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Wow, you're still going strong with these mini novels? Sir, I salute you! I still play my NCAA 12 Temple dynasty but online leagues kept the writing down. Now that my schedule doesn't allow me to online league it anymore I may have to get back into it. Nonetheless, this is still an impressive thread sir.
Yep, still going strong! :) I'm gonna keep this thing going for as long as I can, multiple years, try to get into the hundreds of pages. And with as far as I have made it so far, 100+ is well within reach. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by JerzeyReign
Hopefully you'll get a chance to fire it back up. It's been lonely in this section, just me being the only steady dynasty, others coming and going here and there for a couple weeks. It'd be nice to see this section get active again and multiple dynasties posted.
I appreciate it sir! :up: Glad to have you as a reader and commenting. :)
Firing up Navy right now. God bless coaching carousel. :D I'm playing a Navy squad that's coming out with Air Raid as their offensive style.
:bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang: :bang:
Game Four
:Tulsa: :@: :Navy:
Game Notes
--- Coming off our first loss of the season to Arizona State, it wasn’t about to get any easier, as we hit the road to take on the Navy Midshipman, with stats resembling a juggernaut early in the season. The Midshipmen entered the game putting up 41.3 points/game (#13 nationally), 565.3 offensive yards/game (#3 nationally), 239.3 rushing yards/game (#18 nationally) and 326.0 passing yards/game (#11 nationally). They were nearly as good on defense, giving up only 312.6 yards/game (#18 nationally), 138.0 rushing yards/game (#24 nationally) and 174.6 passing yards/game (#28 nationally).
Our best offensive stat was rushing, where we ranked #20 with 233.0 rushing yards/game. Passing was a less than mediocre #81 ranking. Defensively, we were best against the run, giving up only 157.6 rushing yards/game (#44 nationally), but ranking a horrible #109 in passing defense. Our only hope would be for our offense to find a groove the entire game, and for the defense to get very lucky multiple times. We’d find out how the pouring rain would affect the game. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
No return on the opening kickoff got Navy underway from their 25 yard line. It looked like it would potentially be a long day from the get-go, as Sterling Reid dropped back and found Matt Young for a 20 yard gain and a first down at the 45 yard line. We would catch a break as two incomplete passes intended for Will Reynolds and Kedrick McNair left third and long. Reid would connect with Joe Justice on third down, but the pass for a gain of 9 yards would leave Navy just one yard short at our 47 yard line. That was close enough for Navy, as Young took the fourth down handoff and broke up the middle for a 5 yard gain to pick up the first down at our 42. An incomplete pass intended for Young was followed with a three yard pass to Charles Winston to set up third and 7. A 6 yard rush by Reid would again bring up fourth and one, this time from our 33 yard line. Navy would attempt their second fourth down conversion of the game, but the pass from Reid intended for Reynolds was broken up incomplete, forcing the turnover on downs at the 33.
Taking over after the turnover on downs, Will Oliver got us started on offense, taking the handoff up the middle for a 9 yard rush to leave second and one. A 5 yard rush by Oliver would be enough for the early first down at the 47 yard line. Navy was ready for us on the next play, as Oliver could only manage a yard before being brought down by the middle linebacker, leaving second and 9. Throwing downfield to Joe Vaughn, the pass from Brad Stephens was on-target, but a quick move by the cornerback allowed him to get a hand in front of the ball and deflect it out of bounds and incomplete to bring up third and 9. We wouldn’t find any luck on third down either, as the pass intended for Jason Johnson was batted incomplete to bring out the punt team. No return on the 48 yard punt left Navy buried, starting at their three yard line for the next drive.
Young started off the drive with an 8 yard rush, things not looking good already. It was on the second down play that the first mistake of the game was made, as Young took the ball around the right tackle, getting to the 16 yard line, before he was stripped by defensive tackle Luke Payne, who promptly dove on top of and recovered the fumble, giving our offense a first down at the Navy 16 yard line.
Coming out in the run game, Oliver started the drive with a two yard gain. Going back into the air on second down, Stephens was able to loft a ball over the head of the cornerback and into the hands of Vaughn for a 10 yard gain, setting up first and goal at the four yard line. The defense wasn’t about to go without a fight, tackling Oliver for no gain on the first down carry. Taking it again on the ground, Oliver fought his way to a two yard gain, leaving third and goal at the two yard line. Oliver never had a chance on the third down handoff, quickly brought down by the blitzing outside linebacker for a loss of one yard, leaving fourth and goal from the three. The 20 yard field goal by Alphonso Pratt was good, giving us a 3-0 lead with 3:04 left in the first quarter.
A 14 yard kickoff return got Navy back on the field, starting from their 17 yard line. Young opened up the drive with a rush for one yard, before hauling in a pass from Reid for an 8 yard gain to leave third and one. An incomplete pass on third down would bring the drive to an end. A fair catch by Johnson on the 47 yard punt got us back in action at our 26 yard line.
Oliver took the first down handoff, but never had any hope, as he was quickly brought down by the defensive tackle for a two yard loss, leaving us looking at second and 12. A pass to Oliver picked up 6 yards, leaving third and 6. A handoff to Oliver off a fake pass didn’t fool the defense, as Oliver was brought down for only a two yard gain, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and four. A 7 yard return on the 44 yard punt got Navy lined up at their 31 yard line.
The drive got off to a poor start, as Reid’s pass to Brad Turner fell incomplete, bringing up second and long, before Reid kept the ball himself and gained 7 yards on the ground, setting up third and three. Reid would again keep the ball and get the job done on his own, rushing for 5 yards and the first down at the 43 yard line. Young took the handoff on first down, but our defense left him nowhere to go, tackling him for a loss of three yards. Reid was able to make up those lost yards with an 8 yard rush to leave third and 5 just shy of midfield. That would be the final play as the first quarter came to an end, our lead holding at 3-0.
Opening up the second quarter, the drive would end there at the 49 yard line, as the third down pass intended for Turner would again end up incomplete, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and 5. No return on the 35 yard punt got our offense back on the field at our 16 yard line.
We still could find little to no success on the ground, as Oliver was tackled for a one yard gain. To make matters worse, Oliver suffered a strained pectoral that would keep him sidelined for at least the next couple plays. Going into the air on second down, it would be our turn to make a mistake, as the pass from Stephens intended for Kyle Jones was intercepted as Jacob Morgan snuck down from the safety position and jumped the pass, pulling it down and with nothing but wide open green in front of him, took it 20 yards to the house for the pick six, giving Navy a 7-3 lead with 8:12 left in the second quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got us back out on offense, starting from our 25 yard line. Eric Silva was able to prove our running game was not quite yet neutered, breaking free around the right tackle for a 16 yard rush and a first down at the 41 yard line. Back on the field after the injury last drive, Oliver took the ball up the middle for an 8 yard gain, followed by a second 8 yard rush to get another first down at the Navy 43. Coming out with play action, Silva was able to get wide open along the right sideline, hauling in the pass for a 19 yard gain and a first down at the Navy 24. Oliver took the ball on the ground on first down, picking up 8 yards, before fighting his way to a gain of 6 to get the first down at the 11 yard line. Coming out throwing on first down, Johnson hauled in the pass for a 5 yard gain, leaving second and 5 from the 6 yard line. Returning to the run game, Oliver was able to rumbled ahead for a four yard gain, leaving third and one from the two yard line. Refusing to back down, Silva took the handoff up the middle, seemingly headed for the end zone until a desperation tackled by the safety spun him around and stopped him inches short of the goal line. It saved the touchdown, but it was still enough to get the first down, leaving first and goal with only inches to go. Despite having a hole into the end zone, Oliver was unable to get the job down, tackled for no gain to bring up second and goal. Silva would get the job done on the next play, shaking off the middle linebacker and running straight on the cheeks of the left guard for the one yard touchdown, giving us a 10-7 lead with 4:29 left in the second quarter.
A 20 yard kickoff return set Navy up at their 19 yard line to start the next drive. Reid got the drive started with an 8 yard pass to Zach Daniel, before Young was tackled for a three yard loss to leave third and five. Reid would get the job done on third down, rushing for a 6 yard gain to move the chains to the 30 yard line. Reid connected with Turner for a 7 yard gain on first down, before Young once again set them back, tackled for a one yard loss this time to leave third and four. Young would recover and keep the drive in motion with a 6 yard rush to pick up the first down at the 42 yard line. A 5 yard rush by Young was followed with a two yard reception, leaving third and three at the 49. This time Navy would get across midfield, as Reid picked up 5 yards on the ground to move the ball to our 46 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Reid got Navy to our 39 yard line, before Young would screw the pooch once again. Young was able to fight forward on second and three for an 8 yard gain, before he again coughed up the ball, the fumble recovered by middle linebacker AnthonyClement to give us back possession at our 31 yard line with 1:49 left on the clock.
Left with less than two minutes, it was straight into the air. The first down pass intended for Vaughn was on-target, but Vaughn never got his hands on the ball, as it sailed by and landed incomplete. Getting off the ball to avoid a sack, P.J. Stephens hauled in the pass for a 13 yard gain, giving us a first down at the 44 yard line with 1:41 left on the clock. The first down pass intended for Vaughn was broken up by the outside linebacker, leaving second and long. A quick pass to P.J. Stephens gave us an 8 yard gain to leave third and two, our first timeout stopping the clock with 1:25 left to play. Silva had the third down pass in his hands, but a hit by the middle linebacker knocked the ball loose, leaving fourth and two. Taking the chance on fourth down, the ball intended for Vaughn was broken up by the cornerback, thanks in part to Vaughn slipping on the wet turf at the snap, turning the ball over on downs at the Navy 48 yard line with 1:19 left on the clock.
Reid opened up the drive for Navy with a 12 yard pass to Justice, setting up a first down at our 40 yard line. We would catch another huge break on the next play, as Young took the handoff, rushing down to our 32 yard line, before committing his third fumble of the day. Cornerback Allen Moore recovered the fumble, returning it two yards to our 34 yard line with exactly one minute remaining.
Throwing deep over the middle to Lucas Gates, the pass was broken up by the safety, leaving second and long. The second down pass to Carl Barnes hit him in the hands, but some contact by the outside linebacker was enough to cause the ball to be dropped, leaving third and long. Oliver would keep us breathing, catching the ball around the 42 yard line, then fighting for an additional four yards, ending with a 12 yard gain and a first down at the 46. Our second timeout stopped the clock with 47 seconds to go. Hauling in the first down pass, P.J. Stephens was able to make the catch for an 11 yard gain and then just barely get out of bounds at the Navy 43 yard line, stopping the clock with 42 seconds remaining. Oliver was able to break open on first down, hauling in the pass for an 11 yard pickup, but he was unable to get out of bounds. Rushing to the line and calling a quick audible, Stephens tried to connect with Barnes, but the pass sailed incomplete, landing off-target in the middle of three different receivers, leaving second and long from the 32 yard line with only 24 seconds left. A pass to Johnson over the middle picked up 14 yards and a first down at the 17 yard line. Rushing to the line of scrimmage, a pass underneath to Barnes only gained 6 yard, Rushing to the line of scrimmage, a pass underneath to Barnes only gained 6 yards, forcing us to burn our final timeout, facing second and four at the 11 yard line with 15 seconds to go. Forced to take a shot at the end zone no matter what, as anything shorter would risk the clock running out, the pass intended for P.J. Stephens was batted at the line of scrimmage, leaving it sailing up in a high rainbow trajectory, nearly very easily intercepted by the safety, but thankfully dropped incomplete, leaving third and four with 11 seconds to go. Gates would give us the desired ending to the drive, as he slanted across the middle, pulling in the perfectly thrown pass between the safety and middle linebacker for the 11 yard touchdown and a 17-7 lead with 7 seconds left before halftime.
A touchback on the following kickoff would bring the first half to an end, our lead now 17-7 as fumbles plagued the Navy offense.
Opening up the second half, a 21 yard kickoff return got us lined up at our 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. Oliver never had a chance on the first down handoff, as the middle linebacker blitzed through and just plowed into Oliver with his shoulder and pushed him down for a one yard loss. Turning to the air, Vaughn was able to get the pass in his hands, before a vicious by the outside linebacker completely laid Vaughn out on this back, the ball knocked loose and incomplete. The third down pass intended again for Vaughn was broken up by the cornerback, and the punt team came out on fourth and 11. A fair catch on the 49 yard punt left Navy starting from their 26 yard line.
It took one play for Navy to respond. Reid dropped back on the first down play, Daniel broke free up the left sideline, and Reid dropped a perfect pass into his arms in stride, Daniel racing our entire defense up the sideline for a 74 yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 17-14 with 7:48 left in the third quarter.
An 18 yard kickoff return got us back in action, this time from our 20 yard line. Starting off on the ground, Oliver was able to find four yards on his first down carry, before a blitz by the middle linebacker resulted in a rush for no gain, leaving third and 6. Taking a shot of our own down the left sideline, Johnson was able to beat the cornerback off the line and then get behind the safety on a streak route. The pass from Stephens was nearly perfect, Johnson jumping up to grab the pass at the Navy 30 yard line, before a flailing arm by the safety was enough to knock the ball loose, it heartbreakingly falling to the ground incomplete, in a single second erasing what would have been a 46 yard pass. Left with fourth and 6, the punt team made yet another appearance. A 7 yard return on the 43 yard punt left Navy with good field position at their 40 yard line.
The drive started off promisingly enough for our defense, as two straight incomplete passes left third and long. Third time would not be a charm for our defense, as Reid connected with Daniel for a 22 yard gain, good for a first down at our 38 yard line. A short two yard pass to Young was followed up by a two yard rush by Young, leaving third and 6. Reid would keep the ball moving with a 6 yard rush to the 28 yard line. This time around third time would be a charm, as an incomplete pass and a dropped ball by Daniel left third and long, before Reid was sacked for a loss of 7 yards to leave fourth and 17 from our 35 yard line. Navy didn’t bother to attempt the 52 yard field goal, instead punting it into the end zone for a touchback, giving us back possession at our 20 yard line.
Proving the football gods are just mocking us and toying with us, a first down rush by Oliver that was easily a 9 yard gain, was promptly called back for holding, leaving us instead with first and 20 from the 10 yard line. Going into the air on the next play, Vaughn was able to get his hands on the pass, but a Navy defense stepping up the intensity of their hits with each play and drive knocked the ball loose and incomplete. The second down play would be our biggest of the game. Going left on an out route, Gates was able to get behind the cornerback along the left sideline, while Vaughn was slipping, sliding and falling with every single cut he made nearby. Stephens was able to damn near buzzcut the top of the cornerback’s helmet, sinking the pass right over his head and into the hands of Gates. Vaughn was able to recover from his latest slip and slide in time to block the safety and push him off-balance, allowing Gates to slip past him up the left sideline and put enough distance between them that a diving tackle attempt by the safety around the 40 yard line came up well short. With the safety now off his heels, Gates was able to race up the field, slowing being cut off by the other safety, forcing Gates to try and juke the safety around the Navy 30 yard line. While the juke didn’t quite work, it did allow Gates to slow enough that the safety’s momentum carried him past the tackle, Gates spinning through and off the tackle attempt. The safety though did enough to save the touchdown, as Gates was finally caught from behind by both cornerbacks, tackled at the Navy 25 yard line for a 65 yard gain, on a play that should have ended in only a 15 yard pickup. Looking to build off the momentum of that play, the first down pass intended for Vaughn along the right has would see the momentum swing 100% the other direction, as Morgan intercepted Stephens for the second time today. To make matters worse, despite having multiple players nearby, Morgan somehow wormed his way through four different tackle attempts, then outraced Stephens, one of the linemen, Oliver and Gates down the left sideline for an 89 yard pick six, a new NCAA record, giving Navy a 21-17 lead with 3:41 left in the third quarter.
A touchback on the following kickoff left us starting at our 25 yard line, all momentum long since shot and drowned. Oliver took the ball on first down, rushing for a four yard gain, followed by an option play that saw a blitzing defense bring Stephens down for a loss of three yards, leaving third and 9. Vaughn would manage to keep us breathing, hauling in the third down pass for a 13 yard gain, giving us a first down at the 39. Continuing to try our luck through the air, P.J. Stephens was able to haul in a pass over the middle for a gain of 20 yards and a first down at the Navy 41. Stephens tried to connect with Johnson on first down, but was hit as he went to throw on the very slow developing play, resulting in an incomplete pass. A quick pass to Robert Harper picked up two yards, leaving third and 8 at the 39. Taking off scrambling on the third down play, Stephens was able to catch the defense sleeping, taking off around the right tackle and picking up 9 yards on the carry to get the first down at the Navy 30 yard line. Silva took the ball on the first down carry, picking up 7 yards on the run, followed by a huge 16 yard rush to set up first and goal at the 7 yard line. Keeping it going on the ground, J.D. Faulk ran for a three yard gain, leaving second and goal from the four. The rush by Jones would get two yards on the play, leaving third and goal at the two yard line, where the third quarter to come to an end, Navy leading 21-17.
Opening up the fourth quarter facing third and goal at the two yard line, we weren’t about to shy away from the run game, Silva getting all the way up to the goal line, but unable to cover the final inches, tackled for a two yard gain to leave fourth and goal just outside the goal line. Things would get more difficult as Silva suffered a mild concussion on the play, leaving him knocked out for the rest of the game. Going for it on fourth down, with Oliver still on the sidelines taking a breather, Jones would complete the play, rushing it in for the one yard touchdown to recapture the lead, 24-21 with 8:25 left in the game.
A 20 yard kickoff return set Navy up at their 24 yard line, looking to respond. Reid got the drive started with a 9 yard pass to Young, before keeping the ball himself on a two yard rush, enough to get the first down at the 35 yard line. Young took the ball on first down, picking up two yards on the ground, before a dropped ball by Daniel left Navy facing third and 8. Reid would keep the Midshipmen moving with an 8 yard completion to Turner, moving the chains to the 45 yard line. After an incomplete pass intended for McNair, Reid found Younger over the middle for an 18 yard gain and a first down at our 37 yard line. Another pass, this time to Turner for a 12 yard gain kept the momentum going with another first down at our 25. Our defense won a minor victory on first down, tackling Young for a loss of one yard, but the offense won the battle as Reid found Turner up the right sideline for a 17 yard gain, setting up first and goal at our 9 yard line. An incomplete pass was followed up with a two yard loss by Young, and Navy suddenly found themselves facing third and goal from the 11. Navy would manage to close the gap, but it wouldn’t be enough, as the 8 yard pass from Reid to Turner left fourth and goal at our three yard line. Opting to kick the field goal this time, D.J. Craft nailed the kick through the uprights, tying the game up at 24-24 with 5:38 left to play.
