The Quad: Games to Watch on Saturday

Pete Thamel is the national college sports reporter for The Times, where his primary responsibilities are college football and basketball. He is in his sixth season with The Times, witnessing everything from the Bush Push at Notre Dame to Ian Johnson's sideline engagement at the Fiesta Bowl to Mario Chalmers's long 3-pointer to give Kansas the national championship. Before joining The Times, Thamel covered college sports for ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, The Syracuse Post-Standard and The Daily Orange. A native of Ware, Mass., Thamel graduated from Syracuse University in 1999.

Connor Ennis has been a staff editor in the sports department of The New York Times since November 2006. Before coming to the Times, he worked for The Associated Press, where he was a supervising editor on the national sports desk in New York. While with the AP, he covered the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and the 2006 World Cup in Germany. A native of Dallas, Pa., he graduated from Syracuse University in 2000.

Ray Glier is a freelance reporter who, in addition to The New York Times, contributes to USA Today, AOL FanHouse, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Miami Herald and Unboundary, a strategy/communications firm based in Atlanta. Glier is a graduate of West Virginia University.

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The Quad: Interactive Feature: Heisman Watch: Week 7

Pete Thamel is the national college sports reporter for The Times, where his primary responsibilities are college football and basketball. He is in his sixth season with The Times, witnessing everything from the Bush Push at Notre Dame to Ian Johnson's sideline engagement at the Fiesta Bowl to Mario Chalmers's long 3-pointer to give Kansas the national championship. Before joining The Times, Thamel covered college sports for ESPN.com, ESPN The Magazine, The Syracuse Post-Standard and The Daily Orange. A native of Ware, Mass., Thamel graduated from Syracuse University in 1999.

Connor Ennis has been a staff editor in the sports department of The New York Times since November 2006. Before coming to the Times, he worked for The Associated Press, where he was a supervising editor on the national sports desk in New York. While with the AP, he covered the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, and the 2006 World Cup in Germany. A native of Dallas, Pa., he graduated from Syracuse University in 2000.

Ray Glier is a freelance reporter who, in addition to The New York Times, contributes to USA Today, AOL FanHouse, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Miami Herald and Unboundary, a strategy/communications firm based in Atlanta. Glier is a graduate of West Virginia University.

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Want to Watch the Rugby World Cup in America? Pay Up or Find a Pub

If you need any further proof that the 2011 Rugby World Cup lacks any pull in the USA, just examine the television coverage.

Universal Sports, the barely-known over-the-air digital channel that accompanies most NBC broadcast signals, published this grid showing what games will be shown where. Clearly, the boys at Universal want people to pay up for this. Only nine matches will be shown on free TV, and four of the six pool stage matches involve the USA team — which makes sense, given that this is the USA, but for all its recent improvements, that squad is expected to suffer at least three savage beatings in its four matches.

If you want to watch the entire competition online, Universal Sports is charging $149 for the full package, which covers all the games not shown on free TV. So you’ll still need to grab a good Mohu antenna for certain matches — or pay extra to watch them online.

If you’ve got a dish from either DirecTV and Dish Network, you can also watch World Cup matches that way — if you’ve got a lot of cash to burn. Each pay-per-view match is $24.99, and that’s for crappy 480p viewing. If you want to watch in 720p, it’s $34.99 per match, and there’s no indication that either DirecTV or Dish is offering a complete package deal for the entire competition. (If they are, they’re doing a lousy job of advertising it.)

Clearly, Universal Sports is looking to milk hardcore rugby union fans and expats for all they’re worth, rather than putting the game in front of people and showing everyone what top-level international rugby is all about. Perhaps if the NFL lockout were still going on, things would be different, but American pro football kicks off Thursday, and most sports fans in these parts will be far more concerned with Green Bay v. New Orleans than with Tonga v. New Zealand.

So your best bet for watching the Rugby World Cup might be finding a pub in your city that carries it. Trinity Hall in Dallas has a schedule of games its showing on its web site. So do the Kangaroo and Kiwi in Seattle and Finn McCool’s in New Orleans. If you know of a pub in your area showing Rugby World Cup matches, post it in the comments here. Perhaps we can build a pretty decent list of pubs here by the time this competition kicks off on Friday.

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Winless Watch, Week 13

Welcome to the final edition of Winless Watch, where just one team is left looking for that first win of the season.

Akron (0-11). Streak: L 11. The Zips have come oh-so-close to winning the last two weeks, but have fallen just short against Ball State and Miami (Ohio). Now they get a winnable game to close out the season -- at home against Buffalo (2-9) on Friday. The Bulls are having their own set of struggles -- they have lost six straight. Their only win was over an FBS team -- 28-26 to Bowling Green, which missed a 40-yard field goal for the win as time expired.

