2010 College Football Preview: Predictions & Projections

I hate making predictions. I'm terrible when I make them. It's one of many reasons why I should never work in a sports book. When I worked at my dad's company in high school we would make NFL picks every week for a few bucks. I lost every week which included losses to the secretary. So needless to say bet against me. So why am I making college football predictions? Because I've ran out of teams, coaches, issues to preview that's why. So enough of me talking and on with the predictions.

ACC Champion: Virginia Tech
Coastal Divsison: Virginia Tech
Atlantic Division: Boston College
Player of the Year: Tyrod Taylor, Quarterback, Virginia Tech

Big East Champion: Pittsburgh
Player of the Year: Dion Lewis, Running Back, Pittsburgh

Big Ten: Ohio State
Player of the Year: Terrelle Pryor

2010 College Football Preview: Impact Freshman

Five-star recruits are like NFL draft picks. They can become huge stars and huge disappointments. They are both scrutinized for every decision they make and for they can and cannot do. Some of these mega recruits flame out in spectacular style and end up playing football in Division II.  Some actually live up to their hype and lead their team to a national championship (See: Tim Tebow).

One thing is for sure, more and more Freshman are asked to play right away. Back in the 60's, Freshman actually played on a Junior Varsity team before they were allowed to play as a Sophomore. After Freshman were allowed to play on the Varsity, Redshirting a player become normal. A coach would stock pile talent by Redshirting incoming Freshman allowing them to play five years in college. While Redshirting a Freshman is still common, more and more Freshman are asked to play right away in college. Mark Barkley played right away last year at quarterback for USC as a Freshman. This year's Freshman class is no different. Here's a list of Freshman who could have an impact on their team this season.

Dillon Baxter, RB, USC: Baxter is suspended for the first game of the season, but he is still expected to play a lot for USC. Lane Kiffin admitted that Baxter is probably "the most talented player on USC." Baxter is more of a Reggie Bush type of player. He's elusive on the run and can catch the ball out of the backfield. Of course Joe McKnight was suppose to be a Reggie Bush type of player and he was a massive disappointment.

Marcus Lattimore, RB, South Carolina: Steve Spurrier finally has a running back he's been looking for. Someone who can take the pressure off his quarterback. Lattimore was the number 1 ranked running back coming out of high school and tenth ranked prospect overall. While he isn't ready for 20 carries a game, he should make an immediate impact for South Carolina.

William Gholston, DE, Michigan State: Gholston mainly worked out at linebacker for the Spartans during the spring, but recently moved to defensive end. At 6-7, 260 pounds Gholston is perfect for defensive end. He's strong enough to rush the quarterback while athletic enough to cover the flats. He also has the perfect coach in Mark Dantonio to use him properly on defense.

Jake Heaps, QB, BYU: Heaps will start the season splitting snaps with Junior Riley Nelson, but will soon enough start games by himself for BYU. Heaps was the number one rated pro-style quarterback and he enrolled early at BYU for he could start right away.

2010 College Football Preview: The Question Game, Part 3

(This is the last edition of the question game for the college football season. Tomorrow I'll preview potential Heisman candidates, Wednesday predictions for the bowl games and my Top 25, Thursday the Must List returns with the return of college football.)

Will Rich Rodriguez survive this year at Michigan?: Luckily for Rich Rod the athletic department has been supportive or he would have been fired as soon as Michigan was hit with NCAA violations. Rich Rod was a bad hiring from the start. Michigan didn't fit Rich Rod and Rich Rod didn't fit Michigan. Michigan fans are elitists and I knew they would never embrace Rich Rod a southerner who was bringing an entire new offense that Michigan fans are not used to. To be fair, Rich Rod didn't exactly endure himself to the Michigan culture. If Rich Rod wants to survive this season, he needs to win and win big. Michigan has a losing record in conference play and hasn't played in a bowl game since Rich Rod was hired. He just needs to win and everything will be forgotten. Looking at their schedule though and the uncertainty at quarterback and defense, I don't see Rich Rod coming back for another season.

