College Football Week 11 Recap: Oregon Back in BCS Title Picture, Boise State and Stanford Out of It.
By Ty Duffy
The win vaults Oregon into the BCS title game picture, and he loss could bounce Stanford from the BCS entirely. Considering only football, Stanford would deserve to be there. However, the BCS is about selling ads, tickets and hotel room packages. If you’re running say the Sugar Bowl, is future No. 1 draft pick Andrew Luck worth passing up on a 10-2 B1G team?
Let’s not go overboard. Gary Patterson was gutsy, though he had everything to gain and nothing to lose. TCU is in the MWC. Whether they go 10-2 or 9-3 matters little. They are going to a crap bowl game regardless. Sixteen-point underdogs on the road, he already had won the moral victory. He know Boise had the chance to drive the length of the field and that overtime can be a crapshoot. He’s bold, we need know wheel barrow for his delicate parts. If he had gone for two in Chris Peterson’s situation, with everything on the line, that would have taken fortitude. Hat tip to TCU’s Casey Pachall who threw 24/37 for five touchdowns and played almost well enough to ignore the fact he had his number shaved into the side of his head. Almost.
Kellen Moore was failed by his kickers again. Boise State is out of the BCS title game, but their season may not be over. To earn an automatic BCS bid, Boise must be in the top 12 of the final BCS standings (final 16 in reality, since no Big East team is anywhere close to surpassing them) and they must be the top ranked non-AQ. They are 10th and they are presently ahead of 10-0 Houston, with Southern Miss and Tulsa unlikely to expunge the gap in the computer polls. Should they win out, the Broncos could still be BCS-bound. and most likely out of the BCS. The team must be a conference champion. Thus, since TCU will win the Mountain West, Houston will get the auto bid.
Demolition: Guns were anything but up, when the Cowboys rolled into Lubbock. Oklahoma State scored touchdowns on six of its first eight drives. Texas Tech amassed zero points on its 13 offensive drives. That, emphatically, was that in a 66-6 route. With Luck and Moore faltering, Brandon Weeden’s performance (31/37, 423 yards, five TDs) makes him a firm Heisman contender. Clearly, the Red Raiders missed the poise, leadership, ingenuity and successful bloodlines of senior Adam James.
Patience with Tommy Tuberville won’t run out after this season, but his efforts thus far leave something to be desired. For all the confidence his riverboat gambling imbues, Tuberville has lost five of his last six, is 11-10 overall against FBS teams and is just 5-10 within the Big 12. Since taking over, Texas Tech has become worse on both sides of the ball. The Red Raiders ranked 20th in yards per play defense in 2009, currently 109th. They ranked 17th in yards per play offense in 2009, currently 58th.
Safety: Mark Richt was safe, but needed an emphatic win to decisively snuff out the hot seat discussion. He got it. Georgia absolutely crushed Auburn 45-7. The Bulldogs held the ball for 40 minutes, ran up 528 total yards and converted 12 of 15 third downs, while restricting Auburn to fewer than 200 total yards. Sophomore Aaron Murray, 14/18 for 224 yards and four touchdowns, is the best quarterback in the SEC. This year, they will reach the SEC title game. With a year of experience and better luck with injuries next year, Georgia could win it.
As the B1G Turns. All eyes were on Penn State-Nebraska, until everyone switched to more watchable football games. The Cornhuskers got what they needed to stay alive, with a 17-14 win. Michigan State finally showed up on the road, beating Iowa comfortably 37-21. Michigan got back to Michigan football, running over Illinois with a dominant tailback and shutting them down on defense. Everything went according to script, well…except Purdue blocking the game-winning field goal and knocking off Ohio State in overtime.
Turner’s Last Stand. Kansas is still losing, but not losing as badly. Last game, they only lost 13-10 to Iowa State. This past weekend, they held a 24-3 lead over Baylor heading into the fourth quarter, before conceding three touchdowns. They could have won in overtime, but fell 31-30 after failing on a two-point conversion. Their points allowed per game is now under 50. Things appear better. Still, at just 1-8 against FBS with the one being a 45-42 win over Northern Illinois, he needs an upset of Missouri, Texas A&M or perhaps both to be tenable next season.
UCLA Pulled a UCLA. Pistol Rick was firing last week. The Bruins, winners of four of six in the Pac 12, controlled their own destiny in the South. UCLA finally found a quarterback in Kevin Prince. There were signs for optimism! That lasted a few days. Saturday, said Bruins were dismantled 31-6 on the road at Utah. Prince went 12/24 for 146 yards and two interceptions. Neuheisel, an offensive coach, runs a terrible offense. He can’t recruit kids nationally to come to UCLA. He can’t recruit kids in LA to come to UCLA. The only argument against firing Neuheisel is that UCLA AD Dan Guerrero will be doing the hiring. Guerrero, according to UCLA’s website, has “clearly established a pattern of image and substance that few in his profession can match,” except those with football and basketball programs functioning at full capacity.
[Photo via Getty]