2010 - week 4

Once again, an excellent Saturday. Conference play for most teams started, and it didn't disappoint. There were also some decent non conference match ups, but left some teams with questions still to answer.

Here is what I mean.

Many of you may think the Texas-UCLA game would be my "what in the bleep was that?!" game of the week. Sorry, you are incorrect. Now I will not say I expected UCLA to bring the hammer down on the Longhorns, especially in Austin, but I can't say I'm all that surprised. If you read past posts, you will see that I have not been overly impressed with Texas' offense, and mainly Garrett Gilbert's progression. I know he's young, and its only the fourth game of the year, but this is Texas we're talking about. A program with an elite coaching staff, paired with elite players, should be further along. But Texas was just exposed badly on offense by a team that looked even worse in their first two games. Where was the commitment to the run game I've been hearing so much about from Mack Brown? Way to commit to 85 yards for the game. That, paired with 5 turnovers on offense, will not win any games. When you are the team causing those turnovers, in this case UCLA, and only muster 291 yards of offense yourself but still put up 34 points, you can win. Texas will either respond, or falter this week against OU. Final score 34-12, UCLA.

Speaking of OU.

I guess the Sooners like to keep it close. After pretty much controlling the game, with a 24-9 lead early in the third quarter, the OU defense did what they do best. Let teams sneak back in the game, and hang around till the end. Just like Texas' run game, where is this stout OU defense I heard was going to be just fine this year. Cincinnati rolled up 461 yards of total offense, and moved the ball at will in the fourth quarter. If not for an OU recovery of a muffed punt in Cincinnati territory, that resulted in an OU score, this would have been a much different game. The Sooner offense is doing their part though. QB Landry Jones is playing excellent football, throwing for 370 yards and 2 touchdowns. Demarco Murray is playing well too, he hasn't gotten the chunks of yards like they had hoped, but he is productive and scores td's. They are going to need him next week. Final score 31-29, Oklahoma.

Some things never change.

As much as Florida hasn't wowed anyone so far this year, and Kentucky has surprisingly started 3-0, it didn't change anything. Florida had beaten Kentucky 23 straight times going into last week, and many thought this week might be just the time Kentucky could sneak one out. WRONG AGAIN! Complete domination, which is obviously never going to stop by Florida. Backup QB, running back, tight end, and jack of all trades Trey Burton scored 6 touchdowns! And yes when he scored out of the wildcat formation, they said that sure looked like Tebow. That is also never going to stop. Starting QB John Brantley is looking better, throwing for 248 yards and a score. And Florida is not short on play makers, so as much as I thought the Gators might fall this year, they just may not. Urban Meyer is finding ways to win. But I do know one thing that will change, and you'll see it in Tuscaloosa this week. Final score 48-14, Florida.

I don't know.

Why the College Gameday crew was in Boise for the game of the week. Because the game went EXACTLY as I thought it would. Oregon State shouldn't be ranked in the first place, but the #3 and #24 ranked teams should never qualify when the #1 and #10 teams are playing each other in a conference game! But everyone is on the Boise bandwagon these days, so I'm not really surprised. I really don't have much to say about the game, because I didn't want to watch it, and I didn't watch one second of it. I found out the final score and thought, "eh." When I did see highlights later, I figured out why Boise State never loses at home. That stupid blue turf, paired with their all blue uniforms, makes them invisible! Final score 37-24, Boise State.

Where did this come from?

Many of us thought the PAC-10 this year would be Oregon's to lose. But all of a sudden, Stanford has come roaring out of the gates, and are fresh off a trouncing of Notre Dame 37-14 in South Bend. They are currently ranked ninth in the country, and Andrew Luck is arguably playing better than any other quarterback in the nation. In case you don't remember, Stanford was 1-11 just four years ago. They are now sitting at 4-0 for the first time in 16 years, and visit earlier mentioned Oregon this weekend. If they win that game, Stanford could be sitting very nicely.

And when is it going to show up?

LSU's Jordan Jefferson has now thrown for less than 100 yards and no touchdowns for the third straight week, yet the Tigers are 4-0. It's the old cliche of a win is a win. With two receivers that were top 10 players overall coming out of high school, it should be producing more. If not for cornerback Patrick Peterson, LSU might have a little different record. He is almost single handily winning games for them. He shuts down the opponents best receiver every week, but that's not all. He has 2 interceptions, and returned a punt and blocked a field goal against West Virginia last week. If not for that, LSU probably loses. He even had 257 return yards in their opener against North Carolina, another game they squeaked out a win. So with the Tiger offense not doing really anything, you have to give a lot of credit to their defense and special teams. That can win you a lot of games anyway, but if they could get it going on offense, watch out. Still don't know how Jordan Jefferson hasn't progressed as a QB. Final score 20-14, LSU.

