Michigan/Notre Dame, South Carolina/Georgia...Need I Say More

What a day!!! I am exhausted after this day of football. There was too much action for one person to take in. I think I am going to need to invest in a new DVR because the one I have may not last the season. In my blog on Thursday I said I would bring you my comments on Notre Dame/Michigan after its conclusion, but in this EXTRA large edition I will also give you my break-down of South Carolina/Georgia, my thoughts on the Florida/Miami game, as well as some other ramblings from around the Top 25.

South Carolina @ Georgia

And so it begins. The Top 10 is officially on a roller coaster to hell, at least as far as the SEC might be concerned. This team beat this team which beat this team which beat this team which beat the team that just lost. Only instead filling in these blanks with only SEC teams, Georgia forces us to insert Clemson into the mix. Thanks. But on to the game:

I have said it at least 2-3 times that once you get past the South Carolina defensive line, there ain't nothing there. The back 7 for SCAR surrendered big play after big play, tackled poorly and let Georgia get to the edge over and over. When the front 4 got push, Georgia had negative plays. Whenever Gurley got to the second level he was good for another 4-5 yards. Now, let it be known that Gurley is a man's man, and he is going to be punishing A LOT of people this year. The defensive line for SCAR is extremely good, but they tire out way to fast, and there is no one on the bench behind them apparently. On Georgia's second drive after the onside kick, SCAR was gassed, but after they got to sit on the bench for a while in the second quarter, they forced Georgia into a 3 and out. Then in the third quarter, SCAR was definitely out of gas. Georgia held the ball for 10 minutes in the 3rd quarter and it was really indicative of the game-plan that Georgia had, which I will talk about later. Still not convinced that the back 7 for the Gamecocks is shaky and D-line tires out, take a look at this break-down of Clowney:

First of all I was glad to see Clowney using more moves than just trying to speed around the corner like he did against UNC. But this is how I charted him for the game:
Sacks - 1
Pressures - 5
Ran at by Georgia - 6
Double teams by Georgia - 6 - with 2 of those just being chips
Tackles - 2.5
Plays he was not on the field: 16, although ESPN had him at 18 I believe
Two of Georgia's best runs in the first half came AT Clowney, on the very next play after he put pressure on or sacked the quarterback. And in the 4th quarter they ran at Clowney and he missed the tackle which helped keep the drive alive for Georgia. On 2 of the pressures from Clowney the defensive backfield gave up 2 touchdowns, one of which was the 85 yard bomb that sealed the game. So not a dominating performance by Clowney, Georgia seemed to take advantage of his aggressiveness and when he was making an impact his defensive back field was letting him down. I personally only saw Clowney take 1 play off in the 4th quarter when everything was all but decided.

I was also interested to see how Connor Shaw performed for the Gamecocks and I was impressed. Early on it seemed he was in-decisive on whether to run or throw or who to throw it to and it hurt him early. But on the first touchdown drive we saw more short quick throws and more definite decisions when he took off with his legs. I also felt like there were two late hits on Shaw in this game and it seems since we have the new focus on targeting that quarterbacks are getting hit later and not getting the call, or is that just me? Shaw had two bad breaks, the first being his fumble on a great play by Georgia LB Herrera and the second being the dropped pass by Ellington on 3rd and long in the third quarter because the sun was in his eyes; if he makes that catch we might have had a completely different ball-game. I was also interested to see how Georgia was going to get pressure on Shaw with that SCAR offensive line. The blitz was very effective, I charted 7 blitzes and 5 of those times Georgia got significant pressure on Shaw. Now, my number might be different because of how I charted. Georgia runs a "3-4" but usually has 4 on the line, 2 down and 2 up, so whenever Georgia sent just those 4 I did not count this as a blitz but as their base package.

And I know I already spoke briefly about Gurley, but let me say something about Mike Davis, the RB for the Gamecocks. This kid has got speed, he's got power, and he is going to be one of the top backs in the SEC this year with Jeremy Hill from LSU and Gurley.

