Rosa Parks and Franklin

Some small news service ran a story about a few people on social media upset that Franklin, the black character on Peanuts, is sitting by himself on one side of the picnic table on the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving TV special. Three white characters are sitting on the other side of the table. Nothing about how Peppermint Patty has a crush on Charlie Brown so she’s sitting near him, or that Sally likes Linus so she’s sitting near him. Then someone else has to point out (thereby giving the story further credence) the audacity of the racist claims. People, everyone has an opinion, right or wrong. No need to make a huge story about it – especially when all it is a minute percentage of the population. 

 

Kids today don’t realize the story of Franklin, how Charles Schultz added the character in the 1960’s after MLK was assassinated despite the protests of newspaper editors. They don’t even realize the comic strip no longer runs, or that Schultz passed away years ago. Or that in other TV specials and comic strips Franklin sat at the place of honor or played a key role in a play or story.        

Did you know: Alex Groza, the star basketball player from the 1950’s, is the brother of Lou Groza, the hall of fame guard/kicker for the Cleveland Browns. One year Alex led the NBA with the highest field goal percentage, and Lou led the NFL in the same category. Groza was before my time but I liked Blanda and Kilmer, who played for SF, Saints, and Washington. Liked his single bar face mask. And you know I kicked straight on like Blanda and Groza. I still have my square toed kicking shoe!

 

 

Speaking of retirements, Bryant Wright is stepping down as the pastor of JFBC. They’ll form a search committee in January. Wright said he’d planned on serving for 40 years, but after he’d led the charge to get rid of all of JFBC debt people started asking what the next big thing would be. That’s when Bryant realized he didn’t have a vision for anything else. I think he’s been at JFBC for 37 years.

 

Late last week we received a message from our Sunday School teacher, who’s on staff at JF. He encouraged as many as possible to attend the early service so we could the discuss Bryant’s message in Sunday School. C and I were on the way back from SC so she brought up the message on her phone.

 

In related news, this Sunday C and I are attending a special membership class for people interested in joining JFBC. Might as well.

 

For lunch Tuesday my coworkers dragged me out for Chinese. You would’ve been proud – I ate almost everything on the buffet: orange chicken, my usual sweet & sour chicken, meatballs, egg roll, fried rice, and one other meat dish. Very good. Still stuffed.

 

I recently learned that Danny Morris once had a date with actress Kim Basinger.

 

Stopped for gas on the way home Tuesday night. Turned on the ESPN college football ratings show but it went off at 7:30 so the Duke/Indiana game could start. Flipped over to Jeopardy, The Voice, This Is Us, and New Amsterdam. Many of these shows grouped together don’t accurately depict real life.

 

Been busier than usual at work. Things had slowed down a little but then when something happens it takes up most of the day. Worked past 6:30 Wednesday night, but I’ve been dragging in at 7:30 am instead of seven lately.

 

Ceil had here small group so I was in no hurry. M fixed himself Brussel Sprouts and mac & cheese. I ate some of his pumpkin cake and also leftover black beans. Watched Jeopardy and the first 30 minutes of Independence Day Resurgence. Ceil came home and we replayed New Amsterdam and Chicago Med.

 

Heard this morning that Elton John had to cancel concerts this week in Orlando and Tampa due to sickness, but he’s scheduled to perform tonight and tomorrow here in Atlanta. You ought to go!

 

I hear GT AD Todd Stansbury has scheduled an interview with Ken Whisenhunt. Wouldn’t be the worst choice. He’s a good fit for Tech, but has never coached college ball. Would rather have someone young and dynamic.

 

Worked until almost 6:30. Ceil fixed pot roast for dinner, plus a tossed salad. I always eat the beef, carrots, and onions and pick around the potatoes. Watched “The Kids Are Alright.” Like many shows, after five episodes they run out of ideas and start talking about sex. Then the Hallmark Channel and Cowboys/Saints. As usual M came in from work with a bag of groceries.  

 

Doing much this weekend? Might go to a Sunday school birthday party tonight. Small group in the AM. Need to rake leaves and car shop, but its supposed to rain. Then GA/AL and Pitt/Clemson. Eating Sunday lunch at SunTrust Park.

