Originally Posted by Easy Mac (Post 2866855)

I'm traveling 10 hours to Baton Rouge with my wife and child to watch Furman upset LSU this week. With my mom being an Ole Miss alum, I will be certain to keep my mouth shut around my wife's extended family of LSU diehards.

Originally Posted by Chief Rum (Post 2866791)

I don't like UCLA's chances at Oregon.

Originally Posted by SackAttack (Post 2866957)

I was reading where South Carolina's QB is gonna miss the game. Should be interesting.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2867000)

I'd think that makes the likely outcome a Mizzou blowout unless Mauk melts down. Without Shaw, SC is a different team.

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan (Post 2867071)

Let's not go crazy here. Most considered Dylan Thompson the best backup QB in the SEC coming into this year. He threw for 300+ yards in wins over East Carolina and Clemson while Shaw was out and came into the bowl game against Michigan when Shaw got hurt and lead them to a win in that game. He's no Conner Shaw, but he's still a good QB.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2867098)

First, I said the most likely outcome, I didn't say it was a sure thing.

I've seen both of them play quite a bit, it's not that Thompson is awful by any means. It's just that Shaw brings a lot more to the table & is a much bigger threat, his presence opens up their offense. Combine that with a team that seems to have some internal issues, that's coming off a loss that could be very disheartening, that doesn't have a dominant receiver, well I just don't think that bodes well for the Poultry.

Mizzou could crap the bed, any team can. But I don't see that as a likely outcome.

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan (Post 2867129)

I remember similar comments from you after Franklin went down in the Georgia game. We did just fine with Mauk and I'm pretty sure that USC will do just fine with Thompson. But either way, it'll be a fine excuse for the rest of the SEC if Mizzou moves to 8-0 and all but seals up an East Division title.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2867138)

Mauk surprised me, no doubt.

Buuuut ... no excuses afaic. I mean, how could there be, you've got the same injured QB deal. Chill the sensitivity.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2867000)

I'd think that makes the likely outcome a Mizzou blowout unless Mauk melts down. Without Shaw, SC is a different team.

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan (Post 2867071)

Let's not go crazy here. Most considered Dylan Thompson the best backup QB in the SEC coming into this year. He threw for 300+ yards in wins over East Carolina and Clemson while Shaw was out and came into the bowl game against Michigan when Shaw got hurt and lead them to a win in that game. He's no Conner Shaw, but he's still a good QB.

Originally Posted by Bruce Feldman

How explosive is the Baylor system? Try this: the Bears attack not only leads FBS in offense this season, it also lead FCS too.

Huh?

"We're like the Baylor Junior Varsity," Eastern Illinois coach Dino Babers told me Saturday. "Everything that Baylor does, we do. You can't look at us and not see Baylor."

Babers, Eastern Illinois' second-year coach, spent four seasons on Art Briles' staff at Baylor. Four career-changing seasons.

Prior to Babers' time in Waco, he'd been an OC in the Pac-10 (Arizona) and in the Big 12 (Texas A&M), but after four seasons at UCLA, he was unsure if he was going to stay on the staff. In 2008, he went to the Coaches Convention in hopes of lining something up. He'd interviewed with Urban Meyer for a wide receiver job at Florida, and then met with Briles.

"I'd been in [the coaching business] for 22 years before I met Art," said Babers, counting up that he was on 11 different college coaching staffs before linking up with Briles. "He changed my thinking. I never met a man like that before. He's so positive. So forward in his offensive thinking. He's completely committed to what he's doing and he gets people to drink the Kool-Aid."

Babers guzzled that Kool-Aid.

"The system is not the easiest thing in the world to learn," he said. "It probably took me a year and half before I was comfortable with it. The cool thing about it, is the offense never stays the same. First, it's a caterpillar and then it's a butterfly and then. ... It's always green and grown."

Eastern Illinois is averaging 584 yards per game, more than 40 yards better than the next most prolific offense in FCS. The Panthers (5-1) started off the season with a bang, thumping FBS San Diego State on the road, 40-19. Their lone loss was a 43-39 defeat against unbeaten NIU. Babers' QB, 6-foot-3, 220-pound Jimmy Garoppolo, threw for 800 yards and nine TDs and only two INTs in the games against FBS opponents.

Babers says there's a lot of misconceptions about the Baylor system. He points to comments former colleague Nick Holt, then the DC at Washington, made before the 2011 Alamo Bowl.

"Nick and I were on the same staff at UNLV once, and I saw he said, '[Baylor] is exactly like Oregon.' I felt so bad for him. I'm thinking, 'If you play us like Oregon, God bless you.' "

Baylor ended up scoring 67 points and rolling up 777 yards on Holt's defense. Holt was fired soon after.

"The biggest thing about what we do is that no one really understands what we do," Babers said. "People really think it's like Oregon. It's nothing like Oregon. We throw the ball horizontal and vertical. I see us as throwing team. I see Oregon as more of a play-action throwing team. We don't have to play action to throw it."

Like Babers, Garoppolo's stock is skyrocketing. Babers said when he first arrived he had three people inside the EIU program tell him Garoppolo couldn't play in his system. "They thought I needed an option QB," Babers huffed. "My point was, they don't know my system. As soon as I saw him throw five passes in the spring I knew he was my guy.

"Jimmy's got the fastest release I've ever seen. He's super competitive and intelligent. He's gotten so much better with the speed of the game and being a coach on the field." Babers has given Garoppolo the freedom to run the offense at the line this season.

"He deserves to get the keys to the Cadillac at night. The guy's gotten so much better, it's ridiculous."

On the season, Garoppolo has thrown 28 TDs and four INTs.

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 2867286)

Thompson is a far superior passer to Shaw.
The only problem is his mobility is somewhere between Terry Bradshaw (today) and a bronze sttue at the HOF.....

Originally Posted by molson (Post 2867302)

I feel cautiously optimistic Syracuse can avoid another 55+ point beatdown, but that's exclusively due to the fact that they're on a bye week.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2867299)

Hard to pass from your back, and we saw what a so-so at best UT did to Shaw on Saturday.

Plus, while I know that is definitely the image of the two QB's, Shaw has a lifetime completion percentage about 10 points higher than Thompson's and a better YPC. I think "far" superior might be pushing it.

Originally Posted by CU Tiger (Post 2867371)

The YPC is pretty typical of a mobile QB...if you cant keep contain your SS has to creep down...so if a pass finds the second level there is little chance of pulling a WR down

Originally Posted by MrBug708 (Post 2867059)

UCLA is gonna be run off the field

Originally Posted by Crapshoot (Post 2867799)

For the first time ever, I hope you are underestimating UCLA...

Originally Posted by bob (Post 2868006)

Is it wrong to want your team to lose? If not, I want GT to lose to UVA. I can't stand Paul Johnson.

Originally Posted by Matthean (Post 2868011)

Minnesota takes down Nebraska. That just shows the depth of the conference. #SEC :D

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2868015)

And Bama needed less than 2 minutes to break in front 7-0 over Tennessee

Originally Posted by BillJasper (Post 2868017)

I'm surprised it took that long.

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA (Post 2868018)

14-0 with just 6 minutes elapsed.

Another three & out and this one might be over with less than a quarter played.