Time to start preparing

11- Stanford

In the 7yrs from '01-'07 the Cardinal had 4 different HC's. In'06 they were 1-11 and dead last in the Pac-10 in conf ypg (-169, 90 yds worse than #9).Their 11 str losses tied a SU rec (1959-'60). In Harbaugh's first ssn ('07) SU had 15 ret sts and improved to 3-6 in the P10 but were #10 (-176 ypg, 109 worse than #9!) for the 5th str yr.Stanford (15retsts)was picked #9 in the P10 media poll in '08 but improved to 5-7. In '09 they had 16 ret sts and 7 HG's. RB Toby Gerhart rushed for 1,871 (5.5) and helped SU to an 8-4 reg ssn (ranked as high as #14). In '10 SU had 15 ret sts incl QB Luck. Three of my 9 sets of power ratings called for an 11-1 ssn but Stanford exceeded my expectations. They had their first undefeated home ssn s/'77 and won 8 of their first 9 for the 1st time s/'70 (Jim Plunkett). SU also had 3 shutouts (1st time s/'69). #5 Stanford then walloped #12 VT 40-12 in the Orange Bowl and had their 6th ever Top 10 (#4) finish (1st s/'92) and 2nd highest in tm history (#2 in '40). Luck turned down the NFL but they did have to replace Harbaugh. Two of my 9 sets of PR's called for an unbeaten ssn but I said they wouldn't match '10's 12 win total.I must admit,Shaw did better than I expected as they went 11-2 only losing to Oregon at home 53-30 and #3 Okla St in the bowl (2 miss FG). Their +152 ypg was the best in P12 play. LY they had to replace Luck and had just 13 ret st'rs and drew USC (pressn #1) out of the South. Again Shaw did a remarkable job. While they were outgained 287-280 by SJSt, they pulled out the 3 pt win but fell from #21 to #25. They beat #2 ranked USC in Wk 3, 21-14 with a 417-280 yd edge. After a bye on a Thurs night, they held a 13-3 lead (0 off TD) vs Wash but UW got a 4&1, 61 yd td run to turn the game around and upset SU 17-13. On their next road trip two games later in rainy South Bend, SU again did not score an off td and lost 20-13 in OT. Three games later, Kevin Hogan took over at QB. They trailed Oreg St 23-14 in the 3Q but rallied for a 27-23 win. Oreg's DL was banged up and SU won in OT in Autzen, 17-14. UCLA did not play its "A" game and SU won 35-17 earning the right to host UCLA the next wk in the P12 Title game where they were outgained 461-325 and outrushed 284-170 but escaped. They won the Rose Bowl 20-14 over Wisc with a slim 344-301 yd edge. TY SU is much more exp'd at QB but they did benefit from 6 net close wins LY, were +9 in TO's and had beneficial off (13.4) and def (19.5) ypp's. Despite their P12 Title, they were also only +78.8 ypg, 66 ypg less than Oregon. SU has a great shot at being 8-0 after October but in November,must face 3 potential Top 10 teams. They get 2 of those at home and are a legitimate National Title contender.
 
Wasn't South Carolina like -5.5 at Vandy last year in the opener?
I remember it being a night game and that the Gamecocks had to score in the 4th quarter to win, but we all thought that was a strange number as well.
 
Not to get all sappy on you, but you're not going to find stuff like the Smails countdown anywhere else. Well, you probably could, but I'm not going to look for it.
 
Can't believe Phil doesn't have OSU #1. He's a big schedule guy, it's almost written in stone they'll be undefeated going into the Michigan game.
 
I was curious how they would line that Boise State/Washington opener after the two played in the bowl.
 
VK said:
I was curious how they would line that Boise State/Washington opener after the two played in the bowl.
Click to expand...

You know I am a fukkin homer, but I am pounding the Dawgs at anything better than -6.......and hitting them decent at -6/6.5/7.....no fan of southwick and think price returns to form of 2 years ago....
 
82 days to go ...

Bear's finale: Bear Bryant's legendary career came to a close in 1982 when he announced his retirement. His final game was a 21-15 win over Illinois in the Liberty Bowl, his 323rd career win. A month later, Bryant died of a massive heart attack.

62050-004-9F518E4B.jpg


It was going to be just another Liberty Bowl. Good, not great. It was Alabama, football’s most dominant program in the Seventies, but in 1982, ’Bama would be entering the game coming off three straight season-ending losses. And it was Illinois, 7-4 in the Big 10, with a potent offense and an exciting offensive-minded 46-year-old coach, Mike White. Illinois was reappearing on the bowl scene after a 19-year absence and was undefeated in bowl play.

But on December 15th, three weeks after they were invited to Memphis for the game on December 29th, it become The One and Only Bowl – the only post-season game that really mattered that year. The stunning announcement shook football: The Bear said he was going into permanent hibernation. Nobody could believe it. The man who had won more games coaching college football than anyone else was quitting. Paul W. Bryant would step aside after the Liberty Bowl as Alabama’s football coach and would turn over the reins to one of his favorite students, Ray Perkins.

Bear Bryant was a legend, a folk hero, and a living monument all rolled into one. No one had a greater impact in a profession than Bryant had in football. In the late 1930s, Bryant left Moro Bottom, Arkansas, about seven miles from the big city of Fordyce, to go to Alabama to play football. He became an all-American, then got his coaching start as an assistant at Vanderbilt. From there, he made three stops as a head coach before he heard “Mama” calling and went back to take over at Tuscaloosa in 1958.

Bryant’s retirement created a ticket demand the Liberty Bowl had only dreamed about in all its previous years. With one startling announcement, the Liberty became the bowl nobody wanted to miss. The demand for media credentials was overwhelming: so crushing that the Liberty had to hire Bryant’s former sports publicist at Alabama, Charley Thornton – by then associate athletic director at Texas A&M – to set up a sort of Liberty Bowl News Center.

Thornton was accustomed to dealing with huge games and important people, games such as Alabama vs. Notre Dame for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl, people like Joe Namath at the Orange Bowl. The Liberty had to leave it to Thornton to determine which members of the media got seats in the way-too-small press box and who had to be relegated to seats outside on what would be a bitterly cold night. Thornton set up a schedule of post-practice press conferences, and he ordered a heated press tent set up near the Alabama locker room to house the media for post-game interviews.

All the networks sent news crews to Memphis. So did practically every major newspaper in the country. Alabama’s practice sessions at what then was known as the Kennedy Complex at Memphis State were like a zoo. Bryant was mobbed by autograph seekers wherever he went, but especially when he arrived and left practice each day. Fathers carrying their little sons begged Bryant to sign something, anything. Moms holding little daughters were just as determined. Every day Bryant signed for as long as he could.

He was a little embarrassed at all the hullabaloo. The Liberty Bowl wanted to present him with a going-away gift at the annual luncheon. Bryant nixed the idea. Then they wanted to give him a big present at the black-tie party. Bryant nixed that, too. But he was aware that this was a historical event, and maybe that explains why he sent friends signed and dated lithographs. Lots of famous people have them hanging on their walls even now.

Nobody knew for sure why Bryant had picked that year to hang it up. He was 69 years old, had looked 79 for at least 10 years, but was still producing winners. But Bryant knew. In a private meeting in his suite at the Holiday Inn Rivermont after practice two days before the game, Bryant poured a drink for himself, plopped into an easy chair, and said he wanted to talk.

“There was a time when we’d hardly ever lose a game to a team we were supposed to beat,” he began. “Until last year, I remember it happening only two or three times. We lost to Georgia Tech in the Sixties when we had the better team, and old Bill Pace’s team at Vanderbilt really embarrassed us when they whipped us up in Nashville. But lately, it seems like we’ve been losing a bunch of times to teams we ought to beat. Georgia Tech last year. Southern Mississippi this year. We got more than 500 yards on Auburn this year and still couldn’t win. When you lose to teams you are supposed to beat, that’s the coach’s fault. I found I couldn’t rally my players anymore.”

He talked that way for about an hour-and-a-half, remembering all the good times and the few bad ones. He looked tired, even older. He got up, said he had to rest, and ever so slowly walked into his bedroom. Billy Varner, a University of Alabama campus policeman who was Bryant’s chauffeur, said he was worried about the old man. “I just don’t know what’s going to happen to him,” Varner said. “He won’t make it without coaching. That’s what he lives for.”

In the Liberty Bowl, Ricky Moore started the scoring with a 4 yard touchdown run in the first quarter. After an Illinois touchdown on a 1 yard Joe Curtis run and failed extra point in the second quarter, the Tide took the lead into the locker room 7-6. In the third quarter Jesse Bendross ran it in from 8 yards out to put Bama up 14-6. But, Illinois rallied behind quarterback Tony Eason to take the lead on a two yard pass from Eason to Oliver Williams and a 23 yard Mike Bass field goal.

In the final quarter Craig "Touchdown" Turner lived up to his nickname and scored the last touchdown for Bama in the game on a 1 yard run. The final was 21-15. Alabama won the game despite giving up 444 yards of total offense and surviving a Liberty Bowl record, 423 yards of passing from Eason. Alabama's bruising ground attack mustered 217 yards and that proved to be the difference. Bama's Jerimiah Castille was named the game's MVP thanks to 3 interceptions.

Liberty824.jpg


With the win, the Crimson Tide ended its 1982 campaign with an 8-4 record. An upset loss to Tennessee and three disappointing November setbacks spoiled what could have been a national championship-type season, but the win over Illinois provided college football’s greatest coach one of his most cherished memories. The win gave Coach Bryant a final record of 323-85-17, unmatched in intercollegiate football history.

play_a_bryant01jr_576.jpg


Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant died on January 26, 1983, less than four weeks following the Liberty Bowl.

-----------------------------------------------------------

1982 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS

The Penn State Nittany Lions won their first consensus national championship, closing out an 11-1 season by defeating Georgia and Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker in the Sugar Bowl 27-23, and edging out undefeated SMU for the National Championship. It was Joe Paterno's first national championship, after three undefeated non-championship seasons.


UCLA moved from the LA Coliseum to the Rose Bowl and fulfilled a promise made by coach Terry Donahue by closing out their season there as well, beating Michigan in the post-season Rose Bowl game, 24-14.


The Aloha Bowl premiered in Honolulu, Hawaii.


Heisman Memorial Trophy: Herschel Walker, Georgia
Outland Trophy(Interior Lineman): David Rimington, Nebraska
Vince Lombardi/Rotary Award(Lineman or Linebacker): Dave Rimington, Nebraska
Walter Camp Award(back): Herschel Walker, Georgia
Davey O'Brien Award(Quarterback): Todd Blackledge, Penn State
Maxwell Award(college player of the year): Herschel Walker, Georgia





UCLA 20, USC 19 -- In the first game of this rivalry contested at the Rose Bowl, USC trailed 20-13 and had 4th & Goal from the one-yard line with 0:01 left in the game. USC scored a touchdown and decided to go for the two-point conversion with 0:00 on the clock. USC announcer Tom Kelly remarked, "Typical of this great rivalry--even when it's over, it isn't over!" On the ensuing try for two by USC, UCLA's Karl Morgan sacked USC QB Scott Tinsley. This occurred within minutes of The Play, which was happening 400 miles to the north in Berkeley.


GAME OF THE YEAR: Cal 25, Stanford 20
The Play occurred between the University of California Golden Bears and the Stanford Cardinal on Saturday, November 20, 1982.

Given the circumstances and rivalry, the wild game that preceded it, the very unusual way in which The Play unfolded, and its lingering aftermath on players and fans, it is recognized as one of the most memorable plays in college football history and among the most memorable in American sports.

After Stanford had taken a 20–19 lead on a field goal with four seconds left in the game, the Golden Bears used five lateral passes on the ensuing kickoff return to score the winning touchdown and earn a disputed 25–20 victory. Members of the Stanford Band had come onto the field midway through the return, believing that the game was over, which added to the ensuing confusion and folklore. There remains disagreement over the legality of two of the laterals, adding to the passion surrounding the traditional rivalry of the annual "Big Game."

With Cal leading 19–17 late in the fourth quarter, quarterback John Elway and the Cardinal overcame a 4th-and-17 on their own 13-yard line with a 29-yard completion, then managed to get the ball within field goal range for placekicker Mark Harmon. Elway called a timeout with 8 seconds left on the clock. Had Elway let the clock run down to four seconds before calling time, the ensuing kickoff would not have taken place since the clock would have run out on the field goal.

But Elway was under instruction from coach Paul Wiggin to call time out at the 8 second mark to allow time for a second field goal try in case Stanford drew a penalty on the first attempt. Harmon's 35-yard kick was good, putting Stanford ahead 20–19. However, the team's celebrations drew a 15-yard penalty, enforced on the ensuing kickoff. This was crucial, as Stanford was now kicking off from their 25 instead of the 40. At that point, Cal announcer Joe Starkey praised Stanford and Elway for their efforts, and added, "Only a miracle can save the Bears now!"

With 4 seconds left, Stanford special teams coach Fred von Appen called for a squib kick on the kickoff. Due to confusion, Cal took the field with only ten men, one short of the regulation eleven, but still legal in football. What happened next became one of the most debated and dissected plays in college football history.



  • Harmon squibbed the kick and Cal's Kevin Moen received the ball inside the Cal 45 near the left hash mark. After some ineffective scrambling, Moen lateraled the ball leftward to Richard Rodgers.
  • Rodgers was very quickly surrounded, gaining only one yard before looking behind him for Dwight Garner, who caught the ball around the Cal 45.
  • Garner ran straight ahead for five yards, but was swallowed up by five Stanford players. While Garner was being tackled, however, he managed to pitch the ball back to Rodgers. It was at this moment, believing that Garner had been tackled and the game was over, that several Stanford players on the sideline and the entire Stanford band (which had been waiting behind the south end zone) ran onto the field in celebration.
  • Rodgers dodged another Stanford player and took the ball to his right, toward the middle of the field, where at least four other Cal players were ready for the next pitch. Around the Stanford 45, Rodgers pitched the ball to Mariet Ford, who caught it in stride. Meanwhile, the Stanford band, all 144 members, had run out past the south end zone—the one the Cal players were trying to get to—and had advanced as far as twenty yards downfield. The scrum of players was moving towards them.
  • Ford avoided a Stanford player and sprinted upfield while moving to the right of the right hash mark, and into the band, which was scattered all over the south end of the field. Around the Stanford 27, three Stanford players smothered Ford, but while falling forward he threw a blind lateral over his right shoulder.
  • Moen caught it at about the 25 and charged toward the end zone. One Stanford player missed him, and another could not catch him from behind. Moen ran through the scattering Stanford Band members for the touchdown, which he famously completed by running into unaware trombone player Gary Tyrrell.

The Cal players celebrated wildly—but the officials had not signaled the touchdown. Stanford coach Paul Wiggin and his players argued to the officials that Dwight Garner's knee had been down, rendering what had happened during the rest of the play moot. Meanwhile, the officials huddled. The chaos at the end of The Play made the officials' task very challenging. In particular, the questionable fifth lateral took place in the midst of the Stanford band, greatly reducing visibility. Referee Charles Moffett recalled the moment:
I called all the officials together and there were some pale faces. The penalty flags were against Stanford for coming onto the field. I say, 'did anybody blow a whistle?' They say 'no'. I say, 'were all the laterals legal'? 'Yes'. Then the line judge, Gordon Riese, says to me, 'Charlie, the guy scored on that.' And I said, 'What?' I had no idea the guy had scored. Actually when I heard that I was kind of relieved. I thought we really would have had a problem if they hadn't scored, because, by the rules, we could have awarded a touchdown [to Cal] for [Stanford] players coming onto the field. I didn't want to have to make that call.I wasn't nervous at all when I stepped out to make the call; maybe I was too dumb. Gee, it seems like it was yesterday. Anyway, when I stepped out of the crowd, there was dead silence in the place. Then when I raised my arms, I thought I had started World War III. It was like an atomic bomb had gone off.

<tbody>
</tbody>

After determining that Cal had scored and no one had ruled any of the laterals illegal, Moffett signaled the touchdown, rendering the illegal participation penalty on Stanford irrelevant and ending the game. The final score was Cal 25, Stanford 20.


Cal announcer Joe Starkey of KGO-AM 810 radio called the game. The following is a transcript of his famous call:
All right, here we go with the kickoff. Harmon will probably try to squib it and he does. The ball comes loose and the Bears have to get out of bounds. Rodgers is along the sideline, another one... they're still in deep trouble at midfield, they tried to do a couple of--the ball is still loose, as they get it to Rodgers! They get it back now to the 30, they're down to the 20... Oh, the band is out on the field!! He's gonna go into the end zone! He's gone into the end zone!!

Will it count? The Bears have scored, but the bands are out on the field! There were flags all over the place. Wait and see what happens; we don't know who won the game. There are flags on the field. We have to see whether or not the flags are against Stanford or Cal. The Bears may have made some illegal laterals. It could be that it won't count. The Bears, believe it or not, took it all the way into the end zone. If the penalty is against Stanford, California would win the game. If it is not, the game is over and Stanford has won.


We've heard no decision yet. Everybody is milling around on the FIELD! AND THE BEARS!! THE BEARS HAVE WON! The Bears have won! Oh, my God! The most amazing, sensational, dramatic, heart-rending... exciting, thrilling finish in the history of college football! California has won the Big Game over Stanford! Oh, excuse me for my voice, but I have never, never seen anything like it in the history of I have ever seen any game in my life! The Bears have won it! There will be no extra point!

