Normally, I’m supposed to happy that UF was able to get even with South Carolina and get one win closer to magic number 20.

But … this one feels hollow, superficial, and downright devoid of any real significance. Because while Florida scored 97 on one side of the ball, it allowed 93 on the other. And it REALLY tried hard to get USC to 93.

USC grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, and no, that is not a misprint. For Florida to show that lack of hustle on the defensive end almost completely overshadowed the fact that the Gators grabbed 10 offensive boards of their own. Furthermore, the Gamecocks, propelled by Chuck Norris protege Devan Downey, shot 49% from the field and 50% from the arc. If they shot better than 46% from the line, we could just as easily be trying to digest a loss.

While UF scored 44 points in the paint, and flat out dominated that area offensively, it also allowed USC to score 48 on the other end. The uncontested layup by Downey near the end said it better than words. And in the end, only UF’s ability to shoot free throws when it mattered most kept them from trailing.

If the Gators had to play a high-caliber Big East team, they would be absolutely ripped to shreds with a game like that. I can make that statement beyond any shadow of a doubt.

So enjoy it, guys. Because you’ll have to pull off a repeat performance at Rupp Arena in a week.

Apparently USC didn’t bother to watch the game tapes from the Penn State versus Oregon State game.  Or if they did they must not have taken notes on how to attack the Beavers.  Or perhaps they watched that 45-14 drubbing and felt like all they had to do was show up in Corvalis on Thursday night and leave with the easy win.  Either way, USC could not have scripted a worst way to start this season and will be fighting an uphill battle the rest of the way.

First off you can officially cross Mark Sanchez from the Heisman Watch list.  No matter what he does this game will be forever stamped on his resume.  He was getting a lot of attention from who he played for as much as his stats.  But that is a double edged sword when you not only have an off game but your juggernaut team LOSES to an inferior opponent.  Mark takes a big, if perhaps unfair, hit for that.

Next this is really a game and a half (1.5) loss for USC.  Why you might ask?  Well if an 11-1 USC is fighting for a shot at the BCS Title game against a 12-1 SEC or Big 12 team you can only guess who will get the nod.  Even with Mark May telling us all at the end of the year that USC is the greatest team in the history of the world despte this slipup . . . that might not even gain it enough traction against a 1 loss Big 10 team.

Who does this help the most?  The SEC.  It was very unlikely that any SEC team would finish the year undefeated so this means they will no longer be competing against a mythical Southern Cal team that never seems to live up to expectations.  A one loss Big 12 or SEC team would have a very strong argument against an undefeated ACC or Big East team.  Not that I expect any team from those conferences to go undefeated mind you.

The deck was really stacked against USC.  As the “dominant” power in college football they were destined to be big favorites in all their games and even “close” games would hurt their reputation.  This loss is horrific as they have no marquee matchups left to try and impress poll voters later in the year.  This is where a weak Pac-10 (or maybe strong Mountain West???) really hurts them in the national title hunt.

P.S.  Did anyone else kind of like the Orange home jerseys of Oregon State?  I have to say at least in HD with the night game they were very vibrant and colorful.

The team had a high-powered offense.

The sophomore at quarterback was a legit Heisman contender.

The coach was a success, if not somewhat controversial.

Caldwell was one of the top receivers on the team.

Sound familiar? It should. Only this time, these words do not describe the Florida Gators of 2007.

Instead, they describe the Florida Gators of six seasons prior, in 2001. The signal-caller was Rex Grossman, a kid from Indiana who picked UF over IU, the school of his forefathers. It was Steve Spurrier’s last season behind our sidelines; the visor on his head had Gator insignia. And Reche Caldwell was a top option on the receiving corps - kid brother Andre would sign in ‘03.

How powerful was this edition of the Fun-n-Gun? It scored 538 points in one season, a school record that stood until last year’s team notched 552. Grossman, a pocket passer, threw for 3,896 yards, which remains the school record. His 3,904 yards in combined yardage was a school record that stood until Tebow had 4,181 last year. He had 34 passing touchdowns, third in school history behind Danny Wuerffel’s 1995 and 1996 seasons. And his 39 passing and rushing touchdowns that year trail only Tebow’s and Wuerffel’s Heisman-winning seasons in 1996 and 2007.

But, as with USC, they were plagued by teams that scored enough points on them to make life uncomfortable. Only this time, the magic number was 20.

In a scene eerily reminiscent of last season, the Tigers were tied with the Gators, with the ball in their hands on the last touchdown drive. Then, as Wes Byrum would do six years later, Damon Duval kicked the game-winning field goal.

