The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

I am not sure what is the bigger loss's those you are taking on the field, or McMillan not keeping you in the Top-3. Landing Williams has to be priority #1 now, Mellon Tartan fan's can't take another season with the team in Keyes hands.

[moose141]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Brutal luck losing out on McMillan. Williams is definitely a major need at this point, though with the struggles you have had this season it's probably just tough convincing people to come to Oakland at this point. Even with Keyes's slight steps forward the last few weeks, having some depth in the QB room is a necessity for you. Hopefully that visit on the 15th will keep you alive for him!

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

I am not sure what is the bigger loss's those you are taking on the field, or McMillan not keeping you in the Top-3. Landing Williams has to be priority #1 now, Mellon Tartan fan's can't take another season with the team in Keyes hands.

I have to sign Williams now, no doubt. I'm sure I could find a quarterback in the off-season period and should have a lot interested, but with the academic standards in play, that definitely limits the amount of potential targets. If I do land Williams and he becomes the guy moving forward though, that likely will limit the flexibility I have in changing offenses, since he's your prototypical pocket passer.

Brutal luck losing out on McMillan. Williams is definitely a major need at this point, though with the struggles you have had this season it's probably just tough convincing people to come to Oakland at this point. Even with Keyes's slight steps forward the last few weeks, having some depth in the QB room is a necessity for you. Hopefully that visit on the 15th will keep you alive for him!

I'm definitely worried about the recruiting class for this season because of my poor record - I think by simming the previous year to match up with my 5-7 mark in NCAA 07, that allowed me to attract more three-star talent than I was expecting. Regardless of that, however, I do think the team will be much improved next season no matter who the quarterback is, since I should finally have the original players cycled out of rotation and all my recruits there to take over!

Thanks for checking in, fellas! I'll have the preview up here in a few minutes, then the actual game posted later today!

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

at
Carnegie Mellon Tartans (1-7, 1-4 MAC) at Ohio Bobcats (3-5, 1-3 MAC)
Saturday, November 8, 2008 | 12:30 PM (ET)
Athens, Ohio – Peden Stadium | No television

Team Overview (C overall, C- offense, C+ defense)
Ohio’s matchup with Carnegie Mellon is its seventh home game of the season, as the 2008 slate features eight total games in Athens. The Bobcats opened the campaign with a 52-0 drubbing of Southern Illinois, but then went onto lose five of their next six games. Three of those losses came on second half comebacks, as Ohio owned leads of 19-13 at Kent State, 14-7 against Eastern Michigan, and was tied 14-14 in the fourth quarter at Western Michigan.

The Bobcats offense revolves around redshirt junior tailback Joel Scipio (177 carries, 1,189 yards, 7 TD; 15 catches, 230 yards, 3 TD), who has been the best back in the conference this season. He’s spelled by the versatile redshirt freshman Matt Donahue (29 carries, 170 yards, 2 TD; 6 catches, 100 yards, 2 TD), and handing them both the ball is first-year starter Brandon Jones (102.3 QB rtg., 107-207, 1,172 yards, 11 TD, 15 INT), a senior signal-caller. Jones has All-MAC Second Team returner Chris Garrett (20 catches, 214 yards, 2 TD) as his top target, with fifth-year senior Tyler Huffman (34 catches, 292 yards, 3 TD) and junior Taylor Price (31 catches, 258 yards, 2 TD) contributing on the outside.

Outside of its loss against Eastern Michigan, Ohio’s defense has been pretty strong. Senior defensive end Jameson Hartke (36 tackles, 6 sacks, 2 FF) has already matched his sack total from last year, where he was an All-MAC First Team selection. Opposite of him is fifth-year senior Kris Luchsinger (29 tackles, 6 sacks, 1 FR), with senior Jacob Williamson (24 tackles, 1 sack) and freshman Peter Pettit (20 tackles, 2 sacks – suspended for the first half) plugging up the middle. At linebacker, fourth-year Jordan Meyers (33 tackles, 5 sacks, 2 INT, 2 FF, 3 FR) does everything and fifth-year Michael Brown (35 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT, 1 FF, 1 FR) is a force on blitzes. Senior free safety Michael Mitchell (22 tackles, 1 sack, 4 INT, 1 FF) is a ballhawk in the defensive backfield, but the Bobcats’ secondary is its weakest unit with three first-time starters.

Redshirt freshman Matt Schulte (10-21 FG, 23-23 XP) has been poor in his first year as the starting kicker, while senior Barrett Way (29 punts, 1,212 yards, 41.8 avg.) handles punting duties for Ohio. As mentioned before, Garrett (18 kick returns, 427 yards; 26 punt returns, 252 yards, 1 TD) is a game-changer on returners and has scored twice on punts in his career.

