Tag: SMU Mustangs

Where is Penn State in the AP Top 25 after loss to Illinois?

Penn State got hammered by the AP Top 25 voters after a loss to Illinois in Week 8

Penn State’s catastrophic loss to Illinois in a marathon nine-overtime contest in Week 8 saw the Nittany Lions take a significant stumble in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll. Voters in the Associated Press Top 25 were ready to hammer Penn State as well in this week’s updated AP poll.

Penn State fell to No. 20 in this week’s AP Top 25, falling 13 spots from last week in the process from No. 7. Penn State is now actually ranked lower than the Auburn Tigers, whom Penn State defeated earlier in the season. Auburn moved up from No. 19 to No. 18 this week.

Penn State is still one of five Big Ten teams ranked in the AP Top 25 this week. No. 5 Ohio State and No. 6 Michigan stayed where they were a week ago. No. 8 Michigan State moved up one spot after Penn State and Oklahoma State each lost this weekend. And No. 9 Iowa is back into the top 10 after being on a bye week.

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Georgia remains on top of the AP Top 25 with all 63 first-place votes heading their way. Cincinnati is still ahead of one-loss Alabama for the second spot right behind the Bulldogs. Alabama moved up to No. 3 after swapping rankings with Oklahoma this week.

NEXT: Full AP Top 25 following Week 8

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Penn State tumbles in USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll

Where is Penn State ranked in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after an epic overtime loss to Illinois?

After dropping a nine-overtime marathon at home to lowly Illinois, Penn State was due to take a major tumble in the latest polls on Sunday. And that’s exactly what happened for the Nittany Lions following Week 8 of college football action.

Penn State fell 10 spots down to No. 17 in this week’s USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll, which was updated Sunday afternoon less than 24 hours after a major disappointment in front of a homecoming crowd. But Penn State’s fall in the polls may have been given a slight pillow considering a number of other losses taken by ranked teams around the country.

Coastal Carolina and NC State each losing gave Penn State a slight cushion underneath them, as did the loss by Clemson. Coastal Carolina and NC State each remained in the top 25, although Clemson fell out after their road loss at Pitt. The Panthers moved up four spots in the coaches poll, but only up to No. 19 to remain two spots behind Penn State despite a better record of 6-1.

Penn State took the biggest tumble in this week’s coaches poll by falling nine spots after a loss to Illinois. No. 15 Oklahoma State also took a good fall by dropping six spots after a loss to Iowa State (up to No. 23 after being unranked). Coastal Carolina fell eight spots and NC State fell seven after losses to Appalachian State and Miami, respectively.

Georgia remains the unanimous No. 1 team in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after receiving all 64 first-place votes to stay ahead of No. 2 Cincinnati. But No. 3 Alabama has moved ahead of No. 4 Oklahoma, who fell two spots after having to claw back on the road against Kansas. No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Michigan, and No. 7 Michigan State remain in their spots from a week ago heading into a massive weekend of Big Ten football. Penn State is now left in the rearview mirror, at least for now, in the Big Ten East race.

No. 10 Iowa moved up one spot in its bye week to give the Big Ten four top 10 teams after Penn State fell out.

NEXT: The full USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll After Week 8

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Penn State maintains position in AP Top 25 after Week 7

What Big Ten team passed Penn State in the updated AP Top 25 after an off week?

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An idle week for Penn State saw no movement for the Nittany Lions in this week’s AP Top 25 poll, which was updated Sunday afternoon. The Nittany Lions remain at No. 7 in this week’s updated AP Top 25, although there was some notable movement around them that may raise some eyebrows.

The Michigan Wolverines moved up two posts in this week’s AP Top 25, leaping from one spot behind Penn State to one spot in front of Penn State in this week’s AP Top 25. The logic for such a move considering both teams were on a bye week likely falls on the result of the Iowa Hawkeyes being dumped at home by Purdue in Week 7. A week after Iowa edged Penn State, the Hawkeyes lost by 17 at home to Purdue, thus taking some of the defense to Penn State losing a hard-fought game in the same stadium.

The loss by Iowa dropped the Hawkeyes out of the top 10 of the AP Top 25 (as well as the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll), leaving the Big Ten with four teams in this week’s top 10 of the AP poll. No. 7 Penn State is accompanied by No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Michigan, and No. 9 Michigan State. Iowa fell from No. 2 down to No. 11 this week. Purdue also crept into the top 25 of the AP poll this week, rounding out this week’s poll at No. 25 after their big win at Iowa.

Purdue is one of five new teams in this week’s ranking. Auburn returned to the AP Top 25 at No. 19 this week. No. 20 Baylor, No. 23 Pittsburgh, and No. 24 UTSA also moved into the top 25 this week.