Incidentially, Byrum split the uprights from 43 yards, just 1 yard shy of Duval’s mark.

Then, in a game that was postponed due to the 9/11 attacks, Tennessee won a wild shootout 34-32 after Grossman failed to convert a two-pointer on the final play of the game. The win snapped the Vols’ seven-game losing streak at the Swamp, gave Tennessee the SEC East title, and effectively killed Grossman’s Heisman campaign.

That he lost by 62 points to Nebraska’s Eric Crouch in the Heisman race underscores just how close he came to a stiff-arm, and possibly more.

By the time it was all said and done, another Sunshine State team stole the show. Miami won their fifth national title with the most dominant team in school history.

With two years like these, it’s bound to happen.

After Florida fans (and LSU, Georgia et al.) watched the pastings that the Gators and Tigers gave Ohio State, they saw the reputation of the Southeastern Conference validated on the BCS stage.

However, I want to look at some basic assumptions that fans of SEC schools have as a whole. Mark my words, this probably isn’t going to be the last post that I do on the subject.

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Lindy’s…. Athlon… Phil Steele.

You college football junkies out there have a stack of the pre-season CFB rags just like I do. Don’t try to hide it: embrace your affliction. In case you don’t, though, read on.

The Gators are getting a ton of pre-season love, and from my perspective, it might be a bit much. Here are Athlon, Lindy’s, and Phil Steele’s Top 10:


Average ranking, Ohio State: 2.3
Average ranking, Florida: 2.6
Average ranking, Georgia: 5.0

So… how does that shake out? Florida gets ranked #1 by two of the three rags, but doesn’t even get a Top 5 nod by Lindy’s. Georgia pulls the #1 pick in that same rag but is ranked #5 and #9 by the others.
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One of the more interesting debates on the Gator roundtable is whether Tim Tebow can join Ohio State legend Archie Griffin in the Multiple Heisman club.

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What the hell is going on out there?  While listening to the Colin Cowherd show I’m exposed to a sweaty, disgusting USC lovefest conducted by Colin Cowherd and Kirk Herbstreit.  Am I missing something here?  Since when does beating NOTRE DAME establish anything?  According to Herbstreit it’s a good time to jump on the Trojan bandwagon before they win big in Eugene.  They have gotten their killer instinct back this week based on a big beatdown of the fighting Irish.  Huh???
 
Wow, USC 38 - Notre Dame 0!  That sounds impressive right?  Well it’s been done before (see Michigan in week 2).  Plus it’s the 5th time in 8 games that Notre Dame has surrendered more than 30 points.  It’s also the 2nd time this season they have been shut out and the 4th time they’ve scored 6 points or less.  You want to brag that you’ve beaten Notre Dame?  Get in line, that’s already happened seven times in just 8 games.  In fact it’s been suggested that the Irish’s 1-7 start could cost them from getting into a BCS bowl this year.
 
If anything was ever more overrated than the Notre Dame football team this year it’s the information you can garner from BEATING the Irish this year.  Here’s the some of the trends so far.
 
Georgia Tech pasted the Irish 33 to 3.  They followed that up with 3 losses in their next 5 games. 
 
Penn State smashed the Irish 31-10 only to lose 2 of their next 3 games. 
 
Michigan State won 31-14 and have lost 3 of their last 4 games since. 
 
Purdue beat Notre Dame by two touchdowns and then proceeded to lose two straight games.
 
UCLA actually LOST to Notre Dame and came back to beat a ranked Cal team.
 
Boston College has not played since they beat Notre Dame.
 
The only team that seems to have bucked this trend is Michigan.  While other teams come in on a high and get the win and then struggle, Michigan was struggling until demolishing the Irish and managed to turn their embarrassment of a season around.  But somehow a win against Notre Dame has proven that a struggling USC team is now back on track and the best in all the land.  Talk about a week by week mentality.  After three mediocre games (a 27-24 win over Washington, a 23-24 loss to Stanford, a 20-13 win over Arizona) USC is back on track.
 
I hope the Trojan players don’t start to believe their own hype.  USC travels to Oregon, perhaps the most explosive offensive team in the PAC-10, for their next game.  USC is probably the most talented team in the country.  But lately they also have looked like one of the most unprepared, inexperienced and poorly coached team in the nation.  They still have injuries at a number of key spots, including quarterback, and this victory means little more than the season opening 38-10 win against Idaho.  USC has always played better out of conference than in-conference.  Word to the wise - Oregon is a PAC-10 team.  Don’t be surprised to see the men of Troy knocked back down to earth this weekend in Eugene.

