College Football Betting News and Notes
By Ted Sevransky
This week, we’ll take a look at three teams coming off a bye following a disappointing performance. All three are stepping up in class this week, two home dogs and a double-digit road underdog.
Tiger Tales
Clemson suffered a true heartbreaker prior to their bye week, blowing a 17-point lead at Auburn and losing the game on a missed field goal in overtime.
But head coach Dabo Swinney was quite pleased with his team’s collective reaction to the defeat and their subsequent hard work during their bye week. However, handful of players still sounded disappointed following the road loss.
“It was tough to deal with. But it was something where we learned what we needed to do to improve. (In practice) we got a lot of things corrected that we needed to,” left tackle Chris Hairston said to the media.
Quarterback Kyle Parker took time off last week to rest his ailing shoulder. When he returned to practice this week, he sounded quite upbeat.
“I felt good. I thought I threw the ball well, especially coming back. My arm actually feels really fresh,” Parker said.
Last year, Clemson used its bye week to overcome a 2-3 start and begin a six-game winning streak that resulted in an ACC Atlantic Division title. Swinney says there wasn’t as much soul searching during this bye week.
“I do think we have the personnel and the chemistry on this team to really be a good football team. What we got to do know is try and create some momentum,” he told reporters.
Clemson is currently listed as a 3-point home underdog to the Miami Hurricanes Saturday. The total is set at 50.5.
Zook’s Crooks
Illinois has enjoyed quite a bit of success against Ohio State in recent years, including a shocking upset in Columbus in 2007 that propelled the Illini all the way to the Rose Bowl.
But since that trip to the Rose Bowl, the Illini are just 7-17 SU against FBS foes while compiling a 4-12 ATS mark in their last 16 lined games. They were outgained by Northern Illinois at home before the bye, barely escaping with a six-point win against a MAC foe.
The Illini have been besieged with some off-field distractions after starting offensive lineman Hugh Thornton was arrested following a fight at a local bar and pass rush specialist Michael Buchanon was arrested on a drunken driving charge. Zook didn’t sound too concerned about his team turning into a bunch of criminals.
“I don’t worry about discipline. (Players) understand what’s right and what’s wrong,” he said.
Illinois is not shirking their challenge on Saturday. Redshirt frosh QB Nathan Scheelhaase told reporters, “You don’t wake up every day and say 'I’m going to play against the second-best team in the country.’ You talk about that opportunity with the team doing it (beating the Buckeyes) three years ago, it’s still fresh with any Illinois fans that you talk to.”
For the Illini to hang tough with the Buckeyes, they’ll have to run the football effectively. Scheelhaase has not shown any ability to throw downfield just yet, completing a modest 54 percent of his throws for 380 yards through three games. But Illinois enters this game as the No. 18 rushing team in the country, averaging more than 220 yards on the ground per game.
Illini running back Mikel LeShoure hopes to follow in the footsteps of Illinois backs Rashard Mendenhall and Pierre Thomas, both of whom have enjoyed success at the NFL level in recent years.
“I told him, ‘Hey, Mikel. Go win this game.’ He played with an edge and will to get it done,” offensive coordinator Paul Petrino said of LeShoure’s dominance in the win against Northern Illinois. “One thing I want him to do is when he’s out there one-on-one, he’s got to score. When you’re running more than passing, we’ve got to get more big plays in the running game.”
Illinois is currently listed as a 17-point home underdog to the No. 2 Buckeyes Saturday, as Ohio State leaves Columbus for their first road tilt of the season. The total is set at 50.5.
Rusty Huskies?
Washington got thoroughly embarrassed by Nebraska at home prior to their bye week in an ugly 56-21 defeat.
Following some time off for the players, the Huskies were back at practice Monday. Head coach Steve Sarkisian said, “It’s good to be back in game week. I thought the bye week came at a perfect time for us from both a mental standpoint but a physical standpoint.”
Things won’t get much easier for the Huskies this Saturday, facing another Top-20 team in USC, this time on the highway. To make matters even worse for the Huskies, USC is in serious revenge mode after Washington upset the Trojans16-13 in Seattle last year, despite being outgained by nearly 200 yards on the ground in the contest.
“I think last year, against SC, it validated a lot of the things we were trying to do. It showed that we were just out there talking about it but what we were doing was right,” Sarkisian said.
Sarkisian didn’t sound too worried about his quarterback, Jake Locker, who suffered through the worst game of his collegiate career against the Cornhuskers.
“He came back with a great week of work. He wanted to practice on Monday, which is traditionally a day off for the quarterback. We got back to fundamentals with him - getting his footwork right. We got him really believing. In that game, I might have tried too hard to attack Nebraska, instead of going to the things that really work well for us.”
Sarkisian’s players talked about the intimidation factor when playing USC at Memorial Coliseum in LA. Linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis
“We're not gonna lay down just because they have that logo on their helmets. We're gonna show that we're here to fight from the beginning. I absolutely think we can compete and pull the upset,” linebacker Alex Hoffman-Ellis said.
