Why is Game Day at Nebraska-USC?

[DKW 86 7,426]

http://scoreboards.aol.com/football/ncaaf/...m_schedule.aspx

Just look at the schedule.

Sep 02 @ Arkansas Won (50 - 14)

Sep 16 #19 Nebraska

Sep 23 @ Arizona

Sep 30 @ Washington State

Oct 07 Washington

Oct 14 #22 Arizona State

Oct 28 @ Oregon State

Nov 04 @ Stanford

Nov 11 #18 Oregon

Nov 18 #21 California

Nov 25 #2 Notre Dame

Dec 02 @ #30 UCLA

Outside of ND @ USC there really isnt a whole lot of need to watch. None of the PAC1+9 is even going to make it interesting. Game Day has to go there now because later on in the year, there really wont be a need to be back in LA until the ND game.

[Bottomfeeder 244]

Heck, their not even playing until November 23.

[Weagle98 119]

09/02 at Ga Tech W 14-10

09/09 #19 Penn State W 41-17

09/16 #11 Michigan 3:30 PM

09/23 at Mich St 8:00 PM

09/30 Purdue 2:30 PM

10/07 Stanford 2:30 PM

10/21 UCLA 2:30 PM

10/28 at Navy 12:00 PM

11/04 UNC 2:30 PM

11/11 at Air Force 4:00 PM

11/18 Army 2:30 PM

11/25 at #4 USC 8:00 PM

And Maybe they are having to pimp ND so much already because after this week they don't play a ranked team until the last week in November.

[tgr4lfe 220]

http://scoreboards.aol.com/football/ncaaf/...m_schedule.aspx

Just look at the schedule.

Sep 02 @ Arkansas Won (50 - 14)

Sep 16 #19 Nebraska

Sep 23 @ Arizona

Sep 30 @ Washington State

Oct 07 Washington

Oct 14 #22 Arizona State

Oct 28 @ Oregon State

Nov 04 @ Stanford

Nov 11 #18 Oregon

Nov 18 #21 California

Nov 25 #2 Notre Dame

Dec 02 @ #30 UCLA

Outside of ND @ USC there really isnt a whole lot of need to watch. None of the PAC1+9 is even going to make it interesting. Game Day has to go there now because later on in the year, there really wont be a need to be back in LA until the ND game.

Nobody else in the Pac 10 can tie the shoe lace of USC. I seriously doubt that ASU or Oregon are good at all. We know about Cal, WSU, Arizona, and Washington. No need to talk about Stanford. Nebraska maybe could hang with them if they can control the ball rushing. Key is D against USC. Don't know about Neb. D though.

ND schedule is weaker than USC, but according to Sagarin and some of those idiots Pac10 and Big 10 have most difficult schedules. Basically ND plays a Big 10 schedule.

[macatak911 LSU 0]

pray for a meeeechegan win or the winner of the tiger bowl might be on the outside looking in

[DKW 86 7,426]

pray for a meeeechegan win or the winner of the tiger bowl might be on the outside looking in

Agree totally.

I also wonder if GameDay isnt going to be out there to cover the USC Scandal.

[saniflush 0]

I also wonder if GameDay isnt going to be out there to cover the USC Scandal.

David that might be the case if GameDay had reporters instead of a bunch of HACKS.

[MDM4AU 332]

How many people do you really think will hang out at GameDay at 7am in LA, 10 hours before Kick Off as opposed to 9am in Auburn just 5 1/2 hours before Kick off? Not to mention more people in general nation-wide care more about this game than USCheat and Nebraska.

I know people will show up (in much lower numbers than here) but how funny would it be if only about 20 people were at the Game Day set?

[RadioWryn 0]

Not to mention more people in general nation-wide care more about this game than USCheat and Nebraska.

Wrong. Both USC and Nebraska have much larger fan bases than Auburn or LSU.

One game matters only to the SE. The other matters to the midwest, west coast, and scattered elsewhere throughout the country.

[auwallace 6]

I also wonder if GameDay isnt going to be out there to cover the USC Scandal.

David that might be the case if GameDay had reporters instead of a bunch of HACKS.

exactly, this show is as scripted now as two-a-days

[Boonan 0]

Well if you want to base it on who wants to see what game more, every poll I've seen usually far-and-away picks Michigan/ND so you both lose.

[bellefay1 1]

Agree totally.

