Best post in TGT HISTORY!Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
WOW! Memphis is terrible, just terrible!
I fucking HATE Memphis!
To The Top, Memphis bitches! #SMTTT
Best post in TGT HISTORY!
WOW! Memphis is terrible, just terrible!
I fucking HATE Memphis!
In that case you're going to love my game summary in a little bit here.Best post in TGT HISTORY!
I fucking HATE Memphis!
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-03-2013 at 12:23 PM.
Game Eight
#24
Game Notes
--- Coming off a surprising victory over Cincinnati, it was time to wrap up our two game home streak, ahead of a second three game road trip, by welcoming Memphis to town. The Tigers entered the game an abysmal 1-6, but they weren’t necessarily a team to be taken lightly. Despite the horrible record and ratings no better than D+, Memphis had a couple aces up their sleeves by way of a #22 national ranking in pass offense, pulling up 264.5 yards/game, and a very surprising #7 rush defense national ranking, giving up only 130.7 yards/game on the ground.
The Tigers were pretty much atrocious in all other aspects of the game, including a #117 pass defense ranking, but with a top 25 passing offense and a top 10 rushing defense, the Tigers could put up some yards and points if they catch our defense on a bad day, and shut down our running game and leave us one-dimensional if they catch our offense on a bad day. One of the big factors of the game could end being turnover differential, where we entered +6 (good for #13 in the nation) and Memphis entered -9 (#115 nationally). With that wide of a turnover differential, one or two turnovers forced by our defense may be enough to stop Memphis in their tracks on offense. Memphis won the coin toss and elected to kick.
No return on the opening kickoff gave us the ball at our 25 yard line as we got the game underway. Will Oliver took the ball on first down, rushing for a 13 yard gain and putting the Memphis defense on their heels right off the bat, as we moved the chains to the 38 yard line. A 7 yard gain by Oliver was followed by a 13 yard rush and a first down at the Memphis 42 yard line, the safety barely able to hang onto and drag Oliver down to keep him from breaking free for a touchdown. Keeping the ball on the ground, Oliver rushed for 6 yards, followed by a gain of 10 yards to get the first down at the 26. Oliver would receive the handoff on first down, finding the hole outside the right guard, slipping past the outside linebacker and then racing the cornerback and safeties to the corner of the end zone for a 26 yard touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 6:47 left in the first quarter.
A 15 yard return on the kickoff got Memphis started at their 21 yard line for their first drive. Memphis quickly desired a redo on the drive, as a dropped pass by Chuck Smith was followed by a four yard loss on a rush by Michael Williams to leave third and 14. Micah Morris would try to complete a pass once more to Smith, but it was batted incomplete to bring up fourth down. A 6 yard return by Eric Hayden on the 41 yard punt gave us the ball at our 47 yard line.
Coming out firing on first down, Brad Stephens completed a pass to Hayden for a 12 yard gain and a first down at the Memphis 41. Trying to throw deep to Joe Vaughn, the pass was nearly intercepted, leaving us with second and long. Firing over the middle to Ryan Lewis, he was able to pull in the pass for a gain of 21 yards, moving the sticks to the 20 yard line. Trying to hit Vaughn over the middle, the pass was broken up, leaving second down. Dropping a pass in between the middle linebacker and the safety over top, Lewis was able to haul in the ball from Stephens for a 20 yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 14-0 with 5:15 left in the first quarter.
A 16 yard kickoff return got Memphis back in action at their 20 yard line, facing a deeper hole to climb out of. This drive would end much the same as the previous one, as a dropped pass by Ray Childress was followed with a rush by Williams for a two yard loss. An incomplete pass on third down closed out the drive and brought out the punt team on fourth and 12. A fair catch by Hayden on the 40 yard punt gave us the ball at our 41 yard line.
While we had had our way with the Memphis defense the previous two drives, the Tigers came out ready to play this time around, the defensive end breaking through and sacking Stephens from behind, knocking the ball loose in the process. Right tackle Pat Ross saved us from disaster, able to disengage from his block, race back and dive on top of the ball first, but we didn’t escape without some damage, left with second and 23 after the play. While the Memphis defense showed life on first down, they rolled over and played dead on second down, as Oliver came out of the backfield on the pass, catching a pass from Stephens in the flats along the right sideline. Oliver turned up the field and broke out of a tackle attempt by the outside linebacker. With the cornerback blocked off by Hayden, Oliver was able to break up the sideline, spinning his way out of a tackle attempt by the safety and then sprinting the rest of the way to the end zone for a 71 yard touchdown and a 21-0 lead with 3:52 remaining in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff gave Memphis the ball at their 25 yard line, the hole getting ever deeper. Williams would continue to flounder in the ground game, tackled for a two yard loss, followed by an incomplete pass intended for Sam Garcia. On third and 12, the Tigers would finally find something positive on offense, as Morris connected with Cory Wiggins for a 5 yard gain, but it still wasn't enough as the punt team trotted out on fourth and 7. A fair catch by Hayden on the 41 yard punt set us up from our 31 yard line.
A quick pass over the middle to Hayden gained 10 yards and a first down at the 41. Throwing deep on first down, the pass intended for Vaughn sailed long and incomplete to bring up second down. Dumping off a pass to Robert Harper, Stephens was able to complete the pass for a gain of 12 yards, moving the chains to the Memphis 47. Throwing deep over the middle, Stephens connected with Lewis, who had slipped into the secondary and past the defense, catching the pass and breaking two tackles on his way towards the end zone, before finally being tripped up just short of pay dirt for a 41 yard gain, setting up first and goal from the 6 yard line. Stephens dropped back from under center and fired off a quick pass to Harper, complete for a 6 yard touchdown to give us a commanding 28-0 lead with 2:11 left in the first quarter.
A 12 yard return on the kickoff left Memphis starting from their 13 yard line, this game quickly turning into a rout. It would only get worse. After an incomplete pass on first down intended for Wiggins, Morris threw his first interception of the game, picked off by safety Shaun Miller to set us up on offense from the Memphis 20 yard line.
Taking over after the interception, Stephens tried to throw deep to Vaughn on first down, but the cornerback was able to break up the pass to leave second down. Stephens fired off a pass to Hayden on an out route, complete for 14 yards to once again give us first and goal from the 6 yard line. Dumping off a quick pass from under center, Stephens hit Carl Barnes at the goal line for a 6 yard touchdown, giving us a commanding 35-0 lead with 1:26 remaining in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got Memphis back on the field from their 25 yard line, any hopes of competing today already long destroyed, the Tigers now just trying to avoid being shutout. They would have to wait for another drive to try and do that, as three straight incomplete passes intended for Wiggins and Williams left the punt team appearing once again. A 13 yard return by Hayden on the 49 yard punt got us set up from our 39 yard line.
Trying to hit Vaughn over the middle on first down, the rushed pass by Stephens was broken up to leave second down. Firing off a pass to Lewis, the pass was complete for a 16 yard gain and a first down at the Memphis 45. We would continue to put on a scoring demonstration, as Stephens hit Hayden over the middle on first down, Hayden slipping past the cornerback and safety and taking it all the way to the house for a 45 yard touchdown, Stephens’ fifth touchdown pass of the game, giving us a 42-0 lead with 29 seconds to go in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got Memphis lined up at their 25. Memphis was finally able to get a positive gain to start their drive, as Williams rushed for a 5 yard pickup, but it only lasted briefly as Morris got sacked for a loss of one yard, leaving third and 6. That would bring the first quarter to a close, our lead an abusive 42-0.
Opening up the second quarter, Williams rushed for another 5 yard gain, but the Tigers would come up short, left with fourth and one. A fair catch by Hayden on the 50 yard punt got us started at our 16 yard line.
Starting this drive and quarter on the ground, Oliver rushed for a 10 yard gain and a first down at the 26. Another rush by Oliver gained 8 yards, followed by a three yard pickup to move the chains to the 37. Keeping it going on the ground, Oliver was quickly stood up for a two yard gain to leave second and 8. With the defense keying on our run game, we turned back to the air, Stephens threading the needle between the outside linebacker, middle linebacker and safety to complete the pass to Vaughn, who then was able to break free behind the secondary and race the defense all the way to the end zone for a 61 yard touchdown and a 49-0 lead with 7:06 left in the second quarter. That touchdown pass tied Stephens for the record of most passing touchdowns in a game with 6.
It would only go further downhill for the Tigers, as a fumble on the kickoff was recovered by middle linebacker Danny Ray, handing possession right back to our offense at the Memphis 15 yard line. One simple pass over the middle to Eric Silva gave Stephens the outright record for passing touchdowns in a game with 7, as the throw was complete for a 15 yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 56-0 with 6:50 left in the second quarter.
Memphis managed to hang onto the football this time, returning the kickoff 18 yards to their 24 yard line. The Tigers finally found life on offense, as Morris came out firing with a 25 yard completion to Smith for a huge first down at the 49 yard line. That would be the only highlight of the drive however, as a rush for a one yard loss by Williams was followed with a dropped pass by Smith. The drive would end up capped off with the defense sacking Morris for a 9 yard loss to leave the Tigers punting on fourth and 20. A fair catch by Hayden on the 45 yard punt gave us the ball at our 16 yard line.
Calling off the dogs with a 56-0 lead and 5:50 left until halftime, we brought in the second team offense to close out the rest of the game. Erik Wallace handed the ball off to Silva, who picked up 7 yards on the carry, followed by a gain of two to leave third and one. Silva would pick up the first down and keep us moving with an 8 yard rush, moving the chains to the 33 yard line and keeping the clock moving. Another rush by Silva gained 9 yards, followed by a pickup of two yards to get the first down at the 45. Kyle Jones came in on first down to give Silva a breather, and made the most of the chance, breaking free up the middle and nearly busting loose for a touchdown, an ankle tackle by the safety saving the defense and resulting in a 16 yard rush by Jones and a first down at the Memphis 40 yard line. Silva was quickly brought down for no gain on first down, as the defense was more than ready for us to run the ball. Taking another shot on second down, Silva was tripped up at the line of scrimmage, but managed to recover and gain 8 yards, leaving third and two. Silva would keep us moving with a 7 yard rush, moving the chains to the 24 yard line, only 1:13 left until halftime. Jones could only manage a one yard gain on first down, followed by a four yard rush by Silva to leave third and 5 from the 19. Lining up for a field goal with 10 seconds left, Derek Glover kicked the 36 yard attempt through the uprights with no time remaining, giving us a 59-0 lead heading into halftime.
Opening up the second half, no return on the kickoff gave Memphis the ball at their 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. It was more of the same for Memphis, as three incomplete passes, including a dropped ball by Smith, left the Tigers immediately punting away. A 17 yard return by Hayden on the 47 yard punt gave us the ball at our 44 yard line to begin our drive.
Despite being hit at the line of scrimmage, Silva was able to keep his legs pumping and drive himself forward for a 7 yard gain. A second rush by Silva resulted in a two yard gain to leave third and one. Third time would prove a charm for Silva was he broke free into the secondary for an 11 yard gain and a first down at the Memphis 35. Silva continued to pound the rock against the Tigers, picking up 8 yards on the first down carry, before being brought down for a one yard loss to leave third and three. Jones would come in on third down, picking up the first down and then some with a 12 yard rush to move the chains to the 16 yard line. Silva could only manage one yard on the first down carry, followed by a three yard rush to set up third and 6. Trying to pick up the first down, the pass from Wallace intended for Jones was batted incomplete, leaving fourth down. Glover booted the 28 yard field goal through the uprights, increasing our lead to 62-0 with 3:38 left in the third quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff set Memphis up at their 25 yard line. Morris continued to have an atrocious day, two passes intended for Garcia knocked incomplete, before throwing long and out of bounds on a third down pass intended for Wiggins, resulting in yet another third and out by the Tigers. A 15 yard return by Hayden on the 47 yard punt gave us the ball at our 42 yard line for another crack.
Silva took the ball on first down, quickly brought down for a one yard gain, before he was able to break loose up the middle on second down for a 13 yard pickup, moving the chains to the Memphis 44. The defense wasn’t ready to give up year, tackling Silva for no gain to bring up second and 10. The second down carry by Silva went for a 9 yard gain to set up third and one. Silva was able to push off a tackle attempt in the backfield, but was still tripped up just short, leaving fourth and inches from the 34 yard line. Instead of attempting a 51 yard field goal, Coach Ludwig decided to punt, the boot by Chris Johnson sailing out of the end zone for a touchback, giving Memphis the ball at their 20 yard line.
After an incomplete pass on first down, the Tigers finally found another sign of life as Morris connected with Garcia for 15 yards and a first down at the 35. After throwing the ball away on first down, Morris recovered with a 13 yard completion to Smith, further moving the chains to the 48. That would bring the third quarter to an end, our lead 62-0.
Opening up the fourth quarter, the 48 yard line would be as far as the Tigers would get as three straight incomplete pass to Smith and Garcia left Memphis facing fourth and long. No return on the 42 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 10 yard line, just 8:39 away from closing out the game.
Silva took the first down handoff up the middle for a 10 yard gain to leave second and inches, followed by a 9 yard pickup to move the chains to the 28 yard line. Continuing to pound the rock, Silva kept punishing the defense with a 12 yard rush for a first down at the 40. Silva never had a chance on first down as the defense brought the house, tackling him for no gain. Lining up on second down, Silva was able to break free for a 12 yard gain, keeping the driving moving at the Memphis 48 yard line. Silva kept us moving with a three yard rush, followed by a 13 yard rush by Jones to set up first down at the 33. Silva came back in on first down, picking up 7 yards up the middle, before breaking into the open around the right tackle for a gain of 12 and a first down at the Memphis 14 yard line. Silva kept fighting for yards, picking up 5 yards on the first down carry, followed by a gain of 6 yards to set us up with first and goal from the three yard line, just 3:03 remaining in the game. Silva would need only one play to punch it in the end zone for a three yard touchdown, giving us a 69-0 lead with 2:38 left to play.
A 15 yard kickoff return got Memphis lined up from their 21 yard line. Finally bringing in their second team offense, Josh Hall had as little success as Morris had all day, three incomplete passes resulting in a very quick three and out. A 9 yard return by Jason Johnson on the 44 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 43 yard line, just 2:06 away from victory.
Silva took the ball on first down, nearly breaking it loose for a touchdown, but the defense was able to close up the hole and limit him to a gain of only 11 yards, giving us a first down at the Memphis 46. A two yard rush by Silva was followed with an 11 yard gain, putting the finishing touches on the game with a first down at the Memphis 33 yard line and 59 seconds remaining. Wallace would drop to a knee once to run off the final seconds and seal our 69-0 win over Memphis.
With the win, we improve to 7-1, 4-0 in Big East action. With the loss, Memphis drops to 1-7, 0-4 in Big East play. Up next, we head back on the road for another three game road trip, starting with a visit to Tulane. The Green Wave enter the game 2-6, 1-3 in Big East play. Tulane opened their year with a 27-23 win over FCS Midwest, before losing 31-28 at Maryland, 45-35 at Navy, 38-34 at Southern Miss and 49-28 to Temple. The Green Wave finally got back into the win column with a 27-24 upset of South Florida, before losing 45-21 to Duke and suffering a 38-31 defeat at #21 SMU.
Final Score
#2469,
Stat(s) of the Game:
- Tulsa Offense – What domination! Stephens ended the day 14-19 for 350 yards and 7 touchdowns, receiving a 338.5 QB rating, all by the middle of the second quarter. Rushing, Silva ended up the beast of the day with 207 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries. Oliver, in limited action, ended with 98 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. Jones had 42 yards on four carries. Receiving, seven receivers caught a pass today, ALL seven receivers ended with touchdowns. Lewis led the way with 98 yards and a touchdown on four receptions, Hayden had 81 yards and a touchdown on four receptions, Oliver recorded 71 yards and a touchdown on one reception, Vaughn ended with 61 yards and a touchdown on one reception. Next was Harper with 18 yards and a touchdown on two receptions, followed by Silva with 15 yards and a touchdown on one reception and finally Barnes with 6 yards and a touchdown on one reception.
- Tulsa Defense – Nothing but shutdown defense all. game. long. Best damn defensive game in a long time (not including the four interceptions last week against Cincinnati).
