1405 replies to this topic

[Clemente38]

I'm posting this one for lurker Trotski, a UNH alum and someone who made it to the game at Northwestern on Saturday:



I was at the game in Evanston, and as a UNH alum, it is a wonderful thing to hear "Big time college football fans" SEVERELY underestimating the UNH team. People all around me were saying "Just cram the ball down their throats," and "Their offense got lucky on that first drive." By the end of the game, all I heard (over the chants of UNH!!! UNH!!!) was "Boy, that Santos is real good!" and "What's the name of that receiver that caught that touchdown pass while being interfered with?"

Back during the 94-97 seasons, I used to be the play-by-play guy for UNH football on WUNH, so I got to see Azumah play weekly, but the Wildcat squads of last year and this year have me bubbling with excitement. Can't wait to see what they do to lesser competition.

[RedOctober3829]

I'm posting this one for lurker Trotski, a UNH alum and someone who made it to the game at Northwestern on Saturday:
I was at the game in Evanston, and as a UNH alum, it is a wonderful thing to hear "Big time college football fans" SEVERELY underestimating the UNH team. People all around me were saying "Just cram the ball down their throats," and "Their offense got lucky on that first drive." By the end of the game, all I heard (over the chants of UNH!!! UNH!!!) was "Boy, that Santos is real good!" and "What's the name of that receiver that caught that touchdown pass while being interfered with?"

Back during the 94-97 seasons, I used to be the play-by-play guy for UNH football on WUNH, so I got to see Azumah play weekly, but the Wildcat squads of last year and this year have me bubbling with excitement. Can't wait to see what they do to lesser competition.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'd be weary against calling the A-10 "lesser competition". UMass is very talented as are a lot of other teams. They have to prepare each week just as they did for Northwestern and they will be fine. But, if they don't, they could get beat by a lot of teams in its conference.

[The Napkin]

some good games this weekend:

Sep. 14 Thu. Tennessee Tech @ MTSU 7:00 p.m. ESPNU
Sep. 14 Thu. Maryland @ West Virginia 7:30 p.m. ESPN
Sep. 15 Fri. Kansas @ Toledo 8:00 p.m. ESPN2
Sep. 16 Sat. Iowa State @ Iowa Noon ESPN
Sep. 16 Sat. BYU @ Boston College Noon ESPN2
Sep. 16 Sat. Syracuse @ Illinois Noon ESPNU
Sep. 16 Sat. Cincinnati @ Ohio State Noon GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Duke @ Virginia Tech Noon LFS/GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Marshall @ Kansas State 12:30 p.m. FSN
Sep. 16 Sat. Arkansas @ Vanderbilt 12:30 p.m. LFS/GP
Sep. 16 Sat. USF @ UCF 2:30 p.m. CSTV
Sep. 16 Sat. Oklahoma @ Oregon 3:30 p.m. ABC/GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Michi State @ Pittsburgh 3:30 p.m. ABC/GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Miami (FL) @ Louisville 3:30 p.m. ABC/GP
Sep. 16 Sat. LSU @ Auburn 3:30 p.m. CBS
Sep. 16 Sat. Michigan @ Notre Dame 3:30 p.m. NBC
Sep. 16 Sat. Y'town State @ Pen State 3:30 p.m. ESPNU
Sep. 16 Sat. San Diego State @ Wisconsin 3:30 p.m. GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Ohio @ Rutgers 3:30 p.m. GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Texas Tech @ TCU 5:30 p.m. OLN
Sep. 16 Sat. Texas @ Rice 6:00 p.m. ESPN2
Sep. 16 Sat. Arizona State @ Colorado 7:00 p.m. TBS
Sep. 16 Sat. Furman @ North Carolina 7:00 p.m. ESPNU
Sep. 16 Sat. Nicholls State @ LA Tech 7:00 p.m. GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Wofford @ South Carolina 7:00 p.m. GP
Sep. 16 Sat. UL-Monr @ Alabama 7:00 p.m. GP
Sep. 16 Sat. Clemson @ Florida State 7:45 p.m. ESPN
Sep. 16 Sat. Nebraska @ Southern Cal 8:00 p.m. ABC
Sep. 16. Sat. Florida @ Tennessee 8:00 p.m. CBS
Sep. 16 Sat. TX A&M vs. Army 9:15 p.m. ESPN2
Sep. 16 Sat. Steph F. Austin @ AZ 10:00 p.m. FSN Region
Sep. 16 Sat. Navy @ Stanford 10:00 p.m. FSN Regional

[Morassofnegativity]

Iowa better hope Tate comes back.

