College Football Odyssey

After returning from Lubbock on Friday, the thought of enjoying San Diego weather and becoming a Saturday couch potato was incredibly appealing.  However, legendary USC superfan, John Jones, had other ideas.  JJ called and offered me a ticket.  How do you turn down a 50-yard-line ticket on what rated to be a picture perfect day in LA?  Especially when the unbeaten Washington Huskies will be in town with their passing circus?

Two games were almost entirely predictable Saturday.  At Wrigley Field, the first team to crack double digits in the Northwestern-Iowa rockfight would be the winner.  At the iconic LA Memorial Coliseum, getting to 50 seemed like a need for the winner.  And  both so played out.

When the subject came to Washington, 99%+ of the pub was based on 4 players:  Their all-world QB, Michael Penix Jr. and a prodigiously talented trio of receivers by the names of Odunze, Polk and McMillan were the face of 2023 UDub. Imagine the Odyssey’s surprise when the Huskies called many more running plays than expected.  The Washington brain trust must have thought the Trojans’ run D was even more vulnerable than USC’s pass D.

Frankly, the name Dillon Johnson never would have registered with the Odyssey at 4:30PM. While Washington’s 52-42 triumph over USC was  reasonably predictable (and as wildly entertaining as the final score suggests), Johnson’s prominence was nothing short of shocking.  Johnson’s 26 carries resulted in a truckload of yards: 256.  So dominant was the Huskies’ offensive line that Johnson rambled for 199 yards before first contact.  All of which suggests that the USC front 7 has been spending too much time at Manhattan Beach.   Of course, when an offense amasses 573 yards, Penix also had a chance to shine before a line that often gave him ample time.  The Penix highlight of the game was when he was flushed out of the pocket to the left sideline after a Caleb Williams-like escape from the Trojan pass rush.  Just before Penix was forced out of bounds, he threw a seeming prayer 30 yards downfield into double coverage in the corner of the end zone.  A ridiculous touchdown.

The Trojan defeat certainly could not be pinned on Caleb Williams.  For most of the game, he was Houdini, as his amazing ability to avoid the pass rush could seemingly only occur with eyes in the back of Williams’ head.  That Williams could not almost single handedly beat the Huskies came down to 3 plays where the WIlliams magic was trumped by Kryptonite. Duce Robinson dropped a 3rd down pass well in Husky territory which forced a rare Trojan punt (Robinson would later redeem himself by blocking an equally rare Husky punt).  Just before halftime of a 28-28 tie, USC had the ball deep in their own territory.  When you have Superman, you do not go conservative,  Washington’s first sack of the game was very pivotal as Williams fumbled.  The fumble resulted in a 35-28 Husky lead at halftime.

At 42-42, USC’s maligned defense scored a victory of sorts.  A field goal attempt was forced.  Even with a successful field goal, a moral victory in this scorefest, especially when you have #13 QBing your side.  Sure enough, Williams delivered with a TD pass to put the Trojans in front.  Except it didn’t:  holding.  When Williams was sacked on 3rd down, Huskie fans became ecstatic as a punt was forced.  Quickly, UW put the game to bed with a 91-yard TD drive.

NIL money and Tinseltown allure does not resolve all issues.  USC fans are numb from watching the ongoing defensive ineptitude of this squad.  Ronnie Lott must be in tears.  While Johnson was rumbling all over the Coliseum, USC coverage busts were also evident.  It is a shame that USC and Iowa could not pull off a merger like occurs in the business world.  On the drive home, I imagined a team with USC’s offense and Iowa’s defense.  My thought seemed like a perfect solution for America’s two “half teams.”

The Odyssey’s trip to Lubbock was a milestone as it was the last significant college town West of the Mississippi to which we paid a visit.  Texas Tech was hosting TCU in would might have been dubbed the “Disappointment Bowl.” In August, the Odyssey would have pegged the odds that this tilt in West Texas would involve 2 teams without winning records as quite close to zero.

The seasons of the Red Raiders and the Horned Frogs have paralleled each other in 2 striking elements.

