“I don't even have a clue why a team like Michigan is wasting precious schedule slots on these teams like Ball State? It's embarrassing.”

“You're talking family history, nowslimmer.

My dad pledged Bronislau "Bronko" Nagurski to his fraternity while he attended Minnesota.


It's too bad the big ten is so pathetic now. Those folks must be rolling over in their graves.”

“

It's too bad the big ten is so pathetic now.
arclite

I would not state it that way. Perhaps it's the population growth, the rest of the country growing-up and money. College football is changing like the rest of professional sports. They are no longer sports, but money hungry businesses.”

“holy crap...good thing we were miles from any broadcast of that game...chelle would have had a melt down...she told me on the way home..."Shula is cute, but i can't have this losing #&%!$!"”

“West Virginia dropped all the way down to #10 after losing to the now #3 team?

That doesn't bode well for the loser of the upcoming Ohio State-Michigan battle of the unbeatens.”

“It's hard to watch, but here's a clip of Joe Paterno taking a helmet to the knee on the sidelines: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwiRKkrg_14

I hope I could stand back up at 80 after a similar shot. Get well you tough old fart!”

“Yes, the big-ten's decline is all the fault of greedy big-business capitalists!

Workers of the world unite!!!


Some people will always find a way to shoe-horn blame to “big-business greed”. I take personal responsibility for my choices. I don't, and haven't, followed ANY professional sports for years. Because, in a free market, I vote with my dollars. If people aren't willing to pay the money, the business goes away.

I am willing to pay the price to support my college team. College sports tickets are very cheap compared to professional sports. Donating money to college sports gives the chance for some kids, whose families may not be able to afford it, the opportunity to go to college and to learn discipline. Our athletic department has given millions of dollars to academics over the years. Our athletic department supports tutoring for athletes. Our athletic department pays scholarships. Research into injuries and human health and performance is improved by better facilities and equipment.

Many boosters enjoy the entertainment and are willing to make the free choice to support it.

The only actions I consider to be truly greedy in college football are how certain conferences (who shall remain anonymous) refuse to satisfy the fans by not creating a conference championship game and supporting a playoff such as we have in EVERY other major sport.

It is the fans who support the programs. When you fail to satisfy your customers, while making a profit, THAT’S greedy.

And it's my understanding that it is mostly the government workers (college presidents and administrators) who are blocking a playoff.




Actually, besides loving to stir the pot like most sports writers and many sports fans, I like and respect the big-ten. But don't tell anyone here that...shhhhhhhhhhh.
last edited: 11/06/06 6:20:08 AM”

“Tennessee just isn't where they need to be yet. At the beginning of the year, the overwhelming concensus was that a 9-3 year would be great. Along the way, we upped our expectations. If they can hang on for a 10-2 season, that is better than what we were looking for.

Congrats to UF for nabbing the East crown.”

“Lets face it each conference has its good and bad years and they have there powerhouses that even slump every once and awhile.

Then you get a team like Iowa this year and wonder what in gods green earth are those boys eating as it must not be the corn because they are playing like chit. I firmly believe that my team was the most overrated team heading into the college football season now.

I say bench Tate and start the Sophmore to get ready for next year.”

“Check out the t shirt the wife got me this weekend...

”

“Very classy, Nigal.




What in the world happened to Iowa this year? They’ve got my jaw dropped.

And what in the world happened to Michigan St. this year? They’ve got my jaw dropped.

And Penn. St.…jaw dropped.


Iowa has been especially disappointing. They’ve got a great coach and great fan support. Maybe it’s a one year glitch like Tennessee last year.




Boy, it sure didn’t take violin long to get cocky. My how those expectations do rise quickly.


