Sunday, December 4, 2011

Week 14

Summaries

Oregon 49- UCLA 31: The sham of a Pac 12 Championship Game went to the Ducks in a runaway. The Ducks did commit 10 penalties and turn the ball over twice, but it didn't matter as the UO offense still put 49 points and 571 yards of offense on the bRuins. The bRuins did manage to make the game reasonably close at times, but the outcome was never really in doubt. UO RB LaMichael James gashed the UCLA defense for 219 yards on 25 carries and 3 TDs to lead his squad to the Rose Bowl. UCLA QB Kevin Prince threw for 164 yards and 2 TDs in a losing effort.
Telling Stat: Quick Ducks; UO's longest scoring drive lasted just 3:55 and covered 73 yards.

Observations

...Don't pack those bags; 74 teams ended up being eligible for the 70 bowl slots this year. Yes, that includes UCLA's cheesy waiver from the NCAA. USC, Miami, Ball State, and Western Kentucky will be home for the holidays. USC due to sanctions, Miami by choice, and Ball State and WKU didn't get invited.

...Won't even turn on the TV; The BCS National Championship Game should be called, The Nobody Wants to Watch this &@%#&$ Rematch Bowl.

...Another ACC trial run; After going 3-0 v. the ACC in the regular season, Notre Dame gets Florida State out of the ACC in their bowl game. The Irish are just glad they aren't facing a Pac 12 school after being whipped by USC and Stanford this year.

...Joke bowl; The UCLA-Illinois matchup in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl is a joke. Both teams are looking for head coaches after playing miserably down the stretch. UCLA's struggles have been well chronicled here, but Illinois gets a bowl bid after losing six straight games to finish 6-6 on the year. Pretty sad, folks.

...A goat, not a hero; My heart goes out to Michigan State Safety Isaiah Lewis. He's the kid who drew the penalty for running into the punter that snuffed out the MSU's last chance at a comeback in the Big Ten tittle game. One single play isn't the sole reason a game is won or lost, but this kid's name will stick with MSU fans like Bill Buckner with Red Sox fans. Sad.

...One for the losers; Why is Alabama's entire argument based on who they lost to, rather than who they beat?

...The unkindest (non) cut of all; Don't blame Utah and Colorado for not getting happy about the Pac 12 getting two BCS bowl bids. As part of their agreement to join the league, they are not eligible for a cut of the bowl money earned from the rest of the league this season. They don't get any dough until the 2012 season.

...Getting defensive; The SEC loves to boast how they have these great and powerful defenses that allow them to be in the title game. USC had the best defense in the nation in 2003 and 2008, but that didn't seem to sway the discussion USC's way.

...looking towards 2012; Michigan v. Alabama at Jerry's House, Cal at Ohio State, Nebraska at UCLA, Oklahoma at Notre Dame, and LSU-Washington all look like fun next year.

...Pac 12 Coaching Carousel; Mike Stoops is out at UofA and Rich Rodriguez is in, Paul Wulff is out at Wazzu and Mike Leach is in, Dennis Erickson is out at ASU and it looks like June Jones is in, and Rick Neuheisel is out at UCLA and nobody wants the job. bRuin AD Dan Guerrero must feel like a Microsoft rep trying to sell the Zune.

...Short term memory; Most of the Heisman voters cited the last game they saw as the determining factor in making their vote for the stiffarm statue. It's amazing how guys like Luck and Barkley can get shafted in the vote just because they didn't play last weekend. I guess an entire season of work doesn't matter anymore.

...Quietly making noise; SDSU RB Ronnie Hillman ran for 178 yards and all 4 of the Aztecs TDs in their 28-21 win over Fresno State. HIllman finishes the regular season with 1656 yards rushing and 19 TDs without much fanfare. Oh, and Keith Jackson would say, He's just a soph-o-more.

...Ambush bowl; Washington garnered an Alamo Bowl bid, but this neutral site is anything but as their opponent is Baylor. The Alamo Dome is only about 110 miles from the Baylor campus. It's fair to say that the Huskies won't be seeing much purple in the stands.

...Diggin' the Roses; It's really gonna be fun to watch Wisconsin's big bruisers take on the lighting speedsters of Oregon. Heck, I just get excited watching an O-line as big as Wisconsin's warmup. That's some serious beef there.

...The last is important; The last FBS regular season game is this week as Army takes on Navy at FedEx Field. It's a game steeped tradition that lives up to the ideal of pursuing victory with honor. In this season of more horrible football stories about the excesses of sport, this game lets you experience what's still right about the college game.

Great Stats Department
Team

...What a wall; USC led the nation with only 8 sacks allowed in 12 games.

...Luck of the Irish; Notre Dame went 6 for 6 on fourth down this year.

...Cardinal Red Zone; Stanford score on 63 of their 64 Red Zone trips this season. They ran for 24 TDs, threw for 26 and kicked 13 field goals.

...Academy discipline; Navy was penalized only twice a game for only 20 yards a game, without a personal foul being called.

...Drive stoppers; Alabama allowed teams to convert on third down only 25% of the time.

Individual

...Who? An owl, that's who; Temple's Bernard pierce led all RBs with 25 rushing TDs. Leading all backs period was Kansas State's Colin Klein with 26.

...The Wishbone is so yesterday; The Big XII had four QBs ranked in the top 10 in passing yards per game this season. From 3rd to 6th were OSU's Brandon Weeden, OU's Landry Jones, Texas Tech's Seth Doege and Baylor's Robert Griffin III.

...Don't even look; Once again USC's punter didn't qualify for NCAA ranking due to not enough punts.

...Lighting up the scoreboard; Wisconsin's Montee Ball led the nation with 228 points scored this year. That's 78 more the the second place kid.

...A one man Wolfpack; North Carolina State DB David Amerson intercepted 11 passes in 12 games this year. That's more picks than half the schools in the BCS had as a team this year.

Until next year folks remember, National Letter of Intent Day is just around the corner. It's funny how much I love this game with the funny bouncing ball. Chris Schenkel was right when he said watching college football is "a great way to spend an autumn afternoon."

-The Commissioner


Sunday, November 27, 2011

Week 13

Hey All,

It's time for that column you love on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 50- UCLA 0: After hearing all week about how UCLA had "closed the gap" on USC, the Trojans came out and buried the bRuins. The bRuins sported all-white uniforms for the game. They should have used the their jerseys as flags of surrender at halftime. USC QB Matt Barkley torched the bRuin secondary all night completing 35 of 42 passes for 423 yards and 6 TDs. USC RB Curtis McNeal handled the majority of the Trojan ground attack rushing for 124 yards on just 12 carries and one huge 73-yard TD run. Meanwhile, the Trojan defense pitched a shutout, including stopping the bRuins four times in the red zone.
Telling Stat: The Trojan's marched well; USC's average scoring drive covered 77 yards in just 7 plays.

Oregon 49- Oregon State 21: In a warmup for their thrashing of UCLA this week, the Ducks beat up on the Beavers. Tied 7-7 early in the second quarter the Ducks went on a 35-0 run turning this game into a laugher at Autzen. UO QB Darron Thomas completed 27 of 40 passes for 305 yards and 4 TDs on the day, while RB LaMichael James ran for 142 yards and TD as well. AS for OSU, QB Sean Mannion led threw for 299 yards and 3 TDs in the loss.
Telling Stat: Back in the groove; After being held in check by USC last week, the Ducks put up 38 first downs and 670 yards of offense on the hapless Beavers.

Arizona 45- Louisiana-Lafayette 37: It was a meaningless game at the end of a dreary season for UofA, but it turned out to be an exciting affair where Wildcat QB Nick Foles set a couple of more school records before he exits for the NFL. In fact, Foles threw for 352 yards and 3 TDs. He set new Uof A records for career TD passes with 64, and single-season TD passes with 31. He also surpassed the 10,000 yard mark for his career. He now holds almost all of UofA's passing records. As for the game, it featured a crazy fourth quarter that saw the two teams combine to score 35 points. However, it was UofA that was able to run out the clock to seal the win. ULL's Blaine Gautier threw for 315 yards and a TD in a losing cause.
Telling Stat: A simple 6; after throwing for over 10,000 yards and 64 scores in his UofA career, it was a simple 6-yard pass from Nick Foles to Terrence Miller that sealed the game for the Wildcats and allowed Foles to walk off the field a winner one last game.

Washington 38- Washington State 21: It was the 104th Apple Cup and the Huskies came away with their 67th win in the series behind three TD passes from QB Keith Price. Wazzu hung tough in this game with QB Marshall Lobbastael throwing for 344 yards and 3 TDs of his own. However, he turned the ball over twice in the fourth quarter with one of those turnovers setting up the Huskies for the game-clinching touchdown. That TD was a 1-yard plunge across the double stripe by RB Chis Polk. The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Dawgs and possibly ended the tenure of Wazzu HC Paul Wulf.
Telling Stat: Tough Dawgs in the fourth; The Husky defense recorded two sacks, forced 2 turnovers and held Wazzu to -1 yard rushing in the fourth quarter to win the Apple Cup.

Stanford 28- Notre Dame 14: In what many Pac 12 opponents hope is his last game on The Farm, SU QB Andrew Luck led his squad to a victory over the Fighting Irish and possibly an at-large BCS berth. The Cardinal built up a 21-0 halftime lead on three TD passes from Luck and a defense that held the Irish to just 85 yards in the first half. The Cardinal turned the second half in a glorified scrimmage with Luck tossing one more TD pass to put the game out of reach with 8:11 to play. The win leaves Stanford with an 11-1 record and at the mercy of the pollsters.
Telling Stat: Not as close as it looked; ND's final score came against SU's backups with just :23 left on the clock.

Colorado 17- Utah 14: All the Utes had to do was beat lowly Colorado and they would have a shot at the Pac 12 South division title. However, they stumbled and bumbled their way to defeat on a very cold and windy day in Salt Lake City. Colorado never trailed in the game, building up a 10-0 lead behind QB Tyler Hansen's 1-yard sneak and PK Will Oliver's 23-yard field goal. Utah would cut the deficit to three points early in the third quarter behind RB Tauni Vakapuna's 3-yard run. Colorado answered right back with a drive that ended in a 1-yard TD toss by Tyler Hansen. Then Ute QB Jon Hays capped brought Utah back again with a 6-yard pass to WR Shawn Asiata to cut their deficit to just three as the third quarter ended. Then came the fourth quarter, where Utah PK Coleman Petersen would miss two field goal attempts to hand the win to the Buffaloes. Tyler Hansen was the MVP for CU with a TD run and a TD pass.
Telling Stat: Broken; With the win, Colorado snapped their 23-game road losing streak, which was the nation's longest.

