If Gus Malzahn takes the Auburn job, they skate with the NCAA

It is irrefutable logic. Gus Malzahn was Auburn’s offensive coordinator for three years. If Auburn has committed any major NCAA recruiting violations, he knows about them and he knows where the bodies are buried.

No intelligent head coach would walk into a situation knowing that impending NCAA sanctions might cripple his program for the next three to four years. Further, under the new NCAA penalty system those sanctions would likely include hefty fines for the program, a multiple-year post season ban and heavier scholarship reductions than anything that might have been imposed previously.

Malzahn knows all of this. He also knows that in the modern era, no Auburn head football coach since Shug Jordan has left that program on his own terms. Only one—Tommy Tuberville—went on to coach a major college football program after leaving the plains.

If the NCAA finds major violations and imposes harsh sanctions, it will be many years before Auburn is competitive again in the Southeastern Conference. Going 0-8 in the SEC will become the new normal and as we all know, there is no fan base in this league patient enough to stomach that.

So if Auburn does announce Gus Malzahn as their next head coach, you can rest assured that there won’t likely be any major NCAA violations found.

You can extend this logic to candidates who have recruited against Auburn since 2009, the year Gene Chizik and his staff took over the Auburn program. That would include Bobby Petrino, Kirby Smart, Jimbo Fisher, Chadd Morris and James Franklin. You don’t go head-to-head for top recruits for three years running and not know if a program is exceeding the speed limit by enough to get nailed by the local constabulary.

It doesn’t matter how much money you throw at these guys, either. They’re all relatively young men with relatively bright, yet brief resumes. They’re all up-and-comers, which means that they won’t take a short term cash bonanza if it means wrecking their longer term potential as head coaches. They’re too smart for that.

The only one with an ego—and sense of desperation—large enough to risk his future thinking he might win anyway is Petrino, and even he might take pause.

So mark this down: If Gus Malzahn takes the Auburn job, there won’t be any major NCAA sanctions levied against the Tigers.

The logic is irrefutable.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Morning Six Pack: December 4, 2012

Give me a woman who loves beer and college football, and I will rule the world! But for now, I’m ruling these six college football stories from around the country.

Texas Tech bowl bound after missing last season

Texas Tech is back in a bowl game, a year after the Red Raiders ended a streak of 11-straight postseason appearances.

Death To The BCS, And The Demand For A Better Playoff System

With the seemingly counterintuitive, and geographically chaotic realignment of college conferences, it has been brought to the forefront of people’s minds how redundant the new playoff system is setting itself up to be.

Notre Dame focusing on themselves for now

Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has bigger things to worry about right now than defending national champion Alabama.

Auburn interviews Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart

Auburn reportedly interviewed Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart on Monday. Citing "people familiar with the process," AL.com reported Auburn interviewed Smart, who just helped lead the No. 2 Crimson Tide to a 32-28 win over Georgia in Saturday's SEC Championship Game.

Column: Are you ready for some bowls?! We aren't

This college football bowl season is like a brand of Chex Mix that comes with a bunch of nuts you don't really care to eat.

Quotable:

"The consistency is what we were all about," Fulmer said. "We tried to surround the team with a family kind of atmosphere. We did it all together -- one for all, all for one."

The Vols went undefeated in 1998 and clinched the national title with a 23-16 Fiesta Bowl victory over Florida State. They won the title despite having to replace eight NFL draft picks and three first-round selections, including 1997 Heisman Trophy runner-up Peyton Manning.

"In a lot of ways, that team felt challenged because everybody didn't give them a chance to repeat as [SEC] champions or even have a really good team," Fulmer said. "I think they bonded. They worked really hard. To be honest with you, I probably had three or four other teams that were physically better than that team. It's just one of those things where the stars don't line up. You have a tough loss somewhere along the way and you didn't quite get it done, and that team did."

The national title capped a four-year stretch in which Tennessee went 45-5.

"I had a fantastic career at one school, which is unheard of," Fulmer said. "It being my school made it even more special."