Season Results
09/06 | SOUTHERN ILLINOIS | W, 52-0
09/13 | CONNECTICUT | L, 28-31
09/20 | PRINCETON | W, 19-7
09/27 | at Kent State * | L, 19-20
10/04 | OREGON STATE | L, 6-14
10/18 | at Western Michigan * | L, 17-25
10/25 | EASTERN MICHIGAN * | L, 14-42
11/01 | BUFFALO * | W, 42-13

PFF Top Five
Jameson Hartke, Sr., DE (89)
Michael Mitchell, Sr., FS (84)
Mark Parson, Sr., CB (88)
Kris Luchsinger, R-Jr., DE (87)
Jordan Meyers, Sr., OLB (85)

Injury Report
Carnegie Mellon: Kevin Cousins, R-Jr., WR (torn shoulder muscle – 2 weeks)
Ohio: Michael Philibin, R-Jr., OT (broken fibula – 8 weeks)

Suspensions
Carnegie Mellon: Scott Sanders, R-So., WR (team rules – 1 game)
Ohio: Peter Pettit, Fr., DT (academics – 2 quarters)

[Careless Whisper]

Season 3, Game 9: Carnegie Mellon at Ohio

CMU Snaps Losing Skid with 37-35 Win at Ohio
Carnegie Mellon netted six interceptions and a safety defensively as it grabbed its first win since Sept. 27



Sophomore tailback Jim Manning hit the 100-yard mark for the first time in five games. (John Paulson / Getty Images)

by Alicia Brown, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reporter

ATHENS, Ohio -- Carnegie Mellon’s defense intercepted six passes, running one back for a touchdown, and outscored Ohio, 18-7, over 14:52 of the second half as it snapped a four-game losing streak with a 37-35 victory over the Bobcats this afternoon in Mid-American Conference (MAC) competition.

Carnegie Mellon’s (2-7, 2-4 MAC) defense was opportunistic to say the least, allowing four touchdown passes – two of 50-plus yards – to go along with the six interceptions. The Tartans also picked up a safety and held Ohio (3-6, 1-4 MAC) runningback Joel Scipio to just 48 yards rushing on 10 carries.

“I’m so proud of the guys for responding to the challenge,” said third-year head coach John Elliott. “Our bye week came at the right time, and we came out of it refreshed and refocused. There’s still plenty of clean up on the defensive end, but our guys went out and made some big plays to win us the game. The offense was much more consistent too than in weeks past, and I thought Justin (Keyes) had an excellent day controlling our attack both through the air and on the ground.”

Justin Keyes got it started early with a 16-yard touchdown pass to David Young on CMU’s opening drive, but it had an immediate answer off a 62-yard bomb from Brandon Jones to Taylor Price. The Tartans turned it over to their rushing attack and Keyes found Jim Manning on the option for a 19-yard scamper, then Mark Toth snagged the first of his three interceptions off a deflection from David Brown. Although the Bobcats kept Manning behind the line on a fourth-and-goal attempt, Elvis Washington burst through to trip up Scipio on a swing pass to make it 16-7 with a safety.

The momentum shifted in the hosts’ favor for the second quarter, with Jones finding Tyler Huffman twice for 11 and 52-yard touchdowns. The last came with 2:22 remaining in the half, but CMU responded with a solid drive that ended in a 41-yard field goal for Jon Foster, making it 21-19 Bobcats at halftime.

Toth intercepted his second pass on Ohio’s opening drive of the second half, leading to Keyes finding a wide open Kurt Thompson for a 26-yard touchdown to put the Tartans back ahead, 27-21, after a Keyes two-point conversion. That lead would last nine seconds, as Chris Garrett burst through the wedge for an 88-yard kick return touchdown to push Ohio in front, but after a couple of three-and-outs, Matt Johnson snagged an errant pass into the flat and ran it back for a 20-yard pick six to make it 34-28.

The Bobcats had a couple of chances in the fourth quarter, but Elvis Washington and Hayden Temple both picked off passes in the end zone. CMU used an extended drive to make it 37-28 with 3:41 remaining, tacking on a 39-yard field goal from Foster. Jones followed that up by connecting with Toth for the third time on the day, and while he would toss a fourth touchdown with eight seconds left, the Tartans easily scooped up the onside kick attempt to seal the game.

Manning hit triple digits rushing for the first time since Sept. 27 against Buffalo, leading the way with 178 yards and a score on 26 carries. Keyes nearly joined him at the century mark, tallying 99 yards on 25 totes while contributing 115 yards on 8-of-14 passing. Stephen Carter netted 33 yards on three catches in his first career start.

Carnegie Mellon returns home for its final non-conference tilt, a matchup with Duke on Saturday, Nov. 15.

Carnegie Mellon Tartans at Ohio Bobcats
Nov 8, 2008	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Carnegie Mellon Tartans (2-7, 2-4 MAC)	16	3	15	3	37
Ohio Bobcats (3-6, 1-4 MAC)	7	14	7	7	35

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		CMU	OHIO
10:15	(CMU) Justin Keyes 16-yard pass to David Young (Jon Foster kick)	7	0
8:45	(OHIO) Brandon Jones 62-yard pass to Taylor Price (Matt Schulte kick)	7	7
2:58	(CMU) Jim Manning 19-yard run (Jon Foster kick)	14	7
0:53	(CMU) Safety; Elvis Washington tackles Joel Scipio in the end zone	16	7
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		CMU	OHIO
7:58	(OHIO) Brandon Jones 11-yard pass to Tyler Huffman (Matt Schulte kick)	16	14
2:22	(OHIO) Brandon Jones 52-yard pass to Tyler Huffman (Matt Schulte kick)	16	21
0:19	(CMU) Jon Foster 41-yard field goal	19	21
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		CMU	OHIO
10:36	(CMU) Justin Keyes 26-yard pass to Kurt Thompson (Justin Keyes run)	27	21
10:27	(OHIO) Chris Garrett 88-yard kick return (Matt Schulte kick)	27	28
4:00	(CMU) Matt Johnson 20-yard interception return (Jon Foster kick)	34	28
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		CMU	OHIO
3:41	(CMU) Jon Foster 39-yard field goal	37	28
0:08	(OHIO) Brandon Jones 2-yard pass to Tyler Huffman (Matt Schulte kick)	37	35

