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13 Ekim 2012 Cumartesi
Signing Day Musings
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WVU signee, Jarrod Harper told the News-Tribune that the Mountaineers plan to alternate Pitt and Maryland in their schedule. At least, that's how the incoming safety perceived it from talks with the coaching staff. When reached for comment, WVU told the paper that there is no info regarding the future at this time. (Solid work by former colleague Mike Minnich)
Eric Kinsey is finally a Mountaineer. Though, it was a strange evening for WVU fans following his saga. The defensive end from Miami decided to wait to announce until last night, and then what followed can't really be explained in a few sentences. Go check out Geoff Coyle's Twitter Timeline...it basically explains the night.
Expect at least one or two guys to make an instant impact. The question is where? WVU had no true "need" spots, but depth was certainly added, and typically one or two first-years always get in the mix early. Look for JUCO transfer, Matt Glowinski to get in the mix early on the offensive line. He's a big kid, with two years of experience in. Tarvares Copeland and Deontay McManus could get early looks at the wideout position, and look for the young tailbacks to get right in the mix.
Damon Cogdell is the most important former player in Mountaineer history. Not from what he has done on the football field, but for what he has done as coach at Mirimar in Florida. Not only is he an outstanding coach, but he also has helped send a slew of incredible players to Morgantown. That list includes Geno Smith, Stedman Bailey, Ivan McCartney, Dante Chambers (no longer on the team), and Josh Taylor. You can now add Devonte Mathis to that list, who sent in his letter yesterday.
WVU gets an early jump on the 2013 class. It has been reported that highly-touted Ohio safety, Jayme Thompson has committed to WVU. Thompson has interest from numerous Big Ten schools and Notre Dame. Granted, a year is a long time to hold a commitment, and you certainly couldn't kill the kid if he wavers at some point, but not a bad way to start a recruiting season.
Eric Kinsey is finally a Mountaineer. Though, it was a strange evening for WVU fans following his saga. The defensive end from Miami decided to wait to announce until last night, and then what followed can't really be explained in a few sentences. Go check out Geoff Coyle's Twitter Timeline...it basically explains the night.
Expect at least one or two guys to make an instant impact. The question is where? WVU had no true "need" spots, but depth was certainly added, and typically one or two first-years always get in the mix early. Look for JUCO transfer, Matt Glowinski to get in the mix early on the offensive line. He's a big kid, with two years of experience in. Tarvares Copeland and Deontay McManus could get early looks at the wideout position, and look for the young tailbacks to get right in the mix.
Damon Cogdell is the most important former player in Mountaineer history. Not from what he has done on the football field, but for what he has done as coach at Mirimar in Florida. Not only is he an outstanding coach, but he also has helped send a slew of incredible players to Morgantown. That list includes Geno Smith, Stedman Bailey, Ivan McCartney, Dante Chambers (no longer on the team), and Josh Taylor. You can now add Devonte Mathis to that list, who sent in his letter yesterday.
WVU gets an early jump on the 2013 class. It has been reported that highly-touted Ohio safety, Jayme Thompson has committed to WVU. Thompson has interest from numerous Big Ten schools and Notre Dame. Granted, a year is a long time to hold a commitment, and you certainly couldn't kill the kid if he wavers at some point, but not a bad way to start a recruiting season.
Yes, I'll miss the Big East...and I won't miss the Big East
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What I'll Miss...Big East Championship at the Garden.
What I Won't Miss...The terrible yearly ESPN theme song for the Big East Championship.
What I'll Miss...Trips to New England, so I am within driving distance to see WVU.
What I Won't Miss...Trips to New England, so I don't have to see them lose some terrible game to UConn.
What I'll Miss...Beating Rutgers in football, every year.
What I Won't Miss...Losing to Syracuse in basketball, every year.
What I'll Miss...Being the perennial BCS favorite.
What I won't Miss...Failing to reach expectations nearly every year.
What I'll Miss...Skip Holtz in white.
What I won't Miss...Rick Pitino in white.
What I'll Miss...The Backyard Brawl.
What I Won't Miss...Playing DePaul in anything.
What I'll Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry (WVU/Cuse)
What I Won't Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry.
In all seriousness, the Big East was good to West Virginia. There are a lot of great memories...really too many to choose from. But, it's time to take the next step. Big 12, here we come.
What I'll Miss...Big East Championship at the Garden.
What I Won't Miss...The terrible yearly ESPN theme song for the Big East Championship.
What I'll Miss...Trips to New England, so I am within driving distance to see WVU.
What I Won't Miss...Trips to New England, so I don't have to see them lose some terrible game to UConn.
What I'll Miss...Beating Rutgers in football, every year.
What I Won't Miss...Losing to Syracuse in basketball, every year.
What I'll Miss...Being the perennial BCS favorite.
What I won't Miss...Failing to reach expectations nearly every year.
What I'll Miss...Skip Holtz in white.
What I won't Miss...Rick Pitino in white.
What I'll Miss...The Backyard Brawl.
What I Won't Miss...Playing DePaul in anything.
What I'll Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry (WVU/Cuse)
What I Won't Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry.
In all seriousness, the Big East was good to West Virginia. There are a lot of great memories...really too many to choose from. But, it's time to take the next step. Big 12, here we come.
WVU's New Football Foes
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Now that it looks like WVU is heading to the Big 12 in 2012, what is the team's chances of second straight year to a BCS game? The Mountaineers should be able to integrate right in, and be competitive. But, where exactly do they stand? Let's take a quick look at the conference for 2012.
Baylor: No Robert Griffin III, not a lot of defense equals a rebuilding year for the Bears.
Iowa State: A bowl team from a year ago, questions at quarterback and defense will keep them midpack.
Kansas: Transition year for the Jayhawks as Charlie Weiss takes over the team. It will be interesting to see what he does at the quarterback position.
Kansas State: Quarterback Collin Klein is back, and so is much of the defense. Another solid season for the Wildcats is in the cards.
Oklahoma: Landry Jones and most of the offensive line are back, so scoring won't be a problem. Defensive needs to catch up.
Oklahoma State: Lost major keys parts on offense and defense, but should remain competitive with younger guys stepping in.
Texas: Too many questions for the offense entering the Spring to make them a true contender. Defense did step up last year, and helped the team stay in games.
TCU: The newcomer will have an explosive offense if the young line gives Casey Pachall time to throw. Will be a very competitive team right away.
Texas Tech: Plenty of talent, just a lack of execution over the last few years. Crucial year for Tommy Tuberville to get team to buy into system.
Now that it looks like WVU is heading to the Big 12 in 2012, what is the team's chances of second straight year to a BCS game? The Mountaineers should be able to integrate right in, and be competitive. But, where exactly do they stand? Let's take a quick look at the conference for 2012.Baylor: No Robert Griffin III, not a lot of defense equals a rebuilding year for the Bears.
Iowa State: A bowl team from a year ago, questions at quarterback and defense will keep them midpack.
Kansas: Transition year for the Jayhawks as Charlie Weiss takes over the team. It will be interesting to see what he does at the quarterback position.
Kansas State: Quarterback Collin Klein is back, and so is much of the defense. Another solid season for the Wildcats is in the cards.
Oklahoma: Landry Jones and most of the offensive line are back, so scoring won't be a problem. Defensive needs to catch up.
Oklahoma State: Lost major keys parts on offense and defense, but should remain competitive with younger guys stepping in.
Texas: Too many questions for the offense entering the Spring to make them a true contender. Defense did step up last year, and helped the team stay in games.
TCU: The newcomer will have an explosive offense if the young line gives Casey Pachall time to throw. Will be a very competitive team right away.
Texas Tech: Plenty of talent, just a lack of execution over the last few years. Crucial year for Tommy Tuberville to get team to buy into system.
A Quick Look at WVU's 2012 Schedule
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Here is a look at WVU's schedule for the upcoming year...the first in the Big 12!
Day, Date, Opponent, Time
Sat. Sept. 1 Marshall TBA
Note: Why?
Sat. Sept. 8 Open
Sat. Sept. 15 vs. James Madison + TBA
Note: Cash grab game in DC.
Sat. Sept. 22 Maryland TBA
Note: Is there anybody still playing for the Terps?
Sat. Sept. 29 Baylor # TBA
Note: Interesting homecoming game. And, the first Big 12 game ever for WVU.
Sat. Oct. 6 at Texas TBA
Note: First trip in the Big 12 is to take on the Legend of the conference.
Sat. Oct. 13 at Texas Tech TBA
Note: One of Dana's former stomping grounds. Defense optional.
Sat. Oct. 20 Kansas State TBA
Note: Huge matchup, as Kansas State looks to be one of the top teams.
Sat. Oct. 27 Open
Sat. Nov. 3 TCU ^ TBA
Note: The battle of former Big East teams? Kind-of?
Sat. Nov. 10 at Oklahoma State TBA
Note: Another former spot for Dana. Take the over.
Sat. Nov. 17 Oklahoma TBA
Note: Depending on how the season goes for both, could be a Gameday option.
Sat. Nov. 24 at Iowa State TBA
Note: I have been looking of forward to the first trip to Ames since October!
Sat. Dec. 1 Kansas TBA
Note: Charlie Weis has some serious work to do.
+-FedEx Field, Landover, MD#-Homecoming^-Mountaineer Day
Here is a look at WVU's schedule for the upcoming year...the first in the Big 12!Day, Date, Opponent, Time
Sat. Sept. 1 Marshall TBA
Note: Why?
Sat. Sept. 8 Open
Sat. Sept. 15 vs. James Madison + TBA
Note: Cash grab game in DC.
Sat. Sept. 22 Maryland TBA
Note: Is there anybody still playing for the Terps?
Sat. Sept. 29 Baylor # TBA
Note: Interesting homecoming game. And, the first Big 12 game ever for WVU.
Sat. Oct. 6 at Texas TBA
Note: First trip in the Big 12 is to take on the Legend of the conference.
