closetojumping

There appears to be several other issues causing Tarp to become an enemy of the aggie state. 1) There's a belief that Texags is getting fed information for their use that other writers and site are not. 2) The Elk or one of his minions has now called and berated Tarp/Karels on multiple instances due to how their expressing their opinions and disseminating data. Mack Brown didn't like how certain reporters reported things or asked questions and he'd have his SID team run folks to ground and intimidate them with regard to access and credentials. He once had a reporter (John Modani, I think?) brought to his office under the premise of some sort of scoop and then went fucking nuts on the guy. The Elk is apparently on that level.

A lot of you guys are letting that miserable UF team do a lot of work for you in your thinking about ATM. UF may go 1-11 this year. They're favored in Starkville this weekend by like 5 points, so maybe they pull that off. Maybe they beat FSU? Either win would only be a direct result of the utter putridness both programs currently represent. This is a bad UF with a ton of injuries and many of the players have quit on the dead men walking coaching them. ATM going 8-4 after what we've seen is next level paranoia. I don't know who between BG, Arky, @MSU, @Auburn and @South Carolina beats them, but it will be a combination of those teams. ATM is a bad fucking team. They're going to find ways to lose.

Nobody bats 1.000. It's hard to argue with how WR has been handled, particularly since Marion left. Thompson was at Texas long enough to collect substantial NIL, never learn the playbook, whine about playing time, and then get pushed into the portal. He then turns around after landing at OU to talk shit about Texas along with his mother. Then he fails to learn the playbook and plays little as a backup until this season, as the OU WR room continues to get worse. A starter early in 2024, he's now predictably injured and not contributing.

Jackson Arnold has thrown an interception at a key moment in each of the last two games. He's had to deal with a lot of pressure and was able to escape and run his way out of more than the gaudy 9-sacks-through-3-games stat already indicates. If the Tennessee DL is really as good as advertised, this might actually get ugly. That considered, the heavily lauded James Pierce may want to show up for this game if he's going to live up to his preseason AA billing. Dude has an assisted tackle, one of those, and no solos and zero sacks. Ooofff.

They've actually had at least 2 holding calls against them out of the 18 penalties they've been levied. That might be more holding penalties than most seasons in the past for those cheaters. One guy to watch on the OU OL is RG Fibeche Nwaiwu (transfer from NT). The guy is a penalty machine and a source of a lot of the defensive pressures and sacks. The combo of him and the 3rd string C, Bates, is not favorable for the okies against UTenn. The SEC calls holding, man. You can stop having the Big 12 reffing nightmares, I promise.

At a speed approaching warp, posters on 247 (and I assume texags) are now complaining that The Elk played Weigman against Notre Dame at the program’s expense. “We sacrificed a win by playing favorites.” It shouldn’t be surprising, but son of a bitch if it isn’t. No one has won more games that they never played than Texas A&M. No one has retroactively won more games that they actually lost than Texas A&M. They are the best in the American sports world at that stuff.

Someone in front of a computer should paste it, but Gerry mentioned the CB from Alabama as a long shot target in his write-up today. I believe, and feel free to fact check me here, that this is the first time a credible recruiting journalist has mentioned him as potentially in play for Texas. Things might get loud in the DB realm of recruiting. There’s also a lot of buzz that the CB commit from somewhere in FB/Sugarland is looking great as a senior. I’d be interested if the film junkies here like @Burt Macklin, @Fud, and many others have had a look and an opinion.

I’m a relatively simple man, probably. Both bits entertain me, at least, each week.

Listening to XM 84 Full Ride this morning and Childers is attempting to stoke the fires of QB controversy in Austin. “What happens if Arch goes out there again this weekend and throws 5 TDs?” Neuheisel handled it really well, pushed back, and lauded everyone involved. Said he doesn’t care if Ewers comes out and throws a couple of picks early against Georgia, they’ll all stick their knitting and fans will follow suit. Overall it was about 20 minutes of more or less just touting the hell out of both players, Sarkisian and the program, so I’m not complaining. That said, it’s just an indicator of where the national media and asshats like Bohls, Chip Brown, Ketchum/Anwar, and Liucci are dying to take things. A big statistical game this weekend, which I think is more likely than not, from Manning will send the QB controversy narrative into the stratosphere. We probably all need to gear the fuck up.

One stat I like is that OU has allowed 3 sacks in each of the first 3 games. What does that mean against Tennessee? I’m expecting 6+.

As bad as Kent State is this season, they are not an FCS team. Play like one? Sure. In a conference as one? No.

You really are a buffoon. This response is typical of a middle class real estate cokehead in LA, I guess. Full Ride is heard all over, even if it hurts your weak sensitivities.

This guy is great and the SEC Shorts team has actually stepped up their game plenty. Better than nothing.