Speaking of winning.

Auburn, and especially QB Cam Newton, keep finding ways to win. After a grudge match, overtime win against Clemson two weeks ago, they welcomed in South Carolina. SC was also undefeated and playing their best ball so far under Steve Spurrier. After SC took a 20-7 lead in the second quarter, Auburn came storming back on the shoulders of Newton. This guy either runs or throws for key plays when they seem to need it most. He is still young, but is willing Auburn to victories. His stats are to the right in the player of the week section. South Carolina still played well, and they are still a team to keep an eye on. QB Stephen Garcia threw for 305 yards and three scores, not much more you can do there. The only knock on Newton is he may run too much. If a defense figures out a way to keep him contained, they have a good chance to win. But no one has been able to contain him yet. Final score 35-27, Auburn.

Wonder.

What would have happened if Denard Robinson played the entire game. In only nine minutes of action against Bowling Green, Robinson had 5 carries for 129 yards and two touchdowns. He went out late in the first quarter with an injury, but said after the game he will be fine for this week. He is maybe the most exciting player in the country. We want to see him play.

He did play the whole game.

And continues to roll along. My man Terrelle Pryor is flat getting it done. Against Eastern Michigan, he accounted for 348 yards and SIX touchdowns! Four passing, one rushing, and one receiving. He is making it look easy, which is never a good thing for opposing teams. If he continues to play this way, especially in big games, chalk up the Heisman, and maybe the national title.

Speaking of rolling along.

And who people still forget about, TCU. They sort of quietly put down a much improved SMU squad on the road in Dallas. I don't want to see it in another bowl game, but I do want to see Boise State and TCU play again, they are clearly the two best non AQ schools in the country, no one else is even close. QB Andy Dalton continues to play well, and people also forget the Horned Frogs(they didn't get the mascot part right) put out a good defense. They are the least talked about top five ranked team in the history of college football. SMU QB Kyle Padron gets the award for holding onto the ball way too long almost every play, then deserving to get his head ripped off. Get rid of it! Final score 41-24, TCU.

8th Grade basketball score of the week - Oregon over Arizona State, 42-31.

And a new edition.

The blowout of the week - Wisconsin over Austin Peay, 70-3.

The "what in the bleep was that?" game of the week.

Georgia came into this season as a dark horse pick to win the SEC East. Well, that wasn't very smart. Not to blow my own horn, but I didn't believe that for a second. The Bulldogs are now sitting at 1-3, and 0-3 in the conference. I have always respected Mark Richt as a coach, and thought he could rally the troops after a last minute loss to Arkansas last week. Uh, guess I was wrong on that one. They traveled To Mississippi State who has been a bottom feeder in the SEC for quite some time. Sure, second year head coach Dan Mullen will improve them, but they still are not very good. But not only did Miss State win, they had a 24-6 lead late in the fourth quarter. Huh? Georgia QB Aaron Murray is going through some growing pains right now, but is playing pretty well. He threw for 274 yards and a td, and no picks. But is not getting a lot of help around him it seems. They need AJ Green to return asap, although he is not the only answer to their problems. Final score 24-12, Mississippi State.

The no defense game of the week.

Ole Miss over Fresno State was not a defensive struggle by any means. And the Rebels were supposed to be strong on that side of the ball. Ole Miss went for 578 yards, while Fresno State totalled 420. Final score 55-38, Ole Miss.

Ok I'll talk about it.

The Hogs had their chance against Alabama. A 20-7 lead in the third quarter was not enough though. ESPECIALLY WHEN HOG RECEIVERS START DROPPING BALLS AND MALLET THROWS TWO SECOND HALF INTERCEPTIONS!!!! Ok sorry for yelling. But really, Arkansas could have won, but Alabama as usual, showed why they are number one. Mark Ingram is back in the Heisman talk already after his second week back. Arkansas could not slow him down at all, to the tune of 157 yards and two td's. Mallet had his moments, throwing for 357 yards and a touchdown. He could only muster 160 last year against the Tide. And the defense held Alabama to 20 points under their season average. So there are positives moving forward for the Hogs, but the game was there to be had. Final score 24-20, Alabama.

Until next week,

Nance