<tbody>
</tbody>

[video=youtube_share;6jA6mf-3kNA]http://youtu.be/6jA6mf-3kNA[/video]
 
10- Norte dame

In '05 Charlie Weis stepped into a great situation as he inherited 10 ret sts on offense and led the Irish to a BCS bowl (Fiesta). Weis was named the FWAA COY. In '06 the Irish opened at #2 and got to10-1 but then lost to #3 USC by 20 and to #4 LSU by 27 in the bowl. In Weis' final 3 seasons ND was just 16-21 incl their disastrous 3-9 year ('07) when they set many records for futility. Brian Kelly had exceeded my expectations all 3 yrs at CM and all 3 yrs at Cincinnati and I thought he stepped into a good situation in '10, but ND was not ranked all year and finished 8-5. In '11 they opened the season #16 but after a bowl loss to FlaSt, finished unranked for a 5th str yr. They were 32-31 in that 5 yr span. LY they faced a tough reg ssn schedule battling 10 bowl eligible tms incl 2 that were in the Top 5 at the start of the year. ND entered unranked but, despite the tough schedule, I called for the most wins here s/'06. ND, of course, overachieved everyone's expectations. They beat Navy in Ireland, 50-10,having the offssn to prep for the option. Then, in a letdown spot, barely got past PU with a 27 yd fg with:07 left for the 3 pt win. Mich St had a streak of 15 str home wins snapped by the Irish and then Denard Robinson had 4 int and a fmbl and ND prevailed 13-6 despite being outgained 299-239. Miami never plays well in the cold and the Irish drubbed them 41-3. ND got a? stop at the GL in OT to get past Stan on a rainy day and then barely got past BYU by 3. In their big test on the road at Okla, the Sooners had a td called back late in the 1H. It was tied when ND got a td with 5:05 left then ND went on to a 30-13 win. Pitt led 20-6 after 3Q's and the Irish needed 3OT incl a fortuitous missed Pitt fg in the 2OT to escape in a letdown spot. After a lackluster 21-6 win over BC, they pummelled WF 38-0 in the FHG for 26 Sr's. With Oregon and K-St both losing, ND beat USC to get to the Title game. Unfortunately, Bama outgained them 319-124 at half (trailed 28-0) and Kelly said his best shot at winning was if the Tide didn't show up for the 2H. It was still a great season (#4, highest s/'93) and this year they have 14 ret sts. They benefitted from 5 net close wins, had a def ypp of 23.9, were +8 in TO's and the Stock Market (pg 29) is a 4th indicator that points downward. The Irish, however, are still clearly a National Title contender and even stronger than the 2012 version.
 
Golden Nugget was a blast. I was the first one in the house, 9am. Line started forming about 15 minutes before release. Met a whole bunch of cool customers and hopefully got some good lines. Tony Miller is a nice fellow.
 
81 days to go ...

2,000-yard man: In 1981, USC's Marcus Allen becomes the first running back in major college history to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season. It would propel him to the Heisman Trophy that season.

th


The fourth running back from the University of Southern California to win the Heisman Trophy, Marcus Allen did it by being the first rusher to cover more than 2,000 yards in one season. He finished his senior year with 2,342 yards. Marcus was the first man to have 4 straight 200-yard plus games. On October 31, 1982 in USC's 41-7 win over Washington State, Allen toted up 289 yards on 44 carries and scored 4 touchdowns. Drafted in the First Round by the Oakland Raiders and retired from the Kansas City Chiefs after the 1997 season. He has been voted the MVP of the Super Bowl and of the NFL and is the leading rusher in Raider history.

ALLEN SET THE STANDARD
While baseball holds its numbers more sacred than football does, there are still some gridiron milestones that are iconic. And a 2,000-yard rushing season is one of those milestones.

Once thought to be unachievable, the 2K milestone was first cracked under the legs of USC running back Marcus Allen in 1981, who rushed for 2,342 yards and left a slew of NCAA records in his wake.

"There were indications that it could happen," said John Jackson Sr., Allen's offensive coordinator and running backs coach at the time. "Like the fact that he had run for more than 1,500 yards the season before. If he improved his ability -- with the ability of that team -- that was a very strong football team -- there was no question that he could be a guy to break 2,000 yards."

th


"College Football Live" has named Allen's 1981 campaign the second-greatest single season in the past 50 years of college football. To go with his 2,342 yards, Allen also scored 22 touchdowns, had an average of 5.6 yards per carry and led the team in receptions with 34. (*Note: Allen also rushed for 85 yards in the Fiesta Bowl loss to Penn State, giving him a total 2,427, though the NCAA did not factor in bowl game stats at the time.)

"Marcus was a very unique player," Jackson said. "He was a guy who had great skill running the ball, but he also had great blocking skills which carried over from when he was a fullback and he was also a great pass-catcher. I think his multiple abilities is what people should remember."

Among his 14 records that year:
  • Most yards in a single season (2,342)
  • Most 200-yard games in a career (11)
  • Most 200-yard games in a season (8)
  • Most consecutive 200-yard games (5)

His single-season rushing mark still holds as one of the best rushing years in NCAA history -- ranking third all-time. Since he set the standard in '81, 13 other players have since broken through the 2,000-yard barrier, including Barry Sanders who reached 2,628 in 1988.

A quarterback at Lincoln High School in San Diego, Allen was recruited as a defensive back. But head coach John Robinson also wanted someone who could play some tailback if needed. Allen was transitioned to fullback, where he helped Charles White win the Heisman.

th


"He was our third-string tailback," said Jackson, with a laugh.

Two years later, Allen won the Heisman in 1981, to go along with his conference player of the year honors, the Maxwell Award and the Walter Camp Award. After the '81 season, Allen was drafted by the Oakland Raiders and went on to have a Hall of Fame career in the NFL.

"He was a guy who put in the work," Jackson said. "You could see it in the weight room. Back then we couldn't have practices in the off-season or anything like that. But Marcus was always working at improving his skills, as he did throughout his pro career. The off-season was a time for him to improve himself and he did and worked really hard at it. He was a great practice player and worked at improving himself constantly."

th


The '81 season wasn't without its dramatics for the Trojans as a team, either. There was Fred Cornwell's last-minute touchdown catch from John Mazur to lift the Trojans over Oklahoma, and George Achica blocking Norm Johnson's 46-yard field goal attempt on the final play to preserve a 22-21 win over UCLA. Ultimately, USC was 9-3 that season, finishing 14th in the AP poll.

But it's the records that Allen set and the trail he blazed that makes his 1981 season one of the greatest in college football history.

-------------------------------------------------------

1981 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS

The season ended with the Clemson Tigers, unbeaten and untied, taking the mythical national championship after a victory over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.

This was also the first year of the California Bowl, played in Fresno, California; this game fancied itself as a "junior" version of the Rose Bowl as it pitted the Big West champion vs. the MAC champion.

This was the final season in which the Ivy League competed in Division I-A.; the league was lowered to Division I-AA (FCS) for 1982. Through 2009 season, the Ivy League has yet to participate in the post-season tournament, despite an automatic bid, citing academic concerns.


Florida State played a brutal series of games known as "Octoberfest", playing traditional powers Nebraska, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh and LSU all on the road and going 3-2 in that stretch.

Clemson's match-up with North Carolina proved to be the landmark game of the season and a huge turning point for the ACC. This game which Clemson won 10–8 marked the first time two ACC teams met while ranked in the top 10. ABC broadcast this game live nationally, a huge bit of exposure for what was usually known as a basketball conference. The game ended with Jeff Bryant recovering a lateral with a minute left.


Clemson's Orange Bowl opponent Nebraska featured future NFL stars Roger Craig, Irving Fryar, Mike Rozier, and Dave Rimington while finishing second nationally in rushing with 330 yards per game. But Clemson was able to take advantage of an injury to Nebraska quarterback Turner Gill. Eight out of twelve Nebraska possessions ended in a three and out, they crossed the 50 only four times and ended up with just two scoring opportunities.


Entering the game, Clemson was ranked #1, Georgia #2, then Alabama and Nebraska in one poll and Pittsburgh in another. After Georgia and Alabama had lost in Sugar and Cotton Bowls respectively, The Orange Bowl was for the national championship, although with Pitt beating Georgia, it is likely that Nebraska would have split the title with Pitt had they beaten Clemson. The final score was 22–15.


Pittsburgh, which was the consensus number one until being beaten soundly by Penn State in their season finale, beat defending national champion Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Also in the national title hunt till the very end, Alabama lost to number six Texas in the Cotton Bowl Classic.


Kenneth Sims of Texas was the first pick overall in the 1982 NFL Draft and was the winner of the Lombardi Award, given to the nation's best lineman.


Southern Methodist won the Southwest Conference and was ranked fifth, but was ineligible for post-season play due to NCAA probation, but could have still qualified for the national title.





HEISMAN VOTING

  1. Marcus Allen - TB, Southern California
  2. Herschel Walker - TB, Georgia
  3. Jim McMahon - QB, Brigham Young
  4. Dan Marino - QB, Pittsburgh
  5. Art Schlichter - QB, Ohio State


CLEMSON SEASON REVIEW
"Expectation is a great breeding ground for miracles." That's the way Jeff Davis remembers the 1981 season. A quarter of a century ago, Davis led the Clemson Tigers to the undisputed national title in football. Coming off of a disappointing 6-5 season in 1980, Davis keyed a team that ran the college football table.


Clemson was no stranger to football success. The Tigers captured seven ACC championships in the league's first quarter century, including an 11-1 team in 1978 that finished the season ranked sixth after defeating Ohio State in the Gator Bowl. This was the game that ended the career of Ohio State coach Woody Hayes, who was forced into retirement after he punched a Clemson player. But it also was the first game as head coach for Clemson's Danny Ford, who took over when Charlie Pell announced in December he was leaving Clemson for the University of Florida.


Clemson had a number of key freshmen in 1978, who were seniors in 1981. Davis was one. He says, "We knew Clemson could win and win big, because we had seen it. 6-5 wasn't Clemson football, 11-1 was. Coach Ford made it happen. He was a great motivator, someone who would get in the trenches, someone who wouldn't accept second best. He expected you to be a man, to represent yourself, and your family, to do the work. `Don't cheat yourself, don't cheat the game.' He encouraged the seniors to take possession of the team, to make it ours."


The Tigers returned virtually everybody on defense from 1980 and it was an exceptional group. Davis was the man defensive back Terry Kinard says, "We looked to when things got rough."

Davis made 175 tackles in 1981 and was selected ACC Player of the Year. But Davis is the first to acknowledge, "The linebackers don't get to make plays unless the linemen do the dirty work inside."

th



Clemson tackles Jeff Bryant and Dan Benish made All-ACC, while noseguards William Devane and William Perry controlled the middle. End Andy Headen and linebacker Danny Triplett were standouts, while Kinard was the league's top defensive back and a consensus All-America.


Unleashing this defense was the job of defensive coordinator Tom Harper, a veteran coach hired that season. Davis says, "Coach Harper was quite the feather in Coach Ford's hat. He was a calming influence. He devised a scheme that was in tune with our strengths. He simplified it, freeing us to attack. We were physical and aggressive. Lay our ears back and go after people."


Kinard agrees. "Harper made all the difference. He was a better teacher, had a better feel for what would work. We became more of an attacking team, more blitzing, mixing things up, keep the other team off balance."


Unranked Clemson opened at home against Wofford, a late substitution for Villanova, which dropped football. Wofford scored first but the outcome was never in doubt. Clemson won 45-10. Tulane was next. The visiting Tigers fell behind 5-0 but forced seven Tulane turnovers and eked out a 13-5 win.


Neither of these outcomes was unexpected. What happened next was. Herschel Walker and Georgia's defending national champions rode into Death Valley with a 15-game winning streak. Georgia had handed Clemson its only loss in 1978 and had edged the Tigers 20-16 in 1980.

th



Walker rushed for 111 yards but it took him 28 carries. His fumble deep in Clemson territory in the first period was a harbinger of things to come. Kinard says, "This game was a tribute to our style of defense. Our front four dominated, they couldn't make adjustments, and their offense just fell apart."


Clemson harassed Georgia's Buck Belue into five interceptions and recovered four of Georgia's five fumbles. Forcing a team as talented as Georgia into nine turnovers was the epitome of Clemson's kick-sand-in-your-face-and-take-your-lunch-money style of defense. Georgia could muster a single field goal, while Clemson scored on a pass from Homer Jordan to Perry Tuttle and two field goals. Following the 13-3 Clemson win, Georgia coach Vince Dooley admitted, "Clemson intimidated us."

Jordan completed 11 of 18 passes, five of them to Tuttle, a speedy senior who would break several school records and make All-America. Although not as dominant as the defense, the Clemson offense was talented, balanced and experienced. Tailbacks Cliff Austin and Chuck McSwain gave Clemson a pair of top-level tailbacks, Jordan was a mobile and accurate passer, and Tuttle could stretch any defense. All-America tackle Lee Nanney and center Tony Berryhill anchored the line.


The offense was also in the hands of a new coordinator, Nelson Stokely. Tuttle says "Stokely brought some color to the offense. He understood the strengths and weaknesses of his players and he made things fun. He liked to attack."


The Georgia win put Clemson on the national radar screen. They jumped to ninth in the AP poll. Following a week off, the Tigers started slowly against Kentucky, trailing 3-0 at intermission. Kevin Mack, Jordan and McSwain scored rushing touchdowns in the second half and Clemson won 21-3. Clemson started its ACC season with a 27-0 win over Virginia.


The low point of Clemson's 1980 season was a 34-17 home loss to an 0-5 Duke team. Clemson got its revenge in Durham, plastering Duke 38-10, as Austin rushed for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Duke's touchdown, a 21-yard pass from Ben Bennett to Cedric Jones in the third period, ended a streak of 18 quarters in which no opponent had crossed Clemson's goal line. Late in the game Duke ran six plays at the Clemson goal line but came up empty. Davis says, "Playing hard for sixty minutes wasn't just a slogan. We meant it."


Clemson fell behind North Carolina State 7-0 the following week, the first time anyone had scored a meaningful touchdown against Clemson. But it wasn't enough. Jordan ran for 104 yards, including a touchdown, and Clemson pulled away for a 17-7 win.

th



The Tigers gave up a season high 24 points the next week against Wake Forest, whose quarterback Gary Schoefield passed for 270 yards. It hardly mattered. On a cloudy Halloween afternoon, Clemson produced the greatest offensive explosion in ACC history. "Everything clicked, everything," remembers Tuttle. The Tigers had the ball seven times in the first half and scored seven touchdowns. By the time the slaughter was over, the scoreboard read 82-24. Clemson piled up 35 first downs and 756 yards total offense, totals that would have been higher had Ford not emptied his bench. Eight Clemson players crossed the goal line.


Defending ACC-champion North Carolina was next, in Chapel Hill.

The Tar Heels were ranked ninth and were riding an 11-game ACC winning streak. Davis says, "This is what we lived for. A big game, physical and low-scoring. We worked so hard in practice that we looked forward to the games. We loved close games because we felt that nobody else had paid the price like we had to win. We were going to be there at the end of the game."


Tuttle adds, "It was a dog fight. You have to be the best in your neighborhood before you can be the best in the country."


The Tar Heels drove 64 yards early but a sack by Devane kept them out of the end zone. The field goal made it 3-0. Fullback Jeff McCall capped an 81-yard drive with a touchdown for the visitors but a botched punt gave UNC a safety. It was 7-5 at the half. The teams exchanged field goals in the third period and then the two defenses took control. Bryant sewed up the 10-8 Clemson victory when he alertly recovered a UNC lateral that most players incorrectly assumed was an incomplete pass.


Clemson jumped to number two in the polls after the UNC win. There was still business to take care of. Boomer Esiason and Maryland fell 21-7, only Clemson's second win over Maryland in a decade. Jordan had a career day, completing 20 of 29 passes for 270 yards, while Tuttle had 10 receptions. The Clemson defense hounded Esiason into a 15-of-38 nightmare. Clemson finished the regular season with a 29-13 win over archrival South Carolina, keyed by McSwain's 151 rushing yards and two touchdowns.


Meanwhile, top-ranked Pittsburgh lost to Penn State in its regular-season finale, putting Clemson atop the polls for the first time in school history. The Tigers were matched against 4th-ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Nebraska was a surprising four-point favorite.

8976775_1_l.jpg


Davis remembers, "Give Danny Ford a month and nobody's going to outwork us. After hitting each other for a month, we were going to take it out on somebody. Nebraska was a worthy opponent, a storied program, with lots of great players. But I don't think they took us as seriously as they should have. Maybe it was because we were from the ACC. It was disrespectful being underdogs. We kept hearing about what Nebraska was going to do to us. It was a motivator, no doubt."


Tuttle remembers the slights but he also remembers the anxiety. "Nebraska was a bigger-than-life program. We took that team and its history seriously. We had to get rid of the butterflies and convince ourselves that we could beat them."


Davis was a key, getting in the face of his teammates early, exhorting them not to back down.


Clemson took a 3-0 lead but Nebraska made it 7-3 when star running back Mike Rozier hit Anthony Steels with a halfback option pass. Kinard was the victim, "the first time in my life I got beat on that play and the last time. It was a smart call, designed to take advantage of our aggressiveness."


A Donald Igwebuike field goal made it 7-6. The Clemson defense, as it had done so often, forced a fumble late in the half. Austin took it in from the two for a 12-7 halftime lead.

th



Clemson dominated the third period. A time-consuming, 75-yard drive ended when Jordan hit Tuttle from the 13 to make the score 19-7. Another field goal made it 22-7 with 2:36 left in the third quarter.


Nebraska didn't go quietly. Roger Craig finished off a 69-yard drive with a tackle-breaking 26-yard touchdown, followed by a two-point conversion that made the score 22-15 with 9:15 left. Nebraska got the ball back with 7:49 left but was forced to punt. Jordan scrambled for a first down on 3rd and 23 and the Tigers ran out all but the last six seconds. Nebraska's last, desperate pass was batted down and Clemson had the game and the national title.


