Bowl Season/National Championship Thread

[JasonEvans]

I figure it makes sense to have a thread for tracking all conversation about non-Duke bowls as well as the national playoffs.

So, I will get it started with this-- the First Responders Bowl had a pretty tough time of it yesterday, with multiple lightning strikes delaying the game for hours. It was eventually cancelled. Not really much of a story there, but you really, really need to read the twitter commentary by the guy running the FRBowl twitter account (https://twitter.com/FRBowl). This dude was given lemons and made sweet tasting lemonade out of it! Props!!

Also, if you are one of those people who think too many teams make bowl games, often resulting in bad teams playing in the post-season, your first piece of evidence needs to be last nights Cheez-It Bowl, a game which featured 8 interceptions and ended in overtime with the scintillating score of 10-7. This was ineptitude on a truly epic scale. SB Nation's article on it (https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/12/27/18157269/cal-tcu-cheez-it-bowl-2018)is truly glorious!

And yes, the winner does get a bowl of Cheez-its.
https://cdn1.thecomeback.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/94/2018/12/Cheez-It-Bowl-832x447.jpg

-Jason "thanks to DBR poster Tom B for sending me that link to the Cheez-it bowl" Evans

[budwom]

A fitting end to Sourpuss's reign in Atlanta yesterday, illustrating why many Tech fans won't miss him. Tech faced a middling Minnesota team which managed to completely mangle Tech's option.
There was no plan B. When the option is clicking against teams that don't know how to defend it, Tech is tough. But too many teams have figured it out.
As others have stated, knees in the ACC can rejoice today.

[budwom]

Did anyone note during the Mini Soda/ Ga Tech game offensive tackle Daniel Faalele of the Gophers? 6-9, 400 lb freshman, native Australian (probably the best term)...large young human being, has only played the football for
two years...

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Did anyone note during the Mini Soda/ Ga Tech game offensive tackle Daniel Faalele of the Gophers? 6-9, 400 lb freshman, native Australian (probably the best term)...large young human being, has only played the football for
two years...

Nah, i was too busy changing the channel after it was clear that GT didn't give a DAY YUM - led by their coach.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Wisconsin pushing Miami around like stuffed toys. It's only 14-3 - should be 35-3. Rosier looks terrible...."turble".....for UM.

[Wander]

Wisconsin pushing Miami around like stuffed toys. It's only 14-3 - should be 35-3. Rosier looks terrible..."turble"....for UM.

I think the teams have looked about even other than the first 5 minutes (i.e., both pretty bad).

[devilsince1977]

I love watching The Miami "Convicts" getting their collective butts handed to them.

[JNort]

I figure it makes sense to have a thread for tracking all conversation about non-Duke bowls as well as the national playoffs.

So, I will get it started with this-- the First Responders Bowl had a pretty tough time of it yesterday, with multiple lightning strikes delaying the game for hours. It was eventually cancelled. Not really much of a story there, but you really, really need to read the twitter commentary by the guy running the FRBowl twitter account (https://twitter.com/FRBowl). This dude was given lemons and made sweet tasting lemonade out of it! Props!!

Also, if you are one of those people who think too many teams make bowl games, often resulting in bad teams playing in the post-season, your first piece of evidence needs to be last nights Cheez-It Bowl, a game which featured 8 interceptions and ended in overtime with the scintillating score of 10-7. This was ineptitude on a truly epic scale. SB Nation's article on it (https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/12/27/18157269/cal-tcu-cheez-it-bowl-2018)is truly glorious!

And yes, the winner does get a bowl of Cheez-its.
https://cdn1.thecomeback.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/94/2018/12/Cheez-It-Bowl-832x447.jpg

-Jason "thanks to DBR poster Tom B for sending me that link to the Cheez-it bowl" Evans

I believe it was 9 interceptions.

[WiJoe]

ZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

P.S.: bowl "week" started two weeks ago.

[devilish]

The acoustics in the academy sports and outdoors Texas bowl broadcast are horrible. Or is it just my television?

[OldPhiKap]

Out of our twelve regular season opponents this year, all but two (NCCU and uNC) are playing in bowls. Interesting to keep track of our opponents:

WAKE beat Memphis 37-34
ARMY beat Houston 70-14 (yikes)
GT lost to Minnesota 10-34 (ouch)
BAYLOR beat Vandy 45-38
MIAMI lost to Wisconsin 3-35 (ouch)

So, 3-2 so far (plus our win, plus UNC sitting home). Pretty good so far. While GT and Miami got skunked, we beat both of them too so all good there.

Still left:

UVA v. South Carolina 12/29
CLEMSON v. Notre Dame 12/29 (plus chance to advance)

PITT v. Stanford 12/31
VTECH v. Cincinnati 12/31
NORTHWESTERN v. Utah 12/31

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Out of our twelve regular season opponents this year, all but two (NCCU and uNC) are playing in bowls. Interesting to keep track of our opponents:

WAKE beat Memphis 37-34
ARMY beat Houston 70-14 (yikes)
GT lost to Minnesota 10-34 (ouch)
BAYLOR beat Vandy 45-38
MIAMI lost to Wisconsin 3-35 (ouch)

So, 3-2 so far (plus our win, plus UNC sitting home). Pretty good so far. While GT and Miami got skunked, we beat both of them too so all good there.
1

Both Georgia Tech and Miami clearly mailed it in......neither team had any fire. They were like Duke was v WF frankly. The two DC's (Cut and Dave Clawson) had their teams ready to roll).

[JasonEvans]

Pat Forde just tweeted:


People think Ga Tech and Miami didn't show up for their bowl games.
Purdue: Here, hold my boilermaker.

I also saw a tweet saying that scoring 100 points against a legit opponent in a bowl game would be truly special and begging Auburn to go for it. Would that be bad sportsmanship or really fun? I can't decide.

[OldPhiKap]

I also saw a tweet saying that scoring 100 points against a legit opponent in a bowl game would be truly special and begging Auburn to go for it. Would that be bad sportsmanship or really fun? I can't decide.

Steve Spurrier kept his starters in and ran up the score against UGA one year. The Dawg coach, Ray Goff, was livid and confronted Spurrier at midfield after the game. Steve's response: "I didn't see in the rule book where it was my job to stop us, Ray."

And we all know the best Spurrier run-up story, even if we paid for it for a long time . . . .

[devildeac]

Steve Spurrier kept his starters in and ran up the score against UGA one year. The Dawg coach, Ray Goff, was livid and confronted Spurrier at midfield after the game. Steve's response: "I didn't see in the rule book where it was my job to stop us, Ray."

And we all know the best Spurrier run-up story, even if we paid for it for a long time . . . .

I wouldn't have minded scoring another TD or 3 against Temple yesterday after their "chippy" play.

[OldPhiKap]

I wouldn't have minded scoring another TD or 3 against Temple yesterday after their "chippy" play.

Yeah, although running up the score invites more chippiness. See, e.g., the flag in the end zone after Koppenhaver's TD (IIRC).

The sequence that encapsulates Temple's game for me was the end of the first half. Run the clock down to close to nothing, then call a time-out on your own 35. Run a play that is never going to get to the end zone, and pick up a 15-yard personal foul to be assessed on the kickoff to Duke next half.

Brilliant!

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Pat Forde just tweeted:


People think Ga Tech and Miami didn't show up for their bowl games.
Purdue: Here, hold my boilermaker.
.

Does Coach Brohm want to change his mind on Louisville about now? Gotta love the way Purdue reacted to their coach staying...:p

And on Temple's chippiness? I think 70-27 would've looked real nice. Had a nice symmetry, Army and Duke scoring 70....(then again, Auburn in progress...)

[HereBeforeCoachK]

It's always miffed me why the POY awards in hoops and Heisman in FB are announced with tournament (playoff or essentially playoff bowl games) are left to play. It creates a dynamic of being "dissed" or what have you that to me shouldn't be part of a tournament to decide the championship team. The added pressure to the winning player to "defend" his personal award is another distraction. I remember in BB....Larry Johnson did not have a good game in 91 semi v Duke nor did award winner Laettner play very well in the FF in 92.

Here is an article about how there is now this huge revenge dynamic over the Heisman in the Bama OU game. It compares it to the same situation with Texas and Southern Cal a few years ago. I remember that one and thinking Texas would upset USC for just that reason. The Heisman for Bush did wonders for Texas' motivation. http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/25627431/tua-tagovailoa-kyler-murray-heisman-revenge-factor-alabama

Of course, the difference is that in addition to Bush winning the Heisman, the national media had virtually said that Texas didn't have a chance. That was another part of that game that is different than Bama and OU. But the Murray Heisman is a motivational gift to Bama.

Anyway, just always been a pet peeve of mine. I think the run for a championship should be the only thing....a pure thing....

[Bob Green]

Halftime: Virginia 14, South Carolina 0

Solid 1st half for the Cavaliers in an ACC - SEC head-to-head match-up. Virginia has successfully executed a ball control offense so far in this game.

[Bob Green]

Virginia takes a 21-0 lead into the 4th quarter in Charlotte. The Cavaliers have the ball.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Now 28-0 UVa....ACC now 4-2. Lot of folks picking the ACC to go 4-7 over all. Way ahead of that pace.

[OldPhiKap]

Update of opponents:

Teams we beat
ARMY beat Houston 70-14 (yikes)
BAYLOR beat Vandy 45-38
MIAMI lost to Wisconsin 3-35 (ouch)
GT lost to Minnesota 10-34 (ouch)

Teams we didn’t:

WAKE beat Memphis 37-34
UVA beat South Carolina 28-0 (ouch)



Still left:

CLEMSON v. Notre Dame 12/29 (plus chance to advance)
PITT v. Stanford 12/31
VTECH v. Cincinnati 12/31
NORTHWESTERN v. Utah 12/31

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Seems like after every good Clemson offensive play, a ND player is down....and trainers take forever to get him off......breaking momentum.

[OldPhiKap]

Wow, what a catch at the end of the half for Clemson!

[Bob Green]

Halftime: Clemson 23, Notre Dame 3

The Tigers are starting to pull away and they get the ball first in the 2nd half. Clemson wide receiver made a tremendous TD reception, with a couple of seconds remaining, on a ball the Notre Dame defender got a hand on.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Wow, what a catch at the end of the half for Clemson!

That was amazing indeed......and if I'm a ND fan, I'm frustrated. All three reviews were close, and all three went against ND. I think all three were ultimately called correctly, but two of the three were really close. No doubt on the TD IMO....

[OldPhiKap]

That was amazing indeed...and if I'm a ND fan, I'm frustrated. All three reviews were close, and all three went against ND. I think all three were ultimately called correctly, but two of the three were really close. No doubt on the TD IMO...

Make it four calls now. And all correct I think although the OOB fumble on the kick-off did not seem conclusive to me.

[Troublemaker]

The ACC has played really well during bowl season. I have it as 5-2 against the spread so far. Bodes well for Clemson giving Bama a heck of a game.

[hallcity]

Make it four calls now. And all correct I think although the OOB fumble on the kick-off did not seem conclusive to me.

Luck of the Irish.

[OldPhiKap]

Luck of the Irish.

Cue video of John Belushi if I could find it. . . .

[hudlow]

I'm not diggin' on these split screens too much.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I'm not diggin' on these split screens too much.

There's like 4 different broadcasts......the main one doesn't have that.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Luck of the Irish.

Another Clemson first down, another ND injury - another delay - and Clemson loses some momentum. I swear I think some of this is coordinated by Kelly.

[wavedukefan70s]

Make it four calls now. And all correct I think although the OOB fumble on the kick-off did not seem conclusive to me.

Exactly they may have been right.but not conclusive enough to overturn the field call.
I'm still ticked georgia isnt in.they damn sure looked better than notre dame does.i believe the title is bamas to lose regardless.

[OldPhiKap]

I'm still ticked georgia isnt in.they damn sure looked better than notre dame does.i believe the title is bamas to lose regardless.

I hear ‘ya, but a two-loss UGA was never going to bump either of these undefeated teams. If Kirby Smart had only lived up to his name . . . .

[OldPhiKap]

Update of opponents:

Teams we beat:

ARMY beat Houston 70-14 (yikes)
BAYLOR beat Vandy 45-38
MIAMI lost to Wisconsin 3-35 (ouch)
GT lost to Minnesota 10-34 (ouch)

Teams we didn’t:

WAKE beat Memphis 37-34
UVA beat South Carolina 28-0 (ouch)
CLEMSON beat Notre Dame 30-3 (dominant)

5-2, not shabby.

Still left:

PITT v. Stanford 12/31
VTECH v. Cincinnati 12/31
NORTHWESTERN v. Utah 12/31

Plus another Clemson game

[Indoor66]

The ACC has played really well during bowl season. I have it as 5-2 against the spread so far. Bodes well for Clemson giving Bama a heck of a game.

I don't think one has anything to do with the other.

[JNort]

I'm still ticked georgia isnt in.they damn sure looked better than notre dame does.i believe the title is bamas to lose regardless.

I wouldn't have minded seeing Ohio St in either. I like watching college football but I hate how terrible the postseason is as well as regular season for that matter. Each game individually is fun to watch but they all seem so pointless. They've almost figured how to do the postseason but I see no hope of ever having a good regular season in college football.

[Bob Green]

Alabama 14, Oklahoma 0.

Alabama has scored a touchdown on each of its possessions while Oklahoma went 3 and out. The Sooners better respond now or it might be a long night.

[OldPhiKap]

Alabama 14, Oklahoma 0.

Alabama has scored a touchdown on each of its possessions while Oklahoma went 3 and out. The Sooners better respond now or it might be a long night.

Still early, but Alabama’s lines are winning on both sides of the ball. And Tua is crazy accurate.

[AGDukesky]

Good thing UCF wasn’t allowed into the playoffs and gotten blown out- that could never happen to any other teams...

[Bob Green]

Three possessions, three touchdowns, the Tide is rolling.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

....and this is what we open up with next season? Yikes....

[Bob Green]

Four possessions, four touchdowns...

[wavedukefan70s]

Good thing UCF wasn’t allowed into the playoffs and gotten blown out- that could never happen to any other teams...

I just texted the exact same thing to my buddy.

[dukelifer]

Four possessions, four touchdowns...

Two very poor games.

[Saratoga2]

I watched the ND/Clemson game and confess to rooting for ND as the underdog. Ian Book looked terrible and Kelly has a history of being unable to make adjustments. ND had a nice running back and the game was close at first, but Clemson made adjustments and it was over. One pet peeve I had was when Davo Sweeney and his psychopathic defensive assistant went ballistic when they didn't get a call for a takeaway when the play had been blown dead on forward progress. What terrible sports. They are up 30 to 3 and were getting the ball back. I like to think the Duke coaches would show a little more class. After that display, I'm rooting against Clemson in the national championship game which appears to be against Bama at this point. Nevermind they are ACC, they have no class.

[wavedukefan70s]

I watched the ND/Clemson game and confess to rooting for ND as the underdog. Ian Book looked terrible and Kelly has a history of being unable to make adjustments. ND had a nice running back and the game was close at first, but Clemson made adjustments and it was over. One pet peeve I had was when Davo Sweeney and his psychopathic defensive assistant went ballistic when they didn't get a call for a takeaway when the play had been blown dead on forward progress. What terrible sports. They are up 30 to 3 and were getting the ball back. I like to think the Duke coaches would show a little more class. After that display, I'm rooting against Clemson in the national championship game which appears to be against Bama at this point. Nevermind they are ACC, they have no class.

Bama has no equal in the bcs .Clemson cannot touch them.

[bullettoothtony]

As good as Bama looks, kinda crazy to think that Georgia should've beaten them the last two times they played.

[Bob Green]

Halftime: Alabama 31, Oklahoma 10.

