College Football
Week 9 – Indiana diminishes Ohio State-Penn State game
In Justin Fields, the
Buckeyes grow
The Big Ten began play over the weekend. It looks like the Big Ten will be very much like the ACC and the SEC. Where the ACC is Clemson and the 14 dwarfs and where the SEC is Alabama and the 13 dwarfs, the Big Ten is Ohio State and the 13 dwarfs.
Ohio State stacked the Corn on Saturday. The Buckeyes beat Nebraska, 52-17.
Yes, the Big Ten is very much like the ACC and the SEC. Where you never know what the rest of the teams in the ACC will do and where you never know what the rest of the teams in the SEC will do, you never know what the rest of the teams in the Big Ten will do.
Hence, Rutgers 38, Michigan State 27; Indiana 36, Penn State 35 (OT), and Purdue 24, Iowa 20.
Get the picture?
Ohio State’s cobbing of Nebraska was led by none other than the Buckeyes’ quarterback, Justin Fields. On the day, Fields completed 95.2% of his passes. He was 20-for-21, throwing for 276 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions. Fields rushed for another touchdown, as he led all Ohio State rushers with 54 yards.
Nebraska did manage to keep the score close – for a while. Deep into the second quarter, the score was 14-14. But only for a while. During the remainder of the game, Ohio State outscored Nebraska, 38-7.
Then there were the surprises in the Big Ten. Where you never know what the rest of the teams might do. In East Lansing, Michigan, Rutgers came into its contest against Michigan State, having lost 21-straight games in Big Ten competition. Well, the losing streak is over. Rutgers surprised Michigan State, 38-27.
Now, the Spartans did have seven turnovers. But Rutgers had three. The Scarlet Knights’ defense held Michigan State to only 60 yards rushing. Hats off to Rutgers coach Greg Schiano.
Is Rutgers that good? Or was the game a fluke? We’ll find out this week when the Scarlet Knights host Indiana. And speaking of Indiana, the Hoosiers pulled off the biggest surprise in the Big Ten. Indiana beat Penn State, 36-35 in overtime.
Penn State dominated the game – in everything, including penalties. But the Nittany Lions didn’t dominate the final score. However, the final score came with its share of controversy.
In the overtime, instead of kicking the extra point to tie the score, Indiana went for two to end the game – one way or the other. On the play, Indiana quarterback Michael Penix was tackled short of the goal line. As he was going down, he stretched the ball out to the pylon in the corner of the end zone.
Did he or didn’t he? The referees ruled he did and awarded Indiana the two points. But on the replay, it wasn’t necessarily certain that Penix caught the pylon before the ball was on the ground and out of bounds. However, there wasn’t enough there to overrule the initial call. Or so they say. Penn State fans will question the call from now until eternity.
And finally, in yet another surprise in the Big Ten, Purdue knocked off favored Iowa. Trailing the Hawkeyes, 20-17, the Boilers scored a touchdown on a six-yard pass from Aidan O’Connell to David Bell, with 2:15 to go in the game. Purdue held on and beat Iowa, 24-20. Purdue running back Zander Horvath rushed for 129 yards.
The Big Ten closed out its weekend slate of games Saturday night, with Northwestern smashing Maryland, 43-3, and Michigan tumbling Minnesota, 49-24.
Week 8 got off to a start on Thursday night in Boone, North Carolina. Appalachian State ran and passed over Arkansas State, 45-17. App State quarterback Zac Thomas threw four touchdown passes and Daetrich Harrington rushed for 137 yards. The Little Mountaineers improved to 3-1.
The next night was the busiest Friday night of the season so far. A quartet of games was played, highlighted by the return of the Big Ten. In the Big Ten’s initial game of the 2020 season, Wisconsin smashed Illinois, 45-7.
Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz was 20-for-21 passing, throwing for five touchdowns. The Badgers’ defense held the Banned Indians to only eight first downs and 218 total yards. Wisconsin maintained time of possession for more than 43 minutes. Unfortunately, the next day, Mertz tested positive for COVID.
