Now we know why Nebraska coach Bill Callahan took shots at his former recruit during the offseason.  The kid's good.  Good enough to rain 45 points on Texas' presumably stingy defense.

Freeman, a true freshman, completed 19 of 31 (.613) passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns to help the Kansas State Wildcats defeat Texas on Saturday.  And he did it without the help of a running game (69 total rush yards, 2.8 yards/carry).

Oklahoma State wide receiver Adarius Bowman had a 300 yard/four touchdown game against Kansas last wekend.

Remarkable!

One of the Woods brother once caught seven touchdowns in a game for the Cowboys a few years ago, but 300 yards is 300 yards and similarly impressive.

Bowman was last seen playing at North Carolina, but this story shines a light on his dismissal from that team and trouble-free new life in Stillwater. 

Yeah, it's an AP release, but interesting nonetheless.

The Rotary Lombardi Award recognizes the top lineman or linebacker.  Nothing like crossover awards to confuse the college football public.

Fun Lombardi trivia: 1)Phil Steele is a voter and gives the award prominence in his preseason annual.  2)All this year's finalists are seniors.

The finalists:

Mkristo Bruce, Washington State-Cheers from CFR, as I made sure to have him on my preseason AA team.

Paul Posluszny, Penn State-This is proof positive of the value of name recognition, as Poz is having an average year.

Joe Thomas, Wisconsin-Good call here.  Wisky's offense is on fire, too, with help from his run blocking.

Buster Davis, Florida State-Ok, I guess.  Only Seminole linebacker who stays healthy and had that worthy performance against Miami.

Patrick Willis, Mississippi-Another fine season from Willis, not quite up to par with his other efforts, but he's continued to be a difference-maker.

Justin Blalock, Texas-Eh.  A quality offensive lineman, obviously, but has been blocking against a bunch of stiffs, Ohio State game aside.

Dan Mozes, West Virginia-Solid choice here.  The best offensive lineman on the nation's best rushing attack.

Gaines Adams, Clemson-I'll take it, but barely.  Helped his cause with a fantastic second half against Wake Forest.

Quentin Moses, Georgia-See Posluszny.

Brian Smith, Missouri-Interesting wild card choice here.  A decent throw-in to break up the monotony of players on traditional powers or with tremendous recognition (such as Willis and Bruce).

LaMarr Woodley, Michigan-Cooled off lately, but should be a finalist.

Quinn Pitcock, Ohio State-It's not in the numbers with this guy, he's just a bully inside and makes life easier for all those new faces in the outstanding Buckeye defense.

***
Is there anyone missing who should have made the cut?  Feel free to comment. 

Gone (temporarily or otherwise): Michigan WR Mario Manningham, UCLA quarterback Ben Olson, Clemson WR Rendrick Taylor

Back: Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm (maybe), Auburn linebacker Tray Blackmon

Oh, and five players from the Connecticut football team.  Ouch. 

After Florida State's win over Miami, there was a lot of hype going around for Seminoles middle linebacker Buster Davis.  No doubt he had a great game, particularly blitzing and attacking the run.

But is he FSU's best 'backer?

Call me crazy but I'm much more enamored of sophomore outside linebacker Geno Hayes.  Hayes was all over the field that game and against Troy.  He's more of a sideline-to-sideline guy, playing well in coverage, but he can also do the north-south thing that Buster Davis is so good at.

It's really a matter of taste, but I love a linebacker who is versatile.  So often a team gives up big plays because its linebackers are weak in the passing game or are just too much north-south and get exploited.  Hayes doesn't have that weakness.  He's very hard to pick on and is probably one of FSU's fastest defenders.

Anyway, I just felt like comparing the two a bit.  Davis gets the hype but I'm not sure if he's even their best linebacker.  He has the experience edge and had a hell of a game against Miami, but he's more in the mold of north-south middle backer.  Not many are as good as him, but in general those players are a dime a dozen.  I'd rather have a Hayes on my team.  Florida State is fortunate to have both.

I don't know about you, but I'm kind of a fan of the USC Song Girls.

The sweaters, the routines, the whole California girl thing going on... they're great.

Well, for a little peek into their hardworking world, check out this link:

Camp 2006 with Ryan Kalil

USC's center Ryan Kalil hosts a little webshow on the USC athletics website, and for this episode he smartly decided to visit a Song Girl "Boot Camp" practice.  The default first video is playing, but what you want is the one titled "USC Song Girls" just a little further down the screen.  Click on that link and enjoy.

Niiiiiiiiiiice.

Just a note: I'll be adding new blogs soon.  Strike the harp and join the chorus.  Or something.

---The big story right now continues to be the quarterback shakeup at Arizona State.  ESPN's Joe Schad adds a ($) little more detail about the story and interviews new Sun Devil offensive coordinator Roy Wittke.

What trips me up about this story is that although Rudy Carpenter is considered a better team leader, I keep finding passages about him like this one:

A person close to Carpenter says he was seriously considering transferring. But would he really have followed through with it?

Why not wait and see whether Keller got injured -- like last season -- or not perform as well as Carpenter performed down the stretch in 2005? Those close to Carpenter say his competitiveness would not have allowed him to sit on the sideline for just one season.

