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Yeah, can't say I don't mind that, lol. Though for the record, though still a losing record, USC is actually now 3-4, as they had a game yet to be played before I advanced to the next week, which I didn't do until after I made that post.Quote:
Originally Posted by jaymo76
It's the bizarro world of NCAA Football '12. CPU controlled WVU doesn't know how to recruit QBs in the game at all and, therefore, I'm sure, was stuck with some absolutely atrociously rated QB to helm the team, thus resulting in their horrible season results. Geno probably had a great year in Smooth's first year and then bolted to the NFL, leaving WVU high and dry at the QB position from then on.
Damn, I wish EA would let us go back and fully review and look at various stuff in past seasons, because that would be something I wouldn't mind to go and check out and see what actually happened to cause such a decline so rapidly.Quote:
Originally Posted by morsdraconis
That's why, every time I do one of these, I save it right before going to the offseason of the next season as a separate save. That way, I have all the historical information available to me.Quote:
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
But, yeah, I can almost guarantee that's what happened. It happened in quite a few of the seasons that I did with other teams. CPU WVU is dumb as shit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
Yes and yes. I wish they had historical information, and I make backup saves so that I can go back and look from time to time. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by morsdraconis
I did have a save at the end of season 2, so I could use it to look at coaching contracts and whatnot in case I had any questions about why someone got fired, after someone asked about one of the coaches at Temple or someplace getting fired after the first season. But I think I already overwrote that file.
I'm playing Western Kentucky right now, but here's a shocker for you. I noticed in the stories on the dynasty tabs, apparently Storm Johnson, as of a week or two ago, was among the top 5 for Heisman favorites. There was a story mentioning Johnson falling out of the top 5. That was news to me. :D
Game Five
:FIU: :@: :Western_Kentucky:
Game Notes
--- After a brief visit home, it was right back onto the road. The big difference this time, was that we were heading on the road coming fresh off our first victory of the season. Despite Western Kentucky coming into the game with a 1-5 record, it looked like it could be a tough one as the Hilltoppers brought in a fairly decent running game. We’d find out if our 17th ranked rushing defense could do the job. It was a bright and sunny day, setting up a perfect afternoon for football. We won the coin toss and elected to kick, putting our faith in our defense to start things off.
What a mistake that turned out to be. Western Kentucky started the game off with a 7 yard pass from Jermaine Kelly to Willie McNeal. After Quartterrio Morgan was tackled for a 2 yard loss, Kelly found McNeal again, this time for 19 yards and a first down at the WKU 43 yard line. After a 5 yard pass to Boe Brand, our defense gave us some hope by sacking Kelly for a loss of 4 yards. However, on third and 10, Kelly found Morgan for a 12 yard gain and another first down. After a thrown away pass, Morgan picked up 6 yards on the ground, followed by a 14 yard pass to Ben Evans for another first down at our 25 yard line. Morgan picked up the next first down by himself, with rushes of 8, 2, and 3 yards, giving WKU a first down at our 13 yard line. After a 7 rush by Morgan, Kelly found Brand for a second time, with a 6 yard touchdown pass to give Western Kentucky a 7-0 lead with 5:47 left to play.
Starting our first drive on the 24 yard line, Storm Johnson got us off to a decent start with a 6 yard gain on the ground. It was on second down that Johnson turned on beast mode, plowing over the nose guard, one of the defensive tackles and the middle linebacker for a 13 yard gain before finally being tackled. The Hilltoppers quickly adjusted to our running game, and on the next play, Johnson was tackled for a 2 yard loss. Facing second and 12, we took to the air for the first time of the game, as Jake Medlock found Dominique Rhymes across the middle and threaded the ball between the outside and middle linebackers for an 18 yard completion, giving us first down at the WKU 41 yard line. After a 1 yard rush by Johnson, Medlock found Rhymes for a second time, along the left hash mark, for a 20 yard gain, giving us first down at the WKU 20 yard line. On the next play, Medlock was able to get a quick pass off to Willis Wright, who picked up 12 yards to give us first and goal at the Western Kentucky 8 yard line. Medlock was able to hit Johnson with a dump pass for a 5 yard gain, advancing the ball to the 3 yard line. On second and goal, Darrian Mallary was able to turn the corner and make it to the corner of the end zone for a 3 yard touchdown rush, tying the game up at 7-7 with 2:17 left in the first quarter.
Western Kentucky wasted very little time in responding to our score, as Kelly found Evans on a 2 yard pass, followed by our defense giving the Hilltoppers 5 free yards for being offside. On second and 3, Kelly connected with Evans again for 8 yards. On first down from the WKU 43 yard line, Kelly completed a pass to Brand for 8 yards, followed by an 8 yard rush by Morgan for another first down at our 42 yard line. The very next play, Kelly found McNeal deep for a 38 yard pass, and then on first and goal, Morgan took it in from 4 yards out, giving Western Kentucky the 14-7 lead with 41 seconds left in the quarter. Johnson was able to pick up 3 yards on a first down rush, until our offense went way backwards, with Medlock getting sacked for a 10 yard loss, leaving us with third and 17 as the clock ran out on the first quarter, WKU on top 14-7.
Start of the second quarter found us facing a dire situation. Already down 14-7, our offense was backed up against a wall, facing third and 17 from our own 12 yard line after Medlock got sacked on second down. It was Wright who stepped up and became our savior that drive, breaking loose from his coverage and hauling in a pass for a 36 yard gain, giving us first down at our 48 yard line. After a 1 yard gain on the ground by Johnson, Rhymes was able to get wide open in the middle of the field, easily bringing down a 23 yard pass to give us first down at the WKU 27 yard line. A rush attempt on first down failed instantly, as one of the linebackers came running through the line completely untouched and tackled Johnson for a 2 yard loss. After a 6 yard pass to Wright, Johnson through for us on third and 6, catching a pass out of the backfield and picking up 20 yards before being tackled, giving us first and goal at the 3 yard line. Johnson was able to pick up 2 yards on first down, leaving us just 1 yard away from the end zone. It was on the next play that Johnson would find the goal line, as he was able to get just enough momentum to power through a tackle attempt and fall into the end zone for a 1 yard touchdown, making it a 14-14 tie with 6:29 left in the game. One big stat so far this game, was Jake Medlock at that moment being a perfect 8-8 passing for a 140 yards. It appeared that Western Kentucky’s pass defense really was as bad as their ranking and average showed.
That previous drive by our offense seemed to wake up our defense, as after rushes for 4 and 5 yards by Morgan, a dropped pass by Brand on third and 1 forced the first punt of the game as the Western Kentucky punt team jogged on to the field. Realizing the importance of this drive, and that we would finally be able to play from a position of advantage, rather than playing catch up every drive, our offense immediately set to work trying to cover the 83 yards that lay in front of them. Johnson got our drive started off great, with an 11 yard run. Johnson was then able to pick up 3 yards to make it second and 7, before Medlock found Wayne Times along the right sideline for a 21 yard gain, giving us first down at the Western Kentucky 48 yard line. A 4 yard rush by Johnson, was immediately followed by a 6 yard pass to Johnson, leaving us facing third and inches at the 38 yard line. That 6 yard pass was also Medlock’s 10th consecutive pass of the game, making him 10 for 10 with 167 yards passing. Mallary was able to keep our drive alive, picking up 2 yards before being brought down by the defense. The next set of plays was all Johnson, as he ran for gains of 5, 3 and 2 yards, leaving us facing fourth and short. Coach Cristobal elected to go for it, and Johnson was just barely able to get across the line of scrimmage, picking up 1 yard to give us a first down at the 25 yard line. After a perfect 10 for 10 passing start to the game, Medlock not only ruined that start, but completely trashed it as he threw an interception, giving Western Kentucky the ball back at their own 13 yard line with 2:01 left to play.
Morgan quickly got things rolling for the Hilltoppers, picking up gains on the ground of 3, 4 and 5 yards, to give Western Kentucky a first down on their 25 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Kelly found McNeal for a 27 yard gain, giving WKU another first down at our 48 yard line. A 6 yard rush by Morgan, followed by a dropped pass, left Western Kentucky facing third and 4 at our 42 yard line. It was here that our defense finally stood up, sacking Kelly for a 4 yard loss and stopping the drive before any damage could be done. A punt for a touchback gave us the ball at our own 2 with 34 seconds left and all three time outs. After an incomplete pass on first down, Medlock was able to find Wright for a 17 yard gain and a new set of downs with 24 seconds left. Unfortunately, there would be no last second touchdown or field goal to end the half, as three straight incomplete passes left us punting the ball away with 12 seconds to play in the half. A fumble on the punt return, recovered by WKU’s McNeal, left just 2 seconds on the clock, to which Morgan ran the ball for 5 yards and ended the half, a 14-14 tie.
Our first drive of the second half found us starting at our own 27 yard line, hopefully good enough field position to allow us to get a lead. Johnson was able to pick up 7 yards on first down, before a tackle for a 1 yard loss left us with third and 4. Our drive stayed alive as Medlock was able to connect with Wright for an 8 yard gain, giving us a new set of downs at our 40 yard line. A 17 yard pass to Rhymes reset the downs once again at the WKU 43 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Medlock again found Rhymes, this time for a 19 yard gain and a first down at the 25 yard line. Attempting to catch the defense off guard with a rush, it ended up being a wasted play as Mallary could only get a single yard before being tackled by a pair of WKU defenders. Going back to the air, Medlock was able to find Johnson on consecutive plays, picking up gains of 7 and 6 yards to give us first down at the WKU 11 yard line. A quick pass to Wright on first down picked up an 8 yard gain, giving us second and 2 from the 4 yard line. Johnson would only need one play, fighting through the line for a 4 yard touchdown run, giving us a 21-14 lead with 5:43 left to play in the third quarter.
Despite a 22 yard kickoff return out to their own 27 yard line, the Western Kentucky offense’s drive lasted only a couple plays. Morgan got the drive started with a 5 yard rush, before a dropped pass and a holding penalty left them with third and 15. Kelly would find Dwayne Swan for an 8 yard gain, but it wouldn’t be enough and the Hilltoppers would punt the ball right back, only a minute off the clock. Our drive meanwhile started off pretty poorly, as Medlock was sacked on first down for a 6 yard loss, immediately putting our offense in a hole. Johnson was able to haul in a 10 yard pass to leave with third and 6, but a pass attempt to Wright fell incomplete and we were forced to punt the ball back. Starting at their own 31 yard line, our defense came through huge for us on Western Kentucky’s next drive, forcing an incomplete pass on first down, before Morgan was tackled for a loss of 2 yards, and another incomplete pass on third down forced another WKU punt.
This time we were able to get our drive started off right, as Wright caught a pass for a 16 yard gain, giving us first down at our 37 yard line. After a 5 yard pass to Johnson, our offense once again went backwards, as Medlock got sacked yet again, this time for a 9 yard loss, leaving us facing third and 14. A deep pass attempt to Times ended up overthrown and we once again had to punt right back to Western Kentucky. This time the Hilltoppers started to find some offense, as Morgan started off with rushes of 5 and 3 yards, before Kelly found Mitchell Henry for an 11 yard gain, giving Western Kentucky a first down at their 47 yard line. The drive would collapse after that though, as Morgan was twice tackled for a 3 yard loss, and Kelly’s pass, on third and 16, to Swan for 13 yards, left the Hilltoppers 3 yards short and brought about another punt. Starting at our 20 yard line, we tried to get something going on the ground, but only 2 yards gained by Johnson on first down, and it was right back into the air we went. A 12 yard pass to Johnson gave us first down at our own 34 yard line and brought about the end of the third quarter, with us leading 21-14.
The start of the fourth quarter, we knew it was only a matter of time before the Hilltoppers would get their offense moving and find the end zone again, so we knew we had to do something this drive. Some quick gains of 7 and 4 yards by Wright gave us another first down at our own 45 yard line, and kept us inching close to the end zone. A quick pass over the middle to Rhymes seemed to catch the defense off guard, as Rhymes was able to catch the ball, turn around and run for a 27 yard gain before the secondary could close in and bring him down, giving us first and 10 at the WKU 28 yard line. Our drive however would quickly come to an end, as on second and 10, Medlock would throw his second interception of the day, giving Western Kentucky the ball back on their own 18 yard line. This time we got lucky, as Morgan could only gain 8 yards on first down, before an incomplete pass and a rush for a 3 yard loss by Morgan left fourth and 4 and forced another Western Kentucky punt. An 11 yard punt return by Johnson gave us great field position, as our offense returned to the field on our 42 yard line.
Despite the ending of the last drive, we went right back to the air, forcing Medlock to either overcome his last mistake, or shoulder what could potentially be a loss. Medlock chose to overcome, finding Johnson coming out of the backfield for a 10 yard gain and a first down at the WKU 48 yard line. Facing third and 10, Wright once again came through for us, catching a pass in traffic for a 16 yard gain, giving us first down at the 31 yard line. After a 7 yard gain by Johnson, the defense brought a heavy blitz, which played perfectly into the hands of our offense, as Wright was left wide open for a 14 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the WKU 10 yard line. A 7 yard pass to Johnson left us with second and goal at the 2 yard line. On second and goal, Mallary was able to pick up 1 yard on the ground, leaving us on the 1 yard line on third and goal. Despite Johnson’s best efforts, the Western Kentucky defense was able to overwhelm our offensive line, tackling Johnson for no gain. We would at least walk away with some point, as Yusef Hagen kicked the 19 yard field goal to give us a 24-14 lead with 4:53 left to play in the game. Morgan again tried to give Western Kentucky their best odds at a score, returning the kickoff 23 yards out to the WKU 32 yard line. But an incomplete pass on first down, followed by a 5 yard rush by Morgan and a 3 yard rush by Kelly, left the Hilltoppers facing fourth and 1 from their own 41 yard line. Western Kentucky would attempt the fourth down conversion, but our defense came through in a huge way, as safety Sidney Sledge intercepted Kelly’s pass attempt, giving our offense first down at the Western Kentucky 49 yard line with 4:03 left to play.
With only 4 minutes left to play, instead of trying to pass our way down the field and get another touchdown, we decided to try and run the clock down as much as possible. Despite gains of only 1 and 2 yards by Johnson, leaving us with third and 7, there was only 2:47 left to play in the game, so we decided to play the clock, and attempt another rush. The play call ended up working in our favor, as Johnson was able to break through the line for a 10 yard gain, giving us first down at the Western Kentucky 35 yard line with 2:33 left to play. Western Kentucky did have all three of their timeouts still, so it was still unknown if we could run out the clock and end the game right there on our drive. It was on the very next play, that Western Kentucky started using those timeouts, calling the first one after a 1 yard gain by Mallary, leaving 2:07 left to play. On second down, Johnson was able to give our running game a chance, picking up 5 yards to make it third and 4, with 2:01 left to play after a second WKU timeout. Unfortunately, a 2 yard gain down to the Western Kentucky 27 yard line was all the Johnson could mange, but it did force the Hilltoppers to burn their third and final timeout, leaving them with nothing for the final 1:57 of the game. A 44 yard field goal by Hagen gave us a 27-14 lead with 1:49 left to play.
