2016 Week 8

Hey All,

It's time once again for that column that makes the week between games shorter, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard.  We still miss you Alan Malamud.

Summaries

Washington Sate 37- Arizona state 32:  Wazzu HC Mike Leach got nailed for a big fine from the Pac 12 for accusing ASU HC Todd graham of sign stealing. You have to wonder just how well ASU did steal signals in the way that they couldn't really stop the Cougars all night.  WSU QB Kevin Falk lit up the Sun Devils secondary for 398 yards and three TDs WR Gabe Marks was Falk's favorite target hauling in eight aerials for 107 yards and a TD.  However, Wazzu's rushing game looked as bad as it ever has with the Cougs totaling just nine yards rushing before you count the sacks Falk suffered from the ASU defense.  Add those in and WSU's official rushing total is a miserable -52 yards for this game. ASU made this game close despite gaining a paltry 280 total yards and 12 first downs.  Down 37-21 in the fourth ASU got a 70-yard punt returned for a TD from PR Tim White and a late field goal from PK Zane Gonzalez.  However, WSU was able to run out the clock on the ensuing possession to leave the valley of the sun with a closer than expected win.
Telling Stat: 1 > 4; ASU had four different players play QB in this game, yet one Cougar, Kevin Falk more than doubled their production on his way to making WSU 4-0 in the Pac 12.

Colorado 10- Stanford 5: Yeah, this looks like a baseball game played at the Stanford's famous Sunken Diamond. However, this was a football game at Stanford Stadium. The Colorado defense stuffed the Cardinal all-day long. They held SU to 263 total yards. SU RB Christian McCaffrey did rush for 92 yards, but he didn't have any big plays to break open the game in Stanford's favor.  The Buffs also forced four Stanford turnovers to snuff out any possible Cardinal threats.  This game should have been a blowout, but Colorado misfired on three drives that ended in missed field goals and had a TD called back on offensive pass interference. CU QB Sefo Liufau threw for the only TD in the game when he found WR Shay Fields for a 15-yard scoring toss with 11:59 to go in the second period. CU RB Phillip Lindsay was the bright spot in the CU offense rushing for 131 yards on 12 carries.  Colorado took an intentional safety with a few seconds left to ensure the Cardinal would not have a chance to send this game into overtime.
Telling Stat: A quiet 88;  Colorado's defense held Christian McCaffrey in check, allowing the once Heisman hopeful only 88 all purpose yards. Colorado's defense bottled up the plodding Stanford offense with ease en route to the win.

California 52- Oregon 49 2OT:   Nobody east of the California state line saw one of the most exciting finishes of the season as Cal held on to win in double overtime.  Double OT did not seem like it was in the cards as the first half unfolded.  It looked like a Cal blowout as the Bear-Raid Offense under the control of QB Davis Webb.  While the  Ducks had several drives derailed by costly penalties, the Golden Bears scored on five of their six first half possessions to build up a 31-14 halftime advantage.  At the half, Oregon must have realized that Cal's defense was just as bad as their defense and outscored the Bears 28-11 in the second half.  Cal looked like they had this one won in regulation , but PK Matt Anderson missed a 41-yard FG attempt as time ran out.  In the first OT, UO QB Justin Herbert found WR Jalen Brown for a 30-yard TD toss to put the Ducks up, 42-35.  Cal answered that TD with one of their own when Webb pulled off a great fake at the line of scrimmage and went into the end zone untouched from the one-yard line.  Oregon then looked like they had broken serve on Cal when they held the Bears to a 28-yard field goal to start the second OT.  The Cal defense, which had gone missing for almost the entire second half, made a play when they had to.  LB Jordan Kunaszyk picked Herbert at the Cal 10-yard line and returned it seven yards before he realized he had just ended the game and fell harmlessly to the turf.  The numbers on this game were pretty staggering with Webb throwing for 325 yards and five TDs.  Call also had two RBs crack the 100 yard mark.  Khalfani Muhammad rushed for 148 yards on 23 carries and Tre Watson rushed for 154 yards on 28 carries. For the Ducks, Herbert completed 22 of 40 passes for 258 yards and six TDs.  He also threw the costly pick that ended the game.
Telling Stat: 127th for a reason;  Oregon came into this game, the 127th ranked rushing defense on the FBS.  They allowed Cal's passing offense to rush for 311 yards.  Oh, and there are only 128 teams in the FBS. 

Washington 41- Oregon State 17: The Huskies have a pretty simple pattern to winning this season. They come out fast, bury their opponents in a quick hole and then empty the benches in the second half.  The Beavers were this week's victims for the Dawgs who built up a 21-0 lead after the first period on a TD run and two TD passes from QB Jake Browning. The Dawgs tacked on 10 more points in the second quarter to take a 31-0 lead into the half.  The second half was mostly garbage time with the Dawgs emptying the benches.  Browning finished the game with 291 yards passing and three TDs to go with his rushing TD.  RB Myles Gaskin led all rushers with 128 yards on 18 carries and a score for the Dawgs.  As for the hapless Beavers, RB Tim Cook rushed for 108 yards on 18 carries and a TD.
Telling Stat: Quick work;  UW had a 14-0 lead over a the shell shocked Beavers five minutes in to game and never looked back on the way to victory.

Utah 52- UCLA 45: The bRuins came into this game with a bad o-line that couldn't generate a rushing game and a backup QB to face the hard charging Utes. With the game on his shoulders, UCLA QB Mike Fafaul had both brilliant and bad moments which almost lifted UCLA to the upset win. Fafaul's stat line says it all.  He completed 40 of 70 passes for 464 yards, five TDs and four interceptions. Fafaul's favorite target was TE Nate Iese who caught eight passes for 146 yards and two TDs.  Utah really never figured out how to stop him all game. Utah countered the bRuins passing with a healthy ground attack.  How healthy?  RB Joe Williams ran over, around and through UCLA amassing 332 yards rushing on 29 carries and four TDs.
Telling stat; 15 for the W;  With 4:38 left, Utah RB Joe Williams gained 15 yards on five carries that drained the clock and UCLA's chances of sending this game to overtime. 

Observations

...Bowling with the Buffs:  With their win over Stanford, the Colorado Buffaloes are bowl-eligible for the first time in many years.

...Next bRuin up; UCLA QB Mike Fafaul will only get better as Josh Rosen stays injured.

