And we are off. The race for the final BCS National Championship before the inaugural four team play-off next year has began in earnest.
Week One in College Football is a rare monster, not as traditional as Opening Day in Baseball, not as glamorous as week 1 of the NFL season yet due to the ESPN monster it is just as hyped an event. These are the stars of the NFL future, although amateur by definition they are as feted as former college now NFL stars Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III.
Last year was Year One of Johnny Football and the huge rotation of Jadeveon Clowney's monster hit in January led to him being earmarked as the next Lawrence Taylor or Ray Lewis. Fittingly, it was Clowney and his side, South Carolina Gamecocks who opened up the College Football season at home to North Carolina Tar Heels. The Gamecocks scored on their opening drive, a huge 65 yard TD pass from Conor Shaw to Shaq Roland gave the #7 ranked Gamecocks a lead they never relinquished, winning 27-10. The Tar Heels offered little on offence, a blessing considering Clowney's sub-par performance where he had no sacks and only three first half tackles. An upset stomach was apparently too blame, although the humidity at the 6pmEST kick-off could be as much at fault.
National Champions, Alabama Crimson Tide opened on neutral territory at the Georgia Dome versus the Virginia Tech Hokies. Although the scoreline looks lopsided 35-10, the Tide were helped by Christian Jones scoring a kickoff return TD, a punt return TD and a reception TD for 256 total yards. The Hokies exposed a new offensive line for Alabama who lost three four-year starters to the draft this year; they packed the box with eight defenders prompting confusion and panic for QB AJ McCarron who finished with 10-23, 110 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. The same packed box allowed RB TJ Yeldon 75 yards of the 96 total rushing yards.
They may be National Champions but even champions have some weaknesses that were exposed and need rectifying before next week's huge match-up versus Texas A&M Aggies and Johnny Manziel.
Following on from his NCAA squabble about signing for paid autographs, Manziel was punished with having to sit out the first half of their home opener versus Rice. At half time the Aggies needed him as they held a slender 28-21 lead over the unfancied Rice Owls. Manziel answered the call with three TD passes to help them come out 52-31 victors. Manziel seems to have this aura about him off the field which cannot be put into question in spite of his off-the-field behaviour.
Oregon may have lost Chip Kelly to the Philadelphia Eagles, but for new Head Coach Mark Helfrich it is the same old story as they decimated Nicholls State College 66-3 with three players having 100+ yard games rushing including QB Marcus Mariota had 113 yards in addition to his 234 passing yards. The Ducks had 772 total offensive yards and remain favourites for the Pac 12 title this season with Mariota an under the radar Heisman selection.
Fresh for bowl eligibility this season, Urban Meyer hopes to lead the Ohio State Buckeyes to the National Championship after going undefeated last season. They opened on Saturday with a 40-20 home victory over Buffalo Bulls. Braxton Miller went 15-22, 178 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT but the impressive performance was RB Jordan Hall who had 2 TDs for 159 yards off 21 carries. However, there were moments of worry for the Buckeyes that many better teams would have taken advantage of.
However, that is why many ranked sides open up against easy opposition to give them the opportunity to iron out any creases on both sides of the ball in a real game time situation. Some choose to open with a tougher opponent such as LSU Tigers who played Big 12 TCU at Cowboys Stadium and proved victorious 37-27 for a big non-conference win before the conference slate begins. QB Zach Mettenberger went 16-32 for 251 yards, 1 TD and crucially no turnovers for the senior man, as his side had 448 total yards. TCU led by Gary Patterson have been touted as a side who can step up and mix with the big boys of the SEC, whilst they did themselves justice they only had 259 total yards so to lose by only 10 points was some marker of their intentions and the grit in the side. This close encounter was the game of the weekend.
And just behind was Georgia 35 Clemson 38 with two good QBs Aaron Murray and Taj Boyd trading blows but with Boyd coming out on top. Clemson reside in the ACC but are now in the Championship talk after defeating an SEC side. Boyd - who along with Teddy Bridgewater (see below) is NFL bound - had 270 yards passing and 3 TDs and also ran for two close to goal TDs for five in total. Murray had 323 yards passing but one crucial INT with no TDs; and again he came up short in the big game versus a ranked opponent being sacked four times in the process. The Tigers of Clemson made sure their roar was heard on Saturday, expect them to replace Georgia as the #5 ranked side in country come Monday with the new rankings.
