By Dave
Hershorin
September 18, 2006
Bowden Bowl VIII lived up to the hype
by being one of the most entertaining games of the weekend.
Tommy’s Tiger’s scored with eight seconds
left to break a 20-20 tie and give son Tommy a 3-5 record
against his dad Bobby. The big play they used twice
at the end with amazing success was the same play –
a quick handoff that uses no fakes and catches FSU before
they line up so the Noles then have trouble coming off
of their initial blocks – that Oklahoma ran the
entire 2001 Orange Bowl to exploit the Nole’s
predictable over-pursuit when the Sooners won the BCS
that season. Backed up to their own 15 yard line with
2:22 left in the fourth, it was a genius play call by
the younger Bowden as the second time it went for 47
yards to the Nole four yard line and set up the winning
score. FSU had just come back from a 20-9 deficit to
tie it and looked like they could win as they got the
ball at the Clemson 45 with 5:10 left. But Clemson got
the stop on FSU’s inconsistent offense to force
the punt and then go on for their final game-winning
drive. The Seminole defense, which bailed out the sporadic
offense all night, is not usually the liability it proved
to be at the end. Clemson just made the plays it had
to, seemingly all night and especially with the game
on the line. Dating back to 2004, the Tiger’s
last six losses (three of them in OT) had been by a
total of 18 points. And with family bragging rights
on the line, you just knew it would be a close one.
Tommy proved why he is different than brother Jeff,
State’s offensive coordinator, as he admitted
his team’s mistakes at the halftime break and
then learned from them to make his team better.
FSU’s special teams tallied all of the team’s
first half points (nine), for the offense could only
muster 204 yards the entire game. Tommy has now beaten
dad three of the last four times, and it was the Tiger’s
first win in Tallahassee since 1989. With two of their
three biggest road games behind them to reflect a now-seasoned
squad, Clemson looks like their four returning front
linemen can possibly take them high into the BCS rankings
by year’s end. FSU will take its fans on the same
rollercoaster ride they’ve been on since 2001,
losing in games they should win and beating seemingly
better squads to hang the carrot of promise so the Nole
faithful can believe things are turned around. They
aren’t, and the torture of rooting for this team
will only bring scratching-headed dismay as FSU fails
to ascend to college football’s upper echelon
for another year.
Louisville handed Miami its second loss
in three weeks, winning 31-7 even though losing Heisman
hopeful Brian Brohm in the process. The Cardinal’s
field general was injured in the third quarter as he
fell on his hand while scrambling away from pressure.
Though he is the second major offensive cog (Michael
Bush broke his leg in week one) to go down, Louisville
proved its depth by inserting former walk-on Hunter
Caldwell and getting a strong performance from the sophomore.
Also a former prep baseball and track star, Caldwell’s
accurate arm and worthy feet will provide the same multiple
threats that Brohm does as the junior hurler
recovers for anywhere from the next three to six weeks.
Miami seems to have offensive woes after turning over
the entire offensive coaching staff in the offseason.
The Cane’s young line is showing its inexperience,
and QB Kyle Wright has yet to prove he comes from the
same mold as the great past Coral Gable’s signal-callers.
Like FSU, Miami can surprise anyone who wants to think
they are not talented, but consistency will keep this
squad from reaching any “next levels”. Louisville
is on a collision course with West Virginia for their
Thursday night November 2nd tilt that will probably
determine the Big East title. Many are already saying
the Redbirds have the stuff to beat WVU, and this past
weekend proved that they will be able to keep up with
the high-octane Mountaineer offense in that crucial
home game. But for whichever team loses, will a possible
11-1 outcome be enough to win an at-large bid in the
BCS coming out of the marginally weak Big East?
Florida did what it had to in Knoxville, scoring the
go-ahead TD with 6:30 left to secure their 21-20 win.
The Gator D chomped on Tennessee’s RBs, holding
them to 16 yards and the Vol’s rushing attack
officially to one first down and -11 yards (includes
the two sacks of QB Erik Ainge). Give it to senior QB
Chris Leak for his game-managing efforts that show he
is grasping coach Urban Meyer’s complex offense.
But the biggest surprise was the insertion of just-as-versatile
(but bigger) freshman QB Tim Tebow, someone
who much of the Gator faithful was clamoring for as
the season began due to his enormous promise and Leak’s
2005 struggles in the spread. Meyer used Tebow exclusively
as a runner, and his 29 yards on seven carries against
a resurgent Vol defense proved how well he will carry
the mantle once Leak is out of the picture. Two of Tebow’s
carries were on third-downs and one was on fourth-down,
and each of them was enough to keep the drives alive.
