Iron Dragon's Tulane Green Wave Dynasty

[Iron Dragon]

Tulane (0-1) @ Rutgers (0-0)


A town that starts with a P, NEW JERSEY --- Rutgers. What exactly is a Scarlet Knight? I guess it's a red knight, but I guess Rutgers is too good for just plain Red. Anyways, they get us first in this home-home series. They haven't played a game yet this year, like we have, in which we did not win at home.. now Tulane's roadtrip looks a bit look like this for week 2 and week 3:





Hey look a map! Also my reports are going to be a bit shorter. Now that we got those ADD things out of the way, let's get on to the game..


1ST QUARTER


We'd kick to Rutgers, and we won the toss and defered and deRochemont kicks for a touchback. Jefferson passed twice for 28 yards then Harrison got 3, and Harrison got Young for 7. Then Kordell Young made our defense look dumb with a 43 yard TD run. 7-0 Rutgers.


Stephen Barnett battled back with a 19 yard run, then 2 more, then Moore found D.J. Banks for 16, Barnett got 5, then Donny Richardson dropped a 20+ yard gain (darn), but Moore then found Harrison for a 17 yard gain, Barnett got 5, McDonald caught a 7 yard pass, Barnett got 6.. and then McDonald..




...says hello to the endzone, 5 yard TD. 7-7. Rutgers went three and out. After a seven yard gain by Barnett, Kevin Moore drops back .. and throws a pick. Rutgers stalls but kicks a 31 yard field goal. 10-7. Tulane gets the ball back with 24 seconds left in the quarter, Duplessis grabs a four yard pass, then Barnett from our own 32..




.. this open field looks familiar, remember the 30 yard gain vs LSU? ... well..




.. the safety with the angle SLIPS! Barnett has thirty yards to go..




.. and he will GO ALL THE WAY for a 68 yard TD! What fumble? 14-10 Tulane at the end of the first!


2ND QUARTER


The 2nd quarter was dominated by Rutgers. After a few plays, Jefferson finds Hayes on a 3rd & 4 for a 56 yard TD.. we had 6 DBs and Hayes somehow gets open and JJ Black runs out of bounds trying to defend him. Ouch. 17-14 Rutgers.


We'd go three and out. Rutgers would go one first down and then out. We'd do the same. Rutgers would go three and out. This is exciting. Well we get something going.. a 14 yard run by Barnett.. then 3 for McDonald, Mitchell catches a 29 yard pass, McDonald gets six more, Barnett comes back in..




.. and the ball is jarred out of his hands by a 320-lb defender. [glare]


Rutgers passes three times for 74 yards and gets an easy TD on a 16 yard pass. 24-14 Rutgers. We'd do nothing in the seven seconds we had.



3RD QUARTER


Yawn quarter. We'd run down the field and kick a 42 yard field goal. Ubekista nails it. That takes off half the quarter. Rutgers drives down, stalls and misses a 55 yard field goal. Two plays later, we give it to Barnett..




.. another fumble. Barnett's starting job might be in jeopardy despite his great numbers. He has one bad one: 3 fumbles, none recovered by Tulane. It might just be the good A-rated defenses. I hope. Rutgers stalls, hits an easy 44 yard field goal. 27-17 Rutgers.


4TH QUARTER


We'd start to pass and drive. We'd get to the Rutgers 40, then lose 8 yards on a sack, throw two incompletions then had a chance at a first down but Robottom with room to run gets tripped up after a 6 yard gain. Ugh.


Remember the BYU game last year? Up two possessions, you'd think Rutgers would run the ball? Nope. They'd pass for a 8 yard TD. Nail in the coffin. Dagger in our hopes. 34-17 Rutgers.


We'd drive again..




.. and that's Moore's fourth INT of the year. Please say it's the A rated defenses we've been playing. Remember, it took Moore over 100 passes to throw ONE last year.


Rutgers would thankfully run out the clock.


FINAL SCORE: Rutgers 34-17


Remember when we led this game 14-10 after one quarter? Everything was going perfect and then everything fell flat on their face. Moore had another rough day, he got beat up and had two picks. Barnett, when attempted to be tackled always had someone trying to rip the ball out of his hands, those fellas from Rutgers hit hard and wanted everything they could get. We're beat up a bit, but let's scruff off our shoulders and hopefully not take a "vacation" too much in Hawai'i.. if so, we'll be 0-3.


PLAYER STATS


Kevin Moore: 94.8 QB Rating, 18-for-30 passing, 172 yards, 2 INT, -28 rush yards (From sacks)


Stephen Barnett: 19 rush att, 161 yards, TD, 2 fumbles, 3 rec, 9 yds

J.T. McDonald: 14 rush yards, TD, 7 rec yards / Donny Richardson: 3 car, 22 yards, ~20 yard rec dropped (but was hit)


D.J. Banks: 5 rec, 54 yards / Alan Mitchell: 4 rec, 54 yards

Casey Robottom: 2 rec, 15 yards / George Harrison: 2 rec, 29 yards


Darryl Farley: 11 tackles, TFL

Cody Leford: 9 tackles, TFL

Dezmen Moses: 7 tackles, TFL

Gregory Hallinsworth: 5 tackles

Sammy Boudreaux: 2 tackles

Samuel Brooks: 2 tackles

Tony Bryant: 2 tackles, TFL, Sack

JJ Black: Tackle


Tinzen Ubeksita: 1/1 FG, 2/2 XP

Devin Figaro: 70 KR yards / D.J. Banks: 72 KR yards


RUTGERS: DC "I might be related to Max Hall?" Jefferson: 23/28, 249 yards, 3 TD / Kordell Young: 20 rush att, 120 yards, TD, 8 rec, 58 yards


UP NEXT: Week Two Around the NCAA

[Iron Dragon]

WEEK TWO AROUND THE NCAA

Week one did nothing really.


C-USA SCORES


>> Iron Skillet: #21 TCU 51, SMU 21 ... TCU outscored SMU 44-7 in the 2nd & 3rd quarters.

>> Not this year: Memphis 54, Mid Tenn State 21 ... Bass for Memphis had this statline: 20/38, 334 yards, 3 Pass TD, 24 car, 117 yards, 3 Rush TD. Oh my.

>> NC State 20, UCF 6 ... Yawner of a game. Tied at 3 at the half, NC State had two 1yd rush TDs in the second half and both teams traded field goals. Offensive yards: NCSU 377-306

>> Tulsa 35, West NALFS (Not a Legitimate FBS School, new name for FCS <Insert Direction>) 7 ... The NALFS Fightin' Rick James had no chance. G.J. Kinne threw 4 TD's.

>> UTEP 40, Washington State 35 ... Vittatoe threw for four and Dyke ran for one.

>> Kentucky 23, Southern Miss 16 ... USM "upset" at home by Kentucky. UK rallied on two fourth quarter TD passes by Newton.

>> Miss State 40, UAB 10 ... UAB really missed on this one.

>> #8 West Virginia 41, Marshall 13 ... WVU dominated.

>> Missouri 26, East Carolina 16 ... Field goal fun.. Mizzou kicked three in three minutes in the second, ECU kicked two start to the game. Blaine Gabbert threw 2 TD's.

>> Houston 46, UCLA 41 ... Houston goes to the Rose Bowl and wins. Offensive yards: 587-497 Houston. UCLA's Crissman threw for 419 and 3 TD's but Keenum threw for 340 and 3 TD's and ran for 116 and 2 TD's.


NCAA Scores


Teams that played NALFSes in the top 25: Auburn, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Utah

>> Tim and Jordan Who? Western Michigan 20, #5 Virginia Tech 10 ... WMU's Crawford had a 77 yard TD run and Amheim threw for a 3 yard TD pass as the Broncos held VT to 4/19 on third downs.

>> Arizona 43, #24 Kansas 15 ... Arizona rolled thanks to FIVE TD passes by Foles.

>> #11 Ohio State 29, Miami FL 25 ... Does Miami know how to call plays? Nate Oliver pick-six'd Jacory Harris with 57 seconds left, RUN THE BALL. Seriously.

