Monday Musings: The Big Ten Didn’t Look Like “Murderer’s Row”

The second week of bowls has given us a lot to talk/think about this week.

1. Murderer’s Row got murdered. We all know that Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee stuck his foot in his mouth back in November with his comments that playing the Big Ten conference schedule was “like murderer’s row every week.” We just didn’t realize how far his foot went in his mouth. Murderer’s row got murdered New Year’s Day. The Big Ten was 0-5 in bowl games, and many of them were not pretty. Michigan was destroyed 52-14 by Mississippi State. Michigan State was obliterated by Alabama 49-7. Penn State played horrible against a bad Florida team and lost 37-24. Northwestern couldn’t hang with Texas Tech long enough and lost 45-38. Last, but not least, Big Ten Champion Wisconsin lost to none other than … TCU. Five teams—that’s half the conference. So, if the Big Ten is murderer’s row, then what does that make the SEC (three of the five Big Ten opponents were SEC teams)? A mine field? A rainstorm of nuclear bombs?

2. Where’s the backup quarterback? Penn State quarterback Matthew McGloin had a terrible game in the Outback Bowl against Florida. He was just 17 of 41 for 211 yards, with one touchdown and 5 interceptions. At what point do you bring in the back up quarterback? No surprise that it was an 80-yard interception return for a touchdown that put the nail in the coffin.

3. Nothing says New Year’s Day like infomercials. I turned the television to ABC to watch the Rose Bowl and found an infomercial. Later that night, I turned back to ABC to see what was in place of the Fiesta Bowl. More infomercials. What kind of a decision was that to move the biggest bowl games of the day to cable? How do you cost justify running infomercials on a Saturday during prime time? I don’t think they paid anywhere close to the amount advertisers would have paid for commercials during the Rose and Fiesta Bowls. ESPN has commitments to air plenty of snoozer “sporting” events during the year, so why not schedule the World Series of Poker or some fascinating X games while you broadcast the bowls on your sister station ABC.

4. Not like it used to be. Notre Dame and Miami renewed their rivalry in the Sun Bowl. It was 30-3 in the fourth quarter. Not quite the drama that we were used to 20 years ago. At least no fights broke out this time.

5. A plus-one system for the FSC? A plus-one system can’t be agreed upon for the football bowl subdivision of college football, but what about one for the Florida State Championship? With UCF beating a SEC team in its bowl to finish 11-3 and Florida State beating another SEC team in its bowl to finish 10-4, who is the best team in the state of Florida? I would love to see UCF and Florida State play one last game to settle the state championship.

6. The Holiday Bowl really was a holiday. Nebraska took the name of its bowl game a little too literally. Losing 19-7 to the same Washington Huskies that they beat 56-21 earlier this year, in Seattle, the Cornhuskers shouldn’t have even bothered to show up for the game. It’s a good thing that the Holiday Bowl payout is one of the better non-BCS bowl game payouts; otherwise, that would have been a total waste for Nebraska.

7. Upset alert. Five ranked teams lost to unranked or lower ranked teams last week. Ironically, Oklahoma wasn’t one of them. Number 12 Missouri lost to unranked Iowa. North Carolina State took down number 22 West Virginia. Number 20 South Carolina fell to number 23 Florida State. Number 18 Nebraska mailed it in against Washington. The 9th ranked Michigan State Spartans were clobbered by number 16 Alabama. LSU and Nevada better be paying attention.

8. Model of consistency. Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon had his 12th consecutive 100-yard receiving game when he logged 117 yards against Arizona in the Alamo Bowl. That is a new NCAA record for consecutive 100-yard receiving games and for the most receiving yards by a sophomore (sorry, Larry Fitzgerald). Blackmon reached the 100-yard milestone in every game played this year.

9. Time to relieve Rich Rod. I have argued for Michigan to retain Rich Rodriguez for 2011, but now I am switching sides. The 52-14 loss to Mississippi State shows that the players don’t want, and won’t, play for him. Michigan brass made it clear they were waiting for the bowl game to make a final decision. Okay men, time to rise up. One last chance to save your coach’s job. The players made it known how they feel. Don’t forget that Rodriguez doesn’t want to make the coaching changes necessary to improve the defense, either.

