# College Football November and early December 2009 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 3, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183 "2009-11-03T18:27:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2009, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/181 "2009-11-22T23:54:41Z")
Penn State would be a pretty good job. Do they have a coach in waiting? Is Paterno grooming his successor? ---
**Author:** ![AdmiralCrunch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6f9a4e/32.png) [@AdmiralCrunch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AdmiralCrunch)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/182 "2009-11-23T23:29:39Z")
To wade into GD-ish but amusing territory, Ari Fleischer’s PR firm has been hired to polish the image of the BCS system. [Link](http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4677927) ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/183 "2009-11-24T14:52:12Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > Congrats to Cal for winning The Big Game, but would someone please explain what that stare down thing was all about? I only turned on the last few minutes so I didn’t hear an explanation on the air. I just saw the broadcast. The staredown was part of the turnover of The Axe – the trophy given to the winner of the Big Game. Each school has a committee of geeks (I mean, students) entrusted with the care and keeping of the Axe, which the winning team brings to the Big Game. During the game, the committee just hangs around, waving the Axe, watching the game. But tradition dictates that in the final minute, the 2 committees meet, to hand over (or not, as the score indicates) the Axe. They could spend that minute making small talk, or trash talk, or watching the game, but apparently they’ve decided to do a boxing weigh-in stare down. I’ve never heard broadcasters make a big deal of this before, but the Versus crew latched on to it and didn’t let go. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/184 "2009-11-24T16:16:02Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Possible high profile coaches (or programs) who will not be coaching (either by getting fired, retiring or getting poached by a more attractive offer) their current team next season: > Richt, UGA > There has got to be some others. Richt? Are you serious? No way, unless he quits. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/185 "2009-11-24T16:50:08Z")
Heard this on Sports Talk radio: Texas has beat exactly one team in the current BCS Top 25. (Oklahoma State) Assuming Texas remains undefeated, the 13 teams that Texas’s schedule, none of them will have beat a team in the current BCS Top 25. Nebraska has a chance to get into the BCS top 25 next week, (they are current on the cusp of getting in) if they beat Colorado, but will probably drop out after Texas beats them. This is why some of the BCS computers are not impressed with Texas. Massey, Sagarin and Wolfe puts them #5, #6, #5 in their rankings. If the computer were doing the matchups, I think the SEC winner would be playing Cincy if they remain undefeated. Cincy will get a huge boost if they beat Pittsburgh. IMO, that is the proper matchup considering the year that Big XII has had. They only played 11 OOC games against BCS teams, and they were 4-7 in those games. Two of the better Big XII teams, Texas and Texas Tech, didn’t even play an OOC BCS teams. ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/186 "2009-11-24T21:32:21Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > This is why some of the BCS computers are not impressed with Texas. Massey, Sagarin and Wolfe puts them #5, #6, #5 in their rankings. > > If the computer were doing the matchups, I think the SEC winner would be playing Cincy if they remain undefeated. Cincy will get a huge boost if they beat Pittsburgh. > > IMO, that is the proper matchup considering the year that Big XII has had. They only played 11 OOC games against BCS teams, and they were 4-7 in those games. Two of the better Big XII teams, Texas and Texas Tech, didn’t even play an OOC BCS teams. Good points, but two questions: What would the computer rankings look like if margin of victory could be considered? Who do you think would win a Cincinnati/Texas game? As an aside: Texas had scheduled Arkansas for this season, but the Razorbacks backed out because they thought their schedule was too hard. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2009, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/187 "2009-11-24T22:08:39Z")
Texas/Cincy matchup? I think the oddsmakers would make Texas a big favorite, but I am not so sure. Texas has a football reputation, and Cincy doesn’t. Oddsmakers want to set the odds where there will be an equal amount wagered on each side of the ledger. I think Vegas would account for Texas’s reputation and inflate the point spread. Sagarin ranks Texas 4th instead of 6th with the margin of victory factored. Massey has them 2nd instead of 5th. I haven’t been able to find Wolfe’s rankings w/ margin of victory. Yes, I know about the Arkansas debacle. But that would still be only 12 OOC games. and at best a 5-7 record. And Texas Tech would still not play any BCS OOC games. I believe the last time TTU had a BCS OOC opponent in the regular season was 2003!! ---
**Author:** ![AdmiralCrunch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6f9a4e/32.png) [@AdmiralCrunch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AdmiralCrunch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/188 "2009-11-25T04:14:04Z")
> [@ekweizn](#): > > As an aside: Texas had scheduled Arkansas for this season, but the Razorbacks backed out because they thought their schedule was too hard. They were right. At Bama, at Florida, at LSU. I still think they’re not that bad of a team, but they did have a punishing schedule this year. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/189 "2009-11-25T05:51:28Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > Possible high profile coaches (or programs) who will not be coaching (either by getting fired, retiring or getting poached by a more attractive offer) their current team next season: > > Mangino, Kansas > Weis, Notre Dame > Rodriguez, Michigan > Richt, UGA > Bowden, FSU > Meyer, UF > Stoop, Oklahoma > Brian Kelly, Cincinnati > Paul Johnson, Ga Tech > Butch Davis, UNC > Joe Paterno, PSU > Dan Hawkins, Colorado > > There has got to be some others. Ron Zook’s days are probably numbered unless he wins these last two games, and that might still not be enough depending on how much Guenther thinks of the incoming recruits. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/190 "2009-11-25T14:48:06Z")
