Thursday November 24th, 2005
6:48pmAg Football Preview Part II: #2 texas
Today I'm going to give you a preview of the longhorns.
Yet another brilliant creation from Yours TrulyI went back and found my preview of the longhorns that I did before the season when I ranked them #2 in my preseason poll....
I think that texas is going to be very good this year even after losing Cedric Benson & Derrick Johnson, two of the nation's best at RB & LB last season. Other than those two the horns are returning 7 offensive starters and 9 defensive starters.I need to mention that for the first time I can remember, texas has a high quality non-conference opponent scheduled in Ohio State. This is going to be a huge game drawing a ton of national media attention. It'll be interesting to see how this goes due in part to Mack Brown's inability to win big games. Under Brown the horns are 3-10 against Top 10 teams & 1-6 against Top 5 teams....their last Top 10 victory was way back in 1999 against Nebraska.
Dave Campbell, in his annual Texas Football Magazine said it best when he was listing the top 10 reasons "this is texas's year":
1. Vince Young returns with more confidence than ever 8. Vince Young returns with more confidence than ever 10. Did we mention that Vince Young returns with more confidence than everThat is how vital VY's performance is going to be for the longhorns. I, along with everyone else in the world, expect the entire offense to revolve around Young. I've heard that he has improved his passing game but even an improvement would still put him in the range I would qualify as decent. Fortunately, for Young and the rest of Austin, college football quarterbacks don't have to throw the ball like Brett Farve to win. The boy can flat out run, dodge, duck, and slip out of tackles. He won't put up Rose Bowl numbers every weekend (192 yards rushing with 4 TDs on the ground) but expect a 1,000 yard season out of the QB.
Young will be protected extremely well by one of the best offensive lines in the nation with 4 returning starters (losing only their center). Two of the 4 were first team All-Big XII (Jonathan Scott & Justin Blalock) and the other two were named to the All-Big XII Honorable Mention squad (Will Allen & Kasey Studdard). It'll be interesting to see how the non-VY running game evolves with Selvin Young & Ramonce Taylor still battling it out for the #1 job. Someone is going to have to pick up a decent portion of Benson's yards.
The longhorn's WRs are not very impressive last year and they lost their top two pass catchers. No one on the squad had 40 catches in 2004. The longhorns need to develop a deep threat for Young and he needs to be able to make that throw to keep opponents honest. WR Limas Sweed is probably the man expected to help out there. Thanks to Young's scrambling ability senior TE David Thomas will probably be a big factor in the passing game as TE Bo Scaife was last year.
Defensively the longhorns return all four starting linemen....two were first team All-Big XII (Rodrique Wright & Larry Dibbles), one was a Freshman All-American (Frank Okam), and the final spot will be a rotation between All-Big XII Honorable Mentionables (Tim Crowder & Brian Robinson). In addition to the line, they will return starting LBer Eric Hall, and a secondary that lost only FS Phillip Geiggar (they return SS Michael Huff, CB Cedric Griffen, & CB Tarell Brown).
I think that the longhorns will bring back enough talented starters to overcome the few key losses that they had. Regardless, it's going to be put up or shut up time for all the "VY for Heisman" people and the entire longhorn following will ride on the shoulders of Vincent Young. I hope it's shut up.
It would be natural to start with Vince Young considering he is their team.
Vince Young
Napolian Dynamite's own Uncle RicoI have to admit, I was wrong about Young. He did improve his passing game and it made him more than just "decent". He is head to head with Reggie Bush as the front runner for the Heisman and playing tomorrow for a national audience will certainly have an impact on that. The sips have started up a Vince Young for Heisman page so I thought I'd share it with you. He's a finalist for the Maxwell Award, the Davey O'Brien Award and as I mentioned before, he'll be making a trip to New York.
Even with all of the highlight films they have on that site, they completely left off my favorite.
Here are Young's stats from this year:
Passing Rushing G Att-Cmp Yds %age TD/Int No. Yds TD 11 217-135 2133 62% 18/8 111 778 8He is averaging 193 ypg in the air and 71 yards on the ground.
The Dallas Morning News reports that VY didn't really have much nice to say about Kyle Field.
