Missed Kick Saves Hogs’ Season
Robert Shields
It was the worst win of the Bobby Petrino era. Even the ragged play was matched by a lack of discipline by the players. The sloppiness transferred to the field. It was a messy win for the Hogs.
Just like in 2006, Vanderbilt lost the game on a missed field goal at the end of the game. But way before the missed kick, it was a game of both sides wanting plays back. In the end, the Hogs survived and moved on, which is all that matters. SEC road wins are always difficult to come by even if in Oxford or Nashville. The Hogs have won back-to-back SEC road games and that does not happen very often.
It looked like the Dennis Johnson fumble was going to be a game changer as the Hogs were driving to take the lead because it stopped an important momentum-building drive. A couple of players later, Vanderbilt took it the distance on a run to go up 28-17.
Vanderbilt returned the favor in better fashion with a fumble at the 3-yard line that Jerry Franklin returned 97 yards. The Hogs made the two-point conversion in what amounted to a 15-point swing. The Commodores could have been up 35-20 but instead were tied at 28-28. It was the play of the game.
Regardless, Vanderbilt dropped scores of potential interceptions and the Razorback defense had a drop or two as well.
The game only got stranger when it looked like the Hogs were going to blow the game open with another fumble recovery and return for almost a touchdown. , in an effort to get into the end zone though, Jericho Nelson fumbled the ball and it was recovered by Vanderbilt.
I thought the key defensive stop came after that fumble by Nelson into the end zone. For one of the few times in the game, the defense stopped Vanderbilt on three downs and forced a punt. The offense took the ball and quickly moved it into field-goal range for the go-ahead field goal that proved to be the difference.
At the end of the game, Bobby Petrino won the chess match against his counterpart. Vanderbilt seemed content after driving 80 yards for a game-tying field goal as the clock ran down. Petrino called time out with 24 seconds. After that time out, Vanderbilt went for the touchdown. What transpired left a shaky right-footed kicker on the right hash mark, which is always difficult for a bad kicker. Their kicker’s longest kick was 33 yards. He kicked it true. The kick went almost right down the right hash mark to no good.
As bad as the defense keeps playing, it has on numerous occasions now this season come up with the game-winning stop or save. They did it against Vanderbilt, also, even though it probably gave a few Hog fans palpitations.
Everyone keeps harping on the defense starting slowly, but the offense has been equal to the task. The Hogs need to defer whenever they win the coin toss. Getting the ball first is not helping. It has typically ended up with a three and out and with the other team set up.
The big play maker of Cobi Hamilton has been missing. The Hogs need him the rest of the way. These Razorback receivers were trained by Ryan Mallett. They just fly down the field almost always beating the defenders. Tyler Wilson is struggling delivering the ball to them on the fly. On passes less than 20 yards down field, Wilson has been laser accurate just like the pass in the back of the end zone to Jarius Wright in the game. It was a beautiful thing. Conversely, Wright in the last few games has just flat beaten his defender down the field and Wilson has not been able to deliver. I think this lack of the huge strike down field as frequently as Mallett has hurt Hamilton and maybe even Greg Childs.
I can’t end the column without mentioning the late hit by Marquel Wade. It was out of effort. It was a vicious hit, but it was not flagrant. If Wade would have missed, another Razorback was going to kill the Vanderbilt player for him. The flag on the play was warranted. They just missed timing it by a fraction of a second just like roughing the punter. I don’t believe the Vanderbilt player signaled fair catch. If he did, he needs to do a better job if he does not want to get hit. After the hit, though, Wade acted the fool on TV and if for no other reason that should have gotten him ejected him from the game. He will be a great player, but actions like that won’t help him in the long run.
Send your vicious hits to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
you can follow me on twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Monday, October 31, 2011
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Live Fan Feedback: Week 9
Comments on the week from our expert panel of reporters, bankers, doctors, lawyers, ad wizards, lawn guys, bond guys, car guys, pilots, priests, principals, builders, teachers, bums, and nomads.
Continually updated throughout the day...
Oh,God... Clemson. -- G Biz
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Jeff G's Weekly Line
I’m moving too close to the top, so I’m due for a letdown. Where’s Clemson? Oh, there they are…along with my other favorite – UGa. Great. Thanks.
MSU – I’m riding Sparty although I feel a loss coming. Damn that was a great game last week.
UGa – not sure why I keep doing this to myself.
Tennessee – going with my gut
Stanford – famous last words... "this one won’t even be close"
Clemson – remember when I said I was going to pick Clemson to lose from here on out just to spite them? I don’t.
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Thanks for not putting Norte Dame on the list this week, they have always done me wrong, no matter which way I pick. -- Mike O
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Regards From the Big O
I can't say your comment about Tub's winning accurately reflects the U fans I know best... I, for one, will always pull for Tommy except when we play his team: his ten years at AU were pretty significant in my opinion, not just as to football victories, but also in the way he rebuilt our program the right way. Enough of that, time to make my picks with less research than previously: 1) Nebraska (primarily because they are playing at home and their opponent isn't Notre Dame -- are we sure they didn't throw last week's game?); 2) Florida (because those dawgs don't really bite and, most importantly, the gators are faster and two original starters are rumored to be playing...Brantley is clearly the key to this pick); 3) South Carolina (because TN's coach is too immature and the old ball coach has had enough time to get his new QB up to par -- hopefully); 4) Stanford (while USC is much improved since I picked them over Arizona State, there's good reason they are a 7 point favorite, namely their QB); and 5) Clemson (because they're pretty good and I like their QB). Now, one final observation: you let us off the hook by not including Ole Sis at AU...obviously, by hanging in there with the hogs, the Rebel Black Bears are soooo much improved and we're using a backup QB-- oh, so are the Rebs; never mind. Regards, Oscar And Release the Kirchen for real this weekend so I can learn to Lutzie (that's his dance at bama for the uninformed)!
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Can I make 4 picks & take an auto loss on Clemson? -- Rob O
UGA – the over/under fights in the game: 1.5, the over/under on fights outside the stadium and in the stands: 532 -- Jeff K
Clemson - can they really be #6 and only favored by 3??? -- Steve N
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Poetry Corner
Michigan State
Made me irate
When they caught that Hail Mary pass.
Once again
The stupid Big 10
Made me smack my wife on the ass.
-
So...how on earth could I guy like me go with Clemson, for a second time after filing my C&D letter weeks ago. Well, it seems the best way to beat the curse is to join the curse. own the curse, make love to the curse in an unnatural and unprotected way... So, as I order my Clemson Football visor from Lids.com, I offer my picks as follows. -- G Biz
Continually updated throughout the day...
Oh,God... Clemson. -- G Biz
-
Jeff G's Weekly Line
I’m moving too close to the top, so I’m due for a letdown. Where’s Clemson? Oh, there they are…along with my other favorite – UGa. Great. Thanks.
MSU – I’m riding Sparty although I feel a loss coming. Damn that was a great game last week.
UGa – not sure why I keep doing this to myself.
Tennessee – going with my gut
Stanford – famous last words... "this one won’t even be close"
Clemson – remember when I said I was going to pick Clemson to lose from here on out just to spite them? I don’t.
-
Thanks for not putting Norte Dame on the list this week, they have always done me wrong, no matter which way I pick. -- Mike O
-
Regards From the Big O
I can't say your comment about Tub's winning accurately reflects the U fans I know best... I, for one, will always pull for Tommy except when we play his team: his ten years at AU were pretty significant in my opinion, not just as to football victories, but also in the way he rebuilt our program the right way. Enough of that, time to make my picks with less research than previously: 1) Nebraska (primarily because they are playing at home and their opponent isn't Notre Dame -- are we sure they didn't throw last week's game?); 2) Florida (because those dawgs don't really bite and, most importantly, the gators are faster and two original starters are rumored to be playing...Brantley is clearly the key to this pick); 3) South Carolina (because TN's coach is too immature and the old ball coach has had enough time to get his new QB up to par -- hopefully); 4) Stanford (while USC is much improved since I picked them over Arizona State, there's good reason they are a 7 point favorite, namely their QB); and 5) Clemson (because they're pretty good and I like their QB). Now, one final observation: you let us off the hook by not including Ole Sis at AU...obviously, by hanging in there with the hogs, the Rebel Black Bears are soooo much improved and we're using a backup QB-- oh, so are the Rebs; never mind. Regards, Oscar And Release the Kirchen for real this weekend so I can learn to Lutzie (that's his dance at bama for the uninformed)!
