2009 College Football Notebook

[Cloverleaf]

Our gang will have some contest during the season. No 'Jonnies Lately' will be invited.

Some contest during the season with a $1000 to win Bowl Championship.

You love college football.............we love you. (maybe)

[Cloverleaf]

(FUCK THE SANDBOX) Sorry Ms. B. just didnt like the threat of that.

We appreciate you though bud! Hell of a job...........

[Cloverleaf]

OK Men....let's post.

Some of our guys have read through many posts from those we thought had any
common since about sports. Help us and others who post here. NO FUCKING
MELTDOWNS here buds.....guaranteed. Help us win money....THANKS....(and
we will).....PERIOD (and we will). Count on it....we old losers do. Year after year.

[BigdaddyQH]

Let's do it. Our little cartel (if you will) has already gone down on 5 games. Illinois -2 1/2 vs Mizzouri. (That line is now up to 5). Florida State pk at Boston College. Bowden should retire on the spot if they can't beat B.C. this year. Oregon +3 at UCLA. You may believe what Steele thinks about those two. We do not. North Carolina +3 vs Florida State. Let's see. UNC at home. First Thrusday Night Home game ever, and getting points. Can't ask for much more. North Carolia +2 1/2 vs Miami. Why all the respect for a team that will probably have 4-6 losses? UNC is 4-1 ATS against Mimai in their last 5 games. Christmas comes early?

Happy 4th of July to all.

[BigdaddyQH]

Clover. What do you think about 'Bama being -4 vs Va.Tech? Tough game to wager on IMO. It looks like a defesnive struggle, and who wants to lay more than 2 1/2 in close low scoring games? As far as 'Bama overall is concerned, their is only one game so far that has caught our eye, and that is their 10/3 meeting at Kentucky. 'Bama is not a good away favorite of 11 or more points (2-9) and this is a huge look ahead game, with a trip to Oxford coming up the following week. Watch the line closely on this game.

[crazytrain]

Been away for a week, hope you guys had a great 4th! I'll be holding off on any wagers until the season gets here and try to do the same as last year and grab the best line before it moves. Only a couple months to go boys

[BigdaddyQH]

I grabbed Illinois at -2 1/2. Now the line is up to 5. The boys at LVSC really missed that line. Other "Game of the Year" lines have moved 1/2 a point, but the Illinois-Mizzou line moved one day after it was posted. This is why it is so important to have your information ready to go BEFORE the lines are posted, and to be able to get down early (and I mean Sunday afternoon/evening) on lines that you think are bad, before the corection is made. It does not take long for the lines to correct, especially in this economy that is going to see line movement affected by a lot less action than normal.

[The Noob]

Bigdaddyqh,

One of the things you will notice about both Crazy and myself, we always try and post plays close to the day of the game so the every day player can get the line we posted at.

I am opening a new account this year to try and get better early lines, but my post will reflect what most players are going to get it at. I always felt it did no good for other players for me to post a line that was no longer out there.

You seem to be ahead of the curve on getting the best possible line, which will definitely pay off in the long run.

I have to admit that I am becoming more and more leery of the offshore world, so I have been hesitant to set up a new account. But the availability of early lines out ways the risk...

[BigdaddyQH]

If you are thinking of opening shop at a new book, and want the get a jump on the lines, I suggest the Greek. They also own Bet Jamaica, so they are about as solid financially as they get. I would check to make sure, but the Greek normally offers lines on Sunday.

[The Noob]

Thanks

[BigdaddyQH]

Any Auburn fans in here willing to give 4 points against West Virginia? I think that West Virginia beats them outright.

[IrishTim]

I figure I'll give a little preview of my team for you as some others have done here. In addition, throughout the year I'll give some inside information that might be useful (for instance, I know and hang out with many players on the team from playing basketball with them in the winter to going to parties at the football house on Saturday nights).

