at No. 21 Fresno State
Saturday, 10:30 p.m. EDT, ESPN2
Will we see anything? Yes and no. Yes for Wisconsin, winning a night game in Fresno -- by any means and final score -- would be an impressive accomplishment. The Badgers don't have to look good, just survive. For Fresno, no. Certainly beating a ranked Wisconsin team would be a feather in the Bulldogs' collective cap, but we've seen that movie before. Besides, Fresno has yet to win an outright WAC title under Pat Hill, much less make a realistic run at the BCS. The road to doing so this year is fraught with peril, and Wisconsin is just step number two on that journey. Don't get me wrong, a win would announce the Bulldogs to the nation as a team to be reckoned with. But they have zero margin for error nationall and in the WAC, meaning we might not get a final opinion on this team's fortunes until a November 28 trip to Boise.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
"The field goal"
I saved this topic for its own post, because I didn't want this rant to drown out the recap of my Gainesville experiences.
I'm no fan of running up the score. In my younger days, I played on some good basketball teams but also on some abysmally bad ones as well. In those situations, I always hated the embarassment of watching the other team's starters gun for 100 points in the fourth quarter of a blowout.
But I can unequivocally say that Florida kicking a field goal with a 20-point lead and 25 seconds remaining in the game did not qualify as "running up the score" in my opinion.
I never got the impression that the field goal (or the few shots the Gators took at the endzone that came before it) were designed to embarrass Miami or that the actions were carried out with wanton disregard as to their implications. Instead, I saw a Florida team that looked out-of-sync for much of the game on offense trying to get on track in its last live-game action before the conference opener. The need for additional experience was even more relevant on fourth down, as the Florida kicker had yet to attempt a field goal in a collegiate game.
Leaving the first-string offense (especially Tebow) in the game late may have been stupid in the risking-an-injury department, but it wasn't disrespectful -- in design or in practice -- to Miami.
Finally, this has nothing to do with Florida's actions, but we truly are living in the Bizarro Universe when religious conservatives applaud a Vice Presidential candidate's support of an unplanned teen pregnancy and when the head coach of the Miami Hurricanes football team complains about unsportmanlike behavior. Setting aside for a moment all of the ghastly crimes against decency comitted by the Miami program and its representatives in the past, this current itteration of "Da U" had a questionable brush with "running up the score" just this year.
Ahead 45-7 with 4:28 remaining in the fourth quarter against lowly Charleston Southern, Randy Shannon's squad opted to try to convert a fourth-and-3 from their opponent's 42-yard line. The 'Canes succeeded and a three plays later punched in another touchdown to make the final margin 52-7. That is how you run up the score. I think makes Shannon's comments look less like genuine sentiment and more like an admittedly clever recruiting ploy.
I'm no fan of running up the score. In my younger days, I played on some good basketball teams but also on some abysmally bad ones as well. In those situations, I always hated the embarassment of watching the other team's starters gun for 100 points in the fourth quarter of a blowout.
But I can unequivocally say that Florida kicking a field goal with a 20-point lead and 25 seconds remaining in the game did not qualify as "running up the score" in my opinion.
I never got the impression that the field goal (or the few shots the Gators took at the endzone that came before it) were designed to embarrass Miami or that the actions were carried out with wanton disregard as to their implications. Instead, I saw a Florida team that looked out-of-sync for much of the game on offense trying to get on track in its last live-game action before the conference opener. The need for additional experience was even more relevant on fourth down, as the Florida kicker had yet to attempt a field goal in a collegiate game.
Leaving the first-string offense (especially Tebow) in the game late may have been stupid in the risking-an-injury department, but it wasn't disrespectful -- in design or in practice -- to Miami.
Finally, this has nothing to do with Florida's actions, but we truly are living in the Bizarro Universe when religious conservatives applaud a Vice Presidential candidate's support of an unplanned teen pregnancy and when the head coach of the Miami Hurricanes football team complains about unsportmanlike behavior. Setting aside for a moment all of the ghastly crimes against decency comitted by the Miami program and its representatives in the past, this current itteration of "Da U" had a questionable brush with "running up the score" just this year.
