Hey All,
The final week of summer is here for 2023 and with that comes another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Mal Florence.
Summaries
Utah 31- Weber State 7: Salt Lake City, UT- With Cam Rising still sidelined, QB Nate Johnson was named starter for the first time in his Utah career and the freshman responded with a solid, workmanlike effort to lead his squad to a 31-7 win over the Wildcats. The Utes defense rendered the Wildcats offense inert for most of the game which enabled Johnson to use his arm and his legs to lead his team to victory. He completed 13 of 21 passes for 193 yard and a TD while rushing for 71 yards on 16 carries and another score. Utah held a 17-7 halftime advantage on a 1-yard run from Johnson, a 37-yard FG from PK Joey Cheek and a 13-yard TD pas from Johnson to WR Money Parks. A two-yard scoring jaunt from RB Jaylon Glover and a 23-yard pick six from DB Lander Barton gave the Utes a 31-7 lead in the third period. The fourth quarter saw Utah sub out their first teamers to rest for their matchup next with UCLA. Weber State RB Chris Jackson provided the Wildcats lone highlight when when scored on a two-yard run in the second quarter.
Telling Stat: Throttled; Utah held Weber State to 127 total yards on just 42 plays in this yawner at Rice-Eccles.
Oregon State 26- San Diego State 9: Corvallis, OR-It was beautiful late summer day at Reser Stadium between two determined squads. The Beavers had that little bit more talent and toughness to outlast their opponent from the Mountain West Conference. This was a hard hitting contest that saw the Beavers nursing a 6-0 lead in the early stages of the second period due to a pair of FGs that covered 48 and 44 yards off the foot of PK Atticus Sappington. OSU then got to a 12-0 lead when QB D.J. Uiagalelei threw a backwards pass LT Joshua Gray who rumbled three yards into the end zone untouched for a touchdown. The two-point conversion try that followed came up inches short to leave the Beavers up 12-0 with 8:32 in the second quarter. SDSU then put a scoring drive together to finish the first half. PK Jack Browning was good from 52 yards out to make the halftime score OSU 12- SDSU 3. The third quarter saw the kids from Corvallis extend their lead to 19-3 on a one yard trip to paydirt from Uiagalelei. SDSU's offense came alive in the final period when they cashed in an OSU turnover for a score. RB Jaylon Armstead smashed his way through the Beavers defense on a six-yard TD run. The ensuing two-point conversion attempt failed, but the Aztecs trailed just 19-9 with 9:01 to play. The OSU faithful was getting nervous in the stands at Reser Stadium. Their worries lasted a grand total of 13 seconds. After the kickoff following Arnstead' score on first and 10 from their own 25-yard line, Uiagalelei hit WR Anthony Gould with a bubble screen at the line of scrimmage and the speedy WR took it 75 yards for the game-clinching touchdown. SDSU fell apart after that throwing a pick and missing a field goal on their final two drives. Uiagalelei had an uneven game but managed to complete 14 of 30 passes for 284 yards, a TD and an interception. He also ran three times for 17 yards and a score. RB Damien Martinez led all rushers with 102 yards on 15 carries for the Beavers. For SDSU, QB Jalen Mayden completed 20 of 32 passes for 256 yards and an interception in the losing effort.
Telling Stat: They bent but didn't break; The Oregon State defense gave up over 300 yards, but allowed only two Aztec drives to cross their own 20-yard line.
California 31- Idaho 17: Berkeley, CA- The home crowd at Strawberry Canyon sat in stunned silence as their Golden Bears trailed the Vandals, 17-0 midway through the second quarter. Then Cal remembered they were Cal and that Idaho was Idaho and they fought back to claim the win over their old foe from the Pacific Coast Conference days. In the final 5:38 of the quarter, Sam Jackson V threw TD passes of 20 and 36 yards to WRs Jeremiah Hunter and Triond Grizzell to cut the Idaho lead to 17-14 at the intermission. Then just four minutes into the third period Jackson raced 27 yards to the end zone to put Cal up for good at 21-17. The Golden Bears tacked on a one-yard TD run from RB Isiah Infanse and a 39-yard FG from PK Michael Luckhurst to finish off the scoring. Jackson completed 12 of 23 passes for 108 yards and two TDs while also running for a score. Infanse paced Cal's ground attack by lugging the leather 22 times for 137 yards and a TD. For the losing side, Vandal QB Gevani McCoy completed 28 of 46 passes for 279 yards and an interception while running the ball 11 times for 56 yards and a TD.
