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The USA Today Top 25 College Coaches’ Poll is out. Here are the rankings for September 28:
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1.
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4-0
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1,520
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2
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2.
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4-0
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1,399
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6
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3.
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4-0
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1,398
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5
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4.
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5-0
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1,350
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10
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5.
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4-0
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1,310
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7
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6.
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5-0
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1,146
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12
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7.
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4-0
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1,054
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11
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8.
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4-0
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1,047
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9
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9.
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2-1
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990
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1
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10. (tie)
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5-0
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888
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14
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10. (tie)
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4-1
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888
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3
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12.
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4-1
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854
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13
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13.
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3-1
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832
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4
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14.
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4-1
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776
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16
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15.
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5-0
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684
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17
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16.
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3-1
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555
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18
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17.
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3-1
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521
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8
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18.
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3-0
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446
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20
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19.
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4-0
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351
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25
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20.
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4-1
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286
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22
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21.
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3-1
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280
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24
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22.
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4-0
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229
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NR
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23.
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5-0
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180
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NR
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24.
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4-1
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161
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NR
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25.
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3-1
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148
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15
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Explain to me how Missouri, who hasn’t played anybody of note, is ranked #3 and ahead of Alabama, Penn State, and Texas?
Missouri has beaten, in succession, Illinois, Missouri Southeastern, Nevada, and Buffalo. Frankly, if they cancelled the football programs at those last three schools, nobody would notice. It’s been a complete joke of a schedule thus far and Missouri’s not exactly a storied program.
Alabama, on the other hand, opened the season in a neutral site game against Clemson, then ranked in the top 10, and just went in to Athens and destroyed then-3rd ranked Georgia on their home field. I can understand putting Oklahoma, also a storied program who plays against tough competition, ahead of Alabama, who has come off a bad season. But Missouri?!
Alabama went into Athens a decided underdog against #3 ranked Georgia and stunned everyone with a 31-0 blowout in the first half. The defense took the second half off, giving up 30 points — it would have been 31 had Georgia not gone for and missed a 2-point conversion. Thankfully, the offense managed to add another 10 and hold on.
The AP’s Paul Newberry, who either didn’t watch the game or only cared about the outcome rather than the process, saw it much differently than this Alabama fan.
 Forget the blackout. This was an early knockout. Backed by a dominant defense and John Parker Wilson’s accurate passing, No. 8 Alabama raced to a stunning 31-point lead by halftime against self-destructing Georgia and held on to beat the third-ranked Bulldogs 41-30 Saturday night, establishing Nick Saban’s team as a national championship contender in his second season.
[...]
Alabama (5-0, 2-0) is poised to move up at least three or four spots when the new poll comes out Sunday, and the Tide certainly looked as impressive as anyone all year in winning decisively on the road against a team that started the season at the top of the heap.
Wilson went 13-of-16 passing for 205 yards and a touchdown, while Glenn Coffee ran for two scores in a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score. Georgia scored two touchdowns in the waning minutes.
Not even the most optimistic Alabama fan could have expected Saban, who won a national championship at LSU, to turn the Tide so quickly. This again looks like a program more in keeping with the tradition of Bear Bryant, not Saban predecessor Mike Shula.
Looking for a motivational edge, Georgia came out wearing black jerseys, and most of its fans at 92,000-seat Sanford Stadium also took part in the “blackout.” But the biggest cheers came from the white-clad Alabamians sprinkled throughout the massive stands.
Georgia showed some disturbing tendencies even while winning its first four games, and those sure came back to bite the Bulldogs. They were flagged twice in the opening half for roughing the passer, crucial but familiar mistakes for a team that already was the most penalized in the SEC. Also, an offensive line featuring two freshman and two sophomores was no match for Alabama’s massive front led by 365-pound Terrence Cody.
Knowshon Moreno got only nine carries for 34 yards, and quarterback Matthew Stafford spent much of the game running for his life as Georgia’s 11-game winning streak ended.
The Bulldogs actually made Alabama a little nervous in the opening minute of the fourth quarter, closing to 31-17 on Prince Miller’s 92-yard punt return. But the Tide calmly wrapped it up on the next possession, driving 51 yards in eight plays for Leigh Tiffin’s second field goal.
Oddly, both Newberry and the ESPN game announcers repeatedly refer to an early pass interference call on Georgia as a critical play in the game. In reality, that “mistake” was absolutely the right move on the part of the Georgia defender, saving a sure touchdown and forcing Alabama to drive fifteen yards to achieve a result they would otherwise have had easily.
