Bleacher Report - Articles by Scott Taylor

A Stroll Through the College Football Schedule: ACC

Scott Taylor — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:47:26 -0400

The schedule in college football is vital—perhaps more so than any other sport.

With every week meaning so much, there are always the marquee games to look forward to.

Here is a look at the games of the week in the ACC. There are many of them, as many teams look to be in the running for the divisional crown, as was the case last year.

Week 1

Game(s) of the week: Miami @ Florida State, Alabama vs. Virginia Tech in Atlanta: The winner of the Miami/FSU game (on Monday night) will have the inside track in their respective division, but both teams face difficult schedules. VT needs a win over Alabama for conference respect and a nation title hope.

Other key games: Baylor @ Wake Forest and Maryland @ California: Wake and Maryland go for sweeps of BCS foes after they both won a year ago.

Week 2

Game of the week: Clemson @ Georgia Tech: The Thursday night game is the lone ACC game for the week and GT can’t afford a home loss.

Other key games: Stanford @ Wake Forest and TCU @ Virginia: More games for the ACC to get respect.

Week 3

Game of the week: Georgia Tech @ Miami: Another Thursday night game, a GT win could put it in great shape in the Coastal division. Miami is in midst of brutal start.

Other key games: Nebraska @ Virginia Tech, Florida State @ BYU and Boston College @ Clemson: Virginia Tech continues its difficult non-conference schedule with another biggie. If FSU can start 3-0, watch out. BC/Clemson may be an Atlantic elimination game early.

Week 4

Game(s) of the week: Miami @ Virginia Tech and North Carolina @ Georgia Tech: A pair of important early-season Coastal games. Miami starts with three brutal games, so a VT win will give it a leg up. The UNC/GT winner will be in prime shape to take down the champs.

Other key games: Wake Forest @ B.C. and South Florida @ FSU: If Wake wants to win the division, it needs this game against the two-time division champs.

Week 5

Game of the week: FSU @ B.C.: These two teams are developing a rivalry as FSU looks to take the reign from BC.

Other key games: Oklahoma @ Miami and Clemson @ Maryland: Miami’s brutal start comes to a close in its first non-conference game, while the Clemson/Maryland winner stays alive in Atlantic.

Week 6

Game of the week: Georgia Tech @ FSU: Cross-division showdown will be huge for both teams.

Other key games: B.C. @ Virginia Tech, Maryland @ Wake: BC/VT is repeat of past two conference championship games. VT won both, but BC won both regular season meetings. If FSU stumbles with its early schedule, Maryland and Wake can take advantage.

Week 7

Game of the week: Virginia Tech @ Georgia Tech: This game has quickly become a rivalry, as VT won last year to lead it to the title game instead of the other Tech.

Other key game: Wake @ Clemson: Wake needs this on the road, while Clemson could stay alive with a win.

Week 8

Game of the week: FSU @ UNC: Another tough game for the Seminoles, while UNC gets into meat of its schedule on Thursday night.

Other key game: Clemson @ Miami: Could be a game for bowl position, or to stay alive for division crown.

Week 9

Game of the week: UNC @ Virginia Tech: This Thursday night game will go a long way in deciding the Coastal division, as it did in the Hokies’ comeback win last year.

Other key games: N.C. State @ FSU and Miami @ Wake: Atlantic division favorites need ot hold serve at home.

Week 10

Game of the week: FSU @ Clemson: FSU has had its problems with the Tigers in recent years and a Clemson win could keep it in the hunt.

Other key games: Wake @ Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech @ East Carolina: Big non-divisional game for Wake and Tech, while Virginia Tech faces a Pirates team that beat it last year.

Week 11

Game of the week: FSU @ Wake: Likely the game of the year in the Atlantic division.

Other key games: Miami @ UNC and Clemson @ N.C. State: Both match-ups could have division title implications, but will likely at least have big bowl game implications.

Week 12

Game of the week: Maryland @ FSU: The Seminoles can’t look past Maryland.

Other key game: UNC @ B.C.: UNC might need a win for division crown.

Week 13

Game(s) of the week: North Carolina @ N.C. State and Virginia Tech @ Virginia: Road rivalry tests for Coastal division challengers.

Other key games: Wake @ Duke, Clemson @ South Carolina: Could be a tough division-clinching road game for Wake and Duke could need a win to be bowl eligible. Battle of South Carolina could be for bowl trip.

Ranking the Buckeyes Football Teams This Decade

Scott Taylor — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 14:58:58 -0400

Jim Tressel has led a resurgence for the Ohio State football program this decade. In his second year he made an impact in leading the Buckeyes to the national title. In all the Buckeyes have gone to six BCS bowls in Tressel's eight seasons. Ohio State has also made it to the championship three times this decade. The Buckeyes could arguably be the best program of the decade. But which of their teams are the best of the decade?

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Bush League? Not Tony Stewart, But Kyle Busch

Scott Taylor — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:33:23 -0400

JOLIET, Ill.—After Saturday night's race at Daytona, the big question on everybody's mind was if the crash Tony Stewart caused Kyle Busch to have was bush league.

The answer everyone had was no. Well, almost everyone.

Busch didn't think so and he let everyone know about it Thursday at Chicagoland Speedway when he called Stewart's nudge a "dump."

"I think NASCAR can take a step in looking at it (late wrecks), and if the second-place driver dumps'the leader,' then black flag him," Busch said at Thursday's press conference. "He doesn't get the win. If he is on him from behind and moves him out of the way and there is no wreck, than fine, he can win the race. But, if you are up alongside a guy and you dump him, than I say black flag him and give the win to the third-place guy. (Last week's race) would be considered a dump."

Wow, that was news to everyone in NASCAR, including Stewart, who had a 30-minute phone conversation with Busch two days prior.

Stewart, who already read the transcripts of the Busch interview a couple hours earlier, didn't want to talk about Busch's comments.

Rather, he simply mentioned his successful talk with the former teammate.

"I talked to Kyle on I guess it was Tuesday and had a good conversation with him," the Sprint Cup points leader said. "That is the conversation I am going off of. That is all I am going to talk about Kyle."

And that would be all he would say, despite a question about the black flag issue, where Stewart stayed calm, but let his words do the talking.

"No, I am not biting on your lure and you haven't been around here as long as most of these guys," Stewart told a press member. "They know I am not biting on it so I am damn sure not going to bite on yours. Sorry."

What did Busch think of the conversation between the two? Well, not much.

"I don't know what it means," Busch said of the phone call. "I really don't have feelings. It didn't mean a whole lot. I thank him for I guess checking up on me to make sure I was alive."

Busch doesn't have feelings? That is news to me. It sure sounds like his feelings are hurt because he didn't win Saturday and 95 percent of NASCAR fans love it.

It is pretty sad that he is the only guy who thinks Stewart did something wrong. Kyle's brother Kurt even said that Stewart couldn't help the wreck and that everyone would have done it the same way on both sides.

Another former teammate of Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon, shared similar feelings.

"I certainly would not say that he got dumped," Gordon stated. "This is stock car racing. We've got spotters and in stock car racing, if you have a half an inch of your bumper inside their rear bumper, then you expect them to know you are there because we have spotters. There were a lot of aggressive moves that went on there. I give credit to both for putting on one heck of a show until that happened. But I would put more blame on the guy leading, who is blocking, more so than I would the guy from behind."

Kyle Busch blaming himself? No way that happens. He is perfect. It is always someone else's fault. If Kyle had to balme someone this time, it should be his spotter, not Stewart.

Instead, Busch—like a high school prom queen nominee—threw a competitor under the bus. That man though isn't one to throw under the bus. His experience, success, honesty, integrity, and sorrow after the accident has nearly everyone on his side.

In the meantime, it has developed more of a disliking towards Busch.

In the end, it wasn't Stewart who made the Bush-league move, it was Kyle Busch.

UConn't Commit a Foul?

Scott Taylor — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:43:04 -0400

Last week, I predicted the only way UConn would beat Missouri would be thanks to free throws.

Unfortunately, I was right. The Huskies shot 32 freebies to the Tigers’ 12.

That is a huge discrepancy for a team who won by seven points.

Sure,

Mizzou couldn’t shoot from the outside and that didn’t help its cause, but UConn couldn’t make anything from the floor in the second half.

Free throws won the game. But that isn’t unusual.

For the year, the Huskies are 641-of-943 from the line. Opponents are 306-for-438 from the stripe.

There are a couple teams every year who shoot more than their opponents make, but 203 more? I have never seen that before.

To prove my point, I went on

Statsheet.com to look up some teams in the past decade plus who were known for getting calls (North Carolina and Duke, among others). I also looked up every champion during that time and many runners up.

In the Blue Devils’ runner-up year in 1999, they shot an amazing total of 1,135 free throws, making 800. Obviously, that ranked first in both categories.

However, they gave up 730 free throw attempts.

That equals to shooting 70 more free throws than their opponents attempted.

In UNC’s championship year of 2005, it went 724-of-998, both of which led the country.

It gave up 689 attempts, giving it a plus 35 total.

In 1998 with Antwan Jamison and Vince Carter, the Tar Heels went 666-for-937 from the line, with the most made and second most attempted.

They gave up 542 attempts, giving it a plus 122 made over attempts.

UConn’s championship team in 1999 was plus 31.

Arizona in 2001 and Kansas in 2003 were both in the plus 30 category, while last year’s UCLA team was plus 66.

The best I could find was that 1998 UNC team, until I looked up UConn’s total last year.

The Huskies were plus 147, shooting the fourth most amount in the country, while giving up just 509 attempts.

This year’s 943 attempts rank second in the nation, while ranking ninth in makes with 641.

Opponents shoot the third fewest in the country, while they make the second fewest.

That is 26.9 free throw attempts per game, to 12.5 for their opponents.

The Huskies make 10 more free throws a game than their opponents.

Normally when a team gets fouled a lot it is a physical game so the other team gets fouled too.

Dating back to 1997 at least, nobody was even close to being in the top five in both categories, and the only teams I could ever see a very small chance of that happening would be UCLA in the Wooden days and Duke in the early 1990s.

On top of the free throw disparity, UConn commits the fewest fouls per game in the country, by nearly two fouls per game!

That is incredible.

Sure, the Huskies shot-blocking prowess keeps opponents out of the lane a bit, but Mississippi State, who has nearly the same amount of blocks per game, commits four more fouls per game, so there goes that idea.

These numbers are just absurd and while commentators talk about the lack of fouls they commit, nobody brings up the ridiculous disparity.

They have won 11 games by fewer than 10 points over the course of the year. That tells you how dependent UConn is on the referees to win games. Even the Big East Conference stats are absurd.

In 18 games, the Huskies were 278-of-423, while their opponents were 148-of-206. All I can say is Wow!

In their four losses, the Huskies were 61-of-100 from the line, while opponents were 80-of-101.

That shows when UConn doesn’t get the calls, it has a hard time winning.

It can blame poor free-throw shooting in the losses as the attempts were virtually even.

How have the Huskies fared in the NCAA tournament?

Well, UConn is 89-of-128 in four games (that’s 32.5 attempts a game).

Opponents are 31-of-50 (that’s 12.5 free throws a game).

Granted, some of these attempts come during late-situation fouling, but when you win two games by more than 25 points, it isn’t much.

Perhaps the funniest thing I saw was the team who has shot the third most free throws on the year. It is Chattanooga.

It played UConn in the opening game of the tournament. UConn shot 39 freebies to 10 from the Mocs.

During the game, the Mocs only took two more three pointers than their average. One might say the athletic differential led to the disparity.Well, the Mocs opened the year with four straight tournament opponents: Missouri, Tennessee, Memphis and USC.

In those games they shot 95 freebies to their opponents 114. So, they averaged five less attempts per game than their powerhouse opponents. But 29? Come on.

It is amazing to see a team who leads the nation in blocks has such a foul disparity in their favor. Normally when you go for blocks, you commit fouls. Obviously, UConn always gets all ball. Or, the respect from officials.

You can argue with me all you want, but the stats back it up. That leads me to my Final Four picks. UConn is facing Michigan State in one semifinal.

With the Final Four in Detroit, the Spartans will have a home crowd, which should help balance out the fouls a bit. The game will likely be won on the glass.

Both are good rebounding teams, but Michigan State may be the best in the country, getting several second chances. It will be interesting to see how MSU can rebound against 7-foot-3, Hasheem Thabeet.

The Spartans also struggle shooting the ball at times, while UConn has a solid field-goal percentage defense, which makes offensive rebounding even more vital for Sparty.

In the end, I think the Huskies will use their length and the refs to prevail 78-68. The other semifinal features Villanova and North Carolina. The Tar Heels should be solid favorites, but Villanova has been red hot after an early tournament scare from American.

The Wildcats are solid throughout their line-up, but will need Scotty Reynolds to have a big game. As he goes, the team normally goes. North Carolina is back in the Final Four for the second straight year and Tyler

Hansbrough and company want that title. It seems like the Tar Heels are as healthy as they have been since very early in the year.

Villanova will have to contain Ty Lawson if it wants to win. While I think the Wildcat guards can keep UNC in check, there will be no answer for Hansbrough. North Carolina wins, 85-77.

A UConn-UNC final would be a great one.

It is hard to imagine UConn getting all the calls against the Tar Heels, which should make the game fair and compelling.

A couple of great battles feature Lawson against Connecticut guard A.J. Price and Hansbrough against Thabeet.

The challenge will be for the Tar Heels to score on the inside against Thabeet, or get him in foul trouble.

While I originally picket UNC to win it all, I had a change of heart last week and went with UConn heading into the Sweet 16. Well, they are both here, and I am going with UConn.

Coach Jim Calhoun has won two championships in as many Final Four appearances, with both regional titles in Arizona, five years apart. It has been another five years and UConn just won in Arizona.

Give me the Huskies, 77-71, but boy am I rooting against them. It would be funny, though, to watch them win the title and then give it back if the NCAA finds some wrong-doing in its current search.

Missouri Tigers: When Will They Get Respect?

Scott Taylor — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 13:02:17 -0400

What will it take for the University of Missouri men’s basketball team to get the respect it deserves?

Obviously, after a 102-91 victory over Memphis, a team that lost in the championship game a year ago, the Tigers still have to do more.

After the game, all of the talk was about the Duke-Villanova game and how Connecticut battled through adversity to beat Purdue.

Of course, there was also talk about Pittsburgh struggling, yet winning again and Memphis giving up 100 points.

But, it wasn’t about Missouri scoring 100 points. It wasn’t looking ahead to how Missouri could match up with UConn.

It was about how UConn will overcome adversity again to beat Mizzou.

