DIVISION 1-A GAMES: WEEK 3
*+x GAME OF THE WEEK x+*
"Southern Hatred" Tennessee at Florida
Last year, I wanted to know what Tennessee football was all about. By following the Volunteers, I've enjoyed learning what Vols football is about. And every now and then, I hum "Rocky Top" while at it. Another team sports a little orange, and that is their rivals in Gainesville- Florida. Tennessee and Florida are two rivals in which emotions run wild. Last year, Tennessee beat Florida 30-28. And this is the stadium in which NCAA Football 2005 rated as the #1 Toughest Place to Play (Neyland Stadium at #2), "The Swamp." (16-7; FLORIDA)
"Bow Down to Bowden" Florida State at Boston College
The Boston College Eagles had a lot of pride on the line as they played the Florida State Seminoles. BC made a comeback out of it, but couldn't finish the job. (28-17 ;Florida State)
"Triple Threat Treat" Miami at Clemson
All this time I've been talking about Clemson being once National Champions. I finally figured out that they were national champs in 1981. Of course, Clemson's scoreboard says "1981 National Champions." Miami is no stranger to National Champions, as they seen the promised land about five times. These two ACC talents faced off in Death Valley. (36-30, 3OT ; Miami (FL))
"Week After Last" Northern Iowa at Iowa
The Iowa Hawkeyes are one of the hottest names in the Big Ten right about now. They almost always seem to find a way to win. And if they lose, at least they fight to the end. Play some sad piano music... because last week, Iowa State shocked not only America, but especially Iowa fans. The Cyclones of the Big XII North pulled an upset many of us weren't expecting. The Div. 1-AA Northern Iowa Panthers met the Hawkeyes. After 60 minutes of the good, the bad, and the ugly, Iowa won by more than half of NIU's score.(45-21; IOWA)
"Help Wanted" Pittsburgh at Nebraska
Lincoln, Nebraska is Big XII country fo' sheezy, you dig? It's home to those big uglies on offense known as the Cornhuskers. (7-6;NEBRASKA)
"Ballin' and Brawlin'" Ball State at Auburn
Jordan-Hare Stadium must be a wonderful place to play football. Why so? The Auburn Tigers don't go on the road until October 15th, when they play in Arkansas against Arkansas. I'm not knocking Jordan-Hare. In fact, it's tough to play there. The Tigers are still upset that they didn't get a shot at the National Title last season. On top of that, where the hell did Georgia Tech come from... beating Auburn
at Auburn? Ball State has yet to win. (63-3; AUBURN)
"The Forever Game" Houston at UTEP (Texas-El Paso)
Up and coming UTEP are looking to make the most of their oppurtunities in Conference USA. In the new alignment, there is are Eastern and Western conferences. For sure, Houston and UTEP are part of the West. The Cougars won their tune-up match last week against Sam Houston State. The Cougars must stay composed and focused if they want to play in the inaugural conference championship. Houston hasn't been to a Bowl Game since 2003. And in their last five bowls, they lost all of them. Houston has to step up, and they had their shot against west Texas' UTEP Miners. The game was pretty long with plenty of penalties in this matchup. Kevin Kolb and his boys blew out the Miners before the end of the first half at about 15-5. Then later, there's been all sorts of breakthrough plays. Then with 6 seconds left, UTEP kicker R. Schneider missed an easy field goal, and overtime was forced when the scarlet and white (Houston) took a knee. It took two overtimes to decide this one, but UTEP won in this Texas thriller. Houston is under 0.500 and may go even deeper when they play at home vs. Southern Miss. (44-41, 2OT; TEXAS-EL PASO)
"Green Waves of Change" Mississippi State at Tulane
Tulane usually plays at the Louisiana Superdome. But as you well know, that Superdome is in super trouble. The Green Wave is fortunate to have their season continue. Keep in mind. The stars on the field are also stars on the books. So I question how Tulane will be able to get the academics down. Meanwhile, the MSU Bulldogs took a schalackin' last time out. (-
"" Eastern Michigan at Michigan
MAC meets Big Ten. The Eastern Michigan Eagles finished 4-7 last season. These Eagles flew their way into Michigan's Big House in Ann Arbor. The Michigan Wolverines are fresh off of being defeated at home against Notre Dame. Next week, Michigan plays in-conference as they travel to Madison, WI, to meet the Wisconsin Badgers. As far as this game goes, it wasn't even close. (55-0; MICHIGAN)