I also wonder if GameDay isnt going to be out there to cover the USC Scandal.

i don't think they'll be "covering" the u$c scandal by any means. it will be mentioned but, they've got their emotional piece or two with the washington making grades and probably something else. probably do a bit on auburn with the irons kids being brothers.

i'm sorta curious what the gameday crowd will be like on saturday. do remember that the show will be going live @ 7am pst. mabye it's just me, but getting up @ 6am on a saturday to go wave a sign at lee corso would not be high on my priority list while in college. i would image, some of the usc student body would be less then happy with the stories that have relased this week. i would love to see a gameday show with 30 or 40 people in the background, standing around...mabye one "we plead the fifth" sign waving.

[auwallace 6]

plead da fif

classic

[MDM4AU 332]

Not to mention more people in general nation-wide care more about this game than USCheat and Nebraska.

Wrong. Both USC and Nebraska have much larger fan bases than Auburn or LSU.

One game matters only to the SE. The other matters to the midwest, west coast, and scattered elsewhere throughout the country.

I disagree. I'm not talking about fan base. Talking about the general audience across the nation looking for a good college football game between two good teams. There is more on the line with our game than with the other.

But, hey...that's my opinion.

[mcgufcm 4,107]

USC's "fanbase" is actually probably the smallest or second smallest of the four school (USC, Nebraska, Auburn, and LSU) mentioned. LSU is by far the biggest... LSU: biggest stadium, highest attendance figures of the four, only school that matters in a whole state; Neb.: smallest stadium (averaged 77K last year), incredible history, only source of sports in the state; USC: second largest stadium, great history and present, best entertainment city in America (another way of saying folks are interested as long as it's cool to be a trojan); Auburn: third highest attendance and stadium size, biggest school in alabama and close to the biggest city in the south.

i'd say you'd be hard pressed to prove that there was a major difference in the fanbases of any of those schools. think USC really gets more donations from alumni? think USC has a significantly larger student body? (15K undergrad, 16K postgrad... aka: they don't.) Auburn has 23K+. LSU has about 33K and 28K of that is undergrad, which is another way of saying 28K that care about football. Neb. is smallest with 22K.

i understand that the national media's pimping of the trojans the last few years has developed a few bandwagon fans around the country, but don't mistake that for a real fanbase. just b/c espn tells you a game is big, doesn't actually make the game big. make no mistake about it, usc is going to pound nebraska; the only reason this game gets a lot of air on sportscenter? nebraska pulls the upset or kirk gets his feelings hurt by all the people talking about more important games.

[tigerman1186 537]

Game Day will never come to Auburn or any SEC school since ABC/ESPN does the Saturday night game. As long as Kirk is part of the night broadcasting team, which he is, then they will never come to our conference....we're tied in with CBS....when UF plays at FSU....or S.C. plays at Clemson, then they would be there if it deemed that these match-ups would have a bearing on the big picture....So look at our schedule....when we play UF, they will be somewhere else....UG....somewhere else...the ONLY time we would have Game Day will be in Tempe......for the NC GAME.....sorry to disappoint those who were looking to have them on campus...or anywhere in the SEC......

[LegalEagle 22]

You can go to http://www.al.com/forums/tigers/ and find topic #209635 which purports to be information from Chris Fowler.

For what it's worth . . .

[DKW 86 7,426]

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/insider/col...estitial%3dtrue

This is a love letter to the SEC.

Maybe this stuff doesn't need to be said. But my wife is encouraging me to express my feelings more often. Open up. You know, not assume the other party knows how you feel. Verbalize it. So, here goes. The timing is no coincidence.

Amid all the fun and hoopla of a benchmark Saturday of football (seven matchups of top 25 teams, plus Bowden Bowl VIII, which Clemson enters at 26th), a couple of fierce rivalries stand out because they carry extra heft.

This is Showdown Saturday in the SEC, with the focus on two rivalry games that will shape the respective division races and leave the two winners very much in the national title conversation. These games are the most significant of Saturday's huge games because they involve divisional, conference and national title hopes.

For example, the loser of the annual smackdown between LSU and Auburn has never represented the West in the SEC championship game. Never. The winner of the game has won the division four of the past five years. But just winning this guarantees you nothing -- long way to go. Losing it, however, puts you in a two-game hole versus the winning side early in the race. Given LSU's more challenging schedule, the Purple and Gold Tigers need it even more than the Blue and Orange Tigers.

The same principle applies in the East, although Georgia has emerged as such a formidable force in that division that the Vols-Gators winner can't feel too comfortable. Anything but a tie atop the East this year would surprise me.

