This Week in College Football 9/21 - 9/23

[Hogan Made Wrestling 0]

Stanford and Colorado are probably the top contenders from schools that have any sort of historical football prestige.

[Guest Princess Leena]

Stanford only lost by 1 to SJSU, and was up most of the game. They got a serious shot at 0-12 now, though. Go Wazzou this week!

[CanadianChris 0]

Syracuse was right at the top until they beat Illinois last weekend. They're still going 1-11, though.

[Guest Princess Leena]

Taking a ranked team to OT automatically puts Syracuse Top 100 for the season. Sorry.

[Guest]

Illinois is easily the worst team in college football. Before San Jose State beat Stanford, I would have said that the Spartans were.

[CanadianChris 0]

Taking a ranked team to OT automatically puts Syracuse Top 100 for the season. Sorry.

Yeah, I guess you're right. Too bad everyone on TV passed up the "took a ranked team to OT" angle in favour of the "couldn't score from inside the 2 in nine tries" angle.

[Spicy McHaggis 0]

As far as the early Heisman implications go, I say Troy Smith SHOULD have the inside track. He beat Texas in Texas, and if he puts up big numbers & goes undefeated, I don't see how you can't give it to him.

 

Obviously, Adrian Peterson is next. But his problem might be Oklahoma on a down year... I say might because, with Texas down, the Sooners could gel and take the Big 12. Peterson is probably the best back of the bunch but Steve Slaton has some things on him. West Virginia has a lot of hype already AND they play in the Big East. People can deny it all they want, but a highly prominent player playing in front of the East Coast media is huge for Heisman contention.

 

Chris Leak is probably the most well-known player out of the SEC, and Florida is looking good, so he has to be mentioned. Brady Quinn's Michigan game REALLY hurt his hopes, and he has more to worry about than individual awards... but, he plays on national TV almost every Saturday and if Notre Dame gets it together, wins all the rest of their games, and Quinn has a giant SC Game: an Irish quarterback & the BCS bowl berth will definitely challenge Smith's reign.

 

The only two darkhorses I can think of are Ted Ginn Jr. and John David Booty. With Reggie Bush gone, Ginn is easily the most explosive player in college football. His first problem is that he's a wide receiver. Receivers don't usually win the Heisman for receiving, it's generally because they're good return men. And if they did award a receiver, it would go to Dwayne Jarrett. Ginn's second problem is that Troy Smith is the guy throwing him the ball. As far as JDB goes... his completion percentage is off the charts and if he keeps it up while throwing as many touchdowns per game as he is, he could really make some noise. However, I think his accuracy is a little misleading, as the Trojans offense has been pretty simple thus far. Booty has a tendency to stare down receivers, but if he improves on his technique he could be pretty stellar.

[Guest Princess Leena]

I think it's Booty's to lose. USC probably isn't losing before the ND game. As past history has shown, the ND game in the Colosseum has a strong impact on who wins the Heisman. Good game there, he probably gets it considering his pretty looking stats thus far.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Too bad Czech doesn't watch college football. The ESPN production squad is at it again, showing

 

SOUTH CAROLINA 15

MISSISSIPPI 0

 

at the end of the first quarter. Of Virginia/Georgia Tech.

[Slayer 0]

How long a time span are we talking in regards to being the worst football team? Just this year, or the last five, or ten years?

 

If it's the former, then good choices. If it's the latter, that exempts Stanford and Illinois since they had some decent runs around the turn of the decade

[teke184 0]

How long a time span are we talking in regards to being the worst football team? Just this year, or the last five, or ten years?

 

If it's the former, then good choices. If it's the latter, that exempts Stanford and Illinois since they had some good runs around the turn of the decade

 

Illinois has had 3 winning seasons since 1998, with the 2001 season being their last big hurrah.

 

Ever since LSU beat Illinois in the Sugar Bowl that year, their program went right back down the shitter, going 5-7 in 2002 before hitting 1-11 the next year.

 

 

 

According to http://football.stassen.com/records/, the worst records of major-college team that's been playing for at least 30 years are Oregon State, Iowa State, Temple, Kansas State, Indiana, Northwestern, and Wake Forest.

 

That is by winning percentage, which is 39.9% for Wake.

 

 

The worst team qualifying for the rankings is Kent State with 38.8%.

[Angel_Grace_Blue 0]

Never mind my Kenny Irons comment, as he's not playing according to Coach Tubbs. KI fears Buffalo, perhaps?

 

I guess it just means that Brad Lester, Carl Stewart, Tre Smith and the other nine runningbacks have to get 100 yards each.

 

Or Cox can just chuck it to Courtney Taylor and company a few dozen times.

 

I've been thinking about something, though: How much smaller (And quicker) is Auburn's defense going to get? I really liked last year when Anthony Mix, at 250 outweighed all but two Auburn defensive starters (Four total defensive players, what with there being four tackles). I just want to read that some recruit can't be a halfback (Since the team will have 30), but is free to try out at DT, so long as he slims down to 200.

[Gert T 0]

One of the greatest interviews ever.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Sublime and embarrassing all at once.

 

UVA, by the way, is on disaster street this year. The o-line is terrible. Jameel Sewell, who seems to be QB after a few weeks of uncertainty, is young and completely not ready yet, but he's improving a bit with each appearance. The way they're playing though, they could end up in the bottom fifth of D-I this year. Something like 3-9 is totally a possibility.

[iggymcfly 0]

I thought Ga. Tech looked really good tonight. Obviously, the Virginia offense didn't pose much of a challenge, but the UVA defense was pretty decent and the Jackets moved the ball when they needed to. With Miami being down, that Va. Tech game next week might end up deciding the Coastal division crown.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

GT did look good. Particularly Calvin Johnson. I've never quite bought into the hype, but thigh bruise and all, this was one of the most complete games I've seen from him. Dating back to most of last year, he tended to get a circus catch or two and disappear for long stretches.

 

For some reason I still think Miami will rebound and win the Coastal. Dumb instinct. On paper it should be VT/GT, but I can't get past the Chan Gailey 7-win limit and the fact that VT hasn't played anything but patsies yet. Next week will be a decent judge of both teams.

[Guest]

"There he is. NUMBER 41."

 

"I'm takin' Ohio."

[lomasmoney 0]

If anyone thinks John David Booty is a Heisman candidate, log off and go home, this kid hasn't won a legit football game since I was a Senior in high school. He isn't even going to be a finalist in the race for the Heisman. Peterson, Hart, Quinn, Stanton, Slaton, White, Wolfe, and Troy Smith, all are and will continue to be better candidates, than will be John David Booty

[Guest Princess Leena]

Who's going to beat USC in the regular season.

[Edwin MacPhisto 0]

Yeah. By default, Booty will have a good shot at least being in the top 5. All the usual "might be able to beat USC if they have a great day" teams like Oregon and Arizona State have their obvious chances. But even two games into the season, this team looks like it's going to have less of the complacency that had last year's team losing at the half to ASU and a lot of similar situations. They may lose to Notre Dame or even drop a few in conference, but overall I feel more confident about them getting through unscathed than I do Ohio State or any of the SEC teams.

[Guest Princess Leena]

Plus, Booty has the advantage of every one of their "tough" games being played at the end of the season. All "tough" home games, too. If USC goes undefeated in the regular season, he wins. I wish Jarrett would, but USC has too many other receiving options.

 

I'd like to see Troy Smith win it if OSU goes undefeated. However, 1) OSU is generally regarded as a "defense first, TOUGH Big 10 team". 2) He's a black QB... which I sadly think does matter. Especially when you consider who's voting for the Heisman. And he doesn't run much, or "wow" you in any way.

[Jorge Gorgeous 0]

Plus, Booty has the advantage of every one of their "tough" games being played at the end of the season. All "tough" home games, too. If USC goes undefeated in the regular season, he wins. I wish Jarrett would, but USC has too many other receiving options.

 

I'd like to see Troy Smith win it if OSU goes undefeated. However, 1) OSU is generally regarded as a "defense first, TOUGH Big 10 team". 2) He's a black QB... which I sadly think does matter. Especially when you consider who's voting for the Heisman. And he doesn't run much, or "wow" you in any way.

 

You don't think the voters would be hesitant to give it to ANOTHER Southern Cal guy? I think John David Booty would have to put up the best stats by a decent amount to get the Heisman, he doesn't really have any history in the public eye. When someone says John David Booty to me, the first thing I think is "Its too bad about that last name" but the second thing I think is "Guy who greyshirted at USC only to watch Matt Leinart put a stranglehold on the starting job." On the other hand, its not like Carson Palmer or Matt Leinart had much Heisman steam going into their Heisman years.

 

It really feels like theres no heir to the throne this year. The big names all have reasons why not, as opposed to reasons why. Peterson isn't flashy, hes more Larry Johnson than Reggie Bush. Leena covered Troy Smith. Slaton is a sophomore. Chris Leak has gone through so many systems that he hasn't really built up any steam. Quinn already did a bad job in a big game.

[Guest Princess Leena]

The hype for Booty will grow throughout the year as the team keeps winning, much like it did with Leinart. Plus, Booty is a likeable southern gentleman. The USC connection just helps him, maybe even more so since he did it without Bush.