...De-rooted out of his job;  Fresno State parted ways with HC Tim DeRuyter Sunday.  DeRuyter's  overall record at Fresno was 30-30 but his Bulldogs were 1-7 this season and finished 3-9 in 2015. That trend of downward dogs got him let go.  The two top names to come out as his replacement are Lane Kiffin and Jeff Tedford.

...Fresh as a daisy;  We all know that Jim Harbaugh has a shelf life for wherever he goes, but the Michigan faithful are loving this team that is just blasting their opponents while having a great time in the process. Be afraid, Ohio State, be afraid.

...Bama Backup;  A water pressure loss at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa Saturday forced the PA announcer to address the problem and issue the stadium staff's request that nobody use the restrooms in the facility until it was fixed.  That put 100,000 folks on hold for #s 1 and 2 while watching #1 host #6.

...Scary schedule; Whoever comes in as the new Fresno State HC will get to face both Alabama and Washington on the road in non-conference games in 2017.  Just ask USC fans about that road combination.

...Dad said so;  The scuttlebutt over in Westwood is that QB Josh Rosen was cleared to practice this week by team doctors, but Rosen's father got involved and is holding his son out. He probably doesn't want his son to stand behind UCLA's sieve of an O-line anymore.

...Cubs crossover;  Among all the crazy stats that arose out of Oklahoma's 66-59 win over Texas Tech, this one is my favorite.  Texas Tech QB Pat Mahomes II threw 88 passes in the game,  Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks threw 88 pitches in Game Six of the NLCS v. the Dodgers.

...And then there were NONE;  For the first time in years I am proud to write that nobody in the FBS will go winless this season.  Saturday, Rice beat Prairie View A&M, 65-44 to be that last team to get a victory.

...Quietly making noise in the thin air; HC Craig Bohl has his Wyoming Cowboys at 5-2 and 3-0 in Mountain West Conference play.  The Cowboys get both Boise and SDSU at home in the coming weeks.

...Those orange things; Just prior to kickoff off of the Utah-UCLA game at the Rose Bowl, Utah HC Kyle Whittingham noticed that something was missing from the field.  The grounds crew hadn't set out the pylons in the end zones.  After a few minutes, the grounds crew came out with the pylons and placed them on the field.  Then, there was another few minutes delay as the referees went around after the grounds crew and replaced each pylon correctly. Epic fail for the grounds crew on this one.

...Not a friendly handshake; ASU HC Todd Graham gave Wazzu HC Mike Leach an earful after his Sun Devils lost to the Cougars. Graham was never happy with Leach's assertions that ASU was stealing their signals.  Here's the exchange, it's not easy to make out, but Graham does utter one expletive to Leach and he runs off.
Chickenbleep

...Quacks on board;  Oregon praised themselves for fighting hard against Cal and putting out a great effort in their loss to the Golden Bears.  Those statements punched the Ducks tickets for this season's moral victory tour.  Get used to acceptable losses, Phil.

...A piece of the rock;  While fooling around as I do on YouTube looking for old football games, I stumbled upon a full game broadcast of the 1974 Michigan-Ohio State game.  I enjoyed listening to the great Keith Jackson.  However, at the end of the game there was a ten minute bit of nostalgia that was just plain fun to watch.  So, please follow this link and fast forward to the two hour, forty-six minute mark of the video.
 As Jimmy would say, "The way that it used to be."

Ugly uniform of the Week

This week's winner is Oregon.  When you're winless in the Pac 12, you're just a lousy team in an awful shade of green.

Departments

Low Score Game of the Week: Kings Point, NY- QB Sean Richardson took off on a keeper and rambled 78 yards for a TD to lift the St. Lawrence University Saints to an 8-0 win over the Merchant Marine Academy Mariners.  The Saints two-point conversion came when Holder Tyler Bush took a high snap and knifed his way into the end zone.  Both teams moved the ball well between the 20s in this game, but only St. Lawrence managed to light up the scoreboard.

Blowout Game of the Week: Burnaby, British Columbia: In The D-II ranks, the Azusa Pacific Cougars put on a stellar defensive performance en route to a 57-0 victory over the Simon Fraser Clan.  The Cougar defense returned there interceptions and one fumble for touchdowns and also tallied a safety. The 30 points scored by the APU defense was more than the offensive output of 81 other teams on the Division II level last Saturday.

Georgetown Gridiron News:  Washington, D.C.- The Hoyas played good defense, but the Fordham Rams played just a little better defense and beat GU, 17-14.  A field goal by Fordham's Makay Red with 6:08 to play was the difference in this one. Fordham held GU to -2 yards rushing and 167 total yards. In fact, GU had more first down by penalty (2), than by rushing (1).  Up next for the Hoyas is a trip to Lafayette.

C.W. Post Press: Brockville, NY-  QB Joe Kidd did not suit up for the Pioneers this week due to an injury he suffered last week v. Southern Connecticut State.  Backup QB Matt Brennan only lasted midway through the first half v. American International College. He was injured and Post would have to play the rest of the game with the stronger Michael Campbell at the helm.  Nursing a 3-0 lead at the half, C.W.Post turned things over the to their running game.  RBs David White and Malik Pierre combined for 176 yards on 34 carries and three TDs to carry the Pioneers to a 22-7 win.  C.W. Post is now 8-0 on the season and will host the Pace University Setters this week.

Razorback Report: The Commissioner missed this spot in the column last week and didn't get to talk about how Arkansas defeated Ole Miss, 34-30. Arkansas lost this past week at Auburn, 56-3.  So, I will praise the Hogs again for beating Ole Miss where QB Anthony Allen threw for 229 yards and three scores. Up next for the Hogs is bye week, then a home date with Florida.

This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...

I now see the light. After all these years, I find out that Mother's Taffy Cookies aren't taffy at all. They are Dulche De Leche. Hmmmmmm

Time does march on.  My wife and I lowered the age demographic at the Jimmy Buffett concert by ten years.  my nieces did it by twenty-five.

The Shwack in Dana Point makes a pretty great burger.  The Shwack sauce makes it so.

The Century Mark

I am proud to say that this week's blog marks the 100th edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. I am also proud to see what this blog has become over the years. Way way back when, it was just a set of typewritten notes that I mailed out to our tailgate group.  It then morphed into an email release and then finally became Notes on a Pac 10 Scorecard.  That incarnation lasted 33 posts until the new frontier of the Pac 12 occurred and hence we have this current blog.  I love how this blog just continues to evolve. The input form all of you who read it makes it a living thing.  Some of the best parts of this blog were suggested by you guys.  Among those suggestions, I thank my sister Luci for suggesting the Ugly Uniform of the Week section and my buddy Chris Eggers suggesting the Three Notes about Nothing section. Heres' to the Trojans, Razorbacks, Golden Bears, Wildcats, Wolverines, Beavers, Cougars, Golden Gophers, Pioneers and all the other mascots that have graced these pages. I thank you all for reading these weekly ramblings about the game I dearly love.  It has been a great ride.

