SB Nation - Central Michigan Chippewas

Week Fourteen BlogPoll Ballot Draft

T Kyle King — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 03:52:12 -0000

The time has come to cast my final regular-season BlogPoll ballot---or, at least, I think it has; I’m assuming we’re not submitting new top 25s after next weekend’s Army-Navy game---and here is what I came up with after starting with a blank piece of paper:

Rank	Team	Delta

1	Alabama
2	Cincinnati	2
3	Texas
4	Boise State	1
5	TCU	1
6	Florida	4
7	Oregon
8	Ohio State
9	Georgia Tech	1
10	Iowa	1
11	West Virginia	9
12	LSU	1
13	Arizona
14	Oregon State	2
15	Southern Cal
16	Virginia Tech	5
17	Stanford
18	Miami (Florida)	4
19	Pittsburgh	7
20	California	1
21	Oklahoma State	2
22	Brigham Young	1
23	Nebraska	1
24	Penn State	7
25	Wisconsin	1
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Houston (#18), Central Michigan (#25).

The Alabama Crimson Tide (13-0) are No. 1. Duh! Of the dozen Division I-A opponents beaten by Nick Saban’s squad, nine finished with winning records, including the sixth-ranked Florida Gators, the twelfth-ranked LSU Tigers, and the 16th-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies. The Tide’s only close calls came in rivalry games against teams who will be playing on New Year’s Eve or later.

In spite of their close call against the Pittsburgh Panthers in a game played in the snow featuring two botched extra point attempts, the Cincinnati Bearcats (12-0) captured the No. 2 spot on my ballot by virtue of seven regular-season wins over teams that finished above .500, among them the 11th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers, the 14th-ranked Oregon St. Beavers, and 19th-ranked Pitt. Also, Cincy gets credit for having a logo reminiscent of Chick-fil-A's.

While I understand and respect C&F’s argument, I awarded the No. 3 ranking to the Texas Longhorns (13-0) because Mack Brown’s outfit went undefeated against a slate that included no Division I-AA schedule fodder and only four teams that posted losing ledgers. Wins over the No. 21 Oklahoma St. Cowboys and the No. 23 Nebraska Cornhuskers provided heft to the Big 12 standard-bearer’s resume.

I ranked the Boise St. Broncos (13-0) ahead of the TCU Horned Frogs (12-0) for a variety of reasons. Both took advantage of a Division I-AA victim and each faced five Division I-A teams with winning records, but Boise State has an additional win and Texas Christian has two close shaves (at Air Force and at Clemson) as opposed to the Broncos’ one (at Tulsa). Boise State’s second- and third-best wins (over Nevada and Fresno State) are comparable to the Frogs’ (over Utah and Clemson), but the Broncos’ marquee victory over the seven-ranked Oregon Ducks far outshines TCU’s best pelt, that of the 22nd-ranked BYU Cougars.

The Sunshine State Saurians (12-1) slipped to sixth after their less than competitive neutral site outing against ‘Bama, as befits the nation’s lone once-beaten team, and Oregon (10-2) led the parade of two-loss teams because the Ducks fell to two quality teams on the road and made up for those setbacks with wins over three teams ranked in my top 20 (Arizona, Oregon State, and Cal).

The Ohio St. Buckeyes (10-2) earned a No. 8 ranking on the strength of wins over the tenth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes, the 24th-ranked Penn St. Nittany Lions, and the 25th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-2) rode their ~~fourth-place finish in the SEC East~~ ACC championship to the No. 9 ranking, although the Ramblin’ Wreck’s loss to the Georgia Bulldogs at home serves as a drag on a resume that includes five close calls in the Golden Tornado’s ten Division I-A wins. Only two of the Engineers’ victims finished with fewer than five losses, but one of those triumphs came over No. 16 VPI.

Iowa (10-2) carded quality victories over a trio of top 25 teams (Arizona, Penn State, and Wisconsin, all by double-digit margins) to overcome respectable losses to Ohio State and Northwestern, both of whom will be playing on New Year’s Day. (For whatever it might be worth, I would point out that the five BCS bowls pit No. 9 v. No. 10, No. 7 v. No. 8, No. 4 v. No. 5, No. 2 v. No. 6, and No. 1 v. No. 3 on my ballot. This ought to be a pretty good bowl season.)

West Virginia narrowly edged out Louisiana State in my estimation. Both teams boasted similar resumes: both finished 9-3; both won three games by a touchdown or less; both lost one game by a touchdown or less. However, as ashamed as I am to admit it, the Mountain Men’s win over Pitt counts for more this season than the Bayou Bengals’ win over Georgia. I know, it hurts me to admit that, too; visions of Tony Dorsett and Dan Marino will haunt my dreams tonight.

A glut of 8-4 clubs out of the Pac-10 proved difficult to untangle, but I declared the Arizona Wildcats first among equals by awarding Mike Stoops’s troops the No. 13 ranking. Three of Arizona’s four losses came on the road, two of them were nailbiters, and only one of them was the handiwork of a team with fewer than eight wins. The Wildcats carded victories over No. 14 Oregon State, the 15th-ranked USC Trojans, and the 17th-ranked Stanford Cardinal, with Central Michigan thrown in for good measure.

The Beavers landed right behind Arizona, partly because of wins over Cal and Stanford but mostly because of a quartet of quality losses. Oregon State’s four setbacks all came against opponents sporting eight or more wins, and, of the four, only the one against the No. 2 team in the country wasn’t a close call.

I will grant that it appears somewhat strange that I placed Stanford at No. 17, two spots behind Southern California (a club the Cardinal beat handily in Los Angeles) and three spots ahead of the California Golden Bears (a squad that defeated Jim Harbaugh’s outfit at the Farm), but Stanford had no legitimate third-best victory after the Cardinal’s wins over Oregon and USC to overcome the trio of triumphs notched by the Men of Troy over Ohio State, Oregon State, and Cal. Likewise, the Bears of Berkeley had trouble overcoming the fact that all four of their losses came by margins of 17 points or more. Oddly enough, Southern California, Stanford, and California each lost to a 5-7 team on the road, but the Trojans’ loss to the Washington Huskies and the Cardinal’s loss to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at least had the virtue of being close.

Sandwiched amid those West Coast outfits were No. 16 Virginia Tech (9-3), which beat top 25 teams Miami and Nebraska while sustaining three respectable defeats (including two to top ten squads); the 18th-ranked Miami Hurricanes (9-3), who are able to boast of a marquee win over Georgia Tech; and 19th-ranked Pittsburgh (9-3), which sneaked ahead of California by virtue of a more forgivable set of losses. The Panthers’ three setbacks all came by close margins, with two of those coming in down-to-the-wire clashes with top eleven opponents Cincinnati and West Virginia. Pitt’s loss to N.C. State was comparable to Cal’s loss to Washington---both came on the road against 5-7 squads---but the Wolfpack won by seven and the Huskies won by 32.

