Saturday, September 23, 2006

CFB Saturday Tailgate

As CFB action progresses throughout the day (and night), use the Comments area on this post to deliver your running commentary. I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone does!

-- D.S.

77 comments:

Jingoist said...

Yaaaaaawwwnn. Good Morning Dan. I've been up since 5AM with my kids. How 'bout you? Gabe ready for a thrilling day of college football, MLB, and Ryder Cup action?

Josh said...

Dan, I'm gonna throw this out there for you, and I need you to comment on it.

Tiger is not the golfer that Nicklaus is until Tiger can do what Nicklaus did in the Ryder Cup.

Nicklaus had a career record of 17-8-3 in the cup, compared to Tiger's 7-11-2 before this year. This showed the Golden Bear's ability to adapt to team play, different formats of golf, the pressure of playing for your country, the different climates that one encounters in Europe, etc.

Tiger has done none of these. And now this week, we see that he's pissed, with the whole Elin thing, and he still can't carry a team. Where is the Tiger that dominates the PGA and British Opens this summer? Especially in fourball matches, he should be able to carry Furyk if he's not playing well.

But, I'll also go out on a limb and say this: the European squad has more talent than the U.S.

The heroin sheik said...

I dont think the Europeans are that much better than us so much as it is that they hate us. Having spent a few years in scotland during the late 80's I can say that they they really don't like us Americans. I think it is why we are not as dominant in all sports at the world championships in the various sports. I think the only sport we would smoke the world in would be football and if they started playing internationally I bet we would eventually get our asses handed to us. I think if you took a good team from rugby though and taught them the fundamentals they would smoke us. I remember hearing that back inthe 80's the new zealand all blacks and the 49's had an exhibition. The first half of the game was our football and the second half they played rugby. The allblacks kept within two touchdowns in the first half but come the second half the allblacks ran off a string of like 8 tries in a row without the 49er's scoring. Does anyone remember this happening? I think it was in 85 after that second super bowl win but I might be mistaken.

God I hate this weekend for college football. I have to wait all day to watch the gators have a scrimmage with kentucky which might end up being a 77-0 blowout. The US is going to get blown out by the europeans, and my bucs are gonna get killed by the panthers. At least we get the jax game on tv here in orlando.

FreKy J said...

I've heard that the Gamecocks are favored by 30 against Florida Atlantic. Having seen them play the first 3 games, where can I go to bet against the spread? There's no way in hell they win by 30, they couldn't even score 30 period against Wofford.

Unknown said...

Dan, since I'm pretty sure you're not going to be posting today I figured I'd just take this time to say Happy New Year. I realize that is just a strange way of putting the significance of today but it's the best my non religious mind can comprehend.

Anyways I'm going to enjoy what might be the most boring day of college football - as long as the Golden Domers redeem my bank account by beating MSU I'll be happy today.

Mega said...

ALRIGHT EVERYONE!

Who is your "upset pick" of the day?

MSU over ND, book it!

MoL said...

I can't agree that MSU beating ND counts as an upset. Upset in the fact that MSU is unranked and ND is high-overrated, yes. But the fact that MSU has won 7 of 9 vs ND and has the most victories over ND of any team, no.

Go Green!
Go White!

d_helms32 said...

I've been watching most of the first half of the Georgia/Colorado game and I have not been too impressed by Georgia's play. Colorado has been able to march down field willingly against a D that has already had two shutous.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

colorado is primed to pull a huge upset at georgia. not only has georgia played like shit, it actually looks like the buffs offense is jelling behind qb jackson...

Trey (formerly TF) said...

UGA...thanks for making the SEC look bad.

Joe (Dayton)

Matt Hooper Presents said...

hey dan, earlier in the week you said an alabama fan wrote you saying the tide did not deserve to be a top 25 team. as a bama fan (and former student SID at the capstone) i'm wondering where you'd rank them if they pick up a road win at arkansas today?

d_helms32 said...

Georgia got awfully lucky today.

D. Ling said...

MSU over ND, not after the flag flap last year, Weis and Quinn have revenge on their mind tonight.

