Congrats to Alabama on its first national title since 1992 … The game was a fitting way to end the season. It wasn’t exactly the most scintillating year, was it? … No truly dominant team, no truly dominant Heisman winner, no masterfully-played title game, either … In short, the game sort of summed up how the season went … Don’t count HP as one who was shocked by ‘Bama’s title, we saw the Tide as a legit title contender from the start … All that said, the win over Texas could be seen as just a tad hollow, as Colt McCoy’s injury really changed everything and sucked most of the competitiveness out of the game for a good three quarters … If Garrett Gilbert could get the Longhorns to within three with three minutes to play, how would McCoy have done? … All credit goes to Bama, though, for making the big plays when it needed to and earning that title. I think the Tide were the best team in the country, though maybe they didn’t get a chance to show it last night … Despite the injury to McCoy, the Longhorns still could’ve won if not for two big plays: First, the horrible shovel pass call at the end of the first half. If the Longhorns take a knee, or if Gilbert manages to tackle Marcell Dareus, the Tide go into the half with just a 13-point lead … (Speaking of Dareus, he was the true MVP of the game, as he knocked McCoy out and scored what turned out to be the game-winning TD) … The other big play was Malcolm Williams’ drop of a perfectly-thrown Gilbert pass in the end zone. It was a sure touchdown that would’ve changed the complexion of the game … Texas must’ve had something like six or seven drops–not easy to recover from that! … Two areas of perceived strength were exposed: First, the Longhorn rushing defense showed it could be throttled by an irresistable force, namely the left side of the Crimson Tide offensive line and Bama running backs, who all run with great forward lean and determination … It’s refreshing to see such a straight-forward attack executed so crisply … It’s not like Texas didn’t know the runs were coming–Greg McElroy only attempted 12 passes all game–so, Alabama won this battle mano a mano … The second exposure was the Alabama secondary, which was riddled for parts of the second half by a freshman quarterback … Makes you wonder about the proficiency of the passing attacks Bama played during the year and also how McCoy would’ve fared … If I could’ve changed anything about the call of the game, I would’ve taken Brent Musberger off of the play-by-play duties. He steadfastly refuses to call the game straight and continuously projects his own hunches onto the teams, as in “You can feel the momentum starting to shift now…” … Herbstreit was good, as usual, but it’d be nice if the lead guy wasn’t so self-reverential … At least Fox wasn’t telecasting it and reminding us that quarterbacks don’t have helmet sound gear in the college game (we know that, thanks) … I’m really worried about Lee Corso, whose slurred speech was almost indecipherable at times … Has any BCS game winner ever gone 2 for 12 on third down, as Bama did? … The total passing yards by both teams has to be the fewest in a title-determining game in at least 30 years … My final prediction for the game was a 23-21 Tide win. With three minutes to go, that looked pretty good … The No. 1 impediment to Mark Ingram’s 2010 Heisman campaign was on full display last night, as it’s going to be really tough to keep Trent Richardson off the field for much of the time next year… Ingram had the better game overall, but Richardson’s talent just pops out at you a bit more at times. ..Texas loses some key guys on defense, but you have to like its 2010 outlook as it returns emerging talents like Tre Newton, D.J. Monroe, the Acho brothers, Marquise Goodwin and Gilbert, who almost pulled off the unlikeliest of comebacks and showed some pretty good flashes in the process … He wasn’t a huge recruit for nothing … Texas might be the trendy pick in 2011 … But Bama is the natural pick for preseason No. 1 in 2010. Nick Saban has the program humming and it will only get better with the incoming recruiting class, which is heavy with defensive studs and should be ranked top five in the country … When a team returns its quarterback, its top two running backs, its top two receivers and eight of 10 of the two-deep on the offensive line, it’s going to be ranked high. However, there are seven seniors to be replaced on defense and maybe Rolando McClain, too … The big question will be: Can an inconsistent Tide offense carry this team back to the promised land? … It helps that the SEC will be in a bit of flux as Florida, Georgia and LSU continue to retool. The main challenger to Bama’s SEC supremacy might be Arkansas … In the end, having Saban at the controls gives the Tide a distinct edge … Though he could smile a bit more, huh? … An early top five for 2010: 1. Alabama 2. Ohio State 3. Oregon 4. Miami 5. Boise State … Now, time to get ready for 2010 … National Signing Day is just three weeks away!
