The midway point of the season approaches and there are only 38 programs are left on the Shortlist, listed by conference affiliation as follows:
LSU, Alabama, Mississippi State, Texas A&M, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Ohio State, Purdue, Nebraska, Northwestern, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia, TCU, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Baylor, Iowa State, Florida State, Clemson, Miami, Duke, Southern Cal, UCLA, Arizona State, Oregon, Stanford, Oregon State, Washington, Louisville, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Ohio, Louisiana Tech and UTSA.
A quartet of teams won contests last week to retain their Shortlist spots for another week:
1) Well, well, well, look who we have here; The Miami Hurricanes, making their second appearance in this very part of the article this week fresh off the record setting performance of their quarterback by a 44-37 final against NC State! The crow is getting a little repetitive to the palette now here but
Miami continues to successfully swim with blood in the water from a pretty major gash to their ability to stop the run on defense without being eaten alive in 2012. If the Hurricanes can find a way to keep the turnover ratio in the positive or even better, stop somebody with consistency, they have a glimmer of hope of staying in Shortlist Contention all the way to the end of October, where all bets would be off to finish the year. Am I expecting either to continue much longer? Does the D'Onofrio family give his salary back to the university as a way of saying, "Sorry," for stealing these last two years?
2) Duke storms into Winston-Salem and announces they are finally ready to end that bowl drought with a 34-27 win over Wake Forest. While beating the Deacons moves them to four wins, it is never assumed the Blue Devils won't follow their impending Shortlist Elimination with a collapse to extend the bowl drought yet another year though despite needing only at most a maximum of two mild upsets to bring it to an end.
3) Washington uses a fantastic defensive performance combined with some poor Stanford quarterback play to pull the upset in Seattle 17-13 on Thursday. Keith Price is a great athlete that does more with less than his over-hyped counterpart from Los Angeles could ever dream of being able to and this result proves just that.
4) UT-San Antonio and their coach, Larry Coker, you might recognize that large ring on his finger if you look close, continue their improving performance this year as they beat New Mexico State in Las Cruces 35-14. Coker's FBS record now stands at 65-15, yet he finds himself about as far away removed from the top of the game as one sporting that career mark can possibly be halfway through the year. The Roadrunners still need three wins to get bowl eligible the rest of the way.
Balancing those continual considerations this week are this quartet of teams that lost last week to find themselves struck through on the Shortlist:
1) Michigan State still can't find a way to beat Ohio State two years in a row as they lose a 17-16 decision at home in East Lansing. The fake guy in the sweater-vest's old employee falls to his replacement. How fitting, if still stomach turning, all around.
2) NC State suffers as extensive a meltdown one football team can experience as they forget the most important part of the comeback in their shoot-out loss to the Miami Hurricanes. At least their cleats aren't red anymore in Raleigh or they'd match their cheeks after this result. When does Midnight Madness tip-off again?
3) Wake Forest loses to Duke in a moment that heralds the changing of the guard in the ACC basement. Jim Grobe's game over .500% career coaching record still says a world about his ability to get the best out of the talent on hand wherever he's been in his career despite the upset loss though. When does Midnight Madness tip-off again?
4) Virginia Tech falls in a road game all the way down in Washington D.C. to Cincinnati 27-24 on a last minute desperation prayer of a pass by the Bearcats. I'm contractually obligated right now to remind you, "Nice empty trophy case, losers." Five and a half years into this series and that moment never will lose it's special place in my heart when it arrives during the season. Their basketball team sucks too by the way.
I expect five teams this week to find themselves taken out of Shortlist contention this week as the midpoint of 2012 comes to pass: Purdue, Iowa State, Duke and Washington.
Of course, it just wouldn't be the 2012 season if I didn't save the most important pick for last as I unfortunately expect the Miami Hurricanes to waste a valiant offensive day of production by one of their better quarterbacks to ever take the field for them in Steven Morris and have their defense do just enough to lose to the hated Notre Dame Fighting Irish in Chicago this week to bow off the Shortlist at the midway marker. In what should be a game that holds great promise for the Hurricane's future, the present will finally welcome reality back to the team from the sub-tropics after a showing that will keep the score closer than generally expected going into the fourth quarter.
LSU, Alabama, Mississippi State, Texas A&M, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Ohio State, Purdue, Nebraska, Northwestern, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia, TCU, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Baylor, Iowa State, Florida State, Clemson, Miami, Duke, Southern Cal, UCLA, Arizona State, Oregon, Stanford, Oregon State, Washington, Louisville, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Ohio, Louisiana Tech and UTSA.
A quartet of teams won contests last week to retain their Shortlist spots for another week:
1) Well, well, well, look who we have here; The Miami Hurricanes, making their second appearance in this very part of the article this week fresh off the record setting performance of their quarterback by a 44-37 final against NC State! The crow is getting a little repetitive to the palette now here but
Miami continues to successfully swim with blood in the water from a pretty major gash to their ability to stop the run on defense without being eaten alive in 2012. If the Hurricanes can find a way to keep the turnover ratio in the positive or even better, stop somebody with consistency, they have a glimmer of hope of staying in Shortlist Contention all the way to the end of October, where all bets would be off to finish the year. Am I expecting either to continue much longer? Does the D'Onofrio family give his salary back to the university as a way of saying, "Sorry," for stealing these last two years?
