South Carolina - Auburn Recap

So the Thursday night SEC game between South Carolina and Auburn unfortunately for this Auburn fan turned out to be quite the nail biter. I was obviously hoping for something similar to last year's 49 -7 Auburn victory to take place. However, that would not be the case although after each team's 1st series it looked like we were well on our way to a route. So, I bring you my post game thoughts after a full day of re-orientation to business school.

• Auburn is currently not a national title caliber team. Why? Two big reasons in my opinion - the offensive line is not good enough and Auburn is completely lacking in its receiving corps. This football team does not have a downfield passing game at all.
• Syvelle Newton had a career game in only his 2nd game starting at quarterback. It will be interesting to see if he can continue to play this well.
• How good is Steve Spurrier at finding mismatches? Kenny McKinley came into the game with 9 receptions. He left the field with 8 more receptions, 110 yards, 1 touchdown and made Auburn db Zach Gilbert look silly throughout the game.
• Tommy Tuberville is an excellent coach. His onside kick call was masterful and then choosing to go for the 4th down rather than punt was a difference maker in the game.
• Has anyone ever seen a team hold the football for an entire quarter? And then South Carolina dominates the possession the final quarter.
• Still curious with Will Muschamp's defensive game plan...not quite sure why Auburn didn't blitz more folks and more often.
• Will Herring's 1st quarter interception was sick.

Full Day At School

I have a "re-orientation" day today, so unfortunately will not be posting any substance until late this afternoon. Look for a post on my recap of the South Carolina - Auburn game.

Will Chancellor Khayat follow Michigan High School Example?

According to a report from ESPN.com, the Oscoda Area High School district has decided to cancel the rest of the football team's games for lack of scoring and winning in its first four games. While the Rebels have notched a win, maybe Chancellor Robert Khayat should follow suit. The Oscoda coach is quoted "when you go to a game on Friday night and see a team physically dominated, those are the indisputable facts." If you replace Friday with Saturday, you basically could make a case the quote was from Shrek after the Wake Forest game.

Kenny Irons Heads Back To Carolina

Joseph Person with The State writes a nice piece about Kenny Irons' trials and tribulations that led to his transfer to Auburn from South Carolina. The piece features comments from Kenny, his brother and father, as well as then Carolina coach Lou Holtz and current quarterback Syvelle Newton. Lou can drool all he want and claim that Kenny can't cut it in a single back formation, but the fact of the matter is clearly evident to all - Lou absolutely blew it with Kenny.

Pretty Damn Funny Shrek (Coach O) Song

Chris Vernon, whose site is linked under my Websites Worth A Visit section, has written and sings a great Shrek song. All I can say is thank God I am not an Ole Miss Rebel.

Alligator, Alligator
Crocodile Piss
If Shit Were A School
It Would Be Ole Miss!

All Is Well With The Coach On The Plains

Cary Estes writes a great piece on Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville for MSNBC.com. It's simply amazing that since the end of the 2003 season, Tuberville has led Auburn to a 28 - 3 record, including a 19-1 SEC mark. I do not understand why this football program is still looked over by the likes of ESPN personalities, Lou Holtz and Mark May. Cowherd is about the only personality at ESPN who gives Auburn its due respect. What will it take for folks to realize that Auburn has become a major player on the national stage?

Moving On To Shrek (Coach Orgeron)

Several pieces today across the Southeast focus on Ole Miss and Shrek. Things are very bad when a former coach blasts the current head coach as Billy Brewer blasts Shrek in David Paschall's piece for the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Ex-Coach Brewer No Orgeron Fan.

Tony Barnhart examines Five Coaches In Rough Spots in his blog for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, including Shrek in his list.

And finally, in today's Memphis Commercial Appeal, Marlon Morgan writes about Shrek's decision to stick with Brent Schaeffer as the Rebs' starting quarterback and what has been causing their offense to struggle. Interestingly, the article mentions that Schaeffer is only completing 46.5% of his passes and has only thrown 3 touchdowns versus 5 interceptions. These stats do not come at a surprise to me. In his only year at UT, Schaeffer completed a tad below 49% of his passes with only 2 TDs and a pick. Keep in mind, that the talent level at UT is head above heels better than that at Ole Miss. Still, not quite sure what the Rebel fans were expecting with Brent.

This Week's Sports Illustrated Cover Features Alabama

Funniest Message Board Thread I've Read (Mainly UNC & Miami Related)

So what started with one North Carolina fan posting on a Hurricane message board that he hopes Miami, as well as the remainder of UNC's opponents, drubs them in hopes of assuring that John Bunting will be fired has led to one of the funnier exchanges that I have come across on a message board. Without stealing all of the contributors' thunder, here is a link to the thread: best message board thread I've read. Basically, fans of the two schools are completely bashing their coaches and wishing the opponent in next Saturday's game all the best and other programs, NC State and FSU included jump into the discussion. For those not wanting to read the full thread (believe me, it's well worth your time), I've included several links and pictures that have found their way into the thread. Chuck Amato and Bobby Bowden even find their way into the thread. I absolutely love this picture of Amato:
Check out this cartoon - John Bunting Beat Miami
On a more serious note, I've included several pieces that look at the state of both the Miami and UNC programs and examine the coaching situations.
Stay Or Go? - The News & Observer
Why Do Tar Heels Struggle? - The Herald-Sun
'Canes Seem Unable This Season - The Atlanta Journal Constitution
OK To Root Against Your Own Team? - ESPN.com Page 2

Some Excellent Bama Material

Props to Paul Finebaum for putting what are eerily similar to my thoughts about Mike Shula and Alabama football on paper in this morning's Mobile Register. Yes, Tide Nation, you are in big trouble.