Ahead 45-7 with 4:28 remaining in the fourth quarter against lowly Charleston Southern, Randy Shannon's squad opted to try to convert a fourth-and-3 from their opponent's 42-yard line. The 'Canes succeeded and a three plays later punched in another touchdown to make the final margin 52-7. That is how you run up the score. I think makes Shannon's comments look less like genuine sentiment and more like an admittedly clever recruiting ploy.
Gainesville wrapup
I learned a few things on my innaugural trip to Gainesville, Fla. on a football weekend. For one, attempting a "live blog" via text message is a good idea on paper, but a massive FAIL in practice. For one, my colleague went to the University of Washington football game and was rightly devasted by this debacle. Second, attempting to form a coherent narrative from nothing but drunktxts is borderline impossible. Case in point: Some of my later messages that went mercifully unpublished. Check out these gems: "Kegstands now in full effect"; "Wdgp"; "Mda"; "Teribnl". Move over, Grantland Rice.
On the positive side, however, I was exposed to a gameday environment unlike any I had previously experienced. If I tried to address everything, I'd ramble on for thousands of words, particularly if I didn't compartmentalize my thoughts into a few general categories. So what follows is a collection of aphoristic thoughts about the town, the teams and the game itself.
Gainesville and the pregame environment
Part of me expected the tailgate scene at an SEC school to resemble a riot at an early-90s Guns N' Roses concert -- extreme intoxication, lawlessness, flying chairs and the occasional perm mullet. The first item on that list was actually true; come to think of it, so was the last. But for the most part, societal norms held -- open-container laws aside. (I suspect my original vision is a more accurate description of Baton Rogue.) But that's not to say that the tailgate scene wasn't lively, fun and blurry-drunk. It was certainly on a scale that I hadn't seen before -- a far cry from the West Coast, where any and all pregame activity is unappologetically packed into a tiny parking lot. I came away very impressed with the Florida campus, and I liked most of what I saw of Gainesville. The only negative was oversleeping Gameday. Oh, and the Miami fans. Certain Miami fans, anyway. Everything you've ever heard about them is true. Even the part about every other male 'Cane fan looking like Vanilla Ice circa 2001.
The stadium
Calling a stadium "the best" or "the loudest" is always a tricky proposition. The former certainly has no definitive quantitative measure, and even the latter goes beyond pure decibel-level and into questions of duration, consistency and venue architecture. So while I wont' say that Ben Hill Griffin is necassarily at the top of either list, it certainly must be very, very close on both counts. I can say with 100 percent certainty that it was the best football venue I have ever seen. On the Sunday after the game, I got a chance to go back and check it out in the daylight. Also, I was sober. Walking down to the very first row on the 50-yard line and looking up at the steep slopes of bleechers, I could see why The Swamp might be the most intimidating venue anywhere. Most longtime Gator fans told me that Saturday's game wasn't even that loud relative to how it can be. If that was considered a down-game volume wise... wow.
The game
For transperency's sake, I have a rooting interest in Florida, so I was somewhat frustrated by the anemic offensive production (on both sides of the ball), but the game was far from being a disappointment. I sat (stood, rather) near the very top of the student section, within obscene-gesture range of the visitor's section. In some venues, being in the nosebleeds can make it hard to remain engaged in what was admittedly a boring game, but my attention was nonetheless held throughout. The worst part was Miami's drive in the first and second quarters that burned nearly nine minutes of clock. I haven't seen a replay of the game yet, but at the time it certainly seemed like the Hurricanes were (rightfully so) milking the new clock rules. This deserves its own post, particularly as the available sample size becomes larger, but so far, I don't like the new rules. Beyond that, the atmosphere during Florida's first scoring drive was electric, and its always good to see high-level football in person.