In many respects, Clemson's title remains a singular event. Maryland was voted national champion in 1953 but the AP poll was taken before the bowl games and Maryland lost its Orange Bowl game to Oklahoma 7-0. Clemson remains the only one of the ACC's original schools to have an undefeated national champion on the gridiron.


Kinard played for the New York Giants when they won Super Bowl XXI but says "The NCAA title is better in my book. We were more of a family, had more camaraderie, more friendship. That had a lot to do with Coach Ford. We were a team not just a bunch of individuals." Tuttle, who won a pair of Grey Cup titles in Canada, agrees. "In college, you're winning for the team, the city, the alumni, your league, your friends, your high school coach. It's a bigger community and one that lasts longer."


Jeff Davis has thought a lot about that season. "We were college boys trying to become men. We cared about each other. We shared victories, we shared defeat, we shared the hard work. Playing a childhood game that you loved with your best friends at a great university. What could be better? "We captured the essence of football, how football is supposed to be played, how it is supposed to impact your life."

DEE-White, get out the tissues, buddy ...

[video=youtube_share;X2N4VmUc6z4]http://youtu.be/X2N4VmUc6z4[/video]
 
Career OL Starts Returning


RANK TEAM OL CAREER STS RANK TEAM OL CAREER STS
#1 Texas 124 ----- #63 Louisville 64
#2 Tennessee 123 --------#63 Arkansas St 64
#3 Duke 113 ----- #66 Middle Tennessee 63
#4 Utah St 110 -- #66 Fresno St 63
#5 New Mexico 107- #68 Cental Michigan 62
#6 Georgia Tech 105 - #68 South Alabama 62
#7 Georgia 101 ------#70 Missouri 61
#8 Minnesota 100 -----#70 Buffalo 61
#9 Michigan St 97---- #72 Arkansas 60
#10 Florida St 96 ------#73 Michigan 58
#11 Mississippi St 95 --#73 Temple 58
#12 Colorado St 94 ----#75 Ohio 57
#13 Miami, Fl 93 ------#76 UTEP 56
#14 Florida 92---- #77 North Carolina 55
#14 Houston 92---- #77 Illinois 55
#16 Rutgers 91 ------#77 Oregon 55
#17 Oregon St 90 ----#80 Memphis 54
#18 ULM 86 ---------#81 Hawaii 53
#19 Oklahoma 85 ----#82 Purdue 52
#19 USC 85 --------#82 Boise St 52
#19 Marshall 85 -----#84 Syracuse 51
#22 Cincinnati 83 ----#84 Colorado 51
#22 UTSA 83 ----------#84 Tulsa 51
#22 East Carolina 83--- #84 BYU 51
#22 Georgia St 83 ----#88 Eastern Michigan 50
#22 Old Dominion 83 --#89 LSU 49
#27 Stanford 82 --------#90 Wisconsin 48
#27 Mississippi 82 --------#90 Penn St 48
#27 WKU 82 --------------#90 USF 48
#30 Virginia 81 ------------#93 San Diego St 46
#30 Ohio St 81 ------------#94 Iowa 45
#30 Washington 81 --------#94 UAB 45
#33 Rice 80 ----------------#96 Virginia Tech 44
#33 San Jose St 80 -------#97 Army 43
#35 Nebraska 78 ---------#98 NC State 42
#35 Kansas St 78 -------#98 Baylor 42
#35 Tulane 78 ----------#98 Nevada 42
#35 Toledo 78 ---------#98 Navy 42
#35 New Mexico St 78 --#102 Wake Forest 41
#35 Notre Dame 78---- #102 TCU 41
#41 Washington St 77 ---#102 West Virginia 41
#41 Connecticut 77 -------#105 Northwestern 40
#41 North Texas 77 -------#106 Maryland 39
#44 Miami, Oh 76 ---------#106 Kentucky 39
#45 UCLA 75 ---------------#106 Alabama 39
#46 Indiana 73 -------------#109 Oklahoma St 38
#46 Texas A&M 73 --------#109 Kent St 38
#46 Vanderbilt 73 ---------#111 Wyoming 36
#49 South Carolina 72 -----#112 Akron 34
#49 Bowling Green 72 -----#113 Ball St 33
#49 Northern Illinois 72 ----#114 Western Michigan 31
#52 UNLV 71 ----------------#115 Air Force 30
#53 Boston College 70 ------#116 SMU 29
#53 Iowa St 70 --------------#117 Utah 28
#53 Arizona 70 -------------#117 California 28
#53 Auburn 70 -------------#119 Texas Tech 27
#57 Idaho 69 ---------------#119 Kansas 27
#58 UCF 68 -----------------#121 Massachusetts 26
#59 Pittsburgh 66 ----------#122 Troy 25
#59 Louisiana 66 -----------#123 Florida Atlantic 23
#61 Arizona St 65 ----------#124 Southern Miss 20
#61 Texas St 65 ------------#125 Louisiana Tech 15
#63 Clemson 64 ------------#126 FIU 9
 
tru said:
Gar any idea for us what goy lines u hit?
Click to expand...

9 plays in the fold.Washington -11 vs Illinois (Chicago). I anticipate small line value here and I like the matchup. If I lose this one its most likely because I over-reacted to how awful the Illini were last last season, and the travel isn’t great, rather than because Washington isn’t good. Illinois off the Cincy game which will be interesting and could be physical. Washington has a bye week after Boise so they will have time to refocus and settle down whether they win or lose, and there is no look-ahead as they play an FCS team.

USF +16 @ MSU. Straight variance play. Tough to say how much value this one will get – if any – but I love the matchup and it was a full touchdown above my and PStone’s projections. MSU may only score 21-24.

ASU -1 vs Wisc. Missed the PK. I see the line is up to 3, which is probably a better number. It may yet close higher but it won’t be much higher, certainly not above a touchdown. I am on record as liking the Gary Anderson hire, but not quite yet. Todd Graham basically did what Anderson will do he is just a year further along in the evolution. Wiscy with Purdue on deck, but its mitigated by ASU travelling to Stanford. Not a great situational spot for either team.

Wisc/Ohio State OVER 45. Just too low. Take a look at Urban Meyer’s teams offensive improvement from year 1 to year 2. BGSU, Utah, Florida, everywhere. They will be unstoppable this year, and I would think they will be ready to go after getting warmed up on Buffalo, SDSU, Cal, and Florida A&M with this game in advance of a tricky spot @ NW. If I can just get Wisconsin to not get shutout completely. Ohio State’s defense left something to be desired last year and now they are swapping out almost an entirely new front 7 with inexperienced (albeit) sophomores and juniors everywhere. Have to rate Wiscy to find the end zone a couple times.

Washington -5 vs Arizona. Not a great spot with Stanford on deck and Arizona getting a bye before and after, but apart from that its full speed ahead. Huskies will be a significantly better team than Arizona at this point in the season. Their defense improved quite a bit last year and brings back the important parts. Price won’t turn it over nearly as much this year either fumbles or picks in large part because the OL won’t allow 38 sacks again. Arizona has no pass rush, 10 sacks in 2011 and 16 last year is absolutely pathetic. They haven’t stopped the run in a few years either. I significantly discount the result from last year’s game as Washington was in the midst of a stretch featuring Stanford, Oregon, USC, and Oregon State. It was just a bad spot that got away from them, it wasn’t because Zona was really any better. I think this one gets ugly and I think I have value.

Georgia -12 @ Tennessee. You can have Manziel and A&M’s offense, I will take Murray and Georgia. They were the best last year nationally in ypp which will translate nicely as 9 starters are back on that side of the ball. I probably should care that Georgia lost so much on defense but I don’t because they underachieved as it was and won’t do any worse than the 44 they allowed to Tennessee last year. Vols should have a nice OL, but Butch Jones is going to be doing some different things than they are used to and I would expect it show. Spot isn’t great or terrible for either team. I think I have value.

Nebraska -6 vs UCLA. This is the one ticket I have that I’m not real sure I made a good value decision on. I like the matchup. UCLA loses a ton on defense so the Huskers will score almost a million points. Neither team has anything resembling a potential loss leading up to this game so I can’t say the line won’t still be below a touchdown the week of the game, but it has to be played. UCLA’s talent is still really young for the most part, especially on the stop unit and they will get exposed here. I love the play, but probably didn’t need to make it quite yet.

Texas -1 vs Oklahoma. Variance play. I am way down on OU and pretty high on Texas. I’m not one for hyperbole (when I make outlandish statements its usually for my own amusement) so you can believe me when I say that Mack Brown should be fired if they lose this one. If they can’t beat em this year, then when? Only likely loss leading up to this game by either team is Oklahoma @ Notre Dame. I don’t see anyway this line can move back toward the Sooners between now and kickoff.

Minnesota +8 vs Penn St. This is another variance play that is even more speculative in nature. I hadn’t planned on getting involved in any late season stuff, but this figures to be a bad number. For one thing, I think Tony Miller and Co over-rated PSU and may have under-rated Minnesota in a couple spots. PSU makes this roadie surrounded by hosting Illinois and Purdue. Minnesota comes back home after a trip to Indy and then gets a week off before facing Wiscy and MSU. As hard as I was on McGloin last year, I have to think they will miss him. He played well.
 
80 days to go ...

The kid had an 81-yard run vs. Indiana for a touchdown in 2011 and last season, Braxton Miller attempted 80 zone-read rushes with Urban Meyer as his head coach. Miller attempted nine such rushes in 2011 under Luke Fickell. Miller gained 676 yards and scored six touchdowns with the zone read last season.

ncf_u_miller1x_400.jpg


Miller enters his third season as one of the best players in all of college football. After a strong 2012 campaign in which he led the Buckeyes to a 12-0 record, he has to be an early favorite for the Heisman Trophy.


Last season, Miller finished with an Ohio State record 3,310 yards of total offense. He proved his ability as both a passer and a runner, throwing for 2,039 yards and rushing for 1,271. He totaled 28 touchdowns.


That strong-season performance landed him several honors, including the Big Ten’s Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year and the Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year awards. Miller was a finalist for the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award and also finished fifth in the Heisman voting.


Heading into this season, there’s no reason to doubt that Miller will regress. He’ll be the leader on a team loaded with talent that will likely start the year at or near the top of every poll. The fact that he’ll be in the national spotlight each week, coupled with strong performances, will put him securely in the minds of the Heisman voters.

[video=youtube_share;CWzqIY0RhiY]http://youtu.be/CWzqIY0RhiY[/video]
The record-setting 81-yard run versus Indiana from 2011


Of course, there will be competition from another dual-threat quarterback. Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel, who took the nation by storm as a freshman, won the Heisman last year and will try to repeat in 2013.


Both teams will no doubt be strong, though some would argue that the Aggies play a tougher schedule in the SEC. That could help Manziel if the race is close.


Regardless of who ends up winning the award, as there’s always a surprise that sneaks up, Miller has to be one of the top three candidates at the start of the season. Fresh off his solid season a year ago, he’ll be a favorite to continue to impress with his style and huge offensive numbers.


-----------------------------------------------------
1980 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS


The Georgia Bulldogs starred freshman running back Herschel Walker, who made his NCAA debut against Tennessee. Down 15-2 at halftime, Georgia sent in Walker, the third string running back at the time, to try to light a spark. Walker ran over All-American safety Bill Bates, in a play that would set the tempo for the rest of his career.

th



This year was the final season in which long time rivals Rutgers and Princeton played against each other. The rivalry between the New Jersey schools has not been played since.


This year's edition of Florida–Georgia game was won on a last minute 92 yard pass from Georgia's own endzone, known by the play by play call "Run, Lindsay, run!".


The Bulldogs ran through the rest of the season unscathed, beating Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. Walker rushed for 150 yards against Notre Dame, a defense which had not given up a hundred yard game that whole season. He did this with a dislocated shoulder.


The Pittsburgh Panthers also had a stellar season, led by offensive tackle Mark May. The team went 11-1 and finished ranked #2, finishing the season with a rout of South Carolina and Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers in the Gator Bowl. 29 players from this team went on the play in the NFL.

th

Heisman runner-up Hugh Green of the Pitt Panthers, who was an absolute terror, totaling 123 tackles, 17 sacks, four fumble recoveries and six pass breakups.


Florida State defeated #3 ranked Nebraska on the Cornhuskers' home turf, and the following week defeated the #2 ranked Pitt Panthers.


It was an unusual year for the Pac-10 as 5 of its 10 members were placed on probation by the conference (but not the NCAA) including traditional powers USC and UCLA, along with both Oregon schools and Arizona State. So half the conference was ineligible for bowl games and it was feared that the 4th or 5th place finisher would end up in the Rose Bowl. Ironically, USC and UCLA both got as high as #2 in the polls before being upset. As it turned out, the probation didn't matter as Washington won the conference outright with a 6-1 record.


This year's edition of the Holiday Bowl was a classic as the BYU staged a fourth quarter comeback, led by future NFL star Jim McMahon. Down 45-25 to SMU with less than four minutes left, McMahon threw three touchdown passes, including a Hail Mary as time expired, caught in the endzone by Clay Brown, despite being surrounded by three SMU defenders.

th




CRAZY NOVEMBER
After 5 straight weeks of major upsets, November 1 may have been the craziest day of all. Alabama, who had held the top ranking for 6 weeks, was knocked off by Mississippi State, 6-3. Having heard the news that Alabama lost, #2 UCLA went out and promptly lost to Arizona in Tucson, 23-17. USC and Nebraska re-entered the top 5. The new poll was 1. Notre Dame, 2. Georgia, 3. Florida State, 4. USC, and 5. Nebraska.


The madness continued on November 8 as new #1 Notre Dame was held to a 3-3 tie by Georgia Tech, dropping the Irish to #6. 2nd ranked Georgia trailed rival #20 Florida late in the game when QB Buck Belue hit WR Lindsay Scott on an out pattern; Scott turned up field and went 90 yards for the winning score in the season's most memorable play. It was Scott's only TD reception all season and it gave the Bulldogs a 26-21 win. Alabama would take Notre Dame's place in the top five of the new poll that was 1. Georgia, 2. USC, 3. Florida State, 4. Nebraska, and 5. Alabama.


The surprises continued the following week on November 15. #2 USC lost at home to Washington as the Huskies clinched the Pac-10 title. #6 Notre Dame went down to Birmingham and beat #5 Alabama 7-0; this win vaulted the Irish over Alabama, Nebraska, and Florida State to #2 in the new poll. Ohio State, who started at #1 and had just the one loss to UCLA, returned to the top 5 that was 1. Georgia, 2. Notre Dame, 3. Florida State, 4. Nebraska, and 5. Ohio State.


On November 22, in the showdown for the Big 8 title and Orange Bowl berth, #4 Nebraska was dumped at home by #9 Oklahoma, 21-17. In the game to decide the Big 10 title and Rose Bowl berth, #10 Michigan beat #5 Ohio State in Columbus, 9-3. #6 Pittsburgh returned to the top 5 by winning at #7 Penn State, 14-9. The new poll was 1. Georgia, 2. Notre Dame, 3. Florida State, 4. Pittsburgh, and 5. Oklahoma.


Although there were still games left to be played, the major bowls extended their invitations. Top ranked Georgia earned a Sugar Bowl berth by virtue of its SEC championship and Notre Dame was invited to play them in a 1 vs. 2 matchup. #5 Oklahoma earned the Big 8's Orange Bowl berth and would play #3 Florida State. 6th ranked Michigan would face #16 Washington in the Rose Bowl, while #7 Baylor earned the Cotton Bowl berth by winning the SWC. Most people assumed #4 Pittsburgh would earn a major bowl bid and face Baylor, but the Cotton Bowl opted for #9 Alabama instead. The Fiesta Bowl also passed over Pitt, inviting #11 Ohio State and #10 Penn State (who had just lost to Pittsburgh). Thus, Pittsburgh had to settle for a Gator Bowl bid vs. #18 South Carolina and Heisman Trophy winner George Rogers.


On November 29, #17 USC spoiled the 1 vs. 2 Sugar Bowl matchup by upsetting #2 Notre Dame by a score of 20-3. The final regular season top five was 1. Georgia, 2. Florida State, 3. Pittsburgh, 4. Oklahoma, and 5. Michigan.


BOWL RESULTS:



HEISMAN VOTING

  1. George Rogers South Carolina, RB
  2. Hugh Green Pittsburgh, DE
  3. Herschel Walker Georgia, RB
  4. Mark Herrmann Purdue, QB
  5. Jim McMahon Brigham Young, QB




1981 SUGAR BOWL HYPE: Georgia 17, Notre Dame 10
As it turned out, lowly Georgia Tech knocked the Irish out of No. 1 the week before the Alabama game with a 3-3 tie. That lifted Georgia to the top rung for the first time in 38 years and meant that the Irish would probably have to play the ‘Dogs to have any opportunity to reclaim No. 1. Auburn couldn't wait for a chance to knock its conference next-door neighbor down a couple of pegs on the national ladder. The battle cry in the sleepy little Alabama hamlet that is the home to the War Eagles was "The road to the Sugar Bowl goes through I-85 [the highway that passes Jordan-Hare Stadium]."


Defensive back Greg Bell followed Georgia's season-long script by blocking a second-quarter punt that was picked up and returned for a touchdown. That put the Bulldogs ahead for the first time at 10-7 and was the catalyst in a 31-21 defeat of the gritty War Eagles. "We're shooting for No. 1," Buck Belue added as Vince Dooley accepted the Sugar Bowl invitation.


