The Game: Kansas State at Nebraska
The Mileage: 134 (Approximately a 3.5 hour drive)
The Reasons: This game is for all the Big 12 North marbles. Plus, a sold-out Memorial Stadium is Nebraska's 3rd largest city, which is impressive.
Lodging: There are plenty of affordable options [...]
Ball State offensive line coach Jason Eck wonders what Craigers is up to:
UCF LBs coach and recruiting coordinator Geoff Collins urges his followers to try his new candy and energy drink pairing:
USC head football coach Pete Carroll states the obvious:
[...]
The Game: Toledo at Miami (OH)
The Mileage: 198 (Approximately a 3.5 hour drive)
The Reasons: Robert Frost described Miami University as "the most beautiful college there ever was," so that should be reason enough. Also, Toledo head coach Tim Beckman wants you to make the trip. [...]
Was just channel flipping and caught the end of a conversation between Steve Phillips and Colin Cowherd on some ESPN show. The gist of their conversation was that playoff baseball with days off isn't structured to determine what team is the best especially in relation to the regular season which' [...]
Road Trippin' is a new feature here at College Football Resource. Each week, we'll try our best to convince you to get off the couch and make an epic road trip to watch your favorite team play. The teams, cities, and travel times will change, but the concept will stay [...]
The Wiz of Odds blasts the SEC in his latest writeup at Covers.com
The reality is that the SEC in 2009 consists of Alabama, Florida and a bunch of nobodies. In nonconference games against Division I-A opponents, SEC teams are a pedestrian 14-11 against the spread. In nonconference play [...]
NCAA, meet head-scratching frivolity. You do that a lot, we realize.
The more stupid situations like this that go down, the less ground you have to stand on. This whole amateurism thing can't last forever, and you have to realize that, right?
Right?
Find a smart way to abandon it and maybe,' [...]
Ohhhhh kayyyyyy, things seem to have sorted out a bit more this week. Things get extremely dicey after the top 10 or so, reasonable given most schools are about five games in.
Alabama -- Not perfect on the road against Kentucky, but good enough given all the playmaking on an otherwise [...]All but belated. Really tough picking this week, there's just not much order after those first three teams. Thank heavens the season is 12 weeks.
Alabama -- They're baaaaaack! Texas -- Extremely inconsistent run game, vulnerable defense, but may have caught stride in the passing game which makes them near impossible to' [...]Football Outsiders' 'Varsity Numbers' college football space takes a look at Gus Malzahn's college career and brief showing so far with Auburn and finds his impact explosive.
Malzahn has to be considered the main cause for the sudden success. While it's nice that he has brought some early excitement to' [...]
Every week, some changes.
Florida -- Playing sort of how I felt they would, looking like a No. 1 but not the impregnable machine everyone sort of fears they'd be. Alabama -- The 'Tide do almost everything right. If McElroy ever develops into a powerhouse quarterback they'll be ridiculous. Texas -- May have' [...]The CFR Heisman Ballot and Robert Griffin Watch are postponed, but will return next week.
[...]As always, these are power rankings. Its good to see some early sorting out and shaking out going on. Apologies for the lateness of this. D'oh.
Florida -- Default. USC -- A shaky No. 2, hmm? And now Matt Barkley's hurt and probably won't play Saturday. Taylor Mays may get shelved, as [...]Whats up with this sudden streak of populism from the face of college football on ESPN, Kirk Herbstreit?
I don't mind folks sticking up for the BYU's and Boise State's of the world, but essentially saying before the season's even close to played out an undefeated BYU should be in the' [...]
As seen moments ago on ESPN's College Football Live:
Florida has scored 30 or more points in 13 straight SEC games (!)(!)(!) Unreal.
[...]
Colorado head coach Dan Hawkins is busy watching film, probably a lot of it:
USC head coach Pete Carroll congratulates his former assistant and this week's opponent:
Western Kentucky head coach David Elson took part in YouTube comedy gold:
[...]CFR is 'adopting' Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin.
Why?
