Welcome to Week 8 of the college football season. Just so you know I didn’t go absent last week because I was ashamed of my glowing review of Alabama, right before they imploded. It was because it was Grad School Application Time. With one school behind me, I can focus on the Touchdown this week. A good thing too, since the BCS standings made their first appearance of the season. We’ll get to that later, but first, on to the Touchdown:
1) No. 6 LSU at No. 4 Auburn – 3:30 on CBS
How does the old saying go? “It’s better to be lucky than good.” Seriously, I think luck is the only way both of these teams are still undefeated. If it wasn’t for a freshman kicker from Clemson, Stephen Garcia’s inability to hold on to the ball, and Ryan Mallett’s injury, Auburn could very well be 4-3.
As for LSU, well, they really should have lost to UNC, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Florida. Luck is the only reasonable explanation for those wins. Let’s put it this way, I would never expect any team, be it college, high school, or Pop Warner to be 7-0 with Jordan Jefferson prominently involved in the offense.
Les Miles in either a freaking genius (I refuse to call him the Mad Hatter) or he sacrificed small woodland creatures to some dark overlord, because I do not understand how LSU is winning games. The two headed monster of Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee are the scariest QB duo ever…if you’re a LSU fan.
The LSU game plan will be pretty simple. Run the ball on offense, control the ball and slow the tempo, pray they don’t need their QB’s to win it, and contain the Auburn rushing attack. That’s easier said than done.
I’m so close to buying into Auburn, but then I remember that I’ve seen them play, and it’s not that pretty. Their offensive game plan seems to be “let Cam Newton win it.” The kid isn’t Tim Tebow, yet everyone wants to act like he is. Auburn’s problem was highlighted in the Arkansas game. If a team has a fun and gun, freewheeling offense, Auburn is in trouble. Mallett wouldn’t have made the same mistakes that Wilson did, and Auburn would have most likely lost the shoot-out.
LSU always finds a way to win, even against the odds and conventional wisdom. However, on the road against a hyped up Auburn team? That is too much for even Les Miles to overcome.
2) No. 13 Wisconsin at No. 15 Iowa – 3:30 on ABC
Every year, some conference I don’t particularly care for pops up and makes me love every game. This year, it’s the Big Ten. I was waiting for a team to dismantle Ohio State, but figured I’d have to wait until the Iowa game. Thankfully, along came the Badgers.
Wisconsin is a very intriguing team. They are very balanced offensively with a great offensive line. Wisconsin uses the run to open up the passing game, which they did to great effect against Ohio State. The defense will need to stay solid for Wisconsin to have a chance to win this.
Iowa has one of the best defenses in the country, even though they had a tough time stopping the run against Michigan last week. The problem is that even if Iowa stops the run, Wisconsin QB Scott Tolzien can beat you with his arm. As for offense, Iowa has the best QB in the Big Ten in Ricky Stanzi, but still run the ball at least half the time, keeping defenses honest.
The main advantage Iowa has here is they are playing at home. I think the game is close throughout, but Iowa comes away with a close victory.
3) No. 1 Oklahoma at No. 11 Missouri – 8:00 on ABC
I could use this whole article ripping apart the fact that Oklahoma is number 1, but why would I waste my time when the Oklahoma defense will put up a pitiful performance against some team and get waxed. I’m just not sure this is the game.
Oklahoma has had a tough time against nearly every time they faced. This makes you wonder what’s happening in Norman. We can’t really pin all of Oklahoma’s troubles on the defense. We can pin most of the problems on the defense. Being honest, the defense is going to be the thing that brings Oklahoma down, because the offense is not built to get into a shoot-out.
Having no defense is fine if you’re a team like Arkansas, that is all about throwing the ball around and if you have a strong-armed QB. The problem is the Oklahoma has always been a defensive minded football team that created turnovers and win the field position battle, making it easier for the offense to run up the score. They don’t have that anymore, so Oklahoma is a house of cards waiting to topple over.
Missouri is really a team that came out of nowhere, considering they really haven’t played anyone. They are hard to judge since you really can’t judge a team that plays McNeese State. Even with the paltry schedule, we do know they have a great defense. They get after the QB in a big way. Offensively, expect QB Blaine Garrett to air it out early and often.
The game rests on the shoulders of DeMarco Murray. If he can establish the run game for Oklahoma and do DeMarco Murray type things, then the Missouri defense is effectively neutralized. However, if Missouri stops him, then Landry Jones needs to be able to step up and make things happen. That is not Jones’ strong suit. The Missouri defense contains Murray and beats Oklahoma.
4) No. 16 Nebraska at No. 14 Oklahoma State – 3:30 on ABC
That sad thing about last week was that I had actually bought into Nebraska. I was very nearly on the bandwagon. That was before they put up that stink job against Texas and once again proved that college football is a wacky sport.
The problem Nebraska faces is the fact they have an amazing defense, but they need the offense to stay on the field and score. Taylor Martinez finally got a taste of a Big 12 defense, when he got cuffed around by Texas. When you can’t run and receivers start dropping passes, it’s easy to get frustrated. You have to wonder if Martinez will be affected from his last game or if he can leave it in the past.
