Random Thoughts Week 4: Honk If You Sacked Jackson Arnold!

_{A sign of things to come.^^^}

Oklahoma 24 Auburn 17 – There was early controversy in this match-up when a scoop

and score for AU was overturned. Upon first view, it looked like a completion and fumble, but was ultimately ruled that the receiver never had full possession.

After a sluggish start by both teams, Okie finally recorded the first touchdown of the game on a trick play that – according to the SEC’s interpretation – has been outlawed. In the second quarter, Oklahoma wide receiver Isaiah Sategna acted like he was walking off the field to the sideline, but instead took his position split out crazy wide. With no one from an unaware Auburn defense near him, he easily caught a wide-open pass in the end zone.

Following the game, the SEC made a proclamation that the SEC officials had erred in not throwing a flag. However as replay expert Matt Austin points out in the clip above, there is no clear video evidence of what unfolded. There was a line judge right in front of Sategna and it had to have been his interpretation that everything was copacetic. We;ll probably never know.

Auburn would later score to knot the game up at 10-10 at the break.

The Sooners would kick two 3rd quarter field goals to go up 16-10. Into the 4th quarter, the War Tigers had the ball at the OU 38 yard line and attempted a double pass. Eric Singleton attempted a pass to fellow receiver Cam Coleman who skied for the ball but could not haul it in. Aubies cried foul and it does appear the Sooners defender did indeed get there too soon. But was this ball even catchable? Coleman leaped about as high into the air as a guy can and still barely got a few fingers on the ball.

Some Auburn fans want to point to this as a reason they lost, but the Tigers scored a touchdown a few plays later to take a one point lead and a moot point. Following that score, Oklahoma cruised down the field the other way and had a little more controversy.

IMHO, the Sooner caught the ball, controlled it and took several steps before it was knocked out when he was well out of bounds.

Okie QB John Mateer would scramble in for the go-ahead score but would miss a wide open receiver on the 2-point conversion try. Down 22-17, Auburn would get the ball with just under 5 minutes to play and only needing a touchdown to retake the lead. An Aubie penalty on the kickoff pinned them deep. After moving out to the 23, a 10-yard holding penalty and a 5-yard false start moved them back into the danger zone. A play later, Jackson Arnold was sacked in the end zone for a safety. During the game, the sack count on Arnold was 10, but at some point the official scorer took one away. We have to assume he interpreted a certain play was an intended run.

“Honk if you sacked Jackson Arnold!” bumper stickers are now available for purchase in the lobby.

Welp, at least Auburn still have basketb… Oops. Never mind.

_{SC had to settle for a 32 yard field goal on this series.}^^^

Missouri 29 South Carolina 20 – The Gamecocks led 20-18 heading into the final 15 minutes, mostly due to LaNorris Sellers’s passing as he finished with 302 yards and two touchdowns. However, in the final frame, the former Heisman hopeful missed a couple of open receivers and could not pick up a single first down in three possessions. Meanwhile, Mizzou scored 11 unanswered. Mizz RB Ahmad Hardy ground out 138 yards and a score.

Miami-FL 26 Florida 7 – On a day when the Hurricanes offense was not great, the defense stepped up and limited the Gators to 141 total yards, 7 first downs, and an appallingly bad 0-13 on third down. UF’s DJ Lagway was 12 of 23 passing for only 61 yards. The busiest guy on Florida’s team was the punter who kicked 7 times. Five of Florida’s six first half possessions ended in 3-and-outs.

At 1-3, Florida has an uphill battle getting to 6 wins. Or even 4 wins.

Memphis 32 Arkansas 31 – Why? Why? Why? Why do Power teams schedule these kinds of away games? Winning them does little for the cachet. Losing is devastating.

Played in the Liberty Bowl, Arky jumped out to a 28-10 lead. The Blue Tigers would outscore the Razorbacks 22-3 the rest of the way. The Hogs had the ball deep in Memphis territory with under two minutes to play when Razorbacks running back Mike Washington coughed up the ball at the seven yard line. Arkansas still had a chance with three timeouts but got pushed off the line for a devastating 11-yard run (above) and Memphis ran out the clock.

