@solon16 said:

True. I don't gripe about taking a knee before halftime. This is the reason why you do.

@earl34 said:

Good points Earl and others!

I think what we're seeing here is every conference has their Minute Men Patriotiotic fans ready to defend their conference. SOME learn to hate rivals in their division while others want that sense of ethnocentric pride of "our division is the toughest." This thread is an enjoyable back and forth to read.

Personally I grew up an Ohio State fan from WAY back to seeing them lose heartbreakers when Archie Griffen played. One time they lost badly to a UCLA team in the Rose Bowl whom they had already beaten easily earlier in the season. Like it or not, all this stuff goes in cycles about which conference has the most Bowl wins etc. My second team was always Syracuse because 1) they were local for me and 2) I'm an enormous fan of RB traditions and my common bond w/ them and the Browns began with Jim Brown and Ernie Davis. They've had a great tradition of RBs like those I haven't already mentioned such as: Floyd Little, Larry Csoncka, Art Monk, Joe Morris, Moose Johnston to name just a few. If that's not enough - even their helmet colors are similar to the Browns. Prolly explains a Western NY fanbase comprising at least 3 different browns' backers groups.

Today I reside in SEC country so I'm excited about seeing SEC football even if it has to go through Vandy binoculars. There's some mediocrity mixed into conference though just like there is in any other conference. I'm just not a BIG fan of some of the SEC Coaches because of their previous paths like Saban and Petrino. I don't mind Kiffen because he's trying to change the mindset of a school that got too accustomed to rolling over and playing dead in front of Florida. While I'm at it, I respect Urban Meyer for winning at Dayton and then Utah before going to Florida. That said, I think he clearly understands the difference in academic acceptance criteria at Notre Dame and what Florida will accept if the guy can simply play ball. According to Mike Golic, there's no longer the 1 or 2 slots of exemption they once had to use for Tony Rice as Golic explained it. I believe this is the biggest reason Notre Dame is no longer Meyer's dream job and it became evident long before the health stuff surfaced.

If Jim Tressell could win a series of National Championships at Youngstown State before going on to beat a University of Miami team that was putting more bodies into the NFL than any other D-IA program at the time - what SEC Coach does he take a back seat to? I would say maybe only Urban Meyer. Nick Saban couldn't HACK the Big 10 so it's tough for me to applaud a quitter. I can think of 2 Ohio State teams that only lost 1 game that wasn't handed a National Championship like Les Miles was. One beat Jake Plummer's undefeated ASU Team and another beat Texas A & M in Bowl games. Another year USC shared a National Championship with LSU so it's not like the SEC ever gets neglected when it's time to dish out love and respect. Meanwhile I have witnessed a couple undefeated Big 10 teams like the Penn State team QB'd by Kerry Collins and the undefeated Michigan team QB'd by Brian Griese NEVER getting crowned National Champions or sharing it. I guess I could play pretend and say Joe Paterno doesn't belong in the same coversation with Nick Saban and Urban Meyer but that would become my biggest shoe in the mouth statement of alltime. Not good when I already had big shoes to fill with that.

- Tom F.

@jrb12711 said:

IMO, that game would have been handily won by Texas if he stays in. You can almost asure that you guys would of gotten an early TD instead of a FG, then with that kickoff turnover who knows. It could of easily been 14-0 early in the first. Saban knows he got lucky.

Special teams was kicking their ass and our defense came out of the gate like their hair was on fire. Tough to take but we learned a lot about the kids that are coming back. Any selfish desire on my part to see Colt try and make a go of it (he couldn't actually throw the ball according to Yahoo) was quickly washed away seeing the post game interview with Lisa Saulters on YouTube. He will be a success in life with an attitude like that even if he doesn't make waves in the NFL.

@earl34 said:

Alabama was the better team last night. Football happens. If Greg Davis wouldn't go into his shell with the whole "run-run-pass" playcalling...then it might've been different. Big deal.

I'm proud of my guys. They could have rolled over and given up fifty but they didn't. They fought hard and tough. The true freshman QB played as best he could. That's all we can ask.

don't worry man, it's only that one idiot who doesn't know a damn thing about football. He's just one of those worthless jackels who has a opinion of someone based off nothing other than sure stupidity. I posted a good link describing it. We all know for a fact Colt wanted desperately back into that game, and would of lost his NFL career for it. Mack and the coaches wouldn't let him on the field, period.

IMO, that game would have been handily won by Texas if he stays in. You can almost asure that you guys would of gotten an early TD instead of a FG, then with that kickoff turnover who knows. It could of easily been 14-0 early in the first. Saban knows he got lucky.

