It's time for another edition of the column that keeps your mind on the game, Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Tom Kelly.
Summaries
USC 38- Colorado 24: USC's three act play v. Arizona was such a hit that they took the show on the road to Boulder. USC built up a 27-0 lead thanks to a strong defensive effort and an offense that one day may score enough points to match their yardage totals. Just when SC fans began to relax during the third quarter, SC commenced with the second act of the show. CB Jack Jones made a bad decision on a pass route and WR Juwann Winfree took the gift of the busted coverage and romped 79-yards into the end zone untouched. Colorado followed that with a blocked punt on USC's ensuing possession. The Buffs turned that into a 1-yard TD run by RB Phillip Lindsay and suddenly the Trojans were clinging to a 27-14 lead with over 20 minutes of game left to play. Then, act three commenced began and USC built up a 38-17 lead with 12:42 left on a 22-yard TD run by Ronald Jones II and a two-point conversion pass from QB Sam Darnold to TE Erik Krommenhoek. SC then gave up a 59-yard TD pass thanks to another busted coverage by Jones. Then, despite some horrible clock management down the stretch USC pulled out the win thanks to CB Ajene Harris' second interception of the game and the Buffaloes not realizing that their presumed 1st and Goal at the SC 3-yard line was really fourth and inches. The Trojans walked out of Folsom Field with the Pac 12 South Division Crown. Darnold and Jones II were USC's offense with Darnold completing 21 of 34 passes for 329 yards and two TDs. He also ran for a score as well. Jones II had a great day, rushing for 142 yards on 25 carries and a TD. Jones II moved into sixth place on USC's career rushing list with his 142 yards. He passed Mike Garrett, Reggie Bush and Lendale White on the list with his effort. For Colorado, RB Phillip Lindsay was bottled up by the Trojan defense, gaining only 68 yards on 20 carries with a TD. However, QB Steven Montez competed 27 of 49 passes for 376 yards and two TDs. The downside for Montez was that two of his passes were picked off by Ajene Harris and he took one of them back for a TD.
Telling Stat: 25-9 x 2; After the win, USC HC Clay Helton has the same record after 34 games, (25-9) as Pete Carroll did at USC in his first 34 games.
Stanford 30- Washington 22: Stop me if You've heard this before. See, the Pac 12 schedules a Friday Night game where one of their teams with a hope of making the College Football Playoff has to win a road game at a tough opponent's yard on short rest. Washington suffered the league's Friday night curse and was worked over by the slow, plodding Stanford Cardinal on The Farm. Everything looked good for the Dawgs as they held a 14-7 lead with 11:37 left in second quarter. Their running game was moving and their defense had held Stanford in check for the most part. With 6:19 left in the period UW looked like they were going to take a commanding two TD lead. The Dawgs went for a makeable 4th and 1 at the Cardinal 18-yard line. UW RB Myles Gaskin was stopped short. The momentum had swung Stanford's way and the Dawgs would never get it back. The Cardinal offense chipped away at their deficit, while the their defense bottled up the Huskies. Stanford's time draining attack played a slow game of keep away with the Huskies. Suddenly, there was only 8:48 left to play in the game and the Cardinal held a 30-14 lead. Washington did manage to cut the deficit to just eight points with 4:22 left, but never got any closer. Running on basically one-ankle, SU RB Bryce Love lugged the leather 30 times for 166 yards and three TDs. Even more importantly for SU, QB K.J. Costello completed 16 of 27 tosses for 211 yards without an interception. RB Myles Gaskin ran for 120 yards and three TDs on just 18 carries in the loss.
Telling Stat: They moved the chains; Stanford's slow, throttling style of offense only works if they convert third downs. Stanford did just that. They converted 10 of 18 third downs with an average gain of 9.7 yards per conversion.
