2018's (First?) Week of Chaos
The one certainty in college football is its uncertainty. On any given Saturday, a team viewed as strong or nearly unbeatable lets overconfidence get the best of them, performing below their usual standards. Or sometimes they simply suffer a defeat because their opponents play well enough to pull off an upset.
One of the most exciting occurrences in college football is when a bunch of these unexpected results burst onto the news on the same weekend! Week 4 of 2018 was one such week. Six top 25 teams lost last weekend, 5 of them in major upsets to unranked teams. Most shockingly, the winless Old Dominion Monarchs took down Virginia Tech by a 2 full. touchdowns 49-35. Also saddled by a 0-3 record, the Purdue Boilermakers nonetheless defeated a highly regarded Boston College team 30-13 with a impressive defensive effort.
In the southeast, Kentucky moved to 4-0 with a startling 28-7 smackdown of 14th ranked Mississippi State. And rounding out the upsets were Texas Tech's 41-17 defeat of Oklahoma State and Texas' 31-17 hard-fought victory over TCU. The question is: will 2018 contain a 2nd week that will flip our expectations upside down.
Oregon loses to Stanford at Autzen Stadium
Fans of the Oregon Ducks always pack the confines of Autzen Stadium to the max, making the atmosphere very loud for opposing teams. But just like in 2012, Oregon gave up a late lead at home in a big game against Stanford and lost. All Oregon had to do was kneel down 3 times to win, but instead they opt for a running play and the runner fumbles the ball while unnecessarily pushing for a few extra yards. Stanford uses the opportunity effectively, moving the ball far enough to set up for a field goal which kicker Jet Toner converts to send the game to overtime. Stanford gets the ball first in overtime, scores a touchdown, and prevents Oregon from doing so and notches a monumental win. So, now the Ducks are unranked once again. Perhaps they should choose a more fearsome team name.
Friday, September 28, 2018
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
Headlines Week 3 2018
Back-and-forth Affair Under the Lights in Dallas
In a marquee matchup inside the gleaming edifice of Dallas Cowboys stadium, the Ohio State Buckeyes battled the Texas Christian University (TCU) Horned Frogs. It was truly a tale of two halves. When it mattered most, the Horned Frogs defense was suffocating in the 1st half, allowing the Buckeyes offense to score only 3 points. The TCU offense, led by quarterback Shawn Robinson, constructed a pair of touchdown drives that would give them the lead heading into the half. The lone Ohio State touchdown in the 1st half came when Buckeyes defensive end Nick Bosa sacked Robinson deep in his own territory and forced him to fumble. The ball was barely recovered in the endzone for a touchdown by Ohio State.
The Horned Frogs extended their lead on the running back Darius Anderson's 2nd rushing touchdown of the game. After that, however, the Buckeyes took control. Ohio State scored 3 touchdowns in a period of just under 4 minutes, the most exciting of which was a long reception from the arm of quarterback Dwayne Haskins to the hands of excellent receiver Parris Campbell. The more pivotal one, though, was an interception return for a touchdown by defensive tackle Dre'Mont Jones. The Horned Frogs kept the game close with a long touchdown pass of their own, but Ohio State pulled away for good when Haskins sauntered into the endzone for a score at the end of a efficienct drive. And so, yet again, the Buckeyes departed the magnificent stadium with a huge victory.
I also have to tell you the story behind Dwayne Haskins. Ten years, he and his family visited the Ohio State campus. Upon touring the area showcasing the past glories of Ohio State sports, young Dwayne expressed his desire to one day attend college there. When his father inquired further as to why he wanted to be a Buckeye, Haskins declared, "I'm going to play quarterback here someday." Quite a vivid reason to dream big and try your hardest to achieve it.
The Annual "Battle of the Tigers" Comes Down to the Final Play
The yearly contest between the Auburn Tigers and the Tigers of Louisiana State University usually provides college football enthusiasts with one of the best games of the year. Aside from the obvious similarities, both teams compete in the hotly-contested SEC West division, often have championship hopes, and have fiercely loyal fan bases. Can you spell, R-I-V-A-L-R-Y!
These important division matchups are won or lost in the trenches, a term for the game-long shoving match between each teams' offensive and defensive lines. Looking at the final rushing stats, the result of that was basically a draw.
LSU quieted some of initial enthusiasm of the Auburn home crowd by taking a 10 point lead halfway through the 2nd quarter. Then, Auburn roared back with two rushing touchdowns to jump ahead 14-10 going into halftime.
Auburn jumped further into the lead at the end of a two minute drive when quarterback Jarrett Stidham completed a short TD pass to receiver Darius Slayton. After that, the LSU defense tightened up, refusing to surrender any more points. This allowed LSU to storm back in the final 20 minutes of play. They scored first on a field goal by Cole Tracy and then leapt to within 2 points after a long touchdown pass and catch from quarterback Joe Burrow to receiver Derrick Dillon.
