College Football Week 14 – Richt goes; Miles stays
You can book Alabama and Oklahoma,
but hold your horses on the other two

Thanksgiving week never lacks for excitement. This year was no exception. Clemson barely held onto its playoff hopes, while Notre Dame’s playoff hopes went down the drain as time expired. In Baton Rouge, Les Miles job was hanging in the balance.

Two of the playoff spots were settled, while the possibilities for the other two spots remain open. Conference division titles were settled. The coaching carousel continued to spin, as more coaches were fired, while some new coaches were named. And Will Muschamp blew a gasket during the Alabama-Auburn game.

Turkey Week began with more movement from the coaching carousel. Syracuse announced the firing of third-year coach Scott Shafer, effective after the Orange’s last game against Boston College.

There was plenty of excitement in that game, as Syracuse beat BC, 20-17, on a 35-yard field goal as time expired. Shafer finished 15-22 at Syracuse. The Orange were 4-8 this season, 2-6 in ACC play. 

The week also began with news that, in all likelihood, LSU coach Les Miles would be fired at the end of the week, if not sooner. News reports said the decision to fire Miles was a done deal and it was only a matter of time before the announcement would be made.  

Early in the week, even the Mighty MAC – the Mid-American Conference – got into the excitement of Turkey Week. On Tuesday night, all Northern Illinois had to do was beat Ohio to claim the MAC West title and a spot in the conference championship game. But NIU was upset by Ohio, 26-21.

NIU’s loss left the door open for Toledo to win the MAC West title on Friday. But first, Toledo had to beat Western Michigan. However, WMU upset Toledo, 35-30. Toledo’s loss enabled Northern Illinois to win the MAC West after all. NIU will face Bowling Green for the MAC championship this week.

Thanksgiving Day saw UCF finish its season without a victory. The Knights lost to South Florida, 44-3, and ended its dismal season at 0-12. The win for South Florida kept the Bulls in the running for the AAC East title, pending the outcome of Saturday’s game between Connecticut and Temple.

Meanwhile, out in Austin, Texas Tech added to Charlie Strong’s woes. The Red Raiders beat Texas, in a thriller, 48-45.

Iowa completed its Cinderella season on Friday. The Hawkeyes took advantage of four interceptions by Nebraska’s Tommy Armstrong, and held on to beat the Huskers, 28-20. The Hawkeyes finished their season at 12-0.

Miami (Florida) knocked off Pitt, 29-24, to finish at 8-4. Maybe the Hurricanes should have fired Al Golden earlier than they did. Miami finished 4-1 after Golden was terminated.  Houston sewed up the AAC West Division title with a 52-31 win over Navy, and Western Kentucky took the Conference USA East title, beating Marshall, 49-28.

Out West, Washington burst Washington State’s bubble. The Huskies handed the Cougars their first loss in four games. Washington won 45-10. And in the rain, in Fort Worth, on Friday night, TCU upset Baylor, 28-21, in two overtimes. The loss was Baylor’s second and eliminated any possibility the Bears had of winning the Big 12.

In the annual season-ending battle between the ACC and the SEC on Saturday, the ACC went 3-1. Louisville rallied to beat Kentucky, 38-24. Florida State all but shutout Florida, 27-2. In the most interesting and exciting of the four games, heavily favored Clemson just barely kept its playoff hopes alive. After jumping out to a 28-10 third quarter lead, the Tigers held on to top South Carolina, 37-32 – the same South Carolina that lost to The Citadel last week.

Georgia was the only team to come through the for the SEC. The Dawgs held off Georgia Tech, beating the Yellow Jackets, 13-7.

Southern Miss grabbed the C-USA West title, downing Louisiana Tech, 58-24. On the losing side, former Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel threw three interceptions in the game. The game ended Driskel’s sad and disappointing career in college football, one that was once so promising.

Indiana ended Purdue’s dismal season, with a 54-36 win over the Boilers. It marked the Hoosiers third-straight win over Purdue – the first time that has happened since the 1940s when Indiana beat Purdue four-straight years, 1944 to 1947.

Retiring Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer ended the regular season with a win and became bowl eligible as a result. The Hokies beat Virginia, 23-20. West Virginia won its fourth-straight game. The Mountaineers downed Iowa State, 30-6. The game was the last one for Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads who had been fired the previous weekend.

After the media said that Ohio State was dysfunctional, following the team’s loss to Michigan State the previous week, the Buckeyes came out this week and proved the media wrong. Ohio State easily beat arch rival Michigan, 42-13. And Ezekiel Elliott wasn’t unhappy with the play calling against the Wolverines. Elliott carried the ball 30 times for 214 yards.

The win kept the Buckeyes hopes alive for the Big Ten East title, pending the outcome of the Penn State-Michigan State game. Well, those hopes were short-lived. Michigan State blasted Penn State, 55-16, to win the Big Ten East crown.

Alabama secured its spot in the SEC championship game and, in all likelihood, the playoffs, with a 29-13 victory over Auburn in the Iron Bowl. The most interesting and exciting part of the game was when Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp went into a wild rage, like a mad dog, on the sideline. Well, he is a Dawg.  

Auburn was flagged with a 15-yard penalty for a late, out-of-bounds hit on Alabama quarterback Jake Coker.  That’s when Muschamp lost it.  Muschamp made it a 30-yard yard infraction with his foul-mouthed, gasket-blowing performance.

Shortly afterward, Muschamp had another meltdown, going after an official on the field. Two Auburn assistant coaches had to intervene and physically restrain Muschamp. Who knows? Muschamp’s antics may have cost Auburn the game. I’m sure it cost him the chance of a head coaching job at another school. 

During the game, Muschamp’s defense gave up 465 yards to Alabama.  For the season, Auburn’s defense was 88th in the country in total yards allowed (422 per game), 77th in passing yards allowed (233 per game), 90th in rushing yards allowed (190 per game) and 68th in points allowed (28 per game). No wonder Muschamp had a meltdown.

North Carolina prepped for its ACC title encounter with Clemson, by beating NC State, 45-34. Northwestern capped an outstanding season, beating Illinois, 21-14. The Wildcats finished their season at 10-2.

Out West, USC claimed the Pac-12 South Division crown, beating arch rival UCLA, 40-21. Tennessee finished the season at 8-4, beating Vanderbilt, 53-28. And South Florida’s hopes were diminished as Temple beat Connecticut, 27-3. The victory gave the AAC East title to the Owls.

In the Egg Bowl, Ole Miss downed Mississippi State, 38-27. If it wasn’t for that wild and crazy game-ending 53-52 loss to Arkansas, Ole Miss would have won the SEC West and be playing in Atlanta this week.

LSU beat Texas A&M, 19-7. The win saved Les Miles’ job. Although it appeared certain that Miles was a gonner regardless of the score, LSU athletic director Joe Alleva announced that Miles would remain as LSU’s coach.

Going into the Stanford game on Saturday, Notre Dame’s playoff hopes were still very much alive. But Stanford put an end to those hopes. The Cardinal kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired and Stanford beat Notre Dame 38-36. Conversely, Oklahoma secured its spot in the playoffs as the Sooners downed Oklahoma State, 58-23.

The weekend came to an end with three games out West. California won a thriller over Arizona State, 48-46. Cal’s Jared Goff passed for 542 yards. In the Mountain West, New Mexico beat Air Force, 47-35, and San Diego State downed Nevada, 31-14.

So, after all was said and done over the weekend, four teams finished the season with perfect records. Clemson and Iowa both finished undefeated, each at 12-0. While Kansas and UCF finished the season perfectly winless, each at 0-12.

Five teams finished the season with just one loss – North Carolina (11-1), Oklahoma (11-1), Michigan State (11-1), Ohio State (11-1) and Alabama (11-1) from the Power 5, and Houston (11-1) from the Group of 5.

As far as the playoffs are concerned, you can go ahead and pencil in Oklahoma and Alabama. Oklahoma has no more games, and let’s face it, Alabama is not going to lose to Florida in the SEC championship game. Mark my word.

The remaining two spots most likely will go to Clemson and Michigan State. But that does assume that Clemson beats North Carolina in the ACC title game and that Michigan State beats Iowa in the Big Ten championship game. If the Spartans lose to Iowa, then the Hawkeyes will be in the playoffs. However, a North Carolina upset of Clemson would not boost the Tar Heels into the playoffs. Either Ohio State or Stanford would then be the fourth team in the playoffs. Stay tuned.

The coaching carousel was active Sunday, as a number of firings and hirings were announced. The most surprising of the firings was Georgia’s Mark Richt.  After 15 seasons in Athens, Richt will no longer be coaching the Bulldogs. While we were surprised that Les Miles retained his job, we were just as surprised that Mark Richt lost his.

As expected, Rutgers announced the firing of Kyle Flood. Flood was 27-24 in four seasons at Rutgers – 4-8 this season (1-7 in Big Ten play). Rutgers not only fired Flood, but also athletic director Julie Hermann.   

Also as expected, Virginia dumped Mike London. London was 27-46 in six years at Virginia. This season, the Cavaliers were 4-8 – 3-5 in ACC play.

Then a number of coaches fired their coordinators on Sunday. Penn State coach James Franklin fired his offensive coordinator John Donovan. Purdue coach Darrell Hazell, who just barely hung onto his own job, cleaned house, firing his offensive coordinator John Shoop, his defensive coordinator Greg Hudson and his defensive line coach Rubin Carter. Hazell is coming off his third-straight losing season at Purdue.

Still in the Big Ten, Minnesota coach Tracy Claeys fired his offensive coordinator Matt Limegrower and his passing game coordinator Jim Zebrowski.

Meanwhile, Virginia Tech announced that Memphis coach Justin Fuente would be the new coach of the Hokies, replacing the retiring Frank Beamer. The Tech announcement also said that longtime Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster would be retained on Fuente’s staff.

Iowa State announced that Toledo coach Matt Campbell is the Cyclones new coach. And Illinois announced that interim coach Bill Cubit would become the Banned Indians fulltime coach.

Among the 13 schools yet to announce a new coach are Maryland, USC, South Carolina, UCF, Miami, Missouri, and now Syracuse, Georgia, Rutgers and Virginia. And the rumors are rampant. 

And in the strangest and craziest comment of the weekend, ESPN’s Mark May (and he was serious) said that Georgia should hire Mack Brown as its new coach. Yeah Mark and Lou Holtz should be Brown’s offensive coordinator and Lee Corso his defensive coordinator.

Meanwhile, Feleipe’ Franks, the No. 4 pocket passer in the country, has committed to Florida. The 6-foot-6, 219-pound quarterback from Wakulla High School in Crawfordville, Florida, had originally committed to LSU. But when Les Miles job became in jeopardy last week, Franks reneged on his commitment. Yesterday, the day after Florida only scored 2 points against Florida State, he committed to the Gators.

That’s a Thanksgiving Week wrap. Enjoy Championship Weekend.

Touchdown Tom
November 30, 2015
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com



Weekend Recap

GAME OF THE WEEK: We’re in the playoffs – Oklahoma 58, Oklahoma State 23 (Touchdown Tom said: Oklahoma 35, Oklahoma State 31). An exciting first quarter, Oklahoma led at the end, 14-10, the Sooners left the Cowboys standing in their boots in the second quarter. That’s when OU outscored Okie State, 30-10, to take a 44-20 lead at halftime. The Sooners went on to outscore the Cowboys, 14-3, in the second half. OU won the contest on its running game. The Sooners rushed for 344 yards – Joe Mixon (136 yards) and Samaje Perine (131 yards). Okie State didn’t help themselves any with three turnovers. Attendance in Stillwater: 58,231

RUNNER UP: Sunk – Houston 52, Navy 31 (Touchdown Tom said: Navy 31, Houston 29). Would you believe Navy passed for more yards than it rushed? Believe it. The Middies had 312 yards passing, 147 yards rushing. But Houston had 555 total yards – 218 rushing, 337 passing. Attendance in Houston: 40,562

REST OF THE BEST: Just to prove last week was a mistake – Ohio State 42, Michigan 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Michigan 24, Ohio State 20). A close first half, Ohio State led 14-10 at the break. The Buckeyes ran away from Michigan in the second half, outscoring the Wolverines, 28-3. Ohio State’s defense limited Michigan to 57 yards rushing. The Buckeyes Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 214 yards, and J.T. Barrett ran for another 139 yards, as the Buckeyes racked up 369 rushing yards on the Wolverines. Attendance in Ann Arbor: 111,829

It ain’t over till it’s over – Stanford 38, Notre Dame 36 (Touchdown Tom said: Stanford 26, Notre Dame 23). Stanford kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired to win the game. Notre Dame had 533 total yards to 422 for Stanford. But the Cardinals dominated time of possession 36 minutes to 24 minutes. The Irish were 3-for-9 (33%) on third-down efficiency. Attendance in Palo Alto: 51,424

Where were the FAU-game refs when you need them – Florida State 27, Florida 2 (Touchdown Tom said: Florida 17, Florida State 14). Florida suffered from the same ole problems – no offensive line and no kicking game. And let’s face it, Treon Harris isn’t really that good of a quarterback. The Gators defense played admirably until late in the game when they wore down and Dalvin Cook had his way with them. With 6 minutes left in the game, FSU only led 13-2. Cook rushed for 186 yards. Florida’s Kelvin Taylor ran for 136 yards. Florida’s Attendance in Gainesville: 90,916

