College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 10

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

This is a list of every game played during week 10 of the 2017 college football season involving at least one FBS or FCS school. All games are listed, televised or not.

For the televised games (only live broadcasts are listed), I include the announcers and sideline reporters (where applicable). I put all of it on a Google Documents spreadsheet that can be accessed at the following link:

College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 10

Additional notes:

– I include games streamed by ESPN3.com and Fox Sports Go; they are denoted as “ESPN3″ and “FS-Go”, respectively. This season, I will also list streamed games for NBC Live Extra and CBS Sports Digital.

– I also list digital network feeds provided by various conferences, but only when they are free of charge. For some of these feeds, the audio will be a simulcast of the home team’s radio broadcast. Other online platforms have their own announcers.

For now, the digital networks I am including in the listings are those for the ACC, Big Sky, Big South, CAA, Mountain West, NEC, OVC, Pac-12, Patriot League, SoCon, Southland, and WCC.

Occasionally individual schools (almost always at the FCS level) provide video feeds free of charge. When that is the case, I list those as well.

– I do not include PPV telecasts, regardless of whether or not the matchup in question features FBS or FCS schools. These games are increasingly rare.

– The local affiliates for the ACC Network “national” game of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here:  Syracuse-Florida State

– The regional sports networks carrying the ACC Network “regional” game of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here:  Georgia Tech-Virginia

– ESPN College Extra games (with blackout maps where applicable): Link

– Stadium’s streaming URLs:  Lehigh-Bucknell   Holy Cross-Fordham                         Lafayette-Georgetown   Drake-San Diego   Utah State-New Mexico   UTSA-FIU

– AP Poll (FBS):  Link

– FCS Coaches’ Poll:  Link

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A lot of the information I used in putting this together came courtesy of Matt Sarzyniak’s remarkably comprehensive and simply indispensable site College Sports on TV, a must-bookmark for any fan of college football and/or basketball. It is also well worth following the weekly schedule put together by lsufootball.net.

As always, I must mention the indefatigable information collectors (and in some cases sports-TV savants) at the506.com. I am also assisted on occasion by helpful athletic media relations officials at various schools and conferences.

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Game Review, 2017: VMI

Posted on October 29, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

Links of interest:

– Game story, The Post and Courier

– “Notes” section, The Post and Courier

– “By the numbers”, The Post and Courier

– Photo gallery, The Post and Courier

– Video from WCSC-TV, including postgame comments from Dominique Allen

– Video from WCIV-TV

– AP game story

– School release (The Citadel)

– School release (VMI)

– Extended box score

– Game highlights, including postgame comments from Brent Thompson, Brandon Rainey, and Dominique Allen (video)

– ESPN3 replay of the game

—

The greatest trophy in all of sports, the coveted Silver Shako, will remain in Charleston for at least one more year. With any luck, the most lustrous of laurels shall continue to reside in the Holy City for many years to come.

—

Odds and ends:

– Saturday’s game had a lot of similarities with the last matchup between the two teams at Johnson Hagood Stadium:

  • The Citadel won the toss and deferred in 2015 and 2017; VMI defended the north end zone to open the game both times
  • Cam Jackson scored on the Bulldogs’ third play from scrimmage in 2015; Grant Drakeford scored on the Bulldogs’ third play from scrimmage in 2017
  • The Citadel held VMI’s offense to 87 rushing yards in 2015 and 72 rushing yards in 2017
  • VMI had 212 yards of total offense in 2015 and 219 yards of total offense in 2017
  • VMI threw 36 passes in both games
  • The Keydets punted 7 times in 2015 and 6 times in 2017 (and would have punted 7 times on Saturday, but a punt snap got mishandled)
  • In 2015, The Citadel ran 71 plays from scrimmage, VMI 70; in 2017, both teams ran 68 plays from scrimmage
  • The Citadel was 0 for 5 scoring TDs on red zone opportunities in 2015; the Bulldogs were 1 for 5 in 2017

When it came to the red zone, the difference between the game on Saturday and the 2015 contest was that in the latter game, the Bulldogs converted on all of their field goal attempts.

– Speaking of the red zone:

“There were a couple of times we got inside the red zone and shot ourselves in the foot,” said [Brent] Thompson, whose team totaled 407 rushing yards against VMI (0-9, 0-8) and 405 in last week’s 20-14 win at Chattanooga. “We had some opportunities to put the ball in the end zone, and that’s kind of been our Achilles’ heel all season. And that’s something we are usually pretty good at.”

The Bulldogs’ red zone TD rate for the season is 55.9%, which is actually slightly better than last season (52.1%). However, in SoCon play The Citadel’s red zone TD rate is only 45.8%.

– I was a little surprised that Brent Thompson elected to try another field goal late in the game. From a “game theory” point of view, I probably would have gone for the touchdown on fourth-and-goal, even from the six-yard line.

If the Bulldogs punch in the TD in that spot, they go up by three scores and completely ice the game. A successful field goal wouldn’t have altered the two-vs.-three score dynamic.

Also, if The Citadel didn’t make it, VMI probably would have wound up with the ball around or inside its own 5-yard line. The odds of the Keydets marching 95+ yards down the field (just to get within one score) were not good.

However, game theory aside, there is also something to be said for sending a message to your kicker, which in effect was this: “You’re struggling, but you’re still our kicker, and we are still counting on you and have confidence in you.”

Thompson also might have decided that whether or not the Bulldogs could go up two/three scores was irrelevant, because his defense wasn’t going to give up any more points anyway. If that was in fact his thought process, it was a very reasonable assumption.

– Brandon Rainey and Lorenzo Ward combined for 25 carries from the B-back position. Between them, they averaged 8.2 yards per carry. That will work.

From the quarterback position, Dominique Allen and Jordan Black combined to tote the football 20 times for 93 yards. The A-backs had 11 carries for 113 yards.

– Even though he was only 1 for 8 passing, I thought Dominique Allen threw the football fairly well. VMI made a couple of good defensive plays, and Bulldog receivers could have (and perhaps should have) caught at least two other pass attempts.

– VMI entered the game committing fewer penalties per game than any other FCS team, and didn’t hurt its reputation on that front against The Citadel. The Keydets were only whistled for one infraction all afternoon.

– It was good to see members of the VMI band make the trip. As usual, the Keydets brought a decent number of fans to Charleston. Considering the geographic distance, school size, and the program’s record over the last few decades, the fact that VMI often meets or exceeds other SoCon opponents in terms of “traveling” is very impressive.

– I have a suggestion: no matter where The Military Classic of the South is played, Charleston or Lexington, each team should wear a solid-colored jersey. In other words, it should be color-on-color, with The Citadel wearing light blue jerseys and VMI sporting red tops.

I think it would look great. The schools’ colors are not dissimilar to those for UCLA and Southern California, which have had well-received color-on-color matchups the last few years.

It is likely such a move would require league approval, but I don’t see why the SoCon would have any issues with it.

– I enjoyed the “Meet The Bulldogs” event for the basketball team held on the plaza at Johnson Hagood Stadium prior to the football game.

Along with the players, the cheerleaders and Spike the Bulldog showed up for the festivities. A bunch of kids had a good time, and it appeared that the players did as well.

I have no idea what kind of getup Spike was wearing, though…

– It was fun to watch all the reunion classes “march” into the stadium before the game. I was impressed to see several graduates of the Class of 1952 on the field, armed with a giant flag and a sign that read ‘1952’.

– The ceremony after the game is nice, but the P.A. announcing got a little bit behind the action. That caused some confusion (and also led to the start of The Citadel Alma Mater being drowned out).

– After the presentation, the colors were lowered. Those in the stadium (and on the field) stood silently as the flag was removed from the pole. In fact, it was so quiet that you could hear the cranking as the flag was lowered.

In a way, I was appreciative of the fact you could hear the crank. On the other hand, it may be time to break out the WD-40.

– During the postgame press conference, the assembled media learned that Dominique Allen has a “small budget”. Much hilarity ensued.

(Check out his postgame interview session on the second of the two WCSC-TV links listed above for context.)

– With the victory on Saturday, The Citadel has won 24 games over the past three seasons. The Bulldogs won 9 games in 2015, 10 games in 2016, and 5 games (so far) in 2017.

That total of 24 wins is one short of the record for victories over a three-year period. The Citadel won 25 games in the 1990-1991-1992 seasons.

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I took quite a few photos this week, including a few related to some of the activities surrounding Homecoming. Some of the pictures are actually half-decent.

 

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2017 Football, Game 8: The Citadel vs. VMI

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

…The Citadel came from behind twice in the fourth quarter against a VMI team that literally fought and clawed in an attempt to avoid its seventh loss in eight games and spoil the heavily favored Bulldogs’ championship hopes.

VMI, with its aggressive play, succeeded in making what happened while the clock was running a sidelight to the after-the-whistle skirmishes — even a fight that put a player from each team on the sidelines for the game. The two teams were penalized a total of 21 times for 183 yards.

The visiting Keydets’ strategy worked well. With 8:59 to play, they took a 24-20 lead, getting together an 80-yard drive that was capped by sophomore tailback Trent Bridges’ third touchdown of the day, a one-yard dive.

That put the pressure squarely on the shoulders of Citadel quarterback Robert Hill…

…Hill and flanker Lee Glaze combined for 17- and 49-yard pass plays on the game-winning drive, the 17-yarder coming on 3rd-and-15 from The Citadel 12-yard line and Glaze taking the ball away from a VMI defender on the 49-yard completion.

Hill scrambled for nine yards and a first down to the VMI four. Two running plays by Mike Lewis covered the four yards, the touchdown coming on a one-yard plunge into the middle with 4:47 left to play.

