BCS National Championship Live Blog

To be honest, I've barely watched any college football this year. While the NFL has a little bit of a foothold in Canada, college football is an afterthought...So why not do a live blog? Here goes, game of the century, take two.

11:31- Another LSU drive fails, Alabama takes over, and Alabama runs out the clock. Let's never hype up a game ever again- both of these "Game of the Century"'s were awful. Yes, both the defenses are immensely talented units, and Alabama was fantastic in executing and shutting down LSU. But there was no excitement- only two turnovers forced, a sack fumble with the game pretty much out of reach and a baffling mistake by Jefferson for a pick. The rest of it was ruthless efficiency by the defense and poor, poor offense by LSU. It's impressive, but not exciting, and not compelling. LSU's offense was bafflingly bad, hardly befitting a number one team. Alabama's offense was methodical and able to get into field goal range. That made the difference in this game. There wasn't one play that decided it- it was a slow drip, a bloodletting, and LSU slowly died. A game without flash or panache. An entirely soulless National Championship. Roll Tide, Roll.

11:20- Holy crap! A touchdown! (of course the kicker misses the extra point). Richardson makes a great play, busting out to the outside and then turning on the jets to take it to the endzone, which was once foreign territory to these teams. That's the undeniable kill shot as Alabama goes up 21-0. LSU is pretty much playing for pride and to not be shut out, at this point.

11:13- LSU is forced to go for it on 4th and long and they are stripped of the ball by the suffocating Tide defense. At this point, Alabama's got this game in the bag. But should LSU be number two? Sure, they had a great season, but they've ruined it with this showing. Oklahoma State is going to get a lot of votes for #2 and for a split national championship. Still, the BCS continues, money making machine that it is. The Plus One is the only system they might bring in, and even that seems far off. Maybe a game as poor as this one will spur some change, but it's doubtful.

11: 08- LSU crossed the 50! LSU crossed the 50! Oh my God! With a touchdown, this is a game....

11:04- LSU defense does what they need to do, forcing a punt. Now let's see if LSU can triumphantly cross over the 50 yardline. Honey Badger's return gets two bad puns from Brent Musberger.

10:59- I didn't even watch that last possession, just listened; and I didn't really need to, because it was almost a foregone conclusion that LSU would have to punt. The defense is so good, too good, so that watching is unnecessary. The BCS needs a plus one so we could see this defense against a capable offense with a real quarterback.

10:50- Another field goal puts Alabama up 15-0 as we approach the 4th quarter. LSU needs to score on this drive, pronto. Alabama's defense has been amazing- less than 100 yards given up, total. Alabama has shown they deserved to be here; it's LSU that's crapped the bed. Oklahoma State-Alabama would be a great game. As much as this defense is amazing, it's not fun to watch. Any contrarian who tries to say otherwise is just trying to seem like a 'better' football fan, sorry to say.

10:47- So close to a touchdown, but there's a dropped pass for Alabama, after getting the ball back from yet another three and out. Getting near the end zone must have been weird for the receiver, so I can see why he dropped it.

10:41- Alabama's kicker misses another kick, giving LSU another shot. But it's never a good sign when your quarterback gets booed coming onto the field, and you haven't gotten past midfield all day. LSU did a worse job recruiting their quarterbacks than Alabama did, and that's saying something.

10:34- What in the hell was that pitch by Jordan Jefferson? Lee needs to be in this game, yesterday. Alabama gets another shot to go up 15 or 19, both seemingly insurmountable at this point.

10:31- Alabama had a chance to put the game out of reach, but they falter, with AJ McCarron missing on another deep throw, although he was on the run and in an awkward throwing position. Still, this punt keeps LSU in it. LSU needs to score; they can't just keep hoping to hang around, waiting for someone like Mathieu to make a play- they need to go out, execute, and score, as soon as possible.

10:23- An initially promising LSU drive gets them as far as the 50 yard line, and a punt. A penalty on the punt return gives Alabama better field position. A touchdown in this case would be a dagger; another field goal puts the Tide right at the threshold at putting this game out of reach. LSU could (and I stress, could) muster two touchdowns (and a two point conversion), if they start executing more consistently; three touchdowns, at this point, would be miraculous.