A touchback on the kickoff left us starting from our 25 yard line. Oliver took the first down handoff, managing only one yard on the carry. A quick pass to Oliver picked up 7 yards, leaving third and two from the 33 yard line. Putting our faith in the run game, Jones would take the ball on third down, fighting through a hole and breaking free into the secondary for a 19 yard rush and a first down at the Navy 48. Keeping it going on the ground, Jones fought his way forward for a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches. Despite being met in the backfield by the defensive tackle, Jones was able to fall forward for a one yard gain, getting the first down at the 37 yard line. Faulk came in to take over for Jones, picking up three yards on the first down carry, followed by a pitch to the left to Jones that failed miserably, resulting in a 5 yard loss and leaving third and 12 from the 39 yard line. Going into the air on third down, Vaughn kept us alive, hauling in a pass from Stephens for a 15 yard gain and a first down at the Navy 24 yard line with exactly two minutes left in the game. Going back to the ground game, Jones took the handoff for a 12 yard rush and a first down at the 12 yard line, the clock continuing to run. The first down carry by Jones gained four yards, leaving second and 6 from the 8, the clock dipping under one minute to play. A rush by Faulk picked up four yards to leave third and two at the four yard line, followed by a gain of no yards by Jones to leave fourth and two, a timeout leaving 5 seconds on the clock. Lining up for the game-winning field goal, the 20 yard kick by Pratt sailed wide right and no good, giving Navy the ball at their 20 yard line with three seconds remaining.
Navy handed the ball off to Young for a one yard rush, running out the clock and sending us into overtime tied 24-24.
Taking over to start the overtime session, things could not have gone much worse for Navy, as three straight incomplete passes left them looking for any points. Craft would give them the lead despite no yards gained, kicking the 42 yard attempt through the upright to give Navy a 27-24 lead.
Lining up at our 25 yard line, Oliver took the ball on first down for a gain of 5 yards, followed by a one yard pickup to leave third and four. The third down pass intended for Jones was right on target, but Jones slipped and fell on the wet turf as he went to make a cut, causing the ball to go sailing over his head and incomplete. It would only get worse, as the 36 yard field goal attempt by Pratt ended up clanking off the right upright no good, handing Navy the 27-24 overtime victory in a gift-wrapped box.
With the loss, we fall to 2-2, 1-1 Big East. With the win, Navy improves to 4-0, 2-0 Big East. Up next, it's back home as our nightmare scenario comes true, we entertain #11 Oklahoma as we enter the game on a two-game losing streak. The Sooners enter the game 1-1 on the year, opening with a 26-21 win over then-#1 USC, before losing the next week 30-22 to Ohio. Oklahoma had a bye week this week, giving them a full two weeks to stew on that loss ahead of our game.
Final Score
:Navy: 27, :Tulsa: 24 - Overtime
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A bad day for Stephens, ending 18-36 for 247 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, both interceptions getting returned for a touchdown. Rushing, out of five rushers today, Oliver led the way with 67 yards on 22 carries. Jones had 42 yards and one touchdown on 8 carries, Silva had 41 yards and one touchdown on 7 carries. Receiving, eight receivers caught a ball today, Gates leading the way with 76 yards and one touchdown on two receptions. Six receivers ended with double digit receiving yards.
Tulsa Defense – While Navy had some drives deep into our territory, for the most part it was a good day. Three forced and recovered fumbles, only let Navy score a single touchdown on offense. Those pick-sixes just killed us.
Tulsa Kicking – Besides the interceptions that were both returned for a touchdown, Pratt killed us as well, ending the day 1-3 in field goals, good from 18 yards out, but missing the game-winner from 20 yards out with 5 seconds left, and then missing the game-tying field goal from 36 yards out in overtime. Pratt did go 3-3 on PATs, but it's nothing more than a very minor concession.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Overtime Final Score :Tulsa: 3 14 0 7 0 24 :Navy: 0 7 14 3 3 27
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 3:06 :Tulsa: Field Goal A. Pratt, 18 yard field goal :Tulsa: 3-0 Second Quarter 8:12 :Navy: Touchdown J. Morgan, returned interception 20 yards (D. Craft kick) :Navy: 7-3 4:29 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 10-7 0:07 :Tulsa: Touchdown L. Gates, 11 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 17-7 Third Quarter 7:48 :Navy: Touchdown Z. Daniel, 74 yard pass from S. Reid (D. Craft kick) :Tulsa: 17-14 3:41 :Navy: Touchdown J. Morgan, returned interception 89 yards (D. Craft kick) :Navy: 21-17 Fourth Quarter 8:25 :Tulsa: Touchdown K. Jones, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 24-21 5:38 :Navy: Field Goal D. Craft, 20 yard field goal TIED 24-24 First Overtime --- :Navy: Field Goal D. Craft, 42 yard field goal :Navy: 27-24
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Navy 24 Score 27 21 First Downs 14 413 Total Offense 333 42 - 166 - 2 Rushes - Yards - TD 24 - 86 - 0 18 - 36 - 1 Comp - Att - TD 18 - 35 - 1 247 Passing Yards 247 0 Times Sacked 1 7 - 15 (46%) 3rd Down Conversion 7 - 14 (50%) 1 - 2 (50%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 2 (50%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 7 - 3 - 1 (57%) Red Zone - TD - FG 2 - 0 - 1 (50%) 2 Turnovers 3 0 Fumbles Lost 3 2 Intercepted 0 0 Punt Return Yards 14 39 Kick Return Yards 54 452 Total Yards 401 4 – 46.8 Punts - Average 3 - 39.7 1 - 10 Penalties 1 - 10 22:52 Time of Possession 13:08
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :6redarrow: 21+ points per game in each season 33 :6greenarrow: Win 10 games in one season 2 :6greenarrow: 3300+ passing yards each season :red-x: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 65% pass completions over the entire contract 59% :5greenarrow: :5redarrow: Win 6 games in one season :check: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 15+ rushing TD in each season 10 :5greenarrow: :4redarrow: 3200+ total offensive yards each season 1716 :3greenarrow: :5redarrow: 3400+ total offensive yards each season 1716 :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
35%
Time for another look around the nation. Starting in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State breaks the curse, defending their top ranking with a 42-21 win over winless Minnesota. #2 Georgia rolls over Vanderbilt in a 34-12 win. #3 Texas scores 17 points in the fourth quarter to beat #16 Alabama 31-19, dropping the Tide to 1-3 on the year. #4 Virginia Tech runs away with a 56-21 win over UMass. #5 USC wins a 41-34 shootout over Cal. #6 Nebraska beats Rutgers 42-24. NC State remains perfect on the year, while ruining the perfect season for #7 Miami, beating the Canes 28-24. #8 Auburn escapes Troy 20-17 thanks to a touchdown with 1:06 left to play. There will be no Cinderella story this year, as South Florida knocks off #10 Arkansas State 31-21.
Penn State knocks off #12 Michigan State 27-13. #13 Boise State barely escapes Colorado State 37-30, handing the Rams their first loss. #14 Clemson rolls to a 38-24 win over Northern Illinois. #15 LSU barely pulls out a 35-32 win over South Carolina #17 Arkansas holds on to beat Missouri 34-20. #18 Notre Dame recovers with a 45-30 win over winless Michigan. #20 Virginia picks up a 48-24 win over Boston College. Mississippi State pulls out a 35-19 win over #21 Texas A&M. Utah scores an early Pac-12 upset of #23 Arizona, 21-10, as the Wildcats see their perfect record go down the drains. #24 Tennessee does what Oklahoma could not last week, beating Ohio 42-17 and Army knocks off #25 BYU 24-21.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss finally breaks into the win column, improving to 1-3 (1-0 C-USA) with a 49-17 dismantling of UTSA. Jaymo, Arizona State falls to 1-2 (0-1 Pac-12) with a 45-17 loss to lowly Washington State (that's what you get for beating Tulsa last week. :D). Mors, West Virginia falls to 2-2 (1-1 Big 12) with a 31-21 loss to Maryland. Jeff, #1 Ohio State improves to 4-0 (2-0 Big Ten) with a 42-21 whooping of Minnesota. Other teams of interest, #10 Arkansas State falls to 2-1 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 31-21 loss to South Florida.
In Big East action, Navy beats Tulsa 27-24 in overtime, UCF gets a 38-17 win over Houston, South Florida knocks off #10 Arkansas State, Cincinnati beats Baylor 28-10, East Carolina edges out Buffalo 27-21, Connecticut picks up a 45-38 win over Duke and shockingly, Memphis hands out a 49-7 ass-whooping to Kansas (Jayhawks must REALLY suck this year). On the other end of the spectrum, Western Michigan beat Temple 23-14 and Georgia Tech whooped Tulane 42-7. All in all, a 7-4 week for the Big East, taking into account the two conference games. 5-2 without those conference games.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (34 first place votes) climbs one to #1, Georgia (21 votes) remains #2, Texas (1 vote) remains #3, Virginia Tech (3 votes) remains #4 and USC remains #5. Nebraska (1 vote) remains #6, Auburn (1 vote) moves up one to #7, Iowa jumps one to #8, Oklahoma climbs two to #9 and Boise State jumps three to #10. Clemson jumps three to #11, LSU climbs three to #12, Arkansas moves up four to #13, Miami falls seven to #14 and Notre Dame climbs three to #15. Georgia Tech jumps three to #16, Virginia climbs three to #17, Arkansas State falls eight to #18, Oregon moves up three to #19 and Tennessee jumps four to #20. Alabama falls five to #21, Michigan State drops ten to #22, NC State enters the poll this week at #23, Northwestern enters the poll at #24 and Navy (207 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Texas A&M (from #21), Arizona (from #23) and BYU (from #25). Looking at Others Recieving Votes, Marshall (169 points) is #26, followed by Texas A&M (128), Oklahoma State (60), North Carolina (57) and Wisconsin (34) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week is Penn State (31).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Georgia (42 first place votes) remains #1, Texas (21 votes) remains #2, Ohio State (1 vote) remains #3, Nebraska (1 vote) remains #4 and USC remains #5. Virginia Tech remains #6, Auburn moves up one to #7, Iowa jumps one to #8, Oklahoma jumps two to #9 and LSU climbs two to #10. Boise State moves up two to #11, Clemson jumps two to #12, Notre Dame climbs four to #13, Miami drops seven to #14 and Virginia climbs three to #15. Arkansas jumps three to #16, Georgia Tech leaps six to #17, Tennessee moves up three to #18, Oregon climbs three to #19 and Michigan State drops ten to #20. Alabama falls five to #21, Arkansas State drops seven to #22, Navy enters the poll at #23, NC State enters at #24 and Northwestern (234 points) enters at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Texas A&M (from #21), Arizona (from #23) and Florida (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Texas A&M (151 points) is #26, followed by Penn State (88), Wisconsin (86), Marshall (17) and Mississippi State (16) to round out the Top 30.
Looking at the latest Heisman Watch list, Georgia HB Justin Jones is #1 (LW: #2), Ohio State QB Ryan Fraser is #2 (LW: #4), Nebraska QB Robbie Allen is #3 (LW: #5), Georgia Tech HB Brandon Terrell is #4 (LW: #1), and Arkansas HB Matt Miller is #5 (LW: NR). Falling off the Heisman Watch list this week was Miami QB Jason Day (LW: #3).
Game Five
#9 :Oklahoma: :@: :Tulsa:
Game Notes
--- Stuck in the middle of a two game losing streak after our heartbreaking loss to Navy last week, things weren’t about to get any easier, as it was back home to welcome #9 Oklahoma to town. While the numbers for the Sooners showed a mediocre offense, with only two games played thus far, those numbers were extremely deceptive. Skill-wise, Oklahoma was well above us in talent and skill level, setting up a veritable David vs. Goliath matchup. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A 23 yard kickoff return got Oklahoma lined up from their 23 yard line to open the game. Dan Matthews started the drive with a 7 yard rush, followed by another 7 yard gain. A flag came out on the play, facemask penalty against the defense, giving Oklahoma 15 free yards to set up first down at our 49 yard line. After a dropped pass by Matthews, Shelton Harvey rushed for a gain of four yards to leave third and 6. Our defense would make its first stand of the day, sacking Dennis Stevens for a 7 yard loss, leaving fourth and 13 from the OU 48. No return on the 46 yard punt would get us on the field starting at our 6 yard line.
Will Oliver took the first down handoff up the middle for a three yard gain, followed by an 8 yard gain to get the first down at the 17 yard line. Keeping it going on the ground, Oliver never had a chance on first down, quickly brought down for a loss of one yard. Coming out in play action, the pass intended for Eric Silva was overthrown and landed incomplete, bringing up third and 11. The third down pass intended for Joe Vaughn was broken up by the cornerback, leaving the punt team coming out. A fair catch on the 44 yard punt got Oklahoma back in action from their 40 yard line.
Harvey started the drive with a pair of rushes for gains of 7 and two yards, before Stevens connected with Corey Bean for a 15 yard pickup and a first down at our 36. We would catch another break, as outside linebacker Graham Minor intercepted the first down pass from Stevens, giving us the ball at our 34 yard line.
This time around Oliver refused to go down, fighting through a tackle on his way to a 14 yard rush and a first down at the 48. Managing to avoid a diving tackled in the backfield, Oliver was able to bounce outside around the left tackle and find a huge patch of green grass, rumbling all the way down to the Oklahoma 32 yard line for a 21 yard gain. The Sooners suddenly had no answer to our run game, as Oliver continued to pound the ball on the ground, picking up 15 yards on a misdirection play, setting up first down at the 17. It took a while, but Oklahoma was finally able to hold Oliver to a minor gain of four yards, leaving second and 6. Continuing to drive it right down the throats of the defense, Oliver rumbled up the middle for an 11 yard gain, setting up first and goal at the two yard line. We would strike first blood on the first down play, as Oliver took the handoff and dove up and over the pile and into the end zone for the two yard touchdown to give us a 7-0 lead with 3:45 left in the first quarter.
A 23 yard kickoff return set Oklahoma up at their 22 yard line. Dropping back to pass on first down, Stevens was able to find Bean for a 12 yard gain, moving the chains to the 34. A three yard rush by Claude Horn was followed by a loss of three yards, leaving third and 10. The Sooners would overcome third down this time, as Stevens threw up a deep pass to Matthews for a 27 yard pickup and a first down at our 40 yard line. Horn took the ball on first down for a 7 yard rush, followed by a 6 yard gain by Matthews, moving the sticks to our 26 yard line. After throwing away the ball on first down, Stevens kept it and ran for an 8 yard gain, leaving third and two. William Smith would enter the game for Oklahoma, rushing for a 6 yard gain to get the first down at our 12 yard line. Horn would finish off the drive with a 5 yard rush, before punching it in for a 6 yard touchdown, tying the game up 7-7 with 1:12 left in the first quarter.
No return on the kickoff got us underway at our 25 yard line. Oliver got the drive started with a rush up the middle, good for a gain of 5 yards. Keeping the ball on the option play, Stephens was able to fight his way through a pair of tackles for a pickup of 7 yards and a first down at the 37 yard line. There was a scare after the play as Stephens didn’t get up off the field. We caught a massive break as he was diagnosed with a bruised elbow, leaving him sidelined for at least a couple plays. With Stephens out for the time being, it was up to freshman backup Freddie Woods to take over the signal caller duties. Going around the left tackle on first down, Oliver was able to get 9 yards on the play. That would bring the first quarter to an end, the score all knotted up at 7-7.
Opening up the second quarter facing second and one, Oliver never had a chance as multiple defender blitzed through to tackle him for a two yard loss to leave third and three from the 44. Going into the air on third down, Woods was able to hit Jason Johnson over the middle for a 7 yard gain and a first down at the Oklahoma 49. Looking to keep the passing attack going, Woods found Vaughn up the right sideline for a 15 yard gain, moving the chains to the 34 yard line. The momentum would die on the next play, as the defensive end broke through around the left side and sacked Woods for a 9 yard loss, leaving second and 19. The second down pass intended for Carl Barnes was broken up by the cornerback, leaving third and very long. Woods tried to fire off a pass to P.J. Stephens, but got hit as he threw, the play ending in an incomplete pass to leave fourth and 19 from the 42. The punt sailed into the end zone for a touchback, and Oklahoma took over at their 20 yard line.
Matthews got the drive started for the Sooners with a three yard rush, before a pass intended for Bean was broken up, bringing up third and 7. Bean would be able to pull down the third down pass from Stevens for a 7 yard gain, but a bad spot by the refs left Oklahoma facing fourth and inches from the 30 yard line. Instead of punting it, the offense lined up and got the result they wanted, a hard snap count causing our defense to jump offside, giving the Sooners a first down at the 35 yard line and preserving their drive. It would merely delay the inevitable however, as three straight incomplete passes to Pierre Smith and Leon Downing would bring the drive to an end, the punt team coming out on fourth and long. A fair catch by Johnson on the 44 yard punt set us up from our 21 yard line.
Returning to the run game, Oliver was only able to pick up two yards on the first down carry, as the middle linebacker leaped over the falling center and met Oliver just across the line of scrimmage. Dropping back to pass on second down, Stephens found Robert Harper for an 8 yard gain to get the first down at the 31 yard line. Johnson would keep us moving, hauling in a pass while surrounded by four defenders, and holding on to the ball, for a gain of 16 yards and a first down at the 47. A first down handoff to Oliver gained two yards, followed by a pickup of 8 yards around the right tackle to leave third and inches at the Oklahoma 43. Putting the ball in Oliver’s hands, he was unable to get the job done, tackled for a loss on one yard to bring up fourth down. An underpowered pooch punt by Christian Johnson only sailed 25 yards, a fair catch giving Oklahoma the ball at their 19 yard line.
Horn started the drive for the Sooners with three straight rushes, picking up gains of four, 5 and 6 yards to get a first down at the 34 yard line. Keeping the rushing attack going, Horn managed a pair rushes for three and two yards, before a dropped pass by Matthews brought the drive to a premature end, the punt team coming out on fourth and 5 from the 39 yard line. A fair catch by Johnson on the 44 yard punt gave us possession at our 16 yard line, just 2:29 left before halftime.
Going straight into the air on first down, it was utter disaster for our drive, as middle linebacker Bryce Miller intercepted the pass over the middle intended for Johnson. Miller then somehow managed to avoid being tackled, despite being surrounded at one point by four Tulsa players on all sides, on his way to a 23 yard interception return for a touchdown, giving Oklahoma a 14-7 lead with 2:24 remaining.
An 18 yard kickoff return by Johnson got us lined up from our 15 yard line, just about right where we left off. Avoiding the blitz, the first down pass from Stephens intended for Johnson was broken up by the cornerback. This time the defense would get to Stephens, sacking him for a 6 yard loss to leave third and 16 from the 9 yard line. The connection of Brad Stephens to P.J. Stephens (no relation) would keep us breathing with a 20 yard completion and a first down at the 29 yard line. Going no huddle, it left the Oklahoma defense without the proper personnel, as Vaughn pulled down a pair of passes for gains of 22 and 17 yards, giving us a quick pair of first downs clear down to the Oklahoma 32 yard line. Keeping the aerial attack going, Vaughn pulled in a quick pass for a 5 yard gain, before a rainbow pass to Johnson was completed for an 18 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the 9 yard line with 1:12 remaining. A first down pass to Barnes picked up 8 yards, leaving second and goal at the one yard line, the clock down to 47 seconds. Oliver tried to punch it in on the ground, but was met just outside the goal line for a one yard rush, leaving third and goal, our first timeout stopping the clock with 35 seconds to go. Met in the backfield on the third down carry, Oliver was able to spin off the tackle and fall forward into the end zone for the one yard touchdown, tying the game up once again at 14-14 with 33 seconds left before halftime.
