Breaking Down The Heisman Finalists

Yesterday, the finalists for the Heisman Trophy were announced. And they are:


Colt Brennan, quarterback, Hawaii
Chase Daniel, quarterback, Missouri
Darren McFadden, running back, Arkansas
Tim Tebow, quarterback, Florida

I've listed them there in alphabetical order. Now let me list them and their stats in the order that I think they should finish in the Heisman voting.

Fourth
Colt Brennan. The University of Hawaii quarterback only faced one ranked team all season, and while he did put up impressive stats against #17 Boise State, he didn't face the tougher opponents that the others did. Here is his statline from that game:

Vs. #17 Boise State(W): 75.5% comp., 495yds, 5TD/2INT; 18yds rush, 2.0avg, 1TD

Third
Darren McFadden. I imagine that most people probably have McFadden in either the #1 or #2 spot. However, his down games against two of the five ranked opponents that he faced pushes him down in my estimation. In those two games, both losses for his team, he actually failed to score any touchdowns. Overall, McFadden ended with a 2-3 record against the five ranked opponents that he faced. Here are his stats from those five games:

Vs. #21 Kentucky(L): 173yds, 6.0avg, 1TD; 10yds receiving, 0TD
Vs. #22 Auburn(L): 43yds, 2.5avg, 0TD; 5yds rec, 0TD
Vs. #23 South Carolina(W): 323yds, 9.2avg, 1TD; 4yds rec, 0TD; 23yds passing, 1TD
Vs. #22 Tennessee(L): 117yds, 5.3avg, 0TD; 17yds rec, 0TD
vS. #1 LSU(W): 206yds, 6.4avg, 3TD; 34yds passing, 1TD

Average: 172yds, 5.8avg, 1TD; 7.2yds rec, 0TD; 11.4yds passing, .4TD/0INT

Second
Chase Daniel. The Mizzou quarterback was unable to defeat Oklahoma twice, but he's the only one out of the four candidates that has a winning record against ranked opponents. Daniel finished with a 3-2 record against those teams, and scored at least one touchdown in all five of those games. Here are his stats from those contests:

Vs. #25 Nebraska(W): 70.2% comp., 401yds, 2TD/0INT; 72yds rush, 6.5avg, 2TD
Vs. #6 Oklahoma(L): 78.7% comp., 361yds, 1TD/2INT; -1yds rush, -.1avg, 0TD
Vs. #22 Texas Tech(W): 73.7% comp., 210yds, 1TD/2INT; 11yds rush, 1.6avg, 0TD
Vs. #2 Kansas(W): 81.6% comp., 361yds, 3TD/0INT; 6yds rush, .9avg, 0TD
Vs. #9 Oklahoma(L): 59% comp., 219yds, 0TD/1INT; 26yds rush, 2.4avg, 1TD

Average: 72.6% comp., 310yds, 1.4TD/.8INT; 22.8yds rush, 2.2avg, .6TD

First
Tim Tebow. The Florida quarterback faced four ranked teams, and lead the Gators to a 2-2 record against them. In each of those four contests he scored at least three total touchdowns, and was the prime example of a dual threat type of quarterback. Here are his stats:

Vs. #22 Tennessee(W): 73.7% comp., 299yds, 2TD/1INT; 61yds rush, 3.4avg, 2TD
Vs. #1 LSU(L): 46.2% comp., 158yds, 2TD/INT; 67yds rush, 4.2avg, 1TD
Vs. #8 Kentucky(W): 69.2% comp., 256yds, 4TD/0INT; 78yds rush, 3.9avg, 1TD
Vs. #20 Georgia(L): 63.6% comp., 236yds, 1TD/0INT; -15yds rush, -1.2avg, 2TD

Average: 63% comp., 237yds, 2.2TD/.4INT; 47.7yds rush, 2.5avg, 1.5TD

Yes, Tebow's stats in the completion percentage and average passing yards departments are down a little from Daniel's, but Tebow also averaged more passing touchdowns and less interceptions against the ranked opponents that he faced. Overall, Tebow averaged an astonishing 3.7 total touchdowns versus the ranked teams that he faced. Daniel averaged a solid 2.0, and McFadden averaged 1.4.

I believe that these stats show that Tebow was able to perform better overall against his toughest opponents than either Daniel or McFadden. All of the finalists chosen are tremendous athletes, but only one deserves to have his name called for the Heisman. And that's Tim Tebow.

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

The College Football Season Comes Full Circle
Remember way back in week 1? When Michigan lost to Appalachian State? Everyone thought that was the craziest thing they had ever seen in college football. Then a bunch of upsets involving the top teams, which seemed to result in a revolving door of sorts for the #1 and #2 positions. And Stanford beating USC eventhough they were biggest underdogs in college football history. You thought that was it, right? Wrong! The top two teams went down in flames again on Saturday, as both Missouri and West Virginia lost. Ok, the Mizzou loss isn't too shocking considering that Oklahoma had already beat them once. But West Virginia losing to Pitt? With a chance at the national championship on the line? This season truly has been the most bizarre on record.

And The BCS Title Contenders Are...
Ohio State and LSU? It was the matchup everyone(*cough*voters*cough*) wanted a few weeks ago, and thanks to Tennessee throwing away the SEC title game, they were able to rig it up. I agree with the notion that the SEC is the toughest conference in college football, but LSU just hasn't looked all that impressive to me in recent weeks. Though, the same could have certainly be said about the Gators last year, and look what they did to the Buckeyes. Have fun Coach Sweatervest. I hope your fans travel well because it's going to be like a homegame for the Tigers.

Other Bowl Matchups
I'll do my best to cover all of the bowls as they get closer, but for now here are the matchups in the "bigger" bowls.

Rose Bowl: Southern Cal vs Illinois
Sugar Bowl: Hawaii vs Georgia
Fiesta Bowl: West Virginia vs Oklahoma
Orange Bowl: Kansas vs Virginia Tech

Besides the Buckeyes, Illinois probably benefitted the most from WVU and Mizzou stumbling. Instead of playing in the Capital One Bowl they get to head to the Rose Bowl. I'm pretty sure that's something that no one predicted before the season began.

Florida Faces Michigan
Remember last year, when Lloyd Carr seemed to be extremely critical of Florida head coach Urban Meyer's "lobbying" to get the Gators into the BCS title game? Well, he gets to coach his last game against Meyer. Here's to hoping that Meyer beats the Wolverines worse than he beat their bitter rivals last season.

Heismans!
Not much going on here with the limited schedule.

Chase Daniel didn't do much, and I still stand by my assertion that Kevin Smith should have received that Doak Walker invite over Mike Hart. Against Tulsa on Saturday, Smith ran for 284yds and 4TD's in helping UCF win the Conference USA title. Currently, he's in second place on the single season rushing list, and has a shot at breaking Barry Sanders' record. A-freakin'-mazing.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

And You Thought It Couldn't Get Any Crazier
What's that? This season was already crazy enough? You had already seen everything wacky that could happen? Wrong! This weekend we got to see both #1 and #2 go down, and as a result the current BCS title game would be Missouri vs. West Virginia. LSU controlled their own fate heading into Friday's game against Arkansas, but Darren McFadden put on a one man show, and smashed the Tigers' BCS title dreams into tiny pieces that he'll fuel his fly whip with for years to come. Kansas tried to come back against Mizzou, but the hole they dug themselves into for the first three quarters proved to be too deep and their BCS title hopes were subsequently buried.

But Wait A Sec, The Craziness Might Not Be Over Yet
Both Mizzou and West Virginia, the new #1 and #2 respectively, have games left. Missouri's is against a tough Oklahoma team, the only team to beat Mizzou this season, in the Big 12 title game. Right now, they control their own destiny like another Tigers' team did this past weekend. Will they endure a similar fate? West Virginia gets a relatively easy game against Pittsburgh, and the only question should be, how many points are Slaton & White going to score? If either one loses, though Ohio State will be right back in the mix.

Yes, You're Undefeated. No, You Can't Be Ranked In The Top 2
With Kansas's loss, Hawaii became the only undefeated team left. The Warriors play Washington this Saturday, and should be able to push their record to 12-0. Unfortunately, their schedule isn't extremely tough, and they don't seem to play very well off of the island. They should finish the season with a perfect record and ranked in the top 10, and that's pretty impressive for Coach Jones and his squad.

The Best SEC Team Isn't Even Playing For The Championship
Something happened in Athens, GA after the Bulldogs returned home from a 14-35 beatdown at the hands of Tennessee. Since then, they've won 6 straight(including 3 wins against ranked teams), and have looked more impressive than LSU or Tennessee. They've also moved up to #4 in the BCS. Someone must have questioned Matt Stafford's keg tossing abilities and really fired him up.

Overtime Games Dominate The Holiday Weekend
Combined, there were 12 periods of overtime this week. Seven of them occured in two SEC games(Arkansas vs LSU, Tennessee vs UK). And the one thing they all proved was that the college version of overtime is far and away better than the crappy pro version.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Caught passes from, and laid down blocks for Tim Tebow. The Mayor of Gainesville looked unstoppable on Saturday, and his receivers, backs, linemen, etc. were all a huge part of that. They overwhelmed the Seminoles on every inch of turf in "The Swamp", and had fun doing it. Tebow's broken right hand wasn't even an issue because of his teammate's efforts and production.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
11 penalties for 90 yards? In the last game of the season? At home? I understand that it's a rivalry game, and that things can get heated but that's still no excuse. Plus, how often is Brandon James going to have a return for touchdown nullified by a stupid penalty? It seems to happen every few games.

Heismens!
Tim Tebow deserves the Heisman. His passing and rushing stats are off the charts, and he's the reason that the Gators only have three losses. Here is his statline for the FSU game: 19-28, 262yds, 67.9%, 3TD, 0INT; 13 rushes, 89yds, 6.8ypc, 2TD. And he amassed most of that after suffering a broken right hand on his first touchdown of the game. Incredible.

Darren McFadden did his best to keep his Heisman campaign rolling. His stats for the LSU game were: 32 rushes, 206yds, 6.4avg, 3TD; 3-6, 34yds, 1 pass TD. Yes, he can run and pass, and eventhough Arkansas is fairly one dimensional(Jones is a good back as well, though), McFadden put the team on his back and ran wild over LSU.

Possibly fueled by his Doak Walker snub, Kevin Smith ran strong against UTEP and went over 2,000 rushing yards for the season on Saturday. His statline from the game: 46 rushes, 219yds, 4.8avg, 1TD; 3 receptions, 30yds. It's a shame that he wasn't a finalist for the Doak Walker award because his numbers on the season rival, at the very least, Mike Hart and possibly Ray Rice.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

So Long Lloyd Carr
Something that had been rumored for a while, and set in stone a little more forcefully last week, happened this morning as Coach Lloyd Carr announced his retirement as coach of the Michigan Wolverines football team. In 13 seasons, Carr won 121 games, 5 Big Ten championships and 1 national championship. He also went 6-7 against Ohio State, and it's probably safe to assume that many of them are the saddest that Carr is retiring(don't leave, we want wins!). Like others have said, the spotlight is firmly on LSU Coach Les Miles, as he seems to be the frontrunner to replace Carr.

