Random Thoughts: Look Who’s Number One

While Alabama took the week off, a few other teams took the spotlight. Clemson and Notre Dame went neck-and-neck to show the world who has the worst defense.

That game had SO MANY official reviews that seemed to last forever.

Dabo and Brent Venables wore their masks about as much as camels drink water. And right along side them was the infected one himself, Trevor Lawrence. The star quarterback was allegedly diagnosed with the Captain Trips and was supposed to be in a 10-day quarantine, which by my count would’ve ended Sunday after the game. So, why was Sunshine on the travel team to Indiana, suited up, in the middle of huddles, and often lowering his mask to communicate with teammates. There have been suspicions that the reason is something else that carries a two game suspension. It’s amazing what Dabo has gotten away with in his tenure at AWAL.

The night was capped with the Irish fans storming the field like a bunch of idiots. Even in non-contagion times, this is a bad look for a program that is supposed to be a blue blood.

Florida 44 Georgia 28 - We knew Georgia had a quarterback problem. We just didn’t know it was this bad. Once again, Stetson Bennett struggled (5/16-78 yds-1 TD-1 INT). Now we know why Kirby Smart was reluctant to go back to D’Wan Mathis (4/13-34-1-2). It’s because he is godawful. Kyle Trask had another big day for Florida passing for 474 yards and 4 TD. However, the Gators only scored a pair of field goals in the second half. The UGA quarterbacks missed several wide receivers running free behind the UF defenders. A more capable offense might have pulled this game out.

SAVAGE!

Arkansas 24 Tennessee 13 - Jeremy Pruitt needs to work on his halftime speeches. The Vols looked good and led at the half 13-0. Upon emerging from the locker room, they were flat and Arky scored 24 points in the third quarter. The Hawgs outgained Rocky Slop 253-19 in the second half. The Vols second half possessions were made up of four three-and-outs, one four-and-out, and the final two series ended in interceptions. Feleipe Franks had another solid outing for the R-backs. A change of surroundings has done wonders for the senior. Moving from the high-pressured Swamp to a one-traffic light town in the Ozarks was a wise move - a decision that will probably get him drafted.

* Remember that time Tennessee had the nation’s longest winning streak? They have now lost four straight with TAMU and @Aub up next.

Texas A&M 48 South Carolina 3 - The Aggies keep rolling along. Kellen Mond threw four touchdowns and Isaiah Spiller tallied 131 yards on 18 carries. SC was horrendous. They were outgained 530 to 150 and had 9 first downs. The Gamecocks crossed midfield only three times.

Losing by 45 at home has put Will Muschamp on the hottest of hot seats. Coach Boom stuck with quarterback Collin Hill for way too long and he was pretty awful (8/21-66-0-2). On the last series of the game, last year’s starter Ryan Hilinski finally saw the field for the first time since he got some garbage minutes in a blowout win over Vandy on Oct. 10. He passed 4-for-6 for 34 yards and produced the game’s only points for the Gamecocks. Post-game rumors have been floating around that the fifth year coach would be fired as early as Sunday morning. It might be time for some Saban rehab work.

Mississippi State 24 Vanderbilt 17 - Vandy more than doubled MSU’s offense (478 to 204) and first downs (30 to 14). They also led in another category: turnovers. The ‘Dores coughed up the football five times while the Bullies did not err in that department. Vanderbilt may have missed their one opportunity for a win this season. They still won’t fire Derek Mason who has no winning campaigns in 7 seasons.

Alabama, LSU, Auburn, and Kentucky had a week off. Funny how Auburn doesn’t play and there are no referee controversies. Hmmm....

OTHER STUFF

Notre Dame 47 Clemson 40 (2 OT) - Oh yeah. These guys played. Does it matter? They will undoubtedly get a rematch at the end of the regular season. Would having Sunshine playing made a difference? His replacement DJ Ugiewlele Uggielele Ukulele... you know who I mean... passed for 439 yards, two touchdowns and did not turn the ball over. Travis Etienne was contained to 28 rushing yards on 18 attempts and he lost a fumble. We’ve been saying it here at RBR for weeks that this Tigers defense is suspect. The secondary is not good at all. Ian Book carved them up for 310 yards. Irish running back Kyren Williams busted out for 140 yards and three scores.

Indiana 38 Michigan 21 - Oh my. The Wolverines lost to the Hoosiers for the first time since 1987. They were out-coached, out-hustled and outclassed. The Jim Harbaugh era may be coming to an end. I’m glad Saban got to play him before he departed.

