Posts Tagged ‘Stanford’

The Demise of the PAC12. The Future of the Mountain West

Posted: August 6, 2023 in Uncategorized
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Well, well, well. As I stated August, 2022 (read my SDSU, Big 12 and PAC 12 Implosion piece) when the Bruins and Trojans accepted the invitation to join the Big 10, the PAC 12 was two schools away from complete collapse. The time has arrived. Surprisingly, not initially at my insistence of Oregon and Washington causing the rupture, rather Colorado and Arizona triggered the crumble of the once power 5 conference.

The flight of the Ducks and run of the Huskies to the Big 10 was long anticipated by yours truly. Now the Big 10 has four schools in the treasured fourth window (Pacific time) of college football (sorry, basketball has no influence in any of the August, 2022 forward movement). Two schools to four schools doubles options and flexibility surrounding scheduling on Saturday . . . and Friday (!). Yes, the Big 10 media contract insists on Friday night games. Guess which four newbies will shoulder the dreaded, unnatural Friday night exposure?

The wait-for-me exit of Arizona State and Utah to the Big 12 was their only viable option. The Big 10 wanted nothing to do with either school. Staying with the now four remaining schools was the equivalent of eating under cooked chicken and wondering why your were vomiting for days after. However, Brett Yormark’s long standing desire to provide the Big 12 with a fourth window of linear TV (to those of you wondering, linear TV is normal TV. You know, pre-app and similar broadcast platforms) remains unfulfilled. Will Mr. Yormark shy away from his stated West coast desire or is another addition or two possible?

Concerning the remains of the once vaunted PAC 12, I present to you the chalk outline of Stanford, Cal, Washington State and Oregon State. Bow your head. Pray. You recovered? Here we go.

Stanford has enough money (the root and cause of all realignment movement) to hit the Notre Dame independent road. Cal does not. Both schools are woefully short on football centered alumni (they don’t care. Shhh). The idea floated by certain commentators and wishful thinkers that the Big 10 is interested in either school is, dare I say, poppycock. Yes, harsh language for harsh idiotic ideas. Both schools feature a yawn of recent achievement in the land of football. Cal is sub .500 the last ten years while Stanford is sub .500 three of the last four years. Both results are dismal in the eyes of Midwest decision makers. Cal has no other option other than to join the Mountain West, no matter how distasteful the idea. God forbid, joining a conference with six schools featuring the word “State” in their title. The horror. If Stanford dips their toe in the water of independence, I predict a BYU experience at best. Stanford has zero national appeal and marginal regional appeal (I’m generous. Candidly, they have no appeal outside the Bay area). Joining the Mountain West provides stability as opposed to the who-knows-what-will-happen journey of life without conference affiliation.

Washington State and Oregon State generate no interest with any of the remaining Power Four conferences. Pullman (population 33,000 ) and Corvallis (population 60,000) are small towns surrounded by smaller towns in the middle of nowhere. Traveling to and from is a pain. Both schools are perfectly suited for the Mountain West. The Cougars and Beavers offer a football upgrade for the Mountain West which is most welcome. Basketball, not so much.

Finally, the remaining PAC 12 schools are staring geography in the face. Distance matters. As does a lack of outside interest, athletic departments with budget deficits and nowhere else to go. Welcome to the Mountain West!

Stanford 31, SDSU 10

Posted: September 1, 2018 in SDSU
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Where to begin.

The first half had a pall.  Sure, 7-0 was pleasant, but the inability of the Aztec offensive line to block outside the tackles, especially to the left, was forcing Juwan Washington to run up the gut (with gusto), and nowhere else.

To speak of “to the left”, Tyler Roemer (left tackle) and Daishawn Dixon (left guard) were repeatedly unable to hold blocks during the first half.  Boo.

So, Jeff Horton calls up the gut plays . . . and we score.  Juwan ran for 20+, 10+, 40+, 6-ish, then a td.  Kudos to Dominic Guidino, Keith Ismael and the afore criticized Mr. Dixon for plowing openings galore for Mr. Washington.

Stanford goes three and out.  We follow with seeming momentum until Isaac Lessard is flagged for a chop block, thus we punt.  Boo.  However, during this sequence, Ethan Dedeaux (r-fr) catches a pass (in other receiving news, Fred Trevillion dropped his first opportunity, thus enhancing the legend of Hit Me On My Number And I Drop My First Pass Trevillion).  Mr. Dedeaux is one to watch  and offers Christian Chapman dreams of 60% completion rates.

Stanford scores two points via a hesitant safety by the officiating squad.  The head ref (forgive my lack of football referee knowledge) seemed to need a tutorial in signaling the safety call.  Perhaps because the call was crap.

Prior to this bit of neighbohood football officiating, Chase Jasmin spelled Mr. Washington, thus received his first dose of competitive, non-wipe out football.  He did so the next set of downs as well (and gathered a rushing first down).  Yes, this is Jeff Horton taking a look under the hood for future reference.  Howl all you want about why-was-Juwan-not-in-the-game.  I don’t care.  Many Aztec fans deplore this side of Mr. Horton, but I offer my inestimable support (incredibly valuable.  Much like your drunken friend cheering you on during a fight . . . that you are losing) in preparation for the MWC schedule.  You know, what really matters.

