2011 NCAA FOOTBALL WEEK 9 RECAP

WISCONSIN LOSES BY ANOTHER HAIL MARY

Devin Smith's (15) game-winning catch gave Ohio State a
33-29 win over Wisconsin. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)

For the second week in a row, the Wisconsin Badgers were doomed by a last-minute Hail Mary pass on the road.

This time, it was the Ohio State duo of Braxton Miller and Devin Smith that did the Badgers in en route to a 33-29 win for the Buckeyes.

“(This is) real tough,” Wisconsin senior Nick Toon said. “We’ve handed them the game two weeks in a row at the end of the game. You can’t do that.”

Thanks to both losses, the Badgers—who were No. 6 in the initial BCS standings two weeks ago—are now 2 ½ games behind Penn State in the Big Ten Leaders division.

Despite the loss, Russell Wilson once again turned in a good game to keep his Heisman hopes alive. The senior quarterback threw for 253 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Two of those passing touchdowns came in the fourth quarter to bring Wisconsin back from a 26-14 deficit.

However, it would be his last pass that would fall harmlessly onto the Ohio Stadium turf that would give the Buckeyes a tough, gritty win much like their season this year.

“This is what Ohio State’s all about,” Ohio State head coach Luke Fickell said. “We don’t ever look at ourselves as underdogs. This is a huge win, a signature win. This is for this team, this is for this program. This is what we expect.”

CASE’S NINE-PACK OF TD’S SETS ANOTHER CAREER RECORD

Case Keenum now has 3219 passing yards and
32 touchdowns this season. (Photo by AP)

This Case Keenum kid is really trying to rewrite all of the records isn’t he?

One week after setting the career record for total offense, the Houston quarterback threw nine touchdowns in its 73-34 drubbing of in-city rival Rice.

“It was a blast,” Keenum said. “That was probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing football.”

The sixth-year senior surely had a field day against the Owls, throwing for 534 yards on 24-of-37 passing. Keenum is now 267 passing yards away from another record—Timmy Chang’s Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) record of 17,072 passing yards.

“Those are video-game numbers, something we couldn’t get stopped,” Rice senior linebacker Justin Allen said.

Keenum’s favorite target in the game was senior Patrick Edwards, who had a huge night catching the ball. He caught seven passes for 318 yards and five touchdowns.

The Cougars go to 8-0 and move up to No. 13 in the BCS.

JOEPA BREAKS COACH ROB’S RECORD

As had been the case for most of the season, Penn State’s 10-7 win over Illinois was a gritty one. However, this one was much special.

With the win, longtime Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno recorded his Division I-leading 409^th victory as head coach—passing a mark held by Grambling State coaching legend Eddie Robinson.

“It really is something I’ve [been] very proud of, to be associated with Eddie Robinson,” Paterno said. “Something like this means a lot to me, an awful lot. But there’s a lot of other people I’ve got to thank.”

Snowy conditions made things difficult and both teams were held scoreless at halftime.

Finally with 3:32 left in the third quarter Nathan Scheelhaase hit Spencer Harris from 10 yards out to break the deadlock.

In regular Nittany Lion fashion though, Penn State grinded its way back into the game.

After Anthony Fera’s 30-yard field goal with seven minutes left in the game, Silas Redd would score the game-winning touchdown to put the Nittany Lions ahead.

The Fighting Illini had one more shot to tie the game, but Derek Dimke had his 42-yard field goal try hit the upright giving Penn State the win.

“I guess it’s just something this team has inside of them, needing to make a play, needing to get the job done, to do what it takes to get another win,” Penn State junior quarterback Matt McGloin said.

Paterno was honored with a plaque after the game for his latest achievement.

Joe Paterno (right) was given a plaque commemorating his Division I
record setting victory. (Photo by Justin K. Allen/Getty Images)

“Eddie Robinson and Jake Gaither of Florida A&M were the two guys who opened the doors for African American men when there was no place for them to play,” Paterno said. “For me, coming from Brooklyn, being the grandson of an immigrant, it means a lot.”

The Nittany Lions now sit at 8-1 this season and hold an inside track to the inaugural Big Ten Championship game on Dec. 3 in Indianapolis.

CARDINAL NEED THREE OT’s TO WIN THIRD STRAIGHT IN COLISEUM

Much like their previous two trips to Los Angeles, the Stanford Cardinal recorded a memorable win against the USC Trojans. This one just needed three overtimes to seal the deal.

“I might need a couple of minutes to digest it, but it’s definitely up there,” Stanford junior quarterback Andrew Luck said. “More than anything, I’m just happy to get a win.”

Despite seeing its streak of 25-point blowouts end at 10, Stanford won three straight against the Trojans at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the first time since the mid-1930s according to College Football Reference.

USC gave the Cardinal a tough match all throughout the game, even taking a 20-10 lead 4:30 seconds into the third quarter. Stanford would then regain the lead nine minutes later, heading into the fourth quarter with a 24-20 lead.

As both teams were tied at 27 with 3:08 left, Luck threw a near-costly interception that sophomore cornerback Nickell Robley took back for a score. However, the Heisman hopeful shook off that setback and put together a 10-play, 76-yard drive to force a 34-34 tie capped off by a Stepfan Taylor two-yard plunge.

“He [Luck] was so mad at himself,” Stanford head coach David Shaw said.  “He wasn’t going to let that play lose the game for us.”