I’m obviously thrilled by the outcome. After the season opening win, also in Georgia, against then-highly ranked Clemson, I thought this team had a chance to knock off the Bulldogs. I had no idea, though, that they’d dominate them so thoroughly in the first half.
My only fear is that the second half letdown bodes ill for the team’s ability to focus against some of their lesser opponents in upcoming weeks. In college, which lacks a playoff system, you can’t have a bad week if you want a shot at a national championship.
For shaking a newsborn baby boy. From AP-
MANHATTAN, Kan. (Sept. 19) - Kansas State running back Leon Patton was accused of shaking a 2-month-old boy and charged with child abuse. He was dismissed from the team Friday.
The 20-year-old junior was arrested and jailed Thursday on $30,000 bond for his actions July 15, police said.
Patton shook the baby “feloniously and intentionally,” according to the arrest warrant. Police spokesman Lt. Kurt Moldrup said the matter was reported to police when it happened, prompting an investigation. He would not provide information on the now-4-month-old boy’s whereabouts or condition.
Patton already had been suspended from the team after a July traffic stop led to the discovery of outstanding warrants from 2007, one for stealing two video games from a Wal-Mart. He also was cited for an unpaid parking ticket. After pleading no contest, Patton was sentenced to six months’ probation and fined $100.
Kansas State coach Ron Prince announced Patton’s dismissal from the team. The school said it would make no further comment because of the investigation.
Was there any relationship between Patton and the child?
Only idiots or sickos do what Patton is accused of. It is well documented the dangers of shaking such a young child If found guilty of child abuse, I hope this Patton gets to spend a long time in jail.
On a moped. From AP-
Wisconsin senior linebacker Jonathan Casillas was cited for drunken driving last month while riding a mo-ped.
Casillas, who missed the eighth-ranked Badgers’ first two games because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, was stopped by a university police officer on Aug. 24 just after midnight. A breath test showed his blood alcohol concentration to be 0.15 percent, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08.
Casillas, 21, received three citations — first-offense drunken driving, driving with a prohibited alcohol concentration, and driving with two persons on a mo-ped.
According to the Wisconsin State Journal, Badgers coach Bret Bielema said he already has disciplined Casillas.
Did the coach wag a finger at Casillas and say never do this again? DUI on a moped and having a passenger on board. That shows a lack of brain matter for someone going to a major college, then what do you expect from a jock?
A movie celebrating the former Heisman Trophy winner’s life was released to movie theaters last Friday. From AP-
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Ernie Davis never wore Nikes, until now. A new statue of the first black player to win the Heisman Trophy depicts him in modern-day football gear — including Nike cleats.
The problem is that Davis led Syracuse to the national title in 1959 and won the Heisman two years later, before Nike was formed.
The university unveiled the Davis statue last Saturday, a day after “The Express” — a movie about Davis’ life — had its world premiere at the Landmark Theatre in downtown Syracuse. The film opens nationwide in October.
Call it an honest mistake by the sculptor, 82-year-old Bruno Lucchesi of New York City, who said he was asked to work off a picture of Davis. The school said it also sent him football gear.
The statue has Davis wearing his famous No. 44 jersey, but “NIKE” is inscribed on the heel of each cleat, there’s a swoosh on his chest, and he’s holding a helmet much different from the one he wore.
Accidents happen, but one question remains. Will any of Davis’ surviving family members(Ernie died of leukemia at age 23 in 1963) get royalties from Nike? I’m not sure if that’s a serious question or not.
He took the school now known as Texas El Paso to an improbable major championship in 1966. Forty years later a movie, ‘Glory Road’, was made about Haskins and his team. The AP obituary is below the fold. RIP Coach.
EL PASO, Texas — Don Haskins, credited with helping break color barriers in college sports in 1966 when he used five black starters to win a national basketball title for Texas Western, died Sunday. He was 78.
Texas-El Paso spokesman Jeff Darby said the Hall of Fame coach died Sunday afternoon. He had no other details. UTEP was previously known as Texas Western.
“The word unique does not begin to describe Don Haskins,” former Texas Tech coach Bob Knight said. “There is no one who has ever coached that I respected and admired more than Don Haskins. I’ve had no better friend that I enjoyed more than Don Haskins.”