Both starting QBs were sidelined last night.  Neither team has recovered from a disheartening loss to a Pac12 team.  The Deion hype machine went into overdrive after CU’s comeback, spine tingling 45-42 victory in which Shadueur Sanders and Travis Hunter made Heisman turns.  Oregon has been touted as the “team nobody wants to play” yet the Red Raiders had Oregon on the ropes in Lubbock.

Texas Tech’s entertaining victory by a 35-28 count was attributable to Tech’s QB play behind Behren Morton being more consistent than TCU’s backup, Josh Hoover.  Morton was 28 for 36 for 282 yards.  Not bad.  Hoover was up and down.  After TCU had stormed back from a 20-7 halftime deficit to take a 21-20 lead, Hoover threw a costly interception in TCU territory that set up the Red Raiders for the go ahead score.  Another Hoover interception with a minute to go spelled doom for the Horned Frogs.

A great irony exists in that QBs seem to instantly go into the portal if the starting job is not theirs.  Last night’s games indicate that instatransfers will, in some cases, be premature.  In last night’s Duke-Wake Forest tilt, the Blue Devils prevailed behind a third-string QB.  Arizona’s surprising season (to some, NOT to the Odyssey) has been fueled by backup QB, Noah Fifita.  We wonder if the touted Jayden de Laura will ever get his job back.  Thursday’s third game was also greatly impacted by a QB injury.  Troy had an easier-than-expected 28-10 triumph over rival South Alabama, due in large measure to an injury last week to USA starting quarterback Carter Bradley.

The Odyssey was delighted that the TCU band made the 314 mile trip from Fort Worth.  Always more fun when 2 bands are involved.  We were scratching our heads when we heard Earth Wind and Fire’s “In The Stone” at halftime for the 2nd time in less than 3 weeks, having recently heard the catchy tune in Logan, Utah. We mused to ourself, doubly weird,  since “In The Stone” was not even one of EW and F’s biggest hits.

But enough about the game.  The Odyssey was really impressed with the enthusiasm of the crowd.  When one supports a team rabidly when they sport a 3-5 mark, that support says worlds for the fan base.  The reputation of the passion of fans in West Texas (think “Friday Night Lights) was definitely upheld.  Guns WAY up, Red Raider fans!  We cannot shake one element of sadness which has haunted us in 2023.  The haughty Texas Longhorns will no longer be making regular trips to Lubbock.  We can only imagine how the locals got amped up when UT came to town.

Several interesting aspects of Lubbock.  Their airport is named after a Smith and the stadium named after a Jones.  After being used to long lines to get through airport security, I was amazed when I showed up for an 8:35AM departure at 6:50AM and immediately waltzed through security.  When my driver’s license was examined, the security employee must have seen my surprise.  He smiled and said, “You are the line.”  After my plane landed at 2PM the previous afternoon, I stayed on for 20 minutes to charge my phone.  I felt like I was in a ghost town.  In contrast to the teeming hordes in California, both surprising and refreshing.

As an author of a book on Rock & Roll history, I would like to think I am pretty knowledgeable on the subject – hence the title of this article.  When I saw Mac Davis Boulevard dead ending at the stadium, I said WOW!  Who knew Mac Davis was brought up in Lubbock?  Not me.  With such musical luminaries having grown up in Lubbock, how dare ANYBODY think that Lubbock is in the middle of nowhere.

Yesterday, the ACC revealed conference opponents for 2024-30 for its unwieldy 17-team conference. (17 is a prime number).

The highlights:

Only 8 conference games.

The Odyssey was hoping for 9. Why only 8? Some Athletic Directors still want to have one more guaranteed non-conference home game. Scheduling one more cupcake makes it easier to attain a 6-6 ,mark that would qualify a team for a Toilet Bowl. The 15 added practices for even a podunk bowl game are like catnip for coaches. Last, the Notre Dame factor exists. As long as the arrangement continues that the Irish will play 5 ACC teams annually, each team will periodically have a challenging non-conference game on their schedule.

