SB Nation - Ball St. Cardinals

Don't Bet On It!: National Game of Disinterest

T Kyle King — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 06:00:12 -0000

We have already gone around the SEC and taken a look at the national games of interest, which leaves us with just one game remaining . . . namely, the national game of disinterest.

The national game of disinterest is the one game each week that I refuse to pick because I cannot for the life of me find any compelling reason to root one way or the other, much less to hazard a guess as to the eventual winner. This week’s national game of disinterest is:

Temple Owls at Ohio Bobcats

Yes, I know . . . Temple is 9-2 overall and 7-0 in Mid-American Conference play, whereas Ohio (Ohio) sports an 8-3 record with a 6-1 ledger in MAC action, so this game has real implications for the league championship.

The problem is that the league in question is the Mid-American Conference.

The MAC is a Midwestern hodgepodge of Directional Michigans and glorified Buckeye State high school squads whose chief function is to serve as schedule fodder for the big boys in their neck of the woods. At best, the MAC is the Big Ten’s Conference USA; the MAC might as well be renamed the Snow Belt.

Don’t get me wrong; it’s nice work if you can get it. Take Tuesday night, for instance. I was working on the computer and I had the Ball State-Western Michigan game on in the background, but, because I was sick, I decided to turn in early. Even though the Cardinals and the . . . um . . . Broncos? Eagles? Chippewas? ah, what difference does it make, anyway? . . . were playing a competitive game, I had no trouble turning it off and going to bed without knowing which team won.

It’s an entertaining enough spectacle if you have nothing else to do, I suppose, but it’s more a football-like substance than actual football. Accordingly, I don’t care what sort of implications Friday’s showdown carries for the league championship. This is, after all, the Methadone Addiction Conference, providing the faux football to hardcore fans who need something to ease the transition into the offseason.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Interviewing the Enemy: Ball State Edition

Mike Breese — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:30:38 -0000

If there ever was a brother/sister blog to Red and Black Attack, it would have to be Ball State blog Over The Pylon. They rock, so go visit and visit often. Here is a set of questions that I asked to the BSU expert and you can view my answers to his questions here.

We will also be co-hosting a Live Chat here starting at 4:30 for the game, so make sure to stop by again and say hi!

RABA: What will Ball State's offensive gameplan be against the Huskies, considering that we own the #1 rushing and total defense in the MAC? Will we see a lot of RB MiQuale Lewis?

OTP: To be truthful, I'm far from optimistic about BSU's chances running the ball. A great rushing defense going against a young and inexperienced offensive line is making me quite uncomfortable. Like a lot of games this season, Parrish and the offense will run Quale if he does well, others if he does not, but run they must since the passing game has been hamstringed by Tanner Justice and his limited abilities. The bottom line in answering the question is yes... NIU will see a ton of Quale unless he isn't effective. Which certainly is sort of explanatory.

RABA: Ball State's defense is ususally very tough. How will they slow down the Huskies run game? Any players to watch out for?

OTP: They won't if the beginning part of this season is any sort of indicator. The defense last year was far from dominant or jaw breaking... it simply bent but rarely broke and could come up with a "big play" when needed. That isn't the case this season. The d continues to give up big plays and breaks more than Windows Vista. The two players that need to be contained are Sean Baker at safety and Robert Eddins up front. Both of those guys are tremendous in creating chaos in the passing game... the passing game that NIU won't be relying on.

RABA: As the season winds down, what are the Cardinals focusing on now that will help them next season and beyond? Is there hope for next season?

OTP: Hope, to borrow a line from Shawshank, is a dangerous thing. Hope can make you overlook blatantly obvious problems or things that are going wrong with no hope of getting better. That sort of blind hope is neither warranted or happening. The hope that is happening is that the administration and the staff somehow pulls it all together and the lack of success is more a result of youth and inexperience as opposed to incompetence.

RABA: Have you gotten a picture with the 'Bronze Stalk'? You might want to, considering it's going to be in Dekalb for a while after Thurs.

OTP: I am certainly not hunting down lame-ass rivalry trophies to try and photograph. And if that prediction comes true, and it resides in Dekalb for a while, that's probably a good thing since it was presumably becoming bored with its location in Muncie. However, I hope not only the fans but also the team and staff come into this game with that self-inflated sense of entitlement and victory... that will bode well for us.

RABA: Are you surprised the line is -17? I find that very high. Predictions?

OTP: It's the MAC so anything is possible. Last year I expected a shoot out or a hard fought victory, and we took NIU behind the woodshed. This year, I expect a woodshed beating from NIU, so hopefully, the opposite will happen, as it did last year. I will say NIU by 10-14, and any result better than that is reason to celebrate.

GET BLACKED OUT AT CORNSTALK 2009

Mike Breese — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:58:16 -0000

This could be Dekalb, IL or Muncie, IN or [insert college town here]

View full size photo »

Instructions for Thursday's game vs Ball State

Step 1: Wear Black

Step 2: Play hookey from work (5 PM GAME FTL)

Step 3: Get Loud

Last year, the Ball State Cardinals beat the Huskies 45-14. That was painful. In fact, I stopped blogging for a month after that loss it was so soul-crushing.

For some strange reason, I thought that NIU had a chance against a 9-0 Ball State team that was ranked 17th in the nation. I thought wrong as the Cardinals ran all over the Huskies in Muncie, racking up 529 yds in the process. Since-graduated QB Nate Davis threw for a near perfect game with 300 yds and 4 TDs.

Other than a TD run by Harnish, the Northern offense was unspectacular at best. Nothing seemed to work. We were only 3 of 12 on 3rd downs, including eight 3 and outs.

I wanted to make an impact on national television. I wanted to have the inaugural Bronze Stalk Trophy.

Never heard of the The Bronze Stalk Trophy?

I can't remember who's idea this was exactly, but somebody had an idea for a rivalry trophy between Northern Illinois and Ball State. They contacted the important people inside the respected universities and the rest was history.

It seems kind of silly, right? A trophy made up and just exclaiming that these two teams are rivals. I thought a rivalry was supposed to just grow over the years. It makes perfect sense though as we're the only MAC team and they're the only MAC team in Indiana. Both schools are surrounded by cornfields and voila: The Bronze Stalk is born.

What the actual trophy looks like is shrouded in mystery. This was a prototype crafted a year before it was actually handed out.

The trophy belongs in Dekalb. Why? First of all, Dekalb artist Renee Bemis designed it. Second of all, we're just better at harvesting corn. Have you ever heard of Muncie corn? Didn't think so. Have you heard of Dekalb corn or seen our logo? Likely

Performance agriculturally and athletically

If somebody told you that Ball State beat NIU 3 out of the last 4 years, would you believe them? You better, because it's true. The lesson learned in 2005 was to never take the Cardinals lightly. A 2-6 BSU squad came in and whooped the Huskies 31-17 in one of the most disappointing games that I have ever witnessed.

The game we did win in 2006, Garrett Wolfe did this:

It seems silly to "force a rivalry", but both of these squads have a lot to play for every single year in the MAC West. Even with the struggles the Cardinals have faced this season, the current matchup doesn't waiver in that fact.

