SnoTap College Football Try Week 3

If you are wondering where the Alabama-Texas A&M and Arizona State-Wisconsin stuff, it is coming later today. I actually wanted to watch the games in full as I saw bits and pieces of both on Saturday as I was at a wedding. The Bama-TAMU will be coming soon with UW-ASU later in the day. While we wait, let's talk about the rest of college football.

Bad Day for B1G - Just when you think the Big Ten is turning the corner, they have an awful weekend making everyone reconsider how good the league really is this season. Sure, Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan State and Northwestern beat up on inferior opponents, but it gets pretty ugly after that. Nebraska held a 16-point lead only to get blown out by 20 with 38 unanswered points by UCLA.  Purdue could not complete the upset of Notre Dame as the Irish put up 21 points in the fourth quarter.  Michigan nearly lost to Akron at home. Penn State suffers a home loss to Central Florida. Ohio State got a nice road win and Iowa took care of their rival, Iowa State, but overall, it was a putrid day for the B1G.

No Ole Miss love - Everyone is paying attention to Texas, and yes we will address them too, yet no one is giving Mississippi any credit. The Rebels have went to Vanderbilt and Texas and won both road games. That's truly impressive and the rest of the country should be noticing the Rebs. They play at Alabama in two weeks. I am not saying they could beat the Tide, but do not be surprised if Ole Miss gives them a game. With the way Alabama's secondary played last week plus Ole Miss's wealth of receivers, it could make for a classic. I really think this is a good team who will win at least eight games this season even with their brutal schedule.

Jameis Winston's special encore - Some mid-majors are straight up cupcakes, others are above average mid-majors and can make for a good football game. Nevada would be put in the latter category, but they did not look at way facing Jameis Winston and Florida State on Saturday. This game featured a more efficient Winston with only 15 completions but he still had two more passing touchdowns. For the season, Winston only has five incompletions... Wow.

Anyone noticing the Ducks? - No big deal, but the Ducks put up nearly 60 again for the second straight week. They did it this week against an SEC opponent with Marcus Mariotta throwing over 450 yards. People including me wondered if they would skip a beat with Chip Kelly leaving, and the answer is no, they are the same Oregon team dominating everyone in sight. They start Pac-12 competition in two weeks against California. They just need to avoid the hiccup that seems to happen to Oregon every year.

Texas is a mess-as (Oh that's horrible) -  The Longhorns were beat by 20+ and they gave up 40+ points for the second straight games. They lost at home to Ole Miss, a good but not great SEC team and one, Las Vegas expected them to beat.  The next three games are huge for the Horns as they play Kansas State at home under the lights on national television then a tough road Thursday night game in Ames and then they play Oklahoma. If Texas loses two of three, I doubt Mack Brown still has a job. I realize it would be odd for him to resign mid-season, but I have to think Horns fans would come with pitchforks if that happened.

Underwhelming Louisville performance - This is a weird game where it will probably hurt Louisville in the long run they did not pound Kentucky on Saturday afternoon. They won by 14 points but Teddy Bridgewater looked fairly normal plus the team did not play as well as probably Louisville fans would have hoped given their schedule is weaker than most in the top ten.  The only real way this could end up working out for Louisville is if Kentucky ends up winning a couple meaningful SEC games this year.

Charlie.

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SnoTap CFB Picks Week 3: Tale of Two Scandals

This week in college football has not been about Texas A&M and Alabama truthfully. People were talking about it and sure, ESPN was at Kyle Field all week, Drake might be showing up tonight at Midnight Yell, it's a big game yet still not the top story. Sports Illustrated's Oklahoma State 'scandal' story and Yahoo! report on agents and SEC players dominated the headlines. Both of these stories are interesting, but not really eye-opening however Yahoo! showed how to cover a story such as this one.

While the layout of Yahoo! is tough to read, they source out all sorts of documents ranging from emails, text messages to Western Union transcripts providing the proof.  In recent investigating sports reporting, people beg for more information and finally a group of writers and editors nailed it. As for Oklahoma State, there are no documents, no emails, no real concrete evidence and they have came out with four parts with one still to go next week  But things seem to be falling in on Sports Illustrated.  

