College Football Live Thread - Weekend Nine

Sportsline.com Scoreboard ^ | Thursday 26th of October to Sunday 29th of October 2006

[MikefromOhio]

Weekend Eight was the weekend of near-misses and close calls. Texas, Cal and Notre Dame all escaped their games with wins. Texas won on a last second field goal in Lincoln against Nebraska, while ND drove 80 yards for a winning TD pass from Brady Quinn. Cal, however, had to go to overtime to defeat a steadily improving Washington team. It was business as usual for most of the top 5, with West Virginia, Auburn, Michigan and Ohio State all rolling to relatively easy wins. Unfortunately ND’s narrow win and subsequent drop in the polls prompted whining from Charlie Weis, which is rebutted by ESPN columnist DJ Gallo here. Needless to say, putting Florida and Tennessee aren’t the biggest transgressions this past weekend. Having to come back against a mid-tier Pac10 team, with their backup Quarterback at the helm, at home, late in the 4th quarter, IS a problem for ND.

This week’s match up of the week pits Georgia and Florida in the “World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party”. This is a fun game every year to watch.

Saturday, October 28th, 2006 – 3:30 PM on CBS

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Georgia at (9) Florida (-13.5)

The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party pits Georgia against Florida. Generally this game is played in Jacksonville. Florida has all of the advantages on paper, but more than one good team on either side has been upset here before. Georgia could get back into SEC contention with a win here while Florida needs a win to hold serve to get to the SEC championship game. In the end, I think Georgia’s lack of offense will hold them back from winning this game. They will need points on every possession and the Florida defense is too good to allow that.

Florida 24 – Georgia 14

Thursday October 26th, 2006 (ESPN Thursday Night Game)

(10) Clemson (-4.5) at Virginia Tech

Clemson has a chance to take absolute and total control of the ACC with a win. This has been the type of game that Clemson has lost in the past. After winning a game that many thought they wouldn’t, they have a history of laying an egg the next week. Not this year.

Clemson 32 – Virginia Tech 24

Friday October 27th, 2006 (ESPN2 Friday Night Game)

UTEP at Tulsa (-14)

Tulsa has played one decent team (BYU) and lost. Look for Tulsa to roll over UTEP, although this game should be interesting for a while.

Tulsa 42 – UTEP 24

Saturday October 21st 2006 (in ranking order)

Minnesota at (1) Ohio State (-27)

Ohio State 38 – Minnesota 3

Northwestern at (2) Michigan (-30)

Michigan 45 – Northwestern 10

(3) USC (-10.5) at Oregon State

USC 37 – Oregon St. 13

(4) West Virginia BYE

(5) Texas (-10.5) at Texas Tech

Texas 34 – Texas Tech 20

(6) Louisville BYE

(7) Auburn (-19) at Mississippi

Auburn 38 – Mississippi 13

(8) Tennessee (-3.5) at South Carolina

Tennessee 28 – South Carolina 20

(11) Notre Dame (-13) at Navy

ND 38 – Navy 17

(12) Cal BYE

Louisiana Monroe at (13) Arkansas (NL)

Arkansas 49 – LA Monroe 6

(14) LSU BYE

(15) Boise St BYE

Illinois at (17) Wisconsin (-21.5)

Wisconsin 52 – Illinois 13

Buffalo at (18) Boston College (-35)

BC 48 – Buffalo 0

(19) Oklahoma at (23) Missouri (-2)

Mizzou 24 – Oklahoma 17

Oklahoma St. at (20) Nebraska (-5.5)

Oklahoma St. 28 – Nebraska 27

Miami (FL) at (21) Georgia Tech (-5)

Georgia Tech 32 – Miami 16

Baylor at (22) Texas A&M (-4.5)

Baylor 37 – Texas A&M 24

(24) Wake Forest (-8.5) at North Carolina

Wake 34 – North Carolina 10

Portland St. at (25) Oregon (NL)

BY REQUEST (FReepmail me to have your team included)

New Mexico at Colorado St. (-6.5) – Saturday, October 28th (Mountain West Conference)

Every time I pick against New Mexico, they win, and every time I pick them, they lose. I don’t know anymore.

Colorado St. 28 – New Mexico 17

Baylor at (22) Texas A&M (-4.5)

A&M needs to play better defense against Baylor than they did against OK St. Baylor can score in bunches. If it can ever figure out the defense thing, they could be a dangerous team.

Baylor 37 – Texas A&M 24

Sunday October 29th, 2006 (ESPN Sunday Night Game) UCONN at (19) Rutgers (-19)

As UCONN proved last week against West Virginia, it has a problem stopping the run. Ray Rice should get close to 200 yards in this one.

Rutgers 35 – UCONN 10

[fkabuckeyesrule]

****My Canadiens are down 3-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second period....*****

The Sabres - Thrashers game was a really good game. Playoff atmoshphere. Thrashers won in a shootout.

[catholicfreeper]

Still a exciting game left tonight. Hawaii V Idaho starts at 11:05 eastern Second place in the WAC is on the line. I wished it was TV. Hawaii is fun to watch

[LA Woman3]

Aggies win!

A&M 31
BU 21

[Archie Bunker on steroids]

Another L for Bobby

[scott says]

Montreal came back and tied it at 4...
Leafs won it in the shoot-out, it took 7 frames to decide it,got the 1 point but still a loss...:(

[misterrob]

He didn't deserve this one though. Lee made the plays he needed to until the grounding penalty. If Carr makes the catch he needed to they likely score and win. Good downfield passing tonight. I think that Lee should be the starter given his downfield ability and the fact that he can run and take a hit.

Next year this team should be pretty damned good given the amount of young kids who had to play this year given the injuries. Get a good coordinator and I think that they can win the ACC.

[Archie Bunker on steroids]

Next year this team should be pretty damned good given the amount of young kids who had to play this year given the injuries. Get a good coordinator and I think that they can win the ACC.

That's exactly what I thought at the end of last year. They have been unable to produce the depth that has carried them through injuries in the past. Lee looked terrible last year, I'm glad he has progressed. This is just shameful & I hope recruiting doesn't suffer.

[misterrob]

They have 4 starters out for the season on defense and that has to hurt. The offense has foundered all season but tonight it looked pretty good. We saw the return of the downfield passing game and the mobile QB which FSU has had in the past. The team seems to prefer Lee as the QB.

They will be a lot deeper and experienced next year. Based on what I have seen this year you were probably overly optimistic about their chances.

[Archie Bunker on steroids]

Weatherford improved more last year than Rix did in four. He got his experience with no offensive line & seemed to progress nicely. I thought they would fix that problem & bring in a decent running game with Booker; boy I was wrong.

I don't know of any QB that can perform with a non existent running game...there is a serious problem. I say stick with Lee & give him a look for a few games.

[misterrob]

Smith looked okay tonight. With Lee taking snaps with Smith in the backfield they are a much different team. Speed on the outside with a QB who can throw long combined with his mobility and a good RB will create problems for defenses.

[Diddle E. Squat]

Stirring the pot:

Should Colt be the Heisman favorite?



Colt Brennan that is, of Hawaii and the nation's number 1-rated quarterback as I type this (though their game this week has just started.)

On a pace to have 4800+ yards this season (as comparison Vince Young had 3036 last year, which Brennan currently at 2600 should reach tonight (still in October) and Matt Leinart had 3815 in 2005 and 3322 in his Heisman winner 2004 season.) Brennan has a 72.9% competion percentage, 28/5 touchdowns/interceptions, 183.10 passing rating. Hawaii is 5-2.

Troy Smith is the 4th-rated QB, and in fact has the more impressive 21/2 TD/interception ratio, but on pace for less than 2600 yards this season, with a 67.9% completion percentage and a 176.35 rating.

Heck, red-shirt freshman Colt McCoy as the 9th-rated QB has strikingly similar numbers to Troy Smith, while the original Heisman beauty contest favorite Brady Quinn is only ranked #33.

Complete QB ratings and projections for the season:

http://tinyurl.com/ylqrun

Colt Brennan:

http://tinyurl.com/yyyghs

Year (all to date) - completions - attempts - yards - QB% - YPA - longest - TD's - interceptions - sacks - QB rating

2006 199 273 2601 72.9 9.53 63 28 5 12 183.10


Troy Smith:

http://tinyurl.com/y3fof6

2006 131 193 1715 67.9 8.89 58 21 2 7 176.35


Colt McCoy:

http://tinyurl.com/skptq

2006 126 186 1449 67.7 7.79 62 20 3 9 165.44


Projected out:

Colt Brennan:

Projected 370 507 4830 72.9 9.53 63 52 9 22 183.10


Troy Smith:

Projected 197 290 2573 67.9 8.89 58 32 3 11 176.35


Colt McCoy:

Projected 189 279 2174 67.7 7.79 62 30 5 14 165.44


Matt Leinart's 2005 & 2004 QB stats:

2005 283 431 3815 65.7 8.85 67 28 8 17 157.74

2004 269 412 3322 65.3 8.06 69 33 6 24 156.54 (Heisman year)


Vince Young's 2005 QB stats:

2005 212 325 3036 65.2 9.34 75 26 10 13 163.95

But of course Young had a few rushing yards:

1050 yards on 155 attempts for 6.8 yards per carry and 12 TD's, plus 48 yards on 1 reception for a total of 4134 all purpose yards and 38 touchdowns.


Leinart in 2005 had 36 yards on 51 rushes (.7 yds/carry) and 6 TD's, plus 11 yards on 1 reception for 3862 all purpose yards and 34 touchdowns. In 2004 he had -44 yards rushing on 49 attempts and 3 TD's, for a total of 3278 all purpose yards and 36 TD's.


Colt Brennan is on pace for 72 rushes, 241 yards, 3.3 yards/carry, 4 rushing TD's, for a total of 5071 all purpose yards and 56 touchdowns.

Troy Smith is on pace for 54 rushes, 189 yards, 3.5 yards per carry, 0 rushing TD's, for a total of 2762 all purpose yards and 32 touchdowns.

Colt McCoy is on pace for 69 rushes, 159 yards, 2.3 yards/carry, 2 rushing touchdowns, for a total of 2333 all purpose yards and 32 touchdowns.


I say keep an eye on Colt Brennan as a potential Heisman darkhorse, or rather a name that will pop up in that vein.

[smith288]

Pfff.

Colt McCoy is too young, he'll have his show and Colt Brennan plays for Hawaii. He may have good numbers but he isnt leading his team towards a national championship.

[Diddle E. Squat]

You completely miss my point. I'm not arguing that Colt McCoy should win the Heisman, and at this point I don't think he should even be invited to New York. Troy Smith has better numbers and clearly performed better in the OSU-UT game, Colt McCoy was restricted that night to a safe 'avoid mistakes' gameplan while TS was going full tilt and tossing the long ball. TS belongs at the New York ceremony, and no running backs that play in a major conference are standing out.

OTOH, TS Smith's numbers aren't overwhelming (except for the only 2 interceptions) while Colt Brennan is blowing away the stats, especially compared to other years. The comparison to Colt McCoy is to note that CM may (fair or not) be a pre-season Heisman candidate next year (how'd that work out for Brady Quinn?) and that Troy Smith's numbers for the most part aren't that far apart from several other quarterbacks. Sure, there is more to the Heisman than stats (leadership, performance in the tough games, doing what it takes to win rather than padding stats, tv exposure, university marketing efforts, getting the lazy media to notice and pimp you, being on ESPN/ABC's upcoming schedule, etc.) but Hawaii is 6-2 and their only losses were at Alabama in the 1st game and at Boise State in the 3rd, each by a touchdown. To say he shouldn't get consideration because he plays for Hawaii is the kind of crap that pisses off a lot of college football fans. Is the Heisman about awarding the best college football player (on offense) or simply handing it to the MVP of the team perceived #1 at the end of the season?

Not to mention that the media often gets antsy if there isn't a race for the Heisman, so they often will start looking for darkhorse options to write and talk about, even if there is no shot of anyone else winning. Hence I bet they'll start talking about Colt Brennan, as they should. Too early to claim that he should win it, but if Ohio State loses to Michigan and TS has a bad game, it may become possible.

[Diddle E. Squat]

BTW, Hawaii is number 1 in the country in offense and #2 in scoring. Last night Colt Brennan was 31 of 38 for 333 yards, threw 5 touchdowns, and rushed 5 times for 63 yards. They've punted once in the last 2 games.

[MikefromOhio]

The Heisman is to award the best player in the entire college game.

You can't tell me that the Hawaii QB would have those stats playing in any other conference besides the WAC (or the MAC or the CUSA).

Any major conference would shut him down, to include the better teams in the PAC 10.

He has the benefit of the system of offense he plays in and the conference he plays in.

If it were about stats, let's get the Hawaii QB (whichever one it is this year), the Texas Tech QB and the Fullback from Navy, because they will always have the best stats, even if they aren't anywhere close to a national championship or even a conference championship....

My vote (if I had one which I don't)

1. Troy Smith
2. Ray Rice
3. Mike Hart
4. Steve Slaton
5. Brady Quinn

[Diddle E. Squat]

Any major conference would shut him down, to include the better teams in the PAC 10.

Against 6-3 Alabama in the first game he was 30/44 for 350 yards, 2 TD, 1 int. There were also 2 fumbles. They lost 25-17 because they gave up 3 turnovers while Alabama didn't give up the ball once. That isn't 'shutting down'. Hawaii only punted 3 times, but Alabama was able to control the clock for 35 minutes and pile up almost 400 yards.

They'll soon be talking about how Colt Brennan should be considered for the Heisman. Hmmm, a week ago didn't you scoff when I said that USC would lose a game and that if Ohio State losses to Michigan it is possible that the BCS would only drop them to #2 setting up a rematch? Yet I heard that exact scenario discussed on ESPN, ABC, CBS, and Fox Sports Southwest yesterday.

[Diddle E. Squat]

Brady Quinn, ranked #33 among QB's, shouldn't be receiving any Heisman consideration.

[hispanarepublicana]

Tech got jobbed by these "Big 1 Little 11" refs. Too much money on the line for the conference for golden-boy Mack Brown's team to lose in Lubbock.

[Diddle E. Squat]

Tech got jobbed by these "Big 1 Little 11" refs. Too much money on the line for the conference for golden-boy Mack Brown's team to lose in Lubbock.

It is the ref's fault that the Texas Ticks didn't score any points in the 2nd half?

Did you notice how Colt McCoy chose to slide down after the final 30-yard run and then knelt down a few times inside the Tick redzone at the end of the game? Do you really think that if that interference call had not been made Texas wouldn't have scored again in the final 6 or 7 minutes? Did you forget how many times the ref's quickly turned to instant replay to verify the spots when the Tick players were obviously short on 4th down? If anything they over-reviewed calls last night.

So you are conceeding that Oklahoma really won that game in Lubbock last year?

[MikefromOhio]

And Alabama is a mediocre team.

Cal would shut him down. So would Auburn/Florida/Tennessee. Texas would have a good shot and Ohio STate/Michigan/Penn State would have a field day with Hawaii....

he's not even in the top 15, nor should he be...