CFB Week 6 (9/30-10/4) Picks and News

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">5:35 AM (2 hours ago)
The Template has been forged

from Conquest Chronicles by Paragon SC
Its obvious that USC’s performance, or lack there of, against Oregon St has provided a game plan for how to defend against SC’s defense.

One thing that stood out was OSU’s use of a WR as an extra blocker inside of the box on either Griffen or Matthews on some of their running plays. With Spicer getting double-teamed up front it opened up just enough of a hole for Rodgers to blow through. For all the talk about the defensive line being stout what often didn’t get discussed was its relative newness as a unit. I have read elsewhere that some of the schemes that Riley used would not have worked against LoJack or Big Sed. Maybe, maybe not. Unfortunately we will never know that if that is the case but it does underscore experience level of the defensive line.
But in that poor performance it gives other teams a road map as to how they might defend against us.

With his team visiting the Coliseum on Saturday, Oregon Coach Mike Bellotti has been watching videotape of USC's upset loss to Oregon State and likes what he sees.

Especially the performances of the Beavers' offensive and defensive linemen, who dominated in the trenches for much of the game, and diminutive running back Rodgers.

"I thought Oregon State attacked them pretty well," Bellotti said. " 'Quizz Rodgers, in all honesty, it was unbelievable how he got through some of those holes."

The Ducks don't employ the same schemes as Oregon State and don't have a 5-foot-7 starting back who can sneak through narrow spaces. Still, Bellotti expressed interest in the way Oregon State used straight-ahead running, quick passes and judicious blitzing on defense.

"Obviously," he said, "we're looking at that as a blueprint for success."
​

After reading numerous stories breaking down this game it is clear to me that this SC team simply didn't take OSU seriously. The weren't up for it and I don't know why. I mean why the DE’s didn’t absolutely smash WR James Rodgers when he came into the box to block is beyond me. You would think that such a size mismatch would be an irresistible morsel for our supposed hungry linemen. I would have hit him so hard that he would have never gotten up and never returned to the game. But as we saw they wanted to finesse their assignments by trying to block through their assignments instead of just hitting someone to get to Jaquizz Rodgers.
Pete Carroll demoting Griffen and Spicer, for the time being, for having sub-par performances is not a bad thing. It should light a fire under their butts to knuckle down and focus. Things can get out of hand real quick here. This game is more important that it was 3 weeks ago. Lose to Oregon and you won't even get to the Rose Bowl. Its as simple as that.
So now its time to regroup but the question is do they have the moxie to refocus and play like we have seen them play. SC is going to be tested by Oregon's RB tandem of Jeremiah Johnson and LeGarrette Blount. SC is going to have to go back to quality tackling and getting penetration. Whoever the Ducks have at QB o Saturday is immaterial becuse SC has been burned by unknown QB's in the past so it should not matter who is under center. They will have to regroup and focus on stopping the run but not to the point of abandoning their pass defense. The stupid penalties have to stop. Some of those penalties come out frustration and that is because players are losing focus. That has to change if SC is going to get back on track.






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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">8:51 AM (34 minutes ago)
5 Reasons Texas Tech Will Win: Kansas State Edition

from Double-T Nation by Seth C

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Reason #1: Texas Tech CAN Run The Ball

If there's anything that most of you have already figured out and what TB from BOTC has told us, it's that Texas Tech can run the ball against K-State and it's been years since Texas Tech fans have been able to confidently say that Leach may have changed his ways and is actually starting to run the ball on a more regular basis.

<center> <table border="1" width="90%"> <tbody> <tr bgcolor="black"> <td>Opponent</td> <td>Total Plays</td> <td>Running Plays</td> <td>Percent</td> </tr> <tr> <td>E. Washington</td> <td>83</td> <td>25</td> <td>30%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Nevada</td> <td>68</td> <td>22</td> <td>32%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>SMU</td> <td>82</td> <td>27</td> <td>33%</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Massachusetts</td> <td>68</td> <td>25</td> <td>37%</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </center>
Are you kidding me? Texas Tech actually ran the ball for almost 40% of the time against UMass? That's downright unbelievable, but such a welcoming statistic. Last year Texas Tech ran the ball 24.3% and 25.0% in 2006. KSU has been absolutely horrible stopping the run their past two games and it comes as no surprise that this is the #1 reason why Texas Tech wins on Saturday. And just in case your curious, these are the rushing totals given up by K-State thus far:

<center> <table border="1" width="90%"> <tbody> <tr bgcolor="black"> <td>Opponent</td> <td>Rushing Yards</td> <td>TD</td> </tr> <tr> <td>North Texas</td> <td>105</td> <td>0</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Montana St.</td> <td>83</td> <td>0</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Louisville</td> <td>303</td> <td>3</td> </tr> <tr> <td>La. Lafayette</td> <td>335</td> <td>4</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </center>
Reason #2: Improved Linebackers

I think all Texas Tech fans have plenty of memories of running quarterbacks running wildly over Texas Tech defenders and make no mistake, Josh Freeman is a running quarterback. So why the hope? Brian Duncan and Bront Bird. The last two games there hasn't been many opportunities, but the one other team that was similar to Kansas State was Nevada, at least in terms of having a mobile quarterback and Brian Duncan (12 tackles) and Bront Bird (14 tackles and 1 sack) were pretty in this game. I would imagine how McNeill chooses to play K-State, which if its anything like Nevada, he'll keep his linebackers in play as much as possible. The problem, at least matchup wise, is that KSU has 3 smallish recivers along with a decent sized and productive tight end in Mastrud, which means that McNeill might play it safe, play the nickel or dime and keep the receivers in front of the defense. On the other hand, I could also envision, McNeill sticking with his starters and adjusting as needed, and if that's the case, I like our chances. Brian Duncan and Bront Bird have both shown a pretty good ability to play well against running quarterback a team that I think will try and run. I like our chances
Reason #3: Less Dependence on Graham Harrell

We talked about this some last week and I think it bears repeating, that the improvment of the running game means that there's less of a need to rely on Graham Harrell to make every single play, which makes Texas Tech less susceptible to the bad loss, which makes a Texas Tech victory more likely. That's a very long sentence. In any event, the running game is only going to make the decision making process that much easier for Harrell and if things go according to play, will create so many more opportunities for him as a quarterback and for this offense.
Reason #4: Containing Kansas State

Texas Tech has mastered the art of giving up yards, but keeping opponents out of the endzone. I think Texas Tech fans have done a fair amount of hand-wringing over the method by which McNeill has decided to play close to the vest in non-conference play. Most fans, I think, were expecting a bit more gambling against non-conference opponents and it left some fans wondering why. I think I understand why McNeill decided to play it so safe. Playing it safe doesn't allow any future opponents have a glimpse into how your team blitzes, stunts, etc. It's the element of surprise. Secondly, if Texas Tech is a more physically dominating team then Texas Tech should be able to keep most teams out of the endzone despite playing it safe.
This is a really long way to say that I get the feeling that McNeill is going to play it safe until he absolutely doesn't have to. Kansas State has a couple explosive receivers in Brando nBanks and Aubrey Quarles and if I had to guess, McNeill is going to do everything possible to keep these guys in front of them. We've all forgotten the two long pass touchdowns that Jamar Wall gave up against E. Washington and Nevada and it's been rare that we've heard his name recently. Let's hope that Wall has fixed whatever issues he was having and is ready for some quality receivers.
Reason #5: This Is Where The Championship Begins

It's a bit of a hyperbole to say that this is where the championship begins, and it matters not whether you're talking about the mythical national championship, or a Big 12 South title, or perhaps winning the Big 12. Whatever Texas Tech is playing for begins on Saturday and this is the time that this team has to realize that you had better be all in each and every game. I realize that this isn't a statistically based reason, and more of a rah, rah, rah reasons, but it's true. Take this one game at a time and you'll be fine.






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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">8:15 AM (1 hour ago)
THE TONY FRANKLIN SPREAD: AXED

from Every Day Should Be Saturday by Orson Swindle
The Tony Franklin spread came to Auburn, a misbegotten experiment that in the process of teleportation from Troy to Auburn somehow acquired fly DNA along the way, and then began losing body parts until it became a raving, useless mass of receivers dancing 3 yard cha-cha routes and a quarterback lofting fungo-balls into the secondary. It was begging to be put out of its obvious misery, even with all the shiny Fred McGriff endorsements.

What you’re doing there? Yes, see, the problem is that it sucks.
Tommy Tuberville has shotgunned the beast for the moment:
“We don’t run Tony Franklin’s spread offense,” Tuberville said. “This is Auburn’s offense. It’s like our defense. We’re going to run what works and what we’re going to match up better with the other team. Everybody has to do that. You can’t put a square peg in a round hole. Why would you do that?”
Auburn is currently 90th in the nation in total offense and 97th in passing, the backbone of Franklin’s spread, so it’s a mercy killing at this point. Their imminent switch to a more “Auburn fan-friendly” offense includes something called “the War Eagle” formation, which we’ll guess is just the Wildhogrebel, but run with Mario Fannin, and does not involve anything so vulgar as passing more than one out of every ten snaps. Given that Ole Miss averages damn near nine yards a snap with the formation DAMMIT SHIT DAMMIT SHITFIRE DAMMIT, why not copy America’s favorite aggravating high school formation gone feral?






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[TopDaddy]

I actually think that this will be a benefit to the offense. It can't be worse. I expect a few botched snaps, but you know a fundemental approach to this game is going on right now in the Plains, and that's what AU needs to win this game...

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">11:49 AM (22 minutes ago)
Reports of the death of the Spread Eagle have been greatly exaggerated

from The Joe Cribbs Car Wash by Jerry Hinnen


I'm sure by now you've read the following from Tommy Tuberville:

"We don't run Tony Franklin's spread offense," Tuberville said. "This is Auburn's offense. It's like our defense. We're going to run what works and what we're going to match up better with the other team. Everybody has to do that. You can't put a square peg in a round hole. Why would you do that?"​

This is, of course, hardly news to anyone who watched the Tennessee game--with multiple appearances of the Wild Wario formation and both Todd and Burns taking snaps from under center--or paid attention when Tony Franklin said Sunday "There's the 'Tony Franklin Offense' that I've run most of my adult life ...This is definitely not that."

So no, Auburn's offense it's not the Spread Eagle in its purest, must undiluted form. It's still the Spread Eagle. I will wager Auburn will still run the majority of their plays from the shotgun. I will wager Auburn will still line up three or four receivers and without a blocking back on virtually every snap.

Would it have been awfully silly for Auburn to come out of the three-points-at-Mississippi St. and 1.9-per-rush-vs.-LSU debacles without making some major changes? Yep. Would it be equally silly to up and toss away every single hour of preparation the offense put in during the offseason? Yep. Does it make much sense to assume Franklin's already earned a pink slip when a) so much of Auburn's recruiting has been built around his philosophies b) Tubby has repeated his faith in him ad nauseum c) he does have some track record of improvement? No.

That said, of course Auburn's offensive settings are currently set to FAIL. Of course Franklin's job is light years from being "secure"--ask Hugh Nall and Steve Ensminger if Tubby's willing to grant a second year to OCs who never get things figured out. But Franklin's still got seven games (and probably eight) to do just that. The Spread Eagle's wings might have been clipped a bit, but it's still airborne.

Other Auburn talking points for your afternoon perusal:

1. Chaz Ramsey isn't technically out the door quite yet, but my not-even-educated guess on the situation is that asking for a release without actually transferring yet equals "Chaz likes the school well enough to stay if he can't play football, but if he gets healthy, he's taking off." Again, just a hypothesis.

2. There's a battle for the middle linebacking spot, regardless of how much Rhoads is (understandably) willing to spin the situation. It's one thing when Bynes seizes his big chance by playing as well if not better than Blackmon has all season. It's another when there's this sort of thing hovering above the situation:

Defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads watched his defense crumble under the strain of mis­communication during a Sept. 20 loss to LSU. Players said the Bayou Bengals' shape-shifting offensive fronts caused confu­sion that led to a series of real-time administrative failures.

The middle linebacker is pri­marily responsible for making pre-snap adjustments up front. That didn't happen against LSU.

Pressed into full-time work against the Volunteers, Bynes applied lessons learned from prior mistakes. The Tigers re­ported no significant alignment issues Saturday.​

Blackmon will supposedly be able to play with a clubbed-hand against Vanderbilt. If Bynes gets the call anyway, there might be more to it than Blackmon's injury.

3. Byrum didn't take long winning the kicking job back. Here's to hoping that says more about how good he's looked in practice than how poor Hull must have been.

4. Lester and Davis are apparently healthy enough to play again, just as Fannin starts to reassert himself in the backfield and Burns starts to handle a few carries per game. Let's see if there are enough balls to go around or not.

5. Are Todd and Burns the second coming of Daniel Cobb and Jason Campbell? It's not the first time that parallel has been floated this season, but Thom Gossom makes a convincing case.

And while I've got the following links sitting around, I may as well throw them at you: Pigskin Pathos finds Tristan Davis in a Zen mood on Facebook ... Acid Reign's looks back at Auburn's history playing in Nashville and concludes "close Auburn win" is more-or-less the historical precedent for Saturday ... the SEC Power Poll is out, and Ole Miss is rather mysteriously three spots behind the Florida team they just beat ... the SEC has gone 8-17 against the Big East over the last 10 years, but at least Auburn kept their end of the bargain by, um, getting drilled by Syracuse that one time and losing to USF ... Gators, as expected, blaming the side of the ball that scored 30 points as opposed to the one that allowed 31 ... Jackie Chiles is working for Petrino ... Speaking of, there's a reason he bolted for the Hogs midseason ... Working with posers and Tide fans is less than fun ... the Dawgs' problem between the hedges is humorously identified ... aaaaand if you would like some schadenfreude in regards to our own quarterback situation, I suggest you read TSIB's take on Jon Crompton.





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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">10:30 AM (1 hour ago)
DAVE WANNSTEDT DISCOVERS TWITTER

from Every Day Should Be Saturday by Orson Swindle
12:14, Pittsburgh, PA. Dave Wannstedt, master of motivational ploys, discovers Twitter.


