Two weeks into the college football season and we’re already turning national championship contenders into pretenders. Meanwhile we’ve got a couple of teams There was also another non-BCS school set to crash the party at the same time. And both things happened in the same game.
West Virginia came to Greenville, North Carolina with thoughts of snuffing out the good vibes the Pirates were feeling after beating Virginia Tech the previous Saturday.
Unfortunately that never happened for the Mountaineers as East Carolina notched its second straight upset, 24-3, giving a nice payday to bettors that took them to win outright at a plus 270 return (risk $100 to win $270).
Once again, it was quarterback Patrick Pinkney putting together a near perfect performance. The ECU signal caller connected on 22 of 28 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown, improving his completion percentage to 80.4 and a rating of 167.0.
More importantly for the Pirates is they’ll be talked about ad naseum on television and sports bars alike for an invite to a BCS Bowl. Conversely, the Mountaineers will once more noted as the winningest program to not win a national championship.
Speaking of national championships, the Buckeyes were frighteningly close at tossing those dreams into the Olentangy River.
Ohio State was a heavy 34-point home “chalk,” but were without running back Beanie Wells. While Wells’ absence wasn’t supposed to be a major issue against the Bobcats, but OSU didn’t have a rusher tally more than 50 yards.
The Bucks’ passing game was also unable to get on track as Todd Boeckman completed 16 of 26 passes for 110 yards. Yet Boeckman’s most memorable play was losing a snap over his head in the third quarter to give Ohio a 14-6 lead.
OSU eventually outlasted the Bobcats, 26-14. But the Buckeyes needed some luck in the form of a muffed punt and clip during a runback going uncalled to pull away late in the game. That will still make the Sept. 13 trip to Southern California meaningful.
I couldn’t help but feel bad for Temple after its 12-9 overtime loss to the Huskies. The Owls were able to stop Connecticut on 10 of 13 third downs, while picking an interception and a fumble. Unfortunately the monsoon conditions meant they couldn’t find solid enough footing to make it into the end zone. At least they cashed in tickets as 6 ½-point home ‘dogs.
If the Commodores didn’t get respect in the SEC before, they just might get it now after beating South Carolina for the second straight season. In the same breath you could say that the Gamecock experiment hasn’t worked out for the Ol’ Ball Coach.
The craziest happening from this past weekend had to be up in Seattle. The Huskies paid dividends as eight-point home underdogs, but could have been a bigger payday at 3/1 to win outright. Sadly, Jake Locker isn’t allowed to celebrate a clutch touchdown against Brigham Young by tossing the ball into the air.
The unsportsmanlike conduct infraction pushed the point after attempt back 15 yards and the Cougars blocked the kick to win 28-27. I understand the rule and its purpose, but it still sucks for Washington.
Perhaps it is just me, but I didn’t think the Hurricanes played badly overall at Florida. Sure, they lost as 24-point road pups, but they held their own into the fourth period losing 9-3. What did kill Miami was playing against a Gator defense that is easily the fastest in the nation…especially against the run as evidenced by UM’s gaining just 61 yards on the ground.
You can reach Judd Hall via e-mail at judd@vegasinsider.com