Oklahoma State is on the other end of the spectrum. They’re offense is dynamic, with only Oregon ahead of them in most major offensive categories. They use their offense to cover for the fact that their defense is not really that good. Oklahoma State gives up way to many yards to sketchy teams but it gets overlooked because of guys like Brandon Weeden, Justin Blackmon, and Kendall Hunter.
Nebraska is built to beat a team like Oklahoma State. The Nebraska defense should be able to moderately contain the OSU offense while Martinez and the Nebraska offense should be able to take advantage of the porous OSU defense. Nebraska wins on the road.
5) Washington at No. 18 Arizona – 10:15 on ESPN
I guess if Nick Foles was going to get injured for Arizona, now would be the best time. The schedule right now isn’t too daunting, but you can’t sleep on Washington.
While Locker isn’t the second coming of Peyton Manning, he is still one of the better QB’s in the nation, even after the debacle early in the season against Nebraska. Washington lives and dies by Locker, so if they want to win, Locker is going to be the guy to get it done for them. One the other side of the ball, the Washington defense is suspect. They give up too many yards and too many points, yet they have beaten both Oregon State and USC this season.
Offensively, Arizona will have some issues moving the ball with Foles out. Expect Grigsby and Antolin to run the ball to take the pressure off of back-up QB Matt Scott. Arizona has a highly ranked defense, but they have yield points when faced with good teams. Arizona is going to need the defense to contain Locker if they hope to win.
Washington seems to know how to win close games this year. Expect a close one in the desert and expect Locker and Washington to pull the dramatic upset.
6) Georgia Tech at Clemson – 3:30 on ABC
For all you Clemson fans out there (and I’m one of them), aren’t you wondering how Clemson is going to blow this matchup against Georgia Tech? You know it’s going to be close and you know Clemson is going to find a way to lose it. So, botched field goal? Late interception by Parker? Fumble by Ellington? The possibilities are endless.
Extra Point:
Well, the first BCS ranking came out last Sunday. As aghast as I was that Oklahoma was number 1, Kirk Herbstreit calmly explained to me on Sunday night why this wasn’t the biggest travesty since Veronica Mars got cancelled. It’s still early and, as Ohio State and Alabama proved; we’re a long way from done.
However, looking at the rankings, I’m once again drawn to the same question I had earlier in the year. Does a one loss Alabama deserve to be ranked higher or lower than an undefeated TCU or Boise State? Let’s look at this all scientific like.
If you are going to argue in favor of Alabama, the conversation begins and ends with strength of schedule. The Alabama schedule is a freaking mine-field, with games against Penn State, Arkansas, Florida, South Carolina, LSU, Miss State, and Auburn. If Alabama makes it through that with one loss, that deserves something.
For TCU, they have Oregon State and Utah. No, seriously, that’s it. I’m not sure if that’s worse or better than the Boise State duo of Oregon State and Virginia Tech. You really can’t fault either team for being in conferences that aren’t that tough, but that doesn’t mean you can reward them either. Last year, Cincinnati, Boise State, and TCU all showed us that schedule strength counts.
Of course, this conversation means nothing if two of the group of Oklahoma, Oregon, Auburn, LSU, and Michigan State win out (with Missouri getting an outside shot). No way the BCS polls have TCU or Boise State ahead of any of those teams if they are undefeated. However, with the BCS, you learn to expect the unexpected.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
Trent's Touchdown: Six Week 6 College Football Games to Watch
We’re really at Week 6 already! I’m on edge right now. We are long overdue for something weird to happen. That’s what college football is all about, the weird and unexplained, sort of like the popularity of Jersey Shore. If Alabama lost, now that would qualify, but that isn’t happening any time soon. More on that later, but now, on to the Touchdown.
1) No. 1 Alabama at No. 19 South Carolina – 3:30 on CBS
You know, watching the Alabama/Florida game last weekend, I have to thank God CBS had the intellect to hire Tracy Wolfson as their sideline reporter. If not for her, we might not have the Richardson/Ingram nickname of “Fast and Furious”. Thanks for that contribution Tracy!
Anyway, I’ve asked the question before and I’ll ask it again, is there any defense that can stop the Alabama offense? To be generous, I’ll say Nebraska, and that’s it. Minus my shot at Wolfson, Richardson and Ingram are the most dynamic backfield duo since James Davis and C.J. Spiller.
After you get past the running game, you have to deal with Greg McElroy, who hasn’t lost a game as starting QB since junior high (or so CBS kept telling me, over and over and over again). He has been a tad shaky at times, but he has Ingram to fall back on if he gets in trouble. Just ask Arkansas.
South Carolina finally came back down to earth against Auburn. Not only that, Spurrier once again screwed with a QB’s head by pulling Stephen Garcia for the underwhelming Connor Shaw. Garcia is back for this game, but may be a bit shaken, given he can’t seem to hang on to the ball.
Garcia is going to need to have the game of his life to beat the tough Alabama defense and outscore the Alabama offense. Not going to happen, not by a long shot. As always, ROLL TIDE.
2) No. 17 Michigan State at No. 18 Michigan – 3:30 on ABC
I’m starting to get real tired of all this Denard Robinson talk. He hasn’t faced a quality defense all season long. You know, there is a quality QB for Michigan State that no one seems to be talking about.