- Tulsa Kicking – A perfect day for Glover, going 2-2 in field goals, kicking 36 and 28 yard field goals while going 9-9 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 0 0 0 0 0 42 17 3 7 69
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 6:47 Touchdown W. Oliver, 26 yard run (D. Glover kick) 5:15 Touchdown R. Lewis, 20 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 3:52 Touchdown W. Oliver, 71 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 2:11 Touchdown R. Harper, 6 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 1:26 Touchdown C. Barnes, 6 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 0:29 Touchdown E. Hayden, 45 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) Second Quarter 7:06 Touchdown J. Vaughn, 61 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 6:50 Touchdown E. Silva, 15 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 0:00 Field Goal D. Glover, 36 yard field goal Third Quarter 3:38 Field Goal D. Glover, 28 yard field goal Fourth Quarter 2:38 Touchdown E. Silva, 3 yard run (D. Glover kick)
Game Stats
Memphis Stat Tulsa 0 Score 69 3 First Downs 27 59 Total Offense 684 6 - 1 - 0 Rushes - Yards - TD 51 - 334 - 2 4 - 29 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 14 - 20 - 7 58 Passing Yards 350 2 Times Sacked 1 0 - 10 (0%) 3rd Down Conversion 4 - 6 (66%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 - 0 (0%) Red Zone - TD - FG 7 - 5 - 2 (100%) 2 Turnovers 0 1 Fumbles Lost 0 1 Intercepted 0 0 Punt Return Yards 60 94 Kick Return Yards 0 153 Total Yards 744 10 – 45.1 Punts - Average 1 - 34.0 0 - 0 Penalties 0 - 0 8:31 Time of Possession 27:29
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact 21+ points per game in each season 46 Win 10 games in one season 7 3300+ passing yards each season 65% pass completions over the entire contract 60% Win 6 games in one season 15+ rushing TD in each season 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3400+ total offensive yards each season
Job Security Status
80%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-03-2013 at 03:58 PM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, the upset of the week goes to San Diego State, who shocked the college football world by knocking off #1 Penn State 27-22, scoring the game-winning touchdown with no time remaining. #2 Virginia Tech staked their claim at the top ranking with a 31-0 drubbing of Boston College. #3 Arkansas held off Ole Miss 38-21.
#4 Nebraska kept their title hopes alive with a 35-10 win over Illinois. The game of the week saw #5 Auburn win a shootout over #11 LSU, 45-38. Northwestern shocked #6 Iowa 24-17. #7 Georgia topped Florida 35-7. #9 Ohio State kept up their winning ways with a 38-14 win over Michigan State. #12 Tennessee took South Carolina behind the woodshed for a 55-14 thumping. #13 Texas fought off Kansas State 30-24.
#14 Notre Dame held on to barely beat Stanford 35-33. #15 Miami roughed up Pittsburgh 45-21. #19 Oklahoma escaped Iowa State 36-31. #21 SMU escaped Tulane 38-31. #22 Oklahoma State whooped Kansas 37-7. Texas State stunned #23 Troy 28-23, ruining the Trojans perfect record. #24 Tulsa thrashed Memphis 69-0. #25 Cincinnati lost for the second week in a row, getting upset by Connecticut 33-28.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 7-1 (4-0 C-USA) with a 48-35 win over MTSU. Jaymo, Arizona State improves to 3-5 (2-3 Pac-12) with a 49-21 ass whooping of UCLA. Mors, #16 West Virginia remains 6-2 (4-1 Big 12) with a bye week. Jeff, #9 Ohio State improves to 7-2 (5-0 Big Ten) with a 38-14 win over Michigan State. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State improves to 5-3 (3-0 Sun Belt) with a 41-0 thrashing of Massachusetts.
In Big East action, #24 Tulsa bitch slaps Memphis 69-0, Connecticut upsets #25 Cincinnati 33-28, #21 SMU gets a 38-31 win over Tulane, Temple edges out Navy 28-25, South Florida upsets East Carolina 28-14 and Boise State beats Central Florida 41-24.
With those results, looking at the current standings, in the East Division, Temple (3-1) claims the top spot, followed by South Florida (3-2). After that it's a traffic jam with Central Florida, Connecticut and East Carolina tied (all 2-3), followed by Navy (2-4) bringing up the rear. In the West Division, Houston and Tulsa are tied (both 4-0), followed closely behind by SMU (3-1). After that sits Cincinnati and Tulane (both 1-3) and Memphis (0-4).
Looking at undefeated teams left, #1 Penn State and #23 Troy lost this week, dropping our number of undefeated teams to 3. #2 Virginia Tech (8-0), #3 Arkansas (9-0) and #20 Houston (8-0) all remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 3 teams still looking for their first win: Akron (0-8), Buffalo (0-8) and Utah State (0-8).
Teams getting their first win this week were: None.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Virginia Tech (41 first place votes) climbs one to become the new #1 team, Arkansas (20 votes) climbs one to #2, Auburn jumps two to #3, Nebraska remains #4 and Georgia climbs two to #5. NC State moves up two to #6, Ohio State jumps two to #7, Penn State drops seven to #8, Alabama moves up one to #9 and Tennessee jumps two to #10. Texas jumps two to #11, Notre Dame climbs two to #12, Miami moves up two to #13, Houston leaps six to #14 and West Virginia climbs one to #15. Oregon moves up one to #16, Virginia climbs one to #17, LSU drops seven to #18, Oklahoma remains #19 and SMU climbs one to #20. Iowa plummets fifteen spots to #21, Oklahoma State remains #22, San Diego State enters the poll at #23, Tulsa remains #24 and USC (286 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Troy (from #23) and Cincinnati (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Nevada (110 points) is #26, followed by Georgia Tech (83), Troy (76), Toledo (29) and Utah (17) to round out the Top 30.
Looking at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Arkansas (38 first place votes) climbs one to become the new #1 team, Virginia Tech (27 votes) jumps one to #2, Nebraska climbs one to #3, Auburn jumps three to #4 and Alabama remains #5. Georgia climbs two to #6, Ohio State jumps two to #7, Penn State drops seven to #8, NC State moves up two to #9 and Tennessee climbs two to #10. Notre Dame jumps two to #11, Oklahoma climbs two to #12, Texas moves up two to #13, Houston leaps six to #14 and Miami climbs one to #15. West Virginia moves up one to #16, Oregon climbs one to #17, LSU drops eight to #18, Virginia remains #19 and San Diego State enters the poll at #20. Oklahoma State remains #21, SMU remains #22, Iowa plummets seventeen spots to #23, Tulsa remains #24 and USC (339 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Texas Tech (from #23) and Troy (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Georgia Tech (210 points) is #26, followed by Utah (154), Nevada (152), Toledo (135) and Troy (128) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include Louisville (70), Arkansas State (67) and TCU (44).
In the new BCS rankings #1 Arkansas (0.997), #2 Virginia Tech (0.997), #3 Nebraska (0.986), #4 Auburn (0.986), #5 Georgia (0.976), #6 Ohio State (0.967), #7 Alabama (0.967), #8 Penn State (0.962), #9 NC State (0.958) and #10 Tennessee (0.951).
Taking a look at the Heisman race, Auburn QB J.J. Thomas is #1 (LW: #1),Arkansas QB John Rivera is #2 (LW: #4),Notre Dame QB J.R. White is #3 (LW: #3), Georgia HB Justin Jones is #4 (LW: #5) and Fresno State HB Eric Tyson is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off of the Heisman Watch list this week was Iowa QB Drew Frederick (LW: #2).
Tulane is done. The game summary will be posted here in a short bit.
One note. Boy is the Top 25 gonna get shaken up this week. I completely forgot until I was already in the Tulane game, but there are a plethora of battles this week.
#1 Virginia Tech at #13 Miami, FL, #10 Tennessee at #2 Arkansas, 4-4 Florida State at #6 NC State, #8 Penn State at #7 Ohio State, #18 LSU at #9 Alabama, #19 Oklahoma at #15 West Virginia, 5-4 Cal at #16 Oregon and #20 SMU at 5-3 Cincinnati just to name some. And based on the in-game updates during the Tulane game, there are some upsets and some last second wins this week.
Game Nine
#24
Game Notes
--- Fresh off our dominating win over Memphis, it was time to continue the tour of punishment with a trip to Tulane, a team quite possibly worse than the Tigers. Tulane’s only good area was passing offense, ranked #38 in the nation with 244.0 yards/game. Other than that, their rushing offense was poor, their defense overall was just pathetic. Rushing defense was their highest defensive category, coming in at #81 nationally, giving up 189.5 yards/game. Passing defense and total defense were both ranked in the hundreds.
While this looked to be a game that we could practically sleepwalk through, the Green Wave was probably hoping for that. With trap game written all over this one, we had to come out strong and rack up points early to avoid the potential trap. The Green Wave couldn’t even get any love in the media, as one publication this week declared Tulane one of the worst teams in college football. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A touchback on the opening kickoff got Tulane underway from their 25 yard line. Tulane’s opening drive lasted all of one play, as the first down pass attempt by Randy Palmer was intercepted by cornerback Jonathan Chambers, giving us the ball at Tulane’s 30 yard line, just 13 seconds into the contest.
Will Oliver got our offense drive started with a three yard rush, the Tulane defense not about to just hand us free yards. Another rush by Oliver resulted in a two yard gain to leave third and 5. Dropping back to pass on third down, Brad Stephens hit Joe Vaughn along the left sideline on an out route, Vaughn catching the pass near the ten and racing towards the goal line, the cornerback saving the touchdown with a tackle from behind at the one yard line for a 24 yard gain on the play, setting us up with first and goal from the one. Oliver took the handoff on first down and plowed into the end zone standing up for a one yard touchdown, giving us an early 7-0 lead with 7:30 left in the first quarter.
It almost went from bad to worse for the Green Wave, as a fumble on the kickoff return nearly resulted in another turnover, cornerback Lenny Hollins managing to dive on top of the ball before our players could, saving Tulane and starting their drive at their 22 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Palmer was finally able to make a completion, finding Wayne Temple over the middle for a 22 yard gain and a first down at the 45 yard line. A deep bomb to Brad Williams went for a gain of 38 yards and Tulane was knocking on the door from our 17 yard line. Our defense proved nearly helpless against the Green Wave passing game, as Palmer completed his third straight pass, this time to Tyler Scott for 13 yards to set up first and goal at our four yard line. A first down rush by Antwaun Pope picked up four yards, the defense managing to bring him down just shy of the goal line, leaving second and goal, the ball just inches away from the end zone. Despite needing less than half a yard, Pope couldn’t get the job done, as the defense blitzed through and tackled him for a three yard loss to leave third and goal at the three yard line. Third time would prove to be the charm however as Pope finally managed to punch it in for a three yard touchdown, tying the game up at 7-7 with 5:54 left in the first quarter.
No return on the following kickoff started us from our 25 yard line, looking to recapture the lead. Oliver started the drive with four yards on the ground. Receiving the handoff on second down, Oliver was able to break out of a tackle at the line of scrimmage and spin away from a second tackle attempt on his way to a gain of 9 yards and a first down at the 38. Despite the slow start on the ground, Oliver was finally starting to find holes in the defense, rushing for a 5 yard gain, followed by a pickup of 11 yards to move the chains to the Tulane 46 yard line. Eric Silva came in on first down, spinning his way off a defender after crossing the line of scrimmage but unable to regain his balance on the play, his momentum however carried him forward for a 7 yard gain to leave second and three, which Oliver would cover with a 6 yard rush to give us a first down at the 33 yard line. Looking to catch the defense cheating, we came out with play action pass on first down, the pass to Robert Harper good for a 24 yard gain to give us first and goal from the 8 yard line. Turning back to the running game, Oliver never had a chance for a serious gain as he was quickly overwhelmed by defenders, picking up one yard on the play. Coming out in the shotgun on second down, Stephens dumped off a quick pass to Eric Hayden at the goal line, completed for a 7 yard touchdown to give us a 14-7 lead with 2:26 remaining in the first quarter.
A 19 yard kickoff return got Tulane back on the field at their 20 yard line. It was a bit of a rough start to this drive as Pope was tackled for a three yard loss on the first play. He would make up those lost yards with a 7 yard rush to leave the Green Wave with third and 6. This time however, Tulane wouldn’t find the end zone as the third down pass from Palmer was incomplete, bringing out the punt team on fourth down. A fair catch by Hayden on the 47 yard punt gave us the ball at our 29 yard line.
Oliver was able to pick up four yards on the first down carry, followed by a four yard gain to leave third and two. Keeping the rock in Oliver’s hands, he was able to pick up the first down, busting through a large gap for a 13 yard gain to move the chains to the 49 yard line. A 6 yard rush by Silva would be final play as the clock ran out, bringing the first quarter to an end, our lead 14-7.
Opening up the second quarter, we faced second and four from the Tulane 45 yard line. Oliver was able to sneak through a hole and get a downfield block on his way to a 12 yard gain and a new set of downs at the 33. The defense was more than ready for us on first down, Oliver quickly brought down for a loss of one yard on the play. Lining up under center on second down, Stephens dropped back to pass, finding Carl Barnes over the middle for a 14 yard pickup and a first down at the 20. Looking to keep the air assault going, Stephens hit Hayden on a comeback route for a gain of 13 yards, giving us first and goal at the 7 yard line. Handing the ball off to Oliver on first down, he was able to drive forward for a gain of four yards, followed by Silva taking the ball and plowing through the line around the right tackle for a three yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 21-7 with 7:03 left in the first half.
An 18 yard kickoff return gave Tulane the ball at their 18 yard line, the Green Wave looking to close up the gap. Palmer came out on-target this time around, hitting Williams for a 7 yard gain, followed by an 11 yard strike to Scott to get a quick first down at the 36 yard line. It would all be for naught as Pope took the first down handoff, fighting his way towards the 45 yard line, before he was stripped of the ball, middle linebacker Anthony Clement recovering the fumble and giving us back possession at the Tulane 44 yard line.
Heading back out on offense after the recovered fumble, Oliver took the ball on first down for a gain of 6 yards, followed by a three yard rush to leave third and one. Oliver would get the first down and then some, rushing for 6 yards to move the chains to the 29 yard line. Stephens tried to thread a ball downfield to Hayden, but the safety was able to step up in front of a diving Hayden and knock the ball down, leaving second down. Throwing up a pass over the head of the middle linebacker, Ryan Lewis was able to get open after the safety moved outside to cover Vaughn, Lewis catching the pass inside the 10 and finally brought down at the one yard line for a 28 yard gain to give us first and goal. Oliver had nowhere to run on first down as five different defender burst through the line, tackling him for a one yard loss to push us back to the two. Oliver tried to punch it in again, but was again instantly swarmed and tackled for no gain to leave third and goal at the two. Looking to spread out the defense on third down, we came out in shotgun, Stephens keeping the ball himself on a QB power play, but despite being able to turn the corner around the right tackle, the defense was able to bring him down for no gain, leaving us stranded at the two yard line. The 19 yard field goal by Derek Glover was good, expanding our lead to 24-7 with 3:21 left until halftime.
A touchback on the kickoff gave Tulane possession at their 25 yard line. Palmer again got the Green Wave off to a positive start, connecting with Scott for 19 yards and a first down at the 44 yard line. It would all go downhill from there however, as an incomplete pass intended for Matt McNeal was then followed with an interception by cornerback Andy Malone, giving us back the ball at our 44 yard line with 2:54 remaining.
Handing the ball off to Oliver on first down, he managed to gain four yards on the play. Coming out on shotgun on second down, Stephens found Vaughn for an 18 yard gain, moving the chains to the Tulane 34 yard line. The play didn’t come without a price though, as Vaughn was sidelined for the rest of the game with a strained back. A pass over the middle to Silva went for 7 yards, before the middle linebacker broke up a pass intended for Jason Johnson to leave third and three. Putting our drive into the hands of Oliver, he was brought down for no gain by the blitzing middle linebacker, bringing our drive to an end. The 43 yard field goal by Glover was good to give us a 27-7 lead with 1:19 left before halftime.
A 17 yard kickoff return set Tulane up at their 17 yard line. The Green Wave would end up getting a free gift on first down, a pass interference penalty gave Tulane 15 free yards and a first down at the 32 yard line, 1:05 left. After a dropped pass by Scott, Palmer was able to hook up with Temple for 24 yards, moving the chains to our 43 yard line, Tulane taking their first timeout with 55 seconds to go. After a dropped ball by Temple, Palmer hit Scott down the right sideline for a gain of 12 yards, moving the ball to our 31 yard line, their second timeout called with 44 seconds remaining. Following an incomplete pass on first down, Palmer was able to find Scott again, this time for a 28 yard gain over the middle to give Tulane first and goal at our three yard line, 36 seconds to go. Pope would only need one play to punch it in on the ground for a three yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 27-14 with 28 seconds left until halftime.
A touchback on the kickoff gave us the ball at our 25 yard line, 20 seconds remaining. With all three timeout, we decided to take one shot deep over the middle, Johnson managing to snag the ball off the shoulder pads of the safety for a 33 yard gain to give us first down at the Tulane 42. Calling timeout with 14 seconds left, we looked to at least move into field goal range. The first down pass intended for Johnson was broken up, leaving second down with 11 seconds to go. A third pass to Johnson on an out route was complete for a 14 yard gain, giving us a first down at the 29 yard line, just 6 seconds left. The 46 yard field goal by Glover was good, increasing our lead to 30-14 with two seconds remaining.
A touchback on the kickoff ran the final seconds off the clock, taking us into halftime with a 30-14 lead.