Oklahoma receives the 2nd half kick-off so if they can score a touchdown it will tighten things up. Big if.

[OldPhiKap]

Halftime: Alabama 31, Oklahoma 10.

Oklahoma receives the 2nd half kick-off so if they can score a touchdown it will tighten things up. Big if.

Yup. Game is far from over. But Oklahoma needs to make up some ground and get some stops soon.

[duke09hms]

I watched the ND/Clemson game and confess to rooting for ND as the underdog. Ian Book looked terrible and Kelly has a history of being unable to make adjustments. ND had a nice running back and the game was close at first, but Clemson made adjustments and it was over. One pet peeve I had was when Davo Sweeney and his psychopathic defensive assistant went ballistic when they didn't get a call for a takeaway when the play had been blown dead on forward progress. What terrible sports. They are up 30 to 3 and were getting the ball back. I like to think the Duke coaches would show a little more class. After that display, I'm rooting against Clemson in the national championship game which appears to be against Bama at this point. Nevermind they are ACC, they have no class.

gosh because I've never seen K argue a call. Cmon, it's a competition, we would love to have coaches like Sweeney and Venables after Cut.

[DukieTiger]

I watched the ND/Clemson game and confess to rooting for ND as the underdog. Ian Book looked terrible and Kelly has a history of being unable to make adjustments. ND had a nice running back and the game was close at first, but Clemson made adjustments and it was over. One pet peeve I had was when Davo Sweeney and his psychopathic defensive assistant went ballistic when they didn't get a call for a takeaway when the play had been blown dead on forward progress. What terrible sports. They are up 30 to 3 and were getting the ball back. I like to think the Duke coaches would show a little more class. After that display, I'm rooting against Clemson in the national championship game which appears to be against Bama at this point. Nevermind they are ACC, they have no class.

A) The play wasn’t blown dead for foreword progress, the whistle was super late and the call was unclear. You can tell Clemson didn’t know that was the call because they tried to challenge the ruling on the field

B) Dabo has an incredible reputation and by all accounts is nothing but class

C) Their frustration was just as likely about their player not getting credit for an awesome play

D) These are the kind of snap judgments people make about Coach K when he gets on the refs

[OldPhiKap]

gosh because I've never seen K argue a call. Cmon, it's a competition, we would love to have coaches like Sweeney and Venables after Cut.

Dabo was fighting for everything, I don’t have a problem with what he and his staff did. And it must have been a crazy-quick whistle because I thought they were right.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I watched the ND/Clemson game and confess to rooting for ND as the underdog. Ian Book looked terrible and Kelly has a history of being unable to make adjustments. ND had a nice running back and the game was close at first, but Clemson made adjustments and it was over. One pet peeve I had was when Davo Sweeney and his psychopathic defensive assistant went ballistic when they didn't get a call for a takeaway when the play had been blown dead on forward progress. What terrible sports. They are up 30 to 3 and were getting the ball back. I like to think the Duke coaches would show a little more class. After that display, I'm rooting against Clemson in the national championship game which appears to be against Bama at this point. Nevermind they are ACC, they have no class.

...someone needs a chill pill...and if you think that play was really blown dead for forward progress, I have some land due east of Cape Hatteras I'd like to sell you...and you're wrong about Dabo.

[Troublemaker]

I don't think one has anything to do with the other.

Agree to disagree. I like that the ACC is 6-2 against the spread, including Clemson's own easy cover today, and including UVA's 28-0 demolition of South Carolina (an SEC team who was favored over UVA) and think it is probably meaningful.

I'm hoping Bama continues to roll OU and Clemson is a 7.5 / 8 point underdog in the title game.

[Saratoga2]

...someone needs a chill pill...and if you think that play was really blown dead for forward progress, I have some land due east of Cape Hatteras I'd like to sell you...and you're wrong about Dabo.

The ref said so after so I do think it was blown dead because forward progress was stopped. I stand by my view that Dabo and his apoplectic defensive coach lack class and demonstrated it. Look at a replay and see how they went on and on with the game already won. I hope Alabama gets them.

Now Kelly of Notre Dame made no adjustments and essentially the ND offense went 3 and out most of the game leaving their defense on the field. They did well at first, but had injuries and tired as the game wore on. The ND fan site has arguments going about the difference in talent versus the lack of coaching adjustments. Give Sabin ND's talent and they would do better given time to impact them.

[DukieInKansas]

The ref said so after so I do think it was blown dead because forward progress was stopped. I stand by my view that Dabo and his apoplectic defensive coach lack class and demonstrated it. Look at a replay and see how they went on and on with the game already won. I hope Alabama gets them.

Now Kelly of Notre Dame made no adjustments and essentially the ND offense went 3 and out most of the game leaving their defense on the field. They did well at first, but had injuries and tired as the game wore on. The ND fan site has arguments going about the difference in talent versus the lack of coaching adjustments. Give Sabin ND's talent and they would do better given time to impact them.

Have you been watching Saban on the sidelines? :D

[duke09hms]

Have you been watching Saban on the sidelines? :D

hahahaha true, gotta love competitors go at it!
I think Saratoga is a ND fan

[jdk]

Clemson over ND for the outright ACC title wasn't the prized matchup I had been expecting.

ND joins Citadel and Kent State as the only teams who couldn't find the end zone against Clemson.

Even Pitt was more competitive.

Poor Georgia. Too bad they can't be independent in everything except football.

[wavedukefan70s]

As good as Bama looks, kinda crazy to think that Georgia should've beaten them the last two times they played.

I like georgia .I think they should have been in the bcs.im not sure if they can beat bama .they sure are better than notre dame and probably better than anyone in the bcs not named Alabama.

[Troublemaker]

Bama has no equal in the bcs .Clemson cannot touch them.


I like georgia .I think they should have been in the bcs.im not sure if they can beat bama .they sure are better than notre dame and probably better than anyone in the bcs not named Alabama.

Why the disrespect for Clemson? I think they're better on both sides of the ball than Georgia, and I think I would take Clemson +6 in the national title game.

[YmoBeThere]

Why the disrespect for Clemson? I think they're better on both sides of the ball than Georgia, and I think I would take Clemson +6 in the national title game.

Because when the statement was made the Tide were clearly rolling over an Oklahoma quarterback who for a quater plus was not up to the task. Interesting that no further comment was made after Murray and the Sooners finally caught up to the speed of the game.

I'm not sure I'd take them plus 6, but if I got 10 I would take the action. It is a 3 team race in college football and close enough IMO than an ingame injury could change the outcome.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

The ref said so after so I do think it was blown dead because forward progress was stopped.

I don't believe it...it's not what I saw. The ref was protecting his crew from another over turn. Field refs hate over turns. It's an ego thing. Clearly the ball was stripped and it wasn't stripped because the ND player heard a whistle and stopped. Total bs.

Dabo is one of the better guys in the business....and frankly, Duke and the ACC need the revenue shares Clemson brings (even more than they need the hoop revenue shares Duke brings). Equating being fiery with "low class" is to mis-understand the sport. Not everyone is a stoic on the sidelines, like Cut is.

[Troublemaker]

I'm not sure I'd take them plus 6, but if I got 10 I would take the action. It is a 3 team race in college football and close enough IMO than an ingame injury could change the outcome.

Ha, I too would love +10 in a game between even teams, but +6.5 (available at some books) is probably the best we can get. It's more likely to move down than up, imo.

[Papa John]

Dabo is one of the better guys in the business... Equating being fiery with "low class" is to mis-understand the sport. Not everyone is a stoic on the sidelines, like Cut is.

I tend to agree with you about Dabo. Seems like a down-to-earth guy who enjoys coaching his kids...

However, this bowl season has thrown a disturbing question to ponder into the mix... 3 out of 12 Clemson players test positive for having PEDs in their system—that's 25% of the samples tested, all of them lineman. Who here believes that if they were to test the remainder of the Clemson players their samples would come up clean? I'd be willing to bet that you'd find more kids with Ostarine in their system, and my hunch would be that a good portion of the lineman would test positive.

Which raises another question—if a quarter of the team's samples tested positive for an obscure PED, why would the NCAA not conduct additional testing to determine whether the PED use among the team was more widespread? Is it because the NCAA is afraid that a bunch of additional samples will come back positive, forcing them to suspend additional key players and thereby turning their CFB semifinal into a farce?

I have to say, the NCAA does not engender any confidence at all that rules have any substance or consistent application in any sport at this point.

[Bob Green]

However, this bowl season has thrown a disturbing question to ponder into the mix... 3 out of 12 Clemson players test positive for having PEDs in their system—that's 25% of the samples tested, all of them lineman. Who here believes that if they were to test the remainder of the Clemson players their samples would come up clean? I'd be willing to bet that you'd find more kids with Ostarine in their system, and my hunch would be that a good portion of the lineman would test positive.



The high percentage of positive results definitely causes one to ponder and I agree with you that a team sweep urinalysis would result in additional samples testing positive.

[wavedukefan70s]

Why the disrespect for Clemson? I think they're better on both sides of the ball than Georgia, and I think I would take Clemson +6 in the national title game.

Clemson's good .i believe Georgia is better.clemson losing arguably thier best d lineman doesnt help.clemson secondary got burned quite a few times by south Carolina. Alabama will smoke clemson's secondary .
Duke ,wake forest and notre dame couldnt get to the endzone on clemson.Georgia lost by 7 points to alabama.i believe Clemson will lose by at least 10 probably 14.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Clemson's good .i believe Georgia is better.clemson losing arguably thier best d lineman doesnt help.clemson secondary got burned quite a few times by south Carolina. Alabama will smoke clemson's secondary .
Duke ,wake forest and notre dame couldnt get to the endzone on clemson.Georgia lost by 7 points to alabama.i believe Clemson will lose by at least 10 probably 14.

The SC game was a one off game......by your logic, Virginia would smoke Clemson too. Do you really believe that?

[Spanarkel]

I hear ‘ya, but a two-loss UGA was never going to bump either of these undefeated teams. If Kirby Smart had only lived up to his name . . . .

Fast forward to 9/21/19 when ND visits UGA and the teams can be compared on the field.

[OldPhiKap]

Fast forward to 9/21/19 when ND visits UGA and the teams can be compared on the field.

Yup. Although since Duke will beat both Alabama and Notre Dame next year, its kinda moot. ;-)

If ND was in the ACC, they would have played Clemson either in-season and/or in the championship. One, if not both, would have been knocked out of the playoffs and either UGA or tOSU would have gotten in.

[wavedukefan70s]

The SC game was a one off game...by your logic, Virginia would smoke Clemson too. Do you really believe that?

Clemson gave up 183.8 yds a game .alabama got 205 a game.alabamas schedule was a lot tougher than clemsons.i believe Alabama's passing game will overwhelm clemsons secondary.
I do not believe clemson's defensive line can overpower Alabama's o line either .I do believe bamas defense is going to harass Lawrence more than he has been all season.
I still say bama is 14 points better than clemson.
We will see soon enough.

[budwom]

Clemson gave up 183.8 yds a game .alabama got 205 a game.alabamas schedule was a lot tougher than clemsons.i believe Alabama's passing game will overwhelm clemsons secondary.
I do not believe clemson's defensive line can overpower Alabama's o line either .I do believe bamas defense is going to harass Lawrence more than he has been all season.
I still say bama is 14 points better than clemson.
We will see soon enough.

If you feel that strongly about it, you should bet accordingly since the early line is Bama by 6. I personally have no idea what to expect...

[wavedukefan70s]

Yup. Although since Duke will beat both Alabama and Notre Dame next year, its kinda moot. ;-)

If ND was in the ACC, they would have played Clemson either in-season and/or in the championship. One, if not both, would have been knocked out of the playoffs and either UGA or tOSU would have gotten in.

Yep I realize uga shouldnt have lost to LSU. But I think they got unfairly punished by having to play alabama in the sec championship.i thought the 7 point loss should have solidified that they belonged in the bcs.to be honest no one (outside thier fanbase)thought Oklahoma and notre dame had a legitimate shot at being in the championship game.

[wavedukefan70s]

If you feel that strongly about it, you should bet accordingly since the early line is Bama by 6. I personally have no idea what to expect...

Already have got 200 on bama covering the spread.i dont bet over 1000 a year period win lose or draw.
I'm hoping my earlier bet that the Redskins wouldnt win 8 games will shoulder some of it.that was just a random bet I didnt expect to actually come close to winning .I needed bait for another sure bet lol

[OldPhiKap]

Yep I realize uga shouldnt have lost to LSU. But I think they got unfairly punished by having to play alabama in the sec championship.i thought the 7 point loss should have solidified that they belonged in the bcs.to be honest no one (outside thier fanbase)thought Oklahoma and notre dame had a legitimate shot at being in the championship game.

I guess the flip side argument is that Georgia got a shot to beat Alabama but couldn’t do it. Why not give three other teams a shot at getting and winning that match-up?

I live in Georgia and watch the Dawgs a lot. There is no question that they played phenomenally in the championship game. But that is as much of an outlier, arguably, as was the loss to LSU. Georgia was really good this year, but certainly not great.

I hate tOSU, but one bad loss knocked them out of contention. UCF is undefeated but not in the mix. UGA essentially had a playoff game in the SEC Championship — win and you’re in. All in all, they had more of a chance than tOSU or UCF had to make the playoffs.

Kirby’s crazy decisions to pull a fake FG at LSU, and the fake punt against Alabama, were panic calls that cost UGA the chance to make the playoffs it seems to me. And UGA should be even better next year, so if you like the Dawgs then the future looks bright. Kirby just needs to PLAY @##$@#$& FOOTBALL and drop the desperation special teams tricks.

[wavedukefan70s]

I guess the flip side argument is that Georgia got a shot to beat Alabama but couldn’t do it. Why not give three other teams a shot at getting and winning that match-up?

I live in Georgia and watch the Dawgs a lot. There is no question that they played phenomenally in the championship game. But that is as much of an outlier, arguably, as was the loss to LSU. Georgia was really good this year, but certainly not great.

I hate tOSU, but one bad loss knocked them out of contention. UCF is undefeated but not in the mix. UGA essentially had a playoff game in the SEC Championship — win and you’re in.

Kirby’s crazy decisions to pull a fake FG at LSU, and the fake punt against Alabama, were panic calls that cost UGA the chance to make the playoffs it seems to me. And UGA should be even better next year, so if you like the Dawgs then the future looks bright. Kirby just needs to PLAY @##$@#$& FOOTBALL and drop the desperation special teams tricks.

That I agree with.i could have lived with ucf getting in also.
I like Georgia and a few college teams.my kid likes oregon .i have no idea where that came from. (I bet him he couldnt put the oregon o on straight on my back glass .unfortunately he did i have what i assume is the only truck with a 10 in green oregon o on the back glass in south Carolina. )

[OldPhiKap]

That I agree with.i could have lived with ucf getting in also.
I like Georgia and a few college teams.my kid likes oregon .i have no idea where that came from. (I bet him he couldnt put the oregon o on straight on my back glass .unfortunately he did i have what i assume is the only truck with a 10 in green oregon o on the back glass in south Carolina. )

Most ducks on the Cooper and Yemassee Rivers get shot come mid-November.

[DukieInKansas]

I tend to agree with you about Dabo. Seems like a down-to-earth guy who enjoys coaching his kids...

However, this bowl season has thrown a disturbing question to ponder into the mix... 3 out of 12 Clemson players test positive for having PEDs in their system—that's 25% of the samples tested, all of them lineman. Who here believes that if they were to test the remainder of the Clemson players their samples would come up clean? I'd be willing to bet that you'd find more kids with Ostarine in their system, and my hunch would be that a good portion of the lineman would test positive.

