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Posts Tagged ‘Notre Dame Fighting Irish’

Select 17, Pre-Bowl Edition

Posted by Brett Kincaid on December 6, 2012

The regular season ended last weekend, and once again Alabama sits atop the Select 17 heading into the BCS Championship Game. Is it 2011 or 2012?

(Searching)

Yep, it’s 2012; the Razorbacks do not appear on the bowl schedule. Sad to say, for the first time since 2008 the Hogs are home for the holidays. The upside, of course, is that some smokin’ hot wife has a husband that wants to coach here. Enthusiasm is already surging throughout Razorback Nation, but we need to put a cap on this season before looking ahead to spring practice and kickoff against UL-Lafayette on August 31, 2013 – which is 267 days from now.

So back to the teams still playing…

If you ever wondered whether or not ESPN controls the world, go ahead and look at the BCS Championship Game. Alabama versus Notre Dame for all the marbles. Can you imagine two teams that mean more to the history of college football squaring off for the title? This game will KILL any previous record for ratings of a college football championship game. The Vatican may very well provide free ESPN for all American Catholics. The Alabama National Guard will likely run coax from border-to-border, stealing cable from their neighbors in Tennessee, Florida, and Georgia. (They won’t even try to get it from Mississippi for obvious reasons.)

Perhaps the price we pay for such a great matchup in the title game is a slate of crap for the rest of the bowl season. In total there may be 5 other games I care to watch. I will, of course, probably watch all or part of 90% of the games (aided by the fact that I’m on vacation during Bowl Week), but I will bitch about it all the while.

As for the final Select 17 rankings, you’ll find a theme that repeated itself all season show up once more. The SEC dominates the list, placing six teams in the rankings including three of the top four. We began the year with 5 SEC teams in the rankings with Alabama and LSU occupying the top 2 spots. The more things change, the more they remain the same.

To the numbers…

Rank Team Votes LW
1 Alabama (3) 147 2
2 Notre Dame (6) 145 1
3 Florida 122 5
4 Georgia 117 3
5 Oregon 116 4
6 Kansas St. 110 6
7 LSU 91 7
8 Texas A&M 85 8
9 Ohio St. 77 10
10 Stanford 76 9
11 South Carolina 67 11
12 Oklahoma 58 12
13 Florida St. 46 t13
14 Clemson 34 t13
15 Oregon St. 26 16
16 Northern Illinois 17 NR
17 Boise St. 9 NR

Others Receiving Votes: UCLA 7, Jeff Long 6, Nebraska 6, Wisconsin 6, Utah St. 5, San Jose St. 2, Kent St. 1, Louisville 1

 

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Select 17, Week 12

Posted by Brett Kincaid on November 12, 2012

Texas A&M simultaneously pulled off its biggest win as a member of the SEC and former member of the Big XII last weekend. The Aggies and redshirt freshman superstar quarterback Johnny Manziel rocked the college football world by beating then-#1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. In doing so they cleared the path for Kansas State to play in the BCS Championship Game. All the Wildcats have to do is take care of business this weekend at Baylor then at home against a resurgent Texas Longhorns team two days after Thanksgiving. Kansas State emerged as the #1 team in the latest BCS standings, but they have to settle for the #2 spot in most polls – including this week’s BlogHawgs.com Select 17, where Oregon reigns supreme after picking up 6 of the 9 first place votes.

The Ducks looked strong once again on Saturday at Cal. They host Stanford this weekend in another late-season test. The Civil War awaits Oregon the following week, then a date in the Pac-12 Championship Game against either UCLA or USC. Meanwhile Notre Dame responded to its lackluster performance last week against Pittsburgh by knocking off Boston College on the road. The Irish head back home to take on Wake Forest this weekend before ending its regular season in the Coliseum against Southern Cal. Notre Dame has won ugly – key word, won – but will be tested by the Trojan offensive machine.

The SEC has six teams in this week’s BCS top 10 but none of them in the top three. Two teams have to lose before the SEC champion can realistically get a shot a seventh straight BCS crown. All three teams ahead of Alabama and Georgia (also sitting with one loss and a spot secured in the SECCG) have challenging games remaining, and one slip up could open the door just enough for the nation’s most powerful conference to once again appear in the last college football game of the season.