Go Irish

NOTE: 0-0 OSU and PSU in the 2nd quarter, looks like this could be a nail biter for the Buckeyes.

phillipkscott said...

A life-long Tar Heel and recent graduate, I think it's safe to say that John Bunting's days a coach are numbered. Living in New Jersey now, I can't get the games on TV, so I followed the game on the web while watching other games...

So my question is, when it is okay to start rooting against your guys to ensure a coaching change? I think with the game at 52-0 (against Clemson today), I reached the point where watching the Heels' inept effort became comical... to the point that I wanted to see how lopsided this could become before an open mutiny on the sidelines erupted.

Unknown said...

AND THAT..is why Troy Smith is a Heisman Candidate. What a scramble and throw!

Jon said...

Is it me or did it look like Jenkins from Ohio St spiked the ball before he was in the end zone? Not that it matters. Just saying.

thistlewarrior said...

WTF?! Is that Brett Farve QB'ing for Penn St.?

BTW, Georgia better drop at least a spot or two after nearly losing to Colorado. Seriously, CO lost to Montana St. just 2 wks. ago.

Travis said...

New Hampshire's David Ball who 2 weeks ago burned Northeastern for 2 scores, tied Jerry Rice's NCAA TD Reception record by catching 3 in #1 New Hampshire trouncing of Dartmouth 56-14.

with 8 games remaining plus 4 potential playoff games, David Ball will obliterate the record by seasons end.

Congratulations to David!

Christian Thoma said...

Is it safe to say now that the 'young' OSU Defense isn't going to be a problem for the Buckeyes?

That Troy Smith pass will be shown at his Heisman nomination.

d_helms32 said...

I feel bad for Tiffin, what a rough day. Looking forward to the Notre Dame game, hopefully their offensive line will decide to show up tonight.

CorrND said...

So, Ohio St. having a hard time against Penn St. means ND might be pretty decent, right?

On the other hand, Michigan having a hard time against Wisconsin means ND might not be that great, right?

Or maybe we shouldn't take SO much from the outcome of one game. Right?

kevin said...

The story of the Alabama game is not Tiffin's misses. It is, by far, the conservative nature of Bama's coach, Mike Shula. After having moved the ball on Arkansas the entire second half, Shula plays it safe at the end of regulation and puts the game on the foot of a freshman that is already having a shaky day. Then, what does he do with ALL of the momentum of the game on his team's side after Mustain throws a pick in OT. The SAME EXACT thing. Three runs up the middle to set up a long field goal for Tiffin. Wide right. Bama scores easily to kick off the second OT. Wide right. No way Arkansas is not going to score and win.

Unbelievable. There was a big part of me that hoped Leigh Tiffin would be left in Arkansas, but there's a bigger part of me that's angry with Shula.

firemikeshula.com????

Matt Hooper Presents said...

no...i'm afraid ND IS that bad. brady quinn is looking more and more like a heisman bust.

regarding alabama's painful loss this afternoon:

leigh tiffin's disasterous evening not withstanding, alabama fans have officially had enough of coach mike shula. for the unteenth time today, shula had a chance for a big SEC win, but conservative play-calling doomed that chance once again.

first and goal late with 5 minutes to go...run. run. run. overall gain: 3 yards. result: missed field goal.

arkansas had the first possession in overtime #1. bama picks off an errant mustain throw. first down bama. run. run. run. result: two yards. missed field goal.

and this isn't an isolated event. he does this REGULARLY.

who in the world with first and goal and five minutes left in a tie game would play for a field goal with a true freshman kicker? why, david shula's brother, of course.

i don't understand the UA athletic department. the man is not a racing horse, just because he was sired by don shula doesn't mean he knows how to win football games.

i checked today and yes, fireshula.com and firemikeshula.com have both been registered. either force him into finding an offensive coordinator equally as qualified as his defensive coordinator (Joe Kines), or give him the boot.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

apparently kevin and i agree. sorry man, didn't see your post while i was typing. but right on!!

Christian Thoma said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Christian Thoma said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Matt Hooper Presents said...

another quinn INT. bye-bye heisman.

Jon said...