I would love to make the blanket statement that Kirk Cousins is the best QB in the Big Ten, but that honor really goes to Ricky Stanzi (I refuse to even acknowledge Terrelle Pryor in this conversation). Cousins is one of those QB’s who makes smart plays, doesn’t really hurt you, and knows how to manage a game. Yeah, he throws too many interceptions, but it hasn’t come back to haunt him yet.
Along with Cousins arm, the MSU offense has a dynamic running attack, with both Bell and Baker racking up yards on the ground (both averaging just over 7 yards a carry). MSU is a well balanced offensive team with a solid defense that can cause teams fits.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Michigan has some guy at QB who likes to run the ball. I’ll give Robinson credit, he’s good, but I want to see him pull off runs against Iowa and Ohio State before I crown him the next Vince Young. A win here would help sell me on the whole Shoelaces Robinson era.
This game will come down to defense. Michigan’s defense is poor. They give up way too many points and hope that Robinson will bail them out. That’s fine against the UConn’s and Bowling Green’s of the world, but not in Big 10 conference play. Michigan State pulls off the shocker in Ann Arbor.
3) No. 12 LSU at No. 14 Florida – 7:30 on ESPN
How is LSU still unbeaten? I’m not talking about the last second thriller against Tennessee last week. That was the right call. I mean, I’ve seen LSU play. They are not good. They are the worst Top 25 team in the country, and that includes Miami!
For everyone who thought that Florida would beat Alabama last week, hang your head in shame. If you hadn’t seen Florida play this year, I can see where you went wrong. Florida uses its pure athletic talent to beat teams. Brantley is getting more comfortable with the offense, but he has problems with good defenses. He’ll rely on the weapons around him to move the ball.
LSU has some issues at QB (and that’s putting it mildly). Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee will be splitting time at QB. That’s like trying to decide whether to drink spoiled milk or eat rancid meat. The results will be the same, so it’s all about the journey.
The Jefferson/Lee double-headed monster gets to go up again the best secondary in the SEC. Gee, I wonder how this is going to work out? LSU is going to have to rely on its defense to keep them in this game and hope to fluster Brantley enough to get him to turn the ball over. Florida wins big at home.
4) No. 23 Florida State at No. 13 Miami – 8:00 on ABC
Are you ready for a top of the line ACC rivalry game? While on the surface I might say I’m ready to catch up on Fringe on DVR, this game has potential. I’m not saying the ACC has potential, I’m saying that this match-up will prove close and interesting.
Let’s break this down for you. Neither team is really that good, but they are the class of the ACC. Both QB’s are sketchy, but I trust Christian Ponder more than Jacory Harris (that’s not saying much). FSU has a better running attack, but Miami does a pretty good job stopping the run.
The question you need to ask is, do you trust the FSU defense more than the Miami offense? Jacory Harris has the ability to make amazing plays one down, then completely idiotic plays the next. If you look at last week, Clemson wins that game if they had a competent receiver who Parker could throw to, because Harris kept letting Clemson hang around.
This game comes down to the last second and FSU comes away with the victory.
5) No. 11 Arkansas vs. Texas A&M – 3:30 on ABC (in Arlington, TX)
If you’re a fan of offense, this is your game. This is going to be like that Stanford/Oregon game, lots of points and very little defense.
Not to denigrate Arkansas, but the only reason you’re watching them if for Ryan Mallett. The kid has a cannon arm and isn’t afraid to throw the ball all over the field. They might run the ball to mix things up, but the scoring for Arkansas rests on Mallett’s shoulders.
Texas A&M has one of the best offenses in the country. They would be even better if Jerrod Johnson would learn not to complete so many passes to the other team. Seriously, he has 8 interceptions in the last 2 games. That’s not a stat you want to see from your starting QB.
Expect a few more interceptions from Johnson as Arkansas beats up Texas A&M. It might be close if Johnson only throws to his players.
6) San Jose State at No. 21 Nevada – 10:30 on ESPNU
The main talking point in Boise this week is that the WAC has another ranked team, so maybe the Boise State schedule isn’t as easy as everyone complains about. Well, think again. Nevada is riding the same wave as BSU. I think my old high school team could finish third in this conference.
Extra Point:
I think the main question everyone has right now is “can Alabama be beat?” The answer is yes. However, you have to let me combine teams to do it. Alabama has amazing players on both sides of the ball. They score when the need to and can stop just about any teams offensive schemes.
Alabama is coming to the end of, arguably, the toughest three game stretch in college football this year. The only game they have had a problem with was Arkansas, and the defense stepped up when needed and Ingram carried the offense. The Florida game last weekend was utter humiliation.
The remaining schedule isn’t sunshine and roses, with games at South Carolina, at Tennessee, at LSU, and home against Auburn. Can anyone honestly say that they think any of those teams can beat Alabama? Not only will Alabama win, but I don’t think any of those teams are coming within a touchdown.
So, who can beat them? As I said, let me combine teams and I think I have it. Give me the offensive team of Oregon and the defense of Nebraska and I think we have a winner. Neither of these teams can beat Alabama as is. Nebraska doesn’t have the offense and Oregon doesn’t have the defense. However, Oregon has the offensive firepower to run with any team in the country. Nebraska has the defensive might to give most any offense fits. Put them together and we have a great game.
