It must be Tuesday because here's another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you Alan Malamud.
Summaries
USC 28- Arizona 26: Well, another SC game came down to the final play and this time Trojans prevailed, upsetting the #10 Wildcats in the process. The game started with the Trojan defense withstanding an offensive barrage in which the Wildcats ran 31 plays, gained 133 yards, but only scored six points. While the USC defense then shutout UofA for the rest of the half, the USC offense, behind a pair of Buck Allen TDs runs built up a 14-6 halftime lead. The Trojans would score two more TDs in the third quarter to take a 28-13 lead into the final period. That's when Arizona mounted a comeback against a gassed USC defense. A 41-yard pass from UoA QB Anu Solomon to RB Jared Baker and a 1-yard run from Baker with 1:07 left allowed the Wildcats to draw within two points of the Trojans. UofA did go for the two-point conversion to tie the game after Baker's last TD, but the play was stuffed by the Trojan defense. However the Red and Blue got one last chance to win the game after recovering the ensuing onside kick. In six quick plays, UofA stood poised for the win as PK Casey Skowron lined up for a game-winning 36-yard field goal. USC called time out just before the ball was snapped and Skowron's good kick was for not. On the second attempt after the time out, Skowron's kick sailed wide and USC had the victory. The star of the game for the Trojans was RB Buck Allen who lugged the leather 26 times for 205 yards and three TDs. UofA QB Anu Solomon threw for 395 yards and a TD in the loss.
Telling Stat: Double the ice; USC called two time outs to ice UofA PK Casey Skowron at the end of the first half and at the end of the game. Both ensuing field goal attempts failed. Skowron had one kick blocked and missed the other after being iced.
Stanford 34- Washington State 17: It was a Friday night showdown in Palo Alto between one of the Pac 12's most explosive offensive teams in Wazzu and the top defense in the league in Stanford. The top defense won the battle and the game. The Cardinal did allow Cougar QB Connor Halliday to compete 42 of 69 passes, but for only a total of 292 yards and two TDs on the night. The Cardinal were able to concentrate on stopping the Wazzu passing attack because they have no running game to speak of. In fact, thanks to several sacks of Halliday the Cougars finished with -26 yards rushing. As for the Stanford offense, QB Kevin Hogan was efficient as usual, completing 23 of 35 passes for 284 yards and three TDs. Couple that effort with 98 yards rushing just 14 carries with a TD by Cardinal RB Remound Wright and Stanford had all it needed to claim victory.
Teling Stat: They bent just a little; The Stanford defense held Wazzu QB Connor Halliday to 144 yards and 2 passing TDs less than his per game average which resulted in a major shutdown of the Cougar offense.
Washington 31- California 7: The Husky defense went into Strawberry Canyon and put on a clinic on how to stop Cal's Bear Raid offense. They hit Cal QB Jared Goff early and often sacking him four times and forcing him to fumble three times. The biggest of these turnovers was with 8:41 left to go in the first period when Goff tried to sneak the ball over the UW goal line only to have it knocked from his hands and then returned by LB Shaq Thompson 100 yards for a Husky TD. The Golden Bears never really recovered from this setback and the Dawgs dominated the rest of the half, building up a 28-0 lead heading into the intermission. The second half turned into a glorified scrimmage with the Huskies in total control. As for the Washington offense, QB Cyler Miles competed 22 of 29 passes for 273 yards and 3 TDs which included a 97-yard strike to WR John Ross. Goff finished with 304 yards passing, no TDs and those big three fumbles in the loss.
Telling Stat; First half shutdown; outside of the long drive that led to the 100-yard fumble return, Washington held Cal's powerful offense to just 50 yards for the rest of the fist half.
Oregon 42- UCLA 30: In a battle of two teams looking to rebound from a stunning home losses, the Ducks easily outclassed the bRuins in a game that was not nearly as close as the final score indicated. The Quack Attack was in control of this game from the start, holding a 21-3 lead before UCLA QB Brett Hundley crossed the double stripe from 16 yards out just three seconds before the half. The bRuin offense wouldn't be heard from again until garbage time. The Duck defense came out in the third quarter and shutdown UCLA, while UO QB Marcus Mariota led his squad on three TD drives to put the Ducks up 42-10 to start the fourth quarter. UCLA did put up a bit of a rally in the final period, scoring 20 points in the final 9:46, but it was a case of too little too late as UO had this game firmly in the win column. Mariota finished with 210 yards passing and 2 TDs, while is RB Royce Freeman rushed for 121 yards on 18 carries and two TDs of his own. In the loss, Hundley threw for 216 yards and a pair of scores, while RB Paul Perkins ran for 187 yards on 21 carries.
