College Football Is Almost Here!
| 13
|
by Kwinger 00
1 more day...1 more day...1 more day...
After my extremely detailed and unnecessary overwhelming preview of the SEC, I am just going to give a little (okay, maybe not little) preview for all the major conferences, as well as some teams and notes to watch in other conferences. Without further ado:
ACC
Coastal
1. Virginia Tech (11-1, 8-0)
2. Miami (9-3, 6-2)
3. Georgia Tech (8-4, 5-3)
4. Virginia (8-4, 4-4)
5. North Carolina (4-8, 2-6)
6. Duke (0-12, 0-8)
Atlantic
1. N.C. State (8-4, 6-2)
2. Clemson (8-4, 5-3)
3. Florida St. (8-4, 4-4)
4. Boston College (7-5, 3-5)
5. Maryland (5-7, 3-5)
6. Wake Forest (4-8, 2-6)
Notes : Virginia Tech's visit to LSU in the second week of the season could be the game that determines who plays in the National Championship... Junior Kirby Freeman has beat out two-year starter and senior Kyle Wright at quarterback for Miami. I smell a quarterback controversy... Florida State is in the same boat as Miami. Junior Drew Weatherford has started for two years, but junior Xavier Lee is a tremendous athlete that is wasting his time. Either a controversy is brewing or Lee will transfer... Florida State has the most talent in this league, but they have a brutal schedule. They open the season at Clemson, one of the toughest places to play in the country. They travel to Colorado and Florida, and host Alabama and UAB for their non-conference games. Their conference games include trips to Wake, B.C., Virginia Tech, and Clemson... N.C. State is this year's Wake Forest. They do have a new coach in former Boston College coach Tom O'Brien, but running backs Andre Brown and Toney Baker are going to have big years... The Atlantic Division is impossible to predict, all SIX teams are contenders for the division title... The quarterback play in the ACC is terrible. In Pat Forde's ESPN column, he noted, "In 2006, 31 QBs nationwide had a pass efficiency rating of 140 or higher. Zero played in the ACC. The top nine returning quarterbacks in the league combined to throw 84 touchdown passes and 87 interceptions. Blech."... Virginia Tech's defense is incredible, led by linebackers Vince Hall and Xavier Adibi. QB Sean Glennon returns and will put up better numbers, and junior RB Branden Ore will is the best running back in the conference, and that's saying something... If Duke's going to win a game this year, they're best chance is their opener against UConn. If they don't win that one, they'll be riding a 32-game losing streak into 2008... Clemson returns only 5 offensive starters from last year. That scares me.
Conference Championship : Virginia Tech over N.C. State
Game of the Year : Clemson at N.C. State - September 22
Offensive Player of the Year : RB Branden Ore, Virginia Tech
Defensive Player of the Year : OLB Erin Henderson, Maryland
Serious National Championship Contenders : Virginia Tech. They've got one of the best defenses in the country, plus support from the entire nation after the tragic shooting on April 16. Their special teams are always good, and Coach Beamer is one of the best in the business. If they stay healthy, look out.
Big East
1. USF (10-2, 6-1)
2. West Virginia (11-1, 6-1)
3. Louisville (10-2, 5-2)
4. Rutgers (10-2, 5-2)
5. Pittsburgh (7-5, 3-4)
6. Cincinnati (6-6, 2-5)
7. Connecticut (5-7, 1-6)
8. Syracuse (2-10, 0-7)
Notes : Yes, USF. Call me crazy, but they have Louisville and West Virginia at home. They have to travel to Rutgers, where I project them to have their only loss in conference play. Their only other loss is at Auburn... Louisville has the best overall talent, but a brutal schedule. Their last three games: at West Virginia, at USF, Rutgers... This was my favorite conference to pick. The top four teams are interchangeable and will most likely cancel each other out of the championship contender list, much like last year... USF QB Matt Grothe is going to have his coming out party this year... West Virginia true freshman RB Noel Devine will fit in nicely with West Virginia's offense. He has tremendous speed... Louisville junior linebacker Willie Williams was the #1 linebacker coming out of high school. He was a controversial recruit because of his 11 arrests from 2000-04, mainly consisting of theft and burglary charges, but was excepted at Miami (didn't see that one coming). He redshirted in '04 and played, but didn't start, in 10 games in '05. He then went to a junior college and played and is now at Louisville. This guy has loads of talent, if only he could stay out of trouble... Rutgers RB Ray Rice will miss his fullback Brian Leonard - a lot. Don't expect the little guy to put up numbers anywhere near last year's... Dave Wannstedt is in his third year at Pitt. That's about the time when good coaches start turning their program around. Time is ticking... Former Wake Forest QB Ben Mauk, the nation's all-time leading passer in high school, has transferred to Cincinnati and is competing for the top spot. He will not have to sit out a year for transferring. He was Wake Forest's starting QB last year but broke his arm in the opener, making way for Riley Skinner who led the Demon Deacons to an ACC Championship and an Orange Bowl berth.
