Our Official 2016 Regular Season thread

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Washington vs. Utah

Washington vs. Utah - Game Summary - October 29, 2016 - ESPN

I just watched this game from start to finish, and what a gut-check win this was for Washington. It doesn't hurt that the Huskies special teams were tremendous.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

What else happened so far today?

Well, let's see...
Kentucky won at Missouri, so they're 1 win away from bowl eligibility. And with Austin Peay (from the FCS) looming and with a fading Georgia up next, this HAS to be the year Kentucky goes bowling. It just HAS to!

Also, Houston avoids a 3rd disaster this season by beating UCF, Eastern Michigan is stuck at 5 wins thanks to Miami-Ohio, and so is Maryland (thanks to Indiana).
And we also had Army winning at Wake Fores- Wait wait, WHAT?!

Army vs. Wake Forest - Game Summary - October 29, 2016 - ESPN Army won AT Wake?! WHAT?!?

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Miami vs. Notre Dame

Miami vs. Notre Dame - Box Score - October 29, 2016 - ESPN

Oh! Can't forget this little gem. Now Notre Dame has a WAY better chance of bowling in 2016. As for Miami, this ends a terrible October.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Texas takes out Baylor

Not a good day at all for the Big 12. First West Virginia (their best chance for a playoff team) goes down to Oklahoma State. Then, TCU falls to 4-4 in double OT.

Baylor vs. Texas - Game Summary - October 29, 2016 - ESPN And for the cherry on the sundae, #8 Baylor loses to the Longhorns, meaning there are no more undefeated teams left in the conference.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Nebraska vs. Wisconsin

Nebraska vs. Wisconsin - Box Score - October 29, 2016 - ESPN

I'm doing these posts a little later than usual today. That's because I was helping out at home with the furnace and cleaning the basement, and it was hard.

What does that have to do with the game? Hey, Wisconsin worked hard, so they won this hard-nosed game. As for Nebraska, a good effort. But now EVERYTHING hangs in the balance for them next week against the Buckeyes.

P.S: South Carolina also won last night... against a ranked Tennessee team. Told you that Will Muschamp would be just fine with the Gamecocks.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Wyoming upsets Boise State

Boise State vs. Wyoming - Game Summary - October 29, 2016 - ESPN

You know who the biggest winners of this game was? No, it wasn't a now bowl-eligible Wyoming team. It was Western Michigan! Now they're thinking "YES! The path's all clear for us for New Year's! All we have to do is win out, and we'll make 10 million dollars! WOO!"

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Clemson vs. Florida State

No ESPN link this time. Just know that Deshawn Watson is a great player, this game was one of the best in this rivalry, and that the playoff committee is mad-impressed with Clemson's performance (First win at FSU for Clemson in a decade!).

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 9 Recap

And finally, it's time for "What We've Learned This Week in College Football"!

What I've learned is...

1. Look at the mess you made in the AAC West, Houston! Now everyone but Tulane has a chance at the division title!

2. On the flip-side, Tennessee's loss to South Carolina means that Florida fans can start packing for the SEC championship game.

3. Clemson's been pushed 4 times already this season. In 2013, that meant Clemson blew all 4 games. But in 2016, it means we have a playoff team!

4. Told you that you needed to add some teams, Big 12! Now all you have left is 8 teams fighting for bowl bids.

5. EVERYONE in the Big 10 will now be watching Nebraska @ Ohio State next week, as the sanity of BOTH divisions will be on the line.

6. Starting this Tuesday, hard-core MACtion will begin! Rejoice!

And finally, November is upon us! Sadly, this means I'll be spitting time between this and my college basketball thread. That thread goes up on Wednesday, so please check in...

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 10- Top 10

You're probably thinking "Whoa whoa, WHOA! Bro, why are you doing this right now? The playoff rankings don't come out until tonight!"
Well, one game in particular from the MAC is the reason why. But we'll get to that later, as right now I start...

The Top 10 Games of College Football 2016 (Week 10)​

(All times are Eastern)
10. Syracuse @ Clemson [3:30, ABC or ESPN2] (Clemson HAS to be feeling relieved after that win in Tallahassee, so they should be loose for this ACC Atlantic match-up. But I'm still harboring a sense of hope for the 'Cuse; Eric Dungey has thrown for over 2,600 yards already, and Clemson [as we all know] has been in a lot of close games already.)