The inclusion of Oklahoma State (9-3) attested to the fact that next year’s BlogPoll should rank only 20 teams instead of 25---which the Associated Press poll did prior to 1989, by the way---but somebody had to be No. 21, so the Pokes were as qualified as anyone. Why was Les Miles’s old team ranked nine spots behind Les Miles’s current team when both have identical records and both count a win over the ‘Dawgs among their most impressive conquests? Simple: LSU lost to three teams with a combined 33-5 record by a combined 62-41 margin, while OSU lost to three teams with a combined 30-8 record by a combined 113-49 margin.

BYU (10-2) had absolutely no business being ranked after getting positively smoked by TCU and the hapless Florida St. Seminoles, but Brigham Young beat the Oklahoma Sooners and the Utah Utes, which counts for something. Nebraska (9-4) did little to impress me in the win column---the ‘Huskers beat only two teams with winning records---but, since all of the Big Red Machine’s losses were to teams that finished .500 or better and three of those were by razor-thin margins, I gave Bo Pelini’s team the benefit of the doubt.

The fact that Penn State (10-2) and Wisconsin (9-3) made the grade proves that I was scraping the bottom of the barrel; both the Nittany Lions and the Badgers lost convincingly to the Big Ten’s two top ten teams and neither beat more than two Division I-A teams that finished above .500, but the dearth of quality squads at the bottom of my ballot allowed a PSU team whose best win was against Temple and a Wiscy unit whose best win was against Fresno State to sneak undeservedly into the top 25.

Consideration was also given to the Boston College Eagles and the Mississippi Rebels. I’d like to tell you that I took a look at the Central Michigan Chippewas, East Carolina Pirates, Houston Cougars, Missouri Tigers, Navy Midshipmen, North Carolina Tar Heels, Northwestern Wildcats, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and Texas Tech Red Raiders, but, if I said so, I’d be lying.

I watched the Oregon-Oregon State game on Thursday, the Central Michigan-Ohio (Ohio) game on Friday, and a Saturday slate consisting primarily of the Cincinnati-Pittsburgh, Alabama-Florida, and Clemson-Georgia Tech games, with bits of the Nebraska-Texas and Hawaii-Wisconsin tilts sprinkled in for variety.

As always, I actively solicit your input with respect to what is, after all, a draft ballot. Feel free to register your disagreement or lobby for or against particular teams in the comments below.

Go ‘Dawgs!

If I Were King: 2009

utesfan100 — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:02:21 -0000

More photos » AP

Many Boise State fans feel being paired with TCU is a slap to the face to at large conference members. How long until teams like TCU and Boise State have their day on the field?

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This weeks "If I were King" is coming within an hour of the end of the selection show to demonstrate the simplicity of the selection process. I will be resuming my original format, as I don't need to reiterate my defense against the BCS' playoff problems.

I will also be starting a series going back year by year once per week comparing my design to what we actually got.

Qualifying teams: 7

Top group: Alabama, Texas, Cincinnati, TCU, Florida, Boise State, Oregon

This includes all 5 undefeated teams.

Tournament:

Alabama would receive a first round bye and be seeded into the Sugar Bowl. The Fiesta Bowl's Texas tie-in is the highest remaining BCS bowl tie in, so the Fiesta Bowl would be the other semifinal.

On December 19th:
Texas would host Oregon
Cincinnati would host Boise State
TCU would host Florida

The lowest seeded team to advance would play Alabama in the Sugar Bowl, with the other two team meeting in the Fiesta Bowl. The winners of these games would go to the National Championship game.

The Rose Bowl would have Ohio State and the Orange Bowl would have Georgia Tech. Each would then have a selection among Virginia Tech, Iowa, Penn State and BYU. The Rose Bowl would have first selection for losing Oregon to the tournament.

The Rose Bowl would select either BYU or Virginia Tech while the Orange Bowl would select Iowa.

Imagine three teams from at large conferences in the tournament or a BCS bowl ...

A look at my Tier Based plus-one after the jump:

Also, I would love to see what would happen if you were king in the comments.

Semi-finals:
- Alabama vs. TCU
- Texas vs. Cincinnati

These teams would be playing for the National Championship Game, with a BCS bowl guarantee if they miss.

Direct Participation:

Oregon and Ohio State would be selected for direct BCS participation for being the highest ranked automatic qualifying conference teams, since no automatic qualifying champions failed to win enough games to qualify.

First Round Games:
The top eight 10-2 or better teams would be selected, provided no conference gets three teams until no other options remain. All four current semifinal seeds have earned eligibility.

Teams guaranteed a spot: Boise St, Georgia Tech

Teams that will be eligible for selection: Florida, Iowa, Penn State, BYU, C. Michigan, Houston

Mid West: Iowa vs. Houston
West Coast: Boise St. vs. BYU
South East: Georgia Tech vs. Florida
North East: Penn St. vs. C. Michigan

The winners of these games would advance to a BCS bowl, guaranteeing that at least half of the BCS participants had to win their way into them.

The losers would fall to New Years Eve or later bowls that left a spot open for later selection during the initial round of selections.

Special Friday Night Open Thread: UCLA Bowl Prospects

Nestor — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 01:13:16 -0000

More photos » by Al Goldis - AP

Let's scout the Chippewas (just in case). GO BRUINS.

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Well a heartbreaker for our women's soccer team who were just eliminated in the NCAA college cup by Stanford. Bruins showed heart against undefeated Stanford team by tying up the game after falling behind in second half. Unfortunate it was Stanford's night who move on to the finals. Congrats to them but more importantly congrats to our women for another outstanding season. They will get that championship sooner or later and they look like they have enough young talent on the team (Leroux was amazing to watch) to make another run season.

For now though let's shift our attention to back to football. orlandobruin laid out the bowl scenario earlier today. Looks like our prospects got even better as Notre Dame has officially decided to back out of a bowl game (HT hicalliber). If we do get to a bowl, one of our likely destination will be the GMAC Bowl, where we might take on Central Michigan University. Well CMU is on ESPN2 right now taking on Ohio Bobcats in the MAC Championship game.

If you are watching it, why don't you use this thread to give us some early info, just in case we need to gather notes.

Fire away.

GO BRUINS.