It all starts actually with ESPN. Brent McMurphy is one of the best college football reporters and he happens to be an Oklahoma State alum. McMurphy dug up all sorts of information proving Faith Carter, arguably SI's best sources, may have fabricated some of the things he said to Thayer Evans, the reporter of the SI story. Why is it important to mention McMurphy being an Oklahoma State alum?  Because he probably has much better sources there compared to other reporters in the sports media world. Even though they are a fan blog, Pistols Firing has done a great job with this all week and this outlines why everything could get real ugly, real quick. I feel like the criticism has gotten larger seeing what Yahoo! has done with all the different sources, documents, etc. Let's actually talk football now.

Grab Beers & Bros
1. Alabama at 6. Texas A&M 2:30 pm CBS - Oh baby. I cannot remember a September conference game with this much hype. It is weird the concerns I have for both Bama and A&M blend together pretty nicely.  The Crimson Tide's offensive line is still completely fresh. They did not look good at all against Virginia Tech and I cannot get out of my head they only had 14 offensive points against the Hokies. Now for the Aggies, they cannot play defense. They gave up 25-plus points to both Rice and Sam Houston State, and now we are talking about Alabama.  The Bama offense could look like revelation this week, but it could be a smoke and mirrors situation.

But is their a chance for a shootout?  I say yes because I believe Johnny Manziel is a better player than he was last season. He threw for 400 yards last week. I do not care if it is against a FBS team, that for Manziel is impressive and I truly believe Kevin Sumlin will have a new scheme for him to combat Nick Saban getting ready for them. My heart wants to take the Aggies, but my head tells me to never bet against Alabama and Saban in a revenge game. Alabama in a squeaker and classic we all talking about Monday. BAMA 38-34

16. UCLA at 23. Nebraska 11:00 am ABC - I am so puzzled by this game. Everything tells me take UCLA to win this one. They have a great offense and the Cornhuskers have not figured out the recipe for Tom Osborne's special defense. I keep coming back to the intangibles like this is an 11 am start time for the West Coast kids meaning they are usually getting up to get ready for their game in Los Angeles. Additionally, Lincoln is a tough place to play for any team and they will want revenge from last year's drubbing by the Bruins. I really really hate myself for doing this but I am taking Nebraska. Goddammit.  NEB 30-27

20. Wisconsin at Arizona State 9:30 pm ESPN - See my preview from earlier today on the game. I think this one should be a special one.

25. Ole Miss at Texas 7:00 pm Longhorn Network - I feature this game in our top section because Texas might be the most-watched team this weekend even if the game is on LHN. The reason is to see how Greg Robinson will run this defense.  I feel like this was the worst time to fire Manny Diaz. Texas has Ole Miss coming in with Bo Wallace, Laquon Treadwell, Donte Moncrief and Jeff Scott, all talented offensive players in their own right.  Sure, Diaz's defense looked as bad as spoiled milk on a hot day, but bringing in a new defensive coordinator to face a high-powered SEC offense does not sound like a great idea. I like the Rebels on the road. It will be shootout with a ton of points, but I really like this Ole Miss team. OLE MISS 41-35

3.) Ohio State at California 6:00 pm FOX - Oh boy. When I saw this on the schedule, I thought the Buckeyes might be in for a challenge and I still think they will have their hands full. Berkeley should be at full tilt and Northwestern struggled with the 'Bear Raid' even if the Wildcats won the football game. Now, Ohio State has better athletes than Northwestern, but this is still an offense that is not used in the B1G. Braxton Miller is day-to-day and might not play in this one. That would be a concern, but the Buckeyes have Kenny Guiton, a guy I think could be the next Matt Cassel in terms of not playing much in college, but be a pro quarterback. Jared Goff is a freshman quarterback, and I cannot see him putting the Bears over the top against Ohio State.  Buckeyes by a field goal.  OSU 31-28

