# 2014 College Football General Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 30, 2014, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937 "2014-08-30T03:58:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 58
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1142 "2015-01-02T18:19:08Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Sissy Eunuch Cuckolds, Scorn Earned Copiously. Success Eluded Completely. Secretly Envies California. Special Education Children, Spoiled Every Contest. Schedulers Enjoy Creampuffs. Even though I get a bit of a kick from seeing such jokes, I genuinely do respect the SEC. It’s a dang good conference, probably still the best overall football conference in America. BUT… For a long time, teams in the SEC have gotten undue deference and unearned respect. To most voters, losing to a fellow SEC team is almost as good as winning! When one SEC team loses to another, it rarely falls far in the rankings- the voters’ attitude always seems to be, “Well, if (hypothetically) Georgia loses to Vanderbilt, why, that just proves how deep and strong the SEC is,” and Georgia will remain highly ranked. No team outside the SEC gets a similar pass for a bad in-conference loss. South Carolina was a mediocre team at best- they NEVER belonged in the Top Ten, but started the season there because, as an SEC team, they got more respect than they deserved. Texas A & M was a mediocre team, but when they beat South Carolina, they vaulted into the top ten! It was assumed that beating an SEC team proves you’re great! Of course, Mississippi State handled the Aggies easily… which convinced everyone Mississippi State had to be great! “Mississippi State beat three straight top ten teams” everyone roared. But NONE of those teams finished anywhere near the top ten. When SEC teams crush elite non-conference squads (and they frequently HAVE), they deserve all the respect and hosannas they receive. But they often GET that respect and those hosannas without proving a thing on the field! ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1143 "2015-01-02T18:35:39Z")
astorian: very eloquently put. It’s the circular logic that always drove me crazy: the SEC is great because they play each other, and they’re all great. The SEC response to that was always: “7 straight Natty’s”, and there was no counter-argument to that…until today. I’ve ready several pieces in the national media that all make the same point: if we’d have a playoff during the BCS era, how many of those titles would have gone somewhere else? ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1144 "2015-01-02T19:03:10Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > And another SEC-West team bites the dust, to a Wisconsin team that looked bad against OSU. > > Great game; I hope the semis are this good. > > Heck, who am I kidding, I hope Oregon blows FSU out. But I sure wish we had some of the injured players back. A “minor” Bowl, but very meaningful for the players and coaches involved. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhzEdrUkWCY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhzEdrUkWCY) I wonder if the Heisman voters could ever vote again for a non-quarterback. Relative to other players at his position and prior Heisman winners, Melvin Gordon had a better season than Mariota. Sure, Mariota was the best QB of 2014, but how many NCAA records did he break? Gordon set the career YPC mark, passing Mike Rozier. He had the second highest number of rushing yards for a season to Barry Sanders of 1988. For one week held the single game rushing mark. The old record was set in 1991. Became only the second back to rush for 2,500 yards and score 30 TDs. I guess the Heisman trophy should be for the best QB instead of the best player. ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1145 "2015-01-02T19:07:49Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > astorian: very eloquently put. It’s the circular logic that always drove me crazy: the SEC is great because they play each other, and they’re all great. > > The SEC response to that was always: “7 straight Natty’s”, and there was no counter-argument to that…until today. I’ve ready several pieces in the national media that all make the same point: if we’d have a playoff during the BCS era, how many of those titles would have gone somewhere else? I’m a Big Ten fan and would posit that most, if not all, of those titles still would have been won by an SEC team. But maybe not by the same team in all cases. This year was a bit of a down year for the league and they probably were overhyped at the beginning of the season. But, overall, the league is easily #1. ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1146 "2015-01-02T19:12:55Z")
> [@R.P.McMurphy](#): > > The bowl game hit that maybe ranks just behind Clowney’s hit against Michigan: > > [http://nypost.com/2015/01/02/baylor-kicker-confirms-he-wasnt-murdered-on-crunching-block/](http://nypost.com/2015/01/02/baylor-kicker-confirms-he-wasnt-murdered-on-crunching-block/) > > Glad to see the recipient survived. Michigan State players have done that a few times: Part of the game. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1147 "2015-01-02T19:19:59Z")
What was that, a 29-game winning streak for the Seminoles, that ended in brutal fashion yesterday? ---