STANDING ON TOP OF MOUNT EVEREST
By Mike Fasano

I’ve seen bad times.
I covered Rutgers football when they were 0-11. Truth be told … they were worse than 0-11. 0 and 11 was a compliment compared to what they really were. Rutgers football was awful. It was terrible. It was a disgrace and an embarrassment. They were outclassed and out of their league. Opponents would pull their starters before the first half was over. Rutgers simply couldn’t play the game.
That was the lowest of the low.
But you can’t use “low” to describe Rutgers anymore.
Now, I am standing on top of Mount Everest.
Lou Holtz says that Rutgers could run the table. Rutgers could play for the national championship.
Lou Holtz … Rutgers … National Championship.
I am standing on top of Mount Everest.
But Holtz added a qualifying phrase. Holtz added an “if”…
They could play for the national championship “if they beat Louisville.”
And what an “if” that is.
The Louisville Cardinals.
Brian Brohm may be the best quarterback in America. And he has the receivers to cash in on his talent. Mario Uruttia is a 6-6 wide out. Yes, a 6-6 wide out. And he is a natural … he’s six foot six and 228 pounds of silk. A 228 pound silky smooth freak-of-nature with hands like vises and speed like a cheetah.
His teammate, wideout Harry Douglas is faster still.
And there’s more.
Brohm stands behind a Maginot line of brilliant blockers. The plays he runs are called by Bobby Petrino … perhaps the greatest offensive genius in the game.
And that’s where Louisville’s talent starts … not where it ends.
Not surprisingly, the Cards average 40 points a game. But they don’t just score. This is a team that can play with a purpose.
When Miami came to Louisville and disrespected the Cardinals. Louisville reacted.
They pummeled Miami. They punished them, pounded them and pulverized them. The Hurricanes ran yelping back to Florida and hid under their beds. Louisville said, “who’s wants to insult us next?”
You just don’t diss Louisville because the Cardinals are as gifted as magic and as intense as a nuke. But there’s more to them than that. You see, Louisville knows something. They know that the National Championship is just within their grasp. And God only knows - they want to bring it home.
On Thursday night the Louisville Cardinals are coming to Rutgers Stadium.
They are undefeated.
They’ll play Rutgers.
Who is undefeated.
And all of America will be watching.
But as good as Louisville is, Bobby Petrino knows the score. At Rutgers Stadium they are adding bleachers to handle the overflow crowd. They are adding security to deal with the fans, fans feeding on success and ravenous for more. When the Cardinals run onto the field they’ll be entering a cauldron of Scarlet psychosis. Yes, Louisville, can play. But Rutgers can not only play, they can avenge. After years of enduring derision, humiliation, mockery and scorn, a Rutgers team has appeared with the talent and audacity to challenge anyone in the land.
They intend to do just that.
It is not Brian Leonard who makes this team. It is not Ray Rice. It is not Clark Harris. It is something else, something indefinable but real.
It is a sense, a feeling, a power.
Connecticut felt that power.
Against Connecticut, Rutgers jogged to a 17-0 half time lead. But the Knights were winning too easy, RU got lazy. The Knights started to yawn in the third quarter and Connecticut threatened.
Then Rutgers switched it back on.
The Knights turned on the jets. They pulled away like a rocket. And they rocketed like it was nothing.
You see, this team has juice. This team has power. This team is for real.
On Thursday night this Rutgers team plays Louisville and they are both playing for keeps. It is more than just a clash of teams. This will be a clash of dreams.
And you know something, I can dream too …
I am standing on top of Mount Everest.
And when you stand up that high … well, sometimes you can fall a long way. But sometimes … sometimes … from that great a height… you can see something. In fact, sometimes from the top of Mount Everest … you can see all the way to the promised land.
Is that real, or is it just a dream?
Thursday night, we’ll know for sure.”

“"Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom."
- George Smith Patton”

“Thanks for the congrats, chili. I only hope we can represent the east well in the title game and possibly the SEC in the Sugar Bowl.

Marcus Thomas (DT) has been suspended for good this time. He’s the kid that flunked the marijuana test. Apparently he couldn’t abide by the conditions of his probation. You’ve got to wonder about some of these kids. Maybe he’ll still make it in the NFL, but he certainly has let his teammates down here. He was so disruptive to a running game. He was largely responsible for the push up the middle that allows our ends to terrorize quarterbacks. His leaving hurts.

