College Football 2006 Week 13: Football Feast (Rivalry Week - Part 2 of 2)

This is the week of November 19 through November 25th. I'd like to wish all of you a happy and safe Thanksgiving for when it comes. You are all invited to a Thanksgiving party that lasts all football season. You should be thankful America's game is still played to perfection and watched by millions. It's football! Hooray football! Get the turkey. Get the cornbread dressing. Get the sweet potato pie. Also bring plenty of containers because you're in for a feasting frenzy of college football! If you're not down with that, you're not invited to attend this party.






COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS AND NOTES
* Michigan remains #2 despite losing MICH/OhSU game

* Division 1 Football Championship Subdivision Playoff Selections Made
The brackets themselves will be discussed in my postseason thread. So here are the sixteen teams playing for the Division 1 Football Championship Subdivision (formerly 1-AA) National Championship:

Appalachian State (#1 Seed and Defending Champion)
Coastal Carolina
Montana State
Furman
Youngstown State
James Madison
Eastern Illinois
Illinois State
Massachusetts
Lafayette
Hampton
New Hampshire
Montana
McNeese State
Southern Illinois
Tennessee-Martin



NFL FOCUS

* Donovan McNabb Done for the Season
Donovan McNabb suffered a torn ACL in their game against the Tennessee Titans. The much maligned Philadelphia Eagles will suffer yet another setback.

* David Carr Ties Consecutive Completion Record, Yet Lose 24-21
The Houston Texans had a win in their pocket all until Buffalo came back to win. A late touchdown by Buffalo made the game almost over. David Carr hit about 22-straight passes in this game. And ironically, the consecutive pass completion record took place in Houston. Now the Texans need to keep delivering on the football field. And I'm pretty sure that the typical anti-Houston bias will not really observe David Carr tying the record.

* Green Bay Blanked by Patriots in Crushing Home Shutout
The Green Bay Packers lost 35-0 to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Green Bay has been down the tubes a whole lot this season.




JOHN'S EXTRAS

--- JIMMIE JOHNSON WINS NEXTEL CUP CHAMPIONSHIP ---

The final race of the NASCAR Nextel Cup championship saw Jimmie Johnson have a chance to win the Nextel Cup title. He was able to win the championship by finishing in a favorable position. Jimmie Johnson is only 31 years old and has been a part of Cup since about 2001. He is a protogé of Jeff Gordon. And if you're cool with Jeff Gordon, you're cool with me. I wanted him to have this title. Since Gordon wasn't going to make any significant comeback, I wanted one of his own (that I respect) to win it all. And that he did. My congratulations to the #48 Lowe's team as well as Hendrick Racing.



--- NINTENDO Wii GETS SOME LOVE TOMORROW ---
G4TV will take a look at the Wii. Everything from upcoming games and such will be mentioned. The Wii will be innovative in that while you have a controller set to work with, you ARE the controller. It will be incredibly interesting to see what Nintendo has in store in order to silence those saying that Sony vs. Microsoft isn't the only battle in next-gen gaming. I personally respect Nintendo because while the Gamecube didn't get as much hype, they still remain the most successful makes before Sony and Microsoft even got up off of the ground. And whoever can forget blowing NES cartidges in trying to get them to work? My cousin even put a game in a big freezer just to get it to work! Anyhow, no need to freeze or blow anything for the Wii. The Wii will likely be the cheapest-priced of the the three (hey, that rhymed!). Remember that there are two little remotes you have to work with. The game to watch for the Wii will be "Red Steel." Red Steel has innovative usage for guns and swords in the game. A game I'll be looking forward to is "Super Smash Bros. Brawl." Looking forward to it especially considering that you can play as Solid Snake. So I can go get Mario and beat the s:censored: out of Snake.



--- STILL BUZZED ABOUT THE PS3 ---
The PlayStation 3 was pretty cool to marvel in even though demos have been about only two game demos and a number of videos. I was still awed by Motorstorm. I thought it was going to be some racing game that gets all the publicity for excessive crashes and carnage. It actually is a very fun racing title from what I've played. There was some lag for a racing game like this, but you have to hand Sony Computer Entertainment for acheiving a number of tasks here. I'll explain more on this game when I go to the PS3 forums to talk more about MotorStorm.