Now for what I thought of Georgia. I know I have been critical of Georgia and skeptical of their ability to win big games, but I LOVED their game plan against SCAR. And if Georgia plays that physical and that smart the rest of the year, they could beat ANYBODY. Anybody. Their play-calling was smart, it was timely with play action, they took advantage of what the Gamecocks gave them, and they protected Murray and their young defense. I already mentioned how they had the ball for 10 minutes in the 3rd quarter and they proceeded to grind the South Carolina defense to death. When there was 6 minutes left in the game and Georgia was ramming the ball down SCAR's throat, I looked at my fiance and said, "This one is over." Very impressive win.

Georgia ran the ball over 50 times for 229 yards and a 4.3 yard per attempt average. I believe it was this dedication to the run that led to Murray's 17 for 23 performance for 309 yards, he was efficient, he looked good, and it didn't look like Georgia tried to get too cute and out-smart themselves. I worried when Georgia had the punt blocked and then SCAR scored the touchdown, I just knew it was happening to Georgia again. But they stuck to what they wanted to do and they absolutely wore out that Gamecock defense.

I was thoroughly impressed with Georgia today and if they can play like that every week, they deserve to be in the Top 10 and rising. They have played 2 Top 10 teams in 2 weeks and are 1-1, and they still have a tough SEC schedule to get through. South Carolina left some plays on the field, they should be worried about their defense, but losing to another Top 10 team in the SEC does not spell national title doom. But they will probably have to run the table now since they share the same side of the conference with Georgia, and hope for Georgia to lose a conference game. However, both of these teams have one other thing to worry about, which we will talk about a bit later.

Notre Dame @ Michigan

Notre Dame started out flat with 2 three and outs and let Michigan build a 10-0 lead. The Irish defense had trouble tackling, which they would through-out the night and they were fooled on play-action for a 61 yard TD. After the 10-0 hole Notre Dame did respond and drove the field in a 9 play 75 yard drive and got some luck as the ball ricocheted off the intended receiver and ended up in the hands of another Irish receiver for the touchdown. Thus the tone for the game was set. It was back and forth, as both teams exchanged body blows. Defenses rose up on 3rd down on both sides when they needed to but in the end it came down to the plays that could be made by each team's quarterbacks.

Gardner for Michigan had a very efficient and effective game, except for one play. He finished 21 for 33 for 294 yards and 4 TD's while running 12 times for 82 yards and another touchdown. However, he had one of the DUMBEST plays I have ever seen. Gardner was rushed out of the pocket and proceeded to run backwards into the end zone where, instead of taking the safety he decided to throw the ball up for grabs and Notre Dame LB Stephen Tuitt grabbed it in the end zone for the INT and a touchdown. This cut the Michigan lead to 7 points with almost an entire 4th quarter to play. I am sure Gardner will learn from this, but sometimes you just have to let it go. I was very impressed with Michigan WR Gallon as he had 8 catches for 184 yards and 3 TD's. Whenever Gardner needed a play, Gallon was there, Notre Dame had no answer. Notre Dame also had no answer for Gardner when he ran the ball, which I don't understand why Michigan did not do more of. I know they have this pro-style offense and they don't want Gardner getting hurt, but every time he ran the ball, good things happened, and that ain't bad.

So what about Notre Dame. The defense looked solid against the run and that was about it. They tackled poorly, they had un-timely mental mistakes at the end of the game and I often wondered, "This is the team that some people thought needed to be in a national championship game?" The defense could have held Michigan to a f/g towards the end of the game but committed two pass interference infractions, both on 3rd down, which led to Gardner throwing a TD pass and putting Michigan up for good at 41-30.

Tommy Rees did look a lot different from the Tommy Rees I last saw 2 years ago. He had some awesome throws in tight coverage, he led his team back, but he also had a knack for being streaky. He would start spraying passes high and wide at different parts of the game, with one time leading to a first half interception. He also stalled a great ND drive for a touchdown when he got erratic and they had to settle for a F/G. Ultimately Rees' night ended 29/51 for 314 yards and 2 touchdowns and in a great bit of irony; Rees' last pass of the night he was intercepted in the end zone as he threw wide of his intended target, the ball hit the knee of a Michigan player, ricocheted upwards and came down into the hands of another Michigan defender for the game ending interception.