"" Michigan State at Notre Dame
"Michigan couldn't get the job done, so let's show the Wolverines how it's done!" That's probably what an overconfident Spartan in East Lansing, MI would say about Michigan's upset defeat to Notre Dame. Michigan couldn't get it done over Notre Dame at home, so maybe MSU in South Bend can get it done. Michigan and Michigan State won't be played until October 1st (at MSU), by the way. The game ended up in overtime as both teams played like champions. But there is only one champion, and the upset happened as Michigan State knocked reality into Notre Dame. Not such a perfect world, is it? (44-41, OT; Michigan State)
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" Utah at TCU
TCU upsets Oklahoma in Week 1. SMU upsets TCU last week. Now they make their debut in Mountain West in-conference play. At one point, I thought it would be pretty hard for TCU to beat Utah. Nothing lasts forever, so is this curtains for the Utes' winning streak? Utah's win streak went straight to Hell in an upset I didn't see happening. Congratulations to the Horned Frogs for the upset. That's two upsets against two hot teams. Now, Southern California has yet to fall. (23-20, OT; TEXAS CHRISTIAN)
"Red River Mini Shootout" Tulsa at North Texas
Tulsa's Golden Hurricane got blown out in a potential attempt to upset the wounded Oklahoma Sooners. Tulsa will take a road trip down south to North Texas. If you know Oklahoma and Texas, you may be able to know how far it is from Tulsa to Denton, TX. (-
"" McNeese State at Southern Miss
The McNesse State Cowboys are a member of Division 1-AA's Southland Conference. This Louisiana-based outfit are looking to head east to Mississippi to meet the alma mater of Brett Favre, Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles are among some of the best talent in America. Maybe not Top 25 material, but more like a team that you'd pay dearly for overlooking. Anyhow, you want some Golden Eagles football? You got it! (-
"" Rice at Texas
Did you see the dog fight in Columbus, OH? Texas was down, but fought back. The Longhorns have a Bye week next week. But before they get ready for that Bye week, they have to face another opponent, Rice University. And if you loved the OSU/Texas game, the Texas/Rice game should be just as exciting right? Actually... you'd be dead wrong. Rice is based in Houston, TX, just in the shadow of the Texas Medical Center. Texas is based in the capital city of Austin, TX. Rice isn't a favorite to win C-USA, and they certainly weren't favorites against Texas. (51-10; TEXAS)
"In-Terp-Cepcion!" West Virginia at Maryland
Them danged Terps, I'll tell you what. They decide to bring in some boys from some close-by state... oh yeah, West Virginia. For what I know, Maryland and West Virginia are 1-1 on the season. Only one can go to 2-1, while the other has work to do if they want to make the postseason. The boys of Morgantown, West Virginia travelled east to College Park, Maryland as the Terrapins hosted the Mountaineers. The Mountaineers weren't phased by the onslaught as they won (31-19; West Virginia)
"" Idaho at Washington
This would be a shame if Washington lost to Idaho. Ty Willingham is probably getting roasted by UW students for some lackluster coaching to the Huskies. The 1991 co-national champions haven't won a game since beating San Jose State in their 5th game. Utah may not have their win streak, but Washington's losing streak is currently at eight games. Washington plays in the beautiful city of Seattle, WA. But can these boys beat the visiting Idaho Vandals? (?-3?; WASHINGTON)
"" Alabama at South Carolina
The old ball coach is back at it again. They now are into their in-conference games as they welcome the boys of Tuscaloosa to Columbia, South Carolina. The Gamecocks are getting cocky in taking down the Crimson Tide, but it will take more than cockiness. You have to be confident, and most important... you gots to BRING IT, player! And Alabama washed away the Gamecocks. Roll tide roll! They get their first SEC win this season, and look to better that by hosting Arkansas next week. (37-14; Alabama)
"" Illinois at California
The Fighting Illini of Champaign, IL will make their trip to northern California (I believe), to play against the California Golden Bears. With the game being played in Berkley, CA, the Golden Bears of Berkley is looking to make it three wins this season. If the California Golden Bears are a train, that train has yet to be derailed as they beat Illinois by a touchdown and two field goals. (35-20; CALIFORNIA)