[SawxSince67]

some good games this weekend:
Sep. 16 Sat. Michigan @ Notre Dame 3:30 p.m. NBC
Sep. 16 Sat. Ohio @ Rutgers 3:30 p.m. GP

I recommend that you should watch Rutgers run the ball. Against NC and Illinois, Ray Rice rushed for near 6 yds/carry. NC was demoralized fairly quickly.

There may be a huge game awaiting them at the end of the season v. West Virginia.

No matter what, the Irish have already been in a “game” and Michigan has played only “gimmes”, so I think ND will do OK. Always a grudge game, though.

Edited by SawxSince67, 13 September 2006 - 02:24 PM.

[RedOctober3829]

Sep. 16 Sat. Arizona State @ Colorado 7:00 p.m. TBS

My Buffs will have no chance against the Sun Devils. We have no offense and our defense will do alright but give up too many points to suffice what the offense will bring to the table. Our two QBs are terrible and the #3 quit the team and will be transferring to a school that we don't play in the next 2 years(per Coach Hawk). We also can't seem to decide on a RB either. Barnett left the cupbards a little bare, but Hawkins will turn the ship around.

[redinchicago]

For those Penn St fans, you may or may not want to read this. It's from a Michigan fan. I watched some of the game last week, but couldn't stand listening to the Notre Dame broadcasting channel:

http://mgoblog.blogs...mpressions.html

God, Penn State's coaching staff is retarded. Remember when they'd waste downs by bringing in Robinson to run an ISQD*? They managed to get away from that habit when Robinson became the starter and said quarterback draws were no longer Incredibly Surprising. Well, they're back. Derrick Williams must have blown a half-dozen snaps running into the Incredibly Surprised line; the one time they tried to run trickeration off of it the play design was totally different than the plays they'd "set up" Notre Dame with and was so Incredibly Surprising that Williams was leveled by Ndkuwe when he tried to throw the ball. Lloyd haters take heart: there are dumber staffs out there.

And that compares not at all to what they did on the defensive side of the ball. Their gameplan against ND -- basically "if we drop all eleven guys into coverage it'll take them a really long time to score" -- tripped some sort of Herrmann-fuse in my brain. When I came to I was on the floor of Dunkin Donuts covered in coffee and what I really hope was frosting. Thanks for nothing, Penn State! Undeterred by Quinn freakin' torching them in the first quarter, they persisted in this until the touchdowns fell like rain. Penn State, thy name is Corky.

And then the grand bull-moose of horrific error: that insane option. Someone's been playing too much NCAA 2004. Just because everyone from John Navarre on up makes a dandy option QB in the game does not mean that Anthony Morelli will do anything except explode when you have him do it in real life.

I no longer fear this game much. Penn State's defensive ends have court orders to stay 50 yards from the quarterback at all times. Their blitzes are telegraphed, mistimed, and pitifully slow. Evidently they're terrified of their secondary, since their gameplan was hell-bent on preventing anyone finding themselves in single coverage, like, ever. Morelli has a nice arm and a tendency to throw into double coverage. Tony Hunt is the very definition of pedestrian.

*(Incredibly Surprising Quarterback Draw.)

Quinn was better. Two throws on seam routes to TE John Carlson stand out. They were real and they were fantastic. Never really saw the OMG NFL buzz on Quinn, but those throws give some indication of what his proponents see. They had to be placed in a two-foot window twenty yards downfield and were. Pure "wow" throws. Also, when Penn State's feeble attempts to get pressure failed (basically every time Quinn dropped back -- dude had Navarre-ian time to sit back and evaluate the field) he sliced and diced like Ginsu.

...but not exactly great. Those eight-man coverages in the redzone prompted two throws from him that should have been picked off. One was a horribly thrown ball that would have been a touchdown if accurate; a safety stepped in front of the other. There were also a couple overthrows on somewhat difficult passes.