Game of the Year : West Virginia at USF - September 28
Offensive Player of the Year : RB Steve Slaton, WVU
Defensive Player of the Year : OLB Malik Jackson, Louisville
Serious National Championship Contenders : USF, West Virginia, Louisville, Rutgers. Louisville has the best defense and would be the team most likely to play with a team like USC or LSU, but their regular season schedule is the toughest out of the four Big East contenders. West Virginia is one of the best in the nation in team speed. According to an article written by ESPN writer Mark Schlabach, "And here's the real reason for hope for those teams not among the top 25 today: In every season since 1997, at least two teams that started the season unranked finished among the top 10." USF is going to be one of those teams this year. It's just a matter of how high they can go.
Big Ten
1. Michigan (11-1, 7-1)
2. Penn St. (11-1, 7-1)
3. Ohio St. (10-2, 6-2)
4. Wisconsin (10-2, 6-2)
5. Purdue (9-3, 5-3)
6. Iowa (9-3, 5-3)
7. Northwestern (6-6, 3-5)
8. Illinois (6-6, 3-5)
9(tie) Michigan St. (3-9, 1-7)
9(tie) Minnesota (5-7, 1-7)
11. Indiana (3-9, 0-8)
Notes : So the Big 10 has 11 teams and is looking for a twelfth? Is that correct? So what are they going to call it, the Other Big 12? Gotta love college football... I think Wisconsin is overrated, but they do have a favorable schedule this year. They only have 5 road games and only two of them are tough: at Penn State and at Ohio State. However, I can see them losing both of them. They have a huge hole to fill at QB, and I'm not convinced Tyler Donovan is the answer. P.J. Hill is not going to put up the numbers he did last year... Michigan will beat Ohio State this year... Watch out for Iowa, they do not have Michigan or Ohio State on their schedule this year... Indiana is going to struggle without their leader Head Coach Terry Hoeppner, who died of brain cancer in June... With his success in recruiting, Ron Zook will have Illinois as serious contenders - but not yet... The Big 10 has 6 contenders, but then has a major drop off in talent with the bottom 5... Minnesota was hit hard when 2006 Honorable Mention Big 10 CB Dominic Jones, DE Alex Daniels, CB Keith Massey, and RB E.J. Jones were kicked off the team. It'll be hard for them to match last year's 6-7 record.
Game of the Year : Penn State at Michigan - September 22
Offensive Player of the Year : QB Chad Henne, Michigan
Defensive Players of the Year : LB James Laurinaitis, Ohio St.; LB Dan Connor, Penn St.
Serious National Championship Contenders : Michigan. They'll look okay defensively in the Big 10, but Florida and USC proved last year that speed kills. It may require a shootout to win their first bowl game since 2002.
Big 12
North
1. Missouri (10-2, 6-2)
2. Nebraska (8-4, 5-3)
3. Kansas St. (6-6, 4-4)
4. Colorado (5-7, 3-5)
5. Kansas (6-6, 2-6)
6. Iowa St. (2-10, 0-8)
South
1. Oklahoma (12-0, 8-0)
2. Texas (11-1, 7-1)
3. Texas A&M (8-4, 5-3)
4. Oklahoma St. (7-5, 4-4)
5. Texas Tech (8-4, 4-4)
6. Baylor (3-9, 0-8)
Notes : The South is loaded this year. Texas Tech, projected fifth in the South, would probably vie for the North title... Nebraska at Missouri (October 6) will decide the North this year. Although it kills me because I am a huge Huskers fan, I picked Missouri because it's at home... Nebraska's season depends on how well their defensive line does. They lost all four starters from last year... Redshirt Freshman Sam Bradford won the Oklahoma quarterback job. It won't matter with the talent they have at running back. DeMarco Murray, Allen Patrick, and Chris Brown can put up better numbers than Adrian Peterson, which is quite scary... The Oklahoma defensive back unit and special teams unit are two of the strongest in the nation... You'll be seeing Texas's starting defensive tackles, Frank Okam (Sr) and Roy Miller (Jr), in the NFL next year... Texas will lose a Thorpe Award winner (Aaron Ross), a 1st team All-Big 12 FS (Michael Griffin), as well as starting CB Tarell Brown. This is terrible news considering Texas was ranked 99th in pass defense last year. Bombs away... Texas A&M returns 4 of their 5 starting offensive lineman which will be one of the best lines in the nation... Oklahoma St. receiver Adarius Bowman is a physical specimen... Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell will throw for over 5,000 yards this year... Colorado will be much better than last year; Baylor will not... How is Iowa State this bad? They have a guy at quarterback (Bret Meyer) that will likely pass the 10,000 yard mark for his career, a stud 6-5 receiver in Todd Blythe, and one of the nation's leading tacklers in WLB Alvin Bowen. Keep an eye on them this year. With new coach Gene Chizik (former Texas Defensive Coordinator), they could surprise some teams.
