The Wild West | A West Texas Outlaws Dynasty

[St. Francisco]

So, after shocking losses by Pitt and Virginia Tech in the conference championship games, the BCS picture has been altered dramatically. Here's a taste of the action coming up:

#4 Wisconsin (11-1, 8-1) (At-Large Bid) faces off against the surprising #3 Miami University Redhawks (12-0, 9-0) (MAC Champion, At-Large Bid) in the Rose Bowl.

#5 Texas (10-2, 8-1) (SWC Champion) looks to cap off a resurgent season with a victory over former conference rival #10 Nebraska (11-2, 9-1) (GMC Champion) in the Fiesta Bowl.

Unlikely conference champions Georgia (8-5, 8-2) (ACC Champion) and #8 Notre Dame (10-3, 7-3) (Big East Champion) face off in the Orange Bowl.

#6 Mississippi State (10-3, 7-3) (SEC Champion) will try to cap their cinderella season with a win over #7 Pittsburgh (12-1, 9-1) (At-Large Bid) in the Sugar Bowl.

Andrew Luck and the top-ranked Stanford Cardinal (12-0, 9-0) (Pac-10 Champion) look to complete their perfect season against #2 Michigan State (11-1, 8-1) (Big Ten Champion) and their high-scoring offense in the BCS National Championship game.

[St. Francisco]

2011 AWARDS CEREMONY

A shocking 28-21 loss to unranked Georgia in the ACC championship game cost Virginia Tech a national title berth, an undefeated season, and a chance to play in a BCS bowl. But it couldn't ruin the fantastic season of junior runningback David Wilson, who became the first player in team history to win the coveted Heisman trophy.

David Wilson didn't lead the nation in carries, yards, or touchdowns, but still blew away the competition in the Heisman voting because of his versatility. In addition to averaging 5.9 yards per carry while rushing for 1,523 yards and 15 touchdowns, Wilson also had 17 catches for 244 yards and another five scores, and averaged 23.9 yards per kick return with a 101-yard return for a touchdown on special teams to lead the nation's top-ranked offense, who averaged 430 yards per game this season. He had a handful of memorable games over the year, including 147 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-20 win over ECU, 136 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and two catches for 57 yards and another score in a 44-12 win on the road against UConn, 148 yards and two touchdowns in a 51-17 road win over Wake Forest, 32 carries for 188 yards in a 28-14 win vs. Boston College, 169 yards and a score in a 31-28 road win against NC State, 135 yards and a touchdown in a 37-7 win over North Carolina, and 113 yards and a touchdown in the team's 28-21 loss to Georgia in the ACC title game. All together, Wilson eclipsed 100 rushing yards in nine of the team's thirteen games. Voters certainly appreciated his multitude of skills, giving the junior runningback 621 first-place votes to place him far ahead of Air Force's Asher Clark, who was awarded both the Walter Camp and Walker awards, but finished in 2nd place in the Heisman voting by more than 1,000 total votes. Pittsburgh's Ray Graham, senior Doug Martin of Boise State, and Nebraska's Rex Burkhead rounded out the five-man field of Heisman contenders.

In other news, Virginia Tech's sophomore quarterback Logan Thomas won the Maxwell despite missing the ACC title game with a broken tailbone. Thomas threw for 2,243 yards and 28 touchdowns with just five interceptions, and also rushed for more than 500 yards and another ten touchdowns. He is expected to return to the starting lineup for the team's Chik-Fil-A Bowl matchup against #18 UCF. Senior quarterback Case Keenum of Houston won the Davey O'Brien award after leading the nation with a 182.9 QB rating, completing 69% of his passes for 3,175 yards, 32 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He also rushed for 548 yards and another seven scores. Stanford's Andrew Luck failed to win an award, coming in 7th for the Maxwell and 2nd for the O'Brien, but his defense grabbed three thanks to the stellar play of juniors Chase Thomas (OLB) and Ben Gardner (DE), who combined for 147 tackles, 11 sacks, and seven forced fumbles in 2011. The Bednarik award went to Nebraska's senior cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, who led the nation with nine interceptions and a touchdown. The most surprising award recipient was Washington State's Marquess Wilson (WR), a true sophomore who exploded on the scene this year by leading the league with 92 catches for 1,309 yards and 14 touchdowns.