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Recent HP media mentions: ESPN College Game Day (12/3) ... VS./NBC CFB Talk (12/5) ... SJ Mercury News (12/5) ... Seattle Times (12/5) ... Idaho Statesman (12/5) ... Associated Press (12/6) ... Huntsville Times (12/6)
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THE HP HEISMAN WATCH
Glen Turner
Man. Where to start.
Listen, I know you said some complimentary things about Alabama, and I’ll acknowledge that. I’ll also admit that I’m ignoring it.
But some of things you said to devalue Bama’s accomplishments last night are just, IMHO, silly. And that’s what this post is about.
It wasn’t exactly the most scintillating year, was it? … No truly dominant team.
No dominant team? Really?
How many other seasons do you see a team take on the top 2 contenders, back-to-back, both on neutral sites, at the end of the season when the real contenders are truly established, and win by 17 and 19? I’ll wait for you tell me about the “dominant teams” who have done that in the past. (Hint: Never. Nobody. Ever.)
Or is it because Alabama had a couple of close games? How many seasons can you name for me where teams who played tough schedules never had a close game. Alabama played teams that finished 2nd, 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 20th, only one of them at home, and those final ranks were even after each of those teams took an L from Bama. Again, tell me about the teams that played schedules like that and didn’t have a close game.
no masterfully-played title game, either
I’ll admit, this wasn’t a truly great game, like USC-Texas, or Alabama-Florida in the ’08 SEC Championship, but I think I’m on quite safe ground by calling it one of the top 5 BCS championship games, combining entertainment, suspense, and quality of play to rank the games. Stinkers are the rule, not the exception.
In short, the game sort of summed up how the season went
It’s fashionable to dis this season, but I for one don’t see it. Not at all.
I’ve been watching college football for 47 years now. I don’t recall another season where 6 teams made it through the regular season undefeated. I know there has never been another season that ended with two straight matchups of undefeated #1 vs undefeated #2.
What else is it you’re looking for? Does Notre Dame have to be great or something? I call this a memorable, great season.
All that said, the win over Texas could be seen as just a tad hollow, as Colt McCoy’s injury really changed everything and sucked most of the competitiveness out of the game for a good three quarters … If Garrett Gilbert could get the Longhorns to within three with three minutes to play, how would McCoy have done?
Here, I have to call some major league BS. No make that World Series. And again, where do I start?
OK, first: did you know Greg McElroy played with two broken ribs? The whole game? Did you notice that he wasn’t even the shadow of the QB he has been from the LSU game on? And not even the shadow of the shadow of the QB he was against Florida on December 5? Which, by the way, was a day he turned in a championship-game performance about 1000 times better than the championship-game performance Colt McCoy turned in that same day?
Isn’t that worth mentioning? Doesn’t that put the whole “wah wah wah Colt McCoy got hurt” thing in a different context?
OK, next. Was Colt McCoy injured because he got struck by lightning after a black cat crossed his path? No, he got injured because Mack Brown took a calculated risk to stretch his playbook and keep Alabama off-balance with called quarterback keepers up the middle against the most physical defense in the land. You pays your money, you takes your chances. Nick Saban gambled on a fake punt and failed – Mack Brown gambled on putting quarterback runs in the game plan and failed.
OK, 3rd: I’m sorry, but this one makes me wax livid. I know you know more football than to think that “Texas got within 3 with Gilbert therefore they would’ve won with McCoy” is a valid syllogism, so engage brain prior to writing.