On ESPN following the game, the crew of Rece Davis, Dick Vitale, Hubert Davis, and Digger Phelps talked about the Duke game for five minutes and the upcoming Big East battle.

Then Phelps and Vitale talked about UConn and its problems and overcoming those problems.

Finally, Davis, the most youthful and least known of the three, got a minute to talk about Missouri before break.

And, as he always does to steal the show and get the last word in, Vitale talked about how Memphis had no Hasheem Thabeet.

Basically, the Tigers have no chance because of him.

Well Dickie V, if you were watching any of the Mizzou game instead of sulking about your Dukies going down, you would have seen why there were so many open layups made.

The Tigers spread you out. Their big men, DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons, like to stay on the perimeter, which brought Robert Dozier out and opened up the middle.

Don’t you think the same thing will happen to Thabeet? Or is he so amazing that he will be able to stop dribble penetration and be able to help down low from the top of the key?

I don’t think so. That is why I picked Missouri in the Final Four to begin with.

Of course, the Tigers have no one to stop Thabeet on the other end.

However, the Huskies have shown little discipline throughout the year to get the ball inside to their big man to take advantage of the mismatches.

Will they be able to turn the light on now?

Memphis was able to show a great amount of discipline in the second half, taking the ball inside off the dribble time after time.

Can UConn do the same thing?

I am not saying that the Tigers are a lock by any means.

UConn is the much bigger team and should dominate the glass.

A.J. Price has skills like Tyreke Evans of Memphis and should be able to get inside.

Also, Thabeet will still be able to alter some shots when he is down low.

If UConn went zone, it would have a great chance.

The same can be said if Mizzou lets Thabeet stay down low in the man-to-man defense, while getting in foul trouble from guarding Thabeet.

The Huskies get to the free throw line as much as anyone and somehow few fouls are called on them.

Meanwhile, Missouri’s pressing physical style tends to draw a lot of whistles against it, so free throws and foul trouble could win the game for UConn.

However, it is going to come down to a battle of wills. Who wants it more is going to win the game.

The Tigers have a bunch of hungry players who scrap, claw, and wear their opponents down over the course of the game.

Over the past few years the Huskies have lacked that toughness, but showed it in the six-overtime game with Syracuse.

I will still say, though, that Mizzou has more heart.

Another thing the experts keep bringing up is the Huskies’ road.

I am sure you have all heard how they won the championship in 1999 and 2004 after being in the West regional.

Now, it is another West regional and another five years later, so it is an automatic, right?

Well, the experts can think that all they want, but the game is decided on the court.

Missouri can just keep sliding under the radar, while all of the talk leading up to the game can be about Thabeet and the possible recruiting violations for UConn.

The question now is if Missouri beats the Huskies, will it get some respect finally? Or will the UConn loss be blamed on distractions?

Just to be safe, Missouri better win it all, or else it should be prepared to get no respect.

Five Minute Guide to This Week's Conference Tournaments

Scott Taylor — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 14:27:05 -0400

The major conference tournaments are upon us!

It is the week where bubbles burst and other teams fit into Cinderella’s slipper, as underdogs dream of earning bids to the NCAA Tournament later this month.

It is also the time when storied programs make a run in their conference tournaments to solidify top seeds in each region.

Think back to last year, when Georgia came out of nowhere to win the SEC championship and steal an automatic berth.

Who will be this year’s Georgia and who are the teams to beat in each conference tournament?

Atlantic Coast Conference

Bubble game: No. 8 Virginia Tech vs. No. 9 Miami

The loser’s out, while the winner has a chance at playing No. 1 North Carolina. Miami has been underachieving all year, and Virginia Tech won in Miami earlier this year.

This year’s Georgia: No. 6 Boston College

While the Eagles are a win away from locking up a bid, they could make a dangerous run in the tournament as they have beaten UNC and Duke this year. They also avoid the Tar Heels until the final game.

Champion: No. 1 North Carolina

While I think it will be in for a fight in a couple games, North Carolina is a heavy favorite. The question will be how much it cares? If it does, the championship and No. 1 overall seed is the Tar Heels’.

Big East

Bubble game: No. 8 Providence vs. No. 9 Cincinnati or No. 16 DePaul; No. 8 Providence vs. No. 1 Louisville

Providence likely needs two wins to assure it an NCAA berth. A win over Cincy/DePaul would make it close, but beating the Cardinals would clinch it. (UPDATE: DePaul knocked off Cincinnati.)

This year’s Georgia: No. 12 Georgetown

You could choose Notre Dame, too, as both teams have greatly underachieved. However, Georgetown gets St. John’s, Marquette (no Dominic James) and Villanova (whom it beat on road) in its first three games.

Champion: No. 3 Connecticut

The Huskies pick and choose when they play, and the Big East Tournament is normally when they do. After losing to Pittsburgh twice this year, they will get revenge and beat whoever is left on the other end of the bracket.

Big Ten

Bubble games: No. 8 Minnesota vs. No. 9 Northwestern; No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 5 Ohio State

Minnesota needs the win to clinch a berth, while Northwestern needs to make a deep run. The Wisconsin-OSU winner will be in the dance, while the loser should be in as well, unless the game is a blowout.

This year’s Georgia: No. 7 Michigan

A bunch of teams could do the honors, but Michigan might have the best shot. After Iowa, it gets Illinois and Purdue. It has beaten both teams this year. It also avoids Michigan State until the finals.

Champion: No. 1 Michigan State

Despite a couple head-scratching conference losses, MSU has looked good against the top teams in the conference. If Sparty gets by the Minnesota-Northwestern winner, it should be golden.

Big 12

Bubble game: TBA vs. No. 4 Kansas State

The Wildcats need to advance to the finals to make the big dance. For that to happen, it would likely have to beat No. 5 Texas and No. 1 Kansas.

This year’s Georgia: No. 7 Oklahoma State

While the Cowboys are nearly locks, not much is expected out of them as the No. 7 seed. They just lost to Oklahoma by four at OU and will likely play them in a quarterfinal game with a game under their belt. The tournament is in Oklahoma City, and they won’t face Kansas until the final.

Champion: No. 7 Oklahoma State

I will go out on a limb here. I like the location and how the Cowboys match up with their opponents. Actually, whoever wins the battle of Oklahoma will win the title.

Mountain West

Bubble game: No. 4 San Diego St. vs. No. 5 UNLV

The winner will likely be in, the loser will be out. San Diego has swept UNLV, but UNLV will be hosting the tournament, as always.

This year’s Georgia: No. 5 UNLV

Hosting the conference tournament and winning at Louisville makes this an easy pick. However, the Runnin’ Rebels have struggled down the stretch.

Champion: No. 5 UNLV

With so many equal teams, the edge has to go to the home team. The Rebels will have some close exciting games, but I think they will pull it out.

Pac-10

Bubble game: No. 4 Arizona State vs. No. 5 Arizona

This is nearly a must-win game for Arizona as it is firmly on the bubble. The Wildcats have already been swept by ASU, and their RPI isn’t great.

This year’s Georgia: No. 7 Washington State

The Cougars have been strong of late, winning at UCLA and sweeping the Arizona schools. They will likely get another chance against UCLA—and if they win that game, watch out.

Champion: No. 2 UCLA

As many as seven teams can win the tournament, making it the most competitive of the bunch. The Bruins have looked much better in recent weeks, especially after losing to WSU.

SEC

Bubble games: Plenty

Florida, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Auburn are all on the bubble in a down year for the conference. A Florida-Auburn second-round game should loom large.

This year’s Georgia: No. 5 (East) Vanderbilt

Vandy has been playing much better of late, and a win over LSU proves that. In this conference, as was the case last year, anything can happen.

Champion: No. 2 (West) Auburn

The Tigers have been red-hot, winning nine of their past 10 games. If they get by Florida, they likely get Tennessee, a team they already beat. Conference champion LSU is on the other side of the bracket, and Auburn blew it out Saturday.

Atlantic 10

Xavier is the team to beat, but has been inconsistent down the stretch. Temple and Rhode Island were hot, until a couple head-scratching losses. This will be a crap-shoot in Atlantic City.

Taylor’s Take: Dayton

Conference USA

I would like to pick against Memphis, but it losing just isn’t going to happen. It must be nice to host the conference tournament every year. What a joke!

Taylor’s Take: Memphis

WAC

This is another conference that has a random home court. Reno hosts it a lot and that’s good news for Nevada. Utah State has had a great season, but still might have to win the championship to go to the NCAA tournament. The Aggies lost at Nevada last Saturday. Expect the same to happen again.

Taylor’s Take: Nevada

College Basketball Championship Week: Small Schools Have Plenty to Play for

Scott Taylor — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:03:44 -0500

Now that it is March, Championship Week is now upon us.

It begins Saturday, and over the next nine days 31 conference champions will be crowned and 34 others will enter the NCAA tournament as at-large entries.

While the major conference tournaments don’t start till next week, there will be plenty of excitement Saturday and beyond as small schools fight to get their ticket punched to the big dance as a 13-16 seed.

It is one of the few chances where small conferences get the spotlight, as every small school has the dream of being this year's George Mason or Davidson.

Here is what to expect in the mid and low major tournaments over the next week out of those conferences whose regular season is over with.

America East Conference

Vermont has been at the top of the conference for much of the decade, and this year hasn’t been any different.

However, the top rivals have changed as Binghamton comes in as the No. 1 seed and Boston U the No. 3.

The conference championship game is on March 14, nearly a week later than the semifinal round.

In the final, after two close losses, expect Vermont to get revenge on Binghamton, as the third time will be the charm on the road.

Champ: Vermont

Atlantic Sun

Belmont has been the top dog the past few years, and everyone remembers its near miss last year against Duke in the tournament.

This year the No. 3 seed will have to get by No. 2 East Tennessee State and No. 1 Jacksonville.

The Bruins will have the advantage of playing in their home town of Nashville, on top of their tournament experience.

It is hard to pick against Belmont with its recent success, and I think that will continue for one more year.

Champ: Belmont

Big Sky

Portland State went to its first NCAA tournament last year, and things were going well again this year after beating Gonzaga.

However, it got swept during the regular season by Weber State and now has to travel to Ogden for the semifinals and finals.

Weber State has lost just once in conference and has been dominant at home.

It is tough to beat a good team three times, but the home court of 10,000 fans will help the Wildcats Wednesday night in the championship game.

Champ: Weber State

Big South

Winthrop has owned this conference throughout the 2000s, but this year’s team isn’t the same.

For much of the season it looked like Virginia Military would be the team to beat, but Radford surged late to get the No. 1 seed and will play at home as long as it is in the tournament.

No. 3 Liberty could also be a threat to VMI in the semifinals, but look for a Radford-VMI showdown.

VMI has come close before this decade with its up-and-down style, and this year should be the year the Runnin' Rods break through, even on the road.

Champ: VMI

Colonial

This conference has been strong of late, thanks to George Mason’s Final Four run in 2006 and Virginia Commonwealth’s upset of Duke in 2007.

The ringleader of that team for No. 1 VCU is still there in Eric Maynor.

As the top seed last year, the Rams were upset before the final, allowing George Mason to win the title.

The race this year has been crazy, and as many as seven teams have a chance at pulling off a run.

With all of the upsets that have occurred during the regular season, it is hard not to see one coming.

However, the top two teams should advance to the final, where VCU will get the best of Mason in a classic Monday night.

Champ: VCU

Horizon

This has been Butler’s league for much of the decade, and the road will go through Hinkle Fieldhouse again this year.

However, Butler looks much more vulnerable as it has lost a home game to No. 8 Loyola and just got by No. 3 Cleveland State Saturday.

Expect to see a rematch between the Bulldogs and Vikings Tuesday, with Butler winning for the third time this year in another close game.

Champ: Butler

Metro Atlantic

The MAAC is set up for a great championship game Monday between No. 1 Siena and No. 2 Niagara.

Niagara beat Siena Friday at home, but the conference tournament will be played on Siena’s court.

The only team who could stop this game from happening is No. 3 Rider, who would play Niagara in the semifinals and beat Siena earlier in the year.

The top two seeds should advance though, and it should be one of the best games of championship week.

In the end the Saints will go marching on, looking to repeat last year’s NCAA performance of a first round upset.

Champ: Siena

Missouri Valley

What used to be a three or four-bid league earlier in the decade has turned into a likely one-bid year this season.

The only hope for an at-large comes from No. 2 Creighton, who is red hot.

However, I think it will fall in the semifinals to No. 3 Illinois State in a rematch from Saturday.

On the other end, No. 1 Northern Iowa has struggled of late, and No. 4 Bradley could pull off the upset.

ISU takes advantage to win the tournament Sunday, while Creighton awaits a week for Selection Sunday.

Champ: ISU

Northeast

In a top-heavy conference, it should come down to the top three seeds (Robert Morris, Mount St. Mary’s, and Sacred Heart).

The home court throughout should help Robert Morris move through and punch its ticket for the big dance Wednesday.

Champ: Robert Morris

Ohio Valley

No. 2 Austin Peay and No. 3 Murray State have taken many of these titles, but they will both be looking up at No. 1 Tennessee-Martin.

UTM has been red hot of late and has one of the top scorers in the country in Lester Hudson.

Expect that to be enough to squeak through to a tournament title Saturday.

Champ: Tennessee-Martin

Patriot

No. 1 American looks to repeat as conference champs, while No. 2 Holy Cross appears to be the only team in it way.

The home court should help rally American to its second tournament berth in school history.

Champ: American

Southern

This tournament sets up to be an interesting one as No. 1 Davidson no longer is a mortal lock.

Expect it to get challenges from The Citadel and College of Charleston, both of whom beat the Wildcats this year.

In the end, Stephen Curry will lead Davidson back to the tournament, but don’t expect the same success.

Champ: Davidson

Summit

It has been all Oral Roberts the past few years, but there was a changing of the guard this year.

North Dakota State comes in as heavy favorites in its first year of postseason eligibility.

Look for it to win the conference Tuesday and punch its first big dance ticket.

Champ: North Dakota State

Sun Belt

Top-seeded Western Kentucky holds the banner for the conference after a Sweet 16 appearance a year ago.

Things won’t be as easy this year, as it doesn’t have three starters from that team.

Still, it beat Louisville early in the year and is the clear favorite to win the tournament on Tuesday.

Champ: WKU

West Coast

For the first time the conference tournament will be played in Las Vegas instead at a host school.

That should give Gonzaga an even bigger advantage after going through the conference season unbeaten.

St. Mary’s could play a spoiler, but will need star guard Patty Mills back to do so.

Expect another title Monday for the Zags.

