This Date in College Football History

Nov. 14, 1992: After losing 14 consecutive games in the series, Iowa State stuns No. 7 Nebraska with a 19-10 upset in Ames. Cyclone coach Jim Walden allows third-string quarterback Marv Seiler to start in the senior's last home game. Seiler, coming into the game with only 31 yards rushing, dashes 78 yards setting up fullback Chris Ulrich for a two-yard touchdown run. Kicker Ty Stewart adds four field goals.

Credit: The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame

CFI: THE BIG 12 NORTH REPORT

BY BROCK MURPHY
BIG 12 INSIDER

1) Last weekend, Missouri had its hands full in the first half of its game with Kansas State in the Little Apple, taking the locker room with just a 21-18 lead. In fact, with just two minutes left in the game, Mizzou’s offense had outgained that of KSU by a single yard (407 to 406). The difference was efficiency. The Tigers were twice as efficient at turning real estate gained into paydirt by producing six offensive TD’s to KSU’s three. Chase Daniel was the efficiency trigger for Mizzou – completing 28 of 41 passes for 284 yards and 4 TD’s (0 INT’s). Tiger receiver Jeremy Maclin snagged nine of Daniel’s tosses for 143 yards and two scores. MU’s Tony Temple kept things honest offensively with his 16 carries for 75 yards and 2 TD’s. An obvious area of concern for the Tigers is pass defense. Ranked 96th, nationally, they entered the KSU game giving up 259 yards per game. KSU made that stat honest by gaining 256 yards and picking up two scores through the air. The Wildcats’ Josh Freeman was ranked 62nd in the nation in pass efficiency (14 TD’s/10 INT’s). Next up? Kansas’s Todd Reesing, who, though nursing a gimpy ankle, has thrown 30 TD’s and only 4 INT’s this season.

2) Kansas made it certain that both teams in next weekend’s battle in Arrowhead Stadium will be in the top 5 with an impressive 45-7 over Iowa State. Clearly bothered by a sore ankle, QB Todd Reesing led the Jayhawk charge with 4 TD’s and 253 yards after completing 21 of 26 passes. Five incompletions and no interceptions… not bad. Keeping things honest, tailbacks Jake Sharp and Brandon McAnderson had 24 combined carries for 153 yards. The Jayhawk defense dominated both sides of the ball – holding ISU to two yards per carry (26-52) while limiting the Cyclone passing attack to less-than 8 yards per catch (24-182). They also intercepted a pass while keeping ISU from tossing a scoring pass. KU’s Aqib Talib could be the nation’s top cornerback but you can bet Missouri’s athletic receivers, Jeremy Maclin and William Franklin noticed Talib’s vulnerability to a combination route, which ISU’s Marquis Hamilton threw on him early in the game for a 46-yard gain.

3) Kansas State lost to Mizzou but put in a good offensive effort in the process. Josh Freeman threw for 256 yards and two TD’s, though the yardage was a hair under 10 yards per completion and he also threw an interception. On the ground, senior James Johnson had his best outing of the year with 172 yards, including a rumbling 66-yard scamper near the end of the 1st-quarter. The Wildcats should be proud of the 406 yards they posted against the Tiger defense but have to be concerned about their three turnovers, including two fumbles. KSU ends the season visiting Fresno State, a team whose defense has produced only 10 turnovers while allowing nearly 200 rushing yards per game.

4) Iowa State ended its season with the 45-7 loss in Lawrence. Head Coach Gene Chizik’s first season was not quite what Cyclone fans had in mind. Having finished 4-8 in 2006, ISU ended 2007 with a worse record (3-9). With the former defensive coordinator and defensive-back coach from Texas at the helm, one expected the Cyclone defense to show great strides against the pass. Numbers did improve for this year’s unit, but not by much. The 2006 Cyclones were the most considerate in the nation to other team’s passers, having allowed a 72.46% completion rate. The 2007 model barely reduced that number (to 69.7%). This year’s defense also bested the 2006 team’s TD/INT ratio – 24/10 (’07) to 26/6 (’06). One area which saw clear improvement under Chizik was rush defense, where this year’s team finished 38th (129 ypg) while last year’s unit was ranked 89th (154 ypg).

