Arizona Bears Down On The Territorial Cup & Wins Pac 12 South

All the chips fell for the Arizona Wildcats today.

UCLA was upset at home by Stanford 31-10.

Nobody in Arizona Stadium knew that because Wildcat head coach Rich Rodriguez ordered that the score of that game not be shown on the stadium scoreboard.

All the focus was on Arizona State.

Then today at Arizona Stadium the Wildcats defeated arch rival Arizona State 42-35 to claim the Pac 12 South title.




“I didn’t know if this would happen in year three." Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez said.  "But I knew it could happen, otherwise I wouldn’t have come here."




Did you hear what Rich Rod said?  He told the players in the locker room the Wildcats may have three games left to play.

Rodriguez believes Arizona has an outside chance of breaking into the College Football Playoff.

But first thing's first.

Here we are, we’re where we want to be, playing for a Pac‐12 Championship."Rodriguez said. "Our goal every year is to win the Pac‐12 South and then win the Pac‐12 Championship. We don't talk about much after that because we don't know.”

Arizona State could never figure out Nick Wilson who was the top Cat on the field.  Wilson rushed for 178 yards and three touchdowns to lead the way to the Pac 12 Championship game for Arizona.

#6 Sun Devils Go Down 35-27 At Oregon State

The curtain has fallen in Corvalis for Arizona State's College Football Playoff chances as Oregon State defeated the Sun Devils 35-27.

The 12th man was present at Reser Stadium and that fans made life difficult for the Sun Devils.

“The crowd was awesome, the atmosphere was great." Oregon State head coach Mike Riley said. "It’s great to see us just cut loose and play football. It was hard, it was good, I really appreciate how our team responded.”

One of those Oregon State players that cut loose was Beaver QB Sean Mannion who figured out ASU's defense with a pair of second half touchdown passes. Mannion ended the game throwing for 251 yards.

"It was a great team victory just the way we won it against a great opponent." Mannion said.  "ASU is as tough as anybody we have to tip our hats to them. iI think every aspect of the game came up, the run game was outstanding."

Oregon State sealed the upset when linebacker Michael Doctor picked off a Tyler Kelly pass late in the fourth quarterback and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown that sent the Beaver fans into a frenzy.

 "We knew we didn't have anything to lose,"  Doctor said.

Arizona State falls to 8-2 overall, 5-2 in conference but it's CFB playoff hopes are pretty much dead.

Oregon State is now 5-5 overall and needs one more win to go to a bowl game.

Field Goal Fest Goes To The Sun Devils 19-16 Over Utes

The kickers were the star of the show at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona Saturday night.

Utah's Andy Phillips was good from 50, 36 and 44 yards in regulation time

Arizona State's Zane Gonzalez was good from 20, 45 and 30 yards in regulation time but missed a 50 yarder in the second quarter.

With the game going into overtime and both offenses having an off night the game would come down to the kickers.

Utah received the ball first in the OT period and this is when Andy Phillips picked the wrong time to miss a field goal.

Phillips' kick sailed wide left.

When Zane Gonzalez had a chance to nail the game winner in overtime he did.  His 36 yard field goal split the uprights and the Sun Devils were winners over the Utes 19-16.


"Zane is a big time kicker"  Arizona State head coach Todd Graham said.

“We were extremely confident."  Arizona State defensive back Jordan Simone said. "He's the best kicker in the country. We believe that and he believes that, and he proved that tonight."

While Gonzalez was celebrating his good fortune he was also looking toward the other locker room and feeling for Andy Phillips.

"Andy Phillips is a great kicker." Gonzalez said.  "I don’t know if any of you know about him, but tremendous respect to that guy. He’s a great kicker. I just hope he doesn’t be too hard on himself tonight.”

"No one is harder on themselves than I am on myself for not putting the ball through the uprights." Utah kicker Andy Phillips said.

ICYMI: The Dirty Dozen Gets Scrambled

((HT: ESPN/SEC on CBS/Fox Sports/Northwestern Football)

Did you ever have one of those days where absolutely everything you thought was an absolute lock came crashing down around your ankles and left you in such a state that your pants wouldn't fit anymore...???