Which raises another question—if a quarter of the team's samples tested positive for an obscure PED, why would the NCAA not conduct additional testing to determine whether the PED use among the team was more widespread? Is it because the NCAA is afraid that a bunch of additional samples will come back positive, forcing them to suspend additional key players and thereby turning their CFB semifinal into a farce?

I have to say, the NCAA does not engender any confidence at all that rules have any substance or consistent application in any sport at this point.

One of the 3 was a reserve tightend.

[rocketeli]

I tend to agree with you about Dabo. Seems like a down-to-earth guy who enjoys coaching his kids...

However, this bowl season has thrown a disturbing question to ponder into the mix... 3 out of 12 Clemson players test positive for having PEDs in their system—that's 25% of the samples tested, all of them lineman. Who here believes that if they were to test the remainder of the Clemson players their samples would come up clean? I'd be willing to bet that you'd find more kids with Ostarine in their system, and my hunch would be that a good portion of the lineman would test positive.

Which raises another question—if a quarter of the team's samples tested positive for an obscure PED, why would the NCAA not conduct additional testing to determine whether the PED use among the team was more widespread? Is it because the NCAA is afraid that a bunch of additional samples will come back positive, forcing them to suspend additional key players and thereby turning their CFB semifinal into a farce?

I have to say, the NCAA does not engender any confidence at all that rules have any substance or consistent application in any sport at this point.

...and the Clemson coach was shocked, shocked!, by the positive results...I suppose he has to go through the motions. I've learned in life never to ask a question unless you want to hear every possible answer, and I very much doubt the NCAA wants to know anything more about Clemson's use of PEDs. If they all were positive it would make for a less interesting telecast, and would shine an unpleasant light on one of the realities of playing big time football that they would rather no one think about.

[wavedukefan70s]

Most ducks on the Cooper and Yemassee Rivers get shot come mid-November.

That is true.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

...and the Clemson coach was shocked, shocked, by the positive results...I suppose he has to go through the motions. I've learned in life never to ask a question unless you want to hear every possible answer, and I very much doubt the NCAA wants to know anything more about Clemson's use of PEDs. If they all were positive it would make for a less interesting telecast, and would shine an unpleasant light on one of the realities of playing big time football that they would rather no one think about.

...you sorta sound like those haters who are insistent that Coach K paid Zion big bucks to come to Duke. Just sayin......

[rocketeli]

...you sorta sound like those haters who are insistent that Coach K paid Zion big bucks to come to Duke. Just sayin...

I don't think K had to pay Zion Williamson to come to Duke, but I'm not interested in having him tested for PEDs either.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I don't think K had to pay Zion Williamson to come to Duke, but I'm not interested in having him tested for PEDs either.

methinks you missed the point...........:o

[rocketeli]

methinks you missed the point.......:o

naw, just trying to start something:D
Actually, though this got me thinking, this might be off-topic, but our attitude to "steroids" might be a little weird (as a physician I know that there are possible health risks but they are very much less than the anti-PED propaganda, maybe less than a lot of approved performance enhancing activities if used by experts)
I know that for many guys sports are a substitute war, with their team being the holy, pure defenders of the faith, but in real life sports are an entertainment business and a cut throat one that often treats its entertainer employees shabbily.
And for an athlete, it is fine to use performance enhancing cheating on the field ("if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying") fine to use performance enhancing expertise, diet, and exercise training, fine to be born with performance enhancing muscles or VO capacity you did nothing to deserve, fine to have any number of performance enhancing surgeries, but take a few steps to improve your biochemical milieu and well!
Therefore if I were a professional athlete (which includes division I revenue sports) I would not hesitate to seek any enhancer I could get, given the unforgiving nature of the business, the personal stakes, and the arbitrary lines between allowed and not allowed performance enhancing activities.

[Reilly]

I hope we use the extra rest before our next game to our advantage, and that the shorter turnaround time harms 'Bama.

[Spanarkel]

I guess the flip side argument is that Georgia got a shot to beat Alabama but couldn’t do it. Why not give three other teams a shot at getting and winning that match-up?

I live in Georgia and watch the Dawgs a lot. There is no question that they played phenomenally in the championship game. But that is as much of an outlier, arguably, as was the loss to LSU. Georgia was really good this year, but certainly not great.

I hate tOSU, but one bad loss knocked them out of contention. UCF is undefeated but not in the mix. UGA essentially had a playoff game in the SEC Championship — win and you’re in. All in all, they had more of a chance than tOSU or UCF had to make the playoffs.

Kirby’s crazy decisions to pull a fake FG at LSU, and the fake punt against Alabama, were panic calls that cost UGA the chance to make the playoffs it seems to me. And UGA should be even better next year, so if you like the Dawgs then the future looks bright. Kirby just needs to PLAY @##$@#$& FOOTBALL and drop the desperation special teams tricks.

Totally agree with your thoughts! UGA is closing the gap between itself and Alabama, though one has to wonder with Saban at the helm if it's possible for them to eliminate the gap.

[Papa John]

One of the 3 was a reserve tightend.

Correct, a tight end—i.e., a hybrid offensive lineman/receiver who often lines up just outside one of the tackles on the offensive line in order to provide additional run-blocking support. I can guarantee you that the tight ends spend a lot of time with the offensive lineman.


...and the Clemson coach was shocked, shocked!, by the positive results...I suppose he has to go through the motions. I've learned in life never to ask a question unless you want to hear every possible answer, and I very much doubt the NCAA wants to know anything more about Clemson's use of PEDs. If they all were positive it would make for a less interesting telecast, and would shine an unpleasant light on one of the realities of playing big time football that they would rather no one think about.

So it seems you're immediately assuming that Dabo and his S&C staff knew about the Ostarine, which could be the case. But it's just as plausible to conclude that he was, indeed, surprised by the test result and had no idea. It's just as logical to assume that one of the players somehow found out about Ostarine and started using it, and his peers noticed the results and asked what he was doing differently and the situation snowballed from there. I actually think this is the more plausible explanation.


Actually, though this got me thinking, this might be off-topic, but our attitude to "steroids" might be a little weird (as a physician I know that there are possible health risks but they are very much less than the anti-PED propaganda, maybe less than a lot of approved performance enhancing activities if used by experts)
I know that for many guys sports are a substitute war, with their team being the holy, pure defenders of the faith, but in real life sports are an entertainment business and a cut throat one that often treats its entertainer employees shabbily.
And for an athlete, it is fine to use performance enhancing cheating on the field ("if you ain't cheating, you ain't trying") fine to use performance enhancing expertise, diet, and exercise training, fine to be born with performance enhancing muscles or VO capacity you did nothing to deserve, fine to have any number of performance enhancing surgeries, but take a few steps to improve your biochemical milieu and well!
Therefore if I were a professional athlete (which includes division I revenue sports) I would not hesitate to seek any enhancer I could get, given the unforgiving nature of the business, the personal stakes, and the arbitrary lines between allowed and not allowed performance enhancing activities.

If you ain't cheating, you ain't trying isn't a mantra I was ever taught in my youth by coaches, but then I never played anything at a collegiate level or beyond. Of course, my daughter did, and she never heard that mantra either. While I understand the point that perhaps how we view PEDs should evolve to be a bit more nuanced given the medical benefit they can provide, the fact is that currently the use of most of these substances [e.g. Ostarine] is banned according to the rules of most professional and collegiate sports around the globe. Governing bodies can certainly change the rules to allow for a more nuanced approach, but for the time being they haven't, so the rules are the rules...

Of course, as we observed in the case of the Carolina athletic-academic-eligibility scandal, rules are often ignored [inconsistently enforced] by said governing bodies... Which brings me back to my closing point—the NCAA does not engender any confidence at all that rules have any substance or consistent application in any sport at this point... Personally, that's had a negative impact on my enjoyment of collegiate athletics (though my wife argues that's actually a good thing, as I spend far less time worrying about what she views as meaningless crap in the first place :rolleyes: ;) )...

[elvis14]

Very happy with Clemson's blowout of ND, led by Dabo who is all class. I can't even begin to properly address the ridiculousness of the petty criticism of Dabo in this thread. Come on, learn more about the guy and knock it off.

I can say that the 5 blown calls in ND's favor were annoying and frustrating. At least we were able to get 4 of them corrected. The 5th, that ridiculous call on the fumble/takeaway was probably the worst of the bunch. There are Clemson fans that were getting a bit suspicious after the 5th.

I don't know if Clemson can beat Alabama, the Tide are really good, again. Clemson is clearly the #2 college football program but closing in on Alabama is tough because Alabama wins the recruiting game and has for a long time.

[budwom]

Already have got 200 on bama covering the spread.i dont bet over 1000 a year period win lose or draw.
I'm hoping my earlier bet that the Redskins wouldnt win 8 games will shoulder some of it.that was just a random bet I didnt expect to actually come close to winning .I needed bait for another sure bet lol

I very rarely bet on games these days, and the Bama Okie game was a perfect example why. I thought Bama was clearly better than OK, more than the spread would indicate, but funny things happen with spreads.
Bame jumped out to a huge lead, then got complacent and sloppy (how many penalties did they have on offense?)...they allowed Oklahoma somewhat back in the game, clearly could have scored another touchdown at the end, but
chose to run out the clock, thereby failing to cover.

It's amazing how often the spread is in play at the very end of our hoop games, dependent upon whether a bench dweller might throw in a three or not....

[Bob Green]

Halftime: Virginia Tech 14, Cincinnati 14.

I'm holding my nose and pulling for VT to notch another win for the ACC.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Very happy with Clemson's blowout of ND, led by Dabo who is all class. I can't even begin to properly address the ridiculousness of the petty criticism of Dabo in this thread. Come on, learn more about the guy and knock it off.

I can say that the 5 blown calls in ND's favor were annoying and frustrating. At least we were able to get 4 of them corrected. The 5th, that ridiculous call on the fumble/takeaway was probably the worst of the bunch. There are Clemson fans that were getting a bit suspicious after the 5th.

I don't know if Clemson can beat Alabama, the Tide are really good, again. Clemson is clearly the #2 college football program but closing in on Alabama is tough because Alabama wins the recruiting game and has for a long time.

I pretty much concur with everything you say above. I also found it suspicious that a ND player was down, and required all kinds of attention on the field, after every Clemson play that was successful. Never got hurt on a play where Clemson was stopped. Once Clemson put the game away none got hurt. Almost like they were trying to keep Clemson from getting any tempo going (and yes, I realize one of those injuries was legit to a key ND player....but this was a pattern for much of the game).

[OldPhiKap]

VT goes down to Cincy, Pitt up a bit at the half over Stanford.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

VT goes down to Cincy, Pitt up a bit at the half over Stanford.

The myth of the Bud Foster defense lives on.......with the game on the line, VT's defense barely made Cincy struggle.....

[Troublemaker]

VT goes down to Cincy, Pitt up a bit at the half over Stanford.

But another spread cover for the ACC!

[TKG]

Pittsburgh looked like crud against Stanford. How did we lose to that team? Pitt scored a whopping 13 points.

[elvis14]

I pretty much concur with everything you say above. I also found it suspicious that a ND player was down, and required all kinds of attention on the field, after every Clemson play that was successful. Never got hurt on a play where Clemson was stopped. Once Clemson put the game away none got hurt. Almost like they were trying to keep Clemson from getting any tempo going (and yes, I realize one of those injuries was legit to a key ND player...but this was a pattern for much of the game).

Yeah, ND pulled a few of the NY Giant "injury" timeouts to delay the Clemson offense and try to keep their defense from getting worn down. I was talking with a friend during the game when ND had one of these injuries (to a player who was back on the field 2 plays later). He mentioned it but we didn't dwell on it with there already having been 4 blown and reversed calls at the time (the 5th ridiculous call had not yet happened). I find that more unsportsmanlike than Coach K-like intensity from coaches.

[OldPhiKap]

Yeah, ND pulled a few of the NY Giant "injury" timeouts to delay the Clemson offense and try to keep their defense from getting worn down. I was talking with a friend during the game when ND had one of these injuries (to a player who was back on the field 2 plays later). He mentioned it but we didn't dwell on it with there already having been 4 blown and reversed calls at the time (the 5th ridiculous call had not yet happened). I find that more unsportsmanlike than Coach K-like intensity from coaches.

When the best things announcers can say about your coach is that “he isn’t turning red and showing his butt like usual,” I’m finding it hard to pull for ‘ya.

Anyway, from my friends at SEC Shorts:

https://youtu.be/5q8l4YFS4Mk

[JasonEvans]

Anyway, from my friends at SEC Shorts:

https://youtu.be/5q8l4YFS4Mk

Always brilliant! I'd kill for someone to make an ACC Adventures involving basketball teams.

[kmspeaks]

Want to let UCF hang around and pretend they could compete week in and week out in a P5 Conference? Send in the ACC refs with two pretty bad no calls on the knights' two scores.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Want to let UCF hang around and pretend they could compete week in and week out in a P5 Conference?

WF versus Memphis and Duke V Temple kind of answered this question for me.....

[JasonEvans]

WF versus Memphis and Duke V Temple kind of answered this question for me...

LSU is answering it as well (up 10, 34-24 entering the 4th quarter). It is clear that Central Florida is quite good, perhaps even one of the top 10-15 teams in the land, but they really do not belong in the championship discussion.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

LSU is answering it as well (up 10, 34-24 entering the 4th quarter). It is clear that Central Florida is quite good, perhaps even one of the top 10-15 teams in the land, but they really do not belong in the championship discussion.

....and, since LSU should've put this game away 15 minutes ago, I think it's fair to say that LSU is mega talented and poorly coached with very poor discipline. UCF may catch them yet. How to dominate a game....and maybe still lose it....

[wavedukefan70s]

LSU is answering it as well (up 10, 34-24 entering the 4th quarter). It is clear that Central Florida is quite good, perhaps even one of the top 10-15 teams in the land, but they really do not belong in the championship discussion.

I have to disagree to a degree.with thier starting qb I think they were close to as good as notre dame.
Regardless of record I believe georgia, alabama and Clemson the top 3 teams.after that the water gets a little murky.ucf may match up better with notre dame than lsu .I believe if thier qb had stayed healthy they deserved a shot.with out him no.reason being 2 loses kept what a lot consider the second best team out of the bcs.so its somewhat about record.i believe they earned a shot with a healthy qb.

[Wander]

LSU is answering it as well (up 10, 34-24 entering the 4th quarter). It is clear that Central Florida is quite good, perhaps even one of the top 10-15 teams in the land, but they really do not belong in the championship discussion.

This result is totally consistent with a healthy UCF being a top 5 team on the level of Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Ohio State, etc. They are not as good as Alabama or Clemson, and they take a large step back with their quarterback injured – so if that is what you mean, I agree. But a healthy UCF absolutely belongs in the championship discussion and IMO is slightly better than the Notre Dame team that actually did make the playoff.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

This result is totally consistent with a healthy UCF being a top 5 team on the level of Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Ohio State, etc. They are not as good as Alabama or Clemson, and they take a large step back with their quarterback injured – so if that is what you mean, I agree. But a healthy UCF absolutely belongs in the championship discussion and IMO is slightly better than the Notre Dame team that actually did make the playoff.

Disagree. LSU totally dominated them physically, even with the LSU defense more injury riddled than Duke's. LSU left 20 points on the field easy. That game was not nearly as close as score indicated. LSU had to play wide receivers in the secondary.

[Stray Gator]

I have to disagree to a degree.with thier starting qb I think they were close to as good as notre dame.
Regardless of record I believe georgia, alabama and Clemson the top 3 teams.after that the water gets a little murky.ucf may match up better with notre dame than lsu .I believe if thier qb had stayed healthy they deserved a shot.with out him no.reason being 2 loses kept what a lot consider the second best team out of the bcs.so its somewhat about record.i believe they earned a shot with a healthy qb.