Arizona 49- Oregon State 28: The bloodied, but not bowed Beavers showed up to Tuscon and had first row seats to another episode of "The Running of The Cats." The Wildcats ran up a big halftime lead by ummm... running. Four rushing TDs by four different Wildcats, RBs Nick Wilson, Zach Green, WR Tony Ellison and some QB named Khalil Tate all crossed the double stripe to give their squad a 28-0 halftime edge. Tate, Green and now backup QB Brandon Dawkins would run for scores in the second half to complete UofA's seven rushing TD night. When it was all over, Arizona torched Oregon State for 534 yards on the ground. Tate ran for 206 yards on 16 carries and two TDs. Wilson ran for 101 yards and a score on 10 carries and freshman RB J.J. Taylor ran for 129 yards on 10 carries. Lost in the all rushing yards was the fact that UofA's defense, which had given up more yards than the Italian army pitched a first half shutout. That was a big deal, because they reverted to their usual selves in the second half and gave up 28 to the Beavers. In the loss, OSU QB Darrell Garretson completed 16 of 28 passes for 209 yards and four TDs.
Telling Stat: Why throw? Arizona didn't need to throw so they didn't. The Wildcats only attempted seven passes, but rushed the ball 55 times for 534 yards and seven TDs. That's a cool 9.7 yards per carry for the non-math majors out there.
UCLA 44- Arizona State 37: In game seen by dozens on the Pac 12 Network, UCLA bounced back form their debacle at Utah last week by outlasting the Sun Devils at the Rose Bowl. bRuin QB Josh Rosen came back strong after missing the last game plus due to a concussion. After a slow start, Rosen went on to complete 25 of 45 passes for 381 yards, a TD and an interception. He also ran for a score as well. In addition to Rosen's comeback, UCLA rediscovered their rushing game. The bRuins ran for 192 yards with RB Bob Olorunfunmi gaining 79 yards on 15 carries with a TD. This game was a see-saw affair with ASU fading down the stretch. However, QB Manny Wilkins did throw for 290 yards, a TD and an interception. RB DeMario Richard had a good game, rushing for 125 yards on 21 carries and a TD of his own.
Telling Stat: 0= W; UCLA's much maligned O-line didn't give up a single sack which gave Josh Rosen plenty of time to pick apart the ASU secondary and lift his squad to the win.
Washington State 33- Utah 25: The Cougars were anxious to break out of their road funk dropping their last two contests away from home in unimpressive fashion. Wazzu came out strong early and hung on for the win at the always tough to play in Rice-Eccles Stadium. The Cougars jumped out to a 13-0 lead thanks to three Utah turnovers. Utah would turn the ball over seven times in the game. The Cougars then put just enough points on the board in the final three periods to walk out with a hard fought win. The Utah defense's strong play in the red zone kept this game a lot closer than it should have been. The Cougars didn't get a lot of TDs, but PK Eric Powell nailed four of five field goal attempts to keep his squad in command. Despite the red zone troubles, WSU QB Luke Falk competed 40 of 69 passes for 311 yards, three TDs and two interceptions. Utah QB Tyler Huntley threw for 305 yards with a TD and three interceptions in the loss.
Telling Stat: +4 +2 x 0= W; Wazzu was able to grind out the win thanks to being +4 in the turnover department and shutting out Utah in the first and third quarters.
Observations
...Giving myself a hand; Washington found a way to lose at Stanford.
...The man still resonates; During this season and especially the last few games an old Tom Kelly quote comes to mind. "The Trojans just can't stand prosperity!"
...Butch cut; Tennessee did what was expected all year and fired HC Butch Jones on Sunday. I guess giving up 50 points to Missouri was the last straw.
...Just brutal; Auburn did everything to Georgia short of getting Uga neutered at half time.
...Just a matter of time; As if there were any doubt that Mike Riley will be fired at Nebraska, new Huskers AD Bill Moos said after the Big Red's 54-21 loss to Minnesota, "It's not like I've got a coach to hire this afternoon at 3:30." then followed that up with, "Mike Riley deserves to finish the 2017 season. That's how I operate."
...They woke up the echoes; Notre Dame did a great job waking up the echoes of...Gerry Faust.
...Friday Night Lows; Maybe with the loss of 16+ million by not making this year's CFP, the idiots in charge at the Pac 12 might stop scheduling Friday games.
...Pale in defeat; After Miami smashed ND, I bet there weren't that many disappointed, angry, beaten, people without tans in Miami since SC whipped Oklahoma.
...The Caissons are still rolling; Army is 8-2. Their 21-16 win over Duke gives the Black Knights an undefeated home season and their first eight win season since they went 10-2 in 1996.
...An average year; It is theoretically possible for the Pac 12 to have six schools to finish with 6-6 records.
