BCS, NCAA Football NEWS
Tide Survives, Penn State Fails, More Guns Up!
Published by MoonDog on November 10, 2008
Saban Escapes With a Win in Return To Baton Rouge
The No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide survived perhaps their last major test of the regular season, coming away with a 27-21 overtime win over LSU Saturday in Baton Rouge. Alabama (10-0, 6-0 SEC) secured the SEC West Division title and will play Florida in the SEC championship game on December 6.
Alabama's Rashad Johnson Picks Off LSU's Jarrett Lee in Overtime
The Tide scored on their first possession of overtime after Rashad Johnson picked off his third pass of the game. For LSU quarterback Jarrett Lee, it was his fourth interception of the game.
On Alabama’s first play from scrimmage, John Parker Wilson hit Julio Jones along the sideline, who dragged his defender to the 1 for a 24-yard gain. Two plays later, Wilson sneaked in from the 1 to win it.
The Tide found themselves in unfamiliar territory throughout much of the afternoon, either trailing or tied. Having trailed for only 1:15 in its first nine games, the Tide went down 14-7 when Charles Scott scored on a 30-yard touchdown run for the Tigers with 5:57 left in the first quarter.
Scott tied the game at 21 in the fourth quarter when scored on a 1-yard run with 6:12 remaining. Alabama took their last possession of the fourth quarter and drove 29 yards to the LSU 12 with 3 seconds remaining.
Leigh Tiffin lined up for a 29-yard field goal, but his kick was blocked by the Tigers’ Ricky-Jean Francois to send the game into overtime.
Alabama remains atop the latest BCS standings and can earn their first shot at a national championship since 1992 if they can win out.
Nittany Lions Waive Bye-Bye to BCS Championship Hopes
Penn State’s national title hopes crashed and burned on the grass at Kinnick Stadium, as Iowa’s Daniel Murray kicked a 31-yard field goal with one second remaining to beat the Nittany Lions 24-23.
Iowa QB Ricky Stanzi Scrambles Against Penn State
Murray’s kick capped a fourth-quarter comeback from a 23-14 deficit to give the Hawkeyes their biggest win in two decades. The Hawkeye defense made inspired plays all afternoon, holding Penn State’s potent offense to field goals on three trips into the red zone.
But none were bigger than a Tyler Sash interception on the Iowa 29 with 3:46 left in the game to set up the final Iowa drive. The Hawkeye offense, completely ineffectual for much of the game, was able to scratch and claw its way down the field in 15 plays while converting on third-and-long three separate times.
After the ensuing squib kick was recovered by the Hawks, the fans were able to storm the field for real and celebrate like Iowa fans haven’t in a long time.
Penn State now will have to settle for a date with Oregon State or USC in the Rose Bowl, sparing football fans across America the experience of yet another Big Ten team getting its ass handed to it in a national title game.
Iowa needs to win one more game to be assured of a bowl berth, something that didn’t look likely a month ago. The hot seat Kirk Ferentz was sitting upon is now quite comfortable, and Daniel Murray could probably run for Governor of Iowa.
Thanks to GoPurple for contributing this game summary.
Red Raiders Leave No Doubt in Blowout of Cowboys
If anyone thought the Red Raiders win over previous No. 1 Texas was a fluke last week, they’d better think again. Texas Tech erased any doubts about how good they are with an easier than expected 56-20 win over Oklahoma State Saturday night in Lubbock.
Texas Tech RB Shannon Woods Scores Against Oklahoma State
Graham Harrell was close to flawless, completing 40-of-50 passes for 456 yards and six touchdowns. Things got so bad for the Cowboys that Harrell’s backup, sophomore Taylor Potts, gave everyone a preview of next season when he completed all five of his passes for 60 yards and one touchdown.
Harrell has played his way to the top of the Heisman Trophy candidates list, passing for 4077 yards and 36 touchdowns this season.
Oklahoma kept things tight in the first half, cutting the Red Raiders lead to 21-14 on a Keith Totson 2-yard touchdown run with 4:13 remaining before halftime.
But that was as close as the Cowboys would get, with Texas Tech outscoring Oklahoma State 35-6 the rest of the game.
Despite the Cowboys’ use of multiple defensive schemes in an effort to slow down the Red Raiders’ offense, Harrell comfortably stood in the pocket and picked apart the Oklahoma State defense.
