I got back from lunch, turned on the TV, saw Gus Johnson back for another year, and saw what the OSU helmets look like at the beginning of the year before anyone has earned any stickers. Then this happened:
13:07 left in 1st quarter: Justin Fields runs 51 yards for a touchdown (OSU 7-0 FAU)
11:05 left in 1st quarter: Fields throws 25-yd TD pass to Jeremy Ruckert (OSU 14 - 0 FAU)
9:12 left in 1st quarter: Fields throws 32-yd TD pass to Binjimen Victor (OSU 21 - 0 FAU)
At this point, the ESPN Gamecast gives OSU a 99.4 percent chance of victory. That's good enough for me. It's a beautiful day, and I'm prepared to take my chances that FAU will not launch a monster comeback.
Oh, wait. Fields (of Carl J. Harrison High School in Kennesaw, Ga.) just threw a 29-yd touchdown pass to Chris Olave (of Mission Hills High School in San Marcos, Calif.) Bucks now lead 28-0. I'm guessing they will retain the UCFC for another week.
Saturday, August 31, 2019
Florida Atlantic
If watching Ohio State gives you a sense of the history and tradition of college football, the Buckeyes' opening round opponent reminds us that college football also features variety and change.
In 1960, Woody Hayes was nearing the end of his first decade as the OSU football coach -- and Florida Atlantic University did not exist. But in 1961, the Florida state legislature decided to create a new university in Boca Raton. Florida Atlantic University opened on September 14, 1964. At first, it only took students who had already earned at least an associate degree from a community college. In 1984, however, FAU began admitting freshmen. In 1989, the legislature designated FAU as the lead state university serving Broward County. By 1999, FAU had six different campuses across the country. Today, it has almost 25,000 undergraduates.
FAU had no intercollegiate athletics until 1979, and played its first football season in 2001. Howard Schnellenberger, who had won a national championship for Miami of Florida in 1983, launched the program and served as head coach until 2011. For the first four years, the FAU Owls were an independent in I-AA football, or whatever that level was called at that time. Then they moved up to I-A and started playing in the Sun Belt Conference. Starting in 2013-14, the Owls moved into Conference USA.
Schnellenberger, who had one of the strangest coaching careers in NCAA history, had some success at FAU. In 2003 -- only the third season of football -- the Owls made the I-AA playoffs. They beat Bethune-Cookman and Northern Arizona to reach the semi-finals, where they were ousted by Colgate. In 2007, the Owls went 8-5 and won their first bowl game, beating Memphis 44-27 in the New Orleans Bowl. The next year, the Owls finished 7-6 after beating Central Michigan 24-21 in the Motor City Bowl.
Schnellenberger retired after a 1-11 season in 2011, and the Owls didn't do much for the next few years. For the 2017 season, however, the Owls hired Lane Kiffin, formerly of Tennessee and USC. Kiffin went 11-3 in his first year at the helm, beating Akron 50-3 in the Boca Raton Bowl. Then last year, the team slipped to a 5-7 record. This year, Athlon picks them to finish third in the C-USA East, behind Marshall and Florida International.
FAU may not seem like that big a deal in the world of college football, but from my perspective it is part of one of the most important stories in the last few decades. Florida was a very sparsely populated state at the beginning of the 20th century, which meant that for many decades its only I-A football programs were Florida, Florida State, and Miami of Florida. In the 1980's and 1990's, these teams feasted on the enormous football-playing population of Florida, while states like Texas and California divided their talent among a much larger number of teams. Between 1983 and 2001, Miami won five national championships, Florida State won two, and Florida won one. Anyone who remembers college football from that era will recall the extent to which the three Florida schools dominated the sport. But now Florida has at least four more I-A schools: Central Florida, South Florida, Florida Atlantic, and Florida International. If you took all of the best players on those teams, and put them on the three original Florida schools, they would probably still be the powerhouses we remember. But these days, college football is dominated by Clemson and Alabama, and Florida's Big Three -- while still very important -- are not as dominant as they used to be. Florida's infrastructure caught up to its population, and that fact has significantly changed college football.
