Oregon's quarterback Jeremiah Masoli had a great day. Image: Newscom

Yes, you read that correctly. Forty-seven points. That’s the most points USC has ever given up since a very high-scoring game at UCLA in 1996. The entire Oregon team was on fire, but the major difference in this game was quarterback Jeremiah Masoli. He had 222 passing yards, 164 rushing yards, and 2 TDs during the game, along with one of the best quotes I’ve read in a long time, after someone mentioned that the game was a real statement:

“I don’t know if we made a statement, this is just what we planned on doing. If it makes a statement it makes a statement. That’s just Oregon football and how we roll.”

LeGarrette Blount has dominated Oregon football news since the beginning of the season when he punched a player after the Boise State game and recently when the NCAA began to talk about reinstating him after all. It’s nice to see the spotlight on other players, because this really is a fantastic team.

Morgan Flint did well as the team’s kicker, adding more points to the board to keep the Ducks ahead. LaMichael James, a redshirt freshman, also has a great game, scoring once and rushing for a total of 183 yards.

This could be the first time in seven years that USC hasn’t been the Pac-10 champion (though in some years, they shared the title). Let’s see what the Ducks can do the rest of the season.

Post from: EveryJoe

Oregon Wins the Pac-10 Battle

So, at least the top three teams stayed strong. Of course, the big news for #1 Florida, who beat Kentucky into the ground, was that Tim Tebow was taken out of the game and to the hospital with a pretty bad concussion. He’s doing OK now, which is to be expected with a simple concussion – it’s just a little scary when you’re not sure if it is something worse or not. #2 Texas (who beat UTEP  64 – 7) and #3 Alabama (who beat Arkansas 35 – 7) held steady, but after that, the top 25 went to shit.

First, the Gamecocks shut down #4 Ole Miss, in a game that was all about defense. South Carolina’s defense, that is. Mississippi usually relies heavily on Jevon Snead, but South Carolina pretty much took him out of the game. Oh, he wasn’t injured or anything, but the O-line just couldn’t stop the Gamecock defense, and Snead couldn’t seem to make any places. How’s this for an embarrassing stat: Ole Miss has now lost 6 straight SEC openers. Ouch.

But they aren’t alone when it comes to embarrassing states. Did you know that Penn State has lost 7 of their last 8 games against…Iowa. Seriously, I kid you not, Iowa has a football team. They’re a team that just doesn’t get much press time, and for some reason, Joe Paterno and Penn State haven’t realized that they have a rivalry with them. The Hawkeyes came to Happy Valley this year, and it was a downpour for much of the game, but that didn’t stop them. Head coach Kirk Ferentz actually wanted to play for Penn State and JoePa when he was in high school, but there wasn’t any scholarship interest. Ibet he gets warm fuzzy feelings every time he whoops ass against PSU. The game itself was kinda a snoozefest, holding steady at 10 – 5 for much of the game. Then, Iowa suddenly exploded in the fourth quarter and Penn State made some major mistakes. Final score ended up being 21 – 10, and Penn State is no longer a top five team.Yes, it hurts my soul.

Image: Newscom

Moving on, the previously-ranked #6 California had a bad week as well. They were thrashed by Oregon. I mean, thrashed. Final score 42 – 3 thrashed. Coming into the game, Cal had the tenth best rushing offense in the country. And then Oregon was like “and now, you don’t.” The Ducks aren’t a horrible team, but this was an embarrassment for Cal. They shouldn’t have let Oregon have 32 unanswered points. A single field goal isn’t good enough when you’re a ranked team.

LSU, ranked seventh at the time, won their game against Mississippi State, but it wasn’t pretty, and I personally don’t think that they deserve the #4 spot that they have now after a game like that on Saturday. Sure, they won, but it should have been an easy game and it was anything but. Mississippi State played their heart out and almost ran away with the game. One of the most interesting games of the week was #9 Miami at #11 Virginia Tech. Oh wait, Miami blew too. Seriously, it wasn’t supposed to be a gimme game for the Hurricanes, but they looked like hell on the field this week. It should have been a good game, and it just wasn’t. At least Boise State (then 8, now 5) played like a top ten team should, beating Bowling Green 49 – 14.

We’re mid-season. Teams need to be playing with more heart than I’ve seen. I mean, I’m all for a few surprises and upsets every week, but Week Four was ridiculous.

