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Let's get right to it......
 20- Who will win the Heisman?
Tim
Tebow of Florida is the obvious front-runner. But there are some others
who will make a strong case; RB Noel Devine of West Virginia, QB Pat
White of West Virginia, QB Chase Daniel of Mizzou, RB Beanie Wells of
OSU, QB Sam Bradford of Oklahoma, RB Knowshon Moreno of Georgia, WR
Michael Crabtree of Texas Tech, U Jeremy Maclin of Mizzou, QB Max Hall
of BYU, and RB Joe McKnight of USC. Sleepers: PJ Hill of Wisconsin,
WR/RB Percy Harvin of Florida and QB Colt McCoy of Texas.
My three way-too-early early picks are Knowshon Moreno (Georgia), Sam Bradford (Oklahoma) and Chase Daniel (Mizzou)
19- Can LSU repeat?
Heck yeah! A few things have to happen, but the odds are good they can repeat. If
Miles can get his QB situation under control, then this could be a
special year for the Tigers. Their schedule is what dreams are made of.
They play eight games at home, and four on the road, including at
Auburn, at Florida and at Arkansas to close out their campaign. If they
don't slip up at South Carolina and beat Georgia in Death Valley, they
have a solid shot at being undefeated. The Georgia game is the big
question mark in terms of them being undefeated, but they can still win
the division crown since Georgia is in the SEC East, and LSU is in the
West. Playing in any BCS bowl is not an unrealistic expectation for the
defending champs, and neither is getting to the Big Dance.
18- Will Michigan contend for the Big Ten crown?
Sorry
Wolverines fans, I just don't see this happening. This is a rebuilding
year, wait, a revamping year, and you need to be patient. The no-huddle
spread offense is being installed, and when you consider the Big Blue
has pro set prototype players, I can't forsee anything but a lot of
hiccups. The good news, however, is that this team will be a lot more
exciting to watch, and because they are running an offense that is very
un-Big Ten-like, the Wolverines could catch some unsuspecting
teams off guard. The bad news is they play at a dying-for-respect Notre
Dame, at Penn State, at Purdue, at Ohio State, and host Wisconsin and
Illinois after the Irish game. Their opener against Utah, at the Big
House, will be the litmus test for how well they responded to Coach
Rich Rodriguez.
17- Will Oklahoma finally be back in the driver's seat and play for the Championship?
This
question is fire-hot. Their quarterback Sam Bradford had the best stats
of any FBS team last year. Then there is their schedule- as forgiving
as one can get. They travel only five times this year, but host Texas
and Kansas in back-to-back games. They also get Nebraska and Texas Tech
at home, and if they can keep Tech's fireworks down to a low ceiling,
they could go undefeated. That's a big if, but Stoops is bent on
reversing their current 0-4 BCS bowl streak, and you have to like their
chances with the perfect schedule.
16- Is the Pac-10 top-heavy again this year?
Uh...yes.
Look for two teams to battle it out for the Pac-10 crown- USC and
Arizona State. The rest of the pack will try and be spoilers. Oregon
doesn't have Dennis Dixon, but could still make some noise and will be
competitive. UCLA has lost 25 seniors- 17 of which were starters- and
has a serious quarterback controversy playing out in Westwood. Cal will
inexplicably drop two or three games that they should have won, and
Oregon State will upset someone huge, but lose to someone they
shouldn't have. Only Oregon State, at this point, looks to be the
sleeper in the Pac-10; Arizona, Wazzu, U Dubya, and Stanford will once
again be in the bottom tier.
15- Will someone other than Va Tech and Boston College step up to the ACC plate?
Yes,
and that team will be North Carolina. Butch Davis has amassed too many
fantastic recruiting classes to let the talent go to waste. They will
contend for the crown. Florida State looks to be the same- full of
hope, and unfortunately, too much hype- and the cheating scandals
really put a downer on the 'Noles' fans. Miami could see a resurgence,
but I still think they are a year away from making a good charge.
Boston College doesn't have Matt Ryan anymore, so you have to wonder
just how strong they will be.
Georgia Tech still hasn't
recovered from losing Reggie Ball a couple of years ago, but they
should be competitive, and Frank Beamer will have his Hokies ready for
another solid year. Clemson should be causing chaos in the conference and should win the Atlantic division,
but why do I think they will muff a few games they should have won?
Duke and North Carolina State will both suffer a bad year, and
Virginia's hopes will be crushed in their home opener against USC. It's
status quo in the ACC, with North Carolina making it tougher this year.
14- Will Weis finally get Notre Dame on track?
No.
The problem with Notre Dame is not the players. It's their coach. How
desperate is Charlie Weis? He turned over the offense to his OC.
Considering that Weis is known as an offensive genius, this is
concerning. There is nothing good to come out of this- if the offensive
output gets better-and when you are ranked dead last in offense, is
there anywhere else but to go up?- then it makes him look overrated as
an offensive guru. If the offense still remains the same, then Weis
made a poor coaching decision. Either way, perhaps Weis should update
his resume?
