College Football 2011: What We Learned from This Weekend's Spring Games

The 2011 College Football season is still a few months away, but many schools held their spring practice over this past weekend. Some teams are looking to see what they have with some of their new recruits, while others are hoping to get one step closer toward reaching a BCS bowl game.

But all of the schools are determining their depth charts for the upcoming season.

Here is a look at what we learned from some of the top schools in the country as they concluded their spring practices:

South Carolina Gamecocks

The Gamecocks have the pieces in place to make the upcoming season very special—as long as quarterback Stephen Garcia can convince the team to lift his suspension.

As of this minute, Garcia has not been allowed to rejoin the program after getting suspended for the fifth time at South Carolina. But even without him, the Gamecocks offense was impressive during its spring game. Edward Aschoff of ESPN said the same in the Garnet's 21-17 victory over the Black team.

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"Even without suspended quarterback Stephen Garcia, South Carolina’s passing game was pretty impressive," said Aschoff. "The Black’s Conner Shaw led the way with 176 yards and a touchdown on 17-of-26 passing. The Garnet’s Dylan Thompson finished with 168 yards, a touchdown and an interception on 6-of-13 passing."

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South Carolina has the opportunity to be an explosive offense, especially with running back Marcus Lattimore. With the arrival of JaDaveon Clowney on defense, expect the Gamecocks to challenge for the SEC championship.

Florida Gators

The Gators are embarking on a new season with a new coach, and it appears that new head coach Will Muschamp is focusing on defense.

The Blue defeated the Orange 13-10 in what could only be called an offensive struggle. That includes the Gators incumbent starting quarterback. Edward Aschoff of ESPN says that Florida will need much more from their offense if they expect to compete for an SEC championship.

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"Fans couldn’t have been overly thrilled with the offensive performances from the Gators," wrote Aschoff. "The teams combined for 340 yards of total offense, while the Orange defense held the Blue to the fewest points (13) by a winning team in the history of Florida’s spring game. The Blue had six total completions, tied for the lowest in spring game history the Orange had the fewest total offensive yards (143) in spring game history.

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"Quarterback John Brantley, who coach Will Muschamp said is Florida’s unquestioned starter, began 0-for-6 and finished with 45 yards on 4-of-14 passing. Backup Tyler Murphy led with 68 yards and 7-of-11 passing."

The Gators should have a decent season, but if the offense struggles like it did last year, then they can forget about an invite to a BCS bowl game in January. Brantley will have to play much better this season, or they could be playing before New Year's Day in 2012.

Stanford Cardinal

The Cardinal are hoping that quarterback Andrew Luck can get his team back to a BCS bowl this season, even holding onto hope that he can play well enough to get Stanford to the BCS championship game.

Even without head coach Jim Harbaugh, great things are expected in Palo Alto this year. Ted Miller of ESPN said that Luck certainly got off to a solid start in Stanford's spring practice.

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"Quarterback Andrew Luck completed 16 of 22 passes for 165 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Cardinal to a 42-3 victory over the White before an estimated crowd of 6,800 at San Francisco's Kezar Stadium," said Miller.

"Tight end Zach Ertz concluded an impressive spring by catching all three TD passes. Tight end/fullback Ryan Hewitt caught four passes for 61 yards, while sophomore running back Anthony Wilkerson rushed for 65 yards on six carries."

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Stanford should be one of two excellent teams in the newly formatted Pac-12, along with the Oregon Ducks. Their offense will be as dangerous as any other team's in the country, and Luck could have a Heisman type of season.

Maybe Luck did make the right decision to return to school for his senior season. It should beat playing for the Carolina Panthers.

Clemson Tigers

The Tigers are looking to rebound from an embarrassing bowl game loss to the South Florida Bulls last December. Head coach Dabo Sweeney is counting on big things from new quarterback Tahj Boyd, especially with a solid backfield featuring Andre Ellington.

Heather Dinich of ESPN said that the emphasis was certainly on the offensive side of the ball during the Tigers spring practice.

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"Last year, the Tigers ran 108 total plays in their spring game," wrote Dinich. "On Saturday, the Tigers ran a total of 130. And yes, it was balanced, with 69 rushing and 61 passing plays. Clemson, which is under the direction of first-year offensive coordinator Chad Morris, snapped the ball with 16-20 seconds left on the play clock on most plays." 

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Clemson could have a shot to contend in the ACC if a few things fall in their favor early in the season. If that does happen, it will be because Boyd gets the offense going right from the start.

North Carolina Tar Heels

The Tar Heels are looking to move on from the days of their all-time leading passer T.J. Yates. The team is also hoping to move on from all of the controversial suspensions on defense last season. That may be asking a lot, even if Butch Davis is still leading the Heels.

If the team is to reach its lofty expectations, then new quarterback Bryn Renner will have to produce early and often for UNC. Heather Dinich of ESPN reported that Renner may have plenty of weapons to help him succeed as Tar Heels starter.