On Florida
Few teams, if any, do special teams as well as the Gators, and it was a delight to see them in person, as the TV cameras never cover enough of the field do these units justice. Even taking away Florida's punt block and downed punt inside the one, this unit made an impact and will be instrumental if the Gators are to make a push for any kind of a title, conference or otherwise. The offense sputtered throughout much of the game, which I thought was mainly due to a few protection problems on the line. The adjustments made by the Florida coaching staff were nice, but they'll need to come sooner against tougher opponents. I also still don't believe there's "a book" on stopping the Gator offense, and the talent level is startling (even more so in person) so I don't see any lasting concerns here. It's also tough to criticize a defense that yielded just 140 yards of offense and three points to BCS-conference opponent, but if the Gators have a weakness it's still the defensive line. They got good penetration stopping the run, but the three sacks were of the "coverage" variety, and the line seemed to have trouble breaking through on obvious pass-downs. The secondary is much improved, but the real litmus test for the run- and pass-defenses could come against Tennessee, which has a road-grading running attack and a quarterback capable of executing a play-action pass.
On Miami
First the good: This is a Miami team that has a chance to win the ACC. The defense looked burly and well-coached, and the running game showed promise despite being largely shut down against the Gators. Even if you attribute the game's relatively close score (9-3 at the start of the fourth quarter) a result of some trepidation on Florida's part, you have to credit Miami for showing some moxy after opening the game by punting and surrending a quick-strike TD. But can we stop it already with the "young team" talk? Yes, Miami has something like 105 freshmen on this year's roster, but the 'Canes started seven upperclassmen on defense and six on offense against Florida. By contrast, the Gators started three juniors and exactly zero seniors on defense. Where the 'Canes' youth becomes a weakness is at quarterback where Robert Marve and Jacory Harris showed promise but still looked like the freshmen they are.
Final thought
For people raised in the South (or a few Big 12 and Big 10 environments) the atmosphere before a Florida football game is probably nothing new. But to someone who spent 90-plus percent of his life in the Northeast, Pacific Northwest and Missouri/Kansas-B.S. (that's "Before the Spread" made football relevant inthose parts), the raucousness I observed on Saturday was unprecedented. I can't wait to see it again.
On the positive side, however, I was exposed to a gameday environment unlike any I had previously experienced. If I tried to address everything, I'd ramble on for thousands of words, particularly if I didn't compartmentalize my thoughts into a few general categories. So what follows is a collection of aphoristic thoughts about the town, the teams and the game itself.
Gainesville and the pregame environment
Part of me expected the tailgate scene at an SEC school to resemble a riot at an early-90s Guns N' Roses concert -- extreme intoxication, lawlessness, flying chairs and the occasional perm mullet. The first item on that list was actually true; come to think of it, so was the last. But for the most part, societal norms held -- open-container laws aside. (I suspect my original vision is a more accurate description of Baton Rogue.) But that's not to say that the tailgate scene wasn't lively, fun and blurry-drunk. It was certainly on a scale that I hadn't seen before -- a far cry from the West Coast, where any and all pregame activity is unappologetically packed into a tiny parking lot. I came away very impressed with the Florida campus, and I liked most of what I saw of Gainesville. The only negative was oversleeping Gameday. Oh, and the Miami fans. Certain Miami fans, anyway. Everything you've ever heard about them is true. Even the part about every other male 'Cane fan looking like Vanilla Ice circa 2001.
The stadiumCalling a stadium "the best" or "the loudest" is always a tricky proposition. The former certainly has no definitive quantitative measure, and even the latter goes beyond pure decibel-level and into questions of duration, consistency and venue architecture. So while I wont' say that Ben Hill Griffin is necassarily at the top of either list, it certainly must be very, very close on both counts. I can say with 100 percent certainty that it was the best football venue I have ever seen. On the Sunday after the game, I got a chance to go back and check it out in the daylight. Also, I was sober. Walking down to the very first row on the 50-yard line and looking up at the steep slopes of bleechers, I could see why The Swamp might be the most intimidating venue anywhere. Most longtime Gator fans told me that Saturday's game wasn't even that loud relative to how it can be. If that was considered a down-game volume wise... wow.
The game
For transperency's sake, I have a rooting interest in Florida, so I was somewhat frustrated by the anemic offensive production (on both sides of the ball), but the game was far from being a disappointment. I sat (stood, rather) near the very top of the student section, within obscene-gesture range of the visitor's section. In some venues, being in the nosebleeds can make it hard to remain engaged in what was admittedly a boring game, but my attention was nonetheless held throughout. The worst part was Miami's drive in the first and second quarters that burned nearly nine minutes of clock. I haven't seen a replay of the game yet, but at the time it certainly seemed like the Hurricanes were (rightfully so) milking the new clock rules. This deserves its own post, particularly as the available sample size becomes larger, but so far, I don't like the new rules. Beyond that, the atmosphere during Florida's first scoring drive was electric, and its always good to see high-level football in person.
