by  Jack Kerwin  |  [email protected]

Some random thoughts …

Not sure what they’re smoking these days in the College Football Playoff selection committee room, or through Zoom, but, if you ask me, that’s two weeks in a row the band of 13 got it right. Heck, they not only got the all-important top four slots right in the current rankings with Georgia, Alabama, Oregon and Ohio State, but they were on point with the next seven as well – especially with finally getting the better rep of Oklahoma (Okie State) in the top 10 at No. 9.

Arguments could be made that Notre Dame deserves to be higher than No. 8, but those grandstanding that the Irish would beat the one team it lost to this season – No. 5 Cincinnati – if they met again really haven’t been paying attention. The Desmond Ridder-led Bearcats prevailed five weeks ago in South Bend just like they always do, by winning ugly. Opponent doesn’t matter. Every time they take the field, they make everyone look bad – including themselves. But they win.

Oddly enough, Cincy is the second most-likely top-10 squad to fall this coming weekend when it squares off against high-scoring Southern Methodist with Oklahoma transfer Tanner Mordecai at quarterback. The most likely? No. 10 Wake Forest, which faces subtly-rising-from-the-ashes Clemson in Death Valley. A perennial CFP entrant, the Tigers have no shot at reaching the national semis this season, but they could put the Demon Deacons on edge for their ACC title berth. Watch out for Will Shipley.

Eagles fans and completely uninformed Philly sports talkers can make fun of Howie Roseman and the object of desire last Thursday night in Pittsburgh – Kenny Pickett – all they want. The reality is, their favorite GM was watching the best player in college football this season work his magic in typical oh-so-cool for the homestanding Pitt Panthers in a 30-23 victory against North Carolina. How good is Pickett? His 346-yard, three-TD effort was labeled by the cheesesteak-chomping geniuses in southeastern Pa. as subpar.

The Justin Fuente Experiment at Virginia Tech ended Tuesday, probably about four years after it became apparent it was never going to quite success. Year 3 in Blacksburg was the turning point following a strong 19-8 start to his reign. Mistakes and mediocrity, in all facets for a program, became the norm. Very weird, especially when you consider the guy who followed him at Fuente’s previous stop in Memphis, Mike Norvell, has struggled at Florida State since leaving the Tigers, too.

Not sure about the Jim Mora hiring at Connecticut. The Huskies are kinda trapped in the FBS hinterlands anymore, having bolted the American Athletic Conference for independence –  i.e., the ass-kissing of its hoops programs, so they could rejoin its former old Big East mates in the new Big East. He hasn't coached since 2017, when UCLA let him go after he went 17-19 in his final three seasons there. Then again, he went 29-11 in his first three. Plus, he's a name.

Jimbo Fisher ... just shut up. When you accept the LSU gig, if you're offered it, then you can talk about it and you being the "dumbest human."

PENN STATE MISTAKE
As the torchbearers push him closer to the edge of a cliff, Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin can fend them off with so many realities … except this one: He screwed up on his choice at quarterback.

Despite comments to the contrary, there never was competition for the position once Trace McSorley called it a career in Happy Valley. Sean Clifford was Franklin’s guy from the get-go at that point. He saw another McSorley, a “dude” who’d get it done no matter the cost – with a little style, maybe a little flair, and some serious skill – at least at the college level to boot.

Will Levis, Clifford’s adversary for the starting gig at Penn State in 2019 and 2020, OK, sure, he was a physical specimen, he brought a toughness that surpassed what a willing Clifford could provide, he just as big-time a recruit, but … geez, he just didn’t remind Franklin of McSorley. Ahhh, Clifford did, though.

Which is why we now see, in 2021, Levis elevating Kentucky – yes, Kentucky – to national relevance while the Lions, now 11-9 in Clifford’s last 20 starts after Saturday’s gut-wrenching 21-17 loss to No. 6 Michigan before 109K at Beaver Stadium (sadly, PSU fans, including undergrads left before effin’ halftime – SERIOUSLY?!!!), drifting into the abyss of what used to be, but is no longer.

Kinda like Nebraska under Scott Frost’s tutelage in Lincoln, Neb.