12: 25, Pittsburgh, PA

12: 32, Pittsburgh, PA, Practice Field of Pittsburgh Panthers:



12:43 p.m, Pittsburgh, PA:







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[M.R. Goode]

What in the hell have you seen out of Aggies to make you want to bet them against a good offensive team like Okie St. I guess 24 is a lot of points but I expect Okie to get at least 45 or more.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">1:35 PM (6 minutes ago)
Waving goodbye to the USC hype train

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton

One more note on the fallout from USC's sky-opening loss at Oregon State. There's a fine line between a good team and a legendary one, and the L.A. Daily News' Scott Wolf was reminded just how often Reggie Bush singlehandedly erased that line in the Trojans' championship seasons:

Instead of fretting a loss to Oregon State, perhaps USC fans should instead look back at the number of times the Trojans could have lost but didn't simply because of Reggie Bush.
â¨The Stanford game in the 2004 unbeaten season is a prime example, with Bush's 33-yard zig-zagging punt return setting up the winning touchdown in a 31-28 victory. He also scored a touchdown on a 17-yard run in the first half.
â¨That same year, USC held off UCLA 29-24 with Bush gaining 204 yards and touchdown runs of 65-and-81 yards.
â¨USC coach Pete Carroll did not deny Bush erased a lot of shortcomings on Sunday night.
â¨"We were so dynamic offensively it made up for problems,'' Carroll said. "A lot of it was Reggie.''
​

You can expand this "great man" argument beyond Bush -- does USC have anyone now who could haul in a 60-yard audible on 4th-and-9 with the game on the line, on the road? -- but it gets right to the core of USC's persistent upset issues over the last three years: the recruiting stars have completely failed to yield not only another Bush, but any truly reliable playmaker on offense.
Running back is the best place to start because of the hype: C.J. Gable and Joe McKnight were both supposed to approximate Bush's spectacular role; neither has come close for more than a scattered play or two every few games. Stafon Johnson and Allen Bradford were the pace-setting thumpers in the LenDale White mold -- when they manage to get their hands on the ball. Bradford broke ranks and complained to the media Sunday after being totally ignored (one play, zero carries) against Oregon State, even as the rest of the rotation combined for a whopping 77 yards; the others were "confused" or content to defer to "whoever's hot." They look like Bush and White, and after a game like Ohio State we keep thinking we're seeing Bush and White, Version 2.0. It takes an Oregon State to remind us that the über-talented backfield rotation in the works for the last two-plus years is, somehow, still in the works:

It's not exactly fair to hold anyone to the ridiculous standard set by the 2004-05 offense (not that that stopped pundits after the Ohio State game), but this isn't an overreaction to falling short on an isolated occasion: the failure of the offense in general and the running game, specifically, is the only common thread in USC's last five losses. OSU held SC to 86 yards rushing on 3.2 per carry in its upset in 2006, and UCLA limited the Trojans to 55 on a 1.9 average in its championship-stealing upset that December; Stanford stuffed the backs for 95 yards on 2.5 per carry in last October's shocking loss in the Coliseum, and Oregon kept them to 101 yards on 3.1 in the Ducks' win in Eugene a few weeks later. Then, there was Oregon State again, swarming the line of scrimmage last week.
Five times in a little under two-and-a-half years is not an aberration; in fact, based on the last two years, you can almost set your watch by another Trojan loss before the end of the year in which the offense fails to generate consistency on the ground and struggles to pass its way back into the game late. Not necessarily this week against Oregon, or in any game that will cost the Trojans a seventh straight Pac-10 championship. But somewhere, if no one emerges who can go into every game expecting to be productive on at least a dozen carries, and it might cost them the long-expected shot at another national crown. The difference after Corvallis is that, this time, another SC loss will surprise no one: you can only burn people's expectations so many times, even if it takes them three years to figure it out.






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[RetroVK]

Reggie bush is the most overhyped , overrated player of my adult lifetime. And it's not even close.

 

[RJ Esq]

Well, like it or not, the USC offense has never come close to recovering from its' 2005 status (when you average 49 ppg, it's hard).

 

[E.T.G.]

skeet skeet on BYU and Nevada as well, not worried about a possible sandwich spot for Maryland here with Wake on deck. I'd never bet UVA here but could maybe see Maryland playing a little sloppy and unfocused which might not matter with the team UVA puts out there

 

[RJ Esq]

Week 6 MWC Football Preview: The Early Games

Posted on October 1, 2008 by Jeremy
Two early games this week one on Thursday and one on Friday.
Thursday 10/2

(2-2)

#15 (5-0)
Rice-Eccles 7PM MT TV: Radio: http://mwcfootball.wordpress.com/20...ootball-preview-the-early-games/WWW.VERSUS.TVKALL 700 Sports
This game just got a lot interesting with Oregon State taking it to then #1 USC at home last Thursday. Do not let the 0-2 start for the Beavers fool anyone, Oregon State is a notorious late bloomer. Oregon State has gone 15-3 the last two years in games in October and later.
This game is much bigger in terms of the BCS and strength of schedule if Utah can beat the team that just beat the number one ranked team. Utah has revenge on their mind because last year these two teams played on opening weekend and lost quarterback Brian Johnson for a few weeks and running back Matt Asiata for the year.
On the year Oregon State has yet to win a road game after losing at Stanford and at Penn State in September. Both schools have similar national rankings in their statistics, with the one big difference being that Utah scores 10 more points per game at 38 compared to Oregon State. The big challenge for Utah will be trying to slow down true freshman Jacquizz Rodgers who ran all over USC with 186 yards and two touchdowns. This back is small, but very speedy and Oregon State just ran him right up the gut of USC and utilized his speed in the screen game along with other players.
Utah may be fine in defending the run, because they gave up only 50 yards to an Air Force team that was averaging around 300 per game, two weeks back. They focus must be on Rodgers to slow him down this game.
Utah just needs to keep getting everyone involved in this game and wear down the Oregon State front seven that has only been together for four games this year. Quarterback Brian Johnson will need to be a threat in the running game to keep the Beavers defense from focusing in on one player or type of play.
It is shown that Oregon State is vulnerable to a spread passing attack and a no huddle, look for Utah to emulate what USC did in the second half offensively.
Two side notes about the game as of October 1st the spread has Utah favored by 10.5, Vegas is rarely wrong but that seems a little bit high to me.
Also, Coach Whittingham has had good success a year after a team has beaten his Utes. Every team that has beaten Whittingham he has beaten them the year after; that list includes TCU, UCLA, San Diego State, UNLV, Colorado State, Air Force, and Wyoming. The only schools to defeat Whittingham two years in a row are BYU and New Mexico.
Final Score: Utah 31 Oregon State 20

Here is Coach Whittinghams weekly press conference going over this weeks game.

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Friday 10/3

#7 (4-0)

(1-3)
Romney Stadium 6PM MT TV:

Radio: KSL Sports Radio
It is a wonder ESPN did not pick up this game nationally for its Friday night game, because WAC schools do play a few weekday games plus the game is not even offered on ESPNs pay per view package. The only way to see the game is to be there, live in Utah who get KJZZ or listen at KSL the Cougars radio network online.
On to the game, well we all know that BYU is an overwhelming favorite in this game, and Romney Stadium will be filled with a lot of BYU fans. Also, Utah State fans will be bringing out the boos since they feel BYU stole star recruit quarterback Riley Nielson as he is currently serving his LDS mission. Riley played his freshman season at Utah State and played quite well before leaving.
The big question will be how many points BYU can score, and if they can coninue their scoreless streak which is currently at two games by outscoring opponents 103-0. BYU will most likely do what they wish against BYU with Max Hall throwing at least 2 touchdowns maybe three and then the backups will be in sometime during the third quarter.
For BYU to keep up in the polls BYU will need to give up no more then 17 points and win by at least three touchdowns.
Final Score: BYU 41 Utah State 3

 

[RJ Esq]

Whittaker, Johnson could be answer to UT's runnning woes

from Texas Longhorns Football: Orangebloods.com - Texas Football Headlines by Chip Brown
A couple weeks ago it sounded like a faraway theory, but the fifth-ranked Longhorns may now be ready to embark on their own version of Lightning and Thunder. Fozzy Whittaker is practicing and should be ready to go Saturday at Colorado. Cody Johnson is excited to keep pounding on defenses. In UT's version, the Lightning comes first, followed by the Thunder. It all should add up to a running game that will please coaches and fans

 

[RJ Esq]

[SIZE=+2]Surgery Will Sideline Moten[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]By Eric Prisbell
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, October 1, 2008; E04
[/SIZE]
Maryland linebacker Adrian Moten will be out at least a month after undergoing wrist surgery Monday, leaving the Terrapins without one of their most productive and disruptive defensive players for the next few games.
Moten, who tore a ligament in his wrist against Eastern Michigan on Sept. 20, managed to play 25 plays in Saturday's 20-17 victory at Clemson. But Coach Ralph Friedgen said he decided Moten would undergo surgery Monday because it would give the sophomore a chance to recover for the final month of the regular season and perhaps return for the Nov. 6 game at Virginia Tech.
"The doctors told me we had a window where we could wait until we operated," Friedgen said. "I decided to go ahead and operate on it sooner so that hopefully we can get him back. The fact we had a couple open dates kind of helped. The tough part about it is that his last two games have been his best two games. He was starting to really come on and play well, and we're going to miss him."
Against Eastern Michigan, Moten had an interception and blocked a punt that led to Maryland's first score of the game. Against Clemson, Moten, who wore a cast on his arm, recovered a lateral that put Maryland in scoring position in the first half.
"He is a playmaker, whether he has one arm or two," linebacker Moise Fokou said. "I am surprised he didn't use that cast as a weapon, but he did pretty well with one arm."
Safety Antwine Perez, who has not played linebacker since eighth grade, is expected to help back up Fokou. Defensive tackle Jeremy Navarre said Moten's absence will hurt because he has been one of the Terrapins' best pass rushers.
In other injury news, Friedgen said cornerback Nolan Carroll (knee), running back Da'Rel Scott (shoulder), defensive end Mack Frost (knee) and defensive tackle Travis Ivey (foot) all are questionable to play against Virginia on Saturday.
Offensive Line Lets Down
Maryland's veteran offensive line was expected to be one of the ACC's best, but Friedgen is concerned about the play of the line after it had several miscues against Clemson. Among the issues Friedgen cited were missed assignments, costly penalties and generally poor run blocking.
"I am concerned about it right now," Friedgen said. "Very much so. I really felt we would have played very well there."
Friedgen said the line's poor performance was one of the reasons Maryland's running game struggled against the Tigers. Aside from wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey's 76-yard reverse, Maryland amassed just 47 rushing yards, and 10 of those were gained by backup quarterback Josh Portis. Running backs Cory Jackson, Davin Meggett and Scott combined for 39 rushing yards on 25 carries.
"If you do get notoriety as an offensive line, it's either going to be positive or negative; there is no in between," center Edwin Williams said. "Coach doesn't have to say it for us to know" improvement is a priority this week in practice.
Expecting a Tough One
Virginia has yet to beat a division I-A school this season, the Cavaliers rank 118th nationally in total offense and they are coming off a 31-3 loss to Duke. Yet Maryland's players talked up Saturday's matchup as if it will be another tossup game in a heated rivalry.
"This rivalry is no joke," said Fokou, whose Terrapins lost, 18-17, to Virginia last season. "Dirty plays, trash-talking -- the strongest will survive."
The series has seen its share of tense moments in recent years. Prior to kickoff of the 2003 matchup, Virginia Coach Al Groh and James Franklin, then Maryland's wide receivers coach, exchanged words near midfield at Byrd Stadium. They gestured at each other and waved their arms before officials stepped in.
"I was watching," said Williams, who was a senior in high school at the time. "I was like, 'I can't wait to come to Maryland.' That's the way I like it."

 

[RJ Esq]

Preview: #5 Texas at Colorado

from Bevo Sports by Mike
The Longhorns get conference play started this week with a road game against the Colorado Buffaloes. Texas has been on a roll, while CU enters the game after suffering their first loss of the season last week in Florida State. Last year, Colorado shocked Oklahoma in Boulder the week before the UT-OU showdown so Texas will have to show up to play and not look ahead to Dallas if they want to leave undefeated.
When Texas has the ball

Quarterback Colt McCoy has played as good as any other quarterback in the country. McCoy has played as good as any player in the country. Period. The guy has done everything for the Longhorns: he runs, he passes, he pooch punts, if he cleaned the locker room and prepared the food would you be shocked? Me neither. A great quarterback gives a football team a chance to win every game. McCoy is a great quarterback, and shows no signs of slowing down in the first test Texas faces this season. The offensive line has been above average. While the pass coverage has been outstanding, this group must take some of the blame for a lack of production from the backs. Colorado has given up a ton of yards in back to back games to West Virginia and Florida State. A good day would be great for confidence heading into OU week.
The Colorado defense is simple, but good. They don’t blitz a lot, they don’t disguise coverage, they play mostly zone. Expect Texas to pass, and do it often with McCoy getting pre-snap reads on virtually every play. Texas is hopeful running back Foswhitt Whittaker will be back this weekend. Couple the darting style of Whittaker with the emergent bruising style of Cody Johnson and the struggling Longhorn backfield could become one of the better tandems in the nation. Take into account that both of them are freshman and it should ease the anxiety of a Longhorn fan base that is used to stars toting the rock.
The biggest concern for Texas fans should be the inability of Malcolm Williams, and to a lesser extent Dan Buckner, to become a deep threat that opposing coaches must worry about. I can not remember one deep ball thrown to either of these guys when the ball wasn’t near the goal line. Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley have been very good, but with the loss of Blaine Irby a threat down the field needs to replace the threat in the middle to allow space for Cosby and Shipley. If the offense can’t find one, the room Shipley and Cosby have been enjoying will dry up quickly.
When Colorado has the ball

Last week we finally got to see what Will Muschamp is going to do with the Texas defense. Attack, attack, attack. The Longhorn defense was flying to the ball, and when they got their they made sure Arkansas ball carriers remembered it. Never under Mack Brown has a defense been as fast and aggressive as the defense was this week. When the knowledge and experience that only comes with game snaps catches up with the raw talent and energy of this defense this group is going to remind a lot of people of the old Miami and Florida State defenses UT fans used to beg for. Mack Brown’s best coaching move may be hiring Will Muschamp when it is all said and done.
On offense Colorado is just a solid football team. They don’t do a lot of things great, but they don’t hurt themselves. These are the types of teams that can jump up and bite a better team. If Texas makes mistakes and lets Colorado hang around, the home crowd could put them over the top. However, these types of teams can also be overwhelmed if the better team applies pressure from the beginning. The best way to silence a crowd is to make big plays with your defense.
UT has already scored twice this year on the defensive side of the ball. Texas is ranked in the top 10 in scoring defense, and has been applying a ton of pressure the last two games. The combination of Brian Orakpo and Sergio Kindle has to keep opposing quarterbacks awake at night. With those two coming off the edge, it has almost been a guarantee someone is getting to the quarterback. Add Lamarr Houston, Henry Melton, Sam Acho, and Eddie Jones, and you can see how Texas has recorded seven sacks in each of the last two games.
Muschamp biggest contribution could be the job he is doing as the linebackers coach. Last year this same group of players looked lost in many situations. The scheme seemed to have them playing on their hills, a skill the collective group lacks. The scheme brought in by Muschamp has the linebacker’s core playing downhill and loving it. And while the group of Rashad Bobino, Roddrick Muckelroy, Sergio Kindle, and Jared Norton have been great; the next great linebacker at Texas may have had his coming out party against Arkansas in the second half. His name is Keenan Robinson. The freshman was everywhere, and just appeared to be playing at a different speed. Muschamp loves speed. I don’t know whose snaps will be taken away, but Robinson is going to play more and more.
The secondary is coming together, and it has all hinged on the play of safety Earl Thomas. The secondary is what it is, but if Thomas can play with his swagger, and the front seven keeps applying pressure they have a chance to improve greatly. The best friend to a secondary is a pass rush, and I expect Texas to blitz a lot from here on out. The young secondary will get beat a few times, but so far they have gotten better each week. Muschamp will make sure that continues.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">8:20 PM (22 minutes ago)
MidWeek Thoughts…

from underdogsofwar.com by horses
Little recap of last week…
Losers:
Pitt: Not the worst bet IMO, but I’m sure many would criticize laying 2 TD’s on the road with Wannstedt, cuz he’ll find a way to not get it done. That was indeed the case here as Pitt dominated both LOS’s but a kickoff return for a TD by the Orange was the essential difference. Probably shouldn’t have made this bet, considering the Wannstedt factor, but I couldn’t resist what I considered a short price against a dead in the water team.
Wash: Locker injury hurt as he went out when it was 7-7; that being the case, the UW defense is actually worse than advertised. Stanford is definitely a good fit for Harbaugh as he coached the same type of athlete at USD before this stop, and they played a good game, but this was a game UW absolutely had to have. What game are they going to win now? This is not the first game I’ve lost that will eventually be the deal breaker that costs the HC his job..bye, bye Tye.
Winners:
Duke: Got off to a slow start, but then the ‘Hoos imploded in the 2^nd half while QB Lewis for Duke finally made a few plays. Make no mistake…Virginia is the new Duke for this particular year. When considering Cav spreads this year, you have to put them in the category of Duke the last few years. They are bad/
Maryland: Another slow start to this game as well, as the Tigers dominated early. However, in Clemson we trust…this team is a horrid ACC home favorite and sure enough, they found a way to let the ‘Terps hang around in the 1^st half. Maryland broke out the reverse the WR Heyward-Bey in the 2^nd half and that helped turn the game around; poor coaches laying big chalk is a bad recipe and should be faded or passed…not bet on. I hope I can follow that recipe but I like Tennessee laying double digits to NIU…Yikes!
Western Michigan: Not what I expected at all; if you told me I would get a 7-spot I would have handed the book my money before KO. The key point to take away from this game is that Temple was able to stop the WMU run game with their front 7 only; the only big play of consequence was the TD pass at the end of the 3^rd quarter. A little disturbing WMU had so many problems against a beat-up Temple squad, but I think their offense comes back with a vengeance this week.

