Survival of the Fittest
Happy Monday all!
What a crazy weekend of football on at both levels. There were about 5 total
minutes or so this weekend where it looked as if the polls were going to
take a serious sucker-punch. Oh so close...
And did you happen to see the Houston Texans absolutely steam roll the
Jacksonville Jaguars? What the hell is going??
Obviously, as you know by now, seeing as that Saturday was our first day at
home with the new baby, I didn't get to watch hours and hours of meaningful
(to me) football. I fear those days may be long gone for a quite a while.
Might be time to up the sports package to maximize my more-closed window of
opportunity. Yea right...
Anyway, here are some highlights from the weekend:
THE BEST OF THE BEST:
This was like survival of the fittest in these close games (the "big" ones).
The interesting thing about all of them, I think, is that the better teams
actually ended up winning - the test games that you end up winning are usually the most meaningful and important ones.
Tennessee - U.G.L.Y.:
Well this was certainly an ugly game for the Vols - their offense (usually one of the most potent in the nation) was anemic to say the least - not at all unlike last year when Tennessee lost 6-3. Fortunately for them, the defense played one hell of a game. On Ainge's second INT, the defender was forced out at the Tennessee 8 yard line - the defense held for a field goal. Although probably not talked about much, that was probably the game right there. Although Ainge struggled quite a bit in this game, he held tough and was able to "stop the bleeding" as it were - in other words, he never let it get out of hand. Unfortunately for the Vols, this the kind of game that they will get from the rest of their opponents including games at S. Carolina next week and LSU following that. They still need some help from Florida to make it to the SEC championship game, but they absolutely must win out.
SoCal Breakdown:
I don't know how Notre Dame continues to win these games like this, but give them credit, they are winning them. If I'm a UCLA fan right now, I'm screaming about the 3rd and 6 play that the Bruins ran with a minute to go - all you need is a first down to ice this game and you're playing against a very mediocre (at best) defense whom you've picked apart most of the day - THROW THE BALL!!! You're not playing Michigan or Florida here - the defense is the Irish's biggest weakness. Oh so close. And kudos to the Bruins, there aren't many folks who gave them half of a chance in this game - especially at the end. We talk about it a lot, but the Bruins coach played way too conservative there at the end - I'm not sure he knew HOW to win that game at the end. You have to play to win in a situation like that and if you lose the game by being aggressive, that's a hell of a lot better than pop Warner play calling followed by a complete breakdown in defense. Needless to say this would have been a HUGE win for UCLA and a big confidence builder going into the final stretch.
Read a great quote from Stewart Mandel from Cnnsi.com (I'm paraphrasing here) - he said Notre Dame continues to have moments of greatness on offense, a little bit of luck and most important, they keep winning - but are they really getting any better? Great question - their offensive line and overall defense is pretty weak. They now rank 99th in rushing offense in the country.
Home away from Home:
As shocking as it is, Lincoln Nebraska seems to be the Horns home away from home - they've never lost there since the Big 12 was formed. This was a crazy game and one that left me scratching my head and wondering - was this a good win or a lucky win??? I've come to the conclusion that this was a very VERY good win for the horns (and a little lucky). I was pleasantly surprised to see them get rewarded for this win even though the teams ahead of them also won.
I must admit that I had my doubts throughout this game as to whether or not Colt McCoy was playing well or not. I came to the conclusion (after reading numerous stats and rewatching parts) that Colt played a hell of a game. Rather, it was Greg Davis who, yet again, handcuffed this team in numerous instances. He played ultra-conservative and was (big surprise) very predictable at times. The play calling when the Horns were in the red zone was abysmal. He finally had the right idea, but at the absolute wrong time - for the first time in the game, when Texas had the ball inside the 20, he called a fade route to Lymas Sweed - IN DOUBLE COVERAGE WITH 30 SECONDS LEFT!!! Had that ball been intercepted, my head would have literally exploded. Where the hell was that play call during the last 3 drives into the red zone???
I will confess that I had no idea that the weather conditions were going to be as bad as they were and as such, you are somewhat limited in what you can do. BUT, I just feel like we aren't putting our best athletes into position to make the kinds of plays that they are capable of making and that's infuriating at times. How about we try getting the ball into the hands of our running backs ON THE RUN???!! Have you noticed that 99% of the time, they hand the ball to the guys when they are standing still? Obviously it works at times, but I'd like to see some plays that focus more on getting Charles the ball out of the backfield, etc. so that he can have the room to make some moves. Anyway, Greg Davis is a mediocre coordinator in my mind and there were times on Saturday when it showed. (More on Texas' offense responding to this below).
With all of that said, a HUGE kudos to Nebraska. Tell me honestly how many of you who watched the game thought that Nebraska would come back to take the lead? I thought for sure that Texas would roll on them in the second half. Texas sacked Taylor 4 times in the first half and ZERO times in the second. That's great coaching right there. And give Nebraska credit - they opened up the playbook and made some BIG plays when they needed them the most. Callahan certainly played to win.