Notre Dame cornerbacks haven't exactly repaired that Fiesta Bowl thing. Penn State had a couple opportunities to bomb it deep but could not. Once Derrick Williams dropped it; another time Morelli underthrew a ball that would have been a Ginn-Fiesta-style touchdown if accurate. I have a sneaking feeling that you can just run by these guys no problem toot sweet bingo, especially if Notre Dame brings an eighth guy into the box to staunch the bloodflow in the run game. Can Michigan block long enough to make it matter? Can the wide receivers actually get under and catch the hypothetical bomb? Eh... seems doubtful.

The linebackers can be had. We've had some problems getting guys blocked and keeping 'em blocked in the first couple games, but from what I saw against Penn State once these guys get engaged they're done. Their SAM linebacker has been iffy and both middle and weakside guys are undersized. That's mitigated somewhat by Zbikowski and Ndukwe, both outstanding in run support, but I can foresee a lot of 5 to 8 yard runs against ND.

Some Irish fans are theorizing that their mildly undersized line is good for dealing with the zone game, but that depends entirely on how committed they are to stopping the run. Seven in the box or even eight in the wrong position == death. That gives the Michigan line the freedom to shove undersized guys into sealed positions with their momentary doubles ("scoop" blocks in the parlance of our times), then get out to the linebackers and turn them into green goo. Lanes a-plenty. If, on the other hand, they guess correctly and force adjustments that remove the scoop possibility, Michigan will be trying to deal with one on one blocking while moving laterally across the line of scrimmage against theoretically penetrating linemen: bad news. Hart can probably turn some projected losses into decent gains, but Michigan won't be able to sustain drives on zone alone.

Victor Abiamiri is going to be a problem. He's good and he's lining up against Riley. I was hoping House Rock Built was engaging in a bit of homer fantasy when he described Abiamiri as a monster in our little tete-a-tete, but I regret to inform you that he isn't. Whatever sap is playing right tackle for PSU got izzowned** by Abiamiri all day... and it would have been worse had the refs decided to call two or three really obvious holds on him. Given Riley's ugly performance against Bazuin I think you're going to see an awful lot of chipping and support given to ol' Rueben. That'll harsh our routes a bit and potentially tip our plays: TE over Long == run, TE over Riley == pass.

**(Like "owned," only to such an extent that you can mention Michigan vs. Michigan State basketball as a potential comparison and be taken seriously.)

Random bullets:

* I understand why teams are swarming Samarjajeixkia but not McKnight. McKnight's had several opportunities to make tough catches in ND's first couple games and come through rarely. Whenever you put the ball within five yards of Samarjaexxxxo, he catches it. I hate him.
* If we get aggressive we resign ourselves to two or three forty-yard completions downfield. It's just going to happen. We blitz, it gets picked up, and Quinn hurls it towards one of the aforementioned receivers, both of whom have major height advantages on any cornerback you care to name.
* I'm fine with this. I prefer this in lieu of what happened to PSU.
* Darius Walker is a poor man's Mike Hart. The similarities are downright eerie.
* PSU probably did us a major favor by playing stupidity guinea pig. The stark contrast between GT's approach, PSU approach, and their respective results should be obvious to all. We're coming after Quinn.
* If the other defensive end is as much of a problem area as HRB implied, Long should have a field day against him in the run game. He's been driving guys into the secondary so far this year.
* A large portion of the game's outcome rests on exactly when we have paper to their screen scissors and vice-versa. I often think that football is essentially a very violent poker game; this game will live up to that theory more than most. This worries me, as I don't think there's a person on the planet who would bet on Carr in a heads-up hold'em duel.

[Rick Burlesons Yam Bag]

For those Penn St fans, you may or may not want to read this.  It's from a Michigan fan.  I watched some of the game last week, but couldn't stand listening to the Notre Dame broadcasting channel:

http://mgoblog.blogs...mpressions.html

God, Penn State's coaching staff is retarded. Remember when they'd waste downs by bringing in Robinson to run an ISQD*? They managed to get away from that habit when Robinson became the starter and said quarterback draws were no longer Incredibly Surprising. Well, they're back. Derrick Williams must have blown a half-dozen snaps running into the Incredibly Surprised line; the one time they tried to run trickeration off of it the play design was totally different than the plays they'd "set up" Notre Dame with and was so Incredibly Surprising that Williams was leveled by Ndkuwe when he tried to throw the ball. Lloyd haters take heart: there are dumber staffs out there.

