Aggies' 'statement' lost in translation

Playing with the big boys

It was supposed to be a "statement" game for Texas A&M. Unfortunately, the LSU Tigers were also in a position to make their voice be heard.

The Aggies are returning a ton of kids next year and are projected to be the only obstacle between Oklahoma and another Big X (or whatever) championship. A win against LSU in the new Cotton Bowl was going to propel them as a top 10 team in the pre-season.

LSU, too, is returning a bunch of kids and are considered favorites in the mighty SEC.

LSU's statement rang true. They beat A&M 41-24 the other night at JerryWorld.

A&M's defense looked like it hadn't seen a monster like that in a long time and they all played like they hadn't seen a big game in 10 years.

Truth is, they hadn't. LSU's offense and defense had been honed over 10 games in the SEC, where teams either sink or swim. You down dawdle in the SEC like A&M kind of did in the Big XII, where they were able to lose a handful of games in the middle of the season and still figure into the Big XII South title.

In the SEC, three losses kill you. LSU was molded and set amidst the fire and brimstone of Florida, Alabama, Auburn, South Carolina, Ole Miss and others.

LSU looked hungry. They looked like they knew they were title favorites next season and they looked like they were in big games all the time.

They totaled 446 total yards, 288 on the ground. The 10-0 lead the Aggies had built to open the game was long forgotten when LSU scored two quick touchdowns within four minutes of each other to end the first half. And that was all she wrote. You knew the tide was turning and that A&M would need to fight for pride and start thinking of 2011. Or, the 2011 of the spring, summer and fall.

The Big XII, in its final weeks as the Big XII, went a very disappointing 3-5 in their bowl games.

TCU knows perfection

I wish I were still in college so I could get shot down by these females

Before TCU faced off against Big Ten heavyweight Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl today, I really felt all of the pressure was on the shoulders of the Horned Frogs and head coach Gary Patterson.

They're the red-headed stepsons looking in from the outside, wanting to play with the big boys. A good way to get respect is winning BCS bowl games. TCU hadn't done that.

Going against Wisconsin was a huge test. And they passed. To the tune of 21-19.

Honestly, it was a really well played game for both teams and you could really tell they both wanted it. There was no consolation let-down for the Badgers that could've pouted not being in a bowl game of consequence. Of course, so could've the Horned Frogs. But both wanted that game like a fish needs water.

It had a bit of the good and some of the unordinary bad for TCU. Andy Dalton was silently perfect. Efficient and easy, just seems to glide on the field where every step is swift and every pass looks like he's in no big hurry.

Dalton gets no credit and that's shameful. He should've been a Heisman candidate or at least more attention as one of the best players in college football.

The defense took its lumps. Granted, they limited Wisconsin to 6-15 on third downs and it seemed Wisconsin picked things up late trying to get in the game.

They managed 386 total yards. Running backs Montee Ball and John Clay averaged about 6.5 yards per game. The Frogs defense had no turnovers and just two sacks.

Still, there was control. Nothing got out of hand. They forced the Badgers into third downs after bending a little. The Badgers couldn't convert and they left a lot of yards on the field sans points.

Anyway, GIGANTIC win for the Horned Frogs and I couldn't feel happier for fans of the school. It's the biggest game in program history and puts them squarely on the map in college football as they jump to the Big East. A huge day for Dallas-Fort Worth sports.

****
Other games:

Oklahoma 48, Connecticut 20
Just six of Connecticut's 20 points came on offensive drives as they turned in a TAINT and kickoff return. Anyone that's seen these two play knew what was going to happen here. OU may have been able to win by 42, if they wanted. Landry Jones capped off an absolutely monster year going 33-48 for 426 yards and three touchdowns. OU goes 11-2 with a very young team that's returning almost in tact next year.

Texas Tech 45, Northwestern 38
The TicketCity Bowl may be the long-gone Cotton Bowl, but it still entertained. Sometimes, all you ask for is a good game and I'm happy to see a Big XII represent. If you didn't know any better, you'd think Tech was a lot better than they have this year. Northwestern will probably do that. Tommy Tuberville is 8-4 in bowl games.

Big XII teams are 3-4 in bowl games with Texas A&M left.

An early bowl round-up

Poking along

Before we get to our January college bowl games, we should take a brief look at the games of local or regional interest that have already taken place. Again, if you don't like the 800 bowl games being played, don't watch them.

Army 16, SMU 14
You almost feel bad for Kyle Padron and the Mustangs. They kill the awful Army team and lose by two, mostly, due to Padron's fumble that was returned for a touchdown and two interceptions. But give Army a little credit. They don't have much, but they had zero penalties and did not turn the ball over. June Jones is 1-1 at SMU in bowl games.

Syracuse 36, Kansas State 34
No doubt the best bowl game to date. Tons of offense, no turnovers and a lot of lead changes in the second half. Naturally, it's overshadowed by a shitty official's call: A bunk overcelebration call on K-State that forced them to try a two-point conversion from the 18-yard-line. It failed and the Wildcats were sunk. Football needs to get the celebration bullshit straightened out, quick. If we're worried about gamesmanship and whatnot, Cam Newton's ineligible.