9. Georgia Tech @ North Carolina [12:30, WatchESPN or check your local listings] (Already, Georgia Tech's 2016 season is better than 2015's, and so is their luck. That won't matter here; this is a simple battle of the Jackets running game vs. the Tar Heels passing game. And I think that bye week North Carolina just had will aid them here.)

8. UCLA @ Colorado [9:00 Thursday, FOX Sports 1] (Or as I like to call it, "UCLA's last chance". The much-maligned UCLA running game has to come through in order to derail Colorado's Cinderella run to Santa Clara. For if it doesn't, a proud UCLA program will fall to 3-6. Not good...)

7. Iowa @ Penn State [7:30, Big 10 Network] (The sleeper game of the week. Iowa still has a mathematical chance at the Big 10 West title, and they'll win in "Happy Valley" if they stop Saquon Barkely.)

6. TCU @ Baylor [3:30, FOX] (I wanted to do something funny with TCU and Baylor... but I just can't. Just know that come Saturday in Fort Worth, both of these rivals will be taking their own individual problems out on each other.)

5. Wisconsin @ Northwestern [12:00, ABC] (Mock me all you want, but this could be where Wisconsin loses it's playoff hopes. I mean, you saw the effort Northwestern gave against the Buckeyes last week. And Wisconsin HAS to be out of gas after dealing with Nebraska. Then again, Wisconsin could fool us again if their QB [Alex Hornibrook] is on the money.)

4. Oklahoma State @ Kansas State [3:30, ABC or ESPN2] (This one is all about good, clean, offensive fun. Oklahoma State is now in charge of it's own destiny in the Big 12, but the Wildcat running game is something Mike Gundy and his staff will have to deal with. Maybe that's why Vegas has K-State as the favorite here.)

3. Washington @ California [10:30, ESPN] (Why is this game so high up on the countdown? You can blame Davis Webb; he's thrown for over 2,900 yards already this year! Can the Bears catch Washington napping after their big win at Utah? Something tells me Myles Gaskin will answer that question for the Huskies...)

2. Alabama @ LSU [8:00, CBS] (Much like Syracuse @ Clemson, I'm harboring hope that LSU can beat the Tide. After all, Alabama is only 3-3 at Baton Rouge since 2004, and LSU has been looking better in recent weeks. But southern football fans won't care about fancy statistics; they'll be lining up around the block for this rivalry game... as usual.
But annoyingly, I think that Alabama may lose this game and STILL make the playoff...)

1. Nebraska @ Ohio State [8:00, ABC] (...but here's why THIS game is the main event: The loser will definitely NOT make the 4-team playoff, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Pay attention to Ohio State's young O-line here; if it fails and Nebraska stuns Ohio State in Columbus, we'll have a LOT of fun listening to those whining Buckeye fans on Ohio sports-talk radio. Here's to hope!)

Best "mid-major" game: See next post.
Game with the best chance to be a bust: BYU @ Cincinnati (That long-awaited QB duel between Gunner Kiel and Taysom Hill we all hoped for in preseason? Nowhere to be found here. And I think fading Cincinnati could get their clocks cleaned here.)
Honorable mentions for the Top 10: Florida @ Arkansas, Florida State @ NC State, Oregon @ USC, Vanderbilt @ Auburn, and Louisville @ Boston College.

A special segment is next!

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 10- Smaller school special

Once again this season, the "Group of 5" conferences has a good slate of games for us, both in the FBS AND FCS. First, let's do...

The Top 5 "Group of Five" games this week!​

(All times are Eastern)
5. Texas San-Antonio @ Middle Tennessee [2:30, WatchESPN] (Sayyyy... Dalton Sturm and the Roadrunners has been doing better than I thought in 2016! Now Mr. Dalton and UTSA is ready to test their luck, as the Blue Raiders have been playing out of their minds over the last few weeks.)

4. Toledo @ Akron [7:30 tomorrow, ESPN2] (A lot of fun should be had in this little in-state contest, as both the Zips and the Rockets are in the MAC title hunt and have accurate QB's. But a little warning to the Zips: Toledo may not be in a good mood after losing last week.)

3. Memphis @ SMU [4:00, ESPNnews] (Like UTSA, the Mustangs have been a pleasant surprise. Now they hope to keep the happy times going against Memphis this week. Expect a QB duel between Ben Hicks [SMU] and Riley Ferguson [Memphis] here.)

2. Air Force @ Army [12:00, CBS Sports Network] (Army hasn't won the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy since 1996, so why do they think they can win it here? Oh yeah, because last week they won AT Wake Forest! And if Andy Davidson gets going, the Black Knights will have a lot to celebrate about.)