>> #1 Penn State 42, #20 Alabama 27 ... McElroy had more INT's than TD's for Bama, and Newsome for Penn State had 4 Total TD's on the road.


TOP 25


Others recieving votes in the coaches: Cincinnati, Oregon, Nebraska, Oregon State, Illinois, Colorado, Georgia



HEISMAN: Unchanged


UP NEXT: Tulane visits Hawai'i, hopefully we aren't distracted by a September vacation, because if we are, and we play poorly, we're looking at 0-3.

[Iron Dragon]

Draggo: "[Tulane] is very close to signing a four-star recruit"

NEW ORLEANS -- Ron Draggo told reporters Monday that Tulane is very close to nabbing a four-star recruit, which would be the first under him, and Tulane's first in many years.

Draggo did not say what position this player was at, or who he was, but he did say that the prospect will be visiting for the SMU game on week four. And that the prospect comes from Louisiana and the schools behind him featured LSU, Texas, Mississippi, Miss State and others from the SEC and Big XII. It is also known that the four-star prospect is one of 18 players that Tulane is recruiting who have the Green Wave in first. Tulane also recently picked up a commit in the secondary.

Some people may think that the position could be Quarterback, as Kevin Moore leaves after the 2010 season, and Joe Kemp has taken only a few snaps when Moore got the wind knocked out of him or in mop-up duty last year against McNeese State. However, others believe that D.J. Ponder will move back to QB after his WR-time did not pan out as expected, as Ponder only has done returns. Some speculate that Ponder could start due to his dual-threat abilities.

Whoever this prospect is, it'll be interesting to keep tabs on this player in the upcoming weeks.

[Iron Dragon]

Tulane (0-2) at Hawai'i (0-1)


HONOLULU, HAWAI'I -- Ahh yes, a vacation.. we've lost three straight games dating to back year and our offense is full of turnovers. A spoiler for the end of this game: A major starting position is up for grabs next week at home against SMU. It's all a bunch of bagpipes anyways.. what? Hawai'i lost on week one at home to USC after having a 9-6 lead on the Trojans. We've lost to ranked LSU and Rutgers (who isn't ranked). Anyways, let's get to the game.


1ST QUARTER


We won the toss and chose to kick and defer to the 2nd half. Play two of UH's drive: a 30 yard pass from Brent Rausch to Lofton. A few passes later, and Hawaii will RUN it in for a 1 yard TD run thanks to their true freshman FB Barnes. Strangely enough, that's Hawai'i's first TD of the year, and it comes from a true freshman at a position that rarely sees the field, and actually he never saw the field again in this game.


We'd go three and out and deRochement drops a nice 52 yard punt. A nice kick down the middle. That traps U(g)H inside their own 5, they'd get 13 yards from passing and then this happens. A lesson: NEVER EVER run a HB screen, wait around to pass against a blitz. Why? Because it'll probably turn out like this:









That's a fumble return for TD by Dezmen Moses. 7-7 tie. Hawai'i comes out..





Alex Wacha with the pick. We'd drive down the field and Ubekista hits a 42 yard field goal. 10-7. Hawai'i starts to drive..


2ND QUARTER


Hawai'i drives some more, but stalls and misses a 52 yard field goal. We'd drive down the field, get inside the five thanks to a 34 yard pass to Robottom.. and in the endzone, Moore throws a perfect pass to UH's Ornellas. Wonderful. 1 TD, 4 INT. Luckily Hawai'i stalls and punts.


Barnett runs for 27 yards on four carries, then McDonald gets a 10 yard catch, and then Moore will throw..




... to Hawai'i's Walker. Nice one handed pick, Moore up to 1 TD, 5 INTs. That play wasn't done..




... and he returns it all the way for a TD. But the XP is no good. 13-10 Hawai'i. We'd drive down the field, and kick a 30 yard field goal with :19 left in the half. 13-13.


deRochemont hits a horrible kick, and Hawai'i passes to Blount for a 23 yard gain, calls timeout and they attempt a 54 yard field goal and it's good. Ugh. 16-13 Hawai'i.


3RD QUARTER


We would go three and out. And Hawai'i would too. Then we'd pass and run our way down the field AGAIN, and we'd stall AGAIN and kick a 21 yard field goal. 16-16 tie.


Hawai'i comes out, passes to Blount, WHO FUMBLES IT and Gregory Hallinsworth recovers it! Moore would throw two 11 yard passes, then we'd stall. Ubekista 41 yard field goal is good. 3rd quarter = boring.


19-16 Tulane after three.


4TH QUARTER


Brent Rausch would come out, look to throw, would have open field.. but Darryl Farley NAILS him, the ball pops out and Oscar Ponce De Leon recovers! Barnett then would run for 11 yards on three carries. Moore hits Figaro for 11, then Banks for 6, then two crap pass plays and we'd kick again. However, this time, Ubekista's kick looks good, but it swings right at the LAST SECOND and hits the crossbar. God damn. 19-16 Tulane.


Hawaii comes out passin' up a storm, Rausch hits a WIDE OPEN Alex Green for 42 yards. Then Blount and Taylor for seven each. They drive 8 more yards, throw a couple incompletions and it's fourth down and they kick a 24 yard field goal. 19-19.


Barnett runs for 19 yards on four carries. Incomplete pass, then Moore steps back, and it's PICKED OFF by Ornellas again! 1 TD, 6 INT. 1:04 to play. Oh crap.


Rausch hits Blount for 20 yards. Then Lofton for 18. Then him again for 10. Rausch runs for 4. Two incomplete passes. 4th down. Hawai'i kicks. 39 yard field goal good. Hopes shot. 14 seconds left. 22-19 Hawai'i. D.J. Banks returns the kick, is failed to be tackled, tries to spin out of it for a couple seconds and then is tackled. More time wasted. 9 seconds and 72 yards. Oh great.


Moore, who has had three INT's today does NOT need a fourth now. Four WR set. Three to the right, Robottom to the left. Barnett will come out the backfield and go deep as well. Five options, so little time. Moore looks right to the middle of the field, has plenty of time .. lets one go towards the 40 yard line.. this has to be caught and they have to be tackled immediately ... it's headed deep..








....boy this is exciting




... this ball has been flying for awhile. I suggest you all take a break here to get a drink. I'm sorry for the delay...








.. ITS CAUGHT BY D.J. BANKS ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!!!!! TULANE IS IN FIELD GOAL RANGE! TWO SECONDS LEFT! TIMEOUT TULANE ARE YOU KIDDING ME! THE ball bounced of Banks HELMET and he stepped back and caught his OWN tipped pass! Catch of the year! We are Hawai'i's 37-yard line, down three. We're at the middle of the field.


Now we have a decision. Darren deRochemont is our long field goal kicker (50+). This is the first time this has happened and it's a game-tying decision. There's just about a 1mph aid from the wind. Tinzen Ubekista has made 51 yarders in practice but this is a 54 yarder, and he missed a 31 yarder wide right just minutes ago. We could go for the ball game and throw another pass up.


Draggo says, "deRochemont. This is yours. Go kick it." So deRochemont will attempt a fifty-four yard game-TYING field goal. We don't win the game kicking this. We force OT. Hawai'i has no timeouts to ice him.


And here is was.. the snap, the hold was good, it gets past the line and it has the distance.. but it starts to move right slightly..














.. BUT NOT FAR ENOUGH! IT'S GOOD IT'S GOOD IT'S GOOD! Overtime. 22-22.


OVERTIME


We won the OT toss, defense we go. Brent Rausch comes out. Sacked. Good start. Then he hits Green for 5 yards, then Taylor for four. Symonds will go for the 38 yard field goal..





.. and IT'S WIDE RIGHT! 22-22 still. First play. 13 yard run by Barnett. Party. 3 more yards by Barnett. Then Ubekista will come out for the game winner..










.. HE MAKES IT! UBEKISTA HITS HIS FIFTH FIELD GOAL OF THE GAME AND HE WINS IT! The freshman comes through. Holy crap. 25-22 Tulane OT.