Western Kentucky, facing a 13 point deficit with only 1:49 left to play, tried to use a 22 yard kickoff return to propel their offense. Kelly was able to find Brand for an 8 yard gain on first down. After an incomplete pass on second down, Kelly connected with Evans for 5 yards and gave Western Kentucky new life. After a pair of incomplete passes, our defense, for reasons unknown, decided to help the Hilltoppers with 5 free penalty yards and a first down. The Hilltoppers almost blew it, as on first down, Kelly fumbled the ball on the snap. Kelly was able to recover the fumble at the WKU 42 yard line, but with only 53 seconds left to play, the Hilltoppers were about to be sealed to their fate. A 5 yard false start penalty against the offense on first and 13 only pushed Western Kentucky back to their own 37 yard line with 51 seconds left to play. An incomplete pass on second down left 43 seconds left to play. Before a third down pass attempt would be the last play the Western Kentucky offense would make for the day, as safety Cain Elliot intercepted a pass attempt by Kelly, giving us the ball back at the Western Kentucky 49 yard line with 37 seconds left to play. One kneel by Medlock was all it would take to run out the rest of the clock and secure the 27-14 win. For the second consecutive week, Storm Johnson would take home player of the game honors, ending the day with 77 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns on 25 attempts, and 115 yards receiving on 14 receptions.
With the win, we improve to 2-3 for the season, 2-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. With the loss, Western Kentucky drops to 1-6 for the year, 1-3 in the Sun Belt. Up next, we continue on the road, visiting Troy. The Trojans come into the game with a 5-1 record. Troy opened up their year with a 41-38 loss to UAB, before beating Montana State 34-6, winning at Fresno State 34-21, knocking off Michigan State 31-24, picking up a 65-13 win at Mid Tennessee State, and defeating Florida Atlantic 59-24.
Final Score
:FIU: 27, :Western_Kentucky: 14
Stat(s) of the Game:
FIU Offense – Medlock almost potentially screwed us, throwing an interception during a 14-14 tie, and then throwing a second interception when we only had a 21-14 lead, but he did otherwise go 30-42 with 391 yards, and as our rushing game was barely able to get anything going for much of the game, passing was just about the only thing that kept us going on offense and allowed us to hold on for the win. Rushing, it was an alright day for Johnson with 77 yards, but he did get the final two of our three rushing touchdowns. Mallary, while he only touched the ball 5 times and only gained 8 yards, he scored our first touchdown of the day, so he was just as big a part of our offense as Johnson was.
FIU Defense – They’re still going to kill us some game. Got moon walked over by the WKU offense on the first drive and second drives of the game. They thankfully then held their own for most of the rest of the game, and even when WKU did start making moves on offense, were able to bend without breaking. They’re still going to screw us in a tight game in the future, I guarantee it.
FIU Kicking – Hagen actually had a perfect game for a change, going 2 for 2 on field goals, making them for 19 and 44 yards out, and going 3 for 3 on PATs. A nice surprise for a change after three years of mediocre kicking.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :FIU: 7 7 7 6 27 :Western_Kentucky: 14 0 0 0 14
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 5:47 :Western_Kentucky: Touchdown B. Brand, 5 yard pass from J. Kelly (J. Lane kick) :Western_Kentucky: 7-0 2:17 :FIU: Touchdown D. Mallary, 3 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) TIED 7-7 0:41 :Western_Kentucky: Touchdown Q. Morgan, 4 yard run (J. Lane kick) :Western_Kentucky: 14-7 Second Quarter 6:29 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 1 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) TIED 14-14 Third Quarter 5:43 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 4 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 21-14 Fourth Quarter 4:56 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 19 yard field goal :FIU: 24-14 2:01 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 44 yard field goal :FIU: 27-14
Game Stats
Florida International Stat Western Kentucky 27 Score 14 24 First Downs 11 449 Total Offense 277 34 - 58 - 3 Rushes - Yards - TD 25 - 86 - 1 30 - 42 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 16 - 31 - 1 391 Passing Yards 191 3 Times Sacked 2 7 - 13 (53%) 3rd Down Conversion 7 - 15 (46%) 1 - 1 (100%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 1 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 5 - 3 - 1 (80%) Red Zone - TD - FG 3 - 2 - 0 (66%) 2 Turnovers 2 0 Fumbles Lost 0 2 Intercepted 2 15 Punt Return Yards 20 67 Kick Return Yards 126 531 Total Yards 423 3 – 44.7 Punts - Average 6 - 46.5 2 - 10 Penalties 2 - 15 24:22 Time of Possession 11:38
Florida International Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :3redarrow: 500+ rushing yards in each season 438 :3greenarrow: Win 8 games in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 7+ passing TD in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 10+ points per game in each season 23 PPG :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 2400+ total offensive yards in one season :check: :3greenarrow: :2redarrow: Win 4 games in one season :check: :1greenarrow: :6redarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in one season :check:
Job Security Status
80%
Thoughts on the game... Medlock almost screwed us twice. However, Medlock is also just about our only saving grace when it comes to offense ans his passing abilities. Our running game is not as great as I thought it would be, even with Storm Johnson in the backfield. We just cannot get anything going on the ground outside of the first quarter and the last couple minutes of the fourth quarter. Defense, they are going to screw us, I can guarantee it. Some game, it's going to be a tight game, maybe even tied, and they were ruin it for us. There is no doubt in my mind. We're going to find out about the defense next week, as we go on the road to 5-1 Troy.
Taking a look at action on the national scene, in the Top 25, it's another week, another big upset, as 5-2 Northwestern knocks off #5 Iowa, 28-3. #2 Alabama held off #25 Ole Miss 28-25, #7 Ohio State got the win over #24 Nebraska 27-21, #22 UCF ruins #9 Connecticut's 4-0 season with a 35-10 upset, #18 Washington improved to 6-1 on the year with a 42-10 shellacking of #12 Stanford. #13 Baylor barely escaped Texas 38-37, #14 Arkansas holds off Tennessee 42-35, 5-2 North Carolina gets a win over #15 Georgia Tech, 35-31. Pittsburgh beat #17 Clemson 38-31 in overtime, Duke knocked off #21 Miami 35-21, ruining the Canes 5-0 start, and Utah upset #23 Oregon State 40-10.
For our devoted fans, Mors, unfortunately it's back to more of the same, as 3-2 Kansas State drops West Virginia to 1-7, 1-6 in the Big 12 with an ugly 44-13 win. Jaymo, what do you know, apparently 0-6 is a lucky number. One week after West Virginia finally broke into the win column after an 0-6 start, Arizona State does the same, beating a 3-4 USC, 24-13, to improve to 1-6 for the year, 1-3 in the Pac 12.
A look at the top 25 in bizarro world, Wisconsin is #1 at 6-0, Alabama #2 at 7-0, Penn State #3 at 6-0, Mississippi State #4 at 6-0, Oklahoma #5 at 5-0. Ohio State is #6 at 6-0, LSU #7 at 5-1, Boise State #8 at 4-1, TCU #9 at 5-2, Baylor #10 at 4-1. Elsewhere, Iowa is #12 at 5-1 (dropping from #5 last week), Washington is #13 at 6-1, Connecticut is #15 at 4-1 (dropping from #9 last week), UCF is #17 at 6-2, Northwestern jumps from unranked to #18 at 5-2 fresh off their upset of Iowa, Illinois is #22 at 4-1 (first week in the poll) and USF enters the poll at #24 with a 3-2 record.
Good win Smooth. Looks like you're resorting to the same thing I do once the CPU decides that you can't run the damn ball anymore. It's frustrating as hell to watch it happen because it seems like once the CPU decides you can't run the ball, that's all they play the rest of the game, thus making it stupid easy to throw the ball.
Yeah, I can have some success running for the first drive or two, and then either towards the end of the first quarter or beginning of the second quarter, that's it, our running game dies. After that, we turn into Houston and just start passing play after play, as that's the only way to move the ball. Storm Johnson, so far this season, has actually been more useful as an extra receiver in my passing game than he has been as a ball carrier in my running game.Quote:
Originally Posted by morsdraconis
I figured Western Kentucky would be one of the games where I'd be able to unleash Johnson and my running game on them, being as they are so bad, and their running defense wasn't the greatest, but they still had no problem shutting my running game down for the most part. If I can't get a passing game going against Troy, I'm going to be screwed, because I can guarantee that Troy will obliterate my running game.
Welcome to my world, in my SBCOL OD it's year 3 and Medlock is all I got basically. Mallary is graduated. Rhymes is out for the season, my 5* fresh RB is out for the year. My O-Line SUCKS! Gave up 10 sacks last game and I even use the don't touch the stick until passing method that's suppose to help pass blocking. My D gets crushed every game and is a D overall.Quote:
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
Good thing is Medlocks (RS) Fresh backup is 75 compared to Medlock at 79. So we will not have much of a drop off there, I'm also trying to get more SPEED!!!
Yeah, this team has just gone of a cliff between the first year and this year. I was planning on signing another contract with FIU after this season, so I could at least stay during this year and next year while Storm Johnson was on the roster, but with the way this season is going, once my contract expires at the end of the year, I might just bail for another job.Quote:
Originally Posted by DariusLock
Going by my advancement rules, I'm only allowed to take an OC job at another mid-major, no more than 3 stars prestige. But, go screw around at a MAC school or CUSA school or something for 3 or 4 years, and then after I make it to year 6, I can take either a head coach job at a 3 star or less mid-major, or be OC at a 4 star or less major program. I'll have to see what things look like in terms of recruiting and who I can get the rest of this season for FIU, and what kind of job offers I see during CC.
So, you got me playing NCAA 12 again, you bastard, and playing with FIU as the OC. I started a dynasty with them and immediately realized that I HATE their offensive play style (it's IMPOSSIBLE to run out of shotgun against the CPU unless you absolutely dominate them statistically) so I went with a more pro style offense and the ground and pound approach. Well, you know how that goes with me. I run the ball a bit, and, once they piss me off with them magically breaking through my offensive line like they're not even standing there, I come out and torch them with the pass. Bad defense (fuck you CPU playing 4 WR sets with a Cover 1 defense!) and ridiculous offensive numbers later, I pull out the win 49-42 with 7 TD passes but 200 yards on the ground for Perry. TY Hilton catches 10 passes for 240 some yards and 5 TDs; two of which were absolutely BEAUTIFUL over the shoulder grabs just BARELY out of the defender's reach as he went speeding down the sideline for the TD.
I'm quickly reminded how ridiculously easy it is to pass the ball in this game unless the CPU decides to cheat just enough to know where you want to go with the ball. ~450 yards of passing on 22-38 (or somethin' like that) passing because of all the big plays whereas I have 200 something on the ground with Perry on 30 rushes mainly because the CPU decided I wasn't going to run the clock out by running the ball in the last 4 minutes of the game and, instead, forced quite a few loss of yards runs when, really, it should have been a 3-4 yard gain without teleporting through blockers by the defenders.
Not sure if I'll continue playing the games, but it was a nice distraction for a moment and it was fun to play with a team that I've never played with before (and it was good to see that the yardage totals for myself and the CPU aren't much different than what you had against them).
:D You finally got sucked back in. Yep, there's no way I'd try to run the ball out of shotgun. I'd be lucky to get over 20 yards rushing each game. That's why I had to go the custom playbook route and work in some new formations and give me a bunch of under center plays, both running and passing.
Yeah, for the most part, I'm fairly on par with the statistics of the real life FIU. A little bit better/higher stats, but even then, I'm still struggling to win a lot of my games, having to pull wins out of my ass half the time. So while my stats may be a bit higher or better than the real team, I'm not going to complain too much as changing the sliders up a bunch to try and even out the statistics even more would probably cause me to go 0-12 every year, especially with as much as I've been struggling with opponents this season.
With the sliders as they are now, I can usually beat the teams that are worse than me, it's 50/50 against the teams with close or even ratings, and I will generally get my ass handed to me against teams that are better than me. Well, with the exception of Duke, who for some reason I just had their number in the two games I played against them.
Have been really busy the past week so I haven't read this blog for a bit. However, the news of an ASU victory over much hated USC brings a HUGE smile to my very tired eyes. Great read as always Smooth! Keep up the good work.
Thanks man! Yep, ASU finally broke into the win column, against USC of all teams. Looked like it a good game. As for my dynasty, the Troy game is coming. I was going to play it Monday, then ended pushing it off to Tuesday, pushed it off to Wednesday, then had work take over the last three days. I think it's gotten more to me now trying to avoid the violations that I'm going to receive from Troy for as long as possible. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by jaymo76
Game Six
:FIU: :@: :Troy:
Game Notes
--- Heading into the second game of our two game road trip, was a trip to Troy, Alabama to take on the 5-1 Trojans. While we have split with Troy the last two years, they have been fiercely contested games, as we lost only by four at Troy two years ago, before picking up an eight point win over the Trojans at home last year. Troy so far this year is the favorite to win the conference title, followed by Arkansas State and ourselves, conveniently the only remaining undefeated teams in the conference, as ourselves and Troy enter week nine of the season at 2-0 in the Sun Belt, and Arkansas State enters 1-0. It looked like it was going to be another battle through the air, as Troy entered the game with the 24th best rushing defense in the nation, while their passing defense was less stellar, coming in at only 70th best. Seeing as our offense entered the game with one of the worst rushing offenses in the nation, ranked 117th, but a 33rd ranked passing offense, to air it would be. It was a bright and sunny day, setting up for a perfect afternoon of football. Troy won the coin toss and elected to kick.
Deciding to try and test out the Troy defense on first down, it was apparent our running game wasn’t going to be of much use, as Storm Johnson was immediately stuffed for only a two yard game, as the defense wasted little time in flocking to the ball. After a 6 yard pass to Johnson, we appeared to have a first down after Jake Medlock completed another short pass. However, a flag came out, as we were penalized for clipping during the play, taking away our first down and leaving us facing third and 6. Much our savior last game, Willis Wright again came through for us huge, catching a well placed pass right in the middle of two Troy defenders for a 15 yard gain, giving us first down at our 36 yard line. In what becoming a trend for defenses facing our team, a miscue by the Troy defense allowed Dominique Rhymes to break free uncovered on a flag route, resulting in a 30 yard pass and a first down at the Troy 34 yard line. The very next play, Rhymes continued to make the Troy defense suffer, as a heavy blitz by the Trojans allowed Rhymes to get immediately open on a crossing route, resulting in a 12 yard gain down to the Troy 22. It was at this point that Medlock decided to let his ugly side show, as consecutive blitzes by Troy left Rhymes wide open, but Medlock badly overthrew Rhymes both times. Then facing third and 10, a pass attempt to Johnson was thrown behind him, resulting in our drive stalling at the Troy 22. Yusef Hagen, despite kicking from the right hash mark, had little trouble and kicked the 39 yard field goal attempt cleanly through the uprights, giving us a 3-0 lead with 6:36 left to play in the quarter.