1. Western Michigan @ Ball State [8:00 tonight, ESPN2] (Ah, finally! NOW I remember why I'm doing these posts today; it's thanks to the Broncos! After ESPN has their fancy playoff rankings show, Western Michigan can come out and stop the Cardinals, showing the nation why THEY should get some love.
Of course, Ball State's running game might ruin everything if the Broncos aren't careful...)


And as for the FCS, here are a few games from that division worth checking out:

Big Sky: North Dakota @ Northern Colorado, Eastern Washington @ Cal Poly
CAA: Villanova @ Maine, James Madison @ Richmond
Ivy: Penn @ Princeton
MEAC: South Carolina State @ North Carolina A&T
Missouri Valley: Youngstown State @ North Dakota State
NEC: Duquesne @ Wagner
Ohio Valley: Jacksonville State @ SE Missouri State, Tennessee-Martin @ Eastern Illinois
Patriot: Bucknell @ Lehigh, Colgate @ Fordham
Pioneer: Drake @ Jacksonville
Southern: Samford @ The Citadel
SWAC: Alcorn State @ Prairie View, Texas Southern @ Southern, Grambling State @ Alabama A&M

...And I'm done (for now)! Once the playoff rankings come out, I'll come back tomorrow with my game predictions.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 10 predictions

Here's a quick question for you guys: Would you rather watch Today and see a bunch of women talk about sweaters, or debate about my picks for this week?
...I'd knew you'd see the light. Here there are:

(1)Alabama 30 @ (13)LSU 21
Syracuse 21 @ (2)Clemson 38
Maryland 19 @ (3)Michigan 35
(4)Texas A&M 31 @ Mississippi State 19
(5)Washington 38 @ California 35
(10)Nebraska 23 @ (6)Ohio State 32
(7)Louisville 38 @ Boston College 20
(8)Wisconsin 24 @ Northwestern 28
Vanderbilt 14 @ (9)Auburn 34
(11)Florida 17 @ Arkansas 22
Iowa 26 @ (12)Penn State 20
(14)Oklahoma 51 @ Iowa State 14
UCLA 21 @ (15)Colorado 28
TCU 34 @ (17)Baylor 47
(18)Oklahoma State 32 @ Kansas State 37
(19)Virginia Tech 37 @ Duke 15
Kansas 14 @ (20)West Virginia 30
Georgia Tech 26 @ (21)North Carolina 41
(22)Florida State 42 @ NC State 18
(23)Western Michigan 52 @ Ball State 20 (Call me nuts, but I think this is my lock of the week!)
San Jose State 10 @ (24)Boise State 24
Arizona 27 @ (25)Washington State 37

...and I'm done! Now if you excuse me, there's a CBB thread I have to start. See you there!

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Well, it's Saturday.

So far we had Oklahoma get pushed by lowly Iowa State, Colorado beating UCLA despite making every dumb mistake that there possibly is, and Miami-Ohio is 2 wins away from a bowl berth.
What do YOU think will happen today?

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Texas A&M upset by Miss. State

Texas A&M vs. Mississippi State - Game Summary - November 5, 2016 - ESPN

What the HELL, Texas A&M? You got a personal endorsement from the playoff committee on Tuesday, and then you go and do THIS? Losing to 3-5 Mississippi State?! How the f--k does that- What's that? You lost Trevor Knight?
...Well, that explains it.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

The early slate

What else happened early on? Well...

Texas outshoots Texas Tech, getting them closer to bowl eligibility. Auburn (against Vandy) and Wisconsin (at Northwestern) survived stiff tests. And Air Force won at West Point.
In bigger news, there's now a thread on Sportshoopa entitled "3-6"... no doubt referring to the mess Notre Dame is in right now with their unhappy fans. Also unhappy is Michigan State, who LOST to 6-loss Illinois!

Texas San Antonio vs. Middle Tennessee - Game Summary - November 5, 2016 - ESPN And finally, Middle Tennessee State had a 1.3% chance of making a "New Year's Six" bowl game entering today. But thanks to the Roadrunners of UTSA, their chances are down to 0%. Sorry, Musfreesboro.

(Quick update: Wake Forest is bowl-eligible! Yes! I TOTALLY called that in preseason!)

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Florida vs. Arkansas

Not a good day for me, pick-wise. First Dolgeville gets run over by Onondaga in the Carrier Dome. Then Kansas State couldn't finish off OK State, and Syracuse got stomped. In fact, the only big pick I got right...