Moving away from football, but remaining in T-Town, The Decatur Daily offers a glimpse into what's wrong with the Tide Nation. Check out this Bama Redneck wedding. Again, as mentioned in a post yesterday, the Turds refuse to let loose of the Bahr as evident by the bride's father's outfit at the wedding. Also, notice Carson's lovely crimson wedding dress - she's a a real southern beauty.

Two Different Views on Shula

I thought Mike Shula totally blew the game on Saturday with some awful play calling. John Parker Wilson was putting up career numbers on the Razorback secondary by throwing the ball down the field. Yet, come 4th quarter, Bama's offense got extremely conservative, even appearing to play for the game winning field goal on the foot of freshman kicker Leigh Tiffin. It's safe to assume that we will not see any Daniel Moore paintings depicting Leigh's kicking performance taking the place of daddy's 52 yard game winner in the '85 Iron Bowl on Tide fans' trailer walls.

Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham News believes that Shula made the right decision by going conservative in the 4th quarter and overtimes. Kevin feels "when you have two teams this close, two teams separated by a foot, you run the ball and center the ball. You make the kick, take the win, and go home." If my memory and thought serves me correctly, Auburn and LSU are mighty close in talent and separated by few feet. While both teams tried to establish the run, I think you will be hard pressed to call Tuberville anything but conservative when he opted to go for a 4th down conversion in the 4th quarter with the ball in Auburn's territory.

Neal McCready with the Mobile Press-Register offers a different view on Shula. He feels, along with me, that Shula's conservative style cost the Tide. I totally agree that Shula blew the game when he basically took John Parker Wilson's arm out of the game. Shula even acknowledged his qb's play after the game stating "In the 2nd half and in the 4th quarter, (Wilson) made some plays that you can win games with." The problem wasn't the quarterback making plays; it was his coach giving him the opportunity to make them. Judging from Bama fans calling in to Rivals Radio this morning, it appears that they also share the same sentiment and are getting very antsy with Shula.

As Auburn approaches "Fear the Thumb" Day, Auburn fans, me included, can only hope that Shula remains at Alabama for years to come. Here's to keepmikeshula.com.

New Goal Post by Tuscaloosa Metalworks

Thanks go to W. Gurner for forwarding along the advertisement of the "Leigh Tiffin Model". I heard that the Bear even had a hand in the craftsmanship of this model. While we are on the topic of the Bear, be sure to check out this wonderful song (are they kidding?) by Buddy Buie and Ronnie Hammond. You got to tip your hat to those two devoted Tide fans.

Monday Morning Look Back

Another week in the bag and on a pretty lackluster weekend card, we had some interesting turn of events.....

• First, let's examine the "hot seats" that I have discussed the past few weeks. I felt that Houston Nutt was done after this year, yet Arkansas' win against Bama and the fact that he is playing a true freshman at qb might buy him another year. If he can get the Hogs to 4 wins in the conference (which is very doable with Ole Miss and Miss. St. left on the schedule), I think he will survive. All reports in the preseason had Rich Brooks labeled as a lame duck. Well, the Wildcats are playing some decent football and its two losses have been to Top 10 teams. Not quite sure if Rich is ready to pack it up in Kentucky. Chuck Amato, who had flames shooting from his chair, watched his NC State Wolfpack pull off a stunner against 20th ranked BC. While this will temporarily keep the fire from spreading, Chuck will still be packing at years' end. Staying in the state of NC, I think it's all but official that John Bunting will be jobless soon after his Tarheels were taking behind the woodshed by Clemson. And, while the 'Canes were idle this week, all the talk around Miami concerns Larry Coker's job. Based on media reports and my own intuition (take it for what it's worth), he is done unless they run the table. It's crazy to think that there has not been a coaching change in the last 2 years in the ACC, but big changes are coming. Keep in mind that ol' Tommy can't be too far away from walking away from the game as well.
• Auburn's offense is sputtering and I think the problem lies with the offensive line. After Kenny Irons rushed for 180+ against Washington State, the 1st team unit has yet to have a back break the century mark (Yes, I know that Ben Tate ran for over 100 yards against Buffalo, but those yards came in the 4th quarter when both teams were playing reserves).
• Georgia was exposed by Colorado as having major issues at the quarterback position. Their defense is rock solid though.
• Could Mike Shula have called a more awful game in the 4th quarter?
  
• What has happened to Ken Darby? Bama's O-Line is his main issue.
• I can only imagine the messages left on Leigh Tiffin's voicemail.
• John Parker Wilson is getting better each week, but Bama's talent level is not even close to LSU and Auburn's.
• Mitch Mustain was awful against Bama, yet Arkansas found a way to win. Mitch definitely does not look like the high school player of the year, but is playing the part of a weak and confused freshman quarterback.
• Florida's offense with both Chris Leak and Tim Tebow running the show is very entertaining to watch.
• Tim Tebow looks very impressive....similar to a Matt Jones-type.
• It's no secret that I don't like Ole Miss as a school or football team, but they are making it too easy for me to bash them. Their coach and football team are a downright embarrassment to the SEC. Getting shelled by Wake Forest is one thing, but the fact that Wake shelled Ole Miss by only attempting 5 passes is simply terrible.
  
