What a great week for football, even if the TV selection
left a lot to be desired. It’s rare to get a treat like UCLA – Nebraska so
early in the morning and the rest of the day didn’t measure up too poorly,
either. The noon block had the SEC mega-ultra-showdownageddon (and another
contender, Oregon, in action). The night was finished off in wild fashion, as
three games went down to the wire. First, Notre Dame survived Purdue. Next,
Oregon State escaped Salt Lake City with a wild overtime win over Utah.
Finally, there was the epic weirdness of Wisconsin – Arizona State, which needs
its own section for further analysis.
It was enough that I felt comfortable releasing my initial
rankings, something I prefer to wait on until Week Four. The 2013 season has
given us enough big games already that conclusions can actually be drawn from a
relatively small sample size. It’s heartening to see teams get a jump start on
the more difficult scheduling the new playoff system will require. We still
don’t know whether FCS opponents will be banned – somehow I doubt it – but at
the very least the schools at the top seem to have gotten the memo: better
competition equals better rankings. This will only help the sport.
I wanted to head off the “TCU is overrated” talk as soon as
possible, because it’s quite possible this could become a sticking point later
in the year. LSU’s opening win over the Horned Frogs needs to be recognized for
what it was – a quality win. I say this because TCU probably won’t look
anything like a quality team the rest of the year, if last Thursday’s defeat at
the hands of Texas Tech was any indication. The loss of quarterback Casey
Pachall, which I noted last week, can’t be understated. I’ve had high hopes for
Trevone Boykin, but he looked far from polished or ready to lead his team
against the Red Raiders. That’s not to take away from a solid game by TTU (and
a steady game plan from new coach and homegrown hero Kliff Kingsbury), but TCU
is undeniably better with Pachall at the helm. When LSU’s non-conference schedule
is debated, remember that the Tigers beat a different TCU team.
Louisville had a chance to make a statement Saturday against
rival Kentucky and essentially blew it. The Cardinals’ meager schedule doesn’t
provide them a lot of opportunities to prove they’re actually a great team.
They needed to do so against an SEC bottom-feeder in Kentucky and failed. The outcome
was never really in doubt, but UL took way too long to get going (a 10-3
halftime lead?) and never did anything to make the pollsters take notice.
Consider that Oregon, also facing a mediocre SEC team, demolished Tennesssee
59-14 (and the Volunteers are probably better than UK). Louisville has to step its
game up the next few weeks to be taken seriously. You can’t ride that Sugar
Bowl win forever.
It seems too easy to blame UCLA’s slow start on pent-up
emotion, but I don’t know what else to call it after the win over Nebraska.
For the majority of the first half the Cornhuskers were by far the superior
team, building a 21-3 lead and making the Bruins look as inept as in last
season’s Holiday Bowl. Then UCLA scored 38 straight points, stuffing the
Nebraska offense and carving up the Blackshirts’ D. What happened? It’s hard to
believe UCLA is that much better than the ‘Huskers, who are, by any fair
estimation, pretty good. But had the Bruins played that way for four quarters
the score might have been 75-0.
Alabama’s win over Texas A&M was surprising in some
ways, very predictable in others. It was shocking to see the Crimson Tide give
up so many yards through the air, though it did feel like a sign that even the
best defenses in college football today are pretty much helpless against a
decent passer-to-receiver combination. ‘Bama just doesn’t cover people THAT
badly; you can bet Nick Saban is fairly unhappy with his secondary this week.
However, the Tide did move the ball themselves at a brisk and efficient rate.
This was expected, given Texas A&M’s alleged – as it turns out, correctly –
defensive deficiencies. This game felt very much like the Texas – USC title
bout in (bowl season) 2005, when a team with a great offense and average D
(USC) met a team with both great offense and defense (Texas). As in that game,
it was the squad capable of stopping the other that prevailed. Despite the
close score and yardage totals, Alabama controlled the game from the second
quarter on. The Aggies were never mathematically out of it (see the frantic
late-game rally), but once the Tide took the lead they found themselves playing
an impossible game of catch-up. Without a D to make a few stops (save a fluke fumble),
A&M was doomed.
