That's right, my thirst for playing the XBox NCAA Football 2003 console game knows no bounds.... I've roped my wife into playing a dynasty with me.

The agreement is this: she is the coach, I play the games. I carry out all the on-screen action, as well as call the defenses. The reason she doesn't call the defenses is because she really doesn't know the differences between a 4-3, 3-4, Nickel, Dime, etc. And even if she does, she has no idea when they would be best used. When we used to play NCAA '94 ('95?) on the second-hand Sega Genesis we got from her brother, she would blitz every play.... EVERY PLAY. Usually blitz everyone. Which led to the rule that I could only play as someone crappy (like Ohio U.), while she took someone really good (like Ohio St.). She also would throw on every play. EVERY PLAY. And anyone who ever played those NCAA Sega Genesis games know how easy it is to complete long passes.

She makes all the crucial decisions: when to call timeouts, when to punt, when to go for 2, who to schedule, who to recruit, with as little input from me as possible. When she asks my opinion, my typical response is "you're the coach." Unless she threatens me with something, I stay mute.

The settings are as follows:
-All-American difficulty (I play Heisman with Ohio State, and can win regularly on that level, but I need something to counter-balance what is sure to be the questionable decision making to come)
-5 minute quarters
-All sliders left on default
-Campus challenge on, pennants that can be used to affect outcome of games will be (the collecting of pennants is an aspect that greatly appeals to my wife, all the better to keep her interest).
-Coaching contracts are on, and the expectations are to maintain our initial prestige (which shouldn't be hard, as we're 2 stars out of 6 right now), and to do one of the following in 3 years: make 2 bowl games, win 1 conference championship, or win 1 national title. All very difficult feats with the likes of this team.

To give you some idea of the decision making process, here is how we came to choose the team. I told her only that I wanted to pick a bad team in a good conference to try and lift them to a national title. I suggested Duke... but they are in the same conference as Clemson, her alma mater. (My alma mater is the University of Dayton, a good non-scholarship Div. I-AA team, but not in the game, so no worries.) She could not bring herself to beat Clemson every year, so we scratch that. Then I suggest Vanderbilt. And when I mention that Vanderbilt plays South Carolina every year, who is Clemson's natural rival, she's on board in an instant.

edit: forgot to include contract settings

Umm, this should be interesting...

As this will be played with 5 minute quarters, this will not be a stat heavy dynasty. I will detail the recruiting process, however, and summarize each game.

Our pre-season consisted of changing our schedule. The actual Vanderbilt, in the last 2 years, has won 4 games... 2 of them over Div. 1-AA opponents (Richmond and Furman), 1 over Duke, and 1 over UConn. We switch out of a potential massacre at Georgia Tech, and decide to travel to Duke instead. We also switch out of the game with Furman (listed as Div 1-AA Southeast in the game), and into a matchup with Ohio U. Here is the schedule:

@ Duke
Ohio U.
@ Auburn
@ Ole Miss
South Carolina
Middle Tennessee St.
@ Georgia
UConn
Alabama
Florida
@ Kentucky
Tennessee

Every year is tough in the SEC. If we can win all 4 of our non-conference games, and somehow scratch out 3 conference wins, a bowl game is a possibility in year 1.

#3 Benji Walker will start at QB for us. He's not fast, can't throw real well, but he's the best we've got, rated at a 67.
#9 Norval McKenzie is our starter at RB, again, only a slight bit better than our other backs. He has the power we'll probably need with our weak OL.
#85 Dan Stricker and #24 M.J. Garrett will start at wide out spots, but neither looks spectacular.

Just a roster full of mediocrity, or worse, with defense being our clear strength. Luckily, I'll be handling that. Let's see what happens.

edit: spelling error

Game 1: Vanderbilt @ Duke

An early evening game, if you can believe it. No TV for this titanic struggle.

The stands are amazingly empty. Surely even Duke can sell more tix than this for a season opener? Only the first 5 rows or so look filled.

This game was in doubt the whole way, despite our dominance on both sides of the ball. A couple of poorly timed fumbles led to a low score. Luckily, Duke is even more inept offensively than I'd anticipated. My wife finally discovers the joy of a dominant bruising rushing attack, but is turned off by the fumbles. Our only score comes on a long pass into the end zone on our first drive of the game. A 30 yarder to be exact. The rest of the game, Walker struggles to hit even the most wide open receivers, and even then, the receivers seem to refuse to grab even the most perfectly placed of throws. After seeing our ineptitude with her beloved passing attack, we go ground, mostly to the Counter Trap, QB Draw, and Speed/Power Option plays. Duke never really threatens, driving inside our 40 only once, and missing a long FG then.

Win, 7-0

Originally posted by Butter_of_69
My wife finally discovers the joy of a dominant bruising rushing attack, but is turned off by the fumbles.

I've found most women are this way. Oh wait...this is a football dynasty...nevermind then :D

great idea, btw.

Game 2: v. Ohio U. (0-1)

The Bobcats come out with a surprising reliance on the pass, which shocks me, as I had anticipated more of a ground option attack. They grab a 7-0 lead with a quick slant after a pass heavy opening drive.

Luckily, my wife (hereafter referred to as Mrs. Butter, or MB) calls a good game. We rack up over 200 rushing yards in this one, and MB falls in love with the QB Draw, which we run on several occasions, usually for 10 yards or more, despite having a fairly slow QB as option attacks go. I recover my wits, and start playing more of a zone scheme, which results in 3 interceptions deep in Ohio territory. RB McKenzie gets over 100 yards, and QB Walker gets over 70 on the ground as we throttle OU.

Win, 41-7, move to 2-0

Excellent. :)

Game 3, @ #24 Auburn (2-0)

Here is our first real test of the season. How would MB react to a team with actual players?

Surprisingly well. She showed a great ability to adjust a game plan to fit game situations. For example, Auburn absolutely stuffed the run today. Which is really not surprising, but what is particularly frustrating to MB is the OL's inability to protect the QB. One of MB's favorite offensive plays early in the season is the option pass. With our lack of protection, I know this play is doomed, simply because of the sheer amount of time an option fake will take. I think to myself, how many times will this play fail before she gives up on it?

Well, she never gave up on it today, and it was wholly unsuccessful, being run at least 4 times, and losing yards 3 of those 4, the other being an incomplete pass. She did show a willingness to throw when the run didn't work, but our passing attack is horrific. We do somehow manage to scrape together a drive at the end of the game to tie things at 20-20, and send it to overtime.

I am also frightened by MB's rigid play calling, in that we seem to run the same 6-8 plays over and over. QB draw (from any shotgun or ace formation), Counter Trap (from I or Ace formations), Hail Mary (from any shotgun formations that have it), PA Dive (from I form.), HB Corner (from Shotgun Y-Trips), Flood (from same form.), and the option triumvirate of Power Option, Speed Option, and Option Pass out of the standard I. The problem is, that she never flips these plays. So, once we get on the right hashmark, I'm stuck trying to throw the Flood route to 3 guys whose routes send them out of bounds.

Unfortunately, MB tends to throw in the towel a bit too easily also. Auburn scores in all of 3 plays in the OT, and MB declares "Well, this is over." Indeed it is, as we drive to the 9, but fail on 3 straight plays to gain a first down inside the 5. Not bad play calls, but we do not excel on a short field with no running game.

Loss, 27-20, OT - slip to 2-1, 0-1

By this time, we've accumulated some banners, but only 2 game cheats. Blink, which causes the ref to spot the opposing team's ball short, and Butter (!) which causes the opponent to fumble more often than normal. We decide not to use either today for our game.

We go in at 2-1, ranked around 80th. Ole Miss is in the 30's.

Game 4, @ Ole Miss (2-1)

Unfortunately, MB never gets a handle on things today, and neither do I, frankly. Eli Manning absolutely whips us, with several long, time consuming drives. And with 5 minute quarters, that's hard to overcome. He has no problem using slants and outs to beat man coverage, and has plenty of protection to defeat our zone.

On the other side of the ball, MB gets easily frustrated when our passing attack yields 2 early interceptions. We switch to a mostly ground attack, which sadly is ineffective, and as a result we get absolutely smoked. MB refuses to go back to the air on a regular basis, even after we fall behind by more than 2 TD's in the second half.

I hide my frustration by making fun of how poorly the players seem to be performing. "Way to drop the ball, you stupid bastard!" "Oh, nice block, f**kface!" I think it works. She's pissed, but not with me.

Loss, 28-3, drop to 2-2, 0-2

So, we now face a 3 game losing streak unless we can pull off a miracle against MB's newly created rival of Vandy: South Carolina. They come in at 4-0 and #14. MB decides to break out the big guns: we will use the Butter pennant for this game.

Even with a cheat enabled, MB seems resigned to failure, with statements like "There's no way we're beating them" and "we suck".

Game 5, v. #14 South Carolina (4-0)

The game doesn't start well, as the other USC drives down the field, and gets an early field goal. We immediately go 3 and out, and USC goes deep for a TD (which I didn't expect, as I had man coverage and a safety blitz on this particular play), and I'm starting to feel a tension in the room, that this is all somehow MY fault. It's 10-0, 'Cocks.

So, now I've got to perform on offense, or risk a very cold reception afterwards. Luckily, I am able to find a few open receivers, and squeeze some rushing yards, and MB finally discovers the joy of a good QB sneak near the goal line as we close to 10-7. USC is able to kick another FG as the half closes up at 13-7. The Butter cheat has produced 0 fumbles thus far.

We get an early fumble (thanks, Butter) in the 2nd half, and convert a short FG to make it 13-10. The ensuing kickoff sees the Gamecocks cough it up again, but recover. The next play a pass is caught, but fumbled, and we're in business again. A few conservative run calls later, and it's 13-13.

I finally figure out USC, and try to play a zone scheme with minimal blitzing, and that seems to shut down both the run and pass. We stay locked until early in the 4th, when a couple of well-timed play action pass calls get us inside the 10. Luckily, a seemingly doomed option play is redeemed, as McKenzie picks up the fumbled ball and dives inside the pylon, 20-13 with less than 1:30 to go.

