The Grand Pa Bowl

[Occhidiangela]

The Rose Bowl used to be called "The Grandaddy of Bowl Games" before BCS madness arrived. Last night's Orange Bowl was billed as "The Grandpa Bowl" by some hypesters, a reference to the advanced age of coaches Bowden and Paterno.

I'd call it the Irregularity Bowl: a lot of sweating and grunting, and big trouble trouble finishing the job. Blame the usual suspects: the kickers, and a Penn State QB who fumbled on the FSU 5 yard line after a long drive in the 4th quarter.

It all worked out well in the end, three overtimes later and one sore Occhineck from the whiplash.

Victory for Penn State. This is a good thing. My sister went to Penn State, my first car had a Penn State sticker on it (from the original owner) and certain persons of a Lounging persuasion are Penn State alums.

It's happy time in Happy Valley.

PSU 26 FSU 23

Now that this foreplay is done, we get down to The Big Game: UT vs USC playing for all of the marbles in an event whose economic impact has been estimated at, in southern California, more than $370 million annually from both the Rose parade and bowl. (source = USA Today)

Tonight. On ABC. 7:00 PM Texas International Time. (8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST, Midnight GMT) I'll be feasting on New Braunfels brats and sauerkraut whilst downing Shiner Bock as we root for a Lone Star Victory.

Hook 'em Horns! :whistling:

Occhi

[Pesmerga]

 
and a Penn State QB who fumbled on the FSU 5 yard line after a long drive in the 4th quarter.

It all worked out well in the end, three overtimes later and one sore Occhineck from the whiplash. 
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If you watch the replay, it's actually the center's fault. The ball never comes all the way up, and slips right out of his hand. Robinson takes the blame for it later, but he's just protecting his lineman like any good Quarterback would. :D

My step-brother and his fiancee were at the game, those jerks. :P

Paterno is uber. ::nodnod::

[Occhidiangela]

If you watch the replay, it's actually the center's fault.  The ball never comes all the way up, and slips right out of his hand.  Robinson takes the blame for it later, but he's just protecting his lineman like any good Quarterback would. :D

My step-brother and his fiancee were at the game, those jerks. :P

Paterno is uber. ::nodnod::
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Ah, yes, now that you mention it, the replay did show that error. I stand corrected. Age degrades the memory . . .

Occhi

[Jeunemaitre]

Hook 'em Horns!  :whistling:

Occhi
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With an embarassing record this year, my alma mater (Syracuse) was not even close to bowl eligable, but I was glad to see the performances of WVU and Louisville, despite the utter fraud of a team that USF now seems. The Big East conference had a down year, but it'll be back.

I have a friend who left for Vegas (via Independance air, but that's another story) to visit his fiancee's parents, so I asked him to shop for a line on the UT/USC matchup and if he found one that was more than 7, put a few bucks on Texas for me. I've seen a lot of coverage about how great USC is, and very little about Texas, but I think it's a huge mistake to think that USC will be able to roll over Texas the way they did most of the PAC-10. I'm expecting Texas to try and jump out to an early lead, and the final should be closer than many people think.

[Gurnsey]

Tonight.  On ABC.  7:00 PM Texas International Time.  (8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST, Midnight GMT) [right][snapback]98675[/snapback][/right]

Texas International Time? TIT?

Nice. :P

[Pesmerga]

With an embarassing record this year, my alma mater (Syracuse) was not even close to bowl eligable, but I was glad to see the performances of WVU and Louisville, despite the utter fraud of a team that USF now seems.  The Big East conference had a down year, but it'll be back.
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My alma mater is Division 3, and during my collegiate career (of which I was a football player for 2 years) our school won 3 conference games.... all in my freshman year)

2001: 6-4 (3-3 in conference)
2002: 2-8 (0-6)
2003: 3-7 (0-6)
2004: 1-9 (0-6)

On that note, the Hockey team I was on there took 2nd in our league... losing 2 games to 0 to the other Ursinus team. :D

Go Ursinus Bears!

[Munkay]

I've seen a lot of coverage about how great USC is, and very little about Texas, but I think it's a huge mistake to think that USC will be able to roll over Texas the way they did most of the PAC-10.  I'm expecting Texas to try and jump out to an early lead, and the final should be closer than many people think.

I have to agree that there has been overhyping about USC's skill. Though at the same time I have to say that as bad as the Pac-10 may be, the Texans had a very easy Big (more like Little) 12 this year.

Hype aside, I have to put my money on USC. To all the Texan fans here, goodluck. And truly, let the best team show itself tonight :)

Cheers,

Munk

PS. It was great to see JoePa take it home for UPenn.

[ima_nerd]

Well, so far there have been 2 questionable calls in the game. Vince Young (OB for UT) lateraled (butchered that) to a teammate which resulted in a touchdown but his knee was obviously down and a UT linebacker intercepted the ball and then lost it due to contact (which would sill be an interception) but the refs call it an incompletion. Hopefully the refs tighten their game up and utilize the nice replay power they have now.

