2009 College Football

[Abagadro]

TCU is good and would beat 80% of the SEC with ease.

[Paelos]

TCU is good and would beat 80% of the SEC with ease.

This year, I agree. And thus I'm pissed. That's how far the major conferences have fallen off.

[Ingmar]

This season is literally the worst I've seen in a decade. Nobody can name an obvious Heisman, nobody is stepping up as a decent balanced force on offense and defense, and we've got suck-ass teams like Boise State and TCU in the mix because everyone else can't get their shit together.

You'd rather just have one team completely dominate? Yawn.

[Paelos]

This season is literally the worst I've seen in a decade. Nobody can name an obvious Heisman, nobody is stepping up as a decent balanced force on offense and defense, and we've got suck-ass teams like Boise State and TCU in the mix because everyone else can't get their shit together.

You'd rather just have one team completely dominate? Yawn.

No I'd rather that we have two teams that look remotely competent in all facets of the game against decent competition.

[Triforcer]

A couple points:

(1)  Michigan loses to Purdue, slips to 5-5.  With dates at Wisconsin and OSU, in serious danger of losing bowl eligibility.  Rich Rodriguez MIGHT hold on if that happens, but start the next season 1-3 or something and he's gone.  

(2)  Charlie Weis is in similar danger, losing to Navy again.  If they end their season on a fail streak and lose a bowl, he's gone.

(3)  I don't trust Alabama or Texas at this point.  I trust Florida more than anyone else.  I pray they get to play a big boy in the big game, and that somehow a Cincinnati or Boise State doesn't sneak in and get routed.  

(4)  Re:  OSU and the Big 10- I still think the next two weeks are incredibly dangerous.  If Stanzl is still injured next week, OSU is probably safe- unless they totally overlook the game and Prior reverts to his usual self.  But when you lose to Purdue at home, anything is possible.  

Michigan has serious upset potential the final week of the season.  If they are playing for a bowl game (and I THINK Ohio State clinches the Rose Bowl if they win, seeing as they own the head to head against both Penn State and (hypothetically at that time) Iowa) at Ann Arbor, and Forcier and Robinson play to full potential, a win is possible.  Especially given the game is in Ann Arbor.

And if OSU gets to the Rose Bowl, I have high hopes for a victory against anyone but USC.  OSU has a monkey on their back against big name out of conference programs, but that'll be gone if they play an Oregon or Arizona.  

EDIT:  Wisconsin has two Big 10 losses as well, but OSU beat them earlier in the season so OSU would also win that Rose Bowl tiebreak.

[ghost]

Texas is damned good when McCoy is on his game.  I look for them to beat whichever SEC team they play in the BCS game.

[SnakeCharmer]

To win, in any game, you've got to be prepared, talented, stay healthy, and a little bit lucky at times.  Would LSU have done anything with that interception?  Maybe.  Or they might have coughed it up right back on a turnover for a TD.  No way of knowing.  One play doesn't lose a game.

You can play 'what if's' all day long with every game.  What if he'd just caught the ball?  What if the ref got the spot right?  What if...

In the end, all that matters is the win column. 

I still can't figure out what Bama is thinking on some play calling though...

And yeah, TCU looks good.  Weak schedule though.  We'll see if they're for real next week.
ND getting beat by Navy was

[Paelos]

I agree with you about what-if's Snake, but your QB is horrid. Maybe nobody will exploit that, but it's blatantly obvious and right there for anybody who wants to make you one-dimensionally terrible. My what if is, what if he actually didn't overthrow about 4 receivers that were so wide open they could have done the moonwalk into the end zone?

You have Ingram, you have a defense, and you have a good bit of luck on your side. I question whether or not it's enough at the end.

[SnakeCharmer]

What's odd is he was really good early - like the first four games.  Lit it up.  Good velocity, stood in the pocket, made the right reads, accurate as hell.  Then before the Ole Miss game, he got asked why Julio Jones wasn't getting the ball, and he got pissed, answer the question (I've got 4 other awesome receivers, why would I throw it to 8 when he's double covered and someone is open somewhere).  THEN, Ole Miss lit him up, followed by South Carolina using him as their own personal punching bag.  Then comes UT making him their bitch.  Ole Miss shook him up, and he hasn't been the same since.  I'd almost go back to the North Texas game where he got popped running in a touchdown and suffered a hip pointer on his left side.  His velocity hasn't been the same since then (looks to be about 75 percent as to what it was).  As a righty, he's got to plant that left and pivot off it to generate some power.  He's not doing that.  The UT game, he was flaring his right foot off the ground because of that left side.  He's also just been going through his reads waaaay too fast (happy feet from getting beat up in a couple games).

