2024 - 2025 NCAA Football

[Sonnie Parker]

It will be interesting to see if Bama can get it back together against the Gamecocks, or they'll be down two in a row and the season will be looking dreary.

A good top 5 matchup with the Ducks and Buckeyes, although I think OSU whoops up on them pretty badly. (Never bet on my assumptions.)

Ole Miss vs LSU should be a good one, as should the Red River shootout. My guess is OU will bleed a little more red once they get hooked by the Longhorns.

Tennessee vs. Florida could end up being a much closer game than what I would have thought after the first couple of games.

 

[tripplej]

 

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[Sonnie Parker]

Wow... Bama tried every way possible to lose that ballgame. I've never seen such sloppy play. I hate to be the one to say it, but with the talent we have, this is all about coaching... nothing more. It's going to be a tough year for Bama fans.

 

[JStewart]

2-1/2 weeks of terrible. What’s next?

 

[Sonnie Parker]

I have a feeling we won't be smoking any stogies next weekend. I think we can beat Mercer.

 

[tripplej]

 

[JStewart]

I have a feeling we won't be smoking any stogies next weekend. I think we can beat Mercer.

LOL, I certainly believe so. But then I expected a win against Vandy, too.

Speaking of Vandy, I watched Vandy and UK this morning through the miracle of TV “recording”. Vandy continued their winning ways with the victory. Fair to say UK was Vandy’s 12th man though, with stupid penalties and two fumbled snaps for the placekicker that cost themselves points and maybe the game. One mishandled snap is a rarity. Two in the same game is practically unheard of.

LSU and Ole Miss was a fun game to watch last night as night games in Death Valley usually are. Hate when Bama gets one on the schedule. Anyway, this thrilling LSU overtime win was the exclamation point on the 100 year anniversary of the stadium. I’m thinking the post game celebration was probably the 2nd best in the SEC so far this year.

 

[Sonnie Parker]

Kentucky and Vanderbilt can undoubtedly be your season's upsetters at play. They are both good teams on the right day, as they have both proven, although they may need a little help from the opponent.

Oregon and OSU had a pretty good finish, and the Vols pulled it out over the Gators in a good one. Penn State edged out USC in a close one. A lot of close and fun games to watch this weekend; unless you were a fan of one of those teams, then you were probably on the edge of your seat in the fourth quarter.

 

[tripplej]

 

[tripplej]

 

[Sonnie Parker]

I'll obviously be keeping an eye on the Bama game, but I don't think our defense can stop the Vols, so we'll have to outscore them if we can.

The big game will be the Dogs nibbling at the feet of the Longhorns. We already know those horns can hook.

 

[Travis Ballstadt]

As a fan of a Big 12 team, especially when it dropped to 10 teams, we were always jealous of the SEC and Big 10 where half (or in the Big 10 2/3 to 3/4) of the teams were kinda trash. Iowa State would often play 7 or 8 ranked teams during its 12 game schedule, especially with Iowa as one of their 3 non-conference games.

Now that two of our toughest teams (though teams we've beaten in the last year or two) have departed the conference, here we are at 6-0 and in the Top 10 again nationally, with the possibility of an undefeated season.

I don't know if that's good or bad. I firmly believe that playing those gauntlet schedules helped us improve through the course of the season, but oftentimes we'd be so banged up by November we just didn't have the gas left in the tank. Let's see how this easier schedule thing pans out. Fun to watch!

 

[Sonnie Parker]

The Big 12 has turned around to what we've been seeing over the last decade or so. It's no longer TCU, Baylor, and OSU at the top, with Utah being a powerhouse over the last few years. Iowa State and BYU are both at the top and undefeated. BYU was 11-1 back in 2020 as an independent, but Iowa State has stepped up this year. Coincidentally, their best year since 2000 was also 2020 at 9-3. Matt Campbell has done pretty well to keep them in the winning column except for his first year (2016) and 2022.

 

[Travis Ballstadt]

The Big 12 has turned around to what we've been seeing over the last decade or so. It's no longer TCU, Baylor, and OSU at the top, with Utah being a powerhouse over the last few years. Iowa State and BYU are both at the top and undefeated. BYU was 11-1 back in 2020 as an independent, but Iowa State has stepped up this year. Coincidentally, their best year since 2000 was also 2020 at 9-3. Matt Campbell has done pretty well to keep them in the winning column except for his first year (2016) and 2022.

Matt Campbell has been fantastic.

2016 he had an empty cupboard and even though the team was below .500 he still outperformed expectations.

2022 was an anomaly because a few weeks before the season, the State of Iowa pulled an (illegal) investigation that they were later reprimanded for and found some players using betting apps to place wagers on various sporting events. Only 2 players were found to have bet on ISU games, but over a dozen were charged and lost scholarships and left, including the starting QB. The state used illegal methods and targeted Iowa State and the University of Iowa, but for whatever reason didn't feel the need to investigate the University of Northern Iowa. The state is now being sued by several athletes. Is betting by players okay? Nope. But it happens all across the country and also all across the state, but they chose to target two schools.

I miss the old days of the Big 8 for basketball, but the first years of the Big 12 were really fun for football. Then when it dropped to 10 teams, it became a nightmare situation for a team like Iowa State, trying to rebuild and having to play every team in the conference every year. It helped us get to where we are today, but it was dreadful to watch year in and year out.

 

[Sonnie Parker]

I was wondering what happened in 2022... that investigation explains it. I did not know about it. Seems odd the state would hurt the schools like that. You would think they'd try to handle it discreetly and get it right.

Yeah... Matt Campbell is a very good coach.

 

[Travis Ballstadt]

I was wondering what happened in 2022... that investigation explains it. I did not know about it. Seems odd the state would hurt the schools like that. You would think they'd try to handle it discreetly and get it right.

Yeah... Matt Campbell is a very good coach.

There's not much explaining the majority of what the state of Iowa does anymore. It's a big reason I live in Seattle now.

 

[tripplej]

 

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[Sonnie Parker]

No stogies for Tide fans today. Astronomical number of mistakes... not even sure how it could be as close as it was, other than they made a few mistakes early on that helped us out.

How about the Dogs manhandling the Longhorns in the first half.

 

[tripplej]

 

[Travis Ballstadt]

UCF played a heckuva game. I thought we were done but we pulled it out!

 

[Sonnie Parker]

That was a wild game... glad Iowa State came through... good win for them.

Congrats to Georgia on toppling Texas. I was not expecting it. Their defense really stepped up and made some big plays. They had Texas rattled most of the game.

How about Indiana putting it on Nebraska? I thought that game would have been closer. Later on their schedule, they have a game with Ohio State, which could put Indiana on the football map.

Illinois beat Michigan... wow! Look out, Oregon!

The Army vs. Navy game is shaping up to be the biggest game ever if both of them can maintain their undefeated seasons. Both teams still have to play Notre Dame (Navy plays them next week).