Houston: A perfect bet…nothing else to say except I don’t play money lines so shut up Sam and Mike.
A few words about the national scene…this year is shaping up beautifully if you hate the BCS if you ask me. Right now, I am fairly confident there will be two undefeated teams at years end…Boise St: for the purposes of this discussion, the WAC sucks except for Fresno St (and Boise). Getting them at home will prove to be the difference and the Broncs will get thru the year unscather…again. Gonna keep them out of the BCS after their last effort? Also think a MWC ends up undefeated, though I don’t know which one it’ll be. BYU goes to both Utah and TCU, while Utah gets both at home. It’s possible they all beat each other once, but I think one makes it thru unscathed. The other teams in the MWC don’t represent a threat except for maybe a pesky and very well-coached Air Force team. Utah has passed that hurdle…TCU has had some issues with these guys while BYU basically owns the Academy.
Then there is the rest of the country…or the BCS; realize there is a handful of undefeated teams remaining but I think the all get a loss hung on them. I have Oklahoma for a large chunk Over 10 wins for the season, but I think they get tripped up by Texas, Texas Tech or Oklahoma St. South Florida will lose in Morgantown in the cold late in the season and the SEC…well the SEC won’t have any undefeated teams because it’s too damn deep. If Texas beats OU, they will still get tripped up somewhere. Missouri…ditto. Penn St will lose in Columbus…they’ve never won there and their defense is overrated. The offense rocks though.
So there you have it; a bunch of BCS one-loss teams and two undefeated non-BCS teams; can you see the beauty? I have no doubt both non-BCS team will qualify for the BCS games, but will either make the Mythical National Championship (MNC) game? I say no. Right now I have no call on the MNC game, but I’m naturally looking at the SEC and B12 for my reps.
This week…
Got a late start to this week as I had a work trip to San Francisco, Sun nite till Tue afternoon; yes, work definitely interferes with the more important hobby. Nevertheless, I found two plays to jump on..both heavy away chalk
Florida -24 (-115) over Arkansas: Arkansas has been down at half to Texas and Alabama by 28 points; Florida is same caliber team and will be motivated off a loss and in need of a good performance with LSU on-deck. Arkansas OL just sucks…it says here the ‘Hogs have no time to come up for air with a ‘Bama, Texas, Florida, Auburn run on tap. Demolition.
Fri Nite
BYU -28 over Utah St: BYU continues to need style points; HC Mendenhall and the Cougar maturity will prohibit any look ahead. This team is focused and their last two visits to Logan in ’99 and ’03 (I think, doing it from memory) were both close so I think they come out hard. Both teams off a bye and the Utah St now has a versatile QB that both runs and throws…this could be the one fly in the ointment on this bet as his performance level is hard to predict. Nevertheless, Aggies lost to both Utah and Oregon by 40-something, so this number isn’t far-fetched at all.
Be back with rest of week Saturday morning.
Tomorrow I lean Pitt and Utah and will have TV bets on both. (5-10 percent of regular bet).
Horses






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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">6:43 AM (24 minutes ago)
Thursday Headlinin': The case of the missing song girl

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
• He who controls the present, controls the pom squad. The USC song girls' original squad photo looked like this:

But the "official" version was slightly, shall we say, lacking:

At great peril to life, limb and press pass, the L.A. Daily News' Scott Wolf dug into the "disappearance" and got word back from the university's Ministry of Truth: fourth-year member Allison Daniels left the team after the photo was taken to "pursue" an "internship." A likely story. Expect Allison to turn up years from now in the mini-gulag beneath the registrar's office, where they manufacture the legs that were crudely photoshopped in her place.
In actual on-field news, Rey Maualuga will not play against Oregon; he'll probably be replaced in the middle by outside linebacker Brian Cushing because backup MLB Chris Galippo is "well behind," according to Pete Carroll. And after the rumored flirtation with walk-on Garrett Greene as the No. 2 quarterback last week, Mitch Mustain is making his move on the back-up job.
• At long last, I've found our Achilles heel. Dedicated cynic Nick Saban found the vinegar he's been looking for to sour Alabama's roaring 5-0 start: special teams. The Tide had a punt blocked Saturday and have allowed kickoff and punt returns against Clemson and Georgia, ominous indicators going into a "trap game" against Kentucky, which leads the nation in kick return average. This isn't fluffy negativism for the sake of negativism, although it does overlook the presence of Alabama's own punt return demon, Javier Arenas, who Rich Brooks plans to neutralize by instructing his punter to put the ball through the windshield of the Goodyear Blimp.
Across the state, meanwhile, beleaguered Auburn offensive coordinator Tony Franklin had some advice for reporters when defensive coordinator Paul Rhoades walked into the room:
"Y'all need to go talk to the good football coach over there and leave me alone."
Right-o, guv'na. We'll just keep that 97th-ranked scoring offense and those three offensive touchdowns in three games under our caps.

• Right off the assembly line. Boise State easily cruised past Louisiana Tech Wednesday night, 38-3, and may have cemented a new star in the process: quarterback Kellen Moore was 20-of-28 for 325 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, and also had a 15-yard run. Ian Johnson's not going to give up the role of Northern Idahoan Idol without a fight: the largely forgotten hero of the '07 Fiesta Bowl only ran for 42 yards while splitting time with two other backs, but led BSU with 106 yards receiving, 51 on one play.
Quickly ... Tim Tebow promises to try harder, but isn't that what got Florida into this problem in the first place? And Florida will be missing three offensive starters against Arkansas. . . . Ed Oregeron doesn't want to talk about Ole Miss after the Rebels' upset over Florida, but he will go on about South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia, who his former team faces Saturday. . . . What will Duke do without Ifreke Okpokowuruk? . . . Anyone who watch North Carolina's win over Miami remembers an incredible number of loose helmets flying around the field. The Tar Heels noticed, too. . . . Northwestern's 5-0 and the White Sox are in the playoffs: it's a good bye week for Pat Fitzgerald. . . . Tim Brewster is looking for more big plays out of his offense. What coach isn't? . . . Nebraska's Mike McNeil and Missouri's Jeremy Maclin have been friends since kindergarten, but Saturday will try to kill one another. . . . Keep an eye out for curious follow-ups on Arizona State's Gerald Munns, who'll miss the rest of the season because of "personal issues." . . . And maybe the new chant should be "S-E-C West! S-E-C West! S-E-C West!"






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[RJ Esq]

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[RJ Esq]

<table class="card"><tbody class="card-tbody"><tr></tr><tr><td class="ct c">
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</td><td class="cc c">6:38 AM (30 minutes ago)
Morning Coffee Gets Long-Winded

from Burnt Orange Nation by GhostofBigRoy

Greg Davis sings "Kumbaya." While all of Longhorn Nation wrings their collective hands and begins to enter into mass hysteria about the lack of production from the running backs, Greg Davis thinks he has a handle on the running back situation:

Coach Bum Phillips once said the two types of players that you don't want to have are the ones that never do what you ask them to do and the ones that only do what you ask them to do. They need to get to the point where they are in the zone and if they need to bounce the ball to the outside they will do it regardless of what the coaches told them to do. I also think they'll get better in the second half of the season as they get more carries because that's what happened last year.
​

I imagine there is some truth to what Davis is saying. But it doesn't capture the reality of the situation for two reasons: 1) the offensive line missed some blocks for him on Saturday, and 2) McGee just hasn't demonstrated good feet at Texas.
While the offensive line has been excellent in pass blocking this year, only giving up three sacks, it hasn't been as impressive in the running game. In fact, I would say it's nothing close to a strong run blocking defense. How many big holes have you seen opened up for McGee this year even against defenses that are physically outmatched? On one play Saturday, lined up in the I-formation with two tight ends, fullback Luke Tiemann was left with three Arkansas players to block. On another, McGee was almost tackled in the end zone on a pitch play when Buck Burnette (who played a poor game) and Michael Huey (missed some blocks as well), both whiffed on their assignments. So the final numbers for McGee reflect more on his blockers than they do on him.
The other problem, besides the blocking for McGee, is his feet. It may be that Davis is right and he will eventually become more comfortable in the zone blocking scheme Texas runs, but it doesn't seem likely because of his feet. When watching a running back, notice their feet first. Watching Cody Johnson, he has much better lateral movement than McGee, with the ability to plant his foot and hit the hole explosively, the main requisite for a running back in a zone blocking scheme. McGee hasn't demonstrated that ability at all, which bodes poorly for any future success at Texas. I'm not willing to write him off already, but the first four games haven't been impressive.

Paging the Longhorn tight ends. Last week's game provided some insight into the tight end situation sans Blaine Irby. None of it was particularly positive. The Longhorns showed Arkansas some two tight-looks, but didn't block well out of them and failed to run the ball effectively. Neither Greg Smith nor Peter Ullman, supposedly the two blocking tight ends, justified descriptions as such. Nor did they look anything close to explosive in the passing game.
Ian Harris blocked even more poorly, missing three blocks in a limited period of time, an unacceptable performance. Harris caught a pass, but decided to slow down to juke a defender near the first down maker and barely picked it up, something that drives me crazy. The Longhorns didn't show any four or five wide receivers looks, but it seems likely they will as the season progresses, particularly since the receivers have been excellent blocking downfield. Overall, the performance of the tight ends Saturday left much to be desired, which is unacceptable going forward.

Mack Brown mum on Fozzy. No word on whether Fozzy Whittaker will play this weekend against Colorado. The Longhorn coaches decided not to play him after watching him in warmups in each of the last two games, so he must not be too far off. Anointed savior for the Texas running game, there are stories told of Foswhitt Whittaker that say he scored every time he touched the ball in high school, often making all 11 opposing players miss. Other rumors, spread by certain writers of prominent Longhorn blogs, insist that Whittaker is a robot controlled by a PlayStation 3 controller located in the press box, making him incapable of being tackled (except occasionally to avoid suspicion).

It's not the size of the dog in the fight...Yeah, I'm throwing cliches at you now. Better duck. Sorry about that. Now that I have your attention, I'd like to make the announcement that it's officially time to re-evaluate the evaluation process for high school running backs. Small backs are all the rage after 'Quizz Rodgers' performance against USC last week, which Orson deals with using his typical wit:

The quick search for an iBack Nano will continue in local middle schools and circuses throughout the remainder of the week and through Saturday morning.
​

Rather than being a problem, short running backs with good feet have advantages against the defense. This Denver Post article mentions that Rodney "Speedy" Stewart didn't even get looks from some MAC teams near his home state of Ohio. Which boggles my mind after watching him play this season. I don't know how much he improved during his redshirt season, but he has such incredible feet and explosive quickness, it's hard to understand what turned off coaches scouting him in high school.
Back to those advantages. Short running backs have several: 1) they are generally short striders, which allows them to stop, cut, and explode quickly (think Noel Devine), 2) they have a low center of gravity, which causes problems for taller defenders who have trouble getting low enough to tackle them (think 'Quizz Rodgers against SC), 3) their size allows them to fit through holes larger running backs don't even notice, and 4) they can hide behind their large offensive lineman, slowing down the defense and increasing their relative speed. I've become convinced in the last several years that a prototypical running back looks like Maurice Jones-Drew--short, fast, and thick. Think about how force acts on a lever and you realize how easily good defenders can use a tall running back's center of gravity as the axis against him--not so easy against the shorter guys. So stop discriminatin', yo.

The Colt/Shipley bromance goes national. Longhorn BFF's forever, Colt and Jordan, have been getting a lot of press in the last two weeks for their lifelong bromance. It's clear on the football field the two have the chemistry and connection needed for a successful, fulfilling, and long-lasting relationship. Already has been, really, even though they ended up moving in together at UT instead of Abilene Christian. And since they have been throwing and catching together for years.
Seriously, though, the first touchdown pass on Saturday was extremely impressive. Shipley made one of his trademark double moves (his second touchdown was as well) and had some open space in the front corner of the end zone. McCoy, realizing the safety was closing over the top, put the ball softly just wide of the sideline as Shipley turned his hips and body and caught the ball, all while keeping both feet inbounds.
Incredible stuff. Such poetry in motion, each operating on the same wavelength of consciousness that pervades all of human existence. Yes, not acting on the moment, but allowing it to act on them. Not thinking, their bodies merely vessels of the moment, acted upon by the moment in perfect harmony. The result, kinesthetic excellence and transcendence of the kind that makes athletic competition so richly compelling and beautiful, so worthwhile. As fans of these transcendent athletic endeavors, remember to step back occasionally from your fanaticism and truly revel in the fluidity and grace of those moments.






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[RJ Esq]

<table class="card"><tbody class="card-tbody"><tr></tr><tr><td class="ct c">
</td><td class="ctr c">
</td></tr><tr><td class="cl c">
</td><td class="cc c">6:38 AM (30 minutes ago)
Morning Coffee Gets Long-Winded

from Burnt Orange Nation by GhostofBigRoy

Greg Davis sings "Kumbaya." While all of Longhorn Nation wrings their collective hands and begins to enter into mass hysteria about the lack of production from the running backs, Greg Davis thinks he has a handle on the running back situation:

Coach Bum Phillips once said the two types of players that you don't want to have are the ones that never do what you ask them to do and the ones that only do what you ask them to do. They need to get to the point where they are in the zone and if they need to bounce the ball to the outside they will do it regardless of what the coaches told them to do. I also think they'll get better in the second half of the season as they get more carries because that's what happened last year.
​

I imagine there is some truth to what Davis is saying. But it doesn't capture the reality of the situation for two reasons: 1) the offensive line missed some blocks for him on Saturday, and 2) McGee just hasn't demonstrated good feet at Texas.
While the offensive line has been excellent in pass blocking this year, only giving up three sacks, it hasn't been as impressive in the running game. In fact, I would say it's nothing close to a strong run blocking defense. How many big holes have you seen opened up for McGee this year even against defenses that are physically outmatched? On one play Saturday, lined up in the I-formation with two tight ends, fullback Luke Tiemann was left with three Arkansas players to block. On another, McGee was almost tackled in the end zone on a pitch play when Buck Burnette (who played a poor game) and Michael Huey (missed some blocks as well), both whiffed on their assignments. So the final numbers for McGee reflect more on his blockers than they do on him.
The other problem, besides the blocking for McGee, is his feet. It may be that Davis is right and he will eventually become more comfortable in the zone blocking scheme Texas runs, but it doesn't seem likely because of his feet. When watching a running back, notice their feet first. Watching Cody Johnson, he has much better lateral movement than McGee, with the ability to plant his foot and hit the hole explosively, the main requisite for a running back in a zone blocking scheme. McGee hasn't demonstrated that ability at all, which bodes poorly for any future success at Texas. I'm not willing to write him off already, but the first four games haven't been impressive.