Sadly, USC needs exactly 2 pass plays following the kickoff return to make it 20-20. So much for not playing the Prevent defense. We are sacked for a loss early in our final drive, and MB decides to play it safe, and run run run into our 2nd OT game of the year.

In the OT, they get the ball first, but I am able to stall them out at the 8, and they settle for 3. On our possession, a counter play for 12, a QB draw for 9, and a speed option for 4 gets us in the end zone, and earns me a giant hug from MB for beating our new rival. McKenzie's power shines late in the game and in OT, as he played very well. Sadly, our QB had to leave late in the game with a sprained wrist, but should be back for our next matchup.

Win, 26-23, OT - up to 3-2, 1-2

We gain another cheat: Boing, which causes the opponent to drop more passes than normal. File that one away for Florida, I think.

Next game should be an easy win.

Game 6, v. MTSU (2-3)

Middle Tennessee State is a pass happy bunch. They throw 35 times with 5 minute quarters. Luckily, more than half of the throws are incompletions, and our rushing attack steamrolls over them, picking up our 2nd 200 yard running game of the year. MB calls maybe 7 pass plays, which is A-OK with me against the Blue Raiders. Most of the game is spent trying to decipher whether those are mountains or a horse head peering up over the MT logo on the Raiders' helmets. Their color scheme and logo is surprisingly reminiscent of Memphis's, I think. I say as much and am greeted with a blank stare.

In a particularly gratifying stretch of the game, I sack the Blue Raider QB 3 straight times, the last time being on 4th down to seal the win. If you've played this game, you know how hard it can be to get a sack, let alone 3 in a row. Our QB goes down again during this one, with a strained hammy. Again, he should be back for the next game.

Win, 31-14 - up to 4-2, 1-2

Game 7, @ Georgia (4-2, 1-2)

This one figures to be tough, but if we could win it, surely we'd be in the bowl picture. We were ranked 51st coming in, UGa 30th.

Again, MB abandons the pass early on, after a couple of fumbles following long receptions. UGa's offense was never consistently effective, but Musa Smith had several 7-15 yard runs straight up the middle, and David Greene surprised by effectively running the option on a couple of occasions. Late in the game, I am disappointed as we punt from UGa's 48 already down 10 with just over 4 minutes to go. They score an easy touchdown, and knock another nail in our bowl game coffin.

Finally, by now though, I have impressed upon MB my dislike for the option pass AND how to flip plays to avoid sending all the receivers out of bounds. Neither of these help us today, but might in the future. Still, MB is far too reliant on our slow QB to run several QB draws a game. Especially draws out of the shotgun formation. By the time he gets back to the line of scrimmage, there are at least 2 guys waiting on him, forcing me to employ the juke, spin, or whatever, increasing chances of fumbling. This game also featured a refusal to run a QB sneak on either 2nd, 3rd, or 4th and 1 at Georgia's 23, and resulted in a TE around (!) on 4th and 1 that lost 2 yards, and the game.

Loss, 17-0 - drop to 4-3, 1-3

I forgot to mention that we are playing with coaching contracts on, and I have inserted that detail in the first post of the thread.

Game 8, v. UConn (1-6)

Again, we figure an easy win. UConn is averaging 10 points a game coming in, and that's with regular sized simming quarters. We at least were averaging around 17 a game with just 5 minute quarters. They are 114th in total offense (we're 113th).

UConn manages 16 yards in the first half, including 1 of 10 passing for 2 yards. Their QB seems to enjoy running around for several seconds, followed by a toss out of bounds at the nearest sign of an oncoming defender. We score early and often against this sad excuse for a I-A team, and record our second shutout of the season.

Inexplicably, at 16-0, MB decides to go for 2 with the fake FG run play. Now, having run this once myself, I know it is doomed to failure, especially since we have Mongo the Wonder Sloth out there to run it. The play runs, I sprint out, and am tackled by no fewer than 5 Huskies at the 6 yard line. "Oh, well" she says. But I know better. 16-0 is 2 scores. Even though UConn sucks, who knows if we cough it up a couple of times in the 2nd half and let them back in it? It turned out not to make a lick of difference, but I was worried for a while there, especially playing as Vandy. UConn did manage some offense in the 2nd half, but killed itself by trying to go deep too often into my cover 2 scheme. 2 drive killing interceptions ended their game, and we actually sat on the ball at the 11 yard line at the end of the game.

Win, 23-0, up to 5-3, 1-3

Now comes the tough part of the schedule. Alabama is 5-3, but just beat a top-15 Tennessee squad on the road. Then comes Florida, who is top 10 right now, and a road game, which we've not been good at this year. Then ending with Tennessee is never easy.

If we can somehow win 2 of these, I think we'll be bowling at 7-5.

Interesting dynasty. Good read.

Kudos to you for getting your wife involved in a sports sim dynasty. The most participation my wife ever has with my sports gaming is when she yells, “Are you playing that stupid game again!!!”

Thanks for the comments, folks. Always appreciated.

And I forgot to mention that we also have a road game at Kentucky sandwiched in those last 4 games, so if we can win 2 of 4, we should be bowling, even though it will likely be somewhere crappy, like the Music City Bowl. Hey, I'd take it.

Game 9, v. Alabama (5-3)

Alabama's coming off of a win @ #14 Tennessee. And they looked like it. They took the opening kickoff and drove down the field with ease, running up the middle as though we had cement shoes. It was 14-0 after an interception, and then 24-0 by the time we got even a first down.

Now onto the interesting portion of the game. Down 24-0, with 4th and 12 on our own 38 with under a minute left in the 1st half, we go for it. Good, I think. But not so good is what happens next: she calls a HB toss play out of a standard weak formation.

"Let's just run the clock out", she says...
I say "the clock won't run on a change of possession".
"Just run it anyway."

After the play runs, I say "you're giving up already?!?!?"
"No, I guess not."

Alabama scores a FG thanks to the gift field position, stretching its halftime lead to 27-0. 2nd half is more of the same, as they pound us to go up 41-0. We score late, running mostly against obvious pass defenses.

An embarrassing loss made worse by the fact that MB gave up before halftime.

Loss, 41-8, drop to 5-4, 1-4

The SEC is clearly outclassing us. I'd settle for 6-6 at this point, but am not optimistic. We have 3 cheats in hand though: Blink (spots ball short), Boing (makes passes difficult to complete), and What a Hit (which causes the opponent to suffer more injuries than normal).

With the horrible loss, and an impending game v. #6 Florida, MB asks me if we can change the playbook at all. Sure, I tell her, we just have to decide what we want to do on offense.

"Score," she says.

After an internal eye-roll, I ask what exactly about the playbook it is that she doesn't like. Too much of the same thing, she says. And she's right. Vandy's playbook in this game has about 5 variations of the shotgun, a few Ace variations, an I set, and a goal line look. That's it.

"How about Clemson's playbook?"
Another internal eye-roll.
"No, they do have a bit more formation variation, but they are a finesse team. If we try and finesse in the SEC with our lack of speed, we'll get hammered." Which is true, Clemson's formations have a lot of I, weak, and strong looks with no tight ends. Not to mention that they're a bit shotgun-heavy as well. If we leave the tackle one on one with a DE, and run that direction, we're looking at losses on 3 of 5 rushing plays.

So, I suggest Ohio State's playbook. They have a wide variation, only one shotgun look, a few Ace (single-back) looks, but also a weak, strong, and I formation, with lots of good plays to choose from. They are also a power team, which would play to our only offensive strength (our powerful running back).

She agrees, and we make the switch. Plus, I know Ohio State's audibles, so I can more easily switch out of a bad play when necessary. Now we're armed for Florida.

Game 10, v. #6 Florida (7-1, 4-0)
Florida's lone loss came to current #1 Miami.

We decide to use the Boing cheat, as expected. See if that holds Grossman down a bit.

Early on, it has the desired effect, as Florida goes 1-11 passing in the first half. We do slightly better, parlaying a bad punt and decent return into Florida territory into a 2 yard QB sneak for a 7-0 halftime lead. Our first 2nd half possession starts out with a beautiful long pass to our TE, which sets us up for a series of short QB draw, option, and HB runs into the end zone for a shock 14-0 lead. The Boing cheat works.

Just as we are patting ourselves on the back, Florida busts a 103 yard kickoff return to make it 14-7. Speed kills. But their inability to complete much of anything makes a comeback impossible, and we win a must game for our bowl hopes. Sure, we used a cheat, but who said this dynasty was ultra-realistic?

Win, 14-7, up to 6-4, 2-4

The confidence spilling over from our upset of Florida bodes well for this game. At 6-4, and 4th in our division of the SEC, we don't register on the Bowl Games list, and still rank around 50th in the nation.

Game 11, @ Kentucky (2-7, 0-5)

To try and assure a win, MB decided to use the What a Hit cheat, and boy did it work. Lorenzen was out by the end of the first quarter, after leading Kentucky on an opening FG drive. UK's backup was injured before halftime, and they were running their 3rd string out there. He threw 2 picks, and we had no problems running on the Wildcats' D. They had 5 injuries in all, 2 to the QB position. Even without the cheat, I still think we win.

Win, 28-11, up to 7-4, 3-4

Still not registering on the Bowl Watch list. South Carolina is officially SEC #7 (but #2 in the East), slated to play in the Music City Bowl.

But, thanks to some poor play, we could finish as high as #3 in the East, thanks to Tennessee's collapse, which we could help finish off. They started 5-1, but come in 5-5, and 1 game ahead of us in the SEC East.

Game 12, v. Tennessee (5-5, 3-3)

To try and get in a bowl game, we use our last cheat, the Blink cheat, which will hopefully result in a few close 1st downs spotted as 4th and 1's instead.

