VOLUNTEERED ROBBERY
As many people have heard, three Tennessee football players were arrested and charged in part with an armed robbery that occurred around 2:00 early Thursday morning at an off-campus gas station. That is not the story. That is no big deal. It is the SEC, Lane Kiffin will probably suspend them for the National Anthem.
The story is about one of the victims, Corey Zickefoose. This man had a gun stuck in his face during the robbery, but thinks the robbers should get off easy. Here is what he has to say, "I think they should still be able to play football, regardless. Tennessee is my place. It's my football team." When asked if he believed this despite having a gun pointed in his face by one of the robbers he added, "Yeah, it's Tennessee. That's the way it is sometimes,"
You have got to check this guy out!
Lane Kiffin and Vols need to hook this kids up with some season tickets!
THE NUMBERS DON’T LIE
While watching the Sunday Sports Showdown last Sunday on KDKA-TV and I heard a very interesting stat about Penn State football given by Paul Zeise. The stat was that Penn State is just 5-20 against Iowa, Ohio State and Michigan in the past 10 years. This stunned me, and it was followed up with the fact that they are just 5-10 in non-conference games vs BCS records that finished with a winning record in that same span. So, Penn State is just 10-30 against good competition over the last 10 years. That got me thinking, and researching, to find other surprising numbers that people may not be aware of regarding some of the top profile teams in the country.
I tried to choose 1 or 2 schools from each of the 6 BCS conferences, here is what I found out.
FLORIDA:
A lot is always made about teams and how they schedule their non-conference portion of their schedule. Somehow, it seems to be overlooked each year that Florida does play road non-conference games, and the ones they do play, they don’t have to travel very far to get to. The Gators have not played a non-conference game outside the state of Florida in 18 seasons. The last time Florida went on the road to play a non-conference game was September 21, 1991 and they lost in the Carrier Dome to Syracuse 38-21.
ALABAMA:
To be the best you have to beat the best, sometimes at least. Alabama, since 2000 is just 4-21 against teams that finished the season with double digit wins including losing the final two games of the season last year to Utah and Florida, both of whom finished with 13 wins on the season.
LSU:
Not as bad as Alabama against winning teams but LSU isn’t beating many powerhouses either, in conference play at least. Over the past 20 years the Tigers are just 7-31 against fellow SEC teams that went on to win 10+ games that season.
GEORGIA:
What’s the old saying, “It’s not a rivalry unless both teams win.” Well apparently Georgia is running short on rivals. If you would ask a Bulldog fan to name their two biggest rivals, they would probably say Florida and Tennessee. In the past 20 years Georgia has won only 10 of the 40 games played against those schools.
OHIO STATE:
Going from the SEC to the Big Ten this seems like the best transition to make, Ohio State has not beaten a team from the SEC since September of 1988. That is right, it has been 21 seasons since the Buckeyes have beaten a school from the SEC. The win occurred September 24, 1988 in a 36-33 win over LSU. That is also the Buckeyes only win versus a SEC team.
MICHIGAN:
The Wolverines haven’t fared much better against their rivals than Georgia. Michigan is 2-8 the past 10 games against Notre Dame and Ohio State and in the past 23 seasons, they have swept their rivals just four times.
NOTRE DAME:
As we all know Notre Dame is pretty much just like any other school in college football, the mystique is gone, although they would never want you to know that. Look at some of these numbers regarding whom Notre Dame plays (and beats). In the past 10 years, Notre Dame has won 69 games; only 26 of those wins came against teams with winning records. The average record of those 69 opponents was 5-6. The Irish have lost 8 straight games to teams with 10+ wins and are just 5-21 in the past 10 seasons against 10-win teams. In the past three seasons, they are 0-6 vs ranked teams and 3-16 against teams with winning records.
CINCINNATI:
Cincinnati is new to this winning thing, so these number may not surprised you, but for a team that is in the Top 5 they are pretty interesting. In the past 10 years Cincinnati is 3-12 against non-conference BCS opponents. Two of those three wins have come against Oregon State over the past three seasons.
PITT:
Being a Pitt fan is difficult; they seem to always lose at least one game every year to an inferior opponent. Well maybe it seems that way because it is 100% true. Pitt has lost at least one game for the past 9 seasons to a team that finished with a losing record. That streak looks like it will stay in tact as the Panthers only loss this season was against 4-5 NC State.
