"Steveo's Salvos" - January 2008 Edition

"Salvos" is presented as the editorial content of CollegeFootballFan.com focusing on current issues surrounding college football and news about some of the teams on the CFF schedule this year.  Originally from a newsletter, this web site, CollegeFootballFan.com, has evolved. 

We did it!!! - October 27, 2007.  CollegeFootballFan.com is #1!!!  Aside from any media types, no one can say that they've seen more College Bowl Subdivision teams than we have.  It's impossible.  There are 119 teams and now we've seen 'em all!  Great time with some big Nevada Wolfpack fans for the Grand Finale against Idaho in Reno.  Now we go on to more great football games this season and next!  Western Kentucky becomes #120 in 2009.  We hope to be at their opener, but a certain Guest Game Analyst (GGA) we've had with us over the years will probably start playing Freshman football in HS that season.  We'll have to work around that.

Geaux Tigers, but the system has to geaux, too! -  The LSU Tigers won it all where it counts - on the field.  However, the current system stinks.  There are arguments for other two-loss teams to have played instead of the Tigers, but a number of other teams could also have beaten the Buckeyes, who were not only a surprising number one because 2007 was a rebuilding year for the Bucks, but because overall, the Big Ten was probably the weakest of the BCS conferences this year.  Of all the teams that warranted a shot, the least deserving was Georgia who's probably screaming the loudest.  They didn't even win one of the two divisions within their own conference to even get to the SEC championship.  First things first, Dawgs!  12-1 Kansas is in the same boat.  USC lost to 41-point underdog Stanford at home. Oklahoma had a legitimate gripe.  Missouri should have been in the BCS mix instead of Illinois.  It's gotten to the point where if the Rose Bowl wants to stick to tradition, take them out of the BCS mix. It's too bad because from what we've seen among all the bowls we've attended so far, the "Grandaddy of them all" is by far the best venue.  Pitt screwed it all up for West Virginia who seemed more deserving than Ohio State.  We just wonder if WVU lost to Pitt in the middle of the season rather than at the very end, would they have gotten the nod to go to the BCS.  In the end Georgia and USC were "hot", and WVU was not.  Timing shouldn't be the major factor, consistency over the course of the season should.  The President of the University of Georgia is doing the most complaining and is ready to provide a solution.  Funny, if you listen to him, he must have been reading our website, and this is what he's been reading for the last four years under our Playoff Proposal!

Picks from above - He's still doing it.  Head Coach K.C. Keeler continues to do at Delaware in the Championship Division exactly what he did in D-III when he was at Rowan and pretty successfully, too.  His runner-up blue Hen team losses their starting QB, Joe Flacco, to graduation and probably to the NFL, so what does he do.  He gets the unused second tea QB  from BCS runner-up, Ohio State.  QB Robby Schoenhoft left Columbus for Newark with two years of playing eligibility left.  The 6'-6" QB reports he will be most content with the wing-T offense the Blue Hens play.  Why not?  The graduating Flacco fit right in pretty well after he transferred from Pitt.  We plan to see the Blue Hens play next season, possibly versus Maryland in their opener.

Among the Top 25 greatest - In the end, ESPN named Red Grange as the all-time greatest player in college football history.  We saw three of the top 25 play in person over the years.  We watched Charles Woodson (#11) play offense and defense against Penn State in 1997 in a win on Michigan's way to the national championship.  We saw Bo Jackson (#8) leave games early twice due to injuries - once against Miami on the Kickoff Classic II in a 20-18 loss, and in a home game the following year in a 14-10 loss to Florida.  Tony Dorsett (#7) played in a 13-11 win over Navy as a soph in Annapolis in 1974. 

Great bowl record -  Prior to our Texas Bowl Tour, we watched twelve bowl -bound teams compete during the regular season.  The winners were Purdue, Wake, Penn State, Auburn, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Rutgers and Tulsa.  Navy, Nevada, Oklahoma, and South Florida all fell in their bids.  Our teams went 8-4 in their bowl bids.  Add seven other teams (PSU was already seen) during our Tour and we saw 19 of 64 bowl teams play this season!