2010 College Football Preview: The Question Game, Part 2

Time to continue to the question game.

Will Miami take the next step with Randy Shannon entering his fourth year as coach?: Shannon has rebuilt Miami the past three years by recruiting the familiar five-star talent to South Beach. Is this the year Miami reclaims their spot as one of the best college football teams in the nation? Looking at the roster, Miami is probably another year away. Quarterback Jacory Harris will be protected by an inexperienced offensive line and the Hurricanes have to find a starting running back. The defense will be experienced so the team will probably win 9-10 games but lose to Virginia Tech and Ohio State. I don't like them to play in the national championship game like Desmond Howard.

Can Georgia Tech Repeat as ACC champions?: Joshua Nesbitt and Anthony Allen both return to the offense, but the Yellow Jackets lost both running back Jonathon Dwyer and receiver Demaryius Thomas. The Yellow Jackets also have to replace the majority of their offensive line. Georgia Tech also has to replace their defensive line and adjust to Al Groh's new 3-4 scheme on defense. Too much new adjustments for the Yellow Jackets to overcome this season to repeat as champions.

2010 College Football Preview: The Question Game, Part 1

Will Alabama and Nick Saban win back-to-back national championships? Will Boise State meet Alabama in Arizona on January 10th? Will Ohio State, Florida, Oregon, or Georgia play in the national championship game? Will Rich Rodriguez survive this season at Michigan? These are just some of the many questions heading into the college football season. Let's play the question game.

Could Navy Quarterback Ricky Dobbs actually be an Heisman candidate this year?: This isn't a gimmick to promote my favorite college football team. Dobbs is the real deal. Dobbs rushed for over 1,200 yards last year and even more impressively passed for 1,000 yards in a traditional running offense. The Midshipmen return three starters from the offensive line and the leading receiver. It isn't hard to expect Dobbs putting up greater numbers this season as Navy rolls off another nine to ten wins.

If you could only watch one non-conference game this year, which one would it be?: In just the first weekend of the year we have LSU vs. North Carolina (Atlanta), TCU vs. Oregon State (Jerry World), and Boise State vs. Virginia Tech (Washington D.C.). The next weekend we have Penn State at Alabama, Miami at Ohio State, and Florida State at Oklahoma. Quite the group to choose between. I still have to go with Boise State vs. Virginia Tech just because of the national title implications this game holds.

2010 College Football Preview: Non-BCS Teams

When big conferences pillage each other for teams, the non-BCS conferences become victims themselves. And that is what happened in this off season. Boise State will move to the Mountain West along with Nevada and Fresno State. Utah is moving to the Pac-10. BYU was going to go independent in football with the rest of their teams moving to the WAC, but apparently that won't happen now.

All of this is a year away though so let's concentrate on this season. There are three Non-BCS teams that could contend for a BCS game bid or even the National Championship. Boise State is the team that could contend for a national championship. The Broncos return the majority of their starters on both offense and defense. They actually start the year in the top 5 so they won't have to fight their way up the rankings and fall short of the title game. This year though everything sets up perfectly for Boise State. They have to get past their early non-conference games though.

That's the problem for Boise State this season. They start the year in Washington D.C. for a de facto home game against Virginia Tech. I don't like this game at all for the Broncos. They have to travel across the country to play an always tough team in weather they're not used to. The Broncos are used to playing in cool weather. It will be hot and humid in D.C. for their game. It will be the toughest test the Broncos have ever faced, including their game against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl.

I didn't even talk about Boise State's game against Oregon State. Thankfully for them that game will be at home. They still have to stop Jacquizz Rodgers though. I doubt Boise State wins both of these games. If they do though, they should receive considerable attention for a national title appearance.