-
Can I make 4 picks & take an auto loss on Clemson? -- Rob O
UGA – the over/under fights in the game: 1.5, the over/under on fights outside the stadium and in the stands: 532 -- Jeff K
Clemson - can they really be #6 and only favored by 3??? -- Steve N
-
Poetry Corner
Michigan State
Made me irate
When they caught that Hail Mary pass.
Once again
The stupid Big 10
Made me smack my wife on the ass.
-
So...how on earth could I guy like me go with Clemson, for a second time after filing my C&D letter weeks ago. Well, it seems the best way to beat the curse is to join the curse. own the curse, make love to the curse in an unnatural and unprotected way... So, as I order my Clemson Football visor from Lids.com, I offer my picks as follows. -- G Biz
Labels:
Letters to Ramon
| Reactions: |
Monday, October 24, 2011
From the Bench
Ole Miss’ Loss Reminiscent of Nutt Era at Arkansas
Robert Shields
You may hate him, deride him, think he is an idiot, and consider him a reprobate, but nobody and I mean nobody can deny the fact that Houston Nutt can inspire his players. Make no mistake, Nutt wanted this win against Arkansas and wanted it badly.
His desire to win this game was transposed onto his players, and you could tell it in the first half as well as at the end of the game. The Razorbacks won on superior fire power, which is exactly how Arkansas was beaten many times in the first years of entering the SEC.
This was a game where many even in Ole Miss country were predicting the Rebels would lose in a 30-point blowout or more. I have to admit that I was expecting the same. My only question was if the Hogs were going to hit 50 points.
Instead, the Hogs decided to play only a little over one quarter and scored 29 points in that time period. If you extrapolate the third quarter over the entire game, the Hogs should have ended up with 80. Nutt followed Auburn’s game plan as will other teams against this explosive Razorback offense – don’t worry about scoring as much as using up the clock. The Razorback offense needs lots of possessions, and if they get them they will score almost at will at some point in the game.
Arkansas’ offense took off the fourth quarter, and it almost cost the Hogs as Nutt rallied his troops for one more desperate attempt. You watched the same tactic for more than a decade with him at the helm in Fayetteville. He would often keep teams of superior ability close and then find a way to steal it at the end. The Miracle on Markham comes to mind – and it was called a miracle for a reason.
Nutt often came up short in these SEC comebacks with fans lamenting one certain play or another (frequently a fumble or interception) that ended up being the difference in the game. If you think about it very long, you will come up with scores of them. If you’re honest, you will also come up with some that he pulled out.
The play from Saturday that the Rebels will lament was the dropped pass on third and long when the score was tied at 17. The pass was completed but not for long. It would have been a big gain putting the Rebels in scoring position. The receiver bobbled it all the way to the ground and it was incomplete. Nutt undoubtedly thinks that was the play where his team could have stemmed the tide of the Razorback offensive onslaught. Sadly, the player who dropped it was also the reason Ole Miss was even in the game with two huge touchdown receptions.
This game was reminiscent of the almosts Razorback fans endured under this leadership. And for most fans, at the end of this game they breathed a sigh of relief as the Hogs were able to hang on against this inspired Ole Miss team. Nutt was a master of doing this a couple of times each year, and you cannot deny him that fact because he’s always going to do it against the Hogs.
Shame on any of us thinking it was going to be easy. Nutt will never make it easy. It’s the game that he wants. He had his freshman believing and they caused the sleepy Razorback defense problems.
Arkansas’ defense has got to start waking up sooner. You have to play both halves not just the second half, and this has been a trend even dating back to last year. Most Razorback fans are so accustomed to it that when the Hogs fall down by 17 there is absolutely no reason to panic because it is standard operating procedure. It shouldn’t be that way, though, and if it continues it will start to cost the Hogs games.
Every road game in the SEC is difficult. This was a good win. Vanderbilt on the road this Saturday should not be taken for granted either as they handled Ole Miss much easier than the Hogs. It’s a bad idea to draw conclusions from score comparisons, but it’s still something the Razorback team has to consider going to Nashville and not letting Vandy get up by three scores.
On the upside coming out of the game, maybe, just maybe, the Hogs have found a rushing game with Dennis Johnson. The bye week seemed to do him the most good. As for the rest of the team, the bye week seemed to put a thick layer of rust on the machine that took almost two quarters to break off.
The Hogs have yet to put together a complete game this year. Maybe they are saving it for LSU.
Send your photos from the Grove to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
You may hate him, deride him, think he is an idiot, and consider him a reprobate, but nobody and I mean nobody can deny the fact that Houston Nutt can inspire his players. Make no mistake, Nutt wanted this win against Arkansas and wanted it badly.
His desire to win this game was transposed onto his players, and you could tell it in the first half as well as at the end of the game. The Razorbacks won on superior fire power, which is exactly how Arkansas was beaten many times in the first years of entering the SEC.
This was a game where many even in Ole Miss country were predicting the Rebels would lose in a 30-point blowout or more. I have to admit that I was expecting the same. My only question was if the Hogs were going to hit 50 points.
Instead, the Hogs decided to play only a little over one quarter and scored 29 points in that time period. If you extrapolate the third quarter over the entire game, the Hogs should have ended up with 80. Nutt followed Auburn’s game plan as will other teams against this explosive Razorback offense – don’t worry about scoring as much as using up the clock. The Razorback offense needs lots of possessions, and if they get them they will score almost at will at some point in the game.
Arkansas’ offense took off the fourth quarter, and it almost cost the Hogs as Nutt rallied his troops for one more desperate attempt. You watched the same tactic for more than a decade with him at the helm in Fayetteville. He would often keep teams of superior ability close and then find a way to steal it at the end. The Miracle on Markham comes to mind – and it was called a miracle for a reason.
Nutt often came up short in these SEC comebacks with fans lamenting one certain play or another (frequently a fumble or interception) that ended up being the difference in the game. If you think about it very long, you will come up with scores of them. If you’re honest, you will also come up with some that he pulled out.
The play from Saturday that the Rebels will lament was the dropped pass on third and long when the score was tied at 17. The pass was completed but not for long. It would have been a big gain putting the Rebels in scoring position. The receiver bobbled it all the way to the ground and it was incomplete. Nutt undoubtedly thinks that was the play where his team could have stemmed the tide of the Razorback offensive onslaught. Sadly, the player who dropped it was also the reason Ole Miss was even in the game with two huge touchdown receptions.
This game was reminiscent of the almosts Razorback fans endured under this leadership. And for most fans, at the end of this game they breathed a sigh of relief as the Hogs were able to hang on against this inspired Ole Miss team. Nutt was a master of doing this a couple of times each year, and you cannot deny him that fact because he’s always going to do it against the Hogs.
Shame on any of us thinking it was going to be easy. Nutt will never make it easy. It’s the game that he wants. He had his freshman believing and they caused the sleepy Razorback defense problems.
Arkansas’ defense has got to start waking up sooner. You have to play both halves not just the second half, and this has been a trend even dating back to last year. Most Razorback fans are so accustomed to it that when the Hogs fall down by 17 there is absolutely no reason to panic because it is standard operating procedure. It shouldn’t be that way, though, and if it continues it will start to cost the Hogs games.
Every road game in the SEC is difficult. This was a good win. Vanderbilt on the road this Saturday should not be taken for granted either as they handled Ole Miss much easier than the Hogs. It’s a bad idea to draw conclusions from score comparisons, but it’s still something the Razorback team has to consider going to Nashville and not letting Vandy get up by three scores.
On the upside coming out of the game, maybe, just maybe, the Hogs have found a rushing game with Dennis Johnson. The bye week seemed to do him the most good. As for the rest of the team, the bye week seemed to put a thick layer of rust on the machine that took almost two quarters to break off.
The Hogs have yet to put together a complete game this year. Maybe they are saving it for LSU.
Send your photos from the Grove to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Live Fan Feedback: Week 8
Comments on the week from our expert panel of reporters, bankers, doctors, lawyers, ad wizards, lawn guys, bond guys, car guys, pilots, priests, principals, builders, teachers, bums, and nomads.
Continually updated throughout the day...
GO CARDINALS?????? I'm shocked, disgusted and saddened by that. The opportunity to have 2 Championships (Go Mavs) in the same city should be reason enough for any sports fan to root for the Rangers. Plus they're due. Plus Nolan Ryan will put you in a Robin Ventura headlock and beat you silly if you root against them. -- John R
How about Clemzon. My wife went there. Might as well cheer for someone worth while since UF is sucking it this year. -- My D [EDITOR'S NOTE: Clemson is favored by 10 over North Carolina, which I and probably most don't think has much of a chance to win at Clemson.]
