Wednesday, September 25, 2013

SEC Players Of The Week

The SEC league office announced its top performers for Week 4:

Offense: Jeremy Hill, RB, LSU
Rushed for career-highs of 184 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries in a 35-21 win over Auburn. He scored touchdowns the first two times he touched the ball – going 49 yards on the first score and then followed that with a 12-yard run on his next carry – both coming in the first five minutes of the game.
Scored his third touchdown on a 6-yard run in the third quarter to stretch the LSU lead to 28-7. Added a 54-yard run down to the Auburn 1-yard line early in the second quarter that led to another LSU score and a 21-0 advantage.
Averaged 7.4 yards per carry. Hill’s 184 rushing yards were the most by an LSU player since Alley Broussard set the school record with 250 yards against Ole Miss in 2004.

Defense: Dante Fowler Jr., DE, Florida
Forced two fumbles against Tennessee and recovered one.
Recorded three tackles (for a total loss of 15 yards) and was the only Gators player to claim a sack on the day.
Helped lead the Gators defense as they held Tennessee to just 66 rushing yards.
Helped force the Vols to consecutive three-and-outs in the first half.

Special teams: Alan D'Appollonio, LS, Arkansas
Made first career reception on fake punt in first quarter at Rutgers.
Catch was for 24 yards on fourth-and-6 from Arkansas 49-yard line, extending drive that ended with an Arkansas field goal.
Has been perfect on PAT, field goal and punt snaps in 2013.

Freshman: Reggie Davis, WR, Georgia
Davis caught the first two passes of his career and finished with 134 yards receiving and a touchdown in the 45-21 victory over North Texas.
His first reception was a 98-yard touchdown catch from Aaron Murray. It was the longest offensive play in school history and tied for the third-longest receiving touchdown in SEC history.
Davis helped the Bulldogs generate 641 yards on offense against the Mean Green and 35 points or more for the third consecutive game.

Offensive lineman: Gabe Jackson, G, Mississippi State
Jackson was instrumental in the Bulldogs amassing 551 yards, 235 on the ground, in a 62-7 victory over Troy.
The senior guard didn't have a missed assignment and was credited with five pancake blocks.
The 551 yards were the 14th-most in school history, and the 45 first-half points were the most in the modern era.

Defensive lineman: Kony Ealy, DE, Missouri
Ealy had perhaps the single biggest individual play of Saturday’s win over Indiana, when with the Hoosiers driving for a potential tying score right before halftime, he jumped to knock down a pass on a third-and-3 at the Missouri 46 with two minutes left. Instead of just knocking the ball down, however, Ealy got the ball to stick in his mitts, and he raced the other way for a 49-yard interception return for a touchdown. That staked the Tigers to a 28-14 lead, and they never looked back.
The pickoff was the first of Ealy’s career, and he finished with two total pass break-ups. He also had a solo tackle as the Tigers held the Indiana offense to well below its season averages.

Monday, September 23, 2013

Southeastern Conference Standings



Helmet Stickers From ESPN...


Week 4 of SEC action is in the books. Let's take a look at some of the brightest from Saturday's action and hand out some helmet stickers:

Jeremy Hill, LSU: The sophomore running back rolled to an impressive 184 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries to lead the Tigers to a 35-21 win over Auburn on Saturday night. He picked up 152 of those yards in the first half and had scores of 49, 10 and 6 yards. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Hill averaged 7.3 yards per carry for the night.

Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M: The sophomore quarterback was 14-of-21 passing for 244 yards and a touchdown and ran for 102 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries in a 42-13 win over SMU. He led the team in rushing for the game and threw an interception though it wasn't his fault (the ball went through the hands of a receiver). Saturday marked the ninth time he has thrown for 200 yards and recorded a passing touchdown and rushing touchdown in a game, the most of any FBS player since the start of last season.

Aaron Murray, Georgia: It wasn't a pretty win for Georgia over North Texas, especially after an early interception thrown by Murray in the end zone, but he bounced back to have a strong day: 408 yards and three touchdowns on 22-of-30 passing. He became Georgia's all-time total offense leader and threw his 100th career touchdown pass in the win, becoming only the second SEC quarterback to accomplish that feat.

Tyler Murphy, Florida: Losing your quarterback is never easy, but Murphy eased that challenge for Florida on Saturday. After Jeff Driskel went down in the first quarter with what turned out to be a season-ending leg injury, the junior came in to complete 8-of-14 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown -- with no interceptions -- to help the Gators to a 31-17 win over rival Tennessee. Head coach Will Muschamp said afterward, "He didn't just manage our team. He produced in critical situations."