Paging the Longhorn tight ends. Last week's game provided some insight into the tight end situation sans Blaine Irby. None of it was particularly positive. The Longhorns showed Arkansas some two tight-looks, but didn't block well out of them and failed to run the ball effectively. Neither Greg Smith nor Peter Ullman, supposedly the two blocking tight ends, justified descriptions as such. Nor did they look anything close to explosive in the passing game.
Ian Harris blocked even more poorly, missing three blocks in a limited period of time, an unacceptable performance. Harris caught a pass, but decided to slow down to juke a defender near the first down maker and barely picked it up, something that drives me crazy. The Longhorns didn't show any four or five wide receivers looks, but it seems likely they will as the season progresses, particularly since the receivers have been excellent blocking downfield. Overall, the performance of the tight ends Saturday left much to be desired, which is unacceptable going forward.

Mack Brown mum on Fozzy. No word on whether Fozzy Whittaker will play this weekend against Colorado. The Longhorn coaches decided not to play him after watching him in warmups in each of the last two games, so he must not be too far off. Anointed savior for the Texas running game, there are stories told of Foswhitt Whittaker that say he scored every time he touched the ball in high school, often making all 11 opposing players miss. Other rumors, spread by certain writers of prominent Longhorn blogs, insist that Whittaker is a robot controlled by a PlayStation 3 controller located in the press box, making him incapable of being tackled (except occasionally to avoid suspicion).

It's not the size of the dog in the fight...Yeah, I'm throwing cliches at you now. Better duck. Sorry about that. Now that I have your attention, I'd like to make the announcement that it's officially time to re-evaluate the evaluation process for high school running backs. Small backs are all the rage after 'Quizz Rodgers' performance against USC last week, which Orson deals with using his typical wit:

The quick search for an iBack Nano will continue in local middle schools and circuses throughout the remainder of the week and through Saturday morning.
​

Rather than being a problem, short running backs with good feet have advantages against the defense. This Denver Post article mentions that Rodney "Speedy" Stewart didn't even get looks from some MAC teams near his home state of Ohio. Which boggles my mind after watching him play this season. I don't know how much he improved during his redshirt season, but he has such incredible feet and explosive quickness, it's hard to understand what turned off coaches scouting him in high school.
Back to those advantages. Short running backs have several: 1) they are generally short striders, which allows them to stop, cut, and explode quickly (think Noel Devine), 2) they have a low center of gravity, which causes problems for taller defenders who have trouble getting low enough to tackle them (think 'Quizz Rodgers against SC), 3) their size allows them to fit through holes larger running backs don't even notice, and 4) they can hide behind their large offensive lineman, slowing down the defense and increasing their relative speed. I've become convinced in the last several years that a prototypical running back looks like Maurice Jones-Drew--short, fast, and thick. Think about how force acts on a lever and you realize how easily good defenders can use a tall running back's center of gravity as the axis against him--not so easy against the shorter guys. So stop discriminatin', yo.

The Colt/Shipley bromance goes national. Longhorn BFF's forever, Colt and Jordan, have been getting a lot of press in the last two weeks for their lifelong bromance. It's clear on the football field the two have the chemistry and connection needed for a successful, fulfilling, and long-lasting relationship. Already has been, really, even though they ended up moving in together at UT instead of Abilene Christian. And since they have been throwing and catching together for years.
Seriously, though, the first touchdown pass on Saturday was extremely impressive. Shipley made one of his trademark double moves (his second touchdown was as well) and had some open space in the front corner of the end zone. McCoy, realizing the safety was closing over the top, put the ball softly just wide of the sideline as Shipley turned his hips and body and caught the ball, all while keeping both feet inbounds.
Incredible stuff. Such poetry in motion, each operating on the same wavelength of consciousness that pervades all of human existence. Yes, not acting on the moment, but allowing it to act on them. Not thinking, their bodies merely vessels of the moment, acted upon by the moment in perfect harmony. The result, kinesthetic excellence and transcendence of the kind that makes athletic competition so richly compelling and beautiful, so worthwhile. As fans of these transcendent athletic endeavors, remember to step back occasionally from your fanaticism and truly revel in the fluidity and grace of those moments.






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[RJ Esq]

LES MILES FACEBOOK PAGE

from Every Day Should Be Saturday by Orson Swindle
The CI is on the way, but this must go first. If you wonder where Les Miles has shown his massive testicles, or where he plans to show them…well, there’s a handy map for that.

LSUFreek is a genius. Say bye-bye to your patellas, fucker.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">3:43 PM (56 minutes ago)
Illinois at Michigan is better than you think, somehow

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton

I don't know why, but I keep getting the idea that there's a good team between Michigan and Illinois, there must be, and that the Illini's trip to Ann Arbor Saturday has more significance in the Big Ten than the race for the Alamo Bowl. Maybe it's nostalgia for the innocent optimism of August, but even at 2-2, neither team seems destined for the tank. Michigan, especially, can move itself right back into New Year's Day chatter with a 2-0 start against what should be two of the better teams in the conference. So there's the innocent optimism of October, if nothing else. That, and Arrelious Benn. Then again, we've been instructed to revise expectations downward. A month into the season, it's the league's worst scoring offense (the Wolverines) locking horns with the league's worst scoring defense (the Illini), with both teams only a couple games removed from uncomfortably close shaves against Miami of Ohio and UL-Lafayette, respectively, and only five points between them from each sitting at 1-3. Neither offense can floor the gas pedal because of patchwork lines and the quarterbacks -- Juice Williams is better but still frequently erratic as a passer, and Steven Threet (stunning 58-yard gallop against Wisconsin notwithstanding) is still too stiff to do everything Rich Rodriguez wants to do out of the spread on a consistent basis. It makes matters much dicier for the Illini when they have to settle for short, dinky throws to get Benn involved, and for the Wolverines when defenses don't have to respect the quarterback keeping the ball on the zone read. These are the Big Ten's last two reps in Pasadena, but if either one was ever thinking along those lines during the offseason, they've probably relinquished that goal by now. A winning record and a few stray poll votes shouldn't sound too bad at the moment.
Still, there's a chance either of these teams -- maybe even both -- has a spark that's been buried beneath an extreme schedule on one hand and extreme youthful folly on the other, and will soon be snapping to attention. Michigan was dramatically better on offense against Notre Dame (when not randomly dropping the ball on the ground) and rose from the dead at halftime to beat Wisconsin on three epic touchdown drives in the second half last week. For all the initial yakety sax against Utah and Miami, there's a bona fide offense in there, growing up quickly and struggling to put it together for more than a quarter or two at a time. Illinois, for all we know, has put it together, just not efficiently enough to handle two of the buzzsaw teams of the early season, Missouri and Penn State. You can be pretty good (and the Illini offense has been, with 42 points and 500-plus yards against Mizzou and 24 and 372 in Happy Valley) and nobody will notice against a pair of top five teams. With that part of the schedule past, the Illini are still staring down the barrel at nine wins if it gets back in the plus column Saturday.
Or it may just be two mediocre outfits trying to stave off another week of misery. That's what scraping by Miami and Lafayette suggests: not so much promise as survival. The only way to tell the difference Saturday, though, will be which side of the scoreboard you wind up on.






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[RJ Esq]

Breaking News: Ron Prince Asks for Bailout

from Bring On The Cats by Panjandrum

Manhattan, KS (BOTC Wire Reports) - Numerous sources inside the Vanier Football Complex and Anderson Hall confirmed to BOTC that Head Coach Ron Prince has asked Athletic Director Bob Krause for a bailout. When Krause, puzzled, asked Prince what the bailout was for, the coach supposedly told the athletic director, "Well, if the Senate is willing to give Wall St. $850 billion, you can at least give me $400,000 to hire a decent Defensive Coordinator."
A Crisis of Epic Proportions
At the end of last season, Kansas State's defense began to rapidly devolve from a serviceable unit into the laughing stock of the Big 12 Conference. In the month of November, the Wildcats lost all four games, and their opponents scored a combined 198 points (49.5 points per game). The low point of the losing streak, a 73-31 loss to Nebraska in Lincoln, decreased fan confidence in Defensive Coordinator Tim Tibesar, and it put serious doubt in his ability to run a Division 1 defense.
Several theories were presented by football experts during this period, and most dealt with the defense's transition from a "Cover 2" scheme to a "3-4" base defense. Others postulated that it was a lack of quality depth and injuries taking a toll after a long season. However, most of those explanations were only tentatively accepted by fans. Nonetheless, fan confidence began to return to somewhat pre-choke levels after heavy JUCO recruiting and a spring game that ended in a 3-0 outcome. Furthermore, Prince's assertion that his defense was assembled to combat the spread offense inspired additional hope for fans that saw North Texas, Texas Tech, Kansas, and Missouri on the schedule for 2008.

During the early part of the 2008 season, Prince's prediction seemingly came true. In a 45-6 win against North Texas, a team that ranked 18^th in the FBS a year ago in passing offense, the Wildcats held the Mean Green to 205 total yards. Fans began to rapidly speculate that the JUCO experiment was a resounding success, and that the defense had improved to pre-suck levels. Ultimately, fan confidence, which had steadily been on the rise after the malaise of the previous year had worn off, immediately shot up overnight based on the speculation. While some experts warned that this might simply be a byproduct of playing a butt-awful team, fan confidence rose in spite of the underlying fear.
The following week against Montana State (a member of the FCS), a 69-10 victory, K-State held the Bobcats to 193 total yards of offense. Again, without any true indicators of potential success against confirmed competition, fan confidence rose to unreasonable levels, and in essence created a ‘fan confidence bubble'. This bubble continued to grow for ten days, unperturbed, until Kansas State's September 17^th matchup against the Louisville Cardinals in Louisville, KY.
The Bubble Bursts
On a Wednesday night game against Louisville, the Wildcat defense was exposed by the Cardinals during a nationally televised game on ESPN2. While the announcers held a three-hour discussion of the upcoming Ryder Cup, Kansas State was gashed for 577 yards of total offense, 303 of which were on the ground. Most of these gains were due to missed assignments and broken tackles, and the confidence gained by fans during the previous ten months was immediately shattered. Since they started keeping football records at Kansas State in 1993, there has never been a greater drop in fan confidence in a single day.
Hopes arose slightly that the following week's game against The University of Louisiana would inspire a bounce back of confidence, but after giving up 509 yards (335 rushing) to a team from the Sun Belt conference, fan confidence dropped to its lowest point since the Great Depression of Kansas State football (1896-1993).
Bold and Daring Action is Taken
After seeing fan confidence drop to its lowest point in fifteen years, and a conspicuous group of people wandering the streets of Manhattan with torches and pitchforks, Coach Ron Prince approached Bob Krause about the potential bailout. While Krause listened to the request, sources say that his reaction was mixed. An e-mail from Krause to University President Jon Wefald was intercepted and e-mailed to BOTC:

"In a way, I can see where Ron's coming from. Tim Tibesar is awful. I could throw eleven housecats on the field, and they would probably be more assignment sound and instill more fear in the opposing offense. But, Ron got himself into this mess when he hired a guy whose only experience as a coordinator was at the Division 2 level for chrissakes. He should have been regulating the defense on a more consistent basis. His laissez faire attitude contributed to this mess, and I don't see why the hard earned money those folks on Main Street Manhattan, Kansas donated should go to fixing his mistakes.
"It's really a tough call. Considering that we'll have a new University President in the near future, I need to make sure that I make the right decision in a selection year. I kind of like this job, and hey, I didn't hire this guy. Weiser did. Blame him."
​

Coach Prince was unavailable for comment, but those same sources told us that Prince has been seen putting empty glass jars in all of the campus buildings with an attached label that says, "New DC Fund". An accounting student with nothing better to do tallied up the collected funds, and he found that students and faculty across campus have donated $15.84 towards the effort. This number takes into account an IOU retrieved from a jar outside of the Union coffee shop that said, "Ron, sorry dood, but we're coming up on a recession, and I needed money for a latte. IOU $4.63. Thx."
A closed door meeting is expected tomorrow between Coach Prince, AD Krause, and President Wefald to discuss the potential bailout. When BOTC tried to contact Coach Tibesar at the Vanier complex, a player seeking anonymity told us that he couldn't come to the phone because, "TIbs is playing NCAA Football 09 on the PS3 right now. He said he's played Texas Tech five times today, and he can't seem to figure out how to beat them." As the player went to hang up the phone, another voice in the background was heard screaming, "Take that Tibs! Dude, you are so [expletive] Saturday."
When further news breaks on this story, we'll pass it along.

 

[RJ Esq]

USC linebacker Brian Cushing shifts to the middle

from L.A. Times - USC Trojans
The Trojan will be moved from the outside to the middle for Saturday's game against Oregon, replacing Rey Maualuga.

USC linebacker Brian Cushing spent three seasons on the outside looking in.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">8:43 AM (9 hours ago)
ACC Championship Roulette: Just when you think they're out, the Terps pull you back in

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
Round and round she goes, where the ball stops, nobody knows ...

This week's bet: Maryland. They're not actually good at anything except net punting. Nevertheless, the Terps have won three straight, upset Cal, came from ten points down to sink preseason favorite Clemson on the road and momentarily restored Ralph Friedgen from 'fired' to 'fabulous.'
Let 'em ride: Okay, two more things the Terps are good at: a) Balance. They pass for 184 yards per game, and run for a little over 182; and b) Playing up to the competition. Going back to last year's wins over Rutgers and Boston College, Maryland's won four straight over teams that started the day in the polls, all of them with afro'd gamer Chris Turner at quarterback. Because Turner was so good in those games, and positively brilliant efficiency-wise in wins over Georgia Tech and N.C. State, Friedgen raised a lot of eyebrows when he picked Jordan Steffy to start over Turner and Josh Portis in August, and was virtually left for dead when Turner and the rest of the team fell on his/its face at Middle Tennessee. Turner responded with a quietly deadly effort (15-of-19, two touchdowns, 182 efficiency rating) to beat Cal, and somehow managed to get UMD past Clemson with a meh day, minimal help from the running game and zero catches by the one actually fearsome member of the offense, Darrius Heyward-Bey. As I say, kid's a gamer.
And despite their difficulty getting the ball in his hands, Heyward-Bey is as dangerous an athlete as there is in the conference -- even when he's shut down in the passing game, he finds a way to get his yards:

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That was the Terps' only offensive play of consequence Saturday, and it was enough because they didn't give the game away on turnovers. It was reminiscent of Heyward-Bey's day against Miami in 2006, when Maryland inconceivably gained a mere six first downs for the entire game but got its deep threat behind the secondary not once but twice and won, 14-13. They find a way.
Bet the field: Of course, they also find a way to lose to Middle Tennessee State, because, in fact, Maryland is not actually good at anything in particular. Turner's big games are a shock because he's thoroughly mediocre on every other occasion. Even the defense, which seems like it's alright, currently ranks 87th nationally and next-to-last in the ACC in yards allowed. No one will be -- that is, no one should be -- the least bit surprised if things go horribly wrong this weekend at Virginia.
Payout: 18-to-1. Maryland is better than you think, and arguably the best team in the conference over the last three weeks; it might have the ACC's best wins both inside (Clemson) and outside the league (Cal). But another Middle Tennessee is lurking somewhere in there, in the same place that inspired last year's similar lame duck loss at North Carolina. As stunning as three wins in a row would have sounded three weeks ago, an eminent losing skid seems about as likely.