Washington is currently listed as a 10-point underdog at USC Saturday. The total is posted at 60.5.
NCAAF News and Notes - Week 5
By Northcoast Sports
Miami was dominant in their 31-3 win over Pitt. In the 1H they had a 12-3 FD edge and in fact, Pitt's first FD came with under 6:00 to go in the 1H but UM was int twice, once in the EZ and once at the Pitt 7 and only led 10-0. Pitt closed it to 17-3 at the start of the 4Q but fmbl'd a punt and UM went 43/4pl for a TD. Pitt gained 71 of their yards on their final drive ending the game at the UM5 trailing 31-3. UM came in leading the NCAA in sacks and tfl and had 5 sk and 9 tfl vs the Panthers...
SMU gave TCU a much tougher game than expected. TCU only had a 21-19 FD edge and 375-361 yd edge. In fact at the half TCU only led 14-10 with SMU having a 209-183 yd edge. TCU was int'd on the 2nd play of the 3Q and ret'd to the 1 and SMU got a TD to lead 17-14. TCU got an 83 yd KR to regain momentum and drove 13 yds for a TD then scored TD's on their next 2 poss to lead 35-17 early 4Q. SMU got a TD but TCU got a 19 yd IR TD with 7:14 left but missed the crucial xp as they were -17'. TCU was SOD at the SMU38 with 2:19 left and SMU even got to the TCU17 but was SOD on 4th & 9...
It was BC's first shutout loss at home since 1998 which was also administered by VT. In the 2H, behind backup QB Marscovetra, BC managed 39 yds offense. BC had 3 blown scoring opportunities in the 1H which really cost them the game. BC took their 2nd poss 64/9pl and had a 1st & gl but were int'd in the EZ for a TB and VT drove for a TD. BC was pinned at its own 1 but drove 69/9pl. They missed a FG. BC's last drive of the half went 84/13pl with :15 left and no time-outs, QB Shinskie ran and dove for the EZ. The ball hit the goal line but it was ruled down on the 1/2 yd line and the half ran out. At the half BC had a 211-164 yd edge. Shinskie was taking hard hits all day and after a fmbl and int, he was pulled and VT got the shutout...
Ball St was shutout for the first time since 2005 and Iowa got to play a lot of players. Iowa did only lead 14-0 with 2:55 left 2Q when they rec'd a fmbl and they went 38/3pl for a TD to make it 21-0. At the half, however, Iowa had 15-3 FD and 284-54 yd edges. Iowa opened the 3Q with 65/6, 74/6 and 80/10pl drives for TD's to take command, 42-0 and on their 4th poss went 61/9pl for a 25 yd FG in the 45-0 win...
Michigan QB Denard Robinson, a Heisman frontrunner, injured his knee in the 1Q and DNR. In one brief quarter, Robinson hit 4-4-60 and rushed 5x for 129 yards. Remember the rumors of Tate Forcier transferring from Michigan? Forcier came off the bench after backup QB Gardner had drives that ended on a TD, a fmbl and SOD and Forcier led Michigan to 5 TD's on 5 poss. He, unfortunately, also hurt his knee at the end of the game. UM scored TD's on their first 3 poss to lead 21-0 but Bowling Green thanks to a fmbl and UM being SOD (BG a 71 yd TD pass on the next play) only trailed 21-14. That's when Forcier led 5 straight TD drives and then Gardner came off the bench for a sixth consecutive TD drive, this one with 3:11 left to make it 65-21. UM had 721 yds offense to BG's 283...
For the 2nd straight week, Buffalo played closer than the final as they lost by 24 but had an 18-17 FD edge vs Conn and were only outgained 399-368. Cody Endres came off the bench in the 3Q for UC after Zach Frazer (4-4 on first drive) went into a 3-10 slump. UC was playing without its star RB Jordan Todman who was injured. The game was tied at 14 at half with Buffalo having a 234-119 yd edge. Endres led UC to 4 scores on their first five 2H poss and in their first eight 2H poss they got 1 FG, 3 TD, fmbl'd at the UC10 which set up a Buffalo TD, were SOD at the UB33, fmbl'd at the UB28 and had a 42 yd FG blk'd. Chances for the cover appeared bleak when they got a 46 yd IR TD with 4:01 left, 45-21. UB went 73/12pl but on 4&gl from the 4 with :28 left, fired incomplete...
VMI had just fallen to William & Mary 45-0 the previous week and brought almost its entire Corps of Cadets (21 busses) to the Virginia game so they could cheer. They actually only trailed 14-7 after 1Q. Virginia did finish with 25-8 FD and 466-179 yd edges...
Maryland was without starting QB Jamarr Robinson and Danny O'Brien hit 18-27-250 yds in his first start. MD got a lot of big plays vs FIU. They got an 85 yd PR TD by Logan, a 56 yd TD run by D Scott, a 68 yd TD pass to Smith and got ahead of the spread in the 4Q with a 76 yd TD run by Meggett on their first offensive play after FIU closed within 7. Wes Carroll hit 35-58-355 yds for FIU. O'Brien's 68 yd TD pass came after a pass interference call wiped out a 3rd down incompletion...