Opening up the second half, a 22 yard return by Hayden got us started from our 24 yard line to begin the third quarter. Oliver took the ball on first down, able to break free from a tackle on his way to a 7 yard gain. Keeping the ball with Oliver on second down, he was able to pick up five yards on the play, moving the chains to the 35 yard line. Letting Oliver continue to do his thing, he rushed for 10 yards on the first down carry, held just short of the marker to leave second and inches. Silva would come in on second down for a two yard gain to pick up the first down at the 47 yard line. Running a play action pass on first down, Stephens was just barely able to avoid being sacked and fired off a pass to Hayden, who, with a perfectly timed cutback, was in position to haul in the pass for a 19 yard gain and a first down at the Tulane 34 yard line. Taking a shot at the power option on first down, Stephens ended up keeping the ball as he turned the corner, picking up 7 yards on the play. Tossing the ball the opposite way on second down, Oliver managed to gain 5 yards and a first down at the 22 yard line. Pulling out a screen pass on first down, the throw to Hayden was blown up for a three yard loss. Even worse left guard Kyle Alford was knocked out of the game with a strained tricep, leaving our offense staggering from the blow. Harper would get us back on track though with a 12 yard reception to leave third and inches at the 12. Oliver took the handoff, but the outside linebacker blitzed through and blew up the play, tackling Oliver for a one yard loss to leave fourth and one at the 13. The 30 yard field goal by Glover was good, increasing our lead to 33-14 with 4:25 left in the third quarter.
No return on the kickoff gave Tulane the ball at their 25 yard line. Palmer got the drive started with a three yard dump pass to McNeal, followed by a 13 yard completion to Williams for a first down at the 41 yard line. Palmer then took the ball on the ground on first down, rushing for 8 yards on the play. Palmer would continue to do all the work himself, getting 5 yards on the ground on second down to move the chains to our 46 yard line. The drive started to unravel from there however, as a dropped pass by Temple was followed by Palmer being sacked for a three yard loss, leaving Tulane facing third and 13. A 5 yard completion to Temple wouldn’t be enough as Tulane was left with fourth and 8 after the play. Tulane opted to punt the ball away, the kick sailing into the end zone for a touchback to set us up at our 20 yard line.
Oliver took the first down handoff, picking up 5 yards on the play, followed by a gain of 7 to get the first down at the 32 yard line. Throwing up a bomb down the left sideline to Lewis, he was able to haul in the pass, but the faster safety was able to chase him down, tripping him up at the Tulane 15 yard line for a 53 yard play. Receiving the ball on first down, Silva was only able to get one yard on the play, before being stood up for no gain to leave third and 9. Throwing a quick pass to Barnes, he fought his way through two defenders to the first down line for 9 yard gain, but the refs marked him short, leaving us with fourth and inches at the 5 yard line. Settling for another field goal, the 22 yard kick by Glover was good, increasing our lead to 36-14 with 42 seconds left in the third quarter.
No return on the kickoff got Tulane back on the field at their 25 yard line. It was a poor start for the Green Wave, as Scott dropped the ball on a first down pass, followed by a false start penalty that left Tulane facing second and 15. A 5 yard rush by Pope and an incomplete pass later, Tulane was punting away on fourth and 10. A fair catch by Hayden on the 42 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 33 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down for a 10 yard gain and a quick first down at the 43 yard line. That would be the last play as the clock hit all zeroes, bringing the third quarter to an end, our lead 36-14.
Opening up the fourth quarter, Oliver picked up where he left off with a 6 yard rush, before being stood up for a one yard gain to leave third and three. Putting the ball into the hands of Silva, he was just barely able to get four yards on the play, moving the chains to the Tulane 46 yard line. Oliver came back into the game on first down, breaking off a 5 yard rush on the play, followed by a one yard rush by Silva. We would get a major helping hand on the play by the defense however, as a facemask penalty on middle linebacker Byron Reed gave us 15 free yards and a first down at the Tulane 26 yard line. Silva was able to avoid a tackle in the backfield on first down, picking up four yards on the carry, followed by a second four yard gain to set up third and two. Silva wouldn’t be able to get the job done, tackled for a one yard loss to leave fourth and three from the 18. The 35 yard field goal by Glover was good, giving us a 39-14 lead with 6:02 left in the game. That field goal also gave Glover the record for most field goals in a game, with 6 successful kicks.
A 15 yard kickoff return got Tulane back in action at their 22 yard line, looking to make up a 25 point deficit with little time. It wasn’t the greatest of starts to the drive as Temple dropped the first down pass, but he would recover on second down and catch the ball from Palmer for a 19 yard gain and a first down at the 41. The drive would end up stalling out there as three straight incomplete passes intended for Scott left the Green Wave treading water. A 9 yard return on the 49 yard punt gave us the ball at our 18 yard line, just 5:16 left on the clock and looking to put this one away.
Oliver got the drive started with a three yard rush, followed by a gain of four to leave third and three. Oliver would try to escape outside the left tackle on third down, but was tripped up from behind before he could cross the first down line, only gaining one yard on the play and leaving us punting on fourth and two. A three yard return on the 46 yard punt gave Tulane the ball at their 31 yard line, 4:03 remaining.
This time the Green Wave were able to get off to a positive start, as Palmer hit Temple for a 17 yard strike and a new set of downs at the 47 yard line. After an incomplete pass, Palmer finally connected with Scott for 11 yards, moving the chains to our 42. After another incomplete pass on first down, Palmer was forced to scramble to avoid a sack, picking up four yards on the play to leave third and 6. That would turn into fourth and 6 as Palmer’s pass intended for Temple sailed long and out of bounds. The Green Wave attempted to go for it on fourth down, the pass intended for Pope broken up at the last moment by Chambers, forcing the turnover on downs at our 37 yard line with 3:03 remaining.
Taking over after the turnover on downs, it was time to chew up some clock, just three minutes away from victory. The Tulane defense wasn’t ready to give up yet, tackling Oliver for a one yard loss on the first down handoff. Oliver still could find no joy on the ground this drive, only getting two yards on the next play to leave us facing third and 9 with 2:06 left on the clock. Silva could only get one yard on the third down play, leaving us punting on fourth and 8 with 1:29 left to play, but the clock still running as Tulane accepted defeat and didn’t bother to use one of their three timeouts. A 6 yard return on the 39 yard punt left Tulane starting their drive at their 27 yard line, 1:11 left to play.
Despite the guaranteed loss, the Green Wave offense wasn’t about to just roll over however, as Palmer still came out firing, connecting with Scott for a 21 yard gain and a first down at the 48 yard line. Pope would try to gain some yards on the ground, but a blitz by the defense resulted in Pope being tackled for a loss of four yards, Tulane calling their first timeout with 58 seconds to go. Two incomplete passes intended for Temple left the Tulane offense sitting with fourth and 14 from their 44 yard line. Finally raising the white flag, Tulane punted away, no return on the 45 yard kick giving us the ball at our 11 yard line with 45 seconds to go.
Stephens would drop to a knee two times to run the clock out and seal the 39-14 victory.
With the win, we improve to 8-1, 5-0 in Big East action. With the loss, Tulane falls to 2-7, 1-4 in Big East play. Up next, it’s back on the road with a huge visit to #6 Houston. The Cougars enter the game 9-0, 5-0 in Big East action. Houston started their year with a 49-0 thrashing of FCS East, then got a 35-13 win at Cal, won 41-28 at Louisiana-Monroe, beat Central Florida 38-24, beat Connecticut 38-31, won 27-24 at South Florida, whooped Stanford 49-18, got a big 38-17 win at #17 SMU and demolished Memphis 52-14.
Final Score
#2414
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - Another near perfect day for Stephens, going 15-18 for 272 yards and one touchdown. Rushing, it was the Oliver show, as he ended with 163 yards and one touchdown on 39 carries. Silva had 33 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. Receiving, Lewis led the way with 81 yard on two receptions. Next was Vaughn, in limited play, with 42 yards on two receptions. Hayden had 36 yards and a touchdown on four catches. In all, seven receivers caught a pass today, six ended with double digit yards, Hayden was the only one to score a touchdown.
Tulsa Defense – Hit and miss today. Had a lot of great moments, including two interceptions and a recovered fumble. But they also let Tulane drive for a touchdown twice in the first half and let Tulane build up steam on offense numerous times throughout the game. Definitely a more positive than negative game for the defense, but against even a mediocre team, the defense's play today could have killed us.
Tulsa Kicking – A career, and perfect, day for Glover, ending the game going a record 6-6 in field goals, connecting on kicks from 19, 43, 46, 30, 22 and 35 yards out. He also went 3-3 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 14 16 6 3 39 7 7 0 0 14
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 7:30 Touchdown W. Oliver, 2 yard run (D. Glover kick) 5:54 Touchdown A. Pope, 2 yard run (A. Robinson kick) TIED 7-7 2:26 Touchdown E. Hayden, 7 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) Second Quarter 7:03 Touchdown E. Silva, 4 yard run (D. Glover kick) 3:21 Field Goal D. Glover, 19 yard field goal 1:19 Field Goal D. Glover, 43 yard field goal 0:28 Touchdown A. Pope, 3 yard run (A. Robinson kick) 0:02 Field Goal D. Glover, 46 yard field goal Third Quarter 4:25 Field Goal D. Glover, 30 yard field goal 0:42 Field Goal D. Glover, 22 yard field goal Fourth Quarter 6:02 Field Goal D. Glover, 35 yard field goal
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Tulane 39 Score 14 23 First Downs 15 471 Total Offense 300 54 - 199 - 2 Rushes - Yards - TD 11 - 30 - 2 15 - 18 - 1 Comp - Att - TD 17 - 38 - 0 272 Passing Yards 270 0 Times Sacked 1 4 - 11 (36%) 3rd Down Conversion 1 - 7 (14%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 1 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 7 - 3 - 4 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 4 - 2 - 0 (50%) 0 Turnovers 3 0 Fumbles Lost 1 0 Intercepted 2 9 Punt Return Yards 9 22 Kick Return Yards 90 502 Total Yards 399 2 – 42.5 Punts - Average 5 - 45.8 1 - 15 Penalties 2 - 20 23:45 Time of Possession 12:15
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact 21+ points per game in each season 45 Win 10 games in one season 8 3300+ passing yards each season 65% pass completions over the entire contract 60% Win 6 games in one season 15+ rushing TD in each season 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3400+ total offensive yards each season
Job Security Status
80%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-04-2013 at 07:39 PM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Virginia Tech held onto their top spot with a 42-17 thumping of #13 Miami. #2 Arkansas avoided disaster with a 38-17 win over #10 Tennessee. #3 Auburn kept up their winning streak with a 52-17 dismantling of Texas A&M. South Carolina scores the upset of the week, knocking off #5 Georgia 31-30, scoring 17 points in the fourth quarter, including a game-winning 22 yard field goal with 56 seconds left.
Right behind South Carolina, Florida State went on the road and knocked off #6 NC State, 34-23. #7 Ohio State pulls out a 34-31 win over #8 Penn State, handing the Nittany Lions their second straight defeat after a 6-0 start. #19 Oklahoma smoked #15 West Virginia 51-17. #18 LSU goes on the road and upsets #9 Alabama, 38-31. LSU outscored Alabama 17-0 in the fourth quarter and 31-7 in the entire second half, pulling ahead for the win on a 54 yard touchdown pass with 1:50 left to play.
#11 Texas whooped Baylor 47-17. #12 Notre Dame had their way with Navy, 55-28. #14 Houston rolled Memphis 52-14. #16 Oregon got a 49-28 win over Cal. #17 Virginia blanked Pittsburgh 38-0. #20 SMU rolled to a 38-19 win over Cincinnati. Purdue shocked #21 Iowa 38-24. #22 Oklahoma State got an easy win over Kansas State, 45-24. #24 Tulsa beat Tulane 39-14 and #25 USC barely escapes Stanford 38-34. The Trojans had to score twice in the final three minutes, including a returned interception with 1:43 left to put them up.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 8-1 (5-0 C-USA) after escaping with a 39-36 overtime win over Florida Atlantic. Jaymo, Arizona State drops to 3-6 (2-4 Pac-12) with a 46-37 loss to Oregon State. Mors, #15 West Virginia falls to 6-3 (4-2 Big 12) with a 51-17 violation from #19 Oklahoma. Jeff, #7 Ohio State improves to 8-2 (6-0 Big Ten) with a 34-31 win over #8 Penn State. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State improves to 6-3 (4-0 Sun Belt), edging out BYU 33-28.
In Big East action, #24 Tulsa beats Tulane 39-14, #14 Houston topped Memphis 52-14, #20 SMU took down Cincinnati 38-19, Temple beat East Carolina 35-16, Colorado State edged out South Florida 38-35 in overtime and Notre Dame whooped Navy 55-28.
With those results, looking at the current standings, in the East Division, Temple (4-1) claims the top spot, followed by South Florida (3-2). After that it's a traffic jam with Central Florida and Connecticut (both 2-3), followed by East Carolina and Navy (both 2-4) bringing up the rear. In the West Division, Houston and Tulsa are tied (both 5-0), followed closely behind by SMU (4-1). After that sits Cincinnati and Tulane (both 1-4) and Memphis (0-5).
That sets up the big showdown next week between Houston and Tulsa.
Looking at undefeated teams left, no one lost this week, leaving our number of undefeated teams at 3. #1 Virginia Tech (9-0), #2 Arkansas (10-0) and #14 Houston (9-0) all remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 3 teams still looking for their first win: Akron (0-9), Buffalo (0-9) and Utah State (0-8).
Teams getting their first win this week were: None.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Virginia Tech (35 first place votes) remains #1, Arkansas (25 votes) remains #2, Auburn remains #3, Nebraska remains #4 and Ohio State jumps two to #5. Houston (1 vote) leaps eight to #6, Texas jumps four to #7, Notre Dame climbs four to #8, Penn State drops one to #9 and LSU vaults eight to #10. Oregon climbs five to #11, Oklahoma leaps seven to #12, Virginia climbs four to #13, Tennessee drops four to #14 and Alabama falls six to #15. NC State plummets ten to #16, SMU climbs three to #17, Miami falls five to #18, Oklahoma State jumps three to #19 and Georgia drops fifteen to #20. San Diego State climbs two to #21, Tulsa jumps two to #22, West Virginia falls eight to #23, USC climbs one to #24 and Georgia Tech (312 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Iowa (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Toledo (224 points) is #26, followed by Utah (172), Arkansas State (75), Hawaii (55) and Eastern Michigan (41) to round out the Top 30.
Looking at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Arkansas (44 first place votes) remains #1, Virginia Tech (21 votes) remains #2, Nebraska remains #3, Auburn remains #4 and Ohio State climbs two to #5. Houston leaps eight to #6, Notre Dame jumps four to #7, LSU vaults ten to #8, Texas moves up four to #9 and Oklahoma jumps two to #10. Penn State falls three to #11, Alabama drops seven to #12, Oregon climbs four to #13, Tennessee falls four to #14 and Virginia jumps four to #15. NC State drops seven to #16, San Diego State climbs three to #17, Oklahoma State jumps three to #18, SMU moves up three to #19 and Miami drops five to #20. Georgia plummets fifteen to #21, Tulsa climbs two to #22, USC jumps two to #23, West Virginia falls eight to #24 and Georgia Tech (373 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Iowa (from #23). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Utah (287 points) was #26, followed by Toledo (254), Arkansas State (102), TCU (57) and Missouri (26) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week is Eastern Michigan (22).
In the new BCS rankings #1 Arkansas (0.997), #2 Virginia Tech (0.997), #3 Nebraska (0.986), #4 Auburn (0.986), #5 Ohio State (0.978), #6 Houston (0.969), #7 Texas (0.961), #8 LSU (0.957), #9 Notre Dame (0.956) and #10 Penn State (0.951).
Taking a look at the Heisman race, Auburn QB J.J. Thomas is #1 (LW: #1), Fresno State HB Eric Tyson is #2 (LW: #5), Notre Dame QB J.R. White is #3 (LW: #3), Arkansas QB John Rivera is #4 (LW: #2), and Virginia Tech QB Tony Lewis is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off of the Heisman Watch list this week was Georgia HB Justin Jones (LW: #4).
Just hit the end of the first quarter of the Houston game, and this is one of the weirdest starts to a game I have had in NCAA '13. If the rest of the game ends up like this first quarter, this could be a really damn interesting result, and write-up.
Game Ten
#22
Game Notes
--- Coming off our win over Tulane, it was time for our newest candidate for toughest game of the season, as we headed back on the road to take on hated rivals, #6 Houston. The Cougars appeared on paper to be more than a handful, ranked #8 nationally in points per game (40.7 points/game), #9 in total offense (479.5 yards/game), #44 in rush offense (197.8 yards/game), #10 in pass offense (281.6 yards/game), #38 in total defense (366.6 yards/game), #2 in rush defense (115.0 yards/game) and #8 in turnover differential with +8.
The only weakness in Houston’s game was their pass defense, where they ranked a surprising #104 nationally, giving up 251.6 yards/game. If we could get our passing offense going and our defense could actually slow them down a little bit through the air, we would have a chance. But if our defense rolled over and played dead, we were screwed. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
An 18 yard kickoff return gave Houston the ball at their 17 yard line to start the game. It was already looking like a long day ahead as Lawrence Bryan took the ball on first down, rushing for 8 yards on the play, followed by a 6 yard gain to get a first down at the 31 yard line. The Cougars would peter out on offense however as Bryan managed only one yard on first down, with an incomplete pass and a three yard rush by Larry Carey to follow, bringing out the punt team on fourth and 6. A fair catch on the 48 yard punt got our offense on the field at our 17 yard line, already a minor victory won.