Ole Miss 45 Tulane 10 – The Rebs (4-0) had their way with what was thought to be a strong Green Wave team (3-1). OM outgained Tulane 548 to 282.

Indiana 63 Illinois 10 – Get ready for Indy’s second-year coach Curt Cignetti’s name to start popping up in job rumors should bigger programs be looking for a change. His Hoosiers team absolutely slaughtered the 9th ranked Illini. Indy’s Fernando Mendoza went off for 21 of 23 passing for 267 yards and 5 touchdowns. The running game picked up an additional 312 yards. Meanwhile, the Hoosiers defense stymied Illinois for only 2 rushing yards and 161 total. The special times did their part too with a blocked punt returned for a score. Even the Indiana punter had a big day with two boots for 52 yards each.

Texa$ Tech 34 Utah 10 – It was a tight game until backup quarterback Will Hammond stepped in to give the Red Raiders a spark. With Texas Tech leading 10-3 in the third quarter, starter Behren Morton’s helmet slammed on the turf after he slid head-first into contact with a Utah linebacker. TT was forced to bring in Hammond and all he did was produce 24 fourth quarter points for a blowout win.

Utah was mistake-prone all day long. The Utes had four turnovers as well as a 69-yard TD pass called back on an ineligible receiver penalty. UU’s usually solid running game totaled just 101 rushing yards while averaging 3.3 yards per carry.

Michigan 30 Nebraska 27 – With head coach Sherrone Moore suspended due to Jim Harbaugh’s years of blatant cheating, goofball coach Biff Poggi stepped in and somehow willed the Wolverines to victory. UM quarterback Bryce Underwood had a bounce-back game of sorts. After a disastrous game against Oklahoma, the freshman was just 12-of-22 passing for 105 yards but scored the Wolverines’ first touchdown on a nifty 37-yard run. That is basically how Michigan won this game – by running the ball. Justice Haynes had 149 rushing yards, Jordan Marshall had 80, and Underwood finished with 61. Michigan had rushing scores of 37, 54, and 75 yards.

Following a tie game at halftime, the Cornhuskers had negative yardage and two 3-and-outs in the third quarter while Michigan tallied 10 points to put them in front. An exchange of field goals was followed by a Nebraska touchdown with a minute and a half remaining but it was not enough.

NOTHING TO ESS-EE-SEE HERE

Tennessee 56 UAB 24 – The Vols called off the dogs up 49-10 in the 3rd quarter. They better hope Joey Aguilar doesn’t go down, because the back-up QB kinda suuucks.

LSU 56 SE Louisiana 10 – The Yellow Tigers offense FINALLY scored more than two touchdowns in a game, beating up a poor little FCS Lions team who also got whupped by Louisiana Tech.

Vanderbilt 70 Georgia State 21 – VU revenged an inexplicable upset loss from last season.

Mississippi State 38 Northern Illinois 10 – four and oh!

Texas 55 Sam Houston 0 – Wow, who saw this one coming? Arch Manning shreds Houston! Oh, it’s not Houston? It’s SAM Houston? The 0-4 Bearkats? The same team who lost by double digits to Hawaii, UNLV, and WKU? Oh, okay. Never mind.

*Alabama, UGA, UK, TAMU were all off.

LOL!

Center Florida 34 North Carolina 9 – The Tar Heels picked up only 217 yards of offense in a humiliating blowout defeat for Bill Belichick and UNC Nation. Clempson is next for Carolina.

WHEN IT RAINS, IT POURS

Tulsa 19 Oklahoma State 12 – No excuses. You can’t blame NIL or the Transfer Portal or “somebody else is cheating”. This was a pathetic effort from the Cowpokes (1-2). The Golden Hurricane (2-2) came into Stillwater with losses to New Mexico State and Navy to go with a win over Abilene Christian.

Head coach Mike Gundy (170–90) is in his 21st season with Okie Lite. He has taken the ‘Boys to bowl games every season except his first year and this past year. He’ll need five wins out of Baylor, at Arizona, Houston, Cincinnati, at Texas Tech, at Kansas, Kansas State, at Center Florida, Iowa State to get back to a post-season game. The OSU administration will probably let Gundy finish out the year, but unless there is some kind of miracle turnaround, he is surely done after the season finale.

