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He coached women’s and men’s teams at the college level where he won national championships with three different schools. RIP.
Auburn swimming coach Richard Quick, who won 13 NCAA titles with three schools during a career that spanned four decades, has died of cancer. He was 66.
Auburn said in a statement on its Web site that Quick, who coached men’s and women’s teams at the school, died Wednesday. His family told the Austin American-Statesman that he died in Austin, Texas.
Quick had been diagnosed in December with an inoperable brain tumor.
“While he lost a valiant battle against a cruel disease, Richard was an inspiration to countless people who were touched by his steadfast faith and amazing courage in the face of tremendous adversity,” Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs said.
He won one title at Auburn, seven at Stanford and five at Texas. He also led the U.S. Olympic teams in 1988, 1996 and 2000 and was an assistant coach at the 1984, 1992 and 2004 Games.
Quick’s women’s teams at Texas won five straight titles from 1984-1988. The Stanford women’s team won the title in his first year there in 1989.
Auburn’s men won the championship in 2009 and Quick was named NCAA Coach of the Year for the sixth time.
“Richard will be remembered as one of the greatest coaches in the history of swimming, but more importantly, he will be remembered as a devoted and loving husband, father, grandfather and teacher,” Jacobs said.
Quick coached at Auburn from 1978-82 and returned there in 2007. In between, he coached the women’s teams at Texas and Stanford. He also served as the men’s head coach at Iowa State during the 1977-78 season and the women’s head coach at SMU in 1976-77.
The previous record stood since 1971. From AP-
Travis Tucker hit an RBI single with one out in the top of the 25th inning, leading Texas to a 3-2 victory over Boston College on Saturday night in the longest game in NCAA history.
The game eclipsed the previous record of 23 innings, set in 1971 when Louisiana-Lafayette defeated McNeese State 6-5. The game began at 7:02 p.m. EDT Saturday and concluded 7 hours, 3 minutes later at 2:05 a.m. Sunday.
Texas reliever Austin Wood pitched 13 innings, including 12 1/3 innings of no-hit ball before allowing a two-out single to Tony Sanchez in the 19th inning.
Texas (43-13-1) scored when Connor Rowe walked to lead off the top of the inning and was sacrificed to second by David Hernandez. Rowe advanced to third on a wild pitch, and Tucker grounded past second base through the drawn-in infield for the record-setting victory over Boston College (34-25).
Tucker’s hit came in his NCAA-record 12th at-bat to tie a mark he now shares with teammate Michael Torres, who also batted 12 times.
Texas reliever Austin Dicharry earned his eighth victory by pitching 5 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, striking out four and allowing one hit.
The longest professional game was a minor league affair played in 1981. It went 33 innings. Two future Hall of Famers took part in that affair, Wade Boggs and Cal Ripken Jr.
The Redskins make this pick very quickly.
ESPN writes- Orakpo came off the board this early because he can get to the quarterback. He has excellent first-step quickness, he can redirect insider after starting outside and has better closing speed than his 4.7 40 suggests. That?s not to say he can’t defend the run. He has excellent upper-body strength and is tough at the point of attack. Still, he could stand to add five to 10 pounds to his frame.
No I’m not talking about some middle aged man propelling a ball at some objects at the end of a lane, but the games that climax every college football season. Bowl season officially starts this Saturday, here are the matchups for all the college football fanatics out there.