Sunday night, another Heisman favourite Teddy Bridgewater the No.1 ranked QB prospect for the NFL draft in 2014 started his campaign with his Louisville Cardinals as they attempt to seek perfection to get to the National Championship. They made short work of the Ohio Bobcats winning 49-7 at home with Bridgewater going 355 passing yards and 5 TDs. Louisville play in the ACC, a weak conference in comparison to the SEC, Big 10, Big 12 and Pac 12, they also have a weak schedule so need to run the table and hope teams lose games to their advantage.
Showing posts with label NCAA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NCAA. Show all posts
Monday, 2 September 2013
Thursday, 27 June 2013
Oregon Ducks still swimming
The NCAA released the results of their 27 month investigation into Oregon's College Football recruiting policy, you wonder why it took them so long if they return with such a woeful punishment for such a prominent school, whose illustrious coach is now in the NFL.
The punishment along with public censure including: A loss of one scholarship from two recruiting classes, including last year's class, and a maximum of 84 total scholarship players -- one below the limit -- through the 2015-16 academic year. Three years of probation ending June 25, 2016. A number of recruiting restrictions, including a ban on subscriptions to recruiting services during the probation period, believed to be a first for NCAA sanctions.
Whereas other schools who have been convicted of wrong-doing have suffered with a post-season bowl ban, Oregon who have lost a National Championship match and been in the hunt for the BCS title for the last four years, unlike say Ohio State and USC who both had to endure post-season bans. Last season, the Buckeyes went undefeated through the season and yet could not be selected for the Championship game due to their ban, a slight on a sub-par College Football season as you could not get Alabama versus Ohio State, Nick Saban v Urban Meyer.
Pete Carroll was in charge of the USC Trojans during the period under their investigation, Carroll quickly upped sticks and left for the safe confines of Seattle in the NFL, many felt Chip Kelly's decision to leave for the Philadelphia Eagles smacked of the same conviction to avoid any punishment. And yet Kelly has been banned from College Football for only 18 months, so if the Eagles experiment (where he threatens to run rough shod over the NFC East) is a failure he can return to the safe haven (a la Steve Spurrier) in two seasons.
As well as Chip Kelly the head coach, the others who failed to monitor - the Athletic Director and University President have all been replaced, meaning none have really suffered any personal setback to their tenure.
Oregon lose one scholarship per season for two years, and are under probation for the same period of time - a mere slap on a wrist to a fashionable destination for young student athletes. If you are not going to ban the school from the post-season, you make it harder for them to get there. Apparently, it makes it harder for the school during recruitment with the reduction of one scholarship, yet they still have 24 full scholarships to offer to players who can rule the roost in the Pac-12 conference.
Oregon are head and shoulders above the other Pac 12 schools, owing to USC being behind the eight ball for so long. Oddly, the punishments served to them by the NCAA to remain in a period of strength and not have to worry too much about the ramifications. In a way, did they really do anything wrong in the first place?
The punishment along with public censure including: A loss of one scholarship from two recruiting classes, including last year's class, and a maximum of 84 total scholarship players -- one below the limit -- through the 2015-16 academic year. Three years of probation ending June 25, 2016. A number of recruiting restrictions, including a ban on subscriptions to recruiting services during the probation period, believed to be a first for NCAA sanctions.
Whereas other schools who have been convicted of wrong-doing have suffered with a post-season bowl ban, Oregon who have lost a National Championship match and been in the hunt for the BCS title for the last four years, unlike say Ohio State and USC who both had to endure post-season bans. Last season, the Buckeyes went undefeated through the season and yet could not be selected for the Championship game due to their ban, a slight on a sub-par College Football season as you could not get Alabama versus Ohio State, Nick Saban v Urban Meyer.