And that compares not at all to what they did on the defensive side of the ball. Their gameplan against ND -- basically "if we drop all eleven guys into coverage it'll take them a really long time to score" -- tripped some sort of Herrmann-fuse in my brain. When I came to I was on the floor of Dunkin Donuts covered in coffee and what I really hope was frosting. Thanks for nothing, Penn State! Undeterred by Quinn freakin' torching them in the first quarter, they persisted in this until the touchdowns fell like rain. Penn State, thy name is Corky.

And then the grand bull-moose of horrific error: that insane option. Someone's been playing too much NCAA 2004. Just because everyone from John Navarre on up makes a dandy option QB in the game does not mean that Anthony Morelli will do anything except explode when you have him do it in real life.

I no longer fear this game much. Penn State's defensive ends have court orders to stay 50 yards from the quarterback at all times. Their blitzes are telegraphed, mistimed, and pitifully slow. Evidently they're terrified of their secondary, since their gameplan was hell-bent on preventing anyone finding themselves in single coverage, like, ever. Morelli has a nice arm and a tendency to throw into double coverage. Tony Hunt is the very definition of pedestrian.

*(Incredibly Surprising Quarterback Draw.)

Quinn was better. Two throws on seam routes to TE John Carlson stand out. They were real and they were fantastic. Never really saw the OMG NFL buzz on Quinn, but those throws give some indication of what his proponents see. They had to be placed in a two-foot window twenty yards downfield and were. Pure "wow" throws. Also, when Penn State's feeble attempts to get pressure failed (basically every time Quinn dropped back -- dude had Navarre-ian time to sit back and evaluate the field) he sliced and diced like Ginsu.

...but not exactly great. Those eight-man coverages in the redzone prompted two throws from him that should have been picked off. One was a horribly thrown ball that would have been a touchdown if accurate; a safety stepped in front of the other. There were also a couple overthrows on somewhat difficult passes.

Notre Dame cornerbacks haven't exactly repaired that Fiesta Bowl thing. Penn State had a couple opportunities to bomb it deep but could not. Once Derrick Williams dropped it; another time Morelli underthrew a ball that would have been a Ginn-Fiesta-style touchdown if accurate. I have a sneaking feeling that you can just run by these guys no problem toot sweet bingo, especially if Notre Dame brings an eighth guy into the box to staunch the bloodflow in the run game. Can Michigan block long enough to make it matter? Can the wide receivers actually get under and catch the hypothetical bomb? Eh... seems doubtful.

The linebackers can be had. We've had some problems getting guys blocked and keeping 'em blocked in the first couple games, but from what I saw against Penn State once these guys get engaged they're done. Their SAM linebacker has been iffy and both middle and weakside guys are undersized. That's mitigated somewhat by Zbikowski and Ndukwe, both outstanding in run support, but I can foresee a lot of 5 to 8 yard runs against ND.

Some Irish fans are theorizing that their mildly undersized line is good for dealing with the zone game, but that depends entirely on how committed they are to stopping the run. Seven in the box or even eight in the wrong position == death. That gives the Michigan line the freedom to shove undersized guys into sealed positions with their momentary doubles ("scoop" blocks in the parlance of our times), then get out to the linebackers and turn them into green goo. Lanes a-plenty. If, on the other hand, they guess correctly and force adjustments that remove the scoop possibility, Michigan will be trying to deal with one on one blocking while moving laterally across the line of scrimmage against theoretically penetrating linemen: bad news. Hart can probably turn some projected losses into decent gains, but Michigan won't be able to sustain drives on zone alone.

