ESPN College Football

Bats, they are sick. I cannot hit curveball. Straightball I hit it very much. Curveball, bats are afraid. I ask Jobu to come, take fear from bats. I offer him cigar, rum. He will come.

• Former California star Marshawn Lynch is working on his image. The Cal defense versus Oregon.
• What is former Colorado QB Cody Hawkins -- son of Dan -- doing these days? This is very important: A guide to Boulder.
• Oregon QB Darron Thomas is eager to meet LSU. Should coach Chip Kelly talk to reporters about all that Willie Lyle stuff? Oregon is looking for a special sort to help the football program.
• From farm systems to the Farm, the Stanford walk-on has taken a different path. Andrew Luck: Huge, homeless gladiator and Heisman hopeful.
• What is the problem with UCLA recruiting? Perhaps too few redshirt seasons. Previewing Bruins foes: Houston.
• USC opponent preview: Minnesota. Catching up with an "X USC QB."
• Want to feel like a real, live sportswriter? Then read Utah's media guide. There will be a quiz.
• A take on Neuheisel versus Sarkisian.
• Checking in with former Washington State QB Jason Gesser.
• Where does your team stand over the past decade in recruiting rankings.

It really don't matter if I lose this fight. It really don't matter if this guy opens my head, either. 'Cause all I wanna do is go the distance. Nobody's ever gone the distance with Creed, and if I can go that distance, you see, and that bell rings and I'm still standin', I'm gonna know for the first time in my life, see, that I weren't just another bum from the neighborhood.

• Previewing Arizona State's quarterbacks. Former Sun Devils coach Frank Kush will be honored.
• The Life of Riley? Former California QB Kevin Riley is now with the B.C. Lions.
• Addicted to Quack talks to the California Golden Blogs about life and football.
• Details on the arrest of an Oregon freshman linebacker. On the plus side, the Ducks got a commitment from a quarterback over the weekend.
• Some Stanford consternation over some preseason rankings of the Pac-12 divisions. If football was played in water, this Cardinal might dominate.
• If you're betting on who will be UCLA's QB, it appears Rick Neuheisel favors Kevin Prince.
• A look at how the NCAA unfairly penalized USC.
• Football might not present the toughest Pac-12 transition for Utah. Might Ohio State take a look at Utes coach Kyle Whittingham?
• A review of what Sporting News thinks of Washington.
• Former Washington State QB Jason Gesser is returning to Pullman for an off-the-field coaching position.
• Phil Steele is ranking his top-30 teams -- two from the Pac-12 already have been tapped -- and already has published his All-Pac-12 teams.

Fourth in a series of Pac-10 thoughts that might come from unusual angles (you can see California's 2009 prediction here).

Don't be surprised if ... California quarterback Kevin Riley, after an inconsistent career, turns in a solid senior season.

Watching Riley during the Bears listless loss to Utah in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl made my head hurt, but the good news is it made me forget about stabbing my eyes out while watching him in the regular-season finale at Washington.

My overriding thought as Cal's extraordinarily disappointing 2009 season thudded to an end: No way Riley can start at quarterback in 2010. No way.

But Riley will start at QB in 2010. And my feeling for what Bears fans can expect from him has changed, and not just because Riley is a stand-up guy and an often amusing interview.

Let's put it this way: Think of yourself at this time last year. If I had written that Sean Canfield would be the first-team All-Pac-10 QB in 2009, you would have flown to Scottsdale and beaten me over the head with a stick. Canfield's resume last summer included: 1. 15 interceptions vs. nine TD passes in 2007; 2. A junior year as a backup with shoulder issues.

Then: Poof! Senior break through.

Former USC QB Carson Palmer won the Heisman Trophy in 2002 after a stellar season. The year before, he threw 13 TD passes and 12 interceptions.

Oregon fans were writing sonnets about Dennis Dixon before he got hurt in 2007. And so was I. Guy was unstoppable. And he became that way despite throwing nine interceptions and just two TD passes in the final six games of 2006.

Before USC's run, it was almost a prerequisite to have experience at QB if a team wanted to compete for the Pac-10 championship. Just look at the conference champions and the first-team All-Pac-10 QBs starting in 2002 and going back: Palmer and Jason Gesser, Joey Harrington, Marques Tuiasosopo, Todd Husak, Cade McNown, Ryan Leaf (albeit a junior who finished with 24 career starts), Jake Plummer, etc.

Sure, Riley completed just 46 percent of his passes and was sacked 18 times in Cal's five losses last year. But the Bears offensive line and receiving corps should be better in 2010 because -- just like Riley -- they are more experienced.