-
Bonus Challenge (only because I like a challenge):
Battle of the Pan Flashes
Rutgers - Louisville
7 p.m., Friday, ESPN
Line: Louisville by 2
-- Alex T
[EDITOR'S NOTE: A 2-4 Louisville team against Rutgers isn't exactly an attractive match-up.]
-
As a TCU alum and a sophomore in 2003, I've seen how tough it is to play in Hattiesburg. -- Jarod D
I was expecting an epic struggle between big east powers Cincinnati and South Florida. -- Jeremy A [EDITOR'S NOTE: Game on Big East Network so virtually no one would be able to watch it.]
Why isn't the BC VT game up there? -- Stephen R [EDITOR'S NOTE: Virginia Tech favored by 21.]
-
The Analysis With Jeff G
Another week where I have no good feel for any of these. BTW, I’m flying in for the MSU game 11/19. Craig May starts tailgating at 6:00 AM. I’m wondering if I’m going to even make it to the game.
Okie State – they look real to me and proved they can win on the road. Haven’t see Mizzou.
Miami – goin’ with the home team. That’s the only reason. I don’t think either of these teams are that good.
Domers – now that Kiffin is at USC, my hate expands to both these teams.
MSU – I am 1-1 with Sparty so far. Their handling of Robinson could foretell success against Wilson even though Wilson is a hell of a lot better passer. Just not sure about MSU’s passing game - they should be better than they are. I think a Saturday night showdown in E Lansing will favor Sparty as long as MSU comes out nasty like last week.
Southern Miss – for some reason I don’t think this game will be televised here in NC
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All those years in the School of Noise must have finally paid off!!! -- Randi P
Can you do me a favor and compare my picks to Huber's... If he picks the same as me (even if he got his in first), please email him and let him know those picks were already chosen and he needs to make different picks. We've basically had the same picks except in two weeks. His lead is small but his head is large!!! -- G Biz
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Regards From the Big O
One surprise in the selections, specifically SMU vs UMS, since I'm probably the only one in this pool that has been to a USM game at Hattiesburg. Indeed, I spent a lot of time at what was then Mississippi Southern because my uncle was dean of the Math School and coach of the golf team -- the school's golf course is named after B.O. Van Hook. Anyway, I transgress. My picks this week are as follows: 1) Oklahoma State (although Mizzou may soon be a member of the SEC, their offense is no where near the Jaguar like speed and efficiency of OSU); 2) Miami (because, I assume, all their suspended players are back by now and they are playing at home); 3) Notre Dame (because they are the better team playing at home and I don't pick huge underdogs except for AU -- notably, you likely saved me 2 point by not picking the SEC Tigers game as part of our selections this week, even though AU could surprise Old Man Miles as he's already used up his 9 lives and LSU's offense isn't top caliber, whereas our defense is getting better each week); 4) Wisconsin (because they have just the right person running their offense this year and they are at least the 4th best team nationally, ergo their defense may be over matched this week); and 5) Southern Miss (because they are playing on the same field I once competed against the state's best bands plus USM is pretty good this year...bet you didn't know I'm an old trombonist?).
Given UCLA's total ineptness even against Arizona (who would have guessed their problem was Stoops?), I guess I'll comment on LSU's loss of "Honey Badger don't give a ..." plus two additional starters. Incidently, those Honey Badgers eat Cobras...really. Basically, I thought they were smoking something over there at the red stick every time I read one of the Tigerdroppings comments about Cam and AU over the past year...what goes around comes around, especially to teams like the Corndogs and the Tahd (both of whom, per a comment I read earlier tonight on ITAT, "were born on third base and think they hit a triple").
As for the announced AU haters recently commenting on Poolsville, I ran across and apt Latin legal phrase in a new Legal Dictionary for we AU Davises which you can also feel free to use in the future where applicable: "Illegitimi Non Carborundum." Loosely translated (as it is actually a popular motto in mock Latin that is seemingly beloved of a certain stripe of lawyer), it means "Don't let the bastards get you down." Actually, it was invented in the 20th Century and means nothing sensible in Latin at all. If one must express such feelings, a closer formulation for any Latin Scholars (including more likely teachers or priests at Catholic High) is "Nunquam filii canis sinam vincere."
Enough prattle for this evening. "War Eagle" and "Release the Kirchen" (that's Lutzenkirchen for those who don't remember the last TD by AU at last years Iron Bowl)!
-
Poetry Corner
It’s time to make my move.
I’m in this thing to win it.
But if I start to lose
I’ll beat my wife for a minute.
It’s a strategy I use
And it always changes my luck.
But every time I do it.
She never wants to… cook.
Continually updated throughout the day...
GO CARDINALS?????? I'm shocked, disgusted and saddened by that. The opportunity to have 2 Championships (Go Mavs) in the same city should be reason enough for any sports fan to root for the Rangers. Plus they're due. Plus Nolan Ryan will put you in a Robin Ventura headlock and beat you silly if you root against them. -- John R
How about Clemzon. My wife went there. Might as well cheer for someone worth while since UF is sucking it this year. -- My D [EDITOR'S NOTE: Clemson is favored by 10 over North Carolina, which I and probably most don't think has much of a chance to win at Clemson.]
-
Bonus Challenge (only because I like a challenge):
Battle of the Pan Flashes
Rutgers - Louisville
7 p.m., Friday, ESPN
Line: Louisville by 2
-- Alex T
[EDITOR'S NOTE: A 2-4 Louisville team against Rutgers isn't exactly an attractive match-up.]
-
As a TCU alum and a sophomore in 2003, I've seen how tough it is to play in Hattiesburg. -- Jarod D
I was expecting an epic struggle between big east powers Cincinnati and South Florida. -- Jeremy A [EDITOR'S NOTE: Game on Big East Network so virtually no one would be able to watch it.]
Why isn't the BC VT game up there? -- Stephen R [EDITOR'S NOTE: Virginia Tech favored by 21.]
-
The Analysis With Jeff G
Another week where I have no good feel for any of these. BTW, I’m flying in for the MSU game 11/19. Craig May starts tailgating at 6:00 AM. I’m wondering if I’m going to even make it to the game.
Okie State – they look real to me and proved they can win on the road. Haven’t see Mizzou.
Miami – goin’ with the home team. That’s the only reason. I don’t think either of these teams are that good.
Domers – now that Kiffin is at USC, my hate expands to both these teams.
MSU – I am 1-1 with Sparty so far. Their handling of Robinson could foretell success against Wilson even though Wilson is a hell of a lot better passer. Just not sure about MSU’s passing game - they should be better than they are. I think a Saturday night showdown in E Lansing will favor Sparty as long as MSU comes out nasty like last week.
Southern Miss – for some reason I don’t think this game will be televised here in NC
-
All those years in the School of Noise must have finally paid off!!! -- Randi P
Can you do me a favor and compare my picks to Huber's... If he picks the same as me (even if he got his in first), please email him and let him know those picks were already chosen and he needs to make different picks. We've basically had the same picks except in two weeks. His lead is small but his head is large!!! -- G Biz
-
Regards From the Big O
One surprise in the selections, specifically SMU vs UMS, since I'm probably the only one in this pool that has been to a USM game at Hattiesburg. Indeed, I spent a lot of time at what was then Mississippi Southern because my uncle was dean of the Math School and coach of the golf team -- the school's golf course is named after B.O. Van Hook. Anyway, I transgress. My picks this week are as follows: 1) Oklahoma State (although Mizzou may soon be a member of the SEC, their offense is no where near the Jaguar like speed and efficiency of OSU); 2) Miami (because, I assume, all their suspended players are back by now and they are playing at home); 3) Notre Dame (because they are the better team playing at home and I don't pick huge underdogs except for AU -- notably, you likely saved me 2 point by not picking the SEC Tigers game as part of our selections this week, even though AU could surprise Old Man Miles as he's already used up his 9 lives and LSU's offense isn't top caliber, whereas our defense is getting better each week); 4) Wisconsin (because they have just the right person running their offense this year and they are at least the 4th best team nationally, ergo their defense may be over matched this week); and 5) Southern Miss (because they are playing on the same field I once competed against the state's best bands plus USM is pretty good this year...bet you didn't know I'm an old trombonist?).
