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Championship Weekend Open Thread

N

NUCat320

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Dec 4, 2005
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Utah-USC is about to get started on Fox, and should be an excellent game.

It would be fun to see USC in the CFP.

And UTSA and North Texas are tied in the CUSA championship on CBS SN.

Tomorrow, NMSU plays Valpo to go 6-6 and, I think, earn a bowl bid with a win. Jerry Kill is a genius. (The revolution will not be televised.)

(Actually, 5-6 NMSU is bowl-eligible, win or lose!)

www.espn.com

N. Mexico St. (5-6) gets waiver for bowl game

New Mexico State is headed to a bowl game after having its waiver to be eligible at 5-6 approved by the NCAA Division I football oversight committee.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
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I agree USC would have been something different, particularly with Caleb Williams as a heisman favorite.
But… right now Utah is not cooperating one bit and they don’t seem inclined to do so at all.
 
StreamCat said:
It would be more fun to never see USC play football or hear its band again. 😀
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Well we’ll have to get used to them in the B1G.

Just checking scores - it looks like USC went down hard and will be out of the playoffs. So lol there.

So who will backdoor in? Alabama? OSU?
 
Just the latest example of a great team that plays physical, complementary football winning out over great team that plays pass happy, finesse football. Sad to think that just a few years ago NU was a better version of Utah. What Utah did last night is where I believe Fitz wants NU football to get back to. Long way to go but I hope we can get there.
 
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corbi296 said:
Just the latest example of a great team that plays physical, complementary football winning out over great team that plays pass happy, finesse football. Sad to think that just a few years ago NU was a better version of Utah. What Utah did last night is where I believe Fitz wants NU football to get back to. Long way to go but I hope we can get there.
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Utah scored 47 points.

They rang up 530 yards of offense.

They lost time of possession (barely).

They tried to score even when they had a lead.

They were not the TurtleUtes.

(And they beat an injured QB, who was a shell of himself, but that’s not entirely relevant.)
 
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Styre said:
Utah has won two straight Pac-12 titles, and NU was a better version of them just a few years ago? Was I in a coma or something?
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Yes we were when we whipped their ass in the Holiday Bowl coming off of our first BigTen West Championship season. That was just four years ago or have you forgotten already?

I find it friggen unbelievable that on a Northwestern Football message Board I have to argue about NU Football’s accomplishments and standing with supposed NU fans. We have one of the worst fan bases in college football.
 
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NUCat320 said:
Utah scored 47 points.

They rang up 530 yards of offense.

They lost time of possession (barely).

They tried to score even when they had a lead.

They were not the TurtleUtes.

(And they beat an injured QB, who was a shell of himself, but that’s not entirely relevant.)
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Did you actually watch he game? There was one team that tried to win the game by being more physical across the board and that team won.
 
corbi296 said:
Yes we were when we whipped their ass in the Holiday Bowl coming off of our first BigTen West Championship season. That was just four years ago or have you forgotten already?

I find it friggen unbelievable that on a Northwestern Football message Board I have to argue about NU Football’s accomplishments and standing with supposed NU fans. We have one of the worst fan bases in college football.
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Oh, you mean we were better than them in 2018. That's not what you wrote, but sure. How's it gone since?

Also, you said that Fitz "wants NU football to get back to" "what Utah did last night." Get back to? Sorry, when were we at the point of whipping a top 10 team's ass in a conference title game two years in a row?

Utah right now is light years ahead of any NU teams in the Fitz era.
 
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corbi296 said:
Did you actually watch he game? There was one team that tried to win the game by being more physical across the board and that team won.
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Your statement that Whittingham did what ‘Fitz wants to get back to’ isn’t reflective of the facts.

All of the things I described are contrary to Fitz’s approach, even when NU was a good program.

Kyle Whittingham wanted to beat USC. And when they had that lead, he wanted to destroy them.

Kyle Whittingham played aggressively all game, routinely passing on first down.

Both coaches want to win the line of scrimmage. Both coaches want to play physical. But Whittingham plays physical in a modern way, while the Ron Dayne Badgers are Fitz’s view of a perfect team.
 
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Styre said:
Oh, you mean we were better than them in 2018. That's not what you wrote, but sure. How's it gone since?

Also, you said that Fitz "wants NU football to get back to" "what Utah did last night." Get back to? Sorry, when were we at the point of whipping a top 10 team's ass in a conference title game two years in a row?

Utah right now is light years ahead of any NU teams in the Fitz era.
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Is this the twilight zone? We literally were a top 10 team after we beat another top 10 caliber Team, Utah, in the Holiday Bowl match up just a few years ago in 2018. Which part of that is not factually accurate? Are you sure you are a NU fan because an NU fan should not have such a cynical pessimistic view of his own team’s legitimate accomplishments.
 