In Tampa, South Florida’s woes continued. The Bulls fell to 1-5, as Tulsa beat South Florida, 42-13. South Florida had three turnovers. In Birmingham, UAB lost a close encounter to Louisiana, 24-20. An evenly matched game, both teams had 17 first downs and were within a yard of each other in total yards – 286 total yards for Louisiana to 285 yards for UAB.
And finally, Jacksonville State took care of FIU, 19-10. Talk about humiliation and frustration, FIU only had six first downs, only had 156 total yards and only maintained possession of the ball for less than 18 minutes. Jacksonville State became the first FCS school to beat an FBS team this season.
The action was hot and heavy on Saturday. In the Alabama and the 13 Dwarfs Conference, the Crimson Tide dwarfed Tennessee, 48-17. Alabama quarterback Mac Jones had another sensational day. Jones was 25-for-31, passing for 387 yards.
But the rest of the conference was a little wacky. Auburn and Ole Miss put on a barn burner in Oxford. The game was tied no less than three times. When it was over, Auburn pulled out a win. The Tigers scored late to beat Ole Miss, 35-28. Trailing, 28-27, Auburn scored a touchdown on a 42-yard pass from Bo Nix to Seth Williams with 1:11 on the clock.
Surprising Missouri continued to surprise. The Tigers beat Kentucky, 20-10. Missouri’s defense held the Wildcats to only 145 total yards – 98 rushing and 47 passing. In the SEC nightcap, LSU’s win over South Carolina wasn’t such a surprise. But the score of the game was. The Tigers beat the Gamecocks, 52-24. LSU maintained possession of the ball for more than 37 minutes.
Then in the Clemson and the 14 Dwarfs Conference, the Tigers dwarfed Syracuse, 47-21. But the game did get a little tense for Clemson – for a while. All looked normal at first, as the Tigers jumped out to a 17-0 first quarter lead. However, as the third quarter was coming to a close, Clemson just had a six-point lead on the Orange – 27-21. No sweat – the Tigers went on to score 20 unanswered points.
The wacky game in the ACC occurred in Winston-Salem. Wake Forest upset Virginia Tech, 23-16. The Hokies had three turnovers. And almost as wacky, Virginia put a serious scare into Miami. The Canes held on and beat the Cavs, 19-14. Miami quarterback D’Eriq King passed for 322 yards.
Surprisingly, the rest of the ACC was pretty normal – the favorites won. However, every game was a blowout. North Carolina downed NC State, 48-21; Louisville smoked Florida State, 48-16; Notre Dame tarnished Pitt, 45-3, and Boston College toppled Georgia Tech, 48-27.
Oklahoma State and Kansas State remain the kingpins in the Big 12. The Cowboys struggled, but beat Iowa State, 24-21. Chuba Hubbard had 139 yards rushing. Kansas State demolished Kansas, 55-14.
In the other Big 12 games, Oklahoma put down TCU, 33-14; Texas got by Baylor, 27-16, and Texas Tech out did West Virginia, 34-27.
In the Game of the Season in the AAC, it wasn’t much of a game. The battle of the unbeatens ended with Cincinnati humiliating SMU, 42-13. Cincinnati had 439 total yards. Bearcats’ quarterback Desmond Ridder accounted for 301 of those yards – passing for 126 and rushing for 179.
Elsewhere in the AAC, UCF got back on the winning track, beating Tulane, 51-34. The Knights’ Dillon Gabriel passed for 422 yards and five touchdowns. Memphis bounced Temple, 41-29, and Houston sunk Navy, 37-21.
C-USA’s Marshall and the Sun Belt’s Coastal Carolina both remained undefeated. Marshall downed Florida Atlantic, 20-9, and Coastal Carolina beat Georgia Southern, 28-14.
The Big Ten wasn’t the only conference that began play over the weekend. The Mountain West Conference began its season as well. And it looks like the MWC will be like the Big Ten, ACC and SEC. The MWC is Boise State and the 11 dwarfs.