Champ: Gonzaga

Is The Big East The Beast? Not Quite

Scott Taylor — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 16:13:56 -0500

If you turn on ESPN, chances are you have heard that the Big East is far and away the best college basketball conference in the country.

While it may arguably be the best, it is clearly not dominant, the way ESPN hypes it.

In other words, it isn’t the Beast.

Last year half of the teams (eight) made the NCAA Tournament.

Despite the large number, only one (Louisville) made the Elite Eight, and there were no Final Four teams.

This year there are four teams in the top 10 and eight teams in the top 25.

That makes it sound like an awesome conference, but it also has the most teams in any conference with 16 teams.

Having half of the teams in the top 25 is a very impressive feat, but two or three of those teams are only there because they are in the Big East conference.

With all of the good teams in the conference, there are several bad teams. South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. John's, and Cincinnati are all below average teams.

How can a conference be that good with all of these teams in it?

Sure, anything can happen come March, and the Big East does have a few teams capable of making a deep run, but none of those teams are dominant.

A case and point is the non-conference slate. For as good as this conference is supposed to be, they sure don’t play much out of conference.

Here are the top teams the Big East has beaten this year: Wisconsin twice, Memphis twice, Texas, Miami, Gonzaga, Kansas, Florida, Kentucky, Ohio State, and UNLV.

Outside of Texas and maybe Memphis, there isn’t much there to brag about.

Now here are the best teams the conference has lost to:

Tennessee (twice), Duke, North Carolina, Texas, Minnesota, UNLV, Xavier, Dayton, Baylor, Saint Mary's, Kentucky, Davidson, and Ohio State.

While there wer at least a couple games against top teams, most of these losses are against mid-majors. The glaring team there is Tennessee, which has been called overrated, yet is 2-0 against the daunted Big East, including a win over first place Marquette.

Let's also add that Louisville had three losses out of conference to unranked foes at the time (two neutral court and one at home), but are steamrolling through the Big East.

A team that hasn’t contributed to either of these lists is Pittsburgh, whose best win was at Florida State by eight.

No wonder why they can’t make it deep in the NCAAs.

Syracuse probably has the best resume, beating Memphis on the road and Kansas and Florida at neutral sites. However, it lost at home to Cleveland State (4-5 in Horizon League).

By no means is this an outstanding conference.

Just because they beat up on mid and low majors early in the season and beat up on each other with a lot of evenly matched teams, it doesn’t make it awesome.

Again, I am not arguing there aren’t a lot of good teams in the conference. There are nine very solid clubs which could beat nearly anyone on a given night.

They just don’t play those teams, and they can also lose to a lot of teams, too.

While it makes for several great match-ups a week, there are still those other games that will be blowouts. If you cut the league down to a normal 12 teams, by taking two from the top eight and two from the bottom, you will have a slightly better, if at all better than the ACC.

The Big East needs to stop getting praised for all these conference losses. It is a ridiculous perception.

The fact that Georgetown and Notre Dame are in the top 25 with six losses each and Tennessee does not have a vote with six losses is ludicrous.

The Vols are 2-0 against the Big East and lost to teams in the same level that the Big East teams lost to (Gonzaga twice, Memphis, Kentucky, Kansas, Temple), but have beaten a Big East team in Marquette that no one in the conference has been able to beat.

Just because the SEC has a bad view this year, people won’t vote for them, rather than looking at their body of work. They automatically think six overall losses in the Beast is better than six losses in the SEC.

When you don’t go out and play tough non-conference games, that isn’t the case.

Case in point: Arkansas. It gave Oklahoma its only loss and beat Texas the next week. However, it is 0-4 in conference play.

Hmm, maybe the SEC isn’t all that bad.

In the end though, the likes of ESPN and other outlets will brainwash people to believe what they do. After all, they want those big ratings on Big Monday.

Until the Big East wins another championship or at least beats a premier team, it has no reason to be named the Beast.

What's the Root Problem for the Tennessee Volunteers?...Lack of Toughness

Scott Taylor — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:08:15 -0500

When I saw the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team earlier in the year at the Old Spice Classic, I thought it might be better than last year’s team, especially after the win over Georgetown.

Even after the loss to Gonzaga, I thought the Vols were the real deal.

Then came a blowout loss to Temple in which they couldn't guard or shoot from the outside.

They followed it up with a win over Marquette—giving me hope.

Now, they are in the midst of losing three of their last four games—two of them at home to unranked teams (although both are solid).

There are many things wrong with this squad but the problems all center on one thing— toughness.

In the past few years, the Vols still had some Buzz Peterson recruits who were as tough as nails.

Dane Bradshaw was the glue that held the team together—diving for loose balls and playing with a banged-up shoulder.

Chris Lofton was one of the biggest competitors that you will ever see, especially when everyone found out that he was playing with cancer.

Although JaJuan Smith wasn’t the smartest player in the world, he knew what it took to win games at crunch time.

When I was watching the game against Kentucky, I realized this team has a bunch of wimps outside of Tyler Smith.

There were multiple times during the game when a UT player would be grabbing himself with some kind of injury and would show extreme pain on his face.

If you don’t go to the bench (which they didn’t), it can’t be that bad.

These guys are some of the softest guys I have ever seen.

They don’t dive for loose balls very often, they don’t play tough in-your-face defense, and outside of Smith, no one wants to take it to the rim.

With all of the athleticism these guys have, they all want to sit outside and shoot three-pointers all day.

Memo to Vols players: You can’t shoot!

Scotty Hopson has to be one of the most overrated recruits ever. He can’t shoot very well with his rain-making shots, doesn’t penetrate, or play defense.

Renaldo Woolridge has also been a major disappointment and is barely getting any playing time.

What has been a Top 10 recruiting class has turned into a major bust.

It didn’t help when point guard Daniel West was ruled academically ineligible but that is the type of player that Bruce Pearl is recruiting.

They are a bunch of prima donnas who are looking forward to the NBA rather than winning in college.

It didn’t surprise me when Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson said the Vols were still talking trash to them at the end of the game.

They don’t care about winning. If they did, they wouldn’t have let Jodie Meeks score 54 points against them in their house.

Someone should have taken it as a challenge defensively, but they are all looking to get the ball back so that they can shoot a three on the other end.

One can actually see why they lose the games—it is three-point shooting.

The Vols give up threes at a 37 percent clip. That is ridiculous!

Meanwhile, they shoot the long-range shot at a meager 30 percent rate and shoot 45 percent from the floor.

One-third of their shots are three-pointers, which is a crazy thought when you consider there is no Lofton or Smith. Only one player who has taken at least 10 outside shots is over 33 percent (Hopson), and the team is shooting 53 percent from inside the arc!

This team has no business shooting more than 10 threes a game, let alone the 22 they average!

Pearl is known for letting his players play, but this is getting out of control and he has to rein them in a bit.

Other than that, the offense has not been the problem.

Defensively, Pearl has to get his press to work. There is no excuse for it not to.

He has much better athletes now than he has ever had, yet they are not buying into the playing defense thing and it's not working.

If they can get the press to work, they will be all right. If not, things aren’t going to get any better.

With all the talent Pearl brought in, this team is doomed to fail.

They don’t play smart basketball, they aren’t tough, don’t play defense, aren’t disciplined on either side of the ball, and don’t have a single pure shooter.

In this day and age of college basketball, you have to have a shooter to spread out the defense.

Instead, teams can zone them all day long—knowing they can give up the occasional three because Tennessee will settle for it way too much rather than penetrate.

There is still plenty of time left for the Vols to turn it around, and the potential is there for another Sweet 16 run and possible SEC championship.

But things won’t get any better until they decide to suck it up and play some basketball.

College Football Playoff Bracket Still Has Florida-Oklahoma Final

Scott Taylor — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 05:06:54 -0500

The past few years I have been using my own college football playoff system. I have tweaked it to stay consistent with the BCS.

It used to consist of eight teams, but since the BCS moved up to 10 teams, I have moved the playoff system up to 10 as well.

Each of the six BCS conference champions make the playoffs with four at-large teams.
Seeds will be determined based on BCS ranking.

Here is what you would get:

Opening round: No. 10 Virginia Tech @ No. 7 Texas Tech:

The Hokies had a down season, but still managed to win the lowly ACC.

The Red Raiders have had one of their best seasons and were one of the tri Big 12 South champions.

Virginia Tech’s defense wouldn’t know what hit them when finally playing against a top offense.

Taylor’s Take- Texas Tech 35-17

No. 9 Cincinnati @ No. 8 Penn State:

This game would likely be closer that everyone would think.

The Bearcats will hang around thanks to their smart play on offense and solid defense, but the athletes at Penn State would make the difference in the end.

Taylor’s Take- Penn State 27-21

The second round is set up at four bowl sites, higher seeds play closer to home.

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 8 PSU @ Cotton Bowl:

In a classic matchup of top teams from the 1980s, this version would be quite different with the spread offenses.

The Oklahoma offense has been unstoppable, while PSU has had some struggles towards the end of the season.

Taylor’s Take- OU 38-24

No. 4 Alabama vs. No. 5 USC @ Sugar Bowl:

This has the makings of a great defensive game featuring two of the country’s best. The big question would be which offense would get on track.

A big advantage for USC is that it hasn’t gotten beat up by SEC teams all year. In the end they will prevail.

Taylor’s Take- USC 23-20

No. 2 Florida vs. No. 7 Texas Tech @ Capital One Bowl:

The Gators will fuel off the energy from playing close to home, while Tech realizes its harder to score against all that speed.

The Red Raiders score enough to keep them in the game, but their turnovers will cost them the game in the end.

Taylor’s Take- Florida 37-27

No. 3 Texas vs. No. 6 Utah @ Holiday Bowl:

Chances are this game won’t be competitive after halftime.

Utah’s solid defense might be able to get some stops early, but there is far too much firepower on the other side of the field and not enough on its own. Remember, this team barely bit Michigan. How good can they be?

Taylor’s Take- Texas 31-13

This sets up another one of those all-world semifinal match-ups.

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 4 USC @ Fiesta Bowl:

Because Oklahoma is the higher seed, it gets the Fiesta Bowl rather than the Rose Bowl, which is in USC’s backyard. However, the Sooners haven’t had much luck in the Fiesta Bowl the past two years.

The two teams are much more even than they were in 2004 when they met for the national title and the game will be much closer.

The third time will be the charm for the Sooners as USC just doesn’t have enough offense.

Taylor’s Take- OU 27-21

No. 2 Florida vs. No. 3 Texas @ Rose Bowl:

In what should be the championship game, we are treating to one heck of a semifinal game. Both teams have stud quarterbacks who are the key to their offenses, while both teams have a much better defense than a year ago.

You can throw out the defense when these two teams hook it up because the game will hit the 30s (before overtime). In the end, a healthy Percy Harvin is the difference.

Taylor’s Take- Florida 49 Texas 42, 2 OT

As much as I didn’t want it to be, the national championship will feature the same teams that are included now. However, the best two teams met in the semifinal.

Also, it would be much more exciting to see all of the other games as there is always a possibility of an upset. At least all of the deserving teams would have a chance to play for a championship.

No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 2 Florida @ Orange Bowl:

Well, since this is the actual championship game, you can find out the winner for yourself. However, that won't be as fun because then you can’t rip me for being wrong. I don’t see this game being a blowout. Both teams have too good of an offense for that to happen. The difference will likely come on special teams and in turnovers.

The Florida defense and special teams has put the offense in great shape throughout the year with big returns by Brandon James.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma has had a very shaky special teams unit, meaning the Gators will get a lot of short fields.

Taylor’s Take- Florida 37 Oklahoma 34

A Playoff Would Make the Regular Season Better, Not Worse

Scott Taylor — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 08:12:57 -0500

One of the reasons why those pro-BCS people don’t want a playoff is because they say it would make the regular season less important.

In other words, every game now counts, and, otherwise, the need to win every game is less important if there is a playoff.

This year, I have found this to be a totally untrue statement.

I have lost a lot of interest in college football this year because of a lack of big games, along with my teams (Missouri, Tennessee) out of the national championship picture.

However, this would be totally different with a playoff.

If there were a 10-team playoff (which I have suggested for years), then Missouri would still be alive, especially with the Big 12 Championship game looming.

That would also set up for some big games down the stretch, such as Georgia and Georgia Tech, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, and the ACC Championship Game.

Instead, most people don’t care about these games.

Georgia would have to win the game to possibly make the playoffs.

Instead, as a non-conference game to end the season, people outside of the state of Georgia don’t care who wins.

The Michigan State at Penn State game may decide who goes to the Rose Bowl. Who cares?

Now, if it decided who was going to be in the playoff, now you have some dramatics.

I know that conference title mean a lot, but it is all about winning the national title, and, right now, there are only a few teams who could win it.

Imagine the Utah at BYU winner getting into the playoffs rather than just making a BCS game.

The games the last few weeks are so bland because most teams are only playing for a bowl game.

What if the Bedlam game between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State was to get into the playoffs, with the loser going to a regular bowl game? Now that adds to a rivalry.

As it is, the game may be big for Oklahoma if it beats Texas Tech, but as much as OSU will want to keep OU from a title, the win won’t get it back in the title hunt.

Then there was the LSU game last week. A great comeback and it means nothing. Now, with a playoff, that win keeps hope alive for a possible playoff push.

LSU plays Ole Miss on CBS this week. What is the point of watching the game now? I don’t care if the Rebels make a bowl game. Chances are I won’t be watching it anyway.

The high amount of bowls and an added game against a cupcake team have made getting bowl eligible a complete joke.

Then there is Florida State at Maryland, a big game in the ACC.

Rather than just playing to get to the conference championship game and a BCS bid, they would be playing for a potential playoff spot.

I don’t know about you, but that peeks my interest quite a bit.

I am a big fan of those mid-major conference championship games in basketball because the game means so much, even though the winner will likely lose.

It is about the excitement.

I know there is an opposite point to me story, namely the Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech and Florida vs. Alabama games.

Right now, the first game is huge, as was the previous two games for Tech.

But, in a playoff, both teams likely wouldn’t make it anyway with Texas there too, so the game would be just about as big.

Chances are both Alabama and Florida would both make it into the playoff no matter who loses the SEC Championship Game, so the dramatics of that game wouldn’t be as high.

However, if the winner got the home-field advantage, while the loser had to go on the road and didn’t get a bye week, then it is still a pretty big game.

Also, if one of the teams were to lose to their rivals a week before the game, the game would again be huge for both if fighting for a playoff berth.

I am just not seeing how the college game would be ruined by the playoff system and the regular season would be “meaningless.”

