The Official 2008 NCAA Football Thread

[RABid]

Kentucky - Alabama is finally turning into a game despite 2 1/2 qtrs of horrible offense by Kentucky.

[SilverDragonSoun]

Vandy and Auburn has also turned into a good game. Vandy is proving they can play with at least one decent team in the SEC.

[Jode]

Alabama hangs on like a hair on a biscuit to beat UK 17-14. Saban: "We're certainly happy to win but we also put on a clinic today for how to keep the other team in the game." I'll take your word for it, RABid, about UK's play. I only got to watch the box score unfold online while at work. But hey - Glen Coffee put up 218 yards. Yeehah! Once again this week, I would NOT want to be at Bama's film session tomorrow, much less practice Monday.

 

Vandy beats Auburn! Go Commodores! Man, what's up in the SEC when even UK and Vanderbilt don't even have the courtesy to roll over and play dead anymore? And I was pulling so hard for Northern Illinois to beat Tennessee at home, but it wasn't to be.

 

Juice Williams put up 431 yards by himself today as the Illini molest Michigan. Yikes. Alabama's entire offense didn't put up numbers like that.

 

Florida State beat Miami 41-39... and no one cares. That's hardly ever happened in my lifetime. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

[SilverDragonSoun]

Alabama hangs on like a hair on a biscuit to beat UK 17-14. Saban: "We're certainly happy to win but we also put on a clinic today for how to keep the other team in the game." I'll take your word for it, RABid, about UK's play. I only got to watch the box score unfold online while at work. But hey - Glen Coffee put up 218 yards. Yeehah! Once again this week, I would NOT want to be at Bama's film session tomorrow, much less practice Monday.

 

Vandy beats Auburn! Go Commodores! Man, what's up in the SEC when even UK and Vanderbilt don't even have the courtesy to roll over and play dead anymore? And I was pulling so hard for Northern Illinois to beat Tennessee at home, but it wasn't to be.

 

Juice Williams put up 431 yards by himself today as the Illini molest Michigan. Yikes. Alabama's entire offense didn't put up numbers like that.

 

Florida State beat Miami 41-39... and no one cares. That's hardly ever happened in my lifetime. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

 

Definately some interesting things happening yesterday but nothing earth shattering like the previous week.

 

Vandy got a great win for their program. They've got some very tough games coming up.

 

Hawaii did upset Fresno St.

North Carolina upset UConn

And on Thursday Pittsburgh beat South Florida

 

As much as it pains me to say it, Ohio State did what they had to do yesterday to win. BYU also has to be considered in the mix. Missouri pounding Nebraska was great to see. And again I see no one is talking about Tulsa in the media. They are undefeated and I think will stay this way. They still aren't even mentioned in the rankings yet they've beaten a couple of teams from BCS conferences. USC rebounded nicely pounding Oregon.

[Geoff Grace]

In the meantime, the Sun Devils...

 

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[SilverDragonSoun]

In the meantime, the Sun Devils...

 

 

Best,

 

Geoff

 

 

Was trying not to think about the whole mess of a situation.

[Jill]

Juice Williams put up 431 yards by himself today as the Illini molest Michigan. Yikes.

 

Couldn't believe Michigan was favored by 6. My Illini are a better team than Michigan (not something I've been able to say often the last 20 years.) Going into the big house is never a gimme, but Michigan is down this year.

 

Looking forward to Homecoming next week, flying back for the game. Minnesota shouldn't be a problem for us, even with our weak areas on defense.

 

Oskee-wow-wow

[Jode]

New polls are out. Vanderbilt is #13. I still have trouble wrapping my head around that phrase: 13th-ranked Vanderbilt. That's ahead of Boise State, Va Tech, South Florida, and Au-Barn, and one notch behind Ohio State. The student section has been waving banners that say, "Geeks rule!"

 

And hey, give a shoutout for David Letterman's favorites, the Ball State fighting football Cardinals - undefeated, tops in the MAC, and #25 in the polls, ranked for the first time since - well, ever! If I owned a TV, I'd tune in tonight to see what he says about it.

 

Juice Williams is not even mentioned in the ESPN Heisman watch. Yeah, I know it's early yet, but jeez - you pass for 310 yards and run for 121 more, in The Big House of all places, and you're not a candidate? Hello, Tim Tebow? Even if Michigan does stink this year, you don't just waltz into Ann Arbor and put up gaudy numbers like that. It would be interesting to see how many teams put up 431 yards there this year.

[Jode]

Toledo beats Michigan in the Big House. Ouch. Holy Toledo, in fact.

 

Arkansas beats Au-Barn - on the Plains. Go Hogs! Auburn is really starting to look like they stink this year. How's that new offense workin' for ya, Tubby?