Kenny Irons ran for 218 yards and scored 1 TD against LSU last year.Tommy Tuberville is always happier facing LSU earlier in the season, before the rival Tigers traditionally get things going. Les Miles' team has been very efficient so far, but LSU typically is much more vulnerable in its September tests than later on. Examples: the scares from Oregon State and Arizona State in recent years.

Can Kenny Irons possibly gash through LSU for a second straight year? Auburn controlled the trenches but bogged down repeatedly in the red zone and, incredibly, John Vaughn missed five field goals. We'll hear about how he has bounced back so strongly from that heartbreak on "College GameDay" this week. Kicking and defense: How can you think anything fancier will decide this one. I've got to stick with my preseason pick of Auburn, 20-16.

Did you know? Urban Meyer can become only the second Florida coach to defeat Tennessee in his first two meetings. The other? Nope, not the former Head Ball Coach. Steve Spurrier was spanked in his first visit to Rocky Top, 45-3. The answer is Galen Hall, now the play caller for JoePa at Penn State.

Did you know, Part 2: Not only did Florida beat top rivals Tennessee, Georgia and Florida State last year but the Gators never trailed in those games, making Meyer the first UF head coach to accomplish that.

Great memories

Of the 10 regular-season SEC games matching top 10 teams, we've had the privilege of watching seven from ringside, reveling in the drama. The Tennessee-Florida wars of 2000-02; Auburn's pounding of the Vols, with big Tiger-lover Sir Charles standing next to us on the sidelines at Neyland Stadium; and LSU's heart-stopping OT triumph at Tuscaloosa last year … those are memories that will last.

This is why I believe an explanation is needed for why GameDay won't be in Auburn for LSU's visit this Saturday.

For 13 seasons, the locations of the GameDay road shows have been editorial decisions based on the college football landscape. The basic principle was to (almost) always come from the site of the "biggest game," or occasionally, "the best story." Several times, we have visited the edge of the radar screen to pay tribute to the Mid American Conference's rise (at Bowling Green), the service academies (Air Force and West Point) or the tradition of the Bayou Classic.

Now, the philosophy has been rethought by upper management. For the first time, the competitive landscape of football programming is a frequent consideration. Serving the needs of ABC's new prime-time package of games is often a priority. The decision on GameDay's site is less a clear-cut "best game" philosophy now and is more complicated, made on a landscape where terms like "synergy" and "branding" live.

Please know this: Lee, Kirk and I have no say in decisions on GameDay's location. But as host of the show for 17 years, I am mainly concerned with the show's specific legacy, not the global college football landscape.

The first two weeks of the season were no-brainers. It made sense to follow Notre Dame to Georgia Tech and sit ringside for the first 1-vs.-2 regular-season game in 10 years last week in Austin. This week, the decision was made to come from the Los Angeles Coliseum, where ABC will be set up.

Executive vice president Norby Williamson asked me to relay his reasoning: Nebraska and USC, both visible programs with storied pasts, are colliding for the first time in 35 years, and this might be one of the few chances to showcase a Pac-10 location, keeping the show regionally balanced.

The SEC should feature a lot more big ones in the coming months.

This is important: Williamson said fans still can expect to see GameDay return to the SEC or to Notre Dame for games televised on CBS and NBC. That's a relief to me. LSU's visits to Florida and Tennessee loom large, as does Auburn's trip to the Swamp. Georgia versus the winner of the Vols-Gators clash will be huge.

Any of those games could carry national title weight.

So, who knows? I am hopeful. But just in case we don't make it there quite as often, I would truly miss broadcasting from Gainesville, Knoxville, Athens, Tuscaloosa, Auburn, Baton Rouge and Columbia. SEC campuses have consistently provided the most passionate, colorful and, uh … "spirit"-ed backdrops for the show.

Hands down. No other conference is close.

Even if we don't visit you as much, please don't stop visiting us Saturday mornings. We will continue to give teams from America's strongest football conference, and the Fighting Irish, their due any way we can.

Streaking

Woodshed streak: Heading to the Coliseum, Nebraska has dropped six straight road games versus ranked teams on the road, all by a minimum of 20 points. The Huskers' average losing margin in that streak is 28. Since the start of 1998, the Cornhuskers are 1-10 versus ranked teams on the road.