Joe Eternal retiring? Say it ain’t so! ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/191 "2009-11-25T16:04:38Z")
One thing I love about college football is how 100 years of tradition is encoded in words & phrases…if you’re a sportswriter, you need to work these into any relevant story. If you’re a fan, you need to know these. I leave the decoding as an exercise for the reader. People Blackshirts 12th Man Places, Sites, Landmarks Golden Dome Happy Valley Death Valley (2 answers) Strawberry Canyon The Farm Between the Hedges Checkerboard endzone The Swamp The Big House The Horseshoe (or just The 'Shoe) Rocky Top On the Banks of the Old Red Cedar Games Backyard Brawl World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party (no longer PC) Red River Shootout (ditto) The Big Game Bedlam The Civil War The Apple Cup The Iron Bowl The Granddaddy of them All Trophies The Axe Paul Bunyan’s Axe Floyd of Rosedale Little Brown Jug Old Oaken Bucket Mascots & Icons (I know, every team has a mascot and every mascot has a name. Don’t bother me with “what about Arizona’s Butch the Wildcat?”) Howard’s Rock Bayou Bengals Sooner Schooner Touchdown Jesus Flaming Spear Chief Osceola Mr 2 Bits Stanley the Ibis Ralphie Uga Bevo War Eagle The Tree Sparty Oski References to Fight Songs Boomer Sooner Wake up the Echoes Hail to the Victors Ramblin’ Wreck Shake Down the Thunder ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/192 "2009-11-25T16:29:30Z")
Well I know most of those, without any assistance. I thought about running a poll on the best college traditions and rivalries, but I figured there would be too much bias. As objective as I can be (and being partial to the South) , I think **Rocky Top** is the best college song. I have been to several games in Knoxville and it is incredible to hear 100,000 + singing that song in together. The best intra-state rivalry is between Bama/Aub. Honorable mention FSU/UF, The best interstate rivalry is a tossup between OU/UT and OSU/MICH. Honorable mention USC/Notre Dame, WVU/Pitt and UF/UGA. I like the fact that OU/UT and UGA/UF are at neutral sites. Yes, there is some East coast bias, but I really know little of the West Coast teams and their traditions. And I always found the “Little Brown Jug” as a trophy amusing. Only worthwhile if there is some white lightning in it. And the “Bronze Pig”. Missouri and Kansas play for the “Bell”. Purdue and Notre Dame play for the Shilleleigh {sp?} which I think is a cool trophy. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/193 "2009-11-25T16:34:20Z")
Unless there’s another bronze pig out there, Floyd of Rosedale is the bronze pig. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/194 "2009-11-25T21:10:59Z")
You forgot “The Game.” There is only one of those. Then there is “The Game.” A name given to a more widely publicized rivalry, sometimes also called “The Border War.” Then there is The Rivalry. This one everyone should know. Sports Illustrated has said that everyone should experience it once in their lives. Few do, I imagine, given the teams involved. Oh, and as for songs, don’t forget “Across the Field”. Perhaps not as well known as the competition’s fight song, but in a certain state, it is used by almost 1/3 of the high schools as their fight song, too. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/195 "2009-11-25T22:40:26Z")
I thought about The Game, but decided to limit it to Div I. Otherwise I would’ve mentioned Carmel HS vs Pacific Grove HS and their annual battle for The Shoe. And the song criteria wasn’t just famous songs, but songs whose lyrics have become a shorthand way to reference the school. eg, will Charlie Weis be able to shake down the thunder this year? ---
**Author:** ![Invisible\_Chimp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f05b48/32.png) [@Invisible\_Chimp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Invisible_Chimp)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/196 "2009-11-25T22:43:43Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > As objective as I can be (and being partial to the South) , I think **Rocky Top** is the best college song. I have been to several games in Knoxville and it is incredible to hear 100,000 + singing that song in together. I am a Pac-10 fan, so I have a West Coast bias, yet I agree that “Rocky Top” is the best college fight song. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2009, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/197 "2009-11-25T22:49:51Z")
> [@Ataraxy](#): > > I am a Pac-10 fan, so I have a West Coast bias, yet I agree that “Rocky Top” is the best college fight song. You realize it isn’t really a fight song, right? It’s just a C&W song about Tennessee, adopted by the U of T? Their official fight song is “Down the Field”. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2009, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/198 "2009-11-26T00:41:24Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > You realize it isn’t really a fight song, right? It’s just a C&W song about Tennessee, adopted by the U of T? Their official fight song is “Down the Field”. Yes, I know that, and I meant to not say “fight song” but sometimes I get happy fingers. And FTR, and i don’t think anyone else has said it. RIP UGA VII. This might seem strange as a Ga Tech alumnus, but I have a bulldog who is related to one of the past UGA’s, I think UGA V. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2009, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/199 "2009-11-26T02:42:10Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > I thought about The Game, but decided to limit it to Div I. Otherwise I would’ve mentioned Carmel HS vs Pacific Grove HS and their annual battle for The Shoe. I hate to burst your bubble, but strange as it may seem, the participants of “The Game” are Division I schools. 😉 ETA: Although these last two years, you wouldn’t have thought so about Michigan… 😃 Oh, sorry, that’s the OTHER “The Game” \ ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2009, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183/200 "2009-11-27T15:28:38Z")
Are field hash marks narrower than they used to be? I know there used to be a big difference between college and NFL hash-marks. I think there still is a descrepancy, but not as much as there used to be. A quick google search did not give anything definitive. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-november-and-early-december-2009/516183.md?page=11)