The Curse Of #2 Continues!
#2 ranked Oregon looked like they were heading for a shot at the BCS title against LSU, but those hopes ended along with Dennis Dixon's season in a loss to Arizona. It's sad to see a great athlete like Dixon end his Heisman hopeful season this way, but you have to give him credit for being a tough m-f'er and trying to play on a torn ACL.

Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk! In College Football?
With Oregon's loss, Kansas takes over the cursed #2 spot, and hopes to avoid the same fate that's befallen other #2's this season. It will be tough with a game against Mizzou this week, and a possible Big 12 Championship game against either Oklahoma or Texas. Their defense is strong enough to put them in position to win just about any game, but with the way this season has gone I wouldn't count out just about anything from happening.

The Mountaineers Are In The BCS Rearview Mirror
Currently at #3 in the BCS, West Virginia has a good shot at making the BCS title game. Sure, they need help in the form of a Kansas loss, and they have to hope that they don't get leapfrogged by Mizzou, but I honestly believe that the voters would like to see an LSU/WVU matchup out of what it probably going to be available. Ask any casual college football fan to name two or more players from either KU, Mizzou or WVU, and I bet that you'll get Steve Slaton & Pat White as the most common answers. Pitting them against a tough LSU defense would probably draw the most viewers, and I have a strange feeling that we'll be seeing it come January.

Another QB Injury, Another Upset
Oklahoma's Sam Bradford was knocked out early against Texas Tech, and the Sooners just couldn't get on track against the Red Raiders. Joey Halzle added two scores late, but by that time the deficit was already too large. With the loss, Oklahoma fell out of the top 5, and ended any hope of a shot at the BCS title.

Georgia Is On Fire
Georgia pulled out a win against Kentucky depsite four turnovers, and the Bulldogs racked up their fifth straight win. In that span, they've also defeated three teams that were ranked in the top 25. Should Tennessee lose next week against Kentucky, then the 'Dawgs will be heading to the UGA friendly confines of the Georgia Dome. If LSU has a choice, and they don't, I would suggest rooting for UT extremely hard on Saturday. Georgia is on a roll right now, and would probably give LSU all they could handle in an SEC title game.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Scored lots of points. For the fourth time this season the Gators scored over 50 points. They tied their season high of 59 which they scored against Troy and Tennessee.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Penalties once again plagued the Gators. It goes along with having a young team, but this late in the season there's no reason a team should be penalized 12 times for 75 yards in a game. Especially when they're facing an opponent that is as much of a mismatch as FAU was.

Heismens!
I've done my best all season not to campaign for Tim Tebow too much. However, on Saturday he became the first player in "modern college football" to pass for 20TD's and rush for 20TD's in the same season. He might not be the flashiest player, but without him Florida's offense doesn't perform anything like it has. He has the stats, and only his sophomore class standing is holding him back right now.

Kevin Smith, UCF. Smith is currently ranked 2nd nationally in rushing yards, and is ranked 1st in rushing TD's. This past Saturday, he ran for 177 yards on 20 carries and scored 2 TD's.

Graham Harrell, Texas Tech. With the upset win over Oklahoma Harrell showcased his passing skills. He went 47-72(yes, that's 72) for 420yds, 2TD's and 2INT's. Right now, he's got over 5,000 passing yards and has thrown 45TD's and 14INT's. Sure, Texas Tech is a pass happy offense(gross understatement), but Harrell can make all of the throws and has put up crazy numbers.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Down Goes Frasier!
Ok, so Ohio State losing at home to Illinois isn't quite as shocking. In fact, it's more like Roy Jones getting knocked out by Glencoffe Johnson. Surprising to see, but only because one side was overvalued based on past achievements. The Fighting Illini put on a clinic in ball control on Saturday. They ran 27 plays, including a successful 4th down conversion, in the 4th quarter. The Buckeyes ran 3. Illinois held the ball for 13:25, and OSU held it for 1:00. You can't score if you don't have the ball, and Illinois kept it away from the team formerly ranked #1.

The SEC Is Back On Top
It's the strongest conference in the world! There's so much depth that other teams drown just thinking about playing in it! They beat the hell out of each other all season, but would still whip your favorite non-SEC team! Wooo, sorry about that, forgot to turn the SEC homerism machine off. However, with the OSU loss LSU moves up to #1. Right now, we would get an LSU/Oregon matchup for the national championship. That actually seems like it would be a pretty good game. The Ducks have good speed on both sides of the ball, and Dennis Dixon can do some amazing things from the quarterback position. Though, with the way this season has been going I would advise against either fanbase buying their BCS title game tickets just yet.

The OBC Gets Click Clacked
Coach Spurrier must have had flashbacks to the 90's during Saturday's UF/South Carolina game. The Gators rolled up 51 points on his Gamecocks, and that was without the services of their most explosive playmaker, Percy Harvin. Tim Tebow scored 7 touchdowns, and rushed for 120 yards. This morning he's curing sick kids at Shands with his dashing good looks, and this afternoon he'll be turning Lake Alice into the biggest body of Hunch Punch with his sweat.

B.C. Continues to Fall
Last week it was unranked FSU. This week it was unranked Maryland. The Eagles have looked more like dodo birds in their back to back losses, and Matt Ryan's two late TD passes helped make his statline look a little more respectable. However, anyone who actually watched the game realized that anymore "Matty Heisman" this season should be punishable by a slap to the back of the head.

Kansas Is No Longer Quietly Creeping
Kansas had their game against Oklahoma State broadcast in big boy fashion, and they put on a show. They put up 529 yards of total offense, and eventhough they allowed 195 yards rushing they still won 43-28. Their defense didn't look quite as strong as it had in past games, but the offense seemed to click better. They definitely have the talent to win the Big 12, though the season finale against Missouri and a possible Big 12 title game against Oklahoma would both be good matchups.

The Orange Bowl Deserved Better
48-0? Seriously? The Hurricanes are lucky that Michael Irvin, Luther Campbell and Lamar Thomas don't show up at practice and hand out some ass whoopins. The game was over by halftime, but that final Virginia touchdown, off of the Kyle Wright fumble, illustrated perfectly how inept the UM offense has been all season. The most disappointing aspect, however might have been how lax the entire team seemed to be. There didn't seem to be much fight in them, especially not up to the level that was expected for the final Hurricanes game in such a storied venue. The Orange Bowl deserved to go out with a bang, but instead it was more like an embarrassing beatdown in front of your friends and family. This is the way it should be remembered.


My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Well, if by "team" you mean "Tim Tebow", then they ran the ball extremely well. Tebow accounted for all 7 of the Florida touchdowns, and rushed for 120 yards on 26 carries. Outside of Tebow, Caldwell played well and it was nice to see some other receivers get involved with Harvin out.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Penalties were a bit of a problem, and the defense did give up some passing yards. However, the rush defense was stout, outside of the 3 touchdowns, though the 2 sacks is indicative of the little amount of pressure they've been able to put on opposing quarterbacks this season.

Heismens!
Tim Tebow. 22-32, 304yds passing, 2TD's, 1INT, 26 rushes, 120yds rushing, 5TD's.

Pat White. 16-25, 181yds passing, 2TD's, 0INT, 24 rushes, 147yds rushing, 1TD.

Kevin Smith. 41 rushes, 320 yards, 4TD's.

Ray Rice. 34 rushes, 243 yards, 2TD's.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Navy Beats Notre Dame
Yes, this wild and wacky season just got even more wild and wacky. Navy, previous owners of a 43 game losing streak against the Irish, returned that shit with no receipt. Winning in triple overtime to the tune of 46-44. Anchors Aweigh!

The New England Lovefest Suffers A Setback
As if hearing about the Red Sox and the Patriots every five minutes wasn't bad enough, we were also getting a healthy dose of Boston College and "Matty Heisman" talk. Well, ten days after barely escaping VaTech on the road the Eagles lost to Florida State at home. Yes, that Florida State. The same one that's been having quarterback "issues" all year, even starting a ticket office worker at one point(after paying Jeff that's all they could afford). "Matty Heisman" sealed the loss by throwing a pick-6 in the waning moments. So long undefeated season, and bye-bye Heisman. Hey, at least you still have the Pats and Celtics.

Fred Flintstone "Yabba Dabba Doo's" South Carolina
In case you missed it(and you call yourself a college football fan, ha!), Darren McFadden and teammate Felix Jones dressed up like Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble for Halloween. On Saturday, Mr. Flintstone took the Gamecocks behind the stone quarry and fitted them with some concrete cleats. That's the only reasonable explanation after watching McFadden torch South Carolina for 323 yards rushing on 35 carries and a touchdown. Yes, that's 323 yards, and a 9.2 ypc average. He also threw a touchdown. Mr. Slate never would have let that happen at his quarry.

Hi, We're Kansas And We're Here To Crash Your BCS
Yes, Kansas is here to play some football and crash the BCS party. No, you're reading that correctly, it does say football. March Madness isn't for a few more months, but Jayhawks fans don't have to wait until then to rejoice in athletic success. Kansas beat the hell out of Nebraska on Saturday, 76-39, and put up 572 total yards. That's 218 on the ground and 354 through the air. Amazing offensive balance, and the defense continues to shine. They limited the Cornhuskers to 79 yards rushing, and amassed 7 sacks and 4 interceptions. Coach Mangino is playing for keeps, and the fancy meals that BCS bowl teams surely get.

Oregon Ruins ASU's Unbeaten Season
Oregon, one of the many one loss teams angling for a shot at the BCS title, did their part to spoil another team's season on Saturday. They got on Arizona State early and often, and before Dennis Erickson could finish his third mai tai the Sun Devils were already down 21-3. ASU did pull within five in the third quarter, but Oregon just turned it on again and ran the lead back to 19. Dennis Dixon looked like he was toying with the ASU defense for much of the game, and had he not strained his knee he probably would have added one or two more touchdowns to his stats.

The Big East Has Been Taken Over By Huskies
UConn cemented their position at the top of the Big East by beating Rutgers on Saturday. Donald Brown the Third(you've got a title, embrace it!) outrushed Ray Rice, and UConn's special teams came up big with a safety on a blocked punt and a 97 yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

Ohio State Is Still #1 But Who's #2?
Ohio State pulled away late, they were tied 17-17 at the start of the fourth quarter, and beat Wisconsin 38-17. They remain #1, but who slid into B.C.'s vacated #2 spot? LSU had been ranked #3 going into the weekend, and seemed like the most logical choice after getting by a tenacious Alabama(Dick Satans) team. However, their struggle combined with Oregon's impressive victory seemed like it could be enough to vault the Ducks ahead of the Tigers. However, it turns out it wasn't, and LSU has moved up to #2 with Oregon, Kansas(yes, KU) and Oklahoma rounding out the top 5.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Well, to follow the mantra that winning cures everything I have to say that they did just about everything well. They played good defense, and got the ball into the hands of their most dynamic player, Percy Harvin. Seriously, it seems as if the only person that can tackle him in a semi-open field is himself. He gets going so fast that it's hard for his knees, ankles and feet to all stay together and he's always stumbling or tripping. However, once he gets going there are very few people on the field that will catch him, and most of them are probably on his team.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Penalties were still a little problem, though 7 for 33 yards isn't too bad. Some of the kickoffs were a bit short too, and gave the Commodores good field position to start a number of their drives.

