Tony's Top 10: Is The Game a must-win for Rich Rod squad?
Here are our 10 burning questions as we head into the weekend:
1. We know Rich Rod wants to beat Ohio State. But does he have to beat Ohio State? It's hard to believe that just three short years ago, Ohio State and Michigan were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 when they met. This week one of the greatest rivalries in sport will be played in Ann Arbor and it's hard to know if anybody cares.
Michigan (5-6) needs to win to snap a five-game losing streak to the Buckeyes and avoid finishing last in the Big Ten (at 1-7) for the first time since 1962. But we also wonder if Rich Rodriguez needs to win this game to save his job.
Yes, it's only Year 2 as Rich Rod tries to change a football-playing culture that has existed since Bo Schembechler arrived at Michigan in 1969. Rodriguez thought he might have weathered that storm after a 4-0 start that included a win over Notre Dame. No such luck. The rumblings of negativity have only gotten worse and this week Michigan had to admit it had not done the paperwork to back up its claim that, contrary to what some former players have told the Detroit Free Press, Rodriguez and his staff did not violate the NCAA's 20-hour rule on practice.
"I don't know that anybody could envision this much stuff," Rodriguez told the Free-Press. If Michigan loses to Ohio State for the eighth time in nine years, there will be plenty more "stuff" to rain down on Rodriguez.
2. Can Iowa still salvage a BCS bowl? Iowa's star-crossed football team still has some BCS life left after all.
The Hawkeyes saw their national championship hopes disappear on Nov. 7 with a 17-10 loss to Northwestern. Then their Rose Bowl hopes ended with a 27-24 loss to Ohio State in overtime. But there are still rumblings out there that if Iowa (9-2) can take care of Minnesota (6-5) at home on Saturday, Kirk Ferentz and the gang just might find themselves in either the Fiesta Bowl or the Orange Bowl. That's because of the television ratings power of the Big Ten and the reputation of Iowa fans, who like to travel to warm weather in January.
Iowa, Penn State, and Wisconsin all have a chance to finish 10-2 and be ranked in the top 14 of the BCS standings, which makes a team eligible for a BCS bowl. Iowa beat the other two on the road.
Here's a hint: If Oklahoma State loses at Oklahoma on Nov. 28 and finishes 9-3, the Hawkeyes are a virtual lock for a BCS bid at 10-2.
3. How many times will Dexter McCluster touch the ball against LSU? A good number would be 29.
Sometimes coaches make football more complicated than it needs to be. In Ole Miss' first three SEC games, McCluster touched the ball 33 times for 177 yards, an average of 5.36 yards per touch. Ole Miss lost two of those games. In the past three conference games, McCluster, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound speedster, has touched the ball 84 times for 787 yards, an average of 9.37 yards per touch. Ole Miss won two of those games, against Arkansas and Tennessee.
In the 30-17 win over Arkansas, McCluster touched the ball 29 times for 260 yards, an average of 8.96 yards per touch. In last week's 42-17 destruction of Tennessee, McCluster again touched it 29 times and had 324 yards, for an average of 11.17 yards. Hey, Coach Nutt! Keep giving No. 22 the ball!
4. Chattanooga at Alabama. FIU at Florida. Seriously? Yes, seriously.
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If I'm a season-ticket holder at either Alabama or Florida, there is a pretty good chance that I'm raking leaves this Saturday. OK, we'll cut Alabama a little slack. The Crimson Tide have their big rivalry game with Auburn next week and Auburn is off this weekend. That game, better known as the Iron Bowl in this part of the world, will be on Friday and not Saturday. So if Alabama can't get an open date, too, you really can't blame Nick Saban for wanting to play an exhibition game against the I-AA Mocs.
Florida also has its big rivalry game with Florida State next week. Then the No. 1 Gators face No. 2 Alabama in the SEC Championship Game on Dec. 5. What is the over-under on the number of snaps Tim Tebow will play in Saturday's game? It will be the quarterback's next-to-last home game as a Gator, so the ballpark, as Steve Spurrier used to call it, will probably be full.
5. Can Arizona go to the Rose Bowl for the first time? Here is an amazing fact: Four teams are still eligible for the Pac-10 championship and none of them is named Southern California.
Arizona, Oregon, Oregon State and Stanford are still in the mix. Only Arizona (6-3) and Oregon (8-2) control their own destinies, and they meet Saturday in Tucson. Oregon State (7-3) and Stanford (7-3) need to win out and get some help.