Taking a shot at that #2 rush defense, Will Oliver received the handoff on first down, nearly breaking free on the play, the safety managing to bring him down for only an 11 yard gain, but we picked up the early first down nonetheless at our 28. The defense was more than ready for us on the next play, tackling Oliver for only one yard, followed by a second one yard gain to leave third and 8. Coming out in play action pass on third down, Eric Silva would keep us alive, hauling in the pass from Brad Stephens for a 10 yard pickup and a first down at the 40 yard line. Keeping with the pass attack, we came out in shotgun on first down, Stephens hitting Eric Hayden for a gain of 11 yards and a new set of downs at the Houston 48. Stephens dropped back on first down, but was hit as he threw on the play, the ball landing just feet away incomplete to bring up second down. The second down pass intended for Joe Vaughn ended up incomplete, and we were left with third down as our offense suddenly faceplanted into a brick wall. A quick pass to Ryan Lewis to avoid the sack would end up batted away by the cornerback, and our drive came to a sudden halt. We would still win another minor victory however, as no return on the 46 yard punt left Houston buried deep, starting from their two yard line.
Our defense would come through in a huge way on first down, tackling Bryan in the end zone and striking first blood by way of a safety to give us a 2-0 lead with 5:42 left in the first quarter. A 25 yard return by Jason Johnson on the 58 yard safety punt got us back on the field at our 36 yard line.
Taking another chance on the ground, Oliver received the handoff on first down, but was quickly swallowed up for a two yard gain. Going back to the air, Stephens dropped back from under center, chucking up a ball over the head of the cornerback and into the hands of a jumping Vaughn. The cornerback tried to wrap onto the legs of Vaughn as he fell to the turf, but Vaughn was able to break free, and with no other defenders nearby, took it all the way to the house for a 62 yard touchdown pass, giving us a 9-0 lead with 4:53 left in the first quarter as the momentum swung entirely in our favor.
A 25 yard kickoff return got Houston back in action at their 24 yard line, the Cougars looking to chop our lead down. This time Houston would get back off to a positive start, as Carey connected with Thomas Jones for a 7 yard completion, followed by a 6 yard rush by Bryan to get the first down at the 37. The drive would stall out there however as three straight incomplete passes left the punt team coming back out. We stick another dagger into the heart of the Cougars as Hayden received the 50 yard punt at our 12 yard line, proceeding to return the punt all the way back for an 88 yard touchdown to pile onto our lead. Derek Glover would miss the extra point, leaving our lead 15-0 with 3:33 left in the first quarter.
An 18 yard kickoff return gave Houston the ball at their 18 yard line, still in alright shape, all things considered. Bryan started the drive with a pair of rushes for gains of 8 and four yards, picking up a quick first down at the 30 yard line. After an incomplete pass, Carey was finally able to get another completion, hitting Gordon Webb for 13 yards and a first down at the 43. A second pass to Webb was also complete, going for 12 yards to move the chains to our 45 yard line. After a four yard rush by Bryan, an incomplete pass intended for Webb again left the Cougars teetering on the brink of their drive crashing to a halt, but a third down pass to Bryan went for a gain of 10 yard to get the first down at our 30 yard line. Keeping the air assault going, Carey connected with Brock Benjamin for 9 yards, followed by a 7 yard pass to Corey Gibson to set up first down at our 14 yard line. Bryan tried to pick up some yards on the ground on first down, but was quickly brought down for a loss of two yards, followed by a four yard rush by Webb to leave third and 8 at the 12. Houston would finally get on the board as Carey threw up a pass into the end zone, Chris Washington snagging down the ball for a 12 yard touchdown to cut our lead down to 15-7 with 48 seconds left in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got us back in action at our 25 yard line. Tossing up a rainbow over the cornerback and into the hands of Carl Barnes, the pass from Stephens was complete for a 14 yard gain, Barnes’ momentum carrying him out of bounds at the 39 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on first down, Stephens rifled a ball between the safety and cornerback to Vaughn, who was able to turn up the field and leave multiple defenders diving at his dust, before finally getting tripped up by a shoestring tackle for a 46 yard gain, setting us up with first down from the Houston 15 yard line. Trying to fire in a pass to Johnson on first down, the throw from Stephens was batted away by the outside linebacker, leaving second down. A quick throw over the middle to Lewis was hauled in a couple feet inside the end zone, good for a 15 yard touchdown to give us a 22-7 lead with one second left in the first quarter.
An 18 yard return on the kickoff would get Houston lined up at their 24 yard line, and bring the first quarter to a close, our, surprising, lead sitting at 22-7, with a whole lot of football still to play.
Opening up the second quarter from their 24 yard line, Bryan got Houston started with a 5 yard rush, followed by a three yard rush by Carey to leave third and two. Carey would keep the ball on third down, but wasn’t able to get the job done, brought down for a one yard gain to bring out the punt team on fourth and one. A 6 yard return by Hayden on the 43 yard punt got us set up from our 30 yard line.
Switching things up, Oliver was able to pick up three yards on the first down carry, followed by a five yard rush to bring up third and two. Putting faith into the hands of Oliver, we gave him the ball on third down, and he didn’t let us down, picking up 7 yards on the play to get the first down at the 45 yard line. Continuing to swing at the mouth of the defense, Oliver picked up four yards on first down, followed by a 7 yard rush by Eric Silva to get the first down at the Houston 44 yard line. Oliver received the handoff on first down, but was quickly brought down for no gain to leave second and long. Lining up under center on second down, Stephens dropped back and fired off a pass to Barnes, but the outside linebacker was able to get his hands on the ball to bat it incomplete and leave third and long. Coming out in shotgun on third down, Stephens was forced to get rid of the ball in a hurry to avoid the sack, finding Lewis for a 14 yard gain to move the chains to the Houston 30 yard line. Launching up a pass to Vaughn in the middle of the zone defense, the pass from Stephens was completed for a 22 yard pickup to give us first and goal at the 8 yard line. Turning back to the ground game, Oliver took the first down handoff up the gut for a four yard gain, followed by a three yard rush by Silva to leave third and goal at the one yard line. Handing the ball off to Oliver on third down, he was driven clear to the sideline by the defense, officially able to get a yard on the play, but ultimately shoved out of bounds by the safety just short of the pylon to leave fourth and goal. Opting for the sure points, we brought out the kicking team, the 18 yard field goal by Derek Glover good to give us a 25-7 lead with 3:51 left until halftime.
No return on the following kickoff got Houston underway from their 25 yard line. A pair of rushes by Bryan gained only two and three yards to leave third and 5, before an incomplete pass from Carey left the Houston offense again stuck in the mud. A 10 yard return by Hayden on the 47 yard punt got us back on the field at our 32 yard line.
Oliver was quickly wrapped up on first down for no gain, the defense still more than ready for our run game. Lining up in shotgun on second down, Stephens tried to thread the needle to Johnson, but safety Caleb Malone was there to intercept the pass for Houston, returning it 8 yards to give the Cougars possession at our 33 yard line.
Taking over after the interception, Houston went right back to the air, trying to make the most of the situation, but the pass from Carey intended for Rashad Fisher was knocked down, our own defense looking to keep Houston stuck in neutral. The Cougars would at least momentarily get the upper hand though as Carey connected with Washington for 12 yards and a first down at the 21. That would be as far as Houston would get however, as three incomplete passes left the Cougars facing fourth down. It would get even worse as a holding penalty on the attempted fourth down conversion pushed Houston back 10 yards, leaving fourth and 20 from the 31. A fourth down pass to Washington was completed, but it only went for 11 yards on the play, as our defense forced the turnover on downs at our 20 yard line.
Back on offense without any damage incurred, we hoped to add some more points before the final 1:39 ran off the clock. Firing up a pass to Hayden, the ball was batted down to leave second down. Looking to hit Lewis on second down, Stephens never got the pass off, sacked for a 7 yard loss to leave third and 17, Houston calling their first timeout with 1:32 to go. Hayden would come through for us on third down, cutting across the middle and hauling in the pass for a 22 yard gain, picking up the first down at the 34 yard line. Trying to throw deep to Lewis, the ball was knocked incomplete and we lined back up on second down. The defense would again level Stephens, sacking him for a 9 yard loss as he could barely drop back in time, leaving third and 19, Houston’s second timeout tacking with 1:02 left. Barely avoiding another sack, the pass intended for Barnes was broken up and we were forced to punt on fourth down. A fair catch on the 49 yard punt gave Houston the ball at their 25 yard line, just 52 seconds left before halftime.
After an incomplete pass on first down intended for Webb, Carey was able to dump off a 5 yard completion to Fisher to leave third and 5. Unfortunately for the Cougars, the third down pass intended for Washington ended up sailing long, and Houston was left facing fourth and 5 at their 30 yard line. A fair catch by Hayden on the 49 yard punt got us back on the field at our 21 yard line, just 26 seconds to go.
Looking to just run out the clock, we handed the ball off to Oliver on first down, picking up 5 yards on the play. Houston took their final timeout, stopping the clock with 16 seconds to go. Giving the ball again to Oliver on second down, disaster would strike, as the ball was stripped from Oliver after a four yard gain, defensive tackle Steve Allen recovering the fumble for Houston at our 30 yard line with 10 seconds to go. The Cougars would need only one play, as Carey threw up a deep pass to Gibson for a 30 yard touchdown, once again chopping our lead down to 25-14 with three seconds left.
No return on the following kickoff ran the final seconds off the clock, taking us into halftime with a 25-14 lead.
Opening up the second half, a 20 yard kickoff return by Johnson gave us the ball at our 25 yard line to start the third quarter. Firing off a pass on first down, Stephens connected with Robert Harper for an 8 yard gain, before a throw behind the line of scrimmage to Oliver resulted in a big 5 yard loss, leaving us with third and 7. Lining up in the shotgun, Oliver was hit as he threw, the ball ruled a fumble. Oliver thankfully was nearby to jump on the ball, the play resulting in an 8 yard loss, to leave us punting on fourth and 15. A fair catch on the 49 yard punt got Houston on the field at their 31 yard line.
Bryan got the drive started with a pair of four yard rushes, before a false start penalty pushed the Cougars back 5 yards to set up third and 7. Carey would come through when needed, connecting with Gibson through the air for a 21 yard pickup and a first down at our 45 yard line. Bryan again took the ball on first and second downs, picking up two yards on the first play, before being tackled for a loss of four yards to again leave Houston in a less than desirable position on third and 12. This time the air gam wouldn’t save them, Carey’s pass intended for Washington falling incomplete to bring out the punt team. The 49 yard punt sailed into the end zone for a touchback, and our offense came out to begin our next drive at our 20 yard line.
Giving the ball to Oliver on first down, we was violently leveled by the middle linebacker, the play resulting in a one yard loss. Coming out in the shotgun on second down, Vaughn was somehow able to come down with the ball in the middle of three Houston defenders, the pass complete for a 17 yard gain and a first down at the 36. Throwing deep to Vaughn on first down, the pass sailed long and overshot everyone to bring up second down. The defense would again continue their efforts to turn Stephens into a piñata, hitting him as he threw, the ball squirting out and landing incomplete to bring up third and long. The third down pass intended for Hayden was batted away by the safety, leaving us punting on fourth down. A fair catch on the 50 yard punt gave Houston the ball at their 13 yard line.
Bryan was able to pick up some decent yards this time around, rushing for a 5 yard gain, followed by a pickup of 8 yards to get the first down at the 26. A two yard rush by Bryan was followed with a carry for a 5 yard gain, leaving third and three, where Carey threw a short pass over the middle to Gibson for a pickup of 5 yards to move the chains to the 38 yard line. Two more rushes by Bryan for gains of 5 and 6 yards gave Houston another set of downs at the 49. Turning back to the air on first down, Carey connected with Fisher for an 11 yard gain and a first down at our 39 yard line, the Cougars building up momentum. A 7 yard rush by Bryan was followed by a 5 yard carry. But instead of first and 10 from the 27, our defense decided to give Houston a helping hand, a 15 yard facemask penalty at the end of the play setting Houston up with first down at our 12 yard line. We would end up saved at the bell as outside linebacker Nick Harrison intercepted Carey on first down, giving us the ball at our 5 yard line.
Taking over after the interception, we now had to do what Houston failed to do in the first quarter, avoid giving up a safety as we lined up at our 5 yard line. Houston was more than eager to bring the house, filling the entire backfield in seconds and tackling Oliver for a three yard loss to leave second and 13 from the two yard line. With the defense thinking pass, Oliver was able to plow up the middle for a 7 yard gain to leave third and 6 at the 9 yard line. Lining up in the shotgun on third down, Stephens fired off a quick pass to a wide open Johnson, but too much oomph on the pass resulted in Johnson not catching the ball until right on top of the sideline, his momentum carrying him unwillingly out of bounds for only a three yard gain, leaving us punting on fourth and three. A four yard return on the 44 yard punt got Houston back on the field at their 47 yard line.
It ended up being a short drive as Carey was forced to scramble on first down, only getting two yards on the play, followed by a three yard rush by Bryan to leave third and 5, where Carey’s pass intended for Gibson was batted incomplete to bring out the punt team. Houston would attempt a fake punt pass, punter Kyle Vinson managing to complete the throw to Lewis Williams for a two yard gain, but it wasn’t enough and Houston turned the ball over on downs at our 46 yard line.
Taking over after the turnover on downs, we put the ball back into the hands of Oliver on first down, but a blitzing outside linebacker left him stood up in the backfield, other defenders crashing in to tackle Oliver for a three yard loss. Coming out in shotgun on second down, Houston would again rough up Stephens, sacking him for an 8 yard loss to leave third and 21. That would be where we’re wrap up the third quarter, our lead still holding at 25-14.
Opening up the fourth quarter facing third and very long, Stephens was able to get the ball off to Lewis, but the cornerback and safety cornered him at midfield for only a 15 yard gain, leaving us punting on fourth and 6. No return on the 44 yard punt got Houston lined up at their 7 yard line.
Realizing time was going to start becoming an issue, Houston decided to use only a single play to further cut into our lead, as Carey threw up a deep bomb to Bryan, who had slipped out of the backfield and into our secondary, Bryan catching the ball, shedding the tackle attempt by the safety, and taking it all the way to the house for a 93 yard touchdown. Houston elected to go for the two point conversion, but the pass from Carey to Gibson was broken up for an unsuccessful two point try, leaving the score 25-20 with 8:09 left in the game.
A 23 yard kickoff return by Johnson gave us the ball at our 30 yard line, looking to get our lead back to more than one possession. Oliver took the ball on first down, fighting his way to an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 41 yard line as we started one of our most important drives of the season. Another rush by Oliver would pick up 10 yards on the play but leave him short of the first down marker, followed by Silva being tackled for no gain to leave third and inches at midfield. The Houston defense would win the battle on third down, tackling Oliver for a two yard loss to leave us punting on fourth and two. No return on the 44 yard punt gave Houston the ball at their 7 yard line, looking for a repeat of last drive.
This time around we were survive the first play of the drive, as Bryan took the ball for an 8 yards rush, followed by a gain of two to set up third and inches. Bryan would convert the third down and keep the drive moving with a three yard carry, moving the chains to the 20 yard line. Turning to the air on first down, Carey connected with Webb for an 8 yard gain, before an incomplete pass to leave the Cougars with third and two. Bryan would again come through in the clutch with a three yard rush to get the first down at the 31. After an incomplete pass on first down, Carey found Fisher over the middle for a 12 yard gain, further moving the chains to the 43 yard line. That would be where things would run cold for Houston, as three incomplete passes would leave the drive spinning its wheels on fourth and long. A fair catch by Hayden on the 45 yard punt gave us possession at our 11 yard line, just 4:29 away from pulling off the upset.
Handing the ball off on first down, Oliver rumbled ahead for a 6 yard gain, before being brought down for no gain to leave third and four from the 17. Coming out in the shotgun on third down, the defense would strike its biggest blow of the game, sacking Stephens for a 6 yard loss to leave us with fourth and 10. A four yard return on the 47 yard punt got Houston lined up at their 46 yard line, 2:56 left in the game.
Despite the limited time, Bryan started off the drive for Houston with a 6 yard rush, but our defense was able to bring him down in the backfield on second down, tackling him for a loss of two yards to leave Houston facing third and 6 at midfield. Our defense would fail when most needed, as Carey connected with Webb for an 18 yard gain and a first down at our 32 yard line. Carey was forced to scramble on first down, picking up four yards on the play, but a dropped pass by Webb once again left Houston in a third and 6 situation. An incomplete pass on third down, intended for Gibson, left Houston’s perfect record in serious jeopardy as the Cougars lined up on fourth and 6 from our 28 yard line, just 2:05 left in the game. Our defense would make its biggest stand of the game, the fourth down pass intended for Washington falling incomplete to force the turnover over on downs at our 28 yard line, just 1:59 away from victory.
Taking over after the turnover on downs, Stephens was forced to scramble on first down as the defense again tried to bring him down, tackled for a three yard loss to leave second and 13. Houston called their first timeout with 1:54 to play. Handing off the ball to Harper, he could only pick up three yards on the play, leaving third and 10, Houston’s second timeout taken with 1:50 to go. Throwing up a pass on third down intended for Hayden, the pass overshot Hayden and ended up going directly into the hands of Malone, intercepting his second pass of the game at the Houston 49 yard line. Malone then proceeded to damn near win the game for Houston himself, returning the interception 48 yards clear down to our three yard line before right guard Mike Phillips was able to shove him out of bounds and at least give our defense a chance to make a stand.