Right now, if you had me pick my dream National Championship Game, it would be Oregon/Alabama. The only reason is that give me the best opportunity for a good game. If you look at the other top 5 teams, can you say the same thing? Ohio State is a paper tiger, ready to be ripped to shreds by half the teams in the SEC. Boise State and TCU, while good stories, wouldn’t stand much of a chance. No team is as well balanced on both sides of the ball as Alabama, but Oregon has the ability to score at anytime from anywhere and would at least bring out the best in the tide. Until something weird happens, it’s ROLL TIDE all year long.
1) No. 1 Alabama at No. 19 South Carolina – 3:30 on CBS
You know, watching the Alabama/Florida game last weekend, I have to thank God CBS had the intellect to hire Tracy Wolfson as their sideline reporter. If not for her, we might not have the Richardson/Ingram nickname of “Fast and Furious”. Thanks for that contribution Tracy!
Anyway, I’ve asked the question before and I’ll ask it again, is there any defense that can stop the Alabama offense? To be generous, I’ll say Nebraska, and that’s it. Minus my shot at Wolfson, Richardson and Ingram are the most dynamic backfield duo since James Davis and C.J. Spiller.
After you get past the running game, you have to deal with Greg McElroy, who hasn’t lost a game as starting QB since junior high (or so CBS kept telling me, over and over and over again). He has been a tad shaky at times, but he has Ingram to fall back on if he gets in trouble. Just ask Arkansas.
South Carolina finally came back down to earth against Auburn. Not only that, Spurrier once again screwed with a QB’s head by pulling Stephen Garcia for the underwhelming Connor Shaw. Garcia is back for this game, but may be a bit shaken, given he can’t seem to hang on to the ball.
Garcia is going to need to have the game of his life to beat the tough Alabama defense and outscore the Alabama offense. Not going to happen, not by a long shot. As always, ROLL TIDE.
2) No. 17 Michigan State at No. 18 Michigan – 3:30 on ABC
I’m starting to get real tired of all this Denard Robinson talk. He hasn’t faced a quality defense all season long. You know, there is a quality QB for Michigan State that no one seems to be talking about.
I would love to make the blanket statement that Kirk Cousins is the best QB in the Big Ten, but that honor really goes to Ricky Stanzi (I refuse to even acknowledge Terrelle Pryor in this conversation). Cousins is one of those QB’s who makes smart plays, doesn’t really hurt you, and knows how to manage a game. Yeah, he throws too many interceptions, but it hasn’t come back to haunt him yet.
Along with Cousins arm, the MSU offense has a dynamic running attack, with both Bell and Baker racking up yards on the ground (both averaging just over 7 yards a carry). MSU is a well balanced offensive team with a solid defense that can cause teams fits.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Michigan has some guy at QB who likes to run the ball. I’ll give Robinson credit, he’s good, but I want to see him pull off runs against Iowa and Ohio State before I crown him the next Vince Young. A win here would help sell me on the whole Shoelaces Robinson era.
This game will come down to defense. Michigan’s defense is poor. They give up way too many points and hope that Robinson will bail them out. That’s fine against the UConn’s and Bowling Green’s of the world, but not in Big 10 conference play. Michigan State pulls off the shocker in Ann Arbor.
3) No. 12 LSU at No. 14 Florida – 7:30 on ESPN
How is LSU still unbeaten? I’m not talking about the last second thriller against Tennessee last week. That was the right call. I mean, I’ve seen LSU play. They are not good. They are the worst Top 25 team in the country, and that includes Miami!
For everyone who thought that Florida would beat Alabama last week, hang your head in shame. If you hadn’t seen Florida play this year, I can see where you went wrong. Florida uses its pure athletic talent to beat teams. Brantley is getting more comfortable with the offense, but he has problems with good defenses. He’ll rely on the weapons around him to move the ball.
LSU has some issues at QB (and that’s putting it mildly). Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee will be splitting time at QB. That’s like trying to decide whether to drink spoiled milk or eat rancid meat. The results will be the same, so it’s all about the journey.
The Jefferson/Lee double-headed monster gets to go up again the best secondary in the SEC. Gee, I wonder how this is going to work out? LSU is going to have to rely on its defense to keep them in this game and hope to fluster Brantley enough to get him to turn the ball over. Florida wins big at home.
4) No. 23 Florida State at No. 13 Miami – 8:00 on ABC
Are you ready for a top of the line ACC rivalry game? While on the surface I might say I’m ready to catch up on Fringe on DVR, this game has potential. I’m not saying the ACC has potential, I’m saying that this match-up will prove close and interesting.
Let’s break this down for you. Neither team is really that good, but they are the class of the ACC. Both QB’s are sketchy, but I trust Christian Ponder more than Jacory Harris (that’s not saying much). FSU has a better running attack, but Miami does a pretty good job stopping the run.
The question you need to ask is, do you trust the FSU defense more than the Miami offense? Jacory Harris has the ability to make amazing plays one down, then completely idiotic plays the next. If you look at last week, Clemson wins that game if they had a competent receiver who Parker could throw to, because Harris kept letting Clemson hang around.
This game comes down to the last second and FSU comes away with the victory.