When asked about playing at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas quarterback Vince Young said it was loud.He then added the volume is so high because there are "a bunch of drunks" in the stadium. He called the swaying Texas A&M fans do "ridiculous."
I really hope he gets his bell rung and then gets sick from all the "ridiculous" swaying.
Here is how our defense matches up against the sips offense.
Young ha$ already announced that he will be returning to texa$ for hi$ $enior $eason, which doe$n't really $urprise me. It i$ really amazing that Ol' Yella Teeth ha$ never once had a player leave $chool early for the NFL and con$idering the incredible talent that he ha$ had come through Au$tin....Rickie William$, Cedric Ben$on, Roy William$, Derrick John$on, Cory Redding, Mike William$, Quentin Jammer....they all $tayed for all four year$. ;)
tu Offense A&M Defense ============ =========== 284 (2) Rushing 136 (44) 244 (36) Passing 319 (117) 528 (2) Total 455 (109) 50 (1) Scoring 30 (96)Jamaal Charles (102 carries for 772 yds) has stepped up to compliment Young's running attack but he's not alone....the sips have 5 players with over 350 yards rushing on the season.
Att Yds Avg TD 11 V.Young 117 774 6.6 8 25 J.Charles 102 772 7.6 9 22 S.Young 83 369 4.4 6 37 H.Melton 71 366 5.2 7 11 R.Taylor 43 358 8.3 9They have certainly replaced Benson's yards and TDs with that group.
Their receiving game is interesting. TE David Thomas leads the team with a mere 34 receptions. Billy Pittman has really emerged as they deep threat as a nice compliment to Limas Sweed and TB/WR-hybrid Ramonce Taylor.
No. Yds Avg TDs 16 D.Thomas 34 457 13.4 4 5 B.Pittman 29 686 23.7 5 11 R.Taylor 24 259 10.8 3 4 L.Sweed 20 346 17.3 4I wanted to mention that we're expecting LBers Justin Warren & Nurahda Manning and safety Jaxson Appel to be able to play this week. Hopefully they're at full speed. We're going to need them against such a strong running offense.
Now let's flip the cards....
A&M Offense tu Defense =========== ============ 231 (11) Rushing 113 (20) 216 (66) Passing 164 (6) 437 (16) Total 278 (6) 32 (27) Scoring 14 (5)Ol' Yella Teeth was able to coax Gene Chizek into take over the defensive coordinator's position from Auburn and he has certainly seen his talented players excel.
Here is a list of longhorns who are candidates for defensive national awards:
80 Tim Crowder DE Hendricks Award Candidate (top DE) 2 Aaron Harris MLB Bednarik Award Semifinalist (top defensive player) Lombardi Candidate (top lineman) Butkis Award Semifinalist (top LBer) 7 Michael Huff SS Thorpe Award Finalist (top DB) Nagurski Award Candidate (top defensive player) 90 Rod Wright DT Bednarik Award Candidate Lombardi Award Semifinalist Nagurski Award Candidate Outland Trophy Candidate (top interior lineman)They're led in tackles by their safeties, #27 Michael Griffin (85 tkls) & Michael Huff (80) with MLBer Aaron Harris coming in third with 75 tackles. DE #39 Brian Robison leads the team in sacks (6) & tackles for a loss (11) and #8 Cedric Griffin leads the team with 14 pass breakups (Huff has 12 of his own).
I imagine that we're going to pull out all the stops in our offense tomorrow because we simply have nothing to lose. I'd love to see Fran go away from the option a bit more and let Reggie roll out a bit and also utilize our strong running game of Jorvorskie Lane & Courtney Lewis.
A lot depends on Reggie's ankle but he has said he will be playing. Hopefully the week off gave him time to heal.
I wanted to mention that if our punter, Justin Brantly, can maintain his 43.6 yards per punt he will set the school's freshman record from Shane Lechler. If he can improve it by 0.2 yards per punt then he will have had the third best season punting in school history behind only Lechler. That's pretty impressive.
Here's the schedule of events for game day....