Given UCLA's total ineptness even against Arizona (who would have guessed their problem was Stoops?), I guess I'll comment on LSU's loss of "Honey Badger don't give a ..." plus two additional starters. Incidently, those Honey Badgers eat Cobras...really. Basically, I thought they were smoking something over there at the red stick every time I read one of the Tigerdroppings comments about Cam and AU over the past year...what goes around comes around, especially to teams like the Corndogs and the Tahd (both of whom, per a comment I read earlier tonight on ITAT, "were born on third base and think they hit a triple").
As for the announced AU haters recently commenting on Poolsville, I ran across and apt Latin legal phrase in a new Legal Dictionary for we AU Davises which you can also feel free to use in the future where applicable: "Illegitimi Non Carborundum." Loosely translated (as it is actually a popular motto in mock Latin that is seemingly beloved of a certain stripe of lawyer), it means "Don't let the bastards get you down." Actually, it was invented in the 20th Century and means nothing sensible in Latin at all. If one must express such feelings, a closer formulation for any Latin Scholars (including more likely teachers or priests at Catholic High) is "Nunquam filii canis sinam vincere."
Enough prattle for this evening. "War Eagle" and "Release the Kirchen" (that's Lutzenkirchen for those who don't remember the last TD by AU at last years Iron Bowl)!
-
Poetry Corner
It’s time to make my move.
I’m in this thing to win it.
But if I start to lose
I’ll beat my wife for a minute.
It’s a strategy I use
And it always changes my luck.
But every time I do it.
She never wants to… cook.
Labels:
Letters to Ramon
| Reactions: |
Monday, October 17, 2011
From the Bench
Grades Are Mixed on Midterm Report Card for Razorback Football
Robert Shields
Your Arkansas Razorbacks have reached the halfway point in the season, and if the current trajectory holds with them being 5-1, the ending regular-season record will be 10-2. That mark will match last season’s numbers with Ryan Mallett. So what’s the midterm report look like? Like Run-DMC said, here we go...
Tyler Wilson (A)
I would give him an A+ but the interception return by Alabama was the turning point in that game. I don’t know if he was directly responsible for it, but it still goes on his stats. He is as durable as any quarterback that I have ever seen at Arkansas. Mallett could not have taken the beating Wilson has through the first six games, and as a matter of fact he didn’t leaving the Auburn game with a concussion. The stat that still sticks with me is all those record-setting passing yards against Texas A&M under duress -- and with no interceptions. The kid is a good decision maker and has also yet to make a stupid decision on Dickson Street. That’s a credit to good parenting. I hope his dad is reading this column.
Defense (B+)
The defense at times has been a little soft. Yet, it has come up with critical stops at key junctures during games. It’s also a beleaguered defense with injuries that have mounted. This has led to a few true freshmen playing, which usually spells doom for a team. Yet the freshmen have played very well at times. The mustachioed one, defensive coordinator Willy Robinson, is again thumbing his nose at the administrative suggestion for no facial hair, which I take as a great sign for the defense’s skill level.
Offensive Line (D)
I could almost go with an F, but Tyler Wilson is still alive. Early in the season, teams were living in the Arkansas backfield. I believe a couple of Alabama players actually had time to order a pizza. This has improved some as the games played out, but the running game has yet to get started and the backs are finding very little room. My advice to any of the running backs is to follow Kiero Small when he is in the game if you can ride on his back.
Running Backs (D)
I don’t include Joe Adams as a running back. See above.
Receivers (B)
At times, the receiving corps has looked slower than last year, but maybe I’m just remembering the Alabama linebackers running down the Hogs receivers like they were hyenas. The catching has been good, but they still have some key drops. Those have to stop if the team wants to finish 11-1. A dropped pass almost always sends a possession into a punt. All considered, though, the receivers have come up with some big plays in the first half of the season.
Special Teams (C-)
Alabama’s punt return for a touchdown and the fake field goal make this a bad grade just based on that game alone. Zach Hocker has also missed a field goal or two. Not good. This grade will have to improve for the Hogs to go 11-1 and not make themselves vulnerable to upsets on the road.
Coach (?)
I will give this grade at the end of the year. I am still scratching my head about the time the Razorbacks cut the Alabama lead to 17 and were on a drive to possibly cut it to 10, and on fourth and short the Hogs went to a power run formation when they had not had any success running all day. Surprise, the run failed. I still wonder if Petrino actually thought he was going to overpower them at the point of attack or if this was a play call one of the rich boosters won in yet another money-collecting scheme from the UA.
Arkansas will have to see some improvement in the second half of the season. There is no Missouri State, Troy, or New Mexico State on the schedule in the last half. It’s all SEC and we all know those games are never easy.
-
NCAA Also ‘All in’
Regardless of how you feel about the latest NCAA exoneration of Auburn for any wrongdoing, Auburn still won a national championship and that won’t change. I think outside of Auburn, though, most people still aren’t buying it no matter what the NCAA now declares.
A little history is needed in these last words on the subject. Auburn had a ringer of a player last year in Cam Newton, who only played for one season. The press hounded him with stories of academic fraud at Florida and a stolen laptop being thrown out of a window. These stories painted him as anything but an angel.
Then the news broke of his dad shopping him to Mississippi State for money. Lots of money, according to reports. Based on the facts reported, the idea that Newton ended up at Auburn for free is something that most people outside of the Auburn family just don’t find plausible.
When the news finally was confirmed that his dad was indeed shopping him, he was ruled ineligible -- and then reinstated one day later by the NCAA based on no proof that Cam knew about it (You can see the enormous loop hole the NCAA created.)
At that point, the NCAA was all in, too. It could be no other way.
The NCAA reinstated him before his SEC and national championship games. The chance of Auburn winning without him was none. At that point, the NCAA was culpable in any Auburn win and created the perception to fans that they wanted to maintain the high ratings. This is paired with their ruling for Ohio State players being allowed to play in the Sugar Bowl even though they were also guilty of rules violations. The NCAA right now has an image problem and is being found less credible with each new finding.
The NCAA finding anything other than what it announced last week would have been shocking based on its recent pattern. The NCAA’s reinstatement of Newton was ex-ante. Even though Auburn is now cleared, the masses seem to balk.
Auburn is college football’s OJ Simpson. Yeah, they were found innocent, but nobody believes it.
-
RSVP RIP?
Not everyone answered the call. In big SEC games at home, the program is still trying to hawk tickets for games that are not sold out. It is amazing to me that the UA has to put ads in the paper and send out a multitude of emails pushing tickets sales for premier SEC opponents such as South Carolina and Tennessee in a year when the Razorbacks are in the top 10.
So answer the call -- and make a bid on that signed football by Ryan Mallett while you’re at it. The last bid I saw was $650. And if you’re really into bidding, I will entertain offers on signatures that I have of Frank Broyles, Nolan Richardson, Ron Calcagni, Kevin Scanlon, Joe Johnson, Marvin Delph, Sidney Moncrief, and Ron Brewer. I might even have a Roland Sales.
The starting bid for any of the signature items I have is $650. Included will be the history of how I got their autograph, which is what I’m wondering about regarding all these auction balls from the UA. What’s the autograph history for these balls? Did the UA get the players to sign while in school with the plan to sell the item down the road? I have been against paying players, but maybe they should get paid for their autographs. But, you can also see the enormous loop hole in that idea also.
Send your bids to fromthebench@yahoo.com
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
Your Arkansas Razorbacks have reached the halfway point in the season, and if the current trajectory holds with them being 5-1, the ending regular-season record will be 10-2. That mark will match last season’s numbers with Ryan Mallett. So what’s the midterm report look like? Like Run-DMC said, here we go...
Tyler Wilson (A)
I would give him an A+ but the interception return by Alabama was the turning point in that game. I don’t know if he was directly responsible for it, but it still goes on his stats. He is as durable as any quarterback that I have ever seen at Arkansas. Mallett could not have taken the beating Wilson has through the first six games, and as a matter of fact he didn’t leaving the Auburn game with a concussion. The stat that still sticks with me is all those record-setting passing yards against Texas A&M under duress -- and with no interceptions. The kid is a good decision maker and has also yet to make a stupid decision on Dickson Street. That’s a credit to good parenting. I hope his dad is reading this column.
Defense (B+)
The defense at times has been a little soft. Yet, it has come up with critical stops at key junctures during games. It’s also a beleaguered defense with injuries that have mounted. This has led to a few true freshmen playing, which usually spells doom for a team. Yet the freshmen have played very well at times. The mustachioed one, defensive coordinator Willy Robinson, is again thumbing his nose at the administrative suggestion for no facial hair, which I take as a great sign for the defense’s skill level.
