Saturday, January 16, 2016


College Football Week 21 – See you in August!

They say that all good things must end


And so we’ve come the end of another college football season. As Willie Nelson once wrote and sang, “Turn out the lights, the party’s over. They say that all good things must end.”

I know…..it may not end in Alabama. The lights are burning and fans are still partying. Crimson Tide fans that is. Auburn fans are still crying, “We suck at everything, football and basketball.”

Call it a night
The party’s over

 
Preseason (August 10-30)

But before we call it a night, let’s take a look back at the 2015 season – a very interesting season it was.  In the middle weeks of August, I was lamenting that the offseason ain’t what it used to be.

Normally, the months between January and August are filled with quips, stunts and unexpected events that keep our interest peaked for the upcoming college football season.  Think Johnny Manziel, Jameis Winston, Steve Spurrier, Phillip Fulmer, Mike Price, Bobby Petrino and Manti Te’o.
 
The 2015 offseason was boring. Even the SEC Media Days were dull. The most exciting thing that happened was Steve Spurrier opening a Twitter account.
 
Back in August, Ohio State was the unanimous No. 1 team in all the preseason polls. I wrote that the odds are against Ohio State – the Buckeyes are jinxed. Only twice in the past 20 years has the preseason No. 1 team been No. 1 at the end of the season. Make it twice in the past 21 years now.
 
In August, TCU and Baylor had their highest ever preseason rankings. Michigan State had its highest preseason ranking since 1967. And for the first time since 1957, Nebraska, Florida or Texas were not in the preseason Top 25.
 
A goodly number of coaches were struggling to find a starting quarterback. Fierce battles for the top spot were going on at Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, South Carolina and UCLA among others.
 
Illinois coach Tim Beckman was fired before the Banned Indians played their first game. USC coach Steve Sarkisian had a little too much of the bubbly or the brew or whatever at a Trojan boosters kickoff party. Sarkisian was escorted out of the party by USC athletic director Pat Haden. 
 
Clemson and Florida State were the preseason favorites to take the ACC crown. Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech and North Carolina were labeled challengers. In the Big 12, it was all TCU. Baylor was a challenger and Oklahoma a dark horse.
 
Ohio State was the favorite to take the Big Ten. Michigan State and Wisconsin were the challengers, while Iowa was the dark horse. In the Pac-12, Oregon and USC were the favorites to win the conference. Stanford, Arizona State and UCLA were considered challengers.
 
And finally, Alabama was the pick to win the SEC. Georgia, Auburn and LSU were the challengers and Tennessee and Florida were dark horses. Meanwhile, Bootsie and Swamp Mama were busy buying new Gator glitter, garb and paraphernalia for the fall. Rockledge Gator and I called them the “Glitterazzi” and the “Glam Gators.”
 
 
Week 1 (August 31 to September 7)
 
Buddy Holly once sang, “Do you remember baby, last September? How you held me tight, each and every night? Well oops-a-daisy, how you drove me crazy.”
 
And after the first week’s games of the season, I wrote “You don’t know what you got until you lose it” Stanford, Nebraska, Arizona State, Penn State, Washington State and UCF all suffered unexpected losses on opening weekend.
 
Stanford was stunned by Northwestern 16-6. Nebraska was shocked by BYU, 33-28, on a Hail-Mary pass thrown by freshman backup Cougar quarterback Tanner Mangum. Arizona State, a slight favorite, was blown away by Texas A&M, 38-17. Temple upset Penn State, 27-10, sacking Christian Hackenberg 10 times. It was Penn State’s first loss to Temple in 74 years. Washington State fell to Portland State, 24-17, and UCF was upset by Florida International, 15-14.
 
In some other games, North Carolina suffered what was to be its only loss of the regular season, losing to South Carolina, 17-13. Utah spoiled Jim Harbaugh’s debut. The Utes beat Michigan, 24-17. Notre Dame squashed Texas, 38-3. Fordham beat Army 37-35, and Alabama 35 beat Wisconsin 17.
 
