An LSU/Alabama Rematch Would be Terrible for College Football

November 8, 2011, 11:37 am
I made plans all week to make sure and watch the #1 vs. #2 showdown of LSU and Alabama on Saturday and I wouldn't go as far as saying I as disappointed, but I am comfortable saying that I would not be in favor of a rematch.

Lets get this straight, Alabama had the opportunity to knock off LSU at home where they were a five point favorite and they couldn't get it done.  That was their chance and they need to be satisfied with going to another BCS bowl game if they win out, not the National Championship.  There are plenty of other teams that deserve their shot at the Tigers.  First off, if Oklahoma State wins their remaining three games, they will be the team.  There is such a wide margin in the standings between the top two squads and everyone else that there will be no controversy whatsoever. 

Boise State fans can complain all they want about the newest edition of the BCS Standings, but the real team that got the shaft was Stanford.  How can an undefeated team in the Pac-12 still be behind a one-loss Alabama squad?  I hope that if the Cardinal can beat Oregon this Saturday that they will leapfrog the Crimson Tide in the newest edition of the BCS Standings. 

If you haven't figured it out yet, the human polls will not allow Boise State to play in a National Championship.  If Oklahoma State or Stanford wins out, BSU has no chance and I believe that if Oregon beats Stanford this weekend OR Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State on the first Saturday in December, the Sooners would jump Boise State as well.  I said it after the 3rd week of play and I am sticking by it, Boise State can not make the BCS Championship, but going to the Sugar Bowl or Fiesta Bowl is a pretty good consolation prize if you ask me.

Only Four Teams are Left Standing

November 7, 2011, 10:25 am
The 5A Bracket went as we expected.  All four teams that played at home were victorious and the closest game was Mountain View at Coeur D'Alene.  The Maverick defense was outstanding as usual.  They shut out the powerful Viking offense in the first quarter and held them to their lowest offensive output this whole season.  The bad news for Mountain View is that their offense couldn't score with Coeur D'Alene and the dream season is over for the Mavericks as they fell 27-14. 

Capital left no doubt who was the more dominant team as they trounced Skyline 58-26 in a game where the final score is actually closer than what it should have been.  The Eagles size advantage was noticeable and they rolled on with their 8th straight win and now will travel to Coeur D'Alene Friday night in a game that should be an instant classic.

The Meridian Warriors gave a valiant effort at Holt Arena on Friday but their Defense couldn't stop Highland QB Neil Jewel as they fell 35-26.  The Rams had not been tested like this since September and Meridian's triple option attack proved to be effective, but Highland made significant plays at the right time to move on to the semifinals.

The final quarterfinal matchup was a laugher.  The Eagle Mustangs responded perfectly after their first loss of the season dominating Lake City for a 58-7 win.  It was significant because Eagle was able to rest most of their starters in the 2nd half to get ready for their semifinal matchup against Highland.  Eagle will have home-field advantage, so expect Thunder Stadium to be rocking on Friday night.

Only one team was able to advance from District 3 in the 4A Bracket.  The Middleton Vikings went up to Lakeland and took care of business winning 42-20 to advance and will now host Pocatello on Friday night as the Indians dismantled Preston.  On the other side of the bracket, it was a rough one for Columbia.  The Wildcats fell to Hillcrest 53-14 and their dream season is now over.  The closest game of the weekend was Skyview giving #1 Blackfoot all they could handle.  Eventually, Trey Pilster and the Broncos came out on top 35-25.

In the 3A bracket, Fruitland found themselves in the same scenario as Eagle.  They were up 49-0 at halftime over Kellogg and were able to rest the majority of their starters to get ready for their showdown with Weiser, who beat Timberlake 34-7.  That matchup will be on Saturday afternoon. 

Be sure to join us at the Curb Bar and Grill today from 4-6 as we will be doing the show there for the next four Mondays.

5A Quarterfinal Preview

November 4, 2011, 1:50 pm
Despite the controversy of how many teams from the SIC should have made the field, we are down to four teams in the valley squaring off against two squads from the North and two from the East.

The matchup of the night is the #1 defense in the SIC against the top offense in the state.  Mountain View makes the trip up North to take on 9-0 Coeur D'Alene.  Viking QB Chad Chalich has been a force all season, but before we can see him dual with Eagle QB Tanner Mangum, he has to get past the best defense he has seen all season long.  The Mavericks stymied Eagle last week and are allowing less than 16 points per game.  We have been debating about it on the show all week, but I think traveling a day early will help Mountain View.  The question is, will it be enough?

