Official College Football Championship Week Thread

[Chief Rum]

UCLA at Stanford tonight. Repeat of last week's game, which was a regularly scheduled conference game, only this time at Stanford.

I have to think Stanford will win this one, since they beat UCLA on the road and are now coming home. But there has been some thought that this will be a very even game, more than last week, because: A) UCLA didn't have anything to play for last week; their spot in the conference championship game was set, and they were already guaranteed to be on the road for it; B) Because UCLA didn't have anything to play for and knew they would play Stanford, they went very conservative in their playcalling, to show less to Stanford going into this game, which is for the Rose Bowl; and C) tThe old cliché, it's hard to beat a good opponent twice in the same season.

That said, I just think Stanford is a more disciplined and experienced team which won the last week's game in the trenches, and that's a difficult liability to overcome (because, really, what has changed from last week?). UCLA has a young team and I don't think they're quite ready for that challenge.

Still, if anyone told me before the season that UCLA would repeat as Pac 12 South champs and go to the Holiday or Alamo Bowl with (at least) 9 wins, including a win over USC, I would have gladly accepted that.

[miked]

Man that game was great but depressing. We really had a few big plays, but that fake FG that was called back was huge. I mean, instead of 21-3, we punt and they score and it's 14-10...then 17-14 on the ensuing fumbled kick. The whole 3rd quarter was dead in the stadium.

We got no pressure on Bridgewater, his WR made the great (and routine) catches our guys didn't. And Flood running Jamison/Huggins in to the line every 1st down is getting old. It's seemed like Flood had 3 plays in the book...run straight, stretch run (where the OL get no blocks) and bomb. I actually thought we had a chance to tie it up when Nova got them to the 50 with a minute left and a timeout, but then the mixed up bomb that was picked. I don't know why Nova felt they had to get 40 yards on every pass play, but the middle was open with a minute left and 1 timeout...they should have used it.

[Logan]

Ugh...now seeing pictures that indicate that the ineligible man downfield call was blown. The flagged player appears within 3 yards of the LOS at the time the ball was thrown. WVU 2006 all over again.

[MrBug708]

Gonna be a wet and messy game in Palo Alto

[molson]

That's probably the last big east football game I'll ever watch.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by molson

That's probably the last big east football game I'll ever watch.

Give it a year or two, there might be a last Big East football game anyone watches.

[B & B]

[EagleFan]

Nice finish going on in front of the half empty stadium.

[EagleFan]

dola: I love watching games that he is calling, football or basketball.

[Crapshoot]

This is an amazing fucking game. Just amazing. Should have gone. #regrets

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by EagleFan

Nice finish going on in front of the half empty stadium.

Stanford has ~5,000 undergrad students. Its not a big school, and the Bay Area doesn't live and die with its college teams.

[Thomkal]

It's almost halftime in Coastal Carolina's playoff game at # 3 Old Dominion-and OD leads 28-21. It would be a monumental upset if Coastal pulled it off. I think they had the most losses of any team in the playoffs this season.

Edit: They were at the one yard line near halftime...and didn't score.

[Karlifornia]

See! You! L! A! SeeYouLA You! Guys! Suck! All kidding aside, that was a great effort by the Bruins, and you guys should feel happy with that coaching staff going forward. They had a brilliant gameplan, and yuckla should have won.

[General Mike]

Congrats to Tulsa on winning CUSA

[BishopMVP]

So Oregon State is playing Nicholls State this week (I assume its rescheduled from that LA hurricane in Week 2?). What would have happened if Nicholls made the FCS playoffs?

[GrantDawg]

I haven't been this nervous since before the 1980 Sugar bowl.

[Matthean]

I'm all sorts of uncomfortable with 'Bama's chances in this game. At some point the uber talented but mentally flawed team flips the switch. I prefer it not being now.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Matthean

I'm all sorts of uncomfortable with 'Bama's chances in this game. At some point the uber talented but mentally flawed team flips the switch. I prefer it not being now.

Georgia may have flipped the switch after the USCe/Kentucky debacles, but there's no real way to tell because their schedule has been abysmal. They're lucky Alabama is viewed as such a good win that they'll automatically make the BCS title game if they win today, because other than that they only have 2 wins worth anything and I'd be tempted to put K-State, Oregon or even Florida into the title game over them.

