A brief recap

Over the year, I put made some bold predictions, which worked out in several ways for me. First, the bad. Forcier winning the Heisman someday in his college career seems to have been a bit bold, and a little hasty on my part. Barkley also has not lived up to the hype, but a four year starter at USC would be hard to write off as a top pick, so I'll say hasty, but not bold. And, even though it is way to early to know the long-term effects of Larry Johnson playing for the Bengals, he has been running well so far, and may turn out to, not only be a talented running back, but a good player for the team as a whole. And, if we are going to get real picky, I said that the SEC championship would be an offensive sloppy game, which was a high scoring, exciting game. However, with that being said, we can get into the good. I called Alabama to upset Florida, and even though they were only a five point underdog, I was still sitting alone for the most part. Lou Holtz being insane for predicting Notre Dame to win the National Championship. Clausen did get close to being a contender for the Heisman, and has possibly become the quarterback prospect in the draft, but he will still not be invited to New York, so I was still right. And finally, my begging for Vince Young to quarterback for the Titans. Since bringing Young in, the Titans have won five straight games, and while everyone is being reluctant to give Young any credit, what he has done is simply amazing. Yes Chris Johnson has been on fire this season, but he was running the ball when Kerry Collins was in as well. Bottom line is, Young is a winner, and he always has been, and while Jeff Fisher made the move too late, Young is still giving them a longshot, but a shot at the playoffs.

Newfound love for USC

Through the years, I have found many reasons to hate USC. 1)Pete Carroll 2) Matt Leinart 3) Reggie Bush 4) Reggie Bush's heisman trophy 5) the media's constant coverage on everything USC, and all their "greatness". And the list could go on and on really. However, after watching the Gameday special on USC, and Pete Carroll's treatment of Jake Olsen. Jake was a boy who lost his eyesight to cancer when he was born. He would go on to fight, and beat, cancer eight times, before the ninth when the doctor's informed the Olsens that the only way to beat the cancer was to remove his other eye, and cause Jake to go blind forever.
The surgery was not to take place for a month, and Jake's one wish was to go see a USC football game. When Carroll found out about the story, Jake was invited to be on the field for practice, to be in the locker room with the guys before and after practice, and even lead the team on with Carroll for their game against Oregon State, leading pep talk for the team before they took the field, and celebrating with them in the locker room after the game. Jake continued to go to practices, and on his last night to ever be able to see, he only wanted to do one thing, go watch the Trojans practice. After some motivational speeches from the players and Carroll, Jake left, ready for the inevitable tomorrow. USC's center, Jake's favorite player, went with the Olsens on the day of the surgery and was there to see Jake in, and to see him come out.
The story was very moving, and inspirational, and since the surgery, Jake has come back to the field to see the guys, and give them a motivational speech since their loss to Stanford. The act of classiness from Pete Carroll, and the entire Trojan football team was simply amazing. I am not sure that I have ever seen a team, or a person go so far to assure someone of a last wish. I will always remember Carroll's "extra mile," and will always have a lot of respect for the Trojans, well atleast for the Trojans off-the-field character.

Still has a shot at the Heisman

After being in Dallas for the Big XII championship, I still truly feel that Colt McCoy has a legitimate shot at winning the trophy next Saturday in New York. Although he did not have the game a lot of people were expecting, he still scored the only touchdown of the game, and put together big drives in the fourth quarter when UT needed it the most.
Now, I know that I am bias, but there is no way I am that bias. All Colt had to do was not give the heisman away. Granted, after seeing the stats from the Alabama game, and Ingram's stats, I figured the race would be closer than I thought, but I still figured Colt would be the frontrunner if he had a decent game. But it was clear after the first three drives (and two interceptions) that Colt was not in the mood to win it. There was only person on the field that earned a legitimate shot at the Heisman and that was Ndumakong Suh, who was a beast for four quarters. Now Greg Davis did not help UT very much by running slow developing misdirection plays which would end up going right at Suh, but that does not take away from the amazing game that he had. Suh had 12 tackles, six tackles for loss, and an amazing four and a half sacks. But more than just the numbers, the longhorns could not figure out anything that could stop Suh. He was fast, and strong, and dominating through double teams, running back chips, misdirection plays, plays that stretched the field away from him, it did not matter, Suh was in on almost every play. After watching the game, and really paying attention to Suh, if I had a vote for the Heisman, he would get mine hands down.
Now, as happy as I was for Suh, and to see a defensive lineman get some love that they deserve, I am terrified of Alabama's defensive line, and of our offensive line. All three of their down-lineman are big, strong, and physical. None of them have the speed that Suh has, but all of them are bigger and stronger, and will cause a myriad of problems for our offense. Our line better be hitting brick walls for the next month, and use a poor performance against Suh as motivation for the National Championship game. We are going to need those guys to play a lot better if we have a shot at winning two championships in one season.

