Colt McCoy and the Texas Longhorns solve their offensive woes for now, beating Missouri 41-7

Boy was it ugly, Colt McCoy and his team spared no one in the beatdown they served the Missouri Tigers on Saturday night. It was so ugly that in the third quarter ABC pulled the plug to switch over to their West Coast coverage of the USC and Oregon State game--where these two teams were trading punches. It was the old McCoy (26/31 for 269 yards with 3 touchdowns and one interception) playing pitch and catch with his receivers against an overmatched Missouri team. The entire nation has been waiting for him to breakout this season, and he did against albeit a Missouri team whose quarterback Blaine Gabbert was playing with an injured ankle. Gabbert was unable to plant his feet and this cause a lot of his balls to have no velocity on them. Do not misunderstand me, Missouri can put up points like Texas Tech, but these two offenses score too fast so their defenses get no time to rest and that is why they give up a lot of points, on defense. And also your team identity in college dictates the recruits you will attract: so an offensive team will get more kids on offensive side than the defensive side and vice versa. Not only that, but the Longhorn’s defense (#2 in total defense--which was held by Alabama who dropped to #4) have stepped up in a big way since the Oklahoma game. It’s safe to say that Mack Brown’s team looked far more impressive last Saturday than Alabama and Florida (who both struggled to secure a definitive win). But on a whole, Alabama, Florida, and Texas do not look like the same teams from the 2008 season. One thing for sure is that Texas should not get too excited by beating a Missouri team that is ranked 52nd in the nation in total offense (giving up an average of 345.86 yards per game) and a pass defense that is 65th in the nation (allowing on average of 218.0 yards per game through the air). Looking at their schedule, the best defense they played was Oklahoma’s and they barely won that game, 16-13. Yes, they are in control of their own destiny, but what lies ahead is a trip to Boone Pickens Stadium to play Oklahoma State this upcoming Saturday. I know you are going to say that no Dez Bryant (lied to the NCAA) and Kendall Hunter (injured) will make it easier for the Longhorns. However, you never know: they still have Zac Robinson at quarterback (12 touchdowns and 3 interceptions) and Keith Toston (6 rushing touchdowns and 606 yards rushing so far). Last season, the Longhorns (at home) looked less than stellar in a tight game that they eked out, 28-24. Texas is 3rd in the AP poll, USA Today poll, and BCS standings. If they win out, the winner of the December 5th SEC Championship game will be their opponent in the national title game. But if for some reason they lose a game along the way, all their national championship aspirations fly out the window. And that leaves the Men of Troy sitting perfectly in all this. USC is sitting comfortably (on the 50th floor of the penthouse suite) at No.5 in the BCS standings, and all they have to do is win out, and for Texas to have one loss for them to be in the national title game. The Trojans have to beat Oregon in Autzen Stadium (one of the toughest places to play in the nation, if not the loudest) this upcoming Saturday and this will allow them to step over Iowa (4th in the BCS) and be seated at the No.4 spot in the BCS. But if they lose, they might be out of the BCS picture all together. There is no doubt that silently and secretively USC is hoping for a Texas loss and for their offense to put up 42 points on Oregon like they did against Oregon State. But it has to be disheartening for Trojan fans (myself included) to witness their defense giving up 63 points in their last two games. Last season, Texas’ hopes of the national title were taken away in a Cinderella moment by Michael Crabtree. And then the stupid Big 12 tiebreaker rule that kept them out of Big 12 Championship game, even though they beat Oklahoma head-to-head, 45-35. No one can deny Texas of their destiny, if they just win out. But for the Longhorns it’s all about consistency, this was the first game where their offense was firing on all cylinders, can they keep it up for the remainder of the season?

Alabama pulls ahead in the AP Poll to No. 2

Alabama has been playing really well since the season kicked off. On Saturday, they downed an overmatched Ole Miss team to get the victory, 22-3. Later that night, Tim Tebow came back after suffering a concussion against Kentucky to pull the Florida Gators ahead of an LSU team that has no identity on offense. A turn of events in the polls (AP Poll) have the Crimson Tide No. 2 behind Florida; and rightfully so, they have looked far better than Texas. There is no denying that ‘Bama has the best defense in the SEC from the games I watched. They are ranked 2nd nationally in total defense, allowing on average 220.50 yards per game. The national leader in total defense is Florida, but Alabama’s wins over Virginia Tech, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Ole Miss is far more impressive than Florida’s resume at this point in the season. The Gators have wins over Charleston Southern (total offense ranks 34th in the FCS), Troy (total offense ranks 50th), Tennessee (total offense ranks 48th), Kentucky (ranks 89th), and LSU (total offense ranks 109th). Alabama sports a top 10 rushing defense that only allows on average 65.67 yards per game; Florida’s defense allows twenty yards more on the ground. With a stellar running game spearheaded by Mark Ingram and his understudy Trent Richardson, the Crimson Tide are ranked 11th in the nation in rushing with an average of 223.50 yards per game. Ingram is averaging a whopping 5.9 yards per carry and Richardson is, right up there with him, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. Junior quarterback Greg McElroy has been a surprise to everyone, except the Alabama coaching staff. In a recent interview, Nick Saban mentioned that he knew what McElroy had to offer by watching him in practice. McElroy shows he has the arm to make all the throws and you can see that he is highly competitive. He has to try to make better decisions and realize that he needs to spread the ball around to all his available weapons. At times, he tries to get the ball to Julio Jones (their playmaker at wide receiver) in double coverage or triple coverage and that is very dangerous. ‘Bama has had trouble in the red zone because of trying to find the jump ball for Jones, but there are other options that are open: Tight end Colin Peek, who is a big target (6’6, 255 pounds), play-action is an option as well, and screen passes to the running backs. McElroy is completing 61% of his passes so far and has passed for 1233 yards with nine touchdowns and one interception. Alabama sits at No. 2 in the AP Poll while the USA Today coaches ‘poll has them at No. 3. I really feel like Florida and Alabama will meet again in the SEC Championship game; and who knows, there might be a different outcome this season. Florida’s receiving corps has suffered a rash of injuries, and they do not have that X-Factor at wide receiver like they had in previous years with Percy Harvin. If Alabama continues to win, there is no doubt they will be No. 2 in both polls, and the showdown with Florida will be big or bigger than last year’s meeting. Texas has not look that impressive and Colt McCoy has not been himself: McCoy gets in the groove in the second half and in the first half he has not been accurate with his throws; you can see him settle into the game when the third quarter rolls around. The Longhorns matchup with Oklahoma in the Red River game next Saturday will be telling. Texas must be careful because they face an Oklahoma team that has two losses and has all to gain if they beat the Longhorns. If Texas beats Oklahoma, it does nothing for them because of Oklahoma’s 20th ranking in the AP and 18th in the USA Today poll. A loss by Mack Brown’s team will surely kill their national championship hopes. After the Red River game, Texas will face only two top 20 teams, so it is crucial they continue to win and look impressive. One loss by the Longhorns will be detrimental to their cause unless other teams falter at the top; a one loss SEC team will still be in the mix because of the strength of the conference. Nick Saban will have his boys ready to play every Saturday, but they are only kids and they have a lot on their plate. And there is even more pressures for these players to balance everything going on in their lives, especially at a strong football program like the University of Alabama. But this season sets up nicely for Alabama to be the most consistent team in college football. All that lies ahead is that caped crusader named Tebow.