TCU and Utah should also be really good this season. TCU returns the majority of their offense, including quarterback Andy Daulton but have to replace the majority of their defense. Utah also has to replace the majority of their defense. Both of these teams should be really good, but not in Boise State's class this year.

2010 College Football Preview: ACC

The ACC is known as the conference where national contenders play, with most league games having major implications. One or more ACC teams end up playing at the end of the season, with a league school often hoisting the national championship crystal ball after the final game.

Oh, sorry. This isn’t the ACC Basketball preview: it’s the one for ACC Football.

Yet again, the ACC season will begin with five teams nationally ranked, but expect only one or two of those teams to be in the final poll after the BCS Championship. Both divisions are wide open, but deeply unbalanced. four of the six Coastal Division teams have BCS aspirations, while the Atlantic Divisions teams will be happy just to make the ACC Championship Game and have a shot at playing in the Orange Bowl.

Virginia Tech is my pick to win the ACC this year. Here are some people to watch in the league:

Best Offensive Player: Tyrod Taylor QB-Virginia Tech. The ACC is chock full of talented QB’s. Players like Christian Ponder (FSU), Jacory Harris (MIA), Josh Nesbitt (GT), and Kyle Parker (CLEM) are all experienced signal callers. But, the best of them all is Tyrod Taylor. He has an explosive arm and the ability to pull it down and run. Combined with running backs Ryan Williams & Darren Evans, plus an experienced WR corps, expect Tech to have an offensive juggernaut this season. In fact, I’m picking Taylor to be a sleeper for the Heisman Trophy, especially if he keeps making plays like last year against Nebraska.

Best Defensive Player: Luke Kuechly MLB-Boston College. He stepped in as a freshman and led the league with 142 tackles, while being named ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year. He’ll be even more of a force with a year of experience behind him and moving to the Middle from the weak side position he played last year.

Freshman to Watch: Roderick McDowell RB-Clemson. The Tigers may have taken a loss with C.J. Spiller going to the NFL, but this guy is a strong runner and may be a better pass receiver than CJ was. He’ll start the season as the backup, but expect him to be the starter for the Tigers by the end of the season.

Coach Least Likely to be in the League in 2011: Ralph Friedgen-Maryland. I’m a Maryland grad and a huge Terps fan, but I’m not going out on a limb to say his seat is extremely warm. Two winning seasons in the last six will do that to a coach. With a new school president and AD arriving, he has to win quickly to save his job. A new QB and sketchy defense will make doing this extremely difficult.

Storyline to Watch: Jimbo Fisher- Florida State. Bobby Bowden built Florida State from nothing to national power, only to watch them fade to irrelevance in the last few years. Now Bobby is gone, but his shadow still looms over Tallahassee. How Fisher does with the players Bowden left will be worth watching. Fisher made a very good move bringing in Mark Stoops from Arizona to run his defense.

ACC Darkhorse: Boston College. Picked by many to finish last in 2009, then rocked by the cancer diagnosis of Mark Herzlich, the Eagles could have gone nowhere under Coach Frank Spaziani. Instead, they rallied to win eight games. With Herzlich returning, the Eagles will have arguably the best LB corps in college football. If 27 year old QB Dave Shinskie improves, and his OL stays healthy, combined with the weakest schedule in the league; the Eagles will make a strong push to return to the Championship Game.

Game of the Year: Virginia Tech at Miami, Nov 20. This game will mark the end of Virginia Tech’s November gauntlet, as they face Georgia Tech, UNC, and Miami consecutively. It also should settle the Coastal Division championship, as well as being a battle of rivals going all the way back to Big East days. For this game to have any national meaning, the Hokies must beat Boise State on Labor Day Night at FedEx Field. There are thousands of Tech grads living in the DC area, making this a virtual home game for Frank Beamer’s boys. If they knock off the Broncos, and get a young defense in shape, the Hokie offense should carry them into the running to play in Phoenix on January 10, 2011.

2010 College Football Preview: Pac-10

Out of all the conferences, the Pac-10 is the conference with the most questions heading into the 2010 season.