Heads up! Brady Quinn's stock is dropping fast! He threw that ball right to the MSU guy. Awful. Maybe the Jets knew what they were doing by winning that first game.

thistlewarrior said...

Holy crap, ND sucks! MSU is not even ranked & they are manhandling the Irish. Just goes to show that preseason polls are total BS.

Unknown said...

I am shocked by this ND game. I know that ND is really overrated this year but this is a joke. Charlie Weis did not have this team ready to play and that is pathetic - after that flag incident last season the Golden Domers should have been raring to go tonight and they just got blown off the ball from the first second.

What an embarassment

thistlewarrior said...

They should be out of the top 25, but unfortunately it seems the voters have always been infatuated with ND. Tradition is nice, but it doesn't win football games.

USC is also (and has been the past few years) grossly overrated. Can't wait til they're stripped of their last few titles. Thanks Reggie!

Christian Thoma said...

Wake Forest is beating Miss easily ... Rutgers destroyed Howard. My dream championship remains intact!

The heroin sheik said...

I can't believe how much the gators sucks tonite. Typical letdown after winning a big game. I think though that the double reverse toss and pass might be the play of the year so far. As much as I hate to say it I can totally see them dropping in the polls. I have to give credit where it is due though. Rich brooks has a good game plan and we can't seem to stop that dink and dunk crap. Thankgod we bend but aren't breaking.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

why can't defenses key on tebow and stop him from gaining 20 yards per run. wouldn't you at least spy a linebacker on him or something? my goodness, that is insane. ken stabler is back in the sec

Matt Hooper Presents said...

Love to hate Chuck Amato...then you have got to see this:

http://www.newsobserver.com/1235/story/481010.html

This was on his Wikipedia page. It is a animated Cartoon from the raligh newspaper. Crank up the sound and enjoy...

Josh said...

Ummm, anyone who thinks that Troy Smith is a lock to win the Heisman needs to look at today's stats. He had an average game.

After I was walking out of Neyland Stadium last week depressed over the one point loss to the hated Gators, a bunch of Gator fans were doing that stupid gator chomp thing right in the faces of dejected Vol fans. I said to many of them that they shouldn't celebrate because they will lose two games this year by 10+ points. Today's events just make me more confident that this will come to fruition.

Christian Thoma said...

The heavens have opened up on Notre Dame. Quinn fumbled the snap twice in three plays. Any chance of a comeback is slip-sliding away.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

i wish i had HD...i bet you don't have to squint to see her adams apple better

Christian Thoma said...

Wake Forest gets the win. Here's a fun stat: the QB was 4-5. They had 5 pass attempts the entire game. They won 27-3. I will no longer consider them for the title of worst 4-0 team ever.

Demon Deacons vs. Scarlet Knights for the National Championship.

In other ACC news, Maryland barely beat Florida International. Worst 3-1 Team Ever.

Unknown said...

Here's the biggest problem with saying that Troy Smith isn't still the run away frontrunner for the Heisman - who else would you give it to?

Right now I say Adrian Peterson might be my favorite but that's just because after watching Troy Smith just be average today - and the fact that Calvin Johnson plays for Georgia Tech and not UGA - I'd say it might come down to Peterson at this point.

Christian Thoma said...

I don't see it, bab78. While I'll agree that Troy Smith didn't really help his case today, at no point did I feel OSU was going to lose. While PoSU's defense played very well, once OSU was up 14-3 the game was pretty much over. Even if you remove the false start, there was no guarantee the Lions were going to score a TD as they had been stopped multiple times already. Heck, even with a TD there and the missed FG, they're still down 14-13.

In other words, it wasn't like it was 4th down and they were down and eked out a victory (like OSU did versus Purdue en route to the championship in 2002). Or heck, what Georgia had to do today.

In other news, Notre Dame is now down by 10. And MSU is incompetent enough to blow this.

In related news, Washington beat UCLA for the first time since 2000. Ty's about to have a better record than the 'genius'.

Christian Thoma said...

NC STATE WITH THE HAIL MARY! OMFG!

Unknown said...

LMAO

I love Michigan State.

thistlewarrior said...

