CFB Week 11 (11/4-11/8) News and Picks

Texas falls only to fourth in new BCS rankings, still in the hunt

from Bevo Sports by Brian
The Longhorns lost the battle to Texas Tech on Saturday but they still haven’t lost the war. The new BCS rankings were revealed tonight and Texas fell only to number four, behind Alabama, Penn State, and Texas Tech who moved all the way up to number two. The Horns still have a every good chance to end up back in the top two and headed to the national title game.
All the Horns need is for two teams ahead of them to go down, and with the remaining schedules ahead for both Tech and Alabama that is a distinct possibility. Texas fans need to be rooting hard for Oklahoma and Oklahoma State the next few weeks and for LSU this week against Alabama. The team needs to take care of business during the final weeks of the season for any of this to matter, but fans will be doing a lot of scoreboard watching.
The BCS top 10 rankings are listed below:
<table style="width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <th style="border: medium none ;" colspan="2">
</th> <th style="border: medium none ; text-align: center;" colspan="2">BCS</th> <th style="border: medium none ; text-align: center;" colspan="3">Harris Poll</th> <th style="border: medium none ; text-align: center;" colspan="3">USA Today</th> <th style="border: medium none ; text-align: center;" colspan="2">Comp. Rankings</th> </tr> <tr> <th> </th> <th>Team</th> <th>BCS Avg</th> <th>Prvs</th> <th>RK</th> <th>Pts</th> <th>%</th> <th>RK</th> <th>Pts</th> <th>%</th> <th>Avg</th> <th>%</th> </tr> <tr> <td height="22">1</td> <td>Alabama</td> <td>.9747</td> <td>2</td> <td>1</td> <td>2798</td> <td>.9818</td> <td>1</td> <td>1498</td> <td>.9823</td> <td>T-1</td> <td>.960</td> </tr> <tr> <td>2</td> <td>Texas Tech</td> <td>.9372</td> <td>7</td> <td>3</td> <td>2644</td> <td>.9277</td> <td>3</td> <td>1409</td> <td>.9239</td> <td>T-1</td> <td>.960</td> </tr> <tr> <td>3</td> <td>Penn State</td> <td>.9286</td> <td>3</td> <td>2</td> <td>2689</td> <td>.9435</td> <td>2</td> <td>1437</td> <td>.9423</td> <td>4</td> <td>.900</td> </tr> <tr> <td>4</td> <td>Texas</td> <td>.8531</td> <td>1</td> <td>6</td> <td>2322</td> <td>.8147</td> <td>7</td> <td>1227</td> <td>.8046</td> <td>3</td> <td>.940</td> </tr> <tr> <td>5</td> <td>Florida</td> <td>.8268</td> <td>8</td> <td>4</td> <td>2391</td> <td>.8389</td> <td>5</td> <td>1268</td> <td>.8315</td> <td>5</td> <td>.810</td> </tr> <tr> <td>6</td> <td>Oklahoma</td> <td>.8220</td> <td>4</td> <td>5</td> <td>2366</td> <td>.8302</td> <td>4</td> <td>1290</td> <td>.8459</td> <td>9</td> <td>.790</td> </tr> <tr> <td>7</td> <td>USC</td> <td>.7551</td> <td>5</td> <td>7</td> <td>2273</td> <td>.7975</td> <td>6</td> <td>1232</td> <td>.8079</td> <td>10</td> <td>.660</td> </tr> <tr> <td>8</td> <td>Utah</td> <td>.6972</td> <td>10</td> <td>9</td> <td>1864</td> <td>.6540</td> <td>9</td> <td>1018</td> <td>.6675</td> <td>7</td> <td>.770</td> </tr> <tr> <td>9</td> <td>Oklahoma State</td> <td>.6660</td> <td>9</td> <td>8</td> <td>2021</td> <td>.7091</td> <td>8</td> <td>1066</td> <td>.6990</td> <td>11</td> <td>.590</td> </tr> <tr> <td>10</td> <td>Boise State</td> <td>.6529</td> <td>11</td> <td>10</td> <td>1797</td> <td>.6305</td> <td>10</td> <td>958</td> <td>.6282</td> <td>8</td> <td>.700</td></tr></tbody></table>
 
Ballot Check: The Defenses of Penn State, Texas, and Texas Tech

from Burnt Orange Nation by PB @ BON
My friend and colleague over at SB Nation's outstanding Penn State blog Black Shoe Diaries has submitted his Week 10 draft Blog Poll ballot, ranking Penn State #1, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama, Florida, Southern Cal, Texas, Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State. As Blog Poll voters are strongly encouraged to do, BSD provides the reasoning behind the balloting. First, his disregard for the Big 12:
I have to put Texas Tech in the #2 spot based on their win over Texas. But honestly, I'm not as impressed with the Big XII as the rest of the country is. Sure, they have some great quarterbacks and great offenses, but their defenses are terrible. I watched the Texas-TT game last night and by the third quarter you could tell whoever got the ball last was going to win. I saw missed tackles, poor pursuit angles, and just overall poor defense. I can't see Texas Tech going undefeated.
​
Billyzane has already addressed another version of the "no Big 12 defense" line or argumentation, but even if I were merely of the opinion that the great offenses and playmakers in the Big 12 make the defenses look worse than they are, it's not facially invalid to point out that the conference's defenses fail to shut down the high-flying offenses they see on a weekly basis.
Where I struggle with BSD's reasoning, however, is with his explanation for Penn State at #1.
Penn State in my opinion has been the most solid team in all three phases of the game. The defense has been stellar. Only Illinois scored more than 17 points on them. You can say, "Yeah big deal. Who have they played?" Perhaps a fair point, but look at teams like Oklahoma who have given up 26 points to Cincinnati, 35 points to Kansas State, and 28 points to Nebraska. Or Florida who have given up 31 points to Mississippi. Or even Texas Tech who gave up 24 points to Eastern Washington, 19 points to Nevada, 28 points to Kansas State, and 25 points to Texas A&M. At some point every team comes out flat and needs their defense to pull out a win. Penn State has a defense that can do that. Everyone thinks they are a boring low scoring team, but they forget that before we went to Columbus we were hanging 45 points on everyone. Put them in the Big XII and I honestly believe they would score 50 points per game. That's why they get my #1 vote.
​
To sum the argument, then:

  1. Big 12 offenses are better than they appear because the defenses are lousy.
  2. Penn State gets the nod at #1 because they can score on bad defenses and they feature a great defense.
The problem is that BSD isn't consistently applying the principle which animates his Big 12 skepticism. The truth is that (1) Penn State's defense has done a good job beating up a slate of weak offenses, and (2) if we control for quality, we get a significantly different picture than we would just looking at raw numbers. Consider the season stats, excluding non-Division 1 teams:
Penn State 2008


<table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Vs PSU</td> <td>
</td> <td>Vs PSU</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Opponent</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Pts/Gm</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Delta</td> <td>Points</td> <td>Delta</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oregon St</td> <td>6.0</td> <td>26</td> <td>34.6</td> <td>22</td> <td>4.7</td> <td>-22%</td> <td>14</td> <td>-60%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Syracuse</td> <td>4.9</td> <td>90</td> <td>17.7</td> <td>112</td> <td>2.7</td> <td>-45%</td> <td>13</td> <td>-27%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Temple</td> <td>4.2</td> <td>114</td> <td>16.8</td> <td>116</td> <td>2.3</td> <td>-45%</td> <td>3</td> <td>-82%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Illinois</td> <td>6.5</td> <td>16</td> <td>37.8</td> <td>26</td> <td>5.6</td> <td>-14%</td> <td>24</td> <td>-37%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Purdue</td> <td>5.0</td> <td>84</td> <td>20.3</td> <td>93</td> <td>4.0</td> <td>-20%</td> <td>6</td> <td>-70%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Wisconsin</td> <td>5.4</td> <td>62</td> <td>24.3</td> <td>68</td> <td>4.7</td> <td>-13%</td> <td>7</td> <td>-71%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Michigan</td> <td>4.5</td> <td>106</td> <td>18.9</td> <td>102</td> <td>4.3</td> <td>-4%</td> <td>17</td> <td>-10%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ohio State</td> <td>5.1</td> <td>79</td> <td>24.6</td> <td>67</td> <td>4.9</td> <td>-4%</td> <td>6</td> <td>-76%</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Texas 2008


<table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Vs TX</td> <td>
</td> <td>Vs TX</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Opponent</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Pts/Gm</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Delta</td> <td>Points</td> <td>Delta</td> </tr> <tr> <td>FAU</td> <td>5.5</td> <td>57</td> <td>18.1</td> <td>109</td> <td>4.7</td> <td>-15%</td> <td>10</td> <td>-45%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>UTEP</td> <td>5.5</td> <td>57</td> <td>31.4</td> <td>36</td> <td>5.9</td> <td>+7%</td> <td>13</td> <td>-59%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Rice</td> <td>6.1</td> <td>22</td> <td>40.1</td> <td>10</td> <td>4.4</td> <td>-28%</td> <td>10</td> <td>-82%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Arkansas</td> <td>5.3</td> <td>67</td> <td>19.1</td> <td>98</td> <td>3.5</td> <td>-34%</td> <td>10</td> <td>-75%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Colorado</td> <td>4.2</td> <td>114</td> <td>18.6</td> <td>105</td> <td>4.0</td> <td>-5%</td> <td>14</td> <td>-25%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oklahoma</td> <td>6.8</td> <td>4</td> <td>48.3</td> <td>2</td> <td>6.5</td> <td>-4%</td> <td>35</td> <td>-28%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Missouri</td> <td>7.5</td> <td>2</td> <td>47.4</td> <td>4</td> <td>5.8</td> <td>-23%</td> <td>31</td> <td>-35%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Oklahoma St
</td> <td>7.0</td> <td>5</td> <td>43.6</td> <td>6</td> <td>6.5</td> <td>-7%</td> <td>24</td> <td>-45%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Texas Tech
</td> <td>7.5</td> <td>2</td> <td>48.0</td> <td>3</td> <td>7.1</td> <td>-5%</td> <td>39</td> <td>-19%</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Texas Tech 2008

<table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Season</td> <td>Natl</td> <td>Vs TTU</td> <td>
</td> <td>Vs TTU</td> <td>
</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Opponent</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Pts/Gm</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>Yds/Play</td> <td>Delta</td> <td>Points</td> <td>Delta</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nevada</td> <td>6.8</td> <td>7</td> <td>37.9</td> <td>15</td> <td>6.0</td> <td>-12%</td> <td>19</td> <td>-50%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>SMU</td> <td>5.8</td> <td>36</td> <td>23.1</td> <td>78</td> <td>4.6</td> <td>-21%</td> <td>7</td> <td>-70%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kansas St</td> <td>6.1</td> <td>22</td> <td>38.5</td> <td>13</td> <td>4.4</td> <td>-28%</td> <td>28</td> <td>-27%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nebraska</td> <td>6.4</td> <td>18</td> <td>33.1</td> <td>29</td> <td>5.9</td> <td>-8%</td> <td>31</td> <td>-6%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Texas A&M</td> <td>5.6</td> <td>51</td> <td>27.3</td> <td>50</td> <td>4.9</td> <td>-13%</td> <td>25</td> <td>-8%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kansas</td> <td>6.0</td> <td>26</td> <td>32.3</td> <td>32</td> <td>5.3</td> <td>-12%</td> <td>21</td> <td>-15%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Texas</td> <td>6.7</td> <td>10</td> <td>45.6</td> <td>5</td> <td>6.0</td> <td>-10%</td> <td>33</td> <td>-28%</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> That's a lot of data, but with it the idea that the defenses of Texas and Texas Tech have been limping along is indefensible. Rather, though the Longhorns and Red Raiders have faced vastly superior offenses than has Penn State, they are consistently holding those offenses well below their normal averages, just as is Penn State.
The difference between the average opposing offenses is stark enough that any fan's attempt to note the Nittany Lions' defensive excellence should be met with a shrug. How much value is there in shutting down a schedule featuring the offenses of Syracuse, Temple, Michigan, and the like?
Average Opposing Offense, 2008

<table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td>
</td> <td>Points/Game</td> <td>Yards/Play</td> </tr> <tr> <td>PSU Avg Opp</td> <td>24.4</td> <td>5.2</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Texas Avg Opp</td> <td>34.9</td> <td>6.2</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Tech Avg Opp</td> <td>33.9</td> <td>6.2</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> In the final analysis, has Penn State performed very well against a weak schedule? Without question. Do they have a better defense than Texas and/or Texas Tech? The Nittany Lions have performed so well against their schedule that they very well might, but it's simply disingenuous to summarily wave off the Longhorns and Red Raiders as Black Shoe Diaries has, when:

  1. The data shows both defenses holding opposing offenses significantly below their season averages, and
  2. The 'Horns and Red Raiders both have faced a slew of offenses that can actually move the ball and score points.
Given the same schedule, would Penn State's defense outperform that of Texas or Texas Tech? Who knows? All we know for sure is that Illinois--the cream of the crop on Penn State's schedule--managed 24 points and 5.6 yards per play, down from their season averages, but comparable to Texas and Texas Tech's performances against highly-ranked offenses.
CONCLUSION

Though there may be a plausible case to be made for ranking Penn State #1, Black Shoe Diaries stated justification for his rankings disappoints. It's a cynically dismissive take on the top Big 12 teams' defenses, supported by anecdotal stereotyping instead of analysis--as casual and unfair a treatment of the Big 12 as would be my ranking Penn State #5 for the sole reason that "You know, I'm not so sold on the Big 10 because their offenses suck." There's more to Penn State than that, and there's more to Oklahoma State, Texas, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech than Black Shoe Diaries' balloting would have you believe.
Ranking Penn State #1, or Texas #6, is not outside the realm of reason. But a stronger case has to be made than that which BSD offers.
 
