College Game Day Discussion Thread

[Cyclone792]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

What happened to Pike? Did he get injured or something? I missed the first 2 1/2 quarters but this has been one heck of a fourth quarter.

I think Pike was just pulled for Grutza due to ineffectiveness, and then Grutza goes in and throws a 69 yard touchdown pass to Gilyard.

UC wins 29-24 in a game that gave me about five ulcers, but a win is a win. They better use this as a learning lesson though, because if they play like this against Virginia Tech then chances are things won't look good.

And Goodman ... man I hope he's ok for the bowl game. That's a huge loss.

[CTA513]

Connor Barwin is having an amazing season for someone playing DE for the first time.

He's up to about 12-13 sacks after tonights game.
Good size, power, speed and a nice burst... He'll be playing in the NFL at either DE in a 4-3 defense or OLB in a 3-4 defense.

[paintmered]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

What happened to Pike? Did he get injured or something? I missed the first 2 1/2 quarters but this has been one heck of a fourth quarter.

From the Koch-man himself...

Originally Posted by Bill Koch

HONOLULU - University of Cincinnati quarterback Tony Pike wasn't himself.
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He had been hit hard a few times in the first half and was given some medication that made him sick at halftime.

He tried to keep playing and made it until nearly midway through the fourth quarter when UC coach Brian Kelly had seen enough. There was no reason to keep going with a struggling Pike when he had a healthy and resilient Dustin Grutza on the sideline itching to play.

"It's just one of those things," Kelly said. "He really didn't have all his faculties. He was not clear in his communication with me. He was making uncharacteristic mistakes. He was trying to cover it up and trying to stay in there. Finally, we said, listen, he can't go anymore. He almost passed out on the sideline."

Grutza completed only three of seven passes, but one of those was a 69-yard touchdown pass to Mardy Gilyard that provided the Bearcats with the game-winning points in their 29-24 win over Hawaii on Saturday.

"Even though Tony wasn't feeling well we still had the good feeling inside that Grutza was going to come through," said UC running back John Goebel. "Grutza always exudes confidence."

It was the second time this season that Grutza, who began the season as UC's starting quarterback before he broke his leg against Oklahoma, entered the game in relief of Pike in the fourth quarter and engineered a key touchdown drive.

"It's a great feeling," Grutza said. "It's my last season. I have to have surgery at the end of the season. To be able to come back here and play and get the victory and get our 11th victory, it's huge for us." GOODMAN HURT: Wide receiver Dominick Goodman was forced to leave the game after he suffered a separated left shoulder on UC's first offensive play of the game. Goodman saw a string of 32 games with at least one reception come to an end.

Kelly said Goodman is expected to recover in time to play in the bowl game.

NICE TOUCH: Delbert Ferguson, a senior who arrived at UC as a running back, was switched to linebacker and then fullback, scored the first touchdown of his career late in the first half on a 1-yard pass from Pike.

"All the coaches wanted to run a different play," Kelly said. "But I knew we had that play. We wanted to get him a touch. It was nice to seem him get a touchdown. He was pretty emotional on the sideline."

TIME OFF: The Bearcats headed back to the mainland immediately after the game. They'll gather tonight for the BCS pairings show and then take a week off before returning on Dec. 15 to begin preparations for the bowl game.

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/2...812070447/1064

[OnBaseMachine]

Thanks guys.

I wouldn't put *too* much stock into how UC played last night. Hawaii is one of a few teams that I follow somewhat closely... I've watched them play a lot on TV the last few years and they are very tough to beat at home, so it didn't surprise me to see UC struggle last night. I'm just glad they pulled it out.

[NorrisHopper30]

Pike will not have a nice flight home, hopefully he gets better in time for tonight's BCS selection thing at 5/3.

[paintmered]

Originally Posted by NorrisHopper30

Pike will not have a nice flight home, hopefully he gets better in time for tonight's BCS selection thing at 5/3.

The team is going to be a group of zombies for the BCS selection show. Nothing like a 10-hour red-eye flight the morning before a national television appearance.

[NorrisHopper30]

Originally Posted by paintmered

The team is going to be a group of zombies for the BCS selection show. Nothing like a 10-hour red-eye flight the morning before a national television appearance.

I might bring my camera and try to pick off a few of them sleeping.

We'll see .

[HeatherC1212]

Wow, what a game! I was watching the game last night and eventually I had to go to bed just to get away from it. There were some good things that the Cats did in the first half, but overall it was such a poor game that I couldn't take it anymore. I fully expected to see a loss on their record this morning and was totally shocked they pulled off the win. That's awesome for them and I'm so excited for the whole team. I hope they were able to get some sleep on the plane and it should be fun to see how awake they are later tonight during the BCS show, LOL

I'm glad to hear Dominick is going to be all right. I about had a heart attack when I found out he got injured last night. They really need him for the bowl game!