Guess who’s back, guess who’s back, guess who’s back…and it’s not Tim Tebow. Florida coach Urban Meyer turned his Wienermobile around and allegedly told his players that he’s changing his mind and will return as head coach — just not right away.
Meyer informed his football team on Sunday that he is not resigning but rather taking an indefinite leave of absence, according to a team source.
Meyer also informed the football team that offensive coordinator Steve Addazio will be the Gators’ interim head coach. A timetable has not been set for Meyer’s return but he could resume his position as UF head coach as soon as next season.
In all deference to Meyer and his illness and the general thought the Southeastern Conference would lose a major force, our reaction is, “WELL, SHIT.” There were writers in Alabama, including The Birmingham News‘ Kevin Scarbinsky (who likes
One.
Sentence.
Paragraphs.) who said that Meyer’s retirement effectively ceded control of the SEC to Alabama and Nick Saban for the next three years or so. He said it would be like the Crimson Tide in the ’70s. Total domination. Scarbinsky now has the be-jorted Gator Nation laughing in his face, because this epic battle between two intense, dedicated and borderline-batshit insane coaches is not even close to over.
Meyer’s just going to take a vacation. Then he’ll be back, to take his fourth SEC East title in six years.
Florida head coach Urban Meyer was already on his way to becoming, despite Carolina coach Steve Spurrier’s success, the next Bear Bryant in the Southeastern Conference. Two national championships and a Heisman Trophy to in just four years — eclipsing what Spurrier did in Gainesville in a decade. This season, the Gators were a game away from another national championship appearance. So, at the end of his fifth season with the team, it’s coming as a shock to everyone in the college football community that Meyer announced he would step down as head coach after the Sugar Bowl.
In a statement released Saturday night, Meyer said:
I have given my heart and soul to coaching college football and mentoring young men for the last 24-plus years and I have dedicated most of my waking moments the last five years to the Gator football program. I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to re-evaluate my priorities of faith and family.
After consulting with my family, [Florida president] Dr. Bernie Machen, [Florida athletics director] Jeremy Foley and my doctors, I believe it is in my best interest to step aside and focus on my health and family.
I’m proud to be a part of the Gainesville community and the Gator Nation and I plan to remain in Gainesville and involved with the University of Florida. I’m very appreciative for the opportunity I’ve had to be a part of a tremendous institution – from Dr. Machen to Jeremy Foley and the entire administrative staff at UF. I’m also very thankful for the chance to work with some of the best assistants in college football and coach some of the best college football players and watch them grow both on and off the field as people. I will cherish the relationships with them the most.
If you doubt the frenzy that happened when it was announced via Twitter and on TV in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, the Florida athletics Web site, GatorZone.com, was virtually inaccessible.
Meyer’s record in the nation’s toughest football conference has been nothing short of amazing. With one game left to go, he has a 56-10 overall record (84.8 percent) and a 32-8 SEC record (80 percent). Along with the two national titles and quarterback Tim Tebow’s Heisman, there have been two SEC championships three SEC East titles. Against Gator rivals Tennessee, Georgia and Florida State, he is 14-1. There were five years and $20 million left on his contract, not to mention near-certain bonuses for championships and other incentives.
Initial reportage has been murky as to the true cause of Meyer’s decision. The rumor coming out at the beginning was that it was a health issue. Other sources said it was a lifestyle issue, and yet another rumor has it that Meyer told his players it involves a heart condition. Whatever it is, being a major football head coach (or a coach period, in many instances) is definitely not a healthy occupation.
The Florida program is, definitely, thrown into some measure of absolute chaos. We’re sure Meyer will try to help out with the coaching search and soften the blow for the program, but the damage is done. Recruiting goes in to serious overdrive after the bowl game, a number of quality assistants have taken other jobs and Tebow is leaving school, along with other high-level starters.
It’s too early for fans of Georgia and Tennessee (and oh, Carolina) to expect a significant drop in the Gators’ talent or results. Meyer’s years at the university have stocked the cabinet pretty well. Florida is also at the perfect spot to get a great coach. Great players, years of winning, on TV every week and a pipeline to the NFL. But, you never know. It takes the right mix of coach and program to create a consistent winner.
Bart Starr. Joe Namath. Kenny Stabler. Lee Roy Jordan. Cornelius Bennett. Derrick Thomas. David Palmer. Shaun Alexander. None of these heroes of Alabama football won the Heisman Trophy. For a program that has 12 national championships and 22 Southeastern Conference titles, the other major accomplishment in college football was something that had been lacking from the Tide trophy case for years. No longer.
Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram added one of the more incredible accomplishments of the team this year, becoming Bama’s first-ever Heisman winner, and the third consecutive sophomore to take home the award. The win was the closest in the history of the award, 75-Heismans deep. For the first time in years, stiffarmtrophy.com got the final lineup wrong. It had Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh in third, ahead of Texas quarterback Colt McCoy, but in fact the two flipped positions in the final results.
1. MARK INGRAM, RUNNING BACK, ALABAMA
Votes: 1,304 (227)
2. TOBY GERHART, RUNNING BACK, STANFORD
Votes: 1,276 (222)
3. COLT MCCOY, QUARTERBACK, TEXAS
Votes: 1,145 (203)
4. NDAMUKONG SUH, DEFENSIVE TACKLE, NEBRASKA
Votes: 815 (161)
5. TIM TEBOW, QUARTERBACK, FLORIDA
Votes: 390 (43)
Perhaps the most memorable part of the ceremony was Ingram totally losing it when he went on the dais, having to take a few seconds to compose himself. It was only about a minute or two into the acceptance speech that the 2009 winner was able to get himself together enough to roll through the rest of his thank-yous.
“I’m a little overwhelmed right now,” Ingram said at the podium. “I’m just so excited to bring Alabama their first Heisman winner.” Afterward, the super sophomore told the assembled media, “I was overwhelmed, really excited, just the fact that I’m the first Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Alabama and doing this for my family. It hasn’t been easy for us.”
Alabama football is an emotional endeavor, so most of us who slagged on Tebow for crying during the SEC Championship Game gave Ingram a pass. Double standards are the spice of life in sports.
This season, Ingram put up 1,542 rushing yards on 249 attempts for 6.2 yards-per-carry and 15 touchdowns, despite being extremely limited in action against the patsies of the Tide schedule. He also has 30 receptions for 322 yards, for 10.7 yards-per-catch and three touchdowns.
Ingram wins
Ingram’s interview with ESPN’s Chris Fowler
There’s only one step left: beating Texas in Pasadena in the BCS National Championship Game. If Alabama can do that, and there is significant thought to believe that it’s possible, 2009 could go down as one of the greatest years in the 117-year history of Crimson Tide football.
One of the under reported stories every year in major college football is the amount of free crap football players get when they go to a bowl game. Some is useless. For instance, we got a free watch from the SEC and a free pin for covering the 2004 SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament. Frankly, the catered Georgia Dome food, free bags of Golden Flake and Dr. Pepper out the wazzou was better than what the conference gave sportswriters.
The following is what SEC teams will be getting this year.
Music City Bowl
Kentucky: RCA high-def camcorder, Fossil watch, Majestic fleece pullover, New Era cap, Ogio Metro laptop pack
Independence Bowl
Georgia: Sony gift suite, Timely Watch Co. watch, New Era cap, football
Chick-fil-A Bowl
Tennessee: $250 Best Buy gift card, Fossil watch, Russell Athletic knit cap, Russell Athletic travel bag, football, Chick-fil-A gift card
Outback Bowl
Auburn: Best Buy gift card, Pro-Swiss watch, Jostens ring, hat, Outback Steakhouse gift card
Capital One Bowl
LSU: Party at Best Buy ($420 limit), Timely Watch Co. watch
Sugar Bowl
Florida: Sony, Apple, Trek, Garmin and Weber gift suite, Timely Watch Co. watch, New Era cap, Ogio Politan laptop pack, Lane recliner
Papajohns.com Bowl
South Carolina: RCA high-def mini-camcorder, Oakley Surf Pack backpack
Cotton Bowl
Ole Miss: Unknown
Liberty Bowl
Arkansas: Westinghouse 19-inch LCD HDTV/computer monitor, Fossil watch, Nike training shoes/sport sandals/sunglasses, football
BCS National Championship Game
Alabama: Sony gift suite with Trek and Garmin, Fossil watch, New Era 59Fifty cap, Ogio Politan laptop pack
There are 34 bowl games this year, and we’re picking every damn one of them (probably with 60-70 percent success). You can follow the progress or join up and do battle with us through ESPN College Bowl Mania. We’re in “The League” and “The War Against Tebow.” TWAT (jokes!) is the brainchild of decamped S.C. blogger and good time Johnny, Micah Snead, so go there. But beware — Snead’s dad is a total ringer and will probably take the title by 20 points.
