Week 4 Post-Amble: SEC Superpowers on Collision Course

Superman’s alien powers; Hulk’s radiation-induced strength. These comic book icons clashed in the mid-1990s Marvel vs. DC Comics crossover series’s main event. A month still separates LSU’s trip to face Alabama, but after Saturday it seems these two college football superpowers are hurdling into that match-up with the same unstoppable momentum of the Man of Steel and Incredible one.

Both were locked in showdowns Saturday worthy of a graphic novel, and both prevailed triumphant in super fashion. Alabama displayed the full strength of its defensive force field by holding the vaunted Arkansas offense in check. Tyler Wilson finished with just 185 yards passing, and more impressively the Razorbacks managed a collective 17 yards rushing.

Capitalizing on the defensive advantage, the offense dropped the hammer via Trent Richardson (126 yards rushing) and Eddie Lacy (one touchdown), while quarterback AJ McCarron looked the most comfortable he has this season. He completed 75 percent of his attempts and scored twice, including on a tone setting fake field goal.

McCarron’s evident improvement pales in comparison to the complete rejuvenation of Jarrett Lee’s career, though.

Glenn Guibeau’s recap lead in USA Today was misleading — perhaps intentionally so.

"LSU quarterback Jarrett Lee was outperformed by West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith by more than two to one Saturday night."

I write intentionally because the final numbers were quite deceptive. Smith went for over 460 yards and completed 38 passes, both far more impressive than Lee’s 180 on 16. Furthermore, I lauded the ‘Bama defense for holding Arkansas’s Wilson to five yards more than Lee’s final output. But Lee did exactly what was needed of him, and what will be needed of him given the capable and multifaceted run options LSU boasts, as well as its powerful defense.

The suspension of Jordan Jefferson may prove to be the best thing that could have happened to Les Miles’ offense. Lee threw for three touchdowns, as many scores individually for the senior quarterback as West Virginia accumulated as a team.

Most importantly, Lee went without throwing an interception. Those days seem well behind him. Tiger opponents can’t say the same for themselves. Smith surrendered a pair of picks, and despite racking up a Mountaineer record for yardage, struggled parlaying yards into points.

Like its SEC West rival, LSU also tacked on a special teams touchdown to supplement its impressive offensive showing and dominant defense. Frankly, these teams are mirror images of each in so many ways, and the epic collision come Nov. 5 should shake the world to its very foundation. Hyperbole is impossible to escape in the football media landscape, and you can brace yourself for more now: these are two of the best looking teams collectively this early in the season I have seen since Texas and USC in 2005.

Of course, those two didn’t meet until the BCS Championship, where they created college football history. LSU-Alabama is more like a national semifinal, but if their early season play is any indication the potential for an historic clash.

But on the horizon for ‘Bama lurks a potential Doomsday. Florida continued its perfect start under new mastermind Will Muschamp, making quick work of Kentucky. The Gators’ 4-0 start looks far more comparable to the championship runs of Urban Meyers’ tenure than the uninspiring finale on which he went out. Chris Rainey has emerged as a full-fledged star in the same vein as Dexter McCluster during his tenure at Ole Miss.

UF’s offensive revival under Charlie Weis would seemingly vindicate critics of former Gator offensive coordinator Steve Addazio, but not so fast. Addazio is earning some redemption as Temple’s head coach. He has the Owls off to a 3-1 start, and would be 4-0 were it not for one misplayed goal line stand at Penn State. Temple’s defeat of Maryland was among the weekend’s most impressive both because of the 38-7 final, Temple’s playing on the road and the inherent mismatch of MAC vs. ACC. However, how Temple won supersedes all of that.

The Owls were able to completely impose their will on the Terrapin defense, forcing Bernard Pierce down its throat like a mother spoonfeeding medicine to a defiant child. Pierce ended the first half on pace to tie the modern rushing touchdown record Howard Griffith set in 1990. The Owl junior tacked on a fifth and final score to put the game away in the third quarter, and Addazio pulled on the reins.

That’s right, Temple, long the recipient of such mercy-kills, was the one generously easing on the gas pedal. Granted that didn’t mean the Owls started giving up big yards or scores to the Terrapins — quite the opposite. The Temple defense was far more troubling for Gary Crowton’s offense than ex-Owl head coach Al Golden’s Miami unit had been. In fact, Temple ends September the Bowl Subdivision’s No. 1 scoring defense at just 7.75 points yielded per game, a total better than ‘Bama, Wisconsin or Florida. Maryland can take solace knowing it wasn’t outscored by Villanova against these Owls — just matched.

