College football

[billy.pilgrim]

So I was still thinking about billy.p's view on scheduling, and it seems to me that scheduling a few patsies like Georgia State and Howard and Akron is not an unreasonable part of a broad strategy. Now if your goal is to prove that you're the best team in the land, you might have to play all the teams that are close to your greatness. But for most teams, that will be a failing approach, because if you're always playing teams approximating your quality, you're bound to lose at least a fourth of them most years. On the other hand, if your strategy is to win championships, you've got at least two reasonable approaches: (1) figure that you'll get better if you play tough games early in the season; or, (2) figure you'll be better off treating early games as high level scrimmages and build a record with healthy players. Ultimately, if the goal is to compete for championships, you gotta have wins. Macho by itself won't do it.

I'm not sure there's a problem with scheduling a Georgia State and Howard and Akron if you are playing 3 - 5 top ten teams, or even 4 or 5 top 20 teams.

I really don't think that the goal is for championships.

[O Really]

I really don't think that the goal is for championships.

Well sure, if you're UNC and your best hope for any season is going to be maybe 7-5 and maybe a win over Duke or NC State. But if you're somebody who regularly fields a team who could compete for at least a conference championship, which may or may not lead to a playoff selection, it seems that's going to be the overall goal. Your fellow alums may joke about any season you beat Alabama and Georgia is a good season, but I don't think a couple of 2-10 seasons is going to make anybody happy or keep any coaches their jobs. Being and beating the best in the land on two given days of the year doesn't mean much in the long run. And by the end of a 10-2 season, nobody is going to remember the patsy wins as anything other than wins.

[Vrede too]

... I really don't think that the goal is for championships.

Good thing.
More seriously, what is the goal for a team like Auburn then?

AP Top 25

1 Alabama 2-0 Ugh
2 Georgia 2-0 Ugh
3 Oklahoma 2-0 up1 Ugh
4 Oregon 2-0 up8 Yippee
5 Iowa 2-0 up5 Nice
6 Clemson 1-1 Ugh
7 Texas A&M 2-0 down2 Yep, unranked @CO almost beat them
8 Cincinnati 2-0 down1 Patsy opponents
9 Ohio State 1-1 down6 Sweet
10 Penn State 2-0 up1 Ugh

13 UCLA 2-0 up3 Beat LSU, crushed HI, go Pac12!

21 North Carolina 1-1 up3 Patsy win success
22 Auburn 2-0 up3 Patsy wins success

24 Miami 1-1 down2 Appalachian State came thaaat close to beating @Miami

Others receiving votes: (26) UCF 2-0 ... (37) Maryland 2-0

[billy.pilgrim]

UCLA 2-0 up3 Beat LSU (missing 22 players), crushed HI, go Patsy wins

ND almost loses Patsy game

[Vrede too]

UCLA 2-0 up3 Beat LSU (missing 22 players), crushed HI, go Patsy wins

ND almost loses Patsy game

Yep, that's why #12 Notre Dame 2-0 dropped 4, and should have.

... Not that I cared, but unranked Toledo came thaaat close to beating #8 @Notre Dame, 29-32.

I'm happy to see that LSU bounced back to beat FCS McNeese. At least HI is FBS.
Next up for LSU is Central Michigan, for UCLA it's Fresno State.

[billy.pilgrim]

I wonder which game, or how many games, Auburn will have to play with 20 or 30 players in quarantine. LSU squeaked by against an easy team, we have 6 coming up in the top 20.

[billy.pilgrim]

[Vrede too]

I wonder which game, or how many games, Auburn will have to play with 20 or 30 players in quarantine. LSU squeaked by against an easy team, we have 6 coming up in the top 20.

Go #22 Auburn > #10 @PSU (favored by 5)!

2 exciting games last night, both decided in the last minute.

As you show:
UCF forced OT w/ 1:21 left. Or not. Clean game, no turnovers so far.
Louisville driving, defensive rusher batted pass to himself, INT.
UCF primed to win, receiver tipped pass, pick six.
Louisville 42, UCF 35.

Early 4th: IL rusher gained 33, fumbled to another IL player that ran 30 more to take 17-10 lead.
2:38 left: MD forced OT. Or not.
IL went backwards until punting on 4th and 37!
MD turned the excellent field position into a walkoff FG!
GO TERPS, 3-0, leading the Big 10!

Go:

O Really's #24 @Miami (FL) (favored by 6.5) > Michigan St
New Mexico > #7 @Texas A&M (favored by 30). Yeah, right.
Georgia Tech > #6 @Clemson (favored by 27.5). Yeah, right.
#11 @Florida > #1 Alabama (favored by 14.5). Wouldn't that be something?!
South Carolina > #2 @Georgia (favored by 31.5). Yeah, right.
#21 @N. Carolina (favored by 8, must be a misprint) > Virginia
#4 @Oregon (favored by 40.5) > FCS Stony Brook
#19 Arizona St (favored by 3.5) > #23 @BYU
#13 @UCLA (favored by 10.5) > Fresno St

[O Really]

Sure, you're talking big now, with no 'Bama on the schedule...

[billy.pilgrim]

Sure, you're talking big now, with no 'Bama on the schedule...

They are 50/50 at Auburn. They did beat bammer back about 30+ years ago, but other than 2 beat downs have managed to keep them off the schedule this century.