Let's face it... all hell broke loose at the top of the rankings (whether you choose to look at Brother Phil's Dozen or some other source) and sent it all in the blender for the foreseeable future...

Examples...

Starting in Oxford... it was proven once again that Alabama has SERIOUS special teams issues in their loss to Ole Miss where Bo Wallace would keep the football and stash it someplace after the game was over as he tried to escape the throng that stormed the field.
Oklahoma decided that a road game against TCU in their new digs was a great idea... It wasn't...and plays like this one Gary Patterson pulled out of the back of the playbook help. What kind of flaws do USC have...??? There seems to be the one glaring one right now... Late game focus... it came into play as Arizona State came from behind to surprise them Some would think that Miss State's win over Texas A&M was an upset... The HQ doesn't think so as their suspect defense was exposed and Dak Prescott went off in a 48-31 win But here's one last one for you to think about as we head to Sunday... Northwestern hosted Wisconsin and they weren't good hosts- beating the Badgers 20-14 in a bit of a mucker it looks like...

Whoa! UCLA Kicks It Up a Notch Runs Away From Az. State

((ht: foxsports.com))

It was supposed to be a battle of two top 15 ranked teams. And by all expectations, the game was supposed to be a close one.

And for about a quarter or so, the Arizona State vs. UCLA game was close.

Then the Bruins scored 28 points in 7 minutes on the strength of a 95-yard interception return and 100-yard kickoff return by Ishmael Adams and annihilated the Sun Devils 62-27.

Yes, 62-27.

The two teams combined for 1200 yards of offense and believe it or not Arizona State ran 105 plays, quite a few more than the Bruins.

But Adams speed and Brett Hundley's 4-touchdowns and 355 passing yards were more than enough to prove State may have, well, been overmatched.

Your highlights from FOX Sports:

Sun Devils Sarafin Comes Out: Just How Big A Deal Is This Now...???

((HT: AZCentral.com/Haller))

Chip Sarafin has been a part of the Arizona State football program for the last four seasons as a non-scholarship offensive lineman. And in an article released today in Tempe, Arizona-based Compete magazine Sarafin told writer Joshua Wyrick that he is gay.

Serafin told Wyrick that he started telling his teammates that he's gay back in the spring. The news became public with the release of the magazine on Wednesday.

According to the article, there has been no issue with Sarafin and is Sun Devil teammates since his announcement and it is thought that he is the first-ever Division I football player to announce he is gay during his activity on campus.

Here's the first look from Dan Bickley:
((HT: KPNX-TV))
ASU head coach Todd Graham released a statement: "We are a brotherhood that is not defined by cultural and personal differences, but rather an individual's commitment to the Sun Devil Way. Chip is a fifth-year senior and a Scholar Baller, a graduate and a master's student. His commitment to service is unmatched and it is clear he is on his way to leading a successful life after his playing career, a goal that I have for every student-athlete. Diversity and acceptance are two of the pillars of our program, and he has full support from his teammates and the coaching staff." Vice President for Athletics Ray Anderson said Sarafin has ASU's support: "The entire athletics department is extremely proud of Chip and is unequivocally supportive of him. His undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering, his pursuit of a master's in the same field, his research involving football-related concussions, and his heavy involvement in the community with both youth sports in Arizona and the Tillman Scholars embodies all the characteristics that set our student-athletes apart and allows our university to maintain an environment of inclusiveness and progression."
And the larger question is: Is this THAT big a deal in its progressive behavior...???

The HQ lauds Sarafin and the stance of ASU at present and we hope it continues...

Interesting Night In CWS: One Player Backed Up His Presser Comments

((HT: ESPN/NCAA))

Sacramento State got their first-ever win in College World Series history and it came at a good time- knocking off Arizona State in an elimination game.

The Hornets scored three in the bottom of the 8th and held off ASU, 5-4
Interesting thing about the win was that slugger Rhys Hoskins called that shot after the team lost in the opening game to Cal Poly
((HT: Shotgun Spratling))


And that's how they're still alive in the Cal Poly bracket and the two get a rematch Sunday afternoon

And Then There Was The ASU-Texas Finish

((HT:NCAA March Madness))

Jonathan Holmes missed his three-pointer wide right, but Cameron Ridley was camped out underneath the basket as time expired. A lot of folks think Ridley would not have made the basket he made this season as his put-back gave Texas the win over Arizona State.