16 protected annual rivalries

As in the Big 10, the number of protected rivalries varies by team. Georgia Tech and Louisville are free agents with no protected games. On the other end of the spectrum, North Carolina State and Duke have their 3 Tobacco Road rivalries protected. One former Big East rivalry is restored with annual tilts between Miami and Virginia Tech. Thankfully, Duke and NC State will play annually as the schools are only 22 miles apart.. Their meetings had been tragically infrequent over the past 2 decades.

North Carolina also has 3 protected rivalries.  Protecting games with Duke and NC State were no brainers. There must have been conversation about the third protected game for the Tar Heels. The Odyssey has no doubt that Wake Forest wanted an annual game with the in-state Tar Heels. Yet, Virginia was tabbed as the third protected game for North Carolina. In a way, it is a shame that the Tar Heels could not have 4 protected games but the mutual concerns of scheduling equity and the infrequency of playing other conference foes must have played a role in limiting the Tar Heels to 3 protected games. On a similar note, NC State-Clemson, having played 91 times for a trophy,  sadly became a casualty due to NC State’s 3 Tobacco Road protected games.

Florida State will face a harder road to win the ACC since they will annually play Clemson and Miami, assuming that 4-4 Clemson’s dip is only temporary.

Clemson’s regional rivalries were scorned with Georgia Tech (89 games to date) and NC State.  We see no reason the regional game with Georgia Tech could not have been protected.  Curious!

 Issues relating to the Wine Sipping Schools

Cal and Stanford will make at 3 trips back East annually as both will play SMU annually (It should be noted that San Francisco to Dallas is not a hop, skip and a jump).  The conference is open to the possibility of 2 such trips being scheduled on successive Saturdays. Start times for the San Francisco schools on the East coast or for the Eastern schools in San Francisco will be interesting. Body clocks do not imediately acclimate after long travel. ACC After Dark, anyone?

None of the existing 14 members will make trips to Cali in successive years.

Will Notre Dame’s annual game with Stanford count as one of the Irish’s 5 ACC games per year?  Stay tuned.

The Odyssey looked forward to a fantastic “under the radar” game as 11th ranked Oregon State paid perhaps its last trip to Tucson to face a feisty Wildcat team.

We cannot hide our pain at the demise of the Pac 12 nor the Odyssey’s affection for its 2 orphans, Oregon State and Washington State.  The Odyssey has added affection for any coach at its alma mater, such as the Beavers’ Jonathan Smith.  Which makes our diatribe at Smith doubly painful.

Oregon State had the ball at the UA 20 in what would be the final play of the first half.  In a 10-10 game, Smith called for a fake field goal to try to score a TD.  OOPS!  To boot, the ball was toted by somebody significantly slower than Usain Bolt.  Arizona was relieved to stay knotted at 10.  Did we mention that Arizona won the game, 27-24?

Smith manned up after the game, indicated his call was an error.  Such chicanery might have been excusable if Oregon State was a massive underdog but the Beavers traveled to the desert as a highly regarded 3.5 point favorite.  On the Cristobal meter of 0-10, where a stupid play call can get as high a score as 10, we have to tag Smith with a rank of 9 on that call.  As in truly rank!

Oregon State seemingly lost everything Saturday night.  If the Beavers win out, a Pac 12 title game tilt is remotely possible but the Beavers can kiss the playoff goodbye.

As for Arizona, their latest win was tantalizing when one looks in the rearview mirror.  Two of the Wildcat losses were in overtime and their third defeat was a 1-score loss to undefeated Washington.  Arizona was unheralded heading into the 2023 campaign but the Odyssey had a hunch that the Wildcat renaissance was continuing.  Their over/under win total was at 5.  Bingo!  The Odyssey also took a flyer at Arizona winning the Pac 12 at 75-1.  While this wager will wind up in the same scrap heap as most 75-1 flyers, the bet was awfully live.

One big consolation prize for the Zona Zoo:  Smith’s coaching gaffe played a large part in the field storming in Tucson late Saturday night!