Is Riley going to win first-team All-Pac-10 QB? Probably not in a conference with Jake Locker, Andrew Luck, Matt Barkley and Nick Foles.

But the expectation here is that Riley will turn in solid numbers this fall.

PULLMAN, Wash. -- It's March and the madness is upon us with underdogs swaggering past more talented favorites with a self-regard that rejects those who would question their capabilities.

Which is why a Washington State football skeptic -- read: everybody, since the program has won a single Pac-10 game over the past two seasons -- might pause charitably this time of the year after listening to the Cougars talk about their belief that 2010 will become a transformative year of success.

"I think you're going to see a completely different team out there," defensive end Travis Long said. "Realistically, I think we can get to a bowl game. That's my goal. I think it's everyone's goal."

A bowl game? Really.

"We break on roses everyday because we want to get to that game," quarterback Jeff Tuel said. "We want to get to a bowl game. We know if we put it all together and do things right we can get there."

Tuel pauses. "We expect to win games."

Wait. Go back. Did he say "roses," as in "Rose Bowl?"

Hey, Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA and Washington fans: You might want to stop yucking it up. The Cougars have been to two Rose Bowl since the 1997 season. How many has your team gone to during that span?

That said, come on, now: The Cougars can't really expect to go to a bowl game after a 1-11 season in which they ranked last in the Pac-10 in every major statistical category.

Well, in 2000, the Cougars completed a 4-7 season with a 51-3 beatdown defeat at home against rival Washington. The Cougs had won just 10 games over the three seasons since going to the Rose Bowl.

Ah, but they won 10 each of the next three seasons, finishing each ranked in the nation's top 10.

So there's precedent for the Cougs overcoming doubts and legitimately pursuing roses.

"Everyone knows we're going to be better," coach Paul Wulff said. "There's no doubt."

Well, coach, there are plenty of doubts.

"The players are embarrassed and I think they've got a chip on their shoulder," Wulff said. "They're out to prove people wrong."

(Read full post)

Lots of extraordinary games to choose from, as well as many ways to ascribe greatness: the size of the stage, the competitiveness of the game and the overall strangeness.

And we made the executive decision not to make this a list of USC upset losses -- other than the biggest one of those.

10. Oregon 56, Arizona State 55 (2 OT), 2000: Many of you are drawing a blank, but the ones who saw this one are jumping out of their chairs and going, "Oh man. That one was nuts." Both teams scored 21 points in the fourth quarter. The teams combined for 1,228 yards, 663 of those for the Sun Devils. Ducks quarterback Joey Harrington threw six -- SIX! -- touchdown passes, including three in the fourth quarter, the last of which tied the score with 27 seconds left after the Sun Devils gave away a critical fumble. Arizona State freshman QB Jeff Krohn threw five TD passes, by the way. ASU lost the game when coach Bruce Snyder decided to fake the extra point and go for the two-point conversion in the second overtime. It failed, leaving fans in Tempe stunned.

9. Washington State 30, USC 27 (OT), 2002: Any of you Cougars fans able to muster the memory of kicker Drew Dunning's slide on his knees at Martin Stadium? Dunning sent the game into overtime with a 35-yard field goal and then made the game-winner from the same distance in a victory that was critical to the Cougars' run to the Rose Bowl. The game featured a brilliant quarterback duel between Carson Palmer and Jason Gesser -- Gesser passed for 315 yards, Palmer for 381 -- and a dominant performance from Cougars defensive tackle Rien Long, who went on to win the Outland Trophy. Between this game and the 2006 Rose Bowl, USC lost just once.

8. Oregon 44, Arizona 41 (2 OT), 2009: If Arizona had won this game, we now know the Wildcats would have played in their first Rose Bowl. The Wildcats led 24-14 early in the fourth quarter, but then the game went crazy. With red-clad Arizona fans encircling the field, Ducks quarterback Jeremiah Masoli tied the game in regulation with six seconds left with a touchdown pass to Ed Dickson. Masoli then won it in the second overtime with a 1-yard run. Masoli ran for three TDs and passed for three more.

7. Stanford 24, USC 23, 2007: Greatest upset in Pac-10 history? Maybe. Stanford was a 41-point underdog playing its backup quarterback at No. 2 USC, which had won 35 in a row at home. But Trojans quarterback John David Booty, who foolishly played -- and was allowed to play -- with an injured throwing hand, threw four interceptions, while Stanford's Tavita Pritchard led a clutch, game-winning drive, throwing a 10-yard touchdown pass to Mark Bradford on fourth-and-goal with 49 seconds remaining.

