Friday, December 30, 2016

Other Teams Considered





New Mexico (8-3) ; Biggest Win:  Air Force 45-40; Lost to #25 Boise State 49-21, Rutgers 37-28 and New Mexico State 32-31
San Diego State (9-2) ; Biggest Win: California 45-40 or Utah State 40-13; Lost to Wyoming 34-33 and South Alabama 42-24
Wyoming (8-3)  New Mexico; Biggest Win:  #25 Boise State 30-28; Lost to #19 Nebraska 52-17, Eastern Michigan 27-24 and UNLV 69-66 in three overtimes


Arkansas (7-5) lost to Missouri 28-24; Biggest Win:  #13 Florida 31-10; Lost to #1 Alabama 49-30, #11 Texas A&M 45-24, #12 Auburn 56-3, #23 LSU 38-10 and Missouri 28-24
Miami of Florida (8-4) beat Duke 40-21; Biggest Win:  Georgia Tech 35-21; Lost to Virginia Tech 37-16, Florida State 20-19, North Carolina 20-13 and Notre Dame 30-27
Georgia Tech (8-4) tripped Georgia 28-27
Memphis (8-4) upset #23 Houston 48-44; Biggest Win:  #23 Houston 48-44; Lost to #10 South Florida 49-42, #12 Navy 42-28, Tulsa 59-30 and Mississippi 48-28
Pittsburgh (8-4) outlasted Syracuse 78-61; Biggest Win:  #5 Clemson 43-42 and #9 Penn State 42-39; Lost to Oklahoma State 45-38, North Carolina 37-26, Virginia Tech 39-36 and Miami of Florida 51-28

Minnesota (7-3) ; Biggest Win:  Maryland 31-10; Lost to Penn State 29-26, Nebraska 24-17 and Iowa 14-7
Appalachian State (9-3)





Toledo (9-3) lost to #12 Western Michigan 55-35; Biggest Win:  Eastern Michigan or Central Michigan; Lost to #11 Western Michigan and BYU 55-53


Tulsa (9-3) edged Cincinnati 40-39 in overtime
Temple (9-3) beat East Carolina 37-10
Middle Tennessee State (6-2)
Western Kentucky (9-3) beat Marshall 60-6
Kansas State (5-3)

Ohio (8-4)

Minnesota (8-3)


Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Former Boise State Broncos in the NFL--Week 16

Jamar Taylor's interception helped Cleveland to its first win of the season, while Jay Ajayi ran wild again to highlight Boise State performances in the NFL:

Jay Ajayi, running back of the Dolphins, rambled for 32 carries for 206 yards and a touchdown and caught a pass for 3 yards to lead Miami to victory, their 10th win in 15 tries.

Ryan Clady, starting tackle of the New York Jets, is on the injured reserve list.

Kamalei Correa, linebacker for Baltimore, did not play

Tyrone Crawford, starting defensive tackle for Dallas, had no statistics in Cowboy win.

George Iloka, starting safety for Cincinnati, had six tackles, three of them solo, in Bengal loss.

DeMarcus Lawrence, defensive end for Dallas, had no stats in Cowboy win.

Charles Leno, tackle for the Bears, saw Chicago lose.

Doug Martin, running back for Tampa Bay, did not play after helping his team to a 5-1 record since his return from injury.  The Bucs lost--can't blame Martin.

Shea McClellin, linebacker for New England, had 2 tackles as the Patriots are now 13-2.

Kellen Moore, quarterback for Dallas, is on the injured reserve list.

Reed Odhiambo, the backup left guard for Seattle, saw the Seahawks lose.

Matt Paradis, starting center for Denver, played as the Broncos lost.

Orlando Scandrick, cornerback for Dallas, had five tackles, four of them solo, as Dallas moved to 13-2.

Jamar Taylor, starting cornerback for Cleveland, had five solo tackles, two of them solo, with a tackle for loss, an interception that he returned for 17 yards, and three pass deflections in Brown win.