That's a bit of a dichotomy if you ask me.  On the one hand his teammates respect him more than Crazy Sam Keller^TM, but on the other he couldn't wait one more year as backup to a very good if erratic quarterback before taking charge as a junior?  Yeah that's not leadership in my book.

ESPN has Keller headed to Nebraska (or Oklahoma?) although it isn't a done deal.  He would obviously have to wait one year under NCAA transfer rules and have just one season of eligibility.

---Ben Olson has been named the starting quarterback at UCLA.  Olson was a former all-everything recruit from Thousand Oaks, CA who originally signed with BYU before going on a Mormon mission and then transferred to UCLA.  Of course, despite all his physical gifts some outspoken UCLA fans want nothing more out of him than to manage the game and tread water, something almost any quarterback recruit can be asked to do.

As far as the fans are concerned here, I don't believe any of us are expecting Big Ben to replicate [Drew Olson's] statistical performance from last season. All we are expecting from our coaches is to get a 23 year former No. 1 national recruit ready to manage the game - so that he can use all the talents around him and minimize the mistakes.

What good is a fancy sports car if all you demand of it is to drive like a Civic?  Welcome to the strange world that is the UCLA fan base.

---I'm a little behind on this story, but the preseason Associated Press poll has been released.  Ohio State is No. 1, followed by Notre Dame, Texas, Auburn and West Virginia.

I can't help but wonder if Texas' rankings are an admission that the Big 12 is just a terrible conference this year.  I don't dispute that Texas will be a very good team this year, but No. 2 or No. 3 in the preseason polls despite graduating Vince Young, despite starting any of two freshman quarterbacks, despite graduating all world safety Michael Huff?

---From SI's photo galleries: Best Mobile QB's of the Past 15 Years

---Apparently he's a good bluffer or just likes to talk a lot: Oklahoma Bob Stoops has remained consistent about his plan for 30-35 carries a game for star back Adrian Peterson.  Also an interesting DidYouKnow: "no running bakc since TC's LaDainian Tomlinson has averaged at least 30 carries per game.  Memphis' DeAngelo Williams led D-IA with 28.2 last year"-Via Ben Maller

---Alright, time for the Pundit Roundup: ($)  Bruce Feldman's latest, Ivan Maisel on Adrian Peterson, Pat Forde on coach Steve Kragthorpe and resurgent Tulsa, Stewart Mandel sends a postcard from Texas and notes an interesting link between Mack Brown and golfer Phil Mickelson, Paul Finebaum on the "powerful" Tommy Tuberville

---For just $7.50 you can enter Heisman Pundit's "Fantasy Challenge" for a shot to win a pair of Rose Bowl tickets.  The setup's easy enough and sounds fun, so be sure and sign up.

---More goods from HP: the future of TV and college football and HP's Preseason All America Team (Offense).

---Burnt Orange Nation was recently libeled slandered by a newspaper writer, revealing yet another rift between some in the established media and those on the blogs.  Thankfully, the writer later apologized for his mistake, but this continues to show that things aren't always what they seem in terms of the MSM's whole "accountability" and "accuracy" thing they hold against the blogs.

---College Footblog has it right: more plays, less advertisements.

---From the MoneyMen: VegasInsider's Preseason Top 25, SEC odds and "returning starters" for all NCAA teams.

---Careful, you're being watched.  In a good way... sort of.

NCAA Football chooses Buzz Manager to mine, monitor and analyze online Fan-Generated Media in recognition of the explosion of fan activity on blogs, chat rooms and social networking sites and in an attempt to measure fan passion for the game and awareness of the brand.

Charlotte, North Carolina, Lexington, Kentucky (PRWEB) August 17, 2006 -- NCAA Football has enlisted the services of Sports Media Challenge and it’s leading-edge Internet monitoring service Buzz Manager™ to mine, monitor and analyze online Fan-Generated Media™. Throughout the season and through the help of Buzz Manager, NCAA Football will listen to what fans are saying about the college game to broaden and strengthen its base with people of all ages.

Buzz Manager, designed specifically for the sports, entertainment and lifestyle marketplaces, is an online business intelligence tool to protect and enhance sports brands. In conjunction with Sports Media Challenge’s proprietary search engine, expert analysts who understand the nuance of sports will track and analyze the NCAA Football brand and relevant issues across the Internet for PR, marketing and sponsorship purposes.

---Sun Sports' Whit Watson translates a few scouting cliches for us.

"Manages the game well" = He's accurate as long as he doesn't have to throw it more than 20 yards. Patron saint: Trent Dilfer.

---Here is the list of AP college football poll voters this year.

---Rivals.com ($) has a good story on impact D-I transfers this year.

---Finally, September 1 is "College Colors Day 2006".  Wear your school gear and rejoice in the start of the college football season.

If you have suggestions of links or blog entries or anything for future roundups, be sure and send me an email and I'll put your suggestion into consideration.

By request...

California @ Tennessee
September 2, 2006

It's the [tired stereotype] tree-huggers from Berkeley[/sterotype] against the [tired stereotype] yellow-tooth brigade[/stereotype] from Rocky Top.  Pac-10/SEC madness in week one.  Rejoice!

