*Official* 2007 College Football Thread

[SnakeCharmer]

Seems like I heard that the reason for the mob scene end zone celebration was for UGA's antics on the Vandy 50 yard line logo.  Richt challenged them in such that if they are going to act like that towards a team like Vandy, they better have the balls to do it against a team like Florida.  I don't agree with it, as it was a classless move either way.  Odd move from Richt, he's been one of the classiest coaches around since he took the head job at UGA.  Very unlike him.

[Paelos]

Call it unclassy if you like. That "act like you've been there" is from a white-dominated bygone era before huge drafts, huge NFL contracts, and end-zone dancing. You either embrace/ignore/tolerate it in football or continue to be the old dude in the back raging against the machine. The truth is that fans love the emotion of college sports. That's why they watch. You may disagree with how much emotion is appropriate and the way it can manifest itself, but we took our penalties, kicked off from the 7 yard line, and played a great game all the way through.

I was embarrassed by trying to bunnyhop on the Vandy logo because that's taunting a team who is last in the league in a game you were favored in after the game is over. I'll never be embarrassed by anything we do against Florida, ever. Sacrifice goats, talk smack, dance after every sack, I don't give a shit. Play a clean/classy season the rest of the way, but win that damn game no matter what. Florida fans don't deserve any respect from us, nor would i EVER expect or have seen any from them.

[cmlancas]

Paelos is right. UF football fans are possibly more obnoxious than any other sports fan ever.

[SnakeCharmer]

It doesn't matter if UF is obnoxious. 

And yes, have some freakin' class.  And yes, 'act like you've been there'.  I played a div I baseball.  I started for 3 years.  I've hit home runs.  I've hit game winning hits.  I've made the game winning play.

I've been there.

Chad Johnson needs a bullet between the eyes, along with anyone else that brings singluar attention to themselves.  People celebrate making a goddamn tackle.  For doing their goddamn JOB.  I've got no problem with team wide game winning play celebration.  Or the offensive team as whole celebrating together, or whatever unit was on the field at the time.  But the first touchdown?  Gimme a break.  That wasn't emotion in college sports, Paelos.  It was an instruction by Richt for his team acting like jackasses at Vandy, and he admitted as such.  It was planned.  It may as well have been Terrell Owens pulling out the Sharpie.

It was without a doubt, completely lacking in class.

Be better than them.

[Paelos]

There's no point in being classier than Florida fans on the football field. By simply breathing air you've already won that battle. These people pick fights after WINS, wear jean shorts and gold chains to football games, yell obsenities at families with small children, throw beers on people, and wait in the parking lots to get in the face of fans coming out of the actual game even if they didn't get in. If you think I'm going to worry about our team effecting their delicate sensibilites of fair play, you've got another thing coming. You've also got another thing coming if you believe Saban wouldn't do the same thing against Auburn if they had lost 15 out of the last 17 and he knew it would give them the edge.

Second, I'm not sure where you are pulling this "reaction to Vandy" stuff, but it's out of your ass. Vandy had nothing to do with what was planned. Why would it? Richt tossed their asses off the Star after the win, and that was it. He said he planned the penalty, but he never connected those events publically, and I don't think he told them how to get said penalty. Honestly, do you think Richt believes that having all the players run out there is THAT big a deal? Come on, take a look at what happened. It was simply a ploy to get fans into a game that was supposed to be horribly lopsided. If you love the team-wide winning celebration, would you have condoned the Vandy stomp? I personally think that's 10x worse.

Third, you played baseball. That's so very apples and oranges it's not even worth noting, but you're still not right about celebrations there either. I've seen plenty of college baseball games in my life from the cold seats in early February all the way through the season. I've seen Georgia Tech players vault over their own railings after home runs. I've seen the entire Oregon team walk out of the dugout to celebrate every single home run. I've seen players pose on home runs. I've seen the coach argue calls chasing the umpire into left field just to defend his players. I've seen buckets of balls thrown on the field for bad calls to get the crowd pumped up. Explain to me how this is any different than strategically sending your players onto the field to take a minor penalty? People get thrown out of baseball games to make a point, and it never looks classy.