 

Two coworkers have decorated their cubicles for Christmas. Every day John brings in more. Two others will decorate on Monday. The lobby has poinsettias and purchasing decorated as well. I joked that I was coming in to decorate this weekend, and Sunday night at 8 pm WSB was televising the lighting of my desk, with choirs and Kellie Pickler singing Oh Holy Night.

CPJ Retires

Last Saturday the SEC Network announcers, including Atlanta’s own Tom Hart, mentioned the possibility that Paul Johnson might consider stepping down after this season – “if it’s no longer fun.” I hadn’t heard that from any other source. What will be fun is watching Tobias Oliver run the Tech offense next year. No reason to think Tech won’t be improved next year. Could go 9-3 or 10-2. Thought that would keep Johnson around for two or three more years. 

 

Johnson retires as Tech’s 4th-winningest coach, as well as the fourth longest tenured coach. He was the winningest coach in the past 50 years.

 

….YR…YR…yrs…W - L - T

1903-1903 01 003-05 Oliver Jones Huie

1904-1919 17 102-29-07 John Heisman

1920-1944 25 134-95-15 William Alexander

1945-1966 22 165-64-08 Bobby Dodd

1967-1971 05 27-27 Bud Carson

1972-1973 02 12-10-1 Bill Fulcher

1974-1979 05 34-31-2 Pepper Rodgers

1980-1986 07 31-43-4 Bill Curry

1987-1991 05 31-26-1 Bobby Ross

1992-1994 03 11-19 Bill Lewis

1994-2001 08 52-33 George O’Leary

2002-2007 06 44-32 Chan Gailey

2008-2018 11 82-59 Paul Johnson

 

Fun fact: Heisman had a record of 163-97-5 as Tech’s baseball coach and 9-14 as Tech’s basketball coach.

 

Would be good if Tech could get a young and dynamic head coach. Not sure how real of a prospect the Clemson offensive coordinator would be, but he’d be younger than Whisenhunt (who will be interviewing for the job). Heard Chuck & Chernoff’s interview with GT AD Todd Stansbury. Learned that the former GT linebacker played junior hockey against Wayne Gretzky.

 

Chuck & Chernoff had agreed with my prediction that Johnson’s Jackets might’ve gone 10-2 next year, but it’s doubtful a new coach installing a new offense will be able to do so well in his first season.  

 

This morning 680’s Steak Shapiro had nothing nice to say about departing coach Paul Johnson. Shapiro was probably mad that he didn’t get an exclusive interview. Ever the hype master, Steak hoped Tech would hire someone more interested in promoting his team” (as if that was the most important thing). Of course 680 spent most of the 6:30-7:30 time slot talking pro football – the Browns and Redskins and the like.

 

Stumbled across an interesting web GT site https://www.fromtherumbleseat.com where fans interested in GT sports discuss the issues of the day. What’s funny and unique is that they approach these sports topics not like the rabid UGA fanbase but in a more analytical and methodical way. Much more civilized. A recent poster implored his fellow Techsters to not put down the much more talented and accomplished Bulldogs, as it makes Tech fans look bad. Like most places, not everything on Rumble Seat is 100% accurate (CPJ had nothing to do with the switch to adidas).

 

Who could Tech get who could win as much as Johnson? Every team in their division has upgraded their head coach. Not sure Tech could keep up. Would be great if Tech could strike gold with a young unknown like Clemson did with Dabo, but I doubt even the great Dabo could turn Tech around like he did Clemson.

 

Speaking of Swinney, the young ball coach wasn’t happy with some fans complaining that his #2 ranked undefeated team wasn’t winning by big enough margins. Saturday night Clemson built up a huge lead, then put in the second and third string. The backups allowed rival South Carolina to climb back within two touchdowns. SC had been driving to climb within 14 points when Dabo had enough, finished putting in the first team again when SC went for it on 4th down. SC threw a bomb to score. Clemson kept the ball on the ground to run clock, but SC’s Muschamp kept calling time out to stop the clock. Clemson called another run up the middle. The SC defense couldn’t tackle the running back, and he scored: 56-35. SC fans thought Dabo was running up the score. I guess some Clemson fans thought Dabo should’ve kept the first string in the entire game at the risk of injury, instead of giving the backups valuable experience in case they’re needed in a key situation.    

