Sep 28 2008
All that can be said about the weekend in college football is that it was good to be idle. Nine ranked teams went down, including three of the top four. It’s difficult to rank the degree of the upsets, but USC falling to Oregon State after looking so unbeatable against Ohio State is No. 1 for me. Georgia getting stomped at home and Florida losing to Mississippi at home were close seconds.
Who are the new favorites to advance to the BCS title game? Missouri, Oklahoma, Alabama and maybe BYU are in good position and have favorable schedules, but if the first month of the college football season has taught us anything it’s to expect the unexpected.
LSU became the first team to win the BCS championship with two losses last season and it’s looking like we’re going to have another wacky finish this season.
Here’s my top 25 ballot this week followed by a link to the new top 25.
1. Missouri
2. Oklahoma
3. Alabama
4. LSU
5. Texas
6. Penn State
7. Texas Tech
8. Auburn
9. South Florida
10. BYU
11. USC
12. Georgia
13. Florida
14. Ohio State
15. Kansas
16. Boise State
17. Utah
18. Wisconsin
19. Connecticut
20. Fresno State
21. Vanderbilt
22. Northwestern
23. Ball State
24. Virginia Tech
25. Illinois
Top 25 link
Why I voted Missouri No. 1: Once again I am a lone voice in the wilderness. One week after being only one of two people who gave a first-place vote to Georgia, I am the only person to give a first-place vote to Missouri. It was between Missouri and Oklahoma, and I like the Tigers for the top spot based on their opening week victory against Illinois. Oklahoma’s best win was against TCU, so I give the Tigers credit for their scheduling. That being said, Missouri’s defense better step up because Texas and Kansas, two future opponents during the regular season, have the potential to outscore the Tigers. If the Tigers get past those two, Oklahoma is the likely opponent in the Big 12 title game. That game has 63-56 written all over it.
Too many to rank: Remember when the Associated Press had a top 20 instead of a top 25? It’s getting harder and harder to find teams to round out my ballot from week to week. The 25th team (Illinois) on my ballot this week is 2-2.
Dark horse: Look out for South Florida as a national championship contender. The Big East is weak and the Bulls play Connecticut at home. The other tough games will be at Cincinnati on five days rest Oct. 30 and at West Virginia in the regular-season finale Dec. 6.
New on my ballot
Northwestern – Best start since 1962 for the Wildcats after an impressive 22-17 come-from-behind win at Iowa. Things are setting up well for the Wildcats, who get this week off before playing host to Michigan State and Purdue.
Ball State – Another surprise team off to a 5-0 start, the Cardinals have scored 35 points or more in every game. They appear to be the class of the Mid-American Conference.
Virginia Tech – The Hokies have rebounded nicely from that opening week loss to East Carolina. They have won four in a row, but the tough part of the ACC schedule is around the corner. After a non-conference game against Western Kentucky this week, they play three of the next four games against ACC opponents on the road.
On the cusp of my ballot
Mississippi – The Rebels are 3-2 and those two losses were close ones to Wake Forest and Vanderbilt. They’ll probably get on my ballot if they beat South Carolina at home this week.
Oklahoma State – The Cowboys are 4-0 and have scored 39 or more points in every game. No signature wins, however, so I’m waiting to see how they do in Big 12 play. They open league play this week against Texas A&M.
Maryland – Own impressive victories against California and at Clemson, but I can’t get over that loss to Middle Tennessee. Games against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech in the next month will be key for the Terrapins.
Sep 25 2008
Last week: 5-2; Season: 8-5.
This prediction stuff will be easy as long as Syracuse keeps showing up on the schedules of local teams. It is Pitt’s turn this week after Penn State whipped the Orange two weeks ago. Later, WVU will get a shot at this hapless team. Come to think of it, maybe I'll just pick against Syracuse every week no matter the opponent. I improved from a so-so first week with five out of seven in the win column last week. Here are my picks for this week:
Pitt at Syracuse – LeSean McCoy has not rushed for 100 yards in a game this season. Syracuse has allowed a back to rush for 100 yards or more in each of its three games against Division I-A opponents. If McCoy doesn’t get 100 this week, we’ll know how deep the Panthers’ problems run on offense. Pitt wins, 38-17.
Penn State vs. Illinois – The scoreboard could light up in this Big Ten clash. The Nittany Lions are averaging 52 per game while the Illini average 39 per game. I’ll give the edge to the Lions because the game is at Beaver Stadium, but it won’t be easy, 36-29.