**Author:** ![HubZilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ccd318/32.png) [@HubZilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HubZilla)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1148 "2015-01-02T19:29:34Z")
> [@RaftPeople](#): > > I see this attitude from fans all the time and it’s pretty annoying. Instead of acknowledging that the other performed very well, they try to claim that their own team just didn’t play like they normally do, typically because theyou were expecting to be in a better bowl or they travel led or they were looking forward to cupcakes after the game. > > I’m not an Oregon fan or an fsu fan, as an outside observer I can tell you that Oregon offense was simply too much for fsu’s defense. Two things I rarely hear a fan say: 1. “Your team beat us by outscoring my team.” My team lost solely due to bad calls, turnovers, injuries, bad calls, home-cooking, dropped passes, and bad calls. Throw in a geographic or media bias, too. If “X” didn’t happen, we would’ve won, as if turnovers and dropped passes were all freak uncaused accidents. 2. “My team gets enough respect.” Usually by winning teams, even if they were favored. I’ll even bet some Florida State fans were saying “we don’t get enough respect” after they beat Auburn. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1149 "2015-01-02T19:42:45Z")
> [@R.P.McMurphy](#): > > I like you picks. Just don’t know if the voters will see it that way. There could be a case for Baylor at #6 and FSU #7. Please make it then. Baylor lost to a WVU team that ended up unranked (and lost its bowl game) then they lost to a two-loss lower ranked team in the bowl game. FSU lost to the #2 in the country. A team that will be competing for the National Championship. I’d really like to know when winning stopped mattering for people. Why don’t we just play the game with dice and not bother those boys with actually getting on the field. Or we could add judges to it. The judges could just vote and decide who passed the “eye test”. Why should the actual score be the determining factor. And W/L records? Pffff. Not in something as important as football! > [@](#): > > I’m sure a lot of people would like FSU dropped out of the rankings for their lack of character and class. Quitting in the fourth quarter and then most of the players heading to the locker room instead of shaking hands at the end shows that it is a program that needs a gut check and a reality check. When Jameis Winston is one of the few players that showed any class at the end you have trouble. Did you watch the game? The defense was spent, but kept fighting. Several of the turnovers were from freshman struggling to gain extra yardage to try and come back. Did Jimbo stop killing his kids and change things up with less than 7 min to go and down **39**? Yes, yes he did. Why risk getting his star quarterback (who claims to be coming back) hurt in a lost cause? As for shaking hands after the game, funny that you don’t seem to care that Alabama did THE EXACT SAME FUCKING THING. Should they be dropped out of the rankings too? Baylor didn’t exactly hang out and get all buddy-buddy either. And let’s not forget Oregon’s “no means no” chant. Something their coach is promising discipline for. It’s a tough, physical game and not everybody wants to sing kumbaya after a tough loss. Deal. > [@RaftPeople](#): > > I call out fans of my team also. We played a team with a great defense and our fans were saying crap like “we were dropping balls and missing passes, we beat ourselves” and I had to point out that the missed passes were due to rushed passes due to pressure due to them having a great defense. And while that can certainly be true, it should be noted that 35 of Oregon’s points came on 5 turnovers. If that’s not shooting yourself in the foot, I don’t know what is. So, my post-mortem: FSU played reasonably well in the first half. Our defense was getting crushed and looked unprepared for the tempo of the game. That’s on the coaching. Oregon (as noted above) did EXACTLY what they’ve done all year. And with 20+ days to prepare, we were not ready for it. No excuses. The defense has simply got to get better. We have the talent, we need the coaching. On offense, we were struggling a bit, but started to get rhythm when the fumble-a-thon started. Someone above is saying that Oregon shut FSU down. Really? FSU put up 528 yards of offense - including more passing yards than Oregon. We had 180 yards of rushing and frankly, that would have been higher had we not had to abandon the run starting in the late third quarter (you don’t come back from 20+ down by rushing the ball). My biggest problem with the offense was the lack of early red-zone production. We need to develop plays to deal with a shortened field. It’s been a consistent problem this season and was a known focus of the Oregon D (bend don’t break). Again with 20+ days to prepare, the fact that the offense struggled comes down a LOT to coaching. Nick O’Leary getting hurt during pre-game warmups didn’t help and there’s not much you can do about that. The refs were atrocious. While I saw a ton of missed/bad calls for both sides, the tackling of Nick O’Leary in the end zone during the first half was particularly egregious. The refs didn’t cause the fumbles though, so you can’t blame the loss on them. Oregon played extremely well. They were well-coached and mentally prepared. They executed their game plan to near perfection and avoided beating themselves. Early mistakes (Mariota’s INT) were handled calmly and corrected. They adjusted well at halftime and didn’t let up. Good for them and I wish them luck in Dallas. TLDR? FSU got outcoached before kickoff and subsequently outplayed during the game while creating a host of problems for themselves with turnovers that directly led to points for Oregon. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1150 "2015-01-02T20:07:13Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > And while that can certainly be true, it should be noted that 35 of Oregon’s points came on 5 turnovers. If that’s not shooting yourself in the foot, I don’t know what is. A turnover is shooting yourself in the foot if it’s just a sloppy mistake, like some. But having a defense steal a ball that is well protected, or blocking a field goal and running it back is a good defensive performance. So FSU certainly did some shooting, but not 35 points worth, Oregon deserves credit when their play is what caused the outcome. > [@](#): > > Someone above is saying that Oregon shut FSU down. I said that about the running game (never said it about passing), but I must have misread one of the yardage recaps they showed. It had rushing at -15 yards sometime in the 2nd or 3rd quarter, but it must have just been for the quarter or something because after looking at stats I can see that it couldn’t have been game total at that point. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1151 "2015-01-02T20:07:56Z")
Frankly, W/L records don’t mean much in college football because teams don’t play the same schedule. Many people saw during the season (and it is obvious now in hindsight) that Florida State was scraping by against a weak schedule and didn’t belong anywhere near the top of the ratings. It was just lazy work by the football media. 25 of 60 voters had them ranked #1. I’d love to see those 25 defend their positions in light of the result yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1152 "2015-01-02T20:27:30Z")
One of the things I enjoy about the people I watch games with is that they’ll admire a good play no matter which team made it. ---
**Author:** ![MOIDALIZE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@MOIDALIZE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOIDALIZE)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1153 "2015-01-02T20:36:40Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > I don’t see that. > > Vince Young’s biggest problems were: > > 1. A terrible work ethic > > 2. Inability to handle stress and pressure > > 3. Inability to command respect in a pro locker room. > Jameis Winston may or may not succeed in the NFL, but he’s already shown a much higher football IQ than Vince Young or Johnny Manziel ever showed. And by all accounts, he commands a lot of respect in the locker room. > > Johnny Manziel and Vince Young shared a propensity to run FIRST, even when there were open receivers. Winston hasn’t shown such tendencies. He’s got skills. And heart (or he was point-shaving 😉 ). He sure threw a lot of picks this season for a potential #2 draft pick. I think he has the same maturity issues as Manziel and Young. I don’t know. For a lot of guys, that NFL rookie payday is pretty much the culmination of their ambition. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1154 "2015-01-02T20:49:54Z")
**Overheard in Pittsburg** _“Houston, We have a problem.”_ Sparty, who? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1155 "2015-01-02T21:16:22Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > The SEC response to that was always: “7 straight Natty’s”, and there was no counter-argument to that…until today. Um, actually, until about a year ago. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1156 "2015-01-02T21:17:00Z")
When did it become bad to call out a rapist? ---
**Author:** ![Thing\_Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@Thing\_Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thing_Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1157 "2015-01-02T21:30:32Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Please make it then. Baylor lost to a WVU team that ended up unranked (and lost its bowl game) then they lost to a two-loss lower ranked team in the bowl game. Baylor also beat a top 5 team in TCU and another top 15 team in KSU. The “two-loss lower ranked team” they lost their bowl game to (by one point) lost its two games to Oregon and Ohio State, the national finalists, and lost those two games by a\* total\* of 31 points. FSU only had to play one of those two teams and lost by 39. The undefeated record only works to excuse away your obvious flaws as long as you actually have it. Absolutely no question in my mind that both Baylor and MSU should be ranked above FSU now. Somebody above expressed surprise that Oregon made FSU look like a mid-pack Pac-12 team. I honestly believe that if FSU had been in the Pac-12 this season, they would have been lucky to make the Foster Farms Bowl. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1158 "2015-01-02T21:36:26Z")
> [@R.P.McMurphy](#): > > The bowl game hit that maybe ranks just behind Clowney’s hit against Michigan: > > [http://nypost.com/2015/01/02/baylor-kicker-confirms-he-wasnt-murdered-on-crunching-block/](http://nypost.com/2015/01/02/baylor-kicker-confirms-he-wasnt-murdered-on-crunching-block/) > > Glad to see the recipient survived. There’s also this explanation of the Jameis Winston fumble. It happened too fast to see in real time, but thanks to freeze frame, all is revealed: > ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1159 "2015-01-02T21:53:14Z")
