Time once again to take a look back at all the fancy doin’s in the realm of college football. This week’s theme music reminds you to not call it a comeback…
Some sad news to end the weekend: Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Southern Miss players who were shot last night following their game. Word is that they’re stable, and we hope their recovery goes well.
Speaking of injuries, Northwestern’s QB Dan Persa ruptured his Achilles on the winning TD toss, as Iowa went down to defeat at the hands of the Purple yet again. Interestingly enough, he was not tackled on the play. This is the second year in a row that a QB has gotten injured in this epic (?) match up between the Hawkeyes and Wildkitties; you’ve got to hope that wonder if Persa’s backup has an attractive mom as well. Persa will be missed- he played with a ton of heart and skill, and had just the right amount of moxie.
Iowa’s loss is again interesting for the Buckeyes- it takes a lot of wind out of the game next week in terms of BCS points, but also dings Michigan State. Given that Ohio State is chasing the Badgers and not the Spartans, it may not matter when it’s all said and done.
On the topic of the Badgers- holy crap, what did Bill Lynch do to Bret Bielma? 83 points? The sad thing, as commenters here have pointed out, is that this may be more indicative of the state of Indiana football (“basketball cheering practice“). John Clay missed most of the game with an injury, but given that Wisconsin’s o-line will spend most of Sunday scraping Hoosiers out of their cleats, it didn’t really matter.
Next up for Wisconsin, our good friends at Mich1gAAn. Michigan- really? You managed 425 yards against a team that gave the Buckeyes nearly 500? You sure that your offense is doing as well as you’d hope? Good luck next week against Wisconsin; you can only hope that they’ve already met their monthly quota of scoring. Oh, and I guess it’s time to point and laugh at their kicking game, too- seems like missing a field goal is as much of a tradition as shaking keys and crying at the end of The Game. At least the punting game is solid, right? Right? Oh…
Minnesota upset the fighting Zooks over the weekend, in the second “Zooking” of the season. On Saturday, they’ll “host” Northwestern in a game at Wrigley Field- given the propensity for the home squadron at that stadium to be “loveable losers”, it only makes sense (minus the “loveable” part). Gameday is headed to Chicago as well… feel free to practice your “Harry Caray meets Erin Andrews” impression early.
Well, the story of the week was whether or not Cam Newton would play against the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday, given the concerns about his eligibility. Interestingly enough, between these allegations and the earlier issues with Dawg standout AJ Green, the game could have easily found a new sponsor. The interesting thing in this whole situation is that Alabama and Georgia both chose to sit their questionable players earlier in the season, just in case there was something there (hint- there was). Auburn’s response? “Let it ride”
The Tigers overcame an initial deficit and defeated the Bulldogs, much to the satisfaction of the good folks who sent us this week’s reader’s photo:
In the “Someone has to win the SEC East, right?” game, it was good to see that Steve Superior still has it, as the ‘Cocks easily handled the Gators. While there’s no disregarding St. Urban’s record in his tenure, you’ve got to love moments like this:
Alabama restored order in their thrashing of Mississippi State, as did Kentucky with their victory over Vanderbilt on Senior Day. LSU and Arkansas played out of conference (and it showed), while “Precious” got his team back on track with a pounding of everyone’s favorite ex-Oregon Duck and his Mississippi friends.
OK, TBPU Cowboy fans- you’re now officially no longer the “best team that no one is talking about”. However, keep your perspective- UCLA beat Texas. Baylor beat Texas. Kansas State beat Texas. Everyone A lot of teams beat Texas. You know what the secret was? You played them at home- first time since 1956 the Horns have lost four straight in Austin.
Oklahoma rolled whatever junior college they were playing (wait, that was Texas Tech?), and Nebraska ruined Turner Gill’s return to Lincoln. The Blackshirt defense held the Jayhawks to 5 first downs and 5 total yards… it will be basketball season soon, Lawrence readers. Colorado handled the Cyclones by 20 points- I guess things are easier when you’re not playing Intramural football. The mighty Baylor Bears found out that Aggie has been improving, and that their win over Oklahoma was not a fluke.
TCU struggled early, which is what can happen when you play in a conference with half a pulse. Southern Idaho State doesn’t do that, so was extremely successful against Idaho, enough to jump the Frogs in the polls for the week.
Notre Dame played over their heads, or was TCU’s blowout of the Utes a harbinger that they might just be a wee bit over-rated? Oregon struggled against Cal, while USC handled their business (man, that sounds sketchy) against Arizona. Stanford continued to roll, and the Cougs got their first win of the Pac-Ten season by upsetting the other OSU in Corvallis. This is the part of the show where I remind you that Oregon State is over-rated, whatever their rating might be.
Miami’s win over Georgia Tech helps the Buckeyes out; you think Jacory might have been the problem- is this a Ewing Theory moment? Florida State defeated Clemson- Dabo seems… befuddled? Oh, and I’m not talking about the Big lEast until their conference leader is bowl eligible.
In our small schools, Wabash destroyed previously undefeated Depauw 47-0, Anderson’s Ravens won the Bronze Ball, and Ohio Dominican fell to Indianapolis.
We’re entering the end of the season, which means that it’s time for ridiculous trophies (The Illibuck is awesome- you shut your mouth). In the big game at Wrigleyville, the winner gets to take home the “Sweet Sioux Tomahawk“, and Cal and Stanford meet for “The Stanford Axe“, while Tennessee and Vandy play for “The Old Homestead“. Penn State plays Indiana in the “Bring a friend! Please!” game in DC. Nebraska travels to College Station, and we are certainly aware of the big game in front of the Buckeyes.
Brief programming note: TWTW will most likely be on hiatus next Sunday, since your humble correspondent will be traveling back from the Baylor/Oklahoma game. I’ll try my best, though, to spread the good news regarding the media pass that the Sooners get… I expect a warm welcome will be in order.
In the meantime, please enjoy this video metaphor for Florida’s season:
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