@flugel said:

- Tom F.

From my vantage point at the game last night, Saban was guilty of just that and every Alabama fan near me was quite nervous. He got outcoached considerably. His players just executed so well that they got the turnover late to seal it. Who the hell gives up a second kickoff recovery after having had one earlier? Who throws a fake punt on 4th and 23 in your own territory?

Alabama was the better team last night. Football happens. If Greg Davis wouldn't go into his shell with the whole "run-run-pass" playcalling...then it might've been different. Big deal.

I'm proud of my guys. They could have rolled over and given up fifty but they didn't. They fought hard and tough. The true freshman QB played as best he could. That's all we can ask.

@pumpkin-eater said:

Bama barely held on to beat a kid who was throwing to his high school teammates last year.

That is the way the SEC is...you hear the chants....SEC

I rooted for Bama.....and yes....I do root for the Steelers in Super Bowls, Bengals, and Ravens for that matter...I figure that makes us look better.

That is why some Big 10 fans don't get it.....you should want Michigan to be undefeated every year heading in to your game....it's only going to help you when you beat them.

But again, I root SEC all the way with the exception when the Bucks play them( except Fla)...I still hold some birth right pride....too bad they never have in a bowl.

I have never understood rooting against the person who lives next to you, even if you don't like them head to head.

And really, that is what makes the SEC special. LSU and Bama fans may hate me most of the year, but when it is my time to shine, I know the bulk are rooting for me just as I root for them when it is their time in the sun.

Go SEC

@jrb12711 said:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news...o&type=lgns

great article.

There's only one Retard who thought that - and I am sure he will chime in again with stupidity

@dencyguy said:

Dennis

Still can't believe that Kirk Ferentz won a BCS game. Kirk Freakin' Ferentz.

But you'll believe Les Miles could win a National Championship with 2 losses on his plate? Not sure I understand where you are going with this Dennis. This is actually a GOOD story in college football. I'm kind of happy for the guy. He's had 2 seasons where he's won 11 games or more in the cornfields of Iowa. They've won some Bowl Games since he's been there believe it or not. Not only that, but he's put some good players like Dallas Clark, Bob Sanders, Eric Steinbach, Matt Roth, Shonne Greene, Chad Greenway, and Robert Gallery in the NFL.

I thought his job coaching up our oline to the playoffs in the early 90s was one of the better oline coaching jobs I've seen. He made us completely forget how bad the ideas of Tommy Vardell and Eric Metcalf were for our running game when we learned we could just handoff to a Big 10 RB like Leroy's Hoards running behind guys like Orlando Brown, Tony Jones, Steve Everitt, etc. Hoard ended up making the Pro Bowl as a Fullback that year even though he was just a tailback that started 8 games and gained over 900 yards. Speaking of winning 11 games, we won 11 games and then beat NE in the wild card game when Ferentz was here coaching our oline.

I think the SEC is a FUN conference; but sometimes people go a little overboard how superior it is. Best example I can think of is when 2 evenly matched teams competed in the SEC Championship last year - one of them got TROUNCED by a Utah team a few weeks later. I recall another recent year where Arkansas was the runnerup in that SEC Championship a few month after USC beat them by about 5-6 TDs. Tennessee doesn't look like they ever get much done vrs UCLA in recent years. The Vandy team I had season tickets to see couldn't even win 1 SEC matchup so I'm not sure it's as strong of a conference top to bottom as many insinuate. I do think their top 2-3 teams are tough to beat but that's also from 2 SEC conferences not 1.

I looked at how competitive that game SEEMED to be last night starting as early as the cheesy call that took a TD off the board from Texas. Where was that invisible 5th guy in the backfield on play from the 1 yard line nonetheless? He was on the hip of the olineman next to him. That could have been called countless times against Bama and wasn't. You hate to see that kind of crap and cheesiness taking the game out of the players' hands. IMO, the score should have been 10-0 early with the backup in there for the TD that got pryed away. I think Herbstreit was right on the money when he was noticing things that weren't beign called vrs Bama's touchy feely and noticing these were flags the other way. Saban seemingly looked ready to call a terrible game with that absurd fake punt thing and his team was 0 for 8 at one time on third downs. Don't kid yourself, Bama needed those yellow flags yesterday.