It's the first Texas win in the March tournament in three years
Here's the finish...

Texas Tech QB Davis Webb Enjoyed His Holiday With 4 Touchdown Passes. Texas Tech Defeats Arizona State 37-23

Texas Tech quarterback Davis Webb must have been tired of the losing.

The Red Raiders had lost five in a row heading into their Holiday Bowl match-up with Arizona State.

Everybody was not high on us on in the beginning of the year, we won 7 games, everybody was on our shoulders and we lose five in a row and everybody disappeared." Webb said.

Texas Tech showed up Monday night in San Diego and Webb had a huge game as the Red Raiders defeated Arizona State 37-23.

Thanks AJ Media


The final numbers for Davis Webb, he completed 28 of 41 passes for 403 yards and four touchdowns which ties the Holiday Bowl record.

Thanks ESPN


"When Coach told me I was going to start, there was nothing but joy," Webb said. "I told myself that I was going to make sure that I was going to send the seniors out right. We came prepared. We leaned on each other and we showed that today."

"Everybody in that locker room believed that we could beat Arizona State and we did that." Webb added.

Webb left San Diego with the Holiday Bowl offensive MVP award.

"It's always great to end on a win especially in a big-time bowl game like this, the Holiday Bowl, so it will definitely help our cause." Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury said.

Pac-12 Review: Wazzu Goes Pass Happier Than Normal, Stanford Stays Up, ASU Blows Out Washington

((HT: Pac-12 Network/FS1))

The Ess-E-Cee didn't have all the fun as conferences go on Saturday...

First, let's go to the records... and it didn't have anything to do with Oregon...

The HQ will give the Ducks credit for the pink touches to their amalgam of uniform combinations and permutations Saturday. But after a bit of a scare, they put the pedal down and beat Washington State as they should. The big story was Wazzu QB Connor Halliday, who set a D1 record for pass attempts with 89, breaking a record held previously by Drew Brees. Halliday also tied a record for completions with 58, tying the mark set by Andy Schmitt.

Admittedly, it's hard to pin down a 63-28 game to 1:40 with all that went down. But, here you go...


And, so you know, Washington State only had two yards rushing...

Oregon DC Nick Aliotti was less than happy about the efforts of the Pirate late in the game...
((HT: Campus Insiders))


Elsewhere, the HQ was keeping a keen eye on Boulder early Saturday afternoon as Charleston Southern was only down 22-10 in the first half. That didn't finish so well for the Bucs in the 43-10 loss...

Who knew Todd Graham had what his Sun Devils had in their system as they blew the living hell outta Washington (who won't be ranked anymore) after losing 53-24...

Ted Robinson and Glenn Parker confine their talk to 2:00...


Stanford knocked off UCLA in what a lot of folks didn't even consider an upset, and USC fans will have to try and figure out Coach O and what he'll say about the team's loss to Notre Dame in South Bend...

What Were The Badgers Thinking? Strange Ending In Arizona State's 32-30 Win Over Wisconsin

Can you explain this ending by to the Wisconsin - Arizona State game?



Wisconsin head coach Gary Anderson tried to explain.

It is a shame that it went down that way." Anderson said.  "If there is 18 seconds left we teach the kids to spike it and of course he slipped but that is what we practice. We were worried we would have a kickoff our way.”

Wisconsin fans are calling this the "Valley Of The Stun."

Class Move: Cory Hahn Drafted By Diamondbacks

((HT: ESPNU))

For those of you not familiar...

Hahn was a standout at Mater Dei High School before heading to Arizona State University to play college ball...
Playing in his third game as a freshman, Hahn was paralyzed from the chest down after sliding head-first while trying to steal a base against New Mexico in February 2011.

He has spent the past two years helping with Arizona State's program.
Here's Hahn's story when the four-letter caught up with him...


