Midweek Ramblings - The Excuses Edition

Right on cue, Hick nation slowly pulls themselves up off of the mat this week. Once again, yours truly calls the shot and once again I am correct. Like you people could build yourselves up SO much over the summer, only to be knocked down by 40 bad minutes against the #1 in the country.

Ummmmm...riggghhhht.

For those of you out of state, let me give you a list of some of my favorite excuses that are slowly permeating from Husker fan's mouth and keyboard over the past couple of days.

- "USC is far and away the best team in the country. They would crush anybody"
Well....USC is definitely a cut above the rest in terms of talent. However, I think it might be a tinge over-the-top to instantly declare them an NFL caliber team playing in a college man's game. USC isn't even as good as last year, especially considering they lost their best two receivers. Granted, the 9-star guys they have out there now are solid, I find it hard to buy that this is the greatest team ever assembled by God. (ie - Pete Carroll)

- "Kevin Cosgrove sucks. He's the reason we got crushed."
I agree Kevin Cosgrove does suck and you did get crushed. Please don't get rid of him.

- "That 20 minute injury timeout really killed the Huskers' momentum."
Unless USC secretly sent a hypnotist over to the NU sideline and convinced the entire defensive line that USC players were actually covered in fire ants, I really don't think that had much of a difference. I guess they could have spiked the Gatorade on the Husker sideline, but even the most smashed college kid could tackle a 5'10" running back at least ONCE in 40 minutes.

- "JC Keller had a great game"
JC Keller got big numbers throwing 5 yard slant passes against a nickel and dime defense. It's all about making adjustments, and Pete Carroll coached circles, squares, triangles and pentagons around the GRF©. After letting JC go down the field a bit early, the USC defensive scheme changed to include all sorts of blitz packages and schemes. Hmmm..perhaps it was some other hate-filled blog author who said all you have to do is blitz JC and he runs screaming like a little girl at a Hannah Montana show? By the time SC was up 42-10, they simply sat back in nickle and made sure DUI Purify stayed in front of them. Not exactly rocket science.

As you can tell by our lovely red decorations, Ball State is the next team to challenge Nebraska for the MAC West title. Yeah, I know they hung with Michigan blah blah blah. But just looking out across the MAC this season, they're not exactly putting the fear of God in anybody. Missouri disemboweled the previous MAC West champion, Ohio ran out of gas against Va Tech. Bowling Green beat Minnesota earlier, but then again..who doesn't smack around Minnesota?

I expect a big Husker rebound, and the return of all the things that make me love you guys so much in the first place.

It must be Wednesday, and that means Big 12 Power Poll time!!!!

North:
1) Missouri - (3-0) vs. Illinois State
Same old same old for the Tigers. Another explosive performance by the Tiger offense, another mini-panic attack on defense. Don't get me wrong, Western Michigan isn't going to be confused with the Colts..but they put 24 up on West Virginia earlier this season. Freshman All-American to-be Jeremy Maclin continues to shine, as Mizzou doesn't skip a beat with Denario Alexander out til 10/6. Remember when you people used to argue that JC Keller was a better QB than Chase Daniel? Silly corn people.

2) Kansas State: (2-1) Idle
The Cat's got to work over Branson's favorite college football team in a 61-10 thumping. We're gonna know a whole hell of a lot more about Ron Prince's team when K-State takes on Texas in two weeks. Granted, I'm not expecting any repeat of last season's upset. Playing with a vastly overrated Auburn team is going to be a cakewalk compared to taking on the Horns. We shall see.

3) Kansas: (3-0) vs. Florida International
Apparently ITT Tech wasn't available for Mark Mangino to take on, as the Jayhawks flexed their muscles against one of the MAC's finest. The Jaychickens finish up their house arrest this weekend and strip off the ankle bracelet against K-State on 10/6. KU fans are already in Mid-December form, bitching and moaning between sips of Zima that they're not ranked. Ummmm…yeah. You're KU. What do you expect?

4) Nebraska: (2-1) vs. Ball State
Remember when you were on top of the world? Bragging about your vicious running game and spectacular defense? Yeah, 2 weeks seems a long time ago. Remember a week ago when you made fun of Missouri's defense for sucking? I'll take irony for $500 Alex.

5) Colorado: (1-2) vs. Miami (OH)
The Buffs seem to be just a couple of players away from being a 1/2 decent team. Gotta give them credit though…everybody else in the league should take their lead in scheduling Florida State, Arizona State and the like. I still think that shit is going to payoff in the long run. Luckily, Miami is a bad bad team. Then again, so was Montana State.

6) Iowa State: (1-2) at Toledo
Much props to my ISU fans for a huge win over Iowa. Regardless of the Big 10 sucking gigantic monkey balls this year, a huge huge boost for the Clones as they try to find some semblance of a football team. Memo to everybody else…never take any rivalry game lightly. Ever.


South:
1) Oklahoma: (3-0) at* Tulsa
Talk about humming offenses. How does 79, 51 and 54 sound for ya? Then again, Stoops is a prick and wants to make a statement. Point taken. Look at their schedule, and you'll see: They get by Texas, There's nothing standing in their way except Missouri and Texas Tech. You wanna take Gary Pinkel and Mike Leach on those odds?

2) Texas: (3-0) vs Rice
The Horns have looked relatively mediocre over the past few weeks, although you gotta admire their toughness at Central Florida. On paper, they're clearly a ways behind OU…but they always seem to play at the level of their competition. By the way, Rice gave up 42 points to Baylor 2 weeks ago. Enjoy.

3) Texas Tech (3-0) at Oklahoma State
The Red Raiders open Big 12 play this weekend with a huge game at Okie State. Can somebody tell ESPN Radio's Colin Cowherd to shut his flippin hole please. WE KNOW the Big 12 defenses suck. However, Tech is right up there with OU and Missouri for the league's best offense. Graham Harrell is putting up a ridiculous 432 yards a game in total offense. You can have a defense full of elderly Frenchmen and still win some games putting up those numbers.

4) Texas A&M (3-0) at Miami
The Aggies face a rather large test in the ghettos of Little Havana this Thursday night. They can pound the ball on anybody, but are sitting a robust 107th in the nation in passing offense. That may be good enough to beat La-Monroe and Montana State, but a good defense is going to exploit the hell out of it. After Baylor next week, they play, Okie State, Tech, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Texas. Good luck with that.

5) Oklahoma State (1-2) vs. Texas Tech
I told you not to go to Troy. I told you they would jump you. Do you listen to me? Nope. If the Pokes gave up 35 to Georgia and 41 to Troy…how many are they going to give up to Tech? Can Adarius Bowman play defense? I'm not kidding.

6) Baylor (2-1) at Buffalo
Who the hell plays AT Buffalo? Have you ever been to Buffalo? Now the Bears are not only bad, they're apparently dumb too. Here's a note to Baylor Athletic Department officials: You will never turn the corner playing AT Buffalo. Can somebody just cut these guys loose so we can pick up Arkansas?