Beginning with 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the game, Burrow, a transfer from Ohio State, led his team on a methodical, 14 play drive receiver that included a clutch 4th and 7 completion to Dee Anderson. Later in this critical drive, a pass interference call on Auburn guaranteed LSU would at least get a chance for a last second field goal. Kicker Cole Tracy, who had missed a long field goal in the first half, came on to attempt a 42 yarder with 2 seconds to go. Tracy became the hero on campus for the next week when he nailed the kick right down the middle. With that, the LSU Tigers are now the top challenger to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC West.
The Struggle of First Year Head Coaches
In the current world where fans expect results quickly, there are plenty of fan bases dissatisfied with their first year head coaches.
Let's start with Kevin Sumlin at Arizona who is 1-2 after two head-scratching losses where the offense played poorly, followed by a easy win over a weak opponent. Then you have Willie Taggert at Florida State whose team got manhandled in a big opening game against Virginia Tech, barely defeated little known Samford, and then got blown out by Syracuse.
Scott Frost, who coached UCF to an undefeated season last year, has yet to secure a win at Nebraska. His Cornhuskers have suffered two close losses, the first in a well-fought rivalry against Colorado, which I wrote about in Week 1, and an upset loss to the Trojans of Troy, Alabama. However, that result is more understandable when you know that the Trojans marched into LSU's home stadium and upset them last season as well.
Most surprising is Chip Kelly's terrible 0-3 start at UCLA. He is a well-regarded former NFL head coach, originally viewed as one of the best of the new coaching hires. But the college game is very different from managing professionals. His Bruins were even listed as underdogs against the Fresno State Bulldogs, a team from a weaker conference. When the Bruins lost that game on Saturday, Vegad was proved right.
The one bright spot has been Herm Edwards at Arizona State. He is best known as an NFL analyst and had not coached in 10 years! But he is sitting comfortably at 2-1, mainly because one of those victories was a superb upset of #13 Michigan State.
In a marquee matchup inside the gleaming edifice of Dallas Cowboys stadium, the Ohio State Buckeyes battled the Texas Christian University (TCU) Horned Frogs. It was truly a tale of two halves. When it mattered most, the Horned Frogs defense was suffocating in the 1st half, allowing the Buckeyes offense to score only 3 points. The TCU offense, led by quarterback Shawn Robinson, constructed a pair of touchdown drives that would give them the lead heading into the half. The lone Ohio State touchdown in the 1st half came when Buckeyes defensive end Nick Bosa sacked Robinson deep in his own territory and forced him to fumble. The ball was barely recovered in the endzone for a touchdown by Ohio State.
The Horned Frogs extended their lead on the running back Darius Anderson's 2nd rushing touchdown of the game. After that, however, the Buckeyes took control. Ohio State scored 3 touchdowns in a period of just under 4 minutes, the most exciting of which was a long reception from the arm of quarterback Dwayne Haskins to the hands of excellent receiver Parris Campbell. The more pivotal one, though, was an interception return for a touchdown by defensive tackle Dre'Mont Jones. The Horned Frogs kept the game close with a long touchdown pass of their own, but Ohio State pulled away for good when Haskins sauntered into the endzone for a score at the end of a efficienct drive. And so, yet again, the Buckeyes departed the magnificent stadium with a huge victory.
I also have to tell you the story behind Dwayne Haskins. Ten years, he and his family visited the Ohio State campus. Upon touring the area showcasing the past glories of Ohio State sports, young Dwayne expressed his desire to one day attend college there. When his father inquired further as to why he wanted to be a Buckeye, Haskins declared, "I'm going to play quarterback here someday." Quite a vivid reason to dream big and try your hardest to achieve it.
The Annual "Battle of the Tigers" Comes Down to the Final Play
The yearly contest between the Auburn Tigers and the Tigers of Louisiana State University usually provides college football enthusiasts with one of the best games of the year. Aside from the obvious similarities, both teams compete in the hotly-contested SEC West division, often have championship hopes, and have fiercely loyal fan bases. Can you spell, R-I-V-A-L-R-Y!
These important division matchups are won or lost in the trenches, a term for the game-long shoving match between each teams' offensive and defensive lines. Looking at the final rushing stats, the result of that was basically a draw.
LSU quieted some of initial enthusiasm of the Auburn home crowd by taking a 10 point lead halfway through the 2nd quarter. Then, Auburn roared back with two rushing touchdowns to jump ahead 14-10 going into halftime.
Auburn jumped further into the lead at the end of a two minute drive when quarterback Jarrett Stidham completed a short TD pass to receiver Darius Slayton. After that, the LSU defense tightened up, refusing to surrender any more points. This allowed LSU to storm back in the final 20 minutes of play. They scored first on a field goal by Cole Tracy and then leapt to within 2 points after a long touchdown pass and catch from quarterback Joe Burrow to receiver Derrick Dillon.