Don't Bet On It!: National Games of Interest

T Kyle King — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:00:44 -0000

Needless to say, it has been a busy week in Bulldog Nation, which is why I’m a bit behind schedule in bringing you this week’s special dual SEC/national edition of "Don’t Bet On It!" Reversing the typical trends, I went 4-2 in last week’s national games of interest and 2-4 in last week’s conference picks, bringing me to 68-16 for the season in SEC contests and 32-30 in other outings. In other words, I’m now utterly unreliable in every category, which is all the more reason why you should believe me when I tell you . . . Don’t Bet On It!

Here are this week’s important outings, which will be played on Saturday, December 5, unless indicated otherwise:

East Carolina Pirates v. Houston Cougars: Obviously, I am using the broadest possible definition of "national games of interest" here, but there is a conference title on the line. All right, fine, it’s just the Conference USA title, but, still, that’s something. (Quick question . . . at the end of the Conference USA championship game, do fans of the winning team begin chanting "U-S-A" the way Southeastern Conference fans chant "S-E-C"? Because I think that would be rather presumptuous of them.) I know better than to side with any coach named Holtz unless it’s flagrantly obvious that he’s cheating his hindquarters off, and, since Skip seems to be going about his duties with honesty and integrity, there’s no way I’m taking his team over Houston.

Central Michigan Chippewas v. Ohio Bobcats (Friday, Dec. 4): Central Michigan (Michigan) faces Ohio (Ohio) to settle the MAC championship. This probably only matters to you if you live in Michigan or Ohio, follow college football, and aren’t a fan of the Big Ten. There can’t be more than twenty people who fit that description, can there? Assuming that the quality of football in the two states is roughly equal, it is worth noting that the Bobcats are not the best college football team in Ohio but the Chippewas are the best college football team in Michigan. Therefore, I’m picking Central Michigan.

West Virginia Mountaineers at Rutgers Scarlet Knights: I once asked whether Les Miles was the new Danny Ford, but now I’m wondering whether Bill Stewart is the new Les Miles . . . namely, the head coach everyone is just sure is an ignorant bozo promoted beyond his level of competence, who somehow manages to win in spite of what we all perceive to be his shortcomings. I thought about that for a while and I came to the following conclusion: naaaaaaah. I’m going with Greg Schiano’s Scarlet Knights at home.

(Obligatory photograph of Rutgers alumna Kristin Davis.)

Cincinnati Bearcats at Pittsburgh Panthers: The power vacuum created by the departures of Miami (Florida), Virginia Tech, and, later, Rich Rodriguez made the Big East an intriguing league in which almost every team had a shot at contending. This has made for some wild and wacky upsets, and I expect this to be one of them. Pitt is hopping mad after wetting the bed in the Backyard Brawl, Cincy is distracted by the increasingly credible speculation about Brian Kelly becoming the next head coach at Notre Dame, and the Panthers have both home field advantage and a history of knocking conference rivals out of potential national championship contention. I’m sticking with Pittsburgh this week.

Oregon State Beavers at Oregon Ducks (Thursday, Dec. 3): I’m sorry, did you just say the Battle of the Webbed Feet will settle the Pac-10’s Rose Bowl berth? When did that happen? Oh, right . . . somewhere between the time Pete Carroll whined that Jim Harbaugh went for a cheap late score against him and the time Pete Carroll went for a cheap late score against Rick Neuheisel. With everything on the line in Eugene, the Civil War will be much more akin to warfare than to civility, but I’m not betting against Autzen Stadium when the chips are down, particularly when such other orange-clad contenders as Clemson and Oklahoma State have been getting embarrassed in season-ending in-state rivalry games. Oregon State will come up short in a game of Duck, Duck, Duck, lose.

Nebraska Cornhuskers v. Texas Longhorns: There was a time when the Big 12 title tilt was good for at least one epochal upset every couple of years. One of those came in 1996, when James Brown delivered on his pregame prediction that the ‘Horns would beat the ‘Huskers and announced afterwards, "Get on up! Hit me! Ow!" (All right, not that James Brown. Sorry.) Lately, though, it’s been all South Division, all the time. That won’t change this weekend, as Texas will take care of business.

Alabama Crimson Tide v. Florida Gators: I don’t know which image I find more revolting . . . Urban Meyer hoisting another crystal football while rocking his natty Members Only jacket or Tim Tebow weeping openly after a Gator loss while ESPN films him through the same gauzy lens typically reserved for Doris Day movies or Barbara Walters specials and Thom Brenneman somberly intones, "Every time Tim Tebow sheds a tear, an angel gets its wings." Actually, as sick at my stomach as I get whenever the sports media get all starry-eyed over His Royal Tebowness, I just can’t stand the idea of Florida winning another . . . well, anything, really: national title, conference championship, game, whatever. I’m going with my heart instead of my head and picking ’Bama.

There you have them, ladies and gentlemen . . . the last slate of picks for the 2009 regular season! If you haven’t figured out by now that I’m bad at this, you probably never will, but, just in case, I’m going to warn you one more time: Don’t Bet On It!

Coming Soon: ~~National~~ Championship Game of Disinterest.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Week Thirteen BlogPoll Ballot Draft

T Kyle King — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:00:16 -0000

When compiling this week’s BlogPoll ballot, I paid no attention to last week’s top 25 (ergo, you should ignore the arrows) and I did not consult any other person’s or organization’s rankings, so the fault for what follows is mine and mine alone. I began by cobbling together a list of all BCS conference teams with records of 9-3 or better and all mid-major teams with records of 10-2 or better. This list came to twenty teams, so I went back and added in the six BCS conference clubs with 8-3 records. In so doing, I overlooked nine BCS conference teams and independents with 8-4 records, as well as five mid-majors with 9-3 records. I remain open to arguments in favor of any of these teams, but the first draft of my ballot reads as follows:

Rank	Team	Delta

1	Alabama
2	Florida
3	Texas
4	Cincinnati
5	Boise State	1
6	TCU	1
7	Oregon	2
8	Ohio State	2
9	Iowa	2
10	Georgia Tech	3
11	Virginia Tech	1
12	Pittsburgh	4
13	LSU	7
14	Miami (Florida)	1
15	Southern Cal	6
16	Oregon State
17	Penn State	4
18	Houston	4
19	Oklahoma State	4
20	West Virginia
21	California	2
22	Nebraska
23	Brigham Young
24	Wisconsin
25	Central Michigan
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Clemson (#14), Mississippi (#17), North Carolina (#18), Stanford (#24), Temple (#25).