FINAL SCORE: 25-22 Tulane


GGS: 1033


Holy crap. Tinzen Ubekista hits five field goals including the game winner but deRochemont comes through and nails a HUGE 54 yard field goal to tie the game at the end of regulation. We had no offense TD's. Three INT's hurt us. One in the endzone and the other two in Hawai'i territory. We escaped thanks to a great kicking day: 6-of-7 (Tinzen: 5/6, deRochemont: 1/1). Nice to get our first win nevertheless.


What position is up for grabs: Kevin Moore's time at QB may be done as he'll have to practice hard to keep it, despite his good amount of yards. The competition is open through Moore, Ponder and Kemp for next week's job. We didn't expect Ponder back to QB so soon but he's showing interest.


PLAYER STATS


Kevin Moore: 103.3 QB Rating, 17-for-33 passing, 275 yards, 3 INT


Stephen Barnett: 31 rush att, 121 yards, 3.9 avg, 5 yards rec

Duplessis: 21 rush yards, 14 rec yards


Devin Figaro: 4 rec, 49 yards / Alan Mitchell: 4 rec, 72 yards

D.J. Banks: 3 rec, 58 yards / Casey Robottom: 2 rec, 58 yards

J.T. McDonald: 1 rec, 10 yards / George Harrison: 1 rec, 5 yards


Darryl Farley: 10 tackles / Sammy Boudreaux: 7 tackles

Cody Leford: 6 tackles, TFL / Samuel Brooks: 6 tackles

Devin Williams: 6 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 Sacks

Alex Wacha: 6 tackles, INT

Dezmen Moses: 4 tackles, FR, Def TD

JJ Black: 3 tackles

Gregory Hallinsworth: 2 tackles, FF, FR

Oscar Ponce De Leon: 2 tackles, FR

Tony Bryant: Sack


Tinzen Ubekista: 5-for-6 field goals, long of 42, 1/1 XP

Darren deRochemont: 1/1 FG, 54 yarder.


UP NEXT: Week Three Around the NCAA

ID Note: This game is probably one of the greatest games I have ever played on any NCAA game.

[Iron Dragon]

WEEK THREE AROUND THE NCAA

Virginia Tech lost to Western Michigan at home and then the Broncos became ranked. Basically that's it.


C-USA SCORES


>> Kansas 42, Southern Miss 35 ... Davis had 4 passing TD's for USM but KU's Lewis won the game on a 3 yard TD run with 1:38 to play.

>> #8 North Carolina 34, ECU 20 ... UNC rolled to a 34-13 lead late until ECU had a garbage time TD pass.

>> Troy 27, UAB 20 ... UAB was in it but they weren't. Down 20-13 late, they threw a pick-six at Troy's 29, and then got another TD late but it was too late.

>> UCF 34, Buffalo 7 ... Harvey ran for 3 TD's.

>> Houston 45, UTEP 17 ... The teams traded pick-sixes, Keenum only had one pass TD (only two in the game). Beall ran for two TD's and Keenum ran for one.

>> Northwestern 26, Rice 20 OT ... Rice had a 20-7 3rd quarter lead, but fell in OT after they didn't score and Stephen Simmons for NU did on 2 yard TD run.

>> #18 Oklahoma State 48, Tulsa 21 ... Cate threw 3 TD's in 1st quarter and 1:43 of the 2nd quarter for Oklahoma State as they took a 34-7 halftime lead. G.J. Kinne had three pass TD's, two to DeMaris Johnson.

>> Marshall 34, SMU 24 ... SMU falls to 0-3. Marshall had a 34-0 halftime lead. Darius Marshall ran for 2 TD's, they had a pick-six, two field goals and a pass TD. SMU scored all 24 of their points in the fourth including a garbage TD with :10 left.


NCAA SCORES

NALFSes this week in the top 25: #21 Western Michigan, #4 Oklahoma

>> #9 LSU 24, #7 West Virginia 17 ... Jordan Jefferson had 3 pass TD's.

>> Florida State 36, #14 USF 13 ... USF loses to winless Florida State. USF only trailed by one at the half: 14-13, but Ponder threw for 3 TD's including a strange 2pt conversion (wtf? 21-13 not good enough for you?) in the second half.

>> #16 Virginia Tech 30, #11 Georgia Tech 27 2OT ... Miracle win for VT. Clayton throws a 42 yard TD with :17 left to get the Hokies into OT, then in the 2nd OT he throws a 19 yard TD.

>> #10 Ohio State 24, Ohio 12 ... Not as close as the score seems as tOSU held a 24-0 lead on the Bobcats in the 3rd. Jamaal Berry ran for a TD.

>> #12 Boise State 43, Wyoming 27 ... Boise trailed 27-16 at the half, took the lead in the 3rd (29-27) and then added TWO garbage TD passes including one with :50 left. Kellen Moore threw 5 TD's (3 really).

>> Suicide Watch Alert (Southern California): MINNESOTA 34, #5 USC 28 ... Mighty Minnesota hosts USC and takes a 21-14 3rd quarter lead then a 34-14 lead, and then USC rallies back with two late TD's but it's too little, too late. USC has some QB trouble: 3 QB's played, combined for 4 INT's and two fumbles. Ouch.

>> Nebraska 45, #22 Washington 30 ... Nebraska added a late TD and a late FG to make a 35-30 game look better for them.

>> #19 Clemson 24, #13 Auburn 3 ... Not a surprise. Auburn almost lost to Arkansas State on week one.

>> Not this year: #3 Florida 26, Tennessee 7 ... Brantley threw for 2 TD's.

>> Maryland 17, #25 NC State 10 ... Welcome to the ACC.

Other teams: Eastern Kentucky drops it's first game to Illinois (was 2-0). Temple is 2-0.


TOP 25


Outside the Coaches: Cincy, Oregon, Illinois, Maryland, Florida State, Washington, Colorado


HEISMAN: Kellen Moore, Corbin Louks, Sean Fitzgerald (WR, Utah), Andre Debose (WR, Florida), Titus Young


UP NEXT: SMU (0-3) at home, some prospects visiting. Who starts at QB? Does Kevin Moore keep his job despite the slow start? Find out..

[Iron Dragon]

SMU (0-3, 0-0) @ Tulane (1-2, 0-0)


NEW ORLEANS --- So who's the starter for this game? Kevin Moore. Yes, that's right. He did really well in practice so nothing happened. Meanwhile, for SMU, JJ McDermott is out for multiple weeks with an injury for SMU so Braden Smith (r-SO) starts for SMU. How many times will SMU run the ball this year? Probably not many. Last year, we battled back to beat SMU. This year, we play at home. ON TO THE ACTION!


1ST QUARTER


We won the toss, defers. SMU went three and out. Stephen Barnett takes five carries for 22 yards, then Moore gets sacked, but redeems herself with a 27 yard pass to Banks, then Barnett gets 3 and gets 10 from Moore, then Moore hits Banks for 4, then Figaro for 6 to the 1. Then on the next play..




.. would hit Robottom for a 1 yard TD pass. SMU went three and out again. Barnett ran for 12 yards, then a bad run then two incompletions and a punt. SMU started to drive with a 12 yard pass, then a 36 yard pass, then a 13 yard pass..


2ND QUARTER


A few plays later Smith throws to Lunday for a 9 yard TD pass. 7-7 all.


We come out and run, Barnett gets 11 and then makes a 8 yard grab. Moore gets sacked, but then does this..




.. he throws to Robottom and his defender went WAY too hard for the pick and got smoked for it. A 58 yard TD pass. SMU fights back and passes down the field and scores on an easy 4 yard TD. 14-14.


We'd drive down the field, we'd go for it on fourth (too far for a field goal, too short for a punt), and Moore's pass would be tipped once, then twice, then a third time and picked off. That's actually acceptable. SMU does nothing in the 45 seconds they had. Halftime.


3RD QUARTER


We'd start out running. 6 yards for Barnett, Duplessis got 8, Barnett got 7, then 5, then 7 more, and Moore hit Banks for 7, Barnett got 10 and then four, Moore then found Robottom twice for gains of 13 and 2, then Barnett for 8, and then Barnett scored on a 1 yard TD run. Anti-climatic. Yes.





SMU comes out..