Victor Abiamiri is going to be a problem. He's good and he's lining up against Riley. I was hoping House Rock Built was engaging in a bit of homer fantasy when he described Abiamiri as a monster in our little tete-a-tete, but I regret to inform you that he isn't. Whatever sap is playing right tackle for PSU got izzowned** by Abiamiri all day... and it would have been worse had the refs decided to call two or three really obvious holds on him. Given Riley's ugly performance against Bazuin I think you're going to see an awful lot of chipping and support given to ol' Rueben. That'll harsh our routes a bit and potentially tip our plays: TE over Long == run, TE over Riley == pass.

**(Like "owned," only to such an extent that you can mention Michigan vs. Michigan State basketball as a potential comparison and be taken seriously.)

Random bullets:

    * I understand why teams are swarming Samarjajeixkia but not McKnight. McKnight's had several opportunities to make tough catches in ND's first couple games and come through rarely. Whenever you put the ball within five yards of Samarjaexxxxo, he catches it. I hate him.
    * If we get aggressive we resign ourselves to two or three forty-yard completions downfield. It's just going to happen. We blitz, it gets picked up, and Quinn hurls it towards one of the aforementioned receivers, both of whom have major height advantages on any cornerback you care to name.
    * I'm fine with this. I prefer this in lieu of what happened to PSU.
    * Darius Walker is a poor man's Mike Hart. The similarities are downright eerie.
    * PSU probably did us a major favor by playing stupidity guinea pig. The stark contrast between GT's approach, PSU approach, and their respective results should be obvious to all. We're coming after Quinn.
    * If the other defensive end is as much of a problem area as HRB implied, Long should have a field day against him in the run game. He's been driving guys into the secondary so far this year.
    * A large portion of the game's outcome rests on exactly when we have paper to their screen scissors and vice-versa. I often think that football is essentially a very violent poker game; this game will live up to that theory more than most. This worries me, as I don't think there's a person on the planet who would bet on Carr in a heads-up hold'em duel.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It is rare that I will actively bow down to someone's breakdown of a game I saw, but I watched the first half of this game and this fellow saw WAY more than I saw.

Kudos, he knows his football.

[Clears Cleaver]

Uh...holy shit. WVU and Slaton are just humiliating Maryland rightnow, 21-0...oh, wait, 28, jeezus. This is insane. Slaton has like 150 yards in the first quarter!

Knock the Big East all you want, but this team is really, really good on offense, faster than any team in the country. and Slaton is the best RB I've seen this year.

WVU vs Louisville...there could be 150 points scored

[SoxScout]

He is pretty filthy, I'm really pissed Bush got hurt though. I am interested in seeing what Ian Johnson at Boise State does the rest of the way, kid put on the best show I have seen in a long time last weekend. Through, around, over... it didn't matter, he was taking it to the house.

[SawxSince67]

Uh...holy shit. WVU and Slaton are just humiliating Maryland rightnow, 21-0...oh, wait, 28, jeezus. This is insane. Slaton has like 150 yards in the first quarter!

From a defensive standpoint, some of Rodriguez’ running schemes (with the required RB talent) are a horror: “Block” one way and run the other way.

Defensive players but LBs, in particular, are taught to react to the flow of an offensive line--better than waiting for the ball exchange in the backfield.

A number of times last night, WVU took great advantage of this basic tenet and ran the ball against the flow of the O line. Plus, their WRs were pretty aggressive in blocking who ever was left on that side of the field.

WVU ran 40 + times out of 54 plays. Friedgen knew they’d do that going into the game and the Terps were still helpless. That got ugly in a hurry.

[Clears Cleaver]

West Virginia's defnese is susceptable to a power attack (like Bush woulda at Louisville). they are small and fast, like gnats, but can be attacked straight ahead. They basically sell out a lot to make plays up the field, so can be beaten b y a good o-line and power.

Great weekend ahead, I think my goal is to watch around 12 college games on Saturday

[drtooth]

I know that it's ABC's 8:00 game (hence the ESPN GameDay crew is there), but am I the only one that sees the Neb/USC match-up as a potentially devestating route for a USC win?

Edited for clarity

Edited by drtooth, 16 September 2006 - 08:10 AM.

