Five High School Seniors (A TCY/FOF 2K4 player dynasty)

[WussGawd]

After a hiatus of a couple of years, the FOF/TCY bug has bit me again, and I've decided to take on a new dynasty report as I also work on building a coaching career at lowly little Louisiana-Monroe.

The premise is this. We'll be taking the top five high school seniors (according to TCY) out of the following positions: (QB, RB, TE, WR, DE), and following their recruiting, their college careers, and on into the pros, courtesy of FOF 2004.

Without further ado, here are our 5 high school seniors:

Kelly Nixon:

QB
6' 3" 195 lbs.
Broken Bow High School
Broken Bow, Oklahoma
Major Business
HS GPA: 3.86
SAT: 1290
Rivals.com Ranking: 2
All-Oklahoma Team

Kelly is the most highly touted high school senior quarterback in the nation. Thus far, in 9 high school games, he's completed 92 of 142 for 1537 with 4 TDs and 0 INTs.

Our own scout (Good with QBs) rates him as 94 of 100. He's a guy who could compete for a starting job right out of college.

Offers: Florida, Maryland, Stanford, USC
Considering: Florida, Maryland, Stanford, USC
Contacted: Washington
Visits: None

Ian Dauber
QB
6' 2" 191 lbs.
Fort Vancouver High School
Vancouver, Washington
Major: Nuclear Engineering
GPA 3.55
SAT: 1378
Rivals.com Rank: 3
All-Washington Team

Ian is the reason Washington hasn't made a serious offer to Kelly yet. In 9 high school games this year, Ian has completed 74 of 114 passes for 1327 yards, with 3 TDs and 0 INTs

Truthfully, in terms of preparation, Ian should have the chance to become as good a player as Kelly. Our own scout (Decent with QBs) rates him at 91 of 100. At this point, he is more heavily recruited than Kelly.

Offers: Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Washington, Washington State Wisconsin
Considering: All the above plus Texas
Visits: Washington, Washington State

Bert Miller
RB
5' 11" 209 lbs.
Bend High School
Bend, Oregon
Major: Geology
GPA: 2.67
SAT: 728
Rivals.com Rank: 8
All Oregon Team

Bert is considered the top running back in the country, and there's some distance between him and the #2 prospect. In 9 games this year as a HS senior, he's carried 268 times for 1664 yards and 14 TDs. He has also caught 53 balls for 1115 yards and another 12 TDs, so he's as dangerous a receiver as a runner.

The big obstacle for Bert, naturally, is going to be that low SAT score, which may scare a lot of schools off. Our own scout (Good with RBs) rates him at 83 of 100.

Offers: Auburn, Miami (FL), Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State
Considering: All of the above.
Visits: Mississippi

Darrin Dunne
DE
6'2" 228 lbs.
Troy HS
Troy, New York
Major: Dentistry
GPA: 3.07
SAT: 1059
Rivals.com Rank: 11
All-New York Team

Darrin is the third highest rated defensive lineman overall, but the highest rated Defensive End. In 9 games this year, he has 97 Tackles, 13.5 Sacks, and 2 Interceptions.

Darrin's being recruited heavily, and understandably so. Our own scout (Decent with DEs & DTs) rates him at 89 of 100.

Offers: Florida State, Hawaii, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio State, UCLA
Considering: All the above.
Contacted: Texas A&M, USC
Visits: Ohio State


Harry Harvey
QB
6'2" 202 lbs.
Moriarty HS
Moriarty, New Mexico
Major: Archietecture
GPA: 3.46
SAT: 1234
Rivals.com Rank: 14
All-New Mexico Team

Rounding out our five seniors is the third highest rated quarterback, Harry Harvey, from an unheralded school in Moriarty, New Mexico. In 9 games this year, Harry has completed 140 of 229 for 2440 yards with 13 TDs and 4 INTs. Harry is also quick on his feet, having carried the ball 136 times for 744 yards with 6 Rushing TDs.

Harry is being fairly heavily recruited, and again, understandably so. Our own scout (Pretty Good with QBs) rates him at 78 of 100.

