The Longhorns Toughest Opponent

A bye week....

Won't get into next week's Texas/aggie match up too much today, but I will say the off week scares me. This team has some really good momentum going while the aggies do not - time off is the worst and best remedy for each of those, respectively. Bottom line - Texas HAS to win this game...if they aren't treating this game as a must win than we'll probably lose. I promise you the aggies are treating it as such.

But enough about that - plenty of time for that next week. Let's see, what do we have on the docket for this weekend, anything???

Ohio State vs. Michigan:
Ahh yes, this little gem. This should be a pretty good game as I honestly think both teams are pretty evenly matched. Either way, I think the Big 10 champ may just get creamed in the Rose Bowl this year, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

If you believe the great speculators out there (and at times I do), this looks to be Lloyd Carr's last season in Ann Arbor - and I think it will as well. I gotta think Michigan can pull out the victory here, especially if they get their skill guys 100% healthy. Obviously Michigan's defense is going to be greatly tested - and they've shown flashes of crap all year. I think this will be a pretty high-scoring game and I definitely believe that the aura, fate, emotion, etc. (what ever you want to call it - the intangible) is on Michigan's side and I'll look for Lloyd to get the most rewarding victory of his career while at Michigan (yes, even more than that AP national champ in '97).

Michigan - 37
Ohio State - 28

West Virginia at Cincinnati:
If you would have told me 3 months ago that this would be one of the better games on the weekend before Thanksgiving I would have called you crazy. Yet here we are...

I know Pat White is a tremendous athlete, but I gotta say, I'm not totally sold on these guys being as good as they were last year. They are too turnover prone - if they can get through this game without turning the ball over, they will have a very good shot. I believe Cincy is near the top of the nation, if not at the top, in takeaways too so that doesn't bode well for the Mountaineers. With that said, Cincy is a darling team this year and we all know what happens when these guys face upper echelon competition - they usually fall back down to earth. That win over UCONN would mean something if I thought UCONN was halfway deserving of their 15 minutes of fame. I'm going W. Virginia here, but in a very close game - this could go either way with a field goal.

West Virginia - 34
Cincy - 32

Oklahoma at Texas Tech (UPSET SPECIAL):
So, most everyone reading this (including Tech fans) will say I'm crazy, but here me out. So Oklahoma has only played 2 true road games this year (I'm not counting the Tulsa game for obvious reasons and the Texas game was a neutral site) - at Colorado where they lost, and at Iowa State where they didn't pull out the victory until the last few minutes of the game. Simply put, they haven't played well on the road, especially on defense.

On the other hand, Leach seems dead-set on getting the refs from the Texas game fired - it ain't going to happen Mike, get your sh*t together and get your team ready to play. Beating OU would be HUGE for this team and would most certainly salvage the tank job they've done over the last 5 weeks. And if I'm the defensive coordinator, I'm killing myself to ensure that this defense has the game of the year.

Oklahoma is too well coached to blow these last two games and miss the Big 12 championship (unlike Texas last year), but they are more than capable of losing this game.

Texas Tech - 42
Oklahoma - 37

Other CFB Notes:

• So Tom Osborne is still "undecided" on Callahan's fate as Nebraska's head coach....Rrrriiiiight.
  
• No one can ruin a good football game like espn - they continuously try and force a "compelling" story with sideline reporters. For example, in tonight's Oregon/Arizona game (more on this below), the sideline reporter is interviewing the owner of the Anaheim Angels and asking about A-Rod and Barry Bonds. IT'S A FOOTBALL GAME!!! And no one cares, not one person watching cares what this guy thinks - I promise. It's embarrassing for every single person involved - including us viewers.
  
• So I'm sitting here and there's about 11 minutes to go and Oregon is down by 14....to Arizona. Let me put this into perspective - if Arizona pulls this game out, they're STILL not bowl eligible. Of course Dennis Dixon is out of the game with an injury.
  