--- WHAT PS3 IS RIGHT FOR YOU? ---
I've been looking through this PS3 Buyer's Guide when I was at Wal-Mart. I've been thinking of what PS3 would work for me when I hope to get one next year. So let me tell you about what this thing has on both PS3 models made available. Both units come with Blu-Ray Disc, Bluetooth, 4 USB ports, 1080p video, HDMI (HDMI Cable not included), and the Cell Broadband Engine. Only real difference is that the 20GB version doesn't have most of the stuff 60GB have, but you can upgrade from a 20GB hard disk drive (HDD) to a 60GB version. The 60GB version gives you Memory Stick/SD/CompactFlash lots and Wi-Fi. I'm no online gamer, nor do I have a broadband connection of any kind. I would likely go slow and get the 20GB version. I do still want that 60GB version so I can maybe use my Flash Drive to put stuff on the PS3. It's basically going to be another computer for my room with the capabilities this thing has.



--- COULD 2K SPORTS OR ANYONE ELSE MAKE A COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME TO RIVAL NCAA FOOTBALL? ---
The exclusive licensing deal by stingy-as-hell EA disallows any other developers from making games with certain companies or cars or whatever. There used to be a time in which the NCAA Football series wasn't the only modern college football game series. There was a version by the maligned 989 Sports brand including some by 2K Sports. The 2K Sports brand had some ESPN Videogame support at one point. I want to say that the stuff by Visual Concepts was part of Sega Sports, but unsure. The reason why I talk about this is because of 2K Sports' College Hoops series. College Hoops 2K6 shown off a lot of teams including Independents. You even get more fight songs from some schools you may not know of. If 2K Sports was doing college football like they are doing with college basketball, the NBA, and MLB, they could really work some magic. If that exclusive contract deal wasn't in place, I guarantee you that 2K Sports could make an exceptional college football game with all the teams as well as incredibly-accurate stadiums. It's no wonder why 2K Sports' College Hoops series has been so highly rated. Maybe there isn't as much of pedigree with 2K Sports as there is with EA Sports. However, the hook for me is what 2K Sports did with basketball that EA Sports' NCAA March Madness series didn't do all that well. Games seemed more exciting as well as having players make smart decisions. If you beat down your opponent by a score of 15, the other team WILL knock down some threes and get some open looks. I do wish 2K Sports would do college football as successful as their college basketball games have been. But I've had only a few complaints with CH2K6- namely regarding the weak (yet detailed) commentary and inaccurate fight songs (since when did North Carolina have the fight song of Kansas?). I hope to get College Hoops 2K7 to see how much more improved 2K7 has been by 2K6.



--- SHOULD THE NCAA SAMPLE AN EXHIBITION TOURNAMENT IN DIVISION 1-A? ---
College football is usually spoken in the wrong context because there isn't a playoff to decide a National Champion. I was kind of imagining if the NCAA were to sample a preseason or postseason tournament. Pretend college football season began in the midst of the NFL preseason. Let's say that the 8 teams that participated in the four BCS Bowl Games were invited to a preseason tournament for a preseason #1. Would it work? Would it at least give an idea of NCAA's highest division of football had a playoff? Or imagine if there was a post-postseason game between winners of the four BCS Bowl games all met in a postseason tournament. And let us say this hypothetical post-postseason tournament is just a game of pride and not to redetermine the National Championship. Would that work? Would any such tournament be interesting to see even if there isn't a playoff for the National Championship in 1-A?





More games to come later this week including LSU taking on Arkansas, Texas A&M playing against Texas, and Georgia Tech/Georgia renewing their rivalry.

JohnBM01

--- SHOULD THE NCAA SAMPLE AN EXHIBITION TOURNAMENT IN DIVISION 1-A? ---
College football is usually spoken in the wrong context because there isn't a playoff to decide a National Champion. I was kind of imagining if the NCAA were to sample a preseason or postseason tournament. Pretend college football season began in the midst of the NFL preseason. Let's say that the 8 teams that participated in the four BCS Bowl Games were invited to a preseason tournament for a preseason #1. Would it work? Would it at least give an idea of NCAA's highest division of football had a playoff? Or imagine if there was a post-postseason game between winners of the four BCS Bowl games all met in a postseason tournament. And let us say this hypothetical post-postseason tournament is just a game of pride and not to redetermine the National Championship. Would that work? Would any such tournament be interesting to see even if there isn't a playoff for the National Championship in 1-A?

Click to expand...

An exhibition tournament would be neat, but no one would try due to injury risk. A postseason tournament would have the talking heads arguing back and forth over who was the real champion of the season. It would create even more controversy, but hopefully eliminate the current system over time.