Florida player suspended?

It is true, after Carlos Dunlap's arrest on Tuesday for driving under the influence, Urban Meyer decided to suspend Dunlap from all special teams in the SEC championship. Later, in a courageous act, Dunlap decided to suspend himself from all of Florida's offensive series for the SEC championship.
In all seriousness, Meyer did suspend Dunlap indefinitly, and he will miss the SEC championship, which will be a much bigger blow than the Brandon Spikes "eye gouging" suspension. Dunlap, was the 2009 National Championship MVP, and is considered by many a first round draft pick if he foregoes his senior year at Florida. Dunlap was found at 2:30 in the morning stopped infront of a green light, sleeping behind the wheel.
Although Dunlap is considered a pass rusher in the Florida defense, with his 6'6", 290 pound build, he would have used effectively against Alabama to stop, heisman hopeful, Mark Ingram. And, since Florida is only a five point favorite against Alabama, this is just the kind of distraction to help Alabama get the edge they will need to win the SEC again play in the National Championship, but all all the pieces are not there yet.
Florida came into this season as possibly the greatest college football team of all time. They returned their entire defense from a year ago, their heisman trophy winner, and only lost one person in the first round of last years draft. On paper, they were one of the scariest teams in the country, and while Alabama has been a bit of a surprise to most, Florida has been the most disappointing undefeated team ever.
However, history tends to repeat itself, and just by last years post season play, Alabama went 0-2, including an embarrasing 31-17 loss to the non-BCS Utah. And Florida went 2-0, including beating Alabama, and a 24-14 beatdown against Oklahoma. Florida is the better team on paper, and Florida, historically, has prepared better for postseason games, so of course they are the favorite. But I still believe there will be an upset, and I have Alabama making it to the dance. In a offesive sloppy (SEC defensive showdown) SEC championship, Albama wins 17 - 10.

Bengals back on track...

... to be terrible. After a huge win against the Steelers, a win in which nobody gave them a chance to sweep the Steelers and Ravens this season sign Larry Johnson. Over the past two years Johnson has been one of the most talked about player in the league; mostly for using homosexual slurs, bad-mouthing their coaches, bad-mouthing other players, and run-ins with the law. After a big sign with Cedric Benson working out so well, and finally winning, and surpassing everyones' expectations (except Chad Ochocinco's). The Bengals already have a big personality in their lockeroom with Ochocinco, hardly any teams can deal with two, but never on the same side of the ball (Terrell Owens and Donovan McNabb, Terrell Owens and Jeff Garcia, Shaq and Kobe, A-Rod and Jeter, ect). I know that Benson sustained an injury in their last game and he is questionable for next week, but Johnson won't be ready for the next week, and if he is, it will be a limited role with no significant impact.
The Bengals gambled on Benson and it worked out great, and after Benson went down against the Steelers, their backup did fine, play with the playoff team that you have put together in the offseason, don't gamble with "questionable" players like Johnson when everything is already going your way.

Belichick steals

It is obvious after watching the Monday night crew that Bill Belichick cannot make a bad call. Sunday night, Belichick decided to go for it on fourth down on their own 30 with two minutes to go in the game. Yes Peyton Manning is one of the best in the league, especially at home, at night, and on game winning drives, and the Patriots were moving the ball at will for most of the game on the Colts. However, if the Pats knew they would go for it on fourth down, why didn't they run it on third? It would have been a surprise, and if nothing else, chewed up more clock (the Colts scored with 12 seconds left in the game). But why not trust your defense? They are 7th in the league in pass defense, and had already forced Manning to throw two picks, the most in a game all season for him.
You also send a message to your defense: We know everyone in this situation would punt the ball, but Manning is really good, and so is our offense, so this is the best choice. Two minutes in the NFL can fly by, and with the Colts only having one timeout left, forcing them to go 80 yards of mistake free football is a chance most teams would have taken.

The Honourable Eye Gouger

On October 31st, Brandon Spikes was caught on tape, during a horific attempt to gougeing Georgia's running back during the game. While everyone expected a lengthy suspension from Florida, Coach Meyer decided to suspend Spikes for the first half against Vanderbilt the following week.
Reactions to the suspension made it out to be a joke, and everyone expected the SEC to reign down on Spikes, but before any other suspension was issued, Spikes came out decalring that he would suspend himself for the entire game, to insure he would not be a distraction.
I believe it is very easy to look at this issue, and assume that Coach Meyer tried to cover up his lenient suspension by asking Spikes to come out and suspend himself, plus it would Spikes try and get back a positive image from nation. However, NO ONE saw it from this side, during the entire Vanderbilt game, the commentators only talked about how he took the "high road" and showed how truly bad he felt about the incident, and how he was obviously ready to be back on the field as a "well-respected" player. Are you kidding me?
This is the same player who during the entire Georgia game was taking little late hits, and jumping on piles, and pushing off players when he was getting off the pile, all could have been talked about collectively the next day, however, he was caught gouging a defensless player under a pile; which became the hot topic for the following week. He could have easily been suspended for the rest of the season, or for the remaining SEC games, but instead was only suspended for one half against one of the weakest teams in the SEC. And "couragously" took a full game suspension, and all the sudden became the good guy? Oregon will suspend their heisman hopeful runningback for the entire season for punching a player who was taunting him (even though Blount was recently reinstated), but Florida will only suspend Spikes for a half. The SEC continues to be one of the most conterversial conferences of the 2009 season

Is it VY time?

