Thursday, 3 a.m.
5 Observations
1. When USF has the ball, I think of the possibilities. I think of the weapons. I think in a hurry, because the Bulls may soon be kicking the extra point. But when USF's opponent has the ball, I wonder if this team can avoid losing three times this year.
2. Give credit to Dan Mullen for the job he has done in the middle of the stream. The Gators who lost to Kentucky weren't very good. But since then, they've been impressive. A nice first step.
3. By the way, when did Florida pass FSU?
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4. Every now and then, Miami shouts to the world that, no, it isn't back. Sometimes, it's on its back. The Hurricanes will not succeed until they have a quarterback.
5. UCF seems to be taking advantage of voters who can't remember that they've played a weak schedule. It's not their fault, but yeah, it should count in a person's vote.
They Said It
(On college football's upsets): "It's tough each and every week. You gotta come ready to play, but I think that's what makes college football so fun and exciting because you can't take a week off. Everybody is good now and the parity of college football is a lot closer than what it used to be, which makes the game great. You just gotta come ready to play. You gotta be on your A game I think is really important. I think you see the teams that's winning a lot, the teams that are winning championships, they play to a certain standard every week no matter who they're playing. And I think that's what we all aspire for our football teams to be. You have a standard in the way you play, so you don't play up or down to your opponents. That's what championship football teams do."
-- FSU coach Willie Taggart
(On entitlement): “The guys that come to Florida, come to Florida and they’re putting on that Gator uniform, they think that entitles them to play in and win big games just because of what’s happened before them. I think one of the things that’s changed with this team right now is they’re learning as a team how to come together and how hard you have to work and the things you need to do to be successful out there on the field. I think it started when we first got here through the offseason and they saw their physical growth and conditioning growth. Once the season started, they’ve bought into working and practicing harder every single week. All of a sudden they noticed they started playing better. Hey, when the guys start to believe that this team approach, how we’re doing things, this program, we’re going to be successful. You’re going to find a way to win these tough games.”
-- Florida coach Dan Mullen
(On soul-searching): “I think everybody’s got to do that and make sure that whatever responsibility they’re in charge of that they’re doing the very best they can. ...And then if things gotta be changed, change them. If things just gotta get done better, then set it up where you can get better at it.’’
-- Miami coach Mark Richt
(On looking ahead): "You can't worry about their record. This is a conference game, and you're always gonna get your opponent's best. So the thing we've got to do is put together our best. We need to get out, we need to start fast, we need to play well, we need to play with great fundamentals and technique. We've just got to get started and get going."
-- USF coach Charlie Strong
Player of the Week
He didn't score a touchdown. He didn't have 100 yards receiving. All Tyre McCants did was win the game for USF.
McCants caught a 37-yard pass in the dying seconds Saturday night, allowing the Bulls to kick a game-winning field goal. For the night, McCants caught eight balls for 91 yards.
He is a bowling ball of a wide receiver, a thick, fullback-looking wideout. but he is perhaps the most dependable player on USF. '
Team of the Week
Yes, LSU lost to Florida. But the Tigers have three big wins -- over Miami, over Auburn and over Georgia -- to get to the outskirts of the national title discussion. Their thumping of a previously unbeaten Georgia team assured that.
LSU plays a tough schedule. They still have Mississippi State, Alabama and Texas A&M to go. But they've played their way into a chance.
5 Computer Ratings
Team Colley. Billingsley Sagarin A&H Wolfe
Florida 9 7 12 6 6
UCF 12 13 31 14 14
USF 17 28 63 16 17
Miami 35 39 21 22 39
FSU 74 57 59 80 71
FAU 82 65 95 74 80
FIU 65 80 101 81 66
5 Leading Passers (Florida)
11. McKenzie Milton, UCF 299.5
30. Blake Barnett, USF 257.5
37. Deondre Francois, FSU 251.0
43. Chris Robison, FAU 236.0
49. James Morgan, FIU 228.0
5 Leading Rushers (Florida)
3. Jordan Cronkrite, USF 151.4
16. Devin Singletary, FAU 104.5
54. Travis Homer, Miami 75.6
90. Adrian Killins, UCF 64.2
106. Cam Akers, FSU 60.3
5 Leading Receivers (Florida)
35. Jovon Durante, FAU. 82.8
37. Gabriel Davis, UCF 83.2
57. C.J. Worton, FIU 76.5
83. Darnell Salomon, USF 65.8
90. Tyre McCants, USF 64.3
5 Leading Sackers
5. Jachai Polite, Florida 7
9. Brian Burns, FSU 5
46. Jonathan Garvin, Miami. 4
46. Josh Black, USF 4
36. Joe Jackson, Miami 4
Bowl Projections (USA Today)
USF-FIU Gasparilla Bowl
FAU-Toledo Bahamas Bowl
Miami-Auburn Music City Bowl
FSU-Arizona State Sun Bowl
UCF-LSU Peach Bowl
Florida-Washington Fiesta Bowl
Skins
(Games Won by Teams Beaten)
Florida 21
USF 15
UCF 14
Miami 12
FSU 9
FAU 7
FIU 7
Best-Ever Miami Hurricanes
(One of a Series)
1. Jerome Brown
2. Warren Sapp
3. Vinny Testaverde
4. Ed Reed
5. Ted Hendricks
Random List
Former Champions Who Will Never Win It Again
1. Princeton
2. Yale
3. Colgate
4. Detroit
5. Minnesota
Florida Schedule
Wake Forest at FSU
UConn at USF
UCF at East Carolina
FAU at Marshall
Rice at FIU
National Games of Note
Michigan at Michigan State
Alabama at Tennessee
Mississippi State at LSU
N.C. State at Clemson
Cincinnati at Temple
5 Closing Thoughts
1. It says here that Scott Frost plays in a major bowl before Chip Kelly. We're talking about the 18th of never against the 12th of never.
2. UConn has yet to hold one of this year's opponents to less than 49 points. You think that will be enough to win for USF?
3. Yes, they're unbeaten. No, N.C. State doesn't have a chance against Clemson.
4. The last time I used this analogy, Robert Conrad himself called me to complain. But I think that USF is stuck in an episode of the Wild, Wild West where the star was always in danger at the commercial break.
5. At this very minute, Lane Kiffin is scouting a day-care center.
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