OTHER STUFF

Maryland 27 Wisconsin 10 – It does not look good for Fickell in Madison. More importantly, what does this mean for Alabama who beat this same Badgers team in Tuscaloosa by a very similar score?

Oregon 41 Oregon State 7 – I’m sure this win was important to a few thousand people in the Northwest, but the Beavs (0-4) are historically bad. The OSU travels to Houston and most likely pick up Loss No. 5.

Syracuse 34 Clempson 21 – One week after delivering an ultimatum of sorts, Dabo Swinney’s troops came out in Tiger Stadium and laid another big ol’ rotten egg. With the ‘Cuse leading 24-14 at the half, the game was delayed more than two hours due to a lightning. Plenty of time to make adjustments. No? No. The Orangemen scored the next ten points and their starting QB Steve Angeli left the game with a non-contact lower leg injury late in the third quarter. Even still, the CU offense could not get back in the game.

“Honk if you have won at Orange Death Valley!” bumper stickers are now available for purchase in the lobby.

DABO MEMES

THE ‘U’ IS DEFINITELY BACK…

… IF THEY ARE GETTING NO-CALLS LIKE THIS.

FAKE TUSH PUSH OF THE WEEK

WORST ONSIDE KICK OF THE WEEK

PRESENT DAY COLLEGE KICKERS ARE INSANE

HAIL MARY OF THE WEEK

Somewhere out there, Nick Saban is shaking his head in disgust.

SAVIOR OF THE WEEK

DEVOTEE OF THE WEEK

STOP TRYING TO BE NAJEE

STOP TRYING TO BE NAJEE, PART DEUX

VEGAS WINS AGAIN

Oklahoma was favored by 6.5 points and won by 7 thanks to this safety.

OFFSIDES OR IMPECCABLE TIMING?

SADDEST FAN OF THE WEEK

TAN LINE OF THE WEEK

NOT LIKE THIS, ARCH

Texas QB Arch Manning got raked over the coals for bowing up over a 0-star future insurance claims adjuster from the winless Bearkats.

DERP OF THE WEEK

By rule if a ball falls off the tee before contact, the kicking team gets a re-kick.

I’D LIKE TO REPORT A MURDER

CREEPY WEIRDOS OF THE WEEK

GOOFBALL OF THE WEEK

LATE NIGHT SCOOP & SCORE OF THE WEEK

Which reminds me: whatever happened to former Bama DL Jehiem Oatis? Well, he is playing for 2-2 Colorado and has two tackles on the season. He is now considered third team behind another former Tide player, Anquin Barnes, and the word “bust” is making the rounds in Boulder.

PICK SIX OF THE WEEK

Cal’s true freshman QB Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele had a rough go of it, completing only 17 of 38 passes for 208 yards with two interceptions in a stunning 34-0 upset shellacking.

AI OF THE WEEK

SENIOR CITIZEN OF THE WEEK

Texas A&M’s back-up QB Jacob Zeno started with Baylor in 2019 and recorded stats in each of three seasons in Waco as a reserve. Then, it was three seasons with UAB where he became the starter in 2023. In 2024, he started the first four games for Birmingham before suffering a season ending injury to his non-throwing shoulder. Now at 25 year old, he is third team for the Aggies.

NAME OF THE WEEK

Purdue wide receiver NiTareon “Nitro” Tuggle. Transferred from UGA after one season and is a starter (10 rec, 189 yds, 3 TD).

2014

• Mississippi State starts 4-0 for the first time since 2014.
• Georgia Tech also advances to 4-0 for first time since 2014.

STATS OF THE WEEK

• Running back Robert Henry has gone for at least 144 yards in all four games for UTSA this season including against Texas A&M. He also had a single rush of at least 74 in each of those matches and has scored in all four games with a total of seven touchdowns on the ground and two receiving. Henry’s ypg stands at 9.2. He leads the nation in each of these above-mentioned rushing categories.
• Michigan RB Justice Haynes had 75 yards on one run and 74 on his other 16 attempts – which is still not bad (4.6 ypc on those 16). I really wish Alabama had made more of an effort to keep him.
• TCU senior WR Eric McAlister had a bust-out game in a win over SMU with 254 receiving yards on 8 receptions with 3 touchdowns. The Mustangs led 24-21 until McAlister scored from 70 and 44 yards in the fourth quarter to clinch a 35-24 victory.
• In two games against FBS opponents, Oklahoma State has scored 15 points.
• The last time the Cornhuskers beat an AP ranked team was in 2016. Nebraska has the 2nd-longest active losing streak among current Power Conference teams.
• It is Clemson’s first 1-3 start since the 2004 season.