It’s interesting to see the Gators ranked so high while finding ways to win instead of being dominant.

Florida/South Carolina at 3:30 on CBS. I love to watch The Ol' Ball Coach work. He's so creative. After the emotional high of winning the east, we could have an upset here.”

“I think UT might lose to Arkansas. That is the game that had me worried the most. 9-3 shouldn't be too bad following our stellar 5-6 season last year.”

“Washington only 18-point faves this weekend?! OMG! Get to Vegas, STAT!!”

“I can't agree with you more Arc. Like I said might as well scrap out this year and start developing some young players for next year. But they won't as if they win the next two games they are still bowl eligeble. Personally I don't think we derserve to go to a bowl game.”

“Folks on a Stanford football board I read are calling for the coach's firing. They want Will Ferrell and Mike Ditka to replace him. [reference to "Kicking and Screaming" for the uninitiated]”

““Congrats SS. I'm awfully glad I had the kids out hiking this weekend and didn't have to witness the game. We're gonna finish 6-6. Sigh”
dayhiker
4:22:01 PM
11/05/06

I wasn't going to say anything, dayhiker, seeing as how you must be near suicide with shame. ;-)”

“COME ON LSU AND UT....beat ARKANSAS!!!!..i got SEC championship tix to buy”

“"I wasn't going to say anything, dayhiker, seeing as how you must be near suicide with shame."
StoveStomper

Are you kidding? Dayhiker has no shame. He won’t even admit that he was ratted out by one of his own.

BAMA FANS DESTROY GOALPOSTS WHEN THEY LOSE TO FLORIDA!!!




Flasher, did you make it down here for either of the bowl games Florida/Iowa played?

The Iowa fans were both good winners and losers. Walking to the stadium before both games, I had a number of Iowa fans yell at me. “Go Gators” they said. A nicer bunch I’ve never seen. Their fan support is second to none. They really get their stadium rocking and loud.

One of the most important factors that has served me well in picking the spread is team psychology. How motivated is the team, what is their incentive, how emotionally drained or how “up” for a game are they?

Team chemistry is so important and so intangible. There are so many factors that play into that dynamic. I don’t know as much about the current mentality at Iowa, but I suspect it’s similar to what happened to Tennessee last year. Tennessee’s slump last year appeared to be a case of team chemistry. Tennessee is loaded with talent but there seemed to be a lot of dissatisfaction among the players. When you don’t come together as a team, bad things happen. Hopefully it’s a one year glitch and not something endemic within the coaching staff. I think Ferentz has done a great job there.




A Bama fan here said that they’re going to fire Shula. Has anyone heard that rumor? Gosh StoveStomper, Miss. St. may not be winning a lot of games, but they keep having a big impact on other teams. When you lose to Miss. St., it’s time to fire your coach.”

“we are friends with one of the UA directors..and he is saying that Mal Moore is not happy at all with Shula. The statement we heard was "if he doesn't win the next three...he's gone." and that was before miss st.”

“Nope I've never made it to a bowl game just don't have the funds to travel that far on such few days. Makes it hard for me to justify spending a grand or more on a bowl game that I can use for a vacation out west. Guess my love for travel superceeds my love for college football.

If fact when Iowa played Ohio State. I went camping that night instead of watching the game. I figured they would get their butts handed to them so I might as well relax in the woods vs getting mad at home in front of the TV.

Maybe one of these years when I have more vacation time available to me and saved up some more money I'll make it to a bowl game.”

“I've been waiting too long to write this again on this board.

ROCK
CHALK
JAYHAWK
KAYYYYYY
UUUUUUUUU
!!!!!!!!!!

Look out you pretenders! Dunadan is back!”

“OPIE - what do you mean by director? Board of Trustees maybe? I've been hearing similar stuff.

Welcome back Dunadan. Return of the King!!!!”

“Somehow, seeing that rock chalk stuff in print doesn't do it justice. Hearing it in the Ozarks was priceless.”

“All is right with the world again. Welcome back Uncle Dunny.

Dayhiker, All I can say is WOW!