Week 5 MAC Power Rankings

Mike Breese — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 04:40:22 -0000

I do these every week for the MAC Roundtable, but don't disclose my rankings because A. I am busy...or am I lazy? It's a fine line. B. It's hard to tell how good these teams are, so it was pretty much a crapshoot (Last week I had Temple #2) and C. It's a bye week, so I can do whatever I want. Now with a conference game or 2 down by each team, we can actually get some sort of clarity about these teams that comprise the Mid-American Conference. Commence.

Rank	Team	Comments
1		The Flying C gets the top spot yet again surviving a lightning storm and the thundering debut of Buffalo RB Ike Nduka. The Bulls are still the champs and the Chips went on the road to Buffalo and took care of business. Up next: CM hosts in-state rival Eastern Michigan, which should provide more of a challenge than one may think.
2		The Huskies bounced back nicely from their terrible loss to Idaho with a dominating 38-3 victory over West rival Western Michigan. It wasn't even close by any sense of the word with great performances all-around. Up next: The dreaded Bye Week.
3		My preseason choice to win the MAC East has been sneaking up on people lately. They just beat BGSU on the road and stuck with both UConn & Tennessee in their only losses. Up next: Third straight road game against the pesky Akron Zips.
4		Toledo just squeaked by Ball State, but that game shouldn't have been that close. They outgained the Cardinals 479-310 yds, but turned the ball over 3x. Their offense is consistently scary. Their defense? Not so much. Up next: Rockets host a dazed & confused Western Michigan team.
5		Don't look now, but the Owls are 2-0 in the MAC so far! Sure Al Golden still hasn't beaten a team with a winning record, but who is going to have a winning record in the gauntlet that is the MAC East? Nobody. I don't know too much about this team, but they look good so far. Up next: Hosting a winded Ball State team.
6		Oh Broncos. That sure wasn't a typical Cubit performance on the road against Northern. Disappointing all-around and Hiller threw 3 INTs to seal their fate. Up next: Road trip to the defense-free Toledo Rockets.
7		Still the champs,but keep shooting themselves in the foot game after game with turnovers or whatever else hampering this team. Still dangerous, but wounded not to mention the injuries are starting to pile up. The bright spot: IKE NDUKA. James Starks who? Up next: Gardner-Webb at home? OK.
8		The bye week this past weekend couldn't have happened at a better time. This team is at a serious crossroads. After serious locker room problems, this team can either bond together or fall flat on their faces. Up next: A pivotal home game against the Ohio Bobcats.
9		Reminds me a lot of Buffalo with the bad luck, but the Clawfense can't run the ball at all and it is seriously hampering the Falcons. Up next: A scary road matchup @ Kent State.
10		The Cardinals needed a win badly and Toledo was the team to do it against at home. They forced the turnovers, but couldn't stop the big late plays by the Rockets. It's a long, long road for BSU after this heartbreaking defeat. Up next: On the road against a hot Temple team.
11		I like this team to make some strides in the next few weeks with Haywood taking charge suspending guys and the fact that he benched INT King Raudabaugh for Freshman QB Zac Dysert. That last name makes me hungy. Up next: Nerd bowl @ Northwestern.
12		Even though Andy Schmitt is out for the season, people forget that Kyle McMahon has had his share of playing time these past couple years at the QB position. Up next: @ CMU.
13		There's just nothing that excites me about this Golden Flash team. It is notable that Freshman QB Spencer Keith is the starter this week for Giorgio Morgan though. Up next: BG Falcons at home.

What do you think?

Updated BTBS Projections

Bill C. — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:45:11 -0000

More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

Damn you, Bobby Johnson, and your team's projection-defying ways. I SAID, DAMN YOU, BOBBY JOHNSON, AND YOUR TEAM'S PROJECTION-DEFYING WAYS.

Browse more photos »

Being that we're roughly one-third of the way through the college football season, I thought it would be a good time to re-visit the BTBS projections and see what's changed over the last five weeks. But first, let's take a look at where the BTBS projections have done particularly well or poorly.

Finger on the pulse

Here's the against-the-spread record for the BTBS projections by team:

4-0. Florida State, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Miami-FL, Northern Illinois, Syracuse, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming.
3-0. UConn, Illinois, Kansas State, San Jose State, UNLV, Utah State.
2-0. South Florida, Western Kentucky.
4-0-1. Minnesota.

Have pretty much nailed a good percentage of the east coast (that's what she said), going undefeated on 19 teams in all, including three ACC teams and three Big East teams. Seem to have these teams figured out.

4-1. Bowling Green, Buffalo, BYU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC.
3-1. Ball State, Boise State, Boston College, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Colorado, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Indiana, Kent State, Michigan State, Middle Tennessee, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northwestern, Southern Miss, Texas, Troy, UL-Monroe, Wake Forest, Western Michigan.

This does start to explain why evenings aren't usually very good to me: I've got a much more accurate finger on the pulse of the eastern and midwestern teams, while the western teams have been more of a crapshoot.

2-1. Arizona, Arkansas State, Baylor, Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Louisiana Tech, Louisville, Missouri, N.C. State, Oklahoma, SMU, Temple, UL-Lafayette, Virginia, West Virginia.
2-1-1. California.
3-2. Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Idaho, Miami-OH, Michigan, Navy, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Toledo, UAB, UTEP, Virginia Tech, Washington State.
2-2. Air Force, Central Florida, Colorado State, Iowa, Iowa State, Marshall, Mississippi State, North Texas, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, UCLA.
1-1-1. Houston.
2-3. LSU, New Mexico, Purdue, Stanford, Washington.
1-2-1. Texas Tech.
1-2. Arizona State, Arkansas, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Rutgers, Tulane.

No real analysis here. A big mass of teams for which I'm a game within .500.

1-3. Eastern Michigan, Maryland, Memphis, Nevada, New Mexico State, Ohio, San Diego State, South Carolina, Tulsa.
1-4. Army, Georgia, Rice.
0-3. Akron, Duke, Ole Miss, TCU.
0-4. Vanderbilt.

Why do you taunt me, Akron, Ole Miss, TCU, and Smart Kid Schools (Duke, Rice, Vandy)?

Anyway, when you're reading the after-the-jump projections, you can use this to keep in mind how many grains of salt you should be using.

Range of Spreads

In terms of performance analysis, I also looked at the range of the spread to see if there's a particular group of picks for which I'm performing much better or worse.

0-5 Pts. 38-21-1 (0.642).
5-15 Pts. 60-34-1 (0.637).
15-25 Pts. 29-28 (0.509).
25+ Pts. 16-8 (0.667).

So really, it's the 15-25 point range that has me befuddled to date. Really, that makes a little bit of sense. Here's where junk-time touchdowns can make a big difference, along with how quickly the favorite gets rolling or how long they leave their starters in. More often than not, the pre-ordained blowouts are pretty easy to pick, and 64% for the spreads below 15 points really is, I think, pretty damn good. But it's those damn three-TD spreads that get me.

Anyway, on to the projections! Fun fact: there are 68 bowl bids available...and these projections spat out exactly 68 bowl-eligible teams. YIKES. What happens if there are less than 68? Go down to the 5-7 teams, I guess? Either way, this is a good time for both UL-Monroe and UL-Lafayette (not to mention Temple!) to squeeze out six wins. Automatic bid for anybody with six!

