Hey All,
It's time for the column you all enjoy, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Alan Malamud.
Summaries
USC 24- Washington 14: The offense showed up for the first two quarters and the defense showed up for the whole game as the Trojans came away with a win in Seattle. USC raced out to a 24-7 halftime lead behind an 11-yard TD jaunt by RB Silas Redd, an 18-yard TD pass from QB Matt Barkley to TE Xavier Grimble, a 23-yard field goal by PK Andre Heidari and a big special teams score. CB Anthony Brown blocked a punt and returned it 21 yards for a TD. Then, the offense went cold, not putting up a single second half point. The defense then made the lead stand up by allowing the Huskies only one scoring drive in the final 30 minutes. The offensive star of the day for USC was RB Silas Redd who ran for 155 yards and one TD on 26 carries. As for the Dawgs, QB Keith Price threw for 198 yards and a pair of scores.
Telling Stat: The defense did it; The USC defense forced turnovers on three of UW's last four possessions to secure the win for the Trojans.
California 31- Washington State 17: The pitch and catch game between QB Zach Maynard and WR Keenan Allen along with the running of RB C.J. Anderson lifted the Golden Bears to their eighth straight win over the Cougars. Maynard hooked up with Allen 11 times for 166 yards including a 69-yard TD connection in the first quarter. Anderson ran for 112 yards and crossed the double stripe twice with his last one putting the game out of reach with 10:27 to play. Wazzu did put up 420 yards of offense on the Bears, but couldn't convert in the red zone.
Telling Stat: Two man air show; The Maynard-to-Allen connection accounted for 166 of Cal's 189 total passing yards in the contest.
ASU 51- Colorado 17: The Sun Devil offense overwhelmed the hapless Buffalo defense last Thursday night in Boulder. ASU QB Taylor Kelly completed 20 of 28 passes for 308 yards and 5 TDs on the night. His favorite target was RB Marion Grice who caught three of those TD tosses. The Sun Devils also ran the ball well too with RB Cameron Marshall leading all rushers with 98 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. The ASU defense held CU to just 75 yards rushing and 255 total yards. They also shutout Colorado in the second half.
Telling Stat: They stuck a fork in 'em; ASU choked off Colorado's offense in the second half, allowing only 84 yards. 34 of those yards coming on the game's final drive.
UCLA 21-Utah 14: An efficient effort from QB Brett Hundley and a solid showing form the bRuin defense carried the day at the Rose Bowl. Hundley completed 15 of 21 aerials for 183 yards and one TD while running for 68 yards and another score. bRuin RB Johnathan Franklin ran for 79 yards and scored the game-winning touchdown when he scampered across the goal line from 3 yards out with 6:04 left in the third quarter. The UCLA defense kept Utah bottled up all game allowing only one late score. As for the Utes, QB Travis Wilson threw for 220 yards in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: He was the offense; QB Brett Hundley accounted for 251 of UCLA's 354 total yards v. Utah.
Oregon State 42- BYU 24: Beaver QB Cody Vaz looked like he was the starter all along in his squad's big win at Provo. Vaz started in place of Sean Mansion who was lost for the year with a knee injury last week. All Vaz did was complete 20 of 32 passes for 332 yards and three TDs in front of the hostile BYU crowd. The Beavers won this game in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Cougars 21-3. For the Cougars, QB Riley Nelson completed 28 of 51 tosses for 305 yards and one TD. He also threw three interceptions with one being returned 49 yards for the game-sealing score by OSU CB Jordan Poyer with a little over five minutes to play.
Telling Stat: Tough at the end; The OSU defense forced two turnovers on BYU's last two drives to win the game.
