Tuesday, August 16, 2005
LONGHORN BANDWAGON WATCH
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Stewart Mandel joins the crowd as the latest in a growing line to pick Texas over Oklahoma for the Big XII South title. That means, although it's not impossible for Texas to win the division without beating OU (it did it in 2001), he's picking Texas to beat OU. Mr. Mandel's reasoning:
Gone are QB Jason White, WR Mark Clayton, OL Jammal Brown and seven other veterans taken in last spring's NFL Draft
[...]
The obvious heir to the throne is Texas, coming off an 11-1 season that culminated in a dramatic Rose Bowl win over Michigan and boasting 16 returning starters, most notably electrifying QB Vince Young...Mack Brown's team is oozing with talent and starts out as the clear favorite, but few would be surprised if they slip up along the way. (emphasis SMQ's)  The clear favorite! Has Mandel been getting an early start on trick or treating the last five years? It's not just that Oklahoma has beaten Texas five times in a row, because other teams are on similar streaks whose continuation SMQ does not view as inevitable (Miami's taken six straight over Florida State, for example), it's that OU has kicked the crap out of Texas five times in a row; the average margin of defeat has been around four touchdowns (compared to the even, down-to-the-wire FSU-Miami thrillers , all of ehich the 'Noles could have won). Texas was shut out in Dallas last year, and lost its best offensive player from that game. And then, as Mandel says:
The Sooners aren't exactly barren, mind you -- they still have the greatest freshman performer in history, RB Adrian Peterson... The same Adrian Peterson who singlehandedly took over the bludgeoning of the Longhorn defense last year? That Adrian Peterson? Who consistently ran over and through highly-regarded tacklers who knew he'd be getting the ball? Oh, yeah. As opposed to Vince Young, who was swarmed and shut down by a smart defense that knew he couldn't beat them with his arm.
If Texas is up, and Oklahoma is down - SMQ is not conceding either widely-believed notion - then perhaps we can expect a less severe Longhorn loss. But Texas on top? Believe it when you see it, but no sooner.
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8:30 AM
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WELCOME...
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And don't let the name fool ya - second guessing the phenomenal athletic feats and split-second decisions of college kids under extreme physical duress is for every day of the week.
AWWW!! The totally nicest people, like, ever!...
How much football does he watch? Dude's got insights on -everybody-, and by everybody, I mean everybody. Throw in some of the best writing in the blogosphere, and we're talking about a daily must-read.
- Burnt Orange Nation
SMQ starts to sound more and more like the Gregg Easterbrook of our ideal memories every day - whip-smart, systematic, omnivorous in his intellectual tastes and yet unafraid of the cheap joke.
- Every Day Should Be Saturday
Sunday Morning Quarterback is one of our favorite football blogs on the internet.
- State Fans Nation
Sunday Morning Quarterback is a killer football blog if you are a college football junkie. It is run by one of the most thoughtful, intelligent, and analytical writers in the college football blogosphere...The guy is thorough and detailed and provides a level of analysis you are not going to find anywhere else .
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Just another hack writer who hasn't done one lick of research...
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...the pride of Southern Mississippi ever since Brett Favre turned into an ESPN soap opera, has the sort of prose knack that can keep you riveted to a preview about any one of D-IA's scrubbier members ... should be given gifts.
- MGoBlog
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e-mail Sunday Morning Quarterback at sundaymorningqb@yahoo.com
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PREVIOUSLY FROM SMQ:
2006 Preview
Anatomy of an Underdog
BlogPoll: 1-10/11-25/Roundtable
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The Big XII
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The Rap Sheet
July 29/Aug. 1/Aug. 9/Aug. 16/Aug.19/Aug. 25/Sept. 28/Oct. 4/Oct. 5/Oct. 18/Oct. 26/Nov. 2/Nov. 7/Nov. 8/Nov. 28/Dec. 2/Dec. 8/ Dec. 11/Dec. 18/Dec. 21/Feb. 6/Feb. 10/April 7/April 14/April 21/April 29/May 6/May 12/May 19/May 26/June 2/June 10/June 16/June 24/June 30/July 8/Aug. 4
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We Must Ignite This Couch (West Virginia)
The Wizard of Odds
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The Blog Poll
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WANNA DO SOME RESEARCH? NERD! HERE'S SOME QUICK REFERENCES:
College Football Data Warehouse
College Football Research Center
College Football News
cfbstats.com
Football Commentary
THE STANDINGS
THE POLLS
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing
Passing
Receiving
All-Purpose
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Sacks
Interceptions
Tackles For Loss
Field Goals
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TEAM STATISTICS
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Passing Offense
Total Offense
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Passing Defense
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Past Seasons
2005
Thursday Morning Quarterback
Sept. 29/Oct. 6/Oct. 20/Oct. 27/Nov. 3/Nov. 10/Nov. 17/Nov. 24/Dec. 1
Sunday Morning Quarterback
Oct. 2/Oct. 23/Oct. 30/Nov. 6/Nov. 13/Nov. 27
Stat Relevance Watch
Part One/Part Two/Part Three
SMQ Bowl Blitz
New Orleans/GMAC/Las Vegas/Poinsettia/Motor City
SMQ's [Hurricane-Abbreviated] 2005 Preview
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