Troy seemed more than ready to respond. A 25 yard kickoff return set the Trojans up at their own 26 yard line, to which Corey Robinson quickly found Gavin Ellis for a 10 yard gain. On second and short, Nathan Hendrickson picked up 7 yards on the ground, handing Troy an early first down. It would quickly crumble apart for the Trojans though, as an incomplete pass set them tumbling off a cliff. A sack for a loss of 6 yards and an incomplete pass on third down left Troy punting on fourth and 16 from their own 37. It would only get worse, as their punter shanked the punt short, giving us the ball at our own 29. On the very first play of our second drive, Wright again stated his case for moving up the depth chart from third receiver, as a quick chuck by Medlock to avoid a sack was miraculously hauled in before it could by batted down by two Troy defenders, resulting in a 37 yard gain at the Troy 34 yard line. Unfortunately, that would be as far as we would get, as much like our last drive, three short passes by Medlock, all knocked down by Troy defenders, brought our drive screeching to a halt. A punt out the back of the end zone gave Troy the ball at their own 20. Troy however would not get anything going offensively. After an offside penalty by our defense advanced the ball to the 25, an incomplete pass made it second down, before a false start penalty pushed Troy back to the 20. On the fourth play of the drive, second and 15, Jamel Johnson managed to pick up 5 yards on the ground to get Troy back to the 25 yard line, but a dropped pass on third and 10 would force Troy to punt the ball right back. A 7 yard return by Johnson gave us the ball at our own 39 yard line with 4:18 left in the first quarter.
After a pair of incomplete passes from Medlock, Rhymes decided it was his turn to play savior, catching a pass over the middle and dragging a Troy defender a couple of extra yards, before falling down for a 23 yard gain to give us first down at the Troy 38. After an incomplete pass on first down, Medlock found Johnson for a 9 yard gain to set up third and 1. Johnson would convert the third down on the next play, as in only our second rushing attempt of the game, Johnson found a hole off the left tackle and was able to pick up two yards and the first down. After two more incomplete passes left us facing yet another third down, the Troy defense handed us a gift on a silver platter, as Rhymes was left uncovered and was able to catch a pass at the 5 yard line, before battling two Troy defenders long enough to fall forward into the end zone for a 27 yard touchdown pass, giving us a 10-0 lead with 2:20 left in the first quarter. This time Troy wasted little time in responding, as after a tackle in the backfield cost the Trojans 3 yards, a 2 yard gain on second down set Robinson up for a 13 yards pass to Eric Thomas on third down to convert. A 10 yard pass to Thomas the very next play instantly gave Troy another first down. An incomplete pass on first down did little to slow down the Trojans, as Robinson found Thomas yet again, this time for 18 yards, giving Troy a first down at our 38 yard line. A 13 yard pass to Jim Teknipp set up another first down, before a 10 yard pass to Ellis gave Troy second and 1 from our 15 yard line with 37 seconds left in the quarter. After an incomplete pass left 23 seconds left to play, Robinson found Anthony Williams for 13 yards, giving Troy first and goal at our 2 yard line with 15 seconds left. With 2 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Robinson connected with Ellis for a 2 yard touchdown pass, making it 10-7. A touchback on the kickoff brought the first quarter to an end.
The start of the second quarter, we knew it was time to get serious, as Troy had found their rhythm on offense, and was a threat to take the lead the next time they touched the ball if we failed to score on this drive. Wright continued to work his receiving mojo, hauling in a 32 yard pass on second down, again surrounded by Troy defenders, to give us first down on the Troy 48 yard line. After advancing down to the Troy 22 yard line thanks to receptions of 8 yards by Johnson and 17 yards by Rhymes, Medlock finally paid for his fire from the hip passing, as a pass that was thrown behind Wright was picked off by the defense at the Troy 2 yard line and returned out to their 8. Despite the massive momentum shift, our defense rose to the challenge. After a 2 yard gain by Robinson and a 5 yard rush by Hendrickson, the linebackers got to Robinson and sacked him for a 6 yard loss, setting up fourth and 9 at the Troy 9 yard line. An 8 yard return by Johnson on a 41 yard punt gave us first down at the Troy 41 yard line and a great chance to rectify the mistake on the previous drive. That chance would have to wait though, as two incomplete passes and a dropped pass resulted in a three and out and the punt team returning to the field. A 41 yard punt resulted in a touchback. This time Troy came out firing hard and often. A 24 yard pass to Johnson on first down advanced the ball to the Troy 44. After two incomplete passes, a 17 yard pass to Thomas gave Troy a first down at our 40 yard line. A 13 yard pass to Johnson and a 15 yard pass to Williams gave Troy first down at our 12 yard line. After a 5 yard rush by Johnson, Robinson found Hendrickson for a 7 yard touchdown pass, giving Troy a 14-10 lead with 4:43 left to play in the half.
Our offense knew it had to come out firing as well, and this time we made sure to move the ball after starting the drive on our own 35 yard line, as Medlock found Rhymes for a 12 yard gain on first down, moving the ball out to the 47 yard line. That would be the farthest we would get as Medlock decided to once again throw to the red jerseys instead of the white jerseys, giving Troy the ball back at their own 39 yard line after the interception. Troy quickly started moving with a 4 yard rush by Thomas and a 13 yard pass to Hendrickson. On first down at our 43 yard line, the offense got flagged for holding, making it first and 20 at the Troy 47 yard line, but the Trojans proved more than ready to answer, as Robinson connected with Johnson for a 53 yard touchdown pass, making it 21-10 with 3:08 left in the second quarter. Another great return by Johnson gave us the ball at our own 33 yard line, knowing we had to respond here or the game would be over by halftime. After an incomplete pass on first down, Medlock was able to get a pass to Rhymes for a 23 yard gain, giving us first down at the Troy 44 yard line with 2:47 left in the half. On the next play, yet another drive almost ended in disaster, as a tipped ball at the line of scrimmage deflected up in the air, though it thankfully fell to the ground in front of a Troy linebacker just before he could manage to close the distance on the ball. On another second down, Rhymes again came through for our offense, hauling in a 25 yard pass to give us first down at the Troy 20 yard line. After another incomplete pass on first down, it was Johnson this time who came through for us, catching a pass over the middle and fighting forward through two Troy defenders, before finally being taken down for a 16 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the Troy 3 yard line. A quick pass on first down to Rhymes was caught at the one yard line, who then fought towards the sideline, breaking away from two tackle attempts before finally managing to stumble into the end zone for a 3 yard touchdown pass, making it 21-17 Troy with 1:21 left in the half.
Someone unfortunately forgot to tell our defense it wasn’t halftime yet, as Troy rumbled right over us. Robinson completed a 17 yard pass to Thomas, a 25 yard pass to Teknipp, a 2 yard pass to Ellis, a 12 yard pass to Teknipp, and ultimately a 22 yard touchdown pass to Hendrickson, to cap off a 7 play, 78 yard drive to give Troy a 28-17 lead with only 15 seconds left until halftime. With only 3 seconds left on the clock until halftime and our offense starting at our own 21 yard line, we just handed the ball off to Johnson, who was tackled for a 3 yard loss, bringing the first half to an end.
The start of the second half, it was more of the same from the Troy offense. At the start of their drive, Robinson found Ellis for a 19 yard gain, before Hendrickson reeled off gains of 9 and 8 yards on the ground to give Troy first down at our own 46 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Robinson found Johnson for 13 yards to get down to our 33 yard line. A defensive penalty on the next play gave Troy first down at our 26 yard line. That was as close as Troy would get however, as after a dropped pass on first down, the offense was flagged for holding, making it second and 20 at our 36 yard line. An incomplete pass on second down was followed up by a sack for a loss of 9 yards, pushing Troy clear back to our 45 yard line and leaving the Trojans facing fourth and 29. The ensuing punt went out the back of the end zone for a touchback, giving our offense their first drive of the second half with no further damage inflicted.
Already in an 11 point hole, facing an offense who had proven they could score at will, we wasted no time in trying to get down the field and score before our offense could find a way to either stall out or thrown another interception. A 30 yard pass to Rhymes on first down got the drive started off positively, giving us first down at the 50 yard line. After a 9 yard pass to Johnson left us facing second and short, Johnson was able to catch the Trojan defense off guard and pick up 4 yards on the ground to get the first down. After an incomplete pass on first down, Ezekiel Turner made his first catch of the day, hauling in a pass for 16 yards to give us first down at the Troy 21 yard line. After another incomplete pass on first down, a 3 yard pass to Johnson left us facing third and 18. Rhymes once again came through for us, managing to get enough separation from his defender to catch an 11 yard pass and give us first and goal at the Troy 7 yard line. After a dropped pass and a pass knocked down in the back of the end zone, Johnson was able to get open coming out of the backfield on third and goal and managed to catch the ball and get into the end zone before the defense could close in, giving us a 7 yard touchdown pass and making it 28-24 Troy with 4:53 left to play in the third quarter.
It appeared Troy was about to answer right back on us, as a 27 yard kickoff return started them off at the 25 yard line. A 5 yard rush by Thomas, followed by a 9 yard pass to Robinson set Troy up with first down at their 39 yard line. A 3 yard rush by Hendrickson on first down was the last positive play, as two incomplete passes left Troy punting from their 42. A 10 yard punt return by Johnson gave us the ball on our own 24 yard line to start our next offensive drive. After yet another incomplete pass on first down, Rhymes was able to catch a 20 yard pass over the middle to give us first down at our own 44. Continuing our trend of first down ineptitude, our drive wouldn’t advance any further, as two more incomplete passes, both overthrown by Medlock, would force the punt team out onto the field. Despite a rush for a loss of 3 yards by Hendrickson, Robinson was able to convert third and 13 with a 26 yard pass to Williams, immediately followed with a 9 yard pass to Thomas to give Troy second and 1 at the 50 yard line. An incomplete pass and a loss of 2 yard by Hendrickson forced Troy to punt the ball back. A 43 yard punt, with a fair catch called, left our offense to find an answer from our own 8 yard line.
Wright chose first down to continue his highlight reel catches, hauling in a 25 yard pass in the middle of four Troy defenders, including one that hit and tackled Wright instantaneously as he caught the ball. After yet another incomplete pass on first down, Johnson was able to haul in a 7 yard pass to leave us with third and 3. Johnson would repeat the previous play, making another 7 yard catch to give us first down at our 47 yard line with 55 seconds left in the third quarter. After another incomplete pass on first down, thanks to another overthrown pass from Medlock, Clifford Sanchez broke into to receiving column for the first time of the game, catching a 15 yard pass to give us first down at the Troy 37 yard line. Despite a heavy blitz by Troy on first down, Medlock was just barely able to get a pass off, this time finding Rhymes for a 13 yard gain and first down at the Troy 24. It was there that our drive stalled out, with three straight incomplete passes, including a costly third down when Rhymes went down with an injury, causing concern to spread throughout the stadium. That third down play also brought the third quarter to an end, Troy still hanging on to the lead 28-24.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, we received word that Rhymes had pulled his hamstring and would be out for at least a series or two. Hagen at least was able to stem the bad news, kicking a 40 yard field goal to make it 28-27 with 8:57 left in the game. Closing the Troy lead down to 1 point got our entire team fired up. After allowing a 6 yard rush by Hendrickson on first down from the Troy 27 yard line, two incomplete passes brought the Trojans drive to an immediate end. A 10 yard punt return by Johnson gave our offense the ball back at our 32 yard line. It turned out Rhymes’ injury was less severe than thought, as Rhymes trotted onto the field for the start of our next drive, ready to get back in the action. He proved his hamstring was fine right away as he hauled in a 22 yard pass on first down to give us a new set of downs at the Troy 47 yard line. It turned out those last couple of passes on first down were a fluke, as Medlock overthrew Wright by a mile on the next play, bringing about another second down. It was here that the Troy defense finally decided to help us. After Johnson caught a 6 yard pass, one of the Troy linebackers took Johnson down by his facemask, resulting in 15 free yards and a first down at the Troy 26 yard line, a 21 yard gain. Wright kept our offense moving with his fifth reception of the game, a 7 yard pass down to the Troy 19. A 3 yard pass to Johnson, who was met right at the first down line by three Troy defenders, giving us first down at the 15 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, the Troy defense called a safety blitz on the next play. That play call turned out to be a bad one, as Johnson was left uncovered coming out of the backfield, catching a pass over the middle and taking it the final 7 yards to the end zone for a 15 yard touchdown pass. An incomplete pass to Turner on the two point conversion made it 33-28 with 6:56 left to play in the game.
That touchdown completely emptied the life out of the stadium and the Troy crowd. It also took the life out of the Troy offense, who could only manage a 3 yard rush by Hendrickson on third and 10 before their punt team came onto the field. A fired up Storm Johnson broke a pair of tackles on his way to a 16 yard punt return, giving our offense the ball at the Troy 45 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, the Troy defense again shot themselves in the foot, as another heavy blitz was called to try and overwhelm our offensive line. Medlock wasted no time in connecting with a wide open Rhymes, who fought forward through a tackle for a couple extra yards to make it a 29 yard pass, giving us first down at the Troy 16 yard line. Knowing that a field goal would make it an 8 point game, with 5:40 left to play, we started to play it safe, taking short, simple, safe passes instead of taking risks into coverage. We got started with those safe passes with a 5 yard pass to Rhymes on an out route along the right hash mark, advancing the ball down to the Troy 11 yard line. Another out pass, this time to Wright, picked up 4 yards to make it third and 1 from the Troy 7 yard line with 5:12 remaining. Putting our trust in Johnson to pick up that one yard on the ground, it appeared we were about to be attempting a field goal, as the Troy defense got the jump and our line started to crumble. By a stroke of luck, the Troy defender who met Johnson a yard behind the line of scrimmage wasn’t able to push Johnson back, instead going along for the ride on the tackle as Johnson fell forward and was awarded a 2 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the Troy 6 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Wayne Times was able to get his hands on the ball just before being tackled, resulting in a 5 yard pass and leaving us facing third and goal from the Troy 1 yard line. Once again putting our faith and trust in Johnson, he was able to find a hole between the left guard and tackle, giving us a 40-28 lead with 3:57 left to play in the game.
Troy proved more than ready to respond, needing only a single minute to answer right back with a touchdown of their own. After a 20 yard kickoff return out to their own 30 yard line, Robinson found Williams for a 12 yard pass, Thomas for 7 yards, before connecting on a bomb with Williams for 41 yards, making it first and goal at our 9 yard line. A 5 yard by Hendrickson on first and goal set up Hendrickson for the responding touchdown on a 4 yard rush, making it 40-35 with 2:55 left to play. Trying to upstage his Troy counterpart, our own Johnson returned the ensuing kickoff for 21 yards, giving us the ball at our own 21 yard line. Even though we were starting at our 21 yard line with only a 5 point lead, we chose to take our chances on the ground, trying to run off as much clock as we could. Gains of 4 and 7 yards by Johnson gave us first down at our 31 yard line before Troy called their first timeout, stopping the clock with 1:59 left to play. Knowing Troy was going to use their final two timeouts in the coming plays, we briefly returned to the air, as Medlock found Turner along the right sideline for a 5 yard gain. Our pass attempt on second down was batted down, before Johnson was stopped short of the first down line on a 4 yard pass, resulting in our punt team being called out with 1:46 left to play.
After a fair catch, Troy was left with 79 yards of the field to cover with only 1:46 left to play. Our defense stood up to the challenge and refused to be beaten this time. After an incomplete pass on first down, the defense broke through and sacked Robinson for a 2 yard loss. Another incomplete pass on third down left Troy facing fourth and 12. An 8 yard pass to Johnson wasn’t enough as the Trojans turned the ball over on downs at their own 27 yard line with 1:17 left to play. Despite our attempts to kill the clock, Troy had one remaining timeout and was able to force us into fourth down with 16 seconds left. Instead of allowing us to just kneel out the final couple of seconds, Hagen was called on for a 40 yard field goal attempt, which sailed wide right, giving Troy possession at their own 23 yard line with 3 seconds left. Despite being 77 yards from the end zone with only 3 seconds left, our defense helped out Troy, being called for a facemask on a 17 yard pass, giving Troy an untimed first down at our 41 yard line. Despite the near heart attack inducing scare, Troy’s hail mary attempt fell harmlessly incomplete out the back of the end zone, preserving our 40-35 come from behind victory.