Tennessee has little problems early, and runs the ball down our throat. However, MB has a wrinkle up her sleeve. Instead of pounding the ball mercilessly, as has been her MO, she gets a taste of some early success throwing the ball, and takes to the air. Walker has his best game of the year, throwing for nearly 200 yards. We are able to score just enough to win, as Tennessee falls short in their last desperate attempt to get into FG range.

MB stuck with the passing game in this one, and the result is a respectable .500 SEC record, although we won just 1 conference road game.

Win, 17-14, up to 8-4, 4-4

The win also assures us of 3rd place in the SEC East, typically good enough for a bowl. Would we reach one?

The answer is yes. South Carolina passes a stumbling Florida (who would actually finish 7-6) for 1st, but loses in the SEC title game.

We will face Texas Tech (7-5) in the Independence Bowl.

Kliff Kingsbury was a master in this one, and they shut down our rushing attack. Bad flashbacks of the Red Raiders actual shellacking of Clemson in this year's Tangerine Bowl flashed across my mind as Kingsbury rolled up nearly 250 passing yards.

MB stuck to the ground due to the usual ineffectiveness of our air attack, but neither one would help us today. Texas Tech dominated, and by the time we scored a touchdown, there were just 2 minutes left in the game, and the bus to the airport was warming up.

We had under 100 yards offense in this game.

But, Vandy had made a bowl, and in addition to helping secure our job, it felt good to take this slow, sad sack to a respectable bowl game.

Loss, 24-10, finish 8-5, 4-4

End of season 1

Season 1 recap

Here are some stats I scribbled down. We actually finished ahead of Georgia in the SEC East as well. They didn't go bowling, nor did 4th place Tennessee, or 6th place Kentucky.

Passing
QB #3 (Benji Walker) - 70 comp.-179 att., 1327 yds., 4 TD/7 INT, 39.1% comp. pct., 100.9 rating

Our backup was 8-20 with 2 TD, 4 INT's.

Rushing
HB #9 (Norval McKenzie) - 142 att., 599 yds., 4 TD, 49.9 yds/gm., longest run was 24 yards
QB #3 (Walker) - 136 att., 528 yds., 13 TD (mostly on QB sneaks near the goal line), 44.0 yds/gm, longest run was 21 yards

Receiving
WR #24 - 19 rec., 404 yds., 21.2 avg., 2 TD
WR #85 - 17 rec., 391 yds., 23.0 avg., 2 TD
HB #9 - 15 rec., 158 yds., 10.5 avg., 0 TD
WR #16 - 15 rec., 266 yds., 17.7 avg., 2 TD

Defense
SS #7 - 45 tackles
MLB #44 - 33 tackles
CB #11 - 4 INT's

Kicking/punting
K #75 - 6/8 FG's, 46 yard long, no missed XP's
P #43 - 37 punts, 1314 yds., 35.5 avg., 9 punts inside 20

A good year, considering our existing talent pool. We looked forward to recruiting, where we could upgrade our speed.

Our major losses included losing our entire starting secondary, 2 starting defensive linemen, and losing our 2 best WR's.

Recruiting

Again, our major needs were CB, WR, SS, FS, DE.... and really anywhere we could obtain a speed upgrade. I let MB handle who she wanted to recruit, but I really wanted a quality QB, and a speedy HB if possible.

We also were losing a MLB, a FB, and a couple of OL players, and we had 18 available scholarships, which is a good bit.

We started small, looking at the players interested in Vandy. Only a couple of players were 3 star level, most being 1 or 2 stars. Most of those interested in us were in-state prospects as well. We got something like 468 points to recruit with, far fewer than the nearly 1,000 points I was used to with Ohio State.

Picking those we were interested in, we typically chose all 4 contacts at once (head coach call, asst. coach call, head coach visit, asst. coach visit). Since most of those interested in Vandy were in-state, all 4 of these cost only 15 points. So, with lots of points left, MB decided to peruse the top 100 and see if any were interested. None even had so much as high interest in our program (the 5 interest levels being very low, low, average, high, and very high). Most had very low, only a couple even had so much as average interest. So, we moved on to looking at all recruits. On a national scale, it would be fair to say that about 10 top-500 players had high interest in our program, and we recruited them heavily.

Hell, we recruited everyone heavily, using all 4 contacts on every player we went after, every week, until we "filled" our class. I put filled in quotes, because we only got 14 players out of a possible 18 available scholarships.

None of the 5 star recruits came to us... and we tried to recruit several HB's, but none of the top 100 HB's in the country, that's right, top 100, had any interest in us above average. We also whiffed on the MLB position, and got a QB who was our 3rd choice.

Here is the 2003 Vanderbilt freshman class (with vital stats: star rating (out of 5), state, height, weight, 40 time, type of position player (i.e. balanced, hard hitting for defense, speed for offense, etc.), other info., initial rating as a freshman after training camp) :

WR Warren Terrell- 4* - TN - 5'11", 180 lbs. - 4.37 - Balanced - Excellent hands - 77

CB Mark Dorsey- 4*- KY - 5'11", 182 lbs. - 4.56 - Balanced - Excellent hands - 79

LG Eric Glass-4*- CT - 6'4", 327 lbs. - 5.37 - Balanced - 420 lb. bench lift, 610 lb. squat - 79

CB Patrick Dodson-3*- KY - 6'0", 181 lbs. - 4.73 - Hard Hitter - Poor hands - 71

FS Frank Farley-3*- IA - 6'2", 194 lbs. - 4.60 - Balanced - Good hands - 75

C Shaun Hogan-3*- TN - 6'3", 264 lbs. - 5.24 - Balanced - 390 lb. bench, 555 lb. squat - 73

FS Mike Stein-3*- TN - 5'11", 190 lbs. - 4.52 - Coverage - Excellent hands - 77

FB J.J. Lopez-3*- TN - 6'1", 220 lbs. - 4.97 - Blocking - Excellent hands - 66

QB Chris Lucas-3*- TN - 6'4", 199 lbs. - 4.88 - Pocket passer - Cannon arm, average accuracy - 71 (he's also a lefty)

P Derek Slater-3*- KY - 6'1", 177 lbs. - 5.44 - Balanced - Good kick power, good kick accuracy - 75

SS Damon Lee-2*- TN - 6'0", 220 lbs. - 4.80 - Balanced - Poor hands - 64

LE William McLaughlin-2*- TN - 6'3", 267 lbs. - 5.12 - Balanced - 380 lb. bench, 425 lb. squat - 65

K Antoine Ryan-2*- VA - 5'10", 202 lbs. - 5.01 - Sporadic - Avg. kick power, good kick accuracy - 63

LE Max Mathews-2*- KY - 6'3", 244 lbs. - 5.10 - Balanced - 345 lb. bench, 525 lb. squat - 66

Overall a good class.... Everyone with 3 or 4 stars will be expected to start, except for the QB, who will be our primary backup. The 2 2-star DE's will also be expected to start, as they are rated marginally better than our current Jr./Sr. ends. So, lots of new starters for us, but we definitely have a new deep threat, and a good kick returner in WR Warren Terrell. He was the 1st recruit to sign up, and looks like the best player of the bunch.

Our class was rated 54th nationally, which puts us at 8th in the SEC. We were just behind Notre Dame in the recruiting class ratings.

Preseason, 2003

Warren Terrell definitely looks like the best offensive player we have, with his 91 speed rating. Our speed upgrade will hopefully be immediately obvious. Sadly, the 2 positions we could've used speed the most (QB and HB) went by untouched. Our new QB is not really a runner, although he has a respectable 4.9/40 time. MB decides ultimately to stick with Walker at QB this season, with Lucas coming in at times when needed. As much as we run our QB, there are times when we sub at QB for stamina reasons. Our HB will also remain the same, with no new backs to join the corps. Lopez will start at FB, though, and does provide an upgrade to that position. Terrell starts at WR, Glass at LG, and Hogan at C.

In fact, the only freshmen NOT starting are the new kicker, SS Damon Lee, FS Frank Farley, and QB Chris Lucas. The other 10 freshmen are starting, including the punter.

I expect a similar finish to last year, 8-4, especially considering our road schedule this year.

Our original non-conference schedule was @ TCU, v. Georgia Tech, and v. Navy. We changed that up a bit. Here is our 2003 schedule:

v. Duke
v. Ole Miss
v. Auburn
v. Middle Tennessee St.
v. Rutgers
@ Miss. St.
@ Navy
v. Georgia
@ South Carolina
@ Florida
v. Kentucky
@ Tennessee

We are rated preseason nationally #44, a big step up from last year's sub-100 preseason rank. Only 2 SEC teams are rated top 25 preseason nationally, LSU and Auburn, both not in the top 15.

Game 1, v. Duke

Another season opener vs. Duke, this one on regional TV. My, but they're desperate for programming these days.

For the first time, the commentators predict we'll win in a walk. We'll see.

As we NEVER receive the opening kickoff (if we win, we defer, if we lose, the CPU always receives), Duke is on offense first. They are stuffed for a loss on 3 plays, and punt. New recruit Warren Terrell is back waiting on the punt, and his speed is immediately evident as he scoots past several Blue Devils, and returns the punt 40+ yards inside the Duke 15. Next play is a QB draw, which goes 14 yards for an opening TD. Nice start to the season.

Even nicer is the next drive, in which we mix up some short passes and HB runs, and quickly make it 13-0. MB then decides to go for 2, just to embarrass them even further, and we convert with no difficulties on a QB draw play. Duke had some decent passing yards, but only had 1 sustained drive.

Win, 29-7

Game 2, v. Mississippi (0-0)

We host Ole Miss's first game of the year. Last year, Eli Manning picked us apart to the tune of 28-3. This year, I was determined to slow him down on defense, and give us a fighting chance.

Ole Miss took the opening drive, and ate up most of the 1st quarter in scoring 6. I was too consumed with stopping Manning, and mixing a bunch of man coverages and blitzes to notice that they ran mostly on the drive, and threw just twice. Our first possession ended in a punt, and it looked like 2002 all over again.