CAMPUS SCHEDULE FOR TEXAS GAME 7:30-- Aggie Fan Zone Opens 8:15 -- Spirit Walk w/Team & Aggie Band 9:10 -- Kyle Field Gates Open 9:30 -- Corps Step Off from Quad 10:00 -- Cavalry enter Kyle Field 11:00 -- National Anthem – Aggie Band 11:10 -- KickoffAt the Fan Zone you will have the opportunity to meet Aggie legends Patrick Bates (DB, ’92), Bubba Bean (RB, ’75), Reggie Brown (LB, ’99), Quentin Coryatt (LB, ’94), Curtis Dickey (RB, ’80), Jacob Green (DL, ’79), Greg Hill (RB, ’93), Robert Jackson (LB, ’76), Charlie Milstead (QB, ’60), Gale Oliver (OL, ’60), Kevin Smith (DB, ’92), Richmond Webb (OL, ’90) & my boy, Terrence Murphy (WR, '04). They were all first round draft picks with the exception of T-Murph who was a 2nd round pick.
I thought I should put you all on the lookout for members of ESPN's Game Day crew. This Saturday Game Day will be in Houston (at Relient Stadium) broadcasting from the Grambling v. Southern football game. I wouldn't be shocked if they happened to make the drive up to Aggieland to catch the game....I know that Herbstreit considers the atmosphere at Kyle Field one of the best he's ever experienced.
Anyways enjoy the game and.....
Beat The Hell Outta tu! WHOOOOOOOP!
Wednesday November 23rd, 2005
12:22pmAg Football Preview Part I: #2 texas
We now return you to your regularly scheduled program.
It's the 112th meeting between these two schools in what is now "officially" dubbed the Lone Star Showdown.
The Ags are being completely written off for this game by everyone who doesn't have an Aggie Ring on their right ring finger....The Houston Chronicle this morning had the spread at 26.5.
I was really glad to see our students show some passion for our team and yet again they camped out for tickets starting a week before ticket pull days started.
They were even prepared for the Listeater if she dared show her face again.
I also wanted to mention that the Student Bonfire burnt last Saturday after some potential problems from the city were cleared up. The Houston Chronicle reported that 12,000 Ags made their way out to Hot Rod Hill which is pretty remarkable. Good work Ags.
The longhorns are 10-0 and everyone is talking not about them winning the Big XII Championship but the National Championship. I'm already reading and hearing about the head-to-head match-ups between USC & tu.
The only reason I'm not automatically throwing this game into our loss column yet is because it's a rivalry game being played at Kyle Field. I've always said that in rivalry games you can just throw the rankings & stats right out the window. We have absolutely nothing to lose and have zero pressure on us. Also, it has the potential of being our senior's last game of their career and emotions can be a great equalizer.
Kyle Field has been home to a good number of upsets, including some in this series.
Vs. Top 10 Teams at Kyle Field Since 1996 Year Opponent (Rk) W/L Score ================================= 2004 Oklahoma (2) L 35-42 2003 texas (6) L 15-46 2002 Virginia Tech (7) L 3-13 2002 Oklahoma (1) W 30-26 2001 texas (5) L 7-21 2000 KSU (8) W 26-10 2000 OU (1) L 31-35 1999 tu (5) W 20-16 1998 Nebraska (2) W 28-21That's pretty impressive considering that we were only ranked in 4 of those games with our highest ranking being #17 (#22 v. '04 OU, #19 v. '02 VT, #17 v. '99 tu, & #18 v. '98 Neb). Of the games we lost, only once were we blown out.
The first Texas A&M game I ever watched was the 1999 game against texas after Bonfire fell. I had just sent in my application for admission and was shaken by the tragic events that took place before the game. That was the last game we won in the series but it is another exhibit showing that emotions can make lesser teams rise up and meet the challenge.
I watched the 2000 game at a friend's party with a mixed crowd of t-sips and Aggies which was a pretty rough way to start my time in Aggieland.
Jennifer and I went to the 2001 game and sat on the 50-yd line on the very, very top row of the third deck. It really wasn't that bad because there was a nice breeze blowing on another hot Thanksgiving weekend.