Dec 20
Eaglebank Bowl- Wake Forest vs Navy
New Mexico Bowl- Colorado State vs Fresno St
MAGICJACK ST. PETERSBURG BOWL- Memphis vs. South Florida
PIONEER LAS VEGAS BOWL- Brigham Young vs Arizona
Dec 21
R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL- Southern Miss vs. Troy
Dec 23
SAN DIEGO COUNTY CREDIT UNION POINSETTIA BOWL- Boise St vs TCU
Dec 24
SHERATON HAWAII BOWL- Hawaii vs Notre Dame
Dec 26
MOTOR CITY BOWL- Florida Atlantic vs. Central Michigan
Saturday, December 27
MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL- West Virginia vs. North Carolina
Champs Sports Bowl- Wisconsin vs. Florida State
Emerald Bowl- Miami (FL) vs. California
December 28
Independence Bowl- Northern Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech
PAPAJOHNS.COM BOWL- North Carolina State vs. Rutgers
Valero Alamo Bowl- Missouri vs. No. 23 Northwestern
Tuesday, December 30
ROADY’S HUMANITARIAN BOWL- Maryland vs. Nevada
PACIFIC LIFE HOLIDAY BOWL- Oklahoma State vs. No. 17 Oregon
Texas Bowl- Western Michigan vs. Rice
Wednesday, December 31
BELL HELICOPTER ARMED FORCES BOWL- Houston vs. Air Force
Sun Bowl- Oregon State vs. Pittsburgh
GAYLORD HOTELS MUSIC CITY BOWL- Boston College vs. Vanderbilt
Insight Bowl- Kansas vs. Minnesota
CHICK-FIL-A BOWL- LSU vs. Georgia Tech
Thursday, January 1
OUTBACK BOWL- South Carolina vs. Iowa
CAPITAL ONE BOWL- Georgia vs. Michigan State
Gator Bowl- Nebraska vs. Clemson
Rose Bowl- Penn State vs. USC
Fedex Orange Bowl- Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech
Friday, January 2
Cotton Bowl- Mississippi vs. Texas Tech
AUTOZONE LIBERTY BOWL- Kentucky vs. East Carolina
ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL- Utah vs. Alabama
January 3
INTERNATIONAL BOWL- Buffalo vs. Connecticut
January 5
TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL- Ohio State vs. Texas
January 6
GMAC Bowl- Ball State vs. Tulsa*
January 8
FEDEX BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME- Florida vs. Oklahoma
That’s 34 games, 68 schools spread over a period of 20 days for those of you keeping score at home. An ample supply of college football for any fanatics out there.
A few notes
*- There are a few bowl games remaining without corporate names in their title. Gator, Sun, Texas, Independence. Were these games unable to find sponsors?
*- Will Oklahoma St. and Oregon combine for 70 pts or more in the Holiday Bowl? This annually has been of the most high scoring affairs.
*- Oh how has the Orange Bowl dropped. A game that featured early triumphs of Joe Paterno led Penn State, Nebraska and Oklahoma in their glory days, the first major bowl appearance of Florida State, and the all time classic 84 battle between Nebraska and Miami, has Cincinnati and Virginia Tech playing this year. I’m sure they are talented football teams, but how many people are drooling to see them play in a prime-time network slot?
*- Arizona and BYU meet in a bowl 30 years after the former left the WAC conference for the higher profile Pac Eight(Now Ten, Arizona State joined also)
*- Vanderbilt makes a rare bowl appearance. Congratulations to Commodore fans, but this is a sign of how bowls are grown way out of proportion. 6-6 college teams get bids. When I was growing up I could remember Florida State going without a bowl in 1978 even though they finished the season 8-3.
It is my humble opinion that bowl season has gotten out of hand. Someone may say what’s the big deal? If someone wants to start a bowl game and there are two schools willing to play in it, does their records matter. A good football isn’t only a contest between stars at big name schools.
All true, but how much public money is spent on these affairs? Many of the teams are state universities who get funded by taxpayers. Then there is the game itself where police have to be taken from other tasks to work the day or night of the game or paid over-time.
With the economic downturn right now, you have to wonder if there will be less bowls in the near future. That would depend on how long a deal a corporate sponsor signed on for. I wonder how many fans of some schools plan to make a bowl trip. Are there 1,000 or more FAU Owls willing to journey from Florida to Michigan in December to watch the team play? Even if I were a Owl fan and had money, I’d stay home.
Enjoy the games.