ACC ACCLAIM
The conference takes more than its fair share of heat year in and year out. Maybe it is time to acknowledge some its … well, greatness. Yep, greatness – as in greatness at the game’s most important position, QB. The ACC can proudly claim five of the nation’s top 20 statistical signal-callers, with Pickett coming in behind Virginia southpaw Brennan Armstrong in passing yards. Both have thrown for more than 3,500 yards and account for more than 30 TDs. They’re not alone, though. Wake’s Sam Hartman, N.C. State’s Devin Leary and North Carolina’s Sam Howell ain’t far behind.

Clemson’s D.J. Uiagalelei, who entered the season a Heisman favorite? He doesn’t even crack the top six in the ACC as Miami redshirt freshman Tyler Van Dyke (four straight starts with 300-plus yards and three or more TDs passing) has emerged as a star and possible job-saver for Hurricanes coach Manny Diaz.

by  Jack Kerwin  |  [email protected]

Got no problem with it.

Seriously.

Michigan slotted ahead of Michigan State in the latest College Football Playoff rankings – the Wolverines came in at No. 6, the Spartans No. 7 – announced Tuesday has created enough uneasiness and agita among those in the know that Aaron Rodgers is no longer a one-man ’round-the-clock news cycle anymore.

Doesn’t matter which Power 5-lovin’ former player is speaking or which baldheaded Jim Harbaugh-hatin’ television sycophant is preaching, the message is the same: the 13-person committee that made this a reality is off its cotton-pickin’ collective rocker.

Funny thing is, I got no problem with it.

Hell, I agree with it.

Why? Well, I’ve seen every game each has played this season, including the head-to-head matchup two Saturdays ago. Even with the Spartans winning a thrilling, 37-33 affair at home in East Lansing, there is no question – not in mind, at least … nor, apparently, in the minds of a majority in the aforementioned committee – as to which is the better team.

Not just in a one-game situation. Or, really, in a one-quarter rally. But this whole fall.

I’m a Michigan State fan – hardcore for four decades and change now. Michigan? Cannot stand the school, the program, the whole arrogant ‘tude that just wafts off the campus and around the country like a heavy fog.

But I don’t kid myself, or rationalize stuff, in order to feel better about a team, or player, I prefer over others.

Reality: Before the Spartans lost for the first time this past weekend at Purdue, they were outplayed by three other teams. Seriously, they reached 8-0 and were dramatically outperformed thrice, including by Michigan.

The Wolverines, frankly, were more dominant against Michigan State than the Boilermakers were. Outgained the Spartans by a bigger margin and had them dead-to-rites midway through the third quarter. Credit to State for responding and riding an incredible wave of emotion from the stands and some poor officiating to victory.

But better than Michigan? Sorry, this isn’t a winner-take-all deal to end a season. We’re still in swimwear portion of the beauty pageant … and, frankly, Sparty isn’t the looker other teams are.

OH, THE IRONY
If any team deserves support in the bitching and moaning department about where it currently sits in the CFP rankings, it is usually overrated Oklahoma. The Sooners remained stuck at No. 8 and appear to have no shot at making another CFP appearance.

Yes, they play in a lightweight Power-5 conference and they’ve struggled in six games. But they haven’t lost, which, by this time, all the previous Oklahoma teams of the CFP era would have. It really does seem like past face-plants by the Sooners are punishing the current Sooners.

BUT WHAT ABOUT …
Yeah, got it, Cincinnati. Look, same thing as with Michigan State. Style points are a real thing, and the now-CFP No. 5 Bearcats barely have any. Sure, they play in a better conference than most realize, they beat Notre Dame on the road and they even have been worthy of big-time attention for four seasons now. But they win ugly, seemingly every game anymore, regardless of caliber of opponent, and when you’re trying to crash the CFP, that’s really not the way to get anyone’s attention in order to do so.

Oh, you can’t ignore Cincy’s success. Just the same, you can’t ignore how it’s being achieved, either.

THURSDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
North Carolina, fresh off a game-of-the-year 58-55 upset over previously unbeaten Wake Forest, visits CFP No. 21 Pittsburgh tonight. What’s the big deal? Well, you have the preseason Heisman favorite Sam Howell, whose junior season short-circuited right along with the Tar Heels’ campaign very early, squaring off with, perhaps, the current Heisman favorite in Kenny Pickett, who has the Panthers enjoying one of their better seasons since the Dorsett-Marino-Green glory days four decades ago.

Pickett has thrown for 3,100 yards, 29 touchdowns and just three interceptions in 2021. Howell, despite some up-and-down experiences this fall, has accounted for 10,500 yards and 101 TDs in his career.

by  Jack Kerwin  |  [email protected]

He jumped off the screen.

For a five-star recruit, that was hardly rare.

But this kid, he was different. A star running back at a suburban Charlotte, N.C., high school, he stood out for starters – let’s face it and keep it real – with being white. So, the comparisons to the Carolina Panthers’ Christian McCaffrey were inevitable and just too hard ignore.

The kid ran with the same sprinter’s gait, but only more graceful and faster … and, though being the exact the same size (5-11, 205), he was stronger, far stronger in the way he moved. Bullish even, with running through, and sometimes over, tacklers with power every bit as much as speed and swivel hips.

This was current Clemson University freshman Will Shipley when I watched film of him during his junior season at Weddington High School. He was, in a word, awesome. The No. 1 all-purpose back in the country. The No. 1 recruit in the Tigers’ recruiting class that now finds itself matriculating on the school’s beautiful campus in upstate South Carolina.

He could do it all. Hit the home run. Get the tough yards. Lead block. Pass block. Catch out of the backfield. Catch lined up at receiver. Or pick off balls as a defensive back.

Still can (and, really, he looked far more Clemson great Travis Etienne than McCaffrey in doing so).
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The problem, and, really, the crux of the problem at Clemson right now is that, for the most part, Shipley has been symbolic of the players in its system. In short, head coach Dabo Swinney and Co. have the players. Hell, they have players who were bigger time, far bigger time recruits than those who had a major part in national championship seasons in 2016 and 2018.

They just haven’t produced as expected.

Defensive lineman Bryan Bresee was the No. 1 recruit in the 2020 class. For all the hype surrounding him, including him being a preseason All-American this season, he really hasn’t done all that much. He had 23 tackles and 4 sacks as a freshman. OK, fine. But nothing special.

Quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, the No. 1 QB recruit in the country in 2020, was brilliant in two games in relief of Trevor Lawrence last season as a freshman, but he’s been a major disappointment this fall.

Truth? Got no aversion to ripping the coaches, including Swinney and uber-ballyhooed offensive coordinator Tony Elliott and his beyond-uber-ballyhooed defensive coordinator Brent Venables, but the reality is, these guys, as well as the rest of the staff, have gone out and got the players needed to not only win, but dominate.

Granted, the Tigers have been a bit “soft” on signing top-flight offensive lineman. They obviously decided in the last handful of years that, if anything, if one area they could lag compared to others, it was there.

They’ve loaded up on defensive lineman and skill guys on both sides of the ball.

The thinking, frankly, is kinda sound. But, right now, while everyone is ripping the program and writing the R.I.P. for Clemson as an elite program, the reality is the Tigers are … right there.

Once their blue-chippers start producing, they will be either 1) the top program in the country or 2) the second-best behind Alabama.

Right now, D.J. has shown little, if any, improvement from a disastrous start to his sophomore season. Bresee is gone for the year due to injury.

Shipley? He, clearly, was the best player in the program the first couple weeks – not just due to numbers he posted, but in being rock-solid with blocking and a leader. Then he got hurt in Week 3, came back in Week 6 against Pittsburgh and dropped a crucial pass that had long-TD written all over it and switched momentum to the Panthers’ favor.

Here’s the deal: Clemson, right now, is no longer the staple for ACC play or a given for CFP entry.

But Shipley went off for 128 yards rushing (two TDs), 24 passing and 42 on returns in Saturday’s 30-20 win against Florida State. This was his first game with being “fully” used, and the numbers and result were a good sign for Swinney.

In other words, if Shipley and others start performing as expected, don’t close the casket on the Tigers just yet.
Especially beyond this season.