A New Era of College Football-NCAA14

[Deuce2223]

PANTHERS FALL SHORT IN UPSET BID!!!

Despite 3 first half turnovers, the Georgia State Panthers only trailed by 1 touchdown going into the half as both teams explode for 42 points in the 2nd Quarter.

GSU opened the game with a 7 yd TD pass from Mullins to Pitts to get things going, but Georgia Tech answered with 2 TD's on runs by FR N. Evans to take a 14-7 lead into the 2nd Quarter.

Georgia State tied the game (14-14) as Mullins hits FR WR M. Wright on a 9 yd score and then takes the lead (21-14) as Mullins finds SR WR J. Reed on a 12 yd strike. But a 93 yd kickoff return by D. Nugent followed by 2 of the Panthers 3 turnovers allows Georgia Tech to score 2 more times on the ground including a 8 yd keeper by QB T. Galloway and a 2 yd run by FB J. Rich on a 4th and goal play.

Trailing (35-21) with less then 2 minutes to play in the half. Mullins finds the FR M. Wirght for a 2nd time as Wright scores with 32 seconds in the half.

Georgia State would tie the game midway through the 3rd Quarter as RB J. Durbin rumbles in from 2 yds out for his 14th TD of the season (35-35). But after forcing the Yellow Jackets to punt, Mullins throws his 3rd INT of the game with Nugent coming up big with a 68 yd "Pick 6" to give G.T. the (42-35) lead going into the 4th.

GSU would tie the game yet again early in the 4th though as Mullins connects on his 5th TD of the game this time hititng FR WR A. Adkins on a 19 yd score. (42-42)

The Panthers D would then go to work forcing Georgia Tech to a 37 yd FG. Trailing (45-42) with 3:08 to play, Coach Vader knew his team had a chance to pull off the upset in from of 55,000 fans and with 1:07 on the clock it was Mullins to Pitts to give the Panthers the lead. (49-45).

Despite only having passed for 93 yds all game as the Yellow Jackets had been dominating on the ground with 245 yds rushing and 5 TD's. QB T. Galloway showed why he is considered one of the best dual threat QB's in the game. Galloway leads a 6 play drive including 3 completions for 21 yds through the air to put the ball inside the 5 with under 40 seconds to play. After a stop on 1st and goal, Georgia Tech takes the lead on another Rich 3 yd run with just 10 seconds on the clock.

Trailing 52-49. Coach Vader knew he needed a big return by SR L. Donaldson. Donaldson has actually been a quite hero this season for the Panthers with a NCAA leading 31.7 yd per return on kickoffs. And Donaldson delivers breaking off a return 42 yds but the Panthers are left with just 3 seconds and 1 hail mary to the endzone.

FINAL SCORE G.T.-52 GSU-49

KEY STATS
QB M. Mullins-30/51 409 yds 6 TD 3 INT
RB J. Durbin-23 carrries 88 yds 1 TD
TE L. Pitts-14 rec 245 yds 2 TD
WR M. Wright-4 rec 34 yds

*Mullins 6 TD's was a new school record as was L. Pitts 14 rec. Mullins is currently on pace to break the season record for TD's as well as the Career record for TD's in a season as well as Passing yds in a Season and possibly career. His 409 yds was just 6 yds shy of most yds in a game. L. Pitts is only a JR and by the time he leaves school he should own every record. He already has most TD's in a season, yds in a game, yds in a season, rec in a season and now rec in a game.**

[Deuce2223]

4TH QUARTER MELTDOWN ENDS IN ANOTHER LOSS!!

Georgia State lead at the half (21-10) as it looked like LSU was about to drop its 3rd straight game (they were coming off loss's to Alabama and Ole Miss on the road and were no stranger to losing at home having already lost to Georgia Tech, Georgia and Florida).

But the Tigers never game up as they add 10 points in the 3rd Quarter to make it (21-20).

Georgia State the nation's leader in turnovers had so far survived making any mistakes, but a early LSU TD in the 4th, as P. Colbert hits C. Jackson on a 52 yd bomb followed by the 2 pt conversion now left the Panthers trailing (28-21).

SR QB M. Mullins would find L. Pitts open over the middle but a huge hit on the 6'6 TE pops the ball lose and into the hands of a Tiger Defender.