The Alabama Crimson Tide (12-0) have beaten eight Division I-A teams with winning records, including the 11th-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies (9-3), the 13th-ranked LSU Tigers (9-3), and the Mississippi Rebels (8-4), yet the Tide’s only close calls have come in heated rivalry showdowns with the Tennessee Volunteers and the Auburn Tigers, both of which are 7-5.

The Florida Gators (12-0) have beaten seven Division I-A teams with winning records, but the Sunshine State Saurians’ best victory was over Louisiana State, which is the second-best victim ‘Bama has bested. The Texas Longhorns (12-0) have taken down only five opponents who are above .500 and their best win was over the 19th-ranked Oklahoma St. Cowboys (9-3). As we shall see, the Pokes’ credentials are somewhat suspect, so the ‘Horns are a decidedly shaky No. 3 in my view.

I awarded the No. 4 spot on my ballot to the Cincinnati Bearcats (11-0) due to the fact that Brian Kelly’s club has bested the 16th-ranked Oregon St. Beavers (8-3), the 20th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers (8-3), and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-3). All told, six of Cincy’s Division I-A triumphs have come against teams with winning ledgers.

The Boise St. Broncos narrowly edged out the TCU Horned Frogs for the No. 5 ranking, but it was a close call because the two teams’ resumes are so similar. The two mid-major mammoths arrived at 12-0 by virtually identical routes, as both clubs have beaten one Division I-AA opponent at home (UC-Davis for Boise State and Texas State for Texas Christian), one 6-6 squad on the road (Hawaii for the Broncos and Wyoming for the Frogs), five teams with winning records, and five teams with losing records. Each has beaten a 1-11 team at home (BSU defeated Miami (Ohio) and TCU defeated New Mexico) and each has taken advantage of four opponents with four or fewer wins.

The Horned Frogs’ second- and third-best wins (over the Utah Utes and the Clemson Tigers) were superior to the Broncos’ second- and third-best wins (over the Nevada Wolf Pack and the Fresno St. Bulldogs), but Boise State’s triumph over the seventh-ranked Oregon Ducks (9-2) carries considerably more weight than Texas Christian’s victory over the 23rd-ranked BYU Cougars (10-2), so the Broncos sneaked by the Frogs . . . barely.

(I would add at this point that Texas and Texas Christian have beaten the same number of Division I-A teams with records above .500 and that the Longhorns’ triumvirate of wins over Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Missouri clubs with a combined 25-11 record is comparable in quality to the Horned Frogs’ trio of triumphs over BYU, Utah, and Clemson outfits with a cumulative 27-9 ledger. Texas and TCU share only one opponent in common; the ‘Horns traveled to Laramie and beat the Wyoming Cowboys 41-10, whereas the Frogs traveled to Laramie and beat the Wyoming Cowboys 45-10. Texas allowed 13 points in a narrow win over the Oklahoma Sooners at a neutral site game played in Dallas, while Texas Christian went on the road and throttled a Brigham Young team that allowed 13 points in a narrow win over the Oklahoma Sooners at a neutral site game played in Arlington. There is a compelling case to be made for the proposition that the Longhorns are not the top team in the Lone Star State, or, at least, are not noticeably distinguishable from the other contender for that title.)

Oregon laid claim to the No. 7 ranking ahead of the Ohio St. Buckeyes (10-2) in spite of the fact that the Big Ten champions have the better collection of victories over winning teams: Ohio State beat Iowa, Penn State, Wisconsin, and Navy, while the Ducks defeated Southern California, California, Utah, and Arizona. The Buckeyes were dragged down by the fact that they lost to two teams, including the Purdue Boilermakers (5-7), that both were beaten by Oregon.

The Iowa Hawkeyes (10-2) landed one notch behind an Ohio State team to which they lost a close contest on the road. Iowa ended up ahead of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (10-2) not on the basis of wins, but of losses. In the victory column, the Hawkeyes and the Engineers are comparable. Both have ten wins; both claimed four of those victories by a touchdown or less; both beat one Division I-AA team and three Division I-A teams with winning records. On the whole, the Ramblin’ Wreck’s top three triumphs (over Virginia Tech, Clemson, and North Carolina) arguably are better than Iowa’s (over Penn State, Wisconsin, and Arizona), but the Hawkeyes lost a couple of close ones to an 8-4 team at home and a 10-2 team on the road. The Golden Tornado lost a close one to a 7-5 team at home and a thumping to a 9-3 team on the road.

Wins over No. 14 Miami (Florida) and No. 22 Nebraska enabled the Gobblers to overcome three very respectable losses and claim the No. 11 ranking for VPI, while the Pittsburgh Panthers (9-2) staked an admittedly shaky claim to the No. 12 spot with victories over Rutgers, Navy, and South Florida. Both of Pitt’s losses came in close contests on the road, but the Panthers’ early-season setback to the N.C. State Wolfpack (5-7) gives me pause and I very well might be persuaded to drop Dave Wannstedt’s club.

The Bayou Bengals’ three best wins were over a trio of 7-5 teams (Georgia, Arkansas, and Auburn), but their losses to Alabama, Florida, and Ole Miss are forgivable, so Louisiana State sneaked ahead of the Miami Hurricanes (9-3). A convincing win over Georgia Tech, a recent triumph over the South Florida Bulls (7-4), a previous victory over Oklahoma that acquired new luster in the Bedlam Battle, and a trio of losses to teams with at least eight wins apiece vaulted the ‘Canes ahead of the USC Trojans (8-3), who are hanging onto narrow victories against Ohio State and Oregon State while otherwise relying upon name recognition to make us forget about a stumble against the Washington Huskies (4-7) and blowout losses to Oregon and Stanford.

The Beavers ended up behind the Men of Troy thanks to the head-to-head result of the two teams’ Pac-10 meeting in Los Angeles, but wins over Cal and Stanford continue to keep Oregon State in contention. Despite boasting a 10-2 record, the Penn St. Nittany Lions deserved no better than a No. 17 ranking because Joe Paterno’s club has beaten the Northwestern Wildcats, the Temple Owls, and no other Division I-A teams above .500 while being beaten soundly by both Ohio State and Iowa.

I know lots of folks don’t think the Houston Cougars deserve to be ranked, but the Cougs are a refugee from a traditional Southern power conference and a division champion who got to 10-2 by beating a Division I-AA opponent, skating by four Division I-A foes by seven or fewer points, beating the Mississippi St. Bulldogs (5-7) in Starkville, and taking advantage of five teams with losing records. Houston sounds to me a lot like Georgia Tech, but, whereas an ACC division champion would finish fourth in the SEC East, a Conference USA division champion would finish in the top half of the Big 12 South, at least judging by the Cougars’ wins over Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. Those key non-league wins allowed Houston to overcome the problem of having lost on the road to the UTEP Miners (4-8).