Translation: Joe Milton SUCKS!

THE REST

BYU 51 Boise 17 - Brace yourself. Here come all the yakety-kaks thinking that just because the Mormons beat the Smurfs - still a non-Power 5 team - that they belong in the playoff. Keep in mind that Boise was without starting quarterback Hank Bachmeier and back-up Jack Sears left the game with a neck injury during their second possession of the game. In summation, BYU beat 180-pound true freshman who just returned from a two-year LDS mission to Argentina.

Pitt 41 Florida State 17 - Remember a few years ago when Tennessee was trying to find a coach and it took them to their 17th option to find a guy to say “yes”? If Mike Norvell fails in Tallahassee - and it looks like he will - we may see another ridiculous cursed coaching search. During the Bowden-Jimbo years, losing at home to Pitt by 24 would have been unheard of.

EVERYBODY’S KID BROTHER

Maryland 35 Penn State 19 - PSU’s season is already in the crapper while the Terps are trending up. Taulia Tagovailoa was 18-for-26 with 282 yards and 3 TDs and Rakim Jarrett caught five passes for 144 yards with a pair of touchdowns. The Litany Lions committed three turnovers and scored a touchdown with 11 seconds remaining against UM’s scrubs to make the home defeat look slightly better. Maryland came into the game as a 27 point road underdog.

UNCLE JIMMY

Central Michigan 30 Ohio 27 - Jim McElwain is 1-0 in the MAC’s weird 6-game season. We’ll follow him ‘til he loses. LOL

TRIPLE GOLDEN SOMBRERO

Georgia State 52 UL Monroe 34 - The Warhawks are four losses away from an imperfect 0-12. They have lost all but one game by at least 18 points.

SICK BOYS

For the second week, Wisky canceled another game. This time the opponent was Purdue. Hmm, maybe you shoulda started the season sooner so there’d be room for rescheduling.

Other games were cancelled but it was a whole lotta DGAF.

KEY & PEELE ALL-STAR

Okie Lite DB Kolby Harvell-Peel

BIRTHDAY OF THE WEEK

Living legend Bobby Bowden made it to birthday number 91 this past weekend.

LOL PLAYS OF THE WEEK

STATS OF THE DAY

• What’s this??? A competent SEC crew? Texas A&M was flagged twice for 25 yards. South Carolina committed one penalty for 5 yards.
• Miami and NC State stacked up 1,030 yards in the ‘Canes 44-41 struggle win.
• Tennessee has been outscored 88-7 in the second half of their last four games.

THE WACKY WORLD OF DESI

Is it just me or does College GameDay just seem tired and monotonous without crazy screaming fans. It’s all fluff and gimmicks and less about anylsis. I’d rather watch the SEC Nation crew any day.

Not so fast, my friend.

ADOPT-A-TEAM

• Liberty (7-0) - Virginia Tech scored a game-tying touchdown with 52 ticks on the clock. But Liberty wasn’t done. They worked their way down to the 41-yard linel with 11 seconds to go. The Flames lined up for a game winning 59-yard field goal, but it was BLOCKED and returned for a TOUCHDOWN for the walk-off win, right? But wait! VaTech coach Justin Fuente outcoached himself by calling a kicker-freezing timeout at the last second that negated what would’ve been the game winner. On the next play, the Hokies lined up in Hail Mary defense on fourth down. So Liberty just threw a short pass and picked up an easy first down to set up the 51-yard winning field goal. Poor Western Carolina is next for Liberty. It is the first of a three-game 2020 schedule for the Catamounts. It’s better than nothing.
• LaLaLaffy! (6-1) - The Rajuns beat Arky Lite 27-20. South Alabama comes a-callin’.
• Coastal Carolina (7-0) - South Alabama did not go gently into that good night as most folks assumed. The Chanticleers scored touchdowns on their first two possessoins but then fell asleep. The final score was an unimpressive 23-6. Troy is the next victim.

COUSINS

• Troy (4-3) - The Trojans lost a tight one at Georgia Southern 20-13. Here comes Coastal Carolina!
• South Alabama (3-4) - The Jags held their own in a loss to Coastal Carolina. ULLL is up next.

THAT ANNOYING STEP-BROTHER WHO CRACKS HIS KNUCKLES AT YOUR SISTER’S WEDDING. HIS TOE KNUCKLES

• UAB (4-3) - The Dragons took the week off. North Texas comes to town.

SALUTE TO OUR TROOPS

The Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy is in flux.

