CFB Week 12 Rewind: Play Ball! Edition

Nov 22, 2010

Week 12 of the 2010 college football season was a weird and largely uneventful one, especially amidst all the exciting, upset-filled Saturdays we’ve had this season.

Only four ranked teams lost, and that’s because they played other ranked squads. There was only one certified upset, as Texas A&M put a damper on Nebraska’s BCS bowl hopes with a sleepy 9-6 victory. And there were really no compelling, must-see meetings for this late in the season, with either previous losses or poor scheduling combining to take any luster off what should have been an appetizing week.

I guess you can chalk it up to pre-holiday lull, as this coming Thanksgiving weekend extravaganza is chock full of heated rivalries games and titanic contests that could ultimately decide which two teams will play for the BCS national championship. It also didn’t help that the top three teams in the BCS standings had bye weeks.

Side note: how can they allow byes in the middle of the most intense month of the season? The NCCA needs to be more like the NFL and enact a “no byes after Halloween” rule.

As far as the standings go, there was one change in the Top 10. Due to #8 Nebraska’s loss, the Michigan State Spartans jumped to #10, while Ohio State and Oklahoma State moved up a spot with victories over Iowa and Kansas, respectively.

But the biggest story came from a quartet of unranked teams that played their games in reconfigured baseball parks. At hallowed Wrigley Field, Illinois and Northwestern played to a packed house of chilly Chicagoans in a game that featured ground rules reminiscent of backyard pickup ballgames; the teams played with one end zone, as the other one was deemed unsafe for players to run into lest they get a facemask full of historic Wrigley brick.

And Notre Dame and Army played their annual rivalry in the new Yankee Stadium, minus special rules but complete with ugly unis. Hey the Steinbrenner’s have to recoup some of that billion dollars somehow, since selling out the actual baseball games isn’t working.

But let’s not waste any more words on this turd of a week. I’ll do a quick recap/look ahead for the Top 10, and then I’m ready to move on to the Turkey week feast.

Oregon (10-0) the Ducks had a bye week following that tough win against Cal; they will take on 21st ranked Arizona in what should be an entertaining game on Friday night
Auburn (11-0) if anyone needed a week off it was the beleaguered Tigers, although the coverage of the Cam Newton payola saga didn’t get a bye. Fanhouse’s Clay Travis recently declared that it’s not a question of if Newton will eventually be declared ineligible, but merely when. A loss to Alabama in the Iron Bowl Friday would solve a lot of potential problems for the NCAA and the BCS.
TCU (11-0) the Frogs had a bye this week, and get a bye next week, too. Actually they play horrid New Mexico, a game that will only hurt their SOS & BCS standings. Boise already closed the gap between the two non-AQs this week, and they can leapfrog the Horned Frogs next week thanks to their upcoming game against Nevada
Boise St (10-0) the Broncos’ 51-0 shellacking of a decent Fresno State team helped Boise close the gap between them and TCU, and thanks to Friday’s meeting at #19 Nevada, they are poised to jump up in the standings, perhaps into the top two should Auburn lose to Bama
LSU (10-0) what more can you say about miracle man Les Miles? The Mad Hatter won another head scratcher Saturday night, holding off a tough Ole Miss squad thanks to a last minute touchdown and a dropped ball that could have set up a game-winning field goal for the Rebs. Their luck may run out though when the Tigers face a tough Arkansas team on Saturday
Stanford (10-1) The Cardinal blitzkrieged the weary Cal Bears, 48-14, Saturday night, all but ensuring a Rose Bowl appearance depending on where the other teams finish. Stanford will close the season against Oregon State Saturday, but the Beavers will be so focused on beating Oregon in the Civil War the following week, they will be primed for a drubbing in that one
Wisconsin (10-1) the Badgers didn’t put up 80+ points this week, but they did run roughshod over the defenseless Wolverines, 48-28, despite missing leading rusher John Clay again. It didn’t matter, as new bruiser Monte Ball played let’s make a meal of the Michigan ‘D’, racking up 172 yards and four scores on the ground. Win at home against Northwestern this week and Wisky will be BCS bowl bound based on being ranked higher than the other Big 10 contenders
Ohio State (10-1) No matter the Buckeyes earned a hard fought win over Iowa this week. Their loss to Wisconsin earlier this year ensures the Bucks will not be jumping the Badgers in the race for a BCS bowl berth
Oklahoma State (10-1) whitewashing Kansas meant nothing to the Cowboys – they just want to beat the lingering Sooners in the Bedlam game on Saturday night. Honor, pride and state bragging rights are all on the line in this intense rivalry game, not to mention a potential trip to a BCS bowl. Should be a classic backyard brawl
Michigan State (10-1) the Spartans have clawed their way back into the top 10,thanks to a come from behind 35-31 win over Purdue Saturday. But the only way they can win the Big 10 is to beat Penn State this week and have Wisconsin lose to Northwestern, which would be a sweet capper to a magical season for Sparty

QUICK HITS:

-Florida State took a giant step towards making the ACC Championship Game with a gutsy 30-16 win at Maryland Saturday night. Now the Noles need the Terps to help them out by beating NC State this week, which would give FSU the Atlantic Division title and the right to play Va. Tech in Charlotte in two weeks

-his team may be terrible and his Heisman chances a distant memory, but Denard Robinson set a couple of impressive college records in the Wolverines’ loss to Wisconsin; he became the all time leader in rushing yards by a quarterback in a season, as his 121 yard effort gave him 1,538 total on the year, and he is the first player in NCCA history to amass 1,500+ yards rushing and passing in one season. With Newton almost a lock to bolt for the NFL, Shoelace will be an early frontrunner for the award next season

-Utah redeemed itself after a pair of rough losses by coming back to beat San Diego State, 38-34, late Saturday night. The win can only help TCUs strength of schedule, but still leaves fans scratching their heads as to how the Utes could have been ranked as high as #5 this year

-in the conference nobody cares about, Pittsburgh knocked off USF, 17-10, to retain its hold on the Big East title and earn the trip to a BCS game that goes with it. Win out and the Panthers are in, but with the real Backyard Brawl against West Virginia looming Saturday, we know that scenario is not a lock

-and in the two baseball field games, the Fighting Irish knocked off the Black Nights, 27-3, in front of 54,000+ at the Stadium in the Bronx despite wearing their heinous Kelly green uniforms; and Illinois hung on to beat Northwestern, 48-27, behind RB Mikel Leshoure’s Wrigley record 330 yards rushing. No word if the Cubs tried to sign him to replace Alfonso Soriano after the game

Rest up, college fans – we’ve got a football feast coming our way in a few days!