Bootsie and Rockledge Gator attended the Louisville-Auburn game in Atlanta. Auburn won, 31-24. Charlotte won its first game as an FBS team. The 49ers beat Georgia State, 23-20. UCLA freshman quarterback Josh Rosen made a name for himself. Rosen passed for 351 yards, as the Bruins beat Virginia, 34-16. And Baylor racked up 723 total yards, beating SMU, 56-21.
 
Then there was the Kansas State band. Playing before a home crowd at halftime, The K-State band entertained its fans with a routine that had the University of Kansas Jayhawk performing fellatio. Half of the band formed the Kansas Jayhawk logo on the field. The other half formed what looked like an erect penis, complete with testicles, entering the mouth of the Jayhawk. Videos of the performance went viral on the Internet. The band claimed the formation entering the Jayhawk’s mouth was the Starship Enterprise. Where was William Shatner when you needed him?
 
Even the Kansas State band didn’t know what it had until it lost it.
 
 
Week 2 (September 8-13)
 
Week 2 had a little bit of everything and I wrote, “Anything you want you got it.”
 
Backup Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer, threw a 39-yard TD pass with 12 seconds left to give the Irish a 34-27 win over Virginia. Tanner Mangum was back at it. The BYU quarterback threw at 35-yard TD pass with 45 seconds left to give the Cougars a come-from-behind 35-34 win over Boise State.
 
After trailing Tennessee for most of the game, Oklahoma rallied late and beat the Vols 31-24 in 2 overtimes. Speaking of rallying late, Auburn did the same thing, beating Jacksonville State 23-20 in overtime. Toledo upset Arkansas 16-12, and Bowling Green surprised Maryland, 48-27. Houston beat Louisville 34-31. LSU escaped Mississippi State, 21-19 and Michigan State beat Oregon, 31-28.
 
Jim Harbaugh got his first win at Michigan. The Wolverines beat Oregon State, 35-7. Tim Tebow returned to television on the SEC Network’s “SEC Nation Show,” and Bootsie attended her high school class reunion in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
 
 
Week 3 (September 14-20)
 
Week 3 found me watching football from noon till midnight and beyond as it was the first wild and crazy weekend of the season. There were upsets, near upsets and some wild and crazy scores. It was also the week that Marco Rubio said that the only reason for Florida State is to take the kids who can’t get into Florida.
 
Ole Miss took advantage of five Alabama turnovers and the Rebel Black Bears upset the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, 43-37. It would turn out to be Alabama’s only loss of the season. LSU pounded Auburn, 45-21, as Will Muschamp’s defense looked anything but good. 
 
Georgia blasted South Carolina, 52-20, and Steve Spurrier no longer had any doubts about the kind of season the Gamecocks were going to have. Texas Tech beat Arkansas in Fayetteville, 35-24, as Razorback fans were feeling frustrated.
 
Ohio State had an unexpected close call. The Buckeyes edged Northern Illinois, 20-13. Nebraska rallied to force an overtime, but in the end, the Huskers came up short against Miami (Florida). The Canes won 36-33 (OT). Iowa edged Pitt, 27-24.
 
Texas fired its athletic director Steve Patterson. The Longhorns also lost to California, 45-44. Northwestern beat Duke, 19-10, and Clemson edged Louisville, 20-17. In Pasadena, BYU never trailed in its game against UCLA until near the end. The Bruins beat the Cougars, 24-23. And Stanford put down USC, 41-31.
 
 
Week 4 (September 21-27)
 
I associated Week 4’s games to “Burning Love” – a hunk, a hunk of burning love.
 
