Week 13 Review: Oklahoma Rolls Past Texas Tech
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By Tim Letcher
NCAAFootball.com
After a slow start in the first quarter, Oklahoma saw its offense come to life in the second quarter, opening a 28-0 lead en route to a 65-21 thrashing of then-No. 2 Texas Tech.
Sooners quarterback Sam Bradford has been torching defenses all season, but this time, Oklahoma opened the game using primarily the running attack. In fact, both DeMarco Murray, who scored the game’s first touchdown, and Chris Brown, who scored the season, each went over 100 yards rushing (Murray had 125 yards, Brown 108).
Bradford was extremely efficient in this game, connecting on 14-of-19 passes for 304 yards and four touchdowns, each to a different receiver.
Texas Tech could never find a rhythm on offense. The Red Raiders, who had been dominating many opponents this season, found themselves on the wrong side of a 42-7 halftime score.
The good news is that the win vaulted the Sooners to the number three spot in the latest BCS standings. The bad news is, they are still behind Big 12 South rival Texas. Providing that Texas, Oklahoma and Texas Tech win their final games, the conference tiebreaker will come down to the highest ranked team in the BCS. Texas has the advantage for now, but the Longhorns face 4-7 Texas A&M on Thanksgiving night, while Oklahoma visits No. 11 Oklahoma State. A win there could boost the Sooners past Texas, due to strength of schedule.
Teams on the rise
1. Oklahoma – Not only did the Sooners thump Texas Tech, they did so on national television, where many of the voters in the polls could see them. It showed on Sunday, when Oklahoma vaulted to No. 2 in the USA Today coaches’ poll and number three in the BCS standings. The Sooners can’t let down their guard this week, as they face No. 11 Oklahoma State in Stillwater.
2. Utah – The Utes have completed a perfect 12-0 regular season, and can now wait to find out which BCS bowl game they will be participating in. They can also hope for mass chaos at the end of the season that could end up with them playing for the national title, although that is unlikely at this point.
3. Ole Miss – For the second week in a row, the Rebels make this list. It’s not every year that a team wins at Florida and at LSU in the same season, but Houston Nutt’s team has done that this season. Quarterback Jevan Snead continues to get better, and if the Rebels can get past intrastate rival Mississippi State in this week’s Egg Bowl game, they could find themselves playing in the Cotton Bowl.
4. Northwestern – The Wildcats won three of their last four to finish at 9-3, and will now get to go to a pretty good bowl during the holidays. Northwestern won its first five games, then lost two of three, before winning three of its last four. Pat Fitzgerald deserves a lot of credit for keeping this team on task.
5. Troy – The Trojans are 7-4 on the season after crushing Louisiana-Lafayette 48-3 on Saturday. Their losses this season are: at Ohio State, at Oklahoma State, at LSU and at Louisiana-Monroe. A win on December 6th over Arkansas State will give Larry Blakeney’s team the Sun Belt title.
Teams needing to regroup
1. Notre Dame – It’s just not Notre Dame’s year. The Irish are bowl-eligible, but the season hasn’t been fulfilling. And, during a stunning 24-23 loss to Syracuse on Saturday, fans even pelted the team with snowballs during the game. And, if Charlie Weis thinks it can’t get worse, it can. This week, the Irish visit USC.
2. North Carolina – What in the world happened to the Tar Heels? Ranked 25th in last week’s polls, the Tar Heels had a chance to win the ACC’s Coastal Division. They figured to have an easy game, at home against N.C. State, but something didn’t translate on the field, as UNC was crushed, 41-10. Butch Davis’ team will now settle for a mid-level bowl game, which is still an improvement over last year, but a disappointment to what could have been.
3. Miami (Fla.) – The ‘Canes were ranked last week for the first time in two years. And just that quickly, they are now back out of the polls, after getting run out of the stadium by Georgia Tech, 41-23. Randy Shannon’s team finishes at N.C. State this weekend.
4. Washington – The nightmare of the 2008 season is nearly over for the Huskies. They came close to winning on Saturday, suffering a 16-13, double overtime loss at Washington State. After an open date this weekend, Ty Willingham coaches his last game for the Huskies at Cal on December 6th.
5. LSU – Saturday’s loss at home to Ole Miss was devastating for the Tigers’ bowl picture. LSU is now looking at the Chick-fil-A Bowl or the Liberty Bowl, instead of the Cotton Bowl or the Capital One Bowl. LSU is 7-4, but is third in the SEC West. Not what Les Miles was expecting after a national title last year.
Players making a name for themselves
1. Antwon Bailey, Syracuse – The freshman running back had a huge day as the Orange upset Notre Dame in South Bend. Bailey had 126 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown, completed a pass for 25 yards and made the key block on the game-winning touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.