Sat. Oct. 13 at Texas Tech TBA
Note: One of Dana's former stomping grounds. Defense optional.
Sat. Oct. 20 Kansas State TBA
Note: Huge matchup, as Kansas State looks to be one of the top teams.
Sat. Oct. 27 Open
Sat. Nov. 3 TCU ^ TBA
Note: The battle of former Big East teams? Kind-of?
Sat. Nov. 10 at Oklahoma State TBA
Note: Another former spot for Dana. Take the over.
Sat. Nov. 17 Oklahoma TBA
Note: Depending on how the season goes for both, could be a Gameday option.
Sat. Nov. 24 at Iowa State TBA
Note: I have been looking of forward to the first trip to Ames since October!
Sat. Dec. 1 Kansas TBA
Note: Charlie Weis has some serious work to do.
+-FedEx Field, Landover, MD#-Homecoming^-Mountaineer Day
12 Ekim 2012 Cuma
Well Hello 2012 Syracuse Football Season
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New stuff in the Dome? New season is here!
It's a new football season in the Carrier Dome starting this Saturday afternoon. Which means it is time for John and I to get off our lazy butts and start writing for Orange::44 again. Fair enough. John has already written a major season preview to wet your appetite for the season and this weekend which I will post below. We'll have my usual game preview tomorrow, our usual postgame coverage next week (day TBD due to the Labor Day holiday), as well as the return of my BlogPoll ballot, which should be more regularly posted this season. Additionally we will do our final Big East Prospectus next week before we leave Big East football behind for the ACC next season. Get your jersey out of the closet, make sure that grill is in good, working order, and we'll see you at the Dome.From John Brennan:Before the season officially kicks off, many people enjoy making their predictions on how the Orange will fair this year. Since I have a soapbox in the form of this blog, I figured I'd chime in with some off the cuff, gut feelings on these games before any are even played. Not based on statistics or research, just my beer gut. It will be interesting to compare this to the actual results once December rolls around.Northwestern @ Syracuse: I like Syracuse in this one because it's in the Dome; I don't like Syracuse in this one because it's at noon. Those competing forces make this a toss-up. Rustiness and jitters aside, I think Syracuse comes out pumped and prepared for this one, and hopefully with an orange-clad crowd loud in the Dome, it won't matter whether it's 12pm or 8pm. Syracuse wants to make a statement that its daunting toughest non-conference schedule in the country is not something to lay down and let it run them over. I see a tight one, possibly overtime, but Syracuse wins.USC @ Syracuse: Though this is a home game for the Orange, that home is in East Rutherford, NJ, and I won't be there. In fact, Brian and I will be watching on our WatchESPN apps while at my brother's wedding. If my Best Man speech starts tanking (unlikely), I'll give the wedding-goers some play-by-play updates on the game. It'll go something like this: "Syracuse is getting demolished by the #1 team in the country. Who would have thought?" Syracuse loses.Stony Brook @ Syracuse: Though Stony Brook is one of the best FCS teams in the country, they're still an FCS team. Syracuse has a history of playing down to its competition, but with a good Stony Brook team, maybe that degradation in play won't happen. Plus, it's in the Dome, so there will be a solid 25,000 fans there wondering why the Dome announces official attendance at 39,000. Look for Ryan Nassib to have a career game and for Syracuse to win easily.Syracuse @ Minnesota: The first true road game for the Orange gives one of its most important tests of the season. While this is definitely a winnable game, it's also a loseable game. After this game Syracuse gets a bye week to prepare to open its final Big East slate, so a win would give great momentum to build upon in the bye week. I'll be optimistic and give this one to Syracuse.Pittsburgh @ Syracuse: Big East schedule makers put this soon-to-be ACC match-up first on the schedule. That means nothing. What matters is how each of these teams has been playing up to this point and, more importantly, how they play on October 5. It's a Friday night in the Dome in October, and we saw some magic there last year against West Virginia. If Syracuse is my projected 3-1 heading into this game, they have a legitimate shot at winning. But I'll hedge a bit and chalk this up as a loss.Syracuse @ Rutgers: When the Orange last played in Piscataway, in 2010, it clinched bowl eligibility en route to the Pinstripe Bowl. If the Orange pull the impossible and go into this game undefeated, they can clinch bowl eligibility yet again with a win over the Scarlet Knights. Things won't shake out that way because, come on, Syracuse is not opening the season 6-0. But it should be able to beat a Greg Schiano-less Rutgers squad. I choose Syracuse.Connecticut @ Syracuse: Arguably the most anticipated game on the 2012 slate for the Orange, as former Head Coach Paul Pasqualoni returns to the Dome for the first time to coach the Huskies. Last year's match-up in East Hartford was a huge disappointment for Syracuse, so revenge will be fresh on our minds. Plus, you know, the whole Coach P thing, which led to the Greggers thing, which... let's not go there. The magic of a Friday night, nationally televised game in the Dome should be enough for the Orange to get a victory. But I predict Coach P screws us again, and Syracuse loses.Syracuse @ South Florida: USF is supposed to be decent this year, right? I don't even know. But the last time Syracuse invaded Tampa, it left with a victory. I'll predict a mid-season lull for the Orange, which leads to a loss against the Bulls.Syracuse @ Cincinnati: A second straight road game for the Orange, and I have a feeling Syracuse struggles on the road this season. People are expecting a middle-of-the-pack Bearcats team this year, so if Syracuse plays the way I'm predicting, this could be a good game. But I say Syracuse loses on the road.Louisville @ Syracuse: Homecoming for the Orange on Veteran's Day weekend. This could allow for the Dome to be pretty full and pretty loud. In other words, the way it should be. And that's good, because the Cardinals have all the expectations in this league this year. So I'm struggling to pick this game. But I'll do what history tells me to do: lots of disappointed alumni leave the Carrier Dome early to invade Faegan's & Chuck's.Syracuse @ Missouri: Syracuse interrupts its Big East schedule to finish out its tough non-conference schedule with Missouri. The Tigers could be decent this year, but my feeling is that its record won't reflect it, with its new membership in the SEC. I'd give Syracuse a fighting chance if this game was in the Dome, but it's not. So Syracuse loses.Syracuse @ Temple: Oh, hey friend. I remember you. You're like that abused wife who got kicked out of the husband's house, but then when the low-life couldn't pick up the pieces, he said he was sorry and begged you to come back. (Not to make light of the cycle of violence; domestic violence is horrible). And so, here you are, the Grover Cleveland of the Big East. Our paths will only pass just this one time in your second term, because we're off to greener (i.e. $$$) pastures. The last time Syracuse played at Temple, things didn't go so well for the Orange. But I think Syracuse ends the regular season on a high note and beats the lowly Owls.Adding it up, it looks like I'm calling for the Orange to go 5-7. If the squad doesn't struggle on the road in the second half of the season, that could very easily become a 6-6 or a 7-5. Of course, all this preseason prognostication is just a way for us to have a little fun and see where it all ends up. The fun part will (hopefully) be actually watching the games. I look forward to it. GO ORANGE!
New stuff in the Dome? New season is here!It's a new football season in the Carrier Dome starting this Saturday afternoon. Which means it is time for John and I to get off our lazy butts and start writing for Orange::44 again. Fair enough. John has already written a major season preview to wet your appetite for the season and this weekend which I will post below. We'll have my usual game preview tomorrow, our usual postgame coverage next week (day TBD due to the Labor Day holiday), as well as the return of my BlogPoll ballot, which should be more regularly posted this season. Additionally we will do our final Big East Prospectus next week before we leave Big East football behind for the ACC next season. Get your jersey out of the closet, make sure that grill is in good, working order, and we'll see you at the Dome.From John Brennan:Before the season officially kicks off, many people enjoy making their predictions on how the Orange will fair this year. Since I have a soapbox in the form of this blog, I figured I'd chime in with some off the cuff, gut feelings on these games before any are even played. Not based on statistics or research, just my beer gut. It will be interesting to compare this to the actual results once December rolls around.Northwestern @ Syracuse: I like Syracuse in this one because it's in the Dome; I don't like Syracuse in this one because it's at noon. Those competing forces make this a toss-up. Rustiness and jitters aside, I think Syracuse comes out pumped and prepared for this one, and hopefully with an orange-clad crowd loud in the Dome, it won't matter whether it's 12pm or 8pm. Syracuse wants to make a statement that its daunting toughest non-conference schedule in the country is not something to lay down and let it run them over. I see a tight one, possibly overtime, but Syracuse wins.USC @ Syracuse: Though this is a home game for the Orange, that home is in East Rutherford, NJ, and I won't be there. In fact, Brian and I will be watching on our WatchESPN apps while at my brother's wedding. If my Best Man speech starts tanking (unlikely), I'll give the wedding-goers some play-by-play updates on the game. It'll go something like this: "Syracuse is getting demolished by the #1 team in the country. Who would have thought?" Syracuse loses.Stony Brook @ Syracuse: Though Stony Brook is one of the best FCS teams in the country, they're still an FCS team. Syracuse has a history of playing down to its competition, but with a good Stony Brook team, maybe that degradation in play won't happen. Plus, it's in the Dome, so there will be a solid 25,000 fans there wondering why the Dome announces official attendance at 39,000. Look for Ryan Nassib to have a career game and for Syracuse to win easily.Syracuse @ Minnesota: The first true road game for the Orange gives one of its most important tests of the season. While this is definitely a winnable game, it's also a loseable game. After this game Syracuse gets a bye week to prepare to open its final Big East slate, so a win would give great momentum to build upon in the bye week. I'll be optimistic and give this one to Syracuse.Pittsburgh @ Syracuse: Big East schedule makers put this soon-to-be ACC match-up first on the schedule. That means nothing. What matters is how each of these teams has been playing up to this point and, more importantly, how they play on October 5. It's a Friday night in the Dome in October, and we saw some magic there last year against West Virginia. If Syracuse is my projected 3-1 heading into this game, they have a legitimate shot at winning. But I'll hedge a bit and chalk this up as a loss.Syracuse @ Rutgers: When