Carnegie Mellon Tartans PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Justin Keyes 8/14 115 2 1 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Jim Manning 26 178 6.8 1 Justin Keyes 25 99 3.9 0 Nate Satele 3 10 3.3 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Stephen Carter 3 33 11.0 0 Kurt Thompson 2 38 19.0 1 Pete Carlson 1 19 19.0 0 David Young 1 16 16.0 1 Jim Manning 1 9 9.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Elvis Washington 6 0 1 0 Hayden Temple 5 0 1 0 David Brown 4 1 0 0 Matt Johnson 3 0 1 1 Mark Toth 2 1 3 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Jon Foster 2/2 3/3 9 41 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Brad Jones 3 101 33.6 1 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Pete Carlson 4 83 20.7 0 Stephen Carter 2 33 16.5 0

Ohio Bobcats PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Brandon Jones 16/32 292 4 6 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Brandon Jones 5 58 11.6 0 Joel Scipio 10 48 4.8 0 Vince Davidson 1 3 3.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Tyler Huffman 7 170 24.2 3 Chris Rodgers 4 42 10.5 0 Taylor Price 2 75 37.5 1 Joel Scipio 2 -7 -3.5 0 Chris Garrett 1 12 12.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Mark Parson 10 0 0 0 Shannon Ballard 9 0 0 0 Jameson Hartke 8 0 0 0 Michael Brown 8 0 1 0 Kris Luchsinger 5 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Matt Schulte 0/0 5/5 5 -- PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Barrett Way 1 47 47.0 0 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Chris Garrett 6 188 31.3 1 Taylor Price 1 19 19.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Bobby Armstrong 1 7 7.0 0

[Deuce2223]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Great all around game by everyone. Keyes played within himself, Manning had a great game, and the Defense stepped up huge. 6 INT's seems like you like to get them in bunches. You might have to have Toth play both ways and get some snaps at WR the way he was hauling down pass's.

[moose141]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Finally Keyes starting to come into his own! Finally things were hitting on all cylinders offensively, or at least as good as they can with the current roster. I think that split of passing and rushing was really what you've been looking for all season, and the fact that you were always in the game scorewise probably helped with that. Also, what a day for the defense, 6 picks and a safety? Seems like when it rains it pours for your secondary.

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Great all around game by everyone. Keyes played within himself, Manning had a great game, and the Defense stepped up huge. 6 INT's seems like you like to get them in bunches. You might have to have Toth play both ways and get some snaps at WR the way he was hauling down pass's.

It definitely was a good all-around win! I didn't try to do too much with Keyes, and Manning got rolling early and never let up. I'm always adjusting my sliders and it seems like I may have got a little too fortunate with the interception one, though all but one of the picks were from the user. And as you could see, Ohio still had success with the big plays throwing the ball. Toth has been really, really good for me in the middle, both at stopping the run and sitting in zone to defend the pass, so maybe he could give me some snaps at TE!

Finally Keyes starting to come into his own! Finally things were hitting on all cylinders offensively, or at least as good as they can with the current roster. I think that split of passing and rushing was really what you've been looking for all season, and the fact that you were always in the game scorewise probably helped with that. Also, what a day for the defense, 6 picks and a safety? Seems like when it rains it pours for your secondary.

Definitely a good day for Keyes, and pretty much how I want the offense to play going forward. Manning gets the bulk of the work with Satele spelling him, and Keyes factoring in on a bunch of designed runs and scrambles. I didn't take many shots downfield throwing the ball because he's been notorious for overthrowing it, and that seemed to limit the interception bug that's plagued him. As I mentioned to Deuce, I keep messing with the sliders and both this game and the Buffalo one I think I bumped it up a little too high, but five of the interceptions were from stick skills so I can't complain too much. It's the ones that are thrown right at a guy sitting in zone that I get frustrated with, because as much as I want to force turnovers, I also want the stats to be semi-realistic.

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Around the NCAA – Week 10 Edition
Another undefeated team falls as #3 Iowa is upset at home by #23 Wisconsin, 26-10

BCS Rankings
1 | USC (8-0, 0.961)
2 | Michigan (9-0, 0.940)
3 | UCLA (8-0, 0.863)
4 | Oklahoma (9-0, 0.835)
5 | Penn State (7-1, 0.754)
6 | Texas (9-1, 0.722)
7 | Florida State (8-1, 0.683)
8 | LSU (9-1, 0.665)
9 | Iowa (8-1, 0.618)
10 | Nebraska (9-1, 0.614)
11 | West Virginia (9-1, 0.561)
12 | Miami (Fla.) (8-2, 0.472)
13 | Florida (8-1, 0.453)
14 | Georgia (8-2, 0.436)
15 | Wisconsin (7-3, 0.413)

Heisman Watch
Graham Harrell, R-Sr., QB, Texas Tech | 178.0 QB rtg., 300-420, 3,894 yards, 47 TD (2 rush), 14 INT
Pat White, R-Sr., QB, West Virginia | 169.4 QB rtg., 141-215, 1,733 yards, 29 TD, 9 INT; 107 carries, 668 yards, 6 TD
Joe Ganz, R-Sr., QB, Nebraska | 158.1 QB rtg., 215-338, 2,887 yards, 33 TD, 16 INT
Ryan Perrilloux, R-Jr., QB, LSU | 160.8 QB rtg., 169-269, 2,203 yards, 28 TD, 7 INT; 83 carries, 356 yards, 3 TD
Mark Sanchez, R-Jr., QB, USC | 186.7 QB rtg., 149-237, 2,530 yards, 31 TD (1 rush), 9 INT