Florida @ Miami

Remember that one thing that I said South Carolina and Georgia have to worry about? Well here it is: The Florida Gators. As a friend of mine said while watching the game today: "Holy moley." Indeed. Indeed. First of all, lets get 1 thing straight: Miami DID NOT beat Florida. Florida gave this game away and they deserved to lose. And I did not get to see a lot of Florida last year, but if this is the offense Florida fans have to put up with on a weekly basis....damn....I'm not a Florida fan and I was ready to pull my hair out. Driskel and the play-calling was simply God-awful. How many years has Muschamp been in charge now? Shouldn't this thing be getting figured out? So how bad was it for Florida? It was this bad:

Florida committed 10 penalties for 69 yards, which was an improvement from the 10 penalties for 70 yards the week before. This is not a disciplined team.

Florida was 6 of 15 on third down and I believe Driskel was 3 for 8 for 31 yards on 3rd down passing, with 2 interceptions.

Florida had 5 turnovers. And they weren't filled with apple or cherry. They were filled with sh*t. 3 of the turnovers were in the red zone. One of Driskel's INTs came in the red zone on a pass he had no business trying to make. The Gators were 1 for 6 in the red zone today as well.

Florida wasted their time-outs so they had none at the end of the game.

Why did Florida go for a 2 point conversion so early in the game? Why put your putrid offense in a position to be chasing that 1 point all game long? You are not Oregon, stop trying to be cute.

Florida fooled no one on their third down and fourth down plays. Miami was on top of it. Once again Florida was trying to be cute too many times and should have just lined up and played ball.

Florida's offensive tackles were also abysmal on pass protection.

So, did Florida have anything good out of this game? Yes. The Gator defense is ridiculous. In two games they have only allowed a team to convert on 3rd down a total of 2 times. And that's in 24 chances. Miami had 7 - 3 and outs. Miami had 212 yards of offense and that rushing game that was so good a week ago only averaged 1.8 yards a rush. Purifoy is a monster in the Florida defensive backfield, he was all over the field making tackles, breaking up passes and generally being a nuisance for Miami. Easley and that Florida defensive line are also monsters and might be the best line in the SEC next to LSU and South Carolina. Miami gained 69 yards after the first quarter and at one point was at -3 for the entire 3rd quarter till their last 3rd quarter drive.

I also liked the Florida wide-outs. Patton, Burton and Dunbar had 19 catches for almost 300 yards and were making plays when they had the chance. However, the running backs that we hear so much about I was less than moved by due to their 2.8 yards a rush.

I give Miami some credit, they could have folded after the blocked punt and when things seemed like they started to turn, but they came back and hit Florida right back, I was shocked it was a head-shot though.

The bottom line is the Florida went on the road and wilted in a hostile environment. And I don't know who in the SEC they expect to beat with that in-consistent mess they call an offense. This was an embarrassment to Florida and to the SEC. The SEC lost some shine today. Florida now needs to become Miami's biggest fan, because if the Hurricanes go under they take Florida's respectability and strength of schedule with them. And if Florida's stature goes down, so does the stature of the SEC east. If Miami tanks, and Florida has no respect; then Florida only needs to beat Georgia and/or South Carolina to make things mighty sticky.

Other Top 25 quick thoughts:

Oklahoma - The slow moving Sooners strike again. They get down, they score very few points, but once again run for over 300 yards and force 4 turnovers in an ugly 16 -7 win over West Virginia. And by ugly I mean the Sooner's passing game....

Oklahoma State - Want to know what offensive efficiency is? Offensive efficiency is only having ONE third down in an entire half of football. You know what else is efficient? Having a quarterback go 24 for 27 for 326 yards and 4 td's. Oklahoma State had both. And how did the defense do you ask? Since I have been "slightly critical" of the Cowboy's defense. Well it's hard to say, they gave up 35 points and over 500 yards but I am sure a lot of this was garbage yards and points after the game was decided. The Cowboys did force 2 turnovers in the first half. And if you turn the ball over and let Oklahoma State build a lead, you will never recover.

Oregon - Virginia held their own by only giving up 59 points in 21 minutes to the Ducks. I'm just glad Virginia controlled that ball for as long as they did or it might have gotten ugly out there....Is anyone else concerned that Mariota went 14 for 28 on passing though?

