Monday, August 14, 2023

Blast from the Past of Cougars 2021

 Desert Fans Episode 13 – Bowls Shaping Up

We are in the week of Thanksgiving, many teams have their grudge match rivalries to play this coming November festive time. Happy holidays, desert fans! I think we have earned it. I have consulted with a few fans here and there, and Notre Dame is looking strong. Miami is on the ropes. Clemson pounded a good team. Auburn continues to accrue losses. IU stinks, BYU is banged up, but posed for 10 wins. And oh yeah, Georgia is a definitive number 1.

I could end the weekend summary right there with the above paragraph, but I will entertain some thoughts and match ups related to these teams, and a couple others. You know by now in the season, this “season of the desert”, you are addicted to these write ups… Just kidding, at this point you might be of the opinion that the next football season without Desert Fans installments might be more enjoyable. Then again, the truth should lie somewhere in between. Moving on.

The Dawgs were dominant against a puny opponent, as expected, so they are not the news. (Barely worth mentioning the match up versus FCS team Charleston Southern. Good reps for 4th stringers, I suppose, winning 56 - 7.) Notre Dame is the story, ladies and gentlemen! These Irish might be playing in the College Football Championship come New Year’s. We shall see. The Irish smothered a not so good, but still major program in Georgia Tech, 55 - 0. The Bulldogs will play the poor Yellowjackets next, which may be used by the voting committee for the top four as a measuring stick between the CFP candidates, Notre Dame trying its best to qualify against Cincinnati, which beat them, and a small list of one loss teams, like Oklahoma or Oklahoma State. (One of them will lose this weekend, but the other will win). The Irish need to wrap up against a weaker than normal Stanford Cardinal, and we will watch how the playoff cards play out.

#1 GEORGIA (11-0) NEXT: at 3-8 Georgia Tech. Easy.

# 8 NOTRE DAME NEXT: at 3-8 Stanford. Peasy.

              My Cougars went to Stateboro, Georgia, some two thousand miles from Provo to play the… Georgia Southern Eagles. Eagles, right? A co-worker has a daughter there. I told him that I would have gone to the game, kids in tow, had I been closer to home, as I am very far from it now. The Eagles, not just a 70s band or a team in Boston (see Doug Flutie, 1984. Sorry Hurricane fans). More key defensive players were hurt for the Cougars in this game,  which was close in the first half, 20 to 17.

Despite the top three defenders for the Y being down, Brigham Young will rely on many players and rested bench guys to step up and get the Trojans as they, the powerful traditional program, are experiencing an unprecedented poor year. Two years ago we snuck up on them and beat them, so here is hoping for that elusive double digit win season for my Cougs. UCLA just scored 62 on them, so hopefully the Trojans can hand us some points. They have as much or more talent than Boise State, so BYU has to be careful to hold on to the ball. (BSU trapped BYU with 6 turnovers, even though the Cougs out produced them in yards).

# 14 BYU (9-2) NEXT: at 4-6 USC. The Coliseum.  My brother-in-law and I were there back when they had their Heisman winners, 2003. He grew up in southern California and was a fan of both USC and BYU. The Trojans prevailed that day, despite BYU making it somewhat tight in the 3rd quarter.

              The Clemson Tigers stepped up, whacking a very good ranked Wake Forest team, 48 – 27 (The Demon Deacons with two losses are still ranked ahead of two-loss BYU. Must be strength of schedule, although BYU has played many Power 5 teams). This means that the Tigers are still in the ACC championship race. The offense has woken up; maybe they have found the key to success to acquit themselves well. Clemson has a lot to play for still, despite some tough losses. Ranked again!

#23 CLEMSON (8-3) NEXT: at 6-5 South Carolina. The grudge match should be interesting now that the Game Cocks had a good win. More on that in a second.

 

              The War Eagle goes down in a close one to the abovementioned South Carolina state school, and now Auburn has hit hard times. As mentioned afterward to an Auburn alum, or he to me, we concur that if they can beat mighty ‘Bama in the Iron Bowl it would make a tough season a lot sweeter. Go War Eagle! This upset would certainly help Notre Dame.

AUBURN (6-5) NEXT: hosts #2 10-1 Alabama.

              Oh, ‘Canes! They redeem themselves and take down the Virginia Tech Hokies, 38  - 26. Miami should make a good run for a bowl. I think they will punk the Blue Devils royally before the hardcourt season gets going. They are finishing the season pretty strong. Miami has had a mixed season, but better than the Gators and Seminoles. UCF is best, as we have surmised. Below them, USF, FAU, FIU. Am I missing anyone?

MIAMI NEXT (6-5) : at 3-8 Duke. I have been to Durham once. Seems pretty nice, pristine. ’Canes by 40.

              Yikes, Hoosiers. A 4th string quarterback enters, he does show some promise, but this season is a wash. The defense cannot stop the Minnesota Golden Gophers, and they lose 35 – 14. Two touchdowns seems like a lot offensively these days for IU; that is how low they have fallen. Not looking good against a giant-killer Purdue squad. We lost last year’s sure win because of COVID-19, meaning a slam dunk win was not even played. Thank you Chinese, and all the dumb Americans spreading the virus (it happened to me, I own it). Now it looks like we let the Boilers keep the Old Oaken Bucket, the prize from the perennial game. They have many more Ps on the chain attached then we have Is. That is the way the ball bounces.

INDIANA NEXT (2-8): at 7-4 Purdue. In West Lafayette. I have been to the town twice. Three times if you count eating at a breakfast diner. It is a good school, decent place, 160 or so miles from my town. It is not Bloomington, and vivre la difference! Ah, those Boilers…

              Last notes: Oregon was crushed by Utah, so no more Ducks or PAC-12 teams in the CFC, or CFP. Some predict that even a two-loss Alabama team will make the CFP, because the most recent loss would be to the vaunted Georgia Dawgs. That would hurt the Irish since the Bearcats are looking so strong. Ohio State and Michigan are poised for a winner takes all. Winner goes to the CFP.

              Ole Miss and Baylor are still looking strong as two loss teams.

Army:  Handles the lowly Massachusetts Minutemen, 33 – 17. They look to wrap up the Commander’s Trophy and have a pretty good year.

              Air Force: The Falcons squeak by the Nevada Wolfpack 41 – 39. Not a bad year for these cadets.

              Navy: Loses to East Carolina in a close one, 35 – 38, and this is a bad season for the Squids.

             

Florida State and Florida fight for relevance, both sitting at 5-6. UCF or Miami is the best team in the Sunshine State now. In two years UCF, Houston, Cincinnati, and Brigham Young will join the remaining teams of the Big-12, and it will operate something like the map below.

 

 

Picture Houston on the south east side of Texas. More Cougars, not BYU nor Washington State.

Picture U Central Florida in the center, near Orlando.

Picture Cincinnati in the southwest corner of Ohio.

Erase the Longhorns and the Sooners, in their capitals, respectivley.

I look forward to the WVU games, 3 hours away. I have a sister close to Orlando, so maybe a trip down there. Cinncy is two hours from my home town, so maybe to and fro visiting the family…

Thanks you Texas and Oklahoma, for creating a bigger, better conference. And it is not  yours!

Just kidding, the SEC is pretty much the king of college football. Basketball will be another matter…

Like this.

The future looks bright. I hope that I live to be one hundred to enjoy it all.

Happy holidays, fans.

 

1 comment:

  1. Typo: Statesboro. I would watch via Dofu? Fubo? Dofo...

    ReplyDelete