Michigan St, in their first game without HC Dantonio had 1 punt in the 1H and also fmbl'd at the Northern Colorado 22 and scored TD's on their other 5 poss and led 35-0 with a 387-141 yd edge. NC broke the shutout trailing 42-0 with a TD early in the 4Q...
Toledo got their first win in Ross-Ade Stadium since 1992. An amazing stat is that Toledo came into the game last in the NCAA in total offense but had 378 total yards - 157 more than their season average. UT led 17-0 at the half with a commanding 203-95 yd edge. PU played most of the game without starting QB Marve who was injured for the second straight week. PU got as close as 24-20 with 8:07 left but UT returned the KO 50 yds and drove 47/7pl for a TD to basically clinch it 31-20 with 5:24 left...
Three weeks ago UCF's D held Russell Wilson of NCSt to 10-30 passing. This time they took on the nation's #2 rusher in Daniel Thomas and held him to 76 yards on 22 carries. K-State managed just 3 yds in the 1Q and UCF had a 170-43 yd edge at the half. The Knights missed crucial FG's of 42 and 23 yards which kept K-St in the game. UCF also settled for a 27 yard FG with 5:14 left and K-St drove 67/13pl and got a 7 yd TD run with :24 left for their first lead of the game and won. UCF had 20-11 FD and 344-272 yd edges...
USC may not be having a memorable start under Lane Kiffin but he is the first USC coach to begin his career 4-0 since Jess Hill did in 1951. USC had a 613-323 yd edge but Washington St surprisingly opened with an 80/9pl drive for a TD. USC got a 59/1pl run then a 25 yd IR TD to go up 14-7. WSU drove 45/6pl for a TD and only trailed 21-13 in the 2Q and it was just 28-13 at the half with USC having a 312-230 yd edge. USC dominated the 3Q going 93/4pl, 98/12pl, 64/9pl for TD's, the 3rd drive behind backup QB Mustain and came with 12:02 left in USC's 50-16 win...
Turnovers did have a big factor in the Army/Duke game as Duke had a 5-0 TO deficit with QB Renfree having 2 int that were ret'd to the 3 and 5 yd lines - both setting up Army TD's. Army did have a long drive with a 33 yd FG blk'd and led 21-7 at the half and Army had a 173-80 yd edge. It was 35-7 when Duke gained the majority of their yards. They went 82/8pl for a TD, 43 yds but were int'd in the EZ from the Army34 then went 67/5pl for a TD with 1:41 left which made the final stats 372-333 in favor of Duke...
Ohio St is now a perfect 4-0 ATS but surprisingly their D gave up 3 long drives to E Michigan. One came early 2Q, a 75/9pl TD and at the end of the half, 73/7pl TD and OSU only led 38-14. EM pulled within 45-20 after an 80/6pl TD drive but OSU scored TD's 4 of their 5 next poss to get their highest point total since 1950 at 73. Dane Sanzenbacher became the first OSU player with 4 TD rec in a game since Terry Glenn did it in 1995. OSU did finish with a 33-13 FD edge and over 300 yards both rushing and passing while EM had 248 total...
North Carolina was playing once again without 12 players including 7 starters. Linebacker Bruce Carter had a big day with a 55 yard IR which set up a 28 yd TD drive and he also had a blk'd punt which set up a 27 yd drive for a 25 yd FG and NC led 17-13. RU got to the NC19 but was int'd at the 7 with 2:42 left. They had 1 more shot after a 26 yd NC punt. They took over at their 34 but on 4&14 fired incomplete...
Northwestern and C Michigan were tied 13-13 at the half but NU went on an 11pl drive for a 27 yd FG then after an int, got a 25/1pl TD pass to lead by 10. After punting on their next drive, NU went 47/5pl for a TD and had the ball back up 30-13 in the 4Q and were driving when they fmbl'd at the CM36. CM went 64/8pl for a TD and then went 86/11pl including a 4&15, 20 yd pass to the NU25 which set up a TD with 1:11 left to get them under the number, 30-25. NU rec'd the onside kick and took a knee...
If you followed along the scores on Saturday you were probably under the impression that Temple outplayed PSU for most of the game as TU had a 13-6 lead after 1Q, 13-9 at the half and late 3Q still led 13-12. The story of the game was PSU moved the ball but settled for Collin Wagner tying a school record with 5 FG's. Royster rushed for 187 yds and PSU had 216 yds rushing and 223 yds passing with a 20-8 FD edge as they held TU to just 202 yds. In the 1H PSU had 10-4 FD and 220-131 yd edges. A fmbl set TU up for a 28 yd TD drive and PSU was also SOD at the TU25 late 1H. Leading 15-13 PSU went 96/12pl for a TD and then got it back and got to the TU25 where they were SOD again with :19 left...