Offers: Alabama, Georgia, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Stanford, Virginia
Considering: All the above.
Visits: Oklahoma.

So here's where it goes. Feel free to post if you've got questions, or comments.

[WussGawd]

FYI. Should have mentioned this is the 2004 season of TCY.

It's now week 7 of the TCY season, so a lot of guys out of the Rivals Top 100 are already committed. Only one of our guys have at this point. Here's what is happening with each of our five:

Kelly Nixon, QB:

Kelly still hasn't made a visit, though Washington has finally extended a scholarship offer:

Offers: Florida, Maryland, Stanford, USC, Washington
Considering: Florida, Maryland, Stanford, USC, Washington
Visits: None

Ian Dauber, QB:

For Ian, it's been a busy week, filled with visits, phone calls, and scholarship offers.

Oklahoma is clearly in the mix for Ian as he has made his third visit.

Offers: Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Miami (FL), Michigan, Oklahoma, Washington, Washington State, Wisconsin
Considering: All of the above plus Georgia Tech and Texas
Visits: Oklahoma, Washington, Washington State


Bert Miller, RB

Bert adds a couple of schools to the mix, most notable Oregon and Florida State. He also visits Florida State, who clearly are now one of the two front runners.

Offers: Auburn, Florida State, Miami (FL), Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State.
Considering: All of the above plus Oklahoma.
Visits: Florida State, Mississippi.


Darrin Dunne, DE

USC makes an offer to Darrin, while he makes visits to Michigan and Nebraska.

Offers: Florida State, Hawaii, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio State, UCLA, USC.
Considering: All the above.
Contacted: Texas A&M
Visits: Michigan, Nebraska, Ohio State


Harry Harvey, QB

Harry becomes our first senior to commit to a school. Harry will take his dual running and passing threat to Norman, Oklahoma, and become an Oklahoma Sooner next year.

Committed: Oklahoma.

[WussGawd]

Two more of our guys make commitments, and others are certainly narrowing down the list. Let's move onward.


Kelly Nixon, QB

Kelly doesn't commit, at least, not yet, but he has narrowed down to his final five, and made his five visits:

Visits: Florida, Maryland, Stanford, USC, Washington


Ian Dauber, QB

Like Kelly, Ian narrows down his list to five:

Visits: Auburn, Florida State, Washington, Washington State, Wisconsin


Bert Miller, RB

Bert makes a commitment to Mississippi, the school he visited first, and the one that looked like the front-runner early on. He flirted with Oklahoma, but just couldn't pull the trigger.

Committed: Mississippi.


Darrin Dunne, DE

Darrin also commits this week, to LSU. This means Bert and Darrin have the potential to cross paths a few times in their college careers, which should spice things up a bit in the seasons to come.

Committed: Louisiana State


Harry Harvey, QB, Oklahoma

[WussGawd]

The last of our five seniors make their commitments this week. Not much else to report, so on with the show:

Kelly Nixon, QB

Kelly was a real weird one to figure out. It looked early on like Oklahoma wanted him, until they went and signed Harry Harvey, and Washington seemed to consider him their insurance policy in case Ian Dauber decided to go out of state (I doubt WSU was ever seriously in Ian's plans), but at the end of the day, Kelly decided to take Stanford up on a scholarship offer.

Committed: Stanford


Ian Dauber, QB

Homestate hero Ian commits to Washington, who honestly looked like the front runner all along.

Committed: Washington

Bert Miller, RB, Mississippi
Darrin Dunne, DE, LSU
Harry Harvey, QB, Oklahoma

[WussGawd]

So our five players have their colleges of choice.

Kelly Nixon, QB, Stanford
Ian Dauber, QB, Washington
Bert Miller, RB, Mississippi
Darrin Dunne, DE, LSU
Harry Harvey, QB, Oklahoma

It should be particularly interesting to see Bert Miller vs. Darrin Dunne matchups once a year, along with the prospect of a few Nixon vs. Dauber matchups when Stanford mixes it up with Washington.

All in all, things have turned out nicely.

