| That's right - the Ferringo Report is back for | | | | Spurrier pulled out the wide receiver option pass. |
| another fun-filled season! And this year, The | | | | MSU was caught with its pants down and the |
| Report has extended its diabolical reach into the | | | | Gamecocks managed the game's lone touchdown. |
| realm of college football. Not to worry, I'll still | | | | That's the difference coaching makes.- Somehow, |
| share my reflections on the National Football | | | | even though it shouldn't have surprised anyone, |
| League, but college will be on Monday and pro will | | | | who wasn't utterly shocked to find out the |
| be on Tuesday.In the meantime, here are my | | | | Crocodile Hunter was killed? After watching him |
| random, nonsensical ravings about a wild Week 1 | | | | dance with King Cobras and brush the teeth of |
| in the World of College Football:- The Big East | | | | frenzied crocs a few dozen times, I thought the |
| would have to be the conference I was most | | | | guy was the real-life Beast Master. Steve Irwin |
| impressed with last weekend. Beast schools | | | | was supposed to be indestructible. The best a |
| finished 7-1 straight up and 5-0 against the spread, | | | | person can hope for in life is to find something |
| and notched a pair of rousing victories over ACC | | | | that they can be as passionate about as that guy |
| schools (Pitt hammered Virginia; Rutgers handled | | | | was with animals.- With all the concern about rule |
| North Carolina). The Mike Bush injury has all but | | | | changes and games being shortened, the effect |
| eliminated Louisville from BCS contention (I wasn't | | | | on over/under bettors was minimal. In the 44 |
| a believer anyway - not with that defense) but it | | | | games that had posted totals, teams went 21-23 |
| also opened the door for a powerful West Virginia | | | | against the number.The only part of the rule |
| team to possibly run the table and earn a slot in | | | | change I don't like is starting the clock after a |
| the National Title Game.Here's a look at how each | | | | change of possession. That's ridiculous.- Who |
| of the six major conferences performed:ACC: 6-4 | | | | looked less impressive than Michigan last |
| straight-up, 2-5 against the spread, four games | | | | weekend? Oh, that's right - Michigan State.- USC is |
| off the board. | | | | a machine. They lost 91 percent of their total |
| Big East: 7-1 SU, 5-0 ATS, two games OTB. | | | | offense last season and rang up 50 points, on the |
| Big 10: 11-0 SU, 6-2 ATS, three games OTB. | | | | road, in their opener. Quite impressive.- Penn |
| Big 12: 10-2 SU, 3-3 ATS, six games OTB. | | | | State and the University of Georgia have both |
| Pac-10: 7-3 SU, 3-5 ATS, two games OTB. | | | | banned alcohol from parking lot tailgate parties. |
| SEC: 8-4 SU, 6-5 ATS, one game OTB.An | | | | They want pregame to be a safer environment. I |
| interesting side note is that only four of the 12 | | | | say if people want safe they should stay home. |
| teams in the Big 12 returned their starting | | | | Tailgate parties should be a staging point for |
| quarterbacks, while nine of the 11 Big 10 schools | | | | hedonism, vulgarity and general debauchery. |
| brought back their signal caller. That may have | | | | That's what makes college football so fun. The |
| something to do with the ATS disparity. Or not.- | | | | word "college" is involved. There should be |
| Someone explain to me the big to-do about Cal? I | | | | drunkenness, nakedness and all manner of |
| don't care who you are, you don't just walk into | | | | recklessness. What's this world coming to?- Do |
| Knoxville and kick the Volunteers around. | | | | you think it's any coincidence that now that the |
| Especially not with a starting quarterback that | | | | Yankees have extended their lead to nine games |
| was named about 15 seconds before kickoff. | | | | A-Rod is suddenly unstoppable? Now with no |
| Tennessee is now 12-0 straight-up and 9-3 ATS in | | | | pressure the guy morphs into Babe Ruth. But |
| season openers over the past dozen years. The | | | | when the chips are down, you know he's going to |
| Vols are going to be dangerous this season as | | | | fold faster than the French army.- I was at a |
| they seek retribution for the Debacle of 2005.- | | | | Jocks and Jills in Alpharetta, GA on Saturday and |
| Week 1 of the college football season has | | | | about 40 rowdy Oklahoma fans had reserved a |
| become the equivalent of NFL preseason football. | | | | room for a private party. Fortunately, I left |
| Twenty-nine teams played Division I-AA schools | | | | before the end of the first quarter of the OU |
| this weekend. This season there will be 74 games | | | | UAB contest. I have a feeling they would've burnt |
