NCAA Football Report (Week 13)
NCAA football is a strange mix in sports as it is both entertainment and a way for young players to earn an education. It is multi-billion dollar industry but makes its money off of the efforts of young men who are supposed to be there to earn an education that they might have otherwise never been able to get. The pay for play debate in the NCAA has been done time and time again and will not be talked about in this week in review. Instead it is the attitude of teams and players alike in the NCAA that will be the focus. College football has long been a way for those who are less privileged and living in poverty to change their lives. It has been a channel for those without the money to afford a college education to get one using their physical gifts. For the majority of NCAA players they use their ability on the field to earn an education that they would not have been able to get if it wasn’t for an athletic scholarship. For a handful of NCAA players the education will never be the main goal for them as they see the NCAA as a way to earn millions of dollars in the NFL. These players hold hopes that they can get a chance to impress an NFL team and move their way away from the poverty they grew up with to the riches of playing professional sports. Only a few will get this though and that is always a concern for many players that do not look at their education as an important part to their time in college. For these players when they do not make the NFL they do not have an education to lean on but it is not entirely their own fault. Teams in the NCAA have forgotten what College Football is all about as it is supposed to be a side benefit to the main benefit that is a college education. Many teams do not see an education as a priority whether they claim to or not as they look to winning with these student athletes no matter what. There are the handful of teams that do concentrate on the education more than they concentrate on winning and yet still they are successful. There are plenty of teams who claim to do things the right way and although they may not be the constant national champions they are teams that do right by their players when they eventually leave the school. There is also a conference that does things the right way and although they do not apply to taking people out of poverty to greatness they do concentrate on what happens in the classroom more than on the field. The Ivy League Conference is a conference that is essentially never talked about as Ivy league schools do not make the best teams in the NCAA. The Ivy League recruits much like the rest of the league but they are limited as they require a certain level of education to make the team. This is required because the standards are quite different for players in Ivy League schools than on most players in the NCAA. This can limit their pool of great athletic players and essentially makes them a separate entity in the NCAA with no Ivy League school ever really making the top 25 anymore. They may not have the top athletes or play the best football but Ivy League football is still a competitive brand of football and one that looks back to the traditional values that college football was built on. They do not get a lot of focus but once a year one game brings the Ivy League back into the limelight for a small time. Simply known as “The Game” the rivalry game between the Harvard Crimson and Yale Bulldogs is one of the few times that the Ivy League gets their bit of limelight to show everyone what can happen when teams look at the right way of doing things. It is a small part of the league that is rarely talked about but many teams outside of the Ivy League are not doing anything to help their players instead using them as entertainment and throwing them into the world completely unprepared. If a few more teams took some notes from Ivy League schools and other schools that concentrate on education more there may be less issues with players graduating from these higher institutions of education.
Heisman Watch:
1. Jameis Winston, QB (Florida State)
It has not been the best week for Jameis Winston as the week would begin with accusations of sexual assault at the beginning of the week. The game would become secondary for the Heisman leader this week as there is a lot more at stake now than a trophy or a season. If the accusations are proven to be true Winston will see a promising NFL career take a big hit and a very good College career in jeopardy. Of course it will all be his doing and a man who is guilty of the accusations Winston has had this week doesn’t deserve a great career. He may still sit first in the Heisman race this week but there is no way he should win the award if these accusations turn out to be true.
Stats (11 Games):
69.6% (62 rsh)
3,163 yds (126 rsh yds)
32 TD (3 rsh TD)
7 INT
2. Johnny Manziel, QB (Texas A&M)
It was not the greatest week for Manziel and the Aggies as they would take a loss to the LSU Tigers in an important SEC game. The good news for Manziel is that nobody in the race would have a good game and almost all would fall out of the top of the race. Manziel remains near the top spot but has taken a big hit in his Heisman hopes. If there was a great performance by anyone near him in the race he would surely have lost his second place spot. 224 yards and one TD through the air is not what Manziel does and with the performance he has taken a step back in trying to be a repeat Heisman winner. He will look to make the long climb to the top now when he leads the Aggies against the Missouri Tigers as he hopes to make up for his poor performance this week.