Dec. 19, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
Fresno State v. Wyoming
Dec. 19, 8 p.m., ESPN
Central Florida v. Rutgers
Dec. 20, 8:30 a.m., ESPN
Southern Miss v. Middle Tennessee State
Dec. 22, 8 p.m., ESPN
No. 18 Oregon State v. No. 14 BYU
Dec. 23, 8 p.m., ESPN
No. 23 Utah v. California
Dec. 24, 8 p.m., ESPN
Nevada v. Southern Methodist
Dec. 26, 1 p.m., ESPN
Marshall v. Ohio
Dec. 26, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 17 Pitt v. North Carolina
Dec. 26, 8 p.m., ESPN
Boston College v. No. 24 Southern Cal
Dec. 27, 8:30 p.m., ESPN
Kentucky v. Clemson
Dec. 28, 5 p.m., ESPN2
Texas A&M v. Georgia
Dec. 29, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
UCLA v. Temple
Dec. 29, 8 p.m., ESPN
No. 15 Miami v. No. 25 Wisconsin
Dec. 30, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
Bowling Green v. Idaho
Dec. 30, 8 p.m., ESPN
No. 20 Arizona v. No. 22 Nebraska
Dec. 31, Noon, ESPN
Houston v. Air Force
Dec. 31, 2 p.m., CBS
Oklahoma v. No. 21 Stanford
Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Navy v. Missouri
Dec. 31, 6 p.m., NFL Network
Minnesota v. Iowa State
Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 11 Virginia Tech v. Tennessee
Jan. 1, 11 a.m., ESPN
Northwestern v. Auburn
Jan. 1, 1 p.m., CBS
No. 16 West Virginia v. Florida State
Jan. 1, 1 p.m., ESPN
No. 13 Penn State v. No. 12 LSU
Jan. 1, 4:30 p.m., ABC
No. 8 Ohio State v. No. 7 Oregon
Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m., Fox
No. 5 Florida v. No. 3 Cincinnati
Jan. 2, Noon, ESPN2
South Florida v. Northern Illinois
Jan. 2, 2 p.m., ESPN
South Carolina v. Connecticut
Jan. 2, 2 p.m., Fox
No. 19 Oklahoma State v. Ole Miss
Jan. 2, 5:30 p.m., ESPN
Arkansas v. East Carolina
Jan. 2, 9 p.m., ESPN
Michigan State v. Texas Tech
Jan. 4, 8 p.m., Fox
No. 6 Boise State v. No. 4 TCU
Jan. 5, 8 p.m., Fox
No. 10 Iowa v. No. 9 Georgia Tech
Jan. 6, 7 p.m., Fox
No. 25 Central Michigan v. Troy
Jan. 7, 8 p.m., ABC
No. 2 Texas v. No. 1 Alabama
Here we go. With the conference championship games over, and only Army-Navy left on Dec. 12, bowl bids are going out hot and heavy. There are some things that were expected, some surprises and — oh man — Clemson totally got jobbed.
BCS National Championship Game
No. 1 Alabama v. No. 2 Texas
Sugar Bowl
No. 5 Florida v. No. 3 Cincinnati
Capital One Bowl
No. 12 LSU v. No. 13 Penn State
Cotton Bowl
Ole Miss v. No. 19 Oklahoma State
Outback Bowl
Auburn v. Northwestern
Chick-fil-A Bowl
Tennessee v. No. 11 Virginia Tech
Music City Bowl
Kentucky v. Clemson
Liberty Bowl
Arkansas v. East Carolina
Independence Bowl
Georgia v. Texas A&M
Papajohns.com Bowl
South Carolina v. Connecticut
Definitely some interesting matchups — Georgia and Texas A&M are a couple big name teams for a small bowl, so that should be good. In other bowls, the Gator Bowl gave a big, wet, sloppy kiss to Bobby Bowden by inviting Florida State and West Virginia. Travesty. Though it was technically OK, Miami and Boston College were higher up in the selection order in the ACC. Southern Cal, the over-hyped 8-4 team, is going to play the Eagles in the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco.
Ooh! There are other BCS games?