If we're going to make excuses for UCF based on their starting quarterback being out, let's not ignore the countervailing effect of LSU's 6 missing starters on defense -- which became a total of 8 down after two additional LSU defenders were ejected in the first half. In addition, UCF was spotted two early touchdowns in this game on plays that, as the announcers correctly observed, should both have been nullified by holding penalties on UCF players. While the score was deceptively close, LSU clearly dominated, with more than double UCF's total yardage (555 to 250), almost twice as many first downs (32 to 17), and nearly triple the time of possession (44:11 to 15:29). If not for multiple instances of mindless stupidity by LSU players that resulted in untimely penalties, and a few generous no-calls by the ACC officials that favored the Knights, UCF would have been soundly defeated in this game on the scoreboard as well as on the field. IMO, the playoff already included one team that had no business being there, and UCF was no more deserving.

[wavedukefan70s]

If we're going to make excuses for UCF based on their starting quarterback being out, let's not ignore the countervailing effect of LSU's 6 missing starters on defense -- which became a total of 8 down after two additional LSU defenders were ejected in the first half. In addition, UCF was spotted two early touchdowns in this game on plays that, as the announcers correctly observed, should both have been nullified by holding penalties on UCF players. While the score was deceptively close, LSU clearly dominated, with more than double UCF's total yardage (555 to 250), almost twice as many first downs (32 to 17), and nearly triple the time of possession (44:11 to 15:29). If not for multiple instances of mindless stupidity by LSU players that resulted in untimely penalties, and a few generous no-calls by the ACC officials that favored the Knights, UCF would have been soundly defeated in this game on the scoreboard as well as on the field. IMO, the playoff already included one team that had no business being there, and UCF was no more deserving.

Yes they did double the yardage.ucf freshman QB at one point missed 10 passes give or take.i absolutely believe with thier starting qb they beat lsu.
Lsu does not have the time of possession they had if ucf has a qb.
Going by the criteria of record that the bcs used to keep Georgia out should have had ucf in with thier starting qb.
Officials are horrible at all levels.
In my opinion the bcs had two teams that did not belong.the two best teams are in the sec.if notre dame deserved to be in the bcs then by default so did ucf.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Yes they did double the yardage.ucf freshman QB at one point missed 10 passes give or take.i absolutely believe with thier starting qb they beat lsu.
Lsu does not have the time of possession they had if ucf has a qb.
Going by the criteria of record that the bcs used to keep Georgia out should have had ucf in with thier starting qb.
Officials are horrible at all levels.
In my opinion the bcs had two teams that did not belong.the two best teams are in the sec.if notre dame deserved to be in the bcs then by default so did ucf.

No way they beat LSU unless LSU is in one of those dont giveadam moods in a minor bowl. LSU's injury problems were far worse than UCF's over all....so let's not go there.

[kmspeaks]

Yes they did double the yardage.ucf freshman QB at one point missed 10 passes give or take.i absolutely believe with thier starting qb they beat lsu.
Lsu does not have the time of possession they had if ucf has a qb.
Going by the criteria of record that the bcs used to keep Georgia out should have had ucf in with thier starting qb.
Officials are horrible at all levels.
In my opinion the bcs had two teams that did not belong.the two best teams are in the sec.if notre dame deserved to be in the bcs then by default so did ucf.

UCF, with a month to prepare, was *sort of able to hang with the 4th or 5th best team in the SEC who between injuries, bowl holdouts, and ejections were playing wide receivers on defense. Not sure how that equates to being one of the four best teams in the country.

Could UCF with Milton maybe have given Clemson a game? Sure, Appalachian State beat Michigan, anything can happen in one game. Could UCF compete week in and week out in a P5 Conference? Not a chance.



*17 of their 32 points came from the two missed holding calls and the LSU punt returner slipping on the grass

[OldPhiKap]

Is there anyone that prefers the “Command Center” multi-screens to the traditional? I’m sure there is a market for it, but it drives me nuts.

[wavedukefan70s]

UCF, with a month to prepare, was *sort of able to hang with the 4th or 5th best team in the SEC who between injuries, bowl holdouts, and ejections were playing wide receivers on defense. Not sure how that equates to being one of the four best teams in the country.

Could UCF with Milton maybe have given Clemson a game? Sure, Appalachian State beat Michigan, anything can happen in one game. Could UCF compete week in and week out in a P5 Conference? Not a chance.



*17 of their 32 points came from the two missed holding calls and the LSU punt returner slipping on the grass
A month is not enough to prepare years worth of experience into a qb.calls are calls .there is holding on every offensive down I've ever watched .
Your mistaking what I'm saying .I'm not saying they are top 4.im saying by record they should be in the bcs .if it was good enough to keep Georgia out .its good enough to get them in.i believe with thier qb they were as good as notre dame.if we are going by strength of schedule. Then clemsons schedule doesnt add up either .if they play all sec teams they are not undefeated.the bcs is a joke.a viable playoff needs to be made.highschool and nfl have one.
Alabama georgia then Clemson are the three best teams .in that order.

[arnie]

UCF, with a month to prepare, was *sort of able to hang with the 4th or 5th best team in the SEC who between injuries, bowl holdouts, and ejections were playing wide receivers on defense. Not sure how that equates to being one of the four best teams in the country.

Could UCF with Milton maybe have given Clemson a game? Sure, Appalachian State beat Michigan, anything can happen in one game. Could UCF compete week in and week out in a P5 Conference? Not a chance.



*17 of their 32 points came from the two missed holding calls and the LSU punt returner slipping on the grass

Hate to pile on, but will. The American conference was very, very weak this year with Temple finishing 7-1. UCF struggled to beat them and other weak sisters. Last year’s UCF was much better, but not at upper level Power 5, IMO. We can trash ND, but they did beat Michigan among other credible teams; don’t think UCF would have done any better than 9-3 against ND schedule.

[A-Tex Devil]

As Uga found out pregame, Bevo means business. Of course, outcomes be damned, there were and will be only two possible narratives east of the Sabine and in College Station: SEC dominates Big XII again, or Georgia wasn’t motivated. Lot of time left in 4th. Hook ‘Em.

[OldPhiKap]

As Uga found out pregame, Bevo means business. Of course, outcomes be damned, there were and will be only two possible narratives east of the Sabine and in College Station: SEC dominates Big XII again, or Georgia wasn’t motivated. Lot of time left in 4th. Hook ‘Em.

Go Horns!

[OldPhiKap]

Georgia, the best 11-3 team in college football.

[Stray Gator]

Georgia, the best 11-3 team in college football.

Yeah, Dawgs looked good.

[Wander]

So, I assume a one-touchdown loss to the #15 team totally invalidates the thought of Georgia ever having been in the playoff discussion just like UCF’s one touchdown loss to the #11 team?

[ice-9]

Regardless of record I believe georgia, alabama and Clemson the top 3 teams.after that the water gets a little murky.

That’s the thing with opinions...everyone’s got one.

The committee got the playoffs right this year IMO.

[OldPhiKap]

So, I assume a one-touchdown loss to the #15 team totally invalidates the thought of Georgia ever having been in the playoff discussion just like UCF’s one touchdown loss to the #11 team?

No. But it does upend the argument, pervasive in this neck of the woods, that Georgia is some mythical scorned superteam. I still contend that the Alabama game for them was as much an outlier on the plus side, as Dawgs contend the LSU game was an outlier on the negative side. Fromm was off the charts in the SEC Championship game, he fell back to earth last night.

I do not like tOSU, but at least they showed up for their game. Georgia was sloppy and unfocused. If they wanted to show that they should have gotten in, they blew it.

JMHO, of course.

[Troublemaker]

So, I assume a one-touchdown loss to the #15 team totally invalidates the thought of Georgia ever having been in the playoff discussion just like UCF’s one touchdown loss to the #11 team?

No, because GA-in-the-playoffs was invalid even before this loss to Texas. The Playoff Committee needs to add two foundational principles of humility and uncertainty, i.e. "We are only humans, and our computers are created by humans as well."

The case for GA-in-the-playoffs rejects humility and uncertainty. "Bama and the SEC are so badazz awesome and Bama will blow out every team in its sights, so when GA gave them a close game, GA needs to be in the playoffs despite two losses and not being conference champion!"

There's such lack of humility and uncertainty in that type of analysis.

Are we sure Bama is even the best team in college this season, much less the greatest Bama team ever? What if Clemson spanks-dat-azz (as the kiddies would say) on Monday night? What, that's impossible? Humility and uncertainty.

If you are humble and uncertain, you realize that a close loss to Bama is no reason to make the playoffs. A close loss to Bama doesn't even make it clear that GA is one of the 4 best teams.


Clemson's good .i believe Georgia is better.clemson losing arguably thier best d lineman doesnt help.clemson secondary got burned quite a few times by south Carolina. Alabama will smoke clemson's secondary .
Duke ,wake forest and notre dame couldnt get to the endzone on clemson.Georgia lost by 7 points to alabama.i believe Clemson will lose by at least 10 probably 14.

No offense, but if Ga had played Clemson last night, I think Clemson would've won by 40.


If you feel that strongly about it, you should bet accordingly since the early line is Bama by 6. I personally have no idea what to expect...

Yeah, I still don't get the national championship line. I'm just looking at all the computer rankings with name/reputation, and they have Bama and Clemson as essentially even teams.

Sagarin (https://www.usatoday.com/sports/ncaaf/sagarin/) has Bama and Clemson as close to even teams with large distance between Clemson and third place Georgia (even before the loss to Texas).

Ditto FPI (http://www.espn.com/college-football/statistics/teamratings/_/tab/fpi)

Ditto TeamRankings (https://www.teamrankings.com/college-football/ranking/predictive-by-other)

[wavedukefan70s]

That’s the thing with opinions...everyone’s got one.

The committee got the playoffs right this year IMO.

I like my crow with a touch of Texas pete I guess.dawgz cost me 2bills last night .
Hats off to Texas georgia never got in sinc looking at the highlights.
I was so sure of victory I didnt bother to watch the game.
At least the Redskins saved me lol

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I like my crow with a touch of Texas pete I guess.dawgz cost me 2bills last night .
Hats off to Texas georgia never got in sinc looking at the highlights.
I was so sure of victory I didnt bother to watch the game.
At least the Redskins saved me lol

But this ironically doesn't make you wrong about Georgia. I told my friends yesterday that Texas could well win the game for this reason:

The history of bowl games has been pretty clear over a couple decades at least...in bowls where one team is rewarded for exceeding expectations...and the other is disappointed because they thought they earned more...the underdog who exceeded expectations almost always beats the disappointed favorite. Emotion and motivation in a physical sport like football is YUUUUUUUGE factor. (See WF Duke for recent example, in the extreme).

UCF versus Auburn last year off top of my head for example.
The famous Boise Oklahoma bowl game for another...
Louisville Florida a number of years ago.
And last night. And many others.

I'm reminded of the great speech before the 1980 US/Soviet hockey game by Herb Brooks. "Great moments are born of great opportunity..." In those bowl games mentioned above, only one team had a great opportunity. There's no great moment available for the favorites above, and no title motivations either.

A large difference in motivation and attitude often overcomes a smaller difference in physical talent...and nothing offers us the examples of major differences in motivations than Bowl Season. Well, that and Duke's road schedule...since about 1992...as Duke has been the major attraction for most road games since then.

[Stray Gator]

So, I assume a one-touchdown loss to the #15 team totally invalidates the thought of Georgia ever having been in the playoff discussion just like UCF’s one touchdown loss to the #11 team?

I watched both of these games from beginning to end. IMO, there's no question that the final scores were deceivingly close and do not reflect the real dominance of the winning teams. LSU took a 16-point lead over UCF with just a little over 4 minutes left in the game. Texas took a 21-point lead over Georgia with a little under 12 minutes left in the game. In both cases, the defenses of LSU and Texas clearly went into a more relaxed containment mode, recognizing that their leads were sufficiently safe to withstand a comeback by the opposing offense. So despite the fact that LSU and Texas gave up late scores to UCF and to Georgia that produced final margins of only a single touchdown, I believe most people who watched those games would agree that the closeness of the scores is somewhat misleading.

[Troublemaker]

But this ironically doesn't make you wrong about Georgia. I told my friends yesterday that Texas could well win the game for this reason:

The history of bowl games has been pretty clear over a couple decades at least...in bowls where one team is rewarded for exceeding expectations...and the other is disappointed because they thought they earned more...the underdog who exceeded expectations almost always beats the disappointed favorite. Emotion and motivation in a physical sport like football is YUUUUUUUGE factor. (See WF Duke for recent example, in the extreme).

I agree with you generally but am dubious about the application to this particular game. Georgia could not have reasonably believed that they would get in the Playoffs over 1-loss conference champions. They knew when they lost to Bama, the dream was over. I do think they were disappointed that they blew the game against Bama, and maybe that lingered and produced a hangover effect in their loss to Texas.

But the biggest factors were, imo:
(1) Tom Herman's sparkling record as an underdog (https://247sports.com/college/texas/Article/Texas-Longhorns-vs-Georgia-Bulldogs-Sugar-Bowl-Tom-Herman-record-as-an-underdog-against-the-spread-improves-127199806/). As that link from Texas' 247 site explains, Herman is now 13-2-1 against the spread as an underdog, including 10 outright wins. He just knows how to coach in that role.

(2) The Big 12's underrated-ness heading into bowl season (and probably the SEC's overrated-ness). Texas merely joined OkieSt and Baylor in performing outright upsets of SEC opponents Georgia, Missouri, and Vanderbilt, respectively. In fact, OkieSt, like Texas, was over a touchdown underdog to Missouri as well.

[OldPhiKap]

I agree with you generally but am dubious about the application to this particular game. Georgia could not have reasonably believed that they would get in the Playoffs over 1-loss conference champions. They knew when they lost to Bama, the dream was over. I do think they were disappointed that they blew the game against Bama, and maybe that lingered and played a decent role in their loss to Texas.

But the biggest factors were, imo:
(1) Tom Herman's sparking record as an underdog (https://247sports.com/college/texas/Article/Texas-Longhorns-vs-Georgia-Bulldogs-Sugar-Bowl-Tom-Herman-record-as-an-underdog-against-the-spread-improves-127199806/). As that link from Texas' 247 site explains, Herman is now 13-2-1 against the spread as an underdog, including 10 outright wins. He just knows how to coach in that role.

(2) The Big 12's underrated-ness heading into bowl season (and probably the SEC's overrated-ness). Texas merely joined OkieSt and Baylor in performing outright upsets of SEC opponents Georgia, Missouri, and Vanderbilt, respectively. In fact, OkieSt, like Texas, was over a touchdown underdog as well.

Tweet of the morning:

"C'mon. The SEC hasn't lost a bowl game it wanted to win in at least 40 years."

I don't think it was a hangover from the Alabama game. I think Texas came out focused and put it to the Dawgs early. After giving up a TD on the opening drive (IIRC), the Dawgs had a botched punt (which led to a FG) which was quickly followed by a fumble deep in their own territory (which led to another TD). Down 17-0 before you even get going.

Texas was the better team yesterday. Yet all I hear from Dawg Nation this morning is how great UGA is when they want to play. Ugh, get over yourselves.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I agree with you generally but am dubious about the application to this particular game. Georgia could not have reasonably believed that they would get in the Playoffs over 1-loss conference champions. They knew when they lost to Bama, the dream was over. I do think they were disappointed that they blew the game against Bama, and maybe that lingered and produced a hangover effect in their loss to Texas.
.


Yes, the disappointment here was not being jobbed out of a play off spot......as much as it was being disappointed they let it get away from them.....but the pall over their attitude would be similar in either situation. This is not the game they wanted to be in. This game was probably the top of Texas' expectations.