5) Nebraska will play for bowl-eligibility against Colorado the day after Thanksgiving but they will also likely be playing their last game for Head Coach Bill Callahan. Seven Husker opponents have run for 195 yards or more this year, including four opponents who have topped the 300-yard mark. As a result, only four teams in the nation (Louisiana-Lafayette, Army, North Texas and UAB) have given up more yards on the ground (228 ypg) than the Black Shirts. The Black Shirts have only produced 11 turnovers this year (3 fumbles, 8 INT’s) while Nebraska’s offense has given up 25 turnovers (11 fumbles, 14 INT’s), which is why Big Red is tied for 114th in the nation in turnover margin. Even with Joe Ganz at the helm, the Huskers’ passing attack has been productive and, in fact, deep-threat Maurice Purify has two straight 100-yard games. Remember, heading into this week’s game against CU, Nebraska has come off of the opposite ends of 70-point games (39-76 at KU; 73-31 vs. KSU), but Joe Ganz now has two games’ worth of experience behind him and nearly two weeks to prepare for this season’s finale. Nebraska has won the last two games against Colorado, besting the Buffaloes 37-14 in Lincoln last year and 30-10 in 2005 in Boulder.

6) Colorado lost to Iowa State two weeks ago to put them in a position where both they and Nebraska will be playing for Bowl Eligibility this Friday. The Buffs don’t do anything particularly well but neither are they among the nation’s worst in any category. Quarterback Cody Hawkins has a shaky TD/INT ratio of 17/15 this year but his 2,452 passing yards this season is positively prolific compared to the 1,422 yards the team posted in 2006. CU’s rushing defense has historically been strong and that remains the case this year (128 ypg [34th, nationally]) and its pass defense is more efficient than last year’s model (58% completion rate; 12 INT’s and 20 TD’s vs. 67% 12/22 in ‘06).

Photo Credit: Mizzou Media Relations

CFI: THE BIG 12 NORTH REPORT

BY BROCK MURPHY
BIG 12 INSIDER

NORTH DIVISION:

1) Nebraska: Another 70-point game for Nebraska. Fortunately, the ‘Huskers were on the correct side of this scoreboard. Two weeks ago, Nebraska gave up 76 points to Kansas – the most allowed in school history. On the wings of that debacle, a five-game losing-streak and virtual certainty that a coaching change will meet the team at the end of the year, few outside of Lincoln expected the Big Red to rebound from the KU humiliation and honor its color-based nickname on Saturday while hosting Kansas State. Yet, a diabolically efficient performance by Joe Ganz (Sam Keller’s backup) helped return pride to the entire state by leading Nebraska to a 73-31 win over the Wildcats. Just how good was Ganz? He completed 75 percent of his 40 passes (30 completions) for 510 yds (17 ypc) and seven touchdowns without throwing a single pick. Receivers Frantz Hardy and Todd Peterson were on the receiving end of five of the Ganz’s scoring tosses. All three of Hardy’s receptions (for 83 yds) were touchdowns while two of Peterson’s four catches (for 85 yds) stopped in the endzone. Nebraska’s 702 yards of total offense was astounding but it is unlikely to save Coach Bill Callahan’s job.

2) Kansas took to Stillwater last Saturday to protect its #4-ranking and in pursuit of a sweep of its Southern Division opponents. Mission accomplished. Playing mistake-free football, the Jayhawks relied on Todd Reesing, who went 27 of 40 (68percent) for 308 yards and 3 touchdowns as well as big Brandon McAnderson (6-0, 235; Sr), who pounded-out 142 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Of course, KU could not have pulled out the win without a solid game from its defense, which had more than its handful with the Cowboys’ stable of athletes on offense. Last year, Adarius Bowman torched the defense with 13 catches, 300 yards and four scores. This year, All-American CB Aqib Talib of Kansas had improved and experienced talent to help him in the backfield and, together, the unit held Bowman to 22 yards on four receptions before leaving the game after Talib gave him a hard hit on the knee while stoning a quick-screen for a loss. Kansas rose to #3 in the BCS standings this week but has continued to rank one spot below Oklahoma in the AP Rankings (OU, 3rd; KU, 4th).

