Chris Dempsey, Denver Post: There are many great mysteries in the world, but none more challenging to solve than the collapse of Texas A&M.
Mike Hlas, Cedar Rapids Gazette: We're not sure what drives this guy to such madness each week, but if he keeps writing, we'll keep posting (subscription, so story is posted in comments).
George Schroeder, Oklahoman: Now there are questions if Oklahoma, once thought to be national title contender, can become bowl eligible (registration).
Reggie Hayes, Fort Wayne News-Sentinel: Crewcut Charlie Weis guarantees an upset by Notre Dame if USC's Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and LenDale White miss the flight from L.A.
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The Hlist
Mike Hlas
Cedar Rapids Gazette
First downs
1. Palace Overthrow: The rebels staged a coup in the Big Ten. Ohio State and Michigan were bounced by Penn State and Minnesota, respectively.
Penn State’s 17-10 win over Ohio State left the Nittany Lions as the league’s lone unbeaten and first six-win team.
"It’s nice that we’re eligible for a bowl now. But the bowl we want is Big Rosie," said Penn State defensive end Tamba Hali.
Minnesota beat Michigan, 23-20, on Jason Giannini’s 30-yard field goal with one second left.
Said Gophers Coach Glen Mason: "I told him, 'I’m going to love you if you make it or not. But I’m going to love you a helluva lot more if you make it.' "
"If he was trying to break the ice," Giannini said, "it worked."
2. City of Stars: College football’s mecca isn’t some quaint burg where the campus is the center of the city, reachable only via two-lane highways.
No, it’s Los Angeles, where you take the 405 to the 105 to the 605 to the 91 to the 5 . . .
But 90,221 people saw top-ranked USC beat Arizona, 42-21, at the L.A. Coliseum, then 84,871 packed the Rose Bowl to watch unbeaten UCLA score three touchdowns in the final 7 1/2 minutes to edge California, 47-40.
Trailing 40-28, UCLA Coach Karl Dorrell sent his punt team to the field on a 4th-and-2 at the Bruins’ 42. UCLA’s fans didn’t like it, until they saw it was a fake that became an end-around good for 38 yards.
"You have to make yourself look like you weren’t thinking about it all along. That’s how the process works. As a matter of fact, it worked pretty well because our fans were booing," Dorrell said.
USC has won 27 straight games. Trojans Coach Pete Carroll was asked how he can thwart personal burnout.
"I don’t know how you avoid it," he said. "You just go as long as you can go. If your heart is in it, and you love what you’re doing, you just go until you just physically break down.
"That’s what I’m going for, that physical breakdown."
3. Ball State Lives!: The team that lost 56-0 at Iowa to start the season had a wonderful win Saturday, a five-overtime, 60-57 triumph at Western Michigan for its first win of the season.
"Our kids, like all the kids that play in these programs, work hard," Ball State Coach Brady Hoke said. "To not win and work that hard through the summer and everything . . . this will do volumes for them. I told them I was proud the way they hung in and still believed."
4. Daily Double: Division III Northwestern College of St. Paul, Minn., beat Trinity Bible College 59-0 at home Saturday afternoon, had lunch, bused across town, and beat Macalester College, 47-14.
While Northwestern Athletics Director Matt Hill was trying to find a 10th opponent for the Eagles’ schedule, Macalester called to invite Northwestern to play on Oct. 8.
The Eagles accepted even though they already a game scheduled that day.
"Then I called the NCAA to ask them if it was any sort of a rules violation and they laughed at me," Hill said. "And they said it might be next year."
Fumbles
1. Powers Struggle: Ohio State and Michigan have been to enough Rose Bowls, anyway. They have a combined five losses with five games each left to play.
"I don’t know what we need to do," OSU center Nick Mangold said. "But we have to do something to fix it."
"You name it (on offense), we need to work on it," Michigan Coach Lloyd Carr said.
Or with three losses, is he LLLoyd Carr?
2. Kansas is Flat: Winning the Kansas-Kansas State football game gets you the Governor’s Cup.
And, these days, it doesn’t get you much else.
K-State gained just 182 yards in its 12-3 win over Kansas. The Wildcats had 35 rushing yards in 45 attempts.
"I think we have great character," Kansas State Coach Bill Snyder said. "We’re just not very good."
3. Stark Raven Mad: The Baltimore Ravens had 21 penalties in their humiliating, 35-17, loss to the Detroit Lions.
Ravens defensive end/linebacker Terrell Suggs and safety B.J. Ward were both ejected in the third quarter.
"The last time I’ve seen that many ejections, I was watching WWF," Baltimore receiver Derrick Mason said.
4. Flag Football: Minnesota players planted their school flag into Michigan’s block M at midfield after Saturday’s 23-30 win over the Wolverines at Ann Arbor, Mich.
They copied Michigan State, which did something similar after winning at Notre Dame in overtime last month.
"I thought they were better than that," Michigan running back Mike Hart said. "If they want to be followers, be followers.
"They should have gotten the (Little Brown) Jug, and it should have ended there."
The Hlist thinks that Michigan needs to do some more losing. Then it can understand why other Big Ten Conference teams celebrate big victories the way they sometimes do.
From the papers
"The Texans finally were able to see what it was like to have standing ovations and deafening cheers in Reliant Stadium. It hardly mattered that the applause on Sunday was for the baseball team across town." — Megan Manfull of the Houston Chronicle.
Scoring updates of the Houston Astros’ epic 18-inning playoff victory over Atlanta at Minute Maid Park were put on the NFL Texans’ scoreboard during the 0-4 Texans’ 34-20 loss to the Tennessee Titans.
Final word
"I’ve had guys come up to me in nightclubs and restaurants and tell me I’m on their fantasy team. I’m like, 'What? You’re fantasizing about me, dog?' " — Arizona Cardinals tight end Teyo Johnson.
Mike.Hlas@gazettecommunications.com
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