As for the Outlaws, senior Joe Watts (RT) earned 1st team All Sun Belt honors after leading the conference with 30 pancake blocks while only allowing three sacks. Mike McDaniel also made the 1st team as a returner, racking up over 1,000 yards on special teams. Senior Phil Baldwin (DT) was the only defensive player to be named an All-American, racking up 31 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles to earn 2nd team honors.

[St. Francisco]

2011 BOWL RECAP

[St. Francisco]

Got called to go offshore this morning, so no more updates for two weeks. Gonna try and sneak in the BCS bowl recap before I leave, but no promises.

[St. Francisco]

Another few tweaks the upcoming new alignment.

1. I added Minnesota and Indiana back to the Big Ten, and re-arranged the divisions. I decided I would rather have a conference championship game for every BCS conference.

2. Former C-USA teams ECU AND SMU, and former MAC/GAC team Temple have been added to the Big East to bring them up to twelve teams. Appalachian St. has been moved to the C-USA.

3. The Pac-16 and SEC have sixteen teams each, while the Big XII, ACC, Big East, and Big Ten have twelve teams each. The WAC, Sun Belt, MAC, and C-USA have eight teams each. The GAC has seven teams.

[St. Francisco]

After wrapping up their first undefeated regular season in 47 years and their second straight MAC title, the Miami University Redhawks were rewarded with their first ever BCS bowl appearance as an at-large bid. It was there that they faced off against the 4th ranked Wisconsin Badgers (12-1, 8-1), who might be playing in the national championship game had it not been for a 43-21 loss to Michigan State that not only killed their undefeated season, but also ultimately lost them the Big Ten title. But their season was solid enough to earn them an at-large bid into the Rose Bowl, where the Badgers' 4th ranked rushing offense and 6th ranked passing defense went up against Miami's 5th ranked passing offense and top-ranked defense against the run. Throughout 2011, Wisconsin relied on the dynamic duo of runningbacks Montee Ball and James White, who each averaged over six yards per carry, rushed for over 1,000 yards and scored 10+ touchdowns over the course of the regular season. Ball got the day started off by rushing for 28 yards and a touchdown off five carries, but left the game midway through the first quarter with back spasms, and would not return. With the game riding on his shoulders, true sophomore James White did not disappoint, rushing for 199 yards and three touchdowns including an 87-yard scamper to the endzone in the third quarter to lead his team to a 31-28 victory. As a team, the Badgers dominated Miami's normally stout rushing defense, racking up 344 yards and all four of their touchdowns on the ground. After a close first half that ended with Wisconsin in the lead by a score of 14-12, the Badgers blew the game open in the third quarter by racking up 17 points. The Redhawks would add two touchdowns in the final quarter, but their comeback attempt fell just short. Junior quarterback Zac Dysert, who lead the nation with 3,448 passing yards on the season, throwing 26 touchdowns with just ten interceptions, completed less than half of his 21 attempted passes for 175 yards and threw an interception before leaving the game with a concussion. Sophomore backup Austin Boucher performed admirably in his absence, completing seven of eleven passes for 106 yards, but could not lead the team to their first ever BCS bowl victory. For Wisconsin, the win marked their fourth Rose Bowl victory in school history, and ended any controversy at two teams finishing the season undefeated.

ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO
Jan 2, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#4 Wisconsin Badgers (12-1, 8-1)	7	7	17	0	31
#3 Miami (OH) RedHawks (12-1, 9-0)	3	9	0	16	28

Team Stats Comparison
	WIS	M-OH
Total Offense	475	341
Rushing Yards	344	60
Passing Yards	131	281
First Downs	24	15
Punt Return Yards	24	17
Kick Return Yards	155	137
Total Yards	654	495
Turnovers	1	1
3rd Down Converstion	5-11 (45%)	1-9 (11%)
4th Down Conversion	0-2 (0%)	0-1 (0%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	2-2 (100%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	5-3-0 (60%)	4-3-1 (100%)
Penalties	9-90	10-77
Posession Time	34:32	25:28

