2011 College Football: 12 Teams Excited -- or Not -- About the Season's Start

Well, the long wait is finally over and the blessed first day of the 2011 college football season is finally, at long last, upon us.

It’s hard to believe that 234 full days have passed since Auburn iced Oregon in what was a thrilling BCS Championship affair…a game that ended with a final, loathsome whistle that signaled the beginning of a long, scandal ridden offseason.

But shuck the sanctions off your shoulders fine friend, chant the unholy desire for baseball and golf out of your worthy soul, fire up your fryer, ice down your beverages…our time as a great football people has triumphantly arrived.

The following slideshow delicately presents seven college football teams who have anxiously awaited the dawning of September more than the rest of the FBS ranks and alternatively, it illustrates five collegiate squads who may want to delay the coming of the “most wonderful time of the year.”

“There is the shrill call of the whistle…and hark, the ball has been kicked magnificently into the air, turning end over end against an autumn blue sky…it’s caught and the sweet popping sound of pad upon pad echoes through the air…oh it’s begun in earnest, it’s started, it’s here, college football is here again!”

-Ulysses S. Grant, 1875

Ohio State

The first of our seven teams with increased levels of eagerness in terms of the start of the season is Ohio State, who stole the offseason sanction show until Miami crashed the party in August.

Luke Fickell and his band of Buckeyes have to be as anxious as anyone to stop the talking and begin the playing. 

Yes, the Vest is gone, Pryor is an Oakland Raider (and a 26-year-old former minor league pitcher has just been named the Buckeyes starting QB) and there are probably just as many questions as there are answers, but don’t you know Ohio State just wants to hit the field and play football.

There is a lot of top caliber talent left in Columbus and I think it’s safe to say that a huge sigh of relief will be registered when the No. 18 Buckeyes welcome the Akron Zips this Saturday at high noon (on ESPN and ESPN 3).

The truth is, the 2011 nationwide scandal gate won’t go away this weekend but the actual playing of football will do a great deal to heal a nation of weary fans who had nothing to do with the indignities that have been heaped upon our great sport.

Oklahoma

The Sooners have the joy and jubilation and trial and trepidation associated with being named the No. 1 team in the nation by both the Coaches and AP preseason polls.

Call it a big target on the backs of a fine team with a sweet little chuck wagon or call it a motivating factor that will inspire the Sooners to shove all challengers back down the steep and scary hill…but the No. 1 spot is a tricky position.

You want to prove you belong there and the rest of the nation wants to prove that they can beat the best team in the land; yes, it’s perilous at best.

To illustrate the problem, since 2002 only one team who was ranked preseason No. 1 finished the year with the national championship hardware (USC in 2004).

The only thing the Sooners can do now is play the hand they’ve been dealt and march into the season and as that redneck guy says, “Get ‘er done.”

Oklahoma must be as ready as anyone to get the party started.

Nebraska

The Cornhuskers joined the Big Eight conference in 1928 and have been a vital part of that league (and its offspring the Big 12) since they left the Missouri Valley Conference behind 83 years ago.

And now we come to 2011, the year that will be marked in the great tome of Nebraska football history as the moment in time that the mighty Huskers joined forces with the oldest of all major football associations, the Big Ten.

Nebraska versus Kansas has faded away and Nebraska clashing with Oklahoma is at least temporarily but a memory…but here to stay are juicy little numbers such as the Huskers versus Wisconsin, Ohio State, Michigan State, Penn State, Michigan and, oh yes, Iowa.

Holy crap, I don’t know if Nebraska is eager for the 2011 college football season but I can’t wait for the children of the corn, the Kernels of Pigskin, the shuckers of the gridiron to hit the field in their inaugural campaign in the Big Ten conference.

Texas

5-7, 5-7, 5-7, 5-7…last place in the Big 12 South…second to last in the entire conference…the only team to be bowl ineligible in the Mack Brown era…the worst Longhorn finish since 1997…losses at home to Iowa State, Baylor, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M…5-7, 5-7, 5-7…

The only thing that will make it all go away is wins, and lots of them and that can only happen on a football field within the confines of a regular season FBS schedule.

Oh yes, Texas is ready for Rice to visit Austin this Saturday evening and you can catch it on that saucy little channel called…the Longhorn Network.

Georgia

Though the Bulldogs fall from grace may not seem near as catastrophic as what the Longhorn’s suffered in 2010, don’t forget that there isn’t a whole lot of difference between 6-7 and 5-7.

Mark Richt and Georgia will certainly be pumped up to prove that the last two seasons are not  true indicators of where Bulldog football is going but wow what an arena they have to get that big ball rolling.

Yes, lots of teams want to prove they are “back” but Georgia has that motivator saddled with their season opener where they carry the victorious, dominant SEC mantle to Atlanta to show Boise State and the rest of the non-BCS teams (who think that 11-1 in the WAC or Mountain West is the same animal as reaching the 11 win mark in the SEC, Big 12 or Big 10) who is the big boss in college football.

Boise State is 0-4 all time against SEC foes and the last time they faced an opponent from “the” conference was Georgia in Athens in 2005, a game which the Bulldogs won 48-13.

Sure, Georgia could lose to the Broncos and still salvage a great season but the match-up provides a powerful catapult that, if utilized fully by the Bulldogs, could literally launch them back into championship contention.

Utah

The flip side of the Boise State versus the SEC season fire starter is found in Salt Lake City where the mighty Utah Utes must be fired up for the opportunity that 2011 finally presents.

Utah is 79-22 since 2003, they have five 10-plus win seasons, are 7-1 in bowl play, went undefeated twice and busted into the BCS on both those perfect occasions and ultimately went on to win their BCS bowl games against BCS opponents (Pitt and Alabama).

But, here is a team that (despite their perfection in 2004 and 2008) was denied an opportunity to play in the BCS title game (as was TCU in 2009 and 2010 and Boise State in 2006, 2008 and 2009) due to their affiliation with a non-BCS conference.

All that changes in 2011 when Utah makes the historic move from the Mountain West conference to the Pac-12 where the Utes’ will finally, at long last, be the first previously non-AQ team to get a “fair shake” in the logic retardant BCS.

Amid the unprecedented number of conference shifts in 2011 (and those predicted in the future), don’t overlook Utah, the only team to be moving upwards, not laterally.

Utah absolutely must be stoked to see this season finally come to fruition where all they have to do is play football and win games in order to play for the biggest cheesy enchilada of them all.

Oregon

The last of our teams that can’t wait for kickoff is the high flying Ducks, whose anticipation for 2011 could be rightly argued as more amped up than any of the other 119 teams combined.

No other team in the nation tied up the score in the 2010-11 BCS national title game with 2:21 left to play in the game only to see their worthy opponent Auburn put together a drive (fueled by RB Michael Dyer) that ended with a successful 19-yard field goal with no time left on the clock, ending the Ducks aspiration for their first ever national title.

Sickening, heart breaking, chilling, disturbing but …hold on a minute, motivating, provoking, inspiring, charging, stirring…

Oregon must be screaming to get back in the game, itching to get back on the field and absolutely desperate for the 2011 campaign to begin again…simply so they can win it all.

Miami (FL)

The Hurricanes kickoff our group of five teams that might just want to see a postponement of their season opener and a delay of their entire 2011 campaign.

Miami’s need for a work stoppage comes via the poor timing of their scandal woes involving the alleged illegal benefits supplied by former booster Nevin Shapiro.

Programs like Ohio State (who Miami ironically plays in Week 3’s Sanction and Suspension Bowl) had the benefit of their controversy breaking early in the offseason and therefore were given extra time to sort through on-field issues, the Hurricanes obviously didn’t and don’t have that luxury.

As of late Tuesday, we know now that all eight suspended Hurricane players will be out of the opener against Maryland (three have longer suspensions) and the losses include the QB (Jacory Harris, one game), a receiver (Travis Benjamin, one game), a tight end (Dyron Dye, four games), three members of the defensive line (Marcus Forston and Adewale Ojomo, one game each and Olivier Veron, six games), a linebacker (Sean Spence, one game) and a defensive back (Ray Ray Armstrong, four games).

Even though the Hurricanes have been running the first team without these key players “just in case,” the situation has been fluid enough where it is logical to think they won’t have near the concrete game plan in place as other teams who haven’t faced this sort of late August drama.

You have got to figure Al Golden (who is unjustly one of the big losers in this situation) and friends could really use another couple of weeks in order to work things out.

And remember, Maryland went 9-4 last season, won their bowl game and return 14 starters and 47 lettermen…it’s a conference road game against a good Terrapin team; it is no “warm-up” affair and the margin for error for the Hurricanes has been drastically reduced.

TCU

TCU’s dazzling 2010 season will be difficult to match…13-0, MWC Champs and a thrilling win in the Rose Bowl.

Remarkable.

While you have to believe that the 2011 edition of the Horned Frogs aren’t spending a great deal of time looking backwards, it sure must be fun to fondly remember 2010 and Fort Worth and the TCU campus must be jacked up for football to start again at least partially because they left January with such great vibrations.

But, this is a team that returns only eight starters in 2011 and the statistically savvy Phil Steele says they rank No. 116 (out of 120) nationally in terms of experience.

We all know that Gary Patterson has retooled successfully in past seasons, and this is a job made markedly easier by a MWC schedule (Steele has it as the 28th easiest nationally) but still, it seems realistic to expect at least some kind of drop off.

What makes me wonder even more is when I watch QB Andy Dalton play preseason ball effectively with the Cincinnati Bengals, seriously, how easy is this guy to replace?

TCU may want to savor the flavor of 2010 for just a few extra moments before facing what may be a longish 2011.

