0 comments by Terry P. Johnson on 12/23/2015
In its first game under new head coach Jason Candle, Toledo capped off a very successful season. The Rockets also gave us a glimpse of what appears to be a very bright future for the program. Make no mistake about it: the 2015-’16 campaign was Toledo’s best in over 15 years. Sure, the Rockets failed […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 12/22/2015
The 1981 college football season marked a very different time in the life of the sport. At this point in its evolution, college football was defined by defenses and by the old maxims about running the ball, playing defense, and being fundamentally sound in the kicking game. The poll-and-bowl system wasn’t all that close to […]
0 comments by Allen Kenney
Say the name “Trevor Knight” to the average fan and the first thing that comes up will probably be the 2014 Sugar Bowl. Knight played superbly in Oklahoma’s upset win over Alabama, strafing the Crimson Tide’s defense for 348 yards passing and four touchdowns. It looked like a coming out party for a redshirt freshman […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
Roughly 90 years ago, the Alabama Crimson Tide established themselves as the signature program of the Southern United States. Today, a second straight appearance in the College Football playoff — following three BCS national championships and a full-fledged revival of the program under Nick Saban — has reaffirmed Alabama’s place as the South’s ultimate program… […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
Think of the many long droughts which still exist in modern American sports. The Chicago Cubs’ World Series dry spell is number one. The Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions failing to make any of the first 50 Super Bowls would also rate highly on the list of parched-earth portraits. The city of Cleveland’s professional sports […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
Sooner Magic — it’s what Oklahoma found in the 2001 Orange Bowl, and it’s what the Sooners will try to recapture when they face the Clemson Tigers in the 2015 Orange Bowl, which doubles as a College Football Playoff semifinal. The Orange Bowl is simultaneously the place of Oklahoma’s greatest triumphs and its most stinging […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 12/20/2015
Utah coach Kyle Whittingham had a lot to prove on Saturday. Had this game been suspended or called after one quarter, Whittingham would have looked pretty good. As it is, though, teams have to play four full quarters. Yes, Utah still defeated archrival Brigham Young in the 2015 Las Vegas Bowl, but the way the […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
One month into a college basketball season, a lot of teams and conferences will remain mysterious, as much of a puzzle as they were when the campaign began in the middle of November. To some extent, a college basketball season is supposed to be a study in uncertainty in the days before Christmas. This season […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 12/19/2015
On a Wednesday afternoon just before Christmas, many Americans will be working, either in offices or in preparation for their holiday feasts and celebrations. The Northern Illinois Huskies and Boise State Broncos will be working on a field in San Diego, thrown together in a battle of two of college football’s best little-guy strivers and […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
Given the strength of the American Athletic Conference in 2015, to the diminishment of the other four conferences in the Group of Five, it’s easy to think that the Temple Owls and the Toledo Rockets exist in different places as the Boca Raton Bowl approaches. The AAC dominated the Group of Five race this season. […]
0 comments by Ryan Palencer on 12/18/2015
Michigan State enters play this weekend as the undisputed No. 1 team in the nation in college basketball. The Spartans are 11-0 and have answered the bell every time it has rung. They are an experienced unit. Last season’s group went deep into March and cracked the Final Four in April despite limited expectations. The […]
0 comments by Ryan Palencer
While the recent trend in college basketball has slid toward immediate success for incoming freshman classes such as those at Kentucky and Duke, the 2015-’16 season is calling to mind the 2014-2015 season’s penultimate game, and its most memorable event. Last season, in the second national semifinal, experience prevailed: A seasoned Wisconsin team knocked off […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
It’s not Cape Canaveral, but Miami is the Florida city where launches of a different sort occur. A year ago, the first Miami Beach Bowl pitted BYU against Memphis. Bronco Mendenhall coached against Justin Fuente, in a wild game with a ridiculously entertaining overtime finish, marred by a messy and far-ranging brawl. Now, Mendenhall and […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek
The New Mexico Bowl, played in Albuquerque, grew up in the time — and place — of Breaking Bad. This game regularly opens the bowl season. It is typically played in the middle of the day. The event usually pits a decent Mountain West team against a middle-of-the-road Pac-12 team. Schools from Conference USA (UTEP), […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 12/17/2015
Let’s set the buffet table, shall we? In a year when the NFL has never been less enjoyable to watch (that’s not fact, but it’s a widely-shared opinion), consider making this upcoming Saturday your big sports day and then using your Sunday as the errand day when you do all the Christmas shopping and take […]
