College Football: Week 8 Wrap-Up

Florida State def. North Carolina 30-27
I guess Florida State thought that playing Jekyll and Hyde by game was too boring, so this time, they did it by half! In the first half, they looked really undisciplined, which I thought reflected very poorly on their beleaguered coach. They missed blocks, committed penalties, had trouble with the play clock - ugly stuff. But they apparently all found phone booths to change in for the second half, so all's well that ends well. UNC, for its part, has discovered some extra talent since I saw them last. WR Greg Little and RB Sean Draughn (great name!) played a nice game, but they couldn't overcome the incredible accuracy of second half Christian Ponder. You can see the Tar Heels again on Thursday night (at Virginia Tech) if you like, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.

#13 Penn State def. Michigan 35-10
As much as it stinks to watch your team get killed, it was hard to be really upset about this one. Michigan was very clearly outmatched all day. Penn State played its usual brand of conservative football, did a great job getting to manageable 3rd down situations, and executed when it counted. Meanwhile, the Wolverines had trouble executing and seemed to always be looking at 3rd and 11. And turnovers. Oh, turnovers. Nothing could be as bad as that 2008 Michigan/Notre Dame game, but the steady stream of turnovers in the driving rain brought back some bad memories.

Notre Dame def. Boston College 20-16
Didn't get to watch this one, but it sounds like about par for the course: Notre Dame is clearly the better team despite a relatively weak defense, Notre Dame drags it out until the very end and then emerges victorious...at home. Do they ever play away?

#2 Alabama def. Tennessee 12-10
Just caught a few minutes here, but oof, an ugly one. Once Tennessee's offense catches up with its defense, they'll really have something. And Alabama still looks ripe for a 'whoopin...but not from the Vols.

#1 Florida def. Mississippi State 29-19
I guess sometimes you have to win ugly. I really called the wrong top 3 blowout last week. Two weeks ago, I figured, 'well, Tiger Stadium is a hard place to play', but this Florida team really looks hard-pressed to score points. And considering that the defense was a bit cut off at the knees without Brandon Spikes, they needed points in this one. Add that to two interceptions returned for touchdowns, serious problems in the red zone, and some really questionable decision-making (three straight Tebow rushes with goal to go? throwing out of your own end zone up 16 points with four minutes left? punt returner picks up a bouncing kick at the 1 yard line?) and Florida almost let this one get away. I can't believe I forgot about the Dan Mullen angle last week (former Florida offensive coordinator/Tebow confidant, current Mississippi head coach), but I'd have to say he got the best of this matchup, even in a loss.

#3 Texas def. Missouri 41-7
Not too much to talk about here, other than Texas' offensive line, which was fantastic! You can't give a passer as accurate as Mr. McCoy as much time as the Tigers did without giving up a lot of points - 41 to be exact. The Longhorns defense was decent as well, but the Tigers really handicapped themselves with their lack of running game. Incomplete passes on first down are a pretty big killer of drives.

This week's 'Yell at the TV' Moment: Back to the inappropriate celebrating. Up 22-13 with under 10 minutes remaining, Florida LB Dustin Doe intercepted a Tyson Lee pass and headed for the end zone with no one in front of him. He began high-stepping at the five yard line and was stripped very close to the goal line by hustling Mississippi State WR Brandon McRae. Replays appeared to suggest that Doe was stripped short of the goal line, but the play stood as a Florida touchdown (I believe Bulldogs coach Dan Mullen has lodged a formal complaint). The real question, of course, is what in the world was Mr. Doe thinking? Score the touchdown, and *then* make a fool of yourself.

In other news: Close calls for Alabama and Iowa this weekend - seems like no one wants to step up and be #1......Wussy punt decisions ruled the day - Florida State, down 17-3 in the second quarter, faced 4th at 4 at the UNC 45 yard line and punted, Penn State looked at 4th and 3 from the Michigan *33* and sent up a net 20 yard punt.....Matt Millen informed us during the Penn State/Michigan game that a pass "becomes a lateral if it's backwards".....They said before the Florida game that LB Brandon Spikes was 'on call', that he would play "if they needed him". Doesn't having an undefeated season call for your best effort? Either you're hurt or you're not.....While the hyper-religious athlete thing sort of creeps me out, I have to say I love how Tebow helps up defenders that tackle him.....I feel that it is my duty to let you know that Dartmouth has snapped the nation's second longest losing streak with a convincing 28-6 victory over Columbia