Florida vs. Arkansas - Game Summary - November 5, 2016 - ESPN ...was THIS one?! Cool! Maybe my luck's changing as I speak!

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Late-night action

It wasn't a good night for me last night. First I lose an hour's sleep due to Daylight Savings, then Alabama blanks LSU. And then I sat down to watch Nebraska vs. Ohio State, and whatta ya know! Ohio State gives the Huskers maybe it's worst loss in program history.

Georgia vs. Kentucky - Game Summary - November 5, 2016 - ESPN In fact, the only fun late-night game we had was this one in Lexington. Ugh!

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 11 Recap

And finally, it's time for "What We've Learned This Week!"

What I've learned is...

1. Sorry, Jabrill Peppers. The way things are going with Lamar Jackson, Deshawn Watson, and Jake Browning, looks like you won't be in New York for the Heisman ceremony.

2. Minnesota's alive! They now control their own destiny in the Big 10 West, you know.

3. Come December, we may have a C-USA title game between Old Dominion and Texas San-Antonio! Believe it or don't!

4. Jeez... The way Notre Dame lost to Navy, maybe Brian Kelly really DOES want the school to fire him.

5. Now I'm REALLY hoping that Auburn crushes Georgia next week. ANYTHING to show us that Alabama CAN be beaten!

And finally, a round of applause for Nebraska's Tommy Armstrong Jr. for making it out of Columbus with his health intact.

 

[umichgradfan]

Week 11 Recap

And finally, it's time for "What We've Learned This Week!"

What I've learned is...

1. Sorry, Jabrill Peppers. The way things are going with Lamar Jackson, Deshawn Watson, and Jake Browning, looks like you won't be in New York for the Heisman ceremony.

2. Minnesota's alive! They now control their own destiny in the Big 10 West, you know.

3. Come December, we may have a C-USA title game between Old Dominion and Texas San-Antonio! Believe it or don't!

4. Jeez... The way Notre Dame lost to Navy, maybe Brian Kelly really DOES want the school to fire him.

5. Now I'm REALLY hoping that Auburn crushes Georgia next week. ANYTHING to show us that Alabama CAN be beaten!

And finally, a round of applause for Nebraska's Tommy Armstrong Jr. for making it out of Columbus with his health intact.

Two things: Jabrill Peppers WILL be in New York for the Heisman ceremony.
ND keeps Brian Kelly to punish him.

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 11: Top 10

I'll try to make this one brief, so you guys can get to your election news faster. It's time for...

The Top 10 Games of College Football 2016 (Week 11)​

(All times are Eastern)
10. Pittsburgh @ Clemson [3:30, ABC] (I WAS going to put Tulsa @ Navy at #10, but I just received some breaking news: Dabo Sweeney has said that Deshawn Watson and Wayne Gallman will be in next April's NFL Draft. So this game now begins "Deshawn's farewell trip" through the FBS ranks.
Actually, there's another reason why this game is here: The hope that James Connor and the Panthers will do better against the Tigers than Syracuse did.)

9. Michigan @ Iowa [8:00, ABC] (Speaking of Syracuse, let's all admit one important fact about last week's games: Almost all of them were boring and non-competitive. Iowa hopes to buck the trend on prime-time, as they'll try to stop a Michigan killing-machine that's now running on all cylinders. The key to doing that is C.J Beathard finding a soft spot in that Michigan defense.)

8. Wake Forest @ Louisville [7:00, ESPN2] (Jeez... Wake Forest just clinched their first bowl game in 5 years, and yet they're a 34-point underdog against Louisville? Fine with me, but remember this: Lamar Jackson needed a full 60 minutes to stop lowly Virginia. So if Wake limits their turnovers, the Cardinals's ACC finale may get interesting.)

7. South Carolina @ Florida [12:00, CBS] (Good news for Florida Gators fans: Despite losing to Arkansas last week, you're still in control of your SEC East destiny! The bad news is, there's now no more room for error as you play a more confident South Carolina team. That, and I've heard that a few Gator starters will be out. Be careful...)

6. West Virginia @ Texas [12:00, FOX Sports 1] (One of 2 things will happen in this Big 12 game: Either West Virginia goes to 8-1 and shows they CAN win on the road, or Texas becomes bowl-eligible and Charlie Strong's chances to stay in Austin will increase dramatically. And by the way, did you know that Texas RB D'Onta Foreman had a BIG day last week? West Virginia certainly does...)

