Wrap Up: 2012 Week 9

Kansas State blew out Texas Tech 55-24 to not only take a critical win, but also grab the Unofficial College Football Championship. They will be hosting Oklahoma State next week.

It is very hard to go the full season undefeated as Florida, Rutgers, Ohio, Mississippi State, and Oregon State all found out this past weekend. We are down to just a handful of undefeated teams now and of them only four right now really matter: Alabama, Oregon, Notre Dame, and Kansas State. I put them in that order for a good reason. If things continue on this path and all four teams end the season undefeated, I believe that is the order in which they will finish in the BCS.

Of course being a blog that is Kentucky centric, maybe it's about time we mention the 8-0 Louisville Cardinals. They are the only remaining team in the Big East that is undefeated and yet they have not a shot of making the BCS title game. There is of course a good reason for that. Rutgers was thought to be better than Louisville, Rutgers got manhandled this weekend by Kent State, Kent State's one loss this season was a blowout loss to Kentucky. How good then can any team in the Big East really be. Of course Louisville beat Kentucky and so far everyone they've played. They don't usually win big, but they keep winning and hopefully it can continue until the end of the season. They still have four games remaining on their schedule: Temple, @ Syracuse, Connecticut, and @ Rutgers.

The big game this last week that everyone was watching was Notre Dame, Oklahoma. Notre Dame dominated the game and so they are now settling in near the top of the pile. Their last big test will be their final game of the season at USC, assuming they remain undefeated. The problem for Notre Dame is that stock in Oklahoma, the Big 10, and USC has fallen far from where it was at the beginning of the season. So even though they have solid wins people still question just how good they are.

The big fall last week was of course Florida. Georgia was embarrassed a few weeks ago by South Carolina, but they bounced back to not only beat Florida, but to also put themselves in position to win the SEC East. Now the only team left standing in the SEC with a shot at the BCS title is Alabama, unless of course more undefeated teams lose.

This week there are a couple of really big games to watch.

Middle Tennessee State (5-3) at Western Kentucky (6-2)
     I'm pretty sure both these teams were picked to be in the bottom 25 at the beginning of the year by Sagarin and both have wins over BCS Conference teams.

Oregon (8-0) at USC (6-2)
     Everyone has been waiting for Oregon to play this game.  Despite their two losses everyone still considers USC to be a top team, they just have an idiot for a coach.  At this point though I believe people will be disappointed in Oregon if they don't win this one easily.

Alabama (8-0) at LSU (7-1)
     There has been some talk lately about how Alabama really hasn't beaten anyone.  If they go into LSU and win that will pretty much silence all of those people.  Despite all of LSU's flaws people understand they are still one of the best teams in the country.



TUCFC Power Ratings
Notre Dame makes the jump up to number one and Oregon jumps up to number two.  Georgia and South Carolina both move back in with Georgia's win over Florida, while Texas Tech and Oklahoma fall out.

Rank	Team	Record	WP	WDiffP	LP	LDiffP	Power
1	Notre Dame	8-0	337.844	421.875	0.000	0.000	759.719
2	Oregon	8-0	242.313	464.575	0.000	0.000	706.887
3	Kansas State	8-0	261.406	444.475	0.000	0.000	705.881
4	Alabama	8-0	229.969	460.225	0.000	0.000	690.194
5	Florida	7-1	280.094	387.763	5.000	35.000	627.856
6	Ohio State	9-0	266.063	350.663	0.000	0.000	616.725
7	Louisiana State	7-1	234.750	328.338	4.000	19.750	539.338
8	Florida State	8-1	180.313	439.900	24.438	86.875	508.900
9	Georgia	7-1	209.188	328.138	6.250	55.875	475.200
10	South Carolina	7-2	191.438	331.913	7.750	56.375	459.225

Kansas St. 55 - 24 Texas Tech (Final)

If you've been following the Big XII this year, you won't be surprised to learn that K-State scored 42 points in the second half to pull away for a 55-24 victory.  This is the fifth week in a row that the UCFC has been decided in a Big XII game, and the winning team has scored at least 48 points every time.  I don't know how they get anyone to bet the under on these games.  Today's over-under line was 60, and the teams combined for 79 points.

So K-State wins the UCFC for the first time in its history, and the Wildcats run their record to 1-6 in UCFC games.  They will defend the title next week at home against Oklahoma State.  If they can win that game -- and the three games remaining after that -- the Wildcats will probably play for the national championship.

As for Texas Tech, they had two good wins over WVU and TCU, and they looked to be in good shape at the half today -- but KSU's quality told in the second half, and Texas Tech's defense simply fell apart.  The Red Raiders' UCFC record falls to 17-13, but Tommy Tuberville appears to be making progress down in Lubbock.

Kansas St. 34 - 17 Texas Tech (4:29 left in 3d Quarter)

While I was typing that last entry, Klein took K-State on a five-play 74-yard drive that ended with Klein running 22 yards into the end zone.  Here are his numbers so far:

15-20, 188 yds, 1 TD, 0 INT's
10 carries for 77 yds, 2 TD's

Now that K-State's offense is in gear -- they've scored three touchdowns in this quarter -- it seems pretty clear that the UCFC is going to the Little Apple.  (That's Manhattan, KS).

Kansas St. 27 - 17 Texas Tech (6:12 left in 3d Quarter)

I went to get something to eat, and a blast of typical Big XII offense broke out.  Only a few minutes into the third quarter, K-State took a 20-10 lead on a 21-yard pass from Collin Klein of Loveland H.S. in Loveland, CO to Tramaine Thompson of Jenks, H.S. in Jenks, OK.  Only a few plays later, K-State recovered a Texas Tech fumble, taking over at the Texas Tech 20.  Two plays later, Klein dashed in from 16 yards out to make the score 27-10.  But then Texas Tech drove 70 yards, capping their drive with an 8-yard run from SaDale Foster of Riverside, CA.  That made the score 27-17.

Kansas St. 13 - 10 Texas Tech (Halftime)

I'm very encouraged to see a normal-looking halftime score.

Erin Andrews is wearing glasses on the halftime show for Fox, which makes me feel old.

Kansas St. 13 - 10 Texas Tech (1:35 left in 2d Quarter)

After the missed field goal, K-State quickly moves into Texas Tech territory, and eventually get all the way down to the two.  But the Wildcats cannot punch it in, and Cantele kicks his second field goal of the game to put K-State on top.

Kansas St. 10 - 10 Texas Tech (5:09 left in 2d Quarter)

Texas Tech had a pretty decent drive -- and tried a 49-yard field goal -- but it was tipped by Meshak Williams of Sylvester, GA.  So KSU takes over at its own 32.

Kansas St. 10 - 10 Texas Tech (8:45 left in 2d Quarter)

OK, now we're back to our regularly-scheduled offense.  K-State takes the kickoff and goes 59 yards in eight plays, tying the game on a four yard run by John Hubert of Midway H.S. in Waco, TX.

Kansas St. 3 - 10 Texas Tech (13:08 left in 2d Quarter)

The Red Raiders take the kickoff after K-State's field goal and quickly return to K-State territory.  That drive ends with a 36-yard field goal by Ryan Bustin of Kilgore, TX, and Texas Tech regains a seven-point lead.

Kansas St. 3 - 7 Texas Tech (end of 1st Quarter)

After four hours and 19 minutes, the UNC/NCSU game ended the way everyone knew it had to end -- with yet another UNC victory.  In the meantime, I was unable to see any of the first quarter of this game -- but I have been listening on KSU radio.  The KSU broadcasters are not very happy, because their guys haven't looked all that good.  At one point, it appeared that KSU had scored on a fumble recovery, but there was a penalty on the return, and the Wildcats had to settle for a 34-yard field goal by Anthony Cantele of Kapaun Mount Carmel Catholic H.S. in Wichita, KS.  (Cantele's younger brother, a redshirt freshman, is also on KSU's team as a kicker).