Boise State opened its season with a 42-13 win over Utah State. The Broncos held the Aggies to 203 total yards. In the other MWC games, Nevada edged Wyoming, 37-34 (OT). Nevada quarterback Carson Long passed for 405 yards. Hawaii downed Fresno State, 34-19; San Diego State smashed UNLV, 34-6, and in the only surprise in the MWC, San Jose State tripped up Air Force, 17-6.
Independent BYU remained unbeaten. The Cougars beat Texas State, 52-14.
Week 8’s Winners: Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder, along with Indiana coach Tom Allen, Purdue coach Jeff Brohm and Rutgers coach Greg Schiano. Week 8’s Loser: South Carolina coach Will Muschamp.
Six Top 25 teams lost over the weekend: Penn State, SMU, Iowa State, Virginia Tech, Minnesota and NC State. All lost to higher-ranked teams, except for Penn State and Virginia Tech.
Six Group of Five Teams are ranked in the Top 25 this week – Cincinnati, BYU, Marshall, Coastal Carolina, SMU and Boise State. Cincinnati is the highest ranked at 7th.
The Ohio State at Penn State contest this Saturday was supposed to be the marquee game of the week. And I suppose it still is – somewhat. But Indiana’s win over Penn State sure took the spark out of the game.
If you were listening to music in 1966 and 1967, you’ll remember the songs “Gimme Some Lovin’” and “I Am Man” by the Spencer Davis Group. Spencer Davis died last week. “Gimme Some Lovin’” reached No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the winter of 1967 and “I’m A Man” reached No. 10 on the charts that spring. The lead singer for the Spencer Davis Group was Steve Winwood, who left the band in 1967 to form the group Traffic. Spencer Davis, a native of Swansea, Wales, was 81.
Bill Mathis, a running back for Clemson, in college, and the New York Jets, in the pros, died last week. He played his entire American Football League career – (1960-1969) – with the New York Titans/Jets. Mathis was a member of the 1968 Jets team that won the Super Bowl, beating the Baltimore Colts, 16-7. Bill Mathis was 81.
Sadly, on Saturday morning, I learned about the death of folk and country music singer/songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker. He was one of my all-time favorites. Walker wrote the song “Mr. Bojangles” made famous by The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1971. He emerged from the Greenwich Village folk scene of the 1960s to become a purveyor of the Lukenbach and Armadillo Music sound and scene of the 1970s in Texas. I first learned about Walker on a trip to Texas in 1974. My favorite Walker song is “Sangria Wine.” Walker was associated with the outlaw country scene that included Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt. He later was associated and worked with Jimmy Buffett and Brooks and Dunn, among others. Some called him the Jimmy Buffett of Texas. Jerry Jeff Walker was 78.
In the mail last week my friend Tim Muth wrote, “Go Noles! We are back (at least for one half). I can’t wait until FSU plays COVID U. in Gainesville,” he said. (Something tells me Tim won’t sound so optimistic this week.)
I also had a friendly greeting from Steve Selaga, a faculty member at Georgia. Steve is an East Carolina graduate, with a Masters from Georgia and a PhD from Michigan, all in Sports Management. Swamp Mama and I got to know Steve when he taught at Florida Tech. He then left for Texas A&M and now teaches at Georgia.
My friend Ken Burger, in Alabama, and a Crimson Tide fan, informed me that he watches the Alabama games on TV with his two daughters – each in their own homes, texting back and forth, during the games. Sometime in the second quarter of the game against Georgia, he texted his daughters that he was so nervous, he needed to eat some bad food. Apparently, Ken is normally a healthy food eater. With Alabama down 24-20 at halftime, Ken made a plate of nachos, with salsa, jalapenos and melted cheese. Along with a beer, that was his diet during the third quarter. He even texted a picture to his daughters. Well, sure enough, Bama started playing great and Ken kept munching. At one point, one of his daughters asked if he was still eating the bad food. Ken said yes and she implored him to keep munching away, claiming he was taking one for the team. Ken kept munching on the nachos and Alabama outscored Georgia 21-0. Ken said it took him all day Sunday to recover, but it was worth it.
