#12 Baylor Bears Crush #15 Oklahoma 48-14

The #12 Baylor Bears, with a chance of making the CFP 4 team playoff, faced off with #15 Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday and came away with a 48-14 victory.

Behind 14-3 after the 1st quarter, the Bears came roaring back with 45 straight points to lead 48-14 with 7:37 to play in the game. The Baylor defense held the Sooners scoreless for three quarters while Baylor's quarterback, Bryce Petty was completing 32 of 42 passes for 387 yards and 1 touchdown with no interceptions.

Trevor Knight, pressured all day by a swarming Bears defense threw for 148 yards on 12 of 27 passing for 2 TDs and a crucial INT.

Five Baylor runners recorded 160 yards on the ground and scored 5 touchdowns. Shock Linwood ran for 88 yards and 2 touchdowns while Devin Chafin ran for 2 TDs carrying the ball 11 times for 35 yards. Corey Coleman ran for a touchdown for Baylor and caught the lone TD pass from Petty

Oklahoma got touchdown receptions from Michiah Quick and Durron Neal for the lone Sooner scores. Oklahoma rushed for 172 yards on 33 carries but failed to score on the ground.

Baylor plays unranked Oklahoma State at home and unranked Texas Tech in Lubbock to finish their season while #9 Kansas State plays #6 TCU today.

Read the ESPN recap article here.

Alabama/LSU Preview with my Prediction

The Crimson Tide of Alabama take on the LSU Tigers this weekend in a game with playoff implications for Alabama.

Alabama comes into the game at 7-1, their only loss to a very good Ole Miss team, 23-17, on October 4th. Since then the Tide narrowly beat Arkansas 14-13, pummeled Texas A&M 59-0 and beat a resurgent Tennessee team 34-20.

LSU on the other hand is 7-2 with losses to #1 Mississippi State 34-29 and two weeks later to then #5 Auburn 41-7. Last week LSU beat then #3 Ole Miss 10-7 that took a goal line interception to preserve the win.

Currently, Alabama sits at #5 with LSU at #16. Alabama is just outside the CFP (College Football Poll) ranking of the top 4 teams that will compete for the National Championship in the first ever college football playoffs.

Mississippi State and FSU are the only undefeated teams in the CFP rankings and are #1 and #2 respectfully. Auburn is #3 at 7-1 and Oregon is 8-1 and #4 in the rankings.

A solid win by Alabama in this game would go far toward cracking the top four in the CFP rankings just as a loss could seriously damage Alabama from consideration. Mississippi State plays UT-Martin this week but travels to Alabama on November 15th for a crucial game. FSU plays the University of Miami this week but could face a challange on the 29th of November when they face a tough test against Florida. Oregon plays #17 Utah on Saturday but shouldn't have a tough test until playing Arizona for the Pac-12 title.

In the Alabama/LSU game, Alabama enters the contest second in the nation allowing just 14 points per game while they are 19th in scoring at 36.5 points a game. They average 219 yards rushing and 291 yards passing every game.

LSU is 4th in the land allowing just 15.9 points per game but they are 101st against the pass, giving up an average of 189 yards through the air per game. LSU does score 33 points per game. These two teams are pretty evenly matched.

An intangible for the Tigers may be "Death Valley" where, Coach Les Miles says "...team's dreams come to die".

Nick Saban wants more than anything to be a part of the 1st College Football Playoff. His defense is strong and he has a resurgent offense under Offensive Coordinator, Lane Kiffen.

Against good teams, Les Miles is 2-2. He opened the season with a 28-24 win in Wisconsin, lost to Mississippi State by 5, Lost to Auburn 41-7 and beat Ole Miss by 3, 10-7.

My prediction is this, Alabama will win the game 20-10 and with some good luck over the next three weeks the Tide will roll into the playoffs with a very good chance of winning it all.

Separation Weekend in College Football

Heather Dinich has a real good article on this week in College Football and how different outcomes in games will effect the entire playoff picture.

Read Heather's article here.

Although the games this week will go far in determining the playoff picture, the SEC appears to have a lock on at least two positions. If the SEC can avoid a 2nd and 3rd place finish, we could wind up with an SEC final.

It's hard for me to think that Oregon can hold on to the 4th spot with no big games remaining as it is unlikely that a Big 12 team could vault enough teams to reach the top 4. What might prove fatal to the SEC is if the Playoff Committee deems it unfair to put a 2 loss SEC team, albeit a good team, ahead of a 1 loss Pac 12 or Big 12 team.

