I tell ya' Herbie:
Maryland football looked like it had finally begun to work its way back from beyond just a few weeks ago when it blasted nationally ranked Syracuse 63-20.
With hindsight, we now know how awful the ACC is and that victory at home was deceiving in its quality, but at the time it looked huge for new coach Mike Locksley and his Terrapins.
Fast forward a month and the Terrapins lost to non-power five school Temple before an off week and resulting home game against "rival" Penn State in what Maryland fans were referring to as the biggest game since entering the Big Ten.
Even though Maryland (and Rutgers for that matter) look at Penn State as their rival ( like Penn State does Ohio State), both schools are dismissed by the Nittany Lions as such ( in the same manner that Ohio State scoffs at a Penn State rivalry), so to Maryland it was a huge game, while to Penn State it was just another conference game.
Penn State led 38-0 at the half, the Maryland student section had cleared out so completely that by the end of the 59-0 loss, Penn State's traveling fans had moved down and taken over the Maryland student section!
So much for that return to prominence.
I tell ya' Herbie:
Tennessee has been a staple of this column since I started it this season, but this time it makes sense as athletic director Phil Fulmer ruled out a return to the sidelines after the rumor mill had run rampant that Fulmer would take the reigns of the program should the Volunteers continue to struggle as they are expected to do under Jeremy Pruitt in SEC play.
Fulmer announced today that he will not take over and in the dreaded "Vote of confidence" said that he is fully behind Pruitt.
I'll believe that when I see it, but even if it isn't Fulmer as the replacement, Pruitt will have to finish strong as the 1-3 Vols will be underdogs in their next three games (Georgia, Mississippi State, and Alabama) before the schedule somewhat softens down the stretch (South Carolina, UAB and Vanderbilt at home with road trips to Kentucky and Missouri) in order to feel safe about returning for 2020.
I tell ya' Herbie:
Our weekly hit on the ACC continues as Georgia Tech continues to embarrass the league, this time with a 24-2 loss to Temple.
The Yellow Jackets awful play does have an excuse for a year as Geoff Collins changes the offense from the spread option favored by former coach Paul Johnson while having most of his talent recruited to play in the old offense, but two points against Temple after a home loss to the Citadel isn't going to win Collins a lot of goodwill.
Meanwhile, Pitt had to rally for a three-point win over Delaware at home and the stunning deterioration of the Virginia Tech Hokies (a 35 point loss at home to Duke can do that) eats away at a league's credibility that needs a different reputation other than Clemson, a few has-beens, and a bunch basketball schools.
Only the surprising 5-0 start by Wake Forest, who climbed into the top 25 this week, has been any decent news for the league.
I tell ya' Herbie:
I was asked about the early Heisman race and the fast start by Alabama transfer Jalen Hurts at Oklahoma that has placed Hurts at the forefront after the first month.
I don't generally have favorites this early, but the Hurts scenario is interesting to follow.
Assuming that Hurts can continue his current level of play, here is what I find interesting- Will Heisman voters be more likely to give him their votes because he has a great story with leaving Alabama and then competing for the Heisman against the player that took his job?
Or will the same voters have a backlash against Oklahoma quarterbacks after giving the award to OU passers in the previous seasons (Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray) and begin to consider the system in question as very player friendly?
I don't have an answer or opinion yet, but it's interesting to consider.
I tell ya' Herbie:
I mentioned Appalachian State's win over North Carolina last week and I thought about the Mountaineers as the week moved on.
What are the chances that Appalachian State, should they run the table and go undefeated, grabs the group of five bid to the "New Years Day" grouping of games?
Well, the Sun Belt is the least regarded of the group of five leagues, although I wouldn't argue that they are, but they certainly will have their problems leaping a one-loss UCF (that loss being a one-point loss at Pitt) and maybe even a one-loss Boise State, should the Broncos slip up (they are currently undefeated) in what looks to be a very strong year for the Mountain West, but keep this in mind- Should Appalachian State go undefeated, they would have to defeat South Carolina in Columbia, but should they do that, they would have not only two wins over Power Five opposition, both would have been on the road.
That would be a nice resume' and would make a decision very interesting.
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