There’s Top-4 action in the SEC, the best punter in the nation against the second school to mutually part with Gary Andersen midseason, and a Marvel Comics brawl with Wolverine against Hawkeye.
Good for these teams for piggybacking some exposure off of the big California–USC game.
I just looked at Georgia's schedule. They beat a whole lotta weak teams. Only Georgia and Kentucky have winning records in the SEC East. Georgia is over rated and played a weak ass schedule. No surprise they are gettin their arse kicked. They haven't earned a spot in the CFP.
Exactly. The best team they've faced is Kentucky....no Ole Miss, no A & M. They've been cakewalking through this whole season - Nessler just said Bennett has thrown 11 4Q passes all year....ALL YEAR!
Oh exactly! P12 fans are all pumped bc now the P12 gets a team in the CFP....meanwhile, the SEC is getting a 3rd...Larry Scott (maybe Kliavkoff now, who knows) was playing checkers, while Sankey's playing chess.
I am not a ND fan but if they get in the CFP and win the whole thing it will give me a chuckle that Kelly bailed (obtained a southern accent along the way). Also the new HC at ND, Freeman would have a natty 2 games into his tenure, LOL.
Golden Bear fun facts to know and tell: This is the first time Cal has won the Big Game during a losing season since 1994. If we beat U$C today it will be our first win over them in a losing season since 1999; it will also mean that we'll have beaten both of our most hated rivals in a season in which we finished below .500 for the first time since 1941. We also beat UCLA that year. 1941 is , the only season in which Cal has beaten all three of its rivals and not gone to the Rose Bowl (Cal's only other win that year was against St. Marys).
B12 championship game sucked almost as bad as the PAC12 game. So far these games are all bad. Aranda got bailed out after going for it on 4th deep in his own territory that allowed OSU back into the game.
All 3 seasons have been disappointing...given what's transpired in Seattle & South Central the last week, tho, the Huskies and Trojans seem to have at least taken action to right the ship. What will Cal do?
I watched the Oregon-Utah game after the fact. I was able to fast forward to all of the key plays. What is astounding is the beatdown delivered by Utah with all of its 3 star players and Oregon with its 4 and 5 star players. Hopefully we will witness this tonight as the last Power 5 conference teams play.
How bad is this PAC12 Championship game? It is so bad the announcers are bored out of their skull. How does Mario get an extension, he's not a good coach. And anyone's grandma can recruit to Oregun, so keeping him cuz he's a good recruiter makes no sense. If I were the AD no way I extend him. Not even sure why Oregun picked a FL guy to be their HC.
That game sucked and did not rep the PAC12 (or it confirmed it is a weak conference).
Totally TBD given we didn't see any of the underclassmen take a snap this year. That said it is troubling that Glover was #2 all season and was never overtaken by one of the youngins. Why the staff invested so much (practice snaps) on a one and done player is piss poor planning. Either way offense won't be much different next year unless the OL improves dramatically. 5 years in and Wilcox has to show improvement in that unit or he may be out. Speaking of which, Jackson Brown (OL) is getting a lot of attention right before early signing. Hopefully he doesn't flip.
Losing Brown would really suck...he's a big piece of the class.
Your Glover point is my concern as well - the fact that he went the distance in the desert is a head scratcher....where was Millner. If Garbers moves on, it will be interesting to see who is the starter and if they would they entertain a grad transfer?
Maybe we'll see more of the underclassmen tonight.
I'm indifferent on CG's return (or not). He has 3 choices: remain at Cal, transfer, or retire from football. Perhaps behind a better OL he will be marginally more accurate. But he won't "all of a sudden" acquire more velocity. He is what he is and we know his ceiling. I saw Millner once at an open practice, so I have nothing to go on other than he does spin it. His knowledge of the playbook I have no idea.
I think Cal has to round out this recruiting class from the transfer portal. They need a QB if only for the simple reason of having enough QBs to run a fucking practice!! How pathetic is that? Rowell & Glover are both gone and so might Chase. They also need to pick up an OL or 3 or 4. At least one NG. A running back. And perhaps a DB or 2.
Hell this cycle Cal, atm, does not have a RB or QB committed...that's fugly.
I'm more concerned that the Ducks are going to land Quinn Ewers from tOSU or some other elite signal caller from the portal and have competent QB play for the next 4 years...