Amstutz Is Done Coaching

from The Futon Report by Matt Sussman
amstutz.jpg
Really? I mean … he had another year left on his contract, and maybe at the end of the year a move is made but … really? Stepping down now? Now?
Toledo’s iconic portly coach Tom Amstutz is calling it quits as University of Toledo football head coach. It’s being said he will take a job within the University, which either means he’s burned out and doesn’t want to scan CareerBuilder for a new job, or the University was going to kick his ass to the curb but actually likes the guy and knows he means well.
Either way, why now? Why less than a month after a marquee win for the program? Why the evening of November 2, when they have a nationally-televised game Wednesday night? Something doesn’t smell right about this, but a press conference on Monday will explain everything. Or most everything. I don’t think we’ll get an explanation for the summer sausage.
 
Post-Game Reaction: This Is The End

from Bring On The Cats by TB
For weeks now, I have tried to play the waiting game. I have tried to give this coaching staff a chance to get things turned around. I have hoped we would see a more competitive coaching staff and team, a coaching staff and team that learned from its mistakes.
After yesterday, there are no more chances.
I could deal with last year's close loss, even in Manhattan, because the KU team we lost to was a pretty good team. I can deal with occasional losses, even to our arch-rivals, if they are fielding decent teams. But I cannot stomach four losses in five years to KU. I cannot stomach 31-point beatdowns delivered by a team that is likely on its way to 7-5 this season.
Let's take a short trip down memory lane to illustrate how bad things are. Do you remember 2004? It was Bill Snyder's worst season since the early 1990s, and we all thought the world was going to end. But even in that incredibly disappointing season, I never saw anything like what I've seen this season. In 2004, even with seven losses, we really only got blown out once. The Iowa State game wasn't very close, but ISU was decent that year and we had lost all hope for a bowl game by that point. I had hope that we could improve next year, which we did...barely.
I don't see that hope under this coaching staff. Our players look lost on defense, even nine games into the season. Our offensive playcalling is a joke. If we couldn't block kicks and punts, I'm not sure we'd have as many wins on the season as we actually do.
I'm not even going to bother with the usual format of this post. Usually, I like to make light of the positives and negatives I saw in the game. There's no point in doing that for this game. Under the positives, there would be "nothing," and under the negatives, there would be "everything." Here's the only part of the traditional post-game post that I'm going to keep:
What it means and where we're going...
Let's start with where we're going. We're going to Columbia, Mo., to play Missouri. On Senior Day. Remember, Chase Daniel and Chase Coffman are seniors. Mizzou will be honoring its greatest senior class ever, and will be working its way toward a second-straight division title. Oh, and remember what they did to Colorado a couple weeks ago? We are playing way worse than CU right now. To put it mildly, it's going to be ugly.
What does it all mean? It means that, other than maaaaaaybe the November 22 retard fight between us and Iowa State, we have won our last game of the season. We are heading for a blowout loss to Mizzou. Nebraska isn't very good, and they're going to be favored by double digits against us, even in Manhattan. So the end result is that we're headed for, at best, 5-7, and possibly 4-8.
It also means that I have lost all hope that Ron Prince and his coaching staff will be able to build the team we expect them to in Manhattan. We won't, and probably shouldn't, fire a coach before the season is over. But, and I cannot stress this enough, we cannot permit another season of this. And by "this," I mean everything we have seen. Terrible defense. Inconsistent offense and terrible playcalling. Blowout losses. Unsustainable recruiting practices.
It disturbs me more than watching the "Saw" movies to read things like this (see also here). I'm a humble blogger, but I want what I believe is best for K-State, which is why I implore Bob Krause to step up and do what's right for K-State. He needs to get the big boosters, primarily the Vaniers, on his side. We're going to have to buy Prince out, and we're going to have to throw some real money at Gary Patterson and a whole new staff of assistants. It won't be cheap. But unless we want to see what pre-1989 K-State football looked like, we must do it now.
Review of other Big 12 games is after the jump.
Texas A&M 24, Colorado 17: Two points here. Texas A&M is really showing steady improvement this season, and Colorado is in absolute freefall right now. On top of suffering yet another loss, the Buffs injury woes continued as promising freshman running back Rodney Stewart broke his leg. Colorado outgained TAMU by quite a bit, but also gave up three turnovers. I didn't see any of this one, so I can't really give you a whole lot more.
For more: I Am The 12th Man, The Ralphie Report
Missouri 31, Baylor 28: I expected Baylor wouldn't go down without a fight, but I didn't expect them to have this much fight. Again, I didn't see a single second of this one, but it's just about time everybody starts to really fear what Baylor could become with Robert Griffin at QB. The kid was 26/35 for 283 yards and two TDs. He also rushed for 75 yards before you subtract sacks.
For More: Rock M Nation
Oklahoma State 59, Iowa State 17: The Pokes easily dispatched ISU with a showdown in Lubbock looming next weekend. The Cyclones could only manage 240 yards total offense, while Okie State rolled up more than that rushing the football. What really sucks is that last year we lost a heartbreaker on a last-second field goal to Okie State; this year, we're in ISU's neighborhood.
For More: Clone Chronicles
Texas Tech 39, Texas 33: Quite simply, one of the best football games I've ever witnessed (other than Tech's mentally challenged students rushing the field, twice, with one second left on the clock. Graham Harrell's throw, and Michael Crabtree's catch, with the game on the line and two defenders in the area was nothing short of remarkable. Tech has now shown they are not the overrated, all-offense-no-defense machine they used to be, but now we'll see if they can sustain that high level of play with Oklahoma State and Oklahoma looming.
For More: Double T Nation, Burnt Orange Nation
Oklahoma 62, Nebraska 21: This game was kind of like K-State's game against OU last weekend, but without the useless second-quarter comeback by the losing team. Maybe it was more Nebraska than it was OU, but the Sooners played much better on defense in this game.
 
Ballot Check: Big 12 South One-Loss Teams

from Burnt Orange Nation by PB @ BON
Apparently, some voters are having trouble sorting out the Big 12 South's one-loss teams, as the Longhorns discovered that their loss in Lubbock not only cost them six spots in the Coaches Poll, but also that after the fall they wound up... behind Oklahoma? Who they beat by 10 points on a neutral field just one month ago? What the hell?
Struggling to understand how this could be, I decided it was time to chart the Big 12 South's one-loss teams, to see if I could come up with any other reason for voting Oklahoma over the Longhorns. Among the averages at the bottom of the chart, scores and MOVs against non-Division 1 teams are not included.
<table style="border: 1px solid rgb(224, 118, 27);" align="center" border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td>TEXAS</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>PF</td> <td>PA</td> <td>MOV</td> <td>
</td> <td>OKLAHOMA</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>PF</td> <td>PA</td> <td>MOV</td> <td>
</td> <td>OKIE ST</td> <td>Rank</td> <td>PF</td> <td>PA</td> <td>MOV</td> </tr> <tr> <td>FAU</td> <td>111</td> <td>52</td> <td>10</td> <td>+42</td> <td>
</td> <td>UT-Chat</td> <td>214</td> <td>57</td> <td>2</td> <td>+55</td> <td>
</td> <td>Wash St</td> <td>149</td> <td>39</td> <td>13</td> <td>+26</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ UTEP</td> <td>108</td> <td>42</td> <td>13</td> <td>+29</td> <td>
</td> <td>Cincy</td> <td>42</td> <td>52</td> <td>26</td> <td>+26</td> <td>
</td> <td>Houston</td> <td>77</td> <td>56</td> <td>37</td> <td>+19</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Rice</td> <td>65</td> <td>52</td> <td>10</td> <td>+42</td> <td>
</td> <td>@ Wash</td> <td>121</td> <td>55</td> <td>14</td> <td>+41</td> <td>
</td> <td>SW Mizzou</td> <td>167</td> <td>57</td> <td>13</td> <td>+44</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Arkie</td> <td>61</td> <td>52</td> <td>10</td> <td>+42</td> <td>
</td> <td>TCU</td> <td>11</td> <td>35</td> <td>10</td> <td>+25</td> <td>
</td> <td>Troy</td> <td>73</td> <td>55</td> <td>24</td> <td>+31</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ CU</td> <td>70</td> <td>38</td> <td>14</td> <td>+24</td> <td>
</td> <td>@ Baylor</td> <td>75</td> <td>49</td> <td>17</td> <td>+32</td> <td>
</td> <td>A&M</td> <td>79</td> <td>56</td> <td>28</td> <td>+28</td> </tr> <tr> <td>n-OU</td> <td>7</td> <td>45</td> <td>35</td> <td>+10</td> <td>
</td> <td>n-Texas</td> <td>2</td> <td>35</td> <td>45</td> <td>-10</td> <td>
</td> <td>@ Mizzou</td> <td>12</td> <td>28</td> <td>23</td> <td>+5</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Mizzou</td> <td>12</td> <td>56</td> <td>31</td> <td>+25</td> <td>
</td> <td>Kansas</td> <td>37</td> <td>45</td> <td>31</td> <td>+14</td> <td>
</td> <td>Baylor</td> <td>75</td> <td>34</td> <td>6</td> <td>+28</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Okie St</td> <td>8</td> <td>28</td> <td>24</td> <td>+4</td> <td>
</td> <td>@ KState</td> <td>66</td> <td>58</td> <td>35</td> <td>+23</td> <td>
</td> <td>@ Texas</td> <td>2</td> <td>24</td> <td>28</td> <td>-4</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ Tech</td> <td>5</td> <td>33</td> <td>39</td> <td>-6</td> <td>
</td> <td>Nebraska</td> <td>35</td> <td>62</td> <td>28</td> <td>+34</td> <td>
</td> <td>Iowa St</td> <td>110</td> <td>59</td> <td>17</td> <td>+42</td> </tr> <tr> <td>AVGS</td> <td>SOS: #7
</td> <td>43.1</td> <td>20.6</td> <td>23.5</td> <td>
</td> <td>AVGS</td> <td>SOS: #39</td> <td>48.9</td> <td>25.8</td> <td>23.1</td> <td>
</td> <td>AVGS</td> <td>SOS: #85</td> <td>43.9</td> <td>22.0</td> <td>21.9</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>
  • STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE: Oklahoma owns the only significant non-conference win among the trio, but Texas' recent four-game stretch through hell gives them the country's 7th toughest schedule-to-date--better than Oklahoma and significantly ahead of Oklahoma State.
  • HEAD-TO-HEAD: Texas has wins over OU and OSU, while the latter have not yet battled head-to-head.
  • MARGIN OF VICTORY: A draw, with all three squads pounding hard bad teams for a 20+ MOV average.
  • BEST WINS: Texas enjoys wins over Sagarin Top 30 Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Missouri / Oklahoma has a Top 30 win over TCU / Oklahoma State has a Top 30 win over Missouri.
CONCLUSION?

I would urge fellow Blog Poll voter not to drop the Longhorns behind Oklahoma or Oklahoma State, which at this point in time seems wholly indefensible. If you've got a case to make, I'm all ears, but I'm having trouble imagining even a creative justification for ranking the Sooners ahead of Texas.
 
RJ Esq said:
Has UVA fallen back to reality now?
Click to expand...

We shall see. That was a really tough loss to swallow as a fan, but I can't tell you the mindset of the players. You'll have to believe me when I tell you that apart from Miami's opening and closing drives, UVa totally dominated that game. Forcing TOs, moving the ball deep into Miami territory, etc. They gave the game away, and a big part of that is the Groh's fault for all the stalling and dumb plays when they had the ball in scoring position.

Your guess is as good as mine. If they play the way they did at GT, they will beat Wake by 2 TDs. If they play the way they did last week, blowing opportunity after opportunity, they will lose to a superior coached team down in Cigarette City.
 
J Galt said:
We shall see. That was a really tough loss to swallow as a fan, but I can't tell you the mindset of the players. You'll have to believe me when I tell you that apart from Miami's opening and closing drives, UVa totally dominated that game. Forcing TOs, moving the ball deep into Miami territory, etc. They gave the game away, and a big part of that is the Groh's fault for all the stalling and dumb plays when they had the ball in scoring position.

Your guess is as good as mine. If they play the way they did at GT, they will beat Wake by 2 TDs. If they play the way they did last week, blowing opportunity after opportunity, they will lose to a superior coached team down in Cigarette City.
Click to expand...

I can't lay money on the Big East or ACC any more. Both conferences are too schizo right now.
 
Loss, injuries leave many questions for Longhorns

Texas drops to No. 4 in BCS standings.

