The Grothe of a Program

Louisville. Rutgers. West Virginia. Add Auburn to resume of the South Florida Bulls. And still nobody gives them the credit they deserve. It's hard to believe a team, coming off a win against a #17 team on the road in the hostile environment of a conference that has coaches that have been coaching longer than South Florida has fielded a football team, can still not be good enough to break the top 25. In fact, Auburn actually received more top 25 votes than South Florida in the USA Today poll. It's ok, I think South Florida will, before long, be considered as tough and respectable as any other team in the Big East, but it's gotta be frustrating to be basking in victory in the biggest game in your programs history, and be passed up by teams that lost 48-7 in their most recent game (#17 Virginia Tech), or a team that lost to a previously unranked team (#25 Georgia).

USF's sophomore quarterback Matt Grothe is as clutch as I have ever seen a quarterback. He struggles a lot during the course of the game, but in the end, he can put it together and turn an average offensive performance into a upset of a top college program. Rutgers almost saw it last season when they went down to Tampa and narrowly escaped with a "W" when Grothe, as a freshman, threw for 241 yards and a TD and ran for 61 more and another touchdown. He drove the Bulls down the field against one of the toughest defenses in college football as the time was winding down, to throw a touchdown with :15 seconds on the clock. Only a failed two point conversion, that was arguably propelled by a uncalled pass interference penalty, was the difference in the 22-20 game. He showed that poise again when USF missed on 4 field goal attemps in the second half and he still managed to put the Bulls in position to kick a game tying field goal in the final minute, and...throw the game winning touchdown in overtime to beat Auburn in Jordan-Hare Stadium on saturday night.

Big East Update
Once again the rich of the Big East got richer. #9 Louisville (2-0) survived a scare by Sun Belt secret Middle Tennessee St. Defensively, they didn't look that good, but they didn't make mistakes at all on offense, as still managed to score 58 points to MTSU's 42. Brian Brohm threw for 401 yards and 4 touchdowns without throwing a single pick, and sophomore and Tampa native Anthony Allen ran for 275 yards and 2 touchdowns. It was a little to close for Louisville's comfort but once they tighten up their defense, they will continue to be unstoppable. #4 West Virginia (2-0) had a scare of their own as they found themselves trailing to cross state rival Marshall midway through the third quarter. But 100-yard rushing days by both Pat White and Steve Slaton and 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter gave them the comfortable 48-23 win. #13 Rutgers (2-0) had no trouble putting away Navy on Friday night. Ray Rice became the all-time leading rusher in school history as he chipped away for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns. Navy's rushing offense was tricky as it reversed and optioned it's way to 254 yards on the ground, but Rutgers pass defense was dominant only allowing 35 yards through the air and intercepting 3 passes. Cincinnati (2-0) who is another up and coming Big East program has beaten their opponents (SE Missouri St., and Oregon State) by a combined score of 93-6 this season. QB Ben Mauk had 199 yards passing and 2 touchdowns in their 34-3 win over Oregon St. on thursday night. Pittsburgh (2-0) defeated Grambling St. at home on Saturday 34-10, and Connecticut (2-0) became the seventh undefeated team thus far in the Big East by shutting out Maine 38-0. The only team with a loss was Syracuse (0-2) as they fell to Iowa 35-0. They continue to struggle as they only amassed 103 yards of total offense, but even more frustrating for the Orange is the 32 total rushing yards they have combined against their two opponents (Washington and Iowa) this season.

I want to leave with a quote by ESPN's Ivan Maisel, who I cannot respect as a sportswriter because of his obsurd statements like this "The Big East is 14-2 outside the league. Before you get too excited: Five of those wins came against I-AA schools, six came against I-A leagues that don't get automatic BCS bids and one came against Duke, which has lost 22 in a row. That leaves the Big East 2-2 against its automatic-bid brethren, which sounds about right. But hey, South Florida winning at No. 17 Auburn in overtime? Good win." That is a slap in the face to the Big East. Syracuse is the only team that has lost a game so far this season! SYRACUSE! and yeah they lost to teams from the PAC-10 and BIG TEN. Other than that, the other 7 teams from the Big East are undefeated regardless of what conference their opponents are from. "Dont get too excited"? I really don't think that the teams from the Big East are really concerned about getting excited over the first two weeks when they were undefeated last year in bowl games against a couple ACC teams, a Big 12 team, and a couple teams from Conference USA and MAC. I think they are looking at a slightly bigger picture than roughing up on small weaker schools. Bottom line is, I guarantee that no team in the NCAA is excited about facing any of these teams in the Big East. Cincinnati beat Oregon State this week 34-3. The same Oregon State team that beat the USC Trojans last season. USF beat Auburn...who was the only team to beat the Florida Gators last season. Those two teams aren't even the biggest threats in the conference. You still have 3 other teams ranked inside the Top 15. The Pac 10 only has 3. So does the Big 12. In fact the SEC only has 2. ACC only has 1. Those three teams (West Virginia, Louisville and Rutgers) are boasting a combined 4 Heisman Candidates, and two players that are well on their way if they keep up with the pace they started. How can anyone, let a lone a professional sports journalist, assume that this Conference is getting "too excited" about a couple of opening round wins like that? The teams in the Big East aren't fighting for little moral victories. These teams wont be excited until they are National Champions, and it is very possible that we may see that happen to one of them this season.

A whole new season...

Another College Football season kicked off this past weekend. Which means that until well after Christmas there will be debates galore, and excitement will be packed in like cheap candy in a stocking. Football season is Christmas to me. Every Saturday is like opening a whole new gift. You never know what you're gonna get.