Toad over – TCU 28, Baylor 21 (2OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Baylor 34, TCU 27). Would you believe Baylor only passing for 62 yards? Believe it. Tied 14-14 at the half, neither team scored in the second half. Baylor had five turnovers to two for TCU. Attendance in Fort Worth: 47,675

Doughty takes a Holliday – Western Kentucky 49, Marshall 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Western Kentucky 37, Marshall 24). WKU had 546 total yards to 273 for Marshall. The Hilltoppers had 31 first downs to 16 for the Herd. The WKU defense held Marshall to 31 yards rushing. The Hilltoppers Brandon Doughty passed for 370 yards, completing 69% of his passes. Attendance in Bowling Green: 17,687

How’s that, playoff committee? – Michigan State 55, Penn State 16 (Touchdown Tom said: Michigan State 26, Penn State 19). Another close game at the half, Michigan State led 20-10. Then the Spartans outscored Penn State 35-6 in the second half. The Nittany Lions were hampered by four turnovers. Attendance in East Lansing: 74,705

The Tar Heels weeded out the Pack – North Carolina 45, NC State 34 (Touchdown Tom said: North Carolina 40, NC State 30). North Carolina built up a 35-7 first quarter lead and then held on to win. Late in the third quarter, NC State cut the Tar Heels lead to 12 at 35-23. That was as close as State could come until they scored with 1:50 left in the game to pull within 11. The teams combined for 1,067 total yards. UNC’s Elijah Hood rushed for 220 yards, and T.J. Logan added another 100 yards rushing. The Heels won in spite of suffering three turnovers and letting the Wolf Pack dominate the clock – 36 minutes to 24 minutes. Attendance in Raleigh: 57,600

The Bears sack Dak – Ole Miss 38, Mississippi State 27 (Touchdown Tom said: Mississippi State 35, Ole Miss 34). Ole Miss won the first half, 28-3. Miss State won the second half, 24-10. But early in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs trailed the Black Bears, 38-13. Attendance in Starkville: 62,265

Oh Henry – Alabama 29, Auburn 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 34, Auburn 17). For three quarters, Auburn kept it close. As the fourth quarter began, the Tigers trailed the Tide, 19-13. But then Bama outscored Auburn 10-0 in the fourth quarter. Alabama had 465 total yards to 260 for Auburn, and 24 first downs to 12 for Auburn. The Tide’s Derrick Henry rushed for 271 yards. The Tigers only had 91 yards rushing and were 3-for-15 (20%) in third-down efficiency. Attendance in Auburn: 87,451

Bring on Western Kentucky – Southern Miss 58, Louisiana Tech 24 (Touchdown Tom said: Louisiana Tech 35, Southern Miss 30). This game was for the C-USA West Division title and Southern Miss took care of business. Louisiana Tech only rushed for 2 yards and suffered 7 turnovers. The Eagles Nick Mullens passed for 386 yards and Ito Smith rushed for 169 yards. The Bulldogs Jeff Driskel threw three interceptions. Attendance in Ruston: 19,028



….AND TWO TO KEEP AN EYE ON: 

I’ll be back – LSU 19, Texas A&M 7 (Touchdown Tom said: LSU 27, Texas A&M 20). Midway through the third quarter, Texas A&M led, 7-6. Then the Tigers scored 14 unanswered points. LSU’s 244 yards rushing was the difference in the game. The Aggies only rushed for 89 yards and LSU only passed for 83 yards. Leonard Fournette rushed for 159 yards. Three turnovers hurt A&M’s cause. Attendance in Baton Rouge: 101,803

No grizzly in these Bears – USC 40, UCLA 21 (Touchdown Tom said: UCLA 34, USC 23). UCLA led throughout most of the first half, but trailed USC at the break, 20-14. The Bruins went back up 21-20 in the third quarter. Then the Trojans scored 20 unanswered points. The Bruins suffered three turnovers to none for the Trojans. USC’s Justin Davis rushed for 130 yards. Attendance in Los Angeles: 83,602


YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

Four straight – West Virginia 30, Iowa State 6 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 34, Iowa State 18). WVU’s defense limited Iowa State to two field goals – both in the second quarter. They also held the Cyclones to 93 yards rushing. Meanwhile, WVU’s offense racked up 415 total yards in a balanced attack of 213 yards rushing and 202 passing. The Mounties won their fourth-straight game. Attendance in Morgantown: 42,446

No Husk – Iowa 28, Nebraska 20 (Touchdown Tom said: Nebraska 28, Iowa 27). Iowa outscored Nebraska 14-10 in each half. The Huskers dominated the game – 22 first downs to 11 for Iowa; 433 total yards to only 250 by Iowa. Iowa was 0-for-9 on third down efficiency. But the Huskers Tommy Armstrong threw four interceptions. Attendance in Lincoln: 90,830

Finally – Duke 27 Wake Forest 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 25, Wake Forest 18). Late in the third quarter, the Dookies led 24-7. Then Wake rallied to outscore the Dookies 14-3 in the final 11 minutes of the game. The Deacons John Wolford passed for 338 yards. But the Deacons suffered three turnovers. The Devils won their first game since October 24. Attendance in Winston-Salem: 26,435

Uga had some good bug spray – Georgia 13, Georgia Tech 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 22, Georgia Tech 12). Georgia led 13-0 late in the fourth quarter. Georgia Tech finally scored with 3:24 left in the game. The Dawgs had 402 total yards to 276 for Tech. The Yellow Jackets suffered from three turnovers and a 2-for-13 (15%) third-down efficiency. Attendance in Atlanta: 55,000

Kliffed in Austin – Texas Tech 48, Texas 45 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas Tech 35, Texas 33). After a scoreless first quarter, Texas took a 3-0 lead early in the second quarter. But 28 seconds later, Texas Tech scored a touchdown and went up 7-3. The Red Raiders never trailed again until 7:54 left in the fourth quarter when the Longhorns went up 38-34. One minute and thirty-six seconds later, Tech retook the lead at 41-34 and held on to the lead for the rest of the game. The Red Raiders final touchdown, which put them up 48-38, came on a trick fumblerooski play that resulted in a 40-yard touchdown run. The teams combined for 1,132 total yards. Tech had a balanced attack, but the Longhorns had 403 yards rushing and only 64 passing. The Horns Chris Warren rushed for 276 yards. Attendance in Austin: 94,299

Maybe basketball season will be better for the Boilers – Indiana 54, Purdue 36 (Touchdown Tom said: Indiana 38, Purdue 29). The teams combined for 1,145 total yards. Indiana had a balanced attack – 309 yards rushing and 350 passing. Purdue’s attack was mostly passing – 336 yards. The Boilers attack also suffered four turnovers. Both quarterbacks passed for more than 330 yards. Indiana’s Devine Redding rushed for 144 yards. Attendance in West Lafayette: 37,152

Week 13 Picks:  12 correct, 8 wrong (60%)
On the Season:  153 correct, 77 wrong (66.5%)



ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA 

Miami 29, Pitt 24 – Attendance in Pittsburgh: 40,126
Florida Atlantic 33, Old Dominion 31 – Attendance in Norfolk: 20,118
South Florida 44, UCF 3 – Attendance in Orlando: 25,967



Superlatives

Impressive Passers: 

California’s Jared Goff – 30-51-0 for 542 yards; Arizona State’s Mike Bercovici – 27-43-0-395; Central Michigan’s Cooper Rush – 25-39-1-391; Southern Miss’ Nick Mullens – 24-37-1-386; Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes – 22-39-1-372; Western Kentucky’s Brandon Doughty – 27-39-0-370, and Georgia State’s Nick Arbuckle – 29-41-0-368.

Also, Tulsa’s Dane Evans – 19-32-1 for 367 yards; Arkansas State’s Fredi Knighten – 23-42-1-367; Oregon’s Vernon Adams – 28-38-0-366; Indiana’s Nate Sudfeld – 18-29-0-350; Rutgers’ Chris Laviano – 21-33-1-344; Tulane’s Jordy Joseph – 23-41-2-343, and Wake Forest’s John Wolford – 23-35-2-338.

Also, San Jose State’s Kenny Potter – 28-41-2 for 336 yards; Purdue’s Austin Appleby – 36-57-2-332; Oklahoma State’s J.W. Walsh – 25-42-1-325; East Carolina’s Blake Kemp – 33-50-0-315; Navy’s Keenan Reynolds – 13-16-1-312; Texas State’s Tyler Jones – 24-43-1-312; Idaho’s Matt Linehan – 21-31-0-309, and  Houston’s Greg Ward – 26-35-0-308.

Impressive Rushers: 

Texas’ Chris Warren – 276 yards; Alabama’s Derrick Henry – 271 yards; Massachusetts’ Marquis Young – 240 yards; Wyoming’s Brian Hill – 231 yards; North Carolina’s Elijah Hood – 220 yards; Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott – 214 yards, and Boise State’s Jeremy McNichols – 192 yards.

Also, Georgia Southern’s Matt Breida – 187 yards; Utah’s Joe Williams – 187 yards; Louisville’s Lamar Jackson – 186 yards; Florida State’s Dalvin Cook – 183 yards; Oregon State’s Ryan Nall – 174 yards; Texas Tech’s DeAndre Washington – 173 yards, and Maryland’s Brandon Ross – 173 yards.

Northwestern’s Justin Jackson – 172 yards; New Mexico’s Jhurell Pressley – 170 yards; Texas State’s Tyler Siudzinski – 170 yards; Southern Miss’ Ito Smith – 169 yards; Notre Dame’s Josh Adams – 168 yards; Oregon’s Royce Freeman – 167 yards; Hawaii’s Paul Harris – 166 yards; LSU’s Leonard Fournette – 159 yards, and San Diego State’s Donnel Pumphrey – 154 yards.`



Quotes of the Week

“Rebels, Land Sharks, Black Bears – Ole Miss runs through mascots like they run through bad quarterbacks,” Mississippi State fan Stingray.

“I’ll slap the shit out of you,” Cam Newton to a heckler at the Alabama-Auburn game.

“And this is among the reasons you’d have to be a fool to hire Muschamp to be your head coach,” ESPN’s Bomani Jones, on Will Muschamp’s eruption during the Alabama-Auburn game.

“This season is complete and I want to make it very clear and positive that Les Miles is our football coach and will continue to be our football coach,” LSU athletic director Joe Alleva.

“LSU coach Les Miles deserves better than athletic director Joe Alleva’s ineptitude,” CBS Sports writer Dennis Dodd.

“I don’t know what the world is coming to,” Alabama coach Nick Saban, on hearing that Mark Richt was fired.



Touchdown Tom’s Predictions for
This Week’s 10 Biggest and Most Intriguing Games.…and then one

GAME OF THE WEEK:  1. Iowa (12-0) vs. Michigan State (11-1) – (Big Ten Championship: Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis) – 8 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – Iowa’s undefeated although State played the tougher schedule. Interestingly, the Spartans one loss was to Nebraska in Lincoln, 39-38. The Hawkeyes beat Nebraska in Lincoln, 28-20. Iowa’s signature is its defense. The Hawkeyes are 6th in the country in rushing yards allowed (110 per game), 15th in the country in points allowed (18.7 per game), and 21st in the country in total yards allowed (331.7 per game). State is better on defense too, where the Spartans are 15th in rushing yards allowed (118.2 per game) and 23rd in points allowed (21.1 per game). So this could be a low scoring game.  The Hawkeyes miss their Mark – Michigan State 30, Iowa 23.

RUNNER UP:  2. Clemson (12-0) vs. North Carolina (11-1) – (ACC Championship: Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte) – 8 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Clemson played the tougher schedule – Notre Dame and Florida State – but against common opponents – NC State, Wake Forest and Miami (Florida) – both stacked up equally. The one exception is South Carolina. The Tar Heels one and only loss was to the Gamecocks, 17-13, in the first game of the season back on September 3. This past weekend, the Tigers beat the Gamecocks, 37-32. The Tar Heels have some strong points on offense and defense. On offense, UNC is 11th in points scored (41.2 per game), 16th in total yards (495.7 per game) and 18th in rushing yards (230 per game). On defense, UNC is 18th in passing yards allowed (186.2 per game) and 19th in points allowed (20.8 per game). But Clemson is more impressive on offense and defense. On offense, the Tigers are 14th in total yards (502.5 per game), 15th in points scored (37.9 per game) and 22nd in passing yards (288.8 per game). The Tigers are strong in rushing yards too. On defense, Clemson is 4th in passing yards allowed (160.8 per game), 7th in total yards allowed (289 per game) and 17th in points allowed (18.8 per game). Both teams have talented quarterbacks – Deshaun Watson for Clemson and Marquis Williams for North Carolina. Dabo looks good in Heels – Clemson 36, North Carolina 30.

