Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Week 14, 2013

Hey All,

It must be Tuesday.  That means the final edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard for 2013.  We still miss you, Alan Malamud.

Summaries

UCLA 35- USC 14: The final game in the USC career of HC Ed Orgeron didn't end well for him or the Trojans.  USC wasn't in this game from the get-go as the bRuins controlled the game from start to finish. The Trojans had no answer for UCLA QB Brett Hundley.  Hundley did well with his arm, completing 18 of 27 tosses for 208 yards, but he was better with his legs.  He ran the ball 13 times for 80 yards and two TDs.  The USC defense could not keep him in the pocket on critical third downs and never fully stopped the bRuin offense. As for USC, RB Buck Allen gained 123 yards rushing on 20 carries with a TD, but his big fumble killed off USC's final chances for a comeback. USC QB Cody Kessler threw for 174 yards and a TD in the loss.
Telling Stat: One pair beat a full house; Brett Hundley's legs beat USC and quieted a full house of Trojan fans at the Coliseum. 

Oregon 36- Oregon State 35: The Beavers strong bid to claim victory in the 117th edition of the Civil War rivalry died in the final seconds at Autzen Stadium.  The Ducks had to come from behind in this one as they trailed 35-30 with just 1:38 to play. UO QB Marcus Mariota led the Ducks on an 83-yard, nine play drive in 1:09 to snatch victory out of the hands of defeat. Mariota finished the game with 285 yards passing and three TDs. For the Beavers, QB Sean Mannion torched the Ducks for for 347 yards passing and two TDs in the loss.
Telling Stat: 83 yards in 1:09;  UO's game-winning drive showed exactly why the Oregon offense is so devastating.

Washington 27- Washington State 17: Little did anyone know that this would be UW HC Steve Sarkisian's last game roaming the sidelines in purple and gold as the Dawgs claimed the Apple Cup.  RB Bishop Sankey was the man again for the Dawgs, toting the rock 34 times for 200 yards and a TD.  QB Keith Price had a solid game completing 15 of 20 passes for 181 yards and a TD. Price also ran 23 yards and a TD as well. For the Cougars, QB Connor Halliday hit on 32 of 59 passes for 282 yards and a pair of TDs.
Telling Stat: 3rd was best; Washington took control of the game in the third quarter.  They blanked the Cougars 17-0, scoring on all three of their drives in the period and outgaining Wazzu 190 yards to 63.

Utah 24- Colorado 17: These game between two newly thrown together Pac 12 "rivals" looked like a yawner at first, but then turned into an exciting finish.  The Utes built a 21-0 halftime lead behind two TD runs of 6 yards and one yard by RB Kelvin York and a TD 16-yard pass from  QB Andy Schultz to TE Jake Murphy.  The boys form Boulder kept fighting though and with 2:30 left cut the Utah lead to just seven points when QR Nelson Spruce hauled in a 14-yard TD pass from QB Sefo Liufau.  The Buffs couldn't recover the onside kick, but managed to force a Utah punt.  However, the Buffs did literally throw away their one last chance to send the game to overtime when Liufau's first down pass was intercepted by DE Trevor Reilly.  Three kneel downs latter and Utah escaped with the victory.
Telling Stat:  The defense set the tone; Utah's defense shut down CU in the first half allowing zero points, just four first downs and an average drive length of 4 plays and 11 yards.  That allowed the Ute offense to put the Buffaloes in a hole they couldn't climb out of.

Arizona State 58- Arizona 21: The Sun Devils dismantled the Wildcats to claim the Territorial Cup and more importantly, home field for the Pac 12 Championship Game.  QB Taylor Kelly and the two-headed RB tandem of D.J. Foster and De'Marieya Nelson were too much for the Wildcat defense to handle.  Kelly threw for 274 yards and a pair of scores. Foster ran for 124 yards and two TDs, while Nelson ran for 35 yards and a pair of TDs of his own.  UofA RB Ka'Deem Carey was bloodied but not bowed in defeat,  rushing for 157 yards on 32 carries and a TD.
Telling Stat: Can't leave the ball  on the carpet;  UofA lost the turnover battle, 4-1 and this game became a blowout because of it.