Why not. He's an unusual player at a secondary program that appears on the ascendant. Catch a wave, right?
9/5 @ Wake Forest
15/24 (.625) for 136 yards 1 TD/0 INT
123.85 Rating
13 Carries, 41 yards (3.2) average, TD
The lowlight of the outing may have been his [...]
Throughout the season CFR will have a weekly mock ballot of who its Heisman Trophy choice would be at that point in the season.
This week:
TOO DAMN EARLYThere's just not enough to go by after one week of play and way too many great performances to name. I look forward to putting some [...]
So one week of play is in, yippee! As always these are power rankings. Record matters, but so does talent and performance.
Florida -- Not much to judge by when playing extra soft cupcakes. USC -- Mind you it was San Jose State but wow. The offense has all the returning starters [...]
Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh was glad some professional golfers were thinking about Stanford football:
How did your coach handle practice on Tuesday?
[...]As always, these are power rankings. Records matter, performance and overall perception of team strength plays a big role.
Preseason picks are a challenge and fortunately they mean nothing once the players hit the field. Instead of building out a 20+ team list this year I think I'll just stick to' [...]
USC head coach Pete Carroll is ready to lift some boxes:
Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh wants everyone to check out the latest rankings:
The University of Central Florida's coaching staff uses an almost identical tweet for the rankings (FYI: UCF is [...]
You can be a little better or a lot better than your opponent and the result is the same.
It follows that most teams focus on ways to only be a little much better.
Lame.
[...]
Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh had an action-packed dream:
Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel wants you you check out the scoreboard already:
UCF LBs coach and recruiting coordinator Geoff Collins pulls back the curtain on "Popsicle" [...]
USC head coach Pete Carroll wishes his former coaches and former players the best of luck:
Colorado State head coach Steve Fairchild thinks the BCS belongs in jail:
Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh should probably also make a phone call for the [...]
The Pac-10 should promote a meaningless but interesting competition within the regular season that goes as follows:
Call it the California Cup and the Northwest Cup. Since the conference now plays round-robin, the team(s) with the best intracup record gets some kind of recognition and conference money donated to a charity [...]
... uses those more oblong footballs (college football, high school football).
Sheesh, NFL, get with the times!
[...]
Toledo head coach Tim Beckman wants some company at dinner:
Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis is done with Twitter for awhile:
Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian likes the air quality in Seattle, WA:
In an hour, the smell traveled 315 [...]
Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis hosted a team BBQ last night:
Toledo head coach Tim Beckman shouldn't have a hard time finding players who want to win:
Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez is excited about the naming of the new practice' [...]
So far all Utah's President is talking about is the Mountain West's success "the last two years". And this justifies the inclusion of Sun Belt teams, howwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww?
LOL antitrust lawyer "the BCS has nothing to do with amateurism or education". Neither does major college sports! Weak.
"The BCS excludes competition" Wrong. The [...]
Brought to you by the same body that thought nothing of voting on potentially economically crippling environmental legislation with 300 pages of material not delivered until 3 AM the morning of the vote.
[...]Slightly off-topic, but I wanted to get my $0.02 in here.
Rivals.com has an interesting breakdown of the major conference's overall performance in the "Directors Cup" which is sort of a championship awarded to the best overall athletic departments in any given year. It factors in a school's performance not [...]
The BCS "Big Six" conferences of the SEC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-10, Big East and ACC are the Big Six for a reason.
As a whole, non-BCS schools are 76-392 against BCS opponents since 2005, meaning they win just 19.4 percent of the time.
Paging Senator Orrin Hatch and Representative [...]
Former President George W. Bush, Speaking to a crowd in Oklahoma over the Independence Day weekend:
"all I ask is you take it easy on the Longhorns next year,"
[...]We're 233 today!
' [...]Fresno State's rush defense totals last year
106 yards allowed against Rutgers (3.9 YPC), a good rushing team
154/3.9 (Wisconsin)
Then things get crazy
297/6.5 (Toledo), 234/6.2 (UCLA), 172/5.2 (Hawaii!), 215/5.5 (Idaho!), 206/5.3 (Utah State!), 280/6.7 (LaTech), 472(!)/7.7 Nevada
Then this
-9/-0.6 (New Mexico State), -5/-0.2 (San Jose State)
That might be the largest one game swing [...]