This game should be the most anticipated of the three Pac-10/SEC battles this year.  Cal is getting top-10 hype and Tennessee's looking to disassociate itself from the disaster that was last year's 5-6 season.  The Volunteers fired offensive coordinator Randy Sanders and replaced him with former OC David Cutcliffe.  As such people in Tennessee have delusional visions of 1998 and that ill-gotten national championship that immortalized two absolutely forgettable figures in college football: Clint Stoerner and Marcus Outzen.

Cal must also escape strange ghosts, namely that ouch ouch ouch heartless effort against Texas Tech in the 2004 Holiday Bowl.  Mind you Cal deserved to be in the Rose Bowl and didn't unfairly leverage its connections with conference coaches and media friends into a suspicious last-minute poll boost to get into the game, but that's neither here nor there.  This game's in September and neither team has yet been cheated of its prestige---so play ball.

Aside from the obvious homefield advantage, I hunch Tennessee's coaches will prepare for this game with a healthy dose of realism and sobriety.  They know that their offense is fitful at best, and unlikely to outgun what should be a talented and legitimate California defense.  Quarterback Erik Ainge has been adeqate at times but is mostly scattershot and neurotic behind center, the SEC's answer to last year's Cal starter: Joe Ayoob.  For their part, the Vol receivers dunk their hands in country crock before taking the field most Saturday afternoons.  That's a bad mix when you're up against a team that can score points in a hurry.

Never fear, though, the Volunteers usually have a good run game.  Except when they don't.  Like last year, this year may be another "don't".  Le sigh.

Sophomore Arian Foster came on strong with five hundred-yard efforts to finish the woeful 2005 season, but the SID's don't want you to know those efforts came against matador defenses (ole!) South Carolina, Notre Dame, Memphis, Vanderbilt and Kentucky.  Shhh.  Foster doesn't have the look or feel of another all-SEC, future NFL great back from Tennessee, though.  He's got good size and can handle the workload, but lacks burst, elusiveness and a nose for the open field.  He's the kid who can get steady B's on his report card but the Volunteers desperately need that "A" student in the backfield.  Foster's not that guy.

Both the Tennessee and Cal coaches know what's coming here: ball-control, nose to the grindstone running game from the Vols, eating the clock and the goal of gradually overwhelming the talented Cal defensive line with a little boost from that 100,000 seat stadium and the South's magnificently humid September evenings.  It could work, especially if Ainge is having a good day, but neither the strategy nor the idea of successful quarterback play is a guarantee.

For Cal, they're going to be facing a very fast and athletic Tennessee defense.  The Vols graduated three starters from last year's defensive line that was a top-10 unit against the run and will probably start a very young group of linebackers, but their secondary can legitimately rotate a good 7-8 players in the four DB spots without much dropoff.  The numbers game in the secondary plays to Tennessee's advantage, as Cal's receivers likely won't out-athlete/out-number Tennessee's DB's.  They'll have to win with scheme, efficient quarterback play and enough balance from the run game.

As of today it's still a little unclear who Cal's starting quarterback will be, but I hunch it will be Nate Longshore.  He has a good arm and is in his third year in coach Tedford's system.  He lacks experience and that may cost him at times in this game, but he has the tools around him to direct what could be one of the nation's most explosive offenses.  For all the hype about Cal's passing game and quarterbacks, the power run attack has long been their bread-and-butter.

The obvious name to mention here is Marshawn Lynch, possibly the NCAA's best back.  He's a herky-jerky runner, but has great speed, strength, size, vision... everything.

Injuries have shortened quite a few of his regular season appearances, but when he's in the game he's making plays averaging a ridiculous 8.8 and 6.4 YPC the last two seasons.  He's backed up by Justin Forsett, the West Coast answer to Northwestern's Tyrell Sutton.  Both are elite college running talents and should find ways to challenge Tennessee's defense.

The big question here is what condition Cal's offensive line will be in.  They lost three very good starters to the NFL and must adjust on the fly for this game.  Expect a few breakdowns that kill a handful of Golden Bear drives, but not enough to put the brakes to their fantastic offense.

With all that in mind, I'm favoring Cal here.  Tennessee isn't Texas Tech, they aren't going to surprise California here or dazzle them with an unfamiliar offensive attack.  The Vols are certainly a talented and proud team and should put up a fight in this game and could indeed make this a very close matchup, but I think their winning options are limited.  I'd be very surprised to see Cal's balanced, diverse and efficient offense held under say, 20-25 points.

But I'd be equally surprised to see Tennessee score that many.  In other words, their window of opportunity to claim victory here is narrow.  They'll probably try to win with ball control, turnovers and intimidation and sneak out a 3-7 point victory or pray for a Cal meltdown that pushes that margin upward and onward.  We don't know until the teams hit the field how the Cal players will react, how confident they'll perform and if they get psyched out of this game.  If they aren't, they should all but assure themselves of victory.  Their defense doesn't appear to be a pushover, and has All America candidates at defensive tackle and corner and one of the nation's finest sets of linebackers.  They'll make the Vols work on offense just as Tennessee's defense will challenge Cal.