Heismens!
Two of the early season hopefuls really stood out on Saturday.

Dennis Dixon, quarterback for Oregon, went 13-22 for 189 yards and 4 TD's. He also rushed 11 times for 57 yards.

Darren McFadden, running back/all around stud for Arkansas, compiled a sick statline with 35 rushes for 323 yards and 1 rush TD, and threw one pass for a 23 yard touchdown.

Tim Tebow, Florida's quarterback, also played well ending the day with 22-27 for 281 yards, 3 TD's and 1INT. He also rushed 6 times for 35 yards and 2 TD's.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Business As Usual
After weeks of upsets, week 9 in college football was pretty mundane. Yes, Kentucky losing at home to Mississippi State was a bit odd, and USF losing to UConn might have surprised some people(not me). Even Florida getting beat by Georgia(sonuva...) might have caught some people offguard. However, for the most part all the teams that were supposed to win, did win.

Ohio State Solidifies Their #1 Ranking
Prior to this week, the Buckeyes were viewed as sort of the #1 team by default. They hadn't really played anyone of note, but were still undefeated and were playing well. After Saturday night, they seemed to have tightened their grasp on the top spot. Eventhough Penn State isn't a spectacular team this year, Ohio State played balanced all night and shut the Nittany Lions down. I'm still not convinced that they're better than LSU, but right now they probably do deserve to be #1.

More SEC Cannibalism This Week
At some point there has to be an end to the SEC teams beating the hell out of each other, right? Kentucky looked great early in the season. The loss to Florida was understandable, but a loss at home to Mississippi State? The same MSU team that got blown out on the road a week earlier by West Virginia, but knocked off Auburn in September. South Carolina was also looking to rebound from a shocking loss against Vandy last week, but failed to come through in overtime and lost at Tennessee. I'm not sure if the typically strong teams are all just having down years, or of the weaker teams are just getting better. I would like to believe that it's the latter, but I'm afraid that might not be the case.

ASU Has Quietly Moved To #4 In The BCS
Arizona State finished the '06 season with a 7-6 record and fired Dirk Koetter. They brought in Dennis Erickson(yes, that Dennis Erickson), and he has the Sun Devils sitting at #4 in the BCS with an 8-0 record(5-0 in the Pac-10). The showdown against #5 Oregon this Saturday has national title implications, especially for ASU since they're just one of four remaining undefeated teams.

Kansas Has Also Quietly Crept Up The Rankings
Kansas is another of the unbeatens, and has moved all the way up to #8 in the BCS. They control their own destiny in the Big 12 race, and their defense is playing tough week in and week out.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Stay on the bench after scoring touchdowns? Just kidding, sort of, Tim Tebow and the receivers played well but that's about it.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Just about everything. They gave up too many sacks(6), too many rushing touchdowns and yards(3 & 188) and too many third down conversions(10-13). Matt Stafford looked unstoppable(which he isn't), and even that pick six interception didn't cost his team the game. Florida's defense, which has been dodgy at best all season, looked downright horrible on Saturday. And I still can't figure out how a team with two senior safeties has a secondary that can't stop the pass.

Never Forget. Never, Ever Forget
That's what Urban Meyer said to his team with regard to Georgia's team running off of the bench, and into the end zone to celebrate their first touchdown against Florida on Saturday. I understand that he was looking for a way to keep his team fired up, and I don't believe that he didn't play some part in it occuring, but it seemed pretty shady to me. Two weeks before, at Vandy(who beat UGA for their homecoming in '06), he was out on the field screaming and cursing at his players to stop celebrating. Though, when you're facing a team that you've struggled against in recent times I guess you'll use any tactic to fire your team up. I really shouldn't expect anything else from a former Seminole coach.

Heismens!
Kevin Smith ran wild over Southern Miss last night, to the tune of 175 yards and 2 TD's. He's ranked second nationally in yards, and is tied third in TD's.

Tim Tebow added to his touchdown total by scoring three against UGA, 1 passing and 2 rushing. He now has 30 touchdowns this season(18 passing, 12 rushing).

Consider yourself debriefed.

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Seriously, What The Hell Is Going On?
One or two weeks worth of craziness and "upsets" is explainable and somewhat expected, but this season's wackiness week in and week out is weird and almost unsettling. It's as if the Earth has shifted off its axis, and what we thought we knew has been smashed into tiny little pieces.

LSU obviously used up all of their fourth down luck against the Gators because that playcall for a run to the left against Kentucky that got absolutely stuffed was not imaginative or overpowering. And just like that, #1 falls.

Then second ranked Cal, with the top spot open for the taking, watches their season crumble as the clock ticks down to 00:00 while the field goal unit is scrambling onto the field to attempt the tying kick.

Besides that, we had Cincy dooming themselves via turnover against Louisville, Penn State blasting Wisconsin, Iowa shutting down Illinois and Wake Forest edging out FSU.

Make sure you tune in this week to see what type of freakish events happen under the big top!

The Little Program That Could Has Crashed The BCS Party
The South Florida Bulls had never had a football team ranked in the top 25 before. Right now, they're #2 in the BCS. Jim Leavitt has built that program from scratch, probably with dynamite, whiskey, sledgehammers and other manly tools. They're poised to take over the helm should when Ohio State stumbles. I know some people believed that USF could challenge Rutgers and WVU for the Big East this year, but who would have ever thought they would be the highest ranked team in the state right now? Congrats Bulls.

If Only I Could Predict The Lotto Numbers
Last week I wrote that Ohio State was "creeping up", and that this might be the season they win it all(again). The Buckeyes hopped up to #1 after the LSU and Cal losses, and have played pretty good football so far. However, they toughest part of their schedule is fast approaching(Michigan St. this week), and as we've seen, being #1 isn't the greatest thing in the world this season.

All Your Scoring Belongs To Us!
How's this for a stat line? "Final score 69-67, 4OT. 1266 yards of combined offense." That's what Boise State and Nevada gave us last night. College football, isn't it great?

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Hopefully watched the LSU at Kentucky game since it was their bye week, and they travel to Lexington this coming Saturday.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Everybody seemed to stay out of trouble, though it was sad to hear that walk on defensive back Michael Guilford and his passenger, Ashley Slonina, were killed in a motorcycle accident. Condolences to their friends and families.

Heismens!
Graham Harrell directed the pass happy Texas Tech offense against TAMU, and his season totals are now 3,151 yards, 31 TD's and 3 INT's.

Mike Hart injured his ankle, but not before running for 102 yards and 2 TD's. In the first half against Purdue. Hart leads the nation with 1,078 rushing yards and is near the top with 12 TD's.

And to give some defensive players some space here at The Sports Oasis:

George Selvie currently leads the nation with 11 sacks, and energizes the USF defense week in and week out.

Jordan Dizon from Colorado leads the nation with 58 solo tackles and 89 total tackles. He's not going to get real Heisman consideration, but we'll give him some props here.

Thursday Night Is Ready To Make You Worthless On Friday Again
We've had a great slate of Thursday night games this year, and this week is no different. The South Florida Bulls get to take their shiny new #2 ranking on the road to face Rutgers. It should be a great matchup, and with the way this season has gone anything can, and probably will, happen.

Consider yourself debriefed! (But still totally mystified)

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Bizarro College Football World Lives On!
Stanford won. Yes, you read that right. The Fighting Jim Harbaughs ended the nation's longest home winning streak. One that spanned over 6 years. That is pure, unadulterated craziness. Oh yeah, Illinois ended the nation's longest winning streak by beating Wisconsin. Previously unranked Kansas, now the proud owner of the #20 spot, upset K-State at home. Nebraska got blasted by Mizzou. And Miami lost to UNC. Stay tuned every week from here on out to see what the hell else happens.

Les Miles Gut Checks His Team
I've got to hand it to LSU(just like my beloved Gators did). They made plays when they needed them most, and lucked pulled out a gritty win. Going 5-for-5 on 4th downs is pretty impressive, and ensured that Colt David wouldn't have to be counted on to shank make one.

The SEC Is Proving Once Again How Tough It Is
There are currently 7 SEC teams ranked in the Top 25. Every week the teams are fighting for championship hopes. And even when a traditional powerhouse like Tennessee is having a down year a team like Kentucky steps up and helps fill the void.

Ohio State Is Creeping Up
Last year they were supposed to win it all, but maybe everyone was off by a season. The Buckeyes took apart a pretty good Purdue team on Saturday without playing great football. Their conference is weak this year, and if there was ever time to run the table this is it. They still have tough games left(at PSU/Meeechigan, vs MSU/'Consin/UI), but a perfect record is possible. Though, they would probably still get smacked around by an SEC in the championship game should they make it that far.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Cut down on the penalties. Finally, after what seemed like months and months of having double digit penalties the Gators only had 2 for 8 yards. At least that was nice.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Stop 4th down conversions by LSU in the 4th quarter. On the two 4th quarter touchdown drives for LSU in the 4th quarter they converted 3 times. One was a 4th and goal that resulted in a TD. The other two were 4th and shorts that Jacob Hester was able to pick up running straight ahead. If Florida stops any of those, then they most likely win the game.

Heismens!
Graham Harrell continues to lead the nation in passing yards and touchdowns(I know, I know he's in a pass happy offense. Whatever.)

Redshirt freshman Michael Crabtree continued to benefit from having Graham Harrell at QB by catching 10 passes for 154 yards and 3 TD's. He now has ober 1,000 yards receiving and 17 receiving TD's.

Mike Hart reclaimed the lead in rushing yards by running for 215 yards(He became UM's all-time rushing leader), and 3 TD's on Saturday.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Upsets, Upsets, Come Get Your Upsets!
What appeared to be a relatively docile college football weekend shook up the polls and shattered dreams. Five of the top ten lost(Oklahoma, Florida, WVU, Texas & Rutgers), as did two other ranked and previously unbeaten teams(Clemson & Oregon). It was like bizzaro college football world opened up, and started sucking in teams.

LSU Back On Top
Despite a slow first half against Tulane, LSU moved past USC into the #1 spot in the AP Poll. Both teams have the ability to put lots of points over the course of 60 minutes, but LSU's defense is much tougher. They deserved to get moved up.

South Florida Benefits From The Shake Up(So Does Kentucky)
So what FBS team from Florida is currently ranked the highest? Florida? No. Miami? Uh uh. FSU? Wrong again. UCF? Nope. It's the University of South Florida, which maxxed out their win against West Virginia on Friday night with all of the upsets on Saturday. They're currently sitting at #6, while the next closest Florida school is UF at #9. And no, that's not a typo. Kentucky has crept up to #8 in the football rankings. Andre Woodson continues to lead the Wildcats extremely well, and has them sitting alone atop the SEC East. Bizarro world indeed!

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Uh, cut down on the penalties? 7 for 44 yards was less than usual, but they came at the most inopportune times. Personal foul on special teams? Illegal formation on a successful fake punt? Gun, bullet, foot. The Gators didn't allow any sacks either. Woohoo...

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Hmmm...win?!? Actually, Florida's rushing average was way down, and when your starting "tailback" carries the ball three times for four yards things probably aren't going too well.

Heismens!
Graham Harrell put up another 5 passing TD's, as Texas Tech hung 75 points on the powerhouse that is Northwestern St. He's leading the country in pass yards, and has 24 TD's to just 2 INT's.

Mike Hart turned in another 100+ yard performance, going for 106yds and 1 TD. UCF's Kevin Smith has another monster day, rushing for 223 yards and 3 TD's. Smith has to get mentioned now, as he's third in the nation in rush yards(713) and first in rush TD's(10).

Michael Crabtree gets some space because he's racked up almost 1,000 yards receiving through five games and has 14 TD's. Sure, Texas Tech is a pass heavy offense, but those numbers are pretty impressive, especially for a freshman.

Thursday Night Is Fun Again!
After a down week last week, we get another good Thursday night matchup. This time it's the #8 ranked Kentucky Wildcats going on the road to face the #11 ranked South Carolina Gamecocks. South Carolina's pass defense has been pretty good so far, though their rush defense gives up an average of 200 yards per game. However, Kentucky's rush defense hasn't been any better giving up an average of 203 yards per game, and their pass defense is weaker than USC's. It should be another good SEC matchup.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

Syracuse and Miami Are Who We Thought They Were!
Well, maybe not exactly, but Louisville and Texas A&M fans have to be residing in the same deep, dark hole right now. The Aggies traveled to the Orange Bowl for the final Thursday night game in the antiquated stadium(it's a trap!), and the 'Canes beat them down like it was 1987 and TAMU had shown up wearing Oklahoma uniforms. If Coach Fran thought his seat was hot before, he better have a fire extinguisher, a few thousand buckets of water and a flame retardant suit because it's on fiyah(!) now. I'm sure TAMU fans had to be happy seeing their bruising tail/half/elephantback Jorvorskie Lane rumble for 2 yards on 2 carries. Awesome!

And Louisville? They lost to one of the worst teams in Div.-1 football(screw the FBS, we're adverse to change!), Syracuse. They even lost in Papa John's Stadium where the only thing the Cardinals had been losing were notches on their belts because of that delicious pizza complimented by your choice of garlic or cheese dipping sauce.

The Top 5 Rolled On...For The Most Part
USC hung 47 points and 500+ total yards on Washington State. LSU struggled a bit with South Carolina by only putting up 28 points and 360 yards. Oklahoma took Tulsa behind the woodshed and did unspeakable things en route to 62 points and 550+ yards. Florida(rose colored glasses alert!) never seemed to hit on all cylinders against Mississippi as they posted up 30 points and 500 yards. And West Virginia blew out East Carolina to the tune of 48 points and almost 600 yards. Of course the two SEC teams struggled a bit because it's the toughest conference on this planet, and all of the other ones too!

Don't Look Now, But Michigan is 1-0 In The Conference
After App. State and Oregon, Michigan was getting written off by a lot of people. However, they showed on Saturday that at the very least they're interested in winning the Big 10, and hopefully screwing up someone else's season(Ohio State you're on notice!). Lloyd Carr rode Mike Hart just about until the wheels fell off(44 carries, 153yds, 1TD) as the Wolverines welcomed the Nittany Lions into their (getting) Big(ger) House, and then sent them off to do the walk of shame after getting freaky.

SEC Football Really Is Great(Homerism Warning)
Of course I'm a fan of SEC football. Who isn't? Oh you're not? Well, I'll have to report you to Homeland Security as being un-American. Seriously, the Georgia at Alabama game was one of the best this season. 'Bama scored 10 fourth quarter points to tie the game at 20, and force overtime. Then in OT Georgia holds them to a field goal, and on UGA's first OT possession Coach Richt lets Matt Stafford unleash his precision keg throwing skills for the winning TD. It was awesome, especially because I hate Dick Satan, and his gray suit. The South Carolina at LSU, and Florida at Mississippi games were closer than expected, but that just made for a better day of football(and increased pepto intake). Plus we had Kentucky scoring 21 unanswered points to beat Arkansas 42-29. After the Woodson safety, and Felix Jones kickoff immediately afterwards it looked like the Wildcats were doomed, but they battled back and won. And Andre Woodson played well again.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
They avoided a letdown loss after a big win against Tennessee the week before. Thanks to the announcers I now have seared into my brain the fact that there were 18 players on the Florida team making their first roadtrip. It was nice to see them grind out a closer than should have been win against an SEC opponent on the road. It should prepare them somewhat for heading to LSU in two weeks, and by some I mean about .0001%.

My (insert respective team Didn't Do This Well
Score, avoid penalties, cover the deep pass. Tebow put the team on his shoulders, and scored through the air and on the ground. However, the Gators racked up another 14 penalties for 127 yards, and they gave up 310 yards passing. Including a 77 yarder that brought Mississippi within 3 points of tying the game. I can still remember imploring Meyer through the picture box to put in Major Wright, and take out Kyle Jackson at least for a few plays. Of course, what happens? I get to see Joe Haden and Major Wright trying to catch Mike Wallace as he runs past them and to the end zone. Is Reggie Nelson available on Saturdays?