5) No. 11 Arkansas vs. Texas A&M – 3:30 on ABC (in Arlington, TX)
If you’re a fan of offense, this is your game. This is going to be like that Stanford/Oregon game, lots of points and very little defense.
Not to denigrate Arkansas, but the only reason you’re watching them if for Ryan Mallett. The kid has a cannon arm and isn’t afraid to throw the ball all over the field. They might run the ball to mix things up, but the scoring for Arkansas rests on Mallett’s shoulders.
Texas A&M has one of the best offenses in the country. They would be even better if Jerrod Johnson would learn not to complete so many passes to the other team. Seriously, he has 8 interceptions in the last 2 games. That’s not a stat you want to see from your starting QB.
Expect a few more interceptions from Johnson as Arkansas beats up Texas A&M. It might be close if Johnson only throws to his players.
6) San Jose State at No. 21 Nevada – 10:30 on ESPNU
The main talking point in Boise this week is that the WAC has another ranked team, so maybe the Boise State schedule isn’t as easy as everyone complains about. Well, think again. Nevada is riding the same wave as BSU. I think my old high school team could finish third in this conference.
Extra Point:
I think the main question everyone has right now is “can Alabama be beat?” The answer is yes. However, you have to let me combine teams to do it. Alabama has amazing players on both sides of the ball. They score when the need to and can stop just about any teams offensive schemes.
Alabama is coming to the end of, arguably, the toughest three game stretch in college football this year. The only game they have had a problem with was Arkansas, and the defense stepped up when needed and Ingram carried the offense. The Florida game last weekend was utter humiliation.
The remaining schedule isn’t sunshine and roses, with games at South Carolina, at Tennessee, at LSU, and home against Auburn. Can anyone honestly say that they think any of those teams can beat Alabama? Not only will Alabama win, but I don’t think any of those teams are coming within a touchdown.
So, who can beat them? As I said, let me combine teams and I think I have it. Give me the offensive team of Oregon and the defense of Nebraska and I think we have a winner. Neither of these teams can beat Alabama as is. Nebraska doesn’t have the offense and Oregon doesn’t have the defense. However, Oregon has the offensive firepower to run with any team in the country. Nebraska has the defensive might to give most any offense fits. Put them together and we have a great game.
Right now, if you had me pick my dream National Championship Game, it would be Oregon/Alabama. The only reason is that give me the best opportunity for a good game. If you look at the other top 5 teams, can you say the same thing? Ohio State is a paper tiger, ready to be ripped to shreds by half the teams in the SEC. Boise State and TCU, while good stories, wouldn’t stand much of a chance. No team is as well balanced on both sides of the ball as Alabama, but Oregon has the ability to score at anytime from anywhere and would at least bring out the best in the tide. Until something weird happens, it’s ROLL TIDE all year long.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Trent's Touchdown - Week 5
Welcome to Week 5, where conference foes face off to determine early season conference dominance. Repeat that in your head with Chris Fowler’s voice and you just might have the opening to College Gameday. Does anyone want to read my poorly constructed preview of my Extra Point on transfers or do you want to get on to my breakdown of the games? That’s what I thought. Here’s the Touchdown:
1) No. 9 Stanford at No. 4 Oregon – 8:00 on ABC
With the sanctions imposed on USC, the Pac 10 is a three team race, and this game will put one of the three in the driver’s seat. Of course, I’m going to try and get through this without making a “Mighty Ducks” reference (yet I fail miserably every time I watch Fringe).
Prior to conference play, Oregon had been beating up on teams pretty handily (we’ll forget about that 1st half against Tennessee). They have a very good defense, led by the running of LaMichael James. Defensively, they have been shutting down everybody and giving their offense plenty of time to rack up points. However, they were sloppy last week against Arizona State. They gave up too many points in the first half and the offense couldn’t get going. Oregon cannot afford defense lapses against Stanford or wasted opportunities on offense.
Stanford, on the other hand, has handled all opponents. Those include the UCLA team that beat Texas and a tough Notre Dame team (both games on the road). The high scoring Cardinal offense is led by Andrew Luck, who has been as good as you can get early on. The unheralded defense of Stanford has been able to handle all offenses they have faced with ease.
Basically, these are two high scoring offenses and two stingy defenses. Oregon has a nasty habit of being a bit lazy in the first half of games, almost wanting to play with a degree of difficulty. In order to win, they need to come out fast and not let up. Oregon, and whatever hideous jersey they break out for this game, will win, but it will be close. Remember, Ducks fly together (darn, so close).
2) No. 7 Florida at No. 1 Alabama – 8:00 on CBS
My thoughts on this game kind of parallel the Red River Shootout, you know, if Texas could have beaten UCLA. Anyway, before I start, I want to say that I like Florida, so Gator fans shouldn’t get too upset.
Five weeks into the season and Florida still lacks an identity. From week to week, you’re never really sure about the Gators. You know that the speed and athleticism of Florida will win games against lesser opponents, even if their QB is a little shaky and they lack that swagger of the Tebow era. They are a good team, but they aren’t last year’s Gators.
Alabama finally faced a challenge last week. I thought this was shocking because I never thought Arkansas was that good. I always thought Mallett could never be consistent enough to lead his team to a victory over a clearly superior team. The problem Arkansas had was they couldn’t contain the offense of Alabama all game long.
