Texas set an NCAA record Saturday with 7 sacrifice bunts but luckily Texas coach [tag]Augie Garrido[/tag] let third baseman [tag]Michael Torres[/tag] swing away. The senior from California had a career day leading the Longhorns going 4-for-5 with 2 home runs and 4 RBIs (and zero sacrifice bunts) as Texas beat [tag]TCU[/tag] 10-4 in the opening game of the Super Regionals. Starting pitcher [tag]Chance Ruffin[/tag] gave up 3 homers but didn’t make many other mistakes during his complete game win.
The Longhorns play TCU today at 2pm on ESPN and if they win they’ll be headed back to the College World Series in Omaha.
Related Links
Times and television have been set for this weekend’s CWS Super Regional for Texas and TCU. Game 1 will take place Saturday, June 6th at 5pm on ESPNU. Sunday’s game 2 will be at 2pm on ESPN. If necessary, the two teams will play in one of two time slots on Monday, either noon or 6pm on either ESPN or ESPN2. Tune in to 40 Acres Sports for all your [tag]College World Series[/tag] coverage.
For the second time this year 3 of the Top 4 teams in the nation lose. No one is safe at the top, and most of the Top 10 will be playing each other in the next few weeks so expect to see even more changes. So far this year is looking even crazier than last year.
-
[tag]Alabama[/tag]
LW: 3Even though they didn’t play, I don’t think they deserved to be bumped down below Texas.
-
[tag]Texas[/tag]
LW: 5Texas won with Colt’s leadership and the defense stepping up at the right times. Will Muschamp has the defense improving every week. It was kind of nice cruising through the season unnoticed, but that time is definitely over.
-
[tag]Penn State[/tag]
LW: 7I guess I to move up Penn State after their blowout win. It looks like they are definitely the class of the Big 10, though that is not saying very much.
-
[tag]Oklahoma[/tag]
LW: 1Sam Bradford threw for 5 touchdowns and still lost. Oklahoma has a great team and their schedule is setup to keep them in a BCS bowl game.
-
[tag]Florida[/tag]
LW: 11I had watched Florida play a few times this year, but I have never seen the speed and precision they displayed against LSU. They have some of the fastest running backs in the nation, and if they can keep Tim Tebow from making mistakes they should be good.
-
[tag]Texas Tech[/tag]
LW: 8Texas Tech played like crap but was surprisingly still able to come out with a win against Nebraska. They have a pretty easy road before playing Texas at home.
-
[tag]Oklahoma State[/tag]
LW: 15Not sure if was too much of an upset, but Oklahoma State managed to put a hurting on Mizzou. Oklahoma State has proven they definitely have the offense, but do they have the defense to hang with the big boys.
-
[tag]Missouri[/tag]
LW: 2I am actually pretty disappointed that Mizzou lost, because that would have meant Texas would play two #1 teams in a row. Now that Mizzou has lost, Texas will definitely be expected to beat them this Saturday.
-
[tag]USC[/tag]
LW: 10Looks like USC is getting back into form after totally dominating Arizona State 28-0. They probably have the easiest schedule left of any Top 10 and will probably somehow backdoor their way into the national championship.
-
[tag]Georgia[/tag]
LW: 9Georgia had a solid win against Tennessee but I am still not very impressed with this team. I expect them to lose 2 more games this season.
-
[tag]BYU[/tag]
LW: 6I have decided to not leave BYU so high up in the polls. They play nobody, and until they beat Utah I will not move them any higher.
-
[tag]LSU[/tag]
LW: 4You either smoke, or you get smoked, and LSU got smoked. That was a pretty weak performance against Florida, and if they don’t get someone to play quarterback they will struggle all season long.
-
[tag]Kansas[/tag]
LW: 12Kansas continues to plod along and will probably go relatively unnoticed the rest of the way unless they can beat one of the big teams in the Big 12. Don’t expect that to happen.
-
[tag]Utah[/tag]
LW: 13Utah and BYU really don’t seem much different to me. They will have to prove their ranking by beating both TCU and BYU.