Beginning with 4 1/2 minutes remaining in the game, Burrow, a transfer from Ohio State, led his team on a methodical, 14 play drive receiver that included a clutch 4th and 7 completion to Dee Anderson. Later in this critical drive, a pass interference call on Auburn guaranteed LSU would at least get a chance for a last second field goal. Kicker Cole Tracy, who had missed a long field goal in the first half, came on to attempt a 42 yarder with 2 seconds to go. Tracy became the hero on campus for the next week when he nailed the kick right down the middle. With that, the LSU Tigers are now the top challenger to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC West.
The Struggle of First Year Head Coaches
In the current world where fans expect results quickly, there are plenty of fan bases dissatisfied with their first year head coaches.
Let's start with Kevin Sumlin at Arizona who is 1-2 after two head-scratching losses where the offense played poorly, followed by a easy win over a weak opponent. Then you have Willie Taggert at Florida State whose team got manhandled in a big opening game against Virginia Tech, barely defeated little known Samford, and then got blown out by Syracuse.
Scott Frost, who coached UCF to an undefeated season last year, has yet to secure a win at Nebraska. His Cornhuskers have suffered two close losses, the first in a well-fought rivalry against Colorado, which I wrote about in Week 1, and an upset loss to the Trojans of Troy, Alabama. However, that result is more understandable when you know that the Trojans marched into LSU's home stadium and upset them last season as well.
Most surprising is Chip Kelly's terrible 0-3 start at UCLA. He is a well-regarded former NFL head coach, originally viewed as one of the best of the new coaching hires. But the college game is very different from managing professionals. His Bruins were even listed as underdogs against the Fresno State Bulldogs, a team from a weaker conference. When the Bruins lost that game on Saturday, Vegad was proved right.
The one bright spot has been Herm Edwards at Arizona State. He is best known as an NFL analyst and had not coached in 10 years! But he is sitting comfortably at 2-1, mainly because one of those victories was a superb upset of #13 Michigan State.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Headlines Week 2 2018
Thriller in Texas
Texas A&M's Kyle Field can hold a near national high capacity of 102,000 fans, and most of them were cheering in raucous fashion for the home team as the Aggies battled the highly ranked Clemson Tigers. Clemson eventually built a 15 point lead largely on the fine performance of senior quarterback Kelly Bryant. Also providing a valuable contribution was freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence. His best play was his first, when he fired a beautiful pass to receiver Tee Higgins who caught it dodged a defender and raced for a long touchdown. However, Texas A&M proved to be a very worthy opponent, mounting a determined comeback in the 4th quarterback, as quarterback Kellan Mond and his cadre of receivers showed their own amazing skills. The comeback came up just short, though, when their two point conversion attempt failed with under a minute to play. Teams facing Texas A&M in the future better get ready for a ferocious battle
Good News for Kansas At Last
The Kansas Jayhawks are known as a team that struggles to win, especially on the road. They had lost 46 road games in a row before an impressive defensive effort helped them end the streak against Central Michigan. The Kansas defense forced 5 turnovers and quarterback Peyton Bender tossed 2 touchdown passes as the Jayhawks could finally return home with a satisfying victory.
A Renewed Rivalry Provides a Nail-biting Finish
Nebraska is known for having a long string of consecutive sellouts at home and Saturday was certainly no exception as the Colorado Buffaloes, who used to be a conference rival, came rumbling into town. The teams were neck-and-neck throughout the contest, as they were tied or within a point 3 different times. A trio of rushing touchdowns for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 2 by freshman quarterback Adrian Martinez, gave them a 21-17 lead at the half. The star for Colorado was their quarterback, Stephen Montez, who threw for a total of 351 yards and 3 touchdowns. The most important of these came in the closing minutes, after a totally unnecessary and stupid hit by a Nebraska player, who I will leave unnamed for his own good, extended a Buffaloes' drive. Montez fired a perfect pass that sailed over two defenders to wide receiver Laviska Shinault Jr. who snagged it for the touchdown. Nebraska tried to mount a furious comeback in the final minute with backup quarterback Andrew Bunch forced to play as Martinez had suffered an injury earlier in the final quarter. He played admirably and led his team to a position to attempt a game winning scoring pass. Unfortunately, for Cornhusker fans his final desperation pass fell incomplete and the Buffaloes would gallop away with the victory.
Also of note, Colorado wide receiver Jay McIntyre, son of head coach Mike McIntyre, caught a short touchdown pass. Mike was very emotional about that in a post game interview.
