random facts, tidbits, articles and most importantly my thoughts about things that i find while aimlessly surfing the web...
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Architecture, College Football, Baseball, Hockey, March Madness, The Economy, Corporate Corruption, Incomptent Leadership, Tulane, Atlanta, Florida, etc.
|
|
|
|
travacado's thoughts
or at least "others'" thoughts that I find interesting...
|
|
| |
Sunday, December 28, 2003
First win in arena goes to Predators
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Ungrateful spoilsports.
That's about the only way the Phoenix Coyotes could have described the Predators following Nashville's 3-1 win last night.
Here the Coyotes had thrown the party of the NHL season, building a new $220 million arena, inviting 19,000 fired-up fans and even getting Paulina Gretzky — daughter of The Great One himself — to sing the national anthem.
Who were these Predators to ruin matters?
But that's just what they did, snapping a three-game winless streak, earning just their second win in the last 10 games and throwing a wet blanket on the Coyotes' Glendale Arena debut.
''I thought that keeping the fans out of the game tonight would be key,'' Predators Coach Barry Trotz said. ''We wanted to keep them quiet so they couldn't build on the excitement of the night.''
Predators right wing Scott Walker saw to that single-handedly, with a goal and two assists for his second three-point effort against the Coyotes in less than a week.
He scored the first goal in Glendale Arena history with 5:43 left in the first period, collecting Marek Zidlicky's pass near the Phoenix net and beating Sean Burke from close range.
Zidlicky posted a goal and an assist, breaking a 10-game pointless streak.
The Predators (16-13-4-2) held a 2-0 lead until nearly midway through the third period, when Brian Savage scored to cut the deficit to one. But with 4:50 left, Martin Erat deflected Robert Schnabel's shot past Burke to give the Predators a 3-1 lead.
The Coyotes (11-12-11-1) had their four-game unbeaten streak come to an end.
''This was a huge win for us because they were just two points behind us,'' Predators goalie Tomas Vokoun said. ''We hadn't been winning and we didn't want to slip in the standings. Everything is really tight in the conference.'' (By John Glennon, The (Nashville) Tennessean)
Cheerleader of the Week
Sandy, (San Diego) Charger Girls
TIDAL 6:27 PM
Sunday, December 21, 2003
Red Wings cure Preds' woes again
It may qualify as the strangest NHL trend of the season.
Every time the Predators have been in a rut this year, they've found a cure against the most unlikely of all opponents: the powerful Detroit Red Wings.
The pattern continued last night, as the Predators snapped a five-game winless streak with a 1-0 win over the Red Wings in front of a sellout crowd at the Gaylord Entertainment Center.
It was Nashville's third win in as many attempts over Detroit this season.
Nashville's first win over the Red Wings broke a four-game losing streak, and the second served as the Predators' first road win of the season, breaking a four-game losing streak in that department.
''I wish I could explain it because I'd like to do it against other teams, too,'' Preds Coach Barry Trotz said. ''We had that big win in Detroit and that got us on a roll, and we got going when we beat them at home, too. Maybe the third time was lucky and we'll get on another roll.''
The game was scoreless midway through the third period when an eight-second span changed everything.
With 11:35 remaining, Detroit defenseman Jason Woolley looked as if he was on the verge of firing a short shot into the Predators' net, but goalie Tomas Vokoun — who was lying on his side — managed to throw up a glove to knock the puck away.
Predators left wing Vladimir Orszagh pushed the puck ahead to rookie defenseman Dan Hamhuis, who cruised into the Detroit zone and ripped a shot that beat Curtis Joseph to the far side with 11:27 left.
The Wings saw their four-game winning streak come to an end and suffered just their second regulation loss in the last 14 contests.
''Detroit is a fun team to play against,'' Vokoun said. ''You kind of relax more because you're not supposed to win.''
"It's a little bit different psychological approach than against other teams.'' (By John Glennon, The (Nashville) Tennessean)
Predators frustrate Wings
Shutout by Vokoun is is end of the road for four-game win streak
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Red Wings still can’t find a way to beat the Nashville Predators.
The Predators defeated the Wings for the third time this season, 1-0 Saturday night.
“It was a good hockey game,� Wings Coach Dave Lewis said. “We did a lot of things we wanted to do. The power play was the difference.�
The Wings failed to convert on any of their six power-play attempts. The Predators had allowed four power-play goals Thursday, in a loss to Montreal, but were effective defending the Wings.