California 47- Arizona State 38: In a game that became irrelevant after Utah's loss to Colorado, the Sun Devils came out on the wrong end of a shootout with the Golden Bears. Cal RB CJ Anderson was the star for the Bears, scoring 2 TDs on the ground and 1 TD on a pass play of 74 yards. PK Giorgio Tavecchio also starred for Cal kicking four field goals in the game, the last two coming in the fourth quarter to seal the win. ASU QB Brock Osweiler threw for 264 yards and 3 TDs in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: MIllion dollar bodies and 5 cent heads; ASU cost themselves the game by committing 11 penalties for 121 yards and 4 turnovers.

Cranberry Crushers 28- Tough Turkeys 21- 3OT: In the first backyard Thanksgiving Day game to ever go to OT, the outstanding play the Crushers' Robert Weissler led them to victory. The Turkeys rushed out to an early 14-0 lead behind the passing combination of The Commissioner to Liza Weissler. However, two quick scores by the Crushers just before the half knotted the game at 14-14. The teams traded TDs in the second half, but the tough defensive play of Luci Ursich and Margaret Lenker of the Crushers along with that of Maureen Lenker of the Turkeys led to a game that stood tied at 21 all through two overtime periods. In the third OT period, Robert Weissler raced around the left end on third and goal to put the Crushers up 28-21. Then, he intercepted The Commissioner's second down throw on the ensuing possession to win the game.
Telling Stat: They could still move; It's amazing that the group could still go out and play after having a great Thanksgiving meal!!!!!

Bowl Eligibility Update

There are now 71 bowl eligible teams for the 70 bowl slots with six other squads one win away from becoming eligible. There will be some disappointed teams this time next week.

Observations

...And then there were none; Florida Atlantic got a 13-yard pass from QB Nolen Smith to WR Jonathan Perry with :33 left to defeat UAB. The win by the Owls means that there are no winless teams this year in the FBS. Everyone got to hold their heads high coming off the field at least once this year.

...A Cardinal and Gold escort out; Rick Neuheisel is the sixth bRuin HC to lose to USC in his last regular season game. That's half the number of head coaches UCLA has had since the rivalry began back in 1929. Rick's new fellow club members are Babe Horrell (1944), Bert LaBrucherie (1948), Bill Barnes (1964), Pepper Rodgers (1973), and Karl Dorrell(2007). Bill Spaulding (1938) and Buffett Bob Toledo (2002) also lost to USC in their last season, they just had other games after that in the regular season.

...Not so long ago; The current overtime setup in college football goes back to 1996. It seems like it's been around forever.

...A Cardinal and Gold escort- Part II; To answer your next question, USC has been the last regular season loss for five Notre Dame head coaches. Maybe we'll get to read about those details in 2012.

...Funny stuff; I remember reading all last spring how Utah was gong to come into the Pac 12 and dominate the league. I laughed then, and I'm laughing louder now.

...Rematch anger; When Ohio State and Michigan looked liked they were headed for a rematch of their regular season matchup in the BCS title game a few years back howls were heard all across the nation about how that can't happen. The loudest crying came from the SEC. Where are all those people now that we might be stuck LSU-Bama II? It wasn't good then, it ain't gonna be good now. Sorry Bama, you lost, you're out.

...Hmmmmmm; Just what would Notre Dame's record be this year without a 3-0 trip through the bottom feeders of the ACC?

...Might be just a coincidence; I find it odd that when Urban Meyer stepped down from coaching Florida due to life threatening stress levels that it just happened to be the same time that Tim Tebow's eligibility ran out.

...AD hot seat; UCLA AD Dan Guerrero is about to hire his third head football coach. Most AD's don't get a shot at a fourth.

...Snubbed; How Lane Kiffin didn't win Coach of the Year honors in the Pac 12 is beyond me. It went to Stanford's David Shaw who was handed a BCS bowl winner with a Heisman Trophy finalist at QB and an already in place coaching staff. All he had to do was not screw it up, which he did by losing to Oregon. What a joke.

...A rather quick axe; Turner Gill got fired after just two seasons as head coach at Kansas. Yeah, he was just 5-19 in those two seasons, but since when does a coach only get two years to install his program?

...A painful irony; Back in 1954, UCLA had arguably their greatest team. They went 9-0 during the regular season and thrashed USC in the process, 39-0. However, the bRuins didn't go to the Rose Bowl. It was their second straight PCC title and the league had a "no repeat rule," so UCLA sat home and watched USC get beat by Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. This week, the Trojans will watch UCLA get smashed by Oregon in the Pac 12 title game. That's just sad.

...A strong backup; Seeing Baylor had scored 66 on Texas Tech wasn't a surprise last week. Knowing they did it without QB Robert Griffin III for half the game was. While Griffin sat out the second half with an apparent concussion, backup QB Nick Florence came in and calmly completed 9 of 12 passes for 151 yards and TDs while running for 14 yards and another score to lead Baylor to victory.

...No room to complain; I seem to be saying this every year, but those who defend the BCS as a great system don't get to whine about a lame team coming out of the Big East with an automatic BCS bid.

...A final note; With USC thrashing UCLA another season has come and gone for my tailgate group. The games do no nearly mean as much without you all. The bonding, fun and laughter always lasts longer than and means more than any great plays seen during the year. Thanks for another fun year, folks.

Until next week folks, remember that only a league champ should qualify for the BCS title game.
-The Commissioner

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Week 12

Hey All,

Here's the column that makes Tuesdays fun, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 38- Oregon 35: USC came out confident and strong at Autzen Stadium. Behind QB Matt Barkley and an incredible defensive effort led by LB Hayes Pullard, the Trojans built up a 38-14 lead over the Ducks. Then , they held on for dear life in the final quarter to claim a victory that shook the nation. As UO PK Alejandro Maldonado's 37-yard FG attempt faded wide left, the Ducks 21-game home winning streak, 19-game conference winning streak and BCS title game hopes faded away as well. Barkley had a great game, completing 26 of 34 passes for 323 yards and 4 TDs. The big story of this game was the USC defense. The final numbers won't show it, but they did an incredible job shutting down the Ducks enough for a win.
Telling Stat: The clock; UO HC Chip Kelly doesn't care for clock management and it showed as he mismanaged it on UO's final drive.
Oregon State 38- Washington 21: The Huskies limped into Corvalis with QB Nick Montana starting in place of injured starter, Keith Price. The Beavers shut Montana and the Huskies down in that order. The Beaver defense held Montana to just 11 of 21 passing for 79 yards and 2 TDs. He also threw one interception and fumbled once to kill a pair of Husky drives. Meanwhile, OSU QB Sean Mannion burned up the Husky defense, completing 26 of 37 passes for 339 yards and a pair of TDs. The big running star of the day was OSU RB Jovan Stevenson who rushed for only 41 yards, but scored all 3 of the Beavers second half TDs on runs of 1, 3, and 15 yards.
Telling Stat: A big 3; The beavers put the game away with three straight TD drives in the final quarter.

Utah 30- Washington State 27 1OT: The Utes escaped Pullman with a big win that kept them in the Pac 12 South race. Ute RB John White IV spearheaded the Utah attack with 186 yards rushing on a whopping 42 carries and 2 TDs. As for the Cougars, freshman sensation QB Connor Halliday had some shine come off his penny as he threw four interceptions to go along with his 290 yards passing and 2 TDs. None of those picks were bigger than the one he threw in overtime that set up Utah for the game winning field goal. The kick was a 38-yarder by PK Coleman Petersen. The loss ended Wazzu's bowl hopes for 2011.
Telling Stat: 7-0; The Utes are 7-0 this season when RB John White IV rushes for over 100 yards a the game.

Stanford 31- California 28: The Cardinal recovered an onside kick by the Golden Bears to seal their win in the 114th Big Game. Stanford's offense wasn't really in sync for most of the rainy night in Palo Alto, but they came away with the win. SU QB Andrew Luck had an off first half completing only 8 of 15 passes for 81 yards, but he turned that around in the second half. He went 12 of 15 inn the second half for 199 yards and 2 TDs. Stanford's rushing game kept the Bear defense off balance by using a committee of backs to gain 149 yards and 2 TDs on a sloppy field. As for the Golden Bears, lefty QB Zach Maynard threw for 280 yards and 2 TDs to lead the Bear cause.
Telling Stat: 7s not 3s; Cal had two drives stall inside the Stanford five-yard line only to settle for a pair of field goals, when TDs might have won the game.

UCLA 45- Colorado 6: The bRuins came out and did what they didn't do last week at Utah. They came out strong and fast against the Buffaloes. The bRuins held a 21-0 lead at the end of he first quarter behind, two TD passes by QB Kevin Prince and a 14-yard TD run by RB Johnathan Franklin. UCLA then took the the second and third quarters off before exploding for another 21 points in the fourth quarter to turn this game into a rout. Prince had one of his best days as a bRuin, completing 15 of 19 passes for 225 yards and 4 TDs. He also ran for 84 yards. Franklin led all rushers with 162 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.
Telling Stat: No threat; UCLA's defense totally shutdown the Buffs, allowing a lone TD in 14 CU possessions.

Arizona 31- Arizona State 27: ASU proved once again this week that they really don't want to win the Pac 12 South or the Territorial Cup by falling to the Wildcats. The Wildcats got another great day out of QB Nick Foles who threw for 370 yards and a pair of TDs, but it was backup QB Bryson Beirne who etched his name into the lore of this rivalry. Midway through the fourth quarter, UofA trailed 27-24 and just had Nick Foles knocked out of the game. All Beirne did was come in and lead his squad on the game-winning drive. He capped off the drive with a 23-yard TD pass to WR Juron Criner. ASU did engineer one final drive, but the Wildcat defense held, sending the Sun Devils down to defeat. ASU QB Brock Osweiler threw for 487 yards and a TD in defeat.
Telling Stat: 1/1/1; UofA backup QB Bryson Beirne attempted one pass, completed that one pass for one huge game-winning TD and became a hero in the ASU-UofA rivalry for all time.

Bowl Eligibility Update

Currently there are 66 Bowl Eligible teams for the 70 bowl slots available for this season. However, there are still 18 teams on the bubble to become bowl eligible in the final two weeks of the season. Nine of those teams are from BCS conferences. So, they would seem to have the inside track to some of those spots. However, for the first time in a long time it looks like there will be a good 10 teams or so sitting home despite being bowl eligible.

