The Dawgs Ramblings

I had an awsome time in Chicago!

Wow, what a weekend! Not a great game but who cares. I did not. All I wanted was that win and we got it. It looked like a blowout was going to be in order as we marched right down the field on the first drive and scored a TD. However, missing the extra point always seems to take the wind out of the sail and we were unable to capitalize on the early success for ensuing scoring drives.

Thoughts on the game and season:

Our first round tackle, Gosder Cherilus, was beyond terrible. He committed five penalties and was uncomfortable in listening to the snap count. If he had problems at ND, you think he’ll have problems at Virginia Tech. I bet he was yelled at all week and it scares me that he might react to the defense and not the ball in the next game. If he reacts to the Virginia tech defensive ends, Matt Ryan had better hold on to the ball.

Andre Callendar is rejuvenated. He looks at ease catching the ball out of the backfield and is making the right reads to always pick up positive yardage. Those 3 and 4 yard gains allow us to have ‘on schedule’ drives. He has always been good at picking up the blitz and now must be considered an upper echelon back.

A lot of the fun that occurred on the weekend was after the game ended. Andrew had the brilliant idea of seeing if we could watch the Kentucky-LSU game by peering into the press box. Not only could we but the officials in the press box moved out of the way to allow us to have a clear view. The only problem was that the game just would not end and every two minutes the Notre Dame PA announcer became a little more hostile in his command to please leave the stadium. After 15 minutes and with the security guards approaching it was time to head down from the upper decks. I thought that was the end of our catching some of the game but right as we departed the stadium we noticed the concession room was open with a bunch of cooks and and service people gathered around the TV and they did not object to our brief campout at the door. It was with great pride that we left the stadium after Woodson pulled one out against the Tigers telling anyone that would listen, “LSU lost.” Little did we realize the grandiose dreams would continue …. …

And they continued on the bus. I think it was Moore who first shouted out that Cal was I in a dogfight with Oregon St. The Simons got a call from his brother …. Then my brother called me…. The updates kept coming until we heard the final score and everyone realized that we had just jumped up another position in the BCS. 2 or 3 who cares .. if we win, we’ll be there but the teams keep dropping like flies.

Lets give a shout out to Rich Brooks at Kentucky. What a job he has done. I want to know who their backup QB is as the momentum they have built from this year may rest on his shoulders if they hope to maintain their success. Losing to Florida today will not matter.

Troy got one vote in the AP Top 25. Who was that voter?



Once Matt Grothe gets a better haircut I think he will be my new favorite football player, well at least in terms of his Doug Flutie like running style. The kid needs to learn to throw however.

Ray Rice is tough. Boy does he lay the wood to tacklers. That is a man that I would love on my team.

OK, a shout out to Uconn. I think there a long ways away from bring a consistently good team but they are a lot better than I thought. They are more athletic and their offensive line impressed me against Louisville. Granted Louisville is nothing to write home about but the Huskies victory demonstrated a marked improvement from what I had anticipated. They now sit at 2-0 in the Big East. With 5 games left, they may have an outside chance of being in the Big East race at the end. Their 2-0 is against 2 of the 3 bottom feeders in the conference.

Why can’t ESPN Gameday have a new them song from year to year? Not a bad song but I expect more originality in their lead on song. They spend so much time working on their commercials so why not once a year for a song refresh.

ESPN has really lucked out this past Thursday and forthcoming Thursday with the number 2 and 3 BCS teams as part of their games with South Florida and BC. The funny thing about that is the headline teams for those games would have been the home standing Rutgers and Virginia Tech. All eyes will be on BC this Thursday. It will be the most highly opinionated game in the history of Boston College football - all coming from non BC fans

The Dawgs Top 10

This is how I would vote if given an AP ballot.

1)LSU – their only loss is a tough one on the road after beating Florida in a slugfest the previous week.

2)Ohio St. – They have hammered opponents albeit inferior opponents but they have taken care of business. Have not watched them too much so today’s game against Michigan St. will be a measuring stick.

3)South Carolina – Almost pulled the trigger on these guys at number two but I question their offense. Only loss at LSU. That’s fine.

4)Oklahoma – They have looked great at times and should be a team that improves as Bradford continues to mature though he has not been the problem.

5)Boston College – Win at Virginia Tech to move up

6)Oregon – Their injuries may catch up to them but they did not lose their QB which seperates them from California

7)Arizona St. – Undefeated at 7-0. Like BC, will have plenty of chances to prove themselves.

8)West Virginia – only loss was at South Flordia when Pat White was injured. They have rebounded well

9)Missouri – Tough to drop a team whose only loss is at Oklahoma.

10)California – Longshore is so key. Their ranking depends on his health.

Lurking: Kentucky/Florida winner, Kansas, Virginia Tech

USC does not even deserve to be lurking. They have as much to prove as BC and Arizona St. I have the Irish not only covering but pressing USC to win today. Why? Mark Sanchez playing for USC, 7 point win at home vs Arizona which is terrible when you were expecting a bounce back from the Stanford debacle. Also, I liked how Sharpley looked when given the reins last week.

posted by oceanjay @ 9:50 AM