Darian Thompson, reserve safety for the New York Giants, is injured.

Kyle Wilson, cornerback for New Orleans, is on injured reserve.

Billy Winn, backup defensive end with Denver, had no statistics in Bronco loss.

Saturday, December 24, 2016

Ajayi Rushes for 206 Yards Against Buffalo

Jay Ajayi became just the fourth player in NFL history to post three 200-yard rushing games in a season.  He did it again today!

Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Former Boise State Broncos in the NFL--Week 15

Jay Ajayi, running back of the Dolphins, had 19 carries for 51 yards as Miami moved to 9-5 on the season.

Ryan Clady, starting tackle of the New York Jets, is on the injured reserve list.

Kamalei Correa, linebacker for Baltimore, did not play

Tyrone Crawford, starting defensive tackle for Dallas, had two tackles as the Cowboys advanced their record to 12-2.

George Iloka, starting safety for Cincinnati, had four tackles, two of them solo, in Bengal loss.

DeMarcus Lawrence, defensive end for Dallas, is recuperating from injury the last two games of the season.

Charles Leno, tackle for the Bears, saw Chicago lose.

Doug Martin, running back for Tampa Bay, had 16 carries for 42 yards as the Bucs lost for just the first time since Martin's return from injury.

Shea McClellin, linebacker for New England, had two tackles, one of them solo, as the Patriots ran their record to 12-2.

Kellen Moore, quarterback for Dallas, is on the injured reserve list.

Reed Odhiambo, the backup left guard for Seattle, helped the Seahawks beat the Rams.

Matt Paradis, starting center for Denver, played as the Broncos lost.

Orlando Scandrick, cornerback for Dallas, had one solo tackle and three pass deflections as the Cowboys won again.

Jamar Taylor, starting cornerback for Cleveland, had four tackles, three of them solo, with a pass deflection in Brown loss.

Darian Thompson, reserve safety for the New York Giants, is injured.

Kyle Wilson, cornerback for New Orleans, is on injured reserve.

Billy Winn, backup defensive end with Denver, had two tackles, one of them solo, in Bronco loss.

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Former Boise State Broncos in the NFL--Week 14

Jay Ajayi, running back of the Dolphins, had 20 carries for 48 yards and one catch for 15 yards to help Miami win.

Ryan Clady, starting tackle of the New York Jets, is on the injured reserve list.

Kamalei Correa, linebacker for Baltimore, did not play

Tyrone Crawford, starting defensive tackle for Dallas, had three tackles, two of them solo, with one sack and one tackle for loss in Cowboy defeat.

George Iloka, starting safety for Cincinnati, had three tackles, two of them solo, and an interception that he returned for 21 yards in Bengal win.

DeMarcus Lawrence, defensive end for Dallas, had no stats in Cowboy loss.

Charles Leno, tackle for the Bears, saw Chicago lose.

Doug Martin, running back for Tampa Bay, had 23 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 19 yards as he helped the Bucs win their fifth straight, all since Martin's return from injury.

Shea McClellin, linebacker for New England, had 8 tackles, 3 of them solo, in Patriot win.

Kellen Moore, quarterback for Dallas, is on the injured reserve list.

Reed Odhiambo, the backup left guard for Seattle, saw the Seahawks lose.

Matt Paradis, starting center for Denver, played as the Broncos lost.

Orlando Scandrick, cornerback for Dallas, had four solo tackles and a tackle for loss in Cowboy defeat.

Jamar Taylor, starting cornerback for Cleveland, had five solo tackles in Brown loss.

Darian Thompson, reserve safety for the New York Giants, is injured.

Kyle Wilson, cornerback for New Orleans, is on injured reserve.

Billy Winn, backup defensive end with Denver, had no statistics in Bronco loss.