I’ll talk about the ridiculous last play later, but for now
my comments on the Wisconsin – ASU fiasco will be limited to this truth: the
official outcome will have no effect on the polls, because neither of those
teams is top-25 material right now. If you take that contest as the draw it
essentially was, you’re left with an entertaining game between two decent, but
not very complete football teams.
Speaking of that game… it’s
official: the Pac-12 is the nation’s second-best conference behind the SEC.
Even if Wisconsin had beaten ASU, it would have only given the Big Ten a 2-2
mark on Saturday, which wouldn’t have been enough to erase the statement UCLA
made. Toss in the fact that Oregon and Stanford are still top-10 squads and the
picture is pretty clear. I’d rank the Big Ten third because the Big 12 has been
so awful, then a tie between that league and the ACC, which has looked much
improved but still needs to demonstrate depth. The American, with Louisville
and UCF leading the way, has the momentary edge on the Mountain West, followed
by the MAC, Conference USA and the Sun Belt. Keeping those rankings in mind,
let’s talk top 25.
My top 25 aims to be an amorphous, ever-changing list that
reflects both the full season’s results to this point and the trending
performance of teams on a week-to-week basis. Gone are the days when holding
onto a spot required merely a win. Teams must improve over time, show an
ability to adapt to the opposition, avoid injuries (just ask TCU) and perform against
challenging competition. Everyone enters the season believing things about
teams; those prejudices must be forgotten as we’re presented with actual
on-field results. Here are my initial rankings.
Top 25
1) Clemson
Both Clemson and Alabama are 2-0, but both 2-0’s trump
Oregon’s 3-0 over lesser competition. There’s no sense in splitting hairs about
whether Georgia or Texas A&M is a better win… it’s UGA, as the Bulldogs
have actually beaten someone. The Tigers get a moderate test this week in a
Thursday night road game versus North Carolina State, so perhaps I’ll
reevaluate. For the moment, though, Clemson has accomplished more than any
other team: I have Georgia as the best one-loss squad, therefore Clemson logically
should sit on top. I have concerns about whether the defense can succeed
against power-oriented rushing attacks, but few offenses can afford to play
that style against the high-scoring, up-tempo Tigers. No team is perfect.
2) Alabama
‘Bama deserves to drop a spot after that horrendous
defensive performance. I don’t care if it was the 2007 Patriots offense,
allowing 600+ yards is inexcusable (and for the record, the Pats only averaged
411). There’s nothing wrong with the offense, which continues to be among the
most well-balanced in all of football (though the Tide certainly will see better
defenses). But sheesh… how about covering someone? Like the guy who already has
200 receiving yards? Alabama is very, very good, but the A&M game was a bit
of a letdown. When you’ve won three of four titles, you get judged differently.
This team is capable of, and will need to be, better than it was last Saturday.
3) Oregon
The Ducks’ three wins, as I’ve said, do not compare to Clemson
and ‘Bama’s. I don’t think Tennessee is horrible, but the Volunteers probably
aren’t anything more than a .500 squad. As always, the physicality questions
remain – whether Oregon can adjust and succeed against teams with a size
advantage. However, UO fared much better against UT than they did against
Virginia in that regard, which is a positive sign for those who fear a repeat
of a Stanford-esque flop. The offense is still humming right along, though it
is true that the ground game has suffered some with Byron Marshall as the lead
back. It will be interesting to see if the Ducks continue to lean on QB Marcus
Mariota, rather than the rushing attack that has been their forte for so long.
4) LSU
I like what LSU has done so far, beating a pretty good TCU
team at a “neutral” site (Arlington? Yeah, sure) and once again giving up less
than 20 points a game. But it’s what is happening on the other side of the ball
that should make people take notice. Yes, that day we’ve all been dreading has
finally arrived: LSU can throw the football. The Tigers are averaging more than
250 yards through the air with QB Zach Mettenberger, who has completed 65 percent
of his passes with no interceptions through three games. Time will tell if this
offense can sustain its momentum in conference play (two backs are also
averaging more than eight yards per rush), but thus far the signs are very
encouraging. LSU has clearly accomplished more than the rest of the teams on
this list.