Marshall at West Virginia – Marshall is 3-1, but the Thundering Herd’s only other game against a BCS conference team was a 51-14 loss at Wisconsin. It’s hard to figure how the West Virginia offense can be so average with Pat White and Noel Devine in the same backfield. They’ll figure it out for one week at least by beating their in-state rivals, 34-21.
TCU at Oklahoma – The Mountain West Conference has pulled off some big upsets the first few weeks of the season, and the Horned Frogs are dangerous. They have outscored its first four opponents, 172-31. The Sooners have aspirations of playing in the national championship, so I say they don’t slip up at home, 35-20.
Alabama at Georgia – The preseason No. 1 team has taken a beating in the media because the Bulldogs haven’t been overly impressive on their way to a 4-0 start. They’ll have to be more than solid as they enter a treacherous part of their SEC schedule. Alabama is much-improved, but is probably a year away from competing for a conference title. I like the Bulldogs at home, 20-17.
Purdue at Notre Dame – The Fighting Irish are susceptible to a strong rushing game, but that’s not the Boilermakers’ strong suit. The Irish have some problems scoring as well, but they will find a way to win at home, 20-19.
Colorado at Florida State – It’s almost October and the Seminoles don’t have a victory against a Division I-A team. Two blowout wins over I-AA foes were followed by a 12-3 loss against Wake Forest. The Buffaloes are 3-0, but all of those wins came at home, so I’ll take Florida State in a close one, 25-22.
Sep 25 2008
West Virginia coach Bill Stewart, who coached at the Mountain State's other Division I-A program way back when Jimmy Carter was in office in 1980, steadfastly refused to hear any such talk. Earlier this week, when the notion was raised about assistant head coach/safeties coach Steve Dunlap offering some insider-trading insight on the Marshall where he worked as defensive coordinator last season, Stewart immediately tossed it aside. Won't happen.
But offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen was willing to listen.
"It's like if we were playing Wake Forest," he teased of his former employer, "I'd throw 'em all under the bus."
Seriously, he said he planned to pick Dunlap's brain about personnel, but there is no great information to be gleaned about systems or signals because the Thundering Herd has two new coordinators. Mullen even downplayed that type of scouting report, too: "Once the ball is kicked and the first punch is thrown, none of it matters. I mean, you've got to perform."
About this governor-mandated series: Truth be told, Rich Rodriguez wasn't crazy about it. He felt the game did little to enhance the Mountaineers' strength of schedule and program overall -- if they played poorly or, as on Dec. 1, went full-monty rotten, it would only hurt them come the polls and bowls. But Stewart the successor embraces this baby as if it were a long, lost relation. Said Stew: "I can't imagine growing up in this great Mountain State and not having any kind of interest in this game. It's great for college football. Should be very, very emotional. I can't wait to whip 'em. I can't wait to punch them right in the nose. That's the way it is in a family."
Now, a celluloid moment in honor of Marshall gameday:
Sep 23 2008
It's baaaaaack: the term buyout.
Just when West Virginia administrators, donors and fans thought it was safe to jump back into contract waters, up rises that frightening fin again. Let alone the fact that the university, the fan base, the state was pulled into national attention -- talk about deep, murky waters -- by the WVU Board of Governors v. Rodriguez case, but when school officials seemingly were making an effort to get out of the business of Termination Clauses or Liquidated Damages, out comes the news about powerful people being angry that such language was inserted late into Bill Stewart's new deal.
And here's that deal.
Update: If you were wondering about how some of the Mountaineers players were responding to fans' unrest and attitude toward the somewhat embattled coach. . .
Safety Quinton Andrews: "I feel pressure to win. . . . There is always going to be pressure, and me being the person that I am, I want to do my best so Coach Stew can look really good, because I know he's trying his best. The whole team feels the same thing, and we want to keep him as our coach."
Cornerback Ellis Lankster: "We just ignore [the pressure], but at the same time we are going to respond to it to get our fans back and make them happy."
Sep 21 2008
Here is my top 25 ballot for this week followed by a link for the new top 25.
1. Georgia
2. USC
3. Missouri
4. Florida
5. Oklahoma
6. LSU
7. Texas
8. Wisconsin
9. Alabama
10. Penn State
11. Texas Tech
12. Auburn
13. Ohio State
14. South Florida
15. BYU
16. Kansas
17. Wake Forest
18. Boise State
19. Illinois
20. Utah
21. Connecticut
22. Fresno State
23. Vanderbilt
24. TCU
25. Colorado
Here's a link to the top 25
New on my ballot:
TCU – The Horned Frogs are 4-0 and have been downright dominant, outscoring their opponents, 172-31. Those first four opponents were New Mexico, Stephen F Austin, Stanford and SMU. Traveling to No. 1 Oklahoma this Saturday will be an entirely different story.