There are some things that many bettors would not know such as the USC and BC home games fall at the beginning/end of our fall break (Oct 17-Oct 24) and hopefully I'll be able to give some insight as to how the crowd should be, etc. For instance, I could see most students staying and getting obliterated Friday night and Saturday morning for the SC game and the crowd being out of control. But then on the flip side, many students might stay home the extra day and skip the BC game.

At any rate, if anyone has any questions about the team, just ask. I love talking ND football as much as anyone you can find. I also know there are other ND fans on this forum so hopefully they will contribute to my little preview. Will add more as the season closes in on us.

LOOK BACK

As most of you college football fans know, ND went 6-6 last year in the regular season and defeated Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl 49-21 (score was 49-14 in the 3rd Quarter when most starters were taken out).

Week 1: a sign of things to come: ND narrowly escapes losing to San Diego State, thanks to a miracle fumble on the goal line late in the 4th quarter that would have given the Aztects a 2 score lead
Week 2: ND took advantage of the home crowd, rainy conditions, and 5 Wolverine turnovers to win 35-17 over our rivals
Week 3: a disappointing loss to Michigan State in East Lansing 23-7. ND had its chances the whole game but could never put it together. A win here might have given ND a top 25 ranking.
Week 4: ND then went on to take care of Purdue 38-21 with Clausen going 20-35, 275 yards, 3 TDs, 0 ints
Week 5: Beat Stanford at home in a game that was nowhere near as close as the final score 28-21 indicates with another spectacular performance by Clausen 29-40, 347 yds, 3 TDs, 0 ints
Week 6: Then ND travelled to #22 ranked UNC with a chance to once again move into the AP top 25. ND came out of the half with the ball and up 17-9, only to have Clausen's first pass picked off and returned for a TD. They went on to blow the game and lose 29-24. Michael Floyd had the ball down near the goalline on the last play of the game with a controversial fumble/knee down call ending the game.
Week 7: ND then get back on track with a hammering of Washington 33-7 in a game that could have easily been 50-0. Washington never got the ball across mid-field until later in the game when all the starters had been taken out.
Week 8: the week where everything turned to shit. Up 17-3 going into half, Weis once again decided to sit on the lead and get away from what had worked: Clausen flinging the ball to the extremely talented receivers sophomoe Golden Tate and freshman Michael Floyd. Instead he stubbornly depended on a non-existent running game that went 3 and out for basically the entire second half. Some other poor coaching decisions (going for it on 4th down at mid-field late in the game) and some stupid penalties (Harrison Smith's personal foul on a 3rd down stop that kept alive the eventual game-tying drive) put the game into overtime where poor coaching (run off left tackle, run off right tackle, incomplete pass) and a wide open miss by Clausen to Floyd cost the game.
Week 9: apparently still distraught over the second double-digit/second half-lead blown loss, ND goes to Chestnut Hill and plays their worst game of the year to date, losing 17-0. The defense actually played quite well only giving up 10 points despite BC getting the ball near mid-field every possession.
Week 10: ND defeats Navy 27-21 in another game that was almost blown by Weis taking his foot off the gas. ND was up 24-7 going into the 4th quarter and after a fumble by freshman Jonas Gray inside the 10 yard-line, Navy scores and goes on to receive two onside-kicks in a row to give us a scare. Thankfully the third one was recovered by the Irish.
Week 11: arguably the worst loss of the decade, a 24-23 loss to Homedawg's Syracuse Orange. Up 23-10 going into the 4th quarter, Weis, clearly not having learned the lesson from the first ten games, gets away from what had been working (Clausen throwing it to his playmaker receivers) and stubbornly tries to pound the run game giving the Orange time and field position to get back into the game. Syracuse scores the go-ahead TD with 42 seconds left and Brandon Walker's missed 53 yard-field goal as time expired allowed the 17 point dog Orange to avoid their third 10 loss season in Greg Robinson's four years.
Week 12: if possible things got worse with the 38-3 shellacking put on us by USC at the Coliseum. ND failed to record a first down until the final play of the 3rd quarter and only recorded 91 yards of total offense. Enough said. Freshman Michael Floyd, arguably Clausen's best weapon was hurt as was linebacker and this year's captain Brian Smith. Still no excuse. Only player who looked like he belonged on the field for ND was freshman corner Robert Blanton who picked off a Sanchez slant early in the game and played tough the entire game. If the Syracuse game didn't already have the alums/fans/students putting for-sale signs in front of Weis' house, this game sure did.
Week 13: after being secured of his job by AD Jack Swarbrick, ND went on to manhandle a Hawaii team that had historically played tough at home (almost beat #13 Cincinatti, blew 24-10 4th Q lead)* with Clausen throwing 22 of 26 (with 4 drops) for 401 yards, 5 TDs, and 0 interceptions in 3 quarters of work. Nevertheless, it was Hawaii. Many spoke of this game being the "first of next year" and trying to carry this momentum into next year.