That will be the story of most games Alabama is in. The offense can be contained by a very good defense, but really can’t be stopped. They are too good at all aspects of offense to really be shut down. Plus, the defense is stingy enough to even let a lackluster performance by McElroy doom Alabama.
Florida will not be able to use their athleticism to beat Alabama, because the Tide have just as much on their side of the ball, if not more. This year isn’t the Gators year. ROLL TIDE! That never gets old (unless you’re an Auburn fan).
3) No. 22 Penn State at No. 17 Iowa – 8:05 on ESPN
The story of Penn State and Iowa is pretty much the same early in the season. Both teams beat up on lesser opponents before getting smacked down by the only quality opponent they faced. This should be fun.
Let me sum up the Penn State offense in as few words as possible. Those words are “Evan Royster”. PSU is going to lean on him early and often. Against less skilled teams, that just might work. They are going to need Royster too, since Bolden is downright terrifying….if you’re a PSU fan. PSU will also lean on their defense to stop Iowa and try and grind out the game.
Iowa can not only pass the ball effectively, but can run it too. Iowa learned from the Arizona game not to make stupid mistakes early and put yourself in an unwinnable situation, no matter how good you are. They also have one of the best defenses in the Big 10 and can handle one dimensional teams like Penn State. Iowa will focus on shutting down Royster and make Bolden throw the ball to win the game.
If you’re looking for a game with stellar defense and are not a PSU fan, this game is the one for you. Moderately low scoring affair, but Iowa wins by two touchdowns.
4) No. 21 Texas vs. No. 8 Oklahoma - 3:30 on ABC (in Dallas, TX)
The Red River Shootout at number 4?!?! Well, if Texas didn’t douse their drawers against UCLA, this would probably be number 1, but alas, here we are. Of course, the one year I can actually watch this game it doesn’t seem all that exciting.
Anyone who has seen Texas play, or at least seen highlights, knew that it was only a matter of time before they lost a game, and badly. I thought it would be against Texas Tech, and many others thought it would probably be Oklahoma. Not many thought it would be against UCLA.
Little seems to be going right for Texas coming into this game. The loss to UCLA was not a fluke. The Longhorn’s vaunted defense gave up 264 yards rushing. The Bruin’s only attempted 8 passes for 27 yards. Of course, the offense didn’t help with 4 first half turnovers. Anything that could go wrong did go wrong for Texas. Don’t expect these problems to magically disappear this week.
Speaking of problems, Oklahoma has its own problems on defense. They have the worst defense in the Big 12 in yards against. Every game has been close except FSU (who we have established isn’t that good). Seriously, they beat Air Force, Utah State, and Cincinnati by a combined 12 points. That’s not exactly a murderer’s row of teams.
Picking a winner for this game is like trying to figure out which team isn’t going to screw up the most. I personally think the Oklahoma wins it, because Lord knows Texas can’t take advantage of the inept Oklahoma defense.
5) No. 11 Wisconsin at No. 24 Michigan State – 3:30 on ABC
Not to disparage either one of these teams, but this right here is the battle for third place in the Big 10. Neither one of these teams are getting by Iowa or Ohio State (no matter how much I think OSU is overrated).
This game is weird since both teams are pretty evenly matched. Both have good, Big 10 quality QB’s, though I think the edge goes to Tolzien at Wisconsin. I’ll give the edge to Michigan State at RB, as I think their collection is slightly better than Wisconsin. Both have fairly good defensive teams.
If you look at schedule, both faced challenges against underrated, quality teams (Arizona State for Wisconsin and Notre Dame for Michigan State). So, how do you competently choose a winner in this game without flipping a coin?
Michigan State is playing at home, so they have the crowd. Plus, MSU coach Mark Dantonio will be in the coach’s box, taking his first steps to regaining the reins of the team. If that doesn’t fire up a team, I don’t know what will. MSU wins it for their coach, but it’s a close one.
6) Notre Dame at Boston College – 8:00 on ABC
HOLY WAR! If you live in the Boston area, welcome to the prime time game on ABC. Since my internet access at home is not available, I’m left hoping ESPN2 carries the Oregon/Stanford game, or else I’m stuck watching BC try and get out of its way and ND trying to blow the game in the last few minutes. Fun times!
Extra Point:
I was watching the Boise State/Oregon State game last week and glancing at the score-line along the bottom of the screen and noticed the ASU/Oregon score. It then gave me the stats for ASU QB S.Threet. That name sounded so familiar and I just couldn’t place it. I used my iPhone to look it up and realized that he used to be the starting QB for Michigan before he transferred to ASU due to the Rich Rodriguez hiring.
It made me start thinking about all the notable transfers of late, especially among QBs. When did this become common place? I remember when Brock Berlin transferred from Florida to Miami and it was huge. You couldn’t watch a Miami game without someone mentioning it. If you really look at it, I guess it makes sense. There are a number of reasons it happens.
The first is coaching change. Either the new coach has a different system than you play in or the coach who recruited you left and you want to leave too. Both of these happened to Threet, who started at Georgia Tech, then to Michigan, before landing at ASU. Ryan Mallett is another big name that left Michigan after Rodriguez signed on.