Monday, December 12, 2016

Former Boise State Bronco Doug Martin Passes Mike Anderson and Others To Rank #191 for All-Time

With Doug Martin's performance Sunday in a win over the Saints, he passed several former NFL greats, including Mike Anderson, and now ranks #191 for all-time in career rushing.

Martin had 23 rushes for 66 yards and a touchdown to lead Tampa Bay, which all of a sudden has won five straight games since Martin's return from injury.  The Buccaneers are now 8-5 on the season.

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Former Boise State Broncos in the NFL--Week 13

A big game for Shea McClellin highlighted Week 13:

Jay Ajayi, running back of the Dolphins, had 12 carries for 61 yards and six receptions for 26 yards in Miami loss.

Ryan Clady, starting tackle of the New York Jets, is on the injured reserve list.

Kamalei Correa, linebacker for Baltimore, had no stats in Raven win.

Tyrone Crawford, starting defensive tackle for Dallas, had one solo tackle to help the Cowboys win.

George Iloka, starting safety for Cincinnati, had five tackles, two of them solo, in Bengal win.

DeMarcus Lawrence, defensive end for Dallas, had no statistics in Cowboy win.

Charles Leno, tackle for the Bears, helped Chicago slaughter Colin Kaepernick and the 49'ers.

Doug Martin, running back for Tampa Bay, had 17 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown and a pass reception for 23 yards as the Bucs won for the fourth time in a row since Martin's return.

Shea McClellin, linebacker for New England, was the leading tackler with 7 tackles, 1 of them solo, with a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss in Patriot win.

Kellen Moore, quarterback for Dallas, is on the injured reserve list.

Reed Odhiambo, the backup left guard for Seattle, helped the Seahawks win.

Matt Paradis, starting center for Denver, helped the Broncos win.

Orlando Scandrick, cornerback for Dallas, had seven tackles, six of them solo, as Dallas won for the 11th time in 12 games.

Jamar Taylor, starting cornerback for Cleveland, was idle this week.

Darian Thompson, reserve safety for the New York Giants, is injured.

Kyle Wilson, cornerback for New Orleans, is on injured reserve.

Billy Winn, backup defensive end with Denver, had a solo tackle in Bronco win.

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Blue Through and Through Rankings: Week 14

Head-to-head matchups among teams with equal records is the easiest way to decide which team is better.  When there are "round robin defeats"; i.e. team A beats team B, and team B beats team C, but team C beats team A (each team has a 1-1 record against the others), ranking reverts to most impressive wins vs. least impressive losses.  This situation occurred this week in both the SEC (Auburn, LSU, A&M, Florida) and the Pac-12 (USC, Colorado, Stanford).

Temple, Air Force, Navy, Houston, Louisville and Florida State have to be ranked in that order since Temple and Air Force beat Navy, Navy beat Houston, Houston beat Louisville and Louisville beat Florida State.  All have the same number of losses.  Since Air Force has three bad losses, the four-loss teams ahead of them debut in the Top 25, and the teams above behind Navy must take their place behind the Falcons.

The Pac-12 and the SEC are the biggest beneficiaries of the head-to-head matchups above. Tennessee, Utah and Washington State are all more impressive than Air Force.

Because of these rankings, the difference between #2 Ohio State and #3 Washington is now much closer.  Both have four Top 25 wins and only one loss to a Top 10 team.



(Note:  the rankings are based on logic rather than hype or potential.  Teams with the same record are judged by their biggest wins and their losses, if any.  Impressive wins over Top 25 teams are more important than other wins, and losses to Top 25 teams hurt far less than other losses.

The "Biggest Win" refers to the highest-ranked win; generally, only ranked teams and teams being considered are listed.  Sometimes, as in the case of Western Michigan, they don't have a win over teams in these rankings, and it is unknown at this time which of their listed wins is the biggest.)