Now that I've lived through that painful year, I need to decompress before diving into next year.*


2009-2010 SCHEDULE
September 5 Nevada 3:30 PM ET
September 12 at Michigan 3:30 PM ET
September 19 Michigan State 3:30 PM ET
September 26 at Purdue 8:00 PM ET
October 3 Washington 3:30 PM ET
October 17 USC 3:30 PM ET
October 24 Boston College 3:30 PM ET
October 31 Washington State 7:30 PM ET
November 7 Navy 2:30 PM ET
November 14 at Pittsburgh TBA
November 21 Connecticut 2:30 PM ET
November 28 at Stanford 8:00 PM ET

[BigdaddyQH]

I saw this post on another forum and commented on it there. The only comment I will repeat is my question about Weis and USC. Weis has lost 4 straight to USC. (Notre Dame has lost 7 stright) Next year, they play a USC team that will be loaded in Los Angeles,so it appears that this year is the best chance the Irish have of defeating USC. If Weis loses to USC again (and I think that is a BIg if) will Notre Dame fans sit still for this? The Irish have a very easy schedule. 9 wins are just about assured. 10 is certainly a possibility, when you consider Pitt is one of their tougher games and the Irish are 9-3 in their past 12 meetings, and 4-1 at Pitt. So if the Irish play up to expectations, but still lose to USC, what do they do with Weis?

[The Noob]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

I saw this post on another forum and commented on it there. The only comment I will repeat is my question about Weis and USC. Weis has lost 4 straight to USC. (Notre Dame has lost 7 stright) Next year, they play a USC team that will be loaded in Los Angeles,so it appears that this year is the best chance the Irish have of defeating USC. If Weis loses to USC again (and I think that is a BIg if) will Notre Dame fans sit still for this? The Irish have a very easy schedule. 9 wins are just about assured. 10 is certainly a possibility, when you consider Pitt is one of their tougher games and the Irish are 9-3 in their past 12 meetings, and 4-1 at Pitt. So if the Irish play up to expectations, but still lose to USC, what do they do with Weis?

FWIW...I think after the Hell they have been through, loosing to USC will not matter if they make a BCS game. If they fail to make a BCS game and lose to USC I think he's toast.

[IrishTim]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

I saw this post on another forum and commented on it there. The only comment I will repeat is my question about Weis and USC. Weis has lost 4 straight to USC. (Notre Dame has lost 7 stright) Next year, they play a USC team that will be loaded in Los Angeles,so it appears that this year is the best chance the Irish have of defeating USC. If Weis loses to USC again (and I think that is a BIg if) will Notre Dame fans sit still for this? The Irish have a very easy schedule. 9 wins are just about assured. 10 is certainly a possibility, when you consider Pitt is one of their tougher games and the Irish are 9-3 in their past 12 meetings, and 4-1 at Pitt. So if the Irish play up to expectations, but still lose to USC, what do they do with Weis?

I answered you across the street, but I have to disagree with the previous poster, I don't think the fans (especially not alums/trustees/boosters) will excuse another blowout to SC even if it comes in a BCS season. Weis now has 4 full classes of his recruits. It's time for ND to step up and start competing for a national title again and that means beating arguably the team of the decade, Southern Cal.