 

More Steak:  “this game (the 2018 SEC championship game) is bigger for Georgia than last year’s Rose Bowl, bigger than last year’s national championship game.” Huh?

 

While Finneran said UGA had a chance to win if they could do certain things, Steak said UGA could not win. Shapiro was more concerned with the 13-1/2 point spread being so high, considering how good UGA is. Evidently there’s a rift between the two morning co-hosts (with Sandra trying to play peacemaker), though the former Falcon receiver knows he’s got a good thing going, so he won’t be ruffling too many feathers.

SEC ACC Rushing Passing

Final regular season SEC and ACC rushing statistics for UGA, GT, and Clemson. As suspected, Swift & Holyfield combined outrushed all other duos in their conference. 

 

rank.YD.att.avg.long.TD

1. 1524 252 6.0  73  15 Trayveon Williams Texas A&M (SEC)

2. 1305 263 5.0  52  14 Benny Snell, Kentucky

6. 0962 139 6.9  83  09 D’Andre Swift, Georgia

9. 0896 133 6.7  65  07 Elijah Holyfield, Georgia

0. 1858 272 6.8  83  16 Swift & Holyfield combined

 

41. 284 41 6.9 36 2 James Cook, Georgia

42. 278 46 6.0 24 3 Brian Herrien, Georgia

45. 260 39 6.7 47 4 Justin Fields, Georgia

48. 211 45 4.7 44 5 Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama

57. 139 29 4.8 27 1 Jalen Hurts, Alabama

00. 350 74 4.7 44 6 Tua & Hurts combined

 

154. -2 1 -2.0 0 0 Rodrigo Blankenship, Georgia

 

1. 1307 164 8.0 70 19 Travis Etienne, Clemson (ACC)

8. 0896 194 4.6 45 11 TaQuon Marshall, Georgia Tech

9. 0807 143 5.6 65 12 Tobias Oliver, Georgia Tech

0. 1703 337 5.2 65 23 Marshall & Oliver combined

 

18. 640 103 6.2 46 7 Jordan Mason, Georgia Tech

21. 651 105 5.3 52 5 Jerry Howard, Georgia Tech

23. 531 52 10.0 65 4 Lyn-J Dixon, Clemson

26. 455 061 4.5 64 6 Adam Choice, Clemson

29. 379 066 5.7 70 6 Tavien Feaster, Clemson

32. 348 33 10.5 56 3 Qua Searcy, Georgia Tech

35. 326 043 7.6 34 3 Nathan Cottrell, Georgia Tech

49. 203 040 5.1 25 2 Clinton Lynch, Georgia Tech

62. 130 030 4.3 35 2 Kelly Bryant, Clemson 4 games

00. 520 120 4.3 35 8 Kelly Bryant 12 game projection

63. 126 044 2.9 32 1 Trevor Lawrence, Clemson

66. 116 015 7.7 17 2 KirVonte Benson, Georgia Tech

 

SEC and ACC passing stats for UGA, Bama, GT, and Clemson.

 

yard.com..att.PCT.YD/A.L..TD.INT.sack.rating

3189 189 269 70.3 11.9 81 36  2     9     212.5 Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama

2236 161 233 69.1 09.6 75 24  5   12     179.4 Jake Fromm, Georgia

2488 200 302 66.2 08.2 68 22  4     7     156.8 Trevor Lawrence, Clemson

 

0673 043 058 74.1 11.6 54 07  2     1     204.5 Jalen Hurts, Alabama

0166 006 013 46.2 12.8 86 02  0     5     204.2 Tobias Oliver, Georgia Tech

0328 027 038 71.1 08.6 57 04  0     4     178.3 Justin Fields, Georgia

0442 032 049 65.3 09.0 61 05  3     2     162.5 Chase Bryce, Clemson

0461 036 054 66.7 08.5 64 02  1     4     146.9 Kelly Bryant, Clemson

0824 044 100 44.0 08.2 81 05  4   10     121.7 TaQuon Marshall, Georgia Tech

Total Kicking

Republishing a recent article from DawgNation.com.
Somewhere “The Toe” could be turning over in his grave.