VMI still had time in the Military Classic of the South, [but] The Citadel defense rose to the occasion, twice intercepting passes by VMI quarterback Jim Daly. Scott Thompson, a 260-pound sophomore defensive tackle, got the first interception on a deflected pass that Daly threw to avoid being sacked. Sophomore linebacker Joel Thompson made the game-clinching interception with a minute to play.

— The News and Courier, November 4, 1984

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The Citadel vs. Virginia Military Institute, The Military Classic of the South, to be played at historic Johnson Hagood Stadium, with kickoff at 2:00 pm ET on October 28, 2017.

The game will be streamed on ESPN3.com. Kendall Lewis will handle play-by-play, while former Bulldogs linebacker James Riley supplies the analysis. 

The contest can be heard on radio via the various affiliates of The Citadel Sports Network. WQNT-1450 AM [audio link], originating in Charleston, will be the flagship station. 

Mike Legg (the “Voice of the Bulldogs”) will call the action alongside analyst Lee Glaze.

—

The Citadel Sports Network — 2017 Affiliates

Charleston: WQNT 1450AM/92.1 FM/102.1 FM (Flagship)
Columbia: WQXL 1470AM/95.9FM
Greenville: WLFJ 92.9FM/660AM
Sumter: WDXY 1240AM/105.9FM

—

Links of interest:

– Game preview, The Post and Courier

– Where is the coveted Silver Shako?

– Noah Dawkins: more sacks than the Visigoths

– Game notes from The Citadel and VMI

– SoCon weekly release

– Preview on The Citadel’s website

– FCS Coaches’ poll (The Citadel is receiving votes, and would be ranked #32 if the poll went that far)

– STATS FCS poll (The Citadel is receiving votes, and would be ranked in a tie for #34 if the poll went that far)

– Brent Thompson’s 10/24 press conference, including comments from Grant Drakeford and Aron Spann III (video)

– Brent Thompson’s 10/25 radio show (video)

– Promo for VMI-The Citadel (video)

– Review/highlights/postgame package for VMI’s game versus Western Carolina

– ESPN3 replay of Western Carolina-VMI (video)

– Game story from the Western Carolina-VMI contest

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– My review of last week’s game against Chattanooga

– Link to ESPN3’s streaming coverage of VMI-The Citadel

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Non-football links:

– Don’t forget to meet the Bulldog hoopsters at the game on Saturday; posters and three-point shotmaking to be had

– Caroline Cashion: “I want to play again”

—

Homecoming Week is here, with all the traditional activities associated with it. The schedule: Link

Since 1953, VMI has been the Homecoming opponent for The Citadel 15 times. The Bulldogs are 11-4 in those games, winning the last five matchups. The most recent such contest came just two years ago, with The Citadel prevailing 35-14.

In that time period, the only team The Citadel has faced more often on Homecoming is Furman (16 meetings). Therefore, this week the Keydets will tie the Paladins for most Homecoming appearances by an opponent at Johnson Hagood Stadium.

It should be noted that there were Homecoming games prior to 1953. Furman was the opponent for the first such recorded contest, in 1924. The 1953 season just happens to be the starting point for tracking certain statistical and historical information in The Citadel’s record book.

In 2018, The Citadel’s Homecoming game will take place on November 10, and the opponent will be Samford.

—

This is the earliest meeting during the season between VMI and The Citadel since 1991. That year, the game was played on October 26, and was held at the Oyster Bowl in Norfolk, Virginia. The Bulldogs defeated the Keydets 17-14 that afternoon.

When the series began, the two schools usually met in mid-October. After World War II, however, the matchup shifted to early-to-mid-November.

Beginning in the late 1960s, the game moved to a mid-season date (usually in October). That status continued until the late 1980s, when the series again became a (mostly) late-season clash.

In 1978, The Citadel defeated VMI 14-3 on September 23 at Johnson Hagood Stadium. That is the only time the matchup has ever been played in September. The latest in the year the contest has been held? 2005, when The Citadel won 22-14 at Foster Stadium in Lexington; that season, the game was played on November 19.

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VMI has played Virginia Tech 79 times, which is actually more often than the Keydets have played The Citadel (72 times). However, the Hokies have not met VMI on the gridiron since 1984.

That will change in 2026, when the two schools are scheduled to meet again. VMI also has scheduled games with North Carolina State (2023) and Virginia (2020).

Virginia is another school that VMI has played many times (82 times, to be exact). The Keydets have also had long-running series with William and Mary (87 meetings) and Richmond (86), though neither of those schools has appeared on VMI’s schedule in the last few years.

Next year, VMI has scheduled non-conference matchups at Toledo and at Old Dominion. The Keydets reportedly will also play at Gardner-Webb.

In 2019, VMI has non-conference games at Army and at Marshall.

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Fast mascot/nickname facts about VMI:

– Why is VMI’s mascot a kangaroo? Shouldn’t it be a rat?

Back in 1947, two VMI cheerleaders saw a picture of a kangaroo on the front of the magazine and realized how uncommon the animal was as a mascot. As one of the mascots was finally procured, a contest was held to give the creature an appropriate name. The prize winning name was “TD Bound.”

Later the name of the mascot was changed to Moe, because A) Moe wasn’t a football-specific name, and B) “TD Bound” was kind of dumb. VMI actually had a live animal mascot until the 1970s; one of the real-life animals was actually a wallaby and not a kangaroo. I guess the folks at VMI weren’t too picky about things like that (can’t say that I blame them).

– They weren’t always Keydets, whatever Keydets are…

In ancient days of yore the football team was known as the “Flying Squadron”. The Keydets moniker is only around 85 years old.

If you’re keeping track of old-timey nicknames for SoCon schools, here are a few:

  • VMI: Flying Squadron
  • Furman: Purple Hurricane
  • The Citadel: Light Brigade (this was a thing in the late 1930s-early 1940s, but it didn’t quite catch on)
  • Samford: Baptist Tigers
  • Western Carolina: Teachers (and later chose Catamounts over Mountain Boomers, an atrocious decision)

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Scott Wachenheim’s first two teams at VMI won two and three games, respectively. His third squad is in danger of winning fewer than two games, which would make Wachenheim the latest Keydet coach to suffer through a one-win or winless season.

Wachenheim is VMI’s 11th head football coach since 1953. Of the ten men who preceded him in the position, all but one had at least one season in which the team went winless or won only a single game. The exception to that unforunate rule was Wachenheim’s immediate predecessor, Sparky Woods.

Woods won at least two games in all seven seasons he coached the Keydets. Admittedly, in five of those seasons (including the last four) his squads won exactly two games.

Conversely, The Citadel has had 14 head coaches over that same time period — and in none of those seasons (65 in all) have the Bulldogs failed to win at least two games.

—

VMI is 0-8 this season, and has lost 14 straight games going back to last year. That is now the longest active losing streak in FCS, as last week Delaware State (helmed by Kenny Carter, a graduate of The Citadel) broke a 17-game losing streak by stunning South Carolina State in Dover, 17-14.

The slate for VMI so far:

  • Air Force crushed VMI in Colorado Springs, 62-0; the Keydets only picked up six first downs
  • Catawba, a Division II school, upset the Keydets 27-20, scoring the game-winning TD with 42 seconds to play
  • Robert Morris then shut out VMI, 23-0, the first time RMU had shut out an opponent in seven years
  • VMI opened SoCon play by getting hammered by Chattanooga, 63-7
  • After an early pick-six for the Keydets, Mercer scored 35 straight points and beat VMI 49-14
  • Samford defeated VMI 26-7 in Lexington after allowing the Keydets to score on the game’s opening drive
  • Furman broke open a close game at halftime, beating VMI 42-10; the Paladins had 523 yards of total offense
  • Last week, Western Carolina won 26-7 at Alumni Field, matching the Samford-VMI score

VMI will not have a bye week this season, playing on eleven consecutive Saturdays. After this week, the Keydets travel to Johnson City to face East Tennessee State on November 4, and then will close out their 2017 campaign at home versus Wofford on November 11.

—

Statistics of note for VMI through eight games:

VMI Opponents
Points per game 8.1 39.8
Rushing yardage 694 1699
Average per rush 2.98 4.39
Average per game 86.8 212.4
TDs rushing 4 23
Passing yardage 1025 1992
Comp-Att-Int 109-218-15 140-223-4
Average per pass 4.7 8.9
TDs passing 3 17
Total offense 1719 3691
Total plays 451 610
Yards per play 3.8 6.1
Kick returns-yards 42-716 14-276
Punt returns-yards 10-65 22-205
Fumbles/lost 10/5 1/0
Avg penalties/penalty yards per game 3.1/26.4 5.9/49.1
Net punt average 37.5 38.5
Time of possession/game 26:28 33:32
3rd down conversions 30/110 56/116
3rd down conversion rate 27.3% 48.3%
Sacks by-yards 16-119 18-129
Field goals-attempts 3-8 9-12
Red Zone touchdown rate 3-8 (37.5%) 26-39 (66.7%)
  • VMI is last in FCS in scoring offense
  • The Keydets are also last in offensive pass efficiency, in part because they lead the nation in passes intercepted
  • Offensively, VMI is 119th in third down conversion rate
  • VMI is 116th nationally in scoring defense, and 119th (out of 123 teams) in third down conversion rate allowed
  • The Keydets have not recovered a fumble on defense this season, and somehow have only forced one
  • In terms of turnover margin, VMI is next-to-last in FCS (ahead of only Bryant); the Keydets are -16 in that category
  • VMI’s net punt average is solid and ranks 28th nationally
  • The Keydets are the least-penalized team in FCS, as they have been called for only 3.1 infractions per game

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The Citadel’s key stats through seven games:

The Citadel Opponents
Points per game 24.9 19.9
Rushing yardage 2166 783
Average per rush 5.07 3.75
Average per game 309.4 111.9
TDs rushing 17 12
Passing yardage 691 1307
Comp-Att-Int 40-95-3 106-179-10
Average per pass 7.3 7.3
TDs passing 6 7
Total offense 2857 2090
Total plays 522 388
Yards per play 5.5 5.4
Kick returns-yards 14-263 17-419
Punt returns-yards 11-83 6-53
Fumbles/lost 14/5 7/4
Avg penalties/penalty yards per game 4.4/38.4 3.1/31.6
Net punt average 36.1 37
Time of possession/game 34:54 25:06
3rd down conversions 51/111 24/73
3rd down conversion rate 45.9% 32.9%
Sacks by-yards 11-61 4-27
Field goals-attempts 4-8 2-4
Red Zone touchdown rate (20-29) 69.0% (13-17) 76.5%
  • The Citadel is 62nd nationally in scoring offense, and 24th in scoring defense
  • The Bulldogs are 14th in offensive third down conversion rate, and 24th in third down conversion rate allowed
  • At 42.1%, the Bulldogs’ pass completion rate is the lowest in FCS (out of 123 teams)
  • The Citadel’s kick return defense is 115th nationally (last week certainly didn’t help in this category)
  • The Bulldogs are 19th in turnover margin
  • Rush report: The Citadel is third in rushing offense and 22nd in defense against the rush
  • The Citadel is second nationally in time of possession (behind only McNeese State; two undefeated teams, Columbia and North Dakota State, rank third and fourth, respectively)
  • The Bulldogs are 11th in FCS in the “fewest penalties per game” category

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VMI quarterbacks have thrown the football (or been sacked attempting to throw) on 52.3% of the offense’s plays from scrimmage this season. Counting sack yardage, 52.2% of VMI’s yardage has come via the pass, so the Keydets have been more or less the same in terms of effectiveness on the ground and in the air.

The current starting quarterback for VMI is Duncan Hodges (6’3″, 220 lbs.), a redshirt freshman from Kimberly, Alabama. He is the younger brother of Samford QB Devlin Hodges.

For the season, Hodges is completing 53.0% of his throws, averaging 4.5 yards per attempt, with three touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also has two rushing TDs.

VMI’s leading rusher is Daz Palmer (5’10”, 180 lbs.), a sophomore from Norfolk. He is averaging 4.4 yards per carry, with a long of 56 (which was a TD run against Catawba). He also had a 51-yard run versus Furman.

Palmer can also catch the ball out of the backfield — indeed, he had three receptions against The Citadel last season, including a 30-yarder. This year, Palmer has 18 catches, second-most on the team.

Sophomore wide receiver Rohan Martin (5’10”, 175 lbs.) has started all 19 games of his VMI career. He leads the Keydets in receptions this season, with 19. Martin had a 3-yard TD catch against Furman.

Martin also occasionally returns punts (and is listed in that role on this week’s depth chart). He had a 34-yard punt return earlier this season.

Javeon Lara (6’2″, 178 lbs.), a sophomore from Schulenburg, Texas, is a breakaway threat. The Citadel’s defense must be particularly wary of Lara, who had a 79-yard TD reception against Mercer and a 73-yard catch for a touchdown versus Chattanooga.

VMI’s projected starters on the offensive line average 6’4″, 272 lbs. The largest of the group is right tackle Sawaar Canady (6’5″, 290 lbs.). Canady, a native of Newport News, is one of three redshirt freshmen who start on the Keydets’ o-line.

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VMI’s defense is led by senior Allan Cratsenberg (6’3″, 223 lbs.), a tackling machine from Natrona, Pennsylvania. Cratsenberg was a first-team All-SoCon pick by the media last season after averaging 11.5 stops per contest. That included a 20-tackle day against The Citadel, the first time this century a Keydet had been credited with 20 or more tackles in a game.

This season, Cratsenberg (described by Brent Thompson as “smart and savvy”) is again racking up stops, averaging 11 tackles per game (and leading the league). He has 35 combined tackles in VMI’s last two games.

Cratsenberg has added interceptions to his repertoire in 2017. He has three so far this year, including a 60-yard pick-six versus Mercer. That interception return for a touchdown, by the way, is the only time this season the Keydets have scored following an opposing turnover, either on a defensive return or on the ensuing offensive possession.

Fellow linebacker Brian Lipscomb (6’3″, 225 lbs.), a redshirt junior from Hampton, is having an outstanding season for the Keydets. Lipscomb leads the Southern Conference in tackles for loss (12) and sacks (7).

During his radio show, Brent Thompson had a lot of praise for Lipscomb, saying he has a “knack for the football [and] knows where to be. He is very athletic…he did a great job against us last year.”

Ryan Francis (6’1″, 215 lbs.), a redshirt senior from Knoxville, is tied for second on the team in tackles, with 73. The linebacker also has seven tackles for loss.

Safety Greg Sanders (5’11”, 195 lbs.) also has 73 stops for the Keydets. The native of Memphis had nine tackles against The Citadel in last season’s contest (and also recovered a fumble). Now a senior, the three-year starter was a second-team all-league selection last year.

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VMI’s starting placekicker, Grant Clemons (6’2″, 185 lbs.), is 3 for 7 on field goal tries this season, with a long of 39 yards (accomplished twice, both against Catawba). Clemons, a sophomore who began his collegiate career at Georgia Military, also handles kickoffs for the Keydets.

Something worth watching on placekicks: holder Jake Paladino (6’1″, 205 lbs.) is a quarterback, and it would not be a major surprise if VMI attempted some trickery out of a field goal formation. Last season, in fact, Paladino played quarterback against The Citadel in a relief role, and the redshirt sophomore fared rather well (completing nine of thirteen passes for 100 yards and a TD).

Paladino can also punt, but VMI’s primary punter this season has been Bill Hogan (6’1″, 217 lbs.). The redshirt junior is in his second season as the regular at the position. He is averaging 43.4 yards per boot.

Six of Hogan’s 49 punts have been downed inside the 20-yard line; one has been blocked.

Mason Dermott (5’8″, 167 lbs.) is a redshirt sophomore in his second season as the kick return specialist for the Keydets. He had a 71-yard return last season against Chattanooga.

—

Odds and ends:

– The weather forecast for Saturday in Charleston, per the National Weather Service: a 40% chance of showers, with an expected high of 78 degrees. The low on Saturday night will be 61 degrees, with a 70% chance of precipitation.

– Per one source that deals in such matters, The Citadel is a 26-point favorite over VMI. The over/under is 42.

– Other lines involving SoCon teams: Furman is a 3-point favorite at Western Carolina; Samford is a 15-point favorite over Chattanooga; and Wofford is a 15.5-point favorite at East Tennessee State. Mercer is off this week.

Around the Palmetto State, Clemson is a 14.5-point favorite over Georgia Tech; South Carolina is a 7.5-point favorite against Vanderbilt; South Carolina State is a 2-point home underdog versus Howard; Coastal Carolina is an 8-point favorite over Texas State; Presbyterian is 12.5-point home underdog against Kennesaw State; and Charleston Southern (starving for a conference victory) is a 3-point favorite versus Monmouth.

– Massey Ratings: The Citadel is ranked 46th in FCS, a drop of 2 spots from last week.

VMI is ranked 114th (out of 124 teams) in FCS, falling two places from last week. Overall (all college teams ranked), The Citadel is 188th, while VMI is 414th.

Massey projects a final score of The Citadel 34, Virginia Military Institute 6. The Bulldogs are given a 98% chance of winning.

Other FCS rankings in Massey of note: Wofford is 21st (down ten spots), Samford is 22nd (unchanged from last week), Furman is 23rd (up four places), Western Carolina is 32nd (down three spots), Mercer is 40th (down six spots), Charleston Southern is 41st, East Tennessee State is 67th (up five places), Chattanooga is 75th (down five spots), Presbyterian is 84th, and South Carolina State is 95th.

The FCS top five in Massey’s rankings, in order: North Dakota State, James Madison, Western Illinois, Northern Iowa, and South Dakota.

– Since 1916, The Citadel has a 7-9 record in games played on October 28. The last time the Bulldogs played on October 28, in 2006, they defeated Georgia Southern 24-21. Tory Cooper had both a rushing and receiving touchdown in that contest; Duran Lawson was 18 for 27 passing for 201 yards and two TDs.

The Citadel has only one other home victory on October 28 in the last 65 years. In 1978, the Bulldogs defeated Delaware 21-14 on a rainy afternoon in Charleston. In that contest, The Citadel scored on offense (a 51-yard run by Stump Mitchell), on defense (an 84-yard pick-six by Joe Harvey), and on special teams (after Mike Cunningham blocked a Blue Hens field goal attempt, Mike Adams picked up the ball and ran 71 yards for the game-winning TD).

– There are no changes to The Citadel’s two-deep for the VMI game, the third consecutive week the depth chart has remained the same.

Through seven games, the Bulldogs’ starting lineup on offense has remained unchanged. The same is true for ten of the eleven starting spots on defense; the only exception came at cornerback, when Shy Phillips started the Wofford game in place of Tyus Carter.

– The Citadel has been outscored 56-35 in the first quarter this season. In the other three quarters, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 139-83 (including 90-41 in the second half).

– In eight games this season, VMI has scored a total of 17 points in the second half.

– Among VMI’s notable graduates are actor Fred Willard, playwright/screenwriter Fred Finklehoffe, and civil rights activist Jonathan Daniels.

– Baseball player Dan Crawford is arguably the most well-known VMI alum on the athletic side of the ledger. He later had a conspicuous career in politics.