Channel Flip Worthy
Vanderbilt at 13. South Carolina 6:00 pm ESPN - South Carolina heads back to Columbia after losing their first one in Athens while Vandy tries not to go 0-2 to begin the SEC season.  The Dores bounced back last week by munching on a cupcake known as Austin Peay. If Vanderbilt wants to win this game, they need to control the ball and let Jordan Matthews work as much as he can. But I cannot trust an inexperienced quarterback to come into Columbia and win the game. I like the Cocks in a close game. SCAR 23-17

21. Notre Dame at Purdue 7:00 pm ABC - The Irish are trying to get back to the drawing board after losing to Michigan. Purdue does not get many night games given their current football culture, and they will be fired up for this one. Although Purdue needs to find a way to get some points and that is going to be hard on this Notre Dame defense. For reference, the Boilermakers only beat Indiana State by six points on Saturday scoring 20 points while their rival Indiana put 70 on the Sycamores the prior week. That's not good especially playing a team like the Irish. I feel Notre Dame comes up big in this one. ND 31-6

Tennessee at 2. Oregon 2:30 pm ABC - I do not know if enough was made of the Ducks heading to Charlottesville and beating the complete shit out of Virginia. They now have Tennessee who has won their first two games of the year. They are without Maurice Couch after the Yahoo! allegations, but the Vols have ran the ball well with Rajion Neal and Marlin Lane. Oregon picked up where Chip Kelly left them. Marcus Mariotta is off to a great start and once again, not many are talking about him. De'Anthony Thomas is becoming more a threat in the rushing game and their defense is doing fine yet unproven. I think the Vols could hang with this team for a half, but that's about it.  Mariotta and Thomas are too much. ORE 42-16

Nevada at 10. Florida State 2:30 pm ESPN - Best part of this game?  No, not Jameis Winston. It is Brock Hekking who has a GLORIOUS mullet. Like this is what we mean when we are talking about a mullet. This needs to be worn by at least one defensive lineman or linebacker with every FCS team. A mullet can only take you so far, the Noles and Winston will roll. FSU 39-21

Upset Special
Oregon State at Utah 9:00 pm FOX Sports 1 - This is something new from last year. I am going to just pick a Top 25 upset for the hell of it. If I believe no Top 25 team will lose in what I would deem an upset, I will find another game that smells like an upset.  I present you with this one. Utah is off to a good start with two wins, but one of those is against Weber State. I realize Oregon State lost to Eastern Washington but they were preseason ranked with a ton of talent. They are also very good as road underdogs in the past couple of years. Give me the Beavers on the road. OSU 34-29

A palate cleanser for your Netlix binge watch 
7. Louisville at Kentucky 11:00 am ESPN - This is a basketball rivalry, but people are both schools want this to be a football rivalry as well.  It might become a bigger rivalry in a couple years when Kentucky starts assembling the four-star talent they have been getting in recruiting recently. But right now, Louisville is clearly the better team. Look for another big Teddy Bridgewater game. LOU 45-17

Tulsa at 14. Oklahoma 11:00 am ESPN2 - I am not sold on the Sooners yet. They put up 16 points on an inept West Virginia defense and Blake Bell is back in the saddle at quarterback, a man who does not throw the football much at all. For this career, he has thrown 26 passes in two years and some change. Oklahoma needs to be more run-orientated with Bell behind center. I will take Oklahoma in one that looks like a blowout but it is not. OK 27-10

19. Washington at Illinois  (Played at Soldier Field) 5:00 pm Big Ten Network - Somehow Illinois is 2-0, they win another game, they are three away from being bowl eligible. Washington had a week off against being Boise so they have had a week to prepare for the Fightin' Illini. I feel like Illinois comes down to earth this week; Bishop Sankey has a big game. WASH 34-21

5. Stanford at Army 11:00 am CBS Sports Network - Could this be an upset in the making? Probably not, but it is still commendable to see Stanford head to West Point for a game. My assumption is they are doing it for recruiting purposes.  I will take the Goofy Tree

