Here we are in early October staring down the halfway mark of the season; To celebrate approaching the halfway mark here's another edition of Notes on a Pac 12 Scorecard. We still miss you, Mel Durslag.
Summaries
USC 48- Colorado 41: Boulder, CO- It was a rocking Folsom Field for the 9 AM PDT kickoff. Fox loved showing all the stars on the sideline cheering on Coach Prime and his Buffaloes squad. USC took the field as 21 point favorites and despite a couple of dropped passes and a defensive gaffe or two looked well on their way to an easy win up 34-7 with 2:54 to play in the second quarter. Then the Trojan defense fell apart like last year's defense and allowed Colorado to make a comeback that only failed because the Buffs ran just ran out of time. The Trojans got outscored 34-14 over the final 34:54 of the game. The defense was aligned poorly many times and missed a plethora of tackles as CU QB Shedeur Sanders carved up the SC secondary. The Trojan defense made an instant star of Buffs WR Omarion Miller. Miller hadn't recorded a catch this season, but he and grabbed nine passes for 196 yards and a TD this day. Sanders fourth TD pass, a 16-yarder to WR Jimmy Horn, Jr. cut SC's lead to 48-41 with 1:43 to play. CU then went for the onside kick. The kick was easily handled by WR Michael Jackson III and the Trojans were then able to run out the clock with a couple of kneel downs. Seemingly lost in the Trojan defensive collapse was the great play of QB Caleb Williams. He completed 30 of 40 passes for 403 yards, six TDs and an interception. WR Tahj Washington caught eight passes for 117 yards and a TD while fellow receiver Brenden Rice caught five passes for 81 yards and two TDs. RB MarShawn Lloyd led all rushers with 84 yards and a TD on 13 carries. For the upset minded Buffaloes, Sanders completed 30 of 45 passes for 371 yards, four TDs and an interception. He also ran for 50 yards on 14 carries and a score.
Telling Stat: 21 in 17; USC escaped with a win in this game despite being outscored by Colorado 21-0 over the last 17:14 of the game.
Oregon State 21- Utah 7: Corvallis, OR- Without QB Cam Rising and several other key starters the Utes have piled up a 4-0 record by getting just enough offense to go with their tough defense to eek out victories. Last Friday night, the Utes luck ran out against a very tough and physical Beavers squad. OSU took the early lead the first time they had the ball. QB D.J. Uiagalelei and RB Damien Martinez led the Beavers on a 65-yard TD drive that was capped off by a four-yard run from Martinez. Both defenses then took over and forced punts on the 10 of next 11 drives. That would bring us to the 11:17 mark of the third quarter and OSU with a 1st and 10 at their own 48-yard line. Two plays later, Uiagalelei connected with WR Silas Bolden fro a 27-yard TD pass and a 14-0 lead. On the ensuing possession Oregon State LB Easton Mascarena-Arnold picked off QB Bryson Barnes deep in Beaver territory to snuff out Utah's best chance to get back into the game. The kids from Corvallis then took a stranglehold on the game nine plays later. Bolden took a pitchout from Uiagalelei and sprinted 45 yards to the house to give the Beavers a 21-0 lead. Utah would get on the scoreboard on 41-yard TD pass form QB Nate Johnson to WR Thomas Yassmin that did little more than save the Utes from being shutout. Uiagalelei completed 14 of 25 passes for 204 yards a TD and an interception for the Orange and Black. For the Utes, Johnson completed just eight of 25 aerials for 101 yards and a TD.
Telling Stat: They couldn't move the chains; Utah's offense could only convert 2 of 13 3rd downs in the contest.