[RedOctober3829]

I know that it's ABC's 8:00 game (hence the ESPN GameDay crew is there), but am I the only one that sees the Neb/USC match-up as a potentially devestating route for USC?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Don't you mean a devastating route for Nebraska? They are virtually untested after two patsy wins to open the season going into USC, who has a 27 game home winning streak and are infinitely more talented on both sides of the ball. Not to mention are the best coached team in the nation. To add to the underdog role, one of the Huskers comes out in the media this week and guarantees a win. I'll be surprised if they lose by less than three TDs.

[SoxScout]

I think Nebraska gives them a good fight, and has a decent shot at an upset

UNH wins 62-7 over powerhouse Stony Brook.

[RedSoxFan]

Wow scUM leading ND 27-7.

[SoxScout]

Michigan was my team growing up, but when Weis went to ND they started splitting my non-BC allegiance. I am feeling good right now.

[15'sCementShoes]

Wow scUM leading ND 27-7.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Disappointing effort by the Irish so far. Somebody needs to let them know this isn't a bowl game.

[Chemistry Schmemistry]

Henne to Manningham for a third touchdown. Go Blue!

[SoxScout]

3 catches, 112 yards, 3 TDs. I've seen stuff like that on xBox.

Edit: Well that drive was step #1 in Carr's keys to pissing this game away.

Edited by SoxScout, 16 September 2006 - 04:18 PM.

[Chemistry Schmemistry]

If Michigan continues to give Quinn five-to-eight seconds on every play, that big lead is going to be gone by the end of the third quarter.

[cabrera era]

I swear to God if Miami calls another run on 1st down right up the middle to gain a yard and a half when they're down 17 points I'm gonna fly over to Louisville and kill Larry Coker with my bare hands.

[eddiew112]

I swear to God if Miami calls another run on 1st down right up the middle to gain a yard and a half when they're down 17 points I'm gonna fly over to Louisville and kill Larry Coker with my bare hands.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You kill him, I kidnap Butch Davis from wherever he is and install him at half-time.

[cabrera era]

You kill him, I kidnap Butch Davis from wherever he is and install him at half-time.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

We may be looking at the future Miami coach right here in this game. Bobby Petrino. If I had to put my money on 3 coaches who'd take the job if Coker were fired, I'd say in order: Butch Davis, Bobby Petrino, Tommy Tubberville

[BGrif21125]

Someone forgot to tell JaMarcus Russell that when you're running a 2 minute drill with no timeouts, you can't:
a. take a sack
b. throw 5 yards short of the goal line on the final play
Ugh.

[BigMike]

So how far do the Irish drop after that absolutely humiliating defeat Michigan handed them.

Any other team in the country falls out of the top 10 to maybe 12-15. They should fall behind Georgia, Louisville, and Va Tech

[15'sCementShoes]

So how far do the Irish drop after that absolutely humiliating defeat Michigan handed them.

Any other team in the country falls out of the top 10 to maybe 12-15.  They should fall behind Georgia, Louisville, and Va Tech

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Let me guess...you're a BC fan.

[SoxScout]

ND will probably be 8 or 9.

What a game up in Oregon...

Edit: I love how kicking sucks so much. If I am ever a HS or NCAA coach I wont even carry a place kicker on my roster.

Edited by SoxScout, 16 September 2006 - 06:26 PM.

[ibrewbeer]

HOW awesome was that Oregon v Oklahoma game?

first the refs screwed up two calls in the last minutes, with the blown call on the onsides call, then the pass interference call where the lineman tipped the ball.

The OK runs that kick off way back, and the kick gets blocked at the end...dont uderstand the run at the end, instead of trying to get a down and out a little closer.

Feel bad for OK getting Ref fucked like that...twice

GREAT GAME

[SoxScout]

Lets go Nebraska, Clemson and Tennessee...

[SoxScout]

Wow that is SICK. His foot is dislocated and facing the wrong way.

[BGrif21125]

Wow that is SICK. His foot is dislocated and facing the wrong way.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ya that fullback's lower leg is facing a different direction than the top half. Not good.

