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      Florida unimpressive in win over Tennessee

      September 19, 2009 /

      It’s my own fault, really. I figured that after Lane Kiffin spent the majority of the offseason running his mouth and making false claims about Urban Meyer that Florida would come out and tear Tennessee a new one when the two teams met in Week 3.

      But I came away feeling awfully unsatisfied by the Gators’ 23-13 win over the Vols in Gainesville on Saturday. In fact, I was more impressed with Lane Kiffin’s defense than I was with anything Florida did today. His front four pressured Tim Tebow all game and safety Eric Berry once again proved that he’s one of the best defenders in the nation, if not the best. I thought I was watching Bob Sanders of the Colts with the way Berry played sideline-to-sideline today. I could watch him and Tebow go at it every Saturday. (Did you see that collision in the first half?!)

      Again, this was the media’s fault. We all figured that Meyer, a man who had no issue with his team hanging 63 points on Kentucky last year, would put together some magical game plan that would embarrass Kiffin and serve notice that he and Florida aren’t to be f’d with.

      But there was no magical game plan. Tebow was good (115 passing yards, 76 rushing yards and a TD on 24 carries), but far from great as he threw an interception in the first half that led to a UT field goal and fumbled in the fourth quarter, which produced a Vols’ touchdown. Florida’s lack of playmakers in the passing game was on full display and it’s apparent that the Gators are hurting without Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy.

      Florida’s defense was great again, although Tennessee’s offense is vanilla as it comes. Montario Hardesty is all they have and the passing game is non-existent with Jonathan Crompton under center.

      I’m not a Florida fan, but I expected more. I expected the Gators to be up by 30 late in the fourth quarter and tack on another touchdown just for good measure. Instead, I’m left wondering if Florida won’t get knocked off again at some point this year. I know had Tebow not fumbled and the Gators went on to score in that drive, this probably would have been written differently. But if Tennessee had more playmakers on the offensive side of the ball, it’s not unfathomable to think they could have pulled off the upset.

      College Football

      Kentucky wins Governor’s Cup for third straight season

      September 19, 2009 /

      In one of the wildest games of Week 3, Rich Brook’s Kentucky Wildcats edged Louisville 31-27 to win the battle for the Governor’s Cup for the third straight year.

      It appeared that the Wildcats would roll early on after they took a 17-7 lead into halftime thanks to a John Conner 2-yard touchdown run with less than three minutes remaining in the second quarter. But three second half turnovers allowed the Cardinals to get back into the game as the lead changed four times in the fourth quarter.

      A crucial moment in this game came with just over seven minutes remaining and Louisville up 27-24. The Cardinals’ defense forced a punt, but Trent Guy (who scored on a 66-yard touchdown reception earlier in the quarter) muffed it and the Wildcats recovered at Louisville’s 25-yard line. Three plays later, Mike Hartline found Randall Cobb (who made an outstanding catch while out-leaping the defender) in the end zone to put Kentucky up for good at 31-27.

      While the Wildcats can take comfort in their 2-0 start, but their schedule gets a hell of a lot tougher as they host No. 1 Florida and No. 4 Alabama over the next two weeks. After that, Kentucky has two tough road games at South Carolina on October 10 and at Auburn on October 17. Yikes.

      College Football

      Umpires complain of verbal abuse after Angels-Red Sox game

      September 19, 2009 /

      Angels

      What with all the padding, you think MLB umpires would be able to take some ribbing. This past Wednesday, after Nick Green nearly struck out two times in one at-bat against Angels closer Brian Fuentes, manager Mike Scioscia and staff let the umpires have it. Umpires must pass through the visiting team’s dugout at Fenway to get to their locker room. It’s a stadium design unique to the ballpark and perfect for postgame confrontation.

      “Their deportment as we left the field, going through the Angels dugout, left a lot to be desired,” plate umpire Rick Reed told the Boston Herald. “We filed a report after the game and I would think there will be a coach or two over there that would be regretting his actions today.”

      Attempts by The Associated Press to reach the umpires for comment before and after Thursday night’s game were unsuccessful. A Fenway Park security guard who knocked on the door of their changing room before the game said they were unavailable because they were on a conference call with the commissioner’s office; after the game, a reporter’s request for an interview was similarly declined.