Right now, for many fans, the regular season is meaningless to 114 out of the 120 Bowl Subdivision teams.

If there were a playoff, you could add at least 10 more teams to that list, but a higher amount of teams trying to ruin a rival’s season.

Who would want that though?

Lets put all our eggs in one basket so there is one big game a week and 50 games that mean next to nothing.

Is College Football Now a Non-Contact Sport?

Scott Taylor — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 08:35:04 -0400

After watching college football all day on Saturday, I was disgusted with the high number of personal foul penalties I saw.

It started right away with the big Texas-Oklahoma game. There were three brutal personal foul penalties that greatly affected the outcome.

There were two fouls against Oklahoma on quarterback Colt McCoy as he was going out of bounds. In both cases, the defender (who was the same on both plays) tried to keep McCoy up as he slipped to the ground (on the Texas sideline), bringing out the hankies.

Then there was the phantom "running into the kicker" penalty against Texas on a total flop by the punter, prolonging a drive that resulted in a touchdown.

These kinds of things just can’t happen in big games.

Later in the day, I saw Tennessee get hit with two personal foul penalties for helmet-to-helmet hits, one of which wasn’t even helmet-to-helmet. I don’t understand how you can play defense with having to worry about how you hit an opponent.

The same thing occurred in the Missouri game, where they laid out Dez Bryant twice and the second was called (by the OSU bench, of course).

I have also seen several roughing the passer penalties the past few years on plays where a defender tries to bat the ball down, misses, and hits the QB on the head with his arm.

How this can be dangerous and cause a concussion is beyond my belief, which is why the QB is always fine after these plays. An arm coming down on a helmet will do no more than give the QB a headache. Unless it was flagrant, it shouldn’t be a penalty.

With all the talk about spread offenses being the reason for all of the points scored, a lot of it has to be attributed to a cautious defense worried about making a penalty and all those personal foul penalties giving opponents cheap yards.

I understand protecting players from concussions and career-ending injuries, and I am all for protecting a player from a flagrant hit. But when a defender is simply trying to break up a play, there is no need to throw a flag. Chances are they aren’t headhunting, unless it is over the middle and well after the throw (see Rodney Harrison).

Football is supposed to be a contact sport, which means injuries are a part of the game. You can’t try to avoid them by making all kinds of rules. If you are that worried about injuries, don’t play football—or better yet, make college football a flag football league.

I love college football. It is my favorite sport to watch for numerous reasons. But what officials are doing to the game is ruining it, and I am not going to be the only one turned off.

I made a joke to my dad that my favorite sport is hockey now because it is still a contact sport. To be honest, it is not far off right now and closing the gap quickly. The true tough guys are out there losing teeth and playing with injuries that football players wouldn’t dream of playing with.

This isn’t a dis at football players at all. It isn’t their fault that those in charge are trying to soften them up. I am sure that many wish it was like it used to be (especially on defense).

As for me, if I want to watch good, hard-nosed football, I will have to turn on ESPN Classic and go back to the 1990s.

In the end, the NCAA is going the way the country is: trying to protect everyone, especially the defenseless.

I thought I could turn to sports to get away from the real world. Not anymore.

Which Conference Is Better, Big 12 or SEC?

Scott Taylor — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:02:38 -0400

Before the year started, I thought that the Big 12 would give a good battle to the SEC as the nation’s top conference, despite my love for the SEC. So far, I have been proven right.

With all of the other conferences being pretty bad, I figured to compare the two conferences, team by team, to see who is better. They are ranked based on their national rankings—at the top at least.

1. Oklahoma vs. Alabama

This is a great game that would be one heck of a championship game. The Sooners win out at every position on offense, led by quarterback Sam Bradford. They have put up a bundle of points every week. The running game is solid on both ends, but John Parker Wilson is inconsistent. The edge on defense goes to Alabama, slightly.

Both coaches have won a championship and are two of the best in the business. I still don’t think Bama is as good as it has looked.

Predicted score: 31-27 OU

2. Missouri vs. LSU

This game sets up perfectly for Mizzou. While it would struggle with many other teams' passing games, Mizzou plays well against the run, and LSU has no passing game. It would be really fun to see if LSU’s defense could stop the Mizzou offense. If there is one team that could, it is LSU.

In a battle of Tigers, it would likely come down to the wire. In a close game, I like Chase Daniel making a big play.

27-24 Mizzou

3. Texas vs. Florida

Thinking about Florida losing last year to Michigan, I see no reason why Texas couldn’t beat them. I haven’t watched a full Texas game, but I have liked what I have seen. Meanwhile, Florida has been stuck in the mud for the most part and struggled with Arkansas much more than Texas did.

I think Colt McCoy would have a solid day against the UF defense, while Tebow still hasn’t shown his potential from last year. The Texas defense would probably be the wild card in the game. While I think Florida might have more potential, right now the edge goes with the Horns.

34-27 Texas

4. Texas Tech vs. Georgia

I changed UGA and Florida around on accident, but all four of the teams are so close to each other in the polls, it doesn’t really matter. UGA’s defense would be put to the test by an offense that it has never seen before. Meanwhile, Tech is used to playing against pass-happy teams, rather than the balance that the Bulldogs have.

Tech has had problems historically scoring against athletic defenses, which Georgia has. I think that will be the difference in the game.

31-24 Georgia

5. Kansas vs. Vanderbilt

Here is a real interesting game. Which team is for real? Probably neither, but Vanderbilt didn’t struggle to beat Iowa State. Both teams just seem to find a way to win, but the motto is defense wins championships. The Vandy defense is good enough to contain the Jayhawks, and its offense will score just enough points to win.

23-20 Vanderbilt

6. Oklahoma State vs. Auburn

Here is a battle of spread offenses—yeah right. As long as the Auburn offense is in the spread, it doesn’t win this game. The Tigers probably have the best defense in the country, but the offense has been brutal.

The Cowboys haven’t been tested yet the way Auburn has (that will change this week), but they have an awesome offense that will put up some points. I think Tommy Tuberville will come to his senses and realize that his RBs would gut OSU. It is hard to score 20 points on Auburn without help from your defense.

24-20 Auburn

7. Colorado vs. Kentucky

The way Colorado looked Saturday compared to the way UK looked makes this game look fairly lopsided. The Wildcats just don’t have a good enough offense to make this game a gimmie.

It is also hard for me to believe that the Buffaloes are as bad as they have looked the past two weeks. Remember, they nearly beat Alabama last year. Still, UK’s defense will dominate this game.

20-13 Kentucky

8. Nebraska vs. South Carolina

The South Carolina loss to Vanderbilt doesn’t look nearly as bad as it did. Also, the Gamecocks played Georgia much better than Nebraska played Missouri. It should be an interesting game this week with SC and UK. Sorry, looking ahead. That is how much of a yawner this game would be.

30-16 Carolina

9. Texas A&M vs. Tennessee

A battle between storied programs that have fallen apart. A&M lost to Arkansas St., while the Vols barely beat Northern Illinois. At least they didn’t lose that game. Even the Aggie defense is bad. The Vols at least have a good D.

21-10 Vols

10. Kansas St. vs. Mississippi

The Rebels won at Florida, while the Wildcats got smoked at home by Texas Tech. That is just about all I need to know.

35-23 Ole Miss

11. Iowa State vs. MSU

I don’t know if anyone would watch the game. The first team that scores will probably win.

7-5 MSU

12. Baylor vs. Arkansas

I don’t remember the last time an SEC team was this bad. It was expected though with Casey Dick at the helm. I actually like Baylor in this one.

24-17 Baylor

There you have it. When you look closely, the SEC is still probably the best conference top to bottom. The Big 12 seems to be top heavier, but there just aren’t many gimmies in the SEC.

There have been a lot of conference matchups this year between the Big Ten and Pac-10, as well as Big East and ACC. I would like to see the same thing between these conferences. How about a preseason slate of these games?

Taylor's Take on the Week That Was in College Football: Week Four

Scott Taylor — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 09:58:36 -0400

Week Four of the college football season brought few surprises and few great games. There also were a lot of poorly played games (see the ACC).

Here are my thoughts from Week Four.

ACC

Why is Florida State over-hyped every year? Last year the Seminoles were hyped up because of the coaching changes, and they still fell flat on their faces. This year there was mixed speculation, but after beating up on two I-AA teams they found themselves back in the top 25.

All I heard about on the preview shows was their strong quarterback play in Christian Ponder and how the Wake Forest defense needed to be ready. The experts were right about that. The secondary had to be ready to catch all those passes thrown to them by the FSU quarterbacks.

Wake made several mistakes of its own, and FSU could not take advantage. The matchup of two of the best teams in the conference shows how bad the conference is.

Virginia Tech is on its way to another division championship after beating Georgia Tech and UNC the past two weeks. The Hokies should be thanking the refs for both those wins.

Two crucial, questionable penalties were called against the Yellow Jackets on the Hokies’ final scoring drive. North Carolina then had 14 penalties for 121 yards, while Tech had just four for 21 yards. That sure sounds fair to me.

On top of the refs giving Tech the advantage, the Hokies found luck in both games thanks to injury. Jonathan Dwyer was hurt for Georgia Tech and didn’t play much in the second half, while T.J. Yates of UNC got injured with the Heels up. I guess it is better to be lucky than good.

Big Ten

I am still wondering about the hype surrounding Terrelle Pryor. I know he will be a great player, but throwing four touchdown passes and scoring a whole 28 points against Troy isn’t something to be bragged about—yet he is.

I want him to do something special against a good team like Penn State or Wisconsin before I call him the next Vince Young. Another performance like that against Minnesota doesn’t count.

Penn State continues to dominate early in the season and looks to be the best in the conference. Too bad it has to travel to OSU and Wisky.

I can’t remember the last time a team has been so dependent on a single player at the running back position the way Michigan State is with Javon Ringer. He will likely be worn out for those crucial Big Ten games.

Big 12

There wasn’t too much prime action going on in the Big 12 Saturday. The big game was Colorado’s win over West Virginia. Dan Hawkins looks like he is bringing the Buffs back onto the national stage, especially with the freshman RBs.

Missouri played a sloppy game on offense with three turnovers and gave up a kickoff return for a touchdown. It still won by 21 points and scored 42. The only team stopping the Tigers will be themselves this year.

Big East

Things can’t get much worse for the conference, but at least Louisville beat Kansas State. West Virginia doesn’t look nearly as good as it did under Rich Rodriguez. There is still enough talent to win the pathetic conference, but South Florida might be the current favorite, although it hasn’t looked overly impressive either. How about UConn?

Rutgers has fallen off the face of the earth without Ray Rice, which shows how much he meant to the passing game as well. Mike Teel is a bad QB without Rice.

Some people got on my case about me picking the Cardinals second in the conference, saying how I had no clue about college football. Right now there is nothing that has made me change my mind about that the Cardinals given how bad the conference has looked, but we will see.

Pac-10

The Pac-10 has horribly embarrassed itself the past few weeks, and I don’t hear much about their fans anymore. UCLA’s win over Tennessee was clearly an aberration as the Bruins have looked brutal the past two weeks, losing to an Arizona team that got beat by New Mexico. Ouch!

I am still trying to figure out the second-best team in the conference, but after Oregon’s loss to Boise State, I have no idea. Arizona State is pretty bad after losing two straight home games. California got beat by Maryland after smoking Washington State. Oregon State has already lost to Penn State and a Stanford team that got smoked by ASU.

Right now I am going to go with Arizona because that offense is tough if it doesn’t commit stupid turnovers the way it did at New Mexico.

The non-conference slate goes to show you that defense wins championships, not offense, and all the Pac-10 has is offense (except USC of course).

SEC

All I can think about is Vanderbilt being 4-0, 2-0 in the SEC! It looks a lot better than I thought it would, that is for sure. The win at Ole Miss is a good win, especially with how well the Rebels played at Wake Forest, the best team in the ACC.

I turned on ESPN after Tennessee got beat up by Florida, and I heard the experts say that the Vols got dominated. I was wondering if they were watching the game. UT outgained Florida, kept Tim Tebow in check, and moved the ball up and down the field on the Gators, although at a slow pace.

Florida hardly dominated the game. The Vols just couldn’t tackle on special teams and couldn’t get out of their own way on offense. It had nothing to do with the Gators. If they didn’t self-destruct so much due to poor execution and bad coaching, the game would have been very close and the Vols probably would have won.

Phil Fulmer’s seat is getting hotter the more games that he gets out-coached. Let's see what Tommy Tuberville does to him this week.

Speaking of the Auburn coach, what another exciting Tiger bowl that took place. I still don’t know how LSU won that game when it looked dead for much of it and had to battle back against one of the best defenses around. All of the talent for LSU, especially on defense, is making up for its struggling QBs.

If this team still had Ryan Perrilloux, we would be talking about another championship. Even so, it still isn’t out of the question. The game with Georgia should be great.

What a Surprise: Phil Fulmer Out-Coached in Tennessee Defeat

Scott Taylor — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 10:38:21 -0400

Normally when a team loses to UCLA, it isn’t a big deal.

That isn’t the case for Tennessee after losing to UCLA Monday night. That is because UCLA was down to its third string at many positions on offense and had a young offensive line.

Even with these problems, I still thought the Bruins would be able to hang in the game with their defense. But even during the game, I was never worried about the Vols losing until they scored a touchdown with two minutes left, which left too much time for that potent offense.

All of the talk before the game was about how good the secondary of Tennessee was. That had me scratching my head after an average performance a year ago, and I was right.

Sure, the Vols have a great safety combination, but the cornerbacks are weak, especially without a suspended Brett Vinson. They proved how bad they were when they consistently gave the UCLA receivers five yards to catch short passes and make Kevin Craft look like a Heisman quarterback.

That leads me to the big conclusion of the game: The Vols were out-coached. With supreme talent, that is basically the only way they could lose the game.

The intensity just wasn’t there throughout the game, and it looked like the Vols took UCLA lightly.

I have given Phil Fulmer the benefit over the years because he won a national title—but I have had enough of him now. This turned into another prime example of being a bad coach when he is favored.

No one expected the Vols to win in 1998 after Peyton Manning left and the Vols won. With everyone back in '99, it looked like the Vols could repeat until a collapse at Arkansas.

Tennessee was a 16-point underdog to Florida in 2001 and did the unthinkable by winning in the Swamp. It turned around the next week as the heavy favorite and lost to LSU.

The Vols started No. 3 in 2002 and 2005 and lost five and six games, respectively. They were an afterthought in 2004 and '07 and won the SEC East, including upset wins over UGA both years.

