Ineptitude, Inconsistency, Intrigue and the Highest Jump Ever!

Welcome back, everyone, and welcome to another edition of the #2 Search Term on the "Mo's Sport's Blog" search page on Google.com.

I'm glad that the Dallas Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles play in the same division, because twice a year I get to bash one of these teams for losing to the other. But not this week. Let's start off with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles blew another 4th quarter lead on Sunday leading to many grumblings about Andy Reid's coaching future and Michael Vick's ineptitude at the QB position. The Flying Cheese Steaks was playing a pretty decent game until the 4th when someone told them that they only needed to play for 45 minutes. The wheels came off after that. The Lions clawed their way back (pun absolutely intended) and beat the Eagles in OT which then led to Lions' HC Jim Schwartz's really unusual display of celebration. Let's take a look at the stat sheet though. Michael Vick looked pretty average yesterday (28/46, 311 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT, 9 carries/59 yards). By no means good. Just average. Let's face it, the defense still can't accept the fact that a Wide-9 look in the NFL doesn't work. The re-worked 3-3-5 defense only works for college programs like West Virginia, where the offense can score enough points to offset the chunks of real estate and points the defense gives up. Sorry, Juan Castillo. Stick to the 4-3 like everyone else. Now I have to give credit where credit is due. The Lions did what they needed to do to win. They found the Eagles' defense's weakness (which is evidently playing the 4th quarter) and exposed it. If the Eagles want to win, Michael Vick doesn't need to be throwing the ball more that 30 times per game. Let the run game grind out the W. Yesterday, Ronald Reagan was somewhere "up there" watching the game and screamed, "There they go again." Thankfully for them, the Cheese Steaks are off next week, but they need to regroup, because they play the now 5-0 Falcons on the 28th. They could just mail it in, however...

We now go from Philly to their division rival and my and everyone's hatable losers, The Dallas Cowgir...boys. This game wasn't nearly as bad as it looked. The Raven's D was as porous as a bucket with a hole on both ends, but Tony Romo's interception and Les Miles-like clock management at the end of the game proved to be fatal. Let us fast forward to the last 28 second of the game. Tony Romo completes a pass to Dez Bryant to put them 1 yard out of Dan Bailey's career long FG. Jason Garrett and Tony Romo let the clock wind all the way down to :04!!!!! Seriously? If the convert the first down, game over, but 'hold it right there'. They couldn't figure out what to do. Romo and the rest of the offense didn't move until the time out was called. Then Dan Bailey did what recent Cowboy kickers have done (I'm looking at you, Shaun Suisham)...miss it wide left to win the game! I think this is going to be another sub-par year for the Cowboys. Romo will get his extension, only because Jerry Jones' financial mind has left the building, but Jason Garrett will be fired and they will go with "someone who better exemplifies the Cowboy's winning way." No one will be selected, because who in that organization can define "winning way?"

Now we shift to the only sport that really seems to matter right now: Baseball. It's October and we all know what that means...PLAYOFFS!!!! I'll get you caught up to speed. In the A.L. The Yankees beat the Orioles to advance, because the O's didn't take the Yankees to extra innings in every game. The Tigers beat the Athletics to put a cap on Oakland's stellar season. The Cardinals advanced as the Nationals' decision to sht down Strasberg came back to bite them as they were within inches of advancing, but fell apart in Game 5. Finally, it seems that Dusty Baker's tenure in Cincinnati is over. After having the best record in baseball going into the playoffs, the Reds had a can opened up on them by the Giants.

And here we are. The Yankees are on the verge of the verge of going home. After losing the Yankee captain, Derek Jeter, the Yanks look in disarray. They were holding their own and even came back from a 4-0 deficit to tie Game 1 in the ninth. Then disaster struck. Jeter fractured his ankle making a play on a grounder from Jhonny Peralta. He went down, winced and could barely make the pitch to 2nd base. The Yankees lost Game 1 6-4 in extra innings. Game 2 was a different story. A-rod's slump must be highly contagious because the Yankees were 4-hit in the second game of the series. tiger's pitcher Anibal Sanchez went 7 innings, gave up 3 hits, 3 walked and struck out 7 as former Yankee reliever Phil Coke shut the door to put the Yankees close to the brink. I think this one is over before it really got started. the series heads back to Detroit where it looks like the Tigers will close it out to advance to The Show.