THE WACKY WORLD OF CORSO McAFEE

College GameDay was in Miami for Criminals vs Gators. Pat McAfee took a deep dive into the ‘U’.

FTR, McAfee was the only one to take Indiana over Illinois.

The Florida Panthers Stanley Cup champ Matthew Tkachuk was the guest picker. Fortunately, he wore mostly green.

The next GD will be in Happy Valley for Oregon and Penn State.

Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff was in Salt Lake City for Utah-Texas Tech. Barstool bozo Dave Portnoy was back after an unexplained absence last week in Evanston. He tried to garner favor by wearing a Utah hat and shirt. He has also toned down the buffoonery and the venom. Former Ute and NFL All-Pro WR Steve Smith was on hand.

BNK is headed to Champaign which is bad planning after the Illini just got stomped. Southern Cal comes to play.

ADOPT-A-TEAM

• Someone made an excellent suggestion of adopting Georgia Tech (4-0). It makes total sense. They already beat Dabo and Deion. Coach Brent Key is a Nick Saban disciple and runs his program in the way the GOAT did. The Yeller Jackets smothered Temple 45-24. GT is at Wake Forest on Saturday.
• Memphis has been on this list in years past. They are a legit good team.

COUSINS

• Troy (2-2) – The Trojans upset Buffalo on the road 21-17 with three unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Bye week, then South Alabama.
• Jacksonville State (2-2) – The Gamecocks whalloped FCS Murray State 45-20. Now, a precarious trip to Southern Miss.
• South Alabama (1-3) – Things are not going so rosy for Major Applewhite in Mobile. The Jags lost 38-20 at home to a dreadful Coastal Carolina team that had scored seven points in two games vs FBS foes before this one. A journey to North Texas (4-0) for likely loss number four is on deck for USA.
• West Alabama (4-0) – Scott Cochran’s Tigers destroyed Barton College (NC) 52-14.

THAT ANNOYING GUY WHO LEAVES HIS SHOPPING CART IN THE MIDDLE OF AN AISLE

UAB (2-2) – It is probably not a good sign when your coach is snapping pictures of the opposing team’s stadium just moments before kickoff. The Dragons got thumped by pisst off Tennessee 56-24. Army invades in two Saturdays.

BTW, ULM’s Bryant Vincent – Bill Clark’s hand-picked interim coach that the school did not retain – bounced back from a loss to Alabama to top UTEP in El Paso. #TakeBackTheMedSchool

SALUTE TO OUR TROOPS

• Army (1-2) – The Black Knights kicked a field goal with 9 ticks to go in regulation to tie it up with North Texas. The Mean Green scored seven in overtime, but Army could not answer. Next, the Cadets travel to East Carolina.
• Navy (3-0) – The Midshipmen had the week off before surprising 3-1 Rice comes to Annapolis.
• Air Force (1-2) – The Falcons fell to Boise 49-37. Hawaii comes to Colorado Springs.

ELIMINATED FROM PLAYOFF CONTENTION

Eliminated: Washington State, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, Virginia Tech, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Northwestern, Florida

Endangered: Duke, NC State, SMU, Virginia, Wake Forest, Utah, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Center Florida, Indiana, Notre Dame

Extremely Endangered: Boston College, Clemson, UNC, Syracuse, Baylor, Cincinnati, Colorado, West Virginia, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Kentucky, South Carolina

A way WAY WAY too early look at the College Football Playoff (CFP) picture

POWER 2

• SEC – Eight teams are unbeaten.
• Big Ten – anOSU, PSU, Oregon top the league.

SECOND 2

• Big 12 – Iowa State (4-0) had a week off before Arizona arrives. ConocoPhillips (aka Texa$ Tech) beat up Utah in SLC.
• ACC – A week after losing to Tulane, Duke ended NC State’s undefeated season. The honeymoon is over for Cal as the unexpected happened: the Bears got shutout by San Diego Maradona State 34-0.