Telling Stat: Almost 40 of nothing = W; After giving up 17 straight points to start the game, the Cal defense stiffened and kept the Vandals off the scoreboard for the final 39:08 of the game.
Washington 41- Michigan State 0: East Lansing, MI- With all the fallout and turmoil in the MSU program this past week with the suspension of HC Mel Tucker due to sexual harassment allegations, the answers to two questions would be made clear after kickoff. One, to what degree would the Spartan team be affected by the scandal and two, would Washington's focus on the game suffer from all the outside news? The answers are a large degree for the first question and a resounding no to the second as the Huskies worked over the Spartans in short order. After forcing a Spartan punt to start the game, the Dawgs drove 55 yards in four plays to take a 7-0 lead on a one-yard TD run from RB Germie Bernard. A couple drives later, UW would take a 14-0 lead on a five-yard toss from QB Michael Penix, Jr. to TE Jake Westover. Leading 14-0 to start the second quarter, Penix, Jr. then proceeded to slice and dice the team that resides on the banks of the Red Cedar. Penix, Jr, threw three more TD passes to put the Dawgs up 35-0 at the half. Westover caught two of those TD tosses and WR Ja'Lynn Polk caught the other one. UW would add two FGs in the third period, then empty the benches the rest of the way. In three quarters worth of work, Penix, Jr. completed 27 of 35 passes for 473 yards and four TDs. WR's Rome Odunze and Polk combined for 298 yards receiving and a TD on 13 receptions. For the rudderless Spartans, QB Noah Kim completed 12 of 31 passes for 136 yards and an interception.
Telling Stat: Not even that close; 99 of Michigan State's 261 total yards and only touchdown came on their final drive of the game. That was well after Washington had emptied the benches.
UCLA 59- North Carolina Central 7: Pasadena, CA- The bRuins brought in the the Eagles from the HBCU ranks for a light workout and a paycheck in front of a smattering of fans at the Rose Bowl. UCLA jumped out to a 35-0 lead in the first quarter on TD passes that covered 67 and 30 yards form QB Dante Moore, a one-yard TD rumble from RB Carson Steele and two TDs runs that covered 57 yards and one yard from backup QB Collin Schlee. UCLA subbed liberally form the start of this game and just about everyone on the roster earned their letter in this laugher. In about one half of play, Moore completed eight of 12 throws for 182 yards and a pair of TDs. Meanwhile anybody who could carry the ball, did so for UCLA. 13 bRuins combined not carry the ball 39 times for 404 yards rushing and six TDs. For the woefully overmatched Eagles, QB Walker Harris completed 12 of 18 passes for 114 yards, while RB Chris Mosely scored NCCU's only TD in the fourth quarter.
Telling Stat: Over early; UCLA held a 35-0 lead and outgained UNCC 258-56 after the first quarter of play.
Washington State 64- Northern Colorado 21: Pullman, WA- The Cougars extended their record to 3-0 after a dismantling of the Golden Bears of the Big Sky Conference. Wazzu found paydirt on their first six drives to take a 43-7 lead into halftime. Four of those six first half tallies were TD passes from QB Cameron Ward. None were short throws either as they covered 37, 28, 18 and 31 yards. Oh, and he threw for a two-point conversion and ran eight yards for score too. Ward took the second off and the Cougars tacked on 21 more points with the backups before fully draining their bench in the final stanza. Ward finished the day with 20 completions in 26 attempts for 327 yards with four TDs to go with 12 yards rushing and an another TD. WR Lincoln Victor was Ward's favorite target grabbing six passes for 119 yards and two TDs. UNC QB Jacob Sirmon completed 16 of 24 passes for 171 yards and two scores for the overwhelmed Golden Bears.
