NCAA 14 Coaching Dynasty (PS3)

[Knickerbocker91]

Quote: Originally Posted by moose141

Knicks, I'm not gonna lie, I'm going to have to jump headfirst into your dynasty. I'll have some catching up to do to get to know your squad, but your graphics are first class and beautiful and I love getting to check out other people's dynasty stories and yours is top on my list to jump into!

I appreciate it! My graphics have definitely improved since the beginning of this dynasty, I'm debating making a new thread once I get a head coaching gig to clean things up, but that's still a ways off. Seeing reports from Lopaka, Cheese, Hellisan, Geezy, thesportsguru, and SilverBullet just to name a few made me want to get more immersive in my own work.

I'll keep it going as long as I enjoy it, and I feel like going in depth is going to help me stay invested. I've still got a long way to go before my coach's story is closed!

[Knickerbocker91]

3 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM THE CFP POLLS

1. The College Football Playoff Committee cares not for the AP or Coaches' Polls

It's evident after the first week of the College Football Playoff polls being released that the committee is not using the AP or Coaches' Polls as a benchmark. That's not necessarily a bad thing. There are three teams with three losses currently in the Coaches Top 25, while none of them exist in the first CFP rankings. Clemson is sitting at 10th in the country, but losses to unranked Miami by 17 don't look good. The Tigers are quite possibly the best three loss team, but their chances of making the playoffs are resting on an ACC crown and a lot of chaos above them.

2. It's not just who you lose to, it's who you beat.

The biggest controversy coming from the initial rankings is Oregon at No. 4 ahead of Texas at No. 5. Texas' lone loss came three weeks ago at a neutral site by 13 to Oklahoma, who currently sit at No. 3. The Longhorns wins don't look spectacular, as the highlight of their resume is a 10 point win over unranked 4-2 USC. Other than that, they beat 3-4 Kansas, 3-3 Kansas State, 3-2 Texas State, 3-4 Kentucky, and a FCS school.

Oregon's lone loss was also at a neutral site, falling 32-13 to Alabama (No. 8 Coaches, No. 12 CFP) without their starting quarterback for three quarters of the game. Their wins however include 4-3 Miami, destroying then No. 25 Colorado 69-17 (who are currently 4-3), and just last week beating a Top-10 team in Arizona State in overtime on the road.

It seems the committee is taking into account who schools beat just as much as who they lose to. So now every program has to hope their opponents combined record moves upward, and maybe we'll start seeing more and more contests between top teams like we have this season.

3. The Group of 5 conferences need a better resume, or to stay undefeated

In the initial rankings, only two programs outside a power conference find themselves in the Top 25 - Navy at No. 20 and North Texas at No. 21. It's not a big difference from the Coaches' Polls (No. 17 Rice, No. 19 North Texas, and No. 21 Hawai'i), but it does tell us quite a few things. A two loss Group of 5 school will not sniff the playoffs. The committee did mention that Rice was heavily considered because of their win over a Top 10 school in Oklahoma State, but the loss the week prior to Florida Atlantic isn't helping their cause.

North Texas and Louisiana Tech are both 6-0 in the Conference USA but they have beat a combined one school with a record above .500 (the Mean Green opened the season with a 42-35 win over Army, who is now 4-2). Navy's lone loss is to 5-2 Texas A&M, and they only loss by six. They haven't beaten anyone big but the wins they do have haven't been close, with an average margin of victory of 20 points.

An undefeated Group of 5 school would have a chance to make the playoff with some marquee wins. One loss and at best a New Year's Six bowl is in their future. Two losses? Don't expect that phone to ring anytime soon.

[Knickerbocker91]

The beauty of noticing grammatical errors after saving the image. It's supposed to say that Johnson is cleared TO practice, not cleared the practice. Obviously. And fun fact, according to wiki Kenan Memorial Stadium only has a capacity of 51,000. With an average attendance of 62,980 there isn't even standing room.