By Alan Trubow
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Monday, November 03, 2008
Get ready for chaos, Texas fans.
Get ready for arguing and arguments and theories and scenarios.
The next month is going to be full of those.
Texas' last-second breakdown and 39-33 loss to Texas Tech on Saturday was heartbreaking, debilitating and left the Longhorns with seemingly limitless possibilities when it comes to Big 12 South Division, Big 12 Conference and BCS championships.
It means quarterback Graham Harrell and receiver Michael Crabtree, who connected on a 28-yard touchdown pass with one second left to beat Texas, and the Red Raiders are in great position to win the Big 12 title and make the national championship game.
That's because Texas' loss dropped the Longhorns to No. 4 in the BCS standings, which received a huge shakeup as Alabama took the top spot, followed by Texas Tech, Penn State, Texas and Florida.
UT dropped to No. 5 in the Associated Press poll, No. 7 in the coaches' poll and No. 6 in the Harris Poll .
"The national championship isn't the goal," Texas coach Mack Brown said after the loss. "That's about luck. The goal is always a Big 12 championship."
But the once-seemingly simple route to the Big 12 championship game is more convoluted for the Longhorns than the national championship picture.
That's because Texas Tech (9-0, 5-0), Texas (8-1, 4-1), Oklahoma (8-1, 4-1, No. 6 in the BCS standings) and No. 9 Oklahoma State (8-1, 4-1, No. 9 in BCS standings) are within one game of each other.
And the Red Raiders, Sooners and Cowboys, who each have three games remaining, all have to play each other. That's good and bad for Texas, which has victories over Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.
It's good because that's three potential losses for teams that are tied or ahead of the Longhorns in the Big 12 standings.
It's bad because that's also three potential wins for those teams, and those teams could move or stay ahead of the Longhorns in the BCS standings.
The Longhorns have the easiest remaining schedule of the four Big 12 contenders: vs. Baylor, at Kansas and vs. Texas A&M . That stretch might be tougher than it appears if the Longhorns don't get healthy.
Receiver Quan Cosby injured his back in Lubbock . Defensive end Brian Orakpo, who is having an All-America -type season, left the field on crutches after spraining his left knee.
Texas trainer Kenny Boyd said both players' status for Saturday's game against Baylor is unknown.
If the Longhorns get through their final three games without losing, they have a chance at winning the Big 12 South. But they're not in the driver's seat.
In the case of a two-way tie with any team, the head-to-head winner will receive the bid to the Big 12 championship game.
In the case of a three-way tie, the highest rated BCS team will go to the Big 12 championship game to face the North winner.
So Texas needs Texas Tech to lose twice.
But first, the Longhorns need to get healthy and get past Baylor and freshman quarterback Robert Griffin. The Copperas Cove product might be the best freshman in the country, and he'll be facing a UT secondary that gave up 474 passing yards to the Red Raiders.
Bottom line: Get ready for a wild ride, Longhorn fans. It's going to be an interesting November.
 
5 Thoughts ... Nov. 3
Five Thoughts: 2007 Thoughts | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4
- Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9
Eh, Screw It. Just Send Ball State and Boise State To Miami

[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2]By Pete Fiutak [/SIZE][/FONT]
1. For media types who deal with politics, or comedians who need material, there’s always a part of them that has to root for their careers over their loyalties. Of course Rush Limbaugh wants John McCain to win, but career-wise, it’s better if Barack Obama pulls it off. The flip-side is true for a Keith Olbermann or a Bill Maher, who are more relevant with a McCain administration, even if they really want Obama to win. For college football writers, 99% of the time, any and all loyalties go right out the window in the name of good material.

So on behalf of the college football media, no matter what any of our personal allegiances might be, I beg to you, the gods of all things college football mayhem, for 1) Penn State to win out, 2) a one-loss Big 12 champion with a superpower name, like Oklahoma or Texas, and 3) a one-loss Florida or Alabama to win the SEC title.

While there are a million crazy Pitt-over-West Virginia things that could happen (I sort of think Penn State could have trouble at Iowa, but I don’t want to disturb this groove), most likely, we’re about to be in for the mother of all college football debates.

First of all, there’s no way, no how an undefeated Penn State doesn’t play for the national title if Texas Tech and/or Alabama loses. No way. That would create debate number one, because no one thinks the Big Ten is any good, while everyone respects and loves the SEC (even if it’s not warranted this year, but that’s for a later column) and the Big 12. If it were, say, Minnesota, or even Wisconsin, there would be a chance for an undefeated Big Ten team to be passed over for a one-loss champion from the Big 12 or SEC, but not Penn State. This has been too good a big game program, and yes, it actually has a win over the SEC in recent years.

On the other side, if Alabama and Texas Tech win out, Penn State is out. No question, no debate. It’s not fair, and I do think Penn State could beat anyone in a one game shot, but if one team has to be left out of the three, you have to take the undefeated Big 12 and SEC champions this season.

But let’s say Penn State goes unbeaten, Oklahoma or Texas wins the Big 12 title with one loss, and a one-loss Florida beats an undefeated Alabama for the SEC championship. Then what?

Try coming up with the right answer to this one. In 2004, when Auburn was the odd team out in the USC-Oklahoma-Auburn debate, at least there was the game against The Citadel that was just enough to be the difference maker, considering that something was needed to break the tie.

The unbeaten Nittany Lions are in (yes, really, they would be, and it wouldn’t be close), and then it comes down to the politicking. Oh sure, the BCS computers would weigh in, but it would be the human pollsters who would ultimately decide the matchup, just like they chose last year to leave out Georgia and two years ago to put Florida in over Michigan.

Down year or not for some of the big names on the list, how do you leave out Florida if it beats Miami, Tennessee, LSU, Georgia, Florida State and Alabama, especially considering the way the offense is destroying everyone lately and the way the SEC has played in the last two national championships? How about Alabama, if it loses to LSU but rebounds to beat Florida in the SEC title game? It'll have ruined Clemson's season before it began, whacked Georgia at Georgia, and the one loss would be in Death Valley; no real shame there, even if the Tigers are struggling. So the Florida/Bama winner is in playing Penn State, right?

But how do you leave out a one-loss Big 12 champion? Let’s say Texas ends up winning the Big 12 title. That would mean the Longhorns will have beaten Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri (twice, most likely), Oklahoma State, and Kansas at Kansas, while the one loss came on the road on a miraculous last second play. Florida’s loss came at home to a good, but not elite Ole Miss. Or what if Oklahoma wins the Big 12 title? It’ll have obliterated Cincinnati and TCU and it would’ve also beaten Kansas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and Missouri (most likely). Does the 57-2 win over Chattanooga come into play?

And don’t even start with USC, who might not play anyone and has been dismissed since the loss to Oregon State, but that defense, at the moment, has pitched three shutouts and has allowed 10 points or fewer in every game but one. And by the way, what’s Penn State’s one big win? Ohio State. How did the Trojans do against the Buckeyes?

So please, oh merciful god of all things college football, let your chaos wash over our 2008 season so we might take another baby step to a plus-one. (Sorry, I can’t resist. For this year, SEC Champion vs. USC in one game, Big 12 Champion vs. Penn State in the other, the two winners play the week later … heavy sigh.)




But Please, Not Oklahoma In Another Fiesta Bowl

 By Richard Cirminiello[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2] [/SIZE][/FONT]
2. This past weekend, I saw top-rated Texas rally valiantly in the second half, only to fall short on a one-for-the-ages finish in Lubbock. I saw Texas Tech hand the ‘Horns their first loss of the season, remaining unbeaten and authoring its biggest win in school history. Around the same time, I watched Oklahoma dismantle Nebraska in every imaginable way, en route to a 62-28 rout and an 8-1 start. A little earlier in the day, I marveled at the short memory of Oklahoma State, which also got to 8-1 by shredding Iowa State, 59-17. Four top 10 teams with national championship aspirations. One division of the Big 12. A bevy of offensive stars, including Graham Harrell, Michael Crabtree, Colt McCoy, Sam Bradford, and Dez Bryant. And just two available spots in the five BCS bowl games.

The rule capping the number of BCS representatives from one conference at two never made much sense. This year, the Big 12 South is capable of making it look ludicrous. Yeah, I recognize the spirit of the rule and the quest for balance, but when there’s this much depth from one league, don’t you wish there was a provision that allowed for exceptions? I certainly do. While I realize there’ll be a lot of attrition taking place in November, there’s still a good chance that more than two teams from the Big 12 will be worthy of playing in one of the five marquee games. Heck, if Missouri or Kansas upsets the South winner in December, you could have four teams that warrant a bid.

It doesn’t happen often that one league houses so many national title contenders in the same year. When it does, those programs should be rewarded with a chance to play on the biggest stage. It’s good for the schools and great for the sport. Given a choice, do you want to see Ohio State in a BCS bowl game or Oklahoma State? Some Big 12 team is going to feel robbed when invites are announced in December. That’s a shame because when it happens, the bowl season is the biggest loser. If you want evidence, cue up last year’s Rose Bowl between USC and Big Ten runner-up Illinois.






But Please, Not Against Oklahoma In The Fiesta Bowl
[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2]By [/FONT][/SIZE] Richard Cirminiello[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2] [/FONT][/SIZE]
3. I’m starting to become convinced that TCU is going to be the first non-BCS team in history to earn a BCS bowl bid with one loss.

The Horned Frogs are rolling into this Thursday’s showdown with unbeaten Utah, arguably the biggest game in Mountain West history. Since getting outclassed by Oklahoma 35-10 on Sept. 27, they’ve been on a tear, winning the last five games by an average score of 44-8. The defense is as good as any in the Big 12, leading the country in run defense and sacks, and ranking third in points allowed. The unit is solid in every phase of the game, and junior DE Jerry Hughes is having a George Selvie-like breakthrough season with 17 tackles for loss and a nation’s best 14 sacks. TCU’s signature win of 2008 may have come a few weeks ago against then-unbeaten BYU, but Saturday’s 44-14 rout of UNLV in Las Vegas was almost as telling. The Rebs are a decent team that could have easily caught the Frogs napping, especially at Sam Boyd Stadium. Heck, Utah struggled with New Mexico over the weekend in its lead-up to this week’s game.

If you watch only one Mountain West game all year, invest the time into this week’s battle for first place between TCU and Utah. The Horned Frogs are the team with the loss, but they’re playing as if that’s the only one they’ll suffer this season.








Rocky Needed Apollo Creed
By Matthew Zemek

4. It takes two teams to make a classic, so before anyone thinks that the following remarks represent a way of minimizing Texas Tech's massive achievement on Saturday night, it's actually a way of magnifying the Red Raiders' heroics:

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of witnessing the greatest tennis match ever played: the 2008 Wimbledon men's singles final, in which Rafael Nadal beat Roger Federer in five sets. The rain-delayed epic took four hours and 48 minutes of on-court time, but nearly eight hours in real time. It's the kind of sports moment that never leaves the memory, and endures into old age (the good Lord willing and the creek don't rise).

That match proved to be unforgettable for many different and very compelling reasons, but the foremost aspect of the seminal struggle was that the loser gained an incredible amount of respect, almost as much as the winner. Federer, at the time a winner of 12 major championships, had defeated his opponents on grass and cement courts so consistently that his unreal excellence had been taken for granted. It was only when he suffered a crushing and heartbreaking defeat that his quality began to be appreciated at a higher level. It was only then, in the aftermath of his most agonizing moment as a tennis player, that Federer's humanity and heart could be seen by the wider populace. Always admired for his brilliant technical expertise and clinical skill, Federer finally received warmth and affection when he lost that match to Nadal. The man who, on one hand, lost so much in a match--$700,000 plus a coveted championship--actually gained great riches at the same time. He finally found love from the sporting public, the kind of embrace that doesn't come easily.

So it also is, then, that the Texas Longhorns earned a similar amount of respect and love from college football fans across the country after their heartstopping loss to Texas Tech. When you're No. 1 in the land, and everyone--particularly in places such as Lubbock, Norman, Tuscaloosa, and State College--wants to see you fall, you're not loved.

After Saturday night, it's impossible not to love the Longhorns with your whole heart and soul.

Bodies were flying off the field and into the infirmary for Texas. Reliable receivers and dynamic defenders were being carried to the bench. Up front and on the edges, Mack Brown and his staff were quickly being drained of reserves. Yet, they raged against the dying of the light, fighting into the night with remarkable resolve. They didn't play better than Tech. They didn't hit harder than Tech. They didn't execute at a higher level. But after 58 minutes and 31 seconds, they led. By one. Don't try to figure it out. Just comprehend how gutsy and gritty the Longhorns were, up and down their depleted roster, before Mr. Harrell and Mr. Crabtree survived a dropped interception with eight seconds left to win seven seconds later.

Texas Tech won the biggest game in the history of the program. More will be made of that in the coming days, and deservedly so. But keep in mind how gallant Mack Brown's team proved to be in defeat. It's only because of the courage with which Texas played that Tech's triumph can be seen as the epic accomplishment it genuinely is.

Much as Rafael Nadal's Wimbledon title became that much greater because of his opponent's unflagging determination, so it also is that Texas Tech's awesome achievement is ten thousand times more impressive because Texas made the Red Raiders sweat until the very last second ticked off the clock. If you want to lose a perfect season, lose it the way Texas did. Longhorn fans should be mighty proud of their boys. Moreover, every college football fan should feel the same sense of grade-A admiration.

For McCoy, He Showed Blood And Guts

 By Steve Silverman

5. In Saturday night's spectacular confrontation with Texas Tech, Texas showed more guts and competitive fire in a 39-33 defeat than it had in almost all of its previous eight wins. And so did Texas Tech.

Falling behind 19-0 only steeled the Longhorns' resolve and Colt McCoy brought them all the way back to take a 33-32 lead with 1:29 to play. That would have been enough in year's past against Texas Tech. The Red Raiders have always been a questionable entity in the biggest games under Mike Leach in the past, but this time around they had the gumption to survive the Texas challenge. After building the big lead and watching it slip away, Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree worked their magic on the final play from scrimmage of the game to steal the win with the now-classic 28-yard TD pass. Texas Tech never would have had the resolve to do that in the past, and that's because of experience. This is a veteran team that got justabout everyone back on the defensive side, and 10 starters back on offense. Young teams come up with wins like this over teams like that. The Red Raiders still have a tough schedule ahead with Oklahoma State (home) and Oklahoma (road) and a potential date in the Big 12 championshp game, but they have clearly grown up quite a bit. And so did Texas.<rte_text></rte_text>
 
GameDay Signs - Lubbock, Texas

from CollegeGameBalls: College Football at its Finest by cgb
Texas Tech fans really represented themselves at GameDay this week. They transformed Lubbock into a sea of signs and they were quality. Unfortunately, no one stepped up and accepted the GameDay Challenge. The best signs that I saw are below.