With the improbably and miraculous win, we improve to 3-3 for the season, 3-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. With the loss, Troy drops to 5-2 for the year, 2-1 in the Sun Belt. Up next after this miracle win, we return home to take on UL Monroe. The Warhawks enter the game with a 3-3 record, sitting at 1-1 in Sun Belt play. UL Monroe started off their year with a 31-21 loss at #10 Baylor, then got a 49-24 win over Southern Utah. A week later they lost 34-17 on the road at #24 USF, returned home for a 22-17 win over Western Kentucky, fell to 0-3 on the road with a 43-36 loss at Arkansas State, and improved to 3-0 at home with a 36-13 win over Tulane.
Final Score
:FIU: 40, :Troy: 35
Stat(s) of the Game:
FIU Offense – Well, I thought Medlock screwed us after his two interceptions. Somehow, despite throwing an incomplete pass almost every single first down, and constantly overthrowing receivers left and right with passes not even Andre the Giant could have caught, Medlock somehow led us back from a 28-17 halftime deficit and led us to an upset victory. It only took 77 pass attempts in an completely, entirely one-sided offense the entire game, but Medlock did enough right to pull it out. While running game was virtually nonexistent, Johnson was still huge, not only getting some very much needed one or two yards on an occasional rush, but also being a huge part of the receiving corps today, giving us an additional receiver on plays, helping keep the Troy defense spread out and off guard as to who we might pass to.
FIU Defense – They still suck. Managed to hold Troy's offense in check the first couple drives, then, like Western Kentucky, let the Troy offense practically moonwalk over them for the entire rest of the first half. Somehow, I still don't know how, they managed to hold Troy's offense again in check for almost the entire second half, bending, but not breaking, as they held Troy scoreless for the third quarter, and kept Troy from scoring again until the final minutes of the fourth quarter. I still say and believe that they're going to screw us at some point again this season, there is no doubt in my mind. If anything, we got lucky that they didn't break in the second half.
FIU Kicking – Hagen had a perfect game going for pretty much the entire contest. Kicked field goals of 39 and 40 yards, was 4 for 4 on extra points, until he missed a 40 yard attempt with with 3 seconds left, after Coach Cristobal for whatever reason called a field goal instead of letting me kneel out of the final seconds of the game.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :FIU: 10 7 7 16 40 :Troy: 7 21 0 7 35
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 6:40 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 39 yard field goal :FIU: 3-0 2:20 :FIU: Touchdown D. Rhymes, 27 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 10-0 0:02 :Troy: Touchdown G. Ellis, 2 yard pass from C. Robinson (J. Evans kick) :FIU: 10-7 Second Quarter 4:43 :Troy: Touchdown N. Hendrickson, 6 yard pass from C. Robinson (J. Evans kick) :Troy: 14-10 3:08 :Troy: Touchdown J. Johnson, 53 yard pass from C. Robinson (J. Evans kick) :Troy: 21-10 1:21 :FIU: Touchdown D. Rhymes, 3 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :Troy: 21-17 0:15 :Troy: Touchdown N. Hendrickson, 21 yard pass from C. Robinson (J. Evans kick) :Troy: 28-17 Third Quarter 4:53 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 7 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :Troy: 28-24 Fourth Quarter 8:57 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 40 yard field goal :Troy: 28-27 6:56 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 15 yard pass from J. Medlock (2-Pt failed) :FIU: 33-28 3:57 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 1 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 40-28 2:55 :Troy: Touchdown N. Hendrickson, 3 yard run (J. Evans kick) :FIU: 40-35
Game Stats
Florida International Stat Troy 40 Score 35 27 First Downs 21 587 Total Offense 538 11 - 23 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 19 - 63 - 1 40 - 77 - 4 Comp - Att - TD 30 - 53 - 4 564 Passing Yards 475 0 Times Sacked 4 9 - 16 (56%) 3rd Down Conversion 5 - 14 (35%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 1 (0%) 0 - 1 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 6 - 4 - 0 (66%) Red Zone - TD - FG 5 - 3 - 0 (60%) 2 Turnovers 0 0 Fumbles Lost 0 2 Intercepted 0 55 Punt Return Yards 7 115 Kick Return Yards 150 757 Total Yards 695 4 – 39.8 Punts - Average 8 - 42.4 5 - 53 Penalties 4 - 40 20:59 Time of Possession 15:01
Florida International Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :3redarrow: 500+ rushing yards in each season 461 :3greenarrow: Win 8 games in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 7+ passing TD in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 10+ points per game in each season 26 PPG :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 2400+ total offensive yards in one season :check: :3greenarrow: :2redarrow: Win 4 games in one season :check: :1greenarrow: :6redarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in one season :check: Bonus Beat a higher ranked team :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
86%
Thoughts on the game. I don't know how the hell we pulled that out. After Troy scored to go up 21-10, I was already starting to feel the pressure and felt like the game was slipping away. Then when they scored to go up 28-17 just before halftime, and then were getting the ball right back to start the second half, I thought that was it. I thought our goose was cooked and it was going to turn into a rout. Somehow, our defense came through. I still think our defense sucks and they are going to screw us at some point again this season. They are going to ruin it and blow a lead or blow a game for us at the end. But they didn't today. Despite getting walked and moonwalked over by the Troy offense in the second quarter, they held their own in the second half and where a huge reason we had a chance to slowly chip away at Troy's lead and eventually retake it.
Medlock, extremely stupid passes. Two interceptions, both thrown behind the receiver, directly into the hands of the defense. And then the incomplete passes. At least half of them were either thrown behind the receiver or so ridiculously overthrown that not even Andre the Giant could have caught them. The rest were either dropped by our receivers or knocked down by the defense.
As for the offense, clearly we are a 100% one-sided offense, even with Storm Johnson in the backfield. Our offensive line isn't good enough for a prolonged, successful running attack. It looks like it's gonna be Air City down in Miami for the rest of the season.
A look at the national scene. In the Top 25, what an ending. #1 Wisconsin improves to 7-0 as they escape 5-3 North Carolina, 24-17. UNC was winning 17-10 in the early fourth quarter, before the Badgers scored with 9:11 left to play to tie it up, and then with 2:51 left in the game, they returned a fumble 20 yards to score the game winning touchdown. That would have been a great one to watch. Elsewhere, #2 Alabama (8-0) outscores Tennessee (4-4) 17-7 in the second half to win 37-21. #3 Penn State improves to 7-0 for the year, breaking open a 13-13 tie in the late 3rd quarter to beat #25 Nebraska (4-3), 20-16.
In the game of the week, #4 Mississippi State (7-0) shellacks #7 LSU (5-2), 33-0. #6 Ohio State (7-0) scores 13 points in the fourth quarter to pull away from Purdue (1-6) for a 43-28 win. #8 Boise State moves to 5-1 for the season, beating #15 Connecticut (4-2), 35-21. #9 TCU (6-2) destroyed #10 Baylor (4-4), 52-13. #22 Illinois (5-1) whoops #12 Iowa (5-2), 55-24. Miami (FL) (6-1) upsets #21 Georgia Tech (4-3), 34-28. #23 Clemson (5-2) escapes Wake Forest (3-5) 36-34 after a 2-point try by Wake Forest with 3:28 left to play fails. San Diego State (3-3) knocks off #24 USF (3-3), 35-21.
For our readers, Mors, would you look at that, West Virginia gets their second win of the year to improve to 2-7, defeating an 0-8 Syracuse team on the road 25-12. Jaymo, unfortunately it's more bad news, as Arizona State drops to 1-7 (1-4 in the Pac-12) with a 38-17 loss to 5-2 Oregon State. Looking ahead in the schedule, both teams have bye weeks next week. Arizona State's next game is in week 11 at home against 4-3 UCLA (who still has a game yet with Cal before ASU). West Virginia's off for two weeks, as their next game isn't until week 12, when they face a currently 1-5 Cincinnati (who still has games against Boise State and at Louisville). Based on that, Cincinnati will be either 2-6 or 1-7 going into the West Virginia game.
And Mors, I see now why West Virginia sucks so bad. Their defense is worse than MINE! West Virginia ranks #119 in Total Defense, #120 in Rush Defense and #117 in Pass Defense. They have a good offense, #8 Total Offense, #52 Rush Offense and #21 Pass Offense. It's just their defense is pretty much the worst in the entire NCAA. Arizona State is nearly as bad, ranking #115 in Total Defense, #114 in Rush Defense and #114 in Pass Defense. ASU's offense is ranked #29 in Total Offense, #25 in Rush Offense and #69 in Pass Offense.
Meanwhile, it's going to get very interesting in these coming weeks. Wisconsin #1, Penn State #4, Ohio State #5, all 7-0. Alabama #3 and 8-0, Mississippi State (who jumped Penn State and Alabama after week 9) #2 and 7-0. Some great games about to happen. Looking at the schedules, Wisconsin and Ohio State have a showdown in Wisconsin in week 10, Wisconsin plays at Penn State in week 12, Penn State plays at Ohio State in week 11. Alabama plays at #11 LSU in week 10 and at #2 Mississippi State in week 11. Mississippi State follows up Alabama at #9 Arkansas the next week. Add in Oklahoma at #6 (6-0) with games at #7 TCU in week 12, and at #13 Oklahoma State in week 15, this is going to be an exciting 6 weeks.
Nice win man! Way to pull it out. Sad to see that, like me, you end up just throwing the ball 50-70 times a game because of how inconsistent the running game can be with any team with a below average offensive line. It's the most disappointing thing about this game when compared to real life considering FIU has always been a run first team and, out of the shotgun almost exclusively, they've been damn talented at it during their time in the FBS.
I knew it was gonna happen to WVU. It happens to them EVERY time because of the 3-3-5 defense (which I'm sure they're still doing). The CPU doesn't know how to draft for that defense worth a fuck and hasn't since they added it to the game. You need speed at the rover position more than anything and they NEVER get the top speed guy for that position (or move him there if he's at another position). Or, worse, they play freakin' man coverage out of it 95% of the time, like a complete jackass (I'm sure you've seen something similar with FIU's 3-3-5) when it's basically a cover 2/3 defense 95% of the time.
I'm about to go play game #2 of my dynasty with these guys against Louisville. Probably gonna get throttled, but we'll see.
Well, I lost a heartbreaker against them 24-21 at their place. Had 100+ yards rushing but it's one of those instances where I throw the ball and run playaction so much, I get big gains out of the running game because they are expecting the pass so much. 3 INTs, two in the redzone REALLY killed me. Easily 6-14 points left on the board because of it. Felt good though to lose like that. I lost the game with poor passing by me (and, of course, the dumb ass CPU playing cover 0 with 4 seconds left before the half and giving Louisville a 70 yard bomb TD to tie it up at halftime (rolls eyes)).
Yeah, I'm missing the days of the first season, when it was my passing game that was worthless, but the running game was beastly. Give the ball to Darriet Perry and let him go to town. But, still an incredible win that I still don't know how I managed to pull off. After Troy scored that TD right before halftime, I thought that was it. They had a 28-17 lead going into the half and then were getting the ball right back to start the second half. They'd be up 35-17 and I'd be lucky just to keep it within 14. But then, somehow, our defense stopped sucking and managed to stop the Troy offense, which considering they have the #1 passing offense in the nation, is miraculous by itself.Quote:
Originally Posted by morsdraconis
The only question in this win, is this a condemnation of the Sun Belt Conference as a whole? I get my butt whooped by the likes of Texas A&M, Louisville, UCF, and Washington, but am able to dominate at least half the Sun Belt (UL Lafayette, UL Monroe, MTSU, Western Kentucky), and at least compete with the other half (Arkansas State, FAU, North Texas, Troy) for the most part.
Yeah, I can't begin to count how many games I might have won in the past had I not been screwed by 2 or 3 or more interceptions. Those things really slaughter you.Quote:
Originally Posted by morsdraconis
I'm done playing the UL Monroe game, have everything typed up and ready to post. But before I start simulating national match-ups, something that caught my eye first, good lord what a heck of a race going on in the BCS.
http://i766.photobucket.com/albums/x...0223020457.jpg
Game Seven
:UL_Monroe: :@: :FIU:
Game Notes
--- Fresh off our upset victory over Troy last week, it was back to the friendly confines of home as we welcomed Louisiana-Monroe to town. The Warhawks entered the game with a 3-3 record, 1-1 in the Sun Belt Conference, and coming off a 36-13 win against Tulane. One thing of note regarding their record, ULM came into the game 3-0 at home, but 0-3 on the road, which bode well for us. Weather would have a potential effect on the game today as it was a torrential downpour going on at kickoff. We won the coin toss and elected to kick, putting our defense on the spot to get us started off.
From the start, it appeared we might be destined for another shootout. After a 28 yard kickoff return set the Warhawks up at their own 30 yard line, Kolton Browning got the offense moving with a 13 yard pass on second and 10 to Jyruss Edwards, giving ULM a first down at their own 43. After a 7 yard rush by Edwards, Browning found Jeron Jabour for a 14 yard gain, advancing the ball to our own 36 yard line. Our defense started to make a stand, sacking Browning for a 10 yard loss on first down. Browning was able to recover 6 yards on second down to set up third and 14, which was erased with a 16 yard pass to Edwards to give the Warhawks a new set of downs at our 25 yard line. An 8 yard pass to Justin Ginyard and a 1 yard pass to Luke Russell left ULM with third and 1, to which Browning would convert himself with a 5 yard gain for first down at our 11 yard line. A 10 yard rush by Edwards gave Monroe second and inches at our 1 yard line, but they would go backwards from there, as Edwards was tackled for a loss of 4 yards, and then an incomplete pass on third and 4 from the 5 yard line brought the field goal unit out on the field. We would catch a huge break as the 22 yard field goal attempt by Chris Grant was hooked wide, ending the ULM drive with no points.
Starting on our first offensive series of the game on our own 20 yard line, our offense was fired up after the stand by our defense, and that fire proved its worth as we needed just two plays to score. After Storm Johnson got things started off with a 10 yard gain up the middle for a first down, it was Johnson who would put us on the scoreboard first, as he was able to turn the corner off the right tackle, broke through two tackle attempts by the ULM secondary, and outraced the rest of the Warhawks defense 70 yards for a touchdown, giving us a 7-0 lead with 5:39 left to play in the first quarter. That touchdown seemed to break the spirits of the ULM offense early on, as Browning was tackled for a loss of 3 yards on first down, pushing the Warhawks back to their own 16 yard line. After an incomplete pass left ULM facing third and 13, Browning made the first mistake of the game, as corner Derrick Jones intercepted Browning on a misfired pass, giving our offense the ball back at the ULM 23 yard line. We immediately put the ball back into Johnson’s hands, as he picked on gains of 5 and 6 yards to give us a first down at the UL Monroe 11 yard line. An 8 yard rush on first down got the ball down to the 3 yard line, before a 1 yard rush left us facing third and 1 from the 2 yard line. Johnson wouldn’t need the first down, instead squeezing through a gap before the defense could get to him for a 2 yard touchdown run, giving us a 14-0 lead with 3:20 left to play in the first quarter. A 14 point lead on only seven plays of offense, every one of those seven coming via Johnson and the rushing game.