Oklahoma State 36, Arizona 10
The definition of "cruising." Arizona never had a shot, even at 14-7. The Pokes needed Kendall Hunter for just 10 carries and you ain't beating anyone allowing five sacks and three interceptions. A really fine season for Oklahoma State. No shame in 11 wins. Just to note: Mike Gundy's the second-best coach in the Big XII and Justin Blackmon's a top 10 pick in the NFL Draft.

Washington 19, Nebraska 7
It's insane that Nebraska's offense isn't good already. Or good enough to score 21 points. The Cornhuskers should not be losing to Texas A&M 9-7 nor to Washington 19-7. With all those athletes and you can't score? Insane! By the way, Jake Locker's a first-round pick? Give me Chris Polk.

Iowa 27, Missouri 24
I was mildly shocked to see Mizzou's Blaine Gabbert as a potential top five quarterback in the NFL draft. On cue, it was a Gabbert TAINT that shot the Tigers in the foot against the Hawkeyes.

Illinois 38, Baylor 14
As Robert Griffin goes ... Illinois made Baylor one-dimensional and I don't care how bad or good your opponent is, that'll get you beat a lot of times. Baylor probably turned back into a pumpkin six weeks ago. By the way, it makes the Big XII 1-4 in bowl games and 0-2 against the Big Ten. No wonder Nebraska's leaving.

Bowl cut

Gig 'em

What's fascinating about all the pundits putting down the current college football bowl scene is that even though there are around 40 games, there's no way anyone watches all of them.

Especially the talking heads in the media. So why bitch about it? What does it matter? As my father said once, if you don't like it, don't watch it. Actually, he never said that. But it's something he would say.

If you don't pay a bowl game any attention, what's the point in hating it?

Although, I do have one gripe about the current bowl system. It's not that there's 25 or so meaningless smaller bowl games being played in mid-December with 6-6 teams.

It's that the second-tier bowl games have dropped off significantly in terms of their importance and position in the college football scheme.

Everyone pays attention to the crappy bowl games and the BCS bowl games. Ignored are the Cotton Bowl, Citrus Bowl, Holiday Bowl and these other bowls that have been around for a long while, were almost always played on New Year's Day and always had really good teams going.

Now, they can't play on New Year's Day because of the influx of crappy bowls and their role in terms of hosting good teams is eliminated due to the BCS bowls.

To bowl games of regional significance:

Insight Bowl
Missouri vs. Iowa
A really good game. Two ranked teams that played well in the season that incurred several hiccups that derailed their BCS hopes. Also, their proximity to each other should be interesting. What do you do with two midwest universities? Send them to Arizona, of course.

Texas Bowl
Illinois vs. Baylor
I don't think Illinois is any good and I think the Bears don't know any better. Illinois plays zero defense and has lost to any team of significance this year.

Alamo Bowl
Oklahoma State vs. Arizona
Talk about spitting the bit. Arizona was riding high until four straight conference losses. Meanwhile, OSU's looking for win No. 11 and potentially a pretty high pre-season ranking should they wind up around the top 10 this year.

Armed Forces Bowl
Army vs. SMU
Of all the talk of schools losing money having to pay for travel, SMU must feel pretty good. What's the big difference between the Armed Forced Bowl and the Honolulu Bowl? Nil. Why not save the money, play at home and enjoy a holidays in the continuous 48?

Pinstripe Bowl
Kansas State vs. Syracuse
New York Yankees. Get it? K-State as disappointing of a team as you'll find and I hope they lose by 20.

Holiday Bowl
Nebraska vs. Washington
I give a little credit to Washington. They could've packed it in after getting nailed by Oregon and Stanford. Instead, they pulled themselves up by the bootstraps and beat Cal, Washington State and UCLA to end the season and finish 6-6. Meanwhile, Nebraska crapped the bed against Texas, Texas A&M and Oklahoma to wind up here. Mixed with the Pelini Brothers Fight and Anger Club, it's been a bad year for the Huskers.

TicketCity Bowl
Northwestern vs. Texas Tech
The new Cotton Bowl game at the old Cotton Bowl. And what a turd in the toilet this is!

Rose Bowl
Wisconsin vs. TCU
A really, really good game. Nothing against this. The black-and-blue badgers from the Big Ten against the upstart Horned Frogs, on the verge of going to the Big East. The Frogs are 5-4 in bowl games under Gary Patterson. But since moving to the Mountain West and entering their prime, they've won four of five, which included last year's loss to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. A big test for TCU if they want favor in pre-season rankings.

Fiesta Bowl
Connecticut vs. Oklahoma
Connecticut is a team that was shut out by Louisville before rolling off five straight against the best of the Big East and taking the conference. I feel like OU should win by five or more touchdowns.

Cotton Bowl
LSU vs. Texas A&M
I don't know how good a game this is as much as it's an interesting match-up for us locally. We've longed for the Aggies to right the ship. They have. Now I can't help but feel they're going to get their ass whipped by the seasoned LSU team that plays as good a defense as you'll find in the country. Again, A&M's proved they can win as evidenced in their 9-6 win over Nebraska.