10. Loophole Lovers. The NCAA loves loopholes. It became known this week that the real reason that the five suspended Ohio State players were allowed to participate in the upcoming Sugar Bowl is because a loophole in the rules that allows suspended players to play in bowl games because of “the unique opportunity these events provide at the end of a season.” What about redshirted players? Why not let them play as well? This might be the only time in their careers that they make it to a bowl game. As if this loophole wasn’t enough, the NCAA needed to create another one with the Cam Newton situation earlier in the season.

Monday Musings: 10 Thoughts About Week 5

Week 5 was supposed to be another exciting week of top 10 games and the Red River Rivalry. Conference schedules started to be in full force, too. The top 10 games fizzled, but the conference play sizzled. Here are this week’s Monday Musings.

1. The SEC is officially down. The preview of the SEC championship game was a very lopsided 31-6 blowout. Georgia is 1-4. LSU is in contention for the title “worst 5-0 team.” Ole Miss lost to Jacksonville State. Tennessee squeaked past UAB in overtime. In a year that Alabama had to replace virtually its entire defense, they look to be tested only twice (Arkansas and Auburn), and that is with six conference teams having two weeks to prepare for the Crimson Tide.
2. The torch is officially passed. Tim Tebow was king of college football for the last three years. Everyone was star struck with the quarterback in Gainesville. He accumulated eye popping offensive stats. With Tebow off to the NFL, the torch has been passed to Denard Robinson. Get ready for a three year love fest with the sophomore quarterback in Ann Arbor. Robinson accounted for 5 TDs on Saturday as he passed for nearly 300 yards and ran for over 200 more. On the season he has a 179 pass efficiency rating and leads the nation in rushing (908 yards) by nearly 200 yards!
3. The worst 5-0 team. LSU makes a strong push for this title, but Northwestern definitely takes the cake. The Wildcats biggest win is 37-3 over Illinois State. The rest of the wins are one point over Minnesota (1-4), five points over Central Michigan (2-3), 17 points over Rice (1-4), and two points over Vanderbilt (1-3). Got a problem with this Northwestern? Well, you have a chance to show me something October 23 against Michigan State.
4. What is your favorite color? The Temple Owls love the color brown. With running back Bernard Pierce out with an ankle sprain, Matt Brown picked up the slack and carried 28 times for 226 yards and 4 TDs. Temple needed every yard to beat Army 42-35 and move to 4-1 on the year.
5. The warning light better be on. With the conference schedule swinging into full force, some top teams better have taken notice to what happened Saturday, or they will not be among the ranks of the unbeatens much longer. Ohio State struggled to beat Illinois. They better shape things up in Columbus before they face the likes of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan. LSU barely escaped Tennessee in a game best described as a “comedy of errors.” Oklahoma, congratulations on finally beating Texas. It wasn’t pretty, but you did it. Now, get back to work so you don’t lose to a Big 12 North team.
6. Gutsiest call. Chip Kelly reached into the Sean Payton bag of tricks and used an onsides kick to get back in the game against Stanford. Down 21-10 early in the second quarter following a 29-yard TD pass by Darron Thomas, Oregon recovered an onsides kick and drove down to make it a four point game.
7. Hear come the Hokies and Beavers. We all knew that Virginia Tech and Oregon State were slow starting teams. Much to the satisfaction of Boise, Idaho, both teams are ramping up their speed. Virginia Tech is on a three game win streak after downing previously undefeated North Carolina State, 41-30. The Hokies are 2-0 and first in the Coastal division of the ACC. Oregon State got a solid win against Arizona State to move to 2-2, but isn’t that what we all expected? Remember those two losses are to top 5 teams. Oregon State is ready to play the spoiler role in the Pac-10 and if they play their cards right, they will find themselves in Pasadena.
8. The worst FBS team. While some teams have been astonishingly good and fun to watch, others have been atrociously bad and painful to watch. The sad part is deciding the worst college football team is harder than choosing the worst 5-0 team. In the end, the winner (or loser) is New Mexico. Whether it is Oregon or UNLV, New Mexico has not been competitive in any of their games.
9. Doomed to fail? After Gene Chizik was hired by Auburn, all the experts and pundits said Chizik was in a situation where it was impossible to succeed. He had a 5-19 record at Iowa State in two years. The public backlash was huge. Charles Barkley even got mixed up in it. Eighteen games, a 13-5 record, a top 10 ranking, a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback, and the Chizik hire appears to have paid off.
10. No surprise this time. The last two years, Iowa has surprised everyone and knocked off an undefeated Penn State team. The Hawkeye’s 24-3 win over the Nittany Lions this weekend came as no surprise to anyone. Penn State is reloading on offense and Iowa is expected to push Ohio State for the Big Ten title.