.. and Farley gets an INT. Moore hits Robottom for 9 yards, then hits Banks..







.. who is wide open and goes for six. 28-14 Tulane. SMU comes out, drives a bit and stalls and punts.


We'd start to drive, we'd get a 7 yard run by Barnett, Moore hit Robottom for 31, then Moore to Mitchell for 17 yards. And the quarter ends.


4TH QUARTER


Unfortunately, we'd stall and Ubekista would fail on a kick and miss it wide left. But SMU goes three and out. We then give it to Barnett, who gets 3 yards, then 28, then seven. Moore hits Banks for 5, then Barnett for 13 and then he hits a Utopian..




.. whose name is George Harrison and it's a 6 yard TD. 35-14 Tulane. SMU goes three and out again. Richardson gets 5, then McDonald gets 2 and 9, Barnett goes for five carries, Duplessis picks up one, and then from our 22..




... Donny Richardson is back in. He sees a hole..




... and he goes for a 22 yard TD! First career TD for Richardson. 42-14 Tulane. SMU comes out. Gregory Hallinsworth gets a pick. Game over. Moore kneels a couple times and the game is over.


FINAL SCORE: 42-14 TULANE


Kevin Moore is back and this is the best game we've ever played under my coaching (back to over .500, 9-8), we shut down SMU's passing game with 2 picks and saw three freshman make big plays: Donny Richardson, George Harrison, and Gregory Hallinsworth. Kevin Moore had his best game by far in 2010 with 4 TD's and a LUCKY INT. Casey Robottom had the best game he's ever had too.


PLAYER STATS


Kevin Moore: 194.4 QB Rating, 21-for-29 passing, 288 yards, 4 TD, INT


Stephen Barnett: 31 rush att, 163 yards, TD, 5 rec, 44 yards

Donny Richardson: 3 rush att, 33 yards, TD


Casey Robottom: 7 rec, 135 yards, 2 TD

D.J. Banks: 5 rec, 74 yards, TD

George Harrison: 1 rec, 6 yards, TD

Devin Figaro: 2 rec, 12 yards / Alan Mitchell: 1 rec, 17 yards


Lawrence Abrams: 4 pancakes


Cody Leford: 7 tackles, TFL

Darryl Farley: 7 tackles, TFL, INT

Samuel Brooks: 4 tackles

Sammy Boudreaux: 3 tackles

Oscar Ponce De Leon: 3 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 Sacks

Devin Williams: 3 tackles, TFL

Gregory Hallinsworth: Tackle, INT

Tony Bryant: Tackle, TFL, Sack


SMU: Four players with 12 tackles.


UP NEXT: Week Four Around the NCAA

[Iron Dragon]

WEEK FOUR AROUND THE NCAA

Last week on Around the NCAA: USC lost to Minnesota and stuff. That's about it.


C-USA SCORES


>> UAB 31, NALFS Northwest 6 ... The NALFS Northwest Elaborate Tree Squirrels fell to UAB giving the Blazers their first win. Ellis had two pass TD's and a rush TD.

>> Virginia Tech 14, ECU 0 ... Yawn game. VT led 3-0 after three.

>> Memphis 45, Tulsa 24 ... Memphis to 3-0, Tulsa to 1-2. Memphis threw for 4 TD's and 364 yards through 2 QB's. G.J. Kinne had 3 Total TD's.

>> What's up with Southern Miss: Missouri 47, Southern Miss 24 ... USM down to 0-3.

>> UTEP 37, New Mexico 20 ... UTEP's Vittatoe threw for 4 TD's.

>> Houston 32, Texas Tech 28 ... Case Keenum found Beall for a 39 yard TD pass with :28 left as Texas Tech rallied from 17 down and took the lead but UH came back and won late.

>> Baylor 27, Rice 17 ... Rice took a 10-0 lead, until Robert Griffin had 3 total TD's.

>> Marshall 27, UCF 13 ... Marshall up to 2-0 in C-USA.


NCAA SCORES


>> Miami FL 14, #16 Georgia Tech 9 ... GT down to 0-2 in the ACC. Jacory Harris with 2 TD's.

>> #8 Ohio State 38, Eastern Michigan 21 ... Ohio State is weird. They trailed 13-7 to EMU, then Terrelle Pryor ended up having 4 Total TD's as Ohio State escaped the Eagles.

>> #22 USF 27, #13 Clemson 24 ... USF won the game on a 35 yard field goal with :16 seconds left.

>> #14 USC 52, Washington 31 ... USC needed FIVE second half TD's to escape Washington.

>> #5 Mississippi 14, #17 Oklahoma State 10 ... Close, boring game. Stanley threw for 2 TD's.

>> #20 Western Michigan 33, Toledo 32 ... Closer than the score looks. Toledo had 10 late points. Arnheim had 3 passing TD's.

>> #12 Utah 21, Air Force 19 ... Utah needed a 39 yard field goal with 11 seconds left.

Rivalry Renewed: >> PITTSBURGH 26, #1 Penn State 24 ... Oh Penn State. 2008: Iowa. 2010: PITT. Harper with 11 seconds left kicks Penn State out of their number one ranking with a 39 yard field goal after Penn State rallied from a 23-7 deficit to a 24-23 lead.


TOP 25


Outside the Coaches': Georgia Tech, Oregon, Illinois, Maryland, Florida State, Arizona, Cincinnati, Colorado, Miami (FL)


HEISMAN: Kellen Moore, Sean Fitzgerald, Andre Debose, Garrett Gilbert (r-FR), Roy Helu (RB, Nebraska)


NCAA Player of the Week note: Brent Rausch: 51/68, 624 yards (!!!), 6 TD (54-44 vs Idaho)


UP NEXT: At home against Louisiana Tech, 3-1 (2-0 in the Sun Belt). They are C OVR, they have had NO home games. Only loss is at Clemson (by 21, #19).

[Iron Dragon]

Louisiana Tech (3-1, 2-0 Sun Belt) at Tulane (2-2, 1-0 C-USA)


NEW ORLEANS -- Louisiana Tech looks like they should roll in the Sun Belt and they haven't had a home game yet. Their only loss is at Clemson. Which is impressive, because they haven't played a home game and have scored at least two TD's in each game, and they look to be on track for a decent 8-4ish season. This is my trap game. Louisiana Tech has a few very good players but lack depth. If we let those players get going, we'll be in trouble. Can Kevin Moore have another good game? Let's find out.. also this report will be more picture based in a way because it's late.


1ST QUARTER


We won the toss and chose to receive. Figaro returns the kick to the 34. Barnett gets five, Banks get a 7 yard catch, Figaro gets 7 from Moore, then Duplessis gets 6, then Kevin Moore hits Mitchell for 19, then Robottom for 18, then hits Barnett, who is wide open in the endzone for a 6 yard TD:





L-Tech comes out and goes three and out. We'd drive down the field quickly thanks to a 35 yard run by Stephen Barnett, but two plays later from our two, Moore is sacked and loses the ball..





.. and a d-lineman takes it all the way back for six. Damnit.


We'd drive right down the field again thanks to a huge 53 yard HB screen to Barnett, and two plays later Antoine Duplessis scores from 2 yards out:





Louisiana Tech converts a critical 3rd & 14 and then the quarter ends.



2ND QUARTER


Four plays into the quarter, Ensminger finds Fallis for a 2 yard TD after a 33 yard pass.


We'd start off by running: Barnett got 14 yards on three carries, then Moore hit Mitchell for 12, then Mitchell again for 16, then Banks for 12, Duplessis ran for 10 and Barnett pounded it in from four yards out:





21-14 Tulane. Louisiana Tech would drive down at us, stall. 29 yard field goal. 21-17.


We'd get the ball back with a minute and a half in the quarter to go. On the fourth play of the drive, Stephen Barnett runs for 7 yards but is taken off the field with an injury and he WOULD NOT return. Injury status is unknown. We'd get to the LA Tech 8, roll the dice with 8 seconds left and go for it on 4th & 1 and J.T. McDonald could not break a touchdown-saving tackle at our 8 (he had open field past the guy), and that was that.