On Florida
Few teams, if any, do special teams as well as the Gators, and it was a delight to see them in person, as the TV cameras never cover enough of the field do these units justice. Even taking away Florida's punt block and downed punt inside the one, this unit made an impact and will be instrumental if the Gators are to make a push for any kind of a title, conference or otherwise. The offense sputtered throughout much of the game, which I thought was mainly due to a few protection problems on the line. The adjustments made by the Florida coaching staff were nice, but they'll need to come sooner against tougher opponents. I also still don't believe there's "a book" on stopping the Gator offense, and the talent level is startling (even more so in person) so I don't see any lasting concerns here. It's also tough to criticize a defense that yielded just 140 yards of offense and three points to BCS-conference opponent, but if the Gators have a weakness it's still the defensive line. They got good penetration stopping the run, but the three sacks were of the "coverage" variety, and the line seemed to have trouble breaking through on obvious pass-downs. The secondary is much improved, but the real litmus test for the run- and pass-defenses could come against Tennessee, which has a road-grading running attack and a quarterback capable of executing a play-action pass.
On Miami
First the good: This is a Miami team that has a chance to win the ACC. The defense looked burly and well-coached, and the running game showed promise despite being largely shut down against the Gators. Even if you attribute the game's relatively close score (9-3 at the start of the fourth quarter) a result of some trepidation on Florida's part, you have to credit Miami for showing some moxy after opening the game by punting and surrending a quick-strike TD. But can we stop it already with the "young team" talk? Yes, Miami has something like 105 freshmen on this year's roster, but the 'Canes started seven upperclassmen on defense and six on offense against Florida. By contrast, the Gators started three juniors and exactly zero seniors on defense. Where the 'Canes' youth becomes a weakness is at quarterback where Robert Marve and Jacory Harris showed promise but still looked like the freshmen they are.
Final thought
For people raised in the South (or a few Big 12 and Big 10 environments) the atmosphere before a Florida football game is probably nothing new. But to someone who spent 90-plus percent of his life in the Northeast, Pacific Northwest and Missouri/Kansas-B.S. (that's "Before the Spread" made football relevant inthose parts), the raucousness I observed on Saturday was unprecedented. I can't wait to see it again.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Gametime in Gainesville, and a messed up finish in Seattle...
Kickoff at Florida is now.
As for the ending to the BYU-UW game: this was a ridiculous call to make against Locker with 2 seconds left. The officials will hide behind the rule book, but that is a false safety for them. EVERY penalty is discretionary. The refs blew this one big time.....
As for the ending to the BYU-UW game: this was a ridiculous call to make against Locker with 2 seconds left. The officials will hide behind the rule book, but that is a false safety for them. EVERY penalty is discretionary. The refs blew this one big time.....
First Words from Gainesville
Today's Weather: In the 90's already, with high humidity. Last night was wild, and we'll find out what the tailgating area is like shortly. It's pretty clear why Gainesville is consistently ranked as one of the top party schools in the country... much crazier than anything seen from the West Coast....Seems like Florida has quite a pre-game environment... and of course, the weather doesn't hurt much either when visitors come to Swamp and aren't prepared for it.....
Friday, September 5, 2008
Week 2 Preview: waiting for Week 3 to come around....
So, football fans, after an outstanding Week 1 in which we learned much more than usual for the early season, and after a nice upset of South Carolina by Vandy in their SEC opener, we come to Week 2 of the college football season. Week 2 provides us with a TOTAL of ZERO matchups between Top-25 teams, but there are at least a few interesting games, two of which these bloggers will be at in person. This post will give some picks, although I will NOT pick the game I'm going to, and I'll give everyone a little taste of what's to come in Week 3....