Then comes the Noble Hall moment.  Mr. Hall catches a batted football and decides to emulate Juwan Washington (mistake).  Rather than tucking the ball with both arms securely against his midsection, he assumes the spirit of Mr. Washington, and has the ball poked out of his arms into Stanford possession, which allows the halftime score of 9-7.  However, I disagree with Rocky that this moment was a game changer or momentum shift.

The first possession in the third quarter features Mr. Dedeaux catching another pass from Mr. Chapman.  Unreal.  Based off of last year.  And the year before.  However, we punt.

Stanford scores by and large because of consecutive penalties on the Aztec defensive backfield.  Boo.

Coach Horton then displays what could be an actual passing game.  The one where receivers catch passes from Christian Chapman.  I offer, Mr. Trevillion, Mr. Dedeaux, and Tim Wilson, Jr making consecutive catches.  Mr. Trevillion makes another catch.  John Barron hits a field goal.  16-10.  Not bad.

As Stanford works towards another score, I find comfort with the fact that Bryce “Heisman” Love has done nothing.  The Aztec defense has face stuffed him all game long.  When Stanford goes horizontal, they do so with nothing to show.  Yet, when they throw vertical, our defensive backfield is at risk.  The Stanford receivers stepped in front and made catches.  They out jumped us and made catches.  Thus, the Aztec defensive weakness.  But, better to have one weakness than many.

Remaining Aztec highlights of the third and fourth quarters feature another 40+ run by Mr. Washington and catches by Mr. Dedeaux and Mr. Wilson, plus a nine yard run by Chase Jasmin.  We had a chance to score during the Dedeaux-Wilson-Jasmin sequence, but our o-line gave up consecutive sacks of Mr. Chapman.  Again, boo.

As we move forward, the Aztec offensive line needs to ignore the media praise.  The big guys need to prove their collective worth.  Sustain your blocks and protect your quarterback.  The defensive secondary must stay stride for stride with taller wider receivers or face similar results via this 31-10 loss.  And, STOP WITH THE PENALTIES ALREADY!!!!.  Over 100 yards?  C’mon.  Parker Baldwin had a career game.  Juwan Washington is the real deal.  We seem to have the beginnings of a passing game.

Next is Sacramento State at home.  Fireworks await.  I want a shutout (okay, I’ll accept a single digit) of Hornet offense.  Pound and ground, then stretch the field.  May Fred Trevillion catch the first ball thrown to him (I may pass out.  Get it?).  Deliver good basic football without a field’s worth of penalties.

Aztecs, 0-1.

Eleven to go.

 

 

20-17 Over Stanford or Lights Out

Posted: September 17, 2017 in Uncategorized
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A defensive gem.  This game was worthy of mud, broken teeth and twisted fingers.  The Aztec defense was exceptional.  Consider:

Stanford’s first three possessions were three and out.

The tree throws for a mere 64 yards on a bad 9/20 with 2 interceptions (thank you, Ron Smith and Kameron Kelly).

Stanford’s total offense at the end of the first quarter:  3 yards.

Stanford’s time of possession in the first quarter:  2:19.  Yeah, I know you can credit the Aztec offense as well.

Total tree offense at the half:  88 yards.

The Aztec defense stops Stanford inside the ten resulting in three points as opposed to seven at the end of the third quarter.

And, of course, the Kameron Kelly pick with 54 seconds remaining.

Final total yardage for Stanford:  238.

Proof enough.

Now for the Aztec offense.  First, Christian Chapman throwing in the pocket is as effective as using bare hands to remove a hot dish from the oven.  Christian needs to move to be successful.  No more pocket stuff.  21/29/0 and one touchdown was a solid performance.  Mikah Holder had his best game of the season.  7 catches for 85 yards and besting his twin brother makes for a fine evening.  Rashaad Penny running against a quality defense for 175 yards (5.5 yards per carry) is testament to his place as a top-ten running back.  The final drive post-electrical collapse is further proof of a team on course to have another fine year.  David Wells insisting on the end-zone and game winning touchdown will be a 2017 season favorite.

John Barron misses a field goal.  Who knew?

Brandon Heicklen needs to be much more consistent with his punts.  To date, his effort is as scattered as his punting.  Also, the offensive line struggled against the Stanford defense.  Mr. Chapman was often on the run on behalf of his own safety.  Clean up that mess now.

Finally, I thoroughly enjoyed Hunkie Cooper yelling at David Shaw for touching Aztec players as the two teams were leaving the field at the half.  Don’t touch Hunkie’s kids.  Speaking of kids, great to see the student section storm the field at game’s end.

As a side note to the city of San Diego, what more proof do you need to maintain the stadium other than the lights going off for 25 minutes?  Game interruption on national television is not helpful to either SDSU or the city of San Diego.  Seems minor league.  Invest in something new and spiffy while keeping the lights on.

3-0.  Go Aztecs.