...The man's good; San Jose Mercury News Pac 12 beat reporter Jon Wilner is moving into my pantheon of great sportswriters this year. His latest on what he would do to fix the Pac 12 is another winner in my book. The only thing I don't like is his suggestion that every Pac 12 school play an FCS school each year. You can read it all here. Pac 12 Fix
...Just call him the Dark Knight; UofA QB Khalil Tate should be given the nickname of Batman. Why? Well, because he does his daring deeds on the football field in the dark of night with nobody watching. Thanks, Larry Scott.
...An odd feeling; With SC's game being played in daylight, it was weird realizing that there were more games to watch after the game was over.
...0/5; Everyone this year has talked about SC not having a bye this season. The great Dan Weber who covers SC football pointed out that five Pac 12 teams hadn't had a bye at all until this past weekend. Thanks, Larry Scott.
...Road of tears; Kansas' 42-27, loss at Texas Saturday set the FBS record for consecutive road losses with 45. The Jayhawks last road win was at UTEP on 9/12/2009.
...And there are still two; UTEP and Georgia Southern are the only two winless teams left in the FBS.
...Quietly frustrating folks; Lane Kiffin's Florida Atlantic squad is 7-3 overall, undefeated in C-USA play at 6-0 and stands a win away form the C-USA title game. Hmmmmm.
...The wild wild Mountain West; There are still at least six different scenarios of who could make it to the MWC title game. My favorite one has UNLV pulling off the miracle and wining the West Division.
...Just a rumor; There is no truth to the rumor that BYU has hired a search firm to find just exactly at what point in time that they lost their relevance in college football.
...Tammy Wynette lives in Kansas; KU chancellor Douglas Girod sent out a message standing by his man, HC David Beaty after the Jayhawks dropped to 1-9 this past weekend.
Trojan CFL Spotlight
It's playoff time for the guys on the 110-yard field and a former Trojan is having a big impact. One of the biggest CFL trades to happen in a few years occurred when the Hamilton Tiger-Cats traded former Trojan RB C.J. Gable to the Edmonton Eskimos a few weeks ago. Gable has had quite a career up north and is a fan favorite in the league. In the Western Semi-Fianl game last Sunday, he rushed for 107 yards and two TDs to go along with 37 yards receiving to help lead the Eskimos to a 39-32 win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. This week, Gable leads Edmonton into the Western Final game v. the Calgary Stampeders. Fight On, C.J.!
Closest Rivals in America
No, I'm not talking about USC-UCLA or even Houston-Rice, I'm going down to the D-II level in what's known as the Battle of the Ravine. The rivals in this game are the Henderson State Reddies and the Ouachita Baptist Tigers. The two schools reside in Arkadelphia, Arkansas and are 0.2 miles apart. Yes, 0.2 miles apart. In this year's rivalry tilt at Cliff Harris Stadium, the Tigers outlasted the Reddies, 49-42. RB Drew Harris, (no relation to Cliff), accounted for all seven Ouchita TDs. He ran four four and had receptions for the other three. The Tigers win gave them their third straight Great American Conference title. The Tigers also snapped Henderson State's 31-game road wining streak. Yes, even if it is only 0.2 miles away, it can still be a road game.
A look at the Power Five Conference Races
ACC
Clemson won the Atlantic Division and will face Miami, the Coastal champs in the ACC title game.
Big XII
It's complicated, but Oklahoma is atop the standings with the inside track to the title game. The Sooners will most likely face TCU again in the title game. However, there is a scenario where OU could face West Virginia in the last game of the regular season then play each other again one week later in the title match.
Big Ten
Wisconsin is the Big Ten West champ.
The Big Ten East is a bit more convoluted. Ohio State has the inside track, but if Michigan beats both Wisconsin and Ohio State in the next two weeks, they will play the Badgers a second time in the Big Ten title game. Penn State and Michigan State need the buckeyes to drop their last two games for a shot at the title, but the Buckeyes most likely won't lose to cellar dweller Illinois this week.
Pac 12
USC's win over Colorado clinched the South title.
The North is Wazzu's to lose. A Washington State win at Washington on the 25th sets up a USC-WSU rematch. A WSU loss, sets up a rematch of USC and Stanford. This is assuming that Stanford beats Cal this week. If Stanford falters and UW wins their final two games, the Trojans will face the
Huskies.