[Troublemaker]

Anyway, to flesh out my "uncertainty" post from above, the playoff selection method can't have a single point of failure. Have Bama enter the Playoffs as the #1 seed, fine. Think that they are one of the greatest college teams of all-time, fine. But don't just assume that that's correct and therefore choose other playoff opponents based on how closely they played a game against Bama. Because what if you're wrong about Bama? Isn't the point of the Playoffs to, in theory, let it be won on the field? Otherwise, just crown their butts without playing any more games, as Dennis Green would say.

Because you're humble and uncertain about Bama and about the SEC, you give other conferences a chance to make the playoffs. Georgia making it to the playoffs over 1-loss conference champions or over UCF would've been a travesty.

[JasonEvans]

Having nothing to do with any of this, the "confrontation" between the Georgia Bulldog mascot, Uga, and the Texas Longhorn mascot, Bevo, is one of the great moments in sports history. Nothing like a 2-ton steer with razor sharp horns bearing down on you to make you reconsider your chosen profession.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=215&v=6jyFNKxH3xg

-Jason "the good stuff starts at the 1:30 mark" Evans

[OldPhiKap]

This article sums up my frustration with the excuses I am hearing here in Dawg Nation today (and frankly, since the SEC Championship game):

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb/georgias-sugar-bowl-dud-comes-with-playoff-era-excuses-that-just-dont-fly/ar-BBRHrXP?ocid=spartandhp

As we often said to whining Maryland fans, after we beat them despite their being convinced that Maryland was the better team:

"Score-board"

[lotusland]

My observation of the non-playoff bowls is that no one really cares. Many of the best players skipped to prepare for the draft. In many cases it was the same players who played just a week or two earlier in their schools rivalry game. Gamecock’s Deebo Samuel, for instance, played in the hurricane make-up game against Akron but skipped the Belk Bowl fiasco. The fans didn’t really care as evidenced by numerous empty stadiums. Also, coaches with new gigs often don’t bother to coach in these bowl games. Seems there is minimal excitement only for schools that haven’t been to a bowl in a few years. I wonder if Duke football fans were excited about traveling to Shreveport this year after qualifying regularly this decade (I didn’t watch)? To most of us, these games served only as something to watch on TV over the holidays.

[DukieInKansas]

My observation of the non-playoff bowls is that no one really cares. Many of the best players skipped to prepare for the draft. In many cases it was the same players who played just a week or two earlier in their schools rivalry game. Gamecock’s Deebo Samuel, for instance, played in the hurricane make-up game against Akron but skipped the Belk Bowl fiasco. The fans didn’t really care as evidenced by numerous empty stadiums. Also, coaches with new gigs often don’t bother to coach in these bowl games. Seems there is minimal excitement only for schools that haven’t been to a bowl in a few years. I wonder if Duke football fans were excited about traveling to Shreveport this year after qualifying regularly this decade (I didn’t watch)? To most of us, these games served only as something to watch on TV over the holidays.

Do those that decide to skip playing still get the swag?

[HereBeforeCoachK]

My observation of the non-playoff bowls is that no one really cares. .

If that were true, the games wouldn't exist. Maybe you don't care. Certainly there a variances among the "care factor" at all the bowls.....but the Rose Bowl will always be big.....and certain teams like Duke and Wake Forest and Virginia got a whole lot out of their bowl games. Communities like Shreveport really love their bowl (some not so much).

[Stray Gator]

My observation of the non-playoff bowls is that no one really cares. . . . The fans didn’t really care as evidenced by numerous empty stadiums. . . . Seems there is minimal excitement only for schools that haven’t been to a bowl in a few years. . . . To most of us, these games served only as something to watch on TV over the holidays.

While it's true that some of the minor bowl games were sparsely attended, made-for-TV contests, I can attest to the fact that Florida's coaches, players, and fans were thoroughly pumped up for the Peach Bowl matchup against Michigan. If you watched the game, that enthusiasm was readily apparent. And the fans of both teams must have cared a bit about the game, because 74,000 attended -- meaning that Mercedes-Benz Stadium was filled to 99% of its capacity -- even though neither of these programs are strangers to bowl games. From what I could tell, the same could be said of the Citrus Bowl, the Fiesta Bowl, the Rose Bowl, and the Sugar Bowl.

[A-Tex Devil]

But this ironically doesn't make you wrong about Georgia. I told my friends yesterday that Texas could well win the game for this reason:

The history of bowl games has been pretty clear over a couple decades at least...in bowls where one team is rewarded for exceeding expectations...and the other is disappointed because they thought they earned more...the underdog who exceeded expectations almost always beats the disappointed favorite. Emotion and motivation in a physical sport like football is YUUUUUUUGE factor. (See WF Duke for recent example, in the extreme).

UCF versus Auburn last year off top of my head for example.
The famous Boise Oklahoma bowl game for another...
Louisville Florida a number of years ago.
And last night. And many others.

I'm reminded of the great speech before the 1980 US/Soviet hockey game by Herb Brooks. "Great moments are born of great opportunity..." In those bowl games mentioned above, only one team had a great opportunity. There's no great moment available for the favorites above, and no title motivations either.

A large difference in motivation and attitude often overcomes a smaller difference in physical talent...and nothing offers us the examples of major differences in motivations than Bowl Season. Well, that and Duke's road schedule...since about 1992...as Duke has been the major attraction for most road games since then.

I wrote more, but buried the lede and deleted the rest. Let's stop making "not motivated" a feature instead of a bug. It's a deficiency in these teams that, throughout the last two decades or so, deserved to lose the games they lost, validating why they weren't and shouldn't have been in the big game.

Texas was a really bad match-up for Georgia from an X's and O's perspective, which I'm happy to break down if anyone cares. I was quietly optimistic and excited about this game since Ok St. beat WVU back in November, and it became a real possibility. I also suspect D'Andre Baker backed out of the game more to avoid tape against Texas' giant receivers than for fear of injury.

The "not motivated for the game" thing is a prevalent narrative when the SEC loses big bowl games. And including Boise/OU (or even Baylor/UCF) in that discussion diminishes how well all of the teams played in both of those games, and I don't remember hearing that "not motivated" narrative after either. But in each of Bama-Utah, Bama-Oklahoma, Florida-Louisville, UCF-Auburn, and now Texas-Georgia (I'm sure I'm missing more), that's all we heard.

Win the game or take the loss.

[Wander]

I watched both of these games from beginning to end. IMO, there's no question that the final scores were deceivingly close and do not reflect the real dominance of the winning teams. LSU took a 16-point lead over UCF with just a little over 4 minutes left in the game. Texas took a 21-point lead over Georgia with a little under 12 minutes left in the game. In both cases, the defenses of LSU and Texas clearly went into a more relaxed containment mode, recognizing that their leads were sufficiently safe to withstand a comeback by the opposing offense. So despite the fact that LSU and Texas gave up late scores to UCF and to Georgia that produced final margins of only a single touchdown, I believe most people who watched those games would agree that the closeness of the scores is somewhat misleading.

I agree. So I think UCF and Georgia are basically in the same category.

IMO we have a year where there is a top tier of two teams in Alabama and Clemson, and then a second tier of teams that includes Oklahoma, a healthy UCF, Georgia, Ohio State, Notre Dame, and arguably a couple more. Trying to fit that tiering into a four-team playoff is always going to be awkward and flawed, and the choices of Oklahoma and Notre Dame made sense given that flawed system.

My only point is that UCF and Georgia experienced essentially the same bowl result (one possession loss to a top 15 team, but most people who watched would probably agree the margin "deserved" to be a little more), and interpreting that data as "it showed Georgia was unmotivated, but it showed UCF didn't belong" is just twisting yourself into knots and not very well justified.

[wavedukefan70s]

My observation of the non-playoff bowls is that no one really cares. Many of the best players skipped to prepare for the draft. In many cases it was the same players who played just a week or two earlier in their schools rivalry game. Gamecock’s Deebo Samuel, for instance, played in the hurricane make-up game against Akron but skipped the Belk Bowl fiasco. The fans didn’t really care as evidenced by numerous empty stadiums. Also, coaches with new gigs often don’t bother to coach in these bowl games. Seems there is minimal excitement only for schools that haven’t been to a bowl in a few years. I wonder if Duke football fans were excited about traveling to Shreveport this year after qualifying regularly this decade (I didn’t watch)? To most of us, these games served only as something to watch on TV over the holidays.

My daughters friend zach broke his leg in the Akron game.i think muschamp should have rested his starters.zach is a NFL caliber lineman .I do not blame debo for skipping the game.the bailey kids broken leg may cost him draft spots.draft spots are expensive. That's my take anyway.

[AGDukesky]

I agree. So I think UCF and Georgia are basically in the same category.

IMO we have a year where there is a top tier of two teams in Alabama and Clemson, and then a second tier of teams that includes Oklahoma, a healthy UCF, Georgia, Ohio State, Notre Dame, and arguably a couple more. Trying to fit that tiering into a four-team playoff is always going to be awkward and flawed, and the choices of Oklahoma and Notre Dame made sense given that flawed system.

My only point is that UCF and Georgia experienced essentially the same bowl result (one possession loss to a top 15 team, but most people who watched would probably agree the margin "deserved" to be a little more), and interpreting that data as "it showed Georgia was unmotivated, but it showed UCF didn't belong" is just twisting yourself into knots and not very well justified.

Exactly. I didn’t really think UCF was a national championship caliber team. But I’d much rather see that 4th slot filled by an undefeated, top 10 ranked team than a team like Oklahoma who lost to a solid but not great Texas team and had many unimpressive wins (particularly on defense). I saw enough of Ohio State and Georgia to know those teams were capable of playing great but also capable of laying a turd. As long as the obviously deserving teams like Alabama and Clemson (and ND simply by also being undefeated) are in, why not give the last undeafeated team a chance if the pollsters truly think that team is Top 10?

I know, I know the current playoff system tries to find the empirical best teams beyond just record. I see that as more important when there are not enough undefeated teams (or too many). Just my $.02 and I understand the other side.

[A-Tex Devil]

Having nothing to do with any of this, the "confrontation" between the Georgia Bulldog mascot, Uga, and the Texas Longhorn mascot, Bevo, is one of the great moments in sports history. Nothing like a 2-ton steer with razor sharp horns bearing down on you to make you reconsider your chosen profession.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=215&v=6jyFNKxH3xg

-Jason "the good stuff starts at the 1:30 mark" Evans

With the hindsight of no one getting hurt, has their been a better predictor of game outcome than this? Presumptuous bulldog charioted over to a young angry steer expecting to get a photo opportunity, but instead, getting the horns.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I wrote more, but buried the lede and deleted the rest. Let's stop making "not motivated" a feature instead of a bug. It's a deficiency in these teams that, throughout the last two decades or so, deserved to lose the games they lost, validating why they weren't and shouldn't have been in the big game.

Texas was a really bad match-up for Georgia from an X's and O's perspective, which I'm happy to break down if anyone cares. I was quietly optimistic and excited about this game since Ok St. beat WVU back in November, and it became a real possibility. I also suspect D'Andre Baker backed out of the game more to avoid tape against Texas' giant receivers than for fear of injury.

The "not motivated for the game" thing is a prevalent narrative when the SEC loses big bowl games. And including Boise/OU (or even Baylor/UCF) in that discussion diminishes how well all of the teams played in both of those games, and I don't remember hearing that "not motivated" narrative after either. But in each of Bama-Utah, Bama-Oklahoma, Florida-Louisville, UCF-Auburn, and now Texas-Georgia (I'm sure I'm missing more), that's all we heard.

Win the game or take the loss.

Your last little blurb proves you totally missed my point, TOTALLY. Let me be clear. I am not an SEC fan and I do not give a darn about Georgia or Texas this year or any other. Second, I was not making "excuses" and in no way shape or form nor said anything that could even remotely be construed as that. I was simply offering an analysis, and observation, that has made me a TON OF MONEY over the years. In bowl games where there is an obvious wide disparity between motivations, ALWAYS pick the more motivated team.

This is why I picked the Vince Young Texas team to beat USC in the title bowl game that season...Vince lost the Heisman, and ESPN was crowning Southern Cal all week before the game. It was obvious where the motivation edge would be, and THAT was in a Title game.

Auburn was UCF's super bowl last year. UCF was Auburn's post season bore. That's still a legit loss, it's still a legit commentary on the character of Auburn's team - but it's ALSO A FACT. It happens almost every year, and it's predictable. That you went emotional is odd.

And while i'm not an SEC fan nor apologist, it makes sense that the SEC is the conference who most often loses games like these...because they are the conference most likely to have teams punching down in bowls due to being beat up inside their conference...while they watch others from that league vie for the title. It's a little like, or a lot like, the NIT back in the day when only one team could go to the NCAAT from the ACC. There would normally be 2 or 3 powerful teams that did not get the conference NCAA bid, and they almost always bombed out in the NIT. A lot of these bowl games are like the NIT.

BONUS ANALYSIS: Now as for UCF and LSU this year? Seems like what animated LSU was UCF's claim of a national title. That served to somewhat equalize the motivational equation.

[chris13]

I wrote more, but buried the lede and deleted the rest. Let's stop making "not motivated" a feature instead of a bug. It's a deficiency in these teams that, throughout the last two decades or so, deserved to lose the games they lost, validating why they weren't and shouldn't have been in the big game.

Texas was a really bad match-up for Georgia from an X's and O's perspective, which I'm happy to break down if anyone cares. I was quietly optimistic and excited about this game since Ok St. beat WVU back in November, and it became a real possibility. I also suspect D'Andre Baker backed out of the game more to avoid tape against Texas' giant receivers than for fear of injury.

The "not motivated for the game" thing is a prevalent narrative when the SEC loses big bowl games. And including Boise/OU (or even Baylor/UCF) in that discussion diminishes how well all of the teams played in both of those games, and I don't remember hearing that "not motivated" narrative after either. But in each of Bama-Utah, Bama-Oklahoma, Florida-Louisville, UCF-Auburn, and now Texas-Georgia (I'm sure I'm missing more), that's all we heard.

Win the game or take the loss.

Ding Ding Ding. The other problem with the the "Well team a was really better, they just couldn't get motivated" argument is that is it gets exclusively applied after the fact. Nobody said before the game that these teams were unmotivated, they just said that after the fact to justify the loss.

If the committee had taken two SEC teams this year after doing it last year the other conferences would have revolted. It was one thing to take Alabama with one loss because they are Alabama, but taking a two loss Georgia team over Oklahoma or Ohio State would have been political suicide. Finally, it's time to tell Notre Dame, join a Power 5 conference or get relegated to UCF status.

[chris13]

Auburn was UCF's super bowl last year. UCF was Auburn's post season bore. That's still a legit loss, it's still a legit commentary on the character of Auburn's team - but it's ALSO A FACT. It happens almost every year, and it's predictable. That you went emotional is odd.

.

Well , wait a minute. A fact implies to me that you can quantify it, or at least have some inkling before the game that the SEC team is less motivated than their opponent. What you call facts appear to me to be excuses formulated to explain unexpected and disappointing results.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Ding Ding Ding. The other problem with the the "Well team a was really better, they just couldn't get motivated" argument is that is it gets exclusively applied after the fact. Nobody said before the game that these teams were unmotivated, they just said that after the fact to justify the loss.
.

WRONG it gets predicted by some BEFORE the fact. You know, the people who bet on the underdog quite often do so on the motivation factor. Of course the team would not say ahead of the game they don't care any more than the Duke team would have said that ahead of WFU. Guess what? WFU had a much bigger motivation factor, and it showed up in the score. In football, it usually does. Does that "excuse" Duke? NO. But it's an undeniable fact. Period.