NCAA Players of the Week
Offensive: Maurice Wells, Sr., HB, Ohio State | 36 carries, 246 yards, 4 TD in 45-17 win at Purdue
Defensive: Joel Caldwell, R-Jr., CB, Vanderbilt | 5 tackles, 2 INT, 2 TD in 28-21 win at Virginia

Injury Report
Jonathan Crompton, R-Jr., QB, Tennessee | Broken jaw (5 weeks)
Jimmy Clausen, R-Fr., QB, Arizona State | Strained back (6 weeks)
C.J. Spiller, Jr., HB, Clemson | ACL sprain (1 week)
Mike Davis, Sr., HB, South Carolina | Foot stress fracture (8 weeks)
George Stripling, R-Sr., HB, Louisville | Torn shoulder muscle (8 weeks)
Wendel Davis, R-Jr., OLB, Arkansas | Broken tibia (10 weeks)
Bruce Johnson, R-Sr., FS, Miami (Fla.) | Broken tailbone (6 weeks)

Week 10 Notable Top 25 Scores
#11 West Virginia 21, Connecticut 10
#19 Wisconsin 26, #10 Iowa 10
#6 Florida State 28, North Carolina State 24
#23 Arizona State 35, Washington 14
#4 Oklahoma 40, #18 Texas A&M 27
#25 Alabama 72, Houston 14
#8 LSU 41, Ole Miss 17
#14 Georgia 32, #15 Florida 22
#3 UCLA 28, Washington State 17
#1 USC 34, Oregon State 6
Pittsburgh 35, #22 Louisville 23
#7 Texas 42, Oklahoma State 14
#5 Penn State 44, Indiana 10
#13 Arkansas 17, Kentucky 14 (OT)
#16 Ohio State 45, Purdue 17
#12 Miami (Fla.) 34, Virginia Tech 17

Week 11 National Broadcasts
#22 Louisville (7-2) at Rutgers (7-2) | 11/15, 12:30 PM
Michigan State (5-3) at #16 Ohio State (6-2) | 11/15, 12:30 PM
#17 Clemson (9-1) at #6 Florida State (8-1) | 11/15, 3:30 PM
#20 Texas Tech (7-3) at #18 Texas A&M (7-2) | 11/15, 3:30 PM
Purdue (3-6) at Notre Dame (5-3) | 11/15, 3:30 PM
#3 UCLA (8-0) at California (7-2) | 11/15, 3:30 PM
#9 Nebraska (9-1) at #4 Oklahoma (9-0) | 11/15, 3:30 PM (Game of the Week)
#10 Iowa (8-1) at #5 Penn State (7-1) | 11/15, 6:00 PM

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

by Joe Greenberg, Carnegie Mellon insider for Rivals.com

Cooley spurns Tartans, commits to Tennessee

Three-star tailback Marcus Cooley (Hanover Park, Ill.) was set to make his official visit to Carnegie Mellon this weekend, but instead has given a verbal commitment to Tennessee after the Volunteers’ 34-7 win over Mississippi State this past Saturday.

Cooley, a six-foot-two, 175-pound all-purpose back from Hanover Park High School, had three official visits scheduled with Tennessee, CMU, and Iowa starting last week, but pledged to the Volunteers after taking in Neyland Stadium for the first time.

“There’s nothing like (Neyland Stadium),” said Cooley over the phone. “I really felt good about all three schools on my list, but being in Knoxville and seeing how passionate that fanbase is made it an easy decision for me. I wish nothing but the best for Carnegie Mellon and Iowa.”

Muhammad, Williams ready for official visit to CMU

Despite having to cancel Cooley’s visit to Carnegie Mellon this weekend, the team does have two of its targets arriving in Pittsburgh in three-stars Joey Muhammad (Winnipeg, Manitoba) and Bryan Williams (Charlottesville, Va.).

Muhammad, a six-foot, 290-center from Grant Park High School, has the Tartans as the leaders for his commitment, followed by Ohio State and Boise State. Recruiting experts believe that he is likely to commit after the weekend, given his consistent ranking of the Tartans in his list of schools along with the chance to start immediately.

Williams, a six-foot-four, 210-pound quarterback from Charlottesville High School, doesn’t have a favorite between his final three schools (CMU, West Virginia, Virginia Tech). The Tartans will get his first official visit, however, and will likely pitch playing time as one of the key factors to secure his commitment.

Tartans among nation leaders in interceptions

Carnegie Mellon’s defense has been inconsistent this season, but has excelled in one key area – grabbing interceptions. The Tartans enter the weekend tied for fourth nationally in interceptions, collecting 23 thus far.

Florida tops the list with 28, followed by Virginia Tech and Oklahoma at 24 apiece. CMU shares the fourth spot with Texas Tech and West Virginia, with Ohio State (22), Fresno State (22), Arkansas (21), and Oregon State (21) rounding out the top 10.

Individually, sophomore cornerback Calvin Burton and freshman linebacker Mark Toth lead the MAC and rank fifth nationally with six interceptions each. Burton tied the NCAA single-game record with five on Sept. 27 against Buffalo, and Toth collected three last Saturday at Ohio.

The Tartans have also gotten interceptions from sophomore cornerback Hayden Temple (4), freshman safeties Todd Andriano (2) and Elvis Washington (2), sophomore linebacker Matt Johnson (1), senior defensive end Andrew Miller (1), and first-year cornerback Erik Sellers (1).