[SnakeCharmer]

It's not the sport that matters.  What I'm saying is that as a competitor, I've been there and competed at the highest level of college athletics.  There's no room for it, regardless of sport.  I'm not saying it's justified in baseball.  It's not.  How you went from A to Z in that regard, I'll never know.

The Vandy stomp had no class.
The time wide end zone celebration on the first touchdown had no class.
Any overt celebration that brings singular attention to a player regardless of sport (unless it's solo such as golf, tennis, etc) has no class.

Act like you've been there.  Expect to score.  Expect to win.  Expect greatness.

Anything else is amateur hour.

It's your own insecurities at play if you can't handle that.

[Paelos]

You're living in the past then. Football isn't like that anymore. Blame it on the a lot of factors including the money, the TV, the culture, or whatever. You're never going to go back to the days of handing the football to the official after a TD because these are kids and that's boring. Personally, I think it's the media frenzy and the ESPN highlights, but I've learned to embrace certain parts of the game. I enjoy a little flash in football. I don't enjoy taunting another team. There's a difference there.

[Paelos]

Oh and as a side-note. 68% of fans polled on ESPN thought it was a good call. Kirk also agreed that it was a great call to get after Florida early knowing the consequences and draw a line in the sand.

[Hoax]

I am glad every time I see Ohio State players find the ref and toss him the ball after a TD.  I like that the players always say "the ohio state university" as well.

I also thought the UGA move was a smart one and if it got his players into the game and fired up more power to the coach.  I also thought it was a pretty cool thing to tell his players to do.

As for the Chad Johnson comment, god what a fucking tard.  Seriously just shut the fuck up, he deserves a bullet between the eyes?  That's exactly what I expect from a poster with your history of spouting stupid bullshit that doesn't need to be brought up again.  Fuck off and die in a fire, stupid clown of a bama fan...   

[Nebu]

I am glad every time I see Ohio State players find the ref and toss him the ball after a TD. 

When I played in college, my coach always told us "When you score a TD, act like you've been in the endzone before."  I always felt that a sense of humility was good for the game... and I always had a deep respect for my coach.  Well, at least until the bastard took a job at Notre Dame. 

Then again... maybe that was Tom Landry that said that.  Damn, I'm old.

[SnakeCharmer]

I am glad every time I see Ohio State players find the ref and toss him the ball after a TD.  I like that the players always say "the ohio state university" as well.

I also thought the UGA move was a smart one and if it got his players into the game and fired up more power to the coach.  I also thought it was a pretty cool thing to tell his players to do.

As for the Chad Johnson comment, god what a fucking tard.  Seriously just shut the fuck up, he deserves a bullet between the eyes?  That's exactly what I expect from a poster with your history of spouting stupid bullshit that doesn't need to be brought up again.  Fuck off and die in a fire, stupid clown of a bama fan...   

LMAO!  Good God, you seriously need to take your lithium.  I'm not the one making it about race, though I can see you are.   When Keyshawn Johnson says its too much and is a detriment to your team, you know you've gone over the top.

I YOU!  Come snuggle with me.

Oh and as a side-note. 68% of fans polled on ESPN thought it was a good call. Kirk also agreed that it was a great call to get after Florida early knowing the consequences and draw a line in the sand.

Lots of people bought Britney Spears albums, also.

General public /= intelligence.  See this guy for a perfect example.

You're living in the past then. Football isn't like that anymore. Blame it on the a lot of factors including the money, the TV, the culture, or whatever.

Agreed.

You're never going to go back to the days of handing the football to the official after a TD because these are kids and that's boring. Personally, I think it's the media frenzy and the ESPN highlights

Agreed.  It's made home run hits unbearable.

but I've learned to embrace certain parts of the game. I enjoy a little flash in football. I don't enjoy taunting another team. There's a difference there.

You don't think the TEAM wide end zone celebration was taunting?

[cmlancas]

Damn. You just Bruced a football thread.


 

[Paelos]

Wow, yeah that SirBrucing killed the mood. Anyway, I liked it and that's all that matters to me, so I'll move on to this week in College football. Time for more of my BOLD PREDICTIONS FOR THE WEEK!

