Bleacher Report - Articles by Dusty Floyd

Preseason College Football Power Rankings

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 23:23:57 -0400

The next college football season is finally just one day away, so it seems to be the right time to rank the top 25 teams with all injuries and other factors taken in note. Don't forget that the teams with a lot of hype usually don't always turn out for the best.

The preseason polls of last year didn't even have Texas in the top 10, and also had Georgia at the top spot when Georgia didn't make a BCS Bowl last year. So make sure to trust the preseason polls and power rankings at your own risk, but I'll give them my best shot.

1. Florida Gators

Who didn't see this one coming as the Gators return all of their starters from one of the top defenses in the nation along with Heisman candidate, Tim Tebow. Another important part that will help lead them to a national title is their easy schedule. The Gators don't have to play Alabama or Ole Miss from the SEC West in the 2009-2010 season.

2. USC Trojans

Every year USC is always the big hyped up team, but this year that is not the case. I've bought into the fact that instead of USC sleeping on teams, they will know that they have something to prove in every game, and get it done. If they can get past Ohio State on September 12, they should have a great shot at a national championship.

3. Texas Longhorns

Texas should still be hungry from missing out on their national title shot that they thought they deserved over Oklahoma. They're losing two big contributors in Brian Orakpo and Quan Cosby, but defensive end Sergio Kindle, and wide receiver Jordan Shipley will do their best to make up for those losses.

4. Oklahoma Sooners

The Sooners and Sam Bradford got shown up by Tebow and the Gators in the national championship and have more to prove in this upcoming season. I don't think Bradford will win the Heisman again this year, but I'm sure he'd enjoy a BCS Title much more.

5. Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama had a disappointing finish to last year after starting 12-0 then losing the SEC Championship to Florida then the Sugar Bowl to Utah. The offense only returns four starters and will be tested early against a tough Virginia Tech defense during week one.

6. Virginia Tech Hokies

Virginia Tech will be a dark horse for the BCS Title this year especially if they're able to knock off Alabama in their first game of the year. They return 15 starters from a team that won the Orange Bowl last year.

Running back Darren Evans went down earlier in preseason practice, but redshirt freshman Ryan Williams provides great depth at running back to compliment star quarterback Tyrod Taylor in a very promising Hokie squad.

7. Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State sophomore quarterback, Terrelle Pryor, is looking to take part of the Heisman race this year and should make a run for the prestigious award. Despite the talent at quarterback for the Buckeyes, the defense is where they'll win most of their games this year. They return seven of their defensive starters and allowed less than 14 points per game last season.

8. Oklahoma State Cowboys

If Oklahoma State can get their defense together this year, they will be a very feared team in college football. The Cowboys allowed over 28 points per game last year, and only put up 15 sacks throughout all of last year. On a positive note, Zac Robinson and Dez Bryant are back once again to show off they high-powered passing attack once again.

9. Ole Miss Rebels

The Rebels were the only team last year to take down the BCS Champions in the Florida Gators which showed the potential they have coming into this year. Jevan Snead will have one more year of experience under his belt and could possibly lead Ole Miss to an SEC Championship appearance and possibly more.

10. Georgia Tech

This is an underrated Georgia Tech squad that will return all players from last year's team, but five. Running back Jonathan Dwyer ran for almost 1,400 yards who is a sleeper for a Heisman and he's complimented by quarterback, Josh Nesbitt who is one of the more mobile quarterbacks in college football, piling up seven rushing touchdowns and almost 700 rushing yards last season.

The Best of the Rest

11. LSU Tigers

12. California Golden Bears

13. Penn State Nittany Lions

14. Boise State Broncos

15.Georgia Bulldogs

16. Oregon Ducks

17. Oregon State Beavers

18. Utah Utes

19. TCU Horned Frogs

20. North Carolina Tar Heels

21. Florida State Seminoles

22. BYU Cougars

23. Iowa Hawkeyes

24. Nebraska Cornhuskers

25. Illinois Fighting Illini

Washington Redskins Land Albert Haynesworth, Resign DeAngelo Hall

Dusty Floyd — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 11:24:38 -0500

Owner Dan Snyder and the Washington Redskins started off the free agency season today by making two huge signings in Albert Haynesworth and DeAngelo Hall.

Haynesworth was signed for seven years and $100 million while the Redskins were able to resign Hall for six years and $54 million.

Washington picked up Hall last year after he was cut by the Oakland Raiders and he turned out to be huge for the 'Skins. Hall was moved up to the top of the depth chart at cornerback by the end of the season.

After his big second half with Washington, he was made a top offseason priority by Snyder. He had two interceptions with Washington, and also a safety.

These two signings were foreshadowed when Snyder was making room for a big free agency by changing Chris Samuels' contract and releasing linebacker Marcus Washington.

The deal with Haynesworth is one of the richest in NFL history. It's much deserved by Haynesworth though, as last year he recorded a career-high 8.5 sacks along with 75 tackles, seven tackles for loss, and four forced fumbles.

Hopefully for the Redskins this won't be the case with Haynesworth, as there is much optimism back in Washington.

Don't think that this is the end of Washington's free agency, though, as Snyder is always trying to sign big names to improve his team.

Last year he signed Jason Taylor to try and improve the pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Taylor turned out to be a bust though, as he was injured for most of the year and wasn't much of an impact.

John Chavis to Be LSU's Next Defensive Coordinator

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 05:30:50 -0500

John Chavis will be leaving the University of Tennessee and will bring his attacking defenses to LSU next year.

Tennessee's defense was ranked fourth in the country this year, but after new head coach Lane Kiffin decided to bring in his father Monte Kiffin, Chavis became a big name on the market.

The offer LSU made to Chavis was a multiple-year contract for around $500,000. Chavis will be making a lot more than in his previous contract with the Vols, which was $340,000.

LSU, who will be playing Georgia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl this Wednesday, has struggled defensively this year after the Bayou Bengals had a strong defense last year with their national championship team.

This year their defense ranked 11th in the SEC and has given up 30 or more points in their last three games, all of which were very average teams.

According to head coach Les Miles, there won't be any changes made to the defensive coaching positions, but they do have some spots to fill as the two co-defensive coordinators are expected to leave to other schools.

Chavis, a Tennessee graduate, has remained very loyal to Phillip Fulmer and Tennessee throughout his career (unlike that traitor David Cutcliffe) and has shot down many job offers from the NFL.

There is a chance that Chavis will bring either Dan Brooks or Steve Caldwell with him to Baton Rouge. Both coaches worked alongside Chavis at Tennessee.

My Tennessee Football Christmas Wish List

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 08:16:14 -0500

Well, as the holidays have been coming closer, I've been thinking about what I could ask for this Christmas. I had a lot of trouble thinking of something I needed to make 2009 much better than 2008.

Then I figured out what it was: an improved Tennessee football team.

So I decided to name everything Tennessee needed for next year to finish with a record better than 5-7.

One solid Quarterback for the Whole Season

Last season, as most of you know, the Volunteers started out with Jonathen Crompton at quarterback. After Crompton led Tennessee to a 1-3 record in his first four starts, Phillip Fulmer elected to try out the backup, Nick Stephens.

Stephens was all but impressive in his first game against Northern Illinois, in which he led the Vols to a surprisingly close 13-9 win. In the next three games he performed weakly and Tennessee gave Crompton another try in a drive against South Carolina.

Statistically, Crompton played decently, but couldn't lead the Vols offense to any scoring. From there on, Tennessee just threw in random quarterbacks, and by the end of the season the Volunteers finished with five players having made pass attempts.