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

No decision on punishment for alleged “dirty plays” in SEC Championship Game

The Southeastern Conference media relations office has said that the league yet to decide issuing suspensions for at least two alleged unnecessary roughness plays that occurred during the 2012 SEC football championship game played last Saturday in Atlanta. Alabama won the game in dramatic fashion by the score of 32-28.

The first controversial call came in the second quarter. As Alabama’s AJ McCarron was throwing the ball near the end zone, Georgia’s Alec Ogletree came in and delivered a massive blow to the Tide QB. The pass fell incomplete and Ogletree was penalized for a personal foul.

The second call also came in the second quarter. Georgia’s Aaron Murray was intercepted by Alabama’s Ha’Sean “Ha Ha” Clinton-Dix. During Clinton-Dix’s return, Alabama’s Quinton Dial laid a punishing hit on the Georgia QB. No flag was thrown on the play.

Georgia will square off against Nebraska in the Capital One Bowl on New Year’s Day.

Alabama will face Notre Dame in the BCS Championship Game on January 7.

Both Ogletree and Dial are healthy and expected to play if they are cleared by the conference. Commissioner Mike Slive is traveling and has not yet had an opportunity to review these (and possibly other) extracurricular activities during the game, according to Jon Solomon of the Birmingham News.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Memories Monday: 1992, or 2012?

The 2012 SEC Championship game—won by Alabama over Georgia by the score of 32-28 is being touted by many as the best and most exciting game in the history of the championship series.

It was a great one—decided on the game’s final play. Alabama’s CJ Mosley tipped a pass from Georgia’s Aaron Murray, which fell into the arms of the wrong receiver. He fell to the turf and the clock ran out.

But is this the Best Ever?

ESPN made a documentary on the 1992 Championship Game. Not only was it just as exciting, it changed the course of college football history forever.

Check out the trailer for that documentary below.

 

At a painfully frigid Legion Field on December 5, 1992, the league’s best defense met the league’s best offense in a classic matchup between the irresistible force and the immovable object. The immovable object held the day, but it took two 4th quarter heroic plays to get the final score, 28-21, Alabama.

Late in the 4th with about 3:00 remaining and the score tied at 21, Florida took over at its 21 yard line. On first down, play from scrimmage, Shane Matthews' pass was intercepted by Alabama’s Antonio Langham at the 27.  He weaved and juked his way into the endzone. Michael Proctor kick made it 28-21. 

Steve Spurrier and the Gators had one last chance to tie it up again. On 2nd and 10 from the Florida 39, Matthews' down pass was tipped and intercepted by Michael Rogers near midfield. Alabama ran out the clock, and that was that.

The first ever SEC Championship Game remained the most exciting for the next 20 years. The 20th of course was Saturday’s thrilling game. It’s been a great series. There have been a few very competitive games and a few yawners, but every year it puts the best of the west against the best of the east, and for the seventh straight time, the winner will play for the BCS National Championship.

So which game was the best ever? The very first one, or the one we just watched? The debate may rage for years.

Speaking of memories, if you’re shopping for Alabama sports memorabilia for holiday gifts, check out A Tiny Kingdom Sports. They have a high quality (and growing) inventory of game worn items, signed helmets, jerseys and photos and more. They’re a new sponsor here at IBCR. Show them your support and support this website at the same time.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Morning Six Pack: December 3, 2012

Happy Mondays are happier when you start early. So, here are six cold, clear and refreshing college football stories from around the country.

Gators Thrilled to be Back in Sugar Bowl; Will See Familiar Face on Opposite Sideline

The Gators are going to the Allstate Sugar Bowl and will face one of their former defensive coordinators on Jan. 2 in New Orleans. However, it’s not Oklahoma and head coach Bob Stoops as most projected entering the weekend. Instead, the No. 4-ranked Gators (11-1) will face Louisville and Charlie Strong.

Defense Leads Top Teams in Offensive-Minded Game

Despite all of the pass-happy, fast-paced fun, those atop the BCS standings paint a far different picture of what it takes to be successful. Notre Dame, Alabama and Florida are Nos. 1, 2 and 3 in the BCS standings, and they also fall into that same order in another category — points allowed.