Okay. How about if the rules for each game in my post-postseason model is more like the NFL's Pro Bowl? You can't blitz the quarterback or anything like that? My post-postseason tournament idea is more like an All-Star game between the winners of the four BCS Bowl games. As for a fantasy playoff, College Sports Television (CSTV) has what is called the "Crystal Bowl," inspired by the show "Crystal Ball" on CSTV. It's basically a playoff scenario featuring 16 teams. The game console deal had neither Texas or Southern California in last year's National Championship game. Here's the first-ever Crystal Bowl deal by CSTV: < http://www.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/stories/060104aab.html >.

I'll think a little more about postseason play with a 1-A playoff. Division 1-AA (FCS) features 16 teams with only one #1 seed. Division 2 has 20 teams playing. The winners of Division 2 games in the First Round get to meet top seeds in the Second Round. Top seeds get a First Round bye. Divison 3 has about 32 teams and seperate brackets with 4 #1 Seeds. I'll have a JOHN'S EXTRAS in which I examine what playoff system would work best for Division 1-A football if they ever have a playoff format than the BCS.

Anyone else want to talk about this week or maybe last week's action? You are free to do so.

We're talking about November 21st action here. I'll just cover a little collegiate gridiron action. If that's okay with you...





WEEK 13 - TUESDAY SYNOPSIS
Two great MAC schools with disappointing seasons squared off in a classic rivalry in Ohio. This was a classic rivalry match decided by two scores.





DIVISION 1-A GAMES
"Puff, Puff, Give" Bowling Green at Toledo (RIVALRY: Peace Pipe on the line)
(Please note that we are talking about Bowling Green, Ohio and not Bowling Green, Kentucky). This game is for the Peace Pipe. They won't smoke it, but some team will be smoked in this rivalry. It's Bowling Green State University meeting the University of Toledo. How much does Toledo hate Bowling Green? Toledo has an inactive missle or rocket which points into the direction of Bowling Green State University. Of course for safety reasons and sanity, the rocket in Toledo isn't active. The Toledo Rockets have been duds instead of bombs this season. They haven't been at their absolute best this season. Neither has Bowling Green. The Falcons miss the star power of Omar Jacobs. Bowling Green wants the Peace Pipe and will show no peace in smashing Toledo. But in the end, Toledo picks up a feel-good win. (31-21; TOLEDO)





NOTE
I'll work to update my postseason thread.





JOHN'S EXTRAS

--- HAWAII IS #25? ---
The Hawaii Warriors are 2nd in the WAC and apparentely #25 in the nation according to Yahoo Sports. Hawaii may not be #25 for long because Purdue is coming to Hawaii's beautiful Aloha Stadium.



--- BOWL BIDS ACCEPTED ---
The following have accepted Bowl Game bids:

Purdue (Champs Sports Bowl)
Minnesota = Insight Bowl
Iowa = Alamo Bowl
Wisconsin = Capital One Bowl
Pennsylvania State = Outback Bowl

The Bowl Game season begins in about mid-December.





UPCOMING GAMES (some of many):

Thanksgiving (Night): Boston College at Miami

*Virginia at Virginia Tech (Commonwealth Cup battle)
*South Carolina at Clemson (Battle of the Palmetto State)
*Kentucky at Tennessee
*Oklahoma at Oklahoma State (Bedlam Game)
*Notre Dame at Southern California (Battle for the Jewelled Sch...)

* = rivalry game

JohnBM01

Okay. How about if the rules for each game in my post-postseason model is more like the NFL's Pro Bowl? You can't blitz the quarterback or anything like that? My post-postseason tournament idea is more like an All-Star game between the winners of the four BCS Bowl games.

Click to expand...

I still think that if it didn't count towards anythingyou will have some guys just sitting out or others not trying hard. An RB doesn't want to get his knee taken out when it doesn't matter.

Of course, the best way to counter this would be to have it as a big NFL scouting event. Then you would see everyone trying as hard as they could.

I still vote for getting rid of the BCS system completely, but that's me.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. If you're going to get some early sleep so you can do "Black Friday" action (waking up VERY early (about 5 AM or 6 AM) to go shopping), then at least stop by here to get your college football fix. I'll have to do some Black Friday action as I tried to get this report in. Get ready for a few games courtesy of me.