No return on the kickoff gave Oklahoma the ball at their 25 yard line, the Sooners not yet letting up as Stevens threw to Bean for a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches, Oklahoma’s second timeout stopping the clock with 20 seconds. A pair of incomplete passes would leave Oklahoma facing third and inches from the 35 yard line, just 8 seconds on the clock. A 10 yard return by Johnson on the 48 yard punt left one second on the clock and our offense coming out at our 26 yard line. A rush for no gain by Oliver would bring the first half to an end, a 14-14 tie.
Opening up the second half, a touchback on the kickoff got our offense lined up at our 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. Oliver got the drive started with a rush up the middle, picking up three yards on the carry. Another rush by Oliver gained 7 yards as he was tackled from behind, picking up the first down at the 35 yard line. Going around the left tackle on first down, Oliver was able to manage another three yard gain, followed by a pickup of three yards to leave third and four. A pass over the middle to Vaughn was completed right at the first down line, but a quick move by the safety to push Vaughn backwards resulted in a gain of only two yards on the play, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and one. A 12 yard return on the 46 yard punt got Oklahoma started at their 22 yard line.
It wasn’t a promising start as Smith dropped the ball on first down. The Sooners would recover though, as a 5 yard facemask penalty after a 5 yard rush by Matthews set them up with a new set of downs at the 32 yard line. Oklahoma took advantage of that reset, as Stevens connected with Matthews for a 16 yard gain and a first down at the 47 yard line. Stevens then found Bean on the next play for a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches at our 43 yard line. Our defense was able to do little to stop the attack, as Stevens again connected with Matthews for a 14 yard pickup to move the chains to our 29 yard line. A 5 yard rush by Stevens was followed with a four yard rush by Rashad Dixon to leave Oklahoma facing third and one at our 20 yard line. Horn would convert the third down with a 5 yard run to move the sticks to our 15. The Sooners would recapture the lead on the next play, as Stevens found Horn in the corner of the end zone for a 15 yard touchdown and a 21-14 Oklahoma lead with 5:13 left in the third quarter.
An 18 yard kickoff return by Johnson left us starting from our 23 yard line. Oliver took the ball on first down, but any chance he had of positive yards died quickly, as three defenders broke through and tackled him for a one yard loss. Going into the air on second down, Stephens was able to hook up with Harper for a 7 yard gain to leave third and four from the 29. Silva hauled in the third down pass out of the backfield, fighting his way along the right sideline for a gain of 13 yards to give us a first down at the 42 yard line. Returning to the run game, Oliver picked up three yards on the first down carry, before Silva was tackled for a one yard gain to leave third and 6. The third down pass to Harper ended up going for no gain, and the punt team came out on fourth and 6. A fair catch on the 44 yard punt left Oklahoma starting their next drive from their 11 yard line.
It didn’t take long for the Sooners to move the ball, as Stevens connected with Horn for a 12 yard gain to the 23 yard line. After an incomplete pass, Horn kept the ball on the ground, rushing for a 10 yard gain to leave third and inches. Horn would convert the third down with a four yard rush, moving the chains to the 37 yard line. Oklahoma made its first big strike of this drive, as Stevens threw a deep bomb to Matthews for a 29 yard gain and a first down at our 34 yard line. After an incomplete pass intended for Downing, Stevens found Bean along the right hash for a 14 yard gain and a first down at our 20. Our defense wasn’t going to go down without a fight thankfully, as Horn was tackled on first down for a four yard loss. Stevens made up those lost yards with a 6 yard rush, leaving third and 8. The Sooners would strike again on the next play, as Stevens found Matthews on a post route for a 19 yard touchdown to take a 28-14 lead with 25 seconds left in the third quarter.
No return on the kickoff got us underway from our 25 yard line for our next drive. Oliver took the first down handoff, tackled by the middle linebacker for no gain. The final seconds would run off the clock after the play, bringing the third quarter to an end, Oklahoma leading 28-14.
Starting the fourth quarter, facing second and long, Stephens was able to hook up with Johnson over the middle for a 17 yard gain, keeping any slim hopes of a comeback alive. The first down pass intended for Vaughn was broken up by the cornerback, followed by a sack for a loss of 6 yards, leaving us in the hole, facing third and 16. Stephens could not get a break, as the entire right side of the line instantly collapsed, the defensive tackle, defensive end, middle linebacker and outside linebacker all breaking through on the right side to sack Stephens for a 7 yard loss before he could even complete his drop back, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and 25. A fair catch by the Sooners on the 48 yard punt left Oklahoma starting from their 22 yard line.
Stevens started the drive with a 6 yard rush, but that would be the farthest Oklahoma would get, as a pair of incomplete passes left the drive stalled out on fourth and four. A fair catch by Johnson on the 49 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 23 yard line. A quick pass over the middle to Vaughn went for a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches from the 33. Lining up on the ground, the rush by Oliver ended up in a loss of two yards to bring up third and two. Dumping a quick pass to Barnes on a slant route, he was hit as he caught the ball, tackled for only a one yard gain, leaving fourth and one from our 32 yard line. With only 6 minutes left in the game, we took our biggest gamble of the game, going for it on fourth down. Oliver was able to keep us breathing, picking up four yards on the carry to move the chains to our 36. Throwing a deep pass intended for Vaughn, the ball was underthrown and nearly intercepted by the cornerback, leaving second down. A quick pass to P.J. Stephens on a corner route was completed for a gain of 17 yards, giving us a new set of downs at the Oklahoma 48. Digging deep into our playbook now, Stephens was able to hook up with Vaughn on a comeback route for a 17 yard gain, moving the sticks to the 30 yard line. Stephens never had a chance on first down as the middle linebacker blew through the line, nearly untouched, sacking Stephens for a 7 yard loss to bring up second and 17. A widely thrown pass by Stephens still ended up a positive gain, as P.J. Stephens dove and laid out to pull in the pass for a 7 yard gain, leaving third and three from the 24. Harper would keep us moving, catching the third down pass from Stephens for an 8 yard gain and a first down at the 16 yard line. Trying to end the drive now, that plan nearly came true, and at the same time nearly backfired, as a deep pass intended for Vaughn was nearly intercepted underneath by the middle linebacker, the incomplete pass bringing up second down. Just barely able to get rid of the ball as he was laid out like a rag doll by the outside linebacker, the wounded duck from Stephens fell incomplete to bring up third and long. Throwing up a third down pass to the back corner of the end zone intended for Vaughn, the drive came screeching to a halt as cornerback JoeRobbins jumped the pass and intercepted the ball, tackled in the end zone for a touchback. With that, Oklahoma took over at their 20 yard line, just 3:38 left on the clock.
Our defense promptly proceeded to shoot itself in the foot and the ass, a 15 yard facemask penalty tacked onto the end of a 9 yard run by Matthews to give Oklahoma a first down at the 44 yard line. A 6 yard rush by Stevens left the Sooners facing second and four, when the backbreaker happened. Horn took the second down handoff, and upon finding the middle clogged up, bounced outside the right tackle. Breaking free from a tackle attempt by the defensive end, Horn got a downfield block to take the outside linebacker out of the play, then got shielded from by the cornerback thanks to Matthews blocking him off. With that, Horn was able to stretch the play out to the sideline, turning up the field and racing both safeties all the way to the house for a 51 yard touchdown, giving Oklahoma 35-14 lead with 2:58 left in the game.
A touchback on the kickoff left us starting at our 25 yard line, all hopes of a comeback pretty well exterminated. Coming out passing anyways, Stephens was able to avoid a sack, firing off a pass to Johnson for a gain of 19 yards to get a first down at the 44. Rushing to the line, Stephens found Oliver for a 22 yard pickup. We get extremely lucky at the end of the play, as a tackle from behind by the safety jarred the ball loose, Vaughn thankfully mere feet away to instantly dive on and recover the fumble, preserving the first down at the Oklahoma 34 yard line. Going over the middle on first down, Stephens found Lucas Gates for a gain of 16 yards and a first down at the 19 yard line. The first down pass intended for Marcus Mullins was batted at the line of scrimmage by the defensive tackle, leaving second and long. Throwing up a prayer to Barnes on a flag route, Stephens was able to perfectly lay the ball in between the outside linebacker, cornerback and safety, complete to Barnes for a 19 yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 35-21 with 2:01 left in the game.
Our kickoff team tried the best they could, but Oklahoma was able to recover the onside kick, taking over at our 41 yard line with 1:57 to play. Horn took the ball on first down for a 9 yard gain, our first timeout stopping the clock with 1:53 remaining. Another rush by Horn picked up four yards and a first down at our 27, our second timeout stopping play with 1:50 to go. Horn continued to do his thing on the ground, gaining 5 yards on the carry, our third and final timeout taken with 1:46 left in the game. A 6 yard rush by Horn sealed our fate, as Oklahoma got the first down at our 16 yard line, just 1:41 separating the Sooners from victory. A pair of rushes by Horn went for gains of two and 6 yards, leaving third and two from our 8 yard line, 1:05 left on the clock, the Sooners apparently not content just kneeling the ball. Sure enough, Oklahoma proved they didn’t give a damn about just running out the clock, as Stevens dropped back on third down and threw a pass to Matthews for an 8 yard touchdown, giving Oklahoma a 42-21 lead with 47 seconds left in the game.
No return on the kickoff left us starting from our 25 yard line, 39 seconds left on the clock. A 6 yard rush by Oliver would be all she wrote, as the final 30 seconds ran off the clock without another snap, Oklahoma walking out with a 42-21 win.
With the loss, we fall to 2-3, 1-1 in Big East action. With the win, Oklahoma improves to 2-1, 0-0 in Big-12 play. Up next, we head into a very much needed bye week before heading on a road trip to Vanderbilt, entering at 3-3, 2-2 in SEC action. The Commodores will be no pushover, despite their record. Vandy opened the year with a 28-17 loss to Iowa State, followed by a 43-21 loss at Texas A&M. They got into the win column with a 38-24 victory over Washington, before losing 34-21 to #2 Georgia. Vanderbilt recovered with a shocking 26-24 upset of #7 Auburn and then got a 30-23 road win over 1-4 Ole Miss heading into our game.
Final Score
#9 :Oklahoma: 42, :Tulsa: 21
Stat(s) of the Game:
- Tulsa Offense – Another poor day for Stephens, ending 23-34 for 289 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. During his brief time in, Woods ended 2-3 for 22 yards. If Stephens keeps this crap play up, Woods might just get a start this season. Rushing, Oliver led the way with 129 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries. It was pretty much nothing but Oliver in the rushing game today. Receiving, Vaughn led the way with 88 yards on seven receptions. Johnson was right behind him with 77 yards on five receptions. Barnes scored the lone receiving touchdown to go with 28 yards on three receptions. In all, eight receivers caught a ball, all eight receivers ended with double digits yards for the game.
- Tulsa Defense – For the most part a solid first half, we may have had a seven point lead at halftime if not for yet another pick-six. The second half however was awful. The defense just got abused both on the ground and through the air.
- Tulsa Kicking – Pratt ends perfect on the day, but that's because he never attempted a single field goal. He did however go 3-3 on PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :Oklahoma: 7 7 14 14 42 :Tulsa: 7 7 0 7 21
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 3:45 :Tulsa: Touchdown W. Oliver, 2 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 7-0 1:12 :Oklahoma: Touchdown C. Horn, 6 yard run (K. Hines kick) TIED 7-7 Second Quarter 2:24 :Oklahoma: Touchdown B. Miller, returned interception 23 yards (K. Hines kick) :Oklahoma: 14-7 0:33 :Tulsa: Touchdown W. Oliver, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) TIED 14-14 Third Quarter 5:13 :Oklahoma: Touchdown C. Horn, 15 yard pass from D. Stevens (K. Hines kick) :Oklahoma: 21-14 0:25 :Oklahoma: Touchdown D. Matthews, 18 yard pass from D. Stevens (K. Hines kick) :Oklahoma: 28-14 Fourth Quarter 2:58 :Oklahoma: Touchdown C. Horn, 51 yard run (K. Hines kick) :Oklahoma: 35-14 2:01 :Tulsa: Touchdown C. Barnes, 19 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Oklahoma: 35-21 0:47 :Oklahoma: Touchdown D. Matthews, 8 yard pass from D. Stevens (K. Hines kick) :Oklahoma: 42-21
Game Stats
Oklahoma Stat Tulsa 42 Score 21 18 First Downs 24 433 Total Offense 413 36 - 220 - 2 Rushes - Yards - TD 36 - 102 - 2 15 - 30 - 3 Comp - Att - TD 25 - 37 - 1 213 Passing Yards 311 1 Times Sacked 5 8 - 14 (57%) 3rd Down Conversion 5 - 13 (38%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 1 (100%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 1 - 1 (100%) 7 - 4 - 0 (57%) Red Zone - TD - FG 6 - 3 - 0 (50%) 1 Turnovers 2 0 Fumbles Lost 0 1 Intercepted 2 12 Punt Return Yards 10 46 Kick Return Yards 36 491 Total Yards 459 5 – 46.8 Punts - Average 6 - 42.0 0 - 0 Penalties 4 - 40 14:38 Time of Possession 21:22
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :6redarrow: 21+ points per game in each season 31 :6greenarrow: Win 10 games in one season 2 :6greenarrow: 3300+ passing yards each season :red-x: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 65% pass completions over the entire contract 59% :5greenarrow: :5redarrow: Win 6 games in one season :check: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 15+ rushing TD in each season 12 :5greenarrow: :4redarrow: 3200+ total offensive yards each season 2129 :3greenarrow: :5redarrow: 3400+ total offensive yards each season 2129 :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
35%
Time for another look around the nation. Starting in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State narrowly defended their top ranking, beating Rutgers 21-14. #2 Georgia is forced to score 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to come back and fight off Tennessee 39-35. In the game of the week, #11 Clemson knocked off #4 Virginia Tech 28-21, ruining the perfect season for the Hokies. #5 USC rolls easily to a 42-17 win over Arizona State. #6 Nebraska picks up a 44-24 win over Maryland.
Vanderbilt improved to 2-3 with a 26-24 upset of #7 Auburn. The official margin of victory ended up being so thanks to an early third quarter safety, but Vanderbilt needed a 36 yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter to officially pull out the win. Penn State wins the battle of unbeatens, upsetting #8 Iowa 27-20. Air Force ruins the perfect record of #10 Boise State, knocking off the Broncos 27-10. #13 Arkansas pulled away late for a 27-13 win over Texas A&M. #14 Miami edges out #24 Northwestern 35-30.
#16 Georgia Tech holds off #23 NC State 27-14. #18 Arkansas State recovered from last week's upset, with an upset of their own, knocking off #15 Notre Dame 35-13, dropping the Irish to 2-3 on the year. #17 Virginia handed North Carolina their first loss, 38-14. #19 Oregon whooped Cal 45-21. #21 Alabama routs Ole Miss 44-21. #22 Michigan State rolled to a 44-21 win over Indiana and Central Florida gets an upset over #25 Navy, 35-28, to hand Navy their first loss and knock them out of the polls one week after entering.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss remains 1-3 (1-0 C-USA) with a bye week. Jaymo, Arizona State falls to 1-3 (0-2 Pac-12) with a 42-17 loss to #5 USC. Mors, West Virginia improves to 3-2 (2-1 Big 12) with a 28-14 win over Kansas. Jeff, #1 Ohio State improves to 5-0 (3-0 Big Ten) with a 21-14 win over Rutgers. Other teams of interest, #18 Arkansas State improves to 3-1 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 35-13 whooping of #15 Notre Dame.
In Big East action, Central Florida beats Navy 35-28, Cincinnati gets a 24-17 win over South Florida, Connecticut rolls to a 55-28 thrashing of Tulane, Houston edges out East Carolina 37-32, Oklahoma beats Tulsa 42-21, BYU defeats Temple 31-21, TCU doubles up SMU 34-17 and Pittsburgh violates Memphis 48-14.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (36 first place votes) remains #1, Georgia (24 votes) remains #2, Texas (1 vote) remains #3, Nebraska climbs two to #4 and Clemson leaps six to #5. USC falls one to #6, LSU climbs five to #7, Oklahoma moves up one to #8, Georgia Tech jumps seven to #9 and Virginia Tech drops six to #10. Arkansas climbs two to #11, Miami jumps two to #12, Arkansas State leaps five to #13, Iowa drops six to #14 and Virginia climbs two to #15. Penn State enters the poll this week at #16, Boise State falls seven to #17, Oregon climbs one to #18, Auburn drops twelve spots to #19 and Alabama climbs one to #20. Michigan State climbs one to #21, Marshall enters the poll at #22, Tennessee falls three to #23, Air Force enters the poll at #24 and Notre Dame (288 points) drops ten spots to #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were NC State (from #23), Northwestern (from #24) and Navy (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, NC State (183 points) is #26, followed by Oklahoma State (167), Florida International (140), Wisconsin (122) and Northwestern (53) to round out the Top 30. Others teams getting votes this week include Arizona (42) and Texas A&M (33).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Georgia (37 first place votes) remains #1, Texas (21 votes) remains #2, Ohio State (4 votes) remains #3, Nebraska (2 vote) remains #4 and Clemson (1 vote) leaps seven spots to #5. LSU climbs four to #6, USC drops two to #7, Oklahoma climbs one to #8, Georgia Tech scales eight spots to #9 and Virginia Tech falls four to #10. Penn State enters the poll at #11, Miami climbs two to #12, Arkansas jumps three to #13, Iowa falls six to #14 and Virginia remains #15. Arkansas State leaps six to #16, Oregon jumps two to #17, Boise State drops seven to #18, Auburn plummets twelve spots to #19 and Michigan State remains #20. Alabama remains #21, Tennessee falls six to #22, Marshall enters the poll at #23, Notre Dame drops eleven spots to #24 and Air Force (268 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Navy (from #23), NC State (from #24) and Northwestern (from #25). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Wisconsin (156 points) is #26, followed by NC State (148), Mississippi State (61), Oklahoma State (61) and Florida International (45) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week is Texas A&M (31).
Looking at the latest Heisman Watch list, Georgia HB Justin Jones is #1 (LW: #1), Ohio State QB Ryan Fraser is #2 (LW: #2), Nebraska QB Robbie Allen is #3 (LW: #3), Georgia Tech HB Brandon Terrell is #4 (LW: #4), and Virginia QB Kevin Gant is #5 (LW: NR). Falling off the Heisman Watch list this week was Arkansas HB Matt Miller (LW: #5).
