Ball or Nuthin' » NCAA Football

Note to Meyer: Don’t Try To Hide Your Ailment

T Lamont — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 02:30:07 +0000

As a family man, I can attest to the level of security that fathers and husbands attempt to provide to their loved ones.

As men, we are conditioned to not fully express our emotions. Society dictates the sentiment that it’s not always OK for us to cry. We have to also be tolerant of pain, and even to the extent of covering up the true magnitude of it.

Such seemed to be the case with Urban Meyer’s situation. The University of Florida head football coach recently admitted that he tried to hide his chest pains (which was actually attributed to a heart muscle defect).

“I have three children that mean more to me than anything. I have a football team that means more to me than anything. I didn’t want it to get out at all. We were very careful. I didn’t want anyone alarmed.

“And I think at some point, whether you’re a football coach, whether you’re a lawyer or whatever, you think at some point there would be a lot of respect for families involved and children and 11-year-old boys and 16-year-old girls and 19-year-old girls.

“Do what you have to do to protect them. If that means not coming clean with full details about something very personal, if you can’t understand that, then first of all, I think you’ve got to recheck yourself. And then second of all, I think at some point you certainly will understand that.”

What’s wrong with letting your family have the full play-by-play on what’s going on with you? I would think that’s the least that you could for them. After all, you are someone’s husband, father, son, brother…why keep them in the dark any longer than they have to be?

From a supporting standpoint, give your friends and family the opportunity to make a difference. I’m sure that Meyer has done many wonderful things for his loved ones. Sometimes it’s necessary to give others the chance to repay the generosity that you may have displayed to them at some point in your life. In this case, it may not even be about what Urban needs, but what a friend of family members needs to do to feel good about themselves.

When asked about the state of his health on Thursday, Meyer responded:

“I think there will be an appropriate time to address some of those situations. Today would not be the day. This is about a celebration of a great football game with two really good teams, one undefeated team and one team that was undefeated until the SEC championship game.”

I couldn’t disagree more. It’s only about football is you refuse to address the more important issues – and they have nothing to do with any type of game that is played on the gridiron.

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Alabama and Texas Set For National Title Game

T Lamont — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 05:58:50 +0000

Alabama destroyed a highly ranked opponent and Texas had an unexpected struggle, but they both inches closer toward the completion of their dream seasons.

Alabama smacked Florida on Saturday, 32-13 – leaving Tim Tebow in tears. ’Bama running back Mark Ingram rushed for over 100 yards and 3 touchdowns, and quarterback Greg McElroy passed for 239 yards and a touchdown. The Tide kept the ball moving against the Florida defense, gaining 490 yards and 26 first downs. The Gators allowed their opponents to control the ball, as Alabama had the ball in their possession for 39:37 – compared to Florida’s 20:23.

The loss will leave Florida and Tim Tebow short of a national title – and aptly allows the media to focus on someone other than Tebow within the landscape of NCAA football.

Poor clock management almost costed McCoy and the Longhorns a shot at the national title.

Texas – edged Nebraska, 13-12 – to win the Big 12 championship. The starting quarterbacks in this game were horrible. They combined to throw six interceptions – three apiece for Colt McCoy and Zac Lee. Neither team could muster any momentum offensively and the squads combined for slightly more than 300 yards of net offense.

In the end, it was Texas kicker Hunter Lawrence’s 46-yard field goal with time expiring that pushed Texas to the victory.

The Tide and the Longhorns both finish their seasons at 13-0 heading into the BCS Bowl Series games. Both teams bring effective offenses and defenses into their projected matchup for the national championship.

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Iowa Wins on Last-Second TD Pass

T Lamont — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 03:46:14 +0000

Iowa’s Big Ten fate came down to a 4th and goal from the 7 yard line with 2 seconds left in the game.

Hawkeyes quarterback Ricky Stanzi was able to hook up with receiver Marvin McNutt for a TD as time expired to give Iowa a 15-13 victory over the Michigan State Spartans. The win gives Iowa its first 8-0 start in school history and a 4-0 record in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes are now 6th in the BCS standings.

The game’s scoring only consisted of field goals until midway through the fourth quarter. Michigan State’s Blair White was on the receiving end of a 30-yard TD pass from Kirk Cousins, giving the Spartans the lead 13-9. But Stanzi, who was not very effective throughout the game (11 of 27 for 138 yards), led the Hawkeyes a the game-winning drive that covered 70 yards.

Adam Robinson provided a strong ground game for Iowa, gaining 108 yards in the game despite their limited success in the passing game. By contrast, MSU gained 225 yards passing. But neither team could move the ball consistently enough to put points on the board. In a defense dominated game, Iowa had to be favored – and in the end they did just enough to survive this game.

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Clemson Beats Miami in OT, 40-37

T Lamont — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 03:11:49 +0000

The topsy-turvy roller coaster that is the ACC continued to stay true to its reputation.

The 10th-ranked Miami Hurricanes were defeated by the Clemson Tigers in overtime, 40-37. Clemson QB Kyle Parker was 25 of 37 for 326 yards and 3 TD’s – including a 26-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Ford in overtime to give the Tigers the win. But running back C.J. Spiller provided to be Clemson’s meal ticket. His dominanace kept the Tigers in this contest against a heavily favored Miami team. Spiller contributed the following:

- 81 yards rushing on 14 carries

- 90-yard kickoff return for a TD

- 104 yards receiving, including a 56-yard TD reception

- 310 total all-purpose yards

The game saw 10 lead changes and 2 ties. The most significant tie occurring when Clemson tied the game at 34 on a 43-yard field goal by kicker Richard Jackson with under a minute on the game clock. This sent the game into overtime. The Hurricanes converted a field goal on their first OT possession, setting the stage for Clemson’s game-winning touchdown connection.

The victory placed the Tigers at 3-2 in conference play, and in firm position to win the ACC’s Atlantic Division. The Hurricanes fell to 2-2, behind Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and Virginia in the ACC Coastal Division.

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#19 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets Sting #4 Virginia Tech Hokies

T Lamont — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 05:14:15 +0000

After the first quarter, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets looked like they’d be fortunate to get a single touchdown against the Virginia Tech Hokies. Over the ensuing three quarters, they were able to put up four of them in route to a 28-23 home conference victory.

Georgia Tech produced almost all of its yardage using the triple option. Early in the game, the Virginia Tech defense was ready for each play that Georgia Tech attempted. But as the game went on, GT made some adjustments that exposed VT’s over-aggressive defense. The results were big runs by quarterback Josh Nesbitt and running back Johnathan Dwyer.

The win put the Yellow Jackets firmly in the driver’s seat to advance to the ACC Championship Game. They now control their own destiny, and have few potentially-dangerous opponents remaining on their conference schedule.

The Hokies must now hope for a GT loss to get them into the conference title game as they bid for a third straight ACC title.

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