From: mm42@prism.gatech.EDU (Mark Mitchell)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.football.college
Subject: Re: Faulk, 299 yds rushing vs. BYU
Date: 14 Sep 92 22:46:32 GMT
Organization: Ramblin' Wrecks from Georgia Tech

MXD118@psuvm.psu.edu (Spiro the Spiny Goldfish) wrote:
}
}                                     - in a CLOSE game, Paterno will of
}course rush his best back quite a bit. But looking back when we had Blair
}and Curt, in the few blow-outs we had, they got the hook when the game was
}reasonably out of reach.

For starters, in Penn State's blowout win over BYU last season, RB Gerry 
Collins carried the ball 27 times, and in Penn State's 1989 blowout win over
BYU Blair Thomas carried the ball 35 times - exactly the same number that
Marshall Faulk had last Thursday.

Your point - apparently - in bringing up all this crap about whether or not
Paterno keeps the starters in the game is that the so-called "typical"
performance of Marshall Faulk against BYU (35 carries, 299 yards, 3 TD's)
will not be equaled by any PennHeads on the field because the game
will not be close enough, thereby not allowing them the requisite number
of carries.  However, history has shown quite the opposite - that even 
given a very large number of carries against BYU, the Pepsi State 
RB's can't come *anywhere remotely close* to this allegedly "typical"
performance. 

Witness:

1992:  San Diego State at BYU      
        Marshall Faulk      35-299  = 8.5 yards/carry
                             3 TD's = 1 TD / 12 carries
1991:  BYU at Penn State
        Gerry Collins       27- 99  = 3.7 yards/carry
                             1 TD   = 1 TD / 27 carries
        entire team         67-292  = 4.4 yards/carry
                             3 TD's = 1 TD / 22 carries
1989:  Penn State vs. BYU (Holiday Bowl)
        Blair Thomas        35-186  = 5.3 yards/carry
                             1 TD   = 1 TD / 35 carries
        entire team         54-249  = 4.6 yards/carry
                             3 TD's = 1 TD / 18 carries

Although I've always considered Blair Thomas an excellent ballplayer,
I'm forced to conclude that he is in fact only 62% (186/299) of a 
typical player, in other words well below average.

Of course it's possible that BYU's defense is worse this year than
it was in 1989 and 1991, but that would still leave us with
your ridiculous claim that Faulk's performance was a "typical" 
one against a WAC team.  Since Pepsi State has failed so pathetically 
in 2 attempts at achieving a "typical" day, would you care to name one 
team or back which has done so in the past 10 or 20 years?  If you can't 
produce a single one, perhaps you'd care to classify your "typical 
performance" remark as the utter bullshit which it is.

}Again, mark my words - Pep$i $tate'$ total rushing yardage against BYU
}will be greater than that of SDSU.

Time will tell - so far we have data points from 1989 and 1991
which say that Pepsi State has failed to even exceed the yardage
of Mr. Faulk *all by himself* in 2 tries against BYU with a much
larger number of carries.  

And even if Penn State should happen to exceed SDSU's total rushing yardage
by some small amount, I seriously doubt they can come close to Faulk's
"typical" 8.5 yards/carry average.

lein@base.UUCP (John Leinaweaver,,RRC-4A720,699-2322) wrote:
}
}even with Blair or Curt, they rarely carried more than 25 a game, only when
}the game was close, Faulk would rarely gain more than 150 a game if he played
}for a PSU, ND, Michigan... there's more talent to share the ball with.

Well Blair Thomas carried the ball *more than 25 times* in 7 of Pepsi
State's 12 games in '89.  Is that "rarely"?  He also carried the ball
more than 30 times in 4 of those 12 games.  And he carried the ball
exactly 35 times against BYU in '89, gaining 113 fewer yards and scoring
2 fewer TD's than Faulk did last week.  (Again, it's possible BYU's
rushing defense is worse than normal this year.)

As for the other crap about Faulk not gaining more than 150 a game -
he had 154 against Miami, FL last season, and 220 against Southern
Cal this season.

}IMHO Faulk is a great back but I would like to see him against a top
}10 defense (not a WAC defense that starts to arm tackle mid-way through
}the third Quarter).

You missed a chance last year against Miami, but SDSU plays them again
this season.  I, on the other hand, would be interested to see him
play behind a top 10 offensive line like Penn State's.  Then he could
really start to shine.

-- 
Mark Mitchell           Georgia Tech            mm42@prism.gatech.edu
 "What will happen in the evening in the forest with the weasel with
  the teeth which bite so sharp when you're not looking in the evening?"
Newsgroups: rec.sport.football.college