****************
For those who care, Louisiana-Monroe, with first year coach WussGawd at the helm finished 3-8 (2-4 in Conference) for sixth place in the Sun Belt Conference.

Utah State won the title at 7-4 (6-1).

We started out with twin blowout losses to Auburn (11-48), and Arkansas (7-62), and finished up the season with four straight losses, before winning our finale against our hated rivals, Louisiana-Lafayette.

Biggest win of the year was a 12-10 victory over Arkansas State, which helped Utah State to the title.

But enough about Louisiana-Monroe.

We'll be back tomorrow with the first collegiate season of our five intrepid heroes.

[WussGawd]

As we start with the 2005 Season, here's the likely fate of our 5 players is this season:

Kelly Nixon, QB, Stanford-Redshirted for 2005 Season

Kelly likely would have been the #2 or #3 QB on a Stanford roster that is pretty thin on QB quality this year, but the coach went for the redshirt.

Ian Dauber, QB, Washington-Redshirted for 2005 Season

Washington has a very solid pair of QB's, Donnie Russell, in his last year of eligibility will start, with David Caldwell, a solid backup who is a Redshirt Junior as a very reliable backup. Ian would have been buried deep in the depth chart, so it's no surprise Washington opted for the redshirt year.

Bert Miller, RB, Mississippi-Redshirted for 2005 Season.

Now this is interesting. Bert Miller is easily the best running back on Mississippi's roster, but the team redshirted him anyway. Mississippi has a boatload of mediocre backs, most of whom are upperclassmen, but nobody with the star power of Bert.

Darrin Dunne, DE, LSU-Redshirted for 2005 Season.

Darrin is a face in the crowd amongst some serious talent on the DL for LSU. He has wisely been redshirted.

Harry Harvey, QB, Oklahoma-Redshirted for 2005 Season.

Harry again would have been buried behind a boatload of good quarterbacks. He has wisely been redshirted.

We'll monitor the box scores and rosters to see whether any of these guys get in a game this year, and I'll post a tiny bit about my experiences with UL-M, but it should be a quick season.

FYI. I'm running FOF 2001 rather than FOF 2k4, because I need to do a clean install of 2k4, and can't find the setup file.

[WussGawd]

Three of our players' teams are in action in Week 1:

Central Michigan at #1 Oklahoma (-24)

Harry watched from the sidelines as Oklahoma routed CMU in a laugher, 65-3.

#21 Virginia Tech at #7 LSU (-8)

LSU overcame a lousy game from its starting QB (13-34 205 yards, 2 TDs, 5 INTs) to beat Virginia Tech 48-10 as Darrin Dunne looked on.

Stanford at #9 Nebraska (-15)

Stanford struggled to move the football, and to play defense, as Nebraska crushed them 45-7. Kelly Nixon did not play.

Mississippi & Bert Miller-Idle
Washington & Ian Dauber-Idle

[WussGawd]

Four of our five players will watch as their teams play, while my own Louisiana-Monroe opens their season.

#1 Oklahoma (1-0) -8 at #18 Tulsa (1-0)

Harry Harvey looked on as 2004 National Champion Oklahoma destroyed Tulsa, 69-10.

Mississippi (0-0) -4 at Arkansas State (0-0)

Mississippi took a 28-10 lead en route to defeating Arkansas State 38-18 as Bert Miller watched from the sidelines.

NC State (0-0) at Washington (0-0) -4

NC State built a 13-3 lead after 3 quarters that was just a bit too much for Washington to overcome. NC State won 19-17 as Ian Dauber looked on.

San Jose State (0-0) at Stanford (0-1) -9

Stanford used a stubborn defense, and a coldly efficient offense to crush the Spartans 79-0. as Kelly Nixon watched.

LSU (Darrin Dunne)-Idle


Louisiana Monroe 38 at SMU 27

Despite being outgained by over 200 yards, my own Louisiana-Monroe team forced 4 interceptions, including 1 returned for a touchdown, and upset SMU 38-27.

