It's time for another look back at the week that was in college football with another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Mal Florence.
Summaries
Stanford 23- Washington 13: Palo Alto, CA- The Huskies have had a bad time on The Farm of late, dropping their last five games at Stanford Stadium. That streak grew to six games as the Cardinal used their ball control offense and solid defense to slowly strangle the Huskies. The Cardinal forged a 13-10 halftime advantage behind the a pair of FGs by PK Jet Toner and a 42-yard TD pass from QB Davis Mills to WR Simi Fehoko. UW took the ball to start the third period and marched down to the Cardinal 13-yard line. Dawgs HC Chris Petertsen eschewed a game-tying FG attempt and went for it on fourth down. QB Jacob Eason's pass fell incomplete. Whatever momentum, the Huskies had built up then vanished and never returned. An exchange of punts then left Stanford with great field position at the Washington 47-yard line. The Cardinal didn't waste it. Seven plays later, RB Cameron Scarlett grinded his way through the Dawgs for a four-yard TD. Stanford held a 20-10 lead that would be cut to 20-13 when Petersen opted for the FG he should have had kicked earlier in the quarter. Stanford owned the final period tacking on another FG from Toner. The SU defense shutout the Huskies the rest of the way picking off one pass and forcing a punt on their only two serious drives of the period. Mills had his best game yet, completing 21 of 30 passes for 293 yards and a TD. Scarlett had his best day at Stanford also, rushing for 151 yards on 33 carries. Eason completed 16 of 36 passes for 206 yards a TD and an interception in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: 9/5:06; With 6:00 left in then game and nursing a 10-point lead, Stanford's Cameron Scarlett carried the ball nine straight times for 29 yards. Those nine plays shaved 5:06 off the clock to end any hopes of a comeback by the Huskies.
Oregon 17- California 7: Eugene, OR- Cal's defense shutdown the Oregon offense for most the game, but the Golden Bears couldn't generate much offense of their own in a tough loss at Autzen Stadium. Remarkably, Cal led this game 7-0 at the half thanks to their defense forcing three UO turnovers and a missed FG. Cal's lone score came after the Ducks first turnover. Cal QB Devon Modster, in for the injured Chase Garbers, drove the Bears 63 yards in six plays for the early go-ahead score. Modster hit RB Chris Brown, Jr who found paydirt from 22 yards out. The Ducks finally got off the schneid midway through the third period when PK Camden Lewis made good on a 28-yard FG attempt after the Ducks drive stalled at the Cal seven-yard line. UO got their big break in the game when Cal punter Steven Counts' poor punt from deep in his own territory traveled 38 yards and was returned 24 yards by PR Jevon Holland. The Ducks then drove 30 yards and took the lead when Cyrus Habibi-Liko crossed the double stripe from one yard out. The Boys from Berkley looked liked they were still in the game, but their offense was so ineffective it was just an illusion. Early in the final period, Modtser threw his second pick of the night and Oregon turned that pick into the TD to put the game away. The Quacks covered 64 yards in just five plays and scored when QB Justin Herbert found WR Jaylon Redd for a 1-yard TD toss. Cal would miss a FG and be held for downs their final to drives to end the game. Herbert completed 20 of 33 aerials for 214 yards, a TD and an interception on the evening. Meanwhile, Modster competed 17 of 34 passes for 190 yards, a TD and two costly interceptions.
Telling Stat: 17 is enough; Oregon's offense got stymied by the Cal defense, but they scored just enough points to win the game.
Arizona 35- Colorado 30: Boulder, CO- There must be something about Colorado that brings out the best in UofA QB Khalil Tate. Tate had another stellar game against the Buffaloes and the Wildcats needed it. He accounted for 427 of his squad's 487 total yards of offense, He completed 31 of 41 passes for 404 yards and ran for 23 more to lift the Wildcats to victory. Tate connected with 11 different receivers, but his three TD passes went to WRs Cedric Peterson, Brian Casteel and Stanley Berryhill III. Not a bad game considering Tate missed last week's game due to a leg injury. However, this game was a back an forth affair and the Buffs did put some points of their own on the board. QB Steven Montez completed 28 of 42 passes for 299 yards and a TD while WR KD Nixon threw for a TD pass too. The Buffs didn't have WR Laviska Shenault, Jr. to throw to either as he was still out due to injury. However, most of the Buffs woes could be laid at Montez's feet. He once again missed several wide open receivers with flat out poor throws. That's what really cost the Buffaloes the game.