Post from: EveryJoe

College Football Week Four 2009 in Review

Washington wide receiver #3 James Johnson breaks down field, Image: Newscom

1. Florida
2. Texas
3. Alabama
4. Mississippi
5. Penn State
6. California
7. LSU
8. Boise State
9. Miami
10. Oklahoma

What’s significant to note is who is not there anymore. And really, that boils down to my favorite team to bash, USC.

Sorry, USC fans. This was supposed to be an easy week for you. The Trojans took on Washington, and after a week at Ohio State’s horseshoe, everyone thought that this would be a relaxing game. Only Matt Berkley couldn’t start, so Aaron Corp took his place. And then Washington actually turned out to be good. Now, Washington already lost to LSU, but they took the moment of the 42-23 win against Idaho from Week Three and used it to beat back USC 16-13. The Trojans had absolutely no passing game, and the Huskies took advantage of that.

It was also a hard week for the MWC. BYU lost at home to Florida State, who is proving not to be a totally terrible team. So MWC fans put their confidence in TCU and Utah instead. TCU pulled through with a thorough beating of Texas State, but Utah was another story. They lost on the road to Oregon, and I couldn’t help but chant “overrated” in my head a bit. They were ranked too high after wins to just Utah State and San Jose State. So now, it’s up to you, TCU.

The week started off with an upset, though, so I guess it was Week Three’s fate to have a bunch of games that pissed people off. Thursday gave us #20 Miami beating #14 Georgia Tech 33 – 17. They’re done. Miami has more than proved that the deserve to be in the top ten. Georgia Tech has more than proved that they deserved to be dropped from the rankings completely. On Friday, Boise State (#10) won against Fresno State 51-34, but don’t be too fooled by the score. Boise State played like crap, both the teams’ defenses sucked, and the game looked like it might go either way for awhile there.

And then there was the Florida – Tennessee game. Coming into this game, my money was on Florida, but I knew that Tennessee wasn’t just going to lie down and take a beating – and they didn’t. The Vols put up a fight, but also knew when they were bested. I think the main problem here was that Kiffin played it safe. Rather than making big plays, which was what they needed for any hope of winning against the Gators, they chose to hold back, focusing more on not doing anything stupid than on taking risks. Florida won 23-13, but it was a good game.

Some other games of interest:

• #13 Virginia Tech beat #18 Nebraska 16-15. VT just has a strong defense, and the game ended up coming down to possession time at the end. Kudos to Nebraska’s kicker, who kept the Cornhuskers in the game.
• Michigan State lost a heartbreaker to Notre Dame on Saturday. With a final score of 33 – 30, we’re beginning to see just how disappointing this Fighting Irish team really is. They should have killed MSU.
• In what I like to call “the battle of who sucks less,” Washington State beat SMU 30 – 27 in overtime.

Post from: EveryJoe

College Football Week Three 2009 in Review

So, now the penalties have been announced, and I’m a little shocked. We all expected Blount to sit out next week, but the whole season? Now, the player was already on probation so to speak, as he was reprimanded for not showing up to workouts earlier this year and has had anger issues in the past. And don’t get me wrong, there’s no room for that kind of violence in college football – he flat out nailed the guy in the jaw and later went after fans as he was being pulled out of the stadium.

I blame this stadium for the flaring tempers. The blue is just so freakin' obnoxious.

Being suspended for an entire season seems really harsh, though. I’m glad he’s getting more than a slap on the hand, but the fact of the matter is that he didn’t start it. If you watch the tape, you can clearly see that he was provoked by Boise State’s Byron Hout, and not just verbally. Hout walked up to Blount and shoved him as he mouthed off. (It doesn’t look like it on the tape, but Blount says that a fan punched him first as well.)

So why isn’t Hout getting punished? He’s not even being suspended for a single game. Boise State coach Chris Petersen is going to talk to him about “learning from” the incident this week after practice. Oh, give me a break. That’s the lamest thing I’ve ever heard. Hout doesn’t deserve to get suspended for an entire season, but he shoved Blount first. He provoked someone, taunting them after a major game. He is to blame for poor sportsmanship just as much as Blount. It’s insulting that he isn’t sitting out a single game.

So what do you think about what happened after the game? Are the penalties for Blount too harsh? Does Hout deserve punishment as well?

Oh, and for the record, in part because of this incident, Georgia and Oklahoma State have decided against a pregame handshake. They’re worried that someone will explode.

