Official College Football Thread - Week 3

[cartman]

Games kick off on Thursday with LSU taking on Mississippi State. But the big game of the weekend is OU traveling to Tallahassee for a meeting with Florida State on Saturday night.

[Ksyrup]

I have a bad feelling about the OU game. Something tells me the offense is not up for the challenge. I think best case is the D keeps us close and we somehow pull it out. I wish this game was next year, or that we weren't ranked so high right now.

[MrBug708]

No UCLA-Texas mention Cartman?

Yeah, I don't blame you and I really shouldnt be mentioning it either

[cartman]

Like I told MacroGuru last week, I try to start the initial post as neutral as possible.

That being said, the 'Horns have a metric ton of revenge to extract from the Bruins. Time to do to Neuheisel what UCLA did to Mackovic in '97.

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by HiFiRevival

FCS #17 JMU @ #21 Liberty (coaches poll, Sports Network poll comes out later today) 7pm Saturday on ESPN3. Liberty will be trying to avenge a 10-3 loss from last season @ JMU.

Before last week I would have said no way Liberty wins.

However, JMU REALLY struggled against a mediocre CCSU team this weekend, at home, in the opening game for their new stadium.

They really need to shape up or they will slide quickly.

[MacroGuru]

Utah @ BYU, the earliest the Rivalry game has ever been played. The game no longer has conference implications. This is all about bragging rights.

For BYU, I think we have proven we can hang with out last 2 games, but with Utah we want to show the PAC who the true football school in Utah is (and right now it's looking like Utah State)

Utah has to survive this game and win it...

This will be a nasty week in Utah..

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by HiFiRevival

Don't forget JMU took a nosedive last year. They went from 3-0 to 4-5 with 3 of those losses at home. With the way Liberty ran Robert Morris off the field, I'm feeling more confident in their chances. I think it boils down to Mike Brown not turning the ball over.

Last year was an anomaly for JMU. They lost their identity and replaced a lot of starters. Do not expect them to be that bad this year. And, well, they beat Liberty when they were bad last year.

[Cuckoo]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I have a bad feelling about the OU game. Something tells me the offense is not up for the challenge. I think best case is the D keeps us close and we somehow pull it out. I wish this game was next year, or that we weren't ranked so high right now.

I've found it very interesting that all of the pundits are so confident in Florida State, many predicting the "upset," but most of the FSU fans I've run into around these interwebs are not at all so.

Personally, I keep going back and forth on what to expect. Both teams are better than last year, it seems to me. I think OU is the better team on paper, but that doesn't mean a whole lot when the difference isn't huge. Put the game in hostile territory, and I'm far from confident, despite last year's game.

The Noles will not make the mistake again of backing 10 yards off the receivers all day long, and that will naturally give their d-lineman more of a chance to get to Jones than they had last year. He's not always what one would call calm under pressure, so that could be very telling of how the game will go.

Our defense looked really good against a Tulsa team that is more than solid offensively, but... we had 3 major assignment breakdowns that led to big plays. That just can't happen. Plus, it looks like Travis Lewis won't play, so there are a lot of question marks on that side of the ball, several unproven guys.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Tennessee seems likely to have a much better idea of what they have (or don't have) in Bray after this weekend's trip to The Swamp.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Cuckoo

I've found it very interesting that all of the pundits are so confident in Florida State, many predicting the "upset," but most of the FSU fans I've run into around these interwebs are not at all so.

Personally, I keep going back and forth on what to expect. Both teams are better than last year, it seems to me. I think OU is the better team on paper, but that doesn't mean a whole lot when the difference isn't huge. Put the game in hostile territory, and I'm far from confident, despite last year's game.

The Noles will not make the mistake again of backing 10 yards off the receivers all day long, and that will naturally give their d-lineman more of a chance to get to Jones than they had last year. He's not always what one would call calm under pressure, so that could be very telling of how the game will go.