“It was pretty much anyone’s game,� said defenseman Jason Woolley, who was stopped by Predators goalie Tomas Vokoun moments before the eventual winning goal. “Both goalies were great. It was a matter of a crazy bounce.�
After Vokoun (21 saves) got an outstretched pad on Woolley’s drive, Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis, coming onto the ice after serving a cross-checking penalty, sent a shot past goalie Curtis Joseph at 8:33 of the third period.
Some Wings believed Hamhuis was offside. Joseph was one of them. He said he thought he saw a referee’s arm go up.
“If you hesitate just that much, a hundredth of a second, you don’t quite cover that much,� Joseph said. “I’ll have to watch my reaction. It wasn’t quick enough, obviously.�
He made 16 saves and was still outstanding.
The loss ended the Wings’ four-game winning streak. The Predators stopped a five-game winless streak (0-2-1-2).
The game attracted 17,113, the first sellout of the season to Nashville’s Gaylord Entertainment Center.
“There were a lot of one-on-one battles and we won a lot of them,� Predators Coach Barry Trotz said. “That was a key for us. We had to weather a storm, and we were smart and in control at the end.� (By Ted Kulfan, The Detroit News)
Cheerleader of the Week
Lindsay McBride, Denver Broncos Cheerleaders
TIDAL 1:26 PM
Monday, December 15, 2003
Cheerleader of the Week
Amber, Miami Dolphins Cheerleaders
TIDAL 6:32 PM
Monday, December 08, 2003
Hart's modest proposal: Create new playoff system
Dave Hart learned Sunday what wishful thinking can sometimes bring - a bowl full of disappointment. Not only will Florida State not get to ring in the New Year at the Rose Bowl, but it must play against Miami. Again.
But dreaming big has paid off for the athletic director, who is in his eighth year at FSU.
FSU is nearing completion of a master plan to place its athletic facilities among the best in the nation. The soccer and cross country teams reached their respective national finals while football has rebounded. This fall's success is a sign that Hart's vision for a strong overall sports program at FSU is being realized.
But there is a dream that Hart holds on to that all college football fans should share - a playoff. A Sugar Bowl without Southern California - ranked first in the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls - and an FSU-Miami rematch are all one needs to know about the Bowl Championship Series system.
FSU head coach Bobby Bowden is for a clause that would prohibit a team that does not win its conference from playing in the national championship game. That's the case with Oklahoma, losers in the Big12 championship game but in the BCS national championship game against LSU. Others believe in a clause that would give more consideration to a team ranked No.1 in the AP and coaches polls. But consider this: There is a BCS clause that is supposed to discourage rematches, and here's FSU and Miami in the Orange Bowl.
The BCS is beyond tweaking or repair.
"There's obviously a problem," said Pete Carroll of USC, who understandably is upset but as a former NFL coach understands there is a better way.
Hart has a solution, and maybe an audience following Sunday's travesty. At the very least, take the winners of this year's Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl, and let them play for the title. Better would be to include the eight BCS bowl teams. And, of course, the best solution would be a full playoff.
"I know I'm in the minority, but I feel very strongly that serious consideration should be given to it," Hart said of a playoff. "I've always said I thought it would happen, just as I've always said I felt we were coming to the day when there would be no undefeated teams. I've been saying that for four years and had been wrong until (Saturday night). I think that will become more of the norm than the exception. And, given that potential reality, it begs for serious consideration of this evolution, including some playoff format.
"I'm not talking about a full-blown playoff. I understand people are not ready at this point to have that discussion in a meaningful manner. I guess I'm just tired of hearing the artificial reasons why we can't do that. I just hope (Sunday) will give cause for more serious consideration."
Remember, this doesn't come from an administrator who has been consistently wronged by the system. FSU has played in three BCS national championship games since the 1998 season.
"Whether it's the coalition, alliance or BCS, I've supported that," Hart said. "(I was) hoping that we were in an evolution and ultimately we would evolve into some type of a playoff format - whether you take these teams and bracket them, or add games so that you could have a semifinal bracket and play it off.
"Ultimately, we would have a system in place that could crown a champion on the field without damaging the existing bowl structure. I still think that is possible if people were open-minded."
Sunday's mockery of common sense didn't make Hart more fanatical about a change. Yes, ABC's shift in position on an FSU-Miami matchup, and the BCS's disregard of its own clause, surprised and disappointed Hart. And speculation that the Fiesta Bowl may have passed on FSU because of its fan support on the road was unsettling to Hart, who said the Seminoles' fan base is strong.