For the results to last week's opinion poll, click here.
For the latest College Football Haven Top 25, click here.

Big Ten Conference Preview For 2010

Previewing the Big Ten conference is next to continue priming us for the 2010 NCAA college football season. All the conferences and the independents will be previewed this week (Monday through Saturday, two per day).

1. Who will win the conference? Iowa. If Ricky Stanzi didn’t get injured, the Hawkeye’s probably would have been undefeated and in the Rose Bowl last year. Stanzi is back as well as a strong defense. The schedule is favorable as well. Iowa plays Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Penn State at home with at least two weeks separating each of these games.

2. Who is the top returning player? John Clay, Wisconsin. The bruising tailback rushed for 1,517 yards last year and scored 18 touchdowns. He finished 2009 with six consecutive 100 yard rushing games, and had a total of nine 100 yard rushing games.

3. Who will be the most improved team? Michigan. The Wolverines were 1-7 in conference play last year. In his third year in Ann Arbor, Rich Rodriguez will start to deliver what everyone has been expecting. Although the schedule is difficult, I expect Michigan to reach 8 wins.

4. What will be the biggest surprise? Between the end of the regular season and the bowl game, Joe Paterno will announce that he is retiring. After reaching 400 wins and no Bobby Bowden to push him for college football immortality, JoePa will step aside.

5. Which coach is on the hottest seat? Rich Rodriguez, Michigan. With an 8-16 record after two seasons, and this is a make or break year for Rodriguez. He will be gone if there is not a very positive feeling about the direction of the program after this year.

2010 College Football Preview: 10 Questions

The 2010 college football season will kick off in just two weeks! College Football Haven has the top 10 questions for 2010, plus one bonus question for making it to the end.

1. Is this Joe Paterno’s last ride? Last year we saw the departure of the legendary Bobby Bowden. Now that Bowden is gone, Joe Pa is assured that when he retires he will have more wins than any FBS coach. With 394 wins to his name, he should eclipse the 400 win plateau this year. These two factors just might be enough to get him to finally hang it up after 45 years.

2. Will an SEC team win the National Championship? It has happened for the last four years. Whether the SEC champion has been undefeated or has had two losses, they have made it to the BCS national championship game and come out the victor every time. The SEC championship could be a rematch of Florida and Alabama. If this is the case, I don’t expect either team to be undefeated, so whether the winner makes it to Glendale will depend on how the other automatic qualifying (AQ) champions fare. Two undefeated teams (Ohio State and Oklahoma, perhaps) and the SEC champion will be on the outside looking in. If only one AQ champion is undefeated and so is Boise State or TCU, then the SEC champ probably gets in.

3. Will Boise State or TCU play in the National Championship game? They are both in a very favorable position starting at numbers 5 and 7, respectively, in the USA Today preseason top 25. After the way they played last year, if one of them finishes undefeated, and no other team in the nation is undefeated, then I like their chances to be in the BCS top two. If one AQ champion is undefeated, then Boise State and TCU will have to fight for that second spot. Both teams have earned a shot to prove themselves if they are undefeated, but in the end, they probably won’t make it over a one loss SEC champion.

4. Is this Rich Rodriguez’s break through year at Michigan? With his track record at Tulane and West Virginia, many expected the Wolverines to be a force in the Big Ten last year. Instead, Michigan dropped 7 of 8 league games and finished 5-7. It was a good strategic move by Michigan to hire Rodriguez, but if he doesn’t get things done this year, he is probably gone. That being said, I think Michigan will be back in a bowl and Rich Rod will be on the sidelines in 2011.

5. Will SMU continue its resurgence? While Rodriguez continued to struggle in his second year, June Jones was flourishing in his second year at SMU. The Mustanges went from one win to 8, and slaughtered Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl. Kyle Padron returns at quarterback so I fully expect the Mustangs to gallop in the lead pack of Conference USA and could win the conference in a photo finish.

6. Are select teams auditioning for invitations to join better conferences? The Big Ten doesn’t appear to be satisfied with 12 teams. Pitt, Rutgers, Maryland, and maybe even Virginia are prime candidates. The Big XII may be happy with 10 teams for now, but it won’t be long before they are back to 12. The Memphis faithful are hungry to make the jump to big time football. BYU has made it clear that they are looking for something better than the Mountain West Conference. These teams may find that the way they play on Saturdays was the difference maker in whether they got an invite or not.

