College Football 2011: One Reason for Every Top 25 Team to Be Pessimistic
In everyone's lives, there will be people that have a pessimistic look at the world seeing it as a glass half empty point of view of what happens during a person's day.
College football isn't safe from pessimism as it has those same people looking for a weakness in a team's upcoming campaign this fall to dash the hopes of a fan base that sees big things happening in the future.
As spring practice begins across the country, the pessimistic fans will start coming out of the woodwork looking over the practice and seeing the negatives of the players getting ready for the season instead of the positives of the teams jelling together.
With that, let's check out the preseason top 25 breaking down the biggest reason why those teams will not make 2011 a magical season on campus.
Penn State
1 of 25
Reason: Deciding on a Starting Quarterback
With the ageless Joe Paterno entering his 45th year in Happy Valley, Penn State will have to choose between quarterbacks Matt McGloin and Rob Bolden to run the offense this season. At this moment, McGloin will likely be the leader at grabbing the nod as he had a very productive 2010 with 14 touchdowns and more than 1500 yards as a sophomore.
Miami Hurricanes
2 of 25
Reason: Corner back Position
As new coach Al Golden takes over the Hurricanes' program after the Randy Shannon era ended in 2010, the former Temple coach will have to deal with holes at cornerback as DB Brandon Harris declared for the NFL Draft along with Ryan Hill finishing his NCAA career last season.
The defense as a whole will bring back seven for new defensive coordinator Mark D’Onofrio which includes Brandon McGee who will likely become the most stable player at the corner back position.
Florida Gators
3 of 25
Reason: Offense Continuity
After the first 8-5 season since 2003 and the resignation of Urban Meyer, the Florida Gators will be in a rebuilding mode in some ways as Wil Muschamp takes over as head coach and former Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis enters as the offensive coordinator of a talented loaded program.
With a program that is loaded on the offensive side of the ball, Weis and new line coach Bryant Young will need to replace four starters to help protect John Brantley and keep the offense flowing in 2011.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
West Virginia Mountaineers
4 of 25
Reason: New Offensive Coordinator Dana Holgorsen
As the 2010 season played out, the Mountaineers were held back by their former offensive coordinator Jeff Mullen last season being unable to score when the time was needed in losses to Syracuse, Connecticut and LSU. With Dana Holgorsen taking the controls of the offense, West Virginia has the ability on the team to score points in bunches but it will be up to Holgorsen to utilize the talent to lead WVU back to a BCS bowl game.
Virginia Tech Hokies
5 of 25
Reason: Running Game
With the two-headed monster of Ryan Williams and Darren Evens gone from Blacksburg, Frank Beamer will have to rely on junior David Wilson, who accounted for more than 600 yards in 2010 behind the previously mentioned running backs, as Virginia Tech looks to duplicate and improve on the 11-3 record from 2010.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
6 of 25
Reason: Running Game
As the Bulldogs used their ground and pound running game to a 9-4 record in 2010, Mississippi State will need to retool the offensive line to continue the success of the running game. To help with the play of the o-line, former defensive tackle senior James Carmon will move over to tackle to help help spring senior Vick Ballard and sophomore LaDarius Perkins for huge chunks of yards in 2011.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
7 of 25
Reason: Establishing a Quarterback
With the Brian Kelly era in South Bend ending its first year on a four game winning streak, Notre Dame will need to find a new signal caller for the 2011 season to continue the resurgence of the Irish. Senior Dayne Crist will most likely be the pick from Kelly and the coaching staff as he's had the experience in game at quarterback compared to sophomore Tommy Rees who might be a year away from being the job.
Auburn Tigers
8 of 25
Reason: Replacing Cam Newton
For Gene Chizik and the Auburn coaching staff, the task of replacing the playmaking ability of Cam Newton will likely be filled with junior Barrett Trotter as he has the playing experience in addition to the ability to move outside the pocket with a solid offensive line in front of Trotter in the style of offense of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn.
Michigan State Spartans
9 of 25
Reason: Linebackers/Defense
With Michigan State having a good bit of talent residing on defense in East Lansing, the Spartans coaching staff will need to find some replacements for All-Big Ten linebackers Greg Jones and Eric Gordon. As the linebacker position being the quarterback position of the defense, Michigan State will need to lean on the returning starters in addition to sophomore Max Bullough building on a phenomenal freshman year to be successful in the Big Ten.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
10 of 25
Reason: Run Defense
As the Cornhuskers make the move from the Big 12 to the Big Ten in 2011, Nebraska will need to sure up the offensive line after losses of guards Keith Williams and Ricky Henry to match up better with the running styles of the Legends division. The coaching staff will need to find some big players to fill the holes for the running game to continue the success that ranked ninth in the nation in 2010.
Texas A&M Aggies
11 of 25
Reason: Middle of the Defense
With the losses of Von Miller and Michael Hodges from the Aggie defense, coach Mike Sherman will need to find a replacement to fill the large footprint that those two have left in College Station after they finished their college career. Damontre Moore will likely be a choice to fill the pass rushing void that Miller left in addition to Garrick Williams and Kyle Mangan on a defense that returns nine starters from 2010.