Hey :Oklahoma:!Quote:
A 6 yard rush by Horn sealed our fate, as Oklahoma got the first down at our 16 yard line, just 1:41 separating the Sooners from victory. A pair of rushes by Horn went for gains of two and 6 yards, leaving third and two from our 8 yard line, 1:05 left on the clock, the Sooners apparently not content just kneeling the ball. Sure enough, Oklahoma proved they didn’t give a damn about just running out the clock, as Stevens dropped back on third down and threw a pass to Matthews for an 8 yard touchdown, giving Oklahoma a 42-21 lead with 47 seconds left in the game.
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Have a bye week, so lets jump right into it. Time for another look around the nation. Starting in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State picks up an easy 45-14 win over Maryland. #3 Texas pulls out a 34-21 win over Texas Tech. #16 Penn State wins the battle of the unbeatens, knocking off #4 Nebraska 28-23. In the game of the week, #5 Clemson fights to a 38-21 win over #9 Georgia Tech. #7 LSU gets a 27-17 win over Florida. #8 Oklahoma tops Kansas State 35-16.
Pittsburgh knocks off #10 Virginia Tech 30-28, handing the Hokies their second straight loss. #11 Arkansas pulls away for a 35-20 win over #19 Auburn. #15 Virginia scores a 21-16 upset of #12 Miami. #14 Iowa takes down Wisconsin 52-33. #17 Boise State pulls out a 31-23 win over Hawaii. Stanford upsets #18 Oregon 20-17. #20 Alabama rolls with a 48-17 whooping of Southern Miss. #22 Marshall edges out New Mexico 28-21. #24 Air Force escapes with a 37-34 overtime win over rival Navy. #25 Notre Dame escapes with a 24-21 win over 0-6 Colorado.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss drops to 1-4 (1-0 C-USA) after a 48-17 manhandling from #20 Alabama. Jaymo, Arizona State falls to 1-4 (0-3 Pac-12) with a 42-32 loss to Utah. Mors, West Virginia improves to 4-2 (3-1 Big 12) with a 34-16 win over Iowa State. Jeff, #1 Ohio State improves to 6-0 (4-0 Big Ten) with a 45-14 victory against Maryland. Other teams of interest, #13 Arkansas State remains 3-1 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a bye week.
In Big East action, Connecticut beats Houston 45-31, Tulane upsets Temple 17-14 in overtime, Memphis shocks South Florida 27-24, SMU edges out East Carolina 13-10, Cincinnati beats Miami University 47-28, Air Force defeats Navy 37-34 in overtime and Missouri downs Central Florida 34-27 in double overtime.
Looking at undefeated teams left, #4 Nebraska, #9 Georgia Tech, Florida International and UNLV all lost this week, dropping our number of undefeated teams to 11. #1 Ohio State (6-0), #2 Georgia (5-0), #3 Texas (4-0), #5 Clemson (5-0), #7 LSU (5-0), #16 Penn State (6-0), #22 Marshall (6-0), Connecticut (5-0), Eastern Michigan (5-0), Nevada (4-0) and Toledo (5-0) all remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 11 teams still looking for their first win: Boston College (0-6), Bowling Green (0-5), Colorado (0-6), Florida Atlantic (0-4), Idaho (0-4), Louisiana-Monroe (0-4), Massachusetts (0-5), Minnesota (0-6), New Mexico State (0-4), San Jose State (0-4) and Utah State (0-5).
Teams getting their first win this week were: Purdue (41-38 over 1-4 Northwestern) and UTSA (24-21 OT over 3-3 North Texas).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Ohio State (41 first place votes) remains #1, Georgia (20 votes) remains #2, Clemson jumps two to #3, Texas drops one to #4 and LSU climbs two to #5. USC remains #6, Oklahoma climbs one to #7, Penn State leaps eight to #8, Arkansas moves up two to #9 and Nebraska falls six to #10. Virginia climbs four to #11, Arkansas State moves up one to #12, Iowa moves up one to #13, Georgia Tech drops five to #14 and Boise State climbs two to #15. Miami falls four to #16, Marshall jumps five to #17, Virginia Tech drops eight to #18, Alabama moves up one to #19 and Michigan State climbs one to #20. Tennessee jumps two to #21, Air Force climbs two to #22, Auburn fall four to #23, Notre Dame climbs one to #24 and NC State (245 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Oregon (from #18). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Oklahoma State (176 points) is #26, followed by Pittsburgh (172), Oregon (145), Connecticut (55) and a tie between Arizona and Nevada (both 48) to round out the Top 30.
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Georgia (43 first place votes) remains #1, Texas (21 votes) remains #2, Clemson (1 vote) jumps one to #3, Ohio State drops one to #4 and Penn State leaps six to #5. LSU remains #6, USC remains #7, Oklahoma remains #8, Nebraska drops five to #9 and Arkansas climbs three to #10. Virginia jumps four to #11, Iowa climbs two to #12, Georgia Tech drops four to #13, Arkansas State climbs two to #14 and Boise State jumps three to #15. Miami falls four to #16, Marshall leaps six to #17, Virginia Tech drops eight to #18, Michigan State climbs one to #19 and Alabama climbs one to #20. Tennessee moves up one to #21, Notre Dame jumps two to #22, Air Force climbs two to #23, Auburn falls five to #24 and NC State (202 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week was Oregon (from #17). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Oregon (180 points) is #26, followed by Pittsburgh (177), Oklahoma State (87), Nevada (73) and Connecticut (62) to round out the Top 30.
Looking at the latest Heisman Watch list, Ohio State QB Ryan Fraser is #1 (LW: #2), Georgia HB Justin Jones is #2 (LW: #1), UAB QB Adam Gardner is #3 (LW: NR), Nebraska QB Robbie Allen is #4 (LW: #3) and Virginia QB Kevin Gant is #5 (LW: #5). Falling off the Heisman Watch list this week was Georgia Tech HB Brandon Terrell (LW: #4).
Who in the hell made our schedule this season? Athletic department must be broke because every game is a "money game." When the fuck does conference start?
It might not get much prettier in conference. Marshall's currently undefeated, FIU was undefeated until blowing it against, I think, North Texas. Hell, even UAB has come out of nowhere they year. Blazers are currently 5-1 and just whooped someone something along the lines of 49-7 or 49-14. The score was just ugly. UAB is no longer a pushover this year.Quote:
Originally Posted by souljahbill
So the C-USA East has at least three legit teams in Marshall, FIU and UAB. Southern Miss is going to have their work cut out for them.
Game Six
:Tulsa: :@: :Vanderbilt:
Game Notes
--- Left mired in the middle of a three game losing streak, the tough competition kept right on coming, as we headed on the road to visit Vanderbilt. While, stats-wise and ratings-wise, we were the better team, with the way this squad had been playing lately, anything was possible. Vanderbilt won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A touchback on the opening kickoff get us started at our 25 yard line to begin the game. Will Oliver opened the game with a three yard rush, before breaking loose around the right tackle for a pickup of 12 yards and a first down at the 41 yard line. Eric Silva took the ball on first down, picking up only one yard on the carry. Coming out in play action on second down, the pass intended for Robert Harper was broken up by the outside linebacker, leaving third and 9. Brad Stephens tried to connect with Jason Johnson on third down over the middle, but the cornerback was able to get a hand on the ball, knocking it incomplete. A fair catch on the 48 yard punt left Vanderbilt starting their first drive from their 9 yard line.
The Commodores found quick success, as Richard George took the ball for a 9 yard gain on the ground. Anthony Johnson tried to get the first down, but was tackled for a two yard loss to leave third and three. Our defense would end up gifting Vanderbilt a first down, as a pass interference penalty moved the chains 15 yards to the 31 yard line. Vanderbilt took full advantage of our defense’s generosity, as Johnson dropped back and found George over the middle for a 21 yard completion and a first down at our 48 yard line. George took the ball on first down for a 7 yard gain, when our defense made up for the earlier penalty. Johnson dropped back to pass on the second down play, but a hit in the backfield by defensive tackle Reggie Swain jarred the ball loose, Swain diving on top of and recovering the fumble to give us back the ball at our 46 yard line.
Taking it up the gut on first down, Oliver was able to gain three yards, before a toss to the right picked up three yards to leave third and four. The third down pass intended for Carl Barnes was off the mark, sailing incomplete to bring out the punt team again. The punt team was able to get downfield on the 48 yard punt and down the ball before it could go into the end zone, leaving Vanderbilt in a precarious position, starting their next drive from their one yard line.
A three yard rush by Van Sykes got Vanderbilt out of the immediate danger zone, though only on the four yard line, it still wasn’t a good situation to be in. Our defense would blow the situation, as George ran straight up the middle for a 6 yard gain, leaving third and one at the 10 yard line. Johnson kept the ball on third down, rushing for 6 yards to move the chains to the 15 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, a 5 yard carry by George left Vanderbilt again looking at third down with 5 yards to gain. They would fail to get the first down this time, as Jake Cox dropped the pass from Johnson, bringing out the punt unit. A 9 yard return by Johnson on the 48 yard punt got us lined up at our 40 yard line.
It was still slow going on the ground game, as Oliver could only manage three yards on the first down carry. A second rush by Oliver went for a pickup of four yards, bringing up third and three. Taking our chances with Oliver, he was able to get the job done, rushing for 6 yards and the first down at the Vanderbilt 47. Continuing on the ground, Oliver rumbled his way to an 8 yard gain, followed by a 5 yard rush by Silva to move the chains to the 34 yard line. Trying to catch the defense off-guard, Stephens dropped back to pass on first down, but he was hit in the back by the blitzing outside linebacker, the pass intended for Harper going straight into the ground and incomplete. Johnson was able to get us a fresh set of downs, getting separation over the middle to haul in a 22 yard pass to the Vandy 12 yard line. The first down handoff to Oliver ended up going nowhere, as he was tackled instantly for no gain. Taking a wild chance, Stephens was able to pitch the ball on the second down option play, Oliver receiving the pitch and then carrying a Vanderbilt player on his back for a four yard gain to leave third and 6 from the 8 yard line. Joe Vaughn would end up getting us on the board, losing his defender on a cut out in the end zone, tight roping the back of the end zone for the 8 yard touchdown pass from Stephens to give us a 7-0 lead with 30 seconds left in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got Vanderbilt back in action from their 25. The drive got off to a poor start as Cox dropped yet another pass from Johnson, but George was able to save the start, rushing for an 11 yard gain on second down to move the sticks to the 36 yard line. An incomplete pass on first down would run out the clock and bring the first quarter to an end, Tulsa holding a 7-0 lead.
Opening up the second quarter, Cox dropped his third ball of the day, on the third pass thrown to him, leaving Vanderbilt facing third and long. It would only get worse for the Commodores as Johnson was sacked for a 6 yard loss, leaving fourth and 16. A fair catch by Johnson on the 44 yard punt got us lined up at our 25 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down, but was stuffed for no gain. Taking another crack on the ground, Oliver was able to find a hole and drive his way through a pair of defenders for an 8 yard gain, leaving third and two. Oliver took the ball for the third straight play, but never had a chance, tackled by the outside linebacker for a loss of one yard to end our drive on fourth and three. A fair catch on the 46 yard punt got Vanderbilt started from their 21 yard line.
Johnson began the drive with a 7 yard rush, before a pass intended for Jared Chase was broken up to leave third and three. Dropping back to pass on third down, Johnson took off scrambling, but the defense was able to get to him and sack him for a one yard loss, leaving Vanderbilt with fourth and four. Leave it to our defense to screw us over, a roughing the punter penalty got called on the punt, giving Vanderbilt a first down at the 41 yard line. Left with new life, Johnson dropped back again to pass, but was hit as he threw, the ball landing incomplete. Turning back to the running game, a pair of rushes by George for gains and 8 and 6 yards kept the chains moving, now to our 44 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, George broke free up the middle for a 9 yard gain, leaving third and one. Johnson would manage to convert the third down with a two yard rush, picking up the first down at our 33 yard line. A 10 yard rush by George picked up another first down at our 23. Johnson would end up making his second mistake of the day on the next play, as a pass intended for Chase was intercepted by Allen Moore, returned 5 yards to give us back possession at our 22 yard line.
Fired up after the forced turnover, Oliver took the first down handoff for a four yard gain, followed by a 5 yard pass to Barnes to leave third and one. Barnes would get the first down with a 6 yard rush, moving us to our 37 yard line. With the pocket quickly collapsing on the first down pass attempt, Stephens took off scrambling, able to pick up 16 yards to the Vanderbilt 47 yard line before being brought down. Going into the air on first down, P.J. Stephens was able to get open along the left sideline, hauling in the pass and racing up the field for a 24 yard gain to give us a first down at the Vandy 24. P.J. Stephens would be the go-to guy again, coming across the middle on a deep slant from the right side, a missed assignment by the safety allowing him to get wide open, haul in the pass and trot his way into the end zone for a 24 yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead with 4:15 left in the half.
A touchback on the kickoff left Vanderbilt starting from their 25 yard line and looking for a response. An incomplete pass on first down wasn’t quite the response they were looking for, but George would find some momentum for Vandy, rushing for 10 yards and a first down at the 35. The Commodores would end up going backwards, as Johnson was tackled for a four yard loss, and then to make matters worse, sacked for a three yard loss, leaving Vanderbilt facing third and 17. Leave it to our defense to bone us, Johnson was able to connect with Chase on third down for a 26 yard gain and a fresh set of downs at our 46 yard line. Vanderbilt would get another quick first down as Johnson found Cedrick Breedlove over the middle for a 12 yard gain to our 34. George took the ball on first down, but was tackled for a two yard loss. Johnson was able to make up those lost yards with a 5 yard gain, but Vanderbilt was still left facing third and 7. A two yard loss by George would end the drive, as Vanderbilt was left with fourth and 9 from the 33. The 50 yard field goal attempt by Daniel McDonald was no good, and we took over on offense at our 33 yard line, 2:09 left on the clock.
Oliver took the ball on first down, but was quickly brought down for no gain by the middle linebacker. A pass to Silva picked up 6 yards, followed by a huge 22 yard completion over the middle to Johnson for a first down at the Vanderbilt 40 yard line, our first timeout stopping the clock with 1:15 remaining. A pass to Silva along the right hash picked up 13 yards and a first down at the 27 yard line, as we rushed back to the line. We wouldn’t need another play as Stephens threw up a deep pass to Vaughn, who caught it at the one yard line and then was tackled into the end zone by the safety for a 27 yard touchdown and a 21-0 lead with 1:04 left before halftime.
A 24 yard kickoff return left Vanderbilt starting from their 23 yard line, 52 seconds on the clock. Cox was finally able to hold onto a ball, as he caught the first down pass from Johnson for a 13 yard gain, Vandy’s first timeout stopping the clock with 48 seconds. Another pass to Cox picked up 16 yards, moving the chains to our 48 yard line, Vandy’s second timeout stopping play with 43 seconds to go. Johnson found Matt Vaughn for a 5 yard gain, but was then sacked for a two yard loss, leaving third and 7 and the clock ticking with 31 seconds left. An incomplete pass on third down would leave Vanderbilt facing fourth and 7, just 20 seconds to go. The Commodores decided to not even go for it, punting the ball away for a touchback, giving us possession from our 20 yard line with 15 seconds to go.
Oliver took the ball up the middle on first down for a 6 yard gain. That would be the final play as the last seconds ticked off the clock, bringing the first half to an end, our lead at 21-0.
Opening up the second half, no return on the kickoff left Vanderbilt starting from their 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. George started off the drive with a 10 yard rush to leave second and inches, followed by a 9 yard pass from Johnson to George to get a quick first down at the 44 yard line. After a pair of incomplete passes, Johnson was able to find Breedlove over the middle for a 19 yard pickup and a new set of downs at our 38 yard line. A 7 yard pass to Chase was followed with a 13 yard pass to Cox, and Vanderbilt found themselves with a first down at our 17 yard line. George took the ball on first down, rushing for 7 yards, but was tackled on the next play for a loss of two yards, leaving third and 5. George would continue to go backwards, tackled for a three yard loss to leave Vanderbilt facing fourth and 8 from our 15 yard line. The 32 yard field goal attempt by McDonald was good, cutting our lead to 21-3 with 6:55 left in the third quarter.
No return on the kickoff got us lined up at our 25. Taking the ball on first down, Oliver was able to fight his way to an 8 yard gain, followed by a run that should have went for a gain of 5 yards. That 5 yard gain ended up erased, as Oliver fumbled the ball at the end of the run, middle linebacker Marco Livingston recovering the ball for Vanderbilt to give the Commodores a first down at our 38 yard line.
Johnson came out firing on first down, throwing twice to Chase for gains of 5 and 9 yards, giving Vandy a quick first down at our 23 yard line. After a dropped pass by Cox, Johnson got sacked for a 7 yard loss, bringing up third and 17 from the 30 yard line. Vanderbilt would end up turning the ball right back over, as Jonathan Chambers intercepted Johnson on third down, returning it 6 yards to set our offense up at our 35 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down, tackled for a one yard gain, followed by a 9 yard pass to Johnson to leave third and inches at the 44 yard line. Putting the ball in Oliver’s hands, the defense was able to bring him down for no gain, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and one. No return on the 50 yard punt left Vanderbilt starting from their 5 yard line.
It was a very poor start to the drive as George was tackled for a three yard loss, leaving second and 13 at the two yard line. George was able to recover those lost yards with a 7 yard rush, setting up third and 6. Johnson kept the ball himself on third down, but while he was able to pick up 5 yards on the play, he was brought down just short of the first down line, leaving Vanderbilt punting away on fourth and one. A four yard return by Johnson on the 47 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 43 yard line.
Coming out on first down, the running game proved to be mostly useless, as Oliver was tackled for a two yard loss, leaving second and 12. Going into the air, Stephens was hit from behind as he went to throw, the incomplete pass leaving third and long. Vaughn would keep us alive, hauling in a pass from Stephens for a 19 yard gain and a first down at the Vanderbilt 40 yard line. Throwing to Barnes on first down, the pass to completed for a 7 yard pickup, followed by a two yard completion to Harper to leave third and one. Hoping Oliver would be able to convert, we returned to the ground game. It wasn’t meant to be however as Oliver was tackled for a two yard loss to leave fourth and three from the 33. Lining up for the 50 yard field goal attempt, the kick by Alphonso Pratt was just wide of the right upright, giving Vanderbilt back the ball at their 33.
Vanderbilt went straight to the passing game on first down, as Johnson found Breedlove for a 5 yard gain, but two incomplete passes after that would kill the drive in its infancy, the punt team coming out on fourth and 5. A fair catch by Johnson on the 49 yard punt left us starting at our 13 yard line for the next drive.