Kansas St. 0 - 7 Texas Tech (11:46 left in 1st Quarter)

Ah, the Big XII -- the best touch football league in the country.  Texas Tech takes the opening kickoff, drives straight down the field, and scores on a 32-yard pass from Seth Doege of Frenship H.S. in Wolfforth, TX to Eric Ward of Rider H.S. in Wichita Falls, TX.  So here we go again.

Kansas St. 0 - 0 Texas Tech (14:32 left in 1st Quarter)

Another UCFC battle is under way!

Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to see this game for awhile.  The game is scheduled to air on Fox, but in DC Fox is showing the North Carolina/North Carolina State game -- and that game still has 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Kansas State v. Texas Tech

Now this is a big-time game.  Here are the current standings in the Big XII:

Kansas St:  4-0, 7-0
Texas Tech:  3-1, 6-1
Oklahoma:  3-1, 5-1
Oklahoma St:  2-1, 4-2
Texas Christian:  2-2, 5-2
Texas:  2-2, 5-2
W. Virginia:  2-2, 5-2
Iowa St:  1-3, 4-3
Baylor:  0-3, 3-3
Kansas:  0-4, 1-6

So the winner of this game will have the inside track for the Big XII championship.  Furthermore, if KSU can win it, they will be in a very strong position to play for the National Championship for the first time in school history.  And here's one more thing:  KSU's quarterback, Collin Klein, is now regarded as the front-runner for the Heisman, and he could take a huge step toward capturing the trophy with a big game today.

This will be only the 13th meeting between KSU and Texas Tech.  They did play for the UCFC once before -- on November 30, 1933, when Texas Tech beat KSU 6-0.

Vegas has made KSU a seven-point favorite in a game with an over-under line of 60.  So that would indicate the final score would be something like 34-27.  I would be surprised -- and thrilled -- to see a Big XII game in which so few points were scored.

Kansas State

For most of their history, the Kansas State Wildcats were one of the worst -- if not the worst -- team in major college football.  Consider this:  from 1935 to 1990 -- a period of 56 years -- KSU had only four winning seasons.  In 1989, when Bill Snyder took over the program, Kansas State had the worst all-time record of any team in Division 1-A (299-500-41), and had gone winless in its last 27 games.  Snyder then did one of the all-time great coaching jobs.  Between 1989 and 2005, he went 136-68-1.  KSU went to bowl games in every year from 1993 to 2003.  They never seriously contended for the national title, but they did win the 2003 Big XII championship, and they had a stretch of six 11-win seasons in seven years.

After disappointing seasons in 2004 and 2005, Snyder retired, and KSU drifted back into mediocrity.  Snyder's replacement, Ron Prince, went 17-20 in three seasons from 2006 to 2008.  It appeared that KSU's years of competing with the big kids had come to an end.  But then the Wildcats rehired Bill Snyder, who returned to coach at a stadium that had now bore his name.  When I heard about this, I thought that sentimentality had triumphed over wisdom.  After all, Snyder was 69 years old, and had ben retired for three years.

But I was wrong.  In 2009, Snyder's Wildcats went 6-6.  In 2010, they went 7-6.  Last year, they went 10-3 and earned a trip to the Cotton Bowl.  And this year, they are undefeated with big wins at Oklahoma and West Virginia.

On the other hand, they have never won the Unofficial College Football Championship.  In fact, they have only appeared in six UCFC games, the last of which was a 26-56 loss to Nebraska on October 4, 1997.  Their all-time UCFC record is 0-6, but they have a chance to change that today.

Wrap Up: 2012 Week 8

Week eight was all about the Florida Gators and their drubbing of South Carolina. When the first BCS standings came out and Florida was number two a lot of people openly griped. Michael Wilbon for one on PTI slammed them for playing no one. Well there is a reason the computer models love Florida and that's because Florida has the best wins of any team in college football. If you look at the TUCFC Power Ratings they have a WP rating of 212.813. This rating gives them a point per win, plus points for the wins of all the teams they've beaten, plus their wins, etc. Essentially it gives you points based on the quality of the opponents you've beaten. The second highest score after Florida is Notre Dame with a score of 195.719. Compare this to a team like Mississippi State who is also undefeated but not ranked very well. They have a WP score of 78.438. With this dominating performance over South Carolina people are now expecting them to win out the rest of their season and face Alabama for a shot at the BCS title game. The problem for Florida is they still have to play Georgia, Missouri, and Florida State.


Games to Watch This Week


Cincinnati (5-1) at Louisville (7-0)
     Cincinnati lost their first game of the year last week to Toledo (7-1).  They will be looking to end Louisville's perfect season this week.

Florida (7-0) at Georgia (6-1)
     It's never easy to go into Georgia and win and if Georgia can win this one they would take control of the SEC East.

Texas Tech (6-1) at Kansas State (7-0)
     Not only is this the TUCFC game this week, but a critical game for Kansas State who has now popped ahead of Oregon in the BCS standings.

Kent State (6-1) at Rutgers (7-0)
     Same kind of match up that knocked Cincinnati out of the undefeated list.

Duke (6-2) at Florida State (7-1)
      When was the last time Duke was in a football conversation.  If they could pull off this big upset then they would be the top team in the ACC.

Ohio State (8-0) at Penn State (5-2)
     Even crazier if Penn State can win this one they will be at the top of the Big 10.

Notre Dame (7-0) at Oklahoma (5-1)
     If you think Florida and Kansas State got big boosts with their wins last week, that's what Notre Dame would get this week with a win at Oklahoma.

Mississippi State (7-0) at Alabama (7-0)
     Now we get to find out just how good Mississippi State is.


TUCFC Power Ratings
Florida and Kansas State both move up with big wins.  Oklahoma moves in while South Carolina drops out.

Rank	Team	Record	WP	WDiffP	LP	LDiffP	Power
1	Florida	7-0	212.813	346.050	0.000	0.000	558.863
2	Kansas State	7-0	164.094	338.963	0.000	0.000	503.056
3	Alabama	7-0	135.000	358.100	0.000	0.000	493.100
4	Notre Dame	7-0	195.719	288.963	0.000	0.000	484.681
5	Oregon	7-0	133.875	345.113	0.000	0.000	478.988
6	Louisiana State	7-1	149.688	280.700	1.000	8.000	421.388
7	Texas Tech	6-1	135.656	297.525	2.750	23.500	406.931
8	Oklahoma	5-1	109.781	286.238	1.500	5.000	389.519
9	Florida State	7-1	100.531	344.863	12.750	47.875	384.769
10	Ohio State	8-0	122.719	237.513	0.000	0.000	360.231

Texas Christian 53 - 56 Texas Tech (Final)

It's over, it's all over.  Seth Doege throws his seventh touchdown pass of the day -- an 8-yarder to Alex Torres -- and THE RED RAIDERS HOLD THE UCFC FOR ANOTHER WEEK.

Texas Tech runs it's all-time UCFC record to 17-12, and the Red Raiders will take the Big Gold Trophy up to Manhattan, Kansas to defend the crown against the Kansas State Wildcats.  Kickoff will be next Saturday at 2:30 P.M. Central Time.

TCU falls to 30-17-6 in UCFC battles, although they certainly put up a valiant effort today.  And we really liked their play-by-play team.

Texas Christian 53 - 50 Texas Tech (middle of 3d OT)

The Red Raiders hold, and Oberkrom kicks a 38-yard field goal -- his sixth of the game.  But now Texas Tech can win the game with a touchdown.

Texas Christian 50 - 50 Texas Tech (end of 2d OT)

TCU takes only four plays to score, as Boykin throws a 7-yd TD pass to B.J. Catalon of Westside H.S. in Houston, TX.  So we're all tied up again.

As we move into the third overtime, the rules state that from here on out, both teams have to go for two after a touchdown.

By the way, there's a big train whistle that goes off in the TCU stadium every time the Frogs score.  I think that's really cool.

