Hey All,
The regular season ended for just about everyone last Saturday. Time to look back on the last full slate of games for 2021 with another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Mel Durslag.
Summaries
BYU 35- USC 31: Los Angeles, CA- It was another loss, in this lost season for USC, but the Trojans probably played their best football of the year as a team. Now, I only have a few words left to say...
LINCOLN RILEY IS USC'S NEW HEAD COACH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Utah 28- Colorado 13: Salt Lake City, UT- It was very emotional senior day at Rice-Eccles Field where the seniors present and those that had fallen were honored by the school and their fans. All those emotions might explain how the Utes found themselves trailing the Buffaloes, 3-0 to start the second quarter. However, the Utes got their offense rolling. Two TD passes from QB Cam Rising to TEs Brant Kuthie and Dalton Kincaid would stake the Utes to a 14-6 half-time lead. A lead they would never relinquish. However, it did look al little dicey when KR Nikko Reed to the kickoff to open the third quarter back 100-yards to put CU down just 14-13 with a lot of time left to play. The Utah defense shutout the the Buffs the rest of way to ensure the win. RB Tavion Thomas ran for a 12-yard touchdown and Rising threw another TD pass, this time to WR Britain Covey, to cap off the scoring in the third period. The last period was a glorified scrimmage. Rising finished the game with 179 yards passing and three TDs, while RBs Thomas and T.J Pledger combined for 245 yards rushing and a TD on 38 carries.
Telling Stat: 29 +51 = Second half dominance; The Utah defense held Colorado to a feeble 51 total yards on 29 plays in the second half. That's a nifty 1.75 yards per play.
Washington State 40- Washington 13: Seattle, WA- Nine years. It had been nine long years since the Apple Cup had taken up residence in Pullman. The Cougars came out with their interim HC and whipped the Huskies with their interim HC. Then the Cougars faithful rushed the field, danced on the W in Husky Stadium while planting the WSU flag in the process. The Cougs never trailed, putting up double digits every quarter while the Wazzu defense held the Dawgs offense in check all night. WSU RB Max Borghi had himself another great night, slashing through he Huskies for 129 yards and two TDs on 22 carries. Borghi's teammate, QB Jayden de Laura, completed 27 of 32 passes for 245 yards. For UW, true frosh QB Sam Huard got his first start ever and it was one to forget. Huard completed 17 of 31 passes for 190 yards, a touchdown and four huge interceptions. The last one was the final nail in the Dawgs coffin as it was returned 28 yards for a touchdown by DB Armani Marsh.
Telling Stat: A wall as big as the Cascades; Washington State's defense made Washington a one-dimensional team. They held the Dawgs to just 10 yards rushing. That turned the Cougars loose to make UW QB Sam Huard's first start into a nightmare.
Notre Dame 45- Stanford 14: Palo Alto, CA- Nobody expected much out of this matchup from the Cardinal and they lived down to those expectations. The Fighting Irish pretty much did what they wanted to do on offense while their defense kept the Cardinal easily at bay. ND QB Jack Coan sliced up the Stanford secondary, completing 26 of 35 aerials for 345 yards, two TDs and an interception. RB Kyren Williams had one of his lesser days, but still managed to gain 74 yards and score two TDs on 19 carries for ND. For the hapless Cardinal, QB Tyler McKee completed 20 of 25 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown.
Telling Stat: 45/511 Workmanlike; ND put up 45 points and 511 yards on Stanford like they were getting in a light scrimmage against Las Positas College of Livermore. ND is very good, but Stanford has fallen off the map.
Oregon 38- Oregon State 29: Eugene, OR- Wazzu's beatdown of UW eliminated the Beavers from the Pac 12 North race. Couple that with Oregon's desire to get another crack at the Utah team that embarrassed them one week earlier and you have the recipe for a win for the Webfoots in the latest edition of the rivalry formerly known as the Civil War. In opposite form of most of their games this year, the Quacks came out quick and went up 14-0 on the before some folks had even settled into their seats at Autzen Stadium. UO would go into the break up 24-3 thanks to TD runs of 20 and 10 yards from RB Travis Dye and QB Anthony Brown, a 36-yard field goal from PK Camden Lewis and a 50-yard TD pass from Brown to WR Devin Williams. OSU showed some signs of life when TE Luke Musgrave snagged a four-yard TD pass from QB Chance Nolan for the only score of the third period. OSU's offense finally woke up for real in the final period putting up three TDs, but the Ducks tacked on two more TDs also to keep the game out of reach. Brown completed 23 of 28 passes for 275 yards and two TDs. Dye led all rushers with 99 yards on 20 carries and two scores. Nolan threw for 308 yards, two TDs and an interception in the loss.