[moose141]

Love the little tidbits and news and notes articles, they add so much depth to the reporting over just game recaps and game previews! That said, looks like there are a ton of squads still with their nose pointed towards the CFP, and heck with so much time left to play, UNC could be there too! If things go your way, you're the top ACC squad in the rankings, so that could be enough to propel you in if you can win out convincingly and bring in that ACC crown!

The little jersey and crowd notes are cool too, Kenan Stadium looks like a really fun place to watch a game, I would love to go to a Pitt-UNC game there someday. I was in Chapel Hill for work last year for a week and it was a really cool little town with a great campus.

I'll tell you what, the one thing I wish I could roll with in my Pitt dynasty is the CFP. But alas, I wanted to be able to rock the Script and then have the throwback unis and all that, so I had to make Pitt as a teambuilder squad and I guess you can't get the editor working with teambuilder dynasties so I'm out of luck. Love how you're using it though!

[m_john_k]

This is incredible detail! I was thinking of doing something like this with my franchise, but I think I’m going to be out classed. Incredible work, I’ll be paying attention from here on out


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[Knickerbocker91]

Quote: Originally Posted by moose141

Love the little tidbits and news and notes articles, they add so much depth to the reporting over just game recaps and game previews! That said, looks like there are a ton of squads still with their nose pointed towards the CFP, and heck with so much time left to play, UNC could be there too! If things go your way, you're the top ACC squad in the rankings, so that could be enough to propel you in if you can win out convincingly and bring in that ACC crown! The little jersey and crowd notes are cool too, Kenan Stadium looks like a really fun place to watch a game, I would love to go to a Pitt-UNC game there someday. I was in Chapel Hill for work last year for a week and it was a really cool little town with a great campus. I'll tell you what, the one thing I wish I could roll with in my Pitt dynasty is the CFP. But alas, I wanted to be able to rock the Script and then have the throwback unis and all that, so I had to make Pitt as a teambuilder squad and I guess you can't get the editor working with teambuilder dynasties so I'm out of luck. Love how you're using it though!

It took me a while to figure out how to use the editor effectively, a lot of dynasties on here made me want to keep the detail up as well as get through as many seasons as possible.

I can't say I was expecting to be in the driver's seat in the ACC in my first season, especially with the schedule that I had.We'd definitely be a lock for the CFP if we win out, being a one loss conference champ with four wins against current Top 25 teams (ND, Pitt, Georgia Tech, and if we beat Virginia Tech). I'm still on the fence on whether to start Johnson, he's cleared to play after the concussion last week but I don't want to risk further injury. I know injuries don't happen much in the game but the QBs still manage to go down ocassionally.

Quote: Originally Posted by m_john_k

This is incredible detail! I was thinking of doing something like this with my franchise, but I think I’m going to be out classed. Incredible work, I’ll be paying attention from here on out

Thanks for the compliment! I wouldn't worry about being outclassed, everyone has their own unique style here and it makes for some great reads. From the graphic skills of Lopaka to the immense detail of Geezy, there's a lot to get ideas from. Looking forward to whatever you put forth, and remember to enjoy it first and foremost.

[Knickerbocker91]

WEEK 9 PREVIEW

[Knickerbocker91]

Chapel Hill, NC -- Ira Griffin has spent most of the season on the sidelines, supporting and helping prepare the guy who beat him for the starting quarterback job this off-season while waiting in the wings for his chance.

On Saturday, he got his opportunity. And boy did he not disappoint.

Lionel Johnson suffered a concussion last week against Georgia Tech and while he was cleared to practice, North Carolina head coach Mike Leach elected to sit Johnson and start Griffin against No. 13 Virginia Tech. Griffin would throw for four touchdowns and rush for another as No. 18 North Carolina overcame a 27-6 deficit to defeat the Hokies 44-37 in double overtime.

"I'm so proud of Ira's efforts today, and all season long." said Leach. "He's been an excellent teammate and has always kept himself ready whenever we needed him."