WEST VIRGINIA:
What is the toughest place to play in the Big East? West Virginia. WRONG! A crazy misconception is that playing in Morgantown tough. A hostile environment, yes, but a tough place to win, you may want to reconsider. WVU has lost at least 1 home game every year since 1994. In that span they have lost 13 home games in the last half of the season, when the wins are the most important. So far this season the Mountaineers are 6-0 at home with just one game remaining. WVU hosts Pitt Nov 27th, the last time they hosted the Panthers, Pitt knocked them out of the National Championship game upsetting the #2 Mountaineers in the final game of the regular season.
VIRGINIA TECH:
This one might be a stretch and maybe a little misleading because VT has been so good recently. Of the Hokies last 12 losses, 10 of them came from teams that had a worse record then them.
TEXAS:
The Longhorns and Oklahoma have pretty much been the class of the Big XII since the conference started in 1996. Since that time, Texas has a losing record to only two Big XII foes. One is Oklahoma, who is 6-5 versus the Longhorns. The other is Kansas State. That’s right the Kansas State Wildcats are the 2nd most successful team against Texas since the inception of the Big XII conference. K-State is 4-2 against the Longhorns.
OKLAHOMA:
Sooner fans get on Bob Stoops for not winning the big bowl games, but let’s not stop with just bowl games. Stoops has struggled against every team that is not in the Big XII. Since 2003, the Bob Stoops led Sooners have lost just 19 games. 9 of those games have come against Big XII opponents in 58 games. However, in just 32 nonconference games the Sooners have lost 10 times.
Enjoy your great weekend of college football!
Friday, November 13, 2009
T3R WEEK 3
Sorry for the delay this week, I spent most of the week trying to track down a Nutcracker shirt from the white-out to give to Terrelle Pryor.
#1 TEXAS LONGHORNS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 35-3 win vs UCF
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Baylor
Texas can pretty much sleep walk their way to the national title game at this point. The remaining schedule consists of Baylor, Kansas and Texas A&M. Those three teams are a combined 4-11 in conference play so far this year and they would have to lose 2 of those 3 to not make it to the BIG XII Title game. Then they will go up against one of the jokes from the Big XII South (maybe the worst division of any conference in the history of college football). So I’m saying it now, Texas has already stamped their ticket to Pasadena and will be playing for the national title.
#2 FLORIDA GATORS (9-0, 7-0)
LAST WEEK: 27-3 win vs Vanderbilt
NEXT GAME: Sat @ South Carolina
I am starting to wonder if Florida has just being toying with the college football world this season. Everyone doubted them and they started to lose points in the rankings and then they came out and smashed Georgia in a rivalry game. This week could be interesting though. If the offense really is struggling, SC is not the team you want to have to face. The Gamecocks have a very stingy defense and could be a tough road environment if it is close in the fourth quarter.
#3 ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (9-0, 6-0)
LAST WEEK: 25-14 win vs #7 LSU
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Mississippi State
By beating LSU last week, Alabama has clinched a re-match with Florida (who also clinched last week) in the SEC Title game. Alabama should be able to stay unbeaten until that game with only contests against Mississippi State, Chattanooga and Auburn remaining on their regular season slate.
#4 CINCINNATI BEARCATS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 47-45 win vs UCONN
NEXT GAME: Fri vs WVU
The Bearcats survived a scare against a pesky UCONN team. Cincinnati now has two more conference games remaining against the other top teams in the Big East. If the Bearcats win Friday, it makes the Dec 5th match-up with Pitt the unofficial title game for the Big East conference, regardless how either teams fares in their games until then.
#5 TCU HORNED FROGS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 55-12 win @ San Diego State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Utah
Ten weeks down and TCU is still undefeated! If you are a fan of the BCS-buster then you love this. If you are not, you should be pulling big-time for the Utes this week in Fort Worth. Utah is the only team remaining on TCU’s cake schedule that stands a chance at beating them and knocking them out of BCS consideration.
#6 GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS (9-1, 6-1)
LAST WEEK: 30-27 OT win vs Wake Forest
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Duke
The Yellow Jackets escaped last week with a win against a poor Wake Forest team. GT needs to be on its game this week against a much-improved Duke team that is fighting to get bowl eligible for the first time since 1994. If Georgia Tech wins, they clinch the ACC Coastal division. A loss puts the ball in Miami’s court and the Yellow Jackets would have to hope for a Canes loss in the final weeks of the season.