the Orange last played in Piscataway, in 2010, it clinched bowl eligibility en route to the Pinstripe Bowl. If the Orange pull the impossible and go into this game undefeated, they can clinch bowl eligibility yet again with a win over the Scarlet Knights. Things won't shake out that way because, come on, Syracuse is not opening the season 6-0. But it should be able to beat a Greg Schiano-less Rutgers squad. I choose Syracuse.Connecticut @ Syracuse: Arguably the most anticipated game on the 2012 slate for the Orange, as former Head Coach Paul Pasqualoni returns to the Dome for the first time to coach the Huskies. Last year's match-up in East Hartford was a huge disappointment for Syracuse, so revenge will be fresh on our minds. Plus, you know, the whole Coach P thing, which led to the Greggers thing, which... let's not go there. The magic of a Friday night, nationally televised game in the Dome should be enough for the Orange to get a victory. But I predict Coach P screws us again, and Syracuse loses.Syracuse @ South Florida: USF is supposed to be decent this year, right? I don't even know. But the last time Syracuse invaded Tampa, it left with a victory. I'll predict a mid-season lull for the Orange, which leads to a loss against the Bulls.Syracuse @ Cincinnati: A second straight road game for the Orange, and I have a feeling Syracuse struggles on the road this season. People are expecting a middle-of-the-pack Bearcats team this year, so if Syracuse plays the way I'm predicting, this could be a good game. But I say Syracuse loses on the road.Louisville @ Syracuse: Homecoming for the Orange on Veteran's Day weekend. This could allow for the Dome to be pretty full and pretty loud. In other words, the way it should be. And that's good, because the Cardinals have all the expectations in this league this year. So I'm struggling to pick this game. But I'll do what history tells me to do: lots of disappointed alumni leave the Carrier Dome early to invade Faegan's & Chuck's.Syracuse @ Missouri: Syracuse interrupts its Big East schedule to finish out its tough non-conference schedule with Missouri. The Tigers could be decent this year, but my feeling is that its record won't reflect it, with its new membership in the SEC. I'd give Syracuse a fighting chance if this game was in the Dome, but it's not. So Syracuse loses.Syracuse @ Temple: Oh, hey friend. I remember you. You're like that abused wife who got kicked out of the husband's house, but then when the low-life couldn't pick up the pieces, he said he was sorry and begged you to come back. (Not to make light of the cycle of violence; domestic violence is horrible). And so, here you are, the Grover Cleveland of the Big East. Our paths will only pass just this one time in your second term, because we're off to greener (i.e. $$$) pastures. The last time Syracuse played at Temple, things didn't go so well for the Orange. But I think Syracuse ends the regular season on a high note and beats the lowly Owls.Adding it up, it looks like I'm calling for the Orange to go 5-7. If the squad doesn't struggle on the road in the second half of the season, that could very easily become a 6-6 or a 7-5. Of course, all this preseason prognostication is just a way for us to have a little fun and see where it all ends up. The fun part will (hopefully) be actually watching the games. I look forward to it. GO ORANGE!
Northwestern Quick Predictions
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Meeeeoooow.Syracuse will be starting this season like every season; optimistic. Syracuse has a veteran QB in Ryan Nassib behind center, as well as the return of a deep threat in Marcus Sales. But will Syracuse play to potential, or again come up massively short?Syracuse will be successful in the offensive game. Ryan Nassib completes passes. However, most of those passes were completed between 10 and 11 yards. No deep threat and no shots taken last year for the most part. A far contrast from the Pinstripe Bowl game in which we saw a flea flicker to Marcus Sales for a huge touchdown and hope that Syracuse had finally turned the corner from the horrid last coaching era that we dare not name. Not the case in 2011 as Syracuse took a pretty considerable step back, West Virginia game aside. Barely beating Wake Forrest, Akron, and Rhode Island did not spark confidence, and after the West Virginia drubbing the team regressed well past the mean. The ending at Pittsburgh was particularly maddening. But this is a new year. Sales is back on the team, even though Nick Provo and Van Chew are not. One massive target is enough for any offense to do somewhat well. Add Alec Lemon who will probably play (hopefully without a massive case of the dropsies) and that will be enough to keep some secondary players occupied. That means Jerome Smith needs to get some yards per carry. Center Macky MacPherson will be taking snaps for the Orange so hopefully the first play doesn't start with the ball going over Nassib's head to start. Either way, the offense will not be the factor in this game. The defense will be the key for the Orange if they are to achieve victory. Northwestern's top two receivers and top tight end are being replaced this season and the Northwestern pass rush is vulnerable. Chandler Jones is now on the Pats however. Syracuse needs to find success pressuring the quarterback as we all know the secondary will not bail out Syracuse. I think Syracuse will keep this game close, but Syracuse will fall to the Wildcats. The purple menace over the Orange 31 to 20.The season starts on ESPN 2 at Noon on Saturday. I've decided to venture to the Carrier Dome from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at the last minute so I'll be in the Dome with JBren and we'll be hilarious on the mobile internet Twitter machines, so enjoy all that. Also available on ESPN 3. Enjoy your weekend and Go Orange!
Meeeeoooow.Syracuse will be starting this season like every season; optimistic. Syracuse has a veteran QB in Ryan Nassib behind center, as well as the return of a deep threat in Marcus Sales. But will Syracuse play to potential, or again come up massively short?Syracuse will be successful in the offensive game. Ryan Nassib completes passes. However, most of those passes were completed between 10 and 11 yards. No deep threat and no shots taken last year for the most part. A far contrast from the Pinstripe Bowl game in which we saw a flea flicker to Marcus Sales for a huge touchdown and hope that Syracuse had finally turned the corner from the horrid last coaching era that we dare not name. Not the case in 2011 as Syracuse took a pretty considerable step back, West Virginia game aside. Barely beating Wake Forrest, Akron, and Rhode Island did not spark confidence, and after the West Virginia drubbing the team regressed well past the mean. The ending at Pittsburgh was particularly maddening. But this is a new year. Sales is back on the team, even though Nick Provo and Van Chew are not. One massive target is enough for any offense to do somewhat well. Add Alec Lemon who will probably play (hopefully without a massive case of the dropsies) and that will be enough to keep some secondary players occupied. That means Jerome Smith needs to get some yards per carry. Center Macky MacPherson will be taking snaps for the Orange so hopefully the first play doesn't start with the ball going over Nassib's head to start. Either way, the offense will not be the factor in this game. The defense will be the key for the Orange if they are to achieve victory. Northwestern's top two receivers and top tight end are being replaced this season and the Northwestern pass rush is vulnerable. Chandler Jones is now on the Pats however. Syracuse needs to find success pressuring the quarterback as we all know the secondary will not bail out Syracuse. I think Syracuse will keep this game close, but Syracuse will fall to the Wildcats. The purple menace over the Orange 31 to 20.The season starts on ESPN 2 at Noon on Saturday. I've decided to venture to the Carrier Dome from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at the last minute so I'll be in the Dome with JBren and we'll be hilarious on the mobile internet Twitter machines, so enjoy all that. Also available on ESPN 3. Enjoy your weekend and Go Orange!
Syracuse - Minnesota Postgame Reactions OR Now We're In Trouble
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Yeah, I looked like this in front of my TV too.Syracuse looked to pick up a win against one of the weaker non-conference games in the slate of five that together was ruled the hardest in the nation. Syracuse entered Minnesota hoping for a competitive game and a nice win to put the team at .500. Alas, Syracuse came and played their worst game of the season. Which is odd because it's the fourth game. Minnesota wins 17 to 10.OffenseDRyan Nassib (21/31, 228yds, 1 TD, 2 INT) had his worst game of the season, including throwing a pick in the end zone. While, overall, he did not play his worst game of his career, he did manage to really hurt Syracuse's chances in closing the scoring gap between Syracuse and Minnestoa. I could go on about the good work the running backs did (other than fumbles), or how Marcus Sales is still fantastic. But what matters is that for three consecutive drives the ball was coughed up to Minnestoa. It happened for various reasons, but no major D-1 program can cough up the ball in three consecutive drives and be called anything close to good.DefenseCSyracuse's defense was average to good. They stopped them nine out of 15 times on third down. They also tackled better in this game, even though the secondary seemed to regress (although maybe it just looks like they did as they were playing a much better passing team than Stony Brook). Either way, a passable but not great or elite effort.Special TeamsB+Ross Krautman went back to making all of his one attempts and his extra point. Punting, punt returning, and kick and kick coverage was much better this game. Nothing really bad to report.CoachingCMarcus Sales is a certified stud receiver. Maybe the game plan should be to run some plays designed to get the ball Marcus Sales' direction before late in the fourth quarter. Additionally, the red zone play calling is still not up to snuff, which is probably the most troubling of all. Additionally, Syracuse fans that are students of history should know better than anyone that the "Run, Run, Pass, Punt" offense doesn't work. Yet, Syracuse continued to utilize that series in various drives, only to put the ball to Minnesota. We talked about Doug Marrone in the Nunes/Magician podcast here (which you should listen to) and most of the mistakes on the field are not Doug's fault, or his staff's. But we're getting to the point where the coaching is clearly not putting Syracuse in a position to win the game. That is a disturbing trend when this is not Doug's first go around anymore.GPAC (2.06)Syracuse played stinko in this game. Bottom line, Syracuse looked the worst it's been all season. There are no excuses for how Syracuse played and sadly they lost a winable game. Which are the worst kinds of games to lose. Hell, this team beat the spread on then #2 USC only a couple weeks before. Brutal.Syracuse now has a much needed bye week before taking on Pittsburgh in a Friday Night Big East affair in the Carrier Dome. Hopefully they come out firing. And no one really knows which Pittsburgh team shows up either. Fun stuff. Or soul crushing. Yes... soul crushing.