Carnegie Mellon In-Season Recruiting Targets
Matt Burnsides, DT, *** (6’3”, 280 lbs.; Hyattsville, Md. / Northwestern) – Verbal Commit
Bryan Williams, QB, *** (6’4”, 210 lbs.; Charlottesville, Va. / Charlottesville) – Top 3, 11/15 Official Visit
Joey Muhammad, C, *** (6’0”, 290 lbs.; Winnipeg, Manitoba / Grant Park) – Top 3, 11/15 Official Visit

[Hellisan]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Happy to say I'm caught up and even happier you won't be seeing another post like this so my apologies in advance. There was just too much to respond to. Multiple hijacks and all.

I'm glad there's some alternative universe, even made up, where the Chargers were able to turn all those good years into something.

Sucks to hear about the backup save issue - I didn't see that one coming, at all. I hope 08 is a better more fun game for you than 07.

LOL at Moose's comment about Faneca on the Bengals. i'm not an NFL historian or anything, but I feel like if I had to make an all NFL All time team Faneca would probably on that bad boy, I'd probably take one pure power guy and a guy with some other skills and Faneca would be that guy, man he was a freaking monster.

With the discussion of Shady, the 2009 NFL draft is one of the worst and most painful for me of all time as a Seahawks fan. I believed following the draft at that time that Shady was essentially the next LT and Shaun Alexander's career had run its course in Seattle. Hell, if they had traded back in the first round and drafted him and gotten a pick or two later in the draft I would have been happy but they drafted Aaron Curry. For awhile there, every single year there was seemingly a player that they would say was the "safest pick in the draft," almost as bait for the dumb teams. Hey, if you're picking toward the bottom half of the first round and you can get a few teams to make bad picks you certainly put yourself in a better position, so my guess is GMs from these teams were labeling these dudes "safe" in anonymous interviews. NFL teams toward the top of the draft were awful at drafting in that decade so it should they flocked to players like Curry who had that narrative going. Also at that time, teams did a horrible job at identifying the best running backs - talents such as Ronnie Brown, Ced Benson, Cadillac Williams were drafted in the first few picks of just the 2005 draft with Alex Smith probably considered the "safe pick" going #1. FF to 2009, It was with horror that I watched as the Hawks let Shady get by them twice in the draft and certainly little consolation that they picked up a pro bowl / all pro center in the 2nd round before he was selected a few picks later. .... Sorry, can't help it with all those fun discussions but I knew Shady would be a good one. Was he as good as Tomlinson no, but if you put him on Tomlinson's squads instead of LT... Very similar outcome. on the other hand... I loved Lefevour in college too. I'm not gonna say I thought he would be good but I did think he would have an NFL career lol.

Impressive first win after the save file incident with the 5-INT game by Burton. It's safe to say that whenever you can more than double your tackle totals as a db you're doing something right. Then Manning putting up a cool 286 n 4... As great as that game was it was tough to see that 4th quarter against CMU, game was seemingly still within arm's reach but it wasn't to be. More struggles by Keyes passing.

Regarding Manning and his injury struggles, that was one of the things I hated about the old games. I used to go to E3 and preview these games, and then occasionally write articles about the games and that was a huge complaint of mine. Your starting running back was GUARANTEED to get injured, and moreover, to have it happen frequently. Just a total annoyance, honestly, I'd rather have way too few injuries and fake a realistic number/type of them to test my depth than deal with my #1 back constantly going down.
I remember being at E3 where you could play more of NCAA than most games and testing various backs and seeing guys get injured within the first few carries almost every time. Good call taking Manning off returns. Tough to see that game coming up short against Akron in a very winnable game. But as you've had to remind people, this is a really bad team lol.

What a game to pick up Win #2 against Ohio, team effort with keyes coming positive on turnovers, Manning dominating on the ground, the defense getting those huge turnovers including a pick six that offset their KR TD.

Can't wait to see CMU continue to make those strides even if they are taking longer than we would like, the reporting is top notch and it's just a treasure for ppl like myself to digest and enjoy. Keep up the great work.

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Happy to say I'm caught up and even happier you won't be seeing another post like this so my apologies in advance. There was just too much to respond to. Multiple hijacks and all.

No worries man, I appreciate you taking the time to catch up! Perfectly fine with the hijacks, I actually enjoyed them because it allowed me to look back at previous seasons and see how we've grown since the FCS days!

I'm glad there's some alternative universe, even made up, where the Chargers were able to turn all those good years into something.

It's insane how good they are in both Madden 07 and Madden 08. I think a lot of it is because of the ridiculous sim engine for runningbacks in the older Maddens, because guys are popping off 2,000-yard seasons like nothing and accumulating 400-500 carries without an injury. And with LT as the lead guy, they're a lock to win double-digit games unless something happens to him.

Sucks to hear about the backup save issue - I didn't see that one coming, at all. I hope 08 is a better more fun game for you than 07.

Likewise, and it really frustrated me at first - I don't think I turned on the PS3 for a week after. As I mentioned earlier, I put in 08 and tried to run the same type of dynasty with a created Michigan Tech team, but the attachment was never there after a couple of games. I'm glad that I was able to come up with an alternate option that allowed this to continue to run smoothly.

LOL at Moose's comment about Faneca on the Bengals. i'm not an NFL historian or anything, but I feel like if I had to make an all NFL All time team Faneca would probably on that bad boy, I'd probably take one pure power guy and a guy with some other skills and Faneca would be that guy, man he was a freaking monster.

The free agency periods have had some star-studded moves, that's for sure. Seems like for the most part, teams are willing to let their icons/95+ rated guys go into the pool and replace them with someone ranked in the high 80s, low 90s.

