College Football NCAA 2010 Season rankings, games/play action, calls, players, rants

Black Swan

2010 season College/University NCAA (Division I) thread, through bowls and national championship game, will be featured here as we did for last season.

Of course, to do preseason predictions is a bit risky, but fun. Here's one I found:

Preseason 2010 Top 10 Predictions:
1. Boise State Broncos
2. Alabama Crimson Tide
3. Iowa Hawkeyes
4. Ohio State Buckeyes
5. Texas Longhorns
6. TCU Horned Frogs
7. Oregon Ducks
8. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
9. Wisconsin Badgers
10. Florida Gators

Source: http://collegefootball.about.com/od/schools/tp/rankings-preseason.htm

Here's another by Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated:
1. Alabama
2. Boise State
3. Ohio State
4. Texas
5. Iowa
6. Oregon
7. TCU
8. Georgia Tech
9. Virginia Tech
10. Wisconsin

Source: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/andy_staples/01/12/early-2010-1/index.html

frostie500

The AP announced their preseason Top 25 ranking and with no surpirse reigning national champions Alabama start the year at number 1. The offence comes back almost completely intact and with reigning Heisman winner Mark Ingram in the backfield they should have no trouble moving the chains again this year. Trent Richardson is the backup running back and is arguably more talented than Ingram. Last season Greg McElroy performed his role to perfection and was exceptionally functional and only threw four interceptions, this season I'd expect the team to open the playbook off playaction and give Julio Jones a lot of deep balls, this offence has the potential to be unbelievably explosive. On the defensive side of the ball 'Bama only return two starters but Nick Saban can now unleash his recruiting classes that have been redshirted or played sparingly for the last few seasons. What the defence lacks in experience they will make up for in talent.

Interestingly Boise State start the year at 3, their highest ever preseason position which should put the Broncos in great position for a run for a national title, if they have an unbeaten season. Coming off the back of a terrific game at the Rose Bowl, Terrelle Pryor and the Ohio State Buckeyes are ranked at two, I'll wait until Pryor consistently plays to that high standard through the regular season before believing that the buckeyes are going to the title game.

Florida and Texas are next up with both schools having a new QB under centre...or out of the gun to be more specific! The Gators should be strong again this season, John Brantley should perform well for them and their running back stable is filled with absolute fliers, NCAA sprint champions and national high school record holders, its at wideout that their problems will present themselves. Even so Urban Meyer has consistently gotten performances from players outside the numbers so its hard to see that changing now. Defence the Gators will be as good as ever-the state of Florida is stacked with 4 and 5 star defensive players and the Gators are loaded even with the loses to the NFL.

Texas may have lost Colt McCoy, Jordan Shipley, Sergio Kindle and Earl Thomas but the 'Horns showed they are stacked for the next few years. Even the loss of McCoy, unquestionably one of the best QBs in college football during the last twenty years, shouldn't hit the team too hard with Garrett Gilbert stepping into the starting QB role. Gilbert was very impressive in replacing McCoy in the national title game last year and should have a solid first season as a starter. The team want to change their offensive ethos and become more of a rushing based offence but with the struggles to move the chains on the ground last year it is tough to see where such a vast improvement will come from.

As a fan of the 'Horns I'm looking forward to seeing how Gilbert performs as a full time starter, if Fozzy Whittaker can perform well at RB and for Aaron Williams to become the next elite defensive back from UT.

deisedude

Just looked at the poll. A bit bemused the University of Cincinnati aren't in the top 25. I will admit to being a bit biased as i'm a Bearcat fan. We were possibly only 2 seconds away from playing in the championship game last year only for Texas to pull it out of the fire.

We are Big East champs for the last 2 seasons yet the likes of Pittsburgh and West Virginia are ranked ahead of us. I can only imagine people are expecting us to go backwards now that Brian Kelly deserted us for Notre Dame but i'm pretty confident Butch Jones can do a good job, he talks a good game anyway.