To put a number on it, I'd say 10 wins ensures Weis his job next year. 9 wins and a competitive game vs. SC likely does the same. 9 wins and another embarrassing lose to SC at home will probably get him fired at season's end.

[BigdaddyQH]

Thanks. You are the first Irish fan that has given me a straight answer. That is the way I see it. I do not see a blowout at South Bend this year. I would not be suprised to see a Notre Dame win. I think how USC fares before the game will have a lot to say about how they play in the game. The line is rediculous. No one should be a 10 point visiting favorite in South Bend. I mean, the Irish have enough fuel to feed the fire of 7 straight losses to USC. This just gives them a little more. I noticed that both teams schedules the wekk before this game as a bye week. Boy if these two teams are both undefeated going into this game, it will be a great two weeks. The hype will be like no one has ever seen. People think that Michigan-Ohio State get a lot of hype, but that will look samll compared to what we will see for this game. I hope the Irish are undefeated going into that game.

[BigdaddyQH]

Anyone seen Clover around lately? He hasn't posted since the 4th.

[The Noob]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

Anyone seen Clover around lately? He hasn't posted since the 4th.

He does this from time time...As the CFB season gets closer he will steady out and be here regularly. Clover is a good guy, but just wait until he and his buds have a poker night and he gets toasted and comes on. Last year he had about a 2 page argument solely with himself. One of the funnest post I have ever read.

[IrishTim]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

Thanks. You are the first Irish fan that has given me a straight answer. That is the way I see it. I do not see a blowout at South Bend this year. I would not be suprised to see a Notre Dame win. I think how USC fares before the game will have a lot to say about how they play in the game. The line is rediculous. No one should be a 10 point visiting favorite in South Bend. I mean, the Irish have enough fuel to feed the fire of 7 straight losses to USC. This just gives them a little more. I noticed that both teams schedules the wekk before this game as a bye week. Boy if these two teams are both undefeated going into this game, it will be a great two weeks. The hype will be like no one has ever seen. People think that Michigan-Ohio State get a lot of hype, but that will look samll compared to what we will see for this game. I hope the Irish are undefeated going into that game.

As do I, BDQH. The hype machines will be cranking more for this game than in 2005 when USC was #1 and ND was #9. The campus will be in an absolute frenzy if both teams are 5-0 going into it. This four game stretch, especially the 3 tough road games, will tell you a lot about Pete Carroll and this Trojan team. If they make it out of here 4-0, I think they're going to win the National Championship.

October 3 at California
October 17 at Notre Dame
October 24 vs. Oregon State
October 31 at Oregon

[The Noob]

Originally Posted by IrishTim

I answered you across the street, but I have to disagree with the previous poster, I don't think the fans (especially not alums/trustees/boosters) will excuse another blowout to SC even if it comes in a BCS season. Weis now has 4 full classes of his recruits. It's time for ND to step up and start competing for a national title again and that means beating arguably the team of the decade, Southern Cal.

To put a number on it, I'd say 10 wins ensures Weis his job next year. 9 wins and a competitive game vs. SC likely does the same. 9 wins and another embarrassing lose to SC at home will probably get him fired at season's end.

Wow...You think he could win 9 + a BCS game and still get the street over a USC loss? ND fans must be real sick of him then. I am no fan as I think he's a arrogant asshole...But I was thinking with HUGE buyout clause he has they would be inclined to keep him with a BCS season.

[BigdaddyQH]

It's the USC-NOtre Dame rivalry, a rivalry unparalleled in the NCAA. It is not a conference rivalry like Michigan-Ohio State. It is not an interstate rivalry, like Alabama-Auburn, or any other state that has two BCS teams in it. This is a rivalry that was agreed to by the wives of two great coaches, Knute Rockne and Howard Jones, on a train back in the mid 20's. It is said that when USC first traveled to Chicago (Notre Dame played their home games there), ove 130,000 poeple attended the game, but there was no official attendance announced because they could not count the thousands standing at Soldiers Field watching the game. The Notre Dame-USC series have decided more National Championships than any other series. It was a huge series before people even know what Michigan vs Ohio State was, or Alabama vs Auburn, or the rest. This game is begger to USC alum than the UCLA game is. USC coaches have been fired for not being able to beat Notre Dame. The Notre Dame game is bigger than the Rose Bowl game for USC fans. We could care less about the phony Big 10. This is the game that counts.