7. Can Jeremiah Masoli redeem himself? With a second chance at Ole Miss, the former Oregon Duck may get the last quack. I find it hard to imagine that he won’t be the Rebels starting quarterback. How quickly he can grasp the offense and gel with his teammates will determine his success. He will have a respectable year, but what will determine the winner in this situation will be how well Oregon does without him.

8. Will Jake Locker live up to the hype? For three years we have heard about the phenomenal athleticism and potential of Jake Locker. This summer he went back east on a whirlwind media tour to promote his Heisman Trophy candidacy. Many consider him to be the future number one draft pick in the 2011 NFL draft. With all this fanfare you would think that his college career resembled that of Tim Tebow. On the contrary, Locker has not played in a bowl, nor has he passed for more than 3,000 yards in a season. I predict that Locker will break both these trends this year. Locker and Washington are poised for a breakout year in Steve Sarkisian’s second year as head coach.

9. Who will represent the Pac-10 in the Rose Bowl? No conference race is more wide open than the Pac-10. USC has a bowl ban, so even if they win the conference, they won’t play in the Rose Bowl. Oregon had a good chance to make a repeat showing until they lost Masoli and had a rash of other off the field issues that affected the team. Stanford is making strides, but replacing Tody Gerhart will keep the Rose Bowl out of reach. Same goes for Cal without Jahvid Best. Washington and UCLA are dark horses that I wouldn’t count out. In the end, this is Oregon State’s year. The Beavers will get off to a typically slow start, but when the conference games roll around Jaquizz Rodgers and company will be ready.

10. Will Case Keenum break the NCAA record for career passing yards? With back-to-back 5,000 yard passing seasons and 12,950 yards to his credit, Keenum is only 4,123 yards away from breaking Timmy Chang’s record (17,072). Barring injury, Keenum will break this record with ease. The better question might be how high will he push this mark?

Bonus: How will they react? With the way 2009 ended and the events during the offseason, I am curious to know how several teams will react to what happened. Their reactions will go a long way in shaping how the 2010 season plays out.

• USC: Pete Carroll left for the NFL, and the NCAA finally ruled in the Reggie Bush case. With no bowl game to play for and some players transferring, how will the men of Troy react? USC has a lot of pride, and, like him or not, Lane Kiffen overachieved last year at Tennessee. I see USC bouncing back from last year’s 9-4 campaign and playing with a chip on their shoulder. Even with Carroll gone, the end result will be typical of the Pete Carroll years.

• Nebraska: The Cornhuskers nearly pulled off the biggest win of the season last year in the Big XII championship game. We saw them vent some frustration in the 33-0 beat down of Arizona in the Holiday Bowl, but something tells me that Bo Pelini and his boys are not satisfied. Look for them to be breathing fire this year and play with great emotion as they try to take care of some unfinished business and leave the Big XII as champions.

• Texas: It looked like it would never come, but Texas now faces life without Colt McCoy. We all got a taste of the future when McCoy went down in the BCS Championship game. While Garrett Gilbert will have a nice career in Austin, Texas will drop two games this year.

• Oregon: No one is happier that the season is starting than Chip Kelly. After an offseason to forget, with an alarming number of players violating team rules and having run ins with the law, Kelly is relieved to finally move on. If the players handle this well, then Oregon will still be better than most teams in the Pac-10. However, if the locker room is divided and they are dwelling on the off-the-field issues, the Ducks might struggle to finish with a winning record and leave the fan base wondering what might have been.

• Florida: The Gators face a situation similar to Texas. In Gainesville, the Tim Tebow era is over. It is impossible to replace a guy like him. Florida will have to move on the best they can with John Brantley. Besides losing Tebow, Florida nearly lost their coach. After announcing his resignation, Urban Meyer quickly changed it to a leave of absence. While everything seems to be smooth sailing again, how many of the players are worrying whether Coach Meyer will survive the rigors of the year? Although the Gators are the preseason number 3 team, this year is going to be bumpier than the last two. If Meyer and the players hit the panic button when things aren’t as peachy as they were with Tebow around, then this could end as a disappointing year.