However, Cal has an efficient offense with schematic balance and very good offensive talents in players like Lynch, like Forsett, like receivers DeSean Jackson and Robert Jordan and tight end Craig Stevens.  It's a fine group whereas the opponent continues to sort out its offensive woes in real time.

If Cal's intimidated this game can and will go south on them, but otherwise I simply don't see a consistent offensive threat materializing from the Volunteers.  Cal's not the stereotypical Pac-10 team that is all-pass, no toughness along the lines and no run game.  They play physical, they do run the ball, they do have depth and speed along the defense and have assembled what looks like a top 10 team for 2006.  That cannot be ignored.

In other words, this matchup looks more like the 2003 (USC 23 Auburn 0) Pac-10/SEC opening week battle than 2004's (LSU 22, Oregon State 21), in my eyes.

It's rare that I get emails about breaking news, but today is such a day.

Arizona State quarterback Sam Keller has apparently left the team a day after being named the starter.  More details will arrive within a few hours after ASU coach Dirk Koetter holds a news conference, but this is certainly a shocker.  From tonight's East Valley Tribune:

Senior Sam Keller, who was named the starter over Rudy Carpenter, has left the Sun Devil program, sources close to the situation have said.

A school spokesman told the Tribune that ASU coach Dirk Koetter would have a "significant announcement regarding a player" after the team's practice on Sunday night.

According to a source, several players requested a Saturday meeting with Koetter in which Keller was not present. They expressed to Koetter their feelings that Carpenter should be the starting quarterback.

Earlier this year CFR speculated on the QB battle, and came out in favor of Keller's understudy, Rudy Carpenter.  I've long been a bit suspicious of Keller, as he's always been on the brink of meltdown with his on-field emotions.  There's "fiery leader" quarterbacks and then there's Keller, who is as expressive and perhaps arrogant as they come, taunting foes and calling his shots.

The allegations of a players-only meeting that borders on mutiny give some weight to Keller's decision.  The Sun Devil fan base will turn on him and label him a quitter, but apparently his teammates had already done him the disservice a few days earlier.

***UPDATE***

ESPN has lots more this morning on this story.

ASU's righly mum about the rumored mutinous team meeting, but coach Dirk Koetter says he has switched his starters and Rudy Carpenter is now the No. 1 guy.  He says Sam Keller is welcome to remain a part of the team but I wouldn't count on that happenning given all that's gone on.

We'll probably never know, but I'm very curious whether Carpenter was part of the mutiny or absentia and simply in the favor of his teammates.  The other question to consider now is how does this affect the team's cohesiveness?  Does this actually make them better now that Keller's on the outs and they can relax, or is it a sign of ongoing trouble?  I have them in my top 15 and now I'm a bit worried...

As always, these are power rankings.

Blame the non-prediction prediction on the Pac-10's bottom half, simmering in its own late stage syphilis induced psychosis.  Predictable, they're not.  Thus the frequency of the annoying, somewhat cop-out "TIE" in the list below.

What I do know is this whole tier concept.  In the world of home electronics, tis safer to side with Sony and Panasonic over impressively-named knockoffs.  In college football this means USC and Cal get the nod over UCLA and Stanford.

In the "I'm A Legit Top 10 Team" division, we have USC and California.  As a member of the chattering class I'm contractually obligated to mention these talking points about USC: lost two Heisman Trophy winners to the NFL and running back LenDale White, 3/5 of the offensive line from a team that lost its last game to Texas in the Rose Bowl, suffered through a tumultous offseason full of scandal but but but coach Pete Carroll is Hollywood yay and can recruit so this team is talented.  Of course none of that tells you anything about this year's team because that would require some thinking and we don't do that.  Cough.

Putting on my serious hat for a moment, USC is a team without an identity.  Are they going to reverse course and be on the defensive this year or is the offense going to set the world on fire again?  Or neither?  If one is determined they'll go far, if not, they'll be Florida State early 2000's: talented but woefully boring and with that diminishing dominance thing going on.

As for Cal, they should be in the top 10 this year.  Their offense had some issues last year that should remedy themselves with a new face at quarterback and a new OC hired from Northwestern.  Oh and that defense should be quite good with All-America candidates at defensive tackle and cornerback and a great group of linebackers.  It's 2004 all over again in the Pac-10.

After the obligatory USC/Cal references, the next tier in this conference is a close battle between Arizona State and Oregon.  The Duckies are coming off a 10-win season but graduate their steady-eddy quarterback Kellen Clemens and dominant DT Haloti Ngata.  I'm a little unsure how their defense will perform without the big man running interference, but the offense should be fantastic.  In the second year of a new spread look and the athletic Dennis Dixon at the helm, these Ducks will score, especially with a former No. 1 recruit in sophomore Jonathan Stewart in the backfield.

Arizona State has that two-quarterback monster thing going on and the coaches are content with young Keegan Herring running the ball.  Much like Oregon the question is with their defense.  Three defensive line imports and the addition of former elite recruit Mike Nixon to linebacker from a past life as a baseball player screams improvement.

These two can battle it out for a Holiday Bowl appearance and hopefully legitimate attempts at upsetting the USC/Cal juggernaut.