Lining up on first and goal at our three yard line, our defense would roll over and play dead on that chance as Bryan plowed straight into the end zone on the first play for a three yard touchdown. Bryan would then rush the ball in for a successful two point conversion to give Houston a 28-25 lead with 1:31 left in the game.
A touchback on the kickoff gave us the ball at our 25 yard line, now the ones in danger of running out of time. Lining up straight away in the shotgun, Stephens nearly threw a third interception, the pass intended for Hayden nearly picked off by the middle linebacker, who was unable to hold onto the ball to leave us with second down. Going right back to Hayden, this time sprinting down the right sideline after being able to slip past the cornerback, he was able to haul the pass in for a 38 yard gain, giving us a first down at the Houston 37 yard line and instantly put us into field goal range to give us now two options. Unfortunately, we ended up with terrible news after the play, as Hayden was taken off the field. Word from the doctors was that Hayden had suffered an abdominal tear, leaving him sidelined for 5 weeks and not back until at least the bowl, if he even would see the field again at all this season.
Trying to put Hayden’s injury out of our minds temporarily, we kept up the air assault. Firing off a pass to Johnson on first down, the throw from Stephens was complete for a gain of 18 yards and a first down at the 19 yard line, now with a chance to attempt the go-ahead touchdown. A quick pass to Silva on first down resulted in no gain on the play. Sprinting back to the line of scrimmage, Stephens was able to hook up with Harper for an 8 yard gain, leaving third and two, our first timeout taken with 23 seconds left to go. Silva tried to get the first down on the ground, but was blasted after a gain of only one yard, leaving us lining up to attempt a field goal on fourth and one. Glover would come through on his biggest kick off the season, drilling the 27 yard field goal through the uprights to tie the game up at 28-28 with 6 seconds left on the clock.
A 17 yard kickoff return would leave the clock with all zeroes as regulation came to an end. Up next, overtime to decide this battle. Houston won the coin toss and elected to go first.
Bryan got the drive started with a four yard rush, followed by an 8 yard pass from Carey to Gibson to get the first down at the 13 yard line. A four yard rush by Bryan was followed with a gain of 5 yards, leaving third and inches at the three yard line. Bryan would cap off the drive with a three yard touchdown rush, giving Houston a 35-28 lead.
Starting our drive at our 25 yard line, Oliver was immediately stood up for no gain on the play, leaving second down. While not much use on the ground, Oliver was able to make himself useful in the air, hauling in a pass for 7 yards to leave us with third and three. Silva was able to get the ball in his hands on third down, but a timely hit by the outside linebacker jarred the ball loose, leaving our hopes of a win hinged on this one play, on fourth and three. In a huge play, Harper would give us new life, catching a pass at the line of scrimmage and fighting his way forward for a 9 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the 9 yard line. A first down pass intended for Harper was nearly intercepted, but we averted disaster and had a new chance on second down. The pass intended for Vaughn was broken up, resulting in third and goal as we were quickly running out of chances. Johnson would come through with his biggest reception of the season, hauling in the third down pass for a 9 yard touchdown, Glover’s PAT tying the game up at 35-35, sending us into a second overtime.
Lining up at our 25 yard line to start the second OT, we took a shot straight at the heart of the defense, Stephens launching up an extremely ballsy pass in between the cornerback, safety and outside linebacker, but it worked better than we could have ever hoped, Lewis getting his hands on the ball for a 23 yard gain, instantly setting us up with first and goal at the two yard line. Taking a chance on the ground, Oliver was able to get the job done, punching it in for a two yard touchdown to give us a 42-35 lead.
Starting their possession in the second overtime, Bryan took the ball on first down for an 8 yard rush, before two incomplete passes left Houston’s season on the brink on fourth and two. A hard snap count on the fourth down play gave Houston new life without even having to make a play, an early jump by right defensive end Joel Johnson getting flagged for encroachment to set Houston up with first down at our 12 yard line. Two straight incomplete passes intended for Webb left Houston again in trouble on third down. Third time would prove the charm as Carey connected with Webb for a 12 yard touchdown pass, the PAT making it 42-42 and sending us into a third overtime.
We would again waste no time in going for the jugular, as Stephens launched a pass over the middle to Johnson for a 22 yard strike, setting us up with first and goal at the three yard line. A quick pass to Lewis on first down would put us back on the board with a three yard touchdown. Going for the two point conversion, Oliver was able to spin his way out of a tackle and punch it in, giving us a 50-42 lead.
Houston would line up under center on their first down play, the pass to Jones initially complete, until a vicious hit by cornerback Allen Moore knocked the ball loose at the 25 yard line, outside linebacker Graham Minor scooping up the fumble and rumbling, bumbling and stumbling his way all the way to the house for a 74 yard fumble return touchdown, giving us a 56-42 upset victory over the #6 Houston Cougars.
With the incredible win, we improve to 9-1, 6-0 in Big East action. With the shocking loss, #6 Houston falls to 9-1, 5-1 in Big East play. Up next, we close out our road schedule with a visit to East Carolina. The Pirates enter the game 5-5, 2-4 in Big East action. East Carolina started their season with a massive 30-25 upset of #15 Ohio State, followed by a 31-27 win at Ball State and shocking Arizona State 31-20. The Pirates suffered their first loss, losing 49-16 to Hawaii, but recovered with a 52-28 win over Memphis. From there, the rest of the season has been a rough one, East Carolina losing 21-17 at SMU, losing 33-17 to Central Florida, getting a 28-24 win at Connecticut, losing 28-14 to South Florida and losing 35-16 at Temple.
Final Score
#2242 – 3 OT
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A pretty good day for Stephens, ending 25-42 for 383 yards and a four touchdowns. On the negative side, he threw two interceptions and was sacked four times. Rushing, nearly non-existent. Oliver ended with 74 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries, but that was pretty much erased with the negative 33 yards courtesy of Stephens getting sacked a bunch. Receiving, Vaughn led the way with 147 yards and one touchdown on four receptions. Next was Lewis with 70 yards and two touchdowns on five receptions. In all, eight receivers caught a pass today, all eight ended with double digit yards, Vaughn was the only one to make triple digits. Johnson was the only other receiver to score a touchdown through the air.
Tulsa Defense – Ended up torched like I figured. They had some great moments, including early first quarter, most of the second quarter and all of the third quarter, but the rest of the game and OT, they were getting eaten alive.
Tulsa Kicking – A near perfect day for Glover, ending 2-2 in field goals with kicks from 18 and 27 yards out, but went 4-5 in PATs. That one missed PAT was the difference between kicking a field goal for a 29-28 win and fighting for our lives through triple overtime.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Overtime Final Score 22 3 0 3 28 56 7 7 0 14 14 42
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 5:42 Safety Bryan tackled in end zone for safety 4:53 Touchdown J. Vaughn, 62 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) 3:33 Touchdown E. Hayden, returned punt 87 yards (missed kick) 0:48 Touchdown C. Washington, 12 yard pass from L. Carey (D. Wallace kick) 0:01 Touchdown R. Lewis, 15 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) Second Quarter 3:51 Field Goal D. Glover, 18 yard field goal 0:03 Touchdown C. Gibson, 30 yard pass from L. Carey (D. Wallace kick) Third Quarter --- --- --- --- --- Fourth Quarter 8:09 Touchdown L. Bryan, 93 yard pass from L. Carey (2-point try failed) 1:31 Touchdown L. Bryan, 3 yard run (2-point try successful) 0:06 Field Goal D. Glover, 27 yard field goal TIED 28-28 First Overtime --- Touchdown L. Bryan, 3 yard run (D. Wallace kick) --- Touchdown J. Johnson, 9 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) TIED 35-35 Second Overtime --- Touchdown W. Oliver, 2 yard run (D. Glover kick) --- Touchdown G. Webb, 12 yard pass from L. Carey (D. Wallace kick) TIED 42-42 Third Overtime --- Touchdown R. Lewis, 3 yard pass from B. Stephens (2-point try successful) --- Touchdown G. Minor, returned fumble 74 yards
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Houston 56 Score 42 17 First Downs 18 438 Total Offense 462 35 - 55 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 43 - 155 - 2 25 - 42 - 4 Comp - Att - TD 21 - 49 - 4 383 Passing Yards 307 4 Times Sacked 0 5 - 17 (29%) 3rd Down Conversion 9 - 20 (45%) 1 - 1 (100%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 2 (0%) 1 - 1 (100%) 2-Point Conv 1 - 2 (50%) 9 - 4 - 2 (66%) Red Zone - TD - FG 6 - 3 - 0 (50%) 3 Turnovers 2 1 Fumbles Lost 1 2 Intercepted 1 104 Punt Return Yards 8 68 Kick Return Yards 96 610 Total Yards 566 8 – 47.0 Punts - Average 8 - 45.4 2 - 20 Penalties 2 - 15 14:14 Time of Possession 21:46
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact 21+ points per game in each season 46 Win 10 games in one season 9 3300+ passing yards each season 65% pass completions over the entire contract 60% Win 6 games in one season 15+ rushing TD in each season 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3400+ total offensive yards each season
Job Security Status
81%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-05-2013 at 12:35 PM.
HOLY SHIT!!!
I can't believe I pulled that off! I thought I was toast when Houston pulled ahead late, but we were able to get into field goal range and Glover actually made a kick under pressure. Then in overtime, we kept trading punches back and forth and I just have a constant feeling of impending doom that we were going to fuck it up. I can't believe we actually pulled off the upset!
I think I'm done for tonight after this, holy shit. Besides being so tired that I have to constantly keep correcting typing errors over and over, even on the same words, I also think I'm going to call it a night while still on this euphoric high of victory instead of screwing it up by playing East Carolina tonight. I want to savor this feeling for at least the next 8 hours.
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-05-2013 at 12:53 AM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, in the upset of the week, #25 Georgia Tech went on the road and in overtime, defeated #1 Virginia Tech 31-24, potentially ruining a national title chance for the Hokies. It took everything they had, but #3 Auburn survives with a 49-44 win over #20 Georgia to keep themselves squarely in the title picture. #4 Nebraska keeps their title hopes alive with a 38-10 win over Northwestern. #5 Ohio State kept their winning ways with a 42-10 win over Indiana.
#22 Tulsa shocks #6 Houston 56-42 in triple overtime, ruining the perfect season and national title hopes of the Cougars. #7 Texas picks up a 34-10 win over Kansas. #8 Notre Dame destroyed Boston College 66-14. Michigan got an upset victory over #9 Penn State, 41-34, as the Wolverines head into their break before the Ohio State-Michigan showdown. Texas A&M knocked off #10 LSU 38-31. Utah scored a 34-20 upset of #11 Oregon. Baylor goes on the road and shocks #12 Oklahoma 35-28.
#13 Virginia escapes with a 24-17 win over Louisville. #14 Tennessee edges out Missouri 29-24. #15 Alabama rolled to a 42-3 win over Mississippi State. #16 NC State picked up a 24-14 win over Wake Forest. #17 SMU beat Memphis 56-34. #18 Miami recovered from last week with a 55-21 thumping of Duke. #19 Oklahoma State beat Iowa State 45-24. #21 San Diego State holds on for a 44-29 win over Utah State. #24 USC picks up a 37-27 win over Arizona State.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 9-1 (6-0 C-USA) after fighting out a 33-28 win over Florida International. Jaymo, Arizona State drops to 3-7 (2-5 Pac-12) with a 37-27 loss to #24 USC. Mors, #23 West Virginia remains 6-3 (4-2 Big 12) with a bye week. Jeff, #5 Ohio State improves to 9-2 (7-0 Big Ten) with a 42-10 win over Indiana. Other teams of interest, Arkansas State remains 6-3 (4-0 Sun Belt) with a bye week.
In Big East action, #22 Tulsa upsets #6 Houston 56-42 in triple overtime, #17 SMU tops Memphis 56-34, Central Florida knocks off Temple 38-31, Cincinnati finally gets back in the win column by beating Tulane 41-24 and Connecticut takes down South Florida 41-24.
With those results, looking at the current standings, in the East Division, Temple (4-2) claims the top spot, followed by Connecticut, Central Florida and South Florida (all 3-3). After that sits East Carolina and Navy (both 2-4) bringing up the rear. In the West Division, Tulsa (6-0) is king of the mountain, followed closely behind by Houston and SMU (both 5-1). After that sits Cincinnati (2-4), Tulane (1-5) and Memphis (0-6).
Looking at undefeated teams left, #1 Virginia Tech and #6 Houston both lost this week, dropping our number of undefeated teams to 1. #2 Arkansas (10-0) is the last team to remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 2 teams still looking for their first win: Akron (0-10) and Utah State (0-9).
Teams getting their first win this week were: Buffalo (20-10 over 0-10 Akron).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Arkansas (61 first place votes) climbs one to #1, Auburn jumps one to #2, Nebraska moves up one to #3, Ohio State jumps one to #4 and Texas climbs two to #5. Notre Dame jumps two to #6, Virginia Tech drops six to #7, Houston falls two to #8, Virginia jumps four to #9 and Tennessee climbs four to #10. Alabama moves up four to #11, NC State jumps four to #12, SMU climbs four to #13, Miami jumps four to #14 and Oklahoma State climbs four to #15. Tulsa leaps six to #16, Penn State falls eight to #17, San Diego State climbs three to #18, Oregon falls eight to #19 and Utah enters the poll at #20. Georgia Tech jumps four to #21, West Virginia climbs one to #22, USC climbs one to #23, Oklahoma drops twelve to #24 and Arkansas State (240 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were LSU (from #10) and Georgia (from #20). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, LSU (223 points) sits #26, followed by Eastern Michigan (182), Georgia (15), Michigan (92) and TCU (76) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include Air Force (83), Iowa (44) and Nevada (9).
Looking at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Arkansas (65 first place votes) remains #1, Nebraska climbs one to #2, Auburn jumps one to #3, Ohio State moves up one to #4 and Notre Dame jumps two to #5. Virginia Tech drops four to #6, Texas climbs two to #7, Houston drops two to #8, Alabama climbs three to #9 and Tulsa vaults twelve to #10. Tennessee jumps three to #11, Georgia Tech rockets thirteen to #12, Virginia climbs two to #13, NC State moves up two to #14 and San Diego State jumps two to #15. Oklahoma State climbs two to #16, SMU jumps two to #17, Miami moves up two to #18, Utah enters the poll at #19 and USC jumps three to #20. Penn State drops ten to #21, Oregon falls nine to #22, Oklahoma plummets thirteen to #23, West Virginia remains #24 and Arkansas State (240 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were LSU (from #8) and Georgia (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, LSU (222 points) is #26, followed by TCU (145), Eastern Michigan (110), Georgia (63) and Air Force (32) to round out the Top 30.
In the new BCS rankings #1 Arkansas (1.000), #2 Nebraska (0.992), #3 Auburn (0.992), #4 Ohio State (0.984), #5 Notre Dame (0.973), #6 Texas (0.971), #7 Virginia Tech (0.970), #8 Houston (0.958), #9 Alabama (0.951) and #10 Tennessee (0.949).
Taking a look at the Heisman race, Auburn QB J.J. Thomas is #1 (LW: #1), Notre Dame QB J.R. White is #2 (LW: #3), Fresno State HB Eric Tyson is #3 (LW: #2), Virginia Tech QB Tony Lewis is #4 (LW: #5) and Georgia HB Justin Jones is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off of the Heisman Watch list this week was Arkansas QB John Rivera (LW: #4).
Looking at the bowl picture, 58 teams have reached the 6 win plateau, 37 teams still have a chance (however small it may be) of getting there, to leave 95 teams total fighting for 68 bowl slots.
Looking at the first bowl projections of the year, if they hold out, it's a trip to the Fiesta Bowl for Tulsa fans, taking on rival #15 Oklahoma State (7-2, 6-0) out of the Big 12. The AutoZone Liberty Bowl would feature Southern Miss (9-1, 6-0 C-USA) matching up with Temple (5-5, 4-2 Big East). #4 Ohio State (9-2, 7-0 Big Ten) would head west to the Rose Bowl and a showdown with #23 USC (9-1, 7-1 Pac-12). The New Orleans Bowl would feature UTEP (5-4, 3-3 C-USA) vs. #25 Arkansas State (6-3, 4-0 Sun Belt). And the Holiday Bowl would have #22 West Virginia (6-3, 4-2 Big 12) matching up with #19 Oregon (7-3, 5-2 Pac-12).
Looking at the BCS projections, the Rose Bowl would feature #4 Ohio State (9-2, 7-0 Big Ten) against #23 USC (9-1, 7-1 Pac-12). The Sugar Bowl has #2 Auburn (10-1, 7-1 SEC) matching up with #18 San Diego State (7-2, 6-2 Mountain West). The Orange Bowl has #7 Virginia Tech (9-1, 7-1 ACC) matching up with #6 Notre Dame (10-1). The Fiesta Bowl features a battle between #15 Oklahoma State (7-2, 6-0 Big 12) and #16 Tulsa (9-1, 6-0 Big East). And in the national championship game, #3 Nebraska (9-1, 5-1 Big Ten) takes on #1 Arkansas (10-0, 7-0 SEC).