Intriguing streak: Miami has won six straight games as an underdog, the position the Canes are in Saturday at Louisville. Larry Coker is 5-0 as a 'dog at the "U." With the Canes banged-up and the offense struggling so badly that Rich Olsen is talking about "simplifying" things for Kyle Wright and his receivers, the streak is likely to end at Papa John's.

Legit streak: Virginia Tech has won all nine of its ACC road games since joining the conference, not including a 2003 win over Virginia when the Hokies were still in the Big East. This includes a win at Miami, plus one win at every other ACC stadium except Florida State's and Clemson's. The streak will be tested when Tech visits Boston College and Miami this season.

Stinky streak: As Michigan saunters in to South Bend, remember that the Big Blue has dropped its past six road openers. They have been against quality teams -- Wisconsin, Oregon, Washington, UCLA and Notre Dame (twice) -- but the Wolves have been beaten favorites in five of the six. Last road opener win: 1999, at Syracuse. Don't know why, but I get a funny feeling they will fight to the finish at ND, and it wouldn't shock me if they won. The Irish managed only 244 total yards in last year's win.

Least meaningful streak: Oklahoma State has won 13 straight regular-season nonconference games. Awesome, right? Why here: The Cowboys beat only one team from a BCS conference (UCLA) in a stretch going back to 2002. The streak excludes bowl losses to Ole Miss and Ohio State. Other opponents making up the streak: I-AA Missouri State (twice), Florida Atlantic, SMU (three times), Arkansas State (twice), I-AA Montana State, Wyoming, Tulsa and Louisiana-Lafayette. This week, the 2-0 Pokes go for No. 14 in another clash with … Florida Atlantic. For good measure, FAU is right back on the slate next year.

Well-hidden streak: Appalachian State has a 19-game home win streak. News to you, right? Why: Thirteen of the 19 opponents were unable to navigate to the Appalachian State campus in time for kickoff and had to forfeit. Just kidding. Boone, N.C., is a lovely place.

Latest trend: Lightning. Three games last weekend were delayed by lightning, in three different regions: Michigan, BYU and Kentucky. As I wrote this, lightning was flashing outside the window of my hotel in a remote mountain area of West Virginia, somewhere not too near Morgantown.

[DCWarEagle 0]

There were LOTS of questions about Gameday's choice of venue in the various chats on ESPN.com this week. I for one am glad that someone there at ESPN has at least admitted the real reasoning behind the decision. That is their choice. Of course, it is our choice to stop watching their programming (or at least reduce consumption of their product).

It won't be a high priority, but sometime in the next few days I will be sure to drop an email or letter to Executive Vice President Norby Williamson and relay my reasoning, something to the effect of "Because your network is less interested in my conference, I am less interested in your network. Instead of watching Gameday this Saturday, I felt I needed to focus on the overall landscape of my home...and cut my grass."

[Ryan Sanders 123]

Well.. atleast we know that the hosts want to be at Auburn. Heh.

[saniflush 0]

Talking head.....He is saying whatever the fist up his butt is telling him to say.

[tgr4lfe 220]

I guess they have been getting the message a little. Basically says it is about where the money is, i.e. where ABC is. Not a suprise, but he does pick AU 20-16. At least dancing around the bush on the issue.

Link a dink

This is a love letter to the SEC.

Maybe this stuff doesn't need to be said. But my wife is encouraging me to express my feelings more often. Open up. You know, not assume the other party knows how you feel. Verbalize it. So, here goes. The timing is no coincidence.

Amid all the fun and hoopla of a benchmark Saturday of football (seven matchups of top 25 teams, plus Bowden Bowl VIII, which Clemson enters at 26th), a couple of fierce rivalries stand out because they carry extra heft.

This is Showdown Saturday in the SEC, with the focus on two rivalry games that will shape the respective division races and leave the two winners very much in the national title conversation. These games are the most significant of Saturday's huge games because they involve divisional, conference and national title hopes.

For example, the loser of the annual smackdown between LSU and Auburn has never represented the West in the SEC championship game. Never. The winner of the game has won the division four of the past five years. But just winning this guarantees you nothing -- long way to go. Losing it, however, puts you in a two-game hole versus the winning side early in the race. Given LSU's more challenging schedule, the Purple and Gold Tigers need it even more than the Blue and Orange Tigers.

The same principle applies in the East, although Georgia has emerged as such a formidable force in that division that the Vols-Gators winner can't feel too comfortable. Anything but a tie atop the East this year would surprise me.