10: 15- Coming out of the half, Alabama marches down the field to... a stall within the red zone! Another field goal makes it 12-0 Alabama. LSU has to do something on this drive, anything to give them some momentum in this game- it's slipping away, especially as Alabama's offense continues to be able to move down the field.

9:48- Halftime! 9-0! I'm going to keep reading Henrik Ibsen's The Wild Duck. University life is wonderful. LSU is going to have to make some huge adjustments to win this game. A touchdown by Alabama would put it away. Any touchdown that's scored will change this game. We're just waiting, waiting for one score to alter this game for either team. Still, big half for Alabama.

9:44- The way Brent Musberger says "Honey Badger" is hilarious. He said it half seductively. "The Honey....BADger." Calm down. Alabama maneuvers themselves into field goal range. Alabama scores more in the first half of this game than the last game of the century, and a 9-0 lead is huge- LSU would have to manage to score at least a touchdown and a field goal while keeping the Alabama offense at bay in order to win this game.

9:40- Once again, the LSU offense stalls. Jordan Jefferson is a fantastic athlete, but not a quarterback that can beat Alabama- as are most college quarterbacks. McCarron brings back the Alabama offense to see if they can get some points before halftime; a field goal, perhaps?

9:31- An impressive drive by Alabama, but they once again stall in the red zone- the LSU defense is just too good. As long as we're settling for field goals, this game is going to stay close. They way they've been playing doesn't reflect the score- Alabama has been miles better so far. 6-0 Alabama.

9:21- LSU can't capitalize on the blocked field goal. So far, LSU has no answer to the Alabama defense. They might need the Honey Badger to go off to get in this game.

9:16- The fake field goal was all for naught, as Alabama stalls in three plays, and then their field goal is BLOCKED. A missed kick? In this game? Wow!

9:10- Alabama is taking my "save Trent Richardson" advice a little too much to heart. And then, on the field goal attempt, FAKE!!!! Alabama gets the 1st down by the nose of the football, but it's under review. Still, you gotta love a fake field goal. One of my favorite plays in football.

9:08- McCarron overthrows a wide open receiver deep. Yikes.

9:03- Watching AJ McCarron, I feel like Nick Saban doesn't try so hard when recruiting for quarterback. Sure, he's good, but he doesn't seem "Alabama" good- a prestige program should have a prestige quarterback, but instead they have prestige running backs and defense. Anyway, Norwood makes a big catch on an underthrown McCarron throw to put the Crimson Tide on the 38 yard line to start the second quarterback. Ballsy move by Alabama to commit so heavily to the pass- perhaps saving Richardson for the second half to wear down LSU's defense?

8:57- Alabama's lost their best receiver and punt returner, which is a bad omen. Lucky for them, their defense is still ridiculously good. I wish I could trade the Bills defense for this one.

8:50- Alabama stalls in the red zone. Their kicker actually manages to make it, giving us a 3-0 start to the game. A field goal. Who woulda thunk it? I don't know if the officials are going to do if someone actually crosses the goal line in this game.

8:42- Whenever they say "big boy football," I nearly lose it. Reminds me of this clip:

Which my friend Paul does so wonderfully. Anyway, that was a huge return for Alabama. Field goal time, at least.

8:41- Alabama gains valuable field position, but fear the honey badger too much to punt it to him. Field position is going to be Kirk Herbstreit's buzzword, I can tell.

8:37- Full disclosure, I'm rooting for Alabama because: I made a ten dollar bet on the game last night, I love the phrase "roll tide," and I'd love a three point Alabama win to cause BCS PANDEMONIUM.

8:32- Ha! Just kidding. Three and out. After the first edition of this game, most derided it as an overhyped snoozefest with no offense. There was a group of football purist contrarians who said they loved the game. Are you kidding me? Great defense is only exciting for so long; I need a breakthrough, a sustained moment of offensive brilliance against a great defense to have a compelling game.

8:31- Kickoff goes to LSU. Will we see the first touchdown between these two teams?