This year, I really hope that Lane Kiffin can find one good quarterback and stick with him. I got really sick of watching our quarterbacks pass for a completion percentage below 50 throughout the year.

The offense was given hope when two talented quarterback recruits—Tahj Boyd and Josh Nunes—committed to Tennessee earlier in the year, but both quarterbacks decommitted later on in the year for different reasons.

In my opinion, Crompton should be the top quarterback for next year, but that will be figured out this spring in practice. Whoever it is, I sure do hope he can perform much better than the quarterbacks did last year.

Eric Berry to Get His Much Deserved Thorpe Award

"The winner of this year's Thorpe Award is Malcom Jenkins!" I was completely shocked when I saw Jenkins receiving the 2008 Jim Thorpe Award, given to the best defensive back in college football.

Eric Berry, in my opinion, was obviously the best defensive back in the country, hauling in seven interceptions while returning them for 265 yards and two touchdowns. How could you give this award to anybody but Berry?

I really hope that Berry can match his stats from this past season, and I know he'll do at least that if not more.

The Defense and Secondary to Be as Dominant as They Were in 2008

Tennessee had one of the best secondaries in the nation in 2008. The defense had 17 interceptions while returning four of them for touchdowns. Sadly enough, I enjoyed watching the defense more than I enjoyed watching the offense.

If you look at the scores from some of Tennessee's games you may not realize the strength of its defense, but that was because the offense always left them in such bad field position.

Countless turnovers and three-and-outs by the offense put the defense in bad situations, but the defense did a great job holding opposing offenses to field goals or less.

Daniel Lincoln to Kick Field Goals Like He Did His Freshman Year

Daniel Lincoln looked like the next James Wilhoit III after his freshman year while making 75 percent of his field goals, but struggled greatly in 2008, going 10 for 18 and missing four field goals from less than 40 yards away.

I'm not sure what happened; maybe the pressure of the bad season got to him. But he missed a very short field goal in overtime against UCLA which lost the Volunteers their season opener.

Don't get me wrong, I know that there's no way I could kick a field goal and I know that it's not easy, but how can you get worse? All you do is kick field goals! Lincoln doesn't cover kickoffs or anything.

I really hope that Lincoln can go back to being the All-SEC kicker that he was in his freshman year.

Lane Kiffin to Be Half as Good a Coach as Philip Fulmer Was During His Career

To finish off my Christmas wish list, I'm asking that Lane Kiffin can do nearly as good as Phillip Fulmer did throughout his great career at Tennessee.

Fulmer was one of the greatest coaches not only in Volunteers history, but in the long history of the SEC, and it was a mistake to let him go.

Kiffin is facing high expectations from the Vol Nation, and he had better live up to them. It's something I believe he can do though.

Tennessee has a long winning tradition, and that helps recruiting a lot. Kiffin has already started his recruiting, and has a top-20 recruiting class so far. Even though Fulmer brought in most of those recruits, I'll still give Kiffin props for holding onto most of them.

I wish a lot of luck and a Merry Christmas to all of the Tennessee football program.

Vols Offense May Struggle Again In 2009

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 03:27:03 -0500

Tennessee's offense had just about everything they needed this past year to be successful except for a good quarterback.

It seems as if it could be that way next year. Tennessee shows no sign of bringing in a talented quarterback recruit for next season.

Phillip Fulmer had two top 10 quarterback recruits at one point in Josh Nunes and Tajh Boyd, but both of them decommitted earlier in the year.

Nunes decommitted after visiting Tennessee and deciding that it was too far away from his home on the west coast, and Boyd decommitted after former coach, Phillip Fulmer was fired, and Lane Kiffin told him he wouldn't be a good fit in his new offense.

One thing is for sure though, Tennessee does have a good group of running backs returning for 2009. Lennon Creer averaged over five yards in each of his 73 carries, and Montario Hardesty had six rushing touchdowns on the year.

Hopefully Lane Kiffin will be able to work with our quarterbacks during the offseason though, because teams will commit to the run once they figure out that the Vols have no passing game.

I'll tell you one thing, I do not plan on watching our quarterbacks throw for under 50 percent passing completion percentage.

Tennessee's highest rated quarterback prospect that they have left is Raymond Cotton who is ranked 21 out of all of the quarterbacks and is a four-star prospect.

I sure hope they can at least pick him up, or else the Vols could find themselves sitting out of a bowl game for the second straight season.

Top College Football Bowl Games to Watch over the Holidays

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 04:27:21 -0500

Meineke Car Care Bowl—North Carolina vs West Virginia

The bowl games between the Big East and ACC this year will tell which BCS conference is the worst. West Virginia had high hopes coming into the year, but couldn't come away with a great season.

Pat White and Noel Devine have impressed despite West Virginia's record as they've combined for over 2000 rushing yards. North Carolina looked good all year up until a devastating 42-10 loss to an average NC State squad.

Prediction: Pat White and Noel Devine will prove to be too much for the Tar Heels as they'll cruise to a 28-17 victory.

Sun Bowl—No. 20 Pittsburgh vs Oregon State

It will be very interesting to see how Oregon State does after being one win away from the Rose Bowl. Too Bad for them their inexperience showed, and they got blown out by rival Oregon by a score of 65-38.

Pittsburgh has lost games that they shouldn't have this year, and could easily be in the Orange Bowl with a win over Cincinnati in late November.

Prediction: LeSean McCoy will run all over Oregon State's weak defense to give Pittsburgh a 31-21 win.

Capital One Bowl—No. 15 Georgia at No. 18 Michigan State

Georgia had much higher hopes for the year than the Capital One Bowl, but they won't have an easy time trying to contain Javon Ringer. Georgia has another Walker finalist of their own though in Knowshon Moreno, and a talented quarterback and group of receivers.

If the Bulldogs can hold Javon Ringer under 150 yards, they will have a much higher chance of winning as Ringer hasn't rushed for more than 81 yards in any of their losses.

Prediction: Michigan State won't be able to plan for Georgia's balance on offense and the Bulldogs should stop Javon Ringer enough for a 28-24 victory.

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl—No. 3 Texas vs No. 10 Ohio State

The Longhorns are out to prove that they deserve to be in the national championship and that's what they're planning to do against Ohio State. Beanie Wells won't roll over against Texas though. He has been licking his chops as he's watched Texas' defense on film.

Colt McCoy will actually have to work to have a big day as it won't be easy to prepare for the strong defense of the Buckeyes. He'll get his 300 yards passing though and should lead his offense to at least 20 points.

Prediction: Texas should come away with the win, but as Lee Corso says, "It'll be closer than the experts think." Texas wins, 21-14.

Rose Bowl—No. 5 USC vs No. 8 Penn State

Penn State was hoping for a little bit more than the Rose Bowl, but I'm sure their happy with an exciting matchup against Southern Cal. Penn State's explosive offense and strong defense is something that USC hasn't seen since Ohio State back in September.

USC had better not come in too cocky, coming off of that easy Pac-10 schedule or else they could be in for a beating. Mark Sanchez won't come in ready for Joe Pa's defense and could definitely struggle in this one.

Prediction: Penn State will come in to prove that they are the national championship team everybody thought they were back in October and will win by a score of 17-13.

BCS National Championship—No. 1 Oklahoma vs No. 2 Florida

Heisman winner, Sam Bradford had better not let the distractions of winning the Heisman get in his way, or else he will be in for a rude awakening once he sees the speed of Florida's defense. Oklahoma's high-powered offense will finally be tested, and it may not be too pretty.

Tim Tebow, on the other hand, will come in to prove that he deserved another Heisman. He is very grateful to finally face a non-SEC defense and should do very well against the Sooners. Don't forget that Percy Harvin will be back and healthy for this one as well.

