Category: College Football (Page 149 of 296)

      More deserving of BCS top spot: Florida or Alabama?

      October 19, 2009 /

      With all due respect to Tim Tebow and the No. 1 defense in the nation, Alabama is the best team in college football right now – not Florida. Yet when the BCS recently released its standings for the first time in 2009, the Gators were ranked No. 1 and the Crimson Tide were No. 2.

      I realize at this point in the season we might be splitting hairs when it comes to which team should be first in the standings. After all, both Florida and Alabama are undefeated and the Gators were the preseason favorites so it makes sense that Urban Meyer’s squad would hold onto the top spot.

      That said, who is the BCS fooling? The Crimson Tide has beaten two ranked opponents the past two weeks and also beat a ranked Virginia Tech team in their opener. Alabama has also gone eight straight quarters without allowing a touchdown and Mark Ingram is running like a man possessed. (He rushed for 246 yards in Saturday’s win over South Carolina.)

      Florida, meanwhile, did beat LSU in Baton Rouge two weeks ago, but barely survived a potential scare against unranked Arkansas in The Swamp on Saturday. The Gators were also the beneficiaries of a couple questionable calls in the fourth quarter that probably saved them from their first defeat.

      ‘Bama has been far from perfect this year, but the Tide are the most complete team in college football right now. The Gators may be undefeated, but their offense hasn’t been as explosive this year as it has the past two seasons and the offensive line is having issues keeping Tebow’s uniform clean. (The Razorbacks sacked Tebow six times on Saturday.)

      I’m not surprised that Florida is No. 1 in the standings, but it would be nice if the BCS grew a pair for once and recognized which team actually deserves to have the top spot in the standings. I’m fully aware that Nick Saban’s bunch had the opportunity to beat Florida in the SEC title game last year and failed to do so, but that was last year.

      This is this year and Alabama deserves to be in that top spot right now.

      Which team should be ranked No. 1 in the BCS standings?
      Total Votes: 51 Started: October 19, 2009 Back to Vote Screen

      College Football

      Connecticut football player stabbed to death after game

      October 18, 2009 /

      Jasper Howard, a cornerback for the University of Connecticut, was stabbed to death after an on-campus dance reports Yahoo! Sports. The dance took place just hours after the team’s victory over Louisville.

      UConn police said one of their officers was approached on Hillside Road around 12:33 a.m. and told that a stabbing had occurred. Police found Howard and another person with stab wounds, university police said in a statement. The name of the second person was not immediately released.

      Both were taken by ambulance to Windham Community Memorial Hospital. Howard was later airlifted by Lifestar helicopter to St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, where he died from his injuries, police said. The second person was treated and released from Windham hospital.

      Howard made a key move in Saturday’s game, forcing a fumble just as Louisville was about to score. The Huskies were up 21-13 at the time. They later won 38-25. Following the game, Howard, who led the Big East in punt returns last season, talked to the AP about the play.

      You wonder why someone would feel the need to stab two people following a dance, especially a couple of kids.

      College Football

      VA Tech’s title dreams evaporate in loss to Georgia Tech

      October 17, 2009 /

      Only once in the history of the BCS has a two-loss team every played for the national title (LSU in 2007). So forgive the Virginia Tech Hokies if they’re not feeling too good about their title hopes after they were upset 28-23 by Georgia Tech on Saturday.

      The Hokies became yet another victim of the Yellow Jackets’ option attack as quarterback Josh Nesbitt passed for only 51 yards, but gained 122 yards on the ground and three touchdowns. Running back Jonathan Dwyer added 82 yards on 20 carries in the victory.

      It wasn’t until the fourth quarter when VA Tech played like a team with something on the line. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor rushed for a 22-yard touchdown to cut Georgia Tech’s lead to 21-16, but Nesbitt scored on a 39-yard touchdown with three minutes remaining to put the Jackets back up 28-16. Ryan Williams scored on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Taylor with just under two minutes remaining, but it was too little too late. Despite making strides as a passer the past couple weeks, Taylor struggled outside of the fourth quarter.