Big 12

North Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Missouri	6-3	10-3	Holiday
Nebraska	6-2	9-3	Sun
Kansas	3-5	7-5	Insight
Colorado	2-6	3-9
Kansas State	1-7	3-9
Iowa State	1-7	4-8
South Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Texas*	8-0	13-0	BCS Championship
Oklahoma	7-1	9-3	Cotton
Oklahoma State	6-2	9-3	Alamo
Texas A&M	4-4	7-5	Texas
Texas Tech	4-4	6-6	Independence
Baylor	0-8	3-9

No major changes here, only Colorado and K-State switching places in the North and ATM and Tech switching places (despite a head-to-head Tech win) in the South.
Missouri wins the North by virtue of a 0.4-point win over Nebraska Thursday night. MAJOR North title implications Thursday night...as if you didn't know. Meanwhile, Kansas needs to get things together a bit--they're undefeated, and that's nice, but they're not performing better than Mizzou or Nebraska right now, and being that their schedule is a bit harder (even with Tech's iffy play and OU's "struggles"), they'll need to.
And despite the fact that they quit playing ten minutes into last Saturday night's game against Arkansas, Texas A&M is projected to keep winning here and there. Their reward: a game against Navy in Houston.

ACC

Atlantic Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Clemson*	5-4	8-5	Chick-Fil-A
Boston College	5-3	9-3	Gator
Wake Forest	4-4	7-5	Music City
Florida State	4-4	6-6	Meineke Car Care
N.C. State	3-5	6-6	Emerald
Maryland	2-6	3-9
Coastal Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Virginia Tech	9-0	12-1	Orange
Miami	7-1	11-1	Sugar
Virginia (!)	5-3	6-6	EagleBank
Georgia Tech	4-4	7-5	Champs Sports
North Carolina	1-7	5-7
Duke	0-8	2-10

Florida State sinks a couple of spots, and N.C. State and Maryland switch places.
Looks like Bobby Bowden's career ends in Charlotte at the Meineke Car Care Bowl. And yes, I just had to look up where the Meineke Car Care Bowl is played.
I'm not sure what caused the BTBS numbers' sudden fascination with Virginia, but apparently they're due a bit of a turnaround. And after the projections completely nailed the UVa > UNC pick, I'm not asking any questions.
Speaking of UNC...had them missing a bowl before the season, still do. Not sure why they're not as good as everybody thinks they're supposed to be, but...they're not.

Big East

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Pittsburgh	6-1	10-2	Fiesta
Cincinnati	5-2	10-2	Gator
South Florida	5-2	9-3	Papajohns.com
West Virginia	5-2	9-3	Meineke Car Care
Connecticut	4-3	7-5	International
Louisville	2-5	5-7
Syracuse	1-6	4-8
Rutgers	0-7	5-7

Rutgers has PLUMMETED. From 9-3 and the Orange Bowl to a winless conference slate. I'm sure they're just lying in the weeds before getting hot the last half of the year again (like last year), but...yeah, the Dom Natale Experiment has not exactly been memorable...at least not in a positive way.
Meanwhile, Cincy's mediocre play over the last couple of weeks has allowed Pittsburgh to take over the projected title. A couple of weeks ago, Cincy was projected to go undefeated. Now, not so much.
Really, this would be the best-case scenario for the Big East--four teams with at least nine wins, at least a couple of which will likely thump an inferior bowl opponent thanks to the Big East's mediocre slate of bowls.
Seriously...PLUMMETED.

Big Ten

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Penn State	7-1	11-1	Rose
Ohio State	7-1	10-2	Outback
Wisconsin	7-1	11-1	Capital One
Iowa	6-2	10-2	Alamo
Minnesota	4-4	7-5	Insight
Michigan	3-5	7-5	Champs Sports
Michigan State	3-5	5-7
Purdue	3-5	4-8
Northwestern	2-6	5-7
Illinois	2-6	3-9
Indiana	0-8	3-9

Like Rutgers, Illinois has also sunk like a stone...but thanks to the low quality of the bottom of this conference, they don't sink all the way to the bottom.
Another best-case scenario, really--four teams with 10-11 wins. The top and bottom of the conference has really defined itself in pretty stark fashion. Penn State gets the nod here, but that could be because the preseason projections are still weighted as 40% of the overall projected total (there still isn't enough data from 2009 to make the 100% switch yet).
I'm slowly buying into Wisconsin...not anywhere near complete buy-in yet, but I'm coming around. Now watch them lose three in a row.
(And yes, I'm thinking a 10-2 USC team gets the BCS nod over an 11-1 Wiscy team. Call me crazy.)

Conference USA

East Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
East Carolina	6-3	7-6	New Orleans
Southern Miss	5-3	7-5	Hawaii
Central Florida	3-5	5-7
Marshall	3-5	5-7
UAB	3-5	4-8
Memphis	2-6	3-9
West Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Tulsa*	9-0	11-2	Liberty
Houston	6-2	10-2	Armed Forces
UTEP	4-4	5-7
Rice	3-5	3-9
SMU	3-5	4-8
Tulane	2-6	4-8

ECU's projection (was 3-5, 4-8 in the preseason) has fallen back in line...due as much to the rest of the division being pretty iffy as much as anything. Marshall and Memphis have both fallen a bit. Meanwhile, Houston falls back in line with their preseason 2nd-place finish...and SMU is no longer projected to be decent. Thanks to their inexplicable whipping of Houston, UTEP moves up...I had them 0-8, 2-10, and now they're almost in line for a bowl bid.

Independents

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Navy	--	9-4	Texas
Notre Dame	--	8-4	Poinsettia
Army	--	2-10

Congrats, Notre Dame. Your three tight wins over inferior competition have bumped your projection from 6-6 to 8-4. Keep up the good work.

MAC

East Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Bowling Green	6-3	7-6	GMAC
Temple	5-3	6-6	St. Petersburg
Ohio	4-4	6-6	New Mexico
Akron	4-4	5-7
Kent State	3-5	4-8
Buffalo	2-6	4-8
Miami-OH	1-7	1-11
West Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Central Michigan*	8-1	10-3	Little Caesar's
Toledo	7-1	9-3	International
Northern Illinois	6-2	8-4	EagleBank
Eastern Michigan	3-5	4-8
Western Michigan	3-5	4-8
Ball State	1-7	1-11

Really, the only major changes here are that Ball State has dropped off the face of the planet (they were projected 4-4, 6-6), and Buffalo has slightly exceeded their initial projections (they were 0-8, 1-11). It's still CMU > BGSU in the title game, though the mighty Temple Owls are catching up to BGSU in a hurry. Looks like it's going to be a nice turnaround season for Toledo, though they should probably be careful since they did almost try to lose to Ball State last week--took a miracle TD pass to beat the suddenly lowly Cardinals.

Mountain West

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
BYU	8-0	11-1	Las Vegas
TCU	7-1	11-1	Armed Forces
Utah	6-2	9-3	Poinsettia
Air Force	4-4	6-6	New Mexico
Colorado State	4-4	7-5	Humanitarian
New Mexico	2-6	3-9
San Diego State	2-6	4-8
Wyoming	2-6	4-8
UNLV	1-7	3-9

Despite beating Clemson, TCU is now projected to lose to BYU after pretty iffy defensive performances against Texas State and SMU. Otherwise, no real surprises here. Looks like Dave Christensen's run of luck at Wyoming is about to crap out.

