Written by Jesse Lamovsky

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In terms of exciting, competitive football, the first round of the inaugural NCAA Football Tournament more or less lived up to the expectations of its backers. Four of the eight games were decided by a touchdown or less; three came down to the final moments of the fourth quarter or overtime. With the lowest seeds out of the way and the cream of the field rising toward the top, the quarterfinals should be even more exciting than the opening round. The recaps:

#1 LSU (14-0) 39, #16 Louisiana Tech (8-5) 7

With the Bulldogs down 10-7 and threatening to make a game of it in the third quarter, Louisiana State’s defense triggered a series of big plays that buried the underdogs from Ruston.

The ringleader, naturally, was Tyrann Mathieu. The sophomore playmaker opened the barrage with a 78-yard punt return for a touchdown, making it 17-7. Two minutes later Mathieu stripped Tech star Quinton Patton, setting up a field goal. LSU’s swarming defensive line then obliterated the Bulldog offense: three plays, -19 yards culminating in a safety and a 22-7 bulge. On the ensuing free kick, Mathieu weaved his way down to the Tech 18-yard line before being shoved out of bounds. LSU’s offense provided the coup de grace, as Jordan Jefferson’s scramble made it nineteen points in five minutes and a Tiger rout.

Prior to that explosion the Bulldogs had gamely hung in despite LSU’s overwhelming talent and depth advantages and the rabid Saturday night crowd in Tiger Stadium. Unable to move consistently against the Tiger defense, the visitors took advantage of two first-half turnovers from a team that had committed a miniscule eight in the previous thirteen games. Tech’s only score, a Colby Cameron-to-David Gru aerial late in the first half, was set up by a Michael Ford fumble at the LSU 19.

The Tigers were late getting started on offense as is their habit, but they still managed to pound Louisiana Tech’s defense for 243 rushing yards while dominating the ball and the clock. They settled for three Drew Alleman field goals, however, and neither Jordan Jefferson nor Jarrett Lee ever got going in the passing game. This game was won by the Louisiana State defense, which held the WAC Champions to a meager 153 total yards, including -18 on the ground, while forcing three turnovers. The offensive issues will have to be straightened out, but LSU’s defense is ready to inaugurate a long run in this Tournament.

#8 Wisconsin (12-2) 31, #9 Virginia Tech (10-3) 30

The Badgers only stopped Logan Thomas once, but once was all they needed to survive the upset bid by the visiting Hokies. Chris Borland cut down Thomas at the one-yard line on a two-point conversion attempt with 31 seconds left, climaxing a thrilling afternoon in Camp Randall Stadium.

Frank Beamer’s decision to eschew overtime was based on confidence and doubt. He was confident in Thomas’s ability to reach the end zone, something he’d already done twice, the latest the 18-yard sprint that made it 31-30 with a half-minute left. The big sophomore from Lynchburg had 79 rushing yards on the day to go with 227 passing yards and two more scores. Wisconsin, susceptible to mobile quarterbacks all season, didn’t have an answer for him.

As for doubt, that was Beamer’s sentiment in regards to his defense. Wisconsin’s offense did whatever it wanted all afternoon, rolling up 523 total yards, including 285 on the ground against a Tech team that came in a respectable 17th nationally versus the run. Russell Wilson went 0-2 against the Hokies when he was at N.C. State, but here he punctured their defense for 238 yards and the 23-yard strike to Nick Toon that gave his new team a 31-24 lead with 2:32 left. Thomas’s heroics had saved Va Tech’s bacon temporarily, but their chances in overtime on the road were not stellar.

So Beamer went the Tom Osborne route and lost with honor. Wisconsin, meanwhile, will head to Baton Rouge for a Saturday night quarterfinal meeting with top-seeded and top-ranked LSU. It’ll be a battle between the Big Ten and the SEC under the lights at Tiger Stadium, and a golden opportunity for the rankled B1G to stick it to their foils from down South- or be embarrassed some more, as the case might be.