Pierce had just one peer in Week 4, Hawaii quarterback Bryant Moniz. The frustration of losing to one of the worst teams in the FBS (more on that in a moment) was taken out on poor UC Davis, as Moniz completed 30-of-40 pass attempts for 424 yards and seven touchdowns. Seven touchdowns! Greg McMackin could have let Moniz rack up even greater statistics, but mercifully called off the charge early in the third quarter.

These Tigers are Roaring

No matter the circumstances, injuries or emotional drain from its previous week’s game, Florida State’s loss to Clemson is significant for the Tigers. CU is a young team playing numerous first-year players like Sammy Watkins and Mike Bellamy. Given the loaded signing class Dabo Swinney hauled in last February, there was no doubt the Tigers would become a force in a year or two. The assumption among many opinionated pontificators, though, was CU would thrive under Rich Rodriguez or some other coach.

Swinney entered the season on a hot season after two years of underachieving, and so far the course was been righted. Perhaps that’s the reason for his impassioned and entertaining post-game speeches reminiscent of a mid-1980s Ric Flair interview. I for one hope to see the Tigers continue to win, as I’m convinced Swinney is another few big victories from breaking out a “WOOOOO!”

Of course, as Flair said: “To be the man, you’ve got to beat the man.” In FSU, Clemson knocked off the 2011 ACC favorite. Next week, the Tigers will get an opportunity to knock off the reigning ACC champion, Virginia Tech. Given the combined 8-0 record and play of Clemson the last two weeks, I was surprised ESPN GameDay spurned Blacksburg for its marquee match-up in Week 5.

Heisman Hunters

LaMichael James reminded Arizona why he was the 2010 Heisman Trophy runner-up, and perhaps reinvigorated his candidacy with a 288-yard, two touchdown output in the Ducks’ 56-31 Pac-12 opening defeat. James quickly became a Heisman afterthought in a lackluster showing vs. LSU, and was needed sparingly in a rout of Nevada. But in running wild on a conference foe, even a 1-3 one, has to inflate his case for another invitation to Manhattan.

Robert Griffin III continues to zoom along for Baylor, having no trouble feasting on Rice’s defense. What an incredible stat line for the Bear senior: 29-of-33 (87.9 percent completed), 338 yards, five touchdowns, 51 rushing yards on six attempts and his first ground touchdown. He has yet to throw an interception and has accounted for 13 touchdowns in just three games. There are numerous teams that have nowhere near 13 touchdowns in three games.

Griffin is running neck-and-neck with South Carolina’s Marcus Lattimore for me in the very early going. While Lattimore’s string of century mark games was snapped vs. Vanderbilt, he did still score a touchdown. He also compensated for his relatively modest performance on the ground with 73 yards receiving on three catches, one of which went for a touchdown.

BJ Daniels may register hardly a blip on anyone’s Heisman radar, but the USF quarterback is putting together a nice little start for the unbeaten Bulls. His decision making has improved tremendously, evident in just one interception to eight touchdowns, and he’s completing around 65 percent of his pass attempts. In the Bulls’ defeat of UTEP he also exhibited the rushing ability that made him a hot topic in the 2009 season under Jim Leavitt.

Aforementioned Clemson’s perfect start has also been powered by its quarterback. Tajh Boyd had a solid showing in the defeat of FSU, throwing three touchdowns to bring his season total to 13. That figures bests Kellen Moore (granted in one more appearance), Andrew Luck (same), and Matt Barkley (who has played four games). He threw an interception, but it was just his second of the season.

Into MACtion

Temple’s Pierce may not quite be in the Heisman conversation, but his showing against Maryland is an announcement of the MAC’s presence. The conference didn’t quite have the marquee day it was hoping: Ohio, Toledo and Buffalo all lost hard fought contests to Big East opponents, and Western Michigan took unbeaten Big Ten member Illinois to the brink. But Saturday wasn’t a loss for the league. Ball State declared itself a team to watch with one of the most imposing blowouts of Week 4.

Those BSU Cardinals’ sole loss is to USF, yesterday notching their third win with an impressive rout of Army. The Cardinal offense was unstoppable, but more significant was how handily the defense managed Army’s triple option. BSU actually held a five-touchdown lead before a couple late Black Knight scores made the final tally a bit more respectable.

Nathan Ollie and Aaron Morris have been among the nation’s best defenders attacking opposing backfields, and quarterback Keith Wenning has flung the ball around at a prolific pace. Five of his defenders have caught a double-digit total of passes, he has yet to throw an interception, and is completing 73 percent of his attempts. The Cardinals’ winning ways are likely to take a hit in their next game — they play at Oklahoma. But if BSU can reach the MAC Championship, we may get a redux of Brady Hoke’s appearance on BSU alum Dave Letterman’s “Late Show.”