5) Ohio State
So far, this is what we know about Ohio State: the Buckeyes
beat Buffalo (who’s really, really bad), beat San Diego State (who lost to
FCS-level Eastern Illinois) and beat Cal… who’s probably also really bad. It’s
simply very hard to discern how good a team is when the competition is this terrible.
At least Oregon played Virginia and Tennessee. Certainly, the Buckeyes have
talented players, but that’s never a guarantee of success. I still think we
don’t know how good the QB’s are, which is pretty important in today’s game.
OSU might be an elite team, or just very good team that’s bullied a down Big
Ten the past year. The first league game against Wisconsin will provide some
clues, but that’s still another week out. Until then, I can’t rank this team
any higher.
6) Florida State
FSU has probably impressed me more than any of the top
contenders to this point. I expected the Seminoles to struggle out of the gate
with a new (freshman) QB, but that’s exactly the kind of preconception my
rankings aim to eliminate. If anything, FSU has been better than last year when
a fairly decent guy by the name of E.J. Manuel was running the show, ranking in
the top five in both scoring offense and defense. Granted, it was Pitt and
Nevada, but I would argue that those wins are clearly more impressive than
Stanford’s over San Jose State and Army. Jameis Winston has been a revelation,
completing 40 of his first 45 career attempts. Are you kidding me? Those are “Geno
Smith September 2012” numbers, except Winston is a redshirt frosh, not a
fifth-year senior. It’s obvious why he was the top-ranked QB in his class;
Winston may be a game-changer for the already-stacked ‘Noles.
7) Stanford
To be clear: neither of Stanford’s seemingly “close” wins
were ever remotely in doubt. SJSU and Army weren’t much of a challenge and the
lack of intensity from Stanford was noticable. Still, there are plenty of power
schools playing cupcakes this time of year. Few have looked as unimpressive as
the Cardinal. For a team with such a great O-line, Stanford isn’t running the
ball particularly well (fewer than 200 yards per game) and the RB committee is
looking as suspiciously single-back-oriented as it did last year. Tyler
Gaffney, good though he may be, is no Stepfan Taylor. Kevin Hogan hasn’t needed
to show what he can do in the passing game, but at some point he will and it’d
be nice to know beforehand what the young QB can handle. He and the rest of the
team should be able to make a statement against ASU this week.
8) Georgia
With another week before conference play starts against LSU
the Bulldogs ought to be able to work out any lingering disappointment from
their 1-1 start. We know by now what Georgia is: a talented offensive team with
a less-than-elite line and a very young defense that will give up a lot of
points and yards this season. However, as is always the case with young
defenses, the growing pains should even out over the course of the year as the
new starters get acclimated. UGA reminds me a bit of Oregon in 2011 – a team
that offered a chance to score every drive, but was vulnerable to great
offenses because of young defenders. Ultimately, playing three top-10 opponents in the first month will
benefit the Bulldogs, as the schedule is pretty much all downhill from LSU. I
still expect this team to compete for the East title.
9) Louisville
Despite the fact that I really do like Louisville, my reservations
about the Kentucky game remain valid. UL should be able to easily blow out a
team like the Wildcats, even if it was a rivalry game. The Cardinals’ first two
opponents were terrible, so they need to take advantage of every chance they
get to impress against BCS teams. The next time this squad should be challenged
will be the Thursday night game versus Rutgers in early October. How can I
justify moving them up when they beat the likes of FIU and Temple? This may be
the worst schedule a BCS Championship contender has ever faced. I established
my Teddy Bridgewater fandom credentials long before the bandwagon ever existed,
but we, the people, need more. Problem is, I don’t know how UL can provide it.
10) Texas A&M
First, the good. A&M’s offense got it done against ‘Bama
like nobody’s business. Johnny Manziel and Mike Evans connected all day and the
Aggies put up a better showing than expected versus a defense that was supposed
to be the nation’s best. That bodes well for the future. What doesn’t is the D,
which was predictably carved up by land and by air. You don’t need a brilliant
defense to win a title, but you’ve got to at least have an adequate one.