NOTE: I was unable to log onto the Internet thanks to some Internet troubles. The Thursday scores will be in full or most detail while Friday will be RAPID FIRE. I apologize for not posting these scores to you all Thanksgiving Night





WEEK 13 - THURSDAY SYNOPSIS
A Thanksgiving feast of football took place between college football teams in 1-A and 1-AA. The majority of action took place in the American southeast. The 1-AA game was against a proven Division 2 black college football power.





DIVISION 1-A GAMES
"" #18 Boston College at Miami
Halftime was a 14-10 score in favor of #18 Boston College. (-; )





DIVISION 1-AA GAMES
"" Tuskegee at Alabama State (RIVALRY GAME)
A very good Division 2 school met a considerably good 1-AA unit. How about some respect to the Tuskegee Golden Tigers in cashing in a big win against the Alabama State Hornets? Tuskegee is a Division 2 school beating a 1-AA school. (17-10; Tuskegee) *big win nominee*





JOHN'S EXTRAS
--- none to report ---

Hope you have had a very happy Thanksgiving. Thank you again for your reading.

You probably enjoyed your Thanksgiving and all the food made prepared to stay in your belly. You probably grown a few pounds as a result. Your busy four or five day weekend continues as "Black Friday" took center stage. It is the day in which the day after Thanksgiving means people trying to do VERY early Christmas shopping. Hope you had a radio to listen to because some games were on the air. I'll tell you about my Black Friday in my Extras segment. But for now, I got scores. You want them? I got them, and they are yours as being loyal fans and readers of my reports. Consider this your Christmas present... only one month and a few days early.

NOTE: Because of some Internet troubles and oversleeping, I am unable to provide as many scores as possible. I am deeply sorry.





WEEK 13 - FRIDAY SYNOPSIS
A judgmental day of college football took place as a number of teams played their decisive games. A number of rivalry games took place around the nation in Division 1-A with many more on the way. There is very little doubt a day like this could have also seen shocking upsets. These upsets really did happen as the BCS Standings will SURELY be altered today, if not by Saturday as well.





DIVISION 1-A GAMES
"That Sinking Feeling" Texas A&M at Texas/Texas at Texas A&M (RIVALRY: "The Lone Star Showdown")
Two of Texas' best teams collided in a game simply known as the Lone Star Showdown. It's Texas taking on Texas A&M. If Texas A&M could beat Texas' men's basketball team this past season, imagine these two outfits going at it once again... in football. No Vince Young, no problem? There have been some problems as Texas lost Vince Young to the sorry Tennessee Titans. Now it's time for some more people to bear the Burnt Orange and White. Colt McCoy is the new Texas QB for this season and maybe more to come. Texas came off of a stunning upset against a resurgent Kansas State. The Longhorns already beaten Oklahoma as a key win. Can they take the fight to their hated rivals from College Station? The boys in maroon is Texas A&M University. The Texas A&M University system consists of a great deal of campuses including Texarkana, Corpus Christi, Kingsville, West Texas A&M (Canyon, TX), and TAMU-International among others. The flagship of the Texas A&M system is Texas A&M in College Station, TX. The 1929(?) National Champion Aggies are ready to get Aggie-gressive against their hated rivals from Austin. The game ended as another big loss for the Texas Longhorns came into form. What's wrong with the University of Texas right now? (12-7; Texas A&M/TEXAS A&M) *upset!*

"Give Him the Boot" #9 LSU at #5 Arkansas (RIVALRY: "Battle for the Golden Boot")
My Black Friday away from home consisted of a trip to a shoe store. Girls LOVE shoes. Can't have enough of them. Right, ladies? What if I told you that there was a very special boot two powerful SEC teams are fighting for? Now the sad news... this is not a shoe for sale or can even be worn. You may have to be stuck with boots with gold sequins or what-not. This is a football rivalry between LSU and Arkansas If you look at the states of Louisiana and Arkansas, their design sort of resembles a boot. In fact, I can recall in Elementary school that someone mentioned how Minnesota all the way down to Louisiana sort of resembeles a person. So you got Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana (did I forget one?)... but this game is about the Arkansas and Louisiana part. Arkansas normally has a better basketball team than football. However, their football team has caught fire all season long and have seen very few extinguish their competitive fire. The Razorbacks are ready to defend Home Field like a Capture the Flag game of Unreal Tournament 2004 (UT2007 is forthcoming. I doubt I'll have the computer specs for it). They'll have to do it against LSU. The SEC is the best (if not one of) football conference in America, and LSU is one of those reasons. You think the SEC was negated from Men's basketball until Florida won it all? Imagine how it feels to see SEC teams feel negated against teams like USC and Notre Dame (they play this Saturday). Makes you want to curse out the people behind the BCS and go for a playoff. Either way, they'll play by the system. The Tigers love playing any sport. They are normally good at all sports they participate in. They were especially good in taking down Arkansas. This is an upset in terms of rankings, but I see it as a big win. (??-??; #9 Louisiana State) *big win nominee*