Again, this is not an excuse. It's an observation, made only for the notion of helping one predict upsets. Some of these upsets are EASY to predict, every year, and motivation is why. Again, not an excuse. Please, times ten thousand, not an excuse. But an unarguable FACT every season. Sorry, but when a factor, a reason, is given for a certain set of events, it amazes me how so many people instantly assume it's an excuse, when it's just a reason, an explanation, a predictive factor going forward.

[A-Tex Devil]

Your last little blurb proves you totally missed my point, TOTALLY. Let me be clear. I am not an SEC fan and I do not give a specific ratzazz about Georgia or Texas this year or any other. Second, I was not making "excuses" and in no way shape or form nor said anything that could even remotely be construed as that. I was simply offering an analysis, and observation, that has made me a TON OF MONEY over the years. In bowl games where there is an obvious wide disparity between motivations, ALWAYS pick the more motivated team.

This is why I picked the Vince Young Texas team to beat USC in the title bowl game that season...Vince lost the Heisman, and ESPN was crowning Southern Cal all week before the game. It was obvious where the motivation edge would be, and THAT was in a Title game.

Auburn was UCF's super bowl last year. UCF was Auburn's post season bore. That's still a legit loss, it's still a legit commentary on the character of Auburn's team - but it's ALSO A FACT. It happens almost every year, and it's predictable. That you went emotional is odd.

And while i'm not an SEC fan nor apologist, it makes sense that the SEC is the conference who most often loses games like these...because they are the conference most likely to have teams punching down in bowls due to being beat up inside their conference...while they watch others from that league vie for the title. It's a little like, or a lot like, the NIT back in the day when only one team could go to the NCAAT from the ACC. There would normally be 2 or 3 powerful teams that did not get the conference NCAA bid, and they almost always bombed out in the NIT. A lot of these bowl games are like the NIT.

BONUS ANALYSIS: Now as for UCF and LSU this year? Seems like what animated LSU was UCF's claim of a national title. That served to somewhat equalize the motivational equation.

Apologies. I overreacted to, and did (to an extent) misunderstand what you were saying. My view, though, is that UT plays Georgia off of its feet more often than not in a series of 10 games based on style of play. When UT plays a team with an air raid, misdirection based offense (with bonus points for a mobile QB), or a team with a strong D-line, it will struggle even against inferior talent. Last night was much more X's and O's and strengths and weaknesses than it was "motivation." So the narrative today re: Georgia's "motivation" ignores the X's and O's that won UT the game. I'll buy the betting angle re: these games to an extent (5 seeds in playoff era are 1-4, but have also played against some very good teams) (edited) but that goes more to guessing the right upsets than any particular trend. Vegas is smarter than us all.(edit). And for every game like this, you have a TCU-Ole Miss, or a Texas-Ohio St (2008), or an Ohio St.-Washington to counter.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Well , wait a minute. A fact implies to me that you can quantify it, or at least have some inkling before the game that the SEC team is less motivated than their opponent. What you call facts appear to me to be excuses formulated to explain unexpected and disappointing results.

Many had an inkling. The betters who bet the other way for example. I guaran-DAY YUM-tee you the coaches were worried about it too. But no, no one is EVER going to say ahead of a bowl game "I really don't want to be here, and don't really care about our opponent....."

If that's your test, you're gonna miss this. Or maybe you think Boise or UCF could make the play offs from the SEC or Big 12 or Big Ten or ACC schedules. Or maybe you think a team that was one play from losing to Baylor AT HOME really is that great.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Apologies. I overreacted to, and did (to an extent) misunderstand what you were saying. My view, though, is that UT plays Georgia off of its feet more often than not in a series of 10 games based on style of play. When UT plays a team with an air raid, misdirection based offense (with bonus points for a mobile QB), or a team with a strong D-line, it will struggle even against inferior talent. Last night was much more X's and O's and strengths and weaknesses than it was "motivation." So the narrative today re: Georgia's "motivation" ignores the X's and O's that won UT the game. I'll buy the betting angle re: these games to an extent (5 seeds in playoff era are 1-4, but have also played against some very good teams) (edited) but that goes more to guessing the right upsets than any particular trend. Vegas is smarter than us all.(edit). And for every game like this, you have a TCU-Ole Miss, or a Texas-Ohio St (2008), or an Ohio St.-Washington to counter.

To clarify, motivations are not the only factor, and I agree that X's and O's are also a big factor....match ups often favor one team over the other, even when the other team may seem better overall. We see this in the NCAAT all the time....and if you analyzed this before the Georgia Texas game, you can also claim to have seen this one coming, even if from a different angle than I saw it coming. We were both right....for different reasons.

That said, every match up is different with regards to motivations, and there are exceptions to every rule. The Ohio State game this year was a total wild card with regard to emotions and so on due to the Urban Meyer factor....and I had zero inclination about that game. I don't remember the TCU Ole Miss match up nor the Texas Ohio State game of 2008, and therefore cannot make any intelligent comment on those.

I just believe human nature is the most powerful force on the planet, and it often has a dramatic impact on two teams where one is slightly superior physically than the other. For example, I think Duke faces this in basketball a lot, as almost every team on their schedule looks at the Duke game as the most important game of the year for them. I think this is why K talks a lot about human nature in his comments.

I think one thing that drives young athletes' human nature is the commentary on ESPN and other media outlets. Those things really shouldn't be so animating but clearly they are at times. And again, these factors do not preclude the X and O match up factor....which clearly also exists.

[A-Tex Devil]

Many had an inkling. The betters who bet the other way for example. I guaran-DAY YUM-tee you the coaches were worried about it too. But no, no one is EVER going to say ahead of a bowl game "I really don't want to be here, and don't really care about our opponent...."

If that's your test, you're gonna miss this. Or maybe you think Boise or UCF could make the play offs from the SEC or Big 12 or Big Ten or ACC schedules. Or maybe you think a team that was one play from losing to Baylor AT HOME really is that great.

It's still guessing. When you guess right, there is some confirmation bias. I imagine if you look at >6 point underdogs in non-championship New Years' bowls, they probably have lost about 2/3rds of the time and are probably right at around 50/50 with the line. I'd be curious if someone has looked at something like this.

[OldPhiKap]

Isn't it the coach's job to make sure his team is focused and ready to win? I thought overcoming adversity and disappointment was a big part of what being an elite athlete is about.

I don't buy the "UGA was not motivated" line. And if they weren't motivated, shame on Kirby. Duke was disappointed it did not beat Wake and get into a higher bowl. tOSU was disappointed that they didn't get into the playoff talk even though they had a better record than Georgia. But Duke and tOSU showed up and played well. UCF was disappointed that they did not make the playoffs (again), yet no one questions their effort -- they just ran into a much better team that day.


Call it what it was -- Georgia made a few mistakes early to get in an early hole, and Fromm had a bad game. Texas stacked the box and didn't let UGA get their running game going at all. The idea that those kids didn't want to win, or take the Sugar Bowl seriously, is incorrect IMHO. Texas beat them -- that's it.

[A-Tex Devil]

Isn't it the coach's job to make sure his team is focused and ready to win? I thought overcoming adversity and disappointment was a big part of what being an elite athlete is about.

I don't buy the "UGA was not motivated" line. And if they weren't motivated, shame on Kirby. Duke was disappointed it did not beat Wake and get into a higher bowl. tOSU was disappointed that they didn't get into the playoff talk even though they had a better record than Georgia. But Duke and tOSU showed up and played well. UCF was disappointed that they did not make the playoffs (again), yet no one questions their effort -- they just ran into a much better team that day.


Call it what it was -- Georgia made a few mistakes early to get in an early hole, and Fromm had a bad game. Texas stacked the box and didn't let UGA get their running game going at all. The idea that those kids didn't want to win, or take the Sugar Bowl seriously, is incorrect IMHO. Texas beat them -- that's it.

I'll defend HereBeforeCoachK here given I lashed out in the first place. His point, I think, is that his calculus in making predictions/wagers is, in his opinion, the motivation (or lack thereof) factor of one or both contestants. He's not defending whether a team should use it as an excuse, or arguing a coach didn't fail in preparation if the team wasn't "motivated."

I am not that certain it really is a sound predictive/betting strategy, but I admittedly have not seen stats one way or the other, and not sure how one might quantify motivation anyway. And ultimately if it has been a winning strategy for someone, who I am to argue.

[kmspeaks]

1. Georgia was one of the 4 best teams in the country at the conclusion of the regular season.

2. Georgia did not deserve a spot in the playoff due to their 2 losses.

3. The Georgia players, especially the older guys, were disappointed in how their season ended and may have even preferred for it to just be over instead of playing in the Sugar Bowl.

4. Texas outplayed Georgia.

All of these things can be true at the same time.

[DU82]

So, now we know that Duke was better than Georgia.

Duke>Temple>Maryland>Texas>Georgia.

[dudog84]

To clarify, motivations are not the only factor, and I agree that X's and O's are also a big factor...match ups often favor one team over the other, even when the other team may seem better overall. We see this in the NCAAT all the time...and if you analyzed this before the Georgia Texas game, you can also claim to have seen this one coming, even if from a different angle than I saw it coming. We were both right...for different reasons.

That said, every match up is different with regards to motivations, and there are exceptions to every rule. The Ohio State game this year was a total wild card with regard to emotions and so on due to the Urban Meyer factor...and I had zero inclination about that game. I don't remember the TCU Ole Miss match up nor the Texas Ohio State game of 2008, and therefore cannot make any intelligent comment on those.

I just believe human nature is the most powerful force on the planet, and it often has a dramatic impact on two teams where one is slightly superior physically than the other. For example, I think Duke faces this in basketball a lot, as almost every team on their schedule looks at the Duke game as the most important game of the year for them. I think this is why K talks a lot about human nature in his comments.

I think one thing that drives young athletes' human nature is the commentary on ESPN and other media outlets. Those things really shouldn't be so animating but clearly they are at times. And again, these factors do not preclude the X and O match up factor...which clearly also exists.

I thought compound interest was. (I rarely disagree with Einstein)

[camion]

1. Georgia was one of the 4 best teams in the country at the conclusion of the regular season.

2. Georgia did not deserve a spot in the playoff due to their 2 losses.

3. The Georgia players, especially the older guys, were disappointed in how their season ended and may have even preferred for it to just be over instead of playing in the Sugar Bowl.

4. Texas outplayed Georgia.

All of these things can be true at the same time.

5. Texas would have beaten Georgia more than half of the time in any case.

This could also be true, but if it is you might have to rethink point number 1.

[Spanarkel]

I wrote more, but buried the lede and deleted the rest. Let's stop making "not motivated" a feature instead of a bug. It's a deficiency in these teams that, throughout the last two decades or so, deserved to lose the games they lost, validating why they weren't and shouldn't have been in the big game.

Texas was a really bad match-up for Georgia from an X's and O's perspective, which I'm happy to break down if anyone cares. I was quietly optimistic and excited about this game since Ok St. beat WVU back in November, and it became a real possibility. I also suspect D'Andre Baker backed out of the game more to avoid tape against Texas' giant receivers than for fear of injury.

The "not motivated for the game" thing is a prevalent narrative when the SEC loses big bowl games. And including Boise/OU (or even Baylor/UCF) in that discussion diminishes how well all of the teams played in both of those games, and I don't remember hearing that "not motivated" narrative after either. But in each of Bama-Utah, Bama-Oklahoma, Florida-Louisville, UCF-Auburn, and now Texas-Georgia (I'm sure I'm missing more), that's all we heard.

Win the game or take the loss.


Do you have any additional information to support your suspicion/assertion that UGA's Deandre Baker didn't play in the Sugar Bowl because he didn't want to get exposed against "Texas' giant receivers" (, as well as injury concerns)?

From what I know, Baker came to UGA as a 3* prospect(no. 657 in Class of 2015)and improved himself significantly to become an excellent DB and Jim Thorpe Award winner.

He has kept his nose clean at UGA. ( I'm not sure if he will graduate). He seems to be a solid citizen imo.

BTW, Nick Saban has done pretty well with average sized receivers(5'11"-6'2").

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I'll defend HereBeforeCoachK here given I lashed out in the first place. His point, I think, is that his calculus in making predictions/wagers is, in his opinion, the motivation (or lack thereof) factor of one or both contestants. He's not defending whether a team should use it as an excuse, or arguing a coach didn't fail in preparation if the team wasn't "motivated."

I am not that certain it really is a sound predictive/betting strategy, but I admittedly have not seen stats one way or the other, and not sure how one might quantify motivation anyway. And ultimately if it has been a winning strategy for someone, who I am to argue.

This is all true above.....I never used it as an excuse for the loser and never will. I have no idea why people read that into it. I did however say that it is something to consider before we claim that "well, UCF beat Auburn, so they're SEC worthy" and "Boise beat Oklahoma, so they're BCS worthy" and so on. That's a different side of the coin, and I do think it's a mitigating factor against reading too much into a single result, but that has more to do with the winning team than losing team.

I don't think I was clear enough on one point: this really only applies to a tiny percentage of games. Bowl season, a unique period when coaches are changing and players are sitting out and some teams feel rewarded and others feel bored, and there is a long media run up to the games, provides these situations for large motivational disparities far more than any regular season does.

[A-Tex Devil]

Do you have any additional information to support your suspicion/assertion that UGA's Deandre Baker didn't play in the Sugar Bowl because he didn't want to get exposed against "Texas' giant receivers" (, as well as injury concerns)?

Nope. Just given late timing of announcement, I suspect it. Doesn’t say anything about his character. I fall in camp that it’s a smart business decision by most of these guys. Of course the Slippery Slope is Nick Bosa and Ed Oliver, and unfortunately, I think we are heading in that direction where guys play two years and sit out the third.

[Green Wave Dukie]

Sitting at PTI airport about ready to board a flight to Dallas for the weekends festivities and the National Championship Game. Will file an on-site report for DBR reader's enjoyment. Expecting a very high scoring game.

[Troublemaker]

Sitting at PTI airport about ready to board a flight to Dallas for the weekends festivities and the National Championship Game. Will file an on-site report for DBR reader's enjoyment. Expecting a very high scoring game.

Ha. Interestingly, the national championship game you're attending (https://www.stubhub.com/ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-1-5-2019/event/103794120/?sort=price+asc), once you add in the parking pass (https://www.stubhub.com/parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-parking-lots-1-5-2019/event/103794649/?sort=price+asc), is roughly equivalent in price to the Clemson-Bama national championship game (https://www.stubhub.com/college-football-playoff-tickets-college-football-playoff-santa-clara-levi-s-stadium-1-7-2019/event/103679569/?sort=price+asc) whose ticket prices have been nose-diving. People just don't seem to want to go to Santa Clara and Levi's Stadium to watch Clemson and Bama play. (Let me add that I do think your experience will be more enjoyable.)

A few articles about the Clemson/Bama ticket prices:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kirkwakefield/2019/01/02/why-you-might-get-in-cheap-to-the-2019-national-championship-game/#55fc4ed02c62

http://fortune.com/2019/01/03/ticket-prices-national-college-football-championship-clemson-tide-georgia-bulldogs/

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/cheap-and-getting-cheaper-college-football-championship-game-ticket-prices-sink-2019-01-03

[budwom]

Yup, easy to get tickets to this championship game...Wilbon had a funny take which will enrage SEC fans (because it's partly true): if SEC fans can't easily drive to a game in their Winnebagos, they won't go, they really don't know how to get to Santa Clara.