Pete Carroll was in charge of the USC Trojans during the period under their investigation, Carroll quickly upped sticks and left for the safe confines of Seattle in the NFL, many felt Chip Kelly's decision to leave for the Philadelphia Eagles smacked of the same conviction to avoid any punishment. And yet Kelly has been banned from College Football for only 18 months, so if the Eagles experiment (where he threatens to run rough shod over the NFC East) is a failure he can return to the safe haven (a la Steve Spurrier) in two seasons.
As well as Chip Kelly the head coach, the others who failed to monitor - the Athletic Director and University President have all been replaced, meaning none have really suffered any personal setback to their tenure.
Oregon lose one scholarship per season for two years, and are under probation for the same period of time - a mere slap on a wrist to a fashionable destination for young student athletes. If you are not going to ban the school from the post-season, you make it harder for them to get there. Apparently, it makes it harder for the school during recruitment with the reduction of one scholarship, yet they still have 24 full scholarships to offer to players who can rule the roost in the Pac-12 conference.
Oregon are head and shoulders above the other Pac 12 schools, owing to USC being behind the eight ball for so long. Oddly, the punishments served to them by the NCAA to remain in a period of strength and not have to worry too much about the ramifications. In a way, did they really do anything wrong in the first place?
Sunday, 10 March 2013
College Basketball March 9th Recap
In the 2nd Saturday of March for many sides it is the last game of regular-season games before the lottery of conference tournaments. Yet it remains as the final opportunity for some teams to gain momentum before the tournament.
In recent years, conference tournaments have lit the paper for college sides to catch fire just in time. Look at UConn three years ago who were not even on the bubble but yet got into the NCAA tournament on account of winning the Big East tournament in Madison Square Garden thanks to Kemba Walker; they won five games in New York and then six more in the tournament. Think also of VCU who won there conference title and eventually got to the Final Four.
On Saturday night however, we saw a lot of sides suspected of going deep into the tournament treating the final regular-season game as a means of trying out the bench; how else can you explain Kansas losing 81-58 on the road to Baylor, having known a victory would secure a Big 12 title. Bill Self has to make do with his 9th consecutive conference title.
Syracuse are struggling big time on the offensive end after so much season hype, they were woeful on the road at Georgetown, as they lost 61-39 as the Hoyas secured a share of the Big East title. The Orange are struggling because they have no cohesion, now they may look to Louisville and see that if you make a Big East title run you may make the Final Four, as the Cardinals did last year. Louisville though had stingy defence, something the Orange do not employ at this current moment.
The Tar Heels from North Carolina had been gaining some momentum in recent weeks and secured an at-large tournament bid but they came undone at home to Duke who throttled them 69-53. Duke remain a good team and with the return of Ryan Kelly to the line-up look a dead cert for a number one seed and another final four run for Coach K. Although the ACC title went to Miami who beat Clemson 62-49 to secure the crown.
Current National Champions Kentucky did themselves no harm at all by defeating Florida Gators 61-57 at home, the Wildcats under John Calipari have done well to regroup following the injury to Nerlen Noels and should now have done enough to warrant a tournament bid. A deep SEC tournament run in a weak conference field should secure it.
My dark horse tip for the tournament remains the UCLA Bruins, who won on the road at Washington 61-54 to secure the Pac-12 crown. The talent the Bruins have in Shabazz Muhammed and Kevin Anderson make them an intriguing team and one some teams would like to avoid; their defence has got better and we know they can score.
The Big 10 climaxes today (Sunday 10th) with Wisconsin travelling to Penn State; Ohio State hosting Illinois, Northwestern travelling to #10 Michigan State and the titanic tussle between #2 Indiana at #7 Michigan featuring a star-studded line-up of eventual NBA talent: Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr.
In recent years, conference tournaments have lit the paper for college sides to catch fire just in time. Look at UConn three years ago who were not even on the bubble but yet got into the NCAA tournament on account of winning the Big East tournament in Madison Square Garden thanks to Kemba Walker; they won five games in New York and then six more in the tournament. Think also of VCU who won there conference title and eventually got to the Final Four.
On Saturday night however, we saw a lot of sides suspected of going deep into the tournament treating the final regular-season game as a means of trying out the bench; how else can you explain Kansas losing 81-58 on the road to Baylor, having known a victory would secure a Big 12 title. Bill Self has to make do with his 9th consecutive conference title.