Missouri had a 19 yd FR on Miami Oh's first offensive play for a TD and simply dominated. In the 1H, up 28-3, MO drove 61/10pl and had a 1st & 5 at the 10 but was int'd in the EZ for a TB. They extended it to 51-6 after 3Q's and were about to make it 58-6 when they were SOD at the MU2 with 9:31 left in the game. If you look at the final stats and you'll see MO "only" had 469-316 yd and 25-19 FD edges, but MU gained 98 of their yds on a 15pl drive and got 5 FD getting a garbage TD with 1:40 left...
Wyoming led AF 14-7 after 3Q's and AF needed a TD with 3:41 left to pull out a 20-14 win. Statistically the game was not even close with AF having 27-12 FD and 445-240 yd edges. AF was int'd in the EZ on 2nd & gl on their first drive, missed a 26 yd FG after an 11pl drive and at the end of the half, went on a 48 yd drive for a 39 yd FG but had a bad snap. In the 3Q AF was SOD at the WY38 and int'd before driving 78/16pl and 80/14pl for 2 TD's and a 20-14 lead. AF ended the game at the WY28 yd line taking a knee...
NC State did have a 27-15 FD edge vs Georgia Tech and a 527-363 yd edge but the game was closer than the final score. NCSt jumped out to a 10-0 lead despite missing a pair of 32 yd FG's and led 17-7 at the half with a 264-137 yd edge. They extended it to 31-14 then GT was SOD on 4&3 at the NCSt48 (1:39 3Q). GT got back in it with a 38 yd TD pass then Russell Wilson, who had 168 passes without an int, was not only int but ret'd 33 yds for a TD which made it 31-28 with 12:05 left. NCSt drove for a TD with 8:31 left and then GT out of desperation went for it on 4th & 10 at their own 31 and the pass was incomplete. NCSt tacked on a TD 6 plays later for the 45-28 final...
UAB deserved much better vs Tennessee. For the game UAB had 23-15 FD and 544-287 yd edges. UAB had just 1 TO but it was a 9 yd IR TD just before the half which actually put UT up 23-7. The key to the game was that UAB missed FIVE FG's during regulation. After missing 3 FG's in the 1H they went on a 67/13pl drive and missed a chipshot 30 yd FG in the 3Q. With the game tied, UAB drove for the winning FG but missed it from 54 yds with :38 left. In the 2nd OT UAB made a FG but UT got a 25/1pl TD...
At times Arkansas appeared to be poised to upset #1 ranked Alabama. They got a TD with :15 left 1H to lead 17-7 then took their 3Q opening drive 53/10pl for a 48 yd FG and a 20-7 lead. Bama battled back with a TD and FG to get within 20-17 with 6:01 left. The key play happened when Mallett, on 3&11 was int'd and ret'd 33 yds to the 12. Bama got a TD 3pl later for its first lead of the game with 3:18 left, 24-20. Ark got to midfield but was int'd at the Tide 35 and Saban went for it on 4th & 1 at his own 45 and converted for a FD with :54 left...
Florida St dominated Wake Forest with 28-12 FD and 485-185 yd edges but after fumbling at the WF7, settling for a 35 yd FG and missing a 51 yd FG and fmbl'ing at the WF36, FSU only led 10-0 early 3Q. Up 17-0, WF was driving when they fmbl'd at the FSt32. FSU went 68/9pl for a TD with 7:28 left to get ahead of the spread. WF went on a 61/10pl drive but was SOD at the FSU18 with 3:44 left. FSU with excellent backup QB EJ Manuel in went on an 82/6pl drive and going for the throat they got a 23 yd TD pass with 1:04 left for a 31-0 final...
Middle Tenn St K Alan Gendreau hit a 55 yd FG, the 2nd longest in school and SBC history to give MT a 6 pt lead at half. The game was fairly close with 2 big plays sealing it for MT. They got a 62 yd TD pass with 10:02 left 3Q and after UL was SOD at the MT19, at 27-14, Kyles got a 74 yd TD run 3pl later, 34-14...
Riley Dodge took over as the starting QB for North Texas. He had been the starting QB at NT LY but with an inj'd shoulder limiting his throwing ability, he moved to WR. With inj's to their top 2 QB's, he's back at the QB spot and hit 10-15-146. He guided NT to a 423-357 yd edge at FAU, a game NT led 21-10. FAU did rally back and at the end had a FD at the NT28 down by 4 but a sk forced a 4th & 16 and FAU fired incomplete...
Nebraska spent most of the 1Q vs South Dakota St bottled up inside their own 20 and was very unimpressive as a 44 pt fav vs SDSt. They did get a 96/6pl drive for a TD on their 3rd poss then went 54/4pl for a TD on their 4th but only led 14-0 at the half. Taylor Martinez, who had rushed for 100 yds in each of the first 3 games, was held to 67 and also had a fmbl and 2 TO's. SDS blew some chances. They had a 1st & gl at the NU2 in the 1H and were SOD. SDS went 73/11pl on their 2nd 3Q poss but settled for a 35 yd FG, 14-3. NU went on a 10pl drive for a 30 yd FG. SDSt was int'd at the NU1 and SOD at the NU37 in the 4Q...