But Hart was looking for a different, and better, route to declare a national champion long before Sunday.
"My comments are not driven by the events of the day," Hart said. "I've felt this way for some time. I think it would be a shot in the arm for college football and it would drive revenues at a time when we're all looking to create new revenues."
Unfortunately, Hart is right in believing that college football's decision-makers are not ready for a playoff format on the scale of the NCAA's other divisions in football. But taking all eight BCS bowl participants with the existing bowl system and letting them go at it for a national championship is a good start.
"... You'd have a mini-playoff," he said, "and I guess that's the terminology that has everybody getting weak-kneed."
Better that than the sickening feeling college football fans felt Sunday, thanks to the BCS. (By Steve Ellis, Tallahassee Democrat)
FSU not bowled over by its BCS bid
Florida State gets the rematch no Seminole apparently wants.
Miami and FSU will meet in the Orange Bowl on Jan.1 just two months after the Hurricanes won 22-14 in Doak Campbell Stadium and eight months before they open the 2004 season.
"It's what it is," FSU coach Bobby Bowden said.
What it isn't is the Rose Bowl, or even the Fiesta Bowl. Bowden and FSU have never participated in the "Granddaddy" of all bowl games - as the Rose Bowl is called - but school officials hoped to receive a bid to Pasadena, Calif., after the team earned a spot in a Bowl Championship Series bowl by winning the ACC title. But, when Oklahoma and LSU finished first and second in the BCS standings, that sent Southern California, despite being No.1 in The Associated Press and coaches polls, to the Rose Bowl to face Michigan. Oklahoma and LSU will play in the Sugar Bowl - which hosts this year's BCS championship game.
A Fiesta Bowl bid still seemed possible for FSU on Sunday morning. But the Tempe, Ariz., bowl went with an Ohio State team that arguably travels better than FSU or Miami and is ranked higher than both schools. The Buckeyes will face Kansas State, which upset Oklahoma 35-7 on Saturday night to win the Big12 championship and an automatic BCS bid.
Once the Fiesta Bowl selected Ohio State, the FSU-Miami matchup was a lock.
"... Any rematch in the bowl scenario is not good," FSU athletic director Dave Hart said. "Particularly when we (and Miami) are already scheduled to open the season in August on national TV for the first time as ACC members. That fact led to assurances that a rematch would not happen."
Bowden and Miami head coach Larry Coker also said they were against a rematch.
The BCS committee, made up of commissioners from the six member-conferences, frowns upon rematches of teams that have faced each other in the current season or in the previous season's bowl.
"We talked about it at great length," BCS coordinator Mike Tranghese said.
But the commissioners concluded that a rematch couldn't be avoided - either Miami against FSU or Ohio State, the team the Hurricanes met in last season's national championship game.
"At the end of the day the collective opinion of the group is that the two parties involved were not going to be helped," Tranghese said. "One may have been helped, but not both of them. And we also paid particular attention to bowl-selection rights, and the Fiesta Bowl exercised its bowl-selection right and took Ohio State. ... It's going to take a pretty significant situation for us to unravel (bowl selection decisions).
This will be the Seminoles' fifth trip to the Orange Bowl in 12 seasons and their seventh during the 28-year Bowden era. Miami (10-2) and FSU (10-2) have never met in a postseason bowl. FSU has lost four consecutive games against the Hurricanes.
"How can y'all be so nice to me?" Bowden said of the Orange Bowl bid. "If it's anybody that's tough on us, it is Miami."
"I'd rather not replay a team that we played during the regular season. I'd rather not play a rival (in a bowl)." (By Steve Ellis, Tallahassee Democrat)
BCS is so bad -- it's good
Working system not as much fun
This worked out ideally, seeing how it was probably too much to ask that Oklahoma's sideline also be overtaken by poison monkeys Saturday.
This BCS thing is an absolute gem, a keeper, a must-have in college football. Why would anyone want to ruin all this fun by introducing a playoff system? Why eliminate the clutter by clearly identifying a champion on the field, of all places?
Debating college football is more enjoyable than talking college football, talking about the boring Heisman and the dull games and the anonymous athlete-students. Watching the BCS blowhards squirm under the weight of their failed system is as delicious as anything in the history of the tailgate party.
Who wants to take time to ponder the brilliance of Larry Fitzgerald when we can focus on those triple-chinned, funeral-director-looking dorks wearing bowl game blazers the color of Motel 6 bedding? Just can't get enough of that Mike Tranghese, the current BCS coordinator, meaning he oversees a system that just mis-coordinated an entire season's worth of work.
