The Tailgate - Prepping For Week 2

By Jack Bonden
Love of Spoorts Correspondent

Week 1 is in the book, and aside from one or two games, it didn’t really show us all that much.

We’ll be a little more fortunate as we head into this weekend’s action, though not a whole hell of a lot, honestly.

The Tailgate

1. Matchup of the Week: Texas Tech vs. Nevada

I thought about maybe making a snarky comment along the lines of “Games of the Weak,” since there’s not many good matchups this weekend, but then I came to my senses — it’s college football, and I don’t really care if there are any good games on or not. Never shall an ill word cross my lips about one of our precious few weekends of competition.

The nation’s spotlight will be drawn to the Florida-Miami game in Gainesville, but I’m strangely attracted to the collision between Mike Leach’s throw-it-‘til-it-hurts Texas Tech Red Raiders and Nevada coach Chris Ault’s unique “Pistol” offense.

Tech felt a little buzz in the offseason. Their offense is a known commodity, though not completely unstoppable. They’re going to score a bunch of points pretty much every week. But toward the end of last season, their defense put up some fairly impressive numbers in conference. The thought was that if the defense could be consistently good (not great, but good) this season, then they had a chance to break through into the nation’s elite.

After their first game, though, the jury’s still out. They didn’t bring their A-game on defense against Eastern Washington, but it’s important to resist criticizing them for giving up 341 yards in the air; EWU attempted 60+ passes, after all. But it was an inconsistent effort on the defensive side of the ball.

Moreover, the Red Raiders were exceedingly sloppy. They committed 18 penalties for 169 yards, which is nigh inexcusable for a supposed contender. It’s tempting to write that off as a first-game issue, but I’m not so sure you can turn that kind of sloppiness on and off like a switch.

Nevada, on the other hand, looked sharper in their opener against Grambling State. They rushed for 400+, threw for another 200+ and held Grambling to just five yards of rushing on 40 attempts.

In some ways, Ault is to the running game what Leach is to the passing game. His Pistol offense utilizes some spread principles, but it focuses on a single-back set with a short shotgun snap to the quarterback. It’s not a pure run-only offense, but it can produce some spectacular numbers in the ground game when it is working.

Tech has the size and raw talent advantage at most spots on the field, but Nevada has the advantage of playing at home, and, because of the uniqueness of their offense, a puncher’s chance in most games they play. This one will be entertaining on a lot of different levels.

2. Totally Accountable Prediction

Fulye wel can Þe Taylgat maken predyctiones, nd fulye wel willeth be Þe Taylgat to paye reckonyng complet for hem qualitye.

(OK, so I love Chaucer. Deal with it.)

Utah, East Carolina and Fresno State all won their way into the BCS Buster conversation with opening weekend wins, joining preseason candidates BYU and Boise State. Clearly, any one of these teams will have to go undefeated to make a BCS game, much like Utah did in 2004, Boise State did in 2006 and Hawai’i did last season.

2008 will be a bad year for gridiron populism, however. This year’s BCS will be 100% blue-blood. No team from a non-BCS school will finish the season undefeated and therefore none will secure a BCS bowl bid.

3. Player to Watch: Miami QB Robert Marve

Taking your first collegiate snap at night in The Swamp against a motivated Florida team is hardly a recipe for success. It’s been so long since the Gators have beaten “Tha U,” that the last time it happened they actually spelled it “Tha V.” Florida’s aware of this, and they’re also aware a good pummeling would be a nice reminder to all the freakish athletes being created in labs all over south Florida that the Gators are still running the show in the state.

Miami looked great in their opening win over, well, uh, whoever they played. Florida looked equally good in their win over Hawai’i. In particular, people seem to think Florida’s secondary is much improved since their (and let this one sink in for a second) gouging through the air by a Lloyd Carr-led Michigan team in last season’s Capital One Bowl. Like much else about the early season, though, this idea that Florida’s secondary has improved is based largely on conjecture, notoriously unreliable reports from practice, and the opinions of recruiting types.

Marve doesn’t have a whole lot to throw to and an unspectacular line protecting him. All of this adds up to a busy night for running back Javarris James, and a rough night for Marve.

However, the worst-case scenario for Florida is pretty worst-case in this instance. If Marve’s somehow able to keep Miami in the game by exposing the Florida secondary as a newer version of the same pass defense from last season, then the Gators’ drive back to the top of the mountain will get a whole lot hairier.

4. Objection, Your Honor…

In his Week 1 Huddle recap column, the venerable Powers Kane tapped the BYU-Washington game as his matchup of the week:

“This is a game that’ll define both teams’ seasons. Will we look back at this game as the Cougars’ coming out party en route to a BCS bowl? For Washington, a loss here will be disastrous.”

No problems with my man Powers’ selection here — it’s a matchup of two intriguing teams, but the matchup is more interesting for the off-the-field drama than the on-the-field action. On the field, it’s a complete mismatch. The Cougars are a nine-point road favorite. Other than a nasty case of “the fumbles,” they looked sharp against Division I-AA power Northern Iowa. Washington, on the other hand, was so lifeless against Oregon they couldn’t even draw upon their supposed hatred of the Ducks for a little lift.

BYU has upperclassmen all over the field. Washington started 10 underclassmen against Oregon. The Cougars are openly striving for a perfect season. Any similar bravado coming out of Seattle is merely lip service. Washington’s in trouble, and they know it.

So, deepest apologies, Powers, but I have to disagree wholeheartedly with your argument about this one. BYU’s coming out party comes next week against the Bruins. A loss for Washington won’t be disastrous — it will be, unfortunately for the Huskies, business as usual.

5. The Picks

The Tailgate did pretty well with last week’s picks. Like, 9-1 good. (Oooh, check out the majesties!) Yes, I picked straight up rather than against the spread. Yes, I didn’t pick the UCLA-Tennessee game, because quite honestly, I forgot about it. (It’s hard to undo the decades of hard-wiring that preclude a college fan’s mind from acknowledging a college game on a Monday.) Yes, I picked games that included an actual I-AA team, and another functionally I-AA team (sorry, Syracuse). But, yes, I also confidently had Alabama over Clemson and La. Tech over Mississippi State, so I figure that should balance out the rest.

Besides, this is college football we’re talking about. Who doesn’t indulge in a little early-season padding to get the team moving in the right direction? Here are this week’s picks:

Oklahoma over Cincinnati
Florida (FL) over Miami (FL)
West Virginia over East Carolina
Auburn over Southern Miss
Kansas over La. Tech
Penn State over Oregon State
Navy over Ball State
Georgia Tech over Boston College
Bowling Green over Minnesota
Wake Forest over Ole Miss

Last week: 9-1 (.900); Season 9-1 (.900)

(Jack Bonden’s column appears in this same spot each and every Friday.)

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