According to the oddsmakers, Ohio State is supposed to win today by 27 points in a game that will feature 63 1/2 points of total offense. That works out to a score of something like 45-18 for the Buckeyes, and would make a nice easy start to the new season.
In 1960, Woody Hayes was nearing the end of his first decade as the OSU football coach -- and Florida Atlantic University did not exist. But in 1961, the Florida state legislature decided to create a new university in Boca Raton. Florida Atlantic University opened on September 14, 1964. At first, it only took students who had already earned at least an associate degree from a community college. In 1984, however, FAU began admitting freshmen. In 1989, the legislature designated FAU as the lead state university serving Broward County. By 1999, FAU had six different campuses across the country. Today, it has almost 25,000 undergraduates.
FAU had no intercollegiate athletics until 1979, and played its first football season in 2001. Howard Schnellenberger, who had won a national championship for Miami of Florida in 1983, launched the program and served as head coach until 2011. For the first four years, the FAU Owls were an independent in I-AA football, or whatever that level was called at that time. Then they moved up to I-A and started playing in the Sun Belt Conference. Starting in 2013-14, the Owls moved into Conference USA.
Schnellenberger, who had one of the strangest coaching careers in NCAA history, had some success at FAU. In 2003 -- only the third season of football -- the Owls made the I-AA playoffs. They beat Bethune-Cookman and Northern Arizona to reach the semi-finals, where they were ousted by Colgate. In 2007, the Owls went 8-5 and won their first bowl game, beating Memphis 44-27 in the New Orleans Bowl. The next year, the Owls finished 7-6 after beating Central Michigan 24-21 in the Motor City Bowl.
Schnellenberger retired after a 1-11 season in 2011, and the Owls didn't do much for the next few years. For the 2017 season, however, the Owls hired Lane Kiffin, formerly of Tennessee and USC. Kiffin went 11-3 in his first year at the helm, beating Akron 50-3 in the Boca Raton Bowl. Then last year, the team slipped to a 5-7 record. This year, Athlon picks them to finish third in the C-USA East, behind Marshall and Florida International.
FAU may not seem like that big a deal in the world of college football, but from my perspective it is part of one of the most important stories in the last few decades. Florida was a very sparsely populated state at the beginning of the 20th century, which meant that for many decades its only I-A football programs were Florida, Florida State, and Miami of Florida. In the 1980's and 1990's, these teams feasted on the enormous football-playing population of Florida, while states like Texas and California divided their talent among a much larger number of teams. Between 1983 and 2001, Miami won five national championships, Florida State won two, and Florida won one. Anyone who remembers college football from that era will recall the extent to which the three Florida schools dominated the sport. But now Florida has at least four more I-A schools: Central Florida, South Florida, Florida Atlantic, and Florida International. If you took all of the best players on those teams, and put them on the three original Florida schools, they would probably still be the powerhouses we remember. But these days, college football is dominated by Clemson and Alabama, and Florida's Big Three -- while still very important -- are not as dominant as they used to be. Florida's infrastructure caught up to its population, and that fact has significantly changed college football.
According to the oddsmakers, Ohio State is supposed to win today by 27 points in a game that will feature 63 1/2 points of total offense. That works out to a score of something like 45-18 for the Buckeyes, and would make a nice easy start to the new season.
Friday, August 30, 2019
Ohio State
1. Ohio University and Miami of Ohio are two of the oldest and best public universities in the country, but they are both in the southern part of the state -- which turned out not to be very convenient once the largest city in Ohio ended up on the shores of Lake Erie. So while the Ohio State University is only the ninth oldest university in the State -- it wasn't formed until 1870 -- its central location and comprehensive curriculum allowed it to become a dominant force in the state. It also meant that Ohio -- unlike Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan -- has only ever had one member of the Big 10. And that meant that Ohio State will always get the lion's share of football players in one of the most talent-laden states in America.
2. It took a long while for Ohio State to really get going. Up until the 1930's, the three great college football powerhouses in the Midwest were Michigan, Notre Dame, and Chicago. OSU didn't have a really good team until 1935, when the Buckeyes went 7-1. In 1942, however, Paul Brown -- yes, that Paul Brown -- took the Buckeyes all the way to their first National Championship. But he left for another job, and the war messed everything up. By 1951, Michigan led the all-time series against OSU with a record of 32-12-4.
3. Then, in 1951, Woody Hayes became the head coach, and everything changed. Hayes made the Buckeyes the best program in the Midwest, with the possible exception of Notre Dame. He went 16-11-1 against Michigan, he won the National Championship in 1954 and 1968, and he ruined a lot of my Saturday afternoons in the 1970's with really boring wins against hapless Big 10 competition.
4. Ohio State wasn't the same for a long time after Woody Hayes left. For one thing, Ohio -- which had been an extremely important and powerful state from the Civil War until the 1950's -- was slowly turning into the Rust Belt. For another, Southern schools had started to use African American players, which dramatically changed the playing field in college football. OSU spent most of the 1980's and 1990's longing for a return to the glory years.
5. They finally got there in 2002, when they beat Miami of Florida to win the National Championship in what has to be one of the most violent college football games ever played. Under Jim Tressell, the Buckeyes were always good -- he finished with a record of 106-22, even though he never won another national title. In each of his last six seasons, OSU finished in the top 10.
6. Tressell departed in the wake of a scandal, but by 2012 the Bucks had plugged in Urban Meyer. He was even better than Tressell, leading OSU to its fifth national title in 2014 and putting up a record of 83-9. Of his seven teams at Ohio State, five finished in the AP top five. He won a Sugar Bowl, a Fiesta Bowl, a Cotton Bowl, and a Rose Bowl. He went 54-4 in the Big 10, and never lost to Michigan. (Now OSU trails by only 51-58-6 in that series). I think he's the best coach they ever had, with the possible exception of Paul Brown.
7. Now Meyer is gone, and the job falls to Ryan Day, who was the offensive coordinator last year. He has some big shoes to fill. But he's in a very good place for a football coach.
2. It took a long while for Ohio State to really get going. Up until the 1930's, the three great college football powerhouses in the Midwest were Michigan, Notre Dame, and Chicago. OSU didn't have a really good team until 1935, when the Buckeyes went 7-1. In 1942, however, Paul Brown -- yes, that Paul Brown -- took the Buckeyes all the way to their first National Championship. But he left for another job, and the war messed everything up. By 1951, Michigan led the all-time series against OSU with a record of 32-12-4.
3. Then, in 1951, Woody Hayes became the head coach, and everything changed. Hayes made the Buckeyes the best program in the Midwest, with the possible exception of Notre Dame. He went 16-11-1 against Michigan, he won the National Championship in 1954 and 1968, and he ruined a lot of my Saturday afternoons in the 1970's with really boring wins against hapless Big 10 competition.
4. Ohio State wasn't the same for a long time after Woody Hayes left. For one thing, Ohio -- which had been an extremely important and powerful state from the Civil War until the 1950's -- was slowly turning into the Rust Belt. For another, Southern schools had started to use African American players, which dramatically changed the playing field in college football. OSU spent most of the 1980's and 1990's longing for a return to the glory years.
5. They finally got there in 2002, when they beat Miami of Florida to win the National Championship in what has to be one of the most violent college football games ever played. Under Jim Tressell, the Buckeyes were always good -- he finished with a record of 106-22, even though he never won another national title. In each of his last six seasons, OSU finished in the top 10.
6. Tressell departed in the wake of a scandal, but by 2012 the Bucks had plugged in Urban Meyer. He was even better than Tressell, leading OSU to its fifth national title in 2014 and putting up a record of 83-9. Of his seven teams at Ohio State, five finished in the AP top five. He won a Sugar Bowl, a Fiesta Bowl, a Cotton Bowl, and a Rose Bowl. He went 54-4 in the Big 10, and never lost to Michigan. (Now OSU trails by only 51-58-6 in that series). I think he's the best coach they ever had, with the possible exception of Paul Brown.
7. Now Meyer is gone, and the job falls to Ryan Day, who was the offensive coordinator last year. He has some big shoes to fill. But he's in a very good place for a football coach.
Saturday, August 24, 2019
What'd I Miss?
First, a hat-tip to Tony, who updated my last post with several title changes.
Second, the last game blogged on this web page was Clemson's 35-31 victory over Alabama on January 9, 2017. By winning that game, Clemson not only won the 2016 national championship -- the Tigers' first such title since 1981 -- but Clemson also won the Unofficial College Football Championship.
Even though we stopped updating this blog, they kept playing college football games, and there have been a whole bunch of UCFC battles since the last time we wrote about them. Here is a brief summary of what happened:
1. On September 2, 2017, No. 5 Clemson beat Kent State 56-3 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. The Tigers retained the UCFC.
2. On September 9, 2017, No. 3 Clemson beat No. 13 Auburn 14-6 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Auburn failed in its attempt to regain the UCFC for the SEC, and Clemson kept the title.
3. On September 16, 2017, No. 3 Clemson beat No. 14 Louisville 47-21 at Cardinal Stadium in Louisville, Ky. This was an ESPN GameDay game, but the Cardinals were no match for the Tigers, who kept the UCFC.
4. On September 23, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat Boston College 34-7 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Another easy win.
5. On September 30, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat No. 12 Virginia Tech 31-17 at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Va., The Hokies were ranked number 12 going into the game, and this was another GameDay battle, but the Tigers were too much for Virginia Tech. They defended the title for the fifth time in a row.
6. On October 7, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat Wake Forest 28-14 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. A sixth consecutive defense for the Tigers.
7. On October 13, 2017, No. 2 Clemson traveled to the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y. for a game with an unranked Syracuse team. The Orange stunned the Tigers -- and the country -- with a 27-24 victory. Syracuse moved to 5-3, on the year, and took the UCFC. The Orange would not win another game that season.
8. On October 21, 2017, Syracuse traveled to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. There they were beaten 27-19 by the No. 8 Miami Hurricanes. The Canes, who were number 8 in the country, moved to 6-0 on the season.
9. On October 28, 2017, No. 8 Miami beat North Carolina 24-19 at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Canes were not very impressive, but they retained the UCFC.
10. On November 4, 2017, No. 9 Miami beat No. 13 Virginia Tech 28-10 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Hokies had a pretty good season, finishing 9-4 with a loss to Oklahoma State in the Camping World Bowl. But this was their second failure in the UCFC.
11. On November 11, 2017, No. 7 Miami hosted No. 3 Notre Dame at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. Naturally, ESPN showed up for GameDay in this Catholics vs. Convicts rematch -- the first big game between these two teams in many years. And the Canes put on a show, crushing the Irish 41 to 8. At this point, Miami's record was 9-0 and they moved up to No. 2 in the country.
12. On November 18, 2017, No 2 Miami beat Virginia 44-28 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. It was the Hurricanes' 10th win in a row, and their last win of the year.
13. On November 24, 2017, No. 2 Miami traveled to Heinz Field in Pittsburgh to play a Pitt Panther team with a record of 4-7. The game was the Panthers' last game of the year -- and they pulled off a stunning upset, beating Miami 24-14. It was the second time in 2017 that the number 2 team in the nation lost the UCFC to a team that was not only unranked, but which finished the year with a losing record. These are two of the biggest upsets in UCFC history, and they both happened in the same year. As a result of this game, Pitt took the UCFC. Since the Panthers were not eligible for a bowl game, this was the last UCFC game of the 2017 season. Alabama eventually beat Clemson and Georgia in the playoffs to win the National Title.
14. On September 1, 2018, Pittsburgh beat Albany 33-7 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh to retain the UCFC.
15. On September 8, 2018, Pittsburgh hosted No. 13 Penn State at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. The Nittany Lions crushed Pittsburgh 51-6 to take the UCFC into the Big 10.
16. On September 15, 2018, No. 11 Penn State beat Kent State 63-10 at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa.