Prediction: Tebow and the Gators go on to win their second national championship in three years, winning 45-31.

Other exciting games and predictions

Valero Alamo Bowl—Northwestern over Missouri

Poinsettia Bowl—TCU over Boise State

Holiday Bowl—Oklahoma State over Oregon

Orange Bowl—Virginia Tech over Cincinnati

Gator Bowl—Clemson over Nebraska

A Little Refresher: Top Five Bowl Games of Last Year

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 02:54:55 -0500

5. Gaylord Music City Bowl—Kentucky 35, Florida State 28

This game stayed very close the whole way through as both teams swapped touchdowns throughout the first half ending the half tied at 14. Kentucky quarterback, Andre Woodson had a huge game passing for over 350 yards and four touchdowns.

Florida State scored a touchdown with just over two minutes left in the game to put the Seminoles within a touchdown, but after getting the ball back with around a minute to go, they couldn't tie the game up with another touchdown.

4. Konica Minolta Gator Bowl—Texas Tech 31, Virginia 28

After the first half it seemed like Virginia would cruise on back home with the Gator Bowl after a 21-7 lead, but a Texas Tech comeback ended those hopes.

Graham Harrell had a big game as usual, passing for over 400 yards, and so did his favorite receiver in Micheal Crabtree who had over 100 receiving yards. The Red Raiders scored their last 17 points within the last four minutes which included a game-winning field goal with two seconds left.

3. Chick-fil-A Bowl—Auburn 23, Clemson 20 (OT)

A back-and-forth game the whole time, Auburn ended up getting the last touchdown in this overtime battle. Auburn's new spread offense helped them gain all of 423 yards, and gave them a big win over Clemson.

For Clemson, CJ Spiller and James Davis both had big games, but Clemson could only manage to get a field goal in overtime which wasn't enough for the win.

2. Sheraton Hawaii Bowl—East Carolina 41, Boise State 38

East Carolina kicker, Ben Hartmen, made a 37-yard field goal as time expired to stun the Boise State Broncos.

Boise State looked like they would pull off another miracle, after they scored a defensive touchdown off of a fumble recovery as with under two minutes to play.

East Carolina's running back, Chris Johnson who's now playing for the Tennessee Titans was the obvious player of the game as he accounted for 408 total yards.

1. Capital One Bowl—Michigan 41, Florida 35

Nobody gave Michigan any chance in this game, but the Wolverines came out fired up and ready to play in this intense game. Although Florida's offense proved almost unstoppable, the Gators couldn't shut down Chad Henne or Mike Hart.

Michigan got a field goal and a touchdown within the last five minutes which was enough to be named the Capitol One Bowl champions.

Eric Berry Doesn't Win Thorpe Award? Can You Say...Cheated!

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:44:20 -0500

On Thursday night Malcolm Jenkins won the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given to the best defensive back in the nation—wait...that doesn't make sense.

Wasn't it Eric Berry that had seven interceptions while returning them for 265 yards, and didn't Malcolm Jenkins only have three interceptions that he returned for a mere seven yards?

Okay, so Malcolm Jenkins is supposedly such a great cover corner with all of nine pass breakups. Nine! Oh my gosh! Eric Berry almost had that many interceptions! An interception actually changes possession—it doesn't just force an incomplete pass.

I guess somebody might want to teach the voters some kind of football knowledge. All you have to do is watch one Tennessee football game, and you'll be able to see the impact Eric Berry has on each and every game.

To begin with, Berry has led the Tennessee defense to the fourth-best defense in college football. While doing that, he had to help out Tennessee's struggling offense and averaged over five yards per carry.

You don't see Jenkins playing both ways, do you? All right, he may have had a couple big plays on special teams, but there isn't a game where Eric Berry doesn't have a big hit, interception, fumble forced, and/or fumble recovered.

Eric Berry is also one of the hardest hitters in the nation. Just ask Knowshon Moreno, as Berry lit him up during Tennessee's game against Georgia and put him on the bench for a while, seeing stars.

By now I guess you've noticed that I sound pretty mad, and that's because I am. Eric Berry has been all that Tennessee football fans such as myself have had to be happy about all year, and I don't enjoy seeing him being cheated to some guy who isn't nearly as talented as the best defensive back in the nation, Eric Berry.

I hope that the voters will regret their decision after they watch Colt McCoy's offense pass all over the Buckeyes in the Fiesta Bowl.

Good luck Malcolm—you'll need it.

Tim "Superman" Tebow Favorite to Repeat as Heisman Trophy Winner

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:16:43 -0500

Tim Tebow has had a great season on and off the field this year, and he is my pick to win the Heisman this year.

People could make the argument about how Tebow doesn't have anywhere near the passing yards that Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy have, but half of Tebow's opponents have had defenses ranked in the top 25 in the nation.

You can't say the same thing for the Big 12 duo at all, as McCoy has faced 11 defenses ranked lower than 70 and Bradford has faced eight.

Tebow has showed a lot of leadership this year, especially after Florida's loss to Ole Miss. After the loss, Tebow gave the media an inspired speech saying that there wouldn't be another player that would play as hard as he would the rest of the year.

Tebow hasn't let anybody down on that statement.

Since the loss to Ole Miss, Tebow has had a total of 32 touchdowns. Now that sounds a little bit more like the defending Heisman trophy winner, doesn't it?

As you probably know, Tebow shows much heart in each of his games as he stiff-arms linebackers and runs right through them. Even Bobby Bowden jokingly said that Tebow might want to think about switching to linebacker in the NFL.

Tebow has also been a very inspirational figure off the field. Now I know that the Heisman goes to the most outstanding college football player, but I'm sure the voters won't forget about how traveled across the world to help out kids in need.

He even won the Disney Spirit Award this year, which is given to college football's most inspirational player. The award was presented earlier today in Walt Disney World.

If Tebow wants to win his second Heisman, he had better hope that the voters aren't looking at stats too much, as he's outnumbered on passing yards and touchdowns by Bradford and McCoy.

I'm pretty sure that the voters aren't, though, because the nation's best passing offense's quarterback, Graham Harrell, was left out of the group of finalists.

There has been much controversy about it this week, but maybe Harrell should've thought about not getting blown out by over 40 points to Oklahoma.

Tebow has done all that he can to put himself in position to repeat as the Heisman winner. Now it's up to him, as he has a vote, and many other voters to let him go down in history as just the second player ever to win multiple Heisman awards.

Phillip Fulmer Accepts Administrative Job at Tennessee

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 14:26:56 -0500

Former Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer accepted a job at the University of Tennessee to be a special assistant to University president John Petersen for the next three months.

Fulmer will be making $12,500 a month from Dec. 1 to Feb. 28. His specific job has to do with "developing and enhancing strategic relationships for the university," as said by Petersen.

I'm sure Fulmer isn't really doing it for the money, as he will be paid his six million dollar buyout over the next four years.

Fulmer announced on Nov. 3 that he wouldn't be returning as Tennessee's head coach, and then he also announced that he could possibly stay at Tennessee doing administrative work such as he will be doing now.

Fulmer said he'd only like to return to coach at schools that are passionate about football the way Tennessee is, such as Clemson, but Clemson recently hired Dabo Swinney as their head coach.

"Phillip Fulmer is a UT icon and a wonderful ambassador. Over his long career with the University he has developed a vast network of contacts, made invaluable relationships with alumni and UT supporters, and done extensive work with development," Petersen said.

"I am not yet certain what the future holds for my career, but I'll always support my alma mater, and I appreciate the opportunity to help the university out now," Fulmer said.