Two hours later, Notre Dame (which dropped to sixth after the Tech tie) awaited Coach Dan Devine in Legion Field's dressing room chanting, "Sugar Bowl, Sugar Bowl, Sugar Bowl!" Irish arms were held aloft as the bodies continually swayed, elated about a 7-0 victory over Alabama.

th



A 20-3 defeat by Southern California in the season finale put a practical end to Notre Dame's national championship aspirations, and the Irish opened a one-point favorite over the team no one could quite believe. Georgia was finally going to get its chance to play Notre Dame 34 years after Wally Butts had tried. The Bulldogs were an undefeated, No. 1-ranked underdog.


Scott Zettek felt it should have been more, "I hear we're favored," the Irish defensive end said. "My own personal (line), I give them 10 points. It's a chance to maybe be No. 1, and a chance to regain some of the respect we lost. We can prove ourselves again with a win. This game will get a lot of attention, not only because Georgia's No. 1 but because people want to see what Notre Dame does against them." Devine, who would be coaching his last game for the Irish, also figured in Zettek's handicapping. "We've been an emotional team all year, as all Notre Dame teams are, but the fact that its Coach Devine's last game will be an additional factor."


The mammoth Notre Dame defense, outweighing Georgia's offense 15 pounds a man, had limited opponents to 109 yards a game rushing, a per-play average of 2.8 (in contrast to Georgia's offensive average of 4.5). The mobile Irish offensive line averaged 6-foot-6, 255 pounds against Georgia's front, which checked in at 6-foot-2, 236 pounds.


Notre Dame diehards spoke in smirks of Georgia's relatively easy schedule, and how South Bend troops were battle-hardened, conveniently forgetting some of the past paper-thin schedules the Irish had ridden to glory. Never, however, would Notre Dame have as much fraternity support as it would have against Georgia. There had not been a season quite like this, where so many schools remained alive for the national championship as New Year's Day approached. A Notre Dame victory and the right set of circumstances could vault Pittsburgh, Oklahoma, Florida State, Michigan, or even Baylor to No. 1. But any change hinged completely on one factor: Notre Dame had to defeat Georgia.

th

Baylor LB Mike Singletary earned All-America honors in both junior (1979) and senior (1980) years, where he averaged 15 tackles per game and established a team record with 232 tackles in 1978, including 35 in a game against the University of Houston. During Singletary's senior season of 1980, Baylor won 10 games, marking the first time in school history that had been accomplished.


Former Bulldog idol Charley Trippi said it best, though, when he assessed, "Georgia can beat anyone because it's a very opportunistic team. And football often comes down to opportunism."

It was left to Rex Robinson, the second most prolific field goal kicker (59) in NCAA history at the time, to capture just what this Georgia team was and what could be expected in its 12th game. "I know we've been a fortunate team in many aspects," Robinson said on New Year's Eve. "What we've been, more than anything else, is a team of survivors. Somewhere, someone has been there to pick us up. The reason we're here is that we've survived."


THE GAME:
It was an ugly stat: in a game when Georgia needed air-support to keep defenders off tailback Herschel Walker, quarterback Buck Belue was 0-for-11 passing.

Now, with 2:05 to play, and the Bulldogs trying to protect a precarious touchdown lead, Belue was looking at a third-and-seven at midfield.

He dropped back, looked, finally let loose, and completed his first - and only - pass, seven yards to Amp Arnold. That allowed Georgia to run out the clock, and secure its first consensus national title.

"That was the only one we needed,'' a relieved Bulldog coach Vince Dooley smiled.

th


This was a remarkable Georgia team, one that ran the table more because all its units meshed than on overwhelming talent, other than the redoubtable Walker.

Going into the Sugar Bowl against Notre Dame, conventional wisdom said to survive one more time in this memorable season Georgia would need all its resourcefulness - and more. The Bulldogs had to have a passing threat to relieve pressure on its one-dimensional ground-game.

Although Belue didn't pass much for this infantry-oriented squad, he would have to pass, and pass well, in order to avoid having the Notre Dame Goliaths aim their defensive guns solely on Walker. Sprint-outs and play-action calls by Belue would be the only other offensive options in Georgia's limited offense.

The Bulldogs didn't get that needed air-support - and still found a way to win.

Things didn't look good at the start: Notre Dame went ahead on a 50-yard field goal; a sack of Belue backed the Bulldogs up to their 6; Walker unknowingly separated a shoulder; and the Irish ended up at the Georgia 41, just nine yards from where Harry Oliver just kicked his field goal.

Reaching the 31, on a fourth-and-11, Oliver came back in for a second kick. Everything appeared routine, until Bulldog Terry Hoage entered the game. Hoage was a reserve defensive back who had five minutes of game time during Georgia's season and who had made just two road trips. During Sugar Bowl practices the coaches had the backups attempt blocking kicks, simulating game conditions. Hoage had a knack for it and was placed on the Sugar Bowl travel squad.

As the ball was snapped the freshman sliced through the Notre Dame middle, leaped and caught Oliver's kick in the chest. "I saw kind of a little hole and just sailed through,'' Hoage explained.

From that blocked kick, Rex Robinson booted a 46-yard field goal to tie the score.

Robinson then kicked to Notre Dame's deep backs, Jim Stone and Ty Barber, each of whom drifted away from the ball before it hit near the end zone and began bouncing laterally. "I called for Ty to take the ball,'' Stone said, "but he didn't hear me. It was hard to hear with all that noise." Barber shrugged. "I guess he thought I had it, and I thought he had it. I think we were both too anxious to block (the on-coming Bulldogs)."

A brother act, Steve and Bob Kelly, closed in on the live ball. Steve dived at the offering, hit it, and, he said, "the ball popped into my brother's hand at the 1. The play has come to be remembered in Athens as ‘the world's longest on-sides kick.'"

Two plays afterward, Walker launched himself over the Notre Dame line to put Georgia in front 10-3.

th


After another Irish bobble, at the Notre Dame 22, Walker beat two defensive backs to the outside for a three-yard touchdown.

Taking advantage of three Irish miscues, Georgia was ahead at the half 17-3, but was behind in virtually every statistic - with the exception of three significant figures: Walker already had 95 yards rushing against a defense that hadn't surrendered a hundred yards to any runner all season. And Walker was getting his yards without benefit of a balanced offense; Belue had no completions in six attempts, and on five other plays he was unable to get a pass off.

Irish coach Dan Devine decided to ignore Belue and shoot the works at stopping Walker. The Irish linebackers were moved up for a second-half salvo at Walker. Field position and size became Notre Dame's offensive components.

After weathering a Notre Dame touchdown drive in the third quarter, and another to the 20 - where DB Scott Woerner dropped Phil Carter for a yard loss on third down, forcing a missed field goal attempt, Georgia still had a task at hand.

That's when Belue completed on his only pass of the day.

Notre Dame outrushed, outpassed, and out first-downed Georgia, but Walker finished with 150 yards, 55 in the second half. His individual total may have been the most impressive rushing performance in Sugar Bowl history, considering his separated shoulder and the fact that his total was 30 yards more than his team's. Take away Walker's 36 carries and Georgia amassed a minus 30 yards of offense, partly due to four sacks of Belue. No winning team ever had such paltry figures in the Sugar Bowl.

Georgia did win two stats it had won all season: turnovers, 4-0 (not including Notre Dame's goal line gaffe), and the scoreboard, 17-10.

"I don't know how good we are,'' Vince Dooley said, "but I do know we're 12-0 and nobody else is.''

In fact, Georgia was an undefeated, untied - and slightly unbelievable - national championship team.

th
 
9-Georgia

In Richt's 2nd ssn ('02) he led UGA to their first SEC Title in 20 yrs and set a schl record with 13 wins (#3 AP). Only UGA and USC finished in the Top 10 each year from '02-'05. UGA's D finished in the Top 20 for 7 str yrs ('01-'07). Richt became the then-5th SEC HC to win 10+in 4 st yrs(Bryant,Dooley,Fulmer, Spurrier and now also Saban). Richt was 7-4 vs Top 10 teams at one point but s/'08 is just 2-10. After a #23 finish in '06,UGA was the consensus pick for 3rd in the East in '07 but I picked them to tie for the East Title and that they did. They finished #2 in the final polls. In '08 they were tagged #1 in the pressn AP poll but I looked at the schedule and had UGA 2nd in the East and they slipped to 10-3 (#13). The next 2 yrs they were 8-5 (NR) & 6-7 (NR). The '10 team had 4 net close losses. In '11 UGA only had 12 ret st'rs but I called them one of my MIT and they were my upset pick to win the East(no LSU,Bama orArk).UGA did indeed get to the SEC Title game but after dropping the SEC Champ and their bowl,they were 10-4(#19).LY UGA was pressn #6 and won their first 4 all by 21+.They got past Tenn 51-44 with Tenn's final 3 poss all being TO's but then were destroyed by SCar (down 35-0 before td w/1:55 left).They barely got past UK 29-24 and weren't given much hope vs Fla.DJ Williams called the team out prior to the game and UGA won thanks to 6 UF TO's. They continued on with 4 straight great defensive efforts (beat Miss, Aub, GS & GT by a comb 162-34). However, they all'd 26 FD's per/gm in their final 3 and finished tied with Florida in the East.In the SEC Champ gm they were stopped deep in Tide terr at the end coming up just short 32-28. While trailing Neb after 3Q's, they rebounded for a 14 pt bowl win and finished #5. TY UGA has 9 ret sts on off but just 3 on D. They were +108.5 ypg in SEC play (#3) but did benefit from +11 TO's and their Stock Marketrating is-4.5. UGA does draw LSU out of the West but only has 3 true road SEC games and gets S Carolina at home. They get my call to win the SEC East.
 
Guys:
Along with Gar and many of Vegas' most respected sports bettors, I attended Friday's "Christmas in June" at the Golden Nugget.

Bettors got to bet up to five games each time in line with a $1,000 max. There were roughly 16 of us in attendance, with most firing the max both their first and second trips to the window. I thought Tony Miller and his staff did an excellent job, with the process flowing quite efficiently. Lines seemed to move a full point with each bet (regardless of who made it). Some games got "both sided" early in the process, in essence returning the line to the opening number.

Everybody seemed to have a different approach to the GOYs. I found it interesting that the Nugget moved the date up a little bit and believe they were perhaps attempting to put the vast majority of the bettors at the window without the benefit of Phil Steele's respected College Football Preview.

Following are my plays:
10/5 Georgia -11 (at Tennesee)
9/21 Florida -12 (vs. Tennessee)
11/9 Auburn +8 (at Tennessee)
9/7 BYU +7.5 (vs. Texas)
11/9 West Virginia +11 (vs. Texas)
12/7 Baylor +8 (vs. Texas)
11/2 Purdue +17 (vs. Ohio State)
10/5 Arizona State +4 (vs. Notre Dame in Arlington)
9/14 Arizona State Pk (vs. Wisconsin)
11/16 Louisville -17 (vs. Houston)
11/16 Michigan +3 (at Northwestern)

Good luck,
Paul
 
pstone said:
Guys:
Along with Gar and many of Vegas' most respected sports bettors, I attended Friday's "Christmas in June" at the Golden Nugget.

Bettors got to bet up to five games each time in line with a $1,000 max. There were roughly 16 of us in attendance, with most firing the max both their first and second trips to the window. I thought Tony Miller and his staff did an excellent job, with the process flowing quite efficiently. Lines seemed to move a full point with each bet (regardless of who made it). Some games got "both sided" early in the process, in essence returning the line to the opening number.

Everybody seemed to have a different approach to the GOYs. I found it interesting that the Nugget moved the date up a little bit and believe they were perhaps attempting to put the vast majority of the bettors at the window without the benefit of Phil Steele's respected College Football Preview.

Following are my plays:
10/5 Georgia -11 (at Tennesee)
9/21 Florida -12 (vs. Tennessee)
11/9 Auburn +8 (at Tennessee)
9/7 BYU +7.5 (vs. Texas)
11/9 West Virginia +11 (vs. Texas)
12/7 Baylor +8 (vs. Texas)
11/2 Purdue +17 (vs. Ohio State)
10/5 Arizona State +4 (vs. Notre Dame in Arlington)
9/14 Arizona State Pk (vs. Wisconsin)
11/16 Louisville -17 (vs. Houston)
11/16 Michigan +3 (at Northwestern)

Good luck,
Paul
Click to expand...

Interesting note about your plays, with 3 of them against Texas and Tennessee...those 2 teams rank 1 and 2 in OL starts returning this year. Most likely it's coincidental, just something I noticed reading the last few posts. Is there anything in particular that you don't like about either team (Tenn or Texas)?
 
Lareux:
I certainly take into account the number of career starts on the offensive line and that is a piece of the puzzle. I'll shed some light on the methodology/process behind my plays, but I've got some duties left today and it may tomorrow. Thanks for the response.

Paul
 
pstone said:
Lareux:
I certainly take into account the number of career starts on the offensive line and that is a piece of the puzzle. I'll shed some light on the methodology/process behind my plays, but I've got some duties left today and it may tomorrow. Thanks for the response.

Paul
Click to expand...

Await the response, good stuff Paul! I'm curious as to how you went against the top 2 from that list so much, given that you do take that into account. Not saying that stat necessarily means anything, and I'm not saying you're wrong or anything, I'm just curious is all.
 
Lareux:
While Tennessee and Texas both return veteran offensive lines, I expect both to fall short of the Golden Nugget's preseason expectations.

In the haze of all the preseason preparation; position analysis; coaching changes; etc, it still boils down to scoring offense and scoring defense.

Last season, Tennessee ranked in the nation's top 25 in both scoring and total offense, averaging more than 36 points a game. Quarterback Tyler Bray and a host of talented receivers, including Patterson and Hunter, are gone, and there's no way the Vols come anywhere close to 36 points a game and will likely see that norm drop by double digits. Tennessee has no experience at QB; nothing at the receiver positions; and only average running backs. Defensively, the Vols allowed 45 points a game during a seven-game stretch during the season's mid-section last year. They will probably be better, but only marginally.

Butch Jones is certainly a nice guy who people like and has the Central Michigan/Cincy background that has Vol backers dreaming, "Well, Brian Kelly came that route, so it has to work here, doesn't it?" Maybe so, maybe not, but, in any event, there will be growing pains as the Vols gradually recruit the right personnel and transition to Jones' fast-paced, up-tempo offense.

Over the past quarter century, one could argue that Texas, with the possible exception of Notre Dame, is historically the most overvalued team during college football's preseason. One only has to look at a team's preseason ranking and compare it to their final ranking to see where teams fit in this process. The Longhorns are certainly a veteran team, but are only 12-16 in conference play the last three years. While Texas starts the season closer to its Power Ranking ceiling based on its overall experience, Baylor and West Virginia will be late season home underdogs to the Longhorns and both figure to be much better at the end of the season than the beginning.

There are lots of other reasons, but these are a few I faded the two UTs in the Nugget's GOYs.

Good luck and thanks for the comments,
Paul
 
79 days to go ...

Chicken soup, anyone?: At the 1979 Cotton Bowl (1978 season), the legend of Joe Montana being a clutch performer was born. Trailing 34-12 in the fourth quarter and with Montana in the locker room fighting hypothermia, it looked bleak for Notre Dame. After warming up with some chicken soup, Montana re-entered the game and the Irish scored 23 unanswered points for an amazing 35-34 win.

th


DALLAS (AP) --- Quarterback Joe Montana was sick, All-American linebacker Bob Golic was on the bench with a knee injury and dispirited Notre Dame trailed Houston 34-12 with 4:40 left in the third quarter. Then, reminiscent of a dramatic rally against Southern Cal in the regular season, the Fighting Irish came up with the finest comeback in the 43-year history of the Cotton Bowl.

Montana, the senior quarterback, sent the drama to the final second Monday, completing an 8-yard touchdown pass to diving wide receiver Kris Haines, who made the catch just in bounds as time ran out. Then placekicker Joe Unis had to kick the winning extra point twice for the amazing 35-34 victory over the stunned Cougars.

The first time Unis kicked his extra point, Notre Dame was penalized for illegal procedure. Unis made the second try and the delirious, frostbitten band of Fighting Irish fans stormed the frozen field.

Haines said of the game-tying touchdown pass play, "We ran it with 6 seconds to play, but we got a little mixed up." That pass was incomplete, but with 2 seconds to play, Montana decided to try it again. "Joe asked me if I could beat my man again," said Haines. "I said, 'Yes.' I beat the linebacker, but I don't know who it was."

"This team never quits," said Haines. "I was hurting and starting to feel sorry for myself, but I looked around, and saw the others weren't quitting, so I told myself I couldn't quit."

Unis said concentration was the key to his winning kick. "Every kicker fantasizes about being in a position like that," he said. "When I kicked the first time, saw the yellow flag and prayed the penalty wasn't on us. Then I had to get my concentration back. I had to get my composure back. I took two deep breaths and concentrated on the tee, on keeping my head down and on following through. I hit both of them well."

Cotton796.jpg


Notre Dame Coach Dan Devine said: "When it was 34-12, I felt we had to do something to turn it around. It happened when (Steve) Cichy scored on the blocked punt." Cichy returned a punt blocked by Tom Belden 33 yards for a touchdown that, combined with a 2-point conversion pass from Montana to Vagas Ferguson, narrowed the count to 34-20 with 7:25 to play.

A poor Houston punt put the Irish on the move again and Montana scored on a 2-yard run with 4:15 to go. Then came some questionable Houston strategy by Cougars Coach Bill Yeoman. On fourth and 1, Yeoman decided to go for a first down with 35 seconds to play and the ball on the Houston 29. Running back Emmett King was stopped cold by defensive tackle Mike Calhoun and Notre Dame took over. Montana ran 11 yards and completed a 10-yard pass to Haines, who ran out of bounds on the Cougar 8 with 6 seconds to go.

Then came the incompletion followed by the game-winning pass.

