Football: The Weekend That Was

By UWire
Oct. 6, 2008

Best win: Vanderbilt 14, Auburn 13

Biggest upset: Pitt 26, USF 21

Best Bachman-Turner Overdrive: Missouri 52, Nebraska 17

Et cetera: USC 44, Oregon 10 ... Alabama 17, Kentucky 14 ... Ohio State 20, Wisconsin 17 ... Texas 38, Colorado 14 ... Florida 38, Arkansas 7 ... Illinois 45, Michigan 20 ... Texas Tech 58, Kansas State 28 ... Penn State 20, Purdue 6 ... Oklahoma 49, Baylor 17 ... Kansas 35, Iowa State 33 ... Georgia Tech 27, Duke 0 ... Michigan State 16, Iowa 13 ... Minnesota 16, Indiana 7 ... BYU 34, Utah State 14 ... Boise State 38, Louisiana Tech 3 ... Utah 31, Oregon State 28 ... Cincinnati 33, Marshall 10 ... Boston College 38, N.C. State 31 ... West Virginia 24, Rutgers 17 ... South Carolina 31, Ole Miss 24 ... Notre Dame 28, Stanford 21 ... Cal 24, Arizona State 14 ... Florida State 41, Miami 39 ... Navy 33, Air Force 27 ... North Carolina 38, Connecticut 12 ... Virginia 31, Maryland 0 ... Tennessee 13, Northern Illinois 9 ... Oklahoma State 56, Texas A&M 28 ... Arizona 48, Washington 14 ... Tulsa 63, Rice 28 ... Hawaii 32, Fresno State 29, OT ... UCLA 28, Washington State 3.

Best Charley Steiner: Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame

The sophomore quarterback is beginning to live up to the impossible hype that followed him to South Bend. This was perhaps the best game of his career: 29-of-40 for 347 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. With Clausen coming into his own and both lines playing vastly better, the Fighting Irish are a pretty good team. The haters can quiet down for a few weeks.

This week's theme: History

Vanderbilt is 5-0 for the first time in 65 years after beating Auburn for the first time in 53 years. Missouri won at Nebraska for the first time in 30 years, handing the Huskers their worst home loss in 53 years. (That 1955 season was filled with action, huh?) Illinois became the first visiting team in 17 years to score at least 45 points at Michigan Stadium. Bret Bielema, Wisconsin's third-year coach, lost at home for the first time.

Looking good: Kentucky

Change two plays and maybe the Wildcats win in Tuscaloosa. I mean, sure, you can say that about just about every game, but Alabama's two touchdowns came on a 78-yard run by Glen Coffee and an unforced fumble by UK quarterback Mike Hartline. That's a recipe for regret, even if Rich Brooks' squad proved its defense and its top-25 aspirations are legitimate despite the absence of Andre Woodson.

Best goal-line stand: Vanderbilt

It seemed at first inconsequential, a footnote in yet another Vanderbilt loss to Auburn. But no sequence was more important to the Commodores' eventual victory than their goal-line stand on the Tigers' first drive. Led by DE Broderick Stewart and LB Patrick Benoist, they stoned running back Ben Tate on four straight carries inside the 5, getting a great defensive line push that freed up the linebackers and safeties to plug every hole. Couple that with Wes Byrum's missed extra point, and that's eight game-deciding points the Tigers left on the field.

Best start: Missouri

Mizzou scored 59 seconds in when Chase Daniel hit Jeremy Maclin over the middle on the third play of the game. Maclin broke a tackle, swerved around a defensive back and was gone, 58 yards for a touchdown. The Tigers still haven't gone three-and-out this season.

Losing their heads at the worst time: Wisconsin linebackers

The Badgers had a timeout left but didn't use it despite their linebackers' obvious confusion as Ohio State came to the line of scrimmage at the UW 11-yard line. Terrelle Pryor took the snap on second-and-8 and ran an option play to the left, keeping the ball and loping into the end zone for the game-winning touchdown with 1:08 remaining. Wisconsin's linebackers, a typically top-notch group, were nowhere to be found.

Best option fake: Juice Williams, Illinois

Williams has made tremendous strides as a passer -- witness the deft screen pass that Daniel Dufrene caught in stride for a 57-yard touchdown -- but his most clever move came on the first play of the second quarter at the Michigan 6-yard line. Lined up in the shotgun with four wide receivers, Williams faked a handoff to tailback Mikel LeShoure. While DE Brandon Graham and OLB John Thompson swarmed the back, Williams darted up the middle for the score, starting a streak of 28 straight points for the most underrated team in the nation. How is Illinois not ranked?