For obvious reasons, the Cowboys remained one spot behind the Cougars, but a better set of losses (to Texas, Houston, and Oklahoma) allowed the Pokes to stay ahead of a West Virginia unit that fell to Cincinnati, South Florida, and Auburn before boosting its resume by beating Pittsburgh in the Backyard Brawl.

The California Golden Bears (8-3) suffered their three setbacks to teams with eight or more victories each, but none of those losses came in close contests and Cal’s wins over the Stanford Cardinal (8-4) and the Arizona Wildcats (7-4) are the only bright spots in a resume weighed down by the presence of triumphs over Division I-AA Eastern Washington, the Washington St. Cougars (1-11), the Maryland Terrapins (2-10), and the Arizona St. Sun Devils (4-8), the latter of whom the Berkeley Bears barely beat.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers (9-3) won the Big 12 North after tackling a non-conference slate straight out of the Sun Belt. The Big Red Machine beat Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, and Louisiana-Lafayette but defeated only one team all year with a ledger better than 7-5. The ‘Huskers came up short against the Iowa St. Cyclones (6-6) in an offensively moribund contest, so Nebraska clings to a No. 22 ranking while patiently awaiting its loss to Texas.

Brigham Young does not deserve to be ranked, but I had trouble finding another team to rank 23rd, so the spot went to a Cougar club that lost lopsided affairs to Texas Christian and the Florida St. Seminoles (6-6). Narrow wins over Utah and Oklahoma are about all BYU has to its credit, but those victories are better than the Wisconsin Badgers’ triumphs over Fresno State and Northern Illinois. Those are the only two teams over .500 to have fallen to Wiscy in the course of the Badgers’ 8-3 autumn.

The Central Michigan Chippewas (10-2) slipped into the No. 25 spot ahead of Rutgers because the State University of New Jersey beat a pair of Division I-AA teams and the Chips at least sneaked by the Michigan St. Spartans (6-6) on the road. Also, unlike the Scarlet Knights, they didn’t lose to the gender-neutral Syracuse Orange (4-8).

You should by all means feel free to offer constructive criticisms, heartfelt feedback, and thoughtful arguments for the inclusion or exclusion of particular teams. For what it’s worth, I watched the Ball State-Western Michigan game on Tuesday and the first half of the Texas-Texas A&M game on Thursday before devoting my Friday to flipping back and forth among and between the Cincinnati-Illinois, Alabama-Auburn, Colorado-Nebraska, Pitt-West Virginia, and Boise State-Nevada games. My Saturday was spent bouncing around between the Clemson-South Carolina, Mississippi-Mississippi State, Florida-Florida State, and Miami-South Florida games before I settled in for the Georgia-Georgia Tech game.

Go ‘Dawgs!

A 31-45 loss to the deserving West Champs leaves the Huskies wanting more

Mike Breese — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 06:46:52 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Dan LeFevour. Enough said.

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I'd just like to say that I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving weekend. It was pretty exhausting for myself, but it was a great time and got to see some relatives on the west coast I had not seen in a while. Although I did miss the game on Friday as I was busy traveling, I watched the replay on ESPN360.com. I had seen some negative comments on the message board, but overall I thought it was a hard-fought game against the best team in the conference on a short week on the road.

Hats off to QB Dan LeFevour, RB Bryan Schroeder and the rest of the Chippewas. The best QB in the MAC was absolutely unstoppable and is reaching the apex of his season. He could do nothing wrong passing for 255 yds and 3 TDs. The Chips ran right at the Huskies, as Schroeder powered through for 128 yds and 2 TDs on only 9 carries and caught 4 passes for 41 yds and a TD. LeFevour is a sure-fire NFL prospect and proved it today. His pocket awareness is untouchable and was a pro at running the same offense he has been running for 4 years now.

The Huskies did what they could on offense and defense, but silly mistakes put the Huskies down too much early as they tried to make a furious comeback at the end of the game. The stat of the game was 3rd down conversions. NIU was 4 of 12 (33%) whereas CMU was 12 of 18 (67%).

The ball didn't bounce the right way for the Huskies on Friday, but they put up a tremendous effort. It must have been tough facing both the East (Ohio) and West Champs in consecutive weeks. For a team that was predicted to finish in the bottom half of the West, I was impressed.

Here's a positional breakdown of what I saw against the Chips in Mt. Pleasant:

Quarterback

It's clear that Chandler Harnish was not in a groove the entire game. First of all, you could clearly tell that his knee hasn't healed completely. He didn't look confident in the pocket and didn't have full speed on his runs. Another thing that messed up the offensive rhythm is the times that DeMarcus Grady filled in at QB. It was so painstakingly obvious that he was going to run the ball. We could have been more creative putting either one of the QBs in motion and sending them out wide or in the slot. Just keep Harnish behind center, especially early in the game when you're trying to get your footing.

Chandler had trouble handling snaps from Adamski at a couple different parts of the game. Sometimes, Harnish just held on to the ball too long. This could be accredited to Harnish himself, the offensive line protection or the wide receivers not getting open. He threw two interceptions late, which again could have just been miscommunications or bad throws. Looked like he was just trying to force it too much and needs to work on feeling out the blitz.

Running Back

This game reminded me of how much I love it when Chad Spann runs the ball. He started the game because Me'co Brown was out with an ankle injury. Are we seriously going to have to kidnap Me'co Brown to get Spann more carries next season? We should nickname him Mr. September, because the smaller back seems to breakdown come the latter part of the season.

Even though Spann looked awesome running the ball, you could clearly tell that his shoulder was not 100%. He had a critical fumble and then a dropped pass late in the game. A healthy Spann doesn't make those mistakes. More awesomeness from the postgame notes:

***Chad Spann scored his 19th rushing touchdown of the season (and 20th overall) to tie the Northern Illinois single season record for rushing scores. Spann tied the record owned by Stacey Robinson (1989 and 1990) and Michael Turner (2002). He also moved up to tie Turner for second on the Huskies' list for single season touchdowns with 20, trailing only Garrett Wolfe's 21 in 2004. Spann's 120 points on the year are also tied for second in a single season.

Wide Receivers

As a whole, way, way too many drops. I'm including the TEs and RBs in the passing game. Outcome would have been a lot different had they been able to catch everything thrown to them.

Martel Moore is an absolute beast. He made 3 highlight reel catches for 61 yds and almost a 4th that got knocked down. AND HE'S ONLY A TRUE FRESHMAN! He will be a future MAC star.

