The Ole College Try

This is your weekly wrap-up of the college football season, told from a couple of days distance simply to let some of the stories simmer a bit and to gain a bit of perspective. I did watch quite a bit of games this weekend, although the replay and coaching issues during the Miami game may have discombobulated me for a while.

Heisman Watch (Big 12 QB edition - well except for the Defense)

Favorite - Chase Daniel - He has to be the odds on favorite now, unless he completely underperforms in a big conference game. Here is the only stat you need to see: Since he has started at QB at Missouri, they have not had a single three and out. NOT ONE! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

Sleeper - Colt McCoy - Texas - Normally a Texas QB could never be considered a sleeper, but with all the talented QBs in this conference, and since Colt McCoy is no Vince Young, this is where I will slot him for now. What? McCoy is leading the Longhorns in rushing? Probably not a good sign going into the Red River Battle, but is still impressive nevertheless.

Rising - Sam Bradford - Oklahoma - 372 yards and 2 TDs in a shellacking of Baylor. His yearly totals are 1665 yards and 18 touchdowns to date. You would think that he would be hard pressed to beat his freshman year 176.52 QB rating (which I think was the highest in college last year, but I am too lazy right now to look it up), except for the fact that his sophomore rating to date is 204.97. Read that again! Impressive huh?.

Falling - Todd Reesing - Kansas - He is having a nice season, and can no longer be considered an overachiever for last season. The same cannot be said about the Jayhawks, however.

Statistical Favorite - Graham Harrell - Texas Tech - There is a reason why I called this the Graham Harrell category earlier in the year. 454 yards and 6 TDs passing (plus 1 rushing) against Kansas State. He is also now the leading passing (yards) in Texas Tech history, having passed the prolific Kliff Kingsbury. Remember, this is the team that has passed every down for the past 33 years.

Defensive Leader - Nathan Peppers DT - South Carolina - Mississippi coming off its electric win over Florida, could have thought it was going to go on a roll to make it a very interesting SEC west battle. Peppers made sure that didn't happen by scoring on a 29 yard fumble recovery in the second quarter. This is all I can come up with, as I am holding this category for LSU's Ricky Jean-Francois Jean Luc Picard Rocket Richard Martin St. Louis Vincent Lecavalier makes good on his promise to hit Tebow really hard.

Player to Watch

Demaryius Thomas - Sophomore WR - Georgia Tech - He caught 9 passes for 230 yards in the Ramblin' Wreck's 27-0 shutout over Duke. But, more importantly, HE WAS THE ONLY YELLOW JACKET WITH A RECEPTION, as QB Jaybo Shaw completed 9 of 14 passes, all 9 to Thomas. I know a lot of receivers think that they are the only legitimate target when they step on the field. Apparently Thomas was correct. Jaybo, sounds like he should be my new favorite player.

My New Favorite Player

Sean Spence - LB - Miami - The Dude is absolutely everywhere. Just everywhere. Scored a very important TD against Florida State. Spence is going to be a star. Unless, of course, Ricky Jean-Francoise makes good on his promise. Then I'll have to retire this category.



Predicted BCS Championship Game Matchup

Oklahoma v. Alabama. With the continued emergence of Charles Scott, LSU should probably be here, and I would put them here now, but I just don't want to jinx them before this weekend's game. For now, song girls at play.


Rant(s) of the Week

1. Coaches that don't know how to work the clock when down more than 1 score. Randy Shannon had approximately a 40 yard field goal on fourth down with just over 2 minutes to go down 9. His kicker has been very good this year, and has been successful from over 50. He kicks the field goal, you try to get the onside kick, and if it is successful, you have 2 minutes to score a game winning TD. Instead, Shannon goes for it, ultimately scores the TD, but then only has 15 seconds left with no timeouts to score. The onside kick was unsuccessful anyway, but even if it was successful, no legitimate chance to score a TD. A field goal in that situation gives you the chance. Antone Smith's non-fumble call on the first TD drive notwithstanding. The play was reviewed, the ball was clearly on his hip well before going down. Ugggghhhhh!

Congratulations of the Week

To Utah - the Utes beat upstart Oregon State fresh off their upset of USC. Oregon State should have had the confidence to beat Utah, but yet, they maintained their chance at a BCS bowl with a 31-28 victory to go 6-0.

