2021 College Football Thread

[Pariah]

There were four games involving FBS teams last night. In all four cases, the winning team scored at least 45 points while the losing team scored 24 or fewer. Given that the four losing teams were two FCS schools, UTEP, and Kansas, I don't suppose that's too surprising

[unclevlad]

I think this is the biggest Cupcake Week of the season.  With Labor Day and kicking off the season, last week had more meaningful games.  This week has Florida vs South Florida, Purdue vs UConn (Purdue -32), Georgia -29 vs. UAB, Wisconsin -32 over Eastern Mich, UNC -23 over Georgia State, Arizona State -30 over UNLV, Wake Forest -42 over Norfolk State...not a cupcake game, that barely manages to reach petit fours size...and others.  Mercer takes $600K to be turned into Road Pizza in Tuscaloosa.  West Virginia vs. LIU....?

 

There's always a few of these;  many teams include conference games a bit earlier in the season, so there are some non-conference cupcakes later on.  Week 2 and week 3 are still, I think, MOSTLY non-conference, and for the power conferences, cupcake time to ensure they've got their 6 wins to be bowl-eligible.

[Pariah]

Two notable exceptions to the above: Air Force at Navy and Utah at BYU, both rivalry games. 

[novi]

Oddly enough, this is the only cupcake Wisconsin will get this year.  In addition to only playing 3 non-conference games this year, they've been working on improving the strength of their schedule.  So their other two ncg's this year are Notre Dame and Army.

 

Admittedly, the game against Illinois is also a freebie, but it's not a cupcake.  They're a real Big 10 team!

 

Though, to be fair, these cupcake games do have a purpose beyond free wins.  Each one represents a sizable payday for the athletics department of the smaller schools.  For example, Eastern Michigan is getting $1.4 million for this game, against a budget of about $16 million for their entire athletics department of 17 sports.  I understand that their are similar, if smaller numbers, involved when Division II schools play FCS teams.

 

Which is just another example of the awful governance of the NCAA.  We shouldn't need such ridiculous workarounds to support the smaller schools.

[unclevlad]

As a counterpoint...do those small schools need to play football, by FAR the most expensive sport?  

 

I did forget that, yeah, this is often the rivalry game week.  CU isn't playing CSU this year;  that game was most often week 2, sometimes week 1.  NMSU actually pushed the UTEP game back to week 0...not like anyone noticed...and the UNM game is this week.

Speaking of cupcakes, Saban is gonna have to go on a diet.  NMSU travels to Tuscaloosa on Nov. 13th.  #1 in the top 10 vs. #3 in the bottom 10.  Will the spread break 60???

[unclevlad]

Oregon 35, Ohio State 28

 

 

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Start up the chant....OVER RATED!!!  OVER RATED!!!!

Unfortunately, it's likely Fox will show the Buffs embarrass themselves now...

[novi]

Ditto.  There is much schadenfreude to be had in an Ohio State loss.

[Pariah]

Dang, Navy's Dress Blue A tribute uniforms look sharp. Air Force's B-52 tribute uniforms are interesting, too, but a bit drab by comparison. 

[Pariah]

24 minutes ago, unclevlad said:

Oregon 35, Ohio State 28

 

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Start up the chant....OVER RATED!!!  OVER RATED!!!!

Unfortunately, it's likely Fox will show the Buffs embarrass themselves now...

 

The downside is that now we have to listen to the PAC-12 (who had a Top 25 team lose to Montana last week) crow about how 'relevant' they are this year. 

[novi]

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

I did forget that, yeah, this is often the rivalry game week.  CU isn't playing CSU this year;  that game was most often week 2, sometimes week 1.  NMSU actually pushed the UTEP game back to week 0...not like anyone noticed...and the UNM game is this week.

 

Depends where in the country you are.  The Big 10 saves rivalry week for the last week of the season.

 

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

As a counterpoint...do those small schools need to play football, by FAR the most expensive sport? 

 

That really depends on how you define "need".  Is it essential to their mission of educating people?  No.  But that way lies the argument that there should be no college sports at all.  And ignores the reality that the majority of college football players don't receive a scholarship.  These guys want to play the sport they love.  And in that sense, having the school organize a play area, equipment, and staff so that students don't have to makes sense.

 

But this is where the issue gets muddled by talking about Alabama in the same breath as Ripon (D.III, enrollment 807).  They both are and aren't playing the same sport.