Our defense looked really good against a Tulsa team that is more than solid offensively, but... we had 3 major assignment breakdowns that led to big plays. That just can't happen. Plus, it looks like Travis Lewis won't play, so there are a lot of question marks on that side of the ball, several unproven guys.

If we win, the D is going to win it for us. In 2 games against admittedly inferior competition, the D really has not a single breakdown. The only TD was off an INT returned to the 3 yard line. The past few years, the D would have relaxed or not stayed focused and given up some garbage yards/points. CSU had a total of 84 yards and 3 1st downs. Held ULM under 200 yards and no points.

Our OL has not done a good job opening holes for the run, and Manuel seems to miss too many plays for the offense to be good enough to win a shootout, if it comes to that. The one wild card will be the option - we haven't run it yet this year, and my guess is we may be running it a whole bunch on Saturday night because Manuel isn't going to beat OU solely with his arm. I'm sure they've held those plays out of the gameplan knowing they were saving them for OU and conference play. Jimbo seems to have treated the first 2 games as a practice for Manuel to get more comfortable as a dropback passer.

[cartman]

Looks like the Garrett Gilbert era in Austin is over. He's listed #3 on the depth chart for the UCLA game, with Case McCoy and David Ash listed as #1a and #1b. Freshman Malcolm Brown is listed as the #1 running back. Eager to see how he does over an entire game.

[Cuckoo]

Originally Posted by cartman

Looks like the Garrett Gilbert era in Austin is over.

As an OU fan, this is extremely sad news...

[MacroGuru]

Originally Posted by cartman

Looks like the Garrett Gilbert era in Austin is over. He's listed #3 on the depth chart for the UCLA game, with Case McCoy and David Ash listed as #1a and #1b. Freshman Malcolm Brown is listed as the #1 running back. Eager to see how he does over an entire game.

BYU made Garrett looks silly...in fact, I think that was to our detriment because McCoy and Ash torched us in the second half..

[Lathum]

We are going to get spanked by Nebraska this week

[wade moore]

Originally Posted by HiFiRevival

They also beat VT. Somehow they went in the tank and they don't look like it's out of their system yet. I'm really not sure what's going on there. If things have taken a downturn, it's an interesting moment where they've upped their stadium to 25k and their are rumblings of an FBS move.

And they beat W&M late in the season who was seeded in the playoffs.

You seem to be only looking at the downside. Hopefully Liberty does the same.

[Butter]

Originally Posted by HiFiRevival

Can Auburn have another WTF win @ Clemson?

I would expect Auburn to win pretty handily. Clemson just isn't very good. Their defense is struggling, and the offense just isn't CJ Spiller- or Charlie Whitehurst-era good anymore either.

[Ksyrup]

Clemson had a tough time with Wofford. Effin ACC teams! WTF?

[bronconick]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Clemson had a tough time with Wofford. Effin ACC teams! WTF?

I'm going to have to quit mocking Boise State's schedule if the ACC can't find a third ranked team.

[Matthean]

'Bama and Michigan have stat padding games. MSU @ ND should be interesting since MSU has a history of winning down there.

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by Lathum

We are going to get spanked by Nebraska this week

Maybe, but I'm curious what about Nebraska's difficulties against Fresno State make you think this?

[cartman]

Originally Posted by dawgfan

Maybe, but I'm curious what about Nebraska's difficulties against Fresno State make you think this?

It will all depend on which Taylor Martinez shows up for the game.

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by cartman

It will all depend on which Taylor Martinez shows up for the game.

I could see any number of possibilities for this game, ranging from Nebraska tearing the Huskies a new one (similar to their first game last year) to Washington winning comfortably (if not spectacularly). The thing that works in the favor of Washington is that the Husky defense should be better against a running team, and the Huskies have the interior linemen to force Nebraska outside. Now, that can obviously be bad as their option game can create huge plays on the edge, but if Washington can feel confident that Nebraska has to get to the edge to have consistent success, they can plan accordingly.