Forgoing the run game, Stephens dropped back to pass on first down, but it would be the defense making a play, as Stephens was sacked for a 6 yard loss to leave second and 16. With the pocket instantly collapsing, Stephens tried to take off scrambling, but was tackled for a two yard loss, leaving third and 18. That would be the final play as the clock hit zeroes, bringing the third quarter to an end, our lead 21-3.
Opening up the fourth quarter, Stephens was again forced to run for his life to avoid a sack (and a potential safety), tackled for a one yard gain, bringing out the punt team on fourth and 17 from the 5 yard line. A 12 yard return on the 45 yard punt gave Vanderbilt incredible field position, starting at our 38 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Johnson was able to connect with Cox for a 23 yard gain, setting up first down at our 15 yard line. A 6 yard rush by George was followed by a one yard rush by Johnson to leave third and three at our 8 yard line. George would finish off the drive for Vanderbilt, punching it into the end zone for an 8 yard touchdown. Going for a two-point conversion, George was able to rush around the right tackle and into the end zone standing up, cutting our lead to 21-11 with 7:35 left in the game.
A 17 yard kickoff return by Johnson left us beginning from our 20 yard line, our 18 point lead now chopped down to 10. A rush for a loss of one yard by Oliver got us off a poor start on the drive. Hit by the defensive end as he threw, the ball from Stephens intended for Vaughn ended up skipping along the ground incomplete, bringing up third and long. Trying to dump the ball off to Silva to avoid a sack, the pass from Stephens was broken up by the cornerback, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth down. A 5 yard return on the 47 yard punt got Vanderbilt lined up at their 39 yard line.
Johnson started the drive for Vandy with a 5 yard pass to Breedlove, followed by a three yard rush by Alex Bowser to leave third and two. Johnson would pick up the first down himself, rushing for a 5 yard gain to move the chains to our 47 yard line. A three yard rush by Johnson was followed with an 18 yard strike to Cox, moving Vanderbilt down to our 27. Another pass, this time to Chase, went for a 23 yard gain, and Vanderbilt was knocking on our front door with first and goal from the four yard line. George would get his second score of the day, rushing it in for a four yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 21-18 with 5:15 left in the game.
No return on the kickoff left us starting at our 25 yard line for the next drive. Dropping back to pass on first down, an all out blitz by the defense got to Stephens, hitting him as he threw the ball, the pass landing incomplete only a couple yards away. Throwing deep down the left sideline, P.J. Stephens, spinning in the air like a ballerina, was able to get his hands on the ball for what would have been a 25 yard pass, but a timely shoulder by the safety was enough to knock the ball loose and incomplete, leaving third and long. Our offense officially reached the point of incompetent, as a pass intended for Vaughn was nearly picked off, first by the cornerback, then by the cornerback, outside linebacker and safety all diving at the ground to try and grab the ball. With the incomplete pass, we were left punting away once again. A fair catch on the 45 yard punt gave Vanderbilt the ball at their 30 yard line, just 4:44 left on the clock.
We would end up getting a massive break, and two more dropped balls by Cox were followed with a sack on Johnson for a 7 yard loss, bringing up fourth and 17 for Vandy from their 23 yard line. A 9 yard return by Johnson on the 48 yard punt got us lined up at our 37 yard line, looking to kill the clock. Oliver took the first down handoff up the middle for a 5 yard gain, followed by a one yard gain to leave third and four. Trying to kill the clock on the ground would end up coming back to bite us squarely in the ass, as Oliver fumbled on the third down carry, Livingston getting his second fumble recovery of the game for Vanderbilt at our 48 yard line. To make matters EVEN worse, right tackle Pat Ross decided to yank Livingston down by his facemask at the end of the play, Vanderbilt recovering the fumble AND receiving 15 free yards, giving them a first down at our 33 yard line as our entire team went into full on implosion mode.
Johnson got the drive started for Vanderbilt with a 6 yard pass to Cox, before George was tackled for a two yard loss to leave third and 6. An incomplete pass would save our asses, as the ball intended for Kyle Bower was broken up, leaving fourth and 6 from 29. We would catch our biggest break of the game, as the 46 yard field goal attempt by McDonald hit the left upright, giving us back the ball at our 29 yard line, 2:33 left on the clock.
Despite being bitten in the ass last drive, we had no choice but to return to the ground to run off clock. Oliver took the ball on first down, but found nowhere to go, tackled for a one yard loss. Another handoff to Oliver resulted in no gain, bringing up third and 11. Forced to pass, Stephens dropped back to pass, but found instant pressure. Scrambling to his left, he was able to push off a tackle attempt by the cornerback, but that would do nothing but hurt him more, as the push off drove him back a couple yards, giving the defensive end the opportunity to move in for the kill and sack Stephens for a 10 yard loss to leave us with fourth and 21. A four yard return on a shanked 30 yard punt gave Vanderbilt a first down at our 44 yard line, 1:30 left on the clock with two timeouts.
This time around, Vanderbilt wouldn’t have to rely on a field goal, as Johnson rolled out on first down and bombed a pass deep down the right sideline to Chase, complete for a 37 yard gain, instantly giving the Commodores first and goal at our 6 yard line. George would find the end zone for the third time in the game, rushing it in for a 6 yard touchdown and a 25-21 Vanderbilt lead with 1:11 left on the clock.
A 19 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens did nothing but waste time, as we began our drive from our 16 yard line, 60 seconds left to play. Dropping back on first down, Stephens found P.J. Stephens along the left sideline for a 9 yard gain, our first timeout stopping the clock with 55 seconds to play. Trying to find Vaughn down the right sideline, the cornerback was able to get in front of the ball and knock it down, leaving third and one. Throwing up a pass to Lucas Gates, the ball carried a little too long in the air, allowing the outside linebacker to jump up and deflect the ball, leaving fourth and one with 46 seconds to go. Needing a first down, we decided to run the ball on fourth down. Our drive, and chances for a comeback, would end on the fourth down play as the defensive tackle broke through the line of scrimmage and tackled Oliver for a one yard loss, forcing the turnover on downs at our 24 yard line with 44 seconds left to go.
Taking over at our 24 yard line after the turnover on downs, George ran for a three yard gain on first down, the defense calling our second timeout with 39 seconds to go, doing nothing but delaying the inevitable. A 10 yard rush by George would seal the deal, giving Vanderbilt a first down at our 12 yard line, our final timeout stopping the clock with 34 seconds remaining. Johnson would take to a knee twice to run out the clock and seal the 25-21 comeback victory for Vanderbilt.
With the loss, we fall to 2-4, 1-1 Big East, now on a four game losing streak. With the win, Vanderbilt improves to 4-3, 2-2 SEC. Up next, we continue our road trip with visit to Cincinnati. The Bearcats enter the game 4-2, 2-0 Big East. Cincinnati opened their season with a 35-20 loss at then-#22 Boise State and a 31-20 loss at then-#21 LSU. Since then, they've beaten Central Florida 42-28, Baylor 28-10, South Florida 24-17 and Miami University 47-28 ahead of our game.
Final Score
:Vanderbilt: 25, :Tulsa: 21
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A good day by Stephens for a change, ending 14-26 for 196 yards passing and three touchdowns. Rushing, pretty much useless. Oliver led the way with 74 yards on 28 carries, but no touchdowns and two fumbles killed the stats. Receiving, Vaughn led the way with 54 yards and two touchdowns on three receptions. Right behind him, with the most yards, was P.J. Stephens with 57 yards and one touchdown on three receptions, and right behind that was Johnson, with 53 yards on three receptions. In all six receivers caught a pass today, five receivers ended the game with double digit receiving yards.
Tulsa Defense – Incredible first half, bad second half. Though the defense wasn't entire to blame, as turnovers and bad punts often left Vanderbilt starting their drives from already inside our territory.
Tulsa Kicking – Pratt ended up 0-1 in field goal attempts today, missing wide right from 50 yards out. He did at least go 3-3 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :Tulsa: 7 14 0 0 21 :Vanderbilt: 0 0 3 22 25
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 0:30 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Vaughn, 8 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 7-0 Second Quarter 4:15 :Tulsa: Touchdown P. Stephens, 24 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 14-0 1:04 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Vaughn, 27 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 21-0 Third Quarter 6:55 :Vanderbilt: Field Goal D. McDonald, 31 yard field goal :Tulsa: 21-3 Fourth Quarter 7:35 :Vanderbilt: Touchdown R. George, 8 yard run (2-point conversion good) :Tulsa: 21-11 5:15 :Vanderbilt: Touchdown R. George, 4 yard run (D. McDonald kick) :Tulsa: 21-18 1:11 :Vanderbilt: Touchdown R. George, 6 yard run (D. McDonald kick) :Vanderbilt: 25-21
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Vanderbilt 21 Score 25 10 First Downs 23 285 Total Offense 429 37 - 89 - 0 Rushes - Yards - TD 39 - 156 - 3 14 - 26 - 3 Comp - Att - TD 19 - 41 - 0 196 Passing Yards 273 3 Times Sacked 6 5 - 16 (31%) 3rd Down Conversion 7 - 18 (38%) 0 - 1 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 1 - 1 (100%) 5 - 1 - 0 (20%) Red Zone - TD - FG 5 - 3 - 0 (80%) 2 Turnovers 3 2 Fumbles Lost 1 0 Intercepted 2 22 Punt Return Yards 22 36 Kick Return Yards 24 343 Total Yards 475 8 – 47.4 Punts - Average 6 - 47.3 4 - 60 Penalties 0 - 0 19:40 Time of Possession 16:20
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :6redarrow: 21+ points per game in each season 29 :6greenarrow: Win 10 games in one season 2 :6greenarrow: 3300+ passing yards each season :red-x: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 65% pass completions over the entire contract 59% :5greenarrow: :5redarrow: Win 6 games in one season :check: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 15+ rushing TD in each season 12 :5greenarrow: :4redarrow: 3200+ total offensive yards each season 2414 :3greenarrow: :5redarrow: 3400+ total offensive yards each season 2414 :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
35%
Time for another look around the nation. Starting in the Top 25, #1 Ohio State rolls to an easy 42-14 win over Louisiana-Monroe. #2 Georgia gets a huge 28-12 win over #5 LSU. #3 Clemson whoops Louisville 41-14. In the game of the week, the Red River Shootout goes to #7 Oklahoma, who scores twice in the fourth quarter to beat #4 Texas 41-30. Washington got a huge upset at home, knocking off #6 USC 17-13. #9 Arkansas escapes with a 38-28 win over UAB. #20 Michigan State wins a 44-37 shootout over #10 Nebraska.
#11 Virginia beats #14 Georgia Tech 41-31. Utah trounces #12 Arkansas State 35-10. #13 Iowa takes down Purdue 38-17. Fresno State stuns #15 Boise State 20-16. #17 Marshall thrashes Florida Atlantic 48-10, despite an early lead for FAU. #19 Alabama rolls to a 38-20 win over Florida. Hawaii shocks #21 Tennessee 28-23. #22 Air Force dominates Utah State 45-14. #24 Notre Dame gets a 41-17 win over Stanford and #25 NC State escapes with a 27-20 victory over New Mexico.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 2-4 (2-0 C-USA) with a 59-28 demolishing of Western Kentucky. Jaymo, Arizona State falls to 1-5 (0-4 Pac-12) with a 51-27 trouncing from Cal. Mors, West Virginia improves to 5-2 (4-1 Big 12) with a 38-10 whooping of Kansas State. Jeff, #1 Ohio State improves to 7-0 (4-0 Big Ten) with a 42-14 win over Louisiana-Monroe. Other teams of interest, #12 Arkansas State falls to 3-2 (0-0 Sun Belt) with a 35-10 loss to Utah.
In Big East action, Central Florida beats East Carolina 38-10, South Florida escapes with a 31-24 win over Tulane, Navy knocks off Connecticut 48-38, SMU beats Temple 35-10, Houston get a 31-14 win over Idaho and Vanderbilt beats Tulsa 25-21.
Looking at undefeated teams left, #4 Texas, #5 LSU, Connecticut and Nevada all lost this week, dropping our number of undefeated teams to 7. #1 Ohio State (7-0), #2 Georgia (6-0), #3 Clemson (6-0), #16 Penn State (6-0), #17 Marshall (7-0), Eastern Michigan (6-0) and Toledo (6-0) all remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 9 teams still looking for their first win: Bowling Green (0-6), Colorado (0-7), Florida Atlantic (0-6), Idaho (0-5), Louisiana-Monroe (0-5), Massachusetts (0-6), Minnesota (0-7), San Jose State (0-5) and Utah State (0-6).
Teams getting their first win this week were: Boston College (20-10 over 2-5 Syracuse) and New Mexico State (38-31 over FCS Midwest).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Georgia (37 first place votes) climbs one to #1, Ohio State (22 votes) drops one to #2, Clemson (1 vote) remains #3, Penn State (1 vote) jumps four to #4 and Oklahoma climbs two to #5. Arkansas jumps three to #6, Texas drops three to #7, LSU falls three to #8, Virginia climbs two to #9 and Iowa jumps three to #10. Marshall leaps six to #11, Miami jumps four to #12, Michigan State climbs seven to #13, Nebraska falls four to #14 and Virginia Tech climbs three to #15. Alabama jumps three to #16, Georgia Tech falls three to #17, USC plummets twelve spots to #18, Air Force climbs three to #19 and Auburn moves up three to #20. Arkansas State falls nine spots to #21, Notre Dame jumps two to #22, NC State climbs two to #23, Oklahoma State enters the poll at #24 and Pittsburgh (291 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Boise State (from #15) and Tennessee (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Oregon (254 points) is #26, followed by Boise State (186), Tennessee (173), Arizona (150) and Texas A&M (117) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include Navy (107), North Carolina (82), BYU (69) and Rutgers (66).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Georgia (40 first place votes) remains #1, Clemson (24 votes) climbs one to #2, Ohio State (1 vote) moves up one to #3, Penn State climbs one to #4 and Oklahoma jumps three to #5. Texas drops four to #6, Arkansas climbs three to #7, Virginia jumps three to #8, LSU falls three to #9 and Iowa moves up two to #10. Marshall leaps six to #11, Michigan State jumps seven to #12, Miami climbs three to #13, Nebraska falls five to #14 and Virginia Tech climbs three to #15. Georgia Tech falls three to #16, Alabama moves up three to #17, USC falls eleven to #18, Air Force jumps four to #19 and Notre Dame climbs two to #20. Auburn jumps three to #21, NC State climbs three to #22, Arkansas State drops nine to #23, Pittsburgh enters the poll at #24 and Oregon (270 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Boise State (from #15) and Tennessee (from #21). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Oklahoma State (215 points) is #26, followed by Boise State (138), Tennessee (107), Texas A&M (75) and North Carolina (39) to round out the Top 30. One other team getting votes this week was Rutgers (15).
Looking at the first BCS rankings of the year, #1 Georgia (1.000), #2 Ohio State (0.992), #3 Clemson (0.992), #4 Penn State (0.984), #5 Oklahoma (0.978), #6 Arkansas (0.970), #7 Texas (0.964), #8 LSU (0.959), #9 Virginia (0.959) and #10 Iowa (0.939)
Looking at the latest Heisman Watch list, Ohio State QB Ryan Fraser is #1 (LW: #1), Georgia HB Justin Jones is #2 (LW: #2), UAB QB Adam Gardner is #3 (LW: #3), Nebraska QB Robbie Allen is #4 (LW: #4) and Arkansas HB Matt Miller is #5 (LW: NR). Falling off the Heisman Watch list this week was Virginia QB Kevin Gant(LW: #5).
Well, I think it's probably safe to say this season is pretty much in the crapper. 2-4, on a four game losing streak, I have play freaking Cincinnati next, which means I'll probably be sitting at 2-5 on a 5 game losing streak. At best, I see myself only managing 7-5 this year. At worst, 4-8.
Based on your goals I would suspect you will not be fired. There is no real punishment for a losing record so that's really to your advantage.Quote:
Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes
No, I don't have to worry in regards to my goals, but they're also not helping me as I can't gain any job security from my goals until middle of next season at the earliest.Quote:
Originally Posted by jaymo76
But losing to teams ranked below me may screw me. I've been losing 3% job security for every loss to a team ranked below me, the latest being my loss to Arizona State dropping me from 38% to 35%. I've been lucky in that Oklahoma and Vanderbilt ended up ranked higher than me by the time I played them. Cincinnati I'd also be safe. If I lose to Memphis and/or Tulane? My job security would end up either 29% or 32%.
If I get below 30%, honestly, it's anyone's guess as to if I live out the coaching carousel or not in my opinion. Coaches under 30% don't get saved from the ax very often, especially a "lowly" coordinator, who get fired for just about anything in this game.
Game Seven
:Tulsa: :@: :Cincinnati:
Game Notes
--- Still trying to break a losing streak that was now at four games, the task wasn’t going to get any easier, as a road trip to Cincinnati was on the docket. Cincinnati ranked higher than us nationally in everything except for pass offense and rush defense. To make matters worse for us, the Bearcats had the #40 passing defense in the nation, giving up only 195.3 yards/game through the air. It looked to be another dogfight just for any hope of possibly breaking the losing streak today. We won the coin toss and elected to kick.
A touchback on the opening kickoff got the game started, Cincinnati beginning at their 25 yard line. Joe Miller started the drive with a pair of rushes, go for gains of 6 and one yards to leave third and three. Jermaine Davidson then took over, picking up 7 yards on the ground to pick up a first down at the 39. Another 7 yard rush by Davidson was followed with a one yard rush by Eric Callahan to set up third and two. Davidson would once again get the first down for the Bearcats, a 6 yard rush moving the chains to our 47 yard line. Davidson continued to dominate our defense, breaking of runs for 5 and 12 yard gains to get a first down at the 30 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Jack Brown connected with Callahan for a 9 yard completion to leave third and one at our 21 yard line. John Thomas would keep the drive moving, picking up one yard on the third down rush to reset the downs at our 20 yard line. Another big 9 yard rush by Davidson gave Cincinnati second and one. The Bearcats would end the drive on the next play, as Brown found Davidson in the back of the end zone for the 11 yard touchdown and a 7-0 Cincinnati lead with 6:05 left in the first quarter.
A 15 yard return by P.J. Stephens on the kickoff got us lined up at our 12 yard line, a less than stellar start to the young contest. Starting on the ground, Will Oliver was able to rush for an 8 yard gain, followed by another 8 yard gain to pick up the first down at the 28 yard line. Managing to avoid the blitz, Oliver was able to get 6 yards around the right tackle, before Eric Silva squeezed through a hole to pick up 7 yards and the first down at the 41 yard line. Oliver kept the ground pounding going with a 7 yard rush, followed by Silva just managing to gain four yards and the first down at the Cincinnati 48 yard line. Going into the air on first down, the defense didn’t fall for the play action as the pass intended for Jason Johnson was broken up, leaving second down. Trying to connect with Joe Vaughn on second down, we would make the first error of the game, as the pass from Brad Stephens was off-target, intercepted by middle linebacker Jeremy Owens, who returned it 9 yards to our 48 yard line before being brought down.
