Octopus Overlords

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:00 am Good lord, this Ross kid from Clemson is amazeballs.

Yeah.....
And isn't he from AL too? Double ouch

GungHo wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:02 am

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:00 am Good lord, this Ross kid from Clemson is amazeballs.

Yeah.....
And isn't he from AL too? Double ouch

Have been texting with a friend, and he commented that it seems unfair Clemson will have Lawrence and Ross for two more years.

Etienne will be back next year, too.

I don't think Alabama can score 28 points in 15 minutes.

30-0 run by Clemson. Wow.

I've been watching Alabama in National Title games since their 1973 Sugar Bowl matchup against Notre Dame, and I've never seen them beaten like this. Clemson looks like the hungrier, better coached team. In other words, they look like Alabama usually looks in these matchups.

And to think that it's one of Alabama's beloved sons that created this Monster.

Lol @ SEC.

QB change for Bama not going to work tonight, I don't think.

Wow, that was an ass stomping. Clemson's red zone defense were the heroes. 3 possessions in the redzone and 0 points.

Bama piled up the yards and moved the ball but couldn't score. Oh well...

WTF? I didn't bother to watch what I assumed to be another Bama coronation. That is a humbling ass kicking.

Damn, I would have never thought I would see a Saban Alabama team get beat like that.

Fuuny thing is the stats were pretty even, except for the turnovers. Defensive foul up bit Bama tonight, they've had them all year but it didn't hurt, hurt tonight.

Lassr wrote:Fuuny thing is the stats were pretty even, except for the turnovers. Defensive foul up bit Bama tonight, they've had them all year but it didn't hurt, hurt tonight.

And red zone defense.

Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:48 am Damn, I would have never thought I would see a Saban Alabama team get beat like that.

It was a great, great game. So fun to watch them get No Where and struggle. And how they refused the FG... it was like watching a prized heavy-weight fighter swing and miss, only to REALLY take aim and TOTALLY whiff.

Lassr wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:52 am Fuuny thing is the stats were pretty even, except for the turnovers. Defensive foul up bit Bama tonight, they've had them all year but it didn't hurt, hurt tonight.

LOL. And completed touchdowns. That's one of those stats that really adds up.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:44 am WTF? I didn't bother to watch what I assumed to be another Bama coronation. That is a humbling ass kicking.

You missed a great spectacle. Watching Bama being dominated the way they were throughout this game was quite a lot of fun.

Unagi wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 10:03 am

Lassr wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:52 am Fuuny thing is the stats were pretty even, except for the turnovers. Defensive foul up bit Bama tonight, they've had them all year but it didn't hurt, hurt tonight.

LOL. And completed touchdowns. That's one of those stats that really adds up.

Yep, that's the redzone defense I commented about above. they were the heroes. 3 trips 0 points. Clemson was able to punch it in and Bama was not able.

Seems to me this year didn't do much to support the "expand the playoffs" argument, at least if your goal is to truly find the best team. I don't think there's much reasonable argument that Clemson and Alabama were the two best teams this year (in that order).

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:24 pm Seems to me this year didn't do much to support the "expand the playoffs" argument, at least if your goal is to truly find the best team. I don't think there's much reasonable argument that Clemson and Alabama were the two best teams this year (in that order).

Conceptually, I support the "expanded playoffs argument" especially as the idea that your can be national champion while not being your conference champion is odd to me but practically the 4 teams has seemed about right, especially as parity does not exist in the NCAA.

Interesting observation seen elsewhere this morning. In the five CFP finals so far, it has always been the lower ranked team that won the game:

- #4 Ohio State over #2 Oregon
- #2 Alabama over #1 Clemson
- #2 Clemson over #1 Alabama
- #4 Alabama over #3 Georgia
- #2 Clemson over #1 Alabama.

Which also means that the team ranked as #1 has never won the championship game so far during the playoff era.

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:24 pm Seems to me this year didn't do much to support the "expand the playoffs" argument, at least if your goal is to truly find the best team. I don't think there's much reasonable argument that Clemson and Alabama were the two best teams this year (in that order).

You don't think after watching Clemson dismantle Alabama that maybe Ohio State or even Notre Dame might have given them a battle? Well, Notre Dame looks better considering what Clemson did to Alabama.