 

I hate to say it - and it is early yet - but the dominoes are falling for Alabama to be number 1 next week: Oklahoma goes down to Texas. Florida is beating the crap out of LSU at this moment. Missouri is in trouble with OK State. And Alabama did the smartest thing they could do: not play.

 

Problem is, I'm not sure I like being number one this early. But we're not yet. With some luck, we won't be. We win more national championships when we go into the last game at #2. I'm still holding out for a Bama-Penn State BCS game.

[Marzzz]

Looking forward to Homecoming next week, flying back for the game. Minnesota shouldn't be a problem for [illinois], even with our weak areas on defense.

 

And that's why they play the games.....

[Jode]

 

Florida crushes LSU. OK State downs Mizzou.

 

Your top 3 next week, in no particular order: Alabama, Texas, Penn State, with Texas Tech nipping at their heels and a redeemed USC knocking at the door.

 

Looking down Bama's remaining schedule, I see Ole Miss, which found a way to beat Florida, so watch out; Tennessee, which looks absolutely helpless this year; Arkansas State, a non-conference scrificial lamb; LSU, which struggled to put away an Auburn team that we now know is pretty awful; Mississippi State, a perennial late-season obstacle, no matter the record they bring to the game (ask Vanderbilt about them); and Auburn, who WILL NOT WIN in Bryant-Denny Stadium this year (see "pretty awful" above). If our boys play exactly the way Coach Saban tells them to, then we will run the table and play for the BCS title.

 

Of course, that's all just speculation at this point.

[SilverDragonSoun]

 

Florida crushes LSU. OK State downs Mizzou.

 

Your top 3 next week, in no particular order: Alabama, Texas, Penn State, with Texas Tech nipping at their heels and a redeemed USC knocking at the door.

 

Looking down Bama's remaining schedule, I see Ole Miss, which found a way to beat Florida, so watch out; Tennessee, which looks absolutely helpless this year; Arkansas State, a non-conference scrificial lamb; LSU, which struggled to put away an Auburn team that we now know is pretty awful; Mississippi State, a perennial late-season obstacle, no matter the record they bring to the game (ask Vanderbilt about them); and Auburn, who WILL NOT WIN in Bryant-Denny Stadium this year (see "pretty awful" above). If our boys play exactly the way Coach Saban tells them to, then we will run the table and play for the BCS title.

 

Of course, that's all just speculation at this point.

 

I agree with everything you said but you did forget one itty bitty thing. The SEC championship game. This might be the hardest game they have left if they make the run you and I think they will.

[SilverDragonSoun]

Well some things to talk about. First off Texas is #1, Alabama is #2 and Penn State is #3. Do you agree? I know its a moot point but I can see the argument from all perspectives. The losers in all this appear to be Texas Tech and BYU as neither moved up in the rankings considering two undefeated team ahead of them were beaten. I just hope things get to be settled on the field rather than by computers and the media.

[Jode]

I agree with this week's polls, with one glaring exception:

 

Number five Florida? Gimme a break. Although now that Spurrier's gone, it's harder for me to hate on Florida. Same with Auburn, actually. Now that both teams have a coach who seems to be a good guy, they irritate me less. Auburn was much easier to hate in the Pat Dye days. Good thing we have Tennessee and South Carolina to fill that bill - Fulmer and Spurrier can go make sweet love in the bed of a pickup, for all I care. Thanks to those two, the SEC definitely leads the country in one stat: Biggest Asshole Coaches.

 

(Although some would lump Saban in there, and I couldn't say I blame them, given his history. But he's OUR asshole. But even Florida fans didn't like Spurrier - "Yeah, he wins a lot of games for us, but he IS a big jerk, I'll give you that." Heard that one a lot in the 90s.)

 

And you're right: the SEC championship may be the toughest game on Alabama's schedule at this point, if all goes well. We may even get a pissed-off Georgia in a rematch. The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (GA-FLA in Jacksonville) will decide the Eastern Division champ this year, as it often does - but not who goes to the BCS game.

[SilverDragonSoun]

Good thing we have Tennessee and South Carolina to fill that bill - Fulmer and Spurrier can go make sweet love in the bed of a pickup, for all I care.

 

What a great line, I was LMAO!

[Steve Force]

Say what you want about Spurrier, but his record at my Alma Mater U. Florida is impressive--unlike when I was attending (the Charley Pell-era..)

 

SEC Football rocks, unlike this JV football I am forced to watch here in Michigan (Big 10 is lame--Penn State and occasionally Ohio State excluded.)