Taking over after the interception, Cincinnati wasted little time in moving the ball, as Brown hit Callahan down the right sideline for a quick 22 yard gain and a first down at our 26. After an incomplete pass on first down, Davidson took the ball up the middle for a three yard rush, leaving third and 7. We would catch a huge break on third down, when Callahan dropped the pass from Brown inside our 5 yard line, leaving Cincinnati with fourth and 7. The Bearcats would still get points on the board though, as Greg Rouse drilled the 40 yard field goal down the middle of the uprights, Cincinnati taking a 10-0 lead with 3:11 left in the first quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff got us lined up at our 25 yard line. Returning to the run game, Oliver never had a chance on first down, as the middle linebacker blitzed in and tackled him for no gain. Going into the air on second down, this time Stephens was able to connect with Vaughn, good for a gain of 18 yards and a first down at the 43. Silva originally had a hole at the start of the first down play, but a quick move by both the outside and middle linebackers closed off the hole and limited Silva to a two yard rush. Going over the middle on second down, the pass intended for P.J. Stephens was nearly intercepted due to another off-target pass, leaving third and 8. Vaughn would keep our drive alive, hauling in the ball on an out route for gain of 17 yards and a first down at the Cincinnati 38 yard line. Keeping through the air, Stephens found Carl Barnes for a 5 yard gain, followed by a 13 yard pass to Vaughn to move the chains to the Cincy 20. Keeping the air assault going, a pass intended for Johnson ended up in the middle of a trio of Cincinnati defenders, nearly intercepted twice on its journey to the ground before falling incomplete. We would finally manage to find the end zone on the second down play, as Robert Harper got open over the middle from the tight end position, hauling in the pass around the 5 yard line and then driving his way into the end zone for the 20 yard touchdown, cutting Cincinnati’s lead to 10-7 with 39 seconds left in the first quarter.
A 16 yard kickoff return got Cincinnati underway from their 15 yard line. Davidson took the ball on first down, picking up 5 yards on the play. Our defense would end up extra crispy on the second down play, as Brown threw a deep bomb to Quinton Smith for a 28yard gain and a huge first down at the 48. Another pass to Smith picked up 9 yards, leaving second and one at our 43 yard line. That would be where the first quarter would come to an end, Cincinnati holding onto a 10-7 lead, but driving for another score.
Opening up the second quarter, the Bearcats kept punching with the pass, as Brown found Drew Thornton over the middle for a 19 yard gain, moving Cincinnati down to our 25 yard line. Davidson took the ball on first down for a three yard rush, before hauling in a second down pass from Brown in the end zone for a 21 yard touchdown and a 17-7 Cincinnati lead with 8:24 left in the quarter.
No return on the kickoff gave us the ball at our 25 yard line, once again down by 10. Starting the drive on the ground, Oliver picked up 7 yards on the first down rush, before Silva was brought down by the middle linebacker for no gain, leaving third and three. Trying to find Barnes over the middle, the outside linebacker was just able to get his hand on the ball to knock it incomplete, bringing out the punt unit. A fair catch on the 49 yard punt set Cincinnati up at their 19 yard line.
Our defense won a very minor victory, as Callahan was tackled for a two yard loss on first down, before Brown connected with Thornton for a 7 yard gain to set up third and 5. Our defense would finally come through when needed, sacking Brown for an 8 yard loss, leaving Cincinnati punting on fourth and 13 from their 15 yard line. A fair catch by Johnson on the 48 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 36.
Returning to the run game, Oliver was able to fight his way to a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches. Avoiding the middle linebacker, Oliver was able to pick up two yards to get the first down at the 48 yard line. Continuing with the ground game, Oliver was able to pick up 6 yards, before being tackled for no gain to leave third and four. Dropping back to pass, Stephens was able to connect with Harper for a gain of 8 yards and a first down at the Cincinnati 38 yard line. Dropping back into the shotgun, Stephens hit an open Johnson right in the hands, an almost certain touchdown, but Johnson was unable to hold onto the ball, bringing up second down. P.J. Stephens was able to pick up the first down, hauling in a pass along the left sideline for a gain of 13 yards, moving the chains to the 25 yard line. Barnes gave us another quick first down, hauling in a pass for 11 yards to the Cincinnati 14 yard line. Trying to strike into the end zone, the first down ball intended for Vaughn was broken up at the goal line, leaving second down. We would punch it in on the next play, Johnson getting open and catching a pass at the three yard line, turning around and trotting into the end zone for the 14 yard touchdown, cutting Cincinnati’s lead back down to three, 17-14, with 4:07 left before halftime.
A 30 yard return on the kickoff left Cincinnati starting from their 32 yard line. Davidson started the drive with a three yard rush, before an incomplete pass brought up third and 7. Not shying away from the run game, Davidson took the handoff, rushing for a 7 yard gain and the first down at the 42. Our defense pushed back on first down, tackling Davidson for a loss of three yards, followed by another incomplete pass to leave Cincinnati facing third and 13. Our defense would win another victory, forcing an incomplete pass, intended for Thornton, bringing up fourth and 13 from the 38. A fair catch by Johnson on the 47 yard punt gave us the ball at our 15 yard line, just 2:58 on the clock.
It took one play for our offense to bone things up. Dropped back to pass, Stephens got hit just before he went to throw the ball, the hit causing a fumble in the backfield. Multiple Cincinnati and Tulsa players diving for the ball, it got bounced around a bunch before center Brett Hampton was finally able to recover it for us. Only problem was he picked it up and tried to run with it, his momentum at the time carrying him backwards. Cincinnati quickly wrapped him up and brought him down, the whole play resulting in an 11 yard loss, leaving second and 21 from our four yard line. The second down pass intended for Vaughn was nearly intercepted, leaving us with third and very long. Stephens was able to avoid a sack (and likely a safety) on third down, finding P.J. Stephens along the right hash, but he was unable to cover the yards needed, the pass ending up for a gain of only 15 yards, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth and 6. An 8 yard return on the 41 yard punt set Cincinnati up at their 47 yard line, 2:07 left before halftime.
Cincinnati came out firing to start the drive, an incomplete pass immediately leaving them facing second and long. That didn’t last however, as Brown connected with Callahan for a 31 yard strike and a first down at our 22 yard line. After a dropped pass by Luke Bass, Brown found Thornton over the middle for a 16 yard gain, giving Cincinnati first and goal at our 6 yard line. Davidson would do the honors, taking the first down handoff and rushing in for the 6 yard touchdown, giving Cincinnati a 24-14 lead with 1:33 left until halftime.
No return on the kickoff get us started at our 25 yard line, much less time left than last drive. We would get a massive helping hand by the defense, as Vaughn caught the first down pass from Stephens for an 11 yard gain. Vaughn was then tackled and dragged down by his facemask by cornerback Isaac Burrell, the 15 free yards giving us a first down at the Cincinnati 49 yard line, and allowing us to preserve all of our timeouts. P.J. Stephens kept us advancing, hauling in a 12 yard pass for another first down at the Cincinnati 37. A quick strike to Vaughn on a comeback route netted us another 15 yards, moving the chains to the 22 yard line with 1:03 left to go. The first down pass intended for Kevin Jackson was way off target, sailing out the back of the end zone and incomplete. Another off-target pass, this time intended for Vaughn on an out route, sailed out of bounds to leave third and long. Lucas Gates would save the drive, hauling in a 16 yard reception from Stephens before being run out of bounds, setting up first and goal at the 5 yard line, 41 seconds on the clock. Taking a shot on the ground, it would pay off as Oliver raced straight up the middle untouched for the 5 yard touchdown, once again cutting down Cincinnati’s lead to 24-21 with 38 seconds left until halftime.
A 21 yard kickoff return got Cincinnati lined up at their 20 yard line. 27 seconds left was enough for the Bearcats to take a shot deep, but the pass intended for Davidson was broken up by the safeties to bring up second and long. Davidson took a handoff on second down, the defense tackling him for a two yard loss, leaving Cincinnati with third and 12. A 5 yard rush by Brown would be the final play of the half, as Cincinnati let the final 15 seconds run off the clock. With that, we headed into halftime, Cincinnati leading 24-21.
Opening up the second half, a touchback on the kickoff got us set up at our 25 yard line to start the third quarter. Handing the ball off on first down, Oliver was able to follow a pair of blocks on his way to a 12 yard gain and a first down at the 37. Keeping it going on the ground, Oliver bust open for another huge gain, picking up 10 yards and a first down at the 47 yard line. Continuing to take it right at the defense, Silva was able to fight his way forward for a 9 yard gain, followed by a 7 yard rush by Oliver to get the first down at the Cincinnati 36, the Bearcats unable to slow down our rushing attack. Silva took the ball on first down, but was only able to pick up two yards on the play. Keeping the ball himself, Stephens was able to somehow pick up 10 yards on the play, picking up another first down at the 25 yard line. Another rush by Oliver picked up 7 yards, followed by an 8 yard rush to give us first and goal at the 10 yard line. Silva would finish off the drive on first down, slipping past the middle linebacker and rushing it straight in for a 10 yard touchdown, giving us our first lead of the game at 28-24, with 6:15 left in the third quarter.
A 23 yard kickoff return got Cincinnati started at their 27 yard line, looking to retake the lead. They would have to wait. Davidson started the drive with a two yard rush, but an incomplete pass intended for Smith and a dropped pass by Callahan brought the drive to a quick end on fourth and 8. Things would then go from bad to worse for the Bearcats, as our defense broke through and blocked the punt, Antoine Reese recovering the fumble and racing for the end zone but tackled just outside the goal line, giving us first and goal at the Cincinnati one yard line.
Taking over after the blocked punt, it was a sweet and short drive, Oliver immediately punching it in for the one yard touchdown to extend our lead to 35-24 with 5:32 left in the third quarter.
A 21 yard kickoff return got Cincinnati lined up for take two, starting from their 19 yard line. It would only continue to go downhill for the Bearcats, as a holding penalty on first down erased a great run, instead bringing up first and 20 from the 9 yard line. Cincinnati would only keep going backwards, as Davidson was tackled for a two yard loss, leaving second and 22 from the 7. Brown was able to recover those two lost yards, but the Bearcats still faced a daunting task with third and 20. Only our defense could have a team buried deep, facing third and 20 on their own 9 yard line, and find a way to blow it, as Brown connected with Smith for a 29 yard gain, Cincinnati escaping with a first down at their 38 yard line. Another pass to Smith picked up 10 yards, leaving second and inches. That second and inches would turn into third and three after Davidson was tackled for a two yard loss. Then, despite the huge third down pass just a couple plays earlier, the Bearcats would find their drive coming to an end, as the pass from Brown to Callahan was off the mark and incomplete, leaving fourth and three from the 46. A 6 yard return by Johnson on the 45 yard punt got us lined up at our 15 yard line.
Oliver took the ball on first down, picking up four yards on the play, followed by a 5 yard gain to leave third and one. Silva would try to pick up the first down, but was stuffed for no gain, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth down. A fair catch on the 47 yard pun gave Cincinnati the ball at their 29 yard line.
Davidson got the Bearcats started with a four yard rush, followed by a 5 yard gain by Brown to leave third and one. But an incomplete pass on third down would bring yet another Bearcat drive to an end as both offenses suddenly hit a wall. A fair catch by Johnson on the 49 yard punt gave us back possession at our 13 yard line.
Silva took the ball on first down, tackled for no gain. Dropping back to pass on second down, Stephens was able to connect with Harper for a 7 yard gain, leaving third and three at the 20. Giving the ball to Oliver, he was able to pick up 8 yards and a first down at the 28 yard line. On the next play, Oliver would immediately turn from savior to goat, as he was hit in the backfield by the outside linebacker and fumbled the ball, defensive end Tony Scales recovering the ball for Cincinnati at our 27 yard line.
Taking over after the fumble, Davidson got the Bearcats started with a two yard rush, followed by a gain of 8 yards to get a quick first down at our 17 yard line. After a dropped pass by Smith, Brown scrambled for a three yard gain, bringing up third and 7. Our defense would somehow find a way to keep Cincinnati out of the end zone, as the third down pass intended for Thornton was batted away to bring up fourth and 7 from the 14 yard line. The 31 yard field goal by Rouse was good, cutting our lead to 35-27 with 24 seconds left in the third quarter.
A 24 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens got us lined up at our 30 yard line for our next drive. Giving Oliver a chance to redeem himself, we handed the ball off on first down, Oliver stumbling his way to a 5 yard gain. That would be the final play as the third quarter came to an end, our lead holding at 35-27.
Opening up the fourth quarter, Oliver was able to rumble down the field to a 10 yard gain and a first down at the 45 yard line. Another rush by Oliver picked up 7 yards, before Kyle Jones was able to get one yard to leave third and two. The drive would come to a sudden halt as Silva was tackled for a one yard loss, the punt team coming out on fourth and three at the Cincinnati 49. Christian Johnson tried his damnedest to drop the punt inside the 5 yard line, he nearly manage to do so, but an errant bounce caused the ball to roll just across the goal line for a touchback, giving Cincinnati the ball at their 20 yard line.
Davidson started the drive for the Bearcats with a pair of four yard rushes, leaving third and two, before picking up 6 yards on the ground and a first down at the 34 yard line. Another 6 yard rush by Davidson was followed with an 8 yard rush by Brown, and Cincinnati moved the chains to their 47 yard line. After an incomplete pass on first down, Davidson continued to do his thing on the ground, picking up 11 yards around the right tackle to get a first down at our 41 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Davidson was followed with an 8 yard pass to David McNair, and Cincinnati had a new set of downs at our 26 yard line. Another 6 yard rush by Davidson was again followed with another pass, this time to Bass for a 14 yard gain, giving the Bearcats first and goal at our 7 yard line. Davidson took the ball on first down, rushing for 6 yards to leave second and goal at the one. Davidson would punch it into the end zone on second down for the one yard touchdown, pulling the Bearcats to within two. Going for the two-point conversion, Cameron Foster took the handoff straight up the middle and plowed his way across the good line for the successful conversion, and with that we had a tied ballgame, 35-35, with 5:05 left to play.
A 17 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens gave us the ball at our 23 yard line. Oliver took the ball on first down, picking up four yards on the play. Stephens tried to connect with Vaughn on a second down pass, but the throw was again way off-target, sailing out of bounds and incomplete to bring up third and 6. Stephens was just barely able to avoid a sack and get the ball off to Barnes, but a quick move by the safety left Barnes tackled for only a 5 yard gain, leaving us just short and the punt team coming out on fourth and one from our 32 yard line. A fair catch on the 46 yard punt left Cincinnati started at their 22 yard line, four minutes on the clock.
The Bearcats came out firing, as Brown connected with Bass for a 5 yard gain. Brown was then forced to scramble for a pickup of four yards, leaving third and one. Instead of handing the ball off, Brown dropped back to pass on third down, throwing a 19 yard strike to Callahan for a first down at midfield. From there, Davidson took over with a 6 yard gain, followed by a two yard rush to leave third and two. Another 6 yard gain by Davidson gave Cincinnati a new set of downs at our 36 yard line. After an incomplete pass intended for Bass, Davidson picked up four yards on the ground, bringing up third and 6. Going into the air on third down, Brown found Davidson open for a 17 yard gain, giving Cincinnati a first down at our 15 yard line. Brown kept the ball on first down, rushing for a 6 yard gain, before Davidson was tackled for a loss of three yards, bringing up third and 7 from our 12 yard line. The passing attack would get the job done on third down, as Brown found Callahan racing across the back of the end zone for a 12 yard touchdown, giving Cincinnati a 42-35 lead with 1:54 left in the game.
A touchback on the kickoff got our offense set up at our 25 yard line, now a do or die situation. Going to the air on first down, Stephens was able to get a quick completion to Vaughn for a 13 yard gain and a first down at the 38. Oliver would be the next player to step up, coming out of the backfield and getting open for a 25 yard gain and a first down at the Cincinnati 37 yard line, our first timeout stopping the clock with 1:29 left to go. Lining up on first down, Stephens was able to get the ball off just before getting flattened by the middle linebacker, but it mattered little as the pass was woefully off the mark and incomplete, bringing up second down. Dropping back to pass on first down, Stephens completed a pass to Harper, but a quick tackle by the outside linebacker limited it to a 5 yard gain. Rushing back to the line with the clock ticking, the defense was unable to get fully organized by the time we snapped the ball, Vaughn getting open over the right half of the field, hauling in the pass and then fighting through a defender for a 30 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the two yard line with 1:04 left on the clock. Only two yards away from tying the game, we decided to gamble and chew off some clock before our next snap, wanting to leave Cincinnati as little time left available since they still had all three timeouts. Even if we didn’t score right away, we still had two timeouts left to stop the clock if needed. Sure enough, Silva took the handoff on first down, stopped just outside the goal line for only a one yard gain, leaving second and goal, the clock ticking with 27 seconds left. Taking the ball again, Silva was tackled for no gain on the play, and now we were in trouble. Taking our second timeout, we stopped the clock with 14 seconds left to go, facing third and goal from the one yard line. Third time proved a charm for Silva, as he took the handoff right around the hip of the right guard and in for the one yard touchdown. Alphonso Pratt thankfully did not choose this moment to suck, successfully kicking the PAT and tying the game up at 42-42 with 12 seconds left on the clock.
A 20 yard kickoff return gave Cincinnati the ball at their 19 yard line, our clock management at the end of the drive successful as only one second was left on the clock. Davidson took the ball on first down and was tackled for a four yard loss, bringing the fourth quarter to an end and sending us to overtime.
Starting overtime, Cincinnati won the coin toss and elected to go on offense first. Brown kept the ball himself on first down, picking up four yards on the play, before Davidson was tackled for a loss of two yards to leave third and 8. We would catch a break, as the third down pass intended for Davidson was broken up and incomplete, bringing out the field goal unit at the 23 yard line. We would catch our biggest break of the game, as the 40 yard field goal attempt by Rouse was no good.
Starting our possession at our 25 yard line, all we needed was a field goal to win. Oliver took the ball on first down for a three yard gain, followed by a one yard rush to leave third and 6 at the 21 yard line. Silva would come in on third down, trying to get us closer, but he would get tackled for no gain to leave fourth and 6. Pratt came out to attempt the 38 yard field goal for the win. The snap was good and the kick had far more than enough distance, but Pratt shanked it wide left, sending us into a second overtime.
Starting the second overtime on offense, Silva took the ball on first down, only able to get two yards on the play. With the run game unable to get the job done, it was time to go to the air if we had any hopes of getting a touchdown or at least getting into better field goal range. Stephens tried to connect with Barnes on second down, but the outside linebacker was just able to get a hand in from behind and swat the ball away, leaving third and 8. Vaughn made a huge play on third down, jumping up to catch a high pass from Stephens, then turning up the field for a 19 yard gain to set up first and goal at the four yard line. Giving the ball to Silva on first down, he was tackled for a one yard loss, leaving second and goal at the 5 yard line. Another rush by Silva went for a gain of four yards, leaving third down from the one. Silva tried to punch it in on third down, but was tackled for a two yard loss, bringing out Pratt once again. This time Pratt was able to successfully kick the 20 yard field goal, giving us a 45-42 lead.