TCU - What is going on with that TCU defense? They gave up 200 yards before half, but 110 on two plays.  Now, before we get out the brooms, TCU shut it down in the second half, but I would still be concerned with giving up 207 rushing yards and 4.6 average to.....who did they play again? I hate injuries in football, especially college ball, but maybe TCU can let Boykin be the starter now that Pachall is out for a few games. Boykin looked good again. He was 9 for 13 for 133 yards, 2 td's, he ran 5 times for 35 and caught 3 balls for 25. Pachall before the injury was 8 for 14 for 100 yards.

Clemson - They had me worried! They had 2 - 3 and outs and their third down execution was shaky early on! Thank goodness they had that back-up quarterback Cole Stoudt to bail them out with 19 of 20 passing....I mean what was that Boyd kid doing? Clemson was only up 24 to 7 when he decided to sit the rest of the game out. Total domination for Clemson. But Hopkins only had 3 catches for 19 yards...

LSU - Looked like LSU only with a passing game.

Texas A&M - Okay, the offense is pretty good. 65 points and 400 yards passing for the Sharpied one. What about that A&M D though? They gave up 240 yards rushing for a 5.7 average and they gave up 306 rushing to Rice. Who do they play next week? Oh yeah, Alabama. I'm glad they don't like to run the ball.

Northwestern - They heeded my advice and did not let the bastards get them down. They were 30 for 37 passing for 375 yards and 10 of 18 on 3rd down. They averaged 4.7 yards a rush and forced 4 turnovers in a win over the ACC's Syracuse. So that means a B10 team beat an ACC team the same day an ACC team beat an SEC team? You know what that means....Syracuse sucks.

Speaking of offense: Baylor scored 70 points with 781 yards of offense and all 10 of their scoring drives took under 2 minutes each. So the key here is....make Baylor hold on to the ball. The longer they have it, the less time they have to score....I think.

Nebraska - The Blackshirts scored twice, forced 4 turnovers and only allowed 284 yards. The Nebraska offense might be finding an identity though as they ran for 285 yards to add to the 375 they ran for last week. And you know what that means.....absolutely nothing, they play UCLA next.

Texas - The BYU quarterback, Hill, completed 34% of his passes for 129 yards and 1 INT and the Cougars beat the Longhorns 40-21. The BYU quarterback also ran the ball 17 times for 259 yards and 3 touchdowns. The BYU quarterback was also wearing a knee brace, was coming off of knee surgery from last year, AND used a cane for part of the first half before switching to a wheel chair being pushed by boy scouts. And here you thought the only people sitting down on the field was the Texas Longhorn defenders!! Look here UT, I gave you all props for being my favorites for the B12, Rutgers and Oregon State both got upset last week and I don't even recognize them as actual football teams anymore, so what are you long horned cows gonna do when you go up against Oklahoma State or Oklahoma or TCU or Ole Miss?

Quick thoughts on "My Teams to Watch"

Speaking of the teams I am not speaking too: Good rebound for Oregon State this week with 508 yards and a win.

Ole Miss - dominating win for an SEC school. Did you see that Florida?

Vanderbilt - dominating win for an SEC school. You should be worried Florida.

Wisconsin - Okay okay. 2 shut outs in the first 2 games, 24 of 29 passing today and 384 yards rushing while only allowing 113 yards total. When does Wisconsin start playing actual football teams?

North Carolina - They enjoyed life not playing South Carolina this week.

Rutgers - Oh yeah...they won....

And last but not least lets try those predictions for the Coaches Top 10 ONE MORE TIME!!! At this time I am assuming a Stanford victory. They are up 34-13 with 11 minutes to play.

1. Alabama
2. Ohio State
3. Oregon
4. Stanford
5. Clemson
6. Texas A&M
7. Louisville
8. Florida State
9. LSU
10. Georgia

Also: USC drops out of and Miami gets into the Top 25

Thanks for reading! As always I encourage every one's comments, every one's emails. and for everyone that likes it should click the little +1 button, it doesn't cost anything and it lets me know I'm doing a good job. You can follow via email, share on facebook and twitter and I am on twitter, Aubrey Mos @simplyNCAAF