Pac-10

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Oregon	9-0	11-1	Rose
USC	7-2	10-2	Orange
California	5-4	8-4	Holiday
UCLA	5-4	8-4	Sun
Oregon State	5-4	6-6	Emerald
Washington	5-4	6-6	Las Vegas
Arizona	4-5	5-7
Stanford	4-5	5-7
Washington State	1-8	2-10
Arizona State	0-9	2-10

Arizona and Arizona State have both fallen from their initial projections (of 7-5 and 4-8, respectively). Everything else has stayed basically in the same order, including Stanford, who looks like another team riding a string of good luck and about to crash and burn. I hope the projections are wrong, though--would love to see the Cardinal play a role in the Pac-10 race, just for variety's sake.
And yes, the combination of a) really good projections, and b) improved play of late means Oregon is still projected to win the conference. I'll believe it when I see it, but if they beat USC in Eugene, they're obviously the favorite.

SEC

East Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Florida*	9-0	13-0	BCS Championship
Georgia	5-3	8-4	Outback
Tennessee	5-3	8-4	Chick-Fil-A
South Carolina	3-5	6-6	Independence
Kentucky	2-6	6-6	Music City
Vanderbilt	0-8	3-9
West Division	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Alabama	8-1	12-1	Sugar
LSU	6-2	10-2	Capital One
Arkansas	4-4	8-4	Cotton
Auburn	4-4	8-4	Papajohns.com
Ole Miss	2-6	6-6	Liberty
Mississippi State	1-7	2-10

Only minor changes so far...Vandy and Kentucky trade places in the East, and Auburn and Ole Miss trade in the West. Otherwise, status quo here. Auburn is seen as a surprising success early in the season, but they've done pretty much exactly what they were projected to do.

Sun Belt

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Troy	8-0	9-3	New Orleans
Middle Tennessee	5-3	8-4	Motor City
UL-Monroe	5-3	6-6	GMAC
Florida Atlantic	5-3	5-7
UL-Lafayette	4-4	6-6	St. Petersburg
Arkansas State	4-4	5-7
Florida International	3-5	3-9
North Texas	2-6	4-8
Western Kentucky	0-8	0-12

That's right, it's Temple vs UL-Lafayette in the St. Petersburg Bowl, otherwise known as The Final St. Petersburg Bowl. I'll say this, though: I'll watch it.

WAC

	Proj. Conf.	Proj. Overall	Proj. Bowl
Boise State	8-0	13-0	Fiesta
Nevada	7-1	8-4	Hawaii
Fresno State	6-2	8-4	Humanitarian
Louisiana Tech	4-4	5-7
Utah State	4-4	5-7
San Jose State	3-5	4-8
Hawaii	2-6	4-9
Idaho	2-6	5-7
New Mexico State	0-8	2-11

Looks like Nevada should rebound fine the rest of the season, helping Mizzou's rankings out a bit. Meanwhile...come on, Idaho and Utah State! Find one more win somewhere, and you're bowling!

Bowl Projections

Date	Bowl	Tie-ins	Matchup
12/19	New Mexico	MWC vs WAC	Air Force (6-6) vs Ohio (6-6)
12/19	St. Petersburg	Big East vs C-USA	Temple (6-6) vs UL-Lafayette (6-6)
12/20	New Orleans	C-USA vs Sun Belt #1	East Carolina (7-6) vs Troy (9-3)
12/22	Las Vegas	MWC #1 vs Pac-10	BYU (11-1) vs Washington (6-6)
12/23	Poinsettia	MWC vs Pac-10 #6	Utah (9-3) vs Notre Dame (8-4)
12/24	Hawaii	C-USA vs WAC	Nevada (8-4) vs Southern Miss (7-5)
12/26	Little Caesar's Pizza! Pizza!	Big Ten #7 vs MAC	Central Michigan (10-3) vs Middle Tennessee (8-4)
12/26	Meineke Car Care	ACC #5-7 vs Big East #3	West Virginia (9-3) vs Florida State (6-6)
12/26	Emerald	ACC #5-7 vs Pac-10	N.C. State (6-6) vs Oregon State (6-6)
12/27	Music City	ACC #5-7 vs SEC	Wake Forest (7-5) vs Kentucky (6-6)
12/28	Independence	Big 12 vs SEC	Texas Tech (6-6) vs South Carolina (6-6)
12/29	Eagle Bank	ACC #8 vs Army	Virginia (6-6) vs Northern Illinois (8-4)
12/29	Champs Sports	ACC #4 vs Big Ten #4-5	Georgia Tech (7-5) vs Michigan (7-5)
12/30	Humanitarian	MWC vs WAC	Fresno State (8-4) vs Colorado State (7-5)
12/30	Holiday	Big 12 #3 vs Pac-10 #2	Missouri (10-3) vs California (8-4)
12/30	Texas	Big 12 #8 vs Navy	Navy (9-4) vs Texas A&M (7-5)
12/31	Armed Forces	C-USA vs MWC	TCU (11-1) vs Houston (10-2)
12/31	Sun	Big 12 vs Pac-10 #3	Nebraska (9-3) vs UCLA (8-4)
12/31	Insight	Big Ten #6 vs Big 12 #6	Minnesota (7-5) vs Kansas (7-5)
12/31	Chick-Fil-A	ACC #2 vs SEC	Tennessee (8-4) vs Clemson (8-5)
1/1	Outback	Big Ten #3 vs SEC	Ohio State (10-2) vs Georgia (8-4)
1/1	Capital One	Big Ten #2 vs SEC	Wisconsin (11-1) vs LSU (10-2)
1/1	Gator	ACC #3 vs Big East/ND	Cincinnati (10-2) vs Boston College (9-3)
1/1	Rose	BCS vs BCS	Penn State (11-1) vs Oregon (11-1)
1/1	Sugar	BCS vs BCS	Alabama (12-1) vs Miami (11-1)
1/2	International	Big East vs MAC	Toledo (9-3) vs UConn (7-5)
1/2	PapaJohns.com	Big East vs SEC	South Florida (9-3) vs Auburn (8-4)
1/2	Cotton	Big 12 #2 vs SEC	Oklahoma (9-3) vs Arkansas (8-4)
1/2	Liberty	C-USA #1 vs SEC	Tulsa (11-2) vs Ole Miss (6-6)
1/2	Alamo	Big Ten #4-5 vs Big 12 #5	Iowa (10-2) vs Oklahoma State (9-3)
1/4	Fiesta	BCS vs BCS	Boise State (13-0) vs Pittsburgh (10-2)
1/5	Orange	BCS vs BCS	Virginia Tech (12-1) vs USC (10-2)
1/6	GMAC	ACC #9 vs MAC	Bowling Green (7-6) vs UL-Monroe (6-6)
1/7	BCS Championship	BCS #1 vs BCS #2	Florida (13-0) vs Texas (13-0)

Some BIG-TIME firepower in the BCS bowls. Some combination of Va Tech, Miami, Alabama, and USC could make for interesting matchups, especially if somehow USC and Alabama ended up facing off for late-1970s supremacy.
Most interesting matchups: Sugar, Rose, Alamo, Holiday, Liberty, Meineke Car Care, Las Vegas (rematch of last year's LockerGate controversy, or whatever we're supposed to call it), and St. Petersburg (because I'm a masochist). But really, the most potentially fun game to watch could be the Champs Sports bowl, with Georgia Tech and Michigan combining to rush 100 times.
Least interesting: GMAC (YUCK), Fiesta, Humanitarian (the bowl rematch nobody asked for).
Still Florida vs Texas in the title game, but I'm REALLY hoping one of them loses, just to see if Boise has enough juice to sneak into the title game undefeated. It took BYU a few years to work itself up the prestige ladder when they won in 1984, and even then it took an unprecedented number of flops from higher-ranked teams. We're seeing plenty of flops this year, but Boise will need at least one or two more to hop into the title game. And while they obviously wouldn't win, I have to say I've been really impressed with the amount Boise's overall athleticism has improved in the last couple of years. They're not big enough to compete with Texas, Florida, or Alabama, but speed really won't be an issue.