After a stop by the Defense, GSU gets another chance, and this time Mullins delivers as he finds backup TE J. Jackson on a 14 yd pass play to tie the game (28-28) with 4:08 on the clock.

LSU however answer the score with one of their own as RB M. Grant scores from 7 yds out to make it (35-28) with 3:08 to play.

Again Mullins goes to the air to try and tie the game but yet again, the Panthers bad luck finds them as WR J. Reed has a ball bounce off his hands and into yet another LSU Defenders hands., setting up yet another Grant TD run this time leaving just 1:39 to play.

Now with back to back INT's on back to back series, Panther fans were left to wonder. What Matt Mullins would lead the final drive. The QB who threw for 409 yds and 6 scores last week or the guy who has 17 INT on the season.

Sadly they got the INT guy, as Mullins kills any chance of a comback throwing this one straight into the hands of the Tigers Defense.

FINAL SCORE LSU-42 GSU-28

KEY PLAYERS
QB M. Mullins-24/48 296 yds 2 TD 3 INT
RB J. Durbin-24 carries 60 yds 1 TD
TE L. Pitts-10 rec 110 yds 1 TD
WR J. Reed-7 rec 61 yds
WR A. Adkins-3 rec 82 yds
TE J. Jackson-1 rec 14 yds 1 TD

THE PANTHERS (3-8) ON THE YEAR WILL CLOSE OUT THE SEASON NEXT WEEK AGAINST (1-10) SOUTH ALABAMA

[Deuce2223]

GEORGIA STATE HOLDS ON FOR THE WIN!!

For Georgia State, they knew that their Week 14 matchup with (1-10) South Alabama would be the last for the 22 Seniors on the roster. 16 starters, 8 on Offense and 8 on Defense would be playing their last game in Panther Blue.

GSU would take the early lead as SR QB Matt Mullins connects on a 26 yd TD bomb to TE L. Pitts and then again to SR WR J. Reed from 30 yds out.

The Panthers would extend that lead as Mullins connects to Pitts yet again early in the 2nd Quarter to make it (21-0).

The Jaguars struggle to move the ball both on the ground and in the air, but did finally manage to put points on the scoreboard as T. Glover connects on a 29 yd FG just before half.

USA would open the 2nd half finally finding the endzone as M. Davis rumbles in from 7 yds out but a failed 2 pt conversion leaves it (21-9) as we head to the 4th.

After a hot start the Panthers Offense had gone cold inlcuding 3 turnovers as Mullins throws 2 INT and fumbles away another series. South Alabama takes advantage as the Jaguars score another TD to close the gap to (21-16) with 5 minutes to play.

After having the lead in both the Georgia Tech game and in the LSU game, Coach Vader was starting to have doubts. Could his team hold on or would a late score end the Panthers season on a sour note.

The Offense was playing out of sync and the Defense looked gassed. Vader knew his team needed points, and lucky for them JR PK S. Watson delivers with a 33 yd FG to make it (24-16) with 2 minutes to play.

South Alabama however wasn't going down without a fight. Playing at home in front of what few fans they had left after a 1-10 season, the Jaguars still had a little pride left and they used it all as QB V. Burke lead the team down field on a 12 play drive that end with a 4 yd TD pass to G. Ford to make it (24-22) with 30 seconds to play. USA knew they had one choice. For Jaguars Collin Berry, he knew this would most likely be his last play called as the Jaguars Head Coach.

The Jags lined up for the game tying 2 point conversion. Burke drops back but the Georgia State D was ready as they take down the QB to seal the Panthers "4th" win of the year.

FINAL SCORE GSU-24 USA-22

KEY PLAYERS
QB M. Mullins-17/35 328 yds 2 TD 2 INT 1 Fumble
RB J. Durbin-13 carries 33 yds
TE L. Pitts-10 rec 166 yds 2 TD
WR J. Reed-5 rec 107 yds 1 TD

LB D. Wilson-10 Tackles (6 solo) 3 TFL 1 Sack


**Berry was indeed fired at the end of the season**

[Deuce2223]

AROUND THE NATION RECAP

Weeks 12-Week 15. provided alot of highlights and excitement as several teams saw their chances for a National title disappear, well other teams won their Conference Championships to secure those coveted Bowl Game appearances on New Years Day.

