As I do every June, I went out and grabbed Phil Steele's college football preseason magazine. It's rated the #1 magazine year after year. With less than two months remaining until the official kickoff of the 2009 college football season, fans highly anticipate another action packed year, filled with big time matchups on the field and more Heisman and BCS drama that apparently is NOT settled on the field anymore (see Texas vs. Oklahoma in '08). And while the college football off season is one of the most interesting with so many people following recruiting and spring practice in the recent years, it is very exciting to see the regular season rapidly approaching. Here is a brief look at what is to come in 2009, conference by conference.
*Note that this is my analysis of the conferences.
ACCProbably one of the more interesting conferences in college football. By interesting, I mean impossible to predict and every game will have at least 5 lead changes no matter who is playing. For the past couple of seasons, the big name teams have all had mediocre seasons, and teams such as Wake Forest and North Carolina have been stepping up into the spotlight. Virginia Tech has been the best representation of a measuring stick, especially with their Orange Bowl victory last season. They return as my preseason favorite to win the conference championship.
Also in the ACC Coastal division, Butch Davis continues the transition of making the Tar Heels of North Carolina a two-sport school, with 16 starters returning including 9 on defense. However, I still think they are a year or two away from winning any conference championships, as they will go down when they go to Blacksburgh to take on the Hokies. Randy Shannon and the Miami Hurricanes are looking at a lopsided schedule, and unfortunately it does not lean in the right direction. With their first four games being @Florida State, Georgia Tech, @Virginia Tech, and Oklahoma, things could be a little shaky in the first month for a talented but young team. Georgia Tech will also be in the conversation, boasting one of the best rushing attacks in the country, led by preseason All-American candidate Jonathan Dwyer.
In the ACC Atlantic Division, it will be a battle of three middle-tier teams, between Florida State, NC State, and Clemson. I personally think that Florida State will be representing the Atlantic in the conference championship and will get a chance to play Virginia Tech with a BCS birth on the line, despite having to play C.J. Spiller and the Clemson Tigers on the road on November 7th.
Big 12The Big 12 will again have a great chance at having a representative in the BCS National Championship game for the second straight year. As mentioned earlier, there was a HUGE flaw in the system last year, as Texas defeated Oklahoma on a neutral field, but was not selected to play in the conference championship game over Oklahoma despite the two teams having one loss each. And again, this season is looking like it will come down to the October 17th matchup in Dallas. Well, at least I hope it actually matters this time. While it is WAY too early to make this kind of prediction for a game, I am going to take Oklahoma to represent the Big 12 South in the conference title, and again in the National Championship. However, this year, it will be legitimate.
The Big 12 North will in all probability be Nebraska and Kansas fighting for the #1 spot. I think that the Jayhawks will take it, and there are a few reasons why. Despite Kansas having to play both Texas and Oklahoma and Nebraska only having to play the Sooners, the two teams will go head to head in Kansas in November which could very well be the equalizer. Also, I think that the Todd Reesing to Dezmon Briscoe connection is going to prove to be too much for the Huskers, and Kansas will have the chance to play for the Big 12 title. Unfortunately, it does not matter who comes out of this division, as they will be the whipping post for the winner of the Texas-Oklahoma game.
Big EastWhile being one of the premiere conferences in college hoops, the same can not be said about the Big East when it comes to football. Quite honestly, I think that the excitement in the Big East begins and ends with Noel Devine. While it can not be blamed on the 8 football teams that remain in this conference, the matchups are just not that intriguing anymore without your Miami's, your Boston College's, your Virginia Tech's, your Temple Owl's (Just Kidding). So to add a little excitement, I'm going to pull out the wild card, and pick West Virginia to win the big east. Yes, the 5'8" 175 pound running back will carry the Mountaineers to a BCS birth, and Bill Stewart will keep his job (sorry WVU fans). Cincinnati will also contend, despite having 1 returning starter on defense. They also get West Virginia at home, but like I said, Noel for Hiesman.
Big 10Oh boy, my favorite. Let it be known, I would rather walk into oncoming traffic than watch Big 10 football on a consistent basis. Where I come from, you grow up either a Notre Dame or a Penn State fan. If you have not figured it out yet, I do not travel to State College very often. If it weren't for Terrelle Pryor and Arrelious Benn, I probably would have skipped this conference. While I got that out of my system, let's get down to it.
As difficult as it is for me to say, I truly believe that if Penn State is going to lose this year, I think it is going to be @Illinois. I think that they will do absolutely awful things to Iowa, with that being a revenge game. I also think that they will take care of business when Ohio State comes to town on November 7th. I really think that the Fighting Illini will have a shot at the upset on October 3rd, and I am not even sure why, just a gut feeling. Maybe Penn State will be looking ahead to their BIG TIME matchup against Eastern Illinois the following week (finishing out their out of conference schedule which includes Akron, Syracuse, and Temple). Fortunately, even if the Nittany Lions do go undefeated I think that they will be left out of the national championship picture, with Oklahoma and Florida playing teams with real helmets and shoulder pads at some points throughout the year. Either way, I think Penn State takes the Big 10 title, hopefully leading to another Rose Bowl embarrassment compliments of Pete Carroll and the Trojans.