Syracuse are struggling big time on the offensive end after so much season hype, they were woeful on the road at Georgetown, as they lost 61-39 as the Hoyas secured a share of the Big East title. The Orange are struggling because they have no cohesion, now they may look to Louisville and see that if you make a Big East title run you may make the Final Four, as the Cardinals did last year. Louisville though had stingy defence, something the Orange do not employ at this current moment.
The Tar Heels from North Carolina had been gaining some momentum in recent weeks and secured an at-large tournament bid but they came undone at home to Duke who throttled them 69-53. Duke remain a good team and with the return of Ryan Kelly to the line-up look a dead cert for a number one seed and another final four run for Coach K. Although the ACC title went to Miami who beat Clemson 62-49 to secure the crown.
Current National Champions Kentucky did themselves no harm at all by defeating Florida Gators 61-57 at home, the Wildcats under John Calipari have done well to regroup following the injury to Nerlen Noels and should now have done enough to warrant a tournament bid. A deep SEC tournament run in a weak conference field should secure it.
My dark horse tip for the tournament remains the UCLA Bruins, who won on the road at Washington 61-54 to secure the Pac-12 crown. The talent the Bruins have in Shabazz Muhammed and Kevin Anderson make them an intriguing team and one some teams would like to avoid; their defence has got better and we know they can score.
The Big 10 climaxes today (Sunday 10th) with Wisconsin travelling to Penn State; Ohio State hosting Illinois, Northwestern travelling to #10 Michigan State and the titanic tussle between #2 Indiana at #7 Michigan featuring a star-studded line-up of eventual NBA talent: Cody Zeller, Victor Oladipo, Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr.
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Bracketbusting
After the latest merry-go-round of bracket busting, resume altering games from prospective #1 seeds falling to in conference rivals, to mid-majors still fighting above their weight. For everything this season of College Hoops has lacked in quality, the sheer quantity of teams capable of making a deep tournament run bodes well for March madness.
The latest #1 seed to fall was Indiana who lost on the road to Minnesota Golden Gophers last night, whilst this is not the worst thing in the world to happen to the Hoosiers, who will likely be overtaken by Gonzaga on Monday (if they themselves do not lose) - it must be noted that it is the second time Indiana have lost the game immediately after being made the top ranked National side. The reason they lost though was they lost the board battle to Minnesota 38-25, led by Trevor Mbakwe's personal tally of 12 (6 offensive) and gave up 40 points in the paint, in a 77-73 loss. Mbakwe accounted for a huge block on Cody Zeller that benched the would-be Wooden award winner for several crucial first half minutes.
For Minnesota it was a much needed win, they remain 7-8 in the Big 10 but 19-9 overall with a weak remaining schedule with Penn State (8-18) at home, followed by a dual road trip to Northwestern (13-15) and Purdue (13-14). The chance to finish 22-9 coupled with some big RPI wins will guarantee an at large bid, most likely one of 7 from the Big 10 with Illinois on the bubble probably.
Indiana though, have a tougher run-in at home to Iowa (17-10) is ended with road trips to Ohio State (20-7) and then #4 Michigan (23-4). Indiana are one of those teams that seem to alter when on the road, which is unusual considering the experience in the squad, yet the rebounding is now becoming an issue that teams can exploit.
Florida so often thought of as a definite #1 seed for the tourney, are trying their best to become a 2 or 3. They lost on the road to a resurgent Tennessee, and the injuries Billy Donovan's side have had to compete with seem to have started taken their toll, they missed Will Yeguette (knee) and Michael Frazier II (concussion) as in a tight contest they lost 64-58 to the Volunteers, who are making a late charge for the tournament as one of the last four in.
Florida should win the SEC title but how many SEC sides will get in. Missouri have fallen off the radar, Ole Miss have been inconsistent, Kentucky are still coming to terms with the loss of Nerlens Noel (and face Florida at home in the last regular season game on March 9th) whilst Tennessee themselves have three winnable games (at Georgia, at Auburn, v Missouri) the chance to have a 20-win season is attainable and something that was unthinkable a month ago. Kudos coach Cuonzo Martin.