• Glad to see the Bulldogs of MS State pull out a "w" against UAB.
  
• Conference USA is awful this year. State and Ole Miss need to fill their non-conference schedule with C-USA teams because it's looking like that will be their only "w's" this year.
• I got my first real chance to watch Michigan on Saturday morning, and I must say that they look awfully good. Mario Manningham is a stud and Mike Hart is not too shabby. Their defense flies around the ball. I'm not ready to concede the Big 10 title to the Buckeyes just yet.
• I'm still in a state of disbelief that Michigan State blew the game against Notre Dame. I'm still trying to figure out why Jehuu Caulcrick didn't get a carry after the first play of the 4th quarter. He was shredding ND's defense.

So, it's a short week for my Auburn Tigers with a Thursday night game on ESPN. I'm not a big fan of "my team" playing in the Thursday night game, but Tuberville was quoted as saying that all 12 teams in the SEC owe it to the media to play this game since they have been so good to the SEC. I must admit that I can't quite follow his logic because the ESPN/ABC college football machine is anything but kind to the SEC. Check back shortly for links to columns to get others thoughts on college football. I hope to dig up some good articles on Shula's inept play calling and some perspectives on others' thoughts of Coach O and the state of the Ole Miss program.

Cowherd Beats Me To The Punch on Fantasy Football

So on The Herd today, Colin discussed his dislike for Fantasy Football. I thought I was the only male left in America that didn't play Fantasy Football. Not only do I not play it, I actually hate what fantasy football has done to the game of football. I get so frustrated with the "fantasy people" that could care less about wins and losses of teams on Sunday, but only care about how their "fantasy players" performed. It's impossible to watch an NFL game without having to deal with the constant scroll of players stats across the bottom of the screen. I would much rather see the scores of the games than players stats, but apparently I'm an exception to the norm. To me, it's a shame that stats appear to be more important to the professional football fan than scores. Just another reason I prefer the college game to the NFL version.

Calvin Johnson & Kirk Herbstreit

I think Herbstreit's love obsession with Calvin Johnson, Georgia Tech WR, tops that of Verne Lundquist with David Greene and David Pollack. I can only hope that Calvin's TD reception just prior to the half shuts up Herbstreit. I'm guessing that all we will continue to hear about from Herbstreit is the TD catch and why they aren't going to him more in the 2nd half - Pretty terrible commentating to a pretty terrible game.

Random Musings (OU, Tonight's and This Weekend's Games, Patrick Willis)

I have had little time to read much this week, so I haven't linked anything to my blog - All original this week. I am looking forward to reading some columns and including the links that my loyal readers have come to enjoy.

As mentioned yesterday, I am so sick of Bob Stoops' whining. It is literally on the cover of every sports website, magazine, newspaper and is the focal talking point on very talk show. Get over it, Bob and the Sooner nation. The call, or calls, was terrible, but good teams find a way to win when things don't go their way. The Sooners, in my opinion, did the complete opposite and gave the game away. They gave up over 500 yards of offense to Oregon, 2 touchdowns in less than 30 seconds over the final 2 minutes of the game, and had a game winning field goal attempt blocked to end the game. Humans make mistakes - it's part of life. What you do to overcome those human mistakes proves what you are made of, and OU was exposed by Oregon as an overrated team that will loose more games this year.

For whatever reason, I could care less about tonight's GA Tech - UVA game. I could always place a wager on the game to make it a bit more interesting, but I'm just not in the wagering mode tonight. This crappy game is a great kick-off to a pretty crappy weekend. Penn St. - OSU, Bama - ARK, and ND - MSU are about the only games that I'm looking forward to watching. Wisky- Mich could be a good game to get the day started off. With ABC pulling their regional BS for its night game, I will have to watch the Irish game at a bar, because we will be stuck with USC-Arizona in our region and Time Warner - Santa Monica doesn't offer ESPN Gameplan. So, that means I will be unhappy watching the Irish game with a bunch of fair weather USC assholes at any local watering hole I choose.

I know that I often knock Ole Miss on my blog, but major kudos to Patrick Willis. He is a player and I earlier posted a nice article about him that was printed in the Memphis Commercial Appeal. Well, ESPN The Magazine has a great story on Patrick in its latest issue. It's worth the cover stand price to read if you are not a subscriber. While, I can't pull for Ole Miss, I can't help but pull for Patrick to have a successful career with football and beyond.

Monday Morning Look Back (Just a tad late)

Sorry that this post is late, but I just caught my breath from the Auburn - LSU game. On that note, I picked a hell of a game to make my trip to Auburn this year. These two teams have built quite the rivalry with some amazingly close games in what has clearly become the most important game in the West. Thanks go to D. Kendrick, A. Lorimer, and the rest of their crew for throwing a one hell of a tailgate. On to my thoughts (and they are random with no links):