[BigMike]

Let me guess...you're a BC fan.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yeah, and yes I enjoy seeing ND fail, but what difference does that make in terms of their rankings

ND will probably be 8 or 9.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

FSU going down tonight will help them stay higher

Ohio St
USC
Auburn
Florida
West Virginia
Texas
Georgia
Michigan
Louisville
Florida
Va Tech

Which team on that list does a 1 loss ND deserve to be ranked ahead of? ANd this wasn't a loss on the road that came down to the last play against a top 5 team, like LSU's loss to Auburn, this was a crushing defeat at home.

[Robinson Checo]

Ohio St
USC
Auburn
Florida
West Virginia
Texas
Georgia
Michigan
Louisville
Florida
Va Tech

All of those teams are better than ND, but being the darlings they are like a Duke or UNC in hoops, I guess they fall right above Texas on that list. USC will beat them in LA this year, so it is moot.

Oregon got damn lucky. They wanted this game to get national recognition and I think those blown calls wont help them get that.

[mabrowndog]

I'm assuming based on the inactivity in this thread over the past hour that NOBODY is watching Army vs Texas A&M.

28-24 A&M. 13 secs left.

Army ball on the A&M 1-yard line. 2nd & goal, and they just called their last TO.

A&M checks the formation and calls their last TO as well.

Damn I hope the Cadets pull it off, but this is an amazing ending to a tremendous day of football.

EDIT - Fuck. Incomplete pass, then a busted handoff and run to the left. Woulda, coulda, shoulda...

Edited by mabrowndog, 16 September 2006 - 11:42 PM.

[SoxScout]

Just went through the boxscores of all 18 games that involved a Top 25 team this weekend:

XPA: 90
XPM: 84

93.33%

FGA: 59
FGM: 41

69.49%

Edited by SoxScout, 16 September 2006 - 11:59 PM.

[Spacemans Bong]

ND will probably be 8 or 9.

What a game up in Oregon...

Edit: I love how kicking sucks so much. If I am ever a HS or NCAA coach I wont even carry a place kicker on my roster.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, you're complaining about how much kicking sucks and you wouldn't even carry a placekicker on your roster? Mmmmkay.

The real answer is to treat it as an important part of the game, rather than an afterthought.

[SoxScout]

How many trustworthy kickers are their in America each year? 5, 10 total? Odds are you are not going to have one. Obviously a big part of the problem is the blocking; I don't understand why people can not do this competently.

I was being pretty facetious, I mean this is no way I’ll ever be a NCAA coach… the Wing T is a dying art. However, when I am on the sidelines for Friday night high school battles, I am going for two.

[15'sCementShoes]

Yeah, and yes I enjoy seeing ND fail, but what difference does that make in terms of their rankings

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It doens't mean squat unless you are an AP voter. I just think it's funny that ND gets destroyed and you can't savor it because you're already worried about the polls bailing them out. I know tons of BC fans and most of them share your sentiment. It just baffles me as to why BC fans, in general, hate ND more than the average fan. The schools both share a common Catholic heritage and have high academic standards. They don't play in the same conference. Nor is there a longstanding rivalry. When they did play recently BC had great success so it's not like ND ruined BC's season on multiple occasions. So what is it?

[Rick Burlesons Yam Bag]

Maybe you could do some research instead of listening to ESPN soundbites.

Speed isn't an issue with the ND DB's. Wooden, Zbikowski and Lambert all have great speed. It was the biting on the play action pass. I'm hoping a year of coaching from Bill Lewis will help them recognize the play better.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well......I hate to break this to you.....but you need not just a little, but ALOT more speed in your secondary.

You guys have done a great job this season of building a schedule that is hideously easy (your toughest games are at home, and there aren't all that many that can be described as "tough") and you still blew it. Speed kills, and yesterday the Gold Domers were replaced with chalk outlines.

[NDBoston]

Well......I hate to break this to you.....but you need not just a little, but ALOT more speed in your secondary.

You guys have done a great job this season of building a schedule that is hideously easy (your toughest games are at home, and there aren't all that many that can be described as "tough") and you still blew it.  Speed kills, and yesterday the Gold Domers were replaced with chalk outlines.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hideously easy?

The USC and Michigan State games are away. Georgia Tech wasn't an easy place to win in either. Don't let the facts stop you. You're on a roll.

Michigan is a good team and took it to ND this year. It's clear you have some hatred towards Notre Dame and it takes your critical thinking skills away.