Weis is in a giant hole, but it's not entirely his
fault. Their sked is difficult, and there are only two guaranteed wins,
with a third possible one against Pitt. Couple that all in with
discontent in South Bend (Zack Frazer and Konrad Reuland gone and Prince leaving), there's some Irish Stew cooking.
13- Who are on the short list to be BCS crashers?
Fresno
State, BYU, Southern Miss, Florida Atlantic and Central Florida. They
all have BCS-worthy schedules, and all made strong statements last
year. Fresno State looks to be the heavy favorite, but BYU is a close
second.
12- Which new first year coach will have the most success?
You
have to go with Bobby Petrino. Granted, he lost his stable of horses in
the backfield, his star receiver Monk in addition to some key players
in the secondary, and he has that killer four week stretch against
Texas, Alabama, Florida and Auburn. But he does have Ryan Mallett, who
is awaiting word on whether or not he will have to sit out this year
from the NCAA and lots of veterans returning on both lines. It really
all depends on how the offense adjusts to the new, wide open offensive
schemes. The talent is there, it's just raw. If the Hogs come out of
this season with a winning record, then that will have been a huge
success.
11- Will Ohio State contend again for the BCS crown?
Yes,
but they will have to work much harder to get there. An undefeated or
one-loss season will not guarantee them a BCS Championship game berth
anymore. For two years in a row, the Buckeyes have not lived up to the
expectations of their fans, and more pointedly, the pollsters. Their
one loss last year to Illinois was a tell-tale sign of things to come
when the Illini got spanked by USC in the Rose Bowl. Tressel will have
to score a lot of points against every team to make a strong case, and
will have to beat USC on September 13th.
Come to think of it,
their entire season hinges on that game. Look at it this way- their
first five games are against Youngstown State, Ohio, USC, Troy and
Minnesota. If they aren't 5-0 when they host Wisconsin, then their BCS
Championship dreams are toast. And are Youngstown State and Troy the
two teams you really want to play before traveling to Southern
California? If they beat the Trojans, then the answer is yes, but the
Trojans will have traveled to Virgina for their season opener and then
get a bye before Ohio State. Bottom line? The Trojans will have played
a quality opponent on the road and then have had two weeks to prepare
for the Buckeyes, while the Buckeyes will have played two lower-tiered
teams (one an FCS school) before packing their bags and heading into
the Coliseum. Their BCS dreams will be answered, one way or another, on
September 13th.
10- Will there be a BCS controversy this year?
You
can count on it. Last year's controversy was emphatically answered by
LSU- they proved why a two-loss team deserved to play in that game.
This year could get really dicey. You have the Florida-Georgia battle
in the SEC's East, with one team left holding the bag. What if Florida
beats Georgia, then loses to say Vanderbilt, and Georgia only has one
loss? To Florida. Now what? Florida plays probable LSU for the SEC
Championship crown and Georgia goes to another BCS bowl. A team that
lost to Vandy could land in the title game.
The
Cinderellas lurking around could also add fodder to the arguments. If
Fresno State goes undefeated, and the highest rated BCS conference team
has two losses, should Fresno State get a shot? What about a team that
doesn't win their respective conference championship? It's not written
in stone that you have to win your conference, remember? Then there's
Jerry Jones' new one billion dollar stadium being finished up for the
Dallas Cowboys. There's rumors that the BCS might consider that venue
as a fifth bowl game in the BCS Championship series. The good news is
that slowly, it's getting more to a play-off scenario- the BCS just
doesn't realize it yet.
09- Will the NCAA make a decision on USC's role in Reggie-gate?
Hopefully.
It's going into year three, and for all intents and purposes, a
decision needs to be made. If the NCAA can't prove lack of
institutional control, then move on. That seems to be the point holding
up whether or not USC gets hit with some sanctions. The longer they
wait, the more unfair the punishment will be. Why should players who
didn't even play with Bush have to suffer the penalty? The Sooners of
Oklahoma argued that exact same point when they got sanctioned, and won
in their appeal. The NCAA is dragging their feet again, and setting
themselves up for an automatic appeal if they do sanction the school.
With precedence already established by the Sooners' appeal, this could
be a slap in the face for the NCAA. In short, they have blown it.
8- Which BCS conference will prove to be the strongest?
As
much as I dislike talking about conferences, everybody else uses a
conference's strength as an argument as to who has the best team. And
so I go into this with hesitancy. But this year looks like it will be
the year of the Big 12. Oklahoma, Kansas, Mizzou, Texas and Texas Tech
will all be super strong this year. All of those teams have Heisman
contenders, and all of them have a chance to win the Big 12.
The
SEC will drop off a little bit this year. Kentucky doesn't have 'Dre,
Tenn. doesn't have Ainge, Vandy is Vandy, Mississippi State is very
mediocre, Mississippi and Arkansas have new coaches, Alabama has had
strong recruiting classes, but still isn't there yet and South Carolina
has so many question marks, you pretty much have to peg them as a .500
team. Auburn, Florida, Georgia and LSU are the big dawgs. The rest are
puppies.