REST OF THE BEST:  3. Temple (10-2) at Houston (11-1) – (AAC Championship: TDECU Stadium in Houston) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ABC – Houston was on its way to an undefeated season, until the Cougars were surprised by Connecticut, 20-17, in their next to last game – UConn, a team that Temple easily beat, 27-3. Temple also easily beat Memphis, 31-12, while Houston just got by Memphis, 35-34. The Owls are better in defense than offense. Temple is 11th in rushing yards allowed (117.4 per game), 16th in points allowed (18.8 per game) and 18th in total yards allowed (328.4 per game). Houston’s strength is on offense – 8th in points scored (42 per game), 14th in rushing yards (240.7 per game) and 15th in total yards (499.8 per game). On defense, the Cougars are 12th in rushing yards allowed (117.5 per game). Houston could be hurt by the fact that its coach – Tom Herman – is actively seeking one of the openings at another school. He may not be focused. But the Cougars are focused enough – Houston 32, Temple 25.

4. Florida (9-2) vs. Alabama (11-1) – (SEC Championship: Georgia Dome in Atlanta) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, CBS – This game won’t even be a contest. Alabama has the best defense in the country, while Florida has the worst offense in the country. And although Florida has a decent defense, Derrick Henry will soon wear them down. On offense, Alabama is very balanced, averaging a little more than 200 yards per game both passing and running. On defense, the Tide is 1st in rushing yards allowed (78.9 per game), 2nd in total yards allowed (264.6 per game) and 3rd in points allowed (14.3 per game). Florida will depend on its defense. The Gators are 5th in total yards allowed (283.6 per game), 5th in points allowed (15.5 per game), 8th in rushing yards allowed (111.9 per game) and 9th in passing yards allowed (171.7 yards per game). The teams had four common opponents during the season – Tennessee, Georgia, Ole Miss and LSU. Both barely beat Tennessee. Both beat Georgia handily. But while Alabama lost to Ole Miss, 43-37, Florida easily beat Ole Miss, 31-0. However, while Florida lost to LSU, 35-28, Alabama easily beat LSU, 30-16. Albert gets swamped – Alabama 28, Florida 7.

5. Southern Miss (9-3) at Western Kentucky (10-2) – (C-USA Championship: L.T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – Both teams are strong on offense and weak on defense. WKU is 5th in points scored (44.2 per game), 6th in passing yards (361.1 per game) and 10th in total yards (519.7 per game). Southern Miss, on offense, is 8th in total yards (534.8 per game), 9th in points scored (41.7 per game) and 10th in passing yards (340.2 per game). Both teams have strong passing quarterbacks – Brandon Doughty for WKU and Nick Mullens for Southern Miss. The Eagles come into the game riding a six-game winning streak. The streak ends – Western Kentucky 42, Southern Miss 26.

6. Stanford (10-2) vs. USC (8-4) – (Pac-12 Championship: Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara) – 7:45 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – This game is a rematch. On September 19, Stanford beat USC, 41-31. The Cardinal’s strength is its running game. Stanford is 22nd in rushing yards (221.8 per game). And the strength of the Cardinal’s running game is Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey has rushed for 1640 yards this season. USC relies on quarterback Cody Kessler. Kessler has passed for 3,128 yards this season. Both Stanford and USC lost to Oregon – Stanford by 2 points, USC by 20 points. Stanford beat Notre Dame while the Trojans lost to the Irish. And Stanford beat Washington, while USC lost to the Huskies. The Trees sprout again – Stanford 28, USC 27.

7. Air Force (8-4) at San Diego State (9-3) – (MWC Championship: Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – San Diego State began the season 1-3. Since, the Aztecs have won eight-straight games. San Diego State has a decent defense. The Aztecs are 4th in rushing yards allowed (95 per game), 6th in total yards allowed (283.6 per game) and 9th in points allowed (16.6 per game). State’s running back Donnel Pumphrey has rushed for 1,464 yards this season. Air Force’s strength is its rushing game. The Falcons are 3rd in rushing yards (323.5 per game). Air Force began the season 3-3. But the Falcons are 5-1 in their last six games. The Falcons get sacrificed – San Diego State 33, Air Force 29.

8. Bowling Green (9-3) vs. Northern Illinois (8-4) – (MAC Championship: Ford Field in Detroit) – 8 pm ET, Friday, ESPN2 – Bowling Green is strong on offense and weak on defense, especially passing defense – 101st in the country. But on offense, BG is 3rd in passing yards (387.8 per game), 3rd in total yards (566 per game) and 4th in points scored (44.2 per game). The Falcons mainstay is quarterback Matt Johnson. Johnson has passed for 4,465 yards this season. Like Bowling Green, NIU is weak on defense. But the Huskies are balanced on offense, averaging more than 200 yards per game passing and running. After a 2-3 start, NIU has won six of its last seven games. BG has won eight of its last nine games. Make it nine out of 10 – Bowling Green 28, Northern Illinois 25.

9. Texas (4-7) at Baylor (9-2) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN – Texas has no shot at a bowl game, but a win sure would help Charlie Strong’s cause. Unfortunately, the Horns will catch a mad Baylor team, following the Bears overtime loss to TCU. Sorry Charlie, rejected again – Baylor 40, Texas 23.

10. West Virginia (7-4) at Kansas State (5-6) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 4:30 pm ET, Saturday, FS1 – WVU is riding a four-game winning streak and shooting to finish a strong 8-4. K-State needs one more win to become bowl eligible. Wildcats coach Bill Snyder isn’t used to having a losing season. He better get used to it – West Virginia 30, Kansas State 23.

….AND ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON: 

Georgia State (5-6) at Georgia Southern (8-3) – (Sun Belt vs. Sun Belt) – 2 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN3 – Georgia Southern is about to finish another strong season and will be headed to a bowl game. Meanwhile, Georgia State needs one more win to qualify for a bowl. The Panthers have come on strong under the strength of quarterback Nick Arbuckle. State has won its last three games and Arbuckle has passed for 3,814 yards this season. Two weeks ago, Georgia Southern lost to Georgia in overtime. The Eagles won’t lose to Georgia State – Georgia Southern 32, Georgia State 26.

YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS: 

Duke (7-5), Georgia (9-3), Nebraska (5-7) and Purdue (2-10) have completed their seasons. 

ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Florida Atlantic (3-9), Florida State (10-2), Miami (8-4), South Florida (8-4) and UCF (0-12) have completed their season.

In the Huddle

Elsewhere around college football. . . Montana State fired football coach Rob Ash. Ash coached the Bobcats for nine seasons, going 70-38. This year’s team was 5-6. He was 2-7 against intrastate rival Montana….Eastern Kentucky fired football coach Dean Hood. Hood coached the Colonels for eight seasons, going 55-38. This year’s team was 6-5.

Touchdown Tom
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com

P.S.

Not exactly college football related, but there were two passings of note last week – Ken Johnson, and Guy Lewis.

Ken Johnson, the only pitcher in MLB history to complete a nine-inning game without yielding a hit and still manage to lose it, died last week. He was 82. On April 23, 1964, pitching for the Houston Colt .45s against the Cincinnati Reds, Johnson claimed his spot in history. With one out in the ninth inning, Pete Rose got on second base as the result of an error. Two batters later, Rose scored on an error by second baseman Nellie Fox. Johnson pitched in the major leagues for 13 seasons – 1958 to 1970 – for the Kansas City Athletics, Houston, the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati, the New York Yankees, the Chicago Cubs and the Montreal Expos. Kenneth Travis Johnson was born on June 16, 1933, in West Palm Beach, Florida. After his retirement, Johnson worked as a community service coordinator at Palm Beach Atlantic University in Florida, and as the baseball coach at Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana.

Guy Lewis, a college basketball coach known for coaching the University of Houston’s Phi Slama Jama teams of the early 1980s, died last week at a retirement home in Kyle, Texas. He was 93. Lewis was the Houston men’s basketball coach for 30 years, compiling a record of 592-279 and turning the program into a power house, with 20straight winning seasons and 14 NCAA tournament appearances. Lewis coached Houston to the NCAA tournament’s Final Four in 1967, 1968, 1982, 1983 and 1984. The Cougars reached the championship game in 1983 and 1984, but fell short both times. Guy Vernon Lewis was born on March 19, 1922, in Arp, Texas. After graduating from high school, he served in the Army during World War II. After the War, he enrolled in Rice University. He left Rice and enrolled in Houston where he graduated in 1947 with a degree in education. Lewis became the coach at Houston in 1956.

College Football Week 13 – Iowa State fires Paul Rhoads
When the going gets tough,
the tough get going

Just ask South Carolina.

The excitement of conference races, rivalry games, bowl qualification, undefeated teams, the Heisman race, playoff rankings, coaching rumors and more are all at fever pitch this time of the year.

Big Ten powers Michigan State and Ohio State finally clashed. The anticipation for that matchup had been building all season. The four top teams in the Big 12 – Oklahoma, Baylor, Oklahoma State and TCU – are finally playing each other.

Arizona-Arizona State and California-Stanford were the first of the big rivalry games. Eight more teams became bowl eligible over the weekend. Three of the five undefeated teams lost for the first time. The race for the Heisman Trophy continued to pick up steam, as some players improved their odds, while others fizzled out.

After the weekend’s action, the fourth selection committee playoff poll promises to bring some interesting changes. Another coach was fired and rumors about other coaches are pervasive.

And then there was: The Citadel? Really, South Carolina?

Every year, on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, a number of SEC teams – six this year – play a cupcake game. Florida State from the ACC joined the foray this year. It’s all done for the sake of scheduling a so-called easy game the weekend before a major rivalry game.

The fans hate it. This is the time of the year everyone should be playing a conference game. Well, most everyone is. But not six teams from the SEC and one from the ACC. Alabama coach Nick Saban went off into one of his rants last week when the press questioned him about the Tide’s cupcake – Charleston Southern.

Yes, Alabama, No. 2 in last week’s playoff poll, played Charleston Southern. The Tide won, 56-6. Auburn, Alabama’s opponent this week, played Idaho. The Tigers won, 56-34.

Kentucky, facing intrastate rival Louisville this week, prepared by tackling Charlotte over the weekend. The Wildcats won, 58-10. The ACC team, Florida State, took on Chattanooga. The Seminoles won, 52-13. This week, Florida State has its annual encounter with Florida.

Speaking of Florida, the Gators, along with Georgia got more than they asked for in their cupcake games Saturday. The Gators and the Dawgs got a hold of a couple of potent cupcakes.

Florida played Florida Atlantic, in its cupcake preparation game for Florida State. FAU came into the game at 2-8. The Owls only two wins were over Charlotte and Florida International. Well, at the end of regulation, the game was tied 14-14. Florida and FAU went into overtime.

Florida was on offense first. The Gators scored a touchdown, but missed the all important extra point kick. Florida led, 20-14. FAU took over. The Owls got a first down and had a first-and-goal on the 9-yard line. After a loss of two yards, FAU had a second-and-goal on the 11.

The Owls attempted a pass. It was incomplete, but replays showed that the Florida defender was pulling on the FAU receiver’s jersey. But there was no call. The TV sportscasters, covering the game, said Florida got away with interference.

Third-and-goal on the 11. FAU attempted another pass. The Owls’ receiver was in the end zone. The ball was coming to him. Then the Florida defender, who never turned around to look for the ball, ran straight into the front of the FAU receiver, knocking him down. Again, the TV sportscasters said it was interference. But there was no call. On the sideline, FAU coach Charlie Partridge was livid.

On fourth down, FAU attempted another pass into the end zone. It was incomplete, but it was cleanly defended. However, had either one of the two interferences been called on the previous two plays, FAU would have had the ball first-and-goal on the one-yard line. In other words, Florida Atlantic would have won.

The Gators escaped, 20-14, in overtime. Meanwhile, up in the Peach State, Georgia was having its annual cupcake game – Georgia Southern – prior to its annual meeting with Georgia Tech. Like Florida, the Dawgs got more than they bargained for. And like Florida, Georgia was taken to overtime. First Georgia had to kick a late field goal to tie Georgia Southern. The game ended in regulation, 17-17. Georgia went on to beat the Eagles, 23-17 in overtime.

And then there was: The Citadel? Really, South Carolina?

In its annual cupcake game before playing Clemson, South Carolina took on rough, tough Citadel. The Citadel actually had a decent record at 8-3, but two of its losses were to Charleston Southern (Alabama beat Charleston Southern, 56-6) and to Chattanooga (Florida State beat Chattanooga, 52-13).

Midway through the fourth quarter, South Carolina was beating the Bulldogs, 22-17. Then, with 6:07 left in the game, Citadel scored on a 56-yard run. After a failed two-point conversion attempt, the Bulldogs were up 23-23. The Citadel held on and beat the Gamecocks. No wonder Spurrier abandoned the ship.

Personally, I don’t mind Florida or whoever playing cupcake teams during the first, second or third weekend of the season. But not during the 12th weekend. Not as the 11th game on the schedule. Come on SEC, let’s cut that out. And you too, FSU.

The divisional races in the conferences were either settled or heated up over the weekend. North Carolina sewed up the Coastal Division of the ACC, beating Virginia Tech in overtime, 30-27. The Tar Heels will play Clemson on December 5 for the ACC championship.

In one of the most watched games over the weekend, Michigan State upset Ohio State, 17-14, on a 41-yard field goal as time expired. The win puts the Spartans in the driver’s seat for the Big Ten East crown. If Michigan State beats Penn State this week, the Spartans are the division champs. However, if Michigan State loses, then the winner of this week’s Ohio State-Michigan game will take the East. The East Division winner will face Iowa on December 5 for the Big Ten championship.