Yeah, I looked like this in front of my TV too.Syracuse looked to pick up a win against one of the weaker non-conference games in the slate of five that together was ruled the hardest in the nation. Syracuse entered Minnesota hoping for a competitive game and a nice win to put the team at .500. Alas, Syracuse came and played their worst game of the season. Which is odd because it's the fourth game. Minnesota wins 17 to 10.OffenseDRyan Nassib (21/31, 228yds, 1 TD, 2 INT) had his worst game of the season, including throwing a pick in the end zone. While, overall, he did not play his worst game of his career, he did manage to really hurt Syracuse's chances in closing the scoring gap between Syracuse and Minnestoa. I could go on about the good work the running backs did (other than fumbles), or how Marcus Sales is still fantastic. But what matters is that for three consecutive drives the ball was coughed up to Minnestoa. It happened for various reasons, but no major D-1 program can cough up the ball in three consecutive drives and be called anything close to good.DefenseCSyracuse's defense was average to good. They stopped them nine out of 15 times on third down. They also tackled better in this game, even though the secondary seemed to regress (although maybe it just looks like they did as they were playing a much better passing team than Stony Brook). Either way, a passable but not great or elite effort.Special TeamsB+Ross Krautman went back to making all of his one attempts and his extra point. Punting, punt returning, and kick and kick coverage was much better this game. Nothing really bad to report.CoachingCMarcus Sales is a certified stud receiver. Maybe the game plan should be to run some plays designed to get the ball Marcus Sales' direction before late in the fourth quarter. Additionally, the red zone play calling is still not up to snuff, which is probably the most troubling of all. Additionally, Syracuse fans that are students of history should know better than anyone that the "Run, Run, Pass, Punt" offense doesn't work. Yet, Syracuse continued to utilize that series in various drives, only to put the ball to Minnesota. We talked about Doug Marrone in the Nunes/Magician podcast here (which you should listen to) and most of the mistakes on the field are not Doug's fault, or his staff's. But we're getting to the point where the coaching is clearly not putting Syracuse in a position to win the game. That is a disturbing trend when this is not Doug's first go around anymore.GPAC (2.06)Syracuse played stinko in this game. Bottom line, Syracuse looked the worst it's been all season. There are no excuses for how Syracuse played and sadly they lost a winable game. Which are the worst kinds of games to lose. Hell, this team beat the spread on then #2 USC only a couple weeks before. Brutal.Syracuse now has a much needed bye week before taking on Pittsburgh in a Friday Night Big East affair in the Carrier Dome. Hopefully they come out firing. And no one really knows which Pittsburgh team shows up either. Fun stuff. Or soul crushing. Yes... soul crushing.
Has Syracuse's Success Stalled?
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Has the Syracuse offense had any Red Zone swagger?So, here we sit. A third of the season behind us. The entire Big East slate ahead of us, along with a random trip to Missouri. But the four games the Orange has played so far tells us a lot about what we can expect, a lot about what needs to be fixed, and a lot about our expectations of this program's direction.After Syracuse fell short to Northwestern in the season opener 42-41, and then put up a hell of a fight against Southern California, there was a lot of positivism and excitement around the program. Syracuse was "the best 0-2 team in the nation." Moral victories don't mean anything, but we certainly felt that the Orange was this close to being good.Then there was that "disappointing" win against Stony Brook.It was classic Syracuse "play to the level of your competition." SBU was certainly no push-over, being one of the best FCS teams in the country. But that's not supposed to matter. FBS teams are supposed to manhandle FCS teams. Syracuse, in many ways, was lucky to leave Ernie Davis Legends Field with a win.So it all came down to the game in Minnesota. It was a chance for the Orange to win a big game on the road against a quality BCS conference opponent. It was a chance to pick up momentum heading into a bye week before hitting the conference schedule head on. And what did Syracuse do? Blew it.But it was inevitable. We should have seen it coming. Ryan Nassib's impressive numbers; the offense's ability to move the chains; the "we're almost there" mentality. It was all fake. It was a bunch of getting really worked up, and then getting disappointed, having nothing to show for it. Football blue balls.Really what I'm talking about is an inability to consistently convert yards gained to points. Syracuse was great at moving the ball down the field, but then would get within field goal range and stall. Little to nothing to show for the 50-60 yards it had just gained.My assumption was that it was Red Zone inefficiency. But then I looked at the stats. In 2012's four games so far, Syracuse has been in the Red Zone 18 times: 15 scores (83%), with 11 touchdowns (61%) and four field goals (22%). That shocked me. That's pretty decent Red Zone efficiency, especially on the TD side of things.The problem must be Syracuse just not quite getting to the Red Zone. And this is where I think the much talked about mistakes, penalties, and questionable play-calling come in. I won't go on and on about it here; much better articles have been written and sports radio interviews have thoroughly covered those topics. But, isn't that where the Orange Achilles Heel is?Last week's bye couldn't have come at a better time, as it turns out. Some time to put the brakes on a team careening out of control. Some time to rework the offensive playbook for the opponent's side of the field. Some time to re-instill the basic tenets of rules and discipline.Let's face it: the Big East is wide open. Yeah, Louisville's 5-0, Rutgers 4-0, Cincinnati 3-0; but there's a lot of football to be played. And that same feeling we had about the team after it started 0-2 can still be felt. We can't just be this close. We can be there. Or here, I guess. It of course depends on fixing those things I just mentioned, but there's eight games left, and only five wins needed to qualify for a bowl game.When Syracuse plays Pittsburgh on Friday, it will have been 350 days since the Orange beat a FBS opponent. I'm all for putting on our orange-tinted glasses and hoping for the best.
Has the Syracuse offense had any Red Zone swagger?So, here we sit. A third of the season behind us. The entire Big East slate ahead of us, along with a random trip to Missouri. But the four games the Orange has played so far tells us a lot about what we can expect, a lot about what needs to be fixed, and a lot about our expectations of this program's direction.After Syracuse fell short to Northwestern in the season opener 42-41, and then put up a hell of a fight against Southern California, there was a lot of positivism and excitement around the program. Syracuse was "the best 0-2 team in the nation." Moral victories don't mean anything, but we certainly felt that the Orange was this close to being good.Then there was that "disappointing" win against Stony Brook.It was classic Syracuse "play to the level of your competition." SBU was certainly no push-over, being one of the best FCS teams in the country. But that's not supposed to matter. FBS teams are supposed to manhandle FCS teams. Syracuse, in many ways, was lucky to leave Ernie Davis Legends Field with a win.So it all came down to the game in Minnesota. It was a chance for the Orange to win a big game on the road against a quality BCS conference opponent. It was a chance to pick up momentum heading into a bye week before hitting the conference schedule head on. And what did Syracuse do? Blew it.But it was inevitable. We should have seen it coming. Ryan Nassib's impressive numbers; the offense's ability to move the chains; the "we're almost there" mentality. It was all fake. It was a bunch of getting really worked up, and then getting disappointed, having nothing to show for it. Football blue balls.Really what I'm talking about is an inability to consistently convert yards gained to points. Syracuse was great at moving the ball down the field, but then would get within field goal range and stall. Little to nothing to show for the 50-60 yards it had just gained.My assumption was that it was Red Zone inefficiency. But then I looked at the stats. In 2012's four games so far, Syracuse has been in the Red Zone 18 times: 15 scores (83%), with 11 touchdowns (61%) and four field goals (22%). That shocked me. That's pretty decent Red Zone efficiency, especially on the TD side of things.The problem must be Syracuse just not quite getting to the Red Zone. And this is where I think the much talked about mistakes, penalties, and questionable play-calling come in. I won't go on and on about it here; much better articles have been written and sports radio interviews have thoroughly covered those topics. But, isn't that where the Orange Achilles Heel is?Last week's bye couldn't have come at a better time, as it turns out. Some time to put the brakes on a team careening out of control. Some time to rework the offensive playbook for the opponent's side of the field. Some time to re-instill the basic tenets of rules and discipline.Let's face it: the Big East is wide open. Yeah, Louisville's 5-0, Rutgers 4-0, Cincinnati 3-0; but there's a lot of football to be played. And that same feeling we had about the team after it started 0-2 can still be felt. We can't just be this close. We can be there. Or here, I guess. It of course depends on fixing those things I just mentioned, but there's eight games left, and only five wins needed to qualify for a bowl game.When Syracuse plays Pittsburgh on Friday, it will have been 350 days since the Orange beat a FBS opponent. I'm all for putting on our orange-tinted glasses and hoping for the best.
Pittsburgh - Syracuse Postgame Reactions OR Syracuse Loves Fridays
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Ryan Nassib did just enough to earn the big win.Syracuse opened Big East play coming off a much needed bye week. Their last outing was a disaster so facing an up and down Pitt team with an extra week of preparation worked out perfectly for the struggling Orange. It worked out, despite a lackluster performance from the Syracuse offense. Syracuse pulls out the one point win in the Dome 14-13.OffenseCRyan Nassib (19/30, 185yds, 0 TD, 1 INT) had a lackluster day. Marcus Sales managed six receptions but only earned 63 yards and no touchdowns. The real stars of the offense were the rushes of Jerome Smith and Prince-Tyson Gulley. They were able to ice the game when they needed to, and Syracuse did just enough on offense to put the ball in decent field position. Syracuse was only 5-14 on third down conversions and had only 305 total offensive yards, less than Pittsburgh. Additionally, Syracuse got killed in time of possession by about ten minutes. Then there was that unfortunate pick in the end zone, something Syracuse allegedly worked on all bye week to prevent.DefenseB+Syracuse was able to pressure Tino Sunseri at various points. They also virtually disabled RB Ray Graham. Not only that, but they forced a turnover and earned a fumble recovery for a touchdown. That was half of Syracuse's points in this game. They also pushed them out of field goal range late in this game. Despite not covering Devin Street for most of the game, allowing him a career day, Syracuse managed to do just enough to stop Pitt from scoring anything more than a field goal in the second half, putting them one point short.Special TeamsBWhile the initial kickoff coverage against Pittsburgh was terrible, Syracuse then proceeded to pin punt after punt deep in Pittsburgh territory. The Pitt kicker missed one of his three field goal attempts, and Ross Krautman was perfect on his two extra points with no field goals attempted. All in all a pretty solid day for the Special Teams. For once.CoachingCMarcus Sales should get more targets a game. Period. Also, I guess all that Red Zone preparation over a bye week was for nothing, considering Nassib threw another end zone pick. Great work out there.GPAC+ (2.58)Yeah, it was a win. Syracuse did just enough to literally win by one point. But the offense stalled most of the game. The defense really had to bail out Syracuse by not only scoring the final touchdown for the Orange, but also had to knock Pittsburgh out of field goal range to preserve the lead late in the game. The Orange held on and played really well when the really needed to, but this game was closer than it could have been had the success of the first drive been consistently repeated.Syracuse travels to Rutgers on Saturday to play the nooner in New Jersey. Looks like this will be the last time Syracuse has to travel to New Jersey for a while. Sounds good to me. Syracuse will be trying to pull the upset over ranked Rutgers. Yeah, I don't have them ranked in my Blogpoll either.