-
[tag]Boise State[/tag]
LW: 16Thank goodness we didn’t have to see them play on their ugly blue field this weekend.
-
[tag]Ohio State[/tag]
LW: 17Luckily Ohio State beat Purdue because they are about to lose two in a row. I can’t wait to drop them out of the Top 25.
-
[tag]Michigan State[/tag]
LW: 19Again, the only thing they have going for them is their running back, but man is he awesome. Can we trade for him?
-
[tag]Virginia Tech[/tag]
LW: 18Does anyone really care about anyone in the ACC. They will probably all beat each other and end up with a conference champion that has 3 losses.
-
[tag]South Florida[/tag]
LW: 20Bye week
-
[tag]North Carolina[/tag]
LW: 21It took a last minute play, but North Carolina thankfully kept Notre Dame out of the Top 25. North Carolina is making the most out of their spot, but see Virginia Tech.
-
[tag]Wake Forest[/tag]
LW: 22Another so-so ACC team barely holding on to their spot in the Top 25.
-
[tag]California[/tag]
LW: 24Bye week
-
[tag]TCU[/tag]
LW: –TCU has another huge game coming against BYU. Can they prove BYU is overrated, or will they fall back out of the Top 25?
-
[tag]Vanderbilt[/tag]
LW: 14It was only a matter of time before Vanderbilt came back down to reality. They couldn’t handle the pressure of the being a top team and now they will probably struggle the rest of the way.
-
[tag]Tulsa[/tag]
LW: 25They struggled a little only scoring 37, but I am sure they will get back on track and put up 60+ on UTEP.
Let’s see what is going on this Saturday. Remember, I did go 3-1 last weekend against the spread.
Arkansas at #7 Texas (-27) – 3:30 PM EST on ABC. When these two teams were first scheduled to meet, both were sitting at 2-0. Now things look a bit different with Texas coasting to victory against Rice and Arkansas getting blown out at home against Alabama. The Texas Longhorns are huge favorites for the 4th straight week, and deservedly so. Texas is averaging 48.7 points per game (6th in nation) and should easily score in the 50’s again at home against a weak Arkansas defense. The only potential for trouble is the Arkansas passing game against the young Texas secondary. Lucky Casey Dick is prone to making some mistakes. This one should be another easy cover with the Longhorns winning by 35.
#24 TCU at #2 Oklahoma (-18) – 7:00 PM EST on FCSA. With USC losing, Oklahoma now has the opportunity to make a statement to becoming the #1 team in the nation. There is no way Oklahoma overlooks this game since TCU has managed to beat them in Norman twice in a row. So far this season Oklahoma is destroying teams by an average margin of 35.3 points per game and this Saturday will be no different. TCU’s defense has been impressive, but I doubt they have ever seen an offense like they will face this weekend. This might be the easiest cover of the weekend with Oklahoma winning by 30+.
#8 Alabama at #3 Georgia (-7) – 7:45 PM EST on ESPN. Probably the game to watch this weekend. Alabama looks like they are going to be a legit SEC contender and Georgia is still trying to prove they belong at the top. Georgia will be wearing the cool black uniforms trying their best to look like a high school football team. If you like tough, physical football, this game is for you. Both teams boast impressive running games and stout defenses. This game will probably be one of those typical 14-10 SEC games. But in this one I think Alabama comes out the winner with their running game and offensive line. So take Alabama money-line on this one.
#22 Illinois at #12 Penn St (-16) – 8:00 PM EST on ABC. I don’t normally care about or watch Big 10 match-ups, but I am interested in seeing how Penn St looks against Illinois. Penn St is scoring 52.7 points per game, and probably won’t be stopped Saturday. Take them to cover. Here is something to think about. Penn St demolished Oregon St. Oregon St dominated USC. USC killed Ohio St. I still haven’t figured out what that means about Ohio St and the Big 10, but on first thought I would lean towards the Pac-10 and Big 10 sucking.
My Top 8 remains unchanged this week as a few teams didn’t play and the rest won easily. The story of the weekend was the Cremation in the Coliseum – USC’s dismantling of the over-hyped Ohio State. Ohio State has pretty much become a joke, getting shallacked whenever they play on the big stage. I am starting to think if I should allow any teams in the Big 10 in the Top 25 at all? Hmm….
Agree or disagree? Please let us know in the comments.
-
[tag]USC[/tag]
LW: 1Was there really anyone surprised in their thrashing of Ohio State? USC looks unbeatable right now but they usually suck-up one game during the regular season, so we will see.
-
[tag]Oklahoma[/tag]
LW: 2Offense, offense, offense. Oklahoma probably won’t score less than 40 points all season long. Right now Oklahoma and USC are separating themselves from the rest of the teams in college football.
-
[tag]Florida[/tag]
LW: 3Bye week
-
[tag]Missouri[/tag]
LW: 4Chase Daniel has the offense rolling right now, though it does help when you play a high school team like Nevada. And 6 catches, 172 yards, and 3 touchdowns for Maclin? Ridiculous.
-
[tag]LSU[/tag]
LW: 5LSU finally got to play a game and just toyed with UNT. Not really fair. Let’s see how they do against their first real test, Auburn.
-
[tag]Texas[/tag]
LW: 6Game against Arkansas postponed.
-
[tag]Georgia[/tag]
LW: 7This team is so overrated it is ridiculous. But since they still haven’t lost, I will wait for them to lose so I can drop them down. That will likely happen in two weeks against Alabama.
-
[tag]Alabama[/tag]
LW: 8Alabama’s balanced offensive attack looks impressive. Not much to dislike with this team. They have a pretty good shot to do goods things in the SEC West.
-
[tag]South Florida[/tag]
LW: 19What a game Friday night against Kansas. Big lead changes both ways and South Florida pulls out the crazy victory. Now hopefully they won’t have a letdown after this big win.
-
[tag]Wisconsin[/tag]
LW: 15Wisconsin just continues their boring football that wins games. But hey, whatever works.
-
[tag]Auburn[/tag]
LW: 93-2 victory against Mississippi State? Are you serious? Their defense is great, but they will have to actually score touchdowns to beat LSU.
-
[tag]Texas Tech[/tag]
LW: 13Their offense looks good so far, but hard not to against the caliber of opponents they have been playing. I guess we will have to wait until Big 12 play to see how they really are.
-
[tag]BYU[/tag]
LW: 17Absolutely smoked UCLA. 7 passing touchdowns will usually get it done. Might have to start paying attention to this team.
-
[tag]Wake Forest[/tag]
LW: 18Bye week
-
[tag]East Carolina[/tag]
LW: 12Barely sneaked by a weak Tulane team. Maybe they aren’t as good as we thought. They will need some more convincing wins if they want to challenge for the Top 10.
-
[tag]Oregon[/tag]
LW: 16Probably should have lost to Purdue, but their impressive rushing attack led the charge in their comeback win against Purdue. Blount had 132 yards on 12 carries. Not a bad average.
-
[tag]Penn State[/tag]
LW: 21Penn State racked up 560 total yards and held Syracuse to 159 yards. We will have to see how they face adversity, because so far they have breezed through this season.
-
[tag]Kansas[/tag]
LW: 11Heartbreaking loss against a good South Florida team. I bet Reesing is wanting that one poor throw back late in the 4th quarter. Kansas is still a good football team that will probably climb back up in the rankings.
-
[tag]Ohio State[/tag]
LW: 10Now can we please stop thinking Ohio State is any good? Lately anytime they are the national stage they get blown out. Needless to say they will not be playing for the national championship this year.
-
[tag]Vanderbilt[/tag]
LW: 23Another solid win against Rice. SEC teams better not overlook this Vanderbilt team. They might be the surprise of the SEC East this year.