A&M simply doesn’t have the players on that side of the ball, so god help
them if the offense ever has an off day. This is by no means a bad team (hence
their inclusion in my top 10), yet it’s one that will be in for another couple
of losses if the coaching staff can’t figure out how to cover up some of the
defense’s deficiencies.
11) UCLA
It’s entirely possible this is way too high for the Bruins…
but if you feel, as I do, that Nebraska is a top-25 team, UCLA can be no lower.
Going on the road to a place like Lincoln and storming back in the manner this
squad did is something you’d see from a great team. I’m by no means completely
convinced – that bowl loss to Baylor sticks in my mind – but right now this is
the second-best road win by anyone. That needs to be rewarded. Further
complicating matters is the Nevada situation; the Wolf Pack may be awful, or
they might have just gotten thrashed by a couple of elite teams in UCLA and
FSU. Time will tell. What’s surprised me the most has been the defense’s
performance after losing so many key guys, but that’s why they play the games.
12) South Carolina
I briefly considered slotting Carolina over UCLA (after all,
I’d pick the Gamecocks if the two were to play), but thought better of it for
two reasons: first, though the Georgia loss was a quality one, SC was clearly
outplayed; second, nothing this team has done defensively has been very
impressive. With DE Jadeveon Clowney dealing with painful bone spurs in his
foot, this is a very good time for the Gamecocks to have a bye week. If the
game against UCF was this week instead of next, I’d be tempted to pick the
upset. Carolina remains solid on both sides, but the stats don’t lie. At 65th
in scoring offense (30 ppg) and 67th in scoring defense (25 ppg),
this team isn’t playing elite football yet.
13) Oklahoma State
The upper Big 12 schools are a bit of an enigma. With zero
quality non-conference wins and its members content to beat up (or get beat by)
patsies early on, the Big 12’s quality is a mystery. It doesn’t look great, but
the Oklahoma schools may surprise us, as seen by my pegging them here in the
teens. Speaking of which, I must offer a mea culpa to the Cowboys: you, not
Texas, should be the Big 12 favorite (but the Longhorns should have been so
good!). While Oklahoma looks to be returning to its ground-and-pound roots, the
‘Boys keep doing their air-it-out thing to great success. As OSU also boasts
the closest thing this league can count as a quality win (Mississippi State),
they get the nod over OU.
14) Oklahoma
Color me pleasantly surprised at Oklahoma’s response to
losing so much talent. The Sooners are playing classic OU football, averaging
more than 270 yards on the ground and holding their first three opponents to a
total of three touchdowns. Not bad at all. Next up is Notre Dame in a revenge
game. Although the luster is clearly gone from last season’s exciting showdown,
this can still be a big moment for a team in transition. After years of
adopting the Big 12’s “outscore ‘em” strategy, will the Sooners rebuild the
team around more traditional principles? It makes sense; only Texas can compete
with OU from a recruiting standpoint, and older powers like Alabama, LSU and
Stanford have found success that way. I remain thoroughly unconvinced by the
QB’s (prove me wrong, kids! Prove me wrong), so this is as good a time as any
for Bob Stoops to reevaluate how his wants his team to look.
15) Michigan
I had a tough time figuring out where to slot Big Blue this
week. Should more credence be given to that impressive win over Notre Dame or
the lucky escape against (terrible) Akron? Adding fuel to the “overrated” fire
was ND’s own poor performance versus a very bad Purdue team. In the end, I
ended up putting Michigan 15th – right where the AP voters did. This
is a good team – we know that. But how good? Good enough to beat Ohio State?
Win the Big Ten? Not by playing like they did against Akron. However, I’m still
confident (enough) the Wolverines could beat the rest of my ranked teams that
they have to be up here.
16) Washington
It feels dangerous to put Washington this high, as it’s
entirely possible Boise State just isn’t that good (we’ll know this Friday when
the Broncos meet Fresno). For the moment, though, that blowout win stands as a
pretty solid mark, especially for a team in desperate need of a marquee
victory. The Huskies have been scoring more or less at will and the defense,
unlike in past years, seems to actually have a pulse. That’s the good news. The
bad news is that after the Idaho State walkover this weekend the sked turns
brutal – a sneaky-good Arizona team, then Stanford, Oregon and ASU. It’s ok to
put UW this high for that reason. If they’re overrated, we’ll know.