Fiesta Bowl
No. 6 Boise State v. No. 4 TCU
Rose Bowl
No. 7 Oregon v. No. 8 Ohio State
Orange Bowl
No. 9 Georgia Tech v. No. 10 Iowa
Wait, that just happened, right? Alabama dominated Florida? No late-game heroics from the Tebow child? The truly amazing thing is that this Crimson Tide team plays up to the level of the game. Quarterback Greg McElroy played above his head, and outshined the star in orange and blue. Guess what? He’s back next year. Running back Mark Ingram ran his way back into the Heisman race with a 28-carry, 113-yard, three-touchdown performance. He’s back next year, too. So is his backup, Trent Richardson, who had 80 yards on 11 carries. Standout wide receiver Julio Jones — as valuable as a blocker as he is catching balls — returns, as well. Alabama can actually get better.
But, the ‘09 Tide was good enough to walk away with the program’s 22nd SEC championship, its first since 1999. Here’s a statistic to ponder: Bama has won an SEC title in every decade since the conference was founded in 1933 (the boys in crimson took the first two). Yes, the offense did its job, even if it wasn’t spectacular. The defense, though, stood tall. Tim Tebow finished the game as Florida’s leading rusher — 10 carries, 63 yards. Nobody else did much of anything. The Tebow child put up decent numbers through the air, but threw a pick that effectively ended any chance of a comeback.
So, here we are. Alabama has come close to a national championship in our lifetime beside 1992. There was ‘89 (losses to Auburn and Miami), 1994 (loss to Florida), 2005 (losses to LSU and Auburn) and last year. However, the Tide hasn’t played in an honest-to-God title game since the Sugar Bowl against Miami. And it’s simply poetic that the return trip is to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena (though it’s the BCS National Championship Game presented by Citi). The Alabama program built its reputation by winning Rose Bowls, and national championships, in the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s.
Rose Bowl
1925: Alabama 20, Washington 19
1926: Alabama 7, Stanford 7
1930: Alabama 24, Washington State 0
1934: Alabama 29, Stanford 13
1937: Alabama 0, California 13
1945: Alabama 34, Southern Cal 14
The last win was the last time a team from outside the Big Ten/Pac-10 played in the Rose Bowl before the BCS era. It would be perfect for the Crimson Tide to take its 13th national title at the place it won its first, 84 years ago.
It won’t all become final until after the SEC Championship Game on Saturday, but with Florida and Alabama locking down the BCS National Championship Game and the Sugar Bowl, everything else is good to go. There’s a glut of teams choking the middle of the standings in the conference, so it was really a crapshoot as to who went where.
Carolina might have upset Clemson to post its seventh win, but that doesn’t appear to have changed much in the bowl perspective from two weeks ago. And why’s that? The upper-level bowls wanted to take another date to the dance.
Guess which team comes out smelling like a rose? That’s right, your favorite and mine, the cheap-trick, dirty-playing team from the worst place in the lower half of Alabama not named Montgomery. Auburn got the invite to the Outback Bowl, which means the Tigers get to have fun in the seedier areas of Ybor City while trying to figure out how to beat Wisconsin. Of course, the joke’s on the Aubies, with the godawful early start of 11 a.m.
LSU, with the third-best record, got its expected trip to Orlando for the Capital One Bowl. Depending on which team is picked for an at-large bid in a BCS bowl, LSU will play either Penn State or Iowa.
The first part of the dam to break was the news given to ESPN that Ole Miss is going to the Cotton Bowl for the second straight year. What’s different for the Rebels this time, and their batshit crazy head coach, is the game will be played at Cowboys Stadium instead of the aging monument to football at the Texas state fairgrounds. Just imagine Houston Nutt, on the biggest high-definition screen anywhere, looking over JerryWorld like a Southern-fried Big Brother. Word is that Ole Miss will be facing Oklahoma State.
Hm. Who do we dislike more? It all comes down to fan bases — mountain rednecks from East Tennessee versus the biggest group of bandwagon fans in college football. You know it — it’s Tennessee v. Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Imagine the weird thoughts going through Tech. It began the season in the Georgia Dome against an SEC team, and it will end the season that way. Of course, Tennessee isn’t Alabama, so we’d imagine the Hokies would be favored.
Carolina fans were crossing fingers and praying hard for the Gamecocks to get the invitation to the Music City Bowl (what a bunch of Gaylords). But — a-ha! — foiled again by Kentucky. The gentlemen who run the bowl want to bring the Wildcats to Nashville, so that’s how it goes. It’s expected that either North Carolina or Miami will be the ACC representative in the game.