-Fight On!
The Commissioner

2016 Week 7

Hey All,

It's time for that column that makes you wish for Saturday on Tuesday.  It's time for another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard.  We still miss you, Jim Murray.

Summaries

USC 48- Arizona 14:  The Trojans held a 7-0 lead when Arizona tied the game with 5:40 to play in the first period on a three-yard run by QB Khalil Tate.  After Tate scored he turned to the USC bench and flashed USC's victory sign at them.  24:20 seconds later, USC held a 34-7 lead going into the half and Tate had been dramatically outplayed by Trojan QB Sam Darnold who had thrown four TD passes and a couple of hundred more yards.  Darnold would throw for one more score to cap off his 5 TD day where he completed 20 of 32 passes for 235 yards and ran six times for 54 yards. RBs Aca'Cedric Ware and Jones combined to rush for 192 yards and a TD on just 19 carries. Tate finished the game with just 58 yards passing and 72 yards rushing with that lone TD in the loss.  The Trojans defense also played well forcing four Wildcat turnovers. Two of those coming form Khalil Tate.
Telling Stat:  215 to Tuscon;  215 of Arizona's 343 total yards came after USC had emptied the benches up 41-7 to start the fourth quarter. 

Stanford 17- Notre Dame 10: The struggling Cardinal came to South Bend to take on the staggering Irish.  Notre Dame looked to have this game under control with a 10-0 Halftime lead behind an 8-yard TD run from QB DeShone Kizer and a 29-yard field goal by PK Justin Yoon. Nothing was working at all for the Cardinal with RB Christian McCaffrey out of the lineup.  The Cardinal needed their defense to step up and they did.  On the fourth play of the third quarter, DB Quentin Meeks picked off a Kizer pass and took it back 50 yards for a score to put the Cardinal within three points at 10-7. The teams then stumbled through the next several possessions trading turnovers and punts until an ND miscue gave the Cardinal a chance to win.  On their own five-yard line, ND C Sam Mustipher snapped the ball out of the end zone for a safety.  The Cardinal took the ball after the free kick and marched down the field 77 yards for the go-ahead score.  RB Bryce Love fumbled as he entered the end zone but it was recovered by WR J.J. Acrega-Whiteside of the TD.  Love then ran it in for the two-point conversion and the 17-10 lead.  The Irish had one last shot to tie the game, but Kizer fumbled on the Stanford 14-yard line to end the threat. The struggling Cardinal walked out of South Bend with the win.  Bryce Love was the Stanford offense rushing for 129 yards on 23 carries, while DeShone Kizer led the Irish attack with 154 yards passing and 83 yards rushing with a TD.  Kizer also was benched for three series in second half because ND HC Brian Kelly wanted to try and jumpstart the offense.
Telling Stat: Palo Alto 9-0;  The Stanford defense whipped the Notre Dame offense in the second half, outscoring the Irish 9-0 to set the stage for the Cardinal offense to claim the comeback win.

Colorado 40- Arizona State 16: Sefo Liufau returned to the lineup this week at QB for the Buffs.  Some were surprised by the move, but Liufau had great success in the past v. the Sun Devils.  So, did the Buffs let the ball fly in the thin air of Boulder? No.  They ran around, through and over the Sun Devils.  CU rushed the ball 52 times for 352 yards and five TDs.  The chief punisher of the ASU defense was RB Phillip Lindsay who toted the rock 26 times for 219 yards and three TDs.  The CU defense played well too.  They limited ASU to seven first downs and 199 total yards.  For ASU, QB Manny Wilkins was back after being injured at USC two weeks ago.  However, he did not do well, completing only 13 of 35 passes for 149 yards, a TD and an interception.
Telling Stat: A Defense as Tough as the Rockies;  ASU just couldn't move the ball on Colorado. Not even when they scored.  Two of ASU's "scoring drives" followed big plays that set up ASU deep in CU territory.  On those two drives, ASU was held to -11 yards and two field goals.

Utah 19- Oregon State 14: The Utes lived off their defense and just enough offense to rack up another Pac 12 win up in rainy Corvallis.  The two teams slogged through the remnants of a Pacific typhoon that caused havoc in the state which resulted in a sparse crowd at the game. Due to injury earlier this year, Utah RB Joe Williams "retired" from football.  Well, due to further injuries to the Utes, HC Kyle Whittingham called Williams to coax him out of retirement. Williams jumped at the chance and ran for 179 yards on 34 carries and a TD to lead all rushers.  The Beavers hung tough in this game, down just 19-14 with 1:40 to play. However, the Beavers couldn't recover an onside kick, then couldn't make anything happen in the final :37 when the Utah defense held for downs deep in OSU territory. In the loss, RB Artavis Pierce rushed for 60 yards on nine carries and TD.
Telling Stat: 1/2 a shutout was good enough;  Utah's defense shutout OSU in the first half while their offense built-up a 12-0 halftime lead to take control of this game.

Washington State 27- UCLA 20: The red hot Cougars hosted the Josh Rosen-less bRuins in what looked like it would be a Cougar blowout on paper.  Well, put together a tough bRuin defense and some heavy rain and you get a game that finished way closer than most thought.  For the first time in 41 games, the Cougars did not throw a TD pass, but they did get three rushing TDs from RBs Gerard Wicks and Jamal Morrow. Rosen's backup, QB Mike Fafaul still had a slim chance to tie the game with :49 left, but his second down pass was intercepted by CB Charleston White.  Wazzu the took a knee and got out of the rain with another Pac 12 win.
Telling Stat: Out with a whimper;  After fighting their way back into this game, Wazzu stonewalled the bRuin offense.  The Cougars forced a fumble and an interception to send the bRuins meekly into the Pullman night and a long bus ride to Spokane.  

Observations

...So long, West Lafayette;  Purdue parted ways with HC Darrell Hazel Sunday morning. Hazell's Bolermakers went 9-33 under his tenure with a 3-24 mark in Big Ten play. It didn't help that Purdue has a new AD this year.  New AD Mike Bobinski made noises that he wanted his guy in job over the last few weeks and now he'll choose that guy.