By beating arch rival California, 35-22, Stanford took the Pac-12 North crown. The Cardinal will play the winner of this week’s UCLA-USC game for the Pac-12 championship on December 5.

Florida had already claimed the East Division title in the SEC. In the SEC West, an Alabama win over Auburn this week gives the Tide the division crown. But if Alabama should be upset by Auburn and Ole Miss beats Mississippi State, then Ole Miss wins the West. Florida will meet either Alabama or Ole Miss in Atlanta on December 5 for the SEC crown. Most likely, Alabama.

In the Big 12, where there is no championship game, two teams could end up with the same conference record – 8-1. But this year the winner of the face-to-face meeting between the two teams will be declared the conference champion. So, the winner of this week’s Oklahoma-Oklahoma State game will be the Big 12 champion, unless Baylor wins out, in which case Baylor and the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State winner will be tied. If that happens, Baylor will be the Big 12 champ if Oklahoma State beats Oklahoma. Otherwise, Oklahoma will be the Big 12 champ if the Sooners beat the Cowboys. Did you get that?

In the American Athletic Conference, neither division has been decided yet. Either Temple or South Florida will win the AAC East, while the winner of this week’s Navy-Houston game will win the AAC West. The two divisional winners will play on December 5 for the AAC title.

In Conference USA, it is down to two teams in each division. The winner of this week’s Marshall-Western Kentucky game takes the East crown, while the winner of the Southern Miss-Louisiana Tech game claims the West title. The two winners clash December 5 for the C-USA championship.

Bowling Green has already claimed the Mid-American Conference East Division title. The Falcons will play either Northern Illinois or Toledo for the MAC title on December 4. If NIU beats Ohio this week, then the Huskies are the West champs. But if NIU loses and Toledo beats Western Michigan, then the Rockets win the West.

The Mountain West is all settled. Air Force from the Mountain Division will play San Diego State from the West Division for the MWC crown on December 5. And finally, in the Sun Belt Conference, where there are no divisions, Arkansas State, Appalachian State and Georgia Southern are in a tight race for the Sun Belt title. Arkansas State controls its destiny.

Oklahoma State, Ohio State and Houston fell from the ranks of the undefeated over the weekend. Baylor beat Okie State, 45-35. In a shocker, Houston lost to Connecticut, 20-17. The Cougars were victims of four turnovers in the game. UConn had none. One suspects Houston was looking ahead to its game this week against Navy.

So, the remaining two undefeated teams are Clemson (11-0) and Iowa (11-0). This week, the Tigers are on the road at South Carolina, while the Hawkeyes play Nebraska in Lincoln. Stay tuned!

There are 12 teams with just one loss and nine of them still have a chance to make the playoffs. They are North Carolina (10-1), Baylor (9-1), Oklahoma (10-1), Oklahoma State (10-1), Michigan State (10-1), Ohio State (10-1), Notre Dame (10-1), Alabama (10-1) and Florida (10-1) from the Power 5. Stay tuned!

The other three one-loss teams – from the Group of 5 – have a shot at a spot in a New Year’s Six bowl. They are Houston (10-1), Navy (9-1) and Toledo (9-1). Stay tuned!

There were a number of wild games over the weekend. In the Pac-12, Arizona State outlasted Arizona, 52-37. UCLA knocked Utah out of the South Division contention. The Bruins beat the Utes, 17-9. Oregon continued its resurgence, beating USC, 48-28.

In a couple of stunners in the SEC, Ole Miss plastered LSU, 38-17, and Mississippi State edged Arkansas, 51-50. In the Big 12, Oklahoma survived TCU, 30-29. In the Big Ten, Northwestern upset Wisconsin, 13-7.

Air Force surprised Boise State on the Blue Carpet, 37-30. And in the AAC, Temple stymied Memphis, 31-12.

In the race for the Heisman Trophy, you can eliminate Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott and LSU’s Leonard Fournette. Both were disappointing in their respective teams’ losses. My current Top 4 for the Heisman, in no particular order, except alphabetical, are Alabama’s Derrick Henry, Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, Navy’s Keenan Reynolds and Clemson’s Deshaun Watson. Stay tuned!

Iowa State fired head coach Paul Rhoads, effective after the Cyclones’ last game this week against West Virginia in Morgantown. Saturday, Iowa State led Kansas State 35-14 at halftime. The Cyclones lost the game, 38-35. K-State shutout I-State in the second half, 24-0. Rhoads was 32-54 in seven seasons at Iowa State.

Meanwhile, reports out of Louisiana, calling for Les Miles firing from LSU, are becoming more prolific. The Tigers, once 7-0, are now 7-3. The reports say that LSU will go after Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher. Stay tuned!

Meanwhile, we keep hearing that Miami (Florida) is awfully interested in Charlie Strong. Apparently, the attitude in Austin regarding Strong is 50-50. About half of the Longhorn fans want to keep Strong, while the other half want him gone. Should Strong leave Texas, word is the Longhorns will make an aggressive attempt to get Nick Saban.

Houston Texans coach and former Penn State coach Bill O’Brien is reportedly interested in the Maryland job.

Hats off to South Florida coach Willie Taggart. The Bulls have really turned around their season this year. After starting out a dismal 1-3, South Florida has won six of its last seven games to improve its record to 7-4. Over the weekend, the Bulls beat Cincinnati 65-27.

And speaking of Cincinnati, a number of Bearcats fans are calling for Tommy Tuberville to be fired.

Other teams that got off to a rough start but have turned around their seasons are Air Force (8-3), Oregon (8-3), San Diego State (8-3) and Washington State (8-3).

So far, 13 schools have terminated or lost their coach this season. Eight fired their coach – Illinois, Maryland, USC, North Texas, Miami (Florida), Hawaii, Louisiana-Monroe and Iowa State. Three coaches retired – South Carolina, UCF and Virginia Tech. And two resigned for medical reasons – Minnesota and Missouri. Of the 13 schools, only Minnesota has named a new coach – Tracy Claeys, who was promoted from the defensive coordinator position.

Meanwhile, in the “You thought the Kansas State band was bad” category, last week the Harvard band outdid the K-State band. At halftime, in Harvard’s game against Penn, the Harvard band attempted – so they claim – to spell PEN 15 on the field. However, the PEN 15 came out looking more like PENIS. Harvard was 8-0 going into the game and lost to Penn, 35-25. Saturday, Harvard beat Yale, 38-19. Harvard, Dartmouth and Penn finished in a three-way tie for the Ivy League crown this year.

Back to the bands, you may remember earlier in the season when the Kansas State band formed the Kansas Jayhawk mascot logo with what was supposed to be – so they claim – the Starship Enterprise entering the Jayhawk’s mouth. However, the Enterprise looked more like an erect penis, complete with testicles.

I remember one time when I was in high school back in West Virginia there was an interesting occurrence in the pregame show at a high school game. One of the bands wanted to greet the other team’s fans by spelling HELLO on the field. The band members formed the HELL and the majorettes formed the O. However, the majorettes positioned themselves at the wrong end, and HELLO came out O HELL. As it turned out, it was only appropriate, because the band’s team lost 40-0.

Thursday evening, Swamp Mama and I picked up our friends Colin and Lyn at the Orlando International Airport. They were arriving from Spain via Dublin. As Swamp Mama and I were walking from the parking garage into the terminal, I noticed a group of folks decked out in Ohio State regalia. They were headed for the check-in counter. I figured they must be flying up to Columbus for the Michigan State game.

Bootsie, Rockledge Gator, Swamp Mama and I had another one of our Friday night pep rally dinner gatherings – this time at Amici’s. Bootsie and Rockledge Gator are driving to Birmingham for Thanksgiving, while Swamp Mama and I are headed to Punta Gorda.

And before I forget, I gave you an update a few weeks ago on Washington & Lee. At that point the Generals were 8-0 with two games remaining. Well, W&L finished its season undefeated at 10-0. In the last two games, the Generals beat Catholic U., 52-33, and Shenandoah, 34-21,

As a result, W&L qualified for the Division III playoffs. Saturday the Generals played Thomas Moore College in the first round. Unfortunately, I have to report that W&L lost to Thomas More, 51-21. Thomas Moore was also 10-0 coming into the game.

I hope South Carolina doesn’t schedule Washington & Lee next year. The Citadel? Really, South Carolina?

Oh well, when the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Touchdown Tom
November 23, 2015
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com


Weekend Recap

GAME OF THE WEEK: Chest pains – Michigan State 17, Ohio State 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Ohio State 31, Michigan State 24). The Michigan State defense totally shutdown the Ohio State offense, holding the Buckeyes to only 132 total yards – 86 yards rushing and 46 yards passing. Michigan State wasn’t a lot better on offense, except for rushing, where the Spartans racked up 203 yards on the ground. Ohio State only had 5 first downs. Michigan State dominated the clock – 38 minutes to 22 minutes. The Spartans won in spite of suffering two turnovers to none for the Buckeyes. After the game, Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott and Cardale Jones announced that they won’t be back next year. Both are juniors. Also, Elliott was critical of the Ohio State coaching staff and their play calling in the game. Attendance in Columbus: 108,975

RUNNER UP: Cowgirls don’t cry, but Cowboys do – Baylor 45, Oklahoma State 35 (Touchdown Tom said: Baylor 37, Oklahoma state 35). Tied 14-14 at the end of the first quarter, Baylor scored 24 unanswered points over the next two quarters and held a 38-14 lead midway through the third quarter. In the final 18 minutes of the game, Oklahoma State outscored Baylor 21-7. Baylor had 700 total yards, with a balanced rushing and passing attack. Okie State has no running game – only 8 yards rushing. Baylor won in spite of suffering three turnovers to none for the Cowboys. The Bears handed the Pokes their first loss of the season. Attendance in Stillwater: 58,669

REST OF THE BEST: Croaked – Oklahoma 30, TCU 29 (Touchdown Tom said: Oklahoma 31, TCU 23). Trailing 30-23, TCU scored a touchdown with 0:51 on the clock to pull within 1 point. But opting to go for 2 instead of 1, the Frogs failed on their conversion attempt. Oklahoma led 30-13 at the end of the third quarter. Then the Sooners got conservative on offense and liberal on defense. The Frogs outscored the Sooners 16-0 in the fourth quarter. Oklahoma rushed for 333 yards. TCU had four turnovers to one for Oklahoma. Attendance in Norman: 85,821

Holy – Toledo 44, Bowling Green 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Bowling Green 33, Toledo 29). Toledo jumped out to a 17-0 first quarter lead and Bowling Green never could recover. The Rockets had a more balanced attack, rushing and passing. The Falcons were all passing, only 96 yards rushing. Five turnovers hampered BG. Toledo improved its record to 9-1. Attendance in Bowling Green: 23,492

Blue Cheese – Northwestern 13, Wisconsin 7 (Touchdown Tom said: Wisconsin 22, Northwestern 19). Wisconsin had five turnovers to none for Northwestern, and the Wildcats held the Badgers to only 26 yards rushing. Combined, the teams had 412 total yards. Wisconsin had two TDs called back in the final minute of the game, following replay reviews. Badger fans began throwing snowballs at the referees. Attendance in Madison: 75,276

Where’s Elvis when you need him – Temple 31, Memphis 12 (Touchdown Tom said: Memphis 34, Temple 32). A close game for three quarters, Temple led Memphis 14-12 at the end of the third quarter. Then Temple outscored Memphis 17-0 in the fourth quarter. The Owls had a balanced attack – running and passing. The Tigers only had 76 yards rushing. Temple won in spite of suffering two turnovers to none for Memphis. Attendance in Philadelphia: 31,708

Bear hug – UCLA 17, Utah 9 (Touchdown Tom said: Utah 28, UCLA 24). The teams were pretty even in the stats. But Utah had two turnovers to none for UCLA. The Utes were the better rushing team. The Bruins were the better passing team. Attendance in Salt Lake City: 46,230

One State down, one to go – Michigan 28, Penn State 16 (Touchdown Tom said: Michigan 26, Penn State 19). Neither team had a ground game, but the Wolverines had a passing game. That was the difference. Michigan rushed for 87 yards, but passed for 256. The Lions only had 70 yards rushing. State’s Christian Hackenberg only completed 42% of his passes. The Lions were 3-for-14 (21%) in third down efficiency. Attendance in State College: 107,418

Sad hatter – Ole Miss 38, LSU 17 (Touchdown Tom said: LSU 27, Ole Miss 24). Early in the third quarter, the game was still close. Ole Miss led LSU, 24-17. Then the Rebel Bears outscored the Tigers 14-0 before the quarter was over. Neither team scored in the fourth quarter. LSU’s Brandon Harris passed for 324 yards. Leonard Fournette was a no show. Attendance in Oxford: 60,705

Too many Puddles – Oregon 48, USC 28 (Touchdown Tom said: Oregon 33, USC 27). Early in the third quarter, Oregon had a 38-14 lead. By the end of the quarter, USC pulled within 10 at 38-28. Then the Ducks outscored the Trojans 10-0 in the fourth quarter. Oregon racked up 578 total yards – 407 passing. Attendance in Eugene: 59,094