Notre Dame 20- Stanford 13 OT: This game was defensive struggle in which the officials had a hand in the result. Stanford was holding a 13-10 lead as the Irish faced a 3rd-and-four from the Cardinal 28-yard line. QB Tommy Rees' pass fell incomplete and it looked like ND would have to try a 45-yard field goal in the wind and rain to try and tie the game. However, at the end of the play, Stanford was called for one of the cheapest pass interference penalties in recent memory. The penalty kept ND's drive alive and the Irish would send the game to overtime when PK Kyle Brindza split the uprights from 22 yards out to tie the game with :20 left. Then in OT, ND got a 7-yard TD pass from QB Tommy Rees to WR TJ Jones to take a 20-13 lead. Stanford blew their shot to tie the game in their half of the overtime when RB Stepfan Taylor was given the ball four straight times and couldn't crack the endzone from one-yard out. On the last of those plays, it did look like Taylor had crossed the goal line on second effort, but the Pac 12 officiating crew blew the play dead, ruling that his forward motion had stopped. In this defensive slugfest of a game, ND's front seven shined with LB Manti Te'o doing his best to shut down the Cardinal offense all by himself.
Telling Stat: No paydirt; The Notre Dame defense didn't allow a touchdown. Stanford's only touchdown came via a fumble recovery in the Irish end zone by LB Chase Thomas.
Observations
...Not what they thought; I bet for Utah this wasn't what they thought life would be like in the Pac 12.
...It could happen; after beating Hawaii last weekend, New Mexico has a great chance to make a bowl this year. That would make Bob Davie's first season as HC of the Lobos a great success.
...Something different; Notre Dame is a different team this year because they have eliminated big mistakes. They haven't made many drastic game-changing errors this season.
...And then there were three; Southern Miss, Massachusetts, and Eastern Michigan are the only winless teams left in the FBS.
...Only 5th; Wisconsin's 467 yards rushing v. Purdue was only the fifth best rushing yardage day in Badger history. The top mark was set in 1974 when the boys from Madison ran for 551 yards in a 52-7 win over Northwestern.
...A big assumption and a BCS question; Assuming Oregon State runs the table, they won't be able to play a 12 game regular schedule because instead of making up a game v. Nicholls State, they'll be playing in the Pac 12 title game. So, would that one less game played hurt them in the computers? Hmmmmmmm.
...Substance, not flash; There wasn't a lot of flashy offense on display in the Pac 12 last weekend, but there was some great fundamental football and defense.
...Winning in a vacuum; Three Big East teams are undefeated. Rutgers, Cincinnati and Louisville all have spotless records and no publicity.
...Done in by their own; It's sad how Stanford got jobbed by the refs at Notre Dame.. It's even worse knowing that the officiating crew was from the Pac 12.
...A familiar look; Ever notice how Texas HC Mack Brown is always fixing his hair after using his headset on the sideline? It reminds me of former USC HC Larry Smith. The way he keeps getting his butt kicked in rivalry games reminds me a lot of old Larry too.
...It ain't Vandy; Everyone picks on Vanderbilt for being the doormat of the SEC. Yeah. Vandy isn't great, but Kentucky has been as bad, if not worse than the Commodores for a good decade.
...A rare big one; This Thursday's ASU-Oregon game might just be a really good Thursday night game.
...Note to West Virginia; Teams do need defenses.
...Not early enough; Arkansas AD Jeff Long told the Touchdown Club in Little Rock that he wants a new HC in place by December. Razorback fans would like to have a new HC now.
...They won't be the only ones to suffer; The Cal-Stanford game is the first of several times that Pac 12 rivalry games will find a mid-October home. The next time someone will face their conference rival in October will be in the 2015 season. The infighting over who will be stuck with it will be intense.
Thinking of Beano Cook (1931-2012)
Beano truly loved the game of college football. He loved it with all his heart and with no excuses. It was his game. It's what made him tick. He knew the game inside and out. It was his love of the history of the game that made me like Beano. He was one of those links to the past that we are all the worse for now that he's gone. He was the link to the era of sleeper cars, heavy wool uniforms, and when the Ivy League and service academies still won national titles and produced Heisman Trophy winners. He lived for Saturdays in Autumn. I kind of know what that's like. I just can't believe he didn't make it through the season. Who'll tell him who ends up number 1? I'm sure he'll get the message somehow. Good bye, Beano.
Three Notes About Nothing...
...The Drunkin' Pumpkin will be the new great seasonal drink.
...The SNL spoof soap The Californians is really funny.
...The baseball playoffs aren't as exciting when your team didn't make it to the playoffs.
Until next week folks,
remember that the for the Cover 2 defense to work well, the front four have to get pressure on the quarterback.
-The Comissioner