Offensive Line (D)
I could almost go with an F, but Tyler Wilson is still alive. Early in the season, teams were living in the Arkansas backfield. I believe a couple of Alabama players actually had time to order a pizza. This has improved some as the games played out, but the running game has yet to get started and the backs are finding very little room. My advice to any of the running backs is to follow Kiero Small when he is in the game if you can ride on his back.
Running Backs (D)
I don’t include Joe Adams as a running back. See above.
Receivers (B)
At times, the receiving corps has looked slower than last year, but maybe I’m just remembering the Alabama linebackers running down the Hogs receivers like they were hyenas. The catching has been good, but they still have some key drops. Those have to stop if the team wants to finish 11-1. A dropped pass almost always sends a possession into a punt. All considered, though, the receivers have come up with some big plays in the first half of the season.
Special Teams (C-)
Alabama’s punt return for a touchdown and the fake field goal make this a bad grade just based on that game alone. Zach Hocker has also missed a field goal or two. Not good. This grade will have to improve for the Hogs to go 11-1 and not make themselves vulnerable to upsets on the road.
Coach (?)
I will give this grade at the end of the year. I am still scratching my head about the time the Razorbacks cut the Alabama lead to 17 and were on a drive to possibly cut it to 10, and on fourth and short the Hogs went to a power run formation when they had not had any success running all day. Surprise, the run failed. I still wonder if Petrino actually thought he was going to overpower them at the point of attack or if this was a play call one of the rich boosters won in yet another money-collecting scheme from the UA.
Arkansas will have to see some improvement in the second half of the season. There is no Missouri State, Troy, or New Mexico State on the schedule in the last half. It’s all SEC and we all know those games are never easy.
-
NCAA Also ‘All in’
Regardless of how you feel about the latest NCAA exoneration of Auburn for any wrongdoing, Auburn still won a national championship and that won’t change. I think outside of Auburn, though, most people still aren’t buying it no matter what the NCAA now declares.
A little history is needed in these last words on the subject. Auburn had a ringer of a player last year in Cam Newton, who only played for one season. The press hounded him with stories of academic fraud at Florida and a stolen laptop being thrown out of a window. These stories painted him as anything but an angel.
Then the news broke of his dad shopping him to Mississippi State for money. Lots of money, according to reports. Based on the facts reported, the idea that Newton ended up at Auburn for free is something that most people outside of the Auburn family just don’t find plausible.
When the news finally was confirmed that his dad was indeed shopping him, he was ruled ineligible -- and then reinstated one day later by the NCAA based on no proof that Cam knew about it (You can see the enormous loop hole the NCAA created.)
At that point, the NCAA was all in, too. It could be no other way.
The NCAA reinstated him before his SEC and national championship games. The chance of Auburn winning without him was none. At that point, the NCAA was culpable in any Auburn win and created the perception to fans that they wanted to maintain the high ratings. This is paired with their ruling for Ohio State players being allowed to play in the Sugar Bowl even though they were also guilty of rules violations. The NCAA right now has an image problem and is being found less credible with each new finding.
The NCAA finding anything other than what it announced last week would have been shocking based on its recent pattern. The NCAA’s reinstatement of Newton was ex-ante. Even though Auburn is now cleared, the masses seem to balk.
Auburn is college football’s OJ Simpson. Yeah, they were found innocent, but nobody believes it.
-
RSVP RIP?
Not everyone answered the call. In big SEC games at home, the program is still trying to hawk tickets for games that are not sold out. It is amazing to me that the UA has to put ads in the paper and send out a multitude of emails pushing tickets sales for premier SEC opponents such as South Carolina and Tennessee in a year when the Razorbacks are in the top 10.
So answer the call -- and make a bid on that signed football by Ryan Mallett while you’re at it. The last bid I saw was $650. And if you’re really into bidding, I will entertain offers on signatures that I have of Frank Broyles, Nolan Richardson, Ron Calcagni, Kevin Scanlon, Joe Johnson, Marvin Delph, Sidney Moncrief, and Ron Brewer. I might even have a Roland Sales.
The starting bid for any of the signature items I have is $650. Included will be the history of how I got their autograph, which is what I’m wondering about regarding all these auction balls from the UA. What’s the autograph history for these balls? Did the UA get the players to sign while in school with the plan to sell the item down the road? I have been against paying players, but maybe they should get paid for their autographs. But, you can also see the enormous loop hole in that idea also.
Send your bids to fromthebench@yahoo.com
You can follow me on Twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Friday, October 14, 2011
Live Fan Feedback: Week 7
Comments on the week from our expert panel of reporters, bankers, doctors, lawyers, ad wizards, lawn guys, bond guys, car guys, pilots, priests, principals, builders, teachers, bums, and nomads.
Continually updated throughout the day...
The Jeff G Analysis
State – for the reasons stated before, plus I think they can shut down Robinson enough. The over must be huge for this one.
A&M – A&M should figure out how to put 4 quarters together. What’s a Brazo?
Okie State – Texas’s problems last week seemed to be based on lack of experience. Now they know how to get the shit kicked out of them by an Oklahoma team, this week might not hurt as much.
Auburn – Florida’s QB situation is bad, real bad.
TTech – The Who Cares Game of the Week. That includes Sullivan who has been noticeably (and mercifully) silent so far. Yes, you can tell him I said that.
-
If the sheep pokers of college station let me down im going to put a bag of dog shit on their bus when they come to Austin. -- David N
Whew, Aggies in the pool 4 weeks in a row. Me and Pap heading to College Station this weekend. Gotta load up on A&M-SEC merchandise. Hey, you think they'll move A&M-Ark to a home-and-home? Seems like it would make sense, but I'm guessing that both teams make way more guaranteed money from Jerry in Dallas than they would as a home game. But I'd love to get to Fayetteville or LR for a game. -- Aggie Mark
I'm thinking C. Don't know how you keep up with it all. I hope Steve Jobs gave you some fancy algortithm that automates this for you, before he passed. -- G-Biz
When will you start enforcing the 5p for Sal. I’m big on rules. BIG! Technically, he’s 0-15 the last 3 weeks. -- C Fish
Texas Tech just so Sully won't bug me. -- Moose
-
Regards from the Big O
Since I'm leaving for Auburn at the game with the gators tomorrow morning and I don't want to forget to send them tomorrow, I guess I'd better make my picks which are as follows: 1) Michigan (because even a victory over Ohio State doesn't justify giving the edge to M. State; besides in the Big 11, Michigan's QB is the most effective after the kid who chose Wisconsin over us -- Wilson? -- thus probably adding a loss by us to the Hogs this year, unfortunately); 2) Texas A&M (because I've withheld church donations to the Bears lately and haven't set up Jeremy's cockeyed scheme for funding their recruits; besides, A&M is a better team and except for picking AU out of loyalty, I didn't get to the top picking 9 point underdogs); 3) Oklahoma State (same reasoning as before, I don't pick 7 point underdogs; besides, the L'horns didn't impress me at all after picking them last Saturday over OU); 4) Auburn (for the same previous reason plus their QB is less experienced than ours and our defense has gotten better each game -- feed it to Michael and run, run, run); and 5) Texas Tech (no real reason other than Tubs playing at home and he almost pulled it out against A&M last week). Really enjoyed Jack Arute's giving your friends Pawwly and Danny Boy heck on the radio today. Jack has condemned the rush to speculative judgment (spell checks wrong here, it is proper to spell with or without an "e" according to most legal authorities) against AU throughout our ordeal -- which is now over, regardless of what our detractors (I guess that includes you too) misguided beliefs. In Gene's off color refrain as he raised the crystal football last January 10th, "War Damn Eagle!"
-
Poetry Corner with Danny K
It’s time to pick.
It’s here so quick.
These games are really fickle.
But whoever wins,
Whenever it ends,
My wife will play Hide the Pickle.
-
The Poolsville Auburn debate is very entertaining - I'm kind of sad to see the investigation come to an end for many reasons. And I'm very thankful that the Daviswa aren't a mafia family otherwise I'd have to go underground. -- Fleetwood
-
Glenn B's NCAAFConverter App
The Converter is on Alaska Time today (includes French Polynesia, as you probably know) and rather than run the risk of a late submission, I am sending you the basic results.
1. Michigan - Michigan State
NCAAFConverter says Blue is back. MICHIGAN.
