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Rich Rodriguez now faces the central task of making sure his players don’t lose faith after a classic Arizona stomach-punch loss against USC. The one original Pac-10 member without a single Rose Bowl appearance has to stay the course. If it does, the Pac-12 South is still there for the taking. The winner of this division will probably have at least two conference losses by season’s end. Arizona can overcome just about any scoreboard obstacle, but the Wildcats’ offense needs to be able to score more than 13 points through three quarters at home. The Wildcats were stuck on 13 after 45 minutes in home games against California and USC. The Wildcats overcame the Golden Bears. They weren’t able to make one last kick against USC. Start-to-finish consistency on offense is what Rich Rod has to cultivate over the next month and a half.

Rich Rodriguez was right to turn down South Carolina and stay at Arizona

0 comments by on 12/7/2015

Rich Rodriguez did the right thing by turning down the South Carolina job. Had he accepted the job, it would have been an even bigger mistake than bolting West Virginia for Michigan. Make no mistake about it: South Carolina isn’t the glamorous job some in the media are making it out to be. Sure, it’s […]

5 reforms for the bowl selection process

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The bowl selection process demands improvement. It demands improvement for reasons that go far beyond the reality of seeing Georgia State play 5-7 San Jose State in Orlando on CBS Sports Network before Christmas. Yes, bowl matchups can and should be better, but it’s about so much more than that. I have long believed bowl […]

COLUMBUS, OH – NOVEMBER 21: Ezekiel Elliott #15 of the Ohio State Buckeyes runs into Damon Knox #93 of the Michigan State Spartans and Riley Bullough #30 of the Michigan State Spartans at the line of scrimmage in the second quarter at Ohio Stadium on November 21, 2015 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)

College Football Playoff: Give me Eight Teams

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The final College Football Playoff rankings are out, and according to almost everyone in the media and beyond, there was an absence of controversy this year. Notre Dame tapped out last week and all the conference championship games went to form, leaving a somewhat drama-free, status quo four-team selection with Clemson, Alabama, Michigan State and […]

10 bowl matchups we wish we could have seen, 2015 edition

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Let’s get one thing out of the way: there is no such thing as too many bowl games. If you think there are, I don’t want to hear you kvetching in July when it seems like meaningful sports will never occur on your Saturday night, especially that of the football variety. For the most part, […]

The bill comes due for Ohio State, locked outside the playoff

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In the College Football Playoff era, if you don’t win the game everybody circled before the season, there is no reason to feel left out when the committee overlooks you on the day the tickets were handed out to the Dance. This is true even if you were king a year ago. The Ohio State Buckeyes entered […]

What the Committee Taught Us: Selection Day

0 comments by on 12/6/2015

Last year, the College Football Playoff selection committee threw us a huge, if not completely unexpected, curveball on Selection Day. No one was sure how the committee would deal with the TCU/Baylor/Ohio State debate. TCU was expecting to be in because they were sitting at No. 3 the previous week, but we have learned in […]

2015 in review: for the four playoff teams, fragility was a friend

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What to make of the now-concluded push for the College Football Playoff? Four teams clearly made the cut, but that’s not the same thing as saying that we know these are the four best teams in college football for the 2015 season. Is Alabama better than 11-1 Ohio State? Is Oklahoma better than 10-2 Notre […]

STILLWATER, OK – DECEMBER 7: Quarterback Blake Bell #10 of the Oklahoma Sooners walks off the field after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys December 7, 2013 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Oklahoma defeated Oklahoma State 33-24. (Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)

College football proves once again that four teams are perfect

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The CFB Playoff committee will get on television one final time this season and act as though the end result of picking this year’s playoff participants was akin to splitting the atom, much like a bad auto mechanic using a bunch of terms he thinks the customer doesn’t understand to drive up the price of […]

Complete Bubble Watch and Bowl Projections: December 5

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Bubble Watch The original plan was to have a Bubble Watch here for any teams that would be debated for the final Playoff spot. Well, there aren’t any. The four Playoff teams are locks. I was thinking of presenting Stanford’s resume for comparison against Michigan State’s and Oklahoma’s resumes, but there really is no point. […]

AMES, IA – NOVEMBER 14: Quarterback Mason Rudolph #2 of the Oklahoma State Cowboys breaks away from linebacker Willie Harvey #16 of the Iowa State Cyclones as he scrambles for yards in the first half of play at Jack Trice Stadium on November 14, 2015 in Ames, Iowa. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Mason Rudolph; Willie Harvey

Three 2015 finales invert the ending of the 2011 college football season

0 comments by on 12/5/2015

History breathes so deeply in college football, this realm in which schools carry the memories of past glories and slights with a passion the pros can’t match. History acquires a larger shadow and a longer life than in professional sports. Ancient feuds, special seasons, crushing heartbreaks — they’re all harbored with more concern and care. […]

Clemson and North Carolina: reunited in the spotlight, 34 years later

0 comments by on 12/4/2015

Saturday night in Charlotte, the Clemson Tigers and the North Carolina Tar Heels will play one of the two biggest games in the history of their ACC series. A thorough survey of the history of Tigers-Heels reveals only one other mountaintop moment the two schools shared on the gridiron. That it occurred 34 years ago […]

OMAHA, NE – MARCH 22: Fred VanVleet #23 of the Wichita State Shockers celebrates as the second half ends against the Kansas Jayhawks during the third round of the 2015 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at the CenturyLink Center on March 22, 2015 in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Wichita State tries to rebuild after a rough start

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For Gregg Marshall and Wichita State, the 2015-2016 season had all the makings of a triumphant procession through the college basketball realm. Over the past three years, the Shockers have been a top seed in the NCAA tournament and even made a Final Four, but this season’s squad appeared deep and experienced. The Shockers have […]

CORAL GABLES, FL – NOVEMBER 4: Angel Rodriguez #13 of the Miami Hurricanes chases a loose ball against the Dowling Golden Lions on November 4, 2015 at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables, Florida. Miami defeated Dowling 91-40. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

Guard play lifts Miami to hot start

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Prior to the loss to Northeastern last Friday, Miami was one of the hottest teams in college basketball. The Hurricanes beat Mississippi State, Utah, and Butler in consecutive games. Not only did they win, but the margins were 26, 24, and 10. Of the 5-0 start, Miami won by an average of 21 points. While […]

ANN ARBOR, MI – NOVEMBER 20: Trevon Bluiett #5 of the Xavier Musketeers drives to the basket against Zak Irvin #21 of the Michigan Wolverines during the second half at Crisler Arena on November 20, 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Xavier defeated Michigan 86-70. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)

Early-season report: few have been more dominant than Xavier

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Let’s give you an early report on a college basketball season which is just beginning to take shape. When it comes to one of the best unbeaten teams, the response may surprise you. When you’re told that it comes from the Big East and it is not Villanova, prepare to be shocked even further. Xavier, which […]

Week 14 College Football Playoff Rooting Interests

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We are down to just eight College Football Playoff hopefuls, in addition to two others we feel we should mention as well. Their scenarios en route to the Playoff are more or less clear, though there are a few possibilities where we honestly won’t know who will make the Playoff until the committee tells us […]

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