I actually had to work during the 2002 game but we were listening to it on the radio and I'm sure that my customer service wasn't at its best on that day. It was pretty cool though that some customers just came into the store to sit down and listened to the game with us.
2003 was rough and was my first real dose of Cedric Benson (35 carries for 283 yards and 4 TDs).
Last year Jennifer's dad and brother took me to Austin for my first game there. It was a really exciting game until the third quarter when I got my second dose of Cedric Benson (33 carries for 168 yards and a TD).
Thankfully we don't have to worry about Benson anymore.
I'm pretty disappointed that ESPN Classic has completely ignored us this week. Not one game from this rivalry is being shown....heaven forbid we interrupt some bowling from 2001 or a poker tournament from two years ago. Instead I had to plug in a tape out of my collection....the '87 game in College Station.
Bucky Scores the Game WinnerWe were so loud that texas couldn't get off the first snap of the game and they were allowed to wait until it "quieted" down. Freshman Bucky Richardson, who came in for the last drive and a half to replace the injured Craig Stump, scored the game winning touchdown with 4:33 remaining in the game. Keith Woodside ran for over 130 yards and the Blitz Brothers, John Roper & Aaron Wallace, simply dominated the sips offense. That game decided the SWC Champs with the winner going to the Cotton Bowl and the loser going to the Bluebonnet Bowl.
For those of you who think we have absolutely no shot to pull this game off, take a look back in time....
I've already mentioned the 1999 Bonfire game when we upset the #5 ranked longhorns. We were led by Ja'Mar Toombs's monster rushing performance (37 carries for 126 yards and 2 TDs) and a TD catch by Matt Bumgardner for what would be the game winning score with ~5 minute left on the clock. Freshman Brian Gamble recovered a Major Applewhite fumble with less than half a minute remaining in the game to seal the emotional victory for the Ags.
Flash back a little further to 1984. The longhorns had been ranked #1 before a tie with OU and losses to Baylor and Houston but they still came into the game #13. Craig Buleson of 12th Man Magazine did a really nice write-up on that game a couple of years ago. The great Ray Childress said, "We just came in pissed off and refused to lose," Ray Childress said recently as he reflected back on his senior season. "We had a bunch of frustrations earlier in the year, and we were all ready to put it behind us. At Texas A&M, you can do that by whipping the snot out of Texas." (that first couple of paragraphs about Sherrill sure sounds familiar).
Next, lets flash back a few more years to 1979. Homer Jacobs wrote about it in the current issue of 12th Man Magazine. The Ags were 5-5 going into the Turkey day weekend after starting the season with 11-0 aspirations. The #6 ranked texas (9-1) coming into College Station with a Sugar Bowl clearly in their sights. The sips fumbled 4 kicks giving the Ags an advantage as we held onto a sweet 13-7 victory.
Next stop, 1975. The sips were 10-1 with their only loss coming at the hands of a mighty Oklahoma team but they left College Station 10-2 after Ed Simonini's Ags held the #1 offense in the nation to just 10 points in a 20-10 victory forcing a 3-way tie for the SWC title (Arkansas ended up going to the Cotton Bowl).
Now for a look at my annual "Cycle" theory (2003, 2004). Basically, I'm charting both team's successes to see if there really if this series is cyclical. For the most part it is....when A&M is great texas isn't and vice-versa.