California 24- Arizona State 21: Berkeley, CA-A small crowd watched a pair of teams battle for respectability at Memorial Stadium. What those folks saw was a tight game where Cal's defense held on at the end for the win. The seal was broken on this one when RB Isaiah Ifanse knifed into the end zone from a yard out to give the Golden Bears a 7-0 lead. On the ensuing drive ASU tied the game at 7-7 when bruising RB Cameron Skattebo rumbled two-yards to paydirt. The second quarter saw Cal take a 10-7 lead on a 37-yard FG from PK Mateen Bhaghani who had been named the starter this week in place of the erratic Michael Luckhurst. Cal was able to take that 10-7 lead into the half thanks to stuffing Skattebo on 4th and 1at their own 39-yard line and then recovering a Sun Devil fumble to end the half. The denizens of Strawberry Canyon Extended their lead to 17-7 on a 21-yard TD toss from QB Sam Jackson V to WR Jeremiah Hunter. ASU's offense had the better of things the rest of the period, but had to settle for FGs of 24 and 29 yards from PK Dario Longhetto who had transferred to the Sun Devils last spring from Cal. The Golden Bears took a 24-13 lead when RB Jaydn Ott found the end zone on a two-yard run. ASU would then answer right back on a four-yard TD run from QB Trenton Bourguet and a two-point conversion pass from WR Elijah Badger to Bourguet. Cal then needed to kill the clock and score to put the game out of reach leading 24-21 with 9:18 left to play. They almost got both. The good news for the Bears was that they marched 74 yards and burned 6:28 off the clock. The bad news was that Ott was stopped on 4th an Goal at the one-yard line by the Sun Devils. That left ASU one last shot to tie or win the game. The Cal defense came up big one final time forcing an incompletion on 4th down at the ASU 39-yard line. For the now 3-2 Bears, Ott was a workhorse lugging the leather 29 times for 165 yards and a TD, while Jackson completed 12 of 28 passes for 130 yards and a score of his own. In the tough loss, Bourguet completed 26 of 41 passes for 344 yards and an interception.
Telling Stat: Threes aren't sevens; ASU was forced to settle for FGs instead of scoring TDs on two drives inside the Cal Red Zone and that was the difference in the game.
Oregon 42- Stanford 6: Palo Alto, CA- Was it a bit of a hangover from their thrashing Colorado last week, an inspired Cardinal squad or a little bit of both that led to Stanford holding a 6-0 lead over the Ducks with 13:30 left in the second quarter? As it was happening folks began to wonder if the Webfooots were going to fall in once again in an unlikely upset on The Farm. Those thoughts proved to be fleeting as UO would score TDs on six of their next seven possessions to firmly put this game in the win column. QB Bo Nix efficiently shredded the Cardinal secondary by completing 27 of 32 passes for 290 yards and four TDs. WR Tony Franklin was Nix's favorite target. He caught seven passes for 117 yards and two TDs. The Ducks duo of RBs Jordan James and Bucky Irving combined to rush for 176 yards on 19 carries with a pair of scores. For the hapless Cardinal, QB Justin Lamson completed 11 of 20 passes for 106 yards and ran 22 times for 32 yards.
Telling Stat: A lot in a little; Oregon put up 42 points and gained 506 yards on Stanford in just 24:24 of possession time.
Washington 31- Arizona 24: Tucson, AZ- The state of Arizona has been a relative house of horrors for the Huskies over the years. Whether they were playing in Tempe or Tucson many a Washington season has fallen apart in the desert. This time the Huskies came away with a win to exercise a few demons of seasons past. However, this was not an easy win. UW did take an early 14-0 lead into the second quarter thanks to TD runs of four yards by RB Dillon Johnson and there-yard TD scamper form RB Germie Bernard. UofA's offense then came to life in the second quarter on an eight-yard TD pass from QB Noah Fifita to WR Jacob Cowing and a 30-yard FG from PK Tyler Loop. UW got a 5-0yard TD run from RB Will Nixon and carried an uneasy 21-10 lead into the intermission. The third quarter saw the schools trade TDs. The Dawgs then seemed to put the game out of reach when PK Grady Gross nailed a 37-yard FG to extend the lead to 31-17. However, Arizona made Husky fans everywhere nervous when Fifita hit WR Tetairoa McMillian with a 10-yard TD strike with 1:08 to play. Those fans could breathe easily once again when after UofA's onside kick failed. For the Dawgs, QB Michael Penix, Jr, completed 30 of 40 throws for 363 yards while RB Dillion Johnson gained 91 yards own 16 carries with two TDs. As for Arizona, QB Noah Fifita completed 27 of 39 passes for 232 yards, three TDs and an interception.
Telling Stat: 2+2= W; Washington's two TDs on their first two drives was the difference in the game.
Observations
...Just a rumor; There is no truth to the rumor that USC had former AD Pat Haden meet the team plane when it arrived from Colorado just in case HC Lincoln Riley wanted to Tarmac DC Alex Grinch.
...4 to 3 the hard way; Four different Minnesota Golden Gophers have been named Freshman of the Week in the Big Ten. That's pretty good for a team with just three wins.
...Tired defenses; USC and UCLA rank 11th and 12th in the Pac 12 and 114th and 127th in the nation, in average Time of Possession. (Note: There are 130 FBS teams) The Men of Troy only hold the ball for an average of 27 minutes a game while the Sons of Westwood have the ball 23 minutes a contest on average.
...Not shocked; Army leads the nation in fewest penalties committed with nine flags in four games.
...It's the O too; Yeah, the USC defense deserves all the criticism it gets after their subpar effort at Colorado, but the offense deserves a little too after being held scoreless for the final 17 minutes by the below average at best CU defense.
...No flag, big suspension; Louisiana Tech LB Brevin Randle was suspended indefinitely by the university for this dirty play v. UTEP. Head Shot
...Under the radar Showdown; 5-0 Fresno State heads to 4-1 Wyoming this week for a huge Mountain West Conference tilt.
...Billion with a B; The Powerball jackpot is upon to 1.2 billion dollars. I could really fill in the gaps in my card collection with that.
...Wild in Oxford; The most fun game to watch this year is Ole Miss' 55-49 win over LSU. Why? Well, when you have no real dog in the fight you can enjoy no defense, 104 points, 65 first downs and 1,343 yards of offense.
...Cheaper than parking; You can get a ticket for Friday's Nebraska-Illinois game for six bucks on the secondary market.
..de Laura de done?; With the way the Wildcats have rallied around backup QB Noah Fifita, Arizona starting QB Jayden de Laura might not get his job back when returns from injury.
...Always cool; It's fun to see that Oklahoma-Texas game is on the list of the official events at the Texas State Fair.
...He had a dog in the fight; I got this text critical of the Rebels from our field agent who is also an Ole Miss fan from Vaught-Hemingway Stadium at the start of the fourth quarter, "Not a single QB hurry through three quarters. DBs let them catch balls then celebrate after a 30 yard gain when they make the tackle."
...Fear the turtle?; 5-0 Maryland takes on 4-0 Ohio State in Columbus this Saturday.
...Hot seat cooling; West Virginia HC Neal Brown came into the season on one of the hottest seats in the nation. All his Mountaineers have done this year is go 4-1 to start the season which includes a 24-21 upset win over TCU last Saturday.
...Captain Obvious; Oregon State HC Jonathan Smith got his point across quite graphically that he wanted his offense to milk the clock v. Utah. A clear request
...So, there's a chance; For all of us wanting DC Alex Grinch canned, Georgia Tech just demoted DC Andrew Thacker after losing to Bowling Green. That means it is possible to fire a DC mid season. Just sayin'.
...This just in; Nevada stinks. The Wolfpack are 0-5 and have scored just 77 points this year. Facepalm.
...No 0 for OSU; Oregon State broadcasters were lamenting not shutting out Utah as it would have been the first shutout by the Beavers of a conference opponent since 1975. That shutout was a 7-0 win over Wazzu. It was the Beavers only win in the Dee Andros' last year as HC of the Orange and Black.
