Posted on 12/03/2009 12:22:17 AM PST by GOP_Raider
We have officially reached a milestone in the season. The first of which is that I now don't need any clever or anecdotal introductory paragraph to get your neurons firing in anticipation of the upcoming week. The second is that we now have a pretty clear indication of who will be playing where and a very highly touted, yet scaled down, slate of games.
Before we begin, let's honor the conference champions thus far in 2009. So if you're an Ohio State Buckeye, TCU Horned Frog, Troy Trojan, or Boise State Bronco, break out the sparkling grape juice and overturn some lawn chairs, your respective schools are conference champions! For the rest of you that have titles in the balance, here are this week's games.
Oregon State vs Oregon (Tonight, 9:30 pm) Quick show of hands, how many of you out there would likely have said this back in 1989 "20 years from now, the Civil War will be for the Pac-10 title and a Rose Bowl berth"? Keep in mind here that 20 years ago I also said "Craig Lefferts, Rick Reuschel, Kelly Downs, and Don Robinson are gonna beat the A's silly!" Don't laugh it's not funny. But anyway, the Ducks have been carried for much of this season by QB Jeremiah Masoli and RB LaMichael James. Aside from the opening loss at Boise State and being on the business end of a strange matchup against Stanford, have been making mincemeat out of everyone they've faced. The Beavers however have a QB-RB tandem of their own, getting a very good year out of both QB Sean Canfield and legendary RB Jacquizz Rodgers. This may also mark the first in the history of FR where a thread discusses the "Civil War" and nobody gets banned.
The MAC Championship Game: Ohio vs. Central Michigan (Friday, 8:00 pm) Many of you may be wondering why I haven't been featuring the MAC a little more than I have in the past few seasons. It isn't due to animosity as much as it's due to sheer ignorance. Though I feature the WAC and the Mountain West a lot more than other members of the FR College Football Ping List may desire, I do live out west and this is the football I grew up with. Both the Bobcats and Chippewas have faced each other once already, with Central Michigan doing the thumping 31-10. However, the most compelling number here is that Ohio head coach Frank Solich goes into this game with a 9-3 mark. A Bobcat victory could get us closer to 3 FBS conference champions coming to us from the State of Ohio. So if you Buckeyes, Bearcats and Bobcats want to meet in Dayton somewhere and do a celebratory chest bump or an awkward white person dance, that would be fine by me. Hey, speaking of the Bearcats...
Cincinnati vs. Pittsburgh (High Noon) Here is the informal Big East Championship Game. But let's all congratulate the Big East for no longer being the Big Least. Let's also look at what Tony Pike was able to do last week against Illinois. 32-46, 399 yards and 6 TDs. This after UC was getting some very impressive games out of backup QB Zach Collaros. The main problem as I see it for the Bearcats might be on defense, as a struggling team in Illinois was able to hang around against them. Enter the Panthers, with QB Bill Stull and RB Dion Lewis. While the Pitt offense as a whole didn't have a sparkling game against arch-rival West Virginia last week, they were able to keep the Mountaineers under wraps, and there just might be a WAC game that breaks out at Heinz Field.
The Conference USA Championship Game: Houston vs. East Carolina (High Noon) Despite my unabashed annoyance at anything named Cougars (especially now), this year's Houston team is very fun to watch. UH it would appear, has made a very concerted effort to make every single game they play a track meet. The two losses against UTEP and Central Florida could have derailed any chances they had for a C-USA title (or for QB Case Keenum to have a shot at the Heisman Trophy), but here they are anyway. They'll get the reigning C-USA Champion Pirates who still have a very solid QB in their own right in Patrick Pinkney. One aspect of this matchup that could tilt in UH's favor could be the ECU secondary, which has been beaten and beaten badly at various points throughout the season. Then again, it might not matter much if both offenses start to explode.
New Mexico State vs. Boise State (3:00 pm) Okay, this is for all intents and purposes a coronation for the Broncos, so let's discuss where the Broncos should end up. Would some of you say that they are worthy of going to a BCS game? I would have to say that if I were a part of the Fiesta Bowl in some capacity, I would say to BSU to come on down to Glendale. Now, that does leave an argument out there for some of you to make that BSU played a weak schedule and that if they want to run with your BCS schools out there they need to join a different conference or improve their non-conference schedule. That might be a different argument. Regardless, it's tough to argue with a spotless record such as that one, so just ask yourself if you're selecting teams for the Fiesta Bowl if you would say "okay, I want the best matchup for our little beauty contest. Does BSU give them that?"