WEEK 12

Week 12 had several huge games as #4 UCLA falls to Washington 24-14 as the Bruins chance at a National Title slip away.

#12 Iowa came up huge staying undefeated as they won their 10th game of the year defeating #24 (8-1) Illinois.

#8 Oklahoma State saw all their title hopes disappear as they fell (17-10) to (1-9) Wyoming

Boise State survived a late push by WSU in the 4th to secure their 9th win of the season (41-34) and still give them hope of a Mountain West title as they head into their Week 13 matchup with Oregon.

Maryland hands #17 Virginia Tech just their 2nd loss of the season defeating the Hokies (28-13).

#2 Georgia holds on to defeat Auburn (24-21) lining up a huge Week 13 showdown with #3 Alabama, who trounced Tennessee (42-24)

#9 Stanford comes out on top over (7-3) USC in a Pac-12 showdown (31-28). With the Bruins loss, the Cardinals still have a chance at playing in the Pac-12 title game.

#5 TCU keeps their title game hopes alive with a (54-21) win over Texas State.

WEEK 13

Iowa moves up to #3 in the nation as they improve to 11-0 with a (20-14) win over Michigan, after #3 Alabama moves to #2 with a (32-28) win over former #2 Georgia. The Bulldogs dropped to #7 in the loss.

#7 Oregon secure their right to play in the Mountain West Title game and a spot in the Rose Bowl with a (27-21) win over #15 Boise State. The Ducks with the win move up to 4 in the polls, as they too hold onto a outside chance at a title game.

#10 Texas defeats #11 Texas A&M (52-30) as they secure the division title and a spot in the Big 12 Title game. But the question is who will they play as former #5 TCU falls (35-27) to Rice leaving their division title in question.

Notre Dame keeps their Top-10 finish alive with a huge (48-23) win over Penn State

#1 Ohio State stay perfect as they defeat Michigan State (45-31).

Florida moves up the into the Top-15 after squeeking by FIU (13-10). The Gators will now face FSU next week for a chance to play in the SEC title game.

WEEK 14

#1 Ohio State defeats Michigan (42-20) to stay undefeated and earn a spot in the Big Ten Title game vs Oklahoma State who defeats Oklahoma (31-28).

#2 Alabama defeats Auburn (30-21) as they earn a spot in the SEC title game vs Florida who defeats FSU (17-14). Can the Tide rebound from their early season loss and earn that coveted National Title spot vs the Buckeyes?

#3 Iowa see's their National Title dreams squashed as they fall (28-19) to Nebraska. Iowa will still get a chance at some redemption as they will face N. Illinois for the opportunity to win their first ever CUSA Title.

#4 Oregon defeats Oregon State (34-14) in the Civil War leaving the Ducks a outside shot at the National Title game if they can beat (7-5) Utah in the MWC Title game.

USC defeats UCLA (19-14), but the Bruins do still manage to win the Pac-12 North Division as they will face (10-2) Fresno State for the Title and a spot in the Rose Bowl.

Notre Dame moves up to #5 in the nation after a (30-13) win over Stanford, despite 3 loss's on the season. The Irish have zero chance at playing in a conference title game, so they will be left just to sit and watch things unfold.

Georgia defeats Georgia Tech (35-20) but like N.D. the (10-2) Bulldogs are going to be left watching things unfold and will be keeping a close eye on the SEC title game. A game they feel they should be playing in.

Baylor defeats TCU (27-0) as the Bears win their division and will face Texas in the Big 12 Title game.

Boise State defeats Idaho (42-28) to finish with 10 wins and the #12 spot in the Polls.

South Carolina defeats Clemson (41-20) to win their ACC division. They will now take on Virginia Tech for a chance at a Sugar Bowl bid.

WEEK 15

Only 2 noteworthy games. Ole Miss defeats Tennessee (41-0) to finish the year (10-2) and ranked #13.

Miss State defeats Memphis (42-0) to go (9-3) and ranked #21

Ole Miss earns the American Title crown despite no title game as they go undefeated in conference (8-0) including their win over instate rival Miss State.

6 out of 11 teams are bowl eligible in the American. Missouri finished 8-4, Louisville and Tennessee finished 7-5, Vanderbilt and W. Kentucky finished 6-6.

