Author: rickro51 Page 22 of 36

At the end of Saturday, the Big 10 West has two very unlikely leaders:  Purdue and Northwestern.  Both were assumed to be among the also rans 8 days ago.  Both have unexpected tail winds in their efforts to be the unlikely West winner (and probable sacrificial lamb to Ohio State in the Big 10’s championship tilt) We believe there is a 3rd entity sharing the West lead:  Covid-19.

Wisconsin looked nothing less than fantastic in their opening demolition of  Illinois.  Graham Mertz, their redshirt stand-in for Jack Coan, was not perfect.  In 21 passes, he actually threw one incompletion.

But with Wisconsin’s game today scraped with Nebraska and with next week’s Purdue showdown in Covid jeopardy, both the virus and the Big 10’s questionable decision not to have any bye dates have taken center stage.

Almost as bad for the Badgers, the  ballyhooed Mertz will likely not be able to play at Michigan in two weeks.  One small morsel of good news is that the Wolverines looked very human in their upset loss to their “little brother” today.  Hopefully, the Badgers can play 6 games.  If not, current rules render them ineligible to take on the Buckeye machine.

Northwestern and Purdue have also had to surmount hurdles in 2020. Northwestern literally went from the penthouse to the outhouse in 2019.  They won the West in 2018 and then did a 1-8 faceplant in the Big Ten last year.  In addition to getting the bad taste from 2019 out of their mouth, they had to rally from a 17-point deficit in Iowa City to nip the Hawkeyes, 21-20.  Pat Fitzgerald once again showed his coaching brilliance as this was the 6th time since 2014 the Wildcats have surmounted 17-point deficits.

The dean of Big 10 coaches, Kirk Ferentz, is painfully aware of Fitzgerald’s coaching prowess. Saturday represented the 3rd consecutive time in Iowa City that the Hawkeyes held a halftime lead over NW, only to lose.  With the latest comeback win, Fitzgerald increased his lifetime record against Iowa to an impressive 9-6.

Purdue has had to deal with the absence of their best player, the uber talented Rondale Moore.  The Boilers’ Covid-positive coach, Jeff Brohm, was sidelined for Purdue’s opener.  The Boilers did get a bit of Covid luck when the Illini starting QB, Brandon Peters, was a 12th-hour Covid scratch this morning.

Both co-leaders have been blessed with soft crossover schedules with the East as neither drew Ohio State, Penn State or Michigan.

Given Covid’s pronounced influence on the West, the Odyssey would like to amend one comment with all due respect to the Boilermakers and Wildcats.  Covid-19 is the division’s undisputed leader.

When the Big 10 prematurely shut down the football season in August, nobody was more voiciferous in dissent than Nebraska.  Those bold, brash Cornhuskers briefly  gave thought to defying the Big 10 and concocting their own schedule.

Their possible mutiny so ticked off ESPN talking head Desmond Howard that the Heisman Trophy winner wanted Nebraska banished from the Big 10.

When multiple parties suggest a divorce, the honeymoon is definitely over.  Nebraska’s fall from the elite has been pronounced since their 3 national titles in the 1990’s.  When is the last time the Huskers won a conference championship?  Only trivia buffs can tell you: 1999.

The latest Nebraska pratfall occurred Saturday in Columbus to the tune of 52-17. Nebraska’s boldness and brashness in August did not carry over to late October.

Since Urban Meyer was hired for the 2012 season, the beat goes on against the Big Ten’s boss.  Here are the scores of Nebraska’s last 6 games against Ohio State:

2020          17-52

2019            7-48

2018          31-36

2017          14-56

2016           3-62

2012         28-63

Everybody knows what a perennial power the Buckeyes are, but those who remember the stout defense of the Black Shirts in olden times must still be aghast.

Nebraska has fallen to such low ebb that the local papers were touting various “green shoots” in their latest 35-point smackdown.  After 5-7 and 4-8 seasons,  grasping for any straws is understandable if somewhat pathetic.

Their Big 10 schedule vengefully punished the potential mutineers.  Nebraska’s next 3 games:

Home versus Wisconsin.

Away against perhaps the most improved team in the country in Northwestern.