Miam (FL) AT (5) Florida - The Gators and the 'Canes renew their rivalry in 2008. While the 'Canes are nothing like they used to be, the real thing to watch in this game is the Florida defense. How good the Gators end up being is almost entirely dependant on their ability to defense and disrupt plays in the backfield. Last week, the Gators looked solid, but this should be a much more accurate, complete look at what Florida has on defense. I'd look for Florida to come out strong, but to show some vulnerabilities on D. The pick: Florida 41, Miami 27.
Cincinnati AT (4) Oklahoma - The Sooners will ROLL in this one. Oklahoma 60, Cincy 13.
(8) West Virginia AT East Carolina - Fresh off an upset of Virginia Tech, the Pirates of ECU will give West Virginia all it can handle. Pat White is the difference in a close one. West Virginia 32, East Carolina 28.
(15) BYU AT Washington - No pick here, no commentary here. As you all know, I love the Dawgs, but I'm done trying to figure out what they will do on a weekly basis. I'm just hoping for the best.
Stanford AT (14) Arizona State - Stanford looked pretty strong against Oregon St. last Thursday, and I expect the Cardinal to come out strong yet again. In the end, Rudy Carpenter will just be too much for the Cardinal secondary to handle. ASU wins a high-scoring shootout, 44-35.
Oregon State AT (19) Penn State - OSU looked awful last week. Penn State looked like world-beaters, ready to challenge the Buckeyes for Big-10 Supremacy. Nittany Lions BIG, 53-21.
Mississippi AT (23) Wake Forest - Ole Miss is quickly becoming one of the more intriguing stories of the SEC. I sense something funny here. Ole Miss pulls the upset of the week and takes down the Demon Deacons to get things rolling heading towards a tough SEC schedule. Mississippi 29, Wake Forest 23.
So, as you can see, not the greatest slate of games you'll ever see on a beautiful September Saturday. But, it's passable. And, just to whet your appetite, here's a few of the games coming up the week of September 13:
Friday, Sept 12: (14) Kansas AT (17) South Florida
Saturday, Sept 13:
(3) Ohio State AT (1) USC
(2) Georgia AT (24) South Carolina (the Gamecocks will be unranked for this game)
(4) Oklahoma AT Washington
(9) Auburn AT Mississippi State
Arkansas AT (10) Texas
(23) UCLA AT (15) BYU
(18) Oregon AT Purdue
Week 3 will certainly make up for whatever Week 2 is lacking....
Miam (FL) AT (5) Florida - The Gators and the 'Canes renew their rivalry in 2008. While the 'Canes are nothing like they used to be, the real thing to watch in this game is the Florida defense. How good the Gators end up being is almost entirely dependant on their ability to defense and disrupt plays in the backfield. Last week, the Gators looked solid, but this should be a much more accurate, complete look at what Florida has on defense. I'd look for Florida to come out strong, but to show some vulnerabilities on D. The pick: Florida 41, Miami 27.
Cincinnati AT (4) Oklahoma - The Sooners will ROLL in this one. Oklahoma 60, Cincy 13.
(8) West Virginia AT East Carolina - Fresh off an upset of Virginia Tech, the Pirates of ECU will give West Virginia all it can handle. Pat White is the difference in a close one. West Virginia 32, East Carolina 28.
(15) BYU AT Washington - No pick here, no commentary here. As you all know, I love the Dawgs, but I'm done trying to figure out what they will do on a weekly basis. I'm just hoping for the best.
Stanford AT (14) Arizona State - Stanford looked pretty strong against Oregon St. last Thursday, and I expect the Cardinal to come out strong yet again. In the end, Rudy Carpenter will just be too much for the Cardinal secondary to handle. ASU wins a high-scoring shootout, 44-35.
Oregon State AT (19) Penn State - OSU looked awful last week. Penn State looked like world-beaters, ready to challenge the Buckeyes for Big-10 Supremacy. Nittany Lions BIG, 53-21.
Mississippi AT (23) Wake Forest - Ole Miss is quickly becoming one of the more intriguing stories of the SEC. I sense something funny here. Ole Miss pulls the upset of the week and takes down the Demon Deacons to get things rolling heading towards a tough SEC schedule. Mississippi 29, Wake Forest 23.