Cubs Opening Day Live Blog

Lost in all the NFL draft talk and the Sabres playoff run (which I haven't written about, yet) is the fact that the MLB season has begun, the Cubs are back, and they're starting TODAY. I'm sick at home, so why not run a Opening Day live blog? Cubs-Pirates-FEEL THE EXCITEMENT.

1:23 While WGN showed the Pirates lineup, they showed a terrifyingly haggard Pirates fan. Yikes. Kind of sums up the franchise. A cursory look at their lineup shows three players I know- Andrew McCutchen (the one good player they have), Lyle Overbay (the name just sticks in my head) and Ronny Cedeno (an ex Cub who I hypothesized could hit into a double play with no one on base).

1:26 Dempster, the Cubs starting pitcher, starts with three balls, then throws two strikes, eventually forcing a groundout to shortstop Starlin Castro, who makes a nice play on the ball. He's one of the reasons I'm sort of excited for this season. Dempster strikes out the next batter on three pitches, but then gives up a double to McCutchen. Despite his goofy dreadlocks, he's good.

1:29 Dempster strikes out Overbay to get out of the jam. Dempster looks good so far. Cubs trot out Fukudome to lead off. Maybe he'll have another huge April and do nothing afterwards (as always).

1:33 Fukudome flies out, but Castro hits a screamer towards the third baseman, who can't handle it, so Castro makes it to first. That's right, the youngest opening day starter gets our first hit.

1:35 Castro scores FROM FIRST (well, sort of) after the Pirates third baseman (Alvarez, I guess?) skies his throw to first. Byrd at second. That's a promising start. Pretty amazing to run the bases that quickly.

1:37 Here comes Carlos Pena in his Cubs debut. Huge x factor for the Cubs this year. He's got 30 HR potential, but he bat below the Mendoza Line last year. If he can raise that average closer to what he's used to, I'll be a lot more confident about the the teams offense.

1:39 And he draws the walk. That won't help out the ol' average (because it's a flawed stat at heart), but its good for the team.

1:41 I'm surprised that Tyler Colvin isn't playing. I guess the Cubs have to squeeze every cent out of Fukudome, but Colvin is much better. They should have Colvin playing and Castro batting lead off, but, hey, that's just my opinion. Geo Soto pops out to end the inning, stranding two men on base.

1:45 Oh, here comes Ryan Domuit to the plate. I know him too, but only because I did an MLB 2k10 "My Player" mode as a pitcher with the Cubs and pitched against the Pirates a ton of times. Like most years, this looks to be a down year in Pittsburgh. Dempster goes 1-2-3 in the second inning.

1:50 Here comes Alfonso Soriano to lead off the second. Unbelievably that its his fifth year with the Cubs. So much money for so little production. He might be the streakiest baseball player I've ever seen. Sometimes he'll go on these ridiculous tears when gets a homer a game, and then the rest of the season he's just striking out or popping up. To start the 2011 season, he pops out.

1:52 And now, the Cubs second baseman, DARWIN BARNEY!!! Who? Exactly. Love the guy's name, though. Also, he just fought off an 0-2 pitch for a base hit. Good for you Darwin.

1:54 Ryan Dempster gets up to the plate and can't even lay down a bunt. Yikes. The announcers are calling it uncharacteristic, and I sure hope that's true.

1:56 Darwin, NOOOOOOO!!! Caught stealing, and it wasn't even close. Plus the announcers had previously called out Ryan Domuit for not being great at throwing out base runners. The Cubs are not going to be stealing too many bases this year, it seems.

1:58 The Cubs advertising strategy this year features billboards with a Cubs player facing off with either Derek Jeter or Albert Pujols. Ahh, the classic strategy of not very good teams- "Come see stars we don't have! Come see better teams!" The other example of this I've seen in Chicago was the Bulls in the Jamal Crawford/Jalen Rose/Eddy Curry nightmare days. The Blackhawks would've done the same thing back in the Bill Wirtz pre-Patrick Kane and Jonathon Toews day, but I don't think they had an advertising budget. Speaking of which, now that the Blackhawks are in a precarious position for the playoffs, yes, once again, the bandwagon fans are disappearing...

2:05 Hey! Kosuke got a hit! Can't wait to NOT see this past June.

