Published: December 12, 2007 12:29 am            

The Blog Championship Series | Opening Round

As threatened, a look into the magical world of what would happen with the 12-team tournament for the Division I FBS if it were implemented this year.

(Blogger’s note: I know that I said I’d have this up on or around Saturday, but with free time at a premium, there wasn’t much I could do until now. Hopefully, I’m blessed with more free time this week for completing Round 2 in a more timely manner.)

The games of the Blog Championship Series were played using NCAA Football 2008 for the PlayStation2 on CPU-vs.-CPU simulations. All I do is watch and document what happens for the dozens of readers itching to know how a tournament at the highest level of college football would turn out.

I even went so far as to check the weather forecasts for the game sites to give that ultra-timely feel to this whole thing.

(Blogger’s note II: I am fully aware that there’s all kinds of randomness that ‘would never’ happen in real life when you sim out a video game. But this is a year where seven No. 2 teams went down and Michigan went down to Appalachian State, so who knows what would really happen.)

And now, on with the show:



Round 1 – Game 1: No. 12 Florida at No. 5 Georgia.

ATHENS, Ga. – Florida quarterback Tim Tebow started an amazing day with 281 passing yards and three touchdown passes. His day ended with the Heisman Trophy.

His season will live on for at least another week after BCS No. 12 Florida upset SEC East rival and BCS fifth-seed Georgia 28-18 Saturday at Sanford Stadium.

The win, while ensuring that Florida has another week to try to defend its national title from last year, avenged an emotional 42-30 loss to the Bulldogs on Oct. 27 in Jacksonville, Fla. That game saw a rush of more than 70 Georgia players onto the field at ALLTEL Stadium following a Bulldogs touchdown. On Saturday, any touchdown celebration of that nature by the Bulldogs would have come long after the Gators had put the game away.

Tebow – who was 12 of 17 in collecting those 281 yards – led Florida to a 28-3 halftime lead and then put the Gators offense in cruise control as the Georgia comeback fell short.

A trip to BCS No. 4 Oklahoma will be the reward for Florida (10-3)

The Gators moved quickly towards the game’s first score as Tebow completed three passes for 61 of the 75 yards covered by the six-play drive Kestahn Moore’s 8-yard run capped off the drive to give Florida a 7-0 lead.

After forcing a Bulldogs three-and-out, Florida expanded its lead through the air when Tebow hooked up with Percy Harvin for a 22-yard strike to end another six-play march with a touchdown. Joey Ijjas’ point-after gave Florida a 14-0 lead.

Moore pushed the Gators’ lead to 21 when he hauled in a 48-yard pass from Tebow just after Florida’s Louis Murphy reeled in a 9-yard pass to covert on a third-and-9. The Gators were 4-for-7 on third-down conversions with a 3-for-3 mark on their first three drives.

A 32-yard field goal by Brandon Coutu late in the second quarter cut the Florida lead to 21-3, a score that would only stand for 14 seconds. A 76-yard pass from Tebow to Riley Cooper put the game out of reach before the half.

A Thomas Brown 4-yard run pulled the Bulldogs closer at 28-10 to open the second half to complete a 10-play march that chewed up 76 yards. Georgia hit the end zone again with 30 seconds remaining when Matthew Stafford connected with Mohammed Massaquoi from 45 yards away. Michael Moore hauled in the two-point conversion pass to set the final.

Stafford, who faced constant harassment from the Florida pass rush, passed for 217 yards with all but 68 coming in the second half.



Round 1 – Game 2: No. 11 Arizona State at No. 6 Missouri.

COLUMBIA, Mo. – If the gameplan for the No. 11 seed Arizona State Sun Devils revolved around chasing Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel. Saturday’s 10-3 upset of the sixth-seeded Tigers at Faurot Field proved to be a resounding success of executing that strategy.

Daniel, while never sacked, was hurried 11 times, knocked down six times and threw three picks in the loss – Missouri’s second straight after picking up a No. 1 ranking after topping rival Kansas on Nov. 24 in Kansas City, Mo.

The Missouri quarterback wasn’t the only member of the Tigers offense wearing Arizona State defenders all afternoon as five Missouri receivers combined for eight dropped passes.

Daniel’s counterpart – ASU’s Rudy Carpenter – was 18-of-26 for 189 yards with a touchdown.

Carpenter put the Sun Devils on the board first with just 24 seconds left in the opening quarter as Rodney Glass hauled in a 15-yard strike to wrap up an eight-play, 80-yard march.

After snuffing out a Missouri response drive, Arizona State added to its lead with Thomas Webber’s 41-yard field goal.

The Tigers broke the ice late in the third driving to the Arizona State 9 before calling on Adam Crossett to connect on a 26-yard field goal.

A Daniel interception on Missouri’s next drive seemingly nixed hopes of a Tigers comeback midway through the fourth. A quick three-and-out and a punt that just rolled into the end zone put Missouri at its own 20 with 1:46 showing.

Missouri drove to the Sun Devils’ 21 before Justin Tryon intercepted a pass intended for Tommy Saunders at the 2 with three seconds remaining. Daniel had completed four straight passes to move the Tigers 38 yards from their 41.

Arizona State travels to Virginia Tech next week to face the third-seeded Hokies.