Now to the other side. The Cardinals to a 1-0 series lead against the the San Francisco Giants last night after Giants' starter Madison Bumgarner virtually sold the farm during his short outing last night. In 3 2/3 innings, Bumgarner gave up 6 runs (2 HR) on 8 hits, walked 1 and struck out 2. However, the Cardinals didn't fare too well early on, either. Lance Lynn worked 3 2/3 innings and gave up 4 ER on 5 hits. The real story was the bullpen work from both teams. Both 'pens went a combined 10 2/3 innings of 2-hit ball with 9 K's. The offenses were served up beach balls in the first few innings, but were held in check after the starters were lifted. The Giants (R. Vogelsong) and Cardinals (C. Carpenter) go tonight in what is sure to be an interesting match up. Giants win tonight to tie it up.

The performance of the week has to go to Austrian dare-devil Felix Baumgartner. After years of preparation, Baumgartner jumped out of a specially designed capsule from 128,000 feet/24 miles up in the air. He reached speeds on Mach 1.24, broke the sound barrier and parachuted safely into the Arizona desert. Well done, Felix.

Until next week.

WHO DAT!

-Kenny "Mo"

Welcome back, everyone!

Welcome back, everyone! I would like to thank all of you who have encouraged me to come back to writing this blog. It's been a long time since I have written, so pardon the rust that might fall off as I try to shake it off. Here we go!

This past Sunday, on NBC's SNF coverage, Drew Brees broke a record that was once thought of as not only unreachable, but one of the most prolific records in all of football; Johnny Unitas' consecutive touchdown record. Brees' broke Johnny U's mark with deep pass to a wide open Devery Henderson. Saints fans, both in and out of the Dome rejoiced in what has been called the play that will turn the Saints' abysmal season around. In a season marred by controversy, suspensions, injuries, defensive ineptitude and uncertainty going forward, Drew Brees put the Saints on his back once again and did something that Saints fans of old would have thought to be a joke. Some have blamed Drew Brees for demanding so much money in the offseason, holding out for as long as he did and calling plays in his favor, but the truth is, HE DESERVES TO. Brees has been one of, if not the best quarterbacks in the NFL since he joined the Saints in 2006. He has set the single season completion record (71.6%), most yards passed for in a season (5,476 yards), most completions to start a game (22) and now 48 straight games with a passing TD. Tell me how he doesn't deserve $100,000,000. Tell me why he should have signed earlier. Tell me why he wouldn't call pass plays over the run. The fact of the matter is, his resume merits $100 million, the "Payton factor" (see below) and the Saints win when Drew Brees passes the ball. Drew Brees has won a Super Bowl, revived a city, make a once miserable team into a dominante contender and set records that won't be broken for quite some time. Who cares that he held out! Who cares that he got what he did! The fact is, all New Orlineans owe a lot to Drew. Good on you, Breezy. Keep it up.

Now onto the aforementioned "Payton Factor." We are all familiar with "Bountygate." I won't get into it here, as Roger Goodell has just resuspended all players involved, but lets give the Saints Head Coach Sean Payton suspension and Drew Brees' contract talks a glance. We all know why Payton was suspended, and we all know that it took what seemed like a millenium for Drew Brees to sign. Here's why. Drew Brees, the true offensive coordinator of the Saints, was not under contract with the team and therefore was the only player on the offense who could talk to Sean Payton. Brees and Payton were able to meet, talk about the team and work up an offensive game plan. Sean Payton gave the keys to the Saints' offensive machine to Brees so it would function with out him. Simple as that. Now it makes sense that Brees waited so long to sign. It made GM Mickey Loomis and Tom Benson the scapegoats, but do you think they care? Didn't think so.