"Ten-acious Tens" Northwestern at Arizona State
This edition of Sesame Street is brought to you by the letters, N, A, S, and the number 10. "N" is for Northwestern, "A" is for Arizona, "S" for State, and the number 10 for the Big Ten and Pac-10 for the respective conferences they play in. There ain't no Sesame Street, Mickey Mouse, Disneyland in this matchup. These are two good teams who seen Bowl Game action last year. (52-21 ; ARIZONA STATE)
"" SMU at Texas A&M
Is it possible to pull two upsets in consecutive weeks? If you're a Mustang, anything is possible. SMU beat their rivals out of Fort Worth in Dallas. Now they have a tall order ahead of them in another great Texas institution- Texas A&M. Now, I did some reading online, and learned the story of the "12th Man" for Texas A&M. I'll share what I learned in my "Entertaining Moments" segment at the end of my report. For now though, it's one of the toughest places to play- Kyle Field. The several ten-thousands of Aggie faithfuls love their college football, and it shows. Look at TAMU fans when they Aggies score. The fan experience far exceeds the NFL. The Aggies got agg-ressive and had a cakewalk of a victory against the dismal Dallas outfit of Southern Methodist. (66-8; TEXAS A&M)
"" Mississippi at Vanderbilt
SEC action is up now. The Ole Miss Rebels met against the Vanderbilt Commodores. Both teams were two of the worst in the SEC rankings last season, with Vanderbilt winning only two games. (31-23 ; VANDERBILT)
"Slowly Fading Fast" Oklahoma at UCLA
Oklahoma got upset by TCU. They probably got lucky over Tulsa, but this is a chance for the UCLA Bruins to capitalize on a wounded superpower. For Oklahoma, they need a win or their championship hopes may go straight to Hell like Vanilla Ice's career. Maybe I'm still certain that Oklahoma still has that spark in them. They haven't been national champions since 2000 as this game was played at the beautiful bowl the 2005-2006 National Championship game will be played- the Rose Bowl on 1/4/2006. If you want to talk roses, some black roses may be handed down to Oklahoma's Big XII South power status. A damn shame if you're a Sooners' fan, but a sensational win if you're a Bruin. (41-24 ;CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES)
"" San Diego State at Ohio State
Last week, Ohio State accepted a difficult loss in what had to be one of the greatest games we may see this year. At the Horseshoe, San Diego State went from Qualcomm Stadium to Buckeye Stadium. Would the results be cute as a cuddly kitten? Or would it be an as ugly as the Pontiac Torrent? The Aztecs got knocked back into extinction meeting Shio State. (27-6 ;OHIO STATE)
"Treat Yourself with Tricks" #25 Virginia at Syracuse
Over 40K fans packed the carrier dome in Syracuse, NY. The Carrier Dome is pretty special to Syracuse. During college football season, they play gridiron football (why you all came to the Football forums, right?). During college basketball season (what they are better at) the hardwood comes out so the Orange can shoot behind the arc, making another NCAA tournament appearance. The Virginia Cavaliers may not know basketball too well, considering losing in the 1980s to Chaminade, but football is their forte by being #25th ranked. UVA lead for some time, but Syracuse made a game out of it being down by 3 inside seven minutes. Then, a crucial chip shot of a field goal connected as Virgina avoided a scare. (27-24 ;Virginia)
"Scarlet Starlets" Rutgers at Buffalo
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are one of the oldest football teams in all of college football. They played the first-ever game more than 135 years ago against Princeton. Don't confuse the two, but while Buffalo has the Buffalo Bills in the pros, Buffalo has the Buffalo Bulls in college. The New Jersey crew invaded this city in upstate New York. As you can tell, both teams landed field goals, but Rutgers had two touchdowns to win this one. (17-3; Rutgers)
* Florida Atlantic at Minnesota
Boca Raton, Florida is home to a team that is well outside of "superpower" status. This Sun Belt team had a beautiful 9-3 winning season last year, but have stumbled to Kansas and Oklahoma State. Now they hope to win at least one game before Sun Belt in-conference play. But they had to do it in Vikings country- the Metrodome in Minneapolis, MN. But hey, this is COLLEGE! So it's home to the Golden Gophers as well. These Golden Gophers were golden in downing the Owls. Minnesota will be ready for Big Ten action next week, hosting Purdue. (46-7 ; MINNESOTA)