Listen, arguing against the BCS is about as difficult today as taking a stance against the flu. It's as big a no-brainer as deciding, OK, I will open my parachute. There's no need to waste energy here stating the painfully, ridiculously obvious.
Instead, let's embrace the system and celebrate it for the wonderful bedlam it produces and glaring stupidity it exposes. The BCS is the ultimate tribute to the hypocrites, yahoos and flesh-exploiters who run Division I-A football.
Two weeks ago in this space, the BCS was applauded for its accuracy. Well, we continue to applaud the BCS now, for its mockery, the way it can make a joke of itself that's funnier than anything produced from the outside, be it by man or machine.
(Before the e-mail storm begins, accusing a certain writer of conveniently changing his opinion, recall that the previous BCS column was based on USC and Oklahoma winning their final games. Now, start forwarding your hatred.)
Of course, the Sooners should be the Laters after they opted not to compete against thrice-beaten Kansas State. We should be saying later to Bob Stoops and everything associated with his program -- right down to the legend of Barry Switzer's gun-wielding student-bandits -- until next season.
Yet, the Sooners, not good enough to win a conference championship, now have to settle for the opportunity to win a national championship, which this year will be so mythical the trophy should be presented by Santa Claus riding a unicorn that's riding the Loch Ness monster. Oklahoma will enter the title game under the most unlikely of circumstances, circumstances commonly called a losing streak.
A second phony championship will be available in the Rose Bowl to USC, which is No. 1 everywhere but the place it matters most. College football titles have been split before; there's a history of it, to be exact, so this is just the trendy BCS doning a throwback jersey.
Talk about a dynamic program! How about a computer-based system capable of adjusting to yesteryear? No wonder it takes all those smarty pants to run the thing. There's no way you trash this sort of mind-boggling technology.
Besides, if you want outrage, turn to the eight coaching clowns and two media morons who, moved by Oklahoma's four-touchdown loss, inexplicably still voted the Sooners No. 1. This is as logical as calling Walter Mondale ``Mr. President.''
To review, Oklahoma proved to be No. 2 when matched against only one other team Saturday, second-best by a margin wide enough to drive the Rose Bowl parade through, and was beaten as convincingly as a No. 1 team has been beaten in decades, and these mules still placed them first.
The 10 irresponsible goofs should be immediately stripped of their votes, dignity and pants. Presumably, they picked Oklahoma knowing the Sooners would be in the BCS title game regardless of Saturday's results. So, they did something in the single most important poll of the season that wouldn't have happened in any preceding poll. And you think the BCS lacks common sense?
No, the BCS is radiant compared to this thinking. There's no way we can deprive ourselves of this glorious system. Without the BCS, what would become of Jerry Palm, the most quoted and least recognized man on Earth? Palm is a BCS expert, which is another way of saying he needs a hobby real bad.
Without the BCS, would pollster Jeff Sagarin become so empty he'd rename himself after that zero-calorie sweetener, becoming Jeff Saccharine? Would the New York Times have to return to the crossword-puzzle business? Would computers all over the world protest by blocking porn?
Frankly, we're not willing to face those questions. At least not yet. Give us a few more years of the BCS, OK? It figures to take that long just to stop laughing. (By Jeff Miller, The Miami Herald)
You again? Noles, Canes to play three times in 11 months
UM is staying close to home for the holiday season, but its bowl opponent is no gift -- rival FSU. The Hurricanes start next season, too, with a game against the Seminoles.
The University of Miami gets to stay in familiar surroundings for the bowl season but will play an all-too-familiar opponent -- Florida State -- for what will be the second of three meetings in 11 months.
Sunday afternoon, the Hurricanes (10-2) found out they will play in the Orange Bowl game on New Year's Day against an in-state rival.
UM players, rated No. 9 in the Bowl Championship Series standings, were hoping for a rematch of last year's national championship game against Ohio State.
Instead, the Canes will play the Seminoles (10-2) to close out the 2003 campaign and then face FSU to start the 2004 season. The Hurricanes will join the Atlantic Coast Conference next season and will open up with a Labor Day matchup against the Seminoles, who were ranked No. 7 by the BCS.
''This is just one of those outcomes where its not the outcome that everybody wants, but its certainly a good one,'' University of Miami athletic director Paul Dee said. ``Because we know one thing -- were going to be playing a great team, and theyre going to be playing a great team.''