Washington's Performance Against Giants-Everything But Inspired

Dusty Floyd — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 08:49:16 -0500

The Washington Redskins were unable to win the game honouring former player Sean Taylor for the second year in a row as the Skins fell to the New York Giants this Sunday, 23-7.

The NFL's leading rusher, Clinton Portis, only had 22 yards rushing on 11 carries and was out-rushed by quarterback Jason Campbell.

The Redskins game plan coming into the game was pretty obvious: Shut down Brandon Jacobs. They did that pretty well, holding him to 3.4 yards per carry, but they must've forgotten about the previous year's Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning.

Manning had over 300 passing yards, and did a great job managing the game, despite one interception.

After the Giants' defense forced a three-and-out to begin the game, their offense took the ball 71 yards on just seven plays for a touchdown. The touchdown was a 40-yard pass from Manning to Amani Toomer.

Following New York's touchdown, their defense was able to force yet another three-and-out. The Giants' offense performed well once again, taking the ball deep into Redskins territory, but only managed to come away with a field goal.

The first quarter ended not so brightly for Washington, as they found themselves on the losing end by a score of 10-0.

After another Washington drive stalled, New York started out their drive with a 48-yard pass with most of the yards picked up after the catch by Derrick Ward.

The Giants didn't gain much more after that, and were forced to another red zone field goal by John Carney.

Trailing to New York 13-0, the Redskins were in dire need for a touchdown, and they got just that after driving down the field and ending the drive on Devin Thomas' 29-yard reverse for a touchdown.

Nothing too interesting happened on offense until less than 30 seconds to go in the half, as the Giants opted to go for it on Washington's 38 yard-line. The quarterback sneak was shut down by the powerful defensive line that Washington has.

With 26 seconds to go in the half and two timeouts on their 38 yard-line, the Redskins had a chance to get a field goal before the half.

Their first play was a 20-yard completion down the middle to Chris Cooley, and they quickly called a timeout. The next two plays set up a 42-yard field goal attempt from Shaun Suisham.

If Suisham made the field goal, Washington would go into halftime with some much-needed momentum, but Suisham missed the field goal wide to the right.

The second half was a lot of the same from the Giants' offense, as Brandon Jacobs marched into the end zone on New York's third possession.

There wasn't another Washington possession exceeding five plays until the game was out of reach, down 16 points late in the fourth quarter.

The key stat in this football game was in the time of possession category. New York had the ball for over 11 minutes more than the Redskins.

The New York Giants can count themselves into the playoffs with this win, advancing to 11-1, and I don't know of a better team in the NFL than the defending Super Bowl champions.

Washington, however will do their best to make the playoffs with their record now at 7-5. They find themselves just behind the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC wild card standings, and every win is essential to their playoff chances.

Sean Taylor was inducted into the Redskins' ring of fame just before the game, but Washington didn't seem to play too inspired for their former teammate.

Tennessee Squeezes Past Georgetown, Advances to Old Spice Classic Finals

Dusty Floyd — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 09:35:08 -0500

Tennessee beat Georgetown by a score of 90-78 in an exciting back-and-forth game. With the win, Tennessee advances to the finals of the Old Spice Classic to face either Maryland or Gonzaga.

Before the game, Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl had said that the Vols would have to hit a lot of three-pointers to get past a strong Georgetown defense, and they did just that.

Cameron Tatum led the Vols in three-pointers making five out of his six attempts, and Tennessee finished 10-15 from behind the arc.

Tatum, however was not Tennessee's leading scorer as Tyler Smith led the Vols with 21 points.

This semifinal game had numerous runs and lead changes. Lucky enough for Tennessee though, they had the last big run, going 23-6 at one point late in the second half.

Georgetown started off the game strong leading 14-6 led by Greg Monroe who had six early points, but Tennessee regained its composure and tied the game back up at 14 apiece with 13:35 to go in the first half.

Tennessee and Georgetown stayed pretty close once again, until Tennessee went on a 7-0 run, which included a highlight dunk by freshman Emanuel Negedu.

The two teams stayed pretty even up until the end of the half as the Volunteers out of Tennessee led the Hoyas from Georgetown, 39-37.

Tennessee forward Wayne Chism picked up two early fouls which put him with four fouls just under four minutes into the half. He had been an impact inside, but he had to sit out for over 12 straight minutes.

During that time, the Hoyas led by as much as eight points, and they kept a firm lead for most of the 12 minutes that Chism was out.

Tennessee managed to keep the game within reach though, as the Vols went on a run to put them up by six just before Wayne Chism, who finished with nine points and six rebounds, came back in the game.

Give a lot of credit to Cameron Tatum, as he shined at the end of the game by scoring all of 14 points in the last six minutes to bring the Vols to victory.

Tatum knocked down four nice three-pointers within that period of time, and also had a highlight, breakaway dunk.

The Volunteers pretty much cruised on to victory from there, finishing with a big blocked shot by Emanuel Negedu as time expired.

Another player who played an important role in the victory for Tennessee was junior college transfer Bobby Maze.

Maze finished with three impact steals, nine assists, and 14 points that included two important three-pointers.

The main reason that Tennessee was able to pull off the important win against Georgetown was that they made the Hoyas play their type of game.

Georgetown is known as a low-scoring, defensive based team, and Tennessee is a high-scoring, offensive based team.

The two teams scored a total of 168 points, and that tends to favor high-scoring teams just as it did on Black Friday.

Tennessee will advance to the finals of the Old Spice Classic, and the Vols hope to win their championship game at 7:30 on Sunday night.

Lane Kiffin to Become University of Tennessee's Football Coach

Dusty Floyd — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 08:00:00 -0500

The University of Tennessee and former Oakland Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin have come to an agreement to name Kiffin as their new head football coach on Monday.

Last Wednesday, Tennessee's athletic director Mike Hamilton denied reports that Kiffin had been named the next head football coach for the Vols, but Kiffin has been at the top of Tennessee's list from the start.

This will be Kiffin's first stint as head coach at the collegiate level in his young career.

Previously, Kiffin was head coach of the Oakland Raiders for just 20 games before being fired earlier this season by Raiders owner Al Davis.

The main reason for the delay in naming Kiffin as next head coach has been because of the departure of Tennessee coaching legend Phillip Fulmer. Fulmer, head coach of Tennessee for 17 seasons, was recently fired after posting a disappointing 4-7 record.

Tennessee's next game against Kentucky will take place this Saturday, a day to be known as "Phillip Fulmer Appreciation Day." On Saturday, fans and alumni will remember and appreciate all the things that Fulmer has done for the University of Tennessee.

Kiffin, the youngest coach in NFL history, made $2 million as part of the Raiders. He is expected to have a similar salary in Tennessee.

Nobody knows which coaches Kiffin will bring in to be a part of his staff. He will be only the fifth head coach for the Volunteers in the last 45 years.

Rumor has it that Kiffin is trying to bring in his father, Monte, the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Monte Kiffin has been known to always have great defenses in Tampa Bay. He has earned a lot of respect as one of the greatest defensive minds in the NFL.

With the high standards that the "Volnation" have for their football team, I would like to wish Lane Kiffin good luck at the University of Tennessee. He's going to have to get the Vols to perform well. Otherwise, Lane Kiffin could have another short coaching tenure.

College Basketball's Power Eight

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 15:20:55 -0500

1. North Carolina

Despite losing freshman Tyler Zeller for the season, the Tar Heels have looked as good as, if not better than, everybody thought they would be.

Their matchup against Notre Dame will be a great game, and we should really get a feel of how good North Carolina really is.