...Note to Western Michigan HC P.J. Fleck; You ever get a chance to go to West Lafayette, take it from me, pass it by.

...Not so fast Houston, USF and the 10 dwarves;  The Big XII snuffed out all the talk about expansion without even bringing the matter to a vote in their league meeting Monday.  I even think I heard the Big XII Commissioner Bob Bowlsby say, "Thank you for playing, we do have some lovely parting gifts." as he exited the meeting hall.

...Memo to the Larry Scott; A 12:30 game in Tucson with an air temp of 96 and an on-field heat index of 137 should never happen.  That is all.

...One out of three is bad;  If UCLA's offense and special teams played as well as their defense, they could win the Pac 12.

...Bama Breeze;  Alabama smashed Tennesee, 49-10 and left the Volunteers feeling like a jilted West Nashville Grand Ballroom gal.

...A bayou crime of passion;  Who else thinks that coach Ed Oregon will have his LSU squad ready to blow the doors off his former employer, Ole Miss this week?  

...Bold Buffs;  If a few weeks ago, had anybody had told me that Stanford's role in their game this week v. Colorado would be one of spoiler, I'd tell them to quit sniffing glue.

...bRuins Eve;  UCLA came out and warmed up on Washington State's end of the field during pregame to their contest.  This bush league stunt garnered these comments from Wazzu WR Gabe Marks.  Enjoy.
He said it!

...And then there was one;  Rice is the only winless team left in the FBS.  Good thing Stanford scheduled them so they can end the season on a high note.

...He's the ing of somewhere hot;  ND HC Brian Kelly is on a hot hot hot seat at ND and his going after a Stanford assistant coach who popped off to him after his squad lost to the Cardinal doesn't help. #Bye-Bye Brian.

...Hotter than a Tucson taco; UofA HC Rich Rodriguez is riding one of the hottest seats in the nation. He may beat Texas HC Charlie Strong to the unemployment line.

...No tears for the Irish;  ND is 2-5 and nobody cares.

...Pushing the Pile;  Check out the Oregon State O-line effort on this run.
Beaver blockers

...Aggies in line;  Looks like Texas A&M has the last legitimate shot to derail Alabama on the way to the SEC title game.

...For all the apples;  If current trends hold, this year's Apple Cup might finally garner the folks in Pullman that elusive visit from College Gameday.

Dumb Uniform of the Week

Arizona wins this week's award for wearing this all-blue ensemble.  I know UofA had the wether report stating how hot it was going to be on the field for this game, yet the Wildcats still chose to don all-dark blue uniforms in the heat, which allowed USC to wear their cooler white road jerseys.  SMH.

Departments

Best Game Nobody Saw This Week: LaVerne, CA- With 1:04 left on the clock, QB Zak Tomlinson found WR Alex Arellano for a two-point conversion to lift the LaVerne Leopards to a 57-56 win over the Occidental Tigers.  This game was quite the shootout. The two teams combined for 152 plays, 53 first downs and 1,288 total yards of offense.

Low Score Game of the Week:  Springfield, MA- In the Atlantic 10 Conference, Bentley LB Joey Platnik sacked QB Kwamme Jarvis for a safety in the first period.  Then in the second period, PK Grant Buchanan nailed a 30-yard field goal and tha's all the Bentley would need in a 5-3 win over American International College. Yes, it was a defensive struggle.  The teams combined for 14 three-and-outs and just one drive of of 10 plays or more.

C.W. Post Press: The Pioneers found themselves down, 13-0 midway through the second period to the Southern Connecticut State Owls. QB Jeff Kidd and the rest of the Pioneers dug out of that hole and took the lead in the third quarter when Kidd hit WR Kyle Ward with a 41-yard scoring strike for a 20-16 lead. The Pioneers would hold that lead the rest of the way in a 30-23 win. Kidd finished the game completing 19 of 28 passes for 255 yards and 3 TDs.  He also ran for a score.  In the loss, SCSU QB Rich Catapano completed 19 of 45 passes for 318 yards and a pair of scores. Up next for the 7-0 Pioneers is a home date with the American International College Yellow Jackets.

Georgetown Gridiron News:  The Hoyas entered Patriot League play this week and were whipped by Lehigh, 35-3.  Not much went right for the Blue and Gray in this one. The Hoyas were held to 177 total yards while Lehigh QB Brad Hayes completed 19 of 26 passes for 247 yards and two TDs.  Up next for the GU is a trip to Frodham to take on the Rams.

This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...

Butternut squash soup is pretty good.

There's nothing like a lazy Sunday in the backyard. All that was missing was tin cup chalice.

I'm pretty stoked about going to Jimmy Buffett this weekend. 

Until next time folks, remember that an ugly win is still a win.
-The Commissioner

2016 Week 6

Hey All,

It's time for that column that helps you beat those Tuesday blahs, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard.  We still miss you, Mal Florence.

Summaries

USC 21- Colorado 17:  Despite a couple of early turnovers, USC was still on the verge of blowing out the Buffaloes in the early third quarter. USC held a 14-0 lead and had the Colorado defense in hands-on-hips mode wilting in the 87 degree Coliseum heat.  The Trojans were driving for what looked like a 21-0 lead and total control of the game. Then USC RB Justin Davis fumbled on the CU 22. The Buffaloes then threw for a 67-yard TD pass on the next play and the potential blowout turned into a tense struggle.  Colorado tied that game at 14-14 when QB Steven Montez hit WR Bryce Bobo with a 10-yard TD pass with 10:20 to play.  USC then answered that TD with one of their own on a drive kept alive with just an incredible catch by WR Darreus Rogers.  A tired USC defense came up with one last stop, forcing CU to kick a field goal 4:49 to play which cut the lead to 21-17.  USC's offense needed to run out the clock to ensure a win.  They did with a big 10-play drive that did just that.  The key play to that drive was on third-and-seven, USC QB Sam Darnold Connected with WR JuJu Smith who broke free of his defender to get the first down.  He then smartly hit the turf instead of running for a sure TD so the Trojans could just run out the clock instead of having their tired defense see the field again. Darnold had another good game, despite his turning the ball over three times, completing 25 of 37 passes for 358 yards and three TDs.  In the loss, CU QB Steven Montez completed 27 of 40 passes for 197 yards and a TD.
Telling Stat:  A 3 level passing game;  USC QB Sam Darnold completed passes to his WRs, RBs, and TEs which made the Colorado defend the whole field.  Which is something USC hasn't done in a few years.