The Pac-10 is very top-heavy, with USC and Arizona
State on top. Oregon State, Cal and Oregon have shots of making some
noise, and the rest of the Pac, Washington, Wazzu, Stanford, UCLA, and
Arizona will be lucky to hit .500.
The Big 10 will be a bit more
open, but I see two teams making a run for it; Ohio State and
Wisconsin. Illinois is again, in the mix, but could move up to the top
if Juice Williams plays more consistently, and Michigan State will make
a slight whimper to stir things up a bit. Michigan, Penn State Purdue
and Minnesota will be mediocre, while Indiana and Northwestern round
out the bottom.
The Big East will be more exciting, and I have
them pegged above the ACC, slightly. South Florida, West Virginia,
Rutgers and Louisville will all be strong, and Cincy could cause a lot
of trouble for these teams. UConn and Pitt will be right in the middle,
and Syracuse dead last. Again.
ACC....see question 15.
#7- Which coaches will be on the hot seat if the team doesn't meet expectations?
Charlie
Weis, Mike Stoops, Steve Spurrier, Tommy Bowden, Bobby Bowden and Joe
Paterno. Ok, those last two coaches will never be fired, and rightfully
so. But there will be discontented whispers, and that may cause a new
opening in the Athletic Department to come up, if the Nits and the
'Noles don't have winning seasons and/or a bowl berth. Or the conduct of their players
continues to be a sore spot. Weis has already been explained in
question #14, and Mike Stoops is sharing the hot seat with him. Simply
put, Arizona hasn't improved, and it looks like Stoops' real talent-
that of a DC- would be better served back in Norman, Oklahoma.
Steve
Spurrier has been put on the hot seat because when you are making as
many millions as he is, dropping five straight games after reaching #6
doesn't cut it. Throw in some questionable discipline techniques, four
years to rebuild, and you have a seat dialed up to hot. Tommy Bowden's
record is very good at Clemson; 87-46. Heck, he was even coach of the
year in 2006. But when are we going to move past the Champs Sports
Bowl, Chick-fil-A bowl and the Music City Bowl? The Tigers are loaded
this year, and there is no excuse for them not to be in a BCS bowl.
None.
#6- Which BCS teams will be the sleepers this year?
Sleepers
are, by defintion, those teams who have not been in the mix lately.
While Illinois was a sleeper last year, they are no longer flying below
the radar.
ACC- North Carolina
SEC- Mississippi State
Pac- 10- Oregon State
Big Ten- Michigan State
Big East- Cincinnati
Big 12- Texas Tech
#5- Which teams will be the most disappointing?
You have a few teams that are on the cutting edge of being great, but just haven't been able to cross the threshold.
Kansas- they will surprise no one this year. They had their shot last year.
Cal- always being mentioned in the top 25, and never living up to the expectations.
Penn State- the quarterback issue and their best linebacker out for the year spells disaster.
Alabama- not quite there yet, but the fans are getting impatient. It takes time to build a great team.
UConn- after a surprisingly good last season, and a ton of veterans returning, I'm still not a believer.
Nebraska- the fans should not expect anything, but they are Husker fans, so this will be ugly.
Notre Dame- three wins should seal Charlie's fate.
#4- Which BCS teams have the softest schedule?
Clemson: Alabama,
The Citadel, North Carolina State, South Carolina State, Maryland,
@Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, @ Boston College, @ Florida State, Duke, @
Virginia, South Carolina. While they have two SEC teams on
their schedule, the two FCS (Citadel and South Carolina State) schools
wipe that out. I thought it was against NCAA rules to sked two FCS
schools.
Texas Tech: Eastern Washington, @ Nevada, SMU,
Massachusetts, @ Kansas State, Nebraska, @ Texas A&M, @ Kansas,
Texas, Oklahoma State, @ Oklahoma and Baylor. They only have
to win 2 conference games to be bowl eligible, and K State and Nebraska
look like shoo-ins. Another two FCS schools scheduled make this really
soft.
Indiana: Western Kentucky, Murray State, Ball
State, Michigan State, @ Minnesota, Iowa, @ Illinois, Northwestern,
Central Michigan, Wisconsin, @ Penn State and @ Purdue. Four road games, no Michigan or Ohio State on the sked and two FCS teams (WKU is probie FBS). Are you kidding me?
#3- Which BCS team has the hardest first half of the season?
Wisconsin,
without a doubt. They start out with Akron and Marshall, then it's
fasten your seat belts. They play @ Fresno State, @ Michigan, host Ohio
State, then Penn State. That's as brutal as it gets. There's two losses
in there for sure, most likely OSU and FSU.
#2- Which teams will win their respective BCS conferences?
Big Ten: Ohio state
Pac-10: USC
SEC: Georgia (with LSU in a close second place)
ACC: Va Tech
Big East: South Florida
Big 12: Oklahoma (but Mizzou is a close second place)
#1 BCS Championship game teams will be?
USC v Georgia
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