The Big XII Championship Game: Nebraska vs. Texas (8:00 pm) You may be sitting in your easy chair wondering to yourself "hey, weren't these the two teams that played in the inaugural Big XII Championship game?". You would be correct if this came to your cranium. This was the year where the Huskers came into the title game as heavy favorites and the Longhorns, complete with luminaries such as James Brown, Priest Holmes, and Shon Mitchell, went into the Trans World Dome and shocked Big Red. (This also might have been John Mackovic's finest moment at UT, with the whole "roll left" thing). But now, the roles are reversed and if you're looking for a complete chaotic mess in the BCS, a Husker victory and Big XII Championship would do just that. The thing is though, QB Colt McCoy has played his way into a possible Heisman Trophy, and with that alone, it might not be a possibility for Nebraska to return the favor some 13 years later.
The ACC Championship Game: Georgia Tech vs. Clemson (8:00 pm) Neither team in this year's ACC title contest did themselves any favors last week. After getting humbled by their respective SEC rivals last week, the Yellow Jackets and the Tigers come into the title game having already faced each other earlier in the year. Clemson had the first matchup in their hands against the Ramblin' Wreck and didn't take it, especially after the Tigers contained Tech's ground game in the second half. Now, the second chance has arrived and it's for a BCS spot and a conference title. Which team will still be shellshocked after their losses last week? You may be out there attempting to disagree with me, but this could be the most entertaining game of all the championship games.
(for Biggirl and Man50D) South Florida vs. UConn (8:00 pm) Somebody name for me the best player we haven't heard of yet? I'll nominate Husky RB Jordan Todman. Todman ran for over 1,000 yards when a lot of people--myself included--didn't think anyone would be able to step up at that position after the departure of Donald Brown. One thing that we must note here is that Zach Fraser had a very solid game last week against Syracuse. Fraser threw for 173 yards and a couple of scores, which is pretty solid for the type of team the Huskies have offensively. This week, USF will come to beautiful Rentschler Field, after losing big to Miami at home last week.
And now, the Game of the Week and possibly the game of the year in college football.
The SEC Championship Game: Florida vs. Alabama (4:00 pm) Ye have heard it hath been said that the SEC schedule is such a grind that it's impossible for a team to go undefeated. The rematch of last year's SEC Title Game have gone out of their way to at least leave some doubt about that. The Gators have had their close call (or bad call, depending on one's perspective) against Arkansas and the Tide has had two incredible games against arguably their two biggest rivals, Tennessee and Auburn. But what makes the difference this go 'round? Could it be the quarterbacks, Greg McElroy and Tim Tebow? Could we see a performance from Tide RB Mark Ingram that could propel him to the school's first ever Heisman Trophy? Or could it be the head coaches? Gator head coach Urban Meyer may not be the most savory of characters, but he wins football games, and the same could be said about Nick Saban as well. But the chess match between the two of them just might be the difference. I, for one, can't wait.
Enjoy the games this weekend and we have some bonus games that will be mentioned in Post #1.
William & Mary vs. Southern Illinois (High Noon) Stephen F. Austin vs. Montana (2:00 pm) New Hampshire vs. Villanova (3:30 pm) Appalachian State vs. Richmond (7:00 pm)
After the the eggs laid by Georgia Tech and Clemson last week, it kinda makes the ACC Championship game a big nothing. Bragging rights for the conference I guess, but the SEC showed itself as clearly superior.
love Texas..............Don’t forget round 2 of the FCS where APPALACHIAN STATE vs Richmond. It’s the 3rd year in a row they’re playing each other. The last 4 Nat’l Championships have been won by APPALACHIAN STATE or Richmond. The game is on MASN or the ESPN package. It’ll be better then the ACC Championship.
HOOK 'EM'
The REAL Div 1 Football Championships
Montana vs SF Austin
Appalachian St vs Richmond
Villanova vs New Hampshire
William and Mary vs Southern Illinois
Winners advance to semi finals, Championship game on Dec 18.
Hook ‘em Horns!!!
lol, yeah, kind of sweet that third tier (7-5) SEC teams will have beaten the ACC champs, whoever they end up being.
Roll Tide, I can’t wait for Saturday to get here.
Florida will go up if they beat the team right below them... ok. So what happens in your rankings if Alabama beats Florida??
I’m glad the Big 12 game is in Dallas. That’ll give UT somewhat of a home field advantage.
No matter any outcomes though .... the state of Texas will have a team in the BCS championship! Cool!
Hook ‘em Horns and Roll Tide!!!!!!!
The difference will be decided in the trenches. Specifically, UF's G-C-G vs. Bama's Terrance Cody.
Roll out the last time the Civil War mannered was at Gettysburg type jokes. The guy at SI could not resist.
What I can’t figure out is why Houston (with a better overall record) has to go to East carolina for the C-US Championship.
The only reason I can think of is that East carolina only had one in-conference loss while Houston had two in-conference losses.
HOOK ‘EM’
Can’t be said enough. We’re on a mission.
WOW!!!!
That’ll spice up the thread!!!
Not a lot of love for the Big East in your top 25, FWIW.
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