By the way, I have been privy to some of Clover's long conversations at CM, where I have now officially been run out for stating that McNair was a fool, and for stating that it appeared that black athletes run into a lot more trouble than white, asian, and hispanic athletes. And I did not even use a word that could be considered questionable. I wish I did. But I guess we know who CM caters to now. Their old standby's who would never dare post in here because of their total lack of any knowledge and the fact that they neer wager, no matter what they want to claim.

[The Noob]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

By the way, I have been privy to some of Clover's long conversations at CM, where I have now officially been run out for stating that McNair was a fool, and for stating that it appeared that black athletes run into a lot more trouble than white, asian, and hispanic athletes. And I did not even use a word that could be considered questionable. I wish I did. But I guess we know who CM caters to now. Their old standby's who would never dare post in here because of their total lack of any knowledge and the fact that they neer wager, no matter what they want to claim.

That's OK...the only reason I was at CM was the contest, this is home. I hit the RX on occasion because there are still a few guys there I respect and like to share thoughts with.

Hope you make this home as well, there are some good guys here like crazytrain and junkman to name a few. The best part is the mods keep the BS to a minimum and let us focus on capping.

[BigdaddyQH]

You can still enter the contest at CM without getting nvolved with the forum. That's what I do, and I really tick them off because I have won so many. Well, it's Saturday. I guess Clover will have the gang over for poker tonite.

[Cloverleaf]

EOG needs loyal SOB's like BigDaddy and many others.

Men, College Football Will BE FUN!

Nighttrain
Bigdaddy
and others will never be forgotten. Goddamn meltdowns will.

[Cloverleaf]

Football is about edge. Money is there unless YOU go dumb ass. (Big Star, Unit Stupid,
Unit Demand, (High School Stars) who influence , don't worry about starters...think
backups....these are the kids that win games. Roll Tide.

[Cloverleaf]

Muleriders love:

Number of Offensive Starters.................

Number of Defensive Starters................

Now, what makes this work?

[Cloverleaf]

Who the hell knows, but it does.

Smart guys at EOG will figure (best percentage) for the play.

Always look for the unexpected. It usally pays. (Freck the UNIT sillyness)

[BigdaddyQH]

While it is easier to keep accurate stats on the pro's because of the number of teams (32 compared to 120), I like the college game because of the finality of it. One or two losses and your chances of winning the championship are probably finished. In the pro's, a team that went 9-7 in the regular season was playing for all the marbles in the Superbowl. The pros can take a week or two (or 7) off and get away with it. The colleges can not. That's why I like the colleges. Those kids are playing to get to the point where they can make millions and take a few weeks off during the season.

[IrishTim]

Originally Posted by The Noob

Wow...You think he could win 9 + a BCS game and still get the street over a USC loss? ND fans must be real sick of him then. I am no fan as I think he's a arrogant asshole...But I was thinking with HUGE buyout clause he has they would be inclined to keep him with a BCS season.

In my opinion, yes. But only if it's a blowout. You can't overestimate how embarrassed wealthy ND alums get when people remark about how it's "sad what has happened to ND football" getting surpassed by the big state schools and whatnot. They went to school when ND was a football powerhouse and they don't see ay reason why they can't return to that level. Getting whipped by USC would indicate that ND still is not ready to compete for a national championship and that would certainly get the fire started.

The buyout really isn't an issue. If two anonymous trustees can send the entire band out to LA for the USC game on a whim, they would have no problem whipping up enough funds to buy out Weis' contract.