Picture via WikiCommons.

Post from: EveryJoe

Penalties Too Harsh for LeGarrette Blount?

Week One is usually not very exciting, unfortunately. My favorite team, Penn State, plays Akron, so although this game means they’ll likely be able to keep a high rank, it won’t actually be that fun to watch. Actually, I don’t even think the game is being televised… Maybe I’m selling Akron short. *shrug*

Can Kellen Moore take Boise State to a BCS Bowl this year? Image: Newscom

In any case, despite all of the easy non-conference games we’re seeing during Week One, there are some games to watch as well. The season officially starts on Thursday at 7:00 PM EST, when a number of teams kick off, but the real start to the season, in my opinion, is at 10:15 PM EST when #16 Oregon takes on #14 Boise State. The games on ESPN, and you bet I’ll be watching. Boise State has a lot more on the line than Oregon, since it will be harder for them to be bowl eligible as a WAC team than it will for Oregon as a Pac-10 team. It’s also at Boise State, and Kellen Moore is a solid quarterback, so I give them the edge in this game.

Another game to watch? San Jose State at #4 USC, with a kickoff at 3:30 PM EST on Saturday. Now, no one here expects this to be a close game. In fact, if USC doesn’t run all over San Jose State, I think you’ll have to pick my jaw up off of the floor. I want to see the freshman golden boy quarterback play, though. People put so much emphasis on Pete Carroll’s choice to play true freshman Matt Barkley instead of returner Aaron Corp. This game will really test him to see if he can handle the pressure of being the leader of such a popular team. Will Corp get any playing time at all? We’ll see.

The USC game isn’t nationally televised, so I’ll have to keep up with it online…but that’s ok, since my eyes will be glued to the 3:30 PM EST game on ABC: #13 Georgia at #9 Oklahoma State. My heart is with Oklahoma State on this one, but it isn’t going to be an easy game by any means. They’ve lost Matt Stafford, but if Joe Cox, their new quarterback, really steps up, they could be the surprise of the SEC this year. Florida who? This game is going to set the stage for Georgia for the entire season, so I feel like they’ll fight tooth and nail for it, but Oklahoma State isn’t going to just bend over and take it. They have a huge number of returning starters and are also looking to set the stage for a surprising season. Otherwise, they’ll never be competitive in the Big 12.

On a side note, I’ll also be checking in with the 3:40 game, Missouri versus Illinois. The teams aren’t ranked, but I think it will be an even match up and a good game. Big Ten love!

Sam Bradford is back, hoping to lead the Sooners to a National Championship game again. Image: Newscom

At 7:00 PM, another possibly great game hits ESPN – #20 BYU versus #2 Oklahoma. Ok, I may be going against the grain a little here when I say that I think BYU is overrated. I do love that they’re helping to make a name for a non-BCS conference, which pushes the issue of a playoff system. Do they have a good enough offensive line to beat Oklahoma? What about receivers? They may have the defense they need to keep Oklahoma’s numbers down, even though OU has some amazing returners like Sam Bradford, but you can’t win if you don’t put any points on the board. My vote for winner definitely does to Oklahoma. Sorry, BYU, better luck next year.

Just an hour after the BYU-OU game starts, #5 Alabama meets #7 Virginia Tech on the field, the game televised on ABC. This is a tricky game to predict, in my opinion. The Hokies may take the ACC, and Tyrod Taylor is back at quarterback. Is that enough to top Alabama? The Crimson Tide are replacing great offensive players like Andre Smith, and they have a new quarterback, but players like Mark Ingram could make the difference in this game. Like with Georgia, Alabama needs to win this game to set the stage for the season if they’re going to be competitive in the SEC.

It’s going to be a great Week One – better than we’ve seen in quite a few seasons. I’ll also be interested to see how Notre Dame does against Nevada – an easy win for the Fighting Irish, maybe, but I want to see is quarterback Jimmy Clausen can really put up numbers. Also on my radar is Maryland at #12 California, which starts late Saturday night and Miami at #18 Florida State which is on ESPN at 8:00 PM EST on Monday.

Post from: EveryJoe

College Football Week One 2009 Preview

Image: Newscom

It isn’t that Roper isn’t good, according to the Ducks coaching staff. They just have someone better – Jeremiah Masoli. Montana gives him the chance to explore his NFL potential, according to what he told reporters earlier today.