Go Texas!

Now, back to the game.

Edit: Just wow. Vince Young is amazing. You think Mike Vick is impressive? Pssh. Awesome game.

[Occhidiangela]

Edit: Just wow. Vince Young is amazing. You think Mike Vick is impressive? Pssh. Awesome game.
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Texas 41 USC 38

I haven't seen a game that thrilling in a long time. The Texas defense was up against an awesome offense and got it done "just well enough." Three stops of USC on 4th and short.

As impresive as Vince Young was, the Texas offense mishandled the ball frequently) (3 fumbles, one lost). UT special teams fell short of their season long pattern of excellence: fumbled punts, missed PAT, missed field goal.

It's going to be a long time before there is a national championship game with three lead changes and such "thrill a minute" action. Super Bowls don't hold this kind of excitement.

NFL, eat your heart out.

Occhi

[Mithrandir]

Paterno and Bowden need to just retire already. Especially Paterno. Go out with some grace and what's left of your dignity. It's just embarassing to see that neither Paterno nor Bowden is even allowed to have a headset anymore, much less a play sheet. You're not calling plays. You're not making decisions on the field. You're a glorified cheerleader and a recruiting tool... it's just sad to see once great coaches reduced to such lows and being apparently completely oblivious about it. (The greatness of Bowden is vastly overestimated however - it's easy to get 359 wins when you were the one team in the mid-90s ACC that wasn't just absolutely horrible *and* you played a soft nonconference schedule to boot. Meh.)

With that caveat, the Orange Bowl was still a great game. The BCS in general was pretty successful this year. If the BCS had another crappy year in a row, people would have been calling for blood. It's kinda too bad though since I feel that a playoff system would be far superior to the bowl system. Oh well, 4 more years of BCS at least. There's some hope for a playoff though: Lloyd Carr, one of the BCS's staunchest supporters recently changed his tune and is calling for a playoff after Michigan got jipped out of the bowl it should have gone to. As long as the postseason is decided by the greedy bastards running the show and not the players, college football will never live up to its true potential. Don't get me wrong, college football is great already, but a playoff would make it better. Either way, someone from the BCS needs to send Mario Mannigham a 'Thank You' letter and a gift basket or else they would have had a truckload of really pissed people on their hands. Auburn fans still feel like a more then legitimate shot at a national championship was stolen from them. And rightly so.

Despite the woes Michigan faced this year (Sunbelt refs, injuries, etc.) it warms my heart slightly to see that two Big-10 teams are going to finish in the top 4.

I must say that I am quite surprised that Texas managed to pull off the victory. Vince Young is absolutely phenomenal and after that performance I would be stunned if he stayed for his senior year (despite what he has said in the past). I just hope my Lions can trade up high enough to get a shot at picking him up.

Talk about egg on your face for the Pac-10 though. Talk of '05 USC being the greatest college football team ever has been silenced now for sure (although '04 USC is still probably the best ever) and Oregon, too busy complaining about not being in a BCS bowl game apparently, got smacked.

UT linebacker intercepted the ball and then lost it due to contact (which would sill be an interception) but the refs call it an incompletion.

Technically, that's not true. The ground can't cause a fumble, but it can cause an incomplete pass. The individual must maintain possession throughout contact with the ground.

[Munkay]

Paterno and Bowden need to just retire already. Especially Paterno. Go out with some grace and what's left of your dignity. It's just embarassing to see that neither Paterno nor Bowden is even allowed to have a headset anymore, much less a play sheet. You're not calling plays. You're not making decisions on the field. You're a glorified cheerleader and a recruiting tool... it's just sad to see once great coaches reduced to such lows and being apparently completely oblivious about it. (The greatness of Bowden is vastly overestimated however - it's easy to get 359 wins when you were the one team in the mid-90s ACC that wasn't just absolutely horrible *and* you played a soft nonconference schedule to boot. Meh.)

Although part of me agrees that JoePa and Bowden aren't really calling the shots anymore, I think you overstated just how diminished their role is. UPenn was criticized all last season for still playing a "JoePa offense". It's too old school, it will never get the job done in the "new" college football arena. And UPenn looked like a 'classic' JoePa team - I use parentheses because I don't know what a stereotypical UPenn offense was earlier than the 90's, since I've only watched UPenn over the last 12 or so years.

But all in all I agree with you mithy, JoePa isn't really a head coach anymore. He's at best a placeholder for an old school type of UPenn ball.

As for Bowden, I won't even try to defend the ACC in the mid-90's.

I must say that I am quite surprised that Texas managed to pull off the victory. Vince Young is absolutely phenomenal and after that performance I would be stunned if he stayed for his senior year (despite what he has said in the past). I just hope my Lions can trade up high enough to get a shot at picking him up.