To be fair, his receivers aren't helping him.  There has been some really glaring drops (notably Jones, Peek, and Hanks).

But yeah, we've got Ingram (and Richardson and Upchurch).  And our defense.  And special teams (Leigh Tiffin is just about the best kicker in the country, IMHO).  And some luck.  All McElroy has to do is manage the game (he usually does) and not lose it (hasn't yet).  Saban needs to get the OC's head straight because he's making some really bad calls in crunch situations.  McElroy looked better against LSU than he has in about 5 games.  So that IS encouraging.  Warm up games agsint Miss State and Chattanooga will do some good before Auburn, which will be a good primer for Florida.  I'm not worried.

[Rasix]

And if OSU gets to the Rose Bowl, I have high hopes for a victory against anyone but USC.  OSU has a monkey on their back against big name out of conference programs, but that'll be gone if they play an Oregon or Arizona.  

Yah, keep thinking that.  OSU has typically had trouble with teams built on speed, and Oregon and Arizona have that at every position.

The Pac 10 is just brutal this year.  We're eating our own and there's a lot of solid teams.

[Paelos]

And if OSU gets to the Rose Bowl, I have high hopes for a victory against anyone but USC.  OSU has a monkey on their back against big name out of conference programs, but that'll be gone if they play an Oregon or Arizona.  

Yah, keep thinking that.  OSU has typically had trouble with teams built on speed, and Oregon and Arizona have that at every position.

The Pac 10 is just brutal this year.  We're eating our own and there's a lot of solid teams.

The PAC 10 is what the ACC was last year. You'll get no respect this year in the Rose Bowl since it'll probably be a 2 loss squad vs. a 2 loss squad. At best.

Does that mean you suck? No, but you can still do better than the Orange bowl snooze we had last season.

[01101010]

As a LSU fan, I was actually pretty happy 'Bama got the win. I think they might have a shot at FL in the SEC championship. LSU has looked shady from the start but getting beat by two top 3 teams, meh, I can deal.

And is anyone else suspicious that all the Florida talk that was rampant early this fall has gone silent? Attention has shifted to bama and texas with a fair share to the BCS "busters." I am actually looking forward to the games with Cinn, TCU, and Pitt (PITT?? WTF?)

[Montague]

And if OSU gets to the Rose Bowl, I have high hopes for a victory against anyone but USC.  OSU has a monkey on their back against big name out of conference programs, but that'll be gone if they play an Oregon or Arizona.  

Yah, keep thinking that.  OSU has typically had trouble with teams built on speed, and Oregon and Arizona have that at every position.

The Pac 10 is just brutal this year.  We're eating our own and there's a lot of solid teams.

More specifically, speed on the offensive and defensive lines is OSU's bugaboo. I think they have a good shot of beating Oregon but we're the last fans that should be counting any bowl opponent as an auto-win at this point.

[Ingmar]

You people are confusing me with your calling Ohio St. OSU, everyone knows OSU is Oregon State. 

[Paelos]

You people are confusing me with your calling Ohio St. OSU, everyone knows OSU is Oregon State. 

Or Oklahoma State!

[ghost]

You people are confusing me with your calling Ohio St. OSU, everyone knows OSU is Oregon State. 

Ohio State is tOSU.

[SnakeCharmer]

Wow.  How 'bout Stanford?

[Trippy]

WTG Cardinal

(Yes it's singular as it's the color. Yes it's stupid.).

[sigil]

Ohio State going to the Rose Bowl thanks to an MLS reject.

[Rasix]

Arizona sure can lose in incredibly fucked up ways.  Arizona QB tries to pass again after catching own batted ball.  5 yard spot foul, loss of down for illegal forward pass. 

Granted, we have a horrid kicker and any field goal attempt would have been dicey.  Blah.

[Abagadro]

Man, I felt the bitch-slap that TCU put on the Utes all the way here in SLC. That team would give any team in the country all that it could handle.

[01101010]

Wow.  How 'bout Stanford?

Shamefully, I did not even comprehend that score at first. I saw the names and then the scores and my mind immediately went dyslexic. After I pulled up the ESPN page I sat there for a moment astounded.

[SnakeCharmer]

I thought it funny that reporters and Pete Carroll were complaining about the points being scored on them - most noteably the 2 point conversion.  It's not like USC has ever run the score up people.  Nah, that's never happened.