• I am a believer (especially this year) that most teams in the top 50 can beat most other teams in the top 50 on any given Saturday. BUT, Oregon has no business losing to Arizona - they've faced a lot of adversity with injuries, but if you're going to be included in the national title debate, you're going to have to beat teams like Arizona. Granted, the game isn't over yet....
• The current Oregon game notwithstanding, interesting point/story by Stewart Mandel this week (actually, response to his mailbag). He was looking at the top 3 teams (LSU, Oregon and Kansas) and how they've faired this year against bowl eligible teams and ranked opponents. LSU had beaten more bowl-eligible teams (8) and more ranked opponents (4). But, Kansas and Oregon are closer than some may think - Kansas had beaten one more bowl-eligible team and they were tied on victories over ranked opponents. Bottom line: don't count out those Jayhawks as a fluke just yet.
• And the Ducks lose - thanks for playing Oregon...and it looks like Pac 10 lovers out there take yet another hit. It will be complete when Arizona State loses to Arizona to close out the year.

Heisman Watch:
Alright, I'm only doing this for you, the readers as you all know how much of a joke I think this award is. With that, here's my Fabulous 5 heading to New York (in no particular order):

Darren McFadden, Arkansas - There is no better pure running back in college football today. The Razorbacks' record notwithstanding, he's a workhorse who, I believe, will be a pretty high draft pick in next year's draft (yes, I know spending too much on RB is cardinal sin #1 in the NFL, but this kid is good)

Tim Tebow, Florida - His performance last week may have sealed the deal for him (accounting for 7 TDs and about 67% of your team's offensive output). Before he's done at Florida, he may be the best running QB...ever. Yea, I said it. He's up there in terms of front runner.

Glenn Dorsey, LSU - I know it's uncool to have a defensive player (much less a defensive lineman) in the Heisman discussion, but this guy is a freak. Hands down, the best interior defensive player this year...by a mile. He'll be a top 3 pick in next year's draft. He carries that defense, and that's a bold statement considering that defense.

Dennis Dixon, Oregon - After last night, his chances are gone and he'll likely be replaced by the gentleman sitting on the fringe (see below). He's been a great player and certainly a big-time play maker. I would still take Tebow over him in a heartbeat, but he's been the real deal.

Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech - If this kid isn't invited to New York it will be, yet again, more evidence of just how much of a joke this award really is - beauty pageant for sportswriters and former winners who watch about 1 and a half games every week. There is no receiver in the country who is even in the same ballpark as this kid in terms of skill and talent...and he's a freshman...which will probably be why he won't be there. For crying out loud, he's broken 2-3 receiving records....halfway through the season. Get him there.

On the Fringe: Chase Daniel, Missouri - After Oregon's loss last night, he just may be in the serious discussion...until they lose to Kansas.

NBA:
You want to talk about business negligence - take a look at the New York Knicks' organization. Do the owners of this organization not care about their franchise or image? If I'm the majority owner here I'm firing EVERYONE below me - GM, head coach, President, secretaries, everyone. I'm not sure how one lets an organization get to a point like this. First, it was the Isiah Thomas debacle in the GM role (worst NBA GM of all time...by a mile). Then, it was the Isiah as a head coach experiment (going nowhere fast). THEN, it was the Isiah Thomas sexual harassment trial which gave a black eye to this organization that may never heal. Finally, the Stephon Marbury incident - what a complete joke. Memo to NBA teams around the country - don't sign Marbury when he's released from the Knicks....just don't. Every team he's been apart of has improved immensely following his departure.

Gotta be the worst organization in all of professional sports right now.

NFL:
Dwight Freeney out for the year for the Colts (with possibility of others following) - things are starting to come apart for the defending champs. Not panic time just yet, but definitely time for a bit of concern. Remember, they were without Bob Sanders for just about all of the season last year and were giving up hundreds of rushing yards a game to close out the year. Things aren't so bad when you have to rely on Peyton Manning.

That's what I got guys - I'll do a recap/Turkey Day weekend preview early next week. Have a good weekend.

Changing My Tune

I know I have been pretty hard on this Texas team, and early on I think it was deservedly so, but I must say I was quite impressed with this team yesterday (except the 4th quarter - more on that below). Colt McCoy played like a man possessed and looked (finally) like the true leader of this offense...and team. I thought he played one hell of a game. And Jamaal Charles...are you kidding me? He RAN like a man possessed yesterday and I'll tell you what - he's more patient now and he's waiting for those holes to open up between the tackles and he's hitting them hard. I may be wrong here, but I think he had over 80 yards in the first quarter and almost all of his total yards in the first half. Hopefully his injury is nothing serious - they seemed to be doing fine with out him and why rush it if you don't have to.