HOLY SHIT!!!
I can't believe I pulled that off! I thought I was toast when Houston pulled ahead late, but we were able to get into field goal range and Glover actually made a kick under pressure. Then in overtime, we kept trading punches back and forth and I just have a constant feeling of impending doom that we were going to fuck it up. I can't believe we actually pulled off the upset!
I think I'm done for tonight after this, holy shit. Besides being so tired that I have to constantly keep correcting typing errors over and over, even on the same words, I also think I'm going to call it a night while still on this euphoric high of victory instead of screwing it up by playing East Carolina tonight. I want to savor this feeling for at least the next 8 hours.
Nice win! I would have lost my mind when I recovered that fumble!
Nice shit Smooth! Up to #10 in the media polls too! Hopefully you get some love in the BCS poll as well. Would love to see ya close out the season with a BCS Bowl Bid and win.
Oh I did.Nice win! I would have lost my mind when I recovered that fumble!
Yeah, I'm still in a euphoric state, even 13 hours later at 1pm. I would love to see it happen, but I've still got two landmines in East Carolina and #13 SMU to get by, plus a potential conference championship game against, at the moment, Temple. So a lot of places to slip up if I'm not careful. If Houston can win out of the rest of the season, hell, we could have a chance to put two of us from the Big East into the BCS, me winning the automatic bid and Houston getting the at-large bid. A couple shakeups will have to happen, but it's possible.Nice shit Smooth! Up to #10 in the media polls too! Hopefully you get some love in the BCS poll as well. Would love to see ya close out the season with a BCS Bowl Bid and win.
My Season Ticket download of NCAA '14 is only 8% done, so I'm firing up '13 right now. Shooting to get both East Carolina and SMU played by 7 or 8pm tonight, then depending on what happens, maybe I can squeeze in the Big East title game before leaving for work at 2am. If I screw up and end up out of the title game, I'll try to then get the Pre-Bowl Games Update typed up and posted so I can move straight into Bowl Season tomorrow evening.
Game Eleven
#16
Game Notes
--- Looking to build off of our huge upset of Houston, we headed onto the road for the last time this season, taking a trip to face off with old C-USA foe East Carolina. While the Pirate were fighting to become bowl eligible, they weren’t shy about putting up yards. East Carolina entered the game with the #3 passing offense, putting up 337.8 yards/game through the air, over 30 yards better than us. That however, was the only highlight for the Pirates. Their running game was worst in the nation, ranking #123 with only 58.3 yards/game. Defense was less than mediocre, their best ranking coming at #62 in rush defense, giving up 174.3 yards/game. While the Pirates would potentially be able to put up yards and points through the air, they were so pathetic in every other aspect of the game that our offense should have a field day, and their offense would be held sterile if our defense could shut down the passing game. East Carolina won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A 19 yard kickoff return by Joe Vaughn got us lined up at our 16 yard line to start the game. Will Oliver received the handoff on first down, rushing for an 11 yard gain and a first down at the 27, followed by a 12 yard rush to move the chains once more to the 39. Continuing to pound it on the ground, Oliver had no problem exposing the defense’s weakness against the run with an 11 yard gain to set us up with first down at midfield. A 6 yard gain by Oliver was followed with a four yard rush, leaving third and inches from the ECU 40. Eric Silva would get the first down and much more, rushing for 12 yards to move the sticks to the 28. The defense was more than ready for us on first down, tackling Oliver for a two yard loss on the play. Lining up in play action pass on second down, the throw from Brad Stephens to Silva was complete for a 19 yard pickup to give us first down at the 11 yard line. Oliver would finish off the drive on the next play, rushing it up the middle for an 11 yard touchdown to give us a 7-0 lead with 5:07 left in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff left East Carolina starting at their 25 yard line. Darrick Kirk tried to throw on first down, but the pass to Colby Mills was dropped, followed by an incomplete pass intended for Charrod Pope to leave third down. Kirk would finally get a completion, connecting with Joey Clarke for 9 yards, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Pirates punted on fourth and one. A fair catch by Jason Johnson on the 42 yard punt got us back in action at our 23 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down for a 5 yard gain, before getting stood up for only a one yard pickup to leave third and four. Lining up in shotgun on third down, the pass from Stephens to a wide open Ryan Lewis was overthrown, leaving us punting on fourth down. A three yard return on the 43 yard punt gave East Carolina the ball at their 30 yard line.
The Pirates got off to a better start this time with an 11 yard completion to Eddie Smith for a first down at the 41. A second dropped pass by Mills was followed with an incomplete pass intended for Leroy Talley to bring up third and long. An incomplete pass on the third down play left the Pirates punting once more. A fair catch by Johnson on the 50 yard punt got us started at our 8 yard line this time.
Oliver was able to find better success this time around, rushing for an 11 yard gain to move the chains to the 19 yard line. We would end up going backwards on the next play as Robert Harper was flagged for holding, pushing us back to our 9 yard line with first and 20. Coming out passing on the next play, the pass intended for Carl Barnes was broken up, leaving second and very long. Launching up a deep pass intended for Lewis, the ball was swatted away by the cornerback, nearly intercepted on the fall by the safety, leaving us third and long. Johnson would keep us breathing, catching a pass from Stephens around the 20 yard line, fighting his way through the outside linebacker and cornerback for a 24 yard gain to move the chains to the 33 yard line. We would then proceed to go right back backwards, Stephens sacked for an 8 yard loss to leave second and 18. Vaughn would make up the lost yards with a 15 yard reception to set up third and three. Oliver would just barely manage to get the first down, tackled for a three yard gain to move the chains to the 43 yard line. That would be the last play as the first quarter came to an end, our lead only a mere 7-0.
Opening up the second quarter, Oliver received the handoff for a 7 yard gain, followed by a three yard rush to leave third and inches. It wouldn’t be meant to be, as both linebackers blitzed to tackle Oliver for no gain to leave fourth and inches at the ECU 47. A 10 yard return on the 34 yard punt gave East Carolina the ball at their 22 yard line.
Mills got the drive started with a 6 yard rush, but an incomplete pass and a loss of four yards by Mills on a third down carry brought the drive to an uneventful end on fourth and 8. A fair catch by Johnson on the 41 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 34 yard line.
The Pirates proved more than ready for our run game, Oliver only getting two yards on the first down carry, after breaking two tackles in the backfield. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, Vaughn was able to snag down the pass from Stephens for a 13 yard pickup and a first down at the 49. Taking a shot deep on first down, the pass intended for Johnson fell incomplete to leave second down. The pass fired off to Vaughn on a comeback route sailed long and way incomplete, leaving us facing third and 10. Johnson would manage to keep us moving, catching a pass from Stephens and getting up field for a gain of 19 yards and a first down at the ECU 32. The first down pass to Vaughn was nearly intercepted. Firing off a pass to Oliver on second down, he caught the pass over the middle at the 20 yard and then proceeded to fight his way through three ECU defenders for an extra 9 yards after the catch for a 21 yard reception to give us first down at the 11 yard line. Handing off the ball to Oliver on first down, he rumbled ahead for a 7 yard gain, before waltzing into the end zone for a four yard touchdown, doubling our lead to 14-0 with 4:34 left until halftime.
No return on the kickoff got East Carolina started from their 25 yard line for their next drive. It was a quick start for the Pirates as Kick threw a pass to Maurice Hodge for a 10 yard gain and a quick first down at the 35. Kirk then followed that up with a 15 yard completion to Antoine Pierce to move the chains to midfield. After a dropped pass by Smith and an incomplete pass left third and long, Kirk was able to hook up with Pierce for a 19 yard gain, giving the Pirates first down at our 31 yard line. East Carolina would need only one more play as Kirk launched up a pass into the end zone to Pope for a 31 yard touchdown, cutting our lead in half to 14-7 with 3:24 on the clock.
A touchback on the kickoff got us lined up at our 25 yard line, looking to rebuild our lead. A first down pass to Vaughn nearly ended in disaster as both the cornerback and safety tried to intercept the pass, the ball thankfully falling incomplete. Going right back to Vaughn on second down, he was able to haul in the pass while toeing the sideline, getting his feet down before stepping out of bounds for a 23 yard gain and a first down at the 48 yard line. A missed attempt at an interception by the cornerback allowed Lewis to grab the first down pass and turn up the field for a 22 yard gain, tackled at the ECU 30 yard line with 2:46 on the clock. Firing a pass over the middle to Lewis on first down, he snagged the ball for a 21 yard completion, giving us first and goal at the 10 yard line. Oliver received the first down handoff, rushing up the middle for a 6 yard pickup, followed by a three yard rush to leave third and goal at the one yard line. Putting the ball back in Oliver’s hands on third down, he was able to split a pair of defenders at the line of scrimmage and fall into the end zone for a one yard touchdown, giving us a 21-7 lead with 35 seconds left until halftime.
A touchback on the kickoff gave East Carolina possession at their 25 yard line. Kirk went into the air on first down, trying to connect with Pierce, but the ball was batted incomplete to bring up second down. After a loss of two yards on the ground by Mills, Kirk hit Talley for a 5 yard gain, leaving the Pirates with fourth and 7, 13 seconds left. A fair catch by Johnson on the 49 yard punt gave us the ball at our 22 yard line, just 8 seconds on the clock. Handing the ball off to Oliver on first down, his 13 yard gain would bring the half to an end, sending us into halftime with a 21-7 lead.
Opening up the second half, no return on the kickoff gave East Carolina the ball at their 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. The Pirates would thrown into a hole almost instantly as Kirk was sacked for a 6 yard loss on first down. Mills was able to make up those yards with an 8 yard rush to leave third and 8, but Kirk would be forced to scramble on third down before he could make a throw, only gaining three yards. That would bring out the punt team on fourth and 5. A fair catch by Johnson on the 49 yard punt gave us the ball at our 21 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down, but was leveled by the outside linebacker for only a two yard gain to leave second and 8. A pass over the middle to Vaughn would get us moving with an 18 yard completion for a first down at the 41 yard line. A 5 yard rush by Oliver was followed with a two yard gain to leave us with third and three. Throwing up a pass to Barnes, he was able to make the grab for a 13 yard gain and a first down at the ECU 39 yard line. East Carolina brought the entire house, and the kitchen sink, on first down, as four different defenders converged to sack Stephens within seconds for a 7 yard loss to leave second and 17. Trying to thread the needle to Johnson, the pass from Stephens was intercepted by middle linebacker Earl Williams, returned 10 yards to give East Carolina the ball at their 40 yard line.
Taking over after the interception, an incomplete pass by Kirk on first down was followed with a four yard completion to Clarke, leaving the Pirates facing third and 6. East Carolina would fail to make the most of the situation, Mills rushing for a three yard gain to leave the punt team coming out on fourth and three. The Pirates would end up going backwards as a false start penalty on fourth down resulted in fourth and 8, a fair catch on the eventual 43 yard punt lining us up at our 14 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down to start our drive, picking up 9 yards on the play, before being dragged down in the backfield for a loss of one yard, leaving us facing third and two at the 23. Putting our faith into the hands of Oliver, he received the handoff on third down, picking up two yards on the play, but tackled shy of the first down line to leave us with fourth and inches. A fair catch on the 49 yard punt gave the ball right back to East Carolina at their 27 yard line.
The Pirates were able to briefly jump out to a good start this drive, as Kirk connected with Hodge for a 7 yard gain, but two incomplete passes later, the punt team came back out on fourth and three. A four yard return by Johnson on the 49 yard punt got us back in action at our 21 yard line.
The Pirates were more than ready for our running game on first down, as Oliver was quickly ripped down for no gain. Going to the air on second down, the pass to Harper ended in only a three yard gain to leave us facing third and 7. Lewis would give us new life, cutting across the middle and pulling in a pass from Stephens for a 17 yard gain and a first down at the 41 yard line. That would be the last play we’d get off as the third quarter would come to an end, our lead still 21-7.
Opening up the fourth quarter, we again tried with Oliver on the ground, but he was quickly brought down for a one yard loss on the play. We nearly went even further backwards, as Stephens was just barely able to dump the ball off before being sacked, the “pass” landing incomplete just yards away to leave third and 11. Trying to throw up a ball to Vaughn on third down, outside linebacker Paul Bean leaped into the air and ripped the pass away for an interception, returning it 11 yards to give East Carolina possession at our 39 yard line.
Kirk started the drive with a two yard completion to Mills, before Mills was tackled for a three yard loss to leave the Pirates treading water with third and 11. An incomplete pass on third down would again leave the offense floundering. Our defense decided to help out however as a 5 yard facemask penalty at the end of a four yard completion to Pierce gave East Carolina a first down at our 30 yard line and new life. They would end up only going backwards, Kirk tackled for a three yard loss, followed by Mills brought down for a loss of two yards to bring up third and 15. The streak of negative yards would continue as Kirk was sacked on third down for a 5 yard loss to leave the Pirates facing fourth and 20 at the 40 yard line. Despite all that, our defense would screw us, East Carolina going for it on fourth down and converting as Kirk high Pope deep over the middle for a 31 yard completion to set up first and goal at our 9 yard line. A three yard rush by Mills was followed by an incomplete pass intended for Mills, leaving third and goal at the 6. The Pirates would finally return to the end zone on third down, Kirk finding Smith open in the corner for a 6 yard touchdown, cutting our lead down to 21-14 with 6:26 left in the game.
A 15 yard kickoff return by Vaughn got our offense back on the field at our 16 yard line, looking to avoid a collapse. Oliver received the ball on first down, rushing for a 12 yard gain and a new first down at the 28 yard line. Keeping it on the ground, Oliver picked up three yards on first down. Going into the air on second down, Barnes was able to rip the ball out of the hands of the safety for an 8 yard gain and a new set of downs at the 39 yard line. A three yard rush by Oliver on first down was followed with a huge 32 yard completion to Vaughn to move the chains to the ECU 25 yard line. Stephens winged the pass over the heads of the middle and outside linebackers, and into the hands of a jumping Vaughn was able to turn up the field for extra yards. Turning to the ground game, looking to kill off some clock, Oliver took the handoff for a three yard rush, followed by a second three yard carry to leave third and four. A third down rush by Oliver would get the job done, picking up 10 yards on the play to give us first and goal from the 9 yard line, East Carolina calling their first timeout with 2:10 left to play. Silva was nearly able to punch it In on first down, slammed down at the three yard line for a 6 yard rush, the second ECU timeout taken with 2:06 to go. Silva never had a chance on third down, swarmed in the backfield for a three yard loss, leaving third and goal at the 6 yard line, ECU’s final timeout taken with 2:03 to go. Silva would be unable to punch it in on third down, tackled for a three yard gain to set up fourth and goal at the three yard line. Derek Glover came on and nailed the 20 yard field goal, increasing our lead to 24-14 with 1:38 left to play.
A touchback on the kickoff gave East Carolina the ball at their 25 yard line, just 1:31 left to make up a 10 point deficit. It wasn’t a good start for the Pirates as Kirk was sacked for a two yard loss on first down, followed by an incomplete pass to bring up third and 12. Kirk was finally able to get a completion on third down, connecting with Hodge for 8 yards, but any hopes ECU had all came down to fourth and four at their 31 yard line. An incomplete pass on fourth down intended for Pierce brought any hopes the Pirates had crashing to an end, turning the ball over on downs at their 31 yard line.
Taking over at the ECU 31 yard line after the turnover on downs, we were just 1:04 away from victory. Stephens would twice drop to a knee to run out the remainder of the clock and seal our hard fought 24-14 win.
With the win, we improve to 10-1, 7-0 in Big East action. With the loss, East Carolina falls to 5-6, 2-5 in Big East play. Up next, we close out or 2019 regular season with senior night, as we welcome #13 SMU to town. The Mustangs enter the game 10-1, 6-1 in Big East action. SMU opened their year with a 37-34 overtime win over Baylor, beat Central Florida 35-25, got a 45-14 win over FCS West, topped Texas State 34-6, upset TCU 38-21 and beat East Carolina 21-17 to start 6-0. The only slip up for SMU came in a 38-17 loss to Houston. They then got back on the winning track beating Tulane 38-31, getting a 38-19 win over Cincinnati, dispatching Memphis 56-34 and topping Navy 38-28.
Final Score
#1614
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A mediocre day for Stephens, going 15-25 for 267 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. Rushing, it was all Oliver today, ending with 168 yards and three touchdowns on 35 carries. Silva had 18 yards on four rushes. Receiving, Vaughn was top dog with 102 yards on five receptions. In all, seven receivers caught a pass today, six ended with double digit yards, only Vaughn reached triple digits.
Tulsa Defense – For the most part, a perfect game. Gave up the two touchdown drives in the second and fourth quarters, but otherwise, held East Carolina in check for the entire game.