A&M Record W%age t.u. Record W%age Winner of Rivalry Score 1975 10-2 .833 1975 10-2 .833 A&M 20-10 1976 10-2 .833 1976 5-5-1 .500 A&M 27-3 1977 8-4 .667 1977 11-1 .917 texas 57-28 1978 8-4 .667 1978 9-3 .750 texas 22-7 1979 6-5 .545 1979 9-3 .750 A&M 13-7 1980 4-7 .364 1980 7-5 .583 A&M 24-14 1981 7-5 .583 1981 10-1-1 .875 texas 21-13 1982 5-6 .455 1982 9-3 .750 texas 53-16 1983 5-5-1 .500 1983 11-1 .917 texas 45-13 1984 6-5 .545 1984 7-4-1 .625 A&M 37-12 1985 10-2 .833 1985 8-4 .667 A&M 42-10 1986 9-3 .750 1986 5-6 .455 A&M 16-3 1987 10-2 .833 1987 7-5 .583 A&M 20-13 1988 7-5 .583 1988 4-7 .364 A&M 28-24 1989 8-4 .667 1989 5-6 .455 A&M 21-10 1990 9-3-1 .731 1990 10-2 .833 texas 28-27 1991 10-2 .833 1991 5-6 .455 A&M 31-14 1992 12-1 .923 1992 6-5 .545 A&M 34-13 1993 10-2 .833 1993 5-5-1 .500 A&M 18-9 1994 10-0-1 .955 1994 8-4 .667 A&M 34-10 1995 9-3 .750 1995 10-2-1 .808 texas 16-6 1996 6-6 .500 1996 8-5 .615 texas 51-15 1997 9-4 .692 1997 4-7 .364 A&M 27-16 1998 11-3 .786 1998 9-3 .750 texas 26-24 1999 8-4 .667 1999 9-5 .643 A&M 20-16 2000 7-5 .583 2000 9-3 .750 texas 43-17 2001 8-4 .667 2001 11-2 .846 texas 21-7 2002 6-6 .500 2002 11-2 .846 texas 50-20 2003 4-8 .333 2003 10-3 .769 texas 46-15 2004 7-5 .583 2004 11-1 .917 texas 26-13 2005 5-5 .500 2005 11-1 .917 ????? ?????
Click on Chart for Larger ViewFor those of you interested in the history of this series I have a couple of books to recommend. The first is Back Yard Brawl by W.K. Stratton. It was written a couple of years ago and gives a pretty good background of both schools (as well as a bit of OU history). The second is The Aggies and the Horns by John Forsyth. It was published in 1981 and has a short year-by-year look at each team's season as well as a lot of good pictures from the past (it's probably 50% photos). I just happened to find a copy at Half Priced Books on a clearance rack and for $2 I walked away with a pretty good find.
Ags, don't forget to "Raise Up and we'll be fine. ;)
I hope that it is a clean and injury free game but I also hope we flat out pummel them giving us a bowl birth and taking away their National Championship hopes.
Check back again tomorrow for my typical preview match up stuff.
BTHO tu! WHOOP!
Tuesday November 22nd, 2005
11:49amFootball Abbreviation: BoSox Get Beckett?
We're interrupting this week's Lone Star Showdown Extravaganza to bring you this....
Apparently the Boston Red Sox and the Florida Marlins have a tentative trade in the makes with Josh Beckett moving north along with Mike Lowell for Sox prized prospects Hanley Ramirez and Anibal Sanchez.
Over the last couple of years I'm a little tentative with announcements involving the Red Sox because things always seem to go a little haywire (see Billy Beane, Theo, & the A-Rod for Manny deal).
Some of my older readers probably remember, and you may have read it in my bio, but I played ball against Beckett in high school and I've followed his career very closely since then. I actually wrote a really in-depth article on Beckett's amateur career for the great Aaron Gleeman to use while he was on vacation in Vegas for his birthday following Beckett's leap into stardom following the 2003 World Series.
I recommend checking that article out not only because I'm really proud of it but because it was actually pretty informative.
The trade itself is pretty interesting. The Marlins are using Beckett to dump the 2 years & $18M remaining on Mike Lowell's contract after a horrific season last year (500 AB, .236 BA, .298 OBP, .360 SLG). The Red Sox are giving up two of their top prospects which for Red Sox fans has to be tough to do considering it's the first time in ages that they've any.
The real question is whether or not Beckett ever overcomes his blister problem. He has pitched 4 full seasons in the big leagues now and has yet to start 30 games in a season or throw more than 180 innings. ESPN reported last night that he has been on the DL 9 times in those 4 years. I was arguing with a Rangers fan on a message board before the Rangers fell out of the sweepstakes that regardless of the injury if the guy isn't on the field then he's not producing. If he misses time due to a torn labrum migraine headaches either way he's not on the field.