Lord almighty: Utah 62, Oregon 20
I feel my temperature rising: TCU 55, Texas Tech 52
It’s burning through my soul: Michigan 31, BYU 0
You’re gonna set me on fire: Oklahoma State 30, Texas 27
My brain is flaming: UCLA 56, Arizona 20
I don’t know which way to go: Texas A&M 28, Arkansas 21 (OT)
Your games lift me higher: Florida 28, Tennessee 27
Ooh, ooh, ooh: East Carolina 35, Virginia Tech 28
And nothing can cool me: Baylor 70, Rice 17
But I feel fine: West Virginia 45, Maryland 6
 
After the loss to Florida, Tennessee fans about ready to boot Butch Jones.  
 
 
Week 5 (September 28 – October 4)
 
After five weeks of football, I said it was time for a gut check. Some teams were playing better than expected, some were playing worse than expected and some were living up to expectations.
 
LSU’s Leonard Fournette and TCU’s Trevone Boykin were the leaders in the race for the Heisman Trophy. By season’s end neither finished in the Top 3.
 
Bootsie, Rockledge Gator, Swamp Mama and I were in Gainesville, lodging at the Laurel Oak Inn, for the Ole Miss-Florida weekend. The Gators surprised Ole Miss, 38-10. Florida was 5-0.
  
Against Clemson, Notre Dame scored in the closing seconds, but failed on a two-point conversion attempt. The Irish lost to the Tigers, 24-22. Oklahoma handed West Virginia its first loss. The Sooners beat the Mountaineers, 44-24. Kansas State led Oklahoma State late in the game, but the Cowboys rallied and beat the Wildcats, 36-34.
 
Alabama deflated Georgia, 38-10. Texas A&M piled up 516 total yards, beating Mississippi State, 30-17. Iowa held Wisconsin to two field goals, as the Hawkeyes beat the Badgers, 10-6. Baylor outscored Texas Tech, 63-35. Stanford beat Arizona, 55-17, and Cincinnati surprised Miami (Florida), 34-23.  
 
 
Week 6 (October 5-11)
 
I called it “Four games and a wedding.” Swamp Mama and I were in Las Vegas for a wedding and there were four games I wanted to follow – Oklahoma-Texas, Georgia-Tennessee, Oklahoma State-West Virginia and Florida-Missouri.
 
I found a sports bar – Blondies – with all the drafts you can drink for $20 as the location to watch the OU-Texas game. The Longhorns upset the Sooners, 24-17. Back in our hotel room, I watched the Georgia-Tennessee game. The Vols trailed Georgia 24-3, but rallied to win, 38-31.
 
I had to follow the Oklahoma State-West Virginia and Florida-Missouri games on my cell phone at the wedding reception. The intensity of the WVU game made me intense for several dirty martinis. The Cowboys beat the Mountaineers 33-26 in overtime. Florida took care of Missouri, 21-3.
 
In other games, it was a great day for the state of Washington. Washington State stunned Oregon, 45-38, and Washington knocked off USC, 17-12. Utah stopped California’s drive late in the game, and the Utes held on to beat Cal, 30-24.
 
Michigan skunked Northwestern, 38-0. Notre Dame outscored Navy, 41-24. Miami (Florida) grabbed a lead late in the game, but Florida State scored late and beat the Canes, 29-24. TCU stormed back from an 18-point halftime deficit to beat Kansas State, 52-45. Wisconsin kicked a 46-yard field goal with 4 seconds remaining to beat Nebraska, 23-21.
 
Before the weekend was over, USC forced Steve Sarkisian to take a leave of absence and Maryland fired Randy Edsall. Sarkisian was ultimately terminated.
 
 
Week 7 (October 12-18)
 
It was the halfway point in the season. I said, “The second half, same as the first, a little bit better and a little bit worse.”
 
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier announced his resignation. Spurrier went out of his way to make it clear he wasn’t retiring, he was resigning. The Gamecocks were 2-4. Florida quarterback Will Grier was suspended from the team after testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Grier received at 12 month suspension.
 
With 9 seconds on the clock, Michigan led Michigan State 23-21. The Wolverines were facing a 4th down. The Michigan punter muffed the snap from center. A Michigan State player grabbed the ball and ran it into the end zone – game over. The Spartans beat the Wolverines, 27-23.
 
