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