"Nothing to Lose" Colorado at Nebraska (RIVARLY GAME(?))
Let's return to the Big XII and check in on the Big XII North champs for 2006- Nebraska. (-; NEBRASKA)

--- For more results, look here: http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/scoreboard?w=13&c=all&refresh=0 ---

JohnBM01

Imagine how it feels to see SEC teams feel negated against teams like USC and Notre Dame (they play this Saturday). Makes you want to curse out the people behind the BCS and go for a playoff.

Click to expand...

You didn't think it was a pure coincedence that I support a playoff system did you? Honestly, there are so many bowls you might as well have one. Plus, you never know when a nobody from a small conference might show that they are better than their conference, and everyone else's for that matter.

Because of Internet troubles, I'll leave my WINNERS AND LOSERS to another post.





WEEK 13 - SATURDAY SYNOPSIS
Most of the nation saw beautiful Fall/Autumn weather as another week of rivalries ensued around America. Most of the nation also saw a bevy of Division 1-A upsets. One of the rarest rivalries took place in Los Angeles as a Midwestern rival entered California for yet anothet rivalry match. This was also a weekend in which about three teams finished winless as one team finished winless for the first time in school history.





FOOTBALL BOWL SUBDIVISION GAMES

* #6 Notre Dame at #3 USCal (GAME OF THE WEEK; RIVALRY: Battle for the Jewelled Shi...lagh) (44-24; #3 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA)


--- In-State Rivalry Pack ---
"Basketball on Grass" North Carolina at Duke (RIVALRY: Battle for the Victory Bell/Battle for Tobacco Road)
We go from one basketball power to two proven basketball schools. North Carolina has won games while Duke found every possible way to lose games. Duke has been winless even if Coach K. gave up basketball to coach the football team. Do you think North Carolina needs help? Not really. So we have two sorry-as-hell football teams that doesn't have a definite power in the state of North Carolina. Who'll win this one? Let's find out. The University of North Carolina is better known for basketball. Their football team is actually surprising. Chapel Hill is the city UNC is based in. If you love the UNC/Duke rivalry, you'll get to see if North Carolina can take the fight to Duke like they do in basketball. The Tar Heels are (45-44; North Carolina)

* #? Florida at Florida State (RIVALRY GAME) (21-14; #4 FLORIDA)
* South Carolina at #24 Clemson (RIVALRY: Battle of the Palmetto State) (31-28; South Carolina) *upset!*
* #15 Georgia Tech at Georgia (RIVALRY: "Clean Old Fashioned Hate") (15-12; GEORGIA) *upset!*
* Oklahoma at Oklahoma State (RIVALRY: "Bedlam Game") (27-21; Oklahoma)
* BYU (Brigham Young) at Utah (RIVALRY: "Holy War") (-; )

"'Tis the Season for Beatdowns" Virginia at #15 Virginia Tech (RIVALRY: "Battle for the Commonwealth Cup")
Virginia would normally make a Bowl game by now. But their season has been horrible. This season isn't going to get any better for Virginia because they'll be playing at Virginia Tech. This one goes out to JFM92_GTRacer. We are in Blacksburg, VA as one of only four Commonwealth states are ready to do football. Virginia's season has been dismal. They are normally a surprise team capable of great things. Only great thing Virginia has had was a greatly disappointing season. The Cavaliers have maybe one last chance for consolation. That consolation would be an upset win over Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech normally makes a Bowl Game whether it's December or January. The Hokies don't want to be turkeys in this Rivalry Match. Do you hear that gobbling? That gobbling is coming out of the mouths of Virginia because their turkey of a season is over at 5-7. (17-0; #15 VIRGINIA TECH)

"Goose Egg" Mississippi State at Mississippi (RIVALRY: "The Egg Bowl")
Had a boiled egg this morning? How about scrambled eggs? It's time we give some love to chickens because college football has the Egg Bowl. Keep in mind that Bowl Season doesn't begin until mid-December. In fact, this is a game between two disappointing teams in the state of Mississippi. Mississippi State has long been a football disappointment while Mississippi is a disappointment in basketball (Auburn is the worst in SEC men's basketball). One team won't disappoint. Which one will it be? The anti-disappointing team was Mississippi by a field goal. If this was basketball, Mississippi State would win easily. (20-17; MISSISSIPPI)

* Arizona State at Arizona (RIVALRY: "The Big Game" - for the Territorial Cup) (28-14; Arizona State)

-end "In-State Rivalry Back"


--- Kentucky 2-for-1 ---
Let's check in with Kentucky's only two Division 1-A schools (only two even though Western Kentucky will join 1-A in 2009). Both teams will play outside of the Bluegrass State.

