See what happens when I jump on the Notre Dame bandwagon? And how about Miami's meltdown?
Many of you loyal readers "accused" me over the years of being overly critical of Notre Dame. So what happens? I jump on the bandwagon and they fail to show up last week against Louisville, losing badly, 33-20. What bothered me most was not the turnovers, the poor play calling or even the bad tackling. What offended me most was the lack of effort and urgency. That's on the coach. Yes, Marcus Freeman. The Irish simply did not show up. And yes, for the first time this year, I'm stating the obvious. The Irish, an independent, make-up-their-own schedule team never play in a conference championship game against a likely high ranked opponent. They have all the advantages, including unlimited resources and still they have disappointed their faithful followers since 1988, their last national championship. Fact check me.
Are you kidding me, Miami?
As bad as Notre Dame's effort was, nothing compares to what happened to Miami and coach Mario Cristobal. Full disclosure, I like Cristobal. I interviewed him after perhaps his greatest victory at Ohio State (35-28 victory) just two years ago. He's an exceptional recruiter, a motivator and clearly an intelligent person. After a haphazard effort Saturday against Georgia Tech, Miami led 20-17 and had third down at the Tech 30-yard line. With just 34 seconds left and Tech having no timeouts, it was over. Take a knee. Ballgame, right? Instead, the Canes ran the ball and fumbled. Two plays later, Tech receiver Christian Leary got behind the defense and scored a touchdown on the final play. Miami walked off with an incomprehensible and inconsolable loss. All the blame lies on one person, Mario Cristobal. How could this happen? Victories are lost every year because coaches do not know how to manage the clock. This finish was simply the most egregious error of all time. The only comparison could be the Miracle at the Meadowlands in 1978 when some may remember the New York Giants, leading 17-12, with the ball and Philly with no timeouts, fumbled a handoff and Eagle cornerback Herm Edwards picked up the loose ball, ran it 26 yards for a touchdown and a 19-17 victory. Offensive coordinator Bob Gibson was fired the following day. The Giants didn't recover for years. While we are not advocating firing coaches, this cannot happen. Hire a coach who simply understands clock management. With $10-to-$20-million budgets for coaches at the top level, pay someone a small stipend to participate at the end of games with respect to clock management. That clock strategy will impact the game and guess what, I'm available right now. Fuhgeddaboudit.
We'll see Texas and Oklahoma again
No. 9 Texas (4-1) and No. 5 Oklahoma (Sooner 34-30 win) was special but expect a rematch in the Big 12 championship because that conference is down this year and those teams will be prohibitive favorites in their remaining games. As impressive as Oklahoma (5-0) was, No. 2 Michigan (5-0) has to be considered the best team in the country based on its domination on both sides of the ball, outscoring their opponents, 224-40. Their starting quarterback JJ McCarthy has yet to play a down in the fourth quarter.
People who live in glass houses ...
After Kentucky coach Mark Stoops team got walloped at Georgia, 51-13, he stated the obvious, "Georgia bought some pretty good players." Duh. First, that's a cheap shot because Stoops clearly does not know what NIL deal each Georgia player might receive. Second, we don't even know what players he was referring to and last, he was implicitly referring to the disparity he perceives regarding Georgia's NIL "budget" and Kentucky's. What he failed to mention is the probable disparity of Kentucky's basketball NIL "budget" against every team in the country.
8 p.m. isn't prime time for Sanders
Can't have a column without mentioning Coach Prime who is again in the news for criticizing the 8 p.m. Mountain West game time this week against Stanford. "Who makes these 8 o'clock games? Dumbest thing ever invented in life. Who wants to stay up until 8 o'clock at night for a darn game? What about the East Coast ... is anyone watching it?" To borrow a line from an old EF Hutton commercial, when Deion Sanders talks, people listen. He's really that big.
My weekly picks
No. 8 Oregon (5-0) at No. 7 Washington (5-0) -2.5: The biggest game in the PAC 12 in years. The two teams have Heisman Trophy contending quarterbacks in the Ducks' Bo Nix and the Huskies' Michael Penix Jr. It's going to be an offensive display but this game is in Seattle and this Washington team has speed, a physical defense and a huge home field advantage. The Ducks always seem to start slowly on the road and I see nothing different here. Huskies roll!
No. 10 USC (6-0) at No. 21 Notre Dame (5-2) -2: USC escaped last week at home against Arizona (43-41), prevailing in two overtimes. The Trojans play to their competition but haven't played anybody of note until now. They have Heisman Trophy winning quarterback in Caleb Williams, who is always the best athlete on the field and when allowed to scramble, is a human highlight reel. Their defense? What defense? That's been coach Lincoln Riley's kryptonite since he's been a head coach and nothing's changed. The Irish? They will be pumped up to make a statement and long ago, I identified this game as a defining impression on the Irish's season. So in spite of what happened in Louisville, I am traveling to South Bend. Perhaps I'm a glutton for punishment? Their quarterback Sam Hartman must play error-free football and control the ball, while the defense contains Williams. A tough task but I see Notre Dame pulling this one out. Go Irish!
No. 25 Miami (4-1) at No. 12 UNC (5-0) -3: Tar Heels coach Mack Brown always has his team ready. The Tar Heels have a special quarterback in Drake Maye, and star receiver "Tez" Walker should be ready for full duty after being reinstated last week by the NCAA. Miami is still reeling from last week's fiasco even though they have more talent, just don't see them recovering. NC wins big.
No. 18 UCLA (4-1) at No. 15 Oregon State (5-1) -3: The Bruins came from behind at home to defeat Wazzou (25-17) but this is in Corvallis. Clemson transfer quarterback DJ Uigalelei is getting better, throwing five TD passes in a 52-40 victory over CAL. A Beaver blowout!
My record: Top 25 matchups. If not for Notre Dame's collapse last week, I would have been perfect. Still. finished 3-1 ATS and now 13-5 on the year. 72% winning percentage.
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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Notre Dame football's season could be derailed after Louisville loss