Brown was not a game changing option for them and held that offense back. But that Ducks team was not physical, despite Thibideaux and McKinley....
Question is why he left in the first place, I guess. This is one of those instances where being able to transfer without encumbrances is a real boon to these kids, whether you agree with that or not.
Miami hired AD Radakovich away from Clemson, with Cristobal perhaps right behind him despite Uncle Phil upping the ante to Brian Kelly- neighborhood $...
Does Lane Kiffin get a phone call from Eugene? Probably. Is Wilcox to UO even a possibility? Maybe as DC.
I don't think Wilcox is going anywhere. He seems to be stuck at Cal given the poor conference record we have witnessed, still he probably will get an extension if we beat SC.
I'm inclined to agree. I don't exactly use Covid as an excuse, but Wilcox sure can, rightly or wrongly. The problem is that 1) the city of Berkeley was fairly draconian but 2) what the heck was the coaching staff doing, or not doing, that led to 44 cases of Covid?
Meh, kids are gonna go to a Halloween party...you'd like to think that in a pandemic, sick players would either get tested or stay home, but at the end of the day, they're college kids and it must f-ing SUCK to go to college during COVID. But it shouldn't have mattered....
I'm of the mind that in year 5 of Wilcox's tenure, he should be able to beat the worst FBS school in in the country with a backup QB...THAT'S the big issue for me.
To have that inept of an offensive performance against such an awful team with your backup QB really makes me question if Justin Wilcox will ever produce a team good enough to compete for a P12 Championship, let alone play for one.
San Diego State just got blown out of their championship game. They were down a bunch of players and some key players due to COVID. Albeit they did not lose as many key players as Cal did against AZ. So State is a good comparison of what is likely to happen when you lose so many players. It really is stupid simple why we lost that game. Most teams will lose when they have 20 players out of a game. The only team that I could imagine would "possibly" win is 'Bama.
John Canzano wrote a pretty honest article about things Cristobal needs to work on. The fit w/ Mario at the U is just too perfect, but at the end of the day, he’s a notch below the elite college football coaches.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out...if he jumps, would Wilcox take the Oregon DC position if offered? Hmmm.
DC or HC? I’m sure he would take the HC job in a heartbeat but like UW, I don’t see Oregon offering him the job unless options 1-5 all decline the job.
I don’t think Wilcox is a fit for Oregon because he would overhaul that whole offense and turn it into and average pro style offense.
I think the likely scenario would be if Wilcox gets fired by Cal, Mario leaves for Miami and the new Oregon coach hires Wilcox as his DC.
If Wilcox is fired by Cal, despite what some people may say, he will not be immediately hired as a HC anywhere. He will have to drop back down to a DC to rehab his image and then try to get another HC job in 3-5 years.
That has to just be wild internet speculation because it makes no sense at all. Wilcox has no connection to Virginia and he has no recruiting base on the east coast.
No doubt and rightfully so. SCs is down a lot of players due to injury or players that are going pro will sit this game out. If we get embarrassed at an empty Memorial against a depleted SC team with an interim HC then Wilcox might actually get fired.
It's just food for thought, which is what a lot of this board is...but I believe Wilcox is signed through '23, having been extended prior to the Cheez-It bowl.
He's technically not lame duck until following next season....
I just this minute turned in and so are the refs. I have no love for Oregon, but they just got called for the worst offensive PI I think I've ever seen.
Hat tip to Chitwood for calling SEC title game. Talent difference between QBs was the difference. When do we get one of those Uber talented QBs????
I have two nephews who went to Iowa (only one cares about FB.) Not looking good for them so far.
Georgia is a joke, an impersonator, just a bad team, and YET another really shitty conference championship (3 in a row now).
Unnofficial survey: Who here drinks Dr Pepper?
I have never had a Dr Pepper and I don't recall the last time I witnessed someone else drinking a Dr Pepper.
I bought some Dr Pepper for a kids party about ten years ago and no one drank it. I ended up throwing away. Maybe they still drink it in the South?
I have drank it in probably 20 years. I rarely drink soda and if I do it’s Coke Zero and only because I’m using it as a mixer for whiskey or rum.
*I have not
Yeah, I've had it but can't remember the last time.
Dr Pepper is weird tasting, you aren’t missing anything. (Like JC no more soda for me. I only drink water, coffee or alcohol.)