“I was completely responsible for that call," said Yeoman of the decision to go for the first down. "We were kicking the ball only 10 or 12 yards into the wind and (Center) Chuck Brown had a bad wrist and couldn't snap the ball well."

There was every indication the game would be bizarre from the weird opening coin toss.

Notre Dame won the toss and took the 20 mile per hour wind at its back for the first period. Houston insisted on kicking into the wind because the Cougars wanted Notre Dame to handle the ball first in the 20-degree cold. The weather bureau said there was a chill factor of 6 degrees below zero, and the chill may have been partly responsible for the seven turnovers the Irish made. But the referees started off by giving Houston the wind and Golic finally won the argument that Notre Dame should have it.

Cotton795.jpg


The Irish jumped on the Cougars quickly on this coldest day in Cotton Bowl history. Montana scored on a 3-yard run and freshman Pete Buchanan charged across from a yard away for a 12-0 lead. But a freak play on a punt gave Houston its first touchdown on a disputed call. Officials ruled the punt had hit Dave Waymer of Notre Dame and Brown recovered at the Irish 12. After being pushed back, Houston quarterback Danny Davis completed a 15-yard touchdown pass play to Willis Adams.

Notre Dame came unraveled in the cold at that point. A fumble set up Randy Love's 1-yard touchdown run to put Houston ahead 14-12 with 6:27 left in the first half and two interceptions set up Kenny Hatfield field goals of 21 and 34 yards. The Cougars scored two quick touchdowns in the third period on runs of 2 and 5 yards by the elusive Davis, a senior from Dallas who had never lost a game in this stadium. The final Houston touchdown came after Bobby Harrison blocked a Notre Dame punt.

About this time, many of the estimated 32,500 fans who braved traveler's advisories after Dallas' worst ice storm in 30 years, began leaving. Montana, who was sick at halftime, came back into the game when- on the Houston bench- the players were congratulating Davis for his fine game and backup quarterback Delric Brown was playing.

Notre Dame center Dave Huffman said: "They told us Joe was not coming back and we thought it was over. But we learned over the last four years that it's never over. We were terrible for three quarters, but the last 7 minutes we played football like we know how."

Devin said of Montana: "What makes him the leader he is: Well, you saw it today."

Davis said of the Houston gamble which backfired, "I didn't have second thoughts about going for it. I felt like the law of averages just caught up with us."

The Irish overcame a 24-6 deficit in their final regular season game against Southern Cal, only to lose 27-25 on a last-second field goal.

Cotton792.jpg


Before the Cotton Bowl, Devine had said: "We would have hated for the season to have ended with a game like that."

Now the season has ended successfully for the 10th-ranked Fighting Irish. The ninth-ranked Cougars have to live with that until next fall.

------------------------------------------------------------
1979 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS
------------------------------------------------------------

The Alabama Crimson Tide bring home a national title with a perfect 12-0 season. The title was Alabama's 11th claimed, though the number is disputed. It was their 6th Associated Press awarded title.


This was an extremely dominant Alabama team, only giving up 67 points the entire season and shutting out five opponents. The team won a tight game against LSU 3-0 and beat Auburn by a touchdown before beating Arkansas 24-9 in the Sugar Bowl.

There was very little movement at the top of the rankings throughout the season, as only three different teams held the top spot in the AP poll and only two in the UPI poll. USC was the pre-season top-ranked team, and held the number one ranking until a 21–21 tie with Stanford, a game USC led at halftime 21–0. A fumbled hold on the snap from center cost the Trojans a chance at a last-second field goal. Stanford was led by quarterback Turk Schonert, while freshman John Elway served as his backup.

USC ended up finishing second in the country, but running back Charles White brought home the Heisman Trophy.

th


Number 2 Alabama then took over the top spot and never relinquished that position in the UPI poll. In the AP poll, however, Ohio State took over the top spot in the last regular season poll of the season. Ohio State had defeated #13 Michigan in Ann Arbor by a score of 18–15 to earn the Big 10 title. Two weeks later, Alabama defeated #14 Auburn 25-18 in Birmingham, but the AP voters saw fit to jump Ohio State ahead of them.

Thus, Ohio State came within one point of a national title under first-year coach Earle Bruce, who replaced coach Woody Hayes, falling to USC 17–16 in the Rose Bowl after an undefeated season.

HEISMAN VOTING


  1. Charles White, Southern California TB
  2. Billy Sims, Oklahoma HB
  3. Marc Wilson, Brigham Young QB
  4. Art Schlichter, Ohio State QB
  5. Vagas Ferguson, Notre Dame TB

OTHER AWARDS


BOWL GAMES
[TABLE="class: wikitable"]
<tbody>[TR]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Rose Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#3 USC[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]#1 Ohio State[/TD]
[TD]16[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Sugar Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#2 Alabama[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]#6 Arkansas[/TD]
[TD]9[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Orange Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#5 Oklahoma[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]#4 Florida State[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Cotton Bowl Classic[/TD]
[TD]#8 Houston[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]#7 Nebraska[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Bluebonnet Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#12 Purdue[/TD]
[TD]27[/TD]
[TD]Tennessee[/TD]
[TD]22[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Peach Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#19 Baylor[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]#18 Clemson[/TD]
[TD]18[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Hall of Fame Classic[/TD]
[TD]Missouri[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[TD]#16 South Carolina[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Gator Bowl[/TD]
[TD]North Carolina[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]#14 Michigan[/TD]
[TD]15[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Fiesta Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#10 Pittsburgh[/TD]
[TD]16[/TD]
[TD]Arizona[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Sun Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#13 Washington[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[TD]#11 Texas[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Liberty Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Penn State[/TD]
[TD]9[/TD]
[TD]#15 Tulane[/TD]
[TD]6[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Tangerine Bowl[/TD]
[TD]LSU[/TD]
[TD]34[/TD]
[TD]Wake Forest[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Holiday Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Indiana[/TD]
[TD]38[/TD]
[TD]#9 Brigham Young[/TD]
[TD]37[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Garden State Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#20 Temple[/TD]
[TD]28[/TD]
[TD]California[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Independence Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Syracuse[/TD]
[TD]31[/TD]
[TD]McNeese State[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[/TR]
</tbody>[/TABLE]


1980 ROSE BOWL: Southern Cal 17, Ohio State 16

[video=youtube_share;oGxaa6-SgIo]http://youtu.be/oGxaa6-SgIo[/video]
 
Daily Blog •June 11, 2013
Blog Archives
Today’s blog continues my in-depth look at my New and Improved Experience Chart. For 7 years, I had listed an experience chart, which broke down the number of seniors, juniors, sophomores and freshmen each team had in the two deep and rated the teams experience level with a formula I devised. In 2009, I made the experience chart FIVE TIMES better.


Today I will look at the returning letterman/lost percentages.


Last year I went back and looked at percentages of lettermen returning and lost. Using percentages is more reliable than the amount of returning or lost lettermen because schools give out letters in different manners. Some schools hand out a lot of letters and others far fewer. Getting a letter at Syracuse under Paul Pasqualoni was tough, as he handed out just 38 total letters in 2004 and 40 in 2003. This year, the low’s were Connecticut under Pasqualoni with 45 while North Texas, Old Dominion and Nevada all had 51. Nebraska in 2001 handed out 82 letters or over double what Syracuse was giving out. It was also the most given out by any school in the previous 6 years. In 2007, Ohio broke all records with an amazing 91 letters given out while Hawaii had 90! Last year, Utah was number one with 84 total letters given out while Mississippi was #2 with 83.


% of Letterman Returning and Lost





RANK
TEAM RETURN LOST TOTAL LETTERMAN
1
Rice ---54----- 9 63 %85.71%
2
UTSA-----51 9 60 85.00%
3
Wisconsin 52 10 62 83.87%
4
Louisville 53 11 64 82.81%
5
Marshall 57 12 69 82.61%
6
Colorado 61 13 74 82.43%
7
ULM 45 10 55 81.82%
8
Texas 53 12 65 81.54%
9
Michigan St 52 13 65 80.00%
10
Florida Atlantic 54 14 68 79.41%
11
Temple 53 14 67 79.10%
12
Georgia Tech 55 15 70 78.57%
13
Washington 58 16 74 78.38%
14
South Alabama 43 12 55 78.18%
15
Bowling Green 50 14 64 78.13%
16
Louisiana 56 16 72 77.78%
17
Clemson 55 16 71 77.46%
18
Georgia St 50 15 65 76.92%
19
Northern Illinois 55 17 72 76.39%
20
Akron 45 14 59 76.27%
21
Buffalo 54 17 71 76.06%
22
Kentucky 57 18 75 76.00%
23
Oregon St 60 19 79 75.95%
24
Virginia Tech 50 16 66 75.76%
25
Stanford 59 19 78 75.64%
26
Utah St 49 16 65 75.38%
27
Tulane 51 17 68 75.00%
27
Tulsa 42 14 56 75.00%
27
WKU 39 13 52 75.00%
30
Indiana 53 18 71 74.65%
31
East Carolina 50 17 67 74.63%
31
UAB 50 17 67 74.63%
33
Auburn 44 15 59 74.58%
34
North Texas 38 13 51 74.51%
35
Minnesota 55 19 74 74.32%
36
Tennessee 46 16 62 74.19%
37
Texas St 54 19 73 73.97%
38
Arizona 51 18 69 73.91%
39
Texas Tech 53 19 72 73.61%
40
Connecticut 33 12 45 73.33%
41
Army 60 22 82 73.17%
42
Washington St 43 16 59 72.88%
43
Central Michigan 51 19 70 72.86%
44
Colorado St 45 17 62 72.58%
45
Oregon 52 20 72 72.22%
46
Middle Tennessee 46 18 64 71.88%
47
San Diego St 50 20 70 71.43%
48
Mississippi 59 24 83 71.08%
49
Northwestern 54 22 76 71.05%
50
Boston College 39 16 55 70.91%
51
Miami, Fl 53 22 75 70.67%
52
New Mexico 48 20 68 70.59%
52
Old Dominion 36 15 51 70.59%
54
Vanderbilt 43 18 61 70.49%
55
USC 57 24 81 70.37%
56
San Jose St 45 19 64 70.31%
56
UNLV 45 19 64 70.31%
58
Arkansas St 52 22 74 70.27%
59
UCLA 51 22 73 69.86%
60
Duke 46 20 66 69.70%
60
Memphis 46 20 66 69.70%
62
Wyoming 39 17 56 69.64%
63
Arizona St 55 24 79 69.62%
64
Toledo 41 18 59 69.49%
65
California 52 23 75 69.33%
66
Boise St 47 21 68 69.12%
67
Notre Dame 38 17 55 69.09%
68
Southern Miss 49 22 71 69.01%
68
Ohio 49 22 71 69.01%
70
Syracuse 40 18 58 68.97%
71
Ohio St 51 23 74 68.92%
72
NC State 44 20 64 68.75%
73
Purdue 48 22 70 68.57%
73
Alabama 48 22 70 68.57%
75
Air Force 50 23 73 68.49%
76
Kent St 41 19 60 68.33%
77
Virginia 42 20 62 67.74%
78
Wake Forest 46 22 68 67.65%
79
Troy 50 24 74 67.57%
80
Miami, Oh 52 25 77 67.53%
81
Missouri 39 19 58 67.24%
81
North Carolina 39 19 58 67.24%
83
Cincinnati 43 21 64 67.19%
84
Oklahoma 45 22 67 67.16%
85
Oklahoma St 47 23 70 67.14%
86
Texas A&M 49 24 73 67.12%
86
Georgia 49 24 73 67.12%
88
Michigan 48 24 72 66.67%
88
Florida St 48 24 72 66.67%
88
Rutgers 42 21 63 66.67%
88
Eastern Michigan 42 21 63 66.67%
88
Western Michigan 36 18 54 66.67%
88
Nevada 34 17 51 66.67%
94
Pittsburgh 43 22 65 66.15%
95
Fresno St 35 18 53 66.04%
96
FIU 48 25 73 65.75%
97
Arkansas 49 26 75 65.33%
98
Baylor 47 25 72 65.28%
99
Iowa 39 21 60 65.00%
100
Maryland 37 20 57 64.91%
101
BYU 46 25 71 64.79%
102
Mississippi St 43 24 67 64.18%
103
Florida 41 23 64 64.06%
104
New Mexico St 37 21 58 63.79%
105
UTEP 42 24 66 63.64%
106
TCU 43 25 68 63.24%
106
USF 43 25 68 63.24%
108
SMU 34 20 54 62.96%
109
West Virginia 36 22 58 62.07%
110
Ball State 39 24 63 61.90%
111
Navy 43 27 70 61.43%
112
Kansas St 42 27 69 60.87%
113
Houston 43 28 71 60.56%
114
Massachusetts 45 30 75 60.00%
114
South Carolina 36 24 60 60.00%
114
Idaho 36 24 60 60.00%
117
LSU 37 25 62 59.68%
118
Utah 50 34 84 59.52%
119
Hawaii 44 30 74 59.46%
120
Iowa St 40 28 68 58.82%
121
UCF 31 22 53 58.49%
122
Illinois 33 24 57 57.89%
123
Nebraska 43 32 75 57.33%
124
Kansas 35 27 62 56.45%
125
Penn St 38 32 70 54.29%
126
Louisiana Tech 32 31 63 50.79%

(ill try to make this easier to read when I get off work)
 
8- okst


In '06 and '07 OSt barely qualified for bowls at 6-6 but recorded B2B bowl wins for the 1st time s/'87. In '08 they were 9-4 and #16 (best s/'03). When they knocked off Georgia in '09, OSt entered the Top 5 for the 1st times/'85. Dez Bryant was lost after 3 sts while a banged up RB Hunter had just 3 sts. With a Fiesta Bowl bid on the line vs rival OU, OSt was outgained 367-109 and finished 9-4 (NR). In '10 they were one of the FBS's most inexp'd tms (8 ret sts, 42% lett ret). OSt was picked 5th by the B12 media but the offense emerged under new OC Holgorsen. In the bowl they beat Ariz and finished #13. In '11 they had to replace Holgorsen and RB Hunter from an offense which avg 44.2 ppg but ret'd Weeden and Blackmon. OSt nearly played in the Nat'l Title with a loss on a Thurs night at Iowa St in 2OT costing them that berth. OSt beat #4 Stan and finished #3. LY they had just 12 ret sts (2nd fewest B12) and lost Weeden and Blackmon. They were +21 in TO's in '11 and had 2 net close wins. They had to start 3 diff QB's due to injury. After an 84-0 blowout win over Sav St, they were trading points with Ariz but Lunt threw 3 int and Ariz won by 21. Lunt was inj'd on the first poss vs UL but Walsh threw for 347 (led 58-10 4Q). Texas got a controversial td with :29 left and despite a 576-440 yd edge OSt lost at home. In the rain they led KU 20-0 in the 4Q but only won by 6. They blew out ISt & TCU. Despite K-St's QB Collin Klein missing most of the 2H,OSt trailed 38-17 and lost on the road.They took on their old OC Dana Holgorsen and destroyed WV 55-34 in QB Chelf's first start. They beat TT by 38. They then led Okla the majority of the game despite being outgained 618-490 but the Sooners got a td with :13 left 1H and another with :04 to force OT and OSt lost by 3. In their 2nd str AG they lost by 7 to Baylor. OSt finished tied for 3rd in the B12 but was the 8th pick by the bowls. They were a huge fav vs Purdue and won 58-14 finishing 8-5 (NR). TY OSt has 15 ret sts and they were +47.6 ypg in the B12(3rdbest).The Stock Market Indicator is bullish (+3.5). They had 2 net close losses and 2 net upsets. Two of my 9 sets of power ratings call for an unbeaten year and the other 7 all call for 11 wins making OSt one of my Surprise Teams and a Darkhorse National Title contender.
 
TheGarfather said:
9 plays in the fold.Washington -11 vs Illinois (Chicago). I anticipate small line value here and I like the matchup. If I lose this one its most likely because I over-reacted to how awful the Illini were last last season, and the travel isn’t great, rather than because Washington isn’t good. Illinois off the Cincy game which will be interesting and could be physical. Washington has a bye week after Boise so they will have time to refocus and settle down whether they win or lose, and there is no look-ahead as they play an FCS team.

USF +16 @ MSU. Straight variance play. Tough to say how much value this one will get – if any – but I love the matchup and it was a full touchdown above my and PStone’s projections. MSU may only score 21-24.

ASU -1 vs Wisc. Missed the PK. I see the line is up to 3, which is probably a better number. It may yet close higher but it won’t be much higher, certainly not above a touchdown. I am on record as liking the Gary Anderson hire, but not quite yet. Todd Graham basically did what Anderson will do he is just a year further along in the evolution. Wiscy with Purdue on deck, but its mitigated by ASU travelling to Stanford. Not a great situational spot for either team.

Wisc/Ohio State OVER 45. Just too low. Take a look at Urban Meyer’s teams offensive improvement from year 1 to year 2. BGSU, Utah, Florida, everywhere. They will be unstoppable this year, and I would think they will be ready to go after getting warmed up on Buffalo, SDSU, Cal, and Florida A&M with this game in advance of a tricky spot @ NW. If I can just get Wisconsin to not get shutout completely. Ohio State’s defense left something to be desired last year and now they are swapping out almost an entirely new front 7 with inexperienced (albeit) sophomores and juniors everywhere. Have to rate Wiscy to find the end zone a couple times.

Washington -5 vs Arizona. Not a great spot with Stanford on deck and Arizona getting a bye before and after, but apart from that its full speed ahead. Huskies will be a significantly better team than Arizona at this point in the season. Their defense improved quite a bit last year and brings back the important parts. Price won’t turn it over nearly as much this year either fumbles or picks in large part because the OL won’t allow 38 sacks again. Arizona has no pass rush, 10 sacks in 2011 and 16 last year is absolutely pathetic. They haven’t stopped the run in a few years either. I significantly discount the result from last year’s game as Washington was in the midst of a stretch featuring Stanford, Oregon, USC, and Oregon State. It was just a bad spot that got away from them, it wasn’t because Zona was really any better. I think this one gets ugly and I think I have value.