So, as you can see, not the greatest slate of games you'll ever see on a beautiful September Saturday. But, it's passable. And, just to whet your appetite, here's a few of the games coming up the week of September 13:
Friday, Sept 12: (14) Kansas AT (17) South Florida
Saturday, Sept 13:
(3) Ohio State AT (1) USC
(2) Georgia AT (24) South Carolina (the Gamecocks will be unranked for this game)
(4) Oklahoma AT Washington
(9) Auburn AT Mississippi State
Arkansas AT (10) Texas
(23) UCLA AT (15) BYU
(18) Oregon AT Purdue
Week 3 will certainly make up for whatever Week 2 is lacking....
Heisman Watch Week 2
Not many changes from last week's watchlist, but we'll drop Beanie Wells from the list because the foot injury appears to me to be very serious, and we'll add Todd Reesing of Kansas in the 5-spot.
1) Tim Tebow, QB, Florida, Jr.
2) Knowshown Moreno, RB, Georgia, Soph.
3) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
4) Pat White, QB, West Virginia, Sr.
5) Todd Reesing, QB, Kansas, Jr.
1) Tim Tebow, QB, Florida, Jr.
2) Knowshown Moreno, RB, Georgia, Soph.
3) Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri, Sr.
4) Pat White, QB, West Virginia, Sr.
5) Todd Reesing, QB, Kansas, Jr.
A live blogging event... of sorts.....
So here's the deal readers. Both myself and the co-author of this blog are going to be attending college football games of some import this Saturday. I'll be at the BYU-Washington game in the middle of the day, and my co-author will be at the Miami-Florida game in the evening. So, in order to provide you all with the best coverage possible, we'll be posting periodic live updates from our respective sites. Probably much more coming from the Miami-Fla game.
You all can judge afterwards if this was a good idea or a not so great idea, but I think we can't say no to some live, semi-drunken blogging, at least not on a football weekend this lacking in great games. Think we may be covering the two best games of the whole weekend here, so hope you all enjoy it. And if not, feel free to let us know that....
Look for a Week 2 preview later tonight....
You all can judge afterwards if this was a good idea or a not so great idea, but I think we can't say no to some live, semi-drunken blogging, at least not on a football weekend this lacking in great games. Think we may be covering the two best games of the whole weekend here, so hope you all enjoy it. And if not, feel free to let us know that....
Look for a Week 2 preview later tonight....
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Early Season lessons
So, Week 1 in the college football season is now fully behind us, and it's time for a bit of reflection. First off, I'd like to echo the vast majority of what my co-author here said. We've learned an awful lot, I believe, for a week 1, far more than the normal week 1 would teach us in any sport under normal circumstances, including college football. I'd like to amend and add to our previous post in a few ways though:
(1) The ACC not only sucks, it is going to be worse than the Big East, and MIGHT even be as bad as the WAC. Yes, the WAC. Fresno State, Nevada, and Boise State should all be solid teams this season, and Hawaii might be OK (although they looked pretty awful in the smashing they took from Florida this week). That's more than I can say for the ACC. The only ACC team I can say is still competitive is Clemson, and that's only because they played an opponent who appears to be much better than most people thought. This will be the WORST year in the history of ACC football.
(2) The SEC will dominate again in 2008. Florida, LSU, Georgia, Auburn, and Alabama ALL looked not just good, but DOMINANT in their Week 1 victories. LSU looked great playing two QB's and had a dynamic running attack to go with a great defense, Florida lit up the scoreboard as expected, Georgia and Auburn put away their opponents early, and Alabama looked like world beaters against Clemson by all accounts. It is very possible, perhaps even likely, that the SEC has FIVE of the best ten teams in the nation this season.
(3) Tennessee and UCLA are both garbage. While their game was one of the more entertaining pieces of football action this weekend, neither team looked good at all. Kevin Craft had a great second half, but threw four ugly picks in the first. Which Craft will come to play next week? Crompton looked like he has all the talent in the world, but no pocket presence whatsoever. Tennessee does have a huge amount of talent yet again, but didn't seem to make very good use of it on Monday. And things will not get any easier in the brutal SEC East for the Vols.
(4) Get ready for CHAOS! Upsets of Virginia Tech by East Carolina, Michigan at the hands of Utah, and Bowling Green over Pittsburgh show us that we are in for chaos yet again in this college football season. Get ready to expect the unexpected sports fans, because we'll have another story like Kansas pop up this year. We'll have top teams losing weekly (probably in the SEC, but only because the level of competition is so high), and we'll have inconsistent performers like UCLA get the job done from time to time.