 

Ridiculous that Georgia’s Rodrigo Blankenship was not finalist for Lou Groza Award

Chip Towers

@ChipTowersDN

Posted 6 days ago

 

ATHENS — There are a lot of good people around the country who do an admirable thing in creating and sponsoring all these national awards for college football players. Likewise, I’m sure the people of the Palm Beach County Sports Commission — who sponsor and coordinate the Lou Groza Award — are good, well-meaning folks, too. But they also get it wrong sometimes, and this year was one of those times.

 

They left off Georgia’s Rodrigo Blankenship from their list of finalists.

 

“The Groza” was created in 1992 to go to the player deemed to be the nation’s best place-kicker. But if Blankenship isn’t even a finalist for this year’s award, then the trophy is not worth the stainless steel plate on which they’ll engrave the winner’s name.

 

At first, I thought they must have made some kind of unfortunate oversight. But then I realized that couldn’t be the case because they included Blankenship among their semifinalists. Then I thought maybe there were just some really outstanding place-kickers out there that I didn’t know about who were markedly better than Georgia’s guy. Nope, that’s really not the case either.

 

The three finalists are: Cole Tracy, LSU; Andre Szymt, Syracuse; and Cooper Rothe, Wyoming. Only one of them deserves to be on any list that would include Blankenship. None of them could hold Blankenship’s right shoe lace.

 

The criteria for this award is somewhat confusing. Reading up on the Lou Groza Award website, we’re told that “accomplishments are tabulated throughout the season and the Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award committee announces its 20 semi-finalists in early November. From this list, a panel of over 300 experts selects the top three finalists for the award in late November. That same group then selects the national winner.”

 

So, upon closer inspection, this is a voted-on award. We’re not told who these “experts” are but apparently I’m one of them.

 

I realized way after the fact that I received a ballot to vote on this. Being a sports reporter and a member of the Football Writers Association of America, apparently I’m considered an “expert.” Two problems with that: One, it was sent to an ancient email address I no longer use and I was not alerted in any other way; and, two, like most responsible, objective news outlets, my employer doesn’t allow us to vote on individual awards such as the Groza or the Heisman. It’s a conflict of interest.

 

So the semifinalists are determined how they should be, by being recognized by the commission’s board of directors for their respective performances. Then, apparently, it’s voted on.

 

The truth is, this is an award that doesn’t need to be voted on. I mean, kicking is kicking, right? You’re either good at it or you’re not. And when it comes to that, none of these guys are better than Blankenship.

 

Need proof? Let’s turn to a stat known as “total kicking.” It’s not an official stat kept by the NCAA, but it probably should be. Total kicking takes into account all types of kicking — field goals, point-after-touchdown kicks and kickoffs. It’s a pretty simple calculation: Total points plus touchbacks divided by games played equals total kicking score.

 

Here’s how that looks between Blankenship and the three Groza finalists:

• Blankenship — 106 points (on 18-20 FGs/52-52 PATs) + 69 (of 81) touchbacks divided by 11 games = 15.91
• Szmyt — 135 points (28-31/51-51) + touchbacks 0 divided by 11 games = 12.27
• Cole — 99 points (22-25/33-33) + touchbacks 0 divided by 11 games = 9.0
• Rothe — 69 points (15-16/24-24)  + 25 (of 49) touchbacks divided by 11 games = 8.54

Yeah, that’s right, neither Cole nor Szmyt handle kickoffs for their teams.

 

And I don’t know how Rothe got on there either. Guess they must have launched an intense “go vote for Cooper” campaign in Wyoming and the Big Sky Conference. Or maybe he’s the nephew of somebody on the Palm Beach Sports Commission.

 

Again, this is not to say that none of those other kickers are deserving of recognition. They’re all exceptional at what they do, I’m sure. But when it comes to kicking, it’s not that hard to compare and contrast.

 

It’s not like the Heisman Trophy where you’re trying to determine who’s the best overall player in football. Or the Lombardi Award or Outland Trophy, where you’re trying to determine who’s the better interior offensive or defensive lineman. Those awards are loaded with subjectivity.

 

Good kicking is much more plain to see, and they don’t get any better than Mr. Rec Specs. Even if you take away the touchbacks, to which clearly this group pays no attention, Blankenship’s field-goal kicking holds up. Especially when one considers one of his missed attempts a block. And he would also have two more field goals if his coaches weren’t so bent on him running fakes, and at the absolute worst of times.

