Mike West

Spot on Jon! I believe the JMU game was very helpful in that respect. I also believe the staff and the players have done well to minimize responses to all the hype Tech is receiving. I was completely shocked at what I was looking at when I started to dig into the weeds. It stood out immediately. I could be completely wrong, but I'd be very shocked if I am. And of course, I will give the Red Raiders their due credit if it turns out they are as good as they are being hyped.

Both times we wore grey pants in the postseason, we lost I just wish we wore our traditional colors.

I believe your observation about that aspect of the offense in the Indiana game is spot on. I also had those thoughts. I have watched the game a few times. I do believe Stein went away from the run game more than I would have liked. It wasn't as if he choose poor plays in my opinion when he decided to pass the ball. Moore just didn't execute what he was given. I saw two missed TDs (an additional 8 points there-not to mention momentum lost and more pressure on the defense to hold the line), and some crafty plays to get guys open-on one missed TD, TWO players were open for TDs. Moore simply missed both, and they were easily going to score if either of them caught the ball. I believe Stein sets defenses up much more than we suspect. I believe execution has been the issue with the offense since Stein has been at the controls.

Couldn't have said it better. The intensity was totally gone. Killer Instinct. The one team that executes it better than anyone else is Georgia. They don't care if your QB had a career ending injury. You disrespect them by saying you deserve to be in the playoff against the team that won it the year before and lost a close game to be included-you picked the wrong team. OBD took offense to JMU saying they were going to give them a game. Then this happened... <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9kRpS8mwJ14?si=YgC0VALI9zCg92un" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

It's more than tradition, and pedigree. All three are playing better ball. Not as many mistakes. Better execution. Much better LBs. And the DCs prepare better for what they expect from their opponent (though Lupoi is doing absolutely stunning work with LBs that have no closing speed, or lateral coverage abilities against the run or pass).

Oh, you guys are peaking right on schedule. In my opinion (almost said in fact lol), Georgia is playing the best ball out of everyone-including Texas Tech.

I have a tough time believing OBD are "there" yet. This Oregon team hasn't even played a complete game yet. Not against teams that have enough talent to force them to. So that is what I truly mean. Play your very best. Force teams to take a victory from you (give them nothing). Make a team show they have more playmakers, that have to make incredible plays (that Indiana last second TD in Happy Valley comes to mind). Play the kind of game like last October in Eugene, where you force the most talented team in football to play their very best, and force them into a few mistakes. Play the kind of game like like Alabama did tonight-showing resolve, the ability to adjust immediately, and bring your A game after a slow start. Like in Iowa City with the game on the line, and having to make extraordinary plays to win it. I am not sure how this year's team stacks up against Indiana, Georgia, what we saw from Bama tonight, Ohio State, and Ole Miss. Indiana and Georgia finally showed what they are when they play complete games. We haven't and neither have the rest of the teams I mentioned. Success means to me OBD play 95% perfect. It doesn't matter the results then, because that is true success. That is excellence personified. You can't fault a team that loses to a better team if they play their very best ball. My dad used to tell me all the time: "Do your best son. Be your best". I have never regretted anything in my life when I have done my best. Results didn't matter. What mattered was I conquered the "worst in myself" That to me is true success. OBD will probably play in the title game if they bring their best to the table this post season. They even have a shot at winning it all. Just bring your best damn it. Make us proud.