Just over one year ago, Nebraska left the Big XII with a whimper after losing their sixth straight game to Texas in their semi-regular rivalry game. Looking for a fresh start in the newly-formed Great Midwest Conference, the Cornhuskers put together their first 11-win season in ten years, capping it off with a 31-28 win over Arizona to take home the conference title and earn a Fiesta Bowl bid against the 5th ranked Longhorns, the Big XII champions who rebounded in 2011 after a poor 5-7 finish last season. Appearing in their first Fiesta Bowl since 2000, Nebraska turned to Heisman finalist Rex Burkhead to lead the offense once again, and he did not disappoint. The junior runningback rushed for 164 yards and a touchdown in the win, and also led the receiving corps with four catches for 41 yards and another score, but it was truly the defense who won the game, holding Texas to a season-low seven points to cap their season off with a BCS bowl victory. Texas was held to 266 total offensive yards, and converted just four of their fourteen 3rd and 4th down attempts in the loss, while Garrett Gilbert completed only 39% of his passes for 158 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Meanwhile, Nebraska put up 280 yards on the ground alone, and forced two turnovers to snap a long losing skid to their Texas rivals.

TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL
Jan 2, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#5 Texas Longhorns (10-3, 8-1)	0	7	0	0	7
#10 Nebraska Cornhuskers (12-2, 9-1)	0	10	9	7	26

Team Stats Comparison
	TEX	NEB
Total Offense	266	380
Rushing Yards	108	280
Passing Yards	158	100
First Downs	12	28
Punt Return Yards	17	11
Kick Return Yards	148	29
Total Yards	431	420
Turnovers	2	1
3rd Down Converstion	3-13 (23%)	7-15 (46%)
4th Down Conversion	1-3 (33%)	0-1 (0%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-1 (0%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	1-1-0 (100%)	6-2-2 (66%)
Penalties	7-77	5-35
Posession Time	25:25	34:35

Over the last two decades, Pittsburgh has finished with ten or more wins just once. So when the team completed their second undefeated season in school history, and Georgia knocked off #2 Virginia Tech in the ACC title game, the door was open for the unlikely Panthers to earn their first bid to a BCS national championship game. But in a rematch with #8 Notre Dame in the Big East conference championship game, Pitt fell one point short of earning their 13th win, and saw their national title hopes drift away. Still a one-loss team, the Panthers were fortunate enough to earn an at-large bid into the Sugar Bowl to face off against unlikely SEC champs Mississippi State, who were no match for angry Pitt team. After passing for just 72 yards in their loss to Notre Dame, Tim Sunseri completed 60% of his passes for 301 yards and three touchdowns in a dominating 34-10 win over the Bulldogs, while Heisman finalist Ray Graham joined by backup Zach Brown and Sunseri combined for 162 rushing yards and another score. His go-to man was third-year sophomore Devin Street, who had nine catches for 115 yards and two scores as he torched Mississippi State's 13th ranked pass defense. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's +10 turnover differential payed dividends as they forced three turnovers in the victory, and the defense held the Bulldogs scoreless in two redzone trips. The Panthers finish with one blemish on their 2011 record, but a BCS bowl victory is the next best thing.

ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL
Jan 3, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#6 Mississippi State Bulldogs (10-4, 7-3)	0	7	0	3	10
#7 Pittsburgh Panthers (13-1, 9-1)	7	17	7	3	34

Team Stats Comparison
	MSST	PITT
Total Offense	325	477
Rushing Yards	163	176
Passing Yards	162	301
First Downs	16	23
Punt Return Yards	19	33
Kick Return Yards	143	57
Total Yards	487	567
Turnovers	3	0
3rd Down Converstion	2-10 (20%)	10-17 (58%)
4th Down Conversion	1-1 (100%)	0-0 (0%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-0 (0%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	2-0-0 (0%)	3-2-1 (100%)
Penalties	4-37	9-65
Posession Time	25:23	34:37