1-1    Alabama (13-0) whipped Florida 54-16; Biggest Wins: #10 USC 52-6, #15 Auburn 30-12, #16 LSU 10-0, #22 Texas A&M 33-14, #23 Tennessee 49-10 and  Florida 54-16,
2-2    Ohio State (11-1) did not play; Biggest Wins: #4 Michigan 30-27 in two overtimes, #6 Oklahoma 45-24, #9 Wisconsin 30-23 in overtime and #17 Nebraska 62-3; Lost to #7 Penn State 24-21
3-3   Washington (12-1) demolished #11 Colorado 41-10; Biggest Wins: #11 Colorado 41-10, #12 Stanford 44-6, #24 Utah 31-24 and #25 Washington State 45-17; Lost to #10 USC 26-13
4-4   Michigan (10-2) did not play; Biggest Wins: #7 Penn State 49-10, #9 Wisconsin 14-7 and #11 Colorado 45-28; Lost to #2 Ohio State 30-27 in two overtimes and Iowa 14-13
6-5   Clemson (12-1) defeated Virginia Tech 42-35; Biggest Wins: #15 Auburn 19-13, Louisville 42-36, Florida State 37-34 and Virginia Tech 42-35; Lost to Pittsburgh 43-42
10-6 Oklahoma (10-2) downed #19 Oklahoma State 38-20:  Biggest Wins:  #13 West Virginia 55-28, #19 Oklahoma State 38-20 and #20 Kansas State 38-17; Lost to #1 Ohio State 45-24 and Houston 33-23
9-7 Penn State (10-2)  upset #9 Wisconsin 38-31; Biggest Wins:  #2 Ohio State 24-21, #9 Wisconsin 38-31 and Temple 34-27; Lost to #4 Michigan 49-10 and Pittsburgh 42-39
7-8   Western Michigan (13-0) escaped with a 29-23 win over Ohio; Biggest Win: Toledo 55-35
5-9   Wisconsin (10-3) lost to #7 Penn State 38-31; Biggest Wins:  #16 LSU 16-14 and #17 Nebraska 23-17 in overtime; Lost to  #2 Ohio State 30-23 in overtime, #4 Michigan 14-7 and #7 Penn State 38-31
16-10 USC (9-3) did not play; Biggest Wins:  #3 Washington 26-13 and #11 Colorado 21-17; Lost to #1 Alabama 52-6, #12 Stanford 27-10 and #24 Utah 31-27
8-11 Colorado (10-3) lost to #3 Washington 41-10; Biggest Wins:  #24 Utah 27-22 and #25 Washington State 38-24; Lost to #3 Washington 41-10, #4 Michigan 45-28 and #10 USC 21-17
15-12 Stanford (9-3) was idle; Biggest Wins:  #10 USC 27-10 and #20 Kansas State 26-13; Lost to #3 Washington 44-6, #11 Colorado 10-5 and #25 Washington State 42-16
14-13  West Virginia (10-2) edged Baylor 24-21; Biggest Wins: #20 Kansas State 17-16 and BYU 35-32; Lost to #6 Oklahoma 56-28 and #19 Oklahoma State 37-20
11-14 South Florida (10-2) did not play; Biggest Win: Navy 52-45; Lost to #21 Temple 46-30 and Florida State 55-35 
17-15 Auburn (8-4) was off this week;  Biggest Win:  #16 LSU 18-13 ; Lost to #1 Alabama 30-12, #5 Clemson 19-13, #22 Texas A&M 29-16 and Georgia 13-7
18-16 LSU (7-4) did not play; Biggest Win:  #22 Texas A&M 54-39;  Lost to #1 Alabama 10-0, #9 Wisconsin 16-14, #15 Auburn 18-13 and Florida 16-10 
19-17  Nebraska (9-3) was idle; Biggest Win: Wyoming 52-17; Lost to #2 Ohio State 62-3, #9 Wisconsin 23-17 in overtime and Iowa 40-10
25-18 Boise State (10-2) was idle; Biggest Wins:  #25 Washington State 31-28 and BYU 28-27; Lost to Wyoming 30-28 and Air Force 27-20
13-19 Oklahoma State (9-3) lost to #6 Oklahoma 38-20; Biggest Wins:  #13 West Virginia 37-20 and #20 Kansas State 43-37; Lost to #6 Oklahoma 38-20, Baylor 35-24 and Central Michigan 30-27
-----20 Kansas State (8-4) ran over TCU 30-6; Biggest Win:  TCU 30-6; Lost to #6 Oklahoma 38-17, #11 West Virginia 17-16, #12 Stanford 26-13 and #18 Oklahoma State 43-37
-----21 Temple (10-3) sank Navy 34-10; Beat #14 South Florida 46-30 and Navy 34-10; Lost to #7 Penn State 34-27, Army 28-13 and Memphis 34-27
24-22 Texas A&M (8-4) was idle; Biggest Wins: #15 Auburn 29-16 and Tennessee 45-38 in two overtimes; Lost to #1 Alabama 33-14, #16 LSU 54-39, Mississippi 29-28 and Mississippi State 35-28 
-----23 Tennessee (8-4) did not play; Biggest Wins: Virginia Tech 45-24 and Florida 38-28; Lost to #1 Alabama 49-10, #22 Texas A&M 45-38 in 2 OT's, Vanderbilt 45-34 and South Carolina 24-21
-----24 Utah (8-4) was idle this week; Biggest Win: #10 USC 31-27; Lost to #3 Washington 31-24, #11 Colorado 27-22, Oregon 30-28 and California 28-23
-----25 Washington State (8-4) was off this week; Biggest Win:  #12 Stanford 42-16; Lost to #3 Washington 45-17, #11 Colorado 38-24, #18 Boise State 31-28 and Eastern Washington 45-42