Sleep off your hangover
Kent State at 8. LSU 6:00 pm ESPNU - LSU 52-14
Akron at 11. Michigan 11:00 am Big Ten Network - MICH 49-6
Lamar at 12. Oklahoma State 6:30 pm No TV - OK State 63-10
Western Michigan at 17. Northwestern 8:00 pm Big Ten Network - NW 55-7

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SnoTap's College Football Try Week 2

I feel like Eminem's blank stare reflects the second week of college football. There is still so much sorting out to do. Some teams have really played no one to start the year off while others are playing tough opponents for the first two weeks leading to wild overreactions about them.  Things that are said today could be entirely different in November. That's the beauty of non-conference college football.  The exciting unknown of what is to come with a great year.

The Michigan difference - Honestly, I probably did not give this rivalry the credit it deserved on Friday morning. When the game was starting, I started to get genuinely excited about the game itself. I would say that makes a rivalry great when a person like me without a horse in the race starts actually caring about the game.  Michigan played great on Saturday night and basically showed why they should be taken seriously when it comes to be a National Championship contender (Yes their November schedule appears difficult as of September 9th).  Michigan looked strong on both sides of the football. They had an inexperience interior offensive line hold their own against the likes of Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt. Michigan already has great offensive tackles and if their guards and centers play like they did on Saturday, number 98 is not getting very dirty.  If Devon Gardner does not have a boneheaded interception, Notre Dame gets blown out.

USC hits rock bottom - Oh man. Two friends and I went out right when Washington State-USC went to halftime. Cody Kessler threw an pick-six interception to Damante Horton right at the end of the first half for the Cougars to tie the game. I did not expect when I looked up at the ESPN Bottom Line at 1 am to see Washington State beat the Trojans. I could not believe it. This is a new low for Lane Kiffin and the Trojans. They are in complete flux. Losing to Washington State in Pullman is one thing. Maybe it is brutal weather conditions which has cost USC a game in the Pacific Northwest before, but losing at home to an inferior opponent is an embarrassment.  In case anyone was wondering, I picked them to win the Pac-12 South, joyous!  

Texas joins USC at rock bottom - Ah Texas. How the mighty have fallen. The Longhorns were in the National Championship in 2005 and then again in 2009, but since then, it has been nothing but bad news bears for the Horns. They thought Johnny Manziel would be a safety, same for Robert Griffin III and Jameis Winston never received an offer from them making them sort of a laughingstock among the college football bloggers when it comes to highly touted quarterback recruits. They also have not played well in the last four years and the cherry of the shit sundae was Saturday night losing to BYU, 40-21, with Texas giving up 550 yards on the ground. They fired Manny Diaz, their defensive coordinator, and brought back Greg Robinson, the same Greg Robinson that is known for running Michigan's defense into the ground. They play Ole Miss at home this weekend. Not an easy task whatsoever for the Longhorns.

Aaron Murray makes a statement - It appears the Georgia quarterback is my new 'Can't quit em' guy in college football. I started selling my stock on Murray last weekend when they lost to Clemson and Murray looked less than stellar. I am repurchasing the stock today because Murray was extremely impressive against a good South Carolina team. He had six out of seven completions on third down, Murray did not have his top receiver in Malcolm Mitchell and his team put up 41 points on a good South Carolina defense. The next test comes against LSU in two weeks once again being played at home.  Murray has another attempt to silence the doubters. When it's all said and done this year, I would not be surprised if Murray gets picked in the first round in the 2014 NFL Draft.  

The rebirth of The U - Liked this team in August, and I feel even better about them after their win against Florida. Miami's defense is their weak point of their team and they forced five turnovers with Florida only scoring 16 points with one of Florida's scoring drive beginning in the red zone after a blocked punt. Miami might be the real deal here, and the ACC might be better than people are giving it credit for at least to start the season. I like what they have in Duke Johnson and Stephen Morris, and if that defense comes around, oh boy, we could have something here. They have Savannah State and South Florida before a big one at home against Georgia Tech on October 5th.