To the numbers…

Rank Team Votes LW
1 Oregon 150 2
2 Kansas St. 147 3
3 Alabama 125 1
4 Notre Dame 121 4
5 Georgia 120 5
6 Florida 100 6
7 LSU 90 7
8 Texas A&M 87 14
9 Florida St. 82 8
10 South Carolina 69 11
11 Ohio St. 65 10
12 Clemson 58 12
13 Stanford 47 16
14 Oklahoma 30 15
15 Oregon St. 21 13
16 Nebraska 20 17
17 Louisville 15 9

Others Receiving Votes: UCLA 13, Louisiana Tech 8, Texas 6, Rutgers 3

 

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Select 17, Week 11

Posted by Brett Kincaid on November 6, 2012

The road to football Armageddon has been cleared thanks to late game heroics by Alabama and Notre Dame, a gritty home win by Kansas State, and a dominant offensive road performance by Oregon. As noted last week, all four teams have limited challenges remaining. This week, though, Bama has a suddenly tough game against Texas A&M and their high-powered offense. How will the Tide respond after an emotional win in Baton Rouge? Notre Dame travels to Chestnut Hill to face Boston College in the Catholic Bowl. Will their luck finally run out this weekend after two near/should-have-been losses at home in the past month? Kansas State hits the road this week to take on TCU, which has struggled quite a bit in its first season as a member of the Big XII. And Oregon hits the road again, this time heading to Berkeley to take on an unraveling Cal team.

If Alabama was playing on the road again this week, I’d be tempted to call for the Aggie upset. They run a completely different offense than Bama has seen this year and are playing with a ton of confidence right now. I’ll take the Aggies and 2 touchdowns (the line is currently Bama -13.5) but Bama to win. Notre Dame hasn’t looked very good offensively, but Boston College is pretty bad. The Irish should get to 10-0 this weekend. Kansas State needs to watch out for a road letdown,  but TCU’s defense – usually its strength – is one of the worst in the country this year. Bill Snyder should pick up another road win in his magical season back in Manhattan. Oregon looks to be the safest bet for a win, even if it’s on the road. The Ducks gave up a ton of points to Southern Cal, but they can easily score enough to beat a 3-7 California team with what most believe is a lame duck coach.

Georgia made up a lot of ground this weekend, narrowing the gap between them and Notre Dame to just one point in our poll. The Bulldogs play their annually rivalry game with Auburn this week, needing only a win against the pathetic War Damn Eagle Tigers to cinch the SEC East. A Bulldog win coupled with another lackluster Irish performance against a lousy team could knock Notre Dame down to a peg despite their undefeated record. Despite having 4 teams in the Top Ten, the SEC is just one Alabama loss from being a long shot to play for its 7th consecutive BCS championship.

To the numbers…

Rank Team Votes LW
1 Alabama (9) 153 1
2 Oregon 142 2
3 Kansas St. 137 3
4 Notre Dame 113 4
5 Georgia 112 6
6 Florida 100 7
7 LSU 89 5
8 Florida St. 83 8
9 Louisville 81 9
10 Ohio St. 70 10
11 South Carolina 62 12
12 Clemson 61 11
13 Oregon St. 45 13
14 Texas A&M 42 16
15 Oklahoma 31 17
16 Stanford 28 14
17 Nebraska 10 NR

 

Others Receiving Votes: Louisiana Tech 7, UCLA 7, Rutgers 2, Texas 1, Luck of the Irish 1

 

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Select 17, Week 10

Posted by Brett Kincaid on October 30, 2012

Are we really entering the 10th week of college football? My, my time drags when you’re not having any fun at all. I feel like the season should be over by now. After their second Little Rock meltdown of the season, it appears the 2012 Arkansas Razorbacks feel about the same way. Sitting at 3-5 with four games left on the schedule, Arkansas needs to win at least three games against Tulsa, South Carolina, Mississippi State, and LSU in order to even qualify for a bowl game this year. The Hogs will certainly be sizable underdogs at Columbia and Starkville, and again at home against LSU the day after Thanksgiving. Arkansas is actually laying 7 points at home this week to Tulsa (any takers?), but winning any of the other games would be considered an upset by anyone. The point: Arkansas will very likely miss a bowl game for the first time since 2008. The Hogs also missed post-season play in 2004, got to the Las Vegas Bowl in 2000 (losing it to finish with a 6-7 record), and missed bowl games in 1996 and 1992. Presidential election years have not been kind to the Razorbacks.