3) Missouri wore its #6 ranking well Saturday at home with a 40-26 win over the visiting Aggies of Texas A&M. Having completed more than 3/4th’s of his passes (27 of 35) for 352 yards and three scores (No INTs), Chase Daniel continued his outstanding season and has demanded mention in the same sentence as that trophy with the leather-helmeted guy. Tiger Tony Temple provided offensive balance with 141 yards on the ground and a score. The Tigers’ early lead influenced A&M quarterback Stephen McGee to turn to the air… where he faired pretty well, actually. McGee completed 64 yards of his passes (18 of 28) for 247 yards and two touchdowns. Efficient, but not productive enough to keep up with the insanely dangerous Mizzou offense. The Tigers’ entered the game 25th in the nation in rushing defense which created an interesting match-up against the Aggies’ 11th-ranked ground game. Tigers won – holding Michael Goodson, Jovorskie Lane and McGee to a combined 39 carries for 133 yards and only one TD.

4) Colorado’s potential for schizophrenia is evidently boundless. The same team which dropped then-#3 Oklahoma and Texas Tech, gave Iowa State only its third-win of this, Head Coach Gene Chizik’s inaugural season. What a curious ride for the Cyclones. With losses posted against Kent State and Northern Iowa, their three wins were against Iowa (15-13), last weekend’s win against Kansas State (31-20) and, now, Colorado. Much of ISU’s success should be offered to Alexander Robinson (5-10, 181), who saw his first feature assignment three weeks ago against Mizzou (21-149, 1 TD) and followed it with a two-touchdown effort last weekend against Kansas State. Against Colorado? Robinson racked up 127 yards and two scores. With pressure taken off of the passing game, the Cyclones’ outstanding receiver, Todd Blythe, was able to draw blood, too (4 rec., 124 yds, 2 TDs).

5) Kansas State has endured an up and down 5-5 season in 2007. With impressive wins over Texas (41-21) and Colorado (47-10), they have now dropped two-in-a-row, including surrendering Iowa State’s first conference win and receiving last weekend’s 42-point drubbing by Nebraska (73-31). The Wildcats have struggled containing opponents’ passing games (93rd; 251 ypg) and could be more productive on the ground (86th; 132 ypg). However, their passing game has flourished (16th; 291 ypg) this season. The problem is that Jordy Nelson is a senior who will take 46 percent of KSU’s passing yards and nine of its 17 touchdown catches with him when he graduates.

6) Colorado, which earned only two wins last season, hoped to become bowl-eligible this past weekend. As pointed out above, Iowa State ruined that plan. Now, the Buffs must play for that honor against their arch-enemy, Nebraska, the Friday after Thanksgiving. CU ranks 99th in both turnover margin and passing-efficiency (55%, 15 INT’s, 17 TD’s). Of course, as much as Colorado would like to improve on the passing stats, the fact is they are a marked improvement over last year’s numbers (47%, 8 INT’s and 7 TD’s). Colorado managed no more than 1,422 passing yards last season. With one game left to play in 2007, sophomore Cody Hawkins has already thrown more than 1,000 yards further.

Photo Credit: Mizzou Media Relations

Iowa State is Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week

DALLAS (FWAA) - With their 15-13 win over Iowa, the Iowa State Cyclones (1-2) are the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week for games of the weekend of Sept. 15.
Senior Bret Culbertson tied a school record with five field goals, including the game-winner from 28 yards with one second left to provide the margin of victory.

"This win is for the Iowa State fans and our players," Iowa State head coach Gene Chizik said after his first career win. "I am real excited for all of the players on this team. This team took a lot of criticism the last couple of games and they believed in each other today."

The win was the seventh over in-state rival Iowa in the last ten years for the Cyclones.

Other Tostitos Fiesta Bowl Bowl National Team of the Week nominees for the weekend of Sept. 15 included:

· Duke (1-2): Thaddeus Lewis completed 19 of 23 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns as the Blue Devils ended the nation's longest losing streak at 22 with a 20-14 win at Northwestern.

· Kentucky (3-0): Andre Woodson threw a 57- yard touchdown pass to Steve Johnson with 28 seconds left as the Wildcats shocked Louisville, 40- 34, giving them their first victory over a top 10 team in three decades.

· Utah (1-2): Tommy Grady threw three touchdowns passes and Darrell Mack ran for 107 yards as the Utes romped past UCLA, 44-6.

The FWAA has named a national team of the week since the 2002 season. This is the third season that the award has been sponsored by the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.