Obviously, it would’ve been a different game. Did you get the impression Alabama took the foot off the gas in the 3rd quarter? Here’s another hint: of course they did. And clearly, it was a mistake, and it made the game much more interesting than it should’ve been. But if the game is closer, the foot never comes off the gas.
I wish McCoy hadn’t been injured. For sure, it’s a different game once he is; and your mileage may vary, but from my perspective the way Alabama roadgraded Texas for the last 22 or so minutes of the first half, I don’t think Colt McCoy’s presence would ultimately have made a hill of beans. At the best, he keeps it close a little longer like Tim Tebow did on December 5, so Bama never takes the foot off the gas until it’s really over, like against Florida. Alabama played great QBs all year and kept winning.
Despite the injury to McCoy, the Longhorns still could’ve won if not for two big plays: First, the horrible shovel pass call at the end of the first half.
More standard media narrative. A team trailing by 11 with 2nd and 1 at the 39 is supposed to just tank it with 15 seconds and a TO left? Say what??? They can’t even call something conservative like a shovel pass? It was Gilbert’s execution that screwed that up, not Mack Brown’s coaching. Oh, and Marcell Dareus influenced the outcome as well.
The other big play was Malcolm Williams’ drop of a perfectly-thrown Gilbert pass in the end zone. It was a sure touchdown
Funny, I’ve watched the game twice now and I missed that play. I know you can’t be talking about that throw into the end zone in the 2nd quarter, the one where Marquis Johnson hit Williams’s wrist with a perfectly-timed left cross – and I mean a real life left cross, that was wound up and thrown with a body twist – exactly as the ball got there, high above both players’ heads. That ball was not catchable by any football player in the game.
The second exposure was the Alabama secondary, which was riddled for parts of the second half by a freshman quarterback … Makes you wonder about the proficiency of the passing attacks Bama played during the year and also how McCoy would’ve fared …
Again, where do I start.
OK, first, this was the #2 QB on maybe the deepest roster in college football. He was the top recruit in high school last year, according to some analysts. If he was #2 on this roster, that means he must’ve been pretty good, and he was also surrounded by loads of talent. And this game was not in August, it was in January. Gilbert needed to be ready, and if Texas was going to run its starter up the middle on keepers there’s no room to whine if they don’t have a #2.
Basically, I don’t think giving up 2 TD passes while sitting on a lead, while making 4 picks, was a stinking horrible performance under the circumstances. In fact, I’ll take it all day long, any day. If you had told me when Colt McCoy went down that he wasn’t coming back, and asked me if I would take 2 TDs and 4 picks from Gilbert, man I woulda jumped all over it, and I already knew Bama probably had the top defensive backfield in the country.
Second, the other passers Alabama has played? Ummm, Tim Tebow, Ryan Mallet, Tyrod Taylor, Jonathan Crompton, Jevan Snead, Chuck Todd – these are chopped liver?
PAC 10 Homer
Everybody knows HP is always biased against the SEC and will do what he can to deflate the SEC. HP, where’s your kudos to the SEC for winning 4 championships in a row? So, you’re questioning the passing attacks that Bama faced because of Texas success in this game throwing the ball? Gilbert was 15 of 40 with 2 TDs and 4 Ints. That makes you think Bama’s pass D is weak? Only someone with an ulterior motive could possibly be blind enough to interpret that as suggesting Bama’s pass D is weak? And lastly, why don’t you mention the would of could of stuff for Bama that you mention for Texas. I mean, how lucky could Texas be to recover two kicks? That’s luck…sacking a QB and Intercepting a QB is often not luck…kicking the ball as hard as you can right at a Bama guy and having it bounce right to your team…that’s luck!
Anyway, HP, you’re sports analysis has been shamefully biased all year by your PAC 10 love.
Stephen
I’m a USC student like HP was a lifetime ago, but even I’m ashamed by the SEC hate he spews.
Dawgy
Why is anyone surprised? HP has been spewing the SEC jealousy forever. He trys to disquise it but, it doesn’t work.
BTW HP, what did you think of that SEC speed?