Wisconsin @ Ohio State - Wisconsin sucks sucks SUCK on the road. I used to think there was an upset chance here at the beginning of the season, but it's passed.
Florida State @ BC - This is the one where BC falls down. They had ZERO on offense until the last 2 minutes against Va Tech, but Bowden finally kills the dream here.
LSU @ Bama - Wow, this is the SEC game of the week, and the last ranked team LSU has to play. I'm picking Bama in this one due to the asskicking they handed Tennessee.
Arizona St. @ Oregon - Arizona State beat Cal, and Oregon didn't. They get the edge in this one even though it's a home game for the Ducks.

[Rasix]

It's a slight, slight chance, but I really want ASU to end up undefeated before the UofA game.  I would just absolutely love to be there when UofA spoils theirs season.  It would be tasty.  ASU fans are so fucking annoying; it'd be great to see their hopes smashed. 

[Paelos]

It's a slight, slight chance, but I really want ASU to end up undefeated before the UofA game.  I would just absolutely love to be there when UofA spoils theirs season.  It would be tasty.  ASU fans are so fucking annoying; it'd be great to see their hopes smashed. 

While it would be nice, UofA has no real running threat at all. I can coach a defense against any team that doesn't have a running game. Not to mention that they give up 4 TDs a game on average.

I don't see it at all. Even if ASU beats Oregon, they'll still be on the outside looking in.

[WayAbvPar]

Oregon is going to wipe the floor with ASU. ASU is a paper tiger.

[sigil]

Wow, stop  watching the boards  for a week or two and  they go to shit.

Where's the love?

I'd love for Bama to win against LSU, but I'm not planning on it.

[Rasix]

It's a slight, slight chance, but I really want ASU to end up undefeated before the UofA game.  I would just absolutely love to be there when UofA spoils theirs season.  It would be tasty.  ASU fans are so fucking annoying; it'd be great to see their hopes smashed. 

While it would be nice, UofA has no real running threat at all. I can coach a defense against any team that doesn't have a running game. Not to mention that they give up 4 TDs a game on average.

I don't see it at all. Even if ASU beats Oregon, they'll still be on the outside looking in.

Ohh yah, we have a terrible defense this year (which makes no sense) and no run blocking at all. Kind of a bizarro UofA team, complete with a potentially high scoring passing attack (WTF). It's a rivalry game though, anything can and has happened in that game.

I do expect ASU to lose once if not twice before they get to us though.  They are never as good as their record.   One can hope.

[Hoax]

I just can't see USC dropping too many games in a single year, so I expect them to beat ASU & Cal though Cal has so thoroughly collapsed it would be just like them to FINALLY beat USC after totally fucking up their season.

[Triforcer]

I'll feeling uneasy about the OSU/Wisconsin game- this week just screams "letdown from Penn State+ looking forward to Michigan."  Nonetheless, it is in Columbus- I predict something like a 16-9 victory.

I do want to see Bama beat LSU (and I think they'll pull it off).  I have zero connection to them, but I've always like Bama the  best of all southern teams, for some reason.

[Abagadro]

Probably nostalgia for Paul Bryant's hat.

[Montague]

I just can't see USC dropping too many games in a single year, so I expect them to beat ASU & Cal though Cal has so thoroughly collapsed it would be just like them to FINALLY beat USC after totally fucking up their season.

I think USC is due for a fall. McKnight is good, but Chow isn't there anymore and some of Petey's "number one guys" aren't panning out. Carroll always won by overwhelming the opposition with mismatches, and those mismatches are becoming fewer and far between. We'll see what Carroll has when he actually starts having to gameplan to win a game.

[Daeven]

It's a slight, slight chance, but I really want ASU to end up undefeated before the UofA game.  I would just absolutely love to be there when UofA spoils theirs season.  It would be tasty.  ASU fans are so fucking annoying; it'd be great to see their hopes smashed. 

That would be cool, but Oregon is going to eat ASU this weekend. But regardless, go 'cats.

[Daeven]

I just can't see USC dropping too many games in a single year, so I expect them to beat ASU & Cal though Cal has so thoroughly collapsed it would be just like them to FINALLY beat USC after totally fucking up their season.

Longshore is back. Cal beats USC.

[Paelos]

I'm kind of shocked that nobody has posted the big HA-HA at Matt Ryan and his BC team. The fact that he is even considered for the Heisman is a freaking joke. You can't throw 11 interceptions in 9 games and be a contender for that award.

