Is (the) Bell cracked?

Needing a touchdown to win the game with less than three minutes to go and facing a crucial third-and-four, coach Sonny Lubick elected to give the ball to Kyle Bell off the left tackle. While showing this much faith in your running game is positive, trouble was Bell failed to pick up the first down and a quarterback sneak on fourth down didn't pick the leftover yardage, either.

Needless to say, the Houston Cougars took over and proceeded march right down the field to pad its lead on the way to a 38-27 victory.

Saturday's game and the team's other two losses this year have got me wondering if Kyle Bell is running at the same level he did as a sophomore.

He and coach Lubick both assured me after the game that No. 34 is.

I'm not so sure.

The Rams are getting a lot of yards on the ground, but they are using a lot of carries to get them.

Honestly, it's not so easy to tell the difference between Bell and his replacement last year, Gartrell Johnson, in 2007-- other than the dreads of course.

So, either (the) Bell is cracked or the O-line isn't getting the job done.

Or maybe Bell's near-30 carries per game is wearing him out.