Telling Stat: Dammed up Beavers. After being run over, around and through by Utah last week, the Ducks defense limited the Beavers to just 85 yards rushing en route to their bounce back victory.
UCLA 42- California 14: Pasadena, CA- This was a battle of the main branches of the University of California system. It was a also a battle to see which team handled beating their main rival last week and was prepared to win again this week. After a sluggish first half, the bRuins ran away and hid from the Golden Bears in the second half. Up 17-14 to start the third quarter, UCLA's defense clamped down on Cal while their offense scored on four straight drives to put the game away. A 29-yard pass from QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson to TE Greg Dulcich, a 46-yard FG from PK Nicholas Barr-Mira, a one-yard blast from RB Zach Charbonnet and a four pass from Thompson-Robinson to WR Kyle Phillips accounted for the second half scoring explosion. Thompson-Robinson threw for 164 yards three TDs and also rushed for 102 yards to lead the bRuins attack. As for Cal, QB Chase Garbers completed 16 of 31 passes for a 125 yards and two interceptions in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: 2nd half freeze out; UCLA held Cal off the scoreboard in the second half. In fact, 74 of the 88 yards Cal gained in the final two periods came on their final drive that stalled on the bRuins one-yard line with 2:45 to play and the game long decided.
Arizona State 38- Arizona 15: Tempe, AZ- The Territorial Cup stays in Tempe as the Sun Devils handed UofA their 11th loss of the year. The win was the Sun Devils fifth in a row over the Wildcats.
ASU held a 14-9 lead at the break, but outscored the Wildcats 24-6 in the second half to claim the victory. ASU QB Jayden Daniels didn't pile up a lot of yardage but he did find the end zone three times. He completed 10 of 14 tosses for 86 yards and two TDs while also rushing for 86 yards on 10 carries and another score. Former USC DB Jack Jones sealed the game for ASU when he picked off UofA QB Will Plummer and took it back 87 yards for a touchdown. Plummer finished the day with 346 yards passing, one TD and that soul-crushing interception.
Telling Stat: 2+2= L; Arizona owned a lot of statistical categories in this game, but committing two more penalties than ASU (12-10) and being -2 in the turnovers lost this game for the Wildcats.
Cranberry Crushers 7- Tough Turkeys 0: San Pedro, CA- After a great Thanksgiving meal, some stuffed and not so great athletes clashed for the first time in three years at Yube Ursich Field. It was a true defensive struggle with neither offense doing much in a scoreless first half. The Cranberry Crushers notched the only score of the game midway through the second half. QB Robert Weissler hit WR Margaret Lenker with a pass just shy of the goal line. Lenker did the rest, scampering the last two yards for the score. The Tough Turkeys did have one last shot after forcing a late punt, but never got the ball snapped as the clock ran out. Margaret Lenker's TD reception and two interceptions earned her MVP honors.
Telling Stat: 1 is fun; It was the first backyard Thanksgiving game in three years and it was a lot of fun.
Special Section: Lincoln Riley comes to USC
As he stood atop the Scholarship Tower at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, most Trojans fans still couldn't believe it was happening. New HC Lincoln Riley looked like he couldn't believe it either. Standing at the podium in a sharp suit and a tie that looked more OU crimson than SC cardinal Riley addressed the gathered dignitaries, media and Trojan faithful formally for the first time. He said all the right things with a blend of humor and frankness not seen in quite awhile by anyone tied to Heritage Hall. It was a moment to rejoice for USC fans for one simple reason; USC finally did something right. If for some reason it doesn't work out for Riley at SC you can't blame AD Mike Bohn for not swinging for the fences on this hire. USC hasn't brought a coach with this high a profile into the program since Howard Jones back in 1925. That's one of the reasons why SC fans are so happy right now. This shows that maybe the school actually cares about football. This hire also sent shockwaves through the Pac 12 and greater college football landscape. It's great being a Trojan and seeing the rest of the league flip out over the hire. The sleeping giant of the west has woken up indeed.
Here's some links about the hire...
Observations
...From SoCal; Late season games featuring long time rivals playing in cold, snowy conditions are great to watch... from home.
...Giving thanks; USC owes Oklahoma State a huge thank you for beating Oklahoma. If the Cowboys don't beat OU last Saturday, Lincoln Riley ain't wearing Cardinal and Gold this Saturday.
...A Jolley self-own; Oklahoma candidate for State Treasurer, Clark Jolley fired off a tweet trying to comfort OU fans over the loss of Lincoln Riley to USC by stating how much more he'll pay in taxes by moving to California. It didn't go over well. Pummeled
...Herm is here; ASU has confirmed that Herm Edwards will remain as the HC of the Sun Deivls as an NCAA investigation swirls around the program. Hmmmmm.
...Nervous quacks; Folks around Eugene are starting to worry that HC Mario Cristobal will leave for the Miami job if it opens up.
...De-Lovely for De-Dawgs?; It looks like Washington has come to terms with Fresno state HC Kalen DeBoer to take over the Huskies program after the dismissal of Jimmy Lake. You may have missed that one in all the Lincoln Riley hype grabbing the Pac 12 headlines.
...Taking the heat off; As Lincoln Riley was being vilified in Norman for leaving the Sooners for USC, Notre Dame HC Brian Kelly said, "Hold my beer." He dropped the Fighting Irish like a hot rock for the vacancy at LSU. I guess he just wanted to turn his post season beatings from Alabama into an annual regular season event.
...Still laughing; Don't know how this got approved, but this message made it onto the Iowa State message board last Saturday in their game v. TCU. The teenage boy in me is still laughing...
...Trojan Schadenfreude; It's kind of fun to watch Oklahoma collapse, the rest of the Pac 12 meltdown and ND lose their HC after SC hired Lincoln Riley.
...Blame it on The Tree; Seems that Stanford has basically been the catalyst of change in college football this year. Check out this timeline:
9/11 Stanford plays USC
9/13 USC fires Clay Helton
10/16 Stanford plays Wazuu
10/18 Wazzu fires HC Nick Rolovich
10/30 Stanford plays Washington
11/8 UW Suspends then later fires HC Jimmy Lake
11/26 Stanford Plays ND
11/29 ND HC Brian Kelly bolts for LSU
...Silent Valley; Anybody notice how nobody talks about Penn State anymore?
...In our backyard; Over in Carson, California on Saturday 11-1 San Diego State will host Utah State in the Mountain West Conference title game.
...The shine is on the Big 12 penny; Let get this straight, the SEC is getting an Oklahoma on brink of collapse and a five win Texas team to join their league. Meanwhile, the Big 12 is getting an 11-1 BYU, 11-1 Houston and undefeated playoff-bound Cincinnati team in return. All I say to the SEC is quote the movie Dodgeball...
...One more, we need one more; Moments after USC lost to BYU, USC President Carol Folt sent this tweet out forgetting that there is still a game left in the Trojans season. Facepalm.
Pac 12 Overreactions: George Lucas Edition
USC fans know that Lincoln Riley may be the one to bring balance back to the force.
The other 11 teams in the Pac 12 have just realized that they are the Imperial garrison on the second Death Star and Han just brought the shield generator down.
Ugly Uniform of the Week
Oregon and Oregon State split the award for their TV breaking attire in their rivalry game.
Departments
Low Score Game in the Week: Worcester, MA- This game comes from the first round of the FCS playoffs. With :14 left in regulation, the Holy Cross Crusaders got a 35-yard TD pass from QB Matthew Sluka to WR Jalen Coker to beat the Sacred Heart Pioneers, 13-10. The win was the first ever playoff victory for the Crusaders. Sluka was the Holy Cross offense. He complete 13 of 19 passes for 171 yards and a TD to go with 111 yards rushing on 23 carries. The Crusaders second round opponent are the powerful Villanova Wildcats.
Blowout Game of the Week: Golden, CO- Our source for this week's game shift to the second round of the D-II playoffs. The mighty Orediggers of Colorado Mines worked over the Bemidji State Beavers, 55-6. The Orediggers led only 13-0 at the break but broke the game wide open with a 35 point third quarter. Orediggers QB John Matocha completed 25 of 34 tosses for 348 yards and three TDs while teammate Michael Zeman rushed for 95 yards and two TDs on 22 carries.
Razorback Report: Fayetteville, AR- It looked touch and go for awhile, but the Razorbacks grinded their way to a 34-17 win over the Missouri Tigers. The win was the Hogs eighth on the year and brought the Battle Line Trophy back Fayetteville. QB K.J. Jefferson was very accurate, completing 15 of 19 passes for 262 yards and a TD. Big-bodied RB Raheim Sanders didn't rush far but he rushed well, tints the rock eight times for 21 yards and two scores. Up next for the Hogs is a bowl game!!!!!!!
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...
Thanksgiving leftovers are the best meal of the whole Thanksgiving weekend.
My train set goes up this week!
I'm a little tired of the late season Santa Ana winds.
Until next time, remember that the future can go from cloudy to bright in the blink of an eye.
-The Commissioner