Conference Championship : Oklahoma over Missouri
Game of the Year : Oklahoma vs. Texas - October 6 (When isn't this the game of the year?)
Offensive Player of the Year : WR Limas Sweed, Texas
Defensive Player of the Year : LB Alvin Bowen, Iowa State
Serious National Championship Contenders : Oklahoma and Texas. The winner of the Red River Shootout could very well go undefeated. If I had to pick a defense to stop (or contain) USC's offense, I'd pick Oklahoma's (after USC's defense of course).
Pac-10
1. USC (12-0, 9-0)
2. UCLA (11-1, 8-1)
3. Oregon (8-4, 6-3)
4. California (6-6, 5-4)
5. Arizona St. (8-4, 4-5)
5. Oregon St. (7-5, 4-5)
5. Stanford (5-7, 4-5)
8. Washington (3-10, 2-7)
9. Arizona (4-8, 2-7)
10. Washington St. (2-10, 0-9)
Notes : Both USC and UCLA could very well be 11-0 heading into their game on December 1. USC is at home and looking for revenge. That's why I'm picking them to win the Pac-10. That and they're the best team in the nation. However, UCLA has a better chance at being undefeated going into the game as they have a more favorable schedule... Washington's schedule is absolutely brutal. They play 13 games this year. Their non-conference games begin with a cross-country trip against Syracuse, then host Boise St. and Ohio St. Then, they play conference powerhouses UCLA and USC before their bye week. They cap their season off with a trip to Hawaii, which could be undefeated. This is going to rough for a team that returns only 12 starters... Even though first-year coach Jim Harbaugh has less friends, his Stanford Cardinal team will have more wins... USC has the best video game team ever. The defense is unreal. They'll have to back it up on the field... Arizona St. QB Rudy Carpenter will have a much better year this year... Oregon St. is the only team in the Pac-10 that isn't returning a quarterback who has had considerable playing time... USC is good.
Game of the Year : UCLA at USC - December 1
Offensive Player of the Year : QB John David Booty, USC
Defensive Player of the Year : One of USC's linebackers (Cushing, Rivers, Maualuga)
Serious National Championship Contenders : USC, UCLA. USC is loaded, as everyone who follows college football knows by now. They're the team to beat. Fortunately for UCLA, they did it last year and has a better team this year.
SEC
East
1. Tennessee (10-2, 6-2)
2. Georgia (10-2, 6-2)
3. South Carolina (9-3, 5-3)
4. Florida (7-5, 4-4)
5. Kentucky (5-7, 2-6)
6. Vanderbilt (5-7, 1-7)
West
1. LSU (12-0, 8-0)
2. Alabama (10-2, 7-1)
3. Arkansas (10-2, 6-2)
4. Auburn (7-5, 3-5)
5. Ole Miss (4-8, 1-7)
6. Mississippi St. (3-9, 0-8)
Notes : LSU QB Matt Flynn is 2003 National Champion LSU quarterback Matt Mauck version 2.0... This is Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge's year. He's been given the keys to the offense in which he'll be able to imitate Peyton Manning. Offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe is toying with a no-huddle type offense where Ainge will audible to the correct play... I think Steve Spurrier has a few tricks up his sleeve this year. He thinks this is his year... South Carolina's starting linebackers: brothers Casper and Jasper Brinkley. Jasper will contend for All-American honors this year... Have you heard that Nick Saban is coaching at Alabama?... Arkansas backup running back Felix Jones could start for 98& of the teams in the FBS (formerly known as Division I)... Arkansas quarterback Casey Dick will put up solid numbers this year, especially since phenom Mitch Mustain transferred to USC. He won't be looking over his shoulder this year... Auburn has a brutal schedule with road games at Florida, Arkansas, LSU, and Georgia. They also have potential trap games against non-conference teams Kansas State, USF, and New Mexico State. Ouch... Georgia running backs Thomas Brown and Kregg Lumpkin are back for their tenth and fourteenth years respectively. Maybe it hasn't been that long, but it sure seems like it... The South Carolina quarterback battle will be interesting this year. Blake Mitchell is one of Lou Holtz's recruits and has played the better part of two years, but redshirt freshman Chris Smelley and true freshman Stephen Garcia (a top 10 quarterback prospect out of high school) are Spurrier's boys. Plus, Mitchell has discipline issues and is suspended for the first game of the year for not attending class... Florida's the most overrated team in the nation. They only return 2 defensive starters and no matter what anyone thinks, and Tim Tebow is in his first year at quarterback after a year at running back (you know what I mean)... Kentucky quarterback Andre' Woodson is the best quarterback you haven't seen... Vandy WR Earl Bennett is the best receiver in the SEC, and that's saying something.