• Auburn and LSU have the two fastest defenses that I have ever watched in person. LSU's also comes with size.
• JaMarcus Russell has an absolute cannon for an arm, but too bad we only got to see him heave the ball once.
• Kody Bliss can punt the ever living shit out of a football.
• Glenn Dorsey is a man-child. He made a living in Auburn's backfield.
• Hello, John Chavis....were you the only person in America that didn't know what was going to happen when Tim Tebow came into the game.
• Florida's defense simply crushed Tennessee in a game that Florida dominated much more than the score indicates.
• Is Georgia any good? They have yet to play anyone of note, but have absolutely crushed everyone.
• Ole Miss is absolutely horrible. The school is looking dumb for canning Cutcliffe and hiring Coach O.
• Mississippi State is beyond horrible. Can they cancel the remainder of their football season? Losing to Tulane is a disgrace to the school and the conference. But, hey, at least they found the end zone.
• The Egg Bowl very well could live up to its name this year - the loser finishes its SEC season with an egg (0 - 8) for its record.
• Yea, Alabama! You beat La-Monroe and Shula suspended "Mari"Juwan Simpson. You guys are back. Shula is turning this storied program into a complete joke.
• I'm beginning to question Steve Spurrier's coaching abilities. He won with extremely talented teams at Florida, but has since struggled in the NFL and the jury is still out in South Carolina. Maybe they are already in serious prep mode for Auburn?
• Vandy....Bueller.....Bueller.....so close, but they come up just short. Seems familiar.
• Arkansas still has a lot of improvement before they are ready to compete in the SEC.
• After this past weekend's schedule, how awful does this weekend's schedule look?
• Chuck Amato's seat is now flaming.
  
• Remember me saying that Louisville and VA Tech were must win games for Larry Coker? Uh-oh. Contrary to what the administration at Miami is saying, his seat is smoking and will catch flames like Amato's should the Canes loose to VA Tech.
• Who will Miami court.... Tommy Tuberville? Butch Davis?
• Bob Stoops needs to quit his whining. Had his team kept Oregon from scoring or made its last field goal attempt, the poor officiating would be a non-issue.
• Just how did the replay guy in the Oregon - OU game blow that call?
• Just what was Army thinking running the ball against A&M with no timeouts and less than 10 seconds left? Dennis Franchione owes Army a thank you because smoke was beginning to rise from his seat.
• How about the SEC having 4 teams in the Top 11 in Total Defense? And we play offense too; just ask CAL, Arizona, Washington State, and a host of other teams.
• It's highly possible that Miami and Florida State finish outside the Top 25 this year.
• Is there a stranger program and coaching situation than at Clemson? These guys win some huge games, loose quite a few games by a few points, their coach gets on the hot seat, and then they go back to winning some huge games. Tommy Bowden is the Steve Lavin of college football.
  
• And last, but far from least, WAR DAMN MICHIGAN WOLVERINES.

On a non-football related note, I saw Little Miss Sunshine with my mother on Monday. I highly recommend the movie - it is freaking hilarious.

Will Be Posting Soon

It was a huge weekend in the SEC and I have posted nothing. I left the laptop at home for my trip to Auburn and Memphis, so I have not posted anything since the weekend - dad's computer is a piece of work and crapped out on me yesterday when trying to post my recap. I have spent ample time hanging out with my folks, and am very ready to return to sunny Southern Cali and hang with the wife and dog and get back to blogging. I will be posting my recap tomorrow and hopefully a bundle of good information and columns as I plan to blog and kick it with the dog tomorrow. Does school and work really have to get fired up again in a few weeks?

Another Arrest

Well, Mitch Cozad isn't the only football player to recently be arrested. Maybe Steve Spurrier was pulling a Nostradamus on us earlier in the week when he stated that Carolina's starting line-up was going to be shaken up. On Wednesday, South Carolina quarterback, Blake Mitchell, was arrested after a bar fight and charged with simple assault. By looking at his mug, his victim appears to have gotten a blow in on his left eye as well. The one good thing out of this arrest - at least Mitchell didn't assault one of his own teammates.

Travelling & Football's Tonya Harding

I have a 7AM flight to Memphis, so blogging will not be taking place tomorrow morning. On Friday, I'm off to Auburn with my old man for our first father - son football trip to Auburn in 13 years. I'll try to post some things tomorrow, because I will definitely not be posting again until Monday at the earliest. No promises for tomorrow.

Just what exactly was Mitch Cozad thinking? In an unbelievable story, Mitch Cozad, the back-up kicker at Northern Colorado, stabbed Rafael Mendoza in the leg, similar to Tonya Harding staging an attack of Nancy Kerrigan. The big difference here is that Mitch himself attempted to pull off the stunt when Tonya hired a hit-man. I can only imagine the team unity for the Northern Colorado Bears. I wonder if the starters on the team are constantly looking over their shoulders these days? Here is what the AD and Head Coach had to say on the situation.

Will Florida's Road Struggles Continue?

Last year, the Gators struggled mightily on the road under 1st-year coach Urban Meyer. In today's Orlando Sentinel, Dave Curtis examines Florida's road woes of a year ago and what the team is doing in preparations for the Tennessee game in Neyland Stadium this weekend. I'm struggling with handicapping this game. Florida has looked great versus an always stingy Southern Miss and a mid to top tier C-USA team. Tennessee throttled Cal, a team many expected to compete for the National Title and then survived a scare from Air Force this past weekend. Something tells me that Tennessee is better than the score of the Air Force game, but are they good enough to beat Florida?