2. Connecticut

Hasheem Thabeet and Jeff Adrien are both averaging double-doubles, which helped put the Huskies past No. 19 Wisconsin.

My only problem with UConn is their very close win over La Salle. I would have felt a lot better about them if they had played to their full potential in that game.

3. Louisville

I've been set on Louisville ever since they whupped Tennessee in the Sweet 16 last year. Their leading scorer, Samardo Samuels, is off to a great start, averaging 21 points per game.

The Cardinals will have to get through a tough Big East schedule though. If they get out with fewer than six losses, watch out.

4. Michigan State

Michigan State will get their first test on Thanksgiving night against an undefeated Maryland. Even though their talented freshmen haven't had too much of an impact yet, look for Korie Lucious, Delvon Roe, and Draymond Green to be a factor against Maryland and other future opponents.

Lucky enough for the Spartans, the Big Ten only has two other ranked teams, which could earn them a pretty good seed in the NCAA tournament.

5. Pittsburgh

The part of this Pittsburgh squad that has me so hooked on them is their balance. They have three players that average over 13 points per game.

After knocking off an underrated Belmont team, they looked to knock off Texas Tech, who's averaged over 100 points en route to their 5-0 record.

6. Duke

I have to give Duke a lot of credit for winning the 2K Sports Classic even with star point guard Greg Paulus having limited playing time with an injury.

Duke has four players averaging more than 12 points. I wouldn't want to play against the Blue Devils, especially when they get Greg Paulus back.

7. Notre Dame

Well, as of the moment, they're losing to North Carolina by 10 at halftime, but I don't care if they pull off the win or lose by 30.

After watching them beat Texas, I know that Notre Dame basketball will be at least a lot better than the football team in South Bend this year. Luke Harangody hasn't disappointed at all this year as he averages over 25 points and 12 rebounds.

8. Tennessee

Many people don't think the Vols will be very good this year because Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith graduated, but I could care less.

Those people have forgotten about the balance of Tennessee and a forward named Tyler Smith. He's one of the front-runners for the SEC Player of the Year award and hopes to lead the Vols past a strong Siena team on Thanksgiving Day.

Kentucky-Tennessee: Wildcats Aim to Break 23-Game Skid Against Struggling Vols

Dusty Floyd — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 14:48:13 -0500

Kentucky may be considered a rival to Tennessee, but the Wildcats have been the Volunteers' biggest whipping post since 1984. That's because 1984 was the last time Kentucky beat Tennessee.

Tennessee holds a 23-game winning streak over the Wildcats, which is the longest active streak in college football.

Last year Kentucky took the Vols all the way into four overtimes, but they ended up losing 52-50 after Andre Woodson was sacked on a two-point conversion.

Last year's game meant a lot to Tennessee (like the rivalry isn't enough), because a win put them into the SEC championship game.

The game included a late comeback by Kentucky, a goal line stand at the end of regulation by Tennessee, a blocked field goal in overtime by the Vols, and 70,000 disappointed Wildcat fans.

It just seems as if Kentucky is cursed in some cases.

Erik Ainge also broke Tennessee's record for the most touchdown passes in a game by throwing seven of them. After the game, he said, "We somehow got it done. It wasn't perfect on either side, but we find a way to get it done."

This wasn't the only heartbreaking loss that coach Rick Brooks has watched his team go through.

In 2006, Kentucky had the ball on Tennessee's three-yard line but couldn't manage to get into the end zone with under five minutes left to play, and they ended up losing 17-12.

Even if Kentucky doesn't get the win they're hoping to this year, they do have one thing over Tennessee. Kentucky will be playing in a bowl game as Tennessee will be left out of a bowl game for the second time in four years.

Kentucky may be the favorite on paper, but I think Tennessee will pull one out for Coach Fulmer, and tradition won't be on Kentucky's side.

This could turn out to be an ESPN instant classic, so make sure to tune in at 6:30 on ESPN2.

Nine College Football Award Finalists Announced

Dusty Floyd — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 02:53:54 -0500

Tim Tebow will do his best in his last two games to repeat as a Maxwell Award winner. He, along with Colt McCoy and Graham Harrell, were announced as the three finalists for the award, which is given to the nation's best offensive player.

Tebow, however, was not made a finalist for the Davey O'Brien Award. Sam Bradford took his place as the third finalist along with other Big 12 phenoms Colt McCoy and Graham Harrell.

Tim Tebow has not performed as well as he did last year, but has turned it on in his recent games. Since his loss to Ole Miss, he's been on fire with over 20 total touchdowns.

The three finalists for the Chuck Bednarik Award include star linebackers Rey Maualuga of Southern California and James Laurinaitis of Ohio State, and defensive end Aaron Maybin from Penn State.

The most outstanding wide receiver award wasn't too much of a surprise. Obviously, Michael Crabtree is the front-runner out of Texas Tech, and he's followed by Dez Bryant from Oklahoma State and Jeremy Maclin out of Missouri.

For the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given to the top defensive back, Eric Berry from Tennessee was named a finalist, as he leads the nation in interceptions with seven.

Berry's competitors are Malcolm Jenkins from Ohio State and Taylor Mays out of Southern California.

The Doak Walker Award for best running back is anybody's guess. It could go to Knowshon Moreno from Georgia, Javon Ringer out of Michigan State, or even Shonn Greene from Iowa.

These finalists have been very exciting to watch this year, and I can't wait to watch them in their remaining games.

Eddie Jordan Fired by the Washington Wizards After 1-10 Start

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 03:25:12 -0500

Eddie Jordan was fired as the head basketball coach of the Washington Wizards after a terrible 1-10 start.

Ed Tapscott was named the Wizards' new interim head coach. He will run their first practice Monday morning, a team spokesman told the Associated Press.

Eddie Jordan was not the only one let go, as Washington also elected to fire assistant coach Mike O'Koren. Therefore, Randy Ayers will become the top assistant coach for the Wizards.

Gilbert Arenas and Brendon Haywood have been injured most of the season, and it has taken a toll on the Wizards, who fell once again last Saturday, to the New York Knicks, 122-117.

Antawn Jamison addressed the media shortly after the game about the rough start to the season.

"As long as we continue to work hard and continue to believe that we can turn things around, it makes my job easy," said Jamison, the Wizards' captain. "When guys stop playing hard and giving their all is when it becomes difficult for me, but this is a learning curve."

Earlier in the season, Gilbert Arenas said, "It isn't so bad to be in last place." He alluded to the fact that the Spurs were a weaker team back before they picked up Tim Duncan early in the first round, and now they're right back at the top.

This firing has come as a surprise so some fans, as Eddie Jordan has coached the Wizards to the playoffs in the past four years. Even though he never made it past the conference semifinals, this is still a respectable accomplishment.

He ends his stint as the Eastern Conference's longest-tenured head coach, and he was the third longest-tenured head coach in the NBA behind Jerry Sloan and Gregg Popovich.

The Washington Wizards will hope to end their five-game losing streak Tuesday night at home against the Golden State Warriors.

The three-game home stretch should be an indicator of how the rest of the season turns out, and hopefully it will show some good signs for the rest of the year.

Will Muschamp Supposedly Not an Option For New Tennessee Football Coach

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:51:09 -0500

The University of Texas has recently announced that their defensive coordinator, Will Muschamp, will be the successor of head coach Mack Brown once he retires.

Mack Brown, 57, has said he has no intention of leaving anytime soon as he has eight years remaining on his contract and hinted that he'd like to make a national title run before he leaves.