A curve ball -  We expected to see Duke hire Richmond Head Coach Dave Clawson who has turned around programs of good schools at the Championship Division level like the Spiders who made the playoffs this year and the Fordham Rams we saw him guide in the 2003 playoff win against Northeastern.  So what does Clawson do to get himself into a position for the next opportunity that comes along in the Bowl subdivision?  He became Phil Fulmer's new offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Volunteers.  We're hoping to make a trip to Neyland next season to see how well he does.

Message to Pete Carrol - What are you, nuts? If you make any move to the Atlanta Falcons or any other NFL team, you're dumber than we thought!  You got it made there in Tinsel Town, and believe it when we say that we are not Trojan fans.  You've been there and done that and you're gone.  You think you're better the second time around?  Remember drafts and no non-conference games, players with big salaries and big egos, and owners with even bigger ones?  You're top dog in LA why give that up unless you're running away from Rick Neuheisel!

Speaking of Trojans - We heard a comment made during the NY Giants - Dallas Cowboys playoff game won by the former.  We knew we saw Osi Umenyiora play for Troy State when we saw him play for the Troy State Trojans in 2001 against Maryland, but then we found out during the game that Cowboy DL Demarcus Ware was also on that team.  He was a frosh not playing at that time.  Giant PK Lawrence Ytnes is also five years out of Troy, but we don't see his name in the program.

Stars in bowls out shined! - All -Americans and award winners we saw during our Tour didn't impress us and were totally outshone by others. Defensively for Penn State, we saw Bednarik Award Dan Connor winner intercept a lateral, but it was JR LB Sean Lee who won Defensive MVP in the 24-17 PSU win at the Alamo Bowl. Not a surprise!  We're sure Lee will receive attention to win some national recognition next season at Linebacker U!  At the Cotton Bowl, Arkansas's six and seven man defensive backfield were too much for All-American QB Chase Daniels and his receivers  TE Martin Rucker and All-purpose player Jeremy Maclin, but the strategy set up RB Tony Temple for the third biggest day rushing in bowl game history with 281 yards and four TDs to cream Arkansas, 38-7.  Darren McFadden's 105 yards and one TD for the Razorbacks evidently had no impact on this outcome.

A deal's a deal  - Rich Rodriguez is fighting the payback clause in his contract with WVU.  We hope WVU wins their right to get all their money back.  It was a win-win for both WVU and Rodriguez as both are headed in the right direction.  With the way that team played, it's hard to believe the school wasn't giving Rodriguez everything he wanted.  We would like to have seen him continue at WVU as the Big East seemed up and coming and surpassing the Big Ten in overall conference strength.  Of course, coaches like Rodriguez is what's helping the conference.

Get your tickets - fast! - Not! - Two of our four bowl games on the Texas Bowl Tour were announce as sellouts.  There were plenty of tickets available at both the Alamo and at the Cotton Bowls.  Nobody seemed to be interested in the latter.  We thought about trading for better seats, but our tickets purchased before the pairings were announce cost $45/each.  The only price tags on the ones seen in the parking lot were for $90.  The number of tickets old at the Texas bowl was announced at over 66,000.  We figure the counted 'no-show" which were about half that amount.  With Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl, Amon G. Carter's capacity of 44,009 was nearly full.  We were gald we spent the $40 in advance on the good seat we bought there! 

A REAL championship - Throw out the rankings as a team ranked #6 in the polls, Appalachian State,  meta team ranked #13 in the polls, Delaware,  in the final game of the Championship Subdivision to take the title, 49-21!  Both had won three games in a tournament after 9-2 and 8-3 seasons respectively to get there.  UD defeated in-state antagonist #10 Delaware State, #1 Northern Iowa, and #4 Southern Illinois.  Appy State defeated #14 Eastern Washington, # 9 James Madison, and #8 Richmond along the way.  Of course, during the regular season, both teams flexed their muscles against the Bowl Division.  The Mountaineers kicked off this crazy season with their much vaunted win over pre-season #5 Michigan, 34-32.  The Blue Hens knocked off 8-4 Navy on their way to the Poinsettia Classic, 59-52!