As we left Pullman a week ago, it was with tears in the eyes of the Odyssey as we were saying goodbye to the last Pac-12 game we would ever attend.  Or so we thought.  However, when legendary USC super fan, John Jones, said he had an extra ticket for last night’s Utah game, the Odyssey quickly found itself on the I-5, 405 and the Harbor Freeway.

What a finale on a hot, picture-perfect Los Angeles day!!  Utah sent USC off to the Big 10 with a pulsating 34-32 win result of a 39-yard walk off field goal by Cole Becker.  Utah’s 4th straight win over the Trojans announced to the Big 12 that the Utes might be their daddy in coming years. Would such eventuality be a catalyst for Mormon missions in Ames and Waco?  Meanwhile, the fickle LA sporting public will be spurred on by muckrakers like the LA Times, Bill Plaschke, who dubbed the Trojans as “rapidly and reprehensibly regressing.”  Memo to Hyperbole Bill: the Trojans can still compete for the Pac-12 title if USC wins out, given that the Trojans can personally pin a loss on Washington, Oregon and UCLA.

USC gamely fought back from a 28-17 in the 4th quarter deficit thanks to a Pick-6 by Calen Bullock and a 61-yard punt return by the electrifying Zachariah Branch.  The Trojans needed stellar plays from their special teams because the Utes’ salty defense had done a creditable job containing Caleb Williams.  When Williams sauntered into the end zone on the first play following the Branch gallop, USC fatally proved too efficient.  With almost 2 minutes left on the clock,  Utah posessed too much time.

The eternal wart on any Lincoln Riley squad was everpresent at Figueroa:  the defense.  Behind a walkon QB, Bryson Barnes, a crippled Ute offense amassed a season-high 485 yards. While Barnes threw for 235 yards, his two successful scrambles were essential on Utah’s last-ditch drive for the game winner.  Utah’s drive was significantly aided by a personal foul on Bear Alexander on 3rd and 9.

In 2022, some of USC’s defensive deficiencies were masked by an amazing +22 in turnover margin.  No such luck in 2023 as the Trojans currently sit at -1, thanks in large part to the turnover fest in South Bend.

Necessity IS the mother of invention.  Since Utah needed more offense, enter Safety Sione Vaki.  After doing double duty with 158 rushing yards versus Cal, Vaki proved himself a do-it-all wizard with 2 TD catches, 149 receiving yards and 1 amazing juke.  If Chuck Berry had watched this thriller, he might have crooned, “Roll Over Travis Hunter and tell Charles Woodson the news!”

We suspect that some of Plaschke’s post-game vitriol may have been aided by Lincoln Riley’s ongoing angst with the media.  A month after Riley banned a young journalist for asking one too many questions, Riley petulantly refused to have any players available for post-game questions.  Come on, Mr. Riley, if your mercenaries are going to take gobs of NIL money, they should be able to man up after a tough loss.   Lincoln, don’t you realize that the press will always have the last word?

On Tuesday night, one result saddened us:  South Alabama absolutely humiliated Southern Miss, 55-3.  Believe it or not, the score might not have reflected the full degree of domination by USA.  Total yardage in the first half:  402-26 in favor of South Alabama!

In my youth, I was so impressed that Southern Miss, a “small kid on the block,” who would regularly play the local SEC big boys (Alabama, Mississippi State and Ole Miss) and do  very respectably despite rarely having the luxury of playing in Hattiesburg.  To this day, the Golden Eagles have a lifetime 15-14-1 record versus Mississippi State – although the tide has turned as Southern Miss’ last victory in the series was in 1988 at neutral site Jackson.  Ole Miss stopped scheduling the Golden Eagles after 1984, no doubt piqued at losing 4 of their last 5 to the Golden Eagles.

Southern Miss’ glory days came during a time when there were many fewer “Group of 5” programs playing at the highest level.  Remember how Hugh Freeze and Ole Miss were lauded for beating Alabama two years consecutively in 2014-15?  Southern Miss had performed the same feat in 1953-54, back in the day when their nickname was the unimaginative Southerners.