The Bulls have had a tough time under first-year coach Jeff Quinn as well. Jerry Davis started the season at quarterback but wasn’t what Quinn was looking for to run the spread. Freshman Alex Zordich replaced him, but he is out with a rib injury, so Davis is back in. He has 14 touchdowns and 14 interceptions this season. The Bulls haven’t been helped by their lackluster run game, either. They have an NCAA-worst three rushing touchdowns this season.

These are two of the worst offenses in the MAC and the country. They rank in the bottom in the league in scoring, and total offense. But the Zips have shown some signs of life. They have lost their last two games by a combined 12 points, including the overtime loss to the Cardinals. Last week against Miami, they fumbled late in the game as they were driving for the winning score.

Winning teams somehow find a way to win. That is what Rob Ianello is waiting to see out of his players.

“We have to make those plays we haven’t made,” Ianello said. “We’ve lost two games in overtime and one game on the last possession and all those games you can look at a few key plays that we haven’t made and the opponent has.

“Last week, we turned it over twice. They didn’t turn it over at all. As I told our team, we’ll win when we get good enough to win. How do you get good enough? You make those plays you have to make in a close game. When you get the taste of victory then you understand what it takes, next time you get in a situation you make them again.”

My pick: Akron 21, Buffalo 17.

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Four players to watch for below the radar

I helped call the Redskins-Titans game last week, and of course all of the discussion since then has focused on the aftermath of the fallout between QB Vince Young and coach Jeff Fisher and whether they can coexist in Tennessee. That story will work itself out over the coming weeks and months.

What I did see in that game were a number of players who are below the radar, but made big contributions to their teams:

Keiland Williams, RB, Redskins: He was never a full-time starter at LSU, but has played very well as a rookie and at times as been the Redskins’ lead back. With Chad Simpson going down in pregame warmups, Ryan Torain still out and Clinton Portis unable to finish the game, Williams had to carry the load against the Titans. I’m very impressed by what I see out of a back who can run, catch and also does a nice job in blitz pickup. He’s turning into an all-around back in a short amount of time.

Brandon Banks, WR, Redskins: Don’t be surprised at all if this guy — who is all of 5-foot-7 and 165 pounds — starts to get into the rotation at wide receiver. He’s absolutely fearless. Check out his tapes from Kansas St., he can absolutely fly and will eventually make a difference for the Redskins.

Marc Mariani, WR, Titans: It was quietly whispered in my ear from someone within the organization to not be surprised if Mariani develops into a slot receiver for the Titans. He would be very dependable in that role. The pride of Havre, Montana (home of the Havre High Blue Ponies), this guy has both a punt return and a kickoff return for touchdowns this season as a seventh-round draft pick. He was a walk-on at the University of Montana before eventually becoming an All-America.

Alterraun Verner, CB, Titans: One of my favorite young defensive backs. He got into the lineup because of the injury to Jason McCourty earlier in the season. I liked him during his entire career at UCLA. We talk about the term “ball hawk” quite a bit, and Verner is a flat-out ball hawk. He’s around the football all the time, is fearless in run support and tackles better than he’s given credit for.

These guys might not get the headlines, but it doesn’t mean they don’t make valuable contributions to help their teams win. Enjoy these guys on Sundays and don’t sleep on them.

Follow me on Twitter @CFD22 and follow The NFL Network @nflnetwork.

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Packers: Legendary QB Favre Watch

Senior writer jclombardi highlights Favre watch headlines.

Beaten and battered, Favre faces harsh reality: No matter how you feel about Brett Favre, it was hard not to feel just a pinch of sympathy for him Sunday. Once a three-time NFL most valuable player and just last year still among the best quarterbacks in the game, Favre is finishing out his career with a team in a death spiral and looking every bit like a 41-year-old man in a young man’s game. As purple-clad fans fled the Metrodome and Packers fans stayed behind to savor the closing minutes of a 31-3 beat-down of Favre and the Vikings, the chants of “Go, Pack, go!” must have rung hollow in Favre’s ear flaps. Favre is a Hall of Famer reduced to irrelevance. As Favre walked off the field, a handful of Packers made their way through a phalanx of photographers to pat the quarterback on the helmet or shoulder pads and wish him well. ”One thing we always say is that we miss one another,” Driver said. “I asked him if he would be OK and he said, ‘Yeah,’ and then he said, ‘I love you.’ I said, ‘I love you, too.’ And that was it.” Safety Nick Collins told Favre to “keep his head up and keep playing.” ”He said, ‘Y’all keep going. You’re playing good. You can do it,’?” Collins said. “We’ve been watching him the whole season, watching everything he’s going through,” Jenkins said. “You feel bad for him as a former teammate. He’s a pretty cool guy. You don’t wish bad luck on anybody. It’s just one of those things. He’s having a tough year and hopefully he’ll be able to get past it, whatever direction he goes in after this season.”