MB, of course, gave up at this point. "It's over" is the typical comment I hear coming from her chair. I also noticed some extra-hard cheering and grunting when I was on defense. I finally wised up and started playing mostly zone on passing downs, and Eli finally buckled. Our coverage was much better, and they had severe trouble running the ball once I realized that was their main focus.

Fortunately, MB was able to regain herself, and call a good game, albeit a conservative one. It's like pulling teeth to get her to run a pass play on 1st down. Well, I guess it's more like sitting there and imagining someone pulling her teeth, because I just keep quiet about her play calling. Ole Miss's defense was good overall, but Terrell did break free for a long 40+ yard reception which set up our only TD of the day.

A couple of FG's were added in the second half, and Manning couldn't find enough real estate in the closing minutes to navigate a successful drive, and we avenged one of our 4 losses from last year with a quality, cheat free win.

Win, 13-7, up to 2-0, 1-0

Through 2 games, we already have managed 5 INT's as a team, compared to 7 all of last year. CB Dodson had 3 picks in game 1 of the year vs. Duke, and FS Mike Stein had a big one to set up a FG in our last game. Our defensive speed looks improved, as does our D-line. Our offense is pretty much the same though, with poor pass protection, and a lack of speed at QB and HB seems to hurt us. Giant holes on running plays just aren't hit with the explosiveness that would gain us 30 or 40 yards at a time, and that holds us back a little.

Game 3, v. #6 Auburn (2-0, 1-0)
Auburn is already back in the top 10, and we didn't fare well against them last year. But, with no cheats to use, we had to play them straight up.

Auburn's Cadillac Williams just creamed us. He ran left, he ran up the middle, and he ran right over us. He had over 100 yards, and no combination of run blitzing, and 4-4 scheming made much of a difference.

We were able to put some points on the board, but Auburn closed things out nicely with a long 4th quarter TD drive that put the game out of reach.

Loss, 28-14, drop to 2-1, 1-1

Now we come to the portion of the schedule I like to call "the calm before the storm". We've got Middle Tennessee St., Rutgers, Mississippi St. (who've not been good of late), and Navy before we hit the last 5 games of the season which will not be easy.

Game 4, v. MTSU (1-2)

The Blue Raiders came in a-throwin'. And left a-cryin'. They put up a good fight, but even they're 250 yards of passing couldn't win this one.

They could not stop the run. Even when drives were killed on fumbles in MTSU territory, we'd come back the next drive and pound pound pound away. Suffice it to say, MB likes to run. A lot. And for good reason, as our QB's have put up horrendous numbers throwing to this point.

We win fairly easily, although MTSU was close to making it a 3 point game midway through the 4th quarter, until an interception sealed the win.

Win, 17-7, up to 3-1, 1-1

Game 5, v. Rutgers (2-2)

Rutgers comes in with a .500 record, which surprised me. I expected an easy win. MB did too, but only because she tried to schedule the worst teams possible.

"Rutgers' mascot looks pretty gay," she said, referencing the feather sticking out of the top of the knight's head.
"Not as gay as the old Tampa Bay Buccaneer."
Blank stare.
"You know, I pointed him out on that guy's jacket the other day... bright orange, had a feather on his hat and a knife between his teeth."
"Oh, yeah, I remember that. It'd be gayer if he had a rose between his teeth."
That broke me up. And now I can't look at the Rutgers Scarlet Knight without thinking about his sexual orientation.

Anyway, I talked the whole first few minutes of the game about how we should pretty much destroy Rutgers. And the 1st quarter ended, and it was 0-0. The 2nd quarter began, and Rutgers was able to sneak into our territory. And they started running the Flexbone. I didn't know what to do when I saw that formation. The first play they lined up in that formation, I got lucky, and called a run blitz, and their QB was hit almost immediately, tried to pitch it, but instead pitched it to our LB who returned it 30+ yards to midfield. The very next play, MB predictably called a QB draw. We broke it down the left sideline for 37 yards, our longest run ever! Next play was a counter trap into the end zone for 6. We were able to muster a couple of nice passing plays towards the end of the half, and scored again before the gun to make it 14-3. Rutgers' FG came after a couple of looooong passes.

2nd half kickoff, Warren Terrell takes it from the goal line, jukes one defender, then weaves his way through excellent blocking for a touchdown! My first ever kickoff return for a TD! But the blocking was a little too excellent, and we get flagged for holding, the ball returning all the way to our own 21. Our offense was fairly stagnant through the second half.

Our man-to-man pass coverage seems to be horrendous, stopping not even Rutgers. So, we played mostly zone the rest of the game, holding them to only 1 more FG, and keeping them out of our half of the field mostly. We post a harder-than-expected win.

Win, 14-6, up to 4-1, 1-1

Just how bad have our QB numbers been this year? Very bad. Consider this: our starting QB has a completion percentage of 29%. Offhand, I can't remember how many completions and attempts he has, but it is less than 20 completions. Our backup, Chris Lucas, is faring a bit better, at 8 of 20 for 40%. Still, overall, we're hitting at around 1/3 of our passes, which is horrendous. It seems that often, our receivers will be open, but simply not catch the ball. And it isn't that I can't catch, because I consistently complete well over 50% as Ohio State on the Heisman level. But often, Walker's throws will be nowhere near receivers, and when they are on target, about 50% of the time, they'll just hit the receiver seemingly in the chest, or on the hands, and bounce away. A good number of passes are defensed well, and tipped away, but far more seem to be simply dropped by our terrible receiving crew. So, it has come as no surprise to me that MB shows an increasing reluctance to throw the ball, as it seems that it is very rare to actually complete even the simplest pass. I guess we still have a ways to go talent-wise.

The lack of talent is showing in the secondary too, where our shorter corners are getting beat deep on a regular basis. Last year, the problem was teams were breaking short plays for long yardage. This year, teams are just throwing a LOT of deep balls, and completing more than they should, mostly against our man-to-man coverage. Our guys just seem too short to tip away a perfectly thrown ball to a tall receiver deep. So, I'll probably try to play a lot more zone the rest of the way.

We have earned a couple of cheats the past 2 weeks, Cuffed (which prevents your team from turning the ball over), and QB Dud (which causes your opponent's passes to be high and wobbly... sounds like another Florida cheat!).

Next up: Navy, who is 0-5, and averaging (no joke) 2.4 points per game.

Just to let you know, this is a great dynasty. Keep it up!

I agree that it is a very enjoyable dynasty.

Game 6, @ Mississippi St. (1-3, 0-2)

Whoops, forgot about the Bulldogs here. This would be a big test for our squad, as we did not play well on the road in the SEC last year.

The Bulldogs start fast, and we start very, very slow. 14-0 we are down by the mid-2nd quarter. Luckily, we are able to claw our way back to 14-7 by the break. Our passing game continues to suffer, but luckily we have found a way to start running against this lowly Bulldog bunch who we should beat.

Opening of the 2nd half, we go 3 and out (with a 3rd and 6 QB draw getting stuffed, the QB draw is getting oooooooold). MSU takes the punt, and uses a quick slant that ends up going the distance to make it 21-7. MB is in despair, and sounds on the brink of taking to the bottle as we can't seem to win a road game against anyone good, without the aid of a cheat or two.

But then, a couple of long passes downfield to Terrell finally connect, and we're on the doorstep. Another QB sneak TD finds us down 7 entering the 4th quarter.

We force a punt, and we'll see what we can do with the ball. Finally, with our pass working, MSU softens up on the run. 2 long QB draw plays of over 15 yards put us in field goal range. Then, a beautiful option works us down inside the 10. From there, we are able to punch it in and tie it at 21 with about 2 minutes left.

Our defense is sadly not up to the challenge, as MSU is able to work the ball inside the 20, and they quickly set about running the clock. They kick a game winning FG with :22 left, and our 4 hail marys all fall incomplete (at least 2 of them appear to be thrown to nobody). Another heartbreaking SEC loss.

Loss, 24-21, drop to 4-2, 2-2

With our passing game a shambles, MB decides to turn the reins over to true freshman Chris Lucas. Lucas's arm strength and accuracy can be erratic, but prove to be on target more often than not, unlike current QB Benji Walker. Lucas also has decent speed, despite being scouted as a pocket passer, which pleases QB draw/option happy Mrs. Butter.

Game 7, @ Navy (0-5)

It's hard to play Navy, what with their tendency to show trips formations, then run, or show a flexbone, then pass. With that being said, we quickly fell behind to Navy 7-0, as we seem to be incapable of stopping an offense's first drive.

Our offense was impotent early, and Navy threatened to go up 14-0, until a doorstep interception gave us the ball at the 20. From there, our rushing attack finally got back on track, and Lucas displayed some impressive arm strength, hitting Terrell on a long play-action bomb for a 50+ yard touchdown pass. His throws were generally well-thrown, with just the odd misfire here and there. Lucas winds up with over 100 yards through the air, and more than 150 on the ground as we demolish Navy. He is quite adept at running the QB draw, and had one run of over 50 yards (which got us inside the 20). He does seem to be a tad more prone to fumbling than Walker was, so we'll see how long it takes before MB gets really frustrated with that.

Win, 31-14, up to 5-2, 2-2

Game 8, v. Georgia (5-2, 3-1)

Georgia comes in just outside of the rankings, at #26, but ahead of us, who are sitting at #34.

Last year, Musa Smith ran all over us. This year, we were prepared. Georgia, of course, scored on their first drive to make it 7-0. Perhaps this strategy of always kicking off was not a good one? Oh well, we'll stick with it I'm sure. Lucas keeps us in this one with his arm, as Georgia is stacking the line against our run. MB fortunately goes to the air several times, with marginal success. We are able to score before the half, and make it a 7-7 game.

MB gets REALLY frustrated when our QB draw is ineffective. So much so, that she doesn't know what else to run... literally. She asked my advice for what to run a couple of times, and I basically said that you can't be so dependent on one play all the time. Which is true. Georgia scores a FG on their first possession of the 2nd half and takes a 10-7 lead.