Today, I was reading Sports Illustrated’s 1982 College Football preview issue (great coverage and writing which makes a mockery of their current preseason issue) Southern Miss was coming off a stellar 9-1-1 season and was tabbed #14 in their preseason rankings.  What would surprise many was the reverence for the tie!  Those in Hattiesburg proudly celebrated the tie with bumper stickers proclaiming “I was there when we tied the Bear.”  Reggie Collier was their do-it-all QB on a squad that also featured future pro stars, Sammy Winder and Louis Lipps.  A far cry from USM’s last meeting with Alabama in 2021, a 63-14 thrashing in favor of the Tide.

Last month, Florida State trashed Southern Miss, 65-15.  The 1981 Southern Miss squad also played FSU (  coached by Bobby Bowden).  The Golden Eagles soared in a 58-14 rout.  What a contrast!

The success of the 1981 team was not a fluke.  The 2000 squad shutout Alabama, 21-0. The Odyssey was in Hattiesburg in late November 2003 when USM upset an undefeated TCU team.  On a later trip to Southern Miss, the Golden Eagles gave a very talented Cal team, led by Aaron Rodgers, all the Golden Bears could handle.

What has happened over the past decade plus?  Southern Miss has become a shell of its former self.  In the college conference realignment carousel, USM was not attractive from a media standpoint.  While I would not say that Hattiesburg is in the middle of nowhere, one might be able to see nowhere from the city limits.  I also felt that the ascension of South Alabama to FBS really hurt the Golden Eagles.  Mobile is only 90 miles from Hattiesburg.  Three of the 4 SEC teams in Alabama and Mississippi are from the Northern parts of the state.  Even Auburn is nowhere near the Gulf.  Geographically, USM was in good position to get Gulf  Coast gridders who wanted to stay close to home.  When South Alabama ascended in division ranking, a very attractive Gulf alternative arose.

Last, Southern Miss is not located in an affluent part of the state (if, in fact, there is an affluent part).  The NIL era does not rate to be kind to the Golden Eagles.

Childhood likes do not have to be rational.  A kid from Michigan was in love with Southern Miss.  Which makes the recent era sad in that regard.

Many horror stories start in very misleading fashion.  A beautiful sunny day, a couple deeply in love, characters who seem to be leading an idyllic life.  Just to tease the reader and provide stark contrast for the darkness to come.

On a pleasant, sunny Palouse afternoon, Washington State entered its tilt with Arizona as a ranked favorite.  Not to disturb the vibe, the Cougars took the opening kick and promptly marched down the field for a 6-0 lead.  Enter the Cougar House of Horrors.  An unheralded Arizona squad spent the rest of the day marching up and down the field, amassing 516 yards and acting like the 1985 Chicago Bears on defense. The result:  a 44-6 beatdown over unsuspecting Wazzu that totally de Paloused the host.

Two weeks ago, Cougar QB Cameron Ward was in the Heisman Conversation as some talking heads had the Incarnate Word transfer as third on their list behind 2 other Pac-12 QB superstars, Caleb Williams and Michael Penix Jr.  Two weeks later, he would not rate as high as thirty third.  Last week’s disappointing performance could be attributed to a salty UCLA defense.  This week, Arizona’s vastly improved defense (arguably the most improved unit in college football from 2022) and indecisiveness from Ward spelled doom for WSU.

Take nothing away from the Wildcats.  UA is undoubtedly the best 3-loss team in the country.  In irony of irony, Jayden de Laura was supposed to make his homecoming to the locale where he won Pac 12 Freshman of the Year honors in 2021.  Returning triumph would have been doubly sweet for De Laura since he was likely pushed into the transfer portal when Ward announced his transfer to Washington State in late 2021.  Fate intervened in 2 ways.  De Laura got hurt and his backup Noah Fifita has been brilliant.  In Pullman, Fifita efficiently completed 34 of 43 passes for a spiffy 342 yards.  Will Fifita be Lou Gehrig to De Laura’s Wally Pipp?  Stay tuned.