They made it to their Conference Title Game in clearly a much tougher conference than Notre Dame's. Oh...Notre Dame isn't in a conference are they? Not to mention, the closest iteration of a conference they played in was the ACC. Home of the weakest P4 conference by far. Furthermore, the Tide victory is an "in your face" moment for arguing Bama didn't deserve their spot. Especially since Bama erased a 17-0 lead. Question: how likely would ND be able to erase a 17 point lead against the playoff field? I don't mind giving the SEC credit. Especially when they display prowess legitimately. The conference dared giving Texas a tougher schedule, and Texas demonstrated what the conference is like when balanced scheduling is in play. Bama played nearly as tough a schedule, and matched Texas in eliminating Vandy as a contender-whom had a weaker conference schedule. Scheduling matters and Bama had a tougher schedule than Notre Dame. It was front loaded like ND, but they had more teams to get through, and they did. Not to mention, getting to the SEC Title game should be an automatic bid. If Vandy would have done that, I'd say the same. They would have had to win the two games they were guaranteed to be underdogs in. How many times is ND an underdog? That should be another factor involved frankly, because teams must demonstrate they can win games against a tough field, not just win games because they are pretty good. I had to lecture here, so pardon the soliloquy. Alabama absolutely deserved to be in the playoff in my opinion. A CCG game loss isn't the regular season. It is the post season. It is proof you belong amongst the best. Especially given Bama is in a pretty tough conference. Losing three regular season games makes it far more unpalatable to place a team from ANY conference in the playoffs. Even in a 16 team field in my opinion. Let's hope in the future, the SEC gets soundly rebuked if a three loss team in the regular season has the nerve to lobby for a playoff spot.

I'm not sold on Thomas. And mind you, he threw the ball really well for the most part. He reads well as well, though is a little behind schedule (probably due to few reps). We will know much more when the season ends. Moore looks ready enough to go pro. Not ready enough to step up to the level of play required to excel. The question is more "will NFL execs draft him high since he has so much upside?". Logic says Moore should wait. There are enough solid QB candidates that will enter this year. The other question is will the QB competition be truly open? Thomas is in a good spot whether Moore declares or stays. Its up to Moga and Novo to decide what their best options are.

I guess it's time to Force ND into the ACC by shutting them out of the playoffs each year. I wonder how much they'll lighten their schedule now.

Well, we are going to find out if Brock Thomas is really capable of starting if Moore goes pro. One thing is certain, Thomas executed what he was given. We saw a limited sample, so we have that to go on. I for one am not convinced Thomas is the guy. Has he been given a scholarship? If not, shouldn't he have one now? Personally, I would take Smith Jr. over Thomas. I just do not believe Brock Thomas can march OBD down the field six times a game and generate 30 plus points. I just do not see that. I recognize Moga and Novo have accuracy issues. And Thomas has proven he is mobile. None of the three can throw 45 yard laser shots down the sideline, which I feel is more important. You have to stretch the field, point blank. The QB that accurately does that is the QB that wins titles. Smith Jr. the only backup capable of making that happen. I will remain openminded however, because Thomas we have not seen in OT versus Penn State, or Thomas against Indiana. Perhaps he IS capable of winning those games. I'd like to see a poll on that: Is Thomas capable of defeating the Ohio States, Georgias, and Indianas of the world? Is Novo, Smith or Moga? Is DANTE MOORE?

Sumrall is highly regarded. I want to see world class performance from your QB though. I was absolutely disappointed in his effort and level of play. I don't think that was due to poor coaching. So I hope Sumrall is more effective than Kiffin is at developing QBs, because the road to a Florida title is DJ Lagway. I'm talking 30 TDs, 4 INT level performance. Heck, 27 TDs and 6 INTs would have propelled the Gators much higher. That's got to happen. The kid is too talented to look as average as he did this year.

All I know is Dante Moore missed two TDs Stein called for him against Indiana. Indiana forced both Ohio State and OBD to play mistake free ball. Both teams will defeat the Hoosiers if they do. Both teams field more talent. And yes, I am saying this after watching both games. Ohio State finally faced a team their caliber. Much like A&M. The bad news is , unlike OBD last year, they face the sting of this loss before its "win or go home". That will make them far more dangerous. The Buckeyes can't control the ball with a strong running game. That's finally on film. But that's four games Indiana has displayed the same characteristic. Cignetti is using the DeBoer/Penix back shoulder strategy. Indiana can't out run CBs. Which means the Smart DCs are going to play zone and shut that stuff down. Ironically, that is also what I would do to Ohio State. Jeremiah Smith pushes off as soon as anyone gets close to him. Tate has to be more crafty since he isn't a physical beast like Smith is. But the way to beat both of those teams is to lay off of press coverage. Let's see who follows that strategy, because both teams are excellent against press coverage. This playoff run comes down to Dante Moore. I'm thinking run the offense like the Jim Kelly Bills...all two minute stuff. Moore doesn't think when he's given routes like that. We saw that front and center these past two games, and actually much like the first three games of the season. My two cents of course, which won't be followed since Lanning insists on being physical. College football is closer than ever to the NFL. The QB decides titles. The running game is an accessory. You need to be able to run the ball to wrap the game up. You need to pass the ball to take command of the game.

