The Ole College Try

 

UPSETS, UPSETS, UPSETS.  And even then, that isn't enough upsets, as 5 of the Top 7 in the Associated Press poll fell over the weekend.  This gives rise to a new #1 - THE U!!!  The world is a better place when the U is prominent in NCAA Football!  Not just for me as a fan, but because there are so many haters that thrive when the U is good as well.  It all just seems rights.  Remember, Miami is the most culturally relevant college football team ever.  ESPN made FOUR - count them 4 - 30 for 30s centered on the program.  And the way they ascended to the top with a double-overtime thriller against a less-than-stellar FSU has brought out all of the haters.  Here is how Miami became #1, at least until Notre Dame week (if not before).

Welcome to the Ole College Try, which is my take on college football via a weekly column on college football after each weekend's games.  The column is meant to be a recap of the season to date, with an emphasis on last week's games.  I write this column as if every player is a Heisman Trophy candidate. Why? Because it is ridiculously ludicrous (is there any other kind of ludicrous, besides Ludacris?) that the networks, including the World-Wide Leader, nay, especially the World-Wide Leader, emphasize the Heisman Trophy race all season at the expense of everything else.  Consider this my sarcastic homage to stupid reporting.

Heisman Watch

Quarterback Edition

Favorite - Darian Mensah - Miami - Yes Miami struggled, but that was primarily a defensive problem.  Mensah was outstanding going 23/34 for 326 yards and 3 TDs, with 1 interception - his first of the year (against 18 TDs).  All this for the now #1 ranked Miami Hurricanes.  

Rising - Drew Mestemaker - Oklahoma State.  Yes Oklahoma State lost its ranked-versus-ranked battle with Houston 35-32, but Mestemaker performed eerily similar to Mensah, going 22/34 for 365 yards, 3 TDs, and 1 pick.  Mestemaker is quickly rising up draft boards, and will containue to do so with this type of play.

Sleeper - Bear Bachmeier - BYU - Hard to say he is a true sleeper as he helms the number 2 ranked team in the country, but he still really is.  With BYU's starting RB out of this game, the entirety of this game fell on Backmeier's shoulders, and he delivered in a 28-24 win over Notre Dame.  With his arm he was 23/36 for 224 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception, and with his legs Backmeier rushed for 45 yards and 2 TDs.

Falling - Julian Sayin - Ohio State - Hate to put him here because it is because of injury not performance, as Ohio State outlasted Indiana 19-15.

Falling - Arch Manning - Texas - Who are we kidding?  Manning is dangerously close to losing his job.

Running Back Edition

Favorite - DeSean Bishop - Tennessee - Carried the offensive burden as the Volunteers defeated Alabama 26-10 at home behind Bishop's 159 yards and 2 TDs - on 32 carries!!!

Rising - Kewan Lacy - Mississippi - The preseason All-American is finally rounding into form as the Mississippi running back led the Rebels to a 31-3 thumping over Missouri, gaining 122 yards on the ground.

Falling - Jamal Roberts- Missouri - The Tiger running back fell back to earth in a game that featured Kewan Lacy on the other side, gaining only 39 yards on 20 carries (he did catch 2 balls for 21 yards).

Sleeper - Javian Mallory - Miami - It was the freshman's time to shine as the feature in the four-headed monster backfield of the Hurricanes, gaining 108 yards on 13 carries and scoring 2 TDs to pace Miami's running game.

Wide Receiver Edition

Favorite - Jeremiah Smith - Ohio State - A very pedestrian day for the Heisman favorite, who - in a tough game against Indiana - caught only 4 balls for 68 yards, but a very important TD in a 19-15 victory over the defending champions.

Rising - Malachi Toney - Miami - Turned on the moves when needed against a very game Florida State, finishing with 11 catches, 154 yards, and 2 TDs.  He also threw the successful two-point conversion pass to Cooper Barkate to give Miami its 8-point lead in double overtime.