Lucas gets lucky one more time on a deep ball to Terrell, and we are able to work a nice TE fade route in the end zone to take a 14-10 lead near the start of the 4th quarter.

My defense is up to the task today, and we are able to win against a tough opponent without cheats.

Win, 14-10, up to 6-2, 3-2

We have acquired quite a few cheats in the past several games. What a Hit (causes a greater frequency of injury in your opponent), QB Dud (causes passes to be high and wobbly), Extra Credit (which gives you 3 points for a sack, and 4 pts. for an INT -- I thought at first this was "bonus points", like to buy these cheats with, but they're actually points on the scoreboard in the game, which we didn't realize when we use this cheat later), Jumbalaya (gives you points for injuries your team sustains), Take Your Time (unlimited timeouts for 1 game), Cuffed (your team can commit no turnovers), and Tough as Nails (makes your QB almost impossible to sack).

Plenty of chances to use these cheats coming up.

Game 9, @ South Carolina (3-4, 2-3)

Another road SEC game, against a down Gamecocks squad. Just to try and make sure of a win, MB decides to play the What a Hit cheat... which knocks precisely 1 Gamecock out of the game. So much for that.

South Carolina's D just stuffs us all day pretty much, and MB takes to throwing the Hail Mary on nearly every pass play late, to no avail. A FG with 2:00 left gives Cocky the win.

Loss, 13-10, down to 6-3, 3-3

Our defense has been much improved this year. Despite losing 3 games, we've allowed over 14 points only twice. And while I'm sure you're thinking "You're playing 5 minute quarters, so what?", I think that's a good accomplishment with this defense, who all seem to run very slowly to the ball, and once there, forget how to tackle.

Game 10, @ #2 Florida (9-0, 6-0)

Now comes the biggest game of the year. Last year, we trotted out a passing game based cheat, and won relatively easily. This year, more of the same, only a different cheat: QB Dud. Hopefully, Rex Grossman will find his senior year game as frustrating as his junior year's.

Early on, it's looking good. First play of the game, Rex throws a pick that floats like a balloon. Our offense is fairly inept (STOP RUNNING THE FREAKING QUARTERBACK DRAW!!!!!!), but with the great field position we garnered from Rex's 6 (yep, 6) interceptions, we couldn't help but win. Florida still had a chance late, but just about every time they threw deep, the ball took so long to get there, I had 2 or 3 defenders waiting on it.

Frankly, this was closer than it should've been, as we had 4 turnovers ourselves, and held on for a big win.

Win, 20-14, up to 7-3, 4-3

Game 11, v. Kentucky (0-9, 0-6)

I remember when Kentucky had Tim Couch. They were semi-decent for a couple of years there.

We use the extra credit cheat in this game, figuring to pick up a few bonus points due to the inevitable sacks and INT's against an obviously pitiful Wildcat squad.

Kentucky scores the gratuitous opening drive TD to make it 7-0. We fail to do much on our first possession, as MB likes to frustrate me completely by stringing together 3 or 4 good running plays, then inexplicably calling 3 straight pass plays, which all fail (which I guess is ultimately my fault, but still...why stop using something that's working? Because MB doesn't like using our tailback, who is actually slower than our QB).

Imagine my surprise on UK's ensuing possession when we get an interception... and the score is suddenly 7-4. Ah, so THAT'S what "Extra Credit" is. Wish we had used this against Florida now.

We go on to get 11 extra credit points via 2 INT's and a sack. And 24 regular points, and UK is stymied after my standard opening drive difficulties.

Win, 35-7, up to 8-3, 4-3 (whoops, added a win AND loss for the Miss. St. loss... this record is correct)

Big news for Vandy, as we break into the top 25 in both polls! We stand at #23 in both the Media and Coaches polls, and are currently slated for the Cotton Bowl in the Bowl Watch. A New Year's Day bowl would be awfully nice, but we'd have to beat our in-state rival to get there.

Game 12, @ #20 Tennessee (8-3, 4-3)

Tennessee is currently 2nd in the SEC East, and we're 3rd. The Vols are currently slated for the Citrus Bowl.... and we're slated for the Cotton... if we win, those might flip-flop. If we lose, we'll almost certainly drop out of a New Year's Day Bowl. Big game.

As such, MB decides on 3 cheats for this game: Jumbalaya, Take Your Time, and Cuffed. Frankly, the only major one is Cuffed, which means we'll take the turnover factor out of the game on our end. Her reasoning for using Jumbalaya is, since they're good, they're more likely to injure one of our players. We'll see.

Tennessee scores Butter's Patented Opening Drive Touchdown (all rights reserved). We're behind 7-0, but our drive takes just as long, and goes just as far, and at the end of the 1st, it's 7-7. Lucas has come to play, looking very sharp early. And with the threat of interception out of the equation, MB is throwing with abandon.

Second quarter, and Tennessee is not having difficulty moving the ball. We head into the break down 21-14. But, we are able to take the 2nd half kickoff into the end zone and knot the game at 21. Our defense then comes up with a big turnover, a pick in UT territory, which we parlay into a long 47 yard FG, and a 24-21 lead.

MB had her head on straight for this game, but sadly my defense didn't do the job down the stretch. We yield 2 4th quarter touchdowns, and over 450 yards in offense for the game, as Tennessee proves who is in-state boss with an 11 point win. MB was despondent after the game, asking why we choose to play as such a "sucky" team. Then: "Do you like losing?" No, but I like a challenge, I say.
"Well, I like a challenge too, but I don't like losing."
Then you don't REALLY like a challenge, I think, you just like winning all the time, just winning close games. Of course, I actually say this: "Yes, honey. We'll have a good recruiting class and start winning more next year."

Still, I think 8-4 again is good with this sad sack.

Loss, 35-24, fall to 8-4, 4-4

We drop to 26th, and out of both polls. And out of a New Year's Day bowl, as predicted. We'll face #15 Maryland in the Peach Bowl on New Year's Eve. An improvement on last year, but a disappointment nonetheless.

Peach Bowl, @ #15 Maryland (9-3)

We decide to use our last remaining cheat, Tough as Nails, for this one. Although Lucas hasn't been sacked often, so I don't know if it's worth it.

Early on, it's going well, Maryland again scores the Patented Opening Drive Touchdown, but we fight back with a balanced run/pass attack (during which MB shows surprising sophistication by following 3 straight runs with a play action pass, then running a shotgun pass on 1st down to confuse them). We lead 14-7 going into the final minute of the half... then, disaster strikes. They return a punt inside our 20, and punch it in. On the ensuing kickoff, with under 20 seconds to play, we fumble the ball back to Maryland, who convert a FG and lead 17-14 at the break.

We are able to fight back, and tie the game at 24 midway through the 4th quarter. Sadly, we are again unable to stop an opponent on a crucial drive, and Maryland kicks the game winning FG from 32 yards with :02 on the clock.

Another bowl loss, and an end to a copycat season to last year.

Loss, 27-24, fall to 8-5, 4-4

End of season 2

I'm really enjoying this dynasty, keep up the good work. I wish I could get my girlfriend to do something like this with me...

Season 2 recap

We finish 3rd in the SEC East again, ahead of UGa, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Similar record to last year. Our defense seemed to fade at the end of the year, just when we could've used them most. But still, it's hard to complain about 2 straight bowl appearances with this team. Next year, it'll be time to improve, and see if we can compete for the East division title. Depends on what kind of recruiting class we get in.

Passing
QB #12 Chris Lucas - 112.4 rating, 54 comp.-142 att., 1,007 yards, 10 TD, 6 INT, 100.7 yds/gm, 38% comp. pct.
QB #3 Benji Walker - 88.7 rating, 18 comp.-66 att., 452 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT, 37.6 yds/gm, 27% comp. pct. (graduating senior)

Rushing
QB C. Lucas - 79 att., 495 yds., 6.2 yds/carry, 3 TD, longest rush -53, 49.5 yds/gm
QB B. Walker - 68 att., 379 yds., 5.5 yds/carry, 6 TD, longest rush - 37, 31.5 yds/gm
HB #9 - 86 att., 355 yds., 4.1 yds/carry, 3 TD, longest rush - 17, 35.5 yds/gm
HB #21 - 24 att., 143 yds., 5.9 yds/carry, 2 TD, longest rush - 37, 35.7 yds/gm
FB J.J. Lopez - 29 att., 118 yds., 4.0 yds/carry, 3 TD, longest rush - 10, 9.8 yds/gm

Receiving
WR Warren Terrell - 19 rec., 517 yds., 27.2 yds/catch, 3 TD, 6 drops
WR #19 - 16 rec., 307 yds., 19.1 yds/catch, 2 TD, 8 drops (graduating senior)
WR #16 - 13 rec., 217 yds., 16.6 yds/catch, 2 TD, 3 drops (graduating senior)
TE #81 - 10 rec., 153 yds., 15.3 yds/catch, 3 TD, 4 drops (graduating senior)

Defense
SS #13 - 40 tackles, 5 INT (graduating senior)
FS Mark Stein - 33 tackles, 3 INT
CB Patrick Dodson - 3 INT
CB Mark Dorsey - 3 INT

Kicking/Punting
K #75 - 9/11 FG, 48 yd. long, 44 kickoffs/29 touchbacks (graduating senior)
P Derek Slater - 26 punts, 1,042 yds., 40.1 yds/punt, 9 punts inside 20


Our kicking game was improved, but sadly our kicker is leaving us, and last year's recruit is a serious downgrade.

Our backup QB is leaving as well, and 3 of our top 4 WR's. That's OK... did you see all those drops? Terrell has an excuse, as we threw to him quite often. But the others were just frustrating.

Again, a solid year, but not a real improvement. We move up another prestige star, so we're now a 4-star prestige school out of 6. Hopefully, we can add another star next year, and be a nationally ranked team on a regular basis. This year, we finished 32nd in the country.