[SilverDragonSoun]

The first BCS polll came out and there wasn't anything shocking about it. BYU lost but I really don't think it was an upset. I was surprised that Cal didn't play Arizona tougher. I thought Arizona would win but thought Cal would play them tougher than they did. Arizona is a different team and home and may shock USC next weekend. Alabama showed some maturity at the end of their game with Ole miss yesterday. Texas looked very impressive and if they play the way they did the last two weeks, they may run the table in the Big 12. I'm sure hoping we don't have an issue with who deserves to be in the National championship game. Either with more than two undefeated teams or a bunch or one loss teams.

[Jode]

Say what you want about Spurrier, but his record at my Alma Mater U. Florida is impressive--unlike when I was attending (the Charley Pell-era..)

 

SEC Football rocks, unlike this JV football I am forced to watch here in Michigan (Big 10 is lame--Penn State and occasionally Ohio State excluded.)

 

"When I was a sportswriter in Chicago, I got tickets to all kinds of games. Since I couldn't attend any SEC games, I got tickets to what I thought would be the next best thing - the Ohio State-Michigan game. I was not impressed. It was like waching two mules fight over a turnip - who cares?"

 

--Lewis Grizzard

 

No points in the second half. You can bet Bama will practice on Monday as though they lost. Sometimes I think an ugly win pisses Saban off more than a loss would. And oh man, do I hope Terrance Cody is alright. He is a one-man D-line.

 

Texas is looking like a championship program. They should be in the big game at season's end, if they don't hit a pothole in their remaining games. Of course, I thought Mizzou would give them a test, but...

 

My call for the SEC championship is Florida-Bama. After that burp against Ole Miss, Florida looks impressive. Better than Georgia - the 'Dogs will leave the Cocktail Party with a bad hangover.

[SilverDragonSoun]

Here's my issue with the BCS should it occur. Lets say Ohio State beats Penn St. and ends up with one loss. Lets say Florida beats Alabama and they end up with one loss. Then lets say Texas runs the table or even loses to Oklahoma in big 12 championship game. Now you have the who plays who scenario, obviously if you have two undefeated teams it falls into place nicely. But what happens with all the one loss teams? If one team runs the table who gets to play them? Ohio State with one loss? USC with one loss? Alabama, Florida with one loss? How do you justify putting one team in over another? What if everyone has one loss and Utah winds up as the only undefeated team? Do they play in the championship game? This is why I hate the BCS. We really need a playoff to determine who th ebest team really is. Too often, like last year, we don't know who the best team really was at the end.

[Jode]

I still say, conference champ vs. conference champ in the traditional tie-in bowls, followed by a BCS championship game played second or third week in January, between the two teams with the best records.

[Jill]

Looking forward to Homecoming next week, flying back for the game. Minnesota shouldn't be a problem for [illinois], even with our weak areas on defense.

 

And that's why they play the games.....

 

That game was frustrating to watch. We couldn't get the ball in the end zone! I knew Minnesota would score on us, but thought our offense was strong. Juice wouldn't pull the trigger, didn't look Heisman worthy to me.

 

Found out later my 9-year-old nephew bought an Ohio State hat on the way home. The horror.

[Jode]

The Texas Longhorns go down in Lubbock. Wow. Texas Tech is 9-0 for the first time since 1938. And forget what I said about the SEC - the Big 12 is the real slaughterhouse this year.

 

Florida murders Georgia. Wow. Is Florida that good, or Georgia that bad?

 

Alabama will be number one next week. I don't like it. But boy, did this season just get a hell of a lot more interesting.

[Steve Force]

My call for the SEC championship is Florida-Bama. After that burp against Ole Miss, Florida looks impressive. Better than Georgia - the 'Dogs will leave the Cocktail Party with a bad hangover.

 

Dude! It played out exactly like you predicted!

 

 

[Jode]

My call for the SEC championship is Florida-Bama. After that burp against Ole Miss, Florida looks impressive. Better than Georgia - the 'Dogs will leave the Cocktail Party with a bad hangover.

 

Dude! It played out exactly like you predicted!

 

 

Well, after being - ahem - unimpressed with UGA's play against my Tide, and the way Florida's been playing lately, I knew Georgia would get the dawg-s**t beat out of them. If UA and UF meet in Atlanta, it may be the toughest game either plays all year.

 

Your BCS game this year is either Big 12 vs. SEC, or either of those two vs. Penn State. The good teams in the SEC are as good as they always are, but the Big 12 is scary good on balance. I'd be more worried this year having Texas Tech or Missouri on my schedule than Au-barn or Tennessee - how often do you say that?

 

Still, depending on the Penn State factor, it would be interesting to see one of the Big 12's high-flying offenses meet a classic stone-wall SEC defense. Lots of schools with big passing games go into bowl games thinking they'll just throw all over a stout, conservative SEC defense, and leave knowing better - I'm looking at you, Miami. The Georgia-Bama game showed this; Stafford and Green were supposed to light it up. If your QB spends all day running for his life from Terrance Cody and your receivers have Rashad Johnson stuck to them like static cling, you may throw for less than four hundred yards. Like, way less.