AT LARGE

• PAC-2 – nope
• Indies – Notre Dame begins their exhibition season with a 56-30 W at home over Purdue.

PARTICIPATION TROPHY

• Memphis (4-0) beating Arkansas makes them the new darling.
• South Florida (3-1) beat a cupcake.
• UNLV (3-0) had a bye this week.
• Tulane (3-1) got beat by 5 touchdowns at Ole Miss but still have a shot.
• Navy (3-0) and North Texas (4-0) have entered the chat.

RANK ‘EM IF YOU GOT ‘EM

ROBERT REDFORD STARRED MOVIES

(Not including flicks like “A Bridge Too Far” which he had a smaller part.)

1. The Natural (1984) – The top 3 were tough to choose from but this gets the top spot because he carried the film.
2. Jeremiah Johnson (1972) – Same as above and a close second.
3. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969 – May be the most perfect buddy movie of all time.
4. The Sting (1973) – Redford, Paul Newman, and George Roy Hill reunited.
5. Little Fauss and Big Halsy (1970) – I dig gritty 70s movies like this one. Buddy road flick, motorcycles, smokin’ hot Lauren Hutton, and a soundtrack by Johnny Cash. What could go wrong?
6. Three Days of the Condor (1975) – If you like “The Night Agent” with a little Jack Ryan sprinkled in, you might like this one.
7. All the President’s Men (1976) – Deep Throat. No, not that one.
8. Brubaker (1980) – Prison drama, not the greatest movie but has some heart.
9. A Walk in the Woods (2015) – Some older viewers might appreciate this one. Based on a true story.
10. The Candidate (1972) – A candid depiction of modern election campaigns with candidates who got by on pearly white smiles, catch phrases, and fluff.
11. Sneakers (1992) – A fun thriller for a rainy Sunday afternoon.

The first college football playoff rankings will be announced Tuesday, Nov. 4.

LET’S GO BOWLING!

• Eric Morris has North Texas are two wins away from bowl eligibility. Home games with South Alabama and South Florida are next.
• Don’t look now, but Southern Cal is suddenly 4-0. Brace yourself for the hyperbole storm. Their best win to date is over Michigan State at home.

LET’S GO BLOWING!

1. Surprise, surprise, UMass (0-3) sucks ass. Previously to losing at low-scoring Iowa 47-7 last week, the Minutemen lost at home to Temple by 32 points and to FCS Bryant (2-2) who just handed the Campbell Fighting Camels their first win of the season.
2. Sam Houston (0-4) is one godawful team. Only one of their losses has come against a Power team.
3. UCLA has been outscored by Utah, UNLV, and New Mexico 108-43.
4. Mi-OH-mi, the RedHawks (0-3) are bad. Maybe they can manage to beat Lindenwood on Saturday.
5. Oregon State (0-4) is winless, but at least their opponents are a smidge more noteworthy: Cal, Fresno, Texas Tech, Oregon.

Krazy Kristi’s “SHUT UP!” of the Week goes to Texa$ Tech billionaires who are buying a championship. The new Evil Empire of college football resides in Lubbock, Texas of all places. Under normal times, it might be fun cheering for the perennial runner-up Red Raiders. But the way this team was built represents everything that is wrong with college football these days. The excellent Billy Bob Thornton TV series Landman is a fictionalized version of the oil industry. But the numbers mentioned on the show are all too real. Cody Campbell is the real life way-too-much-money version of the Jon Hamm character. And what’s $28M to a multi-billionaire?

HEISMAN HYPE

The monkeys with microphones have a new crush and it’s not John Mateer. It’s Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. He completed 21 of 23 for 267 yards and 5 TDs over what was thought to be a top tier Illinois defense.

1. Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) +800
2. John Mateer (Oklahoma) +900
3. Carson Beck (Miami-FL) +1300
4. Dante Moore (Oregon) +1300
5. Gunner Stockton (Georgia) +1400
6. Josh Hoover (TCU) +1400
7. Joey Aguilar (Tennessee) +1400
8. Marcel Reed (Texas A&M) +1500
9. Jeremiah Smith (anOhio State) +1500
10. Julian Sayin (anOhio State) +1600
11. Thomas Castellanos (Florida State) +2000
12. Garrett Nussmeier (LSU) +2000

*According to FanDuel.