WTF!!! Damn you MSU! Way to blow it!

Christian Thoma said...

Did I say Michigan State was incompetent? I meant they are fucking incompetent.

Unbelieveable. Well, actually, quite believeable since we're talking about the Spartans. But still annoying.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

You are f--king kidding me?!? As Herbie said: "This is why Michigan State is Michigan State."

ToddTheJackass said...

BC fan here...

Karma blows donkey balls.

-Todd (Boston)

Matt Hooper Presents said...

This is exactly how Mike Shula lost today. what a coincidence. playing not to lose usually means you lose.

Christian Thoma said...

It ain't over yet ... a dumb penalty just cost ND the game-icing INT. Is Karma on the Spartans' side?

Matt Hooper Presents said...

what are the chances of a ND flag making it to midfield tonight?

Matt Hooper Presents said...

well one thing is for certain...drew stanton is no tim tebow

Matt Hooper Presents said...

that looked like nebraska/mizzou

Unknown said...

Wow - Lambert just made the strangest INT ever. My bank account thanks you Lambert.

What a game - what a crazy crazy game.

If anyone checks out Free Billy Volek tomorrow I'll post an article I wrote at about 11:10 tonight about how far ND will fall - basically ripping the Irish. What a differene a half hour makes.

Christian Thoma said...

He caught it off the receiver's back. Inconceivable. Give MSU the death penalty--they deserve it. Now we get to hear more talk about how Weis is a genius when he isn't, just his opponent was a fucking idiot.

Unknown said...

As a pollster, I'd drop ND a spot or two...

MSU tossed this one away...lol big surprise.

FreKy J said...

Well that's a wrap of all the games. Was a pretty lousy day of football. Too many pansies getting stepped on by "powerhouse" teams.

How much do you wanna bet that the pollster morons put Notre Dame back in the top 5? They won, so they must be the best team in the world, right?

I hate polls.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

Lee Corso is still driving the "Brady for heisman" bandwagon, calling his performance "heroic." This despite the fact that (a) they were playing MSU, (b) the defense made the big plays down the stretch.

Matt Hooper Presents said...

You know, that Nike Gridiron commericial is playing on ESPN right now. Answer me this question: How is this "Briscoe High School" team, coached by Don Shula and made up of the likes of Troy Palamalu, Brian Urlacher, LT and Michael Vick trailing another high school team 14-10 in with seconds left in the fourth quarter?

This is proof positive that Michael Vick is just a not a great QB, no matter what Nike and Under Armour keep telling us.

Unknown said...

No Matt...the best part is that they have LT throw the pass..not Vick. That's telling you something...

D. Ling said...

Weis and the Irish pull it out at the end, I love it.

Dan, Happy New Year, how about some love for UFC? Great card tonight, BJ Penn couldn't keep it together in the 3rd round.

TJ said...

I'll srop two truisms on you, apply them as you see fit: 1) Prevent Defense Prevents Defense, and 2) Playing not to lose ensures you won't win.

UF didn't look particularly great, but I didn't think they looked any worse than they did last week against Tennessee. The receivers dropped some balls, the offensive line held a little much, and Chris Leak made one or two bad decisions. Basically, it was the same caliber of play as last week. Or at least it seemed it from the stands.

But here's what got me (and here's why there are times when I just hate our fans): from the beginning of the game, most of the student section was expecting another 49-point explosion on Kentucky, so they could see nothing but Tebow for the second half. Well, when it didn't happen, the Te-Bow! chants began in the first quarter. People around me were actually cussing out Chris Leak when he got sacked and when receivers dropped the ball. It was unbelievable. But the worst part--and I don't know if you could tell this on TV--was not only did Tebow get lots of cheers when he came into the game, Chris Leak got booed when he replaced Tebow after Kentucky was adapting their defense to the QB run. I honestly almost left early for the first time it pissed me off so much. I'll gladly point out for you Chris Leak's faults (his ego seems to be one sometimes) but to boo the guy who led us to a win at Tennessee a week ago (and who has 5 straight victories over the 3 big rivals--only UF QB to do that other than Wuerffel) is a fucking travesty.

