Texas Tech upsets Texas – ‘Bama top team in the nation?
Posted by Anthony Stalter (11/01/2008 @ 11:48 pm)
The 2008 College Football Season just got a bit more interesting as No. 7 Texas Tech knocked off top-ranked Texas 39-33 in Lubbock on Saturday night.
Pundits noted all week how the Red Raiders don’t play defense and while they did give up 33 points, the final score wasn’t a true indication of how well they shut down Colt McCoy and the Longhorn offense. Tech did a fantastic job of taking away what Texas does best – moving the ball with underneath routes and racking up the yards after the catch. Of course it didn’t hurt that Longhorn wideouts couldn’t hang onto the ball either. UT just couldn’t match Tech’s intensity the entire night and pressured McCoy with four, five and even three-man rushes.
Texas didn’t match Tech’s emotion from the start. It’s clichéd to say that one team wanted a game more, but it really seemed like the Raiders went out and grabbed victory by the balls while Texas waited for things to happen. Even when they seized their first lead with less than three minutes left in the fourth quarter, they couldn’t keep Tech out of the end zone when all they were after was a field goal.
So Alabama has to move into the top spot, right? Where do the Red Raiders fit into the picture? Penn State was idle so they could move down, but it’s doubtful. Florida absolutely hammered Georgia so they can only move up. The same could be said for Oklahoma, which waxed Nebraska. It’ll be interesting to see how things fall in the BCS when the new polls are released Sunday.
Rich Rodriguez first year at Michigan total disaster
Posted by Anthony Stalter (11/01/2008 @ 7:26 pm)
To say Rich Rodriguez’s first year at Michigan has been a failure would be a gross understatement. In their 48-42 loss to Purdue on Saturday, Michigan is guaranteed its first losing season since 1967. It also ensured that the Wolverines’ 33-year bowl streak is now over, too.
There’s really no doubt that Rich Rod is going to turn things around at Michigan and get that program back on track soon. He’ll find a quarterback to run his spread option offense and things will start to quickly fall in place. He just needs time to get the right players to fight his scheme and everyone should be patient while he goes through the process.
But there’s no other way to cut it – this season was a total debacle. I realize these young men are learning an entirely new system and will need time to develop, but you can’t lose to Toledo at home. You can’t get beat by Purdue on a hook and ladder on the final play of the game. You can’t turn the ball over six times in an embarrassing loss to Notre Dame.
Rich Rodriguez will turn Michigan around. But they’ve been a total embarrassment this season and an absolute joke.
Posted in: College Football
Tags: College Football Week 10, College Football Week 10 game recaps, College football Week 10 scores, Michigan 33-year bowl streak snapped, Michigan bowl streak, Michigan suffers losing season, Michigan Wolverines, Purdue beats Michigan, Purdue Boilermakers, Rich Rodriguez, Rich Rodriguez first season at Michigan

Florida gets revenge on Georgia in 49-10 rout
Posted by Anthony Stalter (11/01/2008 @ 6:38 pm)
What’s that old saying? Revenge is best served cold? Well cold, hot, lukewarm, whatever – Florida absolutely gave it to Georgia on Saturday in a 49-10 rout in the game formerly known as “The World’s Outdoor Largest Cocktail Party.”
Urban Meyer and the rest of the Gators didn’t appreciate Mark Richt and the Bulldogs celebrating as a team after scoring the first touchdown in last year’s contest. So Meyer’s team made it personal this time around and while the game was close until the third quarter, once Florida got a lead, it never took its foot off Georgia’s neck.
The Bulldogs really never stood a chance Saturday. There was no way Meyer was going to allow his team to forget about what Richt and UGA did last year and it was comical when he called a time out to savor the flavor with under a minute to play and the game well in the bag. It was nice “up yours” to Richt.
Nothing against Texas, Penn State, Alabama and the rest of the top rated teams in college football, but Florida is the most dangerous team in the nation right now. The loss to Ole’ Miss could have been crippling, but now Tim Tebow and the rest of the Gators are playing with unwavering passion and focus.
Looking at the rest of its schedule, Florida has a solid chance to finish with only one-loss. Vanderbilt, South Carolina and certainly Florida State will provide a challenge, but the Gators should finish 11-1 and with some help, could still play for a national title.
Arkansas ends Tulsa’s reign of terror
Posted by Anthony Stalter (11/01/2008 @ 6:07 pm)
Heading into Week 10, Tulsa was 8-0 and were averaging over 55 points a game. But as Arkansas proved on Saturday, even a sub .500 SEC team is usually better than any Conference USA program that the Golden Hurricane’s will face in a given week.
The Razorbacks rode a Dennis Johnson 96-yard kickoff return with 22 seconds left in the third quarter to beat Tulsa 30-23. The loss is the Golden Hurricane’s first of the year and will likely drop them out of the top 25 depending on how the rest of Week 10’s action pans out.
It’s kind of interesting to see how the different conferences shake out when they go head to head. Because it’s not like this is a very good Arkansas program this year. Bobby Petrino will need at least another season to get his personal in place before they start competing again in the SEC, but it’s rather impressive how they held such an explosive Tulsa offense to only 23 points.
Is it a difference in conference strength or were the Razorbacks just a better team today? It’s an interesting debate.
Northwestern hands No. 17 Minnesota second loss
Posted by Anthony Stalter (11/01/2008 @ 5:15 pm)
The first upset of Week 10 in college football occurred at The Metrodome Saturday as unranked Northwestern picked off (literally) No. 17 Minnesota 24-17. Brendan Smith returned an interception 48 yards for a touchdown with 12 seconds remaining to break a 17-17 tie.
Despite the loss, this has been an incredible season for the Gophers. The transformation of the program from winning one game last year to climbing to the 17th spot in the polls this year is an incredible testament to Tim Brewster and his staff.
Northwestern has to be kicking itself even more now after losing to Indiana last week. A win against the Hoosiers and another one this week against the Gophers would have catapulted the Wildcats into the top 25. Either way, they’re one of the more underrated teams in the Big Ten and it’ll be interesting to see how they far against Ohio State next Saturday. It’ll be a good measuring stick to see where they are as a program.