Of Scarlet Knights and Colts

Last night #15 Rutgers came back from a 25-7 halftime deficit to defet #3 Louisville 28-25. One's thinking went from "Well, sure Rutgers was undefeated but this is what happens when they actually play a good team" to "Holy smokes, Rutgers is dominating the line of scrimmage!"

The coolest thing was seeing the Rutgers stadium filled with loud, red-clad fans. New Jersey is the home of several New York teams at the Meadowlands across from Manhatten, and at the same location they have the Devils. But Rutgers football is something they can truly call their own. There's nothing in terms of college football on the East Coast betwen Boston and Maryland, and Rutgers, the school that started college football in 1869, can finally fill that void and make the people of that region become more like real Americans and actually care about college football.

In the NFL, I think the Bears are to be congratulated for losing to the Dolphins last week. It narrowed the gap between them and the Giants, and will cause them to play with a greater sense of urgency from now on.

Which leads to my point. The 8-0 Colts MUST lose two out of their next three games. Instead of sewing up first place in the AFC by week 13 or 14, they should narrow the gap with the 6-2 teams. And the Colts will still have the advantage, having already beaten New England and Denver. But as they may have learned last year, it is better to finish in first place at the end with another team or two nipping at one's heels, than to wait four weeks for one's next meaningful game. The longer the Colts stay undefeated, the less I like their chances.