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NUCat320 said:
Your statement that Whittingham did what ‘Fitz wants to get back to’ isn’t reflective of the facts.

All of the things I described are contrary to Fitz’s approach, even when NU was a good program.

Kyle Whittingham wanted to beat USC. And when they had that lead, he wanted to destroy them.

Kyle Whittingham played aggressively all game, routinely passing on first down.

Both coaches want to win the line of scrimmage. Both coaches want to play physical. But Whittingham plays physical in a modern way, while the Ron Dayne Badgers are Fitz’s view of a perfect team.
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That’s your subjective point of view. I don’t agree with it.
 
corbi296 said:
Is this the twilight zone? We literally were a top 10 team after we beat another top 10 caliber Team, Utah, in the Holiday Bowl match up just a few years ago in 2018. Which part of that is not factually accurate? Are you sure you are a NU fan because an NU fan should not have such a cynical pessimistic view of his own team’s legitimate accomplishments.
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Which part? Every part.

We literally were not a top 10 team in 2018 at any point. Our highest ranking was #19. We came into the Holiday Bowl ranked #22 and rose all the way up to #21 after the win. Utah was also not a "top 10 caliber team" (nice job sneaking "caliber" in there btw) in 2018. They lost five games. Their highest ranking was #15. They came into the Holiday Bowl ranked #17... and dropped completely out of the rankings after we beat them.
 
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Styre said:
Which part? Every part.

We literally were not a top 10 team in 2018 at any point. Our highest ranking was #19. We came into the Holiday Bowl ranked #22 and rose all the way up to #21 after the win. Utah was also not a "top 10 caliber team" (nice job sneaking "caliber" in there btw) in 2018. They lost five games. Their highest ranking was #15. They came into the Holiday Bowl ranked #17... and dropped completely out of the rankings after we beat them.
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Thanks for proving my point. You are splitting hairs over a #15 or #10 ranking to diminish the accomplishments of the team you supposedly root for. That’s what cynics do. Fans, like me, typically do the opposite. Are you really trying to dispute my overarching point by arguing that Utah ranked #15 was not a top 10 caliber team? Ridiculous.

I will admit I confused our final ranking for that season with our final ranking after the 2020 season when we did finish as the #10 ranked team in the country. That in no way invalidates my point that not too long ago NU was able to compete and beat a top program like Utah at its own game and that we are now far from that level. Hopefully we do agree that we hope that Fitz and NU will get back to that level soon. As least that’s what I think true NU fans would want.
 
corbi296 said:
Thanks for proving my point. You are splitting hairs over a #15 or #10 ranking to diminish the accomplishments of the team you supposedly root for. That’s what cynics do. Fans, like me, typically do the opposite. Are you really trying to dispute my overarching point by arguing that Utah ranked #15 was not a top 10 caliber team? Ridiculous.

I will admit I confused our final ranking for that season with our final ranking after the 2020 season when we did finish as the #10 ranked team in the country. That in no way invalidates my point that not too long ago NU was able to compete and beat a top program like Utah at its own game and that we are now far from that level. Hopefully we do agree that we hope that Fitz and NU will get back to that level soon. As least that’s what I think true NU fans would want.
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Lol I knew that was why you put "caliber" in there, so when I inevitably pointed out that Utah was not, in fact, a top 10 team, you could say "well actually..." Regardless, they lost 5 games and finished the year unranked. They did reach #15, yes, but got crushed by ASU in their next game and fell completely out of the rankings. They were not a top-10 caliber team in any way, shape, or form in 2018. That doesn't mean they were bad, but they were nothing like what they are now.

Yes, I would love for us to get back to where we were in 2018 or 2020. But my point is that Utah has gotten significantly better at its own game while we've gotten worse. Utah would still be ahead of us right now even if we got back to 2018 or 2020.
 
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Styre said:
Lol I knew that was why you put "caliber" in there, so when I inevitably pointed out that Utah was not, in fact, a top 10 team, you could say "well actually..." Regardless, they lost 5 games and finished the year unranked. They did reach #15, yes, but got crushed by ASU in their next game and fell completely out of the rankings. They were not a top-10 caliber team in any way, shape, or form in 2018. That doesn't mean they were bad, but they were nothing like what they are now.