This kind of shit is why anyone relying on PFF scoring for college players to determine their opinions about them needs their head checked. What a fucking joke of a system.

Just one guy's opinion, but there are three genius-level OCs in college football right now. Sarkisian, Riley, and Kiffin. Maybe Kinne gets there in my head soon or someone wants to argue for Heupel or DeBoer or Kelly/Day. Fine. Point is, if someone can do something akin to what Texas did against that defense this year, it's Riley or Kiffen, and they ain't playing Ole Miss. One thing we know Riley will do also, is if he gets a lead, he won't stop. If that guy can score 70 in the Big House, he will do it. I think Sarkisian could have had Texas put up something like that but strategically chose to take the sure W with limited to zero injuries and leave Ann Arbor as the slayers of the defending champs without a bunch of drama. If USC just fucking rolls Michigan, all we will immediately hear is how overrated Texas is because Michigan is a 6-6 team. I'd be rooting for Michigan anyways against USC, but that added element has me really hoping for a tough, tight game.

@BurntOrange&White will kiss your ass in public and give you 30 minutes to draw a crowd if Michigan beats USC on Saturday. Having watched their offense 3 times now, man, I don't see how they're getting above 10 points against competent defenses. They're going to need some defensive scores and black magic to put up enough points to beat that USC offense. The only other hope is that the front seven just shreds the USC OL, I guess.

Hudson came absolutely unhinged in the North Texas game and caught 3 passes for 43 yards in garbage time. Regarding Tech beyond Hudson, part of what you can make of them is that Chandler Morris is still very not good. At one point, starting when the game still had a prayer of being close-ish, Morris took it upon himself to put North Texas out to pasture. At 24-7, UNT has the ball and Morris throws a pick 6. They immediately get the ball back at 31-7 and Morris throws another pick on his first attempt, inside the UNT 30. Tech scores again, up 38-7. UNT HC Morris has had enough and they run the ball and punt on the next possession. Tech scores again, 45-7. With the game out of hand, HC Morris decides to let Chandler Morris throw it again, and he immediately throws his 3rd consecutive pick in 3 passes. Getting the ball inside the UNT 30 again, Tech scores again to go up 52-7. That's the same Tech defense that gave up 51 to Abilene Christian and whatever the fuck to Wazzou. Conclusion? Chandler Morris is dirty asshole at QB. Nothing new to read about Tech. They likely still suck balls. But, hey, it's Lubbock, so anything can happen.

I throw references to movies/movie quotes into posts all of the time. When you know, you know. HOHW is one of my favorite movies and that is a great scene.

FSU's got willing alums up to a point. They've only got so much to work with and they have to make choices the same as many schools in the mid-tier range of this stuff. UF's base will provide help if there's hope. They're not idiots. They're also not in the upper tier at this point. If they hire someone they're excited about, that could change. UF has never been one of the crazies in the SEC when it comes to buying players before the NIL era. Meyer had people helping out, but back then, $500k could buy the top end of a great class. You want a top flight roster now? Barring a miracle or a Saban discount, you're going to need north of $12M and that isn't UF. Miami has more than people think and Cristobal isn't totally dependent upon the original loudmouth supporting them. They're not upper tier on the alumni/collective side, but they're not middling. The thing Miami has that the other two do not is corporate NIL. Miami is a big city with a lot of brands that are willing to align with personalities. That helps put them into the higher realm of NIL, likely only lacking to the likes of Texas, Oregon, Ohio State and a few random programs each cycle.

No fanbase can throw away a starting QB for the back-up like ATM. It doesn't really get noticed or credited at the national level because ATM has been a middling program for so long and this kind of shit only happens when that kind of program is really down, but it's clear as day for all of us. What I find astonishing about it is how predictable it is. I know Mond was never replaced, which blows my mind, and Johnny Eightball was the man for two years, but I don't recall any other QB making it through their career since maybe Brandon Stewart. In this case, Weigman was being touted as recently as ... (checks notes) the week before this season as the best QB in the SEC. Yes, Peter Burns did that on the SEC preseason show and while others on the set showed surprise with that, his take was viewed as credible. There were scouts listing him as a 1st rounder who could actually rise to the top of the board! absurdly. Magazines were listing him as a top 10 national QB. Steele listed him as his 7th QB on the draft board, one behind Ewers. So even for the aggie idiots online, there was ample support for their view that Weigman was the real deal. I don't think any of these people looked at the actual performance of the guy and his injury history. They were all just pointing to some stats from a few games and the 5 star ranking and Billy Liucci telling anyone who would listen that Weigman was "Him". Then the guy shows up fat, slow, confused and inept against Notre Dame. Quickly, it's as if this scrub was an unknown in need of a rapid discard. They've basically stayed on that tilt as a fanbase. The boards are furious that Weigman is still listed as QB1 on the depth chart. Reed looks like an average dual threat guy that will have his weaknesses picked apart by good defenses as the season moves on. They're willing to simply dump a 5 star that they, and their talking heads, have been touting for 3 straight years. This for some 3 star rando (until he flops and they find someone new again). If this 5 star QB out of CA actually signs with them, he should be immediately discounted as the dumbest motherfucker in college football.