I don't know what to make of his blister problems. He didn't have problems with this in high school and I'm not aware of any problems from his minor leagues. It has to be frustrating as all else to be physically healthy with that exception. The only explanations that I can come up with are that it's either the ball that the MLB uses or it's something to do with the climate in Florida. In 2000 & 2001 (when he was named Minor League Pitcher of the Year) he pitched in Kane County (Ill.) & Portland (Ore.).
When Josh is healthy he is flat out filthy but whenever that nasty blister problem pops up he struggles with command and then gets hit.
The other slight concern I have with Josh is his home/road splits. ProPlayer Stadium is known as a pitcher's mecca and his splits would indicate the same:
2003: Home: 84.1 IP, 2.67 ERA, .233 BAA Road: 57.2 IP, 3.59 ERA, .265 BAA 2004: Home: 91.1 IP, 3.45 ERA, .213 BAA Road: 65.1 IP, 4.27 ERA, .265 BAA 2005: Home 91.0 IP, 2.47 ERA, .205 BAA Road 88.2 IP, 4.31 ERA, .261 BAAAnother thing that I think some people need to realize is that Beckett on a day-in-day-out basis is not the same Josh Beckett they saw in the 2003 postseason.
G/GS IP H ER SO/BB ERA 2003 NLDS 1/1 7.0 2 1 9/5 1.29 NLCS 3/2 19.1 11 7 19/2 3.26 WS 2/2 16.1 8 2 19/5 1.10 ==================================== Total 6/5 42.2 21 10 47/12 2.11Anyways, I think it's still a solid trade by Boston. Starting pitching is the most valuable thing in baseball and the market is really thin this off-season. The only real issue is the blister problem. Hopefully it was the Florida climate.
Monday November 21st, 2005
Fightin' Texas Aggie by Roger Creager
It's the week of the Lone Star Showdown so naturally I'll be putting together a week long extravaganza leading up to the big game.
Roger Creager, Fightin' Texas Aggie class of '93 and former member of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band, wrote a song that pretty much explains life in Aggieland. I'm going to try and explain some of the things that he sings about.
Feel free to make any corrections in the comments section....
Well it's 7:45 on Friday morning,
He just crawled outta bed.
He stayed too long at the Chicken again
And he's got an achin' head.
He's got an 8-o'clock at Heldenfels
His prof speaks Japanese.
Went broke on beer and Mr. Bills
Now he lives on bread and cheese.He's a fightin' Texas Aggie and he just don't give a damn
That he's got 3 parking tickets
And he's on sco-pro again
But the bonfire's built
And Varsity's horns have been sawed right off his head,
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie
And he will be 'til he's dead.Well it's Wednesday morning at Gollie Rollie
His sports pass in his hand
He's been waitin' three days in the blazin' sun
Just to be with his Twelfth Man
But after fumbles and interceptions
He takes his girlfriend's hand
But the game don't mean a thing to her
She's just there to see the bandHe's a fightin' Texas Aggie and he just don't give a damn
That he's got 6 parking tickets
And he's on sco-pro again
But the bonfire's built
And Varsity's horns have been sawed right off his head,
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie
And he will be 'til he's dead.Well he goes down to the Dixie Chicken
He's dunking his ring tonight
He's there at 6:30,
He thought it'd be early
But there ain't a table in sight
So he buys his pitcher anyway
And he drops his ring on in
Singing, "the road goes on forever
And the party never ends"!He's a fightin' Texas Aggie and he just don't give a damn
That he's got 9 parking tickets
And he's on sco-pro again
But the bonfire's built
And Varsity's horns have been sawed right off his head,
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie
And he will be 'til he's dead.
Well it's one-o'clock
And "Goodnight Irene" is blarin' through the place
He parked about 50 blocks away
So he ain't got time to waste
When he finally makes it to his car
He stands up on his feet
He says, "Boy's lets head to Taco Cabana,
I think I need somethin' to eat."
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie and he just don't give a damn
That he's got 12 parking tickets
And he's on sco-pro again
But the bonfire's built
And Varsity's horns have been sawed right off his head,
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie
And he will be 'til he's dead.
Well he picks up a "Battalion"
Just to see what's going on
But all he finds to read about
Is what we're doin' wrong
"This school's too damn conservative!"