UM officials tried to look at the positive side of a 48th meeting between the two Florida schools, but coach Larry Coker admitted he was ``disappointed because we played FSU and we open the season with FSU. I am not going to be dishonest and say I am not a little disappointed. But were in a situation where were not in control now.''
Added Coker: ``Again, were just extremely happy to have the opportunity to be in a BCS game. You know, when we lost two in a row, we had to win the remaining three games. That wasnt a given. So I think where we are is fine, regardless of the opponent.''
NOT OB'S FIRST CHOICE
Orange Bowl officials tried to persuade BCS commissioners for another matchup that would alter the Fiesta Bowl's choice of Ohio State. The commissioners discussed it but chose not to change it, according to Keith Tribble, chief executive officer of the Orange Bowl.
''We made the effort to try to get the best possible game we could possibly get, understanding what was good for the Hurricanes and good for Florida State,'' Tribble said. ``We felt those teams obviously played each other on an annual basis. . . . That did not work, and now we not only have an opportunity to have a great game, but to have the best game in the BCS outside of the championship.''
Coker said he has not discussed the matchup with his players but expects them to be excited to play the Seminoles.
UM has won the past four games against FSU. The Canes won the Oct. 11 meeting at Tallahassee 22-14.
''Had we played an Ohio State, emotionally we might have had an advantage there because we lost the [national championship] game last year,'' Coker said. ``This year we won the game in Tallahassee and I would think Florida State might be a little angry about that. From a competitive standpoint, we know what we are in for and we have to be ready to play.''
For Coker, there is also an added bonus: ''I have had the good fortune of playing a lot of bowl games, all the major bowl games except the Orange Bowl,'' he said. ``So from a personal standpoint I am very, very happy.'' (By Marissa Silvera, The Miami Herald)
Bloom off the Rose for Bowden
The Seminoles were hoping to head west for the Rose or Fiesta bowls but instead will stay in state to play a team that has beaten them four times in a row.
The Orange Bowl is hardly uncharted territory for Florida State, a team that has played in six OB Classics and won three.
What is unprecedented is the opponent: the University of Miami. And at Florida State, playing the Hurricanes is not fun. It's hard work.
''I'd rather not re-play a team that we played during the regular season,'' FSU coach Bobby Bowden said Sunday after the pairings in the Bowl Championship Series games were unveiled.
"I'd rather not play a rival. Miami is a rival. Florida is a rival. When you play Florida or Miami, there's more pressure involved than if you play a Kansas State or a Michigan.''
Bowl rematches are not new for FSU (10-2), which has played Florida in the Sugar Bowl after regular-season-ending games against the Gators in the 1994 and 1996 seasons.
This will be the first time FSU has met Miami in a bowl game.
But it was a disappointing outcome for FSU, Miami and the Orange Bowl Committee. FSU athletic director Dave Hart was particularly dissatisfied with the matchup.
''We are very proud of our history with Miami and championed their admission to the Atlantic Coast Conference,'' Hart said in a released statement. ``However, any rematch in a bowl game is not good, particularly when we are scheduled to play in the season opener next year.''
The Seminoles had hoped to go west and face an unfamiliar opponent in either the Fiesta or Rose Bowls. But Kansas State's Big 12 title and Southern California's slide to No. 3 in the BCS rankings meant the Rose and Fiesta had to accommodate those teams.
Bowden, who has never coached in the Rose Bowl, was hopeful things would work out so he could make his first appearance there. But once USC was shut out of the Sugar Bowl's the national title game, the Rose was locked into a traditional Pac-10 vs. Big Ten matchup in USC-Michigan.
''I don't know if it was ever in the works,'' Bowden said. ``I had expressed that because I'd never been there. If we were not going to play for the national championship, why not play in the bowl that you've never been to? But it wasn't even close.''
REVENGE FACTOR?
The question now is whether the Seminoles can find the motivation to get charged up for an opponent they play annually and will meet in next season's opener on Labor Day.
Miami (10-2) defeated the Seminoles 22-14 on Oct. 11 in Tallahassee and the two will have played three times in less than a year by the time they collide in September.
But there is one thing that could serve to spur the Seminoles in this game: Four straight losses to the Hurricanes. FSU hasn't beaten UM since 1999 when Miami finished 9-4.
STATE OF MIND
Bowden expects his players to hone in on Miami, an opponent that always brings out the Seminoles' emotion -- after his team gets over the surprise of staying in the state for its bowl trip.