What's the true ceiling of Notre Dame? - I would love an answer to this one because I truly have no idea. They beat a weak Temple team and last week gave up 40 points to a B1G power. There are a few out there, but I feel like Notre Dame is the most unknown team in terms of what they will end up being at the end of the year. Right now, I feel like the Fighting Irish could still be a BCS Bowl team but could also be at the Sun Bowl.  They have a road game against a weak Purdue team this week (It is under the lights and a rivalry game so you never know) and then have a big home affair with Oklahoma the following weekend. I do not think we will have a good read on the Irish until after Arizona State or USC in October.  

Just how legit is Baylor? - Might want to start buying stock in Baylor. The Big 12 has looked awful across the board with Texas losing, Oklahoma not really impressing anyone, Iowa State and Kansas State losing to FCS schools and TCU losing Casey Pachall for eight weeks with a fractured arm. The only team who looks like they could be some gang busters this year are Baylor.  They put up 70 points and 781 yards against Buffalo, a team who stayed with Ohio State for the three quarters last week. Bryce Petty looks like another one in the Art Briles quarterback machine and Lache Seastrunk is living up to expectations. First true test for Baylor might not come until October 12th against Kansas State.



RAPPERS ON EVERY SATURDAY NIGHT - Eminem joined Brent Musburger and Kirk Herbstreit in the booth this week. It was awesome. From Em's blank stare to Musburger asking him about the line for the Lions game on Sunday.  They are in Indiana next week so I see no reason why we could not have Freddie Gibbs in the booth. I also love Brent called him Marshall and Mathers throughout the whole thing, that's such a boss power move that only Musburger could do, he's my favorite.

Charlie.  

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SnoTap College Football Preview: Big 12

Talking college football again here on Sports News on Tap with previews of all the big dogs and some fun stuff thrown in there as well. Naturally, the picks and posts will be coming during and after Week 1.  

Big 12 does not get enough credit for how many good teams they have in their conference.  A lot of that happens because the Big 12 does not play defense. Honestly, there are people in this world whom take umbrage with this conference because they play games like 51-48. I have no idea why people cannot just enjoy the differences of the conferences honestly.  Big 12 is entirely different than the SEC and different than the B1G as well. If you accept that, college football becomes much more enjoyable.   

FIVE PLAYERS TO WATCH
RB Lache Seastrunk (Baylor) - One of the players I keep talking about for the 2013 season. I truly believe he is a Heisman contender that everyone is forgetting about. Baylor also could be a better team than people expected and Seastrunk can take a run to the house at any point of the game.  He finished the year with 185, 136, 178 and 138 and in those games, his lowest yards per carry was 7.2.  Seastrunk will be one of the more electrifying players in all of college football.

RB Jonathan Gray (Texas) - He had a strong freshman campaign going for 700 yards and a couple touchdowns. Gray is a highly touted prospect and could be heading for a breakout year for the Longhorns. Gray and Malcolm Brown will create one of the better one-two punches in all of college football in the backfield. If Texas wants to head back to a BCS Bowl, one of the big reasons will be Gray getting big gains on the ground.

QB Casey Pachell (TCU) - After battling drinking troubles last season, Pachell is back on the team with TCU.  It is not a given he will win the starting spot as Trevone Boykin had a great year filling in. They have not named a starter yet for LSU on Saturday.  Pachell is a pretty competent passer and found ways to win games. The latter part of that sentence is cliche as it it gets, but he pulled a couple games straight out of his ass.

WR Josh Stewart (Oklahoma State) - With Mike Gundy's system, you just expect good receivers will come out of it. From Justin Blackmon to Joesph Randle, the next big one could be Josh Stewart. He had 101 catches last season with over 1,200 yards and seven touchdowns. Stewart came on strong last year in his sophomore year with his last four of six games going over 100 yards in receiving and in three of those games, caught over 10 balls.