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
|
|
3.
|
|
4-0
|
1,398
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5
|
|
4.
|
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5-0
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1,350
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10
|
|
5.
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4-0
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1,310
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7
|
|
6.
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5-0
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1,146
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12
|
|
7.
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4-0
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1,054
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11
|
|
8.
|
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4-0
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1,047
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9
|
|
9.
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2-1
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990
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1
|
|
10. (tie)
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5-0
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888
|
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
|
|
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
|
|
20.
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4-1
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286
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22
|
|
21.
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3-1
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280
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24
|
|
22.
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4-0
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229
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NR
|
|
23.
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5-0
|
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?!
It was a bizarre weekend in college football, with eight ranked teams losing to teams ranked below them — seven to teams not ranked at all.
#3 Oklahoma lost to unranked Colorado, 24-27.
#4 Florida lost to unranked Auburn, 17-20.
#5 West Virginia lost to #18 South Florida, 13-21 (Thursday night).
#7 Texas lost to unranked Kansas State, 21-41
#10 Rutgers lost to unranked Maryland, 24-34
#13 Clemson lost to unranked Georgia Tech, 3-13
#21 Penn State lost to unranked Illinois, 20-27
#22 Alabama lost to unranked Florida State, 14- 21
This was on top of several other close finishes.
ESPN’s Pat Forde dubs it “Insanity Saturday” and observes that this throws the whole season out of whack.
Just that fast, the college football landscape shifted seismically beneath our feet.
Just that fast, the Red River Shootout game Saturday between Oklahoma and Texas was dropped to undercard status. For the first time in years, it’s not the marquee game in the Big 12. And for the first time in years, the league’s maligned North looks more compelling than the South. If you can believe it, the biggest game in that league next week might be unbeaten Kansas at 3-1 Kansas State — either that or 4-1 Nebraska at unbeaten Missouri.
Just that fast, the upcoming LSU-Florida showdown Saturday in Baton Rouge lost half its helium when the Gators were shocked in The Swamp by an Auburn team that had lost at home to South Florida and Mississippi State on consecutive weekends.
Just that fast, the three Big East teams that began the season in the Top 25 all have at least one loss. Louisville went down first, then West Virginia, now Rutgers. Suddenly South Florida, Connecticut and Cincinnati are the unbeaten teams in the Big East. Honk if you foresaw that in August.
Just that fast, Illinois is 4-1 and tied for first in the Big Ten at 2-0. That’s the same Illinois that went 2-10 last year, with only one victory over I-A competition.
Just that fast, we have an ACC plot twist that leaves Virginia and Boston College well out in front in their respective divisions at 3-0 in league play. Virginia was left for dead after a Week 1 blowout loss to Wyoming. Boston College was picked last in its division by at least one preseason magazine.
And just that fast, USC and LSU put that much more distance between themselves and what’s left of the pack.
The object lesson here is that no favorite is safe. Not at home, not on the road, not in league play, not out of league play. If those lessons hadn’t already been learned by Appalachian State 34, Michigan 32, and Syracuse 38, Louisville 35, they were reinforced on Insanity Saturday.
And no lead is safe. You’d think the Sooners getting up 24-7 would be enough to make Colorado quit. You’d be wrong. The Buffaloes scored the final 20 points, winning on the last play of the game — a 45-yard field goal by Kevin Eberhart.
[...]
Underdogs aren’t scared right now, by much of anyone. Players and coaches are shrugging off past history, blowing off bad losses, not worrying about falling behind and regrouping to pull upsets nobody saw coming. Nobody’s rolling over.
I’ve seen this sort of thing in college basketball before but never to this extent in football. The bottom line, though, is that Notre Dame and Alabama and Michigan no longer have an automatic recruiting advantage over South Florida and West Virginia and Georgia Tech. There’s a wealth of talent out there and plenty of television exposure to be had in the realigned conference structure. Players would rather go to a program with less prestige and start than sit on the bench and one of the Big Boys.
