Category Archives: 2013

Another QB Leaves University of Texas Football Program

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University logo for the University of Texas

by Travis Normand

According to Horns247.com, Connor Brewer (QB) is leaving (transferring from) the University of Texas football program.  While it may only be my perception, it sure does seem like a lot of good quarterbacks have transferred away from the Longhorn program over the past couple of years.  One has to wonder what is going on in Austin.

Quarterbacks that have recently left the Longhorns behind:

  1. Connor Brewer
  2. Connor Wood (now at Colorado)
  3. Garrett Gilbert (now at SMU)

Normally, numerous transfers would not be something worth writing about.  However, I am making an exception here because these quarterbacks were all considered quality recruits.

Had only one or two quarterbacks decided to transfer, I may not have taken notice.   However, Brewer is the third quarterback since 2010!

Off-Season Stories – The Platypus Trophy

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Platypus Trophy following restoration in 2007

Half Beaver, Half Duck

by Travis Normand

This story came out last November (2012) but didn’t get much attention.  Now that it is mid-summer, it is a great time to revisit the story.  Hopefully this will help you pass the time until kick-off.

Also, this is one of the best rivalry trophies I have ever seen.  What other rivalry can say that characteristics of the mascots for each team involved in the rivalry actually come together somewhere in nature?  Is there an animal that is part Buckeye and part Wolverine? No. What about part ‘Gator and part Seminole? No.  Aggie and Longhorn?  No.  In my opinion, it would be a real shame for Oregon and Oregon State to NOT use the Platypus as their rivalry trophy.

In Oregon, Civil Rivalry but Quirky One
by Greg Bishop
Published: November 22, 2012
NYTimes.com

CORVALLIS, Ore. — In the broadest, most stereotypical sense, one of the oldest rivalries in college football pits Ducks against Beavers, hippies against farmers, liberals against conservatives. It is defined by proximity and mediocrity, by civility and acrimony, by close games and foul weather and the last 0-0 tie in Division I.

The Civil War, they call it.

The series started in 1894, when Oregon State University, then known as the Oregon Agricultural College, defeated the University of Oregon, 16-0. It will continue Saturday when two top-20 teams meet here for far more than local bragging rights.

For years, the programs seemed to lack a central ingredient to any rivalry: something to win. There was no Golden Egg (Mississippi and Mississippi State), no Keg of Nails (Louisville and Cincinnati) and no Apple Cup (Washington and Washington State).

This brings us to a mystery, to the story of the Platypus Trophy, once missing, stolen and lost — “I’ve heard rumors,” Oregon offensive lineman Nick Cody said — now found.

“I haven’t seen this since 2007,” Warren Spady said as he surveyed his handiwork this week.

Spady drew the platypus assignment in 1959, as an undergraduate at Oregon. He bought two blocks of wood and began to carve, using a stuffed platypus for inspiration. He worked day and night for a month, with four mallets and six chisels, until his forearms ached, until the beak resembled a Duck and the tail looked like that of a Beaver.

While he sanded the trophy smooth, the game approached. He never did finish the feet.

In the early 1960s, the trophy went missing for months, then years, then decades. In 1986, while on sabbatical at Oregon, Spady bumped into the platypus, his platypus, in a water polo trophy case on Oregon’s campus. Then it disappeared again.

Read the rest of this article HERE

You can also check out the Platypus Trophy Wikipedia page for more info.

NCAA Committee on Infractions Report (Oregon) – June 26, 2013

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Oregon Donald Duck - 16Kby Travis Normand

After a 28-month long investigation, the NCAA has finally announced the sanctions that are to be placed on the University of Oregon’s football program.

I believe this is the first time in NCAA history that a program has been banned from using subscription recruiting services.  (See NCAA Report, Section V., Penalty No. 7, page 25).

NCAA - 25K

 

CFB Rule Theory

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by Travis Normand

Last fall (2012), Nick Saban voiced his concern over the fast-paced no-huddle offense. However, Saban is not the only coach to have some thoughts about the no-huddle as Arkansas’ head coach Bret Bielema recently (June 2013) made some comments as well.

Bielema went so far as to actually suggest a potential rule change that would allow a defense to substitute its players during an opposing team’s no-huddle offensive drive.  In discussing his idea, Bielema was careful to say that his rule change was more about a defensive players safety than a desire to slow-down, or stop, a fast-paced offense.

Despite Saban’s and/or Bielema’s intention, we now have a debate:  Should we institute a rule change that would allow a defense to substitute its players during an offense’s fast-paced no-huddle drive, and potentially run the risk of negating that offense’s entire strategy?

One might argue that the current rule is unfair to a defense (and thus more than fair to an offense).  While I can agree that is a valid argument, I do not believe it justifies a rule change.

The current rule on substitutions is basically that if the offense doesn’t substitute, then the defense cannot substitute.  This allows an up-tempo offense to run play after play, with little time between each play, and to control if and when the defense can substitute its players.

However, this strategy, employed by many offenses throughout college football, is a strategic advantage found within the current rules.  There was no rule change granted to the offensive coordinators of the world in order to give them this advantage.

Having said that, it would make sense that if a defense wants to find a way to stop an up-tempo, fast-paced offense, they must do so within the current confines of the rules as they now stand.  The defensive coordinators should not be given a proverbial “12th Man,” or rule change, in order to help them find a way to stop these offensive attacks.

In other words, fair or not, I don’t believe the rules should be changed simply because one side appears to have gained an advantage over the other.

Ole Miss – 2013 Spring Football Info

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by Travis Normand

I got this a while back and wanted to say thanks to Ole Miss for providing them to me.

This is a tri-fold brochure (8.5 x 11) with everything one would need to know about Ole Miss football during the spring of 2013.  The brochure included a spring roster, coach information, stats from 2012, and a position-by-position break-down of the entire team.

This was a pretty useful tool and I appreciate Ole Miss sending it out.  I am always shocked that more programs don’t do stuff like this.

Ole MIss 2013 - Spring Football 1
Ole MIss 2013 - Spring Football 2

BCS Champions – Undefeated (SEC still leads it)

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BCS Logo 2012by Travis Normand

Question of the day: How many teams have won the BCS National Championship with an undefeated record?

Answer: Of the 15 BCS Championships (since 1998), 9 have been won by teams with perfect records.

However, if you look at the history of these undefeated teams, it appears as if going undefeated is becoming less and less common.  For example, from 1998 to 2005, every BCS Champion was undefeated, except for the 2003 LSU Tigers (7/8 or 87.5%).  Since 2005, the BCS crown has gone to an undefeated team only twice (2/5 or 40%).

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