Surprises Aren’t Limited to West Point

People say if you follow this sport long enough you’ll see everything, yet who could have imagined seeing everything on the same weekend?

I’m still rubbing my eyes and trying to make sense of it all:

* Army wins.

* Nebraska loses by 60 points.

* Texas puts up a bagel in a game Oklahomans will recall forever as the Red River Shutout.

* Maryland’s offense averages 1.3 yards per play.

Fascinating stuff.

Army, you’re in the win column now.

The Black Knights snapped the nation’s longest losing streak, 19 games, with a 48-29 victory over Cincinnati, a school that is (laughingly) getting promoted to major (conference) next year when it joins the Big East.

Anyone who doesn’t feel good about Army’s win is likely hiding in a cave on the Pakistan border.

“To constantly read about and hear about the longest losing streak in the country is something that’s very difficult to deal with,” first-year Army Coach Bobby Ross said.

Army tries to make it two consecutive victories when it plays at South Florida next Saturday.

“We’ve had plenty of practice at handling losses,” Ross said. “Hopefully, we’ll know how to deal with a win.”

The best part of Saturday’s victory?

No more “F-Troop” jokes.

* Texas Tech 70, Nebraska 10. Simply, the most amazing football score ever to make its way across an ESPN crawl.

We thought it was incredible in 2001 when Colorado put the wood to Nebraska, 62-36. Shoot, though, that defeat actually vaulted the Cornhuskers into the national title game against Miami.

Saturday’s loss was nothing but vile. We had no idea that when first-year coach Bill Callahan announced he was installing the West Coast offense, he also would introduce the West Toast Defense.

Help may be on the way, however; it was reported in Sunday’s Dallas Morning News that rocker Tommy Lee, a high school dropout drummer, had enrolled at Nebraska as part of a new NBC reality series.

Lee will take courses in chemistry and literature and even try out for the Nebraska marching band.

Episode II: Lee drops out of the band, tries out for free safety and tries to get the coaches to change the name of the defense from “Black Shirts” to “Motley Crue.”

* Oklahoma 12, Texas 0. The first time since 1980 that Texas has not scored a point in a game and Bevo fell asleep before halftime.

After the game, Texas Coach Mack Brown said, “I thought we’d win,” making him one of 15 people in the Cotton Bowl who thought likewise.

The kicker?

Oklahoma’s shutout of Texas was orchestrated by first-year coordinator Bo Pelini.

Sooner Coach Bob Stoops snatched Pelini up after he was let go by a rival Big 12 school that wanted to go a different direction on defense. Last year, Pelini was defensive coordinator at ... Nebraska.

* Maryland Coach Ralph Friedgen, without question, is one of college football’s best offensive minds. Except on Saturday, when his Terrapins were limited to 81 total yards in a 20-7 loss to Georgia Tech. Get this: Maryland amassed seven net rushing yards in 38 attempts, a per-carry-average of 0.2.

Sorry, that’s not an average, it’s a blood alcohol content level.

Friedgen thought the Georgia Tech game would be a good barometer for where his team stands.

“If this is where we’re at,” Friedgen offered, “we’re in trouble.”

Weekend Wrap

What happened to all the Heisman Trophy candidates?

Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton threw his first two interceptions of the season.

Oklahoma quarterback Jason White, last year’s winner, may not be the best player in his huddle.

USC quarterback Matt Leinart continues to win, but he was not the quarterback in the Coliseum who completed his first 23 passes.

Texas running back Cedric Benson, the nation’s leading rusher, was limited to 92 yards in his team’s loss to Oklahoma and also had a fumble.

Florida quarterback Chris Leak led his team to a come-from-ahead defeat to Louisiana State.

USC’s Reggie Bush remains a viable candidate, yet you wonder if voters really appreciate his value given that he does not put up great statistics.

And that leaves, dare we say, gulp, a freshman to carry the load?

If he keeps his habit of rushing for 100 yards or more in every game, Oklahoma tailback Adrian Peterson may draw more Heisman looks as the year goes on.

“I don’t get into that kind of talk,” Stoops said of Peterson, who rushed for 225 yards against Texas.

You can understand Stoops’ concern. The last true freshman to make this big of an impact early was Ohio State tailback Maurice Clarett. And we all know how that story ended up ... in court.

In his defense, Peterson does not seem at all like Clarett, a brash, cocky kid from the streets of Youngstown, Ohio. Peterson, from Palestine, Texas, is so soft-spoken that he had to be asked to speak directly into the microphone at Saturday’s postgame news conference at the Cotton Bowl.

Peterson’s response to the moderator: “Yes sir.”

Peeking ahead: It seems all but a cinch that Utah, if it remains undefeated, will become the first non-BCS to play in a major bowl game, likely the Fiesta.

California fans bummed over Saturday’s loss to USC may be heartened in knowing the Golden Bears can still earn their first Rose Bowl bid since the 1958 season if they finish 10-1 and USC remains No. 1 and plays in the Orange Bowl for the BCS national title.

Shout out to coaches looking to motivate their teams: Nevada Las Vegas is 2-0 since John Robinson announced he is retiring at the end of the season.