"The Big O" Fresno State at Oregon
The ugliest uniforms in college football, Oregon, is a good Pac-10 team. Their problem in Autzen, OR is the Fresno State Bulldogs. Oregon hasn't seen a Bowl Game since 2003, while Fresno State been to Bowl Games for some time, not to mention last year's MPC Computers Bowl (formerly the Humanitarian Bowl). There's no humanitarianism in this game, however. It's kill or be killed, and these two west coast teams won't give the other teams any bull in trying to make the most of each play, each down, each drive. A field goal decided this one when it was all played out. (37-34; OREGON)
"Fresh to Deliver" Oregon State at Louisville
Playing against Louisville is bad enough. Playing at THEIR home is even worse. Papa John's Cardinal Stadium is home to Kentucky's redbirds. Papa John's makes for some good pizza, and the pizza for this game is a large pizza with touchdowns, a field goal, and probably Oregon State's win record with an ugly score. That pizza is ready in 60 seconds, so enjoy taking a bite out of this blowout of a pizza. Dig in, player. (63-27; LOUISVILLE)
* Ohio at Virginia Tech
One week, Ohio knocks off Pittsburgh. The next week- they have a chance to beat one of America's best Division 1-A talents- Virginia Tech. If the cheers in Athens, OH were any indication of motivation for this game, Blacksburg, VA isn't going to take kindly to the Ohio Bobcats. The Hokies shown no mercy as this schalackin' was testament to any underdog looking to (45-0; VIRGINA TECH)
"Cardinal Conquest" U. of California-Davis at Stanford
This is a California matchup, as it is the UC Davis Aggies meeting up against the Stanford Cardinal. Last year, USC was shocked by Stanford in the first half. Now, they need to beat the Aggies. This all seems pretty easy as Stanford plays a cupcake team, then has a Bye week next week.
* Central Michigan at Penn State
Penn State, do you love your Nittany Lions? Do you love your Joe Paterno? That love is going to be put to the test as they play against the Central Michigan Chippewas. Still love your Nittany Lions coached lovingly by Joe Paterno? University Park, PA should be proud to see the Nittany Lions beat down Central Michigan. PSU's next task? At Northwestern to start their Big Ten in-conference play. (34-?; PENN STATE)
* Western Carolina at Cincinatti
Cincy is up now. The Big East team and ex-Conference USA team is looking to make a big splash in the Big East. It was a close game. How close? One field goal, one touchdown. (7-3; CINCINATTI)
"" Connecticut at Georgia Tech
Aww! Cute puppy! What kind is it? It's a huskie. No Nintendogs about these puppies. This is Connecticut, the first school in college basketball to win the Men's and Women's National Titles in the same year. In fact, both of these schools are better in basketbal, so if you had to choose between Storrs, CT and Atlanta, GA, who would you choose? Georgia Tech is slightly more favored despite that Connecticut is up-and-coming. (28-13; GEORGIA TECH)
"Underappreciated Bowl" Baylor at Army
Big XII's Baylor is based in Waco, TX. The United States Army Academy are an outfit in West Poiint, NY. Both teams are abysmal in their respective conferences. Army may be an Independent, but they can still make a game out of a game if need be. Still, the Big XII is a better conference than the Army Independent. The Baylor Bears doubled up the Army Black Knights. In two weeks, they play in-conference play against the team they upset last year- Texas A&M. (20-10; Baylor)
* U. of Louisiana-Monroe at Georgia
Louisiana-Monroe (44-7; GEORGIA)
"Red Raiders of the Lost Ark" Sam Houston State at Texas Tech
Some weak 1-AA teams probably don't need to play teams from major conferences. Sam Houston State learned the hard way as they travelled from Huntsville, TX to Lubbock, TX. This game had a pretty long box score as this beatdown was severe. The Red Raiders wanted the Sam Houston State Bearkats to warm up the bus and head the hell home. Pure ownage. (80-21; TEXAS TECH)
"Union Purdue" Purdue at Arizona
The Boilermakers made easy work of Arizona, even if on the road. Arizona is not a Pac-10 powerhouse in football. Purdue is still very talented and won't take no for an answer. The beatdown (31-24; Purdue)
* Tulsa at North Texas
The boys in Tulsa went to Denton, TX. Why? To pay them a visit of course... not to mention blow them out. That one safety the Mean Green got on the Golden Hurricane was only mere consolation. (54-2; Tulsa)