My Little Colt - Original, ingenious and a insta-classic.

And I bet he needed them after he shit himself when he watched Michael Crabtree break a tackle and seal the Texas Tech comeback.

My favorite genre of sign is back!

Haha

The Jonas Brother are soooo dreamy

“Give Texas CRABS” was an under the radar All American sign this week.

And… That’s the last time I want to think about Lee Corso and the shocker together again.

His ball touching was very inappropriate too.

And plunder your treasure box
 
Bevo's Daily Roundup 11.03.08

from Burnt Orange Nation by dimecoverage


bevoscorral_medium.jpg


Photo by Nick de la Torre, Houston Chroncle
The Game

"The problems of victory are more agreeable than the problems of defeat, but they are no less difficult." -Winston Churchill.
ESPN's Tim Griffin believe that Michael Crabtree's touchdown (yes, you know the one) was the greatest play in the history of the Big 12. He also hands out stickers for good behavior. Sorry, I meant good play.
ESPNU's Ivan Maisel thinks this game legitimized Tech on the national scene. Mack Brown wishes that Texas could have run more time off the clock.
"I was proud of our guys because we didn't play consistently well tonight," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "We had a lot of problems, and to their credit, they kept fighting back. All we did was score too quick at the end. We should have taken more time off the clock."
​
Now Tech has their own big-game hurdle next week: Oklahoma State. Then the Raiders face Oklahoma the week after. Welcome to our world.
"Coach Leach told us in the locker room if we don't come out there next weekend and get another 'W,' this win doesn't mean much to us," said defensive lineman Colby Whitlock.
​
Enough of this game. We all know what happened and we would like to move on.



Bears can be a problem.

The Rest of the Big 12 Weekend

Missouri had a close one on Saturday. They barely beat Baylor 31-28. If bears can pillage Missouri and a campsite, think about what can happen to Texas. We better be prepared.
Baylor's QB, Robert Griffin, is still unintercepted. Is that even a word?
Oklahoma scored 31 points in the first quarter of the game and went on to beat Nebraska, 62-28. OU's Auston English was hurt in the third quarter and did not return to the game.
After Tech's win over Texas, the Raider faithful worry about Mike Leach setting sail for higher paying/more prestige waters. Welcome to Division 1 college football people. It happens.
"I don’t really second-guess it, certainly not during the season," Leach said in a telephone interview this week. "I just roll on and see where it takes you and do the best you can and go from there."
He is earning $1.75 million this year, meaning he is not among the five highest-paid coaches in the Big 12. While local news-media reports this summer blamed the athletic department’s poor financial situation for the lack of an extension, Gerald Myers, Texas Tech’s athletic director, said that was "not exactly right."
​
The Aggies won their second game in conference play against Colorado. The Buffaloes lost their leading rusher, Rodney Stewart, for at least four weeks to a fractured right fibula. I guess Daryl Scott won't have to complain about the lack of playing time any more.
Something exciting happened in Boone Pickens Stadium Saturday, and no, it wasn't just Oklahoma State's 59-17 win over Iowa State. The cyclone's freshman cornerback Leonard Johnson broke the major college football single-game record for kickoff return yards.
"If you look at it," Iowa State coach Gene Chizik said, "it's really one of the only bright spots for our team." Leonard was certainly that today."
​
After two loses, the Kansas Jayhawks’ beat Kansas State, 52-21. KU's running back, Jake Sharp, rushed for a career-high 181 yards and four touchdowns, plus five catches for 76 yards.
Using an ugly two-game losing streak — and a good-deal of pre-game trash talk — as motivation, Kansas pieced together its most complete game of the season in winning its third straight game in the annual Sunflower Showdown.
​

The Big 12 South can end up in one big mess if Tech loses to OSU or OU.



'Round the Big 12 Blogs

Barking Carnival's ChrisApplewhite has four lessons you learn while losing.
Just in case you like eating glass, Double T Nation has an animated drive chart of the game. Enjoy.
The Ralphie Report has a post game analysis and an animated drive chart of their game against A&M.
Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma will be televised.
Missouri 31, Baylor 28. Once again, this actually happened and there is an eye witness account.
This was a very well-prepared Baylor team. They knew how to beat Mizzou (specifically on swing passes and runs up the middle) and they didn't stop doing it. On defense, they had the "Hey Coffman, run to the goalpost and I'll throw it up to you so you can get a foot in and score" play scouted out beautifully, leading to Chase's first interception.
​
Corn Nation laments the loss to Oklahoma. Our condolences.
Bring On The Cats has one last entertaining photo of the Jayhawks.


Aggies preparing for a hurricane.
Other Stuff

Texas A&M charges the most of any Big 12 school for student tickets. Texas comes in second.
Contrary to most thoughts about this season. Texas A&M linemen can block. A&M player Paul Freeney blocked a billboard of Obama from from getting egged in an "Anti Obama Carnival" on the A&M campus.
Chase the quarterback, Chase the tight end and Chase the back-up quarterback. Can you imagine team meetings at Missouri? Everyone answers to Chase.
We need some cheering up after this weekend. The College Football Guys compare their favorite women to the Big 12. An oldie from 2007, Get Well Soon Big 12 from YouTube.
 
Headlinin': Auburn closing ranks around Tuberville

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
ept_sports_ncaaf_experts-110592274-1225720921.jpg
• At least somebody's backing him up. The Birmingham News' Kevin Scarbinsky thinks Tommy Tuberville sounds like a beaten man after Auburn's loss at Ole Miss, the Tigers' fourth in a row, and third straight since dumping offensive coordinator Tony Franklin:
"What happens at the end of the year happens, and there's nothing anybody can do about it," Tuberville said.
​
Well, technically, athletic director Jay Jacobs can do something about it, if he's so inclined, although he'd have to answer to cornerback Walter McFadden, who emphatically backed Tuberville from the deck of the sinking ship. The coach, meanwhile, caught the end of Texas Tech's win over Texas, and couldn't help but notice the difference between the Raiders' completely in-sync spread and his own: Kodi Burns threw a very Tech-like 43 passes for 319 yards, for a very Brandon Cox-like three interceptions and no touchdowns.
• Talkin' 'bout practice. Speaking of Texas Tech's passing game, Graham Harrell told ABCSPN he and Michael Crabtree practiced the death-defying route into double coverage that won the biggest game in Raider history "all the time," and defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill can vouch for that:
"They work on that throw to the back shoulder all the time. Matter of fact, this summer I saw Graham (Harrell) and Crab work on it while I was doing the StairMaster (that overlooks the Tech practice fields) for an hour - for an hour - just an out cut, fade, either fade over the top or fade throw back (shoulder). I don’t know how many routes they ran, but that’s a lot of routes."
​
Here's the really probing question: Ruffin McNeill spends an hour on a StairMaster?
• No hard feelings. Just wait till next year. Payback? Running it up? Padding the stats? No, no, no. Urban Meyer called those late timeouts with a huge lead against Georgia just to, you know, give Emmanuel Moody a little work:
"What was the deal?," Meyer said, repeating the question. "Moody was running the ball real hard and I wanted to get him a couple of more carries. He deserved it."
The Florida media laughed in scoff.
"It seemed like you might have been trying to rub it in there," one reporter said.
"No," Meyer replied. "Just trying to win the game."
​
ept_sports_ncaaf_experts-520729336-1225720942.jpg
Mark Richt can't argue with that, although he was a little sick about how the afternoon went down, overall. Matt Stafford wasn't feeling too good, either.
• When Hackett's around, Garcia goes down, one way or another. Wilbur Hackett Jr., former Kentucky captain and Umpire of Infamy after taking down Stephen Garcia three weeks ago in the most-watched Web clip of the year, was back in Columbia for the Gamecocks' win over Tennessee. Referee and quarterback shared a laugh before the game, which Garcia eloquently recollected for The State:
"Before the game, he was like, 'Hey what’s up man,'" Garcia said. "I said, 'Sorry about all that crazy stuff that happened.' He’s like, 'Hey it’s over now.' So we're cool about it."
​
Then Garcia was all like, "Oh no, I totally hyperextended my knee chasing Eric Berry after an interception." Steve Spurrier thinks his quarterback will be OK, but the ever-vigilant Chris Smelley is warming up extra hard, just in case.
Quickly ... California's Kevin Riley got up woozy and left the game after a hit against Oregon and still has to undergo tests to determine if his fragile brain is okay for USC. ... Tennessee offensive lineman Ramon Foster has started 22 straight games but is questionable against Wyoming with a concussion, and Vol running back Montario Hardesty is banded up, again. ... Colorado freshman running back Rodney Stewart is out until a bowl game, at the earliest, if the Buffs can even get into one. ... Pete Carroll finds humor in everything, even USC dropping two spots in the BCS following its third shutout win in four games. ... Hey Pitt may have a winner in this Bostick kid. (LeSean McCoy's a nice bonus, too). ... And Bill Stewart does his best Don Rickles while imploring pollsters to leave streaking West Virginia out of the top-25, where all its troubles began in September: "We were ranked all right -- we were rank."
 
Girls of Texas Tech

By Rick on November 2nd, 2008
No. 7 ranked Texas Tech pulled off a stunning victory against the No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns.
The black-clad Texas Tech students had camped out since Monday night to see the biggest game in their school’s history and they were not disappointed. With seconds ticking off the play clock and Texas Tech losing by a point, Quarterback, Graham Harrell saw wideout Michael Crabtree in double coverage and let it rip. The All-American wide receiver snagged it on the sideline, shook off a defender and ducked into the end zone with one second left to score the winning touchdown.
As the game came to a 39-33 close with Texas Tech on top, students stormed the field to celebrate. Let’s look at some of the sexy Texas Tech girls that were probably part of the mayhem.




















































































































































































































 
What is with this western mich play ???

i see it on several respected cards this week , including yours. What is the angle here ?


have to laugh that you are laying that with arizona on the road because i know you are correct in doing it. my balls shrivel up at those huge numbers even when i know it is the right side.

really interested in hearing why wmich is the play this week
 
vegaskyle said:
What is with this western mich play ???

i see it on several respected cards this week , including yours. What is the angle here ?


have to laugh that you are laying that with arizona on the road because i know you are correct in doing it. my balls shrivel up at those huge numbers even when i know it is the right side.

really interested in hearing why wmich is the play this week
Click to expand...

Situational play. WMU huge non-conf home game and Illinois in a let-down/sandwich spot.
 
Phil Fulmer Has Reportedly Agreed to Step Down as Tennessee Head Coach After 2008

from The FanHouse - NCAAfootball
Filed under: Tennessee, SEC, NCAA FB Coaching, NCAA FB Fans, NCAA FB Media Watch, NCAA FB Rumors
pf.jpg
Tennessee Volunteer football has had a few very distinguishable faces over the years. Peyton Manning, Tee Martin (kidding) and Phil Fulmer. And, like all college programs, regardless of the talent level of a particular player, it is the coach that always remains in the spotlight and as the face of the program, long after certain athletes graduate.

But it appears, based on what ESPN is reporting, that Fulmer will no longer be the face of Tennessee, having agreed to step down as head coach of the Volunteers following a miserable 2008 showing.
An announcement is being planned for later Monday at Neyland Stadium. The Vols (3-6, 1-5 SEC) have lost four straight games and are in danger of suffering their second losing season in the last four years.

Fulmer, who's won 150 games at his alma mater and is the dean of SEC coaches, met with Tennessee officials Monday morning, and they reached a mutual agreement that it would be best for all parties if Fulmer was not back next season.
​
It's an unsurprising shock, really, because this rumor has been floating out there for some time, and the Vols aren't even popular in Knoxville this year (that's the unsurprising part). Well, that and the fact that FanHouse mentioned this several times in recent weeks.

It's shocking because Fulmer -- with the help of Duke head coach David Cutcliffe -- developed a slew of great football players and won a national championship with the Volunteer program. That's not to say he should be immune from scrutiny by any means, but he did establish Tennessee as an SEC power in the 1990's, and he did bring a championship to his alma mater.

What this proves, though, is that there are only one or two coaches in the entire nation that are immune to a bad run, and that you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone outside of Bobby Bowden or Joe Paterno that simply couldn't get fired. On the bright side for Fulmer, he's at least being given the somewhat respectable option of "stepping down."
 
Making The Case: the Florida Gators Are America's Best Team

from The FanHouse - NCAAfootball
Filed under: Florida, SEC
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You wouldn't know it by the BCS standings where the Gators are ranked fifth after 10 weeks of play, but Florida is America's best team. Since losing to Mississippi at home in late September, the Gators have been on an unmerciful tear ritually beating Arkansas (38-7), LSU (51-21), Kentucky (63-5) and Georgia (49-10).

I realize college football convention says that the undefeated teams are the nation's best -- hello, Alabama and Penn State -- but if you're talking about what team is actually the best in the country right now, the Gators are that team.

Just as Georgia found its groove last year after beating Vanderbilt and then staging that odd celebration in the end zone against Florida, the Gators found their groove after losing to Mississippi. After the game quarterback Tim Tebow tearfully and emotionally met the media in a bizarre scene vowing to right the ship and work harder than any other team. It was unconfortable and not the most inspiring, but holy cow has it worked.

Look, even in this anything goes age there are some things you can count on in college football. People are going to grouse about the polls. Notre Dame is going to receive inordinate attention. The tailgating will forever be awesome. And points will be hard to come by in SEC play.

All of which makes Florida's current play so amazing. To date, the Gators' lowest point total in conference play is 30 against Ole Miss. They scored seven -- seven (!) -- touchdowns against Georgia a week after thrashing Kentucky, the SEC's best statistical defense at the time, for 63 points. Lest we forget, they also rained 51 points on defending national champs LSU, long a powerful defensive squad.