3RD QUARTER


LA Tech goes three and out. First play for us, Donny Richardson takes a carry and HE GOES DOWN. Injury status unknown, he wouldn't return either. We'd go three and out. Then our defense epic fails and we allow a 53 yard TD pass where we had FOUR missed tackles. 24-21 LA Tech.


We'd come fighting back. Moore would hit McDnald for 10, Robottom for 27, then would hit Robottom two plays later for a..




.. 26 yard TD! 28-24 Tulane.


LA Tech's drive would stall and they'd punt.


We'd drive down the field, stall and Ubekista would miss a 37 yard field goal JUST wide left from the left hash mark. Louisiana Tech would end the quarter... by..


FUMBLING! Gregory Hallinsworth recovered the fumble.


4TH QUARTER


With a short field, Moore runs for 14 on a load option (Rare playcall), then hits Harrison for 8, then McDonald gets 5.. then he would find Harrison again..




.. for a 14 yard TD! 35-24 Tulane. LA Tech three and out. We'd go three and out. Play two of LA Tech's drive, Ensminger goes deep but his man CAN not keep up with the ball..




.. and JJ Black and Samuel Brooks fight over the INT and Brooks gets it.. he'd break the WR's tackle.. he'd GET SOME BLOCKS, he'd spin away from the QB..




.. AND THAT'S A 79 YARD PICK-SIX! The man with low ACC does it! His agility does it for us! 42-24 Tulane. That's your ballgame, I hope. Video highlight will come soon.


LA Tech will get a pity TD. 42-30. 2pt no good. They'd kick an onside. We'd recover. Trying to running out the clock..




.. with :25 left, our FIFTH string runningback (moved to 2nd midway through the 2nd), Nathan Austin scores a 2 yard TD. I tried. I tried not to score. If you can't tell. 49-30 Tulane.


LA Tech did nothing in the seconds they had.


FINAL SCORE:


Kevin Moore is back. 338 yards and 3 TD's. I don't know how our runningbacks are doing but I hope they are both back next game. If not, it's McDonald and Austin for the next game. I hope they are doing well as Richardson took a hard hit and Barnett went down awkwardly.


:intup: Samuel Brooks: ups to Brooks for his awesome pick-six.


PLAYER STATS


Kevin Moore: 156 QB Rating, 21/38 passing, 338 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT


J.T. McDonald: 12 rush att, 64 yards, 1 rec, 10 yards

Stephen Barnett (inj): 12 rush, 85 yards, TD, 2 rec, 59 yards, TD

Antoine Duplessis: 4 rush att, 21 yards/ Nathan Austin: 3 rush att, 2 yards, TD / Richardson: 4 yards (inj.)


George Harrison: 5 rec, 61 yards, TD (his stats for the year before this game in one game)

Alan Mitchell: 5 rec, 71 yards / Casey Robottom: 4 rec, 87 yards, TD

Devin Figaro: 2 rec, 31 yards / D.J. Banks: 2 rec, 19 yards


Cody Leford: 6 tackles

Kristifer Rhymes: 5 tackles, 2 TFL

Darryl Farley: 5 tackles, TFL, Sack

Samuel Brooks: 4 tackles, INT, Def TD

Gregory Hallinsworth: 4 tackles

Oscar Ponce De Leon: 3 tackles, TFL, Sack

Sammy Bourdeaux: 2 tackles, TFL

JJ Black: 2 tackles


UP NEXT: Week Five Around the NCAA

[Iron Dragon]

AROUND THE NCAA WEEK FIVE

Last week #1 Penn State lost at home to in-state foe Pittsburgh in a renewed rivalry. Not sure if they'll want to play again after that one.. what happens this week? Let's see.


C-USA SCORES


>> Marshall 37, Ohio 14 ... Marshall is currently the surprise team in the C-USA. 3-2 record and a 2-0 C-USA record. Marshall ran for 2 and Anderson threw for 3.

>> UCF 42, NALFS East 0 ... UCF faces NALFS East and wins. Clabrease with 3 pass TD and Harvey ran for three.

>> Memphis 31, UTEP 29 ... And another surprise team is Memphis. 4-0, 2-0. They escaped a better than last year UTEP team by two. UTEP had a late TD and failed to get the two.

>> Houston 35, Tulsa 7 ... UH is 4-0, 2-0. Tulsa is not so good. Case Keenum threw for 4 TD's and his backup threw for 1. Tulsa needs to end their QB situation: Bower finished with a 82.1 QB rating, with 17 incompletions (9/26), and Kinne finished with a 52.4 rating, with 14 incompletions (5/19).

>> Battle of the Winless: Southern Miss 31, ECU 28 ... If I told you that ECU and USM would be winless entering this game, you'd call me crazy. USM needed 21 2nd-half points including 15 in the final quarter to win. ECU drops to 0-4, USM to 1-3.

>> UAB 31, Rice 24 ... Rice to 0-4. Ellis for UAB had 4 TD's and Fanuzzi for Rice had 353 yards and 3 TD's but 3 INT's while Ellis had none.



NCAA SCORES


>> #13 USC 27, Cal 24 ... USC is struggling. USC could only take a 6-0 halftime lead, then they took a 16-0 lead until Cal rallied back with 17 straight points, then the teams traded TD's (And USC got a 2), and then with 10 seconds left Lee for USC kicks a 46 yard field goal.

>> #12 Penn State 27, #20 Wisconsin 24 ... Penn State needed a Kevin Newsome TD run to get the game back to a tie with 6 mins. left, and then Wagner nailed a 36 yard GW fg with :04 left.

>> #8 Boise State 56, Hawai'i 47 ... Passing TD's galore: Kellen Moore threw for 471 yards with 4 TD's and a pick. While Brent Rausch threw for 460 yards and 6 TD's and 0 INT's. However Jeremy Avery ran for 62 yards and 4 TD's, while Hawaii kicked two field goals that could have been TD's (both kicks from less than 30 yards).

>> #2 Texas 63, Iowa State 24 ... Garrett Gilbert threw for 2 TD's and ran for one, but McGee and Johnson both ran for a trio of touchdowns. ISU's Arnaud had a decent day with 3 Total TD's and 0 INT's.

>> Suicide Watch: Florida, Year Two: #23 Alabama 17, #1 Florida 14 ... Alabama's Mark Ingram scored on a 3 yard TD run with 20 seconds left to put a dagger in the Gators' week at #1.

>> #18 Western Michigan 20, Buffalo 17 ... WMU took a 17-0 lead on the Bulls before UB scored 17 straight, but WMU kicked a 20 yard field goal with 8 seconds to play to win it.


Top game next week: #1 Texas/#2 Oklahoma

TOP 25


Outside the Coaches: Oregon, Georgia Tech (tied with Oregon), Illinois, Maryland, Arizona, Notre Dame, Cincy


HEISMAN: Garrett Gilbert (QB, r-FR, Texas), Sean Fitzgerald (WR, Utah, SO), Jeremy Avery (HB, Boise, SR), Andre Debose (WR, Florida, SO), Roy Helu (HB, Nebraska, SR)


UP NEXT: at Houston (4-0), on TV, 1 win ever on TV (Hawai'i), Houston is better than us in every category but total offense (2 yards worse than us) rushing offense (they are 4 yards worse than us). Keep in mind: Tulane 5 games, Houston 4. Houston has the #1 rush defense, too. Hopefully we stay in the game until the very end.

[Iron Dragon]

Tulane's RB depth chart suffers: McDonald could start, Barnett to play less than normal, Richardson to get another MRI

NEW ORLEANS --- J.T. McDonald could make his first college start - a little earlier than expected. With the NCAA's leading rusher in yards banged up (keep in mind, Tulane has played 5 games, most teams only have played 4, including the no. 2 man), Stephen Barnett could start - but will most likely spend most of his time on the bench. Barnett hurt his ankle in the 2nd quarter of the Louisiana Tech game.