Georgia had a 221-120 yd edge vs Miss St at the half. They had a 20 yd pass to the 1 orig ruled down but it was reversed and ruled there was a fumble and a TB. UGA had a 40 yd TD pass called back on a hold and settled for a 35 yd FG and trailed 7-6 at the half. MSU, clinching to a 10-6 lead, went for it on 4th & 1 at their own 39 and converted. Two plays later they got a 34 yd TD pass. UGA went for it on 4th & 10 at their own 20 with 3:53 left and fired incomplete. MSU, 3pl later tacked on a TD, 24-6. With the game secure, MSU allowed UGA to go 91/8pl for a 40 yd TD pass with 1:27 left. MSU rec'd the onside kick...
Idaho appeared in control vs Colorado St as they had 4 long drives in the H. On the first they were SOD at the CSU29 but they got 1 TD and settled for 31 and 32 yd FG's to lead 13-0. CSU took over with 4:32 left in the half and got a TD with :28 left. UI got a FD but was sk'd and fmbl'd with :19 left and CSU got a TD 3pl later for a stunning 14-10 lead. UI took the lead back and led 27-17 but CSU tied it with 11:32 left. UI got a 59 yd TD pass with 9:46 left and while CSU went 64/7pl, they missed the xp and trailed by 1. UI punted with 2:46 left and CSU got 5 FD and got a 35 yd FG on the final play for the upset...
Stanford was very impressive vs Notre Dame as their D pressured Dane Crist throughout the game. SU QB Andrew Luck did throw his first 2 int's of the year. SU got a 36 yd FG on the last play of the half to go ahead 16-6. Trailing 19-6 the Irish were SOD at the SU49 and SU got a TD 11pl later. On the next play, ND was int'd and ret'd 20 yds for a TD and a close game turned into a blowout, 34-6. ND got a 14 yd TD pass in the final seconds called back on a hold and SU walked away with a 37-14 win which was ND's 11th straight loss vs a Top 25 team and 3rd straight loss of the season as they now have lost 7 of their last 8 games...
All week long Urban Meyer talked about how excited he was that the offense had finally come together and was much improved. The offense had slogged its way thought the first 3 games of the season but Tre Burton helped ignite them as he scored 6 TD's and even had a 42 yd pass. He had those TD's despite having just 3 rec, 5 rushes and 1 pass. Florida led 21-0 but Kentucky faked a 28 yd FG for a TD to make it 21-7 at the half. The Gators scored TD's on all 4 poss of the 2H to take a 48-14 lead with 6;38 left and UK gained 65 of their yards on their final drive. UF has now outscored UK 155-26 in the last 3 games incl 73-0 in the 1Q...
Marshall/Ohio was interesting as MU did have a 233-105 yd edge at the half and led 13-3. OU battled back using a fake 23 yd FG for a TD to take a 17-16 lead with :04 left in the 3Q. MU converted on 3&11 and 3&10 on their next drive, the latter for a 12 yd TD pass and a 25-17 lead. OU opted to punt with 2:31 left on 4th & 14 at its own 16 but MU was SOD with 1;01 left at the OU28. OU went 72/7pl and with :08 left got a 36 yd TD pass as the clock ran out but Solich went for 2 and it failed and MU escaped with a 1 pt win.
BACKDOOR AND FRONTDOOR COVERS
In the 1H Texas turned the ball over 5x and UCLA took advantage but only with a 13-3 lead. At the half UT had a 101 total yards offense on 36 plays and UCLA 75/32pl. UCLA got the most impressive drive of the game to open the 3Q going 80/8pl with 78 on the ground for a TD, 20-3. UCLA led 27-6 in the 4Q and UT drove 80/12pl getting a TD with just 2:28 left to make it 27-12. The onside kick went OOB and LA started at the UT27. On 3&2 when a FD would have ended the game as only :53 remained and LA could have taken a knee, Coleman ripped off a 29 yd TD run to put the game Over the Total.
More News and Notes
By Northcoast Sports
Utah St was in a tough situation vs San Diego St last week. They had called the previous week’s home game vs Fresno St “their biggest game ever” and lost that game and also had a Friday night game vs BYU on deck. SDSt dominated as you would expect. In fact, they scored TD’s on their first 4 poss going 58/10, 59/4pl, 70/7pl and 97/6pl to lead 28-0 while Utah St managed 3 FD’s in that span. USt’s only score came after SDSt fumbled a punt on their own 17 and the Aggies got a TD. SDSt finished with a 504-245 yd edge.
Turnovers were by far the key to the Iowa St 27-0 win. Iowa St benefitted from a 5-0 TO edge and 2 of the TO’s produced points as they basically got a 14 pt swing with a 94 yd IR TD and added a 25 yd IR TD in the 3Q. Northern Iowa had a 310-210 yd edge and twice had a chance to break the shutout. They went 67/14pl but on 4&4 were SOD at the ISU20 with 8:29 left and then went 81/11pl and on 4&gl from the 3 gained 2 yds and fumbled into the end zone for a TB.