I’m posting this morning from a beach house in Seacrest Beach on the Beaches of South Walton in Florida’s panhandle. Rosemary Beach is to our east and Seaside is to our west. Swamp Mama and I are getting in some R&R with Princess Gator, Gator Gabe and Gator Babe.
Interestingly, Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz and Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields were both 20-for-21 passing over the weekend….Last week South Carolina coach Will Muschamp was on cloud nine. He’s back in the dumpster this week….After a two-week COVID absence, we think Florida will be back this week. Keep your fingers crossed….Have a fun-filled week!
Touchdown Tom
Weekend Recap
GAME OF THE WEEK: Cowboys go Bird hunting – Oklahoma State 24, Iowa State 21 (Touchdown Tom said: Oklahoma State 31, Iowa State 27). Iowa State’s Breece Hall rushed for 185 yards, averaging 9.2 yards per carry. Okie State improved to 4-0.
RUNNER-UP: No contest – Cincinnati 42, SMU 13 (Touchdown Tom said: Cincinnati 30, SMU 26). Well, it was for the first half. Cincinnati led at the break, 14-10. Then the Bearcats outscored the Mustangs 28-3 in the second half. Cincinnati’s defense held SMU to just 75 yards rushing. Cincinnati improved to 4-0.
REST OF THE BEST: No Pack attack – North Carolina 48, NC State 21 (Touchdown Tom said: North Carolina 34, NC State 29). North Carolina’s Javonte Williams rushed for 160 yards and Michael Carter rushed for 106 yards. The Tar Heels had 585 total yards. North Carolina improved to 4-1.
No oars – Michigan 49, Minnesota 24 (Touchdown Tom said: Minnesota 23, Michigan 20). Minnesota controlled the ball for more than 35 minutes, but the Gophers couldn’t control the score. Michigan just led 21-17 late in the second quarter. Then the Wolverines outscored Minnesota, 28-7. Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim rushed for 140 yards.
Another beer bottle through the window – Alabama 48, Tennessee 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Alabama 38, Tennessee 11). Alabama had 587 total yards to 302 for Tennessee. The Tide had 30 first downs to 16 for the Vols. Bama’s Najee Harris had 96 yards rushing. Alabama improved to 5-0.
Ragin' - Louisiana 24, UAB 20 (Touchdown Tom said: UAB 34, Louisiana 31). Louisiana scored its go ahead touchdown with 6:35 to go in the game and held on to win. UAB’s Spencer Brown rushed for 128 yards.
What a sermon! – Wake Forest 23, Virginia Tech 16 (Touchdown Tom said: Virginia Tech 27, Wake Forest 23). Wake Forest’s Christian Beal-Smith rushed for 129 yards. Both teams are 3-2.
No famine – Notre Dame 45, Pitt 3 (Touchdown Tom said: Notre Dame 30, Pitt 21). Notre Dame had 28 first downs to 11 for Pitt. The Irish had 434 total yards to just 162 for Pitt. The Panthers only had 44 yards rushing. The Irish controlled the ball for 41 minutes. Irish quarterback Ian Book passed for 312 yards and three touchdowns. Notre Dame improved to 5-0.
Replay that again, please – Indiana 36, Penn State 35 (OT) (Touchdown Tom said: Penn State 34, Indiana 28). Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford passed for 283 yards and rushed for 119 yards. Penn State had 488 total yards to just 211 for Indiana. The Lions held the Hoosiers to 41 yards rushing. Penn State controlled the ball for more than 40 minutes.
Still perfect – Coastal Carolina 28, Georgia Southern 14 (Touchdown Tom said: Coastal Carolina 26, Georgia Southern 22). The score was tied 14-14 entering the fourth quarter. The Chanticleers limited Georgia Southern to 218 total yards – just 99 yards passing. Coastal Carolina improved to 5-0.