Tulane's RB depth chart did not need this. They redshirted sophomore Payton Jason and freshman Dan Thomas - lowering their numbers from 6 to 4. With Barnett banged up, that gives them three. However, Donny Richardson, also went down, in the third quarter. His injury was more severe than Richardson, and is affecting his MCL. With another MRI upcoming, his injury could be a sprain (3-4 weeks), a partial tear (10-15 weeks, back for bowl game(?)), or a complete tear (season-ending).

Richardson's injury is most likely a sprain, but could be a partial tear. This would keep him out for about four weeks. Barnett's injury may not affect him at all, but could limit his carries to let his ankle fully recover. If he is not ready to go, it will be J.T. McDonald starting, with Nathan Austin as his backup and a possible WR as the third string.

If Barnett is good to go, he will most likely take 20 carries at most, unless he looks very confident with his ankle in practice. So he could take around 30 at most. If he's not McDonald and Austin will share the load on about a 75/25 split, along with FB Antoine Duplessis.

If the running game struggles the Green Wave can rely on very confident Kevin Moore who has turned around a 1 TD, 6 INT start to the season to a current 8 TD, 7 INT season.

In other news.. position battles (1st player is current 3rd): WR2: D.J. Banks/Alan Mitchell, CB2: Sammy Bourdeaux/Alex Wacha, TE2: Tyler Helm/Brock Sanders. Also, D.J. Ponder has started to take reps again at QB. Most speculate he will return to the QB after a disappointing stint at WR.

[Iron Dragon]

Alright, another five games down for your pleasure which puts 18 so far in this thread. Only 50 or so more to go.

Also it's pretty cool to re-read some of my earlier seasons in this dynasty, I think.

[HuskerBlitz]

Also it's pretty cool to re-read some of my earlier seasons in this dynasty, I think.

It is cool to be able and go back and read earlier games.

[Iron Dragon]

It is cool to be able and go back and read earlier games.

It's also cool to look at what happened around us like Brent Rausch's 624 yard game.

[JBHuskers]

Loved that Google Map pic

[Iron Dragon]

Loved that Google Map pic

Thanks, I always thought that was a nice touch I had.

[Iron Dragon]

Tulane (3-2, 1-0 C-USA) at Houston (4-0, 2-0 C-USA)


HOUSTON, TEXAS --- Last year we lost a heartbreaker to Houston with a batted pass in OT on fourth down and a batted pass that could have won the game at the end of regulation. This year, Houston is undefeated and is on pace for a great season. The winner of this game becomes the favorite in the West, and if it's Houston, there might be no stopping them. This was the #1 vs #2 West predicted teams, if I remember right. If Tulane pulls off the win, it could be the best win for them so far under Ron Draggo. If Houston wins, they roll to 3-0 in the C-USA.. Let's find out.


Pre-game news: Stephen Barnett will start, he's back to 100%.


1ST QUARTER


We won the toss and deferred. Houston came out. Two incomplete passes and a 0 yard run. Kevin Moore starts out with a 9 yard run, then Barnett gets 7 on two carries, Moore finds Mitchell for 16, Duplessis gets 7, Barnett takes three carries and gets a first down and then Moore steps back and throws..




.. to Alan Mitchell for the touchdown! 15 yard TD for Mitchell.


Keenum throws for 38 yards on two plays, Beall loses 2, Keenum runs for 10, and on fourth down, Houston rolls the dice in field goal range and goes for it.. and they would not get it!


Stephen Barnett showed his injury wasn't stopping him as he almost broke a TD but instead picked up 29 yards. Casey Robottom then on WR sweep picks up 19 yards. Two plays go nowhere for Tulane as we lose five yards on a sack. On third down, Figaro gets 14 of the 15 on a reception. We go for it on fourth and one. Duplessis got five. Moore hits Harrison for 11 to the two. Then J.T. McDonald checks in:





..and gets a 2 yard TD. 14-0 Tulane. Yes, that's right 14-0 TULANE!


Houston starts up the pass happy train and gets 32 yards on three passes to start their drive.. here we go. [glare]


2ND QUARTER


We put pressure on Keenum to start the quarter, and his pass floats and Beall catches it, the catch - he's 7 yards behind the LOS and is stopped immediately. They could not recover from that 2nd & 17 and punted two plays later. Tulane took over with 6:14 in the quarter.


Barnett gets 6 after losing three, Mitchell gets 7, Figaro gains 10, both from Moore's passes obviously. Two plays later on third and 11, and Moore hits Mitchell for 19. Barnett gets 2, then Moore gets 8 and gets the first down on third down. Duplessis then gets eight. We try a WR sweep again: 2 yards from Robottom. Moore hits Robottom for 12 yards. McDonald runs for 3, Barnett gets 2, Barnett then gets a 6 yard reception. A play later..




.. Moore hits Mitchell for TD no. 2 for an 8 yard TD. 21-0 TULANE!! Holy upset batman! That drive chipped off four and a half minutes! 1:47 left in the half.


Houston would go three and out. Pinch me now.


Barnett would get 15 on two carries. Then Moore finds a wide open Robottom for 29. We gain five yards, let the clock drain. Timeout. 38 yard field goal by Ubekista is good. 24-0 Tulane. Holy crap. Upset special?


3RD QUARTER


We'd go three and out. Houston gets a first down, Beall gets 11. But Case Keenum gets sacked on a crucial third down. Punt. Moore fires one to Harrison for twenty. Barnett runs for 18 on four carries. McDonald gets 1 and we can't get the first down. Ubekista misses a 46 yard field goal JUST wide left off the crossbar from the left hash mark into the glaring sun. 24-0 still.


Houston goes three and out. Then this happens:





And J.T. McDonald fumbles. Well hold the phone, if Houston's offense gets going this one's not over.





Well hey would you look at that. Houston passing TD. 8 yards. They go for two. No good.


4TH QUARTER


Three and out us. Punt to start the 4th on the first play of the quarter. Houston starts to drive..




.. Darryl Farley gets a critical INT! He's got some field..




.. but he can't take it. But we're close to field goal range. We'd get into field goal range but we wouldn't get the first down. Ubekista would kick it, and it was good for a career long! Yellow flag. Holding, #80 (HARRISON@!@!), 10 yards. Repeat fourth down. Punt.


Well it's not like Houston would score again.. a 32 yard pass, and then..




.. a 38 yard TD pass to Scrouton who bowled over two of our guys when he made the catch. Hold the phone and the party. They'd go for two..




.. and they got it. 24-14. 3:00 to play.. and they'd kick an onside.. it was a good kick, VAN HOOSER FUMBLES IT!!!







But he picks up his own muff. Whew. We'd chew half of the three minutes and kick a 42 yard field goal. 27-14. Houston was still in this, believe it or not.


However thanks to horrible clock management, on their second to last play, sack. Fourth down and game with 16 seconds to go. Keenum steps back..




.. and it's a sack party. De Leon with the game sealing sack. And Keenum had a man wide open in the endzone too. Oh well.


We'd kneel down the rest of the clock.


FINAL SCORE: (UPSET SPECIAL!!) Tulane 27, Houston 14


This is our best win so far under my coaching. Everyone played their hearts out. Barnett had a poor YPC carry game but had 111 yards on 30 carries, but sometimes YPC doesn't mean a thing. Kevin Moore only had four incompletions (two drops). We shut down Case Keenum in the first half with 0 TD's and held Houston to nothing for three and a half quarters and unlike Southern Miss 2009, we held on after taking a huge lead and getting confidence in the upset. This year, we took a huge(r) lead and then held on to it and now we can go home celebrate and hopefully not be kicked off cloud nine by UTEP.


PLAYER STATS


Kevin Moore: 196.5 QB Rating, 14-for-18 passing, 176 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 13 rush yards


Stephen Barnett: 30 rush att, 111 yards, 3.7 avg, 0 TD, 2 rec, 10 yards

J.T. McDonald: 6 rush att, 24 yards, TD, Fumble


Alan Mitchell: 5 rec, 65 yards, 2 TD

George Harrison: 2 rec, 31 yards / Devin Figaro: 2 rec, 24 yards / Casey Robottom: 2 rec, 41 yards, 21 rush yards


Cody Leford: 8 tackles, 2 TFL

Darryl Farley: 7 tackles, INT

Sammy Boudreaux: 6 tackles

Samuel Brooks: 6 tackles

Devin Williams: 6 tackles, 3 TFL, Sack, FF

Tony Bryant: 4 tackles, 2 TFL, Sack

Oscar Ponce De Leon: 3 tackles, TFL, Sack


Tinzen Ubekista: 2/3 FG, 3/3 XP



UP NEXT: Week Six Around the NCAA

[Iron Dragon]

WEEK SIX AROUND THE NCAA

Last week on Around the NCAA, another #1 bites the dust as Florida fell to Alabama, this week, #1 Texas plays #2 Oklahoma. Could it be three straight weeks?

