The Notre Dame Mystique

I'm not the biggest Irish fan, but I have to admit I was rooting for them this past week for one major reason. I have bought Notre Dame/Michigan St. tickets from someone at work, so my dad and I will be at Spartan Stadium Saturday night for the big game which should be a lot of fun. I was hoping both teams would go in undefeated so there would be a lot on the line, but Michigan made sure that didn't happen. The Wolverines appear to be for real and ND's defensive secondary still has some issues. Michigan St. did their part by beating a pretty good Pitt team in Pittsburgh, so it should be a very entertaining game.

Michigan St.'s offense is very good and can put up points quickly. The biggest obstacle for State is usually State. Mental breakdowns and/or lack of intensity get in the way of the great talent State usually has. Drew Stanton is one of the top QBs in college football, Javon Ringer is a future Heisman candidate, and the receiving corps is deep, big, and fast. Defensively they're fast, but are prone to the big play. This game should be a shootout, just like last year when State won 44-41 in overtime.

This will be my 5th Big Ten Stadium (Michigan twice, OSU twice, Indiana, Northwestern), not bad ehh?

Anyway, here's the roundup:

• My remote got a workout with all of the great games on this past Saturday. One I would've liked to have seen was the first 3 quarters of Ohio St./Cincinnati. UC did not look good at all vs. Pitt the previous week, but they were very close to taking a 14-13 lead at the half if not for a great interception by James Laurinaitis. Ohio St. should've been able to name the final score, but you can't blame them for the let down. Penn St. comes to Columbus this week, followed by the big road trip to Iowa.
• Speaking of not looking good, Miami losing at home 16-14 to Kent Read, Kent Write, Kent St??? First Kent win in Oxford since 1988 and only the 5th win in 27 meetings. I was able to watch the game online and for 3 quarters, there was no fire, no intensity from the Redhawks. I knew it was going to be a tough year with so much youth, but I didn't think effort would be a problem. Now a road trip to Syracuse looms before the Battle for the Bell with UC. Miami could be 0-5?!?!?! Let's go boys, let's get one!
• LSU/Auburn was about as physical a college game as I've seen. Usually, 7-3 games are boring. Not this one. I could feel the impacts of the hits through the tv. Auburn is very good, but can they make it through the SEC unbeaten?
• And yes, I think Oklahoma got screwed at Oregon. The NCAA should make the instant replay rules uniform for all of football.
• Florida is going to be really good next year with Tim Tebow. Chris Leak is pretty good, but he is like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole with that offense. Even in beating Tenn., the running of DeShawn Wynn was the difference. And how about Tebow? You knew by the 4th quarter he was going to run everytime he was in the game. And he still got that 4th down with a tough run.
• The Florida schools are no longer getting the best athletes, as evidenced by the struggles of The U and Free Shoes University. Larry Coker might be on his way out, he's only won with Butch Davis's players. Bobby Bowden needs to retire. When he is interviewed, he responds as if he's an honorary coach who is just a fan and is there for the game. I can't believe how much they're both struggling on offense. I know they have lost guys to graduation and to injuries, but historically they've been so deep, they reload, not rebuild. This year, they are rebuilding. It's not good when you rely on missed/blocked kicks for points.
• Watch out for TCU. Anytime you can hold a Texas Tech team to just 3 points is a job well done. As much as I don't like Texas Chicken University, they have a team capable of sneaking into the BCS.
• What's with all of the missed extra points this year??? Has kicking become that much harder or are there that many poor kickers this year?
• Da Bears, 2-0, 60 points in 2 games. I know it's only Green Bay and Detroit, but I like the way Rex Grossman has played. Desmond Clark looks like an all-pro tight end and the defense hasn't missed a beat. Even Danielle Manning is playing well. We'll see how good they are at Minnesota this week, the HomerDome has traditionally been tough for Da Bears.
• It's Ryder Cup Week and the Americans are the underdogs every way you look at it, even on paper. The Americans have lost 4 of the last 5, they should be the underdogs. But I'm quietly optimistic. Tiger has become the team leader. He actually has a partner who isn't afraid of him. Woods/Furyk and Mickelson/DiMarco were a combined 5-0-2 in last year's President's Cup when paired with their respective partners. Tom Lehman is letting the guys have fun. Now, can they make some putts?
• Big Ben's debut went about as I expected, a little less than mediocre. Against a good Jacksonville defense with a 100.4 temperature and not 100% from his appendectomy, he struggled a little bit, showing quite a bit of rust. But he had to get that out of his system at some point. I disagree with everyone that said he shouldn't have played. If he didn't play this week, he would've been rusty next week. That's just how it is. Next week, he still won't be back to top form, but he'll be much improved.
• What happened at Duquesne, scary. And it hit closer to home because I have an immediate family member that goes there and is an athlete. My prayers are with the players, the program and everyone involved. I'll be rooting for them this year.

That's all I've got for tonight. Is it Saturday yet?