Telling Stat: Achieving separation; In the first 16 minutes of the second half, Oregon outscored UCLA, 21-0 and out gained the bRuins, 233 yards to 76 while forcing two turnovers in the process.
Notre Dame 50- North Carolina 43: The Fighting Irish got caught looking ahead a bit to their game this week with Florida State and barely survived a shootout with the Tar Heels. In fact, the Irish found themselves behind 36-35 to start the fourth quarter. The Irish went on to own the fourth period. They sandwiched two 81-yard TD drives around a big interception by the defense to come out of this shootout with a win. RB Tarean Folston scored both of those TDs. The first one came on a nine yard pass from QB Everett Golson and the second one was a six yard run. Folston finished the day with 98 yards rushing and 71 receiving and three TDs. Golson completed 21 of 38 passes for 300 yards and three TDs on the day. As for the Tarheels. QB Marquise Williams accounted for 435 of UNC's 510 total yards by throwing for 303 and running 132. He also threw for 2 TDs and ran for another.
Telling Stat: Just call him Cool Hand Luke; Notre Dame CB Cole Luke saved the day when he picked off UNC QB Marquise Williams to put the control of this game firmly in ND's hands midway through the fourth quarter.
Observations
...Westside woes; Note to UCLA, don't make those travel plans yet. You at least have to be in the AP Top 25 to be considered for the first college football playoff.
...From the numbers don't lie department; Temple, Rutgers, and Kentucky are a combined 14-3 while, Texas, Florida, and Michigan are a combined 8-10 this season.
...Speaking of the Hail Mary; Only 5 of 92 attempted Hail Mary plays succeeded in the power five conferences over the last three seasons. This year, teams have hit on 4 out of 12 of them.
...Dawgs with bite; Yes, Washington hasn't really hit the meat of their schedule, but they are 5-1 with their only loss coming by seven points to Stanford. The Dawgs are a dangerous team.
...Heisman-worthy character?; So far in his Florida State Career, QB Jameis Winston has faced rape accusations, been nabbed for stealing crab legs, harassed a female student in full view of an entire dining hall, and is now being investigated for accepting cash for autographing memorabilia. Maybe FSU should send his Heisman back.
...His tide has ebbed; The player who created one of the most embarrassing and memorable moments in college football history has passed on. Tommy Lewis, the Alabama player who came off the bench to tackle Rice's Dicky Maegle in the 1954 Cotton Bowl died at age 83. Maegle was on his way to a 95-yard TD run when Lewis flew off the Alabama bench to tackle him near midfield. Maegle was awarded the TD and Rice went on to beat Alabama that day, 28-6. Oh, and the Alabama player on the field who missed the tackle that led to Lewis' moment was some guy named Bart Starr.
...He has the monetary advantage; In 2015, former ND and Kansas HC Charlie Weis will earn nearly 4.6 million dollars in severance packages from those two schools, making him just about the highest paid college football coach in the land. Hmmmm
...Ducked in Pasadena; UCLA DC Jeff Ulbrich got in a shouting match wit his HC Jim Mora during the first half of the bRuins loss to Oregon. He even handed Mora his play card and told him to "call the f@&$*#g defense." Mora, handed him the card back and I don't blame him. I wouldn't want to call defenses against the Ducks either.
...Thanks to Captain Comeback; Roger Staubach is credited with the coining the term "Hail Mary" in football. After he hit Drew Pearson with a game-winning pass from midfield to beat the Minnesota Vikings back in 1975, told reporters that after the ball left his hands, "I closed my eyes and said a Hail Mary." The media ran with it and a term was born.
...It ain't soccer; UofA PK Casey Skowron's whining and histrionics after blowing the game-winning field goal v. USC were FIFA worthy.
...I find it amazing that when teams knock each other off in the SEC, the league is praised for being a conference with "great depth", while when it happens in the Pac 12 the conference is suddenly "overrated."
...Quietly making noise in Hoosier-land; Indiana's Tevin Coleman is the leading rusher in the FBS with 1,060 yards on 120 carries and 11 TDs. That's a nifty 8.83 yards per carry average for the non-math majors out there.
...A road block in Palo Alto; In this crazy, high-scoring, Pac 12 conference, Stanford is the FBS leader in scoring defense. The Cardinal are allowing only 10 points per game.