I think the massive upset in last nights game only shows what can happen in college football.


As for last nights game, I think Alabama went too far trying to win the game with it's passing attack. The early passing TD might have been the worst thing that happened to them. The way Alabama ran the ball I think they could have gassed the Clemson defense in the first half simply by running the ball down their throats. Tua (and protecting him) was their weak link.

Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 4:06 pm

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:24 pm Seems to me this year didn't do much to support the "expand the playoffs" argument, at least if your goal is to truly find the best team. I don't think there's much reasonable argument that Clemson and Alabama were the two best teams this year (in that order).

You don't think after watching Clemson dismantle Alabama that maybe Ohio State or even Notre Dame might have given them a battle? Well, Notre Dame looks better considering what Clemson did to Alabama.

Not even a little bit.

Kliff Kingsbury goes to the Cardinals, leaving USC without an OC.

Skinypupy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 5:14 pm Kliff Kingsbury goes to the Cardinals, leaving USC without an OC.

I thought USC was forbidding Kingsbury from interviewing anywhere?

They did. My understanding is that he basically said, "Fine, then I quit" and did it anyways.

Ah, well, good for him.

Stay classy, Bama.

Alabama defensive tackle Quinnen Williams said after his team’s 44-16 loss in the National Championship Game that the Clemson offense was “very easy” to defend. He said the Tide faced far better offenses before the title game.

“They weren’t hard at all,” Williams said in a postgame interview showed on ESPN. “They were very easy. They capitalized on a lot of mental errors. We made a lot of mental errors. They didn’t come out and do nothing special. We played greater offense than that – Oklahoma offense or Georgia offense. We just made a lot of mental errors and they capitalized. That’s what good teams do – they capitalize on mental errors.”

LOLOL.

Funny story - the game kicked off while I was still at work (didn't get on the road for 45-60 minute commute until just before 6pm PST). Per my earlier posts, I felt that the best way to beat Bama was to get a lead and make Tua beat you. When I left work, all I had seen/heard was the Clemson 3 & out, followed by the pick 6, and then Tua's 62 yd TD pass to Jeudy (sp?). So it was 7-7 less than 3 minutes of game time in last I saw. Based on that, I was thinking Clemson was in deep trouble (3 & out + possibly fluky Pick 6 vs the usual Tua bomb), and thinking that the game could, for all practical intents and purposes, be over with Alabama up big by the time I got home.

When I got home, I turned on the TV with 2+ minutes left in the half, and Clemson driving. Eventually they posted the score and at first I saw 28-16 and thought, oh well, Alabama's up 28-16, this game is just about over, just like I thought it might be.

Then I realized that I had made an assumption that it was Alabama with the 28 points and did a complete double-take on it in shock.

Heard a lot of grumbling and complaining about the game today. I think the consensus is that the revolving door policy with coordinators is finally catching up with Saban. A few years ago he had excellent coordinators in Kirby Smart and Lane Kiffin. But since those two left there has been an endless shuffle at these positions and, against Clemson, it cost them.

No matter how you slice it, Saban was flat-out outcoached by Swinney monday night. But Saban is far from the complacent type, so I expect him to avenge this loss in next year's Alabama vs Clemson V.

RIght now, this is how College Football looks to me:

Tier I: Alabama and Clemson
Tier II: Georgia, Ohio State, Oklahoma.
Tier III: Notre Dame, LSU, Michigan

And then there's everybody else...

Given that Florida blew out Michigan, you may want to consider them. I'd actually drop LSU. I might put UW and Texas on the list too.

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Jan 09, 2019 12:52 am Given that Florida blew out Michigan, you may want to consider them. I'd actually drop LSU. I might put UW and Texas on the list too.

Yeah, I think that Florida, Texas, Texas A&M, and Washington would be on the next tier. And I agree that, with Ed Orgeron as coach, LSU may not be a consistent top 10 team, but for now I'm leaving them there. They are the only team I listed with a questionable head coach, as the others all have excellent head coaches which is why I assume they'll be somewhat consistent in their success. And while Michigan did not end the season well, I still have faith in Jim Harbaugh. As for Texas A&M they clearly improved immediately under Jimbo Fisher and I think they will become a regular Top 12 team. As far as Kentucky, Washington State, and Penn State go, I need to see more. And the less said about UCF the better.