C-USA SCORES

>> UCF 31, Memphis 14 ... Memphis (4-0, 2-0) did have the same record as Houston entering the week, and they will exiting. Memphis' lone offensive TD came in the 1st quarter on a TD pass.
>> UAB 23, SMU 15 ... June Jones may be finding his way to a new coaching job next year, SMU to 0-5. Ellis with 2 TD passes.
>> Marshall 27, #20 Alabama 24 ... Chain: Marshall who beat Alabama who beat Florida. Hello surprise team, 4-2, 2-0 (same record as Tulane). Marshall's 16-point second quarter after falling behind 10-0 and then their TD run at the beginning of the 4th propelled them to the upset.
>> UTEP 39, Virginia 27 ... UTEP rallied with 16 fourth quarter points including a garbage 74 yard TD pass with 41 seconds to play. Vittatoe with 3 TD passes.
>> Southern Miss 22, Tulsa 10 ... Here comes Southern Miss, but what's up with Tulsa? 1-4 and 0-3 in the C-USA. USM had a 22-point 2nd quater. Davis with 2 pass TD's.
>> ECU 32, Rice 21 ... Battle of the 0-4 teams as ECU prevails. outscoring Rice 23-7 in the final 31 and a half minutes.

NCAA SCORES

>> Mississippi State 27, #17 Auburn 0 .. I didn't believe in Auburn's offense. And they mustered up just 120 yards against the previously winless in SEC play MSU Bulldogs.
>> Kansas State 28. #25 Okie State 15 ... K-State having another strong start under Bill Snyder (3-1, 2-0). Brown had 3 all-purpose TD's in the first quarter: 2 recieving and 1 punt return.
>> Northwestern 20, #6 Ohio State 3 ... wah wah wah. The Buckeyes outgained NU 235-216 but the Buckeyes turned the ball over FIVE times at home against the now 4-1 wildcats.
>> #4 LSU 25, Vanderbilt 22 .. With three seconds left. Down 22-17. Jordan Jefferson throws a 22 yard TD pass to Terrance Tolliver and the Tigers win it. JJ threw for 3 TD's.
>> Kansas 24, #14 aTm 13 ... Kansas' 93 yard INT return of Tannehill in the fourth quarter was the dagger in the Aggies first loss of 2010.
>> #21 Minnesota 34, (ID's no. 23) Illinois 27 ... Minnesota rallied back to beat the Illini on a 17 yard TD pass from Adam Weber with 18 seconds to go.
>> #2 Oklahoma 27, #1 Texas 14 ... Primetime Red River Rivalry. Tied at the half at 7, Oklahoma had a 20-point swing including a pick-six of Garrett Gilbert. Gilbert had a bad day: 1 TD, 4 INT / Bradford: 1 TD, 2 INT.
>> Elsewhere: Ranked Western Michigan beat Ball State, North Texas traveled to Hawaii with a 3-2, 2-0 WAC record, got passraped 58-7. Brent Rausch (2.5 qtrs): 21/33, 330 yards, 5 TD. All of Hawai'i's points came inside the fourty minute mark of the game. Oregon improved to 6-0 beating 0-6 UCLA.

TOP 25
OUTSIDE the Coaches: Louisville, Cincy, PITT, Kansas, Auburn

The bottom of the top 25 is a mess. Notice my 13-16, all undefeated teams that were unranked to start the year. How did I decide where the train (the four unbeaten teams) moves up? Minnesota has the best win: USC, WMU has the second best: Virginia Tech, Nebraska's best win is Kansas at home (they should start 8-0 easily), and Oregon's best win is at a sub-.500 Tennessee team.

HEISMAN: Roy Helu (RB, Nebraska), Sean Fitzgerald (WR, Utah), Jeremy Kerley (WR, TCU), Garrett Gilbert (QB, Texas), Jeremy Avery (RB, Boise)

C-USA WEST IS AN EPIC FAIL
1. Tulane 2-0
2. Houston 2-1
3. UTEP, Rice 0-2
5. Tulsa, SMU 0-3

EAST: Everyone is at least .500 in conference, with three undefeated teams in conference.

UP NEXT: On the road at UTEP. Their offense is better on paper and their defense is worse on paper. This screams shootout trap game, but if we stop the passing game like we did to Houston.. watch out..

[Iron Dragon]

Tulane (4-2, 2-0 C-USA) at UTEP (3-2, 0-2 C-USA)


EL PASO, TEXAS -- We head almost south of the border to play UTEP. Classic trap game on the road. UTEP has a B- OFF and a C- DEF. It's could be a trap shootout game. Trevor Vittatoe is a gunslinger who can throw for multiple TD's with no problem at all, and Kevin Moore is the same way, as his INT's have dropped from 6 in the first 3 games to 1 in the last three. Stephen Barnett is fully 100% this week if he wasn't already last week, while Richardson (HB3) is out until our BYE week it seems right now. Also it's an orange-out as UTEP is wearing all-orange and the stadium is full of orange and then our crappy section of green and ocean/light blue. Anyways, let's see what happens..


1ST QUARTER


UTEP won the toss and chose to gunsling and recieve. And gunsling they did. Trevor Vittatoe and their RB Van Dyke led the Miners down the field. Eventually gunslinger Vittatoe finds Van Dyke who gets some air over a diving Samuel Brooks on this 12 yard TD:





We'd battle back easily. Barnett gets one to start the game, Moore hits Harrison for a first down. Barnett then breaks off runs of 19 and 16 yards, and Duplessis pounds for 6, Barnett gets five more, Kevin Moore surprisingly dances away for 6 yards, and then..




.. Barnett slides his way out for a 9 yard TD run to the left. 7-7.


UTEP said not so fast as they passed and ran down the field again and eventually got a 18 yard TD pass from Vittatoe to Frye. But they miss the XP. 13-7


These were our keys to the game:

- Stop Vittatoe: FAIL through one quarter

- Stop the passing game: FAIL through one quarter

- Score touchdowns: SUCCESS:


Well, anything UTEP can do we can do better.. it's a toss to Barnett.. from our own 25 who breaks a tackle at the 26, slips into the secondary..




... makes a defender miss at mid-field and bye bye folks, that's a 75 yard TD run! Hellooooo Barnett! 14-13 Tulane with the XP.


UTEP would drive into the next quarter.


2ND QUARTER


After a funfilled 2nd quarter, this is the quarter where nothing happens. UTEP drives down the field, stalls. 33 yard field goal. We drive down the field. Stall. 51 yard field goal by Ubekista (career long, I do believe). UTEP then punts. We punt. UTEP gets another field goal. 19-17. We go three and out. UTEP does nothing. Halftime.



3RD QUARTER


Unfortunately for the Miners, we get the ball first. Not a bad thing. Barnett gets three on two carries, then Moore hits Robottom for 26, and Harrison for 17. However, on the next play, Moore gets hit and doesn't come back up. He's hurt. And that's not a good thing. He won't return, so Joe Kemp needs to step up. However, Stephen Barnett says "just give it to me":




.. and he gets a 19 yard TD. 24-19. That's no. 3 for him on the day. And UTEP would shoot itself in the foot twice to start the drive: holding then false start. They couldn't recover. Three and out, punt.


Joe Kemp took the role of gunslinger. Kemp who is identical basically to Moore (2 or 3 less THP, not a bad thing, 3 less SPD, not a bad thing either). Had the drive of his life. Five passes: a 19 yarder to Mitchell, a 8 yarder to Barnett, a 6 yarder to Mitchell, 3 yards to Harrison and then going five for five with this:




.. a beautifully thrown 17 yard TD pass to Mitchell. Ron Draggo could breathe easier, "We're going to be okay with this kid.", he mumbled to himself.