...Jumped the shark; ESPN's College Gameday is a shell of itself and the addition of Pat McAfee to the show has really been an epic fail.
...A title game in SoCal; The Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) is the Golden State's only D-III football conference. It only has six teams, but there will be a conference title game. The six teams are split into two pods. The SUN pod is to home to Redlands, Pomona-Pitzer and La Verne, while the SURF pod houses Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Cal Lutheran and Chapman. The winners of each pod will meet in title game to decide who gets the league's automatic bid to the D-III playoffs.
...Utah strong; The Utes have a toughness on defense that USC wishes it had.
...Almost there; Swifties need to get the spelling right to go with their enthusiasm. K-E-L-C-E
A Baseball Goodbye
The regular season ended last Sunday. My team, the Angels won that last game for a small bright spot at the end of another bad season. It was fun to watch that game in the fall light, knowing that my hope will return for a good season when pitchers and catchers report next spring. A few good teams advance now to the playoffs where a World Series victory is to be fought for. However, for my team, the first stanza of Grantland Rice's Game Called tells me it is over...
Game Called. Across the field of play
the dusk has come, the hour is late.
The fight is done and lost or won,
the player files out the gate.
The tumult dies, the cheer is hushed,
the stands are bare, the park is still.
But through the night there shines the light,
home beyond the silent hill.
Pac 12 Overreactions
Washington is the best team in the league.
Oregon plays with a great killer instinct.
Cal will make a bowl game.
ASU will ruin somebody's season.
Oregon State is a very physical team.
Stanford's rebuild will take awhile.
USC is a 9-3 team.
Arizona will scare several teams and go 5-7.
Utah proved a team can't live on defense alone.
Colorado is a 6-6 team.
Wazzu and UCLA enjoyed a quiet bye week.
Ugly Uniform of the Week
Gotta give this week's award to Stanford for their all-black look v. Oregon. My stance is very clear on not liking teams wearing all-black when black is not one of their school colors.
Departments
Low Score Game of the Week: New Haven, CT- This week's game comes from the Northeast 10 Conference in Division II. In a battle for the birds, the Southern Connecticut State Owls got a late score to beat the Saint Anselm College Hawks, 6-3. The Haws took a 3-0 lead in the second quarter when PK Patrick Carroll booted a 24-yard FG. The game stayed that way in a near constant rainfall until the 1:20 mark of the fourth quarter. That was when QB Ridley Keith, Jr. completed a 21-yard TD pass to WR Tylon Papallo. The PAT failed which left Saint Anselm with a chance to at least send the game to overtime, but Hawks QB Drew Forkner was sacked on 4th and 10 from his own 30-yard line to end the game.
Blowout Game of the Week: Durango, CO- This week's game also hails from the D-II level. It comes from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference where the Colorado State University Pueblo ThunderWolves wiped out the Fort Lewis Skyhawks, 85-7. QB Chance Fuller threw for five first half TDs to help pace the ThunderWolves to a 50-0 halftime advantage. The ThunderWolves 85 points scored are a new school record.
Razorback Report :Arlington, TX- Well, it was another game to forget at Jerryworld as the Hogs were beaten 34-22 by Texas A&M to extend their losing streak to three games this season. Arkansas held an early 3-0 lead on a 52-yard FG from PK Cam Little. However, The Aggies would take a 7-3 lead near the end of the first quarter and the Hogs would never lead again. The teams kept trading scores until the Aggies got a pick six and a long punt return to put the game out of reach. QB K.J. Jefferson completed nine of 17 passes for 132 yards, a TD and an interception in the loss. Up next for the now 2-3 Hogs is a trip to Ole Miss.
This Week's Three Notes About Nothing...
Fall means that Pot Roast has returned to mom's Sunday dinner menu.
The unofficial after Sunday dinner rush hour in San Pedro starts at 7:15 PM.
Nobody likes Santa Ana winds in October.
Until next time folks, remember that most games require a full effort for four quarters.
-The Commissioner