As I mentioned earlier, I think that Illinois has the firepower to knock off a top tier team. Unfortunately for them, they play Ohio State and Penn State back to back.
Ohio State should be a fun team to watch, with all eyes on #2 at quarterback. I do not care what type of pro quarterback this kid is going to be, he is a stud on the college level. Vince Young singlehandedly beat what was considered one of the better teams of all time (USC '05), and he is considered a college football legend. Look how that worked out in the pro's. The fact of the matter is, he is a playmaker, and that is what college football is all about. I am really looking forward to seeing him take on USC in one of the top out of conference matchups of the year.
Pac 10
Year after year, experts wait for the opportunity to be the one to pick a team other than USC to win the Pac 10. Well, you may have to wait another year. As a matter of fact, you may want to take a few years off, or decades for that matter. This team has more depth than the Pacific Ocean. They only return three starters on defense, and during spring practice that was what coach Pete Carroll was most excited about. Their recievers will be among the best in the country, with Damian Williams, Ronald Johnson, David Ausberry, and Brice Butler being the top guys. They have at least four running backs that would start for just about any other school in the country. Oh yeah, they also have the best offensive line in the country. The quarterback job, which looks like it will be handled by either Aaron Corp or Freshman Matt Barkley, could turn out to be irrelevant based on how much talent will be around him. However, the game @ the Horseshoe could determine their role in the national title picture.
It always seems to me that the rest of the Pac 10 is really unpredictable. Cal looks to have a big year, led by Heisman hopeful Jahvid Best. If anyone were to knock off the Trojans during conference play, they probably have the best shot, getting their shot on October 3rd (at home).
SEC
Florida will win the BCS National Championship. There are too many reasons why. The offense is unstoppable, the defense is unbreakable, and #15 is just a winner. They return their entire two-deep on defense, a squad that was able to trip up last year's Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford and the Oklahoma Sooners in last year's title game. They need to replace Percy Harvin, and while I am not saying that will be easy, they will just pull another 4.3 running stud off of the bench and put him in there, and not miss a beat (So yes, it will be that easy for them).
The SEC West will be an absolute bloodbath. Alabama, Ole Miss, and LSU are all very well capable of being top 10 teams. Unfortunately, it does not work that way. One of these teams will play Florida for the SEC championship (and lose). My pick for this is going to be Alabama. I really like the job that Houston Nutt is doing at Ole Miss, and Jevan Snead is going to be a really good quarterback this year. I think LSU may hit a speed bump or two with inexperienced quarterback Jordan Jefferson at the helm. This leaves us with Alabama, who has an absolute hard nosed defense. These guys are just nasty. Defensive Tackle Terrence Cody is down to a lean 354 pounds, and he's hungry. If anyone is fortunate enough to get past him, they will be met by Rolando McClain, who will hit them...hard.
The SEC is by far the most exciting conference in college football. The speed and the athletes are what modern day college football is all about. I hope every day that we will see a USC-Florida national championship, but I think we may JUST miss out again.
One more story worth mentioning is the Lane Kiffin offseason shenanigans. This guy better win some football games, or he will get buried. By buried, I mean worse than the the trip to the woodshed that he will be getting by Urban Meyer and the Florida Gators in September. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.
Independents/Non-BCS Conferences
I think one of these years a Non-BCS Conference team will get to play for the title, especially if they keep pulling these upsets off in BCS games against big time teams (Boise St over Oklahoma, Utah over Pitt, Alabama). I think it would be a cool opportunity, but this also is just another reason to develop a playoff system. Look for Boise State and Utah to again have big years and BCS-busting opportunities again. Look for a big opportunity for BYU to go play Oklahoma in their opener (not by any means calling for an upset).
The hope with Notre Dame alumni and fans is that Charlie Weis will be fired with less that 10 wins. With a very manageable schedule, I think that this is a realistic desire. However, Charlie Weis is going no where if this teams wins 8 or 9 games. There is too much talent on this team and too much of a bright future to get rid of him by this point, whether he is the right guy for the job or not. I honesltly expect the Irish to win 11 games this year, all in which they should be the favorite. I also expect the talent gap with USC to be narrowing very rapidly, however we will see if that translates to results on the field in mid-October. Look for the Irish to be in a BCS bowl.
Out of Conference Matchups
Oregon vs. Boise St, September 3rd
BYU vs. Oklahoma, September 5th
Oklahoma State vs. Georgia, September 5th
Virginia Tech vs. Alabama, September 5th
Tennessee vs. UCLA, September 12th
Notre Dame vs. Michigan, September 12th
USC vs. Ohio State, September 12th
Virginia Tech vs. Nebraska, September 19th
Oklahoma vs. Miami, October 3rd
USC vs. Notre Dame, October 17th
That's it for now, Heisman Hopefuls coming, and during the season I will have predictions, and reactions to the games...hope the next two months fly by...Enjoy!