Underperformance of the Week

To Wisconsin - They failed to take advantage of a clearly underwhelming Ohio State team, losing 20-17.

Trivia Question of the Week

In honor of Bradford's atronomical, QB rating, ahem, Passing Efficiency Rating, who holds the highest single season PER and the career highest PER. This is for Division IA, folks.

Last Weeks Answer

The NCAA Division 1A record for most career games rushing over 200 yards is 11, held jointly by Marcus Allen, Ricky Williams and Ron Dayne.

Matchup(s) to Watch

1. LSU v. Florida - Two top 11 teams, LSU top 5 and undefeated, Ricky Jean-Francoise throwing down the Tebow gauntlet, 8:00 p.m. start time, the Swamp, plus, I'll be there. Definitely the matchup to watch. How and why CBS passed this game for the Tennessee - Georgia tilt, I will never know.

2. Texas v. Oklahoma - So maybe LSU/Florida isn't the most important game to watch this weekend. Showdown at high noon for Big 12 South supremacy, and an inside track to the national championship game.

3. Vanderbilt v. Mississppi State - Not because both teams are great or because this is a scintillating rivalry, but simply to see if Vandy can keep up its momentum and go 6-0 overall, and more importantly 4-0 in the SEC.

The Ole College Try

This is your weekly wrap-up of the college football season, told from a couple of days distance simply to let some of the stories simmer a bit and to gain a bit of perspective. Although you may have a different take on the past weekend, I can only truly comment on games that I have seen, and I didn't see as many as I would have liked.

Heisman Watch

(Still) Favorite - Chase Daniel QB Missouri - 36-43 for 439 and 2 TD's. He keeps rolling. If he keeps this up in conference play, hand him the trophy.

Sleeper - Glen Coffee RB Alabama - 10 carries 162 yards and 2 TDs against Arkansas this week. He has well over a 8 yards per carry average this season (404 yards on 47 carries).

Rising - Knowshon Moreno RB Georgia - 149 yards on 23 carries after traveling across the country to play at Arizona State. But, more importantly, 9 TDs on the year. As we saw with Tim Tebow last year, that is how you gain votes.

Falling - Patrick Pinckney QB East Carolina - Not bad stats against North Carolina State, but for East Carolina to win any major awards or crash the BCS bowl games they needed to go undefeated, and that opportunity is now lost.

Statistical Favorite - Graham Harrell QB Texas Tech - 322 yards and 4 TDs against UMass, but more importantly 9 TDs in the last two games. It looks like his numbers are getting ready to take off, and having the best receiver in college doesn't hurt either.

Defensive Leader - Brandon Spikes LB Florida - He has had at least 10 tackles in every single game this year, including 10 against Tennessee. Trust me, this isn't a token mention just to appease those of you that think I hate Florida. Spikes is for real. He better be, I gave an Ole Miss alum 16 1/2 points for next week's game. Ruth's Chris - hear I come.

Player to Watch

Charles Scott. Jr. RB, LSU - He is averaging 9 yards a carry and has gained over 100 yards in each of his first 3 games this year, including 132 against a stout Auburn defense.

My New Favorite Player

Still "Boo" Jackson - QB Ohio University, until someone knocks the crap out of Tebow.

Predicted BCS Championship Game Matchup

Still USC v. Oklahoma. No reason to change this now.

Rant(s) of the Week

1. Nothing really to rant about this week involving the games, so let's just say if you are going to be a fan cheering for a team, please at least know what in the hell you are talking about.

Congratulations of the Week

To Wake Forest - for beating Florida State for the 3rd time in a row, including last week in Tallahassee.

And more importantly - to SYRACUSE for actually winning, even if it was 30-21 over Northwestern

Underperformance of the Week

Northwestern - see above.

Trivia Question of the Week

John Parker Wilson of Alabama recently set school records for both TDs and total offense. Which former Tide player(s)' records did he break for each category. Answers next week.

Last Weeks Answer

Troy Edwards, Louisiana Tech has the most TD receptions in Division I history with 50

Matchup(s) to Watch

1. Alabama v. Georgia - Back to back huge conference games for Georgia, plus it is the only battle of the weekend pitting two top 10 teams against each other. This should be a great one.

2. Illinois v. Penn State - Can one or both of these teams capitalize on the suckiness that is Ohio State and the rest of the Big 10, and if so, which one? Let the Juice loose and see if the Nittany Lions can contain him.

