Big East: Allstate Sugar Bowl
It's been a while since I opened up the mailbag. There wasn't one last week while I was embroiled in Sugar Bowl coverage. So let's do a two-parter today. Still time to get your questions in for this afternoon's second part.
Robert G. from Louisville writes: I think you're being too critical of Cincinnati. When you look at the emotions involved in this game -- the Bearcats are coming off just being dumped by their coach, while Florida has Tim Tebow's last game and a coach who is doing his job despite the discomfort it creates for him. Same with West Virginia; how hard would it be for any team to beat Bobby Bowden in his last game?
Brian Bennett: Emotions only go so far. Yes, Cincinnati had some difficult things to deal with when Brian Kelly left, but that happened on Dec. 10, giving the team a full three weeks to get ready. To a man, the Bearcats said they would be OK and that they were focused on the game. And Kelly or no Kelly, this was the biggest game in school history, with a chance at going 13-0 on the line. And they laid a total egg. The game was never even close, as Florida led 37-3 at one point in the third quarter. There's no other way to say it except that Cincinnati was outplayed and outcoached thoroughly in New Orleans.
As for West Virginia, yes, Florida State had a lot of emotion on its side. But then how do you explain the Mountaineers taking a 14-3 lead? I didn't really understand the game plan for West Virginia. It had the better team and was controlling the action early but just couldn't maintain it. Maybe emotion helped the Seminoles get some momentum after it got back in the game, but that never should have even happened.
Don from Dayton writes: I have to admit that Cincinnati's performance in the Sugar Bowl was poor, but I have to remind you and everyone else that they lost their head coach less than a month before the game. I am not trying to make excuses, but Brian Kelly did call a considerable amount of the offensive plays. In the Sugar Bowl, the offense was nonexistent. Do you think that will be taken into account when the final standings come out?
Brian Bennett: Kelly may have called a better offensive game, but unless he played linebacker, too, it probably wouldn't have mattered much. Florida absolutely steamrolled Cincinnati's defense on its way to 51 points. I don't think there was any way the Bearcats could have hung with the Gators no matter who was coach. Guys like Joe Haden, Carlos Dunlap and Brandon Spikes were just too much defensively.
David from Cincinnati writes: Brian, please tell me that the Bearcats' terrible postseason is no reason to be any less optimistic about next year. I really think less than 10 wins (losing to Oklahoma, splitting Pitt and WVU) would be a disappointment.
Brian Bennett: I'll say this: there aren't many teams, if any, who would have beaten Florida last Friday night if the Gators played that way. So it should have no effect on next year from that standpoint. What will have an effect is a coaching transition and losing valuable players like Mardy Gilyard, Jeff Linkenbach, Aaron Webster, etc. I think Cincinnati should be very good again, but to place those kind of expectations on Butch Jones in Year One may be a bit unfair.
Brad / Little Birch, W. Va., writes: What is your bet on what Noel Devine does now? Will he stay or will he go and what makes you think that? Please reply in 2 page double space format...
Brian Bennett: I can't give you double-spaced, but I'll try to add a bibliography at the end. My gut feeling is that Devine will go. We all know his life story (both his parents died of AIDS) and I think it's going to be too hard for him to say no to an NFL paycheck. And really, will his stock get any higher than it is now? Devine has done just about all he can do at the college level. That's just my feeling, anyway.
Aaron from Nashville: What do you make of West Virginia being put in a no-win situation against Florida State? If we win we're the villain. If we lose, well, they went 6-6 and it makes WVU and the Big East look pathetic. Also, do you think the outcome would have been any different had Jarrett Brown been able to go in the second half?
Brian Bennett: All that is true, but the bottom line is that Florida State was, in fact, a 6-6 team, and West Virginia was better. For whatever reason, the Mountaineers just didn't seem to make very good adjustments as that game went on. I don't know if Jarrett Brown makes too big of a difference; he was only 1-of-4 with an interception. The game plan did not seem to involve throwing the ball, except late when the coaching staff ignored Devine for some reason. If nothing else, at least Geno Smith got some valuable experience for 2010.