I don't drink soda anymore, but when I did tho I was a Coke guy, I would enjoy the occasional Dr. Pepper....tho it's been awhile since.
That should be ballgame in Atlanta...
Again, the modern CFP rule remains: what result MOST benefits the SEC, because that is the one that is going to happen. 'Bama +7 was an f-ing lock.
I just looked at Georgia's schedule. They beat a whole lotta weak teams. Only Georgia and Kentucky have winning records in the SEC East. Georgia is over rated and played a weak ass schedule. No surprise they are gettin their arse kicked. They haven't earned a spot in the CFP.
Exactly. The best team they've faced is Kentucky....no Ole Miss, no A & M. They've been cakewalking through this whole season - Nessler just said Bennett has thrown 11 4Q passes all year....ALL YEAR!
That's it, Georgia is done and they aren't a good team, especially on offense. They have embarrassed themselves, their fans, and Dr Pepper.
But they will make the CFP.
It has to be Bama, Michigan, Cinci, Georgia. I just hope they make Bama/Georgia the semifinal so that the final is not a rerun
I'm convinced the push to expand the playoffs to 8 teams is just a ploy to put 3 more SEC teams in.
Oh exactly! P12 fans are all pumped bc now the P12 gets a team in the CFP....meanwhile, the SEC is getting a 3rd...Larry Scott (maybe Kliavkoff now, who knows) was playing checkers, while Sankey's playing chess.
This SEC championship game, in 2 - 3 weeks, will be known as the Omicron bowl. I'm not sure I've seen one mask in the entire stadium.
Doubt omicron is seeded enough in the US for that… yet. If Rt is really about 3 it is going to blow up. https://mobile.twitter.com/trvrb/status/1467245921536659456
Also could be known as the Meaningless Bowl. Both teams are in the playoff regardless of the outcome, which IMO is ridiculous
Not necessarily - ND could pass a 2-loss 'Bama.
If Bama wins they are in and same with Georgia. I do believe ND would pass a 2 loss Bama.
'bama looks a lot better than Georgia so far after one half. I can't stand 'bama or ND, so no dog in this fight.
I hope so
Then again, Ferentz could screw it up as an Iowa win tonight locks a 2 loss Tide in....
You're gonna see spikes all across the South.
Utah State looking sharp. Practically blowing out Aztecs.
State has about 20 players in protocol. Some of whom are key starters.
Just read about. No wonder.
I am not a ND fan but if they get in the CFP and win the whole thing it will give me a chuckle that Kelly bailed (obtained a southern accent along the way). Also the new HC at ND, Freeman would have a natty 2 games into his tenure, LOL.
It would be hilarious.
Golden Bear fun facts to know and tell: This is the first time Cal has won the Big Game during a losing season since 1994. If we beat U$C today it will be our first win over them in a losing season since 1999; it will also mean that we'll have beaten both of our most hated rivals in a season in which we finished below .500 for the first time since 1941. We also beat UCLA that year. 1941 is , the only season in which Cal has beaten all three of its rivals and not gone to the Rose Bowl (Cal's only other win that year was against St. Marys).
B12 championship game sucked almost as bad as the PAC12 game. So far these games are all bad. Aranda got bailed out after going for it on 4th deep in his own territory that allowed OSU back into the game.
Cal and SC are playing in the “Disappointing Season” bowl to determine who was the most under achieving Pac 12 program of 2021.
I think UW sewed up that title several weeks ago
Yep. Although a USC loss today leaves the South favorite/co-favorite a close second, after what would be a late charge at the bottom.
All 3 seasons have been disappointing...given what's transpired in Seattle & South Central the last week, tho, the Huskies and Trojans seem to have at least taken action to right the ship. What will Cal do?
Probably nothing. APR is great, team not-so-hot over the last 2 seasons.
Which is all the school really cares about.
I'm loving the enormous Cal flag behind Herbie's head on Game Day! Who has that here in Atlanta?! (I'm here too)
I watched the Oregon-Utah game after the fact. I was able to fast forward to all of the key plays. What is astounding is the beatdown delivered by Utah with all of its 3 star players and Oregon with its 4 and 5 star players. Hopefully we will witness this tonight as the last Power 5 conference teams play.
Its fascinating that Utah is the best team in the Pac-12.
I saw them lose to sdsu and never thought that this team would win the Pac 12 south, let alone the Pac 12 title.