Ooh, not looking good. Next up, the Liberty Bowl, which shocked no one by taking Arkansas. It takes, ah, only a walk over the bridge to get from the Natural State to Memphis, so Razorback fans will be filling the stadium. If Houston beats East Carolina in the Conference-USA Championship Game, the bowl will be a throwback to the old Southwest Conference days.
Shreveport goes to Georgia, a quite unfortunate end to the season for the Bulldogs. Let’s face it — no team wants to go to the Independence Bowl. The only reason we saw Carolina play Missouri there a few years ago was because it was on the way to Dallas, where Alabama was taking on Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl. Oh, Gamecocks. That means y’all are in…
…the Papajohns.com Bowl. Yessir, that’s my antiquated monument to Southern football! Welcome back to Birmingham, Carolina. We missed you. It’s been 30 years since you last played at Legion Field, losing to Missouri in the Hall of Fame Classic. If you recall, there used to be an upper deck over the west stands. Structural integrity can be a fickle mistress, and it was taken down several years ago. So, enjoy playing a mediocre Big East team in the cold, try not to get shot in one of the worst neighborhoods in town and for Heaven’s sake, make a trip to Milo’s. You’ll thanks us later for that last one.
It’s doubtful that anytime in the modern era of college football there have been six undefeated teams, ranked Nos. 1-6, going into the final week season (not counting Army-Navy on Dec. 12). As such, not much changed, even after a run of upsets. There remains the distinct possibility of four undefeated teams topping the polls when all is said and done. That would require the winner of the SEC Championship to win the national title game, Cincinnati to beat the loser of the SECCG, and TCU and Boise State to be victorious in their games. If such a thing happens, the issue will probably dominate ESPN for a solid week.
BCS Standings
1. Florida (.9868)
2. Alabama (.9513)
3. Texas (.9282)
4. TCU (.8689)
5. Cincinnati (.8547)
USA Today Coaches’ Poll
1. Florida (53)
2. Texas (3)
3. Alabama (3)
4. TCU
5. Cincinnati
Harris Poll
1. Florida (82)
2. Texas (15)
3. Alabama (12)
4. TCU (4)
5. Cincinnati
AP Poll
1. Florida (46)
2. Alabama (7)
3. Texas (7)
4. TCU
5. Cincinnati
The only real changes came in the first place votes. In each one of the polls, Texas and Alabama lost votes to Florida, while TCU collected one more in the Harris Poll. The computers like Florida and Alabama equally, as the two are tied at No. 1. More or less, the computers and the human polls are looking pretty similar at the top, though the ones and zeroes types have Cincinnati in the No. 3 spot with Texas at No. 4 and TCU at No. 5.
With two weeks left, and Alabama staring at a trip to Auburn and the SEC Championship Game, Crimson Tide running back Mark Ingram still isn’t letting go of first place in the Heisman Trophy race. Against UT-Chattanooga, he was pulled with 10 minutes left in the second quarter, but still put up 102 yards rushing on 11 carries with two touchdowns.
The other major contenders, Texas quarterback Colt McCoy and Stanford running back Toby Gerhart, can’t seem to make the jump to force Ingram out of the top spot. Considering the next two games for Ingram are big ones, and Ingram tends to perform on an exceptional level in big games, could spell the end of the race. However, the Tide need to keep winning. A big showing against Auburn on Friday and besting Florida’s tough run defense would sew it up.
HeismanPundit.com
1. Mark Ingram, Alabama, 58 (10)
2. Colt McCoy, Texas, 40 (1)
3. Toby Gerhart, Stanford, 33 (1)
4. Tim Tebow, Florida, 20
5. C.J. Spiller, Clemson, 13
ESPN.com Heisman Watch
1. Mark Ingram, Alabama, 73 (13)
2. Toby Gerhart, Stanford, 47 (1)
3. Colt McCoy, Texas, 32
4. C.J. Spiller, Clemson, 24
5. Kellen Moore, Boise State, 20 (1)
CBS Sports Heisman Watch
1. Mark Ingram, Alabama, 44 (3)
2. Toby Gerhart, Stanford, 34 (1)
3. Colt McCoy, Texas, 28 (1)
4. Kellen Moore, Boise State, 10
5. C.J. Spiller, Clemson, 6
Of course, Sports Illustrated isn’t doing anything to help the matter, laying the dreaded SI jinx by putting Ingram on the cover and giving him a five-page feature in the magazine.
