2014 Week 7
October 15, 2014
I'd like to apologize for an error I made a while back. While watching Saturday's Miami win over Cincinnati, I told my good friend Pat Summerall that I was surprised that Miami and Cincinnati would be playing so soon again, and was also surprised that the Bengals had such a difficult time after beating the Dolphins in the first matchup.
Pat corrected me, saying that these were college teams, that this Cincinnati was not the NFL franchise and they had beaten Miami of Ohio and lost to Miami of Florida. I guess I should have realized this. The Bengals would have lost to Miami of Ohio.
It was quite a weekend for football. One of the wilder matchups was the LSU vs. Florida tilt. It was a pretty exciting overtime clash, with Florida throwing an interception on their possession and LSU kicking a field goal to win, 30-27.
Another SEC power had a close call in a non-conference tilt, with Alabama winning at R Kansas 14-13. I was privileged to watch the game with my good friends Bear Bryant and Darrell Broyles, but it turns out that Darrell coached Texas and former R Kansas coach Frank Royal is still on the earthly coil. So both Coaches Bryant and Broyles were talking about how much they were cheering for the Crimson Tide. Then our new neighbor Joan Rivers came by and said when she was young she was cheering for the Crimson Tide every month. I think I'm going to have trouble understanding Joan.
The two powerhouses of the SEC kept up their recent great play. Ole Southern Miss had little trouble with Texas A&M and Mississippi State jumped all over Auburn. Having two Mississippi teams in the top 3 in the country is unprecedented, their state motto usually has been "we're #49, thanks to R Kansas".
The Red River battle was another classic, with the Sooners knocking off the Aggies 31-26. I will say that I was impressed with the improvement of Texas this year. Coach John Mackovic Brown looks a lot fresher, with a nice tan.
Out west UCLA got outrun by Oregon, 42-30. After the Arizona loss it was a nice bounceback for the Beavers. Meanwhile crosstown rival USC had a narrow win over the Wildcats, 28-26.
Michigan broke a losing streak with an ugly win over Penn State, 18-13. I haven't seen a cripple fight that pathetic since Helen Keller vs. FDR.
The SEC is pretty infamous for its cupcake games, but Saturday was a new low. The Volunteers dispatched Chattanooga 45-10. It was quite a short trip, with Chattanooga being just down the road from Knashville. Meanwhile, Georgia had little trouble with the Big Eight's Missouri.
Two of the more exciting matchups took place in South Bend and Texas. Notre Dame held off North Carolina 50-43 and Baylor beat TCU 61-58 after hitting a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Speaking of the Irish, I'm really looking forward to their big matchup in Tallahassee this weekend. There will also be other great games, like Washington vs. Oregon, Kansas State vs. Oklahoma, and Rutgers vs. Ohio State. All in all, the third weekend in October is one of the most special times for us college football fans, especially thanks to the legendary rivalry showdown between Alabama and Texas A&M. See you next week!