      With two outs, the bases loaded and the Angels leading 8-7, pinch-hitter Nick Green quickly fell behind 0-2 to closer Brian Fuentes and offered at the third pitch. But first base umpire Jeff Kellogg ruled he did not go around, and Green stayed in the box.

      Green then fouled off three pitches before taking three balls to walk in the tying run. The last was a knee-high fastball that had catcher Mike Napoli jumping out of his crouch in anticipation of a strikeout.

      Later, Reed commented that the pitch “very well could have been a strike.” Not a smart move, Rick. Look, I’m not even an Angels fan and I know Green should have been called “out” on at least one of those pitches. Mr. Magoo himself was in hysterics. Reed made matters worse when he admitted that Napoli’s “framing” of a pitch earlier in the count justified giving Green an advantage. Wow. You never hear umpires being this honest about skewing calls. There’s not a catcher in Major League Baseball that doesn’t frame pitches. Nevertheless, if they’re caught doing so, they should receive a warning. In my opinion, Reed’s decision to thereby “get back” at Napoli is even more inexcusable.

      Lastly, I think Mike Scioscia has the best “oh-no-you-didn’t-Blue” face in baseball.

      MLB

      Carlos Brown plays hero for Michigan this week

      September 19, 2009 /

      Last week, Michigan relied on emerging star, freshman quarterback Tate Forcier, to beat Notre Dame at the Big House. This week, it was a senior running back that stepped up.

      In the Wolverines’ 45-17 trouncing of Eastern Michigan on Saturday, Carlos Brown had a career day, rushing for 187 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was a 90-yard rumble in the second quarter to put Michigan up 24-10. The 90-yard jaunt was the third-longest run in Michigan history.

      Forcier, the hero last week, threw for only 68 yards on 7-of-13 passing. Of course, he didn’t have to do much as Brown (who had -3 rushing yards on four carries last week against Notre Dame) took over this game from the start.

      Eastern Michigan actually hung with UM in the second half thanks to an 11-yard touchdown run by Andy Schmitt to tie the game at 10-10, and a 5-yard Dwayne Priest touchdown run with just over two minutes remaining in the first half to cut the Wolverines’ lead to 24-17.

      But the more physical Michigan program started to wear Eastern down in the second half and the Eagles could do nothing to slow the Wolverines in the third quarter. By the time Denard Robinson scored on a 36-yard touchdown run with seven minutes left in the fourth, the game was already over.

      No. 25 Michigan (3-0) will open its Big Ten schedule next week at home (what schedule-maker did Rich Rodriguez have incriminating photos of to get four straight home games to open the 2009 season?) against Indiana before playing Michigan State and Iowa in back to back road games to kickoff play in October.

      College Football

      Pryor rebounds, uses dual threat skills to beat Toledo

      September 19, 2009 /

      One of the criticisms that Ohio State sophomore quarterback Terrelle Pryor faced after the Buckeyes’ loss to USC last Saturday in Columbus was that he didn’t use his legs enough to make plays. Not only that, but he was hesitant to throw the ball vertically and often settled for safe passes under 10 yards.

      But in OSU’s 38-0 beat down of Toledo on Saturday, Pryor resembled the quarterback that Buckeye fans envisioned he would be last week. He racked up 110 rushing yards and a touchdown on 12 carries while also throwing for 262 yards and three TDs on 17-of-28 passing.

      Granted, Pryor did throw two interceptions, but he threw passes of 76, 28, 15, 13 and 12 yards to six different receivers. His 76-yard touchdown pass to Dane Sanzenbacher on the Buckeyes’ third offensive play from scrimmage set the tone for the rest of the game.

      This is the Terrelle Pryor that the Buckeyes need to see more of, especially in big games. While it’s nice to see him rack up these kinds of numbers against any opponent, as he continues to develop as a quarterback he needs to trust his arm and legs to make things happen against elite competition.

      This was a nice bounce back game for both Pryor and Ohio State. They’ll host Illinois next week in their Big Ten opener before facing Indiana on the road on October 3 and Wisconsin at home on October 10.

      College Football

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