SEC
Georgia is the East champ. (quit laughing, Auburn)
The winner of the Iron Bowl in two weeks will face the Bulldogs in the SEC title game.
Pac 12 Overreactions
USC is the most frustrating 9-2 team in America.
Arizona will beat ASU by three TDs.
ASU needs to run the ball more.
Stanford still needs a QB more than they need Bryce Love.
Cal had a bye and nobody noticed.
Oregon's bye went unnoticed too.
Wazzu fans are cringing with nightmares of "Couging It" in Seattle.
Utah will not make a bowl.
Colorado will make a bowl.
Oregon State has been texting love notes to Mike Riley.
Washington is Cal's biggest fan this week.
UCLA has been seen leaving flowers on Chip Kelly's doorstep.
Cool Uniform of the Week
I'm not an alternate uniform guy or much on abandoning your school colors, but I have to say I do like what Colorado State did here. The Colorado flag is pretty cool state flag as far as state flags go. The Colorado color combo and simplicity of the Colorado C makes this a good look.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: Monmouth, IL- QB Hayden Nelson plunged over the goal line from a yard out to give the Monmouth (IL) Fighting Scots a 9-6 overtime victory over the the St. Norbert Green Knights. St. Norbert opened the scoring with a 41-yard field goal from PK Sean Thompson-Meyers and Monmouth tied it in the fourth quarter with a 39-yard FG from PK Joey Biel. In OT , the Green Knights went up 6-3 when Thompson-Meyers connected form 33 yards out. Thompson-Meyers could have ended the game on then last play in regulation, but his 50-yard attempt fell short. The win gives Monmouth a 9-1 record and most likely a D-III playoff berth.
Blowout Game of the Week: Northfield, MN- This week's winner has to be one of the biggest blowouts in the history of the column. The St. Thomas (MN) Tommies staked their claim to the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Association title with a 97-0 drubbing of St. Olaf College. The Tommies scored just about every way possible. They returned two interceptions for TDs, had a punt return TD, ran and passed for TDs and did make one two-point conversion early in the game. The Tommies emptied their bench after building up a 64-0 halftime lead. 16 different Tommies either carried the ball or caught a pass. QB Jacques Parra threw for 295 yards and three TDs. The St. Thomas defense held St Olaf to 71 total yards, forced 11 punts, picked off four passes, and held the Oles to just 3 of 17 on third downs in this "contest."
C.W. Post Press: Manchester, NH- After a sluggish first quarter, the Pioneers turned a 3-0 lead over the Saint Anselm Hawks into 31-0 lead midway through the third quarter and a 45-7 victory to finish the season. Post QB Yianni Gavalas competed 24 of 38 passes for 256 yards and 3 TDs. RB Malik Pierre had a great day too. He toted the rock 19 times for 168 yards and a TD. The Pioneers finished the season at 8-2. Oh, and yes their season is finished. The Pioneers finished second in the Northeast 10 Conference which in years past would give them berth in the NE-10 title game. However, the conference stopped having a title game this season. That means Assumption College, the NE -10 Champ will go to the D-II playoffs. Assumption will play at California (PA) in the first round of the playoffs this coming week.
Georgetown Football News: Lewisburg, PA- Another day, another loss for the Hoyas in Patriot League play. The Blue and Gray were shutout for the second consecutive week. This time it was a 12-0 decision at the hand of the Bucknell Bison. The Bison's first score came midway through the second quarter when PK John Burdick made a 26-yard field goal to put his squad top 3-0. Burdick connected agin in the third quarter to give the Bison a 6-0 lead. Buicknell put the game away later in the period when QB John Chiarolanzio connected with WR Matt Ademolia for a 36-yard TD pass. GU did stop the two-point try, but never could muster a scoring drive and suffered the shutout. The Hoyas haven't scored any points for the last 120 minutes and 12 seconds of game play. Up next for GU is their final game of the year. It's Senior Day and the Hoyas will host the Red Raiders of Colgate.
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...
Saute'd then grilled asparagus is really good. The asparagus is even better where paired with a good rib-eye.
Finally feels like fall here.
I can't believe it's time for making christmas lists.
Until next time folks, remember that wining ugly is way better than losing pretty.
-The Commissioner