Haskins was an old-time coach who believed in hard work and was known for his gruff demeanor. That attitude was portrayed in the 2006 movie “Glory Road,” the Disney film that chronicled Haskins’ improbable rise to national fame in the 1966 championship game against Kentucky. The movie, which was preceded by a book of the same title, also sparked renewed interest in Haskins’ career.
“The myth that surrounds Don Haskins in the movie ‘Glory Road’ and what he did for black players is better said that he cared like that for all his players. To me that tells me more about the man than anything,” Knight said. “There was never anyone like him before and there will never be one like him again.”
Former Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said Haskins “had a tremendous impact on the college game. Anybody who’s been around college basketball dating back to those days, they’ve seen how it changed after Texas Western won the national championship.”
Sutton said he hadn’t talked to Haskins for at least six weeks.
“Don had not been in good health and was having a hard time,” Sutton said. “He’ll be dearly missed. He was a great basketball coach.”
During his career, Haskins turned down several more lucrative offers, including one with the now-defunct American Basketball Association, to remain at UTEP as one of the lowest paid coaches in the Western Athletic Conference.
Haskins retired in 1999 after 38 seasons at the school. He had a 719-353 record and won seven WAC championships. He took UTEP to 14 NCAA tournaments and to the NIT seven times and briefly worked as an adviser with the Chicago Bulls.
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 The Alabama Crimson Tide came in as heavy underdogs against the #9 ranked Clemson Tigers but surprised everyone by dominating the game from start to finish.
AP:
Nick Saban may face his toughest task yet: Holding down runaway expectations for his inexperienced Alabama team. Crimson Tide’s $4 million-per-year coach gave Alabama backers a reason to think big Saturday night, leading ‘Bama to a thorough 34-10 beating of No. 9 Clemson 34-10 at the Georgia Dome.
“Nobody can be satisfied with a one-game performance,” Saban said. “This will be a challenge for our team and it’ll be interesting to see how they respond.”
Still, as the Alabama band broke into Queen’s “We Are The Champions,” at the end, you had to wonder if they were honoring the Crimson Tide’s past, with 12 national titles and years of dominance in the Southeastern Conference under Bear Bryant, or gazing into the near future.
“It’s still early. We still got a long way to go,” cautioned quarterback John Parker Wilson, who threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third. “But we’ve got a good group of guys here who can do it.”
The statistical comparison was overwhelming:
| Team Stat Comparison |
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 |
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| 1st Downs |
25 |
11 |
| Total Yards |
419 |
188 |
| Passing |
180 |
188 |
| Rushing |
239 |
0 |
| Penalties |
6-40 |
6-43 |
| 3rd Down Conversions |
11-17 |
1-9 |
| 4th Down Conversions |
0-0 |
1-2 |
| Turnovers |
0 |
2 |
| Possession |
41:13 |
18:47 |
It’s worth pointing out that Clemson’s vaunted offense was held to a measly field goal, with 7 of the 10 Tiger points coming on a kickoff return.
ESPN’s Ivan Maisel thinks Alabama is ahead of schedule after a disappointing first year for head coach Nick Saban:
Alabama coach Nick Saban wanted to play No. 9 Clemson in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Classic for a lot of reasons. He wanted the national prime-time exposure of the opening Saturday night. He wanted his No. 24 Crimson Tide to have a presence in this recruiting hotbed. He wanted his young team — 14 freshmen on the two-deep — to play in a bowl-like atmosphere.
Saban, in sum, wanted this game in order to prepare his team for a future when they would be ready to contend for championships. In the wake of Alabama’s 34-10 victory, that may have been Saban’s only miscalculation.
Future? The future is now. If Alabama continues to play as well as it played Saturday night, the Crimson Tide will play in the Georgia Dome again this season — in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game.
It’s an exciting start to the season. Clearly, Saban has done wonders in recruiting. But Alabama faces an absolutely brutal schedule, playing at Arkansas, at #1 Georgia, at #18 Tennessee, at #7 LSU, and closing the regular season at home against #10 Auburn. If they can even win three of those games, it would be a spectacular year. Even that, though, wouldn’t be enough to guarantee them a spot in the SEC title game, let alone the BCS championship game.
 John Mark Stallings, the son of former Alabama head football coach Gene Stallings, died Saturday morningat the age of 46. Gentry Estes of the Mobile Press-Register notes that, “He suffered from Down syndrome, and became an unforgettable part of the Crimson Tide’s football family during his dad’s successful tenure in the 1990s.”