Recruiting

After graduation, we were left with just 2 WR's, so that was our major outstanding need for recruiting. We also were looking for a couple of TE's and DE's, a game-breaking HB, and speed speed speed wherever possible.

Our hope with our improved season was that more blue-chippers would be interested in coming to Nashville.

And, indeed, there was more interest, with 7 of the top-100 listing Vanderbilt in their top 3 schools. 3 of whom were WR's, our major need area! We immediately maxed out all contact with all 7, even though 3 of them were in non-need areas.

Most of the blue-chippers went elsewhere, but we did get our share of quality players, and filled in a bit during the final week of recruiting by getting a few 1 star folks for our first-string to beat on during practice.

Here is the 2004 Vanderbilt freshman class (with vital stats: position rank, star rating (out of 5), state, height, weight, 40 time, type of position player (i.e. balanced, hard hitting for defense, speed for offense, etc.), other info., initial rating as a freshman after training camp) :

#9 HB Sedrick Kane - 5* - TN - 6'0", 195 lbs. - 4.52 - Speed - Average hands - 76

#2 FS Pete Schneider - 5* - AL - 6'1", 187 lbs. - 4.41 - Balanced - Excellent hands - 83

#13 TE Jamel Alston - 4* - TN - 6'1", 250 lbs. - 5.05 - Balanced - Excellent hands - 73

#24 RG Mike McCarthy - 4* - RI - 6'6", 301 lbs. - 5.41 - Balanced - 505 lb. bench, 595 lb. squat - 73

#32 OLB Sam Collins - 3* - KY - 6'0", 233 lbs. - 4.67 - Coverage - Excellent hands - 78

#18 TE Marcus Hull - 3* - TN - 6'2", 210 lbs. - 4.92 - Receiving - Excellent hands - 70

#10 SS Nate Lambert - 4* - MS - 6'1", 208 lbs. - 4.73 - Balanced - Excellent hands - 78

#25 MLB Warren Payne - 3* - MS - 6'4", 228 lbs. - 4.88 - Run stopper - Poor hands - 69

#33 SS Doug Lindsey - 2* - TN - 6'3", 212 lbs. - 4.50 - Balanced - Average hands - 66

#23 WR Lennox Bauer - 4* - KY - 6'0", 221 lbs. - 4.48 - Speed - Excellent hands - 78

#11 DE Raymont Bradford - 4* - VA - 6'4", 244 lbs. - 4.90 - Pass rush - 335 lb. bench, 525 lb. squat - 76

#29 FS Lawrence Forbes - 3* - VA - 6'2", 190 lbs. - 4.84 - Balanced - Poor hands - 68

#101 DE Shawn Johnson - 1* - KY - 6'5", 231 lbs. - 5.03 - Pass rush - 280 lb. bench, 400 lb. squat - 62

#124 WR Adrian Davis - 1* - GA - 6'1", 188 lbs. - 4.78 - Balanced - Average hands - 63

#97 QB Stanley Leach - 1* - VA - 5'11", 212 lbs. - 5.35 - Pocket passer - Cannon arm, average accuracy - 64 will be redshirted

#188 WR Leon Wilson - 1* - MS - 6'2", 221 lbs. - 4.78 - Possession - Average hands - 56

#63 FB Chris Lewis - 1* - AL - 6'0", 241 lbs. - 4.99 - Blocking - Good hands - 58

#93 FB John Byers - 1* - KY - 6'1", 224 lbs. - 4.84 - Blocking - Average hands - 56

Our vast recruiting class of 18 made our roster whole at 55 (the game limit), and was ranked 24th in the nation, #6 in the SEC. Good job, MB... and me too, as I helped determine who to talk to, to a certain extent.

Coming up, season 3: Can we make the jump to SEC title contenders? Will our game-breaking new HB make the difference on offense? Can Lucas improve upon his freshman year at QB by not throwing the ball 10 yards out of bounds on a simple out route? Can our defense stop anyone on an opening drive?

Preseason, 2004

The first 5 recruits on that list will all be starting. Kane will hopefully be a vast improvement on our previous RB corps. Our first 2 years starting HB #9 (McKenzie) is now 3rd string, as his backup (HB #21) proved to be a bit quicker, while able to break tackles just as well. WR Lennox Bauer will also see a lot of time in 3-WR sets, and Adrian Davis is our 4th wide out.

As we were not able to recruit a cornerback, FS Mike Stein and his 90 speed rating moves to the 3rd corner spot, while new recruit Pete Schneider takes over the starting FS spot. DE Raymont Bradford will start at left end, while McLaughlin and Mathews will split time at right end. SS Nate Lambert will also start at that spot, so we have about 7 or 8 freshmen/sophomores in the secondary alone that will see significant playing time.

Our offense remains relatively stable, but our addition of speed at tailback should help us break some games open, and wear our opponents out in the 4th quarter.

Our pre-programmed schedule included Navy, TCU, and Maryland (who we wanted no part of after last year's Peach Bowl). Here's the schedule we end up with, after MB's long search for appropriate opponents:

v. Army
@ Ole Miss
v. Middle Tennessee St.
@ Auburn
@ Georgia
v. Mississippi St.
v. Wyoming
v. Northwestern
v. South Carolina
v. Florida
@ Kentucky
v. Tennessee

The late season schedule is certainly in our favor, now if we can only win some SEC road games...

We are ranked #39 preseason, nearly the same as last year's #44. The SEC looks down this year, as only LSU and Auburn are rated in the preseason again.

We begin the season with just one cheat, as we re-acquired the Take Your Time cheat which allows for unlimited timeouts. The strategy we would employ for using this one would be to wait until a game where we need a lot of timeouts late to try and catch up.

Game 1, v. Army

While I'd LIKE to say that our defense did not yield Butter's Patented Opening Drive Touchdown (all rights reserved), they actually did. Army threw a lot on their first drive, and completed a short slant for a 7-0 lead. Not a good start against the #116 (out of 117) preseason rated team.

Luckily, Sedrick Kane decided to flash some of his speed, and had no problem knifing through the Cadet (or is it Black Knight?)defense. Lucas was also good, but not great, and we had little problem with our opening day opponent, as we did not allow them to sniff the end zone again. Both Kane and Lucas finish with over 100 yards rushing.

Win, 31-7, start at 1-0

Game 2, @ Ole Miss (0-0)

Luckily, Eli Manning is gone, as he still gives me nightmares from the last 2 years, games we split. Now the Rebels start a redshirt freshman whose name is also Kane, like our new HB. Hopefully, our pressure could get to him and force some bad throws.

More or less, that's what happened, as Ole Miss's offense showed flashes, but Ole Miss's Kane killed them with 2 goal line INT's. We avoided yielding an opening drive TD, and indeed points of any kind during the entire game. Sedrick Kane impressed again with his 2nd straight 100 yard game, and is really impressive in the open field, often breaking tackles that our other backs can't, and just accelerating much better through the available holes. It won't be long before they start stacking the line against us, and forcing Lucas to beat them with his erratic arm.

Win, 24-0, up to 2-0, 1-0

That win put us 26th in the coaches poll, and 25th in the media poll.

An impressive SEC road win is followed by a recovery game against MTSU, then 2 more tough road conference games... then 6 of our last 7 are at home. If we can find a way to win the next 3 games, a conference title is certainly possible. Although, you can't tell this early in the season if we were just that good, or Ole Miss was bad.

And, as a sidenote, MB's typical game plan now consists of about 15 plays over several formations. Whenver she clicks into one of our 8 formations, I can pretty much tell you what she's going to run. Still a lot of QB draws, but she does go with a wide array of HB runs, though usually a tackle or draw play if it is available. She is fond of the FB Blast play out of either the pro formation or weak sets. And as for passing, she has grown increasingly fond of the TE streaks play (as often the defense will crowd the line against this apparent running set, leaving one of our TE's fairly open). Other pass plays used regularly are Flood, TE corner (out of the weak set), Hail Mary (out of Shotgun, when large yards are needed), Quick Slants (out of 3 different formations), and Stretch (out of Shotgun). She does use some of the other plays, and varies her passing repertoire from time to time, but if she had to pick the basic 15 plays to form a playbook, these would be it.

With that rundown, here's our game against the Blue Raiders.

Game 3, v. MTSU (0-1)

Again, we totally shut down the opponents using a mix of zone and man coverages, and a good mix of blitzes from both sides of the defense and up the middle. One thing I have learned from using Vanderbilt is it is important to mix up the defenses you use. With Ohio State, I tended to run the same defense 80% of the time on standard run/pass downs (the 4-3 Man Lock), which allowed our typically superior athletes to play man coverage, while blitzing one OLB to stop any running plays. Well, with Vanderbilt, blitzes are often followed by 60 yard pass plays to a single covered wide out. I have toned down the blitzing this year, opting to play more of a zone or base defense (often out of the nickel or dime, as we've been pretty far ahead in all 3 games so far) around 50% of the time, and a man coverage scheme about 25% of the time, while the other 25% I will blitz (although usually only 1 person).

Oh yeah, the game. Lucas went hog wild through the air, getting over 200 yards passing, while Kane came just yards short of his 3rd consecutive 100-yard game. MTSU was frustrated all game, and all but gave up by the middle of the 3rd quarter.

Win, 42-0, up to 3-0, 1-0

We climb to 16th in the coaches poll (a big jump), and 19th in the media poll.

Game 4, @ #24 Auburn (2-0)

Auburn has handed us our first loss each of the last 2 seasons. We were looking to avoid that here.

We started well, once again not yielding an opening touchdown. MB was a bit miffed at Auburn's insistence on stuffing the run, but as I explained to her... they've gotta stop something. Lucas was fairly ineffective, again finding wide open linesman, and seemingly uncovered back judges to fire the ball at instead of our double-covered receivers. We finally broke through late in the 2nd quarter, as Kane was able to break a 20+ yard run inside the 40, followed by a 20+ yard Lucas scramble. Kane then took the ball 4 straight times, and found paydirt. 7-0, Commodores.