Before this season, I viewed the CU schedule as having 3 for sure wins for the buffs - NDSU, CSU and Baylor. One could have also argued for Cincinnati. They're going to be 3-1 heading to UCF. There will be a lot of shit talking ahead of that game, and the media will be talking CU up again for views and clicks. I assume that UCF will have that game circled and put a beatdown on them that resonates for the rest of the year. UCF might run for 400 yards in that game. Baylor? I don't even recognize the names of the players you're referencing. Surely Baylor is headed towards another season of 3-9 hilarity? I've not once considered the notion that Baylor will be anything but cannon fodder this weekend.

Tracking various OU stats for all 3 phases, I've pasted the 247 OU article on it below in spoilers. I left it formatted in the first spoiler and unformatted in the second. Bottom line? The OU offense is really bad. The OL is in shambles and they're about to go up against one of the nastiest front 7's in the sport this year. Jackson Arnold is the leading rusher and that's not because he's a formidable rusher. He got loose on blown assignments on Saturday and he looked like a moderately athletic QB in wide open space. They're trying to get fired up about Tatum, but in watching him, he looks as "okay" as the prior knobs they were slobbing, Barnes and Sawchuk. I honestly think it's a coaching thing. Their development at TB isn't there these days. At WR and TE, they're a grab bag of JAGs. Part of why Burks has received so much acclaim is due to him being the only guy playing right now who would be a part of the rotation at other top 25 programs. Arnold is a TO machine waiting to happen against a quality defense. You could see the pick 6 on Saturday happening before he threw it. The defense is good, not great. They're opportunistic and Venables knows what he's doing with play calls. They've faced no one worth a damn, so their numbers look good and, I'm guessing, they're believing that they're really good. Danny Stutsman is a stud at eventually getting somewhere and making a tackle down the field. They think the Mason guy is good at Edge and he had a day on Saturday. Where's he been? My view is that good offenses need to scheme around the safeties, who are the best players on their defense. Let Stutsman get 12 tackles on plays that gained 80 yards collectively. Good OLs will handle a mostly pedestrian front 7. They've been mostly stifled on special teams and I believe that to be a false positive for opponents. They're formidable on both return teams with talented returners. For OU to beat Tennessee, they're going to need a massive step-up in performance at OL, a surprising performance in the running game, a major gap in turnover differential, and a special teams score. Or maybe it will just turn out that Tennessee hasn't played anybody and is really overrated. I don't think that is the case, but this will be Iamaleava's first legitimate road test in a hostile environment against a competently coached defense.

They're viewing Williams as a safety as of now. It's hard to watch the film and say "oh, he's a linebacker" at this point. The guys they want in the secondary, barring someone emerging from fall scouting, are highly coveted by the teams' they're committed to and those teams are not stupid. I wouldn't be surprised if they're trying to not have certain guys listed as visiting and aiming for very late flips. Of course, that will fail because Geoff Ketchum will inevitably hear something from somewhere and fuck it all up. I don't know if I am putting the pieces together correctly or not, but my view is that the CB committed to Ohio State from Alabama could just show up at some point. Take that with a grain of salt, for sure.

It looks like we've contracted to host them again in 2026, 2028, and 2030. I wonder if Traylor will still be there in 2026? His team isn't good this year, but they're in a weak conference and he's a good coach. Maybe they get bowl eligible. If they have a good season next year, I'm guessing he takes the first offer he gets at the end of that season.

I have friends involved with how all of that stuff moves along and they were commenting at the time about the guys at ESPN, Mike Farrell and On3, all of whom they've worked with over the years. It was pretty hilarious then and it's absurd now. "Farrell is desperate for any kind of click. He's never liked Texas and he knows that negative articles about Texas drive clicks. He probably really believes his own bullshit about Manning, too, because he's a clueless idiot. He's got nothing to lose, really. He's so disconnected with everything that this is kind of an obvious play." "The ESPN guys have not scouted a single guy they're ranking in their top 300 in person. They're doing this to look smart and have told me that Manning is being heralded because of the name only." -- honestly, the ESPN guys were saying the same things to people that the texags posters were saying, almost down to every detail of the texags tropes about Manning. "Power felt he had to do this. Don't bet against a Manning as the guy at QB in a class. He's mocked Texas' development and evaluation problems." Whoops.