Telling Stat: They dialed long distance; Wazzu's TD drives covered 75, 70, 64, 42, 64, 74, 93, 75, and 80 yards in this rout in the Palouse.
Oregon 55- Hawaii 10: Eugene, OR- The Ducks made up for their slow start last week against Texas Tech by racing out to a quick 24-0 first quarter lead en route to a whipping of the Warriors. Just :58 in to the game Webfoot QB Bo Nix threw a 49-yard bomb for a TD to WR Tez Johnson. A 43-yard FG by PK Camden Lewis along with a 22-yard TD scamper form RB Jordan James and a 1-yard TD pass from Nix to WR Treason Holden accounted for UO's 24 first quarter points. The Quacks would open up a 34-0 lead on a 22-yard FG from Lewis and a three-yard run from James. Hawaii would get a 29-yard FG from PK Matthew Shipley just before the half to make the score 34-3 UO at the break. The Men of Oregon would add 21 more second half points as most of the Autzen Stadium faithful left for the craft breweries and pubs of the greater Eugene area. In three quarters of play Nix was good on 21of 27 passes for 247 yards and three TDs while James and fellow RB Noah Whittington combined for 141 yards and three TDs on just 12 carries. Hawaii QB Brayden Schager completed 27 of 43 aerials for 131 yards, a TD and an interception in the lopsided loss.
Telling Stat: Stalled chains; Hawaii was held to just 2 of 14 on third down conversions.
Arizona 31- UTEP 10 : Tucson, AZ- While the rest of the college football world was focused on Colorado's narrow escape against Colorado State, the Wildcats ground down the Miners in battle of old Border Conference foes. UofA opened the scoring seven seconds into the second period when QB Jayden de Laura there an 18-yard TD pass to WR Tetairoa McMillan. UTEP would cut the Wildcats lead to four points when PK Buzz Flabiano spit the uprights from 25-yards out. 7-3 would be as close as UTEP would ever get to UofA. The Wildcats would go up 14-3 on a three-yard trip the end zone by RB Michael Wiley with 1:23 to play in the second quarter. The second half would see Arizona put 17 more points on the board to extend their lead to 31-3 before the Miners would get a cosmetic score with 1:32 left in the game. de Laura was very efficient against the school formerly known as Texas Western University by completing 23 of 29 passes for 285 yards and three TDs. Wiley would lead all rushers with 83 yards and a TD on 17 carries. For the now 1-3 Miners, QB Gavin Hardison completed 15 of 31 tosses for 228 yards.
Telling Stat: They did bear down; After giving up a field goal, the Arizona defense kept UTEP out of the end zone for the final 58:28 which allowed their offense to go win the game.
Sacramento State 30- Stanford 27: Palo Alto, CA- After Stanford's absolute beatdown at the hands of USC last week, pundits wondered if the Cardinal would bounce back and get a win against new HC Troy Taylor's former squad and Big Sky Conference defending champion Sac State Hornets. Ummm, they didn't. Long story short here, the game was tied at 23 all with 1:32 to play when Hornet QB Kaiden Bennett threw a 49-yard TD pass to RB Marcus Fletcher to stun the Cardinal and their several dozen fans that attempted fill the Stanford Stadium stands. A few plays later, the Hornets walked off the field with a big win. Bennet was the Sac State offense. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 279 yards, a TD and a pick while also rushing for 100 yards on 13 carries and another score. For the hapless Cardinal, QBs Justin Lamson and Ashton Daniels combined to complete 11 of 24 passes for 207 yards a TD and two picks.
Telling Stat: They moved the chains; Sac Sate converted on 11 of 16 third downs and outgained the Cardinal by almost 100 yards in this upset on The Farm.