''It was never set in concrete that we would not play in our own state,'' Bowden said. "There was a one-third chance you'd play in Florida. I think the fact that you're playing Miami will get their attention.''
The game will pit two teams in very similar positions. Both at one time harbored realistic hopes of reaching the national title game, only to see those hopes squashed by late losses. FSU's was an upset at Clemson, with Miami's coming in November against Virginia Tech and Tennessee.
FSU was ranked ninth in Sunday's newest Associated Press poll and No. 7 in the final BCS rankings. Miami was 10th in the AP poll and ninth in the BCS. (By Stephen F. Holder, The Miami Herald)
TIDAL 6:55 AM
Sunday, December 07, 2003
Vincent, LSU rout Georgia for SEC title
ATLANTA -- Freshman tailback Justin Vincent helped LSU find its running game in midseason. On a marquee Saturday night in the Georgia Dome, he led the Tigers to their second Southeastern Conference championship in three years.
Vincent, who didn't play on offense Sept. 20 in a regular-season victory over Georgia, rushed 18 times for 201 yards, an SEC Championship Game record. He launched LSU on its way to a 34-13 victory over Georgia by scoring on an 87-yard run, another SEC title-game record, in the first quarter.
The No. 3-ranked Tigers (12-1) set a school record for victories, and midway through the fourth quarter began clearing the Georgia Dome of the bulk of the fans supporting the Bulldogs, who failed in their bid to defend their 2002 conference championship.
Meanwhile, one of the best seasons in LSU history became a lot more intriguing, and not just because of the Tigers' record-setting victory. LSU will watch the BCS bowl announcements at 4:30 p.m. today on ABC to find out if it will play in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans for its first national championship since 1958.
LSU coach Nick Saban, saying he supports the system and won't complain if the Tigers have to play in one of the other BCS bowls, said he wants what's best for his players.
"I would like to see us play in the national championship game," Saban said. "I think this team deserves that."
Georgia coach Mark Richt said he didn't know if LSU would play for a national championship, but he said that might take away some of the sting of losing twice in one season to the Tigers. LSU defeated the Bulldogs 17-10 in September.
"I wouldn't feel so bad if they won it all," Richt said.
In 12 regular-season games, Georgia (10-3) averaged 27 points a game. LSU held the Bulldogs to 23 points in two games. Whether the performance Saturday was enough to clinch a spot in the Sugar Bowl will become clear today.
Things began falling LSU's way hours before kickoff. Syracuse defeated Notre Dame 38-12, and Brad Edwards, the BCS expert for ESPN, said that weakened the strength-of-schedule quotient of the University of Southern California enough for LSU to move up one spot and take USC's No. 2 ranking in the BCS.
Never mind if USC defeated Oregon State, which it did by a convincing 52-28 margin later in the day. Edwards said an LSU victory over Georgia would be enough to put the Tigers in the Sugar Bowl.
Then came the unexpected: Kansas State's shocking 35-7 victory over previously unbeaten Oklahoma in the Big 12 Conference Championship Game, which started at the same time as the SEC title game.
Where Oklahoma, USC and LSU will be ranked today -- in the polls and in the BCS standings -- was the subject of complex mathematical speculation and calculation Saturday night, but it appeared LSU had a good shot to play what would be a de facto home game with the national championship on the line.
Saban said his players didn't have that on their minds before and during the game against Georgia.
"They wanted to win the SEC," Saban said. "They wanted to prove to people that they were the best team in this league, and there was never any talk about what bowl game we're going to go to, whether we were going to get into the BCS and the national championship. It didn't make any difference.
"I haven't had one player ask me about one bowl game. Not one, and it was never discussed, and it was never discussed as a coaching staff. We knew that what we needed to do was win this football game today."
The Tigers echoed Saban's words about focusing on the present moment.
"We've been doing it all year," cornerback Corey Webster said. "Maybe now people realize how good we actually are, but we have to wait for the computers to see where we actually go."
Before 74,913 fans, the largest crowd to see an SEC title game, LSU won the matchup of two of the nation's best defenses. The Tigers led 17-3 at halftime.
LSU is No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense, one spot ahead of Georgia entering the game. LSU is No. 2 in total defense, two spots ahead of Georgia. In rushing defense, the Tigers and Bulldogs were Nos. 3 and No. 8, respectively.
In the end, an LSU offense ranked No. 1 in the SEC in scoring and total offense outgained Georgia 444 yards to 249 and lapped the Bulldogs on the scoreboard.