Under quarterback Treon Harris, Florida lost its first game of the season to LSU, 35-28. Memphis upset Ole Miss, 37-24. Stanford downed UCLA, 56-35, and Notre Dame put away USC, 41-31.    
 
 
Week 8 (October 19-25)
 
I was hung up on slobberknocker and bumfuzzle.
 
In a wild, four-overtime game in Fayetteville, Arkansas beat Auburn, 54-46. In a tight game in Tuscaloosa, Alabama got by Tennessee, 19-14. It took Duke and Virginia Tech four quarters and four overtimes before the Blue Devils beat the Hokies, 45-42.
 
Clemson plastered Miami (Florida), 58-0. In the closing seconds in Atlanta with the score tied 16-16, Georgia Tech blocked a Florida State field goal. A Yellow Jacket player picked up the ball and returned it for a touchdown as time expired. Georgia Tech beat FSU, 22-16.
 
USC handed Utah its first loss. The Trojans beat the Utes, 42-17. Nebraska lost for the fifth time and for the fifth time it was a close loss. Northwestern beat the Huskers 30-28. Nebraska’s five losses were by a total of 13 points.
 
UCF coach George O’Leary pulled a Steve Spurrier and announced his resignation. And Miami fired Al Golden.
 
Florida coach Jim McElwain put out an SOS call to the Gator student body, looking for a walk-on place kicker.
 
 
Week 9 (October 26-November 1)    
 
I said, “Where was the Duke band?”
 
The ending of the Miami (Florida)-Duke game was reminiscent of the California-Stanford game of 1982. Down 27-24, Miami returned a kickoff, as time expired, for a touchdown and beat Duke 30-27. 
 
But there was a difference. When Cal returned the kickoff against Stanford, as time expired, to win 25-20, the Bears committed no penalties on the play. When Miami returned the kickoff against Duke, the Canes committed a half-dozen or so penalties. Only one was flagged, but on review, it was overturned.
 
If that wasn’t enough, later that night, Oregon beat Arizona State, 61-55 in three overtimes. Oregon put the game into overtime on a desperation touchdown pass as time expired. In another stunner, Purdue beat Nebraska, 55-45. Late in the third quarter, Purdue led Nebraska, 42-16.
 
Then, Oklahoma State beat Texas Tech, 70-53. This after the Cowboys trailed the Red Raiders, 31-14, in the second quarter. Michigan escaped Minnesota, 29-26, after the Gophers failed score with a first down on the Wolverines’ one with 19 seconds left.
 
Notre Dame eked out a win over Temple, 24-20. In the day’s nightcap, Stanford was lucky to beat Washington State, 30-28. The Cougars missed a 43-yard field goal as time expired.    
 
In one other game, Florida beat Georgia, 27-3.
 
Minnesota coach Jerry Kill and Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer announced their retirements. Kill’s was for health reasons. Hawaii fired coach Norm Chow. Meanwhile, Butch Davis came out and begged for the Miami job. And Florida coach Jim McElwain found his walk-on kicker from the student body.
 
 
Week 10 (November 2-8)
 
At the beginning of the week, the first playoff poll was released. Clemson was No. 1. The Tigers were followed by LSU, Ohio State, Alabama, Notre Dame and Baylor. 
 
What a week! LSU, Michigan State, TCU and Memphis all lost for the first time.
 
Alabama beat LSU, 30-16, destroying Leonard Fournette’s chances for a Heisman Trophy. Nebraska beat previously unbeaten Michigan State, 39-38. Arkansas beat Ole Miss, 53-52 (OT), on one of the wildest and craziest plays of all time.
 
Auburn surprised Texas A&M, 26-10. Navy handed Memphis its first loss of the season. The Middies beat the Tigers, 45-20. Undefeated Oklahoma State downed previously undefeated TCU, 49-29. Trevone Boykin threw four interceptions.
 