Stat of the game - OK, I swear I'm not making this up. When I was talking with folks about the game, I kept saying how it seemed like there were a half dozen or so plays that really gave Nebraska their boost. Well, heard this crazy stat this morning - Nebraska ran 59 plays and had a total of 340 yards. Of those, 7 plays went for 215. What does that mean? It means that 52 of their plays (88%) went for 125 yards. That's 2.4 yards a pay. That's some damn good defense if you think about it. And two of those 7 big plays included a double reverse and a flee flicker - you don't see those everyday.
Bottom line - Although they fought hard in this game, Texas did get lucky here. 2 of the biggest bonehead plays damn-near cost them this victory. Marcus Griffin personal foul when it would have been 3rd and 19 for the Huskers and then Orakpo's roughing the passer on the last play of the game - still can't believe that!!
THE BEST GAMES THAT NO ONE SAW:
Although this got lost in the hoop-la of the other "big games", there were 2 unbelievable games right here in our backyard (Big 12). Check it out...
Baylor was down by 18 to Kansas with nine minutes to go in the game - Shawn Bell threw 3 of his 5 TDs in that time and Baylor came back to win 36-35 in the final minute. Most notable here - this was the first Baylor homecoming win in like 9 years.
The aggies, playing against the Oklahoma State Cowboys, scored a touchdown in the last 3 seconds to put the game into overtime. They won in overtime by blocking an extra point. WOW!!! More on the aggies below.
TOP PERFORMERS OF THE WEEKEND:
OK guys, I'm limited to the little bit that I watched/listened to and read about, but 2 guys in particular stand out. And yes, I'm biased towards one. :)
Shawn Bell of Baylor - He had 394 yards and 5 touchdowns. As I said above, 3 came in the final 9 minutes in true come-back fashion.
Colt McCoy of Texas - This kid continues to grow up every single week. He made some absolutely incredible plays in this game. 3 key things with Colt that are really starting to become apparent:
1. He's more comfortable with the offense - he's less of a "robot" and starting to expand his options in the plays that are being called
2. His team is more behind him now than they have been - it's very apparent. They have confidence in him and rightfully so. He knows he's not the play maker - he's the play enabler and he's starting to really embrace and shine in this roll.
3. His toughness and confidence has absolutely sky-rocketed. First, he had 2 scrambles of 8 and 10 yards that resulted in first downs. One of them was on 3rd down. Second, that last drive that took them into field position - he looked like a seasoned veteran.
MOST FASCINATING TEAM THUS FAR:
I've talked a lot about them, and yes, I'm a longhorn fan, but I'm going with the Texas A&M Aggies. As a whole, this team is not a great team - especially on defense. They're just barely getting by against some mediocre competition (last-minute wins against Kansas, Okie State and Army). BUT, most importantly, they find ways to win - and that really speaks volumes at any level. Next week's at Baylor will be VERY interesting. Why? Because the last time the Aggies visited Waco, they got beat and last year, in College Station, they damn-near got beat. Baylor is much improved, but A&M has to be confident. Baylor should put some points on these guys too.
The last 3 games will be by and far A&M's toughest - Nebraska, OU and Texas. Off hand, you'd think they will have to be much better to have a chance to win these games, but who knows, these wins may be just what may propel them to the top. Although they've been good this season - 3 straight losses against the upper echelon teams to close out the year may mark the end of the Franchione era. We shall see.
QUICK NOTE ON THE BCS
Thank you pollsters for 2 things:
1. Michigan at #2
2. Texas ahead of ND
QUICK FIVE AROUND THE NFL
1. Anyone want to bet that Simms will not be back as Tampa's QB? And how about that 62 yarder to win it? Man, what a game. Here's one for you - look for Saban to take a look at Simms at year's end as Miami's QB.
2. Is it me or are the Eagles the best team to be 4-3? Rande Barber really gave McNabb fits yesterday taking two INTs to the house, but man is Donovan playing well or what this year? Wouuld love to see them beat out the Cowboys for the division, but we shall see (NO, I'm not a Cowboys fan).
3. Is the tide turning in Houston? Probably not, but that was one hell of an impressive win yesterday. And yes, David Carr is STILL the most efficicent passer in the league. Good move by the Texans to pass on VY - would have been steps backwards. I think Kubiak will certainly make a big difference here.
4. And finally, Oakland gets a win!!! I guess that Arizona loss to the Bears last Monday night really hurt them and their psyche - hey, it's Arizona after all.
5. Is there anyone in the league who is having worse luck this year than Ben Roethlesburger???
Alright guys, bring on the comments - we'll do it again later this week.
What a crazy weekend of football on at both levels. There were about 5 total
minutes or so this weekend where it looked as if the polls were going to
take a serious sucker-punch. Oh so close...
And did you happen to see the Houston Texans absolutely steam roll the
Jacksonville Jaguars? What the hell is going??
Obviously, as you know by now, seeing as that Saturday was our first day at
home with the new baby, I didn't get to watch hours and hours of meaningful
(to me) football. I fear those days may be long gone for a quite a while.
Might be time to up the sports package to maximize my more-closed window of
opportunity. Yea right...
Anyway, here are some highlights from the weekend:
THE BEST OF THE BEST:
This was like survival of the fittest in these close games (the "big" ones).
The interesting thing about all of them, I think, is that the better teams
actually ended up winning - the test games that you end up winning are usually the most meaningful and important ones.
Tennessee - U.G.L.Y.:
Well this was certainly an ugly game for the Vols - their offense (usually one of the most potent in the nation) was anemic to say the least - not at all unlike last year when Tennessee lost 6-3. Fortunately for them, the defense played one hell of a game. On Ainge's second INT, the defender was forced out at the Tennessee 8 yard line - the defense held for a field goal. Although probably not talked about much, that was probably the game right there. Although Ainge struggled quite a bit in this game, he held tough and was able to "stop the bleeding" as it were - in other words, he never let it get out of hand. Unfortunately for the Vols, this the kind of game that they will get from the rest of their opponents including games at S. Carolina next week and LSU following that. They still need some help from Florida to make it to the SEC championship game, but they absolutely must win out.
SoCal Breakdown:
I don't know how Notre Dame continues to win these games like this, but give them credit, they are winning them. If I'm a UCLA fan right now, I'm screaming about the 3rd and 6 play that the Bruins ran with a minute to go - all you need is a first down to ice this game and you're playing against a very mediocre (at best) defense whom you've picked apart most of the day - THROW THE BALL!!! You're not playing Michigan or Florida here - the defense is the Irish's biggest weakness. Oh so close. And kudos to the Bruins, there aren't many folks who gave them half of a chance in this game - especially at the end. We talk about it a lot, but the Bruins coach played way too conservative there at the end - I'm not sure he knew HOW to win that game at the end. You have to play to win in a situation like that and if you lose the game by being aggressive, that's a hell of a lot better than pop Warner play calling followed by a complete breakdown in defense. Needless to say this would have been a HUGE win for UCLA and a big confidence builder going into the final stretch.
Read a great quote from Stewart Mandel from Cnnsi.com (I'm paraphrasing here) - he said Notre Dame continues to have moments of greatness on offense, a little bit of luck and most important, they keep winning - but are they really getting any better? Great question - their offensive line and overall defense is pretty weak. They now rank 99th in rushing offense in the country.
Home away from Home:
As shocking as it is, Lincoln Nebraska seems to be the Horns home away from home - they've never lost there since the Big 12 was formed. This was a crazy game and one that left me scratching my head and wondering - was this a good win or a lucky win??? I've come to the conclusion that this was a very VERY good win for the horns (and a little lucky). I was pleasantly surprised to see them get rewarded for this win even though the teams ahead of them also won.
I must admit that I had my doubts throughout this game as to whether or not Colt McCoy was playing well or not. I came to the conclusion (after reading numerous stats and rewatching parts) that Colt played a hell of a game. Rather, it was Greg Davis who, yet again, handcuffed this team in numerous instances. He played ultra-conservative and was (big surprise) very predictable at times. The play calling when the Horns were in the red zone was abysmal. He finally had the right idea, but at the absolute wrong time - for the first time in the game, when Texas had the ball inside the 20, he called a fade route to Lymas Sweed - IN DOUBLE COVERAGE WITH 30 SECONDS LEFT!!! Had that ball been intercepted, my head would have literally exploded. Where the hell was that play call during the last 3 drives into the red zone???
I will confess that I had no idea that the weather conditions were going to be as bad as they were and as such, you are somewhat limited in what you can do. BUT, I just feel like we aren't putting our best athletes into position to make the kinds of plays that they are capable of making and that's infuriating at times. How about we try getting the ball into the hands of our running backs ON THE RUN???!! Have you noticed that 99% of the time, they hand the ball to the guys when they are standing still? Obviously it works at times, but I'd like to see some plays that focus more on getting Charles the ball out of the backfield, etc. so that he can have the room to make some moves. Anyway, Greg Davis is a mediocre coordinator in my mind and there were times on Saturday when it showed. (More on Texas' offense responding to this below).
With all of that said, a HUGE kudos to Nebraska. Tell me honestly how many of you who watched the game thought that Nebraska would come back to take the lead? I thought for sure that Texas would roll on them in the second half. Texas sacked Taylor 4 times in the first half and ZERO times in the second. That's great coaching right there. And give Nebraska credit - they opened up the playbook and made some BIG plays when they needed them the most. Callahan certainly played to win.
Stat of the game - OK, I swear I'm not making this up. When I was talking with folks about the game, I kept saying how it seemed like there were a half dozen or so plays that really gave Nebraska their boost. Well, heard this crazy stat this morning - Nebraska ran 59 plays and had a total of 340 yards. Of those, 7 plays went for 215. What does that mean? It means that 52 of their plays (88%) went for 125 yards. That's 2.4 yards a pay. That's some damn good defense if you think about it. And two of those 7 big plays included a double reverse and a flee flicker - you don't see those everyday.
Bottom line - Although they fought hard in this game, Texas did get lucky here. 2 of the biggest bonehead plays damn-near cost them this victory. Marcus Griffin personal foul when it would have been 3rd and 19 for the Huskers and then Orakpo's roughing the passer on the last play of the game - still can't believe that!!
THE BEST GAMES THAT NO ONE SAW:
Although this got lost in the hoop-la of the other "big games", there were 2 unbelievable games right here in our backyard (Big 12). Check it out...
Baylor was down by 18 to Kansas with nine minutes to go in the game - Shawn Bell threw 3 of his 5 TDs in that time and Baylor came back to win 36-35 in the final minute. Most notable here - this was the first Baylor homecoming win in like 9 years.
The aggies, playing against the Oklahoma State Cowboys, scored a touchdown in the last 3 seconds to put the game into overtime. They won in overtime by blocking an extra point. WOW!!! More on the aggies below.
TOP PERFORMERS OF THE WEEKEND:
OK guys, I'm limited to the little bit that I watched/listened to and read about, but 2 guys in particular stand out. And yes, I'm biased towards one. :)
Shawn Bell of Baylor - He had 394 yards and 5 touchdowns. As I said above, 3 came in the final 9 minutes in true come-back fashion.
Colt McCoy of Texas - This kid continues to grow up every single week. He made some absolutely incredible plays in this game. 3 key things with Colt that are really starting to become apparent:
1. He's more comfortable with the offense - he's less of a "robot" and starting to expand his options in the plays that are being called
2. His team is more behind him now than they have been - it's very apparent. They have confidence in him and rightfully so. He knows he's not the play maker - he's the play enabler and he's starting to really embrace and shine in this roll.
3. His toughness and confidence has absolutely sky-rocketed. First, he had 2 scrambles of 8 and 10 yards that resulted in first downs. One of them was on 3rd down. Second, that last drive that took them into field position - he looked like a seasoned veteran.
MOST FASCINATING TEAM THUS FAR:
I've talked a lot about them, and yes, I'm a longhorn fan, but I'm going with the Texas A&M Aggies. As a whole, this team is not a great team - especially on defense. They're just barely getting by against some mediocre competition (last-minute wins against Kansas, Okie State and Army). BUT, most importantly, they find ways to win - and that really speaks volumes at any level. Next week's at Baylor will be VERY interesting. Why? Because the last time the Aggies visited Waco, they got beat and last year, in College Station, they damn-near got beat. Baylor is much improved, but A&M has to be confident. Baylor should put some points on these guys too.
The last 3 games will be by and far A&M's toughest - Nebraska, OU and Texas. Off hand, you'd think they will have to be much better to have a chance to win these games, but who knows, these wins may be just what may propel them to the top. Although they've been good this season - 3 straight losses against the upper echelon teams to close out the year may mark the end of the Franchione era. We shall see.
QUICK NOTE ON THE BCS
Thank you pollsters for 2 things:
1. Michigan at #2
2. Texas ahead of ND
QUICK FIVE AROUND THE NFL
1. Anyone want to bet that Simms will not be back as Tampa's QB? And how about that 62 yarder to win it? Man, what a game. Here's one for you - look for Saban to take a look at Simms at year's end as Miami's QB.
2. Is it me or are the Eagles the best team to be 4-3? Rande Barber really gave McNabb fits yesterday taking two INTs to the house, but man is Donovan playing well or what this year? Wouuld love to see them beat out the Cowboys for the division, but we shall see (NO, I'm not a Cowboys fan).
3. Is the tide turning in Houston? Probably not, but that was one hell of an impressive win yesterday. And yes, David Carr is STILL the most efficicent passer in the league. Good move by the Texans to pass on VY - would have been steps backwards. I think Kubiak will certainly make a big difference here.
4. And finally, Oakland gets a win!!! I guess that Arizona loss to the Bears last Monday night really hurt them and their psyche - hey, it's Arizona after all.
5. Is there anyone in the league who is having worse luck this year than Ben Roethlesburger???
Alright guys, bring on the comments - we'll do it again later this week.
posted by The Bearden Wonder at 1:34 PM
1 Comments:
I wonder where Jevan Sneed will transfer to?
Post a Comment
<< Home