This leads me to believe that the Vols will still be all right this year flying under the radar in the SEC, especially after this loss. They will probably upset a team currently in the top 15.

But that isn’t good enough anymore. You can’t keep losing games you should win, especially when you have to play in the SEC.

Now Vols fans already have to wait until next year, as it is improbable that the Vols will run unscathed through the SEC and advance to the national title game.

I was once a big fan of defensive coordinator John Chavis. He always came up with some great blitz packages and had a fast defense that was underrated with the good offenses.

That has changed the past few years as the defense has fallen into mediocrity. There is no reason to give up 20 offensive points to UCLA, including two fourth-quarter drives.

With a young QB, Chavis should have sent in the pressure on nearly every play (the way UCLA did to UT) and forced Kraft into more turnovers than the four he committed in the first half.

Instead, the Vols gave a big cushion to the receivers while Kraft could take his time to throw. There was no reason not to blitz, especially with the strong safeties.

Chavis’ thinking was probably not to give up the big play and make Kraft work down the field. It is that kind of conservative nature that the Vols have been known for under Fulmer, which has cost them more and more games over the years.

Offensively, I miss David Cutcliffe. Sure, his system was far from perfect, but he used his QB’s strengths. Jonathan Crompton has good mobility, but the casual fan wouldn’t know that based on this game, as there were no roll-outs and he sat in the pocket.

On top of that, UCLA continued to blitz up the middle, making it necessary to get Crompton out of the pocket so he could succeed in his second start. Instead, he was pressured constantly and lost his confidence as the game went on and was forcing the ball against the rush.

As Colorado coach Dan Hawkins said, “This ain’t intramurals.” All you have to do is change intramurals with the FCS (I-AA) and you get my point.

Maybe at Richmond you can get away with sitting in the pocket all day, Dave Clawson, but not in major college football. He never called the right play when he needed to. There would be a six-yard run on first down, and then he would call passes the next two downs.

Gerald Jones lined up at QB a whole three plays, and two of those went for big gains. Why wasn’t he used more?

It was plain and simple one of the worst called games on both sides of the ball that I have ever seen, and I am not one to complain about play calling very often.

The other calls that were bad came from the refs. I have no idea how Pac-10 refs could be working the game when its team is hosting, but it sure worked out for the conference. Penalties were one-sided for most of the game, and two bad calls were made on goal line plays.

They stated that replays showed that UCLA’s RB had his forward momentum stopped in play, so there was no safety. I was left wondering when he was ever in the field of play, as he was lined up in the end zone and never fully left it.

UT could have used those two points as it ended up not scoring after getting the ball on UCLA’s 25.

Then there was the running touchdown for UCLA a bit later when the RB clearly never broke the pylon. I think the ref was looking at the color of the jersey rather than the pylon as the runner dove wide right of the pylon.

I am not the only one who feels this way, as Pat Forde mentioned the same thing in his "Forde Yard Dash," comparing it to the OU-Oregon ref debacle in 2006.

There is a good chance that the Vols would have won if the game was officiated fairly, but they didn’t deserve to win the game anyway. The game should have never been close enough where the refs could decide the outcome.

That is why the finger has to be pointed at Fulmer.

Missouri and Oklahoma on Collision Course in Big 12 in 2008

Scott Taylor — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 11:53:39 -0400

Last year the Big 12 North finally gained some respectability, but it was still the South that ended up on top of the heap. This year, one can expect more high-scoring games in what is likely to be the most exciting conference in college football. The big question is if Oklahoma can represent the Big 12 better this year than in years past.

South

1. Oklahoma (12-0, 8-0)

It looks to be another year on top of the Big 12 world for Oklahoma. Sam Bradford is back for his sophomore season at the helm as he looks to avoid the sophomore slump.

Helping him out will be great talent at the skill positions with DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown at RB and Juaquin Iglesias at WR. The offensive line is also one of the best in the country.

While the defensive line looks great, the back seven are expected to struggle, which isn’t good in a pass-happy league. The defense has a lot to prove after the bowl game last year.

The Sooners get a big break in the schedule, as their two tough trips to Oklahoma State and Texas A&M will be easier than normal with both teams in a rebuilding mode. They play Texas in Dallas and get Kansas and Texas Tech at home. There is no Mizzou on the regular season schedule.

I have the Sooners as the lone undefeated team in the country.

2. Texas Tech (10-2, 6-2)

If there is a year for the Raiders to get to a BCS Bowl, this is the year. The combination of Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree is one of the best in the nation. It also helps to have their full stable of RBs back and two other starting receivers in Eric Morris and Edward Britton.

Another thing going for Tech is the defense. While it still won’t be great, it is the best in Mike Leach’s tenure, which could bring some added success.

None of the road conference games will be easy for the Raiders as they travel to Texas A&M, Kansas State, Kansas, and Oklahoma. A split in those four, to go along with a win over Texas, will lead to a great season in Lubbock.

3. Texas (10-2, 6-2)

It has been a struggle for Texas the past couple years as it always seems to lose a game it shouldn’t (K-State both years). It will be up to QB Colt McCoy to regain some consistency as the running game may struggle without Jamaal Charles. McCoy will look to seniors Quan Cosby and Jordan Shipley in the passing game.

The defense has also been inconsistent of late, and it might be that side of the ball that is the key to the Longhorns’ success.

Things start off pretty easy for Texas as it should start 4-0. Then comes a tough three-game stretch where the Horns play at Colorado, at Dallas against Oklahoma, and against Missouri. If they can take two out of three, things could be looking good in Austin. However, trips to Texas Tech and Kansas still loom.

4. Oklahoma State (7-5, 3-5)

Zac Robinson comes in as the most underrated QB in the conference, but he might have to do it all for OSU this year. The Cowboys lose running back Dantrell Savage and star wide receiver Adarius Bowman. There are plenty of other options at those positions, such as Kendall Hunter, Beau Johnson, and Keith Tolston at RB and Dez Bryant at WR. The offensive line is another plus for the Cowboys.

An average defense from last year will be average again this year and keep the Cowboys from realizing their potential.

The schedule sets up for a fast start, but the Cowboys will have to get revenge on Troy and Texas A&M at home to get the 5-0 start. They are going to need all of those wins because they travel to Mizzou, Texas, Texas Tech, and Colorado. They also host Oklahoma to end the season.

5. Texas A&M (6-6, 3-5)

It is going to be an interesting year for the Aggies with their new style of play. The running game looks to be great with QB Stephen McGee and RBs Mike Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane. The problem is that McGee isn’t a very good passer, and he doesn’t have an established receiver to throw the ball to.

It wasn’t the typical wrecking crew defense for A&M under Dennis Franchione in 2007, and it doesn’t look like there will be any change this year.

If there is a smooth transition to new coach Mike Sherman, the schedule isn’t that daunting by Big 12 South standards. While they travel to OSU and Texas, their other road games are at Iowa State and Baylor. Texas Tech, Oklahoma, and Colorado all come to College Station.

6. Baylor (2-10, 1-7)

To be honest, I do not know much about this team since I rarely see them on TV and don’t like watching the blowouts they are in. All I have to do is look at the schedule and see home games against Oklahoma, Mizzou, and Texas A&M, and I know it will be another long year. The Bears do get ISU at home, which should be their lone conference win.

North

1. Missouri (11-1, 7-1)

The question this year for the Tigers is if they can maintain their success with the target on their backs. Having a plethora of returners on both sides of the ball is a big help.

Heisman Trophy candidates Chase Daniel and Jeremy Maclin will help make the passing game one of the best in the country. It will also help to have tight end Chase Coffman around for one more year. The running game won’t be the same without Tony Temple, but Derrick Washington and Jimmy Jackson are solid replacements.

This might be the best defense that Mizzou has ever had. Sean Witherspoon and William Moore are two of the top defensive players in the country, and they will need to be if the Tigers want to win a championship.

There is no Oklahoma on the schedule, which is a big plus since the Tigers’ only losses a year ago were to the Sooners. There are tough trips to Nebraska and Texas, as well as neutral site games with Illinois and Kansas.

2. Nebraska (7-5, 4-4)

The Cornhuskers are looking to bounce back after a miserable 2007 season. Bo Pelini will look to reestablish a once-feared blackshirt defense that felt naked last year after giving up 76 points to Kansas and 65 to Colorado. The talent isn’t there yet, but they should be better thanks to Pelini.

Joe Ganz tore it up at the end of last year, and he gets RB Marlon Lucky back to help him out. This should be a solid team once again on offense.

Nebraska will find out how good it is in a three-game stretch with Virginia Tech and Mizzou at home, followed by a trip to Texas Tech. There also is a trip to Oklahoma on the schedule. The Huskers are a couple upsets from having a very solid season.

3. Kansas (7-5, 4-4)

It is official: The Cinderella season for Kansas is over. It is back to a reality of having some tough opponents. After an easy schedule a year ago, KU has to travel to South Florida, Oklahoma, and Nebraska, while it plays Texas Tech and Texas at home. There is also the neutral site game with Mizzou.

The Jayhawk offense should still be solid with Todd Reesing at the helm, but there isn’t the same talent around him. Jake Sharp and Dexton Fields are back, but there is no Brandon McAnderson or Marcus Henry.

There still are some solid defensive players left, but they will miss Aqib Talib. The Jayhawks won’t sneak up on anyone this year as they head back to mediocrity.

4. Colorado (5-7, 3-5)

This Colorado team is much improved, but it won’t matter much with the brutal schedule. There is a four-game stretch with West Virginia, FSU, Texas, and at Kansas. Wow. Then there are still trips to Mizzou, Texas A&M, and Nebraska. It looks like the Buffaloes will need to pull off some upsets if they want to go back to a bowl game.

Cody Hawkins had a very strong freshman season for a QB and like Bradford hopes to avoid the sophomore slump. Big things are expected of freshman running back Darrell Scott, and he will have to live up to the billing for the Buffs to have a good season.

The defense loses starter Jordon Dizon but still returns a solid lineup.

5. Kansas State (5-7, 2-6)

I don’t think the Wildcats are that bad, but I just don’t see where the wins will come from. QB Josh Freeman is good, but he has a tendency of trying to do too much. Last year he did that with running back James Johnson and stud receiver Jordy Nelson. Those guys are both gone, which means Freeman will put even more on his shoulders.

The defense also lost a bunch of guys from last year, which is why coach Ron Prince brought in a lot of junior college players.

I foresee a six-game losing streak in the middle of the year where the Wildcats have home games against Tech and Oklahoma, while they travel to A&M, Colorado, Kansas, and Mizzou. Ouch.

6. Iowa State (4-8, 1-7)

The Cyclones played in some pretty close games last year thanks to a surprisingly strong defense. It is hard to see where their offense will be any better, especially without four-year starting QB Bret Meyer. It will be up to the defense to keep this team in games.

Home games with A&M, Nebraska, and Kansas, as well as a trip to Baylor, give the Cyclones an outside shot at a bowl game.

Can Georgia Navigate Schedule to the Top of the SEC in 2008?

Scott Taylor — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 09:19:42 -0400

With the emergence of the Big 12 North, this might be the first year in quite a while that the SEC isn’t the top football conference. That doesn’t mean that the conference doesn’t have national title contenders or conference championship contenders, as seven teams could possibly take home the SEC title.

East

1. Georgia (11-1, 7-1)

This is a tough pick with the brutal schedule that the Bulldogs have, but I feel they have enough talent to overcome it.

Knowshon Moreno and Matt Stafford make up one of the best backfields in the nation, and Mohammed Massaquoi finally learned how to catch the ball.

The big key will be defense, which was the biggest reason for their success at the end of the year.

In case you have been living without any form of media, UGA has trips to South Carolina, Arizona State, LSU, and Auburn. It hosts Tennessee and plays Florida at Jacksonville.

As daunting as the schedule sounds, I see only one loss to either LSU or Auburn, as I don’t see them losing both those games. I have them losing to LSU for the sake of the story. Florida just doesn’t have enough defense, and South Carolina doesn’t have enough offense.

2. Florida (10-2, 6-2)

Everyone is talking about the improved Florida rushing game, but I don’t see what was wrong with it. Percy Harvin averaged over nine yards a carry, while Kestahn Moore was at 5.6. The Gators just didn’t give them the ball enough.

With Emmanuel Moody added to the mix, as well as most of their receivers, Florida will be even more unstoppable on offense.

The question, however, remains its defense, and I don’t see it getting good enough for a national title run.

The good news for Gator fans is the SEC schedule is easy, considering the conference. A trip to Tennessee should be the only potential hiccup on the road as they have had FSU’s number lately.

The other tough games will be at neutral sites (UGA) or at home (LSU, South Carolina). I have them losing to UT and UGA, but they could win at least one of those games, which should get them to the national championship game.

3. South Carolina (9-3, 6-2)

The Gamecocks have had their struggles under Steve Spurrier after I continually rank them high. However, this year sets up to be the year for SC to make a run, with Georgia, LSU, and Tennessee coming to Columbia. Trips to Florida and Clemson won’t be easy though, and you also have to watch for the unexpected loss that they are used to having. At Mississippi could be that game this year.

With a strong defense returning, the key to their success will be the quarterback play. Spurrier has yet to groom an SC QB the way he did year after year at Florida. If Stephen Garcia is able to play, he may be the one.

Whoever is at the helm will benefit from having a good back in Mike Davis and a great receiver in Kenny McKinley.

4. Tennessee (9-3, 5-3)

It pains me to have my Vols down here, but unlike most people, I am not biased. I think the offense will be the best it has been since 2001, with Jon Crompton throwing to a trio of receivers in Lucas Taylor, Austin Rogers, and Josh Briscoe. Gerald Jones is a great talent who will spend some time at QB like last year.

On top of that, the Vols have the best offensive line in at least the conference and a great back in Arian Foster.

Defense will be an issue like last year, especially without Jerod Mayo. The secondary should be better though.

The schedule will just be too much to overcome with trips to UCLA, Auburn, Georgia, and South Carolina, not to mention the home games with Florida and Alabama. They were lucky to beat SC the past two years, and a loss to them will keep the Vols from finishing second.

5. Kentucky (5-7, 2-6)

Without all of those offensive weapons, it will be hard for UK to duplicate the success of the past two years. However, the defense will be good enough to keep them in games and perhaps pull off an upset.

Trips to Florida, UT, and Alabama won’t be easy, and neither will home games against Georgia and SC. The Wildcats will likely need to win one of those games to go bowling.

6. Vanderbilt (3-9, 0-8)

This is probably the worst Vandy team of the past few years. With its luck, it figures that it would work out this way. The schedule sets up horribly for the Commodores as the more winnable conference games (Mississippi, MSU, and UK) are all on the road. Auburn, Florida, SC, and UT come to Nashville, making an upset necessary to get a conference win.

