Frogs Can’t Close it Out
TCU came oh, so close. In a span of about four minutes in the third quarter vs. Ohio State their entire world flipped. A TCU win would have caused a ripple effect that could have impacted the College Football Playoff field all the way to Selection Sunday in December. It would have propped up TCU (of course) but also the Big 12, while opening doors for every other conference to have a legitimate shot in a wide open race. The Pac-12 would benefit, a conference that needs every break it can get during the consideration process. And Ohio State would have zero room for error the rest of the way, but they lived to play another day. The Buckeye win does keep an emphasis on their game at Penn State that is coming up soon. And these Frogs can play; it’s just a shame that four minutes unraveled what could have been their best win since joining the Big 12.
Not Back
No, Texas is not back. A home win over a USC team that will likely not go bowling and will probably fire its coach at season’s end is not something to crow about. But it is a start, I’ll give the Horns that. Maryland’s home loss to Temple on Saturday didn’t help the perception. Texas fans will know a lot more about their team over the next three weeks. Come out of that with an overall record that is better than 2-4 would be a surprise for me (though beating Kansas State isn’t out of the question). Beat TCU or OU and we’ll talk. This team needs some serious traction and momentum. Until Texas finds a quarterback, I don’t see them turning the corner to be a contender in the Big 12.
Not So Big Ten
The Big Ten had a bad weekend. Thank goodness they had Ohio State’s rally over TCU. No. 6 Wisconsin gets beat at home by BYU (a 22-point underdog). Nebraska dropped to 0-2 for the first time since 1957 with a 24-19 loss to Troy. Kansas beat Rutgers, 55-14. Let me also reiterate – it’s not basketball season and this was on a football field. I mentioned Maryland above. Akron beat Northwestern, coming back from a 21-3 halftime deficit. The Big Ten lost seven nonconference games against unranked opponents on Saturday, the most for the conference on one Saturday since the AP poll debuted in 1936.
Respect for Ed O
OK, maybe we underestimated Ed Orgeron. LSU’s win at Auburn was impressive on Saturday, and talk of the hot seat for Ed O is rather, well, wrong. LSU has two top-10 wins under their belt, both away from Death Valley. This is a good defense and they are doing just enough on offense to win. They could easily start 6-0 now, then comes a big three-game stretch against Georgia, Mississippi State and Alabama. Those that continue to rip the SEC for “not playing anyone” need to simply shut up. Count me among the doubters at the beginning of the season on Ed O, but I’ll just shut up at this point until he stumbles. I still can’t understand a word he says.
Cowboys Being Overlooked?
OU, West Virginia and TCU are clearly the class of the Big 12, but don’t sleep on Oklahoma State. Saturday’s impressive 44-21 win over Boise State was huge; many didn’t have the Pokes winning that one. They did it with defense, getting nine stops and seven sacks in the process. They also blocked two punts and took another back for a touchdown. The Big 12 isn’t the strongest conference top-to-bottom, but they have some decent teams at the top. By the way, OU’s win at Ames was its 24thconsecutive at Iowa State, with the last loss coming there in 1960 – three days before John F. Kennedy was elected president.
Seminole Impatience
I saw a Tweet Saturday afternoon that read, “Does FSU practice?” Ouch. Willie Taggert is off to a rough start, and easily could be 0-3. Dropping a 30-7 decision at Syracuse didn’t help matters. How rough is it? A Go Fund Me page appeared on Sunday that promoted raising money to buy out Taggert’s contract. It’s mid-September of his first year. Give the man a break, people.
Bama Machine
Can anyone stop Alabama? They became the first team in SEC history to score 50-or-more points in its first three games of a season with a 62-7 win at Ole Miss. Here’s a stat: the Tide has outscored the Ole Miss Rebels, 173-29 over the last 12 quarters of play between the two teams. Here’s another one: QB Tua Tagovailoa is 13-for-13 passing on third downs this season, with 298 yards and six touchdowns. What’s scary – this offense should only improve as the season wears on. My Aggies are up next on the “track meet tour of 2018.”