And to add on to that, the offensive line (with their OTHER senior going out with an injury) really stepped up and played well. I'd like to think these last few games will go a long way to helping these young guys heading into next year - they should have some real confidence to build on. With Charles playing so well, Ogbonnaya only got 1 carry, but he caught 3 balls for 32 yards and two of those 3 came on 3rd and longish (5-7 yards) so those were big plays. Nice to know you can count on a backup RB to make those kinds of plays.

But now let's talk about the defense - somewhat of a paradox in this game. Both the most impressive and least impressive parts of the game. Normally, giving up 466 yards would not be a bright spot, but we're talking about Tech so I can certainly live with that. More importantly, they held Tech to a 3-and-out in the first drive, a field goal in the second drive and only gave up 3 points total for the first quarter. They gave up 0 points in the third quarter. All of this is quite impressive given how shaky they've been all year and the fact that, again, it was Tech.

But then you've got the fourth quarter. I'll be honest, watching the defense, literally, quit playing in the fourth quarter was almost more than I could take. They were getting pressure on Harrell all day, tackling quite well and not giving up big plays. Then, all of a sudden, the fourth quarter starts and they look like they had just stepped on the field. They gave up TD drives of 2, 5 and 1 play in the final quarter - that means they let Tech score fast. If not for our offense in that final period, the defense would have lost that game for the Horns - 23 points in a quarter is a lot....and how about stopping just one of the 2-point conversions???!!! They made that look way too easily.

All in all, the fourth quarter quit job by the defense aside, this team looked very, VERY good on this day and honestly, these guys looked like a team that is (FINALLY) starting to gel and can really compete with some of the better teams around. And I'll say this - it was a good coaching win. I think our coaches did a damn good job of calling this game - the pooch kick on the kickoff was brilliant and really a dagger for Tech. Great win, but you've got an aggie team in 2 weeks who will be playing their super bowl of the season. Texas MUST win this game.

And finally, you guys know how hard it is for me to say this, but this was a very good coaches win too. Key points here: the tackling (except in the fourth), the recovery of all on-sides attempt, the fake field goal call, fourth down conversions and the "onsides pooch kickoff" - all great plays and all great coaching decisions. This team was prepared today and it was very nice to see - now let's see if we can do it for 2 straight games. The bye week worries me a bit.

Key Stats of the Game:

• I know Tech's not a running team, but it's always great to keep a team to 10 yards rushing while you throw up 283. Memo to Leach - you can't win a lot of games if you can't semi run the ball.
• Texas had 283 rushing and 268 passing - you really can't ask for more balance than that.
  
• Colt did have that 1 INT, but I can live with them when you're trying to punch it into the end zone in the final 20 seconds of the half...just wish the pass had a chance, it wasn't even close.
• Texas still needs to hold on to the ball - they fumbled 3 times, but didn't lose any of them - Jamaal had 2 of those fumbles.
  
• Offensive line gave up 1 sack....nice job by the offensive line AND Colt for evading rushers.
• Colt McCoy: 51 yards rushing....still quietly amounting a pretty decent rushing season, for a 13-year old white kid.
  
• Between the 3rd and half-way through the 4th quarter Texas had scoring drives of 17 plays, 16 plays and 10 plays - love to see that.
• Followed by scoring drives of 3 plays and 4 plays late in the fourth - these looks even better after the above stat.
  
• Finally, Texas converted 67% of third downs and 100% of fourth downs.

Memo to Mike Leach:
Look, I like Leach a lot and love having him in the Big 12 and I think the frustration of the loss may have gotten the best of him, but there is plenty that you can look at in your own locker room that would have made a difference in this game....don't blame the officials. I know, there were a couple of pretty bad calls (Texas' first TD was a really bad call initially, but in the officials' defense, I don't think there's anyway you could conclusively overturn that), but there were other calls that went Tech's way in the fourth quarter. You want to bitch about something - bitch about your kick return team moving away from the pooch kickoff.....you might want to let those guys know it's live ball on kickoffs. And your tackling was atrocious (17 missed in the first half by Tech) - they made Texas look like a premier tackling machine...which they're not. The two plays he was most bitching about - the refs got correct. The tech player clearly dropped the ball on the TD reception - not even close. I will grant you the holding call could have gone either way, but again, there's a lot more to the game than those 2 plays. And finally, his call for a roughing the passer was way out of line - not even close.