Blockbuster BCS main event, with iffy undercard

The penultimate Bowl Championship Series gave college football a national championship matchup low on controversy and loaded with star power.

Some rearranging going on at Auburn Athletic Center

Less than a week from the news conference when Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs announced the firing of Chizik following a 3-9 season which Jacobs called “unacceptable,” Auburn took off-the-wall literally, removing several pictures of Chizik from the Auburn Athletic Center.

Cotton Bowl headlines non-BCS bowl games

After missing out on an at-large BCS bid, Big 12 co-champion Oklahoma will have to settle for a matchup against Heisman-hopeful Johnny Manziel and the 10th-ranked Texas A&M Aggies in the Cotton Bowl at Dallas Cowboys Stadium on Jan. 4.

Quotable:

Alabama will be installed as the favorite for a reason. But that hardly guarantees a Tide victory.

…

We'll have the next five weeks to further dissect the matchup, but in reality, that's a fruitless exercise. As we've seen year after year, the teams in the drawn-out BCS championship game often bear little resemblance to those that played in the first 12 or 13 games. There are too many variables to account for with such a long layoff. Coaches change jobs. Players go home for Christmas and eat junk food; others get distracted by agent and looming draft deadline decisions. Injured players get healthy and vice versa.

The only things we can be certain about with Notre Dame-Alabama are that a whole lot of people are going to watch it, and that a whole lot of those same people will be conflicted throughout. Here's one thing they can probably all agree on: After so many recent title-game clunkers, it would be fantastic if the Tide and Irish produced the type of classic that fans of so many previous generations enjoyed.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Should Georgia Have Spiked the Ball?

Should Georgia Have Spiked the Ball?

Published on Smart Football | shared via feedly

As explained in The Essential Smart Football, a lot of my thinking on spiking the ball was influenced by the great Homer Smith. I would have loved to know what the late Homer Smith would say about Richt’s decision not to spike against Alabama. But one of Coach Smith’s best points about the spike is one Richt mentions above: the spike play itself takes time, so people fantasizing about spiking and running three plays are being fantastical. As Smith explained: “Even when there is not time to use all four downs and even if you can snap the ball for a regular play as fast as you can snap it for the spike, [the spike] consumes a second that might have otherwise allowed you an additional play.” Richt’s thought was that the best shot at getting three end zone plays was not to spike. And without the ball being instinctively caught, there would have still been five-to-seven seconds left; enough for one, maybe two plays.

Again, it’s not that not spiking was absolutely correct, but the anger is better directed elsewhere, and the decision not to spike is totally defensible.

Ultimately to me it was a great play by Mosley, and an unfortunate fluke play for Georgia. One of the ironic things is that, with notable exceptions, Richt has been one of the better clock managers over the years. Much of that is because, after his first season at Georgia when his Bulldogs lost a variety of close games, he met with Homer Smith specifically to improve his clock management skills.

Go read the rest at Smart Football.

Whether one agrees or not that it was a mistake not to clock the ball, you can't argue that it's a no brainer. Georgia had the defensive personnel on the field that they thought they wanted. They had the right play called, but if you look at the replay, the receiver on the right fade was well covered and the ball would have probably fallen incomplete or been thrown out of bounds.

What happened was that CJ Mosley made a key play by tipping the ball, and the UGA receiver on the speed out reacted instinctively to catch it.

Would spiking the ball have changed that, assuming UGA ran the same play, got the same coverage and ended with the same result?

UGA’s Mark Richt has lost control of the media

Granted, it was an emotional coach following a gut-wrenching loss and an absolutely moronic question about Georgia’s and Aaron Murray’s big game jinx. I doubt any coach in the same setting would have reacted much differently.

It’s what he did after getting up to leave that doesn’t make sense.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Quotables: SEC Championship Game

Surely, this has to be the best game that offensive line has ever played.

"Uh, no," Kouandijo said. "Honestly, it wasn't. We had a lot of good numbers, but honestly, we left a lot of offense out on that field. We have a lot to work on, still."