Landon Cox looked worn out in this game. Maybe being the only reliable WR all season finally caught up to him. He caught a TD pass early, but later on the game he had a couple drops and left the field with an injury.

Marcus Lewis was all over the place in his last regular-season game as a Huskie. He starts off the game as the go-to guy, catching 3 passes. The end of the 1st, he goes all alligator arms and doesn't catch the pass in his vicinity. Then comes the offensive pass interference. In the 4th quarter he had a SICK crack-back block on a Harnish scramble for a first. And in the final offensive drive for the Huskies, he scores the touchdown. Crazy, crazy game for the 4th year senior.

Offensive Line

It took all season, but the lack of depth really started to show as Panan Tense made his first start of his career for Adam Kiel at RT. There was just way too much pressure on Harnish the entire game. OL has to be a major focus this offseason to improve through recruiting. Joe Pawlak is a little trigger happy.

Defensive Line

Nobody could really get any pressure on Dan LeFevour, but who really can? Got cut up in the rushing game giving up 6.3 ypc to the Chippewa rushers. CMU just ran it up the middle with Schroeder. Same with the O-Line, the depth on this side of the ball has been severely depleted especially with Brian Lawson's late season hand injury. Jake Coffman had 6 tackles and Bice finished with 3 tackles and a sack.

Linebackers

Just a whole lot of meh. The starters looked like their feet were in ice blocks. A lot of overpursuing, which gave CMU the chance to execute screen passes. The only bright spot I saw was Tyrone Clark making a couple of big hits. He also was the player that tipped the ball up so that Patrick George could return the ball for a TD late in the game. The true freshman has been making great plays all season long. Both Schiller & Hanson had 9 tackles a piece and #53 was accredited with the forced fumble.

Defensive Backs

Senior David Bryant started at FS in his last regular-season game, but the rust from being sidelined most of the season was very evident. Dan LeFevour's stiff arm of him was highlight reel stuff. He did, however recover the fumble late in the game. SS Tracy Wilson racked up his 10 tackles a game average in this one.

CB Chris Smith IS A MAN. He played out of his goddamn mind in this game. Just awesome, hard tackles the entire game long. He's the best tackling CB we've had in a long, long time. Not bad for a JUCO transfer in his first year.

One thing I didn't get was all the soft coverage by the CBs on 3rd downs. It was just ridiculous. A player only has to go so far to get a 1st down and you're backed up even further than that. Yes, Kiaree Daniels I'm looking at you. 12 of 18 on 3rd downs is just ridiculous. Tommy Davis had some trouble in the tackling department as a backup. PG didn't have a stellar game either, but did return that INT for a touchdown late.

Special Teams

F*CK RUGBY PUNTS

This is not a personnel problem, this is a coaching problem. Sure, the Mike Salerno's 9 yard punt was into the wind but seriously... Josh Wilber and his monster leg hasn't played since Akron. Talk about under-utilized.

Coaching

These Huskies never gave up, right until the bitter end. Talk about getting this team up to play when they're down 10-38. There was a distinct difference in terms of talent and personnel between both teams, but I felt that the coaches did a decent job of switching things up. An offseason favor: No more 9 yard punts.

So what's next?

We wait, and then we wait some more. The MAC Championship is this Friday and bowl invitations will be sent soon after that. Navy doesn't take on Army until December 12th, so we may not know who our opponent will be in our potential bowl game until then. So now the most important thing to do is heal the bumps and bruises, hit the recruiting trail and keep in game shape. There's a bowl game on the horizon.

Weekly Look at the Latest College Football top 25 Polls

Jeremy Mauss — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:15:09 -0000

The top six stayed the same and the race for number two if Texas slips up stays the same as well with Cincinatti and TCU both gaining the same amount of points from last week to this week. BYU made a jump to 13th in the coaches poll which means when the final BCS standings come out next week they will be in the top 14 and available as an at-large BCS team. That is quite a feat for a two loss non-BCS team; now they will not be choosen but still a good situation.

Utah hangs in the coaches poll at 25 which is a surprise, but a good surprise since that most likely means they will be in the final BCS top 25. This will be the second year in a row that the Mountain West has three teams in the top 25 of the final BCS standings. The only scenarios where Utah will get bumped is if Central Michigan crushes Ohio in the MAC final or if Clemson beats Georgia Tech in the ACC final

USA Today Coaches' Poll
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS	PVS
1	Florida (53)	12-0	1468	1
2	Texas (3)	12-0	1394	2
3	Alabama (3)	12-0	1380	3
4	TCU	12-0	1285	4
5	Cincinnati	11-0	1231	5
6	Boise State	12-0	1197	6
7	Ohio State	10-2	1104	8
8	Oregon	9-2	1061	10
9	Penn State	10-2	975	11
10	Iowa	10-2	889	13
11	Virginia Tech	9-3	831	14
12	Georgia Tech	10-2	774	7
13	Brigham Young	10-2	680	15
14	LSU	9-3	674	17
15	Pittsburgh	9-2	631	9
16	Oregon State	8-3	607	18
17	Miami (FL)	9-3	509	21
18	Houston	10-2	473	20
19	USC	8-3	361	22
20	Nebraska	9-3	335	23
21	Oklahoma State	9-3	309	12
22	California	8-3	210	NR
23	West Virginia	8-3	163	NR
24	Stanford	8-4	154	NR
25	Utah	9-3	120	19

Dropped from rankings: Clemson 16, North Carolina 24, Mississippi 25

AP Top 25
RK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS	PVS
1	Florida (46)	12-0	1483	1
2	Alabama (7)	12-0	1416	2
3	Texas (7)	12-0	1414	3
4	TCU	12-0	1316	4
5	Cincinnati	11-0	1249	5
6	Boise State	12-0	1216	6
7	Oregon	9-2	1104	10
8	Ohio State	10-2	1103	9
9	Iowa	10-2	920	13
10	Penn State	10-2	897	12
11	Virginia Tech	9-3	860	14
12	Georgia Tech	10-2	820	7
13	Oregon State	8-3	719	16
14	Pittsburgh	9-2	642	8
15	LSU	9-3	614	17
16	Brigham Young	10-2	610	18
17	Miami (FL)	9-3	572	19
18	Houston	10-2	400	25
19	California	8-3	398	21
20	USC	8-3	365	24
21	Nebraska	9-3	289	NR
22	Oklahoma State	9-3	269	11
23	Stanford	8-4	266	NR
24	West Virginia	8-3	225	NR
25	Clemson	8-4	87	15

Dropped from rankings: Mississippi 20, Utah 22, North Carolina 23

2009 Bowl Projections - Post Week 13

Bama Hawkeye — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 07:29:09 -0000

Everything is clear. Some things are clear as crystal. Others are as clear as mud. But make no mistake, the situation is clear.