The Tennessee Titans are off to the worse start possible, a league worse (0-6). Kerry Collins does not deserve all the blame, he has a 54% completion percentage, and has thrown 5 TDs and only 8 INTs. He also has an astounding 62.0 quarterback rating. While Vince has not had the most incredible numbers, he is a winner, with a career 18-10 record, including a pro bowl, and leading the Titans to the playoffs, something no one expected. He brings fire to this stagnant offense, and he shows the Titans what they have for the future. Kerry Collins is on a one-year contract, and obviously will not be back next year. Vince was called by the owner their "franchise" and "future" quarterback. If there is not a better time to give him a second chance (his last time to start a whole season they went to the playoffs) then when is that time? Even if Kerry Collins gives the team the best chance to win now, they are still not going to be able to go the the playoffs, so get ready for the future. Get Vince ready to be the leader of this team again, 0r let him prove he could never be that so you will know going in the draft it's a position that needs to be filled. But don't keep losing with a guy that will be setting up deer blinds this time next year.

College is Great

Unless you are Sam Bradford or Jermaine Greshman. While growing up I often questioned athletes when they would decide not to stay around for their senior year. I thought it spoke of the athletes character, and their understanding of what it meant to play for a team; which is why I admired Ricky Williams so much when he returned to Texas for his senior year. However, those were younger, more naive years for me, and now I understand the value of going to the NFL early, about 10-20 million dollars guaranteed money for Bradford.
While I wish Bradford and Gresham could have come back, and play another year in college to help out their school (even if it is terrible) that is simply not the case. The way it works out is, football is a dangerous sport, and injuries happen at every level. If you are the consensus number one overal pick, there is no reason not to enter the NFL. Gresham, while many people predict will still be a late first rounder, early second, has a season ending knee injury and was still on crutches in week six against the longhorns, has to be worried about dropping drastically in the draft since he will, not only be out of football, but battling to get back in shape to impress the coaches in the draft workouts.
The bottom line is, even though us college football finatics enjoy seeing good college football, it is still these athletes career. And a career that is typically a short, but well-paying one. And if the money is there waiting for you, there is no reason to skip out on it, or risk injury to come back and stay in college for one more year.

The hottest seat in Big D

There has been a lot of talk about Wade Phillips losing his job this year, but hardly any talk about who his replacement could be. I believe America's Team is set up perfectly for....... Bill Cowher. Granted, I would want Bill Cowher would be the perfect fit for a team even if the only "professional" was Michael Vick, but I believe, if he would have started the season with the Cowboys, they would not only be playoff contenders, but contenders for the championship. Let's look at the team. A talented defensive that could be very fearful with Keith Brooking and DeMarcus Ware. A front 7 that is fast enough to get to every quarterback, but a little undersized for Cowher's likings, but still a defense, with some refinement, that could be very good. More importantly the cowboys have a perfect offense for Cowher, the big, physical team that can chew up clock, and allow defensive wins. First, the heaviest line in football, that can move people around and force their will in any defensive front seven. Second, two talented and proven tight ends, allowing for a big, two tight end set. A great posession receiver (even though no one has admitted it yet) that could be physical enough to catch the short throws over the middle, or wear cornerbacks defenders out on the run (plus the new threat of Miles Austin who SHOULD be in front of Patrick Crayton by now, and is a deep-ball threat). They have Tony Romo, who is an over-used but under-appreciated football PLAYER. As much as the Cowboys should run the ball, he could be the perfect play-action quarterback, because he is quick enough to get outside the pocket from the collapsing defense, and can throw on the move just as well as he can in the pocket. But finally, the best part of the Dallas Cowboys for Bill Cowher: Marion Barber, Tashard Choice, and Felix Jones. A three back system with a punisher (Marion the Barbarion) a slasher (your only Choice is the wrong one) and fast (Felix) there is no telling the sets Cowher would come up with to implement all three of these backs.
Of course, while I make all of these points, I know I am forgetting the biggest factor of all, Jerry Jones, who chased out one of the best personell people around. And that Jones, big plays = big money from the fans, attitude would not work with Cowher, and they would not make the best team. Let's just put all that aside and imagine what could happen if Jones relinquished his powers, and let Cowher be a true head coach, what could happen?