5. Minnesota @ Nebraska [7:30, Big 10 Network] (The sleeper game of the week. Can Nebraska pick themselves up after Ohio State whooped their @$$, or will the Gophers set up a BIG "Paul Bunyan's Ax" rivalry game 2 weeks from now? The answer may come in Minnesota RB Rodney Smith; he could have a big game in Lincoln.)

4. LSU @ Arkansas [7:00, ESPN] (Listen up, Orgeron. I know you want to be LSU's next full-time head coach in 2017, and losing to Alabama didn't hurt that dream too much. If however, LSU loses to bitter rival Arkansas for the 3rd year in a row, then your chances will fall to just below 0%. So finding a way to stop Austin Allen will be absolutely necessary to keep your dreams alive.)

3. Baylor @ Oklahoma [12:00, ABC or ESPN2] (Scoff at this game all you want, but I think this one is huge for the Sooners. If they keep their offense going, their faint playoff chances will stay alive.
As for Baylor, they're now off 2 straight losses... to in-state rivals... and last week TCU beat them by 40. Is there ANY pride left in Waco?)

2. USC @ Washington [7:30, FOX] (Ah, the fickle finger of fate. Had California upset Washington, then Washington State will FINALLY have College Gameday in Pullman. Instead, Gameday is in Seattle and Jake Browning and the Huskies now has a clear path to the playoff round in December. But wait a minute! USC's won 5 straight games, and Sam Donald has been looking very good.)

1. Auburn @ Georgia [3:30, CBS] (When in doubt for a "main-event" pick, go with the old stand-by rivalry game. And "Deep South's Oldest Rivalry" has almost always delivered great games over the last 30 years. But the pressure is ALL on Auburn: If they win on the road against a stiff rival with a TON of pressure on their backs, the Crimson Tide might want to be afraid of the future.)

Best "mid-major" game of the week: See next post.
Game with the best chance to be a bust: Mississippi State @ Alabama (Congrats, Bulldogs! By beating Texas A&M, you've saved your seas- Wait, you're GOING to Alabama? Well, it's been nice going ya!)
Honorable mentions for the Top 10: Utah @ Arizona State, Penn State @ Indiana, Georgia Tech @ Virginia Tech, Tulsa @ Navy, and Kentucky @ Tennessee.

A special segment is next!

 

[Dolgevillefootballfan]

Week 11: Group of 5 Special

I was over at the local grocery store, and bought 4 cans of canned corn, even though I don't like canned corn. Why? Because those cans are for the local food drive to feed needy people. SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL FOOD PANTRIES!

Phew... With that done, let's get back to the football. It's now time for...

The Top 5 Games in the "Group of 5" conferences​

(All times are Eastern)
5. Toledo vs. Northern Illinois {From Chicago} [8:00 tomorrow, ESPN2] (4 weeks ago, I thought Toledo was gonna run over the Huskies here. But wait a minute! NIU has won 6 straight over the Rockets, and after starting 0-6 they're still alive for a bowl. If Anthony Maddie gets going, we may have a QB duel in Chicago.)

4. South Florida @ Memphis [7:00, ESPNU] (This game is the 2nd half of a BIG AAC doubleheader [Part 1 will come later on here], and I have a feeling it could turn into a shootout. South Florida needs this win to keep the pressure on Temple in the AAC East.)

3. Texas San-Antonio @ Louisiana Tech [3:30, check local listings] (Remember: This game will NOT decide the C-USA West division. It WILL, however, have an impact: If the Roadrunners upset La-Tech, they're in the driver's seat for the C-USA title game. If La-Tech wins, however, the West will come down to La-Tech and Southern Miss. So UTSA's QB Dalton Strum must have the game of his life here.)

2. Appalachian State @ Troy [3:30, WatchESPN] (App. State HAS to be jealous of Troy; the Trojans are getting votes in the AP Top 25 poll while App. State isn't. But App. State should stay positive here; if they stop Brandon Silvers and the Trojans, another Sun Belt title is their's for the taking.)

1. Tulsa @ Navy [12:00, CBS Sports Network] (Remember that South Florida/Memphis game from earlier? Navy's only AAC loss this year was against the Bulls, so the Midshipmen are still in control of the West. So is Tulsa, but they don't have the luxury of that out-of-division loss. So expect an intense game here, with Tulsa winning if their passing game shows up.)

Coming up tomorrow, my predictions for Week 11!