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Friday, December 13, 2002
On the Mike: Rudderless ships
By Mike Diegnan
BCSfootball.com
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The Heisman race
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1. Michael Vick, Virginia Tech QB
Last week: 10-18-120, 1 TD; rush: 11-104, 1 TD
Season: 26-44-412, 4 TD, 1 int.; rush: 25-219, 3 TD
This week: Off
Comment: Somersaulting his way to the Downtown Athletic Club.
2. Chris Weinke, Florida St. QB
Last week: 12-22-262, 4 TD
Season: 69-110-1023, 8 TD
This week: Louisville
Comment: Coral Gables had better start getting ready for the old man.
3. LaDainian Tomlinson, TCU RB
Last week: 39-243, 2 TD
Season: 63-419, 5 TD
This week: Arkansas State
Comment: Is there any doubt about LT now? With Arkansas State, a 300-yard game is feasible.
4. Eric Crouch, Nebraska QB
Last week: Off
Season: 11-25-170, 1 TD, 3 int.; rush: 24-137, 6 TD
This week: Iowa
Comment: After ND silenced Drew Brees, Crouch's effort in South Bend looks even more impressive. Now he faces a Hawkeye defense that will likely have Crouch shut down by the half (because it'll be a 40 or 50 point Husker edge).
5. Drew Brees, Purdue QB
Last week:13-22-221, 2 TD, 1 int.; rush: 7-35
Season: 70-110-954, 7 TD, 2 int.; rush: 16-82, 2 TD
This week: Minnesota
Comment: His Heisman campaign took a serious hit at Notre Dame. He can regain his momentum against the Golden Gophers.
6. M. Tuiasosopo, Wash. QB
Last week: 15-29-200, 1 TD, 2 int.; rush: 13-43
Season: 49-90-646, 3 TD, 5 int.; rush: 43-168, 2 TD
This week: Off
Comment: Tui and the Huskies fought through his mistakes against Colorado and Miami, but will he be able to do the same act against UCLA?
7. DeShaun Foster, UCLA RB
Last week: 24-95 yards, 1 TD
Season: 95-422 yards, 6 TD
This week: at Oregon
Comment: When a team beats two Top 3 teams in a three-week span, someone has to get a chunk of the credit.
8. Anthony Thomas, Mich. RB
Last week: 24-182, 1 TD
Season: 61-421, 4 TD
This week: at Illinois
Comment: Now that the love affair with John Navarre is over, it's time to board the A-Train.
9. Deuce McAllister, Mississippi RB
Last week: 17-143, 1 TD; rec: 5-47
Season: 45-275, 5 TD; rec: 8-100, 1 TD; PR: 6-125, 1 TD; KR: 6-106
This week: Off
Comment: The X-rays were negative on his injured right shoulder, so Deuce's hopes are still alive.
10. Rudi Johnson, Auburn RB
Last week: 36-139, 1 TD
Season: 92-478, 6 TD
This week: Northern Illinois
Comment: Jumping on the Johnson bandwagon. Heck, the Tigers are 3-0 and the best team in the state.
DROPPED OUT:
Major Applewhite, Texas QB
Comment: Beat out Simms, but a loss to Stanford is a loss to Stanford.
LaMont Jordan, Maryland RB
Comment: Maybe he should spend some more time in class after his first two games.
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It's only mid-September and Alabama has no chance to be in Miami on Jan. 3. The Crimson Tide aren't even ranked anymore.
When Mike DuBose's squad hammered Florida in the SEC Championship Game last December, folks in Tuscaloosa and all over the nation were drooling over this team. Freddie Milons alone was enough to get an Alabama fan to summon Bear Bryant from his grave.
But there was one thing that 'Bama fans forgot: Who was going to fire up this team? Against Southern Mississippi on Saturday night, the Tide looked like lost souls and now, Alabama isn't even the best team in its own state.
"One of two things is going to happen," said DuBose after Saturday's loss. "Either we are going to separate and fall or we're going to come together. And, like I said, I love these guys. I simply have to do a better job."
A year ago, DuBose was fighting through his own problems of a sexual harassment suit and whispers of his termination after a loss to Louisiana Tech. A strong group of seniors -- namely, Shaun Alexander and Chris Samuels -- pulled the team together. With their leadership, the Tide recovered from a loss to Louisiana Tech and later staged a second half comeback at Auburn.
"(Samuels) took the team over at halftime against Auburn," said DuBose.
With both of those players now in the NFL, no one answered the question of who was going to do it this year.
Andrew Zow? He's not even the starting quarterback anymore.
Shaun Bohanon? The next Alexander is now the third-string tailback.
Milons? The next "Peter Warrick" made a great start to the season with a touchdown on his first touch against UCLA. Since then, Milons hasn't reached the end zone. Against Southern Miss., Milons touched the ball nine times for just 73 yards. That's not enough if Milons is going to give anyone near Tallahassee images of Warrick, let alone David Palmer's long-lost replacement.
"We've got the pieces of the puzzle," DuBose said after losing another game key game in Birmingham. "We lacked something here, something there. We have to put it together."
'Bama has a chance to recover and still win the SEC West, and therefore get a shot into the BCS, but it is looking further and further from happening with a lineup that is showing no ability to get out of this slump.
It's the same case in Happy Valley and Athens.
At Penn State, the Nittany Lions are 1-3 and sinking faster than the Kursk. Joe Paterno very well could beat Ohio State this weekend, but his team is missing the one veteran leader that could steer the ship upright.
The Lions' problems go much further than whether or not Rashard Casey should be playing. Last season, Justin Kurpeikis was a key contributor to the defense, but he didn't need to be the leader on a squad that had the top two picks in the NFL Draft with Courtney Brown and LaVar Arrington. Kurpeikis is in a no-win situation that few could have been prepared for.
Georgia is in a much deeper hole. The Bulldogs have the talent to challenge for the national championship, but when Quincy Carter is throwing five interceptions and making numerous mistakes against South Carolina, there is no hope.
More of an issue is when a team looks lackadaisical in a league game.
"Certainly we could have had more (intensity) on the field," Georgia coach Jim Donnan admitted recently. "We had a lot of effort but our intensity certainly could have been higher and I accept the blame for that."
If you look at the teams at the nation's top teams, they have one common link: a player that consistently steps up when the game is on the line. At Nebraska, it's Eric Crouch. For Florida State, it's Chris Weinke. Washington is 3-0 because of Marques Tuiasosopo, while at Florida, you could make a case for Jesse Palmer after leading the Gators to victory in front of 108,000 fans screaming at him.
For three years, Texas coach Mack Brown has known who to turn if his team is in danger. Major Applewhite has done everything possible for folks in Austin to love him, but he has ignored his critics, supported his battle with Chris Simms, and rightfully earned the playing time. Against Stanford, he should have had another comeback victory, but saw the defense give up a winning score to a backup quarterback with 1:12 to go.
All these players have turned in great performances this season when it mattered most. For Georgia and Alabama, all the talented recruits in the world will mean nothing if that type of effort doesn't happen sometime soon.
Mike Diegnan is the editor of BCSfootball.com.
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Michael Vick is at it again, somersaulting over a defender into the end zone.