Week 11 in Review

The Fall of Troy – 21st Century Edition


USC had an amazing run of 7 straight years atop the Pacific 10 Conference. Two National Titles, three Heisman Trophy winners, too many Rose Bowl victories to count. But in sobering fashion on Saturday the Stanford Cardinal ended a decade of dominance, arrogance and seeming invincibility for Pete Carroll and the Trojans.

Fans, alumni and students had packed the Coliseum for Homecoming in preparation for what they thought would be payback for the “Biggest Upset in History” two years ago, when Stanford beat USC as 41 point underdogs in Jim Harbaugh’s first season at Stanford. Homecoming didn’t last past the fourth quarter though as many fans were driving home on LA’s freeway system by the time Harbaugh decided to go for two leading 48-21. USC was booed at home for the first time in memory. The Trojans gave up the most points in school history, 55. Pete Carroll lost his first game in the month of November as USC Coach.

It was a monumental day for the Stanford football team and the Pac 10 as a whole. The flesh wounds that Oregon exposed in USC Halloween weekend were made into fatal blows by the Cardinal’s physical running attack and precise passing game. Toby Gerhart continued to show he is worthy of Heisman Trophy consideration with a 178 yard performance and 3 TDs. But maybe the most remarkable part of the game was that the third string RB for Stanford scored their final TD after running through the entire defensive front of the Trojans, and it was USC’s starters. What the Trojans did to teams for seemingly a decade, that is be more physical, more hungry, better executed, better coached, and never stop playing, is exactly what Stanford did on Saturday and Oregon two weeks before. A new team will represent the Pac 10 in the Rose Bowl and that is a good thing.

As for the pundits and critics in Southern California and all over the nation that have made this game more about the two-point conversion and running up the score. If USC had a problem with it they should have stopped Stanford from getting the opportunity. Star safety Taylor Mays was none too happy about the play, but maybe that was because after laying a hit on Stanford TE Coby Fleener on a TD catch, Mays was the one getting up slow with stars circling over his helmet. The Trojans routinely won games by 40, 50 points over the years, going for 4th downs in the fourth quarter of blowouts and scoring more TDs when the game was clearly out of reach. How about throwing a long TD against Oregon last year while up by multiple scores. Maybe Pete has not gone for two in that situation, but regardless USC has not been the image of good sportsmen over the years. I can recall outrageous celebrations and chest bumping by USC players in the midst of blowouts. Then there is the famous Rey Maualuga incident with Erin Andrews on the sideline ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdDGYsYXHKc&feature=related ). If that doesn’t say classless I don’t know what does. The fact is USC was dominated in a fashion that has not happened before this year and if they couldn’t stop a third string RB from scoring on a play everyone knows is coming, then they should be more worried about the rest of their season than a two-point conversion that they actually did stop.

Maybe we could have seen this coming starting in January when Steve Sarkisian left for Washington taking Pete’s defensive coordinator with him. That was followed by Mark Sanchez leaving USC and a strange news conference where Pete did not seem to have his usual confidence and swagger, almost begging Sanchez to reconsider. This was not the USC dynasty we were used to seeing. A chink in the armor could be seen if you looked closely. By the time the season started a freshman quarterback was starting for the first time in history and the Trojans went down to a team that went winless the prior year. USC will be back no question, but the performance of Stanford on Saturday made recruiting against Pete Carroll and USC a little easier. You think Harbaugh might talk about November 14th in the LA Coliseum to a few kids that grew up dreaming of being a Trojan? My guess is yes and the conversation won’t be about any two-point conversion that Stanford missed.

The Rest of the Nation

The headliner came out west for a change as games in Columbus, Ohio, Columbia, SC and Pittsburgh didn’t match the intrigue of LA. Ohio State claimed the Big 10 with an overtime win over Iowa, but as usual the conservative style of Jim Tressell made the game practically unwatchable. Ohio State has not played in a Rose Bowl since 1996 so to see them go against a Pac 10 team in Pasadena should be good. I can’t wait to see if their near top-ranked defense can handle a team with a good offense (my apologies to Penn State, Iowa and the rest of the Big 10-MAC schedule OSU plays). They didn’t handle the SEC’s best over the years in BCS losses and should get a great test against Oregon, Stanford, Oregon State or Arizona, who are all alive for the other Rose Bowl berth.

Florida was able to handle a great effort from South Carolina in Columbia and now can look ahead to Florida State and Alabama. As evidence that the SEC should be knocked down a peg for scheduling cupcake competition, Florida gets a scrimmage against Florida Int’l this Saturday while Alabama goes against Tenn. Chattanooga. At least you have to give Ohio State credit for taking on USC earlier this year. The SEC might as well not play non-conference games if this is the competition they invite.

Pittsburgh and Cincinnati continued their winning ways and are headed for a big showdown for the Big East title and BCS berth. The Panthers handed Charlie Weis another loss while the Bearcats beat West Virginia on Friday night after a questionable night by the officials (again). Texas and Nebraska seem destined to meet in Dallas for the Big 12 Title after both winning Saturday while Georgia Tech sealed a spot against Clemson most likely in the ACC final. The Pac 10 is the most exciting conference in football with as many as 4 teams remaining for the title and at least 4 or 5 games that could have serious implications. Who needs a Conference Title game when you have that. Oh yeah, I forgot, money and sponsors rule the day. I present to you Oregon @ Arizona, presented by Tucson National Credit Union. The Stanford-Cal Big Game presented by Genentech and finally the Oregon-Oregon State Civil War in two weeks presented by Nike. Could work, right?