 

I really hope Peterson wins, because he is a special back. But in order for him to have any shot, OU has to run the table, and I wouldn't bet on them beating Tejas.

[MFer 0]

If Booty wins the Heisman, I will leave this board forever. Sure he's a contender, but he's not even the best candidate on his own team(Jarrett). He's not going to put up the numbers that Leinart/Palmer did. Slaton and Wolfe are well on their way to putting up ridiculous numbers that can't be ignored. Peterson is pretty much a lock for the finals. Ohio State and Michigan have 2 contenders each(Smith and Ginn, Henne and Hart), so there's a fair chance each school will have one finalist. Stanton can stake his claim with a great performance against ND. Leak has a shot depending on how the Gators fare the rest of the way. If Calvin Johnson keeps playing the way he has, you could throw his name into the hat. Booty could be a finalist but I cannot see him winning even if USC goes undefeated. Whenever I see the experts' top 5 lists Booty is nowhere to be found. I see Jarrett before I see him.

[Jorge Gorgeous 0]

If Booty wins the Heisman, I will leave this board forever. Sure he's a contender, but he's not even the best candidate on his own team(Jarrett). He's not going to put up the numbers that Leinart/Palmer did. Slaton and Wolfe are well on their way to putting up ridiculous numbers that can't be ignored. Peterson is pretty much a lock for the finals. Ohio State and Michigan have 2 contenders each(Smith and Ginn, Henne and Hart), so there's a fair chance each school will have one finalist. Stanton can stake his claim with a great performance against ND. Leak has a shot depending on how the Gators fare the rest of the way. If Calvin Johnson keeps playing the way he has, you could throw his name into the hat. Booty could be a finalist but I cannot see him winning even if USC goes undefeated. Whenever I see the experts' top 5 lists Booty is nowhere to be found. I see Jarrett before I see him.

 

Calvin Johnson is gonna have to start catching more balls if he wants to go to the ceremony. I think it might be tough for Johnson because of all the attention defenses pay to him. He might be the most physically gifted athlete in all of college football, though, the guy is a freak.

[Vern Gagne 0]

Illinois is easily the worst team in college football. Before San Jose State beat Stanford, I would have said that the Spartans were.

 

Hi. We're Temple.

[teke184 0]

The hype for Booty will grow throughout the year as the team keeps winning, much like it did with Leinart. Plus, Booty is a likeable southern gentleman. The USC connection just helps him, maybe even more so since he did it without Bush.

 

Booty seems likable because he's winning.

 

All of his teammates that went to college, as well as his high school coach / father, completely wigged out when they came under pressure.

 

 

If Arizona State, Cal, Oregon, or Notre Dame are for real, they'll put a little pressure on him and cause him to flip-out mid-game like fellow Evangel HS product Brock Berlin did in Miami's meltdown against Virginia Tech in 2003.

 

 

I know I harp on this, but there are some SERIOUS attitude problems with the players coming out of that program and he's likely to be worse than average about it because it obviously runs in his family.

 

(His father and his two brothers both flipped out in their dealings with LSU. IIRC, Abram (the younger brother), picked a fight with a fan at an LSU game who said his brother was playing like shit.)

[teke184 0]

They may lose to Notre Dame or even drop a few in conference, but overall I feel more confident about them getting through unscathed than I do Ohio State or any of the SEC teams.

 

No shit...

 

Benefits of being in a shitty conference where you're that much further above everyone else.

 

 

 

The reason the SEC and Big Ten aren't likely to produce undefeated teams is that there's actually some form of balance to the conferences... Each has at least four teams which could win the conference title each year and it's rare for one team to take all the others from pillar to post.

 

 

The Pac 10, OTOH, has USC and... USC. Oregon, Arizona State, and Cal are solid but would have trouble competing for a title in the SEC, ACC, or Big Ten.

[Spicy McHaggis 0]

Like I said before, receivers have a lot of trouble, historically, winning the Heisman based on receiving ability alone. Guys like Desmond Howard & Tim Brown won because of special teams. Also, a great receiver always begs the question of: "Who's throwing him the ball?" It's a problem that will no doubt plague both Ginn and Jarrett (you're preaching to the choir when you mention Jarrett to me).

 

With regard to Booty, he has faced a TON of pressure at USC. He came early, got beat out by Leinart, sat silently as Mark Sanchez was anointed by everyone (including me), got injured and faced back surgery right as summer camp began, fought through practices despite limited reps, and won the starting job in fall camp. There were plenty of opportunities for him to buckle under the pressure. And he's also being coached by arguably the best coach in the country... his brothers didn't have that. The impact of Chow's absence is a fair point, and is the greatest variable, but I still trust Pete Carroll.

[Vern Gagne 0]

How good does a traditional running back have to be to win Heisman?