The Pac-10 attempted to add half the Big XII to their conference, swung and missed, and instead added Utah and Colorado. If that craziness wasn't enough, two of the top Pac-10 programs were either hit by NCAA sanctions or lost key players to suspension or kicked off the team.

Oregon first suspended All-American quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and then eventually kicked Masoli off the team after another arrest. Masoli of course eventually transferred to Ole Miss. While Oregon are still the favorites to win their conference, they lost a lot in Masoli. Masoli's athleticism was the perfect fit for that Oregon Spread-Option offense. Their offense no matter how talent it is will take a hit without Masoli.

Chip Kelly will announce between Nate Costa and Darron Thomas who will be the starting quarterback on Saturday. No matter who the quarterback is for Oregon, they still have an loaded offense. LaMichael James returns after an outstanding Freshman season and he gets to run the ball behind an offensive line that returns every starter from last season's Rose Bowl team. The defense returns eight starters all of them with great speed. Despite the loss of Masoli, Oregon is still a very talented team just not a National Championship caliber of a team.

2010 College Football Preview: SEC

Heading into the 2010 college football season the SEC might be a little overrated.

Sure the national champion will probably come out of the SEC once again, but from top to bottom the SEC is weak this year. The majority of the teams are reloading (Alabama, Florida) and the rest of the teams are rebuilding (Ole Miss, Kentucky, Tennessee).

Alabama will be the favorite. They return a talented offense with the reigning Heisman winner Mark Ingram returning along with quarterback Mark McElroy and receiver Julio Jones. Alabama will have to replace two starters on their line, but that shouldn't be a big problem. The Crimson Tide though has to replace the majority of the defense. Mount Cody and Javier Arenas are both gone. Nick Saban though is such a good recruiter and the defense should be loaded with talent.

Florida faces the same problem as Alabama except on offense. Not only is Tim Tebow gone, Florida also lost two receivers, tight end, and a right guard. All talented players that need to be replaced. Florida does though return a strong defense with veteran defensive lineman and secondary players returning. Florida is realistically still a year away from contention for a national title, but they should once again play in the SEC Championship game.

2010 College Football Preview: The Big East

The Big East has the biggest questions surrounding the conference and they're not in transition like the Big Ten, Big XII, Pac-10, WAC, and Mountain West. Three Big East teams have new coaches at the start of the year including the best team from last year (Cincinnati) and the worst team from last year (Louisville).

Brian Kelly bolted the Natty for Notre Dame before the Bearcats bowl game against Florida in January. Former Central Michigan coach Butch Jones will replace Kelly at Cincinnati like he did at Central Michigan. Cincinnati shouldn't take much of a hit on offense because Jones runs a system similar to Kelly's and the Bearcats will still be loaded on offense. The defense, which stunk up the joint last year, will be very young and will be adjusting to a new scheme. However the defense adjusts will be the key to Cincinnati season.

South Florida and Louisville also have new coaches for the 2010 season. Skip Holtz replaces Jim Leavitt at South Florida which will be a huge change. Leavitt was the only coach in South Florida's history and he was fired in the off-season for striking a player. Leavitt was also known for his colorful personality which is definitely different from the more mundane Holtz.

2010 College Football Preview: The Future of the Big XII

Much like how the Big Ten is in transition this season, the Big XII is in transition. The Big XII is lucky they even have a conference. Texas flirted with the Pac-10 back in June and it's still speculated as to which how close Texas left the Big XII. Many people think Texas was close to joining the Pac-10 and many people think Texas just used the Pac-10 to finagle a TV deal from the Big XII. Whatever happened Texas stayed in the Big XII, Nebraska and Colorado left, and next year there will be only 10 teams in the Big XII. But what about the future?