Heismens!
Like passing? How about these QB's? Graham Harrell's wonderful performance(46-67[67!], 646yds, 5TD, 0INT) resulted in a loss, but now he leads the nation in passing yards(1,963) and TD's(19). Curtis Painter has quietly put up almost 1330 passing yards and is second behind Harrell with 16 TD's. Brian Brohm was another losing QB this weekend, but like Harrell it's not because he couldn't help the offense put up points. Brohm went 45-65, 555yds, 4TD's and 2INT's. He's second to Harrell in passing yards with almost 1,700.

How about running? With his performance this past Saturday Mike Hart has started to distance himself from the rest of the pack. He leads the country with 655 yards, though Steve Slaton did add to his totals with 110 yards and 1TD against ECU.

Friday Night Lights!
Another week, another great weekday game. This week we get to see West Virginia travel to Tampa to take on USF. Both are undefeated, with identical 2-0 conference records, and WVU will be looking to avenge their 24-19 loss last year that knocked them out of BCS title contention. Raymond James will be rocking, and USF will be eager to add another win to their impressive list over the past few years.

Consider yourself debriefed!

College Football Debriefing

Each week, after all of the games have been played, I'll re-visit some of them and give my take(synonym for biased, slightly informed opinion). It's called the debriefing because whatever happened during your chosen team's game you probably felt like you were part of a crime scene, or maybe a terrorist attack. Whether you thought you were robbed by the referees, or got to witness some WMD's exploding in your stadium, this is where we'll re-open fresh wounds and examine the positives and negatives. But since we're all college football fanatics, probably mostly the negatives.

USC Did Their Best To State Their Claim As #1
At the beginning of the season everyone was saying that Nebraska was going to be USC's first big test, and that the Cornhuskers were looking for revenge after last year's game. Well, on Saturday it looked like USC had a cheetsheat, and paid off the professor after they put Nebraska down 42-10 early and held off a comeback attempt to win 49-31. USC's offensive line dominated all night en route to racking up 313 yards rushing with an 8.2ypc average. LSU's defense is probably better, but USC can put up points with anyone in the country. Orson(and Stranko) at EDSBS have some pretty good illustrations of just how dominant USC's offensive linemen were.

LSU Is Still The #1 Team In The Country
The Tigers beat an MTSU team that put up 42 on Louisville(pay no attention to Kentucky!) by a score of 44-0. With their backup quarterback. So far, over three games, LSU has allowed 7 points, and an average of 128 yards per game. And when the offense is averaging 45pts and 480 yards per game that equals lots and lots of wins.

Michigan Got A Win At Home!(Notre Dame Still Winless)
In the game "someone has to win" of the week, Michigan took out their frustrations from the App. State and Oregon debacles on Notre Dame as they cruised to a 38-0 victory. Mike Hart made good on his guaranteed victory by rushing for 187 yards and 2 TD's. The only positive is that it wasn't a home game for ND because I don't think even Touchdown Jesus would have stayed for the fourth quarter. ND hasn't scored an offensive touchdown yet this season, and their schedule doesn't get much easier.

Defense Wins Championships
At least that's what they've always told us. It's probably why over the last few years Louisville has been a great early season pick as possible Big East champ and national title contender, but always stumble at some point. Sure they can score points in bunches, but their defense always seems to allow them in that fashion as well and this year is no different. The only difference is that it caught up to them very early this season, as Kentucky downed the Cardinals 40-34. Andre Woodson played sharp all night, and looks to be a great leader for the UK team.

Nick Saban Has Time For Winning
Saban has his team sitting at 3-0 after the Crimson Tide pulled out a win against Arkansas, and I'm sure the fans couldn't be happier. I however, am not thrilled because I'm also a Miami Dolphins fan. So from here on out, Nick Saban will be known as Dick Satan.

My (insert respective team here) Did This Well
Won! Beating Tennessee 59-20 is good enough for me. They did everything well! If I had to pick one thing, though it would be the rushing attack. Coach Meyer knows how to get the ball into the hands of the playmakers, and that often means lining up a receiver in the backfield(Harvin, Fason, etc.). It's worked so far, and the rushing attack looks the strongest it has in years.

My (insert respective team here) Didn't Do This Well
Penalties are still a concern(9 for 66yds), but at least there wasn't one on the Brandon James return TD!

Heismens!
Colt Brennan? Maybe you've heard of him? Hawaii rebounded from a scary close game the week before to hang 49 on UNLV. Brennan's stats: 26-32, 298yds, 2TD's, 0INT and 3 rushing TD's. The week he scores less than 4 total TD's will cause widespread panic among UH fans.

Sam Bradford. If he keeps leading OU to wins while completing almost 80% of his passes, then he deserves some type of recognition.

Steve Slaton & Ray Rice. Running backs that have the fortunate situations of their coaches giving them the ball all the time. Tied for the nation lead in rushing TD's at 8 both are strong runners. Though, it does seem that Slaton hasn't gotten off to a great start, and I expect him to pull away from the competition as the season progresses.

Don't Forget Thursday(and Friday) Night!
We've got some more Thursday night games lined up this week as Western Kentucky and MTSU face off, and Texas A&M heads to the Orange Bowl to face Miami. It will be interesting to see how TAMU does against UM, and should give us a decent idea how they stack up against an OU team that put up 51 points on the 'Canes. Whatever happens it still beats anything else that's on TV that night.

We also get Oklahoma traveling to Tulsa on Friday night in what could be considered a "trap" game for the Sooners. Tulsa has enough firepower to make it interesting, but OU should get passed them.


You've been debriefed!