Colorado 43- Colorado State 35 2OT: Boulder, CO- The Deion Sanders hype train reached epic proportions last week at the base of the Flatiron Mountains. ESPN's College Gameday and Fox's Big Noon Kickoff set up on the CU campus and 60 Minutes spent the whole week with Primetime. The week leading up to the game featured chippiness between the two HCs and a pre game alteration on the field. At kickoff the Buffs sideline was packed with celebrities. This game had the feel of a coronation for Sanders as his squad was expected to easily smash the 0-1 Rams as 23 point favorites. Then, a funny thing happened on the way to the coronation. Colorado State came to play. They were prepared and attacked the Buffaloes with a nasty streak not seen since a 1970's Raiders-Steelers game. CSU was hit with 17 flags for 182 yards which included a ton of personal foul calls and a targeting ejection. The two teams combined to commit 27 fouls for 269 penalty yards. Several players were injured including CU's two way star Travis Hunter who was leveled after an incomplete pass and sent to the hospital. In the middle of this mayhem a very sloppy but good game took place. The teams traded defensive scores and TD passes to end the first period tied at 14. CSU held the Buffs scoreless in the second quarter, while they took a 21-14 lead on a 15-yard TD pass from QB Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi to WR Louis Brown IV. The third quarter was a scoreless battle which set up a crazy fourth period. Following a 20-yard FG from CU PK Alejandro Mata, CSU found three end zone on a 35-yard pass from Fowler-Nicolosi to TE Dallin Holker. Then up 28-17 CSU got conservative on offense and switched up their defense which opened the door for a Colorado comeback. A 41-yard FG from Mata and a 98-yard TD drive and two-point conversion sent the game to overtime. The teams traded TDs in the first OT. The second OT saw CU take a 43-35 lead on an 18 yard TD pass from QB Shedeur Sanders to WR Michael Harrison and a two-point conversion pass WR Xavier Weaver. CSU had a shot tie the game, but on second and goal at the Buffaloes four-yard line, the Rams were incorrectly called for an illegal blindside block. CSU could not overcome the 15-yard penalty and Colorado escaped with the win. For the now 3-0 Buffaloes, Shedeur Sanders completed 38 of 47 passes for 348 yards, four TDs and an interception. His prime target was Weaver who caught nine balls for 98 yards and a score. For the hard luck Rams, Fowler-Nicolosi completed 34 of 47 passes for 367 yards, three TDs and three interceptions.
Telling Stat: 17 + -2= L; Colorado State outplayed Colorado most of the game, but committing 17 penalties and being -2 in turnovers lost the game for the Rams.
Fresno State 29- Arizona State 0: Tempe, AZ- The Ken Dillingham era at ASU is now off to a 1-2 start after the Sun Devils were humiliated at home by the Bulldogs. Minus starting QB Jaden Rshada who will be out 4-6 weeks with an injury, the Sun Devils offense fell apart under backup QBs Drew Payne, Trenton Bourguet and Jacob Conover. Payne and Bourget were both injured in the game, while Conover remained helathy, but the three of them managed to throw five interceptions. Add three fumbles to that and the Sun Devils committed a total of eight turnovers that the kids from the Central Valley turned into 15 of their 29 points. This score could have been much worse, but Fresno State's offense wasn't any kind of juggernaut. ASU's defense forced Fresno to attempt seven field goals. The Bulldogs made five of those kicks. PK Dillon Lynch was accurate on kicks from 39, 30, 29, 50 and 33 yards. His misses came from 53 and 45 yards away. Fresno's two TDs came on a pair of TD passes from QB Mikey Keene. The first one was a 19-yard toss to WR Jalen Moss and the second was a 42-yard scoring strike to WR Jaelen Gill. Keene finished the game completing 32 of 49 passes for 281 yards and two TDs. For turnover happy ASU, all three QBs combined to complete 17 of 37 passes for 188 yards and five interceptions.
Telling Stat: The Nine that ain't fine; Yes ASU turned the ball over eight times. However, they did turn the ball over on downs once too. The Sun Devils managed to turn the ball over on nine of their 13 possessions in the game. Wow.