The outgoing Pac-10 Commissioner speaks with ESPN's Ted Miller, here. Good stuff in the sense that his rare longevity among the conference commissioners offers some perspective of what leadership was looking at when he first started and how certain issues have evolved.
Selected takeaway:
The fact that members of the Football [...]
Take it away, Senator Blutarsky (emphasis mine):
This is where I think playoff supporters are on thin ice in this debate. It’s very easy to focus on what I call the competition side of this – making sure that every deserving school has the chance to play for an MNC [...]
Seriously there's more important world events going on so I'm trying not to indulge the story but dammit ...
' [...]
Friendly territory fortunately via one of the nicest, most fun commentators at my other gig at FanHouse, "Orange Chuck". The interview.
I discuss the 2009 season a bit, my gameday rituals, the BCS/playoffs stuff, the SEC, conference title games and Syracuse football among other items.
Its pretty fawning up at the [...]
Not every program carries itself well with a target on its back.
Georgia doesn't do well as #1
- Quinton McDawg at Georgia Sports Blog
' [...]Phil Steele, with math, on why Utah wasn't championship game worthy last year.
Essentially: if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it is a duck. Utah wasn't a duck.
Their 2004 team, in my view, was much better than last year's (Sagarin predictor agrees 2004 vs. [...]
First of all I am against an 8 team playoff. There is no way that you could find a single #7 team in the country the last 12 years that had a legitimate claim to being in the national title game. For more on why I think the College [...]
AKA Senator Orrin Hatch is an idiot
No, the BCS doesn’t create the disadvantages; it merely amplifies them. The BCS isn’t the reason San Diego State can’t get a stadium lease [...]
Excerpts from a Los Angeles Times interview with outgoing Pac-10 Commissioner Tom Hansen.
Q: How can you say the BCS has been good for the Pac-10? Oregon finished No. 2 in the polls in 2001 but didn't make the title game. USC was No. 1 in the coaches' poll in [...]
From an interview with AL.com's The Auburn Beat blog:
Q: Is it easier to take more chances or risks at a program like that versus a BCS-type program?
A: I don't know. I don't care what league or level you're in, you've got to do whatever gives [...]
"But I don't want to get going on the NCAA because I think that's about the worst organization going.''
- Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy
'" [...]
Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin wants your support:
UCF LBs coach and recruiting coordinator doesn't want your food to get cold:
Eastern Michigan head coach Ron English wants to make you a star:
' [...]
Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster one-upped Jay Paterno's countdown and gets it down to the minute:
Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian wants you to check out the page you're already looking at:
SMU head coach June Jones quotes the one of the' [...]
Duke head coach David Cutliffe checks back in with his followers:
Penn State QB coach Jay Paterno starts the countdown:
USC head football coach Pete Carroll and USC head men's basketball coach Tim Floyd are on tour in a city near you:
[...]
Coach Larry Fedora watched the Dancing With the Stars finale:
Coach Kyle Whittingham put some pressure on another Utah coach to join twitter (and was successful):
Drivers should watch out for the UCF Coaching Staff:
[...]
The University of Central Florida's coaching staff had plenty of beverages to start the day right:
Coach Ron Zook would like a ruling on twitter recruiting:
Alabama Defensive Coordinator Kirby Smart was stuck:
[...]
Coach Bill Stewart gave everyone a friendly reminder to renew their WVU season tickets:
Coach June Jones had some extra time to burn at the airport:
Coach Pete Carroll gave students a song for the end of finals:
[...]
Nice chat transcript find at College Game Balls
Brian (alexandria, va): HD, thank you for crushing our dreams. So you are saying that if by some miracle Hokies manage to run the tables we will be crushed by the gators in the NC?
Heather Dinich: Ahem. Chomp.
[...]