Arkansas Razorbacks
12 of 25
Reason: Offensive Line
While the Razorbacks moves on as Ryan Mallet heads to the NFL, Bobby Petrino and Arkansas will have Tyler Wilson to take over the QB position but with the losses on the offensive line most notably Demarcus Love, the program will need to fill the holes left on the line to continue the recent success in Fayetteville.
TCU Horned Frogs
13 of 25
Reason: Quarterback Play
After Andy Dalton led the Horned Frogs to an undefeated season and the Rose Bowl in 2010, TCU will be without the most successful quarterback in the program's history after Dalton completed his eligibility last season.
For coach Gary Patterson, the two quarterbacks that can get the nod of run the loaded offense will be be junior Casey Paschall, who has a bit of experience after playing in parts of eight games in 2010 scoring three touchdowns in garbage time.
Wisconsin Badgers
14 of 25
Reason: Quarterback Play
Like other Big Ten schools, Wisconsin will need to choose a new starting quarterback as Scott Tolzien has moved on leaving the job wide open for competition.
Depending on the decision of coach Bret Bielema, the Badgers have their choice of style of quarterback to go with either the pocket passing of sophomore Jon Budmayr or the dual threat of junior Curt Phillips.
Florida State Seminoles
15 of 25
Reason: Offensive Line
After the Jimbo Fisher era started successfully in Tallahassee last season, Florida State will have a talented group of players entering 2011 with the offensive line being the only question with center Ryan McMahon finishing his eligibility in 2010.
The return of offensive linemen Andrew Datko and Zebrie Sanders will have a good foundation to build around as the season goes along to help move the offense for new starter EJ Manuel this season.
Missouri Tigers
16 of 25
Reason: Replacing Blaine Gabbert
With the Missouri offense bringing back an solid nine starters from the 2010 season, head coach Gary Pinkel will need to choose a new starting quarterback for the Tigers between sophomores James Franklin and Tyler Gabbert to help run the spread offense as the receiving corps and offensive line will be a solid in 2011.
South Carolina Gamecocks
17 of 25
Reason: Front Seven
After the Gamecocks broke through with Steve Spurrier by winning the SEC East, South Carolina will rely on the great running by sophomore Marcus Lattimore in 2011 but will not have the stifling defense they enjoyed in route to a great season in Columbia last season.
South Carolina have lost two starters along the line and in the linebacking corps that will need to be addressed as there are multiple SEC teams that will look to exploit this weakness.
Oklahoma State
18 of 25
Reason: Defense Line Unity
While the loss of Dana Holgerson to West Virginia, the Cowboys' defense will be hurting more than the offense as there will be only three returning starters from 2010 along the line and in the linebacker corps in 2011.
Nigel Nicholas and Cooper Bassett will likely fill the holes at defensive tackle as well as Richetti Jones and Jamie Blatnick filling the defensive end positions bring some solidarity to help with opponent's running games.
Ohio State Buckeyes
19 of 25
Reason: First five weeks of 2011
When Jim Tressel, Terrelle Pryor and the rest of the suspended Buckeyes take the field for the first time in 2011, Ohio State can be 3-2 for the season after big games with the Miami Hurricanes at South Beach and the Big 10 conference opener with Michigan State imploding a promising season before October is complete.
LSU Tigers
20 of 25
Reason: Quarterback Play
After a horrible passing game for LSU in 2010 that left them ranked at 107th in the nation, new offensive coordinator Steve Kragthorpe will have to choose between Jordan Jefferson, who had a good final three games of last season after a rocky beginning, and a new transfer quarterback Zach Mettenberger that could provide a better handle of the new offense in Baton Rouge.
Stanford Cardinal
21 of 25
Reason: Offensive Line
Quarterback Andrew Luck should have took the money from the NFL and ran from Stanford last season because there is a good chance that he will be doing more running this season with the loss of three all-Pac-10 selections but with a solid backfield, Luck will have plenty of check downs to throw to in 2011.
Alabama Crimson Tide
22 of 25
Reason: Quarterback Play
As Greg McElroy exits the Alabama program, sophomore AJ McCarron will likely be the next starting quarterback for the Crimson Tide even though there might be some competition from freshman Phillip Sims but either will have the safety valve of Trent Richardson to help with the transition to becoming a full time signal caller in Tuscaloosa.
Boise State Broncos
23 of 25
Reason: Passing Game
As the BCS buster moves from the Western Athletic Conference to the Mountain West Conference, Boise State will enter the new league with a need for pass catchers as the dangerous combo of Titus Young and Austin Pettis have moved on from blue turf.
Kellen Moore will look toward some new targets to keep the ball rolling for the Broncos as two sophomores, Geraldo Hiwat and Aaron Burks, might be the picks to help the passing game in 2011.
Oklahoma Sooners
24 of 25
Reason: Running By Committee
After the loss of DeMarco Murray to the NFL, the Sooners will have a number of choices to pick from to carry the ball this fall with Roy Finch and Brennan Clay as both made contributions during the 2010 season and will be looked upon to fill the void in the running game in 2011.
Oregon Ducks
25 of 25
Reason: Defensive Line & Line backing Corps
With only the corner back unit still remaining solid, the rest of the Oregon Duck defense will need to be worked on all the way until September as the group returns only five starters for 2011 that includes junior defensive backs Cliff Harris and John Boyett, who pulled down 11 interceptions in 2010.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