• Temple: The Temple Owls were the biggest surprise last year. They won 9 games for the first time since 1979. They were a win against Ohio away from playing for the MAC Championship. Temple has Heisman Trophy aspirations for running back Bernard Pierce. Is Temple hungry for more or did they take their foot off the gas after the surprising success in 2009?

• Florida State: Bobby Bowden is not at Florida State for the first time since 1975. While new head coach Jimbo Fisher has been in the program for the last few years, he is making sure that everyone knows there is a new sheriff in town. The reaction, so far, has not been good. Players are dropping from the roster like flies. Florida State has lost several players in the last few weeks for a lot more reasons than injury. The Seminoles sputtered during Bowden’s final few years. Will the coaching change bring a resurgence, or will it further cripple the program as players struggle to adjust to the new expectations?

• Alabama: They are the defending national champions and now they are number one to start the year, despite having seven players drafted. The preseason number one is a curse, and so is Alabama’s schedule with six conference teams having byes the week before playing the Crimson Tide. Will Alabama have enough drive to repeat to end the season where they are starting? In 2009, they were coming off of back-to-back losses in the SEC Championship game and the Sugar Bowl. Where is the motivation going to come from after a perfect 14-0 national championship season?

HEISMAN HOPEFULS, WEEK 3

No one was eliminated from the list after week 3, however, Jevan Snead may be cut next week if he doesn't put up better numbers. Jimmy Clausen solidified himself as number 2 in my mind, while Jahvid Best pulled further in front of everyone else with his 5 touchdowns. The overall quarterback play is down this year, which gives Case Keenum a better chance to be added to the list in a few more weeks. He did not play this week, so his status did not change. Tate Forcier looked more like a freshman and will need some pretty impressive games to ever be added to the list, but Jacory Harris, Miami (FL), has gotten off to a good start and could be on the list next month. One final note for clarification, on quarterbacks the first TD number is the touchdown passes and the second in parentheses is rushing touchdowns in addition to the passing touchdowns, so 2 TD (2 rush TD) means the quarterback accounted for 4 touchdowns.

Tim Tebow, Florida, 14 completions 19 attempts, 115 yards, 1 INT (1 rush TD),(39-58, 540, 5 TD, 1 INT, 3 rush TD)

Colt McCoy, Texas, 24-34, 205, 1 TD, 2 INT (75-110, 859, 6 TD, 4 INT, 1 rush TD)

Max Hall, BYU, 20-31, 306, 2 TD, 3 INT, (70-101, 944, 6 TD, 6 INT)

Jevan Snead, Ole Miss, 16-28, 209, 3 TD (28-50, 384, 5 TD, 2 INT)

Jahvid Best, Cal, 26-131, 5 TD (53-412, 8 TD, 1 TD catch)

Daryl Clark, Penn State, 16-26, 167, 2 TD, 1 INT (65-97, 760, 8 TD, 3 INT)

Jaquizz Rodgers, Oregon State, 20-73, 1 TD (62-342, 5 TD)

Kellen Moore, Boise State, 18-26, 181, 3 TD, (53-81, 685, 8 TD, 1 INT)

Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame, 22-31, 300, 2 TD (62-91, 951, 9 TD)

Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State, 9 receptions 161 yards, 2 TD (17-323, 4 TD, 1 punt TD)

COACHING: BOWDEN VS. PATERNO

With weekly attention to coaching in college football, how long did you think it would take to get to these two coaching giants? Joe Paterno at Penn State and Bobby Bowden at Florida State are the two coaches with the most sustained success in the game today. Bowden caught Paterno for the lead in the race for the most all-time wins by a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) head coach earlier this decade and they have flipped-flopped spots at one and two over the last two to three years with neither one taking more than a one or two game advantage.

Which coach is better? Who would you rather have coaching your team? This is an endless debate rooted in opinion. Nevertheless, here is a quick analysis of each coaches’ resume:

Paterno

• 385 wins 127 losses 3 ties
• 23-11-1 Bowl Record (23 wins is a record)
• 44th year coaching
• 2 National Championships
• 5 undefeated seasons
• 5 losing seasons

Bowden

• 383-124-4
• 21-10-1 Bowl Record (21 wins is second most to Paterno)
• 44th year coaching
• 2 National Championships
• 1 undefeated season
• 2 losing seasons

(source: wikipedia.com)

A few other interesting facts:

1. Bowden’s teams were ranked in the top 5 for 14 straight years (1987-2000).
2. Paterno has had one undefeated season each decade (1968, 1969, 1973, 1986, 1994)—note: the 2000s have not concluded yet, maybe he gets one this year.
3. 31 of Bowden’s victories came in four year at Samford, a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) school.
4. Paterno’s style of play has been more traditional, balanced pass-run attack.
5. Bowden’s style of play has been flashy and spread out to take advantage of great team speed.
   