Can't wait to see what Week Two has in store for us....
(1) The ACC not only sucks, it is going to be worse than the Big East, and MIGHT even be as bad as the WAC. Yes, the WAC. Fresno State, Nevada, and Boise State should all be solid teams this season, and Hawaii might be OK (although they looked pretty awful in the smashing they took from Florida this week). That's more than I can say for the ACC. The only ACC team I can say is still competitive is Clemson, and that's only because they played an opponent who appears to be much better than most people thought. This will be the WORST year in the history of ACC football.
(2) The SEC will dominate again in 2008. Florida, LSU, Georgia, Auburn, and Alabama ALL looked not just good, but DOMINANT in their Week 1 victories. LSU looked great playing two QB's and had a dynamic running attack to go with a great defense, Florida lit up the scoreboard as expected, Georgia and Auburn put away their opponents early, and Alabama looked like world beaters against Clemson by all accounts. It is very possible, perhaps even likely, that the SEC has FIVE of the best ten teams in the nation this season.
(3) Tennessee and UCLA are both garbage. While their game was one of the more entertaining pieces of football action this weekend, neither team looked good at all. Kevin Craft had a great second half, but threw four ugly picks in the first. Which Craft will come to play next week? Crompton looked like he has all the talent in the world, but no pocket presence whatsoever. Tennessee does have a huge amount of talent yet again, but didn't seem to make very good use of it on Monday. And things will not get any easier in the brutal SEC East for the Vols.
(4) Get ready for CHAOS! Upsets of Virginia Tech by East Carolina, Michigan at the hands of Utah, and Bowling Green over Pittsburgh show us that we are in for chaos yet again in this college football season. Get ready to expect the unexpected sports fans, because we'll have another story like Kansas pop up this year. We'll have top teams losing weekly (probably in the SEC, but only because the level of competition is so high), and we'll have inconsistent performers like UCLA get the job done from time to time.
Can't wait to see what Week Two has in store for us....
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
3 1/2 things I learned from week 1
1. The ACC might be as bad as advertised. Its tough to pass judgement on an entire conference based on one week of games, but the ACC's reputation has already taken a major blow. It started opening night, when South Carolina demoralized NC State despite playing sloppy, uninspired football for most of the game. But Saturday was where the pain truly began. Maryland barely "squeeked past" 1-AA Delaware, theoretically rising North Carolina "edged" I-AA McNeese State, and Virginia didn't just lose to USC (no shame in that) -- the Cavs flat out rolled over and played dead. But we haven't even gotten to the worst part. The favorites in the ACC's two divisions, Virginia Tech and Clemson, suffered upsets at the hands of East Carolina and Alabama, respectively. ECU, although considered by some to be a potential BCS-Buster, still plays in Conference USA, and Alabama is maybe the fifth or sixth best SEC team. Clemson was supposed to be the ACC's best and the Tide exposed them in short order.
2. The Pac-10 is wide open. After USC, of course. Stanford beating Oregon State got the party started, but nearly every team showed us something positive in game one (Washington schools excluded). UCLA grabbed the most headlines by shocking Tennessee. While I don't think the Bruins are ready for prime time, they might not be a cellar-dweller as many had forecasted. Cal earned a tough home win over Michigan State and has settled on Kevin Riley at quarterback, and Arizona State's Rudy Carpenter showed why he's the best passer in the conference by lighting up I-AA Northern Arizona for 388 yards. Oregon blasted Washington and even Arizona made a statement by pasting Idaho 70-0. Not that that's a great accomplishment, but I think the final margin indicates that there may be a different attitude in Tuscon this year. Long story short, there will be a lot of teams gunning for the No. 2 spot out West this season.
3. Two borderline top teams have a lot of work left to do on defense. No. 6 Missouri surrendered 538 yards to Illinois and No. 8 West Virginia allowed 399 yards to I-AA Villanova (Villanova!!!). Based on the murderous schedule awaiting nearly everyone in the SEC and the theoretical elimination game between USC and Ohio State, both those teams could be in a position to grab a top two spot when all is said and done. That is, of course, if their stop units can rise up in support of their very capable offenses.