• Army (6-1) - Air Force had to call off their meeting with the Black Knights. The two teams do not have a common bye week so they may not be able to reschedule. Maybe a bowl game? Tulane is next for Army.
• Navy (3-4) - The Midshipmen were forced to cancel their game with Tulsa. You know why. Don’t make me say it. They will attempt to reschedule the game. Navy will try again with Memphis coming to town on Saturday.
• Air Force (1-2) - The Falcons have already cancelled their next game this week with Wyoming. AFA has three remianing games with no open weeks.

ELIMINATED

• Rutgers, Northwestern, Maryland, Purdue, Indy, Nebraska, Illinois, Sparty, it ain’t gonna happen. Minnesota, Michigan, Penn State,
• Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, Texas Tech, TCU, Baylor, WVU
• Duke, Wake Forest, Syracuse, FSU, Georgia Tech, NC State, L’ville, Pitt, UVa, BC, Va Tech, UNC
• BYU - That schedule is still too weak.
• The entire PAC; Sorry, Oregon.
• Vandy, Arky, Missouri, UK, SC, MSU, LSU, Tennessee, Ole Miss

ELIMINATION, ENDANGERED:

• Iowa, Wisconsin - IMHO, I don’t think a team that plays 6 or 7 games deserves a spot over a team that played 10 or 11. Wisky should be eliminated right now, but who knows what the CFPC is thinking?
• Oklahoma Lite, Oklahoma, Texas
• Miami, Notre Dame, Clemson
• Texas A&M, Florida, UGA, Auburn

A way WAY WAY too early look at the College Football Playoff (CFP) picture:

Here’s where it starts to get weird.

• ACC - In the past, the committees have said that they will take into account an injured QB. However, I don’t know if Sunny-boy could’ve done much better than Ukulele did. Clemson had a struggle win against BC and their defense is suspect. Notre Dame is the King of the ACC for now but there will likely be a rematch. Would the committee take both these schools? The Irish have a trip to sneaky BC followed by another road game to UNC.
• SEC - Bama, Fla, and TAMU. Things look dire but Georgia isn’t completely out.
• Big 12 - This conference probably gets left out unless a whole lotta chaos erupts.
• Big Ten - Whoda thunk Michigan, Penn State, and Minnie would be 2-7 while Indiana, Northwestern, and Purdue would be 8-0? Congrats to the underdogs, but it won’t last.
• PAC-12 -
• Indies - Cincy continues to roll but they haven’t played any P-5s. Is this the year the CFP Committee gives into PC crowd and puts a non P-5 in the playoff? Being that it is 2020, nothing would surprise me.

RANK ‘EM IF YOU GOT ‘EM

Alabama has again ascended to the top of the hill. Clemson lost all their first place votes. Yet, they did not all go to the Crimson Tide. UGA topples all the way to #12. Laffy is back at #25. Boise and Michigan dropped out of the rankings.

The first CFP rankings will be revealed Nov. 24.

1. Alabama (59)
2. Notre Dame (2) - one vote from an Auburn writer and one from a Baltimore radio guy.
3. Ohio State (1) - one vote from the Indiana teenager again.
4. Clemson
5. Texas A&M
6. Florida
7. Cincinnati *
8. BYU *
9. Miami
10. Indiana
11. Oregon **
12. Georgia
13. Wisconsin **
14. Oklahoma State
15. Coastal Carolina
16. Marshall *
17. Iowa State
18. Oklahoma
19. SMU
20. Southern Cal **
21. Texas
22. Liberty
23. Northwestern
24. Auburn
25. Louisiana

* No P-5 wins.
** Played ONE game.

Krazy Kristi’s “SHUT UP!” of the Week goes to the CBS for showing multiple replays from multiple angles of the gruesome injury to UGA wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint (Key & Peele All-Star). I think most of us saw it in real time. There was absolutely NO reason to repeatedly show it. I thought they were about to show it from the perspective of stadium security cameras and fans’ cell phones.

HEISMAN HYPE

With the exception of TWO YEARS, the Heisman Trophy voting is basically a hype award. Often times voters fall in love with someone and refuse to REALLY look at what a player has accomplished.

WHO WILL WIN

CLARIFICATION: This section is not who deserves to win. It is who the slobbering press and other voters will callously crush on.