Obviously they need to avoid being so focused on the run game that they let Martinez throw it over their heads, but I don't think Nebraska's passing game is the kind that gives the Huskies fits.

On offense, the Huskies have a terrific RB in Chris Polk. Under Pelini, the weakness in the Nebraska defense is against a strong running game. When the Huskers don't have a Suh anchoring the middle, they can be exploited.

All that said, revenge should be a huge factor for Nebraska in this one, as well as the comfort of playing at home. This Husky team is pretty young, so I could see them getting rattled and falling apart.

But, I do think the talent gap is narrowing, and I'd be highly tempted (if I bet on college football) to take Washington with the 17.5 that Vegas is giving them.

[tarcone]

I cant wait to see how Iowa responds against a quality opponent. They better come out mad after that terrible showing at Iowa State.

[Thomkal]

I'm sure undefeated Coastal Carolina will be favored over Georgia this week.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

I would expect Auburn to win pretty handily. Clemson just isn't very good. Their defense is struggling, and the offense just isn't CJ Spiller- or Charlie Whitehurst-era good anymore either.

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Clemson had a tough time with Wofford. Effin ACC teams! WTF?

Originally Posted by bronconick

I'm going to have to quit mocking Boise State's schedule if the ACC can't find a third ranked team.

I think folks are going to be surprised by what you see out of Clemson this weekend. Through weeks 1 and 2 the starting 11 on D have played 3 series together.Week 1 they got the freshmen a ton f experience and week 2 2 starting CBS suspended for being 5 minutes early for curfew after being told o be 10 minutes early..38 freshmen or rs freshmen have played 30+ snaps...and they have shown nothing on film.....plus it's a noon kick in the valley so the au crowd will be 11 am....early line is Clemson -3 and I wouldn't touch this game with free money.

But in will be there like always and many beers will be slain in the wake.

[Butter]

I'm hoping for the best, but expecting the worst. Just like about every Clemson game my wife and I watch. You just never know with Clemson.

[Ksyrup]

I hope Clemson does well. It's embarrassing being a fan of an ACC team the way they (ACC teams in general) continually play down to their competition week after week, year after year. And FSU was as big a culprit as any other team, although hopefully we're past the days of having to pull out last-minute victories over Jacksonville State-type teams.

I root for ACC teams not because I particularly care about any of them, but I want them to represent the ACC well because it helps all of us. But when you see the kinds of efforts turned in against other conferences, and especially against homecoming teams, it's unbelievable.

[Swaggs]

Only in West Virginia...

From our AD:

Mountaineer fans:

During the opening game of the 2011 WVU football season, one of the ESPN cameras showed a young man wearing a blue t-shirt with "West F##### Virginia" on the chest. Based on the TV rating of the game, this picture was seen by at least a few million people around the country. I think you would agree with me that this is not the image of our University and our state that we want to promote.

I would like to ask you to help me convince people who are wearing these t-shirts to reconsider their choice of attire. I recognize that the First Amendment protects free speech, and as a lawyer, I am more than familiar with the decision of the United States Supreme Court in the landmark 1971 case, Cohen vs. California, which is the law of the land regarding public institutions (like WVU) and protected speech. But as my dad used to tell me, ‘just because it is legal does not mean it is right.’ And I certainly believe that people wearing these offending t-shirts at Mountaineer games, or anywhere else, for that matter, are damaging the reputation of our state and its flagship institution of higher learning.

I would like to request that if you see someone wearing one of these t-shirts that you politely ask him or her to change or to cover it up. Even wearing it inside-out would be an improvement. As you know, we have a big home football game against LSU coming up next Saturday and we would like to present a more favorable image to the millions of football fans from around the country who will be watching the game. Be polite, be courteous, be friendly-but do speak up.

Thank you for your support of the Mountaineers!