College Football Saturday

#1 Mississippi State struggled to defeat an unranked Arkansas team 17-10. Dak Prescott threw for 331 yards with a TD but threw 2 INTs. Arkansas' Alex Collins carried the ball 16 times for 93 yards and a touchdown.
Recap here.

#2 Florida State recovered from a 21 point deficit to beat #25 Louisville 42-31. Jameis Winston threw for 401 yards and 3 touchdowns but also threw 3 INTs to keep Louisville in the game. Will Gardner was 20 of 38 for 330 yards and a touchdown for Louisville.
Recap here.

#3 Auburn solidified it's hold on the 3rd spot in the playoff race by defeating #4 Ole Miss 35-31. Nick Marshall, Auburn, rushed for 50 yards and 2 TDs and Cameron Artis-Payne added 143 yards rushing with 2 TDs. Bo Wallace, for Ole Miss, threw for 341 yards and 2 TDs
Recap here.

#5 Oregon had an easy time with Stanford with the 45-16 victory. Marcus Mariota of Oregon was 19 of 30 passing for 258 yards and 2 TDs. The Ducks rushed for 264 yards on the day. Mariota also had 9 carries for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Recap here.

#7 TCU needed a Field Goal with no time on the clock to beat West Virginia in Morgan town 31-30.
Recap here.

Dave Brandon to Step Down as Michigan AD

The Athletic Director at Michigan, Dave Brandon, has said he will step down at the end of the year and not return in 2015.

I have taken a quote from the ESPN article that states clearly, through emails, how Brandon has handled the fan reaction to a 3-5 record overall and 1-3 in the Big 10.

Earlier this week, mgoblog.com posted caustic and condescending emails that fans wrote to Brandon with their concerns about the athletic department. The website reviewed email exchanges between Brandon and several different fans in which he allegedly told one to "quit drinking and go to bed" and another to "find a new team to support."

TCU Pummels Texas Tech 82-27

The Horned Frogs of TCU had their way with the Red Raiders of Texas Tech on Saturday. Quarterback Trevone Boykin threw 7 touchdown passes while amassing 433 yards through the air before leaving in the 3rd quarter.

Some records were set in the game. While some fell short.

For TCU, Most points in a game 82, Most touchdown passes thrown in a game 7, Most touchdowns in a game 10.

For Texas Tech, Most points allowed in a game 82.

The 109 points scored falls 27 points shy of the record by Division 1 schools. In 2007, Navy beat North Texas State 74-62 for the record of 136 points.

The 82 points by TCU doesn't best the record 100 points scored by the University of Houston against Tulsa in 1968.

TCU scored 10 touchdowns and 4 field goals on 785 yards of offense running 86 plays from scrimmage for an average of 9.12 yards per play. TCU did have to punt twice though.

Two running backs for TCU, Aaron Green and Trevorris Johnson rushed for more than 100 yards and Deante Gray had 165 yards receiving on 4 catches with 2 touchdowns.

NCAA Football Playoffs This Week? UPDATE

#1 Mississippi State gets by Kentucky 45-31
#2 Florida State   Off
#3 Ole Miss loses to #24 LSU 10-7
#4 Alabama beats Tennessee  34-20      
#5 Auburn over South Carolina 42-35
#6 Oregon outlasts Cal 59-41
#7 Notre Dame   Off
#8 Michigan State decisively over Michigan 35-11
#9 Georgia   Off
#10 TCU devours Texas Tech 82-27

The only team I can say for sure that will move in the rankings is #24 LSU. They will probably leapfrog several teams. I would not be surprised to see them at #15.

My prognostication is that Ole Miss drops to #6, Alabama moves up to #3 followed by Auburn at #4 and Oregon at #5. Michigan State will jump Notre Dame to take #7 with Notre Dame at #8 and TCU jumps Georgia to end at #9 with Georgia at #10.

Check my guesses on Sunday afternoon! I'll have the ranking update late tomorrow.

UPDATE!!

Latest Rankings are thus on 10/16/14

#1 Mississippi State                           #6 Notre Dame   (I had Ole Miss)
#2 Florida State                                  #7 Ole Miss (I had Michigan St.)
#3 Alabama                                        #8 Michigan State (I had Notre Dame)
#4 Auburn                                          #9 Georgia (I had TCU)
#5 Oregon                                          #10 TCU (I had Georgia)

#11 K-State Shutsout Longhorns 23-0

The University of Texas football team has been shutout by the Kansas State Wildcats 23-0. This was the first time UT has been shutout since Oklahoma did the deed on October 9, 2004.