Home versus Penn State.

Ouch!!  Nebraska may catch a big break in that Wisconsin’s new wonderkind QB, Graham Mertz, may be a COVID scratch.  Amazingly, Nebraska had the potential to start 2020 against TWO QBs who went 20 for 21 in their 2020 openers.

A winning record for Nebraska in 2020 would be an achievement with that slate.

The Odyssey has long felt Nebraska is misplaced in the Big 10.  The conference only offers one regional rivalry in Iowa.  In eras of Nebraska glory in the Big 12, the Huskers were able to recruit well in Texas and even California.  Those days seem to be gone.  The irony for head coach Scott Frost is that his former job with Group of Five UCF offered more fertile recruiting opportunities than his fallen alma mater.

Nebraska made a deal with the devil for Big 10 monetary riches that was partly necessitated by those egotistical tyrants in Austin.  Hopefully, counting all that money will help compensate for their prolonged fall from the top.

The Odyssey loves Gene Chizik as a commentator on the SEC Network.  Knowledgeable and very well spoken.  Chizik also has a national championship in his back pocket,  no small thanks to Cam Newton.

However, our criticism-obsessed society views Chizik as a bit of a failure.  Less than 2 years after massive rolls of toilet paper were unfurled at Toomer’s Corner, he was unceremoniously pink slipped by the  Auburn poobahs after going winless in SEC play.

Let’s fast forward 8 years.  Ed Orgeron, formerly viewed as a gravel-voiced country bumpkin, was  newly anointed as a Cajun savant in January — courtesy of a 15-0 record that still understates the grandeur of their accomplishment.   You get to swagger when you conquer Georgia, Florida, Clemson and Alabama in one season.  Toss in Chizik’s former employer, Auburn. Amazing!  The Bayou Bengals had a QB, Joe Burrow, who probably had the best season ever for a QB — totally astonishing in every regard.

The experts totally underestimated the effect of massive departures from that magical LSU squad in 2020.  Laughably, LSU was nationally ranked 5th in a preseason poll.  Meanwhile, the Odyssey was thinking that LSU might indeed finish 5th — in the SEC West!

However, even the Odyssey was surprised at the way LSU has played in its first 3 games.  The Tigers were at least 2 TD favorites in each and are sitting at 1-2 with the teeth of their schedule looming.

LSU should be favored in no more 3 games going forward:  home games versus South Carolina and Ole Miss and a road tilt at Arkansas.  As we write, we think the Tigers are unlikely to win all 3.  Right now, we see LSU finishing at 3-7 or, gasp, 2-8.

The way in which LSU has lost their two games is almost as concerning.  Arkansas and Kentucky shut down Mike Leach’s Air Raid that romped for 623 passing yards against LSU.  If $2.3 million dollar per year hire, Bo Pelini, did not understand the wisdom of playing zone or switching to zone against Mississippi State, he may be overpaid by 2.299 million.  Where was Ed O while KJ Costello was going off? A Pelini intervention was warranted.

Many gave LSU a mulligan after its opening face-plant against Mississippi State.  Massive attrition, new coordinators and the absence of all-world cornerback, Derek Stingley Jr. , made forgiveness quite understandable.

However, the Missouri debacle is not forgivable.   Again, Mizzou receivers were running free, despite missing 3 prominent members of their receiving corps.  Worse, the triggerman was raw, redshirt freshman, Connor Bazelak who threw for 406 — despite Stingley’s presence.

Even worse, LSU blew a golden chance to win the game in the final minute, having first down at the Mizzou 1.  A Mizzou team that was playing without 3 of its 4 top defensive tackles.  LSU had enough timeouts left in its pocket to have ample “free will” in its play calls.  After 2 unsuccessful runs, LSU threw the ball twice.  Both times, Mizzou defenders made excellent plays to thwart the Tigers.  What about a QB sneak, Coach? What about another run?  We know that one of Coach O’s strengths is his delegation to coordinators but, sometimes, the head guy just has to take control. LSU’s questionable play calling extended to their 3rd down calls:  The Tigers were a telling 0 for 10.

