Category: College Football (Page 241 of 296)

      Couch Potato Alert: 8/29

      August 29, 2008 /

      Labor Day has traditionally been the last weekend to wear white, but it is now time to don your school colors for the start of the college football season.

      – Al Groh wishes he still had Chris Long anchoring his defensive front this weekend. His Cavaliers could still give USC some trouble if they can exploit the young, inexperienced Trojan offensive line. University of Virginia will host Southern Cal on Saturday in front of a nationally televised audience on ABC beginning at 3:30 p.m. EST.

      – All eyes will be on The Big House on the University of Michigan campus, as the Rich Rodriquez era begins in Maize and Blue. This game might depend on whether or not Utah’s inexperienced front seven can control Michigan’s playmakers at the line of scrimmage. The Wolverines will host the Runnin’ Utes late Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. EST on ESPNU.

      – A In a classic border war, Illinois travels to the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis to play host Missouri. Heisman Trophy candidate QB Chase Daniels will show off his throwing skills in the primetime matchup, and he will have a lot of firepower to throw to on the Tigers side of the ball. But do not underestimate the Missouri defense, which has 10 starters returning. The Fighting Illini will miss the leadership of Rashard Mendenhall this season, as they rely on freshman WR Regis Benn to lead their offense. Check local listings on which ESPN/ABC family of channels will be broadcasting this game on Saturday evening at 8:00 p.m. EST.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, College Football, Couch Potato Alert, General Sports, Television

      Illinois smelling upset over Missouri?

      August 29, 2008 /

      FOX Sports.com previewed the Illinois-Missouri game this Saturday. FOX thinks the Illini will keep it close.

      Chase DanielNo. 6 Missouri vs. No. 20 Illinois at St. Louis, — Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET

      Last year at this time, would you have believed that this matchup would be a battle between a future No. 1 Missouri and a Rose Bowl-bound Illinois? The Tigers won 40-34 after jumping out to a big early lead and then hanging on, and now they’re looking to make a big early statement as the potential star of the Big 12, or at least the North.

      On the other side, Illinois has far more rebounding to do and far more question marks, but this is still a strong team that’s looking to improve upon last year’s breakout success. It might be a big upset if the Illini can pull off the win, but it would be a huge feather in the Big Ten’s cap if it happens.
      Meanwhile, if the Big 12 really is supposed to be a challenger to the SEC in the best-conference-in-America argument, Mizzou can’t just win, but it has to win convincingly.

      It’s a BCS-game being played in August, and it’s one of the marquee non-conference games of 2008.
      This should be a better defensive battle than last year’s shootout, at least for the first half, and then the quarterbacks will take over. Both Daniel and Williams will be tremendous, but the Tiger defense will be a little bit better, and the offense will be more efficient when it needs to be.

      Prediction: Missouri 34 … Illinois 27

      I don’t see it – a close game, that is. I know this series is usually close and the Illini have an underrated defense, but who doesn’t like the Tigers’ explosive offense on the fast track of the Edward Jones Dome? I fully expect Daniel to stay away from corner Vontae Davis and exploit the rest of Illinois’ below average secondary.

      Missouri is currently 8.5-point favorites. I’ll say Tigers win by 10 at least.

      College Football

      Michigan might have a walk-on start at QB

      August 29, 2008 /

      Under new coach Rich Rodriguez, the Michigan Wolverines might be opening the season with a walk-on quarterback.

      No one would be stunned to see Michigan lose on the opening Saturday of the 2008 season. And I won’t be stunned to see a walk-on quarterback the Wolverines. Nick Sheridan gives Rich Rodriguez a more versatile threat than Georgia Tech transfer Steven Threet. For months, folks have sort of assumed Threet will win the job. Coach Rod is not saying, but I think he’ll give Sheridan a shot against narrow underdog Utah (ABC, 3:30 p.m. ET). Think about that: a walk-on as the opening day QB for the Maize and Blue. Wow.

      At home, Michigan is a 3-point favorite over Utah.