Check out the ESPN coverage here.

#6 Oregon Beats Cal 59-41 in Pac 12

Marcus Mariota threw for 326 yards and 5 TDs as the 6th ranjed Oregon Ducks beat the Cal Bears 59-41. Mariota threw his 1st INT of the year with 3:31 to go in the 2nd quarter.

Oregon improved to 7-1 while Cal dropped to 4-4 on the season.

Read the ESPN recap article here.

SEC's 5 Best Coodinators

Brad Crawford of saturdaydownsouth.com, has a really good article on the 5 best coordinators in the SEC. Also contained within the article is a link to one on the 5 worst coordinators...also a good read.

There are two defensive coordinators, 2 offensive coordinators and a running backs/recruiting coordinator listed.

The defensive coordinators are from Ole Miss and Georgia, the offensive coordinators from Alabama and Mississippi State and the running backs/recruiting coordinator is from LSU.

If you like the SEC, you'll love the article. If you tend to think the SEC is overrated you will scoff at any notion that any good thing could come from the SEC.

I'm a college football fan who likes well written articles about college football. Read Brad's article here, Regardless where you stand on the SEC, you'll have to admit this article is spot on.

FSU 31-27 Over Notre Dame

I have watched the replay of the offensive pass interference call on Notre Dame in last night's loss to Florida State. I have seen it from every angle possible. The offensive pass interference call was probably correct, but...if you watch the defensive back #6 for FSU you will clearly see his arms around the shoulders of CJ Prosise.

In this case there are off-setting infractions which should be a no call, or at a minimum a re-do of the play from the 4 yard line.

Of course arguments can be made that ND let the game slip away in the 2nd half and should never have been in the position they were in at the end of the game.

Both teams played clean, hard football all night. It was a thrilling game, depending on who one was rooting for, but a great game none the less.

Rodger Sherman writing for SBNation.com has the video and his commentary here.

I don't agree with his conclusion but watch closely and see for yourself.

Gators "Swamped" by Missouri Tigers 42-13

The Florida Gators have not had 3 seasons in a row this bad since...well...since Spurrier left.

Read the ESPN article here and shake your head in wonder as most SEC fans are.

Selfish Moves by Selfish Players?

Matt Hayes of Sporting News has a great article outlining the Todd Gurley/Jameis Winston autograph signing debacle. Personally I agree with choice #1 on how to solve the NCAA rule.

He touches on a lot of good topics in the rest of the article but I would bet that the lead paragraphs will get to most attention.

Check out his article here, I know I will be back. Send me your comments about the article and Gurley/Winston.

New #1 in College Football

Mississippi State, with a win over previously unbeaten and #2 ranked team, has leap frogged former #1 Florida State to claim the #1 ranking.

The win was the Bulldog's third consecutive over a top 10 team.  This marks the first time in the AP's 78 year history that a team has gone from unranked to #1 in five weeks.

Read the ESPN story here.

NCAA Players Need to be Paid to Play an Editorial

This week, Todd Gurley, a Junior running back and possible Heisman trophy winner in 2014,  of the Georgia Bulldogs was suspended from the football team and is under investigation by the NCAA for selling his autograph. Gurley faces the real possibility that he will not play the remainder of the year for Georgia and could lose his scholarship.

The University of Georgia, as is required by NCAA rules, suspended Gurley when they became aware of the allegations.

Gurley is accused of being paid $400 to sign 80 items for Bryan Allen an Atlanta sports memorabilia dealer, on campus, in early spring. Doing the math, that works out to $5 per item. Supposedly there are photos and video of the signings, although none have surfaced yet.

Rules are rules and Gurley should have known better, if what is alledged is true, but this problem did not start with Todd Gurley nor will this be the end of it.

It is time that the NCAA realizes that athletes at big time universities are treated like chattel.

The arguments that the schools, and the NCAA, use to justify this indentured servitude are simple. They feel that a 4 year scholarship to a university, worth in the neighborhood of $200,000, over 4 years is sufficient payment for services. The second argument is that, starting this year, the athlete can earn up to $2,000 per academic year at employment on or off campus not associated with the athletic department. A final argument is that schools can't afford to pay their athletes.