Well, at much as us "fur balls" are laughing it up, Penn State's downfall isn't great for the B1G. I will harp this until my dead hands grow cold: Iowa, Wisconsin, Penn State, Nebraska, the Fuskies, USC, and even Michigan State BETTER muscle up, because the B1G is falling behind when it comes to drawing eyeballs. That means mega dollars folks. I do not want anything near the disaster that became the WAC12. Ohio State was the only Big Ten program to draw 10M fans outside The Big Game. One week-that's all the B1G generated. That is not acceptable in my book. The B1G has an alum base that more than rivals the SEC, but it is getting its a$$ kicked when it comes to being compelling football the nation wants to watch. And I really don't care if football matters more in the South. Unless College Football gets a commissioner, Tony Pettiti is responsible for at least five teams averaging at least 8M fans watching them EVERY WEEK. We are in an arms race to field the best teams in the business. Humongous television fan bases are the best means to earn astronomic TV contracts. So I prefer risking two losses in a world class conference of national title contenders than to laugh at a conference foe's demise. No matter how much class they lack. We need a slew of programs capable of kicking our a$$ if we falter. At least capable of it. We are no longer in an era where three conference powerhouses are enough to support a conference. So if I were you folks, I'd start demanding teams we hate, and those we poke fun at get their A$$ES in gear and develop title contenders. Our very survival may be at stake.

Matt Campbell is a pretty good hire. Yet somehow I don't believe Penn State and their fan base expected Campbell to be the homerun that replaces "Double at Best" James Franklin. Seems to me Penn State and its fans evaluated themselves as an Ohio State and Michigan caliber program. Not to mention better than "new money" Oregon. I thought firing Franklin was a horrible decision. Campbell is decent though, and if he learns to open his offense up, his Penn State teams could be scary. If not, it may be one knight replacing another on the Chessboard. Penn State thought they were going to easily acquire a deadly "queen" caliber coach. Like one of our favorite announcers fondly used to say "not so fast my friend".

Jon, I think you nailed it on the head. I posted that Fox Sports article I believe two days ago, and I believe it is starting to make more sense. Your suggestion of conferences exclusively scheduling conference opponents is intriguing. I like the Texas versus Ohio State (Bama vs Wisconsin; Miami v. ND etc) games, but those matchups may have more meaning at the end of the season, and possibly more eyeballs on the product. The sport would probably excel more with one Commissioner, but we all know the conferences won't go for that. You also make a solid point when you say college football is close to being the NFL already. Look at how fans are upset that Kiffin went to LSU. We already hate player movement (especially when greed is the factor). But in my mind, nothing compares to the pageantry of college football. Thanks for the post.

Oh, I'm not sure its going to matter. Depending on how we get slotted, that first game might be just as tough. Notre Dame or Alabama would require all OBD have, and mistakes would be deadly. Out of that group of Georgia, Ohio State, Indiana and Texas Tech-I believe the Red Raiders would struggle with OBD in the trenches much more than the other three. And those Red Raiders haven't played a top ten opponent (heck, in terms of talent they haven't played a top 25 team). I have no idea of which OBD team we will see. I was hoping to see that Montana State/Oklahoma State version. That is a very dangerous team. But the more talent OBD have faced, the less that version has shown up. They're young, and it shows. I expected a nuclear bomb to drop on Lake Washington. Instead, we got drone missiles and B2 bunker busters (I'll take the win, but I want to see how close we can get to the damn near perfection we saw in early September). I'm proud of this team. It took care of business-flaws and all. 11-1 is always a major accomplishment. It is so dam hard to go undefeated, and even keep the losses at one.