Oliver Luck

I agree with the sentiment 100%, but our next home game is against LSU and will probably be at 8:00 PM. Rumor has it that, should WVU beat Maryland and LSU beat MSU this week, Morgantown will host Gameday for the first time. I'm guessing there will probably be 10X the number of shirts in the crowd next week.

[Swaggs]

Here is a link to the offending shirt:

hxxp://deadspin.com/5837273/one-t+shirt-stood-out-in-the-west-virginia-crowd

[Butter]

Yeah, I was thinking that if anything there will be a lot more of them thanks to this.

I know I have seen a pic of a guy wearing it before. I can't imagine that ESPN is TRYING to show that shirt given the profanity involved. So he should've just kept his mouth shut.

[Ksyrup]

Heh.

@TAlanWest BCS Championship lifetime ban. Oh wait, they already have that RT @CharlesRobinson: NCAA sanctions Boise State at 3 pm.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by tarcone

I cant wait to see how Iowa responds against a quality opponent. They better come out mad after that terrible showing at Iowa State.

Wait you are calling Pitt quality?

[tarcone]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

Wait you are calling Pitt quality?

Well, they have a good RB. So they must be able to do something.

[bronconick]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I hope Clemson does well. It's embarrassing being a fan of an ACC team the way they (ACC teams in general) continually play down to their competition week after week, year after year. And FSU was as big a culprit as any other team, although hopefully we're past the days of having to pull out last-minute victories over Jacksonville State-type teams.

I root for ACC teams not because I particularly care about any of them, but I want them to represent the ACC well because it helps all of us. But when you see the kinds of efforts turned in against other conferences, and especially against homecoming teams, it's unbelievable.

The ACC needs to win at least 3 of the 5 BCS non-conference games this weekend, especially when they're all home games.

OU at FSU
Auburn at Clemson
West Virginia at Maryland
Ohio State at Miami
Kansas at Georgia Tech

On a side note Boise State lost 9 scholarship over 3 years with the same amount of probation. To reach maximum trolling, they had the associate commissioner of the SEC make the announcement.

[Matthean]

Amazon.com: Three and Out: Rich Rodriguez and the Michigan Wolverines in the Crucible of College Football (9780809094660): John U. Bacon: Books

Should be an interesting read if nothing else.

[General Mike]

Big East needs a big weekend after last week's crap fest. Gotta get 3 out of these 5:

Iowa State at UConn
Pitt at Iowa
WVU at Maryland
Louisville at Kentucy
Syracuse at USC

I don't see Syracuse beating USC, so the pressure goes up.

[Butter]

Was anyone watching the Minnesota - NM State game this past weekend when Minnesota's coach Jerry Kill went down on the sidelines?

If you had been watching, you actually got a few seconds of footage of the actual seizure. The camera view they showed panned over to the sideline, and you could clearly see that someone was down with a few people around him... but you couldn't really tell who it was. All of the sudden he started having the seizure... on camera. After a couple of seconds, the director wisely cut away and did not re-show it or any of the subsequent medical treatment.

I thought the guy might die on the sidelines. I taped it and showed it to my nurse wife who instantly recognized that he was having a seizure and that it may or may not have been life threatening. She said that it usually isn't, but it could have been depending on the circumstances and the cause.

Probably the scariest thing I've ever seen watching football, including Joe Theismann breaking his leg on Monday Night Football.

Glad to hear that it was basically a "run of the mill" seizure (if you can call one that), and that Coach Kill is expected to be back up and running this weekend.

What made it worse was that it came right before a 4th and 20 (15?) that Minnesota needed to convert to stay in the game. Needless to say they missed it and lost. Hardly seemed to matter at that point.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by bronconick

The ACC needs to win at least 3 of the 5 BCS non-conference games this weekend, especially when they're all home games.

At most I see two of those happening, quite possibly one or none.