Luckily for us, Auburn's young offense sputtered time and again, and our secondary did a great job anticipating where passes would be, and arriving there prior to the ball. Auburn spent most of the day on their own half of the 50, and once we added a touchdown mostly via the air in the late 3rd quarter, our first 3-0 record was assured.

3 straight shutouts. I'm impressed with myself.

Win, 14-0, up to 4-0, 2-0

edit: messed up the record

Up to 14th in the coaches poll and 16th in the media poll.

Game 5, @ Georgia (2-1, 0-1)

Georgia is always tough as well, and a road game to Athens worried me.

Again, though, Sedrick Kane proved himself worthy of a mention with the top HB's in the SEC, as he just wore down Georgia with over 20 carries for another 100+ yard performance. We stacked the line against Georgia and forced them to throw, which David Greene did poorly. His final game against us was a horrific one, as he tossed 3 INT's en route to our 4th consecutive shutout.

We have now yielded 7 points in 5 games... and that 7 was to Army, the worst team we've faced, statistically speaking. Maybe this is the year....

Win, 17-0, up to 5-0, 3-0

Game 6, v. Mississippi St. (2-2, 0-1)

Mississippi St. was pretty mediocre last year when they beat us, and we would like some revenge.

Early on, MSU scores the Patented Opening Drive Touchdown (all rights reserved) again, and we quickly fall behind 7-0. Fortunately, Chris Lucas's good arm arrived for today's game, and we passed our way down the field after being stuffed on several early runs, and an early 2nd quarter TD made the score 7-7.

MB then determined to pound the ball up the Bulldogs middle, eschewing the HB Tackle and Counter plays in favor of the personal favorite of mine, the HB Iso. The reason I favor the Iso is that the run can really be to either side of the line, wherever the hole happens to be, instead of designing the play such that there is only one hole, and if it's closed, you're screwed.

The Iso, draw, and lead plays worked very well, and add in an effective QB draw, and we're ahead 21-7 in the 4th quarter, as Lucas tucked his throwing arm away despite its' effectiveness.

Then, the unthinkable. MSU scores a TD with about 1 minute to go to pull within 21-14. Then comes the onside kick. Which we promptly fumble away, as the ball hits our backup HB in the hands and bounces away, into the Bulldogs' waiting arms. A seemingly easy win has suddenly turned stomach churning. That stomach churned a little more when our defense again failed to stop a previously impotent MSU passing offense, allowing a 12 yard slant to tie the game at 21 with :25 seconds left. A few Hail Marys later, and we're in overtime.

MSU wins the toss, and takes defense. Again, we stick with the ground game, and 4 plays into the OT, Kane runs a counter into the right pylon for a 28-21 lead. Sadly, our defense was not up to the challenge, and yields a 3rd down TD pass. We go to a second overtime.

At this point MB is harping about how badly our defense sucks. "I'm trying my hardest," I say. She says that she knows, but we still suck. Her doom & gloom rhetoric become a little too much for me, and I say "Stop talking like that and focus on winning the game! We're going to win, so let's do it!" Yes, we are a bit intense when we're playing... especially when we're losing, or on the brink. I especially lost my cool when she kept saying we were going to lose. I was determined that we weren't... she seemed resigned to it. I felt that if we won this game, an undefeated season might be possible. So, I got a bit angry, but she didn't get angry at me... just tried to calm down a bit.

Anyway, the 2nd OT begins with MSU taking the ball. MSU did score, picking up a 27 yard TD pass on 3rd and 12... a beautiful, loooooong fade route on the only single-covered WR on the play. Sometimes the AI is too smart. Again, it takes a mere 3 plays to find the end zone, and again we're tied, this time at 35. Surprisingly, MB reminds me that starting with the next OT, we must go for 2 when we score. I realized how proud I was that she had picked up a rule along the way... a fairly obscure, rarely used rule at that. The pride was evident in my smile.

35-35, and we start the OT again. Our offense again steamrolls MSU, and we lead 41-35 in the 3rd overtime. We now have nearly 350 yards on the ground, Kane over 150, Lucas over 100. MB begins to panic as she realizes that she now actually has to CALL the 2 point play. She pauses the game and grills me with questions... would this work? Do you think that would work? How about this? I say, I don't know, whatever you think. Surprise, she goes with the QB draw.... and it works, Lucas gets in, and we go up 43-35.

How much longer can this OT go on?

Mississippi State appears ready to give up. They run 2 straight times, losing a yard. 3rd and 11 finds them dropping back to pass, and completing one to their TE down to the 7. We switch now to our fairly standard goal line defense, the 4-4 wide zone, which provides good run support, while also allowing our LB's to get back in coverage on a pass. It's weak on outside throws, but very strong vs. the run and middle/short passing. 1st down is a short run.... 2nd down is an incomplete fade, broken up by Dorsey. 3rd down is a... freakin' draw for a TD. 43-41. I have a strong feeling that they'll run for the 2 pointer, and position a 4-4 rush zone to try and prevent a short run, while leaving the out pattern wide open. The play is run, and indeed it is a run that is STUFFED!!!! Yeeeeeeesssssss, motherf*($er!!!!!!!

I then go on to re-enact the scene from Parenthood where Steve Martin's kid catches the baseball to win the game, complete with kicking the air, and Curly style floor-walking. An unbelievable win, and very satisfying.

Win, 43-41, 3 OT, up to 6-0, 4-0

Up to #11 in the coaches poll, #12 in the media poll, the BCS rankings come out after this week, and we should be in them. :)

Game 7, v. Wyoming (1-5)

Who approved these unis? They're all white, with white helmets, and a little brown trim. I feel like I'm playing the 1970's San Diego Padres.

Wyoming was outclassed all the way, running a largely pass-oriented attack that was really not good. Wyoming avoided the shutout with a 3rd quarter TD drive, but other than that, our highlight was trying to get Sedrick Kane 100 yards toward the end of the game. We got the ball at the Wyoming 21 off of a good punt return from Terrell, and Kane was sitting at 79 yards... if he takes it in the end zone, he gets 100. After 4 consecutive rushing plays, he makes it down to the 1 on our last play, but no further.

An enjoyable rout. Just about any offensive play worked today.

Win, 49-7, up to 7-0, 4-0

The BCS rankings come out, and we're 10th. We are listed in the Bowl Watch as the SEC leader, and are placed in the Sugar Bowl opposite Oklahoma, an at large team right now. We're rated 9th in the coaches poll, and 10th in the media poll, cracking into the top-10 for the first time.

We have now acquired a few cheats which we did not figure to use today. First & 15 (which requires the opponents to gain 15 yards for a first down), Protection (which gives you better pass protection), Stiffed (which I don't recall what that does right now), Take Your Time (unlimited timeouts), and QB Dud (high, wobbly passes by your opponent... Florida again, I'm sure).

Game 8, v. Northwestern (2-4)

Northwestern was not the test we expected... We scored on a 30 yard INT return for a TD on their opening possession, then they nearly fumbled the ensuing kickoff back to us. They quickly punted, and we scored again. Their ensuing possession, they had a drive going, until we returned another INT 88 yards for a TD, and the rout was on. We ran and passed all over this team, and led 35-3 at halftime. 2nd half was more of the same, and we are actually playing like a nationally elite team.

Win, 56-10, up to 8-0, 4-0

Next comes the yearly stretch of death, though, with South Carolina, Florida, Kentucky (*snicker*), and Tennessee. If we could find a way past each of these, we would be on to the SEC title game and have a chance for the national title. I'm cautiously optimistic, especially with the cheats we have on hand.

Keep it up man, I'm really enjoying the dynasty!!

Alright now, butter, I'm jonesing for some Vandy football. Best get your woman away from the housework and on the X-Box where she belongs... :D

More updates will be coming soon... sorry about the delay. We have an exciting end to the season, and a very surprising offseason. But, then, women are unpredictable like that. I'll let you imagine what happens.

I would post it all now, but I left my notes at home today. But this dynasty is not dead by a longshot. :)

We take on South Carolina and decide to use the Protection cheat (which is supposed to provide you more time to throw). We are up to 7th in the coaches poll, 8th in the media poll, and 7th in the BCS.

Game 9, v. South Carolina (5-2, 2-2)

South Carolina played us tough as usual. However, our defense held strong, and turned back 3 USC drives into our territory, twice stopping them on a 4th down play inside our 30. Our offense did as well as they could, scoring on 2 QB sneaks after long pass plays set us up in business. We beat our new "rival" for the 2nd time in 3 years.

Win, 17-10, up to 9-0, 5-0

Ranks
Media: 6
Coaches/BCS: 5

Interesting to note this week, that the Bowl matchups have us facing Clemson in the Sugar Bowl.


Game 10, v. Florida (3-5, 2-3)

Seems that the Ron Zook era in EA-land is not going well. We use the Boing cheat anyway, trying to stunt their pass-happy offense in advance.

Florida drives for a FG on their opening kickoff, but their defense has just gone downhill. We ran at will on them, even when Will was not on the field. Lucas had an OK day, but we had absolutely no problems dispatching a poor Florida squad, who desperately need some new leadership.

Win, 31-3, up to 10-0, 6-0

At this point, it has almost become too easy. Only 2 games have even been close, with only Mississippi State pushing us to the point where I was worried we might lose. This is becoming boring to me... but MB is still interested, so I keep going, dropping hints here and there that we need to up the difficulty settings.

Ranks
Coaches: 4
Media/BCS: 5

Game 11, @ Kentucky (2-7, 1-5)

Our side of the SEC has become the weaker side. Sounds impossible, I know, but look at these patsies. Florida sucks, Kentucky sucks big time, USC is marginal, Georgia is merely OK, and Tennessee is no power. The other side, meanwhile, has 3 teams, Arkansas, LSU, and Auburn fighting for first. We clinch an SEC title berth with a win here, as Tennessee has already lost 2 conference games.