Sleeper - Jesse Legree - Oregon State - The proverbial portal is open (technically not yet) for the freshman phenom who hauled in 8 balls for 108 yards and 2 TDs as Oregon State defeated Washington State 48-30.  Legree has 46 catches for 1,040 yards and 14 TDs on the season, the last two stats are leaders in the country.  

Falling - Cam Coleman - Texas - Only 3 catches for 18 yards (albeit one was a touchdown) in a 27-24 home loss to the Florida Gators.  His main problem is going to be the ongoing quarterback controversy surrounding Arch Manning.

Defensive Edition

5.  Florida Defense - After getting curb-stomped by Missouri and South Carolina in back-to-back weeks, and giving up a touchdown and a field goal to Texas on the Longhorns' first two possessions, the Gators defense not only showed up, but showed out - holding the Longhorns to only 7 offensive points after that (one TD was a punt return by Ryan Niblett - my pre-season All-American), and limiting Texas to 272 total yards and sacked Arch Manning a total of 5 times - possibly knocking him out of college football for good if he doesn't keep his job this week in practice.

4.  Colin Simmons - EDGE - Texas - The best defensive player in college football had a great three quarters + against the Gators, finishing with 8 tackles, 1 sack, and 4 tackles for loss.  He is this far down the list only because he also finished the game on the sideline with an apparent knee injury.  No reports to date as to if - or how long - he will be out.  He leads the NCAA with 10 1/2 sacks.

3.  Bryce Fitzgerald - S - Miami - 1 really big interception in the end zone on the last play of double overtime to seal the 8-point Miami victory over Florida State.

2.  Jordan Ross - EDGE - LSU - Ross had 3 sacks in LSU's win over Mississippi State, and recorded a PFF score of 93.9.  Just dominiting.

1.  Nicholas Rodriguez - LB - Missouri - Even though Missouri lost to Mississippi, it isn't through any fault of Rodriguez's, as he amassed 13 total tackles against the Rebels for an FBS-leading 76.

  

Player(s) to Watch

Tommy Carr, QB, Michigan.  Not only is he second-fiddle in his family right now behind Notre Dame's C.J. Carr, he also plays behind one of the highest paid NIL QB's in college Bryce Underwood.  But when Underwood was pulled against Penn State, Tommy Carr stepped right in and delivered a 21-18 victory over the Penn State Nittany Lions.  He was only 5/11 for 43 yards with 2 Interceptions, but he was able to rush for 36 yards and a TD as the Wolverines pulled out the win.

My New Favorite Player
K.J. Duff - WR - Rutgers - A (usually) weekly mention in the Wide Receiver section of this blog, Duff has just become one of my favorite players to watch - hauling in 9 catches for 113 yards and 2 TDs, with many of his catches of the acrobatic variety.

Players of the Week

6.  Michael Hawkins - QB - West Virginia - Threw for 464 yards and 3 TDS (25/53 passing) - in a 45-42 victory over Cincinnati.

5.  Malachi Toney - WR - Miami - 11 catches, 154 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 thrown 2-point conversion in Miami's double OT win against FSU.

4.  Charlie Smith - QB - Harvard - He finished 19/32 for 297 yards and 1 TD, with an additional 26 yards on the ground as Harvard - one of only 3 remaining undefeated teams in FCS - defeated Holy Cross 30-7, setting up a top-of-the table matchup with Princeton next week.

3.  Terrance Burgess - RB - Texas State - Ran for 224 yards on 24 carries, and scored 4 TDs in Texas State's victory over Colorado State.

2.  Jordan Ross - EDGE - LSU - Finished with 3 sacks in a blowout win over Mississippi State.

1.  Cole Hellums - QB - Army - Ran for 195 yards and 5 TDs as Army trounced FAU 58-24.

Goat of the Week (Player Edition)

Bryce Underwood - QB - Texas - All of the hype, all of the NIL money, and all of the underperformance.  This could also describe last week's "Goat of the Week (Player Edition)" Arch Manning.  The only difference is that Manning is still the QB1 for Texas (at the moment), and Michigan benched Underwood in favor of Tommy Carr, who led the team to a win.  So, now not only is Bryce Underwood the Goat of the Week, he is likely the "(Scape)Goat of the Year."