I have Washington State fifth in the conference.  Quarterback Alex Brink is developing into a fine quarterback, and with three touted JUCO backs and bowling ball DeMaundray Woolridge in the backfield, this team should have its best running game in a long time.  Throw in a defense that, like Cals, returns nearly every starter from a unit that was entirely inexperienced the year before, and the Cougars should make a move to the upper half of the conference.

And then... chaos.

The uncertainty at the bottom means there is little sediment of pushovers as happens in the SEC, but it wreaks havoc on predictions.

There's a lot of talk about Arizona this year, but I'm not buying just yet.  Quarterback Willie Tuitama is developing into a fine player and has good receivers to throw to, but Arizona's offensive line and run game remain huge concerns.  Defensively, they are coached by the much-hyped Mike Stoops, but the talent isn't quite there yet aside from the secondary and JUCO superstar Louis Holmes.

Stanford has what should be a phenomenal passing offense and an improving offensive line, but there isn't much running talent and the defense replaces many starters.  It wasn't a great defense to begin with, but a handful of talented players did depart.  Walt Harris is a quality coach who can get this team into the upper half of the conference, but it might not be this year.

After those two, we have UCLA.

The Bruins are among the most talented teams in the conference, but it's not a clear advantage for them anymore.  They graduate quarterback Drew Olson who had a fantastic senior season last year, but in steps former No. 1 quarterback recruit Ben Olson.  I have no idea what impact he'll have on the offense, but he has great talent and the team's fate is very much in his ability to make them better than they have been.  The defense looks sad, particularly at linebacker and defensive line, but they're playing the "new attitude" card with the import of vagabond defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker.  We'll see where that takes them, but the available talent isn't very encouraging.

Like UCLA, Washington's fate is very much in the hands of their quarterback.  I'm excited about the prospects of Isaiah Stanback this year as he's a team leader and greatly developed as a passer.  They lost a hotshot running prospect to academics, but if healthy Louis Rankin may be consistent and reliable enough to give the running game some life.

Finally, I have Oregon State as the worst team in the conference.  Mike Riley's return to Corvallis has been a disappointment and there's little to suggest this team is on the ascendant.

1. USC
2. Cal
3. TIE Arizona State
4. TIE Oregon
5. Washington State
6. TIE Stanford
7. TIE Arizona
8. UCLA
9. Washington
10. Oregon State 

Please note that this list is sort of a power ranking to answer not "where will X team finish/be ranked at the end of the year?" but rather "how good is team X?"

1. Ohio State
2. USC
3. Auburn
4. Notre Dame (+3)
5. Texas (-1)
6. California
7. Miami (+2)
8. Georgia (-3)
9. Louisville (-1)
10. Oklahoma (+4)
11. Florida
12. West Virginia (-2)
13. Iowa (-1)
14. Michigan (+1)
15. Arizona State (NEW)

Others In Consideration:

Clemson, Florida State, Virginia Tech, Oregon, Arkansas, Alabama, LSU, Texas Tech, Utah, TCU

I felt I should update this as my previous preseason rankings were last updated on the 5^th of June.

The most surprising change may be Oklahoma's bump from 14th to 10th despite the dismissal of starting quarterback Rhett Bomar.  The more I think about the Sooners, the more I like what they'll do this year: play great defense (talented overall unit) and utilize an even more athletic quarterback in Paul Thompson who has some running ability.  He will be throwing to an excellent sophomore go-to receiver in Malcolm Kelly and the great Adrian Peterson as always will carry much of the offensive burden.  I hunch Oklahoma will heavily shift to an offense where the quarterback is a constant run threat which should give them a little more offensive identity and hopefully points.  The offensive line is definitely shaky and Thompson could gag at this opportunity much as he did last year, but I'm a bit more bullish on their prospects than before.

I've bumped Florida State from the top 15 after having an interesting conversation about the FSU/Miami game with a friend who is very knowledgeable about Florida recruiting and has some contacts around both programs.  By his estimate Miami is a much more talented team and despite all their offseason woes should be quite good.  The Seminoles remain a talented and competitive team, but aren't as talented as one would presume.  Both the defensive and offensive lines are looking a little sad compared to recent Seminole teams and that should be a worry.

Finally, keep an eye out for Alabama.  The prevailing logic is that with the graduation of some defensive standouts and quarterback Brodie Croyle from what was already a sub-par offense, they should decline this year.  However, I'm taking a flier on new quarterback John Parker Wilson who played in a high-octane offense in high school and who should be a fresh face for the offense to rally around.  He has two quality receivers to throw to in D.J. Hall and Keith Brown, a more veteran offensive line and what should be a fine set of backs including Kenneth Darby and the talented Jimmy Johns, a converted quarterback.  The secondary remains talented and up the middle defensively Alabama has a pair of 300-pound seniors who should quietly clog things up inside. 

***
Previous:

• It's Early, But... 

Well, it's been kind of a crazy week in the world, hasn't it?  TGIF.

Time for a roundup to wind down this week, and we've got a lot to cover.