With the discussion of Shady, the 2009 NFL draft is one of the worst and most painful for me of all time as a Seahawks fan. I believed following the draft at that time that Shady was essentially the next LT and Shaun Alexander's career had run its course in Seattle. Hell, if they had traded back in the first round and drafted him and gotten a pick or two later in the draft I would have been happy but they drafted Aaron Curry. For awhile there, every single year there was seemingly a player that they would say was the "safest pick in the draft," almost as bait for the dumb teams. Hey, if you're picking toward the bottom half of the first round and you can get a few teams to make bad picks you certainly put yourself in a better position, so my guess is GMs from these teams were labeling these dudes "safe" in anonymous interviews. NFL teams toward the top of the draft were awful at drafting in that decade so it should they flocked to players like Curry who had that narrative going. Also at that time, teams did a horrible job at identifying the best running backs - talents such as Ronnie Brown, Ced Benson, Cadillac Williams were drafted in the first few picks of just the 2005 draft with Alex Smith probably considered the "safe pick" going #1. FF to 2009, It was with horror that I watched as the Hawks let Shady get by them twice in the draft and certainly little consolation that they picked up a pro bowl / all pro center in the 2nd round before he was selected a few picks later. .... Sorry, can't help it with all those fun discussions but I knew Shady would be a good one. Was he as good as Tomlinson no, but if you put him on Tomlinson's squads instead of LT... Very similar outcome. on the other hand... I loved Lefevour in college too. I'm not gonna say I thought he would be good but I did think he would have an NFL career lol.

I remember the Aaron Curry hype and how "safe" of a pick he was - pretty sure Sporting News (when they printed magazines) did a feature story on him around draft time that kept hammering away at that. Knew Shady was going to be a stud in the pros, and that was partially because he ended up at Pitt instead of going to Miami - although that would have been interesting to see him in a Canes uni. (Sorry moose. )

Impressive first win after the save file incident with the 5-INT game by Burton. It's safe to say that whenever you can more than double your tackle totals as a db you're doing something right. Then Manning putting up a cool 286 n 4... As great as that game was it was tough to see that 4th quarter against CMU, game was seemingly still within arm's reach but it wasn't to be. More struggles by Keyes passing.

The Buffalo game was just one of those games where the CPU was too stubborn for its own good. They were gashing me with their run game, yet they just kept dropping back and I kept mixing up zone coverages to confuse their QB. Manning going off definitely helped - that's an understatement - because it allowed me to sit back and avoid giving up the big play defensively, and that's when that unit has excelled.

Regarding Manning and his injury struggles, that was one of the things I hated about the old games. I used to go to E3 and preview these games, and then occasionally write articles about the games and that was a huge complaint of mine. Your starting running back was GUARANTEED to get injured, and moreover, to have it happen frequently. Just a total annoyance, honestly, I'd rather have way too few injuries and fake a realistic number/type of them to test my depth than deal with my #1 back constantly going down.

I remember being at E3 where you could play more of NCAA than most games and testing various backs and seeing guys get injured within the first few carries almost every time. Good call taking Manning off returns. Tough to see that game coming up short against Akron in a very winnable game. But as you've had to remind people, this is a really bad team lol.

That's pretty awesome that you would preview games at E3! Manning's injuries have been frustrating - though thankfully, none have been long absences - especially since when I made the game change, I bumped his injury rating to 95 in hopes of avoiding that. But you're right, the starting runningbacks get injured quite a bit in this game, especially on opposing teams' during simulations - I'm pretty sure Wisconsin's P.J. Hill has missed at least 5-6 weeks each season in this, and he has a high INJ rating as well.

What a game to pick up Win #2 against Ohio, team effort with keyes coming positive on turnovers, Manning dominating on the ground, the defense getting those huge turnovers including a pick six that offset their KR TD.

The Ohio game is pretty much how I want to play going forward - lean on Manning, allow Keyes to contribute running the ball and move the chains with his throws, and rely on my defense to make big plays. That game actually could have been a bigger win for CMU I felt, there were some conversions and the 52-yard TD on their end where the CPU-controlled guys on my defense just took terrible pursuit angles (which, unfortunately, has seemed to be a theme in 08 compared to 07).

Can't wait to see CMU continue to make those strides even if they are taking longer than we would like, the reporting is top notch and it's just a treasure for ppl like myself to digest and enjoy. Keep up the great work.

Much appreciated, that means a ton coming from you! I've mentioned before that I wanted a slow, gradual build because it should be just that when moving a team up from Division III to FCS to FBS, so I don't want to be winning 8-9 games right away at this level. Sure, it's led to some frustration when playing the actual games, but I know that I'll eventually have this team flourishing in a few years and that'll be exciting to see and make it even more fun to report on!

I've got the Duke preview coming now, then the game should be up later today!

[Careless Whisper]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

at
Duke Blue Devils (0-10) at Carnegie Mellon Tartans (2-7)
Saturday, November 15, 2008 | 3:30 PM (ET)
Pittsburgh, Pa. – Gesling Stadium | No television

Team Overview (B- overall, B- offense, C+ defense)
Duke is happy to be near the end of a nightmare season, as it is still searching for its first victory of 2008. The Blue Devils have only been within one score twice, in the opener at Army (28-35) and against North Carolina State (31-34). Versus the Black Knights, Nelson Simmons broke a 28-28 fourth-quarter deadlock with a touchdown and finished with 292 yards and three scores on the ground. In Duke’s ACC opener, it came back from a 28-10 halftime deficit to lead 31-28 through three frames, but the Wolfpack connected on a pair of field goals to escape.