LSU

Early in August, we heard rumblings out of Baton Rouge about sophomore WR Russell Shepard’s eligibility in regards to some questionable housing arrangement but other than that the Tigers looked to be in fine form and sitting pretty at preseason No. 4.

Then, during the early hours of Friday, Aug. 19, the now infamous bar fight occurred, LSU was summarily drug through the media dirt and ultimately, when the dust cleared, the Tigers suspended QB Jordan Jefferson and LB Josh Johns who were both booked on second degree battery charges on Aug. 26.

Just a day before that, WR Russell Shepard snuck back into the spotlight and was declared ineligible for the opener against Oregon not because of the housing issue but instead for allegedly discussing an ongoing NCAA investigation with another player.

The net effect is that gone (for at least the opener) are last year's starting QB, the number two receiver and a linebacker and the word on the street is that the arrests and subsequent suspensions aren't over; add in the shake-up and drama that this has forced upon a locker room getting ready for a tough 2011 schedule and you’ve got some concerns.

LSU has what Phil Steele rates as the No. 5 most difficult schedule in the nation, and, we all know there is very little time to “retool” or “reconfigure” things because the Tigers play highly ranked Oregon this Saturday night and then after a brief respite against FCS Northwestern State in Week 2 they face back-to-back road trips to Mississippi State and West Virginia.

I’m just saying…Les Miles may need a couple of extra days to chew things over … (a reference to grass chewing is certainly intended).

Auburn

The defending national champions are in a similar situation of desired hesitation that the Horned Frogs of TCU may be experiencing; only Auburn’s is worse in three distinct and important ways.

First, while the Frogs have visions of Rose Buds and Broken Badgers dancing in their heads the Tigers have Crystal Pigskin and National Championship Ring fantasies to cope with.

Yes, going undefeated in the MWC and winning the Rose Bowl is one thing, but running the tables in the SEC and winning the whole shooting match is quite another.

And, any person in their right mind would want to hold on to that memory for as long as humanly possible.

Secondly, though TCU is losing a bunch of starting folks, Auburn suffers even more debilitating personnel turnover; the Tigers return just six starters and 38 letter earners from their 2010 squad (and they lose a whopping 31 lettermen) and Phil Steele ranks their experience levels as dead last in the country.

Lastly, and what makes the biggest difference of all, is that the reigning champs will have to sort themselves out against a backdrop of one of the most difficult schedules in all of college football.

Dr. Steele says its No. 9 in the country and if you like scary movies that make the hair stand up on the back of your neck, I recommend reading the 2011 Auburn slate out loud in a suitably eerie setting.

The mighty Tigers, the War Eagle enthusiasts, the Auburn faithful have to want just a few precious weeks more before they have to face the reality that is “next season.”

I know I would.

Texas A&M

The Aggies may present an enthusiastic front when approaching their 2011 campaign but I can think of at least two reasons while the faithful citizens of a place called Aggieland might be tossing and turning in their beds at night…yes, a reason for angst and perhaps a desire for a delay.

First, though all the pieces (minus the linebacker corps) are in place for a magnificent run, how good are the Aggies?

In 2010, they opened the season by whipping up on FCS Stephen F. Austin and Louisiana Tech but then they suffered a near miss against FIU followed by a bizarre loss to Oklahoma State.

This loss was followed up by a close defeat at the hands of Arkansas and then Missouri (in College Station) which had the Aggies at 3-3 and wondering what happened to the arrival (at long last) of their “turn around” season.

Wins at Kansas, against Texas Tech and Oklahoma at home, at Baylor, back home in a thriller against Nebraska and then at Texas answered that question resoundingly and A&M finished the regular season 9-3 and ranked in the Top 20.

But then, the Aggies ended their 2010 campaign with a resounding thud caused by a miserable performance against LSU in the Cotton Bowl where A&M looked like the team from the first half of the season rather than the second segment.

So, are they really a No. 9 caliber team?  Does a six-game winning streak, 18 returning starters and an astounding 61 returning lettermen really equal a top tier, championship caliber team?

Well, they’ll have to find of they are the “real deal” against a schedule that our friend Senor Steele says is the No. 22 hardest in the land, no easy task regardless of who you are.

The second reason for possible trepidation on the part of the Aggies is what happens when the talk of their move to the SEC is over.  Yes, what happens when the actual football begins and the guys in bow ties decide who will make the most money?

Seriously, this is the most we’ve heard nationally about Texas A&M football since Coach Fran ran his questionable insider’s newsletter…so, what happens when the media frenzy dies down?

Well, you’re either stuck living with the decision to play in the SEC and suffer those consequences or you’re back in the good graces of your mother State and hopefully in a more leveraged position with the good ole boys from Austin than you were before.

Either way, now it’s back to winning football games…something you haven’t had much luck doing in decades.

Sleep well, my friends…sleep well.