Oh, I don't want to believe that. I'm sick of the SEC. I don't like when the same teams win all the time. It's boring. I'm sick of Alabama, which is going for its third title in four years, the way I got sick of USC a while back.

I want to believe that Notre Dame will beat Alabama with the same defense-and-discipline approach that has fueled some of the greatest upsets in college football history. I want to believe this is like Penn State shocking Miami in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl, or Ohio State shocking Miami in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl.

But I just watched Alabama. And then I talked to Alabama players, and besides being so maddeningly nice and aggravatingly polite, they sound so much like Saban that it's frightening.

* * *

"Well, you know, I'm always thinking what I'm going to say to the team, what the team has to do next," Saban said later in a quiet moment in one corner of a near deserted Alabama locker room. "And I usually write all that stuff down. And I had written that we had a 3 p.m. team meeting tomorrow, but I hadn't written down that we have a team banquet tomorrow night.

"So I was thinking about, what are we doing next here?"

Saban took a moment, shook his head slightly, sheepishly laughing at himself.

"I mean, you just won a championship, they haven't even given us the trophy yet and I'm already thinking about what's next, what do we have to do next?" he said.

* * *

We came into the game and said it was going to be a 15-round fight," Alabama offensive tackle D.J. Fluker said. "It was. It went down to the bitter end."

How much of a battle was it? Alabama All-American center Barrett Jones injured his foot in the first quarter but played through excruciating pain for the next 50 minutes. He left the Crimson Tide locker room on crutches. Alabama nose guard Jesse Williams wrecked his right knee with 13:13 left in the third quarter, and it looked like he wouldn't be able to return as he limped around the Tide sideline for several minutes, before retiring to the bench with a towel over his head.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, though, Williams was back in the game at fullback, opening a hole for tailback Eddie Lacy on a 1-yard touchdown that gave the Tide a 25-21 lead with 14:57 left. Williams said he'll have an MRI on his injured knee Sunday.

"Once I knew it wasn't anything serious, I knew I could go back in the game and fight through it," said Williams, a 320-pound senior from Australia who sports a tattoo on the side of his head that reads, "Pain Is A Liar."

* * *

"Man, it stinks," said Murray, the quarterback, and he really didn't need to say anything more.

For Georgia, it did stink, in the worst way possible. The Bulldogs led this game 7-0. They led it 21-10. They fell behind, fought back, fell behind again and had one more chance to win it with 68 seconds and 85 yards to go. And all they needed was one more play to become legends, to change the entire star-crossed history of Georgia's program since its last national title in 1980. Instead, they dressed mostly in silence, knowing they're headed for a consolation bowl game that will likely be forgotten the moment it ends.

"I mean, it hurts me. We fought for this," linebacker Jarvis Jones said. "We had a great offseason and had a great season. Our goal was to come here and win it, and we fell short of that. You're always going to think about it. Four yards short of going to the BCS game. You're always going to think about that, no matter what success you have in life."

* * *

They had a chance at the end, with quarterback Aaron Murray having driven the team from its own 28 to the Alabama 8 with 15 seconds left. At that point, we can debate whether Murray should have spiked the ball to reset the offense. But suffice to say, the game ended with a tipped pass that was caught at Tide’s 5, the final seconds ticked off and one team celebrated its impending berth in the BCS championship game while the other collapsed in exhaustion, uncertain of its bowl status.

The irony here was that Georgia probably gained more respect in defeat than in any of its 11 victories. The Dogs were criticized for a perceived soft schedule, for the way they were physically hammered be South Carolina, for the hiccups at Kentucky.

Yet on Saturday, even the opposing coach, Nick Saban, was moved to comment: “I think it’s a crying shame if Georgia doesn’t get to go to a BCS bowl game. That game came down to the last play. It’s ridiculous. Some teams are 7-5 and talking about winning their conference and going to a BCS bowl game? Something’s not right here.”