From what I've been hearing from ESPN it doesn't look likely that Young will go to the NFL Draft. Personally, I think Young is incredible and would like to see him in the NFL. But the word on rumor street is that undergrad's need to sign the petition for inclusion in the Draft by Jan 15th, and Young hasn't moved on it yet. Young doesn't want to go unless he'll be Top 5, and that doesn't seem likely right now. Despite his incredible talent, Young isn't an "NFL Quaterback" the same way Lienart is, and Young would go second for QB's, which would put him out of the top 5.

Personally, I think that logic is a bit loopy, since Young is incredible and has the potential to surpass the Michael Vick standard of play. There is a niche for Young's style in the NFL. But it doesn't look like enough teams are keen to bite yet.

Cheers,

Munk

[Occhidiangela]

Personally, I think that logic is a bit loopy, since Young is incredible and has the potential to surpass the Michael Vick standard of play.  There is a niche for Young's style in the NFL.  But it doesn't look like enough teams are keen to bite yet.

Cheers,

Munk
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Vince Young advantages to remaining at UT.

1. Continue to improve passing skills. He's a far better passer now than when he was a freshman.

2. Win the Heisman. This is contingent on his having a decent line and good receivers. The freshman running backs at UT are talent laden, so all Mack Brown needs to do is keep his line solid and it should be do able.

3. Once in a lifetime chance to repeat as national champs. Granted, some solid defenders are leaving, but you only get one chance in a lifetime to pull off a coup of that magnitude.

Disadvantage:

1. Risk of injury. That could kill and NFL career.

2. Risk of a lot of Texas A & M games next year. Arguably his worst game this year, the A & M game showed that when Vince is off his feed (rumor has it that he had the flu and was quite ill) he's not good.

I hope he stays. If he's too early a draft choice for the NFL, he gets stuck on a lously team and gets hammered by the killer linebackers of the NFL.

Occhi

[TheDragoon]

If he's too early a draft choice for the NFL, he gets stuck on a lously team and gets hammered by the killer linebackers of the NFL.

I just wanted to point out that this will probably happen whenever he enters the NFL draft, so I don't really see how it would have any effect on his wish to enter the NFL draft. :)

Personally, I think he's about as hot as he's going to be and if he enters the draft now he'll go pretty high. Not only can he run like Vick, but he's bigger and more durable as well as a MUCH better pocket passer. I think any team that passed on Young in favor of Leinhart would be kicking themselves a couple years down the road. Leinhart could be good in the NFL, but Young can be great!

[Occhidiangela]

I just wanted to point out that this will probably happen whenever he enters the NFL draft, so I don't really see how it would have any effect on his wish to enter the NFL draft.  :)

Personally, I think he's about as hot as he's going to be and if he enters the draft now he'll go pretty high.  Not only can he run like Vick, but he's bigger and more durable as well as a MUCH better pocket passer.  I think any team that passed on Young in favor of Leinhart would be kicking themselves a couple years down the road.  Leinhart could be good in the NFL, but Young can be great!
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Not sure if Leinhart moves well, but he's remarkably accurate. NFL likes accurate.

Can you say Troy Aikman? Joe Montana?

Accurate is big.

Occhi

[ima_nerd]

Leinhart is accurate but because he can't move, he takes hits. Big hits. Young may be known for his mobility but don't downplay his passing ability. He was the most pass-efficient quarterback this season because he's a good passer and because of his mobility, he rarely gets into a situation where he has to throw it away. His mobility and passing ability compliment each other very well. Covered down field? Run it. Blitzing? Dodge around and throw a strike downfield. If he doesn't get injured like Vick did - he could truly be a great one.

[Mithrandir]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft06/ne...id=2284744

There he goes. Smart financial choice imo. I just hope that my Lions can trade up to the #2 or 3 spot somehow. Doesn't seem likely though :(

[Occhidiangela]

Leinhart is accurate but because he can't move, he takes hits. Big hits. Young may be known for his mobility but don't downplay his passing ability. He was the most pass-efficient quarterback this season because he's a good passer and because of his mobility, he rarely gets into a situation where he has to throw it away. His mobility and passing ability compliment each other very well. Covered down field? Run it. Blitzing? Dodge around and throw a strike downfield. If he doesn't get injured like Vick did - he could truly be a great one.
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Gee, sorta like Carson Palmer on Sunday? Poor guy. That knee thing . . .

Occhi

[Guest]

His mobility and passing ability compliment each other very well. Covered down field? Run it. Blitzing? Dodge around and throw a strike downfield. If he doesn't get injured like Vick did - he could truly be a great one.
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But you most the QBs who fit your discription - do get hurt and then lose half of what makes them effective.

Look ar P Manning, Brady and Palmer, they dont depend on speed to to be effectve. Palmer just took a nasty injury. But becouse he depends on his eyes and arm mostly, hell probably be back next year and still be deadly. If Vick had ripped his ACL he might well be finished.