RB John Hubert (Kansas State) -  Everyone talked about Collin Klein last year with the Wildcats success but people forgot about Hubert. The reason is he seems to have a second-half decline on his season. Hubert had 527 yards after the first six weeks of the season, but he only finished with 947 yards for the season. Hopefully in his third year, he will come through with a widespread big year.  

FIVE GAMES TO WATCH
Thursday October 3rd - Texas at Iowa State - Oh baby. Iowa State is known for their upsets at home just like their basketball team and they have the Longhorns on Thursday night in what should be a great Jack Tice crowd.  This will be a great game and a possible upset in the making.

Saturday October 5th - TCU at Oklahoma - Just looking at the schedule, the Horned Frogs could be licking their chops with this game. The Sooners will be coming off a road game to Notre Dame the Saturday prior and I will tell you in a second, I am buying a lot of stock in TCU and selling a lot in Oklahoma so I see this one as the game where TCU makes their Big 12 presence felt.

Saturday October 12th- Baylor at Kansas State - The Bears head to the Little Apple for a nice fall showdown. It pairs two of the best running backs in the Big 12 going up against each other in Seastrunk and Hubert.  I doubt this will be a high scoring game, but you never know with the Big 12.

Saturday November 16th - Oklahoma State at Texas -  For my money, this decides the Big 12 championship. Oklahoma State should be more well developed as a team and Texas will be also rounding into form. I am happy these two teams are playing in mid-November honestly. I feel like it will be a much better and bigger game.  

Saturday December 7th - Oklahoma at Oklahoma State - Bedlam is always exciting.  The Sooners and Pokes played an absolute classic last season heading to overtime in a high-scoring game.  Oklahoma has won the last nine of ten, but it seems like the Cowboys should have the upper hand this year.

FIVE QUESTIONS TO PONDER
Finally, the year Texas bounces back? - Yes. 100 percent yes. I am buying the Longhorns this year. David Ash is a good quarterback and they have two strong running backs. Also I would not forget about Tyrone Swoops, the talented freshman quarterback.  If Texas does not come back this year, they will not for awhile.

Down year in Norman? - Yes. 100 percent yes. I have no idea why people are so high on Oklahoma. They only bring back four players on their defense, a defense that was awful last season plus they have a redshirt freshman starting at quarterback. Trevor Knight is a fine player, but he will definitely have some hard knocks throughout the year. Also a Notre Dame, TCU, Texas stretch in the early part of the season is just brutal.

Oklahoma State quarterback uncertainty hurt their chances? - No because as Mike Gundy seems to have a bigger cupcake schedule every year more so than Bret Bielema.  They do not play a tough time until Kansas State on October 5th. Clint Chelf and J.W. Welsh are both competent quarterbacks and they should be able to figure out whose the boss by October or at least I hope so.

Forgetting about Kansas State once again? - Yes. We talked about it on our college football podcast, but every year, the Wildcats find a way to be a pretty good team with Bill Snyder. So I will go Icona Pop and say I don't care they only bring back 10 starters with only two on defense. The Wildcats will be fine and beat teams they are not supposed to like every year since Snyder has been coaching.

Could finally a team with a good defense make waves in the Big 12? - Another question where I will say yes. Watch out for the Horned Frogs of TCU this year. They have nine returning starters on defense and Gary Patterson has had some special defenses in the past, no question this could be another version. It is not out of the realm of possibility that the Horned Frogs could beat LSU in the first game of the season in Dallas and if they do that, endless chances for TCU this year. Their October featuring road games against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State and a home game against Texas is their biggest challenge.

PROJECTED FINISH
1.) Texas
2.) Oklahoma State
3.) TCU
4.) Kansas State
5.) Baylor
6.) Oklahoma
7.) Texas Tech
8.) Iowa State
9.) West Virginia
10.) Kansas

I feel like this is the one conference where I could look like a complete dunce by the end of the year or a genius. No real in-between.

Charlie.  

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