Tigers Out-fly the Cardinals, 54-30

Acid Reign — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 05:11:39 -0000

Terrell Zachary goes the distance, against Ball State!

War Eagle, everybody! It's time now for the Acid Reign report, on Auburn's 4^th win of 2009, without a loss! The game against Ball State was expected to be a blow-out, and I suppose you could call a 24 point win exactly that, a blow-out. But, this was hardly a well played game by Auburn. Auburn continues to suffer from atrocious special teams play, bad tackling, and tonight, an offensive line that didn't open many holes. I had singled out guard Byron Issom as early as A-day, as a wrecking ball/lead-blocking force. With Issom out today, Auburn backs got stopped for losses repeatedly, particularly running off the right side, where Issom normally plays.

Needless to say, though, when you win by 24 on a wet night with bad play, some folks on the team are doing things right. Terrell Zachary and Darvin Adams, right now, might be the best receiving tandem in the SEC. Who would have thought that, before the season? With Fannin and Trott on the inside, stack the box if you want. You're GOING to get burned! Ball State did, repeatedly! Any doubts about Chris Todd's arm are pretty much dispelled, by this point. Auburn seemed to have more rain, during the game, than last week. And yet, Todd was still throwing rockets. He's got a LOT of confidence. Yes, there were a couple of "WHY?" throws, but they weren't weak! You've got to remember, Todd doesn't yet have a full season of starting in the SEC, under his belt. We're going to get the occasional mis-read. As long as he can throw 5 TDs against no interceptions, we will go far!

Defense... I don't think tackling has improved even one iota. We could not get off the field on 3^rd down often enough. Pressure was spotty. We had Miquale Lewis' number, but other Ball State backs hurt us, including Eric Williams (5.4 yards per carry), and Cory Sykes (6.3). Freshman quarterback Kelly Page was not picked off, although he kept it conservative, managing only 3.6 net yards per pass. In the end, when you let a team like Ball State rush for over a hundred yards on you, that's not so good. Especially when those guys are starting 4 new linemen up front. Ball State had 146 on the ground. Ouch.

Special teams, outside of the kicking of Wes Byrum, remain spotty, but there was actual, sneaky improvement, outside of the fumbles. Would you take a 43.5 yard punting average with no returns? Yes, you would! There was one particularly bad kick coverage issue, which led to a 31 yard Eric Williams return. But on the night, Auburn held Ball State to 18.1 yards per return. That's a definite improvement. I'm not sure it was a field position improvement, because we were kicking them shorter. A 59.8 yard kickoff average hurts. That's not even the 10 yard line!

Grades, after the jump!

Defensive Line: D. Really guys? A MAC team with four new o-line starters, and all you can manage is 11 tackles by the starters, and one tackle for loss? Ouch. We got stood up and drilled on run downs. Didn't slide, didn't control gaps, lost contain on outside plays. Pass rush, other than a few plays was pretty weak. I guess we were due, though. D-line has been playing lights out, till this game. The only thing that keeps this from being an F is a few tipped balls by Goggins and Coleman.

Linebackers: D+. Our depth problems showed again. Don't know where Adam Herring was. Didn't see him. Eltoro Freeman played A LOT, and never got anyone on the ground. Stevens and Bynes were their usual solid selves, but should have had a banner day against Ball State. Honestly, I was tempted to fail both front seven units. Didn't, because of a few good efforts to stop drives, and cause turnovers. Josh Bynes had a pretty solid game.

Secondary: B+ No, they didn't get beaten deep. They gave up that 5 yard hitch, though, all day. You don't get an A, if the other team can rely on that thing, the whole game. McFadden got his usual pass interference flag. This time, it was even justified. Safeties did a nice job. Ball State tried repeatedly to get a fast secondary guy loose over the middle, and it didn't work. They ended up with a sack or a throwaway, every time.

Punting: B. One howitzer, one high school thud ball. No returns. A B grade = "good." I was worried after the MSU game, about getting 'em blocked, but that's evidently been fixed. We're getting a LOT of coverage folks downfield. In fact, I'm not sure the linesmen are watching things as well as they should...

Punt Returns: F. Two fielded in traffic, two dropped on the ground. Total fail, here. No blocking, no pressure on the punter, not even the presence of mind to make a good fair catch. As hard as it is to believe, we went backwards, here.

Kickoffs: D. We kicked one out of bounds, and allowed another pretty long one. We brought the average return down, but was it at the expense of distance on the kick? Morgan Hull's kickoff average of 59 yards was the lowest of the season, by about 6 yards. On the other hand, the return yardage was about the same amount less. Ergo, the opponent, a MAC team with a lot of new faces, started with about the same average field position as Mississippi State and West Virginia. This was another small step backwards.

Placekicking: A+. Wasn't exactly a pressure-filled environment for Wes Byrum, but he still hasn't missed. All of his kicks appeared to be pretty much down the center.

Offensive Line: C+. I'm giving this high grade because Lee Ziemba broke his streak. He didn't get called by the refs for ANYTHING, this week. Nice job in protection, too. On the other hand, Byron Issom was SORELY missed. All of those "pulling guard" plays failed miserably, this week. John Sullen, Issom's replacement, couldn't get out on the flank nearly quickly enough, and was twitching before the snap, telegraphing the direction of the play. Sullen played on the left, most plays. Lots of raw talent there, and Sullen may well end up being one of those Nate Newton types who blows tackles 20 yards off the ball, one day. Right now, he wasn't ready for Ball State. Mike Berry, solid for most of the year on the left, was moved to the right side for this one. He didn't have his run-blocking assignments down, either. Andrew McCain had a rough day, too, as did center Ryan Pugh. Nice couple of snaps on the freeze play, by backup Bart Eddins, late. Late night word from tireless Tiger beat reporters is that Issom is on "indefinite suspension," for breaking team rules. What a blow! Tigers are hurting, on the line, henceforth.

Receivers: A-. There were some drops, but most of those were either backups, or h-back players. These guys' biggest failures were on blocking, and a lot of that was by design. The receiver can't move before the snap. Defenders can. Ball State was sliding inside, at the snap. They got a lot of guys upfield early, to shut down the Auburn outside running game. Not much a split end can do, if the guy he's supposed to block is 10 yards inside of him, at the snap. The obvious thing to do was to throw outside, and both Adams and Zachary made the Ball State defense PAY, with big plays. Same for Tommy Trott. When they had a chance to block, they did fine. When you pile up 300 receiving yards, the receivers are doing a lot of stuff right! Zachary, Trott, and Adams, War Eagle to you! I continue to be amazed!