Starting their next drive on the 16 yard line, the Warhawks seemed completely lost on offense now, nothing like the offense that showed up on their first offensive series, as a pass to Devontae McNeal for 1 yard would be all they would gain, as two incomplete passes brought the drive to an end and brought the punt team onto the field. An 8 yard return by Johnson on the 48 yard punt gave our offense the ball at our own 42 yard line for the next series. Living by the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mantra, Johnson again took the ball on the ground, managing to pick up 6 yards after spinning off of two would-be tackles to leave us with second and 4. The Warhawks defense finally managed to find a way to stop Johnson, tackling him for only a gain of one yard, leaving us with third and 3 at the 49 yard line, bringing about our first pass attempt of the game on our tenth offensive play of the game. The Warhawks seemed to believe that we were going to try to run again (after nine straight rushes to start the game, can’t fault them for that logic), but instead were left scrambling to chase down Dominique Rhymes, who caught a pass from Jake Medlock and picked up 42 yards before being tackled at the ULM 9 yard line. The Warhawks were still ready for our running game, as Johnson was tackled on first and goal for no gain, bringing about the return of our passing game. Unfortunately, two incomplete passes would keep us out of the end zone a third time, leaving Yusef Hagen to kick a 26 yard field goal to give us a 17-0 lead with 47 seconds left in the first quarter.
Louisiana-Monroe wasted no time in finding their way onto the scoreboard, as Tavarese Maye took the kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown, breaking four tackles along the way, to make it 17-7 with 21 seconds left in the quarter. Johnson returned the ensuing kickoff for 28 yards to set us up at our own 35 yard line with 9 seconds left on the clock. Knowing the Warhawks were finally beginning to anticipate the rush, we went instantly to the air on first down, as Medlock found Rhymes for a 26 yard gain to give us first down at the ULM 39 yard line as the clock ran out, bringing about the end of the first quarter with a 17-7 lead.
The start of the second quarter, we decided to take a chance again on the ground, and see if a couple of consecutive passes would be enough to make the ULM defense back off our run game. The ploy failed as Johnson was tackled for no gain, signaling the end of the mass success our running game had enjoyed for most of the first quarter. Johnson still made himself useful however, as on the next play, a blitz by the safety, and a failed cutback by the covering linebacker left Johnson completely uncovered coming over the middle, allowing him to catch the pass from Medlock and race down to the ULM 7 yard line for a 31 yard gain before finally being brought down. Johnson kept his offensive display going as he caught a 7 yard pass from Medlock at the one yard line, and after being stood up by three ULM defenders, was able to get just enough momentum to fall forward into the end zone for a 7 yard touchdown pass, giving us a 24-7 lead with 8:14 left to play in the first half.
The Warhawks offense seemed to finally find life of its own after a 20 yard kickoff return set them up at their own 26 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Edwards picked up 7 yards on the ground before Browning converted the third down with a 26 yard pass to Russell, giving ULM first down at our own 41 yard line. A 7 yard pass to Kevin Steed was followed up with a 12 yard pass to Maye, and a 17 yard pass to Ginyard to give Louisiana-Monroe first and goal from our 5 yard line. Browning would find Edwards on the next play for a 5 yard touchdown pass to make it 24-14 with 6:37 left in the second quarter. A 26 yard kickoff return set our offense up for its next drive at the 30 yard line. While ULM had been able to adjust to our running game, they had not succeeded in adjusting to our passing game, as Medlock found Rhymes for a 21 yard gain to give us a first down at the ULM 49 yard line. On the next play, Willis Wright got in on the receiving action, hauling in a 29 yard pass along the right hash marks to give us first down at the 20 yard line. An 18 yard pass to Rhymes, threaded perfectly between two of ULM’s linebackers left us with first and goal at the 2 yard line. After two rushes for no gain and 1 yard by Johnson, he was finally able to break into the end zone for his third rushing touchdown of the day, getting enough momentum to run through a tackle and fall forward for a 2 yard touchdown rush, giving us a 31-14 lead with 4:27 left in the second quarter.
The Warhawks meanwhile were not discouraged, as the trotted on the field to begin their next drive at the 22 yard line. Rushes for 9 and 5 yards by Edwards got them off and rolling, followed by a 15 yard pass to Steed to give their offense a first down at the 50 yard line. Another 5 yard rush by Edwards set up Browning for a 14 yard pass to Edwards to gain another first down at our 31 yard line. After an incomplete pass and 3 yard rush by Browning left the ‘Hawks facing third and 7, Edwards picked up another first down with an 8 yard rush down to our 19 yard line. An incomplete pass and 3 yard rush by Edwards left ULM facing third and 7 at our 16 yard line, before the defense got flagged for being offside, leaving third and 2, to which Edwards converted with a 6 yard rush down to our 5 yard line. Browning would need only one more play, running the ball in for a 5 yard touchdown to make it 31-21 with 1:52 left in the half.
After an incomplete pass on first down from our 21 yard line, Medlock found Wright for a 29 yard gain to give us a new set of downs at the ULM 49 yard line with 1:30 left. On the next play, Medlock was able to break free from one tackle attempt, before a blitzing linebacker took him down before he could get the ball released. Medlock fumbled on the play, and replays showed it was a fumble caused by the ground and that Medlock was already down before the fumble, but the attempt by Coach Cristobal to call a coach’s challenge was denied by the referee and ULM kept the ball on an extremely controversial call. After an incomplete pass on first down, Edwards picked up 8 yards on the ground before Browning found Russell for a 5 yard gain to give ULM a first down at our 25 yard line. A 20 yard pass to Centarius Donald left the Warhawks with first and goal at our 5. Browning was sacked for a 2 yard loss on first down, but quickly recovered to throw a 7 yard touchdown pass to Edwards to make it 31-27 with 29 seconds left in the half.
A touchback on the kickoff left us with just 21 seconds and the ball on our 20 yard line. With 3 timeouts still, we decided to take a chance and try to get some points before half. After a dropped pass on first down, Wright was able to get just enough separation from his defender to catch a pass for a gain of 39 yards to give us first down at the ULM 41 yard line with 9 seconds left to play. Another completion to Wright, for 29 yards, left us with first down at the ULM 12 yard line with 4 seconds to play. Coach Cristobal sent the field goal unit onto the field, but the 29 yard field goal attempt from the right hash mark was shanked sharply wide left, sending us into the locker room with a 31-28 lead.
Even though the missed field goal just before halftime ending the first half on a sour note, we still has positive outlooks as we received the ball to start the second half, starting our first second half series at the 22 yard line. Trying to get something going on the ground again, Johnson was able to pick up 9 yards on first down, before gaining another first down with a 3 yard rush out to our 35 yard line. After an 8 yard rush left us with second and 2, ULM came out in what was essentially an 8-1-2 defense, but it still wasn’t enough as Johnson was able to gain 3 yards for another first down at the 46 yard line. After a 3 yard rush on first down, we went back to the passing game. On second and 7, Johnson caught a pass coming immediately out of the backfield, in the process managing to high-step through what would have been a tackle for a 3 yard loss, instead using blocking from our receivers along the right sideline to turn it into a 26 yard gain and give us first down at the ULM 24 yard line. Returning to the ground game, Darrian Mallary picked up 8 yards on first down, before Johnson converted with a 9 yard rush to give us first and goal at the ULM 8 yard line. Johnson kept his plowing routine going, picking up 4 yards on first down to get us down to the 4 yard line. A 1 yard gain by Johnson would leave us with third and goal at the 3 yard line, before a pass attempt to Wayne Times in the right corner of the end zone ended up batted down, forcing us to settle for a 20 yard field goal to make it 34-28 with 4:48 left in the third quarter.
Despite a 24 yard kickoff return out the Warhawks’ 22 yard line, it was nothing be reverse for their offense, as Edwards was twice tackled for a loss of 3 yards, followed by an incomplete pass on third down to bring out the punt team. A 14 yard return by Johnson gave our offense a new series at the ULM 45 yard line. Johnson would only need one play to find the end zone, as another 7 man blitz by ULM was spread outside to our flanks by the offensive line, leaving Johnson with a massive hole up the middle, needing only to break a tackle by the middle linebacker before outrunning the safety for a 45 yard touchdown to give us a 41-28 lead with 3:50 left in the third. It would only get worse for the Warhawks after that. After a 1 yard rush out to their own 18 yard line, Browning fumbled the ball while attempting to release a pass, which was promptly pounced on by defensive tackle Joshua Forney, giving us the ball back at the ULM 15 yard line. Breaking his tenth tackle of the game, Johnson eclipsed the 200 yard plateau with an 8 yard rush to give us second and 2 at the ULM 6 yard line. With some assistance from the Warhawks defense, who dragged and rolled him forward in their tackle attempts, Johnson was able to pick up 4 yards to give us first and goal at the 2 yard line. Johnson would find the end zone for his fifth rushing touchdown the game the very next play, falling forward through a tackle for a 3 yard touchdown to give us a 48-28 lead with 2:38 left in the third quarter. With that touchdown, Johnson set a new school record for most rushing touchdowns in a game, breaking the old record of 4 set by Rashod Smith back in 2004 against Stephen F. Austin. That was also Johnson’s sixth touchdown for the entire game, with him being personally responsible for all six of our touchdowns for the day to this point.
ULM’s offense would again falter with little or no success. After an incomplete pass on first down, Browning would find Steed for an 8 yard gain to get the Warhawks out to their 30 yard line, but a loss of 3 yards by Edwards would force them to punt on fourth and 5. A 5 yard return by Johnson set us up at our own 38 yard line with 1:51 left in the third quarter. The ULM defense seemed all but completely defeated, as Johnson picked up 11 yards on the ground on first down to give us another first at the 48 yard line. We would cross into Louisiana-Monroe territory yet again on the next play as Johnson broke two tackles on a pitch around the left tackle, picking up 33 yards before being tackled at the 19 yard line. A 1 yard rush by Johson, a 4 yard pickup by Mallary and a 3 yard rush by Johnson would bring the final seconds off the clock, ending the third quarter with a 48-28 lead.
We started the fourth quarter with fourth and 2 at the ULM 11 yard line and Hagen kicking a 28 yard field goal to give us a 51-28 lead just seconds into the fourth quarter. The Warhawks would finally find life once again on offense. Starting at their own 21 yard line, Browning immediately connected with Steed for a 17 yard gain, followed by a 23 yard pass to Jabour to give them first down at our 38 yard line. Two dropped passes and a 1 yard pass to Edwards left the Warhawks facing fourth and 9 at our 37 yard line, until the defense gave them a free first down with a 12 yard penalty, setting them up at our 25 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Browning found Steed again, this time for 20 yards to make it first and goal at our 5 yard line. Browning would find Russell on the next play for a 5 yard touchdown pass, before rushing in the 2-point conversion himself, making it 51-36 with 7:29 left to play.
Mallary returned the kickoff 23 yards out to the 30 yard line, and even though there was still 7:18 left to play in the game, we went into clock killing mode, trying to run off as much clock as possible while letting our running game continue to run amuck on the ULM defense. After rushes of 2 and 4 yards by Johnson, he was able to pick up the first down with a 5 yard gain on third and 4, until left end Kentarius Caldwell stripped Johnson of the ball, giving the Warhawks the ball back at our 41 yard line with 5:48 left to play. Despite the tough situation, our defense still put up a valiant effort. Edwards got the Warhawks started with rushes of 8, 3 and 5 yards, before Browning added 4 yards to leave ULM facing third and 1 at our 20 yard line. A 13 yard pass to Russell made it first and goal at our 7 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Edwards left ULM with second and goal at our goal line. For whatever reason, the Warhawks went to the air, with Browning throwing two incomplete passes before managing to dump off a 1 yard touchdown pass to Maye on fourth and goal. The 2-point conversion was no good as Browning’s pass attempt to Steed fell incomplete, leaving us with a 51-42 lead with 4:13 left to play.
A touchback on the kickoff left us with the ball on our 20 yard line and 4:05 left on the clock. Despite the fumble last series, we put the ball back into the hands of Johnson as we attempted to run off the remaining time and leave with a 9 point win. The ULM defense was ready to try and stop us, with Johnson only managing two rushes of 2 yards each before Medlock found Johnson on a dump pass for an 11 yard gain, giving us first down at our 35 yard line with 2:38 left to play. A 14 yard rush by Johnson on first down gave us first down at our 49 yard line when ULM used their first timeout with 2:06 left to play. The Warhawks called their second timeout with 2:02 left to play after a 4 yard rush by Johnson, setting up second and 6. The fate of Louisiana-Monroe was sealed when Mallary picked up 8 yards to give us first down at the ULM 39 yard line. The Warhawks called their final timeout with 1:58 left to play, but it wouldn’t be enough. Rushes of 3, 5, and 2 yards by Mallary left us with fourth and 1 at the ULM 29 yard line with 24 seconds left. We would just left the clock run out without calling another play, giving us the 51-42 shootout victory.
With the win, we improve to 4-3 for the season, 4-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. With the loss, UL Monroe drops to 3-4 for the year, 1-2 in the Sun Belt Conference. Up next, it's a second home game, this time against Mid Tennessee State. The Blue Raiders opened up their season with a 12-7 l to Georgia Southern, then recovered with a 31-15 win over Kent State. Then they went into their current 6 game slide, losing 42-7 at #20 Iowa, 31-10 against Western Kentucky, 35-17 at North Carolina, 65-13 against Troy, 21-14 at UL Lafayette and 20-17 at Florida Atlantic coming into our game, the third of a three game road trip for them.
Final Score
:FIU: 51, :UL_Monroe: 42
Stat(s) of the Game:
FIU Offense – About as perfect a game as I have seen yet. With the exception of that bullshit fumble late in the second quarter, Medlock was practically flawless today, with no truly bad passes, racking up 308 yards on 12 passes. Johnson was just a beast. B-E-A-S-T. While he had help from that 70 yard touchdown run, he ended the game with 292 yards rushing on 37 carries for a 7.8 yard average and 5 rushing touchdowns. Add in a receiving touchdown for a 6 touchdown game, to go along with 75 yards on 4 receptions, and what a day. The most telling stats of Johnson's demolishing of ULM, 10 broken tackles and 125 yards rushing after contact.
FIU Defense – They still suck. Allowed ULM to score 3 touchdowns in the second quarter to destroy what were 24-7 and 31-14 leads (with the potential of entering halftime up by 17+) to give us only a 3 point halftime lead. Thankfully, the defense finally showed back up in the third quarter and held ULM scoreless, allowing our 17 third quarter points to be the deciding factor in a 9 point victory. If ULM scores one touchdown, even one field goal, in the third quarter, we potentially lose the game.