6. Oregon 37, Oregon State 33, 2009: It was the Civil War for the Roses, with the Ducks earning a berth in the Rose Bowl after slipping a game crew of Beavers. While the return of Ducks running back LeGarrette Blount was significant -- he scored a critical touchdown -- the game belonged to redshirt freshman running back LaMichael James, who scored three touchdowns and rushed for 166 yards, and quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who ran over Beavers safety Lance Mitchell to convert a fourth-and-3 play from the Beavers' 33 with 3:41 left as Oregon ran out the final six minutes with its final drive.

5. California 31, Oregon 24, 2007: Sixth-ranked California, featuring a stellar performance from receiver DeSean Jackson, outlasted No. 11 Oregon in a game between two teams that each would at one point rise to No. 2 during the season, though both ultimately crumbled. The game turned on a strange play as the Ducks were on the cusp of tying the score. With 22 seconds to go, Dennis Dixon found Cameron Colvin near the goal line, but Colvin fumbled trying to reach the ball into the end zone when he was hit by Marcus Ezeff. The loose ball went through the end zone and was ruled a touchback and possession for Cal.

4. Washington 33, Oregon State 30, 2000: It was the greatest game no one saw because of the late, West Coast kickoff at Husky Stadium. And at the time its magnitude wasn't clear. The critical play of the back-and-forth affair happened when Washington defensive tackle Larry Tripplett caught Ken Simonton for a three-yard loss on second-and-1 from the Huskies 26-yard line with 42 seconds left. The Beavers panicked and mistakenly spiked the ball -- they had a time out left -- and then Ryan Cesca missed a 46-yard field goal to tie. It was the Beavers only loss of the season; they crushed Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. They would have played Oklahoma for the national title if they had prevailed. And the win helped the Huskies win the Rose Bowl tiebreaker.

3. USC 23, California 17, 2004: No. 7 California had a first-and-goal on top-ranked USC's 9-yard line with under two minutes left. At that point, Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers had completed 29 of 31 for 267 yards and a touchdown. But the Bears couldn't punch it in, with USC registering a sack and forcing three incompletions. It was the closest call of the season for the best team of the USC dynasty.

2. USC 34, Notre Dame 31, 2005: The infamous "Bush Push" game. No. 9 Notre Dame was about to knock off top-ranked rival USC and make Irish coach Charlie Weis a national sensation, but Matt Leinart led a drive for the ages in the waning moments as the Trojans prevailed, scoring the winning points when Leinart got a little extra help from Bush on his second effort on a quarterback sneak.

1. Texas 41, USC 38, 2006 Rose Bowl: Perhaps the great game in college football history, particularly considering that the stakes were a national title for two unbeaten teams and the field was packed with talent and future high draft choices. Vince Young almost single-handedly willed his team to the victory -- he ran for 200 yards and passed for 267 more -- and denied the Trojans a third consecutive national title. USC walked away with a laundry list of "what ifs," but the ultimate result was a 34-game winning streak coming to an end.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Happy Friday. 

• The odds are getting better that Stanford running back Toby Gerhart will return next year instead of getting a huge baseball signing bonus. 
• Former Arizona quarterback Willie Tuitama is looking at the Canadian and Arena 2 football leagues. 
• John Elway talks about son Jack's decision to quit football at Arizona State. 
• Final overview of where California stands heading into the offseason.
• More on Oregon receiver Aaron Pflugrad's decision to transfer.
• Former UCLA coach Terry Donahue has a new gig.
• A top fullback recruit reaffirms his commitment to Washington.
• Former Washington State great Jason Gesser re-emerges as a high school coach, and this makes Jim Moore happy.
• Why do some folks love the bowl system? They bolster local economies. For example, two bowl games bolstered the San Diego economy by $52.3 million.
• Quarterback is a big question for the Pac-10 in 2009 as Bud Withers previews the conference, post-spring.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

10 greatest guitar solos in no particular order: "Freebird," Lynyrd Skynyrd; "Blue sky" Allman Brothers; "Aqualung," Jethro Tull [Martin Barre];  "Cocaine," Eric Clapton; "Sweet Child O' Mine", Guns n' Roses; "Pride and joy," Stevie Ray Vaughan; "Crazy Train," Ozzy Ozbourne [Randy Rhoads]; "Eruption," Van Halen; "Stairway to heaven" Led Zeppelin; any solo by Jimi Hendrix. 
 