Favre to ‘re-evaluate things’ following rout: In 1992, the Green Bay Packers breathed life into Brett Favre’s NFL career. Sunday, they may have put that marvelous career to rest for good. The Packers completed a season sweep of their former quarterback with a remarkably easy 31-3 victory over his Minnesota Vikings Sunday at the Metrodome. That evened it up at two wins per team since Favre joined the Vikings in 2009 and it will probably remain tied because Favre doesn’t look or sound like someone who has a 21st NFL season in his 41-year-old body. When the unexpected rout was over Sunday, two things were clear: The Vikings as we know them are done and Favre might be, too. Afterward, he wouldn’t even commit to playing another game, saying twice that he would go home and re-evaluate. He cracked a joke while declining to say exactly what he would re-evaluate.

The last goodbye?: If this is it, and Brett Favre left the door slightly ajar to that possibility with his promise to “re-evaluate” his situation, then it was understandable that some folks at Mall of America Field at the Metrodome Sunday afternoon took pity upon the 41-year-old Minnesota Vikings quarterback. None of that sympathy, however, was coming from the Green Bay Packers’ locker room in the wake of their 31-3 whupping of their former teammate and his team, effectively ending the Vikings’ season with six weeks remaining. “None. Not at all,” said Packers veteran cornerback Charles Woodson, who played the 2006 and ’07 seasons with Favre. “This is football, and we’re all after one goal – to win games and ultimately win a championship. What somebody else, another team is going through, means nothing to us. We’re full steam ahead.” Wide receiver Donald Driver, Favre’s teammate and friend from 1999 through 2007, agreed. “Nah, not at all,” Driver said. “I love him, love him to death, but when you play this game, there’s no friends until it’s all over. I think he would have agreed if he would have beaten us. I’m happy that we beat him. Now I can say that I’ve won with him, lost with him and I’ve beat him. I can put that on top of my shelf.” Asked point-blank if he’s fully committed to finishing the season, Favre initially tried to deflect the question with a joke. “As I stand here today, I never expected us to be in this situation,” Favre replied. “I came back for a Super Bowl. I also knew there (was) a chance that wouldn’t happen. Probably a better chance that it (didn’t) – a way better chance that you don’t play near as good as you did last year. It doesn’t mean you can’t have success, but this is a little bit surprising. Again, I’m just going to go home and, I don’t want to say think about this game, just re-evaluate tomorrow.”

Will Favre play again this year?: Considering the player, the scene was surreal. Brett Favre, with his legendary consecutive starts streak now five away from the landmark 300, stood on the Minnesota Vikings’ sideline with the clock winding down on Sunday. His team was getting trounced 31-3 by his former employers, and most of the fans had headed for the exits long ago. There Favre stood, arm-in-arm with teammates Ryan Longwell and Steve Hutchinson. Then one trainer. And then another. Was Favre, in the middle of a disastrous season, saying good-bye? Whether Favre’s season – and career – will end after this game seems unlikely for someone who’s given so much of himself in his career and would forever tarnish his legacy by throwing in the towel with six games to go. But he made no effort to emphatically say he’ll stick with a team that is sinking so quickly that coach Brad Childress’ dismissal after the season seems like a foregone conclusion. Asked if he wanted to finish the season, Favre said, “I don’t want to sit here and tell you I’d love to sit here and tell you I’d love to finish the season and then go out and lose 31-3.” Pressed on the meaning of his going home to “re-evaluate” statement, Favre said: “I have no idea. If I had known it was going to lead to that question, I would have re-evaluated that answer.”

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What to Watch, Week 12

None of the top 3 teams in the country are in action this weekend, but there are plenty of games with conference and championship implications on the line. So here are your top 10 storylines to watch headed into Week 12. Special thanks to ESPN Stats & Information for some of the nuggets sprinkled throughout:

1. Look ahead Saturday. I love the people on my live chats that chip in with some of these catchy weekend slogans. With four games featuring two ranked teams, it is easy to look past this week and salivate at the thought of what next week has to offer: Arizona vs. Oregon, Auburn vs. Alabama, LSU vs. Arkansas, Oklahoma vs. Oklahoma State and Boise State vs. Nevada. Though there is no blockbuster game this weekend, some have the potential to have an impact.

2. Big Ten race. No. 7 Wisconsin is at Michigan, No. 9 Ohio State is at No. 20 Iowa and No. 12 Michigan State is at Purdue. The Badgers, Buckeyes and Spartans all have eyes on winning the Big Ten title and a berth in the Rose Bowl. If all three win out, the highest team in the final BCS standings goes to Pasadena. If Iowa beats Ohio State, and Wisconsin and Michigan State win out, then the Spartans go. Wisconsin needs to win out, stay ahead in the BCS standings or have Michigan State lose. Ohio State needs to win out and have Wisconsin lose, or move ahead of the Badgers in the BCS standings. There are plenty of other scenarios out there.