Top-ranked Georgia remained the top team in this week’s ranking with all 63 first-place votes, but Iowa’s loss left an opening for Cincinnati to climb to No. 2 in the AP top 25. The Bearcats stayed ahead of No. 3 Oklahoma and No. 4 Alabama, with all moving up one spot this week.

NEXT: The full AP Top 25 following Week 7

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Penn State passed by division rival in updated USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll

Where is Penn State in the latest USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after Week 7?

Penn State did not move up or move down in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll this week while on a bye week, but the Nittany Lions did get passed by one of its division rivals while sitting at home. Michigan State moved up two spots following a close victory over Indiana in week 7, as the Spartans moved up to No. 7 in this week’s coaches poll.

Penn State remained No. 8, the same ranking they held the previous week after suffering its first loss of the season at Iowa in Week 6. Iowa, after getting humiliated at home by Purdue, actually fell behind the Nittany Lions after tumbling from No. 2 down to No. 11 this week.

The Big Ten still has four teams ranked in the top 10 of the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll with Penn State coming in behind No. 5 Ohio State, No. 6 Michigan, and No. 7 Michigan State.

Georgia secured all 65 first-place votes in this week’s coaches poll to lock down the No. 1 overall ranking for a second straight week. But Cincinnati’s path to its highest ranking in the coaches ranking was blocked by a resurgent Oklahoma. Oklahoma moved up one spot to No. 2 to replace Iowa behind the Bulldogs, and Cincinnati moved up to No. 3. No. 4 Alabama, Ohio State, and Michigan each moved up one spot and the Spartans moved up two. No. 9 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Oregon round out the top 10 this week.

Former Penn State opponent Auburn popped back up into the top 25 of the coaches poll this week following their win over Arkansas, which dropped the Razorbacks out of the top 25 as their losing skid hits three games after a fun start to the season. Pittsburgh also surged into the rankings this week at No. 23, moving just ahead of No. 24 Clemson to setup a top 25 matchup between the Panthers and Tigers coming up.

Here is the full look at the full coaches poll after this week’s slate of games.

Full USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll:

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 Georgia 6-0 1,624 (64) –
2 Oklahoma 7-0 1,508 +1
3 Cincinnati 6-0 1,497 +1
4 Alabama 6-1 1,446 +1
5 Ohio State 5-1 1,305 +1
6 Michigan 6-0 1,299 +1
7 Michigan State 7-0 1,158 +2
8 Penn State 5-1 1,134 –
9 Oklahoma State 6-0 1,093 +3
10 Oregon 5-1 1,048 –
11 Iowa 6-1 1,031 -9
12 Ole Miss 5-1 826 +2
13 Notre Dame 5-1 816 –
14 Kentucky 6-1 763 -3
15 Wake Forest 6-0 696 +1
16 Coastal Carolina 6-0 675 -1
17 Texas A&M 5-2 580 +1
18 NC State 5-1 528 +3
19 SMU 6-0 399 +4
20 Baylor 6-1 369 +7
21 San Diego State 6-0 334 +3
22 Auburn 5-2 315 +4
23 Pittsburgh 5-1 192 +6
24 Clemson 4-2 146 +1
25 UT-San Antonio 7-0 96 +5

Dropped from the rankings:

No. 17 Florida; No. 19 Arkansas; No. 20 Brigham Young; No. 22 Arizona State

Others receiving votes:

Iowa State 38; Utah 35; Arkansas 31; Florida 23; Brigham Young 23; Air Force 20; UL Lafayette 18; Arizona State 18; Purdue 16; Houston 11; Virginia 6; Texas 4; Louisiana State 2; Fresno State 1.

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OU QB challenge: Former college HC says ‘Go with the guy that got you to the dance’

Former Hawaii and SMU head coach June Jones shared his thoughts on what he’d do with the Oklahoma Sooners QB situation vs. TCU this week.

Right now, there isn’t a hotly debated topic in college football than what the Oklahoma Sooners should do at the quarterback position. It’s a unique spot for Lincoln Riley and the OU coaching staff.

Between Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams, the Sooners have two good options at the most important position in football. Say what you want about Spencer Rattler. He’s played some really good football for the Sooners. Aside from the Kansas State game, it has been a tough year for Rattler.

But recency bias shouldn’t erase everything he did for the Sooners last year to help them win the Big 12 Championship and the Cotton Bowl over Florida.

Williams was fantastic last week and looked to be the real deal. But that doesn’t make Riley’s decision easy. Williams doesn’t have the experience Rattler offers.

He has two guys capable of leading this team and two guys with a lot of talent. Though a report from earlier in the week indicated Williams was getting a majority of the first-team reps, there’s no telling what happened in practice the rest of the week.