1. Justin Fields (QB, anOSU, Jr.) was again pretty darn close to perfect: 24/28, 314 yds, 5 TD, 0 INT. However, it is still only three games against teams who are collectively 1-7.
2. Mac Jones (QB, Bama, Jr.) - Had the weekend off to pick out a Jesus tattoo design.
3. Trevor Lawrence (QB, Dabo Cult, Jr.) was on the sideline instead of in quarantine. You have to wonder if that will rub some voters the wrong way. Of course at some point, Tom Rinaldi will report on GameDay how Sunny courageously fought off the mean ol’ sick.
4. A token running back - Najee Harris had the week off. Iowa State’s Breece Hall had 113 rushing yards but did so on 31 carries. 4.3 ypc isn’t that great. Travis Etienne of Clempson had a poor game.
5. The BYU QB and Ian Book of Notre Dame blah blah blah.

WHO SHOULD WIN

CLARIFICATION: This section IS for who deserves to win it.

• Justin Fields still looks good but he AINT PLAYED NOBODY, PAAAWWWLLLLL!
• Mac Jones will have a chance to show his wares in the coming weeks.

THE SICK REPORT

• Bama running back Trey Sanders was involved in car accident last week. He had surgery in Birmingham and is out “indefinitely”. Translation: he is probably done for the season.
• DL LaBryan Ray (sprained elbow) is still questionable.
• LSU quarterback Myles Brennan returned to practice last Wednesday for the first time since his injury. Even so, Ed Orgeron stated that the junior Myles Brennan won’t be available for the Alabama game and possibly may miss the rest of the season. With their season in the crapper and Signing Day coming up in a couple of weeks, it sure feels like this is O shutting it down with this “mystery” injury. Here again we have another flaw in the hastily decided NCAA ruling that everyone gets a free year. Some of these players, coaches, and teams are acting like this season doesn’t count and when things go south for them, they can just quit and everyone will applaud them for it.
• Florida TE Kyle Pitts is questionable after suffering a concussion.
• Georgia running back Kendall Milton suffered a slight MCL sprain. Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint is out for the year with a dislocated ankle. See, this is why playing 10 SEC games is tougher than anything BYU or Cincy could do.
• Arky head coach Sam Pittman caught the thing. He’ll be out ten days, won’t die, and will be back.

DRAMA

• Apparently, Cal-Berkeley had all of ONE positive test on their team. Because contact tracing is open to interpretation, they asked and received the PAC-12 for a cancellation with their game with Washington last Saturday because they allegedly could not field a full team. The Bears had no hope of making the playoff but UW fans thought their team had an outside shot. This action basically ends those hopes for both teams. Many PAC fans are calling for a forfeit. FUN FACT: Only 3% of undergraduate students at UC Berkeley are black even though Alameda County’s population is 30.3% black.
• The Pac-12 also approved a request from Utah to cancel their game with Arizona this past weekend due to not having the minimum number of scholarship Utes available. How is it they had six weeks of practice time and no issues and then all of a sudden an outbreak? Sus. That’s two more teams basically eliminated.
• Mississippi State cancelled their upcoming game with Auburn due to lack of personnel. They are officially blaming the sicky-sick, but really it is because Mike Leach has run off half the team. I really wonder if the SEC looks into these claims or if they just rubber stamp them?
• Meanwhile, Clang Clang lost another one. Running back Kareem Walker has entered the NCAA transfer portal as a graduate transfer. A running back playing for Mike Leach is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.
• By all reports, UGA quarterback JT Daniels is healthy and ready to play. He has been for a few weeks now. Even with the mighty struggles of Stetson Bennett and D’Wan Mathis, Kirby Smart insists on sticking with his Matt Saracen. With every player getting a free year of eligibility, it seems useless to keep the former Southern Cal starter on the sidelines with a snap count of zero.

• ESPN had another round of layoffs slashing 500 jobs, blaming it on Captain Trips. To which everyone in America responded in a chorus of “BULLS*T!” The truth is that ESPN has chosen a path of fluff and personalities over substance and good reporting. The crescendo of this mighty titan’s fall was when they gave Bruce Jenner an award for cutting off his ding dong and putting on a dress. Erik captures the situation pretty well in an RBR Tweet. The layoffs include Ivan Maisel who is basically the George Washington of espn.com, Chris Peters, and Ty Wenger. Retired ESPN icon Bob Ley appropriately ripped into his former employer.

