Boy, did we learn some things in college football this week or what?
Or did we really learn anything about any of these ranked teams?
What an interesting third week of the season – some teams bombed with opportunities to really set themselves apart, while others just made the race for a nation championship that more exciting and close.
Here is a look at some games that should have caught viewer’s attention in Week 3:
>(#3) Auburn 7, (#3) LSU 3
My Bullz-Eye.com game of the week proved to be anything but exciting as far as scoring is concerned, but what a thrilling finish between these two SEC powerhouses.
What an incredible job by Auburn’s defense in holding LSU to just 42 yards on the ground. The combination of Alley Broussard and Justin Vincent for LSU never got going, which put a lot of pressure on quarterback JaMarcus Russell (who I thought showed excellent veteran savvy late in the game) to try and win the game solely through the air.
As good as Auburn’s defense played, this was LSU’s win for the taking.
With only a minute to play in the game and LSU on its own 20-yard line, Russell led the Tigers into Auburn territory by connecting with receiver Craig Davis on two passes of over 20 yards. On a third down play from Auburn’s 39-yard line, Russell hit Dwayne Bowe for 20 more yards as Bowe broke three tackles while successfully getting out of bounds and stopping the clock. That play might have been the best effort by any individual I saw today in college football.
After an illegal formation penalty was called against LSU, Russell fired a pass intended for Bowe that was incomplete. However, an Auburn defender dragged Bowe down on the play and the back judge threw a flag to call pass interference. After only a couple of seconds, the official that threw the flag went back on the call because another Auburn defender had tipped the ball while Bowe was being dragged down – nullifying any pass interference that could have been called on the play.
It was a sham call that eventually costed the game for LSU, handing Auburn a 7-3 victory and putting the Tigers on easy street to a possible SEC title appearance.
I don’t want to take anything away from Auburn, but LSU deserves to be ranked in the top 10 and could have very easily defeated Auburn on its home turf. Will Auburn be ranked #2 with Notre Dame losing?
>(#7) Florida 21, (#13) Tennessee 20
This was a closer game than I expected. I really thought Florida was a much superior team, but I figured that the game being played in Knoxville would keep the game close.
But after watching the Volunteers rack up a 17-7 lead on the Gators half way through the third quarter, I see that Philip Fulmer does have his team playing at a high level again. However, you can’t deny the savvy that Florida displayed in coming back from behind.
What a performance by quarterback Chris Leak. He did have the one interception, but throwing for nearly 200 yards and three touchdowns is impressive – especially coming from behind on the road.
Leak’s best play was on a third down and six from Tennessee’s 33-yard line with just under 10 minutes to play and Flordia down 20-14. Leak picked up the first down using his legs and then proceeded to connect with receiver Dallas Baker for 20 yards for the Gators game-clinching score just two plays later.
Erik Ainge came back down to earth a bit by throwing two interceptions and no TDs. He was able to find Jayson Swain six times for 78 yards, but Ainge’s other go-to-guy, Robert Meachem, was virtually shut down.
The real question now for Florida is – where do the Gators sit in the AP Poll? With Notre Dame and LSU losing, should the Gators be ranked in the top five? West Virginia holds that fifth spot right now and did crush Maryland 45-24 on Thursday night.
But a win on the road against a formidable SEC rival might get Urban Meyer’s group ahead of the Mountaineers.
Quick Shots:
(#18) Oregon knocked off (#15) Oklahoma 34-33 in possibly the most thrilling game of the day. The Ducks took advantage of a controversial call on an onside kick to score twice in 22 seconds. The Sooners will surely cry foul, which they should, but come on – you can’t allow a team to roll up the field on you twice in 22 seconds…(#4) USC smoked (#19) Nebraska 28-10, scoring seven points in every quarter. John David Booty threw three touchdowns – two to receiver Dwayne Jarrett who had a great day with 11 catches for 133 yards…The upset of the day by far, was unranked Clemson knocking off (#9) Florida State 27-20 in Tallahassee. I guess that narrow victory over Troy last week was a telltale sign for the Seminoles after all, huh?…(#12) Louisville defeated (#17) Miami (FL) for the first time ever and did it rather convincingly too. In the Cardinals 31-7 victory, however, Louisville lost another Heisman trophy candidate (the first being running back Michael Bush who broke his leg in week one) when quarterback Brian Brohm strained thumb ligaments in his right (throwing) hand in the third quarter. The QB will miss 4-6 weeks… Top ranked Ohio State had a minor hiccup early in its 37-7 victory over Cincinnati, falling behind the Bearcats 10-7 in the first quarter. Then Troy Smith and Ted Ginn Jr. remembered that it wasn’t a bye week and hooked up five times for 34 yards and two scores. The Buckeye of the day was running back Antonio Pittman who rushed 16 times for 154 yards, including a 48 yard scamper in the fourth quarter…(#16) Iowa battled back to beat its arch nemesis Iowa State 27-17 after being down to the Cyclones 14-10 at halftime. 14-10 isn’t a huge margin by any means, but Iowa State did knock off the Hawkeyes last year and were close to accomplishing the feat again this season.
Most impressive showing from Week 3: It has to be Michigan’s 47-27 victory over Notre Dame in South Bend. There weren’t a lot of people (including myself) who envisioned the Wolverines beating the Irish period – never the less by 26. Nice job by the Michigan coaching staff (especially offensive coordinator Mike DeBord) for opening up the playbook and not standing pat when they had the lead. We now have your undivided attention Michigan – now don’t go out blow this momentum against Wisconsin in Ann Arbor next week.
Louisville crushing Miami 31-7 was big too. Although the Cardinals lost their stud running back (Bush) and now their All-Pro quarterback (Brohm) to injury, Louisville keeps putting up points at a rapid pace and now deserves top 10 consideration.
Least impressive showing from Week 3: How about a team that was supposed to be the second best in the nation laying an egg on its home grass? Besides being physically abused 47-21 by Michigan, what really shocked me was Notre Dame’s toughness (or lack thereof). I’m not talking about physical toughness, but the toughness a good team is supposed to have when they get punched in the mouth, but bounce back and persevere. As soon as Prescott Burgess returned his first interception off of Brady Quinn for a touchdown in the opening minutes of the game, the Irish shut down shop and called it a day. Even after tying the game 7-7, Notre Dame never showed its mettle and got destroyed in South Bend.
On tap for Week 4: There are some weak games on the schedule next week in terms of ranked teams facing other ranked teams. However, Penn State travels to Ohio State to kick off Ben Ten action and Notre Dame will try to throw away its season by traveling to East Lansing to face the Spartans of Michigan State (who by the way, knocked off the Irish in South Bend a year ago and who also played excellent in a 38-23 win in Pittsburgh today).