---The latest from the pundits: ($)Bruce Feldman on the toughest roads to the title, Stewart Mandel opines in his mailbag about his readers' lack of reading comprehension, there's so much going on lately Tom Dienhart has to play catch-up, Ivan Maisel goes contrarian and questions the paradigm "defense wins championships", Pat Forde goes into terribly annoying parental lecture mode, Dennis Dodd's top 25 has been released and Oklahoma has been dropped to No. 15, Cory McCartney singles out ten freshmen ready to play and finally Paul Finebaum reflects on the legacy of "legendary" (his words, not mine) former Auburn coach Pat Dye.

---Remember that little dustup a few weeks ago about Auburn's academics?  Well, the university has cleared athletic department officials of any wrongdoing.

No surprise there, and no cynicism either.  It was obvious based on the original story that the transgressions had nothing to do with anything the athletic department had facilitated or encouraged.  For whatever reason the partisan nature of college football fans demands they paint with the broadest brush possible and see the misdeeds of an individual or a few people and extrapolate it as a function of an entire institution rotten to the core.

---Heh.  Mississippi State coach Sylvester Croom "suited up" for Practice two days ago, wearing a red cross shirt to signify injury.  He had missed a previous practice for personal reasons and as punishment arrived in pads, football pants and a helmet.  Must-see picture($) here.

---MGo's latest: a preview of Northwestern, "The Show Goes On"

---USC is clearly thumbing its nose at outsiders who mock its Hollywood image and turbulent offseason, issuing a press release about a team meeting interrupted by coach Pete Carroll and actor Will Ferrell, dressed as characters from his new movie Talladega Nights.  Here's the release and more from fullback Brandon Hancock' blog and reporter Scott Wolf's blog.  The team later spent the evening watching Ferrell's movie at a campus theatre.

---Hancock also has an interesting entry on his site about what he calls "The Third Eye".

---And the most important USC item of the day: star receiver Dwayne Jarrett, who came under scrutiny for living in an expensive apartment with teammate Matt Leinart and not paying equal rent, has been cleared by the NCAA.  However, he must pay $5,352 to a charity as punishment.

The NCAA's rule on this issue remains absurb, as athletes should be able to enter living arrangements as they so please, so long as it's a sensible plan and not accomodated for by overeager boosters or auto dealers etc.  However, given that the rule is on the books, this is a fair and sensible ruling.  What's interesting is the demand for Jarrett to submit a sum of money to a charity.  That comes awfully close to a fine if you ask me, and last I checked the professional leagues fined their players, not the NCAA.  This further weakens the amateurism line the NCAA's so recklessly tried to defend over the years.

---Navy blogger Pitch Right has head coach Paul Johnson channeling Allen Iverson.  That's amazing.  He also has a rundown of state-by-state football records during the 2005 season and adds a political twist.  That should nicely compliment a similar effort by CFR last year.  And from the archives: all you need to know and more about the great Phil Steele.

---Speaking of Phil Steele, EDSBS does a podcast interview with Mr. VHT.

---It looks like the Daily News has finally gotten around to adding a UCLA blog for Bruin beat writer Brian Dohn.  It only took them around six months from the day they created one for USC... do you think it would have taken this long if the UCLA fan base and readership cared about their football team?

---More on UCLA: their schedule poster is out and to quote The Wiz, it's uninspiring.  You have to love how asleep at the wheel UCLA's marketing department is to include a picture with the uniform back of linebacker John Hale front and center.  Hale was last seen pleading no contest to assault charges stemming from an incident at his parents' house this offseason.

---Finally, it's back!  Be sure and keep tabs on ViewFromTheRockyTop's neat "Animated Race to the National Championship"

I've been mulling over this game in my mind for a few days, figured I might as well write about some of those thoughts on here.

The rematch of last year's battle in Columbus (which Texas won 25-22) will be played in Austin on Sept. 9 at 8 p.m. Eastern in what could be a consensus No. 1 vs. No. 2 game. Hype worthiness TBD, but it's clearly a big intersectional game to rally around.

In assembling a game in one's mind, it helps to lay a foundation of facts, make some assumptions and then arrive at an outcome, hopefully more accurate ("Tennessee's vastly overrated in '05") than inaccurate ("Boise State over Georgia, wheeeeeeee").

The following are choppy but relevant facts about the proud combatants, typed up in scout-speak for rapid consumption:

Texas Longhorns

Defending national champions. Vince Young no longer at quarterback, replaced by completely untested R-FR Colt McCoy and true frosh Jevan Snead. Returns a good chunk of the roster. Will run the same offense and return for a second year of defensive coordinator Gene Chizik. Big, athletic defensive line. Three seniors return on a quality offensive line. Defense must replace veteran MLB Aaron Harris, DT Rodrique Wright, DT Larry Dibbles, SS Michael Huff and CB Cedric Griffin. Fast and shifty running backs in SO Jamaal Charles and SR Selvin Young, not much size in the unit except the overrated SO Henry Melton who may or may not be a tight end or defensive end this year. Like to run the ball. Major fumble issues although few fumble related turnovers.

Ohio State Buckeyes

Preseason No.1 team in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Return the majority of their offense, but will miss playmaking receiver Santonio Holmes, first-round center Nick Mangold and guard Rob Sims. However, they must replace nearly the entire starting defense from last year. Many good players return, however, and have experience everywhere except the secondary. Defense plays very physical football. Will likely have best offense in the coach Jim Tressel era (six seasons) with quarterback Troy Smith, backs Antonio Pittman and frosh Chris Wells, and receivers Ted Ginn, Anthony Gonzalez and Roy Hall.