As much as the Odyssey loves Coach O,  Saturday is not the only wart in his play-calling resume. Far from it.  LSU’s failure at the 1 reminded us of Florida’s 16-10 win at Baton Rouge in 2016.  Another epic, late failure at the Florida goal line  in the game’s final moments (The irony is not lost on the Odyssey that both these “goal line failure” games were moved because of hurricane issues).

Worst was the arguably the most painful loss for Ole Miss faithful in 2007 — ever.  Sporting a 14-0 lead in Starkville in the 4th quarter,  the underdog Rebels had surprisingly stopped the Bulldogs stone cold through 50 minutes.  Having total game control, Coach O elected to go for a 4th and short at midfield.  Stopped!  The cowbells clanged hopefully as momentum did a 180.  A 48-yard field goal with 18 seconds left gave Mississippi State the most improbable comeback in Egg Bowl history.  This faceplant insured the prompt firing of Coach O.

That play-calling history makes the Odyssey  worry for you,  Coach O!  Was Joe Burrow your Cam Newton?  Will Ed Orgeron morph into Chizik 2.0?  With the postponement of Saturday’s game at Florida, Coach O should feel temporary relief.  The more-than-capable Kyle Trask was salivating at the prospect of 500+ passing yards.   The Orgeron soap opera is deferred for at least one week but will remain must-see TV.

The Gulf Coast had to deal with another huge storm on Saturday.  Football-wise, there was also stormy weather in Florida.

Florida has 7 FBS teams, including 2 that entered Saturday in the Top 10.  How many Florida teams triumphed on Saturday?  The same probability that Governor De Santis will vote for Joe Biden next month:  ZERO.

Miami’s defeat is excusable.  Beating Clemson in their version of Death Valley is as tall a task as a Washington DC politician going thru a whole day without telling a lie.  Clemson is as good as advertised.  They look to be a super team save for their curious inability to block for their kickers.

The Gators travelled to another tough road venue:  College Station, Texas.  Allegedly, A&M was limited to 25,000 fans — with emphasis on allegedly!  A walk-off field goal allowed A&M their first home win over a Top 5 team in 18 years.  Florida was supposed to have a solid D, but the 543 yards of offense by the Aggies offered more evidence of a tall tale.  After the game, Dan Mullin belly ached about how the crowd was a big factor in the game’s outcome and, as a result, that he wants to pack the Swamp for next week’s game versus LSU.  No wonder the USA keeps having Covid issues.  The Odyssey wonders if a Covid death striking down President Trump would have altered Mullin’s thinking.  Probably not.

South Florida’s season morphed from a rebuild into a train wreck on Saturday night.  They were walloped in Tampa, 44-24, by previously winless East Carolina. The USF beat writer noted that their East Carolina contest looked like the most “winnable” game on the balance of their schedule.  Oh, well, the Bulls can always savor their Citadel triumph over the winter.

Florida International will be delighted to see Middle Tennessee’s Asher O’Hara graduate.  After O’Hara torched FIU last year, he led the Blue Raiders to a late game-winning TD.

Florida State’s 42-26 defeat at Notre Dame offered some green shoots as Jordan Travis’ dual-threat QB abilities offers some hope behind an iffy offensive line. However, Travis does not play defense.  After Notre Dame gashed FSU for 353 yards rushing , it is unclear how many Seminoles do.  Oh, well, Florida State can always savor their Jacksonville State triumph over the winter.

Given the results of their Sunshine brethren, Florida Atlantic and Central Florida should be a bit relieved to have Saturday off.  To a degree,  the other 5 Florida teams also took the day off yesterday.

Each Thursday, the Tulsa World’s unique treasure, “The Picker”, takes a stab at predicting some of the weekend’s college and pro games.  While The Picker clearly has solid football knowledge, what sets him apart is his laugh-out-loud commentary.

Two of the funniest college football coaches were Steve Spurrier and Lou Holtz.  Their memorable quips were accumulated over long careers (evidently, South Carolina liked hiring coaches with terrific senses of humor).

In contrast, check out some of the Picker’s gems  from solely one day, last Thursday:

On Jim Harbaugh:  During offseasons, he walks taller than Chuck Norris and Buford Pusser rolled into one.  During games, he soils himself.