SUN BELT

The Sun Belt also doesn't have a Conference title game and with 3 teams finishing (7-2) in conference who knows who is claiming rights.

La Tech, Arkansas and Arkansas State all finished 7-2 and 8-4 Overall.

UL Lafayette actually won more games going 9-3, but only 6-3 in Conference play.

[Deuce2223]

UPSET CITY MAKES A APPEARANCE!!!

National Title dreams are given and taken away in just a moments time..


#1 Ohio State cruised to a (42-16) victory over Oklahoma State to secure the Big Ten crown and a spot in the National Title game, but who would join them?

Not #2 Alabama because the Tide fall (43-40) in Overtime to the Florida Gators. With the loss the Tide drop to #7 in the final BCS Rankings. The SEC Champ Gators with the win move up to #6 and will play in the Sugar Bowl.

#3 South Carolina isn't going either, as the Game cockz.. fall (35-25) to Virginia Tech. SCAR drops to #10 in the final rankings.

That leaves #4 Oregon who defeats Utah (26-10) in the Mountain West Title game. The Ducks jump to #2 and will face the Buckeyes for the title.

#6 Texas jumps to #3 after a (34-17) win over Baylor to win the Big 12 title but they are left headed to the Fiesta Bowl.

#5 Notre Dame moves up to #4 in the final rankings. Despite Oklahoma State finishing as the #2 team in the Big Ten, its the Irish who will get a invite to the Fiesta Bowl who was originally suppose to be the Big 12 champ vs the Big Ten Champ.

So now we will have a 1 vs 2 and a 3 vs 4.

Georgia despite not playing moves up 2 spots to claim #5 in the final rankings.

#9 Iowa defeats Northern Illinois (40-10) in the CUSA title game and moves to #8 in the final rankings. The Hawkeyes (12-1) will now face #13 Ole Miss in the Orange Bowl.

Fresno State is headed to their first ever Rose Bowl as they secure the Pac-12 title with a (28-21) win over UCLA. With Oregon headed to the National Title game, the Rose Bowl committee is left picking the best team out there so they grab #5 Georgia.

I will have a full bowl schedule in the next post.


**Should be noted Buffalo defeated Temple (23-16) to win the MAC. The Buff's finished the year 11-2 well Temple was 10-3

[Deuce2223]

A COMPLETE LOOK AT THE BOWL SCHEDULE

(6-6) Texas Tech vs (6-6) Vanderbilt-New Mexico Bowl
(8-4) Rutgers vs (8-4) Arkansas State-Idaho Potato Bowl
(7-5) Ohio vs #20 (9-3) Washington-Poinsettia Bowl
(6-6) Northwestern vs (7-5) Tennessee-Beef O'Brady's Bowl
(7-5) Purdue vs (8-4) La Tech-New Orleans Bowl
(8-4) San Diego State vs #12 (10-2) Boise State-Las Vegas Bowl
(9-4) N. Illinois vs (7-6) Utah-Hawaii Bowl
(9-3) UL Lafayette vs (10-2) Syracuse-Little Caesars Bowl
#23 (8-4) TCU vs #22 (8-4) USC-Holiday Bowl
(9-3) Cincinnati vs (6-6) Duke-Military Bowl
(8-4) Maryland vs (8-4) Missouri-Belk Bowl
(8-4) Toledo vs (7-5) Virginia-Independence Bowl
#21 (9-3) Miss State vs #16 (9-3) NC State-Russell Athletic Bowl
(6-6) Michigan vs (7-5) UTEP-Meineke Car Care Bowl
(7-5) Iowa State vs (6-6) Oregon State-Armed Forces Bowl
(9-3) Boston College vs (7-5) Arizona-Fight Hunger Bowl
(9-4) Baylor vs #11 (9-3) Stanford-Alamo Bowl
(8-4) Rice vs (7-5) Michigan State-Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
(6-6) Florida Atlantic vs (8-4) Clemson-Music City Bowl
(9-4) UCLA vs (7-5) North Carolina-Sun Bowl
(10-3) Temple vs (9-3) Illinois-Liberty Bowl
(8-4) Florida State vs #10 (11-2) South Carolina-Chick-fil-A Bowl
(7-5) LSU vs (9-4) Oklahoma State-Gator Bowl
(6-6) W. Kentucky vs #24 (7-5) Nebraska-Heart of Dallas Bowl
#14 (10-2) Georgia Tech vs #18 (9-3) Kansas State-Outback Bowl
#7 (11-2) Alabama vs #19 (8-4) Oklahoma-Capital One Bowl
#5 (10-2) Georgia vs #17 (11-2) Fresno State-Rose Bowl
#4 (9-3) Notre Dame vs #3 (12-1) Texas-Fiesta Bowl
#15 (11-2) Virginia Tech vs #6 (11-2) Florida-Sugar Bowl
#25 (9-3) Miami vs #9 (10-2) Texas A&M-Cotton Bowl
#13 (10-2) Ole Miss vs #8 (12-1) Iowa-Orange Bowl
(7-5) Louisville vs (7-5) Army-BVCA Compass Bowl
(11-2) Buffalo vs (8-4) Arkansas-Go Daddy.com Bowl