2. Baylor - Texas A&M (Baylor worth four points)
NCAAFConverter says the team of attorneys Baylor had on retainer to stop A&M's flight from the Big 12 has been working overtime on breaking down A&M's offensive schemes for litigation purposes; these guys will be key in pulling the upset here. BAYLOR. Bonus points, please.
3. Oklahoma State - Texas (Texas worth three points).
NCAAFConverter duly notes that This Week in Schadenfreude awarded the Tears of Unfathomable Sadness to Texas after last week's loss to Oklahoma. Standing in water is never a good thing when lightning is about to strike twice. OSU, please. Go peddle your shiny bonus point elsewhere.
4. Florida - Auburn
NCAAFConverter says: really? What purpose does this serve? Arkansas showed last week that the emperor wears no clothes. But that won't stop Auburn from trouncing those Gators. AUBURN, please.
5. Kansas State - Texas Tech
NCAAFConverter says some things just cannot be explained through science. KSU, please.
Continually updated throughout the day...
The Jeff G Analysis
State – for the reasons stated before, plus I think they can shut down Robinson enough. The over must be huge for this one.
A&M – A&M should figure out how to put 4 quarters together. What’s a Brazo?
Okie State – Texas’s problems last week seemed to be based on lack of experience. Now they know how to get the shit kicked out of them by an Oklahoma team, this week might not hurt as much.
Auburn – Florida’s QB situation is bad, real bad.
TTech – The Who Cares Game of the Week. That includes Sullivan who has been noticeably (and mercifully) silent so far. Yes, you can tell him I said that.
-
If the sheep pokers of college station let me down im going to put a bag of dog shit on their bus when they come to Austin. -- David N
Whew, Aggies in the pool 4 weeks in a row. Me and Pap heading to College Station this weekend. Gotta load up on A&M-SEC merchandise. Hey, you think they'll move A&M-Ark to a home-and-home? Seems like it would make sense, but I'm guessing that both teams make way more guaranteed money from Jerry in Dallas than they would as a home game. But I'd love to get to Fayetteville or LR for a game. -- Aggie Mark
I'm thinking C. Don't know how you keep up with it all. I hope Steve Jobs gave you some fancy algortithm that automates this for you, before he passed. -- G-Biz
When will you start enforcing the 5p for Sal. I’m big on rules. BIG! Technically, he’s 0-15 the last 3 weeks. -- C Fish
Texas Tech just so Sully won't bug me. -- Moose
-
Regards from the Big O
Since I'm leaving for Auburn at the game with the gators tomorrow morning and I don't want to forget to send them tomorrow, I guess I'd better make my picks which are as follows: 1) Michigan (because even a victory over Ohio State doesn't justify giving the edge to M. State; besides in the Big 11, Michigan's QB is the most effective after the kid who chose Wisconsin over us -- Wilson? -- thus probably adding a loss by us to the Hogs this year, unfortunately); 2) Texas A&M (because I've withheld church donations to the Bears lately and haven't set up Jeremy's cockeyed scheme for funding their recruits; besides, A&M is a better team and except for picking AU out of loyalty, I didn't get to the top picking 9 point underdogs); 3) Oklahoma State (same reasoning as before, I don't pick 7 point underdogs; besides, the L'horns didn't impress me at all after picking them last Saturday over OU); 4) Auburn (for the same previous reason plus their QB is less experienced than ours and our defense has gotten better each game -- feed it to Michael and run, run, run); and 5) Texas Tech (no real reason other than Tubs playing at home and he almost pulled it out against A&M last week). Really enjoyed Jack Arute's giving your friends Pawwly and Danny Boy heck on the radio today. Jack has condemned the rush to speculative judgment (spell checks wrong here, it is proper to spell with or without an "e" according to most legal authorities) against AU throughout our ordeal -- which is now over, regardless of what our detractors (I guess that includes you too) misguided beliefs. In Gene's off color refrain as he raised the crystal football last January 10th, "War Damn Eagle!"
-
Poetry Corner with Danny K
It’s time to pick.
It’s here so quick.
These games are really fickle.
But whoever wins,
Whenever it ends,
My wife will play Hide the Pickle.
-
The Poolsville Auburn debate is very entertaining - I'm kind of sad to see the investigation come to an end for many reasons. And I'm very thankful that the Daviswa aren't a mafia family otherwise I'd have to go underground. -- Fleetwood
-
Glenn B's NCAAFConverter App
The Converter is on Alaska Time today (includes French Polynesia, as you probably know) and rather than run the risk of a late submission, I am sending you the basic results.
1. Michigan - Michigan State
NCAAFConverter says Blue is back. MICHIGAN.
2. Baylor - Texas A&M (Baylor worth four points)
NCAAFConverter says the team of attorneys Baylor had on retainer to stop A&M's flight from the Big 12 has been working overtime on breaking down A&M's offensive schemes for litigation purposes; these guys will be key in pulling the upset here. BAYLOR. Bonus points, please.
3. Oklahoma State - Texas (Texas worth three points).
NCAAFConverter duly notes that This Week in Schadenfreude awarded the Tears of Unfathomable Sadness to Texas after last week's loss to Oklahoma. Standing in water is never a good thing when lightning is about to strike twice. OSU, please. Go peddle your shiny bonus point elsewhere.
4. Florida - Auburn
NCAAFConverter says: really? What purpose does this serve? Arkansas showed last week that the emperor wears no clothes. But that won't stop Auburn from trouncing those Gators. AUBURN, please.
5. Kansas State - Texas Tech
NCAAFConverter says some things just cannot be explained through science. KSU, please.
Labels:
Letters to Ramon
| Reactions: |
Since the NCAA says case closed, where does Auburn go to get its reputation back?
http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2011/10/after_the_ncaas_all-clear_wher.html
Published: Friday, October 14, 2011, 5:00 AM
By Kevin Scarbinsky, Birmingham News
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Now that it's over, as Julie Roe Lach might say, now that Auburn has a letter from the NCAA that isn't a notice of inquiry or allegations, now that the official asterisk has been removed from the 2010 Heisman Trophy and BCS Championship, one question.
Where does Auburn go to get its reputation back?
It's a famous question once asked by a former U.S. Labor Secretary who was charged with corruption, then was tried and acquitted on all counts.
It's a trick question, of course, with a cruel answer.
Once you've been convicted in the small minds of people hoping beyond hope that your success has been a sham, it doesn't matter how many formal letters you receive from the proper officials saying you're free to go. Some people won't believe you got cleared.
They'll believe you got off.
Cam Newton gets to keep his Heisman Trophy, but he'll forever be the first and probably last Heisman winner to finish runner-up for SEC male athlete of the year. To a tennis player.
Gene Chizik gets to say that he was the national coach of the year in 2010 but not the conference coach of the year, not in a vote of his peers.
Auburn will always have Jan. 22, 2011, the day 78,000 family members gathered in Jordan-Hare Stadium to cherish the memory of Jan. 10, 2011, in Glendale, Ariz., but two days of basking in the sun hardly compares to nine months of staring at a crystal football covered in shadow.
The shadow was real, but not because a rag-tag militia of bloggers, posters and callers rose up to take aim at the Tigers. The one true fact that became their cause was a form of friendly fire.
If Cam Newton was guilty of anything, as far as you and I and the NCAA know, it was being born to Cecil Newton. As close as father and son may be, it was the father who put his son and his son's school in this predicament in the first place.
Cecil Newton talking to former Mississippi State player Kenny Rogers about getting money to send the quarterback to State was the spark that set off a wildfire of unsubstantiated allegations captured most fancifully in the Internet fable "As the Plains Burn," which really should've won a Pulitzer Prize.
For fiction.
The unhealthy alliance between the elder Newton and Rogers, for all practical purposes, put Auburn on a form of probation from the day it was revealed last November until Wednesday, when the NCAA classified it as the only violation it could pin down against the Newton family.
Fortunately for anyone who cares about the truth, as the NCAA pointed out in the bureaucratic smack-down portion of its official statement, the association operates under a slightly higher burden of proof than bloggers, posters and callers, and even some members of the media.
Here's looking at you, Danny Sheridan and friends.
Instead of being swayed by public misinformation, the NCAA did what the NCAA is supposed to do. It assigned to the Newton case a bulldog of a lead investigator, Jackie Thurnes, whose previous work included the Derrick Rose-Memphis basketball case that cost the Tigers 38 victories and a national runner-up finish, and turned her loose.