TJ said...

Here's my tentative, morning after, kneejerk top 10:

1. (1 last week) Auburn - Soundly beating Buffalo adds about as much to a team's resume as a bye week, but still look like the best team.
2. (3) Ohio State - Got taken down to the wire by a ridiculously pumped Penn State team, but got it done, and certainly looked more impressive than WVU.
3. (6) LSU - I had them too low at #6 last week. Because of the home field advantage of the Swamp, they shouldn't come into Gainesville in two weeks as favorites, but they should come in higher ranked.
4. (2) WVU - Great explosive offenses struggle against East Carolina.
5. (4) Michigan - Struggled with 'Sconsin but pulled away there at the end, which is good enough.
6. (5) Florida - Didn't look as bad as people seem to be reporting. Any time an SEC game is locked up in the third quarter, I'll take it.
7. (7) Louisville - Looked pretty good without Brohm, who they'll get back before they play anyone they really have to worry about.
8. (9) USC - They're climbing in my esteem, but still.
9. (-) Texas - Back into my top 10.
10. (10) TCU - They get to hang onto the 10-spot after a bye.

Dropped out: (8) Georgia - Man that was the best of all worlds really, Georgia crapping the bed at home against Colorado, yet somehow pulling it out in the end. So UF fans will get to make fun of them for it, while having a team on our schedule not plummet out of the polls to hurt our SoS.

TJ said...

on WVU, that should read "shouldn't struggle"

Unknown said...

SEC Homer!!

;)

As you should be. I was not impressed with the Auburn-LSU tilt in that it really didn't tell me if either team was great or not.

1 - Ohio State (Good victory, especially considering the weather)

2 - Auburn (But one should never start off slowly against Buffalo...cmon!)

3 - West Virginia (Until they see a run defense)

4 - Michigan (Wisky is never an easy out)

5 - Florida (Good team. Fans will crush Leak before opposing teams do.)

6 - USC (The media might hype up Arizona...but they've sucked for years. Not impressive)

7 - Louisville (Should keep winning, nice job in Manhattan)

8 - LSU (Yes, ahead of Texas. A cupcake schedule will not make me a McCoy believer)

9 - Texas (But beating Oklahoma might)

10 - Notre Dame (It pains me greatly, but as much as MSU threw the game...ND still had to make plays. Besides, Georgia sure as hell does not belong in Top 10)

CorrND said...

Mike-
That int may have been absurd, but ND was going to win anyway. MSU's offense was terrible in second half. They only had 93 yards!

Matt Hooper Presents-
You're nuts if you think this isn't going to help Quinn in the Heisman race. Yes, the defense made big plays, but Quinn also threw 3TDs (out of 5 on the day)! That's how a TEAM overcomes a huge deficit.

20-36, 318yds, 5TDs, 1int. Looks like a Heisman stat line to me, especially in the rain.

Go ahead and drop ND a couple spots if you want. With the cake-walk schedule they have left, they're going to be 10-1 and in the top 10 when they play USC at the end of the season anyway.

MoL said...

That loss last night defined MSU in the John L. Smith era. Build a big lead and then just give it away in the 4th quarter. This is what separates wanna-be underachievers like MSU from the OSUs & company. When it comes to the 4th quarter and they have the lead, you can see the fear in MSU's eyes. When OSU gets to the 4th quarter, that is their time baby. How do you give up 19 points, and abandon a dominant running game in the 4th quarter? Is firejohnlsmith.com active yet?

~~Disgruntled Spartan fan

Mega said...

What a terrible, terrible day for true sports fans. Now that MSU completely blew it versus ND, we will have to hear more crap on how ND is such a storied team with a genious of a coach and a Heismann QB. This sucks.

