NCAA REWIND
Saturday NCAA football recap: Big wins for Texas, Tech, Baylor, LSU in Week 6
Oct 6, 2019, 1:06 pm
NCAA REWIND
Texas gets revenge on the road, Tech bounces back after humiliation, and Joe Burrow sets LSU passing record. Here's a look at what happened in the Lone Star State and with LSU:
Last year West Virginia players left several Texas players upset after flashing the "horns down" sign during West Virginia's 42-41 win at Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin. Although Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger insists he had put aside the defiant celebration of Mountaineers on his home field last year, he got his payback, leading the No. 11 Longhorns to a 42-31 victory over West Virginia on Saturday. Ehlinger finished 18-of-33 for 211 yards passing and two touchdowns. Freshman running back Roschon Johnson finished with career highs on 121 yards on 21 carries for the Longhorns. The Texas defense came up clutch for a team whose offense got off to a rough start. West Virginia quarterback Austin Kendall was intercepted four times, twice by cornerback D'Shawn Jamison. It's possible that Texas will reappear in the top 10 with the road win but I expect they will at least hold their 11th position on the poll. The Longhorns face off with the Sooners next Saturday in Dallas.
Joe. Burrow. This kid is undeniably talented but what really strikes me is the LSU quarterback's relentless quest for greatness. After completing 27 of 38 passes for 344 yards, becoming the first LSU quarterback to stack 300 yards passing in four consecutive games, Burrow seemed unimpressed with his latest performance. "Last year, we would have been very happy," Burrow said. "But this is a new team and a new offense. Things have changed around here when you are not happy with this performance." Burrow was intercepted once on a deflected pass against Utah State before being replaced by Myles Brennan early in the fourth quarter due to a lopsided score. Burrow also rushed for 42 yards and another score. Despite only finishing one fourth quarter this season, Burrow has a 78.3 percent pass completion rate for 1,864 yards and 22 touchdowns. LSU receiver Ja'Marr Chase caught his sixth touchdown pass of the season helping the fourth-ranked Tigers rout Utah State 42-6 on Saturday to remain undefeated. LSU's injury-riddled defense also showed no signs of slowing down, intercepting Aggie quarterback Jordan Love three times, including a mystifying pick by freshman cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. which set the Tigers up for a 99-yard scoring drive. LSU's point total was a season low which coach Ed Orgeron says was intentional to allow its defense to rest before getting into the meat of their season next week. "It wasn't as fun, but it worked," Orgeron said. "This game was methodical. We were chewing up clock." Three of the Tiger's next four games are against teams that spent the past week ranked in the top 10: No. 10 Florida, No. 7 Auburn and No. 1 Alabama. Expect the Tigers to hold their position in the AP Top 25 poll after easily handling Utah State. LSU is home against Florida next Saturday.
In his first start of the season, quarterback Jett Duffey completed 26 of 44 passes for 424 yards and four touchdowns, ran for a score and avoided turnovers (which plagued him in the past), leading the Red Raiders to a much needed 45-35 upset over No. 21 Oklahoma State on Saturday. Coming off a humiliating 55-16 loss at Oklahoma two weeks ago, the Red Raiders built a 20-0 lead early in the second quarter and never stopped fighting. "This was a tough week. It was an emotional week," Texas Tech coach Matt Wells said. "Nobody was very happy about the way we played last week. I thought they responded. Tremendous amount of guts." The Red Raider defense forced three interceptions and two fumbles by redshirt freshman quarterback Spencer Sanders. Safety Douglas Coleman III snatched two interceptions for the Red Raiders, bringing him to five in five games this season. "We had to show the world, like, we can play defense at Texas Tech," Coleman said. "I think it was a big statement we had to prove." Texas Tech heads to Baylor next week for its first trip to Waco in 12 years.
Iowa State quarterback Brock Purdy threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns and ran 102 yards for two more scores, overwhelming the Horned Frogs defense and leading the Cyclones to a 49-24 victory for their first Big 12 win of the season. "I think Brock is really special. I don't know if I have any different feeling for the words I can use for to describe Brock," Iowa State coach Matt Campbell said. "He's a guy who gives us an ability (as) a dual threat football player." Freshman quarterback Max Duggan finished 17 for 25 passing for 219 yards and two touchdowns for the Horned Frogs. TCU is off next week and plays at Kansas State on Oct. 19.
Bad Baylor surprised me again, beating Kansas State 31-12 on Saturday. The victory extends the Bears undefeated record to 5-0 and marks Baylor's first conference road win since beating Kansas in 2017. "I'm really proud of our guys because this is a tough place to play with a great crowd," Baylor coach Matt Rhule said. "I thought our guys battled early, found a way to get a halftime lead and then grounded it out in the second half." Baylor quarterback Charlie Brewer led his team with 230 yards passing and one touchdown, but left the game early in the fourth quarter with an injury and did not return. Running back John Lovett rushed for two touchdowns for the Bears, one of which came on a 46-yard run late in the fourth quarter to seal the Wildcat's fate. Baylor returns home to face Texas Tech next Saturday.
Quarterback Tyler Johnston III threw for 282 yards and three touchdowns and running back Lucious Stanley ran for two scores, leading UAB to a 35-20 win over Rice on Saturday. The Owls have lost 17 of their last 18 games dating back to last season. Rice is off next week and plays at UTSA on Oct. 19.
Two first-place teams, identical records, and a weekend set with serious measuring-stick energy.
The Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs open a three-game series Friday night at Daikin Park, in what could quietly be one of the more telling matchups of the summer. Both teams enter at 48-33, each atop their respective divisions — but trending in slightly different directions.
The Astros have been red-hot, going 7-3 over their last 10 while outscoring opponents by 11 runs. They've done it behind one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, with a collective 3.41 ERA that ranks second in the American League. Houston has also been dominant at home, where they’ve compiled a 30-13 record — a stat that looms large heading into this weekend.
On the other side, the Cubs have held their ground in the NL Central but have shown some recent shakiness. They're 5-5 over their last 10 games and have given up 5.66 runs per game over that stretch. Still, the offense remains dangerous, ranking fifth in on-base percentage across the majors. Kyle Tucker leads the way with a .287 average, 16 homers, and 49 RBIs, while Michael Busch has been hot of late, collecting 12 hits in his last 37 at-bats.
Friday’s pitching matchup features Houston’s Brandon Walter (0-1, 3.80 ERA, 1.10 WHIP) and Chicago’s Cade Horton (3-1, 3.73 ERA, 1.29 WHIP), a promising young arm making one of his biggest starts of the season on the road. Horton will have his hands full with Isaac Paredes, who’s slugged 16 homers on the year, and Mauricio Dubón, who’s found a groove with four home runs over his last 10 games.
It’s the first meeting of the season between these two clubs — and if the trends continue, it may not be the last time they cross paths when it really counts.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -112, Cubs -107; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
Here's a preview of Joe Espada's Game 1 lineup.
The first thing that stands out is rookie Cam Smith is hitting cleanup, followed by Jake Meyers. Victor Caratini is the DH and is hitting sixth. Christian Walker is all the way down at seventh, followed by Yainer Diaz, and Taylor Trammell who is playing left field.
How the mighty have fallen.
Pretty wild to see Walker and Diaz hitting this low in the lineup. However, it's justified, based on performance. Walker is hitting a pathetic .214 and Diaz is slightly better sporting a .238 batting average.
Screenshot via: MLB.com
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