#1 (13-0) Ohio State vs #2 (12-1) Oregon-National Title.

[Deuce2223]

BUCKS DOMINATE DUCKS!!!

The Ohio State Buckeyes won their 8th National title ending a 11 year drought as they destroy Oregon 41-6, behind the play of Heisman winner QB Cam Brown. Brown dominated the college football awards taking home the 2013 Maxwell,Walter Camp and Davey O'Brien awards.

On the season Brown finished with a 181.7 QB Rating, completing 268 pass's out of 394 for 3808 yds with 43 TD's and 7 INT. A dual threat, Brown also added 896 yds rushing on 164 carries (5.5 avg) and scored another 11 TD's.

Oregon's QB K. Fisher finished 5th in the Heisman but he was MIA in this game completing just 10 pass's for 81 yds in the loss.

Fresno State is your 2013 Rose Bowl winner in the "Battle of the Bulldogs". FSU dominated #5 Georgia as Fresno QB M. Hopkins throws for 352 yds and 5 TD's in the 51-35 victory.

Virginia Tech came out on top in the Suger Bowl with a 24-7 win over the Florida Gators dominating UF on Offense (510 yds to 232).

Iowa spent 13 weeks with a undefeated season, but a loss to Nebraska in Week 14 left the Hawkeyes out of the the National Title picture. Looking to rebound with a big win over Ole Miss in the Orange Bowl also came up short as the Rebels pull off the 20-6 victory.

Ole Miss finishes the year ranked #5 well Iowa falls to #6.

Despite 3 loss's the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, fought themselves back into a spot in a New Year's Eve Bowl, but the Fight ended in Phoenix, as Texas adds another Bowl Title to their resume with a 34-3 victory.

With the win, Texas finishes the year ranked #2 in the Final Polls, well Notre Dame drops to #13

Alabama started the year as the nations favorite to win a National title, but a early loss to Georgia Tech followed by a loss to Florida in the SEC title game, left the Tide rolling into a matchup with Oklahoma in a non BCS Bowl. The Tide however showed they are still one of the best teams in the nation with a 55-28 win to finish the year ranked #3.

OTHER BOWL RESULTS

Vanderbilt-24 Texas Tech-19 -New Mexico Bowl
Rutgers-28 Arkansas State-16-Idaho Potato
Washington-30 Ohio-0-Poinsettia Bowl
Tennessee-26 Northwestern-23 in OT-Beef O'Brady's Bowl
Purdue-31 La Tech-14-Newe Orleans Bowl
Boise State-41 San Diego State-16-Las Vegas Bowl
Utah-34 N. Illinois-31 in OT-Hawaii Bowl
UL Lafayette-28 Syracuse-22- Little Caesars Bowl
TCU-34 USC-28-Holiday Bowl
Duke-28 Cincinnati-27-Military Bowl
Missouri-35 Maryland-28-Belk Bowl
Virginia-31 Toledo-20-Independence Bowl
Miss State-34 NC State-20-Russell Athletic Bowl
Michigan-49 UTEP-32 Meineke Car Care Bowl
Oregon State-16 Iowa State-10-Armed Forces Bowl
Arizona-31 Boston College-17-Fight Hunger Bowl
Baylor-38 Stanford-23-Alamo Bowl
Rice-27 Michigan State-23- Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Clemson-17 Florida Atlantic-10-Music City Bowl
North Carolina-28 UCLA-13-Sun Bowl
Illinois-31 Temple-28-Liberty Bowl
Florida State-42 South Carolina-35 in OT-Chick-Fil-Al Bowl
LSU-42 Oklahoma State-13-Gator Bowl
Nebraska-45 W. Kentucky-14-Heart of Dallas Bowl
Kansas State-35 Georgia Tech-21- Outback Bowl
Miami FL-35 Texas A&M-28 in OT-Cotton Bowl
Louisville-45 Army-7-BBVA Compass Bowl
Arkansas-31 Buffalo-6-Go Daddy.com Bowl