Arizona may spend December kicking themselves for letting USC off the hook in triple overtime as their remaining 5 games look manageable if one grades on the daunting Pac 12 curve.  Their two road games are at Colorado and Arizona.  Three difficult tests loom against Oregon State, UCLA and Utah but at least the games will be in Tucson.

Regrettably, horror had paid a previous visit to Pullman in August when the Pac-10 morphed into the Pac 2.  Such uncertain future was entirely unfair to a proud program and passionate fan base.  However, as Stephen King will attest, some very unfair things happen in this world.  The Odyssey will continue to root for Washington State and Oregon State.

Times have changed.  Friday night, once reserved for preps, before media money seduced colleges to play on Friday evening, produced two spectacular games — both in the often overlooked Mountain time zone.

The Odyssey was in Logan for a game of interest in that 2 teams wounded by the transfer portal (36 exited Utah State and 29 left Fresno) have maintained quality programs thanks to the considerable coaching acumen of Jeff Tedford and Blake Anderson.  Dub them anti-Cristobals!    The tilt was exciting with 2 late lead changes.  With  5 minutes left, Utah State took its first lead of the game, 32-31.   The Aggies produced 568 yards of offense but were plagued by penalties and 2 turnovers. Behind backup QB Logan Fife, the Bulldogs responded with an emphatic 5-play, 72-yard touchdown drive, only flawed by leaving the Aggies offense 2+ minutes for a potential game-winning drive.  An acrobatic interception by Fresno in the last minute  preserved the Bulldogs 37-32 margin and kept Fresno alive for the Mountain West title game.

The most creative play of the game came on Utah State’s 2-point conversion following a TD to reduce their deficit to 28-23 early in the fourth quarter.  The Aggies ran a reverse  which had the makings of a subsequent pass into the end zone.  At least 2 Fresno State defenders thought so.   Jalen Royals made a brilliant fake which caused 2 nearby Bulldog defenders to leap in the air.  While they leaped, he decided to sidestep them and dash into the end zone for a unique 2-pointer.   Delicious!

Thankfully, the game ended in time that most of the 2nd half (and thereafter!) of the Colorado-Stanford game could be watched.  With the Buffs leading 29-0 at the half, the watch seemed like it would consist of watching Shadeur Sanders pad his statistics  and seeing how healthy Travis Hunter was.  How could a downtrodden 1-4 Stanford team possibly put up significant resistance?  The impossible proceeded to happen!

The Cardinals kept throwing the ball to Elic Ayomanor in the 2nd half.  Again and again and again.  Did not matter to the Stanford brain trust in the least that Travis Hunter was covering Ayomanor.  A 46-yard field goal by their terrific field goal kicker, Josh Karty, forced overtime at 36 all.  Ayomanor wound up with a staggering 294 receiving yards that included a ridiculous TD catch on the back of   Hunter’s helmet in overtime.  The imagination boggles at how much NFL money that Ayomanor made after his mano-a-mano success against the usually brilliant Hunter who also committed a costly personal foul (but partially redeemed himself with 13 catches and 2 TD grabs).

Shadeur Sanders’ interception in the 2nd overtime sealed the Buffs’ fate and highlighted a CU shortcoming.  Subsequent to a pass interference call, Colorado had the ball on the Stanford 2.  Their nonexistent running game meant continued reliance on Sanders’ arm.  Often that is a good tactic given that Sanders threw for 5 TDs and 400 yards.  However, the lack of a run game also makes it more problematic to milk the clock with a substantial lead and to pound the rock home from the 2.

The shocking outcome on Friday the 13th was the biggest lead ever blown in Buff history as well as the biggest comeback in Stanford lore.

No matter what happens in future realignment, Mountain teams will always remain #1 in one category:  beautiful scenery.  Watching the sunset in Logan in the aptly-named Cache Valley (in French, cache means hidden) with the backdrop of mountains is amazing.  Ditto in places like Provo, Boulder or Colorado Springs.  To boot,  those jaw-dropping sunsets do not require any NIL money.

Decades of travel result in a climactic weekend for the Odyssey.  By attending tonight’s game at Utah State and then traveling to the Palouse tomorrow, the Odyssey will have attended at least one game at each venue in the Mountain and Pacific time zones.