The first time the two teams met this season, Georgia outgained the Tigers 411 yards to 285 but had trouble converting that into enough points. David Greene, the Bulldogs quarterback, credited LSU with coming a long way since then.
"They've got a great team," Greene said. "I think they're definitely better than what they were earlier in the season."
Greene completed 17 of 41 passes for 199 yards and a touchdown. The Tigers sacked him five times and added another when a Georgia tailback tried to pass.
Pregame analyses projected victory for the team most able to establish the run. Each team was better running the ball at season's end than it had been early, so both defenses hoped to make the opposing offense one-dimensional.
LSU, which rushed for 105 yards against Georgia in its 17-10 victory over the Bulldogs in Tiger Stadium nearly three months ago, rolled to 293 rushing yards in the rematch.
Vincent, a freshman from Lake Charles who sat out last season while becoming academically eligible to play, was the catalyst. His 87-yard touchdown, the third-longest run in LSU history and the longest since 1952, gave the Tigers a 6-0 lead in the first quarter.
His 62-yard run early in the fourth quarter gave LSU its tightest momentum grip of the night and set up a 22-yard field goal by Ryan Gaudet for the last points of the game. Gaudet earlier kicked a 35-yard field goal after taking over for Chris Jackson, who missed one PAT and had a field goal and another PAT blocked.
Saban credited Vincent for biding his time last year while becoming eligible and early this season when playing a supporting role to veteran running backs Joseph Addai and Shyrone Carey.
"This guy's an example right here," Saban said. "We talk all the time about working hard and being ready to take advantage of your opportunities, because you never know when they're going to come."
Vincent said the offensive line opened big holes for him all season, and he said Addai and Carey helped him in a number of ways when he became the starter.
"Whenever you're surrounded by good people, you do good things," he said.
LSU quarterback Matt Mauck, the Most Valuable Player of the 2001 SEC title game after leading the Tigers to a comeback 31-20 victory over Tennessee, completed 14 of 22 passes for 151 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown pass to Michael Clayton for a 14-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter.
Other LSU scoring came while its offense was on the sideline. Georgia punter Gordon Ely-Kelso mishandled a snap from center, and LSU's Alley Broussard and Daniel Francis tackled him in the end zone for a safety.
An 18-yard interception return by Lionel Turner gave the Tigers a 24-6 lead with 4:17 left in the third quarter, but Georgia didn't concede. Thirty-seven seconds later, the Bulldogs pulled to within 24-13 on an 18-yard pass from Greene to tight end Ben Watson.
When Georgia failed with its most creative offensive play, on its next possession, LSU tightened its hold. On fourth-and-2 from the LSU 6, Greene handed off to running back Michael Cooper and continued toward the end zone.
Cooper, hoping to complete the throwback pass to Greene, was unable to get rid of the ball when LSU linebacker Adrian Mayes blanketed Greene. Defensive tackle Chad Lavalais sacked Cooper at the 10 with 11:26 left.
Vincent's 62-yard run came soon after that. Gaudet's 22-yard field goal finished the scoring with 7:12 left, convincing thousands of Georgia fans to head home.
Many more followed suit two minutes later when LSU defensive end Marcus Spears sacked Greene for an 11-yard loss to the Tigers 44-yard line. If anyone still had any doubt, LSU strong safety Jack Hunt erased it when he intercepted a pass at the Georgia 44 with 3:35 left.
LSU had made its statement.
"Unfortunately it's out of our hands," Turner said, "but we deserve to be playing in New Orleans. I think this game did a lot in making LSU the powerhouse we thought it should be." (By Carl Dubois, The (Baton Rouge) Advocate)
Wait of the World
Trojans do their part but won't learn until today if they'll play for national title
USC players refrained from any outward chest-thumping after the Trojans had finished off Oregon State on Saturday at the Coliseum.
But in the locker room, senior cornerback Marcell Allmond confidently wore a message across his chest that boldly posed the question on the mind of every Trojan player, coach and fan:
"Got Sugar?" read the gold letters on Allmond's T-shirt.
The Trojans certainly thought they earned the right to play for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl after completing the regular season with a 52-28 victory before a crowd of 73,864.
Kansas State's victory over top-ranked Oklahoma in Saturday's Big 12 championship game, and Louisiana State's win over Georgia in the Southeastern Conference title game, will tweak the equation that decides the Sugar Bowl matchup, which will be announced today.
But USC, which entered the game second in the bowl championship series standings, felt confident that it had stated its case for inclusion even before the BCS computers started churning.