Bootsie, Rockledge Gator, Swamp Mama and I were in Gainesville, staying at the Laurel Oak Inn, for the Vanderbilt-Florida weekend. The Gators won a squeakier against the Commodores, 9-7, on a 43-yard field goal near the end of the game.
 
Back at the Laurel Oak Inn, we watched the Florida State-Clemson game on TV. Clemson won, 23-13. In other games, Washington State downed Arizona State, 38-24.
 
Reports out of Athens had the Georgia coaching staff in disharmony, feuding with one another. At Missouri, the African-American football players threatened to strike if the school’s president didn’t step down. Ultimately, the whole team and the coach came out in support of the players’ request.
 
The Heisman race was up for grabs, but Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey was gaining ground.
 
 
Week 11 (November 9-15)
 
I said, “East End toys and West End noise.” The top teams in the East just played with their opponents, while in the West it was a different story – a lot of noise. Five top teams fell and another had a close call.
 
In the East, Clemson beat Syracuse, 37-27. Alabama downed Mississippi State, 31-6. Ohio State beat Illinois, 28-3, and Notre Dame downed Wake Forest, 28-7. Florida dumped South Carolina, 24-14. Michigan State beat Maryland, 24-7. Florida State plastered NC State, 34-17, and Navy sailed away from SMU, 55-14. So much for the toys.
 
In the West, Baylor lost for the first time. Oklahoma beat the Bears, 44-34. Oregon stunned Stanford 38-36. After trailing Iowa State for most of the game, Oklahoma State rallied and beat Iowa State, 35-31. Arizona upset Utah, 37-30, in two overtimes, and UCLA lost to Washington State, 31-27.
 
In other games, Houston beat Memphis, 35-34, while Arkansas pounded LSU, 31-14.
 
Clemson’s Deshaun Watson, Alabama’s Derrick Henry, Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott and Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey were in a race for the Heisman Trophy. 
 
 
Week 12 (November 16-22)
 
I said, “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.”
 
Just ask South Carolina. The Gamecocks lost to The Citadel, 23-22. Thanks to the officials, Florida beat Florida Atlantic 20-14 in overtime. North Carolina sewed up the ACC Coastal Division, beating Virginia Tech 30-27 (OT).
 
In the big game of the weekend, Michigan State upset Ohio State, 17-14, on a 41-yard field goal as time expired. Stanford won the Pac-12 North Division, beating California 35-22. Baylor handed Oklahoma State it first loss. The Bears beat the Cowboys, 45-35. Houston lost for the first time. The Cougars were upset by Connecticut, 20-17.
 
In other games, Oklahoma got by TCU, 30-29, as did Northwestern against Wisconsin, 13-7. Ole Miss dumped LSU, 38-17. Oregon beat USC, 48-38, and Mississippi State won a thriller against Arkansas, 51-50.
 
Iowa State fired head coach Paul Rhoads. Some LSU fans were calling for Les Miles to be fired. Reports had LSU going after Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher. 
 
 
Week 13 (November 23-29)
 
Thanksgiving Week – Oklahoma and Alabama all but sewed up their spots in the playoffs. Clemson barely held on to its playoff hopes, while Notre Dames playoff hopes went down the drain. And Les Miles’ job was hanging in the balance.
 
Syracuse fired Scott Shafer. UCF finished its season at 0-12. Iowa finished its season at 12-0. Texas Tech downed Texas in a thriller, 48-45. TCU upset Baylor, 28-21, in two overtimes. Florida State downed Florida, 27-2, and Clemson barely got by South Carolina, 37-32.
 
After the media called Ohio State dysfunctional, following the team’s loss to Michigan State, the Buckeyes up and polished off Michigan, 42-13. Michigan State blasted Penn state, 55-16, to take the Big Ten East Division title. Will Muschamp had a meltdown during Auburn’s 29-13 loss to Alabama. LSU beat Texas A&M, 19-7, saving Les Miles’ job.
 
Stanford kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired to beat Notre Dame, 38-36. Oklahoma secured its spot in the playoffs, beating Oklahoma State, 58-23.
 