Observations

...There is still one; Florida Atlantic is still the only winless team in the FBS. At 0-10, they still have two games to play and both of those are against under .500 teams in Alabama-Birmingham and Louisiana-Monroe. So, there's hope for FAU.

...Fight, Fight, for dear old Harvard! Congrats to the Harvard Crimson, 2011 Ivy League Champions. The Crimson sealed their title run with a 45-7 thrashing of Yale at the Yale Bowl. It's always good to take a minute to salute the Ancient Eight where college football was born.

...Uniform watch; I saw a team wear something I'd never seen before, brown helmets. Wyoming broke out brown helmets for their tilt with New Mexico last week.

...Heavens to Bo and Woody! It's hard to believe that the first ever Big Ten title game won't have either Ohio State or Michigan as a participant.

...Great rivalry games this week; USC-UCLA, OSU-Michigan, Pittsburgh-West Virginia, and Indiana-Purdue are among the "big" games that have bragging rights on the line this week. Remember, all rivalry games are "big" and do mean something, just ask Arizona.

...Red v. Blue for the right to face the Green; Penn State travels to Wisconsin this week where the winner of their matchup will face Michigan State in the inaugural Big 10 Championship Game. Could we get a matchup of that great Wisc.-MSU game earlier in the season?

...No bowling for the 'Canes; So, Miami chose not to accept a bowl bid this year in the wake of their NCAA probe. It could be the first of many bowl-less seasons in Coral Gables.

...Scary stat for the Ducks; USC became the first team to beat a Chip Kelly Oregon team with just one week to prepare.

...Not as attractive; It's not as pretty a matchup as last week, but the Okie State-Oklahoma game is still for the Big XII title and a BCS berth.

...Big Least; It looks like Louisville could win the Big East win a 7-5 record.

...If an Independent fell in the forrest; BYU could finish the season at 9-3 with a win over Hawaii on December 3rd. Has anyone seen the Cougars play? Does anyone care? Way to grab those headlines and make people notice you as an independent BYU!

...Ahhh, a bi-coastal November; Notre Dame has racked up three straight wins this month over opponents from the ACC, this week they'll come over to the Pacific Coast to take on Stanford. Somehow, I don't see them enjoying it as much.

...All a Twitter; So, UofA used Twitter to announce the hiring of Rich Rodriguez as their Head Coach. I saw many of his press conferences at Michigan and West Virginia. I wouldn't let him speak either.

...Still ranked; Can someone explain to me how Texas can still be ranked at #25? They're 6-4 and in 7th place in the Big XII.

...Son shines; I wonder how the post game handshake went between UCLA WR Taylor Embree and his father, Colorado Head Coach Jon Embree after UCLA's 45-6 win?

Until next week folks, remember it's great to have speed on defense.

-The Commissioner




Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Week 11

Hey all,

Here's your Tuesday dose of the Pac 12, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 40 - Washington 17: The Trojans had lost two straight to the Huskies on the final play of the game. This year, the Trojans made sure it wasn't that close. The Trojan defense really led the charge in this game, holding the Huskies to just 244 total yards, and a meager 2 of 13 on third downs. The USC defense even registered a safety that broke the Huskies spirit in the second quarter. As for the Trojan offense, RB Curtis McNeal was the man with 148 yards on 18 carries and 1 big TD that came on a 79-yard scamper in the third quarter. USC QB Matt Barkley had an off day, but did complete 18 of 28 passes for 174 yards and a touchdown. To cap it off for USC, the special teams wear great with a well executed fake punt, a kickoff return for a touchdown, and great kick coverage.
Telling Stat: Nowhere to run; The USC defense held UW star RB Chris Polk to 36 yards rushing, just one yard more than USC punter Kyle Negrete gained in the game.

California 23- Oregon State 6: The Golden Bears became bowl eligible and snapped a four-game losing streak to OSU with the win at AT&T Park. Cal RB Isi Sofele ran all over the Beavers, gaining 190 yards on 23 carries with a TD. Cal QB Zach Maynard overcame a shaky start to complete 13 of 19 passes for 128 yards and a TD. He also ran for another score. The Cal defense really controlled this game, holding the Beavers to just 27 yards rushing, and forced three turnovers. The Bear defense shutout OSU in the second half. Oh, and Cal managed to dominate this game despite racking up 15 penalties in the game. OSU QB Sean Mannion grew for 247 yards in a losing effort.
Telling Stat: Not as close as it seems; Cal had three TDs negated due to penalties. The score of this one could have been much more lopsided.

Colorado 48- Arizona 29: The Buffaloes got their first official Pac 12 win on a very windy day in Boulder. How windy? Try sustained 45 MPH winds with gusts up to 71 MPH during the game. That didn't stop both squads from throwing the ball though. CU QB Tyler Hansen completed 16 of 26 passes for 213 yards and a pair of TDs, while UofA QB Nick Foles completed 33 of 53 passes for 352 yards and 1 TD. However, this game was won on the ground as CU RB Rodney Stewart carried the ball 24 times for 181 yards and 3 TDs. The CU defense held the Wildcats to just 60 yards rushing total as a team and forced 4 turnovers make the victory possible.
Telling Stat: Wind-aided offenses; CU and UofA combined for 912 yards of offense and 50 first downs while running off 162 total plays.

Utah 31- UCLA 3: Up in Salt Lake City there was plenty of white stuff on the ground, a guy named White in the Utah backfield, and in the end, it was UCLA waving the white flag after being smacked around by the Utes. Utah RB John White IV gashed the bRuin defense for 167 yards rushing on 33 carries and 2 TDs. He also caught a TD pass to aid the Utah cause. As for UCLA, QB Kevin Prince was contained by the Ute defense all day and threw a pick-six that sealed the game for Utah midway through the fourth quarter. With the win, the Utes have climbed bad into the Pac 12 South race.
Telling Stat: Off to a bad start; UCLA punted four times, made one field goal and missed another in their six first half drives.

Washington State 37- Arizona State 27: The story wasn't the mix of rain and snow in the cold Pullman night. The story of this game was the freshman that lit up the Sun Devils. Freshman WSU QB Connor Halliday completed 27 of 36 passes for 494 yards and 4 TDs without an interception to lead Wazzu to victory. His favorite target was WR Marquess Wilson who caught eight passes for 223 yards and three TDs. Meanwhile, the Wazzu defense managed to keep the potent ASU offense corralled just enough for the win despite ASU having prime starting field position for most of the game due to Wazzu's lack of a healthy placekicker. As for ASU, QB Brock Osweiler completed 28 of 44 passes for 351 yards and a touchdown on the night.
Telling Stat: A grand fourth; Wazzu owned the fourth quarter, outscoring the Sun Devils 14-0 to get the win.

Oregon 53- Stanford 30: This was the big game of the year in the Pac 12. Heck, Even College Gameday showed up in Palo Alto for the first time ever, and the Cardinal self-destructed. They committed 5 turnovers, dropped numerous passes and just couldn't get used to Oregon's speed. The Ducks were in control of this game from the start. Despite converting on only 1 of 9 third downs, they still managed to put up 53 points on the Cardinal. UO RB LaMichael James ran for 146 yards and 3 TDs on the vaunted Cardinal defense. SU QB Andrew Luck threw for 256 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 interceptions in the loss.
Telling Stat: Stats don't matter; SU held the edge over UO in almost every offensive category and lost by 23 points.

Observations

...A note for Nick; UofA QB Nick Foles needs to watch himself in these next two games, avoid injury and then concentrate on the combine.

...Road weary; ASU is a Jekyll and Hyde team. 5-0 at home, 1-4 on the road.

...And then there was one; New Mexico RB Demarcus Rogers crossed the double stripe from one-yard out with 1:15 left to give the Lobos their fist win of the year, a 21-14 decision over UNLV. That leaves just Florida Atlantic as the only winless team in the FBS.

...Pac 12 nightmare scenario; It is possible that UCLA could make it to the Pac 12 championship game with a 5-7 record. Thanks, NCAA.

...Bowling Teams; As of this week, there are 53 bowl eligible teams for this year's 70 bowl slots.

...Truly poor kicks; Boise State's missed field goals v. Nevada last year and TCU this year will end up costing the school over 20 million dollars in bowl money. Ouch.

...Head scratcher; Just how did Texas Tech beat Oklahoma this year? That has to be the strangest upset of the season.

...Waiting in the wings; If Arkansas can get by Missisippi State this week, they will get a shot at LSU with a possible National Title shot on the table. Wooo Pig!! Sooiiiee!!

...Throw for almost 500 yards, get a start; Wazzu QB Connor Halliday threw for 494 yards and 4 TDs coming off the bench v. ASUlast week. Now, he'll get to start v. Utah this week. Makes sense.

...Rivalry stat to consider; Cal has won 7 of their last 9 v. Stanford. It could be a tight battle for The Axe this week.

...Finishing strong; I think UofA Qb Nick Foles will torch the ASU secondary this week.

Looking around the BCS conference races...

ACC: Clemson and VaTech look to be headed for the conference title game. Clemson spanked VaTech earlier in the year at VaTech, 23-3.

Big 12: There's no title game here. Okie State control it's fate. They win out, they have a shot to play for it all.

Big East: It's Cincinnati in control here. The Bearcats need to win out to win the league. if they lose one, West Virginia will most likely claim the crown.

Big Ten: Michigan State and Penn State still ride atop the divisions, but a loss by each would throw the league into tie-breaker chaos.

Pac 12: Oregon is all but in as the host of the inaugural Pac 12 title tilt, but the South division is a mess. USC's ineligibility could mean a sub .500 team could play for the league title. What a mess.

SEC: A win by Georgia over Kentucky this week and the Bulldogs will be SEC East champs. A loss will give South Carolina the nod. If the Hogs beat Miss St. this week, their tilt at LSU will be for the SEC West title.

Until next week folks, remember that the key to a great Tampa 2 defensive scheme is athletic, quick linebackers.