The Red Raiders piled up 629 yards of offense against the Cowboys. Standout wide receiver Michael Crabtree had 8 receptions for 89 yards and three scores while running back Shannon Woods ran for one touchdown and caught two more, one each from Harrell and Potts.
Texas Tech (10-0, 6-0 Big 12) has a bye week to get ready for Oklahoma on November 22, a game that will determine the Big 12 South title and a berth in the Big 12 championship game.
Florida Turns Vandy Into Gator Bait
Tim Tebow accounted for five touchdowns, throwing for three and running for two more, as Florida routed Vanderbilt 42-14 and clinched the SEC East Division title.
Florida QB Tim Tebow Scored 5 TDs Against Vanderbilt
The win over the Commodores earned the Gators a shot at the SEC championship and kept alive their hopes for a berth in the BCS national title game. Florida will face Alabama, the SEC West champion on December 6 in Atlanta.
Since the Gators were upset by Ole Miss on September 27, Tebow vowed to refocus his efforts and Florida has responded, reeling off five straight wins. The Gators have outscored those five opponents 243-57, including games against Top 20 teams LSU and Georgia.
The Gators (8-1, 6-1), coming off their huge win over Georgia last week, scored on each of their first four possessions. Tebow connected with David Nelson on a 41-yard touchdown pass with 8 seconds remaining before halftime, putting the Gators up 35-0.
After starting the season 5-0, Vanderbilt (5-4, 3-3) has lost four straight and failed to gain their sixth victory which would make them bowl eligible. The Commodores, already one of the worst offensive teams in the nation, couldn’t muster much against the Florida defense.
Florida will square off against former coach Steve Spurrier next week when South Carolina visits Gainesville. The Gamecocks beat Florida the first year Spurrier took over as head coach in 2005, but have failed to get a victory over the Gators since.
Longhorns Remain Alive For Big 12, BCS Titles
Colt McCoy passed for 300 yards and five touchdowns as Texas rebounded from last week’s loss to Texas Tech with an easy 45-21 victory over Baylor.
Texas RB Foswhitt Whittaker Dives for the End Zone Against Baylor
McCoy connected with Quan Cosby eight times for 111 yards and two touchdowns, the first a 35-yarder that put Texas on top 7-0 on their first possession of the game.
Texas built their lead to 14-0 later in the first when McCoy found Greg Smith for a 1-yard touchdown pass with 4:35 left in the first quarter.
Baylor made it game early in the second quarter, tying it at 14 when Kendall Wright scored on a 55-yard pass from Robert Griffin with 9:01 remaining before halftime.
Baylor would never get closer as the Longhorns scored 31 unanswered points before the Bears scored a late touchdown for the final margin of victory.
McCoy finished with 26 completions on 37 attempts as the Longhorns rolled up 494 yards of offense.
The Longhorns (9-1, 5-1 Big 12) still need plenty to happen to get into the Big 12 championship game and stay in the BCS national title hunt.
Texas will face Kansas next week in Lawrence and need a win over the Jayhawks to keep pace with Texas Tech and Oklahoma in the Big 12 South.
Latest AP and USA Today Polls Released, BCS Standings
As expected, Alabama remained on top of both polls and the BCS standings this week, followed by Texas Tech. Check out the latest rankings here.
My Personal Top Five This Week:
1. Alabama
2. Texas Tech
3. Florida
4. Texas
5. Oklahoma
Similar Posts:
- Guns Up!, Gators Chomp, Tide Is No. 1
- Gators Chomp ‘Cocks, Tide Rolls, Trojans Avenge Loss
- MoonDog’s Heisman Ballot – Colt McCoy Is The Man
- SEC, Big 12 Battles Help Penn State, USC
- Vandy’s For Real, Mizzou Dominates, Tide Survives
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NESW Sports Headlines 11/10/2008 | NESW Sports, Sports Videos on Mon, 10th Nov 2008 10:42
[...] College Football last weekend explained < Moondog Sports [...]
David Lithman on Mon, 10th Nov 2008 13:41
Florida looks like the best defense in college football, and Texas tech has the best offense. I’d love to see these two match-up in the BCS Championship game.
My Sports Rumors - The Goon Squad on Mon, 10th Nov 2008 23:47
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