The Boys

According to Sports Nation, 64% of America is still concerned about the Cowboys, and they should be. Unlike most fans of the Cowboys, I'm not disapointed in Tony Romo's performance so far this year, I'm disapointed with Jason Garrett, the offensive coordinator. The Cowboys have three 0utstanding running backs (proven Monday when they rushed for 212 yards without their starting running back), yet they still insist on putting the ball in Tony's hands. I believe Tony is a fine quarterback, but when he gets to play a manager's role. When you have one of the largest offensive lines in the NFL, and three premier running backs, there is one thing you should do: pound the football. There is no reason for Romo to throw the ball more than 25 times in a game, and there is ABSOLUTELY no reason why Jason Garrett should call two straight fade routes from the one yard line when you are only up by a field goal; and more importantly, have been running at will against the Panthers (who allowed 6.6 yards a rush Monday night against the Cowboys). Get it together Jason, you have two outstanding tightends, who both have been blocking well this year two, three running backs who could all start somewhere in the League, with a lacking receiving core, and a quarterback who is constantly being criticized, this is not rocket science. The run/pass ratio was 32/33, when this team is obviously built for running the football, these numbers should have been much more like: 43/22. Please run the ball Jason, please

The UT win (loss?)

After the UT win over Tech, you heard plenty of skeptics talking about the margin of victory not being as great as expected, Colt not looking to be in Heisman form, the defense still looking soft on the outside, and the Greg Davis play calling still being too conservative. On the contrary, I was excited about the win; sure I would have liked to seen Colt throw for five touchdowns with a 90% completion percentage, but that is just because I'm ready to see another Heisman trophy in Austin, Tx. But when our Heisman candidate quarterback was having a rough game, against a tough, rival opponent, who's best offensive weapons match up against our worse defensive positions, at night, with all the pressure on us, and we still win! How could one not appreciate this victory?
Although I wish Greg would stretch the field out a little more, I believe our offense found a vaulable asset in young running back Tre Newton. He's a slasher, but still has enough power to get tackled falling forward. Yes, Curtis Brown got burned a few times, but Sergio recorded his first sack, and our linebackers forced turnover after turnover, which is something we saw very little of last year.
After this game, I believe if people want to start jumping off board on the heisman for Colt ( I'm not ready yet ) I can kind of see that, but I believe people should start jumping on board for our championship run. We have proved that our best player can have a bit of an off game, and we can still beat a tough opponent. And now with USC out of the picture, we can have nine more "unimpressive" wins, plus a Big XII championship game and I will see you in Pasadena.

Best Freshman Quarterback

Highly regarded in this debate is USC's Matt Barkley, but I believe people should take a closer look at Michigan's Tate Forcier. Barkely proved a lot of doubters wrong last week getting a big win over a rival in a hostel enviornment. Although he had medicore numbers, he came through the most when he was needed. While Forcier did not have to deal with an hostel enviornment like Barkley, he had a big upset win over rival Notre Dame this last week. Barkley, though he had medicore numbers played really well in the forth quarter, and on the drives he was needed most. Forcier had a passer rating of 98 with 240 yards of offense with two TDs, plus another TD on the ground. Although the numbers tell the story all by themselves, I believe you also have to look at the teams and these games alone. Barkley: impressed us, but frankly, led a better team on the field and won a game a lot of people USC to win. Forcier led a Michigan team, still in their rebuilding years with new coach Rich Rodriguez, against an opponent expected to beat them and didn't only play well in crucial moments (which he did), but played well the entire game. I'm not going to say that Barkley won't eventually be a top overall pick in the NFL draft, but the bottom line is, right now Barkley is playing for a team that is talented enough where he can just not mess up and they can still win. Forcier is required to play great to give them a chance to win. Forcier will win the heisman before he is done at Michigan. Barkley will be the first quarterback taken overall when he enters the draft.

Lou Holtz

Earlier in the week Lou Holtz, former Notre Dame football coach picked Notre Dame to win the National Championship this year. This is after a 7-5 record including a loss to Syracuse, and loses against their only two ranked opponents. This year they came in with a generous ranking of 23 and they only play one ranked team this entire year. I know people can be bias for their favorite teams, but this is taking that to an extreme. There are two obvious favorites to be playing in the for the championship this year: Florida and Texas, with a clear favorite: Florida. And I believe the sleepers are: Oklahoma State, USC, Ohio State, and Alabama. Every one of these teams would have to lose two games and Notre Dame would have to win out for it to even be possible for Notre Dame to be a contender, and even then it would be questionable. I think it is safe to say that Notre Dame should not be considered as a contender, and that if Lou Holtz keeps making statements like that, he should no longer be considered a credible source. A lot of respect for you Mr. Holtz, but lock it up.