West

1. Auburn (10-2, 6-2)

There are some high expectations on the plains this year for the Tigers. With a new offensive coordinator going to the spread, Kodi Burns and Chris Todd should combine to have a big year at QB.

The running game has the potential to be great with three capable running backs in Ben Tate, Brad Lester, and Mario Fannin. Looking to help the young quarterbacks will be veteran receivers Rodgeriqus Smith and Montez Billings.

Auburn’s defense will be good and fast as always, despite losing some talent from last year.

The schedule shapes up fairly well for the Tigers with three of their toughest SEC opponents (UT, LSU, UGA) at home. Trips to West Virginia and Alabama will determine whether this is a good or great season.

2. LSU (9-3, 5-3)

With the loss of Ryan Perrilloux, this will likely be a transition year for the other Tigers. That doesn’t mean they won’t be good, as there is still plenty of talent on the roster.

Keiland Williams, Charles Scott, and slash player Trindon Holliday will look to help out whoever starts at QB with a balanced run game. Star receivers Brandon LaFell and Demetrius Byrd should also help the transition. Watch out for Terrance Tolliver, who could emerge as the next great WR.

There are also a lot of changes on the defensive side of the ball, both on the field and off. Again, there still is plenty of speed and talent to keep the unit good.

The schedule, however, is no breeze with trips to Auburn, Florida, and South Carolina and a game against UGA in a five-game stretch. If the Tigers can somehow navigate through that with only a loss or two, another conference title is within reach.

3. Alabama (9-3, 5-3)

Things are looking much better for the Tide in year two, even with their top three receivers gone. That is because super recruit Julio Jones will be there for the dependable John Parker Wilson to throw the ball to. I expect to see stats similar to what D.J. Hall has put up in Jones’ freshman year.

The running game returns intact with a strong offensive line and a stable of running backs consisting of Terry Grant, Glen Coffee, and Jimmy Johns.

There were some key losses on defense, but Rashad Johnson returns to lead the solid unit.

A big key this year will be consistency for the Tide. They nearly beat LSU and Georgia last year and smoked UT, but they lost to Louisiana-Monroe and squeaked by Houston.

If they can win those easy games this year, the team should advance to a solid bowl game. Another upset loss could lead to disaster with an opening game against Clemson, trips to Georgia, Tennessee, and LSU, and a home game with Auburn.

4. Mississippi State (7-5, 3-5)

The Bulldogs surprisingly landed in a bowl game last year and should get back in there this year with an easy non-conference schedule.

Wesley Carroll is back at the helm after a decent freshman year, while Anthony Dixon is one of the top running backs around. A less than stellar receiving group has to step up for Carroll.

It was the defense, as normally is the case for MSU, that led the team last year. That will be no different this year as seven out of the top eight tacklers return.

The schedule gives the team some hope as the Bulldogs get Auburn at home and have tough road games at LSU, Alabama, and Tennessee. A final game battle at Mississippi in the Egg Bowl could be for a bowl berth.

5. Ole Miss (5-7, 2-6)

I think the Rebels are a year away from a bowl game and possibly becoming a force under Houston Nutt.

Transfer QB Jevan Snead just needs a year to develop at QB and learn a new style of offense, and he could be dominant. There is zero experience at RB, so Enrique Davis will be thrown into the fire as a freshman. Most of the receiving corps is back, so they will help Snead gain experience.

Nearly everyone returns on defense, making the unit dangerous in 2008.

There are a lot of tough games for the Rebels, but there is a good chance for them to start 3-1 and get the offense some good experience and confidence for the SEC season.

6. Arkansas (4-8, 1-7)

It is going to be a long year for the Hogs. Bobby Petrino brings in a passing offense, and we have seen over the years that Casey Dick can’t pass. If he could, Arkansas would have an SEC championship. Making it even harder for Dick will be a lack of experience at both running back and wide receiver.

The defense will likely have to carry the team, which isn’t a good thing as they are one of the worst in the SEC.

The highlight (or lowlight) of the year will be Oct. 25 when Nutt’s Rebels come to town. A win and it will be a good year, even with a 1-7 conference mark. A loss, and the heat will quickly be on Petrino. Next coach, Bill Clinton?

What a Surprise: USC Is Team to Beat In Pac-10

Scott Taylor — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 09:48:41 -0400

There will be a new look to the PAC 10 conference this year as most teams lose a bunch of experience from a year ago.

However, the team at the top of the pack should be the same team that has been there the past six years in Southern California.

While it looks like USC will run away and hide this year, there is a large cluster of teams of could grab a piece of second place.

Expect a lot of close battles in games where USC or Washington State isn’t playing in.

1. USC (11-1 overall, 8-1 Pac-10)

This may be the Trojans’ worst team since 2001, but that shouldn’t matter much this year.

Mark Sanchez did a solid job at quarterback last year, but I don’t see him being great. The same can be said about Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain. There is a stable of highly talented running backs in Stafon Johnson, Joe McKnight and C.J. Gable, so expect USC to run a bit more this year, despite a slightly weaker offensive line. While there is no standout receiver on the roster, Patrick Turner and Vidal Hazelton are good, experienced receivers to throw the ball to.

The defense will still be one of the best in the country, although it probably won’t be as good as it was last year.

However, the schedule is much better than last year. Despite having five Pac-10 road games, they get Oregon, California, and Arizona State at home.

USC does travel to Oregon State and UCLA, where it lost two years ago. Don’t forget about a possible BCS elimination game the third week of the season against Ohio State, two weeks after a trip to Virginia.

Even with what appears to be some tough games, the only game I have the Trojans losing is at Arizona. The Wildcats nearly pulled of the shocker last year and it has pulled off a big upset the past few years (No. 2 Oregon last year).

2. Oregon (8-4, 6-3)

Last year went down as what might have been for the Ducks if Dennis Dixon wasn’t hurt. A good thing about an injury is that it gets others more experience, which will be good for Justin Roeper this year if he wins the starting job over Nathan Costa.

Jaison Williams will still be there to throw the ball to, it is just unsure if he can catch it consistently. Despite losing Jonathan Stewart, the ground game looks just as strong with Jeremiah Johnson and Andre Crenshaw back. The offensive line looks very solid again as well.

The defense was inconsistent a year ago, but the secondary is one of the best in the country, which should keep the Ducks in most games.

There aren’t many easy games on the schedule as the non-conference slate includes a trip to Purdue and a visit from Boise State.

The Ducks also have to travel to ASU, California, USC, and Oregon State.

They need to win at least one of those games to get second in conference.

3. Arizona State (7-5, 5-4)

Here comes the log jam in the middle of the conference, so I will go in the order of who I think is the best.

The Sun Devils should have a better team than last year, but the schedule is much tougher. If Rudy Carpenter stays healthy, he should end his career as the all-time leading passer in school history.

Leading rusher Keegan Herring returns, as well as top receivers Chris McGaha and Michael Jones.

The big question remain the offensive that gave up far too many sacks a year ago. Many of those players are gone, which could be a good thing.

The defense should be similar to last year, which is decent.

It looks like the Sun Devils will get off to a 3-0 start before facing Georgia at home, a game I don’t see them winning.

That is the first of a brutal six-game stretch where they travel to Cal, USC, OSU, and Washington, surrounded with a home game against Oregon and two off weeks.

I have the Devils going 1-5 in that tough stretch, which is why they will only end in a mid-level bowl.

The season ends the way it starts with home games against WSU and UCLA before a short trip to Arizona.

4. California (7-5, 5-4)

This is shaping up as another one of those decent years for the Bears.

The quarterback situation is up in the air again between Nate Longshore and Kevin Riley. Whoever wins the quarterback job will miss not having their top four receivers from last year, including draft picks DeSean Jackson and Lavelle Hawkins.

The ground game will also be different without Justin Forsett, but speedster Jahvid Best looks like more than a capable replacement.

Some good news for Cal is their defense should be the best it has been in a few years.

Cal opens the season with an interesting game against Michigan State and travels to Maryland the third game of the year.

The Bears only have four Pac-10 road games, which could set up a decent run in the conference. Trips to USC, OSU, and Arizona will be hard, so it will be vital to win the Sep. 6 trip to Wazzu.

A three-game stretch with Oregon, USC and OSU will determine their fate.

5. Arizona (8-4, 5-4)

The Wildcats haven’t been to a bowl game in a decade, but that should change this year.

Willie Tuitama is the best QB in the conference and should shatter the school’s passing yardage record.He will have the top four receivers all returning and the offensive line blocking for him is a big, solid group, making this the most explosive offense in the conference.

Nicholas Grigsby is returns at running back after a solid freshman season.

However, defense has been a problem for the Wildcats, despite having a defensive coach in Mike Stoops.

After losing several players from an underachieving defense a year ago, it will be up to a new cast of characters to put Arizona back on the map.

The schedule is in their favor with only five road games all year. Three of those games are against Pac-10 teams who were below .500 overall a year ago.

Trips to Oregon and New Mexico won’t be easy though.

Don’t foget about the upset victory over USC on Oct. 25. Mark it on your schedule.

This has the potential of a special year in the desert.

6. Oregon State (6-6, 5-4)

It should be an interesting year for the Beavers.

The key to the season will be if either Sean Canfield or Lyle Moevao can step up at the QB position.

Yvenson Bernard is gone in the backfield, but there is a highly touted freshman expected to start in Jacquizz Rodgers.

Sammie Stroughter is back for one more year to try to help out the quarterbacks in the passing game.

The Beavers had the best run defense in the country last year, but they have a lot of guys that need to be replaced.

It doesn’t help that they have the second toughest schedule in the Pac 10.

OSU opens at Stanford and Penn State before getting Hawaii and USC at home. Then there is a tough game at Utah.

The good news is that most of the teams around them (ASU, Cal and Oregon) head to Corvallis.

7. Washington (6-6, 4-5)

I think this year will be the year Tyrone Willingham will breakthrough and go to a bowl game, but just barely.

Jake Locker had a solid freshman season, especially as a runner (986 yards). However, he needs to improve on his 14-15 TD/INT ratio and 47 percent completion percentage.

The skills positions were shot with graduation, so it will be up to Locker to do much of the work on offense.

There should be an improvement on the defensive side of the ball, which will take some pressure off Locker.

The schedule is absolutely brutal.

The Huskies open with a trip to Oregon before hosting BYU and Oklahoma at home.

Last year I said they would beat Boise State and they did. This year I am saying that they will be a top-15 BYU team.

It does get a little easier from there (except for a trip to USC).

The interesting match-up of the year is when Notre Dame pays a visit to Seattle.

8. UCLA (5-7, 4-5)

The beginning of the Rick Neuheisel era won’t be an easy one.

Ben Olson is going to have to stay healthy for a change for the Bruins to be bowl eligible.

Kahlil Bell will help out on the ground, but it won’t be enough, especially without a proven receiver.

The defense has carried the Bruins the past few years, and that will probably happen again.

It will be up to the offense to keep the defense off the field.

UCLA also has itself a tough schedule with an opening visit from Tennessee, followed by a game at BYU.

The Bruins need to sweep the following three-game homestand (Arizona, Fresno State and WSU to have any shot at a bowl bid.

9. Stanford (3-9, 2-7)

Even though the Cardinal is better than last year, it will be hard to get to that four-win mark again.

There is solid depth in the backfield, but the passing game looks to be a question mark once again this year.

Many players return on defense, which is what Stanford will have to depend on this year.

The first three and last three games of the year are daunting for the Cardinal.

They open with OSU, and at ASU TCU. They finish at Oregon, USC and then at Cal.

It appears to be another tough year at Stanford, but things look brighter in the future.

10. Washington State (4-9, 1-8)

With the struggles the past few years, many people forget that this team won 10 games three straight seasons from 2001-03.

The problem is they haven’t been to a bowl game since. This won’t be the year that changes.

Wazzu will turn to senior QB Gary Rogers to lead the way in his first starting time. Having Brandon Gibson to throw to will be a big help.

The defense struggled quite a bit last year, but should be quite a bit better.

There isn’t much hope on the schedule, outside of a visit from Portland State. A trip to Baylor will be for some serious bragging rights.

Clemson Should Take ACC Title in Down Year for Conference

Scott Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:28:57 -0400

It was once thought that the Atlantic Coast Conference would be a football powerhouse with the additions of Virginia Tech, Miami. and Boston College.

Instead, it has been mediocre at best, with Miami and Florida State falling apart, among others who have struggled.

This year seems to be more of the same, with the lone national title contender being Clemson.

The good news is that the bottom of the conference might get better now that Duke has a successful coach in David Cutcliffe.

It will be a dogfight to stay out of the BCS cellar between the ACC and Big East, but I will give the ACC the advantage.

Atlantic Division

1. Clemson (10-2, 7-1)

The Tigers are the clear-cut favorite in the ACC this year as they return nearly all of their key offensive players.

Senior Cullen Harper had a strong season last year and is expected to be the top quarterback in the conference.

James Davis and C.J. Spiller are back to form the two-headed monster in the backfield. Top receivers Aaron Kelly, Tyler Grisham, and Jacoby Ford also return.

Even the defense returns several key returners, despite the loss of leading tackler Nick Watkins.

The problem under Tommy Bowden has been losing games they shouldn’t, and it is hard to imagine them not doing that at least once this year.

In fact, I have the Tigers losing their first game of the year in Atlanta to Alabama. Clemson finished last year with a loss to an SEC team (Auburn) in Atlanta, and I find the Tide this year comparable to Auburn last year.

Clemson should bounce back nicely with four home games and a bye before going to Wake Forest. The Tigers have had the Deacons' number, and I think that will continue.

The only tough tests the rest of the year should be at Florida State and hosting South Carolina.

I think the FSU game will be the only conference loss of the year because daddy is due to beat son.

Either way, it should be a big season in Death Valley. If not, it may be the end of both Bowdens.

2. Florida State (8-4, 5-3)

It has been a struggle the past few years for the Seminoles, and this year could be more of the same with plenty of suspensions over the first few games.

The good news is that those three games are at home, and two of those against I-AA teams.

The other should be a big game with Wake Forest that could go either way.

Drew Weatherford is finally a senior, and I think he will be improved again.

With Antone Smith and Preston Parker back in the backfield and Greg Carr at receiver, the lone question mark is the troubled offensive line.

Expect that group to make or break the season.

The defense should remain solid with plenty of athletes to go around.

FSU has shown signs of greatness (winning at B.C. last year), so the potential is there to have a big year.