Running Backs: B-. We didn't pick up blitzes as well, this game, and we went down from the first tackler, way too much. Mario Fannin had some drops. Onterrio McCalebb did get another BIG long-distance run. Fannin took a screen to paydirt. Eric Smith looks like a guy we need to continue to feed the ball to. Smith's blocking wasn't so great, though.

Quarterback: A. This might have been Chris Todd's best game. He showed a gun for an arm, I thought. Great reads, for the most part, and a super job of getting it in there. He's got a load of confidence in his receivers, and it's showing. He also continues to show surprising mobility, avoiding sacks. No sacks this game, even with a new freshman guard, and his tight end wearing two knee braces! Made an absolutely sensational scramble, Fran-Tarkenton-worthy, late in the game. He pulled up just before the line of scrimmage, and fired a bullet to Darvin Adams, who had posted a defender up around the 5 yard line. Touchdown. Super play, off the cuff! He had one or two passes I think he'd like back, but even Peyton Manning has those. Even on the junk, Todd threw it hard enough that the defender wasn't getting it!

Conclusions after this one: first, it's great to be 4-0! It wasn't as pretty as I'd like, but I'll take it! Against the Auburn defense, patience is the key. You're not going to beat Auburn deep. At least, not very often. You can hitch and counter your way to multiple first downs. Watch out, though. Auburn likes to strip the ball. Guys will give up a tackle, to get that ball out. It cost Ball State a couple of times. Auburn likes to keep it in front, and force you to drive the length of the field, error-free. If you make a mistake, you might get a scary zone blitz from an odd angle, on long yardage.

Punting to Auburn is as good as throwing a bomb at them, maybe better. The Auburn punt and punt return unit are a GREAT thing to exploit for field position and turnovers. The only reason this hasn't been worse, is that Auburn doesn't punt much, and doesn't force many punts. Kick returns are a good opportunity, too. Just don't expect to win the game on a missed Auburn kick. Hasn't happened yet, in 2009.

You pick your poison, against the Auburn offense. You might get a stop or two, but Auburn's coaches will figure out quickly what you are giving up, to get those stops. With home-run-hitting backs and receivers, and a quarterback making the great reads and throws, it's an awfully tough situation for a defense. Even if you're not a Tiger or Vol fan, you should enjoy the matchup next week against Monte Kffin's defense. It's a chance to see two truly great football minds at work. Here's hoping the Auburn offensive players continue their great play.

War Eagle! We'll be looking forward to a showdown on Rocky Top, all week long, at TrackEmTigers.com.

Week 4 Preview: Time to Sort Things Out

cocknfire — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 14:04:12 -0000

More photos » by Beth Hall - AP

Arkansas has the scoring part of the game figured out. When the other team has the ball, though ...

Browse more photos »

The Weekend Thread opens up at 11 a.m. ET

WILL THEY SCORE TWO HUNDRED?
Arkansas at No. 2 Alabama, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS

Go back a couple of years and this seems like an unlikely candidate to be a shootout, but this is 2009. The Crimson Tide ranks ninth nationally in total offense (512.3 ypg) and is tied for 11th in scoring offense (42.3 ppg). The Hogs are second (538.0) and eighth (44.5) respectively.

Arkansas' defense is certainly not going to keep points from going on the board -- they rank 81st in total defense (367.5) and 99th in scoring offense (31.0). The Tide, though, is a far different story. Alabama is allowing just 185.3 ypg, good for third nationally, and 15.0 ppg (24th).

The offensive transformation was expected in Fayetteville, where players have now been in Bobby Petrino's system for a second straight year now -- which is incredible considering few expected the Gypsy Coach of the South to stay at Arkansas for two years. But Alabama returned just four starters from an offense that was, shall we say, not the strong point of the 2008 team that went undefeated in the regular season.

But Greg McElroy has been a revelation, putting himself in the running for best first-year quarterback maybe in Alabama history, even if it is just three games into the year.

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	RAT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
2009 - Greg McElroy	3	46	69	66.7	0	0	9.4	4	1	161.66	13	30	10	2.3	1	-	-

Ryan Mallett has been even better, ranking first in the country in pass efficiency and throwing for more than 700 yards in two games. But he doesn't have a defense backing him up.

Alabama 54, Arkansas 38

ASK LANE KIFFIN HOW TO PREVENT A BLOWOUT
No. 6 LSU at Mississippi State, 12:21 p.m. ET, SEC Network / ESPN360

If Dan Mullen wants to continue what has so far been a relatively successful debut as head coach in Starkville -- solid improvement even if the record isn't impressive -- this would be a good place to start. The Western Division Bulldogs have defeated LSU once since 1991, and that was ten years ago. Last season's game marked the first time since 2002 that Mississippi State lost by less than 30.

Meanwhile, the Bayou Bengals are still in search of their first awe-inspiring win. Forgive me if I fail to find anything impressive in an eight-point win at Washington, a two-touchdown victory vs. Vanderbilt and a 28-point cakewalk against Louisiana-Lafayette. Good wins, yes, but nothing that indicates the Tigers are part of the elite.

Then again, even when they haven't been, this game has never given them any trouble.

LSU 38, Mississippi State 14

NO MORE SURPRISES
No. 1 Florida at Kentucky, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN2 / ESPN360

Admit it -- if I had told you at the end of last year that Kentucky would score 73 points in its first two games and Mike Hartline would have the 35th-highest passing efficiency rating in the nation, you would have laughed. And here we are, with a Kentucky offense that has been able to put up points on a weak MAC team and a dubious Big East team, but one that's been able to put up points nonetheless.

Florida, though, is coming off what might be the most disappointing 10-point SEC win in the history of the league. The Gators were supposed to score 50 or more on Tennessee and didn't, and now they have to travel to Lexington to take on a Wildcat team that nobody has a solid fix on yet.

The smart money says that Florida will be able to do what no one else has done against Kentucky so far this year -- sack Hartline -- but that UK will struggle to do what no one has done against Florida this year -- score more than a single offensive TD.

Florida 32, Kentucky 7

I HAVE NO EARTHLY IDEA
Arizona State at No. 21 Georgia, 7 p.m. ET, ESPNU

If you had asked any reasonable Georgia fan at the beginning of the season if they would like to get through September with just one loss, they would have asked you where they needed to go to sign up. The Dawgs are on the cusp of pulling off a 3-1 start against one of the most difficult opening slates in the nation. Only Arizona State, a team that was disappointing last year after a successful 2007, stands in Georgia's way.

But to the casual observer, ASU is almost completely unreadable. Their only two games came against Idaho State and Louisiana-Monroe, both blowouts but neither giving us much to go on leading up to this game.

We do know that Georgia has a good or even great offense and a suspect defense. But this is a shot in the dark.

Georgia 31, Arizona State 30

TRY TO REALLY WIN THIS ONE
Ohio at Tennessee, 7 p.m. ET, PPV / ESPN360

You know, the old cliche is that it's not unusual have to have a letdown game after a big win like the -- What? Tennessee didn't win in Gainesville last week? Well then why all the crowing from Knoxville and the fulminating from the Gators faithful?

