Pat Dooley’s Back Nine (September 11th)

The Back Nine comes at you after a Saturday of true football decadence although I did go to sleep before Auburn-Cal was over.

 10. Yes, I had spent 14 hours watching football. Oh, I did move occasionally from the recliner. There were wings involved. That first big weekend of the season, you get mesmerized, especially when you are trying to figure out which games were moved to different channels because of weather delays and which ones went away altogether. By the way, last Monday was Labor Day, so I didn’t do the Back Nine or The Picks but wanted you to know that everywhere else I picked Texas to beat Alabama. I want that on the record. I was still surprised at how much better Texas looked. I stayed up for the late games and then on top of that I watched 11 hours of football Sunday. I need to get a hobby.

11. Certainly, Florida did what it needed to do Saturday night, run the ball against a team you should be able to run against and control the ball by driving it more than 60 yards for seven consecutive touchdowns. The bottom line is that we aren’t sure what this team is. The first two games didn’t tell us as much as we thought they might. The first was a mistake-filled disappointment. The second was against a team collecting a paycheck. Get back to me on Sunday morning.

12. Steve Spurrier once announced in a presser that “statistics are for losers and assistant coaches.” But I like them. So, here’s one for you – Ricky Pearsall is on pace to break Carlos Alvarez’s 54-year old school record. I consider the Cuban Comet’s 88 receptions to still be the mark because when Chad Jackson tied it in 2005 he was allowed the bowl game stats (he had 7 catches in the Outback). Alvarez was not and he had four with a score in the Gator Bowl. Anyway, Pearsall now has 14 on pace to catch 91 if Florida makes a bowl game. And the way this offense is set up for short passes and bubble screens, he might just get it.

13. When Deion Sanders was at Jackson State, it was a football story. Now that he is winning games at Colorado, it has become a news story. Let me just leave this here – Mel Tucker is in big trouble at Michigan State. Nick Saban could walk away from another disappointing season (for him). Jimbo Fisher could be canned. There could be a race among programs way more established and richer than Colorado so we could see the race for Deion. I know I’d rather live in Boulder than Lansing.

14. It hasn’t been a good start for the SEC (3-6 vs. Power 5 opponents) and the talking heads are enjoying it. But remember that it is still about the team that wins the whole thing. And I still like the SEC’s chances. Another thing: the big stories in college football are all getting there different ways. Texas is the king of NIL. Jackson State and FSU are portal phenoms and Georgia just recruits the heck out of it.

15. I did take the five games I would have picked against the spread and if you go by my picks for the Gainesville Quarterback Club I went 5-0. Yes, Dr. Football makes his own rules so I am 10-3 on The Picks so far (30-10 at the QB Club). On to next week before the pitchforks and torches arrive:

• Florida is giving 7 points to Tennessee despite a subpar performance by the Vols last Saturday and despite the fact the game is in Gainesville. I’ll take Florida and the points, although you could have gotten 9.5 points this summer.
• LSU is giving 10 points against Miss. State and did you see Zack Arnett drop an F-Bomb during his postgame interview on the field? This is a lot of points but I will take the Tigers.
• South Carolina is getting 27 points at Georgia. Wow, it would be nice to see the Spencer Rattler of the last three games of last season show up. I’ll take the 27 and probably regret it.
• You may not think Kansas State-Missouri is a big deal, but it is up in Columbia. The Wildcats are 5.5-point faves and I will give the points.

16. Florida’s volleyball team won its own tournament to stay unbeaten with FSU next Tuesday night and then No. 1 Wisconsin on Sunday. That should be a packed O-Dome. Soccer finally lost a match 1-0 to FSU and is now 4-1-2. It’s difficult to keep up with all that is going on.

17. No you didn’t, Dallas. Man, is there going to be a lot of talk about the Cowboys winning 40-0 to start the season. At least until Aaron Rodgers takes his first snap Monday night.

18. All summer, it was golf and music. Football season takes golf kind of out of the equation, but we still have playlists:

• “Days Move Slow” by Bully. A real rocker.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REuUXI8YjfE

• For an old one, let’s go with “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_f85Zc6u-U

• And I know I am late to the party with this, but my favorite Jimmy Buffett song is “Come Monday” and I couldn’t get it out of my head last week. But I think Jimmy would like us all to sing a happy song so “Down At The Lah De Dah” by James Buffett.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQIIFak-Ong

 Be safe.