This week's Opponent watch is
****UPDATE: See Missouri****
Colorado State University:
Sat, Sept 18
0-3 (0-0)
- They've scored a total of 19 points through three games. They are deal last in points scored this season, and 119th out of 120th in rushing yards (they went for one yard on Saturday). Pete Thomas did throw for 300 yards and his first Touchdown. But also had two interceptions. Committed four total turnovers
- They shut down the Miami (OH) running game, but made their QB look like a stud. He was 18-22 for 231 yards with no turnovers. Phew. They are 105th in points allowed this season. Not looking good for the Rams.
University of California, Berkeley:
Fri, Sept 17
2-1 (0-0)
- They finally got their running game off the ground, with Shane Vereen gaining 198 yards and 3 TDs on 19 carries, but it wasn't enough. Kevin Riley threw three Interceptions and they barely had the ball for 23 minutes.
- They couldn't get off the field. Playing without All-American Mike Mohamed, they allowed Nevada to hold onto the ball for nearly 37 minutes in their Pistol Offense. Colin Kaepernick ran for 148 and passed for 181 easily, and they took advantage of Cal's turnovers.
University of Hawaii:
Sat, Sept 18
1-2 (0-0)
- We held them to below their season average (which doesn't mean much after two games) in passing yards. Bryant Moniz was held to minimal damage on the ground, and he threw his first Interception of the season.
- They continued to have trouble defending both the run and the pass. Thank goodness. We needed that.
University of Georgia:
Sat, Sept 18
1-2 (0-2)
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Aaron Murray looked like a redshirt freshman against Arkansas. He got beat up a bit and held onto the ball too long. Sure, he threw for 253 yards, and Georgia ran for 139 yards, but they just didn't have enough to overcome their opponent. They came back in the fourth quarter, but they couldn't hold on.
- They couldn't cover the Arkansas receivers and gave Ryan Mallet more than enough time for him to pick them apart. They did a solid job defending the run, but it didn't matter. They were gashed through the air.
University of Missouri:
Sat, Sept 18
3-0 (0-0)
- They needed a huge last minute TD pass from Blaine Gabbert to T.J. Moe to overcome SDSU. Gabbert threw for 351 yards, but it took 51 attempts and he threw two Interceptions.They only managed 89 rushing yards.
- They allowed 250 rushing yards, but stayed in the game even with some funky things not going their way, and their Offense having troubles. Not the best showing, but managed to win the game.
- ****UPDATE: Aldon Smith, Missouri's talented DE is out for "a couple of weeks" with a broken leg. It's his fibula, so he can play on it if he has to. Possibly out for Missouri-Colorado game.****
Baylor University:
Sat, Sept 18
2-1 (0-0)
- They finally played a quality opponent, and the real Baylor showed up. Robert Grinnin III was shut down by the Defense. They could only manage 3 points in the first half, and their TD was in "extended" garbage time (the second half).
- They could do absolutely nothing to stop the TCU Offense. Andy Dalton was 21-23 and Ed Wesley went for 165 yards and two TDs on only 19 carries. Baylor could do nothing to slow them down.
Texas Tech University:
Sat, Sept 18
2-1 (0-1)
- They scored about two TDs more than many people thought they would. This may be proof that Texas isn't as good as people thought, more than a reflection on TTU being very good. They put up a solid fight, but Texas finally took control in the fourth quarter.
- They forced a bunch of turnovers, but couldn't do enough with them. When they needed to step up, they couldn't, and Texas was able to grind out the clock in the fourth quarter with a 9 minutes, 22 play drive.
University of Oklahoma:
Sat, Sept 18
3-0 (0-0)
- Murray rushed for over 100 yards again along with two TDs, and they did what they had to do. Broyles also went over 100 yards again. They are still not perfect under Landry Jones, but he got it done.
- They had trouble with the Air Force triple option, allowing them 458 total yards, 351 of that on the ground. More than that, they looked out of position at times, and missed tackles. They shouldn't have given up that many yards or points, but they did.
University of Kansas:
Fri, Sept 17
1-2 (0-0)
- They were handled by the USM Defense. They only managed 274 yards, split nearly evenly between passing and rushing yards. No turnovers, they just couldn't make anything happen.
- They couldn't slow down the USM Offense, who ran for over 200 yards at nearly 6 yards per carry.
Iowa State University:
Sat, Sept 18
1-2 (0-1)
- They stayed in the game, but couldn't get it done behind Austin Arnaud. He only managed 122 yards on 27 attempts, and his Wide Receivers did not play very well. Alexander Robinson had a solid game, but they went away from him late.
- They, like most people, couldn't stop Daniel Thomas.
Kansas State University:
Sat, Sept 18
3-0 (1-0)
- They fed Thomas the ball, and it won them the game. Carson Coffman only needed to attempt 12 passes. He did have a bad Interception that let Iowa State stay in the game.
- They were helped by a pretty bad performance by the ISU Offense.
University of Nebraska:
Sat, Sept 18
3-0 (0-0)
- I've said that I thought both of these teams are overrated. Washington definitely proved it today. And as much as I hate to say it, Nebraska looked pretty good. Three 100 yard rushers, though it was against a pretty meager Defense. Taylor Martinez looked good running the ball, but made plenty of mistakes. He held onto the ball too long and had trouble finding the open guy in the passing game. If someone can stop their rushing game, I think they'll fal apart. Of course, nobody has been able to do that yet...
- They held an overrated Offense to 246 yards. They definitely don't look as good as they did last year, but they're finding ways to make up for that. And for now, they don't have to play that well because their Offense has been putting up tons of points. We still won't really know about them until they play Texas on October 16th.