Will Muschamp is supposed to get his salary boosted to $900,000 come January. I'm sure that the University of Tennessee can offer a lot more than that. Muschamp seems to be staying at Texas for a while, but just ask Nick Saban, money can change minds pretty quickly.

Will Muschamp, 37, played safety at Georgia and was the defensive coordinator at Auburn before coming to Texas which gave people the idea that he might be the next head coach at Tennessee or maybe even back at Auburn.

I just love how intense he gets on the field, before becoming a head coach, he may want to cool down a little bit, but that's just his style.

If you decide to try to jump the snap, but end up jumping it too early and causing your defense five yards on an offsides call, he'll be in your face the second you come off of the field.

His ways have caused a lot of chatter, but that style could be what the Tennessee players need. Phillip Fulmer has always been the laid back kind of coach. He's been known to get his team pumped up during halftime, but Tennessee has played flat all year.

Texas was probably smart to offer him this position as the future head coach of Texas, because if it came too late, he may easily ended up at another school.

Will Muschamp has helped the Longhorns to a record of 113-26 in a career that's lasted over 10 years now. He's also led Texas to three Big 12 championship appearances, and a Big 12 title and national title back in 2005.

This announcment isn't expected to disrupt the coaching staff, who are preparing for their next game against Texas A&M.

"Will is the hot guy and they understand that," Brown said. "This is not an immediate issue. It just means he's staying and not leaving. You all [the media] are more excited about it than anybody else. We're all going back to work. At some point way in the future it will become a factor."

Is the Big 12 Better Than the SEC? Top Conferences in College Football

Dusty Floyd — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:51:51 -0500

1. SEC

No other conference in the nation can match the SEC's speed on defense. The SEC has five ranked teams, along with Alabama and Florida ranked in the top three.

People may think that there is not enough offense for the SEC to be ranked ahead of the Big 12, but there are four teams that average more than 30 points per game.

2. Big 12

I just can't put all of those high-powered offenses ahead of the SEC until I see them play against a tough defense.

I know that they have more top 15 teams, and more Heisman candidates, but the toughest out-of-conference game I could find was when Oklahoma played TCU at home.

3. ACC

It's a very debatable decision putting the ACC at No. 3, especially with the ACC not having a team with more than seven wins.

The part I didn't add though, was that the ACC is the most balanced conference in college football with eight bowl eligible teams already! The ACC is still up for grabs, and it seems as if there is a new leader of each division after every week.

4. Big Ten

There was another big shake-up in college football after Iowa upset Penn State last Saturday. The downfall of Michigan has hurt the Big Ten's ranking, but Michigan State has made up for that with a 9-2 record.

5. Mountain West

The Mountain West has jumped the Big East and Pac-10 this year after having three teams ranked in the top 18 and Air Force at 8-2.

Utah could be one of the top teams in the nation, but I doubt it only because their what seemed to be a "big upset" over Michigan wasn't as Michigan only has three wins.

6. Pac-10

Previously, I had the Pac-10 as the fourth-best conference, but after seeing they only had two teams in the top 25, I dropped them down to No. 6.

USC is the conference's only good team, and they seem to always lose to weaker division opponents. Arizona State and UCLA have been big disappointments this year, which has caused a lot of lost respect for the Pac-10.

7. Big East

There isn't really anything positive to say about this weak Big East as there isn't a team ranked higher than 20. Pat White and Matt Grothe have been everything but Heisman candidates, as they've led their teams to 6-3 records.

Maybe you can say that the Big East is consistent. Too bad their consistency is being average, having a winning percentage of under 60 percent.

Bandwagon Fans: The Nuisances of the Sports World

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 13:59:46 -0500

In life, there are many things that can get on a person’s nerves, and one of them that sticks out in my mind is bandwagon fans.

Many people may not be so sure about what a bandwagon fan is. Bandwagon fans cheer for a certain sports team just because they are good.

Whenever somebody tells me they like the New England Patriots, the first thing I ask them is why. More than half of the time they have no good reason for rooting for them at all. I just can’t stand it one bit.

I have always cheered for the same teams all my life. I’ve always been a Baltimore Orioles fan despite how bad they have been. Even when the beloved Washington Nationals came to town, I never switched my team. The Orioles haven’t had a winning record since 1997.

Now this is an example of the dedicated sports fan that I will always be.

I hate the bandwagon fans that just switch to a new team after every single year. I can understand it a little bit if it’s a little kid, but if they're in college and still switching teams around, then they have no excuse at all.

It especially drives me crazy when they say how bad the team that I like is. I try my best to ignore it, but it just totally gets on my nerves. I’m sitting here right now with Tennessee’s 3-6 season, and all of the bandwagon fans have already changed teams.

During a losing season is when a team needs their fans the most. I can't emphasize that any more. When a team is in a tough situation, they need as much fan support as possible.

Their fans are what will keep them going in the fourth quarter. By the time the team is starting to turn around, all of the bandwagon fans would've moved on by then.

Bandwagon fans will always get under my skin, and they will not stop annoying the world of sports.

Who Can Turn Tennessee's Struggling Offense Around?

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 10:13:57 -0500

Tennessee's offense sure has struggled this year. The main reason? The lack of any star power. Their best returning player on offense is running back Arian Foster, who has only rushed for 458 yards this year.

Then there's this Eric Berry kid. He's an amazing athlete, starring at safety with the defense. On the year, he has six interceptions, averaging over 36 yards on each interception return, and he took one of those all the way back for a touchdown.

He has already set the SEC career record for interception return yards and is on his way to breaking the NCAA record by the end of this season. Oh yeah, did I mention that he's only a sophomore?

Tennessee has not had a consistent quarterback this year either. Jonathan Crompton was the quarterback to start the season, but at about midseason the Vols brought in their backup, Nick Stephens, who hasn't done much better.

Eric Berry played quarterback during most of his high school career and had a lot of success. Tennessee should at least try him out at quarterback. Eric Berry even said in an interview that he'd love to try out the offense.

After the past few games, the coaches have said they'd try him out on punt returns and kick returns, but I think that was just to make the fans shut up. They've only let him return two kickoffs.

Eric Berry is just amazing in the open field, as you can see on his interception returns. I'm sure that if Phillip Fulmer would just put him on offense when he's not too tired, Fulmer would get some big wins to finish out his career.

Should Phillip Fulmer Really Have Been Fired?

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 03:22:25 -0500

150 career wins, a winning percentage of almost 75 percent, a national title, and five trips to the SEC championship in 17 years. How would a coach with this kind of résumé get fired?

Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer has done a great job at the University of
Tennessee but has struggled in the past few years. In the past four seasons, Tennessee's record has been 27-20. That's way below par for a school with as much tradition as Tennessee has.

Phillip Fulmer has been on the hot seat ever since his 5-6 record back in 2005. Last year he responded with a big win over Georgia and an SEC East title. This year, he never turned the season around.

The complaints started coming after UCLA, one week after beating the Vols in overtime, suffered a 59-0 rout to BYU. That's when everybody started fearing another losing season.

Things didn't get any better after they lost to Florida at home, 30-6. Fulmer has not been doing so well against rivals in the last decade either. Vol fans always want to beat Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. In this decade, Tennessee has just been 11-16 against those three teams, and 17-26 against ranked opponents.

This year, the offense has been the problem. It all started when David Cutcliffe left Tennessee's offensive coordinator job and took the head coaching job at Duke. This year, Dave Clawson has not done well at all as the offensive coordinator.

In my opinion, he should be the one to get fired. I don't care if it's his first year—there's no excuse for only putting up 13 points against Northern Illinois at home.

Fulmer will always be known as one of the greatest coaches in Tennessee's long history and in the history of the SEC. Only five coaches have won more SEC games than he has, and only the great Tennessee coach, General Robert Neyland, has won more total games with the Vols.

It will be a very tough job to replace Fulmer, but the Athletic Director asked for it after firing one of the biggest legends in Tennessee football history. I will always love Coach Phillip Fulmer and wish the best for him as he moves on in his life.

How a College Football Playoff System Would Turn Out

Dusty Floyd — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:26:18 -0400

There have been many arguments in the past few years about a playoff system in college football. It seemed that the past two years the BCS got the national champion right, but it hasn't always been that way.

In 2004, Auburn finished the season 13-0, led by star quarterback Jason Campbell. In my opinion, any undefeated SEC team should always make the BCS title game, and the Tigers did not. Therefore, questioning the system is necessary.

When people argue against a playoff system, they say that a four-team playoff would eventually turn into an eight-team playoff, and the number of teams would continue to grow. Remember, college basketball's NCAA tournament started off with eight teams—now they have 65.

In my system, all I did was take the top eight ranked teams in the BCS and seed them according to ratings. The higher seeded team would get the home field advantage, except in the national championship.

Seedings based on BCS rankings

No. 1 Texas

No. 2 Alabama

No. 3 Penn State

No. 4 Oklahoma

No. 5 USC

No. 6 Georgia

No. 7 Texas Tech

No. 8 Florida

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Texas over No. 8 Florida

No. 2 Alabama over No. 7 Texas Tech

No. 6 Georgia over No. 3 Penn State

No. 5 USC over No. 4 Oklahoma

Semifinals

No. 5 USC over No. 1 Texas

No. 2 Alabama over No. 6 Georgia

National Championship

No. 2 Alabama over No. 5 USC

A playoff system would benefit marketing and would cause many exciting games. Bowl games deny exciting games in a lot of cases.

Last year, instead of Georgia playing USC in the Rose Bowl, Georgia ended up blowing out Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl and USC ended up blowing out Illinois in the Rose Bowl. A playoff would force many exciting games in multiple weeks.

I will always love the bowl games, but adding a playoff along with the bowl games would be college football heaven during the holidays.

College Football Week 10 Pick 'Em

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 12:04:05 -0400

In Week 10, there are many great college football games just as there is every week. Two of the games include two Top-10 teams facing off, and there are some bitter rivalries to be played out this week. I'll pick some of the top games from this week, and let you know who I think will come out with the victory.

No. 15 Florida State at Georgia Tech

More shake-ups in the ACC after this one. Georgia Tech will use their home field advantage and run the ball all over Florida State.

Georgia Tech 27-14

Miami at Virginia

The Virginia Cavaliers have been upsetting teams lately; they should continue this against Miami. The Cavs will extend their four-game winning streak and pull off a tight one against the Hurricanes.

Virginia 17-13

West Virginia at No. 25 Connecticut

After West Virginia pulled off the surprise upset against Auburn, it'll be hard for me to choose against them in this one. Pat White and Noel Devine will take over the game and run the clock out with their quick feet.

West Virginia 38-24

Pittsburgh at Notre Dame

Jimmy Clausen has got to avoid interceptions in this game, because every play will matter. Notre Dame's defense will have to find a way to shut down Pitt's running back, LeSean McCoy, or else they won't have an easy time winning this one. The Fighting Irish should find a way to pull this one out at home, which they've done in all four home games so far in the season.

Notre Dame 20-14

Wisconsin at No. 21 Michigan State

Michigan State will continue to get back on track against a disappointing Wisconsin squad. The Badgers' running game should keep this game closer than expected, but Michigan State will win by a decent score.

Michigan State 24-10

No. 1 Texas at No. 7 Texas Tech

If the Longhorns can get through this game, they would've gotten through the toughest four-week stretch of games on any schedule in college football without a loss. Both offenses in this game are the big story, but Will Muschamp's defense will stop Texas Tech just enough times to give Texas the win.

Texas 45-38

No. 24 Oregon at California

Both teams are ranked in the top 20 in points scored and both offenses will continue to produce in this one. Don't forget that the Golden Bears are undefeated at home this year too. Cal gets the final possession in this one to pull off the upset.

California 35-28

Tennessee at South Carolina

The Volunteers have obviously been a huge disappointment this season, and if they don't win this game it's likely that they won't make a bowl game for the second time in four years. South Carolina's defense should win this one for the Gamecocks.

South Carolina 13-7

Game of the Week:

No. 8 Florida vs. No. 6 Georgia

Florida will be looking for sweet revenge in this rivalry. If you didn't know, last year Mark Richt sent out his whole team to celebrate their first touchdown, knowing they'd get flagged for a personal foul. After that, the Bulldogs were pumped up and went on to win the game.

If Tim Tebow can get going like he did against Kentucky this past week, Georgia's defense will have a tough time winning. Look for Urban Meyer to send out the Gators after their first touchdown to celebrate it, and get them excited for the rest of the game. Getcha' popcorn ready!

Florida 31-21

Florida-Georgia: The Game of the Week

Dusty Floyd — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 04:19:31 -0400

The SEC East title is pretty much on the line with this game. Both of the teams have a 4-1 conference record, so the winner of this game will take a one-game lead in the SEC East and hold a head-to-head tiebreak if the winner ends up losing to one more SEC opponent.

Florida is very excited to get back at Georgia for embarrassing them by sending all of their players on to the field to celebrate a first quarter touchdown, knowing they would get flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

That got the Bulldogs pumped for the rest of the game, and they went on to win the game 42-30.

Tim Tebow played as he was expected to the whole season against Kentucky last week in their 63-5 rout of the Wildcats. He had four total touchdowns and over 200 total yards.

He will have to play even better than that to upset the number six-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. Georgia wins by an average of two touchdowns and extra points in their games, which is a very tough thing to do while having five SEC opponents on their schedule.

Georgia hopes to make it back to the SEC championship game so they can most likely get another shot at number two Alabama. The Crimson Tide was destroying Georgia at halftime 31-0, but Georgia came back to make the score respectable at 41-30.

Florida's only loss was a 31-30 upset to the Ole Miss Rebels. Florida had an extra point blocked at the end of that game to finish off the disappointing loss.

The Florida vs. Georgia game is always a big rivalry, and there will be a lot on the line in this game, including a probable trip to the SEC championship game. Stars Knowshon Moreno and Tim Tebow had better play tough for their teams, or else they will end up having a very disappointing season.

Penn State: Keys to a National Title

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:12:43 -0400

Does anybody remember how bad Penn State was in 2003 and 2004? In those two years, they had a combined record of 7-16. Not too good, was it?

Joe Paterno has turned this program back around with his great recruiting and coaching. Now, this Saturday, they face off against No. 9 Ohio State in a game which promises to be one of the best so far this season.

If the Nittany Lions win, they have an easy three games left to continue their undefeated season. If they win those, Penn State should find themselves back in another national championship game, because it's very unlikely that both Alabama and Texas will win every game on their tough schedules.

Evan Royster has put up some impressive stats so far. He's averaging 7.7 yards per carry and has 10 rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Daryll Clark has stepped up his game as well in just about every category.

Penn State's only problem is their schedule. The Buckeyes will only be the second ranked team, as of now, that they will play this whole year. Texas will end up playing four teams ranked in the top 15, and Alabama obviously has a tough schedule in the SEC.

The question is, will the BCS put a one-loss Big 12 or SEC team in front of an undefeated Penn State? This will remain unanswered until the final BCS poll comes out at the end of the season. For that reason, Penn State will have to put up some style points, just as USC did, against Ohio State to get into a BCS title game.