Things Not Looking Good In Oxford

Well, well, what do you know? We are only two weeks into the football season and Rebel fans are already talking about "next year." During this offseason, Coach O signed the nation's top JUCO quarterback, Brent Schaeffer and brought in two coaches from Miami, Dan Werner and Art Kehoe after Larry Coker of Miami showed them the door. All was going to be good in Oxford this fall, right? Wrong. The Rebels defense is currently ranked 104 out of 119 teams in yards allowed and the offense is ranked 102 nationally in yards gained, leaving the Rebels with the dubious distinction of being one of only 6 schools in I-A to be ranked 100 or lower in both categories. And it's not like the Rebels have faced two juggernauts early in the season - Memphis and Missouri. Schaeffer has struggled mightily as I expected completing only 44% of his passes, but the defensive struggles under Coach O's watchful eyes are surprising to me. I understand Ole Miss fans believe the guy is recruiting highly talented players into the program, but I just don't think this guy can get the job done. Ole Miss would be smart to cut their ties with Coach O soon, before the Ole Miss program becomes even more of a mockery.

Mississippi State Player - "Then we'll be on a roll"

Apparently, once Mississippi State finds the end zone, they will "be on a roll," according to freshman quarterback Tray Rutland. State's offense currently ranks dead last in the nation averaging 161 yards a game. R.J. Morgan highlights the youth of the Mississippi State offense in an article in today's Memphis Commercial Appeal along with the fantastic quote from Tray Rutland.

Suspected Felon Eyeing Bama and The Buckeyes

The folks over at the M Zone offered a post yesterday about the story of Pat Lazear, a high school football standout who is facing armed robbery charges. Wheaton High School is giving him a second chance and he is hoping to land at either Alabama or Ohio State to continue his football days. The guys with the M Zone obviously focus their attention on the Buckeyes, but notice in the Washington Post article that Alabama is high on Pat Lazear's list. If he can get down to Tuscaloosa for a visit, I'm sure that "Mari"Juwan Simpson could be more than happy to be his player host and maybe they could hit up the local ice cream shop instead of a smoothie shop this go-around.

College Football's Biggest Issue - Shorter Games

After two weeks of action, many people, with Tommy Tuberville appearing to be the lone exception, have voiced and written about their displeasure of the new clock rules. I found an interesting tidbit in an article by Carl Dubois, sportswriter for the Baton Rouge Advocate, on the subject of shorter games. While college games have been too long, it's not because of old clock rules, but rather college football has become big time business for the universities, conferences, and television networks. The amount of commercials during the games is absurd. Let's cut out some commercials rather than plays. The fan is now getting completely screwed by paying higher prices for tickets and television, yet seeing fewer plays.

Anyhow, the most interesting part of the article in my opinion comes when Dubois discusses the amount of live action in a football game. I was shocked to learn that in LSU's game against Arizona on Saturday there was only 13 minutes and 8 seconds of live football action, meaning from the snap of the ball to the end of the play. I never really put much thought into the amount of live action, but to fans who say that football is boring (especially folks from outside the U.S. that love the game of soccer), I can now understand where they are coming from. However, I still think a game that generally ends with a score of 1 - 0 is boring as hell even if the players are involved in "live action" for 90 minutes. Those 90 minutes of live action is pretty damn boring and painful compared to college football's 13 minutes of "live action."

Coaching Friends Collide - LSU vs. Auburn

In today's Huntsville Times, Phillip Marshall writes a good piece on the friendship between LSU Offensive Coordinator, Jimbo Fisher, and Auburn Defensive Coordinator, Will Muschamp. These guys coached together at both Auburn and LSU and even co-own a beach house. In a game that has seen so much over the years, another twist to what is becoming quite a rivalry only seems logical. I do not know Coach Muschamp, but having been involved with the football program at Auburn while Jimbo was there, I only have nice things to say about Jimbo - he is a heck of a guy and coach.

Post - Weekend Columns

Not going to include as many this week, just a few that I have come across - feel free to pass along other notable columns:

Tony Barnhart with the Atlanta Journal Constitution writes a column discussing the huge upcoming weekend of college football and a few quick hitters from this past weekend.

According to Michael Ventre with MSNBC, the National Title game is already set. It's truly amazing the "National Respect" that USC and Notre Dame garner from the media. If a team survives undefeated in the SEC, they will be playing for the National Title this year. Period.

Memphis Commercial Appeal columnist, Ron Higgins, writes a nice piece on Sylvester Croom and his struggles at Mississippi State with the added perspective from Tommy Tuberville.

Ray Melick of the Birmingham News writes that Auburn has been focused on the LSU game for many months.

Nate Allen, columnist for The Benton County Daily Record, writes about Arkansas and their upcoming match-up with Vanderbilt. At one time Arkansas looked at this game as an easy "w," but not anymore. Houston Nutt attributes it to Vandy's improvement, but I challenge Nutt to look in the mirror and at his own team.

Pat Dooley of The Gainesville Sun discusses Florida's domination of the C-USA and looks ahead to their upcoming weekend game with Tennessee.

Jim Kleinpeter of the New Orleans Times Picayune compares the start of LSU's 2006 season to that of the 2005 season.

Monday Morning Look Back

It's crazy to think that 5 years ago today this country was under attack. The coverage of the events 5 years later still fills me with anger. While life is back to normal for a majority of Americans, things are still different today and even affect college football with longer lines entering stadiums thanks to mandatory bag checks (although these bag checks are still useless in my opinion). On to my thoughts from college football this past weekend:

• Stop Auburn's running game, and Brandon Cox appears to look capable of beating you.
• Auburn needs some receivers other than Courtney Taylor and Rodgerigus Smith to step up.
• Auburn's linebackers are awfully small and I think teams will be able to pound the ball between the tackles on Auburn.
• Mississippi State's offense is painful on the eyes.
• Good thing Alabama opened up with patsies this year - they are struggling and do not look impressive.
• Vanderbilt appears to have found its usual groove - play teams tough, but come up short.
• South Carolina's offense is just several steps ahead of Mississippi State's offense.
• UGA has talent, but is the 3rd best team in the East behind Florida and Tennessee.
• Is Joe Tereshinski's sprained ankle bad enough to keep him out of action for 4 to 6 weeks or is this a ploy by Mark Richt to avoid a quarterback controversy. I highly doubt it's a ploy.
  
