Week 4 of the college football season gave us a variety of
emotions. Shock, excitement, confusion, and heartbreak are just a few. While
some fan bases such as TCU, and Florida are excited to survive a tough game in
the final moments today, others like the fan bases at Arkansas and Texas are
still thinking what could have been. But that’s why we love it. The ups, the
downs, the “OMG” moments all make up the game, the game of college football.
Here’s My Take…
Heartbreak Hotel
Room 206
In this room sits the Volunteers of Tennessee. Another 4th
quarter lead, another collapse, another loss. There were plenty of questionable
decisions that lead to Tennessee’s loss. Mainly the decision to go for the
extra point after a touchdown which only put you up 13, instead of going for 2
so if you blew the lead and Florida came back to tie, the worst you could do is
go to overtime. Another issue for the Volunteers was their inability to get
stops on 4th down as Florida converted 5/5 which really helped them
come back to win the game. While Tennessee has shown talent, and the ability to
get a lead, they have not proven that they can close out a game. If they ever
want to get back to national relevance, that must change, and change quickly.
Room 211
Now after gaining 607 yards, scoring 52 points, and having
zero turnovers in a game, how would that land you in the Heartbreak hotel? Well
I guess when your opponent gains 750 yards, scores 55 points and also doesn’t have
a turnover. Texas Tech did everything it wanted offensively against TCU but,
unfortunately their defense decided to miss the bus. Tech was eager for a BIG
win that would have perhaps put them back on the map and set up a big showdown
with Baylor this week. It looked they had a shot too, up late with TCU going
for it on 4th down. The heartbreak happened when Aaron Green caught
a tipped pass in the back of the end zone with 23 seconds left to put TCU ahead
for good. Tech can’t hold their heads for long though, another great
opportunity presents itself Saturday.
Room 300
The Texas Longhorns are here in their regular room again.
Last week they were here after missing what would have been a game tying PAT
against Cal. They checked in again this week after another special teams
collapse. The punter, who shall remain nameless, dropped a perfectly snapped
ball before scrambling, and punting it for just 10 yards setting Oklahoma State
up to win the game with a field goal with just 6 seconds remaining. At this
rate, Charlie Strong will lose all the hair he doesn’t have..
Room 405
The Arkansas Razorbacks join us again, courtesy of the Texas
A&M Aggies for the 2nd straight year. Last year Arkansas felt
they had the game wrapped up, being up 2 touchdowns late in the 4th
quarter only to have the Aggies come back and take the game in overtime. This
game played out quite similar. Arkansas up 8 late, not only surrendered an
A&M touchdown but also a 2 point conversion to tie it up. Arkansas had a
shot to win it in regulation but those dreams crashed when quarterback Brandon
Allen fumbled the ball giving Texas A&M a chance to win it, but their field
goal was wide right. Unlike last year, the Aggies didn’t score on the 1st
play of overtime, they waited until the 2nd and then held off the
Razorbacks on 4th down to secure another win for them as they remain
undefeated. For Arkansas, it’s another year, another game, another heartbreak.
Just keep the keys Razorbacks, I think you’ll be back soon.
PAC 12 Look-In
The weekend was hyped with bigtime matchups across the PAC
12. You had Utah visiting Oregon, USC at Arizona State, and the primetime
matchup of UCLA going to Arizona. And what’d we get? Blowout, after blowout,
after blowout. What do I make of it? That the PAC 12 is a very deep league.
Despite what the numbers may say, I think these 6 teams, along with Stanford
are very good teams. I think the final scores, specifically Oregon’s was merely
an aberration. They could win out and it would not surprise me. Utah has been a
really good team for years, and maybe this is the year they announce that to
the rest of the country. USC definitely made a big statement to me by bouncing
back from the loss to Stanford by going out and enjoying a talented Arizona
State team. I am looking forward to seeing this play out and who eventually takes the crown, and
perhaps a spot in the playoff.
There are several big games to watch this Saturday that I
can’t wait to see. A couple games that will have me glued to my screen are
Alabama and Georgia, and Clemson and Notre Dame. Many more games being played
Saturday will give other teams chances to make statements. College football, like
life, is a learning process. As each week goes by, we learn a little more about
each time until they begin to separate the real from the fake. And just like
fake people, fake teams will eventually reveal themselves.
This is My Take
My Top 6
1) Ole Miss
2) Georgia
3) Ohio State
4) Michigan State
5) Baylor
6) Utah
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