2:07 The Pirates bungle a potential double play, allowing Castro to reach first. Man, that is so Pirates-y.

2:08 Just remembered that Ron Santo died, so I won't have the delight of hearing him on the radio. What a bummer. Byrd reaches base on a single, moving Castro up. Here comes Aramis Ramirez with a RBI chance.

2:10 Ramirez gets a single but he can't bring in the run, so now its bases loaded for Carlos Pena. He could make the city fall in love with him right now with a big hit here. Seriously, Cubs fans will LOVE a guy early in the season, with all their hope built up.

2:12 Tom Ricketts (the owner) has awkwardly been in the booth this whole inning, but at least he sounds like a real baseball fan. Pena grounds into what could've been a double play, but Ramirez is savvy enough to slide into the second baseman, so Castro comes in for another run scored. 2-0 Cubs!

2:14 Geo Soto once again fails to get a hit with runners on base. Thanks, Geo, you've been AWESOME ever since you won Rookie of the Year. Can't help but think that Colvin could've done a little more in that spot.

2:17 The Cubs began the game with God Bless America, the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem, along with the 9/11 flag. Woah. We get it, baseball is AMERICAN. Also, the Ricketts are also apparently funding the Tea Party. Weird.

2:21 Dempster gets out of a jam (Overbay doubled) with a strikeout. He's been pitching well. It's weird to see that on Opening Day, because I'm used to Carlos Zambrano going out on Opening Day and getting shelled. My routine has been thoroughly messed with.

2:27 Cubs go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fourth. Darwin couldn't save us. But I'm still hopping on the bandwagon.

2:35 The Pirates had a man on second with 1 out with Ronny Cedeno coming to the plate. I thought this was a sure double play opportunity. Instead, Dempster walks him. It's RONNY CEDENO. Now there's men on second and third with two outs (after a sac bunt). Dempster's gonna have to work to get out of this one. In an alternate universe, Carlos Zambrano is pitching this game and has just given up a home run and is screaming at the dugout.

2:39 Oh god, Dempster just walked the bases loaded.

2:42 Full count, bases loaded....and oh my god, he just hit a grand slam. Not a good place for Dempster to put that pitch. I guess me making fun of the Pirates is coming back to bite me. Now that I remember it, the Cubs sucked last year against the Pirates.

2:45 It's pretty easy to take the energy out of Wrigley field, and Neil Walker just did exactly that. Add in the fact that its cold and raining...the Cubs need to do something in this inning to get the fans back.

2:48 Aaaaaand Kosuke strikes out. See, even I'm getting bitter, and I'm sitting at home.

2:52 1-2-3 inning for the Cubs. Oof.

2:58 Dempster should be out after this inning. He's having trouble hitting the strike zone consistently this inning (the 6th). Taking his time between pitches, too. His location is also off (a belt high changeup,yeesh).

3:04 Dempster eventually gets out of the inning, but I'd describe his performance as 'laboring'. Which could also describe my interest in this game.

3:07 Shots of people in ponchos watching the Cubs losing set to U2's 'Beautiful Day'. I never knew WGN was so ironic.

3:12 Carlos Pena gets the green light on a 3-0 pitch and skies it straight upwards, leading to a fielders choice when the Pirates can't catch the pop up. And, right on cue, here comes Geo Soto. I'm guessing double play here. Literally right after I typed that Soto almost grounded into a double play, but it turns into another fielders choice. Now Soriano comes to bat, and it seems like a perfect opportunity for him to strike out, but instead he pops out. Still 4-2 Pirates. Yikes.

3:19 Adam Dunn is trending on twitter for doing well for the White Sox, while Neil Walker is trending for killing the Cubs. McCutchen just hit a 2 run homer. This game is going swimmingly.

3:25 Russel comes in and strikes out the next batter. Maybe the crowd will be revitalized by Santo's family singing the seventh inning stretch. Let's Get Some Runs!

3:31 Darwin Barney (MY BOY!!!) pops up and somehow the Pirates let another one drop. If the Cubs had a competent offense today, they'd take advantage of more of these mistakes.

3:34 Tyler Colvin is pinch hitting! Watch him strike out and make me look like an idiot.

3:35 Yep.