-
[tag]Utah[/tag]
LW: 25Utah is starting to play like they did in their 2004 unbeaten season. Though their big win against Michigan isn’t looking as impressive as it did in the beginning of the season.
-
[tag]Florida State[/tag]
LW: NRLots of first timers making an appearance in my Top 25, and FSU is the first. They have a real test upcoming against Wake Forest, so we will see how long they stay here.
-
[tag]TCU[/tag]
LW: NRTCU has started their season off with 3 impressive win, including a 31-14 win against Pac-10 Stanford. They virtually have no passing game, but their stable of running backs is impressive.
-
[tag]Oklahoma State[/tag]
LW: NROklahoma State is chugging along basically unnoticed so far this season. Unfortunately for them they have an extremely tough schedule this year. But for now things are looking good.
-
[tag]West Virginia[/tag]
LW: NREven though they didn’t play, I am giving them another shot in the Top 25. They need to win convincingly if they want to stay here.
Damion James dominates but Texas struggles to get past TCU without AJ Abrams. Ian Mooney is outplaying young studs? Ah oh.
Freshman forward [tag]Gary Johnson[/tag] finally received medical clearance to play Saturday and he’s already been inserted into the starting lineup. Johnson, the Longhorns’ highest rated incoming player, has sat out the entire season with an undisclosed heart ailment but he’ll make his debut as the starting power forward against [tag]TCU[/tag] Wednesday. He replaces [tag]Justin Mason[/tag] who has been in the midst of a horrid shooting slump the last few games.
Head coach Rick Barnes has described Johnson as a more athletic PJ Tucker, a comment that should really excite Texas fans. At 6-foot-7 he’ll play the 4 and Damion James will slide to the 3, giving the Horns a much bigger lineup. Johnson should bring energy, interior defense, and most importantly rebounding to a team that has been lacking all three during the current two game losing streak.
Mason is a good defensive player but his lack of size causes match-up problems at the 3 spot. Now he should be great asset as a defensive stopper off the bench. Hopefully the kid doesn’t get too down on himself about being sent to the bench, he should still see solid minutes and be a valuable member of the team.
Purely from a depth standpoint this team just got a lot better. I can’t wait to see what Johnson can do and how this team will perform in Big 12 play.
Last week’s keys didn’t work out so well. We barely won, Brian Orakpo got hurt, and John Chiles could barely even see the field from where he was sitting on the bench. Let’s hope the Horns come out firing against [tag]TCU[/tag] and turn things around for the rest of the season.
1. Get Jamaal Charles running north/south.
There was some minor controversy this week over a [tag]Jamaal Charles[/tag] quote on Scout that the Longhorns’ sideways running style had made him more hesitant. I’m not sure he should have said it, but I agree with him. I don’t know if it’s Charles or the system (or both) but if your running back is spending half his time running lateraly you’re not going to be successful consistently. If we’re not running the zone read with an athletic QB then we should take a cue from teams like the Indianapolis Colts, which Greg Davis spent time with this offseason. If we can’t run more consistently from the shotgun then we have to put Colt McCoy under center more.
2. Don’t give receivers a ten-yard cushion.
It doesn’t matter who our cornerbacks are if we continue to give wide receivers a 10+ yard cushion. Playing that far off you’re not going to get burned deep but you’re also going to let the opposing QB eat you alive ten yards at a time. If you let a quarterback get comfortable he’s making the easy passes. This week [tag]Duane Akina[/tag] has give Brandon Foster, Ryan Palmer, and/or Deon Beasley a better chance to succeed (or fail).
3. Convert short yardage opportunities.
Not being able to get one yard costs us two games last season and almost costs us against Arkansas State. If it’s first and goal from the two or third and one, the linemen have to be willing and able to whoop somebody’s a**. The offensive line didn’t have a terrible game against ASU but couldn’t get it done when it mattered. Texas should be a team that can maul and get 2 – 3 yards even if everyone in the stadium knows it’s coming, but we haven’t been able to do that since Cedric Benson left.
TCU defensive star Tommy Blake returns to team after week at home. Strange situation.