Other teams – like Alabama, Oregon, Kansas State, and Notre Dame – have no such problems. All four remain unbeaten this year, and all four could definitely end the season undefeated. The Crimson Tide and Ducks both face big challenges this weekend, though. Alabama must travel to Baton Rouge to take on LSU, while the Ducks fly south to take on Southern Cal. The Fighting Irish is on let-down alert when they host Pitt on Saturday afternoon, while Kansas State has revenge on its mind Saturday night when Oklahoma State comes to the Little Apple.

Kansas State has the easiest path to perfection. If they can get past Okie State this weekend, they have road games left against TCU and Baylor, and Texas in Manhattan to end the season. After this weekend Notre Dame has a similarly weak field ahead of it with only a road trip to Southern Cal the real danger along with dates against Boston College and Wake Forest on its schedule.

The current #1 and #2 in the Select 17 poll have the most difficult schedules remaining. If Bama passes a huge test this weekend, they get a dangerous Texas A&M squad before slowing down with Western Carolina and Auburn before the SEC Championship Game – against either Georgia or Florida. Oregon plays three times on the road in the final four weeks. They’re at USC this weekend, then at Cal, home for Stanford, and at Oregon State for the annual Civil War. If they survive that schedule, they plan the Pac-12 Championship Game, likely against Southern Cal (again) or UCLA.

As you have probably realized at this point, the two teams with the clearest paths to Miami both avoid a conference championship game. If both Notre Dame and Kansas State finish undefeated, you can bet a one-loss SEC or Pac-12 champion will not make the BCS Championship Game – to the delight of many and murderous rage of many more. The good news, at least for people like me, is that this nonsense all comes to an end in the 2014 season when the 4-team playoff format finally helps college football settle its business on the field.

To the rankings…

Rank Team Votes LW
1 Alabama (9) 153 1
2 Oregon 138 2
3 Kansas St. 137 3
4 Notre Dame 121 6
5 LSU 108 5
6 Georgia 106 13
7 Florida 93 4
8 Floirda St. 84 10
9 Louisville 81 14
10 Ohio St. 68 12
11 Clemson 61 15
12 South Carolina 48 NR
13 Oregon St. 38 7
14 Stanford 29 NR
15 Mississippi St. 28 11
16 Texas A&M 26 NR
17 Oklahoma 17 8

Others Receiving Votes: Boise St. 10, Louisiana Tech 9, Southern Cal 4, Texas Tech 4, Rutgers 1

 

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Select 17, Week 8

Posted by Brett Kincaid on October 15, 2012

The more things change, the more things stay the same. While the S17 looks quite different in most spots this week, #1 Alabama and #2 Oregon continue to reign supreme. Once again the Crimson Tide swept up all 9 first place votes, extending their streak to 7 consecutive weeks as the consensus Number One team in all of college football. With an off week the Ducks held steady as a unanimous #2 selection. With losses by South Carolina and West Virginia - and boy howdy, what a loss – the rest of the Top Ten saw significant changes. Kansas State‘s road win at Norman looks more and more impressive after the Sooners gashed Texas in the Red River Rivalry Rout on Saturday. Meanwhile traditional powers Florida and Notre Dame moved into discussion as legitimate national title contenders. Out west, Oregon State remains unbeaten and Southern Cal continues its march back to BCS discussion.

While we’re still several wins away from it happening, Arkansas finally looked like a preseason Top Ten team this weekend. If this offense – and more importantly, defense – continue to show up each week, the Hogs may end the season back in the rankings. The teams that have beaten Arkansas have a combined record of 21-3, and those three losses came by a combined total of 11 points. While the Hogs have no claim of being an elite team, we can take some solace in knowing all the losses have come to accomplished football teams.

Without further ado, your Week 8 Select 17 college football poll:

Rank Team Votes LW
1 Alabama (9) 153 1
2 Oregon 144 2
3 Kansas St 129 5
4 Florida 124 6
5 Notre Dame 107 7
6 LSU 98 10
7 Oregon St 91 8
8 South Carolina 72 3
9 Oklahoma 70 17
10 Southern Cal 59 11
11 Ohio St 58 9
12 Florida St 52 13
13 Louisville 46 14
14 Mississippi St 45 15
15 Georgia 44 12
16 Clemson 30 16
17 Rutgers 20 NR

 

Other Receiving Votes: West Virginia 19, Cincinnati 8, Texas A&M 6, Texas Tech 3, Pete Kozma 1

 

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