Observations
...Pac 2 Showdown; The battle for whose best of what's left happens this week as Oregon State travels to Pullman to take on Wazzu.
...He will be gone; Michigan State has begun the process of firing HC Mel Tucker. Moving On
...Poking the bear; Ole Miss HC Lane Kiffin at least two times this week publicly wondered who is calling the defensive plays for Alabama. He believes St. Nicholas of Tuscaloosa has secretly demoted his DC Kevin Steele. Ole Miss plays at Bama this week. Ticking of Nick
...On, Brave old Coach; Army HC Jeff Monken has received an extension to be at Army through the 2027 season. Winning five of his last seven games v. Navy was big factor in Monken recieivng that extension.
...He can fetch; Juice Kiifin is a Golden ReTeever. Hotty Toddy Puppy!
...An early frost in Florida; Florida put Tennesee's SEC title hopes into a deep freeze in the Swamp. I'm sure that Vols fans have already googled "Josh Heupel buyout clause."
...Speaking of Orange; Syracuse is 3-0 after taking Purdue down, 35-20. The Orange have a date with Army this week before taking on Clemson to start ACC play on 9/30.
...Speaking of teams that beat Purdue; Fresno State is 3-0 and has wins at Purdue and Arizona State. Odd thing is that their smallest margin of victory was a three point win over FCS power Eastern Washington. Hmmmmmm
...Cheap is cheap; Fox Sports One hasn't sent announcers to college football venues for awhile, but they reached a new low Saturday when they had Play-By-Play man Alec Faust and Color Analyst Petros Papadakis call two games on Saturday from their remote location. The pair called the SDSU-OSU game then later on called the Fresno State- ASU game. FS1 didn't even give them a wardrobe change. Faceplam.
...NSFW Warning; The West Virginia fans added some interesting lyrics to the Neil Diamond classic, Sweet Caroline for last Saturday's rivalry game with Pitt. Eat What?
...A loaded slate; This upcoming weekend of games is as loaded as last weekend's slate was dull. Ohio State at Notre Dame, Iowa at Penn State, Florida State at Clemson and UCLA at Utah are just a few of the matchups I'm looking forward to this week.
...Tough W's Maryland has fallen behind 14-0 to start their last two games, but managed to rally and win both contests.
...Feeling the heat in Tempe; After a horrible 1-2 start, ASU HC Ken Dillingham has taken over play calling duties for the Sun Devils.
...Campbell was hot; Not talking soup here, Iowa State HC Matt Campbell was held back by his own team from going after a fan who heckled him after the Cyclones were upset, 10-7 by Ohio U. Funny thing is that holding Campbell back was the best block Iowa State made all day. Hot Seat
...Embarrassment of riches; The number of great QBs in the Pac 12 is staggering. The Stiffarm Statue seems to be lock to remain in the west another year.
...A mess in green; His teammates can say anything they want to the media and make a great show of supporting New York Jets QB Zach Wilson, but how many of the players truly believe they can win with him under center?
...An origin story; With Fall arriving this Saturday I found a story on a weather event we have all heard of that has been known as St. Martin's Summer in Europe and England long before it got its' North American name. Old Farmer's Almanac
...Ivy Rarity; Princeton made the long trip out west to California and beat the University of San Diego, 23-12 last Saturday.
...Just rumor; there's no truth to the rumor that ASU has checked to see if former QB Jake Plummer still has any eligibility left.
...Western Dogfight; The Mountain West Conference might be a battle all the way to the end with Fresno St., Air Force, Wyoming, SDSU, Boise St and UNLV all in good position for a title run.
...Winless goodness; The Patriots are 0-2 and I am really ok with that fact.
...One for the books; Missouri PK Harrison Mevis booted an SEC record 61-yard FG as time expired to lift the Tigers to a 30-27 victory over Kansas State. He broke the previous league record by one yard. That record was held by three players. Fuad Reveiz of Tennessee booted a 60-yarder in 1982 while both Georgia's Kevin Butler and Florida's Chris Perkins each nailed 60-yarder in 1984. 61!