– The roster for VMI (per its website) includes 66 players from the State of Virginia, slightly over 70% of the total number of players. Other states represented: Tennessee (6 players), North Carolina (6), Pennsylvania (4), Alabama (3), Georgia (2), Texas (2), and one each from West Virginia, New York, California, Maryland, and Kentucky.

There are no Palmetto State players among the Keydets, not even from pigskin powerhouse Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School. A quick Google search suggests that no player from that school has suited up for VMI in at least the last 35 years, which if true would be simply staggering. Not coincidentally, the Keydets have not had a winning season on the gridiron during that stretch.

– The Citadel’s geographic roster breakdown (per the school’s website) is as follows: South Carolina (47 players), Georgia (29), Florida (6), North Carolina (5), Alabama (4), Texas (4), Pennsylvania (3), Tennessee (2), New York (2), and one each from Louisiana, Michigan, Virginia, and West Virginia.

—

The beginning of this post features an excerpt from the game story for a 1984 contest played between VMI and The Citadel. Why did I choose that particular game to highlight?

  • It was a Homecoming game played at Johnson Hagood Stadium
  • The Citadel had a solid team that year, while VMI was scuffling
  • The Bulldogs were heavily favored to win, and had a big game on tap for the following Saturday

Does any of that seem familiar?

I could have picked out several other games between these two schools with a similar profile. Bulldog fans of every era can remember games like that in this series. Some of them didn’t end on a positive note for the Bulldogs, either.

Heck, last year would have been a decent example. The Citadel was trying to complete a first-ever perfect conference campaign, while VMI was 3-6, but when the fourth quarter rolled around the Bulldogs were only up by three points and the Keydets seemed to have the momentum.

VMI tried just about everything in the trick-play handbook in that game, and some of it worked. Back in 1984, the Keydets apparently employed slightly different tactics, but the principle was the same — do whatever it takes to win this game.

“You can throw the records out when these teams play” is such a trite sports cliché, and one that is often not true — but it is very much true when these two institutions meet on the gridiron. Over the years, both schools have played spoiler.

Of course, this game is about a lot more than just conference standings or making a late-season playoff push.

It is the Military Classic of the South. VMI and The Citadel will both be ready for battle on Saturday. The action will be fast and fierce.

The coveted Silver Shako is at stake, the greatest trophy in all of sports. The Bulldogs must do everything in their power to retain it, and keep it in Charleston, where it rightfully belongs.

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College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 9

Posted on October 24, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

This is a list of every game played during week 9 of the 2017 college football season involving at least one FBS or FCS school. All games are listed, televised or not.

For the televised games (only live broadcasts are listed), I include the announcers and sideline reporters (where applicable). I put all of it on a Google Documents spreadsheet that can be accessed at the following link:

College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 9

Additional notes:

– I include games streamed by ESPN3.com and Fox Sports Go; they are denoted as “ESPN3″ and “FS-Go”, respectively. This season, I will also list streamed games for NBC Live Extra and CBS Sports Digital.

– I also list digital network feeds provided by various conferences, but only when they are free of charge. For some of these feeds, the audio will be a simulcast of the home team’s radio broadcast. Other online platforms have their own announcers.

For now, the digital networks I am including in the listings are those for the ACC, Big Sky, Big South, CAA, Mountain West, NEC, OVC, Pac-12, Patriot League, SoCon, Southland, and WCC.

Occasionally individual schools (almost always at the FCS level) provide video feeds free of charge. When that is the case, I list those as well.

– I do not include PPV telecasts, regardless of whether or not the matchup in question features FBS or FCS schools. These games are increasingly rare.

– The local affiliates for the ACC Network “national” games of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here: Louisville-Wake Forest     Duke-Virginia Tech

– The regional sports networks carrying the ACC Network “regional” game of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here: Virginia-Pittsburgh

– ESPN College Extra games (with blackout maps where applicable): Link

– Stadium’s streaming URLs:  Lehigh-Fordham   Bucknell-Colgate                     Georgetown-Holy Cross   FAU-Western Kentucky   UNLV-Fresno State

– ABC coverage map for ABC/ESPN2 3:30 pm ET games (TCU-Iowa State and UCLA-Washington): Link

– ABC coverage map for ABC/ESPN2 8:00 pm ET games (Georgia Tech-Clemson and Texas Tech-Oklahoma): Link

– AP Poll (FBS):  Link

– FCS Coaches’ Poll:  Link

—

A lot of the information I used in putting this together came courtesy of Matt Sarzyniak’s remarkably comprehensive and simply indispensable site College Sports on TV, a must-bookmark for any fan of college football and/or basketball. It is also well worth following the weekly schedule put together by lsufootball.net.

As always, I must mention the indefatigable information collectors (and in some cases sports-TV savants) at the506.com. I am also assisted on occasion by helpful athletic media relations officials at various schools and conferences.

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Game Review, 2017: Chattanooga

Posted on October 22, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

Links of interest:

– Game story, The Post and Courier

– “Notes” section, The Post and Courier

– “By the numbers”, The Post and Courier

– Game story, Chattanooga Times Free Press

– Game story, University Echo

– Video from WCSC-TV

– Video from WRCB-TV

– Game story, The Chattanoogan

– AP game story

– School release (The Citadel)

– School release (Chattanooga)

– Extended box score

– Postgame comments from UTC coach Tom Arth (video)

– ESPN3 replay of the game

—

The Citadel needed that win. It wasn’t easy, to the surprise of no one, but that’s okay — it wasn’t supposed to be. The bottom line is the Bulldogs went to Chattanooga and got the victory.

Random observations:

– The Citadel’s special teams weren’t at their best on Saturday. The missed 27-yard field goal hurt, but the real problem came in defending kickoffs and punt returns.

Chattanooga freshman Brandon Dowdell had 167 return yards, which is why three of UTC’s eleven possessions began at or inside the 50-yard line, despite the fact the Bulldogs committed no turnovers during the contest. Dowdell’s 37-yard punt return in the second quarter gave the Mocs a first down on The Citadel’s 35-yard line, and UTC scored its second (and final) touchdown of the game on the ensuing drive.

For the game, Chattanooga had a 14.0-yard edge in average field position, a significant margin. As a comparison, the largest field position differential advantage in all FBS games on Saturday was 16.7 by TCU against Kansas, a game the Horned Frogs won 43-0.

– Chattanooga only had four second-half possessions. The first three drives for UTC in the second half resulted in just 54 total yards and five first downs. Two of those first downs came via a defensive penalty; one of those calls was dubious, and the other was a simply terrible officiating decision.

Despite the bizarre rulings by the men in stripes, the Bulldogs’ defense kept the Mocs in check throughout the second half until the final possession, when The Citadel almost unfathomably gave up 69 yards to Chattanooga in just five plays.

However, the defense held Chattanooga at bay when it counted, with Aron Spann’s second interception of the afternoon sealing the victory.

– The Citadel was 8 for 17 on third down, which is solid. Meanwhile, Chattanooga was 0 for 7 trying to convert on third down. That discrepancy explains the difference in time of possession (37:02 – 22:58) and plays (72 to 50).

The Mocs actually averaged more yards rushing per attempt than The Citadel, 7.5 to 6.2. Of course, the Bulldogs had many more rushes (65 to 19).

If you took out plays of 30+ rushing yards (along with sacks and kneeldowns), Chattanooga would have averaged 4.82 yards per rush, while The Citadel would have averaged 3.97 yards per carry.

– Breakdown of running plays for The Citadel: the A-backs got 28 carries, including 15 from Cam Jackson. The B-backs had 19 carries, the quarterback position finished with 14, and the wideouts had two rushes.

– The Citadel had four rushing plays of 30+ yards on Saturday. Dominique Allen, Grant Drakeford, Raleigh Webb, and Rod Johnson all had one each.

In their four previous SoCon games this season, the Bulldogs had a combined total of *one* 30+ yard rushing play.

The big play has been all too absent for much of this year for The Citadel’s offense. Hopefully its return against Chattanooga is a sign of things to come.

– I’m glad Grant Drakeford didn’t get hurt on his 35-yard run in the third quarter. Drakeford was brought down by a horsecollar tackle, and it was ugly. He could easily have been seriously injured on that play.

Speaking of injuries, let’s hope Kailik Williams can return to action soon. He missed much of the second half on Saturday with what was called a “lower leg deal” by head coach Brent Thompson.

– I thought UTC coach Tom Arth may have made a mistake early in the fourth quarter when he elected to punt on 4th-and-9 from the Bulldogs’ 35-yard line. At the time UTC trailed 17-14.

I understand that 4th-and-9 is not an easy conversion opportunity, but it seemed to me trying to pick up the first down that deep in opposing territory was the better move than giving up a possession (particularly in a game like that; as mentioned, UTC only had four second-half possessions).

Instead of pinning the Bulldogs deep, the punt sailed into the end zone for a touchback. On the very next play from scrimmage, Dominique Allen burst through the UTC defense for a career-long 54-yard run. That took care of any field position advantage.

– Chattanooga has now gone four straight games without causing a turnover.

– The Citadel is now 2-1 on the road in league play this year, with a conference game at Furman still to play. The Bulldogs have won at least half of their SoCon road games in each of the last seven seasons.

– The Bulldogs had 405 yards rushing against UTC, averaging 6.2 yards per carry. Last year, there were three conference games in which the Bulldogs had 400+ rushing yards while averaging six or more yards per carry — Samford, East Tennessee State, and Western Carolina.

—

Upcoming: a big, big week. Not only is it Homecoming Week at The Citadel, but the coveted Silver Shako is on the line as VMI comes to town.