On the LA Chargers playing during the pandemic:  They should benefit as they should feel right at home playing in an empty stadium.

Why Bill Belichick loves the cardboard cutouts in empty stadiums:  Many more opportunities to hide spy cameras.

Miami (Florida) and Texas are the Coy and Vance Duke of college football.  We wonder when and if the actual dudes are coming back. (This was written before Miami’s resounding triumph at Louisville which indicates that at least one of the Dukes may be returning).

The Picker decries the piped-in artificial noise, saying that the simulated crowd noise is as artificial as the annual dose of pre-season hype for the Dallas Cowboys.

That, my friends, is clear evidence of a national treasure.

The Picker has totally infiltrated the soul of the Odyssey.  When the San Diego State Aztecs made the incredible, hard-to-believe news that their home games in 2020 and 2021 would be at the infamous Carson soccer stadium that housed the Chargers after their dreaded escape from San Diego, our first reaction was “Is this some type of sick joke”?  Our second reaction:  The Picker would have a field day with this material!

Going into Saturday, the Sun Belt’s historical record against the Big 12 was a humbling 6-70.

Today, that record is 9-70.   Remarkably, none of Saturday’s 3 Sun Belt upsets were fluky.  One common denominator: poor offensive line play (with the exception of Kansas’ 2nd half).

Kansas State clearly lost the line of scrimmage in their 35-31 loss to Arkansas State – not a surprising development as their veteran offensive line of 2019 graduated.  Only Red Wolf turnovers kept the game close.  The Wildcats also found out they have nobody capable of covering the Red Wolves’ man-child receiver, Jonathan Adams Jr.

Iowa State’s defense deserved to win as they did an excellent job of containing Louisiana’s vaunted ground game.  The Rajun Cajuns were limited to 272 yards of total offense.  However, Louisiana had a kickoff return TD and a punt return TD to spell the difference in the game.  Iowa State clearly has a lack of offensive playmakers.  Brock Purdy played,arguably, his worst game as a Cyclone, aided and abetted by a leaky offensive line.

Les Miles had to be dismayed at the halftime score in Lawrence against an unheralded Coastal Carolina team:  28-3.  While the Chanticleers’  found a quarterback in surprise starter, Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina is not to be confused with Appalachian State (the reigning Sun Belt champ).  To Kansas’ credit, the towel was not thrown in, as the Jayhawks played much better in the 2nd half.  Still, two home losses to the Chanticleers in 12 months is not the kickstart badly needed by Miles and the program.

Iowa State and K-State both have raucous fan support, negated as one of the casualties of the pandemic.  I suspect that at least one of those losses would have been prevented in “normal” times.  Which gets us to the inherent unfairness of college football’s caste system.  The Sun Belt’s horrendous 9-70 record is due, in part,  to its has to play virtually all games against the Power 5 on the road.  Two of the few times that the Big 12 visited current Sun Belt teams resulted in horror shows for the visitor.  Prior to Louisiana’s upset of ISU, their only previous win over a Top 25 team was when they hosted and stunned Texas A&M, 29-22, in 1996 (In one of the nastiest revenge paybacks ever, A&M shellacked Louisiana,  66-0, in their 1997 rematch).  In 2004, Troy hosted a Brad Smith-led Missouri squad and prevailed, 24-14.

As horrific as Saturday was for the Big 12, their collective pratfall was almost worse.  Easily the best QB that most have never heard of, Bailey Zappe of Houston Baptist, came so close to pulling off a shocker in Lubbock.  Zappe, 2019’s all-Southland Conference QB, led a furious 2nd half rally only to have their 2-point conversion fail in a 35-33 thriller at Texas Tech.  When Zappe threw for 480 yards against North Texas last week, that was mere prelude for his 567 passing yards against the shell-shocked Red Raiders.

College football always delivers —  even during pandemics.  When new heroes like Adams Jr. and Zappe emerge, such welcome emergence is as inevitable as spring flowers.

Last Saturday, the gloom that had permeated the college football world started to lift.  Cue, arguably, the best song from 1996:  Republica’s “Ready To Go.”

The FCS Kickoff Classic in Montgomery, Alabama pitted Central Arkansas against Austin Peay.  As if to try to make up for the considerable pain caused by the pandemic, the game was a thriller.  Austin Peay scored a very late go- ahead touchdown BUT not quite late enough as Central Arkansas responded with a last-minute touchdown to pull out a victory.

The Bears stayed in Alabama so that they could play their 2nd game in 5 days.  Last night, UCA paid a visit to legendary Legion Field to take on UAB.  The fact that UAB’s superior physical size was a key element in their 45-35 victory over the Bears almost did not matter.  That ESPN3 had live football to offer us college football fanatics was more than enough.

The Odyssey has become a HUGE fan of Central Arkansas football.  Two weeks from now, THE game of the year in Arkansas takes place in Jonesboro as Central Arkansas makes the 2 hour drive from Conway.   Sorry, you haughty Hogs, you will not be playing as you stay sequestered in Fayetteville.  The same Hogs that have been HIDING from playing Arkansas State ever since the Red Wolves ascended to 1-A status in 1974.  While Arkansas State is a quality Sun Belt program, do not pencil in a victory for the Red Wolves over the Bears.  The last time these two programs met was in 2016 on Agriculture Night in Jonesboro:  Central Arkansas pulled off a 28-23 upset.

As for Arkansas refusing to play Arkansas State, we cannot help but appreciate the irony.  Clearly, the Hogs do not wish to have an embarrassing intrastate loss.  But how much pride can you have left?  Your program has suffered home losses to San Jose State, Colorado State and North Texas in the past two years.  Just schedule Arkansas State and the Natural State will have a happening.  PLEASE!  And, for that matter, if you continue to schedule FCS teams, why not Central Arkansas, as well?

Let’s close with an unrelated thought as to the insanity that comes with sports wagering.  Last night, the all-FBS opener occurred when South Alabama made the 90-mile bus ride to play at Southern Miss.  The over/under for total points early in the week rested at 53.5.  The Odyssey thought the “over” was a likelihood.  The final score:  South Alabama was an upset 32-21 winner. For non-math whizzes, that totals to 53.  If you bet the over, the aggravation would have been incalculable.

Southern Miss has one of Conference USA’s best quarterbacks in Jack Abraham.  Abraham led the Golden Eagles into the red zone 5 times.  The results:  one TD, 2 field goals, one botched snap on a chip-shot field goal and no points on a final-minute first and goal.  Add to that, South Alabama’s similar placekicking woes which included a missed extra point.

To minimize such aggravation,  the “socially distanced” Southern Miss cheerleaders were a partial antidote.  They truly looked Golden!

August is normally a time when college football fanatics, such as yours truly, are incredibly excited about the coming season.  In 2020, color me depressed.

I see little possibility that the 2020 season comes off in a meaningful way.  Seemingly each day,  another nugget of distressing news drags fans down.

Yesterday, UConn announced the shuttering of its 2020 year.  Given that the Huskies have now been orphaned into independent status, the announcement is not a surprise given the decimation of their schedule (Six of their games had been axed as the Power 5 conferences focus on conference football).

Earlier in the week, the staff at Colorado State has been accused of covering up Covid-19 cases and encouraging players to practice despite Covid symptoms.  These allegations have been strongly disputed.  Could 1st-year coach, Steve Addazio, really be this dumb and insensitive?  We surely hope not.

Minnesota’s stellar receiver, Rashod Bateman, is the latest star to announce that he will be sitting out 2020.

The Big 10 schedule was just released yesterday.  Rutgers’ opener is against Nebraska on September 5.  But will it be played?  Rutgers has been inundated with 28 positive tests.  The Michigan-Ohio State game has been moved up to October 24.  Both teams have a common bye in November if this date becomes problematic. If played in October, the archrivals will play before November for the first time in almost 80 years.

In better times, we could empathize with Iowa.  A 10th conference game has been added.  Iowa’s reward:  Ohio State.  Given that the Hawkeyes had already drawn Penn State from the East, Iowa’s path to the Big 10 West title just got steeper.