...A rumble for six; I do dig a big man with skills. Watch OSU LT Joshua Gray find the end zone. A Big Six!
...Rooting in the press box; ESPN Play-by-Play man Mark Jones couldn't have been rooting harder for Colorado last week if he tried. All he was missing was Chip's Costume and some pom poms. Facepalm.
...Because I begged the question; The record for longest field goal ever made in a college game belongs to Abilene Christian PK Ove Johansson who, in 1976, booted a 69-yarder against East Texas State (Now known as Texas A&M Commerce). Here's the film... Oh Yay for Ove!
...Old school football; I love it when Penn State lines up in the T Formation down on the goal line.
...A lot older school football; The Philadelphia Eagles QB Sneak formation looks like an old mass momentum formation from the 1890s. Somewhere Walter Camp is smiling.
Pac 12 Overreactions
USC is happy that Colorado has drawn all the attention in the Pac 12.
Washington's offense is the best in school history.
Colorado is a six win team.
ASU is depressed that they won't play Stanford this year.
Utah is a four loss team without Cam Rising.
Cal could win a lot of games if their offense and defense would play well at the same time.
Oregon State is the new Stanford.
UCLA will lead every game in rushing yards.
Stanford is a 1-11 team.
Arizona is a bowl team in almost any other conference.
Oregon wishes every game was at home.
Wazzu is an eight win team.
Ugly Uniform of the Week
This week's winner is UTSA with this all-orange kit they wore v. Army.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: Chicago, IL- We head to the NAIA ranks where the #5 ranked Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats held on for a 16-15 win over the #15 ranked St. Xavier Cougars. IWU held a 14-7 lead in the the third quarter before the teams traded safeties on a pair of penalties for intentional grounding in the end zone. Down 16-9 with 4:21 to play in the fourth quarter, St Xavier got a great return on a bad IWU punt and had a First and 10 at the IWU 20-yard line. Four plays later, Cougar QB Stuart Ross hit WR Matt Chavers for a 16-yard TD pass to make the score 16-15. The Cougars then went for the two-point conversion and IWU DB Luke Bays picked off the pass for the two-point attempt to save the win for the Wildcats. IWU QB Xander Stokes threw for 175 yards with a TD and an interception while his backfield mate, RB Williams Dedarrian led all rushers with 121 yards on 32 carries and a TD of his own.
Blowout Game of the Week: Hillsboro, OR- A couple of weeks ago Portland State was hammered 81-7 by Oregon. Last Saturday the Vikings of the FCS' Big Sky Conference handed out an epic beatdown of their own with a 91-0 win over tiny North American University of the NAIA. How small is NAU? Well, they are not even a full member of an athletic conference for football, they are just associate members of the Red River Athletic Conference. PSU led 63-0 at the half and was up 91-0 after three quarters. The Vikings held NAU to -23 total yards and two first downs.
Razorback Report: Fayetteville, AR- The Hogs jumped out to an early, 14-0 lead only to see the visiting BYU Cougars erase that lead. The game was a back and forth affair the rest of the way with BYU winning the fourth quarter, 7-0 and the subsequently the game, 38-31. Without the services of starting RB Rocket Sanders, the Hogs still ran for 177 yards as a team with RB AJ Green leading all rushers with 86 yards and two TDs on nine carries. QB KJ Jefferson completed 24 of 35 passes for 247 yards, a TD and an interception in the loss. For the victorious Cougars, former USC and Pitt QB, Kedon Slovis completed 13 of 25 passes for 167 yards and two scores. Up next for Arkansas is a trip to Baton Rouge to take on LSU.
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...
Quality Cold Cuts from a butcher shop is a great thing in life.
One sign of good suburban living is having a well-organized kitchen drawer of Ziplock bags.
The Fifth Avenue candy bar is still a great treat if you can find it.
Until next time, remember that every game is counts.
The Commissioner