Kansas seem to be that sort of team that people either respect because Bill Self is able to take a team of would-be's sophomores and other parts to create a side who is able to compete for a school's 9th successive conference title, or they are the sort of Manchester United - the big noise that gets the favourable calls on the road. Yet just like those Red Devils, these Jayhawks whilst making it hard for themselves know how to win ugly after playing ugly that nearly railroaded their conference campaign.
Kansas beat Iowa State in OT for the 2nd time this season helped by a career night for Elijah Johnson who had 39 points (11 in OT), yet it was the charge no charge call at the end of regulation on Johnson that overshadowed a highly intense game. The Big 12 have said the officials got the call wrong, Johnson converted both free throws to tie the game and take it to overtime.
Kansas are now looking like a possible 1 seed - depending on other team's finishes - they have games remaining versus West Virginia and Texas Tech at home, then a road trip to Baylor. Whilst Ben McLemore has gone a bit cold of late, Jeff Withey is a solid leader and if they keep getting big performances from others such as Johnson or Travis Releford; the team can make some noise. On their day they can hang with any team.
Along with Indiana and Kansas, the other teams to consider for National Championship title contenders are Duke, Miami, Gonzaga, Georgetown, Louisville and perhaps New Mexico or Butler, the perennial Cinderellas.
One thing for certain is the bracket should be fun to fill in.
Tuesday, 27 November 2012
Big East loses Identity
The Big East has suffered recently with long established names such as Syracuse and Pittsburgh leaving for the ACC, following West Virginia's migration to the Big 12 conference this year. There is also movement of Notre Dame to the ACC in a few years, and Rutgers to the Big 10 in 2014.
The Big East, as a conference is probably more established for its College Basketball programs, but with the departure of Syracuse and Pitt, with the inevitable departure of Louisville and Conneticiut, the Big East is slowly turning into the Big Sleep. A conference that is losing relevance and is so snatching up schools that will jump at any carrot dangled in front of them.
The news on Tuesday (27th Nov) that they have added Tulane and East Carolina to the football Big East conference, has been met with some guffaws and feint praise. The two schools join in 2014, giving them 13 football members - UConn, Louisville, South Florida, Cincinnati, along with recent additions Temple, Boise State, San Diego State, UCF, Southern Miss, Memphis, Houston, Tulane and East Carolina.
That makes it 9 former Conference USA teams, two former Mountain West teams and a former Mid-American conference (MAC) member.
The Big East should just eat up all of C-USA and call itself that. The reach of the schools across much of the midwest reaching towards California with San Diego State, makes them the Big Eat - a conference that gorges on other teams. Boise State were due to be on a larger stage, but to go Eastwards instead of the Pac 12 means that the schools are just as bad as the conferences, taking up whatever money they can.
Most schools in C-USA get $750,000 each with their television deal, the prospective numbers for the Big East make it closer to $8m each; so who is fooling who is leading who here. All these schools are simply moving to the Big East for a bigger cut of the pie, the Big East is negotiating a new television deal and stressing on bigger markets in Philadelphia, Dallas and New Orleans
What is gained and who wins here? Tulane are nothing special, this season in C-USA they ended 2-10 (2-6 C-USA), both wins came against conference opponents vs SMU 27-26 and UAB 55-45, two teams that ended up 0-12 and 3-9 respectively. Amazingly SMU jumped to the Big East first.
As for East Carolina, they have a better football program and are only joining for football in 2014; finishing 8-4 and 7-1 in conference, there only loss coming to UCF Knights who will play Tulsa in the C-USA championship on Saturday. There pedigree is reads much better and will certainly improve with the added income, which is what such re-alignment is for. However, conferences must always carry deadwood in certain sports.
Conference re-alignment is an understatement, surely conference rebranding is a better turn of phrase for the comings and goings of universities and schools moving from one conference to another under the pretence of joining a bigger and better conference.
Check out my writing at www.1amsports.com
Follow me on twitter @JamieGarwood
The Big East, as a conference is probably more established for its College Basketball programs, but with the departure of Syracuse and Pitt, with the inevitable departure of Louisville and Conneticiut, the Big East is slowly turning into the Big Sleep. A conference that is losing relevance and is so snatching up schools that will jump at any carrot dangled in front of them.