Even though our starting quarter back from last year Tony Pike is gone to the NFL i actually think we are strenthened there. When Pike got injured Zach Collaros was exceptional especially against UConn, most Bearcats fans felt he should have been kept at QB even when Pike returned.

We also have some pretty talented wide receivers, expect Armon Binns to have a big season now that Mardy Gilyard is gone. Vidal Hazelton and D.J Woods Jr have plenty of talent too.

I can understand people thinking Cincy arent going to be as good as last year but to be not in the top 25:rolleyes: To quote Ocho Cinco "Child Please!":D Come on you Bearcats!

P.S OSU suck:D

eagle eye

What a wonderful time of the year. I get to watch some soccer during the day and then from around 5pm onwards on Saturdays its College Football woohoo!:D
Then I get a short amount of rest, watch some soccer on Sunday afternoon and then NFL action usually from 6pm onwards.:D

Anyways I have had to do a lot of study on this years college football scene with all the powers losing a lot of big players. Well apart from USC who would be my favourites for all the honours this year but unfortunately they are not allowed compete in the BCS.

Florida have lost too many big name players, they have to suffer because of that. I know they still have a real good team but all the leaders off the great team for the last couple of years are gone. They didn't just lose their star QB and the greatest college footballer of all time imo, they lost the center Pouncey, Hernandez and Riley Cooper off that offense. The D lost Haden, Spikes, Dunlap, Cunningham and Major Wright. They had a big problem at WR the last couple of years and I don't see that being resolved by losing your two best receiving threats in Cooper and Hernandez.

Texas lost so many too that its hard to see them just bounce straight back this year. Oklahoma have lost big time too with Sam Bradford, Gerald McCoy, Trent Williams and Jermaine Gresham all leaving. Those guys are once every ten year elite type players not just your regular very good players. They also lost Clayton, Franks and Eldridge.

Alabama lost a couple of big players but I think they have a lot of strength and are likely to be right there this year again.

Boise look set to have a real run at it but all it takes is two undefeated teams from the big conferences to make sure they don't have any chance of making the big game. Personally I think they will have another great season but the Rose Bowl is the highest they will get again.

I think USC are in a very strong position this year but of course they won't be going to the bowls. They for me will be the best team in college football this year but of course they can't prove that beyond the regular season.

Have to agree with the previous poster than Cincy are very unlucky not to be ranked.

Of course I'm delighted they lost Kelly because he is now with the Irish:D

My gut tells me that Boston are going to have a really big year. They just have to figure out the QB, I'm hoping that Shinskie can be really good this season. A lot of good things going on there right now and the return of Herzlich from cancer is just going to inspire the whole group. I just hope he can be as good or even better than he was before he got sick. They have two really good running backs too. If Herzlich is as good as he was before the injury then they have a really top D with 8 from last year plus Herzlich returning is nine experienced starters.
Their schedule just sits right for them to have a big run. If Virginia Tech can beat Boise in week 1 then BC face them after a bye week which leaves them in very good shape to beat Tech and claim a very high ranking spot early.

tallaghtoutlaws

For me if USC were allowed to contest the BCS it would be a Bama/SC BCS game. But I will give you my rundown based on who I watched last season. Didn't get to watch as much College ball as I have in recent years but here is my break down of those teams I did manage to watch regularly last season.

Alabama: They have lost a few key player but still have that punishing runningback field with Ingram and Richardson and with Greg McElroy taking the snaps and the WR corp they have with Julio Jones leading them Offensively they have the weapons. Defensively they will find it hard to replace McClain but they have a good solid crew in line to replace McClain especially Dont'a Hightower who spent last season injured and had he been on the same field as McClain some reckon they would have destroyed offenses around the country. If Hightower can step it up Bama's Defense can do the same damage again this season.

The downside for me is that secondary and their offensive line. 6 key figures lost in the secondary SS Barron will be expected to lead the new pack. They have a lot of work to do but with the Class of recruits they have had for the last few years one would expect them to be alright. Their O-line isnt a huge downside but it is untested but with 6'6 340pound Tackle DJ Fluker expected to slot in as the right tackle they should be alright.