TCU looked damn good again.  ND lost  , though I do think the officials botched that fumble (looked like a forward pass to me).  UF looked flawed playing South Carolina.  Ole Miss took it to UT.  Bama regaining form and looked very very solid in beating up on MSU.  Didn't see the Texas game, but throttling Baylor shouldn't be all that difficult.

What games of note are left?  UF v FSU, Bama v Auburn, UGA v GT...What else?

[Paelos]

You left out UGA beating Auburn 

[SnakeCharmer]

How the hell did I forget that??  Yeah, I was loving it once UGA got their shit together.  They actually seemed to play better once no. 8 went down.

Is it just me or is there an extremely high number of really bad concussions this year?  That Rambo kid made a pretty clean hit, mostly with his shoulder.  I did see his head snap to the left pretty quickly, though.  Which is pretty much what causes a concussion more than a direct impact; the brain bouncing around inside the skull (I think).  I honestly thought that kid from Cal broke his spine last week.

[Hoax]

That kid?  Best is by far and away the top RB in the country right now.  Will be top 3 RB picked in the draft, I think after that play he has to go early.

[SnakeCharmer]

That kid?  Best is by far and away the top RB in the country right now.  Will be top 3 RB picked in the draft, I think after that play he has to go early.

You're out of your mind.

[Ingmar]

That kid?  Best is by far and away the top RB in the country right now.  Will be top 3 RB picked in the draft, I think after that play he has to go early.

You're out of your mind.

I've been watching him for 3 years, he does some absolutely jaw-dropping stuff. He's been limited a bit this year due to a weak OL (and now the injury.) Trust me, Hoax is not really living in much of a state of hyperbole. He's easily fast enough to be an Olympic sprinter, and he has moves too.

The only thing that will hold him back is durability. After that hit he's either got to go into the draft early or go back to track and just give up on football, that was his 2nd concussion in a week and the long-term consequences could be rough.

[Sjofn]

WTG Cardinal

(Yes it's singular as it's the color. Yes it's stupid.).

I so wish they had gone with the Robber Barons. :(((((((((

[Triforcer]

Whoever said earlier this is a boring year is right.  I can't remember ever being less excited about following the various storylines.  And Michigan sucking isn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be- don't get me wrong, puppy-kicking them is mildly amusing, but the game is more meaningful when they are a power. 

Who is with me in thinking Richrod gets another year (or at least three or games in one), even if there is a blowout loss next weekend?  Michigan isn't the type of school to kick to the curb after two years, even though he tries his hardest to be as douchebaggy as possible. 

[Hoax]

I've been rooting for Michigan all year, I do that every year until the end.  Beating them when they are down isn't nearly as satisfying.

[ghost]

I would like to see Notre Dame and Michigan good again.  It's no fun when my least favorite teams suck.  I like having good enemies.  However, I hate Standford with the intensity of a thousand burning suns doused in gasoline, so maybe with their resurgence I will have someone new to hate in FB.

[Montague]

Whoever said earlier this is a boring year is right.  I can't remember ever being less excited about following the various storylines.  And Michigan sucking isn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be- don't get me wrong, puppy-kicking them is mildly amusing, but the game is more meaningful when they are a power. 

Who is with me in thinking Richrod gets another year (or at least three or games in one), even if there is a blowout loss next weekend?  Michigan isn't the type of school to kick to the curb after two years, even though he tries his hardest to be as douchebaggy as possible. 

The only thing that will get Richrod fired this year is NCAA violations. If Michigan gets put on probation in football (first time in 100 some-odd years) then he's gone.

Real pleased with the Rose Bowl berth. Tressel pisses me off something fierce sometimes but his teams are extremely consistent, even with a lot of inexperience on offense. If he loses again and the offense gets shut down the bitching will start up again. Everything I've heard from C-bus has said that Tressel is probably gone in 2-3 years anyway.

[Paelos]

In other news, how awesome was it that Stanford went for 2 in the face of USC? Oh, you don't like it when teams run up the score, Pete? Fuck you. Ask around how other teams felt when you put up 69-0 on them last year instead of just running the clock.

 

[01101010]

In other news, how awesome was it that Stanford went for 2 in the face of USC? Oh, you don't like it when teams run up the score, Pete? Fuck you. Ask around how other teams felt when you put up 69-0 on them last year instead of just running the clock.

 

I actually think Bettis said it best when he was talking about this.

Remember, everything you do in college football is for recruiting. Stanford recruits against USC, so if they have a chance to humiliate their recruiting rivals on the field, they've got to take it. I'll tell you from experience, this incident will carry a lot of weight when Jim Harbaugh is in some kid's living room recruiting against USC. "We took on a juggernaut," he can tell that kid, "and we slapped 'em in the face."