Diamondbacks president Derrick Hall said he hopes to have Hahn as an employee with an undetermined role in the organization.

So, without a doubt, Derrick Hall gets the "good guy" award for the day... and the HQ hopes that Hahn keeps serving as an example for anyone around...

Late Night CFB: Oregon sprints past Arizona State

Oregon was down 7-0 after fumbling on their 1st play from scrimmage.

It would be the only time they trailed Thursday night. The Ducks used 143 yards rushing from Kenjon Barner and 135 from QB Marcus Mariota to fuel a 43-21 rout over Arizona State which quite honestly, wasn't that close.

Oregon's defense forced 4 turnovers and Arizona State's supposed #1 Pac 12 defense (if there is such a thing) couldn't stop the Quack Attack from doing whatever it wanted to.

There was concern...at least by the 4-letter pundits that Oregon might struggle because of Mariota's inexperience and it being his 1st road game. And...raising that question did a good job of drumming up interest.

But there's a difference. Oregon easily justified their #2 ranking in the Weeks OSG Sports Dirty Dozen and now climb to 7-0. They still face games with USC, Stanford and a really tough Oregon State team that could knock them off. But it would be a surprise if that happens.

As for the Sun Devils, they drop to a very respectable 5-2 under 1st year wandering coach Todd Graham. The program, which had been struggling under previous coach Dennis Erickson seems to have found some footing, drawing 70,000 to a Thursday night game in the "Valley of the Sun".

KVAL-TV in Eugene provides us with some highlights:

Green With Envy: Oregon Infiltrates Tempe Mountain

((HT: AZCentral.com))

The HQ knows that Oregon is heading to Tempe to take on Arizona State for a nationally-televised game tonight...

And, as people say, Thursday night is where ranked teams go to die...

So, Oregon fans, knowing where the home game is played, took their pride to the mountain top (literally) this morning to paint their colors over the "A"...

Evidence below...

Apparently, it has been painted over since the initial color changing...
Back to black...

Here's Todd Graham talking about the game... before he goes somewhere else...
((HT: ArizonaSports620))

ICYMI: Arizona State destroys Colorado

Your West Coast audience probably stayed up to watch this, but those of us on the East Coast....eh...not so much.

Arizona State continued their run to a good season by totally demolishing Colorado last night 51-17. Of course, pretty much everyone destroys Colorado, one of the NCAA"s worst teams (though not quite Bottom of the Barrel--just also receiving votes).

ASU QB Taylor Kelly threw for 5 TD's and Rashad Ross returned the opening kickoff of the 2nd half 100-yards for a TD and the Sun Devils never looked back.

The win keeps ASU at 3-0 in the Pac 12, still within earshot of a conference title. Colorado, their season was over long ago, they are playing for experience at this point.

Here's some video of the Ross kickoff return:

Moore, Boise Punt Arizona State For 50th Career Win

((HT: KTVB-TV))

For a lot of people, this was the "35" point game if you were playing in one of those post-season confidence pools...

Just for craps-and-giggles, of course, not for any kind of financial windfall... and, if you did, you were right on as Boise State was challenged at points, but not completely challenged...

If you get the HQ's drift...

Kellen Moore got his 50th career win for the Broncos as they manhandled the Sun Devils and their tacky, new uniforms 56-24 in the Vegas-played car care bowl game- and, to be honest, it wasn't even that close...

Here's Moore reflecting on his career- three losses by a total of five points... but, as TBH says, what do they call those three losses by a total of five points...???

Losses...

OSG Buzzer Beater: Dodson's 3 Shoots Down Arizona State

A crazy game in Tempe, Arizona Monday night between Southern Miss and Arizona State.

First there was a fight between Torye Pelham of Southern Mississippi and Arizona State's Rusian Pateev, both were ejected.

Then the game ended on a buzzer beater by Southern Miss' Darnell Dodson, who was coming off suspension.

Here's the highlights, Thanks Fox Sports Arizona



Darnell Dodson, a Kentucky transfer, was kicked off the Southern Miss men's basketball team back in April after he was arrested on auto and residential burglary charges at a fraternity house. He pleaded guilty but the conviction could be lifted if he serves 500 hours of community service.

Southern Miss officials and head coach Larry Eustachy reinstated Dodson last Friday after making amends.

A buzzer beater is not a bad way to be welcomed back to the team.

"It was great to see (Dodson) out there tonight have the game that he had," Southern Mississippi coach Larry Eustachy said. "He had only practiced with our team once prior today and I just hope he can continue to keep it going like that the rest of the way."

DEVELOPING: Todd Graham To Arizona State

Hey, Todd Graham is changing addresses again...

What a shock...

Signs a 10-year deal with Tulsa, leaves for Pitt, texts his players a little after noon telling them he's heading to Tempe...

Graham told Joe Schad: "Coaching there has always been a dream of ours and we have family there..."

yeah, sure...

More when we know more... but this shows you how desperate ASU is to get a head football coach after turning away June Jones and Todd Haley...

Coaching Carousel begins: Multiple coaches fired

Ron Zook

It seems to start earlier and earlier each year. But in this case, it more or less begins at the end of the last regular season game.

Already, less than 2 days after that, we've got multiple coaching changes to report. And no, Urban Meyer is a separate story.

We start in Champaign, Illinois where to the surprise of very few people, the Zooker, Ron Zook was let go. He was let go in the midst of his team starting 6-0 and finishing the season 0-6.

Said Athletic Director Mike Thomas, "I assessed the entire program and felt that it was time for a change in leadership."


Thomas will discuss where the program is headed at 3:15, Zook, oddly enough will speak an hour later at the football stadium.

Read the full story from news-gazette.com RIGHT HERE

In Kansas, the Turner Gill era has ended.

Turner Gill

Gill was hired two years ago and given a 5-year, $10 million contract. He didn't finish. Kansas will pay him $6 million to leave Lawrence so they can find a new coach.

Gill went 5-19 overall and 1-16 in the Big 12. And really, the Jayhawks haven't been competitive at any point during his tenure.

The next question of course, who will take over the moribund program.

The Kansas City Star gives us details and suggests a few names RIGHT HERE

Next please.

Larry Porter

To the surprise of nobody, Memphis has relieved Larry Porter of his job after 2 seasons and 3 career wins. The Tigers, who desperately want to move to a "BCS" conference are perceived as a great basketball school and "They play football too?".

Porter, a Memphis grad in his 1st head coaching job went 3-21 in his 2 seasons and the Tigers were a perennial visitor to our "Bottom of the Barrel".

Also, Memphis AD R.C Johnson is expected to retire as well.

Read about the departures from Commercialappeal.com RIGHT HERE

Dennis Erickson

And in Tempe, Arizona it appears Dennis Erickson's tenure at Arizona State has come to an end. The departure has been widely reported and is expected to be made official sometime Monday.

Erickson was 31-30 in his 5-years, including a 6-6 record this season. He's taken the Sun Devils to bowl games, but has struggled living up to the expectations out there in the desert.

AZCentral.com gives us the latest RIGHT HERE

In Birmingham, UAB coach Neil Callaway was relieved of his duties as the Blazers football coach.

Callaway walked into a program in disarray and essentially ignored in the state of Alabama and couldn't do much with it. He went 18-42 in 5 long seasons as one of the lowest paid coaches in Division 1 football. His best season was a 5-7 slate in 2008.

AL.com gives us a recap of Callaway's tenure RIGHT HERE

And finally (for now), Paul Wulff hasn't been fired...yet at Washington State. The Cougars are 9-40 in Wulff's 4 seasons in Pullman and there have been hints that Athletic Director Bill Moos is ready to pull the trigger and find a new coach.

Washington State finished 4-8 this season, which was an improvement as the team has steadily won one more game each year than the past.

The Seattle Times says this is a done deal. Read the story RIGHT HERE

And yes, Washington State has a serious hard-on for former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach. Considering the jobs available, that may be a bit of a pipe-dream.

Expect more to come, we will try our best to keep you updated as the Carousel picks up speed before it runs out of steam sometime in mid to late January.

Much like the classic movie Logan's Run, we welcome you...to Carousel: