The Sooners and the Vols are two of the most successful teams in college football history, but they have only met twice in their history. On January 2, 1939 they met in the Orange Bowl, where the Vols cruised to an easy 17-0 victory -- their fifth shutout in a row. On January 1, 1968, Oklahoma and Tennessee again met in the Orange Bowl in a game that also decided the UCFC. This time the Sooners prevailed, pulling out a 26-24 thriller that allowed them to keep the Big Gold Trophy.
This year's game is not expected to be so dramatic. Vegas thinks that the teams will combine to score 57 points and that Oklahoma will win by 21. That works out to something like a 38-17 win for the Sooners, with the possibility of an extra Sooner field goal to cover the spreads. One story here is that Bob Stoops, the Oklahoma coach, is an outspoken critic of the Southeastern Conference, which he claims is overrated. Stoops's team pounded Alabama in the Sugar Bowl in January, and he will want to underscore his point with a crushing win over Tennessee tonight. But at least for a quarter or so, this should feel like a big-time game.
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Tennessee
Only eight schools in Division I-A college football have won more than 800 games. Seven of those schools would be pretty easy for any college football fan to guess: Michigan (911), Notre Dame (876), Texas (875), Nebraska (867), Ohio State (850), Oklahoma (844), and Alabama (840). But my guess is that most fans would struggle to name the eighth team on the list. It is not Southern Cal (798), LSU (755), Penn State (732), Florida (685), Miami (Fla.) (583), UCLA (569), or Florida State (501). No, it is Tennessee, with an all-time record of 806-361-53. Tennessee also ranks 10th in winning percentage (.682), 6th in bowl appearances (49), and 7th in NFL draft picks (337). The Vols also have two AP national titles, one in 1951 and the other in 1998. This is one of the all-time great college football programs.
It is true, of course, that the Vols have piled up 149 wins -- over 18 percent of their total -- against Kentucky and Vanderbilt, two of the worst programs in all of Division I-A. It is also true that the Vols have a losing record against their two biggest rivals, Alabama (38-51-7) and Florida (19-24). And these facts have tended to keep Tennessee from getting the national recognition for which their fans -- and they may have the most rabid fans in the country -- so desperately hunger.
But in General Bob Neyland (that's no nickname, he was a Brigadier General in World War II), who had a record of 173-31-12 from the mid-1920's until 1952, the Vols can claim one of college football's greatest coaches. Credit must also go to Peyton Manning and Philip Fulmer (all-time record of 152-52), who brought the Vols back to national prominence in the 1990's. Tennessee fans exaggerate the greatness of their program, to the intense annoyance of their fellow SEC members. However, they don't exaggerate by much.
Nevertheless, the Vols have fallen on hard times in recent years. Fulmer lost ground vis-a-vis the rest of the SEC in the 2000's, and a 5-7 record in 2008 was enough for the hot-heads in Knoxville to replace him with the youthful Lane Kiffin. At the time, most folks on Rocky Top thought this was a brilliant move, and that Kiffin was a young genius who could return them to the top of the heap. But Kiffin came to believe his own hype, and left for Southern Cal after only one season. Left in the lurch by Kiffin's swift departure, UT was forced to settle for Derek Dooley, a nice man who did not appear to be up to SEC standards, or at least to Tennessee standards. Showing unaccustomed levels of patience, the Vols stuck with Dooley for three losing seasons in a row, by which Tennessee had almost disappeared from the national scene. Dooley was finally replaced with one game left in the 2012 season, with a dismal record of 15-21. The Vols then turned to Butch Jones, who had enjoyed great success at the University of Cincinnati. Jones appeared to bring a new level of seriousness and organization to Knoxville, but a lack of talent doomed him to a 5-7 record last year -- Tennessee's fourth losing season in a row.
This year, UT fans are desperate to see significant improvement, and so far the Vols look better. They opened with easy home wins over Utah State (38-7) and Arkansas State (34-19). They are almost certainly not ready for a prime time UCFC battle on the road against Oklahoma. But the ever-ambitious Tennessee fans will like the feeling of being back in big-time college football -- at least for awhile.