The Meridian Warriors have been looking at this game for a long time.  Kip Crofts has preached how important it was for the school to get into the playoffs and the good news is that their mission was accomplished.  The bad news is they have to travel four hours to take on the 9-0 Highland Rams at 5:30 tonight.  Sports 630 The Fan's Athlete of the Week, Hayden Stout has 1286 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns on the season and will do his part to try and keep his team in the game.  The problem for Meridian is their defense who surrendered 49 last week to Vallivue.  If they can come to the party, this would be the upset of the weekend.

The Eagle Mustangs suffered their first setback last week against Mountain View, but I feel the loss could be beneficial for the playoff run.  The Mustangs did not lose anything as far as seeding is concerned and are still set up to play two games at Thunder Stadium and the State Championship at Bronco Stadium if they can keep winning.  Tanner Mangum was honored today for being selected to play in the Under Armour All-American Game so you know he will be ready to ply against a 5-4 Lake City team that put their pads away before winning a Kansas tiebreaker on Monday night.  Combining the short week of preparation for Eagle as well as the long bus ride, I think Eagle runs away with this game.

The final game of the night is the Capital Eagles, who ended the regular season with a 7 game winning streak, against the Skyline Grizzlies who come in with a 5-4 record.  The Grizzlies final regular season game was a loss to 4A Rigby, who hadn't won a game in 2 years.  With that being said, Capitals size and rushing attack will prove to be too much for Skyline.

Tune in on Monday to 630 The Fan at 4:00 for exclusive interviews and recaps of the weekends games.

4A Bracket Breakdown

November 3, 2011, 11:12 am
With the 5A preview coming tomorrow, its time to focus on the 4A bracket as plenty of local teams have a great chance of moving on to the semifinals.

The matchup of the weekend has to be the #1 Blackfoot Broncos coming to the Treasure Valley to battle it out against Skyview.  The Hawks came on strong as of late and defeated Bishop Kelly by one point last Friday to earn the home playoff game.  Blackfoot got the best of Skyview last year in the semifinals, but David Young's squad is hoping this year will be different as they will try and stop Blackfoot's dynamic quarterback, Trae Pilster.

Columbia has had a magical season as they won the most games in school history, but they stumbled in their final two regular season games and will travel to Hillcrest tomorrow night, where the weather forecast is calling for a good chance for snow.  The Knights took 3rd in District 6, but don't be fooled.  Their only three losses are to Blackfoot, Shelley and 5A Highland so they are battle tested and will be ready to play.

Middleton took the #2 seed from District 3 by virtue of their win against Columbia the last week of the regular season.  That gave the Vikings the easiest road to the state championship, but they have to make a long road trip to play Lakeland tomorrow night. The Vikings are a very balanced team and were up on Skyview 17-0 before the Hawks rallied in the 4th quarter for the win.

The other matchup has Pocatello taking on Preston in a game where the Indians are big favorites to advance to the semifinals. 

What does LSU vs. Alabama mean to Boise State?

November 2, 2011, 12:12 pm
After you get your high school playoff fix in for the weekend, make sure to park yourself in front of a TV Saturday for a great night of college football.  #1 LSU will be traveling to #2 Alabama in a contest that people are already deeming as a National Championship play-in game; but is it?

As far as the Broncos are concerned, there is one scenario that could work out to their advantage from the big SEC game this weekend.  If the winner of this game, which I think will be LSU, loses in the SEC championship game to Georgia or South Carolina, how could you justify taking them over the Broncos for the National Championship? The argument has always been out there that if you do not win your conference championship you should not be allowed to make the National Championship.  So regardless of who wins this weekend, that is an option for Boise State.

The other big element that we will find out on Sunday night is where the loser of this showdown will fall down to in the BCS standings.  Common sense would tell me that they would still be the highest rated one loss team and if that is the case that puts them at #5, right behind Boise State.  If for some odd reason, the loser is still ahead of the Broncos, then you can completely forget the National Championship because the human polls just will not allow the Broncos to crack the top two.

After the LSU vs. Alabama game is over, you can watch the Bronco game that starts at 8:30, but all signs point to this one to be a laugher.  UNLV Head Coach Bobby Hauck is doing his part in rebuilding a program that was in shambles when he arrived and that was displayed in a 38-35 win over Colorado State last Saturday, but don't expect this one to be close.  I have said it all year, but it will be extremely important in this game for the Broncos to make a statement and win this game by as many points as they can because passing the eye test is as important now as it has ever been.