YE OLDE STOMPING
GROUNDS:
Raided – Texas Tech 34, West Virginia 27 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas Tech 31, West Virginia 30). West Virginia quarterback Jarret Doege passed for 347 yards. But WVU only had 91 yards rushing. As the fourth quarter began, the score was tied 27-27.
Frostproof – Ohio State 52, Nebraska 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Ohio State 31, Nebraska 18). Like Justin Fields, Nebraska quarterback Adrian Martinez was the leading rusher for his team. Martinez rushed for 85 yards. The Buckeyes had 491 total yards. Ohio State had 28 first downs to 17 for Nebraska.
Bevo was Horny – Texas 27, Baylor 16 (Touchdown Tom said: Texas 27, Baylor 24). Texas limited Baylor to just 64 yards rushing. Baylor scored first with a field goal. Then Texas scored 27 unanswered points.
Bad eyes – Purdue 24. Iowa 20 (Touchdown Tom said: Iowa 27, Purdue 23). Purdue scored first and last. Purdue outscored Iowa 10-3 in the fourth quarter.
Week 8 Results: 9 winners, 5 fumbles (64.3 percent)
ELSEWHERE AROUBND
FLORIDA:
Jacksonville State 19, FIU 10
Louisville 48, Florida State 16
Marshall 20, Florida Atlantic 9
Superlatives
Impressive Passers:
UCF’s Dillon Gabriel – 26-40-0 for 422 yards (5TDs); Nevada’s Carson Strong – 37-50-0-405 (3TDs); Alabama’s Mac Jones – 26-31-0-387; West Virginia’s Jarret Doege – 32-50-0-347 (1TD); Liberty’s Malik Willis – 24-31-0-345 (6TDs); Middle Tennessee’s Asher O’Hara – 24-33-0-333 (2TDs); Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler – 13-22-0-332 (2TDs); Troy’s Jacob Free – 24-38-2-329, and Miami of Florida’s D’Eriq King – 21-30-0-322 (1TD).
Impressive Rushers:
Iowa State’s Breece Hall – 185 yards (1TD); Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder – 179 yards (4TDs); Louisville’s Javian Hawkins – 174 yards (3TDs); UCF’s Greg McCrae – 162 yards (1TD); UTSA’s Sincere McCormick – 165 yards (3TDs); North Carolina’s Javonte Williams – 160 yards (3TDs), and Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim – 140 yards (2TDs).
Also, Oklahoma State’s Chuba Hubbard – 139 yards (1TD); Appalachian State’s Daetrich Harrington – 137 yards (1TD); LSU’s Tyrion Davis-Price – 135 yards (1TD); Purdue’s Zander Horvath – 129 yards; Auburn’s Tank Bigsby – 129 yards (2TDs); Wake Forest’s Christian Beal-Smith – 129 yards, and UAB’s Spencer Brown – 128 yards (2TDs).
Quotes of the Week
“I thought he had good poise. I thought he saw the field well. You never know quite how someone’s going to react on their first start,” Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst, on the performance of quarterback Graham Mertz against Illinois.
“It used to be that good defense beats good offense. Good defense doesn’t beat good offense anymore. That’s not the way it used to be. It used to be if you had a good defense, other people weren’t going to score. You were always going to be in the game. I’m telling you. It ain’t that way anymore,” Alabama coach Nick Saban,
Tweets of the Week
“Y’all are a disgrace. Your officiating is absolutely atrocious. If y’all want to just keep gifting Auburn wins, just say it,” an Ole Miss fan, on the officiating in the Auburn-Ole Miss game.
Touchdown Tom’s
Predictions for
GAME OF THE WEEK: 1. Ohio State (1-0) at Penn State (0-1) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, ABC – We’re assuming the Penn State loss to Indiana was an anomaly. Regardless, the Ohio State win over Penn State this week won’t be an anomaly. But you have to assume that in the Indiana game, Penn State was looking ahead to Ohio State. Someone once told me, “Never assume anything. It only makes an ass out of you and me” – Ohio State 40, Penn State 20.