      What a win for Georgia Tech. They quieted many pundits that deemed them overrated and one-dimensional by turning in a solid defensive effort to go along with their potent option attack. The Jackets turned some heads tonight.

      With the Hokies’ loss, the Coastal Division is now wide up. Between VA Tech, Miami, Georgia Tech and Virginia, the division is completely up for grabs.

      College Football

      Barkley outduels Clausen as USC beats Notre Dame in thriller

      October 17, 2009 /

      Welcome to the party, Matt Barkley.

      The freshman quarterback completed 19 of 29 passes for 380 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday in USC’s thrilling 34-27 victory over Notre Dame. Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen was also solid while completing 24 of 43 passes for 260 yards and two touchdowns.

      The Trojans made several stupid mistakes in this game, including a couple of costly and near-costly penalties in the second half. But Pete Carroll’s squad racked up 501 yards on the road in a hostile environment, which is incredibly impressive.

      Pundits had been waiting for USC’s offense to break out of its shell with Barkley under center and that’s exactly what they did today. At one point in the third quarter, Barkley completed seven straight passes for 195 yards and connected with Damian Williams on a 41-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter to give the Trojans a 20-7 lead. That scoring drive was huge because its defense had just stuffed James Aldridge on a fourth-and-one-attempt inside the Trojans’ 30 and it was key to USC stealing the momentum.

      While it’ll be hard for Charlie Weis and the Irish to stomach yet another loss to USC, Notre Dame has nothing to hang its head about. In the past, the Irish would have simply given up in the second half and allowed the Trojans to crush them. But Weis’ group kept fighting back on Saturday and even had several cracks inside the red zone to tie the game with seconds remaining in the fourth. This is a tougher Notre Dame team than we’re used to seeing.

      With this win, USC keeps its national title hopes alive. Of course, the Oregon State team that has given the Trojans fits the past couple years is the next team on their schedule and then USC has to travel to Eugene to take on Oregon. So while this was a huge win for the Trojans, they’ve got a long way to go.

      College Football

      Florida survives scare against Arkansas

      October 17, 2009 /

      One would have thought that Tim Tebow and Florida learned from their loss to Ole Miss last year to never take an opponent for granted. Maybe that wasn’t the case on Saturday, but it sure seemed like it.

      The Gators are extremely lucky to still be undefeated and when the BCS releases its standings for the first time on October 20, Florida will be extremely lucky if they’re still ranked No. 1.

      The word “lucky” might not sit well with some Gator fans, but most teams that play as bad as Florida did in its 23-20 win over Arkansas on Saturday usually don’t win. The Gators turned the ball over four times, benefited from two Razorback missed field goals and had no answer for backup running back Dennis Johnson, who broke so many tackles the stats people will need a calculator to add them all up.

      Tebow was good – damn good. He threw for 255 yards on 17 of 26 passing with one touchdown and also added 60 rushing yards on 24 carries. But the key in this game wasn’t Tebow – it was that Arkansas didn’t capitalize on Florida’s mistakes. For all intents and purposes, it was a game they probably should have won.

      But “should have” and “did” are two different things. Bobby Petrino’s squad didn’t win and that’s the bottom line. They could have shocked the college football world by beating the No. 1 team in the nation but in the end they choked. That said, this is one of the most dangerous unranked teams in the nation, which they’ve proved over the past two weeks by routing Auburn and hanging with Florida.

      Back the Gators. If Alabama comes out and absolutely crushes South Carolina, does the Crimson Tide deserve to be No. 1? Alabama hasn’t suffered one setback this year – not one. I realize Florida still won today, but the Gamecocks are ranked and would therefore prove to be a more worthy opponent than Arkansas.

      If ‘Bama produces a rout tonight, Nick Saban’s squad has an argument that it deserves to be No. 1. Tonight should be interesting.

      College Football

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