It’s time to ratchet the intensity up another ten or twenty notches…

 

 

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College Football 2017, Week 8: the top 15 matchups

Posted on October 20, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

An explanation of this post:

On his college hoops ratings website, Ken Pomeroy has an algorithm called ‘FanMatch’, in which “games are rated for competitiveness and level of play with a lean towards higher-scoring games”. It is a way to rate the potential watchability of various basketball contests. There is just a touch of whimsy involved, which makes it even better…

Borrowing this idea, I’ve created a utterly byzantine and truly enigmatic formula to produce game ratings; it is called “Tingle Factor”, or TF. The higher the TF, the better.

To access a Google Document that has a complete schedule of televised/streamed D-1 college football games (including all the announcing teams), see this post: Link

I am excluding the game between The Citadel and Chattanooga this week, as that matchup looms over the rest of the slate to such an enormous degree that comparing it to the other games on the schedule is a wasted exercise.

Outside of that contest, here are the top 15 games for Week 7 that will take place on Saturday:

Road Team Home Team Gametime (ET) TV/Streaming TF
Southern California Notre Dame 7:30 PM NBC 83.6
Oklahoma State Texas 12:00 PM ABC/ESPN3 82.9
Michigan Penn State 7:30 PM ABC/ESPN3 82.8
UCF Navy 3:30 PM CBS Sports Network 79.5
Iowa State Texas Tech 12:00 PM FS1/FS-Go 77.2
Louisville Florida State 12:00 PM ESPN 70.8
North Texas FAU 5:00 PM ESPN3 69.5
Wake Forest Georgia Tech 7:30 PM ESPNU 69.4
LSU Mississippi 7:15 PM ESPN 69.2
Arizona California 8:00 PM Pac-12 Network 68.6
Iowa Northwestern 12:00 PM ESPN2 66.5
USF Tulane 7:00 PM ESPN2 64.9
Eastern Washington Southern Utah 7:00 PM Eleven Sports 64.7
Oregon UCLA 4:00 PM Pac-12 Network 64.6
Oklahoma Kansas State 4:00 PM FOX/FS-Go 64.1

 

Additional notes and observations:

– Southern California-Notre Dame will also be streamed on NBC Live Extra.

– CBS/CBS Sports Network games will also be streamed on CBS Sports Digital.

– The games on the ESPN “Family of Networks” will also be streamed via WatchESPN.

– Arizona-California and Oregon-UCLA will both be streamed on the Pac-12 Digital Network.

– The one FCS game to break into the top 15 this week, Eastern Washington-Southern Utah, will also be streamed on the Big Sky Digital Network.

– Of the fifteen highest-rated “TF” games on the board this week, Iowa State-Texas Tech (over/under of 68) is projected to be the highest-scoring. Other potential scorefests in the top 15 include Oregon-UCLA (over/under of 67.5), Eastern Washington-Southern Utah (66.5) and North Texas-FAU (66).

– The classic intersectional matchup between Southern California and Notre Dame has often been a bit streaky, but the two programs have split the last eight meetings. This is the 40th anniversary of one of the wilder team entrances in series history, the green jerseys/Trojan horse lunacy of 1977.

– Oklahoma State had a yards/play margin of +5.8 against Baylor, the largest such margin in any FBS game last week.

– Iowa State’s 20.5 yard field position margin advantage over Kansas was the biggest differential in that category for any FBS game last week.

– Arizona and California both ranked in the top 5 in “turnover luck” last week (the Golden Bears were #1 in that category). They play each other this week, so something has to give.

– Oregon has won six straight games against UCLA, including the 2011 Pac-12 title game. The Ducks have averaged 41.3 points per game over that stretch. Meanwhile, the average score of UCLA’s games this season is Opponent 40.5, Bruins 39.5.

– Eastern Washington’s last to trips to Cedar City, Utah have been adventurous. In 2014, the Eagles (then ranked 2nd in FCS) had to rally for a 42-30 victory. Two years before, the homestanding Thunderbirds upended a top-ranked EWU squad 30-27.

– USF is 6-0 for only the second time in program history. In 2007 the Bulls were ranked #2 in the country after six games, but USF lost its seventh game that season at Rutgers, 30-27.

– UCF is 5-0 for only the second time in program history, and the first time as an FBS team. The Knights have never started a season 6-0. Saturday’s game at Annapolis, a meeting between two teams with a combined record of 10-1, is the first time UCF has ever faced one of the service academies.

– Louisville and Florida State have met on the gridiron seventeen times, with the Seminoles winning fourteen of those contests. Before the Cardinals’ staggering 63-20 triumph over FSU last year (which catapulted Lamar Jackson to favored status for the Heisman Trophy, which he eventually won), Louisville’s previous largest margin of victory versus Florida State came in the first meeting in the series, a 41-14 decision in 1952.

The next season, Florida State beat Louisville 59-0.

– Wake Forest and Georgia Tech are playing for only the third time in the last ten years. Georgia Tech has won both of the most recent meetings, but the matchup before that came in the 2006 ACC title game, won by the Demon Deacons, 9-6. Sam Swank’s three field goals were all the scoring Wake Forest would need that afternoon.

– The most famous game in the history of the LSU-Mississippi series is, without question, the 1959 meeting. LSU was ranked #1; Mississippi, #3. The two teams had combined to allow only two touchdowns all season prior to the October 31 matchup. The Tigers won 7-3 on a legendary punt return touchdown by Billy Cannon, who subsequently won that year’s Heisman Trophy.

—

It should be a great day of college football. The primetime block of games looks particularly appetizing. Get all your chores done in the morning, grab your snacks, and spend the rest of the day and night on the couch…

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2017 Football, Game 7: The Citadel vs. Chattanooga

Posted on October 19, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

The Citadel at Chattanooga, to be played at Finley Stadium/Davenport Field, with kickoff at 2:00 pm ET on October 21, 2017.

The game will be streamed on ESPN3.com. Chris Goforth will handle play-by-play, while B.J. Coleman supplies the analysis. 

The contest can be heard on radio via the various affiliates of The Citadel Sports Network. WQNT-1450 AM [audio link], originating in Charleston, will be the flagship station. 

Mike Legg (the “Voice of the Bulldogs”) will call the action alongside analyst Lee Glaze. 

—

The Citadel Sports Network — 2017 Affiliates

Charleston: WQNT 1450AM/92.1 FM/102.1 FM (Flagship)
Columbia: WQXL 1470AM/95.9FM
Greenville: WLFJ 92.9FM/660AM
Sumter: WDXY 1240AM/105.9FM

—

Links of interest:

– Bulldogs aren’t giving up on the playoffs just yet

– Game notes from The Citadel and Chattanooga

– Preview from The Citadel’s website

– SoCon weekly release

– FCS Coaches’ poll (The Citadel is in the “receiving votes” category, and would be ranked #31 if the poll went that far)

– STATS FCS poll (The Citadel is in the “receiving votes” category, and would be ranked #31 if the poll went that far)

– Brent Thompson’s 10/17 press conference, including comments from Rod Johnson and Quinlan Washington (video)

– Brent Thompson’s 10/18 radio show (video)

– Tom Arth wants Chattanooga to “be the aggressors” on Saturday

– Rushing defense key for Mocs against The Citadel

– A trying season for UTC’s seniors

– Chattanooga searching for its first home win (video from WDEF-TV)

– Chattanooga media luncheon with head coach Tom Arth, quarterback Cole Copeland, and defensive back C.J. Fritz (videos)

– Inside Chattanooga Football (video)

– Highlights of Chattanooga’s win over VMI (video)

—

The Citadel hits the road again after two disappointing home losses, looking to break a three-game losing streak. If the Bulldogs have even a remote chance of making a third straight trip to the FCS playoffs, they almost certainly have to win their next four games. That starts on Saturday in the River City against Chattanooga.

The Mocs are having an even more difficult time on the gridiron, as they are currently 1-6 for the 2017 campaign. UTC’s only victory came against the other military school in the Southern Conference, VMI.

New coach Tom Arth has had a tough debut season to date in the SoCon, perhaps more so than was expected. Among other issues, Chattanooga is now featuring its third starting quarterback of the season, a true freshman who was originally going to be redshirted.

—

Every year, it is mandatory to explain the history related to Chattanooga and its mascot/nickname. I’ve written frequently about the school’s identity and branding issues over the years.

Chattanooga has a webpage on its varsity sports website devoted to the one big question that has dominated discussion at the school for decades: What is a Moc?

 The term “Moc” is short for “Mockingbird.” Mockingbirds are fiercely territorial creatures which protect their homes with courage, determination and skill…

…Named after legendary football coach A.C. “Scrappy” Moore, Scrappy, the Chattanooga mascot, is a fixture for the Mocs.  A re-design in 2008 puts Scrappy in the image of the State Bird of Tennessee, a Mockingbird.  The mockingbird is known as a fierce protector of its nest and environment. It is sometimes seen swooping down on a dog, cat or predator that may be venturing too close to the bird’s protected territory.   Once described by “Late Night” host Jimmy Fallon as “a sledge-hammer wielding mockingbird with a heart of Blue & Gold,” Scrappy symbolizes that competitive passion.

Faced with politically sensitive issues and in need of a stronger core identity to help establish a strong brand as Chattanooga’s Team, the athletics department embarked on a comprehensive identity program in 1996. A new direction for the athletics identity was determined, moving away from the politically incorrect Native American Indian imagery.

The “Power C” and “Cowcatcher logo” are also branding symbols of note at Chattanooga. The subject even came to the attention of The New York Times back in 2009.

The official name of the school, meanwhile, is the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. In this post, I’ll refer to “Chattanooga”, “UTC”, and “Mocs” when discussing its football program.