-The Commissioner

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Week 10

Hey all,

Here's the column you love to read on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 42- Colorado 17: The Trojans found themselves coming off two emotionally draining games and physically banged up as they took the field at Colorado. The hapless Buffaloes were just what USC needed to get back on track. USC QB Matt Barkley hit on 25 of 39 passes for 318 yards and 6 TDs to lead the offense. His 6 TD passes are a new Trojan single-game record. As for USC's rushing game, RBs Amir Carlisle and DJ Morgan combined to rush for 177 yards. As for the Buffaloes, QB Tyler Hansen threw for 20 yards and a pair of TDs in a losing effort. USC's defense did a good job stopping the CU offense despite starting four freshmen.
Telling Stat: Big Hands; USC blocked two more kicks in this game. That gives them 6 blocked kicks for the season.

California 30- Washington State 7: It was an ugly game on a drizzly day at AT&T Park. The Golden Bears used a strong rushing game and a stingy defense to corral the Cougars. Cal RB Isi Sofele ran for 138 yards an 23 carries and a touchdown to lead Cal offense. Bear QB Zach Maynard didn't throw any interceptions and did throw for 118 yards and a touchdown before being knocked out of the game in the third quarter. By that time though, Cal had built up a 30-0 lead and just cruised the rest of the way. As for the Cougars, they couldn't muster much offense, only gaining 224 total yards and converting on just 4 of 16 third downs.
Telling Stat: 1st half misery; AS the Cal offense built up a 23-0 lead, the Cal defense made life miserable for WSU in the first half. They allowed only 55 yards of offense, forced six punts and held for downs once in the Cougs seven first half drives.

Utah 34- Arizona 17: The Utes got another 100 yard game from RB John White IV to help pick up their second Pac 12 win. White ambled for 109 yards on 27 carries with 2 TDs. However, the big story was Ute QB Jon Hays, who seems to have finally gotten it together. He completed 12 of 21 passes for 199 yards, 2 TDs, and no interceptions. He looked better than he has all year running the Ute offense. Meanwhile, UofA QB Nick Foles threw for 326 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 interceptions in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: They bent but didn't break; Utah's defense gave up 201 yards on 23 plays in the fourth quarter, but allowed only a lone TD while forcing two turnovers to get out of Tucson with a win.

Stanford 38- Oregon State 13: The Cardinal looked a little sluggish in the first 30+ minutes of this game, but shutout the Beavers 21-0 in the last 27 minutes to remain undefeated. However, for a sluggish looking team, the Cardinal offense still put up 507 yards of offense and racked up 31 first downs. SU QB Andrew Luck was his efficient self, completing 20 of 30 passes for 206 yards and 3 TDs. The Stanford defense returned to its' stingy ways, holding the Beavers to just 33 yards rushing on 17 carries. OSU QB Sean Mannion threw for 252 yards and a TD in the loss.
Telling Stat: They played keep away; Stanford used a committee of running backs to rack up 300 yards rushing on 48 carries and control the ball for 40:20 T.O.P.

Oregon 34- Washington 17: It was the last game at Husky Stadium before the place gets renovated and the Ducks spoiled the party. As usual the Webfoots played their up-tempo style and held a 17-10 halftime lead over UW despite just having the ball for a little over seven minutes in the half. Then, the Duck defense shutout the Dawgs the rest of the way and victory was theirs. Duck RB LaMichael James ran for 156 yards and a score, while QB Darron Thomas threw for 169 yards and a TD of his own. As for Washington, QB Keith Price threw for 143 yards and 2 TDs, but also threw two interceptions.
Telling Stat: Quick strikes; Oregon had the ball for 13 drives, only four of those went longer than 5 plays.

UCLA 29- Arizona State 28: UCLA QB Kevin Prince had another good day running the bRuins offense to lead his team to a big upset of the Sun Devils. Prince completed 11 of 17 passes for 196 yards and a TD, while backfield mate, RB Derrick Coleman carried the ball 17 times for 119 yards and 2 TDs. The bRuins ran up 416 yards of offense on ASU's vaunted defense. UCLA had the ASU defense back on its' heels all-night. That's what made this upset happen. As for the Sun Devils offense, QB Brock Osweiler completed 22 of 38 passes for 264 yards and 2 TDs. RB Cameron Marshall ran for 168 yards and a TD to help the ASU cause.
Telling Stat: 0 for 3; ASU PK Alex Garoutte missed three field goal attempts, the last coming on the final play of the game.

Observations

...And there are still two; Florida Atlantic and New Mexico are still the only winless teams in the FBS. This is a recording.

...No remtaches; Sorry, Alabama. You had your shot, you're out. Time for another undefeated to take a crack at #2.

...A rare feat; Now that they've joined the Big 10 this will happen a lot more often, but Northwestern gets to claim that they are the first Big Ten team to win at Nebraska since 1981. The Wildcats looked impressive in their 28-25 upset of the Cornhuskers.

...Back from the dead? We'll see if UCLA can keep their momentum going up at Utah this week.

...Lose to Kentucky, lose your job; Well, losing to Kentucky was the last straw for the administration at Ole Miss. HC Houston Nutt will resign, (be fired), at the end of the season. The loss was the Rebels' 12th straight in SEC play.

...Timing; Does anyone else but me find it a bit strange that the findings of the Penn State case broke just after Joe Paterno got win 409 to pass Eddie Robinson?

...Not for kicks; How could Alabama not have a good placekicker?

...Bronco hopes; Boise's last big hurdle to stay undefeated lies in front of them this week as they host TCU. This is a what could have been moment for the Mountain West Conference.

...Not a word; Nebraska(7-2) plays at Penn State (8-1) this week and I haven't heard word one about this game. Just sad.

...Giving snow quarter; TCU took a 31-20 lead over Wyoming early in the fourth quarter as a snowstorm hit the field in Laramie. The storm won the fourth quarter. Both teams went scoreless with two turnovers in the final 14:46.

...Could happen; Stanford could hold the ball for over 40 minutes, dominate the line of scrimmage and lose to Oregon, 45-42. It's amazing what speed can do.

...Bowl Eligibility; 44 teams are bowl eligible as of this week. There are 70 bowl slots this year and the WAC is the only conference without a bowl eligible team.

...Just a rumor; There is no truth to the rumor that the Pac 12 asked the Big 12 last week if they want to take Colorado back.

...Quietly making noise; It's funny how a guy can rush for almost 1,200 yards without many people knowing about it. SDSU RB Ronnie Hillman has rushed for 1198 yards so far and looks on pace to surpass his 2010 rushing total of 1,532 yards. He's a talented kid, and he's just a sophomore.

...A short word about Penn State; The situation at PSU is so beyond the pale that I, like others, am having trouble just understanding how something so bad could have happened. I just hope that the victims are not swept aside in this matter. Because they are the real story here. Their pain and how they were hurt is what matters, not what will happen to Joe Paterno.

Until next week folks, remember that special teams are important. Just ask Alabama.
-The Commissioner

Monday, October 31, 2011

Week 9

Hey all,

Here's that column you love to read on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

Stanford 56- USC 48 3OT: The undefeated Stanford Cardinal came into the Coliseum for a big, big game with the Trojans. The game was a big one with, epic momentum shifts, controversial plays, and blown calls that all contributed to this being one of the best games of the college season. When it was done, after SU QB Andrew Luck threw for 330 yards and ran for another score and after USC QB Matt Barkley threw for 284 yards and 3 TDs of his own, the game ended on a fumble. USC RB Curtis McNeal had a great day, rushing for 145 yards on 20 carries with 2 TDs, but he fumbled the ball into the end zone in the third overtime and the Cardinal came away with the ball and the win.
Telling Stat: 111; In their last two trips to the Coliseum, Stanford has scored 55 and 56 points respectively. Those are two highest total ever allowed by USC in a single game.

Utah 27- Oregon State 8: It's a couple of months too late for Utah fans, but the Utes did finally get their first Pac 12 victory last week. The Utes had a dominant second quarter in which they outscored the Beavers 21-0 to pull away for the win. Utah RB John White IV was his team's workhorse, carrying the ball 35 times for 205 yards and 2 TDs. The Utah defense did its' part by shutting down the Beavers. They forced 4 OSU turnovers and held them to just 32 yards rushing on 26 carries.
Telling Stat: Just enough air; Utah completed only 6 of 14 passes for 62 yards in their win over OSU. However, two of those completions went for touchdowns.

Arizona State 48- Colorado 14: Before most of the Sun Devil faithful had a chance to sit down, QB Brock Osweiler had already put ASU up, 7-0 with a 25-yard TD pass. After one quarter of play, ASU led 21-0, and the rout was on. Osweiler would finish 18 of 28 for 307 yards and 2 TDs, while RB Cameron Marshall gained 114 yards on 15 carries with 3 TDs. As has been the norm for CU this year, they put up a bunch of yards, but killed themselves with turnovers (5) and plenty of missed assignments on defense. The loss was the Buffaloes 22nd straight on the road.
Telling Stat: When T.O.P means nothing; CU held the ball for almost 34 minutes, yet lost by 34 points.

Washington 42- Arizona 31: Up in Seattle, the crowd at Husky Stadium was treated to the Chris Polk show. Polk became the only player in UW history to go over 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game. The RB from Redlnads, CA finished the night with 144 yards rushing and 100 yards receiving. He also scored 5 of his team's 6 TDs. None of those was more important than his jaunt from two yards out with 3:59 left that sealed the victory for the Dawgs. As for the Wildcats, QB Nick Foles did throw for 388 yards and 2 TDs in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: They couldn't shoot straight; UW QB Keith Price and UofA QB Nick Foles each threw three interceptions in this wild affair.

UCLA 31- California 14: The bRuins came into this game still stinging after being embarrassed last week by Arizona. CAL came into this game riding high after whipping Utah last week. So, naturally UCLA came out and smacked the Golden Bears. What? Huh? Yeah, they did it playing strong defense and getting a good effort out of QB Kevin Prince. Prince only completed 9 out of 18 passes for 92 yards, but it was his 163 yards rushing on 19 carries that kept the CAL defense off balance all afternoon. RB Derrick Coleman also had a big day for the bRuins, gaining 80 yards on 16 carries with 3 TDs. UCLA's defense got into the act too by forcing 5 Golden Bear turnovers.
Telling Stat: 4 for 7 ain't bad; UCLA forced CAL to turn the ball over on four of their seven second half possessions to help secure a victory.

Oregon 43- Washington State 28: The Ducks led this one just 15-10 at the half. They hadn't raced out to one of their usual early big leads. One reason for this was that Duck QB Darron Thomas had thrown two first half interceptions. So, UO HC Chip Kelly benched him in favor of backup QB Brian Bennett who went and threw for 2 TDs and no interceptions in the second half to lead the Ducks to victory. The Cougars gave the Duck defense all they could handle, gaining 462 yards and holding the ball for over 40 minutes, but just couldn't get out of their own way. The Cougars gave up an interception return, blocked punt return, and a kickoff return for touchdowns.
Telling Stat: They just didn't need the ball; With scoring TDs on three types of returns, UO's offense only ran 48 plays on offense in the game, yet score 43 points.

