By Rock Westfall
Week 7 was a “Prime” example of how football remains a man’s game. There is no easy way to success, and winning is hard. Football is a game of sacrifice, pain, discipline, and the greater good. There are always aspiring geniuses who are touted to have a new way for the modern athlete. Yet the game always returns to a defining moment when physical will must be asserted. Football is a game that is as much about eliminating mistakes as forcing them. Championship Football is not about glitz and glamour but preparation, pain, and toil. That will never change. We were reminded of that truth in Week 7.
Who is the Greatest of the Greats?
The two best teams in college football are the Georgia Bulldogs and Michigan Wolverines. Georgia is winning in a methodical, workmanlike fashion. As we mentioned here last week, Michigan is so good as to be unwatchable. Their games are over before halftime.
Michigan has not played a serious quality opponent. Georgia has had a slightly tougher schedule but wins by lesser margins than the Maize and Blue.
While the masses are screaming Michigan is best, don’t be so sure. The two-time defending national champion Bulldogs have the deepest and most talented roster in the land. And they have the intangible of knowing how to win nattys. Furthermore, they crushed Michigan in a playoff game in 2021.
Additionally, it remains hard for many to forget Michigan’s playoff flop against TCU last year. The Wolverines’ schedule is tougher down the stretch. That is where the rubber will meet the road.
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The Life of Riley Ends in SoCal
Upon his arrival at USC, Lincoln Riley seemed a perfect fit. He was LA cool, bought a mansion with a gorgeous view of the Pacific, and was a reputed master recruiter. Top prospects burned Riley’s phone with relentless appeals. Riley came off as Tommy Bahama’s son with a charmed life.
When he was Oklahoma’s head coach, Riley was touted as an offensive wizard. NFL coaches would visit for whiteboard sessions each offseason. The Dallas Cowboys head coaching position was said to be Riley’s for the asking. Riley’s arrival at USC caused ticket sales and donations to soar.
Last year’s thrashing in the Pac-12 championship game to Utah, and an embarrassing Cotton Bowl loss to Tulane were blown off as things that would get fixed. However, midway through 2023, it’s not fixed. Instead, it is worse. Riley is finally facing doubters after a humiliating loss at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame jumped out to a 24-3 lead en route to a 48-20 win over the pretty Troy Boys. And the fault did not lie with defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. USC outgained Notre Dame 306-251. The Grinch Who Stole Defense was trying to cover for his boss’s ill-prepared offense. Caleb Williams, the USC quarterback and 2022 Heisman Trophy winner, was intercepted thrice in the first half. Riley failed to have his famed offense prepared, and USC was ambushed. Notre Dame played with a short field for most of the game.
For the first time, fans and gamblers now openly question whether Lincoln Riley is NOT all that. The performance was abysmal and spoke of a soft team unprepared for serious football. Of greater concern is that this was not a one-off. USC continues to struggle against tough, old-school football.
This week brings the Utah Utes to the LA Memorial Coliseum. The same Utah Utes that break bones and curb stomp the soft and comfortable.
Aggie Yell of Agony
One of life’s great mysteries is Texas A&M. We have been repeatedly told about the Aggies’ phenomenal recruiting classes under head coach Jimbo Fisher. Yet the results rarely match the hype. Most alarming is the lack of team speed. Texas A&M lacks game-breakers. Rather, the Aggies have more than their share of slow, plodding guys who try hard but cannot finish plays. The Aggies lost 20-13 at Tennessee against a beatable Volunteer team.
Texas A&M was outgained 332-277 and managed only 54 yards rushing. They were a pathetic 5-15 on third downs and 0-2 on fourth downs. Quarterback Max Johnson had a miserable day, going 16-34 for 223 yards with two sacks and two interceptions. But it was not all Johnson’s fault. He has no speedsters that can get open or make plays.
As for the marriage of convenience between Fisher and offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, it’s all about nothing. In his last major college gig, Petrino flamed out miserably at Louisville. He is not a difference-maker. But Andy Reid would struggle with the mediocre and slow material that Fisher has put together.
The Aggies are 4-3 and going nowhere fast. After a much-needed bye week, the Aggies host the struggling South Carolina Gamecocks on October 28.
A Fickell Transition from Neanderball in Wisconsin
Luke Fickell arrived in Wisconsin, promising to end the Stone Age tactics that served the Badgers well from 1993 through 2022. People forget that in 2017, head coach Paul Chryst had the Badgers within one score of the College Football Playoff. And in 2019, Wisconsin led Ohio State at halftime of the Big Ten Championship Game.
Ironically, the much-heralded arrival of Graham Mertz changed the fortunes of Wisconsin and Chryst forever. Mertz is proving to be a fine quarterback this year at Florida. But at Wisconsin, he was never a fit. The Badgers were at their best with anonymous game-manager QBs under center and power running. Chryst became perplexed. His offenses with Mertz were a bizarre patchwork. And it cost Chryst his job.
Fickell promised a transition to the Air Raid. Wisconsin fans roared their approval. But after an ugly 15-6 home loss to the Iowa Hawkeyes, doubts have set in, including from Fickell himself. Fickell lamented the Badgers throwing so much. He admitted that Iowa lulled UW into the trap of abandoning the run. Fickell said that all of the throwing didn’t serve anyone well. Wisconsin threw 50 passes compared to 28 rushes. And it was a colossal flop.
This week brings more uncertainty as the Badgers travel to Illinois to face the resurgent Fighting Illini and old friend Bret Bielema.
Mike Lock-Tease Lays a Terp
Speaking of highly touted recruiting classes that fail to deliver, we focus on the Maryland Terrapins and head coach Mike Locksley. Locksley is “The Man” of the fertile DMV (District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia) recruiting territory. But while more quality talent is on the Maryland roster, it is not being developed effectively.
Modest improvement is happening in Maryland. But an abysmal 27-24 home loss to a struggling Illinois team on Saturday is the latest example of Locksley’s inability to sustain success. Illinois is not a good football team. A loss at home to the Illini shatters the credibility of Locksley and his program.
The Terps are 5-2 but on a confidence-busting two-game Big Ten losing streak. Maryland is at Northwestern after a bye this week.
Mack Truck Hits the U and Not So Super Mario
Mario Cristobal’s year keeps getting worse. Last week, his failure to take a knee snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against a bad Georgia Tech team. On Saturday night, the U got its butt kicked in a 41-31 loss at North Carolina. Miami was -4 in the turnover margin and allowed 508 total yards to the Tar Heels.
Head coach Mack Brown’s Tar Heels are 6-0, stampeding toward the ACC championship game. Meanwhile, Cristobal faces increased doubts at home with a fan base known as front runners who will tune out mediocrity en masse.
This week, Miami hosts Clemson in another dangerous matchup.
K-State Klieman Back Into the Big 12 Race
After last week’s 29-21 loss at Oklahoma State, Kansas State head coach Chris Klieman admitted his team was not good and that it started with him. One week later, the defending Big 12 champions look much better after a 38-21 win at Texas Tech.
True freshman QB Avery Johnson is becoming a sensation. Johnson ran for 90 yards on 15 carries and five TDs. He was 8-9 for 77 yards passing, just for good measure. Johnson seems to have won the full-time QB gig, as Will Howard took most of the game off while Johnson gained steam.
Chris Klieman is one of the best coaches in college football and proved it again in Lubbock. This week brings the TCU Horned Frogs to Bill Snyder Family Stadium in a 2022 Big 12 championship game rematch.