Bearcats: I think the main problem here and why they don't get a fair shot at the rankings is down to reputation more than anything. With Kelly leaving for Notre Dame many feel Butch Jones wont get the same results as Kelly. Granted not a lot has changed with Cinci in relation to players. Under Jones the will stick to a similar Offensive set with passing at the forefront but will balance it with more time on the ground.

One of the main questions is whether Zach Collaros can now take full responsibility of the Offense on his shoulders and lead the team. He showed us as a backup he can win games having won all 4 of the games he started last year when Pike got injured but coming in as a backup wont carry the same pressure. The WR corp is still one of the best in the country even with the loss of Gilyard and Defensively their secondary needs to improve especially with the loss of Webster.

Have to say I enjoyed watching them play and it would be a very good thing again to see them push for the BCS game as it will once again prove the failing system that is the rankings.

Texas:Looking forward to see how Garrett Gilbert gets on as the starter this season. After a shakey start in the National Championship game when he came on to replace McCoy I have to say he showed towards the end of that game his ability and I feel he could be big for Texas and better than McCoy. Shippley a big loss to Texas but Texas always have a solid WR Corp and Gilbert will have plenty of talented guys to throw to. Their running game may see increased production though and we can expect Whittaker and Newton to get more carries as Texas might want to take pressure of Gilbert somewhat but only time will tell. Defensively same as before decent secondary and solid LB corp and an ok Dline.

BC Eagles: Agree with Eagle Eye passing game needs some work. I am a fan of Shinskie but he needs to be more consistent and continue to grow. As last season was his first year back playing football since he left High school he showed how rusty he really is. He does have the ability and at times showed why BC put faith in him and brought him in. The Eagles have traditonally always recruited solid Offensive lines and with Montel Harris again running the ball this season and using the big push from his linemen the Eagles offensively can put together a good solid package.

Defensively the return of Herzlich is HUGE to BC. Huge to the whole team and it will lift everyones spirit having him back on the field. Herzlich before getting cancer was a big prospect for BC and the NFL. He is a solid linebacker and natural leader. With Luke Kuechly being the second highest solo tackler in the nation last season and Herzlich who was ACC Defensive player of the season in 08, If both these guys are on top of their game this will be huge for BC and could make them a deadly duo in that defense.

For me what will hold BC back from having a big season is the passing game and the lack of a pass rush. If they can get pressure on the Opposing QB and Shinskie and his Wide Recievers get the Job done the Eagles could take the ACC this year and make a good push for a decent bowl game.

USC: They continue to recruit excellently and remain top of the class even though they can't make a bowl this season. Based on last season it is a pity they cannot make the bowl game because a year on Berkley looks more polished and in fact USC as a team have extremely healthy depth chart. All round solid team really.

For the rest of what I have watched in the NCAA and from what I have read I would expect to see Boise fighting hard in the push for a BCS spot and Ohio State who had recent years of choking when it mattered, the question is now that they had a decent bowl win over Oregon last season can they go on from their and get the job done this year. Everything on Paper seems to suggest they can?

Roll on Sept.

davyjose

tallaghtoutlaws wrote: »

USC: They continue to recruit excellently and remain top of the class even though they can't make a bowl this season.

How do people think USC will fare over the next few years. I know it's a nice part of the world to live in, but there's always UCLA. Surely they are bound to suffer in terms of recruiting players, which could make it a long time before they are a top team again?

tallaghtoutlaws

davyjose wrote: »

How do people think USC will fare over the next few years. I know it's a nice part of the world to live in, but there's always UCLA. Surely they are bound to suffer in terms of recruiting players, which could make it a long time before they are a top team again?

Most thought that would be an issue but it really hasn't affected them on the large scale everyone said it would.

Peyton Manning

Anyone here Bart Scott's quote on Hard Knocks last week about Joe McKnight (USC) at the Jets?