[britrock88]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

So Oregon State is playing Nicholls State this week (I assume its rescheduled from that LA hurricane in Week 2?). What would have happened if Nicholls made the FCS playoffs?

They probably would have cancelled it, and Nicholls would have gotten a buyout-type sum for it. Same would have gone if Oregon State had won their division and played in the PAC-12 championship game.

[Ben E Lou]

Now THAT was a throw.

[Easy Mac]

Originally Posted by BishopMVP

Georgia may have flipped the switch after the USCe/Kentucky debacles, but there's no real way to tell because their schedule has been abysmal. They're lucky Alabama is viewed as such a good win that they'll automatically make the BCS title game if they win today, because other than that they only have 2 wins worth anything and I'd be tempted to put K-State, Oregon or even Florida into the title game over them.

Georgia beat Florida.

[Thomkal]

Originally Posted by Thomkal

It's almost halftime in Coastal Carolina's playoff game at # 3 Old Dominion-and OD leads 28-21. It would be a monumental upset if Coastal pulled it off. I think they had the most losses of any team in the playoffs this season.

Edit: They were at the one yard line near halftime...and didn't score.

And its tied at 35 as they near the end of the third quarter...

[JonInMiddleGA]

Alabama best find a way to score soon. The longer they leave Georgia in this game, the better the chances for an upset become.

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by Easy Mac

Georgia beat Florida.

Georgia had the worse loss, etc.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by Matthean

Georgia had the worse loss, etc.

How you figure? Georgia lost to the higher ranked team, away, in a game they where a underdog. Florida loss to the lower ranked team, in a game they were favored. I love how we always ignore context in these discussions.

[Thomkal]

Originally Posted by Thomkal

And its tied at 35 as they near the end of the third quarter...

And just like that its 49-35 ODU

[bob]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

How you figure? Georgia lost to the higher ranked team, away, in a game they where a underdog. Florida loss to the lower ranked team, in a game they were favored. I love how we always ignore context in these discussions.

I think he means scoreboard wise. Georgia got boat raced, while UF lost to UGA by a touchdown or so (can't remember the exact score of either game)

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

How you figure? Georgia lost to the higher ranked team, away, in a game they where a underdog. Florida loss to the lower ranked team, in a game they were favored. I love how we always ignore context in these discussions.

Georgia was never in the game after the first 10 minutes, Florida had the ball with a chance to tie in the last minute. I also don't think it makes sense to use the teams ranking at the time as the arbiter. Does Stanford get more credit for beating USCw than Notre Dame or UCLA does because USCw was #2 at the time?

I'm not even saying I'd definitely go for Florida over Georgia, but I don't think Georgia should be the lock for the title game that they will be with a win. Florida has more quality wins and K-State has beaten more decent teams. Fortunately for the Bulldogs, Alabama is regarded as a juggernaut and a win over them validates any team as elite.

Originally Posted by Britrock

They probably would have cancelled it, and Nicholls would have gotten a buyout-type sum for it. Same would have gone if Oregon State had won their division and played in the PAC-12 championship game.

Probably, but it would have been interesting if Oregon State had stayed in the discussion for the title game. Would they have tried to cancel it just to avoid the SoS downgrade?

[KWhit]

How is that not a penalty?

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by KWhit

How is that not a penalty?

The ref was looking right at it. People get pissed at me for being hard on the refs. The ref who was looking right at that play and didn't throw a flag should NEVER ref another football game again. He should be walked off the field at halftime.

The Alabama player who had the cheap shot should be kicked out of this game and suspended for the next one. The powers that be in the NFL and college football both talk about safety, but refuse to do anything about it. A personal foul of that nature should have SEVERE consequences.

If Bama ends up with a FG because of the 15 free yards, this will be a shame.

[timmynausea]

Originally Posted by TroyF

The ref was looking right at it. People get pissed at me for being hard on the refs. The ref who was looking right at that play and didn't throw a flag should NEVER ref another football game again. He should be walked off the field at halftime.