3:38 Hey, Kosuke showed up! An RBI single brings in Darwin Barney to cut the lead to 6-3. That was that capitalizing-on-their-mistakes thing I was talking about.

3:42 Another hit by Starlin Castro. This guy is a machine. Now Byrd is up, tying run at the plate, one out.

3:45 Byrd pops out, so now its Ramirez's turn to try and make something happen, but he flies out into deep left center. Once again, we strand two base runners. That's not a trend you want to continue.

3:57 After a quiet inning for the Pirates, Pena gets on base with a goofy hit, allowing Geo Soto to not do anything with a man on base (he pops out). Soriano's up now. Guessing he'll pop out or strike out, in classic Soriano fashion (as you can tell, its been a pretty bitter five years with Soriano).

4:00 Yep, strike out. I think we have 3 more years with this guy. Well, here's DARWIN BARNEY!!! Maybe he can cement himself as 'my guy' with a clutch hit.

4:04 He struck out. Well, he hasn't been doing that for five years, so I can't be completely disenfranchised with him.

4:09 Jeff can't-spell-his-last-name-the-former-ND-WR is pitching for the Cubs now. If I had to choose between professionally playing football or baseball, I'd definitely pick baseball too. It's a pretty lazy sport and they make a lot of money for not a lot of effort (with so much less brain damage than football).

4:18 The aforementioned Jeff walks the bases loaded, but eventually settles down and gets the batter to line out to Starlin Castro, who makes another great play in the field for a double play. He had a bunch of errors last year but looks much improved this year. Now it's time for the bottom of the ninth, the Cubs last shot.

4:21 Blake Dewitt starts the inning by striking out. Now its up to Kosuke and the the top of the order.

4:23 Fukudome walks, getting him up to 3 times on base in five trips. I don't care, I still very much dislike Kosuke.

4:25 Starlin Castro gets his third hit of the day on a base hit up the middle that's initially stopped by Cedeno, but he can't make a play on it. Now Marlon Byrd is the tying run at the plate.

4:27 Byrd strikes out disastrously, missing late on the first two strikes and then looking at the last pitch.

4:28 And Ramirez grounds out to end the game, Cubs lose 6-3. That was a very Cubs-ish ninth inning- get in position to at least tie, and then failing to produce. If this team hopes to make a playoff run this year, the situational hitting is going to have to get a lot better. I know its just one game, but it was not a sparkling start by any means.

Final thoughts, I guess, on being a Cubs fan. It's perennially being in the bottom of the ninth inning, down a couple runs, but hoping, hoping for that one time when things will go wonderfully right. And its been that way my whole life, and the 82 years before that. Sure, there are fans who just go to Wrigley to get drunk and leave early if the Cubs are going to lose; but there's also that faction just waiting, waiting, waiting.

National Championship Live Blog

Here we go for my first live blog experience. Hope this works out well. I've got Duck Fever right now, but I'm also interested in seeing Cam Newton, seeing as he has been linked to the Bills as a potential QB of the future. Love the Ducks though. Fun, videogame offense that blows you away. All times Central Time (Chi City!)

7:21- Moment of silence for the Arizona tragedy. Weird to be playing so soon after. Glad we can forget it, for just a bit, to watch some good football.

7:25- Urban Meyer said he wanted more time with his family, and that's why he left Florida. But now he's an analyst? I don't quite get it...

7:32-Gotta love the Ducks Day Glo socks. Just by uniforms, you can see that it's a old school vs. new school deal. Has anyone noticed that Nike makes sweet uniforms for Oregon, but screws up pretty much everyone else's? Ohio States alternates against Michigan were terrible; ditto for a lot of other teams. Also glad to hear Brent Musberger in the booth tonight. When he's announcing, you know it's going to be fun. Some of the sentences he string together are hilarious.

7:34- Oh, it's the BCS National Championship Trophy! It's a...glass football? Snooze. I'm waiting for someone to drop it. Highlights of Nick Fairley now playing- another intriguing choice for the Bills with their high draft pick. Brent Musberger just said "youngsters", and I got a shiver. No one else can pull it off.

7:36- Oregon chooses to receive after winning the coin flip. Here come the cue cards, the hand signals, and the crazy, fast paced offense.