We roll Kentucky, although they do a good job on Kane, and Lucas is off. We still beat them by 18, but what does it say about UK that their entire offense managed only 97 yards? It means Lorenzen is gone, and their backup is WRETCHED. He went something like 4-21 today. They had 3 yards in the whole of the first half. It was a punt fest. I felt like I was at Puntapalooza '04.

Win, 21-3, up to 11-0, 7-0

We're in the SEC title game! Against the winner of the final week Arkansas-LSU battle.

Ranks
Coaches/BCS: 4
Media: 5

I now start to worry that if we run the table, we won't be in the title game. Oklahoma has 1 loss, but is ahead of us in the BCS thanks to their non-conference schedule which included teams with actual players. We need the Big 12 to dive, as all 3 teams ahead of us are Big 12 (Texas A&M and Texas are the other 2).

Game 12, v. Tennessee (7-3, 4-2)

We use a couple of cheats here, most notable the 1st & 15, which requires them to gain 15 yards on each 1st down. Needless to say, that was quite effective, often proving to be too much to overcome. In fact, it often appeared that the computer was oblivious to this new cheat, running power runs on 3rd & 6 or 7.

Again, we roll to a boring victory, and move into the SEC title game with an unblemished record. MB just calls the same draws and counters and passes over and over now... and why wouldn't she? The computer is impotent to stop us on this difficulty setting with our talent.

Win, 21-0, up to 12-0, 8-0

Ranks
All 3 polls: #3

Texas A&M went down to Texas, so we move up. Now Texas must lose in the Big 12 title game, to Nebraska, who is unranked. Otherwise, we're shutout of the title race, and it'll be an all-Big 12 Orange Bowl. Go Huskers! (Ew, that makes me shudder)

SEC Championship, v. Arkansas (8-4, 6-2)

Arkansas moves their first drive right down the field, mixing runs and passes beautifully, and giving me faith that maybe this game is more difficult than I expected. Not that I want to LOSE, but I do want a challenge. We answer with a well-orchestrated, long drive that takes us into the 2nd quarter. It's 7-7. MB is clearly nervous and agitated, sighing with every Hog first down and Lucas incompletion. At halftime, we go in up 14-10, but this is clearly going to be a struggle all the way home.

MB's favorite play, the QB draw, is not working. She temporarily gives up running altogether, allowing Arkansas to pressure the QB, and force punts. They then take the ball for 2 long TD drives, and lead 24-14. The dream is dying.

The ticker flashes an early score of 7-3 Nebraska. There is hope.

Then, Chris Lucas decides to take his arm out of mothballs, and we start playing some football. Lucas for 20, 23, 17, 8, and 9 yard passes, and we're in for a 24-21 game early 4th quarter. Arkansas has become predictable, running on 1st down, running a QB draw or option on 2nd down, and throwing on 3rd. We force a 3 and out. We then get a nice return from Terrell to set us up inside the Hog 40. Lucas decides one play should be all we need, and threads a 39 yard needle to David Terrell who stands between 2 Razorbacks in the end zone, and outjumps them both to grab the go-ahead touchdown. 28-24, Vanderbilt!

2:53 remains between us and a possible national championship game. But the Razorbacks hurry-up offense wears us down. They move the ball down the field with precision, but are picked off! We regain possession with 1:03 left. They use all 3 timeouts and force a punt with 0:47. They have the ball at their own 38, and again are able to move it quickly. They penetrate to our 24, with :15 left. Next play is a beautiful short pass, down to the 12, but it leaves just :04 left. MB is on the edge of her seat, cursing me to victory (I suppose). The next play, we play a Dime Zone defense, and I try to rush a lineman off the side. The rush doesn't work, and the pass flies toward the corner... it's a fade!!!! The ball seems to float in slow motion towards the pylon.... NOOOOOOOOOOO......



it's knocked away by Mark Dorsey! We win!!!!!!!

Win, 28-24, up to 13-0

Texas loses to Nebraska, BAD. 42-17. We are in the Orange Bowl!

YES!!!!!!

SOON TO BE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!

Sweet!!!

Glad to see this dynasty back up and running...

Ranks
All 3 polls: #2

National Championship Game, Orange Bowl
v. #1 Oklahoma (11-1)

We take the field in our road whites, and Oklahoma comes out in their home reds. We blew most of our cheats to get to this game, so we break out the minor cheats we have left, Kicker Hex (which causes the wind to be in your favor in FG/XP situations), and Stiffed (which doubles penalty yardage of opponents). These will hopefully keep them from getting any FG's today. Stopping their offense is another matter. They have the #10 rated offense in the nation, AND the #2 (behind us, who play short quarters) defense in the land as well.

Oklahoma receives the opening kickoff and promptly fails to gain a first down. Our opening possession flounders as well, as Oklahoma has scouted us well to prepare for this game, stuffing the QB draw with outside pressure, and beating the counter trap with an 8-man front. Lucas appears shaky as his first pass sails about 10 yards out of bounds and forces a punt.

Oklahoma's 2nd possession gets them on track. An 80 yard drive, they have no difficulty passing on us, mostly post routes and double moves. Their rushing game is used mostly as a change of pace, and an 18 yard TD pass caps the first scoring drive of the game. The XP is no good, thanks to the Hex. 6-0, Sooners.

Our 2nd possession is a big bag o' suck. 3 plays, -7 yards including a sack on 3rd down, and MB is already frustrated.

"Did you not see that guy coming?"
"Honey, I don't question your play calls, so don't start with me."
"No, I'm really curious as to whether you know they're coming before you throw it."
"What do you think, I'm TRYING to get sacked? There is a slight delay between pressing the pass button, and the QB actually winding up and throwing, and sometimes that delay causes a sack. So don't mention it again, please. I'm trying my best."

The snarkiness has already begun, and we're at the end of the first quarter. Oklahoma's 3rd possession results in an interception, and we're in business. We manage a FG, and close the gap to 6-3. Not much happens before the break, and that's the halftime score. We have just 75 offensive yards, mostly thanks to long passes. Lucas is around 30% completion-wise, and our running game is getting nowhere against the speedy Sooners.

Our opening drive in the 2nd half finds MB resolved to cross up the Sooners. 1st down, throw, 2nd down, throw... 3rd down, throw some more. This pass happiness catches Oklahoma off guard, and we penetrate deep into their territory. On the 7th play of the drive, Lucas finds Mr. Warren Terrell on a fade route for a touchdown! Extra point is good, 10-6 Commodores!

Oklahoma sputters, but holds us down, and it is 10-6 entering the 4th quarter. Oklahoma finally puts something together, and a shotgun HB draw puts them in from 9 yards out, and makes it 12-10 after another "wind-blown" extra point. Our ensuing drive goes backwards in a hurry, after not one, but 2 sacks (just imagine the heavy sighing that MB gives me.... I'm sure you can). On 4th and 23 with 2:30 left, we have no choice but to punt from our own 14. All 3 timeouts left, and we must hold. 1st down, 2 yard run, timeout. 2nd down, 3 yard run, timeout... 3rd and 5. 3rd down is an incomplete pass, and we get to save a timeout, and get the ball back with 2:06!

Lucas seems sharp on this drive, completing slants and ins, throwing to the corner for our tight end. We penetrate to the Oklahoma 36, with 1:04 remaining. Next play is an MB favorite, Flood, this time from the left hash, flooding the wide side of the field. Lucas steps back to throw, zeroes in on a target, and lets it go... the ball spirals beautifully downfield....



straight into the hands of an Oklahoma LB who followed the play across the field. Oklahoma has intercepted a pass on our march to victory! Unbelievable. Our 1 TO is no match, and Oklahoma kneels on 3rd down to run out the clock. Our national championship run is halted, 1 minute short.

MB and I spend a few minutes in stunned silence, and quiet cursing before moving on. A rough end to a great season.

Loss, 12-10, finish 13-1, ranked #4

After much begging, I convince MB not to re-play the game. "We lost, we just have to deal with it... I don't think it's fair, nor do I enjoy 'fixing' the results..." even though it is a game, and we are using cheats... I just have some lines I will not cross. We lost, period.

Season 3 recap

3 bowls in 3 years at Vandy is no disgrace, but my how I'd like that crossing route throw back at the end of the Orange Bowl... I have no doubt in my mind that the INT was totally and thoroughly my fault, although I'll never admit that to my wife.

Passing
QB #12, Chris Lucas - 57/141, 40%, 1,087 yards, 9 TD, 6 INT, 117.7 rating, 90.5 yds/gm

Rushing
RB #22 Sedrick Kane - 179 carries, 1,086 yards, 13 TD, 6.0 yds/carry, 37 yard long, 83.5 yds/gm
QB #12 Chris Lucas - 125 carries, 780 yards, 13 TD, 6.2 yds/carry, 61 yard long, 65.0 yds/gm
FB #49 J.J. Lopez - 30 carries, 152 yards, 2 TD, 5.0 yds/carry, 32 yard long, 12.6 yds/gm

Receiving
WR #81 Warren Terrell - 19 rec., 460 yards, 6 TD, 24.2 yds/catch, 4 drops
WR #87 Lennox Bauer - 17 rec., 397 yards, 3 TD, 20.4 yds/catch, 6 drops
WR #80 - 16 rec., 236 yards, 1 TD, 14.7 yds/catch, 1 drop
TE #88 Jamel Alston - 10 rec., 170 yards, 1 TD, 17.0 yds/catch, 2 drops

Defense
OLB Sam Collins - 40 tackles, 1 sack
SS Nate Lambert - 34 tackles, 3 INT
CB Mark Dorsey - 28 tackles, 6 INT
FS Frank Farley - 28 tackles, 1 INT, 3 sacks

Kicking/punting
K Antoine Ryan - 7-9 FG's, 78%, 41 yard long
P Derek Slater - 20 punts, 39.0 yds/punt, 7 punts inside 20, 65 kickoffs/0 touchbacks

Damn, sorry you didn't take OU out. Next year though...

well, at least you got to the NC game! Better luck next year