Observations

...A scenario to ponder; Many folks down south are arguing that the loser of the LSU-Alabama game should get a rematch in the BCS title game. However, two teams could be out there with a slightly better record and stronger arguments. Penn State and Oregon could each finish as 12-1 conference champs. Oregon's only loss would be to LSU and Penn State's only loss would be to Alabama. Wouldn't those two schools have a legit argument for a title game shot?

...And then there were still two; Florida Atlantic and New Mexico are still the only two winless schools in the FBS. The sad thing is that the Lobos are giving up and average of 46.8 points per game and they haven't played Boise State yet.

...Some Pueblo; A great feel good story belongs to the Colorado State- Pueblo Thunderwolves. In 2008, CSUP started playing football again for first time since 1984. In just four short seasons the Thunderwolves are now the #4 ranked team in Division II. It's neat to see a program come back in this age of contraction.

...The Pac 12 is a joke- Part I; USC HC Lane Kiffin got fined 10,000 big ones by the league for his comments about the poor level of officiating in USC's loss to Stanford last week. It must be awful to be fined for being right.

...A big one for Bucky; Rumor has it that Wisconsin is petitioning the NCAA cut all football games down to just 59 minutes in length.

...College Park blues; In 2011, Maryland has a new HC in Randy Edsall, new fancy/ugly uniforms, and they stink at 2-6. In 2010, they had HC Ralph Friedgen (2010 ACC Coach of the Year), not so fancy/ugly uniforms, and went 9-4. Hmmmmmm.

...The Pac 12 is a joke- Part II; For USC's TJ McDonald to get suspended for doing what safeties have done for the last 50+ years is just plain stupid.

...Hmmm stat; Houston QB Case Keenum has thrown 32 TD passes so far this season. New Mexico has scored 13 TDs total this year as a team.

...A sad saga; The demise of the Big East is taking on a sadly epic tone. You think they can get Edward Gibbon to record the decline and fall?

...Quietly making noise; Wyoming is 5-2 and tied for second place in the Mountain West Conference. Yeah, they have some tough games coming up, but they are only a win away from qualifying for just their third bowl game in the last 18 years.

...Early, early report; There will be 35 bowl games this year. That means 70 teams are needed to fill those games. Right now, nine weeks into the season, there are 32 bowl eligible teams.

...Balloon Mortgage schedule; Kansas State's getting smacked by Oklahoma, 59-14 was just one payment on their back loaded schedule. The Wildcats will take on Okie State, TAMU, and Texas in the next three weeks.

Until next week folks, remember that in Cover-2 the corners have to funnel their receivers into the middle of the field.

-The Commissioner


Sunday, October 23, 2011

Week 8

Hey All,

It's time for that column you love to read on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. In honor of his great columns after every USC-ND clash, we miss you, Jim Murray.

Summaries

USC 31- Notre Dame 17: ND moved this game to prime time, handed out 80,000 rally towels, and brought in great names from the past to inspire the squad in a game that was supposed to be ND's big step back into relevancy. Then, USC came in and physically dominated for four full quarters. USC's much maligned O-line paved the way for 219 rushing yards and didn't allow a sack of QB Matt Barkley who completed 24 of 35 passes for 224 yards and 3 TDs. Pint-sized RB Curtis McNeal rushed 24 times for 118 yards. He carried the ball the final 10 plays of the game to kill the clock and secure the Trojans' fifth straight win at ND and USC's ninth win their last 10 games v. ND. As for the Trojan defense, they bottled up the Irish all night long and forced three turnovers, which included an 80-yard TD return of Irish QB Dayne Crist's fumble by CB Jawanza Starling that put USC ahead to stay late in the third quarter. The win by USC ended any hope of ND making a BCS bowl.
Telling Stat: A balanced win; USC's ability to run the ball led to a total offense split of 224 yards passing and 219 yards rushing and a time of possession edge of almost 20 minutes.

California 34- Utah 10: Well, Utah dove back into Pac 12 play and lost yet again. This time the Golden Bears worked over the Utes at AT&T Park. CAL QB Zach Maynard completed 19 of 29 passes for 255 yards and a TD. He also ran for another score. As for CAL's running game, RB Isi Sofele gained 84 yards on 26 carries and scored a TD of his own. The Golden Bears controlled this game from the start as their defense forced four Utah turnovers and held the Utes to just 13 yards on the ground and 178 total. The defense also put a bow on this win early in the fourth quarter when DB Josh Hill returned an interception 32 yards for a TD. That return put Cal up 34-0 and the parties began in Berkeley.
Telling Stat: A weak 178; the last 64 of Utah's 178 total yards came on their final drive of the game after Cal had emptied their bench.

Oregon 45- Colorado 2: This had to be the most boring game of the weekend as the Ducks made quick work of the Buffaloes. Behind two Kenjon Barner TD runs, and two TD passes from QB Bryan Bennett, the Ducks were up 29-0 after one quarter of play. The Webfoots then put the game on cruise control and built up a 45-0 lead at the end of three quarters of play. Barner led all Duck RBs with 115 yards on 10 carries and those two TDs. As for Colorado, the Buffs offense only crossed the 50-yard line twice and never mounted a serious scoring threat.
Telling Stat: 350/231; The Ducks ran up 350 yards of offense in the first quarter of this mismatch, while Colorado gained 231 yards total in the game.

Arizona 48- UCLA 12: With HC Mike Stoops fired, and UofA looking pretty bad after losing to Oregon State two weeks ago, it looked like this game might be close. Yeah, right. UofA QB Nick Foles came out and torched the bRuin defense for three first half TDs. Wildcat RB Taimi Tutogi ran for two TDs in the first half and that helped UofA end this game early with a 42-7 halftime lead. However, those performances were lost in the shuffle of a bench-clearing brawl just before the intermission. The fight started about 50 yards away from where a streaker, originally dressed as a referee, disrupted the game. The fight spread all over the field. When it was all over, one player from each squad was ejected and a day later 10 players total on both sides were suspended for at least one game and one player from UCLA, DT Cassius Marsh got a two game suspension.
Telling Stat: No O= a battered D; UCLA's lack of offense left their defense hanging. The bRuin defense gave up 573 yards, 32 first downs, and allowed UofA to convert 10 of 16 third downs.

Oregon State 44- Washington State 21: This was a back and forth affair for the first 25 minutes until the Beavers went on a 20-0 scoring run to pull away from the Cougars. Beaver QB Sean Mannion had his best game, completing 26 of 34 passes for 376 yards and 4 TDs. As for the Beaver defense, they forced 3 Wazzu turnovers and knocked out WSU QB Jeff Tuel right before the half. The Cougs could only muster seven second half points behind backup QB Marshall Lobbestael.
Telling Stat: They still won; OSU won despite committing 14 penalties for 120 yards.

Stanford 65- Washington 21: SU QB Andrew Luck completed 16 of 21 passes for 169 yards and 2 TDs, but it was the Stanford O-line that administered this beat down. Stanford's big uglies paved the way for seven backs to carry the ball 44 times for 446 yards on the ground. In fact, the Cardinal came seven yards shy of having three backs break the 100 yard mark in the game. RB Stepfan Taylor carried the ball 10 times for 138 yards and a TD, while fellow RB Tyler Gaffney carried the ball 9 times for 117 yards and a TD, and RB Anthony Wilkerson lugged the leather 14 times for 93 yards and 2 TDs. As for the Huskies, QB Keith Price did throw for 247 yards and a TD and RB Chris Polk rushed for 144 yards and 2 TDs.
Telling Stat: Strong Drives; Stanford's average scoring drive lasted just 6 plays and covered 61 yards.

Observations

...Hmmm Stat; with USC's 31-17 win over Notre Dame, OB Matt Barkley became just the third visiting quarterback to win two games at Notre Dame Stadium. The other two are USC's Matt Leinart who won at ND in 2003 and 2005, and Purdue's Len Dawson who won there in 1954 and 1956.

...And then there were two; Alabama-Birmingham got a 40-yard field goal by PK Ty Long with 21 seconds left to beat Central Florida, 26-24. The Blazers finally have a win in 2011. That leaves just Florida Atlantic and New Mexico as the only winless schools in the FBS.

...This just in; They are still celebrating MSU's Hail Mary pass in East Lansing.

...This seven ain't heaven; By losing their seventh game of 2011, Indiana, New Mexico, Colorado, and Florida Atlantic are the first schools to play their way into bowl ineligibility for 2011.

...Requiem for a Trojan; I like to think that somewhere Marv Goux is smiling. Goux will always be the standard by which all true Trojans are measured.

...Not an Oxford brain; Only Houston Nutt is stupid enough to run wide from his own end zone.

...Another one for Joe; Here's to Penn State HC Joe Paterno for tying Eddie Robinson for all-time wins by a Division I coach with 408 when his squad beat Northwestern, 34-24 last week. That puts JoePa only 73 wins behind the all-time record holder, John Gagliardi of D-III St John's (MN).

...After their beat down by Stanford, the Huskies must feel like they've been through the Iditarod.

...He got what?; Minnesota HC Jerry Kill had been working at Minnesota without a contract, just a memorandum agreement. He then starts out 1-6, and has been hospitalized twice with seizures. So, for that he gets a seven year deal at 1.1 million a year. Wow, if I had known that's all it would take to make me a millionaire I would have volunteered years ago to run some school's program into the ground.

...Some punishment; If you're a UCLA football player, I would think being suspended right now would be more like a vacation than a punishment.

...Definition of Desperate; The Big East keeps handing out invites to join their league like comped meals in Las Vegas. They just don't realize it's hard to get people to come over to your house when it's burning down.

...Flying tortilla time; Gotta love Texas Tech's upset of Oklahoma. I just feel sorry for the guys who have to clean up all the tortillas that were flung around Lubbock in celebration.

...A new leader; Here's a salute to Houston QB Case Keenum who broke the NCAA Career Total Offense record. At over 17,000 yards and still going, Keenum surpassed previous record holder Timmy Chang's total of 16,910 yards. Chang as you remember did his damage as Hawaii's Qb from 2000-2004.

...Pac 12 Commissioner's nightmare; After a dismal start and a fired HC, Arizona can still make it to the inaugural Pac 12 Championship Game. The Wildcats could win out and finish at 7-5 as Southern Division Champs.

...A gauntlet; Penn State looks good at 7-1 atop the Big Ten Leaders division. They're only loss is to Alabama, but they have a tough month ahead. The Blue and White's last four games are at home v. Illinois and Nebraska, then two on the road at Thee OSU and Wisconsin. That's tough.

...Not OK at KU; The Kansas Jayhawks have been just awful the last two years. Do you think they miss the days, not so long ago, when they were nicknamed the Fighting Mangino's?

Until next week folks, remember that most bubble screens are thrown to the boundary side of the field because the defense usually over rotates coverage to the wide side.

-The Commissioner



Sunday, October 16, 2011

Week 7

Hey All,

It's time for that column that makes Tuesday's fun, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

USC 30 -California 9: The Game was played in San Francisco in a baseball park and USC was the team that hit the home runs. The much maligned Trojan defense forced five Cal turnovers while the Trojan offense sputtered, but did put up 30 points. USC QB Matt Barkley completed 19 of 35 passes for 195 yards and 2 TDs while RB Curtis McNeal lugged the leather 17 times for 86 yards and a TD of his own. Cal QB Zach Maynard was intercepted three times by the USC defense wit two of those coming deep in Cal territory.
Telling Stat: A great 8; USC's win was their 8th straight over the Golden Bears. That's three short of USC's record of 11 straight wins in the series from 1959-69.

Utah 26- Pittsburgh 14: After getting slapped around by their new friends in the Pac 12, the Utes went out of conference to Pitt and did the slapping for a change. Utah revived their rushing game behind 171 yards on 36 carries from RB John White IV, while Ute QB Jon Hayes threw for 127 yards and a TD. However, it was PK Coleman Petersen who was the offensive star. At Heinz Field, which is known for its' tricky winds, Petersen made all four field goal attempts to lead his team to victory. The Ute defense did a great job too. They held the Panthers to 120 total yards. DB Derrick Shelby sealed the game for Utah when he returned an interception 21 yards for a touchdown.
Telling Stat: Zero; Utah's defense shutout Pitt's offense. Pitt's two touchdowns came on a blocked punt return and a kickoff return.

Washington 52- Colorado 24: The Buffaloes Pac 12 nightmare just won't end. The boys from Boulder were whipped by the Huskies. UW QB Keith Price connected on 21 of 28 passes for 257 yards and 4 TDs. The Huskies ran well too. They ran for 295 yards as a team with RB leading all rushers with 117 yards on 18 carries. The Huskies got off to a fast start and held a 38-10 halftime lead before letting everyone play in the second half.
Telling Stat: CU Couldn't get off the field; The Huskies didn't face too many third downs, but when they did they converted 8 out of 10. That's 80% for the non-math majors out there.

Stanford 44- Washington State 14: The Cougars came out strong in the first half. They hit the Cardinal hard, forced turnovers and even knocked a couple Cardinal players out of the game. They trailed 10-7 at half and were confident. Then Stanford came out and declawed the Cougars, scoring 34 second half points to stay undefeated. SU QB Andrew Luck completed 23 of 36 passes for 336 yards and 4 TDs. The Stanford defense played another strong game, holding WSU to just 48 yards rushing and just 5 of 15 on third downs.
Telling Stat: It ain't just Luck; The Stanford defense held Wazzu scoreless in there third quarter. In fact, the Stanford defense has only given up only six points all year in the third quarter.

BYU 38- Oregon State 28: Three weeks ago, BYU QB Jake Heaps was replaced by his backup Riley Nelson. Heaps may never get his job back after Nelson led BYU to their third straight win. All Nelson did was complete 17 of 27 aerials for 217 yards and 3 TDs. He also led all BYU rushers with 87 yards on 12 carries. Nelson's main target was WR Cody Hoffman who caught nine passes for 162 yards and touchdown. As for the Beavers, QB Sean Mannion threw for 306 yards and a TD, but also threw two interceptions. BYU's defense choked off OSU's rushing game, holding the Beavers to just 59 yards on 23 carries.
Telling Stat: No aerial circus; Usually pass-happy BYU attempted only 29 passes, but ran the ball 48 times for 282 yards v. OSU.

Oregon 41- Arizona State 27: In a preview of what could be the first Pac 12 Championship Game, Oregon got a big boost from a backup QB to hold off the Sun Devils, in Eugene. After starting QB Darron Thomas was knocked out of the game in the third quarter, Freshman Bryan
Bennett came in and calmly led the Ducks on scoring drives of 68 and 88 yards. UO took control of the game with those two TDs and never looked back. The Ducks ran up 536 yards of offense on ASU, with 327 of those coming on the ground. As for ASU, QB Brock Osweiler threw for 291 yads and a pair of TDs, while RB Cameron Marshall ran for 97 yards and a score of his own.
Telling Stat: Just that fast; Oregon went from trailing 24-21 to in control of the game up 35-24 in a four minute span in the third quarter.

Observations

...Fickle Cougars; BYU made a big deal a little while back about how great they would be as an independent team. They spun the issue endlessly extolling the virtues of the independent life. So why are they now considering an invitation from the Big XII?

...Hmmmm Stat; In 39 of the last 42 games between Michigan State and Michigan, the winning team has been the team that has rushed for the most yards in the contest.

...The fact that the NCAA acquitted Auburn of all charges so quickly shows just how agenda driven and corrupt the NCAA has become. The NCAA's agenda was to find Auburn not guilty, so they did so, quickly. It looks like USC will hold the record for longest NCAA investigation ever.

...And then there are still three; Alabama-Birmingham, New Mexico, and Florida Atlantic are all still winless. However, UAB will play FAU in a few weeks, so there will only be two teams soon.

...Glasses strikes again; ASU fans will have Pac 12 ref Jay Stricherz and his crew on their hate lists for quite some time after his crew blew a key third quarter fumble call in the ASU-Oregon game. Silly me, I thought the Pac 12 supposedly upgraded their officiating this season.

...Great name department; Illinois has a DL named Whitney Mercilus. (Merciless).

...Why not the Badgers? Wisconsin's schedule is weak enough to make the SEC proud.

...Ifs and buts; Utah would be undefeated if they didn't have to play those annoying conference games.

...Shotgun wedding; The football only merger of the Mountain West Conference and Conference USA has disaster written all over it. I just don't see Hawaii making a seven time zone trip to play at East Carolina.

...Not easy in the Big Easy; Buffet Bob Toledo has resigned as HC at Tulane. He was just 13-35 in four plus seasons there.

...Uglier than their uniforms; Oregon plays at Colorado this week. The spread is 32 points and that was the number before CU announced that their top LB and RB will miss the game due to injuries. Oh, and the Ducks aren't known for backing off with a big lead. The Webfoots might put up 80 on the Buffs.

...New Uniforms; It seems that almost everyone is sporting new uniforms this season. I have just one request. Can the teams stick to their school colors? Since when does gold figure into Michigan State's colors or black into Arizona State's scheme?

...Price is right; QB Keith Price has been great so far for Washington. He's completed 69.4% of his passes with 21 TDs and just 4 interceptions. He's quickly made Husky fans forget about Jake Locker and could make a lot of fans remember his name throughout the conference with a big game at Stanford this week.

Until Next week folks, remember that it takes more new uniforms to win games.
-The Commissioner

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Week 6

Hey All,

Here's that column you love to read, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

Stanford 48- Colorado 7: A glorified scrimmage was held up in Palo Alto last weekend. The Cardinal came out, stretched, broke a sweat and calmly smashed the Buffaloes. Colts future first round draft choice Andrew Luck completed 26 of 33 tosses for 370 yards and 3 TDs. Luck completed passes to 11 different receivers on the afternoon. SU RBs Tyler Gaffney, Stepfan Taylor and Jeremy Stewart each ran for a TD as the Cardinal used a committee of backs in the game. As for Colorado, QB Tyler Hansen threw for 202 yards and his team's only score in the losing effort. The loss was CU's 21st straight road defeat.
Telling Stat: one and done; after allowing CU's lone touchdown, the Cardinal defense held the Buffs to 146 total yards, 7 first downs, and zero points for the remaining 42:54 of the game.

UCLA 28- Washington State 25: The Cougars did everything right except win this game at the Rose Bowl. The stats are staggering. Wazzu outagained UCLA 389- 371. They racked up 28 first downs to UCLA's 15 and held the ball for 13 minutes more than the bRuins, yet lost. Why? They couldn't score TDs in the Red Zone. WSU's miscues and a tough UCLA Red Zone defense forced the Cougs to kick three first half field goals and that was the difference in the game. UCLA seemed doomed for defeat when QB Richard Brehaut was lost for the season with a broken leg in the first half. However, much-maligned QB Kevin Prince came off the bench and threw two fourth quarter TD passes to lead UCLA to the win. UCLA RB Johnathan Franklin led all rushers with 110 yards on 12 carries.
Telling Stat: 3s are not 7s; Wazzu left 12 points on the field in the first half and it cost them the game.

Oregon State 37- Arizona 27: The Beavers raced out to an early 27-6 lead up in Corvalis, then held on for dear life as they weathered the storm of another big passing day by UofA QB Nick Foles. The Beavers were up 14-0 on the Wildcats in the second quarter behind a 1-yard TD run by RB Jovan Stevenson and a blocked punt return by DB Clayton York. In the middle of third quarter, down 30-6, the Wildcats woke up. RB Keola Antolin scored on a run from 13-yards out, then eight seconds later, DB Shaquille Richardson intercepted OSU QB Sean Mannion's pass and returned it 28-yards for a score. The Wildcats were now down only 10 with a quarter to play. UofA pulled within three at 30-27 early in the fourth quarter when RB Ka'Deem Carey crossed the double stripe from one yard out. However, the Beavers put the game away when Mannion found TE Joe Halahuni in the end zone for a two-yard TD pass on fourth and goal with 5:22 to play. Mannion threw for 267 yards and 2 TDs in the Beavers first win of 2011. Foles threw for 378 yards, a TD and 2 interceptions in the loss.
Telling Stat: Digging an early hole; In their five losses this season, Arizona has been outscored 55-3 in the first quarter.