Robert G. from Louisville writes: I think you're being too critical of Cincinnati. When you look at the emotions involved in this game -- the Bearcats are coming off just being dumped by their coach, while Florida has Tim Tebow's last game and a coach who is doing his job despite the discomfort it creates for him. Same with West Virginia; how hard would it be for any team to beat Bobby Bowden in his last game?
Brian Bennett: Emotions only go so far. Yes, Cincinnati had some difficult things to deal with when Brian Kelly left, but that happened on Dec. 10, giving the team a full three weeks to get ready. To a man, the Bearcats said they would be OK and that they were focused on the game. And Kelly or no Kelly, this was the biggest game in school history, with a chance at going 13-0 on the line. And they laid a total egg. The game was never even close, as Florida led 37-3 at one point in the third quarter. There's no other way to say it except that Cincinnati was outplayed and outcoached thoroughly in New Orleans.
As for West Virginia, yes, Florida State had a lot of emotion on its side. But then how do you explain the Mountaineers taking a 14-3 lead? I didn't really understand the game plan for West Virginia. It had the better team and was controlling the action early but just couldn't maintain it. Maybe emotion helped the Seminoles get some momentum after it got back in the game, but that never should have even happened.
Don from Dayton writes: I have to admit that Cincinnati's performance in the Sugar Bowl was poor, but I have to remind you and everyone else that they lost their head coach less than a month before the game. I am not trying to make excuses, but Brian Kelly did call a considerable amount of the offensive plays. In the Sugar Bowl, the offense was nonexistent. Do you think that will be taken into account when the final standings come out?
Brian Bennett: Kelly may have called a better offensive game, but unless he played linebacker, too, it probably wouldn't have mattered much. Florida absolutely steamrolled Cincinnati's defense on its way to 51 points. I don't think there was any way the Bearcats could have hung with the Gators no matter who was coach. Guys like Joe Haden, Carlos Dunlap and Brandon Spikes were just too much defensively.
David from Cincinnati writes: Brian, please tell me that the Bearcats' terrible postseason is no reason to be any less optimistic about next year. I really think less than 10 wins (losing to Oklahoma, splitting Pitt and WVU) would be a disappointment.
Brian Bennett: I'll say this: there aren't many teams, if any, who would have beaten Florida last Friday night if the Gators played that way. So it should have no effect on next year from that standpoint. What will have an effect is a coaching transition and losing valuable players like Mardy Gilyard, Jeff Linkenbach, Aaron Webster, etc. I think Cincinnati should be very good again, but to place those kind of expectations on Butch Jones in Year One may be a bit unfair.
Brad / Little Birch, W. Va., writes: What is your bet on what Noel Devine does now? Will he stay or will he go and what makes you think that? Please reply in 2 page double space format...
Brian Bennett: I can't give you double-spaced, but I'll try to add a bibliography at the end. My gut feeling is that Devine will go. We all know his life story (both his parents died of AIDS) and I think it's going to be too hard for him to say no to an NFL paycheck. And really, will his stock get any higher than it is now? Devine has done just about all he can do at the college level. That's just my feeling, anyway.
Aaron from Nashville: What do you make of West Virginia being put in a no-win situation against Florida State? If we win we're the villain. If we lose, well, they went 6-6 and it makes WVU and the Big East look pathetic. Also, do you think the outcome would have been any different had Jarrett Brown been able to go in the second half?
Brian Bennett: All that is true, but the bottom line is that Florida State was, in fact, a 6-6 team, and West Virginia was better. For whatever reason, the Mountaineers just didn't seem to make very good adjustments as that game went on. I don't know if Jarrett Brown makes too big of a difference; he was only 1-of-4 with an interception. The game plan did not seem to involve throwing the ball, except late when the coaching staff ignored Devine for some reason. If nothing else, at least Geno Smith got some valuable experience for 2010.
NEW ORLEANS -- That was about the worst possible first quarter for Cincinnati.
Tim Tebow is 10-for-10 and the Bearcats offense is 0-for-3 on drives. Florida's 9-0 lead seems larger than it is. Cincinnati has yet to adjust to the Gators' defensive speed and may not be able to. Meanwhile, Florida is too big and Tebow has been too good for the Bearcats defense to handle.