Texas Christian 43 - 50 Texas Tech (middle of the 2d OT)

That didn't take long.  On first down, Texas Tech came out in a wildcat formation, and ran a reverse that gave the ball to Seth Doege, their quarterback.  He threw a 25-yard pass to Jakeem Grant of Mesquite Horn H.S. in Mesquite, TX, who was left all alone by a very confused TCU defense.

Texas Christian 43 - 43 Texas Tech (end of the 1st OT)

Do the Red Raiders score a touchdown?  Are we in the Big XII?  Seth Doege flips a 6-yard pass to Eric Ward to tie the game, and we're on to the second overtime.

This time Texas Tech goes first, and we'll go to the other end of the field.

I hate this stupid overtime rule.  I only watch overtime if the game decides the national title or the UCFC.

Texas Christian 43 - 36 Texas Tech (middle of the 1st OT)

On 3d and 7 from the 7, Boykin finds Josh Boyce from Copperas Cove H.S. in Copperas Cove, TX, who catches the ball at the five and races into the end zone.  Texas Tech will have to score a touchdown in the bottom of the 1st to stay alive.

Texas Christian 36 - 36 Texas Tech (top of the 1st OT)

Texas Tech wins the toss and elects to play defense.  TCU elects to go into the wind, apparently figuring that their kicker is better than Texas Tech's.

Texas Christian 36 - 36 Texas Tech (End of 4th Quarter)

The clock runs out and we are headed for overtime.  This will be the first UCFC game to go into overtime since October 30, 2010, when Florida beat Georgia 34-31.

Texas Christian 36 - 36 Texas Tech (18 seconds left in 4th Quarter)

TCU got another first down on the Texas Tech 19, and spiked the ball to stop the clock.  Then they were sacked back to the 25 on second down.  Since they had no timeouts, they spiked the ball on third down to stop the clock again.

This left everything up to Jaden Oberkrom -- who made his FIFTH field goal of the game, a 42-yarder to TIE THE GAME AT 36.

Texas Christian 33 - 36 Texas Tech (47 seconds left in 4th Quarter)

After three passes, TCU has zipped from their own 19 to the Texas Tech 29.  They spike the ball to stop the clock.  The folks in Fort Worth are going wild.

Texas Christian 33 - 36 Texas Tech (1:20 left in 4th Quarter)

Texas Tech runs the ball three times and goes nowhere.  TCU calls their remaining timeouts.  Texas Tech punts, and TCU will take over at their own 19.  This is their last shot.

Texas Christian 33 - 36 Texas Tech (2:25 left in 4th Quarter)

Seriously, can't anyone in this conference play defense?  On third and 20 from his own 40, Trevone Boykin hurls a 60-yard touchdown pass to LaDarius Brown of Waxahachie H.S. in Waxahachie, TX to keep TCU's hopes alive.

TCU then goes for the onside kick, but Texas Tech holds onto the ball, and the Red Raiders will take over at their 49.  TCU has two timeouts left.

Texas Christian 26 - 36 Texas Tech (4:06 left in 4th Quarter)

Well, of course, they didn't run out the clock.  It's the Big XII.  In typical Big XII fashion, Texas Tech drove down to the TCU 47 -- at which point Kenny Williams of Hendrickson H.S. in Pflugerville, TX busted a 47-yard run right up the middle of the field for the touchdown that will almost certainly clinch this game for Texas Tech.

For most of the day, TCU appeared to be the better of these two teams, but they have simply fallen apart in the last few minutes.

Texas Christian 26 - 29 Texas Tech (5:33 left in 4th Quarter)

The Frogs again go three and out, and they are forced to punt.  Texas Tech will take over at its own 38.  Can they run out the clock?

Texas Christian 26 - 29 Texas Tech (6:40 left in 4th Quarter)

Seth Doege, who has been great on this drive, throws his fourth touchdown pass of the day, a 9-yarder to Alex Torres of Franklin H.S. in El Paso, TX.  Texas Tech then called its third and final timeout to set up a two point conversion.  That also worked, as Doege flipped a pass to a wide-open Darrin Moore.

So after looking hapless for most of the second half, the Red Raiders have regained control of the game -- but at the cost of their timeouts.  It's still up for grabs.

Texas Christian 26 - 21 Texas Tech (7:13 left in 4th Quarter)

Texas Tech completes two more passes to advance the ball to the TCU 21, but then some confusion forced the Red Radiers to take their second time out.  It will be first and 10 when they come back.

Texas Christian 26 - 21 Texas Tech (8:08 left in 4th Quarter)

Moving with the force of desperation, Texas Tech has put on its best drive of the second half.  They have driven to the TCU 48 where they call time on second and three.

For the record, Texas Tech is going into the wind.

Texas Christian 26 - 21 Texas Tech (10:41 left in 4th Quarter)

That wasn't a good possession for TCU at all.  They go three and out and hold the ball for less than a minute.  They punt into the end zone, and Texas Tech will take over at its own 20.

Texas Christian 26 - 21 Texas Tech (11:47 left in 4th Quarter)

TCU's defense holds, and Texas Tech is forced to make its seventh punt of the day.  The Red Raiders have no points and only one first down in the second half.  TCU gets a decent return -- and a penalty against Texas Tech -- and the Horned Frogs will take over at the Texas Tech 48.

Texas Christian 26 - 21 Texas Tech (14:49 left in 4th Quarter)

The Horned Frogs are not able to get a touchdown, but they get another field goal from freshman Jaden Oberkrom -- this one a 45-yarder -- to take a five-point lead.

Texas Tech's offense has been stalled the entire second half.  Can they get something going now?

Texas Christian 23 - 21 Texas Tech (2:28 left in 3d Quarter)

TCU's defense holds, and the Red Raiders are forced to punt.  The Horned Frogs take over at their own 45.  Can they score again?

By the way, today's attendance of 47,894 is the second-largest crowd in TCU history.  EVERYONE LOVES TO SEE THAT BIG GOLDEN UCFC TROPHY!

Texas Christian 23 - 21 Texas Tech (4:09 left in 3d Quarter)

Texas Tech took the opening kickoff.  And then punted.

TCU held the ball for a few minutes and threw an interception.  Texas Tech took over at the TCU 45.

Texas Tech went three and out.  And punted again.

TCU took the ball and finally put together a drive that stalled at the Texas Tech 15.  That led to another Oberkrom field goal, and the Horned Frogs have regained the lead.

Texas Christian 20 - 21 Texas Tech (Halftime)

But now the Horned Frogs come back with a nice drive of their own.  They work their way down the field and get a 41-yard field goal from Jaden Oberkrom with 22 seconds left to draw within a point of Texas Tech.  The Red Raiders then take the kickoff and run out the clock.  So this game is very much up for grabs as we head into the second half.

Texas Christian 17 - 21 Texas Tech (3:28 left in 2d Quarter)

What a huge swing in momentum.  After recovering an onside kick, the Red Raiders take their first lead of the game on a 29-yard pass from Doege to Ward.  Doege is now 13-18 for 158 yards and 3 touchdowns, and the UCFC holders are back on top.

Texas Christian 17 - 14 Texas Tech (4:15 left in 2d Quarter)

The Red Raiders are going for it now.  After their score , they try AN ONSIDE KICK -- which WORKS!  They take over at their own 49.  Now they have worked their way down to the TCU 29.  Suddenly the Horned Frogs are in some real trouble.

Texas Christian 17 - 14 Texas Tech (6:37 left in 2d Quarter)

But Texas Tech comes right back. They take the kickoff, and zoom right down the field -- scoring on a 33-yard pass from Doege to Darrin Moore of Irving, TX.  Suddenly the Red Raiders are right back in this game.

For the record, by the way, the TCU play-by-play team is really, really good.