UL-M climbs to 1-0

[WussGawd]

All 5 of our intrepid heroes will be watching as their teams continue through the non-conference schedule today. Also, UL-M has a game at Buffalo

Notre Dame (1-1) at #7 LSU (1-0) (-7)

Darrin Dunne watched in admiration as LSU scored early, scored often, and absolutely throttled the Fading Irish's listless offense, 41-0.

Boise State (0-1) at #1 Oklahoma (2-0) (-10)

Oklahoma showed why they are expected to defend their national title, ripping the Broncos 63-3. OU ran up over 300 yards rushing and passing on the way to the win, as Harry Harvey looked on.

Stanford (1-1) (-2) at Eastern Michigan (0-1)

Kelly Nixon watched as Stanford turned a 17 point second quarter into a 38-14 win over EMU.

Washington (0-1) at #6 Miami (FL) (1-0) (-4)

On a stormy afternoon in south Florida, Washington twice battled back from touchdown deficits before kicking a field goal with 3 minutes left in the game to upset the heavily favored Hurricanes, 17-14 as Ian Dauber looked on.

Alaska-Anchorage (0-1) at Mississippi (1-0) (-13)

Bert Miller's Ole Miss team rolled to over 500 yards of total offense in a 40-0 blowout of Alaska-Anchorage on a warm day in Oxford, Mississippi.


Louisiana-Monroe (1-0) at Buffalo (0-1) (-3)

Buffalo's coach made the biggest mistake of the game, going for 2 after scoring to take a 12-0 lead in the first half and failing, and Louisiana-Monroe rallied to make him pay, as the Indians rallied from 15 down in the first half upset the Bulls 16-15.

[WussGawd]

Kelly Nixon's Stanford team, and Harry Harvey's Oklahoma team have the week off, as does my own Louisiana-Monroe.

Tulane (0-2) at #6 LSU (2-0) (-14) (TV4)

Darrin Dunne watched as LSU throttled another non-conference opponent, beating cross-state rival Tulane, 52-3.

Bowling Green (3-0) at Washington (1-1) (-5) (TV5)

Ian Dauber watched as Washington's starting QB, Donnie Russell, threw for 5 touchdowns and 396 yards in a 49-7 thrashing of Bowling Green.

South Florida (0-2) at #25 Mississippi (2-0) (-11)

Bert Miller watched as MIssissippi rolled to a 35-7 win over South Florida.

[WussGawd]

Everybody gets down to business as the real season begins. Four of our five teams gget some television time this week.

#5 LSU (3-0) at South Carolina (2-0) (-2) TV2

Darrin Dunne watched as the Tigers overcame some earlier offensive jitters to beat the Gamecocks, 39-23.

#10 Georgia (2-0) at #23 Mississippi (3-0) (-2) TV3

Bert Miller looked on as the Rebels cruised to a 34-7 lead over the first three quarters, before easing up to beat the Bulldogs, 37-22.

#1 Oklahoma (3-0) (-15) at Missouri (0-3) TV4

Oklahoma reeled off 600 yards to overcome a mediocre defensive performance, beating Mizzou 61-31 as Harry Harvey looked on.

Arizona State (3-0) (-4) at Stanford (2-1) TV5

Kelly Nixon looked on in frustration as ASU rolled to a 27-0 halftime lead. Stanford's second half rally fell short, as the Sun Devils won, 27-20.

UCLA (1-1) at Washington (2-1) (-12)

For the first 22 minutes, the day looked like it would belong to the Huskies, as they rolled to a 21-7 lead. Then the bottom fell out, as UCLA rolled off 35 unanswered points to beat Washington, 42-21, as Ian Dauber watched from the sidelines.


Louisiana-Monroe (2-0) at New Mexico State (1-1) (-2)

At last, UL-M's lack of offensive punch doomed me. The Aggies won in a laugher at home, 44-13. UL-M falls to 2-1 (0-1).

[WussGawd]

A couple of our teams (Washington & Oklahoma) are idle, but most are in action as conference play continues.

Sorry guys, forgot to post the lines before running the sims this week.

Here's the score for the games that I ran.

LSU 44, Kentucky 16

LSU struggled to put Kentucky away for most of three quarters before pulling away in the 4th. Darrin Dunne didn't play. Kentucky dropped to 3-1, while LSU climbs to 5-0 (2-0) and is tied with Mississippi for the SEC South lead.

Mississippi 27, Vanderbilt 0

Bert Miller looked on as Mississippi ran for 250 yards in a rout of the Commodores. Mississippi climbs to 5-0 (2-0) to tie LSU for the SEC South Lead.

Stanford 34, Arizona 7

Kelly Nixon watched as Stanford reeled off 34 unanswered points after going down 7-0 to beat Arizona. Stanford climbs to 3-2 (1-1), which puts them 6th in the Pac 10.


Central Michigan 35, Louisiana-Monroe 15

Our offensive woes continue. and Central Michigan thrashes us. UL-M drops to 2-2 (0-1).

[WussGawd]

Only Bert Miller's Mississippi team is idle, as we continue with conference play.

Mississippi State (2-2) at #5 LSU (5-0) (-31) TV4

Darrin Dunne watched as LSU rolled up over 650 yards of total offense in a 56-7 lauger vs. Mississippi State.

Baylor (1-4) at #1 Oklahoma (4-0) (-25)

Oklahoma ran for almost 200 yards and took a 21-0 lead in the first quarter, effectively dismantling the Bears, 59-14 as Harry Harvey watched in awe.

Stanford (3-2) at Oregon State (3-1) (-10)

Stanford outscored Oregon State 31-7 over the final three quarters to upset the Beavers, 31-14, as Kelly Nixon watched.

Washington (2-2) (-10) at Oregon (1-3)

An Oregon 20-7 lead was too much for Washington, as Ian Dauber watched helplessly from the sidelines.


North Texas (3-2) (-11) at Louisiana-Monroe (2-2)

North Texas reels off 600 yards of offense, throttling my team 51-17. The family is hiding the sharp objects at this point.

[WussGawd]

Everybody's playing this week. Except our players, of course.

#5 LSU (6-0) (-4) at #15 Mississippi (5-0) TV1

The big game of the week, this one will be a bit more meaningful in future years, when our DE Darrin Dunne meets up with RB Bert Miller.

This season's battle was a dogfight, with numerous lead changes, and ultimately, a tie after 4 quarters at 17-17. The game would ultimately be determined in a third overtime possession, when LSU failed to make a 2 point conversion, while Mississippi succeeded. Final Score: Mississippi 39, LSU 37.

#1 Oklahoma (5-0) (-2) at Texas (3-2) TV4

As usual, Oklahoma-Texas was a dogfight, and Harry Harvey had a spot on the sideline. Again, nip and tuck the entire way, it went to overtime tied at 38-38. Finally, in the fifth overtime possession, after some great defense, Oklahoma was forced to settle for a field goal, with Texas answering with a touchdown on their own possession. Final Score: Texas 58, Oklahoma 55

UCLA (3-2) (-1) at Stanford (4-2) TV5

The Bruins rolled to a 24-6 lead, and Stanford couldn't make up the difference as UCLA defeated Stanford, 31-22. Kelly Nixon watched in agony.

Washington (2-3) at California (3-3) (-3)

The Huskies seem to be falling into a pattern of giving up huge early leads, and then having to dig themselves out of the holes. This time, they spotted Cal a 24-0 lead, made it as tight as 35-28 in the second half, but ultimately came up short, 42-28. Ian Dauber watched as his homestate Huskies fall short again.


Louisiana-Monroe (2-3) at Idaho (1-3) (-14)

Two touchdown underdogs at kickoff, the UL-M fans groaned as Idaho quickly reeled off a 10-0 first quarter lead. Then, down at the half, 13-7, everything changed. Louisiana Monroe put up two third quarter touchdowns, took the lead, and never looked back, beating Idaho 38-19 in a huge Sun Belt Conference upset.

For the third straight time, UL-M was outgained by an opponent, but defeated anyway.