#13 West Virginia (10-3) 41, #4 Stanford (11-2) 34

The Tournament’s biggest stunner happened courtesy of the Big East Champion Mountaineers, who went out to Palo Alto and beat the heavily favored Cardinal in an edge-of-the-seat thriller. Geno Smith’s 39-yard scoring strike to Stedman Bailey gave WVU the lead for good with 2:37 to play, and the Mountaineer defense preserved the victory by stopping Stanford on fourth down in the final minute, sending Dana Holgorsen’s team on to the quarterfinals.

The game was billed as a battle between Smith and Andrew Luck and it more or less lived up to the billing. Smith bombed Stanford’s defense for 364 yards and three touchdowns. Luck was also outstanding with 327 yards and three scores, although he did throw a couple of costly interceptions. The costliest came in the end zone with the Cardinal leading 27-17 and looking to take complete command in the third quarter. From there West Virginia outscored its hosts 24-7 to pull out the upset.

For the Big East, which has suffered through a season of turmoil, the win is a measure of vindication. No one expected the beleaguered conference’s banner to fly into the quarterfinals yet it will be doing just that in Eugene, Oregon against the Pac-12 Champion Ducks, who moved on in authoritative fashion last Saturday.

#5 Oregon (12-2) 42, #13 Southern Mississippi (11-3) 20

Southern Miss bamboozled Houston’s record-breaking passing attack to reach the Tournament, but couldn’t find the same magic against Oregon’s prolific rushing attack. The Ducks shut off the Golden Eagle turnover spigot and ran wild in Autzen Stadium on the way to a decisive victory.

Leading the way was Oregon’s tandem of quicksilver running backs. Both LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner breached 100 yards on the day, and their big-play penchant showed itself early as the Ducks raced out to an insurmountable first-half lead. Barner opened the scoring with a 59-yard run, while James added two more scores and made it 28-0 in the second quarter when he turned Southern Miss’s favorite weapon- the non-offensive touchdown- against them, dashing 78 yards with a punt return. From there it was a matter of running out the clock.

More good news came from California, where West Virginia knocked off Stanford. Instead of taking to the road against the Cardinal, Oregon will stay at home and host the Mountaineers in the quarterfinals. Not that the Ducks would have lacked confidence against their conference rival, whom they routed on the Farm in November. They’re just pleased to play another football game in Autzen Stadium, their house of decibels.

#3 Oklahoma State (12-1) 51, #14 Arkansas State (10-3) 27

The Sun Belt Champions had no answers for Oklahoma State’s passel of offensive and defensive weapons, and as a result the Cowboys are moving on to the quarterfinals. Brandon Weeden passed for 442 yards and five touchdowns, three to Justin Blackmon, while the Cowboy defense added four turnovers to their national-best total.

The explosion that put the game away came in the second quarter. After playing the Artists Formerly Known as the Indians to a 7-7 tie after fifteen minutes, Oklahoma State ran up 27 points in the second period, holding the ball for more than twelve minutes. By halftime it was 34-7 and the fans at T. Boone Pickens Stadium could commence looking forward to another home date in the quarterfinals.

For Arkansas State it was a frustrating day, although the Red Wolves did flash quality in defeat. Wide receiver Dwayne Frampton was the star of the night for the losers, gathering in 12 passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns. The defeat was decisive but not a total humiliation for the team or for their conference, the little Sun Belt. But too many mistakes and way too much of the Cowboy offense doomed them from being truly competitive.

#6 Boise State (12-1) 34, #11 Texas Christian (10-3) 28

The whimsy of Tournament seeding forced the Frogs to make a return trip to Bronco Stadium, and beating Boise twice on the Smurf Turf was simply too much to ask of Gary Patterson’s team. Kellen Moore completed 29-of-35 for 333 yards and a pair of touchdowns and the kicking game came through with a 2-of-2 effort on field goals for the Broncos, who led most of the way and held off a final Horned Frog sally in the final minutes.

Boise established its edge in the first half. Doug Martin’s 21-yard touchdown run, Moore’s five-yard flip to Gabe Lineham and Dan Goodale’s 38-yard field goal gave the Broncos a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter. TCU’s offense, meanwhile, failed to get a first down until after Boise had taken its three-score advantage. The Frogs eventually heated up, cutting the deficit to three early in the fourth quarter, but Moore put the game out of reach with a 28-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Shoemaker. A Casey Pachall-to-Josh Boyce touchdown connection with 38 seconds left was too little, too late for the disappointed Frogs.