Junior quarterback Thaddeus Lewis (100.8 QB rtg., 125-252, 1,272 yards, 14 TD, 12 INT) is in his second year as the starter and has a quartet of solid pieces to work with. Senior tailback Re’quan Boyette (148 carries, 789 yards, 3 TD; 15 catches, 152 yards, 3 TD) contributes both on the ground and in the passing game as the team’s most explosive player, while senior trio Eron Bailey (33 catches, 291 yards, 4 TD), Raphael Chestnut (31 catches, 314 yards, 3 TD), and Ryan Wood (27 catches, 321 yards, 1 TD) are all solid talents at wide receiver.

The Blue Devils’ struggles are partially because of their injuries on defense, as redshirt junior defensive tackle Vince Oghobaase and senior defensive end Greg Akinbiyi were knocked out for the season early on with a ruptured disk and torn shoulder muscle, respectively. The Okpokowuruk twins, Ayanga and Ifreke have picked up the slack somewhat with Ifreke, a sophomore defensive end, tallying a team-high four sacks. Redshirt junior Michael Tauiliili (65 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 INT) is a capable middle linebacker, while fifth-year senior Jabari Marshall (23 tackles, 1 sack, 3 INT, 1 FF, 1 TD) serves as the team’s top defensive back.

Senior kicker Joe Surgan (7-12 FG, 18-18 XP) is in his first season kicking field goals and extra points after being the kickoff specialist previously. Redshirt sophomore Kevin Jones (62 punts, 2,627 yards, 33.3 net avg.) has had plenty of work at punter this season. Bailey (36 kick returns, 860 yards; 17 punt returns, 280 yards, 1 TD) is dangerous in the return game and should play a big factor against a poor Carnegie Mellon coverage unit.

Season Results
09/06 | at Army | L, 28-35
09/13 | NORTHWESTERN | L, 22-33
09/20 | NORTH CAROLINA STATE * | L, 31-34
09/27 | VIRGINIA * | L, 14-61
10/04 | at Virginia Tech * | L, 17-42
10/11 | MIAMI (FLA.) * | L, 7-28
10/18 | at Georgia Tech * | L, 7-44
10/25 | at Navy | L, 14-28
11/01 | at Wake Forest * | L, 10-38
11/08 | at Clemson * | L, 3-28

PFF Top Five
Re’quan Boyette, Sr., HB (91)
Ayanga Okpokowuruk, R-Jr., DE (88)
Eron Bailey, Sr., WR (87)
Thaddeus Lewis, Jr., QB (86)
Kyle Hill, Jr., OT (86)

Injury Report
Duke: Vince Oghobaase, R-Jr., DT (ruptured disk – season); Greg Akinbiyi, Sr., DE (torn shoulder muscle – medically redshirted)
Carnegie Mellon: Kevin Cousins, R-Jr., WR (torn shoulder muscle – 1 weeks)

Suspensions
Duke: E.J. White, Fr., WR (academics – 1 game)
Carnegie Mellon: None

[Careless Whisper]

Season 3, Game 10: Duke at Carnegie Mellon

Tartans Outlast Duke at Buzzer for Second Straight Win
Jim Manning scored from two yards out with 20 seconds remaining to keep the Blue Devils winless


Carnegie Mellon tailback Jim Manning ran through Duke tacklers en route to another 100-yard day. (Michael Welch / Getty Images)

by Jayson Thomas, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter

PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- Carnegie Mellon led for all of 20 seconds this afternoon. Luckily, it was the final 20 seconds.

Capping one of the wildest games of their young Division I tenure, the Tartans’ Jim Manning punched in a touchdown from two yards out with 20 seconds remaining, lifting the hosts to a 41-37 victory over winless Duke this afternoon at Gesling Stadium.

Carnegie Mellon (3-7) nearly became the first team to lose to Duke (0-11) this season, as Justin Keyes tossed his third interception of the day in the red zone with 1:59 remaining. However, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for taunting pushed the Blue Devils back 15 yards and made it first-and-25 for their next drive, allowing the Tartans the chance to force a three-and-out and get another crack at the winning score.

“Sometimes football doesn’t care if a team is 12-0, 6-6, or 0-12,” said third-year head coach John Elliott. “It’ll throw out the records and give you a classic football game regardless of the teams’ backstories. Just because Duke came in without a win didn’t mean they were a pushover and we didn’t take them as such leading up to today. We knew that they were an ACC team, and they had BCS-caliber talent through their roster. Our resolve today was so strong – we never really had control of the game, but we weren’t ever out of it either. The guys believed and they made it happen there at the end.”

As previously mentioned, the Tartans led for only the final 20 seconds of the contest. The hosts tied the game with 36 seconds left in the first quarter on a Manning six-yard plunge, but that was shortlived as they gave up their second kick return touchdown in as many weeks with Eron Bailey finding paydirt from 84 yards out.

It almost turned disastrous for CMU after that, as Keyes fumbled the first snap of the next drive to give the ball back to the Blue Devils. However, Calvin Burton leapt up to snag an interception in the end zone, keeping the score at 14-7.

Duke nearly broke the game open with 3:11 remaining in the half after Thaddeus Lewis connected with Bailey on a long 68-yard touchdown strike, making it 24-14. The Tartans had an answer though, as Keyes engineered a long drive before taking it in himself from eight yards out in the closing seconds of the quarter.