—

Why does Finley Stadium/Davenport Field have artificial turf? Well, because the facility was relentlessly mocked on ESPN’s SportsCenter program about 13 years ago.

A recent article in the Chattanooga Times Free Press explains:

James Madison and Montana met for the [2004 FCS] title at Finley, but that showdown was upstaged by the stadium’s new sod coming up in chunks throughout the game that was televised nationally on ESPN2.

“That’s probably the worst field I’ve ever played on in my life, grade school through college,” then-James Madison quarterback and current UTC offensive coordinator Justin Rascati said afterward. “I was really surprised how bad it was for this type of game.”

[Former Finley Stadium executive director Merrill] Eckstein explained that the field was resodded after UTC’s 2004 season because the NCAA repeatedly griped about how brown it looked.

“We would paint it green, but by the end of the first quarter, the green was all over the uniforms of the players,” Eckstein said. “Somebody had to sign on the sod deal, and I’m the genius who did that.”

[Gordon] Davenport, the current chairman of the Stadium Corp., vividly remembers the morning after the 2004 FCS title game and watching ESPN’s “SportsCenter” at home.

“They were using the visuals of the field as their entire story,” Davenport said. “I’m sitting there looking at Davenport Field. I wasn’t involved with the stadium at that point, but I jumped right in for the fundraising for the first version of the artificial turf and have ratcheted up my involvement ever since.”

Finley Stadium/Davenport Field hosted the FCS title game from 1997 through the 2009 season. Thus, both Chattanooga and The Citadel have hosted the I-AA/FCS championship, as Johnson Hagood Stadium was the site of the final in 1983 and 1984.

—

Here is a trivia question: which school has Chattanooga faced on the gridiron more than any other opponent?

The answer, which might be surprising for some, is The Citadel. On Saturday, the Mocs and Bulldogs will meet for the 51st time.

It is Chattanooga’s longest football series in terms of games played, despite the fact that this is the school’s 110th year of fielding a football team. Conversely, The Citadel has played five different opponents 51 or more times.

I don’t think fans of either program would consider this matchup a classic (or even modern) rivalry. The two schools are not close in terms of geography, nor are they similar in enrollment size or mission.

Nevertheless, the game preview on UTC’s website suggests the ‘rivalry’ is a “hot one”, one that has been “turning into one of the more heated rivalries in the league over the last few meetings.”

—

As mentioned above, Chattanooga is 1-6 so far this season.

  • In the FCS Kickoff game, played in Montgomery, Alabama, Jacksonville State defeated the Mocs 27-13
  • UTC then lost (somewhat predictably) at LSU, 45-10
  • In its first home game of the season, Chattanooga didn’t score until late in the third quarter, and dropped a 21-7 decision to UT Martin
  • The Mocs picked up their first win of the season at woebegone VMI, routing the Keydets 63-7
  • Chattanooga then got rolled at home by Western Carolina, 45-7
  • The following week wasn’t much better, as UTC lost its Homecoming game to Furman, 41-17
  • Last Saturday in Macon, Mercer beat the Mocs 30-10

One thing that is noticeable when perusing those games: Chattanooga has yet to play a close game this season.

—

Former UTC head coach Russ Huesman left his alma mater after the 2016 season to take the job at Richmond. In a bit of a surprise, Chattanooga reached down into the Division III coaching ranks to pick his successor.

Tom Arth is only 36 years old, but he has already had an interesting (and largely successful) run in the game of football. A star quarterback at John Carroll University, Arth spent three seasons (2003-2005) as a backup for the Indianapolis Colts, where he befriended Peyton Manning.

Arth never took the field for the Colts in a regular season game (to be fair, backups to Manning back then never played), but he did suit up for various NFL Europe and Arena League teams. Arth is surely the first coach in Southern Conference history to have played for the Scottish Claymores and the Hamburg Sea Devils.

He returned to his alma mater as an assistant in 2010. Arth became head coach of the Blue Streaks in 2013, and in four seasons compiled a 40-8 record. Last season, John Carroll went 12-2, including a monumental win over D-3 heavy Mt. Union.

Arth is a native of Cleveland. He played his high school ball at perennial power St. Ignatius.

Another critical piece of information: according to Wikipedia, he was the lowest-rated player in the ESPN NFL 2K5 video game.

—

Stats of note for UTC through seven games:

Chattanooga Opponents
Points per game 18.1 30.9
Rushing yardage 398 1144
Average per rush 2.01 3.96
Average per game 56.9 163.4
TDs rushing 6 11
Passing yardage 1431 1286
Comp-Att-Int 143-246-11 88-135-5
Average per pass 5.8 9.3
TDs passing 9 13
Total offense 1829 2430
Total plays 444 427
Yards per play 4.1 5.7
Kick returns-yards 34-591 23-435
Punt returns-yards 10-88 9-152
Fumbles/lost 7/5 3/1
Avg penalties/penalty yards per game 6.9/55.7 6.7/64.0
Net punt average 39.9 36.6
Time of possession/game 29:43 30:17
3rd down conversions 32/98 36/88
3rd down conversion rate 32.6% 40.9%
Sacks by-yards 8-57 24-198
Field goals-attempts 5-6 5-12
Red Zone touchdown rate 11-19 (57.9%) 15-23 (65.2%)
  • Chattanooga is 119th (out of 123 FCS teams) in rushing offense; UTC’s 2.01 yards per attempt is fourth-worst nationally
  • The Mocs are 74th in rushing defense
  • UTC is 83rd in FCS in offensive third down conversion rate, and 86th in defensive third down conversion rate
  • Chattanooga’s defense has only one fumble recovery, the lowest total in FCS
  • Partly because of that, UTC’s turnover margin is 114th nationally
  • Chattanooga completes a lot of short passes, which is why the Mocs are 109th in yards per pass completion
  • That, plus UTC’s 11 interceptions, has led to an offensive pass efficiency rating that is 91st in FCS
  • The Mocs are 115th in defensive pass efficiency
  • Chattanooga is 100th nationally in scoring offense and 86th in scoring defense

—

I took a quick look at some of last year’s stats for the Mocs (the full 13-game season). A few eye-opening differences from 2016 to 2017:

  • UTC’s offense scored 34.2 points per game in 2016; in 2017, 18.1
  • Chattanooga averaged 5.1 yards per rush last year; so far this season, 2.01
  • UTC quarterbacks only threw 7 interceptions in 342 pass attempts last season; they have already thrown 11 picks (in 246 attempts) this year
  • The Mocs’ defense is allowing 9.3 yards per pass attempt this season; in 2016, that number was 6.2
  • Chattanooga’s offense is averaging a full 2 yards less per play this year (6.1 to 4.1) while the defense is allowing 1.1 more yards per play (5.7 to 4.6)

—

Key stats for The Citadel through six games:

The Citadel Opponents
Points per game 25.7 20.8
Rushing yardage 1761 640
Average per rush 4.9 3.4
Average per game 293.5 106.7
TDs rushing 16 10
Passing yardage 652 1152
Comp-Att-Int 38-88-3 89-148-7
Average per pass 7.4 7.8
TDs passing 5 7
Total offense 2413 1792
Total plays 450 338
Yards per play 5.4 5.3
Kick returns-yards 12-226 14-289
Punt returns-yards 11-83 5-16
Fumbles/lost 14/5 6/4
Avg penalties/penalty yards per game 4.5/37.2 3.2/31.0
Net punt average 37.5 38.1
Time of possession/game 34:32 25:28
3rd down conversions 43/94 24/66
3rd down conversion rate 45.7% 36.4%
Sacks by-yards 10-55 4-27
Field goals-attempts 2-4 2-4
Red Zone touchdown rate 17-26 (65.4%) 11-15 (73.3%)
  • The Citadel is 17th in offensive third down conversion rate and 51st in defensive third down conversion rate
  • The Bulldogs have been called for the 12th-fewest penalties per game in FCS
  • The Citadel is 5th nationally in rushing; the Bulldogs are 26th in FCS in yards per rush
  • In terms of pass efficiency, The Citadel is 74th on offense, and 72nd on defense; both of those numbers took a hit last week
  • The Citadel is 60th in the country in scoring offense and 31st in scoring defense
  • The Bulldogs are 4th nationally in time of possession
  • The Citadel is 37th in FCS in turnover margin

—

At his weekly press conference, Brent Thompson described Chattanooga’s offense as being “a little more pass-oriented” and “more pro-style” this season under Tom Arth’s direction.

UTC’s offense has been affected by a revolving door at quarterback. Last year’s starter, Alejandro Bennifield (6’3″, 220 lbs.), was suspended for the first four games of the season for academic reasons. He returned to the field against Western Carolina, only to suffer a concussion after one of the more brutal hits on a QB you will ever see.

He has yet to return for the Mocs, and may not, although Arth said this week that Bennifield was improving. That is good to hear.

Nick Tiano (6’5″, 240 lbs.), a transfer from Mississippi State, started the season at quarterback, but he was also injured against the Catamounts, hurting his shoulder.

The starter for the last two games has been Cole Copeland (6’4″, 200 lbs.), a true freshman from Cleveland, Tennessee. Copeland was going to redshirt this year, but he is running the show now (and presumably will for the foreseeable future, as long as he stays healthy).

Copeland’s stats versus Furman: 30 for 42 passing for 317 yards and two touchdowns, which is fairly impressive for a debut. He did throw four interceptions, however, and was sacked three times.

Last week against Mercer, Copeland was 22 for 39 for 206 yards, suffering one interception and three sacks. The Mocs only rushed the ball 42 times combined in those two games (and that includes six sacks), so it is fairly clear that despite Copeland’s inexperience, UTC’s coaches are willing to put the offense in his hands.