Ryan Nassib did just enough to earn the big win.Syracuse opened Big East play coming off a much needed bye week. Their last outing was a disaster so facing an up and down Pitt team with an extra week of preparation worked out perfectly for the struggling Orange. It worked out, despite a lackluster performance from the Syracuse offense. Syracuse pulls out the one point win in the Dome 14-13.OffenseCRyan Nassib (19/30, 185yds, 0 TD, 1 INT) had a lackluster day. Marcus Sales managed six receptions but only earned 63 yards and no touchdowns. The real stars of the offense were the rushes of Jerome Smith and Prince-Tyson Gulley. They were able to ice the game when they needed to, and Syracuse did just enough on offense to put the ball in decent field position. Syracuse was only 5-14 on third down conversions and had only 305 total offensive yards, less than Pittsburgh. Additionally, Syracuse got killed in time of possession by about ten minutes. Then there was that unfortunate pick in the end zone, something Syracuse allegedly worked on all bye week to prevent.DefenseB+Syracuse was able to pressure Tino Sunseri at various points. They also virtually disabled RB Ray Graham. Not only that, but they forced a turnover and earned a fumble recovery for a touchdown. That was half of Syracuse's points in this game. They also pushed them out of field goal range late in this game. Despite not covering Devin Street for most of the game, allowing him a career day, Syracuse managed to do just enough to stop Pitt from scoring anything more than a field goal in the second half, putting them one point short.Special TeamsBWhile the initial kickoff coverage against Pittsburgh was terrible, Syracuse then proceeded to pin punt after punt deep in Pittsburgh territory. The Pitt kicker missed one of his three field goal attempts, and Ross Krautman was perfect on his two extra points with no field goals attempted. All in all a pretty solid day for the Special Teams. For once.CoachingCMarcus Sales should get more targets a game. Period. Also, I guess all that Red Zone preparation over a bye week was for nothing, considering Nassib threw another end zone pick. Great work out there.GPAC+ (2.58)Yeah, it was a win. Syracuse did just enough to literally win by one point. But the offense stalled most of the game. The defense really had to bail out Syracuse by not only scoring the final touchdown for the Orange, but also had to knock Pittsburgh out of field goal range to preserve the lead late in the game. The Orange held on and played really well when the really needed to, but this game was closer than it could have been had the success of the first drive been consistently repeated.Syracuse travels to Rutgers on Saturday to play the nooner in New Jersey. Looks like this will be the last time Syracuse has to travel to New Jersey for a while. Sounds good to me. Syracuse will be trying to pull the upset over ranked Rutgers. Yeah, I don't have them ranked in my Blogpoll either.
11 Ekim 2012 Perşembe
BlogPoll 2012 - Week 1 Ballot
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SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »*I didn't fill out a Preseason ballot so there are no deltas to see the change of teams. But I dropped Michigan from #8, I dropped Wisconsin a few spots, moved Oklahoma State up slightly, and Stanford and Boise State dropped a couple spots as well in my mind from my initial rankings based on the actual Top 25.
*By far, the #1 and #2 spots belong to USC and Alabama. Then there is everyone else.
*Michigan, despite playing #2, was at a neutral site and should have been more competitive against Alabama. That is why they fell the way they did. I was pretty underwhelmed and are not a top tier team until they prove otherwise in my mind.
*Oklahoma State put up a score of 83-0. I'd be more impressed if they played a team not in the dregs of 1-AA.
*By now you should know how this works. But in case you don't or need a refresher, I'll be posting my weekly ballots on Mondays. You can leave comments and if valid points are made I can revise my ballot anytime before Noon on Wednesdays, at which point the poll will go live on SBNation. Have fun, leave constructive comments, and be nice. Football is fun after all.
Orange::44 Ballot - Week 1
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | USC Trojans | -- |
| 2 | Alabama Crimson Tide | -- |
| 3 | LSU Tigers | -- |
| 4 | Oregon Ducks | -- |
| 5 | Oklahoma Sooners | -- |
| 6 | Georgia Bulldogs | -- |
| 7 | Florida St. Seminoles | -- |
| 8 | South Carolina Gamecocks | -- |
| 9 | Arkansas Razorbacks | -- |
| 10 | West Virginia Mountaineers | -- |
| 11 | Michigan St. Spartans | -- |
| 12 | Clemson Tigers | -- |
| 13 | Texas Longhorns | -- |
| 14 | Wisconsin Badgers | -- |
| 15 | Virginia Tech Hokies | -- |
| 16 | Nebraska Cornhuskers | -- |
| 17 | Ohio St. Buckeyes | -- |
| 18 | Oklahoma St. Cowboys | -- |
| 19 | Michigan Wolverines | -- |
| 20 | TCU Horned Frogs | -- |
| 21 | Kansas St. Wildcats | -- |
| 22 | Florida Gators | -- |
| 23 | Louisville Cardinals | -- |
| 24 | Stanford Cardinal | -- |
| 25 | Boise St. Broncos | -- |
*By far, the #1 and #2 spots belong to USC and Alabama. Then there is everyone else.
*Michigan, despite playing #2, was at a neutral site and should have been more competitive against Alabama. That is why they fell the way they did. I was pretty underwhelmed and are not a top tier team until they prove otherwise in my mind.
*Oklahoma State put up a score of 83-0. I'd be more impressed if they played a team not in the dregs of 1-AA.
*By now you should know how this works. But in case you don't or need a refresher, I'll be posting my weekly ballots on Mondays. You can leave comments and if valid points are made I can revise my ballot anytime before Noon on Wednesdays, at which point the poll will go live on SBNation. Have fun, leave constructive comments, and be nice. Football is fun after all.
Northwestern - Syracuse Postgame Reactions OR Derp!
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After all that, we were also left asking "wha happened?"Syracuse Football opens every season with excitement and optimism. This year was no exception. I, more than a decent chunk of fans, have realistic expectations when looking at this football team. I called this as a loss. That's not why this game was so soul crushing. It was the mental mistakes, bizarre penalties, and moments of truly astounding ineptness. And then falling short by only one point. To the first report card of 2012.OffenseB+Ryan Nassib (44/65, 470yds, 4 TD, 1 INT) had a career day and set a school record for completions in a single game. While he was overall impressive, he definitely had some opening game jitters in underthrowing and overthrowing the ball several times. He was 50% responsible for Marcus Sales tipping up the ball for his only interception of the day as well for throwing low. But that being said, he played his heart out and did his best to try and win the game. Not his fault that didn't happen. Marcus Sales (11rec, 117yds, 10.6avg, 1 TD) announced his presence with authority as he returned from a year off due to legal troubles. Jerome Smith and Prince-Tyson Gulley combined for 84yds on 17 carries and 1 TD so not too bad in the running department either. Really, the offense put up 28 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarters to take the lead before Northwestern scored the go ahead touchdown. Not too shabby, but again, receivers have to know when they are running past the first down line or just drifting in the middle of the field. 12 -20 on third down conversions and 33 first downs, with 596 total yards is pretty spectacular all things considered however.DefenseCThe defense played pretty well overall, especially in the first half. Poor field position thanks to Special Teams is not their fault and really the defense only allowed Northwestern to score 28 of the 42 points essentially. They played better than expected and even managed to break up a few passes. #SHAMARKO Thomas continues to be a very good player for Syracuse and surprisingly the run defense was fairly stingy. Syracuse only allowed Northwestern to convert 5 of 14 third down attempts and stopped them twice on fourth down attempts. It was a passable day for the Orange, despite allowing Northwestern to score in their final drive.Special TeamsCOh boy. They started out well, capitalizing on Northwestern's equally dumb special teams mistakes. But then Syracuse tried to outdo them by allowing a punt return for a touchdown and giving away the majority of the field on field position after punts. Syracuse missed a field goal, which would have not made the final TD by Northwestern the game winner as well, although it was a 43yd attempt. Either way, special teams had an average day, but those mistakes directly led to points on the board for the Wildcats.CoachingCLet me be clear here. Most of the stupid mistakes that occurred on the field were not the fault of the coaches, but the players failing to execute or failing to use their brain. Just unbelievable stupidity. But some of the play calling, especially in the first half was ineffective and they continued to result in punts for Syracuse. However (and this is a first), Marrone was too aggressive on Syracuse's final scoring drive, leaving over two minutes for Northwestern to drive down the field and score. They needed to take a little more time before heading to the end zone, and also tell your players to use the entirety of the play clock. GPAC+ (2.33)While I am encouraged by the fact that the Syracuse offense performed as well as they did, they will not be so lucky in the future I'm guessing. Additionally, mental mistakes and costly special teams plays doomed this team, despite the fact that the offense managed to come back. Hey! Offense wasn't the problem! Yaaaaaaay!. Special teams needs to have a lot of practice time this week however.Intangibles
Let me address the late hit out of bounds penalty. I was sitting in the second tier with the same viewing angle as the referee, who threw the flag (not the line judge on the sideline). As an official myself I would have also thrown that flag if in the same position. Because Lyn had his hands on the player as he went out, despite a probable acting job from Northwestern, officials will throw that flag ten out of ten times. As a player you have to take your hands off the guy once he steps out. Period. Lyn didn't. You can argue that the rule should be clarified on the NCAA's end, but exactly what happened will be called every time, whether you think that is bullshit or not.