Telling Stat: He loves the Buffs; In three games v. Colorado, Arizona QB Khalil Tate has amassed 1,174 yards of offense and 13 TDs. Wow
Oregon State 48- UCLA 31: Pasadena, CA- 6:01 into the first quarter the Beavers, with a little help from UCLA HC Chip Kelly's hubris and an epically cool onside kick, held a 21-0 lead at Rose Bowl. The bRuins never recovered form the early onslaught and fell to 1-5 on the season. The anatomy of the 21-point Beaver explosion went down like this. OSU took the opening kickoff and rove 75 yards in seven plays for a 7-0 lead when QB Jake Luton hit WR Isaiah Hodgins for a 4-yard score. UCLA then got the ball and faced a 4th and 1 at their own 29-yard line. Kelly kept his offense on the field and RB Joshua Kelley was nailed in the backfield for a 5-yard loss. Five plays later, RB Artavis Pierce waltzed through he bRuins defense for a 14-0 lead. The Beavers then pulled off a drop-kick onside kick that they recovered at the UCLA 27-yard line. On the next play, Luton hit TE Teagan Quitoriano in the end zone for a 21-0 lead. The Bruins did cut the deficit down to 10 points several times during the game, but the Beaver kept putting up points to grab a win at the Rose Bowl. Luton had one of his best games completing 18 of 26 passes for 285 yards with five TD and he also ran for a score. His big target was Hodgins who grabbed 10 passes for 123 yards and three scores. OSU had a good rushing day as well. Pierce ran the ball 21 times for 129 yards and a TD. UCLA QB Austin Barton who was playing in place of the injured Dorian Thompson-Robinson completed 27 of 41 passes for 236 yards and a TD in the loss.
Telling Stat: They finished it off; After UCLA scored to get within 10 points at 41-31, Oregon State got the ball back with 8:39 left in the fourth quarter and went on a 14 play, 74-yard drive that shaved 6:57 off the clock and ended with a 19-yard TD by Jake Luton to clinch the win.
Observations
...P ain't for Playoff; Pac 12 commissioner Larry Scott's dream of parity in the league has become the nightmare we expected it would be. The league won't produce a CFP team yet again. SMH
...Feisty Beavers; In their last five quarters of play Oregon State has scored 69 points and gained 695 yards of total offense.
...And he's gone; No, not Clay Helton. Wazzu DC Tracy Claeys "resigned" from his post last Friday. I guess giving up 50 to UCLA and 38 to Utah in consecutive weeks got him shown the door.
...Just a rumor; There's no truth to the rumor that Arizona QB Khalil Tate has created a John Denver playlist on Spotify and was heard singing Rocky Mountain High on the team bus last Saturday.
...Molto Brutto; UCLA's defense has given more ground than the Italian army. The bRuins defense is allowing 502 yards a game and have given up 1.7 miles of yards in six games into this season.
...5-0; Congrats to Minnesota on being undefeated and with a strong chance to start out 8-0 for the first time since 1941 when RB Bruce Smith won the Golden Gophers only Heisman Trophy.
...The Hoyas have a team; Georgetown is 4-1 and has beaten both Columbia and Cornell in non-confernce action.
...113 miles; That's the short distance between the two top teams in the expansive Big Sky Conference. Montana and Montana State sit atop the standings at 5-1 and 2-0 in league play.
...Get off my field turf!; Oregon RB Cyrus Habibi-Likio made a great tackle on a fan who ran onto the field at Autzen Stadium. Check it out. Smackdown
...We're 13th!; Maryland wiped out Rutgers, 48-7 to take one large step out of the Big Ten cellar.
...An unintended consequence; With their HC fired and their season circling the drian, Rutgers starting QB Art Sitkowski and starting RB Raheem Blackshear announced they are redshirting and skipping the rest of the 2019 season. It's already happened in Houston and expect more of this to occur across the nation as players use the new redshirt rule to their advantage.