Roper started during three games last year before a knee injury forced him to spend the next four games on the bend . During those three games, plus three others near the end of the season where he played (but didn’t start), Roper completed 48 out of 91 passes. He threw three touchdown passes and ran the ball in himself once.

Montana can have Roper for two years, since he redshirted in 2006. Will he succeed with this program? Maybe. If he does, I hope people will actually take notice. They may not be Florida or USC, but great quarterbacks have come from weirder places.

Post from: EveryJoe

Roper: From Duck to Grizzly

Oregon 35, Stanford 28

• Ducks: Oregon-Stanford report card at Statesmanjournal.com
• Football: Rollercoaster at The Stanford Daily

Arizona 59, Washington State 28

• WSU Breaks Scoring Slump Against Arizona at Washington State Football News
• Cougars Downed By Arizona, 59-28 at KNDU Sports

Oregon State 34, UCLA 6

• Oregon State clobbers UCLA at KVAL Sports
• Oregon State beats UCLA 34-6 at Sport Snipe
• Oregon State roars past UCLA, 34-6 at Bruinville

Arizona State 39, Washington 19

• Huskies Fall to Sun Devils, 39-19 at Washington Football

#7 USC 17, #21 California 3

• Inside The Numbers: USC at California Golden Blogs
• Winning California-Style at Jimokes of USC Football
• California-USC Report Card at Bears Necessity

Other conferences: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Independents, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-10, SEC, Sun Belt, WAC

(check back soon if the link isn’t live yet)

Post from: EveryJoe

2008 Week 11: Blogging about the Pac-10

California 26, #24 Oregon 16

• Grades and Analysis: California at Oregon Ducks Football
• Cal vs. Oregon – Post Game Thoughts at California Golden Blogs

Stanford 58, Washington State 0

• Stanford Thrashes Washington State at Stanford Cardinal News

#5 USC 56, Washington 0

• USC-Washington Report Card at Inside USC with Scott Wolf
• Five observations: USC-Washington at OC Register’s USC Blog
• Washington Beatdown at Jimokes of USC Football

Oregon State 27, Arizona State 25

• Oregon State holds off Arizona State 27-25 at Original Signal
• Oregon State holds on in nail biter at KVAL Sports

Other conferences: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Independents, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-10, SEC, Sun Belt, WAC

(check back soon if the link isn’t live yet)

Post from: EveryJoe

2008 Week 10: Blogging about the Pac-10

California 41, UCLA 20

• UCLA Recap at California Golden Bears Football Blog
• Another Loss for UCLA Football at The Good Life in Virginia

Notre Dame 33, Washington 7

• Bye-bye Ty, Washington to replace Willingham after season at More with Gore
• Notre Dame Trounces Hapless Huskys at Casey’s Clipboard & Wally’s World

Oregon 54, Arizona State 20

• Oregon’s Quick Start Too Much for Sun Devils at Arizona State Football News

#5 USC 17, Arizona 10

• College Football Bullets at The Natural Blog of x
• College Football Thoughts about 10.25.08- Is Southern Cal slowly coming back into reality? at Fooball on the Brain

Other conferences: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Independents, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-10, SEC, Sun Belt, WAC

(check back soon if the link isn’t live yet)

Post from: EveryJoe

2008 Week 9: Blogging about the Pac-10

Arizona against Stanford

• Stanford Edges Arizona 24-23 In Homecoming Thriller at Stanford Cardinal News
• Second guessing, chapter I at AZStarNet.com

Arizona State against #8 USC

• Ugly Sanchez: USC 28, ASU 0 at No Joshin\\\’
• Arizona State University 0 USC 28 at A Muchness of Me
• USC shuts down Arizona State 28-0 despite sloppy play at South Bay Chat

Oregon against UCLA

• UCLA loses a close one in Oregon at UCLA Blog
• Oregon\\\’s Late Start Pushes the Ducks Past Bruins at UCLA Bruins News
• Oregon Fans Are Rick Neuheisel Haters at Larry Brown Sports

Oregon State against Washington State

• Game Recap: Oregon State 66, Washington State 13 at Building the Dam
• Beavers Break Down Cougars On Record-Setting Day at Oregon State University Headline News

Did not play this week:

• California
• Washington

Other conferences: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Independents, Mid-American, Mountain West, Pac-10, SEC, Sun Belt, WAC

Post from: EveryJoe

2008 Week 7: Blogging about the Pac-10