Sports Then and Now

Tyrod Taylor and the Virginia Tech offense struggled until the last minute, then pulled out a dramatic victory.

It will be pretty hard for the rest of the college football season to have an afternoon like we saw this Saturday. If you were lucky enough to be sitting in front of the TV or at a sports bar for the games that started at 3:30 p.m. EDT, you really got a treat.

Just picking which game to focus on was quite a challenge. Though the Virginia Tech/Nebraska game was the only one pitting top 25 teams, there were several other intriguing games during the time period on national television including Oregon/Utah, Notre Dame/Michigan State, USC/Washington and Florida/Tennessee.

As it turned out, all five games went down to the wire with big plays deciding the outcomes.

For 58 minutes it appeared that Nebraska would get its first road win in more than a decade against a ranked opponent. They led 15-10 and had an anemic Virginia Tech offense pinned deep in their own territory.

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Michigan Freshman Tate Forcier led the Wolverines to a late victory over Notre Dame.

Each Sunday during college football season we look at some of the big games, stories, and events from the action of the week.

Are They Really Back?
I noticed a lot of similarities between the outstanding game Saturday afternoon between Michigan and Notre Dame and the equally entertaining contest last Monday night between Florida State and the University of Miami.

Both games featured two teams with proud football traditions that have been struggling in recent years, but appear to be turning the corner back toward respectability.

After Miami turned back Florida State’s final charge in the closing seconds of the game, all post game talk was about whether this signaled the return of Miami as a football power and if FSU was also now poised to return to national relevance.
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That is the theme in the football hotbed of the South.  You better pledge your allegiance to the Gators, Vols, or the Dawgs in the state of Georgia. The Atlanta Falcons? The NFL who?

This is college football country y’all!

Time to paint your faces! Slap that sticker on your SUV! Buy your pet a shirt sporting your favorite team’s logo (yes my friend’s roommate bought a Georgia Bulldogs shirt for two of her cats)!

As I mentioned in my previous blog, NCAA Football=Not Competitive At All Football, I am not a diehard fan by any stretch, but damn these fans are rabid!!

I went to Atlanta for Labor Day Weekend to visit my displaced Yankee buddy. Little did I know, the city was hosting ‘Bama-Virgina Tech at the Georgia dome. The train was packed with fans. Hotels for a 10 miles radius were sold out. The city was under siege for the first time since Sherman arrived.
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The injury to Sam Bradford in the first half proved to be one that Oklahoma could not overcome in suffering a season opening loss to BYU.

Each Sunday during college football season we will look at some of the big games, stories, and events from the action of that week.

Why You Start With Cupcakes
While the Florida Gators, Texas Longhorns and Penn State Nittany Lions were opening the season with huge victories over cupcake opponents, some of the other high ranked teams opened with much tougher opponents and in at least one case may have ended any hopes at a national title before the season is barely a week old.

It was anticipated that the BYU Cougars would give the #3 Oklahoma Sooners a tough game, but very few actually thought they could beat one of the teams on the short list of national championship contenders.

However, the high-flying Sooners’ offense of a year ago was nowhere to be found in Dallas.

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Jahvid Best is the top returning rusher in major college football.

Overview: The complexion of the 2009 Pac 10 season changed in one fateful moment following the season opener between Boise State and Oregon. The punch thrown by Oregon’s LeGarrette Blount not only ended his season, but probably ended any hope for the Ducks to contend for the Pac 10 Championship. That leaves perennial champion USC and the University of California as the primary contenders for the title.

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With a year of experience Terrelle Pryor could emerge as one of the top players in the Big Ten.

Overview: Once recognized annually as one of the strongest conference in college football, the Big Ten has taken a reputation hit in recent years with the poor showing of its top teams in bowl games. Last season the conference was 1-6 in bowl games with only Iowa pulling out a victory. Ohio State and Penn State start the season ranked in the top 10, but the conference must have some strong early non-conference victories if they hope to have a squad seriously considered for the BCS Championship Game.
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