[WussGawd]

We'll be back with the rest of the season later.

[WussGawd]

Four of our five players are in action this week, while Darrin Dunne's LSU team tries to shake off the malaise of their first loss.

#6 Oklahoma (5-1) at #4 Nebraska (7-0) (-11) (TV2)

Reeling from their loss to Texas, OU faces another tough test in #4 Nebraska. Unfortunately for OU, it was never to be. Nebraska's running game got uncorked, and things came unravelled in a hurry. Nebraska led 17-0 at the half, and 17-7 after three. Nebraska quickly made it 27-7 in the fourth quarter, and never looked back. Final: Nebraska 34, Oklahoma 21.

#12 Mississippi (6-0) (-3) at South Carolina (4-2) (TV3)

Bert Miller watched from the sidelines as his Mississippi Rebels fought off a tough South Carolina team on the road. Final: Mississippi 21, South Carolina 14.

Arizona (1-6) at Washington (2-4) (-11)

Arizona scored first, taking a 6-0 lead, but then, WAshington unleashed a firestorm. They scored 10 in the second quarter, and after 3 quarters, led 13-9. Then in the fourth, they reeled off 17 straight to blow open the game. Final: Washington 37, Arizona 16.

Stanford (4-3) (-2) at Oregon (3-3)

Kelly Nixon watched from the sidelines as Stanford blew away Oregon in a 45-3 laugher.


Louisiana-Monroe (3-3) at Utah State (2-3) (-10)

My own Louisiana-Monroe team dug out of a 10-0 deficit to upset heavily favored Utah State, 21-17.

[WussGawd]

Since we're just a few games away from the season, I thought I'd take a moment to speak about each of these 5 teams bowl prospects:

Louisiana State (6-1 Overall, 3-1 SEC, 3rd in SEC South)
Remaining Games (Home games in CAPS): Alabama, TENNESSEE, ARKANSAS, Auburn

LSU's loss to Ole Miss really hurt. They currently trail Ole Miss and Arkansas in the SEC South. LSU's season will depend on how they do in these four games. Particularly how they do against Arkansas at home. Although hardly a lock, they still have a shot at winning the SEC South Crown.

Mississippi (7-0, 4-0 SEC, 1st (Tied) in SEC South)
Remaining Games: AUBURN, Alabama, Arkansas, MISSISSIPPI STATE

Like LSU, Mississippi's future will be influenced by all these games, but particularly Arkansas. An SEC South Crown is in reach, but Ole Miss has to get through Arkansas first.

Oklahoma (5-2, 2-2 Big 10, 3rd (Tied) in Big 12 South)
Remaining Games: TEXAS TECH, COLORADO, TEXAS A&M, Oklahoma State

Oklahoma's dreams of a national championship are clearly over. They can serve themselves well by beating Texas Tech in their next game and still have a solid chance to finish 2nd in the Big 12 South, but 1st will be a stretch, since Texas has the tiebreaker.

Stanford (5-3, 3-2 Pac 10, 4th in Pac 10)
Remaining Games: WASHINGTON, at USC, CALIFORNIA

In a conference where USC is still unbeaten, Stanford's hopes of a first place finish are clearly gone, and it's hard to envision a scenarion where this team wins against USC. Stanford still has a shot at a minor bowl, depending on their performances, particularly against Washington State, and the rivalry game vs. Cal. To expect much more is unrealistic.

Washington (3-4, 1-3 Pac 10, 8th (Tied) in Pac 10)
Remaining Games: at USC, at Stanford, ASU, WASHINGTON STATE

Right now, this doesn't look like a bowl team. A USC loss puts this team at best with a 4-4 record in the Pac 10. Right now, it looks like Washington will be underdogs against every team remaining on their schedule. Considering these odds, I don't see a bowl in the Huskies future.

[Tasan]

Just to let you know, you do have a reader!

[WussGawd]

Originally Posted by Tasan

Just to let you know, you do have a reader!

Cool. Good to know somebody's paying attention. More in a moment.