Georgia fired Mark Richt. Rutgers fired Kyle Flood and Virginia fired Mike London.
 
 
Week 14 (November 30 – December 6)
 
Championship Week and there were no surprises – Alabama, Clemson, Michigan State and Stanford won their respective conference titles. Granted, Clemson got a bit of help from the referees.
 
Clemson, Alabama, Michigan State and Oklahoma were the playoff teams, finishing in the Top 4 of the poll.
 
East Carolina fired coach Ruffin McNeal to the surprise of many. And also to the surprise of many, South Carolina hired Will Muschamp to replace Steve Spurrier.
 
 
Week 15 (December 7-13)
 
Navy beat Army, 21-17. It was Navy’s 14th-straight win over Army.
 
Alabama running back Derrick Henry won the Heisman Trophy, and Texas A&M quarterback Kyle Allen announced he was transferring.
 
I made my bowl game predictions.
 
 
Week 16 (December 14-20)
 
Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo turned down the offer to coach BYU. 
 
Texas A&M quarterback Kyler Murray announced he was transferring, as did suspended Florida quarterback Will Grier and Oklahoma quarterback Trevor Knight.
 
The first five bowl games were played, as Blake Shelton showed us his Gildan underwear.
 
 
Week 17 (December 21-27)
 
Christmas Week and 13 bowl games were played.
 
Kyler Murray announced he is transferring to Oklahoma. 
 
 
Week 18 (December 28 – January 3)

The final 22 bowls were played, including the big ones.
 
TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin was suspended from playing in the Horned Frogs bowl game. Boykin was arrested and charged with a felony for allegedly hitting a bar employee and a police officer.




Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey set Rose Bowl records in the Cardinal’s win over Iowa. Most of the bowls, including the playoff games were blowouts. In the last of the 40 bowl games, West Virginia beat Arizona State in a thriller, 43-42.
 
Week 19 (January 4-11)
 
Alabama beat Clemson in the national championship game.
 
 
Notre Dame finished the 2015 season 10-3. The three losses were to the No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 teams in the country – Clemson, Stanford and Ohio State. Not bad if you have to have three losses.
 
Of the 14 new coaches in 2015, Houston’s Tom Herman faired the best with a 13-1 record and a Peach Bowl win over Florida State. The other new coaches who finished with respectable records were Jim Harbaugh at Michigan (10-3), Paul Chryst at Wisconsin (10-3), Jim McElwain at Florida (10-4), and Pat Narduzzi at Pitt (8-5). All had good debuts. Harbaugh and Chryst won their bowl games.
 
Four of the new coaches were so-so in 2015. They were Mike Bobo at Colorado State (7-6), Mike Riley at Nebraska (6-7), Philip Montgomery at Tulsa (6-7), and Lance Leipold at Buffalo (5-7). All were average. Riley finished with a good bowl win over UCLA.
 
Five of the new coaches had shaky starts. They were Neal Brown at Troy (4-8), Tony Sanchez at UNLV (3-9), Gary Andersen at Oregon State (2-10), Chad Morris at SMU (2-10) and David Beaty at Kansas (0-12). All had rough debuts, especially Beaty.
 
The last two open coaching slots were filled this week when Ball State and UT San Antonio named their new coaches. Ball State hired Mike Neu. Neu was the quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints. LSU running backs coach Frank Wilson was hired at UTSA. Wilson replaces Larry Coker who stepped down.
 
And in a nutshell that was the season that was.
 
As Buddy Holly once sang, “There you go and baby here I am. Well you left me here so I could sit and cry. Well golly gee what have you done to me. Well I guess it doesn’t matter anymore.”
 
 
So, 26 FBS teams will have new coaches in 2016. Some of the hires were interesting and intriguing, in particular Will Muschamp at South Carolina, Scott Frost at UCF, Mark Richt at Miami (Florida), Justin Fuente at Virginia Tech, Dino Babers at Syracuse, Kirby Smart at Georgia and Bronco Mendenhall at Virginia.  
 