This off season, the Joe Paterno and Bobby Bowden duel for the wins record took a strange, unforeseen twist when the NCAA sanctioned Florida State University for a student academics scandal. Part of the sanctions was to vacate 14 Florida State victories. Florida State has relentlessly appealed this decision by the NCAA, and to my knowledge the appeals are still ongoing.

Although it seems an oxymoron that one of these two has to be a loser in the battle for most wins, I am quietly rooting for Paterno to ultimately end up on top, even with Bowden’s 14 wins restored. Nothing against Bowden. My feelings are mostly to avoid controversy and endless debate for the next 100 years. First, Bowden has 31 wins at a FCS school. Personally, I can’t penalize Bowden for his 31 wins at a FCS school. Technically, FBS and FCS are the same division in NCAA sports, but more importantly, how many of Paterno’s wins have come against FCS teams? Second, the NCAA’s ruling to vacate 14 Florida State wins. If Paterno ends with the most wins, then Bowden supporters will argue it was the vacated wins. If the wins are restored and Bowden ends with the most wins, then Paterno supporters will argue that Bowden cheated for his wins. Both of these men have had such great careers, their retirements do not deserve to be tainted.

In any case, the Bowden vs. Paterno battle is great for coaching in college football. Perhaps the more important issue is what will happen when they are gone. Coaching is evolving with the rest of the sport and we may never see a 300 win coach again.

HEISMAN HOPEFULS, WEEK 2

Week 2 helped clear the Heisman picture. Jimmy Clausen played very well, but his team lost, so that moves him down a notch or two. Jahvid Best is my new number one--over 10 yards per carry and almost 300 yards in two games. Max Hall did what he needed to do against Tulane, but a few more TD passes without that interception would have helped. Colt McCoy does not look like his 2008 self, and what was that 13-10 score to Wyoming at halftime? Dropping from the list this week will be Eric Berry (he has not done anything yet this year), Terrell Pryor (he has great talent, but still very raw), Zac Robinson and Kendall Hunter for Oklahoma State (Robinson is a hybrid QB who is slighly above average in a high powered offense, and Hunter isn't even the leading rusher on his team, so far). As for adding new candidates, Case Keenum, Houston, and Tate Forcier, Michigan, are close, but I am more about trimming the list than making it grow. If they continue to impress and consistently outperform the rest on this list, they will be added. One final note for clarification, on quarterbacks the first TD number is the touchdown passes and the second in parentheses is rushing touchdowns in addition to the passing touchdowns, so 2TD (2 rush TD) means the quarterback accounted for 4 touchdowns.

Tim Tebow, Florida, 15 completions 24 attempts, 237 yards, 4 TD (1 rush TD),(25-39, 425, 5 TD, 2 rush TD)

Colt McCoy, Texas, 30-47, 337, 3 TD, 1 INT (1 rush TD), (51-76, 654, 5 TD, 2 INT, 1 rush TD)

Max Hall, BYU, 24-32, 309, 2 TD, 1 INT, (50-70, 638, 4 TD, 3 INT)

Jevan Snead, Ole Miss, DID NOT PLAY, (12-22, 175, 2 TD, 2 INT)

Jahvid Best, Cal, 17-144, 1 TD (1 TD catch), (27-281, 3 TD, 1 TD catch)

Terrell Pryor, Ohio State, 11-25, 177, 1 INT (25/46, 351, 1 TD, 2 INT, 2 rush TD) will not continue to track

Daryl Clark, Penn State, 20-31, 240, 3 TD, 1 INT (49-71, 593, 6 TD, 2 INT)

Jaquizz Rodgers, Oregon State, 26-166, 1 TD (42-269, 4 TD)

Kellen Moore, Boise State, 16-26, 307, 4 TD, 1 INT (35-55, 504, 5 TD, 1 INT)

Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame, 25-42, 336, 3 TD (40-60, 651, 7 TD)

Eric Barry, Tennessee, will not continue to track

Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State, 5 receptions 85 yards, 1 punt TD (8-162, 2 TD, 1 punt TD)

HEISMAN HOPEFULS 2009

No season can start without setting our sights on Heisman Trophy candidates. I know that it is essentially a three man race, barring an unexpected meltdown or unexpected phenomenal record shattering performance by someone else. But what is fun about a three man race in August? This list looks beyond the big three and will track each players' performance until they are reasonably eliminated from the race throughout the season.

Tim Tebow, Florida

Colt McCoy, Texas

Sam Bradford, Oklahoma

Max Hall, BYU

Jevan Snead, Ole Miss

Javhid Best, Cal

Terrell Pryor, Ohio State

Daryl Clark, Penn State

Jaquizz Rodgers, Oregon State

Kellen Moore, Boise State

Tyrod Taylor, Virginia Tech

Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame

Eric Barry, Tennessee

One of the Oklahoma State trio (Zac Robinson, Kendall Hunter, Dez Bryant)

PRE-SEASON PREDICTION: Of the big three, Colt McCoy is the only one not to win yet, which should play to his advantage. The recent trend has been to spread the wealth with awards. However, something about McCoy does not scream Heisman Trophy winner to me. His accuracy is out of this world, but unless he goes over 4,000 yards and 40 touchdowns I don't feel comfortable predicting him as the winner. Besides, there seems to be a growing movement among voters that they want to be part of history by awarding Tim Tebow with a second trophy. Tebow has a 70% chance of making history as the second two-time winner. If he guides the Gators to the National Championship game and he throws for over 3,000 yards the trophy is his. Sam Bradford will suffer from stats that don't match his campaign last year, just as Tebow suffered last year. Matching his stat line from last year will be virtually impossible with a new offensive line. He will be in the discussion all year, but he is almost certain to continue the trend of 1st to 3rd place finish (Ty Detmer, 1990 and 1991, Jason White, 2003 and 2004, Matt Leinart, 2004 and 2005, and Tim Tebow, 2007 and 2008). I cannot imagine this Florida Gators squad, under Tebow's leadership, stumbling along the way to the National Championship game, so I predict Tebow will be crowned the 2009 Most Outstanding College Football Player.

ABOUT ME: THE EDITOR

I have followed college football for over two decades. I still remember attending my first game in 1988: Brigham Young University (BYU) vs. Air Force in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I was even lucky enough to get Ty Detmer’s autograph after the game! My second game came the following year in Albuquerque, New Mexico, BYU vs. New Mexico. The image of BYU cornerback Brian Mitchell racing down the sideline on a 97-yard interception return for a touchdown is still fresh in my mind.

First, and foremost, I am a BYU Cougars fan. I attended BYU, my parents attended BYU, and both sets of my grandparents attended BYU. Therefore, I have an affinity for stories related to BYU, the Mountain West Conference (MWC), and Bowl Championship Series (BCS) reform. However, I am still a fan of college football. My other favorite teams (since the 1990s) include the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Florida State Seminoles, and the Florida Gators. More recently, I have enjoyed watching the resurgence of Penn State, the emergence of Boise State—although they present competition to BYU in some ways, the dominance of the University of Southern California (USC), and the superhuman performance of Tim Tebow on and off the field.

I was born in a suburb of Dallas, Texas, so football is in my blood. After about seven years there, my family moved to Colorado Springs, and five years after that we relocated again to South Jordan, Utah. While in South Jordan, I played three years on the Bingham High School football team as a quarterback; I also played a little bit of safety. I was sophomore team captain on the “best sophomore team in school history” according to our coaches. We were ranked number 2 in the state my senior year as we compiled an 8-2 record.

During my playing career, I was associated with the following prominent players:

1. Kevin Curtis, Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver, asked me to
do passing drills with him as he prepared for the upcoming football season in
1999.

2. Paul Peterson, former Boston College quarterback
and 2004 Continental Tire Bowl MVP, was my teammate in high school.

3. Reno “Junior” Mahe, Philadelphia Eagles running back/punt
returner (led the NFL in punt returns in 2005), played with him at BYU football
summer camps and played against him twice during the 1997 football season.

4. Bryan Kehl, New York Giants Linebacker, played against
him in high school during the 1998 football season.

I have created this blog to share my passion for college football, and to, hopefully, enhance others' participation in the sport as a fan, student, or player.

Enjoy.

(Feedback is always appreciated and will be taken into consideration for the future development of this site.)