The second would be playing time. Robert Marve transferred from Miami to Purdue looking for playing time, which worked out before he got injured. Mitch Mustain left Arkansas after being replaced as starter by the horrible Casey Dick and went to USC. He still rides the pines, watching Matt Barkley throw touchdown passes. I remember when Clemson fans got scared that C.J. Spiller was going to transfer to Florida because he was playing second fiddle to James Davis. Those were bad times.
The third reason would be when you get booted from the team. Cameron Newton was back-up to Tim Tebow before he bought a stolen laptop and was looking for a new place to play, finally ending up at Auburn. Jeremiah Masoli got the boot from Oregon after robbery and drug possession charges were brought against him. He is currently taking snaps for Ole Miss.
So, are all the transfers a good thing or bad thing for college football? With coaching changes, it makes sense. If they system changes on a kid, he should be able to transfer someplace where his skills will be of more use. Playing time is sort of a gray area. Kids should know that they will have to compete for their position. The entitlement these kids feel sometimes doesn’t jive with the real world. As for getting booted off the team, this country has a long history of embracing rehabilitation of our athletes.
For the most part, transfers are a good thing for the sport as long as it doesn’t get taken too far. I don’t want Bob Stoops to be able to call up some freshman QB at Florida and ask him if he wants to play for Oklahoma. On the other hand, I don’t want a player like Robert Marve handcuffed like he was by Miami when he decided that Miami wasn’t right for him. I guess the point is that it’s good for these kids to have an out, but they should think long and hard before actually committing somewhere.
1) No. 9 Stanford at No. 4 Oregon – 8:00 on ABC
With the sanctions imposed on USC, the Pac 10 is a three team race, and this game will put one of the three in the driver’s seat. Of course, I’m going to try and get through this without making a “Mighty Ducks” reference (yet I fail miserably every time I watch Fringe).
Prior to conference play, Oregon had been beating up on teams pretty handily (we’ll forget about that 1st half against Tennessee). They have a very good defense, led by the running of LaMichael James. Defensively, they have been shutting down everybody and giving their offense plenty of time to rack up points. However, they were sloppy last week against Arizona State. They gave up too many points in the first half and the offense couldn’t get going. Oregon cannot afford defense lapses against Stanford or wasted opportunities on offense.
Stanford, on the other hand, has handled all opponents. Those include the UCLA team that beat Texas and a tough Notre Dame team (both games on the road). The high scoring Cardinal offense is led by Andrew Luck, who has been as good as you can get early on. The unheralded defense of Stanford has been able to handle all offenses they have faced with ease.
Basically, these are two high scoring offenses and two stingy defenses. Oregon has a nasty habit of being a bit lazy in the first half of games, almost wanting to play with a degree of difficulty. In order to win, they need to come out fast and not let up. Oregon, and whatever hideous jersey they break out for this game, will win, but it will be close. Remember, Ducks fly together (darn, so close).
2) No. 7 Florida at No. 1 Alabama – 8:00 on CBS
My thoughts on this game kind of parallel the Red River Shootout, you know, if Texas could have beaten UCLA. Anyway, before I start, I want to say that I like Florida, so Gator fans shouldn’t get too upset.
Five weeks into the season and Florida still lacks an identity. From week to week, you’re never really sure about the Gators. You know that the speed and athleticism of Florida will win games against lesser opponents, even if their QB is a little shaky and they lack that swagger of the Tebow era. They are a good team, but they aren’t last year’s Gators.
Alabama finally faced a challenge last week. I thought this was shocking because I never thought Arkansas was that good. I always thought Mallett could never be consistent enough to lead his team to a victory over a clearly superior team. The problem Arkansas had was they couldn’t contain the offense of Alabama all game long.
That will be the story of most games Alabama is in. The offense can be contained by a very good defense, but really can’t be stopped. They are too good at all aspects of offense to really be shut down. Plus, the defense is stingy enough to even let a lackluster performance by McElroy doom Alabama.
Florida will not be able to use their athleticism to beat Alabama, because the Tide have just as much on their side of the ball, if not more. This year isn’t the Gators year. ROLL TIDE! That never gets old (unless you’re an Auburn fan).
3) No. 22 Penn State at No. 17 Iowa – 8:05 on ESPN
The story of Penn State and Iowa is pretty much the same early in the season. Both teams beat up on lesser opponents before getting smacked down by the only quality opponent they faced. This should be fun.
Let me sum up the Penn State offense in as few words as possible. Those words are “Evan Royster”. PSU is going to lean on him early and often. Against less skilled teams, that just might work. They are going to need Royster too, since Bolden is downright terrifying….if you’re a PSU fan. PSU will also lean on their defense to stop Iowa and try and grind out the game.
Iowa can not only pass the ball effectively, but can run it too. Iowa learned from the Arizona game not to make stupid mistakes early and put yourself in an unwinnable situation, no matter how good you are. They also have one of the best defenses in the Big 10 and can handle one dimensional teams like Penn State. Iowa will focus on shutting down Royster and make Bolden throw the ball to win the game.
If you’re looking for a game with stellar defense and are not a PSU fan, this game is the one for you. Moderately low scoring affair, but Iowa wins by two touchdowns.