Colorado – Other voters are putting the likes of Clemson, East Carolina and Oregon on their ballots. I’ll give a little credit for a good home win over West Virginia and an unblemished record. The Buffaloes have another chance to prove the doubters wrong this week when they make a road trip to Florida State.
On the cusp of my ballot:
Clemson – The Tigers have rebounded with three consecutive wins after that season-opening debacle against Alabama. They're getting closer to resurfaciing, but only because other teams are screwing up.
East Carolina -- The Pirates are one of those teams that screwed up Saturday. Skip Holtz had a chance to put the game against N.C. State on ice with a field goal in the fourth quarter, but he decided to go for a touchdown. The move backfired, and the Wolfpack came back to tie the score and send it into overtime, where they won it. Holtz single-handedly lost the game, and now the Pirates have no chance of going to a BCS bowl game. That's not the way to get a better job, Skip.
Other thoughts…
*Yes, I still have Georgia No. 1 on my ballot. The Bulldogs had an impressive victory at Arizona State. It never gets easy in the SEC. Next up is a home date with No. 9 Alabama.
*At least three conferences are having “down” years. The Big Ten, Pac-10 and Big East have had their share of struggles against teams from mid-major conferences. I wonder if I’ll live to hear the words: “It’s a down year for the SEC.” I’m thinking not.
*BYU is getting people’s attention with their last two games. The Cougars beat Wyoming and UCLA by a combined score of 103-0. They are getting more respect than Penn State, which has been even more dominant overall in its first four games.
*Northwestern hasn’t exactly been awe-inspiring on its way to its first 4-0 start since 1962, but the Wildcats could be on their way to having a very nice season because the schedule is in their favor. They don’t have to play Wisconsin or Penn State. The first ranked team on the schedule is Ohio State on Nov. 8. Voters are starting to put them on their ballots, but I’m going to wait to see how they do the next few weeks at Iowa and at home against Michigan State.
Sep 18 2008
With each passing week, another Penn State player raves about the ability of starting tailback Evan Royster.
He leads the Nittany Lions in rushing with 306 yards and six touchdowns.
Royster is averaging 8.1 yards per carry and has put together back-to-back 100-yard games entering Saturday’s contest against temple at Beaver Stadium.
The redshirt sophomore is quickly becoming a folk hero.
He has been dubbed "Rolls Royster" and there was a sign in the student section two weeks ago that read "Blue Royster Cult."
Royster initially didn’t know anything about the American rock band "Blue Oyster Cult" that formed in New York in 1967 and it still somewhat active today.
"I actually saw a Facebook page about it, and it cracked me up," he said. "But I had never heard of it. Someone said they sang a song about a cowbell."
Royster didn’t play against Temple last year. He carried the ball just once in Penn State’s 31-0 victory before leaving with a sprained ankle.
Safety Anthony Scirrotto said Royster "cuts very nice, he has breakaway speed. I think people underestimate his speed and don't realize how fast he is until he's running by them."
-- Ron Musselman
More Cowbell for Walken, More Royster for PSU.
Sep 18 2008
Last week: 3-3; Season: 3-3
I picked against a couple of home teams last week and it cost me, but I'm a glutton for punishment. I'm going with four more visiting teams this week in my picks. Here's my take on seven of this week's biggest games, including my take on the Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia games.
West Virginia at Colorado: The Buffaloes and Mountaineers each had last week off, so there is no bye week advantage in this game. Neither squad has a very good feeling after their last game. The Mountaineers were embarrassed at East Carolina, 24-3, and the Buffaloes barely squeaked by Eastern Washington, 31-24. I’ll take Colorado for no other reason than the home-field advantage, 20-19.
Iowa at Pitt: The Hawkeyes have not allowed a touchdown in their first three games. The Panthers have had trouble moving the ball consistently on offense. This doesn’t seem like a hard game to pick, so why overanalyze? I’ll pick Iowa, 24-13.
Temple at Penn State: The Owls are 1-2, but they probably deserve a better fate. They lost to Buffalo last week on the last play of the game. Even if they were undefeated it wouldn’t mean a thing this week. Penn State is looking like a Big Ten contender and the game is at Beaver Stadium. I’ll take the Nits, 38-20.
Florida at Tennessee: We’ll have a pretty good idea over the next few weeks whether Phillip Fulmer will return as head coach of the Volunteers next season. In the next month, the Vols will play three teams that are currently in the top 10. Tennessee had better win this week because the Vols have to go to Auburn and Georgia on Sept. 27 and Oct. 11. I don’t think it happens, Gators win, 30-27.