Stanford 27- Notre Dame 20:  The Cardinal didn't let down in their final game before the Pac 12 Championship Game and knocked off the Irish on The Farm.  It was a typical Stanford win as they controlled the line of scrimmage. SU also ran the ball well with RB Tyler Gaffney running for 189 yards on 33 carries and a TD and got another solid game form QB Kevin Hogan who completed 12 of 18 passes for 158 yards and a TD. For the Irish, QB Tommy Rees threw for 199 yards and a pair of score, but also threw two big interceptions to kill off his team's chances.
Telling Stat: Defenses ruled the fourth quarter;  The SU and ND defenses combine to allow just three points, 86 total yards and force three turnovers in the final period.

Cranberry Crushers- Tough Turkeys- PPD:  The great backyard football game of the past few seasons was postponed this year because The Commissioner had to attend a second Thanksgiving dinner this year.  It was the Commissioner's fiancĂ©'s Thanksgiving.  Yes folks, there's going to be a Mrs. Commissioner.  For those that haven't passed out yet, there's a lot of column left to read. Enjoy.

Observations

…A life lesson enacted on a grand stage; An old Chinese proverb warns us all, "Be careful for what you wish for, you just might get it."  How does Alabama HC Nick Saban feel after fighting to get that one second back on the clock last Saturday?

…It's in high gear; The ESPN-SEC PR machine that is.  All week long be ready to hear how a one-losss SEC team is better than an undefeated team from any other league. Sorry, good ole boys. You built this system, now you have to live with it.

…Michigan-Ohio State WTF moment #1; How could Michigan HC Brady Hoke decide to go for two v. Ohio State?  The game was at home and all the momentum was on his team's side.  Just kick the PAT and go to overtime.

…And for the final time this year, they just didn't get the memo;  Kansas State didn't get the memo that Kansas had the schematic advantage over them.  How else could you explain KSU's 31-10 whipping of the Jayhawks?  Oh, Charlie Weis, I will miss you when you're gone.

…Just a rumor;  There is no truth to the rumor tat the NCAA made USC hire Steve Sarkisian as part of their sanctions.

…Stiffarm Statue blues;  Haven't seen a year with so few viable Heisman Trophy candidates in years. Somehow, Rashaan Salaam's name comes to mind here.

…Michigan- Ohio State WTF moment #2;  THeee OSU HC Urban Meyer won't suspend any of his three players that were ejected for taking part in the big brawl that occurred in Ann Arbor.  Boy, that's sure some good old midwestern values of accountability and discipline on display there, Urbie.

…From my intrepid field reporter up north; "Hey, great news. Sarkisian can beat the Cougs.  You're safe again."

…Running to immortality; Auburn CB Chris Davis went form ordinary ballplayer to Immortal Auburn Football God in a little over 108 yards.

…Feeling Blue Devilish;  with their 27-25 win over arch-rival North Carolina, the Duke Blue Devils are now 10-2 and will face Florida State in the ACC title game.  Somewhere, Wallace Wade is smiling.

…Now not so much; Remember when the Texas-Baylor game this week looked like it would be a really big contest?  Oh well…

…Overlooked;  How come Missouri HC Gary Pinkel isn't getting much publicity?  All the guy did was take a Tiger team that was added to the SEC to be treated as an also ran and got them to the SEC title game this season.  Just sayin'...

Ugly Uniforms of the Week: Oregon and Oregon State are runaway winners this week.


This combination of uniforms disabled televisions all across the nation.  Wow.


Bowl Math- The Third Installment

Just about everyone in the FBS has wrapped up their regular seasons and championship games in the major conferences are at hand.  Let's look a who will go bowling.

Currently there are 46 BCS conference teams and 3 independent schools that are bowl eligible.  Throw in 28 schools from the Non-BCS conferences and that means that there are 77 teams available for the 70 bowl slots.

Now, the number of bowl eligible teams could increase by two because Rutgers and SMU still have a game each to play. If they both win, that means 79 teams will be bowl eligible and nine teams will not get to put their bowling shoes on.