#7 LSU TIGERS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 24-15 loss @ #3 Alabama
NEXT GAME: Sat vs La Tech
How does a team move up after losing? They play well. The LSU defense played well enough to win that game last week, and minus one terrible call and review by the SEC officiating, they could have won that game. LSU has lost twice this season. Once to Florida and once to Alabama, that is not too bad!
#8 PITT PANTHERS (8-1, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: win 37-10 vs Syracuse
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Notre Dame
Pitt has survived the easy part of their schedule and now has a tough 3-game stretch to close it out. The Pitt secondary should face a stern challenge against Jimmy Clausen and the Irish, but the next two games are what really matter as they push towards their first outright Big East title.
#9 OREGON DUCKS (7-2, 5-1)
LAST WEEK: 51-42 loss @ #16 Stanford
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Arizona State
How do you take the air out of a program after a huge win? Go out and lay an egg the next game out. The Ducks did that exact thing. After coming off arguably the biggest win in school history Oregon got down early and never recovered against Stanford.
#10 SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 14-9 win @ Arizona State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Stanford
The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of the college football world have to be the USC offense. They were held under 20 two games earlier this year, then ran 5 straight games scoring 27+, and in the past 2 weeks they have scored a total of three touchdowns.
#11 the OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY BUCKEYES (8-2, 5-1)
LAST WEEK: 24-7 win @ #18 Penn State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Iowa
Well I was hoping for a 40 point win and a career day for Pryor last week, I guess I will settle for a 17-point win and seeing an empty Beaver Stadium as the time ticked off the clock in the 4th quarter. If last week was the Big Ten semi-final for the Buckeyes, that would make this week the Championship game. Looks like the Ohio State University will be going back to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1996.
#12 ARIZONA WILDCATS (6-2, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 48-7 win vs Washington State
NEXT GAME: Sat @ California
Mike Stoops FINALLY has his team in place to reach expectations that were set when he took over in Tucson, but he still has a tough road ahead of him. The Wildcats still have this week vs Cal, then they host 1st place Oregon before going on the road to rival Arizona State and finishing at USC. Can it be done? Yes, but it certainly won’t be easy.
#13 BOISE STATE BRONCOS (9-0, 4-0)
LAST WEEK: 45-35 win @ La Tech
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Idaho
59-2 on the Smurf Turf this decade is all you need to know about this match-up. Idaho is not a bad team and if this were a road game for Boise State, it would pose a challenge, that being said the Broncos will roll to a very unimpressive 10-0.
#14 WISCONSIN BADGERS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 31-28 win @ Indiana
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Michigan
John Clay and his power running game for the Badgers versus a hit-or-miss Michigan team who has had trouble stopping anyone on the defensive side of the ball. Wisconsin has quietly played itself into a battle for 2nd place in the Big Ten.
#15 OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS (7-2, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 34-8 win @ Iowa State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Texas Tech
Oklahoma State has two bad losses, but I really do feel that they could play with anyone in the country outside of the top 3 teams. The loss to Houston is still a bad loss despite what the Cougars have done since. And the Texas game was a bad loss simply due to the margin of defeat, you can’t be ashamed losing to the Longhorns, it was just how it happened, at home none the less.
#16 STANFORD CARDINAL (6-3, 5-2)
LAST WEEK: 51-42 win vs #9 Oregon
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Southern Cal
The Trees had a big win last week on the road to get into the rankings this week, now they need to do it again on the road to stay in the rankings. If they do upset the Trojans, not only will they stay in the rankings but also they will vault right into the Pac-10 race for the Rose Bowl.
#17 MIAMI HURRICANES (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 52-17 win vs Virginia
NEXT GAME: Sat @ North Carolina
The Canes are an OT loss against Clemson from being in first place in the Coastal Division of the ACC. They are not out of it however, with two games to play in conference and the head-to-head tiebreaker over 1st place GT, the Canes still have a lot to play for. This week won’t be easy though, they have never won in Chapel Hill.
#18 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (8-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 24-7 loss vs #11 Ohio State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Indiana
What happened to the home field advantage that Penn State used to have with 110K crazy loud fans? Last week was the second time they lost at Beaver Stadium this season, and most of the fans left before the game was even over. Indiana won’t be as easy as many Nits think this week. The Hoosiers have lost their last three games and are just 1-5 in conference but they just haven’t finished well. In those five conference losses, they have held leads late in the 4th quarter or lost by one possession in four of them.