Who will be the best teams in 2016? According to the way too early polls and predictions, here are the teams forecast to be the strongest next season:
 
ACC – Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina, Louisville, Miami
Big 12 – Baylor, Oklahoma, TCU, Oklahoma State
Big Ten – Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State, Iowa,
Pac-12 – Stanford, USC, Oregon, Washington State, UCLA, Washington,
SEC – Alabama, LSU, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Georgia, Arkansas
AAC – Houston
MWC – Boise State
Ind. – Notre Dame
 
Stay tuned!
 
They say that
All good things must end
Call it a night
The party’s over
But seven months starts
The same old thing again
 
Well, Bootsie, Rockledge Gator, Swamp Mama and I will be in Gainesville on January 30, attending the West Virginia-Florida basketball game. One of us will be cheering for WVU. Guess who? Let’s Go Mountaineers!
 
And finally, next football season, I hope we never ever see Larry the Dr. Pepper Guy, Flo the Progressive Girl, The All State Mayhem Guy, Blake Shelton’s XXXL underwear, Miranda Lambert singing, and Cigar….I mean….Ciara singing the national anthem.
 
Bye…..Outta here!
 
Sweetheart the party’s over
Turn out the lights
 
Touchdown Tom
January 16, 2016
 
P.S. “The Party’s Over” was written by country music singer and songwriter Willie Nelson in the mid-1950s. The song was originally recorded by singer Claude Gray and released as a single in 1959. It went nowhere. Nelson recorded the song himself in 1966. It was released as a single in February 1967 and reached No. 24 on Billboard’s Hot Country Singles chart. The song was later popularized by former SMU and Dallas Cowboys quarterback and “Monday Night Football” host Don Meredith, who sang a line from the song on the broadcasts.  
 
 
Quotes of the Week
 
“I’m smiling,” Alabama coach Nick Saban.
 
“I’m not motivated to coach in the NFL,” Alabama coach Nick Saban.
 
“Where were you with the greatest collection of quarterbacks in college football history, a Heisman Trophy candidate at running back, nine or ten first-round draft choices, Joey Bosa and the coach of the century, according to all of the media? Where were you this year? Why couldn’t you get motivated to try? There’s no excuse for Ohio State playing the way it played. I understand what I saw in Columbus, and I understand what I saw in Dallas. And I’m telling you right now, Alabama would have beaten Ohio State more easily than it did against Clemson. Clemson was a better team than Ohio State, better coach and better motivated. You had last year to brag about Ohio State. I don’t want to hear it anymore. Do me a favor. Shut up!,” Paul Finebaum to Bobby the Ohio State fan.
 
 
In the Huddle
 
Elsewhere around college football . . . At the close of the season, Alabama has the longest winning streak in FBS at 12 games. The Tide’s last loss was to Ole Miss on September 19, 2015. Second is San Diego State with a 10-game winning streak.
 
And finally, notables from the football nation who left us during this past football season included Charlie Coffey, 81 (former Virginia Tech football coach); Tyler Sash, 27 (former Iowa and New York Giants football player); Tom Scott, 84 (former Virginia and NFL football player); Lindy Infante, 75 (former NFL coach); Fred McNeill, 63 (Minnesota Vikings linebacker); Doug Atkins, 85 (Tennessee and NFL player), and George MacIntyre, 76 (former Vanderbilt football coach).
 
Touchdown Tom
 
 
P.S.
 