From HeismanPundit:
We hear a lot about how many players don’t fit into NFL schemes because they play in the spread in college. Well, wouldn’t it behoove the NFL to start playing more spread and get a quicker payout from the talent it drafts? Oh, right. Supposedly things like the spread [...]
The Dan Hawkins experiment has been mostly a flop for the Buffs, but a simplified approach may be in line for 2009. Comment from quarterback Cody Hawkins in a recent The Sporting News:
The mentality is going back to 2006-2007. We want to run the heck out of the ball and [...]
Just moments ago on College Football Live, ESPN's Joe Schad outlined the three-point defense by BCS officials as they head into a Congressional subcommittee hearing tomorrow.
1)The regular season must be preserved as the key entity of the game
2)Several bowls would fail if a playoff were enacted
3)The logistics to install a [...]
Our government (for my American readers) and the NCAA could learn a thing or two from the ill-fated manifesto detailed in the movie Jerry Maguire. Essentially, less clients, less money, better service.
Stop being all things to all people. Focus on what you do well.
I bring this up because I found [...]
Great article today by ESPN's Ivan Maisel. He advocates those in charge of the BCS go on the offensive.
I second the call.
The commissioners are populists, too. What none of them did, or has done with any effectiveness, is mount a vigorous defense of the BCS.
None of them has pointed [...]
Keep in mind I think the guys USC will put on the field this year (Malcolm Smith, Chris Galippo, Michael Morgan) might end up being better players than this group, at the college level. Via the Orange County Register's USC Blog:
Cushing: “Tough guy, and he wants to prove it [...]
[Q:] Who do you think is the best offensive mind in the NFL today?
[Homer Smith] I just don't know. I think the best minds are in college.
Crimson Confidential via Smart Football via Get The Picture
' [...]And, by extension, the schedules for 12-team conferences. Nothing you haven't heard in this space before obviously, but (full schedule):
--- Only five road games
--- Don't have to play Georgia or Florida
--- Non-conference games with Memphis, Southeast Louisiana, UAB, Northern Arizona
The Rebels could be entirely average this year and still [...]
Actually found this via another link at Smart Football (great site). Some love from The Blue-Gray Sky's J-DUB. Many thanks, especially considering I've been gone so long.
Read the entire thing (really, read it), but in the name of vanity the relevant CFR part here:
12) CollegeFootballResource.com
Have to' [...]
Time to return, I suppose.
Watching ESPN's College Football Live, John Saunders just told Colt McCoy he's against a playoff. Who knew?
[...]I'm back, apologies for the gap in posting here.
What we have now are various tiered clusters of teams sorting themselves out atop the heap in college football.
And then it gets silly, but chief among the remaining teams I think Boise State, Utah, BYU, TCU, Michigan [...]
“I think it is about time that we had playoffs in college football. I’m fed up with these computer rankings and this and that and the other. Get eight teams — the top eight teams right at the end. You got a playoff. Decide on a National Champion,” Obama said.
Bobby Bowden's last ride? Join me as we figure it all out.
Also: Undefeated BYU at TCU. The fun begins at 730 ET.
[...]
Out: Wisconsin
You know the drill. Red River Rivalry Saturday and a ton of other great games.
It's like hitting a moving target. Duck Hunt, for college football fans.
Alabama LSU Oklahoma Missouri Penn State USC Georgia Texas Ohio State Texas Tech BYU Florida
Out: Maryland, Auburn, Fresno State
What makes this difficult is that a team like USC probably could be No. 3 or 4 on' [...]
Be sure to join me at the College Football FanHouse's Thursday Night college football live blog between Clemson and No. 21 Wake Forest.
ESPN's Thursday night game has been host to five consecutive upsets, and tonight could be a ridiculous sixth such event.
After last weekend we're now on upset alert at all times. This is good and bad for college football but it certainly makes the more mundane games involving ranked teams more compelling, huh?
Anyway, feel free to leave comments and discuss things below. Or, join myself and the College Football [...]
I stopped at 13. It was that kind of week.