Yes, I would love for us to get back to where we were in 2018 or 2020. But my point is that Utah has gotten significantly better at its own game while we've gotten worse. Utah would still be ahead of us right now even if we got back to 2018 or 2020.
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No doubt they have gotten better and we have badly regressed since we last played. Sadly, On that we agree. When I watch Utah, it makes me think about where we could be now had different choices been made.
 
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CoralSpringsCat said:
If TCU or Michigan were to lose would they be more deserving than all the two loss teams??
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That seems to be the word on the street, though I would submit that TCU’s helmets today should disqualifying regardless of result. Respect to K-State’s ‘unchanged since ‘94, just like they like it in Kansas’ look.
@12375CAT BIG 12 Champs!
 
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Its gonna be Mich, OSU, Bama, UGA in the playoffs. And if you rank them right, will be Mich/OSU rematch.
 
corbi296 said:
Yes we were when we whipped their ass in the Holiday Bowl coming off of our first BigTen West Championship season. That was just four years ago or have you forgotten already?

I find it friggen unbelievable that on a Northwestern Football message Board I have to argue about NU Football’s accomplishments and standing with supposed NU fans. We have one of the worst fan bases in college football.
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More Corbi football expertise hilarity at play.

They have a top 10 offense. When was the last time we had one of those? Or even a top 50 offense.

Back to back conference champions. We have yet to win one under Fitz and yet we are a better version of Utah. What a laugh.
 
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USC & TCU losing couldn’t be better for the 12 team playoff argument.

If Michigan or Georgia go down too, it will be an interesting bit of madness for the selection committee! My popcorn’s ready.
 
Great drive by TCU. Great QB.

This drive also shows how stupid football coaches are. It was 1st and 25. Penalty was called. You gather your defense and go, " Gentleman, three man rush. #, you will spy the qb. Do not rush stay 3 yards behind the line of scrimmage." It was pretty obvious. So much for executive brain function or decision making.
 
Purple vs Purple game is pretty entertaining.
 
NUCat320 said:
Your statement that Whittingham did what ‘Fitz wants to get back to’ isn’t reflective of the facts.

All of the things I described are contrary to Fitz’s approach, even when NU was a good program.

Kyle Whittingham wanted to beat USC. And when they had that lead, he wanted to destroy them.

Kyle Whittingham played aggressively all game, routinely passing on first down.

Both coaches want to win the line of scrimmage. Both coaches want to play physical. But Whittingham plays physical in a modern way, while the Ron Dayne Badgers are Fitz’s view of a perfect team.
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I don't think we watched the same Utah team across the season. There wasn't much of a "modern way" about Utah football. They don't really spread people out much. They use the run to set up the pass. And I think the TurtleUtes comment is unfair. Utah kept scoring because they ran the ball down USC's throat. There wasn't risky, unconventional playcalling there. Just dominating the line of scrimmage and opening huge holes for a physical back to run through.
 
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CatManTrue said:
USC & TCU losing couldn’t be better for the 12 team playoff argument.

If Michigan or Georgia go down too, it will be an interesting bit of madness for the selection committee! My popcorn’s ready.
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Was thinking the same thing CMT. What if none of the teams in the National Championship Playoffs is a conference champion! That would be a hoot!
 
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watching Georgia’s defense is such a jarring adjustment after watching our games all year. Is one of their assistants ready to make the jump to DC, and maybe bring a couple recruits with them?
 
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phatcat said:
My hometown Toledo Rockets win the MAC
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I grew up Lima, just down the I-75 from Toledo. Our family tended to go to Dayton and Columbus for vacations and events when I was growing up so I liked the Flyers for basketball and the Buckeyes for football. My dad would take me to twi-night doubleheaders with the Reds at Crosley Field. Toledo and Cincinnati both have had decent football programs over the years. Lima has fallen on to hard times and my family got out before things really declined. The crime rate there has really escalated as you probably are aware. No desire to go back.
 
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hoosboot said:
I don't think we watched the same Utah team across the season. There wasn't much of a "modern way" about Utah football. They don't really spread people out much. They use the run to set up the pass. And I think the TurtleUtes comment is unfair. Utah kept scoring because they ran the ball down USC's throat. There wasn't risky, unconventional playcalling there. Just dominating the line of scrimmage and opening huge holes for a physical back to run through.
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Correct, they are just way better at playing the style of ball that FItz wants to play. Doesn’t matter if the other team k owns you are going to run the ball if you have a dominant OL and RB that can’t be stopped. Also just heard on the SEC Championship game broadcast that Utah is a close second to Georgia in passes completed to their backs and TEs. Exactly the type of offense FItz wants to play and why he kepy Jake as OC because it is the offense he has shown himself capable to run. We just need the horses upfront and at QB to do it.
 
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