By now, most of Gator Nation is aware of the fact that we’ll have a highly-ranked RB on the roster competing for touches in 2008. Despite rushing for nearly 500 yards and 2 TDs during an injury-plagued year with the Trojans, Emmanuel Moody decided USCw wasn’t offering enough carries.

Now he’s a Gator. He came to Florida with his chief wish being that he become the “feature back” in an offense which has, for the last two years at least, split carries between quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tailbacks.

From the Palm Beach Post:

Why Gator fans should be wary: Southern Cal seems to have no qualms about releasing a guy who was the team’s second-leading rusher. To me, that’s a giant red flag. Also, he’s said he left USC because he wants to become a team’s featured running back. He said he felt forgotten in LA. But Florida doesn’t exactly have the best track record of producing star running backs (at least not recently, and especially not under Urban Meyer).

Thank you, Lindsay Jones. That’s my sentiment exactly. I’m pleased that Moody, who is by all accounts an excellent running back, will be a member of Florida’s increasingly talented RB corps. Talent creates competition, competition creates desire and effort, and that, of course, produces wins. I’m concerned, however, that Moody is a “me, me, me” guy rather than a team-first guy. I am hopeful that Moody will remove these doubts with impressive performances and strong demonstrations of good character in his time at Florida.

Among the reasons cited for why he left the Trojans for the Gators was the fact that this was a “business decision.”

At Florida, football is far more than a business. It’s a religion.

Give him time. I think he will ‘get it.’

Welcome to Florida, Emmanuel. Make us proud.

Update: here’s an ESPN interview with Moody.

The definition of an “elite” college football program can vary drastically between observers. A truly elite program is one that can continue to be a top program regardless of the adversity that arises. This means they have enough resources available to overcome the loss of any one factor. Some of these factors include (in no particular order of value) tradition, location, fan support, revenue and stability. There are a number of top college football programs that have enjoyed recent success but lack the prerequisites that guarantee its long term dominance (an average of 9 wins per year for a period of 15-20 years). This means that a change in circumstances that might hinder a strong program could instead be crippling to one of these teams. In that regard I have identified FIVE top college programs I believe could easily tumble into mediocrity and why.

TENNESSEE - The University of Tennessee has a lot of the characteristics you would expect a football factory to have - rabid fans, large revenue base, a long list of former stars and a consistent winning program. For all that Tennessee has in its favor it still lacks one important thing . . . a strong in-state recruiting base. Because of its geographic location, Tennessee must steal top talent from nearby states. The state of Tennessee by itself simply cannot stock a major University with SEC caliber talent. With that fact obvious, Vol coaches have always had to (and been able to) reach into the surrounding stakes like the Carolinas, Kentucky, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Georgia for top talent to keep the football machine running.

Currently only Georgia and LSU have enjoyed the type of recent success to fortify their borders from excessive thefts from the Vols. The resurgence of Alabama combined with the rise of traditionally futile programs like South and North Carolina could prove disastrous to Tennessee as recruits see an opportunity and play for Championships and in the national spotlight without leaving their home state. Additionally, Tennessee is in a precarious situation as a team that has garnered the national reputation for underachieving despite great talent. Fulmer, the current coach, is a man who always seems to be on the hot seat despite his accomplishments at the school. UT is not one of the schools who I believe is reliant on their current coach and could still thrive with a change of direction. The problem remains that this new coach would still face the same restrictions and constraints as the last two (Phil Fulmer and Johnny Majors) have struggled with.

ALABAMA - Normally a school with such tremendous home state support and tradition would be safe from the ups and downs of the changing college landscape. However the Crimson Tide has proven the opposite can be true in the right circumstance. Their recent record of recent futility points out another major factor that can seriously affect even a great program - NCAA Sanctions. There is no school with such a culture of cheating as found in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It was so prevalent and accepted as to permeate the mindset of boosters with the notion that such tactics were normal. (more…)

In true blog style, I present an article with no real structure!

Lesson one: anything can happen.  Kentucky beat Clemson, the Big East went undefeated in Bowl Play, Georgia Tech fielded an actual Quarterback, Randy Moss left Oakland and now wears a number 8 for USC (attitude and skills, but sadly not the hair), Adrian Peterson’s dad jinxed another game,  Bobby Bowden and JoePa both improved their coaching records without actually doing any coaching, and Boise State created a real life, super-awesome Disney movie in Arizona (complete with a Ginger Quarterback).

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