CigarSmokinFootball

Week 4 Cigar Butts

Tulane 38, Houston 31 – In a Thursday night game that appeared to be a ho-hum drowser, it suddenly – well, over a quarter, anyway – turned into the gem of the week. The Cougars started off dominating the a Green Wave in every department, as they were supposed to. But the Greenies were wearing baby blue uniforms (why? Not sure, but their colors are truly Olive Green and Blue) and these unis must have inspired them to make a game out of it in the second half. They shut down UH and mounted a comeback. Late in the final stanza, Houston kicked a field goal and tied the game. Less than a minute to go, Tulane lined up in victory formation to send the game into overtime. BUT, it was a fake. Coach Willy Fritz pulled out all the stops. The Green Wave, wearing Blue, got a first down through trickery, then, the next play, Jalen McCleskey caught a pass in double coverage, broke a tackle or two, and ran into the endzone for a 53-yard touchdown! What a  way to start the weekend.

Wisconsin 35, Michigan 14 – In what was a top 20 match up within the Great White North Conference, the game actually turned out to be a snoozer, if your heart can stand it. The Badgers beat the snot out of the Wolverines. This contest wasn’t even close, in fact, it wasn’t a contest. Wisconsin scored 14 in each of the first two quarters, Michigan didn’t so much as sniff the endzone . After having two weeks to get ready for this game, the High Priced Low Results Coach Harbaugh had his team completely unprepared. It was funny to watch, well, for non-Wolverine fans, it was. The script “W’s” were overwhelming and are now the number one contender to win the Great White North. Ohio State is in the mix, too, but the Buckeyes are still writing big paychecks to small schools and tuning up for the regular season.

Georgia 23, Notre Dame 17 – Honestly, I thought the Bulldogs, with their huge offensive line, would run away with this game, but they didn’t. It was closer than predicted. The Dawgs held the Irish to 46 rushing yards, that’s for the entire game, not just a half, great job. But the passing defense was a little loose and allowed ND to stay in the game. QB Fromm dinked and dunked the Notre Dame secondary to death, and, then, without warning, he’d launch one deep down field and complete it! The vaunted Bulldogs’ running game did okay, not extraordinary, with Swift gaining 98 yards on 18 carries, but it was the short yardage passing that destroyed the Irish. UGA is the number one team in the SEC East, no question about it, but the rest of the SEC-East, watching how Georgia never really exploited their superiority on either side of the ball, can sense another Sugar Bowl melt-down in the Dawgs’ future. Maybe not Tennessee, and probably not Kentucky, but Florida, Missouri, and Auburn took heart, I’m sure. Georgia won the game, but they did more for Notre Dame football than an Irish victory would have done. Notre Dame will not be challenged again this year, so, watch out CFB for another Irish fiasco. Georgia should be ashamed of themselves.

Pitt 35, UCF 34 – In one of the most see-saw games of the day, the Pitt Panthers ended Central Florida’s 27-regular season win streak. It started off with Pitt coming out of the gate throwing haymakers, opening up a 21 point lead. But like an experienced fighter, the Golden Knights absorbed the blows and started landing shots of their own. They overtook the Panthers and took the lead, 31-21. Pitt didn’t stay on the ropes, though, and made it 31-28. With the fourth quarter winding down, UCF extended their lead with a field goal, 34-28. Pitt had to score a touchdown to win. With 56 seconds left, they ran the “Pitt Special” from the 3 yard line. The quarterback took the snap, handed it off to the running back, who broke to the left, but then pitched the ball to the receiver on a reverse! Central Florida broke and went to shut down the end and prevent the receiver from getting to the outside. What, Ho? That rascal stopped and threw the ball to the quarterback standing in the endzone. Touchdown! After Pitt kicked the extra point, the Panthers led by one measly point. UCF got the ball after the kick off with a chance, a slim chance, but a chance. One quarterback sack later and Pitt had locked up the victory. What a game!