Texas Christian 17 - 7 Texas Tech (8:13 left in 2d Quarter)

The Horned Frogs are starting to take control of this game.  After their field goal, the Horned Frogs forced a punt, which they ran all the way back to the Texas Tech 31.  From there, TCU drove into the end zone, mostly thanks to an effective running game.  The score resulted from a two-yard plunge by Matthew Tucker of Chapel Hill H.S. in Tyler, TX.

By the way, there is a strong wind in the stadium right now.  TCU had to use a holder to keep the ball on the tee for the kickoff.

Texas Christian 10 - 7 Texas Tech (49 seconds left in 1st Quarter)

TCU responds to Texas Tech's touchdown with a good drive of their own.  But the drive stalls at the Texas Tech 15, and the Frogs turn to Jaden Oberkrom of Martin H.S. in Arlington, TX.  Oberkrom's 32-yard field goal puts TCU back into the lead.

Texas Christian 7 - 7 Texas Tech (4:55 left in 1st Quarter)

After an exchange of punts, TCU threw an interception that gave Texas Tech the ball in Horned Frog territory.  After a short drive, Texas Tech scored on a five-yard pass from Seth Doege of Frenship H.S. in Wolfforth, TX to Eric Ward of Rider H.S. in Wichita Falls, TX.

Texas Christian 7 - 0 Texas Tech (12:37 left in 1st Quarter)

West Virginia no longer holds the UCFC, but Big XII football still appears to be defensively challenged.  TCU takes the opening kickoff and marches straight down the field -- topping off their drive with a 19-yard pass from Trevone Boykin of West Mesquite H.S. in Mesquite, TX to Skye Dawson of Dallas Christian School in Mesquite, TX.

TCU's defense then holds, and Texas Tech's punter turns out to be Ryan Erxleben of Lake Travis H.S. in Lake Travis, TX.  Presumably he is the son of Russell Erxleben.  That's pretty cool.

Texas Christian 0 - 0 Texas Tech (14:29 left in 1st Quarter)

I'm listening to this game over the TCU radio feed, which starts by telling us that TCU's announcers have been voted the best play-by-play team in Texas.  The play-by-play guy then came on and told us that they were broadcasting "from the streets and avenues of North Texas to the information superhighway," which I thought was really good.

Huge crowd in Fort Worth for this game.  The Frogs are wearing purple helmets, black shirts and black pants. Texas Tech has black helmets, white shirts with red numerals, and black pants.  It is a bright and sunny day in North Texas.

Texas Christian v. Texas Tech

The first match-up between the Red Raiders of Texas Tech and the Horned Frogs of Texas Christian took place in 1926.  TCU was in the Southwest Conference at that point, while Texas Tech was only three years old.  By the late 1950's, Texas Tech had also joined the Southwest Conference, and the two teams met every year until the SWC broke up in 1995.  Most years they were poking around near the bottom of a league that was dominated by Texas, Arkansas and Texas A & M.  Since the break-up of the SWC, they have played each other only twice -- in 2004 and 2006.  Tech leads the all-time series 28-23-3.

This is only the second time that Texas Tech and TCU have played for the UCFC.  On October 25, 1930, TCU beat Texas Tech 26-0 to retain the crown.

This game is not only important because of the UCFC.  Texas Tech is 5-1 overall, 2-1 in the Big XII, and ranked 18 in the country.  Their only loss is to Oklahoma.  TCU is also 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big XII.  Their only loss is to Iowa State.  So this game will go some way toward clearing up who is capable of challenging for the Big XII crown.

The oddsmakers think this will be a very close game.  Texas Tech is a 1 1/2 point favorite, and the over-under line is 55.  That would work out to something like a 28-27 victory for the Red Raiders.  We haven't had too many close title games this year, so that would be fun.

Texas Christian

For the fourth week in a row, the challenger for the UCFC is a school from Texas that used to belong to the Southwest Conference.  Founded in 1873 as AddRan Male & Female College -- it was named for brothers Addison and Randolph Clark -- this week's challenger was the first coeducational institution of higher education in Texas.  It was in Thorp Spring, Texas from 1873 to 1895, after which it moved to Waco, where it was renamed Texas Christian University in 1902.  In 1910, the University's main building was destroyed by a fire, and a group of Fort Worth businessmen offered TCU $200,000 in rebuilding money and a 50-acre campus if it would relocate to that city.  It's been there ever since.

The history of TCU football goes back to 1896.  The Horned Frogs joined the Southwest Conference in 1923, and since then they have had one of the more dramatic histories in the NCAA.  They won the national championship in 1938, and they were competitive for several decades thereafter.  But while TCU alumnus Dan Jenkins practically invented modern sportswriting while covering college football for Sports Illustrated in the 1960's and 1970's, the Horned Frogs were suffering through decades of defeat.  Finally, the Southwest Conference itself imploded in 1995, and TCU was left out in the cold as SWC members Texas, Texas A & M, Texas Tech and Baylor jumped into the Big XII.

That should have been the virtual end of TCU as a serious football contender.  But remarkably, the Horned Frogs started to improve.  Under the leadership of Gary Patterson, TCU went from the Western Athletic Conference to Conference USA to the Mountain West Conference, getting better all the time.  In 2009 and 2010 they had back to back perfect regular seasons, winning the 2011 Rose Bowl over Wisconsin.  By this point, the Big XII was in trouble, as Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri, and Texas A & M had decamped for other conferences.  Looking to save the league, the Big XII members invited two new members:  West Virginia and TCU.  So after almost 20 years in the wilderness, the Horned Frogs are once again a major conference member.

As we have mentioned on several recent occasions, almost every UCFC game in the 1930's featured a team from Texas.  Given that these were TCU's greatest years, it is hardly surprising that they built up a remarkable record during that stretch.  They held the title from November 16, 1929 to November 15, 1930; held it again for four weeks in 1933; and held it again from November 13, 1937 until September 29, 1939 on their way to the 1938 National Championship.

TCU won the title again in late 1941, and held it for a few weeks before losing to Georgia in the 1942 Orange Bowl.  Since then they have gone 1-7 in the UCFC, with their only win coming in 1991 over Rice.  But their all-time record of 30-16-6 ranks them number 11 on the UCFC list, just ahead of Alabama (29-13).

Wrap Up: 2012 Week 7

When I was a kid I always thought that if you were undefeated, no matter who you played, you should be ranked ahead of any team with a loss. Nowadays I'm not such an absolutist, but I still believe that undefeated teams should be treated with a certain level of respect. We currently have quite a few undefeated teams and past the halfway mark one has to wonder if they can go all the way and even get into the BCS picture. Here are the current undefeated teams in Division I football and their current BCS rankings.

Alabama 6-0 (1)
     Right now Alabama is the team to beat in college football.  They will remain number one until another team can beat them.
Florida 6-0 (2)
     Florida surprised quite a few by being in this position when the BCS ranking first hit, but the computer models love Florida. 
Oregon 6-0 (3)
     Florida and Alabama will have to meet at some point.  If Oregon can stay undefeated they will be playing for the national championship.
Kansas State 6-0 (4)
     No one is taking Kansas State seriously in part because they are in the Big 12, but remember they beat Oklahoma early on and next week face West Virginia.  If they win that one as well people will start thinking of them as a legitimate number four.
Notre Dame (6-0) (5)
     Notre Dame has been down for so long it is hard to really think of them as a top ten team, but so far their defense seems to be as good as West Virginia's offense.  They still have a tough schedule ahead and I still think if they are undefeated at the end of the season they will have a very good shot at falling into the BCS title game.
Oregon State (5-0) (8)
     I'm so happy these guys keep winning and in fact they seem better every week.  Their schedule is such that they could very well be undefeated going into the Oregon game.
Mississippi State (6-0) (12)
     Mississippi State isn't getting a whole lotta love because of who they've beaten, but in two weeks head to Alabama and then we'll know just how good they are.
Rutgers (6-0) (15)
     Let's face it no one is paying any attention to the Big East so it's no surprise these guys aren't getting any love. 
Louisville (6-0) (16)
     What I just said about Rutgers. 
Cincinnati (5-0) (21)
     Another Big East team.  They play 6-1 Toledo this week so we'll see how that helps or hurts Cincinnati. 
Ohio State (7-0) (NA)
     Ohio State is ineligible for a Bowl so they can't make the BCS rankings.  Because of that and the Big 10 being so bad this year they aren't getting much attention, except to think how good they are going to be under Urban Meyer.
Ohio (7-0)  (NR)
     I think if you are 7-0 then you should at least be ranked in the BCS standings.  If the Big East teams can get in there then why not Ohio who beat a Penn State team that now doesn't look all that bad. 