That said a lot more positive about the Aztecs than it did negative about the Utes, as it turns out.
How bad is this PAC12 Championship game? It is so bad the announcers are bored out of their skull. How does Mario get an extension, he's not a good coach. And anyone's grandma can recruit to Oregun, so keeping him cuz he's a good recruiter makes no sense. If I were the AD no way I extend him. Not even sure why Oregun picked a FL guy to be their HC.
That game sucked and did not rep the PAC12 (or it confirmed it is a weak conference).
Hey Taco, what's your take on the Cal QB prospects for '22? Garbers or Milner or a TBA?
Totally TBD given we didn't see any of the underclassmen take a snap this year. That said it is troubling that Glover was #2 all season and was never overtaken by one of the youngins. Why the staff invested so much (practice snaps) on a one and done player is piss poor planning. Either way offense won't be much different next year unless the OL improves dramatically. 5 years in and Wilcox has to show improvement in that unit or he may be out. Speaking of which, Jackson Brown (OL) is getting a lot of attention right before early signing. Hopefully he doesn't flip.
Losing Brown would really suck...he's a big piece of the class.
Your Glover point is my concern as well - the fact that he went the distance in the desert is a head scratcher....where was Millner. If Garbers moves on, it will be interesting to see who is the starter and if they would they entertain a grad transfer?
Maybe we'll see more of the underclassmen tonight.
I'm indifferent on CG's return (or not). He has 3 choices: remain at Cal, transfer, or retire from football. Perhaps behind a better OL he will be marginally more accurate. But he won't "all of a sudden" acquire more velocity. He is what he is and we know his ceiling. I saw Millner once at an open practice, so I have nothing to go on other than he does spin it. His knowledge of the playbook I have no idea.
I think Cal has to round out this recruiting class from the transfer portal. They need a QB if only for the simple reason of having enough QBs to run a fucking practice!! How pathetic is that? Rowell & Glover are both gone and so might Chase. They also need to pick up an OL or 3 or 4. At least one NG. A running back. And perhaps a DB or 2.
Hell this cycle Cal, atm, does not have a RB or QB committed...that's fugly.
Very ugly. It’s getting to the point where Wilcox is about to have a very poorly managed roster in terms of depth at QB, RB and OL.
Without Cal having enjoyed much success despite having such experience at QB, RB, & OL, which may be even a larger indictment of Wilcox.
Very fugly...
Cristobal’s OC leaving for Akron head coach job. Not sure if that’s good for us or not.
I'm more concerned that the Ducks are going to land Quinn Ewers from tOSU or some other elite signal caller from the portal and have competent QB play for the next 4 years...
Brown was not a game changing option for them and held that offense back. But that Ducks team was not physical, despite Thibideaux and McKinley....
I think Ewers ends up back in Texas.
Question is why he left in the first place, I guess. This is one of those instances where being able to transfer without encumbrances is a real boon to these kids, whether you agree with that or not.
NIL money? With the transfer rules finally favoring players over programs I guess he figured he could always transfer.
He earned $1M in NIL in Columbus.
Ewers to Texas is the rumor.
He’s a Texas kid - makes sense.
Bet alums are pleased w/ Sark?
Losing CJ Verdell really hurt them. He was a game changer at RB with HR capability.
Miami hired AD Radakovich away from Clemson, with Cristobal perhaps right behind him despite Uncle Phil upping the ante to Brian Kelly- neighborhood $...
Does Lane Kiffin get a phone call from Eugene? Probably. Is Wilcox to UO even a possibility? Maybe as DC.
Crazy coaching carousel this year!
I don't think Wilcox is going anywhere. He seems to be stuck at Cal given the poor conference record we have witnessed, still he probably will get an extension if we beat SC.
His contract is good through '23...do you extend a guy on the heels of back to back losing seasons? Dunno.
Not sure but I wouldn't be surprised. We can blame the past 2 losing seasons on Covid and the city of Berkeley's stance.
You really can't tho...it's an excuse for Wilcox, but this team was 3-5 BEFORE the COVID bout.
And a win v a dogschitt SC team should change nothing.
I'm inclined to agree. I don't exactly use Covid as an excuse, but Wilcox sure can, rightly or wrongly. The problem is that 1) the city of Berkeley was fairly draconian but 2) what the heck was the coaching staff doing, or not doing, that led to 44 cases of Covid?