...The Mustangs are hot; SMU is 6-0 for the first time since the Pony Express backfield roamed Texas Stadium. Their triple overtime comeback win over Tulsa was awesome.
...A bit of a ruckus; Check out this incident where the Sam Houston State PK and the Stephen F. Austin band director get into it. Pushed Away
...Just a rumor; There's not truth to the rumor that Pac 12 Commissioner Larry Scott is having participation trophies made for the Pac 12 champs when they don't make the CFP yet again.
...Big Motion; Just some average motion before a play at St. Joseph Catholic School in Greenville, MS. Splits!!!
...One big step; Navy downed Air Force, 34-25 to position themselves to win the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy.
...Less one Les in Lawrence; Kansas HC Les Miles fired his OC Les Koenning after the Jayhawks were whipped, 45-20 by Oklahoma last Saturday. The Jahawkws were only averaging 22 points per game in the offensive heavy Big XII.
...Sticking with Dallas; Forget the LSU-Florida game, the best game this weekend will be Oklahoma-Texas.
Pac 12 Overreactions
USC won't get to 4-2.
UCLA is a miracle away from 0-12.
Oregon State will finish 3-9
Arizona is bowl bound.
Colorado will win seven games.
Cal will go winless until Chase Garbers returns.
Utah is afraid their game with Colorado will really mean something this year.
Wazzu's DC needed to "resign" two weeks ago.
Washington is a Holiday Bowl team at best.
Stanford will win just enough games to help kill the Pac 12.
Arizona State is happy to stay under the radar in the Pac 12 South.
Oregon won't make the playoff even if they go 12-1.
CFL Update
The final month of the regular season starts this coming week and the top team in the league is June Jones' Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Ti-Cats are 12-3 and a win way from clinching the East Division. Saskatchewan is 10-4 and on top in the West Division, but holds a slim one game lead over both the Calgary Stampeders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The Edmonton Eskimos should make the playoffs as a crossover team as the East Division only has one more playoff eligible team in the Montreal Alouettes.
Ugly Uniform of the Week
Got to go to the NFL for this week's winner. The Seattle Seahawks gives the best argument as to why the NFL Color Rush uniforms are a horrible idea. Facepalm. A small picture was used here as to not damage my readership's eyes.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: Jamestown, ND- This week's game comes form the Great Plains Athletic Conference in the NAIA. The Jamestown Jimmies downed the Concordia (NE) Bulldogs 13-10 in four overtimes. Constant rain turned the field into an absolute mud bowl. The game went to overtime tied at 3-3. The teams traded TDs in the first OT with Jamestown scoring on 14-yard TD pass from QB Jordan Mann to WR Garrett Mitchell and then Concordia tying the game on a 1-yard mud dive by RB Ryan Durdon. Neither team scored in the next two OT periods with turnovers and missed kicks thwarting the offenses. Then finally in the fourth OT, Jamestown picked off another Concordia pass and PK Sean Fenlon then kicked a 32-yard FG to lift the Jimmies to victory. Neither team gained more than 200 yards and they combined to convert on only 6 of 39 on 3rd down conversion attempts. The win was Jamestown's first of the season.
C.W. Post Press: Pittsburgh, PA- At Arthur J. Rooney Field , the Sharks just couldn't muster enough offense and fell to 0-4 on the season with a 21-14 loss to the Duquesne Dukes. Nursing a 13-7 lead to start the fourth quarter, the Dukes went on a 10-play, 80-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD blast form RB A.J. Hines to put the game away at 21-7. Post got a a cosmetic TD late when QB Clay Beathard hit WR Steven Chambers with a 14-yard TD pass. Up next for Post is a trip to Bryant University.
Razorback Report: The Hogs were off this week and will play at Kentucky next Saturday.
This Week's There Notes About Nothing...
There's nothing like a big birthday party in San Pedro.
Amalfitano's cakes never disappoint.
Comfortable costumes rock.
Until next tome folks, remember that parity isn't a great thing in a modern college football conference.
-The Commissioner
