2005 College Bowl Games

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Naaaaaaaaaaaaavin... :D

 

You called?

 

Good game. :)

 

EDIT: I have never been more impressed with UCLA's offensive line. They were just doing what they wanted with NU's DL like USC did to our DL earlier this month.

Edited December 31, 2005 by CaliforniaRaisin

[stitchface]

there is really no argument about it to me, there needs to be a playoff. all these irrelevant bowl games are further proof. I think big ten teams have historically been tailored to play in cold windy conditions. playing speedy southern teams in warm climates has not served them well recently. basketball-wise, the big ten has done pretty well in the tournaments, why do you say they are overrated? Top-heavy perhaps.

 

everyone said the Big 10 was bad in basketball last year, yet they had 3 teams in the Elite 8. I will agree with you guys about football though, the Big 10 is definitely not as good as conferences such as the SEC, ACC, Big 12, and maybe even the Pac 10.

 

the ACC? Did you not just watch this game? Who is good in the ACC? To me, the Big 12 looks to be pretty dominant. Everyone else looks about the same. I don't see any convincing argument that the SEC, ACC or Pac 10 (definitely not) is stronger than the Big 10.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

That was a stupid pass from Brady Leaf last night against Oklahoma, I was hoping Belotti would have gone conservative and gone for the tie because I just don't trust Leaf. They were driving because of swing and screen passes, not Leaf's throws downfield.

 

Oregon would have blown away Oklahoma if Clemens was healthy. Oh well, if USC wins, the Pac-10 goes 4-1.

[Butterscup1679666578]

i think that brings the totals to

 

Big 12: 4-1

Pac 10: 3-1

ACC: 3-2

SEC: 1-1

Big 10: 0-3

 

 

Go ISU, TT, and UT! I want that trophy for best bowl win-% goin to the Big XII!

[cubweiser03]

Conference comparison bowl arguement

So when a #3 team from a conference beats the #6 from another in a close game we dont take that into consideration?

Example: UCLA vs Northwestern.

Minn the worst team in the big ten to make a bowl loses to the worst team in the ACC to make a bowl on a last minute FG, and UM blows an 11 point lead and loses to NU and the Big Ten is suddenly overated? In 2 of the games the Big Ten lost they were not anywhere near being dominated. A few plays here or there and they are 2-1. But the record of 0-3 says they are overrated, uh huh.

[CuseCubFan69]

i think that brings the totals to

 

Big 12: 4-1

Pac 10: 3-1

ACC: 3-2

SEC: 1-1

Big 10: 0-3

 

Ummm...Big East is 0-1. :D

[CuseCubFan69]

Way to go Miami!!! Easily the class of the ACC. :lol:

[Jon]

You called?

 

Good game. :)

 

EDIT: I have never been more impressed with UCLA's offensive line. They were just doing what they wanted with NU's DL like USC did to our DL earlier this month.

I said it shouldn't come down to FGs and yet...sigh. Demos better be good. Despite how poorly they played, if he does what he's supposed to do, the 'Cats likely win. 2 missed PATs + one short-range FG blocked when nobody even jumped + one chip-shot FG attempt not made because of how bad Howells was = a sad me. That doesn't even include the opening kickoff out of bounds. Of course, it wasn't just him. Pederson was horrible (punts of what, 18 and 22 yards?), Hamlett botched two kickoff returns, and Philmore went backwards 5 yards on a punt return.

 

Yeah, the defensive line was dominated and the linebackers were pretty bad, but Olson did more harm than good. And Maurice Drew was a non-factor. Even the 299 yards or whatever it was on the ground by Markey and Bell didn't make up for it.

 

The game came down to Northwestern's offense and they were just dominated by the UCLA defense. The key stat of the game was ZERO touchdown drives for Northwestern over 36 yards until just minutes left in the game. Holy crap is that pathetic. Like I said earlier, they never bothered to establish a run game and that was my fear. Basanez throwing 70 times is absolutely ridiculous, especially when the offensive line was letting them beat him up. This is what happened in the Arizona State blowout. They started to fall behind, panicked, and completey gave up on the run game.

 

It all comes down to the coaching, though. UCLA completely out-coached Northwestern, especially if you include the lack of a special teams coach on the team. But they made no adjustments. UCLA knew what to look for in the option and screen pass and stopped it. They knew what to look for in the passing game and stopped it. They brought pressure successfully and still were able to cover up guys downfield. But they didn't try to switch things up. Sure they gave up 416 yards through the air, but on 70 freakin' attempts with just 2 TDs to match 2 picks. And like usual, Northwestern's offense couldn't get it done in the red zone. Abandoning the run game was death, especially considering the performance of the WRs. UCLA had less time to prepare and get healthy. Northwestern hadn't played in over a month and had finals 1-2 weeks before UCLA. And the coaches were able to start preparing for UCLA at least a week before the USC game.