[Pariah]

No, they're not the same game. Division I football, especially the Power 5, are a de facto minor league for the NFL, especially with the new NIL provisions. It is completely revenue driven, as the recent changes in the Big 12 have demonstrated. Big time college football is an industry, academics are largely secondary.

 

It's not quite the same at the FCS level, where there are fewer scholarships available. Most players going to FCS schools understand that there's not much chance they're going to end up playing on Sundays, unless it's in the CFL. I'm not certain what goes on at Division II, but I know that Division III players are not there on scholarship. Those guys (and the occasional lady) play for the love of the game while of necessity having their primary focus on their degree.

[unclevlad]

9 minutes ago, novi said:

That really depends on how you define "need".  Is it essential to their mission of educating people?  No.  But that way lies the argument that there should be no college sports at all.  And ignores the reality that the majority of college football players don't receive a scholarship.  These guys want to play the sport they love.  And in that sense, having the school organize a play area, equipment, and staff so that students don't have to makes sense.

 

But this is where the issue gets muddled by talking about Alabama in the same breath as Ripon (D.III, enrollment 807).  They both are and aren't playing the same sport.

 

Sure, but what I'm saying is, you were advocating for some means for the small schools to continue playing w/o the need for the paycheck games.  If they can't afford the sport, then don't play it...or in a case like NMSU, play it at a level you *can* afford.

 

It isn't about the athletes, it's about administrators' (and boosters') egos.  Also of note:  there are 96 schools that play Div I basketball, but NOT football.  

FCS sends more players to the pros than you might think, actually...and may offer more scholarships than you think.  FBS is 85;  FCS is 63.  All FBS scholarships are full-ride;  FCS can split them, but can't have more than 85.  Division II actually allows 36.  That said:  the first round in particular is basically OWNED by the Power 5, to be sure, and the rest of the draft is heavily slanted.  Found some numbers from the 2019 draft...254 total picks, 191 from the Power 5.  And from the flip side, looking at the current ESPN 300 top rated high school players, looking at the top 140, not all are committed but many are...and only 4 are NOT going to a Power 5.  2 are going to SMU and 2 to Notre Dame...which gets special treatment by the bowls like a Power 5 school.

Yeah.  The Power 5 is a collection of football factories.  And with NIL opportunities, hey, let's face it...the visibility of the Power 5 will generally open MANY more doors, only exacerbating these tendencies.  Altho it might be interesting to see if it causes more transfers, too...because if you're not getting the playing time you want, you're probably not cashing in much NIL money.  Grass is always greener elsewhere, right/

[Pariah]

Okay, I know that it's supposedly helps with recruiting or whatever, but what's the big deal with black uniforms? Especially for schools who don't have black as one of their school colors? I know that most schools have a BFBS (Black for Black's Sake) alternate. 

 

Sometimes they're okay. I mean, BYU's is not entirely horrible, for example. But the game I'm looking at right at this moment features Iowa and Iowa State. It's at Iowa state, who's school colors are maroon and gold. So what is Iowa State wearing? White helmets, white pants, and black jerseys. Is no one at Iowa State aware that black is one of Iowa's school colors? Why wear a jersey that looks like it belongs to the team you're playing against? It's nonsense.

 

Okay, I'm done.

[novi]

1 hour ago, unclevlad said:

Sure, but what I'm saying is, you were advocating for some means for the small schools to continue playing w/o the need for the paycheck games.  If they can't afford the sport, then don't play it...or in a case like NMSU, play it at a level you *can* afford.

 

To be fair, by that logic, only football and basketball at a fraction of the universities should be allowed to continue.  No other sport pays for itself.  Is that what you want?

 

No, seriously, what is your stance here?  I want to argue, but I don't want to put words in your mouth here.

[unclevlad]

It isn't that football doesn't pay for itself;  it's that it costs far more than any other sport.  So it's not so much that they lose money, it's how much.  

 

Plus, I'm principally arguing against this:

 

Quote

Which is just another example of the awful governance of the NCAA.  We shouldn't need such ridiculous workarounds to support the smaller schools.

 

If they can't hack it?  Let them fold.  I'll grant the NCAA is incompetent, but this isn't in their mandate.  

 

Switched over to the Iowa-Iowa State game just now.  Those Iowa State jerseys are pretty bad.  The jerseys are just sterile to me.  The helmets...really, the best you can do is that?  

[Pariah]

Florida State just lost to Jacksonville State on the final play of the game.

 

Inconceivable.