[drtooth]

Tough day for the refs

1. LSU/Aub--The 4th down reversal of a pass interference call was hard to fathom, at best. This especially true given the fact the WR appeared to be hit prior to the ball being tipped

2. Okla/Oregon- Already noted earlier in the thread.

3. The replays appear to be slow in their review and the calls (so far this year) have been hit-or-miss.

So far, it appears that replayhas exposed the officiating in college football.

[Carroll Hardy]

.... It's clear you have some hatred towards Notre Dame and it takes your critical thinking skills away.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Talk about being obsessed against ND, how about Navy fans? We're talking Kennedy Administration.

Navy dismantled Stanford last night. They are 3-0, despite not yet having played as well as they are capable. Air Force and Army have also shown an ability to play well against some decent 1-A teams.

With quality coaching, they have demonstrated how a disciplined team with outmanned, but tough, kids can use a triple option to hold the ball for 10 minute drives. Time of possession is their 1st team All-American on defense. If they don't put it on the ground, they can score 3-4 TDs on just about anyone.

ND will get absolutely no credit whatsoever for beating all three of these teams. After all, they're Service Academies, for crying out loud. But there is a real possibility they will lose to one of them. These games aren't gimmes: teams that will score in the 20s against you have a real shot.

A loss to Navy, Air Force, or Army would hurt their season immeasurably as compared to a single loss to Michigan.

[RedSoxFan]

Even still, I think ND has to be a lock for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy.

[SoxScout]

Notre Dame falls to #12 in the new AP Top 25.

[Dave Stapleton]

ND is like the Yankees. They are a storied team which generates lots of hate or love but no in between. It's a complement.

I think the reason BC fans (of which I am one) root against ND for a number of reasons but I think one is that they refuse to recognize BC as a legitimate rival. Lou Holtz started this routine with the whole ... only USC is worthy of being a real rival, etc. BC fans are somewhat resentful of this.

As shown by the last several years ND has discovered it is no win situation for them and have ended the relationship (in favor of teams like Rutgers). I like Charlie and have a hard time rooting against ND now but Lou Holtz got it all started with the fake punt in thier first meeting blow out and all his "noone but USC" talk.

Edited by Dave Stapleton, 17 September 2006 - 02:04 PM.

[Dave Stapleton]

Notre Dame falls to #12 in the new AP Top 25.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

And 13 in the Coaches Poll.

[Rick Burlesons Yam Bag]

Hideously easy?

The USC and Michigan State games are away. Georgia Tech wasn't an easy place to win in either. Don't let the facts stop you. You're on a roll.

Michigan is a good team and took it to ND this year. It's clear you have some hatred towards Notre Dame and it takes your critical thinking skills away.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Wow. You guys are playing Michigan State on the road??? Wow, those are some balls!!!!! And yeah, Georgia Tech. They may be a top 25 team at some point.....but probably not once they start conference play.

Listen, I know it is your schtick to defend them to the last breath, but so far this season you have been wrong about....oh, everything actually. I will rephrase slightly; Notre Dame built as easy a schedule as one could put together for realistic consideration for a BCS spot.

Great possibility: What happens 2 years from now if Weis has put together 2 back to back 6-7 win seasons and bowl demolitions like last season? Will they carry themselves with the great poise and loyalty like they showed with Willingham? Those 10 year giant contracts can really taste like crap going down.

Do I hate ND? I didn't until the Willingham fiasco. Brady Quinn was recruited by Willingham, as were a number of highly rated players currently playing under Weis and Willingham wasn't given a chance to play otu his contract under his kids. Weis did not do significantly better in his first season than Willingham did and he got an enormous, hideous extension. If you are going to preach loyalty and all of the ND schtick you need to live it. ND chose not to. If ND fans start coming out and saying "Hey you know what? We are a football program trying to win a National Championship and we are doing the exact same crap that everyone else does in the pursuit of that." I guess I would no longer hate ND. But for now it is great seeing you guys choke on your own hype.

[Drocca]

I think of one thing we can all agree:

Notre Damn was(is) atrociously overrated and therefore very easy to make money off them.

For that reason, I love em'.