A half-formulated opinion about: Tennessee. The sky is already falling in Knoxville after the Vols coughed up what should have been a relatively straightforward win over UCLA and its quasi-Division I offense. But a few things got in the way. First, UCLA's defense played an excellent game. And though the Bruin offense struggled -- through the air in the first half and on the ground the whole night -- the play-calling of Norm Chow down the stretch was predictably magnificent. The Vols failings lay mainly in missed opportunities and mistakes. Yes, Jonathan Crompton looked a bit uncomfortable or rushed at times, but the running game looked to be well in-gear. If anything, the "Clawfense" would have done well to grind things out on the ground and escape with an uninspiring 24-10 win, or thereabouts, that would have been long-forgotten halfway through SEC play.
But Tennessee made just enough mistakes to keep UCLA around long enough for Rick Neuheisel and Chow to spring their trap to perfection. The end result is we saw nothing out of the Vols that indicate they are ready to at least contend in the SEC East against behemoths like Florida and Georgia. But hold on -- we didn't see anything to say they aren't either. Remember, we saw this movie in last year's opener, and the Vols won their half of the league. Besides, it wasn't as if Tennessee showed no fire (they did in the fourth-quarter comeback) or had a deficiency of talent (certainly not). The play-calling and subsequent execution certainly need work, but those are correctabe issues. The Vols are probably not among the SEC's top tier this season, but don't write them off entirely just yet.
2. The Pac-10 is wide open. After USC, of course. Stanford beating Oregon State got the party started, but nearly every team showed us something positive in game one (Washington schools excluded). UCLA grabbed the most headlines by shocking Tennessee. While I don't think the Bruins are ready for prime time, they might not be a cellar-dweller as many had forecasted. Cal earned a tough home win over Michigan State and has settled on Kevin Riley at quarterback, and Arizona State's Rudy Carpenter showed why he's the best passer in the conference by lighting up I-AA Northern Arizona for 388 yards. Oregon blasted Washington and even Arizona made a statement by pasting Idaho 70-0. Not that that's a great accomplishment, but I think the final margin indicates that there may be a different attitude in Tuscon this year. Long story short, there will be a lot of teams gunning for the No. 2 spot out West this season.
3. Two borderline top teams have a lot of work left to do on defense. No. 6 Missouri surrendered 538 yards to Illinois and No. 8 West Virginia allowed 399 yards to I-AA Villanova (Villanova!!!). Based on the murderous schedule awaiting nearly everyone in the SEC and the theoretical elimination game between USC and Ohio State, both those teams could be in a position to grab a top two spot when all is said and done. That is, of course, if their stop units can rise up in support of their very capable offenses.
A half-formulated opinion about: Tennessee. The sky is already falling in Knoxville after the Vols coughed up what should have been a relatively straightforward win over UCLA and its quasi-Division I offense. But a few things got in the way. First, UCLA's defense played an excellent game. And though the Bruin offense struggled -- through the air in the first half and on the ground the whole night -- the play-calling of Norm Chow down the stretch was predictably magnificent. The Vols failings lay mainly in missed opportunities and mistakes. Yes, Jonathan Crompton looked a bit uncomfortable or rushed at times, but the running game looked to be well in-gear. If anything, the "Clawfense" would have done well to grind things out on the ground and escape with an uninspiring 24-10 win, or thereabouts, that would have been long-forgotten halfway through SEC play.
But Tennessee made just enough mistakes to keep UCLA around long enough for Rick Neuheisel and Chow to spring their trap to perfection. The end result is we saw nothing out of the Vols that indicate they are ready to at least contend in the SEC East against behemoths like Florida and Georgia. But hold on -- we didn't see anything to say they aren't either. Remember, we saw this movie in last year's opener, and the Vols won their half of the league. Besides, it wasn't as if Tennessee showed no fire (they did in the fourth-quarter comeback) or had a deficiency of talent (certainly not). The play-calling and subsequent execution certainly need work, but those are correctabe issues. The Vols are probably not among the SEC's top tier this season, but don't write them off entirely just yet.
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