Darrell Bridges (6’1″, 200 lbs.), a senior from Chattanooga, leads the Mocs in rushing, although he is only averaging 2.8 yards per carry. Bridges had 88 yards (on only 15 carries) and UTC’s lone touchdown versus LSU. He also scored last week against Mercer.

Bingo Morton (6’2″, 215 lbs.), though not listed as a starter on the two-deep, is Chattanooga’s leading receiver so far this season, with 23 receptions (three for TDs). Two of those touchdowns came against VMI; Morton, tipped as a potential breakout candidate in the preseason by at least one publication, also had a 59-yard TD catch versus UT Martin.

Chattanooga’s projected starters on the offensive line average 6’4″, 300 lbs.

Starting center Josh Cardiello (6’3″, 305 lbs.) began his collegiate career at Georgia. The senior was a preseason first-team All-SoCon pick this year after being a second-team all-league selection at the end of last season.

Left tackle Malcolm White (6’6″, 305 lbs.), was a preseason second-team all-league selection. The sophomore from Johnson City, Tennessee made the All-Freshman team for the SoCon last year.

—

Despite missing last week’s game, middle linebacker Tavon Lawson (6’1″, 225 lbs.) still leads the Mocs in tackles, with 50. The native of Talladega also has 5 1/2 tackles for loss.

Noseguard Derek Mahaffey (6’2″, 205 lbs.) had nine tackles last week against Mercer, which strikes me as a lot of tackles for someone at that position. He had eight tackles the week before versus Furman.

Also worth mentioning: Mahaffey wears #5 on his jersey. How many interior linemen wear #5?

Defensive end Taylor Reynolds (6’3″, 275 lbs.) was a preseason second-team All-SoCon choice.

Lucas Webb (6’1″, 205 lbs.) already has two interceptions and a fumble recovery, not surprising given that he is already a three-time first-team all-SoCon performer. Webb had eight tackles against The Citadel in last year’s game between the two teams. He has 47 career starts.

Cornerback C.J. Fritz (5’11”, 175 lbs.) had six tackles versus The Citadel last season. Fritz has started every game for the Mocs over the last two seasons.

Placekicker Victor Ulmo (5’8″, 180 lbs.) is 5 for 6 on field goal attempts, including a 44-yarder last week versus Mercer. His one miss was from 47 yards. Ulmo also handles kickoffs for the Mocs.

Colin Brewer (6’1″, 205 lbs.), UTC’s punter, made the All-Freshman team last season. Brewer also serves as the holder on placekicks. Both Ulmo and Brewer are from Chattanooga.

The primary punt returner for the Mocs is freshman Brandon Dowdell (5’10”, 195 lbs.), a native of Cordele, Georgia. He is averaging 10.1 yards per return, which is outstanding. The Bulldogs must be very careful when (if?) punting to him on Saturday.

Running back Richardre Bagley (5’9″, 180 lbs.) has returned most opponents’ kickoffs for Chattanooga this season.

—

Odds and ends:

– The weather forecast for Saturday in Chattanooga, per the National Weather Service: mostly sunny, with a high of 75 degrees.

– Per one source that deals in such matters, The Citadel is a 3.5-point favorite over Chattanooga. The over/under is 47.5.

– Other lines involving SoCon teams: Furman is a 3.5-point favorite over Mercer; Western Carolina is a 27.5-point favorite at VMI; and Wofford is a 2.5-point favorite over Samford. East Tennessee State is off this week.

Around the Palmetto State: Clemson, South Carolina, and Presbyterian are all off this week. South Carolina State is a 17-point favorite at Delaware State; Coastal Carolina is a 23.5-point underdog at Appalachian State; and Charleston Southern (hungry for a victory) is a 30-point favorite over Savannah State.

– Massey Ratings: The Citadel is ranked 44th in FCS, a drop of 3 spots from last week.

Chattanooga is ranked 70th in FCS, falling nine places from last week. Overall (all college teams ranked), The Citadel is 193rd, while Mercer is 252nd.

Massey projects a final score of The Citadel 24, Chattanooga 20. The Bulldogs are given a 63% chance of winning.

Other FCS rankings in Massey of note: Wofford is 11th (up two spots), Samford is 22nd (up one position), Furman is 27th (down two places), Western Carolina is 29th (up two spots), Mercer is 34th (also up two spots), Charleston Southern is 35th, East Tennessee State is 72nd (down eight places), Presbyterian is 78th, South Carolina State is 85th, and VMI is 112th.

The FCS top five in Massey’s rankings, in order: North Dakota State, James Madison, South Dakota, Western Illinois, and Eastern Washington.

– Since 1911, The Citadel has a 5-6-1 record for games played on October 21. The last time the Bulldogs played on October 21, they defeated Western Carolina in overtime, 30-27.

The Citadel has played Chattanooga twice on this particular date, splitting the two matchups. The Bulldogs’ 12-0 win over the Mocs in 1972 is the only time the program has won on the road on October 21.

– The Citadel’s two-deep for the Chattanooga game is the same as that for the Wofford contest, the second consecutive week there has not been a change on the depth chart.

– Changes on the UTC two-deep: Darrell Bridges is listed as the starter at running back, ahead of Richardre Bagley, who was in that spot for the Mercer game. Cole Strange was not listed as a starter at left guard on last week’s depth chart, but actually started the game anyway and is the presumed starter against The Citadel. As noted earlier in this post, linebacker Tavon Lawson did not play against the Bears due to injury, but is back in the starting lineup this week.

– Among Chattanooga’s notable graduates are actor Dennis “Mr. Belding” Haskins, retired general Burwell Bell, and chemist Irvine Grote.

– For the second straight week, The Citadel will be involved in a “Military Appreciation Day” game. As part of the festivities, Mocs coach Tom Arth will wear camouflage pants.

– The roster for Chattanooga (per its game notes) includes 52 players from the State of Tennessee. Other states represented on the roster: Georgia (26 players), Alabama (14), Florida (8), and one each from Ohio, Arkansas, Kentucky, Colorado, and California.

There are no Palmetto State residents on the Chattanooga roster. That means, of course, that not even one UTC player is from Orangeburg-Wilkinson High School, internationally recognized for its superiority on the gridiron. This mind-boggling recruiting oversight almost certainly explains the sudden downturn in the Mocs’ pigskin fortunes.

– The Citadel’s geographic roster breakdown (per the school’s website) is as follows: South Carolina (47 players), Georgia (29), Florida (6), North Carolina (5), Alabama (4), Texas (4), Pennsylvania (3), Tennessee (2), New York (2), and one each from Louisiana, Michigan, Virginia, and West Virginia.

—

The Citadel has not won at Chattanooga since 2011. That was a memorable game, as the Bulldogs came back from a 27-0 deficit in the third quarter and won 28-27.

I think Saturday’s contest presents the Cadets with a reasonable opportunity to pick up another victory at Finley Stadium, but it won’t be easy. While UTC is struggling this season, the Mocs still have a lot of talented players, many of whom are used to winning.

If that sounds a lot like the makeup of The Citadel’s roster, well, that is because there are a lot of similarities. Both teams know what it is like to win. Both teams need to win.

I expect this game to be hard-fought and close. However, if the Bulldogs can put together four solid,well-played quarters of football, they should return to Charleston with a victory.

Here is hoping they do just that.

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College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 8

Posted on October 17, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

This is a list of every game played during week 8 of the 2017 college football season involving at least one FBS or FCS school. All games are listed, televised or not.

For the televised games (only live broadcasts are listed), I include the announcers and sideline reporters (where applicable). I put all of it on a Google Documents spreadsheet that can be accessed at the following link:

College Football TV Listings 2017, Week 8

Additional notes:

– I include games streamed by ESPN3.com and Fox Sports Go; they are denoted as “ESPN3″ and “FS-Go”, respectively. This season, I will also list streamed games for NBC Live Extra and CBS Sports Digital.

– I also list digital network feeds provided by various conferences, but only when they are free of charge. For some of these feeds, the audio will be a simulcast of the home team’s radio broadcast. Other online platforms have their own announcers.

For now, the digital networks I am including in the listings are those for the ACC, Big Sky, Big South, CAA, Mountain West, NEC, OVC, Pac-12, Patriot League, and SoCon.

Occasionally individual schools (almost always at the FCS level) provide video feeds free of charge. When that is the case, I list those as well.

– I do not include PPV telecasts, regardless of whether or not the matchup in question features FBS or FCS schools. These games are increasingly rare.

– The local affiliates for the ACC Network “national” game of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here:  Pittsburgh-Duke

– The regional sports networks carrying the ACC Network “regional” game of the week can be found on a link in the document, and here:   Boston College-Virginia

– ESPN College Extra games (with blackout maps where applicable): Link

– Stadium’s streaming URLs:  Colgate-Holy Cross   Fordham-Georgetown               Bucknell-Lafayette   Utah State-UNLV   Southern Mississippi-Louisiana Tech

– AP Poll (FBS):  Link

– FCS Coaches’ Poll:  Link

—

A lot of the information I used in putting this together came courtesy of Matt Sarzyniak’s remarkably comprehensive and simply indispensable site College Sports on TV, a must-bookmark for any fan of college football and/or basketball. It is also well worth following the weekly schedule put together by lsufootball.net.

As always, I must mention the indefatigable information collectors (and in some cases sports-TV savants) at the506.com. I am also assisted on occasion by helpful athletic media relations officials at various schools and conferences.