Washington 70- Oregon 21: The Ducks held a 12-game wining streak over the Huskies coming into this game.  The Huskies quickly ended any thoughts that this streak would reach 13.  The Dawgs dismantled Oregon in front of their home crowd, silencing the usually raucous Autzen Stadium faithful.  By halftime, much of that crowd were dressed up as seats as UW held a 35-7 lead.  The Husky defense easily contained the Ducks offense which set the stage for UW QB Jake Browning to make himself known to the rest of the nation.  Browning completed 22 of 28 passes for 304 yards and six TDs.  He also ran for a pair of scores too. RB Myles Gaskin also had a pretty good day toting the rock 16 times for 197 yards and a TD.
Telling Stat: Over early again;  Once again the Huskies came out and put an opponent in an early hole.  With 2:37 left in the first period UW held a 21-0 lead over Oregon, out gaining the Ducks 166 yards to 45 in the process.

Arizona State 23- UCLA 20: This game was the ugly game in the Pac 12 this week.  Neither offense got untracked in the first half.  ASU's offense was held to 59 total yards in the first half by a stingy UCLA defense that made ASU QB Brady White look just as bad as he did at USC last week when he came on for injured starter Manny Wilkins. However, UCLA did triple ASU's first half yardage gaining 183 yards, but two missed field goals and key drops by bRuin receivers to go with QB Josh Rosen's lack of mobility due to a groin injury led to the teams being deadlocked 3-3 at the half. The teams did make some second half adjustments and managed to score some points, but injuries played a major role in this game.  Rosen had left the game in the second quarter and his backup Mike Fafaul presided over a stagnant offense as ASU found some life and managed to build a 13-3 lead with 8:29 in the third quarter.  Rosen then came back from the locker room and led UCLA back to tie the game at 13-13. White then drove the Sun Devils 75 yards on the ensuing drive for a go ahead TD.  He found WR N'Keal Harry from 14 yards out on the final play of the third quarter to put ASU up 20-13.  The ASU defense then stepped up and picked off Rosen on the next drive. ASU PK Zane Gonzalez turned that interception into a 46-yard field goal to extend the Sun Devils lead to 23-13.  UCLA and Rosen got off the deck and went on a 75-yard TD drive that cut ASU's lead to three at 23-20.  ASU then looked like they would put UCLA away when White was sacked and injured on the bRuin 15-yard line.  That forced ASU to burn the Redshirt of true freshman QB Dillon Sterling who promptly came threw an interception in the UCLA end zone.  The limping Josh Rosen then started to lead the bRuins on what looked like a game-winning drive.  Rosen was then sacked on a second down at the ASU 44-yard line.  Rosen's throwing shoulder was injured and he would not finish the game.  The bRuins would get the ball with :48 seconds left, but the ASU defense sacked Fafaul twice and intercepted him as time ran out to hold on to the ugly win.
Telling Stat: 1-2-3; UCLA was -1 in turnover margin, went through 2 QBs and racked up loss number 3 in another game where they gained lots of yards, but poor special teams and dropped passes kept them form winning. 

Washington State 42- Stanford 16: Stanford came into their game with Wazzu without their starting cornerbacks for the second successive week and for the second successive week the Cardinal defense was torched by an opposing QB.  Luke Falk completed 30 of 41 for 357 yards and four TDs for the Cougars.  The Wazzu offense did a great job, but it was their defense that set the tone for this game.  While the Cougar secondary rendered SU RB Christian McCaffrey a non-entity, the front seven out muscled the Cardinal O-line, registering four sacks and hitting SU QBs often and as hard as possible.  When WSU took a 28-10 lead into the final period, it was clear that the Cardinal couldn't mount a comeback. Wazzu easily ran up the score to 42-10 before allowing a cosmetic score as time ran out.
Telling Stat: There is No O in Cardinal;  WSU forced 3 Stanford turnovers, registered four sacks, and held the Stanford's vaunted rushing game to 61 yards in a physically dominating performance.

Oregon State 47- California 44 OT:  The Cal defense which asserted itself last week in the Golden Bears upset of Utah, was nowhere to be found for most of this game v. the Beavers.  The much maligned and injured Beaver offense actually showed up this week and held a 41-24 lead over Cal with 10:35 to play in the final period. Then, both units reverted to their norms and this turned into one  exciting game down the stretch.  Suddenly, the OSU offense went dormant, gaining just 10 total yards on their final three drives in regulation.  Meanwhile, the Cal offense found their stride, gaining 188 yards and scoring 17 points to send this game to overtime.  They accomplished this not through the air, but on the ground. 113 yards on those drives were rushing yards with both TDs coming on the ground.  However, in the lone overtime period, the OSU defense shutdown Cal's rushing attack and forced a 39-yard field goal from PK Matt Anderson. Oregon State then took over the ball and won the game when QB Darell Garretson sliced through the Cal defense for a yard 16-yard TD. Garrison ended the day 105 yards rushing and two TDs while only throwing for 85 yards and two interceptions. OSU RB Ryan Nall ran all over Cal, rushing for 221 yards on 14 carries and three TDs. For Cal, RBs Khalfani Muhammad and Tre Watson combined to rush for 299 yards and three TDs in the loss.
Telling Stat: Mutual no fly zones; In this game that featured 1,000 yards of total offense between the two teams, 791 of those yards were rushing yards and all the TDs scored by both offenses came on the ground.  

Utah 36- Arizona 23: The Utes suffered a hangover form their upset loss at Cal last week.  For the first half, Utah sputtered and bumbled their way through the game.  Eight, yes Eight false start penalties served as the greatest evidence of this hangover, yet the Utes trailed Arizona by only two points at the half, 14-12.  The Utes came out strong in the third quarter shutting otu the Wildcats 17-0 to take control of the game. Utah's defense picked off two passes to set up short scoring drives of 26 and 46 yards join the 17 point quarter. Utah RB Armand Shyne led all rushers with 101 yards and a TD on 19 carries but was lost for the season with an knee injury.  That just adds to a Utah injury list that includes their top two C, two WR and two other RBs who will miss significant playing time.
For the Wildcats QB Brandon Dawkins threw for 243 yards and a TD to go with 49 yards rushing and another score.
Telling Stat: 400 + <30 = another L; The Arizona defense gave up 400+ yards to another opponent this season and possessed the ball less than 30 minutes again as well in this loss to Utah.