3. Syracuse v. Pittsburgh - Can Syracuse make it two in a row? Can Dave Wannstadt learn to coach? The answers to all these, and more coming this week.

The Ole College Try

This is your weekly wrap-up of the college football season, told from a couple of days distance simply to let some of the stories simmer a bit and to gain a bit of perspective. Although you may have a different take on the past weekend, I can only truly comment on games that I have seen, but I did see portions of a lot more games than the previous weekend.

Heisman Watch

Favorite - Chase Daniel QB Missouri - He topped last weeks' 3 TD performance with another gem, going 23 - 28 for 405 yards and 4 TDs. Granted, he still will need to perform in the big games, but he is doing exactly what he needs to be doing against the non-conference portion of his schedule.

Sleeper - Michael Crabtree WR Texas Tech - 8 catches for 164 yards and 3 TDs in a pass happy offense. Even given the scheme, Crabtree still produces, and is the best performing WR in football.

Rising - Todd Reesing QB Kansas - Played magnificently in the game of the week. His stats were 34-51 for 373 yards and 2TD, but his impact was so much more. Although they lost to South Florida, the Bulls' coach specifically stated that "that QB over there is real good". He is making a name for himself in the QB rich Big 12.

Falling - Pat White QB West Virginia - Probably a week late on this mention, as he really faltered in the loss to East Carolina, but I just had to bring up Tebow last week. Unless he, and the rest of the Mountaineers really turn it on the rest of the season, this year will be a whole lot of "what could have been".

Statistical Favorite - Again, this will most likely turn out to be the Graham Harrell portion of this blog, but for a second week I have to select - Max Hall QB Brigham Young. After a 486 2 TD performance, then a 338 yard 3TD performance against Washington, all Hall did was 27-25 for only 271 yards, but 7, YES 7, Touchdowns in a 59-0 spanking of UCLA.

Defensive Leader - The entire linebacker corps of USC. The absolutely annihilated Ohio State this week, as yours truly (and any other astute observer), predicted they would. Since you have to pick someone, it might as well be Ray Maualuga, since he will get the majority of the credit.

Player to Watch

Brandon Tate, Sr./WR , North Carolina - Yes he is a senior, but he absolutely murdered Sharon and the rest of the Scarlet Knights. And since Carolina has been irrelevant since Julius Peppers graduated, he is now a player to watch.

My New Favorite Player

Still "Boo" Jackson - QB Ohio University, until someone knocks the crap out of Tebow.

Predicted BCS Championship Game Matchup

Still USC v. Oklahoma. I haven't even talked about Sam Bradford yet, but that will certainly come in future installments of the Ole College Try. In honor of this prediction:

Rant(s) of the Week

1. I don't want to belabor the point since I wrote a whole post on the topic, but why must the networks try to force named events down our throat. Everyone with half a brain knew that Ohio State didn't stand a jean shorts chance in Gainesville to beat USC last week, yet we were saturated with "Collision at the Coliseum". It was a collision all right, and in some collisions people get hurt, bad. That was Ohio State. At the risk of repeating myself, it was truly the "Suckfest in South Central".

Congratulations of the Week

To Maryland, who answered my challenge from last week and beat Cal 35-27.

Underperformance of the Week

No contest, UCLA. I would love to really rag on Ohio State here, but I didn't expect them to win, and they were without Beanie Wells. UCLA just simply didn't show up, losing 59-0 to BYU and Max Hall's 7 TD passes.

Trivia Question of the Week

Terrell Owens is now second in most TD receptions in NFL history. In honor of his feet, who is the Division 1 leader in TD receptions, and how many does he have. Answers next week.

Last Weeks Answer

As Hopps correctly pointed out, the four colleges with alums who were both President of the United States and Super Bowl starting winning QBs are:

Michigan - Gerald Ford/Tom Brady
Stanford - Herbert Hoover/Jim Plunkett, John Elway
US Naval Academy - Jimmy Carter/Roger Staubach
Miami (Ohio) - Benjamin Harrison/Ben Roethlisberger

Matchup(s) to Watch

This is the SEC edition:

1. LSU v. Auburn - Winner gets a huge leg up in the SEC West, with only Alabama and an improved Mississippi set to challenge for the division. Can LSU succeed with a Harvard transfer at QB? Does Auburn finally have what it takes to get to the top?