A+ to the new video boards and LEDs that line the Dome.
A to the students that showed up and filled the lower sections and a pretty considerable overflow section in the 3rd tier.
D- to the fact it was about 95 degrees inside the Dome during the game. I know there is absolutely nothing they can do about that, but it still sucked.
A+ to the fact you can use your credit card anywhere in the Dome now.
A+ to the fact that beer stands now have several verities on tap at every stand, instead of designated stands for specific beers.
The first game is in the books. Losing by 1 is ROUGH. I'd rather lose by a few touchdowns than by one. Either way, Syracuse starts 0-1. And there is a 99.9% chance they start 0-2. And so it goes. USC is next. The season rolls on.
After all that, we were also left asking "wha happened?"Syracuse Football opens every season with excitement and optimism. This year was no exception. I, more than a decent chunk of fans, have realistic expectations when looking at this football team. I called this as a loss. That's not why this game was so soul crushing. It was the mental mistakes, bizarre penalties, and moments of truly astounding ineptness. And then falling short by only one point. To the first report card of 2012.OffenseB+Ryan Nassib (44/65, 470yds, 4 TD, 1 INT) had a career day and set a school record for completions in a single game. While he was overall impressive, he definitely had some opening game jitters in underthrowing and overthrowing the ball several times. He was 50% responsible for Marcus Sales tipping up the ball for his only interception of the day as well for throwing low. But that being said, he played his heart out and did his best to try and win the game. Not his fault that didn't happen. Marcus Sales (11rec, 117yds, 10.6avg, 1 TD) announced his presence with authority as he returned from a year off due to legal troubles. Jerome Smith and Prince-Tyson Gulley combined for 84yds on 17 carries and 1 TD so not too bad in the running department either. Really, the offense put up 28 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarters to take the lead before Northwestern scored the go ahead touchdown. Not too shabby, but again, receivers have to know when they are running past the first down line or just drifting in the middle of the field. 12 -20 on third down conversions and 33 first downs, with 596 total yards is pretty spectacular all things considered however.DefenseCThe defense played pretty well overall, especially in the first half. Poor field position thanks to Special Teams is not their fault and really the defense only allowed Northwestern to score 28 of the 42 points essentially. They played better than expected and even managed to break up a few passes. #SHAMARKO Thomas continues to be a very good player for Syracuse and surprisingly the run defense was fairly stingy. Syracuse only allowed Northwestern to convert 5 of 14 third down attempts and stopped them twice on fourth down attempts. It was a passable day for the Orange, despite allowing Northwestern to score in their final drive.Special TeamsCOh boy. They started out well, capitalizing on Northwestern's equally dumb special teams mistakes. But then Syracuse tried to outdo them by allowing a punt return for a touchdown and giving away the majority of the field on field position after punts. Syracuse missed a field goal, which would have not made the final TD by Northwestern the game winner as well, although it was a 43yd attempt. Either way, special teams had an average day, but those mistakes directly led to points on the board for the Wildcats.CoachingCLet me be clear here. Most of the stupid mistakes that occurred on the field were not the fault of the coaches, but the players failing to execute or failing to use their brain. Just unbelievable stupidity. But some of the play calling, especially in the first half was ineffective and they continued to result in punts for Syracuse. However (and this is a first), Marrone was too aggressive on Syracuse's final scoring drive, leaving over two minutes for Northwestern to drive down the field and score. They needed to take a little more time before heading to the end zone, and also tell your players to use the entirety of the play clock. GPAC+ (2.33)While I am encouraged by the fact that the Syracuse offense performed as well as they did, they will not be so lucky in the future I'm guessing. Additionally, mental mistakes and costly special teams plays doomed this team, despite the fact that the offense managed to come back. Hey! Offense wasn't the problem! Yaaaaaaay!. Special teams needs to have a lot of practice time this week however.IntangiblesLet me address the late hit out of bounds penalty. I was sitting in the second tier with the same viewing angle as the referee, who threw the flag (not the line judge on the sideline). As an official myself I would have also thrown that flag if in the same position. Because Lyn had his hands on the player as he went out, despite a probable acting job from Northwestern, officials will throw that flag ten out of ten times. As a player you have to take your hands off the guy once he steps out. Period. Lyn didn't. You can argue that the rule should be clarified on the NCAA's end, but exactly what happened will be called every time, whether you think that is bullshit or not.
A+ to the new video boards and LEDs that line the Dome.
A to the students that showed up and filled the lower sections and a pretty considerable overflow section in the 3rd tier.
D- to the fact it was about 95 degrees inside the Dome during the game. I know there is absolutely nothing they can do about that, but it still sucked.
A+ to the fact you can use your credit card anywhere in the Dome now.
A+ to the fact that beer stands now have several verities on tap at every stand, instead of designated stands for specific beers.
The first game is in the books. Losing by 1 is ROUGH. I'd rather lose by a few touchdowns than by one. Either way, Syracuse starts 0-1. And there is a 99.9% chance they start 0-2. And so it goes. USC is next. The season rolls on.
Syracuse - Minnesota Postgame Reactions OR Now We're In Trouble
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Yeah, I looked like this in front of my TV too.Syracuse looked to pick up a win against one of the weaker non-conference games in the slate of five that together was ruled the hardest in the nation. Syracuse entered Minnesota hoping for a competitive game and a nice win to put the team at .500. Alas, Syracuse came and played their worst game of the season. Which is odd because it's the fourth game. Minnesota wins 17 to 10.OffenseDRyan Nassib (21/31, 228yds, 1 TD, 2 INT) had his worst game of the season, including throwing a pick in the end zone. While, overall, he did not play his worst game of his career, he did manage to really hurt Syracuse's chances in closing the scoring gap between Syracuse and Minnestoa. I could go on about the good work the running backs did (other than fumbles), or how Marcus Sales is still fantastic. But what matters is that for three consecutive drives the ball was coughed up to Minnestoa. It happened for various reasons, but no major D-1 program can cough up the ball in three consecutive drives and be called anything close to good.DefenseCSyracuse's defense was average to good. They stopped them nine out of 15 times on third down. They also tackled better in this game, even though the secondary seemed to regress (although maybe it just looks like they did as they were playing a much better passing team than Stony Brook). Either way, a passable but not great or elite effort.Special TeamsB+Ross Krautman went back to making all of his one attempts and his extra point. Punting, punt returning, and kick and kick coverage was much better this game. Nothing really bad to report.CoachingCMarcus Sales is a certified stud receiver. Maybe the game plan should be to run some plays designed to get the ball Marcus Sales' direction before late in the fourth quarter. Additionally, the red zone play calling is still not up to snuff, which is probably the most troubling of all. Additionally, Syracuse fans that are students of history should know better than anyone that the "Run, Run, Pass, Punt" offense doesn't work. Yet, Syracuse continued to utilize that series in various drives, only to put the ball to Minnesota. We talked about Doug Marrone in the Nunes/Magician podcast here (which you should listen to) and most of the mistakes on the field are not Doug's fault, or his staff's. But we're getting to the point where the coaching is clearly not putting Syracuse in a position to win the game. That is a disturbing trend when this is not Doug's first go around anymore.GPAC (2.06)Syracuse played stinko in this game. Bottom line, Syracuse looked the worst it's been all season. There are no excuses for how Syracuse played and sadly they lost a winable game. Which are the worst kinds of games to lose. Hell, this team beat the spread on then #2 USC only a couple weeks before. Brutal.Syracuse now has a much needed bye week before taking on Pittsburgh in a Friday Night Big East affair in the Carrier Dome. Hopefully they come out firing. And no one really knows which Pittsburgh team shows up either. Fun stuff. Or soul crushing. Yes... soul crushing.
Yeah, I looked like this in front of my TV too.Syracuse looked to pick up a win against one of the weaker non-conference games in the slate of five that together was ruled the hardest in the nation. Syracuse entered Minnesota hoping for a competitive game and a nice win to put the team at .500. Alas, Syracuse came and played their worst game of the season. Which is odd because it's the fourth game. Minnesota wins 17 to 10.OffenseDRyan Nassib (21/31, 228yds, 1 TD, 2 INT) had his worst game of the season, including throwing a pick in the end zone. While, overall, he did not play his worst game of his career, he did manage to really hurt Syracuse's chances in closing the scoring gap between Syracuse and Minnestoa. I could go on about the good work the running backs did (other than fumbles), or how Marcus Sales is still fantastic. But what matters is that for three consecutive drives the ball was coughed up to Minnestoa. It happened for various reasons, but no major D-1 program can cough up the ball in three consecutive drives and be called anything close to good.DefenseCSyracuse's defense was average to good. They stopped them nine out of 15 times on third down. They also tackled better in this game, even though the secondary seemed to regress (although maybe it just looks like they did as they were playing a much better passing team than Stony Brook). Either way, a passable but not great or elite effort.Special TeamsB+Ross Krautman went back to making all of his one attempts and his extra point. Punting, punt returning, and kick and kick coverage was much better this game. Nothing really bad to report.CoachingCMarcus Sales is a certified stud receiver. Maybe the game plan should be to run some plays designed to get the ball Marcus Sales' direction before late in the fourth quarter. Additionally, the red zone play calling is still not up to snuff, which is probably the most troubling of all. Additionally, Syracuse fans that are students of history should know better than anyone that the "Run, Run, Pass, Punt" offense doesn't work. Yet, Syracuse continued to utilize that series in various drives, only to put the ball to Minnesota. We talked about Doug Marrone in the Nunes/Magician podcast here (which you should listen to) and most of the mistakes on the field are not Doug's fault, or his staff's. But we're getting to the point where the coaching is clearly not putting Syracuse in a position to win the game. That is a disturbing trend when this is not Doug's first go around anymore.GPAC (2.06)Syracuse played stinko in this game. Bottom line, Syracuse looked the worst it's been all season. There are no excuses for how Syracuse played and sadly they lost a winable game. Which are the worst kinds of games to lose. Hell, this team beat the spread on then #2 USC only a couple weeks before. Brutal.Syracuse now has a much needed bye week before taking on Pittsburgh in a Friday Night Big East affair in the Carrier Dome. Hopefully they come out firing. And no one really knows which Pittsburgh team shows up either. Fun stuff. Or soul crushing. Yes... soul crushing.