I imagine you will expect a call from the Big 12....with an invoice following shortly after. One more thing, can you please beat OU for us next weekend?

Other Observations from the Weekend:

• Love that Ohio State lost - keep the wrenches coming this year.
  
• Still picking Michigan to beat the Buckeyes
• Kansas may be the most methodical team in the country - they go out and do the same thing each time and win. I'm giving them a slight edge over Missouri at this point.
• Thanks for playing BC - see you next year.
  
• Way to close out the final game in the Orange Bowl with a sense of pride Miami - 48-0 shutout to Virginia...WOW.
  
• I'm sorry, but I just don't think Ohio State is the best one-loss team - they (still) have beaten no one.
  
• But I do think Illinois is a pretty darn good team - look out which ever team has to face them in their bowl game.
  
• Teams whom I think will underachieve in whatever bowl they go to: Ohio State, Arizona State, Alabama, Rutgers, South Florida, GaTech, BC, Iowa, Hawaii and Kentucky
• Teams whom I think will make big statements in whatever bowl they go to: Oregon, USC, Michigan, Kansas, Cincy, Auburn, Florida, Georgia and LSU.
• Team to watch the next couple of weeks: Georgia. They are looking VERY good lately. They get Kentucky and Georgia Tech to close out the year before facing (probably) LSU in the SEC title game. Look out Tiger fans - not a team to be taken lightly...at all.
  
• I'm still going with LSU to win it all....regardless of who they may face.
• Hmmmm.....so maybe ND's short comings a few years back weren't Willingham's fault after all...I have zero respect for the Notre Dame athletic organization...zero. They deserve what they're getting and will continue to get with Weiss. He's simply not a very good college coach. It's one thing to lose to upper echelon teams, but Air Force and Navy??? Sorry, but no top-tier recruits on those teams.
  
• Sorry guys, but Hawaii simply isn't that good. They've got a competent QB and a good coach - that's really it. They will lose to Boise State and they will lose whatever bowl game they play in. Write it down.
  

NFL Notes:
So didn't get to catch too much action on Sunday, but watched a lot of recaps and some of the Colts game and Cowboys game. Here are my observations:

• Are you kidding me Petyon Manning - 6 INTS??? What a horrible, HORRIBLE game for the Colts - you gotta wonder about these guys. I know they're still good (and damn near/should have won the game), but that was a pathetic offensive performance.
• But not quite as pathetic as the special teams performance: gave up kickoff AND punt returns for TD and missed a 29-yard field goal to win it...I think that guy was supposed to be money.
  
• And I'm sorry guys, but San Diego sucks....bad. Phillip Rivers is just an OK quarterback. They've got the best back in Tomlinson, but that's really it in terms if players you can rely on week in and week out. Horrible offensive team. Hell, Manning had 6 picks and still outplayed Rivers.
  
• Colts still take the #2 seed in the AFC...no question.
  
• Let's be honest, I know there's a lot of games left, but it's really down to the Cowboys and the Packers in the NFC....there's no one else that's going to compete with those guys down the stretch.
• I have to wonder if the Giants are starting to toy with the idea of moving beyond Eli Manning - he's just not that good. He's not bad, he's just not that good. I put him and Rivers on the same plane....along with a bunch of other QBs.
  
• I really dislike Tony Romo....the same way I really dislike Tom Brady. I would enjoy seeing a jaw-shattering hit on either one of those guys in the next few weeks (I don't think Romo would recover, but I do think Brady is pretty tough).
• Part of me thinks the Titans (now that they've lost) will begin to completely unravel. I know they were without 2 starters on defense (and Haynesworth being one of them), but that team is just not very solid. VY finally had a respectable passing game, but threw 2 more picks - he continues to turn the ball over more than he converts TDs. SERIOUS sophomore slump for this guy - part of me wonders if Norm Chow and Fisher are keeping him in a small box too much???
• This proves that if you can stop the Titans' running game - you can beat them fairly easily.

That's what I got folks, have a good week. Bye week for the Horns next week, but fear not, I'll have the Rant in full swing by Friday.