"Paradise in Purgatory" Kentucky at Tennessee
How many of you know about Greek Mythology? Well, you may have an opportunity to learn something today. Kentucky will play at Tennessee for this BIG match. Only a few will be able to escape Neyland Stadium with a win as the Away team. Tennessee's mascot is a blue tick hound. This hound can be thought of as Cerebus. Cerebus was the guard dog to the underworld. It was a three-headed dog that was incredibly vicious. This cerebus isn't under the watch of Hades. Instead, it's under Phillip Fulmer as the Volunteers look to pin down Kentucky. We've met the boys in orange. Now we meet the boys in blue. Blue is a beautiful color. And for a while, Kentucky has been more like peasants compared to other teams in the SEC. However, the University of Kentucky football team has summoned the powers of the Siren (also called "Harpies"). The primary power of the Siren were these half-woman, half-eagle creatures famous for producing beautiful sounds. Sounds good, right? Well in Greek Mythology, Siren could be very dangerous if ships were trying to pass by. The Sirens' song could lead ships to rocks in the water and lead to the deaths of sailors and crushed ships alike. The Wildcats don't make sounds as beautiful as the Siren of Greek Mythology, but they'll do you one better. How about the sounds of Kentucky going to a Bowl Game by season's end? Sweet music. This game was televised on the Lincoln Financial Sports Network. Also sweet for the Lexington outfit that Kentucky led Tennessee 12-10 at the Half. It was close, but Tennessee was just too much for the Kentucky Wildcats. This is about their 22nd(?) straight victory Tennessee has over Kentucky. Better luck next year. (17-12; TENNESSEE)

"Steeling the Show" Louisville at Pittsburgh
So Kentucky lost. Is Louisville in trouble as well? Louisville thought they had a tough match when they faced West Virginia. Now, they have to play Pittsburgh... AT Pittsburgh. Let's meet "The 'Ville" first. Louisville has everything from great college football, great college basketball, great horse racing, and a lot of other sports they are involved in. Let's not forget the biggest Louisville Slugger in the world (maybe the Houston Astros would make the playoffs if they had a bat like that). I usually call Louisville the Louisville Sluggers at times. But as much as Louisville and slugging have been synonymous, they are the Louisville Cardinals. I honestly thought Louisville could have been a one-loss team by losing to Miami, but they've lost to Rutgers. Hoping not to lose two straight is Louisville. Now they must take this campaign to Pittsburgh. While the Pittsburgh Steelers haven't been too hot, the University of Pittsburgh has been on point. At least they have a better season this year than their last season. Last season, Pittsburgh was about 0-4 until they shut out Youngstown State 41-0. The Panthers are certainly NOT anyone's cupcake. You think Pittsburgh is scared of Louisville? Hell no, player! But let's see who wins this deal here. The winner is Louisville. While their name starts with "L," they picked up yet another "W" and are probably in the Driver's seat in the Big East. Or are they? Find out if West Virginia did well against South Florida NEXT! Sorry I couldn't deliver good news to Pittsburgh Panthers fans. (48-24; #8 Louisville)

-end "Kentucky 2-for-1"


* South Florida at #7 West Virginia
November 2nd, 2006... (then) #3 West Virginia played at #5 Louisville and lost by about 10. November 25th, 2006... West Virginia is hoping that (24-19; South Florida) *upset!*

* Alabama-Birmingham at Central Florida (31-22; CENTRAL FLORIDA)

* Southern Methodist (SMU) at Rice
The University of Houston will make ready for the C-USA Championship game forthcoming. But let's see how Houston's other Division 1-A team has done. Rice played at Autry Stadium. Autry is Rice's home ground as they took on Southern Methodist of Dallas, TX. Rice's Owls got it done over the Southern Methodist Mustangs. (31-27; RICE)