UF’s ball-control offense held it over ten more
minutes than UT and out-gained them by a hundred yards.
They also won the field-position battle by averaging
over nine more yards on their net punt results. Florida
pinned the Vols inside their own 25 yard line on Tennessee’s
last three drives. With the other two bigtime Sunshine
State programs losing, the Gator win kept this from
being only the second Saturday in 28 year that would
have had all three teams losing on the same day. Kentucky
this week offers Florida a respite before the four-game
onslaught (vs. ‘Bama, LSU, Auburn and Georgia)
that will truly test their wares. With iffy running
dimensions on both sides of the ball, Tennessee cannot
sleepwalk through their next two mid-major opponents,
let alone the SEC slate that ensues thereafter. The
Vol’s inclusion back into the nation’s elite
tiers was ostensibly done too soon. Who knows where
UT may wind up, but I have a feeling UF will wind up
back in Atlanta come December 2nd playing for the league
championship.
LSU lost its road bid at Auburn 7-3,
leaving the Tigers from Alabama at the top of the SEC
heap. LSU out-gained No.2 Auburn in total yards (311-182)
but went 4-of-13 on third down conversions to Auburn’s
6-of-15 and could only muster one trip into the red
zone with no points. Auburn converted a TD on Brandon
Cox’ one-yard run late in the third quarter to
end LSU’s streak of 16 quarters allowing no TDs
(AU now has its own streak of not allowing a TD –
nine quarters). The Bayou Bengals wound up at the Auburn
four yard line as time expired in the second half for
a thrilling end to this defensive struggle. LSU may
have the best defense in the land, but Auburn figured
out their offense and stiffened at just the right junctures
to preserve Auburn’s 19th win in their last 20
SEC games. Cox is one of the most underrated QBs in
the country. He may not have flashy numbers, but he
is a great leader who can keep his troops cool and focused
as all seems hopeless. Auburn has won seven
of its last eight against AP top 10 opponents,
and their 25-3 record since 2004 is third best in the
country. No.5 Florida comes into Jordan-Hare October
14th and will likely be in the top 10 still, possibly
giving us a preview of the SEC championship game.
Michigan paid back Notre Dame for last
year’s home loss by beating the Irish in South
Bend for the first time since 9-10-94 (26-24). It was
a 47-21 drubbing that saw the Wolverines hold the Irish
to 42 yards on their first eight possessions as Michigan
went up 34-14 at the half. Charlie Weis’ running
game had averaged 124 yards in ND’s first two
games but was held to just four net ground yards the
whole game. The Irish offense also had not lost a TO
before they coughed up five (three INTs and two fumbles)
that were converted into 24 Michigan points. The last
time QB Brady Quinn threw three INTs was against Michigan
in a 28-20 win September 11th, 2004. This time, the
Wolverines used their own well-seasoned, balanced offense
to expose ND’s shaky defense. The emergence of
sophomore WR Mario Manningham (four snarls for 137 yards
and three TDs) means that Michigan seniors Steve Breaston
and TE Tyler Ecker have a legitimate complimentary receiver
who will assure all can be open for QB Chad Henne’s
efforts. The inexperienced Wolverine line appears to
be gelling well, which is just in time for the Big Ten
onslaught that begins with Wisconsin next week at home
and doesn’t let up until after Iowa (Oct. 21st).
Michigan vaults to No.6 in the latest AP poll while
the Irish slip to No.12. Michigan is 19-14-1
all-time versus ND and 8-7-1 at Notre Dame
Stadium. Hey, didn’t someone on this site predict,
with all of the attention Ohio State and Notre Dame
were getting, that this Michigan team would fly under
most radar and sneak up on unsuspecting foes?
Oregon may have avoided a big home loss
to Oklahoma by scoring two TDs in the last 3:12 to win
34-33. But the Sooner’s showing out in Eugene
did more to legitimize their standing than it did to
help the Ducks earn any respectability. Favored by six,
Oregon gave up four turnovers (that produced 16 Sooner
points) and needed to recover an onsides kickoff late
to secure the win. Oklahoma, which lost its starting
QB right before the season began, got 13-of-23 passing
from senior stand-in Paul Thompson for 174 yards after
All-American RB Adrian Peterson brought the Duck defense
in with his 211 rushing yards. Many experts thought
this was the game – against a highly-touted Oregon
squad with BCS promise - that would take OU down a notch.