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Game Review, 2017: Wofford

Posted on October 16, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

Links of interest:

– Game story, The Post and Courier

– “Notes” package, The Post and Courier

– “By the Numbers”, The Post and Courier

– Photo gallery, The Post and Courier

– AP game story

– Game story, Spartanburg Herald-Journal

– School release

– Video from WCSC-TV (postgame discussion with Brent Thompson and Dominique Allen)

– Game highlights (video)

– Boxscore

– ESPN3 video of the game

—

First, something not related to the football game but a bit more important:

Caroline Cashion, a mainstay on The Citadel’s soccer team for the past few years, was injured in the Bulldogs’ match against Chattanooga on Friday. She was hurt while attempting to head the ball away from goal; Cashion collided with one of the Mocs and went down heavily, immediately clutching her lower back after she landed.

Jeff Hartsell of The Post and Courier posted this message to Facebook on Sunday:

From Craig Cashion, father of injured Citadel soccer player Caroline Cashion: “Thank you to everyone for thoughts and prayers. Caroline still cannot move her legs but her feeling has moved from her waist to her upper thigh so she is improving slowly.”

Some Bulldog fans may recall that in addition to her high school soccer exploits, Cashion served as the placekicker for West Ashley High School’s football team, most memorably kicking a game-winning field goal against Summerville during her sophomore campaign.

Let us hope she makes a complete recovery.

—

Saturday’s loss was tough. The Bulldogs played hard, and often played well, but it wasn’t enough. There is only so much that can be said about a game like that.

A few random thoughts:

– I didn’t have any significant issues with the officiating in terms of specific calls, but the game management left a lot to be desired. There was no reason that contest should have taken over three hours to play.

A key third-down play for Wofford in the second quarter may have come after the play clock hit zero, but I wasn’t sure. The ESPN3 game replay would tend to indicate that the play should have been whistled dead, but it wasn’t and such is life, especially when league opponents face the Terriers.

– During the contest, I was more than a little startled to hear the P.A. announcer credit Wofford linebacker Michael Roach with a tackle on a kick return. Why?

Well, because Roach almost died last season after going into cardiac arrest during a game. I remembered his name (you could say I was predisposed to do so), and immediately tweeted a question, asking if he was playing again.

Not surprisingly (as Todd Shanesy of the Spartanburg Herald-Journal soon replied), he wasn’t.

Later, Roach was credited by the P.A. with another special teams tackle. I had my suspicions, which were confirmed when I took another look at Wofford’s roster.

Wofford lists two players as wearing #43, Roach (who obviously doesn’t play) and linebacker Shaun Moore, a freshman from Spring Valley High School in Columbia.

It was undoubtedly Moore who made two tackles on special teams Saturday night, though the statistics don’t indicate as such. He is credited with participating in the game, however.

I don’t really know who was at fault for this particular episode of mistaken identity. I think it is probably up to the road team’s support staff to make sure the P.A. announcer (and his spotter) is given the correctly numbered roster. Whether or not that happened, I have no idea.

For a brief moment, though, I was left wondering if Michael Roach was making medical history…

– Near the end of the game, Brent Thompson was left with a tough decision in regards to when to take his timeouts on defense. There was a bit of nuance as to when he should take them. In general, he handled the situation reasonably well, though I thought he probably should have taken his first timeout one play earlier. Some might argue he should have done so two plays earlier.

It was a very tricky time/score management scenario. I was going through the various potential permutations myself and not coming up with any decisive answers, which is unusual for me, as I am one of those nerds who spends way too much time thinking about clock management.

In the end, it didn’t really matter once Wofford picked up its penultimate first down.

It mattered a little too much to a couple of guys behind me, though, who were loudly berating the coach as the clock wound down. I particularly remember one of them (maybe both of them) bellowing, “This isn’t high school!” as they yelled for Thompson to call timeout. “You’re paid to do this!” They shouted a few other things, too.

They were right about one thing. It wasn’t, and isn’t, high school. It is college. That applies to the coaches and players…and it also applies to the fans.

Thompson shouldn’t be immune from criticism — he is a professional, after all. There comes a time as a critic, however, when the point has been made, and over-the-top obnoxious behavior isn’t going to change anything or make things better.

In short, a couple of people need to grow up.

– The colored smoke routine for Military Appreciation Day was new (at least, I don’t remember seeing it before, but admittedly I could be very wrong about that). It led to a chaotic-looking scene on the field after the team made its run through the “Block C”.

To be honest, I thoroughly enjoyed the chaos. Let’s do that again.

– When the Bulldogs play again at Johnson Hagood Stadium in two weeks, it will be Homecoming. The opponent will be VMI, and the coveted Silver Shako will be on the line.

Would it be too much to ask that the team breaks out light blue jerseys and white pants for that game? Even if it is too much to ask, I’m asking anyway. C’mon.

—

As usual, the pictures aren’t the best; they aren’t the worst, either. No annotations, though the game action is in sequential order. My thanks to Spike The Bulldog for the pose in the initial photo (water bottle and all).

 

 

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College Football 2017, Week #7: the top 15 matchups

Posted on October 13, 2017 by Sandlapper Spike

The weekly explanation of this post:

On his college hoops ratings website, Ken Pomeroy has an algorithm called ‘FanMatch’, in which “games are rated for competitiveness and level of play with a lean towards higher-scoring games”. It is a way to rate the potential watchability of various basketball contests. There is just a touch of whimsy involved, which makes it even better…

Mimicking this idea, I’ve created a remarkably convoluted and studiously hazy formula to produce game ratings; it is called “Tingle Factor”, or TF. The higher the TF, the better.

To access a Google Document that has a complete schedule of televised/streamed D-1 college football games (including all the announcing teams), see this post: Link

I am excluding the game between The Citadel and Wofford this week, because that matchup dominates the rest of the slate to such an extent that it is unfair to compare it to other contests.

Outside of that matchup, here are the top 15 games for Week 7. All fifteen games will take place on Saturday.

Road Team Home Team Gametime (ET) TV/Streaming TF
Navy Memphis 10/14, 3:45 pm ESPNU 78.2
UCLA Arizona 10/14, 9:00 pm Pac-12 Network 77.1
Texas Tech West Virginia 10/14, 12:00 pm ESPNU 76.9
Oklahoma Texas 10/14, 3:30 pm ESPN 76.7
South Carolina Tennessee 10/14, 12:00 pm ESPN 76.1
TCU Kansas State 10/14, 12:00 pm FS1/FS-Go 75.9
Georgia Tech Miami (FL) 10/14, 3:30 pm ABC/ESPN3 75.2
UTSA North Texas 10/14, 7:00 pm ESPN3 73.8
Auburn LSU 10/14, 3:30 pm CBS 72.4
Texas A&M Florida 10/14, 7:00 pm ESPN2 72.1
Utah Southern California 10/14, 8:00 pm ABC/ESPN3 70.7
Toledo Central Michigan 10/14, 3:30 pm ESPN3 68.6
Boise State San Diego State 10/14, 10:30 pm CBS Sports Network 66.9
Villanova James Madison 10/14, 3:30 pm MASN2 65.5
Wyoming Utah State 10/14, 4:30 pm Facebook 65.1

 

Additional notes and observations:

– The Oklahoma-Texas game will be played in Dallas, at the Texas State Fair, where fans have the opportunity to gorge themselves on such food items as tamale donuts and funnel cake queso bacon burgers.

– CBS/CBS Sports Network games will also be streamed on CBS Sports Digital, as will the Villanova-James Madison game on MASN2.

– The games on the ESPN “Family of Networks” will also be streamed via WatchESPN.

– The UCLA-Arizona game will be streamed on the Pac-12 Digital network.

– The three highest-rated “TF” games on the board this week are also projected by sources to be the highest-scoring games among the top 15. Navy-Memphis has an over/under of 70.5, slightly lower than UCLA-Arizona (over/under of 74.5) and Texas Tech-West Virginia (72.5).

– San Diego State had the largest advantage in field position in any matchup played last week (+18.8, in its game versus UNLV).

– ESPN’s College GameDay is in Harrisonburg, Virginia this week for the Villanova-James Madison game, a matchup which also landed in the TF top 15 (the only FCS game to do so). It is the second time JMU has hosted the show; Lee Corso and company were last in town in 2015. The Dukes hope to avoid what happened on the field that afternoon, when Richmond spoiled the party with a 59-49 victory.

– Bridger’s Battle, a/k/a the Wyoming-Utah State game, is the first TF top 15 matchup to be exclusively streamed on Facebook. The rivalry trophy is a .50 caliber Rocky Mountain Hawken rifle.

– Streaky: Central Michigan has lost seven straight games to Toledo, a streak dating back to 2010. The Chippewas had won the five games between the two teams prior to that run; however, the Rockets had won 10 straight in the series before that stretch.

– The last time TCU played Kansas State in Manhattan (2015), the Horned Frogs (ranked #2 at the time) escaped with a 52-45 victory after trailing 35-17 at halftime.

– Miami has never lost to Georgia Tech in the facility known as Hard Rock Stadium (which was previously Joe Robbie Stadium, Pro Player Park, Pro Player Stadium, Dolphins Stadium, Dolphin Stadium, Land Shark Stadium, and Sun Life Stadium). The Hurricanes are 4-0 against the Yellow Jackets there, regardless of the name.

– In the last five seasons, the Texas Tech-West Virginia game has averaged a total of 64 points per contest. WVU has won the last three games in the series.

– South Carolina has played five overtime games in its history, going 2-3 in those contests. All three of the losses were to Tennessee (and all by three points).

– The contest between Texas A&M and Florida will be only the fourth meeting in the series, and only the second since 1977. The Gators have won two of the previous three matchups.

– It is a shame the Auburn-LSU game is not being played at night. That probably lessens the chance for a repeat of the 1988 “Earthquake Game“.

—

It should be a fun afternoon of college football. There aren’t any standout games (at least on paper), but the day does feature a bunch of pigskin battles that have the potential to be very entertaining. Keep that clicker handy…

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