So, let's say:

Tier I: Alabama and Clemson
Tier II: Georgia, Oklahoma, Ohio State
Tier III: Notre Dame, LSU, Michigan
Tier IV: Florida, Texas, Texas A&M, Washington

And don't worry Pac-12 fans: When Urban Meyer goes to USC, you'll have an instant Playoff team.

I actually believe Chip Kelly will have UCLA there sooner than people think. If David Shaw at Stanford can pull in a better OL, they are on the list too. Some have Oregon as the Pac-12 favorite in 2019, but I'm not sold on Cristobal yet - I have a LOT more faith in Peterson and Shaw currently.

As to UCF, not having Mackenzie Milton to close the season was huge. They could well have beaten LSU, even if LSU's dbs hadn't been booted if he were healthy. Yes, their defense wasn't as good as last year due to graduation, but they still gave LSU all they could handle. Think Clemson with Kelly Bryant instead of Trevor Lawrence to close the season in terms of how they closed.

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:55 pm I actually believe Chip Kelly will have UCLA there sooner than people think. If David Shaw at Stanford can pull in a better OL, they are on the list too. Some have Oregon as the Pac-12 favorite in 2019, but I'm not sold on Cristobal yet - I have a LOT more faith in Peterson and Shaw currently.

As to UCF, not having Mackenzie Milton to close the season was huge. They could well have beaten LSU, even if LSU's dbs hadn't been booted if he were healthy. Yes, their defense wasn't as good as last year due to graduation, but they still gave LSU all they could handle. Think Clemson with Kelly Bryant instead of Trevor Lawrence to close the season in terms of how they closed.

IIRC, Oregon returns almost their entire offense for next year. And I agree, with their regular QB UCF very well could have beaten LSU. The backup was very inconsistent in that game and his inexperience showed, and they still scored a lot of points against an SEC defense.

Scuzz wrote: ↑Wed Jan 09, 2019 5:45 pm

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:55 pm I actually believe Chip Kelly will have UCLA there sooner than people think. If David Shaw at Stanford can pull in a better OL, they are on the list too. Some have Oregon as the Pac-12 favorite in 2019, but I'm not sold on Cristobal yet - I have a LOT more faith in Peterson and Shaw currently.

As to UCF, not having Mackenzie Milton to close the season was huge. They could well have beaten LSU, even if LSU's dbs hadn't been booted if he were healthy. Yes, their defense wasn't as good as last year due to graduation, but they still gave LSU all they could handle. Think Clemson with Kelly Bryant instead of Trevor Lawrence to close the season in terms of how they closed.

IIRC, Oregon returns almost their entire offense for next year. And I agree, with their regular QB UCF very well could have beaten LSU. The backup was very inconsistent in that game and his inexperience showed, and they still scored a lot of points against an SEC defense.

Oregon's top WR (only? The rest weren't very good this year) declared for the draft (Dillon Mitchell).

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Wed Jan 09, 2019 1:55 pm ...As to UCF, not having Mackenzie Milton to close the season was huge. They could well have beaten LSU, even if LSU's dbs hadn't been booted if he were healthy. Yes, their defense wasn't as good as last year due to graduation, but they still gave LSU all they could handle. Think Clemson with Kelly Bryant instead of Trevor Lawrence to close the season in terms of how they closed.

Let's also remember that LSU's secondary and defensive line was decimated with injuries plus their best defensive back was sitting out for the NFL. Frankly, I expected them to play a sloppy game and lose to UCF, so the fact that Orgeron was able to get the team to show up and play actually impresses me (As I've stated before, LSU is traditionally a very talented team with questionable coaching and no QB. Even the mediocre QB they started this season was a big improvement on what they usually have, and it showed.)

So while I agree that UCF could have beaten LSU, I want to see UCF have one more great season before I consider them a regular Top 15 team. After all, they've lost their Head Coach (from last year's undefeated season) and their QB, so next year will be a great test of what kind of program they have at UCF. Are they going to be able to play with the Big Boys year after year, or were the last couple of seasons the result of a top notch head coach and QB?