17. On September 21, 2018, No. 10 Penn State beat Illinois 63-24 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
18. On September 29, 2018, No. 9 Penn State hosted No. 4 Ohio State at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa. A crowd of 110,889 showed up to watch, which was the largest crowd in the history of the Stadium. ESPN was there for College GameDay. It was a spectacular game. With 8 minutes left, Penn State led 26-14. But OSU quarterback Dwayne Haskins hurled a 47-yard touchdown pass to make the score 26-21 with 6:42 left. Then Haskins got the ball back at his own 4 with 4:35 left. He drove the Buckeyes 96 yards, capping off the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass with 2:03 left. Down 27-26, PSU tried to answer, but the Nittany Lions were stopped on 4th and 5 at the OSU 43, and the Buckeyes had taken the UCFC.
19. On October 6, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State beat Indiana 49-26 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
20. On October 13, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State beat Minnesota 30-14 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
21. On October 20, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State went to Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Ind. for a game against a Purdue team that had started the year 0-3. But the Boilermakers were now 3-3, and in an emotional game, the Boilermakers delivered a stunning upset for Tyler Trent -- a Purdue student who was dying of bone cancer. Purdue rolled over OSU by the amazing score of 49-20, and Purdue took the UCFC.
22. On October 27, 2018, Purdue traveled to Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich. for a game with Michigan State. In a hard-fought defensive struggle, the Spartans knocked off Purdue 23-13, and took the UCFC.
23. On November 3, 2018, Michigan State beat Maryland 24-3 at Byrd Stadium in College Park, Md. With the victory, the Spartans moved to 6-3 on the year.
24. On November 10, 2018, Michigan State hosted No. 8 Ohio State at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich. For the second time in the year, OSU took the UCFC in a road game -- rolling over the Spartans 26-6 in front of 74,633 fans.
25. On November 17, 2018, No. 9 Ohio State traveled to Byrd Stadium in College Park, Md. to play the Maryland Terrapins. It was the second time in three weeks that Maryland had hosted the UCFC, and this time the Terrapins really put on a show. Maryland led for most of the game, and led by 45-38 with 1:41 left in the fourth quarter. Once again, Dwayne Haskins led OSU to a comeback victory. First, he sparked a touchdown drive that tied the game a 45 and sent both teams to overtime. Then he scored a TD in overtime to make the score 52-45. Maryland scored to cut OSU's lead to one, and then went for the victory with a two-point conversion. They did not make it, and the Buckeyes escaped with a 52-51 victory. This game ended up being very important, as it effectively killed OSU's chances of making the year-end playoff. However, OSU still had the UCFC.
26. On November 24, 2018, No. 10 Ohio State hosted No. 4 Michigan at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Both teams were 10-1, and a huge crowd of 106,588 showed up for the Game of the Year in the Midwest. Of course, College GameDay was also there. In the last-ever meeting between Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh, Meyer came out on top once again -- crushing the Wolverines 62-39.
27. On December 1, 2018, No. 6 Ohio State beat No. 21 Northwestern 45-24 in the Big Ten Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. In my opinion, OSU should have gotten into the playoff. But their terrible loss at Purdue, and their terrible win at Maryland, sunk their chances, and they were left out. Clemson rolled through the playoffs with easy wins over Notre Dame and Alabama to take their second title in the last three years. Ohio State went to the Rose Bowl.
28. On January 1, 2019, No. 5 Ohio State beat No. 9 Washington 28-23 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. The game wasn't actually that close. OSU led 28-3 midway through the third quarter, and were up 28-17 with less than a minute to go. Washington got a touchdown with 42 seconds left that didn't make much of a difference to the outcome, but makes the score look better in the record books.
That Rose Bowl was Urban Meyer's last game as coach of the Buckeyes. In seven years at Columbus, his record was 83-9. His record in the Big 10 was 54-4. He went 7-0 against Michigan. Personally, I think he's the best coach Ohio State ever had -- just as I think he was the best coach Florida ever had.
The Rose Bowl was also Dwayne Haskins's last game as quarterback for the Buckeyes. In one year as the starter, he went 13-1 with 50 touchdown passes and only 8 interceptions. He completed 70 percent of his passes and threw for 4,831 yards. He will be missed.
But the UCFC goes on. At noon Eastern Daylight Time on August 31, 2019, the Buckeyes will defend the UCFC at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio against the Florida Atlantic Owls. We will see what happens.