Cincinnati came out for their next possession, needing a field goal to send it to a third overtime or a touchdown to win. Brown came out throwing on first down, as he found Thomas for a 9 yard gain. Davidson took the ball on the next play, picking up one yard, but stopped short of the marker, leaving the Bearcats facing third and inches. Choosing to go for the win right now, instead of trying for the first down, Brown dropped back on third down and threw a bullet into the end zone and into the hands of Callahan, complete for a 15 yard touchdown to give Cincinnati the win, 48-45 in double overtime.
With the loss, we fall to 2-5, 1-2 Big East, our losing streak now at 5 games. With the win, Cincinnati improves to 5-2, 3-0 Big East. Up next, we finish off our long road trip with a visit to Memphis. The Tigers enter the game at 2-5, 1-2 Big East. Memphis opened their year with a 38-13 loss at then-#8 Virginia Tech, then lost 24-7 at Rice and 40-14 to Navy. Memphis got in the win column with a 49-7 whooping of Kansas, then lost 48-14 to Pittsburgh, recovered with a 27-24 win over South Florida, before losing 35-17 to Temple coming into our game.
Final Score
:Cincinnati: 48, :Tulsa: 45 – 2OT
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A mostly decent day by Stephens, ending 21-34 for 292 yards and two touchdowns, one interception and one fumble his only black marks. Rushing, Oliver led the way with 160 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries, but also one fumble. Receiving, it was the Vaughn show today, as he ended with 136 yards on eight receptions, the only player to reach triple digits. In all, seven receivers caught a ball today, all seven receivers ended with double digit yards.
Tulsa Defense – Horrible, just horrible. Other than the handful of drives the defense was able to stop Cincinnati, they were pretty much getting stampeded by the Cincinnati running and passing games. A day by the defense that I hope to soon forget.
Tulsa Kicking – Hadn't done much all day, and then boned us in the end. Went 1 for 2 in field goals, missing the game-winner from 38 yards out in the first overtime, connected from 20 yards out in the second overtime. Did at least go 6-6 in PATs, but not much to celebrate.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter 2 OT Final Score :Tulsa: 7 14 14 7 3 45 :Cincinnati: 10 14 3 15 6 48
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 6:05 :Cincinnati: Touchdown J. Davidson, 11 yard pass from J. Brown (G. Rouse kick) :Cincinnati: 7-0 3:11 :Cincinnati: Field Goal G. Rouse, 40 yard field goal :Cincinnati: 10-0 0:39 :Tulsa: Touchdown R. Harper, 20 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Cincinnati: 10-7 Second Quarter 8:24 :Cincinnati: Touchdown J. Davidson, 21 yard pass from J. Brown (G. Rouse kick) :Cincinnati: 17-7 4:07 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Johnson, 14 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Cincinnati: 17-14 1:33 :Cincinnati: Touchdown J. Davidson, 5 yard run (G. Rouse kick) :Cincinnati: 24-14 0:38 :Tulsa: Touchdown W. Oliver, 5 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Cincinnati: 24-21 Third Quarter 6:15 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 10 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 28-24 5:32 :Tulsa: Touchdown W. Oliver, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 35-24 0:24 :Cincinnati: Field Goal G. Rouse, 31 yard field goal :Tulsa: 35-27 Fourth Quarter 5:05 :Cincinnati: Touchdown J. Davidson, 1 yard run (2-point conversion good) TIED 35-35 1:54 :Cincinnati: Touchdown E. Callahan, 12 yard pass from J. Brown (G. Rouse kick) :Cincinnati: 42-35 0:12 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) TIED 42-42 First Overtime --- --- --- --- --- Second Overtime --- :Tulsa: Field Goal A. Pratt, 20 yard field goal :Tulsa: 45-42 --- :Cincinnati: Touchdown E. Callahan, 15 yard pass from J. Brown :Cincinnati: 48-45
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Cincinnati 45 Score 48 26 First Downs 20 494 Total Offense 498 47 - 202 - 4 Rushes - Yards - TD 50 - 187 - 2 21 - 35 - 2 Comp - Att - TD 20 - 38 - 4 292 Passing Yards 311 1 Times Sacked 1 7 - 13 (53%) 3rd Down Conversion 11 - 20 (55%) 0 - 0 (0%) 4th Down Conversion 0 - 0 (0%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 1 - 1 (100%) 7 - 5 - 1 (85%) Red Zone - TD - FG 10 - 5 - 2 (70%) 2 Turnovers 1 1 Fumbles Lost 1 1 Intercepted 0 15 Punt Return Yards 8 56 Kick Return Yards 101 565 Total Yards 607 5 – 46.6 Punts - Average 5 - 47.2 3 - 35 Penalties 3 - 25 17:11 Time of Possession 18:49
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :6redarrow: 21+ points per game in each season 31 :6greenarrow: Win 10 games in one season 2 :6greenarrow: 3300+ passing yards each season :red-x: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 65% pass completions over the entire contract 59% :5greenarrow: :5redarrow: Win 6 games in one season :check: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 15+ rushing TD in each season 3/4 Completed :5greenarrow: :4redarrow: 3200+ total offensive yards each season 2908 :3greenarrow: :5redarrow: 3400+ total offensive yards each season 2908 :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
35%
Time for another look around the nation. Starting in the Top 25, #1 Georgia scores with 1:20 left in the game to barely escape Missouri 27-24. In the game of the week #4 Penn State knocks off #2 Ohio State, 38-25. #23 NC State shocks #3 Clemson 34-27. #5 Oklahoma gets an easy 52-14 win over Kansas. Florida upsets #6 Arkansas 30-17. #7 Texas violates Iowa State, 61-0. #8 LSU beats Mississippi State 38-28. #10 Iowa escapes with a 35-25 win over Indiana.
#12 Miami edges out Florida State 44-38. #13 Michigan State rolls to a 41-14 win over rival Michigan. #15 Virginia Tech beats North Carolina 38-13. Tennessee knocks off #16 Alabama 49-35. #25 Pittsburgh knocks off #17 Georgia Tech 24-14. Arizona upsets #18 USC 38-24. #19 Air Force rolls to a 34-10 win over San Jose State. #20 Auburn gets a 45-20 win over Ole Miss. #21 Arkansas State bests Army 38-15 and #24 Oklahoma State beats Baylor 30-13.
For our readers, souljahbill, Southern Miss improves to 3-4 (3-0 C-USA) with a 48-31 win over Louisiana Tech. Jaymo, Arizona State has hit a low point, falling to 1-6 (0-5 Pac-12) with a 28-14 loss to previously-winless Colorado. Mors, West Virginia remains 5-2 (4-1 Big 12) with a bye week. Jeff, #2 Ohio State falls to 7-1 (4-1 Big Ten) with a 38-25 loss to #4 Penn State. Other teams of interest, #21 Arkansas State improves to 4-2 (1-0 Sun Belt) with a 38-15 win over Army. In a game of interest, Toledo wins the battle of MAC unbeatens with a 24-7 win over Eastern Michigan.
In Big East action, Cincinnati beats Tulsa 48-45 in double overtime, Connecticut gets a 49-31 win over East Carolina, Houston edges out SMU 26-24, Navy tops South Florida 44-38 and Temple beats Memphis 35-17.
Looking at undefeated teams left, #2 Ohio State, #3 Clemson and Eastern Michigan all lost this week, dropping our number of undefeated teams to 4. #1 Georgia (7-0), #4 Penn State (7-0), #11 Marshall (7-0) and Toledo (7-0) all remain with an unblemished record this season.
Turning to a more sadistic watch, who is still winless. There remains 5 teams still looking for their first win: Bowling Green (0-7), Louisiana-Monroe (0-6), Minnesota (0-7), San Jose State (0-6) and Utah State (0-7).
Teams getting their first win this week were: Colorado (28-14 over 1-6 Arizona State), Florida Atlantic (49-23 over 1-7 UTSA), Idaho (45-7 over FCS Southeast) and Massachusetts (38-35 over 0-6 Louisiana-Monroe).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Coaches Poll, Georgia (41 first place votes) remains #1, Penn State (20 votes) climbs two to #2, Oklahoma jumps two to #3, Marshall leaps seven to #4 and Texas climbs two to #5. Ohio State falls four to #6, LSU climbs one to #7, Virginia moves up one to #8, Iowa jumps one to #9 and Clemson falls seven to #10. Miami jumps one to #11, Michigan State climbs one to #12, Nebraska climbs one to #13, Virginia Tech moves up one to #14 and Arkansas drops nine spots to #15. Air Force jumps three to #16, NC State climbs six to #17, Auburn jumps two to #18, Arkansas State moves up two to #19 and Notre Dame climbs two to #20. Pittsburgh jumps four to #21, Tennessee enters the poll at #22, Oklahoma State climbs one to #23, Arizona enters the poll at #24 and Oregon (270 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Alabama (from #16), Georgia Tech (from #17) and USC (from #18). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Georgia Tech (262 points) is #26, followed by Boise State (235), USC (194), Texas A&M (131) and Alabama (98) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include Navy (82) and Connecticut (58).
Taking a look at the new Top 25 Media Poll, Penn State (36 first place votes) leaps three spots to #1, Georgia (26 votes) drops one to #2, Oklahoma climbs two to #3, Texas jumps two to #4 and Marshall (3 votes) leaps six to #5. Virginia climbs two to #6, Ohio State falls four to #7, LSU moves up one to #8, Clemson drops seven to #9 and Iowa remains #10. NC State leaps eleven spots to #11, Michigan State remains #12, Miami remains #13, Nebraska remains #14 and Virginia Tech remains #15. Air Force jumps three to #16, Arkansas drops ten to #17, Pittsburgh climbs six to #18, Auburn jumps two to #19 and Notre Dame remains #20. Arkansas State climbs two to #21, Tennessee enters the poll at #22, Oregon jumps two to #23, Georgia Tech drops eight to #24 and Oklahoma State (318 points) enters the poll at #25. Dropping out of the poll this week were Alabama (from #17) and USC (from #18). Looking at Others Receiving Votes, Arizona (290 points) is #26, followed by Boise State (288), USC (221), Texas A&M (217) and Connecticut (113) to round out the Top 30. Other teams getting votes this week include Navy (110), Alabama (107), Texas Tech (37) and Hawaii (5).
Looking at the new BCS rankings, #1 Georgia (0.997), #2 Penn State (0.997), #3 Oklahoma (0.989), #4 Texas (0.980), #5 Marshall (0.978), #6 Virginia (0.967), #7 LSU (0.965), #8 Ohio State (0.963), #9 Clemson (0.954) and #10 Iowa (0.946).
Looking at the latest Heisman Watch list, Ohio State QB Ryan Fraser is #1 (LW: #1), Georgia HB Justin Jones is #2 (LW: #2), Texas HB Robert Young is #3 (LW: NR), Arkansas HB Matt Miller is #4 (LW: #5) and Navy QB Sterling Reid is #5 (LW: NR). Falling off the Heisman Watch list this week was UAB QB Adam Gardner (LW: #3) and Nebraska QB Robbie Allen (LW: #4).
Game Eight
:Tulsa: :@: :Memphis:
Game Notes
--- Still trying to fight our way out of what was now a five game losing streak, we hit the road to meet Memphis. Both us and Memphis entered the game with a 2-5 record on the season, meaning one team was going to walk out with hope still left for their year, while the other team would be pushed right up against the brink of seeing their bowl hopes come crashing down. While Memphis entered with the #59 rushing offense (182.1 yards/game), which was five spots better than our ranking, and a #44 ranking in rushing defense (160.7 yards/game), most every other stat for the Tigers was amongst the worst in the nation, giving us an immediate head to head advantage. Now all that remained to be seen was if we would actually use that advantage. Memphis won the coin toss and elected to kick.
An 18 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens got us started at our 21 yard line to open up the game. Will Oliver got the drive started as he took a handoff up the middle for a 5 yard gain, followed by a gain of 10 yards to get an early first down at the 36. Oliver kept the ground attack going with a 6 yard rush, trying to tire out the defense early on. A four yard rush by Oliver left us just shy of the first down marker, bringing up third and inches. Despite every attempt by the Tigers, Oliver was able to keep the legs driving through a block in the backfield and fall just across the first down line for a one yard gain, moving the chains to the 46 yard line. Going into the air with the run-first defense, the pass from Brad Stephens intended for Joe Vaughn was off the mark, batted away by the cornerback. A pass to a seemingly wide open Carl Barnes also ended up incomplete as the outside linebacker was able to somehow get a hand in the way from the other side of Barnes’ body, leaving third and long. P.J. Stephens would keep us alive, hauling in the third down pass for a 14 yard pickup and a first down at the Memphis 40. Jason Johnson would keep us moving with an 18 yard reception to move the sticks to the 22 yard line. A 6 yard rush by Oliver was followed with a 6 yard rush by Eric Silva, and we found ourselves looking at first and goal from the Memphis 9 yard line. Silva replicated his previous rush, picking up 6 yards on the carry to leave second and goal at the three. Oliver took over on the next play, but was stood up in the backfield for a one yard loss, leaving third and goal from the four yard line. Vaughn would strike first blood for us, as he reached out and pulled in the third down pass from Stephens for the four yard touchdown and an early 7-0 lead with 5:01 left in the first quarter.
Memphis got some good field position for their first drive, as a 26 yard kickoff return left them beginning from their 28 yard line. The Tigers wasted little time in attacking, as Leon Gipson found Chuck Smith over the middle for a 10 yard gain, leaving second and inches. Memphis would try to pick up the first down on the ground, but Erik Chavez found nowhere to run as he was tackled for a three yard loss, leaving third and three. That loss would be only a temporary setback, as Gipson found R. Childress down the right sideline for a 13 yard gain to pick up a first down at the 47. After an incomplete pass on first down, Gipson kept the gun slinging going with a 13 yard strike to Marcus Cox, as the Tigers found themselves with a new set of downs from our 40 yard line. Our defense seemed unable to stop anyone, as Chavez got in on the action, hauling in a pass for a 16 yard gain, moving Memphis down to our 24. Trying again from the ground, Chavez was able to find positive yards this time, rushing for consecutive 7 yards gain to set up first and 10 from our 11 yard line. A third straight 7 yards rush by Chavez got Memphis clear down to our four yard line. Chavez tried all he could to punch it in for the score, but the defense wasn’t going down without a fight, tackling him for only a two yard gain, leaving third and one at our two yard line. On his fifth straight rush, Chavez would finally find pay dirt, scoring a two yard touchdown to even the score 7-7 with 2:34 left in the first quarter.
A 17 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens left us starting our next drive at the 19 yard line. Coming out running on first down, Oliver was only able to manage one yard on the play, as the Memphis defense lived up to their ranking. Coming out of the backfield on second down, Oliver was still able to put up some yardage on the defense, as he hauled in a pass from Stephens for a gain of 14 yards and a first down at the 34. Trying to hit Barnes over the middle, the ball was broken up by the middle linebacker to leave second down. Throwing up a bomb down the sideline, the cornerback misplayed the pass, his early move at the ball allowing it to fall beyond his arms and into the hands of Vaughn. Taking advantage of the slightly slower cornerback, Vaughn reeled in the pass and then took off down the sideline, racing 66 yards down the field for a very quick touchdown and a 14-7 lead with 1:14 left in the quarter.
Another huge kickoff return got Memphis started at their 38 yard line this time, the Tigers barely needing to even move to hit our territory. A false start penalty on first down took care of that however, as Memphis was moved back to their 33 yard, left with first and 15. A dropped ball by Cox wasted what would have been at least a 20 yard gain to bring up second down, where Chavez rushed for a four yard gain to leave the offense facing third and 11. Another dropped pass, this time by Chavez, would bring the drive to an end. A fair catch by Johnson on the 45 yard punt got us lined up at our 17 yard line.
Oliver finally was able to get some yardage on the ground, rushing for 13 yards and a first down at the 30. A blitz by all three linebacker left Memphis completely exposed in the secondary, as Oliver was able to escape through a hole before the linebackers could close in. A downfield block by the fullback took the safety out of the play, allowing Oliver to bounce to the outside and rush for a 20 yard gain before being brought down from behind by the cornerback, giving us a new set of downs at midfield. Keeping the rushing game going, Oliver was able to pick up 8 yards on the next play to give us second and two at the 42 yard line. That would bring about the end of the first quarter, holding onto a 14-7 lead.
Opening up the second quarter, Oliver tried to pick up the first down on the ground, but a more than ready defense limited him to just a single yard, leaving third and one. Oliver would again just barely squeak his way to a first down, picking up two yards and barely getting across the first down line to the 39 yard line before being pushed back by the defense. Trying to connect with Vaughn on a comeback route, the pass from Stephens was broken up by the cornerback, leaving second down. A quick out pass to Johnson went for an 18 yard gain, Johnson stepping out of bounds at the 21 yard line. Hitting Vaughn on an aborted flag route, it ended up being for the best, as Vaughn was able to grab the ball before stumbling his way to a 16 yard gain, giving us first and goal at the 5 yard line. Returning to the ground, Oliver was almost immediately wrapped up and spun down after the handoff for no gain on the play to leave second and goal. Silva would get the job done though, coming in on second down, finding a hole outside the right guard and riding it straight into the end zone for the 5 yard touchdown and a 21-7 lead with 7:12 left in the half.
Memphis finally got to start their drive in a “normal” spot, the 19 yard kickoff return by Chavez leaving the Tigers getting underway at their 17 yard line. Going straight to the air, the pass intended for Cory Frazier on first down was broken up by the safety. Chavez took the ball on second down, but our defense stopped him for no gain, leaving Memphis facing third and 10. Unfortunately fourth down would never come as Gipson threw a 17 yard strike to Smith to give Memphis a first down at the 34 yard line. Another pass, this time to Frazier, went for a 16 yard gain and Memphis had a new set of downs at their 49. A 6 yard rush by Chavez got the Tigers into our territory, leaving second and four at our 45. Finally fourth down would make an appearance, as incomplete passes intended for Cox and Childress brought about fourth and four. The fourth down punt nearly ended horribly, as the ball bounced around the 7 yard line, landed at the three and ever so slowly rolled toward the goal line. We could catch a massive break as the ball was just barely able to roll across into the end zone for a touchback before Memphis could down it, giving us the ball at our 20.