• Florida again looked solid against lesser competition.
• Chris Leak is playing the part of a senior quarterback.
• UT, although they were on the brink of defeat to Air Force, are still a solid football team. Air Force was a sandwich game and their offense can create problems as it did.
• While UT is one of the top 2 teams in the East (we will learn who the top is this weekend), injuries have handicapped the Vols.
• LSU continues to be my favorite in the West. JaMarcus Russell is a stud.
• LSU's defense looks lightening fast.
• Ole Miss is still a bottom feeder in the SEC. While they showed signs of life against Memphis, they looked terrible on Saturday against better, but nor great competition.
• As predicted, Brent Schaeffer is struggling to produce offense.
• Arkansas' struggles continue and it all starts with the quarterback play as predicted in the preseason.
• Arkansas' rushing game was great against Utah State, but will be shut down by SEC teams that force their quarterbacks to beat them with their arms.
• Kentucky notched a win, granted it was against Texas State.
• I made an excellent decision Saturday night - the Bonnie Raitt and Keb' Mo' concert was phenomenal, and the Ohio State - Texas game appears to not have lived up to expectations.
• I only watched the 1st quarter of the OSU - UT game, but OSU looks very good. Troy Smith looks very impressive.
• What's going on at Florida State? - maybe it's finally time for Papa Bowden to walk away.
• Notre Dame - Penn State game was not entertaining to watch unless you're a fan of the Irish. I'm still not sold on the Irish.
• Chuck Amato will be looking for a new gig when the year is over along with Houston Nutt and Rich Brooks. The folks at the M Zone have started the "Official Chuck Amato Watch."
  
• New year and same story - Clemson suffers an early loss in a game that they clearly should have won. If Tommy Bowden isn't careful, he could be joining the list of coaches above.
• How about Iowa's goal line stand? The best goal line stand I have ever witnessed.
  
• Is it Saturday yet? I am making my annual pilgrimage back to Auburn and the schedule this upcoming weekend is sick:
• LSU at Auburn
• Michigan at Notre Dame
• Florida at Tennessee
• Nebraska at USC
• Clemson at Florida State
• Miami at Louisville
• Oklahoma at Oregon

Mississippi State D Talking Smack

Michael Heard is bringing some serious smack before the Auburn - Mississippi State game. Nothing wrong with a little smack talk, but as a 3 touchdown underdog, Heard might do well to pipe it down a bit. Judging from Kenny Irons' trash talk last week, this could be quite entertaining to watch. Personally, I hope Kenny keeps to himself, but I find that highly unlikely when you have fools making statements such as "I'm not trying to be arrogant, but if we play our game, we can smash these boys." Not quite sure what he means by "our game," but based on my definition of MSU's "game," they are in for a very long Saturday. Also, is it possible for Mr. Heard to be arrogant? Here's to looking forward to Heard's "I-told-you-so" speech.

Sacrifice

OR

Well, we have a little good news/bad news for this Saturday evening. Several months back, I learned that Bonnie Raitt and Keb' Mo' were performing at the Greek Theatre on September 9th. I don't listen to Bonnie too much (though I hear her shows are great), but I am a huge Keb' Mo' fan. Anyhow, a friend of ours works with Capital Records and more directly with Bonnie Raitt. My wife mentioned something about the show to her and low and behold, I just received 4 unbelievable tickets to the sold-out show. I am extremely excited about the show; however, there just happens to be a small little college football game tomorrow night.

Yes, I might be committing college football fanatic suicide, but I am going to the concert. Our friend was too nice to hook us up with tickets that we asked for and Keb' Mo' live will be awesome. I will also not be taking my phone, because I would then be pre-occupied with checking updates every 5 minutes.

Bring StrangeCock Back

On the eve of the UGA - USC game, I was reminded about one of the more clever South Carolina Websites on the Internet, StrangeCock.com - Gamecock Gazette. We are now going on the 2nd year of no updates to the site and there were only limited editions in '03 and '04. Anyone know the author of the site and his or her whereabouts'?

Last Night's Football Choices

I must admit - I watched the Steelers-Dolphins game instead of the Boise State-Oregon State game.

I am a huge college football fan, but I am kind of tired of Boise State at this point. They are a solid mid-major program and that is all they are. The "Blue Turf" was interesting at first, but that has now faded and the field is quite terrible. All-in-all, I think Boise State is quite "bush league." They have an impressive home winning streak, yet they beat no one worth a damn in my opinion. Yea, Oregon State is in the PAC-10, but they are a bottom tier team in a bottom tier conference. The Big East with Louisville and West Virginia appears to have more fire power than the PAC-10 this year. Boise State attempted to play a top-tier SEC program and got absolutely trounced. If these guys find their way to a BCS bowl, the BCS will be letting down college football fans in a huge way.