Wednesday, we previewed Fresno State’s visit to Logan. The outcome of Saturday’s visit by Arizona to the Palouse may well be determined by which team can best get over bitter disappointments in Los Angeles last weekend.

Washington State brought an undefeated team into the Rose Bowl , featuring Cameron Ward who had been as hot as Pasadena’s midday sunshine proved to be. The Cougars could not hang on to a 17-12 4th quarter lead and succumbed to UCLA, 25-17. The story of the game was how UCLA’s ferocious defensive line kept Ward in check. His stats: 19/39/2/197 with a quarterback rating of a paltry 32.8. Utah was considered to have the Pac 12’s best defensive line by the pre-season talking heads but UCLA’s front may well be the equal of the Utes.

Arizona gave USC fans heart failure Saturday night. The Wildcats grabbed an early 17-0 lead as Caleb Williams actually looked mortal in the first quarter. One cannot keep Superman down forever as Williams led back the Trojans for an apparent game winning, chip shot field goal at the end of the game. OOPS! An errant snap meant overtime. Predictably, Williams led USC to a score, putting the Trojans in front 35-28. When Arizona scored a touchdown, the Odyssey felt that Jedd Fisch had an easy decision. Go for 2! What right-thinking human being would want a tiring defense to be tormented by the Heisman Trophy winner in subsequent overtimes? Fisch kicked the extra point and the inevitable befell the Wildcats in the third overtime (Rece Davis also screamed at his TV when seeing Fisch’s fatal flaw).

Who will have the worse hangover in Pullman? The Odyssey believes that UA’s migraine will be worse. Not only will Washington State have the home crowd, Arizona has 37 Southern Californians on its roster who may not be fully over massive heartbreak against USC.

The Cameron Ward factor will be everpresent in a second sense. Jayden De Laura was voted the Freshman of the Year in 2021 at Wazzu. Why did De Laura subsequently enter the transfer portal in January 2022? New coach, Jake Dickert, may not have been enamored with de Laura, unquestionably talented but also with erratic, off script tendencies. When Ward announced his transfer from Incarnate Ward, De Laura said goodbye to the Palouse. De Laura’s September injury has opened the door for Wildcat backup, Noah Fifita, to play. Fifita, while not having as high a ceiling as De Laura, has efficiently operated the UA offense with its cadre of ultra-talented receivers.

If De Laura does play, an extra layer of intrigue will be present! Some homecomings are just more bittersweet than others.

Last Saturday at 7,220 feet, Fresno State could not overcome a 24-7 halftime deficit to Wyoming and lost 24-19.  Goodbye to the Bulldogs’ 14-game winning streak and a national ranking.  Very possibly goodbye to the coveted “New Year’s 6” bowl invite to the best Group of 5 team.

Worse, their productive QB, Mikey Keene, left the game in the 4th quarter with an ankle injury.  The Bulldogs have a short week to prepare for a second game at altitude as they visit Utah State on Friday night.

The circumstances are quite tricky for Fresno.  While Utah State has also had injury issues at QB, both Cooper Legas and McCae Hillstead have played well.  Keene’s status is uncertain.  Giving Bulldog fans some comfort, backup Logan Fife is experienced as he started 4 games in 2022.

After a disappointing off season where the Aggies suffered multiple losses to the transfer portal, Utah State is trending upward.  Two Saturdays ago, they blocked an extra point to win 34-33 over Connecticut just when the Huskies thought they were going to force overtime.  Last Saturday, the Aggies spotted Colorado State a 17-0 lead.  No problem for Utah State as the Aggies roared back from a double digit deficit for the second straight week as they rolled to a 44-24 victory.

The Odyssey cannot help but root for Utah State’s coach Blake Anderson.  His wife passed on while he was coaching Arkansas State.  More recently, Anderson had to deal with another unspeakable tragedy when his son committed suicide.  Hard to believe, but a few things are just more important than college football.

Utah State is currently a 5.5 point underdog.  If live dogs appeal to you, the Aggies are attractive.