Meanwhile UTEP woke up from their hibernation and scored on a 4 yard TD after a minute-and-a-half long drive. Did ya forget about them? 31-26 Tulane.


J.T. McDonald gets 24 yards on two carries (one being 22), Kemp hits Duplessis for 8 (6-for-6 in the third), and then runs for a 7 yards and a first down to end the quarter. Not bad, youngen.



4TH QUARTER


McDonald starts the quarter witha 10 yard run, Kemp hits Harrison for 8 (7-for-7), Barnett runs for 5, Kemp throws to Harrison who is absolutely NAILED and flips and almost hangs onto the pass. Incomplete. Great attempt at it though. McDonald lost one, and then Kemp missed Mitchell. Ubekista nails a 35 yard field goal. 34-26 Tulane.


UTEP comes out... and Vittatoe makes a mistake. He underthrows Van Dyke and Kristifer Rhymes gets the INT.


We'd start to chew the clock. McDonald for 10, then five, then five more, Barnett got two, then eighteen (almost a TD), Stelly made a rare appearence and got one on 1st and goal, then Barnett got three. 3rd and Goal.


"The gunslinger" as Draggo would now call him does this:




.. he throws a perfect TD strike to D.J. Banks in the endzone. Great form, great pass, great catch. 41-26 Tulane. That's a four-yarder. A pretty good debut with only 10 passes, I'd say.


UTEP drove down the field passing, of course, scored. It was too little, too late, even though they got the two. They didn't get the onside kick and the kick was a miserable one.


We'd run out the clock with two first downs. Ah yes, Tulane is really turning into something good.. are we the best team in Louisiana? No. But we're getting there.


FINAL SCORE: 41-34 TULANE


If you told me Trevor Vittatoe would do better than Case Keenum, I'd say "you are an idiot". And boy I was wrong. UTEP played like Houston should have, and Houston played like UTEP should have. Or maybe this was the way things were supposed to go down. Four more C-USA wins and the title is ours. Just gotta play strong with Kevin Moore. He's supposely going to be back around the BYE week. But Joe Kemp is a gunslinger and he's a pocket passer and a good one at that. Hopefully his performance carries over to next week and the weeks he will start. Stephen Barnett is back, too, completely.


PLAYER STATS


Joe Kemp: 207.3 QB Rating, 8-for-10 passing, 73 yards, 2 TD, 7 rush yards

Kevin Moore (injured, ~4 weeks): 100.3 QB Rating, 6-for-12 passing, 72 yards


Stephen Barnett: 22 rush att, 197 yards, 3 TD, (8.9 avg), 3 BTK, 4 rec, 28 yards

J.T. McDonald: 10 rush att, 62 yards (turning into a more usable back-up)


Alan Mitchell: 3 rec, 42 yards, TD / D.J. Banks: 4 yard TD catch

George Harrison: 4 rec, 37 yards / Casey Robottom: 1 rec, 26 yards / Duplessis: 8 rec yards


Samuel Brooks: 6 tackles, TFL

Cody Leford: 6 tackles

Gregory Hallinsworth, Sammy Bourdeaux, JJ Black: 5 tackles each

Kristifer Rhymes: 5 Tackles, INT


Tinzen Ubekista: 2/2 FG, long of 51, 5/5 XP

Devin Figaro: 158 return yards


UTEP: Vittatoe 24/34, 323, 3 TD, INT / Van Dyke: 19 rush att, 74 yards, TD, 5 rec, 79 yards, 2 TD


UP NEXT: Week Seven Around the NCAA

[Iron Dragon]

WEEK SEVEN AROUND THE NCAA

For the last three weeks, the number one team has lost: Penn State (PITT), Florida (then #20 'Bama, now NR), Texas (now #1 Oklahoma). This week, Oklahoma faces winless Iowa State, I hope it doesn't happen or we have more suicide watch.


C-USA SCORES


>> Marshall 38, UAB 31 .. Both of these teams were 2-0 in C-USA play. Marshall continues to be the surprise going to 5-2. Marshall rallied back with 24 4th Q points including a 6 yard TD pass with :27 left.

>> UCF 37, Southern Miss 7 ... USM's only TD was a return TD. Harvey ran for two TD's, Catto hit 3 FG's. USM had a pitiful 112 yards of offense.

>> Houston 38, Memphis 0 ... Oh hey, who pissed off Houston? Oh right we did. Case Keenum threw for 4 TD's in the opening 18 minutes in a 391 yard day.

>> ECU 40, SMU 34 ... SMU is horrid at 0-6, 0-4 and ECU's struggle is surprising even though they are struggling. ECU outscored SMU 20-14 in the 1st quarter and that was the difference.

>> Tulsa 33, Rice 10 ... Rice and SMU battling for last (0-6). Tulsa gets 2nd win (2-4, 1-3). Kinne with 2 TD's and Tulsa also had a 3 yard pick-six. Why was Rice throwing from inside their own three only down 13-7?!!


NCAA SCORES


>> Alabama 52, #2 Ole Miss 17 ... I wasn't drinking the Ole Miss kool-aid. McElroy throws for 6 TD's.

>> Cal 43, #20 Oregon 27 ... Oregon's defense has been pretty good until today. They blew it. Outscored 30-10 in the 2nd half. Bye bye undefeated.

>> #23 Wisconsin 20, #16 Ohio State 10 ... tOSU choke meter: Full!

>> Iowa 17, #12 Penn State 12 .. Remember when Penn State was #1?

>> #8 Florida 28, #3 LSU 0 ... I didn't have the Ole Miss kool-aid, but I did sip the LSU wine.

>> Oregon State 26, #22 Arizona 21 ... That's four undefeated teams down this week.

>> #25 Northwestern 31, #14 Minnesota 28 ... And that's five. Northwestern wins the game on a 10-point fourth quarter with a GW 39 yard field goal with :25 left.

>> #10 Virginia Tech 27, #4 North Carolina 20 ... Jeez. That's six. No. 2, 3 and FOUR all go down. Boise State and Utah shit their pants.

Elsewhere: #1 Oklahoma won, so did Western Michigan, Miami beat sub-.500 FSU, Colorado improved to 6-1.


TOP 25


OUTSIDE THE COACHES: Oregon, Clemson, Arizona, Auburn, L'Ville, Illinois, Okie State, Cal


HEISMAN: LaTravis Washington (QB, Nebraska) jumps to 4th, Avery falls out, Titus Young back to fifth, Roy Helu still leads. (Nebraska)



C-USA WEST = BAD

1. Tulane 3-0

2. Houston 3-1

3. Tulsa 1-3

4-6. Everyone else 0-3/0-4

EAST'S WORST CONF RECORD: 2-2 (Memphis), four 2-1 teams and Marshall is 3-0.


UP NEXT: at Home against UCF (4-2, 2-1).. This could be our free mulligan, but it's at home, so I have some confidence in us to get win no. 6. If we lose, we can still win out and hit the CCG. Also, Tulane is just three wins away from 500 wins all-time.

[Iron Dragon]

Kevin Moore out until BYE week at least, Joe Kemp to start next two games

NEW ORELANS -- Kevin Moore will be sitting on the sideline with a pinched nerve along with Donny Richardson, who will both be recovering into the BYE week after Tulane's UCF and Marshall games.

Joe Kemp who went 8-for-10 with 2 TD's in a win at UTEP last week will start this coming week at home against UCF and will most likely start unless something happens in the Marshall game.

Kevin Moore is expected to return after the BYE week, along with Donny Richardson, who suffered a MCL sprain. Hopefully this will be the end of the injury bug for Tulane that has taken out two good players for 3-4 weeks right in the middle of C-USA play.

"Kemp is a gunslinger and he's pretty darn similar to Moore, so the guys don't have to adjust to his throws at all. And he's a pretty good pocket passer.", said Ron Draggo. Tulane currently sits at 5-2 and 3-0 in C-USA play.