* * *

“C.J. came on it,” Smart said. “We talked about it all week and said we would do it if we had the situation. It played out perfectly. He batted the ball. Probably a good thing the guy caught it. Otherwise, they get another snap. It cost them the game, the guy catching it.”

“We run that route a lot of times, because when you run the speed-out, it grabs the attention of the cornerback,” Georgia head coach Mark Richt said. “You try to get the corner thinking the ball might be going to the inside receiver (Conley) and then throw it over the top (to Mitchell).

“We were taking a shot at the end zone right there. But the ball got batted, so what can you do?”

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Morning Six Pack: December 2, 2012

Massive hangovers are cured on BCS Selection Day. Settle in with these six college football stories from around the country.

BCS bonanza: Alabama vs. Notre Dame

Alabama vs. Notre Dame. The BCS championship game couldn't get much bigger.

Special UF football team deserves special mentions

Because the All-SEC teams don't come out until later this week, it seems like a good time to come out with an early list of superlatives for this UF season.

Replay reversal nearly costs 'Bama

It was Championship Saturday in college football, but the BCS title game on Jan. 7 in Miami will be hard-pressed to produce the drama that took place in Atlanta as Week 14 and the regular season for all intents and purposes came to a close.

Badgers bash Nebraska, head to Rose Bowl vs. Stanford

Badgers prove they belong, roll Huskers for Rose Bowl berth.

Former Tiger Wright gets life sentence for robberies, sex assault

Former Missouri defensive lineman Keith Wright has been sentenced to life in prison for a series of home-invasion robberies and a sexual assault in Sacramento, CA.

Quotable:

Like so many things, a successful coaching search is a matter of timing. And Tennessee’s timing is not good. UT recently was notified is probation period is being extended. Financial concerns in the athletics department have been duly noted.

“It’s a different landscape now,” said Hayes, who keeps a finger on the pulse of college football for The Sporting News. “Florida, Tennessee’s biggest rival in the East, won two national championships, hit rock bottom, hired another coach, and is back competing among the elite in the nation — all while Tennessee has been trying to find its way through the end of the Fulmer years and the disasters of Kiffin and Dooley.

“You can’t slip up in the SEC now, not with the elite coaches at nearly every school. One slip, and you’re behind two or three years. Two slips, and you’re in deep.”

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.

Morning Six Pack: December 1, 2012

Championship Gameday! Fire up the grill and enjoy these six college football stories from around the country’s best conference.

Auburn President Jay Gogue: "Strong and decisive leadership" and the guy who will pick the next coach, really

"But when a decision is clearly presidential, the president decides - after listening to his senior advisors and all interested parties." C. Peter Magrath

SEC Championship Game Preview: In Excellence vs. Redemption, Give the Edge to Excellence

But these two teams and these two programs got here in very different ways. For one team, it would be a validation that even its storied program has heights that it hasn't fully explored. And for the other team and the other coach, it would be the kind of redemption that seemed unimaginable two years ago, or even two months ago.

SEC Championship Game: Quarterbacks targeting big prizes

AJ McCarron's standard reply about handling big-game pressure is a shrug and a look that says, What's the big deal?

Alabama, Georgia staffs have many ties

As far back as he can search in his mind, Mike Bobo and Kirby Smart have been friends. Their early days found them on opposing sidelines, years before they were teammates at Georgia in the late 1990s.

Alabama favored for 40th time in row

The Georgia Bulldogs are underdogs to Alabama this afternoon at the Southeastern Conference football championship in Atlanta, but what else would one expect?

Quotable:

"You don't win a gold medal by thinking about winning a gold medal," Saban said. "You win it by running the best race you can run."

The game may come down to which team can keep its focus. The approaches have been different. Mark Richt has talked about emotion this week, while Saban has talked about controlling emotions. His Friday analogy was a heavyweight fight - "you can throw a lot of punches in the first round, but you still need to be punching in the 15th round." He talked about control, about not being outcome-oriented, the same theme he has sounded all season.

It has worked, not perfectly, but well enough. Now, Alabama is here, controlling its destiny - and in a position to recapture the Missing Ring, the SEC championship, that eluded it a year ago.

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook.