2013 Week 13 Discussion

Pittsburgh, PA - We are less than 24 hours away from history being made one way or another, Middle Tennessee State University will win its first ever conference championship in only their 4th year in the Big East, OR Pittsburgh will win a dominant fourth straight Big East crown and stake claim to the crown once again to solidify their spot as the "owner" of the Big East.
A win tomorrow night at Heinz Field in the "Big East Championship" game would mean a lot for both of these programs, but it would mean a lot for both in different ways. A win for the Pittsburgh program and Coach Macc would be taking a step to national prominence, not that they are not already nationally recognized, but it would be taking a dive into the pool with the teams who are mentioned to have a shot at a national title every year. For the Middle Tennessee program and Coach Hickerson, a win would mean getting on to the national stage. The Blue Raiders will come in to this game still outside the top 25, but they did receive votes last week for the first time in the Hickerson era. If MTSU leaves tomorrow night the Big East champs, they will also leave a top 25 team, and they will also leave with a spot in a BCS bowl game. If you had to draw a map of how to get national recognition for a program, those are three steps that I believe would be on it.
The game itself is interesting, many believe MTSU will walk in tomorrow night a sizeable underdog and then walk out a sizeable loser. Pitt scores more points than anyone in the country and has a higher turnover margin than anyone in the country. Those are two things that will win you a lot of ballgames. They have the number 9 total offesne in the country and the leading tackler and 2 of the top 5 pass interceptors in the country on defense. Their only loss was by 3 points, against the number 4 team in the country, on the road. There are lots of things that say Pitt will walk in this game and walk out, victorious.
For MTSU to be succsesful in this game, I believe there are three keys.
1. PROTECT THE BALL
-This is the most important thing MTSU must do, they cannot turn the ball over and expect to win. Pitt has made a living this season on converting turnovers into points
2. SCORE IN THE REDZONE
-I do not believe MTSU will have trouble moving the ball tomorrow night, I think Logan Kilgore will move the offense down the field, but something MTSU has struggled with in big games under Coach Hickerson is scoring once they get inside the 20's. They must convert their opportunities tomorrow night
3. RUN THE BALL
-Pitt has the number 2 rush defense in the nation and number 102 pass defense in the nation so one would think hey, lets throw all night. Wrong, if MTSU chooses this route it could be a long night. This would allow the dangerous corners in the Pitt secondary to figure out the offense of Middle and give them chances to pick, it will also allow the Pitt defensive lineman to pin their ears back and harass Kilgore all night. MTSU must run the ball tomorrow night to keep the Panther defense honest, they do not have to run for 150 or 200 yards, but they must be able to run the ball when they want too
This is a huge game for both programs and a stepping stone in its own way for each team, Pitt is knocking on the doorstep of national title contention down the road and MTSU is knocking on the doorstep of national attention. Who will get through the door first?

Adam Sparks-MTSU BEAT WRITER

titangator wrote:

Pittsburgh, PA - We are less than 24 hours away from history being made one way or another, Middle Tennessee State University will win its first ever conference championship in only their 4th year in the Big East, OR Pittsburgh will win a dominant fourth straight Big East crown and stake claim to the crown once again to solidify their spot as the "owner" of the Big East.
A win tomorrow night at Heinz Field in the "Big East Championship" game would mean a lot for both of these programs, but it would mean a lot for both in different ways. A win for the Pittsburgh program and Coach Macc would be taking a step to national prominence, not that they are not already nationally recognized, but it would be taking a dive into the pool with the teams who are mentioned to have a shot at a national title every year. For the Middle Tennessee program and Coach Hickerson, a win would mean getting on to the national stage. The Blue Raiders will come in to this game still outside the top 25, but they did receive votes last week for the first time in the Hickerson era. If MTSU leaves tomorrow night the Big East champs, they will also leave a top 25 team, and they will also leave with a spot in a BCS bowl game. If you had to draw a map of how to get national recognition for a program, those are three steps that I believe would be on it.
The game itself is interesting, many believe MTSU will walk in tomorrow night a sizeable underdog and then walk out a sizeable loser. Pitt scores more points than anyone in the country and has a higher turnover margin than anyone in the country. Those are two things that will win you a lot of ballgames. They have the number 9 total offesne in the country and the leading tackler and 2 of the top 5 pass interceptors in the country on defense. Their only loss was by 3 points, against the number 4 team in the country, on the road. There are lots of things that say Pitt will walk in this game and walk out, victorious.
For MTSU to be succsesful in this game, I believe there are three keys.
1. PROTECT THE BALL
-This is the most important thing MTSU must do, they cannot turn the ball over and expect to win. Pitt has made a living this season on converting turnovers into points
2. SCORE IN THE REDZONE
-I do not believe MTSU will have trouble moving the ball tomorrow night, I think Logan Kilgore will move the offense down the field, but something MTSU has struggled with in big games under Coach Hickerson is scoring once they get inside the 20's. They must convert their opportunities tomorrow night
3. RUN THE BALL
-Pitt has the number 2 rush defense in the nation and number 102 pass defense in the nation so one would think hey, lets throw all night. Wrong, if MTSU chooses this route it could be a long night. This would allow the dangerous corners in the Pitt secondary to figure out the offense of Middle and give them chances to pick, it will also allow the Pitt defensive lineman to pin their ears back and harass Kilgore all night. MTSU must run the ball tomorrow night to keep the Panther defense honest, they do not have to run for 150 or 200 yards, but they must be able to run the ball when they want too
This is a huge game for both programs and a stepping stone in its own way for each team, Pitt is knocking on the doorstep of national title contention down the road and MTSU is knocking on the doorstep of national attention. Who will get through the door first?

Adam Sparks-MTSU BEAT WRITER

nice write up...

thanks man, i wanna play sooooo bad

Nice write up Gator

Hey guys just wanted to let you know...I have to take a trip to DC tomorrow but ill be back on Saturday early afternoon. I'm hoping we can advance to bowl week before i leave AX...but if we can't i will be free to get the NC game in Saturday anytime after 1pm, But tomorrow (Friday) I will be out of commission.

man its dead around here today

Sorry Tite, I literally could not keep my eyes open last night. I had to be up at 6:30 this morning and this isn't a game that can be rushed, for me.

I'm off at 6PM and will make myself availible this evening whenever you want to play. I'm not SCHEDULED tommorow, I may come in but as of right now I should be able to play late even. Post what times good for you and I'll be around for then.

BTW sick write up. I didn't realize my rush d was so good. I really need to step it up in the secondary if I want to beat you, thankfully I think that my secondary is my strength defensively. I think my pass defence numbers are a direct correlation to the slider settings we use are still too easy for the CPU to pass on us. We've got to figure out how we can make it tougher on them, while improving their running ability without making them Robo RBs.

How do you guys feel about making recruiting harder? Did you ever talk about putting it on All American instead of Varsity?

harder? texas just signed NINE 5 stars lol

yea i guess your right...idk 3 change of subjects seems cheap sometimes lol

Ax can i reiterate my request to have multiple users scheduled to play texas next year...those fuckers deserve a star demotion. 9 five stars. the nerve.

my goal is to land ONE 5 star next year, lol... shoot i just not got my first 4 star



MACCCCCC I WANNA FUCKIN PLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! sorry for the language, just tryign to get my point across... believe my boys are fired up...

there theme song for this game is not afraid by eminem lol

we might be smaller, slower, not as strong, but it dont matter, we are not afraid!!!!!!!


I have never been so pumped up for a game in my entire time in this dynasty.... i have to take an exam from 6 to 8 central.... so i should be good after that... unless you will be home like an horu and a half or so before that

Gruden did you really lose Price for the season? Thats brutal...he was your coach on the field

ouch gruden, i have been lucky not to have kilgore go down this season, he has every other year...

llcoolgrey wrote:

Gruden did you really lose Price for the season? Thats brutal...he was your coach on the field

Unfortunately yes...he took a shot in the third qt vs Arizona and never returned, really could have used him late, he is a field general for sure...it was a tough week in Seattle getting beat by both the Ducks/and Wildcats...both games were very similar in that I forced a ball that both you guys picked late....then to get stuffed at the goal line ala Tennessee Tiatan/St Lous Rams was a tough way to end the night..with 0:03 on the clock around the 25 Montana hits TE Barnett at about the 8 and he tries to drive into the end zone but the Wildcats stop him short....can't get wait to get to the off season...

llcoolgrey wrote:

yea i guess your right...idk 3 change of subjects seems cheap sometimes lol

Ax can i reiterate my request to have multiple users scheduled to play texas next year...those fuckers deserve a star demotion. 9 five stars. the nerve.

hey Axe, can i keep my series with Miami alive also...played them this year and would like to continue that series if possible...

clean slate next season...and ill be facing you at washington so that should help.

llcoolgrey wrote:

clean slate next season...and ill be facing you at washington so that should help.

I hope so? you and bucc are very tough...i will say that the years i have both of you in Seattle will be my best shot, but years like this one were I play both you guys at your place will be almost impossible to win both...My team is loosing some good SR, I really need some recruits to come in and help out, there will be some immediate playing time available...could be a interesting season for the Huskies....how are the Ducks going to be?

The Ducks are actually very young. I have very few graduating seniors, unless a bunch plan to leave for the NFL Draft. All in the high 80s. If Seamonster leaves that would suck but i do have a good backup in Williams. Overall i have this and next year to build depth. Hopefully AX doesnt skip the cut stage this offseason again...bc when i took over Oregon the cpu had recruited and signed liek 6 4 star hbs lol and so now i have a ton on redshirt. But i have the number 12 recruiting class right now, and about 9 3 stars and 2 more 4 stars as my clear number 1, hoepfully i can snag another 4star or 5 in the offseason.

I have a redshirt freshman QB who looks to be learning...his name is Jackson Carmichael...REMEMBER THE NAME!!! lol same with my oline. Im loosing my RT but i have some depth so it should be ok.

6pm central time macc?

llcoolgrey wrote:

The Ducks are actually very young. I have very few graduating seniors, unless a bunch plan to leave for the NFL Draft. All in the high 80s. If Seamonster leaves that would suck but i do have a good backup in Williams. Overall i have this and next year to build depth. Hopefully AX doesnt skip the cut stage this offseason again...bc when i took over Oregon the cpu had recruited and signed liek 6 4 star hbs lol and so now i have a ton on redshirt. But i have the number 12 recruiting class right now, and about 9 3 stars and 2 more 4 stars as my clear number 1, hoepfully i can snag another 4star or 5 in the offseason.

I have a redshirt freshman QB who looks to be learning...his name is Jackson Carmichael...REMEMBER THE NAME!!! lol same with my oline. Im loosing my RT but i have some depth so it should be ok.

doesn't sound promising for the rest of the PAC 10....I would hate to see Lache leave early lol...

fun facts for us 3 since no one else appears to be around...

Of the 4 top 5*HB in this recruiting class, South Carolina has commitments from #1,#2 and #4....Texas has the #3...

Washington has 4 verbal commits from top 150 HB all 4*....should be interesting to see how they come in ranked...

why? in our second game Lache was a non factor!

Gruden are you losing Bronson this coming offseason?

llcoolgrey wrote:

why? in our second game Lache was a non factor!

I don't agree...his numbers may not have been great, but he is a threat to take it to the house at any moment, and as a defense has to account for him every play, which helps to open up other aspects of your game...

"I don't agree...his numbers may not have been great, but he is a threat to take it to the house at any moment, and as a defense has to account for him every play, which helps to open up other aspects of your game..."

agreed...same goes for Bronson...usually i play a very in your face, strip the ball high turnover kind of defense. but i had to be waaaay conservative defensively bc i knew bronson would break tackles if i didnt swarm to the ball. and ever when you spread 4 wrs, i had to drop my FS Aiko Phillips to the box and be weary of the run.