What's got me puzzled is how quickly the Pac-12 has fallen off the map. Just a couple of years ago we were all considering them one of the best conferences in college football, so I'm not sure what happened. After looking really bad a few weeks ago, they now have several teams in the Top 25 in recruiting, so maybe help is on the way. And if Urban Meyer really does go to Southern Cal, that would be HUGE for the conference as a whole, not just USC. But I'm curious what you Pac-12 fans think about the last couple of years as well as the future of the conference.

The P12’s biggest problem is always that it eats itself every year. There is very rarely a single dominant team like Bama or Clemson. Instead, it’s a bunch of pretty good teams that end up beating up on each other.

That said, the conference is a shitshow right now, for lots of other reasons. Lack of exposure, officiating that is a national punchline (causing recruits to play elsewhere), piss poor out of conference performance, bad bowl performances, etc. I fear the gap is going to continue to get larger unless there is a change of leadership at the top, Playing important games that start at 10:30 ET on a channel that half the country can’t see (because they won’t negotiate with Direct TV) is a recipe for disaster. East coast bias is a real thing, but it tough to blame anyone for it when the conference just continues to shoot itself in the dick. And it’s only going to get worse in the next round of TV negotiations.

That said, I’m awfully glad Utah is inside the P12 tent. It’s highly unlikely that we’ll ever really be a factor on the national stage (which can be said about 85% of P5 teams), but being in the P12 is infinitely better than the alternatice.

Fresno State for years thought that maybe somehow they could get in the P12. It was a pipe dream, but it really was the only chance for a program that really meant anything.

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 4:14 pm

Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 4:06 pm

ImLawBoy wrote: ↑Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:24 pm Seems to me this year didn't do much to support the "expand the playoffs" argument, at least if your goal is to truly find the best team. I don't think there's much reasonable argument that Clemson and Alabama were the two best teams this year (in that order).

You don't think after watching Clemson dismantle Alabama that maybe Ohio State or even Notre Dame might have given them a battle? Well, Notre Dame looks better considering what Clemson did to Alabama.

Not even a little bit.

Disagree about tOSU. Yeah they shit the bed against Purdue but that was a pretty darn good team outside of that. They struggled a game or 2 otherwise but found a way to win and when they played the 'big games' they were excellent. I think ND was overrated yeah; they somehow got a murderers row of a schedule that actually wasnt all that tough. 95 times out of a 100 they're not going undefeated vs that schedule. This just happened to be one of the fluky years and they capitalized. I heard a radio commentator say about ND that they deserved to be in the CFP but they didn't belong. I thought that was fair.
But I do agree it's clear Clemson and ALA are the cream of the crop and it's not especially close behind them. Think one of the TV guys said he saw 15 NFL guys on Clemson.
Texas hasn't had 15 guys in the last 5 years.


Also Kyle Murray going NFL and ditching his baseball contract....crazy or just nuts? Lol. He has the talent I don't doubt that, arm strength, elusiveness (duh), 'football IQ' etc. But that size...I just dunno. Somebody will eventually get a clean shot on him and I feel like that could be it. Seems like baseball is the safer route but who knows?

GungHo wrote: ↑Thu Jan 10, 2019 10:50 pm

Also Kyle Murray going NFL and ditching his baseball contract....crazy or just nuts? Lol. He has the talent I don't doubt that, arm strength, elusiveness (duh), 'football IQ' etc. But that size...I just dunno. Somebody will eventually get a clean shot on him and I feel like that could be it. Seems like baseball is the safer route but who knows?

Murray stands to have a longer career in baseball but with the NFL he'll go straight to the "show" and won't spend a few years in the minors. Plus someone probably told him he's a 1/1 pick.

Isn't Boras his agent?

Crazy. 5'11 qb's make far less than the average baseball player, and have far shorter careers.

Pyperkub wrote: ↑Thu Jan 10, 2019 11:18 pm Crazy. 5'11 qb's make far less than the average baseball player, and have far shorter careers.

His baseball stardom is far from a sure thing though. And the A's are only guaranteeing him like $4.7M right now.

[MLB] Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 50 | Run: 70 | Arm: 40 | Field: 55 | Overall: 50