Has Syracuse's Success Stalled?
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Has the Syracuse offense had any Red Zone swagger?So, here we sit. A third of the season behind us. The entire Big East slate ahead of us, along with a random trip to Missouri. But the four games the Orange has played so far tells us a lot about what we can expect, a lot about what needs to be fixed, and a lot about our expectations of this program's direction.After Syracuse fell short to Northwestern in the season opener 42-41, and then put up a hell of a fight against Southern California, there was a lot of positivism and excitement around the program. Syracuse was "the best 0-2 team in the nation." Moral victories don't mean anything, but we certainly felt that the Orange was this close to being good.Then there was that "disappointing" win against Stony Brook.It was classic Syracuse "play to the level of your competition." SBU was certainly no push-over, being one of the best FCS teams in the country. But that's not supposed to matter. FBS teams are supposed to manhandle FCS teams. Syracuse, in many ways, was lucky to leave Ernie Davis Legends Field with a win.So it all came down to the game in Minnesota. It was a chance for the Orange to win a big game on the road against a quality BCS conference opponent. It was a chance to pick up momentum heading into a bye week before hitting the conference schedule head on. And what did Syracuse do? Blew it.But it was inevitable. We should have seen it coming. Ryan Nassib's impressive numbers; the offense's ability to move the chains; the "we're almost there" mentality. It was all fake. It was a bunch of getting really worked up, and then getting disappointed, having nothing to show for it. Football blue balls.Really what I'm talking about is an inability to consistently convert yards gained to points. Syracuse was great at moving the ball down the field, but then would get within field goal range and stall. Little to nothing to show for the 50-60 yards it had just gained.My assumption was that it was Red Zone inefficiency. But then I looked at the stats. In 2012's four games so far, Syracuse has been in the Red Zone 18 times: 15 scores (83%), with 11 touchdowns (61%) and four field goals (22%). That shocked me. That's pretty decent Red Zone efficiency, especially on the TD side of things.The problem must be Syracuse just not quite getting to the Red Zone. And this is where I think the much talked about mistakes, penalties, and questionable play-calling come in. I won't go on and on about it here; much better articles have been written and sports radio interviews have thoroughly covered those topics. But, isn't that where the Orange Achilles Heel is?Last week's bye couldn't have come at a better time, as it turns out. Some time to put the brakes on a team careening out of control. Some time to rework the offensive playbook for the opponent's side of the field. Some time to re-instill the basic tenets of rules and discipline.Let's face it: the Big East is wide open. Yeah, Louisville's 5-0, Rutgers 4-0, Cincinnati 3-0; but there's a lot of football to be played. And that same feeling we had about the team after it started 0-2 can still be felt. We can't just be this close. We can be there. Or here, I guess. It of course depends on fixing those things I just mentioned, but there's eight games left, and only five wins needed to qualify for a bowl game.When Syracuse plays Pittsburgh on Friday, it will have been 350 days since the Orange beat a FBS opponent. I'm all for putting on our orange-tinted glasses and hoping for the best.
Has the Syracuse offense had any Red Zone swagger?So, here we sit. A third of the season behind us. The entire Big East slate ahead of us, along with a random trip to Missouri. But the four games the Orange has played so far tells us a lot about what we can expect, a lot about what needs to be fixed, and a lot about our expectations of this program's direction.After Syracuse fell short to Northwestern in the season opener 42-41, and then put up a hell of a fight against Southern California, there was a lot of positivism and excitement around the program. Syracuse was "the best 0-2 team in the nation." Moral victories don't mean anything, but we certainly felt that the Orange was this close to being good.Then there was that "disappointing" win against Stony Brook.It was classic Syracuse "play to the level of your competition." SBU was certainly no push-over, being one of the best FCS teams in the country. But that's not supposed to matter. FBS teams are supposed to manhandle FCS teams. Syracuse, in many ways, was lucky to leave Ernie Davis Legends Field with a win.So it all came down to the game in Minnesota. It was a chance for the Orange to win a big game on the road against a quality BCS conference opponent. It was a chance to pick up momentum heading into a bye week before hitting the conference schedule head on. And what did Syracuse do? Blew it.But it was inevitable. We should have seen it coming. Ryan Nassib's impressive numbers; the offense's ability to move the chains; the "we're almost there" mentality. It was all fake. It was a bunch of getting really worked up, and then getting disappointed, having nothing to show for it. Football blue balls.Really what I'm talking about is an inability to consistently convert yards gained to points. Syracuse was great at moving the ball down the field, but then would get within field goal range and stall. Little to nothing to show for the 50-60 yards it had just gained.My assumption was that it was Red Zone inefficiency. But then I looked at the stats. In 2012's four games so far, Syracuse has been in the Red Zone 18 times: 15 scores (83%), with 11 touchdowns (61%) and four field goals (22%). That shocked me. That's pretty decent Red Zone efficiency, especially on the TD side of things.The problem must be Syracuse just not quite getting to the Red Zone. And this is where I think the much talked about mistakes, penalties, and questionable play-calling come in. I won't go on and on about it here; much better articles have been written and sports radio interviews have thoroughly covered those topics. But, isn't that where the Orange Achilles Heel is?Last week's bye couldn't have come at a better time, as it turns out. Some time to put the brakes on a team careening out of control. Some time to rework the offensive playbook for the opponent's side of the field. Some time to re-instill the basic tenets of rules and discipline.Let's face it: the Big East is wide open. Yeah, Louisville's 5-0, Rutgers 4-0, Cincinnati 3-0; but there's a lot of football to be played. And that same feeling we had about the team after it started 0-2 can still be felt. We can't just be this close. We can be there. Or here, I guess. It of course depends on fixing those things I just mentioned, but there's eight games left, and only five wins needed to qualify for a bowl game.When Syracuse plays Pittsburgh on Friday, it will have been 350 days since the Orange beat a FBS opponent. I'm all for putting on our orange-tinted glasses and hoping for the best.
BlogPoll 2012 - Week 6
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SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »*The top 2 stay the same. No surprise with Oregon still dominating and Alabama on the bye.
*South Carolina moves up to #3 after FSU falls to unranked NC State. West Virginia also moves up to #4 after beating Texas in a shoot out.
*TCU takes the biggest dive after their performance and the loss of players.
*There was some general shuffling in the top ten, as well as the next five. Notre Dame made a few bigger jumps like Florida. Kansas State is an interesting case as they are a good team but they do not have a great resume compared to other teams in the top ten.
*Goodbye Northwestern after not being able to get it done on the road at Penn State. Virginia Tech lost to UNC as well. Hello Cincy and Oregon State (who I probably should have had on here).
*Do I not like Rutgers as a Syracuse alum? True. Is that preventing me from ranking them? No. I don't think they are better then the teams on here. Beating UConn isn't noteworthy, especially since they have no offense.
Anything crazy? Think I'm nuts? Leave a comment, as per usual.
Orange::44 Ballot - Week 6
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama Crimson Tide | -- |
| 2 | Oregon Ducks | -- |
| 3 | South Carolina Gamecocks |  3 |
| 4 | West Virginia Mountaineers | 3 |
| 5 | USC Trojans | 3 |
| 6 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | 5 |
| 7 | Kansas St. Wildcats | 3 |
| 8 | Ohio St. Buckeyes | 4 |
| 9 | Florida Gators | 10 |
| 10 | Florida St. Seminoles |  -7 |
| 11 | LSU Tigers | -7 |
| 12 | Clemson Tigers | 1 |
| 13 | Georgia Bulldogs | -8 |
| 14 | Texas Longhorns | -5 |
| 15 | Oklahoma Sooners | -- |
| 16 | Louisville Cardinals | -- |
| 17 | Boise St. Broncos | -- |
| 18 | Stanford Cardinal | -- |
| 19 | Michigan Wolverines | 1 |
| 20 | Michigan St. Spartans | 3 |
| 21 | Mississippi St. Bulldogs | 3 |
| 22 | Oregon St. Beavers | -- |
| 23 | Cincinnati Bearcats | -- |
| 24 | Nebraska Cornhuskers | -2 |
| 25 | TCU Horned Frogs | -11 |
| Dropouts: Virginia Tech Hokies, Northwestern Wildcats | ||
*South Carolina moves up to #3 after FSU falls to unranked NC State. West Virginia also moves up to #4 after beating Texas in a shoot out.
*TCU takes the biggest dive after their performance and the loss of players.
*There was some general shuffling in the top ten, as well as the next five. Notre Dame made a few bigger jumps like Florida. Kansas State is an interesting case as they are a good team but they do not have a great resume compared to other teams in the top ten.
*Goodbye Northwestern after not being able to get it done on the road at Penn State. Virginia Tech lost to UNC as well. Hello Cincy and Oregon State (who I probably should have had on here).
*Do I not like Rutgers as a Syracuse alum? True. Is that preventing me from ranking them? No. I don't think they are better then the teams on here. Beating UConn isn't noteworthy, especially since they have no offense.
Anything crazy? Think I'm nuts? Leave a comment, as per usual.
10 Ekim 2012 Çarşamba
REPORT: Mike Smith Leaving WVU...Already
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Mike Smith, who expected a defensive coaching position a few weeks back is headed back to the NFL...already. At least that's the word from Jeff Darlington of nfl.com, who tweeted about it earlier today. Darlington wrote...