I wish that I could find my usual pre-game optimism, but I have some serious qb concerns

and then there's our dumbass anti-vax coach

Edit

It's an away game - good, less chance we'll get another delay of game penalty because Our student section was so loud that Our QB couldn't hear or be heard

[Vrede too]

... It's an away game - good, less chance we'll get another delay of game penalty because Our student section was so loud that Our QB couldn't hear or be heard

Your student section is that loud when Auburn has the ball??? Must be the low admission requirements.

[O Really]

Not a bad weekend - UNC won against a conference opponent Huskies kicked ass on some second-tier school, WaSu's worthless coach got one game closer to his extinction, Aztecs pulled off a highlights film win over PAC-12 Utah, and Miami - uh, nevermind.

[Vrede too]

Not a bad weekend - UNC won against a conference opponent Huskies kicked ass on some second-tier school, WaSu's worthless coach got one game closer to his extinction,

Nice, though I'm no USC fan.

Aztecs pulled off a highlights film win over PAC-12 Utah,

3OT!

and Miami - uh, nevermind.

Go #22 Auburn > #10 @PSU (favored by 5)!
Ouch, coulda won, 20-28. Gonna stay in the Top 25?

...

Go:

O Really's #24 @Miami (FL) (favored by 6.5) > Michigan St
Silver lining: You don't have to worry about maintaining a Top 25 position anymore.
New Mexico > #7 @Texas A&M (favored by 30). Yeah, right.
Texas A&M beat the spread, 34-0.
Georgia Tech > #6 @Clemson (favored by 27.5). Yeah, right.
Unranked Georgia Tech came thaaat close to a win, 8-14.
#11 @Florida > #1 Alabama (favored by 14.5). Wouldn't that be something?!
Ahh, that would have been sweet, 29-31.
South Carolina > #2 @Georgia (favored by 31.5). Yeah, right.
South Carolina beat the spread, 13-40. Yippee.
#21 @N. Carolina (favored by 8, must be a misprint) > Virginia
59-39, who are they?!
#4 @Oregon (favored by 40.5) > FCS Stony Brook
Beat the spread by 0.5, 48-7.
#19 Arizona St (favored by 3.5) > #23 @BYU
Crap 17-27.
#13 @UCLA (favored by 10.5) > Fresno St
UCLA 37, Fresno St 40 . Does this mean that Fresno St is better than LSU?

Other challenges to powerhouses:
Unranked 2-2 Nebraska 16, #3 @Oklahoma 23
Unranked 0-3 Tulsa hung in there with 2-1 #10 @Ohio St until the last 3 minutes of the game.

AP:
Oregon (3-0) jumped past Oklahoma (3-0) to #3.
Penn State (3-0) bounced up to #6 thanks to Auburn.
Clemson (2-1) dropped to #9 after its Georgia Tech near miss.
North Carolina (2-1) stayed at #21, which is a big dis to (2-1) Virginia.
Auburn (2-1) dropped just 1 to #23.
UCLA (2-1) fell 11 to #24, below #22 Fresno State (3-1).
(1-2) Miami did not get any votes. Ouch.

Also:
2-1 App St beat Elon 44-10.
San Jose St 17, @Hawaii 13, 674 punting yards!
https://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/san-jose ... tion=stats

Gripe of the week: Georgia Tech @Clemson had a looong lightening delay. At 1928 ABC switched the game to ESPN2 in order to show the Auburn @PSU game. Fine, however the MS St - Memphis was still playing on ESPN2. So, for about 20 minutes real time, much of the 3rd, the game was not shone. Luckily, no scoring happened. Meanwhile, Auburn @PSU game didn’t really start until 1946. FU, ABC/ESPN.

[billy.pilgrim]

... It's an away game - good, less chance we'll get another delay of game penalty because Our student section was so loud that Our QB couldn't hear or be heard

Your student section is that loud when Auburn has the ball??? Must be the low admission requirements.

Bo held both hands out to his sides, palms down. When he lowered his hands, hoping to quiet the excited student section, they got louder and he had to take a penalty for too much time.
Honest to the Dude, the FSM and to all the Festivus Poles everywhere this happened last week.

[billy.pilgrim]

Kinda sucks about tv coverage. Seems they could have at least offered some sort of free streaming.

I've missed half or at least 5 game minutes of so many games that I lost count years ago. Why a sports network with their countless talking head shows would only allow 3.5 hours for a game that often takes nearly 4 is beyond me.

And why not keep people informed. We never saw a mention of what would happen until 4 minutes before they switched to Auburn. I can't believe they just cut the other game. What would have been wrong with a split screen

[billy.pilgrim]

I realize that they're playing miss state, but lsu looks pretty good

[billy.pilgrim]

I used to like app state - not so much anymore. This kind of crap is more like bammer and Florida.

A season, or even a lifetime ban should do the trick.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/ncaafb ... ar-AAOMMbP

After a home loss, don't attack the other players and fans, just brag about next year.

Edit: oops, app state won by 1 point. Now I like them even less.
1st congratulate them on the close game and then brag about how bad you will kill them next year.

[O Really]

Good grief. (likely) drunk college males being obnoxious and classless. Whodathunkit?

[billy.pilgrim]

This may prove to be our worst year since the chiz in 2012.
Georgia state in 1 and 2 and is killing us.

[billy.pilgrim]

Damn, what difference the 2nd half made. Not only did we get rid of our "almost a qb", but we got our defensive captain back at halftime.