A Perfect Five-for-Five (plus a bonus)

Watched two great games, with a nice nap in between.  Missouri's great come-from-behind victory over Texas A & M was exciting, but not nearly as much as the Stanford-USC triple-overtime contest.  Were it not for the label of "This Year's Game of the Century", these two games--plus Clemson's unexpected shellacking at the hands of Georgia Tech--kind of make next week's LSU-Alabama game fade into obscurity.  Oh yeah, Air Force plays Army next week.  I'll be on the course at the Palencia Country Club in St. Augustine, raising money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for the fourth consecutive year, so will miss most of the action on Saturday.  Here's how Week #9 looked from SoCal.
Union 38, RPI 28.  QB Drew Connolly throws for five TDs, including one each to Union's own "Gallo Brothers"--Ernest (a.k.a. Connor) and Julio (a.k.a. Justin). Also, the 2nd human being I've ever heard of with the name "Jimmer" (Bennett), who averaged 28.5 yds. per carry in a Schenectady air show worthy of more than just a podcast. Even RPI's Mike Hermann completed 23 of 33, for 349 yds. Apparently, no defense whatsoever was played. Who  cares?

Air Force 42, New Mexico 0.  UNM should be proud of holding "The Academy" to 42 points, well below their 47.2 pts./game points-against average for the season.  In fact, Falcon RB Mike DeWitt was held to 64 yds. on 15 carries, a measely 4+ yds./carry.  Too bad for the Lobos that his efforts resulted in four TDs.  Now THAT'S military efficiency!  Falcon defense rose to the occasion, notching the first score of the game on a fumble recovery, and sacking and picking off QB B. R. Holbrook twice each.


Army 55, Fordham 0.  Game only merits a mention in the Championship Subdivision category.  It takes only 55 yds. of actual running yardage for Cadets to score six TDs.  They add two more scores, one on a fumble recovery and one by air.  Fordham manages only 86 yds. of total offense.

Notre Dame 56, Navy 14.  Irish put on a running clinic for Middies, scoring seven--count 'em, SEVEN--times on the ground, while holding Navy under 200 yds.  Rumor has it that Touchdown Jesus tears a UCL giving the TD sign, and is scheduled for Tommy John surgery on Tuesday.

Louisiana Tech 38, San Jose State 28.  Hey, same as the Union-RPI score!  Spartans' QB Matt Faulkner was 33-for-49 and three TDs.  Unfortunately, he was intercepted four times.  State's running game was anemic, while LA-Tech had offensive balance spread over 500+ yds. of total offense.

South Portland 33, Sanford 13.  Ah, the joy of two-way football!  Riots' Logan Gaddar catches two TD passes and picks off Redskin QB Cody Mooney three times en route to a first-round playoff win.  Coach Steve Stinson has the day's best "teachable moment" when he describes his team's play as having a "deflating effect", then follows up by defining his term with, "I think it really took the air out of them."  And people wonder where I got my education...

Not to be outdone, The Summit Mountain Lions and Lady Mountain Lions both racked up volleyball victories of Mt. San Jacinto Continuation (Palm Springs).  This week the game was on Tuesday, not Thursday, and the bus left during SECOND period, not third.  Big road trip, fifteen miles.  Staff has large discussion at faculty meeting about eligibility requirements, sticking point being exactly how many classes can a "student-athlete" be failing before he/she is benched.