Up we go – Air Force 37, Boise State 30 (Touchdown Tom said: Boise State 31, Air Force 30). The amazing thing is that Air Force won the game in spite of suffering four turnovers (three interceptions and one fumble) to none for Boise State. The second quarter sewed it up for the Falcons. Air Force outscored the Broncos, 21-0, in the second quarter to take a 24-13 halftime lead. The teams played pretty even in the second half. The Falcons outgained Boise State 607 total yards to 378 for the Broncos. The second amazing thing in the game was Air Force passing for 279 yards – something almost unheard of from the Falcons. Air Force improved its record to 8-3. Boise State lost for the fourth time this season. Attendance in Boise: 30,332

Arboretum – Stanford 35, California 22 (Touchdown Tom said: Stanford 35, California 26). A close game entering the fourth quarter – Stanford led 21-16 – the Cardinal scored 14 unanswered points to lead 35-16 with 6:13 left in the game. Cal had 397 yards passing and Stanford had 260 yards rushing. Conversely, Cal had 98 yards rushing and Stanford had 96 yards passing. The Bears Jared Goff passed for 386 yards. Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey rushed for 192 yards. Attendance in Palo Alto: 51,424


….AND TWO TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

This little piggy went wee, wee, wee all the way home – Mississippi State 51, Arkansas 50 (Touchdown Tom said: Arkansas 28, Mississippi State 21). In a wild game, with big swings, Miss State led Arkansas, 31-14 late on the second quarter. Then the Hogs scored 28 unanswered points and led the Bulldogs 42-31 midway through the third quarter. Miss State scored 14 points to retake the lead at 44-42 midway through the fourth quarter. The teams traded touchdowns in the final 7 minutes, with Miss State scoring last with 3:05 on the clock. The teams combined for 1,110 total yards, but Arkansas only had 73 yards passing. Miss State’s Dak Prescott passed for 508 yards and five touchdowns. Attendance in Fayetteville: 71,936

The North is better than the West – Northern Illinois 27, Western Michigan 19 (Touchdown Tom said: Northern Illinois 31, Western Michigan 26). WMU came alive in the third quarter, outscoring NIU, 9-0, and taking a 19-14 lead. Then the Huskies bounced back in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Broncos, 13-0, to win the game, 27-19. WMU’s Zach Terrell passed for 331 yards and NIU’s Jordan Huff rushed for 159 yards. Attendance in DeKalb: 10,194


YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

No chalk Jayhawk – West Virginia 49, Kansas 0 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 30, Kansas 17). The Mountaineers built up a 42-0 first half lead and then went into cruise control in the second half. WVU had 630 total yards to 221 for Kansas. Rushing, the Eers had 426 yards. Three Mountaineers rushed for more than 100 yards – Skyler Howard (129 yards), Wendell Smallwood (115 yards) and Russell Shell (108 yards). Kansas was 2-for-15 (13%) in third-down efficiency. The Jayhawks were 13-for-38 (34%) passing. Attendance in Lawrence: 21,415

Saved by the refs – Florida 20, Florida Atlantic 14 (OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Florida 34, Florida Atlantic 14). Midway through the third quarter, Florida led FAU, 14-0. But the Gators didn’t score again until overtime. Both teams were weak on offense and strong on defense. The Owls dominated time of possession – 45 minutes to 30 minutes. Florida was the beneficiary of two back-to-back blown calls in overtime, either of which would have resulted in FAU most likely winning the game. Florida’s offensive line and kicking game were the Gators biggest enemy. Florida missed two reasonable-distance field goals and an extra point kick. Attendance in Gainesville: 90,107

Yahoo for the Wahoo – Virginia 42, Duke 34 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 21, Virginia 20). The Dookies trailed 21-7 at the end of the first quarter, 28-13 at the break and 42-20 at the end of the third quarter. Then the Devils scored 14 unanswered points and trailed the Cavs 42-34 at the midway point of the fourth quarter. Neither team scored in the final 7 minutes of the game. The teams were evenly matched in the stats. The Cavs Matt Johns passed for 344 yards. The Dookies still haven’t recovered from that game ending loss to Miami a few weeks back. After beginning the season 6-1, the Dookies have dropped four straight. Attendance in Charlottesville: 35,178

Dawg in the fog – Georgia 23, Georgia Southern 17 (OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Georgia 32, Georgia Southern 10). Like Florida, Georgia needed an overtime to subdue Georgia Southern. Trailing 17-14, Georgia kicked a 43-yard field goal with 6:06 left in the game to tie the score at 17-17. Sony Michel scored on a 25-yard run to give the Dawgs the win in overtime. Attendance in Athens: 92,746

Still undefeated – Iowa 40, Purdue 20 (Touchdown Tom said: Iowa 27, Purdue 13). Iowa jumped out to a 20-0 second quarter lead over Purdue. But, by early in the third quarter, the Boilers closed the gap to 7 points – 20-13. Then the Hawkeyes went back to work and built up a 33-13 lead. Each team added a touchdown in the final five minutes of the game. Attendance in Iowa City: 62,920

Week 12 Picks: 10 correct, 9 wrong (52.6%)
On the Season: 141 correct, 69 wrong (67.1%)


ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Miami 38, Georgia Tech 21 – Attendance in Miami Gardens: 51,355
Western Kentucky 63, Florida International 7 – Attendance in Miami: 14,380
Florida State 52, Chattanooga 13 – Attendance in Tallahassee: 66,412
East Carolina 44, UCF 7 – Attendance in Orlando: 23,734
South Florida 65, Cincinnati 27 – Attendance in Tampa: 26,522

Davidson 20, Stetson 17 – Attendance in Deland: 1,757
Jacksonville U. 58, Valparaiso 13 – Attendance in Jacksonville: 2,388
Bethune-Cookman 35, Florida A&M 14 – Attendance in Orlando: 45,728


Superlatives

Impressive Passers:

Miss State’s Dak Prescott – 38-50-1 for 508 yards; East Carolina’s Blake Kemp – 35-50-0-465; Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph – 27-50-0-430; Oregon’s Vernon Adams – 20-25-1-407; Arkansas’ Brandon Allen – 30-43-0-406; California’s Jared Goff – 37-54-0-386; Indiana’s Nate Sudfeld – 23-35-0-385, and South Carolina’s Perry Orth – 28-43-1-367.

Also, Rice’s Driphus Jackson – 23-40-2 for 359 yards; Virginia’s Matt Johns – 24-33-1-344; Clemson’s Deshaun Watson – 24-35-2-343; Central Michigan’s Cooper Rush – 20-34-0-337; BYU’s Tanner Mangum – 24-37-0-336; Texas A&M’s Kyle Allen – 18-36-0-336; Western Michigan’s Zach Terrell – 21-37-1-331, and LSU’s Brandon Harris – 26-51-2-324.

Also, Middle Tennessee’s Brent Stockstill – 27-38-1 for 322 yards; Arizona State’s Mike Bercovici – 21-32-1-315; San Jose State’s Kenny Potter – 23-32-0-312; Georgia State’s Nick Arbuckle – 27-44-0-311; Arizona’s Brandon Dawkins – 16-30-2-305; Southern Miss’ Nick Mullens – 21-37-1-302, and Miami of Florida’s Brad Kaaya – 16-25-0-300.


Impressive Rushers:

Maryland’s Brandon Ross – 250 yards; Iowa State’s Mike Warren – 195 yards; Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey – 192 yards; New Mexico State’s Larry Rose – 191 yards; Oklahoma’s Samaje Perine – 188 yards; Hawaii’s Paul Harris – 179 yards; Minnesota’s Shannon Brooks – 174 yards; Kentucky’s Jojo Kemp – 165 yards, and UTSA’s Jarveon Williams – 163 yards.

Also, Southern Miss’ Jalen Richard – 161 yards; Northern Illinois’ Jordan Huff – 159 yards; Louisiana-Lafayette’s Elijah McGuire – 159 yards; SMU’s Matt Davis – 157 yards; Toledo’s Kareem Hunt – 153 yards; Pitt’s Qadree Ollison – 152 yards; Boise State’s Jeremy McNichols – 151 yards, and Tennessee’s Jalen Hurd – 151 yards.


Quotes of the Week:

“The most important thing is my players. I’m going to miss scolding them when I had to scold them, hugging and touching them every day,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel, at his press conference last week, explaining his retirement.

“When you get it, it’s so numbing. For a week you look at yourself and say, ‘You have to be kidding me,’” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel, on being diagnosed with lymphoma.

“It’s all rumors. We’re here to build a program. I’m not going to Miami. I’m here to stay at Texas,” Texas coach Charlie Strong, on rumors he is going to Miami.

“They ran through our ass like shit through a tin horn, man, and we could not stop them,” Alabama coach Nick Saban, at his press conference last week, on Georgia Southern rushing for 302 yards against Alabama in 2011.

“Of course that doesn’t mean Charleston Southern will have the same success. I mean, Georgia Southern may have gone through Alabama’s tin horn like that, but I’m assuming Alabama bought a new tin horn since then. I know I would get a new one if somebody did that to mine,” CBS Sports staff writer Tom Fornelli, responding to Nick Saban’s comment.

“We need to collectively apologize to Baylor. The Bears aren’t the most overrated team in the country. It’s actually defending national champion Ohio State,” ESPN staff writer Mark Schlabach.

“I’m disappointed in the play calling. I’m disappointed in the situations we were put in. I deserve more than 12 carries. I really do. I can’t speak for the play caller. I don’t know what was going on,” Ohio State running back Ezekiel Elliott, after the Michigan State game.


Signs of the Week

Corso Picked Rousey

We Should Take Michigan And Push It Somewhere Else

Connor Cook: The Next Tim Couch

Fire Tommy Tuberville


Touchdown Tom’s predictions for
This Week’s 12 Biggest and Most Intriguing Games…and then some

GAME OF THE WEEK: 1. Oklahoma (10-1) at Oklahoma State (10-1) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 8 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – Bedlam! And it will be. If Oklahoma wins, the Sooners stand a good chance of making the playoffs. If Okie State wins, the Big 12 can forget the playoffs again this season, unless Baylor can find a way to slip in. Last week against TCU, the Sooners looked great in the first half and awful in the second half. Last week against Baylor, the Cowboys lost their stride and never could get it back. OU has more to shoot for in this game. And the Cowboys get shot – Oklahoma 35, Oklahoma State 31.

RUNNER UP: 2. Navy (9-1) at Houston (10-1) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 12 noon ET, Friday, ABC – The winner of this game wins the AAC West title and will play in the AAC championship game. Last week, the Cougars suffered their first loss. They were upset by Connecticut. Houston probably got caught looking ahead to this game. Navy is riding a five-game winning streak. Make it six – Navy 31, Houston 29.

REST OF THE BEST: 3. Ohio State (10-1) at Michigan (9-2) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ABC – The winner of this game still has a chance of winning the Big Ten East division. That is if Michigan State loses to Penn State. If Ohio State wins and beats Iowa in the Big Ten title game, the Buckeyes could find themselves back in the playoff picture. But if Michigan wins and beats Iowa, the Wolverines will not be in the playoff picture. In that scenario, no one from the Big Ten would make the playoffs. Following the loss to Michigan State, Ohio State appears to be a disconnected team. Michigan is riding a four-game winning streak. The Wolverines make it five – Michigan 24, Ohio State 20.

4. Notre Dame (10-1) at Stanford (9-2) – (Ind. vs. Pac-12) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – If Notre Dame beats Stanford, the Irish aren’t a lock for the playoffs, but they are in good position to make the playoffs. Stanford, on the other hand, is playing for pride. The Trees have no chance of making the playoffs. But Christian McCaffrey could be playing for the Heisman. The Irish check into the Hotel California and they can’t check out – Stanford 26, Notre Dame 23.

5. Florida State (9-2) at Florida (10-1) – (ACC vs. SEC) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – Win out and Florida has a possibility of making the playoffs. Not that the Gators are necessarily a playoff caliber team. What little offense the Gators have had this season was lost in the Vanderbilt game and hasn’t been found since. Florida will definitely need to find it if they expect to have any kind of chance against Florida State. FSU will be playing for pride. With two losses, the Bingo Boys aren’t going anywhere near the playoffs. And is Jimbo Fisher focused on this game, or on a job in Baton Rouge or somewhere else? The Gators “D” comes to the rescue, again – Florida 17, Florida State 14.

6. Baylor (9-1) at TCU (9-2) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 7:30 pm ET, Friday, ESPN – These two teams were supposed to be playing for the Big 12 championship. Actually, Baylor will be if Oklahoma loses to Oklahoma State. TCU is just playing for pride and a better bowl. Both teams are playing with backup quarterbacks. But both backup quarterbacks have been playing pretty good. Both teams have a good running back – Shock Linwood for the Bears and Aaron Greene for the Frogs. The defense will be the difference in this game. The Bears, but just barely – Baylor 34, TCU 27.

7. Marshall (9-2) at Western Kentucky (9-2) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 12 noon ET, Friday, FS1 – Last year, Marshall was one game short of an undefeated season and along came the Hilltoppers and spoiled the picture for the Herd. The winner wins the C-USA East Division and will play either Louisiana Tech or Southern Miss for the C-USA title. WKU has a potent offense. The Hilltoppers also have the home field – Western Kentucky 37, Marshall 24.