Georgia -12 @ Tennessee. You can have Manziel and A&M’s offense, I will take Murray and Georgia. They were the best last year nationally in ypp which will translate nicely as 9 starters are back on that side of the ball. I probably should care that Georgia lost so much on defense but I don’t because they underachieved as it was and won’t do any worse than the 44 they allowed to Tennessee last year. Vols should have a nice OL, but Butch Jones is going to be doing some different things than they are used to and I would expect it show. Spot isn’t great or terrible for either team. I think I have value.

Nebraska -6 vs UCLA. This is the one ticket I have that I’m not real sure I made a good value decision on. I like the matchup. UCLA loses a ton on defense so the Huskers will score almost a million points. Neither team has anything resembling a potential loss leading up to this game so I can’t say the line won’t still be below a touchdown the week of the game, but it has to be played. UCLA’s talent is still really young for the most part, especially on the stop unit and they will get exposed here. I love the play, but probably didn’t need to make it quite yet.

Texas -1 vs Oklahoma. Variance play. I am way down on OU and pretty high on Texas. I’m not one for hyperbole (when I make outlandish statements its usually for my own amusement) so you can believe me when I say that Mack Brown should be fired if they lose this one. If they can’t beat em this year, then when? Only likely loss leading up to this game by either team is Oklahoma @ Notre Dame. I don’t see anyway this line can move back toward the Sooners between now and kickoff.

Minnesota +8 vs Penn St. This is another variance play that is even more speculative in nature. I hadn’t planned on getting involved in any late season stuff, but this figures to be a bad number. For one thing, I think Tony Miller and Co over-rated PSU and may have under-rated Minnesota in a couple spots. PSU makes this roadie surrounded by hosting Illinois and Purdue. Minnesota comes back home after a trip to Indy and then gets a week off before facing Wiscy and MSU. As hard as I was on McGloin last year, I have to think they will miss him. He played well.
Click to expand...

Good lookin out. I'm way behind, Steele needs to drop ASAP.
 
78 days to go ...

Heisman hardware: There have been 78 Heisman Trophys awarded since Jay Berwanger won the first in 1935. There have been 77 different winners with Archie Griffin the only repeat winner.

th


The Heisman Memorial Trophy is awarded to an individual designated as the outstanding college football player in the United States. The Heisman Trophy is a national symbol of collegiate football experience and competitiveness. At the same time, it has become the single most celebrated and sought-after award in American collegiate athletics.


Named in memory of a man whose inventiveness and contribution to football strategy is without compare, the Heisman Trophy has become more than an award of sculptured statuary. Indeed, it is an end in itself for college football players to become the next member of the elite fraternity of Heisman Trophy winners.

Known initially as the DAC Trophy, it was first presented to Jay Berwagner, the legendary "one man gang" from the University of Chicago on December 9, 1935, the bronze statue award depicts a football player side-stepping and straight-arming a tackler.

th


The idea of an award to the most outstanding college football player was originally conceived by members of the Downtown Athletic Club, formerly located in the southern end of Manhattan. Renowned for its devotion to sports, members of the Downtown Athletic Club appointed a Club Trophy Committee charged with conducting the first award presentation at the conclusion of the 1935 football season.


First, the trophy itself - what should be its style, size and design? The traditional cup or bowl seemed too commonplace, lacked distinction and was in no way emblematic of the athletic talent to be honored and immortalized. The Club Trophy Committee decided, after deliberation, that the trophy should be the replica in bronze of a muscular footballer driving for yardage.


To create this trophy, a well-known sculptor and National Academy Prize Winner, Frank Eliscu, was engaged. He set to work at once selecting Ed Smith, a leading player on the 1934 New York University football team, as his model. In due course, Eliscu prepared a rough clay model. It was approved by the DAC Committee and sent uptown to Jim Crowley (one of the legendary Four Horseman of Notre Dame), then Head Football Coach at Fordham, for his inspection. He showed the replica to his players who took various positions on the field to illustrate and verify the side step, the forward drive and the strong arm thrust of the right arm. Sculptor Eliscu closely observed these action sequences and modified his clay prototype to correspond. The result was a truly lifelike simulation of player action. It was then converted into a plaster cast, a step preliminary to ultimate production in bronze.


The final inspection of the cast was made after a dinner at the McAlpin Hotel on November 16, 1935, attended by Coach Elmer Layden and the entire Notre Dame football team (they had just played a memorable 6-6 tie with Army before 78,114 fans). The members of the Fighting Irish squad were impressed by the animation and fidelity of Eliscu's model - especially Wally Fromhart, Don Elser and Wayne Millner. The 1935 Notre Dame team thus put its seal of approval on this new trophy.

Now it was ready for its final stage, bronze casting, after being refined by a diversity of intercollegiate contributions; the live model from New York University, the Fordham team which brought reality to the prototype, the men from Notre Dame who endorsed it, and two of the "Four Horseman" who gave it their personal blessing. The trophy was, indeed, an almost classic sculpture, an artistic as well as athletic triumph.

th



The finished product, cast in statuary bronze, faithfully depicts a skilled and sinewed football player, sidestepping, and straight arming his way downfield to a mythical touchdown! Cast in a highly artistic method known as the lost wax process of bronze medal molding, the statue weighs 45 pounds, is 14 inches long, 13½ inches in height and 6½ inches in width.

The first award of the DAC Trophy was made on December 9, 1935 to Jay Berwanger, a triple threat cyclone in Chicago's backfield. In 23 games (1933-1935) Berwanger gained more than a mile from scrimmage.


Following John W. Heisman's death in 1936, the DAC Trophy was renamed the Heisman Memorial Trophy as a fitting tribute to the memory of the distinguished American athlete and inventive football genius. In 1968, the Heisman Trophy Committee voted to award two trophies each year - one is presented to the college football player selected for excellence, while a second trophy is awarded to the school represented by the winner.


The college player selected for the award is flown to New York City along with school officials for the formal presentation ceremonies and special honors.

th


th


----------------------------------------------------

1978 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS


The 1978 NCAA Division I-A football season was the first season of Division I-A football; Division I-A was created in 1978 from the splitting of Division I for football only.

The season came down to a rare #1 vs. #2 post-season meeting as #1 Penn State and #2 Alabama met in the New Year's Day Sugar Bowl. The game is most remembered for Alabama's goal line stand with four minutes left in the game. On fourth down and a foot, Alabama managed to keep Penn State out of the end zone and went on to win 14-7. Keith Jackson, who did the play by play for ABC, called it the greatest game he'd ever seen. 76,824 people packed the Louisiana Superdome, which was tremendously loud.


Alabama's only loss that year was 24-14 in Birmingham to Southern California. Both schools claim this year as a national title year. Alabama claimed the national title because it defeated top-ranked Penn State on the field. USC claimed the title because it defeated Alabama in the regular season and also finished with only one loss.

The AP Poll and most other voting outlets crowned Alabama as national champion, while the UPI coaches' poll selected USC.

This was the first year of the Pacific-10 Conference, as the Pac-8 added Arizona schools the University of Arizona and Arizona State University.

HEISMAN VOTING

  1. Billy Sims, Oklahoma HB
  2. Chuck Fusina, Penn State QB
  3. Rick Leach, Michigan QB
  4. Charles White, Southern California TB
  5. Charles Alexander, LSU TB

MAJOR AWARDS




October 14 was a day of surprises. #1 Oklahoma escaped with a 17-16 win over Kansas, #2 USC lost to Arizona State in Tempe 20-7, and #5 Michigan lost to Michigan State, 24-15. #3 Penn State and #4 Arkansas escaped the madness by being idle. Alabama rejoined the top 5 by beating Florida 23-12, and Nebraska cracked the top 5 by beating Kansas State 48-14. 1. Oklahoma, 2. Penn State, 3. Arkansas, 4. Alabama, 5. Nebraska


October 21 saw more upheaval in the rankings as #3 Arkansas lost to #8 Texas 28-21. #1 Oklahoma beat Iowa State 34-6, #2 Penn State won over Syracuse 45-14, #4 Alabama beat Tennessee 30-13, and #5 Nebraska won at Colorado 52-14. Maryland jumped into the top 5 with a 39-0 win over Wake Forest. New poll: 1. Oklahoma 2. Penn State 3. Alabama 4. Nebraska 5. Maryland


November 11 saw #1 Oklahoma lose to #4 Nebraska 17-14 in the game that decided the Big Eight title. #2 Penn State climed the top spot with a 19-10 win over N.C. State. #3 Alabama rolled along with a 31-10 win at #10 LSU. #5 USC beat #19 Washington 28-10. The new poll was 1. Penn State 2. Nebraska 3. Alabama 4. Oklahoma 5. USC.


On November 18, #1 Penn State was idle while #2 Nebraska was knocked off at home by Missouri 35-31 and fell to 7th. #3 Alabama was also idle, and #4 Oklahoma won its final game over Oklahoma State 62-7. In the showdown to decide the Pac-10 title and Rose Bowl berth, #5 USC stopped #14 UCLA by a score of 17-10. Houston, who had beaten #6 Texas the week before to clinch the SWC title and Cotton Bowl berth, moved up to #5. New poll: 1. Penn State 2. Alabama 3. USC 4. Oklahoma 5. Houston


On November 24, #1 Penn State wrapped up its undefeated regular season with a 17-10 over #15 rival Pittsburgh. #2 Alabama had one more week off before its game with rival Auburn. #3 USC needed a controversial call (an apparent fumble was ruled an incomplete pass thus keeping the final drive alive) and last second field goal to beat #8 Notre Dame 27-25. #5 Houston was upset by Texas Tech 22-21. #6 Michigan clinched the Rose Bowl berth with a 14-3 win over rival Ohio State.

On December 2, #2 Alabama finished its season with a win in the Iron Bowl rivalry game over Auburn, 34-16. Thus, the final regular season top 5 was: 1. Penn State 2. Alabama 3. USC 4. Oklahoma 5. Michigan.

Top ranked Penn State, as an independent, was not tied to any bowl game so the Nittany Lions accepted the Sugar Bowl invitation where they would meet SEC Champion Alabama, who was ranked 2nd in the AP and 3rd in the UPI.

Pac-10 champion USC (ranked 3rd in the AP and 2nd in the UPI) faced #5 Michigan in the Rose Bowl in a battle of one loss teams.

Nebraska had upset Oklahoma to earn the Big 8 title and automatic Orange Bowl berth; the Orange Bowl pulled a surprise by inviting the Sooners to play Nebraska in a rematch. Most observers felt Clemson would be invited and Oklahoma would play Houston in the Cotton Bowl Classic.

The Cotton Bowl Classic bid went to Notre Dame and Clemson had to settle for the Gator Bowl despite a better record and higher ranking than Notre Dame.

BOWL RESULTS

[TABLE="class: wikitable"]
<tbody>[TR]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"]NEW YEARS DAY BOWLS[/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Cotton Bowl Classic[/TD]
[TD]#10 Notre Dame[/TD]
[TD]35[/TD]
[TD]#9 Houston[/TD]
[TD]34[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Sugar Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#2 Alabama[/TD]
[TD]14[/TD]
[TD]#1 Penn State[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Rose Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#3 USC[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]#5 Michigan[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Orange Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#4 Oklahoma[/TD]
[TD]31[/TD]
[TD]#6 Nebraska[/TD]
[TD]24[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"]OTHER BOWLS[/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[TH="bgcolor: #F2F2F2, align: center"][/TH]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Gator Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#7 Clemson[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[TD]#20 Ohio State[/TD]
[TD]15[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Fiesta Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#8 Arkansas[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[TD]#15 UCLA[/TD]
[TD]10[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Bluebonnet Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Stanford[/TD]
[TD]25[/TD]
[TD]#11 Georgia[/TD]
[TD]22[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Peach Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#17 Purdue[/TD]
[TD]41[/TD]
[TD]Georgia Tech[/TD]
[TD]21[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Sun Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#14 Texas[/TD]
[TD]42[/TD]
[TD]#13 Maryland[/TD]
[TD]0[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Tangerine Bowl[/TD]
[TD]North Carolina St.[/TD]
[TD]30[/TD]
[TD]#16 Pittsburgh[/TD]
[TD]17[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Liberty Bowl[/TD]
[TD]#18 Missouri[/TD]
[TD]20[/TD]
[TD]LSU[/TD]
[TD]15[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Holiday Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Navy[/TD]
[TD]23[/TD]
[TD]Brigham Young[/TD]
[TD]16[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Hall of Fame Classic[/TD]
[TD]Texas A&M[/TD]
[TD]28[/TD]
[TD]#19 Iowa State[/TD]
[TD]12[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Independence Bowl[/TD]
[TD]East Carolina[/TD]
[TD]35[/TD]
[TD]Louisiana Tech[/TD]
[TD]13[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]Garden State Bowl[/TD]
[TD]Arizona State[/TD]
[TD]34[/TD]
[TD]Rutgers[/TD]
[TD]18[/TD]
[/TR]
</tbody>[/TABLE]


1978 GATOR BOWL: Clemson 17, Ohio State 15

The Clemson team of 1978 was notable for many reasons, not the least of which was a 17-15 victory over Ohio State in the Gator Bowl. The '78 team won 11 games (eight by convincing margins), had the nation's longest winning streak after the bowl game and changed head coaches 19 days before the Gator Bowl

The first quarter of new Clemson coach Danny Ford's first game was scoreless, although Ohio State had been stopped at the Clemson one-yard line on a fourth-down play. The second quarter was unusual in that there were four possessions in the stanza and each team scored twice. Ohio State drove to the Clemson nine on the passing of Art Schlichter, but the Buckeyes had to settle for Bob Atha's 27-yard field goal.

Clemson quarterback Steve Fuller engineered an impressive 80-yard, 15-play drive after the kickoff. Staying mostly on the ground, Fuller himself ran around left end from four yards out to give Clemson the lead. Obed Ariri's point after made the score 7-3.

Schlichter duplicated Fuller's feat nine plays later, but Clemson right end Steve Gibbs blocked Vlade Janakiewski's extra point try, leaving Ohio State in the lead, 9-7. Clemson got the ball back with 1:15 remaining in the quarter and Fuller passed his way to the Buckeye 30. With only five seconds left, Ariri hit a 47-yard field goal that gave the Tigers a 10-9 lead at halftime.

Clemson scored the only points of the third quarter as the running combination of Fuller, Marvin Sims, and Warren Ratchford grounded out 83 yards in 18 plays. Cliff Austin went the final yard for the score, and Ariri's conversion gave Clemson a 17-9 cushion.

With 8:11 left in the game, Schlichter scored his second touchdown to bring Ohio State within two points. Jim Stuckey tackled Schlichter on a sweep to prevent the two-point play, and Clemson still led at 17-15.

Ohio State mounted one final drive. Faced with third-and-five at the Clemson 24, an interception by second-team middle guard Charlie Bauman (the only theft of his four-year career) killed the drive. Bauman was run out-of-bounds on the Ohio State sideline, and Buckeye coach Woody Hayes swung at the Clemson player. Consecutive unsportsmanlike conduct penalties gave Clemson excellent field position, and Fuller was able to run out the clock, giving Clemson its first win over a Big Ten team.

21794509.jpg

This photo, shot from a monitor at the ABC studios in Washington, shows Ohio State coach Woody Hayes slugging Clemson's Charlie Bauman (58) on the sideline at the Gator Bowl in 1978.

Woody Hayes made the worst mistake of his legendary career: The 65-year-old Ohio State coach slugged an opposing player. Bo Schembechler, then Michigan's head coach and a former Ohio State assistant, was attending the Big Ten dinner of champions in Southern California. "I was in the Rose Bowl that year," he said Sunday. "I was sitting at the head table and (Big Ten Commissioner) Wayne Duke came up and said Woody had just hit a Clemson player. And I knew then, I said, "Geez, it's over. The morning after the 17-15 defeat, Hayes was fired. He never coached again. He also never apologized to Bauman for hitting him.

21794458.jpg

Woody Hayes grabs the face mask of Ohio State player Ken Fritz, who was attempting to restrain the coach after Hayes punched Clemson defensive player Charlie Bauman following his interception during the 34th Gator Bowl on Dec. 29, 1978.