"He's probably mad because he had to take a pay cut."

:D:D

Black Swan

AP 2010 Preseason Rankings
1 Alabama
2 Ohio State
3 Boise State
4 Florida
5 Texas
6 TCU
7 Oklahoma
8 Nebraska
9 Iowa
10 Virginia Tech
11 Oregon
12 Wisconsin
13 Miami
14 USC :cool:
15 Pittsburgh
16 Georgia Tech
17 Arkansas
18 North Carolina
19 Penn State
20 Florida State
21 LSU
22 Auburn
23 Georgia
24 Oregon State
25 West Virginia

bobo the clown

Archimedes wrote: »

Anyone here Bart Scott's quote on Hard Knocks last week about Joe McKnight (USC) at the Jets?

"He's probably mad because he had to take a pay cut."

:D:D

Haha yeah that was quality.......:D

D3PO

cant wait for the season to start and some tasty non conference fare early doors rather than the usual BSC v Subdivision tonkings.

Boise v V Tech first week is gonna say alot about Boises chance at the BCS.

Personally I hope they runt he table and get a shot.

frostie500

D3PO wrote: »

cant wait for the season to start and some tasty non conference fare early doors rather than the usual BSC v Subdivision tonkings.

Boise v V Tech first week is gonna say alot about Boises chance at the BCS.

Personally I hope they run the table and get a shot.

I'm quite conflicted about Boise State, obviously it would be great to see a non automatic qualifying school get to play for the national title but its tough to get too far away from the fact that their schedule is:
Virginia Tech, Wyoming, Oregon State, New Mexico State, Toledo, San Jose State, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Idaho, Fresno State, Nevada and Utah State.

With the Tech game being played at a neutral venue and the OSU game at home its quite possible that they could run the table but I still struggle to see how their body of work would be more impressive than a one loss SEC, PAC-10, BIG 12 or Big 10 team who play a much tougher conference slate.

As I said I'm conflicted on Boise, I'd like to see them get to the title game....but I don't see how they can deserve to play for a title with such a poor schedule of games

deisedude

frostie500 wrote: »

I'm quite conflicted about Boise State, obviously it would be great to see a non automatic qualifying school get to play for the national title but its tough to get too far away from the fact that their schedule is:
Virginia Tech, Wyoming, Oregon State, New Mexico State, Toledo, San Jose State, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Idaho, Fresno State, Nevada and Utah State.

With the Tech game being played at a neutral venue and the OSU game at home its quite possible that they could run the table but I still struggle to see how their body of work would be more impressive than a one loss SEC, PAC-10, BIG 12 or Big 10 team who play a much tougher conference slate.

As I said I'm conflicted on Boise, I'd like to see them get to the title game....but I don't see how they can deserve to play for a title with such a poor schedule of games

Just goes to show what a ridiculous system the bowls are that a team like Boise may never get there chance at a title game but i guess money talks and the bowl system is definately a huge money spinner

D3PO

frostie500 wrote: »

I'm quite conflicted about Boise State, obviously it would be great to see a non automatic qualifying school get to play for the national title but its tough to get too far away from the fact that their schedule is:
Virginia Tech, Wyoming, Oregon State, New Mexico State, Toledo, San Jose State, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Idaho, Fresno State, Nevada and Utah State.

With the Tech game being played at a neutral venue and the OSU game at home its quite possible that they could run the table but I still struggle to see how their body of work would be more impressive than a one loss SEC, PAC-10, BIG 12 or Big 10 team who play a much tougher conference slate.

As I said I'm conflicted on Boise, I'd like to see them get to the title game....but I don't see how they can deserve to play for a title with such a poor schedule of games

True but the Virginia Tech is technically a home game for V Tech. As for their schedule yes the SOS isnt the strongest but thats not their fault for the most part.

I think you have to remember bar Kyle Wilson they return EVERY starter and on that basis I think if they run the table you have to consider their body of work from last year in determining how good a team they are and how deserving they are at a shot.