8. Penn State (7-4) at Michigan State (10-1) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – Unless the Spartans have a post Ohio State let down, they will win the Big Ten East and play Iowa for the conference title. But a letdown isn’t out of the realm. Anything is possible. Penn State won’t make it easy for the Spartans. But it will be party time in East Lansing – Michigan State 26, Penn State 19.

9. North Carolina (10-1) at NC State (7-4) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC/ESPN2 – Following an opening game loss to South Carolina, the Tar Heels have had an amazing run. They have won 10 straight. Unfortunately for the Tar Heels, they haven’t played anybody. Well, maybe Pitt. So if UNC was to win out, beating Clemson in the ACC title game, the Tar Heels would not make the playoffs. But, first things first – UNC has this rivalry game with the Wolfpack. It could be troublesome for the Heels. But not that troublesome – North Carolina 40, NC State 30.

10. Ole Miss (8-3) at Mississippi State (8-3) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7:15 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – Believe it or not, Ole Miss can still win the SEC West. But the Rebel Bears must beat Miss State and Alabama would have to lose to Auburn for this to happen. Ole Miss could beat Miss State, but Bama won’t lose to Auburn. So the Rebel Bears can forget Atlanta. Both of these teams have looked good and bad throughout the season, but mostly good. Both are coming off big wins – Ole Miss over LSU and Miss State over Arkansas. Chip is hip, but Dak has tact – Mississippi State 35, Ole Miss 34.

11. Alabama (10-1) at Auburn (6-5) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, CBS – I know, this is a rivalry. You’d like to think that Auburn has a chance. But the Tigers don’t. This is like an NFL team playing a high school team. Bama fans can book their trip to Atlanta, not that they haven’t already. Auburn fans can book their trip to Shreveport, not that any will bother to go. It’s been a tough year for the Tigers. It will be tougher after this game – Alabama 34, Auburn 17.

12. Southern Miss (8-3) at Louisiana Tech (8-3) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FSN – The winner of this game gets to play Western Kentucky for the C-USA championship. That’s assuming WKU beats Marshall. Southern Miss is riding a five-game winning streak. Louisiana Tech is on a four-game winning streak. One of these winning streaks comes to an end. And it won’t be the Bulldogs’ – Louisiana Tech 35, Southern Miss 30.


….AND TWO TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

13. Texas A&M (8-3) at LSU (7-3) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, SECN – Both coaches are on the hot seat, but Les Miles’ seat is hotter – much hotter. If the Tigers lose, figure Miles is a gonner. He won’t survive four losses in a row. The game will be interesting. A&M is playing with LSU’s old defensive coordinator – John Chavis. That adds to the intrigue. The Mad Hatter pulls a trick out of his hat – LSU 27, Texas A&M 20.

14. UCLA (8-3) at USC (7-4) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC/ESPN2 – The winner of this game wins the Pac-12 South Division. The winner will play Stanford for the Pac-12 championship. Anything could happen. This is a big rivalry. But in the end, the Bruins have the better defense. Josh is posh; Cody is grody – UCLA 34, USC 23.


YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

Iowa State (3-8) at West Virginia (6-4) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FS1 – Following the four games from hell – Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor and TCU – West Virginia has found success again, beating Texas Tech, Texas and Kansas. It’s like a whole new season for the Mounties. The success should continue against the Cyclones. But Iowa State will be fired up, as it will be Paul Rhoads last game coaching the Cyclones. Rhoads was fired on Sunday, effective after the West Virginia game. Cy gets baked in a pie – West Virginia 34, Iowa State 18.

Iowa (11-0) at Nebraska (5-6) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 3:30 pm ET, Friday, ABC – All right! This is my upset of the week. It may have been a tough year for the Huskers, but when it is over, Nebraska can say it beat both the Big Ten East champ and the Big Ten West champ. Not bad. Iowa can’t handle the pressure of staying undefeated. Herbie gets his Bird – Nebraska 28, Iowa 27.

Duke (6-5) at Wake Forest (3-8) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 12:30 pm ET, Saturday, ACCN – The Dookies have dropped four-straight games. Of course, Wake has lost five-straight games. Neither team has looked good lately. The Demon Deacons continue to look bad – Duke 25, Wake Forest 18.

Georgia (8-3) at Georgia Tech (3-8) – (SEC vs. ACC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – Unless Georgia pulls a Florida State against Tech, the Dawgs shouldn’t have anything to worry about. The Jackets are 1-8 in their last nine games. They are hopeless. Make it 1-9 in their last 10 games – Georgia 22, Georgia Tech 12.

Texas Tech (6-5) at Texas (4-6) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 7:30 pm ET, Thursday, FS1 – It’s been a tough season for both teams, especially for the Longhorns. A loss to the Red Raiders could be curtains for Charlie Strong. It also means Texas wouldn’t qualify for a bowl game. Tech has actually performed pretty much to its expectations this season. The Red Raiders weren’t expected to be any better than 7-5 or 6-6. But Tech would love to cap its season with a win over the Longhorns. A lot probably depends on the passing of Patrick Mahomes. The Horns are silenced – Texas Tech 35, Texas 33.

Indiana (5-6) at Purdue (2-9) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, BTN – Indiana needs a win to become bowl eligible. Purdue would love to keep the Hoosiers out of a bowl. The Boilers would love to do a lot of things, but the problem is they have only done anything two times all season. Indiana is hungry. The Hoosiers go looking for a bowl. And the Boilers can’t stop them – Indiana 38, Purdue 29.


ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Miami (7-4) at Pitt (8-3)– (ACC vs. ACC) – 12 noon ET, Friday, ESPN2....
FAU (2-9) at Old Dominion (5-6) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ASN….
South Florida (7-4) at UCF (0-11) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 7:30 pm ET, Thursday, ESPN….
Florida International (5-7) has completed its season.

Bethune-Cookman (9-2), Florida A&M (1-10), Jacksonville U. (9-2) and Stetson (3-8) have completed their seasons.


In the Huddle

Elsewhere around college football . . . Thirty-five-year-old Danny White was named the new athletic director at UCF. White is currently the athletic director at Buffalo. White’s father – Kevin White – is the AD at Duke. A brother – Mike White – is the basketball coach at Florida and his other brother – Brian White – is the senior associate AD at Missouri. White’s first duty will be to find a new football coach for UCF…. Miami (Florida) has named former players Vinny Testaverde and Jonathan Vilma to its search committee for a new coach.

Touchdown Tom
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com


P.S.

Not exactly college football related, but as the regular season was coming to a climax and Thanksgiving turkeys and pumpkin pies were almost in the oven the number one song in the country…

…75 years ago this week in 1940 was “Only Forever” by Bing Crosby

…70 years ago this week in 1945 was “It’s Been A Long, Long Time” by Harry James and His Orchestra

…65 years ago this week in 1950 was “Harbor Lights” by Sammy Kaye and His Orchestra

…60 years ago this week in 1955 was “Autumn Leaves” by Roger Williams

…55 years ago this week in 1960 was “Stay” by Maurice Williams and The Zodiacs

…50 years ago this week in 1965 was “I Hear A Symphony” by The Supremes

…45 years ago this week in 1970 was “I Think I Love You” by The Partridge Family

…40 years ago this week in 1975 was “That’s The Way (I Like It)” by KC and The Sunshine Band

…35 years ago this week in 1980 was “Lady” by Kenny Rogers

…30 years ago this week in 1985 was “We Built This City” by Starship

…25 years ago this week in 1990 was “Love Takes Time” by Mariah Carey


Not exactly college football related, but there were two passings of note last week – P.F. Sloan and Bert Olmstead.

P.F. Sloan, a singer-songwriter whose apocalyptic anthem “Eve of Destruction,” written when he was 19, was a seminal protest song of the 1960s and a No. 1 hit for singer Barry McGuire, died last week at his home in Los Angeles. He was 70. In the 1960s, Sloan was a prominent figure in the pop music world. He and co-writer Steve Barri wrote several songs, including “I Found a Girl” (Jan and Dean), “Let Me Be” (Turtles), “A Must to Avoid” (Herman’s Hermits) and “Secret Agent Man” (Johnny Rivers). “Eve of Destruction” was clearly influenced by Bob Dylan and different from anything else Sloan had written before. In 1968, Sloan recorded an album, “Measure of Pleasure.” Shortly after that, he retreated from the music business and into seclusion. Early in the 1970s, songwriter Jimmy Webb wrote and published a song “P.F. Sloan,” lionizing Sloan’s musical spirit. Later, Sloan battled drug abuse and mental illness. Philip Gary Schlein was born in New York City in 1945 and grew up there and on Long Island. His family moved to Los Angles in 1956-57 and changed their name to Sloan. The F in P.F. came from the nickname, Flip. His first song with Barri was “Kick That Little Foot, Sally Ann,” a hit in 1964 by Round Robin. Sloan released three more albums between 1993 and 2014.

Bert Olmstead, who played on five Stanley Cup championship teams, four times with the Montreal Canadiens of the 1950s, died last week in High River, Alberta. He was 89. Olmstead played in the NHL for 14 seasons. After four titles with the Canadiens, he led the Toronto Maple Leafs to the championship in 1961-62, his final season. Murray Albert Olmstead was born on September 4, 1926, in the town of Sceptre, Saskatchewan. He made his NHL debut in the 1948-49 season.

College Football Week 12 – Can the Spartans beat the Buckeyes?
East End toys and West End noise

Yeah, I know. The lyrics are East End boys and West End girls. (That was a good song, wasn’t it?) But Saturday, it was more like East End toys and West End noise in college football.

The top teams in the East just toyed with their opponents. Out West, it was a different story. There was a lot of noise. Five top teams fell, while one other had a close, very close, call.

In the East, No. 1 Clemson just toyed with Syracuse, beating the Orange 37-27. The Tigers jumped out to a 14-0 lead only to see the Orange come back and tie the score at 14 all. But 6 or so minutes later, Clemson was up 28-14. Each team kicked a field goal and the Tigers led 31-17 at the break.

In the third quarter, Syracuse closed the gap to 7 points, trailing the Tigers, 31-24. A few minutes later, Clemson was up 34-24. The Orange made it interesting again, adding another 7 to trail the Tigers 34-27. Clemson added a field goal to increase its lead to 10 points and that’s how the game ended – 37-27.

Clemson never quite shook the Orange, but you never felt the Tigers were going to lose the game. They always kept their distance. Clemson racked up 570 total yards, including Deshaun Watson’s 360 yards passing. Watson also added another 105 yards rushing. It was a Heisman performance. Clemson had 29 first downs to 16 for Syracuse, and the Tigers held the Orange to 80 yards passing.

No. 2 Alabama was supposed to be tested by No. 17 Mississippi State, but it was not to be. The Tide just toyed with Miss State, downing the Bulldogs 31-6. The game was close for one quarter – 0-0 at the end of the first. Then Alabama went to work in the second quarter, pouring it on Miss State, 21-3. The Tide went on to outscore the Bulldogs in the second half, 10-3.

Like Clemson’s Deshaun Watson in the Syracuse game, Alabama’s Derrick Henry put on a Heisman performance against Miss State, rushing for 204 yards, averaging 9.3 yards per carry and scoring two touchdowns.

Likewise, No. 3 Ohio State toyed with Illinois. The Buckeyes scored one touchdown in each quarter, dumping the Banned Indians, 28-3. Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 181 yards, scoring two touchdowns and averaging 6.7 yards per carry – a Heisman performance of his own. All the while, the Buckeyes defense held Illinois to only 20 yards rushing.

In South Bend, No. 4 Notre Dame toyed with Wake Forest, downing the Demon Deacons, 28-7. The Irish didn’t look all that impressive, as they took advantage of three Wake Forest turnovers. But with a 21-0 halftime lead, there was never any doubt that the Irish were going to win. It just wasn’t a real smooth win. Notre Dame could fall a spot or two in the poll this week.

No. 11 Florida spent most of its game with South Carolina toying with the Gamecocks. The Gators built up a 17-0 lead over the Cocks, entering the fourth quarter. Then Florida let South Carolina back into the game in the final quarter. The Gamecocks scored the second of two touchdowns with 4:49 to go in the game to pull within 3 points at 17-14. However, two minutes and 48 seconds later, the Gators scored a touchdown to put the game out of reach. Florida won 24-14.

The Gators defense held South Carolina to 201 total yards, 21 yards rushing and only 13 first downs. Florida controlled the ball for 40 minutes of the game.

In a messy game that included seven turnovers, No. 13 Michigan State put away Maryland, 24-7. The Spartans didn’t look good, but there was little doubt about the outcome. No. 16 Florida State made play dough out of NC State, dispensing of the Wolfpack, 34-17. The Seminoles had 479 total yards to 297 for NC State.

No. 20 Navy made mince meat out of SMU, thumping the Mustangs, 55-14. Leading SMU 34-14 at the end of the third quarter, the Middies outscored SMU 21-0 in the final quarter. Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds rushed for 137 yards, scoring four touchdowns. And finally, No. 23 North Carolina built up a commanding 45-0 lead over Miami (Florida), before going on to beat the Canes, 59-21. Think the Playoff Committee will take notice?

So much for the toys.