No matter what, somebody is going to go to Pasadena for the first time in a long time. Oregon hasn't been to the Rose Bowl since 1994, when Rich Brooks was the head coach. Stanford hasn't been there since Jan. 1, 2000. Oregon State hasn't been there since Jan. 1, 1965. Arizona, which joined the Pac-8 along with Arizona State in 1978, has never been to the Rose Bowl.
6. Can Nebraska close the deal against K-State? Bo Pelini takes a straightforward approach to his job. When he came to Nebraska two seasons ago, people talked about getting back into the hunt for the national championship. But you can't win a national championship until you win a conference championship. And you can't win a conference championship until you win your division. On Saturday, Nebraska (7-3) can win the Big 12 North by beating Kansas State (6-5) in Lincoln.
Pelini, whose first Nebraska team went 9-4 and beat Clemson in the Gator Bowl, thought the Cornhuskers should have won the Big 12 North last season.
"I was really disappointed when we weren't in that position. I don't really think about it long term. I really don't," Pelini said. "All we have done now is put ourselves in position to have this opportunity. Being in this position won't do us any good if we go out and lay an egg on Saturday."
7. Will TCU keep its foot on the gas at Wyoming? TCU coach Gary Patterson made his point last week when the Horned Frogs dismantled Utah 55-28 in Fort Worth. I was there. Patterson has a helluva football team. But he also knows the reality of his situation. His 10-0 team is ranked No. 4 and is at least a part of the BCS conversation. But the SEC champion, either No. 1 Florida or No. 2 Alabama, is going to get into the big game.
TCU's only hope of playing for the national championship is this: The Horned Frogs need to put their foot on the gas this Saturday against Wyoming (5-5) and again next week against New Mexico (0-10). As Coach Yoast said in Remember the Titans, TCU needs to "leave no doubt." Don't even give the suggestion of a letdown after last week's big win against the Utes. Then go buy some red and white pom-poms and root like hell for Nebraska to beat Texas in the Big 12 Championship Game. TCU, that's your shot.
8. Why do we not pay attention to recruiting rankings? Texas is why. My friend Chuck Carlton of the Dallas Morning News reminded us this week that the 2005 signing class at Texas was rated No. 20 in the country by a bunch of the recruiting gurus. The class, which only included 15 players, was ranked No. 4 in the Big 12. Saturday night at Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium Texas fans will say goodbye to that senior class.
We assume the Longhorns (10-0) will beat the struggling Jayhawks (5-5). That will give the senior class, led by Colt McCoy, 43 victories in four years. McCoy, the only quarterback to lead a team to four consecutive 10-win seasons, will break the NCAA Division I-A record for victories by a starting quarterback. He is currently tied with David Greene of Georgia at 42.
Texas will have a chance to win three more games: Texas A&M, the Big 12 championship and, perhaps, the BCS championship. With 46 wins and a national championship, this will be the most successful class in Texas history. Not bad for No. 20.
9. What happens if Notre Dame loses to UConn? Does Charlie Weis even make it to Stanford?
All week long people have been throwing numbers at Weis. His record of 35-25 is the same that Bob Davie had when he got fired. This winning percentage (58.3) is the same that Tyrone Willingham had when he got fired. Notre Dame went 19-6 in Weis' first two seasons (with quarterback Brady Quinn). Weis is 16-19 in the past three seasons. Notre Dame is 1-12 in its past 13 games against the Top 25 and winless in its past eight games against the top 10.
Weis said this week that a decision has not been made about his future. And technically, that may be true. Lose to Connecticut (4-5) and it will all be over but the news conference. Notre Dame will be forced to make a move before Thanksgiving and the final game against Stanford on Nov. 28.
10. What will C.J. Spiller do this week? Clemson has not won an ACC championship since 1991, but the Tigers can clinch a spot in the conference title game against Georgia Tech with a win Saturday against Virginia (3-7) in Death Valley. Given Virginia's struggles, we feel comfortable in saying that Clemson will win.
What we don't know is what C.J. Spiller will do for an encore. Last week in a 43-23 win against N.C. State, the Clemson running back ran 16 yards for a touchdown, caught a 34-yard touchdown pass and then threw a 17-yard scoring pass to Xavier Dye. For the season, Spiller has returned three kickoffs and one punt for touchdowns. If you're keeping score at home, that is five different ways Spiller has scored touchdowns for Clemson this season.
"There is nobody else like him in college football," Tigers coach Dabo Swinney said.
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