[+] Enlarge Thomas Campbell/US PresswireCan Texas A&M win its fifth in a row with Ryan Tannehill under center?3. Does Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill give the Aggies a chance to beat Nebraska? After replacing Jerrod Johnson in the second quarter against Kansas, Tannehill is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes for 1,109 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions in just under four games. Cyrus Gray has four straight 100-yard games rushing as well. But it could be slow going against a Nebraska secondary featuring two of the best cornerbacks – Prince Amukamara and Alfonzo Dennard. Nebraska clinches the Big 12 North with a win or a Missouri loss to Iowa State.

4. Football in baseball stadiums. Army and Notre Dame renew their rivalry at Yankee Stadium, while Illinois and Northwestern play at Wrigley Field on Saturday. The Black Knights and Fighting Irish played each other at the old Yankee Stadium many times, with the last meeting there in 1969. This will be the first football game at the new stadium. Meanwhile, events took a bizarre turn in the game at Wrigley when the Big Ten announced Friday morning that each offense will head toward the West end zone for player safety reasons. The layout of the field drew concerns this week because there was little space between the back of the East end zone and the outfield wall.

5. An encore for the California defense? The Bears surprised the college football world when they held the high-octane Oregon offense to just 15 points last week. Can another performance like that be expected against No. 6 Stanford? The Bears have been a vastly different team at home, and the Cardinal haven’t won at California since 2000. With Brock Mansion at quarterback, that defense is going to have to slow Andrew Luck down to have a shot at pulling the upset.

6. Does No. 21 Mississippi State have what it takes to beat No. 13 Arkansas? The Bulldogs face a ranked opponent for the second straight week after losing to Alabama. They have the advantage of playing at home. Arkansas has won 10 of the last 11 meetings between the two, but that lone Mississippi State win came in Starkville, 31-28 in 2008. Mississippi State is going to have to get pressure on Ryan Mallett to have a shot.

7. ACC race. It is pretty simple in the Coastal. If No. 16 Virginia Tech beats No. 24 Miami on Saturday, then the Hokies win the division. They only need one win in their final two games to clinch. As for the Atlantic, things are more complicated with Florida State, Maryland and NC State all in the hunt. All three cannot win out because they all play each other in the next two weeks: Florida State is at Maryland on Saturday; NC State is at Maryland next week.

8. Big East race. Pittsburgh can still win the Big East if the Panthers win out. But they are at USF this weekend, and the Bulls are surging, having won three straight. The Bulls have had the reputation of starting fast and then falling apart late in the season. But coach Skip Holtz has brought a toughness to this team, and he knows how to win championships, too. Syracuse is playing Connecticut on Saturday. Story to watch in that game: Connecticut RB Jordan Todman against the Syracuse defense.

9. Weather in Boise. The No. 4 Broncos have the national spotlight to themselves tonight when they host Fresno State. As the only undefeated team playing, they can make a case for why they are the top non-AQ team in the country. But rain is expected in Boise, and it could turn into snow as the game progresses. That means there is the potential for a relatively low-scoring game. Would that impact their standing?

10. Record watch. Three rushing quarterbacks have a chance to write their names in the NCAA record books. Michigan's Denard Robinson needs 78 yards to set the NCAA single-season record for most rush yards by a quarterback. Air Force’s Beau Morgan ran for 1,494 yards in 1996. Nevada's Colin Kaepernick needs 51 rushing yards to become the first player in NCAA history with three seasons of 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards. Nebraska's Taylor Martinez needs 43 rushing yards to become the third quarterback in NCAA history with 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards passing as a freshman.

Tags:

ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Big East, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Army Black Knights, South Florida Bulls, Pittsburgh Panthers, Arkansas Razorbacks, Illinois Fighting Illini, Connecticut Huskies, Syracuse Orange, Iowa Hawkeyes, Michigan State Spartans, Michigan Wolverines, Northwestern Wildcats, Ohio State Buckeyes, Wisconsin Badgers, Iowa State Cyclones, Missouri Tigers, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Texas A&M Aggies, Florida State Seminoles, Maryland Terrapins, Miami Hurricanes, North Carolina State Wolfpack, Virginia Tech Hokies, Mississippi State Bulldogs, Atlantic Division, California Bears, Stanford Cardinal, Nevada Wolf Pack, Skip Holtz, Brock Mansion, Boise State Broncos, Ryan Tannehill, Taylor Martinez, Ryan Mallett, Colin Kaepernick, Denard Robinson, Jordan Todman, Fresno State Bulldogs, Andrew Luck, Prince Amukamara, Alfonzo Dennard

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