Best & Worst

Best - The Army vs. Navy Game

Navy QB Kriss Proctor

I'm coming at this from a biased perspective, but there is something special and unique about an Army-Navy football game. Most nationally televised games feature players and coaches who are doing everything they can to promote themselves for a better job or a chance at the NFL - the next step has already been decided for the players from both of these service academies. Even if you aren't a fan of college football or sports in general, you can watch this game and feel an incredible sense of pride and patriotism in seeing some of the best leaders our nation has to offer, on the field and in the stands.

Now, as a Navy fan, yesterday's game was a great way to end the season. For a team that has had so many struggles and heartbreaking losses, it was awesome to see the Midshipmen be able to finish a close game. A defense that has been torched all season came up with big turnovers and a huge stop in the 4th quarter, a senior kicker who has a had a nightmare season hit a clutch field goal, and a quarterback who's battled injuries all year made some key runs to help his senior class go out on top. In a way, it's just a football game - and in a way, it means everything. Every day of the year, these two schools think about beating each other. At Navy, they say "BEAT ARMY!" after nearly everything they do. "BEAT ARMY" as they turn the corner to go down the hall. "BEAT ARMY!" as a plebe finishes a set of push ups. And for the 10th year in a row, "BEAT ARMY!" on the football field. Mission accomplished. Go Navy!


Worst - The Cincinnati vs. Xavier Brawl

Yancy Gates looking for more...

If the Army-Navy game is the standard for everything great about college athletics, the end of the Cincinnati-Xavier men's basketball game is the standard for everything wrong with college athletics. In a rivalry game that had turned into a blowout (Xavier won 76-53), the game finished with an on-court brawl. It began with trash talking from both teams and quickly escalated into a fight with Cincinnati's Yancy Gates punching a Xavier player in the head and then other Bearcats kicking the Xavier player while he was on the ground. It didn't get any better after the game - Xavier's players were proud of how they stuck up for themselves and didn't back down from a fight while Mick Cronin, Cincinnati's Head Coach, promised heavy consequences for his players.

A strong message would have been dismissing Yancy Gates, the team's best post player, off the team. Instead, the university announced it will suspend Gates for six games. How convenient that five of those games will be against insignificant non-conference opponents. Gates will miss also miss the Big East conference opener against Pittsburgh. No Xavier player will be suspended for more than one game. In short, both teams displayed embarrassing and unacceptable behavior - and neither institution or coach has enough backbone to assess the discipline and consequence the players deserve. It doesn't get much worse than that.

Week Three in College Football

Regarding the three games I said would be worth watching last weekend, I ask, "WERE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!" Georgia and South Carolina put on quite a show. Texas came up big in the 4th quarter against BYU. And USC made a key special teams play to put the game away against Utah. I really don't think this weekend will be as exciting, but here are three more I'm looking forward to.

Can Maryland top these?

No. 18 West Virginia vs. Maryland - College Park, MD. - If nothing else, everyone is excited to see what uniforms the Terrapins will break out for this game. After surprising everyone with their uniforms for the opener against Miami, the wardrobe choices for the Terps have been quite the buzz. Regardless of the outfits, I think this game will reveal a lot about these two teams. How will the West Virginia offense fare against a legitimate opponent? Can West Virginia avoid the slow starts that have plagued them in their previous two games? Will Maryland quarterback, Danny O'Brien, be able to build on his strong performance against Miami in the season opener? If Maryland is able to knock off the Mountaineers and go to 2-0, fans in College Park should feel very good about the direction of the program under Randy Edsall.

No. 21 Auburn vs. Clemson - Clemson, SC. - Clemson fans are probably still upset about the outcome of last year's game against Auburn. Like nearly every other opponent the Auburn faced, Clemson had the Tigers on the ropes before giving up a lead and watching Cam Newton lead his team to an improbable comeback victory. This season, it has been the same song with a different cast of characters for Auburn. In their first two games, Gene Chizik's team has narrowly escaped defeat by making clutch plays down the stretch. On one hand, you feel like Auburn has played with fire for the past 15 games and their luck is bound to run out at some point. On the other hand, you think Auburn has now been in so many close games that the pressure doesn't affect them anymore. The first two victories came in the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium. We'll see how much of their mojo travels with them for a road game at Clemson.

Even the mascot was intimidating in the 1990s.

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 5 Florida State - Tallahassee, FL. - It must be nice to pull for a team that isn't afraid to play a strong non-conference schedule. Georgia's Athletic Director, Greg McGarity, has basically said the Dawgs are finished playing tough non-conference opponents while he has a role in the scheduling. Way to expect greatness! Saturday night, Oklahoma heads to Tallahassee for a game that will capture most of the attention of the college football audience. The game is in primetime on ABC and I'm sure people at Florida State are talking about this game as an opportunity to show that the 'Noles are back. If you ask some, this could be the match up of the best offense in the country (Oklahoma) against the best defense in the country (FSU). I don't know if that's the case, but I do know there will be a LOT of talent on the field Saturday night. In my opinion, I don't know if Florida State will ever get back to the level the program was at in the 1990's. The talent and intimidation level of those teams was incredible. They beat teams before the games even started with the way they could intimidate an opponent in warm ups. You never expected them to lose a game. Ever. Actually, it's the same feeling I get when I watch Alabama play.