2) Duke storms into Winston-Salem and announces they are finally ready to end that bowl drought with a 34-27 win over Wake Forest. While beating the Deacons moves them to four wins, it is never assumed the Blue Devils won't follow their impending Shortlist Elimination with a collapse to extend the bowl drought yet another year though despite needing only at most a maximum of two mild upsets to bring it to an end.
3) Washington uses a fantastic defensive performance combined with some poor Stanford quarterback play to pull the upset in Seattle 17-13 on Thursday. Keith Price is a great athlete that does more with less than his over-hyped counterpart from Los Angeles could ever dream of being able to and this result proves just that.
4) UT-San Antonio and their coach, Larry Coker, you might recognize that large ring on his finger if you look close, continue their improving performance this year as they beat New Mexico State in Las Cruces 35-14. Coker's FBS record now stands at 65-15, yet he finds himself about as far away removed from the top of the game as one sporting that career mark can possibly be halfway through the year. The Roadrunners still need three wins to get bowl eligible the rest of the way.
Balancing those continual considerations this week are this quartet of teams that lost last week to find themselves struck through on the Shortlist:
1) Michigan State still can't find a way to beat Ohio State two years in a row as they lose a 17-16 decision at home in East Lansing. The fake guy in the sweater-vest's old employee falls to his replacement. How fitting, if still stomach turning, all around.
2) NC State suffers as extensive a meltdown one football team can experience as they forget the most important part of the comeback in their shoot-out loss to the Miami Hurricanes. At least their cleats aren't red anymore in Raleigh or they'd match their cheeks after this result. When does Midnight Madness tip-off again?
3) Wake Forest loses to Duke in a moment that heralds the changing of the guard in the ACC basement. Jim Grobe's game over .500% career coaching record still says a world about his ability to get the best out of the talent on hand wherever he's been in his career despite the upset loss though. When does Midnight Madness tip-off again?
4) Virginia Tech falls in a road game all the way down in Washington D.C. to Cincinnati 27-24 on a last minute desperation prayer of a pass by the Bearcats. I'm contractually obligated right now to remind you, "Nice empty trophy case, losers." Five and a half years into this series and that moment never will lose it's special place in my heart when it arrives during the season. Their basketball team sucks too by the way.
I expect five teams this week to find themselves taken out of Shortlist contention this week as the midpoint of 2012 comes to pass: Purdue, Iowa State, Duke and Washington.
Of course, it just wouldn't be the 2012 season if I didn't save the most important pick for last as I unfortunately expect the Miami Hurricanes to waste a valiant offensive day of production by one of their better quarterbacks to ever take the field for them in Steven Morris and have their defense do just enough to lose to the hated Notre Dame Fighting Irish in Chicago this week to bow off the Shortlist at the midway marker. In what should be a game that holds great promise for the Hurricane's future, the present will finally welcome reality back to the team from the sub-tropics after a showing that will keep the score closer than generally expected going into the fourth quarter.
.
Try to enjoy the games again this week and join me back here next week as we inch closer to the magic 25 teams left here on the Buffet of Warmed Over Crow, I mean, Shortlist to South Beach. No, really, I meant the latter.
Copyright 2012 by Christopher Whelpton for Canespace.com
Copyright 2012 by Christopher Whelpton for Canespace.com
I'll feel a lot better with a UpNorth pep talk
Posted by: 4-Real | October 06, 2012 at 03:32 PM
As the stakes get higher, I get more nervous.
Posted by: 86Cane | October 06, 2012 at 02:59 PM
Hmmmm, interesting.
I wonder if the players feel the exact opposite, with the low expectations prior to the season, and the impending sanctions.
I think the players have a "got nothing to lose" attitude...
Posted by: CaneRock | October 06, 2012 at 03:32 PM
Army on top of BC, 45 seconds left.
Posted by: The Dude | October 06, 2012 at 03:35 PM
Duke up 14-7 on UVA.
Posted by: The Dude | October 06, 2012 at 03:36 PM
Army wins 34-31 over BC.
Posted by: The Dude | October 06, 2012 at 03:40 PM
Canes lets gettttt itttt tonight fellas.....
ROME wasn't built in one day, lay the bricks fellas. brick by brick lets get this University to where it belongs "on top of the World"... Notre lame is in our way, all hype no bite tey havent won or done nething in like 20 years ....
Lets get back to beating these alter boys and the rest of the world will begin to live in fear.....
CANES 34 Notre lame 10!!!!!!
Posted by: UpNorthCane27 | October 06, 2012 at 03:51 PM
Clemson can put GTech away for the rest of the year if they win today, gets underway in a bit.
Posted by: The Dude | October 06, 2012 at 03:22 PM
Really, once you've lost to a university with "Middle" in its name, your season's already pretty much shot.
Posted by: dj moonbat | October 06, 2012 at 04:14 PM
How effective are blitzs when the Qb has a easy throw to all his Receivers? I have no clue why we are blitzing because they have these under throws on every single play. OMG somebody help me
Posted by: Jiggafras | October 06, 2012 at 09:17 PM