[Logan]

Interesting story out of Rutgers today as junior RB De'Antwan Williams has left the team. Williams was a high profile recruit who many thought should have been playing over the past two seasons, and we were surprised he didn't transfer after last season. He made a lot of comments how transferring wasn't an option and he was going to work hard at proving he deserves it. He did great in the spring and came into the season starting the first two games, but struggled big time against UNC last week (as did the entire running game). Schiano announced that top recruit Savon Huggins would start next Saturday, which would still leave plenty of touches for Williams, but he left practice and quit the team. Supposedly he has an open invite to return but I'm not sure if I want him at this point.

[MacroGuru]

Wow...doesn't even feel like a rivalry game is coming up on Sat.

[Passacaglia]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Only in West Virginia...

From our AD:



I agree with the sentiment 100%, but our next home game is against LSU and will probably be at 8:00 PM. Rumor has it that, should WVU beat Maryland and LSU beat MSU this week, Morgantown will host Gameday for the first time. I'm guessing there will probably be 10X the number of shirts in the crowd next week.

So I guess you'll just have to do 10x more politely asking. But hey, at least they're not throwing whiskey bottles on the field anymore...

[Passacaglia]

Anyway, Sparty was bored, so they decided to unveil some ugly uniforms:

Michigan State Pro Combat uniforms | MLive.com

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by Passacaglia

Anyway, Sparty was bored, so they decided to unveil some ugly uniforms:

Michigan State Pro Combat uniforms | MLive.com

I'd like to see them in action before I decide for sure, but I think they look pretty good. Simple, classic. Not sure why the gold substituting for the white though...

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by dawgfan

I'd like to see them in action before I decide for sure, but I think they look pretty good. Simple, classic. Not sure why the gold substituting for the white though...

This was my thought as well.

[General Mike]

I've seen worse

[General Mike]

Originally Posted by Logan

Interesting story out of Rutgers today as junior RB De'Antwan Williams has left the team. Williams was a high profile recruit who many thought should have been playing over the past two seasons, and we were surprised he didn't transfer after last season. He made a lot of comments how transferring wasn't an option and he was going to work hard at proving he deserves it. He did great in the spring and came into the season starting the first two games, but struggled big time against UNC last week (as did the entire running game). Schiano announced that top recruit Savon Huggins would start next Saturday, which would still leave plenty of touches for Williams, but he left practice and quit the team. Supposedly he has an open invite to return but I'm not sure if I want him at this point.

And the guy who is the beat reporter for Rutgers' Rivals.com site had this to say:

Originally Posted by Bobby Deren

I am going to write a column style piece for tonight on Williams but will provide some quick points right now. I have been at virtually every practice for the last five years and can tell you that Williams received more than his share of chances. The bottom line is that he had trouble getting off the line of scrimmage, he did not have a great burst and he often got bottled up. I rarely remember him popping any runs and saying 'wow, that was a nice play.' Had Deering and Jamison been healthy, here is how I would have slotted the RB's heading into game one:
1. Huggins
2. Deering
3. Jamison
4. Williams
5. James
(and James is not that far behind Williams at all)
I like De'Antwan, he was always courteous and respectful but the bottom line is that he wasn't effective as a tailback. Had Deering and Jamison been healthy all camp and Huggins not appeared to hit a wall halfway through camp, Williams might have been out of the mix a lot sooner.
As I mentioned, I will have a more extensive piece coming this evening.

I really don't care either way if he stays or goes. Unlike the people on Rivals, I trust Schiano's ability to identify talent, especially based on guys Rutgers offered that went elsewhere. I'm not of the belief that Schiano keeps better players on the bench out of spite.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by General Mike

Big East needs a big weekend after last week's crap fest. Gotta get 3 out of these 5:

Iowa State at UConn
Pitt at Iowa
WVU at Maryland
Louisville at Kentucy
Syracuse at USC

I don't see Syracuse beating USC, so the pressure goes up.

I don't know what to expect this weekend. WVU could drop 40+ on Maryland if they get blocking from the line and receivers. If the blocking is as inconsistent as it's been the past 2 weeks then the game will be an ugly one to watch.