[Deuce2223]

SEASON RECAP

Coach Deuce Vader's first year at the helm of the Georgia State Panthers didn't go quite as he had hoped but not all was lost, as the young Head Coach laid a solid foundation to build on.

Vader originally signed a 5 yr deal when he came to GSU with the expectations of at least a 5 win season. But with the move to the SEC, I think most fan's expectations were to just not finish last in the conference.

The Panthers managed to pull off 2 wins including a win over South Alabama in Week 14 to do just that.

Well a 4-8 record might not look good on paper, Georgia State actually played really well in games leading in the 4th Quarter but just coming up short against Florida in Week 3, Georgia Tech in Week 12 and LSU in Week 13.

The highlight of the season was there win over North Illinois on the road in Week 4 well the Huskies were ranked in the Top-25.

SCHOOL RECORDS
The 2013 season saw several school records broken as SR QB Matt Mullins who took over in Week 3 as the fulltime starter finished the year with 2684 yds passing which is both the season and career record for the school. Mullins also completed 22 TD's on the season which again is both season and career record for the young program, and to top it off he added a 6 TD performance in that Week 12 loss to the Yellowjackets where he came up just 8 yd shy of beating the single game record of 417.

Joining him in the backfield setting several new school records was SR RB James Durbin. Durbin leaves school with 4 records of his own, scoring 16 TD's on the season (both season and career), including 4 TD's in a game (record) well finishing with 868 yds rushing in a season (also record)

When school records are broken in the air, it typically means someone had to catch that ball.

When SR WR S. Brown the teams original school record holder when down early in the year with a season ending injury, JR TE Leon Pitts took over. Pitts was unstoppable for most defenses as he breaks 5 school records in the process.

Pitts end the year with 94 receptions for 1447 yds and 11 TD's, all new season records. He also had a career high 14 rec for 245 yds in that same Week 12 loss to G.T. establishing new records there as well.

GRADUATION TAKES HUGE HIT ON ROSTER

The Panthers will most likely be one of the youngest programs in the nation next season as they say goodbye to 22 Seniors including 8 starters on both sides of the ball.

Georgia State will be looking for a completely new backfield, 4 new O-Line starters as well as looking for a #1 WR as Steve Brown and Jeff Reed both leave. Reed started the year as the #2, but ended in the #1 role finishing with 52 rec 615 yds and 6 TD's.. JR WR Jordan Rodgers will look to fill that role potentially. The 5'9 slot receiver did manage 39 rec for 583 yds and 3 scores before finishing the year on the IR missing the last 4 weeks of the season.

On Defense the Panthers say goodbye to the teams leading 2 tacklers OLB M. Barnes (85) and MLB P. Kramer (64). Both they do manage to return RS JR DE C. Mitchell 15 TFL/4 Sacks and SO OLB D. Wilson (44 solo tackles).


Special Teams will see both SO PK Shelton Watson returning. Watson connected on 9/13 FG's with a season long of 39 yds and was a perfect 45/45 in XP.s

JR Punter A. Johnson punted 33 times for a respectable Avg of 40.5 and a net of 34.9 with a season long of 55 yds.

However the Panthers will need to find a new return man as SR Leon Donaldson graduates, and that person will have some huge shoes to fill as Donaldson is named the Best Returnman in the nation. Donaldson returned 65 kicks for 1712 yds (26.3 Avg) including a season long 52 yds. He also had 13 punt returns for 107 yds (8.2 Avg).


**NEXT UP A RECRUITING RECAP**