 

The whole affair was summed up nicely on Twitter by Blankenship’s former teammate and Georgia punter Cameron Nizalek: "I didn’t read anything about citizenship, public service or academics being part of this award, but Blankenship has those covered, too. That’s why he’s one of the 11 members of the prestigious Allstate Good Works Team. Accordingly, Blankenship took the high road. When the three finalists were announced, he sent out a congratulatory tweet."

 

Again, at the end of the day, these awards really don’t mean much. All these teams know the worth of their respective kickers, and Hot Rod couldn’t be more appreciated by his teammates, or his fan base. He continues to draw the largest ovation during lineup announcements at Sanford Stadium.

 

Perhaps Blankenship will have the last laugh by being named an All-American. Or, better yet, by bringing home a conference and/or a national championship.

 

You can bet those guys in the NFL don’t care whether you won the Groza or not. It’s not a stretch to think a professional contract may be in Hot Rod’s future. But we’re assuming he will wait around another year to test those waters.

 

https://www.dawgnation.com/football/ridiculous-that-georgias-rodrigo-blankenship-was-not-finalist-for-lou-groza-award 

Thanksgiving Weekend

Worked late last Tuesday night. Came home and crashed. Anna was working on her ten page paper all night. W&MC would be spending the weekend in Cartersville with her parents. I watched Julia Louis Dreyfus receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on PBS.  

 

Spent most of Wednesday morning cleaning upstairs. Made the bed. Put up clean clothes. Got dirty clothes ready to wash. Went downstairs and did laundry all day. Did the dishes. Cleaned and cleaned. Anna got off at four but had an appointment at 5:30. M got off at six. He brought home something to eat from Whole Foods. Packed up Anna’s car.

 

Hit the road at 6:45 (or was it 7:45?). When we left home the GPS said I-20 was the quickest route, but after we got gas the GPS said to take I-85. Traffic was heavy but not gridlocked. A and M wanted to make a late night Taco Bell run, so we stopped in Greenville at 10 pm. Also topped off the gas tank. Checked the GPS again and since it was so late I decided to skip the dark two lane backloads and hit the Charlotte southside perimeter instead. Hardly any traffic. Made it to Matthews (SE Charlotte) by midnight and Jefferson by 1 am. Got 28 MPG in Anna’s Subaru.

 

Helped get ready for Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday morning. Then everyone showed up about noon and we ate a little after one. All the usual dishes. Only ate one plateful. Only had 13 at the dinner but later Phil and Dic Dac’s crowd came over, bringing the total up to 22. Had the NFL games on. After everyone left we rested, and I just had a little for dinner.

Friday we had another big meal, this time for eighteen. Ceil cooked chili. A and M made cornbread muffins. Others brought oyster stew, vegetable beef soup, and chicken tortilla soup. After lunch most of the crowd laft and headed over to Clemson for Saturday’s game. A and M headed back to Atlanta so they could work  . I was sent to Monroe for Christmas lights. Stopped for gas, Lowe’s, Target, two thrift stores, and Wendy’s. On the drive I listened to 680’s college football podcasts.

Saturday morning I settled in for a long day of football. Watched ESPN College Gameday and GT/GA. Had to put up the lights up on the porch during Bama/Auburn, so I only saw bits and pieces of the game. Also had to drive back to Pageland to CVS for a prescription, Pizza Hut to pick up dinner, and Bojangles for Sunday breakfast. Watched SC/Clemson. All weekend I worked on unsubscribing to the hundreds of emails I get every day.

 

Got packed up Sunday morning and left Jefferson at 9:50 am. Traffic heavy but steady. Stopped once in Augusta. Made it home by 3 pm. Didn’t do much, but I had to drive over to work to get some documents for Matthew.  Stopped for gas on the way home.  Got 30.5 MPG on the way home in the CRV.

 

Matthew made up a batch of the pumpkin cake dessert we’d had on Thanksgiving.

Rivalry Pics

Photos from yesterday's games...

 The Dawgs throttled Tech's running game.

 But Swift and his running mates ran free.

Jake Fromm paid proper respect to the rivalry.

 Tech tried to cover the fastest receiver in the SEC with a middle linebacker.

 JJ Holloman out-jumped Tech's Rivera for the touch.

 Holyfield powered to the pylon.

 Bama cruised past the War Eagles.

 South Carolina wouldn't quit, so neither did Clemson.

 Hunter Renfrow had another big game.

Florida ended FSU's bowl streak.

 When I went to bed the score was tied at 24 all.

 Evidently there were a few questionable calls.

The play below was ruled a first down.

Number 10 Ohio State upset #4 Michigan

Vandy beat Tennessee

Today both Nick Chubb and Sony Michel had big games again.

Rivalry Saturday

Notes from today's football games. For the record I'm wearing a GT blue t-shirt. Tech has won the last two games in Athens. Both times they wore gold helmets, white jerseys, and white pants. That's what they're wearing today. Smart choice.

UGA methodically drives the field for touchdowns on their first two possessions. Ridley catches a short pass over the middle for the first score, then Swift powers in for the second. 14-0.

On Tech's first possession CPJ was going to go for it on fourth down, but after the third down play the UGA defender pulls GT QB TaQuon Marshall's helmet off. Marshall has to sit out a play, then the Jackets jump offside on fourth down. Pressley Harbin punt fair caught on the 12 yard line. 

Buckeyes strike first, scoring on a touchdown pass.

GT returns kickoff for TD. I might've been the only one to see the uncalled clipping penalty. Was pulling for Rodrigo to make the tackle. 14-7.

Another UGA drive. Fromm TD pass, his second of the day. 21-7.

UGA hitting harder after the obvious targeting penalty was overturned. The backup Tech linebacker celebrates. Dawgs stop jackets on fourth down, then Fromm spots Hardiman in man to man, covered by a slow linebacker. 28-7.

1:11 pm: Buckeyes go up 14-6.

Down 28-7 GT punts. Good return by Mecole Hardiman. Freshman Cook slices through the defense for twelve. Another UGA lineman goes down. Swift for ten. Holyfield 11 yard TD run. 35-7 with 5:00 remaining in the half. Five TD's scored by five different players. UGA has outgained Tech 303 to 43. Fromm 9-10 for 144 yards.

Marshall sacked on 4th & 5, giving UGA good field position with 48 ticks remaining in the half. Rodrigo splits the uprights to end the half. 38-7. Peter Burns: "My Thanksgiving turkey put up a better fight than Tech in the first half."

Syracuse 28 BC 14
Buckeyes 21 Michigan 7 (1:35 pm)
Buckeyes 24 Michigan 19 (1:55 pm)

Second half: Jackets forced to punt, a rugby 29 yarder. Fromm starts the third quarter. Where is Justin Fields? Dawgs drive. Fields run. Fromm to Ridley for the touch. 45-7.

Jackets convert on 4th & short. Twice in a row. But not a third. Fields takes over with a minute remaining in the third quarter. On third & five, Fields overthrows Hardeman, and UGA has to punt for the first time since the Auburn game.

Florida extends their lead over FSU 27-7. The loss ends the Noles' long streak of bowl games. NC State 21-13 over UNC. Wake Forest 38-7 over Duke.

Fields barely converts on fourth down. Cook fumbles. Tech drives. Searcy scores. 45-14 with 7:30 remaining.

Buckeyes 34-19 over Michigan (2:50 pm).

Fields finally strings together several first downs on his third possession, mostly thanks to the talented Mr. Cook. Fields unwisely catches his own deflected pass, losing more yards. Rodrigo's 48 yard try hits halfway up the upright. He's 19-22 for the year.

34-14 Florida.

TaQuon passes the Jackets downfield as the clock ticks down, hitting senior Brad Stewart for the touchdown with 39 seconds remaining. 45-21 will be the final score. 

After the game I went out to hang Christmas lights CVS, Bojangles, and Pizza Hut. Thin crust beef and onion for me.

Georgia Southern 35 Georgia State14

Ohio State 62 Michigan 39. Puts Haskins back in the Heisman race, but how could the #10 Buckeyes jump six teams to make the playoff - especially after failing to show up against Purdue and Maryland? Doesn't change anything for the Dawgs - they still have to beat Bama to advance. 

With the state championship on the line, Clemson wears their orange championship pants. Gamecocks take the kickoff and march down the field for a touchdown. It's the first time Clemson has allowed an opponent to score a TD all season. 7-0.