Additionally, the ref should be kicked in the balls by the UGA player of Aaron Murray's choosing.

[Matthean]

'Bama up despite their numerous mental errors. If they play smart, it will be a fun second half. The fake punts have to be killing my Dad. He HATES Bobby Williams who coaches the special teams for 'Bama.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by Matthean

'Bama up despite their numerous mental errors. If they play smart, it will be a fun second half. The fake punts have to be killing my Dad. He HATES Bobby Williams who coaches the special teams for 'Bama.

Monster drive by GA there. They needed to answer the last part of that second quarter. They did in a big way. Bama will have made adjustments as well. The D needs to step up to support what the offense just did.

[Ben E Lou]

WOOHOOO!!!!

[Matthean]

Well, can't complain about the missed personal with the missed call that lead to a blocked FG and TD. Did I mention how much my Dad hates Bobby Williams? Congrats on the title Georgia.

[TroyF]

Huge play. If GA can somehow win, I will forgive Stanford for beating OR. Long way to go though.

[Ben E Lou]

Sheesh. Not even close to stopping the run.

[Ben E Lou]

Dawgs must answer right now, or it's over.

[cuervo72]

I guess Bama woke up after that blocked FG.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by TroyF

The ref was looking right at it. People get pissed at me for being hard on the refs. The ref who was looking right at that play and didn't throw a flag should NEVER ref another football game again. He should be walked off the field at halftime.

The Alabama player who had the cheap shot should be kicked out of this game and suspended for the next one. The powers that be in the NFL and college football both talk about safety, but refuse to do anything about it. A personal foul of that nature should have SEVERE consequences.

If Bama ends up with a FG because of the 15 free yards, this will be a shame.

When was the last time the refs didnt just crap all over the team you wanted to win?

[jbergey22]

Game on!

[Ben E Lou]

Originally Posted by Ben E Lou

Dawgs must answer right now, or it's over.

Alllllllrighty then.

Epic game?

[Buccaneer]

I thought the Georgia Dome had all of those multi-colored ceiling tiles?

[cuervo72]

Upset Alert:#2 Alabama 25, #3 Georgia 28 - 12:54 4th Qtr

Don't ever change, ESPN Scoreboard.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Saw this on Twitter, from legendary WWE announcer (and uber college football fan) Jim Ross
Can only imagine how the late, great Larry Munson would be while calling #Bama vs #UGA. Classic, real passion & memorable descriptors.

Ol' JR is right about that one. No matter my feeling about the Dawgs, Munson would have provided a call for the ages today.

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by jbergey22

When was the last time the refs didnt just crap all over the team you wanted to win?

I would be seeing the same thing if it happened FOR the team I wanted to win. People always forget that I go crazy even if the call goes for my team.

As for that particular play, it was dangerous, cheap and the intent was to simply knock the QB out of the game. The ref saw this and chose to not call it. It was a disgusting call and it would have been just as disgusting had the hit been against the bama QB.

If you disagree with my assessment, have at it.

[jbergey22]

Georgia needs to add a guy to the box or something. This is ridiculous.

[Ben E Lou]

Saban does the Dawgs a favor by throwing on 3rd and 6...

[TroyF]

Originally Posted by jbergey22

Georgia needs to add a guy to the box or something. This is ridiculous.

The only thing that concerns me when you get a team grounding and pounding like this is what happens when they are forced into a third and long. The QB is a little out of rhythm and converting in those situations becomes tough. I didn't think GA was going to stop them, but when they did on two consecutive plays the third down was missed.

GA really needs some first downs here, even if they don't get a TD. Their defense badly needs a rest.

[jbergey22]

Originally Posted by TroyF

The only thing that concerns me when you get a team grounding and pounding like this is what happens when they are forced into a third and long. The QB is a little out of rhythm and converting in those situations becomes tough. I didn't think GA was going to stop them, but when they did on two consecutive plays the third down was missed.

GA really needs some first downs here, even if they don't get a TD. Their defense badly needs a rest.

Agree

The back seemed to have a hole on that 3rd down play. Couldnt really tell if it was a poor effort by him or a great play by the bama tackler.