FIU Kicking – Hagen was for the most part perfect. 6 for 6 in extra points, 3 for 4 in field goals with a long of 28. Only miss was the 29 yard field goal attempt right before halftime when he shanked the attempt from the right hash mark way to the left and never got close the left upright of the post.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :UL_Monroe: 7 21 0 14 42 :FIU: 17 14 17 3 51
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 5:39 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 70 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 7-0 3:20 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 2 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 14-0 0:49 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 25 yard field goal :FIU: 17-0 0:21 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown T. Maye, returned kickoff 97 yards (C. Grant kick) :FIU: 17-7 Second Quarter 8:14 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 7 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 24-7 6:37 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown J. Edwards, 5 yard pass from K. Browning (C. Grant kick) :FIU: 24-14 4:27 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 24 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 31-14 1:52 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown K. Browning, 4 yard run (C. Grant kick) :FIU: 31-21 0:29 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown J. Edwards, 6 yard pass from K. Browning (C. Grant) :FIU: 31-28 Third Quarter 4:48 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 20 yard field goal :FIU: 34-28 3:50 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 45 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 41-28 2:38 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 3 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 48-28 Fourth Quarter 8:57 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 28 yard field goal :FIU: 51-28 7:29 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown L. Russell, 5 yard pass from K. Browning (2-Point Conversion) :FIU: 51-36 4:13 :UL_Monroe: Touchdown T. Maye, 1 yard pass from K. Browning (2-Point failed) :FIU: 51-42
Game Stats
UL Monroe Stat Florida International 42 Score 51 19 First Downs 21 362 Total Offense 618 26 - 94 - 1 Rushes - Yards - TD 44 - 310 - 5 24 - 42 - 4 Comp - Att - TD 12 - 17 - 1 268 Passing Yards 308 2 Times Sacked 1 8 - 15 (53%) 3rd Down Conversion 4 - 9 (44%) 1 - 1 (100%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%) 1 - 2 (50%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 6 - 5 - 0 (83%) Red Zone - TD - FG 8 - 4 - 3 (87%) 2 Turnovers 2 1 Fumbles Lost 2 1 Intercepted 0 0 Punt Return Yards 27 282 Kick Return Yards 124 644 Total Yards 769 3 – 44.0 Punts - Average 0 - 0.0 0 - 0 Penalties 3 - 32 13:53 Time of Possession 22:07
Florida International Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :3redarrow: 500+ rushing yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: Win 8 games in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 7+ passing TD in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 10+ points per game in each season 29 PPG :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 2400+ total offensive yards in one season :check: :3greenarrow: :2redarrow: Win 4 games in one season :check: :1greenarrow: :6redarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in one season :check:
Job Security Status
96%
B-E-A-S-T! THAT is exactly what Johnson is! That right there is EXACTLY what I've been waiting all season to see from Johnson, to see him unleash that ungodly amount of rushing talent and just steamroll a team. My god it was a thing of beauty. And my god our offense is bipolar. Last game against Troy, we could not do a damn thing on the ground against Troy and had to throw up 70+ pass attempts. This game, we take a whole 17 pass attempts and rush the ball 44 times, racking up 310 yards rushing, to go along with a very even 308 yards passing. Now why can't this damn offense do this EVERY game? :fp:
With games still to come against Mid Tennessee State, Florida Atlantic and UL Lafayette (along with very much expected butt whoopings from Arkansas State and #14 UCF), I'm looking forward to unleashing Johnson and seeing him go off the chain again. With MTSU have the #98 rushing defense in nation, and Florida Atlantic coming in at #94, after doing that against ULM (who ranks #86 in the nation in rushing defense), it might be time to break out the popcorn these next two games. :popcorn:
Defense is still going to screw us some game, most likely against Arkansas State and UCF, and possibly against either Florida Atlantic or UL Lafayette. This had the potential to become a 30+ point blowout, until the defense decided to roll over and play dead, allowing ULM to score 21 points in the second quarter and 14 in the fourth quarter to make it only a 9 point victory. Hopefully they decide to get their asses in gear before they cost us another loss.
Meanwhile, some insane stats from that game. UL Monroe punted a whole 3 times that game, we did not punt a single time the entire game. ULM was not penalized at all, we got flagged 3 times. ULM racked up 282 kick return yards, we both went 80%+ in the red zone, with ULM ending the game 83% in the red zone, us ending 87% in the red zone. What a heck of a game. Also clearly a "wide open offense" game, as the defenses clearly were not good based on those stats.
Taking a look at action on the national scene... In the game of the week, there will be a new #1 next week, as #5 Ohio State (8-0) knocks off #1 Wisconsin (7-1) on the road in Madison with a 34-21 victory. #2 Mississippi State (8-0) looks to be our new top ranking team as they defeated Kentucky (3-6) 31-14. The showdown for next week meanwhile is still on as #4 Penn State (8-0), fighting off the upset, outscores #18 Illinois (5-2) 24-6 in the fourth quarter to top the Illini 48-31. #8 Boise State (6-1) keeps their title game hopes alive with a 42-14 curbstomping of Cincinnati (1-6). #10 Washington (7-2) loses their second game, falling at home to Oregon State (6-2), 29-21, after Oregon State scores 9 fourth quarter points, including a 30 yard field goal with 43 seconds left to put the game away.
Meanwhile, #12 Auburn (7-2) hands #11 LSU (5-3) their second straight loss with a 31-16 win at home. #13 Oklahoma State (6-1) easily handles #15 Baylor (4-3), handing the Bears their second straight loss (and third loss in fourth games) with a 38-6 whooping. #16 Northwestern (6-2) scores a fourth quarter touchdown to escape with a road victory at Purdue (1-7), winning 24-21. Duke (3-4) scores a Top 25 upset at home over #17 Virginia Tech (6-2) with a 30-27 win. #21 Connecticut (5-2) drops 15 points in the final 2:27 of the game to pull out a come from behind 41-38 win over Louisville (2-5). Florida State (6-2) makes their case for a Top 25 ranking with a 27-6 win over #22 Clemson (5-3). #25 Virginia (7-1) scores a minor upset victory over #24 Miami (FL) (6-2) with a 36-33 win.
For our readers, both West Virginia and Arizona State out of action with byes this week. Arizona State returns next week to take on 5-3 UCLA, West Virginia returns in two weeks in week 12 to take on (currently) 1-6 Cincinnati. That record will change as Cincinnati plays 2-5 Louisville in week 11.
As for my conference title hopes (sitting 4-0 in the Sun Belt Conference right now), I got a huge boost as Troy defeats Arkansas State 38-21 to knock the Red Wolves down to 2-1 in conference play. Troy is still right on my butt at 3-1 though, so I can't have any let downs. UL Lafayette and North Texas both still have a chance, sitting at 2-1 in the conference, and even Florida Atlantic is still technically alive with a 2-2 conference record.
As for the popcorn eating games, after advancing the week in game, another great week of action coming up in week 11, with the Big Ten hosting the national game of the week for the second week in a row. Fresh off their upset win over previous #1 Wisconsin, Ohio State, now the #3 team in the nation, takes on their second straight top 5 opponent, #4 Penn State, this time at home. Both teams enter 8-0, and if Ohio State wins, they will be in the driver's seat for the Big Ten Championship game. If Penn State wins, they get a date in week 12 at home with Wisconsin. Mississippi State does indeed jump to #1, taking on 4-4 Georgia in week 11 ahead of their week 12 showdown at home with #2 Alabama (8-0). The #2 Crimson Tide first go on the road in week 11 to take on #16 LSU, who is in the middle of a two game slide. Boise State remains #8 as Wisconsin only drops down to #6 after their loss to Ohio State.
Not a whole lot was changed in the Top 25 after Wisconsin's loss. Mississippi State jumps from #2 to #1. Alabama moves up 1 spot to #2. Ohio State jumps from #5 over Penn State to land at #3. Penn State remains stuck at #4. Oklahoma moves up a spot to #5. Wisconsin drops 5 spots to #6. TCU, Boise State and Arkansas all remain in the same place in #7-9. Washington drops from #10 to #14 with their loss, making way for Auburn to jump from #12 to #10 with their win over LSU. Meanwhile, I may end up playing a #10 team after all, as UCF (7-2 on the year), has climbed back up to #12 from a ranking in the 20s after their two earlier losses.
Surprise teams in the current Top 25, Northwestern at #13 with a 6-2 season, Connecticut at #18 sitting at 5-2, Illinois at #19 with a 5-2 record, Virginia at #22 with a 7-1 record. The big one, Mississippi State after going 11-2 and a #7 ranking in the first year, dropped off to 7-6 last year, and jumped right back up, sitting #1 in the nation with an 8-0 record, with games against 4-4 Georgia, 8-0 #2 Alabama, 8-1 #9 Arkansas and 4-4 Mississippi being the only thing keeping them from a 12-0 season and a berth to the SEC Championship game and even potentially the BCS Championship game.
And there is currently a moment where I right now HATE recruiting. :bang: I just lost someone I was going after, Jon Newsome, a :4star: DT, #9 DT in the nation, :sparq: of 66.00, just hard committed to Florida, after I fought to get within -1 of Florida. While Florida at least offered a scholarship, the guy apparently didn't need to visit as I was the only one he made a visit to, and still signed with Florida over me and Florida State (all three of us offering a scholarship).
And now, another guy, Will Medlock (not related to Jake Medlock as Will is black), a :4star: HB, #19 HB in the nation with a :sparq: of 78.00 is currently soft committed to Nevada, despite the fact that Nevada has not even so much as bothered to schedule a visit nor even offer a scholarship to the guy. I'm the only team to offer a scholarship and schedule a visit. Nevada is the top team, I'm -1 behind, the next closest is Oregon State at -960. So much for the 60 minutes I've poured into both guys every single week since I added them to my board back in weeks 2 and 3.
At least there is one bit of good news from recruiting. David Holt, the #59 DT in the nation, :3star:, :sparq: of 57.00, was soft committed to Purdue last week, I poured 60 minutes into him and not only kept him from hard committing to Purdue, but actually stole him and got him to hard commit to me. So he went from soft commit to Purdue to hard commit to me in one week. A heck of a theft.
That is a very interesting top 10 list as it currently stands. TCU and Washington stand out to me as weird ones. Does Alabama play Mississippi St this season?
Yep. I'm currently in week 11 of the season, Alabama plays at Mississippi State in week 12. And as I plan to play MTSU in a little bit, I'll be onto week 12 tonight, and hopefully have week 12 played and advanced sometime Saturday.Quote:
Originally Posted by jaymo76
[Statgeekery]Quote:
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
Well, anytime you use raw numbers, yes, teams that have horrible win-loss records are pretty likely to be at the bottom defensively. The key is to look at opponent-adjusted statistics. Too bad that would take a headache-inducing amount of effort.
[/statgeekery]
Good stuff, Smooth! Nice wins!
But, you have to admit that even with a horrible win-loss record, being dead last or nearly dead last in all defensive categories is most likely based more on poor defensive performance overall and less a product of their win/loss records. With enough offense, I'm sure they could outscore opponents and win the games, while still having an atrociously bad defense.
True, I am/was just using raw numbers there. Unfortunately, I have neither the time or nor the desire to put in the effort to get opponent-adjusted statistics, unless someone else would like the honors. I'm fine with just recruiting, playing the games and mention the raw statistics I can pull up in a matter of seconds for a quick look at a team's season. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by JeffHCross
And looking at it right now, this season is still a toss-up. MTSU is my only, for lack of a better word, sure victory. Florida Atlantic has played me tough the last two years, as well as it being a rivalry game, so they out fired up already. UL Lafayette, while undefeated against them the last two seasons, they too have played me pretty tough and besides last year's rushing domination against them, have put up a fight on defense. So I can see myself going 3-0, 2-1 or 1-2 against those three.
Then I have Arkansas State and UCF, who have both dominated me both years, so at least for now, I'm going into both games expecting a loss. So I'm looking at ending the season anywhere from 7-5 to 5-7. Add in the Sun Belt Conference title race, with me sitting at 4-0, Troy at 3-1 and Arkansas State and North Texas both at 2-1. So still LOTS to do and play for this season, even with just 5 games left to play.
Game Eight
:MTSU: :@: :FIU:
Game Notes
--- After holding on last week to defeat UL Monroe, our fourth win in a row, our team hit a new air and stride in practice, ready to hit the field and take on the Blue Raiders of Mid Tennessee State. We entered the game with a 4-3 record, 4-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. Mid Tennessee State entered at 1-7 on the year, 0-4 in conference play. Today would also be a huge day, as 13 recruits, out of 22 recruits that we are currently actively recruiting, were visiting for their official campus visit today. Hopefully we could have a huge day to help sway some of those recruits to sign with us. Special for today’s game, we broke out our alternate uniforms for the first time this season, wearing our black jerseys instead of our normal navy blue. It was a partly cloudy sky as the sun began to set behind the scoreboard, setting up a perfect evening of football. We won the coin toss and elected to kick, putting the beginning of the game on the shoulders of our defense.
The game almost started off in absolute disaster for the Blue Raiders, as a fumble on the opening kickoff return was just barely recovered by one of their return team members, giving them the ball at their own 32 yard line. Two passes, for 1 and 5 yards from Derrick Hicks to Christian Collis left MTSU with third and 4 at their 38, but they would go backwards with a loss of 2 yards by William Pratcher, setting up the first punt of the day. We got some help as a 15 yard facemask penalty was called on the Blue Raiders during the return, giving us first down at our 32 yard line to start. Unfortunately for us, MTSU appeared to have taken notes when looking at last week’s game film. After a 5 yard run by Storm Johnson on first down, Johnson was stuffed for no gain on second down and could only manage 3 yards on a third down dump pass to leave us punting on fourth and 2. A 49 yard punt left the Blue Raiders on their own 11 yard line to start. Everything looked in our favor after an incomplete pass and a loss of 3 yards on a run left MTSU facing third and 13 at their own 8 yard line. Then things started to fall apart, starting with the defense being flagged for offside, before Hicks found Richard Drake for a 17 yard gain on third and 8. After another offside penalty on the defense left MTSU with first and 5 at their 35, we finally caught some breaks. An incomplete pass on first down was followed with a 2 yard rush by Drake to set up third and 3, before a holding penalty pushed the Blue Raiders clear back to their 27 and left them facing third and 13 yet again. An incomplete pass on third down this time would force MTSU to punt for their second time today. A 12 yard return by Johnson gave us good field position, starting at our 37.
The Blue Raiders continued to put up a fight on defense against our running game, as Johnson was only able to gain 4 yards on first down before fighting through two tackles to pick up 8 yards on the next play to give us a first down at our 49 yard line. The Blue Raiders would make a mistake on the next play, trying to overwhelm our line with a blitz to the left side, while Johnson took the ball, blew through a hole on the right side, and reeled off 50 yards before the MTSU secondary was able to bring him down at the 1 yard line. Darrian Mallary would do the honors on the next play, pushing through a defender and using their combined momentum to fall forward into the end zone for a 1 yard touchdown run, giving us a 7-0 lead with 4:48 left to play in the first quarter. After a 17 yard kickoff return out to the 25 yard line, Mid Tennessee State went only backwards, as Hicks threw two incomplete passes and was tackled for a loss of 2 yards on a run, bringing out the punt team yet again on fourth and 12.
A 7 yard return by Johnson this time set us up at our 39 yard line. The Blue Raiders found some success stopping our run game this time, as Johnson could only get 4 yards in two rushes, leaving us with third and 6 at the 43. A 6 yard pass to Johnson wasn’t quite enough for the first down, as the official measurement forced us into fourth and inches at the 49 yard line. Coach Cristobal decided to make a statement right here, having us go for the fourth down conversion, to which Johnson was able to pick up a yard and give us a new set of downs at the 50 yard line. After calling another run play on first down, the Blue Raiders defense came out showing heavy blitz and began tightening down on the box. In response, Jake Medlock called an audible at the line, changing the play to a play action pass, and found tight end Aaron Clark open for a 28 yard gain to give us first down at the MTSU 21 yard line. Despite getting burned on the play action pass last play, MTSU again came out and stacked the box, this time to the left side, and with the run going to the right, Medlock decided to leave the play call as is. That turned out an unsuccessful call as Johnson could only pick up 2 yards before being piled on. Johnson would still come through for us though with a 12 yard pass on second down to give us first and goal at the MTSU 8 yard line. The Blue Raiders were still as ready as ever for Johnson, continuing to stack the box. Johnson could only manage one yard before being swarmed on first down, signaling that this would have to be finished through the air if we wanted a touchdown. After an incomplete pass intended for Dominique Rhymes on second down, Willis Wright came through for us, diving and catching a 7 yard pass for the touchdown to give us a 14-0 lead with 1:02 left in the first quarter.