Observations

...Good Dawgs;  It looks like only Washington has a good offensive line in the Pac 12 this year.

...Not equipped;  Stanford's defense looked like they brought a knife to a gunfight v. Washington State's Air-raid offense.

...Must be the third Saturday in October, Alabama and Tennessee meet again this week.

...Austin City Limits;  Looks like Tom Herman will be the new HC at Texas next year.  Texas losing to Oklahoma and the Longhorns AD pulling a Tammy Wynette sort of sealed the deal in my mind.

...Mr. Financial Advantage;  ND is off the hook, but Kansas is still paying Charlie Weis.

...Cyclones on the horizon;  Iowa State under 1st year HC Matt Campbell is getting better every week and will ruin somebody's season in the Big XII this year.

...Professor of Profanity;  Arkansas Professor Lawton Nalley was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and public intoxication after screaming obscenities at Razorback HC Bret Bielema following the Hogs, 39-20 loss to Alabama. Heck, during the game they could have arrested half the state of Arkansas for that.  Just what did this guy do to be the only guy arrested for this?

...The Grandaddy is always remembered;  Pretty cool to see the 1920 Rose Bowl Champions sign still up at Harvard Stadium.

...And then there were two;  Miami (OH) and Rice are the only winless teams left in the FBS.

...A total beatdown;  Washington did everything to Oregon except flatten the tires on the team bus.

...Another Mike Leach gem;  When asked if the noise at Stanford Stadium caused Wazzu's false starts, "Stanford's got great taste in music. Who woulda thunk it?" Obviously the music did not come from the Stanford band.

...Signs of life;  Hawaii has comeback from the dead moving to 3-3 overall and 2-0 in the Mountain West's West Divison.

...Just a rumor;  There is no truth to the rumor that the Palo Alto Police Department's CSI unit was called over to Stanford Stadium to figure out exactly when RB Christian McCaffrey's Heisman Campaign disappeared.

...His copper leg is golden;  ASU PK Zane Gonzalez's 46-yard field goal v. UCLA not only proved to be the margin of victory for the Sun Devils over UCLA, it also made him the most prolific PK in NCAA history with 89 career field goals.

...A surprise on tobacco road; While North Carolina was busy being thumped by VaTech, Wake Forest quietly moved to 5-1.

...He caught it;  He's another look at Darreus Rogers great catch v. Colorado.

Almost an interception

...The last Saturday;  Really looking forward to the Army-Navy game this year.

...Hot seat in Tuscon;  UofA HC Rich Rodriguez may be feeling the pressure a bit this year when he responded this way to reporter asking him about keeping the team morale high after his squad lost to Utah, "What do yo want me to do, quit? We're just going to go down here and hitchhike home and go feel sorry for ourselves and cancel the season."

...No excuses;  Michigan destroyed the Big Ten's resident dumpster fire, Rutgers, 78-0 last week. I had heard that Michigan emptied the benches early and HC Jim Harbaugh tried not to run up the score.  Umm, no.  That doesn't fly.  When I looked at the box score, RB Ty Isaac scored both the first and last TDs of this game.  Hmmmm.

...A trend or maybe something more;  More high schools are suspending their football seasons and dropping the sport altogether due to injuries and an overall lack of players.  Is this the canary in the mine that signals the possible end of the sport?  Hmmmm.

...Cowboy Bowling; Wyoming is just two wins away form being bowl-eligible. It took awhile, but HC Craig Bohl has Ragtime Cowboy Joe on the upswing.

Ugly Uniform of the Week: We have two winners this week.  Oregon State's all-orange ensemble is just truly hideous and Arizona State's copper uniforms win for being ugly and unreadable.  Just lots of wrong there.

  

Departments

Low Score Game of the Week: Salisbury, NC-  While there were many contenders for recognition this week due to Hurricane Matthew, This one is the winner.  On the second play of the game, DB Jeremy Hall picked up a fumble and took it 34 yards to the house for a TD.  The ensuing PAT was blocked.  The Limestone Saints made that lone score stand up for the final 59+ minutes for a 6-0 win over the Catawba Indians. Limestone won this game despite making just two first downs and gaining only 48 total yards (49 rushing, -1 passing). Oh, and one of their to first downs was via penalty.

Blowout of the Week: Morningside, IA- It was homecoming at Morningside and the Mustangs did not disappoint the home crowd by crushing the Doane College Tigers, 69-7.  QB Trent Solsam and his backup Addison Ross combined to pass for 500 hundred yards and seven TDs.  The big news about this game is that it it was a conference game and that Morningside was the underdog.  Doane has now only lost two regular season games in the last two years, with both of those being lopsided losses to Morningside.

Razorback Report: The Hogs just did't have enough in the tank and fell to the #1 Alabama Crimson Tide, 49-30.  Arkansas QB Anthony Allen throw for 400 yards and three TDs, but he also threw three huge interceptions. Up next for Arkansas is a home date with Ole Miss.

C.W. Post Press: Bethpage, NY- No last minute heroics needed this week for Post.  They whipped the St. Anselm Hawks, 63-20 to make the homecoming crowd very happy.  The pioneers built up a 42-14 halftime lead behind 204 yards passing and four TDs from QB Jeff Kidd and a TDs from RBs Malik Pierre and David White.  The Pioneers emptied the benches in the second half and cruised on to the win.  Up next for Post is a trip to New Haven, Connecticut to take Southern Connecticut State University.

Georgetown Gridiron News: Georgetown, D.C.- The Hoyas now own back-to-back 31-17 losses.  This week's loss was to Princeton. The Hoyas trailed 21-14 at the half, but the Princeton defense shut down the Hoyas offense over the final 30 minutes.  The Tigers forces four three and outs and a fumble to render the GU offense inert.  GU RB Alex Valles rushed for 91 yards and a TD in the loss.  Up next for Georgetown is a return to Patriot League play v. Lehigh.

This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...

TCM Scene It is still a great game.

Coleman still makes a pretty good stove.

Thinking it would be nice if the weather would make a decision if it really is Autumn or not.

Until next time folks, remember that freshman QBs are a double-edged sword.

-The Commissioner

2016 Week 5

Hey All,

It's time for that Tuesday treat, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard.  We still miss you, Loel Schrader.

