Anyone going to beat Indiana?

[purplefaithful]

MAYBE Miami???

I can't remember a doormat program making such a leap like they have...

Thats how you play the game now; NIL, donors and lots of $$$ for players, coaches and facilities. I know its historically described as the same, but now with NIL and Portal its even more important to grease the skids and make it rain $$$

And where the hell did Chambliss come from??? That kid came out of nowhere to beat them Dawgs last night. 

What a game!

[Greylock]

I think Ole Miss has a good chance to beat them.

[purplefaithful]

I think Ole Miss has a good chance to beat them.

Ole Miss has a couple DL I would love to see on the Vikings...

[JR44]

It just goes to show how having the right QB can turn your program around. Mendoza seems to have a lot of Bradylike qualities, very cerebral QB. Loved the stories they told of when he went to Indiana he wanted bios on all the players as well as wanting bios on every Heisman winner before going to the awards ceremony. He is always prepared and mindful of others. Raiders going to get a good one.

Watching Chambliss pick up his draft stock last night made me think of what a selfish move it was for the Notre Dame admin to not participate in a bowl game and take away the opportunity for some players to shine and catch the eye of some scouts. Some really great entertaining games this week in both the playoff and traditional bowl games. Increasing the field to 12 has really helped create much more exciting during bowl season. Would not mind seeing them expand the field even further and add another weekend or two of playoff games. Always thought college football was missing the mark by not using the empty NFL week before the Super Bowl to showcase their championship game.

[Montana Tom]

MAYBE Miami???

I can't remember a doormat program making such a leap like they have...

Thats how you play the game now; NIL, donors and lots of $$$ for players, coaches and facilities. I know its historically described as the same, but now with NIL and Portal its even more important to grease the skids and make it rain $$$

And where the hell did Chambliss come from??? That kid came out of nowhere to beat them Dawgs last night. 

What a game!

Where did Chambliss come from?  D11 Ferris State in Big Rapids, Michigan.

There are no FCS programs in all of Michigan or Wisconsin...only one in Minnesota (St. Thomas). So there is a big drop off in opportunity for those high school kids who are not signed to Michigan or Michigan State and Ferris State is the next best option.  Ferris State has won 4 National C2 Championships in the last 5 years.

Now the fun stuff.

I was able to Chambliss play in person last season in Missoula, Montana when the Grizzlies opened their season with visiting Ferris State.  While many figured it would be an early season cakewalk against a D2 school, it was anything but.  Chambliss was impressive.  The Griz squeaked by with a win 17-10, but Ferris State was a helluva strong program.  

Fun factoid:  The Ferris State head coach made a comment in his post-game comments that the crowd played a huge factor in the end result (false starts due to the 120 db noise).  He said that he hopes that the only time he ever returns to Missoula would be as a member of the Griz coaching staff.  It's that tough of a place for visitors to play.

[supafreak84]

Watching Chambliss pick up his draft stock last night made me think of what a selfish move it was for the Notre Dame admin to not participate in a bowl game and take away the opportunity for some players to shine and catch the eye of some scouts.  

Notre Dame doesn't need to play in meaningless bowl games for players to catch the eyes of scouts. Much like USC, they aren't that kind of program. And if anything the performance of Miami (who barely beat us in the opener) and Alabama (who just got smoked by Indiana), only varifies that Notre Dame should have been in the big dance and did the right thing skipping the Pop Tart bowl in protest.

[JR44]

Notre Dame doesn't need to play in meaningless bowl games for players to catch the eyes of scouts. Much like USC, they aren't that kind of program. And if anything the performance of Miami (who barely beat us in the opener) and Alabama (who just got smoked by Indiana), only varifies that Notre Dame should have been in the big dance and did the right thing skipping the Pop Tart bowl in protest.

I believe Miami's play in the playoffs has reinforced they should have made it over ND.  They just dominated the #2 team. Alabama's dominating win over Oklahoma showed they belonged as well.  ND had a solid team and would have been a dangerous team in the playoff, there can definitely be made a case with Alabama, but it could have gone either way, that is always going to happen with the later selections.  The real issue with the top 12 that they have to fix are the automatic bids, James Madison and Tulane getting in are what mostly hurt them.  I do think every additional game you play in gives players an opportunity to shine.  I actually thought USC was a great example of that, many players got a chance to shine, especially some who got more playing time due to playing behind some exceptional players who had opted out or were injured.

[supafreak84]

I believe Miami's play in the playoffs has reinforced they should have made it over ND.  They just dominated the #2 team. Alabama's dominating win over Oklahoma showed they belonged as well.  ND had a solid team and would have been a dangerous team in the playoff, there can definitely be made a case with Alabama, but it could have gone either way, that is always going to happen with the later selections.  The real issue with the top 12 that they have to fix are the automatic bids, James Madison and Tulane getting in are what mostly hurt them.  I do think every additional game you play in gives players an opportunity to shine.  I actually thought USC was a great example of that, many players got a chance to shine, especially some who got more playing time due to playing behind some exceptional players who had opted out or were injured.

Alabama was down 17-0 against Oklahoma. Good for them coming back but only to get smoked by Indiana in the next round, who ND beat in the playoffs last year. The Miami loss was held against Notre Dame, which is fair, but Alabama was a three loss team who did not play well the month before the conference championship. Meanwhile Notre Dame was beating teams by 30. Agree though, the real issue is the automatic bid teams that had no business being in the playoff.