--- RAPID FIRE (More scores at: http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/scoreboard?w=13&c=all ---
* Cincinatti at Connecticut (26-23; Cincinatti)
* #1? Boise State at Nevada (38-7; #12 Boise State)
* Syracuse at Rutgers (38-7; RUTGERS)
* #20 Wake Forest at Maryland (38-24; MARYLAND) *upset!*
* Kansas at Missouri (RIVALRY: "Battle for the Marching Drum") (-; MISSOURI)





FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SUBDIVISION GAMES

* Grambling State vs. Southern (RIVALRY: "Bayou Classic"; Louisiana Superdome; Baton Rouge, LA)
Two of Louisiana's best FCS teams are ready to get it on in this neutral-turf game. Last year's game was right here in Houston, TX. This year, it's back home in New Orleans, LA. The Louisiana Superdome is usually home to Tulane football. However, this will host a big game between two of the proudest SWAC football teams. Hope you like zydeco and boudain because we're all about Louisiana in this one. The Louisiana city of Grambling is where Grambling State University is located. Their logo looks highly similar to Green Bay (say the same for Georgia). Only that you trade the green for black. Speaking of black, this is a historically-black university that is home to a pack of hungry Tigers. These SWAC kittens are ready to pounce on their rivals from a city you might have heard of before. Louisiana State is the Division 1 power of Louisiana. Much like Texas Southern to Houston and Florida A&M to Tallahassee, Baton Rouge has Southern University. Southern hasn't been very impressive in the basketball ranks in recent times, but their football is still on point. They are usually a good football team. This team is based in Baton Rouge, LA. It is the same city where Louisiana State is located. Southern has some cats of their own... the Jaguars. The Louisiana Superdome has wonderfully been restored and ready to host this college rivalry after a one-year abscence. (24-17; Southern)

* South Carolina State at North Carolina A&T (RIVALRY GAME)
This loss by North Carolina A&T makes for the first-ever Aggies team to finish winless. The Bulldogs of South Carolina State showed NCA&T just how horrible of a season they had. Oh, and if you want some real humiliation, I need only say this: even Savannah State and even Morgan State won a game this year. Sad break. (41-19; South Carolina State) *most disappointing loss nominee*





JOHN'S WINNERS AND LOSERS
BIGGEST WIN(S) OF THE WEEK
(Nationally)#9 Louisiana State Stuns #5 Arkansas - I understand that this is an upset in terms of rankings. However, this is a feel-good win for LSU when a number of people picked Arkanas to beat LSU. But come on now. One of LSU's proudest alums is a guy by the name of... Shaquille O' Neal. LSU slam dunked Arkansas in a BIG win.
(Locally) Rice Makes Incredible Turnaround All Season... Capped Off With Win Over Southern Methodist - Word has it that Southern Methodist has had a great season. Well guess what? So has Rice. The star power for rice has been well-defined even in losing efforts. Never was this more apparent than when they lost a tooth-and-nail battle against Houston back in Week 1.

MOST DISAPPOINTING LOSS(ES) OF THE WEEK
North Carolina A&T's Suffers First Winless Season EVER - South Carolina State is a pretty good team, but it's really sad that this team suffered its first losing season in school history. Hell, their basketball team is probably just as bad as this year's football team. I might have said the most impacting thing earlier in this report: "even Savannah State and Morgan State won games." I'm sorry this had to happen to this team.

UPSET(S) OF THE WEEK (if any)
South Florida Upstages #7 West Virginia on the Road - Slim hopes of a National Championship game was certainly halted as the WVU Mountaineers have to accept a loss like this.

OWNAGE OF THE WEEK
(not reported) Florida Atlantic and Southern Mississippi Respectively Blow Out Florida International and Marshall - I wanted to give out this honor to two schools in beating down the other teams. I couldn't find any significant OWNAGE I want to commend. So I decided to include a blowout and a shutout. So enjoy two OWNAGES:

Marshall = OWNED (by Southern Mississippi 42-7)!
Florida International = OWNED (by Florida Atlantic 31-0)!



JOHN'S EXTRAS

I'm sorry for the VERY long delay. The final week of Division 1-A is forthcoming. I have a LOT of reports to make on coaching changes. Also next week are conference championship games and yet another rendition of one of college football's most famous rivalries- California vs. Stanford.

JohnBM01

* #6 Notre Dame at #3 USCal (GAME OF THE WEEK; RIVALRY: Battle for the Jewelled Shi...lagh) (44-24; #3 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA)

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This was a fun game to watch. Well, the first half was. USC is just amazing to watch.