[Paelos]

Wisconsin @ Ohio State - Wisconsin sucks sucks SUCK on the road. I used to think there was an upset chance here at the beginning of the season, but it's passed.
Florida State @ BC - This is the one where BC falls down. They had ZERO on offense until the last 2 minutes against Va Tech, but Bowden finally kills the dream here.
LSU @ Bama - Wow, this is the SEC game of the week, and the last ranked team LSU has to play. I'm picking Bama in this one due to the asskicking they handed Tennessee.
Arizona St. @ Oregon - Arizona State beat Cal, and Oregon didn't. They get the edge in this one even though it's a home game for the Ducks.

Well let's see how these held up.
In the win column, Ohio State did crush a shitty Wisconsin team.
Florida State did beat up on a BC team that couldn't get diddly shit done on offense, and FSU should have blown them out by even more according to their time of possession.

In the loss column, Bama. Dammit Bama you freaking had them. It was right there. You blew it.
Arizona State looked like shit. I should have gone with my original pick of the Ducks, but I dared to dream.

[Abagadro]

I found this interesting

Stength of Schedule to date

Ohio State 116
Kansas 117

Thats out of 119 teams total.

[Triforcer]

I found this interesting

Stength of Schedule to date

Ohio State 116
Kansas 117

Thats out of 119 teams total.

http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/current_congrove_rankings.html

These are the figures all the analysts are using, I don't know what that is that you are citing...a preseason projection maybe?

Anyway, that sort of thing is a self-fulfilling prophecy.  When a good SEC team blasts another SEC team for their third loss, its proof of how brilliant the conference is and the three loss team is ranked 15th or 20th (and possibly given a very slightly smaller parade and statue by the critics than the victor).  When OSU blasts someone like Penn State or Wisconsin (and possibly Illinois and Michigan) all of these teams dive completely out of all the rankings because they suck and have three losses. 

[Trippy]

I found this interesting

Stength of Schedule to date

Ohio State 116
Kansas 117

Thats out of 119 teams total.

http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/current_congrove_rankings.html

Stanford is #2 in SoS? I also like how the top 11 in SoS has 9 PAC-10 teams.

[Montague]

I found this interesting

Stength of Schedule to date

Ohio State 116
Kansas 117

Thats out of 119 teams total.

"For this reason, when comparing schedule strength, it's best to only look at teams of comparable ranking. There's an inevitable bias toward the top teams having a seemingly "weak" schedule, and the bottom teams having a "strong"schedule. However, this bias is not in any way included in the rankings - the strength of schedule measures are computed only after the rankings are computed."

Greenfield's Rankings:

1. Ohio State
2. Kansas
3. Oregon
4. LSU
5. Missouri

Greenfield's SOS rankings are always messed up. You can only really compare teams with similar losses. If OSU loses to Illinois, their SOS shoots up 30-40 spots. Every other predictor has OSU's schedule as middle of the road, 60ish.

[Paelos]

Anyway, that sort of thing is a self-fulfilling prophecy.  When a good SEC team blasts another SEC team for their third loss, its proof of how brilliant the conference is and the three loss team is ranked 15th or 20th (and possibly given a very slightly smaller parade and statue by the critics than the victor).  When OSU blasts someone like Penn State or Wisconsin (and possibly Illinois and Michigan) all of these teams dive completely out of all the rankings because they suck and have three losses. 

Uh, yeah. It's called parity. Conferences shouldn't have a team running away with the thing every year, or that conference is playing like shit. The best conferences in the eyes of the media, fans, and general public are those that are the MOST in doubt at the beginning of the season. Why? Because the teams in that conference are strong from top to bottom and they will all compete to win it.

Also, raters have eyes. They can see who is beating who and how they are beating them. When the #1 team in your conference takes the biggest upset asswhooping of the last 50 years at the hands of a Division II squad, your conference is going to pay dearly in the rankings. It's even worse when that same team starts beating some of the stronger teams in your conference. A lot of it has to do with big out of conference games like that as well.

[WayAbvPar]

LMAO @ BC. And I told you Oregon was good. I think half of their strength is that their uniforms are so fucking ugly that the defense can't keep an eye on them long enough to properly defend. Those pants they wore on Saturday could be seen from orbit I think.