TCU will go to the BCS. The BCS Championship? Only with a couple of upset losses.

On the crystal side, the SEC Champ will play Texas, Cincinnati, or TCU in the BCS Championship Game. I think that's the order, too. If Texas beats Nebraska, they'll go. If not, Cincy is next in line. After playing the Pitt, they'll move ahead of TCU in the standings. Should the Bearcats fall to the Panthers, I think TCU gets their chance. I do not see a repeat of the SEC Championship game. Not with one viable undefeated team in the clubhouse and two more approaching 18. All in all, the 10 BCS teams are pretty safe bets. I've mentioned some alternatives, but I think that there are only 15 teams in play for the 10 spots.On the mud side, look at the SEC after the top 4 teams are placed. That's right, six 7-5 teams.

This Week's Articles

JerDogg finally admits that Minnesota just ain't that good.

Graham ranks the Big Ten quarterbacks for their 2009 performance.

Greg discusses the future of Tate Forcier and moving Denard Robinson to WR.

Good luck making any sense of it. I took my best shot, but you can feel free to speculate in a different direction. If you're counting, there are four open bowl spots for at large teams. 9 win MTSU and 7 win Bowling Green and Northern Illinois will take three of the spots. That leaves room for one 6-6 team to go to Mobile, Alabama to play the top choice from the MAC. My guess is that it's UCLA.

Full projections of all of the Big Ten, BCS, and every other bowl game after the jump.

Remember the rules.

These are projections. I am taking into account what will happen in future games, not assigning teams based upon current standings.
The best teams don't always go to the best games. In the end, butts in the seat and eyes to the television are the biggest factors.
The order of BCS selection is 1) Replacement for #1 Team; 2) Replacement for #2 Team; 3) Orange Bowl; 4) Fiesta Bowl; 5) Sugar Bowl.
The Champs Bowl picks its Big Ten team ahead of the Alamo Bowl this year.
For the full rules on BCS selections, look here.

			The SEC Champion will finish Number 1 in the BCS. Texas will finish #2 if they beat the Huskers. If they lose, Cincinnati will finish #2 with a win over PItt. If Texas and Cincy lose, TCU will slide into the number two spot.
			Beware of Clemson. Aren't they most dangerous after losing a game they have no business dropping? If Clemson wins the ACC, the Orange Bowl will likely take Cincinnati over a regular season rematch.
			Oklahoma State's loss means that the second Big Ten BCS team will be in Arizona, not Florida. If the Huskers upset Texas, Nebraska will be here, Texas will be selected by the Orange, and the Fiesta will still get a Big Ten team (and Boise will be left out). And yes, it very well could be Penn State over Iowa. If it was the Orange making the decision, it probably would be. But I'm still thinking that the Fiesta goes black and gold (and $green$).
			The only way that this isn't the SEC Runner-Up versus the Big East Champ is if Clemson or Nebraska pulls the upset.
			Ohio State has punched their ticket. The winner of Oregon/Oregon State will do the same. It says here that the Ducks win and head to Pasadena.
			LSU slips back into Orlando after Ole MIss lays an Egg against Mississippi State. From the Big Ten, this will be the loser of the behind the scenes battle between Iowa and Penn State.
			Is there any chance that this could be Northwestern? Maybe if Wisconsin loses at Hawaii, but I still have a hard time seeing the Wildcats winning that tiebreaker. Picking Tennessee here establishes them as the most desirable of the SEC's 7-5 mob.
			I think Clemson gets this bid after Virginia Tech and Miami.
			Yes, I think that 7-5 Oklahoma is selected over 8-win Missouri and Texas Tech. If good-MSU and good-OU show up, this could be a great game. If one of the schools brings their bad squad, it could get ugly.
			I don't see this matchup going well for the Gophers. Then again, if it was OU or Texas Tech, I don't know that it would go much better.
			Another Big Ten-less Motor City Bowl.
			When you can't get to six wins, you know that you'll spend the season On the Couch with the Queso Bowl (now sponsored by Ro*Tel).

			Kudos to Wyoming for getting bowl eligible.
			The bowl will want a Florida connection if it can get it.
			Troy has clinched their trip back to New Orleans. ECU makes for a great matchup.
			BYU makes their 122nd consecutive trip to Las Vegas. Oregon State will be a great match for them there.
			I expect the Mountain West to arrange their alignment to give their big three the best games possible.
			Both teams say that they'll play "anytime, anywhere." Time to prove it.
			This will be Pitt or West Virginia from the Big East. For the second year in a row, Tar Heel fans should fill the seats.
			Bowden's last stand in that hotbed of college football --- San Francisco?
			Boston College is always a tough out in a bowl game. This should be no exception.
			Independence Bowl selects its Big 12 team ahead of the Texas Bowl this year. I think they take the team that gave Texas a battle over the team that beat Nebraska. My guess is that it's a choice between Kentucky and South Carolina on the SEC side.
			If Army defeats Navy in two weeks, they'll replace Marshall.
			Idaho is happy enough to go bowling. I'm sure that staying close to home is all right with them.
			Navy has clinched this bid. On the Big 12 side, it will be whoever is left between Iowa State and Texas A&M.
			Could the Cotton take Nebraska over Oklahoma State? Yes. Especially if the Huskers show well in a loss to Texas.
			The Ponies are another team that won't mind the quick commute for the bowl game.
			Should be a fun game.
			Georgia brings the crowd, while Miami brings the sizzle.
			It's an old fashioned Big East battle. Notre Dame's 6th loss means that the Gator Bowl can't pick the Irish. My guess is that West Virginia will head to Jacksonville if Cincinnati beats Pittsburgh (and the Mountaineers beat Rutgers). If the Panthers win, Cincy heads here.
			Still weird to see Temple in a bowl.
			I've got South Carolina as the last choice out of the SEC. It has as much to do with geography as anything else.
			Yes, this could be Nebraska over Okie State. I suppose that one of those seven win SEC teams could be chosen here too. When push comes to shove, I think that the teams with the best records get chosen.
			Think that Arkansas will bring some fans to Memphis? I have Houston beating ECU. The C-USA champ automatically goes here.
			GMAC gets first choice from the MAC. Not champion, first choice. I project that's CMU, regardless of what happens elsewhere. It looks like it will come down to UCLA or Notre Dame to fill an empty ACC slot With the firing/hiring going on in South Bend, I expect the Irish to decline a bid.