• California tackle Mike Tepper is whole again after his life spun out of control. 
• Arizona has a commitment from a tall tackle with family ties to the program. An Arizona regent gripes about coach Mike Stoops' new contract.
• Senator-cornerback Josh Jordan, Arizona State's political player.
• Profiling Oregon coach Chip Kelly from a New Hampshire perspective. The Ducks new offensive coordinator arrives in Eugene. Breaking down the Ducks roster.
• Is Sean Canfield Oregon State's starting quarterback? Oregon State injury report.
• More things we learned about UCLA during spring practices.
• More things we learned about USC during spring practices. Welcome to New York, Mark Sanchez.
• Checking in with former Washington State quarterback Jason Gesser.
• He doesn't coach in the Pac-10 any more, but my guess is many of you will find this story about Dick Tomey's marriage interesting.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

"Relax," said the night man. "We are programmed to receive. You can check-out any time you like, But you can never leave!"

• When Mike Bellotti walked off the field this week, it closed the book on his Oregon coaching career -- and opened a new one as athletic director.
• The Arizona Board of Regents has approved Wildcats coach Mike Stoops' contract extension and raise.
• I've previously advised some teams -- OK, it was Washington -- that can't get recruiting right to merely find out who Oregon State is recruiting and then recruit those guys. Well, this Paul Buker story is about how smart I am. Not specifically, but by implication. OK, not by implication but, well, just read the story. Oh, and how do Oregon State's receivers measure up? And these guys make the calls on defense.
• Checking in on Stanford recruiting.
• More on UCLA's Kevin Prince earning the No. 1 quarterback spot.
• What did we learn about USC defensive end Everson Griffen? That he can be as good as he wants to be. But he has to want to be.
• Sark attack on the links.
• Former Washington State quarterback Jason Gesser is going to be a high school head coach.
• Jon Wilner looks at the Pac-10's 2010 NFL draft prospects.
• The American Football Coaches Association will review the results of a three-month study of the USA Today coaches' poll. Here's a place to start.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

There's a Rose Bowl elimination game (the Civil War), bowl elimination game (UCLA at Arizona State), a national rivalry game (Notre Dame at USC) and a beach trip for the celebrating Cougars (Washington State at Hawaii) this week to keep you entertained while you digest your turkey.

Friday

UCLA (4-6, 3-4) at Arizona State (4-6, 3-4): The loser becomes a loser -- record-wise -- and is out of the bowl hunt. The winner then will try to earn mediocrity -- record-wise -- and bowl eligibility vs. its rival on Dec. 6. UCLA and Arizona State have split their last four meetings, but the Bruins have won seven of 10 at Sun Devil Stadium, including their most recent visit in 2006. Last year, in the Rose Bowl, the No. 9-ranked Sun Devils improved to 9-1 with a 24-20 victory. Keegan Herring was the difference, rushing for 116 yards and a touchdown.

Saturday
Notre Dame (6-5) at USC (9-1): The nation needs this game to matter because it's a unique and special rivalry. Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis isn't keeping up his end of the bargain since the classic 2005 affair. The Irish are coming off a humiliating home loss to Syracuse. After the game, Irish fans pelted some of their players with snowballs. USC could use a quality Notre Dame team to bolster its national standing. Too bad. As it is, the Trojans need a blowout or they will face further skepticism from voters. Duplicating last year's 38-zip win in South Bend might do the trick. That was the most decisive Trojans victory in the 79-game series and their first shutout in South Bend since 1933. Mark Sanchez, making his second career start in place of John David Booty, threw four touchdown passes and USC rushed for 227 yards.

The Civil War
Oregon (8-3, 6-2) at Oregon State (8-3, 7-1): If Oregon State wins, it's going to the Rose Bowl for the first time in 44 years. If Oregon wins, the Beavers don't go to the Rose Bowl and likely end up in the Sun Bowl because the Holiday Bowl likely would prefer the Ducks. So, there's a lot at stake here in the biggest Civil War since 2000. This is the longest running football rivalry on the West Coast in terms of games played. The teams have met 111 times dating to 1894 and uninterrupted since 1945. The Ducks lead the series 55-46-10, but Oregon State won at Eugene last year -- 38-31 in double overtime -- snapping a 10-year run of the home team winning. The Beavers have won five in a row in Reser Stadium with the last Duck victory in Corvallis coming in 1996.

Washington State (2-10) at Hawaii (6-5): The Cougars would like to remind you that that last weekend they beat Washington 16-13 in double overtime. Oh, this game? Well, Washington State leads its all-time series with Hawaii 2-1, including a 22-14 win in 1999, the team's most recent meeting. In that game, quarterback Jason Gesser, who, unlike Kevin Lopina, never beat Washington -- which lost to the Cougars 16-13 last weekend in double overtime -- led WSU to 10 points in the final three minutes in his first collegiate start in his hometown of Honolulu. Gesser, of course, though he never beat Washington 16-13 in double overtime, went on to become the school's all-time passing leader before being eclipsed by Alex Brink, who was part of three victories over Washington, though never by a count of 16-13 in double overtime.