Second, the last game blogged on this web page was Clemson's 35-31 victory over Alabama on January 9, 2017. By winning that game, Clemson not only won the 2016 national championship -- the Tigers' first such title since 1981 -- but Clemson also won the Unofficial College Football Championship.
Even though we stopped updating this blog, they kept playing college football games, and there have been a whole bunch of UCFC battles since the last time we wrote about them. Here is a brief summary of what happened:
1. On September 2, 2017, No. 5 Clemson beat Kent State 56-3 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. The Tigers retained the UCFC.
2. On September 9, 2017, No. 3 Clemson beat No. 13 Auburn 14-6 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Auburn failed in its attempt to regain the UCFC for the SEC, and Clemson kept the title.
3. On September 16, 2017, No. 3 Clemson beat No. 14 Louisville 47-21 at Cardinal Stadium in Louisville, Ky. This was an ESPN GameDay game, but the Cardinals were no match for the Tigers, who kept the UCFC.
4. On September 23, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat Boston College 34-7 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Another easy win.
5. On September 30, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat No. 12 Virginia Tech 31-17 at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Va., The Hokies were ranked number 12 going into the game, and this was another GameDay battle, but the Tigers were too much for Virginia Tech. They defended the title for the fifth time in a row.
6. On October 7, 2017, No. 2 Clemson beat Wake Forest 28-14 at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. A sixth consecutive defense for the Tigers.
7. On October 13, 2017, No. 2 Clemson traveled to the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y. for a game with an unranked Syracuse team. The Orange stunned the Tigers -- and the country -- with a 27-24 victory. Syracuse moved to 5-3, on the year, and took the UCFC. The Orange would not win another game that season.
8. On October 21, 2017, Syracuse traveled to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. There they were beaten 27-19 by the No. 8 Miami Hurricanes. The Canes, who were number 8 in the country, moved to 6-0 on the season.
9. On October 28, 2017, No. 8 Miami beat North Carolina 24-19 at Kenan Memorial Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Canes were not very impressive, but they retained the UCFC.
10. On November 4, 2017, No. 9 Miami beat No. 13 Virginia Tech 28-10 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Hokies had a pretty good season, finishing 9-4 with a loss to Oklahoma State in the Camping World Bowl. But this was their second failure in the UCFC.
11. On November 11, 2017, No. 7 Miami hosted No. 3 Notre Dame at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. Naturally, ESPN showed up for GameDay in this Catholics vs. Convicts rematch -- the first big game between these two teams in many years. And the Canes put on a show, crushing the Irish 41 to 8. At this point, Miami's record was 9-0 and they moved up to No. 2 in the country.
12. On November 18, 2017, No 2 Miami beat Virginia 44-28 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. It was the Hurricanes' 10th win in a row, and their last win of the year.
13. On November 24, 2017, No. 2 Miami traveled to Heinz Field in Pittsburgh to play a Pitt Panther team with a record of 4-7. The game was the Panthers' last game of the year -- and they pulled off a stunning upset, beating Miami 24-14. It was the second time in 2017 that the number 2 team in the nation lost the UCFC to a team that was not only unranked, but which finished the year with a losing record. These are two of the biggest upsets in UCFC history, and they both happened in the same year. As a result of this game, Pitt took the UCFC. Since the Panthers were not eligible for a bowl game, this was the last UCFC game of the 2017 season. Alabama eventually beat Clemson and Georgia in the playoffs to win the National Title.
14. On September 1, 2018, Pittsburgh beat Albany 33-7 at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh to retain the UCFC.
15. On September 8, 2018, Pittsburgh hosted No. 13 Penn State at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. The Nittany Lions crushed Pittsburgh 51-6 to take the UCFC into the Big 10.
16. On September 15, 2018, No. 11 Penn State beat Kent State 63-10 at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa.