| played between the big boys and their Div. I-AA | | | | that place to the ground if Adrian Peterson hadn't |
| little sisters. Last year there were just 45 such | | | | put that team on his back in the second half. The |
| matchups.The humorous - or distressing - part of | | | | Sooners are severely on tilt.- Chris Spielman and |
| the story is that two I-AA teams actually won! | | | | Sean McDonough were calling the |
| Montana State humiliated Colorado and Richmond | | | | Michigan-Vanderbilt contest on Saturday. After |
| treated Duke like the pansies they are.Also, | | | | about the 28th dropped pass in the game, |
| what's up with counting these games towards | | | | Spielman told a story about how he teaches the |
| bowl eligibility? That's not the case in college | | | | pee wee kids that he coaches to catch the ball |
| hoops, so what gives with football? I think all that | | | | with their hands instead of with their body. "I find |
| does is give schools a reason to go out and put | | | | that if you whip the ball right at their face, they |
| more cupcakes on their slate.- During the first half | | | | get those two hands up there," he said, getting |
| of the Notre Dame-Georgia Tech game I was | | | | increasingly angry as he told the tale. He |
| having serious flashbacks to Super Bowl XXXVI. | | | | apologized afterwards for his "passion". Priceless.- |
| That was the game in which Charlie Weis' New | | | | Take your hat off to Northwestern. They proved |
| England club took down an infinitely more talented | | | | once again that football can be transcendent, and |
| St. Louis squad in one of the Big Game's great | | | | they showed the college football fraternity that |
| upsets. The Rams downfall was their hubris and | | | | their fallen coach taught them well.- Kenny Irons is |
| their soft game plan.You would think Weis - an | | | | legit, and will soon join Cadillac Williams, Ronnie |
| alleged football genius - would know better than | | | | Brown and Brandon Jacobs as the next successful |
| to come out pussy-footing around against a very | | | | Auburn-to-NFL running back. Irons looks a bit |
| game Tech team. Dinky passing and no rushing | | | | bigger and stronger this season, and he hasn't lost |
| attack doomed the Irish to a 10-0 deficit. It | | | | that burst that helped him gain 1,300 yards last |
| wasn't until they started grinding it out on the | | | | season.The Tigers dominated a decent |
| ground that they established control.Also, with six | | | | Washington State squad 40-14, but may be |
| months to design a defense to stop | | | | caught in a bit of a look-ahead game this |
| Yellowjackets uber-wideout Calvin Johnson you | | | | weekend. Auburn travels to Starkville to face |
| would've thought Notre Dame would've done a | | | | Mississippi State before hosting LSU in a critical |
| better job. Like, say, triple-teaming Johnson from | | | | SEC clash.- What happened to the Metro-Atlantic |
| the opening snap. That shouldn't have been a | | | | Conference? The daddies of the MAC have been |
| halftime adjustment - that should've been the plan | | | | thorns in the side of Goliath over the past few |
| all along. That's a red flag.- Sylvester Croom | | | | seasons. However, they were a putrid 3-7-1 ATS |
| should be coaching Pop Warner football. Mississippi | | | | and looked downright feeble doing it.- Even if Gary |
| State faced fourth-and-one at the South Carolina | | | | Throne had a hard time telling them apart, |
| 45, down 6-0 with about 14 minutes left in the | | | | Rutgers halfback Ray Rice (black) and fullback |
| fourth quarter. Now, I loved the call to go for it, | | | | Brian Leonard (white) may comprise the best |
| but how about digging into the playbook a little bit. | | | | backfield in the nation. Rutgers is legit this year |
| The Bulldogs averaged 2.4 yards per rush for the | | | | and I'm already calling that they win their bowl |
| game and were getting hammered at the point of | | | | game.- I had heard that LSU quarterback |
| attack. What'd Croom do? Just ran up the gut. No | | | | JaMarcus Russell beefed up over the summer. But |
| misdirection. No ingenuity. Just a dive play. The | | | | until I saw all 6-feet, 6-inches and 252 pounds of |
| result: minus-two yards. If they had simply faked | | | | him sliding around the field I didn't realize just how |
| and sent the quarterback on a bootleg - which | | | | big he'd gotten. He might be the best quarterback |
| they had set up by trying to run up the middle | | | | in the SEC, and the Tigers will be a BCS dark |
| for the entire game - they would have picked up | | | | horse because of him.- Reggie Ball is the Nick |
| 25 yards easily.Conversely, after stopping the | | | | Anderson of college football.- Give me some of |
| Bulldogs on that crucial fourth down, Steve | | | | whatever Tiger Woods is eating these days. |