Boise State at Oregon: Fresno State saw its BCS hopes take a hit last week when it lost to Wisconsin. Now the lone remaining BCS hopeful from the WAC goes to Oregon to keep its hopes alive. I like the Broncos to stay close, but Oregon is too tough at home, 31-24.
LSU at Auburn: It was apparent that Auburn has some problems on offense after last week’s 3-2 win over Mississippi State. This was a Mississippi State team, mind you, that lost to Louisiana Tech in its opener. LSU can play offense and defense, so I’ll take the Bayou Bengals in a low-scoring affair, 20-13.
Georgia at Arizona State: It is being hypothesized that the Sun Devils were looking ahead to this game, and that’s the reason they lost to UNLV. But good teams don’t let that happen. Georgia was solid in a road win at South Carolina last week, so I’ll take the Bulldogs on the road, 34-20.
Sep 17 2008
A look at what's going on in college football around the nation.
Remember Willie Williams? The former Miami Hurricane linebacker who had his share of off-field problems is starting over at Union College in Kentucky.
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel says Terrelle Pryor will compete with starter Todd Boeckman for more playing time this week before the Buckeyes play host to Troy.
Chris Dufresne of the L.A. TImes writes about Mike Stoops' struggles at Arizona.
Texas A&M receiver Jeff Fuller is trying to follow in his father's footsteps. The elder Fuller played for the 49ers and won three Super Bowls.
Eric Prisbell of the Washington Post writes about how the Internet gave an obscure Maryland defensive back his 15 minutes of fame.
Sep 15 2008
Colorado should expect to see Thursday in its own Folsom Field: middle linebacker Reed Williams and receiver Wes Lyons of Woodland Hills High for the first times this season, and more of tailback Noel Devine.
Hey, Coach Bill Stewart claims he tells his Mountaineers nothing but the truth, so help him, so why would he deceive the stinking media?
Stewart today, approaching his first game as the official, signed, sealed and contract-delivered head coach of West Virginia, pronounced a few new wrinkles for the Buffaloes:
* "Reed Williams will play," Stewart said of the 2007 team-leading tackler and Fiesta Bowl defensive MVP, who had offseason surgery on both shoulders. "We had a talk yesterday, Reed, myself and the medical people. Reed Williams is going to let it go. We couldn't block him [Sunday in practice]. And I was, like, 'Wow.' He's ready to go. Brings another level of excitement to our team. Moxie, swagger. . . what's a good buzzword? He brings a presence to us.
"He's just one guy, but he's one special guy. I left it up to him. I left it up to our medical people. He felt like he should go. Be good to have old Reed out there." Williams' return also means Gateway's Mortty Ivy can return to strong-side linebacker from the middle.
* "We'll play Wes Lyons more at receiver 'cause he's earned it," Stewart continued of the junior receiver slow to recover from August arthroscopic knee surgery. "I told him that when you show me you could go two hard weeks, then we'll get you in there and we'll play you. Wes Lyons will get in there this week. He'll help us."
* The diminutive dynamo Dynamo (with Jock Sanders what Stewart calls his Mighty Mites), after 15 touches in each of the opening two games, will get the ball a lot more often somehow, someway, the coach added. (You think the Buffs read these enemy-territory blogs/sites or listen to those internet-archived news conferences? Nahhhh.) "Dagnabit," said Stewart, who last week vowed more belly-option runs. "I wish you hadn't brought that up. He needs to get the ball more. You can't just have 54 plays a game, that's first and foremost. If he can tough it 18 to 22 times out of the backfield, five to seven times on screens and that. . . . We've got to get him in the rhythm, get him in the flow. We will really try to get the ball in the little guys' hands more, yes we will."
Stewart also said that he expected to play one or more backup offensive lineman -- most likely Seneca Valley's Don Barclay, moved from left tackle and currently listed as right tackle Selvish Capers' backup. Another depth-chart change was the switch of Pat Liebig to starting defensive end, ahead of Weirton's Zac Cooper and Larry Ford, with end Julian Miller moving to backup nose tackle -- Liebig's previous spot -- behind Chris Neild.
Speaking of Stewart's new contract, announced late last week in the wake of that East Carolina loss, it should be noted that the man without an agent needed roughly eight months and nine days to formally complete the deal -- a scant 10 days shorter than the purported Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight, Rich Rodriguez's team. And the new guy didn't even have one of those wieldy buyout clauses, making him the second of the past three newly signed Mountaineers coaches to go without one. Women's basketball coach Mike Carey was the other, last February, just days after lawyers representing the university filed the lawsuit against Rodriguez over that doodad.
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