College Football Predictions: Teams Who Could Take Over Their Conference
College football season is almost here. With each teams' sights set on the ultimate goal, the BCS National Championship, teams must first get through the season and win their respective BCS conferences.
Let's take a look at the six BCS conferences and the teams capable of overthrowing last year's conference champions.
Big Ten: Wisconsin
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 5
Head coach Bret Bielema has gotten the Badgers back on track after a few mediocre seasons, as Wisconsin went 10-3 in 2009, upsetting the Miami Hurricanes in the Champs Sports Bowl.
The Badgers return all but one starter on offense, with the departure of tight end Garrett Graham. Quarterback Scott Tolzien proved himself towards the end of 2009, but the offense will revolve around the 2009 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, running back John Clay.
The defensive lost three starters on the line, along with safety Chris Maragos and linebacker Jaevery McFadden. One plus for the Badgers in 2010? They get Ohio State at home.
The Badgers are looking to finally come out of the large shadow that is Ohio State in the Big Ten, and this very well may be the year.
Pac-10: Oregon State
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 3
Oregon State narrowly missed out on playing in its first Rose Bowl since 1964, losing to rival Oregon in the Civil War. Instead, the Beavers faced BYU in the MAACO Bowl, and got crushed by 24 points.
The Beavers could very well be contenders for the Pac-10 crown in 2010 under coach Mike Riley. The Rodgers brothers, receiver James and running back Jacquizz, will return the air and running attacks for this veteran team.
Ryan Katz is expected to take over for the departed quarterback Sean Canfield. Katz saw very limited playing time in 2009, but coach Riley feels confident in the sophomore.
Oregon State undoubtedly has the talent to take the Pac-10, it's just a matter of them not losing should-win games.
Big 12: Nebraska
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 1 in North, lost to Texas in Conference Championship Game
After the Cornhuskers blew out Arizona 33-0 in the 2009 Holiday Bowl, head coach Bo Pelini announced "Nebraska's back and we're here to stay." It looks like this could very well be true.
The Blackshirt defense is back. Of course, Ndamakung Suh will be greatly missed along with four other defensive starters, but the blackshirts will look to dominate the field in 2010.
Quarterback Zac Lee and running back Roy Helu are returning to push the offense into Big 12 title contention. The offense is seemingly unchanged,as it lost only one starter, center Jacob Hickman.
The Huskers will be a force to reckon with in their last season in the Big 12 Conference. They've got a new motivation to obtain the Big 12 title after coming within one second (literally) of winning the championship game against Texas in 2009.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
ACC: Miami
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 3 in Coastal Region
Things started out great for The U in 2009. With early wins over Florida State, Georgia Tech, and Oklahoma.
However, it all seemed to slow down for the 'Canes, and ended with an upset loss to Wisconsin in the Champs Sports Bowl. They showed signs of the glory days at The U, but proved to not quite be at that level.
One thing is true, Randy Shannon is doing good things down in Miami.
Jacory Harris is returning at the quarterback position and has the potential to bring great things to Miami if he eliminates mistakes. In fact, he has to play better after the departure of key tackles Jason Fox and Matt Pipho.
Seven starters will be returning on the defense, which was up and down most of the 2009 season. The 'Canes did lose some talent with the departures of linebacker Darryl Sharpton, cornerback Sam Shields, and safety Randy Phillips.
Like many have said before, most of the 'Canes success will ride on the shoulders of Jacory Harris.
Big East: West Virginia
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 3
The Mountaineers return all but a handful of starters to the 2010 roster with seven on offense and nine on defense.
Quarterback Jarrett Brown is gone, and is likely to be replaced by Gino Smith, who is by no means a superstar quarterback, but seems capable of getting the job done.
Star running back Noel Devine will return to the Mountaineer offense, looking to dominate the running game. West Virginia might not have as much talent as Pitt in the Big East, but they do have the tools to put up a good fight.
SEC: Florida
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2009 Conference Ranking: No. 1 in East, lost to Alabama in Conference Championship Game
Florida narrowly missed playing for their third 2010 BCS Championship in four years after a loss to Alabama in the SEC title game, but gained a huge 51-24 win over the then undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats team in the Sugar Bowl.
Tim Tebow is gone. So is linebacker Brandon Spikes, cornerback Joe Hadan, receivers Riley Cooper and David Nelson, and just about everyone else who mattered to Florida in the past two years. But the thing is, there is never a lack of talent down in Gainesville.
Quarterback John Brantley will be taking on the task of replacing Tim Tebow, an almost impossible task in the eyes of Gator fans. Considering the success that Tebow had in his collegiate career, this guy's got some big shoes to fill down in The Swamp.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