Goat of the Week (Coach Edition)

Steve Sarkisian - Texas - The SEC is a gauntlet; Every game is a challenge in the SEC; Anybody can beat Anybody in the SEC; blah, blah, blah.  Since technically all this is true, you can forgive the slip-up against Oklahoma in the rivalry game at a neutral field.  But you are supposed to bounce-back in a home game the next week against a reeling conference foe.  Not only did Texas not do that, it is obvious that the coaching staff is afraid to put the game in Arch Manning's hands.  The playbook is simplified, and Manning looks downfield only on occasions, and even then only if the defense makes a mistake.  If this coaching staff is scared to give the game to the starting quarterback - the team isn't ready and a quarterback switch needs to be made.  I don't care if the QB is the fourth best Manning in SEC history.

Predicted Playoffs Semi-Final Match Ups (By Seeding Only)

(1) BYU v. (4) Notre Dame/Ohio State (2) v. Miami (3) (The pending BYU-Utah game could be HUGE for seeding!

Final Unbeatens

FBS - BYU, James Madison, Miami, Texas Tech, UCLA, Utah

FCS - Harvard, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State

Rant(s) of the Week

Same as last week, except switch "Big 12" and "ACC" for "SEC."  The officiating has just GOT TO GET BETTER!!!

 

Under Performance of the Week

Missouri Tigers.  Coming off two very big wins in a row against Florida and Texas A&M and heading into a very difficult environment to play a tough Mississippi team, we all expected Missouri to show up, play hard, and give the Rebels a run for their money.  They did not, getting shellacked 31-3.  This puts them at 5-2 with Texas, Georgia, Kentucky, and Oklahoma up  next.

Mississippi State also did not show up - getting blitzed 31-0 by LSU, but losing injured QB Kamario Taylor will do that - so I will absolve them from this distinction this week.

Last Week's Trivia Answer

The question was:  Inspired by Kingston Lopa, what is the NCAA FBS record for most interceptions in a season?

The answer is:  Gerod Holliman of Louisville, with 14 in 2014

Trivia Question of the Week

This was upset week, so let's ask a question about upsets.  When was the last time an AP #1 ranked team lost to an unranked opponent, who lost and who won?

Match-up(s) to Watch

6. Princeton v. Harvard - As has been the norm, so long as Harvard is undefeated, they will remain on this list.  The two top teams in the conference (Princeton 4-1 overall; 2-0 in conference/Harvard 5-0 overall; 2-0 in conference) face a battle to knock off each other from the top of the Ivies.

5. James Madison v. Appalachian State - James Madison is still undefeated under Billy Napier, as they play perennial power Appalachian State to look to stay undefeated and in the pole position for a playoff birth.

4. Pittsburgh v. Miami - This game was potentially really compelling before Pittsburgh lost its last two games to North Carolina and Boston College; but it is still interesting to see how Miami reacts to that super-tough rivalry double-overtime game against Florida State this past weekend and to being ranked number 1 for the first time since 2002.  Can they be caught sleeping as they lead up to Notre Dame?

3. Mississippi v. Texas - Trinidad Chambliss is amazing and Mississippi has been playing great; but the intrigue here is does Arch Manning play the entire game?

2. LSU v. Auburn - Auburn is heading home for its first game after upsetting then-number 1 ranked Georgia in Athens.  The Tigers (War Eagle?  Plainsmen?) have Uber-Talented Bryum Brown at QB.  Could a second-straight upset be in the works?

1. Houston v. Utah - Undefeated and 10th-ranked Utah hosts number 14 6-1 Houston, whose only lost came on the road to number 8 and also undefeated Texas Tech by the close margin of 28-26.  This game could be incredibly close, and GAMEDAY should be in Utah for a second straight week.

Special Mention of the Week

North Dakota State's Jackson Williams returned a 57-yard missed field goal 100 yards for a touchdown, icing a 41-17 victory over Nevada in a play popularized by Devin Hester and made famous by Auburn - a Kick-Six!