North Carolina (7-1, 5-0 ACC) is continuing to turn college football on its head as a team that won just two games the season prior has now defeated four Top 25 opponents this season and move one week closer to their first berth in the ACC Championship Game. The Tar Heels have five ACC Championships to their name, but have not sat at the top of the conference since 1980.

Things looked to be going south for North Carolina when Virginia Tech's defense handled the sixth best offense in the nation for the first half. A late 47 yard touchdown pass from Griffin to Tom Harrison sent the Tar Heels into halftime with just a 27-13 deficit, but they had only gained 84 yards of offense and two first downs while having possession for just over half a quarter's time.

"We had to make adjustments at halftime, and we did it well in the second half." said Leach. "We had to get the running game going, to help give our defense some rest and build our momentum."

Virginia Tech (5-2, 2-2) started off the game in a groove, with Terrance Ward connecting with Jeremy Blanks for a 37 yard strike on just the third play from scrimmage. Two plays later, Courtney Davis used the bodies of defenders below him to stay off the ground and scored on a seven yard run.

Ward completed 37 of 51 passes for 409 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He lead the Hokies with 55 yards rushing, while Davis added 41 yards and two scores on the ground along with six catches for 48 yards.

The next Hokies drive received help from what Tar Heels fan will argue was a blind ref, as Ward connected on a pass to convert a third down despite throwing the ball three yards past the line of scrimmage. How the call was missed is anyone's guess, but the Hokies would go on the finish the drive with a three yard touchdown reception by Demetrius Smith.

Ward had 162 passing yards in the first quarter alone while North Carolina was held scoreless in the first for the second consecutive game after having scored in the first of their first six games.

North Carolina got on the board thanks to cornerback Nathan White recovering a Davis fumble and returning 61 yards to the house, making it a 24-6 game as the Tar Heels failed to convert the two-point conversion. Virginia Tech would turn the ball over on consecutive drives as Ward was intercepted by Adam Montgomery on their next possession, but North Carolina got no points from it after being forced to punt.

A field goal by Anthony McMillan gave the Hokies a 27-6 lead with less than a minute remaining before Griffin found Harrison, who slipped past the safety and scampered to the end zone with 13 seconds remaining.

Griffin threw for 287 yards and four touchdowns off 24 of 43 passing, with Harrison being his most reliable target. Harrison snagged seven catches for 150 yards and found paydirt three times.

"They bottled us up early, but we started to wear them down and make plays." said Griffin. "We have a great team here, we just kept fighting. We didn't give up, we all needed each other's effort to get this win today."

Teams exchanged field goals in the third quarter before North Carolina had their best drive - an 11-play, 59-yard venture that led an eight yard touchdown connection from Griffin to Harrison making it a 30-23 game.

With just over two minutes remaining, North Carolina started their final drive of regulation from their own 45 thanks to an excellent punt return by White. The Hokies bent but looked like they wouldn't break until linebacker J.B. Medley committed a costly facemask penalty while tackling Harrison to move the Tar Heels inside the Hokies 25. Virginia Tech buckled down and freshman Josh Sweat sacked Griffin to force North Carolina into 3rd-and-13, but the very next play saw Griffin find Harrison for the third time to tie the game.

Virginia Tech had the ball first in overtime and Ward was almost intercepted by Josh Nunez before finding Jeremy Blanks for a touchdown. North Carolina responded with a five yard rushing touchdown from Griffin, then opened the second frame of overtime with a 21-yard screen pass touchdown to Vince Gibbs. Virginia Tech's final chance to stay alive ended up as a pass underneath to Cedric McCollum who got close to the first down marker before pushed back by Nunez and tackled by a bevy of Tar Heel defenders.

North Carolina will surely climb significantly in all three polls, as they currently sit ninth in the inaugural College Football Playoff rankings. The Tar Heels will hope their continue their ascension next week in the 108th meeting against North Carolina State. The Wolfpack started the season 3-0 but have since lost fourth straight. North Carolina leads the all-time series 67-34-6 and has won their last two meetings.