0 comments by Bart D on 11/3/2015
For the most part tonight, college football media, bloggers, message board wall flowers, and water cooler conversation junkies will be sitting around the picture box salivating at ESPN’s CFB Playoff committee rankings show like starving junkyard dogs do at a plump tom cat licking its paws right outside the gate. If we’re all honest about […]
MEMPHIS, TN – OCTOBER 17: Head Coach Justin Fuente of the Memphis Tigers on the sidelines during a game against the Ole Miss Rebels at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on October 17, 2015 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Tigers defeated the Rebels 37-24. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D
The coaching carousel is about to spin at full speed. The open-job count has reached double figures, and November is only beginning. ‘Tis the season when every loss means the fan base is taking to social media after a few too many cold ones to voice how “disappointed” it is in a program it doen’t […]
Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher, left, and Miami heach coach Al Golden, right, chat at midfield before their teams meet at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, on Saturday, November 2, 2013. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/MCT via Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 11/2/2015
Some coaches are retiring these days, but a lot of coaches are being fired, which brings up the subject of purposefully changing coaches. Let’s say a few things about the matter. * Smart people keep backup lists for everything important. You know the ones, like when you’re dating and just in case your girlfriend kicks […]
EVANSTON, IL – OCTOBER 17: C.J. Beathard #16 of the Iowa Hawkeyes evades the tacke of Max Chapman #1 of the Northwestern Wildcats during the second quarter at Ryan Field on October 17, 2015 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Jon Durr/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D
There are more college football thoughts, as we get real stuff to argue about this week with the College Football Playoff committee doing its dog and pony act for the first time. 1. Fans should boycott watching the CFB Playoff committee reveal shows. This practice should be adopted not just because ESPN mostly puts out […]
0 comments by Bart D
Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett isn’t Spider-Man, and neither are most of us. “With great power comes great responsibility” is the famed Peter Parker quote when he realizes he’s part spider, but only the good things like walking on buildings or being able to sense danger rather than having a bunch of eyes, eight legs, […]
0 comments by Bart D on 11/1/2015
Well, Michigan has had an interesting last few weeks, now, hasn’t it? “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” quoted Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities back in 1859, probably without the slightest hint of college football on his mind. After all, we were still 10 years from […]
MORGANTOWN, WV – OCTOBER 10: Skyler Howard #3 of the West Virginia Mountaineers tried to evade a flying tackle from Jordan Burton #20 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the second half during the game at Mountaineer Field on October 10, 2015 in Morgantown, West Virginia. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 10/29/2015
It was supposed to be better than this for West Virginia. Dana Holgorsen is in year five of his existence as WVU’s head football coach, one full recruiting cycle in, which is typically when even the most patient of natives get restless if their internal (realistic) expectations are not likely to be met. The Mountaineers entered […]
0 comments by Bart D on 10/28/2015
The actual CFB Playoff committee spits out its first rankings next week. I encourage you to not watch, because it seems like a dog and pony act aimed at getting reaction when in the back of their minds, they’re trying to do the right thing. As always, picks below are NOT reflective of where things […]
0 comments by Bart D on 10/27/2015
We’re near the end of October, which means rankings are going to become even more a part of our college football lives. * We’re dismissive by nature. We see something that looks a bit off, we don’t give it a chance. We assume things, because taking time to figure it out would be an awful […]
STATE COLLEGE, PA – OCTOBER 10: Danny Cameron #18 of the Indiana Hoosiers fumbles the ball while under pressure by Carl Nassib #95 of the Penn State Nittany Lions in the second half during the game on October 10, 2015 at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 10/26/2015
Oh, Indiana — what are we going to do with you? The thing about being almost good enough is that it sometimes sucks more than just being bad. At least when you’re flatly terrible, you can reconcile that (insert activity here) isn’t up your alley, and there are new trails to tepidly blaze. We’ll go […]
Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher, left, and Miami heach coach Al Golden, right, chat at midfield before their teams meet at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, on Saturday, November 2, 2013. (Stephen M. Dowell/Orlando Sentinel/MCT via Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D
Four college football thoughts on a Monday morning, as the stretch run becomes visible from a distance: * 1. Charlie Strong has his guys believing Good things typically take some measure of time. Sometimes, the first few dates don’t go well and you have no idea she’s the one for you. “Not going well” would […]
OXFORD, MS – OCTOBER 24: Mike Hilton #38 of the Mississippi Rebels encourages the crowd during the fourth quarter of a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on October 24, 2015 in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 10/25/2015
How do the kids say it these days? If you’re an SEC “hater,” Ole Miss just became your favorite team. Throughout the Rebels’ exsanguination of Texas A&M Saturday evening, one had to watch, mouth agape, thinking, “Where the heck has this been since they defeated Alabama?” Ole Miss displayed its best self, a collection of […]
MEMPHIS, TN – OCTOBER 17: Head Coach Justin Fuente of the Memphis Tigers on the sidelines during a game against the Ole Miss Rebels at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on October 17, 2015 in Memphis, Tennessee. The Tigers defeated the Rebels 37-24. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 10/23/2015
“You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone” is one of the most disingenuous axioms routinely spit out by human types. Surely, you knew someone in college that posted it on a Facebook wall in the most passive-aggressive way of announcing relationship problems. People typically do know what they have; they just bet on […]
EVANSTON, IL – OCTOBER 17: C.J. Beathard #16 of the Iowa Hawkeyes evades the tacke of Max Chapman #1 of the Northwestern Wildcats during the second quarter at Ryan Field on October 17, 2015 in Evanston, Illinois. (Photo by Jon Durr/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D
Kirk Ferentz and Iowa do this from time to time. The smarter people on our staff seem to have seen this ahead of time. Iowa is just sort of “there” every college football season. Here and there, when he loses just enough, people start complaining about Ferentz’s salary of $4 million, one of the top […]
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – OCTOBER 17: Quarterback Travis Wilson #7 of the Utah Utes passes the ball in the second quarter of their game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Rice-Eccles Stadium on October 17, 2015 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr/Getty Images)
0 comments by Bart D on 10/22/2015
Much appreciation to the tens of readers who took part in the Hurt and Helped Themselves columns. With so much of the season in the books, we (or I) can get a jump on what the members of the CFB Playoff committee should be thinking (if they’re playing with a full deck). There’s no real […]