The defense, long rumored to be Florida's Achilles heel these past two seasons, has finally arrived allowing just over 10 points/game the last four games. It took a season and a half under Tim Tebow, but Florida has finally become a complete team and is playing great football on both sides and special teams. Overall in eight games, Florida has allowed more than 10 points but twice.

The effort against Georgia was particularly notable. At times Georgia moved against the Gators' defense with effortless ease, but when the field got smaller Florida snapped into action, picking off Matt Stafford -- who we'll see in the NFL next year -- three times. Overall Georgia was still held under 400 yards and stopped moving the ball early in the third quarter. It was rope-a-dope football played to perfection, taking a page from USC's defensive playbook.

Yes, they do have that mark against them, a single loss against Ole Miss, but personally I've never been one to disqualify teams for just one loss. I'm more interested in their body of work particularly how they've played in recent games. Its frustrating to the by-the-books college football crowd but if I had a vote I'd enthusiastically cast it for Florida over other noteworthies with slightly superior records like Alabama, Penn State and Texas Tech.

Why shouldn't I? The Gators are better than them. All of this can change next week of course, but to at least this observer its obvious who should be No. 1.Making The Case: the Florida Gators Are America's Best Team originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 03 Nov 2008 11:43:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Running Back Success Rates against Arkansas State

from Roll 'Bama Roll by Todd

Mark Ingram, ladies and gentlemen, give him a hand!​
Time to look at the Running Back Success Rates of the three primary backs from this weekend, Mark Ingram, Glen Coffee, and Roy Upchurch. To refresh your memories (or if this is the first time you've seen this), each individual rush is considered on it's own, and measured by it's "success." A run is considered successful if it gets 40% of the yardage needed to move the chains on first down, 60% of the yardage needed on second down, and 100% of the yardage needed on third or fourth down. This is a much more accurate overall picture of how well a running back does in a game than just the total yardage or ypc averages because it ignores big run outliers that can skew those kinds of stats. First up is leading rusher Mark Ingram, who carried 12 times for 113 yards (9.4 ypc) and 2 TDs:

Ingram finished the game as the primary back in relief of Glen Coffee, who started the game and had the most early carries before suffering a bruised bicep in the first half that caused the medical staff to hold him out the rest of the game. As you can tell from the numbers Ingram filled in quite capably, finishing with a very good 9 of 12 tally for a 75% success rate overall (and in both halfs, so consistency what!), a far cry from the 0% showing in Knoxville. Next up, the aforementioned Mr. Coffee:

Considering a stat line that reads "9 rushes for 56 yards (6.2 ypc) and 1 TD" is pretty good for a guy splitting time with two other backs, Coffee didn't have that good of a game as far as success rates go. He finished at 56% before being pulled after the bicep bruise, and it was actually a step back from his 58% performance against UT. He had some success in the early goings and seemed to hit his stride after the TD run, but considering he was out after only 9 carries and early in the second quarter it's hard to say how well he may or may not have done with more carries to average out. Finally, the hero of last week's win, Mr. Roy Upchurch:

Like Coffee, Upchurch's numbers (5 carries for 31 yards (6.2ypc) and a TD) sound good for a back that's splitting time, but the big 22 yard TD run inflates those numbers, as Upchurch finished with a 60% overall rating and a 50% rating in the second half, where four of his five carries took place. Even more damning is the fact that the two unsuccessful carries were for no gain and a loss. As someone mentioned last week, though, thankfully we have three guys who can carry the load and when one is struggling, there's another that can step in for a change of pace. I also forgot to post the carry percentages with last week's post, so here is the current stats with both UT and Arkansas St. factored in:

Coffee is still clearly the leader with 38% of the carries so far, though Ingram's time on Saturday has helped him close the gap, and the fact that he came in as the primary back after Coffee's injury instead of Upchurch even after his struggles and Upchurch's heroics in Knoxville should tell us that Ingram is the guy the coaches trust the most after Coffee.
 
Mack rails against postgame celebration

from Bevo Beat

Texas coach Mack Brown opened his weekly news conference after Saturday’s loss at Texas Tech by calling for a clampdown on postgame security. Thousands of Texas Tech fans stormed the field at Jones AT&T Stadium after the game — actually, some of them jumped the gun and ran onto the field with one second still on the clock.
“It’s really, really dangerous,” Brown said. “It’s amazing, with all the talk about security, that we’ll turn everybody loose.”
Brown said that Colt McCoy was pushed by Tech fans. Brown said he wasn’t able to congratulate Tech coach Mike Leach and, for the first time at Texas, was unable to join the players near the Longhorn Band for the postgame singing of “The Eyes of Texas.”
Brown went out of his way to twice say that he didn’t blame those fans or the Tech officials who failed to control the situation. Rather, he called for Big 12 and NCAA rules to keep fans off the field after games.
“I’m afraid that in my lifetime there’ll be a tragedy, and then we’ll change the rules,” Brown said.
He complimented his own staff and players for their behavior on the field and in media interviews after the game. “All reports are they handled themselves well,” Brown said. “I really appreciate the class the team and coaches showed.”
 
Injuries linger for Horns, Mack says

from Bevo Beat
“We’re banged up,” Texas coach Mack Brown said Monday. Texas lost receiver Quan Cosby, end Brian Orakpo and tackle Roy Miller at various points during the loss at Texas Tech. Miller was able to return later in the game, while the status for Orakpo and Cosby remains uncertain.
“Some will not play this week,” Brown said. “A lot won’t practice this week.”
He didn’t clarify the status of any individual players.
 
Don't single out Gideon, Mack says

from Bevo Beat
Texas coach Mack Brown said Monday that it’s unfair to single out Blake Gideon’s dropped interception as the defining play in three-and-a-half hours of football.
Gideon had the ball go through his hands after a pass was deflected. One play later, Tech’s Graham Harrell connected with Michael Crabtree for the game-winning score.
“Everybody had something that we could have done better,” Brown said, noting that Gideon’s mistake wasn’t the only one. He cited himself for poor clock management, leaving Tech with enough time to mount the game-winning drive.
“I’m at fault as much as he is,” Brown said of Gideon. “All of our guys feel bad. It wasn’t just him.”
 
Last-second loss was a new one for Brown

from Bevo Beat

Texas coach Mack Brown was asked Monday whether he’d ever lost game like he did Saturday in Lubbock — with an opponent scoring the winning touchdown with one second on the clock.
“Not in 33 years,” Brown replied. “Never lost an overtime game. Never lost with one second on the clock.”
 
Drop, drop, drop, drop, drop, drop, drop

from Bevo Beat
Longhorn coaches put the official tally at dropped passes by Texas receivers at seven.
Offensive coordinator Greg Davis and receivers coach Bobby Kennedy watched the tape of the Tech game separately to evaluate the receivers. Davis said he counted six passes that he thought should’ve been caught; Kennedy put the number at seven.
“Whoever’s right, it doesn’t matter,” Davis said. “It’s way too many.”
He termed the Texas’ receivers’ play “extremely uncharacteristic” and was at a loss to explain it. “It has to be focus,” he said.
Head coach Mack Brown praised the play of quarterback Colt McCoy. “I thought Colt played well,” Brown said. “He had the one bad throw he wishes he could have back. … He didn’t get a lot of help at times.”
 
Texas to send in disputed calls

from Bevo Beat
As they do after many games, Longhorn coaches plan to send a tape of disputed calls to the Big 12 office. Mack Brown just shrugged when asked whether he thought anything would come of Texas’ report on the officiating.
He didn’t say how many plays they were questioning, nor did he cite any examples.
Likewise, he didn’t bite when given numerous chances to address the lack of holding calls — something that Texas fans have been railing about since Saturday.
 
Ogbonnaya slowed by ankle injury

from Bevo Beat

One question (of many) that emerged out of Saturday’s game was the sporadic use of starting Texas tailback Chris Ogbonnaya. He carried just six times and was replaced by Vondrell McGee and then Fozzy Whittaker as the game progressed.
On Monday, Texas coaches disclosed that Ogbonnaya had been hobbled by left ankle injury last week.
Texas offensive coordinator Greg Davis said he regrets not putting Whittaker in the game earlier. The redshirt freshman showed some much-needed burst late in the game, including a 21-yard run, the longest by a Longhorn running back.
Davis and Mack Brown both were critical of their team’s running game. Davis said he would continue to evaluate his running backs.
 
Profiles in Disillusion: Michigan's still free-fallin'

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
A weekly look at conquered favorites and other notables picking up the pieces of shattered ambition.
ept_sports_ncaaf_experts-335701282-1225742585.jpg

There are no answers. But we'll fire that one coach anyway. There's not much left to dissect about the agony in Michigan. Ann Arbor is beyond disillusion. The Wolverines scored 42 points against Purdue, easily their best offensive game of this historically wretched season, and that still wasn't enough to beat a first-time starting quarterback who'd spent most of the year at running back, and who's not even guaranteed to start next Saturday for a hopeless team under a lame duck coach who has no incentive whatsoever to return to senior Curtis Painter. That is, even Purdue doesn't think Justin Siller's that good, but the redshirt freshman completely shredded Michigan for the Wolverines' fifth loss in a row. So even if it's too late to do anything about hiring Rich Rodriguez, defensive coordinator Scott Shafer has no such security:
Here is what I know: Rich Rodriguez is not going anywhere, even if Michigan loses its final three games by 50 points each. He will be back for 2009 ... and 2010 ... and probably beyond.
Here is what I think: A team like Michigan, with all its pride and history, cannot go 3-9 or 2-10 and have everything stay the same.
And, with that said, there is an obvious candidate to be scapegoated - and it's Scott Shafer.
​
Commence scapegoating! The usually patient MGoBlog's progressive frustration with Shafer has boiled over into the closest Brian Cook will come to saying, "Fire the bum!" -- "... the inbox is filled with emails asking whether Shafer needs to go. [...] I can no longer say so for certain" -- and Maize 'n Brew puts the loss 'squarely on Shafer's shoulders' (in context, "a less effective Ron English" is the insult of the week).
Maybe they can bring in a JUCO coach until the younger guys come around. The Wildcat Web sites are all but done with Ron Prince after Kansas State's fourth loss in five games -- and the third of those four in which KSU's defense gave up at least 31 points in the first half en route to 50-plus for the game -- at Kansas, but Jason Whitlock says a new coach won't solve much bigger problems in Manhattan. And the big man's not afraid to name names:
There’s a crisis of leadership at Kansas State. I could see it most clearly when I reached the K-State sideline early in the fourth quarter. Back over my left shoulder were Kansas’ beautiful, brand-new practice facilities. Ahead and off to my left were Mark Mangino’s new offices and football complex. All around me was a stadium packed with excited Kansas fans.
[...]
[KSU president Jon] Wefald is on a farewell tour; he’s retiring at the end of the school year. No one I know can understand why [AD Bob] Krause was tabbed to lead the athletics department.
Why would TCU’s Gary Patterson take the K-State job? Wisconsin’s Brett Bielema has a right to feel insulted that his name is even being gossiped about.
Many K-State fans want Prince fired. Who is going to hire his successor? And who would be foolish enough to apply for the job given the current leadership void?
​
ept_sports_ncaaf_experts-332614773-1225742621.jpg
Whitlock insists he's no Prince apologist, but he's not exactly easy on the players, either: gargantuan scout favorite Josh Freeman has turned the ball over 13 times in three games against the Jayhawks, including a goal line fumble Saturday that "defies reason or explanation"; Freeman's supporting cast is "midmajor"; and his "tiny receivers" can't catch. The outrageously JUCO-heavy recruiting class has been a bust, With Freeman eligible for the draft after this season, the writing is on the wall:
Again, the problem is there are no good solutions for 2009. Without a president in place, a legitimate athletic director and a concrete plan, no promising, intelligent coach would take the K-State job.
[...]
The more prudent move might be to do nothing for one year, install a school president, develop a serious game plan for improvement and forbid Prince from recruiting more than two or three jucos this offseason.
​
Let me repeat: I am not pleading for Ron Prince’s job. Sometimes you have to swallow your medicine and absorb the beating you earned. If you rush in with a quick-fix solution, you might prolong the beating.
Ron Prince in '09: Because it could get even worse! But only barely!
Optimism abounds. Bo Pelini says it's no time to overreact, so Corn Nation decided to look on the bright side of Nebraska's 62-28 loss at Oklahoma:
After giving them 28 points ... we played fairly well.
​
Yes, after the Huskers spotted the Sooners a four-touchdown lead less than six minutes into the game by committing three turnovers in their first five offensive snaps, they did alright. Only got outscored 34-28 the rest of the way, in fact, though not even most of the press on hand in Norman noticed: they were too busy watching Texas and Texas Tech. Maybe they'll also fail to notice that Nebraska's 5-4 and might need to win two of its last three against Kansas, Kansas State and Colorado to avoid missing a bowl for the second year in a row.
Elsewhere in Disillusion: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Mark Bradley compiles all the times he was wrong about Georgia. ... Texas still sees a light at the end of the BCS tunnel. ... And Wisconsin's athletic department is giving away tickets to the season finale against Cal-Poly following the Badgers' fifth loss in six games.
 