17) Miami (FL)
The only reason Miami is on this list is because I couldn’t
leave Florida out, something I seriously considered doing. The Gators haven’t
done anything to deserve being ranked, so why should the Hurricanes reap the
benefits of beating an “elite” team? I had to include Florida, though, because
it was obvious throughout their meeting that Miami was the inferior team.
Sometimes the weaker squad wins, which is what happened that day. The ‘Canes
are probably good, but with such a small sample size (2-0, with the other win
over FAU) we really don’t know. I do know they were lucky to beat Florida, so
I’ll split the difference for logic’s sake. Al Golden’s boys are here at 17,
while Florida rounds out the top 20.
18) Ole Miss
Hey, a bye before playing Alabama? I thought the SEC was
going to outlaw these shenanigans. No matter, ‘Bama is more than good enough to
beat the Rebels. With that said, Ole Miss doesn’t look too bad. The program has
built on last season’s success and added an infusion of young talent that has
already paid dividends. Although I don’t see them knocking off the Tide, there
are really only two other games on the schedule that look to give the Rebels
trouble: Texas A&M and LSU, both of which are at home. If they win one of
those – easily possible – a 10-win regular season could be in store. However, a
word of caution: after surviving a very losable opener against Vandy and
beating up on downtrodden (in every sense of the word) Texas, Ole Miss just
might be overrated. But the Alabama game will provide some answers.
19) UCF
Probably my biggest surprise or “reach” team, UCF has been
quite good thus far. Unlike some teams that will remain nameless, the Knights actually
took care of business against Akron, then shut out FIU before going on the road
to beat Penn State. The game on September 28th with South Carolina
will be very interesting, but win or lose Central is looking like the biggest
threat to Louisville in the American. Remember the names Blake Bortles and
Storm Johnson. The QB and RB will be well-known by season’s end. The defense
ain’t bad, either. In their one season of AQ status, could the Knights actually
make the BCS? It could be one Louisville upset from happening. Don’t say I
didn’t warn you.
20) Florida
As I said, I had to include Florida to justify Miami (FL)’s
ranking, so here the Gators go. I hate to come off like a cynic, but after
2012’s improbable 11-win campaign it does feel like UF is due some misfortune.
Was the Miami game just the start? In two contests, it’s become very apparent
Jeff Driskel has made zero strides toward being an actual QB and without the
defense to bail him – and the rest of the inept offense – out it’s hard to take
Florida very seriously. All the talent and athleticism in the world means
nothing if players aren’t put in a position to succeed, a job at which the
Gators coaches have clearly failed. Last year proved you can win with a decent
ground game and elite D, but right now this team has neither. With LSU,
Georgia, South Carolina and rival FSU on the docket, that could spell trouble.
21) Nebraska
Not unlike Florida, I had to keep Nebraska in my rankings to
justify UCLA’s lofty position. However, I’m more certain the Cornhuskers are a
good team than I am with Florida, largely because this team has a relatively
competent QB. Nebraska ends up lower on my rankings because of that ugly
defense, but the ‘Huskers also have a higher floor than the Gators because of
their schedule. There’s no one nearly as tough as the opponents I mentioned
earlier. Of course, there’s some bad feelings around this program because of
the Bo “F#%! our fans” Pelini incident and general frustration with the
defense, but Nebraska is good enough that anything less than an eight-win
season would be a surprise. I see this team righting the ship enough to compete
for the Big Ten title.
22) Texas Tech
I’m tentatively sticking the Red Raiders in the top 25,
though a midweek win over a hobbled TCU team might not be worth getting too
excited about. The prospect of Tech being great again with Klingsbury coming
home to lead the squad makes for a tantalizing story, I’ll admit. It is
possible this team just caught TCU at the right time. With the upcoming
schedule, however, TTU is likely looking at a 6-0 start. Baker Mayfield has
been marvelous at QB for the Red Raiders, even if he did throw a trio of picks
against the Horned Frogs. In the Air Raid system running the ball is never a
priority, and Mayfield (so far) has proved to be a quick study, so I don’t see
him continuing to make those kinds of mistakes. We’ll see if it pays off when
Tech faces the Big 12’s heavyweights.