[UD_Delt]

Also, raters have eyes. They can see who is beating who and how they are beating them.

Hehe yeah and the raters should see that the Big 10 was 2-1 vs the SEC last year, Wisconsin and Penn State both beating SEC teams and tOSU losing. Over the past 5 years the Big 10 is 8-6 vs the SEC and over the past decade the the two conferences are tied at 13 wins a piece when going head to head.

Now why is it that when playing head to head the Big 10 has a slight, more recent advantage but is the weaker conference? Why is it that people think the SEC is beating each other up but the Big 10 is instead showing its' weakness? My answer... SEC fans are ignorant or in some cases are willfully blind to the truth.

Edit: And after a quick check it looks like the 4 (Illinois, Penn St, Purdue, Wis)  3 loss Big 10 teams this year (none of which are ranked) were 15-1 outside of the conference. How many 3 loss SEC teams are ranked top 25 now?

[Paelos]

Also, raters have eyes. They can see who is beating who and how they are beating them.

Hehe yeah and the raters should see that the Big 10 was 2-1 vs the SEC last year, Wisconsin and Penn State both beating SEC teams and tOSU losing. Over the past 5 years the Big 10 is 8-6 vs the SEC and over the past decade the the two conferences are tied at 13 wins a piece when going head to head.

Now why is it that when playing head to head the Big 10 has a slight, more recent advantage but is the weaker conference? Why is it that people think the SEC is beating each other up but the Big 10 is instead showing its' weakness? My answer... SEC fans are ignorant or in some cases are willfully blind to the truth.

Edit: And after a quick check it looks like the 4 (Illinois, Penn St, Purdue, Wis)  3 loss Big 10 teams this year (none of which are ranked) were 15-1 outside of the conference. How many 3 loss SEC teams are ranked top 25 now?

Your numbers are woefully misleading. The teams you played outside of your conference this year in the Big 10 were absolutely nobody. Let's break it down.

Illinois: Lost to Missouri (who was unranked at the time), Beat W. Illinois (6-4 in the Gateway Conference), Syracuse (dead last in the Big East and 2-7 overall), and Ball State (.500 in the MAC).

Penn State: Beat Florida International, Notre Dame, and Buffalo. COMBINED those teams are 5-23.

Purdue: Beat Toledo, E. Illinois, Central Michigan. 2 of those are .500 MAC teams, E. Illinois is tied for 2nd in the Ohio Valley Conference.

Wisconsin: Beat Washington St. (dead last in the Pac-10), UNLV (tied for dead last in the Mountain West), The Citadel (middle of the Southern Conference), and N. Illinois (dead last in the MAC).



I'm not seeing anything impressive here. In fact the one matchup you had against a currently ranked opponent (Missouri) you lost. Beating up on the MAC doesn't earn you points in the rankings.

[UD_Delt]

So all of the 3 loss SEC teams (the ranked ones) played nothing but top 25 teams?

Most teams in any of the big conferences usually have cake-walk out of conference schedules. Notre Dame is usually that "tough" team that the mid schools are able to schedule but they suck this year.

My point was those mid-level Big 10 teams played the same exact cake-walk non-conference schedule as the 3 loss SEC teams and they did what should be expected by going 15-1 against them.

So now you are saying that by beating the teams they should beat and losing in-conference the Big 10 is showing it's weakness. It's the same old ignorant argument from SEC fans around the country. Do you see my point?"

The SEC beats the weak teams they are supposed to and then beats each other up so they are strong.

The Big 10 beats the weak teams they are supposed to and then beats each other up so they are weak.

I'm not saying that the Big 10 is some vastly superior conference to the SEC. I'm just saying I'm sick of SEC fans talking out of both sides of their mouths. Its like there is some sort of SEC inferiority complex that makes them ignore rational thought. I've already shown the conferences are ridiculously close in the past 10 years in strength when compared heads up. It's just irritating that this irrational SEC bias is starting to bleed into the polls.


Edit: It's because the Big 10 played the Pac 10 in the Rose Bowl for so many years isn't it? Is this pay back because the SEC felt picked on when it was growing up?