Nebraska and Colorado leaving the Big XII leaves a massive gap and erases the competitive balance for teams like Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, and Iowa State. Now teams in the Big XII North will have to compete with Texas and Oklahoma for the conference championship each year. How is that fair? At least with the two division system teams like Kansas, K-State, Missouri, and Iowa State had a puncher's chance at a conference championship.

This leads me to a theory. With Texas receiving their very own network (think Yes Network for the Yankees) they will become an independent school like Notre Dame. What's stopping them? They have a large alumni/booster base, a large recruiting base, and now they'll have there very own network. Once the Texas Network is off the ground and established they won't need the Big XII.

And Once Texas leaves the conference then all hell would break lose. Missouri and Kansas would probably want to join the Big Ten. Texas A&M to the SEC. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State to the Pac-10. K-State and Iowa State to either the WAC, Mountain West, or Conference USA. Many questions surrounding Texas, the Big XII, and college football in general heading into this season.

2010 College Football Preview: The Big Ten

2010 will be a year of transition for the Big Eleven Ten. Nebraska will join the conference for next season and the conference will be split up into divisions with a conference championship game at the end of the season. For now though the Big Ten looks like it will be the deepest conference in the nation.

Yes the Big Ten actually has the deepest conference this season. Ohio State will be a national title contender. Michigan State is loaded. Wisconsin returns practically their entire offense. If Ricky Stanzi can stay consistent, Iowa will be a player. If Penn State can find a quarterback and overcome an early test at Alabama, they'll be in contention. The Big Ten is loaded this season.

Ohio State will be the team though with all the expectations. Terrelle Pryor will be a Heisman favorite and will be expected to play all season like he did in the Rose Bowl against Oregon. Meanwhile the rest of the offense only has to replace two starters from last year's team (Tight End and Left Tackle). The Buckeyes are also loaded at running back with Brandon Saine leading the group. The defense returns seven starters from a top five ranked defense from last season. Big expectations this season for the Buckeyes.

Meanwhile Wisconsin is also a loaded team. The offense returns every starter except one, John Clay is still at running back, and Scott Tolzien finally provides the Badgers a consistent presence at quarterback. The Badgers need to replace some key defensive players, but return every linebacker from last year providing the defense with experience. And the good news for Wisconsin is that Ohio State travels to Madison this season. Wisconsin's toughest road games will be at Michigan State and Iowa. Wisconsin could surprise everyone and win the Big Eleven Ten this season. 

2010 College Football Preview: Coaching Hot Seat

(I kick off the 2010 college football preview with a look at the coaches who's seats are warm going into the season. Remember the college football season starts in four weeks and I'll be cranking out more and more previews in the upcoming days and weeks.)

The proverbial hot seat we hear about each year means several different things. A coach can be on the hot seat when he desperately needs to start winning, but will probably won't be fired at the end of the season. Then there are the coaches on the hot seat because of other circumstances surrounding his program. Which brings me to my first coach.

Rich Rodriguez, Michigan- Things haven't fared well for Rich Rod and Michigan haven't they? When Rich Rod was hired at Michigan I knew this was a bad fit for both sides. Rich Rod is a southerner trying to run a spread offense at a northern school with a tradition of running a pro style offense. So right off the bat Rich Rod was off to a bad start. After two years at Michigan, Rich Rod hasn't posted a winning record and hasn't taken Michigan to a bowl game. The latest straw that was broken was that Michigan was found guilty of breaking off-season workout violations. Needless to say Rich Rod needs to win this season and it would be even better if he lead Michigan to a victory over Ohio State in Columbus. He'll need to win at least 7 games and reach a bowl game to save his job.

Dan Hawkins, Colorado- If it wasn't for budget problems, Colorado might have entered this year with a new coach. Things just haven't worked out for Hawkins since he left Boise State for Colorado. And things look even worse with Chris Peterson leading Boise State to two BCS games in four years. Since Colorado is transitioning from the Big 12 to the Pac-10, Hawkins is just around to treed water for this year and will probably be dusting off his resume next year.