Speaking of last nights' games, did anyone catch the picture of Charlie Batch's mother, Lynn Settles? Here hair is a thing of beauty. This is the best photo that I could find - trust me, it doesn't do her justice.

Former Ole Miss Assistant Arrested Again...This Time for Driving Nude

Detroit Lions' Defensive Line Coach, Joe Cullen, has made a return to the police blogs. After being canned at Ole Miss for public intox prior to ever coaching a game for the Rebels, Joe moved on to Illinois and is now with the Detroit Lions. According to the Detroit Free Press, Joe Cullen was arrested twice in the last two weeks, charged with DUI and indecent and obscene conduct for driving in the nude. Apparently, Coach Cullen has taken Coach Ed Orgeron's "Wild Boys mantra" to heart.

Early Heisman Hype

Yes, the season is one game behind us and websites and television shows are already dissecting the Heisman Trophy race. Bill Sanders with the Atlanta Journal Constitution writes on Kenny Irons' merits as a Heisman candidate after week 1.

Kenny had a great game against Washington State - but we all know that defense is not a strong suite of the PAC-10. Actually, is anything a strong suite of the PAC-10 when you look beyond USC? It will be interesting to see how well he does versus a stingy defense in Mississippi State this weekend and then in a national television showdown with LSU in a little over a week. My senses are that if Kenny has big games the next two weekends (especially against LSU with many eyes across the nation watching), he will have a very legitimate shot at a Heisman run and the Heisman hype surrounding him will become more reality than hype.

The Early Rankings

In today's Birmingham News, Ray Melick writes a nice column on Auburn and being surpassed by USC in the latest AP poll. Auburn was burned by the polls in '04, yet head coach Tommy Tuberville had little to say about USC jumping Auburn. Ray writes that he believes Auburn will hang points on opponents all year to make a statement and avoid the potential of being "on the outside looking in" again. However, Tuberville says that Auburn will just try to win their games.

Post-Weekend Columns

My attempt to compile columns about SEC teams and the previous weekend:

Alabama:
There Is Life After Croyle, Prothro at Bama - Kevin Scarbinsky
Spiffed-Up Stadium, But Same Old Game - Ray Melick
Shula Writes Tale of Two Disciplines - Ray Melick
Cheers Off, On Field Drown Out One Jeer - Mark McCarter
QB Wilson, Others Step Up for UA - Randy Kennedy
Shula Spits On Tradition At Alabama - Paul Finebaum
Alabama Still Has Plenty Of Unanswered Questions - Cecil Hurt

Arkansas:
Mustain Era Has Arrived - Alex Abrams

Auburn:
Daring Call Keeps Tigers In Control - John Pruett
AU, LSU Ahead In West; Vols May Be Beast In East - John Pruett
Two Weeks Until Judgement Day - Neal McCready
Tigers Already Flashing Elite Pedigree - Mike Szvetitz
Celebration Over Before It Began; Back To Work For AU - Mike Szvetitz

Florida:
UF Opening Night Mostly Thumbs UP - Gene Frenette
Good Start For Gators - Pat Dooley
Don't Read Too Much Into Opener - Pat Dooley
Ol' Ballcoach Still Casts Shadow Over Gainesville - Mike Bianchi

Georgia:
Another QB Quandry For Dogs - Carter Strickland
The Future Is Now For Stafford - Andy Johnston

Kentucky:
If Brooks Can't Get Cats Pumped For Cardinals... - John Clay
Brooks Needs To Win Next 2 Or Ship Sinks - Mark Story
Lopsided Loss Shows Cats Not Competitive Yet - John Clay
Cats Searching For A Lot More Than Their Soul - Eric Crawford

LSU:
Acadiana Players Key For Tigers - Scott Rabalais
Broussard Rebirth Takes Shape - Scott Rabalais

Mississippi State:
Croom's Old Coach Would Have Punted - Rick Cleveland
The Good, Bad, and Ugly - Michael Wallace
Bulldogs Unable to Recover From Loss Of Henig - Danny Smith

Ole Miss:
Werner Earns 1st Game Ball - Rick Cleveland
Offense Good. Defense Bad. - Robbie Neiswanger
Creative Playcalling, Spirited Rivalry...Hey, Let's Do It Again! - Geoff Calkins

South Carolina:
USC's Half-Full Glass Quenches - For Now - Ron Morris
Spurried Deserved UF's Cheers - Ron Morris

Tennessee:
Vols Not Yet Back On 'Top' - John Kaltefleiter
Ainge A New QB Under Cutcliffe - Ron Higgins
Cutcliffe Is The Real Playmaker - Joe Biddle
Don't Get Excited By One Game - David Climer
Fulmer Has Vols Fired Up For Opener - Chris Low

Vanderbilt:
Big House Leaves A Small Impression - David Climer
Nickson Shows Signs Of Future Success - Maurice Patton

Please bring my attention to any notable columnists that are not included on this list at secfanatic at gmail dot com.

Monday (Tuesday) Morning Look Back

After 46 beers, a few pounds of barbecue, and a whole lot of football viewing, I finally bring to you the Monday Morning Look Back (or Tuesday thanks to Labor Day):

* Is there a better weekend than opening weekend of college football? If so, please fill me in.

* Auburn looked good - I thought the offense struggled to get into a rhythm, but they still managed 40 points and just under 500 yards. The defense played some strange formations (not indicative of what we will see), but held a potent offense to only 14 points and completely shut down the Brink - Hill connection. AU needs receivers to step up.