Mailbag: Texas Rose Bowl Edition

from Burnt Orange Nation by PB @ BON
With each passing week in this crazy season comes more and more email to my inbox. As always, I try to respond to everyone's email individually or on the site. I will never use anyone's full name unless you explicitly authorize me to.
I read your post on all the various scenarios. Thanks for putting that together. I personally don't think we're gonna get to Miami, but what do you think might the most likely "dream scenario" if Miami doesn't happen?
--Kendall R.
​
If Penn State or Tech win out, Miami's not happening, you're right. If either team loses, it'll get interesting. But let's take Miami out of the equation for a moment and consider my other Dream Scenario, which I didn't mention in that post, but talked about briefly during Sunday night's podcast.
Assume the following:

  1. Penn State wins out, goes to Miami.
  2. Tech beats OSU.
  3. OU beats Tech.
  4. OSU beats OU.
  5. SEC champ gets Miami bid.
  6. Texas wins out.
In this scenario, Texas Tech wins the Big 12 South, and either they or the Big 12 North winner get the auto-bid to the Fiesta Bowl. National Title Game is Penn State vs Bama/Florida. And now we move to Texas' bowl game.
Would the Longhorns be BCS bound? Absolutely. Most likely destination? Either the Sugar Bowl or Rose Bowl, who have first dibs on replacing their tie-in teams lost to the national title game. I think it's more likely than not that in this scenario the Sugar Bowl would take the Bama-UF runner-up to preserve the SEC tie-in, with the Rose Bowl snagging Texas. A Trojans-Longhorns rematch in the Rose Bowl? Yes, please.
Outside the chance to play for a conference or national title, could Texas fans ask for anything more? The Rose Bowl is a perfect January destination, we'd likely face an 11-1 USC team, and--get this--the stage would be set for 2009, which will also conclude in Pasadena, as it'll the Rose Bowl's turn to host the national title.
Deja vu?
(Final note: this scenario also works if Tech wins out, but loses Big 12 Title Game. Pretty much any scenario where Penn State plays in Miami and Texas finishes 11-1 but short of Kansas City is likely to lead to a trip to the Rose Bowl.)
 
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Video of Mack Brown’s news conference:
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Adding:

Rice -9 (-110)

Rice should outscore Army badly. The only hope for Army is to keep Rice off the field for long enough to keep it close. Don't think that will happen.
 
[FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]Fiu's Cavalcade of Whimsy[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]
[/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif]
a.k.a. Frank Costanza's Festivus Airing of the Grievances [/FONT][FONT=verdana, arial, sans serif][SIZE=-2]

By Pete Fiutak
What's your beef? ... Fire off your thoughts
Past Whimsies [/SIZE][/FONT] 2006 Season | 2007 Season
- Preseason Cavalcade | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4
- Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9
If this column sucks, it’s not my fault … I’m trying to cover the Texas Tech receivers, but Graham Harrell keeps throwing it behind me on these back-shoulder, stop short routes.

Sorry, but the Guns Up hand sign that looks like they’re saying “Loser” doesn’t help the perception … Is anyone giving Texas Tech a real, honest shot of playing for the national title? The assumption is that the bottom will drop out at some point against either Oklahoma State this week or Oklahoma, and if the Red Raiders magically get through those two games, then comes Missouri. Maybe it’s because Tech has a 2007 Missouri/Kansas feel, or maybe it’s because it’s Texas Tech, but don’t just assume this team has no realistic chance of running the table. It’s not like the Oklahoma defense is stopping anyone, and Oklahoma State, while incredible offensively, might not have the pass rush to consistently get to Graham Harrell. This is a veteran team that can play defense and can run the ball as well as chuck it. It's the real deal.

“Thank you Mr. Cowboy, I'll take it under advisement. Hit it again.” … Football is an easy sport to figure out. Just get to the quarterback. Ask Tom Brady about the New York Giants. However, the true measure of the top quarterbacks is to see how they roduce when getting the tar beaten out of them. Colt McCoy was thrown around like a rag doll at times throughout the loss to Texas Tech, and he still kept coming back to do what was needed late to get the win. Of course, Harrell, who had time to throw on that epic final touchdown pass, just happened to be better.

“Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a bomb on a bus. Once the bus goes 50 miles an hour, the bomb is armed. If it drops below 50 it blows up. What do you do? What do you do?” … According to the AP poll, Texas is ranked fifth and Oklahoma sixth. Of course, that doesn’t matter because the AP rankings are irrelevant. The two polls that actually influence the world have it embarrassingly wrong and without any possible reasoning. By what possible justification is Texas, who beat the Sooners 45-35, ranked seventh in the Coaches’ Poll while Oklahoma is fourth? According to the Harris Poll, Oklahoma is fifth and Texas sixth (the Longhorns even got one first place vote). If Michael Crabtree loses his balance just a little bit and his back heel goes down out of bounds, Texas probably survives the Texas Tech game and is the unquestioned number one. It took a perfect, perfect last second play for the Longhorns to end up losing, while Oklahoma, again, lost in the Red River Rivalry by 10.

Remembering that the Harris and Coaches’ Polls combine for two-thirds of the BCS rankings, the pollsters have to be better, and they have to be far, far smarter and more vigilant than this. Every once in a while I try to provide a little weed-‘em-out help with a test I demand all pollsters need to take to determine whether or not they know enough to continue voting in these polls. Simply put, if you can’t answer all five of these questions correctly, you shouldn’t be allowed to vote in a Mr. Tight Buns competition, much less the college football polls.

1. Name three players on BCS No. 1 ranked Alabama not named John Parker Wilson.

2. Name the BCS No. 10 ranked Boise State starting quarterback.

3. Who are Dez Bryant, Nate Davis, and Jerry Hughes?

4. Did Jamaal Charles run for more or less than 50 yards against Texas Tech?

5. Name two Penn State wide receivers.

“You shut your mouth how can you say/I go about things the wrong way/I am human and I need to be loved/just like everybody else does” … I keep getting laughed at/yelled at every time I say this, but mark my words, the Tommy Bowden/Phil Fulmer how-soon-is-now? clock is ticking on Georgia head coach Mark Richt.

He’s not on a hot seat, and he won’t be next year, but at what point does it become a problem that he can’t get his program over the hump? Florida not only isn’t going away, it’s getting stronger. Meanwhile, Tennessee is only going to be better with whatever A list hire it comes up with to replace Phil Fulmer. Forgive me for fanning the inferno of unfair and unrealistically high expectations for a guy who has gone 79-21, but this was supposed to be it for Richt. This was the year. Matt Stafford is a mortal lock to be off to the NFL early. So is Knowshon Moreno, and while the Dawgs have running backs by the truckload, there isn’t another top five draft pick bomber hanging around campus.

This is year eight for Richt, and not only did the preseason No. 1 team not live up to the ranking, it was blasted in two of its big tests (Alabama and Florida). Granted, injuries have played a key role, but if coaches refuse to use bumps and bruises as an excuse (try asking any big-time head coach worth his salt about hurt players), then I won’t. Since Georgia last won a national championship, Florida has won two, LSU has two, Tennessee one and Alabama has one. SEC fans are a lot of things, but they're not patient.

Maybe he ended up being canned because everyone thought his barefoot kicking style for the Philadelphia Eagles was just too weird … How’d that Tony Franklin firing go for Auburn? Since Tommy Tuberville whacked his offensive coordinator, Auburn has lost to insanely mediocre Arkansas, West Virginia, and Ole Miss teams, and now is on the verge of missing a bowl game. Meanwhile, the offense has gotten even worse.

“You drop a pass, you run a mile. You miss a blocking assignment, you run a mile. You fumble the football, and I will break my foot off in your John Brown hindparts ... and then you will run a mile.” ... Even though the veins are popping in the neck and with bile blowing up in the belly, head coaches always have to put on a brave face and a positive spin after their quarterbacks give up a big interception for a touchdown. This last weekend, from Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald, to Nebraska’s Bo Pelini, to Texas’ Mack Brown, the reaction was the same. They all clapped, they all yelled “let’s go,” and the all nodded their heads as if to make it look like the interception returned for a touchdown could actually have been a positive. Who couldn’t use that sort of encouragement after screwing up?

Awwww, dinner was awful … “Let’s go, let’s go.”

Alan Greenspan’s shocked disbelief? … (clapping) “Focus on the next play, that’s fine, that’s fine, shake it off.”

Yet another poorly written article? … Yanked for Chris Smelley after the visor is picked up off the ground. Not all of us get breaks.

“Alright Brain, you don't like me, and I don't like you. But lets just do this, and I can get back to killing you with beer.” … Two strategy gaffes in the heat of the moment in two of last week’s better games. The first came by Wisconsin’s Bret Bielema, who called a time out just before Michigan State’s Brett Swenson nailed a 44-yard field goal for a 25-24 Spartan win. Michigan State didn’t have any time outs left and had to hurry on to the field and rush the attempt, but Bielema bailed the Swenson and the field goal team out by calling the time out. While the announcers criticized Bielema, it would’ve been a good move to save a little bit of time. Instead of the clock running out, you call the time out to give your offense a shot if the field goal is good. And then that excuse went out the window when Bielema called a second time out.

The second mistake came from Mike Leach in the Texas Tech win over Texas. After the Michael Crabtree touchdown grab there was just one second to play with the Red Raiders up 38-33. Why not go for two? At that point, the only possible thing that could hurt you would be a miraculous kickoff return for a touchdown, and if Texas could’ve pulled that off, it would’ve won the game with the extra point. Why not try to push the score to seven?

“You have chosen wisely. But the Grail cannot pass beyond the Great Seal. That is the boundary and the price of immortality.” … I was the Grand Marshal of the Tebow For Heisman parade last year, and I keep believing Florida will win the national championship this season. With that said, consider me the head of the Brotherhood of the Cruciform Sword when it comes to giving out a second Heisman. I’m not sure I’m ready to make Tim Tebow a college football immortal.

Looking back, Archie Griffin really didn’t deserve to be the lone two-time Heisman winner, but that was before my time. The second two-time Heisman winner needs to be someone truly special, an elite once-in-a-generation talent, and not just a great player on a great team. Tebow might be close, and if he leads the Gators to the national title, then yes, in hindsight, I’ll accept a second Heisman. Anything less, and I’m chasing Tebow around Europe, including a boat battle in Venice, in an attempt to keep the honor safe. Meanwhile, me and my brethren will have an image of Herschel Walker tattooed into my chest as a reminder of the player who actually deserved to be a two-timer, and the caliber of player one has to be to get a second award.

The C.O.W. airing of the grievances followed by the feats of strength

We’re still a few weeks away from the end of the regular season, but by this point, it’s relatively easy to figure out who the best and worst coaches of the year have been. Terry Bowden is already gone, Ty Willingham and Phil Fulmer will be gone, and there are many more openings on the way. So while this might change a little, here’s my 2nd Annual Five Best and Worst Coaching Jobs Done This Season along with every team’s coaching status.

Worst Coaching Job of the Year – Fifth Place

Larry Fedora, Southern Miss
In a controversial move, Jeff Bower was let go at Southern Miss last year after 14 straight winning seasons. He left the cupboard stocked with decent talent from a team that went 7-6, got to a bowl game, and led Conference USA last year in scoring defense and was second in total defense. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 70-14 win over UAB, but under Fedora, they’re 3-6 overall, 1-4 in Conference USA play, and are 100th in the nation in defense.
Worst Coaching Job of the Year – Fourth Place

Shane Montgomery, Miami University
Last year’s Miami team won the MAC East thanks to the league’s second best defense and top scoring D. This year, with everyone coming back, this was a loaded RedHawk team that was supposed to be special, especially on defense thanks to its tremendous linebacking corps. Instead, MU is 2-6 win just one win over an FBS team while the defense is giving up more than 30 points per game. The offense is the second-worst in the league.

Worst Coaching Job of the Year – Third Place
Rich Rodriguez, Michigan
The season was all but over the moment Terrelle Pryor signed with Ohio State. However, most recruiting gurus knew early on that Pryor was a long shot for Michigan, yet Rodriguez’s first big move turned out to be a disaster as he put all the eggs in one basket. Granted, RichRod didn’t have all the talent to work with that Lloyd Carr had at the end of last year, but the defense was in place and the running game should’ve been great from the start thanks to a good backfield. Now it’s November, Brandon Minor is finally a huge part of the offense, and Michigan is out of the bowl picture for the first time in 33 years.Worst Coaching Job of the Year – Second Place

Tommy Tuberville, Auburn
The Buck Stops Here. Tony Franklin was made the scapegoat for a disappointing start, but for all the problems, Auburn was 4-2 after a tight loss to Vanderbilt. Since then, the Tigers, who came into the season with good enough running backs and a strong enough defense to win the SEC West, have lost three straight and have gotten worse. If Franklin was such a drag on the team, then Tuberville has to be blamed for making the hire in the first place. Now Auburn is 4-5 and needs to beat either Georgia of Alabama, after the layup against UT Martin, to go bowling.

Worst Coaching Job of the Year – First Place

Bret Bielema, Wisconsin
Bielma is better than this. Far, far better. The Badgers came into the season with enough talent and experience to be a sleeper for the national title, and at the very least, they should’ve been a player in the hunt for the Big Ten championship. Instead, the coaching staff made the wrong call on starting quarterback Allan Evridge, the defense can’t tackle, and the in-game adjustments weren’t there to slow down the momentum in the epic collapse against Michigan and the gag against Michigan State. The team didn’t show up against Penn State and Iowa, and now, at 1-5 in the Big Ten and 4-5 overall, it might take a clean sweep of Indiana, Minnesota and Cal Poly (the nation’s leading FBS offense and fourth ranked rushing attack) just to go bowling.

Best Coaching Job of the Year – Fifth Place

Al Groh, Virginia
Virginia had not only started out the season getting blasted by USC 52-7, but it lost to Duke 31-0. It was over. The Cavs were 1-3 with no offensive production whatsoever, Al Groh was a lame-duck coach, and the season was over. And then came the 31-0 win over Maryland, the decision to boot QB Peter Lalich off the team for legal issues, and pump up Marc Verica into the number one spot. And the team started winning. The overtime loss to Miami last week notwithstanding, the Cavaliers have turned things around thanks to the ability to come through late time and again.