Games I'll be watching this week.

Oregon (6-0) at Arizona State (5-1)
     It's a road game that trips up Oregon every year.  Could this be the game?

South Carolina (6-1) at Florida (6-0)
     At this point Florida just has to win out and then beat Alabama in the SEC championship game.

Texas Tech (5-1) at Texas Christian (5-1)
     This should be an exciting TUCFC game.

Louisiana-Monroe (4-2) at Western Kentucky (5-1)
     After ULM almost pulled off back to back upsets over SEC teams I figured they would plow through the Sun Belt, but Western has beaten an SEC team as well so this should be a real battle. 

Kansas State (6-0) at West Virginia (5-1)
     Their win over Oklahoma came too early in the season for anyone to notice.  They now have a chance to pick up a big win with a much more captive audience.

Texas Tech 49 - 14 W. Virginia (Final)

Well, that was hideous.  Texas Tech absolutely humiliated West Virginia, cruising home for a 49-14 victory to take the UCFC for the first time since 2008.  Seth Doege, the Texas Tech QB, passed for 499 yards and six touchdowns.  More importantly, Tommy Tuberville's defense actually tackled WVU's high-powered receivers, and never let the Mountaineers get into the comfortable groove throughout their time as UCFC holder.

Nevertheless, West Virginia's reign was long and honorable.  The Mountaineers won six UCFC games in a row, and their all-time record in UCFC play is a very respectable 16-8.

As for Texas Tech, the Red Raiders improve their UCFC record to 16-12, and they will take the big gold trophy to Fort Worth next week, where they will defend the title against the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs.

Texas Tech 35 - 7 W. Virginia (35 seconds left in 2d Quarter)

And now it's just getting ugly.  WVU has to punt (again), and TTU takes over with about a minute to go.  They quickly move up to their own 47, and then SaDale Foster (of Riverside J.C. in Riverside, CA) dashes 53 yards down the sidelines for Tech's fifth touchdown of the half.

This is an embarrassing performance by the Mountaineers, who have shown virtually none of the flair and panache they exhibited throughout their run as UCFC holders.

Texas Tech 28 - 7 W. Virginia (2:04 left in 2d Quarter)

WVU is now in huge trouble.  Texas Tech's defense holds again -- forcing a punt that the Red Raiders take on their own 16.  They then mount the usual length-of-the-field TD drive, which ends on a 2-yard pass from Doege to Darrin Moore of Irving, TX.

Here are the key numbers in the game so far:

Seth Doege (Texas Tech):  20-28, 317 yards, 4 TD's, 1 INT

Geno Smith (WVU):  16-26, 144 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT's.

I should emphasize that Smith doesn't look that much worse to me than usual.  What's different is that the Texas Tech defense is not giving up very many yards after the catch.  So WVU is not picking up the long gains that they normally enjoy, and are being forced to rely on short passes instead.  Meanwhile, WVU's defense -- which is just awful -- is putting up its usual dreadful performance.  The result is that the UCFC is probably headed to Lubbock.

Texas Tech 21 - 7 W. Virginia (9:02 left in 2d Quarter)

After an exchange of punts (!), WVU put together a nice drive deep into Red Raider territory -- but for the second time today, TTU held on fourth down.  So the Red Raiders took over on their own 18, and quickly drove down for their third TD of the game.  This time it was a 16-yard pass from Doege to Marcus Kennard of Lawton, OK.  And so WVU is once again behind by two touchdowns -- and Tommy Tuberville's guys are doing a better job of stopping the Blue and Gold than anyone else we've seen this year.

Texas Tech 14 - 7 W. Virginia (2 minutes left in 1st Quarter)

They just said that WVU has the 117th-best passing defense in Division 1-A, and I have to say I was surprised they were ranked that high.  But just as it appeared TTU was headed for another easy TD, a Tech receiver bobbled a pass -- the ball was yanked out of the air by WVU's Karl Joseph, a safety from Edgewater H.S. in Orlando, FL.  WVU takes over at its own 16.

Texas Tech 14 - 7 W. Virginia (4:21 left in 1st Quarter)

But I'll say this for Geno Smith and co -- they do not let their team's defensive travails affect them.  The Eers take the kickoff, roar down the field, and score on Smith's 26th TD pass of the year.  This was goes from Smith (of Miramar H.S. in Miramar, FL) to Stedman Bailey (of Miramar H.S. in Miramar, FL).  It's Bailey's 14th TD catch of the year.

Here we go again.

In Dallas, OU beat UT 63-15.

Texas Tech 14 - 0 W. Virginia (6 minutes left in 1st Quarter)

It is simply impossible to overstate the pressure on Geno Smith and the WVU offense.  Their defense is just unbelievably bad.  TTU goes straight down the field again and scores on a 19-yard pass from Seth Doege to Eric Ward of Rider H.S. in Wichita Falls, TX.

Texas Tech 7 - 0 W. Virginia (9:13 left in 1st Quarter)

Well, that was unusual.  WVU did not score on their first possession; they were stopped on fourth and four from the TTU 33.  That's not a good sign for the Eers.

A few other observations about today's game:

1.  WVU's win over Texas doesn't seem quite so impressive now, as Oklahoma currently leads Texas 56-15 in the fourth quarter.

2.  It's a beautiful day in Lubbock, bright and clear with a temperature of 77 degrees.  I'm guessing they don't get too many days like this.

3.  WVU is wearing their usual road uniform of white jerseys and white pants, but they have replaced the usual navy blue helmet with a gray helmet showing the normal "WV" logo.  TTU is going with its traditional red jerseys and black pants.

Texas Tech 7 - 0 W. Virginia (13:04 left in 1st Quarter)

Same as it ever was.  WVU's defense looks as hapless as ever.  TTU takes the kickoff, drives down to the WVU 41, and then QB Seth Doege of Frenship H.S. in Wolfforth, TX throws a touchdown pass to Jace Amaro of MacArthur H.S. in San Antonio, TX.  As usual, WVU has no defender within ten yards of Amaro when he catches the ball, and he strolls untouched into the end zone.

Texas Tech v. W. Virginia

For the third week in a row, the Mountaineers of West Virginia will defend their crown against an opponent from Texas.  After wins over Baylor (70-63) and Texas (48-45), WVU is now the number 5 team in the nation.  But Texas Tech (4-1) has a pretty decent team, with a very good coach (Tommy Tuberville), and home-field advantage.  Certainly the Red Raiders won't be worried about WVU's defense, which has been pretty dreadful all year.

WVU and TTU both have a sort of passionate underdog quality that should make them spiritual soul mates, but this will only be their second meeting.  In the 1938 Sun Bowl, WVU beat Texas Tech 7-6.  My guess is that the two teams will score more points than that today,

Vegas thinks we're going to get a great game today.  WVU is favored by 4 points, and the over-under is 77 or 78.  That translates to a WVU victory by the score of 41-37, which sounds too low to me.  But the markets are probably assuming that at some point, WVU's magnificent offense has to slow down somewhat.

Texas Tech

Texas Tech University and its hometown of Lubbock, Texas have an unusual and controversial place in American life.  Lubbock sits far out on on the western plains of Texas -- 532 miles northwest of Houston, and 349 miles west of Dallas.  It is known as the home of Buddy Holly and Natalie Maines (the lead singer for the Dixie Chicks), who famously trashed her hometown for its conservatism in the song "Lubbock or Leave It."