Last Year's Numbers

These help paint a picture of what both teams can do and what they emphasize based on the previous season

Texas-50.2 points/game, 275 rush (5.9 YPC), 64.9% completions, 237 yards /// 16.4 points allowed, 131 rush (3.7 YPC), 51.1% completions, 172 yards, +7 turnover margin

Ohio State-32.7 points/game, 197 rush (4.7 YPC), 64.9% completions, 226 yards /// 15.2 points allowed, 73 rush (2.2 YPC), 60.7% completions, 208 yards, -9 turnover margin

Last Year's Game

Texas won 25-22 at Ohio Stadium. The Longhorns had a good first quarter and established a 10-0 lead, but panicked a little after an Ohio State touchdown, committing a few turnovers in their side of the field before making the appropriate stops and only allowing a few gimme FG's to the Buckeyes. Texas took an interesting risk in committing to untested frosh back Jamaal Charles who ran ten times and caught six passes. Aside from a few long plays Texas' offense never really was a threat after the first quarter (game winning TD drive aside).

Ohio State's major flub was a tactical error in playing the shaky Justin Zwick. He wasn't a disaster, but struggled to inspire an already shaky offense. The bulk of the Buckeyes' offensive production came when Troy Smith was under center, generally running for haphazard gains and connecting on a few passes but doing enough to score when presented the opportunity. That all changed when Smith wasn't playing. Particularly woeful was the bungled last 2:37 of the game. After Texas scored to go ahead 23-22, Ohio State trotted out Zwick who proceeded to surrender a safety and fumble on another possession, effectively ending the game without any offensive threat.

Here's what I think happened:

Tactically, Texas played that game as well as they could. Much like last year's Rose Bowl, Texas gambled that its opponent would do some stupid things and give them a shot to win the game. Both times it worked against arguably superior foes. Texas also knew it had its best team in a long time and with a guy like Young at quarterback could emerge victorious in any game where they had the ball, were within a touchdown and the game clock was under 5:00 to go. The successful strategy has left a wake of such prominent victims as Michigan, Ohio State and USC.

What were those stupid things their opponents did? Well, for Ohio State they played the uninspiring Justin Zwick. To be fair Zwick was superb in his last start, the Alamo Bowl against Texas A&M. The thinking was that he would build on that momentum, which obviously didn't happen. The Buckeye offense clearly responded to Troy Smith both in the Texas game and throughout the 2005 season, but coming off his suspension I think politically the coaches had to be careful about his playing time in this game.

Compounding their mistakes, the Buckeye coaches let Zwick play on Ohio State's final two drives. Smith played a good chunk of the second and third quarters, when Ohio State scored all of its points and did the most offensive damage. Yet when the game called for a comeback, the coaches whiffed and let Zwick surrender two points and possession on a safety and then the game on another fumble. [Ed.-I stand corrected, it was Smith at quarterback on the safety.  Regardless, it was a huge mistake]

Texas' gamble clearly paid off in that game and similarly in the Rose Bowl. USC's stupidity was in Reggie Bush's first quarter lateral on what would have been a scoring drive, and then the 4th and two stop when they didn't even have Reggie Bush on the field despite Texas' having keyed All America safety Michael Huff on him all night. With Bush on the sideline, Huff was the Longhorn defender who helped bring down LenDale White short of a first down. The rest is history.

So, what to make of this year's game?

The two obvious things to know are that it's in Austin, which gives Texas some kind of an advantage, and that it's early in the year. Good teams take a while to "get going", and that was clearly the case for both these squads last year. Ohio State in particular caught fire midway through the season once they figured out Troy Smith was in a class with other very successful Buckeye QB's of late such as Bobby Hoying, Joe Germaine, Stanley Jackson and Craig Krenzel.  The early season date is a tipoff that things are likely to be pretty conservative: controlled passing game, ball control, an emphasis on the run and simplified schemes on both sides of the ball.

As far as tactics, I think Texas will be confident it can continue its policy of "let them make the mistakes" and keep this game close even if they have opportunities to pull ahead. They'll try and run the ball and protect their young QB's McCoy and Snead.

For Ohio State, they'll probably be conservative too. Although Ted Ginn is a great athlete, he's been a fairly average receiver to this point in his career. The real playmaker in their pass game was Santonio Holmes, and with his departure I anticipate a scaled-down passing game more concerned with small gains down the field instead of taking large chunks of yards at a time.

Both defenses are likely to make their stand against the run, and gamble that the opposing quarterback cannot make enough big plays against their secondaries and linebackers to put the game out of reach. This is where Ohio State actually gets a break, because their defensive weakness is the secondary and Texas' passing game is in the hands of very inexperienced young quarterbacks.  Mind you, that advantage can be neutralized if McCoy or Snead start making plays all over the field.

Of the two teams, I anticipate Ohio State will also be the better running team. I'm enamored of Texas' Jamaal Charles, and he played big role in Texas' offense last year against the Buckeyes, but ideally you want a bigger, more physical runner to bang into the Buckeye defense who can then soften things up for Charles. Texas does have big Henry Melton, but I'm not sold on him as a hammer.