Tulsa Kicking – Another perfect day for Glover, going 1-1 in field goals with a 20 yard kick that sealed the win for us, and going 3-3 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 7 14 0 3 24 0 7 0 7 14
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 5:07 Touchdown W. Oliver, 11 yard run (D. Glover kick) Second Quarter 4:34 Touchdown W. Oliver, 4 yard run (D. Glover kick) 3:24 Touchdown C. Pope, 30 yard pass from D. Kirk (D. Smith kick) 0:35 Touchdown W. Oliver, 1 yard run (D. Glover kick) Third Quarter --- --- --- --- --- Fourth Quarter 6:26 Touchdown E. Smith, 6 yard pass from D. Kirk (D. Smith kick) 1:38 Field Goal D. Glover, 20 yard field goal
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat East Carolina 24 Score 14 22 First Downs 5 434 Total Offense 165 43 - 167 - 3 Rushes - Yards - TD 10 - 8 - 0 15 - 25 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 13 - 30 - 2 267 Passing Yards 157 2 Times Sacked 2 8 - 13 (61%) 3rd Down Conversion 2 - 12 (16%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 2 (50%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 4 - 3 - 1 (100%) Red Zone - TD - FG 4 - 1 - 0 (25%) 2 Turnovers 0 0 Fumbles Lost 0 2 Intercepted 0 4 Punt Return Yards 12 34 Kick Return Yards 0 472 Total Yards 177 3 – 42.3 Punts - Average 7 - 46.9 2 - 18 Penalties 2 - 11 25:53 Time of Possession 10:07
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact 21+ points per game in each season 44 Win 10 games in one season 3300+ passing yards each season 65% pass completions over the entire contract 60% Win 6 games in one season 15+ rushing TD in each season 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3400+ total offensive yards each season
Job Security Status
90%
Last edited by SmoothPancakes; 07-05-2013 at 04:04 PM.
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, #1 Arkansas maintains perfection, beating Mississippi State 38-14. #3 Nebraska eases their way past Minnesota 49-13. In the game of the week, #5 Texas beats #15 Oklahoma State 44-17. #8 Houston trounces Tulane 42-14. #9 Virginia holds off Duke 37-27. #10 Tennessee had to go to overtime to fight off Vanderbilt 31-24. #11 Alabama picks up a 40-21 win over Texas A&M. #12 NC State holds on to beat North Carolina 24-17. #13 SMU fights off a determined Navy squad, 38-28.
#21 Georgia Tech upsets #14 Miami 41-20. #16 Tulsa beats East Carolina 24-14. #17 Penn State scores 17 in the fourth quarter to comeback and beat Rutgers 41-30. Pittsburgh knocks off #18 San Diego State 41-22. Arizona makes it bowl eligible, knocking off #19 Oregon 31-13. #20 Utah tops Washington State 38-14. TCU gets a 28-22 overtime victory over #22 West Virginia. #23 USC scores a game-winning touchdown with 40 seconds left to avoid disaster and beat rival UCLA 39-36. #24 Oklahoma picks up a 49-24 win over Texas Tech and #25 Arkansas State rolls Texas State 42-14.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 10-1 (7-0 C-USA) after fighting to hold onto a 31-28 win over UAB. Jaymo, Arizona State improves to 4-7 (3-5 Pac-12) with a 27-16 win over Washington. In one of the most stunning collapses, Washington, who was 6-0 and ranked halfway through the season, has since lost 5 straight and dropped to 6-5 after their loss to Arizona State. Mors, #22 West Virginia falls to 6-4 (4-3 Big 12) with a 28-22 overtime loss to TCU. Jeff, #4 Ohio State remains 9-2 (7-0 Big Ten) with a bye week. Other teams of interest, #25 Arkansas State improves to 7-3 (5-0 Sun Belt) with a 42-14 win over Texas State.
In Big East action, #16 Tulsa beats East Carolina 24-14, #8 Houston tops Tulane 42-14, #13 SMU holds off Navy 38-28, Cincinnati drubs Memphis 41-10, South Florida keeps their bowl hopes alive as they beat Central Florida 30-26 and Connecticut stays alive for bowl season, knocking off Temple 23-14.
With those results, looking at the current standings, in the East Division, it's a clusterfuck as Connecticut, South Florida and Temple are tied (all 4-3), followed by Central Florida (3-4) and then East Carolina and Navy (both 2-5). In the West Division, Tulsa (7-0) sits on top, followed very closely by Houston and SMU (both 6-1). After that, it's Cincinnati (3-4), Tulane (1-6) and Memphis (0-7).
Looking at undefeated teams left, no one lost this week, keeping our number of undefeated teams at 1. #1 Arkansas (11-0) is the last team to remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 2 teams still looking for their first win: Akron (0-11) and Utah State (0-10).
Teams getting their first win this week were: None.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Arkansas (61 first place votes) remains #1, Auburn remains #2, Nebraska remains #3, Ohio State remains #4 and Texas remains #5. Notre Dame remains #6, Virginia Tech remains #7, Houston remains #8, Virginia remains #9 and Tennessee remains #10. Alabama remains #11, NC State remains #12, SMU remains #13, Tulsa jumps two to #14 and Penn State climbs two to #15. Georgia Tech leaps five to #16, Utah climbed three to #17, Oklahoma State dropped three to #18, USC moved up four to #19 and Oklahoma climbs four to #20. Arkansas State jumped four to #21, LSU enters the poll at #22, Eastern Michigan enters the poll at #23, Miami falls ten to #24 and TCU (262 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were San Diego State (from #18), Oregon (from #19) and West Virginia (from #22). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Georgia (249 points) is #26, followed by Michigan (202), San Diego State (125), Nevada (73) and Southern Miss (42) to round out the Top 30.
Looking at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Arkansas (65 first place votes) remains #1, Nebraska remains #2, Auburn remains #3, Ohio State remains #4 and Notre Dame remains #5. Virginia Tech remains #6, Texas remains #7, Houston remains #8, Alabama remains #9 and Tennessee climbs one to #10. Tulsa drops one to #11, Virginia climbs one to #12, Georgia Tech drops one to #13, NC State remains #14 and SMU climbs two to #15. Utah jumps three to #16, Penn State climbs four to #17, USC moves up two to #18, Oklahoma climbs four to #19 and Oklahoma State drops four to #20. Arkansas State jumps four to #21, LSU enters the poll at #22, TCU enters the poll at #23, Eastern Michigan enters the poll at #24 and Georgia (229 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were San Diego State (from #15), Miami (from #18), Oregon (from #22) and West Virginia (from #24). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, San Diego State (203 points) is #26, followed by Miami (202), Michigan (155), Toledo (120) and Southern Miss (102) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week is Nevada (15).
In the new BCS rankings #1 Arkansas (1.000), #2 Nebraska (0.992), #3 Auburn (0.992), #4 Ohio State (0.984), #5 Notre Dame (0.973), #6 Texas (0.971), #7 Virginia Tech (0.970), #8 Houston (0.955), #9 Alabama (0.951) and #10 Tennessee (0.951).
Taking a look at the Heisman race, Auburn QB J.J. Thomas is #1 (LW: #1), Fresno State HB Eric Tyson is #2 (LW: #3), Notre Dame QB J.R. White is #3 (LW: #2), Georgia HB Justin Jones is #4 (LW: #5) and Arkansas QB John Rivera is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off of the Heisman Watch list this week was Virginia Tech QB Tony Lewis (LW: #4).
Looking at the bowl picture, 6 more teams punched their tickets this week, giving us 64 teams have reached the 6 win plateau. 8 teams saw their bowl hopes end, leaving 23 teams still having a chance (however small it may be) of getting there, to leave 86 teams total fighting for 68 bowl slots.
Looking at the first bowl projections of the year, if they hold out, it's a trip to the Fiesta Bowl for Tulsa fans, it would be a rematch, taking on #20 Oklahoma (8-2, 6-1) out of the Big 12. The AutoZone Liberty Bowl would feature Southern Miss (10-1, 7-0 C-USA) matching up with Cincinnati (7-4, 3-4 Big East). #4 Ohio State (9-2, 7-0 Big Ten) would head west to the Rose Bowl and a showdown with #19 USC (10-1, 7-1 Pac-12). The New Orleans Bowl would feature Rice (7-4, 4-4 C-USA) vs. #21 Arkansas State (7-3, 5-0 Sun Belt). And the Meineke Car Care Bowl would have West Virginia (6-4, 4-3 Big 12) matching up with Michigan (7-4, 4-3 Big Ten).
Looking at the BCS projections, the Rose Bowl would feature #4 Ohio State (9-2, 7-0 Big Ten) against #19 USC (10-1, 7-1 Pac-12). The Sugar Bowl has #2 Auburn (10-1, 7-1 SEC) matching up with #6 Notre Dame (10-1). The Orange Bowl has #7 Virginia Tech (10-1, 7-1 ACC) matching up with San Diego State (7-3, 6-2 Mountain West). The Fiesta Bowl features a rematch battle between #20 Oklahoma (8-2, 6-1 Big 12) and #14 Tulsa (10-1, 7-0 Big East). And in the national championship game, #3 Nebraska (10-1, 6-1 Big Ten) takes on #1 Arkansas (11-0, 8-0 SEC).
Damn that was way too close. Exactly what I was afraid of going into the game, that we would have a let down against East Carolina. Thankfully we didn't piss it away. Now we have the next showdown with #13 SMU.
Before firing up SMU in a moment, looking at the Top 25, this is going to be a week where heads will roll.
#1 Arkansas at #22 LSU (rivalry).
#11 Alabama at #2 Auburn (rivalry).
#3 Nebraska at 7-4 Iowa (rivalry).
#4 Ohio State at 7-4 Michigan (rivalry).
#5 Texas at #25 TCU.
#19 USC at #6 Notre Dame (rivalry).
#7 Virginia Tech at #9 Virginia (rivalry).
#8 Houston at 7-4 Cincinnati.
#13 SMU at #14 Tulsa.
7-4 Georgia at #16 Georgia Tech (rivalry).
#18 Oklahoma State at #20 Oklahoma (rivalry).
#21 Arkansas State at 7-3 Troy.
7-4 Northern Illinois at #23 Eastern Michigan.
The top 25 poll are going to implode after this week with how many games between top 25 teams are taking place, as well as some games with top 25 teams taking on opponents with good records.
Game Twelve
#13
Game Notes
--- Coming to the close of another regular season, it was time to honor our seniors once more. Players appearing in front of the home crowd one final time included: QB Brad Stephens, HB Eric Silva, WR Eric Hayden, WR Jason Johnson, WR Kevin Jackson, TE Marcus Mullins, LG Kyle Alford, C Brett Hampton, RT Carl Meeks, LE Jason Williamson, LE Jason Jansen, RE Miguel Ramsey, RE Joel Johnson, DT Shaun Jackson, DT Devon Odom, LOLB Nick Harrison, MLB Anthony Clement, ROLB Graham Minor, CB Jonathan Chambers, CB Allen Moore, CB Caleb Miller, CB Andy Malone, FS Shaun Miller, FS Chad Butler, SS Darnell Turner and SS Courtney Jones for 26 players bringing their Tulsa careers to a close today.
Our opponent, #13 SMU, the only team remaining standing between us and a shot at a Big East title. The Mustangs have been an equally dominant team all season, entering with the #12 offense in the nation, putting up 472 yards/game. Their rush offense, better than our own, ranked #52 at 190.2 yards/game while their pass offense came in at #11 in the nation, airing it out for 281.7 yards/game. Their defense was decent, but not exactly special. Overall, the defense ranked #40 nationally, giving up 372 yards/game. Broken down, they ranked #22 in rushing defense (153.8 yards/game) while entering #65 in pass defense (218.2 yards/game). Either way, after our close game against East Carolina, we couldn’t afford any mistakes today or SMU would certainly be a team to make us pay for them. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A 20 yard kickoff return got SMU lined up from their 18 yard line to start the game. Anthony Key to things started with a 5 yard rush, but that would be all the success SMU would see, as a dropped pass by Josh McNeal and a pass from Erik Woods intended for Sean Smith brought the drive to a quick halt. A 7 yard return by Jason Johnson on the 46 yard punt got us on the field at our 38 yard line.
The SMU defense wasn’t messing around on first down, tackling Will Oliver for a one yard gain. Oliver would recover with a 9 yard rush to leave us with third and inches. Oliver would just barely manage to get the first down, officially recorded as a rush for no gain, but getting the ball to the line for a first down at the 48 yard line. Continuing with the ground game, Oliver picked up four yards on first down. Rushing for a four yard gain on second down, the result by Oliver was wasted as a holding penalty on Pat Ross left us instead facing second and 16. Lining up in the shotgun on second down, the pass over the middle intended for Ryan Lewis was off the mark, sailing past behind Lewis’ back to bring up third and very long. Brad Stephens would complete a pass on third down to Joe Vaughn for a 15 yard gain, but a quick tackle by the cornerback brought him down where he caught the ball, leaving us punting on fourth and one. A touchback on the punt got SMU back in action from their 20 yard line.
Key got the drive started with a four yard rush, followed by a four yard completion to Smith, but an incomplete pass on third and two would end SMU’s drive with little success. An 8 yard return by Johnson on the 42 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 37 yard line.
Oliver started the drive with a 6 yard gain, but a second holding penalty, this time on tight end Marcus Mullins, pushed us backwards, facing first and 20. To add insult to injury, a tackle on the play that saw Oliver go airborne, twisting through the air before landing on the ground, left Oliver limping off the field. A medical diagnosis revealed that Oliver had suffered a PCL sprain, leaving him sidelined for two quarters. Taking over in the backfield on first down, Eric Silva could only gain one yard on the carry. The second down pass intended for Lewis was nearly intercepted, leaving third and 19. Trying to hit Johnson deep over the middle, the pass sailed long and incomplete, leaving us punting on fourth and 19. A four yard return on the 47 yard punt gave SMU possession at their 29 yard line.
The Mustangs came out passing on first down, and nearly had a big play, but Key dropped the ball at the last moment. Keeping the ball on the ground on second down, Key was able to rush for an 8 yard gain, before picking up 5 yards on the ground to get a first down at the 41. A first down pass to Alex Noel was completed for a one yard gain, followed by a 5 yard completion to Pat Sims, leaving third and 6. Key would try to get the job done on the ground, but would fail, tackled for a three yard loss to leave the punt team coming out on fourth and 6. A fair catch by Johnson on the 45 yard punt left us starting from our 10 yard line.
Silva took the ball on first down, trying to pick up some yards, but a blitz by the SMU defense left him cornered and tackled for no gain. Lining up under center on second down, Stephens dropped back to pass. That was the end of the good things that happened on this play, as the pocket quickly collapse, leaving Stephens scrambling to his left trying to avoid a sack. He was able to get back to the line of scrimmage, before two defenders closed on him and initiated a tackle, the ball getting knocked loose on the hit. Defensive tackle Tremaine Moss disengaged from his tackle attempt on Stephens and scooped up the fumble, moon walking the 9 yards into the end zone for a touchdown, giving SMU a 7-0 lead with 1:20 left in the first quarter.
A 23 yard kickoff return by Johnson gave us the ball at our 28 yard line, looking to recover from the hole we had dug ourselves. Silva never had a chance at true yardage on the first down carry, tackled at the line of scrimmage and falling forward for a one yard gain to leave second and 9. Dropping back on second down, Stephens was again unable to get a pass off, though thankfully he held onto the ball this time, sacked for a 6 yard loss to leave third and 15. We wouldn’t get another snap off as the first quarter came to an end, SMU leading 7-0.
Opening up the second quarter, Stephens found Carl Barnes out of the tight end position for a 10 yard gain, but it wouldn’t be enough as the defense converged and brought him down, leaving us punting once more on fourth and 5. A four yard return on the 50 yard punt gave SMU the ball at their 21 yard line.
Key started the drive with a one yard rush, but the Mustangs would quickly go backwards thanks to a holding penalty, leaving them with second and 19. A loss of one yard on a scramble by Woods and an incomplete pass intended for Zach Jones would continue the battle of which offense could suck more, SMU punting on fourth and 20. A fair catch by Johnson on the 48 yard punt gave us our best field position yet, starting at the 41 yard line.
Handing the ball off to Silva on first down, he could only gain two yards on the play, leaving us facing second and 8. Coming out on second down with a play action pass called, Stephens was nearly sacked on the play, dumping the ball as he was hit for an incomplete pass intended for the 40 yard line, bringing up third and 8. Trying to hit Lewis over the middle on third down, the pass from Stephens was broken up by the middle linebacker, as we wasted away our great field position and the battle of punters continued. A 10 yard return on the 42 yard punt got SMU lined up at their 24 yard line.
Key got the drive started for SMU with a pair of rushes for 5 and 10 yard gains, picking up a first down at the 39 yard line. That would be as far as SMU would advance, two incomplete passes and a dropped ball by Key ending the drive on fourth and 10. A big 21 yard return by Johnson on the 49 yard punt got us started at our 32 yard line for the next drive.