Tweet 1.
Small note learned while reporting Welker feature: Mike Smith, who accepted a job with WVU, has decided to instead stay as@JetsOLB coach.
Tweet 2.
Smith had accepted the West Virginia ass't DC job, but Rex Ryan convinced him last week in Hawaii to stay with the Jets instead. Just fyi.
If true, WVU is now looking to fill two spaces once again. Most people believe that WVU must be targeting someone from the Giants or Patriots, considering the hiring process is taking forever, and now might have just reached a new level.
Nothing is official at this time, but Darlington seems pretty confident in his tweeting.
UPDATE: College Football Talk just tweeted that WVU has announced that Smith has gone back to the Jets.
Tweet 1.
Small note learned while reporting Welker feature: Mike Smith, who accepted a job with WVU, has decided to instead stay as
Tweet 2.
Smith had accepted the West Virginia ass't DC job, but Rex Ryan convinced him last week in Hawaii to stay with the Jets instead. Just fyi.
If true, WVU is now looking to fill two spaces once again. Most people believe that WVU must be targeting someone from the Giants or Patriots, considering the hiring process is taking forever, and now might have just reached a new level.
Nothing is official at this time, but Darlington seems pretty confident in his tweeting.
UPDATE: College Football Talk just tweeted that WVU has announced that Smith has gone back to the Jets.
Is the End Near?
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It seems the end is undoubtedly near for WVU in the Big East. One of the big Mike Casazza nails it out of the park today, writing about the separation.
Casazza writes...
Casazza writes...
There's no way West Virginia dismisses Florida State unless the Mountaineers are absolutely certain they won't be a part of the Big East in 2012 and has a guarantee from the Big East. We could see that Thursday.
It could be that the two sides have already reached a proposed settlement and that they'll submit it to the judge that requested this hearing.
That judge will then agree or disagree with the proposal and make sure the terms are fair and equal for both sides and any third parties that may be involved and affected by the conclusion.
It seems that the biggest fact is the FSU angle. Casazza is right on the money with saying what he did about the FSU game. WVU would never sacrifice the game (and certainly the money they will have to give up) if they didn't have some clear indication the Big 12 is in their immediate future.
It would also be nice if WVU and FSU could clear this up quickly, so the story can be put out quickly. Casazza also points out that WVU could get away free, if FSU could find a comparable opponent.
No matter what happens, look for more news to break this week about the future.
Yes, I'll miss the Big East...and I won't miss the Big East
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What I'll Miss...Big East Championship at the Garden.
What I Won't Miss...The terrible yearly ESPN theme song for the Big East Championship.
What I'll Miss...Trips to New England, so I am within driving distance to see WVU.
What I Won't Miss...Trips to New England, so I don't have to see them lose some terrible game to UConn.
What I'll Miss...Beating Rutgers in football, every year.
What I Won't Miss...Losing to Syracuse in basketball, every year.
What I'll Miss...Being the perennial BCS favorite.
What I won't Miss...Failing to reach expectations nearly every year.
What I'll Miss...Skip Holtz in white.
What I won't Miss...Rick Pitino in white.
What I'll Miss...The Backyard Brawl.
What I Won't Miss...Playing DePaul in anything.
What I'll Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry (WVU/Cuse)
What I Won't Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry.
In all seriousness, the Big East was good to West Virginia. There are a lot of great memories...really too many to choose from. But, it's time to take the next step. Big 12, here we come.
What I'll Miss...Big East Championship at the Garden.
What I Won't Miss...The terrible yearly ESPN theme song for the Big East Championship.
What I'll Miss...Trips to New England, so I am within driving distance to see WVU.
What I Won't Miss...Trips to New England, so I don't have to see them lose some terrible game to UConn.
What I'll Miss...Beating Rutgers in football, every year.
What I Won't Miss...Losing to Syracuse in basketball, every year.
What I'll Miss...Being the perennial BCS favorite.
What I won't Miss...Failing to reach expectations nearly every year.
What I'll Miss...Skip Holtz in white.
What I won't Miss...Rick Pitino in white.
What I'll Miss...The Backyard Brawl.
What I Won't Miss...Playing DePaul in anything.
What I'll Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry (WVU/Cuse)
What I Won't Miss...The Husband/Wife Rivalry.
In all seriousness, the Big East was good to West Virginia. There are a lot of great memories...really too many to choose from. But, it's time to take the next step. Big 12, here we come.
WVU's New Football Foes
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Now that it looks like WVU is heading to the Big 12 in 2012, what is the team's chances of second straight year to a BCS game? The Mountaineers should be able to integrate right in, and be competitive. But, where exactly do they stand? Let's take a quick look at the conference for 2012.
Baylor: No Robert Griffin III, not a lot of defense equals a rebuilding year for the Bears.
Iowa State: A bowl team from a year ago, questions at quarterback and defense will keep them midpack.
Kansas: Transition year for the Jayhawks as Charlie Weiss takes over the team. It will be interesting to see what he does at the quarterback position.
Kansas State: Quarterback Collin Klein is back, and so is much of the defense. Another solid season for the Wildcats is in the cards.
Oklahoma: Landry Jones and most of the offensive line are back, so scoring won't be a problem. Defensive needs to catch up.
Oklahoma State: Lost major keys parts on offense and defense, but should remain competitive with younger guys stepping in.
Texas: Too many questions for the offense entering the Spring to make them a true contender. Defense did step up last year, and helped the team stay in games.
TCU: The newcomer will have an explosive offense if the young line gives Casey Pachall time to throw. Will be a very competitive team right away.
Texas Tech: Plenty of talent, just a lack of execution over the last few years. Crucial year for Tommy Tuberville to get team to buy into system.
Now that it looks like WVU is heading to the Big 12 in 2012, what is the team's chances of second straight year to a BCS game? The Mountaineers should be able to integrate right in, and be competitive. But, where exactly do they stand? Let's take a quick look at the conference for 2012.Baylor: No Robert Griffin III, not a lot of defense equals a rebuilding year for the Bears.
Iowa State: A bowl team from a year ago, questions at quarterback and defense will keep them midpack.
Kansas: Transition year for the Jayhawks as Charlie Weiss takes over the team. It will be interesting to see what he does at the quarterback position.
Kansas State: Quarterback Collin Klein is back, and so is much of the defense. Another solid season for the Wildcats is in the cards.
Oklahoma: Landry Jones and most of the offensive line are back, so scoring won't be a problem. Defensive needs to catch up.
Oklahoma State: Lost major keys parts on offense and defense, but should remain competitive with younger guys stepping in.
Texas: Too many questions for the offense entering the Spring to make them a true contender. Defense did step up last year, and helped the team stay in games.
TCU: The newcomer will have an explosive offense if the young line gives Casey Pachall time to throw. Will be a very competitive team right away.
Texas Tech: Plenty of talent, just a lack of execution over the last few years. Crucial year for Tommy Tuberville to get team to buy into system.
A Quick Look at WVU's 2012 Schedule
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Here is a look at WVU's schedule for the upcoming year...the first in the Big 12!
Day, Date, Opponent, Time
Sat. Sept. 1 Marshall TBA
Note: Why?
Sat. Sept. 8 Open
Sat. Sept. 15 vs. James Madison + TBA
Note: Cash grab game in DC.
Sat. Sept. 22 Maryland TBA
Note: Is there anybody still playing for the Terps?
Sat. Sept. 29 Baylor # TBA
Note: Interesting homecoming game. And, the first Big 12 game ever for WVU.
Sat. Oct. 6 at Texas TBA
Note: First trip in the Big 12 is to take on the Legend of the conference.
Sat. Oct. 13 at Texas Tech TBA
Note: One of Dana's former stomping grounds. Defense optional.
Sat. Oct. 20 Kansas State TBA
Note: Huge matchup, as Kansas State looks to be one of the top teams.
Sat. Oct. 27 Open
Sat. Nov. 3 TCU ^ TBA
Note: The battle of former Big East teams? Kind-of?
Sat. Nov. 10 at Oklahoma State TBA
Note: Another former spot for Dana. Take the over.
Sat. Nov. 17 Oklahoma TBA
Note: Depending on how the season goes for both, could be a Gameday option.
Sat. Nov. 24 at Iowa State TBA
Note: I have been looking of forward to the first trip to Ames since October!
Sat. Dec. 1 Kansas TBA
Note: Charlie Weis has some serious work to do.
+-FedEx Field, Landover, MD#-Homecoming^-Mountaineer Day
Here is a look at WVU's schedule for the upcoming year...the first in the Big 12!Day, Date, Opponent, Time
Sat. Sept. 1 Marshall TBA
Note: Why?
Sat. Sept. 8 Open
Sat. Sept. 15 vs. James Madison + TBA
Note: Cash grab game in DC.
Sat. Sept. 22 Maryland TBA
Note: Is there anybody still playing for the Terps?
Sat. Sept. 29 Baylor # TBA
Note: Interesting homecoming game. And, the first Big 12 game ever for WVU.
Sat. Oct. 6 at Texas TBA
Note: First trip in the Big 12 is to take on the Legend of the conference.
Sat. Oct. 13 at Texas Tech TBA
Note: One of Dana's former stomping grounds. Defense optional.
Sat. Oct. 20 Kansas State TBA
Note: Huge matchup, as Kansas State looks to be one of the top teams.
Sat. Oct. 27 Open
Sat. Nov. 3 TCU ^ TBA
Note: The battle of former Big East teams? Kind-of?
Sat. Nov. 10 at Oklahoma State TBA
Note: Another former spot for Dana. Take the over.
Sat. Nov. 17 Oklahoma TBA
Note: Depending on how the season goes for both, could be a Gameday option.
Sat. Nov. 24 at Iowa State TBA
Note: I have been looking of forward to the first trip to Ames since October!
Sat. Dec. 1 Kansas TBA
Note: Charlie Weis has some serious work to do.
+-FedEx Field, Landover, MD#-Homecoming^-Mountaineer Day
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