Kenny Irons ran for 218 yards and scored 1 TD against LSU last year.Tommy Tuberville is always happier facing LSU earlier in the season, before the rival Tigers traditionally get things going. Les Miles' team has been very efficient so far, but LSU typically is much more vulnerable in its September tests than later on. Examples: the scares from Oregon State and Arizona State in recent years.

Can Kenny Irons possibly gash through LSU for a second straight year? Auburn controlled the trenches but bogged down repeatedly in the red zone and, incredibly, John Vaughn missed five field goals. We'll hear about how he has bounced back so strongly from that heartbreak on "College GameDay" this week. Kicking and defense: How can you think anything fancier will decide this one. I've got to stick with my preseason pick of Auburn, 20-16.

Did you know? Urban Meyer can become only the second Florida coach to defeat Tennessee in his first two meetings. The other? Nope, not the former Head Ball Coach. Steve Spurrier was spanked in his first visit to Rocky Top, 45-3. The answer is Galen Hall, now the play caller for JoePa at Penn State.

Did you know, Part 2: Not only did Florida beat top rivals Tennessee, Georgia and Florida State last year but the Gators never trailed in those games, making Meyer the first UF head coach to accomplish that.

Great memories

Of the 10 regular-season SEC games matching top 10 teams, we've had the privilege of watching seven from ringside, reveling in the drama. The Tennessee-Florida wars of 2000-02; Auburn's pounding of the Vols, with big Tiger-lover Sir Charles standing next to us on the sidelines at Neyland Stadium; and LSU's heart-stopping OT triumph at Tuscaloosa last year … those are memories that will last.

This is why I believe an explanation is needed for why GameDay won't be in Auburn for LSU's visit this Saturday.

For 13 seasons, the locations of the GameDay road shows have been editorial decisions based on the college football landscape. The basic principle was to (almost) always come from the site of the "biggest game," or occasionally, "the best story." Several times, we have visited the edge of the radar screen to pay tribute to the Mid American Conference's rise (at Bowling Green), the service academies (Air Force and West Point) or the tradition of the Bayou Classic.

Now, the philosophy has been rethought by upper management. For the first time, the competitive landscape of football programming is a frequent consideration. Serving the needs of ABC's new prime-time package of games is often a priority. NAW...really?? The decision on GameDay's site is less a clear-cut "best game" philosophy now and is more complicated, made on a landscape where terms like "synergy" and "branding" live. better terms like money and money!!

Please know this: Lee, Kirk and I have no say in decisions on GameDay's location. But as host of the show for 17 years, I am mainly concerned with the show's specific legacy, not the global college football landscape.

The first two weeks of the season were no-brainers. It made sense to follow Notre Dame to Georgia Tech and sit ringside for the first 1-vs.-2 regular-season game in 10 years last week in Austin. This week, the decision was made to come from the Los Angeles Coliseum, where ABC will be set up.

Executive vice president Norby Williamson asked me to relay his reasoning: Nebraska and USC, both visible programs with storied pasts, are colliding for the first time in 35 years, and this might be one of the few chances to showcase a Pac-10 location, keeping the show regionally balanced.

The SEC should feature a lot more big ones in the coming months.

This is important: Williamson said fans still can expect to see GameDay return to the SEC or to Notre Dame for games televised on CBS and NBC. That's a relief to me. LSU's visits to Florida and Tennessee loom large, as does Auburn's trip to the Swamp. Georgia versus the winner of the Vols-Gators clash will be huge.

Any of those games could carry national title weight.

So, who knows? I am hopeful. But just in case we don't make it there quite as often, I would truly miss broadcasting from Gainesville, Knoxville, Athens, Tuscaloosa, Auburn, Baton Rouge and Columbia. SEC campuses have consistently provided the most passionate, colorful and, uh … "spirit"-ed backdrops for the show.

Hands down. No other conference is close.

Even if we don't visit you as much, please don't stop visiting us Saturday mornings. We will continue to give teams from America's strongest football conference, and the Fighting Irish, their due any way we can.

No wonder my post got zapped, it was within this thread. Didn't see DKW had this within here. On track now!!

[AUChizad 0]

http://www.aunation.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=28732

[Raven_tiger 5]

Chris Fowler was on ESPN radio this afternoon. Fowler said that the most important game this weekend was AU-LSU. Too bad that CBS is carrying the game, else Gameday would have been on The Plains.

[zeebish 0]

Scroll down and listen to Herbstreit talk about Gameday's decision to skip AU/LSU. He seemed to be as shocked as anybody.

Herbstreit audio on Finebaum (11 min)