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"I was a lot more nervous today because I was running with the ones and it was the first time Coach [John] Shoop was in the [press] box," Renner said, according to the team's practice report. "I thought I did alright, but I know I've got a lot more to learn. I worked the ball to Dwight a lot today and he made me look good. He has the potential to be one of the best receivers in the country."

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North Carolina is going to be ranked to start this season after their exciting Music City Bowl victory over the Tennessee Volunteers last December. If Renner can hook up with his receivers and the new defense can play as a unit to begin the season, then North Carolina may just be able to live up to those high expectations.

Purdue Boilermakers

The Boilermakers are still in search of a new quarterback to lead the offense in 2011. Unlike many programs who have to settle for the better option, Purdue may have two excellent options before the season starts. Miami Hurricanes transfer Robert Marve is battling it out with Rob Henry, who led the Gold team to a 14-3 victory this weekend.

Adam Rittenberg of ESPN says that head coach Danny Hope will have quite an important decision to make come August.

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"Although Purdue's quarterback race isn't over as Robert Marve will rejoin the mix this summer, Henry separated himself this spring and clearly has the support of his teammates," wrote Rittenberg. "It'll be an interesting decision for Hope, who has a lot invested in Marve but has repeatedly praised Henry's progress."

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Henry may have the lead right now, but don't expect Marve to go down quietly. He already left Miami after failing to lock down the starting job, and he knows that he is running out of chances—and time—to lead a team to a bowl victory.

South Florida Bulls

The Bulls are expecting big things in the Big East Conference this season, and there is plenty of reason for all of the optimism. Following an impressive bowl game victory over the Clemson Tigers, the Bulls are headed in the right direction in the college football world.

B.J. Daniels is back as the team's dual-threat quarterback, and head coach Skip Holtz has a lot of talent surrounding Daniels to work with this season. However, Brian Bennett of ESPN says that not exactly everything is in place for South Florida to earn a BCS bid quite yet.

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"The good news from the scrimmage was that the offense, which had an ugly day in the official spring game a week earlier, played better on Saturday," wrote Bennett. "Darrell Scott and Demetris Murray combined to rush for 136 yards and two touchdowns, and quarterback B.J. Daniels also had a rushing score. But in the bad news department, Daniels was just 8-for-19 for 117 yards as he and the receivers again struggled to connect.

"With spring over, the Bulls' biggest questions heading into the summer appear to be at receiver, and finding depth at cornerback and on the offensive line. They look strong and deep at running back and have a solid defense, especially with the starting group."

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Holtz will have the pieces in place to have a great season at South Florida, but their schedule will not be easy. They have to open up the season at Notre Dame, and have another out-of-conference game scheduled against the Miami Hurricanes in November.

LSU Tigers

The Tigers bring back senior quarterback Jordan Jefferson, and they expect their offense to be amongst the best in the SEC this season. While Les Miles may be losing some talent on defense, they figure to have enough returning offensive talent to keep them in contention in most of their games. Throw in the late-game luck of Miles, and anything can happen in Baton Rouge this year.

Edward Aschoff of ESPN claims that the Tigers will need a strong ground attack, which got off to a solid start at their spring practice.

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"Starting running back Spencer Ware was the star of the day, leading all rushers with 94 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries for the White," says Aschoff. "Ware, who has the responsibility of taking over for Stevan Ridley (1,147 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns in 2010), also caught two passes for 50 yards."

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If Ware can help out Jefferson in the Tigers offensive attack, then LSU should have an explosive season with the ball. They should put up more points this season anyway, because the loss of Patrick Peterson should mean that their opponents will throw more against them this year, leading to more points on both sides of the ball.

Either way, LSU should be one of the more entertaining teams in the SEC this season.

Ohio State Buckeyes

The Buckeyes are in for a controversial year in Columbus, which is not expected to get any easier any time soon. Head coach Jim Tressel and star quarterback Terrelle Pryor are suspended for the first five games of the season, along with four other Buckeyes starters.

According to Adam Rittenberg of ESPN, suspended wide receiver Devier Posey will also be sorely missed by Ohio State during the first five games of the season.

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"Receiver DeVier Posey recorded two touchdown receptions, a 33-yarder from Joe Bauserman and an eight-yarder from Taylor Graham," says Rittenberg. "Freshman quarterback Braxton Miller had the only other touchdown of the scrimmage on an 11-yard run.

"Posey recorded five receptions for 83 yards and two scores, while the other scholarship wideouts combined for only five receptions. Think Ohio State will miss No. 8 in the first five games?"

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The Buckeyes should still easily win three of their first five games, even without their suspended players. But beating Miami and Michigan State may prove to be a little harder. Those two games could determine how successful Ohio State is this season.

There are still quite a few teams who have not yet held their spring game, which means that many depth charts are still up in the air. For some teams, this will be the case until August.