Best Coaching Job of the Year – Fourth Place

Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech
Johnson hardly had all the pieces in place when he took over, yet he has managed to get his brand of offense working. He had to change around the offensive line, he had to rely on young, untested quarterbacks, and he has led the way to close win after close win. Four wins came by four points or fewer, and the two losses have come by a total of ten points.

Best Coaching Job of the Year – Third Place

Ken Niumatalolo, Navy
Paul Johnson might have set the wheels in motion, but Niumatalolo has kept it all going despite the loss of starting QB Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada for stretches. It’s hard to properly convey the huge disparity of talent between Navy and many of the D-I schools it faces, yet there were wins over Rutgers and Wake Forest on the way to yet another bowl game. Navy has already accepted the bid for the EagleBank Bowl.

Best Coaching Job of the Year – Second Place

Nick Saban, Alabama
Don’t forget that Alabama was supposed to be at least a year away from being a major player. The tone was set for the season with the 34-10 win over Clemson to start, while the first half against Georgia was breathtaking. Even though things haven’t always been smooth, the Kentucky and Ole Miss games were a bit too close for comfort; Saban has been able to keep the team focused all the way to the No. 1 spot in the BCS rankings. The defense has been tremendous, while the offense has done its job with the SEC’s best running game and an efficient passing attack.

Best Coaching Job of the Year – First Place

Tim Brewster, Minnesota
Minnesota went 1-11 last year with the lone victory coming in overtime over Miami University. The Gophers lost their final ten games thanks to the nation’s worst defense, no pass rush, and an inability to hang on to the ball. They were 114<sup>th</sup> in the nation in turnover margin. Brewster hired former Duke head coach Ted Roof to handle the defense, instilled an aggressive attitude from game one, and now, the team is 7-2, going to a bowl, and is second in the nation in turnover margin helped by one of the Big Ten’s best pass rushes. The defense isn’t anything special, but while it bends, it doesn’t break all that often. The Coaching Status For Every Team

As the saying goes, coaches, like Wal-Mart greeters, are hired to be fired. At this point in the year, with a few big-name coaches already fired, fan bases of the underachieving start to wonder about the possibility of getting a new head coach to turn things around. Which ones are really in trouble? Here’s a quick breakdown of all 119 coaching situations.

“Well, he's...he's, ah...probably pining for the fjords.”
100% job security for 2009. Outside of something crazy happening, these coaches are all going to be back next year.

Alabama: Nick Saban; Arkansas: Bobby Petrino; Arkansas State: Steve Roberts; Arizona State: Dennis Erickson; Army: Stan Brock; Baylor: Art Briles; Boston College: Jeff Jagodzinski; Bowling Green: Gregg Brandon; California: Jeff Tedford; Central Michigan: Butch Jones; Cincinnati: Brian Kelly; Colorado State: Steve Fairchild; Connecticut: Randy Edsall; Duke: David Cutcliffe; Florida: Urban Meyer; Florida Atlantic: Howard Schnellenberger; Florida International: Mario Cristobal; Fresno State: Pat Hill; Georgia: Mark Richt; Georgia Tech: Paul Johnson; Hawaii: Greg McMackin. Houston: Kevin Sumlin; Illinois: Ron Zook; Iowa State: Gene Chizik; Kansas: Mark Mangino; Kentucky: Rich Brooks; Louisiana Tech: Derek Dooley; LSU: Les Miles; Marshall: Mark Snyder; Maryland: Ralph Friedgen; Miami: Randy Shannon; Michigan State: Mark Dantonio; Middle Tennessee: Rick Stockstill; Minnesota: Tim Brewster; Missouri: Gary Pinkel; Navy: Ken Niumatalolo; Nebraska: Bo Pelini; New Mexico: Rocky Long; North Carolina: Butch Davis; NC State: Tom O’Brien; Northern Illinois: Jerry Kill; Northwestern: Pat Fitzgerald; Notre Dame: Charlie Weis; Ohio: Frank Solich; Ohio State: Jim Tressel; Oklahoma: Bob Stoops; Oklahoma State: Mike Gundy; Ole Miss: Houston Nutt; Oregon: Mike Bellotti; Oregon State: Mike Riley; Pitt: Dave Wannstedt; Purdue: Danny Hope; Rutgers: Greg Schiano; San Jose State: Dick Tomey; SMU: June Jones; South Carolina: Steve Spurrier; South Florida: Jim Leavitt; Southern Miss: Larry Fedora; Texas: Mack Brown; Texas A&M: Mike Sherman; Troy: Larry Blakeney; Tulane: Bob Toledo; UAB: Neil Callaway; UCF: George O’Leary; UCLA: Rick Neuheisel; UL Lafayette: Rickey Bustle; USC: Pete Carroll; Utah: Kyle Whittingham; Vanderbilt: Bobby Johnson; Virginia: Al Groh; Virginia Tech: Frank Beamer; Wake Forest: Jim Grobe; West Virginia: Bill Stewart; Western Michigan: Bill Cubit; Wisconsin: Bret Bielema

“No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'. Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage.”
A.K.A. Double Secret Probation. 2009 had better be big or there won’t be a 2010, and a least three of them will be fired..

Akron: J.D. Brookhart; Arizona: Mike Stoops; Auburn: Tommy Tuberville; Colorado: Dan Hawkins; Idaho: Robb Akey; Indiana: Bill Lynch; Iowa: Kirk Ferentz; Nevada: Kansas State: Ron Prince; Louisville: Steve Kragthorpe; Memphis: Tommy West; Miami University: Shane Montgomery; Michigan: Rich Rodriguez; Mississippi State: Sylvester Croom; New Mexico State: Hal Mumme; North Texas: Todd Dodge; UNLV: Mike Sanford; UTEP: Mike Price; Washington State: Paul Wulff

“Nononono, no, no! 'E's resting!”
The jobs are secure, but these coaches are 50/50 to be around with the same program for the next few years. They might retire or move on to another gig.

Air Force: Troy Calhoun; Ball State: Brady Hoke; Boise State: Chris Petersen; Buffalo: Turner Gill; BYU: Bronco Mendenhall; East Carolina: Skip Holtz; Florida State: Bobby Bowden; Chris Ault; Penn State: Joe Paterno; Rice: David Bailiff; Stanford: Jim Harbaugh; TCU: Gary Patterson; Temple: Al Golden; Texas Tech: Mike Leach; Tulsa: Todd Graham

“'E's not pinin'! 'E's passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! 'E's expired and gone to meet 'is maker! 'E's a stiff! Bereft of life, 'e rests in peace! If you hadn't nailed 'im to the perch 'e'd be pushing up the daisies! 'Is metabolic processes are now 'istory! 'E's off the twig! 'E's kicked the bucket, 'e's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisible!! This is an ex-parrot. ”
Stay gone and be gone. These coaches are either canned already or will need nothing short of a miracle to keep a parking spot past 2008.

Clemson: Dabo Swinney; Eastern Michigan: Jeff Genyk; Kent State: Doug Martin; Syracuse: Greg Robinson; Tennessee: Phil Fulmer; Toledo: Tom Amstutz; UL Monroe: Charlie Weatherbie; San Diego State: Chuck Long; Utah State: Brent Guy; Washington: Tyrone Willingham; Wyoming: Joe Glenn

Random Acts of Nutty … Provocative musings and tidbits to make every woman want you and every man want to be you (or vice versa) a.k.a. things I didn’t feel like writing bigger blurbs for.

- The SEC will have a rough time filling all of its bowl slots, and there could be at least two openings for at-large teams to step in. The smaller bowls with SEC tie-ins would love for Tennessee to win out and for Auburn to win two of its final three.

- You can’t reaggravate an injury. You can only aggravate it.

- Texas Tech has thrown the ball 444 times and has allowed a mere five sacks.

- No matter what side of the fence you sat on regarding the Tommy Bowden era at Clemson, there’s on major silver lining. You’re not going to have to hear the words Bowden Bowl as much this week.

- Utah is ranked eighth in the BCS polls, but what’s the best win? Oregon State might be it, and that was a struggle. The second best win was probably the win over Air Force, not Michigan.

C.O.W. shameless gimmick item … The weekly five Overrated/Underrated aspects of the world
1) Overrated: Oregon’s home uniforms ... Underrated: California’s all yellows
2) Overrated: The ACC and Big East races … Underrated: Inviting two non-BCS league teams into the BCS
3) Overrated: Joe the Plumber ... Underrated: Herkey the Hawkeye
4) Overrated: Indiana losing to Ball State ... Underrated: Indiana losing to Central Michigan
5) Overrated: Matt Williams ... Underrated: Donnie Carona

“I hearby designate Graham Harrell, Texas Tech as my First Choice to receive the Heisman Memorial Trophy awarded to the most outstanding college football player in the United States for 2008. To the best of my knowledge he conforms to the rules governing this vote.”

My Second Choice Is: Colt McCoy, Texas
My Third Choice Is: Sam Bradford, Oklahoma

“You know I'm born to lose, and gambling's for fools/But that's the way I like it baby, I don't wanna live forever” … The three lines this week that appear to be a tad off.

I had a record, epically bad week overall against the spread. You couldn’t try to do what I did with the Expert Picks last week. Here, I went my normal 1-2 to get to 10-19-1 overall.

I press on by taking the three games I’m sure of … 1) Kentucky +10.5 over Georgia, 2) Arkansas +10 over South Carolina, 3) Houston -14 over Tulane

Last Week: 1) Texas A&M -3 over Colorado (WIN), 2) East Carolina -3.5 over UCF (LOSS), 3) Indiana -2.5 over Central Michigan (LOSS)

Sorry this column sucked, but it wasn’t my fault … I ran into a cart at Marshall and now I’m out for the year.
 
Headlinin': Tennessee players stand futilely by their man

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
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• The last day of Phil Fulmer. The outgoing boss choked up frequenty in his farewell press conference Monday, in front of a tense, absolutely packed conference room with miffed players standing to the side, cheering their coach and openly heckling athletic director Mike Hamilton. It's a wonder Fulmer made it through the spiel without losing it. Linebacker Ellix Wilson told reporters the players heard the news via ESPN, which is kind of a sucker punch, and all-universe safety Eric Berry got Biblical, saying it felt like he'd lost a rib, or like somebody died. Lineman Vladimir Richard -- surely the only black man in the world named 'Vladimir' -- told reporters, "Coach Fulmer's always gonna be my coach."
Unless Richard is quitting football before his senior year, though, no, he won't be. There's no successor waiting in the wings like Fulmer was for Johnny Majors in 1992 (somebody get Majors' thoughts on his protege's $6 million buyout, please), and not many names floating around. There's the de facto list floating around for every job that comes open -- Mike Leach, Will Muschamp, Lane Kiffin, Gary Patterson, Butch Davis -- and of that group, as much as Vol fans would love to get them some of that West Texas pirate passin' magic, the name with the most immediate traction on the message boards seems to be Kiffin. Whatever that's worth.
If there was any question, here's one name you'll never see in that particular shade of orange: Steve Spurrier. The Ball Coach shot down the inevitable question in a hurry, and congratulated his old rival on hitting the lottery:
"I don’t know whether to feel sorry for coach or congratulate him for the biggest buyout in the history of college football. He got the best deal ever, I think."
​
Things are better between Spurrier and Fulmer these days than during Florida's run of dominan in the nineties, as Steve says, because South Carolina "can't score 50 on anybody." There's nothing else behind their civility, really, though it turns out 27 points will do the trick, too, under the right circumstances.
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• On to a more secure coach, if you can believe that. It's hard to get a firm handle on Pittsburgh, which has spent the first two-thirds of the season oscillating between impressive efforts at South Florida and Notre Dame and awful losses to Bowling Green and Rutgers. But this much is clear: If the Panthers win their last four games, they're going to the BCS. West Virginia's in the same boat at 3-0 in the conference, and UConn is lurking, too, tied with Pitt at 2-1. Let the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette untangle the Panthers' route to the Big East title:
... Pitt is in a tie with Cincinnati (6-2, 2-1) in second place in the Big East, one game behind West Virginia (6-2, 3-0); the Panthers play both the Bearcats and the Mountaineers later this month. If the Panthers win both games as well as those against Louisville (5-3, 1-2) and Connecticut (6-3, 2-2), they'd finish in no worse than a first-place tie with the Mountaineers. They would own the tiebreaker.
​
Translation: The Pitt-West Virginia finale in Pittsburgh could have major, million-dollar stakes. So does that mean it's about time for the Wannstedteers to drop four in a row?
Quickly ... Kafka is the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week, which he finds unbearably jejune. ... Texas is sending the Big 12 a tape of questionable calls in its loss to Texas Tech. This is a fairly regular practice, by the way. I just wonder if the tape will include the obvious block in the back flag the officials picked up on Jordan Shipley's punt return that began the Horns' second half comeback. ... Oklahoma defensive end Auston English might miss the next two games, including Texas Tech, with a bum knee. ... Georgia Tech's best lineman, Andrew Gardner, could be lost for the year with a dreaded torn labrum. ... The wonders of modern medicine: USC's Kevin Ellison might be in the lineup for Cal less than a week after knee surgery. ... Don't expect Bronco Mendenhall or Kyle Whittingham to look for a way out of Utah as the coaching carousel turns this winter. ... And Hawaii's spending the week before its game at New Mexico State in the West Texas town of El Paso, so you know what that means: We're driving to Mexico! Uh, not so fast, guys.
 