2. Florida v. Tennessee - Is the Florida from 2006 or from 2007? Can Jonathan Crompton torch the Florida defensive backs a la Erik Ainge?

3. Georgia v. Arizona State - The Bulldogs' secondary looked a bit suspect against South Carolina, how will they fare after traveling across the country to face a real passing attack?

The Ole College Try

This is your weekly wrap-up of the college football season, told from a couple of days distance simply to let some of the stories simmer a bit. Truth be told, I was at the Miami-University of Florida game (with it's own stories and post later this week), so I really didn't get to see a lot of football this week. Therefore, we have an abbreviated version.

Heisman Watch

Given the Beenie Wells injury, and the fact that I will most likely want to write about Knowshon Moreno later in the year, consider this an all-QB edition.

Favorite - Chase Daniel QB Missouri - He has started out like a house on fire, going 16-17 for 245 yards and 3 touchdowns this week against South Something Missouri State (OK - I know the something is supposed to be East). Coming off a Heisman-like campaign, he has reached the top of the charts for now.

Sleeper - Juice Williams QB Illinois - 124 yards passing and 174 yards rushing for 3 total touchdowns coming off a nice passing game against Missouri. Juice is an exceptionally fun player to watch, and gives the Illini a chance in every game.

Rising - Riley Skinner QB Wake Forest - All he does is play well and win games. This week he had 267 yards passing in a win over a rapidly improving Mississippi.

Falling - Tim Tebow QB Florida - He really hasn't played that well in the first two games against Hawaii and Miami. The Hurricanes defense had him really flustered for the first three quarters, until bailed out by a blatantly awful replay call. Since he doesn't have the great statistical numbers of others, he has to play well and be a "leader" as well as be multi-dimensional, which he hasn't.

Statistical Favorite - In what will most likely turn out to be the Graham Harrell portion of this blog - Max Hall QB Brigham Young. He followed up his 486 yard 2TD performance opening week with a 338 yard 3TD performance against Washington.

Defensive Leader - Myron Pryor DT Kentucky - Even before his 72 yard fumble return for a TD against Louisville, he and fellow DT Corey Peters were controlling that game. No single defensive player has had as much of an impact this year in the games I have watched.

Player to Watch

Sean Spence, FR., University of Miami - He spent practically the entire game in the Florida Gators' backfield. He is going to be an absolute monster. Star written all over him.

My New Favorite Player

Franshaw "Boo" Jackson - QB Ohio University.
Let me count the reasons why. 1. His name is Franshaw. 2. His nickname is Boo. 3. As a backup QB, he almost led Ohio University to the first victory by an Ohio school over Ohio State since Oberlin College in somewhere near 1936. 4. His hair.

Predicted BCS Championship Game Matchup

Right now, it looks as if it is USC v. Oklahoma. SEC is too tough this year, with their champion possibly having 2 or 3 losses. I expect USC to win by somewhere around 1 zillion points this week. In honor of this prediction:


Rant(s) of the Week

1. That was absolutely not an excessive celebration you morons. The fact that the Pac-10 recently stated that it's officials were correct in penalizing QB Jake Locker is even more asinine. Washington deserved the chance to send that game into overtime, or possibly, to go for 2.

2. Instant Replay is supposed to make the officiating better, not overturn the correct call. First, the ruling on the field was "incomplete pass". Second, there is nothing in the replay that conclusively shows that his elbow hit the ground in the field of play. Third, he never had full control of the ball to begin with, in bounds or out of bounds. Fourth, if you have to ask what play I am talking about you haven't been paying attention.

Congratulations of the Week

To East Carolina, who could have absolutely rested on their laurels after an upset win over Virginia Tech, but instead took it right to West Virginia, for its second upset victory to start the season. I can't see anybody in Conference USA that wants to play them right now.

Underperformance of the Week

A lot of strong candidates for this one, especially in a week in which Ohio U almost pulled off the shocker against Ohio State, San Diego State doing the same thing at Notre Dame and the aforementioned East Carolina game. However, the winner this week is the University of Maryland, who lost 24-14 against Middle Tennessee State.

Trivia Question of the Week

Four colleges have had alums that became both a President of the United States and a Super Bowl winning starting Quarterback. Name the Universities. (And for those that will ultimately ask - the Presidents and QBs are different people). Put your guesses in the comments. Answers next week.

Hopefully this week we can see some much better matchups.