Consider a list of states where the NCAA put actual boots on the ground to sniff around on Newton, the HBO 4 and beyond: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida and Arkansas.
Now contemplate the multiple fronts covered by a wide-ranging investigation that, according to Thurnes' "It's over" letter to Auburn AD Jay Jacobs, "was not limited to" Newton and the HBO 4.
According to people who were interviewed by the NCAA, the probe looked into everything from the repairs that were done on Cecil Newton's church to the suits that Cam Newton wore in New York during Heisman week. They asked questions about everyone from an alleged street agent in Louisiana to an alleged street agent in Arkansas.
They combed through bank, tax and phone records of Auburn players, coaches, officials and trustees. They requested and were provided some records that went back almost two years.
Did I say requested? Demanded is more like it. The NCAA made it clear that, if those records weren't turned over, the NCAA would consider that suspicious and might find Auburn guilty of failure to cooperate.
What did the NCAA find after 13 months of that kind of determined digging? Not enough to substantiate any of the potential violations it examined. Auburn's unofficial probation ended, not only without sanctions, but without a single formal charge brought against the school.
It's extraordinary for the NCAA not to find something somewhere to charge a school with when it invests this kind of time and money. People who've been involved in infractions cases will tell you. When the enforcement staff turns over this many rocks, it expects to find some serious dirt.
Auburn expected to come out clean, but it didn't expect to get the detailed letter it received that was signed by Thurnes. There probably isn't a more rare and valuable document in the possession of any athletic department in the country today.
It became clear on opening day of the 2011 football season, when Auburn was forced to come from behind to beat Utah State, that the Tigers were not going to defend their 2010 national championship.
Something even more important became clear Wednesday.
They no longer have to defend it. Not to the people that matter, the ones with the power to take it away.
Published: Friday, October 14, 2011, 5:00 AM
By Kevin Scarbinsky, Birmingham News
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Now that it's over, as Julie Roe Lach might say, now that Auburn has a letter from the NCAA that isn't a notice of inquiry or allegations, now that the official asterisk has been removed from the 2010 Heisman Trophy and BCS Championship, one question.
Where does Auburn go to get its reputation back?
It's a famous question once asked by a former U.S. Labor Secretary who was charged with corruption, then was tried and acquitted on all counts.
It's a trick question, of course, with a cruel answer.
Once you've been convicted in the small minds of people hoping beyond hope that your success has been a sham, it doesn't matter how many formal letters you receive from the proper officials saying you're free to go. Some people won't believe you got cleared.
They'll believe you got off.
Cam Newton gets to keep his Heisman Trophy, but he'll forever be the first and probably last Heisman winner to finish runner-up for SEC male athlete of the year. To a tennis player.
Gene Chizik gets to say that he was the national coach of the year in 2010 but not the conference coach of the year, not in a vote of his peers.
Auburn will always have Jan. 22, 2011, the day 78,000 family members gathered in Jordan-Hare Stadium to cherish the memory of Jan. 10, 2011, in Glendale, Ariz., but two days of basking in the sun hardly compares to nine months of staring at a crystal football covered in shadow.
The shadow was real, but not because a rag-tag militia of bloggers, posters and callers rose up to take aim at the Tigers. The one true fact that became their cause was a form of friendly fire.
If Cam Newton was guilty of anything, as far as you and I and the NCAA know, it was being born to Cecil Newton. As close as father and son may be, it was the father who put his son and his son's school in this predicament in the first place.
Cecil Newton talking to former Mississippi State player Kenny Rogers about getting money to send the quarterback to State was the spark that set off a wildfire of unsubstantiated allegations captured most fancifully in the Internet fable "As the Plains Burn," which really should've won a Pulitzer Prize.
For fiction.
The unhealthy alliance between the elder Newton and Rogers, for all practical purposes, put Auburn on a form of probation from the day it was revealed last November until Wednesday, when the NCAA classified it as the only violation it could pin down against the Newton family.
Fortunately for anyone who cares about the truth, as the NCAA pointed out in the bureaucratic smack-down portion of its official statement, the association operates under a slightly higher burden of proof than bloggers, posters and callers, and even some members of the media.
Here's looking at you, Danny Sheridan and friends.
Instead of being swayed by public misinformation, the NCAA did what the NCAA is supposed to do. It assigned to the Newton case a bulldog of a lead investigator, Jackie Thurnes, whose previous work included the Derrick Rose-Memphis basketball case that cost the Tigers 38 victories and a national runner-up finish, and turned her loose.
Consider a list of states where the NCAA put actual boots on the ground to sniff around on Newton, the HBO 4 and beyond: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida and Arkansas.
Now contemplate the multiple fronts covered by a wide-ranging investigation that, according to Thurnes' "It's over" letter to Auburn AD Jay Jacobs, "was not limited to" Newton and the HBO 4.
According to people who were interviewed by the NCAA, the probe looked into everything from the repairs that were done on Cecil Newton's church to the suits that Cam Newton wore in New York during Heisman week. They asked questions about everyone from an alleged street agent in Louisiana to an alleged street agent in Arkansas.
They combed through bank, tax and phone records of Auburn players, coaches, officials and trustees. They requested and were provided some records that went back almost two years.
Did I say requested? Demanded is more like it. The NCAA made it clear that, if those records weren't turned over, the NCAA would consider that suspicious and might find Auburn guilty of failure to cooperate.
What did the NCAA find after 13 months of that kind of determined digging? Not enough to substantiate any of the potential violations it examined. Auburn's unofficial probation ended, not only without sanctions, but without a single formal charge brought against the school.
It's extraordinary for the NCAA not to find something somewhere to charge a school with when it invests this kind of time and money. People who've been involved in infractions cases will tell you. When the enforcement staff turns over this many rocks, it expects to find some serious dirt.
Auburn expected to come out clean, but it didn't expect to get the detailed letter it received that was signed by Thurnes. There probably isn't a more rare and valuable document in the possession of any athletic department in the country today.
It became clear on opening day of the 2011 football season, when Auburn was forced to come from behind to beat Utah State, that the Tigers were not going to defend their 2010 national championship.
Something even more important became clear Wednesday.
They no longer have to defend it. Not to the people that matter, the ones with the power to take it away.
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Monday, October 10, 2011
From the Bench
Razorback Defense Dominates Malzahn Again
Robert Shields
Saying Gus Malzahn’s offense and Auburn as a whole are not the same without Cam Newton is an understatement.
Newton, even surrounded by controversy, was the best running back in the SEC. Not only was he the best running back, he was the best player in the SEC. And not only was he the best player in the SEC, he was the best player in the NCAA and he has a Heisman Trophy to prove it. He was the most valuable player and it is no wonder his dad was shopping him around because he was straight money. He is the single biggest impact player to only play football at a school for one year that I have ever seen.
As for Little Rock Christian’s Michael Dyer, he is a very good running back but without Newton other teams will be able to key on him as did the Razorbacks on Saturday night. Auburn has been very effective running over teams but is seriously lacking any ability to throw the ball, which is a tough predicament if you’re running the Springdale offense.
The Auburn fly sweep to Onterio McCalebb kept the Hogs off balance early, but the Hogs quickly figured it out. After amassing 71 yards in the first quarter, Dyer was held to 7 yards in the second and 8 yards in the third. By the fourth quarter, the game was getting out of reach for the Tigers because of an ineffective running game.
Just like Nick Saban has Bobby Petrino’s number, so does Willy Robinson against Gus Malzahn. The mustachioed one is now 3-1 against the chosen one. Robinson owned Malzahn in the first matchup when Tulsa brought in its highly ranked offense and Arkansas, with really no defense whatsoever, stopped him. Robinson has the hurry-up no-huddle figured out -- unless Malzahn has the best player in the nation in Newton.
The perplexing thing about Robinson is how long it takes his defense to settle into a game. It’s not that uncommon for defensives to take a while to figure it all out, but in relative terms the Hogs seem to be out of sorts worse than the average.
You saw this against Ohio State, which absolutely dominated the Hogs defense in the first half of the Sugar Bowl, but the Buckeyes did nothing in the second half (and we all know they had to vacate the win and probably should have to take the loss.) You saw the defense again against Texas A&M falter in the first half and then come alive in the second. Then early against Auburn, you saw the Tigers score twice on their first four possessions before going on to be shut out the rest of the way.
If nothing else, you can be mad about the Razorbacks’ wandering defense in the first quarter or so, but give the devil his due as Robinson makes some serious adjustments at the half that resulted in the defense actually being dominating.