Utah dominated San Jose St as the score shows. On their offensive play after a SJSt punt they got a 43 yd reverse for a TD. SJSt did get a 71 yd KR to the Utah 20 and got a 20 yd FG and only trailed 7-3. SJSt went out of their way to not kick to Shaky Smithson who had been the star of Utah’s special teams the previous two weeks with his returns. QB LaSecla hit a line drive punt into a teammate and it was returned 10 yards for a TD then they brought their regular punter back and his punt was blocked setting up Utah for a 24-yard TD drive. QB Jordan Wynn returned to the lineup for Utah and left after the 3Q first series with the Utes ahead 42-3.
Memphis took their opening drive 58/13pl for a 37 yd FG. Their 2nd drive was int at their own 47 and Warren hit a 57 yd FG for the Miners, 3-3. Memphis was SOD at the UTEP26 and UTEP was int’d at their own 20 setting up a MEM 20/3pl drive for a TD and Memphis led 10-3 at half with a 181-170 yd edge. UTEP got a 53 yd PR but on 4th & gl from the 1 fired incomplete. UTEP went 53/8pl for a TD to tie it at 10. Memphis was int but Warren missed a 37 yd FG. Memphis drove 62/15pl for a 35 yd FG and the lead, 13-10. Seven plays later Warren hit a 2nd 50 yarder of the game, a 50 yd FG to tie it at 13. Memphis had a 3rd & 4 but gained 2 yards and punted 42 yards to the 4 with 3:13 left. UTEP went 95/12pl and had a 1st & gl at the 2 and got an 18 yd FG on 3&1 on the last play of the game for the win.
SE Louisiana almost upset ULM. They took their opening drive 71/7pl for a TD and a 7-0 lead. After ULM tied it, SEL went 77/8pl but settled for a 28 yd FG and missed it. ULM got a TD when at midfield a pass went 39 yds to the 16 and it was fumbled forward into the EZ and ULM fell on it for a TD. SEL was SOD at the ULM34 late 1H. ULM did fumble on its own 14 and SEL got a TD on the next play and tied it and then got a 75/9pl drive for a TD with 2:08 left 3Q but missed the all important xp. ULM got a 47 yd TD pass with 14:34 left and the xp gave them the lead. ULM fumbled the punt at their own 35 but SEL was SOD on 4th & 3 and SEL’s last drive ended on an int at their own 27.
Baylor and Rice each went on a long drive with Rice getting a 42 yd FG and Baylor a TD and it was 7-3 when the game went to a 1 hr 6 min lightning delay. When they came back, Baylor punted and Rice was int’d and BU went 47/4pl for a TD then after a bad snap on a punt, BU took over at the Rice 16 and added a 33 yd FG. BU went 78/10pl and on 2nd & gl at the 5, settled for a 20 yd FG on the final play of the half to lead 20-3 with a 208-97 yd edge. There were 3 turnovers to open and Rice benefited from a 43 yd FG, 20-6. BU went 24/8pl with a 46 yd TD pass then went 89/14pl but missed a 26 yd FG. Rice went 80/10pl for a TD to make it 27-13 with 5:57 left but BU rec’d the onside kick and added a 37 yd FG (2:59). Rice gained 39 yds on their final garbage drive.
Minnesota had a 23-12 FD edge vs Northern Illinois and a 470-378 yd edge. The game was 13-13 with 1:22 left 1H when the momentum changed. NI blocked a punt and recovered at the UM11 and 3 plays later with :03 left in the half, got a 10 yd TD pass for a 20-13 lead. UM kicked a FG in the 3Q to make it 20-16. NI RB Chad Spann rushed for a career-high 223 yards. His 30-yard run sparked a 67-yd drive for a TD, 27-16. UM went 52/12pl but on 4&2 were SOD at the NI21 and Spann got a 61 yd TD run 3pl later to ice it, 34-16.
The Arkansas St/Troy game was on TV and I have to admit, it was on my upper left hand spot in my 12-TV display and I must not have been paying too much attention to it after Troy jumped out to leads of 21-7 and 27-14. I did not realize until going through the play-by-play on Monday that this one came down to the wire and ASU actually took the lead with under 1:00 to go. Troy led 27-14 at the start of the 4Q and ASU went 78/10pl for a TD with 9:26 left. ASU was SOD on 4th & 3 at the Troy 30 with 5:26 left but got it back and converted on 4th & 2 and 4th & 4 then on 2nd & 5 with :57 left, got a 30 yd TD pass to take a 28-27 lead. Troy33 got 22, 18 and 10 yd passes on their first 3 plays down to ASU17. Most teams would normally set up for the game winning FG at this point but on 2nd & 10 Troy hit a 17 yard TD pass and got the 2 pt conversion with :22 left. ASU started on its 36 but was sacked on the final play of the game. ASU finished with over 200 yards both rushing and passing but Troy had a 505-450 yard edge.