Tennessee is 10-10-2 in UCFC play. But they have not held the title since September 20, 1975, when they were beaten 34-28 by UCLA. Their biggest UCFC game came on January 2, 1998, when they played Nebraska for the National Championship. That game, however, did not go so well for the Vols, who lost 42-17. Since then, they have had three more shots at the crown, losing to Miami (Fla.) in 2002, Florida in 2007, and Florida in 2009.
It is true, of course, that the Vols have piled up 149 wins -- over 18 percent of their total -- against Kentucky and Vanderbilt, two of the worst programs in all of Division I-A. It is also true that the Vols have a losing record against their two biggest rivals, Alabama (38-51-7) and Florida (19-24). And these facts have tended to keep Tennessee from getting the national recognition for which their fans -- and they may have the most rabid fans in the country -- so desperately hunger.
But in General Bob Neyland (that's no nickname, he was a Brigadier General in World War II), who had a record of 173-31-12 from the mid-1920's until 1952, the Vols can claim one of college football's greatest coaches. Credit must also go to Peyton Manning and Philip Fulmer (all-time record of 152-52), who brought the Vols back to national prominence in the 1990's. Tennessee fans exaggerate the greatness of their program, to the intense annoyance of their fellow SEC members. However, they don't exaggerate by much.
Nevertheless, the Vols have fallen on hard times in recent years. Fulmer lost ground vis-a-vis the rest of the SEC in the 2000's, and a 5-7 record in 2008 was enough for the hot-heads in Knoxville to replace him with the youthful Lane Kiffin. At the time, most folks on Rocky Top thought this was a brilliant move, and that Kiffin was a young genius who could return them to the top of the heap. But Kiffin came to believe his own hype, and left for Southern Cal after only one season. Left in the lurch by Kiffin's swift departure, UT was forced to settle for Derek Dooley, a nice man who did not appear to be up to SEC standards, or at least to Tennessee standards. Showing unaccustomed levels of patience, the Vols stuck with Dooley for three losing seasons in a row, by which Tennessee had almost disappeared from the national scene. Dooley was finally replaced with one game left in the 2012 season, with a dismal record of 15-21. The Vols then turned to Butch Jones, who had enjoyed great success at the University of Cincinnati. Jones appeared to bring a new level of seriousness and organization to Knoxville, but a lack of talent doomed him to a 5-7 record last year -- Tennessee's fourth losing season in a row.
This year, UT fans are desperate to see significant improvement, and so far the Vols look better. They opened with easy home wins over Utah State (38-7) and Arkansas State (34-19). They are almost certainly not ready for a prime time UCFC battle on the road against Oklahoma. But the ever-ambitious Tennessee fans will like the feeling of being back in big-time college football -- at least for awhile.
Tennessee is 10-10-2 in UCFC play. But they have not held the title since September 20, 1975, when they were beaten 34-28 by UCLA. Their biggest UCFC game came on January 2, 1998, when they played Nebraska for the National Championship. That game, however, did not go so well for the Vols, who lost 42-17. Since then, they have had three more shots at the crown, losing to Miami (Fla.) in 2002, Florida in 2007, and Florida in 2009.
Friday, September 12, 2014
Tulsa 7 - 52 Oklahoma (Final)
Normally we give each team that plays for the UCFC a few write-ups, including an individual post describing the football history of the school. But this game was so forgettable that I literally did not remember it was taking place until Oklahoma already had a 31-0 lead, so I don't think Tulsa deserves the full UCFC treatment.
The most interesting thing about this game is that Tulsa has actually held the UCFC on several occasions. On November 10, 1934, they took the title from Centenary -- Centenary! -- with a 14-8 victory. They held it until September 27, 1935, until they lost it to Central Oklahoma. But they won it on October 3, 1936 with a 40-7 win over Central Oklahoma -- only to lose it the next w4eek to TCU. Tulsa didn't get the title again until September 21, 1996, when they upset Iowa 27-20. Tulsa then beat Oklahoma (!) 31-24 to keep the title, and then beat Colorado State 20-14 to keep it for another week. But then they lost the crown to BYU (who kept it until the end of the season), and they haven't had it since. Tulsa entered this game with a very respectable record of 6-6-1 in UCFC games, and even after this blowout their record of 6-7-1 is not too shabby.
(For the record, Centenary got the title on October 20, 1934, when they beat Texas 9-6. You won't see that result any time soon.)