A kickoff return out to the MTSU 22 yard line was again the only success the Blue Raiders would enjoy, as two more incomplete passes, and a 2 yard loss by Pratcher would leave Mid Tennessee State again punting on fourth and 12. Johnson called a fair catch on the 44 yard punt to give us the ball at our 35 yard line with 20 seconds left to play. As MTSU had been stacking the box on first down for the last couple drives, we deciding to come out firing this time. A 21 yard pass to Rhymes made an immediate statement as we quickly crossed midfield to the MTSU 43 yard line. Two incomplete passes, as Wayne Times and Wright were unable to haul in the ball, would bring about the end of the first quarter, a 14-0 lead for us on the scoreboard.
The start of the second quarter found us facing a third and 10 situation after two incomplete passes to end the first quarter. Rhymes would again come through for our offense, catching a pass from Medlock and fighting forward enough to get down to the 13 yard line before collapsing under the weight of the defensive players trying to tackle him, a 31 yard gain on the pass. It was then that Medlock decided to be his usual “shoot us in the foot” self, throwing an interception directly into the hands of MTSU’s safety, Brandon Newsome, who returned it 9 yards out to the 11 yard line. Despite an incomplete pass and a loss of 2 yards by Pratcher, the MTSU offense would finally find some success, as Hicks found Arthur Williams for a 25 yard gain to give the Blue Raiders a first down at their 34 yard line. That would be it for their offensive show though, as three straight incomplete passes by Hicks would grind the drive to a halt. We unfortunately would have our worst starting position of the day, as a 7 yard return by Johnson was only enough to give us the ball at our 29 yard line. Despite getting lit up through the air the previous drive, the Blue Raiders were still more than ready for Johnson, as he could only manage a single yard on first down to leave us with second and 9. Two incomplete passes by Medlock later, and we were making our second punt of the day. This one was much worse, as Hagen shorted it for only 38 yards, which was then returned 9 yards out to MTSU’s 41 yard line, their best positioning of the day. Luckily for us, the Blue Raiders would only go backwards, as Pratcher was tackled for a 2 yard loss on first down, followed by a 4 yard loss by Hicks on second down and an incomplete pass to round things out and bring back out the Mid Tennessee State punt team.
Continuing a disturbing trend, our field position continue to get steadily worse, as a fair catch by Johnson on a 43 yard punt left us starting our next series at our 22 yard line. That turned out to actually be good news, as the Blue Raiders left Times covered one and one with no secondary support. A faster Times was able to break off the line and get the inside track on corner Marquise Dixon, leaving Dixon playing catch-up. A perfectly placed pass to Times was hauled in, during which Dixon jumped and went for the knock down, missing in the process, leaving him out of position with his back towards Times, who with a minor juke move was able to sidestep Dixon and then outrace Newsome for a 78 yard touchdown to give us a 21-0 lead with 6:16 left in the first half. MTSU’s next drive got a helping hand, as the defense got flagged for defensive pass interference, giving the Blue Raiders a first down at their 31 yard line, a pickup of 7 yards. A 4 yard rush by Pratcher was the last they would get, as two incomplete passes from Hicks would force another punt.
The 44 yard punt ended with Johnson calling a fair catch, beginning our next drive at the 21 yard line, continuing the trend of progressively worse starting field position. Unbelievably, the Blue Raiders made the same mistake of leaving Times covered in man with no help in the secondary, but they caught a break as Dixon was able to this time get a hand on the ball, keeping Times from holding onto it. The Blue Raiders made sure on the next play to bring over help from the safeties on Times, but it was Wright this time who made the defense pay, hauling in a 20 yard pass to give us first down at our 41 yard line. Keeping the MTSU defense thinking pass, our run game found a breathe of air as Johnson was able to break through the line for a 10 yard gain to give us a first down at the MTSU 49 yard line. Our ground success was short lived however as Johnson was brought down for no gain on the very next play. The defense was thinking run on the next play, bringing the house on a safety blitz. Instead of leading to a sack or loss of yards, that blitz played perfectly into our hand, as Mallary was left partially open on the play, hauling in a pass from Medlock, then outrunning his cover for a 23 yard gain down to the MTSU 27 yard line before one of the corners were able to bring him down. After two incomplete passes to leave third and 10, Medlock was finally able to find Rhymes breaking open over the middle for a 20 yard gain, setting up first and goal at the Mid Tennessee State 7 yard line. Despite the Blue Raiders still playing the pass, Johnson was stood up for no gain on the first down rush, leaving second and goal and actually pushing us back a little to the 8 yard line. Johnson wouldn’t be denied on second down, hauling in a pass in the flats and fighting his way forward before falling into the end zone with some help from the defense, scoring a touchdown on the 8 yard pass to give us a 28-0 lead with 3:33 left in the first half.
Starting their next series on the 16 yard line, Mid Tennessee’s offense started to find a little bit of success again, as Hicks picked up 3 yards on a first down rush, then followed up with a 4 yard pass to Damien Murray to leave third and 3. But an incomplete pass on third down would force the Blue Raiders to once again punt the ball away. A 9 yard punt return by Johnson gave us possession at our 40 yard line and 2:39 left on the clock. In a true stacking the box sense, the Blue Raiders on first down brought the entire defense, except for one safety, up to the line of scrimmage before backing their other safety back into position at the last moment. Those two safeties would have little effect however as with all three linebackers blitzing, Rhymes was left wide open going up the middle of the field, hauling in the pass before fighting an extra 11 yards forward for a 31 yard gain, giving us first down at the MTSU 29 yard line. The Blue Raiders still proved more than ready for our running game as Johnson would only manage 2 yards on first down, before a pass intended for Ezekiel Turner was swatted down, leaving us facing third and 8. Despite coming out in a 10-0-1 formation yet again, it paid off this time for the Blue Raiders as Johnson could only manage 4 yards on a pass from Medlock, forcing us to attempt a field goal on fourth and 5 at the MTSU 23 yard line. Hagen would come through for us, kicking the 40 yard attempt right down the middle of the uprights to give us a 31-0 lead with 1:32 left to play.
Starting at the 27 yard line, the Mid Tennessee State offense this time sprang to life. After a pair of incomplete passes left third and 10, Hicks found Kevin Byard for a 22 yard gain, followed by a 12 yard pass to Collis to give the Blue Raiders first down at our 40 yard line. After another incomplete pass, Drake hauled in an 11 yard pass to give the Raiders first down at our 29 yard line. A 5 yard pass to Drake advanced the ball to the 24 yard line, after which Drake caught a 16 yard pass to give MTSU first and goal at the 8 yard line. It nearly all fell apart as Hicks fumbled the snap on first and goal, but he was able to recover, albeit for a loss of 5 yards, backing the Blue Raiders out to the 13 yard line. A pair of incomplete passes left fourth and goal with 7 seconds left on the clock. The Blue Raiders would finally get on the scoreboard as Orlando Sellers kicked a 30 yard field goal to make it 31-3 with 4 seconds left. A touchback on the kickoff would bring the half to an end with a commanding 28 point lead.
The start of the second half, we finally bucked the trend of progressively worse field position as a 19 yard kickoff return by Johnson left us starting at the 30 yard line. Finally catching a break on the ground, Johnson was able to beat the defensive end around the corner on and sprint down the sideline for a 37 yard gain, tiptoeing the final 5 yards after a tackle attempt by one of the safeties, giving us first down at the MTSU 43 yard line. Continuing to use the off tackles rushes, Mallary picked up 4 yards on first down, followed by Johnson on second down, who turned the corner, rushed forward through a gap and plowed full speed into one of the linebackers, using his momentum to send both players rolling forward, just gaining the 6 yards needed for a first down at the MTSU 33 yard line. Another attempt off the left tackle ended with only a 2 yard gain, sending us back to the air on the next play, hoping the Blue Raiders would play the run again on the next play. Exactly that happened as the Blue Raiders sent a blitz against an anticipated rush, instead finding the ball flying over their heads as Clark caught a 9 yard pass along the left hash marks for a first down at the 22 yard line. It was on the next play that Times left the MTSU defense once again burnt, as a corner blitz on the play left Times completely uncovered and wide open on an out route. After catching the pass at the 15 yard line, with the nearest defender more than 7 yards away, Times immediately turned upfield and started heading along the sideline and angling towards the pylon to keep as much space between him and the pursuing safeties. Times was able to get as close as the 3 yard line before safety James Heinz was able to close the distance and attempt to tackle Times. It would not be enough however as Heinz’s attempt to drag Times down by his outside shoulder only hindered his attempt, as Times fell down and rolled to his left, ending up facing back towards our end zone, his feet two yards deep into the end zone and the ball resting directly on the middle of the goal line for a 22 yard touchdown pass, giving us a 38-3 lead with 7:02 left in the third quarter.
Despite a 26 yard kickoff return out to their 29 yard line, and a 6 yard rush by Pratcher on first down, the Mid Tennessee State offense would end up going backwards, as they were called for holding on second and 4, Hicks threw an incomplete pass on second and 14, and then Hicks was sacked for a 7 yard loss on third and 14, leaving the Blue Raiders punting from their 18 yard line, 11 yards back from where they initially started the drive. An 8 yard return by Johnson on the 52 yard punt left our offense starting at our 37 yard line. Even though they were down by 35 points with just 6 minutes left in the third quarter, the Blue Raiders defense was still as hardnosed as they had been all game, limiting Johnson to just a pair of 1 yard rushes on first and second downs. On third down, Wright was able to get past his coverage and had nothing but a wide open green field between him and the end zone, but an overthrown pass by Medlock landed 5 yards further downfield from Wright, forcing us to punt the ball away. The Blues Raiders offense again found some minor success, as Pratchter picked up 9 yards on first down, followed by an incomplete pass from Hicks, and a 7 yard gain by Williams to give MTSU a first down at their 33 yard line. That would be as much as they would get as three straight incomplete passes from Hicks brought the punt team back out once again. Their punter at least still had some fire left in him, as a 50 yard punt ended with a fair catch, giving us the ball at our 16 yard line to start our next series.
Trying to run the ball, the defense was once again ready for us as Johnson could only manage 3 yards on first down. Despite once again managing to beat the coverage downfield, getting a couple yards behind the safeties, Wright was once again overthrown by Medlock, leaving us with third and 7. The third down pass attempt intended for Rhymes was batted by the blitzing defensive line. While it landed in Johnson’s hand at the line of scrimmage for a brief second, Johnson ended up dropping it as he was quickly hit by one of the linebackers. After a 47 yard punt by Hagen, the Blue Raiders returned it 7 yards out to their 40 yard line for their next series. Tim Rhodes got their drive underway with a 2 yard pass on first down, followed by a 7 yard rush from Pratcher to leave the Blue Raiders facing third and 1. The drive would come to an end as a pass to Pratcher on third down was dropped.
A 51 yard punt ended up rolling into the end zone for a touchback. Going to the ground game, Johnson was able to pick up 7 yards on first down, but a 2 yard rush that left third and 1 was all we’d do, as Johnson got tackled for a 1 yard loss on third down, forcing us to punt. After a 44 yard punt left MTSU starting at their own 29 yard line, Hicks found Collis on first down for an 8 yard gain. A 3 yard rush by Drake gave the Blue Raiders a first down at the 40 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Hicks completed a pass to Drake for 12 yards to give MTSU a first down at our 48. A 5 yard pass would get the Blue Raiders down to our 42 yard line, but two incomplete passes would force MTSU to punt the ball away yet again. The 42 yard punt from Davis went into the end zone for a touchback, giving us the ball on our 20 yard line with 13 seconds left in the third quarter. An audible at the line of scrimmage off a run play left Yakeem Griner open in the flats as he fought forward for a 10 yard gain before being driven out of bounds to give us another first down with 8 seconds left to play. The final seconds would tick off the clock before we could get back to the line, bringing the third quarter to a close with a 38-3 lead.
The start of the fourth quarter found us returning to the ground game. Despite Mid Tennessee State’s defense coming out in a 6-2-3 look as they packed the line, Johnson still was able to find a hole between the center and left guard, picking up 6 yards before being brought down. A 3 yard rush by Johnson, using his momentum to fall forward enough to get the third and final yard, left us facing third and 1 at our 40 yard line. Johnson took full advantage of a gap left unfilled by the linebackers between the center and right guard, picking up 7 yards to convert the third down. Despite the defensive tackle making contact with Johnson just two yards beyond the line of scrimmage, Johnson ended up taking both him and the middle linebacker for a ride, continuing to high step his way forward to gain 6 yards before being wrapped up and tackled. A 1 yard gain on second down, as the left guard failed to pick up his assignment, the left outside linebacker, left us going to the air on third and 3. That third down pass would end in disaster as Medlock threw too far ahead of Johnson, the pass being picked off by Heinz to give Mid Tennessee State the ball at their 43 yard line. Despite the momentum swing of the interception and great field position, the Blue Raiders would fail to take advantage of it as Hicks threw two incomplete passes and Drake was tackled for a 4 yard loss, leaving the Blue Raiders punting on fourth and 14 from their 39 yard line. Johnson called fair catch on the 52 yard punt to give us the ball at our 8 yard line with 6:11 left in the game.
It was at the start of this series that we brought in our second team offense and defense, despite some on the coaching staff wanting one last score. Mallary got our drive started poorly as he was stood up for no gain. Being so deep in our territory, we took the air on second down, backup quarterback and redshirt sophomore Lorenzo Hammonds getting his first action of the season. A brief rundown of Hammonds’ very brief periods of action last season in 2012, he went 2-12 passing with 111 yards, no touchdowns or interceptions, averaged 10.1 yards per game, had a completion percentage of 16.7, his longest pass was 72 yards and he ended the year with a 94.4 QB rating. Despite only completing 2 passes last season, Hammonds made the most of his first attempt this year, completing a 26 yard pass to Clark over the middle for a first down at our 35 yard line. Despite our desire to want to run out the remaining clock with run plays, Mallary was only able to gain 2 yards, just barely at that, on a first down run, forcing us to return to the air. With the sudden impotence of Mallary’s running abilities, those couple coaches on the sidelines may just end up getting their wish of another touchdown if we had to keep passing. Even though Wright made a great jumping catch on second down, it ultimately only gained 1 yard when all was said and done, leaving us facing third and 7. On third down, Clifford Sanchez was able to get behind the safeties, hauling in a perfect over the shoulder pass from Hammonds, then running it clear down to the MTSU 4 yard line before the safeties could catch up to him, a 58 yard gain to give us first and goal. Mallary’s attempt to score on the ground proved fruitless, as he was tackled for no gain, Mid Tennessee State’s first team defense busting right through our second team offensive line with ease. Knowing there was no way we’d be able to score on the ground with our second team against their starting defense, we elected to call a short pass with Hammonds going under center. The Blue Raiders must have mistook it for another run play, as Clark was left wide open on his out route from the tight end position, catching it at the two yard line and then heading toward the pylon, covering the final two yards before the right cornerback could react, scoring a 4 yard touchdown pass to give us a 45-3 lead with 3:21 left to play in the game.