Summaries

USC 41- Arizona State 20: Behind the dynamic play of QB Sam Darnold, the Trojans came out and blew the doors off the undefeated Sun Devils.  Darnold's ability to extend plays and hit receivers in stride led to his completing 23 of 33 passes for 352 yards and three TDs.  WR JuJu Smith-Schuster caught all three of those scoring passes with the last one being a long catch and run that covered a rambling 67 yards. Justin Davis had a good night as well for SC racking up 123 yards on the ground on 14 carries and a TD of his own.  The Trojan defense had a very good game, generating a good deal of pressure on ASU.  The defense effectively ended this game with USC up 24-6 in late in the second quarter when they knocked out ASU QB Manny Wilkins with a knee injury.
Telling Stat; Way too little, too late for ASU;  The Sun Devils gained 146 of their 303 total yards and scored 14 of their 20 points long after USC had emptied the benches with a 41-6 lead.  

Washington State 51- Oregon 33: The pass happy Cougars returned to the ground this week and ran the Ducks out of Pullman. RBs Jamal Morrow, Gerard Wicks and James Williams each scored twice while helping the Cougars to amass 280 rushing yards on a Duck defense that looked lost all game long.  The Cougars also did it on defense too.  Yes, RB Royce Freeman rushed for 138 yards and three TDs for UO, but Wazzu shutdown all of Oregon's other weapons and scored a safety as well. This game was not nearly as close as the score indicated with Oregon getting a garbage time TD late.
Telling Stat: A feather soft defense;  The Oregon defense gave up 51 points, 651 yards, 36 first downs, and lost the time of possession battle by almost 20 minutes to a Wazzu team that values T.O.P less than the Ducks do in this rout.

California 28- Utah 23: The Utes came into Berkeley riding high after defeating USC last week the previous Friday in the final seconds.  The Utes found themselves in a battle from the get go. The Golden Bears came out quick and strong, racing out to 14-0 lead after the first quarter on TD passes 40 and 39 yards from QB Davis Webb to WRs Chade Hansen and Demetrius Robinson. Utah fought back and seemed to take control of the game going up 17-14 with 4:05 left in the third quarter when RB Armand Shyne scored from a yard out. However Cal fought back back and held a 28-23 lead over the Utes with just 4:21 to play.  The Utes looked like they would pull off another last second win as they stood poised to score at the Cal one-yard line with just :03 left.  However, the Cal defense, yes the Cal defense, made a stand.  Utah RB Zack was tackled short of the goal line as time ran out and the Bears had the win.
Telling Stat: A big 3 for the D; Cal's defense stood tall on the goal line with three stops of the Utah offense when  it mattered most to come away both the win.

Washington 44- Stanford 6: The Dawgs did what most dogs to trees in their dismantling of the Cardinal.  The Dawgs came out hungry and strong.  The UW offense took full advantage of both of SU's starting corners being out due to injury and torched the Cardinal secondary.  QB Jake Browning only threw 21 passes, but completed 15 of them for 210 yards and three TDs.  The UW rushing game was pretty good too with RB Myles Gaskin toting the rock 18 times for 100 yards and a pair of scores. The Husky defense was the true star of this game as they shut down Stanford quickly and easily.  The Dawgs were able to make life miserable for SU QBs all night long with just a four man pass rush. Stanford's O-line had a terrible night giving up eight sacks and generating nothing close to a running game.  The Cardinal were held to just 29 yards rushing with Heisman Candidate RB Christian McCaffrey being rendered a non-factor by the Dawgs.
Telling Stat: Long chains;  3rd and 9;  Washington shut down Stanford's offense so thoroughly that the Cardinal's average distance to convert on third down was nine yards.

Colorado 47- Oregon State 6:  The Buffaloes dialed some long distance to thrash the Beavers.  Freshman QB Steven Montez, still subbing for the injured Sefo Liufau, connected with WR Shay Fields for TD tosses of 51, 33, and 63 yards.  Those TDs along with a 1-yard TD plunge by RB Phillip Lindsay, a 20-yard interception return by LB Rick Gamboa, and a 54-yard field goal by PK Davis Price put the Buffs up 37-6 at half the half.  The second half was merely a scrimmage as Colorado emptied the benches in this laugher.   Yes, Colorado emptied the benches because they were ahead by 30 points.  For the hapless Beavers, RB Artavis Pierce rushed for 61 yards in the loss.
Telling Stat: Bad by land, Worse by air;  How bad did Colorado's defense whip OSU?  Well they held the Beavers to just 3.7 yards per carry and 3.1 yards per pass attempt.

UCLA 45- Arizona 24: The bRuins came into this game against and injury depleted Wildcat squad looking for a bounce back win after their gut wrenching loss to Stanford lsat week.  For the first 30 minutes the defense and special teams did their job, but the offense lagged.  UCLA did hold a 14-7 lead, but the sluggishness of the offense had the Rose Bowl crowd booing the bRuins. The offense did come in the second half and find itself, putting up 31 points to pull away form the Wildcats. UCLA QB Josh Rosen completed 20 of 37 passes for 350 yards and three TDs. UCLA's RB by committee combined to rush for 125 yards with Nate Starks gaining 80 of those on 17 carries with a TD.  For Arizona, touted freshman QB Khalil Tate took over their stagnant offense and passed for 72 yards and 79 yards with a late TD pass after the game had long been decided.
Telling Stat: 8 is not great; Arizona ran only 8 of their 80 plays in the red zone in a game where they dominated every statistical category but the scoreboard.   

Observations

...Quietly making noise; West Virginia is undefeated after taking out K-State, 17-16 last Saturday.

...From the penthouse to the outhouse;  Duke football goes to Notre Dame two weeks ago and beats the Irish, then comes home the next week and loses to a Virginia squad that was whipped by FCS foe Richmond to start the season. SMH.

...If they had a good wall; USC QB Sam Darnold and RB Justin Davis make the Trojans very weak O-line look good.

...Coach O is 1-0; Interim LSU HC Ed Orgeron is now 1-0 at LSU after his Bayou Bengals dismantled Missouri 42-7.  Coach O, just another good coach that Pat Haden couldn't hire.

...And then there were four;  There are four winless teams left in the FBS this season.  Rice, Miami of Ohio, Georgia State and Arkansas State are the dubious final four.

...The number is 54;  I have seen five 54-yard field goals in college football this year.  Wow.

...Not taking it well;  Pac 12 Commissioner Leisure Suit Larry Scott must be pretty angry that the Pac 12 power center has shifted to Seattle after all he's done to make Palo Alto the center of the Pac 12 universe.