Stats (11 Games):
69.1% (122 rsh)
3,537 yds (665 rsh yds)
32 TD (8 rsh TD)
13 INT
3. Tajh Boyd, QB (Clemson)
With Bryce Petty losing and Marcus Mariota losing his second game Tajh Boyd is back in the top three of the division. After leading the race for the start of the year Boyd fell quickly with big losses that has kept him on the outside while other players have taken over. In a week where a lot of teams and players would fall short of where they were supposed to be Boyd would have a great day. He should have had a great day as he led Clemson against Citadel and would put up some great numbers. 288 yards and 5 TDs would be exactly what he needed to get himself back into the conversation for the Heisman Trophy. He will take on the South Carolina Gamecocks and will next week in a game that could completely change the Heisman race is Boyd can take over and other players falter.
Stats (11 Games):
67.3% (119 rsh)
3,248 yds (257 rsh yds)
29 TD (8 rsh TD)
7 INT
4. AJ McCarron, QB (Alabama)
Stats (11 Games):
68.6%
2,399 yds
23 TD
5 INT
5. Jordan Lynch, QB (NIU)
Stats (11 Games):
66.3% (221 rsh)
2,418 yds (1,434 rsh yds)
21 TD (17 rsh TD)
5 INT
BCS Rankings:
1. Alabama Crimson Tide (1)
2. Florida State Seminoles (2)
3. Ohio State Buckeyes (3)
4. Auburn Tigers (6)
5. Missouri Tigers (8)
6. Clemson Tigers (7)
7. Oklahoma State Cowboys (10)
8. Stanford Cardinal (9)
9. Baylor Bears (4)
10. South Carolina Gamecocks (11)
11. Michigan State Spartans (13)
12. Arizona State Sun Devils (17)
13. Oregon Ducks (5)
14. NIU Huskies (16)
15. Wisconsin Badgers (19)
16. Fresno State Bulldogs (15)
17. LSU Tigers (22)
18. Oklahoma Sooners (20)
19. UCF Knights (18)
20. Louisville Cardinals (21)
21. Texas A&M Aggies (12)
22. UCLA Bruins (14)
23. USC Trojans (23)
24. Duke Blue Devils (–)
25. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (–)
Key Scores:
#10 Oklahoma State Cowboys 49 – 17 Baylor Bears #4
– The Baylor Bears seemed to be on their way to a BCS bowl behind the arm of Bryce Petty but they would be stopped fast with a loss to the Cowboys who would spoil the party and kick the Bears out of the BCS picture
Arizona Wildcats 42 – 16 Oregon Ducks #5
– The Oregon Ducks still had a small chance of a BCS title game or at least the Pac-12 Championship that would put them in the Rose Bowl but they could not afford another loss which is exactly what they would get against Arizona
#22 LSU Tigers 34 – 10 Texas A&M Aggies #12
– The Aggies were looking at a chance at climbing into a BCS bowl bid but the LSU Tigers would play spoilers as they would beat Johnny Football and the Aggies to put them out of the running for the BCS Bowl
#17 Arizona State Sun Devils 38 – 33 UCLA Bruins #14
– The Sun Devils continued their run up the rankings this week when they took on their toughest competition yet in the Bruins and would take the win to continue a great end to the season
Next Week:
#2 Florida State Seminoles vs. Florida Gators (Saturday November 30th; 12:00 pm ET)
– Rivalry week kicks off with Jameis Winston getting another shot to prove that he deserves the Heisman Trophy as he leads his Seminoles against the Florida Gators in the most important game of the season for both teams
#3 Ohio State Buckeyes vs. Michigan Wolverines (Saturday November 30th; 12:00 pm ET)
– The Buckeyes have a very outside chance of making the BCS National Championship game but they won’t if they cannot get by their biggest rivals in the Michigan Wolverines as the Big Ten rivalry
#1 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. #4 Auburn Tigers (Saturday November 30th; 3:30 pm ET)
– The Auburn Tigers have made their way up the rankings at the end of this year as they are looking to be a very strong team but can they get through the #1 Alabama Crimson Tide and change the National Championship through the Iron Bowl
#21 Texas A&M Aggies vs. #5 Missouri Tigers (Saturday November 30th; 7:45 pm ET)
– The Aggies are looking to recover from the loss to the LSU Tigers and continue their high standing in the rankings as they take on the newest SEC member the Missouri Tigers to save the end of their season
The Sport Addiction 
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