> [@BigAppleBucky](#): > > A “minor” Bowl, but very meaningful for the players and coaches involved. > > [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhzEdrUkWCY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhzEdrUkWCY) > > I wonder if the Heisman voters could ever vote again for a non-quarterback. Relative to other players at his position and prior Heisman winners, Melvin Gordon had a better season than Mariota. > > Sure, Mariota was the best QB of 2014, but how many NCAA records did he break? > > Gordon set the career YPC mark, passing Mike Rozier. He had the second highest number of rushing yards for a season to Barry Sanders of 1988. For one week held the single game rushing mark. The old record was set in 1991. > > Became only the second back to rush for 2,500 yards and score 30 TDs. > > I guess the Heisman trophy should be for the best QB instead of the best player. Sounds more like what you’re saying is the Heisman trophy should be for the best stats instead of the best player. A RB only has to do one thing — blocking or occasional pass catching is a bonus, but not crucial. A QB, especially in an offense like Oregon’s, has to read the defense, (often) call the play, fake out the defense with eyes or play action, make a split-second decision on his options, and then throw or run. It’s a lot harder to do all of those things really well, than to do one thing exceptionally well. As for stats, if you and your team are so good that you usually only play 3 quarters, you’re not going to set many NCAA records. Heck, he even had the last ten minutes off against FSU. ---
**Author:** ![Hamlet](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hamlet/32/2818_2.png) [@Hamlet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamlet)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1160 "2015-01-02T22:22:27Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > A RB only has to do one thing — blocking or occasional pass catching is a bonus, but not crucial. For Wisconsin, Gordon’s role was incredibly crucial. He ran for more yards than they threw, and scored more touchdowns. Wisconsin was #3 in rushing offense, and 111th (out of 128) in passing, in the nation. Saying Gordon wasn’t crucial to Wisconsin’s success is just silly. > [@Tony Sinclair](#): > > A QB, especially in an offense like Oregon’s, has to read the defense, (often) call the play, fake out the defense with eyes or play action, make a split-second decision on his options, and then throw or run. It’s a lot harder to do all of those things really well, than to do one thing exceptionally well. I disagree completely. Maybe for QB’s at schools that run a pro-style offense, that is true, but for teams like Oregon, it’s not. It’s a single read system, where the QB looks at one, maybe two players, and makes a decision based on that. It’s a simplistic system to run, and the QB’s athleticism and pass catchers are much more important to their success than their ability to read a defense or “fake out” an offense. That’s why so few of the studs read/option QB’s go onto success in the NFL. > [@Tony Sinclair](#): > > As for stats, if you and your team are so good that you usually only play 3 quarters, you’re not going to set many NCAA records. Heck, he even had the last ten minutes off against FSU. And Gordon sat out plenty of games too. Hell, in his record setting performance against Nebraska, he sat out the entire 4th quarter. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2015, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937/1161 "2015-01-02T22:42:30Z")
> [@Hamlet](#): > > Saying Gordon wasn’t crucial to Wisconsin’s success is just silly. I agree. Who said that? Certainly not me. Read the sentence you quoted again. > [@](#): > > And Gordon sat out plenty of games too. Hell, in his record setting performance against Nebraska, he sat out the entire 4th quarter. I’m aware of that. But if you want NCAA records broken, Mariota isn’t competing against Gordon; he’s competing against previous QBs. Does anyone know or care how many minutes the current NCAA passing record holders sat out? And does it matter to you at all that a QB who can run like Mariota is obviously not going to throw as much? If Gordon had taken a handoff and then dropped back and thrown a fourth of the time, would he have broken the record? Would you be happier if WSU’s QB (Connor Halliday), who I think DID break some NCAA records while throwing 70 times a game, and probably would have a lot more if he hadn’t been injured, had won the Heisman? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937.md?page=57) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2014-college-football-general-thread/696937.md?page=59)