7:39- It's pretty loud in the University of Phoenix Stadium. Musberger plays it perfectly by not saying anything and letting the crowd noise speak for itself as Auburn kicks off. The stadium's become a big game stadium on the basis of its' UFO looks and sheer size.

7:43- Ill advised pitch by Darron Thomas on the option on second down. Herbstreit says its a completely new look for the Ducks, which shows the sheer complexity of their offense. A lot of motioning out LaMichael James in the first series leads to a three and out for Oregon. Both teams are better second half teams, so it might be expected. Here comes Cam Newton.

7:45- Big run to start the day for the Tigers. They might try to just beat down the undersized Ducks defense. Ducks get some pressure on the next 2nd down, and force a fumble. 3rd and Long, Newton shows some nice touch on the deep ball down the sideline, but the receiver can't bring it in. Auburn Three and Out to start.

7:52- LaMichael James is pretty fast. Takes a screen pass for a first down, Oregon's first. Oregon's gone short on every throw this game. Don't know if they're not trying deep, or if Auburn's not allowing it. What I do know is that the option is not working for Oregon right now. Oregon tries a short out on third down, ball tips off the receivers hands, and it's picked off. Not the way the Ducks were looking to start.

7:56- Do we really need a blimp to show us the outside of the stadium? Anyway, Newton and the Auburn offense come back on, and an initial Newton run is stymied. Newton then throws a pick STRAIGHT to the Ducks. He really missed on that throw. Poor decision, because the receiver was double covered.

8:00- Weird how everyone on Oregon stares over at the sideline, almost programmed like robots. Oregon's got another first down, and starting to put together something of a drive. Option is still not working.

8:02- Oregon gets into the redzone with another short pass. I'm interested to see when they'll try anything deeper, or if they'll keep dinking and dunking for first downs. Aaaaaand Thomas throws another pick under pressure from Nick Fairley. There goes the drive.

8:04- Now Auburn's starting to put it together on offense. Newton looks more comfortable on rollouts. Oregon defense looks REALLY quick, ad are getting constant pressure in the backfield. Punt for Auburn.

8:10- Oregon gets two first downs, on one LaMichael James run, and another short pass and run. Will they ever take a shot? Barner is providing a valuable service for the Ducks, giving them another good running back. Oregon just got Auburn caught on a too many men on the field call based on how fast they were going. Another first down, and the Ducks move closer to the end zone- already near the ten.

8:12- Oregon's end around fools no one, and the Ducks move 4 yards back. Thomas ends the first quarter with a 12 yard pass, getting then within the five and close to another first down, if necessary. That's probably the longest pass Oregon's had all day.

8:16- Huge stop by Fairley on a key third down in the red zone, and a misread by Darron Thomas on the play. Ducks settle for a field goal.

8:22- Auburn hits another first down on a rollout by Newton. I sense a trend here... Also, the run game is really working for the Tigers. Musberger is calling every screen "basically a run play". You go, Brent. Now the Auburn offense seems to have some rhythm.

8:28- Cam Newton pulls off a beautiful play action pump fake, then hits a deep post to Cody Burns for a Touchdown. Maybe the offenses have loosened up a little bit?

8:31- Yep, they have. Oregon finally went deep, and Darron Thomas hits Maehl for a huge play, going from in their own endzone into the redzone.

8:35- Oregon "baits the trap beautifully" (thanks Brent) and sets up a short touchdown throw to LaMichael James. Oregon then goes for two on a fake field goal! WOAH! Anything for a spark, I guess. A kicker option? That's wacky. I love it.

8:43- Now Auburn has their own nice drive in response, all the way to the redzone. Newton's getting into a nice tempo.

8:49- Auburn foolishly goes for it on 4th down and goal, and Newton misses a wide open throw in the endzone, leaving it too low. Auburn fans have to be hoping that one doesn't come back to haunt them.

8:52- Dinner break, for anyone reading. Doubtful.

9:16-Spaghetti was tasty. Anyway, Auburn looked decidedly smart when they caused a safety on the next play. On the ensuing drive, they ran the ball effectively and then duped Oregon on a long pass play for another touchdown. Momentum shifted, 16-11 Auburn at half.

