The Back Alley Archives

Did anyone watch Tennessee 45, Georgia 19?

My first impulse was to groan. I don't cheer for the Vols. Ultimately this could help UF out if they were to be upset by UGA.

Remember when you used to know who FSU was playing this week?

Georgia Tech. Be an interesting game. FSU has the athletes to handle the Paul Johnson attack. But do they have the coaching and discipline?

No, they don't.

Houston 31, Mississippi State 24
Army 16, Vandy 13 (ot)

What I said before about the SEC slipping in out-of-conference games still holds. At this point it's an outrage that the ACC gets an automatic bid -- though Miami or VT may yet prove themselves a BCS team.

Well, if the SEC can't wipe up this level of competition, we ain't gonna keep sending one- or two-loss conference champs to the BCSCG every year. One of these days they're gonna let USC play OSU, and we're just gonna have to suck it.

Beat the lambs, damn it.

Did anyone watch Tennessee 45, Georgia 19?

My first impulse was to groan. I don't cheer for the Vols. Ultimately this could help UF out if they were to be upset by UGA.

I'm still holding out hope that Spur-Dog will give it the Vols this year!

Anyone else watching without sound? I got sound on every channel except the damn game.

Moody is the correct answer! I want Meyer to give the man 25 carries tonight.

Ugh. This is going to be a painful game to watch. I hate that we didn't make the 4th down. Come on D.

I am fucking loving this game. We needed this.

Georgia Tech has FSU completely confused. OMFG, you guys gotta tune in this game. It's 41-38 GT with 18 minutes left. This thing could easily wind up 55-52.

i was definitely looking for signs of the concussion...i've had it and all that screaming at the line of scrimmage could be bothersome...it could hurt...i noticed his eyes looked clear...at the LOS and in the huddles...he was definitely cleared to play.

tt showed his ring rust for sure...he kinda ran gingerly but surprisingly played hard at the point of contact....i think the gingerly running was not so much the result of a concussion but just the fact that he'd been out of contact drills and such.

having said that, i think he made some bad decisions throughout the whole game that to me WOULD be indicative of a concussed person...passes didn't look crisp (never do but now more than ever), chucked one up for grabs and looked unbalanced most of the time in the pocket at release....LSU defense was a quick, physical, swarming defense to be sure...was a great win for UF and went a long way for TT.

I was surprised we didn't get a little bit of Brantley -- a change of pace possession, maybe late when the game was mostly salted away. Call it an investment in the future. You can't do better than Death Valley for giving a young QB a taste of the work to come.

Maybe Brantley didn't light the world on fire during his week-plus of practicing with the first unit?

good intentions toothy but within 10, i don't know...one bad pitch, one bad snap, one bad pass...could possibly make it a 3 point game.

tt at 75% is still a better play than putting in a redshirt soph backup in a game that pits #1 vs #4 in the unfriendly confines of death valley at a record attendance....ya know? good intentions though but just scary.

good intentions toothy but within 10, i don't know...one bad pitch, one bad snap, one bad pass...could possibly make it a 3 point game.

tt at 75% is still a better play than putting in a redshirt soph backup in a game that pits #1 vs #4 in the unfriendly confines of death valley at a record attendance....ya know? good intentions though but just scary.

No doubt, but still, we were a doctor's clearance away from starting Brantley. We're eight games away from starting him anyway. We don't trust him -- at all?

I was surprised by that.

I don't think it's that, Toothy.

you've got a heisman winning QB who is arguably one of the best to ever play the collegiate game. If he can play, against a top 5 conference rival on the road...in a close game...then he plays. Period.

Anyone else think there is no way we're number 1 if we didn't start that way in the preseason poll? I know we win and I'm happy about it. I just think we're like Bama, on the outside looking in at someone else and Texas if we hadn't started at the top. Then I wonder if we wouldn't open it up more if we weren't at the top. Sometimes I think that Meyer plays more conservative since he doesn't need to impress.

Interesting question 95. If this was the first week with rankings, who do you think would be ranked #1?

The way the talking heads are going, I think it would be Bama, UF, and Texas in that order, AA.

Though, in actuality, it matters not whether which of Bama or UF is #1 (other than bragging rights) because if all goes as planned...a rematch of the titans will occur in Atlanta. What a fucking game that's going to be.

Absolutely. Bama's gone to Blacksburg and won. And they've beaten Mississippi. I have no problems with the pollsters who are picking them first. And if Texas beats Oklahoma, they pick up some votes.

The SEC championship is at present a national championship semifinal game.

Bama has not gone to Blacksburg. That game was in Atlanta.

Good point. Still an attractive win, far better than the one we're gonna get against the ACC.

I don't honestly care where we are ranked...I just want this team to go undefeated...even if it's only by 2 points per game...we've never had an undefeated season and I'm pretty sure TT would just consider the season a failure if we lose one game. That is his goal...all the other stuff will fall into place.

i think all teams in the network are striving to be #1...that said, if you ARE number 1, you play to keep it...no need to play to get it cause you're there already...ya know?

as for the theoretics of it all and if we were NOT number 1 on the get go, i think tough wins/low scoring affairs against higher ranked teams are more of an indicator of strength as opposed to blowouts...blowouts only introduce the 'perception' that the high ranking opponent is overrated....we would need tennessee to beat someone significant to aid our SoS...i think UGA/SCaro aid our argument

I think it would be cool to go wire to wire.

Absolutely. It's the Noles' deepest fear, too. They think somehow their 12-0 championship team in 1999 -- and no knocks on them; they beat us in our house -- is this great thing we've never accomplished, is something they hold over us. It's gonna shut that up if we go 13-0 in the toughest conference in the land.