Texas A&M's Kyle Field can hold a near national high capacity of 102,000 fans, and most of them were cheering in raucous fashion for the home team as the Aggies battled the highly ranked Clemson Tigers. Clemson eventually built a 15 point lead largely on the fine performance of senior quarterback Kelly Bryant. Also providing a valuable contribution was freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence. His best play was his first, when he fired a beautiful pass to receiver Tee Higgins who caught it dodged a defender and raced for a long touchdown. However, Texas A&M proved to be a very worthy opponent, mounting a determined comeback in the 4th quarterback, as quarterback Kellan Mond and his cadre of receivers showed their own amazing skills. The comeback came up just short, though, when their two point conversion attempt failed with under a minute to play. Teams facing Texas A&M in the future better get ready for a ferocious battle
Good News for Kansas At Last
The Kansas Jayhawks are known as a team that struggles to win, especially on the road. They had lost 46 road games in a row before an impressive defensive effort helped them end the streak against Central Michigan. The Kansas defense forced 5 turnovers and quarterback Peyton Bender tossed 2 touchdown passes as the Jayhawks could finally return home with a satisfying victory.
A Renewed Rivalry Provides a Nail-biting Finish
Nebraska is known for having a long string of consecutive sellouts at home and Saturday was certainly no exception as the Colorado Buffaloes, who used to be a conference rival, came rumbling into town. The teams were neck-and-neck throughout the contest, as they were tied or within a point 3 different times. A trio of rushing touchdowns for the Nebraska Cornhuskers, 2 by freshman quarterback Adrian Martinez, gave them a 21-17 lead at the half. The star for Colorado was their quarterback, Stephen Montez, who threw for a total of 351 yards and 3 touchdowns. The most important of these came in the closing minutes, after a totally unnecessary and stupid hit by a Nebraska player, who I will leave unnamed for his own good, extended a Buffaloes' drive. Montez fired a perfect pass that sailed over two defenders to wide receiver Laviska Shinault Jr. who snagged it for the touchdown. Nebraska tried to mount a furious comeback in the final minute with backup quarterback Andrew Bunch forced to play as Martinez had suffered an injury earlier in the final quarter. He played admirably and led his team to a position to attempt a game winning scoring pass. Unfortunately, for Cornhusker fans his final desperation pass fell incomplete and the Buffaloes would gallop away with the victory.
Also of note, Colorado wide receiver Jay McIntyre, son of head coach Mike McIntyre, caught a short touchdown pass. Mike was very emotional about that in a post game interview.
Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Headlines Week 1 2018
1. The most highly anticipated and important game of the week was certainly the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game which pitted 2 top 10 teams, the Washington Huskies and Auburn Tigers, against each other. The game took place in the dazzling new Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, giving Auburn a decided advantage in fan attendance because Auburn University is located in the nearby state of Alabama. It appeared like this had some effect on the game as Auburn jumped out to an early 12-3 lead. Washington caught up in the 2nd quarter when Huskies quarterback Jake Browning found his groove and his receivers made a couple of fantastic catches. But inability to score touchdowns in the red zone in the 2nd half doomed Washington when Auburn scored a late touchdown. This is yet another example of how the PAC 12, the conference that Washington is a part of, usually fails to win a big game on the national stage.
2. In Charlotte, North Carolina, West Virginia soundly defeated a capable Tennessee squad, 40-14 behind the 5 touchdown passes thrown by West Virginia quarterback Will Grier. This came as welcome news to me because it bolstered my theory that West Virginia will challenge Oklahoma for the Big 12 Championship this year.
3. Are the Knights of the University of Central Florida the best team in Florida? When my fellow college football expert George Winston asked who I thought the best team in Florida was, I quickly responded, "The UCF Knights!" He responded with a chuckle, which is understandable with teams like Miami, Florida, and Florida State who generally are more talented and play far tougher schedules. However, after games late in the weekend in which Miami was soundly defeated by LSU and Florida State was embarrassed at home by Virginia Tech, I might be onto something. UCF certainly played well in their 56-17 shellacking of UConn after a long trip up to Connecticut. This just goes to show that the Knights are no flash in the pan.
2. In Charlotte, North Carolina, West Virginia soundly defeated a capable Tennessee squad, 40-14 behind the 5 touchdown passes thrown by West Virginia quarterback Will Grier. This came as welcome news to me because it bolstered my theory that West Virginia will challenge Oklahoma for the Big 12 Championship this year.
3. Are the Knights of the University of Central Florida the best team in Florida? When my fellow college football expert George Winston asked who I thought the best team in Florida was, I quickly responded, "The UCF Knights!" He responded with a chuckle, which is understandable with teams like Miami, Florida, and Florida State who generally are more talented and play far tougher schedules. However, after games late in the weekend in which Miami was soundly defeated by LSU and Florida State was embarrassed at home by Virginia Tech, I might be onto something. UCF certainly played well in their 56-17 shellacking of UConn after a long trip up to Connecticut. This just goes to show that the Knights are no flash in the pan.
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