The Trojans had one last chance to win it in regulation, but Robert Woods could not get to the sidelines in time (despite USC having two timeouts left) setting up overtime.

Stanford players celebrate as Matt Barkley (7) disappointingly
looks on. (Photo by Hans Gutknecht/Daily News)

With both teams matching touchdowns in both overtimes, Taylor’s five-yard run put the Cardinal ahead 56-48 with USC having chance to respond in the third overtime. It would never come, as a Curtis McNeal fumble was picked up by Stanford to end the game.

“No excuse, I just fumbled,” McNeal said.

Stanford has Oregon State, before a showdown with Oregon on Nov. 12 that could determine the Pac-12 North.

MY WEEK 3 BCS RANKINGS

LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma St., Stanford, Boise St., Oklahoma, Oregon, Arkansas, Nebraska, South Carolina

WEEK 9 PREDICTIONS

Michigan St. 31, Nebraska 27
Oklahoma 35, Kansas St. 25
Stanford 45, USC 21

WEEK: 2-1 (.667)
SEASON: 22-8 (.733)

PREDICTIONS FOR WEEK 10

No. 7 Arkansas 27, No. 9 South Carolina 20
No. 3 Oklahoma St. 34, No. 14 Kansas St. 30
No. 1 LSU 27, No. 2 Alabama 24

2011 NCAA FOOTBALL WEEK 6 RECAP

HUSKERS WIN IN HISTORIC FASHION

Four minutes into the third quarter and down 27-6 to the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Nebraska Cornhuskers looked as it would suffer its second straight crushing defeat in its new conference.

But the Huskers kept on fighting en route to a 34-27 victory.

Nebraska sophomore quarterback Taylor Martinez had a rough game against Wisconsin a week earlier and things did start well for him in this one. However, he was able to shake things off and amass 293 total yards and three total touchdowns.

“He kept fighting,” Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini said. “He led the team, and I was proud of how we played. That’s why he’s the starting quarterback right now.”

Martinez started the comeback after running for an 18-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 14.

As the Nebraska defense finally shut down the Buckeyes, the Concord, Calif. native threw for two touchdowns and the game was tied at 27-27 with 7:35 remaining.

Ohio St. tried to regain momentum on their next drive, but Joe Bauserman’s pass would be picked off. Four plays and 78 yards later, Rex Burkhead would score his second touchdown of the night to give the Huskers the lead.

Nebraska will take on Minnesota this week, while Ohio State plays No. 16 Illinois.

THIRD TIME IS THE CHARM FOR THE AGGIES

After two straight weeks of blowing just as many three-possession leads at halftime, Texas A&M’s 31-20 lead over Texas Tech did not look safe.

But unlike games against Oklahoma St. and Arkansas, the Aggies held on to win, 45-40.

In a game where the Red Raiders were rowdy—some in more ways than others—the game was all about the offense.

Aggies senior quarterback Ryan Tannehill scored three total touchdowns in the game and became the first player in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) with 3000 passing yards and 1500 receiving yards in a career.

Texas Tech was fueled early by junior running back Eric Stephens, but he went down with a season-ending injury to his left knee in the third quarter. He would finish with 102 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries.

The Red Raiders would still show fight without Stephens thanks to quarterback Seth Doege.

Down 45-33 with 2:55 left, Doege led Texas Tech on a nine-play, 91-yard drive capped off with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Alex Torres to put the Red Raiders only down by five.

But the ensuing onside kick would not go their way and Texas A&M came away with a win.

A relieved Mike Sherman said, “It seems like it’s been forever since we’ve had this feeling.”

WEEK 6 PREDICTIONS
Oklahoma 24, Texas 17
LSU 31, Florida 10
Auburn 45, Arkansas 38

WEEK: 2-1 (.667)
SEASON: 14-6 (.700)

PREDICTIONS FOR WEEK 7
No. 11 Michigan 24, No. 23 Michigan St. 23
No. 21 Texas A&M 38, No. 20 Baylor 35
No. 6 Oklahoma St. 30, No. 22 Texas 13
No. 9 Oregon 42, No. 18 Arizona St. 28

JIM TRESSEL'S TWO GAME SUSPENSION IS NOT ENOUGH

With Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel's recent suspension, the NCAA rules committee continues to prove that they are a joke.

Tuesday, the NCAA handed Tressel a two-game suspension for failing to notify the university that some of his players committed violations.

However, what good is this two-game suspension if Ohio State is only playing two tune-up games against Akron and Toledo?

If the NCAA really wanted to punish Tressel for his infractions, it should have suspended him for at least the same amount of games that Terrelle Pryor and four other Buckeyes were suspended for.

In December, the NCAA handed a five-game suspension to those five players for selling school memorabilia in exchange for tattoos.

However, the NCAA got it wrong in suspending them for the first five games this season instead of the Sugar Bowl against Arkansas, a 31-26 win for Ohio State.

Suspending Tressel for Ohio State's first two conference games—Michigan State and Nebraska—would also serve as much stiffer punishment.

This has already happened in college basketball where Bruce Pearl and Jim Calhoun received suspensions for only conference games for violating rules.

Lastly, the NCAA could also have taken away scholarships and placing the school on probation for its second violation in three months.

Either of these would have been more severe than what is basically a slap on the wrist, but it is a shame that the NCAA cowered in making sure that this would not happen again.

In the meanwhile at least the NCAA acted swiftly as did, although looking further into the situation would have suited this better.

Well, look at the bright side Jim. At least your sweater vests

are still A-1.