[video=youtube_share;HmoIjMr1BZs]http://youtu.be/HmoIjMr1BZs[/video]
 
7- Louisville


When former HC Howard Schnellenberger ('85-'94) got UL's program turned around he said the Cardinals were on a collision course for the Nat'l Title.The '06 season was probably that year despite their star RB being OFY Wk1 and QB Brian Brohm missing 2 gms. They blew a 25-7 lead vs Rut or they would have played in the Nat'l Title game.Then-HCBobbyPetrinoleftfortheNFL and the next 3 yrs UL failed to have a winning record under Steve Kragthorpe.Kragthorpe was let go after a 4-8 '09 ssn(-104ypg BE). Strong had just 12 ret st'rs in '10 and UL was picked last in the BE but he got them to their first bowl in 4 yrs. They tied TCU with 27 Sr's (2nd FBS) but did play 9 true frosh. UL also added an upper deck and new suites to its stadium(cap 42 to 55,000). They beat SM in the bowl to finish 7-6. In '11 they had 10 ret st'rs (fewest BE).UL actually had a shot at the BE Title if Cincy had lost their finale but UL was relegated to the Belk Bowl in NCSt's backyard and finished an identical 7-6. LY Bridgewater was back and expectations were high despite just 9 Sr's. UL was ranked in Aug (#25) for the first time s/'07. The Cardinals destroyed UK on a Sun and after whipping Mizz St, jumped out to a 36-7 lead vs NC. At the end, NC's pass into the EZ was incomplete and they hung on for a 5 pt win. UL trailed FIU 14-7 in heavy rain but won. Playing in a heavy rain again at SMiss they trailed 17-6 but rallied for a win.They then trailed Pitt 21-14 but the D got a SOD near midfield with :51 left in the half and UL got a 45 yd fg to gain momentum and won by 10. UL trailed USF 25-21 and got a td with 1:35 left to remain unbeaten.They trailed UC 24-14 but rallied for a 34-31 win in OT.They were 1 of 6 unbeaten teams in the country and waxed Temple 45-17. UL was ambushed at Syr by 19 for their first loss and with a potential BE Champ game on deck, Bridgewater hurt his wrist in the 3Q vs Conn. He did return and they forced OT but lost in 3OT. Bridgewater didn't start vs Rut on the road (trailed 14-3) but his heroic effort got them the BE Title and a trip to the Orange Bowl.While Florida clearly did not play its "A" game, UL did have a 23-17 FD edge and cruised to a 33-10 lead. TY UL has 16 ret st'rs and figure to be in the AP Top 10 in Aug.There are some indicators pointing down as they were +11 in TO's, have a Stock Market Indicator of -4.0 and had 5 net close wins. However, when you look at the talent and the sked, they figure to be favored in every game. UL was+83 ypg in BE play(#1BE)and 5 of my 9 sets of PR's calls for them to go unbeaten.
 
% of Offensive Yards Returning

Team ---% of Yards Returning Team---- % of Yards Returning
#1 Buffalo 98.8 ----------#64 -Eastern Michigan 69.4
#2 Indiana 98 ----------#65 ---South Carolina 68.4
#3 Washington 97.4-----#66 ----Kansas 68
#4 Boston College 96.4 ----#67 UCLA 67.9
#5 Ohio St 95.3 ----------#68 -Western Michigan 67.7
#6 Northwestern 92.9 ----#69 Clemson 67.2
#7 Illinois 92.7 ----------#70 --Navy 67.1
#8 Texas 92.3 ----------#71 --Temple 66.6
#9 Ball St 92.3 ----------#72 --Virginia Tech 66.4
#10 Bowling Green 91.6 ----#73 SMU 65.6
#11 UTSA 91 ----------------#74 Massachusetts 65.6
#12 Wyoming 90.8 ----------#75 Notre Dame 63.8
#13 Ohio 89.3 ----------------#76 UTEP 63.4
#14 Toledo 88.7 ----------#77 --Kent St 63.4
#15 Mississippi 87.8 ----------#78 Troy 62
#16 UNLV 87.7 ----------------#79 Virginia 61.7
#17 Tulsa 86.6 ----------------#80 Rutgers 61.5
#18 Memphis 86.4 ----------#81 Cincinnati 61.3
#19 Georgia 85.7 ----------#83 -Georgia Tech 60.4
#20 Old Dominion 85.2 ----#82 BYU 60.4
#21 Wake Forest 84.9 ----#84 -Auburn 60
#22 Houston 84.7 ----------#86 San Jose St 59.9
#23 Miami, Fl 84.1 ----------#85 Army 59.9
#24 Rice 84 ----------------#87 -Tulane 59.2
#25 New Mexico St 83.9 ----#88 Minnesota 58.4
#26 Washington St 83.9 ----#89 WKU 58.1
#27 UAB 83.8 ----------------#90 Utah St 57.2
#28 Marshall 82.9 ----------#91 -Iowa St 56
#29 East Carolina 82.5 ---#92 ---Florida 55.2
#30 Maryland 82.1 ----------#93 Florida Atlantic 54.6
#31 LSU 81.6 ----------------#94 Michigan 54.1
#32 South Alabama 81.4 ---#95 Penn St 53.7
#33 Alabama 81.4 ---------#96 --Utah 53.7
#34 Kentucky 81.1 ---------#97 -Cental Michigan 52
#35 Arizona St 80.9 ---------#98 Akron 51.8
#36 Colorado St 80.5 ---#99 ----San Diego St 50.5
#38 Oregon St 80.4 ---------#100 Arizona 50.2
#37 Colorado 80.4 ---------#101 Southern Miss 49.9
#39 Nebraska 80 ---------#103 --Iowa 48.7
#40 Northern Illinois 79.7 ---#102 Baylor 48.7
#41 Oklahoma St 79.6 ---#104 --Vanderbilt 47.2
#42 North Texas 79.2 ---#105 ---USC 47
#43 Texas A&M 77.8 ---------#106 Duke 46.6
#44 ULM 77 ----------------#107 Arkansas St 46.3
#46 Louisiana 76.7 ----------#108 Florida St 43.5
#45 Louisville 76.7 ----------#109 Oklahoma 42.2
#47 Fresno St 76.4 ----------#110 NC State 41.6
#48 Wisconsin 75.4 ----------#111 Texas St 41.1
#49 Connecticut 75.3 ----#112 ---Miami,Oh 40.9
#50 Hawaii 75.1 ----------#113 --Syracuse 40.3
#51 Boise St 74.9 ----------#114 Texas Tech 39
#52 Georgia St 74.6 ----------#115 Idaho 38.7
#53 North Carolina 74.1 ----#116 USF 36.5
#54 Middle Tennessee73.7 ----#117 Kansas St 35.7
#55 Missouri 73.3 ----------#118 Purdue 33.2
#56 Oregon 73 ----------#119 ---Stanford 30.9
#57 FIU 72.2 -----------------#120 Arkansas 30.5
#58 New Mexico 71.9 -----#121 Louisiana Tech 29.8
#59 UCF 71.5 -----------------#122 Air Force 28.7
#60 TCU 71.4 -----------------#123 California 27.8
#61 Mississippi St 70.9 -----#124 Tennessee 26.1
#62 Michigan St 70.6 -----#125 Pittsburgh 21.9
#63 Nevada 70.2 -----------#126 West Virginia 15.5
 
6- USC

Under Pete Carroll USC became the only tm to finish in the AP Top 4 in each yr from '02-'08.They won a National Title in '04 and nearly again in '05. USC "plummeted" to 9-4 in '09(5-4 P10,-19.4 ypg, 4th worst). This came just one year after they were +233 ypg. USC was my favorite to win the P10 in '10 before being hit hard over the summer by NCAA probation in cla postseason ban for '10 and '11. They were so thin that they cut back on contact in Aug. It seemed to hurt their D, especially early. The Trojans' 5 losses were their most s/'01 (3rd in the P10, 5-4, +46 ypg). In '11 USC had just 12 schlp Sr's (12 ret sts). I picked them to win the P12 South even though they were ineligible for the Title game. The Trojans finished 2 full games ahead of UCLA. It's amazing how perceptions change.At midseason USC was unranked. At that point it would have been far fetched to think of USC as a Top 10 team for '12 but they beat a banged up Col by 25, UW by 23 and then as a 15 pt dog upset Oregon on the road. UCLA was looking ahead to the P12 Title Game and USC clubbed them 50-0. LY USC had 15 ret sts and due to their impressive finish, vaulted to #1 in the AP poll in Aug, despite the fact that they had benefitted from 3 net close wins and still had schlp limitations. USC blew out Haw in the opener and struggled with Syr 42-29. They were then manhandled by Stan (outgained 417-280). USC got expected wins in the next 4 then led Ariz 28-13 but lost by 3. They blew some early opportunities and had 3TO's and would lose to Oreg 62-51.They drew some boos from the home crowd when it was 14-14 vs Ariz St but they won by 21. In the P12 South Title game,UCLA won38-28 knocking the preseason #1 team out of the AP poll while also knocking QB Barkley OFY. With Wittek at the helm, USC was stopped on 4 tries from the ND1 and lost by 9. Then in the cold, windy Sun Bowl lost to ground oriented GT 21-7.USC became the first pressn AP#1 tm to finish NR s/'64 (Miss) and the first ever to lose 6 gms. USC also failed to beat a ranked tm for the first time s/'97. TY things are pointing upward as they are +2.0 in my Stock Market Indicator, had 2 net close losses and -4 net upsets plus have 15 ret sts. For the first time s/'04, USC avoids Oregon although they do play Stanford. They are actually deeper at almost every position, making them better equipped to absorb inj's (unlike LY). Despite their 5-4 P12 record they were +69.7 ypg in conf play(4thbest).USC goes from a disappointing team to a Surprise Team (pg 19).
 
yo thanks for posting these cudder

but HOLY SHIT WHAT IS STEELE SMOKING

sc at 6 and ucla at 31 LMAO WTF. these rankings need to be flipped.

sc won't finish in the top 25 ucla will finish in the top 10. count it.
 
sportjunky said:
yo thanks for posting these cudder

but HOLY SHIT WHAT IS STEELE SMOKING

sc at 6 and ucla at 31 LMAO WTF. these rankings need to be flipped.

sc won't finish in the top 25 ucla will finish in the top 10. count it.
Click to expand...

Agreed that USC is overrated from Steele, no chance they are a top 6 team this year, no fuckin chance
 
Arizona easily leads the way by returning 94.4% of their tackles from last year. The Wildcats return all 11 starters on that side of the ball including all 15 of their top tacklers! It’s safe to assume that they should be one of the most improved defenses in the country after allowing 35 ppg and 499 ypg a year ago. UTSA is #2 with 89% and Rice is #3 with 88.7% as they return 10 starters from last year’s team including their top 8 tacklers.


At the bottom of the chart is Georgia who returns just 34% of their tackles from last year. The Bulldogs only return 3 starters on defense and lose their top 4 tacklers. Kansas St only returns 2 starters on defense this year and return just 34.2% of their tackles.


% of Tackles Returning

Team --------% of Tkls Returning Team % of Tkls Returning
#1 Arizona 94.4 ---------#64 UAB 65
#2 UTSA 89 -------------#65 Wake Forest 65
#3 Rice 88.7 ------------#66 Mississippi St 64.7
#4 Louisville 86.3 -------#67 San Jose St 64.7
#5 Bowling Green 86.2 #68 Texas St 64.6
#7 Georgia Tech 85.4 --#70 Notre Dame 64.4
#6 Massachusetts 85.4 #69 Temple 64.4
#8 Washington St 85 --#71 Oregon St 64.1
#9 San Diego St 84.8 -#72 Florida St 64
#10 TCU 84.8 ----------#73 Clemson 63.8
#11 North Texas 84.2 -#74 Fresno St 63.6
#12 Texas 83.3 --------#75 Old Dominion 63
#13 Michigan St 82.4 -#76 Syracuse 63
#14 Indiana 81.6 -----#77 Navy 63
#15 North Carolina 81 #78 Virginia 62.3
#16 Western Michigan 80.8-#79 Minnesota 61.9
#17 Stanford 80.6 -----#80 Louisiana 61.7
#18 Colorado St 80.4 -- #81 Ohio 61.5
#19 Washington 80.4 --#82 Utah 61.5
#20 Tennessee 80.3 ---#83 Northern Illinois 60.6
#21 Mississippi 78.9 ---#84 California 59.7
#22 WKU 78.9 ---------#85 UCLA 59.5
#23 Miami, Fl 78.6 ----#86 USF 59
#25 Army 78.3 --------#87 Missouri 58.6
#24 Kentucky 78.3 ---#88 Arkansas 58.2
#26 Auburn 77.9 -----#90 Maryland 56.3
#27 Colorado 77.8 ---#89 Ball St 56.3
#28 East Carolina 77.7 #91 Illinois 56.2
#29 Boston College 77.2#92 Houston 55.6
#30 Virginia Tech 76.5 #93 Connecticut 54.7
#31 Pittsburgh 75.8 --#94 SMU 54
#32 Tulane 75.4 ------#95 Ohio St 53.4
#33 ULM 74.8 --------#96 Boise St 53.1
#34 Hawaii 74.6 -----#97 Texas A&M 52.9
#35 Middle Tennessee74 #98 Cincinnati 52.5
#36 Baylor 73.6 -----#99 Kansas 51.3
#37 Oklahoma St 73.1#100 Wyoming 51.2
#38 Buffalo 72.9 ----#101 LSU 50.4
#39 Iowa 72.8 ------#102 Arkansas St 50.1
#40 Oregon 72.5 ----#103 BYU 49.4
#42 West Virginia 71.5 #104 Air Force 48.6
#41 Southern Miss 71.5#105 Tulsa 48.2
#43 New Mexico St 71.3#106 Penn St 48
#44 Purdue 71.1 ------#107 Florida 47.3
#45 Vanderbilt 70.5 --#108 Troy 46.7
#46 Alabama 70.5 ----#110 Iowa St 45.6
#47 Utah St 70.4 -----#109 Eastern Michigan 45.6
#48 Memphis 70.4 ---#111 UCF 44.4
#49 Florida Atlantic70.2 -#112 NC State 44.3
#50 Arizona St 70 ----#113 New Mexico 43.6
#51 Cental Michigan 69.5 #114 Rutgers 42.8
#53 USC 69.3 --------#115 Kent St 42.5
#52 Michigan 69.3 ---#116 South Carolina 41.8
#54 South Alabama 68.8 #117 Toledo 40.6
#55 UNLV 68.5 -------#119 Oklahoma 40
#56 Marshall 67.8 ----#118 Louisiana Tech 40
#57 Miami,Oh 67 -----#120 FIU 39.9
#58 Duke 66.7 --------#121 UTEP 38.3
#59 Georgia St 66.6 --#122 Nevada 37.6
#60 Wisconsin 66.4 ---#123 Idaho 36
#61 Texas Tech 66.1 --#124 Nebraska 34.3
#62 Northwestern 65.8 #125 Kansas St 34.2
#63 Akron 65.1 ---------#126 Georgia 34
 
Nebraska -6 vs UCLA. This is the one ticket I have that I’m not real sure I made a good value decision on. I like the matchup. UCLA loses a ton on defense so the Huskers will score almost a million points. Neither team has anything resembling a potential loss leading up to this game so I can’t say the line won’t still be below a touchdown the week of the game, but it has to be played. UCLA’s talent is still really young for the most part, especially on the stop unit and they will get exposed here. I love the play, but probably didn’t need to make it quite yet.

gotta disagree with your assessment of the UCLA defense Gar. I consider the front 7 to be the strength of the team. the back 4 will be a bunch of young blue chippers so they could struggle early on but the line-backing unit is going to be dynamite. and the dline unit should be great as well, tho datone's replacement is an issue right now with the chance owa and vanderdoes will both be unavailable. thinking ellis mccarthy (this dude) would slot in at the DE spot instead of replacing epanesa as the starting DT.
 
77 days to go ...

Montee on the ball: Wisconsin's Montee Ball finished his brilliant career in 2012 with 77 rushing touchdowns, breaking the FBS record set by Travis Prentice (73). Ball rushed for 22 touchdowns last season.

5079ac0d49883.preview-620.jpg


Ball was born in Wentzville, Missouri. He went to Wentzville Timberland High School, and played high school football for the Timberland Wolves. He was ranked as the number 33 running back in the nation and fourth-best player in Missouri by Rivals.com. He was named first-team all-state, all-metro, all-district and all-conference as a senior.

As a senior, Ball carried the ball 213 times for 2,187 yards and 41 touchdowns. As a junior, Ball was named player of the year (St. Louis American), first-team all-state, all-metro, all-district and all-conference after putting up 358 carries for 3,077 yards and 32 touchdowns, and was recognized in Sports Illustrated magazine's "Faces in the Crowd" section. As a sophomore, Ball was named first-team all-district and all-conference after carrying the ball 297 times for 1,845 yards and 15 touchdowns. As a freshman, Ball had 1,113 yards on 127 carries with 19 touchdowns. Ball was a team captain and team MVP as a sophomore, junior and senior.

He holds the Wentzville school district rushing records with career totals of 995 carries, 8,222 yards, 107 touchdowns and an average of 8.26 yards per carry. Ball was also named to the all-academic list three times and was a two-time letterwinner in basketball.

2011 SEASON
Ball played and started in all 14 games. On October 15, 2011, Ball was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week after throwing a 25-yard TD pass and scoring three rushing touchdowns with 142 yards rushing, including a career long 54-yard rush, on 14 carries and 46 yards receiving on one catch against Indiana.


On November 5, 2011, Ball was named Big Ten Player of the Week after rushing for a career high 223 yards against the Purdue Boilermakers. During that game, Ball scored four touchdowns (three rushing and one receiving) which gave him 146 total points scored on the season. This broke Brian Calhoun's school record for total points in a single season of 144.


On November 12, 2011, Ball broke the single season Big Ten Conference record for touchdowns by rushing for two and receiving one against the Minnesota. Ball had 27 touchdowns (23 rushing and 4 receiving) at the end of that game. The previous record of 26 was held by Ohio State's Pete Johnson (1975), Indiana's Anthony Thompson (1988) and Penn State's Ki-Jana Carter (1994).


On November 19, 2011, against Illinois, Ball ran for a career high 224 yards and two touchdowns on a career high 38 carries. He also added a receiving TD and became just the fifth player in NCAA Division I FBS history to score 30 touchdowns in a single season.


On November 26, 2011, Ball scored four touchdowns against Penn State, and four more in the Big Ten Championship game one week later giving Ball 38 total touchdowns on the season which is 2nd all-time in FBS. He trails Oklahoma State's Barry Sanders who scored 39 touchdowns in 1988.


Ball was one of three finalists for the 2011 Doak Walker Award joining Oregon's LaMichael James and Alabama's Trent Richardson. The award was given to Alabama's Trent Richardson.