Mal Moore, Alabama’s athletics director, issued a statement on behalf of the ‘Bama family:
“I’ve known John Mark Stallings his entire life,” Moore said. “I want to extend my deepest sympathy to Coach Stallings, Ruth Ann and the entire Stallings family. For someone who never played or coached a game, I think John Mark may have touched more Alabama fans than any other person ever did. I would like to thank the Stallings family for sharing their love for John Mark with all of us.”
John Mark was indeed a fixture at the Capstone during his dad’s too-short tenure there. He’ll be missed and all of Bama Nation’s hearts go out to the Stallings family.
Mike Souchak won 15 tour events in a career that lasted over a decade. He was an accomplished college football player and shot the lowest score ever in PGA history for 72 holes at the 1955 Texas Open. That record stood for over four decades. RIP.
DURHAM, N.C. (AP)—Former PGA Tour professional and Duke Sports Hall of Fame member Mike Souchak has died.
The school said the 81-year-old died Thursday in Belleair, Fla.
Souchak won 15 events on the PGA Tour from 1955-66 and had 11 top-10 finishes in major championships. He finished third at the U.S. Open in 1959 and 1960, and played on the winning U.S. Ryder Cup teams in ‘59 and ‘61.
He set a tour record for four-round low score at the 1955 Texas Open, opening with a 60 and finishing a 257. That record stood until Mark Calcavecchia’s 256 at the 2001 Phoenix Open.
At Duke, Souchak lettered three seasons in football and four in golf, helping the Blue Devils win two Southern Conference golf titles.
The Yankees have a fascinating prospect at Single A Staten Island, Pat Venditte Jr. He’s a relief specialist. But he’s no LOOGY. He’s ambidextrous.
The pitch was nothing remarkable: Pat Venditte, Creighton University’s temporarily right-handed pitcher, threw a fastball past a Northern Iowa
batter for a called strike three. It was his next windup that evinced this young pitcher’s uniqueness and, perhaps, professional future.
As his teammates whipped the ball around the infield, Venditte smoothly, unthinkingly, removed his custom glove from his left hand and slipped it on his right. Moments later he leaned back, threw a strike left-handed to the next batter, and finished the side in order.
Venditte is believed to be the only ambidextrous pitcher in N.C.A.A.
Division I college baseball, the ultimate relief specialist. A junior, he throws left-handed to lefties and right-handed to righties, and effectively. In a home game in Omaha last Friday, he allowed only one hit in five and a third shutout innings to earn the victory against Northern Iowa.
Go to the article not just for the pictures of him pitching, but also for his custom glove. In addition to the standard finger slots, it has two thumbs.
Practically speaking, what happens when he goes up against a switch hitter? That question occurred Thursday night:
Still pitching right-handed, Venditte allowed a single by Nicholas Giarraputo. Up next was designated hitter Ralph Henriquez, and he and Venditte engaged in a routine more vaudeville than Mudville.
As Henriquez walked to the plate, Venditte, assuming Henriquez would bat left-handed, stood behind the pitching rubber with his glove on his right hand and the ball in his left. Henriquez, looking out at Venditte, then stepped across the batter’s box, determined to hit right-handed and gain a righty-lefty advantage. Seeing this, Venditte quickly switched his custom-made glove to his left hand and put the ball in his right, hoping to gain a righty-on-righty advantage.
Henriquez stepped out and began asking the home-plate umpire, Shaylor Smith, to lay out his options, then summoned his third-base coach. With the matter unresolved, Henriquez again stepped across the batter’s box in an attempt to bat left-handed. Again, Venditte switched glove and ball. The cat-and-mouse game reached full comedic gear when Henriquez again strolled across the batter’s box to hit right-handed, and Venditte responded with the old switcheroo, setting up as a righty.
The question is, if there a player’s allowed a single switch, who must commit first?
On Thursday night it concluded:
McMahon, who said Friday that he was waiting for an official ruling from higher baseball authorities on the subject of switch-pitching to switch-hitters, said that the way he understood it, “the rule dictates that the hitter establish the box and the pitcher establish the throw, and then each team can make one move, and then it’s play ball.”
“That’s the rule that we got from the rule book of minor league baseball,” he said.
Apparently that will be the rule in MLB too.
Crossposted on Soccer Dad.
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