Not exactly college football related, but in mid-January as college football fans put the lid on another great season and shifted their attention to college basketball, the number one song in the country…
 
…75 years ago this week in 1941 was “Frenesi” by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra
 
…70 years ago this week in 1946 was “Symphony” by Freddy Martin
 
…65 years ago this week in 1951 was “The Tennessee Waltz” by Patti Page
 
…60 years ago this week in 1956 was “Memories Are Made Of This” by Dean Martin
 
…55 years ago this week in 1961 was “Wonderland By Night” by Bert Kaempfert
 
…50 years ago this week in 1966 was “We Can Work It Out” by The Beatles
 
…45 years ago this week in 1971 was “Knock Three Times” by Dawn
 
…40 years ago this week in 1976 was “I Write The Songs” by Barry Manilow
 
…35 years ago this week in 1981 was “The Tide Is High” by Blondie
 
…30 years ago this week in 1986 was “That’s What Friends Are For” by Dionne Warwick and Friends
 
…25 years ago this week in 1991 was “The First Time” by Surface
 
 
Not exactly college football related, but notables from other sports who left us during this past football season included Justin Wilson, 37 (race car driver); Daryl Dawkins, 58 (NBA player); Lou Tsioropoulos, 84 (Kentucky and Boston Celtics basketball player); Joaquin Andujar, 62 (MLB pitcher); Moses Malone, 60 (NBA player); Yogi Berra, 90 (MLB player and manager); Neal Walk, 67 (Florida and NBA player); Harry Gallatin, 88 (NBA player); Dave Meyers, 62 (UCLA basketball player); Dean Chance, 74 (MLB pitcher), and Jimmy Roberts, 75 (NHL player and coach).
 
Also, Mel Daniels, 71 (ABA player); Bert Olmstead, 89 (NHL player); Ken Johnson, 82 (MLB pitcher); Guy Lewis, 93 (University of Houston basketball coach); Dolph Schayes, 87 (NBA player and coach); John Williams, 53 (NBA player); Dickie Moore, 84 (Montreal Canadiens player); Dave Henderson, 57 (MLB outfielder); Jim O’Toole, 78 (Cincinnati Reds pitcher); Meadowlark Lemon, 83 (Harlem Globetrotter); Frank Malzone, 85 (Boston Red Sox third baseman); John Johnson, 68 (NBA player); Bill Foster, 86 (former Duke basketball coach); Jim Simpson, 88 (sportscaster), and Luis Arroyo, 88 (MLB pitcher).
 
 
Not exactly college football related, but notables from the entertainment world who passed away during the 2015 football season included Yvonne Craig, 78 (actress); Melody Johnson, 66 (actress); Dean Jones, 84 (actor); Judy Carne, 76 (actress); Martin Milner, 83 (actor); Gary Richrath, 65 (REO Speedwagon lead guitarist); Catherine Coulson, 71 (Log Lady on “Twin Peaks”); Frankie Ford, 76 (“Sea Cruise” singer); Billy Joe Royal, 73 (singer); Pat Woodell, 71 (“Petticoat Junction” sister), and Cory Wells, 74 (Three Dog Night singer).
 
Also, Marty Ingels, 79 (actor and comic); Maureen O’Hara, 95 (actress); Al Molinaro, 96 (actor); Allen Toussaint, 77 (New Orleans musician); Betsy Drake, 92 (actress); P.F. Sloan, 70 (singer/songwriter); Robert Loggia, 85 (actor); Bonnie Lou, 91 (country and rockabilly singer); Marjorie Lord, 97 (actress); Wayne Rogers, 82 (Trapper John on “M*A*S*H”); Natalie Cole, 65 (singer); Kitty Kallen, 94 (singer); Pat Harrington, 86 (Schneider on “One Day at a Time”); David Bowie, 69 (singer/songwriter), and Alan Rickman, 69 (actor).
 
 
Not exactly college football related, but well-known folks from other walks of life who passed away during the 2015 football season included Julian Bond, 75 (civil rights leader); Marvin Mandell, 95 (former governor of Maryland); Jackie Collins, 77 (author); Paul Prudhomme, 75 (New Orleans chef); Gail Zappa, 70 (wife of Frank Zappa); Fred Thompson, 73 (U.S. senator and actor); Helmut Schmidt, 96 (former West German chancellor); Ray Gandolf, 85 (ABC and CBS sportscaster and news anchor), and Peggy Say, 74 (sister of hostage Terry Anderson).
 

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