The New York Giants have taken Texas cornerback Aaron Ross, widely projected to go to the Dallas Cowboys at the 22 spot, number 20 overall in the 2007 NFL Draft.
What the Experts Say:
Scout.com Profile:
Player Evaluation: One of the better athletes at the cornerback position in this draft, Ross is just hitting his stride as a football player and offers great upside. May need time to develop his skills but has starting potential.
STRENGTHS: Closing Speed, Size
AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT: Burst Out Of Breaks, Coverage Awareness
 Biography: All-Conference selection as a senior after becoming a full-time starter, posting 80/6/19. Primarily a reserve cornerback and return specialist before last season. Junior totals were 62/9/3, when he averaged 14.7 yards on 34 punt returns.
Pos: Athletic corner who showed tremendous progress last season. Quick-footed in reverse, is fluid flipping his hips and easily runs downfield with opponents. Displays an excellent break to the throw, out-jumps opponents defending passes and makes a lot of athletic plays. Effective in zone, displaying a sense of timing, and does a fine job handling man coverage responsibilities. Impacts the game returning punts.
Neg: Tends to play soft coverage and gives up a lot of underneath receptions. Shows hesitation to his game and has trouble staying with receivers out of their breaks.
UPDATE Scouts.inc:
Sam Madison and R.W. McQuarters have both lost a step and are now liabilities when left on an island, so taking a corner makes sense and the Giants got an excellent one in Ross. He possesses a very good blend of size, speed, instincts and ball skills. If he develops as expected, he’ll emerge as a playmaking starter in the NFL. Don’t overlook the impact he should make on special teams because the Giants made Chad Morton a cap casualty and need help in that area. It’s also worth noting that Central Michigan OT Joe Staley also would have been an excellent selection.
The Tennessee Titans have gone with a University of Texas player for the second year in a row, taking safety Michael Griffin. Last year, of course, they took quarterback Vince Young. The Titans are hoping this pick works out half as well.
None of the ESPN talking heads seem surprised but Griffin is a big reach according to the print guys, including ESPN’s Mel Kiper.
What the Experts Say:
Scout.com Profile:
Player Evaluation: A rangy centerfielder with a complete game, Griffin offers starting potential at safety and could be a dominant special-teams player.
STRENGTHS: Change of Direction, Coverage Awareness, Toughness
AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT: Anticipation
 Biography: Two-year starter and All-Conference selection as a senior after totaling 126/4/10. Blocked four kicks as a junior and accumulated 124 tackles.
Pos: Explosive safety who is an intimidating force in centerfield. Diagnoses the action, fires up the field in run defense and aggressively lays his shoulders into ball handlers. Displays outstanding sideline-to-sideline range and gets to the flanks to help cornerbacks. Shows a burst of speed and ability to recover. Wraps up tackling and punishes opponents. Terrific special-teams player.
Neg: Has tackles broken. Occasionally shows some hesitation to his game. At times is too quick moving up the field.
UPDATE Scouts.inc:
This is isn’t as bad as Miami taking Ginn, but drafting Griffin was still bad for the Titans. Most teams are looking to add one or two starters through the draft unless it’s a quarterback, and then there’s Tennessee. The Titans need a corner that can step into the starting slot opposite free-agent singing Nick Harper, a receiver that can make an immediate impact and a running back that can share the load with LenDale White. Taking a safety here rather than a receiver like Robert Meachem or Dwayne Bowe makes it a lot more difficult to fill those holes. That’s not to say Griffin isn’t going to be a player in this league. Though he gets caught out of position at times and he needs to get a little bigger, he will smack the ball carrier in the mouth and has above-average cover skills, so he should push for immediate playing time.
Ian Rapoport has a longish feature on why Major Applewhite, hired by Nick Saban to fill a yet-undefined offensive role on his staff, is considered the Next Big Thing in college coaching.