Chili, if we can beat UT we will have beaten Bama, Auburn & UT in the same year. I don't think that has ever happened.

BTW, "GO RUTGERS"”

“Good to see you are still around, Arky. I was beginning to worry about you.

When are we going hiking in the Ozarks again. I sort of miss those hills.”

“Wow I just saw there was an opening in the Defensive line of Miami.

University of Miami defensive lineman Bryan Pata was shot and killed Tuesday night at his apartment complex”

“I'm still here.

We can go to the Ozarks anytime you're ready. Might even be able to drag Duanadan down.

I was going to show up at Sipsey unannounced this weekend but I have a game this Friday night.”

“Arky - did you get my email about a trip?”

“Violin's Fightin' Tomatoes take on Louisville tomorrow night. Greg Schiano was interviewed on Comcast Sportsnet here last night. Interesting guy. The results speak for themselves.”

“Dayhiker - Got it. Mail back atcha.”

“I am thinking maybe a trip in the spring, arky. I have enough planned between now and then. I have seen pretty much all of the OHT. What about a trip over on the Quachita?”

“I've been to a lot of places but never have I been on the Ouachita Trail. Sounds ok to me.”

“10 days until the National Championship Game is played!”

“Who crapped up this thread?

message from Dunadan being ignored”

“It should be PIG SOOOOEEEEE on the Ouachita Trail.

Where's the love for the Hogs? No Arkansas fans at all here!”

“Bacon, pork chops, sausage ... I love hogs.”

“Flasher, I'm two hours from both Tampa and Orlando, and 1.5 from Jax. Miami is 6 hours south. Flights to Jax, Tampa, and Orlando can get pretty cheap. We've got an extra bedroom and I don't charge much for taxi service. I think you're just making excuses.





ALL RIIIIIGHT, DUNADAN!!!

Now we've got our patsy for the Football God contest!!!

November 3, my man. November 3. And that's the last I'll say about that on this thread. Except to also say we're gonna put a whoopin' on OSU on December 23. Stinkin' overrated OSU. That's no surprise.”

“Wow, it looks like the two teams voted highest in our popularity contests that are the polls are testing themselves with tough conference games again!

I understand scheduling weaker opponents for non-conference games because conference games should be close, rivalry battles. But the puny-ten has to schedule respectable opponents for non-conference games because their conference is…well…puhthetic.

Michigan is AT Indiana and still favored by 19.5

Ohio St. is AT Northwestern and still favored by 23 points

And Wisconsin/Iowa is even money? Hasn’t Wisconsin wrapped up third place in the puny-ten? Isn’t Iowa terrible this year?

Puuuuhthetic…puhthetic….puhthetic


At least Florida has S. Carolina at HOME to justify a 13.5 point spread. And I doubt they’ll cover that.”

“I bet the FL / S. Carolina game is closer than 13 too - there's a lot more going on with that game than just two teams lineing up. I'm sure that if Spurrier wins that game he considers his season a lot more complete than he would otherwise regardless of overall won/loss numbers.”

“Got your raccoon coat and beanie out of mothballs didnchya, violin?”

“Scarlet Knight? Wierd”

“Still holding at #2 in the Bottom 10. I met someone from Duke (#1) at a meeting yesterday and we had a "my alma mater's football team sucks more than yours" duel. I think we tied....”

“Well next time we are good and in a Florida bowl game arc I'll have to look you up.

I hope Iowa can mess up Wisconisn 3rd place run even if we suck this year.”

“I think I spotted violin in the crowd at the game. He was trying to get a closer seat where he could see the cheerleaders better.

LOL.”

“One of the GREATEST college football games I have EVER watched…EVER!!!

Rutgers is for REEEEAL BAYYYYYBEEEEE!!!


The sense of satisfaction you must feel, violin, should be awesome. If it isn’t, it SHOULD be!!!
last edited: 11/09/06 10:12:21 PM”

“Ho, hum, some sandlot football on TV tonight. Nothing at all like a typical Big Ten Football Game. Guess a person has to be from the mid-west to notice the difference. Even the winning field goal kick required two trys.”