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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">8:29 AM (9 hours ago)
5 Reasons Texas Tech Will Lose: Kansas State Edition

from Double-T Nation by Seth C

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Reason #1: Tough On The Road

If there's anything that last week showed college football fans it's that teams can lose, whether they are at home or on the road. Of the 4 losses from last year, Texas Tech lost 3 of 4 on the road (Oklahoma State, Missouri and Texas). There's no reason why Texas Tech can't lose on the road, just like there's no reason that Michigan can upset Wisconsin, Ole Miss can upset Florida or Alabama can upset Georgia. This is a huge opportunity for Kansas State, a win here against Texas Tech puts them one step closer to being eligible for a bowl and restoring some of the success of a proud program. The bottom line, is that this is a very winnable game for Kansas State and although the Wildcats haven't had the season they expected, it takes one game to turn it around.
Reason #2: Renewed Running Game

Last week, was Lamark Brown's first at running back, and suffice to say, he's pretty good. Brown, a converted receiver, had 29 attempts, 137 yards and a touchdown against La.-Lafayette. Keep in mind that Brown's position change came after the 12 attempts for 30 yards against Louisville. Brown is big (6'3"/225) and I don't think that Texas Tech has faced a back this big this far. Granted, I don't think that Brown has faced a Big 12 defense either, so perhaps that's a push. But given the fact that Brown may be feeling a bit chipper after last week's romping over the Ragin' Cajuns (that's two very funny words to type), I'd expect that Brown is feeling that he can do the same sort of thing against a traditionally porous defense.
Reason #3: Banks is Explosive

This worries me a bit. If there's one thing that I've noticed thus far about Kansas State's Brandon Banks, it's that he's tiny (5'7"/142) but can make some plays (he's averaging, that's right, averaging 21.05 yards per catch and he has 6 touchdowns). I'm not sure that Banks sits outside or in the slot, but if he's outside, the biggest fear that I have is that cornerback Jamar Wall gets beat deep, much like he did against Eastern Washington and against Nevada. Both were plays where Wall was perhaps expecting help from Daniel Charbonnet, but it was either late or just didn't get there. In any event, Wall was soundly beat those times and I think McNeill made a concerted effort to not let that happen against SMU and UMass. As we talked yesterday, the plan is to just keep everything in front of them, but I think Banks shakes free a couple of times during the game and it's on the defensive backfield to make sure that Banks doesn't burn the Red Raiders for huge chunks of yards and touchdowns.
Reason #4: Ian Campbell Can Still Play

I have no doubt that Ian Campbell is still an immensely talented player who is miscast in a 3-4 defense. Although Rylan Reed has faced the absolute best in Chris Long last year, and more than held his own, he also did so on an ankle that wasn't injured until the end of the game. Reed performed as well as could be expected against Long and I'm not sure that Campbell is the exact same type of talent that Long is, he is good, very good. It was only 2006 where Campbell had 17.5 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks, while absolutely dominating in the Big 12, but last year the coaching staff switched to a 3-4 defense and Campbell's been neutered. Campbell hasn't even come close to being the player he was in 2006 and as of this year, he's still struggling. But that doesn't mean that he's can't still be dominating, especially against Rylan Reed, who just isn't quite 100% despite what he may say. If Campbell gets to Harrell on a consistent basis then I think Harrell has a long day.
Reason #5: The Wildcats Can Still Put Up Points

I'm saying all of this with a grain of salt, because almost no team has played a tough schedule, but Kansas State can still put up points and they're averaging 47.0 points a game thus far. I've never been concerned about Texas Tech's ability to put up points, but when the offense struggles, it puts additional pressure on the defense to perform and I'm not quite sure that this Texas Tech defense is capable of making a huge stand. The Texas Tech defense has always relied on the Texas Tech offense engineer a comeback drive, but at some point, the defense is going to have to make a stand at the end of the game and I'm not sure that this defense has the horses to do that, and at some point against Kansas State a stand will need to be made.






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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">7:07 PM (18 minutes ago)
Five Longhorns to watch vs. Colorado

from Bevo Sports by Brian
Cody Johnson runs against Arkansas

Saturday at 6pm on FSN the Longhorns will start Big 12 play against Colorado. The Buffaloes are easily the Horns’ toughest opponent of the season so despite four blowout wins the team still hasn’t proven anything. Texas will lean on Colt McCoy as they do every week, but Texas will also need these five other players to step up to take care of business: Cody Johnson

The Texas coaches and fans thought the running game would be led by the tandem of Vondrell McGee and Foswhitt Whittaker. While Whittaker has struggled to contribute as expected because of injuries to both knees, McGee has just struggled. Enter former fullback Cody Johnson. The big man has looked like the best ball carrier on the team not named Colt McCoy. Mack Brown has preferred big, downhill runners throughout his career, a la Natrone Means and Ricky Williams. And even though the UT running game doesn’t appear to suit Johnson’s strengths he has excelled. If Johnson can outperform McGee again, this time in a conference game, it seems likely that the combination of Johnson and Whittaker when he is healthy will lead the running game going forward into the season.
James Kirkendoll

Texas has to find a third receiver. The physical appearance and upside of Malcolm Williams and Dan Buckner led many to anoint them the leaders for the position. But through four games it is clear that McCoy does not trust these two yet for whatever reason. Colt does seem to trust Kirkendoll, who made a nice run after the catch early in last week’s blowout of Arkansas. The loss of Blaine Irby allows defenses to key on Jordan Shipley and Quan Cosby. If Texas wants to continue their success through the air, one of the young receivers must step up. This week is Kirkendoll’s week to solidify himself as that guy.
Blake Gideon

There is no doubt that the true freshman from nearby Leander High School has exceeded expectations. After only being out of high school for six months, Gideon finds himself leading a young but talented secondary for the Texas Longhorns. Most 18 year’olds would be overwhelmed, but the coach’s son appears to be taking to his new position like a duck to water. Gideon hasn’t made a whole lot of huge plays, but according to defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, Gideon is lining up the defense correctly. I think Muschamp, a former college safety, sees a lot of himself in Gideon and for UT fans that is assuredly a good thing. Teams are going to try and confuse the secondary to create big plays, if Gideon can limit these by being smart and aware, the Longhorn defense could become one of college football’s best this year.
Keenan Robinson

If nobody else is running, I’d like to nominate myself as the President of the Keenan Robinson fan club. This may be premature but Robinson has looked like a star in the making every time he is on the field, albeit in cleanup duty. He has the speed and nose for the football that Muschamp craves in his line backing unit. Overall the group of Roddrick Muckelroy, Sergio Kindle, Rashad Bobino, and Jared Norton has looked great, but Robinson gives this defense the ability to keep three linebackers on the field against three receiver sets. The other linebackers on the team struggle in space. With Robinson’s speed and ball skills, he is a prime candidate to get more time as the opposing offenses become faster. The problem is deciding whose snaps the talented freshman cuts into. The combination of Robinson and Muckelroy at linebacker with Kindle playing rush end appears to be the best combination for Texas on obvious passing downs.
Justin Tucker

Historically, Texas has not done great on kick coverage. Don’t believe me? Watch the DVD of the first Rose Bowl Texas played in. With the talent on campus, it has appeared the Horns have struggled to find the types of players it takes to excel on special teams coverage. Kick coverage is more about willingness and want to than superior athletic ability. Kickoff specialist Justin Tucker is making this quandary obsolete. Tucker has been booming the ball, forcing touchbacks at a rate not seen on the 40 acres. It’s beginning to seam that on balls he doesn’t kick into the end zone come at the coach’s request in order to get a look at the coverage unit. Against teams like Oklahoma, Missouri, Oklahoma State, and Texas Tech special teams could decide the game. A weapon like Tucker, and on the punt team with John Gold, gives Texas an advantage in every game.






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[RJ Esq]

It's an ugly job, but somebody has to reconsider Pitt

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton

Thursday night is just alright for taking eye-opening dives: favorites South Carolina, Rutgers, West Virginia, Southern Cal and now South Florida have gone down four weeks in a row. Four ranked teams lost on Thursday night last year, including then-undefeated South Florida, at Rutgers, and it was the Scarlet Knights that started all this by upsetting undefeated Louisville on a memorable Thursday in 2006. During the week, chaos is the rule and ambitions are meat.
Speaking of chaos, the bigger story tonight -- even bigger than USF's apparent exit from the national landscape -- is the suddenly wide, wide open race in the Big East. I ask you, reader: with the Bulls sitting at 0-1, who is in charge of this conference? Undefeated UConn? Disappointing preseason favorite West Virginia, which still has a chance to pull its act together for the league slate? Or ... Pittsburgh? Surprisingly enough, after its somewhat misleading opening loss to Bowling Green, the Panthers may actually be evolving into the upstarts so much of the prognostoscenti guessed they would be, especially when they play the way they did tonight: Pitt held the ball for more than 37 minutes, including a pair of eight-minute scoring drives; shut out USF's offense in the first half; got a flatly sensational performance from its star, LeSean McCoy; and when USF looked like it had wrested the game away with a touchdown to go up 21-20 with six minutes to play, the Panthers flew down the field, 60 yards in three plays, and snatched the lead right back. Needing to run the clock out, McCoy made a first down by himself that drained USF's comeback chances to virtual nonexistence.
Not that Pitt was exactly firing on all cylinders: it had a punt blocked and run in for a touchdown, its own first touchdown was dependent on a string of Bull penalties, and without McCoy's occasional hairpin brilliance in tight quarters would not have been able to power its way to several improbable conversions in the second half. Suddenly, though, the Panthers actually look like Dave Wannstedt has presumably wanted them to look for years, and the calls for his head are likely subsiding for the first time in about as long. If USF and West Virginia aren't going to take hold of this league, after as good a road win as any team in it, the initiative might as well be Pitt's.

 

[RJ Esq]

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[RJ Esq]

Horses--See highlighted section.

Jackie Sherrill thinks the Aggies suck

from Bevo Sports by Brian
There was a fantastically negative article in the Houston Chronicle about Texas A&M this week. The headline is “Also-ran status looms for Aggies” and the article itself is even more scathing. The Aggies are 25.5-point underdogs this weekend against Oklahoma State. Not real Oklahoma, the light version. How big would the spread be if they were playing the Sooners?


Former A&M coach Jackie Sherrill thinks <del>they should start cheating like when he was the coach</del> the program has taken a giant step back:

The signs of decline around the Texas A&M football program have been apparent for a while now.


But after a lackluster month of non-conference play and days before the Aggies’ Big 12 opener, the reality is the program could be headed for one of its rockiest rides in nearly 40 years. A&M is a four-touchdown underdog entering Saturday’s game at No. 21 Oklahoma State - a team the Aggies have beaten four times in a row, including two consecutive one-point victories.


“Since when has A&M been a 25-point underdog to Oklahoma State or a 25-point underdog to anybody?” said former A&M coach Jackie Sherrill, referencing the opening line for Saturday’s game. “So they’ve taken a tremendous step back.”
​

Many thanks to EDSBS for the link.

 

[RJ Esq]

54b's Commentary - Arkansas Redux/CU Preview

from Burnt Orange Nation by 54b
Were those really the same Arkansas Razorbacks that ruined the new millennium for me and turned DKR upside down in 2003? Was that really the same Ozarkian fan base that lives to remind Texas fans that it's possible to hate another state so unconditionally that one can persist on spite alone?
Seriously, after the Horns went up by a couple of touchdowns last Saturday on their way to a thorough 52-10 trouncing, I had to keep reminding myself that McCoy and the Longhorns were taking one of our fiercest rivals to school rather than taking advantage of a defenseless and offensively challenged team mired in a free-fall to obscurity.
Harsh words to be sure and no "sooner" do I write them than I cringe at the thought that we may be awaiting the same fate in the coming weeks against some very potent opponents. But for now I sit in wonder of the most lopsided win in the storied rivalry since 1916 and I'm reminded of the kind of sportsmanship the Razorbacks displayed the last time they delt the Longhorns a heartbreaking loss. So instead of taking the high road, I figure I'll just fight fire with gasoline and rekindle the Razorbacks fans hatred for us with...

The Top 10 Ways To Heckle A Hog When It's Down
10) Hey Arkansas, how does it feel to actually get your "Dick" knocked in the dirt?
9) Will your team be good again when pigs fly or when pigs complete a forward pass?
8) Wow, your offense is so bad, Will Muschamp didn't even make it on YouTube this time.
7) If pork is the other white meat, does that make Razorback the other white trash?
6) Do you find it ironic that the "SEC" won't bail you out of this mess?
5) Let's honor Beck's appearance at the ACL Music Fest by singing, "Soyyyy, un Patrino-Boar, I'm a loser-piggy, so why don't you grill me."
4) You've tried snapping the ball directly to your running back, have you tried snapping it directly to the Back Judge?
3) Is "Woo Pig Suey" really just Pig Latin for "Makin' Bacon?"
2) What's it like knowing you busted your Nutt for a coach who's perfected the art of speed dating?
And the #1 way to heckle a hog when its down...
1) Sorry Razorbacks, you're just not quite up to par with The Arkansas State University.
The Game
Not much more I can say about the Longhorns third straight blow-out at DKR other than before UT's next home game, I'd like to get T-shirts printed up that read...
Texas 52
(Your team name here) 10
Despite a lack of formidable opposition, I've got to admit this Texas team has been impressive and exceeded most Longhorns fans' preseason expectations. And I must admit that I found it somewhat comforting when two of our previous foes, Rice and UTEP, completely demolished North Texas and UCF last weekend even if those teams aren't much better. Still, I'm left wondering if the Horns are really that good, or if our non-con schedule was really just that bad? No doubt we'll start to find out the answer to that question at the...
Next Game
Ah yes, bring on the Big XII and right out of the gate, the Longhorns get a blind date with the Buffaloes in Boulder. CU was undefeated going into last weekend (including a win over a ranked West Virginia team) before dropping a sloppy one to a so-so Florida State team down in Jacksonville. So it's hard to tell just how much muscle Ralphie's packing these days. But despite the Seminole setback, a rash of injuries to the Buffs O-Line, and Coach Hawkins taking that whole "take your son to work day" thing a little too seriously, I've no doubt Folsom Field will be rocking this Saturday night. Hopefully the Horns can quiet the crowd by getting to Cody Hawkins early and exploiting a CU defense that has only been so-so against the run. But will it be enough to get a much needed win heading into back-to-back games with two Top 5 teams? Well, since we can't leave it up to the House of Representative to vote on this one, let's turn it over to the...
Unpredictable Prediction
Never fear, Longhorns fans, one of my friends used to be a handler for Bevo and he's always helped me out with all of my Longhorn prognostication and hooven-quadruped tranquilizer needs. Provided FedEx doesn't mind transporting some metabolic-grade Buffalo-nip to Boulder this weekend and I can borrow some organic peanut butter from the CU hippie faithful, it'll be night-night for Ralphie.
Texas 38
Rocky Mountain Oysters 27
Quoteworthy
I think Coach Hawkins did a pretty good job summing up how we all feel about the opening weekend of conference play when he said:
"It's Division 1 Football. It's the Big XII. It ain't intramurals."
Hook’em,
54b