Whether moral victories have the same effect on teams is a fair question, even for someone who's usually skeptical of things like "letdown games." It probably wouldn't matter in any case; this is a perfect match-up for Tennessee. The Bobcats are good at defending the pass but not the run, and so Lane Kiffin can actually win this game by running instead of just trying to keep it close.

The one reason that might give Tennessee fans reason to worry: Ohio has one of the best turnover margins in the country. If it's luck, then everything should be fine. But if the Bobcats are good at creating turnovers, then things could get interesting.

Tennessee 37, Ohio 12

LAST YEAR WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH DIFFERENT
Ball State at Auburn, 7 p.m. ET, FSN / ESPN360

This game tells you all you need to know about how much college football can change in a season. Last year, Auburn entered its third week coming off the infamous 3-2 and the beginning of the most serious questions about Tony Franklin's offense. This year, the Tigers are 3-0 and haven't scored fewer than 37 points in any of their three games while averaging 515 yards of total offense.

Ball State has gone the other way, losing each of its three games after an undefeated regular season that saw the Cardinals' first loss come in the MAC Championship Game. All of Ball State's games have been close, but the schedule has consisted of North Texas, New Hampshire and Army.

Auburn 48, Ball State 0

TIME TO HAVE FUN AGAIN, AT LEAST FOR A WEEK
Vanderbilt at Rice, 8 p.m. ET, CSS

Remember, say, three weeks ago, when Vanderbilt fans were touting the new Vanderbilt and how last year's bowl season was a breakout year for the program and proof that they were on the way up? Well, losses against LSU and Mississippi State have pretty much wiped out that optimism, though the Commodores should win this game. The old Vanderbilt might be back, but even the old Vanderbilt wouldn't lose this game.

Rice is good at throwing the ball. And special teams. And that's about it. They lost at UAB by 20, at Texas Tech by 45 and at Oklahoma State by 17. At least their home fans finally get to see them play -- whatever small consolation that might be.

Vanderbilt 23, Rice 14

The Big Blue Daily Mail -- Kentucky has No Shot Edition

Truzenzuzex — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 19:12:40 -0000

More photos » by Chris O'Meara - AP

I wuv you!

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So the headline is, Florida is going to crush UK like a bug.

That's right, folks. It seems Florida is all mad they didn't put up at least 50 on the Vols, so they are going to take it out on poor, hapless UK. What I don't get is, after hanging a net 60 points on us last year, what the heck do the Gators have to be mad about? Shouldn't UK be a little bit miffed they got drilled so mercilessly?

Does anyone, at this point, believe that this year's Florida team is better than last? If so, the numbers sure don't back it up. Is this UK team as bad as UK last year? If so, the numbers don't back it up. So given all that, how are the Gators supposed to come in and deliver an even bigger beat-down, at Commonwealth, than they did last year at Gainesville? I don't know, but that seems to be the consensus.

Whatever. Florida is no doubt a talented team and should be a 20+ point favorite. Let's see if they can do better than LSU did. Now, for the news.

UK Basketball News

ESPNU’s Biancardi likes Poole’s talent, potential | Vaught's Views
Kentucky fans get all blue over Calipari " Evansville Courier & Press
"There's not a better coach. There's a lot of excitement around Kentucky basketball again, especially with the recruiting class he's brought in," said West.
Calipari brings in first '10 recruit | KentuckySports.com
Great start for 2010. Poole is not on the level of John Wall or DeMarcus Cousins, but he is certainly a nice player who will fit very well into the DDM scheme.

UK Football News

" BBL: Poole jumps on board; Cats case Gators John Clay’s Sidelines
TheTimesTribune.com, Corbin, KY - Rich Brooks’ Wildcats are better than many think
I hope he's right.
Florida wary of Wildcats despite series' lopsided history | courier-journal.com | The Courier-Journal
"Rich is a good friend of mine, and what he's done up there, I think, is one of the great coaching jobs," Meyer said. "It's a little bit like what coach (Bill) Snyder did at Kansas State."

There's one in your eye, Boy Wonder. :-)
Go Or No Go For Sick And Injured Gators - Alligator Army
Heh. Even a weak Gator team is very strong.
Cats looking for cracks in Florida's defensive wall | KentuckySports.com
Well, this will be a tough one. I think running the ball is key to staying competitive in this game.
South Alabama Football Recruiting 2010 - ESPN
Brooks continues to sign under-the-radar kids as always. Hawkins had an ACL injury that probably cost him a 3* ranking, but he has good size and decent speed at 4.59.
Cats to try fullback Conner at tight end | KentuckySports.com
Brooks estimated that UK uses a fullback out of the I-formation on just 20 to 25 percent of its plays and said Conner needs to be on the field much more than that. The staff had planned before the season to work Conner in at tight end, but he suffered a high-ankle sprain that kept him out of the season opener.

I think this is a good call by Brooks.
Seiber won’t forget Brooks’ surprising chest bump | Vaught's Views
Who knew Brooks could jump that high?

Other UK Sports News

None today

NCAA Sports News

The country's top frontcourts in 2009-10 - CBK News - FOX Sports on MSN
Surprise. UNC is #1, The Loathsome Troll is a UNC fan. That can't be an accident.

To be honest, I think Kansas deserves that honor, not UNC or Kentucky.
College basketball's top 10 centers - Mike DeCourcy - College Basketball - Sporting News
Sporting News' Mike DeCourcy ranks the best players at each position heading into the 2009-10 season. 1. Luke Harangody, Notre Dame. When his career ends, he will own most of ND's biggest school records.
Did you know, SEC style - SEC - ESPN
From ESPN's Chris Low.
Dusty Mills now a Ball State…Whatever they Are
Like Louisville, Ball State are the Cardinals. I know because of Over the Pylon.

Other News of Interest

University of Kentucky News -- news.uky.edu
"While I have been part of the Big Blue Nation for a relatively short time, I understand your deep appreciation for, and pride in, Kentucky’s athletic tradition," said Coach Calipari. "I am proud to be a part of that tradition and want to build on its success. But even as we look to the future, we must assure that our wonderful heritage is preserved."
'GuestAssist' Service Now Available - KENTUCKY OFFICIAL ATHLETIC SITE
Very cool idea. I hope they can keep up with it all.

The Daily Schadenfreude

Intentional Foul " Kentucky Coaches Slap KU for Fighting
Heh.
Rush The Court " Blog Archive " Another Tennessee Coach Doesn’t Know When To Stop Talking
This is exactly why I dislike Pearl. He truly thinks everyone south of Indy is a redneck racist. Welcome to Bruce Pearl's world, Tennessee fans.

Don't Bet On It!: Around the SEC

T Kyle King — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 04:30:18 -0000

A 7-1 ledger in last week’s SEC picks improved my record for the season to 22-2 in conference games, which sounds pretty impressive until you consider how many patsies the league crossed paths with in the first three weeks of the autumn. Please bear in mind, therefore, that my weekly disclaimer still stands: Don’t Bet On It!