[WussGawd]

Kelly Nixon's Stanford Cardinal are Idle. However, the other 4 teams are in action, as well as my own Louisiana-Monroe.

#17 Texas Tech (6-1) (-4) at #10 Oklahoma (5-2) (TV3)

Harry Harvey watched from the sidelines as the Oklahoma Sooners recovered from their two losses to throttle one of the teams ahead of them in the Big 12 South. It wasn't close. Final: Oklahoma 59, Texas Tech 13.

Auburn (2-5) at #11 Mississippi (7-0) (-12) (TV5)

Bert Miller watched from the sidelines in shock, as Mississippi finally ran into a buzzsaw. Auburn scored early and often, Mississippi's quarterback play was poor, and Auburn pulled off the upset. Auburn 42, Mississippi 35

#6 LSU (6-1) (-8) at Alabama (3-4) (TV5)

Darrin Dunne stood on the sidelines as Alabama upset LSU, scoring 27 straight points. A subsequent LSU rally fell short, leaving the Tiger faithful searching for answers. Alabama 27, LSU 15.

Washington (3-4) at #3 USC (6-0) (-20)

The great Huskies death spiral continues, as Ian Dauber watches his favorite team get blown away by the #3 ranked Trojans. USC 52, Washington 14.


Troy (2-6) at Louisiana-Monroe (4-3) (-2)

It was a nip and tuck game all the way, with Troy finally scoring the winning field goal in the final minute. Troy 30, Louisiana-Monroe 27.

On to the bowl picture with the next post.

[rjolley]

Just caught up and following along.

[WussGawd]

Oklahoma (6-2, 3-2 Big 12 South, 2nd (Tied) in Big 10 South)

Remaining Games: COLORADO, TEXAS A&M, at Oklahoma State

Oklahoma's blowout win over Texas Tech made them bowl eligible, but also keeps them in the hunt for the Big 12 South title, if Texas stumbles over the last couple of weeks.

Prediction: Non-BCS Bowl Game.

Mississippi (7-1, 4-1 SEC, 2nd in SEC South)

Remaining Games: at Alabama, at Arkansas, MISSISSIPPI STATE

Ole Miss looks like a candidate for a major bowl, but still trails unbeaten Arkansas for the SEC South title.

Prediction: New Year's Day (but not BCS) bowl game.

LSU (6-2, 3-2 SEC, 3rd (Tied) in SEC South)
Remaining Games: TENNESSEE, ARKANSAS, at Auburn

LSU is certainly bowl eligible. However, what bowl they wind up in will be heavily dependent on their performance in the next three weeks.

Prediction: Non-BCS, non-New Year's Bowl game)

Stanford (5-3, 3-2 Pac 10, 4th (Tied) in Pac 10)
Remaining Games: WASHINGTON, at USC, CALIFORNIA

Stanford looks like a minor bowl team at the moment, though they can enhance their position with 3 wins to close out the regular season.

Prediction: Minor Bowl.

Washington (3-5, 1-4 Pac 10, 8th (Tied) in Pac 10)
Remaining Games: at Stanford, ARIZONA STATE, WASHINGTON STATE

It's hard to envision a scenario where this team becomes bowl eligible, or climbs high enough in the Pac 10 to grab a bowl spot.

Prediction: Season ends vs. Washington State

[WussGawd]

Originally Posted by rjolley

Just caught up and following along.

Welcome aboard.

[WussGawd]

4 of our 5 teams are in action, as is my own Louisiana-Monroe team, who are still fighting to get above .500 for the first time in a long time.

#18 Colorado (7-1) (-1) at #9 Oklahoma (6-2) (TV2)

In a game that was nip and tuck throughout the first half, Oklahoma blew the game open in the second half, rolling over Colorado, 47-21

#7 Tennessee (7-1) at #13 LSU (6-2) (-5) (TV3)

Rallying from an early 21-7 deficit, the LSU Tigers defeated Tennessee rather handily, 35-24.

Washington (3-5) at Stanford (5-3) (-8)

Washington served notice early that they were playing this one to win. Stanford's offense struggle early, and their defense collapsed in second half, as Washington pulls off the shocker, 38-3 to keep their slim bowl hopes alive.