 

[RJ Esq]

Thursday upset 2.0 gets away from Oregon State

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton

I'm watching the end of Oregon State's encore effort at Utah, and with two minutes to go, it looks like exactly that: one week after shocking the cosmos and salvaging its season against Southern Cal, and after yielding 20 unanswered points in the first half to another undefeated, top 15, double-digit favorite at Utah, OSU ripped off 25 straight points and seemed to lock up the game with an 80-yard, 13-play, six-and-half-minute drive to go up 28-20 with 2:23 on the clock. Remember: at this point, Utah hadn't scored since the second quarter and had hardly gained a first down.Naturally, the Utes tore down the field, 62 yards on four plays, pulled within two on a Brent Johnson-to-Brandon Godfrey seam route and tied the game on Brian Johnson's two-point scramble. Oregon State, gunning for the win, proceeded to throw two incomplete passes on either side of an out-of-bounds run, draining all of 15 seconds off the clock, leaving just enough time for Johnson to complete three straight passes and Louis Sakoda to boot the game-winner with no time left. Two minutes, 11 points, 6-0.
The student crowd pressing against Sakoda during the kicker's postgame interview was chanting "B-C-S!" "B-C-S!" which sounds like an obvious goal but is still putting the Rolls ahead of the horse with another six games to go -- especially when one of those games is against fellow big-money aspirant BYU, and the Utes have veered onto awfully thin ice in three of those games, against Michigan, Air Force and Oregon State. But back in the summer, I wouldn't give the Utes a chance to beat Michigan and Oregon State, even in the best case scenario. So they're over that hump, and with the Mountain West schedule coming on in earnest, it's all downhill until the Thanksgiving date with the Cougars.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td rowspan="3" bgcolor="#cccc99" height="31"><script type="text/javascript">//<![CDATA[ WriteDate(true, true, 0);//]]></script>Friday, October 03, 2008</td><td rowspan="3" valign="middle" height="31">

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</td><td rowspan="3" height="165">Each week I will look at the matchups involving top 25 teams for the upcoming week and give you my forecast on the game. If you read pages 324 and 327 of my National college football preview you will see I have a Power Plays projection for each teams yards for the season. I will give you my computers projection for each game as well and keep track how both do this season. The numbers above the game reflect the Power Plays projected box score for each game. I then write my personal analysis below. I am not a computer and I do not just go by what a computer predicts, so sometimes the forecasts may vary. All games will be tabulated by the Straight up winner of each game. I will also have a couple of extra marquee games or upset selections each week to keep it interesting. Also this year I have added two new things to the forecasts. I am listing the last 11 years matchups between the schools (just click on team names in Blue. I am also providing you with the team page from my FCS preview (over 100 pages) to give you a better idea of the type of FCS (1AA) foe that the top teams are facing each week. *Numbers in Red are actual numbers/ Highlighted numbers are within 30 yds OR 3pts!
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</td><td colspan="8" rowspan="3" height="95">Robert Griffin is an exciting true frosh QB for Baylor who should make some plays and the Bears should put some points on the board vs the #1 team. The Oklahoma/TCU game was closer than the final score indicates (see Thursday’s News and Notes) but the Sooners will avoid the current upset bug.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Oklahoma 48 BAYLOR 24
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</td><td colspan="7" rowspan="3" height="95">Good spot for Kentucky catching the Tide off their super impressive win at Georgia and moving up to #2 in the polls. Kentucky is a very quiet 4-0 this year and I like their defense. This should be a lower scoring game but Bama has next week off and Saban will have their attention about avoiding upsets.
PHIL’S FORECAST: ALABAMA 27 Kentucky 10
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</td><td colspan="8" rowspan="5" height="137">This one could be a surprise upset. Missouri has lost their last 15 trips here with their last win in Lincoln in 1978! This is a night game and the Huskers will be given no chance after their loss to Virginia Tech last week. Missouri is off a bye but watch for the Huskers to play much better than last week. It would be ironic if Missouri caught a deflected pass in the end zone like in 1997 when the Tigers almost upset #1 Nebraska at home as a 29 point dog.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Missouri 42 NEBRASKA 35
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</td><td colspan="7" height="109">Last year Oklahoma traveled to Colorado the week before the Red River Rivalry and led 24-7 in the 4Q but they got caught looking ahead and were upset by the Buffaloes. Already this year the Buffs knocked off a ranked West Virginia team at home. Texas has the RRR on deck, so it will be closer than my computer calls for.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Texas 31 COLORADO 17
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</td><td colspan="7" rowspan="3" height="109">Kansas St upset Texas on the road last year around this time so Texas Tech had better be careful. They are just 7-11 traveling to Big 12 North stadiums and 2-5 the last 7 Big 12 road gms overall including two upset. I have not seen Tech play up to their talent level in any of their games yet this year but perhaps they will break out this week even though they are in a tough situation.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Texas Tech 38 KANSAS ST 27
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</td><td colspan="8" rowspan="3" height="123">I had Penn St rated higher than anyone else in the country this year as I had them in my Top Ten and #2 in the Big Ten while some magazines actually had them as low as #7 in the Big Ten. This looks like a flat spot off a “White Out” national TV game vs Illinois and with huge games vs Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio State on deck the next 3 weeks. They have enough talent to get out of West Lafayette with a win.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Penn St 34 PURDUE 20
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</td><td colspan="7" rowspan="5" height="151">Utah came up here and beat the Aggies 58-10 a few weeks back. BYU has a take no prisoners approach and could even have the crowd edge for this Friday Night game. Utah St does have some potential with new QB Borel bringing mobility to the offense and a mobile QB is needed for their schemes. You might not realize this but Utah St beat Idaho 42-17 in their last game! BYU was favored big in each of their last two trips to Logan but needed 2 OT’s to win in ’99 and only won 35-34 in 2002 but that was before Mendenhall arrived.
PHIL’S FORECAST: BYU 47 Utah St 13
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</td><td colspan="8" height="84">I am very impressed with the Ducks this year because even without LY’s QB Dennis Dixon and now without their top 2 or sometimes 3 QB’s this year, they continue to put points on the board. USC will be angry but the Ducks will keep this one closer than expected.
PHIL’S FORECAST: USC 33 Oregon 20
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</td><td colspan="2" rowspan="5" height="151">Last week on these pages I wrote that Ole Miss could be 4-0 this year and the Gators were off a solid win vs rival Tennessee and would not bring their “A” game and said it would be closer than most expect. It was and after a stunning upset I look for the Gators to come out with their hair on fire. I still have them projected in the national title game as they will be favored in all of the rest of their games and a one loss SEC team WILL be in the title game. At the start of the year I said this was a rebuilding year for the Hogs and they have not let me down in that regard.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Florida 48 ARKANSAS 13
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</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="3" height="112">It just came out that USF will likely be without their star DE Selvie and also starting DT McClain. That is big as their DLine is among the best in the NCAA when they are healthy. So far this year I have watched Pitt struggle vs a couple of MAC teams, get outgained by 100+ yards by Iowa at home and trail Syracuse 24-16 in the 4Q! Even without their DL’s USF is a national title contender and Pitt is not.
PHIL’S FORECAST: USF 34 Pitt 20
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</td><td height="2">

</td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="889"><colgroup><col width="161"><col width="1"><col width="3"><col width="344"><col width="1"><col width="26"><col width="2"><col width="2"><col width="1"><col width="340"><col width="5"><col width="2"><col width="1"></colgroup><tbody><tr valign="top"><td rowspan="2" height="54">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="2" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Ohio St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Wisconsin
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td colspan="8" height="25">
</td><td height="25">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="29">
</td><td colspan="4" rowspan="3" height="51">

</td><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="51">
</td><td height="29">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="6" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td rowspan="5" height="112">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="5" height="112">Last week was the first time RB Beanie Wells (’08 Heisman candidate) and QB Terelle Pryor (future Heisman candidate) both started a game and they led Minny 34-6 in the 4Q. The D allowed just 125 yards in the first 3 quarters but the 2nd and 3rd string gave up 14 4Q points on a couple of drives with multiple 4th down conversions. The 1st string D, Wells and Pryor will play all game here and Buckeyes will start a surge up in the polls.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Ohio St 20 WISCONSIN 16
</td><td colspan="2" height="18">
</td><td height="18">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="8" height="3">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="54">
</td><td colspan="4" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Auburn
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Vanderbilt
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td height="54">
</td><td height="54">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="8" height="3">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="34">
</td><td colspan="4" rowspan="5" height="151">Did you know that Vandy has been outgained in 3 of their 4 games this year? They were very fortunate to escape with wins over Ole Miss and South Carolina and have been getting some national publicity and ESPN Gameday will be at their stadium this week. Last year Auburn led 35-0 before allowing a late score and Vandy’s luck will run out this week. Unlike when Auburn traveled to Miss St and had a 3 to 1 yardage edge but only won by one, the computer calls for a 362-198 yard edge here and this time it will be reflected on the scoreboard.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Auburn 23 VANDERBILT 9
</td><td rowspan="5" height="151">
</td><td height="34">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="7" height="13">
</td><td height="13">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="51">
</td><td colspan="2" height="51">

</td><td colspan="2" height="51">
</td><td height="51">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="7" height="5">
</td><td height="5">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="54">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="3" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Kansas
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Iowa St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td colspan="2" height="48">
</td><td height="48">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="7" height="3">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="4" height="3">
</td><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="59">

</td><td rowspan="3" height="59">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="9" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="109">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="3" height="109">Iowa St coach Chizik has been a home dog 5 times and has 3 outright upsets to show for it and also a near upset of Oklahoma last year in which his team was down 10-7 and had the ball near the OU goal line but was intercepted in the end zone. He has more talent and depth on this year’s squad and Kansas is struggling to run the football, so another upset is possible here.
PHIL’S FORECAST: Kansas 28 Iowa St 21
</td><td colspan="4" height="52">
</td><td height="52">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="7" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="53">
</td><td colspan="4" rowspan="2" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Oregon St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Utah
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td height="53">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="8" height="1">
</td><td height="1">
</td></tr><tr class="f-sp"><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td height="4">

</td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="889"><colgroup><col width="162"><col width="2"><col width="345"><col width="1"><col width="30"><col width="348"><col width="1"></colgroup><tbody><tr valign="top"><td colspan="5" height="12">
</td><td rowspan="4" height="109">Oregon St is off their big upset of USC and got a lot of press for it including being named the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl team of the week. Now they have to make a trip to a non-BCS school and Utah can make a name for themselves with a solid win vs the team that beat USC. I still rate Utah as the leading non-BCS team that has a shot at making a BCS bowl.
PHIL’S FORECAST: UTAH 37 Oregon St 24
</td><td height="12">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="51">
</td><td height="51">

</td><td colspan="2" height="51">
</td><td height="51">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="5" height="3">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td rowspan="2" height="54">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="2" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Western KY
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Virginia Tech
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td height="43">
</td><td height="43">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="11">
</td><td height="11">
</td></tr><tr class="f-sp"><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td height="4">

</td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="889"><colgroup><col width="162"><col width="348"><col width="30"><col width="2"><col width="345"><col width="1"><col width="1"></colgroup><tbody><tr valign="top"><td rowspan="4" height="95">
</td><td rowspan="4" height="95">Hats off to VT which overcame two tough road games the last two weeks and escaped with wins. WK is improved over last year but they were an FCS team last year. WK has already lost at Bama by 34 and Kentucky by 38. VT has a bye on deck and this is their homecoming game.
PHIL’S FORECAST: VIRGINIA TECH 37 Western Kentucky 6
</td><td colspan="4" height="3">
</td><td height="3">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="48">
</td><td height="48">

</td><td height="48">
</td><td height="48">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="4" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td height="40">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="2" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">LA Tech
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Boise St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td height="40">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="14">
</td><td height="14">
</td></tr><tr class="f-sp"><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td height="4">

</td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="889"><colgroup><col width="157"><col width="2"><col width="2"><col width="343"><col width="1"><col width="1"><col width="1"><col width="28"><col width="3"><col width="2"><col width="343"><col width="5"><col width="1"></colgroup><tbody><tr valign="top"><td colspan="10" height="7">
</td><td colspan="2" rowspan="4" height="81">Boise is unbeatable on its blue turf and rFr QB Moore might just end up to be the best QB to ever play for Boise. LT did upset Miss St this year but that was at home. Boise has a shot at being a BCS-buster again and will want to impress on national TV.
PHIL’S FORECAST: BOISE ST 38 Louisiana Tech 14
</td><td height="7">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3" height="51">
</td><td colspan="3" height="51">

</td><td colspan="4" height="51">
</td><td height="51">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="10" height="5">
</td><td height="5">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="54">
</td><td colspan="5" rowspan="3" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Texas A&M
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Oklahoma St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td colspan="3" height="18">
</td><td height="18">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="5" height="18">
</td><td height="18">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="18">
</td><td colspan="2" rowspan="3" height="51">

</td><td rowspan="3" height="51">
</td><td height="18">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="9" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" rowspan="5" height="109">
</td><td colspan="5" rowspan="5" height="109">Texas A&M barely got past Army last week and now must face the potent Cowboys on the road. Mike Gundy knows to kick a program like A&M when they are down to show any recruits that he might battle the Aggies for that the difference in the programs is large. Texas A&M has actually beaten OSU 4 straight times, so there will be no let up by the OSU offense in the 2nd half.
PHIL’S FORECAST: OKLAHOMA ST 45 Texas A&M 17
</td><td colspan="2" height="29">
</td><td height="29">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="5" height="7">
</td><td height="7">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td height="54">
</td><td colspan="3" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Connecticut
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">North Carolina
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td height="54">
</td><td height="54">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="5" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td height="15">
</td><td colspan="3" rowspan="5" height="109">NC survived without QB Yates last week and that was in a tougher environment vs a stonger team. Connecticut was outgained by Louisville 508-279 but somehow managed to win. NC already whipped Big East member Rutgers 44-12 on the road and I am not sure that UC is actually a stronger team than the Knights.
PHIL’S FORECAST: NORTH CAROLINA 30 Connecticut 16
</td><td rowspan="5" height="109">
</td><td height="15">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="8" height="22">
</td><td height="22">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="2" height="51">
</td><td colspan="2" height="51">

</td><td colspan="4" height="51">
</td><td height="51">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="8" height="4">
</td><td height="4">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td rowspan="2" height="54">
</td><td colspan="4" rowspan="2" height="54"><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="2"><tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="12">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td><td valign="top" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Hawaii
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="124" height="17">Fresno St
</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td><td valign="middle" width="53">

</td></tr></tbody></table></td><td colspan="3" height="17">
</td><td height="17">
</td></tr><tr valign="top"><td colspan="7" height="37">
</td><td height="37">
</td></tr><tr class="f-sp"><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td>

</td><td height="4">

</td></tr></tbody></table><table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="506"><colgroup><col width="157"><col width="348"><col width="1"></colgroup><tbody><tr valign="top"><td height="95">
</td><td height="95">Pat Hill did a fine job the last two weeks. They were hoping for an undefeated season and after losing to Wisky they did not go into the tank. Hill has surprisingly never won a WAC title outright and that is his new goal and they take their first step towards trying to achieve it with a comfy home win.
PHIL’S FORECAST: FRESNO ST 34 Hawaii 13
</td><td height="95">
</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

[RJ Esq]

<table class="card"><tbody class="card-tbody"><tr></tr><tr><td class="ct c">
</td><td class="ctr c">
</td></tr><tr><td class="cl c">
</td><td class="cc c">6:48 AM (3 hours ago)
Wilson will play and other links

from Eagle in Atlanta -- atleagle.com by ATL_eagle
Russell Wilson will play this Saturday.

