Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Good...Bad: Lost in Lincoln Edition

With LSU off this week, I was able to plop down on the couch, turn on my 4 TV’s and watch about 20 games this weekend. Some may say this is insane sensory overload; I like to think that I am beefing up my college football IQ to bring some perspective and insight to this little spot in cyberspace.

So without further ado…

Good…Nice job by the Wolverines beating Eastern Michigan.

Bad…where was this intensity last week?

Good…USC is the real deal. I know a lot of folks around here hate the men of Troy, but they CRUSHED the helpless Hogs. Less than six minutes had passed in the game and they were up 21-0.

Bad…Unless USC’s entire team comes down with food poisoning, the Trojans are on the way to 12-0.

Good…I have railed on the Noles all season, but they have a National Championship caliber defense. Now, if that offense could stay off the field, “Free Shoes University” could do some special things this season.

Bad…Down by 11, ball on the 2 yard line, 3 minutes left in the game and you have all your timeouts. Tough situation, but BC was very much in the game. That is until the BC brain trust ran 7 plays from the 2, burned two timeouts and…came away with ZERO points. NICE!! Keep running into the line jackass. (The best was the 4th down call, a QB sneak from the 2 after pounding the ball with the fullback 4 times for no gain. Brilliant!)

Good…I play this little game on the internet where you pick some games and win some “fake” money you can exchange for prizes. I picked Nebraska over Pitt and the Cornholers won 7-6.

Bad…I actually had to watch the game. I am convinced that former Raider coach Bill Callahan and former Bears and Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt are fairly clueless. It appears that both of these guys are more interested in “running their systems” than actually, you know, winning football games. Callahan insists on running the west coast offense when his quarterbacks couldn’t hit my grandma as she shuffled across the floor. Yo! Bill! Nebraska is still a running team. Try running the ball a few times and sprinkle in a few passes here and there. Wannstedt is even worse. He repeatedly ran into the boundary on third and short. He was repeatedly stopped by a very good Nebraska defense. He has basically wrecked Tyler Palko’s confidence and eliminated any semblance of a passing game. Wannstedt sucked in the pros and if nothing else he has been consistent.

Good…The Mighty Spartans. I said John L. Smith was a great hire and I am sticking to it. At least until he loses next week to Ron Zook and the Illini.

Bad…Historic failures. After beating a top-10 team, Michigan State is 0-7 in its next game during the same season since 1997:

1997: Beat No. 4 Penn State, 49-14; lost to Washington, 51-23
1998: Beat No. 10 Notre Dame, 45-23; lost to Michigan, 29-17
1998: Beat No. 1 Ohio State, 28-24; lost to Purdue, 25-24
1999: Beat No. 3 Michigan, 34-31; Lost to Purdue, 52-28.
2000: Beat No. 9 Purdue, 30-10; Lost to Penn State, 42-23.
2001: Beat No. 6 Michigan, 26-24; lost to Indiana, 37-28
2004: Beat No. 4 Wisconsin, 49-14; lost to Penn State, 37-13
2005: Beat No. 10 Notre Dame, 44-41 (OT); Saturday at Illinois

Good…Clemson v. Miami was a DANDY game.

Bad…Florida v. Tennessee was actually pretty dull. Neither team could move the ball but it didn’t have the feel of a great defensive struggle.

Good…VANDY BABY!!! 3-0 and leading the SEC EAST!!

Bad…Ole Piss. Tell me again why Cutcliffe was fired.

Good…Penn State is quietly 3-0, average score 35-13.

Bad…The Big Eleven slate is brutal for JoePa, Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin and Michigan State are a combined 15-2.

Good…Contenders: USC, Texas, LSU, VaTech, Florida, The Criminoles, Georgia, Louisville, Purdue, California, Georgia Tech, Michigan State, Texas Tech, Alabama, Iowa State, Virginia, UCLA, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Oregon, Vandy, Nebraska and Penn State.

Bad…Poser Material.

Good…UVA v. the Cuse was another exciting game. Plus Al Groh referenced a great line from Risky Business.

Bad…The Carrier Dome is basically an oversized garage.

The BEST…Family.

The WORST…Going into the home you grew up in and seeing complete and utter devastation. My folks’ next remodeling project will be to bulldoze and start fresh.

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