Southern Miss/Louisiana Tech were tied at 3 at halftime with SM having a slim 199-178 yd edge. SM got their best 2 drives of the game to open the 3Q going 60/6pl for a 23 yd TD pass, 73/17pl for a 37 yd FG and a 13-0 lead. LT converted on 4th & 1 at the SM22 early 4Q and 2pl later got a 19 yd TD pass to pull within 13-10. A couple of key plays allowed SM to escape with the win. They returned the KO to the LT39 but punted on 4&9. SM was at their own 26 and the punt was blocked by Porter who had a chance to fall on it for the TD and it squirted away and was batted out of the EZ for a safety. If LT had fallen on it for a TD, they would have had the lead but SM fell on it for a safety. LT was at the 50 on 3&3 when they were int at the SM27. SM faced a 3&14 as LT burned their 2nd time-out with 2:21 left and it was obvious LT would be getting the ball back, in good field position with 1 time-out needing only a FG for the win. SM connected on a 56 yd pass to Bolden and took a knee.
Austin Peay made a game of it very early vs Wisconsin taking their first drive to the UW49 on a 22 yard pass before punting and their 2nd drive was 52/11pl for a 51 yd FG. They punted on their next 4 series and then UW’s offense was so dominant, they scored TD’s on all seven 1H poss and with backup QB Budmayr in scored TD on their first 2 poss of the 3Q. Their first punt came with 11:08 left in the game and it was due to a 15 yd pers foul which turned 3 & 4 into 3 & 19. True frosh James White rushed for 145 yards and John Clay rushed for 118 and Budmayr in relief hit 6-7-55.
In the 1H West Virginia had a 139-55 yd edge vs LSU. Normally those stats would lead to an upset but somehow they trailed the game 17-7. Two turnovers and a PR TD were key. WV fumbled at their own 7 and LSU on 4&1 got a TD. WV was int at their own 41 and LSU went on a 9 yd “drive” and got a 49 yd FG. Petersen who blocked an earlier 28-yard WV FG which would have put WV in the lead, returned a punt 60 yards for a TD and a 17-0 lead. It was 17-14 when LSU got their only offensive drive of the entire game going 72/14pl for a 23 yd FG on the first play of the 4Q, 20-14. WV missed a 48 yd FG with 10:47 left and their final 2 poss they were pinned at their own 7 and 9 yd lines and went 3 & out.
Oregon St has been significantly outgained in each of their first 3 games. Against Boise St they were outgained 474-233 but a couple of key plays kept them in it. First of all, Boise St went on a 70/12pl drive and had a 1st & gl at the 2 and later went 36/7pl and 67/12pl but on all 3 drives, they settled for short FG’s. OSU got a 54 yd PR for a TD and then B2B key plays kept them within 2 TD’s. BSU fumbled a punt at their own 31 late 3Q and 2 plays later Katz threw a pass that should have been int’d but was caught by Catchings but he fumbled. It went into the EZ and Halahuni recovered for an OSU TD.
The situation favored Cal vs Arizona as the Cats were off an upset of a Top 10 team while Cal was off a loss. As you can tell by the score, the game was a defensive struggle and the 1Q featured 5 punts and was scoreless. Cal recovered a fumble at the Arizona 28 and would settle for a 25 yd FG to lead 3-0 and later drove 53/11pl for a 40 yd FG, 6-0. Arizona’s only scoring threat of the 1H was at the end when they got to the Cal13 but on FD Foles was int in the EZ with :38 left. Cal got off a 19 yd punt early 3Q which allowed Arizona a zero yard drive for a 46 yd FG, 6-3. Cal had a couple of chances to put this one away. Tavecchio had a 33 yd FG bounce off the left upright with 1:28 left in the 3Q. Cal was at the Ariz8 when they gained 2 yards on 3&3 and settled for a 23 yd FG, 9-3 (11:02). AU did have a 48 yd FG come up short but Cal went 47/11pl with 2:37 left the game clinching 47 yd FG by Tavecchio went wide right. Arizona got a 51 yd pass to the 12 and a 3 yd TD pass with 1:11 left and int Cal at their own 32 to escape with a 1 pt win.
New Mexico continues to get blown out on a weekly basis. The Lobo’s are being outscored by an average of 56-10. Tarean Austin became the first true frosh QB to start a game for NM since 1988. Austin hit a 48 yd TD pass on NM’s 2nd drive to give them a 7-0 lead and that would be their highlight for the game. UNLV scored TD’s on 4 of their next 6 poss on drives of 58, 22 (after 18 yd IR), 53 & 65 yds and even missed a 48 yd FG on the final play of the half. UNLV took their 2nd 3Q poss 60/4pl for a TD and added a 40 yd FR TD to lead 42-7 with 4:14 left in the 3Q. The next 7 poss were punts and then each team went on a long drive that included a 4th down conversion. UNLV got a 24 yd FG with 5:23 left and NM on 4th & 9 opted for a 42 yd FG with :20 left to pull them “within” 45-10.