Auburn 28, Texas A&M 20 – The Daughter had a tough time watching this game, as did everyone who is an Aggie fan. The Aggies’ defense gave up way too much at the start of game. Auburn opened up a 14 point lead in the first quarter, and as long as Head Coach Fisher was sticking with QB Mond, that deficit proved too much to overcome. Auburn is good, not impressive, but good. A&M had a golden opportunity to prove they were for real in the SEC-West, but they did nothing to even come close to beating Auburn. Oh, sure, they scored late in the game, but it was never a real threat. The offense is just inept. This is the second year of Fisher leading this program, so it might be too early to put him in the same category as that coach up north, but if Jimbo doesn’t get the offense to produce some points, he’s going to join Harbaugh as expensive mistakes for their Athletic Departments.

USC 30, Utah 23 – One of these years, the Utes will figure out how to beat the Trojans in LA, not this year, again. Until they solve this riddle, they’re not going to win the PAC-12.

Clemson 52, Charlotte 10 – Hope the fans enjoyed paying to see a live practice session.

LSU 66, Vanderbilt 38 – Yeah, they scored a bunch of points, but, giving up 38 to Vandy? Seriously?

Ohio State 76, Miami (OH) 5– Yeah, sure. I said the Buckeyes were still scrimmaging.

Florida 34, Tennessee 3 – Not as close as the score indicates. Florida stomped UT into the ground. I hope UT doesn’t make any changes at all, None. Allow me to state that I am not a UT fan.

Alabama 49, Southern Miss 7 – Tua set another record with 5 TD passes. This game was never in question.

Texas 36, Oklahoma State 30 – OSU finally played someone with spunk and lost it. Quite an entertaining game to watch, if you don’t care who wins.

Oregon 21, Stanford 6 – Ducks ran all over the Trees

UCLA 67, Washington State 63 – WSU had a 31 point lead at one point in the game and yet the Bruins came back to win? How does this happen? Turnovers played a huge part in it.

Virginia 28, Old Dominion 17 – ODU did not lie down and play dead, they didn’t let up, and they tested UVA as much as they could, but the Monarchs ran out gas.

Washington 45, BYU 19 – Not even close.

California 28, Ole Miss 20 – With time running out, Ole Miss completed a touchdown pass which they needed along with the 2-point conversation to tie the game. Hold it! One of the PAC-12 officials called the pass short of the endzone and did not call for a review. With the game on the line, and the seconds ticking off, the officials in the booth thought it shouldn’t be reviewed? The Rebels got robbed!

Colorado 34, Arizona State 31- I had a feeling this might happen. Should have stuck with my feeling, but I didn’t.

SMU 41, TCU 38 – The Mustangs are 4-0!

Army 52, Morgan State 21- The Black Knights showed no mercy in the second half.

Michigan State 31, Northwestern 10 – Holy cow, the Spartans realized that scoring touchdowns was a good idea! At least they’re learning

Florida State 35 Louisville 24- It’s sad when FSU struggles to beat the Cardinals.

Appalachian State 34, North Carolina 31- The Tar Heels let the Mountaineers get the lead and a come back just wasn’t in the cards. I tried to warn them, remember?

Mississippi State 28, Kentucky 13- The Wildcats should have played better. They allowed Florida to beat them twice

Iowa State 72, UL Monroe 20 –The Cyclones came roaring back from their loss to Iowa.

Indiana 38, UConn 3 – Finally, Indiana beat UConn…what? This isn’t a surprise?…huh, who knew?

Tulsa 24, Wyoming 21 – Why did Wyoming drop this game? They beat Missouri…why lose to Tulsa?

Missouri 34, South Carolina 14 – The Gamecocks had 16 yards rushing for the entire game. That doesn’t help a freshman QB, but maybe it’s time to give Coach Boom his pink slip

West Virginia 29, Kansas 24 – KU came very, very close to pulling another upset, that darn clock just ran out.

San Jose State 31, Arkansas 24 – Move over Tennessee, the Razorbacks are talking over the worst team slot in the SEC. I’m embarrassed.

Nebraska 42, Illinois 38 – Cornhuskers struggled but managed to pull this one out.

Utah State 23, San Diego State 17 – Things just did not go the Aztecs’ way.

Hawai’i 35, Central Arkansas 16 – The Bears of Central Arkansas endured a very long flight, got their butts spanked, so hopefully they got to hang out at the beach for awhile before flying back.

Jacksonville State 30, North Alabama 12 – Alright, three losses in a row is enough, no more kidding around Lions, I’m serious, stop losing.