Conference Championship : LSU over Tennessee
Game of the Year : LSU at Alabama - November 3
Offensive Player of the Year : RB Darren McFadden, Arkansas
Defensive Player of the Year : DT Glenn Dorsey, LSU
Serious National Championship Contenders : LSU, Alabama. The winner of the Alabama-LSU game will win the SEC. Since the SEC is by far the best conference in the country, one of them should have the opportunity to be in the National Championship.
Independent
1. Navy (8-4)
2. Notre Dame (6-6)
3. Army
Notes : Navy has lost 43 games in a row to Notre Dame. In the words of my buddy Braus, "They're due"... Navy's quarterback's name is Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada. Just so you know... Notre Dame is going to struggle this year. They only return 9 starters - total. Mark May of ESPN thinks they'll go 1-7 to start the year. I don't believe anything he says though. Lou Holtz thinks they're a National Championship contender. I don't believe anything he says either... I don't have much to say about Army.
Non-BCS Conferences
'Conference USA
' East
1. Southern Miss
West
1. Tulsa
Conference Championship : Southern Miss over Tulsa
Game of the Year : Tulsa at UTEP - October 6
Offensive Player of the Year : WR Jarett Dillard, Rice
Defensive Player of the Year : DE Albert McClellan, Marshall
MAC
West
1. Western Michigan
East
1. Kent St.
Conference Championship : Western Michigan over Kent St.
Game of the Year : Western Michigan at Toledo - September 29
Offensive Player of the Year : QB Dan LeFevour, Central Michigan
Defensive Player of the Year : DE Larry English, Northern Illinois
Mountain West
1. TCU
Game of the Year : TCU at BYU - November 8
Offensive Player of the Year : RB Rodney Ferguson, New Mexico
Defensive Player of the Year : DE Tommy Blake, TCU
Sun Belt
1. Troy
Game of the Year : Florida Atlantic at Troy - December 1
Offensive Player of the Year : QB Omar Haugabook, Troy
Defensive Player of the Year : DE Erik Walden, Middle Tennessee
WAC
1. Hawaii
Game of the Year : Boise St. at Hawaii - November 23
Offensive Player of the Year : QB Colt Brennan, Hawaii
Defensive Player of the Year : OLB David Vobora, Idaho
Notes : Don't expect the same numbers as last year from Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan, but the numbers will still be incredible... Hawaii is predicted by many to be this year's Boise St. However, their non-conference games are pathetic. I don't know if they'll be able to rise high enough in the polls by the end of the year... TCU's defense is one of the top defenses in the nation. They have a big game at Texas the second game of the year (September 8). If they win that, they're home free until their November 8 matchup at BYU. If they win at Texas, they'll be this year's Boise St... It is an understatement to say that Rice WR Jarrett Dillard adjusted fairly well to the spread offense from the wishbone Rice ran when he was a redshirt freshman. After catching 35 as a freshman, he caught 91 last year and had 21 TDs! He was a 2nd team All-American last year... TCU's defensive ends Chase Ortiz and Tommy Blake could start for any team in the nation. Any Team... Check out the October 27 New Mexico St. at Hawaii match-up. There will be over 1000 yards of total offense... San Jose St. CB Dwight Lowery is one of the best (if not the best) at his position in the nation. He was a 1st team All-American last year with 9 interceptions.
Heisman : QB John David Booty, USC
National Championship Contenders:
1. USC
2. Oklahoma
3. LSU
4. Michigan
5. West Virginia
Sleeper: USF