Here are this week’s Southeastern Conference contests, which will be played on September 26 unless otherwise noted:

Ball State Cardinals at Auburn Tigers: I think it would really be cool if David Letterman decided to become for the school in Muncie what Bobby Lowder is was for the institution in the so-called Loveliest Village. You’d see high-ranking university administrators flying around on CBS corporate jets hiring replacements for coaches who hadn’t been fired yet, followed by late-night comedy bits entitled "Top Ten Reasons My Alma Mater Got Its Accreditation and Its Athletic Program Put on Probation," all topped off by gap-toothed grinning into the camera with the declaration: "The NCAA infractions committee is the finest law enforcement agency in the world!" In a game that could only have been scheduled as part of the Worldwide Leader’s plan to get every Division I-A program to arrange an outing against the team that comes after it alphabetically in the ESPN College Football Encyclopedia, the Hoosieroons will go down fighting against the Plainsmen.

Ohio Bobcats at Tennessee Volunteers: Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, uttered by Lane Kiffin about the threat of a flu outbreak in Knoxville after the Big Orange dropped a ten-point decision in the Swamp: "I don’t know. I guess we’ll wait and see, and after we’re not excited about our performance, we’ll tell you that everybody was sick." That is truly, genuinely pathetic. Think about what that says about the state of Tennessee football. Following a double-digit loss in a rivalry game in which the Vols did not perform appreciably better on the field than they did the year before, Coach Kiffin fils projects forward to the day when they’re "not excited about our performance." That means Coach Kiffin the younger was excited about his team’s performance in the game he just lost by less than anticipated. (Try to imagine Phillip Fulmer saying such a thing. Try to imagine Johnny Majors even thinking such a thing. Heck, try to imagine Robert Neyland not pistol-whipping someone who said such a thing.) When you compare the reaction of Coach Kiffin the lesser to the angst that gripped the Gamecock faithful after their loss to the ‘Dawgs, it quickly becomes apparent that Tennessee has replaced South Carolina as the SEC program most inclined to accept moral victories in lieu of actual victories. That’s just sad . . . though not so sad that the Volunteers won’t register a win (on the scoreboard and everything) over Ohio (Ohio).

Vanderbilt Commodores at Rice Owls: If this game is tied after 60 minutes, can the teams forego overtime and settle the contest using a Final Jeopardy! question posed by Alex Trebek? Seriously, if I wanted to watch snooty private school students play a sport, I’d have the courage of my convictions and watch Harvard take on Yale in lacrosse. I’m really going out on a limb by picking Vandy to win a road game, but I’m taking the ’Dores.

Florida Gators at Kentucky Wildcats: The Sunshine State Saurians last lost to the Bluegrass State Felines on November 15, 1986. That was about a week and a half after most Americans learned the name "Oliver North." It was exactly one week before Mike Tyson beat Trevor Berbick to win his first world boxing title. It was around the time I was finishing up the first quarter of my freshman year of college. What about this Florida team or about this Kentucky team leads you to believe this will be the year the Wildcats break the streak? That’s what I thought. I can’t stand the Gators in general, but I like them in this game.

LSU Tigers at Mississippi State Bulldogs: I keep waiting for the Bayou Bengals to put it all together. A trip to Starkville may be just what Louisiana State needs to start looking like the team I keep telling myself the Tigers are going to be.

Arkansas Razorbacks at Alabama Crimson Tide: No matter how badly you feel about the Georgia defense after watching this . . .

FULL SCREEN VERSION

. . . you’re going to get to the end of the Alabama-Arkansas game and feel worse. In terms of sheer fear factor, I’d be significantly more concerned about the prospect of facing a Nick Saban-coached defense than I would be of facing a Bobby Petrino-coached offense . . . and that is without taking into account the vast chasm yawning between the Tide’s offensive prowess and the Hogs’ defensive ineptitude. I like ’Bama to win this one in Tuscaloosa and I don’t look for it to be close.

Ole Miss Rebels at South Carolina Gamecocks (Sept. 24): Is there any chance of Colonel Reb pounding Plucky the Chicken into the Williams-Brice Stadium turf? Because I would pay to see that, particularly if the fight was followed by the winner being interviewed by Erin Andrews sporting her new "hot librarian" look. Wait, where was I? Oh, yeah, right . . . Thursday night SEC football. There shouldn’t be Thursday night SEC football, but, in any event, there’s this game, and they’re going to play it without regard to whether we want this game to occur, so I might as well pick it. You know what? I’ve thought all along that Mississippi was overrated by everyone (including, oddly enough, by me; we all ranked the Rebs highly, but none of us seemed to believe it as we were doing it), and I have such personal familiarity with the bear trap that is Columbia that it is the one sports arena in all the world to which I have sworn a solemn oath never to return (Georgia is 0-2 at South Carolina with me in the stands), so, while I’ll be rooting for Ole Miss, I’m picking the Palmetto State Poultry.

Clearly, I have plunged entirely off the deep end here, so caveats hardly seem necessary, but, just to be on the safe side, I’m going to warn you once again: Don’t Bet On It!

Coming Soon: National Games of Interest.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Mid Major College Football Breakdown Week 3

AgentZer0 — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 16:11:35 -0000

Mid Major Game of the Week:

Utah vs. Oregon

Utah is 'itching for a big win" starting center Zake Taylor told the Salt Lake Tribune. "I know everyone else is too. The last two wins have been ugly, but they've been wins. But this team is really hungry for a big win against a good team." Utah owns the nation's longest winning streak at 18 games despite rocky performances in the first two games this season. The memory of those two games can quickly be erased as Utah hits the road on Saturday night, where this will be the second road game in a five game stretch where the Utes are playing on the road four times. The biggest question remains is Oregon actually a "good" team this season? The Ducks offense was invisible against their first game vs. Boise State, and their defense was abused against their two-point win against Purdue. With that said, a win on the road against a Pac-10 team will embellish Utah's resume and get them some national exposure. Tune in Saturday night as the Utes, since the beginning of 2003 have won six of eight games against Pac-10 opponents.

Best Mid Major vs. BCS Game:

After a disappointing finish in the USC game last week, Ohio State can not afford to look past Toledo. Ohio State is favored by 21 points, but Toledo is capable of putting points on the board. Last week the Rockets beat Colorado 54-38. They are ranked 8th in the country in total offense with 558.5 yards per game. Good news for the Buckeyes is that the Rockets let up 493 yards per game and 45 points per game. Ohio State will need to take advantage of this as they fight to get back into the top ten in the BCS ranks. If Ohio state mistakenly makes this a low scoring game, look for them to drop out of the top 15. Watch for a lot of yards and a lot of scoring, but in the end look for Ohio State to take the win by 30+.

Here's your chance, now show us what you can do:

Nevada Quarterback Colin Kaepernick is in the hot seat this week. The Wolf Pack opened with a 35-0 loss two weeks ago against Notre Dame, and were last week. If Nevada wants to redeem itself with its first win of the season against Colorado State, Kaepernick needs to step up with a big performance. Kaepernick threw for 149 and ran for 39 against Notre Dame, and the rushing yards will be the more important factor in the game during one of the three Mountain West-WAC games this week. Colorado state has only allowed 87 rushing yards in 2 games, but Nevada needs to make an effort to run the ball, and Kaepernick is the key factor.

Mid Major Madness Picks of the Week:

Army 30 Ball State 21

North Carolina 21 East Carolina 16

Maryland 27 Middle Tennessee 17

Oregon 24 Utah 21

Troy 31 UAB 27

Iowa State 24 Kent State 20

Ohio State 35 Toledo 17

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Mid Major College Football Breakdown Week 3