Maines's claim that her hometown is full of small-minded meanies may or may not have been fair, but within the world of the NCAA, TTU often appears to live up to the stereotype.  Texas Tech hired Bobby Knight when no one else would give him a job.  Texas Tech hired Billy Gillespie to coach its men's basketball team despite the rumors that he had abused players at the University of Kentucky -- and soon faced charges that Gillespie had continued the practice at TTU.  Mike Leach, the most successful football coach Texas Tech ever had, was fired due to a controversy that arose over allegations that he had mistreated a player who had suffered concussion during practice.  In short, TTU often shows up in the type of stories that cause good-government types to roll their eyes.

But the folks at Texas Tech don't seem to mind.  Texas Tech didn't even exist until 1923, and wasn't allowed to join the Southwest Conference until 1956 -- allegedly after the good folk of Lubbock threatened to boycott the big stores in Dallas unless their Red Raiders were let into the SWC.  So Texas Tech has always been the scrappy underdog, and they revel in that role.  They've never had too much success -- they tend to turn up in bowls with names like the "Valero Alamo Bowl" and the "TicketCity Bowl", and they have an all-time record of 0-4 in the Cotton Bowl.  Their school spirit, however, cannot be denied.

They also have a pretty decent history in the UCFC.  The UCFC spent almost the entire 1930's down in Texas, and TTU first grabbed the title with a 6-0 win over SMU on October 1, 1932.  They defended the title 8 times -- beating schools like "New Mexico Highlands" and "Colorado Mines" -- before losing to Hardin-Simmons on November 24, 1932.  The next year, they regained the title with a win over Baylor, and kept it until September 22, 1934, when they lost it to Texas.  They didn't regain the UCFC until the next-to-last game of the 1991 season with a 31-24 win over Baylor.  On September 3, 1992, they lost the crown to Oklahoma by the score of 34-9.  They also held the crown for two weeks in 2008 (thanks to wins over Texas and Oklahoma State) before Oklahoma beat them again, this time 65-21.  Their all-time UCFC record is 15-12.

Wrap Up: 2012 Week 6

Week 6 was a week of big games so let's get right to them.

As I said last week people were losing faith in LSU, mostly because of their offense, and their offense let them down against Florida in week 6 as they lost 14-6. This loss knocked LSU out of the unbeaten list, but it also opens the door for another SEC team to claim the top spot for a potential national championship. Sad for Florida that this win alone won't help their chances all that much.

If it ends up being Alabama versus another SEC team, that team may well be South Carolina after they embaressed Georgia 35-7. In their first five games no one had held Georgia to less than 40 points. South Carolina completely shut them down and established themselves as the number two SEC team behind Alabama.

The big upset of the week came from the ACC where Florida State fell to North Carolina State. All the talk of whether or not Florida State was back got answered and so they now fall out of the talk as a potential national champion. This opened a big door for Notre Dame who destroyed Miami of Florida 41-3. More wins like this will help Notre Dame out as other teams start to lose.

Of course first Notre Dame and South Carolina need Oregon to lose and that doesn't look like it will be happening anytime soon. People were wondering if Washington's defense may give them some trouble but a 52-21 victory seemed to answer those questions.

Happily Oregon State won again and so they remain undefeated. I'm still keeping hope for the big Oregon, Oregon State game to decide the Pac 12. West Virginia and Kansas State are the last remaining teams in the Big 12 with a shot.

The Big 10 is now Ohio State's conference and they are not bowl eligible to the Big 10 is eliminated now from any national picture.

Here are the games I'll be most interest in this week.

Western Kentucky at Troy
     Eric I love you, but I root for Corey Robinson.  Robinson is struggling a bit this year.  Hopefully he'll get it together against Western.

Kansas State at Iowa State
     For the second week in a row Iowa State has a chance to knock off an undefeated Big 12 team.

Stanford at Notre Dame
     If Notre Dame can win this one convincingly, they'll cement a top four spot.

South Carolina at LSU
     It is hard to imagine LSU losing two games in a row, especially being at home this week.

Texas 45 - 48 W. Virginia (Final)

The onside kick bounced straight at WVU's Nana Kyeremeh of Thomas Worthington H.S. in Worthington, OH.  He grabbed the ball and fell to the ground.  Geno Smith ran out the clock and West Virginia KEEPS THE UCFC!  The Mountaineers win their sixth consecutive UCFC game and run their record to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in the Big XII.  They should also move up in the polls next week, as both # 5 Georgia and # 3 LSU lost.  Their record in UCFC games is now 16-7, and they will defend the title next week in Lubbock, Texas against Texas Tech.  That game will kick off at 3:30 P.M. Eastern Time.

The Texas Longhorns, who made a valiant effort and were eventually thwarted by a bad snap and a missed FG, fall to 40-22-3.  But they have nothing to be ashamed of; Geno Smith and company played one of the best and bravest games you'd ever want to see.  On the other hand, that whole scheme of letting WVU into the Big XII doesn't seem very clever right now.

Texas 45 - 48 W. Virginia (15 seconds left in 4th Quarter)

After the timeout, David Ash throws an 8-yard TD pass to Marquise Goodwin of Rowlett H.S. in Garland, TX.

Now I suppose we'll finally see that onside kick.

Texas 38 - 48 W. Virginia (22 seconds left in 4th Quarter)

Texas takes the kick off and quickly drives to the WVU 8, where they call time.

Texas 38 - 48 W. Virginia (1:18 left in 4th Quarter)

Andrew Buie hammered the Texas line over and over on that drive -- and eventually ran in from six yards out for a touchdown to give WVU a 10-point lead.  He has 31 carries for 207 yards -- as WVU needed him to keep UT's pressure off of Geno Smith, and he came through.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (2:18 left in 4th Quarter)

With 1st and 10 on the Texas 25, WVU calls its second timeout.  They keep going to RB Andrew Buie, who has already rushed for 184 yards in this game.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (3:28 left in 4th Quarter)

WVU calls time.  They face 2d and 11 on their own 40.

And then Geno Smith comes out of the TO and hits Bailey for a first down at the TX 47.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (5:25 left in 4th Quarter)

But Texas does not retake the lead -- or even score at all.  On 3d and 6 from the WVU 9, a bad snap gets away from QB David Ash, and he chases the ball all the way back to the WVU 24, where he is sacked.  And so Anthony Fera is forced to try a 41-yard FG -- which he misses.

The Eers are going crazy on their sideline.  If their amazing offense can score one more touchdown, they will almost certainly keep the UCFC for another week.

I have seen football games in movies that weren't this entertaining.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (7:37 left in 4th Quarter)

Disaster for the Mountaineers.  For the second time in this game, Alex Okafor forces a fumble by Geno Smith -- this time by reaching in and slapping at the ball while Smith was looking to pass.  Chris Whaley from Madisonville H.S. in Madisonville, TX jumped on the ball at the WVU 11, and Texas is now poised to re-take the lead.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (8:15 left in 4th Quarter)

Pat Miller of Hoover H.S. in Birmingham, AL is a defensive back for West Virginia.  That means that for most of the season, he's been tackling guys after they catch the ball.  But just now, on 4th and 13 from the WVU 40, he ran over to break up a pass and give WVU the ball -- and the lead -- at the same time.  The big question now is whether WVU can score again.

Texas 38 - 41 W. Virginia (10:50 left in 4th Quarter)

We're getting late in the game, and the good folks in Austin are starting to pull out all the tricks.  On this possession there was an obvious pass interference by Texas on 3d and 6 that wasn't called.  There was an invisible false start on WVU that was called, and there was a play where the Longhorns pulled off Geno Smith's helmet -- forcing him to leave the field for one play.  BUT THEY COULDN'T STOP GENO SMITH, TEVON AUSTIN, ANDREW BUIE, AND STEDMAN BAILEY!  The Mountaineers convert two separate fourth downs, and WVU drives 71 yards in 12 plays to RETAKE THE LEAD on a 6-yard pass from Smith to Bailey.