R.I.P

Former App State head coach and 2025 Center Florida assistant coach Shawn Clark “unexpectedly” died Sunday at age 50. He was 40-24 with the Mountaineers from 2019 to 2024 and seemed to get prematurely fired following a 5-6 season last fall – his only losing campaign. That season included a cancelled home game with Liberty due to effects from Hurricane Helene. The tragic weather event caused severe damage in Western North Carolina and likely affected the team as well. Appy would lose their next two games but went 3-2 down the stretch. Clark’s cause of death is unknown at this time.

THE SICK REPORT

• Syracuse quarterback Steve Angeli suffered a season-ending Achilles injury against Clemson on Saturday.
• Michigan State linebacker Wayne Matthews sustained a neck injury during a tackle in the second quarter of Saturday’s game against Southern Cal. He had to be restrained, put on a backboard, and carted off the field, but should be okay. He recently tweeted: “Thank you for all your prayers and support! I’m doing a lot better now! I’ll be back in no time.”
• Southern Cal star wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane, who did not play in Saturday’s 45-31 victory over Michigan State, will remain sidelined indefinitely with what Trojans coach Lincoln Riley vaguely described as an “inconclusive” injury. Lane was listed as questionable on the official injury report Saturday, but he was on the sideline in street clothes for the entire game. You may recall his hot dog catch from a few weeks ago.

DRAMARAMA

• From the Get A Job Department: Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia has all lawyered up again to get a SEVENTH season of eligibility. However, he did cryptically tweet: “… this my last year” with a cap emoticon in front and a handshake emoticon at the end of his brief statement. Cap is slang for “fake” or “lie”, so who knows what this means?
• The ACC has fined Syracuse $25,000 and publicly reprimanded the school Monday for faking injuries in their 34-21 win over Clemson last weekend. The NCAA has instituted a new rule against such a thing but it calls for a flag only after the ball has been spotted. The Orangemen, however, have a workaround in that they instructed their players to drop before the ball was set. No video evidence is available but you can see the Syracuse players carrying out this pathetic ploy against Tennessee and it is clearly something that was taught. First off, the fine should be on the head coach. Secondly, we at RBR have long advocated for a rule that makes the “injured” individual sit out multiple plays on up to an entire series. Once again, the NCAA is short-sighted.
• Also in ACC news, the conference has agreed to a 9 league games, aligning with rest of the Power teams.

• Some dude with way too much money named Max Chira has donated $1.81 million to construct life-sized statues of Vinny Testaverde and Gino Torretta on the Miami campus. I hope Torretta’s has him with that terrified look on his face when Alabama put 11 men on the line of scrimmage in the 1992-1993 Sugar Bowl.
• College football is inching closer to eliminating the spring transfer window and leaving Jan. 2-11 as the lone portal window for FBS and FCS players. With the NCAA being the bureaucratic nightmare of an organization that it is, everything has to go through multiple committee approvals. But this one looks like it will happen. This past spring saw drastically less movement than past years – including Alabama who had nobody enter the portal – which helped predicate the move.

KOACHES KORNER

• Mike Gundy (21st season) is a dead man walking. With rumors that Kyle Whittingham (21st season) and Kirk Ferentz (27th season) might hang it up after this season, that leaves Troy Calhoun (19th season) at Air Force as the longest tenured coach at one school. After him is Dabo Swinney (17th full, 18th overall season) who took over Clemson as interim back in 2008.
• Wisconsin athletic director Chris McIntosh voiced his support for coach Luke Fickell following the dreadful showing against Maryland. In the past, this was the kiss of death. However, Fickell is under contract through the 2031 season. If Wisky decided to part ways with their head coach following the 2025 season, the Badgers would owe him more than $25 million. Last I checked, there are no oil fields in Wisconsin.
• Usually when a head coach such as DeShaun Foster is fired, someone becomes interim coach and the rest of the staff finishes off the campaign. Tim Skipper previously served as the Special Assistant to the Head Coach and has been named interim for the rest of the season. However, UCLA announced on Wednesday that defensive coordinator Ikaika Malloe is out as well.
• Florida RB coach Jabbar Juluke (Coach Name of the Week) was suspended for three games due to an “altercation” before UF-LSU game. Juluke already sat out the Miami-FL game, and will miss games vs. Texas and Texas A&M.
• Urban Meyer’s wife said nothing would make her happier than getting a ring on her birthday. So, he got her nothing.
• Fat F*** Phil Fulmer stepped on his scale and it read “To Be Continued.”