Now let's switch gears to a more calm, non-contact kind of topic. The 2012 Ryder Cup, or as I like to call it, "The Muck-up at Medinah." The 2012 Ryder Cup was supposed to be the most evenly matched event in the Cup's history. The Europeans had dominated the early part of the season led by young superstar Rory McIlroy, but it was the American squad that was deep and very talented. The U.S. team boasted an impressive 22 majors and 11 season wins, plus the FedEx Cup (Brandt Snedeker). The Euros won only 4 times in 2012 on the PGA Tour. Now granted, Sergio Garcia was the only European player to play full time on the PGA Tour this year, but still... Having a 10-6 lead going into Sunday's singles matches, coupled with Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker and Tiger Woods' inability to win seemingly any match until then was nothing short of impressive. However, look back to 1999 at Brookline. The Euros had the same lead going into Sunday only to let it slip away. Blame whomever you want and there will be some truth to it. Davis Love III's failure to pick Hunter Mahan after he lost the Cup in Ireland in 2010 will certainly be a hit topic, but the real blame lies with the best player on the team, Tiger Woods. After losing his opening matches with Steve Stricker, Love benched Woods for the morning matches on Saturday, Woods lost his Saturday afternoon match with Stricker again! He salvaged a half point in the Sunday singles match, but watched from the 18th fairway as the Euros sealed it before his 1/2 point could matter. The U.S. team is to blame for their individual failures on Sunday, but the Euros did what they needed to do to win. Kudos to them. Ole, Ole, Ole, Ole. Until 2014...

Again, welcome back, you guys. Drop by again next week.

WHO DAT

-Mo

Back to the Grind

Well, folks. It's been quite a while since I have written one of these, and too much time has passed to recap all of the sport's even of the past year, so I guess I'll start with something current.

First off, I want to thank all of you who read my previous blogging endeavors. I didn't know how popular it was until someone recently asked me why I didn't write anymore. Thanks again, everybody.

And here we go....

I want to talk about Bobby Petrino for a minute. I mean come on! Really, Bobby? Bad decisions seem to follow this guy around. He left a highly coveted job at Louisville (a team that had Brian Brohm!) to coach the always toxic Atlanta Falcons only to leave after a lackluster first 3/4 of the season. Doing so after committing to Falcon's owner Arthur Blenk that he was the guy for Atlanta. He then bolted town seemingly before Atlanta and the rest of the sports word knew what happened.

Next stop for the Bobby Petrino Travelling Circus: Fayetteville, Arkansas. Home of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks.

What seemed like a puzzling hire by Arkansas turned into quick success by SEC standards. Despite going 5-7 (2-6) in his first year at UA, Petrino knew that his team would be primed for success. With former Michigan transfer Ryan Mallett at the helm, The Razorbacks began to show signs of greatness. In Petrino's second season, The 'Backs went 8-5 (3-5) and newcomer Mallet threw an astonishing 30 TD on only 7 INTs and won the Liberty Bowl.

Over the next two seasons, Arkansas went 21-5 and was invited to the Sugar Bowl in 2010 (which they lost) and the Cotton Bowl in 2011. Despite 2011's success, Petrino made a few enemies. Most notably LSU head coach Les Miles. During a 41-17 thrashing by LSU, Petrino repeatedly motioned to the LSU sidelines and shouted expletives in Miles' direction. The name calling didn't stop there. At the ceremonial coaches' handshake at the end of the game, Petrino gave Les Miles and half-hearted flesh press mumbled something that only Miles could hear and walked off after Les tried to pull Petrino back toward him. LSU's coach had a look of shock, astonishment and sheer amazement after Petrino disengaged and walked off.

In 2012, Arkansas was the one of the favorites to win the SEC West behind LSU and was primed for a potential SEC Championship run, but "not so fast" (in my best Lee Corso impression). In March, it was revealed that Ole' Bobby had been involved in a minor motocycle accident with passenger, former UA volleyball player and newly appointed athlete student-development coordinator, Jessica Dorrell. The end was seemingly near for Bobby Petrino. His seen-this-before, almost-Tiger-Woods-like press conference did little to sway the Arkansas brass as well as the fan base. Petrino was ousted on April 10th, 2012 leaving yet another wave of destruction and despair.