To counter those arguments I would argue that sports scholarships are not guaranteed, by most universities, for 4 years but are on a yearly basis and can be revoked for many reasons both academic and non-academic. There are some universities that have started to guarantee those scholarships but not nearly enough. Given that the academic year, in most cases, runs from September through May, a 9 month period, that $2,000 earned works out to $222 a month.

These are the arguments put forth by the colleges/universities and the NCAA as to why they can't afford any changes to the current rules and regulations put forth by the NCAA and approved by the Deans of member colleges/universities.

Here are the reasons I have for a change in idea at the NCAA level.

Schools make millions of dollars off of these athletes. Here is a list of ways in which the schools and the NCAA make that money:

1.  Ticket sales to athletic events
2.  Concessions and Parking at those events
3.  Visiting team remuneration packages (The University of Idaho was to be paid $900,000 dolllars for their trip to play the University of Florida)
4.  Conference TV money (ESPN paid the SEC 2.25 billion dollars to broadcast their games through the 2026-2027 seasons. That's $150,000,000 per year for the SEC which works out to $10,700,000 per year/per school)
5. Local TV/Radio Money (considerably less than TV money, but income none the less)
6. Stadium advertising money
7. Bowl game revenue (if selected for bowl games, all revenue generated by teams in the conferenece is divided among all conference teams)
8. Jersey and sports memorabilia sales (University and the NCAA split this revenue)
9. Alumni giving to sports departments
10. Video game revenue (note lawsuits by former players over lost revenue)
11. Nike Sponsorship

Students who receive non sports scholarships are not limited as to the amount of time they can spend at employment. They can earn as much as they need to in order to pay for incidentals while attending college.

What Todd Gurley did was against the NCAA rules. He knew, or should have known, that what he was doing was against those rules. His suspension by the University of Georgia was done in accordance with those same rules governing universities and self reporting.

But Georgia will play football this weekend. They will travel to Columbia, Missouri to take on the Tigers in a game with SEC West Division implications. Todd Gurley will remain in Georgia while the University of Georgia and the NCAA decide his fate.

The NCAA must rethink it's rules on paying players to play. I remember when Title IX was going to absolutely ruin college sports. Has that happened? No. The universities were required to rethink their positions and make college athletics fair to all. Coming up with a fair way to pay players so that they don't feel the need to break the rules will not ruin college sports either.

There are now allegations (10/13/14) that 2014 Heisnan Trophy winner Jameis Winston has had over 100 signatures authenticated by the same firm that authenticated those signatures of Todd Gurley. When asked, Florida State Head Coach, Jimbo Fisher had this to say, "I asked Jameis if he took money for signing those autographs...he told me no."

There you have it folks, in the SEC the player is suspended right away. In the ACC, and the #2 Seminoles, the player said he didn't get any money so...nothing to see here...move along.

UCF Wins in OT Against BYU 31-24

Last nigh's contest between the Knights of UCF and the Cougars of BYU was exciting to say the least. Christian Stewart, replacing BYU QB Taysom Hill, did a very credible job going 22 for 37. He threw 3 TD passes and had 1 INT.

Justin Stewart, for the Knights was 30/51 for 326 yards with 2 TDs and 2 INTs. but the second of his TD throws came on the first drive in OT on a 4 yard toss to William Stanback out of the backfield.

The game had plenty of momentum swings. UCF went on top 10-0 early. BYU then scored 24 unanswered points to take a 24-10 lead. The Knights came back with 14 of their own points to tie the game in regulation before scoring in OT for the win.

Read all the details in the ESPN story here.

University of Georgia Running Back Todd Gurley Suspended

Georgia Bulldogs tailback Todd Gurley has been suspended indefinitely pending an investigation into an alleged violation of NCAA rules, the school announced Thursday.

"I'm obviously very disappointed," Georgia coach Mark Richt said in a statement. "The important thing for our team is to turn all our attention toward preparation for Missouri."

[+] Enlarge

David Goldman/AP ImagesGeorgia tailback Todd Gurley has rushed for 773 yards and eight TDs on 94 carries this season.

The school made the announcement Thursday, two days before the No. 13 Bulldogs (4-1, 2-1 SEC) face No. 23 Missouri (4-1, 1-0) in a crucial Eastern Division game.

Georgia officials did not reveal the alleged violation.

Gurley, one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy, was leading the SEC with 773 rushing yards and had scored eight touchdowns in the first five games for the Bulldogs.

