4 Hard Downs: Week 3 Was Jam Packed From The Rooter To The Tooter

Penalties, Are They Bad, Contenders vs Pretenders & Everything In Between

I am going to end on a positive note because I am already coming in hot thinking that the helmet comms are really making officiating even more difficult and no one knows that to do with it. Shifts at 15 seconds by the defense leading to false starts. Offensive stupid motion trying to figure out if they’re in man vs zone leading to offsides.

It just sucks.

Basically, they still aren’t sure what they’re doing, almost across the board with very few exceptions. The exceptions are, “we trust our QB/LB to make choices,” and, “the play is the play,” type teams. We’ve already seen teams go back to signals after the play call for the final 15 and it is just hard to tell 10 other guys what to do, while listening to a coach.

Add in the refs not figuring out, or in a better way, not realizing this evolution isn’t the same as a DT or LB barking or faking the snap count. It is a team realizing, let’s just wait until 15, coach can’t help him and he has no clue what he is doing so let’s just move.

So we’re gonna move and go ahead and SPOT THE BALL!!!

1st Down: Officiating is hard and also really bad

Need to say that if you’re in your 40s and 50s chasing around elite athlete 18-22 year olds, it might be hard to see everything and keep pace with them down the field. Hell, I have a hard time following my kid around at these Dave and Buster’s, Chuck E. Cheese or Big Air birthday parties and I’m not quite 40. Me on a football field trying to run and watch, and not die, with a guy who runs a 4.4 and I’m in trouble.

I preface everything with that.

Now, let’s get to the heart of the matter.

It is bad. Watching Florida DB Trikweze Bridges getting tossed for this is bad:

Below the waist, jumping defender, wraps up and basically puts his face in his butt and wraps up to bring him down. That is insane, to me. No helmet to helmet. No launching.

What is he supposed to do?

This is bad.

I know it is hard. Two things can be true at once. Especially when, through review, you get a redo to make it work.

This isn’t just an SEC or Pac-12 or ACC or Big 12 or Sun Belt or MAC or Big Ten or Mountain West or C-USA or AAC thing. It is a hard job that isn’t performing well and it is tough because of rules but also tough because, and I speak from experience, trying to keep up with in prime fitness 20 year olds is really hard.

Like, imagine, your uncle, trying to run with Travis Hunter on either side of the ball. Imagine yourself trying to be the umpire while Deontae Lawson might run into you but you still have to watch the G-C-G for holds or illegal man downfield. Not to go all John Lennon but imagine all the people you’re trying to officiate (the teams playing) but also watching you (live and on TV).

2nd Down: Georgia Picked A Bad Day To Have A Bad Day

They’re still the #2 team in the country but woof. What a move to play a team that got housed by South Carolina in a survival match while Texas cruises up to #1, Bama cruises, Oregon comes alive and Notre Dame seems to have fixed some things.

We all have bad days.

Kentucky’s defense was embarrassed a week ago and fired back strong.

However, the thing that struck me was that Georgia wasn’t moving bodies. Outside of a few plays, they didn’t look like the bully, the biggest, strongest and fasted on the block. They showed some vulnerability and for teams like Mizzou and Bama, this is going to be a scrap in the SEC. With no divisions and Mizzou avoids UGA, gets Bama; Bama gets UGA and Mizzou and LSU, and Tennessee.

This might be a fight Florida doesn’t want to be in because in the word’s of Spades, “The SEC has 6 and 2 possibles.” (UGA, TX, Bama, Mizz, Tenn, Ole Miss and maybe LSU or OU, I counted)

3rd Down: Who Is The Most Dangerous Team In America?

Georgia gets bumped to #2. Texas makes an aggressive leap to #1. Ohio State is a lot of folks’ pick to win it all. Mizzou and Oregon and Ole Miss are fun.

Tennessee and Alabama are the answer.

I don’t think either team has played their best game and that is what makes them scary and dangerous. Crush NC State and just be ok; maybe that says more about the Pack. Play around, in the words of our friends at Split Zone Duo, with their food before just absolutely monstering in Madison.

Nico. Milroe. Let’s go.

Despite what we thought about NC State both Western and the Vols proved the contrary. Then the Vols go out and hang 71, in again, not their best game. Alabama down 3 with 55 to play:

And for the next 55 minutes they just out-muscled, in NYC parlance, “son’d” and baptized Wisconsin to the tune of 42-10. The Tide moves bodies. Vols are fast. Bama is strong as hell. It is wild to watch.

4th Down: Oregon Looked The Part

Had Dan Rubenstein on College Sports Now and the biggest question was, “when will Oregon look the part,” as a contender. Dillon Gabriel going for almost 300 through the air, 64 on the ground, on the road in Corvallis. The defense keeping them at around 300 in modern college football. Scoreless second half for the Beavers.

They’re 3-0 and finally looked like a team that could bother someone in the Big Ten. Been waiting for it for the first few weeks and we finally saw a glimpse of what could be out of Eugene.

It is good to see.

Juxtaposed with watching UGA struggle, Mizzou battle it out with BC in a rock fight and we got to see a team, Oregon, finally do what they were supposed to do.

Tomorrow we hit “The Format” because Notre Dame smoked Purdue, the ACC is a mystery and Memphis has moved into the lead spot for the G5 but Toledo and UNLV are like, “hey man we are here.”

Cheers!!!