Riley has been reluctant to name a starting quarterback for this week, but if the rest of the week played out like the report from OU Daily, it looks as though it’ll be the Williams show.

Former SMU and Hawaii head coach June Jones joined me on the “Locked On Sooners” podcast to promote his “Run and Shoot” coaching seminar on CoachTube.com. In the workshop, Jones and former head coach Mouse Davis take you through the ins and outs of the “run and shoot,” an offense predicated on motion and throwing the football. It’s the offense that helped Timmy Chang become the NCAA all-time leading passer at one point.

Coach Jones knows a thing or two about the offensive side of the ball and the quarterback position and offered his thoughts on what he’d do this week with Rattler and Williams.

I always feel you go back to the guy that got you to the dance. I would start (Spencer Rattler). I’ve watched him. He makes some unreal plays. He can pass the ball. I think you always go back to him. And if you really think the young kid behind him is the guy then he’s got to prove it again if Rattler doesn’t do the job, then he takes over the team at that point. But right now, for me, I’d go back to the starting quarterback and let the young kid sit there and watch him. – Jones

Rattler has played a lot of good football for the Sooners and has been a big part of Oklahoma’s nation-leading 14-game winning streak dating to last season. He hasn’t looked comfortable for much of this season, but that doesn’t mean he’s a bad quarterback or incapable of turning it around.

Riley will do what he thinks is best for the Oklahoma Sooners in Saturday night’s matchup with the TCU Horned Frogs. Whether Rattler or Williams is at quarterback, the Sooners will have a good player running the show.

3 Offensive Keys to the game for the Oklahoma Sooners vs. TCU

As the Oklahoma Sooners get ready to play the TCU Horned Frogs, here are three keys for the offensive side of the ball.

On Saturday night, Oklahoma pushes forward and looks to take one step closer to an undefeated regular season. This week’s opponent will be the TCU Horned Frogs led by Gary Patterson. Patterson’s team is far from a heavyweight but they aren’t pushovers either. They come into the game with a record of 3-2 with losses to Texas and their big rival in SMU.

Defensively, they do not resemble the TCU defenses of the past. For years, TCU was a stingy, stingy defense that had impactful players at every level. While the talent isn’t bad, they lack the edge of TCU defenses from the past.

So, how does Oklahoma attack them when the Sooners have the ball? Let’s take a look at three offensive keys to put Oklahoma in a spot to come out victorious Saturday night.

Protect the Ball

Yes, it’s quite obvious. However, there is still uncertainty about who will be taking the snaps as starting quarterback. There has been no official word from Lincoln Riley about his decision but the point stands for either Spencer Rattler or Caleb Williams. Rattler was benched for his turnovers against Texas. A fumble on a scramble sealed his fate for that game and opened the door for Caleb Williams.

However, Williams has had some issues securing shotgun snaps. TCU quarterback Max Duggan is a veteran player and has the running and throwing ability to make Oklahoma pay if they give them extra possessions.

The Oklahoma Sooners are the more talented team. They can’t afford to let a team like TCU hand around by giving them good field position off of turnovers. Whoever the quarterback is the Saturday night has to protect the football.

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Where did Penn State fall in updated AP Top 25 after Week 6?

Where is Penn State in the AP Top 25 after the loss to Iowa in Week 6?

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As expected, Penn State was due to drop a few spots in the new AP Top 25 that was released Sunday after losing on the road to Iowa. But what was unknown was just how much of a drop Penn State could take in a week that saw the Nittany Lions lose a close one on the road while playing the majority of the game with a backup quarterback. It turns out, three spots.

Penn State fell to No. 7 in the new AP Top2 5 that was released Sunday afternoon. Penn State had previously been ranked No. 4 in last week’s AP Top 25. While Penn State did fall behind a rising Ohio State in the AP poll, the Nittany Lions did manage to stay ranked ahead of the Michigan Wolverines amid the reshuffling of the top 10.

Georgia took full control of the first-place ballots this week, receiving all 62 after their road win at Auburn was paired with Alabama’s upset loss Saturday night at Texas A&M. The Crimson Tide fell to No. 5 in the AP poll this week. Iowa moved up to No. 2, with Cincinnati moving up to No. 3 and Oklahoma taking No. 4 this week.

Like in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll, Michigan State has moved into the top 10 of the AP Poll to give the Big Ten half of this week’s top 10 teams (Iowa, Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State.

NEXT: See the full AP Top 25 following Week 6

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Where did Penn State drop in USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after Week 6?

Where is Penn State ranked in the new USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after the loss to Iowa?

As expected following a tough loss on the road this weekend, Penn State fell back a few spots in the updated USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll. The good news is Penn State is still in the top 10 amid some reshuffling of the deck in the poll this week.