Georgia and Notre Dame were the most unlikely of conference champions this season, beating two of the four remaining undefeated teams to win the ACC and Big East respectively. Matched up in the Discover Orange Bowl, the winner would take home something fans never expected to even be a part of: a BCS bowl victory. Despite losing starting quarterback Dayne Crist late in the game with a broken thumb, the Irish gutted out another close win, holding Georgia to just seven points in four redzone trips to earn a 20-14 win. Crist completed 18 of 34 passes for 223 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception, while senior wide receiver Michael Floyd earned player of the game honors with nine catches for 108 yards and two scores. Georgia managed to win the turnover battle, but faced an unusually stout Notre Dame defense in the redzone, who ranked a miserable 91st over the course of the season. Still, the Bulldogs were in it until the end thanks to their 17th ranked defense which held the Fighting Irish to just 20 points, but failed to close the six-point gap before time expired and gave the team their sixth loss of the season. Meanwhile, Notre Dame ended their decent 9-3 season with a Big East title in their first season with the conference, and the team's first Orange Bowl win in over 20 years.

DISCOVER ORANGE BOWL
Jan 4, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Georgia Bulldogs (8-6, 8-2)	7	0	7	0	14
#8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (11-3, 7-3)	14	3	0	3	20

Team Stats Comparison
	UGA	ND
Total Offense	303	385
Rushing Yards	100	132
Passing Yards	203	253
First Downs	21	19
Punt Return Yards	34	12
Kick Return Yards	66	52
Total Yards	403	449
Turnovers	1	2
3rd Down Converstion	10-19 (52%)	6-16 (37%)
4th Down Conversion	0-0 (0%)	1-2 (50%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-0 (0%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	4-1-0 (25%)	5-2-2 (80%)
Penalties	5-30	12-102
Posession Time	30:55	29:05

[St. Francisco]

[St. Francisco]

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP





#2 MICHIGAN ST. SPARTANS (11-1, 8-1)
VS.
#1 STANFORD CARDINAL (12-0, 9-0)

Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech fell in their respective conference title games, and Miami University came out on the losing side in the Rose Bowl, leaving #1 Stanford as the last undefeated team in the nation. In the national championship, they put their perfect mark on the line against the high-scoring #2 Spartans, who led the league with 38.6 points per game this season. On the biggest stage of them all, the two senior quarterbacks shined, combining for over 300 yards and seven touchdowns. But it was Michigan State's defense who ultimately won the game, holding the Cardinal to field goals in two redzone attempts, and stopping a two-point conversion try that would've tied the game in the final minutes. With a final score of 28-26, the Spartans pulled off the upset to win their first national title in 46 years, becoming the first Big Ten team since Ohio State in 2003 to be crowned the best in the nation.

Stanford came out firing on all cylinders, with Andrew Luck throwing TD passes to tight end Zach Ertz and senior Chris Owusu in the opening seven minutes to give them an early 14-0 lead. But the Spartans wouldn't be silent for long, responding with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Kirk Cousins to senior tight end Brian Linthicum near the end of the first quarter. After a scoreless period of 10+ minutes, Michigan State tied the game late in the first half with a 3-yard TD pass to Keshawn Martin. Determined to pull back in the lead, the Cardinal put together a fantastic drive in the final minutes of the second quarter, but ran out of time at the end and kicked a 30-yard field goal to give Stanford a 17-14 lead. To open the third quarter, Stanford put together another productive offensive drive, but were stifled in the redzone and forced to settle for a chip shot field goal to increase their lead to six. Minutes later, the Spartans would take their first lead of the game when Cousins found senior B.J. Cunningham for a 3-yard touchdown pass. In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, Linthicum scored his second TD of the day, giving the Spartans a 28-20 lead with precious few minutes remaining. After a back-and-forth defensive quarter, Stanford's senior wide receiver Griff Whalen would find the endzone with just two minutes remaining, but the team's two-point conversion try that would've tied the game fell incomplete. Michigan State controlled the ball for the rest of the game, running the clock out and sealing their thrilling victory.

Kirk Cousins proved worthy of attention by NFL scouts in his final collegiate game, completing 17 of 26 passes for 184 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception to lead his team to their first ever BCS national title. His final year was spectacular, as the senior signal-caller completed 67% of his passes for 3,268 yards (2nd in the NCAA) and a league-leading 35 touchdowns with ten interceptions. He also received help from true sophomore Leveon Bell on the ground, who filled in for injured starter Edwin Baker after he left the game early with a pulled hamstring. Bell only carried the ball 17 times, but averaged 6.1 yards per touch as he rushed for 104 yards. Defensively, the Spartans recorded three sacks, but their real accomplishments came inside the 20-yard line, where they held the potent Cardinal offense to 20 points in four redzone trips.