Arizona (6-5), California (7-4), Washington (0-11) - open dates.
Stanford (5-7) - season concluded.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State quarterback Rudy Carpenter knows how to deliver the ball -- he's one of the nation's most accurate passers -- but the reason he's climbing the Pac-10's all-time passing record list is almost as much about his ability to take a hit.

He completed 27 of the 36 passes he threw in the 15th-ranked Sun Devils 41-17 victory over Stanford, rolling up 345 yards with three touchdowns.

And after just about every throw, a Cardinal defender plastered him to the turf.

He was sacked only twice, but two roughing the passer penalties showed that Stanford fully intended to try to bust Carpenter into little pieces by any means necessary.

"He is one of the best quarterbacks in the Pac-10 and in the nation," Cardinal linebacker Pat Maynor said. "He's a tough kid."

Added Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh: "Rudy was very impressive. I gained a lot of respect for him tonight. He took some hits. He was under pressure a lot, but he made some good throws and was very accurate."

Carpenter's lone mistake was second-quarter interception that led to a Stanford touchdown, which closed the gap to 13-10. Carpenter, sprinting to his left, uncharacteristically lobbed the ball into coverage and made things easy for Stanford cornerback Kris Evans.

"That was a terrible interception," Carpenter said.

It didn't take long for Carpenter to bounce back, though. With less than a minute before halftime, he parlayed good field position after the ensuing kickoff went out of bounds and a roughing the passer penalty into a touchdown drive, which he completed with a 45-yard scoring toss to Kerry Taylor.

"That was a huge play, scoring there just before half," ASU coach Dennis Erickson said. "That was probably the turning point of the game, without question."

Carpenter completed passes to nine different receivers, often flinging the ball just before a defender flattened him.

It's hard on Carpenter, but not so bad for his receivers.

"It seems kind of easy out there right now, knowing where Rudy is going to put the ball," Taylor said. "I know where the ball is going to be every time."

Carpenter said he wasn't unhappy with his protection. In fact, he saluted the entire offense working together to put away the bugaboo of the 55 sacks yielded a year ago.

"I think our offensive line did a great job of picking up pressure today," Carpenter said. "I think our receivers did an even better job recognizing blitz and coming open on their hot routes."

Carpenter, who has made 33 consecutive starts, has thrown for 733 yards in the first two games, which is the most passing yards a Sun Devils quarterback has compiled to start a season.

He now has 69 touchdown passes, ninth most in Pac-10 history. He also has 8,731 career passing yards, which ranks 14th on the conference's all-time list. Another 300-yard effort next week against UNLV and he will pass Sun Devils legend Jake Plummer and former Washington State star Jason Gesser.

He's put up big numbers because he's one of the nation's best passers. But he's also had to survive. It's hard to imagine many QBs across the country who have hit the turf more in their careers.

Particularly one who never stays down.

"He knows how to take a fall," Erickson said. "He's had to take a few. It's amazing how many times he gets hit and gets right back up and makes plays."

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

Take a break from watching the Olympics and read...  

• Is Washington QB Jake Locker almost ready to return from his hamstring injury? That breeze you feel might be a collective sigh of relief coming from Seattle.
• Brian Dohn notes again how QB Kevin Craft appears to be the likely starter for UCLA in the opener against Tennessee. He also has this note that injured QB Ben Olson plans to play this year and doesn't think he can qualify for another year of eligibility.
• Would somebody tell the USC players -- with their jock itch and injured QB -- to be careful? Seems that somebody slammed RB Joe McKnight's hand in a dorm room door. One word: ouch.
• College football coaches are overpaid, dadgumit! Or are they? Some are. Some aren't, according to Forbes.  Oregon State's Mike Riley and USC's Pete Carroll are on the lists... but on which side of the ledger?
• Bruins Nation takes the pulse of the Blog World on Rick Neuheisel perspectives coming from Washington fans. Interesting stuff. Still believe that the significant majority of the Huskies fan base (just like the Colorado fan base) blames Neuheisel for everything -- no matter how unsophisticated and unfair or inaccurate their arguments are.  
• Pete Carroll has celebrity friends ... who support Pete's charity "A Better LA." In this video, Will Ferrell pays tribute.
• Speaking of charity, SI.com's Stewart Mandel wants you to smack talk conferences for charity. Check it out. 
• Bet there's nothing charitable about the $EC's new TV deal with CBS.
• For those of you wondering what former Washington State QB Jason Gesser is up to these days, here you go.