Silva took the ball on first down, but was quickly brought down for a one yard gain. Stephens would keep the ball himself on second down, sprinting around the right tackle for a gain of four yards, leaving us facing third and 5. A quick pass over the middle to Barnes would go for a gain of 11 yards, giving us only our second first down of the game at our 48 yard line. Giving Silva the ball on first down, he was able to fight his way to a 9 yard gain, followed by a 6 yard rush to get another first down at the SMU 37. Silva was able to spin his way off a tackle at the line of scrimmage, but lost his balance in doing so, falling forward for a 5 yard gain to set up second and 5. Silva would receive the handoff on second down, sprinting through a hole for a 6 yard gain and a first down at the 27. Shaking off one tackle in the backfield, Silva managed to pick up three yards on the first down play, before plowing over one defender and rumbling his way clear down to the 5 yard line for a 19 yard rush, giving us first and goal. Silva took the ball on first down, fighting his way to a four yard gain to the one yard line. Silva appeared to bust into the end zone on second down, but a tackle by the safety rolled him to his right, bringing him down on his side at the goal line, the ball just inches away to leave third and goal. Silva was unable to get the job done on his third try, brought down by the blitzing middle linebacker for a one yard loss to leave fourth and goal at the one yard line. We called timeout with 6 seconds left in the half, lining up for a field goal. The 18 yard kick by Derek Glover was good, cutting SMU’s lead down to 7-3 with three seconds remaining.
A 13 yard return on the kickoff would run out the clock and take us into halftime, SMU leading 7-3.
Opening up the second half, Johnson returned the kickoff 20 yards out to our 22 yard line to start the third quarter. Finally returning to the starting lineup, Oliver came in and picked up 5 yards on his first carry of the drive, followed by a 7 yard rush to get the first down at the 34 yard line. Oliver kept punching away at the defense, finding the tiniest of holes and riding it all the way to a 14 yard rush, moving the chains to the 47 yard line. Keeping the ground assault going, Oliver managed to break free from an ankle tackle and rumble his way to a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches, upon which our offensive line put the entire defense line on their backs, allowing Oliver to freely bust up the middle for a 12 yard gain and a first down at the SMU 31 yard line. The defense wasn’t about to just roll over and play dead however, as Oliver was held up for a three yard gain, followed by a three yard carry by Silva to leave us with third and four. Stephens tried to needle a pass in to Barnes on third down, but the outside linebacker was able to get a hand on the ball, leaving fourth and four. Glover would line up for the 41 yard field goal, but shanked the kick wide right, giving SMU back the ball at their 24 yard line with 4:46 left in the third quarter.
The Mustangs came out firing on first down as E. Woods rifled a pass toBrandon Woods for an 18 yard pickup and a first down at the 43. A 6 yard rush by E. Woods was followed with another pass to B. Woods for a gain of two, leaving third and two at midfield. E. Woods would convert with a three yard rush to move the chains to our 47 yard line. After a dropped pass on first down by Nick Rawlins, Key rushed for a 7 yard gain, followed by a huge 14 yard carry, giving SMU a first down at our 25 yard line. A 6 yard rush by Rawlins was followed with a 15 yard completion to Noel, and the Mustangs found themselves with first and goal at our three yard line. Key would punch it in on first down for a three yard touchdown, giving SMU a 14-3 lead with 2:30 left in the third quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff gave us the ball at our 25 yard line, looking to make up the damage. Oliver took the ball on first down, and nearly broke into the open, but a desperation tackle by the safety brought him down for “only” a gain of 14 yards and a first down at the 39. Running play action pass on first down, Stephens was forced to dump the ball off to Silva to avoid a sack, the pass going for a three yard gain. Lining up under center on second down, Stephens dropped back and somehow fired off a pass directly over the head of the outside linebacker and into the hands of Barnes for a 13 yard gain, moving the chains to the SMU 45. Lining up in the shotgun, Stephens threw a deep pass over the middle to Johnson for a 30 yard pickup, the safety tackling him at the ankles to save the touchdown and instead give us a first down at the 15 yard line. Throwing to Lewis on a slant route, he was able to get into an open patch of grass behind the linebackers, hauling in the pass for a 15 yard touchdown, cutting SMU’s lead down to 14-10 with 42 seconds left in the third quarter.
A 14 yard kickoff return got SMU started at their 15 yard line. It was a poor start as Key was brought down for a three yard loss, followed by an incomplete pass to leave the Mustangs with third and 13. Woods would try his best to save the drive with his arm, but his pass to Jones netted only a 7 yard gain, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and 6. A fair catch by Johnson on the 48 yard punt would give us back the ball at our 32 yard line. The punt would also bring the third quarter to a close, SMU hanging on to a 14-10 lead.
Opening up the fourth quarter at our 32 yard line, Oliver took the handoff on first down, getting a pair of blocks downfield before being tripped up by the safety, spinning his way to the ground for a 19 yard rush and a first down at the SMU 49. A two yard rush by Oliver was followed with a pass to Vaughn for 18 yards, moving the chains to the SMU 29. Oliver took the handoff on first down, but was brought down for no gain on the play. Dropping back on second down, Stephens was able to dump a pass over the outside linebacker to Vaughn for a 22 yard gain, putting us SMU’s doorstep with first and goal from the 7 yard line. Oliver received the handoff on first down, picking up four yards on the play, before getting thrown around like a ragdoll for a two yard loss, giving us third and goal at the 5 yard line. Dropping back from the shotgun, Stephens fired a pass to Silva along the right sideline, but the defense would manage to shove Silva out of bounds for only a three yard gain, leaving fourth and goal at the two. We would settle for the sure points, Glover kicking a 19 yard field goal to further cut SMU’s lead down to 14-13 with 4:48 left in the game.
A 21 yard kickoff return got SMU back on the field at their 23 yard line to try and close things out. An incomplete pass would end up followed by disaster for SMU, Key fumbling the ball during a rush on second down, safety Darnell Turner diving on top of the loose football to recover the fumble for us at the SMU 28 yard line.
Taking over after the fumble recovery, Oliver went right back to work on the ground with a 6 yard rush, followed by a two yard gain to leave third and two. Third time would prove a charm for Oliver as he broke free for a 9 yard rush, giving us a first down at the 11 yard line. Oliver took the handoff on first down, but was stood up for only a two yard gain, leaving second and 8. A dumped pass to Silva to avoid a sack ended up in Silva being tackled for a one yard loss, leaving third and 9 from the 10 yard line, just 1:38 left on the clock. An incomplete pass on third down left the field goal unit coming out to try and win the game on fourth down. Fate would bite us squarely in the ass, Glover kicking the 27 yard field goal and clanking the ball off the left goddamn upright. The failed field goal gave SMU the ball back at their 20 yard line, 1:14 away from victory.
Key took the ball on first down for a two yard gain, our second timeout taken with 1:10 left. Woods followed with a two yard gain of his own, leaving third and 6, our final timeout called with 1:07 left to play. We would catch our biggest break of the game as the third down pass intended for McNeal was batted incomplete, freezing the clock with 1:04 to go. A fair catch by Johnson on the 48 yard punt got us lined up for one last hope at our 27 yard line, 58 seconds remaining.
Firing the ball off on first down, Stephens found Lewis for a 13 yard gain and a first down at the 40 yard line. Keeping the attack going, Stephens hit Johnson deep for a 29 yard gain and another first down at the SMU 30 yard line, 45 seconds to go. We would end up going backwards from there, as a pair of 7 yard sacks by the defense left us with third and 24 from the 44 yard line. The third down pass to Harper was initially caught, but broken up as he was speared by the safety, the middle linebacker nearly intercepting the ball as it fell to the ground. It all came down to this one play, fourth and 24, 13 seconds left on the clock. Our fourth down chance would end in failure as the defense sacked Stephens for a third time, this time for an 8 yard loss. While the ball would officially be turned over on downs at our 48 yard line, the clock expired as Stephens was brought down on the play, ending the game and handing SMU a 14-13 victory.
With the depressing loss, we drop to 10-2, 7-1 in Big East action and potentially lose out on spot in the Big East Championship game. With the win, #13 SMU improves to 11-1, 7-1 in Big East play. Up next, the wait to see how far we’ll fall in the polls, to see if we made the Big East CCG, and to see what bowl game we’ll end up dropping to.
Final Score
#13
Stat(s) of the Game:
- Tulsa Offense – A decent day for Stephens, going 13-20 for 180 yard and one touchdown. But 5 sacks partially ruined the game for us. Rushing, Oliver, despite missing most of the first half, led the way with 121 yards on 20 carries. Silva ended with 61 yards on 15 rushes. Receiving, Johnson led with 59 yards on two receptions. Lewis has 28 yards and a touchdown on two receptions. In all, only five receivers caught a pass, four ended with double digit yards.
- Tulsa Defense – For the most part dominant. Only bad moment was during SMU's touchdown drive in the third quarter.
- Tulsa Kicking – Absolutely pathetic. His ass would be getting cut next season. Went 2-4 in field goals, making from 18 and 20 yards out, but missing from 41 yards and a potential game-winning kick from 27 yards out that he clanked off the left upright. He did at least managed to go 1-1 in PATs, but I'm still pissed at him.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score 7 0 7 0 14 0 3 7 3 13
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 1:20 Touchdown T. Moss, returned fumble 9 yards (S. Sanders kick) Second Quarter 0:03 Field Goal D. Glover, 18 yard field goal Third Quarter 2:30 Touchdown A. Key, 3 yard run (S. Sanders kick) 0:42 Touchdown R. Lewis, 15 yard pass from B. Stephens (D. Glover kick) Fourth Quarter 4:48 Field Goal D. Glover, 20 yard field goal
Game Stats
SMU Stat Tulsa 14 Score 13 6 First Downs 17 131 Total Offense 340 18 - 73 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 40 - 160 - 0 8 - 20 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 13 - 20 - 1 58 Passing Yards 180 0 Times Sacked 5 3 - 10 (30%) 3rd Down Conversion 3 - 11 (27%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 3 - 1 - 0 (33%) Red Zone - TD - FG 6 - 1 - 2 (50%) 1 Turnovers 1 1 Fumbles Lost 1 0 Intercepted 0 18 Punt Return Yards 36 68 Kick Return Yards 43 217 Total Yards 419 7 – 47.4 Punts - Average 4 - 46.0 1 - 10 Penalties 2 - 20 12:33 Time of Possession 23:27
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact 21+ points per game in each season 44 Win 10 games in one season 3300+ passing yards each season 65% pass completions over the entire contract 60% Win 6 games in one season 15+ rushing TD in each season 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3400+ total offensive yards each season
Job Security Status
90%
Taking a look around the nation, in the Top 25, in the upset of the week, #22 LSU walks away with a 41-31 win over #1 Arkansas. #2 Auburn beats #11 Alabama 42-30. #3 Nebraska dropped Iowa 41-17. #4 Ohio State rolled Michigan 39-13. #25 TCU shitcans #5 Texas 41-0. #6 Notre Dame edges out #19 USC 38-33. #7 Virginia Tech easily beats #9 Virginia 35-7. Cincinnati stunned #8 Houston 45-17.
#10 Tennessee beat Kentucky 40-21. #12 NC State held on to beat Boston College 24-17. #13 SMU edged out #14 Tulsa 14-13. #15 Penn State rolls Indiana 38-3. Georgia knocked off #16 Georgia Tech 22-21. #17 Utah beats Colorado 45-17. It was Bedlam as #20 Oklahoma knocked off #18 Oklahoma State 52-38. Troy shocks #21 Arkansas State 31-28. #23 Eastern Michigan got a 21-10 win over Northern Illinois. #24 Miami slapped around North Carolina 49-24.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss can't run the gauntlet, falling to 10-2 (7-1 C-USA) after getting beaten 38-22 by Marshall. Jaymo, Arizona State ends their season 4-8 (3-6 Pac-12) with a 34-24 loss to Arizona. Mors, West Virginia improves to 7-4 (5-3 Big 12) with a 31-7 win over Texas Tech. Jeff, #4 Ohio State improves to 10-2 (8-0 Big Ten) with a 39-13 thumping of Michigan. Other teams of interest, #21 Arkansas State falls to 7-4 (5-1 Sun Belt) with a 31-28 loss to Troy.
In Big East action, #13 SMU beats #14 Tulsa 14-13, Cincinnati stuns #8 Houston 45-17, South Florida tops Temple 42-21, Connecticut beats Central Florida 42-34, Navy defeats East Carolina 23-10 and Memphis takes down Tulane in overtime, 37-31.
With those results, looking at the current standings, in the East Division, it's Connecticut and South Florida (both 5-3) on top, followed by Temple (4-4), Central Florida and Navy (both 3-5) and East Carolina (2-6). Connecticut wins the head to head tiebreaker thanks to a 41-24 win over South Florida in week 12. In the West Division, SMU and Tulsa (both 7-1) sit on top, followed by Houston (6-2), Cincinnati (4-4) and Memphis and Tulane (both 1-7). SMU wins the head to head tiebreaker thanks to their 14-13 win this week.
Looking at undefeated teams left, #1 Arkansas lost this week, the last team to lose their first game this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 2 teams still looking for their first win: Akron (0-12) and Utah State (0-11).
Teams getting their first win this week were: None.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Auburn (34 first place votes) climbs one to #1, Nebraska (26 votes) jumps one to #2, Ohio State climbs one to #3, Virginia Tech (1 vote) leaps three to #4 and Notre Dame moves up one to #5. Arkansas drops five to #6, Tennessee climbs three to #7, SMU leaps five to #8, NC State jumps three to #9 and Penn State climbs five to #10. Texas drops six to #11, Utah climbs five to #12, Virginia falls four to #13, Houston drops six to #14 and Oklahoma climbs five to #15. Tulsa drops two to #16, LSU leaps five to #17, Alabama tumbles seven to #18, TCU jumps six to #19 and USC drops back one to #20. Eastern Michigan jumps two to #21, Georgia enters the poll at #22, Georgia Tech falls seven to #23, Miami remains #24 and Cincinnati (289 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Oklahoma State (from #18) and Arkansas State (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, San Diego State (233 points) is #26, followed by Oklahoma State (127), West Virginia (67), Fresno State (49) and Boise State 19) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week is Oregon (3).
Looking at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Auburn (43 first place votes) jumps two to #1, Nebraska (21 votes) remains #2, Ohio State climbs one to #3, Notre Dame (1 vote) climbs one to #4 and Virginia Tech moves up one to #5. Arkansas drops five to #6, Tennessee climbs three to #8, LSU rockets fourteen spots to #8, SMU leaps six to #9 and NC State climbs four to #10. TCU leaps twelve spots to #11, Utah climbs four to #12, Penn State jumps four to #13, Tulsa falls three to #14 and Houston drops seven to #15. Texas dropped nine to #16, Oklahoma climbs two to #17, Virginia falls six to #18, USC moves back one to #19 and Georgia climbs five to #20. Alabama plummets twelve to #21, Georgia Tech drops nine to #22, Eastern Michigan climbs one to #23, Miami enters the poll at #24 and Cincinnati (289 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Oklahoma State (from #20) and Arkansas State (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, San Diego State (262 points) is #26, followed by Fresno State (62), Oklahoma State (34), Boise State (34) and Oregon (19) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include West Virginia (17) and Western Michigan (13).
In the new BCS rankings #1 Auburn (1.000), #2 Nebraska (0.995), #3 Ohio State (0.989), #4 Notre Dame (0.981), #5 Virginia Tech (0.981), #6 Arkansas (0.973), #7 Tennessee (0.967), #8 SMU (0.954), #9 NC State (0.938) and #10 Penn State (0.937).
Taking a look at the Heisman race, Fresno State HB Eric Tyson is #1 (LW: #2), Auburn QB J.J. Thomas is #2 (LW: #1), Notre Dame QB J.R. White is #3 (LW: #3),Georgia HB Justin Jones is #4 (LW: #4) and Nebraska HB Ronnie Mayfield is #5 (LW: NR). Dropping off of the Heisman Watch list this week was Arkansas QB John Rivera (LW: #5).
Looking at the bowl picture, 13 more teams punched their tickets this week, giving us 77 teams that have reached the 6 win plateau. 7 teams saw their bowl hopes end, leaving 3 teams still having a chance (however small it may be) of getting there, to leave 80 teams total fighting for 68 bowl slots. Many teams are getting screwed this year.
Looking at the newest bowl projections, if they hold out, it's a trip to the Champ Sports Bowl for Tulsa fans, taking on #9 NC State (10-2, 7-2) out of the ACC. The AutoZone Liberty Bowl would feature Southern Miss (10-2, 7-1 C-USA) matching up with Connecticut (6-6, 5-3 Big East). #3 Ohio State (10-2, 8-0 Big Ten) would head west to the Rose Bowl and a showdown with #20 USC (10-2, 7-1 Pac-12). The New Orleans Bowl would feature North Texas (8-4, 5-3 C-USA) vs. Arkansas State (7-4, 5-1 Sun Belt). And the Holiday Bowl would have West Virginia (7-4, 5-3 Big 12) matching up with Arizona (7-5, 6-3 Pac-12).
Looking at the BCS projections, the Rose Bowl would feature #3 Ohio State (10-2, 8-0 Big Ten) against #20 USC (10-2, 7-1 Pac-12). The Sugar Bowl has #6 Arkansas (11-1, 8-1 SEC) matching up with #8 SMU (11-1, 7-1 Big East). The Orange Bowl has #4 Virginia Tech (11-1, 8-1 ACC) matching up with #5 Notre Dame (11-1). The Fiesta Bowl features #20 Oklahoma (9-2, 7-1 Big 12) and Boise State (8-3, 6-2 Mountain West). And in the national championship game, #2 Nebraska (11-1, 7-1 Big Ten) takes on #1 Auburn (11-1, 8-1 SEC).
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