I guess they want us to be
Like all the hippies down in Austin
Wearin' orange and sippin' tea.He's a fightin' Texas Aggie and he just don't give a damn
That he's got 12 parking tickets
And he's on sco-pro again
But the bonfire's built
And Varsity's horns have been sawed right off his head,
He's a fightin' Texas Aggie
And he will be...'til he's dead.
Ah-hah!
Sunday November 20th, 2005
12:22pmBig Saturday of College Football
Yesterday was a big day of college football even without our Ags taking the field. For starters, Miami and the "7th Floor Crew" took a tumble at home to Georgia Tech eliminating all hopes of a national championship trip.
I also saw that Tennessee lost to Vanderbilt at home. That certainly doesn't shake the earth on a national level but it does mean that Tennessee will not become bowl eligible. I wonder how many teams have started the season #3 in all the poles and just completely bombed like this? Could this be one of the most disappointing seasons ever?
Michigan v. Ohio State certainly didn't disappoint with a game winning TD leaving 24 seconds on the clock. Anthony Gonzalez made an incredible catch to put them inside the 5 yard line when the announcers were completely assuming they'd set up a FG to tie the game. Bobby Carpenter, one of OSU's stud LBers, left the game after the first play and came out of the locker-room on crutches.....That had to be sickening for the senior. AJ Hawk was again incredible as was Anthony Schlegel. Also, Santonio Holmes was flagged with a celebration penalty for diving into the end zone which was a bogus call....if he hadn't he very easily could have been hit by the guy coming at him from the top of the screen. There were MUCH worse celebrations that I saw in other games that didn't get a flag.
Auburn v. Alabama was not a very good game. I heard that there is a shortage of ice in the state of Alabama because they needed it all for Brodie Croyle's bruises following an 11 sack day.
Penn State v. Michigan State was the first time I've had the opportunity to watch PSU. With JoePa's first BCS bowl, how sweet would it be for a Notre Dame/Penn State match up in the Fiesta Bowl?
I think the most overshadowed game was Oklahoma at texas tech. The "mighty" red raiders, playing at home, should give the game ball to the officials. The three horrible calls (one overturned) as they "marched" down the field in the final 1:33 were a complete disgrace to the Big XII.
OU came back from a 17-7 deficit in the 4th quarter to take a 4 point lead on an Adrian Peterson TD run. tech got the ball back with 1:33 seconds on the 35 yard line after OU's kicker kicked the ball out of bounds. They marched down to OU's 26 yard line and had a 4th & 3 situation. The pass was tipped and one player from each team came down with the ball and the refs ruled it a completion, which I really didn't have a problem with because the ball was about 2 feet short of the first down.....until they spotted the ball. Check out this video showing the play....texas tech is in the red jerseys. The game should have been over. Nope. First down texas tech. The play was reviewed from the booth but there wasn't sufficient evidence to overturn the play....for whatever reason.
So tech gets inside the 10 yard line and throws two incomplete passes then throws a fade to the back right corner of the end zone ruled a TD by the official.....except that the ball ended up in the first row of the stands because the receiver never had more than 4 fingers touching the ball. That one was over-turned by the booth.
On the next play tech runs Taurian Henderson who appears to fall short and then sticks his arms out and is given the TD. You can watch that video here. Right click on the video and change the zoom to "Full Screen". At 4 seconds is when Henderson's rear hits the ground and at 7 seconds is when he sticks the ball out. Naturally, there was not conclusive evidence to overturn that one as well. [edit: here is a better video clip that I ran across]
I just felt that the refs depended on the instant replays and they made the safe call and assumed that if it was incorrect that the replay officials in the booth would get it right. It's something that I've kind of noticed throughout the season.
I got to see a little bit of the USC game. I turned it on just before USC kicked their FG before the half making the score 21-13 and I turned it off once they went up 34-21 before the 3rd quarter was halfway over. Apparently I missed a pretty good ballgame as Fresno State came back and actually took the lead at 42-41 before Reggie Bush did his thing. He finished the day with 294 yards rushing, 68 yards receiving, and 152 return yards. The thing that is so amazing watching him is that he never has to slow down before he jukes, he just does it at full speed.
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