A 24 yard kickoff return got the Blue Raiders out to their own 26 yard line to start their next series. Drake picked up 4 yards on the ground before an incomplete pass from Hicks, intended for Williams fell incomplete. It was after this play, facing third and 6, that the Blue Raiders decided to put their second team offense into the game. The change in personnel worked as redshirt freshman backup quarterback Ira Price hit Ross Thompson for a 21 yard gain to give them first down at our 49 yard line. The Blue Raiders proceeded to go backwards, as Price was sacked on first down for a 5 yard loss. A 1 yard pass to Drake on second down left MTSU facing third and 14 from their 47 yard line, when a pass intended for Drake was batted down, forcing the Blue Raiders to punt with 2:09 left to play. The 47 yard punt was caught by Johnson, who was promptly tackled for no gain at our 6 yard line, starting our next series even deeper in the shadows of our goalpost with 2:04 left to play. After a pair of 1 yard gains by Mallary, we were left with third and 7 at our 9 yard line with 37 seconds to play. Mallary came through for us on the next play as he managed to squeeze through a small gap and pick up 8 yards and gaining a first down, keeping the ball in our hands with 33 seconds left to play and allowing us to kneel out the final seconds. One kneel from Hammonds ticked off the final seconds of our 45-3 victory over Mid Tennessee State. The win also sets a new record for the biggest win in school history, as the 45-3 victory eclipses our 42-3 win over Bowling Green last season.
With the win, our fifth straight, we improve to 5-3 on the year, 5-0 in the Sun Belt Conference. With the loss, Mid Tennessee State drops to 1-8 for the season, 0-5 in conference play. Up next, we hit the road to take on our hated rivals, Florida Atlantic. The Owls enter the game with a 3-6 record, 2-3 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Owls opened up the year with a 42-17 win over Indiana State, before going on a three game slide with a 14-7 loss to Purdue, a 24-18 loss at #4 Penn State and a 36-20 loss at Rice. They got their second win of the year with a 42-25 victory at Western Kentucky, before the back half of their 5 game road trip took its toll, with losses of 59-24 at Troy and 38-22 at North Texas. They got their third win against Mid Tennessee State 20-17 before losing at home against UL Monroe 39-20.
Final Score
:FIU: 45, :MTSU: 3
Stat(s) of the Game:
FIU Offense – Running game had another strong game, with Johnson and Mallary combining for 181 yards on 39 carries and one touchdown. It was both a great day and a bad day in the passing game. Medlock was on fire for a good portion of the game, with Hammonds coming in during garbage time and leading us down the field for our final score of the game, both combining for 423 yards on 21-35 passing and 5 total touchdowns, but Medlock again did his best imitation of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, passing for 333 yards and 4 touchdowns, but also throwing some horrible passes on his 14 incompletions, as well as two interceptions that he pretty much laid directly into the hands of the MTSU defense. Despite being a younger and much less talented quarterback, there is hope for the future in Hammonds, who came in and ate fire, going 4-4 passing for 90 yards and 1 touchdown in his brief stint of action today.
FIU Defense – Actually did pretty good for a change, which was to be expected against a decidedly much weaker opponent like Mid Tennessee State. Allowed only 190 yards of offense and allowed only 17 completions on 50 pass attempts. Besides that breakdown right before halftime that let MTSU score that field goal, it was pretty much a perfect day for the D.
FIU Kicking – Hagen pulled off another perfect day for the season. He made his only field goal attempt of the day, kicking it perfectly down the middle from 40 yards out and made all six extra point attempts.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :MTSU: 0 3 0 0 3 :FIU: 14 17 7 7 45
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter :FIU: Touchdown D. Mallary, 1 yard run (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 7-0 :FIU: Touchdown W. Wright, 7 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 14-0 Second Quarter :FIU: Touchdown W. Times, 78 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 21-0 :FIU: Touchdown S. Johnson, 8 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 28-0 :FIU: Field Goal Y. Hagen, 40 yard field goal :FIU: 31-0 :MTSU: Field Goal O. Sellers, 30 yard field goal :FIU: 31-3 Third Quarter :FIU: Touchdown W. Times, 22 yard pass from J. Medlock (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 38-3 Fourth Quarter :FIU: Touchdown A. Clark, 4 yard pass from L. Hammonds (Y. Hagen kick) :FIU: 45-3
Game Stats
Mid Tennessee State Stat Florida International 3 Score 45 10 First Downs 20 190 Total Offense 604 16 - 22 - 0 Rushes - Yards - TD 39 - 181 - 1 17 - 50 - 0 Comp - Att - TD 21 - 35 - 5 168 Passing Yards 423 2 Times Sacked 0 5 - 20 (25%) 3rd Down Conversion 6 - 14 (42%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 1 (100%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 5 - 0 - 1 (20%) Red Zone - TD - FG 7 - 4 - 0 (57%) 0 Turnovers 2 0 Fumbles Lost 0 0 Intercepted 2 16 Punt Return Yards 43 164 Kick Return Yards 19 370 Total Yards 666 14 – 46.8 Punts - Average 5 - 44.2 3 - 35 Penalties 4 - 32 12:43 Time of Possession 23:17
Florida International Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :3redarrow: 500+ rushing yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: Win 8 games in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in each season :check: :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 7+ passing TD in one season :check: :3greenarrow: 10+ points per game in each season 31 PPG :3greenarrow: :3redarrow: 2400+ total offensive yards in one season :check: :3greenarrow: :2redarrow: Win 4 games in one season :check: :1greenarrow: :6redarrow: 2000+ total offensive yards in one season :check:
Job Security Status
96%
Holy crap, our defense finally showed up. With the exception of the series right before halftime and a couple big plays here and there, our defense completely shut down the Mid Tennessee State offense.
Our offense meanwhile had another great day. The running game was good, though it kept getting shut down at times by the MTSU defense. But our passing game more than made up for it, with some great passes, some great plays, and some huge mistakes by the MTSU defense on coverage. Medlock still makes me shake my head, being able to go from throwing pinpoint perfect passes to throwing interceptions perfectly into the hands of the defense almost back to back.
There is promise for the future. While it was just one game, Hammonds came in and did a great job with 4-4 passing, 90 yards and 1 touchdown. Hopefully we get a chance to have him get some more action later this season so I can get a better look at his skills and see what all he can do in a game, especially as it appears he'll be my starter next year, if I decide to stay around FIU a little longer.
Now to go slaughter some Owls.
Oh yeah, that picture of the BCS standings I post above. It looks exactly the same at the moment, just Alabama is the current BCS #1, Ohio State #2 and Mississippi State #3, all 8-0 and all tied for first with 0.994 points. Penn State comes in at #4 with 0.983 and Oklahoma is #5 with 0.978. Some mid major love as Boise State is ranked #6 and TCU #7, both tied with 0.967 points. There's still a chance Boise State or TCU could get to the title game if Armageddon happens, with Penn State beating Ohio State, Wisconsin beating Penn State, and the winner of Alabama-Mississippi State either losing at some point before the end of the regular season or in the SEC Championship game.
Taking a look at action on the national scene... In the game of the week, for a second straight week in the Big Ten, the #3 Ohio State Buckeyes remain perfect at 9-0 as they defeat #4 Penn State (8-1) 38-21. While it may seem like it was a decent game, this game was a blowout. Ohio State had a 31-0 lead at halftime and a 38-0 lead after the third quarter. Penn State didn't score until the fourth quarter, with touchdowns at 11:02, 6:00 and the third to make it seem close with 1:15 left in the game. The funny thing, Penn State had 435 yards of total offense, Ohio State only 288. But, Penn State also had 3 interceptions while Ohio State had no turnovers.
Elsewhere, #1 Mississippi State (9-0) beat Georgia (4-5) 38-17, while #2 Alabama (9-0) beat #16 LSU (5-4) 41-23, setting up the #1 vs. #2 showdown in the SEC next week! It's amazing how things can change so suddenly. Three weeks ago, LSU was 5-1 and ranked #7, just on the outside of the national title picture, and three weeks later, has been whooped 33-0 by #1 Mississippi State, 31-16 by #10 Auburn and 41-23 by #2 Alabama, dropping to 5-4 for the season, 3-3 in the SEC, and will either be ranked in the 20s or could be completely dropped out of the rankings by next week.
#8 Boise State (7-1) barely avoids being upset as they hold on to beat South Florida (4-4) on the road 35-31, outscoring USF 14-7 in the third quarter, with the game winning touchdown coming with 27 seconds left to play in the third quarter. #9 Arkansas (9-1) barely escapes with a 20-17 win on the road against South Carolina (6-4), scoring 10 fourth quarter points, including the game winning field goal with 4:41 left to play. Another Top 10 team loses as Mississippi (5-4) scores 14 points in the fourth quarter to knock off #10 Auburn (7-3) with a 24-14 road win.
#25 Nebraska (6-3) gets a 42-21 win at home against #13 Northwestern (6-3). In a cross country battle, #14 Washington (8-2) scores 14 points in the fourth quarter to beat #22 Virginia (7-2) 42-35, scoring the game winning touchdown with 2:20 remaining. #15 Stanford (6-3) suffers their third loss of the season, falling at home to Oregon (6-3) in a 31-14 loss. Michigan (5-4) goes on the road and knocks off #17 Iowa (6-3) 25-13. Syracuse (1-9) gets their first win of the season, breaking open a 31-31 tie at the end of 3, to knock off #18 Connecticut (5-3) with a 41-34 win. #21 Baylor (5-3) escapes Missouri (2-7) with a 24-17 win.
For our readers, West Virginia still out of action for one more week, returning in week 12 to take on Cincinnati. This may be West Virginia's best chance at win #3, as Cincinnati enters the game 1-7 on the year, 0-6 in the Big East, fresh off a 29-2 ass whooping from 3-5 Louisville. Cincinnati managed a whole 9 first downs and 171 yards of offense in the game, only 59 yards on 7-30 passing, and gave up 26 first downs and 463 yards of offense to Louisville.
Meanwhile, Jaymo, Arizona State ALMOST pulled it out. The Sun Devils drop to 1-8 (1-5 in the Pac-12) with a 28-25 loss to 6-3 UCLA. Arizona State did have to outscore UCLA 14-7 in the fourth quarter to pull within 3, the last touchdown coming with 2:45 left to play, but they were close and had a chance. It was a pretty even game, UCLA winning the first down battle 25-19, Arizona State winning the total offense battle 364-326. The thing that killed Arizona State was 2-11 on third down conversions for 18%.
As for my conference title hopes (sitting 5-0 in the Sun Belt Conference right now), no real upsets this week. UL Monroe evened up their conference record at 2-2 with a 39-20 win over Florida Atlantic, dropping the Owls to 2-3 and eliminating them from the conference title. Arkansas State improved to 3-1 in conference play with a 27-6 win over North Texas, dropping the Mean Green to 2-2 in conference and essentially eliminating them. Troy remains right on my ass with a 24-12 win over UL Lafayette to improve to 4-1 in the Sun Belt Conference, UL Lafayette drops to 2-2, essentially eliminating them as well.
It's still going to be very tough the rest of the season. I either have to go a perfect 8-0 in conference, or hope that Troy loses another game to either North Texas (2-6, 2-2), UL Monroe (4-4, 2-2) or Western Kentucky (1-8, 1-5). I also need to either actually beat Arkansas State for my first time in week 13 or hope that they lose a second game to either Mid Tennessee State (1-8, 0-5), UL Lafayette (4-4, 2-2) or Florida Atlantic (3-6, 2-3). Pretty horrendous, impossible odds for any of those chances (8-0 in conference, Troy losing a second time or Arkansas State losing a second time) to happen and come true. Fuck.
As of this point of the post, I have now advanced to week 12 in-game...
As for the popcorn eating games still to come, obviously, the biggest game of the season, #2 Alabama (9-0, 6-0) at #1 Mississippi State (9-0, 6-0). Get the popcorn ready. :popcorn: Ohio State (9-0, 5-0) remains stuck at #3, but is in good shape to go undefeated after surviving the Wisconsin/Penn State gauntlet. They just have games at 4-5 Indiana, against 6-2 #13 Illinois and at 5-4 Michigan. Penn State (8-1, 4-1) was able to hang up to their top 10 ranking, dropping to #9 for their game this week with #5 Wisconsin (8-1, 4-1). With Penn State's drop to #9, TCU (6-2, 4-2) moves up to #6 with a game against 4-4 (3-3) Texas this week. And Boise State (7-1, 5-0) is now #7, hosting Rutgers (7-1, 5-0) in what will essentially be the Big East championship game.
Looking at the Top 25 this week, Mississippi State remains #1, Alabama #2 and Ohio State #3. Oklahoma starts a trend from 4-8 by bumping up one to #4, Wisconsin #5, TCU #6, Boise State #7, Arkansas #8, Penn State down to #9 (from #4) and Oklahoma State up one to #10. UCF is up one to #11, Washington jumps up two to #12 (following their win over #22 Virginia), Illinois, Nevada and Baylor all make the second biggest jumps, moving up 6 from 19-20-21 to 13-14-15. Auburn drops down 6 to #16. Nebraska makes the biggest jump of the week, moving up 8 from 25 to 17 after their win over previously #13 Northwestern. That same Northwestern team drops 5 spots to #18. Oregon State is up 4 to #19, Northern Illinois up 4 to #20, Stanford drops 6 spots to #21. Georgia Tech makes their first appearance at #22 (with 6-3 record), Virginia (despite losing to #11 Washington) only drops one down to #23. Oregon makes their first appearance at #24 (with 6-3 record), and despite their 3 game slide, LSU holds on, dropping 9 spots down to #25.
Iowa (#17, lost 25-13 to Michigan (5-4) and Connecticut (#18, lost 41-34 to Syracuse (1-9) both drop out of the poll this week. Others getting votes, Miami (FL) is ranked 26th, followed by Florida State, Iowa, Ole Miss, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Troy, NC State and Virginia Tech.
Looking at the new BCS... Alabama is still ranking #1, Mississippi State (#2) and Ohio State (#3) trade spots, all tied with 0.994 points. Oklahoma is up one to #4 with 0.983. Boise State jumps up one to #5 and TCU is up one to #6, both tied with 0.972. Wisconsin (0.968), Penn State (0.956), Arkansas (0.954) and Oklahoma State (0.948) all around out the top 10.
Looking at Awards and the semifinalists lists, Storm Johnson is currently ranked #8 for the Maxwell, #3 for the Walter Camp, and #4 for the Doak Walker awards.
And something I completely forgot to mention, Florida International swept the NCAA Players of the Week awards for Week 10. Storm Johnson was national offensive player of the week with 37 carries, 292 yards, 5 rushing touchdowns, 4 receptions, 75 yards and a receiving touchdown against UL Monroe. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Joshua Forney was the national defensive player of the week with 2 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, an assisted tackle, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery against UL Monroe.
Nice ass beating against MTSU. Always feels good to get one of those. Hopefully the same next week.
LOTS of interesting things happening in the national title picture.