23) Notre Dame
Notre Dame might not even be a top-25 squad, if last week’s
narrow victory over a truly bad Purdue team is any indication. We don’t have
much to go on with this team; two wins over weak competition and a loss to
Michigan aren't very useful. The Fighting Irish still have a lot left over from
2012’s unlikely championship game squad, but considering the breaks they got
last season ND will need more than just veteran leadership to reach the BCS
again. The program has recruited well enough that a huge drop-off is unlikely;
still, the Irish face a Florida-like situation without their excellent defense
from a year ago to put the offense in great position all the time. QB Tommy
Rees is decent, but he’s not enough to make up for a rushing attack that ranks
in the bottom third of the country. Notre Dame is on notice.
24) Northwestern
In theory Northwestern is a really good team. The Wildcats
are 3-0, coming off a 10-win season, and feature a nice group of skill position
players. Sounds great, right? Well, I’m officially on record as a major
Northwestern skeptic. Those 10 wins last year didn’t come over anyone of note
and the three wins in 2013 have been over teams that have exactly zero wins
over other FBS schools. After the team reaches 4-0 versus Maine there will be a
lot of commotion regarding a showdown with a presumably undefeated Ohio State
team in the first week of October. Don’t believe the hype – whatever niggling
issues the Buckeyes might have, they’re not nearly enough to make the
Northwestern game competitive. I know I have the Wildcats ranked, but that’s
honestly because there aren’t any other BCS teams worthy of it right now.
25) Fresno State
Pending the result of Friday’s tilt with Boise State the
Broncos might end up in this spot instead. To this point I like what Fresno has
done. The win over Rutgers, though tight, was a good first step for a mid-major
looking to return to prominence. Pay no attention to the final score of the
Cal-Poly game – the Bulldogs led that one 41-3 before letting up. This could be
the best non-AQ school in the country, given what the offense has accomplished
so far. How many teams have four receivers with double-digit catches this early
in the season? Yes, the defense is mediocre, but there’s plenty of time for
improvement. Let’s be honest: Fresno can probably just outscore everyone on
their schedule anyway. However, just so my bases are covered, all of this praise
comes with the caveat that I get to revoke it if Boise wins.
You’ll notice quite a lot of power schools on the list;
that’s intentional, as few (if any) mid-majors have shown much to this point.
Teams present in the actual polls but absent from my rankings include Baylor
(seriously, play somebody), Wisconsin and Arizona State (did anyone watch that
game?) and Michigan State, which is so baffling I don’t even have a quip for
it.
Pac-12 Report
UCLA won the weekend, both for themselves and the
conference. I’ve been afraid to take the Bruins seriously ever since the
no-show in San Diego last winter, but it seems we can actually start treating
this team like a real threat to Oregon and Stanford (fingers crossed). The
early win set the tone for the entire league, which went an impressive 8-1,
with the only loss a somewhat competitive showing by Cal to top-five Ohio
State. I’m not counting Oregon State’s win over Utah in that figure because
both teams are in the Pac-12, but as far as conference openers go you could do
a lot worse than a 99-point overtime affair.
Stanford was less than great in the Army win, though against
the Black Knights it wasn’t really necessary. Thank goodness ‘Furd finally plays
someone with a pulse this week, because I’ve grown tired of trying to figure
this team out. Are the Cardinal just biding their time against weak
competition, or are they vastly overrated? ASU is the perfect opponent to find
out. The Sun Devils unsurprisingly got the overreaction benefit this week from
pollsters who were scrambling to find a new team to rank after Wisconsin
“lost.” No matter – to keep it, ASU will have to beat the Stanford on The Farm
this week, which doesn’t seem very likely even with the Cardinal’s average
performance through two games.