There's so much meat on the bone in this discussion. But it's frustrating. I really don't want college football to look more like the NFL. The very heated discussions are what makes college football more interesting. But it is so awesome to see early season matchups between the marquee teams. Not to mention, since the B1G doesn't have the depth or the fanaticism the SEC has, it is very difficult to argue that it is a better conference when it comes to talent in the middle of both conferences. The problem with a Wisconsin versus Bama matchup is Bama truly exposes how much further the B1G has to go to get the respect middling Florida, LSU and Auburn are getting. Florida ruined Texas' playoff bid, and the conference uses the result as an argument that is is just better. Meanwhile, Penn State totally collapses, fires their coach, and now they are in a terrible situation. They are the last team considered talented enough to compete for titles to find a quality coach. So the B1G truly needs to see its marquee teams step up in performance. We want those marquee matchups, but since Michigan, Wisconsin and USC "dropped the ball", and Iowa lost to middling Iowa State, the B1G looks silly, and Texas-who has a legit argument because a talented SEC team finally played a real schedule with real consequences-can argue what USC and Michigan can't. BYU, and Utah, who are talented, but lack the depth the B1G and SEC have, are sitting outside looking in. Miami, a marquee team with glory from 1800, is calling out Notre Dame-who refuses to compete in a conference so they can use the college football tactic of arguing its way into playoffs(and is another 1800 blue blood relic). OBD, Ole Miss, A&M and even Bama are riding their conferences' respective reputations. Even Ohio State is relying on its dominance of a pretty weak schedule outside of "marginal" Texas and Michigan. The Playoff Committee is dishing slop about who should get in right now. How are Utah and BYU considered better than Miami, when Miami lost its games by no more than 4 points, but the Big 12 teams got smoked by their best conference foe-the 11-1 Texas Tech "we're still not sure how good they are" Raiders. SMU messes up the ACC title game and somehow, Duke-whom a forgotten Illinois team flattened, is in the ACC Title game instead of Miami (or any of the other ACC teams with a much better overall record). Even if we went to a 24 team playoff, how do you settle the ACC mess of seven teams close to each other in conference record with unbalanced schedules. Missouri, who like Vandy and Ole Miss, played the bottom half of the SEC and each struggled against the more talented group of teams they faced in the conference. The appealing aspect of arguing for your team is making all this frustrating, and the more we settle the issue on the field, the closer college football resembles the NFL because it is clear a lot of playoff teams would end up with 3 or more losses in the effort to prove they are truly playoff caliber.

Whew, That last scenario is huge. I would hope everyone would agree Georgia put to rest any notion Florida State deserved to be in that last four team playoff (and to be frank, Georgia made a case THEY should have been there). Florida State could barely win their Conference, and they were a shadow of who they were before the injury. As far as Texas and Miami: As much as I hate to admit it, Texas has a case. They beat A&M, Oklahoma and Vandy. Two of those three are definitely in. They lost to Bama-also in. And they played horribly against Ohio State, with both teams a shadow of what they would become, and only lost by a TD. Miami lost two games they should have handily won. They beat ND early, and I believe we all can agree they would have a much tougher out against Notre Dame now. BYU is going to have a lot to say about Texas' chances. However, this is a situation where schedule does matter. Texas was all over the map when you look at how they performed all year. But they played FIVE playoff caliber teams. None of them lost more than two games. They defeated A&M, who was undefeated. I believe Indiana, Georgia and Alabama were the only other teams to take down an undefeated playoff bound team. And this isn't in defense of the SEC. A&M proved you can run through your conference unscathed if you face the middle of the pack. Texas proved it is really difficult to go unscathed against a field of playoff caliber teams. Georgia, Ole Miss, OBD and Bama are examples of how tough it is to handle even one playoff bound team when they are playoff bound themselves. And Texas faced two top 3 teams. Miami has no such argument. Much less, the talent they have nullifies any excuse at justifying their two losses. They have an NFL bound QB, and is far more talented than the rest of their conference. Texas is a tier below Bama and Georgia for certain. They defeated Oklahoma, which is at their level, and took down Vandy, who is also at or near Texas' level. Ironically, this goes against my "you are what your record says you are" argument. What changed my mind was when I looked at Texas compared to Michigan, whom I initially thought should go instead of Texas had they defeated Ohio State. But Michigan didn't face five playoff caliber teams. The Wolverines faced two that were potential playoff teams, and went 1-1(and we can we acknowledge Michigan looked shaky as well?). If BYU defeats Texas Tech, they are in. If they lose, that 11 slot should be slated for Texas if and only if Virginia loses. I can't justify rewarding Duke for winning a weak ACC, or giving Miami the nod for "being more talented". That is an insult to the "every week matters" mantra. Because it means you can lose several times and still make the playoffs. And you can get mulligans for losing to twice to teams you have no business losing to in the first place. I despise the SEC mantra that they have a tougher slate than the rest of college football. This year, Texas and A&M proved the SEC is ordinary UNLESS you play a schedule that actually verifies your mantra. Texas is the first team in a very long time that faced 4 playoff bound/caliber teams, three in their own conference. Texas is correct to say scheduling Ohio State was risking a loss they easily could have replaced with an easy victory. Take away the conference shield, and you still see Texas performed well despite looking awfully shaky all year. So as much as I hate to give an SEC team Kudos, Texas is a team I can honestly respect for scheduling and handling a very tough slate. They are the only team this year to play almost half their schedule against teams that lost less than 3 games all year. And they are the only team to face four teams guaranteed to make the playoffs.

