Week 15: Gameday Experience, Season Awards, Army-Navy

 

Week 15: Gameday Experience, Season Awards, Army-Navy

It's bowl season! Let's look back at a crazy conference championship weekend, look at Army-Navy, and recap the season. Starting out with a bit of a different section, feel free to jump down to the football if you would like. Also, at the end I will share how the schedule will look going forward and ask for suggestions on things you want to see more of, whether you would enjoy other outlets and content, and any thoughts you may have.

Gameday Experience

Even though I am currently enrolled at the University of Michigan for my MBA, I had to cheer for my Boilermakers this past Saturday. It was awesome to be in Lucas Oil for the game and both teams played well. These two teams were the ones I watched the most of this year, so seeing how they squared off was a ton of fun. Indianapolis was full of Gold and Black and Maize and Blue faithful; feeling the buzz in the air before a big game is the pinnacle of live sports. Getting to see so many awesome friends and family though, was the highlight. Ever Grateful, Ever True and Hail to the Victors.



(S/O Alan Karpick for the amazing seats!)

A Week (14) in Review

Favorite Game: Kansas State vs TCU

What a game! The Big 12 always has bonkers conference championship games and they delivered once again. Do you think TCU crossed the goal line? Max Duggan, Quentin Johnston, and Duck Tape were not enough for the Horned Frogs this week. Kansas State has an underrated football program and loves to play spoilers. It seems like every conference has a team that historically is going to be the most physical and be the team no one wants to play. Amazing job by Will Howard and Deuce Vaughn to get enough offense going and get the win.

Favorite Uniform: Tulane Green Wave

Should this award be named after our favorite NOLA school? The American champion looked amazing and I can't wait to see what they wear against USC. They really use all the colors in their wheelhouse to make fun jerseys every week. Look good, feel good, play good.

Other Notes from the Weekend

The Utes started off our weekend with an emphatic win. This team is a bit smaller than normal Kyle Whittingham teams, but they do not lack physicality. They wore the Trojans down and then asserted themselves. They will look amazing in the Rose Bowl... Georgia heard everyone saying they are not as good this year and took it out on a wounded LSU team. What a wagon this squad is. I often worried they may not be able to push the ball down the field but they keep finding creative ways to do so and I should just admire their greatness... I think Clemson found their QB, but they also have another recruit coming in. UNC started the season so high and have limped to the finish. What a physical beatdown... Tulane got revenge on the Knights and now get to play in the NY6. What a great program building performance and I can't wait to see how fired up they are against the Trojans... UTSA deserved more national spotlight this year and I would recommend watching their bowl games. People in the Big Ten will be familiar with their offense as they mesh the spread and smashmouth very well... Toledo and Troy took advantage of wounded teams and congrats to them on being conference champs! These wins mean so much for these programs and I am glad they got some coverage... Fresno State also got revenge and Jake Haener is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine in the middle rounds of the draft. Great job in Boise... With all of these conferences getting so big we need more conference games during the season. We also need to do away with the divisions; Purdue and Michigan should play more often. Auburn and Georgia should play more often. As we add yet another game to the schedule with the CFP expansion, we may also need to just do away with the conference championship games. Every team does not play each other in the conference anyway, so it's never apples to apples. Save these guys the hits, or are we officially done pretending these guys are just students?

Favorite Play of the Week

You will see a lot of blitzing in college football as teams try to overwhelm quarterbacks and offensive linemen into making mistakes that they can capitalize on. But what happens if the ball gets out on time and you brought the house? As UCF showed us, often a big play.



  • UCF has 9(!!!!) defenders at the line of scrimmage (yellow circle). They are not hiding that they are bringing the heat.
  • Tulane has a very balanced attack and uses all of their skill players. They have two tight ends (dots 1 and 2) and two receivers to the wide side (3 and not pictured). They are able to run or throw depending on the look they get and they get a look they like here.
  • UCF has one corner (dot 4) that we can see and another on the other receiver. Let's keep this guy in mind later in the play.

  • Tulane does a great job of protecting their inside gap and stopping UCF from getting pressure up the middle that could impact the quarterback's ability to step into a throw. This is textbook with keeping both tight ends in as well.
  • They also keep the running back in to block (dot 1). He does an amazing job of meeting the edge rushers and not letting them come to him. Be aggressive, sacrifice yourself, and don't let a defender push you into your quarterback. Amazing job.

  • Not the best ball, thrown to the receiver we could not see earlier on a quick hitch. They got the ball away before the blitz got home. UCF played off man and now has to close the gap and make a tackle in space. He does not.


