Links at Lunch: The Mississippi Miracle Remembered; Positive Impacts in the Big East

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Four years ago today marks one of, if not the wildest finish to a college football game ever. More bizarre than “The Band is out on the field!” even. Kevin McGuire reminisces on the “Mississippi Miracle” at No2MinuteWarning.com.

The Mississippi Miracle is a reminder of what is awesome about college football. Conference realignment? Not as much. It’s a necessarily evil that must be discussed though — including by senators, apparently. Members of the U.S. Senate are jumping into the realignment fray sayeth TeamSpeedKills.com. And as things get hairy for those maybe-maybe not invited to the Big 12, Jim Ashley at HailWV.com asks, what now for the Mountaineers?

The Big East continues to forge along despite the instability, and Pat Johnston breaks down the conference’s quarterbacks as only he can via the Positive Impact Factor. No. 1 Zach Collaros’ performance against USF certainly buoys what Isaiah Pead told GoBearcats.com was a “disgusting” outing against the Bulls.

More links after the jump.

• Miami meets Virginia in tonight’s primetime, Thursday showcase. ESPN’s focus turns to the ACC for the next few weeks after the Pac-12 provided three consecutive duds. The ACC was the driving force behind the Thursday night game in the 1990s, so hopefully that equates to some karma. Get prepped for the outing with:
  • Danny Hobrock of CanesWarning.com provides the top five items to watch from The U perspective.
  • Reginald Eller of UnconqueredNoles.com and Crystal Ball Run sat down with Virginia broadcaster Dave Koehn to discuss the burning questions for the Cavaliers tonight.
  • The palpable energy building for Nov. 5 and Alabama vs. LSU prompted the fine folks at BamaHammer.com to take a look at past No. 1 vs. No. 2 match-ups.
  • What ‘Bama – LSU is to the FBS, Northern Iowa at North Dakota State just might be to the Championship Subdivision. SaturdayBlitz.com FCS Roundtable panelist Kyle Roth profiled NDSU quarterback Brock Jensen on Bison Illustrated. Jensen’s quick maturation should play an integral role in Saturday’s showdown.
  • Central Michigan’s big tight end David Blackburn garnered praise for his impressive performance in Week 8, including several Detmer Award votes. One of the #DetmerAward voters, HustleBelt.com’s Matt Sussman, writes Blackburn transcends typical tight end abilities.
    
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  • The Husky Haul’s Mark Knight sat down with Scout.com recruiting reporter extraordinaire Brandon Huffman to talk Washington’s 2012 signee class.
  • UW’s in-state rival is on shakier ground since dropping two straight winnable games, and with quarterback Jeff Tuel back on the shelf the clock may be ticking on Paul Wulff, writes Avinash Kunnath on PacificTakes.com.
  • Another Pac-12 program in precarious position is UCLA. The Bruins host Cal in their Homecoming game this Saturday in what has to be considered make-or-break territory. Derek Hart on GoJoeBruin.com breaks down the good and bad for UCLA this week.
  • As Wisconsin heads into Ohio State, looking to rebound from its loss at Michigan State, Jack Moore of BadgerOfHonor.com analyzes how Bret Bielema coaching not to lose hurts the Badgers.
  • Wisconsin-Ohio State is just one of the games on a loaded Big Ten slate. Black Shoe Diaries previews Week 9, which includes Penn State vs. Illinois. The Nittany Lions have supplanted Illinois as the Big Ten’s surprise team. PSU looks to extend that against the Illini, losers of two straight. Victory Bell Rings has the preview.
  • CowboyAltitude.com hosts its weekly Mountain West bloggers’ preview.