The heroin sheik said...

on tv troy, they said that when leak went back into the game after tebow they were cheering but as an alum I said bullshit to my friends. We are fickle and spurrier ruined it for us. We have come to expect laying half a hundred on UK. I mean cmon there was a two yr span where we beat them by a 140! point margin (70-0 and 77-7 i think) I think part of the problem is that we are used to the flash and lets face it Leak isn't all that flashy. I remember when he first was on campus how the alligator said leak would rather study than hang out with girls. I mean what would you rather do study your playbook or go bang the freshman cheerleading squad? I sure know what a guy like Matt Leinart would have done. He would have fucked all of sorority row then worked his way down 441 to traders and then cafe risque. All the hype with tebow (Especially with him being just up the road from jax) has made us think he is the answer and that he is going to run this "flashy" offense. We have been led to believe he is going to run like emmitt and pass like danny. How long will it be before we start to boo him when the next wunderkind is on campus?

Anyhow:

1 Auburn (until oct 7)

2 OSU is it just me or does anyone else want to just beat jim tressel senseless?

3 WVU It is a good thing they dont play anyone good this yr but I would love to see uf's run defense on a good day against them on their best day.

4 Michigan can't wait for them to shit on OSU's parade

5 UF we are gonna be subject to some good football games the next month

6 texas my cousin from dallas sent me a text last night saying fear bevo and he can kick my ass so they are going here.

7 LSU I just like how they look and want no part of them this season but c'est la vie.

8 Louisville (reminds me of a funny joke I will put on my blog this afternoon when I post.

9 USC I just applied to go there for my piled higher and deeper so why not.

10 TCU you cant drop by not playing right?

Trey (formerly TF) said...

I am still disappointed that the Swamp crowd boo'd Leak, he is in the top 5 in QB rating, leads the nation in TD passes, and put together a GREAT drive to answer UK to end the half.

I just want to add the MAJORITY of Gator fans appreciate Leak and what he has given this program and KNOW there is no QB controversy. Tebow is going to come in because he can run the ball better than Leak, no shame in that.

Joe (Dayton)

TJ said...

My roommates' pet theory is that the students weren't booing Leak so much as booing Meyer for putting Leak back in after Tebow had just run 3 times for 62 yards. But the people around me--a lot of underclassmen--were definitely booing Leak. And a buddy tells me the boosters/alums sitting near him were also booing. Which is even worse than the students.

I'll agree that most Gator fans rightly appreciate Leak, but I'm not entirely sure anymore that the majority of Swamp-goers (especially those who exert influence with their pocketbooks) aren't ready to see Tebow take over now. A loss at home to Bama or LSU and things could get really heated and ugly in Gville.

TJ said...

Ack! Georgia only dropped one spot to #10 in the AP poll?!? Wow, that's all sorts of ridiculous.

Jen said...

Hey, layoff "my"-HAHA Jimmy Tressel. He's a great coach.

A win is a win, right!? The Buckeyes still deserve the #1 spot since they haven't lost. Penn State always plays them hard. I'm a tad nervous about the game Saturday...Iowa, at home, at NIGHT. Ugh, I hate those primetime games. Iowa is hungry for this one.

Anonymous said...

Notre Dame deserves a higher slot for showing they aren't over-rated and coming from behind like true champions. I will say Michigan is a better team than Notre Dame on the field, but not on paper.

It's jealousy that leads everyone to dislike Notre Dame (even you Dan), but we've survived the Bob Davie and Ty Willingham eras and we deserve to be excited with Charlie Weis at the helm.

Unknown said...

lol

its not jealousy...it's the undeserved hype.

Trey (formerly TF) said...

Sorry ND fans, I'll give you credit for coming back, it was amazing. However, it had NOTHING to do with your coach and MORE to do with the meltdown of MSU's team and their coach.

If Notre Dame was the contender they believe themselves to be they wouldn't have been in that situation in the 1st place.

Congrats on coming back to beat a team that has been to a bowl game since 2003...that's one to hang your hat on...

Wake up the Echos.

Joe (Dayton)

Trey (formerly TF) said...

P.S. - If Notre Dame wasn't overrated how do you explain getting beat to hell at home by Michigan? They're where they should be ranked for a 3-1 team.

Joe (Dayton)

Mega said...

Jealousy? Are you serious? Its undeserved hype. The Cubs get the same crap every year. People hate ND because 98% of their fans have no connection to the school but they act like they were born there. That and the national media shoves ND down our throats every chance it gets.