[wavedukefan70s]

Ha. Interestingly, the national championship game you're attending (https://www.stubhub.com/ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-1-5-2019/event/103794120/?sort=price+asc), once you add in the parking pass (https://www.stubhub.com/parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-parking-lots-1-5-2019/event/103794649/?sort=price+asc), is roughly equivalent in price to the Clemson-Bama national championship game (https://www.stubhub.com/college-football-playoff-tickets-college-football-playoff-santa-clara-levi-s-stadium-1-7-2019/event/103679569/?sort=price+asc) whose ticket prices have been nose-diving. People just don't seem to want to go to Santa Clara and Levi's Stadium to watch Clemson and Bama play. (Let me add that I do think your experience will be more enjoyable.)

A few articles about the Clemson/Bama ticket prices:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kirkwakefield/2019/01/02/why-you-might-get-in-cheap-to-the-2019-national-championship-game/#55fc4ed02c62

http://fortune.com/2019/01/03/ticket-prices-national-college-football-championship-clemson-tide-georgia-bulldogs/

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/cheap-and-getting-cheaper-college-football-championship-game-ticket-prices-sink-2019-01-03

Seems like they could centralize the national championship game.there probably isnt much interest in California for two east teams.atlamta Charlotte Jacksonville, Tennessee .the saint Louis dome would be my choice.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Seems like they could centralize the national championship game.there probably isnt much interest in California for two east teams.atlamta Charlotte Jacksonville, Tennessee .the saint Louis dome would be my choice.

Relative to the population, there isn't much interest in college sports in general in California. There's a LOT of population, but Cali is not a college sports area. We see the same thing at play in NY with ACCT. It's really hardly a blip on the radar. This game won't be to that extreme, but it's the same principle at play. Really odd and absurd place to put this game.

[camion]

Relative to the population, there isn't much interest in college sports in general in California. There's a LOT of population, but Cali is not a college sports area. We see the same thing at play in NY with ACCT. It's really hardly a blip on the radar. This game won't be to that extreme, but it's the same principle at play. Really odd and absurd place to put this game.

It's only a hunch or a suspicion, but it's just possible that Money Talks.

[JasonEvans]

Oregon and Ohio State made it in 2014, but the past 4 games have been all about the deep South (Bama, Clemson, and Ga). Seems like putting the game West of the Mississippi is a hardship on the fans of the teams most likely to be there.

-Jason "The next 5 locations: New Orleans, Miami, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Houston" Evans

[Indoor66]

Play it in Miami. Weather is good. The stadium is good. The hotels, restaurant and facilities are A++++++. Who doesn't want to go warm in winter?

[Spanarkel]

Yup, easy to get tickets to this championship game...Wilbon had a funny take which will enrage SEC fans (because it's partly true): if SEC fans can't easily drive to a game in their Winnebagos, they won't go, they really don't know how to get to Santa Clara.

Maybe, but ESPN doesn't have any problems finding Tuscaloosa, Auburn, Athens, Baton Rouge...

[thedukelamere]

Play it in Miami. Weather is good. The stadium is good. The hotels, restaurant and facilities are A++++++. Who doesn't want to go warm in winter?

I say go the opposite route; play it in Chicago. Play it at Lambeau. Sure, it doesn't check many of those boxes, but if I'm going to tune into Bama/Clemson XI in 2026, let's throw a wrinkle into the equation and have it in a full blown blizzard. Sucks for the fans that want to attend, but how sorry would you feel for two fan bases that have had that level of sustained success? I don't think anyone would come to our defense if we had to play a Final Four in Afghanistan, and we haven't even won a championship in ALMOST 4 YEARS!!

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I say go the opposite route; play it in Chicago. Play it at Lambeau. Sure, it doesn't check many of those boxes, but if I'm going to tune into Bama/Clemson XI in 2026, let's throw a wrinkle into the equation and have it in a full blown blizzard. Sucks for the fans that want to attend, but how sorry would you feel for two fan bases that have had that level of sustained success? I don't think anyone would come to our defense if we had to play a Final Four in Afghanistan, and we haven't even won a championship in ALMOST 4 YEARS!!

Where are you going with that? I'm hoping you're joking......

[sagegrouse]

Maybe, but ESPN doesn't have any problems finding Tuscaloosa, Auburn, Athens, Baton Rouge...

Actually, it's CBS with the SEC football package -- and there's always Starkville, Mississippi.

[OldPhiKap]

Actually, it's CBS with the SEC football package -- and there's always Starkville, Mississippi.

SEC games are worth the trip though. The Grove in Oxford, Mississippi is a great experience. Baton Rouge at night is a highlight trip. Game day in Athens or Tuscaloosa is fantastic.

The ACC has a few venues like that -- Tallahassee and Clemson come to mind.

The Bay area is wonderful, and one of my favorite general locations on the West Coast. But it doesn't scream "college football" to me. I don't blame the NCAA for spreading it around the country, and as someone upthread stated it's all about money for them anyway.

FWIW, I asked DaughterPK (a student at Alabama) if she wanted me to get tickets for us to fly to the game. She was sorta meh about the whole thing, figuring it's about as much fun to watch with her friends on a high-def TV and avoid the whole travel and game day hassle. I doubt she is an outlier of her generation.


Sports are beholden to television, which creates a great stream of revenue but is killing off attendance. #sad.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

SEC games are worth the trip though. The Grove in Oxford, Mississippi is a great experience. Baton Rouge at night is a highlight trip. Game day in Athens or Tuscaloosa is fantastic.

The ACC has a few venues like that -- Tallahassee and Clemson come to mind.
.

Clemson, FSU and VT are the only ACC venues that match what most of the SEC offers in that regard. Maybe NCSU a little bit. The large public "University of" type schools are what the SEC has (Vandy the exception) while the ACC has many smaller schools. On top of that are the cultural differences between the leagues.

One of the most underrated atmospheres is Williams Brice stadium at night in Columbia. Great venue. And I think most people agree that night games in Baton Rouge are the games with the most incredible atmosphere.

[OldPhiKap]

One of the most underrated atmospheres is Williams Brice stadium at night in Columbia. Great venue.

"The 'Cocks ain't a-playin' 'til the stands start a'swayin"

(or something like that)

Wholly agree. South Carolina fans remind me of Cubs fans -- dedicated as hell, even if year after year brings a slap in the face or two. A fun venue.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

"The 'Cocks ain't a-playin' 'til the stands start a'swayin"

(or something like that)

Wholly agree. South Carolina fans remind me of Cubs fans -- dedicated as hell, even if year after year brings a slap in the face or two. A fun venue.

To fill in some details for your little story above...when the stadium was increased from about 56,000 to 75 or 80 thousand, it meant installing an upper deck on the other side of the stadium. The next year, there was a night game with Notre Dame, and the Gamecocks routed them, crowd was packed and CRAZY - and the new upper deck would absolutely move up and down. It was FREAKY. This only happened really with wild crowds, a couple of times a season. (at least I think that ND game was the first game they noticed the sway, not 100% sure).

Engineers inspected and inspected and INSISTED it was safe.

So there were bumper stickers..."If it ain't swayin' - we ain't playin'" or something to that effect. During the next summer, both Billy Graham and The Pope visited the stadium, so there were also stickers saying "If it ain't swayin' - we ain't prayin'" and so on. It was funny.

After either the first or second season of the sway, some work was done that stopped the sway. But I'm gonna tell you, I sat in that upper deck for a big upset of a very highly ranked Florida State team...and on the front row, it was like being on a boat bobbing up and down on swells while you're looking at the horizon...you see the field...now you don't see the field...you see the field...now you don't see the field. Crazy is an understatement. Gamecocks rose to #2 in the polls, only had to get past Navy and Clemson to be in the Orange Bowl for a natty game. Navy blitzed a very flat SC team the next week. Beat Clemson, then got Barry Sandered by OSU in the Gator I think....

And yeah, SC football always seems big time....even as it rarely is big time. Same with Clemson, who of course, has been more big time than SC has. Both are great venues, and I've been in both for the Clemson SC game. Nuts. Totally.

[BandAlum83]

Clemson, FSU and VT are the only ACC venues that match what most of the SEC offers in that regard. Maybe NCSU a little bit. The large public "University of" type schools are what the SEC has (Vandy the exception) while the ACC has many smaller schools. On top of that are the cultural differences between the leagues.

One of the most underrated atmospheres is Williams Brice stadium at night in Columbia. Great venue. And I think most people agree that night games in Baton Rouge are the games with the most incredible atmosphere.

My Williams Brice Stadium at Night Experience

My first experience with big time college football was my sophomore year in 1980. I had gone to all the Duke games at home the year before and I had joined DUMB before the 1980 season. Coming from NY, I had no knowledge or much interest in college sports before going to Duke (I had seen the Duke-ND final four game in 1978, and jokingly would say that i chose Duke over ND because Duke won that game). So my my college football experience was pretty much working at the Duke University store on game day mornings selling Duke paraphernalia, and ambling over to the game to join my House CC dorm mates in an empty Wallace Wade stadium in the hot sun (no stadium lights back then and all games were day games). Sophomore year, I went early to join the pre-game marching band practice. I had two home games under my belt in the band when I had an experience that made me understand this "football thing."

I had a friend who went to USCarolina. I went to visit him for the game with Duke on October 11. It was a night game and when I walked into the stadium I was blown away! There, under the lights, was a sold out stadium of over 56,000 screaming, chanting, cheering fans all with black/red/white pom poms on sticks moving to the beat of the twice as large as DUMB USC band. USC was ranked 17 at the time and had this guy named George Rogers at tailback. That George fella had a pretty good game, rushing for 224 yds on 36 carries and one touchdown as Duke lost 20-7.

George would go on to win the Heisman trophy that year, and I would forever remember my introduction to Big Time College Football.

The following week, I would have my first road game experience in the DUMB, when we traveled to Clemson's Death Valley for my second experience with Big Time College football. It was a daytime game, and the 0-5 Blue Devils took on the Tigers and put an absolute smack down. There were nearly 60,000 fans in attendance, but I think probably Death Valley was never as quiet as when Duke went on to win 34-17.

The fans were gracious in defeat, and Clemson did go on the following year to win the national championship.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

My Williams Brice Stadium at Night Experience

I had a friend who went to USCarolina. I went to visit him for the game with Duke on October 11. It was a night game and when I walked into the stadium I was blown away! There, under the lights, was a sold out stadium of over 56,000 screaming, chanting, cheering fans all with black/red/white pom poms on sticks moving to the beat of the twice as large as DUMB USC band. USC was ranked 17 at the time and had this guy named George Rogers at tailback. That George fella had a pretty good game, rushing for 224 yds on 36 carries and one touchdown as Duke lost 20-7.

George would go on to win the Heisman trophy that year, and I would forever remember my introduction to Big Time College Football.


I was at that game, back in the day when capacity was 56 thousand. Even then great at night. Yes, Rogers was simply awesome, and I remember that the Duke offense did nothing all night....except for a long TD bomb to Chris Castor, a sprinter/football player from Cary. With ties to both schools, I HATE those games where they play each other.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

To fill in some details for your little story above...when the stadium was increased from about 56,000 to 75 or 80 thousand, it meant installing an upper deck on the other side of the stadium. The next year, there was a night game with Notre Dame, and the Gamecocks routed them, crowd was packed and CRAZY - and the new upper deck would absolutely move up and down. It was FREAKY. This only happened really with wild crowds, a couple of times a season. (at least I think that ND game was the first game they noticed the sway, not 100% sure).

Engineers inspected and inspected and INSISTED it was safe.

So there were bumper stickers..."If it ain't swayin' - we ain't playin'" or something to that effect. During the next summer, both Billy Graham and The Pope visited the stadium, so there were also stickers saying "If it ain't swayin' - we ain't prayin'" and so on. It was funny.

After either the first or second season of the sway, some work was done that stopped the sway. But I'm gonna tell you, I sat in that upper deck for a big upset of a very highly ranked Florida State team...and on the front row, it was like being on a boat bobbing up and down on swells while you're looking at the horizon...you see the field...now you don't see the field...you see the field...now you don't see the field. Crazy is an understatement. Gamecocks rose to #2 in the polls, only had to get past Navy and Clemson to be in the Orange Bowl for a natty game. Navy blitzed a very flat SC team the next week. Beat Clemson, then got Barry Sandered by OSU in the Gator I think...

And yeah, SC football always seems big time...even as it rarely is big time. Same with Clemson, who of course, has been more big time than SC has. Both are great venues, and I've been in both for the Clemson SC game. Nuts. Totally.

Cool story. I have a friend who is a HUGE Gamecocks fan, born and raised in Columbia. Nothing is sadder than watching him experience SC football seasons. I swear, every year is going to be their year, and then something breaks wrong and everything falls to pieces.

Gamecocks fans are a hearty group.

[OldPhiKap]

{great story}


{great story}


Both venues are great, and the hate between the two alumni bases is very real. I highly recommend an experience at both, as do y'all.

[PackMan97]

Clemson, FSU and VT are the only ACC venues that match what most of the SEC offers in that regard. Maybe NCSU a little bit.

I agree. I think State is underrated as a football venue (especially when you toss in the tailgating)...but a smallish size and a constant stream of noon kickoffs keep us from elevating our experience.

[DarkstarWahoo]

This seems like a good enough place to post some sad ACC football news: Former UVA coach George Welsh has passed away.

https://www.richmond.com/sports/college/schools/university-virginia/george-welsh-football-coach-who-led-uva-to-no-in/article_c1bd2e48-dbef-5447-b3d7-0162f9cee8b2.html

[BigWayne]

Ha. Interestingly, the national championship game you're attending (https://www.stubhub.com/ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-1-5-2019/event/103794120/?sort=price+asc), once you add in the parking pass (https://www.stubhub.com/parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-tickets-parking-passes-only-ncaa-division-1-fcs-football-championship-frisco-toyota-stadium-dallas-parking-lots-1-5-2019/event/103794649/?sort=price+asc), is roughly equivalent in price to the Clemson-Bama national championship game (https://www.stubhub.com/college-football-playoff-tickets-college-football-playoff-santa-clara-levi-s-stadium-1-7-2019/event/103679569/?sort=price+asc) whose ticket prices have been nose-diving. People just don't seem to want to go to Santa Clara and Levi's Stadium to watch Clemson and Bama play. (Let me add that I do think your experience will be more enjoyable.)

A few articles about the Clemson/Bama ticket prices:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kirkwakefield/2019/01/02/why-you-might-get-in-cheap-to-the-2019-national-championship-game/#55fc4ed02c62

http://fortune.com/2019/01/03/ticket-prices-national-college-football-championship-clemson-tide-georgia-bulldogs/

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/cheap-and-getting-cheaper-college-football-championship-game-ticket-prices-sink-2019-01-03

There was an article in the local paper here this morning about the falling ticket prices. Any interest in college football around here is confined to the PAC-12 and even that is not really that significant. It's a professional sports market. With the local pro baseball and football teams being in down cycles, most interest is confined to the Warriors overall and the Sharks in the south bay area where Levi's is located.

Since it's too far to drive from the southeast, you really need some local interest to drive ticket sales, and it's just not here.

[budwom]

I say go the opposite route; play it in Chicago. Play it at Lambeau. Sure, it doesn't check many of those boxes, but if I'm going to tune into Bama/Clemson XI in 2026, let's throw a wrinkle into the equation and have it in a full blown blizzard. Sucks for the fans that want to attend, but how sorry would you feel for two fan bases that have had that level of sustained success? I don't think anyone would come to our defense if we had to play a Final Four in Afghanistan, and we haven't even won a championship in ALMOST 4 YEARS!!

I don't think I could resist watching 80,000 Bama and Clemson fans driving in the snow, so I'm all for it. Bring it on. I'll be the guy in the helicopter.