Obviously, You have heard about the big upset. Little Appalachian State knocked off the #5 team in the country. Michigan, who managed to go the entire 2006 season without losing a game until they lost to then #1 Ohio State and then to #4 USC in the Rose Bowl, completes the tri-fecta by being embarrased at the Big House. Watching the highlights after the game, I heard this upset being compared to the Miracle on Ice, when the 1980 USA Olympic hockey team defeat the frickin' USSR. Am I the only one who doesn't think this game is that big of an upset? Michigan was on a two game losing streak after losing a huge emotional game against Ohio State, and then getting roped by USC in the Rose Bowl. And, granted, Appalachian State is a 1-AA team but they only lost one game last season and have one two straight 1-AA National Champions. This team has played in the quote/unquote "spotlight", and they win. Don't get me wrong...this win is HUGE, and if you play that game a hundred more times and Michigan wins all 100, but this isn't going to change the landscape of how people perceive 1-AA football. I think Appalachian State could beat most teams in the NCAA Division 1. I Guarantee they would go undefeated against the Sun Belt. They would probably win the MAC and give the WAC and Mountain West a run for their money.

The Big Big East Part 2- After going 4-0 in their Bowl Games last season the Big East looked pretty impressive in their kickoff weekend. #3 West Virginia looked a little shaky in the first half of their game against Western Michigan but they shook out the kinks and rolled to a 62-24 victory. #10 Louisville absolutely destroyed Murray State. New Head Ball Coach Steve Kragthorpe (formerly of Tulsa) has to like what he has inherited. I know it was Murray State, but anytime you win 73-10 it builds confidence and Louisville is going to need it if they want to keep winning down the stretch. The Big East schedule isn't getting any weaker. #16 Rutgers did what they do best, Give the Ball to Ray Rice, and play exceptional defense as they won their first week cake walk over Buffalo 38-3. South Florida, who is on the brink of a breakthrough season looked a little rusty on defense against little known Elon College. They won, but when you can only squeak it out 28-13 it shows that you got a lot of work to do. I think the only team that has ever heard of Elon is Appalachian State who has manhandled them the last 4 seasons by a combined score of 179-54. But it is freakin' Appalachian State. USF's sophomore QB Matt Grothe looked really good though, going 23 of 39 for 238 yards and a pair of TD's. I think he is going to make a name for himself and for the Bulls this season. Next Saturday, USF hits the road to take on #18 Auburn, and the rest of their schedule is going to be pretty rough. They do play at home against West Virginia who they shocked 24-19 last season in Morgantown, their in-state rival Central Florida (who is no push over) and of course Louisville (who has lost in each of their last two trips to Tampa, 45-14 in 2005, and the 31-28 overtime thriller in 2003). They play at Pitt and UConn, but the big game on the road for them is going to be Oct. 18 in Piscataway N.J. when they play Rutgers. This series has become a good one. Rutgers got spanked 45-31 back in 2005 when USF came to town, and last season in Tampa, the Scarlet Knights won a controversial one 22-20 in a game that I know the Bulls remember. So mark that game on your schedule, because it will have huge implications on the Big East. But if the Bulls want to get anywhere this season , they must win two of their three games against the Big 3 (West Virginia, Louisville, and Rutgers) along with an undefeated schedule against they rest of the Big East which is slowly becoming one of the most talented Conferences in the NCAA. It's not gonna be easy, but if anyone can get them there, its gotta be Matt Grothe that leads the way.

Anyway, only one Big East team lost this weekend, and the wins were pretty impressive. UConn beat Duke 45-14 on the road, Cincinnati unloaded (and they should have) on SE Missouri St. 59-3, and Pittsburgh knocked off Eastern Michigan 27-3 at Heinz Stadium. Syracuse, the only loss, has somehow developed into the whipping boy of the Big East. Long gone are the days of Donovan McNabb to Marvin Harrison, and the times have evolved into the Orangemen (1-6 in the Big East in '06) getting crushed at the Carrier Dome, 42-14 by unranked Washington on opening weekend. It's going to be an exciting season.

Slow Starts and Upsets- Other than Michigan, there were a few teams that started off pretty shaky against teams they should have beaten by a lot more. The game that comes to mind immediately is #4 Texas coming just an onside kick away from losing to Arkansas State. It was 14-3 at halftime, and after extending the lead to 21-3, ASU stormed back with 10 in the 4th quarter and missed an onside kick opportunity that just may have started a huge upset in Austin. Texas needs to clean up their act. Next week they travel to Orlando to play a confident UCF team who would like nothing more than to knock off Texas to open up their new stadium. Speaking of upsets, The UCF Knights (formerly the UCF Golden Knights) themselves went up to Raleigh and beat the N.C. State Wolfpack 25-23. Not the biggest upset, but N.C. State should be a much more talented team and the Knights. But the Knights definitely gained some momentum that they will definitely need to pull off the stunner next weekend.

#9 Virginia Tech barely beat East Carolina in their emotional kickoff. Obviously a win is something that campus needed and I'm not trying to belittle that, but only beating ECU 17-7 in Blacksburg may be a sign that the Hokies may have more struggles ahead of them. And in the SEC, #18 Auburn had a lot of trouble putting away Kansas State in their home opener. It took a 14 point 4th quarter to sneak by K State 23-13. And...Notre Dame? It's going to be nice to not have to hear about Notre Dame's quarterback controversy every single day. It doesn't matter who it is when your #1, #2 and #3 guy can't get anything going in a 33-3 thrashing by the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in South Bend. I don't know if these are signs of how the NCAA is going to look this season, but it is definitely enough to keep me watching. Its going to be a great season.