Carrying On About College Football: Preseason Edition

Coming to Bleacher Report this fall: “CARRYING ON ABOUT COLLEGE FOOTBALL”-- your one-stop weekend wrap-up of everything college football.  And when I say everything, I do mean everything.  This column won’t just be the 137^th angle on the latest Alabama game or the umpteenth Heisman watch.  Instead, I plan to combine the following:

    - my love for spending Saturday afternoons in front of the television(s)

    - an interest in detail and variety of coverage

    - your knowledge and passion as readers

    - hundreds of games on DirecTV

...into a weekly series that can hopefully grow to become the most interactive college football column ever.   Ambitious?  I know.  But hey, it can’t be as insane as my last big project (watching twelve straight hours of the NCAA basketball tournament simultaneously on two TVs.)  Sorry, I digress.  In order to be interactive, reader input is welcomed and…well…pretty much required!  That means I need you to send in your thoughts, suggestions, and favorites for the following sections.  Here is the layout my columns each Sunday night or Monday morning will use (along with an explanation of each category).

1.  DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH

My feature story, Diamond in the Rough, will spotlight a game that deserves a closer look.  As a Purdue fan, I’m used to being interested in important games for my team that aren’t often covered by national sports writers/networks/sites because ESPN decides there’s something better or more interesting going on.  (In the dictionary, see: Dame, Notre.) 

Every once in a while, I just wish there was an unbiased writer (not already on the Purdue beat) who was interested in watching and writing about my team.  The only qualifications for a game that I feature in “Diamond in the Rough”: it must appear somewhere on my DirecTV package (so I can see it) and it can’t be the game that’s over-hyped by College GameDay or similar television programs. 

For this feature, I’ll watch every play of the selected game and provide complete analysis.  You, the reader, are crucial here: go through your team’s schedule (right now! hurry!) and send in a suggestion for which game(s) you’d like to see profiled and why. 

Tell me why I (and the rest of the country) should be interested in Iowa/Arizona…or Boise State/San Jose State…or [insert your team/insert your team’s rival].  Can’t decide between two great games?  Send both – the more ideas, the better!  Hopefully, by spotlighting a variety of teams, games, and conferences over the next few months, you’ll get a chance to read some in-depth coverage of your favorite squad.

Send me an e-mail at carryingonabout (at) yahoo (dot) com, search "Carrying On About College Football" on Facebook, or check out @TimCary on Twitter. I'd love to hear from you about which game to cover next!

2.  MAYBE BROADCASTING IS EASIER THAN I THOUGHT

This section could otherwise be titled: “If I were a football announcer, I wouldn’t say…”  My mind has been blown so many times by stupid and/or hilarious quotes from television analysts…here’s where we’ll run them down.  If you hear a comment that might qualify, make sure to send it my way.  Assuming I hadn’t found it already, I’ll credit your discovery in the column.

3.  THAT CAN’T BE RIGHT

This is where you’ll find the ridiculous stat lines and improbable scores that make you think the sports ticker on your television has malfunctioned.  You know, Appalachian State 34, Michigan 32.  That sort of thing. We also keep an eye out for times the sports ticker DID malfunction...if you find a typo, send it my way!

4.  THANK GOODNESS FOR MY DVR

Highlights, highlights, highlights.  Here’s where I sum up the jaw-dropping moments and plays that were worth rewinding for.

5.  SINCE I DO LIVE IN OHIO

As a Boilermaker fan raised in Michigan and now residing in Buckeye land, I’ll make sure to highlight some interesting storylines from the Big Ten (my hometown conference) each weekend.

6.  MAYBE COACHING/OFFICIATING IS EASIER THAN I THOUGHT

See section #2.  This is the category that could be named: “If I were a coach, I wouldn’t do:”.

Warning: ugly real-life examples of coaching error to follow.

(And don't worry, every once in a while, we'll give referees their turn in the spotlight.)

7.  EVEN THOUGH SEVENTEEN IS A RANDOM NUMBER

I am a college football pollster (in the amateur sense), voting for the “Top 17” teams on this site.   Each week here in “Carrying On”, I’ll provide a detailed look at my Top 17 ballot and why I ranked the teams the way I did. 

And yes, this is another section where the reader input comes in – I welcome your e-mails explaining why your team should crack the Top 17.  The first regular-season edition of Carrying On (this Sunday) will include my preseason ballot.

8.  COMING ATTRACTIONS

I don’t know why anyone would need a reason to be excited about the upcoming college football weekend.  But if you do, here’s three:

 a. “Worth buying a ticket for”:  a matchup that deserves the hype.

 b. “Heat check”:  this team is playing great, but faces a serious test.

 c. “Diamond in the rough”: the game you selected for an in-depth review. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

That’s it for Carrying On About College Football– unless we go to overtime.  Every so often, I’ll chip in an “Overtime” section with a few bonus thoughts and comments on the week that was. 

The rest is up to you.  I can amuse myself and a couple dozen readers for the next few months writing about college football…because I love it.  But I can also be relevant and interesting for thousands of you…if you take the time to debate my Top 17…tell me which Diamond in the Rough to look forward to…send in a quote from that play-by-play announcer you just love to mock…explain why you think Youngstown State will upset Penn State…or whatever. 

To submit thoughts, ideas, questions, arguments, or anything else for “Carrying On”, e-mail [e-mail]. Check out the first regular-season installment of COACF September 5. And thanks.  Interactive means YOU, not just me.  I can’t wait…

Tim Cary (yes, Cary…as in “Carrying on”) is a resident of Springfield, Ohio and a die-hard college football fan (especially when it comes to the Purdue Boilermakers).   Contact Tim at [e-mail] or @TimCary on Twitter.