The Nittany Lions have blown out every opponent they've played so far, with their closest game being a 38-24 win over Illinois. Also, 24 points was the most allowed by their defense all year.

So in a wrap, if Penn State beats Ohio State, they have a pretty good chance at making a BCS title game. Joe Paterno had better get his squad ready for this one, because it's the game of the year for Penn State.

Race for the Heisman: Colt McCoy Leads Top Five Candidates

Dusty Floyd — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 03:49:24 -0400

1. Colt McCoy

He's at the top of everybody's list, and for good reason. He has kept the Longhorn offense going throughout the year, which put them past Oklahoma. His top stats are an 80 percent completion percentage, almost 1,900 passing yards, and 25 total touchdowns. He may not seem like a rusher, but he is Texas' leading rusher.

McCoy has done an awesome job of following up Vince Young's national championship, and he may have one of his own by the end of the year, along with a Heisman trophy.

2. Sam Bradford

Another star Big 12 quarterback here—he would've been the leader in the Heisman race if he had just beaten Colt McCoy and the Longhorns. He has over 2,500 passing yards and 26 total touchdowns. If Texas wins the rest of their games, then I don't see how he'll win this award over Colt McCoy.

3. Tim Tebow

The reigning Heisman winner has some more talent around him this year, which has caused his stats to drop. He did a great job blowing out LSU, which definitely helped his chances for a repeat. He will have to have an amazing second half, because his stats are about half as good as Sam Bradford's.

4. Knowshon Moreno

Without him, I'm not sure where Georgia's record would be right now. In their six wins, he averages 6.1 yards per carry, and in Georgia's one loss he averaged 3.8 yards per carry. Big difference right? If he produces on a consistent basis and pushes the Bulldogs through their tough late season schedule, then he could find himself right back at the top of the Heisman race.

5. Graham Harrell

I know that many people will argue with him being this low, but I haven't jumped on the Graham Harrell bandwagon yet. His toughest opponent so far has been Nebraska, and they only won by six points. I think he's just another system quarterback. Once I see him play against a decent defense, then I'll take another look his way.

Tennessee-Alabama: Can the Volunteers Knock Off the Tide?

Dusty Floyd — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 04:24:28 -0400

Many people do not think anything of the Volunteers this year. Tennessee has not played the way they should be playing at all. However, they have a chance to make up for the whole season by knocking off number two Alabama this weekend.

Alabama had better be ready for this one, because Tennessee may be a young team, but they are very physical.

Their strength is their secondary as they lead the nation with 14 interceptions. All-American safety Eric Berry leads the way with five interceptions, and on every pick he makes he has a chance to return it all the way.

After a 72-yard interception return for a touchdown last week against Mississippi State, he became the SEC's all-time leader in interception return yardage. He's only halfway through his sophomore season!

If John Parker Wilson can avoid throwing any interceptions, then the Crimson Tide have a much better chance to win this game.

Tennessee is pretty good at stopping the run, and they will have to back that trend up, because Alabama has the eighth-best rushing game in the country.

Glen Coffee and Mark Ingram seem to be the next Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. Don't forget about Roy Upchurch though, as he averages 5.9 yards per carry.

The one problem for Tennessee is their offense. After the benching of Jonathan Crompton, Nick Stephens has showed better poise in the pocket, but it doesn't show in his stats. A sub-50 percent pass completion percentage just won't get the job done against Alabama.

The Volunteers just have to stay with the Crimson Tide in the fourth quarter, and maybe the 105,000 screaming fans in Neyland Stadium can help them pull off a season-changing upset.

Will The Crimson Tide Go Unbeaten? Breaking Down the Rest of Alabama's Schedule

Dusty Floyd — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 15:21:27 -0400

The Alabama Crimson Tide has fallen on many lists of power rankings after a close 17-14 win over Kentucky this past weekend. Did you think they'd blow out all of their opponents? Not in the SEC they won't.

LSU lost two games last year, and that didn't stop them from winning the national championship. This Alabama squad could be different though, that's why I will break down the rest of their schedule for you, and tell you who could potentially upset them.

October 18: Ole Miss Rebels

Ole Miss will attempt to knock off another major SEC contender as they did against Florida. I can tell you one thing, Nick Saban better have his team ready for this game, or else they will fall just as Florida did in week five. No worries though, Saban will have the Crimson Tide ready.

Prediction: Alabama 27-10

October 25: @ Tennessee Volunteers

This is one to watch out for. If Alabama does not come in ready, Tennessee has a big chance of winning. At 2-3 right now, this Tennessee team has a new, talented quarterback in Nick Stephens who will get experience in three games prior to the Alabama game. The Volunteers have the talent to finally pull out a big victory and stun the nation against the Crimson Tide.

Prediction: Tennessee 17-14

November 1: Arkansas State Indians

Alabama will seek revenge after a loss to Tennessee, and will take all of their anger out on Arkansas State. Not much to say about this one, the Indians have no chance at all.

Prediction: Alabama 42-3

November 8: @ LSU Tigers

Les Miles will bring out some more Tiger magic in this one. LSU may not be as talented as Alabama in this one, but Les Miles will win this one the same way he did against Florida in 2007, great coaching. The Baton Rouge fans won't help Alabama at all in this game either.

Prediction: LSU 27-21

November 15: Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State has been a disappointment so far this year, and the disappointing play will continue in this game. John Parker Wilson will pass all over their defense, and the Bulldogs won't have much response on offense.

Prediction: Alabama 34-7

November 29: Auburn Tigers

Although Auburn had a very strong performance against LSU, even though they couldn't pull out the win, they had a big letdown in the loss to Vanderbilt. Even with Auburn's strong defense, Alabama's high-powered offense is very hard to slow down. Auburn will keep this rivalry game pretty close.

Prediction: Alabama 24-13

Regular Season Record: 10-2

Alabama could easily win the Tennessee game and the LSU game if they prepare properly. They are the most brutal team in the country, and they showed that against Georgia.

If Alabama wins the SEC championship win one loss to the Volunteers, they deserve a spot in the national championship game. Any SEC champion with one loss deserves a spot in the national championship game. Alabama controls their own destiny right now, let's see what they do with it.

Six Teams College Football Fans Love to Hate

Dusty Floyd — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 10:10:16 -0400

There are many teams in college football that nobody cares for at all, and then there are teams who just drive other college football fans crazy.

There are plenty of reasons to hate a team. Their fans, their fight song, or even their mascot can force an opposing fan to hate that team.

Here are six of the most hated teams in college football:

1. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

The Fighting Irish are just like the Yankees, you either love them or you hate them. That's all you need to say for Notre Dame. Oh, and Lou Holtz is one of the most annoying college football analysts ever.

2. USC Trojans

They have gotten better and better, which draws in more hate from around the country. It's also brought in even more bandwagon fans, which every sports fan hates.

3. Tennessee Volunteers

As if their long winning tradition isn't enough to be jealous of, at Neyland Stadium they play "Rocky Top" 30-40 times per game. If you don't know the song before you go to the game, I will give you a 100 percent guarantee that you will know every single word after you leave Knoxville that day.

4. Ohio State Buckeyes

OH-IO! The Buckeyes take their football tradition very far back. College football fans are sick and tired of watching the Buckeyes get blown out in back-to-back national championships, knowing that any top 25 team could come in more prepared.

5. Florida Gators

The Gator fans are obnoxious, annoying jerks. Did I mention that every other college football team wishes that they had Tim Tebow leading their team?

6. Michigan Wolverines

Everyone had a good laugh after watching the Wolverines get it handed to them by Appalachian State, then seeing all of the Michigan fans cry their eyes out.