[DU82]

This seems like a good enough place to post some sad ACC football news: Former UVA coach George Welsh has passed away.

https://www.richmond.com/sports/college/schools/university-virginia/george-welsh-football-coach-who-led-uva-to-no-in/article_c1bd2e48-dbef-5447-b3d7-0162f9cee8b2.html

Sorry to hear this. Welsh took UVa from nothing (IIRC, no previous bowl games in their history) to the top of the ACC. (Of course, it took a while to actually beat Clemson, as Steve Spurrier pointed out in 1989. :) )

While we had a fairly healthy rivalry then, I always thought things were being done correctly, no suspicion of improper actions behind the scenes, unlike other "rivals."

[OldPhiKap]

This seems like a good enough place to post some sad ACC football news: Former UVA coach George Welsh has passed away.

https://www.richmond.com/sports/college/schools/university-virginia/george-welsh-football-coach-who-led-uva-to-no-in/article_c1bd2e48-dbef-5447-b3d7-0162f9cee8b2.html

Seemed like a class guy who ran a class program, as far as I remember. Prayers for his family.

[budwom]

George was a very very good football coach who had more than a bit of Paul Johnson in him.

[jimsumner]

George was a very very good football coach who had more than a bit of Paul Johnson in him.

Welsh thought that Duke's Red Wilson ran up the score on UVA (51-17) in 1982. Spurrier was Duke's OC that year. Welsh nursed a bit of a grudge and the rivalry got a bit intense, especially when Spurrier returned to Duke.

RIP.

[budwom]

Welsh thought that Duke's Red Wilson ran up the score on UVA (51-17) in 1982. Spurrier was Duke's OC that year. Welsh nursed a bit of a grudge and the rivalry got a bit intense, especially when Spurrier returned to Duke.

RIP.

I recall a game when UVA led Duke 28-0 in the first quarter (I guess this was post Spurrier), then it got worse, and they pretty much ran up the score except Duke was just godawful back then...after the game Welsh said "it's not my fault if they can't tackle" which was pretty accurate. (Spurrier had taunted Welsh the year we were (correct me if I'm wrong) co-champs of the ACC, but Spurrier declared us champs. Yes, there was a history.

[OldPhiKap]

(Spurrier had taunted Welsh the year we were (correct me if I'm wrong) co-champs of the ACC, but Spurrier declared us champs. Yes, there was a history.

Yup, 1989. I think we both finished with even records, and UVA beat us. But we beat defending conference champ Clemson, so by the Bill Walton theory of titles we were the conference champs according to the HBC. It didn't really make much sense, but Spurrier knew he was going to Florida and didn't really care.

[budwom]

In a sense I miss the guys who would get into it with other coaches...the prevalent coachspeak these days is certainly laudably civil, but it can be refreshing to hear two guys who really don't like each other go at it, rather than
going thru the tedious stale "they're a good football team, they have great players and coaching, we respect their team (but we don't fear their team) ad nauseam...
It would be nice to bring Spurrier back yet again for a halftime taunt of Mack Brown, aka "Mr. Football." Great stuff.

[devildeac]

I recall a game when UVA led Duke 28-0 in the first quarter (I guess this was post Spurrier), then it got worse, and they pretty much ran up the score except Duke was just godawful back then...after the game Welsh said "it's not my fault if they can't tackle" which was pretty accurate. (Spurrier had taunted Welsh the year we were (correct me if I'm wrong) co-champs of the ACC, but Spurrier declared us champs. Yes, there was a history.

9/22/90 maybe:

Duke 0 Virginia 59

Too painful to research in any more detail.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

In a sense I miss the guys who would get into it with other coaches...the prevalent coachspeak these days is certainly laudably civil, but it can be refreshing to hear two guys who really don't like each other go at it, rather than
going thru the tedious stale "they're a good football team, they have great players and coaching, we respect their team (but we don't fear their team) ad nauseam...
It would be nice to bring Spurrier back yet again for a halftime taunt of Mack Brown, aka "Mr. Football." Great stuff.

Wasn't that many years ago that Spurrier owned Dabo.....winning 4-5 in a row over Clemson.....those two went at it. Entertaining.

[EKU1969]

9/22/90 maybe:

Duke 0 Virginia 59

Too painful to research in any more detail.

My wife and I were at this game, our son’s freshman year. UVA stars were QB Shawn Moore and WR Herman Moore. Near the end of the game the scoreboard read Visitor 59, ???? 0!
UVA’s 4th string RB gained over 100 yards. And yes, Duke could not tackle!

[Reilly]

... had more than a bit of Paul Johnson in him.

"I don't think a lot of people would call him warm and fuzzy" - https://www.capitalgazette.com/sports/navy_sports/ph-ac-cn-welsh-1104-20161104-story.html

When he came to the ACC in 1982, lots of good coaches in the ACC who would go on to (or had recently done) good things ... Monte Kiffin at State (NFL DC), Spurrier OC at Duke (nat'l champ; NFL HC), Groh at WFU (NFL HC), Ross at MD (nat'l champ; NFL HC), Ford at Clemson (nat'l champ).

When Welsh took over Virginia, they had had 2 winning seasons in the previous 29.

When Cut took over Duke, we had had 5 winning seasons in the previous 33.

[Reilly]

George Welsh quarterbacked Navy's 1954 "Team of Desire": https://www.capitalgazette.com/sports/navy_sports/ph-ac-cs-navy-team-desire-103015-20151029-story.html

That 1954 Navy team finished #6 in the SRS (#5 in the AP) and won the Sugar Bowl over Ole Miss: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/years/1954-ratings.html

Along the way, Navy beat Duke in Norfolk. Duke would finish #21 in the SRS (#14 in the AP) and win the Orange Bowl over Nebraska: https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/years/1954-ratings.html

Here's the Nov 6, 1954 Duke/Navy program (with one of the sketchiest looking Blue Devils): https://repository.duke.edu/dc/dfp/dspfb072170010

[Acymetric]

So, anyone pulling for 'Bama tonight? Hoping for a great game, I'm not necessarily a rah-rah "Go ACC" guy but getting another football championship would be nice for conference credibility.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

So, anyone pulling for 'Bama tonight? Hoping for a great game, I'm not necessarily a rah-rah "Go ACC" guy but getting another football championship would be nice for conference credibility.

And for conference coffers....a natty will lead to more TV down the road....

And I would bet that Coach Cut will be pulling for the conference tonight. Certainly cannot confirm, and I know he has ties back to the SEC for decades...but I'd bet a little piece of real change on that one...

[Green Wave Dukie]

Sitting at PTI airport about ready to board a flight to Dallas for the weekends festivities and the National Championship Game. Will file an on-site report for DBR reader's enjoyment. Expecting a very high scoring game.

Not that anyone really cares, and I am no longer 'on-site', but since there isn't much of a realistic chance of a true long-lasting thread hijacking here, and I try to be a man of my word, will say that the FCS Championship game that Daughter Green Wave Dukie (she goes to grad school at NDSU) and I attended over the weekend in Frisco, TX, was an awesome experience. I will even go so far as to add that as much (deserved) wrath that the NCAA takes on this board, I actually felt like they did a reasonable job of putting on a football championship game (played in front of less than 20,000 people) that actually is the end to a true tournament (24 draw participants).

There were plenty of NCAA folks around trying to be helpful, a fun 'title town' area inside the stadium for all ages to enjoy, they had several free photo booth opportunities and I came away with a free (I get it, nothing was really 'free', but other than a ticket to get in, I didn't have to pay 'extra' for it) 'football card' of my daughter and I (that they took w/their professional camera and emailed to us), as well as a free photo of she and I in front of a replica of the championship trophy. On that set-up, the NCAA photographer actually was there taking pics using the cell phones folks handed them, and again, no extra costs. Game is played on a soccer field which was far from good footing in January for football, they had plenty of (overpriced) NCAA championship merchandise available, significant amounts of tailgating in the parking lots the NDSU die-hards had made arrangements to get opened for them at 5:30am, and a good assortment of food at the concessions, and beer, which I don't think I was expecting, but I don't drink so I'm not familiar with all the rules.

Game was good, too. NDSU capped off a 15-0 season, and their 7th title in 8 years. And I get it's FCS, not FBS, but that is pretty impressive in my opinion. It was tense to the end, when NDSU quarterback Easton Stick (who learned from Carson Wentz for 3 years), broke open a 40 or so yard run to put them up 2 scores with less than 2 minutes left.

(Okay, now back to all things 'Bama-Clemson).

[Acymetric]

And for conference coffers...a natty will lead to more TV down the road...

And I would bet that Coach Cut will be pulling for the conference tonight. Certainly cannot confirm, and I know he has ties back to the SEC for decades...but I'd bet a little piece of real change on that one...

True, although he also has 'Bama/Bear Bryant ties. He is also friendly with Dabo from what I understand, so I'd guess between that and the benefits for the conference he'll be pulling for Clemson.

[OldPhiKap]

So, anyone pulling for 'Bama tonight? Hoping for a great game, I'm not necessarily a rah-rah "Go ACC" guy but getting another football championship would be nice for conference credibility.

DaughterPK is a 'Bama student (freshman), so -- Roll Tide Roll!


The street right next to Bryant-Denny stadium, btw, is "Wallace Wade Drive." Wade won several national championships at Alabama before leaving there to come to Duke.


Plus -- don't you want to defeat the defending national champion next August when we play Alabama?!?

[cato]

DaughterPK is a 'Bama student (freshman), so -- Roll Tide Roll!


The street right next to Bryant-Denny stadium, btw, is "Wallace Wade Drive." Wade won several national championships at Alabama before leaving there to come to Duke.


Plus -- don't you want to defeat the defending national champion next August when we play Alabama?!?

On that note, I’d be fine with defeating the defending national champion in the conference championship next fall.

[Avvocato]

On that note, I’d be fine with defeating the defending national champion in the conference championship next fall.

After defeating the national runner-up in our opener.

[AGDukesky]

Well that was a pleasant shift of momentum

[JNort]

Let's go Bama!

[Acymetric]

Put in Hurts!

[OldPhiKap]

Well that was a pleasant shift of momentum

And back.

RTR!

[AGDukesky]

Never mind

[Acymetric]

I'm actually a little impressed that the Clemson safety almost recovered.

[AGDukesky]

Score is tied but Alabama has looked much better

[AGDukesky]

I’m going to just keep jinxing each team alternately

[pfrduke]

So who else had 21 points scored in the first 4:25?

[arnie]

This is insane - am I watching the Big 12 championship?

[AGDukesky]

Hope everyone bet the over...

[Acymetric]

Hope everyone bet the over...

The way your commentary has gone so far, I expect there will now be no more scores until late in the 4th quarter. ;)

[CameronBlue]

Hope everyone bet the over...

On pace for your garden variety 60 point quarter

[AGDukesky]

The way your commentary has gone so far, I expect there will now be no more scores until late in the 4th quarter. ;)

Well played!

[Acymetric]

On pace for your garden variety 60 point quarter

It's been like 2 minutes without a score. Snooze fest...I'm going to bed.

[AGDukesky]

Alabama should run every play till Clemson shows it can stop it

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Alabama should run every play till Clemson shows it can stop it

I think Clemson will struggle to stop anything tonight...I'm not at all sure they can keep scoring with Bama.

[AGDukesky]

Bama should probably just go for 2 from now on- both of those PATs were bad and the first barely made it

[CameronBlue]

It's been like 2 minutes without a score. Snooze fest...I'm going to bed.

Missed PAT, glad I didn't put any money on it.

[CameronBlue]

Number 82 for 'Bama, is that like his chromosome number or something? That dude is monstrous.

[YmoBeThere]

Lawrence looks like a freshman...

[AGDukesky]

Nice answer by Clemson. The offensive line is doing a good job and Lawrence doesn’t seem bothered by the stage...

[wavedukefan70s]

I think Clemson will struggle to stop anything tonight...I'm not at all sure they can keep scoring with Bama.

Probably will come down to halftime adjustments. All my football season winnings are on bama.

[CameronBlue]

Lawrence looks like a freshman...

Interesting scenarios playing out, you're right about Lawrence but the announcers called it--the Bama defensive line look gassed toward the end of that drive. First real contact on the TD came from the middle linebacker who took maybe two steps sideways to put a meaningless hit on the Clemson running back.

[AGDukesky]

I’m surprised but pleased

[wavedukefan70s]

I'm looking for a comeback Alabama 42 Clemson 28 no more scores.

[DukieInKansas]

I wish it were the 4th quarter.

[YmoBeThere]

Interesting scenarios playing out, you're right about Lawrence but the announcers called it--the Bama defensive line look gassed toward the end of that drive. First real contact on the TD came from the middle linebacker who took maybe two steps sideways to put a meaningless hit on the Clemson running back.

He's starting to catch up to the speed of the game, but the first couple of possessions except for the 62 yard pass he was thinking too much as in just standing there looking around and then making a not great throw. He's looking better lately.

[AGDukesky]

I'm looking for a comeback Alabama 42 Clemson 28 no more scores.

Just curious how Alabama scores 26 more points - is that two missed PATs?

[YmoBeThere]

I wish it were the 4th quarter.

Me too!

[wavedukefan70s]

Just curious how Alabama scores 26 more points - is that two missed PATs?

3 td 1 missed pat two field goals.its a stretch but I can dream big lol

[wilson]

3 td 1 missed pat two field goals.its a stretch but I can dream big lol


Just curious how Alabama scores 26 more points - is that two missed PATs?Put me down for 13 safeties.

[YmoBeThere]

I'm looking for a comeback Alabama 42 Clemson 28 no more scores.


3 td 1 missed pat two field goals.its a stretch but I can dream big lol

42 - 31??

[wavedukefan70s]

42 - 31??

I hope.

[YmoBeThere]

Roy must have told Nick about the Chapel Hill McDonald's...

[AGDukesky]

Halftime came at the wrong time for Clemson- hope Dabo can keep his players from getting overconfident...

[devildeac]

Halftime in Death Valley:

Clemson 14

Duke 6

Just sayin...

[OldPhiKap]

Watch Nick bring Jalen Hurts in now. . . .

[devildeac]

Possession:

Clemson 40:34

Alabama 19:26

Yes, the brilliant minds at espn really have that stat now.

:rolleyes:

[OldPhiKap]

Possession:

Clemson 40:34

Alabama 19:26

Yes, the brilliant minds at espn really have that stat now.

:rolleyes:

Wow, no reason to watch the second half.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Possession:

Clemson 40:34

Alabama 19:26

Yes, the brilliant minds at espn really have that stat now.

:rolleyes:

....must be expecting TOTAL domination in the second half......

[AGDukesky]

Possession:

Clemson 40:34

Alabama 19:26

Yes, the brilliant minds at espn really have that stat now.

:rolleyes:

That’s because the Clemson cornerbacks are credited with time of possession when Alabama is calling passing plays

[devildeac]

That’s because the Clemson cornerbacks are credited with time of possession when Alabama is calling passing plays

I had credited it to who had the ball when they went to their extended TV timeouts :p.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

That’s because the Clemson cornerbacks are credited with time of possession when Alabama is calling passing plays

....also known as Surratts Syndrome

[Troublemaker]

Halftime in Death Valley:

Clemson 14

Duke 6

Just sayin...

Duke was halfway towards having a case for being the 4th playoff team...

[Rich]

Possession:

Clemson 40:34

Alabama 19:26

Yes, the brilliant minds at espn really have that stat now.

:rolleyes:

Make it, take it, but only when Clemson scores

[AGDukesky]

Such an obvious fake FG

[wavedukefan70s]

Such an obvious fake FG

There went my money. Absolutely disturbing of how bad that play was.

[YmoBeThere]

There went my money. Absolutely disturbing of how bad that play was.

42-37??

[elvis14]

42-37??

51-16 sounds better. Go Tigers!!!!

[AGDukesky]

Ridiculous catch!!