October
15, 2003
Well,
well, well
NationalChamps.net comes to you after our
huge throwdown in Pittsburgh this past weekend. It was a great
time, except for the misinformation we got from the Panther's
front office as to when the lots would open. They told us
10 a.m., so we were there, along with thousands of others
who were evidently told the same.
The end
result was that we all had to wait until 1 p.m. for any lots
to open. It was a huge damper to the proceedings, as hundreds
of patrons looking for us were confused and deterred. The
real kicker was that the authorities shoved us into a nowhere
corner of our lot, and in between two huge RVs. So there was
no ability for other party-going-wanna-bees to find us easily.
The ultimate outcome is that NationalChamps.net will never
again choose University of Pittsburgh for our annual party.
But we
made the best of it. Football and music flowed while we gave
away food and beer to whomever showed. The games were broadcast
via our satellite hook up, and the friends we made make the
process all worthwhile. It just won't happen in the Steel
City next time.
And there
were other subtle observations about the game atmosphere we
noticed. It really was a college game, but it was hard to
tell from the social feel of things. See, all the games the
Panthers play are off campus, at Heinz Field - home of the
city's professional team, of course the Steelers. This means
everyone has to leave campus and congregate in vehicle after
vehicle on concrete under bridge overpasses. The end result
is a sterile feel to the game's scholastic atmosphere, and
this ostensibly objectified any advantage the home stadium
brings, especially against Notre Dame.
With a
third of the attendance comprised of Irish fans, it was more
of a neutral, bowl-type atmosphere, and the opportunistic
crowd responded accordingly - any noise seemed rather low
for the close situations presented. Complacency is the best
way to describe it. The Pitt contingency either remembered
the last 20 struggling years (as Notre Dame evidently took
control), or they reflected the objective nature of the locale,
or likely both. After having such a strong showing at Texas
A&M - where the 12th man dictates audience participation
levels, this team needed just a little "oomph" from
their own to make it over the hump they (eventually) couldn't.
A few dropped third quarter passes made it an evening of "fair
weather" in more ways than one (mid-60 degree range by
games end).
But what
it all really showed me was how second-tier University of
Pittsburgh football actually is. Rob Rutherford, Larry Fitzgerald
and Gerald Hayes have done what Tony Dorsett, Hugh Green and
Dan Marino did - prop their Pitt squad up on their own, individual
accomplishments for ultimate team success. This is not a formula
that speaks well for recruiting, let alone the immediate supporting
cast (other team members). And with Hayes now gone, Rutherford
and Fitzgerald seemingly lack the running depth they need
to make their effort(s) enough for victory. Teams easily identify
these two and adjust, as ND did. These Panthers will not scale
up the rankings any farther as long as the Toledos and severely
lacking Irish squads of I-A beat them. Look for VT and Miami
to handedly beat the Panthers, that is unless something drastically
changes. And don't look for dangerous recruiting classes to
emerge from the Alleghenies while the current climate holds.
This, along with our own experiences, makes a strong case
outlining Pitt's needs so that any permanent "next step"
to be in their future.
And that
climate indicts the defense, in particular. The Irish ran
the same three rushing plays at Pitt all night, and the Panthers
balked at stunting, blitzing or even adding an extra man to
the box. The result was the greatest rushing total ever for
a Notre Dame player. As site-president Todd Helmick mockingly
shouted half way through the Irish final drive (of over nine
minutes that ended the game, due to Pitt using all its timeouts
in the third), "They're gonna run it." He was too
far up for anyone to hear; that is, if they didn't realize
it themselves, which was hard to tell if they did or not.
See, we threw our huge wingding and couldn't get graced with
the media credentials deserved, so we could not be heard by
the needed coordinators (joking, somewhat).
What may
have been the most "criminal" result of our Pittsburgh
tailgate debacle was our inability to watch the FSU-Miami
game in any manor. Having started that game at noon, the ever-changing
timing logistics precluded us from being able to set up any
kind of viewing station. Not that it mattered much (with hindsight),
but it was its own pitfall for those of us (NC.net site founder/president
Todd Helmick and myself, both former FSU students) who are
alumnus of either school, as well as any fans of great college
football.
Hey, speaking
of that FSU-Miami sludgy mud fest, did we tell you, or what?
Again, Bowden led his team to an anemic showing in the day's
top showcase. The score doesn't tell of the multiple moments
in just the opening quarter that spelled out how the game
would result. From the Rix-Wilfork fumble play (poorly called)
to the inadvertent whistle that came from the Miami student
section which led to a punt play (unblocked) being blown dead
and then retried, only to be blocked the second try, it seemed
everything went the Canes way. Yes, I am a huge FSU fan, and,
no, these aren't sour grapes. But it does accurately tell
of how volatile the entire contest was. Many intangibles could
have gone either way, but Miami, who could have won much bigger
after getting only six points on three first quarter red-zone
possessions, was the better team (especially since they were
in Tallahassee).