Top 10

1. Florida – The Gators may not look like last year’s team, but they are undefeated this year and are winning games with defense and just enough offense.

2. Alabama – Nick Saban has his team on a collision course with Florida. But the rivalry against Auburn will be Gene Chizik’s first in the series and Auburn’s offense has the ability but not the consistency. A big upset would ruin the SEC’s dream of a #1-2 title game.

3. TCU – This team continued to dominate against the best competition they face. Wins at Clemson and BYU and Utah in Fort Worth this past week have TCU all but sure of the BCS. Avoid the upset and they have a slight chance for the BCS title game if Alabama and Texas get upset.

4. Texas – I have the Longhorns as the #2 team in Texas. I look at the way TCU plays defense and I think they would stop Colt McCoy and company. I would love to see the old Southwestern Conference, with TCU, Texas, A&M, Tech, Houston and others. TCU might prove they were the best of the bunch this year.

5. Cincinnati – The Bearcats were fortunate to get a TD on a controversial call and beat WV by 3. Pittsburgh awaits in what will be a de facto Big East title game.

6. Georgia Tech – GT trailed Duke 10-0 early before rattling off 49 straight points. Josh Nesbitt is throwing the ball better while the running game continues to dominate. Nobody wants to play this team come Bowl season.

7. Boise State – The Broncos just haven’t done enough to stay above one-loss GT. They don’t play the best competition and they don’t look unstoppable against overmatched teams. Nevada might have a shot at an upset on the Blue Turf in a few weeks.

8. Pittsburgh – The Panthers beat Notre Dame and are looking good for a shot at the BCS. Who knows how good the team really is but we know RB Dion Lewis is legit.

9. Oregon – The Ducks continued to dominate teams in Eugene, but they have been outgained on average in their road games and must beat Arizona in Tucson this week to set up a Civil War for the Rose Bowl. Zona ruined their BCS hopes two years ago, the Ducks remember.

10. Stanford – The Cardinal have two of the biggest upsets of the season in back to back weeks and in my mind are better right now than two-loss teams Ohio State, LSU, Iowa, Penn State. None of those teams have wins over an Oregon or USC. Ohio State lost to USC and Purdue and big wins over Iowa and Penn State doesn’t count so much since those teams have really beat nobody good. LSU lost to Florida and Alabama, but have not beaten any great teams either. That leaves Stanford as the best of the rest. Their only losses were on the road to Arizona and Oregon State, and an early season last second road loss to Wake Forest after questionable officiating. Put the Cardinal on the field with those above mentioned teams and I think Stanford’s offense rules the day. Until those Big 10 teams beat anybody out of conference, they don’t belong in the same conversation as the best teams in the nation.


Saturday Lox Week 11 in Review

Premium

Last Week: 1-2

Overall: 16-20

Winners:

Oregon State (-13): 48-21

The Beavers won easily over a Washington team that is on its last legs after starting the year well. Oregon State still has its sights set on a Rose Bowl and revenge against Oregon.

Losers:

BYU (-27.5): 24-19

The Cougars almost gave New Mexico their first win of the year but held on. BYU is not a good road team and even with the big win over Oklahoma has to consider this a disappointing season.

Arizona (+3): 16-24

Cal handled the Wildcats fairly easily and could have won by more if not for multiple turnovers in the red zone by Cal. But Arizona had the cover before Cal RB Shayne Vereen scored on a long TD run late 4th quarter to seal it. Tough loss.

Regular

Last Week: 3-0

Overall: 16-18-2

Winners:

Stanford (+11): 55-21

Toby Gerhart scored three times and had 178 yards rushing but it was Andrew Luck that controlled the game with his feet (61 yards rushing and a TD) and his arm (2 TDs). Harbaugh proved prophetic when he called Luck the best QB in the country, as he has engineered two upsets in a row and has shown off for NFL scouts who wish he was eligible this year. Matt Barkley looked bad in a battle of freshman Pac 10 signal callers, but the whole Stanford team dominated the Trojans. It could be a good rivalry for a few years to come as Barkley and Luck develop and the coaches continue to dislike each other. Stanford and Harbaugh lead the series for now.

Georgia Tech (-14): 49-10

The Yellow Jackets had no problem coming from behind against Duke. They scored at will against an overmatched defense after trailing early. Running, passing and special teams were all in GT’s favor as they clinched a spot in the ACC title game.

Nebraska (-3): 31-17

The Cornhuskers came one step closer to getting a chance at Texas in the Big 12 title by beating Kansas. The defense has been there all season for Nebraska and the offense finally played good enough to get a comfortable win.

Upsets

Last Week: 0-2 (outright upsets)

Overall: 9-13 (outright upsets)

Kansas State and Vanderbilt couldn’t pull the conference upsets as Missouri and Kentucky ruined their chances with strong showings. Both teams get another chance at the upset this week, but have stronger opponents in Nebraska and Tennessee respectively.