KOACHES KORNER

• So much for everyone getting a pass this season. Utah State has forced out Gary Andersen after a season and three games in which he had records of 7-6 and 0-3. The Aggies lost their first three games this season by a total score of 114 to 29. The 56-year old had formerly been head coach at Utah State (26-24) from 2009-2012 before landing the Wisconsin (19-7) job. He then made the odd choice of leaving Madison for Oregon State (7-23) where he flamed out and snuck out after the first six games into the season.
• Staying in the Beehive state, Kyle Whittingham signed a four-year extension with Utah through 2027. The 60-year old is starting his 17th season in Salt Lake City. He has never won a PAC-12 title and has never had less than three losses in a season since joining the conference in 2011. Alabama needs to schedule a game with these jokers before he or Saban retire.
• At a recent press conference Kirby Smart stated that he had “no interest in running for office either.” To which a reporter replied, “Coach, my question was about your quarterback situation.”
• Urban Meyer tripped recently but was able to cushion his blow by landing on a 95-year old lady carrying a kitten she had saved from a storm drain.
• The last time Fat F*** Phil Fulmer went camping, the Bears hid their food from him.

TEEVEE

This week college football has a little competition with coverage of grown men in long pants hitting a little white ball around a big lawn with no defense. It will be real interesting to see how this silly decision goes ratings-wise. Personally, I do enjoy watching the Masters in tiny bits here and there - especially if Bama alum Justin Thomas is in contention. However, I cannot imagine watching one second this Saturday. Pshaw!

THIS WEEK

(Below is an abbreviated list of highlighted games of interest. If you REALLY need to know about the big Rice-LaTech showdown, you can find the details here.)

Tuesday, November 10

Three MAC games between 6pm and 7pm CT kickoffs. Just turn on a random sports channel.

Wednesday, November 11

Three MAC games between 6pm and 7pm CT kickoffs. See above.

Thursday, November 12

Colorado State at Boise 7pm/8pm FS1 - Coverage of the Masters knocks this game to Big Lots ESPN.

Friday, November 13

More Big Lots ESPN games.

Iowa at Minnesota 6pm/7pm FS1 - Already eliminated.
FAU! at FIU 6pm/7pm CBSSN - No offense, Hoosiers.
East Carolina at Cincinnati 6:30/7:30 ESPN2

Saturday, November 14

SEC

Georgia at Missouri 11am/noon ESPN - Will UGA have a WLOCP hangover?
Vanderbilt at Kentucky 11am/noon SECN - UK would be wise to audition many different QBs.
Texas A&M at Tennessee 2:30/3:30 ESPN - This could get ugly.
Auburn at Mississippi State - Cancelled because SEC Officials could not figure out another way to hand Awbern a win. Tentatively rescheduled for Dec. 12.
Alabama at LSU 5pm/6pm CBS - Is Bama angry? I hope they’re angry.
Arkansas at Florida 6pm/7pm ESPN - Feleipe Franks returns to the Swamp!
South Carolina at Ole Miss 6:30/7:30 SECN - ugh.

THEM OTHER GUYS

Indiana at Michigan State 11am/noon ABC - How good is Indy?
Coastal Carolina at Troy 11am/noon ESPNU
Notre Dame at Boston College 2:30/3:30 ABC -It’s a TRAP!
Ohio State at Maryland 2:30/3:30 BTN - Can Lia pull the big upset?
* Oddly, the B12 has only two games. Not worth mentioning.

THE DEEP SLEEP

PAC12 schlock on ESPN2 and FS1 at 9:30/10:30

MACK and SABAN vs. OZ and LAVELL

Mack Brown picks up a win with a mighty victory over big bad Duke (must be nice). Nick Saban bides his time.

[For those of you new to RBR Random Thoughts, we count all on-field wins in Division I-A, aka FBS. So, before you go screaming about Frank Beamer, 42 of his wins came at Murray State. Brown had six victories in one season with Appalachian State when they were still in what was known at I-AA (FCS today). In addition, we don’t recognize NCAA sanctioned forfeits. If you won on the field, it counts in our books.]

So, what did you do on your week off?

#ALABAMA

GAME 7: Saturday, November 14, 2020

Alabama Crimson Tide (6-0) at LSU Tigers (2-3)

Tiger Stadium, Tuscaloosa, AL ~ 5pm CT / 6pm ET, CBS

• Announcers: Brad, Gary, useless blonde.
• Eli Gold on Alabama Radio.
• Alabama is 53-26-5 all-time against LSU. The Crimson Tide hope to start a new winning streak against the Bayou Bengals after a close loss in 2019. Previous to that game, Bama had won the last eight meetings.
• The line on this game opened at -22 and quickly shot up to -28 on Monday. Over/Under is 71½.