Oregon 43- California 15: For the first 30 minutes up in Eugene, the Golden Bears stuck it to Oregon. Their defense smacked any Duck who got his hands on the ball and their offense built a 15-14 halftime lead. Then, the Webfoots game out and lowered the boom on Cal in the second half. The Duck offense exploded scoring 29 unanswered points to turn this game into a laugher. UO QB Darron Thomas threw for 198 yards and 3 TDs with all three of his TD throws coming in the second half. Duck RB LaMichael James ran for 239 yards and a TD of his own, but left the game in the fourth quarter with a dislocated elbow. As for the Golden Bears, QBs Zach Maynard and Allan Bridgford combined for 321 yards and 1 TD in the loss.
Telling Stat: 4 for 4; The Ducks scored four TDs on their first four second half drives to turn this game into a blowout.

Arizona State 35- Utah 14: Utah played a strong first half against the Sun Devils, but ASU's hard-hitting defense asserted themselves in the second half, forcing three third quarter turnovers that QB Brock Osweiler and the ASU offense were all too ready to take advantage of. Oswelier threw for 2 TDs and a 2-point conversion as part of ASU's 25 point second half. Osweiler would throw for 325 yards and 3 TDs total in the win. Utah QB Jon Hays completed 18 of 30 passes for 199 yards and a TD, but also threw three big interceptions.
Telling Stat: Bad hands team; In their three Pac 12 losses, Utah has turned the ball over 11 times.

Notre Dame 59- Air Force 33: Once again, the Fighting Irish didn't commit any turnovers and once again they came away with a blowout win. QB Tommy Rees completed 23 of 32 passes for 261 yards and 3 TDs while a committee of ND running backs combined for 266 yards rushing and 4 TDs on the ground. ND dominated for the first three plus quarters, building up a 59-19 lead before emptying the benches and giving up a couple of garbage time scores.
Telling Stat: In balance again; For the second straight week, the ND offense showed great balance, rushing for 266 yards and passing for 294.

Observations

...Growing pains; Wazzu's red zone failures at UCLA will stick with the Cougs for awhile.

...Yeah, it had to be a kicker; LSU became the first victim of the new taunting rule when punter Brad Wing showboated on about the five-yard line on his way to the end zone on a fake punt v. Florida. The Tigers TD was taken off the board by the penalty and LSU only got a field goal out of the drive. Doh!

...Undefeated and under the radar; Houston is 6-0 and nobody knows or cares. They're being treated worse than Boise State.

...And then there were three; There are only three winless teams left in FBS football. Oregon State, Miami of Ohio, and Western Kentucky all got off the list with wins last week. The final three winless teams are Alabama-Birmingham out of C-USA, Florida Atlantic out of the Sun Belt, and New Mexico out of the Mountain West conference.

...Quietly making noise; Kansas State has HC Bill Snyder back and they are 5-0. Back-to-Back games with Oklahoma and Oklahoma State in a couple of weeks will let us all know if the 'Cats are back all the way.

...Hmmm Stat; On October 1st, USC WR Robert Woods caught 14 passes for 255 yards v. Arizona. Army has completed 13 passes for 205 yards for the season.

...Coaching casualty; Arizona has fired HC Bob Stoops. I'll miss his sideline antics.

...Weird sight; I don't know about anybody else, but watching Thee Ohio State play a conference game at Nebraska was just weird.

...Left at the altar; TCU left the Big East standing in the church to go elope with the Big XII. However, the Big East will be fighting to keep TCU's five million dollar dowry.

...Strange stat; Iowa is 2-2 in their last four trips to Penn State despite only scoring 36 total points in those four games.

...This wasn't in the brochure; Colorado and Utah are a combined 0-6 in Pac 12 play since joining the league.

...Keeping it blue; Nevada whipped UNLV 37-0. It was Nevada's seventh straight win over the Rebels. The Wolfpack won't have to pack up that 1,100 pound cannon after all.

...Have your sun glasses at the ready; Clemson plays at Maryland this week. The uniform clash could hurt your eyes.

...Never saw the Iceberg; The Big East is sinking fast. They've lost three teams already, gonna lose some more, and are frantically trying to add members every day. Their efforts look to me like something akin to rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

...Finally gone; I see South Carolina finally dismissed QB Stephen Garcia from the team after testing positive for alcohol and marijuana. What took so long? He had already been suspended from the team on five other occasions. Maybe it was the fact that Garcia was bumped from the starting lineup by sophomore QB Connor Shaw. Funny, how he finally became not expendable anymore when he wasn't the starting QB.

Until next week folks, remember that you need touchdowns in the red zone, not field goals.
-The Commissioner

Monday, October 3, 2011

Week 5

Hey All,

It's time for that Column you dig on Tuesdays, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries:

USC 48- Arizona 41: The Trojan defense came out and kept UofA off the scoreboard in first quarter and that proved to be huge in this shootout at the Coliseum. USC ran out to a 17-0 first quarter lead behind two TD passes from Matt Barkley and a 46-yard field goal from PK Andre Heidari. USC DB TJ McDonald picked off UofA QB Nick Foles twice in the first quarter. The USC defense would not be heard from again. Neither would the Arizona defense as the schools would combine for 1136 yards of offense and 89 points. Foles went on to complete 41 of 53 passes for 425 yards and 4 TDs in a losing effort. Meanwhile, USC QB Matt Barkley set a new USC record with 468 yards passing. He also threw for 4 TDs as well. The two main recipients of Barkley's passes were WRs Robert Woods and Marqise Lee. Woods had 14 receptions for 255 yards and 2 TDs. Lee had 8 catches for 144 yards and a touchdown.
Telling Stat: TJ's 3= W for SC; TJ McDonald had two interceptions and recovered UofA's onside kick attempt with 1:00 to play. Those three plays were the difference in the game.

Washington 31- Utah 7: The Utes fumbled the opening kickoff in this one and the game went downhill from there for the boys from the Great Salt Lake. Even though the Utes only trailed at the half, 10-7, they would be without QB Jordan Wynn who was knocked out for the rest of the game with an injury to his non-throwing shoulder. That left QB Jon Hays to run the Ute offense. Hays had only thrown one pass ever in am FBS game. The Husky defense harried, hit, and harassed Hays for the whole second half, only giving up a TD pass with few seconds left in the game. As for the Husky offense, QB Keith Price continued his stellar play, hitting on 22 of 30 throws for 226 yards and 3 TDs. RB Chris Polk ran for 189 yards on 29 carries to balance out the Dawgs' attack.
Telling Stat: UW's fab 5; The Huskies forced five Utah turnovers to turn this game into a rout.

Arizona State 35- Oregon State 20: ASU's hangover after beating USC last week lasted a little over one quarter. By then, ASU trailed 13-0 and had committed three turnovers. Then, QB Brock Osweiler and the rest of his squad woke up, outscoring OSU 35-7 over the last three quarters to get the victory. Osweiler would finish the day with 258 yards and 2 TDs. RB Cameron Marshal only tallied 80 yards rushing for the Sun Devils, but did score 2 TDs. OSU QB Sean Mannion completed 40 of 66 passes for 341 yards and one TD. However, he also threw four interceptions that derailed some promising Beaver drives.
Telling Stat: They were off; ASU only ran for 109 yards, committed four turnovers, and converted only 1 of 10 third downs, yet they sell had enough to beat the hapless Beavers.

Stanford 45- UCLA 19: The Cardinal came out and basically beat up UCLA for a full 60 minutes up on The Farm. SU QB Andrew Luck had his way with the bRuin defense completing 23 of 27 passes for 227 yards and 3 TDs, while RB Stepfan Taylor rushed 17 times for 112 yards and 2 TDs. The Stanford defense contained UCLA at almost every turn, laying punishing hits on any bRuin that touched the ball. A bright spot for UCLA was QB Richard Brehaut who completed 18 of 33 tosses for 202 yards and 2 TDs.
Telling Stat: Cold efficiency= victory; Stanford completed 85% of their passes, converted 71% of their third downs and didn't turn the ball over in their thrashing of the bRuins.

Washington State 31- Colorado 27: It was late in the fourth quarter up in Boulder, and the Buffaloes were on the verge of winning their very first Pac 12 game. Then, it all fell apart in 1:33 as Wazzu QB Marshall Lobbestael brought the Cougs back from the dead. First, Lobbestael hit WR Isiah Barton with a 19-yard TD pass. Then after the WSU defense forced a punt, Lobbestael silenced the home crowd with the 63-yard game-winning strike. Finally, the Cougar defense sealed the game eight seconds later when they recovered a Buffs fumble. In the victory, Lobbestael completed 32 of 49 passes for 376 yards and 3 TDs. As for Colorado, QB Tyler Hansen threw for 175 yards and 2 TDs on the afternoon.
Telling Stat: Tough down the stretch; In the last 23:33 WSU outscored CU, 21-7 to seal the victory.

Notre Dame 38- Purdue 10: The Fighting Irish excelled in all phases of the game in their dismantling of the Boilermakers under the lights at old Ross-Ade Stadium. ND QB Tommy Rees led ND through the air with 254 yards and 3 TDs. ND came just shy of having a pair of 100 yard rushers as RBs Cierre Wood and Jonas Gray ran for 191 and 94 yards respectively. They also combined for 3 TDs. Also huge for the Irish was that they didn't commit a single turnover. Meanwhile, the ND defense shut down Purdue's offense limiting them to 84 yards rushing and holding them to just 5 of 14 on third down attempts.
Telling Stat: Balance is beautiful; ND ran up 551 yards of offense in this game. 264 yards passing, 287 rushing.

Observations

...In reverse; If Oklahoma keeps winning they'll get dropped out of both polls as an undefeated team.

...If they only had to play two quarters; I can't imagine what it's like to be a coach at Texas A&M right now. The Aggies two consecutive second half collapses are two of the craziest things I've ever seen.

...To say Stanford plays physical football is an understatement. They are by far the hardest hitting team in the Pac 12 since the 2008 USC squad.

...Play at ASU- get flagged; in ASU's four home games their opponents have been flagged an average of 10 times a game for 94 yards. In ASU's one road game, their opponent was flagged only 5 times for 33 yards.

...Disturbing stat; USC has given up 40+ points in two consecutive games. That has never happened before in the history of the program. Great job, Monte!

...And then there were six. There are six winless teams left in the FBS. Middle Tennessee got off the list with a 38-31 win over Memphis. Oregon State continues to embarrass the Pac 12 as the only BCS conference school without a win.

...Harsh reality; It's early October, you're unranked, 0-2 in league play, lost your QB, and Arizona State is coming calling. Welcome to the Pac 12, Utah!