#19 HOUSTON COUGARS (8-1, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 46-45 win @ Tulsa
NEXT GAME: Sat @ UCF
Tulsa had a lot of hype coming into the season for their high-powered offense, but they haven’t really produced much. They were 4-5 coming into this game and got smacked by Oklahoma 45-0. This game should not have been close. The Cougars escaped thanks to a 51-yard FG by a freshman as time expired capping a 9-point rally in the final 21 seconds of play. You can’t struggle to win two straight weeks against bad competition and expect to climb in the rankings.
#20 CLEMSON TIGERS (6-3, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 40-24 win vs Florida State
NEXT GAME: Sat @ NC State
Clemson started the season 2-3, including a terrible lost at Maryland, but since has won four straight and currently lead the ACC Atlantic division.
#1 TEXAS LONGHORNS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 35-3 win vs UCF
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Baylor
Texas can pretty much sleep walk their way to the national title game at this point. The remaining schedule consists of Baylor, Kansas and Texas A&M. Those three teams are a combined 4-11 in conference play so far this year and they would have to lose 2 of those 3 to not make it to the BIG XII Title game. Then they will go up against one of the jokes from the Big XII South (maybe the worst division of any conference in the history of college football). So I’m saying it now, Texas has already stamped their ticket to Pasadena and will be playing for the national title.
#2 FLORIDA GATORS (9-0, 7-0)
LAST WEEK: 27-3 win vs Vanderbilt
NEXT GAME: Sat @ South Carolina
I am starting to wonder if Florida has just being toying with the college football world this season. Everyone doubted them and they started to lose points in the rankings and then they came out and smashed Georgia in a rivalry game. This week could be interesting though. If the offense really is struggling, SC is not the team you want to have to face. The Gamecocks have a very stingy defense and could be a tough road environment if it is close in the fourth quarter.
#3 ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (9-0, 6-0)
LAST WEEK: 25-14 win vs #7 LSU
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Mississippi State
By beating LSU last week, Alabama has clinched a re-match with Florida (who also clinched last week) in the SEC Title game. Alabama should be able to stay unbeaten until that game with only contests against Mississippi State, Chattanooga and Auburn remaining on their regular season slate.
#4 CINCINNATI BEARCATS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 47-45 win vs UCONN
NEXT GAME: Fri vs WVU
The Bearcats survived a scare against a pesky UCONN team. Cincinnati now has two more conference games remaining against the other top teams in the Big East. If the Bearcats win Friday, it makes the Dec 5th match-up with Pitt the unofficial title game for the Big East conference, regardless how either teams fares in their games until then.
#5 TCU HORNED FROGS (9-0, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: 55-12 win @ San Diego State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Utah
Ten weeks down and TCU is still undefeated! If you are a fan of the BCS-buster then you love this. If you are not, you should be pulling big-time for the Utes this week in Fort Worth. Utah is the only team remaining on TCU’s cake schedule that stands a chance at beating them and knocking them out of BCS consideration.
#6 GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS (9-1, 6-1)
LAST WEEK: 30-27 OT win vs Wake Forest
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Duke
The Yellow Jackets escaped last week with a win against a poor Wake Forest team. GT needs to be on its game this week against a much-improved Duke team that is fighting to get bowl eligible for the first time since 1994. If Georgia Tech wins, they clinch the ACC Coastal division. A loss puts the ball in Miami’s court and the Yellow Jackets would have to hope for a Canes loss in the final weeks of the season.
#7 LSU TIGERS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 24-15 loss @ #3 Alabama
NEXT GAME: Sat vs La Tech
How does a team move up after losing? They play well. The LSU defense played well enough to win that game last week, and minus one terrible call and review by the SEC officiating, they could have won that game. LSU has lost twice this season. Once to Florida and once to Alabama, that is not too bad!
#8 PITT PANTHERS (8-1, 5-0)
LAST WEEK: win 37-10 vs Syracuse
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Notre Dame
Pitt has survived the easy part of their schedule and now has a tough 3-game stretch to close it out. The Pitt secondary should face a stern challenge against Jimmy Clausen and the Irish, but the next two games are what really matter as they push towards their first outright Big East title.
#9 OREGON DUCKS (7-2, 5-1)
LAST WEEK: 51-42 loss @ #16 Stanford
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Arizona State
How do you take the air out of a program after a huge win? Go out and lay an egg the next game out. The Ducks did that exact thing. After coming off arguably the biggest win in school history Oregon got down early and never recovered against Stanford.
