College Football 2010

[Ella Minnow Pea]

It's time for the sport I've followed for 30 years to start back up. I predict that Duke will make it to a bowl game this year, but Tennessee will not.

A couple of you have already joined, but if you haven't and want to, I've set up a Yahoo! Pick'em Group

Group ID#:     17871
Group Password    BAM!
http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/college

[clemsonfan]

Joined!


I'm cautiously optimistic about Clemson's chances of winning their division this year.

[Dan]

They are all saying OSU will be really good this year. Like, really really good. National championship level. So that's exciting. But we'll also find out real fast whether they are for real or not - week two against the Miami Hurricanes. They aren't as good as So Cal like the last two years, but they are still legit.

Pryor for Heisman? I don't know - he's amazing, but what I saw last year is that he wants to play in the NFL, and thus he wants to be a pocket passer. That means they are taking away his best talent - running the ball - and making him throw. I don't remember how he was last year, but as a freshman he was horrible with his arm. 4 for 12 in that bowl game.... and every time they threw it I cringed. I know he's grown since then - but how much? I don't follow much during the offseason, so I don't know if he's suddenly got a cannon or pinpoint accuracy or not. But those are the things that are going to determine if he can be a Heisman candidate.

His legs are definitely legit, and I really just want him to run the ball.

OSU's defense should be pretty awesome. Very exciting.




As for UC... they lost their best asset in Brian Kelly. I don't know anything about this new coach except that he's succeeded Kelly before. I do know Kelly left us with an awesome QB in Zach Collaros and a new WR who transferred from USC who should replace Gilyard adequately (name escapes me at the moment). So maybe there's some hope there... although not Orange Bowl level or anything. Should be interesting... at least until we lose two or three games.

[Butter]

OSU will be fine.  If the Pryor that showed up vs. Michigan and in the Rose Bowl plays all season, OSU will go undefeated.  The Big Ten is just that bad, still.  Iowa is overrated, they fluked their way through half their schedule and lost their defensive leader to the NFL.  Wisconsin is, as always, a borderline top-25 team, and Penn State is also borderline.

The key is, will Pryor make a lot of terrible decisions, or just a few?  He tends to throw balls up for grabs sometimes, and that could really get us killed at the wrong time.  Just witness the Purdue game from last season.

[Dan]

I did a little more research and Pryor had off-season knee surgery b/c of an injury that debilitated his mobility. Huh. That's a concern, I suppose. I mean, there's nothing about how he's not recovered so maybe it's nothing. I'd like to see him play a little bit, though, before we really find out.

He also passed for over 2,000 yards last year, which ain't bad. So maybe his arm is getting better, too.

[Ella Minnow Pea]

The ending of the Tennessee vs. LSU game was such the roller coaster. Too bad it didn't work out for my team. Learn to count to 11, guys! Argh!

[Dan]

Illinois... is not that good this year. They are competitive but not going to be considered challenging. And yet OSU did not look impressive against them yesterday. Even before Pryor got hurt it was a little concerning.

BUCKEYES! You'd better shape up fast!

[frizgolf]

Eh, Illinois has been playing Tressel pretty damn good since he's been at Ohio State. I'd chalk it up to a conference foe who makes good use of game films and nothing more. That they got a win in a hostile environment should be good enough.

[rva]

I am not even sure if the ACC is a better conference than the CAA.   In football or basketball.

[va_vacious]

oh yes, the Tennessee/LSU sadness. We were so close. And it wasn't just having 1 extra man- they had 13 on the field.  And LSU still made the mistake, but because of UT's error, they got to retry the play.  Wah!

[Butter]

Illinois... is not that good this year. They are competitive but not going to be considered challenging. And yet OSU did not look impressive against them yesterday. Even before Pryor got hurt it was a little concerning.

BUCKEYES! You'd better shape up fast!

They played Tressel-ball.  On the road, in conference, you show nothing, you try nothing spectacular.  You play field position and don't make mistakes.  In the end, it got them the win.  Frankly, any road win is a good win for Ohio State, considering they are always going to get their opponent's best game of the season.

And LMNOP, I felt your pain as I watched the closing seconds of LSU-UT.  UT is finding new creative ways of losing games this year.  They almost did it vs. UAB also earlier.  At least they got Lane Kiffin out of there so I don't have to hate them any more. 

[rva]

Big win for William and Mary today, as they defeat #10 UNH on the road with their top 2 QB's both out.  This gives them their third victory against a top ten team this season.  They may or may not move to #3 in the rankings, with Villanova inexplicably ranked ahead of W&M despite an easier schedule, identical record, and a head-to-head loss.  App State and Jacksonville State will most likely remain undefeated at #1 and #2 as they roll through the powderpuff conference schedules.  Of course none of that matters, since there are playoffs in FCS. 

Next up for William and Mary are the#22 JMU Dukes.  The Dukes unfortunately have been decimated by injuries this year, but should have some key players back for this CAA matchup.  They also have a victory over Top 20 BCS Virginia Tech as well as a clownishly large marching band.

[rva]

Amazingly, App State, Jacksonville State, and Villanova all lost. 

So you would think William and Mary would be ranked #1 when the polls come out this afternoon.  However, it might be Delaware because apparently their 45-0 over 1-7 (0-5 CAA) Towson counts more than William and Mary beating #10 New Hampshire away.  Or the fact that they lost to William and Mary.  Or that William and Mary has played by far the tougher CAA and therefore FCS schedule. 

[Kenneth Toilethole]

Delaware even got one vote in the AP top 25 poll this week.

[rva]

William and Mary is officially ranked #1 in the FCS writers poll. They will probably be #2 in the coaches poll.  They were ranked behind Delaware and Villanova going into the week, despite having defeated both teams.  Villanova lost, but Delaware won.

Unfortunately, I think the Tribe will lose to JMU this week but who cares?  They got the #1, and now all that matters is if the team is healthy going into the playoffs.