Dropping back to pass on first down, the pass from Stephens intended for Vaughn never had a chance, the pass sailing long and out of bounds, leaving second and long. Trying to hit Vaughn again along the right sideline, the pass was broken up by the safety, leaving third down. The third down pass intended for P.J. Stephens ended the same as the other two, though this time nearly intercepted by the outside linebacker, leaving the punt team coming out on fourth down. A 10 yard return by Chavez on the 41 yard punt set Memphis up with their best field position yet, starting at the 48 yard line.
After a first down pass that sailed long and incomplete, Gipson found his mark on second down, hitting Childress for a 23 yard gain, giving the Tigers a first down at our 28 yard line. A 21 yard pass to Cox, and Memphis suddenly had first and goal from the 7. Smith took the ball on the ground on first down, picking up 6 yards on the play to set up second and goal at our one yard line, where Chavez would finish off the drive with a one yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 21-14 with 4:38 left before halftime.
A touchback on the kickoff left us starting at our 25 yard line, looking to extend our lead before halftime. A quick strike over the middle to Johnson went for an 11 yard gain, instantly moving the sticks to the 36 yard line. The defense would undo most of that gain in one fell swoop, sacking Stephens from behind for an 8 yard gain to leave second and 18. P.J. Stephens put us back in position to keep the drive alive, hauling in a pass for a 17 yard pickup to leave third and one at the 45 yard line. Putting the fate of our drive into the hands of Oliver, he didn’t let us down, rushing for a gain of 6 yards to move the chains to the Memphis 48 yard line. Vaughn would be the next to come through for us, hauling in a pass while tiptoeing along the right sideline for a 20 yard gain to get a first down at the 29 yard line. Instant pressure on the first down play forced Stephens to get rid of the ball prematurely, the off balance pass intended for P.J. Stephens sailing into the ground well short of its target, leaving second down. Trying to find Vaughn on second down, the pass ended up a bit short, allowing the safety to make a play on the ball and nearly intercept it, leaving third and long. P.J. Stephens would again come through in the clutch, hauling in a pass for a 10 yard gain, leaving us just shy of the first down line to face fourth and inches. Following the mantra of go big or go home, we went for it on fourth down, Oliver pushing his way through the defense for an 8 yard gain to the Memphis 11 yard line to extend our drive. Silva kept us pushing forward with a 5 yard gain, before hitting a hole to the left of the center and diving into the end zone for a 5 yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 28-14 with 1:32 left on the clock.
A touchback on the following kickoff left Memphis starting from their 25 yard line. Going into the air on first down, the pass from Gipson intended for Chavez was broken up. Gipson was then forced to scramble on the second down play, managing to pick up 5 yards on the play, leaving third and 5 and the clock ticking. An incomplete pass on third down intended for Cox would bring the drive to an end. A 10 yard return by Johnson on the 49 yard punt gave us back the ball at our 30 yard line and 44 seconds on the clock.
With all three timeouts still in the bag, we decided to take a couple shots, if anything, to at least get in field goal position. Taking some higher risk passes into coverage, Stephens was able to find Vaughn on first down for a 16 yard gain to move the ball to the 46 yard line, followed by a 17 yard strike to Johnson on a comeback route, setting up first and 10 from the Memphis 38 yard line, our first timeout stopping the clock with 32 seconds to go. A misstep by the safety would end up costing Memphis dearly, as Vaughn was able to slip by on a slant route, haul in the pass and turn up the field with nothing but green in front of him. Leave it to Vaughn however to screw up a sure thing, stumbling and falling down at the one yard line to only end up with a 36 yard gain instead of a 37 yard touchdown, leaving us first and goal at our one yard line, our second timeout taken with 26 seconds to go. Taking the ball on first down, Oliver went off the right tackle and dove over the top of the pile for the one yard touchdown, extending our lead now to 35-14 with 24 seconds to go.
A 21 yard kickoff return left Memphis starting at their 20 yard line, only 13 seconds left to work with. The Tigers would surrender the first half, Chavez rushing for three yards to run out the remaining time on the clock, as Memphis prepared for the ball to start the second half. As the clock hit all zeroes, we headed into halftime with a somewhat surprising 35-14 lead.
Opening up the second half, no return on the kickoff left Memphis starting from their 25 yard line to begin the third quarter. Despite finding themselves going from trailing by 7 to a 21 point deficit in a matter of minutes at the end of the first half, Memphis was far from giving up the war. Coming out passing, Gipson found Cox for a 12 yard gain to pick up an immediate first down at the 37. A 5 yard pass to Frazier was followed with a 9 yard strike to Chavez to pick up another first down at our 49 yard line. Finding his fourth different target in four passes, Gipson connected with Smith for a 19 yard gain, setting up first down at our 30 yard line as Gipson spread out of the field and his targets. Keeping the attack going, Gipson threw to Jacob Myers, now his fifth different target in five passes, this time for 20 yards to give Memphis first and 10 just outside of our 10 yard line. Chavez would finish off the quick hitting drive, diving across the back of the end zone to haul in the pass for a 10 yard touchdown, cutting our lead to 35-21 with 7:32 to go in the quarter.
A touchback on the ensuing kickoff got us underway from our 25 yard line. Coming out rushing, Memphis proved ready for us as Oliver was quickly brought down for only a two yard gain. With Memphis stacking the box, it was into the air on second down, as Stephens was just barely able to get the ball off to avoid a sack, Oliver hauling in the pass for a 9 yard gain and a first down at the 36 yard line. A quick pass to Vaughn on an out route led to a pickup of 18 yards and another first down at the Memphis 46. The next play would screw us, as Stephens tried to connect with P.J. Stephens, the quick pass to avoid a sack causing the ball to rainbow through the air, letting cornerback Mike Daniels intercept the pass. Johnson tried to make the tackle, but Daniels was able to break out of the ankle lock, outracing P.J. Stephens down the field on his way to a 59 yard interception return touchdown, and just like that, Memphis was back within 7 points, 35-28, with 6:08 to go in the third quarter.
Taking over at our 25 yard line after the touchback, Stephens went right back to the air to shake off that interception. He would do exactly that, finding Johnson over the middle for a big 21 yard gain, moving the chains to our 46 yard line and getting us off to another positive start. Vaughn was able to come through next, snagging down a ball to beat the middle linebacker to it, picking up 5 yards on the play, followed by an 18 yard pass to Barnes to set up first down at the 30 yard line. Another pass to Vaughn picked up 15 yards and a first down at the 15 yard line, but it came with bad news, as Vaughn needed helped up off the field. He was diagnosed with back spasms and was ruled out for the rest of the game, leaving our top receiver watching from the sideline for the next quarter and a half. A first down pass to P.J. Stephens went for a gain of 9 yards after Stephens was able to cut off the outside linebacker and pull in the ball first, leaving second and one from the 6 yard line. Giving the ground game some attention on second down, Oliver was able to pick up three yards on the second down carry to set up first and goal from the three yard line. That would turn into the 8 yard line as a hard snap count to try and draw the stacked defense offside instead resulted in freshman left tackle Jimmy Pope jumping to bring out the false start penalty. Going back to the air after the penalty, we would find the end zone in one play, Johnson coming across on a slant route and pulling in the pass for an 8 yard touchdown and a 42-28 lead with 3:48 to go in the third quarter.
A 23 yard kickoff return set Memphis up at their 30 yard line for their next drive. The Tigers wasted no time in taking to the air, as Gipson threw deep, connecting with Smith for a quick 21 yard strike to set up a first down at our 49 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Gipson was followed with an incomplete pass, leaving the Tigers facing third and three. Memphis nearly had a first down inside our 20 yard line, but Smith was unable to hold onto the ball, dropping it incomplete to bring up fourth and three from our 42. Memphis wasn’t about to go quietly, going for it on fourth down, but the plague of dropped passes continued, as Damien Collins was unable to hold onto the fourth down pass, turning the ball over on downs at our 42 yard line.
Taking over on the turnover on downs, Oliver took the ball on first down, picking up only two yards on the carry, the defense still not going down without a fight. Returning to our own air attack, Johnson pulled down a pass for a gain of 12 yards, picking up a first down at the Memphis 44 yard line. Trying to go for the deathblow, Stephens heaved up a huge pass down the left sideline to Johnson. Instead of a 44 yard touchdown, Stephens’ nemesis Daniels returned, intercepting his second pass of the day at the two yard line, juking and side stepping multiple tackle attempts while returning it 33 yards to the 35 yards line before Stephens could finally push him out of bounds.
Taking over after the interception, it was back to business like usual for Memphis, as Gipson tried to throw up a pass to Charley Wiggins, but a great play on the pass resulted in it getting batted down incomplete. Turning to their own ground game, Chavez took the ball for an 8 yard rush, followed by a two yard rush to leave Memphis facing fourth and inches from their 45 yard line. The Tigers were unwilling to go for it on fourth down this time, a fair catch by Johnson on the 39 yard punt leaving us starting from our 15 yard line.
We would need only one play this time around to twist the knife in the hemorrhaging wound, and it wouldn’t miss, as Johnson went up high to grab a ball over the head of the cornerback, a poorly timed diving tackle attempt allowing Johnson to break free up the middle of the field, outracing both safeties and two linebackers on his way to a massive 85 yard touchdown, increasing our lead to 49-28 with 53 seconds left in the third quarter.
A touchback on the kickoff left Memphis trailing once again by 21, looking for any way to get back into the game. Gipson got the drive started with a 7 yard pass to Myers, followed by a 6 yard strike to Frazier to set up a first down at the 38 yard line as the Tigers returned right back to their passing game. Chavez tried to take the ball on the ground on first down, but was quickly tackled for a loss of three yards, pushing Memphis back to face second and 13. Only our defense would prove as worthless as ever, as a 5 yards facemask penalty at the end of a 7 yard rush gave Memphis a new set of downs at their 47. Going back into the air, Gipson found Cox for a pickup of 10 yards to our 43 yard line. That would end the third quarter as the clock ran out, holding onto a 49-28 lead but Memphis driving.
Opening up the fourth quarter, Myers hauled in a pass from Gipson for a 7 yard gain, followed with an 8 yard pass to Childress to move the chains to our 27 yard line. The drive would up in jeopardy as three straight incomplete passes left the Tigers facing fourth and 10. Once again our defense would prove themselves would be absolutely worthless, as Cox hauled in a 16 yard pass from Gipson to keep the drive alive at our 12 yard line. After another incomplete pass on first down, Chavez took the ball for a 6 yard gain, leaving third and four from our 6 yard line. The Tigers would punch it in on third down, as Cox easily hauled in the 6 yard touchdown pass to cut our lead to 49-35 with 7:41 left to go.
A 22 yard kickoff return by P.J. Stephens got us lined up from our 21 yard line, looking to put this game away, put the women and children to bed and go looking for dinner. Oliver got the drive started with a 10 yard rush up the gut, picking up a quick first down at the 31 yard line. Another rush by Oliver picked up four yards, followed by a option play that resulted no gain as the pitch from Stephens to Oliver was poorly made, the ball fumbling backwards and out of bounds at the 35, leaving third and 6. Robert Harper would keep us moving with a timely 11 yard reception to move the chains to the 46. Abandoning the run for the meantime, the first down pass intended for Johnson was off the mark and nearly intercepted by the cornerback, leaving second down. Another pass intended for Johnson ended up underthrown and low, the outside linebacker nearly picking off the pass but unable to hold onto the ball, the incomplete pass bringing up third and long. Lucas Gates would come through on third down, pulling in the ball for a 16 yard reception and a first down at the Memphis 38. A first down pass to Johnson picked up 17 yards, moving the chains once again, now to the 22. Looking to plunge the dagger in the heart, Stephens made a beautiful pass right in the middle of the coverage and perfectly into the hands of P.J. Stephens for a 20 yard gain, setting up first and goal at the two yard line and knocking on the door. Taking our time lining up on first down to run off some clock, Silva pounded his way into the end zone on the first try for the two yard touchdown, increasing our lead back to 21 points, now 56-35, with 5:07 left in the game.
A huge 30 yard kickoff return left Memphis with some slim hopes still alive, as they lined up at their 36 yard line. Those slims hopes came to an end as two incomplete passes and a dropped ball by Smith left Memphis with fourth and long from their 36. Going for it in a last ditch effort, the fourth down pass intended for Smith down the right sideline was broken up by both the cornerback and safety around midfield, forcing the turnover on downs, just 4:38 left to go.
Taking over at the Memphis 36 after the turnover on downs, we entered full on clock kill mode. Oliver took the ball on first down, picking up three yards on the carry, following that up with a 7 yard gain to leave third and inches as the clock ticked down to less than four minutes to play. Silva would put the icing on the cake on third down, beating the blitz through the line, getting a block from the tight end, bouncing outside the left hash and racing the defense down the field for a 26 yard touchdown, giving us a commanding 63-35 lead with 3:18 left to play.
A touchback on the kickoff got Memphis again started at their 25. Knowing their hopes of a comeback were long since erased, Chavez took the ball on first down, rushing for 8 yards. The offense would end up going backwards on second down as a false start penalty left them with second and 7. Another rush by Chavez would end in a loss of two yards to leave third and 10. Gipson would finally manage to complete a pass, but the completion to Frazier picked up only 8 yards to leave Memphis facing fourth and two from their 33. Signaling their overall surrender now, Memphis punted the ball on fourth down, the 47 yard punt getting returned for 6 yards by Johnson to put our second team offense on the field at our 26 yard line, just 2:33 away from victory.
Silva took the ball on first down, tackled for no gain on the play. Another rush by Silva went for a 7 yard gain to set up third and three from the 33. The second team defense for Memphis was not about to watch our offense run out the clock on them, tackling Silva for a one yard gain to leave fourth and two. An 11 yard punt return by Chavez on the 50 yard boot gave Memphis back possession at their 27 yard line with 49 seconds left to go.
After an incomplete pass on first down intended for Frazier, Smith was able to come down with a ball for a 13 yard gain, moving the chains to the 40. A 6 yard rush by Chavez was followed with a 6 yard pass to Cox for a first down at our 48 yard line, a timeout by Memphis freezing the clock with 30 seconds left to play. Another pass to Cox picked up 11 yards, moving the ball to our 37 yard line. A 7 yard rush by Chavez down to our 30 yard line to leave second and three. A 10 yard pass to Smith would be the final play of the game as the last seconds ticked off the clock to make our 63-35 victory over Memphis official.
With the win, we at long last break our 5 game losing streak and keep our slim bowl hopes alive, improving to 3-5, 2-2 Big East. With the loss, Memphis falls to 2-6, 1-3 Big East. Up next, it’s back home at long last to take on Tulane. The Green Wave enter at 3-5, 2-2 Big East. Tulane started the year with a 27-15 win over FCS Midwest, before losing 55-7 to Penn State. They recover with a 41-17 win over Louisiana-Monroe, before losing 42-7 at Georgia Tech and 55-28 at Connecticut. Tulane gets back in the win column with a 17-14 overtime win over Temple, followed by a 31-24 loss at South Florida and a 45-17 whooping from SMU coming into our game.
Final Score
:Tulsa: 63, :Memphis: 35
Stat(s) of the Game:
Tulsa Offense - A career day for Stephens, ending 28-41 for 540 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. Even with the interceptions, he still ended with a 201.3 QB rating for the day. Rushing, Oliver was king of the yards, with 121 yards and one touchdown on 24 carries, but Silva was king of the end zone, with 64 yards and four touchdowns on just 10 rushes. Receiving, two career days were made today, as Johnson led all receivers with 207 yards and two touchdown on nine receptions, followed very closely by Vaughn with 197 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions, despite being benched with an injury midway through the third quarter. In all, seven receivers caught at least one pass today, all seven receivers had at least double digits yards, Vaughn and Johnson were the only to reach triple digit yards.
Tulsa Defense – Mostly worthless. They got a couple late stops, but giving up 35 points again freaking Memphis is just pathetic. The score probably would have been closer, if we hadn't scored a touchdown on nearly every single drive.
Tulsa Kicking – Pratt didn't attempt any field goals, but was a perfect 9 for 9 in PATs.
Scoring Summary
Team 1st Quarter 2nd Quarter 3rd Quarter 4th Quarter Final Score :Tulsa: 14 21 14 14 63 :Memphis: 7 7 14 7 35
Time Team Result Play Score First Quarter 5:01 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Vaughn, 4 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 7-0 2:34 :Memphis: Touchdown E. Chavez, 2 yard run (J. Strickland kick) TIED 7-7 1:14 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Vaughn, 66 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 14-7 Second Quarter 7:12 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 5 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 21-7 4:38 :Memphis: Touchdown E. Chavez, 1 yard run (J. Strickland kick) :Tulsa: 21-14 1:32 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 5 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 28-14 0:24 :Tulsa: Touchdown W. Oliver, 1 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 35-14 Third Quarter 7:32 :Memphis: Touchdown E. Chavez, 10 yard pass form L. Gipson (J. Strickland kick) :Tulsa: 35-21 6:08 :Memphis: Touchdown M. Daniels, returned interception 59 yards (J. Strickland kick) :Tulsa: 35-28 3:48 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Johnson, 8 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 42-28 0:53 :Tulsa: Touchdown J. Johnson, 85 yard pass from B. Stephens (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 49-28 Fourth Quarter 7:41 :Memphis: Touchdown M. Cox, 5 yard pass from L. Gipson (J. Strickland kick) :Tulsa: 49-35 5:07 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 2 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 56-35 3:18 :Tulsa: Touchdown E. Silva, 26 yard run (A. Pratt kick) :Tulsa: 63-35
Game Stats
Tulsa Stat Memphis 63 Score 35 30 First Downs 21 718 Total Offense 418 36 - 178 - 5 Rushes - Yards - TD 22 - 86 - 2 28 - 41 - 4 Comp - Att - TD 27 - 49 - 2 540 Passing Yards 332 1 Times Sacked 0 8 - 11 (72%) 3rd Down Conversion 4 - 12 (33%) 1 - 1 (100%) 4th Down Conversion 1 - 3 (33%) 0 - 0 (0%) 2-Point Conv 0 - 0 (0%) 8 - 6 - 0 (75%) Red Zone - TD - FG 7 - 4 - 0 (57%) 2 Turnovers 0 0 Fumbles Lost 0 2 Intercepted 0 16 Punt Return Yards 21 57 Kick Return Yards 127 791 Total Yards 566 2 – 46.0 Punts - Average 5 - 45.6 5 - 35 Penalties 2 - 10 22:13 Time of Possession 13:47
Tulsa Contract Goals Update
Fail Impact Goal Progress Pass Impact :6redarrow: 21+ points per game in each season 35 :6greenarrow: Win 10 games in one season 3 :6greenarrow: 3300+ passing yards each season :red-x: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 65% pass completions over the entire contract 59% :5greenarrow: :5redarrow: Win 6 games in one season :check: :5greenarrow: :6redarrow: 15+ rushing TD in each season 3/4 Completed :5greenarrow: :4redarrow: 3200+ total offensive yards each season 3/4 Completed :3greenarrow: :5redarrow: 3400+ total offensive yards each season 3/4 Completed :2greenarrow:
Job Security Status
35%