Middle Tennessee State (5-2) (-10) at Louisiana-Monroe (4-4) (TV4)

My own Louisiana-Monroe team pulled off an upset of their own, shellacking heavily favored MTSU by a score of 40-14.

None of our 5 freshmen played in their team's games.

[MacroGuru]

yeah I am reading as well.

[WussGawd]

Oklahoma (7-2 Overall, 4-2 Big 12 South, 2nd (Tied) in Big 12 South)
Remaining Games: TEXAS A&M, at Oklahoma State

Oklahoma remains in the hunt for the Big 12 South crown, but basically needs an end of season collapse. More importantly, Oklahoma's win enhances their chances of at least a decent bowl game.

Prediction: Non-BCS Bowl Game

Stanford (5-4 Overall, 3-3 Pac 10, 5th in Pac 10)
Remaining Games: at USC, CALIFORNIA

Stanford's loss to Washington was a devastating blow, as it is very hard to imagine them beating unbeaten USC on the road. Stanford will absolutely have to win their rivalry game against Cal, who may also be fighting to be bowl eligible in that game as well

Prediction: Possible Minor Bowl

Washington (4-5 Overall, 2-4 Pac 10, 6th (3 Way Tie) in Pac 10
Remaining Games: ARIZONA STATE, WASHINGTON STATE

The Huskies did exactly what they needed to do on the road against the Trees and remain in the hunt. The good news is their remaining two games are on the road. The bad news is that both ASU & Wazoo are 3rd and 4th in the conference, bowl teams, and fighting to improve their bowl games.

Prediction: No bowl.

LSU (7-2 Overall, 4-1 SEC South, 3rd SEC South)
Remaining Games: ARKANSAS, at Auburn

LSU remains a long shot for the SEC South title, but really need to win out to enhance their bowl chances. A win over Arkansas would go a long way in that direction, as well as keep alive their slim homes of catching the Razorbacks and Rebels.

Prediction: Major (non-BCS) bowl game.

Mississippi (7-1 Overall, 4-1 SEC South, 2nd SEC South)
Remaining Games: at Alabama, at Arkansas, MISSISSIPPI STATE

Other than Arkansas, Mississippi is the only team in the conference that controls their own destiny. If they run the table, they win a berth in the SEC Championship Game.

Prediction: BCS Bowl Game.

[WussGawd]

All five of the teams, as well as my Louisiana-Monroe squad, are in action today.

#6 Arkansas (9-0) at #9 LSU (7-2) (-4) (TV3)

LSU jumps on Arkansas early offensively, and their defense throttles the Razorbacks. The Tigers win in a laugher, 35-3.

#23 Texas A&M (6-2) at #7 Oklahoma (7-2) (-5) (TV3)

Oklahoma's defensive woes come back to haunt them for a third time this season, as they blow two leads, including a 13 point 4th quarter lead, to lose to the Aggies, 42-41.

Arizona State (7-2) (-7) at Washington (4-5)

Arizona State's offense takes an early lead, but the story of the day is ASU's defense, which dominates the Huskies offense, enabling ASU to win 20-7. And just like that Washington's bowl hopes are snuffed out for 2005.

#16 Mississippi (7-1) (-3) at Alabama (4-5)

The story of the day was Alabama's defense throttling Mississippi's seemingly unstoppable running game. Mississippi's defense played gallantly, but eventually wore down against an Alabama offense that did little, but didn't need to do much in light of Mississippi's sputtering offense. Alabama won easily, 26-0.

Stanford (5-4) at #3 USC (8-0) (-18)

USC serves notice early that Stanford will not be the team that snaps the 20 game USC win streak going into the game, and stuffs the Cardinal, 49-14.

Louisiana-Monroe (5-4) (-1) at Louisiana-Lafayette (2-7)

Louisiana-Monroe's defense throttles Louisiana Lafayette, and their offense finally gets going in the second half. UL-M 28, UL-L 6.

None of our five redshirted freshmen see action.