I only have one comment to make about this game: THAT WAS A FUMBLE!!! It wasn't a game changer so it doesn't matter but it had to be the worst call in history. He tucked the ball, how is that not possesion? Granted, it was a bad tuck, but if that isn't possession then let's call back about half the fumbles in all of football.

It was close, but Tennessee was just too much for the Kentucky Wildcats. This is about their 22nd(?) straight victory Tennessee has over Kentucky. Better luck next year. (17-12; TENNESSEE)

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I give the credit for this win to Kentucky. Missed PAT, missed FG, and delay of game from the 3 yard line with 3:00 to go? Two chokes and a QB that cracked under the pressure and tried to change the play three times, until he had no time. The coaching staff are saying they failed to make the call in time and it wasn't Woodson's fault, but it seems suspicious. We had a chance and we blew it, end of story.

Hopefully this is out of their system before the bowl game.

Sorry I couldn't deliver good news to Pittsburgh Panthers fans. (48-24; #8 Louisville)

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Just like USC, this was a fun game to watch, for a half.

Well, Louisville will probably get a BCS bid (depending on the Rutgers West Virginia game) and the way it looks now they may play Florida or LSU. If the football Gods have any sense of justice this will be the case. To see the shock and awe on the faces of Louisville fans as they realize that the SEC is a tough conference will be great. I wish I could hear the shock and awe, but the game would silence Louisville fans for a long time to come.

Now, I didn't get a chance to see that game because I've been playing "Capcom Classics Collection - Volume 2." It's a wicked package of games including the insanely frustrating "Tiger Road" and the real challenging (even though I beat it yesterday) Strider. I'd say this Notre Dame loss is pretty demoralizing. I'll be honest with you. I haven't really clicked with the new USCal. I know what I'm getting when talking about Leinart and Bush. Thing is, I haven't really much to say that I'm actually excitied about this year's squad. I felt the same way about Texas' squad. But Texas did quite well until losing to Kansas State and Texas A&M in successive games.

Now let me talk Kentucky while you're here. Let me praise your Wildcats on a job well done. Although the biggest surprise in the SEC is Arkansas, your Wildcats have sort of been a sleeper of a team. I predicted that they would make a Bowl Game this year and look what happened. The last basketball power in football that I had respect for was Connecticut. Connecticut made their first Bowl Game last year or two years ago. This used to be a 1-AA team playing in Division 1-A (now called FBS). Anyhow, Kentucky likely isn't going to take down the big names in the SEC. They did, however, take down a struggling Georgia team. This gives Kentucky a lot to build upon if they want to make their team shine on the football field. * Now let's look to Louisville. I have great respect for Louisville. They really seem like a team that is more like... "looking for their big break," so to speak. Think of them as a music group that's been blazing up the local scene and looking to elevate their game to the national (and even international) level. I think this was part of Louisville's intent to join the Big East. The Big East Champion has a chance to play in a BCS Bowl Game. It doesn't get any better than that. It means that you are among some of the finest (and maybe luckiest) teams to play for a title or play a critical Bowl Match. The 'Ville even know what they got themselves into with basketball and even baseball. Louisville knows their basketball matches will be against teams like Cincinatti, Syracuse, Connecticut, Georgetown, St. John's, and even Notre Dame. If Louisville wants to win games and potentially play for a National Championship, they'll need some more solid recruits as well as an attitude to which they feel they can beat ANYONE. You don't beat Miami in a blowout and not get some national respect. I propose a challenge to Louisville. If they really think they belong in a national picture, schedule teams like these:

Ohio State
Michigan
Texas
Louisiana State
Florida
Southern California
Florida State
Tennessee

The push for a National Championship will involve lots of commitment and talent. You don't win if you don't have these two virtues.


And that's that. Week 14 thread is coming soon.

JohnBM01

Now, I didn't get a chance to see that game because I've been playing "Capcom Classics Collection - Volume 2."

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Haha! I had the small collections they put out for the PS1.

I spent my free time this weekend playing Burger King Pocketbike Racer.

You don't beat Miami in a blowout and not get some national respect.

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Even this Miami team?

I propose a challenge to Louisville. If they really think they belong in a national picture, schedule teams like these:

Ohio State
Michigan
Texas
Louisiana State
Florida
Southern California
Florida State
Tennessee

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I would buy a season ticket if they did this.