TEEVEE

GAME TIME: The Vanderbilt-Alabama clash on October 4th will kickoff at 2:30pm CT / 3:30 pm ET and will air on ABC.

THIS WEEK

Below is just a sampling highlight of games of interest this week. If you REALLY MUST know about the BIG Lindenwood @ Miami (OH) showdown, click here.

Thursday, September 25 – One Game

Army at East Carolina 6:30/7:30 ESPN

Friday, September 26 – Three Games

Florida State at Virginia 6pm/7pm ESPN
TCU at Arizona State 8pm/9pm FOX
Houston at Oregon State 9:30/10:30 ESPN

Saturday, September 27

SEC

Notre Dame at Arkansas 11am/noon ABC – GO HOGGIES!
Utah State at Vanderbilt 11:45/12:45 SECN
** LSU at Ole Miss 2:30/3:30 ABC
** Auburn at Texas A&M 2:30/3:30 ESPN
Tennessee at Mississippi State 3:15/4:15 SECN
UMass at Missouri 6:30/7:30 ESPNU
Kentucky at South Carolina 6:45/7:45 SECN

National

Southern Cal at Illinois 11am/Noon FOX
Ohio State at Washington 2:30/3:30 CBS
Indiana at Iowa 2:30/3:30 Peacock
** Oregon at Penn State 6:30/7:30 NBC

Now I lie in bed and think of her. Sometimes I even weep. Then I dream of her, behind the wall of sleep

BYU at Colorado 9:15/10:15 ESPN

#ALABAMA

• Everyone involved with the AP has been under major scrutiny this fall for their bizarre/lazy/biased selections – and rightfully so. The latest victim is the Crimson Tide who fell three spots in the survey for what must have been an awful performance of not playing this past weekend. The suspected motivation is a transitive one from Maryland defeating Wisconsin in Madison by roughly the same score Alabama did in Tuscaloosa. Now at No. 17, might this Bama team use this “diss” as a reason to get angry and get better? Or will they just sulk?
• Starting nose Tim Keenan (ankle) and RB Jam Miller (collarbone) are set to play versus Georgia on Saturday. Everybody heals differently, so it is almost impossible to know how well they are.
• It is hard to understand why nobody is talking about the absence of Jah-Marien Latham who has not played since being helped off the field in the fourth quarter of Week 1 against Florida State. TE Danny Lewis has also been out.

GAME 4: Saturday, September 27, 2025
Alabama Crimson Tide (2-1) at Georgia Bulldogs (3-0)
Athens, GA ~ 6:30/7:30 ABC

• Editorial: TBH, I am not feeling good about this one. Wisky losing at home to Maryland makes me feel like Bama should have put up another 70-burger on the Badgers. Lose this one and it may be a long season for the Tide.
• Coach: Kirby Smart is the midst of his tenth season in Athens. He is 108–19 overall and 63–11 in the SEC.
• UGA 2024: The Bulldogs went 11-3 last season with losses to Alabama and Ole Miss. They beat Texas in the SECCG and then got dominated by Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl–CFP Quarterfinal.
• UGA 2025: Marshall W 45–7 and Austin Peay W 28–6, both at home. W 44–41 (OT) over Tennessee on the road.
• Series: Alabama leads the all-time series 44–26–4. Smart is 6-1 against the Tide.
• Black Out! UGA is tempting fate with another black jersey game. That move did not go so well the last time around.
• Weather: Athens is expecting partly cloudy skies with a high near 80° and temperatures dropping to the 60s following sunset.
• TV Announcers: Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit, and Holly Rowe.
• Radio: Chris Stewart, Tyler Watts, and Corey Reamer on Alabama Radio.
• Vegas: The FanDuel point spread has Alabama as a 2.5 point underdog as of post. The Over/Under is at 52.5.