BSU has company in the MAC’s overachieving department. Bowling Green’s road defeat of 2010 10-game winner Miami U. gives the Falcons three victories on the season. That’s more than BGSU had all of last season.

Rage in Miami

FIU knocked off its second quality non-conference opponent in as many weeks, toppling UCF in what was seemingly the big hurdle between the Golden Panthers and a perfect regular season. Well, there is indeed a reason the games are played. Louisiana-Lafayette came into Miami and stunned the Sun Belt favorites, 36-31. Suddenly, the Ragin’ Cajuns are an intriguing surprise worth following.

ULL’s Dwight Bentley returned two Brandon Weeden interceptions for touchdowns in the season opening loss at Oklahoma State — the Cajuns’ sole loss to date. What makes this run so perplexing is ULL has nearly as many defensive touchdowns (3) as passing (4).

With defending Sun Belt champion Troy coming to Lafayette later this season, the Cajuns are maybe, just maybe, a conference title candidate.

Locksley’s Breaking Bad & More from on Mountain Low

Mike Locksley was hired at New Mexico to replace the program’s all-time most winning coach, Rocky Long. Long’s final season was a 4-8 slump that snapped the Lobos’ run of five straight bowl appearances. Since the change, New Mexico has failed to win four games total. Locksley’s retention for the 2011 season despite a cumulative 2-22 record surprised many, but the odds of his making it through the campaign are much higher than those of the Lobos getting a win.

After dropping their likely best opportunity at victory on Saturday, 48-45 to Sam Houston State in overtime, Locksley’s fate seemed seal. Likelihood became an inevitability when just hours after the Bearkats’ game-winning touchdown, news broke of a teenager receiving a DUI behind the wheel of a sport utility vehicle registered to Locksley.

Earlier today, UNM fired Locksley according to several reports. In the city where “Breaking Bad” is set, parallels to pro/antagonist depending on perspective Walter White were evident. Things certainly went from bad to worse for Locksley on a seemingly weekly basis, his eventual demise appeared the only endgame and he even fought a colleague a la White with Jesse Pinkman in the Sept. 11 episode of “Bad.” But Locksley is more akin to Pinkman, routinely in trouble whether on-field or field, while UNM athletic director Paul Krebs was the White, persistently loyal to his Pinkman to a fault.

The struggling Lobos have on-field company in UNLV, which suffered a 41-16 loss to FCS Southern Utah not as close as the final score. Rebel head coach Bobby Hauck called the defeat “all-time bad” in his post-game press conference, and that would be an accurate description. The Rebels had momentum from handling a good Hawaii team, 40-20, but all that was squandered immediately against the Thunderbirds. SUU made Sam Boyd Stadium its dwelling, boasting what sure sounded like more of its own fans who made the 2-hour drive from Cedar City to Sin City.

As for the previously discussed Long, while his San Diego State program is far, far ahead of his old team at UNM, Saturday was not a banner day for the Aztecs. SDSU struggled mightily against Michigan, melting under the bright lights of a national stage. Ronnie Hillman’s two fumbles doubled his previous career total, and quarterback Ryan Lindley was under pressure and throwing inexplicably off balls.

SDSU will be a factor in the MWC race, but its struggles at Michigan put a damper on what should have been a big week for the conference. The MWC is in a position to make significant moves toward BCS status with the landscape changing, but the conference desperately needs its mid-to-lower level programs to step up.

FCS vs. FBS Update

Half of the Championship Subdivision’s defeats of the FBS were scored yesterday. SUU and SHSU’s victories were Nos. 5 and 6, while North Dakota State got the best of Minnesota to start the modest deluge. NDSU handed the Golden Gophers their second FCS defeat in the last two years, and it was also the Bison’s second victory over UM since 2007 [correction: NDSU is 2-1 against UM in the last three, not 3-0]. The Bison’s 37-24 win wasn’t really as close as the final score would indicate. NDSU just looked stronger and faster. Jerry Kill has quite the undertaking on his hands. He did turn around Southern Illinois, but had to struggle through a two-win campaign his first year in Carbondale. Gopher fans need to bear through the bad times to get where they want to go.

As for NDSU, three different players rushed for touchdowns, exhibiting what is going to make the Bison a tough out for FCS foes. The NDSU offense is so stout on the rush and boasts so many weapons, defenses won’t be able to simply key in on star DJ McNorton. Quarterback Brock Jensen has also progressed, adding yet another element to that attack.