NC State blogger Section Six wonders why we would want to come out passing. As you know, I think we need to open it up. Crane is all risk-reward and we know if we take away the "reward" he is still a risk. So you might as well get a few big plays. Plus I think Davis gets more snaps this Saturday.


Kaleb Ramsey is ahead of schedule in his development.


College Football News thinks BC will beat NC State handily.


From the Globe: TOB isn't sure what BC is going to do and Gause is still hurt. The Globe also had a feature on Akins.


BC is still in the mix for Georgia LB Jonathan Davis, but he sounds intrigued by Miami.


Fans in North Dakota are paying close attention to BC's hockey team.


Former Eagle goalie Cory Schneider will spend another season in the AHL.


ESPN writers are offering advice to Matt Ryan.


These two Matt Ryan Q&As (Philly paper, ATL paper) are from the same session but were edited differently to include different questions and answers. What did I learn? Matt likes Popeye's. As Little Nicky said, "Popeye's chicken is f-ckin' awesome!"






</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

[RJ Esq]

<table class="card"><tbody class="card-tbody"><tr></tr><tr><td class="ct c">
</td><td class="ctr c">
</td></tr><tr><td class="cl c">
</td><td class="cc c">6:44 AM (3 hours ago)
Friday Headlinin': Panthers, Utes, Tigers take it down to the wire

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton

• Wild, wild nights. All three Thursday night games came down to the last play, with USF falling short on a hail mary against Pitt, Utah capping its wild, 11-point rally in the final two minutes by knocking the winning field goal through against Oregon State, and maybe best of all, Memphis driving 72 yards in four minutes for a last-second kick to put away UAB, 33-30, in the game you didn't see. The Tigers and Blazers did the typical C-USA thing, racing up and down the field for 900 yards between them, and Memphis' sensationall-named Arkelon Hall tossed four touchdown passes. But the star of the night was easily LeSean McCoy, who made up for an early fumble with two touchdowns, a pair of did-you-see-that runs in the third quarter (one on a full, NCAA Football-style spin move in the open field, the other on a dead end, 3rd-and-9 screen that he singlehandedly wove into a first down by making half the USF defenders whiff and bowling over a tackler at the sticks), a big run on Pitt's quick-turnaround drive to regain the lead late in the fourth and a finally a couple timely first down runs in clock-killing time. This is the kid we saw against West Virginia at the end of last year, and that we expected to see on a regular basis if Pitt was going to make any noise. Now the Panthers just need him to stick around.
• Gooood. Let your hate flow. Stanford tackle Chris Marinelli, taking his cues from refreshingly outspoken coach, shot a little too straight even for Jim Harbaugh's tastes this week when he opened up on Notre Dame for Rivals' CardinalReport.com. A few choice selections of Marinelli on the Irish:

• "... it's going to go bad for them at one point and we are going to gash the (expletive) out of them, I promise you that. So keep bringing it, keep bringing it. They have one sack all year on 200 blitzes."
• "I hate [South Bend], playing up there. The field, excuse my language, the field sucks. The stadium sucks. I think the area sucks."
• "I grew up with a bunch of Irish and Italian Catholic people back home [in Boston]. And all the Irish Catholic people, all they talk about is Notre Dame this, Notre Dame that. And they've never even been there, ya know. So I hate those guys, I hate that school."
• "We are going out there to mash them up and that's all there is to it."
​

This is exactly what I want to hear from a player before a game: "I hate their guts and I want to physically destroy them." This is what Dick Butkus or Ray Nitschke would say, right on the record, if anyone had bothered to write it down then because of course you hate your opponent and want to beat them and everyone associated with them into a pulp, leave their town a heap of desperate ruin, embarrass their entire ethnic lineage and make them question the very faith that's guided their lives for hundreds of years. That's what football is all about.
But living in the PC world of faux respect that he does, Marinelli was forced to issue a tepid apology in which he invokes "one of the great environments in college football," and to internalize his lifelong socio-economic rage into an ulcer that will kill him before he reaches fifty. At least nobody was offended.

• End of an era. Houston Nutt is losing to Vanderbilt and knocking off heavy favorites in Oxford, Mitch Mustain is struggling for his job in Los Angeles, Gus Malzahn is lighting up scoreboards in Tulsa, John White is out of the president's office and Theresa Prewett is banned from association with Arkansas football. All of the players in the Razorbacks' endlessly entertaining Great Tumult of 2006-07 have left the scene, and the ridiculous lawsuit they left in their wake -- over the specifics of the university's "investigation" into the bile-filled e-mail Prewett, a Nutt family friend, sent to then-freshman Mustain in December '06 -- was finally dismissed Thursday. The memories ...
Meanwhile, Mustain is officially the No. 2 quarterback at USC again after a brief demotion.
Quickly ... Tennessee should announce its starting quarterback against Northern Illinois later today. . . . Steve Spurrier has backed off his flirtation with Stephen Garcia and will start Chris Smelly at quarterback against Ole Miss. . . . Knowshon Moreno vows to play against Tennessee next week. His bum wrist had no comment. . . . The Fridge dances, and his father rolls over in his grave. . . . Joe Paterno doesn't know what an upset is, frankly. . . . Rebuffed Texas isn't holding any grudges against Colorado recruiting coup Darrell Scott. Seriously, the Horns won't even be thinking about that when they hit Scott over, and over, and over ... . . . USC's Vidal Hazelton is struggling with injuries and illness and might ask for a redshirt. . . . Virginia Tech receiver Ike Whitaker has been suspended for the second time this season, and has an unlisted telephone number. . . . Notre Dame's Will Yeatman faces jail time, for underage drinking? . . . And you know it's a big when the legendary Daniel Moore decides to preserve it. Add Alabama's win over Georgia to the collection.






</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

[RJ Esq]

Virginia Tech receiver Whitaker suspended
October 2, 2008
Associated Press
BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) -- Ike Whitaker, a quarterback turned wide receiver whose time at Virginia Tech has been highlighted more by news from off the field than from on, has been suspended by coach Frank Beamer for the second time for a violation of team policy.
Beamer said Thursday in a statement that he would have no additional comment on the suspension, and that the redshirt junior from Germantown, Md., is suspended indefinitely.
Whitaker has an unlisted telephone number. He could not be reached for comment.
Whitaker, who has played in three games this season and had three catches in the No. 20 Hokies' season-opening loss to East Carolina, also was suspended in 2006 after he was charged with public intoxication, underage possession of alcohol and destruction of property.
He pleaded no contest to the charges stemming in Montgomery County District General Court in March 2006, and Judge Gino Williams said he would wipe the three misdemeanor charges from Whitaker's record if he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid to fix a broken dormitory window, served 25 hours of community service and attended alcohol awareness classes.
Whitaker was reinstated to the team about a month later, then left the team in December, skipping the Chick-fil-A Bowl to undergoing inpatient treatment for alcohol-related issues.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">4:04 PM (1 hour ago)
Stanford Will Gash the (Expletive) Out of Notre Dame Saturday

from The FanHouse - NCAAfootball
Filed under: Notre Dame, Stanford, Pac 10

There's nothing I like better than when someone from Stanford (Yeah, Stanford!) talks trash in the media. It worked well for Jim Harbaugh last year. So Stanford offensive tackle Chris Marinelli thought he would try his hand at it for the Notre Dame game this weekend.

"We'll be ready, we've seen a lot of tape and it is a good challenge for us," said Marinelli, a 6-foot-7, 297-pound fourth-year junior. "But on the same token it's going to go bad for them at one point and we are going to gash the (expletive) out of them, I promise you that. So keep bringing it, keep bringing it. They have one sack all year on 200 blitzes."​

That would normally be enough bulletin board material for Notre Dame to get fired up. But just in case Notre Dame needed a little more, Marinelli was willing to go on.

"I grew up with a bunch of Irish and Italian Catholic people back home. And all the Irish Catholic people, all they talk about is Notre Dame this, Notre Dame that. And they've never even been there, ya know. So I hate those guys, I hate that school."​

And now you can never go home. Marinelli did issue an apology, but after what he said I find it really had to believe he's sorry. That would be like me saying I'm sorry I wrote this post. For his part, Harbaugh indicated that Marinelli's views were not that of the Stanford football team. But that's just because he didn't say it first.

Harbaugh told Stanford beat reporters, "In Chris' case, it's out of character. He let his emotion and his passion about this game get the best of him. That's certainly not what I think is in his heart, and it's definitely not the view of Stanford football or the university."

Of course, Harbaugh took public swipes at Cal, Michigan and USC in his first few months on the job, then answered follow-up questions by saying, "We bow to no program here at Stanford University."​

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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">4:14 PM (1 hour ago)
Rattling Terrelle Pryor

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
Already, some pundits are hyping Terrelle Pryor as Ohio State's best player, but the freshman has never started on the road and faces one of the most hostile environments in the Big Ten Saturday night. All eyes will be on the 18-year-old's composure as he tries to navigate the howling Mad House.

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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">3:46 PM (1 hour ago)
Philanthropy (The Picks)

from Verno's Blog by Chris Vernon
Vinnie Verno picks winners, you make money. The rich get richer. Philanthropy record is now 20-7 this season (74%).

Missouri -10 over Nebraska (Daniel has 12 tds and 1 pick, Huskers gave up 377 yds to V Tech. Last years score...41-7)

Kansas -12 over Iowa St. (Mangino is a covering machine. They kill this team every year.)

Florida -24.5 over Arkansas (Arkansas is trash, they continue to prove it. Until the line against them hits 35, we keep winning)

Ball St -8 over Toledo (Toledo lost to Florida International House of Pancakes.... by 19! This is an insult)

Nevada -24 over Idaho (Every week we bet against this team, every week we win. So easy)

The NFL Parlay is the Chalk Road Warriors 3 team parlay of the year!
Titans -1 over Balt
Bears -3.5 over Detroit
Pats -3 over San Fran





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[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">2:27 PM (3 hours ago)
Crompton will not be the first QB [to play].

from Rocky Top Talk by hooper

Crompton will not be the first QB [to play].
​

"Inside source" on the Tony Basilio radio show - 11:40 AM EST Friday. Apologies for not catching his name.







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[RJ Esq]

Florida State at Miami: The ghosts of Brent Musburger, Dexter Carter, Michael Barrow and Tecmo Super Bowl are rolling over in their graves

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
For any college football fan under the age of 40, Florida State and Miami should be one of the annual meccas, a bigger deal than, say, a stodgy romp like Notre Dame-Michigan, and yes, the zeitgeist of Gen-X fandom weeps every time its memory of Danny Kanell dissolves into visions of Drew Weatherford. Christian Ponder and DeVontrey Richardson are on pace to rend garments. This is the game that weaned us on the sport's growing obsession with speed, "swagger," and defensive linemen who hunt quarterbacks like tyrannosaurs after proto-rodents. These kids today, they're going to associate Miami-FSU as a meh ACC tilt with lame quarterbacks. Like all kids in any era, they are so, so wrong.
It wasn't always this way. Let Brent Musburger take you back to late, great 1988 to set the stage for one of the rivalry's earlier blockbusters:

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oxW8nVUQlRA&hl=en&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344">Popout​

These teams didn't like it each other, and expressed their mutual distaste with attitude and flair, most creatively employed by Dexter Carter when a Cane tried to show him up in 1989:

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/c9xhrVQ1QFc&hl=en&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344">Popout​

For all the defensive firepower in this series, none of them summed up its ethos more succinctly Michael Barrow, at the expense of poor Tamarick Vanover in 1992:

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A somber hat tip is in order also to the dedicated nostalgists who not only brought all of the fabled wide right/left disappointments under one cheesy ballad, but who painstakingly recreated the 1991 classic between the No. 1 Noles and No. 2 Canes on Tecmo Super Bowl, right down to the ill-fated Gerry Thomas kick that initiated the curse:
<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oYTp7IbZ2uY&hl=en&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="275" height="222">Popout<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PR3SXPfO-Qk&hl=en&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="275" height="222">Popout
And so on, through roughly the hard-hitting Orange Bowl rematch at the end of the 2003 season. If anyone is obsessively recreating Saturday's depressingly low-stakes game via retro pixelation, truly theirs is passion that knows no bounds.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">2:05 PM (3 hours ago)
The Spread Offense - How Can Nebraska (Or Anyone Else) Defend Against It?

from Corn Nation by corn blight
This is part three of a three part series on the spread offense, particuarly as it pertains to Missouri and Texas Tech.
Part three looks at how Nebraska (or anyone for that matter) can defend against the spread offense. Husker Mike had a previous article about defendng the spread, but we'll get much more in depth here. This article was born out of the arguments in the comments section of that article, proof that you can have an online argument and rise to better discourse.

Inpart onewe started with a basic definition of the spread offense, an introduction to the theory behind it, and how it's evolved from the late 90's to today.

Part two looked at why Missouri is so effective with their version of the spread and how the differ from Texas Tech under Mike Leach.
Beergut from the Texas A&M blog I Am The 12th Man provided the expertise for this series. You owe him a visit!
How can Nebraska (or anyone else) best defense against the spread?

The easiest way to beat the spread offense is to "out-athlete" it. The spread is trying to put more athletes on the field than you have on defense; you need to respond in kind.

Schematically, the easiest way I've seen to do this is to align in a 3-4 or 33 Stack defense. R.C. Slocum used his 3-4 to put more speed on the field than the offense had. He would keep his NG in, put OLBs at the DE position, and put CBs or safeties at the OLB position. This meant there was more speed on the DL than the OL could handle. He would keep the MLB on the field to stop the run, and play a nickel package (5 DBs) all over the rest of the field.
He would send blitzes from everywhere, from every position, so the offense never knew where pressure was coming from.

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Now, all of this speed on the field meant you were giving something up in size if the offense decided to run the ball, but you were okay with the trade-off. Some teams run the spread because they can't line up and run the ball well, and on defense, you want to force the offense to do what it can't do well.

A 33 Stack defense does two things: it guarantees there are more athletes on the field than the offense possesses, purely by its numbers, and it shows the QB the same look in base, Cover 1, so he needs to make the run-pass decision. The 33 Stack features 3 DL, 3 LBs, and 2 CBs, 1 safety, and 2 safety/LB hybrids. This means you are meeting the threat of their 4 WRs and 1 TB with 3 defensive backs and 2 DB/LB hybrids.

You still have 3 LBs to bring pressure and cover the flats. Assuming your LBs are an athletic match for their RB, you have outnumbered their athletes with your athletes. The 33 Stack also allows you to bring blitzes from all angles, which lets your defense be, to use one of Bo Pellini's favorite words, "Multiple." You can do many different things from many different looks in the 33 Stack, which is one of the reasons I favor this defense against the spread.