He ran for 163 yards and two TDs against Vanderbilt while also completing a 50-yard pass -- Georgia's longest of the season. Gurley is the conference's leading rusher with 154.6 yards per game, and his 194.6 all-purpose yards ranks second nationally behind Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah (195.8).

With 3,147 rushing yards, Gurley needs 86 to pass Garrison Hearst for second on the school's all-time list.

Freshman Nick Chubb, who has rushed for 224 yards and two scores and also has a TD pass, would be next in line for carries. The Bulldogs have run the ball at least 35 times in every game while making no more than 26 passing attempts.

Sony Michel, another freshman, has rushed for 223 yards and three touchdowns on 23 attempts, but suffered a shoulder injury against Tennessee.

Georgia is opening a four-game stretch that includes two other road contests against Arkansas and Kentucky, as well as its annual showdown with rival Florida in Jacksonville. The Bulldogs will go 42 days between home games -- their most since 2008.

Gurley, a junior who is averaging more than 8 yards per carry, was ranked ninth overall on the latest NFL draft "Big Board" by ESPN Insider Mel Kiper Jr.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

What a Week for College Football

For the first time since 1994, 4 of the top 6 ranked teams lost on the same weekend. Let's take a look at what happened.

#1 Florida St. crushed Wake Forest 43-3
     Roberto Aguayo kicks 5 FGs in win
#2 Oregon lost to previously unranked Arizona 31-24
     Arizona rushes for 207 yards
#3 Alabama lost to #11 Ole Miss 23-17
     Ole Miss ties the game and Alabama fumbles the unsuing kickoff - Ole Miss scores
#4 Oklahoma lost to #25 TCU 37-33
     Trevor Knight throws 2 INTs in loss
#5 Auburn beats #15 LSU 41-7
     Nick Marshall has 326 yards total offense and scores 4 TDs
#6 Texas A&M loses to #12 Mississippi State
     Dak Prescott has 336 yards and 5 TDs in Miss. St. win
#7 Baylor beats Texas 28-7
     Texas scores with less than 3 minutes to play to make the game look closer
#8 UCLA lost to previously unranked Utah 30-28
     Utah kicks FG with :34 on the clock
#9 Notre Dame beats #14 Stanford 17-14
     Golson throws TD on 4th and 11 play for the victory
#10 Michigan State beats #19 Nebraska 27-22
     MSU takes 27-3 lead, hangs on to win
#13 Georgia beats previously unranked Vanderbilt 44-17
     Todd Gurley 25 carries 165 yards and 2 TDs
#16 USC lost to previously unranked Arizona State 38-34
     46 yard TD pass as time expires wins it for ASU
#17 Wisconsin lost to previously unranked Northwestern 20-14
     Godwin Igwebuike has 3 INTs in upset
#18 BYU lost to previously unranked Utah State 35-20
     Taysom Hill, BYU quarterback fractures leg
#20 Ohio State beats Maryland 52-24
     Esekiel Elliott has 139 yards rushing on 24 carries for OSU
#21 Oklahoma State beats Iowa State 37-20
     Iowa State AD bemoans officiating in loss
#22 East Carolina beats SMU 45-24
     Shane Carden 31 of 41 for 410 yards and 4 TDs
#23 Kansas State beats Texas Teeh 45-13
     Jake Waters had 395 total yards with 4 passing TDs and a rushing TD

As you can see 5 of the top 8 ranked teams lost this week and 8 of the top 18 ranked teams lost. It was quite a week in college football.

Florida State should maintain it's solid hold in the #1 spot. Oregon which lost to an unranked Arizona should drop out of the top four. Alabama with it's close loss to #11 Ole Miss should stay in the top four. Oklahoma and Texas A&M will both drop. Baylor should move into the top four. Mississippi Stste and Ole Miss should move up pretty good although neither should be able to jump Notre Dame in the rankings. It is possible that ND jumps into 4th in the polls...we'll have to see come Sunday night.

Arizona Goes on the Road to Defeat #2 Oregon 31-24

The undefeated Arizona Wildcats traveled to Eugene, Oregon to take on the #2 Oregon Ducks on Thursday night and the result was a good one for the 'Cats. For the second year in a row Arizona has defeated the 2nd ranked Ducks and effectively eliminated them from National Champioship contention.
Marcus Mariota, Oregon quarterback had this to say "They're undefeated," he said. "It's obviously a testament to our conference. If you're not prepared each week, if you're not ready to play, you'll lose."

Read the ESPN story here