2. Andy Schmitt, Eastern Michigan – Schmitt set an NCAA record on Saturday, attempting 76 passes without an interception in a 55-52 loss to Temple. Schmitt completed 50 of those passes for 484 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for a pair of scores.
3. Adam DiMichele, Temple – Not to be outdone by Schmitt, DiMichele was 21-of-37 for 370 yards and six touchdowns, and also rushed for a score in the win over Eastern Michigan.
4. Phillip Tanner, Middle Tennessee – It was quite a day for the junior running back, as he had 14 carries for 159 yards and five touchdowns, and also returned a kickoff 92 yards for a score as the Blue Raiders pounded North Texas 52-13.
5. DuJuan Harris, Troy – Harris, a 5-7 sophomore, had 234 yards on 28 carries and two touchdowns, and also completed a pass for five yards and another touchdown as the Trojans thumped Louisiana-Lafayette 48-3.
Five questions heading into this week
1. Will any of this weekend’s rivalry games affect the national title race? – Many of them will. And in these “throw out the records” games, a stumble by a national title contender could drastically affect the entire national picture. And the top five teams in the latest USA Today poll all face rivals this weekend.
2. Who will ultimately win the Big 12 South? – Even with one week to go, it’s too early to tell at this point. Texas is the leader for now, but it will be interesting to see how well the computers would like an Oklahoma win at Oklahoma State against a Texas win at home against a mediocre Texas A&M squad. The best answer to this question: stay tuned.
3. Who will ultimately play for the BCS national title? – Much like the question above, it’s too early to tell. However, the possible participants are taking shape. Barring any major upsets, it appears that the winner of the Big 12 South, providing they beat Missouri in the Big 12 title game, will face the winner of the SEC championship game. That means get ready for a battle between Texas/Oklahoma/Texas Tech and Alabama/Florida.
4. What team can salvage its season with a win this weekend? – We’ll give you a couple. Without question, Auburn is one. If the Tigers can beat Alabama for the seventh straight time, and likely take them out of the national title hunt, that would be big for the school. Same goes for Texas A&M. It hasn’t been an ideal first year for Mike Sherman, but an upset win, in Austin, would make the Aggie faithful feel much better about this season.
5. Which team is likely to finished ranked the highest and be left out of the BCS? – Boise State, which is currently ranked ninth in the USA Today coaches poll. It appears that Utah is in line to claim the non-BCS conference bid to the big dance, meaning Boise State will likely be left out in the cold, despite (likely) finishing undefeated.
Five big games for this week
No. 3 Oklahoma at No. 11 Oklahoma State – It’s pretty simple for the Sooners: they have to win to keep hopes of a Big 12 South and national title alive. The Cowboys would like nothing more than to spoil that for their intrastate rivals.
No. 18 Georgia Tech at No. 13 Georgia – Tech has finished its ACC campaign, and is currently in first place in the ACC’s Coastal Division. But that doesn’t matter, at least for this week, as the Yellow Jackets face their arch rival, the Georgia Bulldogs. Mark Richt’s team was number one in the preseason, but a brutal schedule and injuries have taken their toll on the Bulldogs this season.
No. 2 Florida at No. 23 Florida State – Florida is anxious to get to Atlanta to face top-ranked Alabama in the SEC Championship game. But the Gators better not overlook the resurgent Seminoles, especially in Tallahassee. Quarterback Tim Tebow continues to put up big numbers in defense of his Heisman Trophy, but points could be tough to come by against a pretty good FSU defense.
No. 19 Oregon at No. 17 Oregon State – After pulling a stunning upset of USC in September, few experts gave Oregon State a chance to actually win the Pac-10 and appear in the Rose Bowl. The Beavers are now one game from making that happen. However, that game is against arch rival Oregon, which has won two in a row and four of its last five.
Auburn at No. 1 Alabama – Despite a high early ranking, Auburn has fallen apart this year, and currently sits at 5-6. However, Tommy Tuberville’s team has beaten Alabama six straight times. Nick Saban and the Tide hope to keep rolling toward a national title, but they’d better not overlook their old rival in this one.
FCS Headlines
The 2008 FCS football playoff pairings were announced on Sunday. In first round action, top-ranked James Madison faces Wofford.
Second-ranked Appalachian State takes on South Carolina State.
Division II Headlines
In a game that can only be described as a Texas shootout, Abilene Christian beat West Texas A&M 93-68 on Saturday. Yes, that score is correct, 93-68.
Grand Valley State continued its roll, thumping Ashland 40-7.
Division III Headlines
Top-ranked Mount Union blanked Randolph-Macon 56-0 in the first round of the DIII playoffs on Saturday.
Second-ranked North Central (Ill.) cruised to a 44-23 win over Thomas More in their playoff opener.