4) No. 21 Texas vs. No. 8 Oklahoma - 3:30 on ABC (in Dallas, TX)
The Red River Shootout at number 4?!?! Well, if Texas didn’t douse their drawers against UCLA, this would probably be number 1, but alas, here we are. Of course, the one year I can actually watch this game it doesn’t seem all that exciting.
Anyone who has seen Texas play, or at least seen highlights, knew that it was only a matter of time before they lost a game, and badly. I thought it would be against Texas Tech, and many others thought it would probably be Oklahoma. Not many thought it would be against UCLA.
Little seems to be going right for Texas coming into this game. The loss to UCLA was not a fluke. The Longhorn’s vaunted defense gave up 264 yards rushing. The Bruin’s only attempted 8 passes for 27 yards. Of course, the offense didn’t help with 4 first half turnovers. Anything that could go wrong did go wrong for Texas. Don’t expect these problems to magically disappear this week.
Speaking of problems, Oklahoma has its own problems on defense. They have the worst defense in the Big 12 in yards against. Every game has been close except FSU (who we have established isn’t that good). Seriously, they beat Air Force, Utah State, and Cincinnati by a combined 12 points. That’s not exactly a murderer’s row of teams.
Picking a winner for this game is like trying to figure out which team isn’t going to screw up the most. I personally think the Oklahoma wins it, because Lord knows Texas can’t take advantage of the inept Oklahoma defense.
5) No. 11 Wisconsin at No. 24 Michigan State – 3:30 on ABC
Not to disparage either one of these teams, but this right here is the battle for third place in the Big 10. Neither one of these teams are getting by Iowa or Ohio State (no matter how much I think OSU is overrated).
This game is weird since both teams are pretty evenly matched. Both have good, Big 10 quality QB’s, though I think the edge goes to Tolzien at Wisconsin. I’ll give the edge to Michigan State at RB, as I think their collection is slightly better than Wisconsin. Both have fairly good defensive teams.
If you look at schedule, both faced challenges against underrated, quality teams (Arizona State for Wisconsin and Notre Dame for Michigan State). So, how do you competently choose a winner in this game without flipping a coin?
Michigan State is playing at home, so they have the crowd. Plus, MSU coach Mark Dantonio will be in the coach’s box, taking his first steps to regaining the reins of the team. If that doesn’t fire up a team, I don’t know what will. MSU wins it for their coach, but it’s a close one.
6) Notre Dame at Boston College – 8:00 on ABC
HOLY WAR! If you live in the Boston area, welcome to the prime time game on ABC. Since my internet access at home is not available, I’m left hoping ESPN2 carries the Oregon/Stanford game, or else I’m stuck watching BC try and get out of its way and ND trying to blow the game in the last few minutes. Fun times!
Extra Point:
I was watching the Boise State/Oregon State game last week and glancing at the score-line along the bottom of the screen and noticed the ASU/Oregon score. It then gave me the stats for ASU QB S.Threet. That name sounded so familiar and I just couldn’t place it. I used my iPhone to look it up and realized that he used to be the starting QB for Michigan before he transferred to ASU due to the Rich Rodriguez hiring.
It made me start thinking about all the notable transfers of late, especially among QBs. When did this become common place? I remember when Brock Berlin transferred from Florida to Miami and it was huge. You couldn’t watch a Miami game without someone mentioning it. If you really look at it, I guess it makes sense. There are a number of reasons it happens.
The first is coaching change. Either the new coach has a different system than you play in or the coach who recruited you left and you want to leave too. Both of these happened to Threet, who started at Georgia Tech, then to Michigan, before landing at ASU. Ryan Mallett is another big name that left Michigan after Rodriguez signed on.
The second would be playing time. Robert Marve transferred from Miami to Purdue looking for playing time, which worked out before he got injured. Mitch Mustain left Arkansas after being replaced as starter by the horrible Casey Dick and went to USC. He still rides the pines, watching Matt Barkley throw touchdown passes. I remember when Clemson fans got scared that C.J. Spiller was going to transfer to Florida because he was playing second fiddle to James Davis. Those were bad times.
The third reason would be when you get booted from the team. Cameron Newton was back-up to Tim Tebow before he bought a stolen laptop and was looking for a new place to play, finally ending up at Auburn. Jeremiah Masoli got the boot from Oregon after robbery and drug possession charges were brought against him. He is currently taking snaps for Ole Miss.
So, are all the transfers a good thing or bad thing for college football? With coaching changes, it makes sense. If they system changes on a kid, he should be able to transfer someplace where his skills will be of more use. Playing time is sort of a gray area. Kids should know that they will have to compete for their position. The entitlement these kids feel sometimes doesn’t jive with the real world. As for getting booted off the team, this country has a long history of embracing rehabilitation of our athletes.
For the most part, transfers are a good thing for the sport as long as it doesn’t get taken too far. I don’t want Bob Stoops to be able to call up some freshman QB at Florida and ask him if he wants to play for Oklahoma. On the other hand, I don’t want a player like Robert Marve handcuffed like he was by Miami when he decided that Miami wasn’t right for him. I guess the point is that it’s good for these kids to have an out, but they should think long and hard before actually committing somewhere.
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