Yes I realise that evey year the slate should be clean but you have to appreciate its worthy of consideration in terms of weighing up how deserving they are at a shot of it all.

As a school starting the ratings #3 with the winningest record in DIV1 football for the last decade with 2 BSC bowl wins under their belt, and 21 of 22 starters returning its hard not to agree their worth of a shot if they runt he table again.

frostie500

D3PO wrote: »

True but the Virginia Tech is technically a home game for V Tech. As for their schedule yes the SOS isnt the strongest but thats not their fault for the most part.

There's a pretty big difference between FedEX field and Blacksburg though. Boise will easily take 15-20000 fans to this game so its fair from a 'home' game for Tech.

D3PO wrote: »

I think you have to remember bar Kyle Wilson they return EVERY starter and on that basis I think if they run the table you have to consider their body of work from last year in determining how good a team they are and how deserving they are at a shot.

Yes I realise that evey year the slate should be clean but you have to appreciate its worthy of consideration in terms of weighing up how deserving they are at a shot of it all.

As a school starting the ratings #3 with the winningest record in DIV1 football for the last decade with 2 BSC bowl wins under their belt, and 21 of 22 starters returning its hard not to agree their worth of a shot if they runt he table again.

As I said in the earlier post I can understand why the Bronco's will be included in the talk for the title game-returning so many starters is massive but when you look at their results in recent years they are 3-4 against major conference opposition.

I'd like to see a team like Boise play for the title but it HAS TO BE at the expense of a two loss automatic qualifier school. If Boise run the table and play against an unbeaten team, lets say Alabama, and the pair play for the title should that really be at the expense of a one loss team in the other conferences. One loss in the PAC, Big East, ACC, Big 10 or 12 surely should carry more weight than an unbeaten Boise who play so many poor teams.Who you beat has to be more important than just winning.

If you put an average SEC team, for example Georgia, into Boise's schudule they would be favoured in every game bar the Tech game. If you put Nebraska into the slate it would be the same story. Much as I'd like to see Boise play for the title it should wait until they are in a more challenging conference or the other options for the title game are two loss teams.

D3PO

frostie500 wrote: »

I'd like to see a team like Boise play for the title but it HAS TO BE at the expense of a two loss automatic qualifier school. If Boise run the table and play against an unbeaten team, lets say Alabama, and the pair play for the title should that really be at the expense of a one loss team in the other conferences. One loss in the PAC, Big East, ACC, Big 10 or 12 surely should carry more weight than an unbeaten Boise who play so many poor teams.Who you beat has to be more important than just winning.

.

and this is exactly why the BCS is a load of bull. Winning is all that should matter. Portsmouth made the FA cup final without playing a premier league team a few years ago. Should they have been denied a shot at the title because they didnt beat powerhouses ?

the sooner we get a playoff system the better.

frostie500

D3PO wrote: »

and this is exactly why the BCS is a load of bull. Winning is all that should matter. Portsmouth made the FA cup final without playing a premier league team a few years ago. Should they have been denied a shot at the title because they didnt beat powerhouses ?

the sooner we get a playoff system the better.

So you really think that Boise winning out their slate of games, once again they play:Virginia Tech, Wyoming, Oregon State, New Mexico State, Toledo, San Jose State, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Idaho, Fresno State, Nevada and Utah State should carry the same weight as Florida's fixtures of: Miami, USF, Tennessee, Kentucky, Bama, LSU, Miss State, Georgia, Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Appalachian State and Florida State.

If Boise played the Gators schudule of games does anyone really think they would be unbeaten? If Florida played Boise's slate does anyone think they WOULD be beaten even once?

The BCS may be far from perfect but it is what we have right now and the more I've been thinking about this the less I would agree with giving a team like Boise the chance of playing for the national title unless there are competing with two loss teams for a spot.

D3PO

frostie500 wrote: »

If Boise played the Gators schudule of games does anyone really think they would be unbeaten? If Florida played Boise's slate does anyone think they WOULD be beaten even once?