...Why the love? Virginia Tech has to be the most overrated team in the last 20 years.

...Big Ten surprise; Who thought Illinois would be 5-0 right now?

...Big hardware; The largest rivalry trophy in college football is up for grabs this week as UNLV and Nevada will battle for the Fremont Cannon. The cannon actually fires and weighs over 1,100 pounds.

...Hail to their schedule maker; Michigan may be 5-0, but all five games were at home. They have eight home games on their schedule and their longest road trip is to Illinois. The Wolverines also won't play Wisconsin in the regular season. Wow.

...One knee equals one game; Illinois LB Jonathan Brown was suspended by HC Ron Zook for this week's game against Indiana for kneeing Northwestern OL Patrick Ward in the groin int he first quarter of their tilt last week. Go find the video on this one, folks. It came well after the play and was just a cheap shot. Guys, cross your legs before viewing.

...From the amazing stat department; In Air Force's controversial 35-34 OT win over Navy, two stats stick out. One, Air Force won despite only having the ball for 19:14, and two USAFA QB Tim Jefferson completed 90% of his passes. He was a cool 9 of 10 for 136 yards and a touchdown.

...Quietly making noise; Don't look now, but SMU is 4-1. June Jones' squad has everyone in the Metroplex talking after their 40-33 upset win over TCU. The Ponies snapped TCU's 22 game home winning streak in the process.

...Small schools big rivalry; Occidental beat Whittier, 31-17 in the 68th meeting between the two rivals. Oxy gets to keep the rivalry trophy, a pair of bronzed cleats on a wooden base. The trophy known as "The Shoes" goes back to 1946.

Until next week folks, remember you can't sit in the same defense all game long. You'll just get torched.

-The Commissioner

Monday, September 26, 2011

Week 4

Hey All,

It's time for the column that makes Tuesdays a little more fun, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

Arizona State 43- USC 22: The Trojans went into Tempe and faced high heat, a first quarter monsoon and an ASU team on a mission. The Sun Devils made USC pay for every mistake, while QB Brock Osweiler completed passes at will on the Trojan defense. Osweiler completed 25 of 32 passes for 223 yards and 2 TDs, while RB Cameron Marshall provided great balance to the Sun Devil offense by rushing for 141 yards on 25 carries with 3 TDs. The Trojans did look like they were gonna win this one when they overcame a 21-9 halftime deficit to take a 22-21 lead in the third quarter. However, the Trojans two-point conversion attempt failed after the go-ahead score. Nothing went right for USC after that point. ASU went on to outscore USC, 15-0 in the fourth quarter to preserve the win. In defeat, Trojan QB Matt Barkley threw for 227 yards, and a TD. However, he also threw two interceptions, and fumbled once. All of those turnovers had disastrous results. His first interception led to an ASU TD drive, while his fumble killed a Trojan drive into the ASU red zone. Then, his last interception was returned for ASU's game sealing TD. Meanwhile, USC 's defense didn't have a clue all night as to what ASU's offense was doing.
Telling Stat: Tunrovers Kill; The old adage came through again. USC's four turnovers, three of them in the Red Zone, cost them the game.

Oregon 56- Arizona 31: It was the LaMichael James show in Tucson Saturday night. He ran through, around, and past the Arizona defense for 288 yards on 23 carries and scored 2 TDs. The 288 yards are a new Oregon single-game record. Thrown in 2 TDs through the air from QB Darron Thomas and you can see what kind of rout this turned into. The Ducks held a 35-9 halftime lead and kept the pressure on until the clock ran out. As for the Wildcats, QB Nick Foles connected on 37 of 54 aerials for 398 yards and 3 TDs while RB Keola Antolin chipped in with 55 yards and a TD of his own.
Telling Stat: Lightning fast drives; UO's average scoring drive in this game took only 2:52 and covered 63 yards in just 7 plays.

Washington 31- California 23: This game was a see-saw affair that saw both offenses shine, but it was the Husky defense that came up big for the Dawgs up in Seattle. The Dawgs made a goal line stand, forcing an incompletion by CAL QB Zach Maynard on 4th down with under a minute to play to secure the win. As for the Husky offense, QB Keith Price completed 19 of 25 passes for 292 yards and 3 TDs, while RB Chris Polk lugged the leather 20 times for 60 yards and a TD. As for the Golden Bears, Maynard completed 23 of 43 for 349 yards and one score.
Telling Stat: 2+2=0; In the fourth quarter the Husky defense forced CAL to punt twice and then held for downs twice, shutting the Golden Bears out in the fourth quarter.

Ohio State 37- Colorado 17: Buckeye QB Braxton Miller only completed 5 of 13 passes for 83 yards, but two of those completions were for TDs as Thee OSU rolled the Buffs in Columbus. This wasn't a great game by either team, but Thee OSU just kept grinding on the mistake-prone Buffs until they just wore down. CU QB Tyler Hansen did throw for 238 yards and 2 TDs, but most of it came after the game was out of hand.
Telling Stat: Not nearly as close as it looked; CU's last TD and final 91-yards of the game came late in fourth quarter against Thee OSU's second stringers.

UCLA 27- Oregon State 19: Richard Brehaut was UCLA's QB of choice this week and he led his team to a 21-3 second quarter lead. He would then engineer UCLA's game sealing drive in the fourth quarter to hold off a furious OSU comeback attempt. Brehaut finished the game completing 7 of 11 passes for 146 yards and a TD, but he did set up the UCLA rushing game that ran for 211 yards on the Beavers. The Beavers woke up in this game when WR Jordan Poyer broke off an 85-yard punt return for a TD to close the gap to 21-10 just before halftime. The third quarter belonged to OSU as they got within two of UCLA, trailing only 21-19 as the fourth quarter started. However, the bRuin defense did come alive again in the fourth quarter. They shutout OSU in the final period and salted the game away when RB Anthony Barr crossed the double stripe from one yard out.
Telling Stat: I above Team; UCLA RB Derrick Coleman ran for 100 yards in this game. OSU as a team rushed for only 88 yards.

Notre Dame 15- Pittsburgh 12: After breaking their maiden last week against Michigan State, the Fighting Irish got their second win of the year over the Panthers at Heinz Field. ND held a 7-6 lead at half thanks to a 79-yard TD scamper by RB Jonas Gray and a defense that held Pitt to just two field goals. Pitt QB Tino Sunseri then put his Panthers ahead 12-7 when he hit Hubie Graham with a 3-yard TD pass. However, their two point conversion attempt failed, (sound familiar?), which opened the door for an ND comeback. Midway through the fourth quarter, Irish QB Tommy Rees led his squad on a 11 play, 85 yard drive to win the game. Rees capped the drive by throwing a 6-yard TD pass to Tyler Elfert. Then, he also connected with Elfert for a successful two-point conversion to put ND up by three points. The ND defense held off Pitt the rest of the way to ensure the win.
Telling Stat: Great when he had to be; ND QB Tommy Rees didn't have a great day, but on that final scoring drive, he completed all nine of his passes for 77 yards, the game-winning TD and the two-point conversion.

Observations

...Hawaii QB Bryant Moniz completed 30 of 40 passes for 424 yards and 7 TDs against FCS foe UC Davis. So, why am I talking about this? Well, because Moniz only played the first half. Yup, just the first half.

...The first axe has fallen. New Mexico fired HC Mike Locksley on Sunday. To say Locksley was an embattled coach is putting it lightly . His teams were just 2-26 over his two plus years at the helm and there were several embarrassing off the field incidents. Those incidents included Locksley being suspended a game for punching one of his assistants and a sexual harassment lawsuit. The last straw came Saturday when the Lobos lost in overtime to FCS powerhouse, Sam Houston State, 48-45.

...Note to Monte Kiffin; Ditch the Tampa-2 defense. It's useless against spread offenses.

...Those Tigers need to travel. Clemson has been great at home, but they need a big road win to really impress the rest of the country.

...Nobody in the nation has had a tougher schedule to start the season than Arizona. The Wildcats may be just 1-3, but their losses are to #5 Oklahoma State, #6 Stanford, and #9 Oregon.

...And then there were seven; There are seven winless teams left in the FBS. The only winless team left in a BCS conference is Oregon State out of the Pac 12. The other six are UAB (C-USA), New Mexico (MWC), Miami OH (WAC) along with Florida Atlantic, Western Kentucky, and Middle Tennessee who all come from the Sun Belt Conference.

...Just how do you screw up a call on a PAT? Well, the Big East did it and their error cost Toledo a win over Syracuse. It was a double error as the refs on the field and in the booth both called a PAT kick good that wasn't. The Big East apologized, but really what does that do for Toledo?

...10-27-2007; That was the last time Colorado won a road game. That day, they beat Texas Tech 31-26. The Buffs have dropped 19 straight road games since then. The Buffs latest road loss at Thee Ohio State led to this great nugget of wisdom from their HC John Embree, "We have a long way to go as a program." Great stuff there, John.

...Toledo- Part II; The NCAA told Toledo there was no way to vacate Syracuse's win over them due to a blown call by the refs. Funny, I've seen the NCAA vacate a lot of wins lately.

...Baby, things change; The Big East voted Temple off their island a decade ago. Now, the Big East is on the brink of collapse and is looking at inviting Temple back. What goes around...

...After four games, it is quite clear that USC has no great players on the defensive side of the ball.

...Couture, yet no consistency; The Maryland Terrapins are grabbing headlines for their crazy uniforms, but their team stinks. the Terps were smashed at home by Temple, 38-7 and are now 1-2 on the season.

...How does Oklahoma win and get jumped by LSU in the polls? The Sooners won! That's no reason to drop down. Only a loss should knock a team out of the number one spot.

...Jake who? The Husky doesn't seem to be missing Jake Locker much. The Dawgs are averaging 32 points per game with new QB Keith Price at the helm.

...Don't overlook Wazzu's trip to Boulder this week. Even though they already faced California, this is Colorado's first true Pac 12 game. It's a historic moment for CU and should be a really good game.

...Trap game alert! ASU faces winless Oregon State this week. The Sun Devils have to concentrate on this game and not look ahead to their trip to Utah in two weeks.

...Dallas and Fort Worth clash again this week. SMU will travel to TCU for a tilt that evokes memories of the old Southwest Conference. I wish Dandy Don was around for this game.

...What's the over/under for passes attempted in this week's Air Force-Navy game? I'm thinking single digits here.

Until next week folks, remember that the corner has to turn the play back into the middle of the field when defending the quick screen.

-The Commissioner