[Iuz the Evil]

Some devastating burns today in college football social media

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/fansided.com/2021/09/11/arkansas-twitter-buried-texas-sec-welcome/amp/

 

[Pariah]

BYU 26, Utah 17

 

My daughter is eleven and my son is seven. This is the first time in either of their lives that BYU has beaten Utah.

[unclevlad]

Wow.  Clay Helton gets the boot after losing at home in week 2.  AD Mike Bohn made this comment:

 

Quote

"As I committed to upon my arrival at USC, during the past two off-seasons we provided every resource necessary for our football program to compete for championships," Bohn said in a statement announcing the dismissal. "The added resources carried significantly increased expectations for our team's performance, and it is already evident that, despite the enhancements, those expectations would not be met without a change in leadership."

 

SO soon???  Wow.

Anyone who follows things out there...was there rumbling of this going into the season?  Cuz it's a big surprise to me.

 

Mind, if a Florida State coach got canned for the BONEHEAD defense they were in, to throw that game away, I'd understand it.  I'm sure it rings a bell with Pariah...Ravens and Broncos, and a certain Mile High Miracle.........

 

 

[Pariah]

That Ravens receiver who ended up being on Dancing with the Stars? Yes, that sounds vaguely familiar.

 

The crazy thing is that Clay Helton is already the second FBS coach to be fired this season. Sure, UConn called Randy Edsall's departure a 'Retirement'. Whatever. Walks like a duck, quacks like a duck. Kind of makes me wonder how much slack that coach at Colorado State really has.

 

So, who is the next head coach at U$C? I can't imagine that this turn of events has really enamored the university to a lot of high-profile candidates. Sure, it's a top level gig, but when you consider that Helton got unceremoniously axed not that long after Lane Kiffin was fired on the tarmac, who wants to work for bosses like that?

[unclevlad]

Edsall's record was horrible.  In his 3 years (17-19) this time around, he was 6-30.  Now maybe he would've lasted longer...but when he comes out and says "this is my last year," well, what reason is there to stick with him?  

 

You might be right that they have someone in mind, but it's a horrible time to try.  Who are you gonna get right now?  Also:  Kiffin got canned by Pat Haden, who's gone...and who, IIRC, was pretty roundly criticized for how he handled it.

 

IS USC still a top-tier job?  Or is it another one where the light shining on it is mostly reflected glory from decades ago?  And, to be sure:  Pete Carroll's time.  But since he left, they haven't been the same at all.  Flip side, of course...all programs have down periods.  The overall serious weakness of the conference doesn't help.  Lack of major TV exposure...West Coast so bad time slots, a terrible conference network...and practically NO representation in the playoffs by any team in the conference make it look like, at best, a 2nd-rate conference.  That's a hard sell.

[Cancer]

I have the impression that all the Pac-n schools' athletic director offices junked a lot of tradition grubbing for every television nickel they could get starting in the 1990s.  It got to the point that Husky ticket holders here in Seattle didn't know the time of day of their games until a couple of weeks before each game, and you lose a lot of your base that way when you have a late-start game.  And that grubbing for TV money actually devalued the money that came in, over the long haul.

 

A case can be made that Steve Sarkisian ruined both Washington's and USC's programs in the four and two years respectively that was he head coach at each school in the 2000s.  In that context his hiring at Texas makes me hear Palpatine's voice saying "We will watch your career with great interest."

[unclevlad]

Helton's first full season after Sarkisian, they did go 10-3 and finished top 5.  

 

Might make a better case to point the finger higher up.  Haden canned Kiffin in an extremely public and embarrassing manner.  Then there was the confusion...Orgeron took over and went 7-2, only to NOT get the permanent job he likely deserved at the time.  And letting Sark have it?  What had Sark done at Washington?  

I also don't see how Sark "ruined" the Huskies, given that he started with a team that'd gone 0-12 the year before, and 5-13 in conference the 2 years before that.  Granted, he couldn't get past mediocre...but that made USC's choice to hire him that much more questionable.  Now...unless you mean the point about USC hiring Sark *during* the season.  Yeah, that's bush league, but got to put that on USC and Haden as much as you put it on Sark.  And while I hate it...poaching coaches between the end of the regular season and their bowl game is very, very common.

 

(It may be that my attitude here was mildly influenced by the 1978 Colorado Buffs, who hired Chuck Fairbanks away from the NE Patriots *mid season*.  Then the team utterly imploded, going 7-26.  It was not a good period....)

[Pariah]

The current state of USC football in a single image:

 

[L. Marcus]

Ow.