On the other side of the ball, Andrew Luck completed just 51% of his passes, but threw for 189 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. As he prepares for what many believe may be the #1 overall selection in the 2012 NFL draft, Luck finished his senior season with a 68% completion percentage, throwing for over 3,200 yards and 31 touchdowns with just six interceptions. Meanwhile, junior runningback Stepfan Taylor led a highly productive rushing attack, racking up 119 yards off just 19 carries. Stanford's defense held the Spartans to 335 total offensive yards, and recorded two sacks and the only turnover of the game, but fell just short of limiting the opposing offense enough to let Luck win the team another game.

Another thrilling college football season is in the books, and a national champion has been crowned. Now teams will turn to the offseason, where the final touches will be put on recruiting classes as all 120 teams prepare for what is sure to be another great season.

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Jan 9, 2012	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#2 Michigan State Spartans (12-1, 8-1)	7	7	7	7	28
#1 Stanford Cardinal (12-1, 9-0)	14	3	3	6	26

Team Stats Comparison
	MSU	STAN
Total Offense	335	374
Rushing Yards	184	189
Passing Yards	151	185
First Downs	18	21
Punt Return Yards	19	13
Kick Return Yards	139	48
Total Yards	493	435
Turnovers	1	0
3rd Down Converstion	8-14 (57%)	6-13 (46%)
4th Down Conversion	0-0 (0%)	1-1 (100%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-1 (0%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	4-4-0 (100%)	4-2-2 (100%)
Penalties	9-83	7-60
Posession Time	33:38	26:22

Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING		MSU	STAN
11:00	(STAN) TD: Zach Ertz, 17 yard pass from Andrew Luck	0	7
8:04	(STAN) TD: Chris Owusu, 27 yard pass from Andrew Luck	0	14
2:23	(MSU) TD: Brian Linthicum, 18 yard pass from Kirk Cousins	7	14
SECOND QUARTER SCORING		MSU	STAN
3:55	(MSU) TD: Keshawn Martin, 3 yard pass from Kirk Cousins	14	14
0:06	(STAN) FG: Eric Whitaker, 30 yard kick	14	17
THIRD QUARTER SCORING		MSU	STAN
9:36	(STAN) FG: Eric Whitaker, 22 yard kick	14	20
5:55	(MSU) TD: B.J. Cunningham, 3 yard pass from Kirk Cousins	21	20
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING		MSU	STAN
11:45	(MSU) TD: Brian Linthicum, 8 yard pass from Kirk Cousins	28	20
2:01	(STAN) TD: Griff Whalen, 5 yard pass from Andrew Luck (2-pt. conv. failed)	28	26

[St. Francisco]

2011 SEASON STATS

[calgaryballer]

Isn't the MSU QB Kirk Cousins...?

[St. Francisco]

Isn't the MSU QB Kirk Cousins...?

Ah crap...I actually put Kirk Cousins in the story and box score, but not on the graphic. Nice catch.

I also referred to Luck as a senior. FML.

[St. Francisco]

2012 GRADUATION CEREMONY

[St. Francisco]

[St. Francisco]

I usually write up a little something on the graduating players and incoming recruits, but decided not to for this dynasty. Instead, I'll do a detailed roster preview before kicking off next season.

For now, the time has come for me to put this little dynasty on hold while I focus on getting my franchise report off the ground. So stay tuned in the NFL section for that one.

P.S.: My 6-6 (5-3) season was enough to bring West Texas up to a 2-star school. Moving on up! Also, Miami University went 12-0 (9-0), with a three-point loss in the Rose Bowl to Wisconsin, and remained a 2-star school. What a crock of shit.

[St. Francisco]

Back at it again, expect updates soon.

Side note: FFFFFUUUUUUUU. I just accidentally saved over my 2011 save file. For those not in the know, I keep a save file of each year so I can go back and look at stats and stuff...and I just fucking saved over it. So pissed.