 

And I still do not like being ranked #1 until after the last game. I am glad Coach Saban shares this view. Alabama's last three national championships were won by teams that carried a #2 ranking into the big game. We much prefer being underrated.

[SilverDragonSoun]

The AP poll is out and reads like this:

 

1. Alabama (46) 9-0 1,600

2. Texas Tech (12) 9-0 1,528

3. Penn State (6) 9-0 1,525

4. Florida (1) 7-1 1,398

5. Texas 8-1 1,353

6. Oklahoma 8-1 1,324

7. USC 7-1 1,250

8. Oklahoma State 8-1 1,198

9. Boise State 8-0 1,030

10. Utah 9-0 1,028

 

 

I have no issues with the rankings. Yesterday there were some amazing games and some statement games. Texas Tech and texas was a great game. Notre Dame and Pitt played a great game but don't worry Irish fans, you still moved up in the polls and are still BCS eligible. Minnesota and Northwestern was also a great game.

 

With Texas tech still having a few difficult games and Alabama still having to play LSU and probably Florida, I think its a very likely scenario we could see a plethora of one loss teams. I can't justify saying any of these teams from a major conference deserves to be there over someone else. This looks like we may be heading into another BCS mess.

[RABid]

Florida looks like the best team in the nation at this point and I expect them to beat 'Bama. That leaves the problem of getting past two unbeaten teams in Texas Tech and Penn State. I don't think Penn State has any difficult games left.

 

Poor Kentucky. I don't ever remember a season with this many injuries. A few injured players are coming back for the Georgia game but I don't think it will be enough. Everyone knows that the QB battle going on right now will only last until the next freshman class comes in. With 4 star and 5 star QB recruits signed the future looks much better than today.

[Jode]

Florida looks like the best team in the nation at this point and I expect them to beat 'Bama. That leaves the problem of getting past two unbeaten teams in Texas Tech and Penn State. I don't think Penn State has any difficult games left.

 

Poor Kentucky. I don't ever remember a season with this many injuries. A few injured players are coming back for the Georgia game but I don't think it will be enough. Everyone knows that the QB battle going on right now will only last until the next freshman class comes in. With 4 star and 5 star QB recruits signed the future looks much better than today.

 

Penn State has the best chance of playing out unblemished, but there are a lot of better teams out there knocking each other out, as we certainly saw this weekend. There are some tough, tough teams out there this year, and whoever wins out will have earned it the hard way. I would not be the least bit ashamed to lose this year's title to half the Big 12, or even - gulp - to Florida. Like I said, I'm not quite the Gator hater I used to be, but even if I were, there's no denying that Florida is playing championship-caliber ball since the loss to Ole Miss.

 

As for whether we beat them, or even meet them, in Atlanta - well, ask me how I feel after LSU this weekend. Even though I expected big things out of Alabama this year, I'm frankly astonished at where we are. We'll see how long it lasts this season, but there will be a BCS trophy added to the case at the Bryant Museum before Andre Smith graduates - bank on it.

 

Congrats to your 'Cats, RABid, on the Miss State win. They're always tough to play in Starkville. Many a time has Alabama tripped over the Bulldogs late in the season - they're almost always the next-to-last regular season game before Auburn. Frankly, I'm more concerned about a misstep against MSU than our chances with Auburn this year. But Coach Saban seems to have these boys focused on their work - they must be doing something right!

[MikeT156]

Quote by Jode:

 

"Penn State has the best chance of playing out unblemished"

 

But it is difficult to finish without a loss in the Big Ten too. Our biggest problem is that Ohio State layed some gigantic eggs in the last two National Championship games. Embarrassing. The Big Ten usually doesn't do all that well in Bowl games overall either. It will be interesting to see if Penn State goes undefeated and if it will get a shot in the national championship game or not. If there is a team with a loss chosen instead of PSU, there will be a lot of screaming in Happy Valley. The SEC has the best reputation, and if Texas Tech finishes unbeaten, Penn State will be out.

 

Mike T.

[Jode]

Call me old fashioned. I believe that the team with the fewest losses should be ranked highest. I even sympathized with Auburn a few years ago when they got screwed out of a BCS berth. Going undefeated in the SEC is supposed to be some sort of golden ticket, and even THAT wasn't good enough.

 

In other news, dateline ObKnoxville, Tennessee:

 

"I suck, and we suck, and therefore I quit." WAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!

 

It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. I heard Lane Kiffin's name floated as a replacement. For a guy who put up with Al Davis, handling boosters would be a snap.

[RABid]

At least we did not have to hear the UT band play Rocky Top at the announcement.