The result sets up an intriguing quarterfinal matchup between the Broncos and Oklahoma State in Stillwater. Both teams were in the Top 5 throughout the season and considered legitimate National Championship contenders. Both boast senior quarterbacks (senior citizen, in the case of 28-year old Brandon Weeden) who have enjoyed fantastic seasons. Boise has been outstanding of late in high-profile games against big-time schools, starting with the ’07 Fiesta Bowl upset of Oklahoma. If a Tournament produces matchups like these- in the second round, no less- sign me up.  

#10 Clemson (11-3) 30, #7 Kansas State (10-3) 27 (OT)

In a battle between high-powered quarterbacks, Clemson’s Tajh Boyd proved better at the end. The sophomore from Hampton, Virginia led a 68-yard touchdown drive to tie the score with less than a minute left and guided the Tigers to what proved to be the winning field goal in overtime. K-State’s Collin Klein, meanwhile, fumbled the game away while struggling for extra yards on his team’s possession in the extra session.

Kansas State led from the opening series of the game and still clung to a 27-20 edge as Clemson took over with 2:45 remaining. Boyd, who finished with 327 passing yards, then went to work. Consecutive completions to tight end Dwayne Allen put the ball on the K-State 47. Two plays later Boyd then went to his main man, hitting Melvin Watkins with a 37-yard bomb that set up the Tigers with first-and-goal on the eight. Allen finished the clutch march with a fingertip grab in the back of the end zone, making it 27-27. Chandler Catanzaro’s 31-yard field goal gave Clemson its first lead of the day, and from there the defense forced Klein’s fumble to salt it away.

Three years ago a highly touted Clemson team was routed by Alabama on opening day, a decision that kicked off a 47-6 run by Nick Saban’s Tide. Now the Tigers have their own opportunity to score a heartbreaker of far larger magnitude against the same foe. They gave BCS Champion Auburn everything they could handle on the Plains last season, so a road game against a decorated SEC foe isn’t a new thing for them. Clemson has always been something of a Janus, and if the “good” version shows up, things could get interesting in Tuscaloosa.

#2 Alabama (12-1) 45, #15 Northern Illinois (11-3) 10

Chandler Harnish never got started, and neither did the Huskies. Alabama’s defense, statistically the best in the nation, swarmed the NIU quarterback, holding him to barely half his per-game average of 336 total yards. Two Trent Richardson touchdowns got the Tide out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, and from there it was smooth sailing for the SEC runners-up. Richardson added another dollop of frosting to his 2011 cake with 176 rushing yards and three scores as the Tide dominated the total yardage statistics, 454-201.

Alabama’s defense set the tone right from the start. Northern Illinois’s first five possessions resulted in three punts, two turnovers and fifteen total yards. The Tide rolled to a 24-0 lead in this span. The Huskies didn’t crack the scoreboard until the end of the first half, when a 41-yard Mathew Sims field goal made it 31-3 at the break. NIU finished tenth in the nation in total yardage during the regular season, but those gaudy numbers were not compiled against the likes of Alabama.

With the win, the Tide moves on game closer to their expected national-title rematch with top-ranked LSU. They’ll stay at home in Bryant-Denny Stadium through the next two rounds as well as the first, hosting Clemson, then the winner of the Oklahoma State-Boise State quarterfinal. With Richardson and that defense, Nick Saban’s team will be a prohibitive favorite all the way up to the Championship Game in New Orleans, provided they make it that far.

So the quarterfinal round is set, and it’s filled with marquee matchups. Wisconsin heads south to Baton Rouge for its first meeting with LSU since 1972. Upset-minded West Virginia stays out West, taking on high-powered Oregon in Eugene. Boise goes to Stillwater for its’ first-ever matchup with Oklahoma State. Finally, revived Clemson goes to Tuscaloosa for a date with Alabama. There may have been some mangy mutts in the first-round schedule, but the quarterfinals enjoy a much finer pedigree. It’ll be a great weekend of football in round two of the 2011 NCAA Football Tournament.