This is a big test for interim coach Jeff Quinn. He and his staff have to come up with some adjustments and fast, or they could get blown out.
Yes, things looked really bad early on in the Pitt game, too. But Florida is better than Pitt and is playing with a ton of confidence right now.
Tim Tebow is 10-for-10 and the Bearcats offense is 0-for-3 on drives. Florida's 9-0 lead seems larger than it is. Cincinnati has yet to adjust to the Gators' defensive speed and may not be able to. Meanwhile, Florida is too big and Tebow has been too good for the Bearcats defense to handle.
This is a big test for interim coach Jeff Quinn. He and his staff have to come up with some adjustments and fast, or they could get blown out.
Yes, things looked really bad early on in the Pitt game, too. But Florida is better than Pitt and is playing with a ton of confidence right now.
NEW ORLEANS -- Cincinnati's defense, which was so leaky in the last month of the regular season, apparently hasn't gotten any better.
Florida marched down the field on a 13-play, 84-yard drive to take a 6-0 lead (Walter Stewart blocked the extra point). The Gators are more physical than the Bearcats and any question of whether they'd come ready to play has been answered.
Tim Tebow got it done with his arms and legs that drive. The Bearcats had Florida in a couple of third-and-longs, but Tebow found receivers for the first down. He was 7-for-7 on the drive. If Tebow can stand in the pocket and deliver completions like that, Cincinnati is going to have a long, long night defensively.
One of Florida's best offensive players, though, is probably done for the game. Running back Jeff Demps injured his left forearm near the goal line and was taken to the locker room.
Florida marched down the field on a 13-play, 84-yard drive to take a 6-0 lead (Walter Stewart blocked the extra point). The Gators are more physical than the Bearcats and any question of whether they'd come ready to play has been answered.
Tim Tebow got it done with his arms and legs that drive. The Bearcats had Florida in a couple of third-and-longs, but Tebow found receivers for the first down. He was 7-for-7 on the drive. If Tebow can stand in the pocket and deliver completions like that, Cincinnati is going to have a long, long night defensively.
One of Florida's best offensive players, though, is probably done for the game. Running back Jeff Demps injured his left forearm near the goal line and was taken to the locker room.
Cincinnati sells out Sugar Bowl allotment
December, 10, 2009
12/10/09
4:09
PM ET
By
Brian Bennett | ESPN.com
Cincinnati has sold out its entire allotment of 17,500 tickets to the Allstate Sugar Bowl and has requested more tickets.
The school sold out in a little more than three days without much public offering, since season ticket-holders gobbled up their seats for the game first.
"That's a pretty good statement for us," Cincinnati senior associate athletic director Mike Waddell said.
And that's the kind of statement a program needs to continue to attract good bowl bids. The Bearcats brought about 10,000 fans to Birmingham two years ago for the Papajohns.com Bowl. Last year, they sold 13,500 tickets from their allotment to the Orange Bowl, but Waddell said the school estimated that nearly 30,000 Cincinnati fans actually attended. Because the Orange Bowl and BCS title game tickets were sold in a bundle, many who had purchased the package for the national championship game unloaded their Orange Bowl tickets for dirt cheap on the Internet, and lots of Bearcats fans went that route, Waddell said.
But Waddell said when he talked to BCS officials this season, they expressed concern about the 13,500 number.
"That still put us in the worry category," Waddell said. "They wanted to know, 'Are they able to move tickets?'"
Waddell said Cincinnati should know by the weekend whether it will get extra tickets, and he added that there was a "substantial" waiting list for fans wanting to go. Playing Florida in an attractive destination city certainly doesn't hurt. But the program also has some questions now surrounding the coaching situation. That didn't seem to bother the Bearcats fans.
"This is kind of what all of us in the Big East are doing," Waddell said. "We're trying to establish our football reputation. Some schools had it already, some had it and lost it a little bit. Here we are, and our fan base responded that this will not be a temporary thing. Our program is established now."
The school sold out in a little more than three days without much public offering, since season ticket-holders gobbled up their seats for the game first.
"That's a pretty good statement for us," Cincinnati senior associate athletic director Mike Waddell said.