In the West End, it was mostly noise, as some biggies took an unexpected tumble, while another biggie came close to tumbling. First, No. 6 and previously undefeated Baylor lost to No. 12 Oklahoma. The Sooners downed the Bears, 44-34. The game was close throughout until 4:47 left on the clock when Oklahoma took a 10-point lead that held up until the final gun. The Sooners Baker Mayfield (270 yards passing) and Samaje Perine (166 yards rushing) were the stars of the game.

OU had 511 total yards and 28 first downs to 18 for Baylor. The Sooners controlled the ball for 35 minutes compared to 25 minutes for the Bears.

Then No. 7 Stanford was stunned at home by upstart Oregon. The Ducks edged the Cardinal, 38-36. Stanford failed on a two-point conversion attempt in the final 10 seconds of the game. Stanford dominated the game in both statistics and ball control. But the Cardinal also suffered three turnovers.

No. 8 and undefeated Oklahoma State got the scare of its season. Early in the second quarter, Iowa State led the Cowboys 24-7. At the end of the third quarter, the Cyclones led Okie State, 31-21. But the Cowboys scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, the second coming with 3:06 on the clock, to rally and beat Iowa State, 35-31.

In Tucson, No. 10 Utah lost a doozy to Arizona. The Wildcats upset the Utes, 37-30, in two overtimes. In regulation, the Utes controlled the ball for 37 minutes to 23 minutes for Arizona. But Utah couldn’t take advantage of the ball control.

The Pac-12 was full of upsets, Saturday. No. 19 UCLA lost at home to Washington State, 31-27. In a game where the lead changed hands seven times, the Cougars, trailing 27-24, scored with three seconds left to upset the Bruins.

In a matchup between the No. 21 and No. 24 teams, No. 24 Houston beat No. 21 Memphis 35-34. The Cougars trailed the Tigers 20-0 late in the second quarter, and 34-14 early in the fourth quarter. Then Houston scored 21 unanswered points in the final 13 minutes of the game to pull out the victory.

As much toying that went on in the East End, there was a little noise to be heard. No. 9 LSU lost for the second week in a row. The Tigers fell to Arkansas, 31-14. And for the second week, Leonard Fournette was held to less than 100 yards rushing. No. 14 Michigan was taken to two overtimes by Indiana before the Wolverines could finally subdue the Hoosiers, 48-41. In Tampa, No. 22 Temple was upset by South Florida, 44-23. From the midway point in the second quarter, Temple was never in the game.

So, going into Week 12, there are only five undefeated teams: Clemson (10-0), Oklahoma State (10-0), Iowa (10-0), Ohio State (10-0) from the Power 5, and Houston (10-0) from the Group of 5.

There are only 10 one-loss teams. They are North Carolina (9-1), Baylor (8-1), Oklahoma (9-1), TCU (9-1), Notre Dame (9-1), Michigan State (9-1), Alabama (9-1), Florida (9-1) from the Power 5, and Navy (8-1) and Toledo (8-1) from the Group of 5.

In some other games of note over the weekend, Vanderbilt won its second SEC game of the season. The Commodores beat Kentucky, 21-17. Kentucky began the season 4-1, but has now dropped five straight. Following a week of turmoil, emotions, interruption and distraction, Missouri held up to beat BYU, 20-16. The Tigers defense held BYU to 46 yards rushing. Hats off to Mizzou coach Gary Pinkel.

In the Mountain West, New Mexico upset Boise State in Boise, 31-24. It was a strange game because Boise State had 40 first downs to 11 for New Mexico. The Broncos had 638 total yards to 413 for the Lobos. New Mexico upped its record to 6-4. In his fourth year at New Mexico, former Notre Dame coach and ESPN commentator Bob Davie appears to be turning around the program in Albuquerque. In another wild one in the Mountain West, Air Force edged Utah State, 35-28. The score was 35-28 at the end of the third quarter. Neither team scored in the fourth quarter.

In the SEC, Georgia downed Auburn, 20-13, to continue the Tigers frustrations. West Virginia took advantage of five Texas turnovers, as the Mountaineers downed the Longhorns, 38-20.

My feeling is the Heisman is a three-man race going into Week 12 between Clemson’s Deshaun Watson, Alabama’s Derrick Henry and Ohio State’s Ezekiel Elliott. Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey would be a distant fourth. LSU’s Leonard Fournette and TCU’s Trevone Boykin have fallen by the wayside.

Listening to ESPN’s Dave Fleming and Mack Brown broadcast a game is painful. It’s like listening to Sheldon Cooper of “The Big Bang Theory” and Grandpa Jones of “Hee Haw” cover a game. The problem is ESPN, FOX, CBS, etc., are covering so many games that there just are not enough good sportscasters to go around.

And speaking of sportscasters and commentators on ESPN, some just don’t know how to dress, a la Greg McElroy, Danny Kanell, Tim Tebow and Jesse Palmer. The Tweets on Twitter are not kind to these guys and their apparel.

I had another good time last week talking college football with Mark Moses on the “Mark Moses Show” on Sports Radio 1560 The Fan. Mark’s show runs from 3-6 p.m. weekdays on 1560.

Swamp Mama and I spent the past few days in the panhandle visiting with Princess Gator, Bama Gator, Gator Gabe and Gator Babe. We returned home yesterday. As we turned onto I-75 South off of I-10, Rockledge Gator and Bootsie were about 50 miles north of us, heading South on I-75. They had been at the Georgia-Auburn football game Saturday.

Will it be another week of East End toys and West End noise or vice versa? Stay tuned!

Touchdown Tom
November 16, 2015
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com


Weekend Recap

GAME OF THE WEEK: No longer undefeated – Oklahoma 44, Baylor 34 (Touchdown Tom said: Baylor 34, Oklahoma 31). Three turnovers, a weak defense and the lack of Seth Russell combined to bring Baylor’s downfall. And, oh yes, OU’s Baker Mayfield and Samaje Perine were clicking on all cylinders, as the Sooners handed the Bears their first loss of the season. OU had 511 total yards, which included Mayfield’s 270 yards passing and Perine’s 166 yards rushing. Baylor’s Jarrett Stidham threw two interceptions. Attendance in Waco: 49,875

RUNNER UP: Still undefeated – Houston 35, Memphis 34 (Touchdown Tom said: Houston 37, Memphis 34). Houston handed Memphis its second-straight loss, but it wasn’t easy for the Cougars. The Tigers outgained Houston 490 yards to 392 yards. The Cougars only had 96 yards rushing and trailed Memphis, 20-7 at halftime. But Houston outscored the Tigers, 21-7, in the fourth quarter. Houston improved to 10-0. Attendance in Houston: 42,159

REST OF THE BEST: Oh Henry – Alabama 31, Mississippi State 6 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 28, Mississippi State 21). Miss State was no contest for the Tide. The Bulldogs are a one-dimensional team with Dak Prescott. They have no running game. Bama held the Bulldogs to 89 yards rushing. Bama’s Derrick Henry rushed for 204 yards. Attendance in Starkville: 62,435

They’re back – Oregon 38, Stanford 36 (Touchdown Tom said: Stanford 31, Oregon 23). The third quarter killed Stanford. The Trees led 23-21 at halftime, but the Ducks outscored Stanford 14-0 in the third quarter. The Trees rallied in the fourth, pulling within two points on a touchdown with 10 seconds left in the game. But Stanford failed to convert its two-point conversion attempt. Stanford outgained Oregon 506 total yards to 436. The Trees Christian McCaffrey rushed for 147 yards. The Ducks have won four straight. Attendance in Palo Alto: 48,633

Hey Playoff Committee! – North Carolina 59, Miami (Florida) 21 (Touchdown Tom said: North Carolina 30, Miami 24). The Tar Heels were definitely trying to make an impact on the Playoff Selection Committee. They probably did. North Carolina led 45-0 before the Canes even scored. Miami’s Brad Kaaya passed for 326 yards. The Tar Heels had two 100-yard rushers – Elijah Hood (132 yards) and Marquise Williams (101 yards). Attendance in Chapel Hill: 61,000

The Cougs are for real – Washington State 31, UCLA 27 (Touchdown Tom said: UCLA 34, Washington State 32). The Cougars scored a touchdown with 0:03 on the clock to win the game. Wazzu won the game with only 38 yards rushing. Both quarterbacks passed for more than 330 yards. Wazzu has won five of its last six games. Attendance in Pasadena: 76,255

B-I-N-G-O – Florida State 34, NC State 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Florida State 33, NC State 22). NC State scored all 17 of its points in the first quarter. The Wolfpack led 17-7 going into the second quarter. Then the Noles scored 27 unanswered points. NC State was held to 79 yards rushing. Attendance in Tallahassee: 71,210

Desert storm – Arizona 37, Utah 30 (2OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Utah 36, Arizona 27). The teams were evenly matched in the stats. The score was 27-27 at the end of four quarters. Coming into the game, Arizona had lost three straight. Attendance in Tucson: 48,912

MAC East champs – Bowling Green 41, Western Michigan 27 (Touchdown Tom said: Bowling Green 38, Western Michigan 32). The score was tied 27-27 early in the third quarter. Then BG scored 14 unanswered points. The Falcons Travis Greene rushed for 170 yards. BG improved to 8-2. Attendance in Kalamazoo: 14,436

Barred Owls – South Florida 44, Temple 23 (Touchdown Tom said: Temple 22, South Florida 20). South Florida built up a 31-10 halftime lead. The teams exchanged 13 points apiece in the second half. USF tallied 536 total yards, with Marlon Mack rushing for 230 yards. The Bulls are 5-1 in their last six games. Attendance in Tampa: 28,393

Feeling some pressure – Iowa 40, Minnesota 35 (Touchdown Tom said: Iowa 33, Minnesota 23). Iowa held a 24-14 lead at the half. Then the Hawkeyes held on to win in the second half. The Hawkeyes racked up 506 total yards, including LeShun Daniels 195 yards rushing. Iowa improved to 10-0. Attendance in Iowa City: 70,585

Where’s Leo? – Arkansas 31, LSU 14 (Touchdown Tom said: LSU 27, Arkansas 26). Arkansas had a 21-7 halftime lead over LSU and the Hogs outscored the Tigers 7-0 in the fourth quarter. Arkansas held LSU to 59 yards rushing. For the second-straight week, Leonard Fournette was a no show. The Hogs Alex Collins rushed for 141 yards. Attendance in Baton Rouge: 101,699


….AND TWO TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

Rocking Rockets – Toledo 28, Central Michigan 23 (Touchdown Tom said: Toledo 29, Central Michigan 22). Toledo had a good first half and a bad second half, as the Rockets held on to beat CMU. Both quarterbacks passed for more than 300 yards. But CMU only had 59 yards rushing. Toledo improved to 8-1. Attendance in Mount Pleasant: 13,490

On the skids – Pitt 31, Duke 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Duke 25, Pitt 24). The loss to Miami two weeks ago must have taken everything out of the Dookies. The Devils have now dropped three straight. Meanwhile, Pitt improved to 7-3. Attendance in Durham: 30,241


YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

Messed ’em – West Virginia 38, Texas 20 (Touchdown Tom said: West Virginia 34, Texas 23). The Mountaineers took advantage of five Texas turnovers. WVU’s Wendell Smallwood rushed for 165 yards. The Mounties improved to 5-4 and won their second-straight Big 12 game. Attendance in Morgantown: 56,736

Albert raids the Hen house – Florida 24, South Carolina 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Florida 21, South Carolina 12). Florida built up a 17-0 third-quarter lead, and then held on to beat South Carolina, as the Cocks mounted a 14-point rally in the fourth quarter. The Gators outgained the Cocks 404 yards to 201. Florida’s defense limited South Carolina to only 21 yards rushing. Attendance in Columbia: 78,536

Rutgers was no Purdue – Nebraska 31, Rutgers 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Nebraska 36, Rutgers 26). The Huskers played good defense, holding Rutgers to 89 yards rushing and 170 yards passing. Together, the teams suffered five turnovers – all interceptions. Attendance in Piscataway: 45,606

No War in this Eagle – Georgia 20, Auburn 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Auburn 24, Georgia 18). In what had to be a boring game, Auburn totally fell apart in the second half. The Dawgs outscored the Tigers, 17-3, following the break. The teams only combined for 518 total yards. Both teams passed for less than 100 yards each. Three turnovers hurt Auburn. Attendance in Auburn: 87,451

Cutting it close – Northwestern 21, Purdue 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Northwestern 30, Purdue 17). Tied 14-14 late in the fourth quarter, Northwestern scored a touchdown with 4:37 remaining in the game. The Wildcats held on to win. The Boilers were held to 73 yards rushing. Purdue’s David Blough passed for 287 yards. The Wildcats improved to 8-2. Attendance in Evanston: 30,003

Week 11 Picks: 11 correct, 8 wrong (57.9%)
On the Season: 131 correct, 60 wrong (68.6%)


ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Middle Tennessee 24, Florida Atlantic 17 – Attendance in Boca Raton: 13,233
Marshall 52, Florida International 0 – Attendance in Huntington: 26,572

Morgan State 21, Florida A&M 7 – Attendance in Baltimore: 1,167
Stetson 60, Ave Maria 21 – Attendance in Deland: 3,825
Jacksonville U. 20, Campbell 14 – Attendance in Buies Creek: 4,170
Valdosta State 39, Florida Tech 21 – Attendance in Valdosta: 4,434


Superlatives

Impressive Passers:

Georgia State’s Nick Arbuckle – 23-34-2 for 471 yards; California’s Jared Goff – 26-37-1-453; Michigan’s Jake Rudock – 33-46-1-440; Southern Miss’ Nick Mullens – 23-31-0-386; Cincinnati’s Gunner Kiel – 29-42-1-386; Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes – 33-42-0-384; Tulsa’s Dane Evans – 30-49-0-375; Utah State’s Kent Myers – 25-47-1-364, and Clemson’s Deshaun Watson – 34-47-1-360.