What a game!

Now I wait to see if WVU will try an onside kick.

Texas 38 - 34 W. Virginia (29 seconds left in 3d Quarter)

In all seriousness, if WVU could play defense as well as Mississippi State -- or Tennessee -- the Eers might have won the National Championship this year.  But their defense is simply dreadful.  Texas again uses up as much of the clock as possible before Joe Bergeron dashes in from four yards out for his fourth TD of the game.

Now, will UT try an onside kick?

Texas 31 - 34 W. Virginia (4:32 left in 3d Quarter)

I told the Longhorns to try an onside kick.  DON'T GIVE THE BALL TO GENO SMITH!  Smith continues his Cam Newton imitation with another masterful drive.  This one ends on 3d and 3 from the Texas 9, when Smith throws his third TD of the game, this time to Stedman Bailey.  Smith doesn't have his usual video-game numbers, but he is 19-28 for 226 yards and 3 TD's.

Texas 31 - 27 W. Virginia (7:35 left in 3d Quarter)

Texas, wisely realizing that the best way to beat WVU is to keep Geno Smith and company off the field, keeps the ball on the ground for most of its opening possession.  The Longhorns used up over half of the third quarter before Anthony Fera of Cypress, TX (a transfer from Penn State) kicked a field goal to give You-Tee a four-point lead.

Of course, now Geno Smith will get his chance -- unless Texas takes my advice and tries an onside kick.

Texas 28 - 27 W. Virginia (Halftime)

Huge break for UT on WVU's last possession of the half.  Smith was driving the Mountaineers as usual -- with WVU going to very quick passes to stifle the UT pass rush.  With about 20 seconds to go from his own 45, Smith hit Buie at the 19 yard line.  There was no one within 10 yards of him -- he could have walked into the end zone.  But he stumbled and fell after the catch, and WVU was forced to settle for a second field goal.  Still, everything is up for grabs as we head to the locker rooms.

Texas 28 - 24 W. Virginia (1:14 left in 2d Quarter)

It doesn't take Texas long to make WVU pay for having to settle for a field goal.  UT quarterback David Ash of Belton H.S. in Belton, TX masterminds a very efficient drive that ends with the usual 1-yard plunge by Joe Bergeron.  It's Bergeron's 3d TD of the game, and it puts Texas in front.  The Longhorns have outscored WVU 21-10 in this quarter.

Texas 21 - 24 W. Virginia (5:10 left in 2d Quarter)

It is now kill or be killed when WVU has the ball.  UT has plainly decided that their best hope of stopping WVU is to simply charge at Smith on every play.  So each play is a race to see whether the Longhorns can get to Smith before he can do something productive with the ball.  On that possession, Smith did take the Eers down into Texas territory.  But on 3d and 3 from the Texas 9, Desmond Jackson of Westfield H.S. in Houston, TX blasted through for a sack to stop WVU's drive.  So Tyler Bitancurt kicked a 37-yard FG to put the Mountaineers back on top.

This game is being played at a desperate and ferocious pace right now.

Texas 21 - 21 W. Virginia (8:14 left in 2d Quarter)

The UT rush is now starting to cause huge problems for WVU.  On third and 14 from his own 9, Geno Smith went back to pass.  He was sacked at the 1-yard line by Alex Okafor of Pflugerville H.S. in Pflugerville, TX.  Smith dropped the ball, which was recovered in the end zone by Jackson Jeffcoat of Plano West H.S. in Plano, TX.  And just like that, WVU's 14-point lead is gone.

Great adjustment by the Texas defense, which has simply overwhelmed WVU on its last two offensive possessions.

Texas 14 - 21 W. Virginia (8:45 left in 2d Quarter)

WVU will regret not doing something with that fumble.  On 1st and 10 from the 50, Johnathan Gray of Aledo H.S. in Aledo, TX dashed 49 yards down to the WVU 1.  And two plays later, Joe Bergeron blasted in from one yard out for his second touchdown of the game.

So Texas is back in business.  But it looks very much as if it will take at least 45 points to win this game, so it's really too early to make much of a judgment about how things are going.

Texas 7 - 21 W. Virginia (10:01 left in 2d Quarter)

We've had some odd happenings since WVU's last touchdown.  Texas ran the kickoff all the way back to about the WVU 46.  But soon afterward, a Texas fumble gave WVU the ball at its own 38.  The Eers had a chance to blow the game open, but Smith suffered a rare sack and WVU could go nowhere. The Mountaineers then did a rare punt, but it was deflected by Texas.  So when we return from commercial, the Longhorns will be in business at the 50 yard line.

By the way, they just announced that tonight's attendance of 101,851 is the largest home crown in UT football history.

Texas 7 - 21 W. Virginia (12:22 left in 2d Quarter)

It's really dangerous to let WVU have the ball.  They go 70 yards -- thanks in part to a key 4th and 9 pass from Smith to Austin from the TX 30 -- and Andrew Buie of Trinity Christian Academy in Jacksonville, FL caps things off with a four-yard run.  Tyler Bitancurt of West Springfield H.S. in Springfield, VA tacks on his third extra point, and the Eers are suddenly up 14.  This is not what the Texas fans -- or I -- expected.

Texas 7 - 14 W. Virginia (end of 1st Quarter)

Texas goes three and out, and WVU will have a second and 8 from its own 30 when play resumes.  So far, the Mountaineers have had three possessions:  a touchdown, a blocked field goal, and a touchdown.  So they're looking pretty good so far.

Texas 7 - 14 W. Virginia (1:56 left in 1st Quarter)

For almost 10 minutes of game time, the Longhorns kept the Mountaineers bottled up.  But you are never safe with WVU.  On fourth and 4 from the Texas 40, Geno Smith hit Tevon Austin on a crossing pattern, and Austin ran all the way for the touchdown to put WVO back in the lead.  So far, Austin has 55 receiving yards and 110 more yards on two kickoff returns.

Texas 7 - 7 W. Virginia (9:22 left in 1st Quarter)

Well, WVU may have brought their high-powered offense to Austin, but they brought their lousy defense as well.  Texas takes the kickoff and strolls down the field without too much trouble.  Joe Bergeron of North Mesquite H.S. in Mesquite, TX bangs in from two yards out for the game-tying touchdown.

Last week's UCFC finished 70-63.  Could we see another score like that tonight?

Texas 0 - 7 W. Virginia (12:53 left in 1st Quarter)

So far, except for the white uniforms with blue numerals, West Virginia looks the same on the road as it does at home.  The Mountaineers zip down the field with their usual efficiency, and Geno Smith of Miramar H.S. in Miramar, FL throws an 8-yard pass to Stedman Bailey of Miramar H.S. in Miramar, FL.  And just like that, the Mountaineers take an early lead in this big UCFC matchup.

Texas 0 - 0 W. Virginia (14:51 left in 1st Quarter)

Tevon Austin of Dunbar H.S. in Baltimore, MD takes the kickoff out to the WVU 46, and the Mountaineers will start their first possession from there.  Another UCFC game has started!

Texas v. W. Virginia

The best thing about the UCFC is that the champion, whoever it may be, cannot hide for very long.  Sooner or later, you have to put that big golden trophy on a train and head to a very hostile environment, where a significant challenger is waiting.  Since taking the trophy in last season's Orange Bowl, the West Virginia Mountaineers have defended the title against Marshall (69-34), James Madison (42-12), Maryland (31-21), and Baylor (70-63).  With the exception of a few anxious moments toward the middle of the Baylor game, Mountaineer Nation has had little cause for alarm during these games.  But today they face a very different challenge.  Today WVU will be in Austin, Texas to face an undefeated group of Longhorns who will be urged on by over 100,000 screaming fans.