  • Now that the receiver (dot 2) has gotten by his defender it is off to the races. He works to get back to the sideline and away from the help defenders that are closing in.
  • That corner we talked about in the first image? That is the one defender in position to make a play (dot 1). Does he make the tackle or force the receiver back to the middle of the field and the help defenders (dot 3)? He does not.


  • Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing at all. The slot receiver from the first frame is dot 1. I am sure him and 31 have had words all game and he would love to absolutely crush him on a blindside block, or any of the other defenders for that matter. But that would be a penalty. Great job staying calm and thinking about the bigger picture. Six points.

4th Quarter Season Awards

We made it to the bowl season! Here are my thoughts on how the season ended.

Best Team: Georgia

An emphatic way to finish the season and this group is so well rounded. They can run, they are creative in the passing game, an amazing defense, and the second best coach in the sport.

Honorable Mentions: Michigan

Only one other team ran the table. A chaotic weekend took TCU out and I can't say Ohio State, Alabama, USC, Tennessee, and LSU are world beaters.

Heisman Favorite: Caleb Williams (QB - USC)

No one did more with less this season than Williams. USC should not have won more than 9 games, but they got two more and nearly went 12-0. The last image of him is not great, but no one else wowed enough on Saturday to jump him.

Honorable Mentions: Hendon Hooker (QB - Tennessee), CJ Stroud (QB - Ohio State), Blake Corum (RB - Michigan), Stetson Bennett (QB - Georgia), Max Duggan (QB - TCU), Drake Maye (QB - UNC), Michael Penix Jr. (QB - Washington), Marvin Harrison Jr.

Give me Duggan, Hooker, Stroud, and Penix Jr. in New York. Bennett did not play enough and Michigan has been rolling even without Corum. I would argue Harrison Jr. should go instead but I understand how important the QB is now.

Best Game: Tennessee vs Alabama

You remember how amazing this was, there is no denying this was THE game of the year. That's it, just enjoy the highlights.


Honorable Mentions: North Carolina vs Appalachian State, Utah vs Florida, Marshall vs Notre Dame, UTSA vs Houston, Troy vs Appalachian State, Alabama vs Texas, Kentucky vs Ole Miss, Wake Forest vs Clemson, LSU vs Alabama, Washington vs Oregon, Oklahoma State vs Texas, Ohio State vs Michigan, Florida vs Florida State, North Carolina vs NC State

Week 12 Preview

Favorite Group of 5 Game / Best Game of the Week: Army vs Navy

Only game on the slate and boy is it a great one. This game is always fun to watch. The passion they bring to the game and then how they embrace after, so touching to watch. The jerseys are looking amazing and the weather isn't looking too bad in Philadelphia on Saturday. Both teams are going to run the ball a lot, but have opened things up more this year. You probably are not used to seeing the shotgun in this one but you will this Saturday. Navy can't go bowling this year but they can keep Army from doing so; this will be a bitter battle.

Favorite Player to Watch: John Marshall (LB -Navy) vs Army

88 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 interception. This dude can flat out ball. He will be all over the field trying to stop the Army offense and I bet you will hear his name early and often.

Also Worth Watching: Andre Carter Jr. (Edge - Army) vs Navy

3 and Out

Season Total: (20-21) -0.10 Units

Spread Picks (8-11) -3.65 Units, O/U Picks (8-5) +2.15 Units, ML Picks (6-6) +1.40 Units

If you bet $1 on every play I suggested this year you lost 10 cents. I will take that for the first year giving out picks. Only one play this week, enjoy.

Pick of the Week: u33.5 (-110) Army vs Navy

The under has hit in 14 straight Army-Navy games. It's a super low total but I'm not betting against history. Enjoy the game!

Going Forward and Feedback Requested

As we head into bowl season, below is how our future schedule looks.
  • 12/16: Bowl Week 1 Preview
  • 12/23: Bowl Week 2 Preview
  • 12/30: New Years Bowl Preview
  • Winter 2023: QB Draft Breakdowns
  • Spring 2023: Mock Drafts
I'm considering doing NFL coverage (yes, I love all football) for the playoffs, let me know if that is something you would enjoy.

Additionally, I would love to hear what you have enjoyed about the blog this year! Feel free to DM, text, email, carrier pigeon things you would love to see more of every week. Would you prefer less about the previous week and more film breakdowns and picks? Let me know. Also, if you think a Twitter account, so I could share picks throughout the week and tweet through Saturday's, or a podcast or other avenue would be enjoyable, let me know as well!

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