Ohio State under Tressel consistently trots out a no-name defensive line that can stop the run. I think they've twice led the country in either run defense or defensive yards per carry. They like to maul up front and make things real messy and crowded, and this group should be one of their finest despite losing two of last year's starters. Last year Texas could muster only 2.9 YPC in this game, and 112 yards overall. I anticipate similar numbers, which means with a young quarterback their scoring should be fairly low.

For the Buckeyes, they'll be going up against a talented texas defensive line, but one that can be run on. For all the hype last year, Texas was vulnerable to the run, as Antonio Pittman had a fine day against them (17 carries, 75 yards, 4.4 YPC), as did Oklahoma State (250 yards, 5.4 YPC), Baylor (112/3.7), Kansas (119/5.4), Texas A&M (277/5.3) and USC (209/5.1). They're good, but not impregnable the way Ohio State tends to be. That's a sign of a soft underbelly that might be exploited given the right conditions. In addition, Pittman is just a fine runner with good speed and the size and strength to run inside. He'll be complimented by frosh Chris Wells, one of the nation's top recruits who is a big, physical runner at 6-1 and 225 pounds.

Here's what I think will happen:

In last year's game, Texas invested heavily in scoring early, exhausting a certain amount of their offensive capital in racing to a 10-0 first quarter lead. It was smart strategy and let them play keepaway for a good chunk of the game. Expect more of the same this year. They'll craft a game plan to score early and get fan and player faith in the new quarterback and some doubt in the hearts and minds of Buckeye players and fans.

But then things will bog down for the Horns' offense, much as happened last year. Meanwhile, Ohio State will find ways to move down the field but probably not score too much, tilting this towards being a low-scoring affair. They have a terrific offense but Texas has a fine defense as well and is at home and it's early which means offenses will take what they can get.

There will be a moment at some point in the third or fourth quarter when both teams get a little desperate and either do something great or make a mistake and put themselves in dire straits.  Who will flinch?  It's tough to tell.

Texas has conditioned itself not to panic in the last two years, but their main source of calm and sobriety, Vince Young, is gone.  Their resolve without him is unknown.

Meanwhile, Ohio State's always been a calm team under Tressel.  Think back to the amazing 2002 season where nearly every game was excruciatingly close and narrowly won.  They like playing that way and are probably a little more comfortable than Texas at such a battle, especially with Young gone.  Given the youthful realities of Texas' quarterback situation, I give the edge to Ohio State.

They have the more veteran offense led by Heisman Trophy candidate Troy Smith, they have what should be a great defensive line despire dire predictions to the countrary, and are arguably the superior team.  Despite playing this game on the road, they should be favored and it will be a disappointment if they don't come away with a victory whether it's one point or twenty-one points.

As I noted earlier, Ohio State is likely to gamble that it can stop the run and pray for sloppy quarterback play when Texas' young passers are asked to win the game for the Longhorns.  It's a smart gamble and the odds are on their side.  Texas can't be so cavalier knowing the athletic and passing abilities of Troy Smith.  To gain victory here, they'll have to find a solution to overcome this apparent disadvantage.  I'm not sure they will, but we'll see, maybe McCoy or Snead are better than anticipated and can handle a big game like this so early in their careers.  The fact that neither has emerged as "the" guy is concerning, however, and the same issues plagued Ohio State last year in this very game.  Again, advantage Buckeyes.

That's my call.

***
I'll try and provide another analysis like this of this year's other anticipated matchup between elite teams, USC and Notre Dame.  Stay tuned. 

Weekend's over, back to work.

---First off, be sure and check out CFR's new Portal page.  It should be quite useful in quickly accessing some of the better and more relevant college football websites on the internet.  Any feedback about additional links to be included on that page is appreciated.

---Notre Dame is switching reserve back Travis Thomas to linebacker.  I like the move, hopefully it sticks.  Thomas is pretty quick for a big back (listed at 212 pounds) and should be able to transition nicely.

---ESPN's Mark Schlabach writes about what's hot and not in CFB 2006 and I have to ask, are we really in need of another year of Jen Sterger?

---We're less than 30 days away from college football's opening day (August 31), which means most teams have now begun fall camp.  Most news from here on out will fall into but a few categories, namely injuries, academic suspensions, emerging freshmen and other rah rah stories.

---Bruce Feldman's latest ($) is up.  Keep an eye out for Washington and quarterback Isaiah Stanback.  An interesting did-you-know from the article: Washington coach Tyrone Willingham recruited potential first-rounder quarterbacks Brady Quinn (Notre Dame) and Trent Edwards (Stanford).

---Sun Sports' Whit Watson made a minor boo-boo and is just killing himself over it.  All is forgiven.

---The Wiz has word that former Sooner moneyman Rhett Bomar has put feelers out for at least one program: TCU.

---OnCollegeFootball has their top 13 teams list out and Auburn's on top.  Why 13?  Because its a Fibonacci number, of course.

---Colorado's real live buffalo, Ralphie, is cleared to make his stand between the hedges at Georgia!  Way cool.

---And finally, be sure and take a gander at HP's rundown.

That's all for now.