Friday NFL Draft watch notes

Mocking Dan — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:05:38 -0000

More photos » by Mel Evans - AP

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Considering there are 13 games on today, we'll do a double-shot of watch notes this weekend.

• Rutgers junior Anthony Davis is emerging as perhaps the second-best tackle prospect in the nation after Oklahoma State's Russell Okung. Davis has a body that is NFL ready and he is at times dominant. Davis can struggle against speed rushers, but he's an elite run-blocking tackle.

Also in the Rutgers/Lousville game, keep an eye on Scarlet Knight cornerback Devin McCourty. The senior is slightly undersized, but he has great athleticism. He's really come on as the season has progressed and may be a solid mid-round talent.

• Auburn's run offense is one of the best in the nation, so today could be a showcase day for Alabama middle linebacker Rolando McClain. The leader of the Crimson Tide defense has the task of tracking down the Tiger's Ben Tate, a talented mid-round prospect. If you watch this game today, watch how McClain leads his defense and how he gets off blocks.

Auburn has its own stellar junior middle linebacker in Josh Bynes. He leads the team in tackles with 84 to go along with seven pass breakups, four tackles for a loss and a sack. Bynes is a physical run defender and a good 3-4 middle linebacker prospect.

• Everyone talks about Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh, and justly so, but don't sleep on redshirt sophomore Jared Crick. The defensive tackle has 14 tackles for a loss, nine sacks and two fumble recoveries this season. He's big at 6-foot-6 and 285 pounds and should only get stronger. If he enters the draft, don't be shocked if he's taken in the first 75 picks.

• Sleeper alert: Ohio wide receiver Taylor Price is an athletic freak. He reportedly runs the 40-yard dash in the mid-4.3 range and has good size at 6-foot-1 and 212 pounds. On the year, Price has 48 receptions for 639 yards and five touchdowns.

• Illinois might be having a disappointing season, but that's not because of the play of guard Jon Asamoah. The senior is a good telephone booth blocker and has good footwork. He's kind of a tweener tackle/guard kind of lineman, but he'll offer a team solid late-round depth.

• As mentioned here last week, Central Michigan's Dan LeFevour is starting to put together a phenomenal season. On the season, he's completing 70 percent of his passes with 2,627 yards, 21 touchdowns and five interceptions. Look for him to have another stellar day today against a weak Northern Illinois defense.

Up Next: Central Michigan

BoilerTMill — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 14:00:14 -0000

The key to stopping Central Michigan Saturday will be containing perhaps the best player in MAC history, Dan LeFevour...

Sorry about that. I guess over the past few years I am used to seeing Central Michigan on the schedule and thinking about Dan LeFevour. In a way, it may be a good thing we missed out on a bowl game. Otherwise we would possibly see him again in Detroit. This time the men's basketball team will be facing the Chippewas. They don't have The Clippers' Chris Kaman to help them now, so we'll exact some revenge after they eliminated our women's soccer team from the NCAA tournament.

Jordan Bitzer is Central Michigan's #2 scorer at 14 points per game.

Record: 2-3

2008-09 Record: 12-19 (lost to Ball State in MAC Tourney)

Blog Representation: The Central Word (More of a message board, but still solid)

Series with Purdue: Purdue leads 5-1

I actually have a bad memory about Thanksgiving and the one loss we have had to Central in the series. It was early in my junior year and we played Central Michigan on the night before Thanksgiving break began. I attended the game, then left at halftime to get home to Kokomo because it looked like we had the game in hand. During the drive back the Chips made a furious comeback. Purdue led by one in the closing seconds and had the ball with the shot clock winding down. Central played good defense, forced a bad shot, and got a long rebound. The rebound started a 3-on-1 break the other way that led to an easy layup and a stunning 67-66 win for the Chippewas. I managed to catch this final play on TV just as I walked in the front door of my parents' house. The Chips have not visited Mackey Arena since, though we did play them at Conseco Fieldhouse in 2003. That game was a dominant 80-39 Boilermaker victory.

That game during the 2000-01 season was the harbinger of Gene Keady's downfall. Though we made the Elite 8 the season before, we would fall to the NIT that season. Keady would have just one more tournament.

This year's contest will likely fall more along the lines of that meeting in 2003. Purdue is currently ranked 6^th in the nation, while Central Michigan has beaten Ferris State and Illinois-Chicago. The three losses have come to Princeton, Fairleigh Dickenson, and Wright State.

Central Michigan is a relatively deep team. They have a nine man rotation with two players averaging in double figures. 6'1" senior guard Robbie Harmon is the team's leading scorer at 16.4 points per game. He is a legitimate deep threat who has twice had a game this season where he made six 3-pointers. He accomplished this feat against Princeton and Illinois-Chicago, so we will need to make sure he doesn't get loose on the perimeter.

Fellow guard Jordan Bitzer is also a senior and is second in scoring at 14 points per game. He is currently shooting better than 50% from beyond the arc, hitting 13 of 22 attempts through five games. 6'8" forward Chris Kellermann is also a senior and he averages 9.6 points per game. He can also step outside and hit the three, but his shooting percentage from the field is under 35%.

Junior College transfer Jalin Thomas has been a promising addition through five games. He had a season high 16 in the win over Illinois-Chicago and is averaging nine points per game. Thomas also leads the team in rebounds at 7.4 per contest. 6'9" junior forward Marko Spica is the only other player averaging over seven points per game at 7.2. He is playing after missing all of last season due to injury.

The statistics fall off quite a bit outside of these top five. William McClure, Finis Craddock, Brandon Ford, and Tyler Brown provide depth, but they don't do much scoring.

Though Central Michigan is an experienced team, turnovers can be a bit of an issue. They average more than 14 per game while only dishing out 10 assists. They are a decent rebounding team, but it is more by committee than anything. We won't be overwhelmed with their size. They prefer to play out on the perimeter with only Jalin Thomas doing a lot of work inside.

The final factor to consider is that they are struggling this year without having played anyone even close to the talent level we have. Fairleigh Dickenson beat them for their only win in six games. Wright State is probably their best opponent. The Raiders could challenge Butler in the Horizon League.

Honestly, this is a game we should have little trouble in. Central Michigan is not one of the better teams in the MAC even though they are experienced. It is a bit of a trap game falling in between Tennessee and Wake Forest, but I don't think we'll be looking ahead. Matt Painter need to say one word: Wofford, if we start to look ahead. We must see this as another chance to get our freshmen like Patrick Bade and Kelsey Barlow some experience against live competition. Purdue 77, Central Michigan 57