Morning Coffee Is In Mourning

from Burnt Orange Nation by GhostofBigRoy
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Credit to Texas Tech. First of all, Texas Tech deserves a lot of credit for winning the football game. Because make no mistake, Tech won the game. Graham Harrell threw a number of passes into good coverage that had to be perfectly thrown to find the hands of the Tech receiver. And they did. Repeatedly. Many observes nationally and in Texas still wondered before the game if Harrell was just another in a long line of "system" quarterbacks at Texas. He's not. Want evidence? Do system quarterbacks lead the Heisman race late in the season? It's also no coincidence that Harrell completed that final pass to Crabtree. According Ruffin McNeil, Crabtree and Harrell work on that throw often, including for at least an hour one day during the summer.
Many observers wondered if Mike Leach would abandon the running game, as he is known for doing. He didn't, as the Red Raiders picked up 105 yards against the Longhorns, as the two running backs averaged 4.7 (Woods) and 5.1 (Batch) yards per carry, respectively. He's also answered questions about a commitment to defense, promoting Ruffin McNeil, who has done an impressive job with the unit in about a year. Here's a prediction: A major program will finally offer Leach a first tier coaching job (it's overdue) and he will leave Lubbock.
It wasn't just the offense, however. The Tech defensive line was more talented by far than any other Tech line this century. The triumvirate of Colby Whitlock, Brandon Williams, and McKinner Dixon spent most of the game in the Texas backfield harassing Colt McCoy. The defense isn't among the handful of best defensive teams nationally, but it is one of the three best in the Big 12 (Texas, OSU, Tech, in no particular order).


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Schedule advantage: Tech. Their game against Texas marked the second game in Tech's own gauntlet that still includes games against Oklahoma State and Oklahoma. Texas, on the other hand, was playing the last game of their four-game gauntlet. And it showed. Mack Brown on the injuries:
It's a very difficult week for our players and our coaches. They're emotionally and physically tired. They're banged up. Some may not play this week. A lot will not be able to practice this week after this stretch.
​
Last week, I wrote about Cosby, Shipley, and Ogbonnaya seeming tired and beat up from the tough, physical games they had played through. Cosby hurt his back during the game, while the ABC crew dropped the nugget that Cosby hadn't been hit in practice all week. Shipley looked fine physically, but dropped a crucial possible touchdown pass early in the game. Ogbonnaya looked like he lacked the burst that contributed to long runs against Colorado, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Brown said later in his Monday presser that Ogbonnaya has in fact been bothered by an ankle sprained against Missouri.
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Finally happened. Meanwhile, on the defensive side of the ball, injuries took a serious toll. Ryan Palmer, unlikely hero of the 2006 victory in Lubbock, battled through hamstring and elbow injuries. Chykie Brown, the largest and most physical cornerback on the roster besides Aaron Williams, didn't play much after missing the OSU game with a sprained ankle. Jared Norton was sick for several days last week and I don't recall seeing him on the field. Roy Miller got dinged up before returning late. Brian Orakpo was finally injured while being held. In retrospect, it's surprising that it hadn't happened earlier in the season. Fortunately, Mack Brown said on Monday that his Texas career isn't over ($). Team officials reported on Monday that he doesn't have ligament damage, which is positive. Check out the screen shot of the play when he was hurt. Holding, much?
Big 12 officials are clearly not concerned about the rampant holding that goes on every game, but it's absolutely irresponsible to allow defensive ends to be injured because of it. The team is sending tape to the league office this week documenting the holding calls from the previous week, but that isn't working. They do that every week. It's time for Mack Brown to take a public stand about it. He has to protect his players and he makes enough money the fine shouldn't be an issue. Call it what it is. A travesty. And then tell the Texas offensive line to start doing it if the league isn't going to crack down. Apparently it's fine now for offensive lineman to tackle people. Make no mistake, though, the missed holding calls aren't the reason Texas lost. Tech was a better team that night.
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Stats are for losers. Mack had a bunch of them this week during his Monday presser. The Longhorn defense tired early as Tech possessed the ball for 12:28 of the first quarter. Another reason they tired? Tech converted four third downs of eight yards or more in the first half. The defense also allowed eight explosive plays, while missing 15 tackles that contributed to 93 extra yards. That's three more missed tackles than last week. Unacceptable, especially considering the team worked on tackling last week, as it does every week.
On the offensive side, the wide receivers dropped seven passes, including the aforementioned potential touchdown grab that Shipley dropped. I don't think he's dropped a pass all year. Those seven drops made up half of McCoy's incompletions (14). If the receivers catch those passes, McCoy completes close to his usual 80% (79.4%), instead of a season-worst 58.8% (10% worse than his 68% game against UTEP). McCoy is now under 80% for the season (79%).
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Extended appearance for mythical Fozzy creature. I might as well just make this a weekly segment. The running game is struggling again with OG hobbled by an ankle injury and so the Eyes of Texas turn once again to the mythical Fozzy creature, who may finally be absolving himself of mythical status. He gained 42 yards on six carries, while adding a catch for five yards, taking over running back duties in crunch time and providing Texas a chance to win the game.
It's not a myth that the kid is electric and needs to see the field more. Greg Davis called his first poor game of the season, repeatedly using the ineffective tight ends (I don't want to see them any more) and not giving Fozzy a touch until it was almost too late. Oh yeah, and that's not even mentioning the first offensive play call, which was horrendous. Stupid. Harebrained. Any number of other derogatory terms. The early season success has kept notoriously fickle Texas fans off his back, but more mistakes and a continual failure to use the Fozzy creature may very well resurrect calls for his job.
 
Alabama, Florida, and saving the soul of the SEC

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
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You may not realize this, because they don't like to talk about it much, but the SEC has a certain reputation to uphold. It's produced not only the mythical champion the last two years, but two of the top three in the final AP poll in both seasons and at least four (last year, it was five) of the final top-15. They like to think winning that conference is pretty special. This year, it still is, although a little less so: two of the league's regular powers, Tennessee and Auburn, are enduring nightmare seasons (appropriately enough, after they played a nightmare game in September) that have already claimed coaches on both sides, and might claim another before it's over, while Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Ole Miss and South Carolina have hardly surged to fill the vacuum. Two bellwethers that remain in the current top-15, Georgia and LSU, have combined for one win over another ranked team -- Georgia over LSU two weeks ago -- and suffered four defeats by an average of 24 points, and could have been much worse in all four games if it needed to be. With the meltdowns of would-be preseason heavies Arizona State and Clemson, the conference's best non-conference win at this point is probably Arkansas' 30-23 survival Saturday over Tulsa. It's either Tulsa or Louisville, the only other team besides the Hurricane in this week's "Also Receiving Votes" section with an SEC loss on its record. Then there are the losses to UCLA, Duke, Georgia Tech, West Virginia and Louisiana Tech, and legitimate scares by Middle Tennessee (twice), Western Illinois, Northern Illinois and UL-Monroe. I hope I didn't leave anyone out.
Of course there's still hope for the SEC's rep, in the form of this year's kingpins, Florida and Alabama, which are one Texas Tech loss and one Crimson Tide win in Baton Rouge away from having a clear path to a blockbuster championship game in Atlanta. In fact, I'm not sure Alabama losing to LSU Saturday would necessarily change the equation for the first week in December, which is setting up as a play-in -- a semifinal, as much as I hate to put it in those terms -- for the mythical championship game. Aside from Florida's loss to Ole Miss, in which UF committed as many turnovers (3) as it has in its seven wins combined, neither the Gators nor Tide have been seriously challenged, and if Alabama puts away sagging LSU as decisively as every prevailing trend suggests it will, only a massive upset by South Carolina, Florida State or Auburn will derail a Tide-Gator SEC Championship to end all SEC Championships.
From here, if I had to bet on one BCS scenario, it would be this: Penn State ascends to the championship game, undefeated, and either undefeated Alabama or one-loss Florida (possibly even one-loss Alabama, if the close is a close one at strong-finishing LSU) passes a one-loss Big 12 South champion (any of them) and very frustrated USC into another SEC-Big Ten title game with the Nittany Lions, where the Southerners chant, etc. That's exactly what everyone wants to see, isn't it? After all: there are reputations to consider.
 
An Introduction: Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech

from Double-T Nation by Seth C

<center> <table> <tbody> <tr bgcolor="#696969"> <td>
TTU Pass Offense
vs.
OSU Pass Defense​
</td> <td>
TTU Rush Offense
vs.
OSU Rush Defense​
</td> <td>
TTU Pass Defense
vs.
OSU Pass Offense​
</td> <td>
TTU Rush Defense
vs.
OSU Rush Offense​
</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#cc0000"> <td>
424.56 (1,1)​
</td> <td>
134.78 (70, 8)​
</td> <td>
250.89 (100, 8)​
</td> <td>
98.67 (10, 2)​
</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="orangered"> <td>
240.56 (92, 6)​
</td> <td>
116.89 (36, 5)​
</td> <td>
238.44 (38, 9)​
</td> <td>
273.56 (5, 1)​
</td> </tr> <tr> <td>
DT_texas_tech_logo_small.png
</td> <td>
DT_oklahoma_st._logo_small.png
</td> <td>
DT_oklahoma_st._logo_small.png
</td> <td>

​
Push​
</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </center>
<center> <table> <tbody> <tr bgcolor="#696969"> <td>
TTU Scoring Offense
vs.
OSU Scoring Defense​
</td> <td>
TTU Scoring Defense
vs.
OSU Scoring Offense​
</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#cc0000"> <td>
47.00 (3, 2)​
</td> <td>
22.44 (46, 3)​
</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="orangered"> <td>
21.00 (39, 2)​
</td> <td>
45.33 (5, 4)​
</td> </tr> <tr> <td>
DT_texas_tech_logo_small.png
</td> <td>
DT_oklahoma_st._logo_small.png
</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </center>
General Thoughts: Well, that's the first time that a team has the statistical advantage over Texas Tech. I gave both teams a push in the Texas Tech rush offense vs. the OSU rush defense because they are within 5 teams of each other in terms of national rank. I thought that seemed fair.
Statistical Interestingness:

  • OSU is by far and away the most talented rushing team in the Big 12. Oklahoma State is 90 yards better than the second place team in terms of rushing yards per game. The one interesting statistic is that OSU is 1st with 5.70 yards per attempt while Texas Tech is 2nd in the Big 12 with 5.23 yards per attempt.
  • Guess who has the highest yard per passing attempt average in the Big 12? YOu were probably going to guess 1 of 2 teams, and if you guessed OSU you're right. Oklahoma State is averaging a whopping 10.9 yards per passing attempt for the season. For comparison purposes, Texas Tech is averaging 8.6, good for 5th in the Big 12, which is pretty good, but it's not even close to OSU's numbers. If there's one thing to key on, it's that Oklahoma State is more than capable of the big play, which is a huge reason why that average is so high. Not to mention, the Cowboys and OSU are the highest rated passing team in the Big 12, again, Texas Tech is 5th.
  • I think OSU is more susceptible to the run that we might think. For the year, OSU is giving up 116.89 yards a game, but there was a three game stretch earlier in the year that's making me scratch my head. Southwest Missouri State rushed 48 times for 173 yards (3.60 avg), Troy rushed 23 times for 144 yards (6.26 avg) and Texas A&M rushed for 184 yards on 30 carries (6.13 avg). Something happened after that A&M game because OSU has been pretty good after that. The next 4 opponents were Missouri (64), Baylor (42), Texas (113) and Iowa State (122), but the average on each of those teams was closer to 3.5 than the earlier 3 game span.
  • I have this idea that OSU is this team that completely controls the clock, but Oklahoma State is only 3rd in the conference at 31:31:78, while Texas Tech checks in at 5th and a respectable 30:11:33. Surprisingly, Missouri is last in the conference at 25:24:11 in TOP.
  • Oklahoma State and Texas Tech are #1 and #2 in the Big 12 in passes defended. Oklahoma State has 11 interceptions and 50 passes broken up good for 6.78 passes defended a game. While Texas Tech is right behind the Cowboys with 15 interceptions and 43 passes broken-up for a 6.44 passes defended a game. As maligned as the secondary is for Texas Tech, those are some pretty decent numbers.
  • Oklahoma State is last in the Big 12 in sacks at a measly 1.22 a game and Texas Tech is still best in the Big 12, allowing 0.56 sacks per game. That's not very much pressure and for a team to beat Texas Tech, much like Texas, Oklahoma State has got to get some pressure on Graham Harrell.
<center> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td>
DT_texas_tech_logo_small.png
</td> <td>
Result​
</td> <td>
DT_oklahoma_st._logo_small.png
​
</td> <td>Result</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#dcdcdc"> <td>Eastern Washington</td> <td>W, 49-24</td> <td>@ Washington State</td> <td>@, 39-13</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ Nevada</td> <td>W, 35-19</td> <td>Houston</td> <td>W, 56-37</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#dcdcdc"> <td>SMU</td> <td>W, 43-7</td> <td>Missouri State</td> <td>W 57-13</td> </tr> <tr> <td>UMass</td> <td>W, 56-14</td> <td>Troy</td> <td>W, 55-24</td> </tr> <tr bgcolor="#dcdcdc"> <td>@ Kansas State</td> <td>W, 58-28</td> <td>Texas A&M</td> <td>W, 56-28</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nebraska</td> <td>W, 37-31</td> <td>@ Missouri</td> <td>W, 28-23</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ Texas A&M</td> <td>W, 43-25</td> <td>Baylor</td> <td>W, 34-6</td> </tr> <tr> <td>@ Kansas</td> <td>W, 63-21</td> <td>@ Texas</td> <td>L, 24-28</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Texas</td> <td>W, 39-33</td> <td>Iowa State</td> <td>W, 59-17</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </center>
Ending Thoughts: If Oklahoma State doesn't scare you now, then I'm not sure what will. OSU is a wonderfully put together team with varied talents on offense to make you sick to your stomach. Defensively, I think this OSU team still struggles a bit, but they are certainly getting the job done, holding opponents to 23, 6, 28 and 17 in their last 4 games. That ain't bad.
 
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