Once again, the Roar brings you This Week in College Football: your one-stop-shop for everything you might have missed from the week’s games.
Biggest Storyline: Let the hate flow through you
Hate games are back, people! And boy, was this week intense.
In terms of pure loathing, it’s hard to top Arkansas’ fans’ opinion of the Texas Longhorns. This game was absolutely a perfect storm of circumstances. First of all, this is a very old Southwest Conference rivalry. There’s a lot of history there. Second of all, Texas’ incoming move to the SEC was, for this game, the equivalent of poking a bear with a stick. Except this bear was a bear of pure disdain and the stick was the Longhorns’ ego. Third of all, in the words of Joe Tessitore, “these fans hate Texas more than they like themselves.”
The result? A beautiful beatdown that saw Texas get a reality check that nearly everyone outside of Austin loved seeing.
Now, there were other rivalries as well. Iowa won big over Iowa State. And Air Force crushed Navy in the battle of who gets to lose to Army in the quest for the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy. And let’s not forget the triumphant end to the PAC-12’s greatest rivalry: USC fans versus Clay Helton.
When it comes to college football, hate, for lack of a better word, is good.
Biggest Winner: Oregon and the cat from Miami-App State
Oregon has finally won a big game yada yada yada that’s not the most important thing. Did you see the video of that cat?
A poor, innocent cat who was dangling from the upper railing of Hard Rock Stadium was saved by your friendly neighborhood football fans with a conveniently located American flag. In celebration, said cat was lifted to the sky. Behold, street cat Simba.
But in all seriousness, this is a massive win for the Ducks. They’ve, at long last, beat a top five opponent. And it was Ohio State no less. Sure, the PAC-12 may continue it’s proud tradition of cannibalizing itself, but this is definitely a reason to feel more confident in both Oregon and the conference as a whole. Could we see possibly consistently see a new face on the list of college football’s powerhouses?
Biggest Loser: Iowa State
It’s time for the Cyclones to start asking themselves the tough questions, like is this the peak of their potential?
While this year El Assico did not live up to its name as both teams were ranked in the top ten, Iowa State still suffered a bitter, disappointing loss to their arch-nemesis Iowa. This was also the first team the rivalry had seen a game in which both teams were ranked. Ever. Hence the unfortunate nickname.
This was supposed to be Iowa State’s year. They hardly lost anyone from last year’s squad, Matt Campbell wasn’t poached, it was all going to work out great.
And sure, Iowa is good, but you’ve got to be thinking that maybe a New Year’s Six bowl is the most Iowa State can ever realistically hope for. It’s hard to believe they’ll get a better chance than this.
Non-Power Game of the Week: Army 38, Western Kentucky 35
Admittedly, I’m biased, as I was in attendance at this game. What can I say, Michie Stadium is quite nice.
However, look at this statline: Total yards for Army, 416. Total yards for Western Kentucky, 477. Rushing yards for Army, 339. Passing yards for Western Kentucky, 435.
It was an absolutely beautiful matchup of contrasting styles. On one hand, you have the Hilltoppers high-octane passing offense that they literally stole from Houston Baptist (Western Kentucky’s offensive coordinator, quarterback, and three receivers all were with HBU last year). And their offensive scheme worked really well.
On the other hand, you have Saint Monken (as he is known by many Black Knights) and his classic triple option offense. It’s a work of art. And if you happen to be rooting against it, it is the most frustrating scheme known to man.
Army will gain three yards every play. You think to yourself “oh it’s okay, that’s only three yards.” Then you suddenly realize that every play means literally every play, and sooner or later the Black Knights find themselves in the end zone and your team of choice finds themselves in a hole with no time left to climb out of it.
Will this game have any lasting importance on the college football landscape? I doubt it, but there’s more to the sport than who makes the playoff.
Stat of the Week: Florida State is now 97-1 in games where they are favored by 27-plus points since 1978
The FCS strikes again, as a last-second-it-would-take-a-miracle-oh-look-they-got-a-miracle 59-yard touchdown in the game’s final seconds helped Jacksonville State to a 20-17 upset over Florida State on Saturday. That’s the eighth FCS over FBS upset this season, and the third that involved a Power Five program.
Keep in mind, this Florida State team took Notre Dame to overtime last week. Things aren’t looking good for a Seminoles squad that thought this might be the year to escape from the doldrums they’ve been stuck in since the end of Jimbo Fisher’s stay in Tallahassee.
Well, you know what they say about all good things….
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