"We definitely should go," Allmond said. "We've done everything we were supposed to…. We belong in New Orleans."
Said senior flanker Keary Colbert: "That would be the sweetest thing."
USC finished the regular season 11-1, its best record since 1988, when the second-ranked Trojans lost to top-ranked Notre Dame in the finale to finish 10-1.
USC also won the Pacific 10 Conference title outright for the first time since 1989 and will play in the Rose Bowl if pollsters and computers combine to keep them out of the top two spots in the BCS standings.
"[The Rose Bowl] is our goal every year so it won't be a letdown," junior defensive tackle Shaun Cody said. "But we want to go to the Big Dance."
Throughout the weeks leading up to Saturday's game, USC Coach Pete Carroll claimed ignorance of the BCS system and downplayed any burning desire to play for USC's first national championship since 1978.
But afterward, he admitted that excluding the Trojans from the BCS title game would hurt.
"I will be disappointed," said Carroll, whose team is 22-3 over the last two seasons. "We were so excited about playing in that game. You don't get many chances to do that."
USC would have had no chance at the Sugar Bowl if it had lost to Oregon State, which has not defeated USC at the Coliseum since 1960.
After giving up a 90-yard pass from Oregon State quarterback Derek Anderson to Mike Hass on the second play from scrimmage, and a one-yard touchdown run by tailback Steven Jackson two plays later, it looked as if the Trojans would be in their toughest game since their triple-overtime loss at California on Sept. 27.
But quarterback Matt Leinart tied a school record with five touchdown passes, USC intercepted four passes and blocked four kicks, and wide receiver Mike Williams and cornerback Will Poole made spectacular plays as the Trojans came back to win their eighth consecutive game and extend their home winning streak to 15 games.
"It almost looked like we had run out of energy early on in the game because of probably the buildup," Carroll said. "But the guys came back and finished strong."
Poole, a senior, intercepted two passes, and returned one 67 yards for a touchdown that gave USC a 21-7 lead with 4:58 left in the first half.
"I just wanted to take it to the house," said Poole, who has seven interceptions this season.
Williams made perhaps the most spectacular play of USC's season on the Trojans' next possession when he shook off an Oregon State defender and caught a nine-yard touchdown pass with his left hand.
"I don't think it was the best catch I ever made," said Williams, who also had a 14-yard touchdown catch, blocked a field-goal attempt and delivered a crunching block. "I guess I could have made it with two hands. I was just trying to have fun, though."
Freshman running back Reggie Bush also caught two touchdown passes, and freshman receiver Steve Smith started USC's final push with a 73-yard touchdown reception.
"We came in wanting to make sure they couldn't run on us," Oregon State Coach Mike Riley said. "But they are pretty smart and they spread us out. Poole's interception was hard on us, as were those blocked kicks."
Leinart completed 22 of 38 passes for 278 yards but struggled at times. He had two passes intercepted, one of which Brandon Browner returned for a touchdown to help Oregon State cut the Trojans' lead to 35-21 with 8:47 left in the third quarter.
"You can't be perfect every game," said Leinart, who had thrown 212 consecutive passes without an interception, a Pac-10 record.
USC began pulling away on the third play of the ensuing possession when Leinart threw a short slant pass to Smith, who squeezed between two defenders and sprinted to the end zone for the Trojans' longest play from scrimmage this season.
The Trojans added a one-yard touchdown run by LenDale White with 1:39 left in the third quarter and a 29-yard field goal by Ryan Killeen with 6:36 left in the fourth before Oregon State scored a late touchdown for the final margin.
Anderson completed 34 of 60 passes for 485 yards and two touchdowns, but Poole and linebacker Lofa Tatupu each intercepted two passes.
USC held Jackson, the Pac-10's leading rusher, to 62 yards in 22 carries and sacked Anderson four times.
Carroll will be on campus today when the BCS announcement is delivered on television. He said the Trojans should be part of the Sugar Bowl package.
"We have everything you want for a national championship game," he said. "You have a big exciting offense and a tough defense.
"I'm not taking anything away from LSU. If we go, we are going to go and let it rip." (By Gary Klein, The Los Angeles Times)
In honor of the Men of Troy and their impending Rose Bowl bid I will have to mention the Song Girls. The picture of the USC sweaters in the Southern California sunshine is yet another reminder of the great pagentry of college football.
Cheerleader of the Week
Blakelee, St. Louis Rams Cheerleaders
TIDAL 6:15 PM
|
|
| |
|
|
|