RUNNER-UP: 2. Texas (3-2) at Oklahoma State (4-0) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 4 pm ET, Saturday, FOX – Oklahoma State is on a roll. But can the Cowboys keep it going. When you are undefeated, the pressure gets tougher and tougher. The Cowboys handle it – Oklahoma State 29, Texas 23.
REST OF THE BEST: 3. Boston College (4-2) at Clemson (6-0) – (ACC vs. ACC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ABC – Syracuse gave Clemson a scare, brief as it was. Can Boston College do the same? The Eagles have had some impressive moments this season. But they don’t impress the Tigers – Clemson 38, Boston College 22.
4. Memphis (3-1) at Cincinnati (4-0) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN – SMU was no test for the Bearcats. Now it is time to see what Memphis can do. The Tigers have an offense, but no defense. The Bearcats have both – Cincinnati 42, Memphis 30.
5. Kansas State (4-1) at West Virginia (3-2) – (Big 12 vs. Big 12) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPN2 – Talk about an up-and-down team. The Mountaineers can really take you up. Then they let you down. This is an up week in Morgantown – West Virginia 30, Kansas State 27.
6. Arkansas (2-2) at Texas A&M (3-1) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, SECN – Texas A&M is looking like the second-best team in the SEC West. But Arkansas knows how to pull some surprises. Just not in this game – Texas A&M 26, Arkansas 18.
7. LSU (2-2) at Auburn (3-2) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, CBS – You really never know how either of these teams are going to play. LSU appears to be heading up. Auburn appears to be going sideways. Either way, the Tigers can’t lose in this one. The Cajun Tigers don’t lose – LSU 33, Auburn 30.
8. UCF (3-2) at Houston (2-1) – (AAC vs. AAC) – 2 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN+ – UCF has an offense, but the Knights have no defense. That has been their problem this year. It’s a similar situation at Houston – all offense and no defense. The Knights’ offense wins – UCF 36, Houston 30.
9. Missouri (2-2) at Florida (2-1) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, SECN – Missouri is kind of like Arkansas. The Tigers can pull some surprises. Florida is hoping its defense can surprise this week and actually show up. The Gators’ offense keeps them in the game – Florida 34, Missouri 26.
10. Coastal Carolina (5-0) at Georgia State (2-2) – (Sun Belt vs. Sun Belt) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, ESPNU – Coastal Carolina has kind of become America’s team this season. Everybody’s cheering for the Chanticleers. Well, Georgia State isn’t. Fear the Rooster – Coastal Carolina 34, Georgia State 25.
YE OLDE STOMPING
GROUNDS:
Wisconsin (1-0) at Nebraska (0-1) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 3:30 pm Et, Saturday, FS1 – Wisconsin looked good last week. Nebraska looked bad. But Wisconsin was playing Illinois. Nebraska was playing Ohio State. There is a difference. But the Badgers aren’t much different from Ohio State – Wisconsin 38, Nebraska 21.
Charlotte (2-2) at Duke (1-5) – (C-USA vs. ACC) – 7 pm ET, Saturday, ESPN3 – Something tells me the Dookies will be 2-5 after this game. Assuming they can hold on to the ball. The Dookies escape Charlotte’s web – Duke 35, Charlotte 24.
Georgia (3-1) at Kentucky (2-3) – (SEC vs. SEC) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, SECN – I thought this might be a good game. Then Kentucky lost to Missouri. And Georgia had the week off to heal from Alabama. The Wildcats can play defense. They simply have no offense. Kind of similar to Georgia. But Uga’s offense is better – Georgia 25, Kentucky 15.
Purdue (1-0) at Illinois (0-1) – (Big Ten vs. Big Ten) – 12 noon ET, Saturday, BTN – Now a typical Purdue team, after upsetting Iowa, would lose to Illinois. But this isn’t your typical Purdue team. The Boilers step up the steam – Purdue 32, Illinois 19.
ELSEWHERE AROUBND FLORIDA:
UTSA (3-3) at Florida Atlantic (1-1) – (C-USA vs. C-USA) – 12 noon ET, Saturday….
Touchdown Tom
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