Anyway, Oklahoma crushed Tulsa with very little difficulty, and they are now 30-16-1 in UCFC play. This weekend, the Sooners will host the Tennessee Volunteers in what feels like the first true UCFC bout of the season.
The most interesting thing about this game is that Tulsa has actually held the UCFC on several occasions. On November 10, 1934, they took the title from Centenary -- Centenary! -- with a 14-8 victory. They held it until September 27, 1935, until they lost it to Central Oklahoma. But they won it on October 3, 1936 with a 40-7 win over Central Oklahoma -- only to lose it the next w4eek to TCU. Tulsa didn't get the title again until September 21, 1996, when they upset Iowa 27-20. Tulsa then beat Oklahoma (!) 31-24 to keep the title, and then beat Colorado State 20-14 to keep it for another week. But then they lost the crown to BYU (who kept it until the end of the season), and they haven't had it since. Tulsa entered this game with a very respectable record of 6-6-1 in UCFC games, and even after this blowout their record of 6-7-1 is not too shabby.
(For the record, Centenary got the title on October 20, 1934, when they beat Texas 9-6. You won't see that result any time soon.)
Anyway, Oklahoma crushed Tulsa with very little difficulty, and they are now 30-16-1 in UCFC play. This weekend, the Sooners will host the Tennessee Volunteers in what feels like the first true UCFC bout of the season.
Oklahoma 48 - 16 Louisiana Tech (Final)
Well, this wasn't much of a game -- although Oklahoma did not cover the 35-point spread. So that's something for the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs' record in UCFC play falls to 0-5. Oklahoma moves to 29-16-1.
The Bulldogs' record in UCFC play falls to 0-5. Oklahoma moves to 29-16-1.
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Oklahoma 24 - 0 Louisiana Tech (9:50 left in 2d quarter)
As we saw with Baylor last year, these early-season games against Big XII powers are not very competitive. Oklahoma already has this game well in hand, so we'll probably just do a wrap up tomorrow.
Oklahoma v. Louisiana Tech
Oklahoma took the Big Gold Trophy in the last game of the regular season last year, with a stirring upset of rivals Oklahoma State. Then the Sooners pounded Alabama in the Sugar Bowl to keep the trophy. Now they get to open the 2014 season with what should be a few relatively easy games, the first of which is today's home opener against LaTech. These two schools have never met, but LaTech won only four games last year and Oklahoma is 71-3 at home against unranked foes since Bob Stoops became their coach. Vegas has installed the Sooners as 35-point favorites, and that seems low to me.
Louisiana Tech
It's time for another year in the Unofficial College Championship. The current holders, Oklahoma, defend the crown today at 6 P.M. Central in a home game against Louisiana Tech.
In 1894, the U.S. economy was reeling from the Panic of 1893, one of the worst economic disasters ever suffered in this country. Things were particularly grim in the rural South, which had still not recovered from the Civil War. At the time, a lot of Southerners were attracted to the idea that the South should try to imitate the North and devote more resources to industrialization. So it's not surprising that the Louisiana legislature approved an act creating the Industrial Institute and College of Louisiana, which was supposed to instruct white children in the arts and sciences. The Institute opened in Ruston in 1895.
In 1898, the name was changed to the Louisiana Industrial Institute. By 1921, the Institute had begun issuing the degree of Bachelor of Science in Engineering. The same year, it was renamed the Louisiana Polytechnic Institute. The current name -- Louisiana Tech University -- arrived in 1962, soon after LaTech began awarding Masters degrees.
Unlike Georgia Tech or Texas Tech, Louisiana Tech has never been a big-time football program. Back in the 1920's, Governor Huey Long put his support behind LSU, and the Tigers have dominated the sporting scene in the Pelican State ever since. But LaTech has a nice history of its own. The Bulldogs won the national Division II title in 1973, and they won the 2008 Independence Bowl. They are probably best known as the alma mater of Terry Bradshaw.
LaTech has never won the UCFC, although they have played for it four times since moving to Division I-A in 1988. The closest of their four UCFC losses was a 31-42 defeat to Miami (Fla.) on October 28, 2000. Their last UCFC appearance was on November 10, 2007, when holders LSU beat them 58-10.
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