9:40- Auburn's first possession has them moving the ball easily. They can run for short and medium gains, pass for first downs, and then take shots downfield. They're back in the redzone.

9:42- Auburn wastes their chance, and settles for a field goal. Oregon's offense MUST respond with some points.

9:52- A disjointed drive by Oregon is effectively ended by a holding penalty which Oregon can't recover from. Their deep routes have been blanketed. They punt, and now need a stop to stay in this game. It's slipping.

9:57- Key play, as Newton overthrows a wide open receiver deep on a key third down. Oregon got the stop they needed; now it's up to the offense to make something happen. A huge missed chance for Auburn to really ice this game.

10:03- FAKE PUNT! Now that's a momentum shifter for the Ducks after another drive had seemingly stalled. With their first play, Oregon goes deep and the receiver makes a beautiful grab to get the Ducks into First and Goal. The run game has been weak in the red zone, and it continues on first, second, and third down. Nick Fairley makes a beautiful play to stop Barnley on third down. Oregon controversially goes for it on fourth down and is stuffed once again. Dad is really questioning the decision, but I think if the Ducks can get a stop, they're still in it, so why not? They need all the momentum they can get. Interesting to see if that comes back to bite them.

10:17- As the fourth quarter starts, Auburn has control of the game, with Oregon desperately leaning on their defense to make another stop.

10:22- A blitz on third down works for Oregon, and leads to a hurried incomplete pass for Newton. Oregon's getting the ball back.

10:27- Huge 3rd down conversion by Oregon. Let's see if they can build on this for a scoring drive.

10:30- And the drive stalls on a broken pass play. This game has been mostly Auburn, but they need something to really ice this game. The longer Oregon hangs around, you have to believe they'll wake up.

10:41- Oregon holds once again, but looked weaker against Auburn's offense. Another chance for the Oregon offense, and now they really need some magic.

10:47- Another Oregon offense stalled, as Auburn once again gets deep penetration into the Oregon backfield. Another punt, and now Auburn just needs some first downs to win it.

10:50- Woah! Huge forced fumble by the Oregon defense (punch out by Matthews), and they pick it up. Oregon's offense needs to pick up the slack here. They just barely avoided an interception.

10:53- HUGE fourth down conversion by Oregon that puts them into the redzone. Auburn brought the house and Thomas calmly, quickly got the ball out to his hot read for a big gain. Here they come for points.

10:56- Oregon is clinging to running between the tackles, and it's just not working. They now face a crucial 3rd and 1, and had to burn a critical timeout to figure out what they wanted. Chip Kelly isn't showing his offensive genius card tonight.

10:57- A fake option turned shovel pass leads to a Oregon touchdown to at least bring them within a field goal.Two point conversion to come.

10:58- Got it!!! Off a bad snap Darron Thomas flings it to Maehl who comes down with it! Now Cam Newton gets his chance to make some magic. Is this a Heisman defining moment (after the fact)?

11:03- Dyer gets a 37 yard run to get Auburn into at least field goal range, off a tackle that never got him to the ground. Oregon needs a stop just to get the ball back after a field goal; Auburn's kicker is money. Bad news for the Ducks. Not sure if I love that "not down" rule. He was tackled, but because his knee doesn't touch, he's still live. The players stop and he's able to get a cheap gain out of it.

11:06- Dyer down at the 1 yard line, or in the end zone. Either way, Auburn's in the drivers seat. This time, Oregon couldn't quite stop them.

11:12- And with that gimme kick, the game is over. Oregon was never able to get it going, and a failed fourth and goal conversion likely cost them the game. Auburn was able to capitalize when it mattered with an effective running game. Final analysis: it wasn't the offensive shootout we expected. It was exciting at some parts, but both offenses were hardly the well oiled machines they were throughout the season. Credit to the defense and the huge layoff that both teams got. Cam Newton showed himself to be merely decent, in my opinion-plenty of overthrows- and Nick Fairley was the star of the show, earning him a spot near the top of the draft. He'd look great in a Bills uniform. Yep, that's what it comes back to. The NFL. Can't wait for the playoffs this weekend.