Round 1 – Game 3: No. 10 Hawaii at No. 7 Southern California.

LOS ANGELES – No 7 Southern California stands as one of the teams with the most to gain from this Blog Championship Series tournament. After narrowly ecsaping with a win over Hawaii Saturday at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Trojans also showed that they had an awful lot to lose.

Southern Cal quarterback John David Booty outdeueled Hawaii’s Colt Brennan in a highlight-reel quality 32-29 win over the previously unbeaten Warriors.

Awaiting the Trojans (11-2) will be BCS No. 2 Louisiana State, the school that split the 2003 national title with Southern Cal. Were it not for Booty’s fourth-quarter heroics the highly anticipated quarterfinal clash would have fallen as quickly as other first-round hosts Georgia and Missouri.

Booty passed for 329 yards and four touchdowns – including the go-ahead score with 21 seconds remaining. Brennan

The Warriors drew first blood using a 10-play, 49-yard drive to move into range for a 43-yard field goal by Dan Kelly early in the second.

Southern Cal replied quickly, moving 72 yards in 10 plays with Vidal Hazelton’s 27-yard touchdown grab pushing the Trojans ahead 7-3.

Hawaii regained the lead in quicker fashion, using only four plays, as Brennan found Ryan Grice-Mullen in the end zone from 34 yards away. A John David Booty fumble in Trojans territory led to another Kelly field goal just before halftime, increasing the Warriors’ lead to 13-7.

Booty’s 57-yard touchdown pass to tight end Fred Davis gave the hosts a 14-13 lead just 50 seconds into the second half. Davis, who was blocking on a play-fake, found a hole in Hawaii’s zone and raced to the end zone untouched.

Hawaii grabbed a 16-14 lead three minutes later thanks to 25-yard field goal by Kelly. Twice a Brennan pass was dropped in the end zone after the Warriors moved inside the Southern Cal 20 – once by Grice-Mullen and the other by Jason Rivers.

Two plays later Myron Newberry picked off Booty and returned the ball 38 yards to the end zone. Kelly’s point-after put Hawaii up 23-14.

The Trojans inched closer at the start of the fourth, calling on David Buehler to connect on a 44-yard field goal.

Kevin Thomas’ interception on Hawaii’s next drive set up USC’s go-ahead score late in the fourth as Booty found fullback Michael Coleman in the end zone on third-and-goal from the 2. The point-after try from Buehler gave the Trojans a 24-23 lead.

Rivers atoned for his earlier gaffe just two plays later when he hauled in a 51-yard touchdown pass from Brennan. Hawaii’s try for two was stopped short when Brennan’s to Leon Jackson was batted down. Rivers’ 171 yards on eight catches led all receivers.

With 52 seconds left, Booty calmly moved USC down the field with a 37-yard pass to Patrick Turner setting up a 7-yard strike to Turner. Davis was on the receiving end of the two-point conversion throw. Turner led the Trojans in catches and yardage, pulling in eight passes for 126 yards.

Hawaii could not answer with only 21 seconds showing on the clock, moving the ball to their 38 before Brennan misfired on two straight deep passes to run off the remaining time.

Brennan, who finished third in Heisman Trophy voting, was 23-of-42 for 349 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Round 1 – Game 4: No. 9 West Virginia at No. 8 Kansas.

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Not even the vaunted spread attack of West Virginia could derail the dream season of BCS No. 8 Kansas Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.

The Jayhawks (12-1) utilized big plays on special teams and defense to eliminate No. 9 West Virginia by a 35-14 count.

Kansas weathered big runs by West Virginia’s Patrick White, who totaled 151 yards on nine carries, while keeping Steve Slaton in check with 55 yards on 12 rushes.

After chipping away at the Kansas defense and coming up empty on their first two drives, the Mountaineers scored quickly on their third possession as White ran 57 yards on an option keeper with 2:39 left in the second. White easily outraced the Jayhawks’ secondary, crossing the goal-line 10 yards in front of the nearest blue jersey.

Kansas knotted the score in three plays on a 61-yard run by Jake Sharp through the heart of the West Virginia defense.

After picking off White at midfield on the ensuing drive, Kansas traveled 50 yards in seven plays with Marcue Henry’s acrobatic catch in the end zone putting the Jayhawks ahead 14-7 with six second remaining in the second quarter.

A dazzling 93-yard kickoff return by Kansas’ Ryan Murphy expanded the Jayhawks’ lead to 21-7 only 10 seconds into the third quarter.

In 41 seconds West Virginia fired back with a winding 65-yard scamper by White. Pat McAfee’s point-after kick pulled West Virginia with seven.

Kansas pulled ahead by two touchdowns again with 46 seconds left in the frame when Brandon McAnderson reeled in a 16-yard pass from Reesing.

After a West Virginia punt, the Jayhawks iced the game with Reesing’s 40-yard pass to Marc Dierking. Reesing was 17-of-23 for 212 yards.

Kansas will battle BCS top seed Ohio State in the quarterfinals.



Shawn Curtis is a sports writer for The Tribune-Democrat. Holding this year’s cyber-version of Missouri to only three points is something that he couldn’t do. He offers his kudos to the cyber-Sun Devils.

        

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