#10 SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 14-9 win @ Arizona State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Stanford
The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of the college football world have to be the USC offense. They were held under 20 two games earlier this year, then ran 5 straight games scoring 27+, and in the past 2 weeks they have scored a total of three touchdowns.
#11 the OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY BUCKEYES (8-2, 5-1)
LAST WEEK: 24-7 win @ #18 Penn State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Iowa
Well I was hoping for a 40 point win and a career day for Pryor last week, I guess I will settle for a 17-point win and seeing an empty Beaver Stadium as the time ticked off the clock in the 4th quarter. If last week was the Big Ten semi-final for the Buckeyes, that would make this week the Championship game. Looks like the Ohio State University will be going back to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1996.
#12 ARIZONA WILDCATS (6-2, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 48-7 win vs Washington State
NEXT GAME: Sat @ California
Mike Stoops FINALLY has his team in place to reach expectations that were set when he took over in Tucson, but he still has a tough road ahead of him. The Wildcats still have this week vs Cal, then they host 1st place Oregon before going on the road to rival Arizona State and finishing at USC. Can it be done? Yes, but it certainly won’t be easy.
#13 BOISE STATE BRONCOS (9-0, 4-0)
LAST WEEK: 45-35 win @ La Tech
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Idaho
59-2 on the Smurf Turf this decade is all you need to know about this match-up. Idaho is not a bad team and if this were a road game for Boise State, it would pose a challenge, that being said the Broncos will roll to a very unimpressive 10-0.
#14 WISCONSIN BADGERS (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 31-28 win @ Indiana
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Michigan
John Clay and his power running game for the Badgers versus a hit-or-miss Michigan team who has had trouble stopping anyone on the defensive side of the ball. Wisconsin has quietly played itself into a battle for 2nd place in the Big Ten.
#15 OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS (7-2, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 34-8 win @ Iowa State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Texas Tech
Oklahoma State has two bad losses, but I really do feel that they could play with anyone in the country outside of the top 3 teams. The loss to Houston is still a bad loss despite what the Cougars have done since. And the Texas game was a bad loss simply due to the margin of defeat, you can’t be ashamed losing to the Longhorns, it was just how it happened, at home none the less.
#16 STANFORD CARDINAL (6-3, 5-2)
LAST WEEK: 51-42 win vs #9 Oregon
NEXT GAME: Sat @ Southern Cal
The Trees had a big win last week on the road to get into the rankings this week, now they need to do it again on the road to stay in the rankings. If they do upset the Trojans, not only will they stay in the rankings but also they will vault right into the Pac-10 race for the Rose Bowl.
#17 MIAMI HURRICANES (7-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 52-17 win vs Virginia
NEXT GAME: Sat @ North Carolina
The Canes are an OT loss against Clemson from being in first place in the Coastal Division of the ACC. They are not out of it however, with two games to play in conference and the head-to-head tiebreaker over 1st place GT, the Canes still have a lot to play for. This week won’t be easy though, they have never won in Chapel Hill.
#18 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (8-2, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 24-7 loss vs #11 Ohio State
NEXT GAME: Sat vs Indiana
What happened to the home field advantage that Penn State used to have with 110K crazy loud fans? Last week was the second time they lost at Beaver Stadium this season, and most of the fans left before the game was even over. Indiana won’t be as easy as many Nits think this week. The Hoosiers have lost their last three games and are just 1-5 in conference but they just haven’t finished well. In those five conference losses, they have held leads late in the 4th quarter or lost by one possession in four of them.
#19 HOUSTON COUGARS (8-1, 4-1)
LAST WEEK: 46-45 win @ Tulsa
NEXT GAME: Sat @ UCF
Tulsa had a lot of hype coming into the season for their high-powered offense, but they haven’t really produced much. They were 4-5 coming into this game and got smacked by Oklahoma 45-0. This game should not have been close. The Cougars escaped thanks to a 51-yard FG by a freshman as time expired capping a 9-point rally in the final 21 seconds of play. You can’t struggle to win two straight weeks against bad competition and expect to climb in the rankings.
#20 CLEMSON TIGERS (6-3, 4-2)
LAST WEEK: 40-24 win vs Florida State
NEXT GAME: Sat @ NC State
Clemson started the season 2-3, including a terrible lost at Maryland, but since has won four straight and currently lead the ACC Atlantic division.
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