Heres' to you, Bobby. You don't always crash motorcycles, but when you do, you make damn sure that someone you're not supposed to be with is on that bike with you.

In the word's of a close friend, "You can't hire your cake and eat it too."

Until next week,

-MO

WHO DAT

They are Saints

Recently I was cleaning off my desk and came across this story I wrote for the Weber newspaper. Despite not being published, I think that this is my favorite story I ever wrote.


CJ's Crab Shack erupted like a volcano of jubilation and excitement on Sunday as the New Orleans Saints Won Super Bowl XLIV.

The bar and restaurant on Ocean Drive on South Beach seemed to be the unofficial headquarters for the "Who Dat Nation," the Saint's fan base. Customers paid $100 to reserve a table, and it was filled to capacity. The reservation price did not deter football fanatics from enjoying seafood dishes, ice-cold beer and football not included with the reservation fee. "We are excited. I don't care if we win or lose. It's just amazing we are in this position," Anna Phillips, of Gretna, La., said before the game. This was the first Super Bowl the Saints had played in, and the second for the Indianapolis Colts in three years.

The tension mounted as the clock ticked toward 6:30 p.m. The Saints won the opening coin toss, but their opening drive stalled and they were forced to punt. Colts' quarterback, Peyton Manning drove the Colts powerful offense deep into Saints territory and kicked a field goal with 7:29 remaining in the first quarter. 3-0, Colts. Another Saints drive, another Saints punt and another Colts score. With 36 seconds remaining left in the first quarter, the Colts led 10-0.

The Saints' ball-hawking defense held the Colts' offense to zero points in the second quarter , and New Orleans Saints' kicker, Garrett Hartley aded two field goals over 40 yards to cut the Colts' lead to four.

"The Who" rekindled the hits that made them rock icons, and the Saints returned to the field with the same swagger that brought them to the Super Bowl. Punter Thomas Morestead kicked the first on-side kick in Super Bowl history to start the second half. After a scuffle that lasted over two minutes, it was revealed that the Saints had recovered the onside kicked after it bounced off of Colts' wide receiver and special teams player, Hank Baskett's helmet. Peyton Manning's look went from focused to surprised and dejected as the Saints took advantage of their good fortune and outscored the Colts 25-7 in the second half en route to their first Super Bowl victory in their mostly futility-ridded 43 years history.

When Saints' quarterback Drew Brees took the final kneel-down of the game and as the seconds ticked away, Saint fans young and old hugged, cried and cheered as if they too had compete in the contest.

"This is huge for us, for the city," Demondre Ashby, a New Orleans native, said. Ashby was displaced by hurricane Katrina is 2005 and has since relocated to Houston. "After Katrina, no one knew where we would go, if the city would recover, or if the Saints would even be back," Ashby added.

CJ's wasn't just a haven for Saint fans. COlts' fans were also taking part in the festivities. However, the majority of them left soon after Saint cornerback, Tracy Porter returned an interception thrown by Manning for a touchdown.

"That one definitely hurt our chances. We were still in it until that point," Rachel Fenton, COlts' fan and Manning family friend said. "It will be a tough loss for all of us (Colts' fans) to swallow, but we are very proud of the Saints, their fans and their city," she said.

Brees was named the game's MVP after completing 32 of 49 passes for 288 yards and two touchdown. Brees also made history by tying the Super Bowl record for most completions set by Tom Brady.

The New Orleans Saints became saviors of their city in distress in 2006, but now they have truly lived up to their names. They are Saints.

Who Dat!

The Triumphant Return 11/24/2010

I would like to start by writing a letter to the Boise State Broncos football team.

Dear Boise State,
Play tougher teams. Virginia Tech doesn’t count.

Sincerely,
Annoyed

The Boise State Broncos and their increasingly sympathetic fans have wondered why they have gotten no love when it comes to putting them into the BCS title game. Is it not that obvious? Boise State plays glorified practices against glorified high school teams week in and week out. Despite running their opponents into the ground, and outscoring them by an impressive 30+ points per week, why do people think they are more deserving of a BCS title bid than a one loss SEC team or an undefeated Pac-10 school?

This season looked like it might be the one that Boise State needed to prove to their critics that they are for real. During the first week of the season, Boise State travel to Landover, MD to play the Virginia Tech Hokies at FedEx Field, a supposed “neutral site.” The stadium was filled to capacity with about 90% Hokie faithful. This turned out to be the only close game that Boise State would play all season. I thought that the Broncos had answered their critics, and I was all but sold until Virginia Tech lost to James Madison the following week. Now, granted it was a very short week for the Hokies, and shame on the NCAA for scheduling it that way, but Youngstown State? Youngstown State had never won a game against a Top 25 in their history.

After the Boise State played the Hokies, they reverted back to their weak schedule. Since the game in Landover, Boise State opponents have a combined record of 31-46, with only two of those teams having winning records (Toledo and Hawaii).

Now don’t get me wrong, Boise State has done some pretty incredible stuff this season. They have scored over 50 points four times this season, they have not scored less than 33 points in any game, and quarterback Kellen Moore is among the top three in Heisman voting, but when the toughest team on the schedule loses to Youngstown State five days after they played Boise State in a close game, any strength of schedule bias that the Broncos had is no longer there.

I am tired of fans jumping on the Boise State bandwagon just because they are the prototypical “underdog.” Boise State is anything but. They are an underdog to be an underdog. Boise State was still favored to win against Virginia Tech by 6.5. Since that game, Boise State has been favored to win by no less than 34 points. If fans want an underdog, root for South Carolina, or Youngtown State, or Georgia Southern. Youngstown State had never beaten a Top 25 team until they played Virginia Tech. Georgia Southern was on the verge on not having a football team, and South Carolina whooped up on then #1 Alabama at home.

Boise State closes the season with two home games against Fresno State and Utah State (6-3 and 4-6 respectively), and a road game to #23 Nevada in what all Boise State nay-sayers are hoping and praying that they lose. Myself included.

Until Boise State plays SEC, Pac-10, or Big-Ten teams at least once every season, and proves their worth, they will continue to be subjected to this same kind of argument.

Monster Weekend Part II

Well, "Monster Weekend" has officially ended, but with a plethora of story lines.

Aside from what I covered earlier (See Monsters Weekend Part I) it was business as usual for most of the remaining Top 25.

(1) Oklahoma @ (11) Missouri

Right now, I don't think any team wants to be the BCS #1. For the third straight week, the number one team in the country has lost. Interceptions, kicks returned for TDs, penalties, and the inability to stop the run doomed the Sooners from the get-go. The Oklahoma defense allowed a season high 178 rushing yards and the Missouri running game kept them on their heels for most of the evening. The score might not reflect it, but Missouri's defense owned up today. The Tiger defense allowed less than 100 yards rushing, and picked off Landry Jones twice. Like the Sooner defense, Jones looked frustrated throughout much of the second half.

Oklahoma will look to rebound next week against Big-12 pushover, Colorado. Landry Jones has impressed this season, and is on the fast track to stardom. This loss is just a minor setback for a very promising team.

Missouri has a much tougher task net week as the travel to Nebraska to face "The Big Red Machine." I doubt they will repeat their success next week against a team who rebounded well from a loss to Texas, but you never know, Youngstown State did beat Virginia Tech. Sorry Hokie fans.

(4) Auburn (Home) vs. (6) LSU (Previous blog)

(5) TCU (Home) vs. Air Force

I thought this game would be much closer than it was. I actually thought that AFA had an outside chance at winning this game. Boy was I wrong. The TCU ground game went gang-busters and gave the Academy a shot of their own medicine. The Frogs ran for 377 yards and 4 touchdowns. TCU running back Ed Wesley proved his Heisman worth and went off for 209 yards and 2 scores. TCU quarterback, Andy Dalton, passed for 184 yards and a touchdown which might have been a quarterback clinic as far as AFA quarterback, Tim Jefferson is concerned. Jefferson went 3/7 for 47 yards and no TDs. I know that Air Force runs an option offense, but 47 yards?!?! At least challenge the secondary, fellas. All was not lost for the Falcons as their reliable running game rattled off 184 yards, but only punched it in one time.

TCU looks to improve their record to 9-0 when they travel to UNLV (1-6, 1-2) next week. UNLV might be coming off a bye week, but Rebs head coach, Bobby Hauck, will need to pull some serious magic out of his rear end to have any hopes of keeping this close.

Unfortunately, it doesn't get any easier for the Falcons when Utah comes to town. Now Air Force could win this game if they can buckle down on defense and stick to a balanced offensive attack. Either way, it will be a test for AFA, and a cake walk for the Utes.

(7) Michigan State @ Northwestern

The collective population of East Lansing, Michigan has no more fingernails. The Michigan State Spartan offense looked frail as fell behind early to the Northwestern Wildcats. The Wildcats went up 17-0 on Sparti before MSU felt like scoring. Michigan State hung around in the third quarter, but kicked it into overdrive in the fourth scoring 21 points including a fake punt that resulted in one of their TDs. I am sure that State fans are happy this one is over, and I am sure Northwestern wants another crack at MSU. If there is one thing we can take away from this game, it has got to be: Northwestern still doesn’t know how to play with a lead against a better team.

Sparti travels to Iowa next week in hopes of cementing themselves in the BCS title conversation. They have an outside chance at making the big game, but they need big performances against Iowa and Penn State (both on the road) to be a legitimate title contender when the Big Ten championship rolls around.

Northwestern will look to put this loss behind them, or take out their frustration against Indiana next week. The ‘Cats are only 1-2 in the Big Ten, but disaster looms as the travel to Penn State and Wisconsin and have Iowa come to town. Winning one of those games could change their entire season.

(8) Alabama @ Tennessee
I didn’t watch too much of this game, and judging by the final score, I didn’t miss much. Tennessee has started the season 0-4 in conference play in over two decades, and after the drubbing put on them by The Tide, it is easy to see why. The Vols could not get anything going after a first quarter 59-yard TD rush by Tauren Poole. Alabama was out to prove that their loss to South Carolina was fluke, and did so in impressive fashion. The ‘Bama rushing attack pounded the rock for over 210 yards including Trent Richardson’s 119 and a TD. Mark Ingram rushed for over 80 yards and two scores, and there was little Derrick Dooley’s defense could do to stop it.

Alabama heads into their bye week walking tall, and has to direct their focus to conference foe LSU (also heading into bye week). This one is sure to be a good one as
Nick Saban travels to LSU to face the hostel Tiger faithful, and a reeling LSU team looking for revenge after a heartbreaker last year in Tuscaloosa.

Tennessee travels to South Carolina, and early predictions are the Vols have no chance. I have to agree.

(9) Utah (Home) vs. Colorado State
I don’t know why I even bother mentioning Utah football in any blog post. The Utes are grossly overrated, and their ranking just exposes more BCS computer flaws. Sure they blow out their opponents week in and week out, but isn’t that what Mountain West teams are supposed to do their weak-ass conference opponents? I am so tired of seeing these guys in the top 10 week in and week out just because they can put up 60+ on a team from BFE. I cannot wait for them TCU to come to town and give the Utes what they deserve, an ass-whooping.

Anyway…

Not much to report here. The Utah rush offense exploded for over 220 yards, and the quarterbacks passed for over 400. Colorado State looked totally outmatch in this contest. The rushed for a combined 28 yards and their quarterback looked uncomfortable the whole game going 19 for 28 for 185 yards and a pick.