“He’s a very analytical young man,” said Greg Davis, the Longhorns’ offensive coordinator who coached Applewhite. “And he tries to break things down to not only simple terms, but also common sense terms. I think the quarterbacks will fall in love with him, and he’ll do a great job.”
[...]
While Saban’s staff includes some noteworthy names, the hiring of Applewhite is perhaps the most intriguing. Not just because he grew up a hard-core fan of the Crimson Tide. Not just because, as Rice University’s offensive coordinator last season, his spread offense helped the Owls to their first bowl game since 1961. Not just because his often heroic collegiate career captured the interest of a nation. It’s because of what Applewhite, with his sharp understanding of the game, can do for the Crimson Tide.
“He thinks of plays off the top of his head like no man I’ve ever been around,” said Rice sophomore receiver Jarett Dillard, a Biletnikoff Award finalist. “He’s a mastermind.”
In leading Rice to its most prolific offensive season in its history, the thinking man’s style of Applewhite was contagious. “I was able to learn so much about the game, offensive philosophy, what a defense is doing, why things are the way they are,” recalled Rice quarterback Chase Clement. “He elevated my mental game more than anything.”
[...]
Despite splitting time with NFL-bound Chris Simms, Applewhite had a 22-8 record as a starter at Texas, finishing as the school’s all-time leader in several categories, including passing yards (8,353) and touchdown passes (60). It had storybook moments, including his comeback win over Washington in the 2001 Holiday Bowl.
Applewhite worked at Texas for two years as a graduate assistant, at Syracuse for one year as quarterback coach, then in one year as Rice’s offensive coordinator. But it was his playing career that gave him instant credibility. “Most of us saw the way he played on the field, and we kind of allowed him to take the leadership role,” Clement said. “We all believed in him.”
[...]
Colleagues say he has no set scheme. He does not try to force a system onto his players. Quite the opposite. And he constantly reacts based on what the defense gives him. “He’s going to adjust whatever he has to adjust to get the ball to guys to make plays,” Dillard said. “At Rice, we were a one-back, quick-tempo, coming-at-you-fast kind of thing. If the defense runs this, we’re giving you that. If you want to play 10 yards off the ball, we’ll run a hitch all day. We’re taking whatever you give us.”
The bad thing about having The Next Big Thing on your coaching staff is that you’ll almost certainly lose him. My guess is Saban will be with the Tide for years to come, since he’s learned he doesn’t want to be in the NFL and it’s hard to imagine that there’s a better college job out there for him. Still, it’ll be nice to have the phenom teaching Alabama quarterbacks and calling the plays while it lasts.
Rick Gosselin, the Dallas Morning News’ Hall of Fame sportswriter, explains why it’s so much better to be a coach in a big-time college program than in the NFL:
I think Nick Saban suffered from Steve Spurrier Syndrome. Winning in the NFL isn’t as easy as a great college coach may think, so it’s back to campus life where you can coast at 9-2 in an off year. For that reason, Pete Carroll and Charlie Weis should never leave the college game. They have better jobs right now at Southern Cal and Notre Dame, respectively, than what they can find in the NFL.
Michigan, Ohio State and Texas are also better head-coaching positions than any you’d find in the NFL. The Cowboys are about as marquee a franchise as there is in the NFL – and they’ve run through four coaches since winning their last Super Bowl in 1995. And a fifth coach could be on the way. Green Bay? Four since their last Super Bowl in 1996. New York Giants? Four since their last Super Bowl in 1990. Washington? Six since winning their last Super Bowl in 1991. Oakland? The Raiders are soon to be on their fourth coach since appearing in their last Super Bowl in 2002.
Stability wins in coaching. You can find it in college. You rarely find it in the NFL.
Indeed. The Raiders’ stat is the scariest: They went to the Super Bowl in five years ago. That coach was fired the very next year. Then his successor got fired. Then his. Then his. That’s just staggering.
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