The news on Tuesday (27th Nov) that they have added Tulane and East Carolina to the football Big East conference, has been met with some guffaws and feint praise. The two schools join in 2014, giving them 13 football members - UConn, Louisville, South Florida, Cincinnati, along with recent additions Temple, Boise State, San Diego State, UCF, Southern Miss, Memphis, Houston, Tulane and East Carolina.
That makes it 9 former Conference USA teams, two former Mountain West teams and a former Mid-American conference (MAC) member.
The Big East should just eat up all of C-USA and call itself that. The reach of the schools across much of the midwest reaching towards California with San Diego State, makes them the Big Eat - a conference that gorges on other teams. Boise State were due to be on a larger stage, but to go Eastwards instead of the Pac 12 means that the schools are just as bad as the conferences, taking up whatever money they can.
Most schools in C-USA get $750,000 each with their television deal, the prospective numbers for the Big East make it closer to $8m each; so who is fooling who is leading who here. All these schools are simply moving to the Big East for a bigger cut of the pie, the Big East is negotiating a new television deal and stressing on bigger markets in Philadelphia, Dallas and New Orleans
What is gained and who wins here? Tulane are nothing special, this season in C-USA they ended 2-10 (2-6 C-USA), both wins came against conference opponents vs SMU 27-26 and UAB 55-45, two teams that ended up 0-12 and 3-9 respectively. Amazingly SMU jumped to the Big East first.
As for East Carolina, they have a better football program and are only joining for football in 2014; finishing 8-4 and 7-1 in conference, there only loss coming to UCF Knights who will play Tulsa in the C-USA championship on Saturday. There pedigree is reads much better and will certainly improve with the added income, which is what such re-alignment is for. However, conferences must always carry deadwood in certain sports.
Conference re-alignment is an understatement, surely conference rebranding is a better turn of phrase for the comings and goings of universities and schools moving from one conference to another under the pretence of joining a bigger and better conference.
Check out my writing at www.1amsports.com
Follow me on twitter @JamieGarwood
Friday, 17 August 2012
Tyrann Mathieu
Here is a link to my newest post for 1amsports website (www.1amsports.com), about the dismissal of Tyrann Mathieu from LSU Tigers for substance abuse.
I am the US College Sports writer for this website; so expect some articles weekly regarding College Football moving into the Basketball arena come November/December.
It is a great website, full of like-minded individuals who love US sports and they cover all your favourites - MLB, NHL, NBA, NFL and Nascar also.
So please click on the link and enjoy:
http://1amsports.com/college-sports/college-football/the-dismissal-of-tyrann-mathieu
Regards
Jamie
I am the US College Sports writer for this website; so expect some articles weekly regarding College Football moving into the Basketball arena come November/December.
It is a great website, full of like-minded individuals who love US sports and they cover all your favourites - MLB, NHL, NBA, NFL and Nascar also.
So please click on the link and enjoy:
http://1amsports.com/college-sports/college-football/the-dismissal-of-tyrann-mathieu
Regards
Jamie
Friday, 20 April 2012
Pat Summitt
Go check out my work for www.1amsports.com
I write sometimes for this website, which specialises in coverage of US sports written by diehard fans in this country who stay up late and watch too much NBA, MLB, NHL and NFL.
I have written a piece about the retiring Pat Summitt, female head coach of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers who retires with 1,098 wins more than any man or woman in NCAA Div1 College Basketball history.
http://1amsports.com/college-sports/college-basketball/pat-summitt-steps-down
Please read, leave comments and follow the website on twitter @1amsports where you can hear podcasts and leave your opinion.
I write sometimes for this website, which specialises in coverage of US sports written by diehard fans in this country who stay up late and watch too much NBA, MLB, NHL and NFL.
I have written a piece about the retiring Pat Summitt, female head coach of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers who retires with 1,098 wins more than any man or woman in NCAA Div1 College Basketball history.
http://1amsports.com/college-sports/college-basketball/pat-summitt-steps-down
Please read, leave comments and follow the website on twitter @1amsports where you can hear podcasts and leave your opinion.
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