And that's the kind of statement a program needs to continue to attract good bowl bids. The Bearcats brought about 10,000 fans to Birmingham two years ago for the Papajohns.com Bowl. Last year, they sold 13,500 tickets from their allotment to the Orange Bowl, but Waddell said the school estimated that nearly 30,000 Cincinnati fans actually attended. Because the Orange Bowl and BCS title game tickets were sold in a bundle, many who had purchased the package for the national championship game unloaded their Orange Bowl tickets for dirt cheap on the Internet, and lots of Bearcats fans went that route, Waddell said.
But Waddell said when he talked to BCS officials this season, they expressed concern about the 13,500 number.
"That still put us in the worry category," Waddell said. "They wanted to know, 'Are they able to move tickets?'"
Waddell said Cincinnati should know by the weekend whether it will get extra tickets, and he added that there was a "substantial" waiting list for fans wanting to go. Playing Florida in an attractive destination city certainly doesn't hurt. But the program also has some questions now surrounding the coaching situation. That didn't seem to bother the Bearcats fans.
"This is kind of what all of us in the Big East are doing," Waddell said. "We're trying to establish our football reputation. Some schools had it already, some had it and lost it a little bit. Here we are, and our fan base responded that this will not be a temporary thing. Our program is established now."
Allstate Sugar Bowl: Cincinnati (12-0) vs. Florida (12-1)
Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m. (FOX)
Cincinnati had hoped to play for the BCS title after its perfect season. A Sugar Bowl trip against the defending national champs and the team that was ranked No. 1 most of the season is not a bad consolation prize.
The Bearcats -- who are making their second straight BCS appearance -- could even siphon some first-place votes in the final Associated Press poll with an impressive performance against the Gators. But that won't be easy.
The Cincinnati defense allowed 146 points in its last four regular-season games, and while Florida struggled at times this season to score points, giving Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow nearly a month to prepare is a scary proposition. The Gators' overall team speed and athleticism will provide a stiff test, though with guys like Mardy Gilyard, Armon Binns and Isaiah Pead, the Bearcats are not exactly plodders either.
Interim Bearcats coach Jeff Quinn has to be encouraged by how Alabama scored 32 points on the mighty Gators' defense, which had allowed only 20 points once before Saturday. Nobody has been able to keep Tony Pike, Gilyard and the Bearcats' attack under 24 points all season, and they're very comfortable if it becomes a shootout.
It's no BCS title game, but beating the program that has recently been the gold standard in college football would represent a huge leap forward for Cincinnati, which is Meyer's alma mater. Like a lot of alumni, Meyer probably never thought he'd see the day when the Bearcats could stack up to SEC powers in the Sugar Bowl. We'll find out if that day has arrived.
Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m. (FOX)
Cincinnati had hoped to play for the BCS title after its perfect season. A Sugar Bowl trip against the defending national champs and the team that was ranked No. 1 most of the season is not a bad consolation prize.
The Bearcats -- who are making their second straight BCS appearance -- could even siphon some first-place votes in the final Associated Press poll with an impressive performance against the Gators. But that won't be easy.
The Cincinnati defense allowed 146 points in its last four regular-season games, and while Florida struggled at times this season to score points, giving Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow nearly a month to prepare is a scary proposition. The Gators' overall team speed and athleticism will provide a stiff test, though with guys like Mardy Gilyard, Armon Binns and Isaiah Pead, the Bearcats are not exactly plodders either.
Interim Bearcats coach Jeff Quinn has to be encouraged by how Alabama scored 32 points on the mighty Gators' defense, which had allowed only 20 points once before Saturday. Nobody has been able to keep Tony Pike, Gilyard and the Bearcats' attack under 24 points all season, and they're very comfortable if it becomes a shootout.
It's no BCS title game, but beating the program that has recently been the gold standard in college football would represent a huge leap forward for Cincinnati, which is Meyer's alma mater. Like a lot of alumni, Meyer probably never thought he'd see the day when the Bearcats could stack up to SEC powers in the Sugar Bowl. We'll find out if that day has arrived.
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ABOUT THIS BLOG
Andrea Adelson
Adelson joined ESPN.com in 2010 after spending time as a college football columnist at The Orlando Sentinel. She has covered college football since her days as a University of Florida student, and lives in Orlando, Fla.