In better times, we might comment as to how Minnesota’s September schedule, usually quite light, is atypically tough.  The Gophers’ first 5 foes: Michigan State, Michigan, Iowa, Wisconsin and Nebraska.

In better times, the Odyssey would be furious that the SEC vetoed the playing of passionate intrastate rivalry games such as Florida-Florida State and South Carolina-Clemson.

However, we need to be realistic.  Even Major League baseball has had issues in its non-bubble resumption.  When a ship starts taking on water, …………….

For all the good the transfer portal can confer, two more disturbing cases have recently arisen.  Two terrific players are spurning the less-than-elite pastures that nurtured their growth for bigger name programs.

Jamie Newman was an electrifying QB for Wake Forest.  Evidently, for Newman, playing in a Power 5 conference was not good enough.  Neither was playing for a winning team.  Newman has gone into the transfer portal with his eyes on big-name programs such as Georgia and Oregon.  If Jake Fromm elects to go pro, Georgia would make sense.  Otherwise, the Ducks would be our call.  Was Newman worried about the departures of 3 seasoned offensive line starters?  In any event, this is another sickening example of the rich getting richer.

Quincy Roche was an elite pass-rushing defensive end for Temple.  So elite that he was named American Athletic Conference player of the year.  So elite that Roche has tied Joe Klecko’s career sack record.  Gone…Temple was not a dumpster fire but a program with a recent winning history.

The Odyssey loves the transfer portal in those cases where lack of playing time is an issue.  However, the cases of Newman and Roche make us want to vomit.

The Odyssey will have 7 months to recover!  We look forward to talking with you in August.

The Odyssey was happy for nice guy Clay Helton.  After USC’s triumph over crosstown UCLA, Helton was given another year to coach the Trojans in spite of continual chatter this fall that he would get the ax.

Some happiness is quite transitory.  Friday night, USC was routed in the Holiday Bowl, 49-24, by Iowa.  Many Helton Haters resurfaced.   Predictably, USC sacked its linebacker coach, DC and special teams coach yesterday.  And why not? USC’s linebacker play was particularly horrendous in San Diego.  The usually button-down Hawkeyes came up with a brilliant, innovative game plan that exploited one of the worst set of USC backers in memory.   Any Iowa play that featured misdirection or made a beeline toward the wide side of the field was a guaranteed winner.  Does Troy Polamalu have any eligibility left?

The USC D was so leaky that Iowa scored TDs on its first 5 possessions.  The Odyssey wondered:  Which was more decrepit:  The Trojan D or the Stadium formerly known as Jack Murphy and Qualcomm? (One of the stadium’s laughable elements:  The scoreboard is exactly the same as when the writer first moved to San Diego in 1983 — right down to the formats and fonts)  The miserable Trojan D was so bad that USC wisely elected to onside kick after a Kedon Slovis bomb narrowed the Iowa advantage to 28-24.   Courage was rewarded as USC’s kicker recovered the brilliantly executed surprise.

However, Trojan ecstasy was very short lived.  Iowa pass-rushing terror, A.J. Epenesa, messed with the elbow  of the brilliant Freshman Slovis on the next series.  The phenom was out for the game.   USC might as well have have headed north on I-5  immediately after his departure.

Slovis  made mincemeat of Iowa’s elite defense before his injury.  The Freshman broke the Pac-12 record for accuracy (minimum 300 attempts) with a 71.9% completion rate, breaking Andrew Luck’s record.   With Slovis and perhaps as many as 17 other starters returning, 2020 prospects will be rosy if Helton can produce any semblance of a defense and can get some helpful freshmen on the squad.  The last possibility  is cloudy as USC’s recruiting rankings to-date have been the worst in the Pac-12 and ranked on a par with Bowling Green.

If Helton cannot shore up the D, Trojan faithful will rue the reported near miss in the Urban Meyer sweepstakes.  Another uncertainty exists in regard to J. T. Daniels, the 5-star Sophomore who was the opening day starter before getting injured.  With the emergence of Slovis, is Daniels the 21st Century version of Wally Pipp?

With so many nagging questions, one pleasant possibility exists.  Barring further injury, the Odyssey believes that Slovis has a chance to go down as perhaps the all-time Pac-12 QB.