Probably not in either case, but you have to reward winning otherwise whats the point ?

Lets just put Ohio State V Alabama into the title game right now why bother with the regular season.

Sport should be sport and financial considerations should be seperate. Unfortunatly the NCAA would appear to be a wholly corrupt organisation that has no interest in anything but $$

Scrap the BCS lets have a proper playoff system and lets take the ambiguity out of the equation as to who should be the champs.

frostie500

D3PO wrote: »

Probably not in either case, but you have to reward winning otherwise whats the point ?

Lets just put Ohio State V Alabama into the title game right now why bother with the regular season.

Sport should be sport and financial considerations should be seperate. Unfortunatly the NCAA would appear to be a wholly corrupt organisation that has no interest in anything but $$

Scrap the BCS lets have a proper playoff system and lets take the ambiguity out of the equation as to who should be the champs.

I'm not looking for Ohio State and Bama to play in the title game just the two best/most rewarding teams. Much as it would be great to see Boise State-or a similar team in the game-I don't see how the opposition they play can not be held against them when it comes time to decide on who plays. You say you have to reward winning, but the question has to be asked are the teams that Boise beat equal to the teams that major conference teams have to play? I don't doubt for a second that Boise are good enough to take on a 'bama, OSU, Texas or Florida on any given day but I do doubt if they would be good enough to play the teams that those four have to play throughout the season and do as well.

Is winning against mediocrity really as good as winning against the best which is what Bama, Texas, Florida and Ohio State will have to do to play in the title game?

D3PO

frostie500 wrote: »

Is winning against mediocrity really as good as winning against the best which is what Bama, Texas, Florida and Ohio State will have to do to play in the title game?

No its not. But winning has to be rewarded.

Take the scenario of the SEC title game

If Alabama beat Florida by a single point after triple overtime and pre game both teams were unbeaten and ranked 1 & 2

Should they not replay for the national title ? I mean the result would cement the polls and indicate they are the 2 best teams.

Should the fact Florida lost not be ignored if your considered the second best and you lose against the best its the expected result and shouldnt harm your ranking at all ? Shouldnt it be a rematch for the national title.

Winning has to be rewarded or in theory you should end up with a farce like the above.

Now the above logic would never be applied but if you support the view that SOS has to be weighted above winning this should be what happens.

frostie500

D3PO wrote: »

No its not. But winning has to be rewarded.

Take the scenario of the SEC title game......
Now the above logic would never be applied but if you support the view that SOS has to be weighted above winning this should be what happens.

A similar kind of issue arose in 2006 when Michigan and Ohio State were both unbeaten heading into their end of season match up. There were calls that in light of Ohio State winning a tight game,42-36 or something, that both should play for the national title. As it was sense prevailed and Florida was given the chance to play, and win, the national title.

I don't think that the beaten team in either your example or the 2006 example should play for the title but if there is a one loss team from another conference that would have played a much tougher series of games than Boise I think that they would deserve the chance to play in the title game.

I'm not trying to discount victories but those victories need to be weighted in the case of Boise otherwise what would be different to Notre Dame schuduling nothing but Subdivision schools and poor division 1-a schools all year and running the table? They would have an unbeaten season as well and surely they would be just as deserving of a title berth. Strength of schedule and overall record has be taken as a combination otherwise a situation occurs where a team has no right to play for the title(and that means a mid major punching above their weight or an undeserving AQ school doing the same)

D3PO

frostie500 wrote: »

A similar kind of issue arose in 2006 when Michigan and Ohio State were both unbeaten heading into their end of season match up. There were calls that in light of Ohio State winning a tight game,42-36 or something, that both should play for the national title. As it was sense prevailed and Florida was given the chance to play, and win, the national title.

I don't think that the beaten team in either your example or the 2006 example should play for the title but if there is a one loss team from another conference that would have played a much tougher series of games

But why shouldnt Michigan have got to play ? If you go by who of the one loss teams were most deserving surely they were, given who their loss was against versus who Florida lost against.