And what
about FSU's running game, where did that go? Give credit to
the penetrating Cane linemen, but the Nole efforts to establish
any such dimension were woefully lacking. Too many plays where
FSU's chosen back had to move laterally invited trouble. But
Rix' poor decision-making when flushed proved to be the marginal
factor that kept FSU from competing. And this isn't from the
numbers that I say this, but in watching Rix' downfield focus
disintegrate anytime the pocket collapsed. There was no standing
in there to get a good one off as he took a shot, nor intelligent
improvisation that froze the Cane defenders. There was just
the same scared boy-commander that wore on his sleeve his
inability to beat his biggest rival. Rix seems to lack any
development from his freshman season in his literal performance
levels.
Now, onto
Ohio State, whom I just last week told you would lose. The
mediocrity they still call Big Ten football produced another
average game that's only verve was in the fact that the defending
national champion's were finally beaten to end the nation's
longest winning streak at 19. The rest was, which I readily
admit can be a waste of time, fodder. OSU needs to make this
a rallying point, or risk falling a few more times before
their campaign is through.
Five of
the nation's top ten teams were struck down, each for their
first loss of 2003. What happened to LSU? Didn't Nick Saban's
experiences tell him about having a Top 10 defense that actually
is only in the Top 40 for pass stopping? The Gators only got
229 air yards (only 29 yards or so above LSU's former average),
but UF's Chris Leak going 18-for-30 - offset by 27 (chosen)
runs for 144 yards - made for unstoppable efficiency (Florida
was 7-for-18 on third downs).
Auburn
is back. Now that they are motivated, and with only six (five
SEC) games left as they sit undefeated in the conference,
the Tigers should be considered odds-on favorites to take
the west. But they have their work cut out, going into the
Red Stick (Baton Rouge) and Athens as they lay in wait for
Ole Miss, Mississippi State and 'Bama at home. By holding
Arkansas' powerful, seventh-ranked rushing game to only 160
yards, Auburn served notice to all coming that their early
season road-bumps might as well have been decades ago. Both
away games should be two of the nation's best all year.
The Virginia
Tech Hokies got revenge for two-straight losses to Syracuse
in their final matchup before departing next year for the
ACC. CB/PR DeAngelo Hall had two returns for scores and a
24-yard catch for another. But his valiant efforts were upstaged
by North Carolina State LB Freddie Aughtry-Lindsay. Freddie
scored on a fumble and an INT-return as the game ended, the
latter his team's game winning play. Both deserve recognition,
as you now see.
And did
Oklahoma separate itself from the Big XII pack, or what? Mizzu,
another Football Fodder called-out watch team, joins Oklahoma
State as their likely closest games until the Sooners play
for the titles (Big XII and BCS)
Down 17-3, Northern Illinois rebounded to win the rest of
the way 37-7 for a 40-24 final against Central Michigan. They
are not playing like a dominant team, but they do deserve
more respect for the character they displayed so far in all
their games, each wins
TCU could be another smaller-conferenced team vying for respect
as another perfect season is ignored by the BCS's wild-card
selections. The Horned Frog's schedule, though, has more cupcakes
than my niece's birthday party
B.J. Symons, Phillip Rivers - so, like, can anything stop
either of these guys?
And just who are these mystery teams, Georgia Tech and Clemson?
Purdue needs to step out of their impish-Big Ten mold and
represent their conference with exceptionally bankable play.
If not them, who else?
So, since I am checking my past claims, notice how Tennessee
QB Casey Clausen's (in)abilities are costing his team its
competitive edge against competitive opponents? After fumbling
on the goal-line at the end of the first half as he tried
to go ahead 14-13 (but instead Sean Jones ran it back for
a 92-yard score and a 20-7 Georgia lead), he evidently deflated
in the second half. Georgia made the Vols one-dimensional
by allowing only 61-ground yards to force Clausen's marginal
hand - to speak of another claim I have made about the Vols
concerning their play-choice balance
And speaking of off-balance offenses I've called out, I'll
give Washington the nod for running it 48 tries (for 103 yards)
compared to passing only 37 (for 337). I guess we now know
why they play it the way they do - they still rank 78th in
rushing even though they run it 40 times a game
And someone fire Jackie Sherrill, sheesh. If he isn't disciplined
by someone for his intimidation of Memphis coach Tommy West,
it will send the wrong signal to those nearly 100 kids on
scholarship who take Sherrill's actions as mentoring. And
as we mention Sherrill, it actually all comes back around
to Pitt mistakes, huh.
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