Remember also that this is a defense that has been decimated by injuries. The open date comes soon enough to let some guys shake the bruises they have sustained. Tyler Wilson must have purple skin under his uniform.
The two extra weeks will also help Greg Childs. He looked better against Auburn and looks like he is on the verge of breaking out again in the second half of the season. We are now at the halfway point, but the second half is more difficult than the first half. On the upside, there is Vanderbilt and Ole Miss, which should be battered having to play Alabama the week before Arkansas goes to Oxford.
Like George Jefferson, the Hogs are moving on up. On Saturday, the Razorbacks took a step forward distancing themselves from the rest of the SEC but are still chasing LSU and Alabama. The proof will be over the next few weeks if this team is BCS bound.
Send your Auburn Bagman sightings to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on Twitter@rsfromthebench
end
Monday, October 03, 2011
From the Bench
Tyler Wilson Wills Razorbacks Back Into Spotlight
Robert Shields
As the first half played out, Razorback fans had to think that Alabama was not all that great -- it was just that Arkansas was just that bad as they watched Texas A&M rack up more than 400 yards of offense and Tyler Wilson was chased from sideline to sideline.
Wilson had to feel like he was in a boxing match and must have had a concussion because a lucid person would not have gone back out onto that field. After the game was over, I halfway expected to see Larry Merchant on the field conducting the postgame interview with him.
To his credit, Wilson held his composure against Texas A&M, and if he was frustrated with his offensive line he never showed it. One time, he even patted Jason Peacock on the helmet in support after he got a motion penalty. It would have been easy to yell at him like you see so many other quarterbacks do. Wilson is showing true leadership.
In the second half, the blows to Wilson did not let up, it was actually Wilson who wore down the A&M defense. He was Ali in the end. During the game, I had moments where I questioned the kid’s arm as he underthrew a wide-open Jarius Wright down the sideline. But I discounted that thought because he never had a chance to get set and surely was already banged up and bruised from the onslaught of hits.
Wilson’s biggest stat of the game was not the record-setting yards. It was the fact he threw the ball for that many and never had an interception, which is crazy considering the pressure he was under the entire game and A&M knowing he was going to pass.
On the other side of the ball, the Razorback defense seemed to get thinner with every play as more guys got injured. Yet in the second half, the defense held only allowing three points, and the three it allowed was a crucial stop as it held A&M from scoring a touchdown, which would have meant the Hogs’ winning touchdown only tied the game.
In the stat book it will never show up, but the most significant part of the game was the defense holding Texas A&M on its first possession of the second half to three plays and a punt. The offense got the ball and drove down to score a field goal. It signified the second half would be different.
The offense got stronger and the defense found ways to stop the brutal A&M running attack. The Aggies did not rip off any long runs after the half. If nothing else, the Hogs defense has proved it will be gritty when the other team is fourth and short. The last stand stopping A&M on fourth and two and throwing the Aggies for a loss was impressive.
The game initially unfolded as though this Razorback team was going to be one of the greatest disappointments in school history. The debacles of the 1978 and 2003 seasons that were letdowns after such high expectations came to mind. Some thought this team could be in the hunt for the national title and yet here they were down 14-0 to Texas A&M after a woodshed beat down the previous week at Alabama. During the Alabama game and the first half of the Texas A&M game, Arkansas looked like the team that was going to be fighting Ole Miss and Auburn for bottom of the SEC West.
The Razorbacks found new life in the second half, and it gave their hopes of a great season a second chance. Yet with all the injuries, it will still be difficult to get at least 10 wins. They are also only a hit away on Wilson from this season unraveling and the Hogs just trying to reach bowl eligibility.
What made the win all the more impressive for the Hogs was not that A&M blew and choked the game away, it was that the Razorbacks took it away from them. The Aggies gave the Hogs nothing. The Hogs had to earn it all and they did. Against Oklahoma State, the Aggies blew it with four turnovers in the second half. They self-destructed. They did not in this game. Arkansas just outplayed them.
The reemergence of a running game in the second half for the Razorbacks was pivotal. A lot of the credit can be given to Dennis Johnson and the return of Broderick Green. It was his best game in well over a year. In the first half, the offense scored 17 and in the second half scored another 25. In points, it wasn’t an enormous gulf, but the difference was that with the renewed running game the offense became more authoritative, especially late in the game. It was fitting the game-winning touchdown came on a rushing play.
As the Hogs move deeper into SEC play, the defense will have to start putting complete games together, which will be difficult as beat up as it is right now. The return of Jake Bequette cannot come soon enough as the suddenly relevant Auburn Bagmen roll into Fayetteville next.
Send your photos of skirts and boots from the game to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on twitter @rsfromthebench
end
Robert Shields
As the first half played out, Razorback fans had to think that Alabama was not all that great -- it was just that Arkansas was just that bad as they watched Texas A&M rack up more than 400 yards of offense and Tyler Wilson was chased from sideline to sideline.
Wilson had to feel like he was in a boxing match and must have had a concussion because a lucid person would not have gone back out onto that field. After the game was over, I halfway expected to see Larry Merchant on the field conducting the postgame interview with him.
To his credit, Wilson held his composure against Texas A&M, and if he was frustrated with his offensive line he never showed it. One time, he even patted Jason Peacock on the helmet in support after he got a motion penalty. It would have been easy to yell at him like you see so many other quarterbacks do. Wilson is showing true leadership.
In the second half, the blows to Wilson did not let up, it was actually Wilson who wore down the A&M defense. He was Ali in the end. During the game, I had moments where I questioned the kid’s arm as he underthrew a wide-open Jarius Wright down the sideline. But I discounted that thought because he never had a chance to get set and surely was already banged up and bruised from the onslaught of hits.
Wilson’s biggest stat of the game was not the record-setting yards. It was the fact he threw the ball for that many and never had an interception, which is crazy considering the pressure he was under the entire game and A&M knowing he was going to pass.
On the other side of the ball, the Razorback defense seemed to get thinner with every play as more guys got injured. Yet in the second half, the defense held only allowing three points, and the three it allowed was a crucial stop as it held A&M from scoring a touchdown, which would have meant the Hogs’ winning touchdown only tied the game.
In the stat book it will never show up, but the most significant part of the game was the defense holding Texas A&M on its first possession of the second half to three plays and a punt. The offense got the ball and drove down to score a field goal. It signified the second half would be different.
The offense got stronger and the defense found ways to stop the brutal A&M running attack. The Aggies did not rip off any long runs after the half. If nothing else, the Hogs defense has proved it will be gritty when the other team is fourth and short. The last stand stopping A&M on fourth and two and throwing the Aggies for a loss was impressive.
The game initially unfolded as though this Razorback team was going to be one of the greatest disappointments in school history. The debacles of the 1978 and 2003 seasons that were letdowns after such high expectations came to mind. Some thought this team could be in the hunt for the national title and yet here they were down 14-0 to Texas A&M after a woodshed beat down the previous week at Alabama. During the Alabama game and the first half of the Texas A&M game, Arkansas looked like the team that was going to be fighting Ole Miss and Auburn for bottom of the SEC West.
The Razorbacks found new life in the second half, and it gave their hopes of a great season a second chance. Yet with all the injuries, it will still be difficult to get at least 10 wins. They are also only a hit away on Wilson from this season unraveling and the Hogs just trying to reach bowl eligibility.
What made the win all the more impressive for the Hogs was not that A&M blew and choked the game away, it was that the Razorbacks took it away from them. The Aggies gave the Hogs nothing. The Hogs had to earn it all and they did. Against Oklahoma State, the Aggies blew it with four turnovers in the second half. They self-destructed. They did not in this game. Arkansas just outplayed them.
The reemergence of a running game in the second half for the Razorbacks was pivotal. A lot of the credit can be given to Dennis Johnson and the return of Broderick Green. It was his best game in well over a year. In the first half, the offense scored 17 and in the second half scored another 25. In points, it wasn’t an enormous gulf, but the difference was that with the renewed running game the offense became more authoritative, especially late in the game. It was fitting the game-winning touchdown came on a rushing play.
As the Hogs move deeper into SEC play, the defense will have to start putting complete games together, which will be difficult as beat up as it is right now. The return of Jake Bequette cannot come soon enough as the suddenly relevant Auburn Bagmen roll into Fayetteville next.
Send your photos of skirts and boots from the game to fromthebench@yahoo.com.
You can follow me on twitter @rsfromthebench
end
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