Also, Central Michigan’s Cooper Rush – 33-52-1 for 354 yards; UCLA’s Josh Rosen – 33-57-0-340; Washington State’s Luke Falk – 38-53-1-331; Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph – 24-36-0-327; Miami’s Brad Kaaya – 24-43-1-326; Toledo’s Phillip Ely – 23-39-0-322; Stanford’s Kevin Hogan – 28-37-1-304; Middle Tennessee’s Brent Stockstill – 18-32-1-301; Arkansas State’s Fredi Knighten – 15-30-0-300, and Mississippi’s State’s Dak Prescott – 22-43-1-300.


Impressive Rushers:

Texas Tech’s DeAndre Washington – 248 yards; Appalachian State’s Jalin Moore – 244; Indiana’s Jordan Howard – 238 yards; South Florida’s Marlon Mack – 230 yards; Alabama’s Derrick Henry – 204 yards; Iowa’s LeShun Daniels – 195 yards; Ezekiel Elliott – 181 yards; UTSA’s Jarveon Williams – 181 yards, and TCU’s Aaron Green – 177 yards.

Also, Bowling Green’s Travis Greene – 170 yards; Massachusetts’ Marquis Williams – 168 yards; Oklahoma’s Samaje Perine – 166 yards; West Virginia’s Wendell Smallwood – 165 yards; Northern Illinois’ Joel Bouagnon – 156 yards; San Diego State’s Chase Price – 152 yards, and Colorado State’s Dalyn Dawkins – 151 yards.


Quote of the Week

“Georgia appears to be like Georgia is every year. They take you almost there and then they let you down,” Gainesville Sun sports columnist Pat Dooley, on Georgia.


Sign of the Week

Iowa? Really??


Touchdown Tom’s Predictions for
This Week’s 12 Biggest and Most Intriguing Games…and then some

GAME OF THE WEEK: 1. Michigan State (9-1) at Ohio State (10-0) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – At last, the Buckeyes finally play a decent team. After 10 cupcake games, Ohio State may have a challenge this week. That’s assuming the Spartans can step up to the challenge. They are certainly capable. It just depends on which Michigan State team shows up. Something tells me the Buckeyes have been waiting for this game. The wait is over – Ohio State 31, Michigan State 24.

RUNNER UP: 2. Baylor (8-1) at Oklahoma State (10-0) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – The other Oklahoma team handed Baylor its first loss last week. And that one was in Waco. The game against this Oklahoma team is in Stillwater. Both teams have something to prove. The Bears prove it more – Baylor 37, Oklahoma State 35.

REST OF THE BEST: 3. TCU (9-1) at Oklahoma (9-1) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 8 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – The Sooners are on a roll. Ever since that strange loss to Texas, OU has been averaging 55 points a game. If the Sooners win out, they most likely will be in the playoffs. But the Frogs will provide a test. The Sooners ace it – Oklahoma 31, TCU 23.

4. Toledo (8-1) at Bowling Green (8-2) – (MAC vs. MAC) – 6 pm ET, Tuesday, ESPN2 – These two teams could meet again in the MAC championship game. The Falcons have won the MAC East. But the Rockets must win if they are to meet again. If Toledo loses, the Rockets are kaput. Guess what? The Rockets are kaput – Bowling Green 33, Toledo 29.

5. Northwestern (8-2) at Wisconsin (8-2) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, BTN – Northwestern comes in on a three-game winning streak. But the Badgers come in on a five-game winning streak. The streak is over for the Wildcats – Wisconsin 22, Northwestern 19.

6. Memphis (8-2) at Temple (8-2) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN – Both teams were on a roll for a while. Memphis has lost its last two games. Temple has lost two of its last three games. One has to bounce back. The other remains on the skids. The Tigers do the bouncing – Memphis 34, Temple 32.

7. UCLA (7-3) at Utah (8-2) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – Both teams lost last week in what were considered upsets. Whoever wins this week, it won’t be an upset. These two teams are pretty even. But the Utes are tough at home – Utah 28, UCLA 24.

8. Michigan (8-2) at Penn State (7-3) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ABC – Penn State has to hope that the Wolverines are looking ahead to next week. If they are, then the Nitts have a good chance of knocking off Michigan. But after the scare from Indiana last week, the Wolverines should be on their toes. Penn State had the week off to prepare for Michigan. That’s a plus for the Nitts. This one could be a donnybrook. But in the end, it’s the Wolverines by a little toe – Michigan 26, Penn State 19.

9. LSU (7-2) at Ole Miss (7-3) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, CBS – Both teams are in a funk – a Razorback funk. Both teams suffered their last loss to Arkansas. It will be a tough season for the loser. Both were expected to do better. Fournette breaks out of his funk – LSU 27, Ole Miss 24.

10. USC (7-3) at Oregon (7-3) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – After beginning the season at 3-3, the Ducks found their wind and have won four-straight. They are on a roll. USC also started 3-3 and has now won four in a row too. Somebody’s row is about to be broken. The Ducks stay in a row – Oregon 33, USC 27.

11. Air Force (7-3) at Boise State (7-3) – (MWC vs. MWC) – 9:30 pm ET, Friday, ESPN2 – The Falcons are riding a four-game winning streak. They are positioned to win the MWC Mountain Division. But the Broncos are still in the running too. This one could be a doozy. The Broncos give the Flyboys saddle soars – Boise State 31, Air Force 30.

12. California (6-4) at Stanford (8-2) – (Pac-12 vs. Pac-12) – 10:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – The Trees slipped up last week. But a win over Cal will give them the Pac-12 North Division title. If Jared Goff is hot, he could cause problems for Stanford. But Christian McCaffrey could cause bigger problems for Cal. The Bears can’t shake these Trees – Stanford 35, California 26.


….AND TWO TO KEEP AN EYE ON:

13. Mississippi State (7-3) at Arkansas (6-4) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN – Arkansas is on a roll. The Hogs began 2-4 and are now 6-4, winning four straight. The Hogs are a multi-dimensional team. Miss State is a one-dimension team. Multi wins – Arkansas 28, Mississippi State 21.

14. Western Michigan (6-4) at Northern Illinois (7-3) – (MAC vs. MAC) – 8 pm ET, Wednesday, ESPN2 – Both teams are 5-1 in conference play. The winner here will be in good shape to win the MAC West Division. NIU has the home field advantage. That means a lot in this contest. The Huskies break the Broncs – Northern Illinois 31, Western Michigan 26.


YE OLDE STOMPING GROUNDS:

West Virginia (5-4) at Kansas (0-10) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, FSN – After an 0-4 start in Big 12 play, the Mountaineers have won two-straight conference games. They are looking for their third straight. Kansas is one of only two winless FBS teams. The Jayhawks gave Texas Tech and TCU fits in losses to those two teams. But they can’t fit the Eers – West Virginia 30, Kansas 17.

Florida Atlantic (2-8) at Florida (9-1) – (C-USA vs. SEC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, SECN – The Gators get to relax this week. But then that’s what they thought when they played Vanderbilt. We know how that turned out. FAU is no Vanderbilt. The Owls have been struggling this season. The interesting angle in this game is that Jason Driskel, younger brother of former Gator quarterback Jeff Driskel, is the backup quarterback for FAU. Jason has seen action in almost every game this season. So he could take the field against the Gators. Jason may take the field, but the Gators take the game – Florida 34, Florida Atlantic 14.

Duke (6-4) at Virginia (3-7) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN3 – The Dookies are in a funk. The ending of the Miami game got them in a funk. They haven’t been able to shake it. But this week, there’s a whole lot of shaking going on – Duke 21, Virginia 20.

Georgia Southern (7-2) at Georgia (7-3) – (Sun Belt at SEC) – 7 pm ET, Saturday, ESPNU – After facing some tough competition, Uga gets a breather this week. There should be no pressure on Mark Richt in this game. The Dawgs cruise – Georgia 32, Georgia Southern 10.

Purdue (2-8) at Iowa (10-0) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – It’s been a tough season for the Boilers. But if they could manage to hand Iowa its first defeat, that would make the season for the Boilers. Iowa may fall to Nebraska next week, but the Hawkeyes aren’t going to fall to Purdue this week. The Hawkeyes make the Boilers – Iowa 27, Purdue 13.

Nebraska (5-6) and Texas (4-6) are off this week.


ELSEWHERE AROUND FLORIDA:

Georgia Tech (3-7) at Miami (6-4) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 12:30 pm ET, Saturday, ACCN….
Western Kentucky (8-2) at FIU (5-6) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 2:30 pm ET, Saturday, FCS….
Chattanooga (8-2) at Florida State (8-2) – (Southern vs. AAC) – 3 pm ET, Saturday, FSN….
East Carolina (4-6) at UCF (0-10) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 7:30 pm ET, Thursday, ESPN….
Cincinnati (6-4) at South Florida (6-4) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 8 pm ET, Friday, CBSSN….

Davidson (1-9) at Stetson (3-7) – (Pioneer vs. Pioneer) – 1 pm ET, Saturday….
Valparaiso (1-8) at Jacksonville U. (8-2) – (Pioneer vs. Pioneer) – 1 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN3….
Bethune-Cookman (8-2) vs. Florida A&M (1-9) – (MEAC vs. MEAC) – 2:30 pm ET, Saturday, ESPNClassic….
Florida Tech (7-4) has completed its season.


In the Huddle

Elsewhere around college football . . . Interim football coach Tracy Claeys has been named the fulltime coach at Minnesota. Claeys, who was made the interim coach when Jerry Kill stepped down for medical reasons, has signed a three-year contract with the Gophers. Under Kill, Claeys was Minnesota’s defensive coordinator…. Missouri coach Gary Pinkel announced he is retiring for medical reasons. Pinkel is suffering from lymphoma. His retirement is effective at the end of the season. Pinkel is the winningest coach in Missouri football history.

Touchdown Tom
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com

P.S.

Not exactly college football related, but there were four passings of note last week – Helmut Schmidt, Allen Toussaint, Betsy Drake and Fred McNeill.

Helmut Schmidt, the former Chancellor of West Germany who marshaled managerial brilliance pushing his country into an assertive international role in the 1970s, died last week at his home in Hamburg. He was 96. For decades, Schmidt was one of West Germany’s most popular politicians. Under Schmidt’s stewardship, West Germany fared better than the rest of Europe during the 1970s economic crisis. In 1982, a parliamentary majority voted him out of office. Helmut Heinrich Waldemar Schmidt was born on December 23, 1918, in Barmbek, Germany, a suburb of Hamburg. He was drafted into the German army during World War II. After the war, he obtained a degree in political economy from the University of Hamburg.

Allen Toussaint, the versatile, producer, songwriter, pianist and singer who was a fixture of New Orleans R&B, died last week in Madrid, Spain. He was 77. Allen Toussaint was born in 1938 in Gert Town, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans. He released his first album in 1958. Toussaint became a producer, arranger and songwriter for songs like “Mother in Law,” “Ya Ya” and “Oh Poo Pah Doo.” He became one of New Orleans’ most influential songwriters and producers. Toussaint co-founded Sea-Saint Studios in 1972, which attracted Paul Simon, Paul McCartney and others. His songs, including “Java” and “Fortune Teller,” were covered by other musicians – Al Hirt, The Who, and The Rolling Stones, among others. Toussaint recorded an album with Elvis Costello and often paired with other pop stars.

Betsy Drake, who starred alongside Carry Grant and later married to Grant, died last week at her home in London. She was 92. The couple appeared in two films together, “Every Girl Should Be Married” (1948) and “Room for One More (1952). They also co-starred in “Mr. and Mrs. Blandings,” an NBC radio series. Drake and Grant were married on Christmas Day in 1949. Howard Hughes was the best man. The French-born daughter of American parents, Betsy Gordon Drake was born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, on September 11, 1923. Her family returned to the United Sates when she was seven. Drake’s acting career began in the play “Deep Are the Roots” which opened in London in 1947. She met Grant on the Queen Mary sailing to the U.S. Actress Merle Oberon introduced the two aboard the ship. Drake was married to Grant for 12 years, the longest of his five marriages. In 1957, Drake had a supporting role in the movie “Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter.” She later earned a master’s degree in education from Harvard.

Fred McNeill, a linebacker who appeared in two Super Bowls with the Minnesota Vikings before becoming a lawyer, died last week at his home in Los Angeles. He was 63. McNeill played his entire professional career, from 1974 to 1985, with the Vikings. He was drafted by the Vikings out of UCLA. Frederick Arnold McNeill was born on May 6, 1952, in Durham, North Carolina. His family later moved to Los Angeles.