Best punch in the mouth: Pitt

USF took a 21-20 lead with just less than 6 minutes left (see below), but the demoralized Bulls defense all but forgot to take the field. Delbert Alvarado booted the kickoff out of bounds and Bill Stull hit Oderick Turner for 38 yards over the middle on the next play. LeSean McCoy followed with a 19-yard run to the USF 3-yard line, juking inside cornerback Tyller Roberts, and then took a toss left for an easy touchdown. Three plays, 60 yards -- thanks, Delbert! -- and the Panthers had the winning points with 4:43 left.

Shell of its former self: Marshall

Crushed by Wisconsin, Cincinnati and the artists formerly known as West Virginia. (Combined score: 111-27.) Since dominating the MAC with the likes of Randy Moss, Byron Leftwich and Chad Pennington, the Herd is a feeble 15-26 in three-plus losing seasons in Conference USA and hasn't been to a bowl game since 2002-03.

Inexplicably regressing: Curtis Painter, Purdue

The fifth-year senior was one of those most productive QBs in the nation last season in Joe Tiller's spread passing attack, but he's been a mess this year. Against Penn State, his interception in the final minute of the third quarter killed a nice drive and essentially ended Purdue's chances of an upset. Painter threw late over the middle for TE Jerry Wasikowski and safety Drew Astorino picked it off. Now 0-9 against ranked opponents, Painter was replaced on the next drive by Joey Elliott.

Hazardous to your viewing health: FSU-Miami

Oh sure, 80 points and a down-to-the-wire finish were fun, but it's a measure of how far these programs have fallen that they don't have a decent (at this point) quarterback between them. Lots of just kind of flinging the ball over the field without regard for human life or risk of turnovers. Yet they were hardly the only players who didn't really know what they're doing. The coaching for these teams fails to impress. Like the rest of the ACC and the Big East, the Seminoles and Hurricanes can occasionally win a game, but they rarely if ever pass the look test as a truly good team.

Not fired today: Al Groh, Virginia

Playing with their third-string quarterback, the heretofore hapless Cavaliers blew out Maryland at home, days after UVa officials rescinded their Orwellian ban on fans bringing signs into the stadium. A guess they can shelve their (irrational) "Fire Groh" placards for another week. Behold the power of free speech!

Best throw off his back foot: Matt Grothe, South Florida

The Bulls' all-star quarterback isn't always a pinpoint passer, but his off-balance TD throw to Jessie Hester was dead on, dropping over Pitt's Eric Thatcher for a go-ahead touchdown with just less than 6 minutes left.

Worst angle: Charles Stewart, Michigan

The fifth-year safety took a horrid angle trying to break up a deep sideline pass on the first drive of the second half. Jeff Cumberland caught the ball for Illinois and the coast was clear for a 77-yard score.

Worst fielding of a punt: Doug Baldwin, Stanford

Down 28-21 with 3:23 left, the Cardinal began its final drive at its own 3-yard line after Baldwin decided to catch a Notre Dame punt at the 1. Mike Anello, the new Rudy, nearly tackled him in the end zone before David Bruton brought him down a moment later.

Best name for a running back: Ben Tate, Auburn

Go on, just say it with a Southern accent. That big ol' boy'll run you over, son.

Stop me before I pass again: Dave Brytus, Pitt

The Panthers had a wide-open look on a fake punt midway through the third quarter, but the punter shot-putted the ball over 2 players in the direction of protection back Conredge Collins. It fell short.

Toughest throw: Joe Ganz, Nebraska

Calling an audible before the play, Ganz rolled right, threw on the run near the sideline and took a terrific shot from Missouri LB Sean Weatherspoon. The pass found Nate Swift in the end zone and Ganz bounced up off the turf to tell Weatherspoon all about it. It was the Huskers' opening drive -- and their lone highlight for the night.

Worst mental mistake: Rashad Johnson, Alabama

The Tide survived anyway, but how did the senior safety get distracted by a slot receiver in the final minute? Kentucky was desperate for a touchdown and got one, pulling within 17-14 when DeMoreo Ford beat cornerback Marquis Johnson down the right sideline and Johnson let the play get behind him.

Welcome back: Beanie Wells, Ohio State

The Bean scored the first touchdown of the game on the opening drive, running 33 yards and making the end zone with a stiff arm that drove Wisconsin safety Shane Carter with him the final 5 yards.

Injured again: Pat White, West Virginia

Less bad than last season: Minnesota, North Carolina

Best comeback: Kansas

Best revenge: Boston College

How you like me now, Tom O'Brien?

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Football: The Weekend That Was

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