2010 Week 10
November 9, 2010
The Conference races are finally beginning to shape up as we all anxiously watch the games on Saturday then sit back and breathlessly await Sunday night's announcement of the BS rankings on ESPN.
Some of you have wondered why I've not appeared on ESPN's Sunday BS show. I'll let you in on a little secret -- the show is recorded earlier in the day. A couple weeks ago, when they had the first BS rankings of the season, they did invite me into the studio in Bristol to give some historical perspective.
I was sitting between my good friend Lou Holtz and one of my favorite ever Pitt players, Mark May. Davis Reese asked Coach Holtz what he thought about some of the smaller schools. He talked about that team in Idaho, then I chimed in, noting that Boys' State had done a great job with some of these recalcitrant youth.
I then digressed and discussed what sorts of activities would lead some of these boys to get into trouble and end up at a school like Boys' State. When I started discussing Idaho's very backwards laws about minors and livestock I noticed that the red light on the camera had gone out.
That night ESPN did not show the BS ratings show and instead broadcast an old episode of "Superstars" featuring OJ Simpson and John Havlicek. After the segment they told me that they'd call me the next time they wanted me in the studio, but they must have lost my phone number.
One of the biggest games of the week was played in the Lone Star State. TCU continued its undefeated campaign by smashing the University of Texas at Houston, 47-7. U.T.A.H. never knew what hit them.
Another big game took place in Death Valley. I've always said that LSU is like Dracula, they suck the most at night. Fortunately for the Bayou Bengals, this game was an afternoon tilt. Les Miles gave Nick Satan a dose of his own black magic medicine, with reverses on 4th and 1, long passes in running situations, and even a couple 360 quarterback head spins.
The biggest comeback of the day took place in Boulder, as Kansas roared back in the 4th quarter to knock off Colorado 52-45. Coach Mangini looked very excited on the sidelines for KU and seemed a lot healthier than he was last year. Shaving off that mustache, exercising, and getting in some beach time seems to have done wonders for his appearance.
Some of the most interesting games went to overtime. Iowa State could have tied Nebraska and gone to a second overtime. Instead they faked the two point conversion but failed. Similarly Indiana went for the win but the pass was dropped in the end zone.
I really think teams need to focus on just kicking the ball, tying up the score, and going to the next overtime. The worst offender was Illinois, who went for two after their last overtime touchdown at Michigan but failed to convert. The final score of that wild game was in the 60's, which made people wonder if it was a basketball game. It clearly wasn't. Big Ten basketball teams can't score 67 points.
Finally, I would like to recognize the great milestone achieved in State College Station. Just like everyone else I want to congratulate JoePa on getting to 400. Coach, you don't look a day over 180.