...11 years and a whole conference ago;  Colorado was an 18-point favorite going into their game with Oregon State last week. That's the first time the Buffs were a double digit favorite in a conference game since 2005 when they were still in the Big XII.

...Just a rumor;  There is no truth to the rumor that the Corvalis Police Department had to rescue the Oregon State offense from a busy intersection because they couldn't cross the street.

...A question for the Quacks;  Plucking QB's from the Big Sky Conference doesn't seem so cool now, huh?

...Got 'em again;  The Wazzu athletic department hit Oregon hard after the whistle with this 1980's throwback image to celebrate the Cougars second straight win over the Quacks.

...OC, DC, then HC; Texas HC Charlie Strong has already replace his OC this season, now he replaced his DC with himself.  I think his days at UT are numbered.  Texas is now another team in the Tom Herman sweepstakes.

...On pace for 2K;  RB Donald Humphrey has rushed for 750 yards through four game this year.  That puts him on pace for a 2,250 yards for the season.

...Memo to Penn State;  If your kicker is gonna make a name for himself leveling kick returners, he's gonna get leveled himself by the return team.  Live with it.

...Need that calculation;  Just what are the odds that two Hail Mary passes are completed in one game like what happened in the Tennessee-Georgia game?

...Ugly winners;  Tennessee has to be the worst looking good team out there.

...Just as much protection;  Stanford could have saved some wear and tear on their O-line if they would have just installed turnstiles at the tackle positions last week v. Washington.

...Just a rumor;  There is no truth to the rumor that former USC AD Pat Haden is going to be honored with a lifetime achievement award by the University of Washington at halftime of the Trojans game at UW in November.  His resume though is pretty outstanding.  Haden hired Steve Sarkisian when UW was going to fire him, saving the Huskies lots of buyout cash that they could use to hire Chris Petersen as their HC who Pat Haden deemed "just didn't get USC" when he turned him down for the job.  Way to go, Pat.

...He had an app for that;  USC WR JuJu Smith's catch and 75-yard TD run took such a long route to pay dirt that it looked like he received directions from Waze to get to the end zone.

...It's all about the ball; Washington leads the nation in turnover margin with a +11 mark.

...Eyeing the Storm; Hurricane Matthew or what's left of it will hit the eastern seaboard this weekend and impact a lot of games.

Ugly Uniform of the Week?

This week's honor goes to the Houston Cougars and it's mostly because I am conflicted here.  I don't like the all-gray ensemble.  I don't think the numbers would be easy to tread form the stands either. Heck, even the UH on the helmets is tough to read, but part of me really likes this uniform.

A Baseball Note

This past Sunday marked the end of the regular season in MLB.  I donned one of my many Angels t-shirts and watched the final innings of the Halos final game.  The Halos would finish 21 games back of first place, but I did find some positives in that final game.  I saw Mike Trout get his 30th stolen base and his 100th RBI of the year.  The guy plays like I wanted to as a kid and dream of as an adult.   For a good deal of my friends, they get to watch their teams battle in the playoffs to try and claim that World Series crown.  I'll be watching the playoffs too. There is something magical in the hard sunlight and long shadows of fall that tell us that winter is coming as the summer game finishes for another year. I always find something to like in the grand old game.

Departments

Low Score Game of the Week: Somerville, MA- QB Ryan McDonald dodged defenders when he raced 15 yards for a TD with 9:04 left in the fourth quarter to give the Tufts Jumbos a 12-7 lead over the Bates College Bobcats.  The Jumbos defense then held Bates the rest of the way for the hard fought win.  McDonald only completed one of eight passes, but his 75 yards rushing on 11 carries and his TD run were enough for Tufts to win.

Blowout Game of the Week: Belton, TX- After a sluggish first half, the Mary-Hardin Baylor Crusaders scored 42 second half points to crush the McMurray War Hawks, 66-3.  QB Blake Jackson completed 16 of 20 passes for 256 yards and five TDs in this laugher.  Jackson's 256 yards passing were 75 yards more than the Crusader defense gave up in total yardage to the War Hawks.

C.W. Post Press:  Worcester, MA- The Pioneers remained undefeated on the season by pulling off a thrilling 19-18 upset over the 15th ranked Assumption College Greyhounds.  The Pioneers held a 12-10 lead at the half thanks to a 1-yard TD toss from QB Jeff Kidd to RB Malik Pierre.  After a scoreless third quarter, Assumption regained the lead with 9:27 to play when QB Marc Monks hit WR Bryan Swain-Price with an 8-yard TD pass.  Monks then passed for the two-point conversion and the Greyhounds held an 18-12 lead.  Post came right back on the ensuing possession.  Kidd drove the Pioneers 66 yards in 11 plays, capping it off with a 4-yard TD run with 4:04 to play.  The PAT was good and Post was up to stay at 19-18.  Assumption looked like they would have one last chance to wi this game, but a great punt by Post Punter Joey Tolgyesi was downed at the Greyhounds one-yard line. Post would then hold for downs and leave with the upset win.  Up next for Post is Homecoming v. Saint Anselm College.

Georgetown Gridiron News: Cambridge, MA- The undefeated Hoyas did not fare well in the second leg of their three game Ivy league swing, dropping a 31-17 decision to the Crimson under the Friday night lights. The first half was all Harvard,who built up a 24-7 lead behind three TD passes from QB Joe Viviano, the longest of which was a 75-yarder to WR Anthon Firkser. The Hoyas did outscore the Crimson 10-7 in the second half, but it wasn't enough to get a win.  RB Isaa Ellsworth ran for 109 yards on just 10 carries with a TD in the losing effort for the boys form the Capitol.  Up next for the Hoyas is a home date with the Princeton Tigers.

Razorback Report: After last week's loss to Texas A&M, the Hogs returned home and took their frustration out on Alcorn state, 52-10. The Hogs took a 24-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back.  QB Anthony Allen threw for 208 yards and three scored, but the Razorbacks ran for 353 yards on the Braves.  RBs Devwah Whaley and Rawleigh Williams III both topped the 100-yard mark with Whaley crossing the double stripe once.  Next week, the Hogs et back to serious business when they host Alabama.

This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...

...I totally enjoyed my son Jerick's Carne Asada hot dog creation this past Sunday.

...Sunday family dinners are a great thing.

...A backyard breeze and a cold drink are a winning combination.

Until next time folks remember that it really ain't over until it's over.

-The Commissioner