17. On September 21, 2018, No. 10 Penn State beat Illinois 63-24 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
18. On September 29, 2018, No. 9 Penn State hosted No. 4 Ohio State at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pa. A crowd of 110,889 showed up to watch, which was the largest crowd in the history of the Stadium. ESPN was there for College GameDay. It was a spectacular game. With 8 minutes left, Penn State led 26-14. But OSU quarterback Dwayne Haskins hurled a 47-yard touchdown pass to make the score 26-21 with 6:42 left. Then Haskins got the ball back at his own 4 with 4:35 left. He drove the Buckeyes 96 yards, capping off the drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass with 2:03 left. Down 27-26, PSU tried to answer, but the Nittany Lions were stopped on 4th and 5 at the OSU 43, and the Buckeyes had taken the UCFC.
19. On October 6, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State beat Indiana 49-26 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
20. On October 13, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State beat Minnesota 30-14 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
21. On October 20, 2018, No. 3 Ohio State went to Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Ind. for a game against a Purdue team that had started the year 0-3. But the Boilermakers were now 3-3, and in an emotional game, the Boilermakers delivered a stunning upset for Tyler Trent -- a Purdue student who was dying of bone cancer. Purdue rolled over OSU by the amazing score of 49-20, and Purdue took the UCFC.
22. On October 27, 2018, Purdue traveled to Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich. for a game with Michigan State. In a hard-fought defensive struggle, the Spartans knocked off Purdue 23-13, and took the UCFC.
23. On November 3, 2018, Michigan State beat Maryland 24-3 at Byrd Stadium in College Park, Md. With the victory, the Spartans moved to 6-3 on the year.
24. On November 10, 2018, Michigan State hosted No. 8 Ohio State at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich. For the second time in the year, OSU took the UCFC in a road game -- rolling over the Spartans 26-6 in front of 74,633 fans.
25. On November 17, 2018, No. 9 Ohio State traveled to Byrd Stadium in College Park, Md. to play the Maryland Terrapins. It was the second time in three weeks that Maryland had hosted the UCFC, and this time the Terrapins really put on a show. Maryland led for most of the game, and led by 45-38 with 1:41 left in the fourth quarter. Once again, Dwayne Haskins led OSU to a comeback victory. First, he sparked a touchdown drive that tied the game a 45 and sent both teams to overtime. Then he scored a TD in overtime to make the score 52-45. Maryland scored to cut OSU's lead to one, and then went for the victory with a two-point conversion. They did not make it, and the Buckeyes escaped with a 52-51 victory. This game ended up being very important, as it effectively killed OSU's chances of making the year-end playoff. However, OSU still had the UCFC.
26. On November 24, 2018, No. 10 Ohio State hosted No. 4 Michigan at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. Both teams were 10-1, and a huge crowd of 106,588 showed up for the Game of the Year in the Midwest. Of course, College GameDay was also there. In the last-ever meeting between Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh, Meyer came out on top once again -- crushing the Wolverines 62-39.
27. On December 1, 2018, No. 6 Ohio State beat No. 21 Northwestern 45-24 in the Big Ten Championship Game at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. In my opinion, OSU should have gotten into the playoff. But their terrible loss at Purdue, and their terrible win at Maryland, sunk their chances, and they were left out. Clemson rolled through the playoffs with easy wins over Notre Dame and Alabama to take their second title in the last three years. Ohio State went to the Rose Bowl.
28. On January 1, 2019, No. 5 Ohio State beat No. 9 Washington 28-23 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. The game wasn't actually that close. OSU led 28-3 midway through the third quarter, and were up 28-17 with less than a minute to go. Washington got a touchdown with 42 seconds left that didn't make much of a difference to the outcome, but makes the score look better in the record books.
That Rose Bowl was Urban Meyer's last game as coach of the Buckeyes. In seven years at Columbus, his record was 83-9. His record in the Big 10 was 54-4. He went 7-0 against Michigan. Personally, I think he's the best coach Ohio State ever had -- just as I think he was the best coach Florida ever had.
The Rose Bowl was also Dwayne Haskins's last game as quarterback for the Buckeyes. In one year as the starter, he went 13-1 with 50 touchdown passes and only 8 interceptions. He completed 70 percent of his passes and threw for 4,831 yards. He will be missed.
But the UCFC goes on. At noon Eastern Daylight Time on August 31, 2019, the Buckeyes will defend the UCFC at Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio against the Florida Atlantic Owls. We will see what happens.
Thursday, August 15, 2019
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