Dropped Out:  Virginia Tech, Florida, Florida State, Navy, Houston, Louisville


Also Considered:

Air Force (9-3) did not play; Biggest Wins:  #18 Boise State 27-20 and Navy 28-14; Lost to Wyoming 35-26, New Mexico 45-40 and Hawai'i 34-27
Navy (9-3) lost to #21 Temple 34-10; Biggest Win:  Houston 45-40; Lost to #14 South Florida 52-45, #21Temple 34-10 and Air Force 28-14 
Houston (9-3) did not play; Biggest Wins: #6 Oklahoma 33-23 and Louisville; Lost to Navy 45-40, Memphis 48-44 and SMU 38-16
Louisville (9-3) was off this week; Biggest Win: Florida State 63-20; Lost to #5 Clemson 42-36, Houston 36-10 and Kentucky 41-38
Florida State (8-3) did not play; Biggest Wins:  #14 South Florida 55-35 and Florida 31-13; Lost to #5 Clemson 37-34, Louisville 63-20 and North Carolina 37-35
BYU (8-4) was idle; Biggest Win:  Toledo 55-53; Lost to #13 West Virginia 35-32, #18 Boise State 28-27, #24 Utah 20-19 and UCLA 17-14
Florida (8-4) fell to #1 Alabama 54-16; Biggest Win: #16 LSU 16-10; Lost to #1 Alabama 54-16, Florida State 31-13, Tennessee 38-28 and Arkansas 31-10
Virginia Tech (9-4) lost to #5 Clemson 42-35;  Biggest Win:  North Carolina 34-3; Lost to #5 Clemson 42-35, Tennessee 45-24, Georgia Tech 30-20 and Syracuse 31-17
Iowa (8-4) did not play; Biggest Wins:  #3 Michigan 14-13 and #17 Nebraska 40-10; Lost to #7 Penn State 41-14, #9 Wisconsin 17-9, Northwestern 38-31 and North Dakota State 23-21
Tulsa (9-3) did not play; Biggest Win:  Memphis 59-30; Lost to #2 Ohio State 48-3, Navy 42-40 and Houston 38-31