Alabama LSU Oklahoma Missouri Penn State Georgia Texas USC Texas Tech Ohio State USF Kansas BYU Others: Illinois, Auburn, Wisconsin, Fresno State, Oregon, California, Utah, Georgia Tech, Boise State, Miami, Cincinnati, Maryland, North Carolina, Wake Forest
Out: ECU, Colorado
Update: Ummm, I forgot Florida. Let's call them No. 7 or so, hm?
It'll be hosted at the College Football FanHouse but you're all welcome to join me there. Oregon State also visits Utah which should be of some interest, no?
Live Blog kicks off at 7:30 Eastern.
Duh.
The fact that a game like USC-Oregon State game can impact so many other schools has pushed television ratings higher and is keeping stadiums full. And as long as the TV ratings are high and the stadiums are full, there is no motivation (other than fan unrest) to go to a playoff of [...]
It's back again, take a break from work (or studies) to talk a little college football at the College Football FanHouse. Wrap up the week that was and look forward to week six and get in any last football talk that was drowned out by the monstrosity that is NFL' [...]
As evidenced above, Georgia's playing host to the headline game between the 'Dawgs and resurgent Alabama.
Feel free to leave comments below, or join the College Football FanHouse Live Blog throughout the day.
As always these are power rankings.
Notes: Georgia, Florida and LSU are virtually indistinguishable right now.
The College Football FanHouse will be Live Blogging tonight's game between USC and Oregon State.
Thursday Night games are always fun, and USC/Oregon State battles have been compelling of late. Last year was a sack fiesta, but Oregon State did upset USC in 2006 in Corvallis and nearly did so [...]
Join me for a (hopefully) regular Monday mid-day feature at FanHouse: A Case of the Mondays chat.
It's live right now (2 p.m. to ~ 3 p.m. Eastern), application below.
It's SEC Saturday, if you will. LSU's trip to Auburn and Georgia's trip to Arizona State (its first regular season game outside the south in over 40 years) are grabbing the headlines but there's plenty more to discuss.
Be sure to leave comments below or join me at the [...]
As always, these are about relative positioning more than the generic process of swapping up and down on wins. It's still early so I scratch my head at someone like Penn State who is doing great but remains unknown, and make others scratch their heads with my Oregon pick. And [...]
Trying something out tonight. Feel free to join me in a Live Blog with the College Football FanHouse crew, keeping tabs on tonight's Thursday Night game between Colorado and visiting West Virginia. The Live Blog should get going around 8:30 Eastern.
Comment away. We all know the "Game of the Week" and lucky me, I'll be there so you're on your own here for the day so behave!
Feel free to leave comments, discuss, etc. or jump over to FanHouse or Heisman Pundit (who I'll be talking to in [...]
Answering the question: how good are they right now? The only way to do it if you ask me.
East Carolina, West Virginia, Auburn, BYU, Fresno State, Texas, Wisconsin, Utah, Arizona State, Georgia Tech
Out
Colorado, Michigan, Rutgers
Anyone I'm missing? Fire away.
Comment away. Here's the schedule, with GameDay visiting Gainesville for the millionth time to witness Florida/Miami.
As usual I'll be mostly occupied with FanHouse, feel free to stop by!
My apologies for the delay. Quickly ...
Auburn, BYU, Fresno State, Colorado, Texas, Rutgers, Wisconsin, Michigan, Utah
The first Saturday of the college football year is upon us. We're already three days in now, but obviously today is the headline maker.
Feel free to leave comments below, I'll be working mostly at College Football FanHouse, we'll have some "chat" software up to get all interactive on [...]
Fire away in the comments below.
Things weren't the most exciting today aside from the Oregon State/Stanford matchup. ESPN needs to stop scheduling teams with quarterback issues for its marquee Thursday game. That's two years in a row that an SEC quarterback wet the bed on national television on opening Thursday's [...]
Here's tonight's full schedule of games.
The headliners are Oregon State @ Stanford (9 Eastern, ESPN2) and North Carolina State @ South Carolina (ESPN). Miami, Connecticut, Georgia Tech and Wake [...]