Moore tends to be just a little off when you look at his complete body of work. But man, he was far more accurate today when it mattered and the uncharacteristic drops really nullified some very good drives yesterday. I actually like what I have seen from Moore. Sure, he needs to be more accurate, but man, he threw some good balls yesterday, and he was in "control" much more than he had been since the beginning of the year. And this was with the second level ("talentwise") of WRs. I had to go back to last year's Spring Game to remember that Moore would be ok. This year's Spring Game gave me hope concerning the depth of the WRs. That panned out well. I believe the team must work on the mental aspect of the game more than the physical. OBD are about to face teams that characteristically do not beat themselves. We have seen too much self destructive "behavior" from this obviously young group (and boy, have they been productive for being so young). I am very comfortable with Moore however. He is throwing with far more "authority". He isn't "shaky" like he was just a month ago. The guy is starting to "flex". I don't see the hesitation vibe I was getting earlier in the season.

Now if we could just wear our "natural colors" the entire playoffs, maybe we'd go all the way!!! It's time to retire grey and black for the season.

https://www.foxsports.com/stories/college-football/rj-youngs-24-team-college-football-playoff-bracket-entering-week-12 This article actually makes sense to me. I don't necessarily like the fact that some teams just don't qualify in my opinion, but settling things on the field would settle a lot of headaches and arguments. I prefer the 16 team 3-3-2-2-1 and 5 at large bids more. It would preserve some of the bowl season. But this presentation makes total sense based on how this season has progressed.

Why not simply expand to 16 teams? Go with a 3-3-2-2-1 format and 5 at large teams with CCG week used as a play in round between the P4 teams qualified to participate? That basically maintains the most important aspect of college football: making every week matter. Making those Play In Games relevant also matters as there must be some objective measurement used as a measuring tool for those contenders. I believe that would be fairly simple, as contending for your conference title should definitely be one of those measurements. Same with defeating teams you were favored against, and defeating teams you were an underdog to. This year is going to be a mess. I believe Texas losing to Florida ruined what is considered facing a gauntlet schedule (all three of their losses are to teams that are playoff bound, and they defeated a fourth while eliminating Vandy as a fifth). Expanding to 16 definitely makes sense. Using Play In games would expand it further, and create the kind of drama fans of the sport love. Not to mention settle matters on the field.

Green, yellow and white... My favorite Duck uniform color combos.

USC fans are in the five stages of grief. They always come up with their heritage when we beat them because we still don't have a title. They're having a difficult time accepting they are a "has been". It all changed in 2007. It was the first time we decisively defeated them. The year we should have won our FIRST NATTY. We are much closer to winning our first title than they realize.