Penn State fell from No. 4 down to No. 8 in the fresh coaches poll on Sunday. Penn State fell behind Big Ten East foes Ohio State (No. 6) and Michigan (No. 7) as both the Buckeyes and Wolverines moved up one spot to take advantage of Penn State’s first stumble of the season. Iowa moved up to No. 2 following their victory over the Nittany Lions, taking full advantage of a surprising loss Saturday night by Alabama.

The Crimson Tide fell from the top of the coaches poll down to No. 5 after suffering a last-second loss at Texas A&M on Saturday night. Georgia took full control of the top spot in the coaches poll this week with 64 first-place votes. There was one first-place vote from the coaches for the Hawkeyes.

Joining the Hawkeyes, Buckeyes, Wolverines and Nittany Lions inside the top 10 this week is Michigan State. The undefeated Spartans moved into the top 10 by being bumped up two spots this week. Michigan State lept over Oregon, who was idle this week and fell to No. 10. Michigan State also moved into the top 10 after BYU fell out due to a loss at home to Boise State.

A former Penn State opponent, Auburn, fell out of the top 25 this week with their home loss to top-ranked Georgia.

Here is a look at the complete USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll after Week 6.

Full USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll:

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 Georgia 6-0 1,624 (64) +1
2 Iowa 6-0 1,537 (1) +1
3 Oklahoma 6-0 1,452 +2
4 Cincinnati 5-0 1,418 +2
5 Alabama 5-1 1,363 -4
6 Ohio State 5-1 1,254 +1
7 Michigan 6-0 1,237 +1
8 Penn State 5-1 1,124 -4
9 Michigan State 6-0 1,064 +2
10 Oregon 4-1 1,004 +1
11 Kentucky 6-0 994 +3
12 Oklahoma State 5-0 910 –
13 Notre Dame 5-1 817 –
14 Ole Miss 4-1 741 +3
15 Coastal Carolina 6-0 708 –
16 Wake Forest 6-0 580 +4
17 Florida 4-2 543 +1
18 Texas A&M 4-2 396 +8
19 Arkansas 4-2 386 -3
20 BYU 5-1 342 -10
21 NC State 4-1 321 +1
22 Arizona State 5-1 294 +3
23 SMU 6-0 269 +1
24 San Diego State 5-0 156 +3
25 Clemson 3-2 155 -4

Dropped from the rankings:

No. 19 Auburn; No. 23 Texas.

Others receiving votes:

Auburn 98; Baylor 91; Texas 74; Pittsburgh 36; Texas-San Antonio 30; Mississippi State 18; Iowa State 18; Appalachian State 18; Boston College 11; Air Force 9; Tennessee 8; Liberty 8; Nevada 7; UL Lafayette 3; Houston 3; Fresno State 3; UCLA 1.

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Oklahoma State, Texas, Baylor make Big jump in week 4 Big 12 Power Rankings

The Oklahoma State, Cowboys, Baylor Bears, and the Texas Longhorns rise in this week’s Big 12 power rankings after emphatic wins to start conference play.

What a week it was around the Big 12 as two teams lost their non-conference matchups. There was a huge blowout and three teams won to remain undefeated.

Baylor and Iowa State played the game of the week, a thrilling affair that saw Iowa State rally from down 12 in the final quarter and a half to give themselves a chance to tie with a two-point conversion at the end. The pressure got to Cyclones’ quarterback Brock Purdy who had to heave the ball into the end zone with the hopes a player could make a play. It would be for not as the Baylor Bears pulled off an early upset in Big 12 play.

Texas looks like they have their answer at quarterback and Spencer Sanders had a fantastic game to keep Oklahoma State undefeated.

Let’s take a look at how the conference stacks up in this week’s Big 12 power rankings.

SMU topples Louisiana Tech on Tanner Mordecai’s Hail Mary as time runs out

Tanner Mordecai threw 5 TD passes, the last on a Hail Mary to win the game for SMU as time ran out

All that separated Tanner Mordecai and SMU from a victory Saturday was 33 yards and the clock below 10 seconds against Louisiana Tech.

The Mustangs trailed 37-33 at Mordecai readied to take the snap with 6 seconds to go in the American Conference contest.

No problem.

Watch as Mordecai unloads and the deflection finds Reggie Roberson in the end zone for the winning score as time runs out.

The 39-37 victory was achieved as Mordecai went 36-for-48 with 395 passing yards and 5 touchdown passes.

If the name Tanner Mordecai sounds familiar, it is because the quarterback spent three seasons at Oklahoma — he saw action in 10 games — before transferring to SMU.

SMU celebrated its stunning victory.