Turnovers were a key factor in the Arizona St game but it is a bit of a misleading box to see ASU with a 29-19 FD edge and 597-380 yd edge as 260 of their yards came in the 4Q after they had already been down 42-24. Also 4 of their 7 turnovers happened after they were down by 18. Oregon got a 39 yd IR TD to take a 14-7 lead and ASU did miss a 47 yd FG and was SOD at the UO7 in the 1Q. ASU, after an int, got a 28/1pl TD pass and actually led this game 24-14 with 3:36 left 1H. Showing how explosive UO is, they went 80/8pl for a TD with 2:21 left then 80/3pl for a TD with :48 left to take a 28-24 lead. UO fumbled the opening KO of the 2H at their own 19 but ASU fumbled it back at the 2. A 32 yd FR TD by UO put them up 42-24 with 4:57 left in the 3Q. ASU went 69/8pl for a TD then fumbled at the Duck32 (:06 3Q), punted (12:48), was int’d in the EZ (10:07), int’d at the Duck11 (7:01) and int’d at their own 32 (1:31).
For the 2nd straight week Auburn overcame a double digit 2Q deficit. Auburn actually got a 54 yd TD run by Newton on their first drive for a TD and a 7-0 lead. SC did drive 80/6pl for a TD to answer 7-7. Much was made of South Carolina’s four TO’s in the 4Q but Auburn turned it over two times in the 1H and SC took advantage of a short field with 44/7p and 47/7pl drives for TD’s to lead 20-7 with 6:16 left in the half. Auburn would drive 76/12pl for a TD with :46 left. Auburn opened the 3Q with a missed 52 yd FG but then drove 80 yards for a TD. SC got a 69-yard pass to Jeffery setting up a TD to retake the lead, 27-21. Auburn went on a 73/15pl drive but missed a chip shot 23 yd FG. They got a fumble on the next play and went 26 yards for a TD and the lead, 28-27. SC QB Garcia was sacked and fumbled at the AU47 and AU went 53/9pl for a TD. Possibly because Garcia was dinged up on the sack, Shaw came in at QB and led them 49/6pl to the 25 but they were int’d at the 11 with 3:19 left. SC got it back after a punt and was at the Auburn 18 when a pass into the EZ was knocked out of Jeffery’s hands and Washington int’d it just catching it before it hit the turf with :33 left. SC came in leading the SEC in rush D allowing just 55 ypg rush but Auburn rushed for 335 on them.
Hawaii was expected to blow out Charleston Southern and that they did. In the 1H UH had 6 TD’s which all came on drives of 5 plays or less in less than 2:00. They used 5 different QB’s in the game including rFr Graves who came in for 1pl and the first pass of his career went 90 yards for a TD in the 3Q to make it 63-7. UH had a 49-7 halftime lead and rolled up 414 yards of offense but Charleston Southern did have 170 yards offense in the 1H as they missed a 48 yd FG and were also stopped on 4&1 at the UH36 and on 4&1 at their own 48.
Rebel fans had to have been thinking “we’ve seen this before” as Mississippi had a big halftime lead at 27-10. Keep in mind they have blown some big halftime leads all season long including losing 2 games straight up. Brandon Bolden took care of matters. He got a 71 yd TD run on the first play of the 3Q to make it 34-10 and Jesse Grandy got a 51 yd PR to put UM up 41-10 ensuring there would be no blowing of the 2H lead. Bolden rushed for 228 yards on 19 carries. Normally Fresno St comes in a solid dog in games like this vs BCS schools but many were calling for Mississippi to be upset and they were only favored by 2 pts so FSU was not in their normal true underdog role. The game was 48-24 when FSU would get 2 TD’s to pull within 48-38 with 3:20 left but Mississippi recovered the onside kick and Bolden’s 14 yd TD run with :35 left made the final 55-38.
Houston was without their top 2 QB’s but Broadway hit 19-28 although for just 174 yards as UH stuck with the ground game. They jumped out to a 21-0 lead but it was actually 28-23 in the 4Q. Leading just 28-23 UH got a 25 yd TD run by Beall to make it 35-23 then got a 42 yd IR TD with just 2:50 left to go up by 19. UH led 21-0 when they fumbled at the Tulane 39 with 7:39 left in the half. Tulane would go 61/8pl for a TD then after another int, got a 36 yard TD pass 2 plays later to make it 21-14 with 2:50 left in the half. UH went 54/7pl for a TD with :39 left and had a 271-136 yd edge. UH missed a 47 yd FG and Tulane made a 29 yd FG, 28-17. Tulane had a 50 yd FG blocked at the end of the 3Q but then surprisingly went 92/11pl for a TD to pull within 28-23 with 9:19 left (2ptng). UH was sk’d twice and punted on 4th & 25 and a 38 yd PR had Tulane at the UH30, down 5 but they had an offensive face mask and a sack and a delay force a 3rd & 46 and they were int’d. UH went 37/5pl for a TD then had a 42 yd IR TD with 2:50 left for the final margin.