Just a Nick Saban question: if he is truely the GOD of winning, what happened at Michigan State? Too much academic criteria for his liking? Folks up there seemed like they liked George Perles alot better. I see why Saban NEVER chose Vanderbilt. That said, Urban Meyer showed me he could coach at Utah. After he beat Saban last year with his Florida recruits - his remaining Utah recruits gave those Crimson Tides some Crimson Hydes. Guys like Saban and Miles don't want any part of Big 10 schools stressing academics because they prefer places like LSU where guys like Perilloux can keep dressing for games whether they've seen the inside of a classroom or not. I think it's pretty obvious why Les Miles never wanted any part of Michigan and why Saban couldn't tolerate another year of Michigan State. Come to think of it, Urban Meyer doesn't want to tarnish his coaching reputation on the Notre dame job where 50% of the kids he recruits at Florida wouldn't get accepted at ND. Bigger challenge not accepted right? That USED to be his dream job.

I don't think I'll ever get the visual of Carl Banks wanting to beat the tar out of Nick Saban on the sidelines in our playoff matchup with Pittsburgh when they kept counter-trapping to their weakside and Saban refused to adjust to it. I heard an interview with Carl Banks when he was asked about the sideline incident. His message was that Saban didn't even prepare at all for Pittsburgh and it became crystal clear to him when Saban wouldn't adjust to the game day trends unfolding. In fact, Banks said he got the impression Saban was feeling like the sooner the Browns could exit the playoffs - the sooner Saban could get on with his next gig at the college level. Players aren't stupid and they can sense when someone is screwing them. NEVER liked the guy since. He's boned over countless teams but there's some places where selling the soul is more honorable than others. The only difference between him and Bobby Petrino is a Championship makes everyone forget about when the path wasn't exactly RIGHT. I don't think Ferentz ever had to bone anyone, especially his players, on his way to becoming a very well respected Head Coach.

- Tom F.

And it was a down year for the SEC in bowls; of the ten teams from the conference that went to the postseason, the conference record was only 6-4 (as opposed to 6-2 last year, 7-2 the year before, and 6-3 the year before that).

Dennis

Hopefully next year Tennessee can go 8-4, so I can come on here and crow about how they've defied all the media hate and made a bowl game...oh wait, that's right, in the SEC 8-4 and bowl eligibility isn't something to crow about.

@dencyguy said:

Dennis

I know what you mean, those PC Rankings seem to shake Tennessee right out of the mix every year.

Seriously, don't they know the Mighty Vols play in the vaunted SEC? WTF?

@riffer-x said:

True, SEC teams did get the benefit of playing Ohio State in a couple of NC games, but that's just the way the computer rankings shook out.

Dennis

@miktoxic said:

Come on dude you don't know what that kid was feeling. Who in the hell in their right mind would voluntarily not want to play in a game of that magnitude? You're the one smoking, leave the kid alone. You can't throw a football when you can't feel your arm, plain and simple.

BTW, Solon is from Solon Ohio, he just lives in Texas.

@solon16 said:

i guess that's why he'll drop a round in the draft. the way he 'shows up' in big games. you're lucky that the refs gave him/texas another two seconds in the big 12 championship cuz they should have never been in that game last nite. oh and being from texas i guess your views aren't a little slanted, huh? think about it, how can you be objective? dolt.

@miktoxic said:

Listen dude you are dead wrong...I live here in Austin and you judging his face and mannerisms from what you see on television is the epitomy what smoking dust and believing what you read/see from interviews. DEAD wrong....You have no fking clue dude...zero! You obviously never played football before...clueless!

@jrb12711 said:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news...o&type=lgns

great article.

keep believing that. what, was there a novelist in the locker room when all this heroics was going on. pleeez. talk about believing everything you read. anyone with any journalistic or writing skills can dramatize a situation over-the-top to skew one's perspective. the kid was soft then and he'll be soft in the nfl. nothing was broke and his shoulder hadn't popped, so what was it? a stinger? man, shoot him up and get him out there again. punk. you think guys in the nfl don't get popped like that all the time? he's a pussy and anyone who thinks he's not is smokin dust.

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news...o&type=lgns

great article.

@riffer-x said:

Yep, he's a Carpetbagger, like Art Modell. I bet he was drooling at the Urban Meyer news...another job opportunity for him.

I bet Bear Bryant is churning in his grave at Saban.

suns said:

great.. I don't know many people who choose to root for an entire conference rather than a particular team.. but whatever. That's like rooting for the Squeelers to win thwe Super Bowl because they also play in the AFC North.. Or rooting for Michigan to win a bowl game.. it's not happening.

Bama barely held on to beat a kid who was throwing to his high school teammates last year.

@riffer-x said:

Nah, they prefer to play backups, not all stars.

I'm not a big McCoy fan, but I'd take a long look at him if he's there in the 3rd round.