Keyes had another answer for a long Blue Devils touchdown, as he scored on a 41-yard scamper following Re’quan Boyette’s 54-yard touchdown run in the early moments of the third quarter. Jon Foster brought CMU even with 1:59 left in the frame with a 33-yard field goal, and it seemed like the momentum was shifting in the hosts’ favor after they forced a punt – only to see Brandon King fool everyone with a 40-yard touchdown burst as the upback on a fake.

Foster nailed a second field goal to pull the Tartans within three at 37-34 with 5:35 remaining. After getting a defensive stop, Keyes led CMU down to the Duke 11-yard line only to find Ayanga Okpokowuruk dropping back into coverage for a heartbreaking interception. However, Okpokowuruk spiked the ball in celebration and was immediately penalized, forcing the visitors into a first-and-25 for their ensuing drive.

The Tartans took advantage of the long field and generated a quick three-and-out, using two of their timeouts in the process. Keyes then redeemed himself, converting a third-and-11 with 0:22 remaining on a 12-yard scramble. Manning scored on the following play to put CMU ahead for the first time, 41-37, and Raymond Cooper finished the game by sacking Lewis on a cornerback blitz.

Despite Keyes’ four turnovers, the sophomore quarterback had one of the better games of his career, accumulating 428 yards (275 passing, 153 yards) and three total touchdowns (1 pass, 2 rush). Manning added 137 yards and two scores on the ground, along with 62 yards on seven receptions. David Young hauled in four passes for 120 yards and a touchdown from the tight end position.

Defensively, Cooper netted the aforementioned sack and an interception at the end of the first half. Devon Elliott also brought Lewis down for the Tartans, and Burton's interception was his seventh of the season.

Carnegie Mellon returns to Mid-American Conference (MAC) play for its final two games, beginning next Saturday, Nov. 22 at Western Michigan.

Duke Blue Devils at Carnegie Mellon Tartans
Nov 15, 2008	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Duke Blue Devils (0-11)	14	10	13	0	37
Carnegie Mellon Tartans (3-7)	7	14	10	10	41

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		DUKE	CMU
5:43	(DUKE) Re’quan Boyette 4-yard run (Joe Surgan kick)	7	0
0:36	(CMU) Jim Manning 6-yard run (Jon Foster kick)	7	7
0:28	(DUKE) Eron Bailey 84-yard kick return (Joe Surgan kick)	14	7
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		DUKE	CMU
9:30	(DUKE) Joe Surgan 31-yard field goal	17	7
5:42	(CMU) Justin Keyes 5-yard pass to David Young (Jon Foster kick)	17	14
3:11	(DUKE) Thaddeus Lewis 68-yard pass to Eron Bailey (Joe Surgan kick)	24	14
0:37	(CMU) Justin Keyes 8-yard run (Jon Foster kick)	24	21
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		DUKE	CMU
12:04	(DUKE) Re’quan Boyette 54-yard run (Joe Surgan kick)	31	21
10:03	(CMU) Justin Keyes 41-yard run (Jon Foster kick)	31	28
1:59	(CMU) Jon Foster 33-yard field goal	31	31
0:48	(DUKE) Brandon King 40-yard run (XP blocked)	37	31
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		DUKE	CMU
5:35	(CMU) Jon Foster 26-yard field goal	37	34
0:20	(CMU) Jim Manning 2-yard run (Jon Foster kick)	37	41

Duke Blue Devils PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Thaddeus Lewis 8/21 160 1 2 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Re'quan Boyette 15 104 6.9 2 Brandon King 1 40 40.0 1 Thaddeus Lewis 4 13 3.2 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Eron Bailey 2 90 45.0 1 Re'quan Boyette 2 46 23.0 0 Ryan Wood 2 10 5.0 0 Danny Parker 1 14 14.0 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Chris Rwabukamba 13 1 0 0 Jabari Marshall 9 0 1 0 Ayanga Okpokowuruk 8 1 1 0 Leon Wright 8 0 1 0 Adrian Aye-Darko 7 0 0 0 Michael Tauiliili 6 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Joe Surgan 1/1 4/5 7 31 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Kevin Jones 4 148 37.0 1 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Eron Bailey 6 178 28.6 1 Re'quan Boyette 2 46 23.0 0

Carnegie Mellon Tartans PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Justin Keyes 18/25 275 1 3 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Justin Keyes 26 153 5.8 2 Jim Manning 25 137 5.4 2 Nate Satele 4 30 7.5 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Jim Manning 7 62 8.8 0 David Young 4 120 30.0 1 Stephen Carter 4 59 14.7 0 Pete Carlson 3 34 11.3 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Matt Johnson 5 0 0 0 Mark Toth 5 0 0 0 Devon Elliott 4 1 0 0 Raymond Cooper 1 1 1 0 Calvin Burton 1 0 1 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Jon Foster 2/2 5/5 11 33 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Pete Carlson 5 94 18.7 0 Stephen Carter 2 30 15.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Pete Carlson 3 6 2.0 0

[moose141]

Re: The Rise of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans (NCAA Football 07)

Man, if you could've limited a couple of big plays, I think you could've blown Duke out of the water. What an incredible game offensively, obviously the turnovers aren't ideal and never seem like they're going to end this season, but basically 600 yards of offense is incredible! Not to mention that you doubled up Duke offensively, and seeing Keyes finally pass for a reasonable amount of yards feels like an April Fool's Joke, haha. Nice to see Manning contribute in the pass game out of the backfield as well, becoming more than just a one trick pony. Classic bad team thing to have a couple monster games at the end of the season and really raise the expectations for the following season to a ridiculous level!