Oregon State, UCLA, WSU and Washington all face pretty meager
challenges this week, from SDSU (OSU) to New Mexico State (UCLA) to Idaho
(Wazzu) to Idaho State (UW). That’s a solid four guaranteed wins (hey, if it
works for the SEC, it can work for you, too!). Colorado, Oregon, Arizona and
Cal are joining the strangely large group of teams taking a Week Four bye, so
there’s not much to go on other than the ASU – Stanford matchup and Utah versus
BYU in the Holy War, possibly the nation’s nastiest rivalry. Remember the wacky
ending last year? I think the Cougars do.
The final game (though not chronologically) is Utah State at
USC, a game I’ve had my eye on for quite a while. Before the season, I pegged
this as a trap game the Trojans were likely to lose; of course, I hadn’t
counted on SC already being upset by Wazzu. With that wake-up call, will USC be
more ready? USU is no pushover and Chuckie Keeton is a much better QB than
anyone on the Trojans’ sideline. Still, USC looked rejuvenated last week
against Boston College and the shame of losing the way they did to WSU will
motivate them here, right? Right? Hmmm. I’ll stop short of calling for the
upset, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Keeton went out and shredded
the USC defense en route to an Aggies victory.
Random Thoughts and Observations
It‘s time for the return of the Stanzis! I had forgotten to
hand these out in the first two weeks, then realized that Texas A&M’s
Johnny Manziel and Utah’s Travis Wilson both very nearly took home the year’s
first Stanzis on Saturday. If you don’t recall, the Stanzi is named for ex-Iowa
QB Ricky Stanzi, who routinely got credit for saving his team from holes he himself
put them in with poor play. The award was born out of my bewildered joy at
watching Stanzi miraculously bring the Hawkeyes back from certain defeat. Since
then, I’ve tried to recognize such performances with Stanzis.
This year, I’ve formalized the rules and will be awarding
individual Stanzis weekly, along with a year-end Ultimate Stanzi, which will be
memorialized by a statue of the man’s 2009 game versus Indiana, when he threw five
interceptions yet somehow won (yes, it was just as ridiculous then as it is
now). The rules are as follows:
2013 Stanzi Awards
1) QB’s are the only players eligible
Quarterbacks are the only players that touch the ball every
play. They have a much greater impact on the game than any other position and
can make plays – good and bad – easier than anyone else.
2) The QB must have multiple turnovers
At least two turnovers are required. They usually need to
fall into my “critical mistakes” category: interceptions taken back for TD’s,
interceptions in the end zone, fumbles at the worst possible time. These need
to be plays that significantly damage the team’s chance to win. The more
boneheaded the play, the better.
3) The game must be very close, preferably involving a late
comeback
It doesn’t matter if the QB plays badly if his team still
stomps the enemy into the ground. No Stanzi effort is complete without a
dramatic do-or-die drive to tie or take the lead right after consecutive pick-sixes.
Every contest was a thrill ride with Stanzi; nothing more than a one- or two-score
game is acceptable
4) The QB’s team must win the game
The truth is that while I loved to hate Stanzi, he won an
inordinate amount of the time. While both Manziel and Wilson threw multiple
costly interceptions – including pick-sixes, the backbone of any respectable
Stanzi-ing – both their teams lost. Sorry, fellas. You gotta win to pick up a
Stanzi!
Any number of players can win Stanzis in any given week,
depending on the level of QB atrociousness. The Ultimate Stanzi will be awarded
to the player with the most total Stanzis over the course of the year. In the
event of a tie, the player with the most turnovers will prevail. If there’s
still a tie, I’ll have to go to the still-nebulously defined “critical
turnovers” category to determine how much said QB’s hurt their respective
teams.
Keep in mind this is not Grantland’s Bad QB League. The
Stanzis don’t celebrate bad QB’s, they recognize poor play by (generally) good
players. After all, the QB’s must win to be eligible. Rather than making fun of
actually bad players, the Stanzis reveal the absurdity behind the idea that a
QB should get credit because his team won. In any case, I came up with the
Stanzis first.
After reviewing all the FBS scores from Weeks One-Three, I’ve
determined three Stanzis should have been handed out. Here are your leaders in
the clubhouse so far this season
Connor Wood, Colorado
Opponent: Central Arkansas
Performance: Two INT, two FUM, led two fourth-quarter TD
drives in 38-24 win
Connor Halliday, WSU
Opponent: USC
Performance: Two INT (one in USC end zone), one FUM, led
game-winning drive in 10-7 win
Devin Gardner, Michigan
Opponent: Akron
Performance: Three INT (including pick-six), one FUM, led
game-winning drive in 28-24 win
In less silly news... this old instructional video for football is one of
the most entertaining things I’ve come across in a while. It’s amazing to see
how much the game has changed in the past 60-odd years, but what I found even
more interesting was the use of tactics rarely seen post-NFL merger (1970) that
are now commonplace again. Look at the shovel pass around the eight-minute
mark. That’s a shovel to a back crossing the QB’s face behind the line of
scrimmage (rather than staying in place), a common sight in the NFL today and a
staple of college spread offenses. Minus the pre-snap motion, it’s the exact play
WVU’s Tavon Austin scorched Clemson with in the Orange Bowl two years ago! This
video shows that despite the obvious difference in player size/athleticism and
a host of new formations, many of the same concepts from the early days of
football are still applicable today.
The distressing lack of great games this week has led ESPN’s
College Gameday to set up shop in Fargo, North Dakota for Delaware State’s
visit to the FCS’s top team, North Dakota State. The Bison, as you may recall,
upset reigning Big 12 champ Kansas State in Week One. Good for Gameday. With so
many FBS contenders taking a week off or scheduling patsies, lower-division
schools deserve the spotlight. I think I speak for many fans when I say the
opportunity to see the showing from a great FCS team’s fan base far outstrips
my desire to watch Florida or Notre Dame or yes, even Oregon host the thing
AGAIN.
About those FBS games… seriously, what happened? We were
spoiled with what seemed like one of the best opening months ever and now Week
Four brings us nothing. The early slate Saturday is practically unwatchable,
even by my standards. The best matchup is North Carolina’s visit to Georgia
Tech, which, though it could play an important role in the Coastal Division
race, isn’t reeling in the viewers. Let’s be honest here. The second wave is
stronger and features some rivalry games (Tennessee – Florida, MSU – Notre Dame,
West Virginia – Maryland), but that’s about it. Arizona State and Stanford face
off in the week’s sole contest between ranked teams, while Auburn and LSU follow
with another rivalry game, but unless you want to watch a whole lot of FCS
teams get pummeled you’ll probably end the day feeling unfulfilled. The best
game of the entire week might be Utah – BYU, which will probably be delightful
given the history of the series and, of course, last year.
By the way, look how well the refs handled a very difficult
situation in that 2012 Holy War. With fans on the field and a furious home crowd
ready to explode, the officiating crew took its time, reviewed the tape and
made the correct call in every instance. You know, exactly the opposite of what
the refs at the ASU – Wisconsin game did.
I’ve watched the replay of that fateful last snap (sorry for the ad) about 100
times and I’m 90 percent sure Joel Stave’s knee did hit the ground. However,
the fact that he did the motion so quickly and had one of his linemen back into
him right as he went down made it very confusing. Stave compounded the issue by
spotting the ball himself instead of just tossing it to the back judge right
behind him. It’s not unreasonable at all that ASU mistakenly thought it was a
fumble. Of course, the refs should have acted much faster and reviewed what
happened, but some fault also lies with Wisconsin coach Gary Andersen for
calling a kneel with very little time left and no timeouts. To his credit,
Andersen has taken the high road in all of this, refusing to complain or berate
the officials over something that will not be changed (It’s a simple fact that
the NCAA really doesn’t like altering scores post-game.) Wisconsin fans –
normally such a pleasant bunch – could learn thing or two from him. Did the
officials mess up? It sure seems like it. Now you know what it’s like to play
in the Pac-12 every week. Ugh.
Next week: Heisman talk, an update on the race for the 2013 Stanzi,
the real start of conference play and – just maybe – some good games.
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