      College Football

      Top 10 College Football Programs of the BCS Era

      August 28, 2008 /

      RealClearSports.com compiled a ranking of the top 10 college football programs of the BCS era, complete with YouTube clips and a summary.

      #1 USC

      What, were you expecting Duke?

      USC spotted everyone four years and yet still emerged as the top program in the BCS Era on the sheer dominance of its latter six seasons. After beginning his tenure at Troy with a 6-6 record in 2001, Pete Carroll has led the Trojans to six consecutive BCS bowl berths and Pac-10 championships, at least 11 victories each season and no worse than 4th in the final AP poll.

      After starting 2-5 in 2001, the Trojans have gone 67-7 under Carroll and won 34 consecutive games between 2003-2005. USC won two national championships and lost its bid for an unprecedented third in a heartbreaking loss to Texas in the 2006 Rose Bowl – USC’s only BCS bowl loss. The Men of Troy also hauled home three more Heisman Trophies (Carson Palmer 2002, Matt Leinart 2004, Reggie Bush 2005), matching Notre Dame with seven winners all-time.

      About the only thing that might stop this college football hegemon is the NCAA. With the Bush investigation wrapping up, there are indications that stiff penalties including forfeiture of games, recruiting losses and postseason sanctions may be imposed. Short of that, there is no end of this Trojan Dynasty in sight.

      The rest of the top five: #2 Ohio State; #3 Oklahoma; #4 Miami; #5 LSU.

      Obviously this ranking is up for interpretation because it mostly focuses on records and doesn’t get into each programs’ difficulty of schedule or opponents, but it’s a pretty cool list nonetheless.

      College Football

      Jay Mariotti quits Chicago Sun-Times

      August 27, 2008 /

      Columnist and resident I-love-to-hear-myself-talk sports personality Jay Mariotti has abruptly decided to quit the Chicago Sun-Times.

      Mariotti told the Chicago Tribune he decided to quit after covering the Olympics in Beijing because newspapers are in serious trouble, and he did not want to go down with the ship.

      “I’m a competitor and I get the sense this marketplace doesn’t compete,” he said in the Tribune story. “Everyone is hanging on for dear life at both papers.

      “To see what has happened in this business. … I don’t want to go down with it.”

      His comments sparked a pointed response from his former employer.

      Sun-Times Editor Michael Cooke said in an e-mail to CBS 2: “That’s Jay’s opinion. He has plenty of them. But the facts, of course, say something different. I’m going with the facts. Well, it’s turning nasty … and that’s typical of Jay to throw a bomb on the way out of a place that cared for him, nurtured him, paid him well for 17 years.

      “The reason Mariotti showed up the Sun-Times 17 years ago was because the paper had the best sports pages in town. That was true then, and it’s true now.

      “And as in all sports, when the star leaves, some other young star-to-be skates on to the ice. The Sun-Times has a deep bench of talent, and we’ll be using that depth.

      “I am not hearing from grief-stricken fans,” Cooke said.

      Cooke pointed to e-mails that he received from readers, including this one: “I wish to inform you that due to recent developments on the Jay Mariotti front, I will now read your newspaper. In fact, I picked one up on the way to work this morning. Not a half-bad rag, I must say. Bully on you.”

      Mariotti said he plans to pursue opportunities on the Web, and continue his regular appearances as a panelist on ESPN’s “Around the Horn.”

      You have to love this comment by Cooke: “That’s Jay’s opinion. He has plenty of them.” The Sun-Times is going to do just fine without him. People read his stuff because they liked to disagree with him and anyone who watches “Around the Horn” knows that he just likes to stoke the fire.

      I will say this about Mariotti, however – the guy doesn’t back down from players, coaches or GMs. (In his columns at least. Apparently he never goes into the White Sox clubhouse because he fears for his safety.) Sometimes he hits the nail on the head when he’s criticizing (i.e. Bears’ GM Jerry Angelo).

      College Football, General Sports, MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL

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