* Kenny Irons is very good. Brad Lester is good. Carl Stewart has the build of an amazing back, yet I haven't been impressed with him.

* LSU was completely dominant (as they should have been) against overmatched opponent, Louisiana Lafayette. JaMarcus Russell looked very good. AU - LSU in two Saturdays will be huge.

* What has happened to Justin Vincent since he torched OU in the Sugar Bowl?

* UGA is going to need a lot of improvement before they are going to hang with Florida and Tennessee this year.

* Vanderbilt actually showed some team speed on Saturday (if Michigan still has the talent that it should).

* Though they will always struggle in the SEC, I sense Bobby Johnson is building something at Vandy to remove them from its SEC doormat position.

* John Parker Wilson was impressive in his debut at Bama after a rugged start.

* Bama's running game struggled against Hawaii - doesn't appear to be a good sign for the Tide.

* Is Cal the most overrated team in the country this year or is UT back? I think it's a little of both. UT will be in the hunt for the East all year. Florida - UT in two Saturdays is huge.

* After a slow start, Florida and Chris Leak looked very impressive once they got into their groove.

* Rich Brooks will be joining Houston Nutt in the unemployment line at year's end.

* Brent Schaeffer was good in his Ole Miss debut. His stats were not off the chart, but he had a good command of the offense.

* BenJarvus Green-Ellis is a huge step-up for Ole Miss in the running game.

* Dexter McCluster had a great game, but Ole Miss will need more than one receiver to catch a pass if they are going to make any noise in the SEC (which they still are several years away from doing).

* Patrick Willis is very good.

* Joe Lee Dunn is not a good defensive coordinator. His schemes are down right terrible.

* After week 1, my pre-season thoughts on Arkansas and their qb situation are remarkably accurate.

* A high school coach calling offensive plays is going to struggle in the SEC and against the likes of USC.

* Louisville and Virginia Tech are must win games for Larry Coker.

* Florida State and Miami are no longer in the nation's elite.

* Bill Curry is painful to listen to. Since he has a new high school gig, can ESPN not can him?

* I don't really dig Mike Patrick. I didn't like him in the NFL booth and the same goes for college.

* How about Hampton and Grambling putting together one of the more exciting games on Saturday?

*My Preseason SEC Predictions:
After week 1, I still like my top 3 in the West. I think Auburn will be better than 5-3, but will still finish behind LSU. The Auburn-LSU game is clearly for the right to play in Atlanta. No way State finishes 4-4 in the conference and Ole Miss may notch 3 wins. In the East, I'd have to move Florida and Tennessee ahead of UGA. I'd also swap places with Kentucky and Vanderbilt.

Edgerrin James Interview (Miami - FSU)

I will have my weekend recap posted tomorrow....

I'd plan to take the long weekend off, but decided to quickly post at half of this game. First off, if it was possible for two teams to loose the same game, the Miami - FSU game would get my vote.

Holly Rowe's interview with Edgerrin James during the 2nd quarter was priceless. When asked if Miami had lost its swagger, Edgerrin answers that Miami just always has to replace great players that move on to the NFL. Edgerrin continued to elaborate stating that everybody knows that guys only come to Miami to play for three years and then move on to the league. I'm sure the private school administration is thrilled with Edgerrin's analysis of the football program. I'm hoping the interview finds its way to You Tube.

Isn't sad that this game isn't a sellout? Hard to put it too high on a rivalry list when you can't even sell out your stadium.

War Damn Eagle

The following post is courtesy of Washington State fan known as CougVegas on Scout's Washington State's message boards:

Auburn-Wow
Got here yesterday and all I can say is wow. The campus is beautiful and the people are just fantastic. Were on campus the students couldn't have been nicer. Wasn't there 5 minutes when the nicest young women offered me and my buddies a tour of campus. She spent an hour with us telling us about the university. Had someone from the admissions office come out and bring us botteled water when they saw us on the tour. Too many other nice little things to comment on right now.Humid, but not too bad. The women here are just amazing, and there is some good bbq here too. All in all, after day one, this is fantastic.

1st SEC Game of 2006

The Carolina - State game was not enjoyable to watch - close on the scale of the Memphis - UCLA Elite 8 game. Hands down, the punter/kicker for Carolina, Ryan Succop, stole the show last night with three field goals and an excellent decision to tuck and run the ball for a 1st down, avoiding a blocked punt. State's defense looked good as did Carolina's, but I think both offenses (granted State played without their starting QB in the 2nd Half - but he wasn't all that impressive) had something to do with that. This is Croom's 3rd year at Starkville, and I have yet to notice an improvement with the team since he took over. Things should get interesting in Starkville, if and when the time comes for his head to roll. Based on last night, I'm not to confident in my prediction of State going 4-4 in the conference - it will now require them to pull off at least 1 major upset. Hopefully, that will not come next weekend.

Crazy Happenings at Ole Miss

The Jerrell Powe saga continues on at Ole Miss. This is a crazy story - A County Chancery Court Jude granted a temporary restraing order that states Powe must be allowed to enroll in school. Last week, the NCAA ruled that Powe was ineligible to receive scholarship aid or play football at Ole Miss this season. The judge granted the restraining order stating that Powe has met the NCAA's minimum requirements for academic eligibility and he should be placed on scholarship and be allowed to practice. I hope it all ends up working out for this young man who has struggled to make it to Ole Miss.