Pigskin Potpourri, Week 12

I have had profound respect for Washington's football program since witnessing the Huskies' 1992 Rose Bowl victory over Michigan, which gave UW a share of the national title. But let's face it, the Washington schools are the doormat of the Pac-10 these days. UW continued its slide into ignominy with a convincing home loss to Slick Rick's UCLA Bruins. And the Wazzu Cougars played their part in Operation Poinsettia by allowing the Sun Devils to post their first shutout in 12 years.

Evergreen State futility aside, it was a wild week in the Pac-10. Oregon outlasted Arizona in a zany shootout, USC took Stanford seriously this time and smacked down the Cardinal, and the Rodgers brothers propelled Oregon State to a much-needed win over Cal.

Should the Beavers defeat Arizona and Oregon, they are Rose Bowl bound. Having OSU in Pasadena would likely enable a superior USC team to slither its way into a BCS matchup against Florida, Texas or some other non-Big 10 heavyweight. Go Beavs.

Crystal Ball (Express)

Alas, no time to wax poetic today, so a few quick picks for the weekend...

Notre Dame over Navy in a competitive one. I like the Irish run defense to stuff Navy when it counts.

Ohio State over reeling Illinois.

South Florida over Rutgers.

Texas over Kansas.

UPSET ALERT: Air Force over Brigham Young, which has its attention on next week's showdown with Utah.

North Carolina squeaks by Maryland.

Oregon over Arizona in a thriller.

USC over Stanford by at least five scores.

Florida State over Boston College, big. (tho', if B.C. can force some turnovers, it'll be closer.)

Bonus pick:

Cowboys over Redskins, with Dallas QB Tony Romo showing surprisingly little rust.

On the tube

Watch these:
11 a.m.: Navy at Notre Dame (CBS) -- Notre Dame continues to redeem itself. Midshipmen try to make it two in a row.
11:30 a.m.: Texas at Kansas (FSN) -- Longhorns need a win to stay in contention for a three-way Big 12 South tie.
2:30 p.m.: North Carolina at Maryland (ESPN Gameplan in Big 12 Land) -- Fight for ACC control.
6 p.m.: USC at Stanford (Versus) -- The Cardinal can help Oregon State or Cal make it to the Rose Bowl.
7 p.m.: Boston College at Florida State (ESPN Gameplan) -- I hate you, ABC/ESPN, for forcing us to watch Oklahoma State at Colorado. FSU is going for a Blackout Night. BC has a chance to stay in contention for a trip to the ACC championship.

Flip to it when you can:
11 a.m.: Ohio State at Illinois (ESPN) -- Buckeyes almost maybe possibly could steal the Big 10 crown. Illinois fights for bowl eligibility, a year after a Rose Bowl appearance.
2:30 p.m.: Cal at Oregon State (ESPN Gameplan) -- Either could back their way into the Rose Bowl.
7 p.m.: Tulsa at Houston (CBSC) -- Will be an offensive shootout, with two of the top producers in the NCAA.

Don't even bother:
11 a.m.: Rutgers at South Florida (ESPN Gameplan) -- South Florida may be the worst bowl-eligible team in the Big East.
2:30 p.m.: Minnesota at Wisconsin (ESPN) -- Exhibit 963 for why I don't really like the Big 10.
5:30 p.m.: Missouri at Iowa State (FSN) -- Hyper-regional interest only.
6 p.m.: UConn at Syracuse (ESPNU) -- Would rather watch the non-televised Texas A&M at Baylor.
7 p.m.: Oklahoma State at Colorado (ABC) -- This might have mattered if, say, the Cowboys had beaten Texas and/or Texas Tech. Instead, the geniuses at ABC/ESPN are serving up a big dud in prime time.

Crystal Ball Express (Thursday Edition)

Hi all. Expect a full-on Crystal Ball tomorrow. In the meantime, here are predictions for tonight's twin bill:

Virginia Tech at Miami. The Hokies are a much more efficient team with QB Sean Glennon running the offense. And they have found a running game in RB Darren Evans. But Tech has struggled on the road this season, while Miami has speed to burn on both sides of the ball. I wouldn't be surprised if Tech snatches this one late, but my gut tells me that the Hurricanes will prevail in a competitive slugfest.

Jets at Patriots. How about that QB Matt Cassel? When these two teams last met, Cassel was starting his first game in the Post Brady Injury era. Now, it's Week 11 and the division is at stake. The Jets are a hot and cold team --- much like their leader, QB Brett Favre. Which Favre/Jets Team will show up? The one that pummeled the Rams last week? Or the one that lost to Oakland in overtime a few weeks back? I think the Jets will show flashes of both of their personalities tonight. On the other side, the Pats will be efficient as always and maybe give up a big play or two. But I think New England will force Favre into some mistakes and has the offensive horses to squeak by.

Quick college basketball note: UCLA's senior guard Darren Collison is a sight to behold. In the Bruins' first game Wednesday against Prairie View A&M, Collison put up Chris Paul-like numbers: 19 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 steals. All of that came in only 28 minutes. One sequence against Prairie View went like this: Collison steals the ball. Collison drains a three. Collison steals the ball. That's downright Jordanesque. NBA scouts are drooling.

The Agony Meter (and other thoughts)

It's been a busy time for us three fans. Jake is working diligently on his professorial duties. Ian has been busting out stories left and right. And I have been caught between multiple work and home commitments. But the sporting world rolls on, and so does 3 Fans.

This week's Agony Meter, a look at the tribulations of our three alma maters:

Loads o' agony: Southern Methodist
The Mustangs lose a close one yet again -- this time to Memphis. Progress Schmogress. We're dyin' for some actual wins!

A dash o' agony (tie): Arizona State
The Sun Devils get back on course with a convincing 39-19 win against Washington. Still, we can't help noticing that this is the same Huskie team USC absolutely obliterated the week before.

A dash o' agony (tie): Boston College
The Eagles snap a two-game losing streak in grand fashion -- by shutting out rival Notre Dame on national television. It's hard to argue with that, although B.C.'s offense at times looked about as ugly as Newark, N.J.

Now for some other thoughts:

If I were a Wall Street man, I'd short sell: Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell
He's putting up studly numbers and is currently everyone's Heisman frontrunner, including mine. But someone is bound to decipher Tech's secrets sooner or later. Will it be Oklahoma? Baylor in an upset? Missouri in the Big 12 championship?

Ted Kim Fantasy Football update: Another dominant performance by the Dallas Barbecues in Fantasy Football puts Mr. Kim in 3rd place out of 12 and in a solid playoff posture.

Golfing Theory 101: Having observed minor league golf up close this past week at the Nationwide Tour Championship, I have figured out the difference between that tour and the major league PGA Tour: Putting. As in, PGA players can and Nationwide players can't.

He's growing on me: ESPN analyst Todd Blackledge. Like superstar analyst-of-record Kirk Herbstreit, Mr. Blackledge is articulate and sees both the big picture and the intricacies of the game.

I wish I had drafted in Fantasy Basketball: Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose. The rook from Memphis is a complete stud, averaging nearly 18 points a game. And he's about as old as your younger sister.

The National League Yankees: How can the Chicago Cubs, a team known as the "Loveable Losers," lose my sympathy? By signing San Diego ace pitcher Jake Peavy. This team already has two money-bags aces: Carlos Zambrano and Rich Harden. Adding Peavy would be downright unfair and, dare I say, Yankee-esque. You're talented enough, Chicago. Your problem is mental. Win with what you've got, I say.

They should replace the NBA's Washington Wizards: North Carolina. The Heels are so good, so deep, so experienced and so motivated to win the national championship that it's almost unfair.

They may be inferior in football... But when it comes to men's basketball, man alive!: The Big East. This conference has no fewer than seven teams in the AP Top 25, including three in the Top 5. The Big East is to basketball what the Big 12 and SEC are to football. Combined.

Blu-ray Disc of the Week: Transformers. Say what you want about the movie itself, which is typical Hollywood popcorn-for-the-masses fare. The lossless audio and video quality are stunning.

The BCS

Back to normal here, post-election week.

Top 2: Alabama, Texas Tech

Conference champs/leaders:
Big 12: [Texas Tech]
Big 10: Penn State
SEC: [Alabama]
ACC: Ummm...North Carolina?
Big East: Uhh.....Pitt?
Pac 10: USC

Non-automatic conference in Top 12: Utah

No. 3, 4: Texas, Florida

One at-large spot. Not SEC, not Big 12. Makes Boise State, Ohio State and -- get this -- Ball State eligible.

If they were played today:
(Automatic placements are not labeled; guessed placements are marked as such.)
BCS Championship: Alabama-Texas Tech. Smashmouth vs. gunslinging.
Orange Bowl: North Carolina-Pitt (guess). Not the best-executed game, but oh well.
Sugar Bowl: Florida (guess)-Ohio State (guess). Gators dominate.
Fiesta Bowl: Texas (guess)-Utah (guess). Longhorns destroy the Utes.
Rose Bowl: USC-Penn State. Really, really good game.

What we learned (express)

Another crisp fall weekend has come to a close. The weather's getting nippy, even in Dallas, which means the games are getting important.

Things are finally (Finally!) starting to shake out in the BCS conferences. The list of games that matter is growing short. But if you're team is still alive at this point, then your season's already made.

Let's look toward the final weeks and pinpoint the games we'll all be watching...

Brigham Young at Utah (11/22). Mountain West supremacy, BCS birth, yada yada yada. All of it is Utah's to lose. (That said, they better not overlook San Diego State the week before.)

Texas Tech at Oklahoma (11/22). If you're not aware of this game's significance already, you might as well stop reading.

Michigan State at Penn State (11/22). A defacto Big Ten title game?

West Virginia at Pittsburgh (11/28). This showdown will likely decide the Big East championship.

Georgia Tech at Georgia (11/29). Can the Yellow Jackets finally break the Bulldog hex and represent their conference? They've got as good a shot as any.

Notre Dame at USC (11/29). If you can draw breath and you watch at least an hour of ESPN each day, then it's your duty to watch no matter how lopsided it is.

Auburn at Alabama (11/29). For the Crimson Tide, only one game to go before the SEC title game and a shot at the national title. What a perfect opportunity for your arch nemesis to screw it all up.

Florida at Florida State (11/29). Here's the ultimate chance for the Seminoles to show they're back.

Games that interest only me:

Florida State at Maryland (11/22). This one, at what will be a rocking Byrd Stadium in College Park, Md., will be for ACC Atlantic Division supremacy.

Syracuse at Notre Dame (11/22). The matchup looks boring on paper, I know. But consider all the subplots. This is a must-win for the bowl hopes of the Irish and could be Syracuse coach Greg Robinson's last hurrah. Moreover, it's Notre Dame's last home game of the season on NBC.

Colorado State at Wyoming (11/22). The Mountain West Network's first televised high-definition game. It'll be from Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium, a venue I have never seen before on television.

Overrated: Boise State, Ball State

Underrated: Florida State, Virginia Tech, Indianapolis Colts

Fine Nine: Texas Tech, Alabama, Florida, Texas, USC, Oklahoma, Penn State, Ohio State, Utah