Dak Prescott, Mississippi State: Making just his third career start for the injured Tyler Russell, Prescott threw for 233 yards and a touchdown, ran for 53 yards and two touchdowns and even caught a 36-yard touchdown pass in a 62-7 victory over Troy. The touchdown catch was the result of a trick play, a catch-and-run off a pass from receiverJameon Lewis.

Tyler Murphy





Well Gatornation, Jeff Driskel is out for the season. I was not pleased with his play this season but, I wanted him to improve. I did not want him to get hurt. In the end though, I wish him well in his recovery. I think he is a nice kid and a tough kid. I just didn't think he showed signs of improvement from one season to the next. 

But, Tyler Murphy! Once he settled in I liked what I saw. I thought he made great decisions and didn't take unnecessary chances and throw into coverage. He actually threw the ball away or he tucked and ran with it. 

I also thought the team rallied around him and responded well. The coaches gave Murphy plays he could manage and the team was able to run the ball against Tennessee. But, it was Tennessee. The Vols are not the same caliber of program in football that they were in early 2000s. 

I am excited to see what the offense looks like with Murphy at the helm in Lexington, Kentucky. He seemed to really settle in with the offense in the second half of the Tennessee game. I am hopeful that will carry over with the Wildcats. 

In looking at the schedule I think we can manage Kentucky and Arkansas and get ready for the true test of LSU. And, btw, the Tigers look like a true contender for SECCG and the National Championship. 

Back to my Gators, I am hopeful the running game continues to improve with Matt Jones, Mack Brown, and Hunter Joyer. I also want our WRs to help out and catch some passes. Solomon Patton made some good plays but, he has dropped some key passes in this season so far. He and Quinton Dunbar could be the difference in our Offensive success. We will have to show we can stretch the field or teams will just load the box and play the run. 

I am hoping Coach Pease can get this together offensively and make a good season out of what our circumstances are at this point. 

This is just about Tyler Murphy. I am hoping the whole team rallies together. The Defense is solid. Can the Offense come along in time to make this a meaningful 2013 for Gator Football?


Monday, September 2, 2013

College Football Week 1 Review


First and foremost it's awesome to have College Football on Saturdays. Life is definitely back to normal. And, with the NFL starting this weekend that definitely puts things back into perspective. 

The Gators were impressive in the first half. But, when Toledo made adjustments at halftime the offense struggled. Driskel looked sharp for the most part. But, I thought he struggled throwing the ball down field in the second half when Toledo came with more defensive pressure. The good news is our back up running Mack Brown looked powerful and ready. The OL looked Alabama like and our defense looked strong despite seven new starters. And, all of our starters will be back for the Miami game except Halapio. The bad news is, it was Toledo. If we struggle like that against Miami or anyone else in the SEC, we lose. Review of Hurricanes v Gators coming later on this week. And, a special Cane supporter on the Radio Show on Friday.

The Gamecocks looked strong. I was impressed with Mike Davis and his running. I thought Shaw and Thompson looked sharp. And, the SEC Defense overwhelmed the Tar Heels Offense for the most part. But, the game took on a different turn when it clearly looked like Clowney was out of shape. And, with all the hype from the Summer leading up to this game I really don't think he came close to living up to it. He constantly had his hands on hips in the first half and it did not get better throughout the game. As Bianchi said from the Orlando Sentinel, "Clowney's Heisman Campaign lasted all of one half." I was completely not impressed with his performance. He had a total of three tackles, no sacks, and no TFLs. Not acceptable. The defense will have to play a lot better against the Bulldogs who clearly have their backs against the wall after losing to Clemson Saturday night. 

And, speaking of Clemson v Georgia...that was an awesome Opening Weekend Game. Boyd looked sharp and threw some tough passes. He was clutch and made great decisions in the pocket. And. Watkins was illusive and speedy on the edges where he is most dangerous. And, even though the Bulldogs went blow for blow they could not stop Clemson's Offense and Aaron Murray did not look sharp. Nor, did he look like a, "Seasoned Sr SEC Quarterback. I do predict though, they will play a lot better this week as they will be in desperate mode at home against the Gamecocks.

Other tidbits from this weekend's schedule:

  • Alabama looked beatable and not as dominant in the first half. 
  • Vanderbilt is not the old Commodores. 
  • South Florida and Willie Taggart are in trouble of that Massacre handed to them at home by McNeese State. 
  • The same can be said for UConn after that terrible lost at home to Towson which they paid 275,000 for. 
  • Johnny Manzel is an embarrassment and should be suspended by Sumlin. His attitude and entitled demeanor will keep him from the Heisman this year.
  • Bridgewater (Louisville), Boyd (Clemson), and Miller (OSU) have emerged as front runners in the Heisman race.