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Using a tradition 4-3 alignment against the spread is usually asking for trouble, unless you have some standout DL and LBs. If your DL can get pressure on the QB every play, and your LBs are athletic enough to cover their slot receivers in the flats, you can use a 4-3 all day long. Oklahoma used to kill Texas Tech's "Air Raid" with their 4-3 (and 4-2-5) simply because they brought pressure from their front 4.

Now, as for Nebraska against Missouri, well, I'm not sure you have the athletes in your secondary to match up with Missouri's WRs, specifically against Jeremy Maclin (no shame there, if you find a CB who can match-up with Maclin heads-up, there are a lot of Big 12 coaches who'd like to talk to you right now). I think Nebraska's best bet is to try to keep Missouri's offense off the field with their offense. You need to run the ball and eat clock. You need to slow the game down and try to prevent a shootout. You aren't going to win a shootout with Missouri; that how they LIKE to play.

On defense, you need to tempt them to run the ball as much as possible. You want to show them 5 in the box as often as you can. then you need to play run defense. This accomplishes two things: It forces them to do what you want them to do, so you can stop it. It also keeps the clock moving, which shortens the game.

Nebraska needs to stay in a multiple Cover 2 look as much as possible, so they can keep Missouri away from the deep stuff, keep the game in front of them, and tackle well. Yards after catch can be deadly, so pursuit to the ball and tackling on first contact are paramount.

Against spread offenses, I am also in favor of shifting the paradigm. Spread offenses put a lot of pressure on defenses because their alignments stretch the defense all over the field. If I knew I was going to play a spread team in the pre-season, I would put in a package on offense that I would save especially for them. I'd run something from the single-wing or from a full house T offense, something that would put some stress on their defense, and see if their DC knows how to effectively defend something he may not have seen in several decades, if at all. See if the opposing defense knows how to effectively run a wide-tackle 6 scheme. This also falls into the running the ball to keep the clock moving point I made earlier.

Well, that's all.






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[RJ Esq]

WR Fields returning for Kansas' Big 12 opener

from SI.com - NCAA Football
Read full story for latest details.

 

[RJ Esq]

Spurrier: Not Really Into All That Personnel

from The FanHouse - NCAAfootball
Filed under: Mississippi, South Carolina, SEC

DE Greg Hardy is a star thanks to his big-time plays against the Florida Tebows. In fact, his play was so impressive that he made the cover of Sports Illustrated. Considering Spurrier's Gamecocks play the Rebels next week, surely he's preparing his <strike>flavor of the month</strike> <strike>starting and soon to be benched and restarting</strike> current QB for Hardy's fearsome pass rush. Right, Coach?

Uh, Coach?

Spurrier was silent for a few seconds when first asked the question about Hardy and finally said, "You talking about, uh ..."

The reporter asking the question quickly jumped in and responded, "Their defensive end, No. 86."

Spurrier then cut in and said, "Their defensive end, oh yeah. I don't really get into all that personnel. When I look at other teams, I sort of look at schemes. But their whole defensive line is very good. Shoot, they've got good athletes up and down the field at all positions.

​

Never mind 'bout all that personnel. Just remember, I toldja he could really go. Yeah, yeah, click-clack. See ya at the game, Coach.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">12:28 PM (5 hours ago)
Baylor Bears Ain't Scared of No Sooners, Predict Win Over Oklahoma Tomorrow Afternoon

from The Sporting Blog
When you're Baylor, why be scared on the football field? The worst thing that can happen to you has already happened to you, football-speaking: You're Baylor, a team that hasn't had a winning season since 1995, which was so long ago they were actually making new Calvin and Hobbes comic strips then. (The strip ended that year, thus ending my sole reason to actually pick up a newspaper.)

Thankfully, this isn't 1995, which is why you're not wearing a Dr. Seuss hat and carrying glowsticks at this very moment. This is 2008, where Baylor's new coach Art Briles has gifted freshman Robert Griffin running around making up glorious things on the football field when the pesky x's and o's break down. <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UUDvLUqwF1I&hl=en&fs=1" allowscriptaccess="never" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="344">Popout

Also, when all else fails, you can always fall back on the last refuge of mad, desperate men: blind, outrageous confidence.

Baylor tackle Jason Smith is feeling pretty confident about his team's chances against No. 1 Oklahoma on Saturday. "This win that we're going to get over OU will get us on the right track," Smith told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
​

Oh, sure, you're going to react with the logical: OU, crushing talent, blah blah blah. And that's what you would say if you used pesky "facts" to make your case. Baylor has no need for your facts, infected as they are with the virus of rampant optimism. Georgetown, though, is infected with an entirely different virus. Norovirus, to be specific. They could use a serious shipment of sani-wipes if you have them hanging around. An outbreak has forced the cancellation of the football team's game with Colgate Saturday, and has sickened 170 students at the school with nausea, cramping, and diarrhea. Norovirus is a foul little stomach bug picked up through contact with an infected person, making it a lot like optimism, really. (Except with the habit of ruining perfectly good pairs of underwear.)






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[RJ Esq]

Whittaker out for Colorado

from Bevo Beat
Longhorn tailback Fozzy Whittaker will miss his third straight game with a knee injury, according to a report issued Friday night by Texas athletics trainer Kenny Boyd.
Whittaker has sprained ligaments both knees in the past two months and has missed all but one game this season. However, the past two games he was listed as questionable with coaches deciding whether he’d play after watching him go through warmups.
In addition, Texas will have only two scholarship tight ends for the game. Ian Harris, who made his collegiate premiere last week, now has been ruled out for Colorado. He sprained his neck in mid-August and had been cleared for workouts, Sept. 33.
Others on the injury list — backup center/guard Buck Burnette (hip) and receiver Montre Webber (ankle).

 

[RJ Esq]

Well, lost the first one of the week (who thought that Utah St would cover as a home dog?).

Really misleading score. BYU gave this game away.

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</td><td class="period">1</td><td class="period">2</td><td class="period">3</td><td class="period">4</td><td class="total">T</td></tr><tr><td style="text-align: right;">#8</td><td class="team">BYU (5-0)</td><td>24</td><td>0</td><td>10</td><td>0</td><td class="ts">34</td></tr><tr><td style="text-align: right;">
</td><td class="team">USU (1-4)</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>0</td><td>14</td><td class="ts">14</td></tr></tbody></table>Fina



<table class="tablehead" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr class="gamehead"><td colspan="3">Team Stat Comparison</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" align="right"><td align="left"> </td><td>

</td><td>

</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">1st Downs</td><td>17</td><td>23</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">3rd down efficiency
</td><td>8-16</td><td>5-11</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">4th down efficiency
</td><td>1-1</td><td>0-0</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Total Yards</td><td>406</td><td>330</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Passing</td><td>302</td><td>193</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Comp-Att
</td><td>23-37</td><td>16-27</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Yards per pass
</td><td>8.2</td><td>7.1</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Rushing</td><td>104</td><td>137</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Rushing Attempts
</td><td>30</td><td>42</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Yards per rush
</td><td>3.5</td><td>3.3</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Penalties</td><td>12-128</td><td>9-79</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Turnovers</td><td>2</td><td>4</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Fumbles lost
</td><td>0</td><td>3</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" align="right"><td align="left">Interceptions thrown
</td><td>2</td><td>1</td></tr><tr class="colhead" align="right"><td class="bi" align="left">Possession</td><td>29:59</td><td>29:55</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table class="tablehead" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr class="stathead" style="background: rgb(0, 41, 66) none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><td colspan="7">Brigham Young Drive Summaries</td></tr><tr class="colhead"><td>START</td><td>QTR</td><td>POSS.</td><td>YARD</td><td>PLAYS</td><td>YARDS</td><td>RESULT</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>12:53</td><td>1</td><td>01:02</td><td>BYU 20</td><td>3</td><td>80</td><td>Passing Touchdown</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>08:09</td><td>1</td><td>00:00</td><td>USU 38</td><td>0</td><td>38</td><td>Fumble Return Touchdown</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>03:57</td><td>1</td><td>02:11</td><td>USU 46</td><td>7</td><td>19</td><td>Field Goal Good</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>01:30</td><td>1</td><td>00:07</td><td>USU 11</td><td>1</td><td>11</td><td>Rushing Touchdown</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>14:03</td><td>2</td><td>00:56</td><td>BYU 24</td><td>3</td><td>7</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>09:42</td><td>2</td><td>02:11</td><td>BYU 6</td><td>5</td><td>23</td><td>Interception</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>05:39</td><td>2</td><td>04:59</td><td>BYU 29</td><td>12</td><td>59</td><td>Field Goal Missed</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>15:00</td><td>3</td><td>03:49</td><td>BYU 33</td><td>8</td><td>63</td><td>Field Goal Good</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>11:11</td><td>3</td><td>01:19</td><td>USU 20</td><td>3</td><td>3</td><td>Interception</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>07:49</td><td>3</td><td>06:23</td><td>USU 24</td><td>13</td><td>76</td><td>Passing Touchdown</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>13:47</td><td>4</td><td>01:35</td><td>BYU 31</td><td>3</td><td>-8</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>09:22</td><td>4</td><td>05:27</td><td>USU 45</td><td>13</td><td>28</td><td>Field Goal Missed</td></tr></tbody></table><table class="tablehead" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tbody><tr class="stathead" style="background: rgb(2, 7, 103) none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;"><td colspan="7">Utah State Drive Summaries</td></tr><tr class="colhead"><td>START</td><td>QTR</td><td>POSS.</td><td>YRDL</td><td>PLAYS</td><td>YARDS</td><td>RESULT</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>15:00</td><td>1</td><td>02:07</td><td>USU 20</td><td>3</td><td>6</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>11:51</td><td>1</td><td>03:42</td><td>USU 17</td><td>7</td><td>21</td><td>Fumble</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>08:09</td><td>1</td><td>04:12</td><td>USU 8</td><td>8</td><td>38</td><td>Fumble</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>01:46</td><td>1</td><td>00:16</td><td>USU 19</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>Interception</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>01:23</td><td>1</td><td>02:20</td><td>USU 20</td><td>5</td><td>16</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>13:07</td><td>2</td><td>03:25</td><td>USU 24</td><td>6</td><td>27</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>07:31</td><td>2</td><td>01:52</td><td>USU 47</td><td>6</td><td>17</td><td>Field Goal Missed</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>00:40</td><td>2</td><td>00:40</td><td>USU 20</td><td>6</td><td>32</td><td>End of Half</td></tr><tr class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>09:52</td><td>3</td><td>02:03</td><td>USU 40</td><td>3</td><td>-10</td><td>Punt</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>01:26</td><td>3</td><td>02:39</td><td>USU 20</td><td>7</td><td>80</td><td>Rushing Touchdown</td></tr><tr style="font-weight: bold;" class="oddrow" valign="top"><td>12:12</td><td>4</td><td>02:50</td><td>USU 37</td><td>7</td><td>63</td><td>Passing Touchdown</td></tr><tr class="evenrow" valign="top"><td>03:55</td><td>4</td><td>03:54</td><td>USU 18</td><td>12</td><td>55</td><td>null</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

[RJ Esq]

Vols will start Stephens over Crompton at QB

from SI.com - NCAA Football
Read full story for latest details.

 

[RJ Esq]

Miami LB McCarthy to miss game vs. Florida St.

from SI.com - NCAA Football
Read full story for latest details.

 

[RJ Esq]

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</td><td class="cc c">6:09 AM (21 minutes ago)
Your Saturday in Detail: Trojan recovery, for the most part

from Dr. Saturday - NCAAF - Yahoo! Sports by Matt Hinton
Twelve hyper-specific predictions.

• USC never finds a rhythm on offense and fails to cover the 17-point spread in a slog-ish game with Oregon that hardly helps the Trojans' immediate poll position. Oregon runs for at least 150 yards and controls time of possession in Rey Maualuga's absence, but gets no consistency in the passing game and eventually a killer turnover from Jeremiah Masoli. Grumbly Trojan fans make the first calls for Mitch Mustain at quarterback and no USC running back gets double digit carries, as Pete Carroll explains, because "no one was hot."
• Ohio State and Wisconsin feel each other out for a couple quarters before the Badgers open up a two-score lead with a touchdown drive on their first possession of the second half. Terrelle Pryor is nondescript at best in the passing game, and the Buckeyes pound their way back with a heavy dose of Beanie Wells. Eventually, though, they're forced to rely on Pryor to make nearly all of the plays -- the biggest with his legs -- on a game-winning field goal drive in the final four minutes.
• Miami hits Florida State hard enough in a low-scoring but Cane-dominated first half to inspire an ineffectual Drew Weatherford appearance in the second. UM approaches 200 yards rushing, Robert Marve throws two touchdowns and FSU's season takes a very sour turn.
• Auburn gets its offense untracked with a pair of first half touchdowns, then throttles down and lets its defense slowly choke the life out of Vanderbilt. The Commodores have an opportunity to close a two-score gap with a turnover early in the fourth quarter, but fall short on a fourth down attempt and fade away down the stretch.
• Michigan and Illinois threaten the 50-point over/under with a barrage of big plays in the first half, including some jaw-dropping clip by Arrelious Benn. Things settle down in the second half, until Illinois moves ahead in the fourth quarter and Steven Threet takes the Wolverines on an 80-yard two-minute drill for another dramatic win in the final minute.
• Nate Longshore starts for Cal and throws three touchdown passes in a dominant first half as the Bears run away from Arizona State. Minus Jahvid Best, the Bear running game doesn't miss a beat behind Shane Vereen, who has his second 100-yard game of the season.

• Texas cements itself as a national contender with a 40-point barrage at Colorado, headlined by a big rushing game (70+ yards, at least one touchdown) by Colt McCoy, who also tops 250 passing in a Longhorn rout. The Buffaloes finish with less than 50 yards rushing.
• Josh Freeman keeps pace with Graham Harrell, yardage-wise, for most of the game, but also throws three interceptions that put Kansas State in too large a hole to overcome against Texas Tech. Harrell throws five touchdown passes, at least two to Michael Crabtree, and the Raiders easily cruise to another 40+ points in their Big 12 opener. Either Mike Leach or Ron Prince says something after the game that makes the rounds online, but even odds on which one.
• Jonathan Dwyer has two long touchdown runs and passes the 100-yard mark before halftime as Georgia Tech emphatically ends the brief optimism around Duke. The Devil offense is held under 250 yards and commits at least two turnovers.
• Purdue moves the ball early and throws a scare into Penn State with a pair of early scoring drives before yielding the lead just before the half and being effectively run over in the third quarter. The Lions win with their lowest point total of the season (< 38) but Evan Royster averages over seven yards per carry for the sixth straight game.
• Shonn Green outruns Javon Ringer and Iowa pushes Michigan State well into the fourth quarter despite another awful day from Keystone Kwarterbacks Ricky Stanzi and Jake Christensen. The Spartans regain the lead with a touchdown drive in the final six minutes and seal the win with an interception on Iowa's last gasp.
• Jimmy Clausen has the first 300-yard game of his career and Notre Dame scores 35+ for the third time in four games against the awful pass defense of Stanford. Irish-hating Cardinal right tackle Chris Marinelli is hit with a personal foul penalty late out of frustration in the fourth quarter, but Irish fans are above chanting or taunting, of course, as Marinelli gestures wildly on his way off the field.






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