[IrishTim]

Originally Posted by BigdaddyQH

It's the USC-NOtre Dame rivalry, a rivalry unparalleled in the NCAA. It is not a conference rivalry like Michigan-Ohio State. It is not an interstate rivalry, like Alabama-Auburn, or any other state that has two BCS teams in it. This is a rivalry that was agreed to by the wives of two great coaches, Knute Rockne and Howard Jones, on a train back in the mid 20's. It is said that when USC first traveled to Chicago (Notre Dame played their home games there), ove 130,000 poeple attended the game, but there was no official attendance announced because they could not count the thousands standing at Soldiers Field watching the game. The Notre Dame-USC series have decided more National Championships than any other series. It was a huge series before people even know what Michigan vs Ohio State was, or Alabama vs Auburn, or the rest. This game is begger to USC alum than the UCLA game is. USC coaches have been fired for not being able to beat Notre Dame. The Notre Dame game is bigger than the Rose Bowl game for USC fans. We could care less about the phony Big 10. This is the game that counts.

Well said. While Michigan (or even BC) may be considered our traditional rivals (Navy's more a ceremonial one), SC is the game people--especially the students and younger fans--get most fired up for. The last 5 years or so it's turned into a more jealous younger-brother hatred than anything else.

[crazytrain]

Akron Zips.................
When does improving from 4-8 to 5-7 signify a quantum leap? When your offense and defense combined to improve 97 YPG, that’s when. Had it not been for a heartbreaking three-game season-ending losing skein the Zips might have landed a bowl bid last year. Instead, J.D. Brookhart will look to 15 returning starters from last year’s squad to try and complete the task this season. The keys to the car will be handed to QB Chris Jacqueman who, along with both of his leading receivers, will look to improve offensive production for the fourth year in a row. One thing is for certain. The Tiremakers will need to avoid season-ending blowouts in their final two games (0-6 last three years) this season if they wish to move up to the next level.

[crazytrain]

Central Michigan............
This much we know. QB Dan LeFevour is a sure-fire NFL star who has lead his team to 26 wins in three years. His accomplishments are many. He has accumulated 11,702 yards of total offense in three years as a starter (2765 yards rushing) and has been the Chips’ leading rusher each of the last two seasons. To top it off, his top three receivers – 199 receptions last year - all return. Close calls were much to CMU’s liking last year. They went 5-1 in the six games that were decided by three of less points. Four non-conference road games against bowl teams may be the only thing that can stop the Chips from becoming the first current MAC member to play in four straight bowl games. Hey! Look! Up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s Super Dan.

[crazytrain]

Temple..............Yea, I know, but I think the MAC will be a money maker this year guys.
Its 2009 and the times are definitely changing around the football program at Temple. After a 1-22 run in 2005 and 2006, Al Golden’s gang is all about change and the signs are there. The five wins recorded last year were the most by a Temple football team since 1990. Better yet, five of the seven losses in 2008 were by four or fewer points. Compare that to the fact that 17 of the previous 19 losses under Golden were by double-digit margins. With seventeen starters back, including nine from a defense that improved 75 YPG last year, it’s understandable the Owls are anxious to get back on the field. “We really have a nice group coming back. We really do,” exclaimed Golden. Yea, we can read the signs.

[BigdaddyQH]

With the number of bowl tie-ins that the MAC has (3 minimum), Central Michigan should have no trouble getting into a 4th Bowl game. Non-con games do not count in determining who goes to bowl games unless there is some type of tie-breaker.

[crazytrain]

Western Michigan......................
The Broncos kicked their heels and went bowling for the second time in three years last season and, thanks to the schedule maker, they could be in position for a holiday party once again in 2009. That's because Bill Cubit's crew's first six games this season are against teams who finished with losing records in 2008. Unlike last year, when eighteen returning starters were on board, only eleven grace the roster this season. The good news is QB Tim Hiller (3725 yards and 36 TD’s last season) and RB Brandon West (1026 rushing yards in 2008) are among the returnees. The bottom line is that the three road games at Big 10 venues will go a long way in determining WMU’s post-season fate. FYI: they are 3-15 on the Big 10 road.