Here's the bowl eligible team tally by conference:

BCS Leagues     Independents    Non BCS Leagues
AAC:4                          3                C-USA: 8
ACC: 11                                         MAC: 7
PAC 12: 9                                      MWC: 7
SEC: 9                                           Sun Belt: 6
Big 10: 7
Big XII: 6

So, what seven or possibly even nine teams will be left home for the holidays? It's usually the teams that are at the bottom of the list for being bowl eligible in their respective leagues.  Conferences only have so many guaranteed tie-ins to bowl games and after that it becomes a mad scramble for available slots.  However, this year all the tie-ins in the respective league are already filled and there are only so many at-large berths left.  So, teams like Pitt in the ACC or Wazzu in the Pac 12 could find themselves out in the cold.  Also, the cold economics of the bowls comes into play. Bowls are a a business.  Bowls mean hotel rooms and dining dollars to the cities that host them.  So, teams that don't travel well will be left home.

Special Section: The Hiring of Steve Sarkisian

Well, it didn't take long after  the end of the regular season for Pat Haden and co. at USC to find their next head coach.  Problem is, nobody wants him except for the AD.  I, sure as heck,  don't want him either.  After all the stories about how Pat Haden was going to make a "big name" hire.  He didn't.  He settled for guy who is not a step up, but a guy who is a lateral move at best.

Five Things that bother me most about Sark being hired

1. The exhaustive search that was to analyze all the possible candidates from around the country settled on another former assistant to Pete Carroll. Hmmmm

2. Lane Kiffin won more Pac 12 games in a single season at SC than Sark ever did in a single season at UW.

3. Sark likes to call his own plays too.  Denny's menu 2.0 on the way.



4.  Its' another failure by the PR department at USC.  This feels similar to the outrage Laker fans felt when Mike D'Antoni was hired.  Fans forget D'Antoni replaced Mike Brown.  They feel he's the idiot they got instead of what could have been with Phil Jackson.  Trojan fans don't feel Sark is replacing Lane Kiffin. They feel Sark is replacing what could have been with Coach O.

5. Sark's defenses have been abysmal at UW.  Remember when the Huskies were embarrassed at the Alamo Bowl in 2011?  They lost 67-56 and gave up 777 yards of offense. Wow.

Departments

Blowout of the Week: Belton, TX- In the second round of the Divison II playoffs, the Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusader whipped the Rowan Profs, 59-8.  QB Zach Anderson completed 12 of 18 passes for 168 yards and three TDs to go with 121 yards rushing on 13 carries to lead the Crusader attack. The Crusader defense held Rowan to just 209 total yards and 10 first downs on the day.

Close Game of the Week: Shepherdstown, WV- In the second round of the Division III playoffs, Shepherd University RB Allen Cross scampered 29 yards to paydirt with 4:06 to play in the third quarter to lift his squad to a 7-0 victory over Winston-Salem State.  Cross did bear the load for Shepherd with 247 all-purpose yards and the game-winning TD.

Razorback Report: The Hogs had a shot to end their dismal season on a high note, but fell just short in a 31-27 loss to LSU.  The Hogs did have everything going their way nursing a 27-24 lead and having knocked out LSU QB Zach Mettenberger.  Then, the Hog defense let backup QB Anthony Jennings drive down the field for the winning score. Arkansas QB Brandon Allen threw for 178 yards and 2 TDs in the loss.  Arkansas finishes the year at 3-9 overall, 0-8 in SEC play.

Horned Frog Headlines:  TCU hung tough, but in the end they didn't have enough to topple Baylor, losing 41-38. Frog QB Casey Pachall threw for 267 yards and 3 TDs with three costly interceptions. The Frogs finish their season at 4-8 overall, 2-7 in the Big XII.

Tulane Times: The Green Wave fell to the Rice Owls, 17-13.  The Rice offense struggled to pull out the win, but their defense held Tulane to just 123 total yards and six first downs. Tulane QB Nick Montana completed 14 of 31 passes for 97 yards and a TD in the loss.

C.W. Post Press: The Pioneers finished the season at 5-6 and did not make the D-II playoffs.


This Week's Three Notes About Nothing

There's nothing in the world like Thanksgiving dinner at my mother's house.

Now that Thanksgiving is over, it's time for Christmas music.

75 degrees at my house on December 1st makes me thankful for my Southern California life.

And Now a Note of Thanks

Another season of this blog is over and it's time to give my thanks to all of my friends that take the time to read this little blog each week.  These notes are built on the fellowship of my football family. The shared experience of this great game makes these notes go.  We all love this game with the funny bouncing ball.  I'm thankful to have the friends and family that love the game as much as I do.

Until next season,

Peace, happiness, and Fight On!

-The Commissioner