The schedule doesn’t look very daunting either, as the 'Noles get Clemson and Florida at home. The toughest road games will be at Miami and Maryland.

3. Wake Forest (9-3, 5-3)

This looks like another big year for the Demon Deacons, as they have the most talent in program history.

Quarterback Riley Skinner’s big job is to cut down on INTs and give Josh Adams the ball as much as possible on the ground.

Expect to see teams gang up on the run with the loss of Wake’s top receivers.

The passing game will be the difference between a good and great season.

Much of last year’s defense returns, which could lead to a great amount of success on that side of the ball.

You can’t overlook the best coach in the conference in Jim Grobe.

Wake has a pretty easy schedule with Clemson at home and trips to FSU, Miami, and Maryland. All the other games should be wins.

4. Maryland (8-4, 4-4)

The Terrapins have been stuck in mediocrity the past few years, and I expect that to continue this year.

The passing game should be the strength of this year’s team, with transfer Josh Portis and two quarterbacks who split duties last year.

They will be throwing to one of the best in the conference in Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Last year’s strength was the running game, but the Terps lose both Keon Lattimore and Lance Ball, leaving the unit a big question.

The defense loses leader Erin Henderson, but as a whole it should be better with plenty of depth returning from last year.

It should be a fast start for Maryland, as the toughest of its non-conference games is at home against California.

The Terps travel to both Clemson and Virginia Tech, but get FSU and Wake at home.

The potential and schedule are there for a solid season, although visiting the top two teams in the conference will keep them from a conference championship.

5. N.C. State (5-7, 3-5)

The Wolfpack are in year two of rebuilding under coach Tom O’Brien and appear to be a year away after losing many players.

Daniel Evans and Harrison Beck both return at QB, while Andre Brown looks to remain healthy in the backfield. The offensive line has several experienced players, making it better than it has been over recent years.

The big problem will be on the defensive side of the ball, where the Wolfpack lose five of their top six tacklers.

The non-conference slate isn’t easy, with an opening trip to South Carolina and home games with East Carolina and South Florida.

N.C. State also has to travel to Clemson, Maryland, and North Carolina.

6. Boston College (6-6, 2-6)

It is a good thing the Eagles have some wide receivers returning, as that is the only group not hit hard on offense by graduation.

Life after Matt Ryan will be tough, but at least they have a senior signal caller in Chris Crane to throw to the receivers.

The offensive line and running backs will have to do a much better job to keep the pressure off the passing game.

Last year’s defense was one of the best against the run, and there is still a decent amount of returning talent. B.C. will also get back Brian Toal at linebacker.

It is a good thing the Eagles have an easy non-conference schedule, because that is their best hope to reach another bowl game.

The Notre Dame game on Nov. 8 will likely be the make-or-break game for the Eagles’ bowl chances.

Coastal Division

1. Virginia Tech (10-2, 6-2)

This is a down year for the Hokies, but a decent schedule and bad conference will keep them around the top 10 yet again.

The two-quarterback system of Sean Glennon and Tyrod Taylor was inconsistent last year, but another year of experience could help greatly.

Va. Tech will be looking for playmakers this year to make up for the losses of Branden Ore and the top four receivers from a year ago.

It will also be a different look on defense as many key players have left the program.

However, this defense is known for reloading, so that side of the ball shouldn’t be a problem.

One may wonder how a team with this many questions wins 10 games, but there is no game on the schedule that screams loss.

Road trips to UNC, Nebraska, B.C., Florida State, and Miami won’t be easy, but it's almost certain that the Hokies will win at least two of those games.

The toughest home game will probably be against Maryland, which shows how easy the home schedule is.

2. North Carolina (8-4, 5-3)

This is the year to beat Virginia Tech for the Coastal title, but it appears that UNC is a year away under Butch Davis.

There are plenty of returners on both sides of the ball, particularly on offense, to make the Tar Heels a much better team.

If T.J. Yates can get the ball out to Hakeem Nicks often, this could be a dangerous offense.

After having a great defense in the late '90s, the Heels have struggled on that side of the ball, but they should be good enough to keep the team in games this year.

The Heels have a tough three-game stretch early with trips to Rutgers and Miami surrounding a home game with Virginia Tech.

I think they will beat the Hokies, but it still might not be enough to top them for the title.

The best chance for that to happen is if UNC can win at Virginia, a place it has lost 13 straight times.

Make that No. 14 this year, even though the Wahoos are down.

3. Miami (6-6, 4-4)

Expect one more tough year for the Hurricanes before they get back on track.

Javarris James and Graig Cooper make a solid one-two punch in the backfield, but yet again there are major questions at QB.

It looks like a bunch of freshmen will be competing for the job, which is trouble. However, it can’t be much worse than what they have had there recently.

The defense loses many players, but the newcomers are better and should play with more passion.

Early season trips to Florida and Texas A&M will have this team on the ropes early.

It will be very important to win the following home games against UNC and FSU to keep the team from quitting this year.

The Canes also get Virginia Tech and Wake at home, so the potential for a good season is there. However, it is hard it imagine much of a home field advantage.

4. Georgia Tech (5-7, 3-5)

It seems like everyone but UNC is having a down year on this side of the conference.

The big problem for the Jackets is the adjustment to an option offense under Paul Johnson, which will take a couple years.

Losing Tashard Choice won’t help that process.

Everything on the offense will have a new look, and it will be up to running back Jonathan Dwyer to keep the team afloat.

The defense loses its top four tacklers and coordinator, making it a rough year on both sides of the ball.

That said, there is still enough talent for a possible bowl push.

It doesn’t help that Tech has to go to VT, Clemson, UNC, and Georgia.

Home games with Mississippi State and FSU aren’t easy either.

5. Duke (4-8, 2-6)

This will be a much improved Duke team with David Cutcliffe at the helm and many returning starters.

QB Thaddeus Lewis has been up and down over his career, but expect QB guru Cutcliffe to make him much better.

It will also help to have Eron Riley to throw the ball to—he averaged over 20 yards per catch a year ago.

Although the defense was bad last year, having nearly everyone back means that they should be at least decent this year.

While I don’t think they will win many games, the first seven are all winnable and should be at least competitive.

Road trips to Wake, Clemson, and VT are the only unwinnable games in my opinion.

6. Virginia (4-8, 2-6)

It has been an up-and-down ride for UVA the past few years, and that should continue.

The Cavs won several close games last year, but that will be much harder to do without much of their defense and a new signal caller, since Jameel Sewell was ruled academically ineligible.

The running game should be the team’s strength, but that won’t get them far enough to reach a bowl game.

After opening with USC, there are some winnable games throughout the season before closing with Wake, Clemson, and Virginia Tech.

Kyle Busch Wins, Richard Petty Celebrates under the Lights at Chicagoland

Scott Taylor — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 06:54:25 -0400

This weekend’s NASCAR races at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet just about lived up to its hype.

It was billed as the first time races would be run under the lights at the speedway. And a pretty good race was thrown in, too.

The weekend started off with a bang when my favorite driver, Tony Stewart, held a press conference to announce that he would leaving Joe Gibbs Racing to join Haas-CNC Racing, which will now be called Stewart-Haas Racing.

I have mixed reactions about the change. It is good to see him go after his goals, but he is going to struggle quite a bit in his first year, and he isn’t getting any younger.

The reason I started liking him was because of that No. 20 Home Depot car. He won’t have that car anymore, so I will have to get used to that change. While Stewart will still be my favorite, I will still like the No. 20 car (unless Jeff Gordon or Dale Earnhardt, Jr. ever end up driving it).

That was about all the excitement for Thursday as storms washed out all of the evening action, including the Gretchen Wilson concert. Wilson performed Friday afternoon instead, and boy was it hot. Standing in the middle of a few thousand people in 90-degree heat taking pictures is hot enough, but wearing pants makes it even hotter.

The concert was pretty good, even though I’m not a big fan of country music. However, a few clouds in the sky would have been nice. This year I had a hot pass, which allowed me into the Sprint Cup garage as well as use of a camera for the first time in my two years at the races.

It was really interesting to see how often the drivers came into their garage during practice to make changes. It was also awesome to see the changes being made close-up.

Then it was onto the Nationwide Series race, where I began in the pits.

After taking pictures of Stewart and Kevin Harvick in the pits, I made my way into turn four to take some action shots. The night racing lived up to its billing as it was an awesome sight to see the lights glow on the cars from up front.

With the lack of a caution over the final half of the race, I was up in Victory Lane in no time. This was also my first time there, and it was just as it appears on T.V., the champagne streaming everywhere.

The low part of the night was after the race when we were forced to drive out of a different exit. It took us an hour to drive two miles.

There was a high amount of anticipation for the Sprint Cup race. Nationwide winner Kyle Busch was on the pole and looking for his seventh win of the Sprint Cup season.

Before the race started, there was a ceremony on the track featuring Richard Petty, celebrating his 50 years in racing. It was quite a sight to see many of the drivers ask for the King’s autograph in cowboy hats. That got everyone ready for the race as I headed up to the press box to see the night racing from above.

The changes in the track and sky were incredible as daylight turned to dusk. As night fell, the cars began to sparkle from the press box, which was a sight to see.

Busch had jumped out early to the lead, but it looked like Carl Edwards, Stewart, and Martin Truex, Jr. had the best cars.

However, Truex Jr. couldn’t get through the traffic and Stewart made a couple of bad adjustments, as the defending champion ended up with a fifth-place finish.

Edwards had passed up Busch on multiple occasions, but had car problems late when he was in the lead, forcing him a lap down.

That left Busch fighting off Jimmie Johnson and Harvick for the win.

Busch was in command until a pair of cautions allowed Johnson to catch up and ultimately take the lead.

Another caution came and it set up a furious race to the checkered flag.

Busch made a move past Johnson and held him and Harvick off to complete the sweep.

One of the interesting things I took away from the press conference was how lucky all of the media felt Busch was because of the final caution flag.

I left wondering why he wasn’t given credit for some great racing. After all, if those previous cautions didn’t come out, no one would have been able to catch up to the No. 18 car.

The other interesting thing I have noticed a lot this year is the lack of crashes. Sure, it is good and safe for the drivers, but it stinks for the fans.

Just two of the nine cautions Saturday dealt with spins (both were single cars). Friday night featured just three cautions.

The new cars have obviously helped. However, people want to see cars run into each other. Nobody wants to see injuries, but people like wrecks. The lack of wrecks could greatly hurt the sport in the future.

Despite the lack of accidents this weekend, the races will still go down as another memorable experience for me.

College Football: Explosive Big East in for Exciting Race

Scott Taylor — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 09:15:16 -0400

Seven out of the eight Big East teams may be bowl eligible this year, but it doesn’t make it a top conference.

With no dominant team (sorry, West Virginia) and a bad team (Syracuse), there will be a lot of action all year for the conference title.

West Virginia is the defending champion and favorite in many people’s minds, but there are a bunch of teams with enough talent to contend.

1. West Virginia (10-2, 6-1)

Despite losing coach Rich Rodriguez and running back Steve Slaton, this team still has plenty of weapons to compete for the title.

Pat White is a Heisman Trophy contender at the quarterback position, and Noel Devine showed he has game-breaking potential at running back.

The wide receivers take a hit without Darius Reynaud, but all five starters return on the offensive line.

The defense had numerous question marks last year, and this year should be no different.

Despite a strong showing in the bowl game with Bill Stewart, the coaching department takes a big hit without Rodriguez.

The early and middle part of the schedule is very favorable, with a trip to Colorado followed by three home games and a bye.

After the bye is a fourth straight home game against Auburn, a game I think the Mountaineers will lose.

That is the start of a six-game stretch with no gimmies.

I think the game at Louisville will be the only conference loss, as they will be ready for revenge at Pittsburgh.

This is a team that I don’t see going better than 10-2, but could slip to 8-4.

2. Louisville (10-2, 5-2)

After last year’s train wreck (which I predicted with that brutal defense), I can’t believe I have the Cardinals doing this well.

Look at the schedule, though, and you will see the same thing.

I am expecting a lot of the success based on the high praise for senior quarterback Hunter Cantwell, who has performed well in relief in his career.

The big problem is that all major position players need to be replaced, so this record could still be a stretch.

However, in year two of the Steve Kragthorpe era, I feel they will be more used to the system, and the defense will be improved from last year.

Louisville could easily win its first eight games, with its hardest game at home against South Florida.

The final four will be a big test, but the Cardinals should be able to go 2-2 with West Virginia and Cincinnati coming to UL.

However, trips to Pitt and Rutgers could keep them from a conference title.

3. Cincinnati (8-4, 4-3)

The key to the Bearcats’ season will be if Ben Mauk is granted a sixth year of eligibility.

Even if he isn’t back, Cincy will have a pair of solid replacements in Demitrius Jones and Dustin Grutza.

The Bearcats will be down to their fourth-leading rusher from last year in Jacob Ramsey, but five of their top six receivers will be back.

Defense won the Bearcats some games last year with turnovers, and more could be on the way this year.

An early season showdown at Oklahoma will be tough, but four easy wins should follow.

That sets up a tough four-game stretch where I have Cincy going 1-3, with road losses to Connecticut, West Virginia, and Louisville wrapped around a win over South Florida.

The final three are very winnable, which could lead to a solid bowl.

4. South Florida (9-3, 4-3)

The Bulls were the darling team in the country for a while before losing three straight games.

After losing defensive backs Trae Williams and Mike Jenkins to the NFL, it is hard to see this team being as strong as it was on the defensive end, even though the front seven should be solid.

The offense returns all its skill position players and even most of the offensive line, making them dangerous on offense.

Quarterback Matt Groethe is a proven leader, but I don’t see how they can win the conference.

Even with just three road games in conference play, all three are against the teams ahead of them on this list, making a 1-2 record quite good.

A couple of interesting non-conference games are also on tap with a visit from Kansas and a trip to N.C. State, two games I think they will win.

It just looks like the Big East schedule will be too much to overcome, as I see a trip to a middle bowl game.

5. Pittsburgh (8-4, 3-4)

The Panthers are many people’s surprise team, but I just don’t see how you can base it on one game at West Virginia.

The offense should be much improved with all of their key parts returning, led by running back LeSean McCoy.

Much of their solid defense returns as well, as this no doubt looks like a team on the rise.

However, Dave Wannstedt is still the coach, which means I can’t trust this team.

The schedule sets up nicely through most of the season, as the Panthers could be 8-1 and possibly near the top 10 if they can win at Navy and Notre Dame.

Those last three games look mighty tough though, with trips to Cincy and UConn sandwiching a visit from West Virginia.