Ball was named First Team All-Big Ten, by both the coaches and media, at the conclusion of the 2011 regular season. Ball was also the winner of two other Big Ten awards. The Graham-George Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year award which was renamed in 2011 after of Northwestern's Otto Graham and Ohio State's Eddie George and the Ameche-Dayne Big Ten Running Back of the Year award which was also renamed in 2011 after Wisconsin's Alan Ameche and Ron Dayne.


On December 5, 2011, Ball was named one of five finalists for the Heisman Trophy. He is joined by Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III, Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu and Alabama running back Trent Richardson. On the same day, Ball was named All-American by AFCA joining teammates Peter Konz and Kevin Zeitler. Ball was also named All-American by CBS again joined by teammate Peter Konz.


On December 8, 2011, Ball was named First Team All-American by Yahoo Sports. Ball's teammates Peter Konz and Kevin Zeitler were named to the Second Team and quarterback Russell Wilson and linebacker Chris Borland was named to the Third Team.


On December 10, 2011, Ball was one of five finalists invited to New York City for the presentation of the Heisman Trophy. He finished fourth in the voting with 348 points (22-1st place, 83-2nd place and 116-3rd place points). Ball's fourth place finish was the highest in Wisconsin history for a non-winner of the award. Ball was joined by teammate Russell Wilson who also received votes, Wilson finished ninth with 52 points. Baylor's Robert Griffin III won the award.


On January 2, 2012, Ball scored his 39th touchdown of the season tying him with Barry Sanders for most touchdowns in a single FBS season.


On January 5, 2012, Ball announced he would return for his senior year with the UW Badgers rather than entering the 2012 NFL Draft.



2012 SEASON

On October 13, 2012, Ball scored three rushing touchdowns against Purdue giving Ball a career total of 72 touchdowns. Ball's total of 72 touchdowns broke the Big Ten record and the Wisconsin record of 71 held by former Badgers running back Ron Dayne. He also ran for a career high of 247 yards against the Boilermakers.


On November 17, 2012, Montee scored on a 7 yard run in the second quarter against Ohio State tying Travis Prentice with an NCAA record 78 career touchdowns.


On November 24, 2012, Ball became the FBS career record holder for total touchdowns when he scored his 79th touchdown on a 17 yard run against Penn State.


On December 6, 2012, Ball won the Doak Walker Award that is awarded to the nation's top running back. Ball finished ahead of fellow finalists Kenjon Barner of Oregon and Johnathan Franklin of UCLA. Ball is the second Badger to win the award, Ron Dayne won the award in 1999.




On January 1, 2013, Ball became the first player in Rose Bowl Game history to score a touchdown in three straight years.


On April 26th, 2013, Ball was selected by the Denver Broncos in the 2nd Round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He was the 58th pick and the third back chosen.

-----------------------------------------------

1977 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS

The top five teams all finished with records of 11-1-0. Notre Dame, which beat a #1 ranked Texas team in the Cotton Bowl Classic, became the national champion. The year 1977 was the last before NCAA's Division I was divided into I-A and I-AA. On the eve of a national playoff for the smaller programs that would be I-AA, the Sugar Bowl in 1977 became the fourth bowl game to sign a contract guaranteeing an appearance by a major conference champion. The result was that meetings between the media poll choices for the top two teams were less likely, unless those teams were in the Big Ten and Pac-8 (which met in the Rose Bowl), or one of the teams was not obligated to play in a particular bowl game.


Besides the Big 10-Pac-8 matchup in the Rose Bowl, the SWC champion played in the Cotton Bowl Classic, the Big 8 titlist in the Orange Bowl, and the SEC champ in the Sugar Bowl. Top teams that had their choice of which bowl to play were either in a conference outside of the five major powers (such as the ACC or the WAC) or those that were "independent" (not affiliated with any conference), During the 20th Century, the NCAA had no playoff for the college football teams that would later be described as "Division I-A". The NCAA Football Guide, however, did note an "unofficial national champion" based on the top ranked teams in the "wire service" (AP and UPI) polls. The "writers' poll" by Associated Press (AP) was the most popular, followed by the "coaches' poll" by United Press International) (UPI). The AP poll consisted of the votes of as many as 64 writers, though not all voted in each poll, and the UPI poll was taken of a 42 member board of coaches.


Two former NFL head coaching failures became college football successes, upsetting the #1 and #2 teams. Dan Devine had been unspectacular as Green Bay's coach before succeeding the legendary Ara Parsheghian at Notre Dame, while Lou Holtz had coached the New York Jets to a 3-11 finish before taking over at Arkansas.


In the Sugar Bowl, it was a matchup of legendary coaches in Bear Bryant and Woody Hayes; Bryant's #3 Alabama squad easily handled 8th ranked Ohio State, 35-6.


The largest crowd in Cotton Bowl Classic history (76,701) turned out in Dallas to watch the unbeaten #1 Texas Longhorns finalize a national championship. Notre Dame's defense, however, forced five turnovers, setting up five scores. Vagas Ferguson scored three touchdowns, including one on a pass from Joe Montana in a 38-10 win. For Texas, both Earl Campbell and Johnny Lam Jones were injured. Devine changed his mind about resigning his Irish coaching job.


Following the Cotton Bowl Classic and Texas' loss, #4 Michigan hoped an impressive win over the Washington might vault them to a possible national championship. However the Huskies, led by Rose Bowl MVP Warren Moon, raced to a 24-0 3rd quarter lead and held on for a 27-20 upset.


With #1 Texas out of the way, #2 Oklahoma was in a position to claim the championship with a win over #6 Arkansas. The Razorbacks had finished behind Texas in SWC play and had settled for the Orange Bowl. The week of the game, Holtz suspended the Hogs' top rusher, Ben Cowins, and the top receiver, Donny Bobo for violating team rules. The Sooners were 18 point favorites but Cowins' backup Roland Sales rushed for two touchdowns and over 200 yards as the Razorbacks shut down the Sooners' ground game en route to a 24-0 lead and a 31-6 win.


BOWLWinning TeamLosing Team
COTTON#5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish38#1 Texas Longhorns10
ORANGE#6 Arkansas Razorbacks31#2 Oklahoma Sooners6
SUGAR#3 Alabama Crimson Tide35#8 Ohio State Buckeyes6
ROSE#13 Washington Huskies27#4 Michigan Wolverines20

<tbody>
</tbody>

The national championship was disputed as there were 6 one loss teams - Alabama, Arkansas, Notre Dame, and Texas, plus Penn State and Kentucky (who were prohibited from playing in a bowl due to NCAA probation).

Notre Dame had lost to Mississippi, who lost to Alabama, who lost to Nebraska, who lost to Oklahoma, who lost to Arkansas, who lost to Texas who lost to Notre Dame.

Penn State lost to Kentucky and Kentucky lost to Baylor who had lost to Texas, Arkansas, and Nebraska.

Amidst this confusion, there were several good choices for a champion; giant killers Notre Dame and Arkansas, and third-ranked Alabama, and Texas. Notre Dame, on the strength of its lopsided win over #1 Texas, vaulted over Texas, Oklahoma (who lost in the Orange Bowl), Alabama (who won in the Sugar Bowl), and Michigan (who lost in the Rose Bowl).

Alabama fans cried foul as they assumed, as the #3 team before the bowls, that if #1 Texas and #2 Oklahoma lost (which they did), they would rise to #1 with a win over Ohio State. Some believe Alabama was granted a share of the national title in 1978 despite its loss to the team it shared it with (USC) to make up for 1977. The electors for AP and UPI were divided, but a majority for each service picked Notre Dame. With one AP writer naming all three schools as number one, the writers poll was 37⅓ for Notre Dame, 19⅓ for Alabama and 5⅓ for Arkansas. UPI had 23 for Notre Dame, 13 for Alabama and 2 for Arkansas.


 
76 days to go ...

Dominating the middle: Warren Sapp won the Lombardi and Nagurski Awards during a dominating career at Miami. He was elected to the Pro Football HOF in 2013 and will be enshrined in August.

tumblr_mevjq7AU2x1qm9rypo1_1280.jpg


Many top national colleges sought him out as a football player; Sapp chose to play for the University of Miami. Converted to defensive lineman while there, Sapp won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player), the Rotary Lombardi Award (best lineman or linebacker) and the Bill Willis Award (best defensive lineman) all in 1994.

Awards and honors




warren-sapp-miami-hurricanes.jpg



  • Led a Miami defense that led the NCAA in total defense, scoring defense and pass defense.
  • Earned Player of the Game honors from ABC vs. Washington, the BIG EAST Network vs. Rutgers and ESPN vs. Florida State.
  • As a junior in 1994, had 84 tackles and led the Hurricanes in sacks (10.5), tackles for loss (9.0), fumbles caused, fumble recoveries and quarterback pressures (25).
  • First-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (12th choice overall) in the 1995 NFL Draft.


---------------------------------------

1976 COLLEGE FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS

---------------------------------------

The season ended with a championship for the Panthers of the University of Pittsburgh. Coached by Johnny Majors (voted the AFCA Coach of the Year), the Pitt Panthers brought a college football championship to the home of the defending pro football champions, the Steelers. Pitt also had the Heisman Trophy winner, Tony Dorsett. At the beginning of the season, the Panthers had been ranked #9 in the AP poll.

image.php



November 6 In West Lafayette, Indiana, #1 Michigan narrowly lost to Purdue, 16-14, and fell from the top spot. #2 Pittsburgh's 37-7 win over visiting Army allowed it to take over the top spot. #3 UCLA beat Oregon, 46-0 #4 USC won at Stanford, 48-24. #5 Texas Tech won at TCU 14-10. the Top Five was: 1.Pittsburgh 2.UCLA 3.USC 4.Michigan 5.Texas Tech


November 13 #1 Pittsburgh beat West Virginia 24-16. #2 UCLA won at Oregon State to extend its record to 9-0-1. #3 USC beat Washington, 20-3. #4 Michigan beat Illinois 38-7. #5 Texas Tech beat SMU 34-7 to reach 8-0-0. The Top Five was unchanged: 1.Pittsburgh 2.UCLA 3.USC 4.Michigan 5.Texas Tech


November 20

  • While #1 Pittsburgh was idle, three conference championships were determined on the same day. In Pac-8 conference play, #2 UCLA (7-0) and #3 USC (6-0) were both unbeaten, so their crosstown L.A. game determined not just the conference title, but who would go to the Rose Bowl. UCLA suffered its first loss of the season, falling to the Trojans 24-14.
  • The same day in Columbus, Ohio, the Big Ten's two best teams were meeting to determine the other berth in the Rose Bowl. In conference play #4 Michigan (6-1-0) was second to #8 Ohio State (7-0). In the bicentennial year Schembechler-Hayes meeting, it was no contest as Michigan won 22-0 over the Buckeyes.
  • The Southwest Conference title and a trip to Cotton Bowl came down to a meeting between #5 Texas Tech and #9 Houston, 6-0-0 and 5-1-0 in conference play, respectively. Visiting Houston handed the Red Raiders their first loss, 27-19.
  • #6 Maryland closed an 11-0-0 regular season with a 28-0 win at Virginia, and the ACC champion was invited to meet SWC champion Houston in the Cotton Bowl.
  • Pittsburgh was invited to play in the Sugar Bowl after the players took a vote and made it clear that they would prefer to play SEC champion #5 Georgia there rather than face lower ranked Big 8 co-champion Colorado in the Orange Bowl. The Orange Bowl then controversially selected Big 10 runner up Ohio State to play Colorado over Pac-8 runner up UCLA, even though UCLA had a better record and higher ranking than Ohio State. It was believed that Ohio State would bring more fans to Miami for the warm weather than UCLA would, and Orange Bowl officials did not like the prospect of a UCLA - Colorado matchup as it would be two schools from the west playing back east.
  • The Top Five was: 1.Pittsburgh 2.USC 3.Michigan 4.Maryland 5.Georgia

November 27 #1 Pittsburgh moved its game against Penn State from its campus to Three Rivers Stadium. Pitt had not beaten the Nittany Lions in its last ten meetings, and on the day after Thanksgiving, cruised to a 24-7 win. Tony Dorsett, who rushed for 224 yards and scored two of Pitt's touchdowns, breaking the record for yards in a season (1,948) and becoming the first college player to reach 6,000 yards rushing in a career, closing with 6,082.

[video=youtube_share;qJAJfVch06g]http://youtu.be/qJAJfVch06g[/video]


USC maintained its #2 ranking with a 21-13 win over Notre Dame.

The final regular season poll was 1.Pittsburgh 2.USC 3.Michigan 4.Maryland and 5.Georgia.


BOWL GAMES AND FINAL RATINGS
At the Sugar Bowl, Pitt quarterback Matt Cavanaugh passed for 192 yards, and Dorsett had 32 carries for 202 yards, overcoming Georgia's heralded "Junkyard Dogs" defense. After taking a 21-0 lead at halftime, the Panthers cemented their number one status with a 27-3 win over Georgia.

Sugar771.jpg


In the Cotton Bowl, #6 Houston beat #4 Maryland 30-21, and in the Rose Bowl, #2 USC beat #3 Michigan 14-6. Finally, Ohio State justified their Orange Bowl invitation by crushing Colorado, 27-10.


BOWL
SUGAR#1 Pittsburgh Panthers27#5 Georgia Bulldogs3
ROSE#2 USC Trojans14#3 Michigan Wolverines6
COTTON#6 Houston Cougars30#4 Maryland Terrapins21
ORANGE#11 Ohio State Buckeyes27#12 Colorado Buffaloes10

<tbody>
</tbody>

Pittsburgh received 59 of the 62 first place votes cast to win the AP Trophy, and was ranked #1 by UPI as well, followed by 2.USC, 3.Michigan, 4.Houston and 5.Oklahoma. The other Division I unbeaten team, Rutgers (11-0-0), was ranked 17th in the final poll.


Other bowls:
BOWLLocationWinnerLoser
SUNEl PasoTexas A&M 37Florida 14
GATORJacksonvilleNotre Dame 20Penn State 9
TANGERINEOrlandoOklahoma State 49Brigham Young 21
FIESTATempeOklahoma 41Wyoming 7
ASTRO-BLUEBONNETHoustonNebraska 27Texas Tech 24
LIBERTYMemphisAlabama 36UCLA 6
PEACHAtlantaKentucky 21North Carolina 0
INDEPENDENCEShreveportMcNeese State 20Tulsa 16

<tbody>
</tbody>


RUTGERS' UNDEFEATED SEASON
"No one understands, unless you're on a team that's done it, how difficult it is to play an entire season and win them all," said Bert Kosup, who guided the Scarlet Knights through the undefeated season as the team's starting quarterback.


The Scarlet Knights boasted one of the nation's top defensive units, paced by All-America defensive end Nate Toran and standout defensive tackle John Alexander. Both have been inducted into the Rutgers Football Hall of Fame. The Rutgers defense was the first in 19 years and only the sixth in NCAA history to lead the nation in three defensive categories, finishing No. 1 in total defense, rushing defense and tying Michigan in scoring defense. The Scarlet Knights limited their opponents to 179.2 yards a game, just 83.9 rushing and allowed 7.4 points on the average.


Kosup and Alexander are among eight players who earned varsity letters on the 1976 team who were later enshrined in the Rutgers Football Hall of Fame. The other varsity letterwinners from 1976 that are in the RU Hall of Fame are DT Dan Gray, LB Jim Hughes, FB Glen Kehler, PK Kennan Startzell, Toran and WR Mark Twitty.

1976_knights.jpg



For the season, Kosup completed 69-of-141 passes for 1,098 yards and six TDs. and Kehler led the ground attack with 764 yards. Twitty was the team's leading receiver with 29 catches for 514 yards. Hughes led the defense with 113 tackles, while Toran finished the season with a whopping 17 sacks.


Under Frank Burns, the winningest head coach in Rutgers football history, the Scarlet Knights won 18 consecutive games (including the final nine of the 1975 season), before falling to Penn State in the 1977 season opener.

The 1976 Perfect Season (11-0)
September 11 Rutgers 13, NAVY 3
September 18 Rutgers 19, BUCKNELL 7
September 25 Rutgers 17, PRINCETON 0
October 2 RUTGERS 21, Cornell 14
October 9 RUTGERS 38, Connecticut 0
October 16 Rutgers 28, LEHIGH 21
October 23 RUTGERS 47, Columbia 0 (Giants Stadium)
October 30 RUTGERS 24, Massachusetts 7
November 6 RUTGERS 34, Louisville 0
November 13 Rutgers 29, TULANE 20
November 25 RUTGERS 17, Colgate 9 (Giants Stadium)

FROM A 12-6-76 Sports Illustrated article: Old Queens was built in 1809, the oldest building on the campus of the nation's eighth-oldest college, Rutgers. In the cupola atop Old Queens hangs a bell that tolls only on rare occasions. Last March, when the Rutgers basketball team completed an undefeated season, the bell rang 26 times, once for each victory.

On Thanksgiving night it rang again when the Rutgers football team capped its perfect season, 11-0, with a hard-fought 17-9 win over Colgate, which came into the game with a gaudy record of its own (8-1). In the process the Scarlet Knights extended the nation's longest major-college winning streak to 18.


And so Rutgers winds up undefeated, untied and, to its sorrow, uninvited to any of the established bowls. (The team voted to reject overtures from the Independence Bowl in Baton Rouge, La., where its opponent would have been McNeese State.)

How good are the Scarlet Knights?

The team's detractors point to the undemanding schedule, which included four Division II opponents, but Rutgers beat Louisville 34-0, while Pitt defeated the Cardinals 27-6 and Alabama beat them 24-3. Nonetheless, it seems a shame that the Tangerine Bowl, for instance, did not choose to pair Rutgers with Oklahoma State. That's what bowl games are supposed to be all about, presenting intriguing matchups. Could Rutgers compete with a good Big Eight team? We'll never know.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top