0-3 for interims - Three teams on our Texas Bowl Tour played under interim Head Coaches and came up short though two of the three coached there teams to very competitive bowl games.  On the other hand, two of their teams came up with very questionable calls.  Houston will played under Chris Thurman whose team relied on the mobility of QB Case Keenum to scramble out of trouble to get his team a chance on offense. Houston named Kevin Sumlin, co-offensive coordinator of the Oklahoma Sooners as their new Head Coach.  Texas A&M will played under former offensive coordinator Gary Darnell.  Why he didn't go straight at PSU on fourth and two rather than go option right where Stephen McGee slipped on his butt, we'll never know. Mike Sherman left the Green Bay Packers as an assistant to take over the reigns at A&M.  Arkansas will played under former defensive coordinator Reggie Herring who forgot you have to defend against the run as well as the pass when he coached against Missouri.  Bobby Petrino left the Atlanta Falcons to replace Houston Nutt who left Arkansas and became Head Coach at beleaguered Mississippi.  We wonder who his defensive coordinator will be.  At West Virginia, Bill Stewart took over the interim position after Rich Rodriguez left.  After the Mountaineer win over the Sooners, he was no longer the interim.  He's WVU's new Head Coach.

Making amends - Rumor has it that Rutgers and Boston College, that team that ran out on the Big East to join the ACC after saying that they would never do such a thing, are talking about a Thursday night game at the Birthplace next season. Schiano's learning.  With QB Matt Ryan and others departing, the timing will be right to catch a big name program when they're reloading.  BC probably sees playing in Jersey as a good recruiting toll since it's been fertile recruiting ground for the Eagles over the years.  With Temple on the rise somewhat and NJ  native and Head Coach Al Golden taking players from the Garden State, too, we don't think we'll see a Rutgers=Temple match-up any time soon.  If you remember, the RU administration was pretty vocal about getting the Owls out of the Big East.  Now if they start winning in the MAC and bringing fans into the "Linc" on Saturdays, Schiano may want to reconsider.  Even though he coached at PSU under Paterno, Golden played for the man, and our money says if Al Golden show he can win with that program in Philly, he'll have the inside track to State College, something Schiano supposedly wants.

In the end - Only four teams among the 19 bowl teams we watched this finished in the AP Top 25. Missouri (12-2) finished on top at #4.  Oklahoma (11-3) dropped to #8 after their whipping at the hands and feet of West Virginia.  .   Auburn (9-4) came in at #15 by beating Clemson in the Chik-Fil-a Peach Bowl.  9-4 South Florida who defeated the Tigers  at Shug-Jordan fell from #23 after their loss to Oregon in the Brut Sun Bowl And Texas Tech climbed up to #22 after their second bowl comeback in a row with a 31-28 win over Virginia in the Gator Bowl. 

Where championship football is played... - In the Championship Subdivision, formerly known as 1AA, the FCS Coaches poll ranked the last four teams we saw play in the top 25.  In THE GAME, where Yale(9-1) forgot it was playing Harvard of an undefeated season and the Ivy League title, the Bulldogs finished ranked #21 behind their archrival, Harvard (8-2) , #20.  Ranked just ahead at #19 were the Rams of Fordham (8-4) who won the Patriot League Conference. We saw them lose in the opening round of the playoffs to UMass in Amherst, MA, 39-35.  The Minutemen finished the season at #6.  In case you hadn't heard, Appalachian State won the national title.  With their win over #18 Michigan (9-4) to start the season, how come nobody voted for them at the end of the season like they did after they beat Michigan?

See Joe, see records - Every time we go see PSU play, we see Joe Paterno setting some kind of record or establish some kind of bench mark.  At the Alamo Bowl, he coached his 34th bowl game ever.  He won extending his bowl wins to 23, most ever.  No wonder why he's in the Hall of Fame!  It was his 500th game for PSU.  We saw him break Bear Bryant's mark with his win in 2001 over Ohio State.  We have to go back and see what other milestones of his we've see along the way.   For us, it was his 78th game he's coached that we've attended since 1979.  The 58-20 record he has when we attend is the same .744 winning percentage as his lifetime mark of 372-125-3!