Thursday, September 11, 2014

Football 2014: Week Three

Texas A&M's non-conference cruise continues Saturday with Rice, a former SWC opponent that's a 31 point underdog. College Football News predicts A&M will win 52-14.

A&M played Rice last season in a game that foreshadowed what was about to happen with the Aggie defense. Rice ended up losing 52-31, but controlled the ball for 38:24 and racked up 28 first downs, 306 rushing yards, and 509 yards of total offense. At the time, I wrote it off as a lackluster performance by a heavy favorite that wasn't focused on a cupcake opponent. At least that's what I hoped.

For me, the Rice game should be a useful tool to gauge the level of improvement in A&M's defense since last year. Other TV games that could be interesting:
  • Arkansas at Texas Tech. A current division rival against a former division rival.
  • Georgia at South Carolina: Let's see how good the Gamecocks really are.
  • Tennessee at Oklahoma: I want the Vols to win because I hate the Sooners.
  • UCLA vs Texas: Longhorns be strong, but I hope UCLA kicks their ass. 
Added 5:46 PM Saturday 13 September: Arkansas looked good beating the crap out of Texas Tech (49-28) with an impressive running game and effective pass defense. Kingsbury has quarterback problems (no Johnny Manziel making him look like a genius). On CBS, South Carolina is hanging tough against Georgia in the showcase SEC game of the day. I have to pull for the Gamecocks in that one.

The A&M game against Rice doesn't start until 8:00 PM, so it looks like I'll be watching  football tonight until at least 11:45 PM.

Added 7:45 PM same day: South Carolina tried to give the game to Georgia late in the fourth quarter with penalties and an interception, but the Bulldogs missed a tying field goal by inches. Having dodged that bullet, the Gamecocks held on to win 38-35. They looked much better tonight than they did against A&M, validating the Aggie win.

Added 9:54 PM same day: Rice is giving A&M all they can handle, trailing 21-7 at halftime. The Owls are better than Lamar, but A&M is making them look like a second tier SEC team. Maybe they'll get in a groove in the second half, but as things stand now, the Aggies don't look like a team that can contend for the SEC West.

Added 11:50 PM same day: An unimpressive 38-10 win, and A&M couldn't cover the spread. An erratic performance on offense and defense, with an equal mixture of busted plays and big plays. Rice was able to hold the ball for long stretches, as they did last year. I wanted A&M to dominate this game in every phase, and I'm less optimistic about the season tonight. Ho hum.    

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