Instead, it proves that the Sooners are for
real and that Oregon seems like it will again
be a Pac Ten bridesmaid to USC. The Ducks go down to
Los Angeles November 11th, but it is their trips to
Tempe and Berkeley, followed by a home game with UCLA,
that Oregon has to survive to prove they deserve to
break into the top 10. Oklahoma (2-1) only dropped two
spots to No.17 and looks like they can make this year’s
Red River Shootout much closer than last year’s
45-12 wipeout.
Army almost had the win Saturday night
against Texas A&M, but a dubious play call kept
the Cadets from beating a BCS-aligned opponent for the
first time since 1997 (when they won at home against
Rutgers 37-35). With a 28-24 lead and the ball on their
own 31 with 2:58 left in the game, the Aggies went for
it on fourth-and-one, only to lose four yards and give
it up deep in their own territory. What was head coach
Dennis Franchione thinking? Wait, it gets better…
Army drove it all the way down to the A&M two yard
line with 0:13 left, then called their last timeout.
To the amazement of anyone watching ESPN 2 at around
12:37am (EST), the ensuing play was an off-tackle run
that was stopped inbounds for a loss of four. The clock
ran out and the Aggie faithful breathed a deep sigh
of relief. What could Bobby Ross have been thinking?
Was there some kind of contagion in the Alamodome making
coaches try their hardest to give up the imminent victory?
I mean, really…should these kids give it their
best effort all night only so they can then watch their
leaders stink the joint up by vacating all logic with
such pivotal calls when any 12-year old could
have made the right choice(s)?
Chalk another win up for those
pesky Division I-AA teams against their big
brothers in Division I-A. Southern Illinois took Indiana
to the woodshed in their 35-28 win at Bloomington. It
was the fifth win this season for the smaller upstarts,
with Montana State (19-10 over Colorado), Portland State
(17-6 win over New Mexico), Richmond (13-0 over Duke)
and New Hampshire (34-17 over Northwestern) also earning
impressive road victories this year. South Carolina
barely escaped Wofford 27-20, and Furman had a 35-31
lead on UNC with 12 minutes left before falling 45-35.
With only two wins all of last year against I-As (in
50-plus games), the lesser division has 77 chance this
year to upend the bigger schools due to the I-A’s
expanded 12-game schedule. I have personally been told
by major sports writers that these games are a waste
of everyone’s time and that they have no place
in “serious college football”. But as long
as the I-AAs continue to provide competitive efforts
and upset results, I will continue to support their
right to “play up” so they can prove the
worth of their programs and/or division.
Lagniappe
Navy’s
37-9 road win at Stanford didn’t surprise many
who already know how consistent the Midshipmen have
become since 2004 (29-11). But with Stanford having
the toughest schedule in all of I-A (see our 2006 SOS
listings), no victories yet (0-3), and the meat of their
slate about to happen, it looks like a long year for
Walt Harris & Co. out there in Palo Alto…Southern
Cal’s 28-10 win over a revitalized Nebraska program
was their 28th consecutive home win and their 36th win
in the last 37 games. The Trojans seem to have
a chip on their shoulders after last season’s
41-38 Rose Bowl (and BCS national championship) loss,
and their new-look backfield and secondary are showing
no signs of weakness…N.C. State’s 37-17
road loss in Hattiesburg leaves them 1-2 and nowhere
near looking like a team that can even challenge the
upcoming ACC teams they soon meet (BC and FSU in their
next two games)…From the “whatever happened
to that guy” files: Ty Willingham got the magic
working again in Spokane as the Huskies beat Fresno
State 21-20. Washington third-string DE Caesar Rayford’s
block of what seemed like the tying Bulldog score with
4:30 remaining proved to supply Willingham’s most-recent
vindication…Drew Stanton had 105 rushing yards
and went 16-of-25 for 198 passing yards to lead his
Spartans over the Panthers in Pittsburgh. Michigan State
(3-0) now gets Notre Dame at home. They are 7-2 against
the Irish as of late, but between 1969 and 1994, they
were 3-23. The visiting team has won the last five in
the ND-MSU series…TCU held the powerful Texas
Tech “Air Raid” passing game to a measly
204 yards as they won 12-3 in Fort Worth and stretch
the nation’s best winning streak to 13
games. For what many thought would be an offensive
showcase, both defenses looked solid in containing their
foes’ lethal ball-moving machines. Tech hadn’t
been held without a TD since Nebraska whomped them 56-3
in 2000 and the Horned Frogs hadn’t failed to
score a six-pointer since 1998’s 10-6 loss at
SMU. TCU is 4-0 against Big 12 teams since 2005...Temple
remains the only team without a TD so far…
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