This game, between the number 8 Mountaineers and the number 11 Longhorns, is -- at least on paper -- the most attractive UCFC game since Auburn beat Oregon for the 2010 National Title.  For the first time this year, WVU will not be on cable, as this is the national game for Fox.

This is only the second time in history that WVU has played Texas -- their only other matchup was a 7-6 win for the Mountaineers back in 1956.  But WVU showed last week that they are very comfortable playing the type of high-scoring passing game -- it always looks like eight-man football to me -- that has become the dominant style in the Big XII.  The real question for tonight is whether all those pretty patterns will work so well on the road against a team of first-class athletes.

Vegas is not convinced that WVU will be quite so efficient against the Longhorns.  UT is a 7-point favorite in a game featuring an over-under line of 74 1/2.  Those odds would suggest a UT win by a score of something like 41-34.  I do think the Longhorns will win, and my guess is that they will score more than 41 points.  But Geno Smith and the Mountaineers have been remarkably efficient so far this year, and I am eager to see how they do on such a big stage.

Texas

Article 7, Section 10 of the Constitution of the State of Texas provides that "{t}he legislature shall . . . establish, organize, and provide for the maintenance, support, and direction of a Univerisity of the first class, to be located by a vote of the people of this State, and styled, "The University of Texas."

That provision was adopted with the rest of the Texas Constitution in 1876, and the University opened its doors in Austin on September 15, 1883.  Texans -- at least those who did not attend Texas A & M -- generally love their State University, and are convinced that it is "a University of the first class."  During the recent controversies over conference re-alignment, Texas fans made clear that they had no interest in joining the Southeastern Conference, in part because they considered the SEC schools to be far below You-Tee academically.  SEC fans retorted that U.S. News and World Report ranks Texas in a tie for 46th among national universities -- well behind Vanderbilt (17th), and only slightly ahead of Florida (T-54) and Georgia (T-63).  But the Texans were unmoved.

But however you feel about Texas academically, no one could deny that UT has one of the nation's greatest football programs.  Their all-time record after the 2011 season was 861-329-33, which placed them second only to Michigan in terms of all-time wins.  And if their three AP national titles (1963, 1969, 2005) leave them far behind schools like Oklahoma and Alabama, no one can deny that they are dominant in their region (they have 32 conference titles) and they are usually a part of the national conversation.

In recent years, they have also played a critical role in conference re-alignment.  They were a major force in the break-up of the old Southwest Conference in the early 1990's, and their threats to bolt the Big XII for the Pac-10 did a lot to drive schools like Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri, and Texas A & M into new leagues.  But it all worked out for UT, which was left with a rump version of the Big XII that should make it much easier for the Longhorns to play for National Championships.

The Longhorns are also one of only seven schools to have won 40 or more Unofficial College Football Championship games.  Their total of 40 UCFC wins is exceeded only by Yale (109), Princeton (101), Southern Cal (90), Harvard (88), Penn (56), and Ohio State (52).  Their all-time record in UCFC play is 40-21-3.

It would take too long to go through all UT's games in the UCFC, so we will simply hit some highlights.  On January 1, 1960, they lost the Cotton Bowl to Syracuse, who not only retained the UCFC but also captured the 1959 National Championship.  On October 12, 1963, the Longhorns took the UCFC from Oklahoma with a 28-7 thumping, and went on to capture their first National Title.  In fact, they held the UCFC until October 17, 1964, when they finally lost to Arkansas by a score of 14-13.  They didn't regain the title until the last game of the 1998 regular season, when they beat A&M 26-24.  They lost it again in the first game of the 1999 season to North Carolina State, but won it back on January 4, 2006, when Vince Young led them to a pulsating 41-38 victory in the Rose Bowl over Southern Cal that signified their third National Crown.  Finally, they played for the UCFC on January 7, 2010 when they battled Alabama for the 2009 National Championship, but they lost by a score of 37-21.  This will be their first UCFC game since that one.

Wrap Up: 2012 Week 5

Except for the Unofficial College Football Championship title match, I found this past week to be quite boring.  This then gives me a chance to write about my favorite story of the year so far which involves the University of Texas San Antonio.

UTSA started playing football in 2011.  This year they are in the failing WAC and will move next year into the Conference USA.  Yes that's right a team with no tradition at all has found a home outside the WAC while the University of Idaho has found none.  Still while the Vandals sit at 0-5, the Roadrunners sit at 5-0.  I find this to be a wonderful story and I'm pulling for UTSA to hold on to win the WAC.  It would be a fitting end to the WAC to have their final champion be a team that was only in it for one year and had only been playing football for two years.  The WAC has been around since 1962.  That's 50 years of tradition that will disappear overnight, but that is the current trend in conference realignment and the mess that is Division I football today.  You only need to look at games like UNC 66, Idaho 0 to realize that we have too many teams trying to play at the top level of the sport, simply because the money is so enticing.

Well that's enough of my soapbox and so I'll move on to talking about the week.  In many ways the West Virginia, Baylor game and the Texas, Oklahoma State game hurt the Big 12 standings.  No one now takes any of these teams very seriously as a national contender and so the dominance of the Pac 12 and SEC has continued to grow.  Florida State is now the big question mark in the mix, with Notre Dame looming as a potential spoiler for it all.  If Notre Dame could manage to win out they would be an intriguing pick for the BCS title game, so we'll have to start following Notre Dame much closer.

LSU had another disappointing win and so they continue to slip in people's eyes but they will have a chance to prove themselves this upcoming weekend.  Ohio State beat Michigan State, and though no one is expecting anything at this point from any Big 10 team, it has to be upsetting if you're a fan of any other Big 10 school, that Urban Meyer is so quickly getting Ohio State at the top of the Conference.

This coming week has some big games so let's take a look at the ones I'll be most interested in watching.

Arkansas (1-4) at Auburn (1-3)
   These two teams are both really struggling and I have a feeling that whichever team loses this game may not have a coach afterwards.  I know that Auburn won a national title fairly recently, but I can't imagine there is much patience at Auburn for losing and especially if they were to lose to an Arkansas team that seems to be completely collapsing.

Northwestern (5-0) at Penn State (3-2)
     With Ohio State ineligible to play in bowl games, Northwestern may have a great shot to win the reeling Big 10.  They will need to win this game on the road against a Penn State team which could very easily be 5-0.

LSU (5-0) at Florida (4-0)
     This will be a very interesting game.  A lot of people are losing faith in LSU and no one has faith in Florida.  The only a win in this game will help either team in the standings if it is a complete blowout.

Oklahoma (2-1) at Texas Tech (4-0)
     It's hard to believe but Oklahoma has only played three games so far.  Amazing they are already out of it and only three games into their season.  Texas Tech meanwhile is 4-0 and took last week off to prepare for this game.  A win here will set the Big 12 up for an interesting top end.

Washington State (2-3) at Oregon State (3-0)
     WSU is scoring more and more points every week as Mike Leach gets things ramped up and I'm really pulling for the Beavers to go undefeated for the big end of the year game with Oregon.  So this will be an interesting one to watch.

Georgia (5-0) at South Carolina (5-0)
     One of these teams will walk away with a huge win.  I work with a guy who grew up in Georgia and is a Georgia grad.  He's sweating this one.

West Virginia (4-0) at Texas (4-0)
     Not only is this the Unofficial College Football Championship title game, but it's also going to set up the top team in the Big 12.  This should be a very interesting game.

Miami (Florida) (4-1) at Notre Dame (4-0)
     Back in the day this was a bitter rivalry.  Now no one is quite sure what to make of Miami or Notre Dame.  The winner here will definitely get a boost.

Nebraska (4-1) at Ohio State (5-0)
     Can Ohio State knock off Michigan State and Nebraska in back to back weeks we'll see.

Washington (3-1) at Oregon (5-0)
     Washington just pulled off an upset over Stanford, so everyone will be watching to see how well the Ducks can handle them.