Meh, kids are gonna go to a Halloween party...you'd like to think that in a pandemic, sick players would either get tested or stay home, but at the end of the day, they're college kids and it must f-ing SUCK to go to college during COVID. But it shouldn't have mattered....
I'm of the mind that in year 5 of Wilcox's tenure, he should be able to beat the worst FBS school in in the country with a backup QB...THAT'S the big issue for me.
To have that inept of an offensive performance against such an awful team with your backup QB really makes me question if Justin Wilcox will ever produce a team good enough to compete for a P12 Championship, let alone play for one.
In year 5 we couldn’t put up more than 3 points against Arizona and that included us winning the TO battle 3-0!
Had we lost 28-24 and had something like 4 TO would be one thing but to only put up 3 points?!?! Against that Arizona team?!?!
San Diego State just got blown out of their championship game. They were down a bunch of players and some key players due to COVID. Albeit they did not lose as many key players as Cal did against AZ. So State is a good comparison of what is likely to happen when you lose so many players. It really is stupid simple why we lost that game. Most teams will lose when they have 20 players out of a game. The only team that I could imagine would "possibly" win is 'Bama.
Yep, that's why my expectations are now so low for this program...good teams beat the worst team in the country in year 5 with a backup QB.
3 OL out, I don't think you win. Several DL out, you don't win. SDS just got their ass kicked and are a reasonable comparison of what happened to Cal.
I can’t see him going to Miami. I think he needs Oregon more than Oregon needs him.
John Canzano wrote a pretty honest article about things Cristobal needs to work on. The fit w/ Mario at the U is just too perfect, but at the end of the day, he’s a notch below the elite college football coaches.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out...if he jumps, would Wilcox take the Oregon DC position if offered? Hmmm.
DC or HC? I’m sure he would take the HC job in a heartbeat but like UW, I don’t see Oregon offering him the job unless options 1-5 all decline the job.
I don’t think Wilcox is a fit for Oregon because he would overhaul that whole offense and turn it into and average pro style offense.
DC…he’s not getting the HC job.
Agreed - and it’s a long shot & highly unlikely, at least now. It presumes a lot of things, like if Cristobsl bolts to Miami…etc
But if SC somehow blasts the Bears tonight, things could be a little unsettled in the program….
I think the likely scenario would be if Wilcox gets fired by Cal, Mario leaves for Miami and the new Oregon coach hires Wilcox as his DC.
If Wilcox is fired by Cal, despite what some people may say, he will not be immediately hired as a HC anywhere. He will have to drop back down to a DC to rehab his image and then try to get another HC job in 3-5 years.
Wilcox's name has come up with the recent open at Virginia.
That's interesting...wonder what the connection is.
That has to just be wild internet speculation because it makes no sense at all. Wilcox has no connection to Virginia and he has no recruiting base on the east coast.
I don’t see any way he gets fired, but if they lose tonight by 2+ scores, there’s gonna be rumblings.
No doubt and rightfully so. SCs is down a lot of players due to injury or players that are going pro will sit this game out. If we get embarrassed at an empty Memorial against a depleted SC team with an interim HC then Wilcox might actually get fired.
This is a tough spot with so little incentive...you have to beat a program that has owned you for a century...
The kids play hard for Wilcox so Cal should win. Still.......
It's just food for thought, which is what a lot of this board is...but I believe Wilcox is signed through '23, having been extended prior to the Cheez-It bowl.
He's technically not lame duck until following next season....
Everybody who has played Oregon except Stanford and Utah are asking "Who are these ducks" They ain't the same ducks we saw!"
Cal played them close, we just don’t have the offense to consistently beat them or pull away.
Fresno state played them close too. The only mystery of the ducks season is how they beat Ohio state
I expected way more action here tonight. Utah has this on lock.
I sense a much better atmosphere in this Vegas stadium than Levi's.
I’m just here to bitch about the p12 championship game being played on a Friday.
Ok, apparently I’m also here for Oregon getting trounced. Even though I *still* call the p12 the PAC-10 more than half the time.
Goood lord Oregon’s QB is awful
I just this minute turned in and so are the refs. I have no love for Oregon, but they just got called for the worst offensive PI I think I've ever seen.
They certainly do. They just needed to find a QB. Rising has gotten better and better as the season went on.
Big & athletic in the trenches...they dominate the LOS, something Cal can’t do.