CFB 2010 Week 3 Rewind

Sep 20, 2010

When you looked at the schedule for Week 3, it appeared the quality of the matchups left a lot to be desired. After all, there was only one game featuring two Top 25 teams (#9 Iowa at #24 Arizona), and most of the other contests were scoffed at for their odd geographic and/or cross-conference characteristics.

And if you glanced at the scores from the weekend, it would appear the strange schedule did in fact produce some cruddy games. Nine of the Top 25 teams scored at least 40 points (including a trio that dropped 60+), 16 clubs won by at least 10 points, and the top five teams mauled their “competition” by a combined score of 270-36.

But if you looked a little closer (or stayed up till 2:30ET like me), you would have found enough exciting, entertaining and downright thrilling games to keep even the most cynical fan satisfied; in fact seven Top 25 games were decided by a touchdown or less, including a one point nail-biter and an overtime heartbreaker.

And that’s not even counting the unbelievable finish between unranked Michigan State and Notre Dame.

Mixed in with the early blowouts (Bama hung 62 on Duke, Oregon crushed Portland State, 69-0) were a couple of last-second thrillers, including Arkansas holding off a late charge by Georgia to win 31-24 and Wisconsin blocking a PAT in overtime to hang on for a 20-19 victory over Arizona State.

But things really got rolling when the nighttime tilts kicked into gear, and the intensity level was off the charts for the Clemson/ #16 Auburn clash.

Unranked and rebuilding Clemson jumped out to a 17-3 half time lead, leaving the rabid fans at Jordan-Hare Stadium stunned. But after Clemson QB Kyle Parker was nailed with a helmet to the back early in the third, things went downhill from there.

Auburn stormed back with three touchdowns in the third quarter, and after Clemson tied it at 24 early in the 4^th, this hard-hitting war of attrition (multiple players were carted off the field) headed to overtime; that’s when things really went wrong for Clemson. Auburn kicked a 39-yard field goal to go up by three, and Clemson appeared to tie it at 27 with a 27-yard field goal of their own. But a bizarre false snap call meant they had to re-kick, and Chandler Catanzaro’s 32-yard attempt sailed wide left to saddle Clemson with a gut-wrenching loss.

Minutes after that thriller concluded, Michigan State and Notre Dame produced what will probably go down as the best ending of the season.

The game began slowly, as the Irish and Spartans entered the locker room at halftime knotted at seven. But right from the start of the second half, things got wild & wooly – fast.

The teams traded two touchdowns apiece in the third, two at the beginning of the quarter and another pair near the end. Another touchdown exchange in the fourth quarter left the contest tied at 28 with seven minutes to play, but from there the offenses sputtered, and the teams headed to overtime.

In the extra session, Brian Kelly’s Golden Domers got the ball first and had to settle for a 33-yard field goal. Needing a trifecta to match or TD to win, the Spartans instead got two negative-yardage plays and wound up facing a 46-yarder to tie. As kicker Dan Conroy lined up for the attempt, you got a sneaking feeling something could be up. But no one guessed coach MSU Mike Dantonio would have the stones to call the play he did.

With the play clock running down, the ball was snapped to holder Aaron Bates, who calmly rose up and lofted a beautiful touch pass over the Irish line and into the awaiting arms of tight end Charlie Gantt, who strolled into the end zone with the improbable game-winning touchdown as a stunned Kelly could only stare and muster a “you got me” grin from the sideline.

Only later, after telling reporters they planned the play, nicknamed “Little Giants”, all week, did we learn that Dantonio had suffered a heart attack and had to have emergency surgery to place a stent in an artery to help with blockage. Doctors believe the euphoria surrounding the win probably triggered the episode, which will sideline the coach for a few weeks.

Now I’m no football historian, but I have watched a lot of games in my day and this is the first time I’ve ever heard of the outcome of a contest directly leading to a significant health problem for a coach.

Talk about your heart-stopping wins.

Quick Hits:

-Michigan got another big game from Denard Robinson (345 tot. yds, 3 TDs), but still had to hold on for a five point win, 42-37, against mighty FCS foe UMass. That doesn’t bode well for their upcoming Big 10 action

-#8 Nebraska ended any hopes Jake Locker (4-20, 71 yds, 1TD, 2INTs) had of winning postseason awards as the Huskers crushed Washington, 56-21. QB Taylor Martinez continued his Heisman march, racking up 287 total yards and 4 TDs

-The Texas/Texas Tech rematch was an interminable borefest. The #6 Longhorns jumped out to a 14-0 lead, the Red Raiders tied it up in the second quarter, and then Texas cruised to an uninspired 24-14 win. Yawn.

-#24 Arizona climbed back to national prominence with an impressive 34-27 win over #9 Iowa. The Wildcats blitzed the Hawkeyes with three quick TDs courtesy of a blocked punt, interception return and 100-yard kick return, then after Iowa stormed back to tie the game at 27 in the 4th, QB Nick Foles led the Cats to the winning touchdown in Zona’s biggest non-conference win of the millennium

-Cal’s top-ranked defense got a dose of reality as Nevada destroyed the Bears, 52-31 Friday night. The Wolf Pack racked up 497 yards of offense, and QB Colin Kaepernick accounted for 329 yards and 5 TDs himself, making the late season showdown with Boise State all the more interesting

-speaking of the Broncos, they had no trouble getting back on track after a 12-day layoff following their Labor Day win over Va. Tech. #3 Boise scored 34 points in the first half en route to a ho-hum 51-6 victory over overmatched Wyoming

-how bad is Cincinnati’s offensive line? In each of its two losses Cincy has endured a series where the line allowed three sacks on one drive. QB Zack Collaros has already been sacked 15 times; at this rate he’ll be incapacitated by the end of the season. Up next for the Bearcats: Oklahoma. Gulp.

-welcome back, Mark Ingram. The Heisman winner shrugged off the arthroscopic knee surgery that sidelined him for the first two games, rushing for over 100 yards in the first quarter of the blowout of Duke. He ended with 151 yards and 2 TDs on just 9 carries. Could he win the award again despite not playing a full schedule? I wouldn’t put it past him

-Houston has a problem. Not only did the Cougars get taken to the woodshed, 31-13, by previously winless UCLA, they lost both their star quarterback (Case Keenum) and their top backup QB (Cotton Turner) for the year with season ending injuries (ACL and broken collar bone, respectively). Looks like that improved rushing attack will now have to carry the Cougar offense for the rest of 2010

So as you see it was a very entertaining week, which goes to show you college football is more than marquee matchups and so-called glamour games. On any given week in any given college town, an exciting thriller can emerge from the least-expected places.

Just be sure to keep a defibrillator handy.