Ugly Uniform of the Week: This week's honorees are the Iowa State Cyclones. This all athletic gold look is just horrible.
Special Section: Number Crunching with Penalties
So, after watching another weekend of poor Pac 12 officiating, I decided to check out some penalty stats. What I was looking for was how the power five conferences stacked up in regards to the number of penalties called per conference. I also looked at the number of plays run by each conference so far. What's here is the power five conference averages for number of plays run and average number of penalties per team in each conference.
Pac 12: 447.8/ 45.9
ACC: 447.2 / 41.5
Big XII: 444.6/ 40.5
SEC: 437.7/ 35.3
Big 10: 435.6/ 33.0
The Pac 12 stands head and shoulders above the rest for average penalties called per team. I find it very interesting that the ACC and Big XII can run almost as many plays per team with fewer penalties called per team on average. These stats also reveal that the Big 10 and SEC don't call much at all and just let the kids play.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: San Antonio, TX- QB Ryan Patrick threw for a pair of TDs in the first quarter to provide all the scoring the Chicago Maroons would need for a 14-7 win at Trinity University. Patrick's two scores went to WR's Tom O'Neill and Nat Massey. Hey folks, if you want to win a bar bet, here's some trivia for you. The University of Chicago is the only school to ever win the National Championship, then drop football. The Maroons won the 1902 National Title, only to drop football in 1939. The Maroons pulled out of the Big Ten Conference in 1946 and didn't reinstate football until 1973. Since 1973 they have played on the Division III level.
Blowout of the Week: Conway, AR- Well, the Bears of Central Arkansas were dropped from this column a little while ago, but they have made a reappearance with a 70-0 win over the Houston Baptist Huskies. The Bears defense intercepted five passes to set up the offense with short fields. The offense took advantage of those fields to build up a 56-0 halftime lead. RB Dominique Thomas led all rushers with 89 yards on just five carries and two TDs.
Rivalry Game of the Week: Eagle Rock, CA- The Occidental Tigers snapped a two-game losing streak to their bitter rivals, the Whittier poets, with a 23-17 win. The star for Oxy was RB Kwame Do, who rushed the ball 32 times for 185 yards and two TDs. The win means that Oxy now takes back possession of "The Shoes", which is the rivalry trophy that features a pair of bronzed cleats. The Commissioner is very happy to see "The Shoes" are back in their rightful place.
Razorback Report: The Hogs blocked PAT trumped getting a pair of turnovers from Alabama and the Razorbacks lost their 15th straight SEC game. The Alabama defense stymied the Hogs offense in the second half, allowing just five yards rushing on 13 carries in the second half which allowed their sputtering offense to score the game winning TD early in the fourth quarter. Up next for the Hogs is a home date with Georgia.
Horned Frog Headlines: All looked great for the Frogs, up 58-37 over the Baylor Bears with just 11:38 to play. However the Bears managed to cross the Brazos and score the final 24 points of the game to pull off an amazing come-from-behind victory, 61-58. TCU QB Trevone Boykin threw for 287 yards and a TD in the loss. Up next for the Frogs is a home game with the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
Tulane Times: The Green Wave picked up their first American Athletic Conference win with a 12-3 tough win over the Connecticut Huskies. QB Nick Montana, with his father Joe watching, led the offensive attack for Tulane. He completed 19 of 26 passes for 135 yards and the game's only TD. The Green Wave defense rolled all over the Huskies, holding them to just 217 total yards and forcing three turnovers. They also recorded a safety. Up next for Tulane is a trip to Central Florida.
C.W. Post Press: Brookville, NY- The Pioneers trailed Stonehill College, 25-21 with 2:43 to play. They had just given up the go-ahead score and things looked bleak. Then, Sr. QB Steve Laurino saved the day. Laurino led Post on a 10 play, 65 yard drive that ended with Laurino hitting WR Shane Hubbard with a two-yard TD pass to hand Post a 28-25 win. Laurino handled the ball on every snap, completing all four of hiss pass on the drive and also rushing for on the other five plays. Up next for the Pioneers is their homecoming game with Saint Anselm College.
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing
I didn't know that Hee-Haw was on the air for almost 30 years and ran for over 300 episodes.
Fall is here, heard the fog horns blaring last night.
I miss my old Atari 2600.
Until next week folks, remember that 7s are better than 3s.
-The Commisisoner