Utah travels to Air Force next week, and I think that the Falcons will give them more than the Utes bargained for.

CSU goes to lowly New Mexico (0-6, 0-2) to face a team that ranks in the bottom five in the nation in every major offensive statistic. CSU should walk away a winner.

(10) Ohio State (Home) vs. Purdue
It was business as usual for Terrelle Pryor and the gang as they smoked Purdue like a Thanksgiving turkey. I don’t think we would have expected anything else from a team who got throttled in their first week at number 1. Terrelle Pryor and Joe Bauserman combined to throw for 300 yards and 4 touchdowns and the ground game rushed for 184 yards and 3 scores. Purdue was held to under 50 yards rushing and just seemed to not want to be playing today.

Ohio State looks to regain their swagger as the travel to Minnesota to play the laughable Minnesota Golden Gophers, who have now started 0-1 since the firing of Tim Brewster. This is essentially a televised practice this weekend.

Purdue travels to Illinois to take on the Fighting Illini. Not much at stake here for either team…unless you count bragging rights as something big.

(12) Standford (Home) vs. Washington State
I am slightly disappointed in the Cardinal right now. Only beating a team who has won only one game in the last year and a half? Andrew Luck was not too bad today. Completing a respectable 20 of 28 passes for a measly 190 yards and somehow threw 3 touchdowns. The real story was WSU’s quarterback, Jeff Tuel. He scorched the Stanford secondary for almost 300 yards and 4 touchdowns, but his 2 interceptions downed the Wildcats. Stanford’s rushing attack blew up for 249 yards and 2 scores, both by Stepfan Taylor who added 142 yards of his own.

Stanford travels to Washington next week in what could be an upset waiting to happen. It all depends on which Jake Locker shows up.

Dub-State goes to Arizona State for a game of non-epic proportions. I don’t think anyone outside of Sun Devil Stadium or Seattle really cares who wins or loses this one.

(13) Wisconsin @ (15) Iowa
Next to the LSU/Auburn game, I was really looking forward to this one. This was one helluva contest. Iowa quarterback, Ricky Stanzi, lit up the Wisconsin defense for 3 touchdowns, but it was the Wisconsin ground game that won this one. The Badger backfield accounted for 142 yards and three touchdowns en route to a 31-30 squeaker. This was the perfect example of hard fought effort by both teams, but in the end, the better team did prevail.

Wisconsin goes into a much deserved bye week feeling good which doesn’t bode well for Purdue and the Badgers travel to Ross-Ade Stadium on November 6.

Iowa gets Michigan State at home next week in what is sure to be the game of the week. If Iowa wants to prove that they are better than their record, the must take it to the Spartans next week.

(16) Nebraska @ (14) Oklahoma State
Can you say, “Barn-burner?” These two teams erupted to score over 90 total points in this one, and defense took a back seat as both quarterback combined to throw over 600 yards and seven touchdowns. Taylor Martinez rebounded nicely from the loss to Texas going 23 for 35 for 323 yards and 5 touchdowns. He enters back into the Heisman discussion, but it might be a little too late for the young freshman. Still, outstanding effort. The Oklahoma State backfield made a statement today and answered their critics by rushing for 212 yards and three touchdowns. The Cowboy offense is not to fault here. They did everything they needed to do, but the defense looked like a wet paper bag today.

Nebraska gets Missouri at home next week, and ESPN’s College GameDay would do well to just mosey on over to Memorial Stadium for next week’s contest. No clear winner here, but Nebraska is tough to beat when Martinez plays well.

Oklahoma State goes up to Kansas to play the #22 ranked WIldcats. K-State is good at home, so OK State should be on their toes and ready for anything.

Here are a few stats to remember from this one:
Combined 606 passing yards
Combined 7 passing TD’s
Combined 429 yards rushing
Combined 308 kick return yards

Next week is World Series week. All posts will be directed to the World Series between the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers. NFL recap on Monday.

WHO DAT
Kenny “Mo”

Monster Weekend Part I

We are in the midst of a monster football Saturday. Here are some of the early story lines.

Let me get my LSU rant out first, because it will cloud my mind otherwise. I am getting sick and tired of watching LSU's anemic offense week in and week out. It is pathetic. From their first series of the game against Auburn, LSU's offense was atrocious. Not only was Gary Crowton's play calling awful, the execution at the quarterback position was lamentable. I am still wondering why Les Miles refuses to start Jarrett Lee. LSU-hater, Gary Danielson, pointed out an interesting stat before the game today: "Jordan Jefferson threw 2 touchdowns in the season opener against North Carolina. Since then Jefferson had failed to throw a touchdown in 17 straight possessions." I think this in itself is enough to name Lee the starter. Who cares if Jarrett Lee can't run (as was evident during LSU's last offensive play). He wasn't recruited to do it, and therefore, shouldn't be expected to do so. Gary Crowton's offensive play calling is as questionable as Lindsay Lohan's sobriety. When Jarrett Lee, notorious gun slinger, is under center, Crowton continues to call short, conservative passes (some of which do not even get past the line of scrimmage). Why do you not challenge down field, Gary Crowton? Auburn's defense is about as solid as a wet paper bag trying to stop a freight train! They gave up over 400 yards of total offense to Arkansas in their last game, and Ryan Mallet found success by throwing bombs down field.

And the defense.....

John Chavis, defensive mastermind at Tennessee, was hired to employ to rock'em sock'em defensive schemes that made the Vols so successful for nearly a decade, and they gave up over 400 yards of rushing! That is more that LSU's entire offensive effort. Did they not study film that showed Cam Newton's success against the blitz. Today, it seemed like Newton and the rest of the Auburn offense knew what was coming before Chavis even called the play. Newton ran on the LSU defense (217 yards) at will and when he was tired, he would hand it off to Michael Dyer, who rushed for 100 as well. Every time Chavis called the blitz, Newton, Dyer and the Auburn offense torched the Tigers (LSU).

Sure, Jordan Jefferson is not entirely to blame for this loss, and neither is Jarrett Lee or Les Miles. The coordinators are at fault. I will give John Chavis a pass this week, but Gary Crowton exemplifies how not to run an offense. Just despicable.

Moving on...

Texas lost....again. This time to a team that should not even be considered a D-I school. Iowa State rode into Austin and smacked the 'Horns in the mouth. At least they did in the first half. Iowa State proved how overrated Texas is this year, and exposed a once vaunted Longhorn run-defense. The Cyclones went off for 199 yards and two scores on the ground. Compare that to a miserable effort by Texas (96 yrds, 0 TD). The only semi-bright spot for Texas today was the play of Garrett Gilbert. The 'Horns QB fling the ball around 57 times, completing 34 of them for 344 yards and 2 touchdowns, but three interceptions doomed the offense, and opened the door for Iowa State's most prolific win in recent memory.

It is hard to bash the Longhorns for their play this season. I mean, they did beat Nebraska, right? We all know Texas will get to a bowl game, and Mack Brown will still be the highest paid coach in college football at the end of the season, but this young team shows promise, and lots of it. This season might be a wash, but don't be surprised if they find themselves in the Top-10 at the start of next season.

How 'bout them boys from Syracuse? I think this was one of the most unusual wins for any team this season (next to the what-would-be play clock debacle in the closing seconds of the LSU/Tennessee game). Orange quarterback, Ryan Nassib, went 5/15 for 55 yards and one touchdown. This seemed like a classic case of all-or-nothing. The Orange running game was the news maker. They erupted for 183 yards, but zero scores. You read that right. NO SCORES! The kicking game was the savior for Syracuse this week. Kicker Ross Krautman went 4/4 in FG and made his only extra point attempt for a total of 13 points.
WVU running back Noel Devine (pre-season Heisman hopeful) got back on track today against ‘Cuse. Going 122 yards on 24 attempts, but is still struggling to find the endzone.
Good thing LSU doesn’t play again today.
More to come tonight…
WHO DAT
-Kenny “Mo”