That should take Pitt from a BCS game to barely holding onto a bowl bid.

6. Rutgers (7-5, 3-4)

The Scarlet Knights took a big hit losing Ray Rice early, and that will keep them from winning the Big East.

I love this team’s passing offense with Mike Teel and receivers Tiquan Underwood and Kenny Britt.

It takes more than that for an offense though, and the running game will be a big question with a new back and a revamped line.

The defense should be a bit better than last year, but it won’t be enough to shut down the high-powered offenses in the Big East.

Rutgers opens up with three non-conference games that could go either way.

Visits from Fresno State and North Carolina are followed by a trip to Navy, which will go a long way in the team’s confidence for the conference season.

The conference schedule doesn’t get any easier with trips to West Virginia, Cincy, Pitt and USF.

That schedule will make it tough for Rutgers to get to a good bowl game and might even keep it from any bowl game.

7. Connecticut (6-6, 2-5)

I look at what the Huskies have coming back, and I wonder how they could only win two conference games.

One reason is how lucky they got last year, while the other is the four road games they have in conference.

A three-game road trip in the middle of the season (Louisville, North Carolina, Rutgers) will determine their fate.

I have them losing all three, but getting a pair of wins can go a long way for their confidence with Cincy and West Virginia following at home.

Quarterback Tyler Lorenzen and running backs Andre Dixon and Donald Brown will keep them in games, but I just don’t think it will be enough to get them over the hump.

This was a 9-4 team last year that escaped with home wins over the Cardinals and Bulls.

8. Syracuse (3-9, 1-6)

This should be Greg Robinson’s last year, as the Orange will finish in the cellar once again.

They are better than they have been in years past, but there just isn’t any Big East game that they should win.

I have them beating UConn at home simply because I think they will win one conference game like last year.

The non-conference slate isn’t all that easy either, with Northeastern being the only gimmie.

The good news for Orange fans is that their team should be much more competitive with QB Andrew Robinson having some experience.

The pass defense has to get better than last year after giving up over 3,000 yards through the air.

Check back next week for my No. 5 conference predictions.

Mizzou Football Roundtable Chat: Scott Taylor Q&A

Scott Taylor — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 09:02:39 -0400

1.) Looking at the 2008 recruiting class, it has to be a little disappointing that it only ranks fifth in the Big 12 according to Rivals.com. Do you think that this recruiting class is a disappointment considering Missouri's new high expectations?

I am not disappointed by Missouri's recruiting class at all. For one thing, just because you have a couple good years doesn't mean that all the big-time players want to go there. With the likes of Texas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska in the conference, it is hard to see the Tigers reaching the top three in recruiting.

Also, looking at their current team, the Tigers do not have many top recruits, but are one of the top teams in the country. It is all about getting a bunch of solid players to fit the style of play, which is what Gary Pinkel does pretty well.

2.) We all saw Chase Daniel become a nationally known quarterback last year after he threw for 4,170 yards and was a Heisman finalist. How realistic is it that Daniel actually wins the Heisman this year?

I don't think that Daniel will win the Heisman this year. It is so hard to get votes coming from a school without the tradition and hype. I think that defenses will see how Oklahoma stopped the Mizzou offense and will make it harder for Daniel this year. I would be shocked if he can duplicate those numbers.

3.) Wide receiver Denario Alexander just recently had surgery to repair his re-injured ACL. He is not projected to be back in playing shape until the beginning of the conference season next year. How much will this effect the Tigers as a whole? How will this affect the stats that Jeremy Maclin will be able to produce with the defenses more able to focus on him?

I don't think the loss of Alexander will be a big deal. First off, he missed several games last year, and the team didn't miss a beat. Sure, they don't have Martin Rucker and Will Franklin this year, but there still is Jared Perry, who had a big freshman year before being lost in the mix last year, plus Tommy Saunders.

Don't forget about Chase Coffman, who needs to be double-teamed himself. I'm sure there is another receiver waiting in the wings as well.

His loss might hurt the team a bit, but for Maclin, it will help him because there will be more balls thrown his way. Mizzou can't afford to lose him or the Chases.

4.) Will the Tigers win the Big 12 North again this season? What will be the biggest games in determining this?

Missouri will be the team to beat in the Big 12 North. Nebraska and Colorado have one more year to make it back, while Kansas actually has to play some tough conference games this year with Texas, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma. I think the key game will be the first at Nebraska. A win there will go a long way to a North title. Obviously, the Kansas game will be big as well.

5.) How realistic is it that we see the Tigers playing in a BCS bowl game come season's end?

It is so hard to tell after last year's robbery. Chances are the Tigers will have to win the Big 12 to make it to a BCS bowl. That can be done, especially if they don't have to play Oklahoma. With a loss in the title game, that will likely give them at least two, probably three, which puts them on the outside with more "traditional teams" to choose from.

Open Mic: Volunteers' 2001 Loss to LSU Still Smarts

Scott Taylor — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:57:20 -0400

Over my years as a sports fan, I have witnessed several disappointments.

There was 2005, when both the Houston Astros and Seattle Seahawks made it to the championship, only to fall in the end.

I will never forget the game now in question, the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals between Sacramento and L.A. As a Kings' fan, I thought Game Six was rigged back then.

Last year, the Missouri Tigers were one win away from the National Championship game when their offense couldn’t get going in a second loss to Oklahoma.

Even this year there have been a couple of big disappointments for me.

Tony Stewart got a flat tire with five laps left when he was going to win at Charlotte.

My favorite golfer, Jonathan Byrd, held a three-shot lead at the AT&T Classic after 36 holes, only to choke it up in a hurry.

But the one that takes the cake came in 2001.

A week prior to the SEC championship game, Tennessee went into The Swamp and beat Florida for the first time since 1971 in a game for the SEC East title.

The game was moved to the end of the year because of the September 11 attacks.

I remember being as nervous as I have ever been while watching a game on T.V. as I lived and died with every play.

When the Vols were victorious, I was as happy as I have ever been with the outcome of a game.

The next week was a rematch of an earlier meeting between Tennessee and LSU.

Tennessee won the earlier game 26-18 at home.

A win would put the Vols in the National Championship game against Miami.

While I knew the game wasn’t going to be easy, my nerves and excitement were nowhere near what they were a week ago.

I am guessing the players weren’t at the same peak either, as they were quite flat throughout the game.

Tennessee held the lead at the half, thanks to the same defensive strategy that it used to contain Rex Grossman the week before—a four-man front with two of the guys standing up like they were linebackers.

The strategy wouldn’t work for long though, as the Vols knocked out Rohan Davey, forcing unknown Matt Mauck into the fire.

The Vols were not prepared for a running threat from the quarterback position after not having to face one all year, and it showed.

Mauck made crucial runs that eventually opened up the passing game, where Josh Reed took over.

Trying to get back in the game, Tennessee was driving when Donte' Stallworth fumbled, ending all hope.

The game showed how hard it is to get up for a major game two weeks in a row, and how a backup quarterback might not be the worst thing in the world.

After the game, I was in complete shock and had to deal with all the criticisms the next week in school.

I was left wondering what might have been. I don’t think any other team in the country could have won at Florida that year, which showed how good the Vols really were.

Also helping the Vols’ cause was a drubbing of Michigan in the Capital One Bowl.

Many people say that the Miami team that year was unbeatable, but after losing the following year, I know that Tennessee had a decent chance to win.

Just ask Michigan if Tennessee 2001 or Ohio State 2002 was better (45-17 loss in 2001, 13-9 loss in 2002 to OSU).

Maybe I was just being greedy after the Vols won it all in 1998, but I wasn’t nearly as big of a fan then as I was in '01, and especially now.

In fact, 1998 was the last time one of my teams won a championship.

I had a good chance in hockey with Philly, Dallas, and San Jose, but none of them could even make the finals.

Last year would have been a great chance for revenge on LSU for the Vols. But Erik Ainge’s interception returned for a touchdown, and another pick later proved to be costly in what turned out to be a brutal day of football for me.

I only hope that the next time one of my teams is in that situation, they can come out on top.

College Athletics: Heading Down the Wrong Path

Scott Taylor — Wed, 14 May 2008 16:55:38 -0400

College sports have been going down the wrong path for the past few years.

It has gotten even worse recently with the Kelvin Sampson scandal and now the O.J. Mayo fiasco.

Amateur athletics are on a slippery slope, but giving in to the athletes will just make it worse.

For one thing, athletes should not be paid. They are getting a scholarship to get their education for practically free in many cases.

If that isn't good enough for them, then too bad. Many other students work during college for the college, but they aren't getting paid 20 thousand a year to do the work.

I understand that the athletes make the school an abundance of money, but that money should be going to the school to improve things and make more scholarships.

Just because they go about using the money the wrong way doesn't mean that athletes should be rewarded for it.

With all of the pro leagues out there, far too many athletes are using college siply as a stepping stone. These players will make their money in time and can suck it up for a few years, or go play in Europe.

That goes along with the age limit. I love it because it makes college basketball better. Just because some use it the wrong way shouldn't mean it should stop.

After all, Kevin Durant would have never won the Rookie of the Year if it wasn't for the year in college.

What Mayo has done is a disgrace to himself and the school.

He didn't care if he got caught and took the school down, as long as it was after the season. A school will have to decide if taking that kind of chance is worth it, and that makes it fun.

You can't start paying them money because they will just want more. Next thing you know it will be cars (which some already get) HD TVs and why not houses (Reggie Bush)?

This is a greedy society and people always want more. It is a slippery slope that will get worse and worse the more the NCAA gives in.

That is why you need to be air tight on all signings and what occurs on a given day. I know it is a lot of work, but with all the money that is being made by the schools and the NCAA, they should have enough money to hire all the help needed.

A clean recruitment is the exception and not the rule, and that needs to change.

I love college sports ,because most athletes play for the name on the front of their jersey and not the back—but that is starting to change.

The purity of college sports is nearly gone, and it is starting to trickle down to the high school level.

Sports are supposed to be fun and amateur sports are supposed to be about learning the game and having fun.

At some point in time fans will have enough and if this stuff continues, it might be sooner than you think.

Memphis-Tennessee: Breaking Down No. 1 vs. No. 2

Scott Taylor — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 10:45:41 -0500

With the college basketball game of the year approaching, it is time to breakdown the matchups on and off the court.

Guards: Advantage Memphis

The guard play features strength versus strength in Chris Douglas-Roberts, Derrick Rose and Willie Kemp of Memphis against Chris Lofton, Jajuan Smith, and Ramar Smith of Tennessee.

Douglas-Roberts and Rose are the top two of the bunch, which is where the advantage comes from. However, the long ball makes up for a lot of the talent differential.

Jajuan and Lofton are rarely hot on the same night. Normally, as long as one of them is, it is enough, but they will both have to be to beat Memphis. It will be hard for them to slow down the dynamic Memphis guards, too.

Post: Advantage Even

Joey Dorsey and Robert Dozier might have a rebounding advantage over Tennessee's post, but the Vols can get more points from their inside men, even though those points will be scored on the perimeter. That will also bring the Memphis big men outside.

Tyler Smith, Wayne Chism and company will continue to rotate in and out, keeping them all fresh. The key will be for them to keep Dorsey off the offensive boards.

Shooting: Advantage Tennessee

This is where the Vols can make hay. As mentioned before, Lofton and the Smiths have to be on for the win. Meanwhile, the Tigers are known for their struggles beyond the arc. It won't be as necessary for them though if they can get to the paint. Neither team can shoot free throws very well, but the Vols are better, thanks to Lofton and Jajuan.

Defense: Advantage Even

The Vols have the full-court pressure defense that can change the game fast. However, they foul quite a bit and struggle with interior defense. Memphis has a solid, underrated half-court defense.

Coaching: Advantage Even

John Calipari might be the bigger name for Memphis, but Bruce Pearl is one of the best coaches out there as well. The chess match should be great, and the fact that the coaches aren't the best of friends makes it even more interesting.

Intangibles: Advantage Memphis

The home court wins out here, which comes along with getting the calls. The Tigers seem to get most of them and when they don't, Calipari will let the refs know. That and the noise will be a big factor in the game and you can expect several Vols to be in foul trouble.

The harder schedule will give the Vols a big advantage as they have already played at Kentucky and Xavier, and against Gonzaga in Seattle.

Bench: Advantage Vols

The Vols can come at you in waves and they will with J.P. Prince, Jordan Howell, Duke Crews, and Brian Williams.

Outcome: 81-75 Memphis

This should be a game of runs, but Memphis will make just enough of its plenty of free-throw opportunities to hold off a late charge.

Missouri Tigers Left Wondering What Might Have Been

Scott Taylor — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:24:10 -0500

For those of you who tuned in to the Cotton Bowl, you saw one of the most dominating performance of the bowl season turned in by the University of Missouri.

Not only did the Tigers shut down Heisman Trophy runner-up Darren McFadden, but its running back broke the Cotton Bowl record for most yards in the historic game.

That's right: Tony Temple rushed for 281 yards on just 24 carries for the normally pass-happy Tigers.

McFadden managed 105 yards, but his contributions were generally very quiet and meaningless.

The win has left many Tigers fans, including myself, wondering how they couldn't beat Oklahoma, a team they lost to twice and who was smoked by West Virginia 48-28 in the Fiesta Bowl.

The way West Virginia ran all over the Sooners was similar to the way Missouri ran past Arkansas. So why couldn't they do the same to the Sooners?

Well, the answer is fairly simple: they didn't try.

Missouri will force the pass at all times, and the games against Oklahoma is a perfect example. With the passing attack not working in the first half, the Tigers needed to go to the ground in the second half.

Even in the Cotton Bowl, Missouri passed way more than it needed to.

Chase Daniel completed just 12 of 29 passes for 136 yards—yet he passed more times than Temple ran.

In fact, it should have been easy to stop Temple. With all of the five wide receiver sets that Missouri used, almost every time Temple was in the game he got the ball. It was one of the most predictable things in the world.

All it did was make me put two and two together, and realize why the Tigers weren't playing in the championship.

Obviously the defense isn't great, but it isn't bad either. Play calling is still the major issue.

Despite all of the success of the Tigers this year, I will look back at the 2007 team and wonder what might have been.

People keep talking about the two-loss teams (USC, Georgia) who deserved a shot at the title. After Kansas won as well, why shouldn't the Jayhawks and Tigers be in the same position?

That goes back to the whole playoff discussion, which will have to be saved for another day.

Anyway, book a repeat between Oklahoma and Mizzou in the Big 12 Championship game next year, with some revenge from the Tigers.

They were a top five team this year, and will be again next year.