Clemson answers with two TD drives, the second a 95 yarder. 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.

Kentucky 21 Louisville 7 - no surprise.
Florida 41 FSU 14
Syracuse 42 BC 21
NC State 34 UNC 28
Wake Forest 59 Duke 7
 
SC drives. A first & goal after a pass interference penalty, but the Tigers hold. Bentley throw incompletions on third and fourth down. Clemson drives 97 yards to go up 21-7, but SC answers with a 67 yard catch and run on third down: 21-14.

USC draws first blood: 7-0 (8:20 pm).
Kentucky 28 Louisville 10
Miami 24 Pitt 3

More scoring: Clemson drives for another TD, punctuated by a long run by QB Trevor Lawrence (need to compare his rushing stats to those of Kelly Bryant last year). But SC throws another long TD pass - 75 yards. 28-21.

Clemson has to punt for the first time, with two minutes remaining in the first half. Dabo wearing an orange cap with an old school block C. Would be fun to be a coach and wear a different cap almost every game: white, ordange purple, visor, cap, tiger paw, block C, baseball's round C. 

SC drives close to midfield, but Bentley throws an interception. Lawrence immediately throws a TD pass, but Rogers is called for pushing off. Griese calls it a "ticky tack" call. Completion to Renfrow but two straight incompletions: one out of bounds and another a shade too low. The field goal was wide right. 28-21 at the half, the most point Clemson has allowed all year. 

Kentucky 35 Louisville 10
Vanderbilt 38 Tennessee 13 
Minnesota 37 Wisconsin 15. Badgers a preseason playoff pick. And zero talk about Penn State today. 

USC 10 Notre Dame 7

Griese on Hunter Renfrow: "one of the best players in college football." Tigers take the second half kickoff and drive for five minutes. TD makes it 35-21.

SC has to punt. Another TD drive for Clemson. 42-21 with 7 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Has SC given up on defense?

ESPN's Todd McShay: Clemson almost as good as Bama. Cocks drive. First and goal, but Tigers hold again (9:50 pm).

LSU & A&M tied at 17 (at 9:50) but ten minutes later A&M answers: 24-17.

Fourth quarter in Clemson. Tigers drive. The fog rolls in off the lake. Streeter caps the 98 yard drive with a TD run: 49-21.

SC drives the field against Clemson's backups, scoring on a fourth down TD pass. 49-28. Most points Clemson has given up all year.

Notre Dame 14 USC 10 at 10:15 pm.
#8 Washington State lost last night to Washington, 28-15.

Clemson fumbles, and SC converts, making it a two score game with 3:37 remaining. 49-35.

LSU returns a fumble to tie the score at 24.

Clemson drives the field as the clock runs down. Inside a minute remaining on fourth down Lawrence passes to Renfrow for a first and goal at the nine yard line. All Clemson has to do is take a knee to run out the clock, but Lawrence takes the snap from the shotgun, and hands to Entiene, who powered across to make the score 56-35.

Wild ending: SC tries to mount one last drive, but with the chains not set from a long gain, SC receiver makes another first down but fails to get out of bounds. Officials don't stop the clock and the game ends before Bentley can go for the end zone.

Third Time Not the Charm

For the third and last time this season, the Falcons donned their throwback uniforms last Sunday against the always traditionally-clad Dallas Cowboys.

With the roof of Mercedes Benz Stadium open,

the Falcons saluted the military with a pregame flyover.

 

Though his replacement did well, Falcons kicker Matt Bryant returned from injury and kicked four field goals, including a 53 yarder.  

 Long day for Matt Ryan. 

The teams looked remarkably similar

to when they met back in the mid-1990's (below).

Late in the game Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones had to play defensive back to prevent an interception.

I'm loving the photos taken from overhead. 

Vic Beasley Jr. chases Dak Prescott.

Julio Jones scored a late-game touchdown to give the Falcons the lead.

Back in the day it was Jesse Tuggle and Michael Irvin wearing the same unis.

This time the defense couldn't hold the lead,

and well-traveled Cowboys kicker Brett Maher nailed the game-winner as time expired.

 The Redskins also wore throwback uniforms.

 For Thanksgiving the Lions wore their 1930's-era uniforms.