Saturday Notepad 9-17-11: P.M. Edition
By Kyle Kensing
Last updated at 7:15 p.m. Click the time stamp to jump to the update. Times are Pacific.
We are through nine hours of football, and about five more remain. Yes, fall Saturdays are indeed the best days. Even the first two rounds of March Madness (my favorite consecutive sports days of the year) only last about 11 hours with a 90-minute gap. Sadly, the Notepad reopens to a horrific scene in Tallahassee. Wideout Kenny Shaw was blasted between two Oklahoma tacklers and hit the turf, landing with his arms frozen in the same position in which he went down. A similar phenomenon occurred two years when Jahvid Best hurdled Oregon State defenders and smacked the ground hard. Best sustained a concussion on the play, which might be Shaw’s best scenario based purely on my own speculation. There’s no information backing that.
Regardless your religious views or team affiliation, please either say a prayer or send out some positive vibrations to Shaw. We can only hope his thumbs up his indicative of his health.
6:13 p.m. Ronnie Fouch connects with tight end Alex Jones to convert a fumble into six points for Indiana State, and the Sycamores are well on their way to giving the Championship Subdivision its third win over the Bowl Subdivision this season.
6:16 p.m. ESPN3 is a beautiful thing, especially for FCS followers. James Madison and Liberty head into the fourth quarter tied 17-17. Both could factor into the NCAA Championship race, but could use this non-conference win to solidify their resume.
6:19 p.m. Ronnie Hillman breaks off a touchdown rush to give San Diego State its first lead over Washington State, 28-24. This is a win WSU undoubtedly wants, aside from the obvious of every team wanting every win. A 3-0 start would emphasize the turnaround Paul Wulff is leading, but with 10:52 remaining the statement has already been made. These Cougars aren’t the laughingstocks they were when Bill Doba exited.
6:26 p.m. The defense was supposed to be Arizona State’s hallmark heading into this season, but last Friday Missouri poked holes in it late. Well, with just 17 minutes remaining the Sun Devils are completely bottling up an Illinois offense that came into the game scoring 46 points per game — granted, against Arkansas State and South Dakota State, but nevertheless the Illini are stuck on 10 points.
The bad news for A-State? It’s offense is as bottled up with just seven points. The Sun Devils’ struggle to establish a running game has hamstring them, but field position on the Illinois side might give the white-clad Devils the break they need.
6:47 p.m. Florida State is lucky to trail just 13-3 at halftime with points left on the board, turnovers given away and excellent field position surrendered to the Sooners. Is a 10-point deficit a win given how FSU has played? It’s debatable. The defense has shown great heart in keeping the ‘Noles in it.
Meanwhile in the Holy War, Kyle Whittingham exhibited why he coaches the Utes and not the Cougars. After a would-be touchdown pass was ruled incomplete, Whittingham was caught on camera saying “that’s a bunch of crap.”
Frankly, I’d have to agree. DeVonte Christopher comes down with two feet, but even if it’s jarred loose, BYU’s Travis Uale leads with the helmet dangerously.
7:11 p.m. Illinois is the victim of replay at home; Nathan Scheelhasse rushed for a big third down gain that seemingly gave the Illini a clock-salting first down, but replay officials brought the ball back from the 29 to the 28 to force a punt. Arizona State takes over down just three but needing a score in two minutes.
7:14 p.m. Wazzu either ran out of gas, or San Diego State decided to declare its authority. Either way, the Aztecs scored three times in the fourth quarter for the 42-24, taking off some of the moral victory in the Cougars’ effort.
But that’s a better showing than Western Illinois had at Missouri. The Tigers took out the frustration of losing at Arizona State by thumping the Leathernecks, 69-0 and outgaining the visitors a ridiculous 744 to 44. MU is the second team of the day to rack up more than 700 yards; Georgia Tech accrued 768 against Kansas.
7:24 p.m. E.J. Manuel was taking shot after shot and his going to the sideline seemed only a matter of time, but Clint Trickett is doing an impressive job moving the Seminoles down field. It’s readily evident the Sooner defense game planned for a much different style of quarterback.
7:29 p.m. Miami’s third touchdown ends Ohio State’s chances, and Al Golden is a winner for the first time at The U. The Hurricanes have looked much better than anticipated given the circumstances leading to their season’s beginning. Ohio State, on the other hand, was exposed against Toledo. Miami did a commendable job attacking those weaknesses. It could be a long Big Ten season for the Buckeyes.