 

There really isn't an excuse for the way the game played out. If they had lost in a shootout, fine. But not that way. That was a worse special teams performance than Huffman vs. TCU last year. And a top-ranked offense should not be shut down like that, nor should they decide not to run the ball against a defense that is ranked at the bottom against the run.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

I just don't know why NU didn't run more - designed Basanez runs and Sutton runs. Especially as they built their Olson-induced first quarter lead. They could have blown away UCLA had they run more in the first half. I was also shocked that a walk-on place kicker who wasn't even on the team against USC outplayed NU's kicker. When UCLA got the ball, down 22-7, I new they were going to win (the same way I knew they would win when they were down 24-10 against Stanford). They had regained their swagger after the first scoring drive and knew the run couldn't be stopped. And when the defense needed to step up and get turnovers, it was the two senior leaders Spencer Havner and Jarrod Page. We're gonna miss them.

 

On a side note, Chris Markey lost his house and some family members to Katrina (he's a Louisiana boy) and had an injury-plagued season. Nice to see him get co-MVP after a tough few months, couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

 

P.S. Watching games at Las Vegas' New York, New York is awesome. You can see the game in HD even when you go to the restroom!

 

Sorry, Jon.

[CaliforniaRaisin]

Please give me input about my impending college football keeper situation in the Fantasy forum - especially if you know Georgia Tech or Ohio State football.

[Jon]

I just don't know why NU didn't run more - designed Basanez runs and Sutton runs. Especially as they built their Olson-induced first quarter lead. They could have blown away UCLA had they run more in the first half. I was also shocked that a walk-on place kicker who wasn't even on the team against USC outplayed NU's kicker. When UCLA got the ball, down 22-7, I new they were going to win (the same way I knew they would win when they were down 24-10 against Stanford). They had regained their swagger after the first scoring drive and knew the run couldn't be stopped. And when the defense needed to step up and get turnovers, it was the two senior leaders Spencer Havner and Jarrod Page. We're gonna miss them.

 

On a side note, Chris Markey lost his house and some family members to Katrina (he's a Louisiana boy) and had an injury-plagued season. Nice to see him get co-MVP after a tough few months, couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

 

P.S. Watching games at Las Vegas' New York, New York is awesome. You can see the game in HD even when you go to the restroom!

 

Sorry, Jon.

Because that's what they do. After Sutton carried the ball 32 and 29 times to open the Big Ten season, Walker didn't want to use him that heavily since he was just 18 (turned 19 a couple of weeks ago). But they did the same thing against ASU in week 3 (15 carries). But in the third Big Ten game, he had just 13 carries.look at his stats this year:

 

9/3 Ohio W 38-14 17 104 6.1 20 2 2 23 11.5

9/10 Northern Illinois W 38-37 30 214 7.1

9/17 @Arizona State L 52-21 15 98 6.5

9/24 Penn State L 34-29 32 112 3.5

10/8 Wisconsin W 51-48 29 244 8.4

10/15 @Purdue W 34-29 13 89 6.8

10/22 @Michigan State W 49-14 21 109 5.2

10/29 Michigan L 33-17 10 50 5.0

11/5 Iowa W 28-27 17 65 3.8

11/12 @Ohio State L 48-7 14 93 6.6

11/19 @Illinois W 38-21 34 212 6.2

Sun Bowl @UCLA L 50-38 18 84 4.7

 

And those limited carries can't just be explained by fumbles. NU's record in those games? 2-4. And that game against Purdue was nearly lost because the offense shut down in the second half and the one against Iowa featured no offense by Northwestern until the final two minutes. I thought the fans who were saying that the offense could be better next year since Basanez will be gone and they'll focus on the run were crazy, but now, I don't know. Not better, but they could be more consistent.

 

Not only could a win have made it just the 9th time that Northwestern has finished in the AP top 25, but with just one bowl victory, it would've been one of the biggest wins in the history of the program. A team has to be better prepared than that in that kind of game. :(

[Outshined_One]

The Liberty Bowl has been a fairly entertaining game so far. Tulsa's QB, Paul Smith, is a scrappy son of a gun who's been getting pounded on a regular basis throughout this game.

 

Also, Tulsa WR/KR Ashlan Davis has looked really good. I'd like to see the Bears draft him at some point to replace Azumah.

[abuck1220]

can anyone else who has watched iowa state football this season explain to me why they don't throw to blythe AT LEAST three times per drive? he catches a TD in the 1st q, and they don't go back to him till late in the 3rd. result? three catches and another TD. as far as i'm concerned, their refusal to throw him the ball more is more frustrating than anything stupid the cubs do. dude's a stud.