Lets not kid ourselves into thinking deserving teams get a shot. The BCS is nothing more than a popularity contest in which the sweetheart schools get preferential treatment.

Im not saying an unbeaten Boise should get a shot ahead of an unbeaten Texas or Florida or Penn State or whoever but an unbeaten Boise who start 3 in the rankings having returned essentially the same team and were also unbeaten last year do deserve a shot.

if they get run over Bearcats style then the argument is put away for a long time but they deserve that chance.

fisgon

I'm on this thread looking for some advice on which game(s) to watch this weekend. I'm primarily an NFL fan, and actually find the world of college football kind of baffling (teams have to get voted into championship games!?...and what's with all those bowls????) but have recently got ESPN and so I thought I'd give a few games a go this first weekend of the college season.

There are a lot of games on, and I have Sky plus, but I have no idea which games will be competitive and are worth watching, and which will be blowouts. Anyone willing to educate a newbie? USC are at Hawaii, Southern Miss are at South Carolina, Miami (ohio) are at Florida, and UCLA at Kansas state. These are only some of the games on....

Peyton Manning

Mark Ingram is out of Alabama's game against San Jose State this weekend, and could be out for longer after having surgery on his knee following an injury in training yesterday.

eagle eye

fisgon wrote: »

I'm on this thread looking for some advice on which game(s) to watch this weekend. I'm primarily an NFL fan, and actually find the world of college football kind of baffling (teams have to get voted into championship games!?...and what's with all those bowls????) but have recently got ESPN and so I thought I'd give a few games a go this first weekend of the college season.

There are a lot of games on, and I have Sky plus, but I have no idea which games will be competitive and are worth watching, and which will be blowouts. Anyone willing to educate a newbie? USC are at Hawaii, Southern Miss are at South Carolina, Miami (ohio) are at Florida, and UCLA at Kansas state. These are only some of the games on....

North Carolina are one of the 'dark horses' this year and they play LSU which could be a great game. The big game of the weekend is Boise State against Virginia Tech and that is gonna be a cracker imo.

Pittsburgh and Utah should be another good one, I think Pittsburgh will be very strong this year but the Utes have been very strong for a couple of years now so its gonna be a great test for both sides.

D3PO

fisgon wrote: »

I'm on this thread looking for some advice on which game(s) to watch this weekend. I'm primarily an NFL fan, and actually find the world of college football kind of baffling (teams have to get voted into championship games!?...and what's with all those bowls????) but have recently got ESPN and so I thought I'd give a few games a go this first weekend of the college season.

There are a lot of games on, and I have Sky plus, but I have no idea which games will be competitive and are worth watching, and which will be blowouts. Anyone willing to educate a newbie? USC are at Hawaii, Southern Miss are at South Carolina, Miami (ohio) are at Florida, and UCLA at Kansas state. These are only some of the games on....

The answer is clearly watch AS MUCH as you can

Pitt V Utah will be a very tasty game on opening day.

If your willing to stay up all night USC v Hawaii could be interesting. USC shoud roll them over but with no post season to look forward to I wonder what the motivation levels will be like. Long shot but woudl be one hell of an upset if it happened

Other good games should be (In my opinion)

Oregon State v TCU

LSU V North Carolina

Boise v Virginia Tech (DO NOT MISS)

U Conn V Michigan I think might be tasty albeit neither team is likely to be fighting for a BCS bowl this year

Cincinatti V Fresno State . Not sure Zach Colleros will replicate last years form. I think an upset might be on the cards here.

SMU V Texas Tech. June Jones is a top coach could SMU cause a monster upset ?

FalseJoe

Personally i'm looking forward to the LSU vs North Carolina game.

LSU has the talent on the offensive side of the ball but just didnt click last year. Sheppard has moved to receiver from QB and has the ability to light up any game.

It will be a big ask for them to get it right against the Tar Heels defense though!

Oat23

Fantastic game between Pitt and Utah. Well worth staying up till 5am for .

Black Swan

D3PO wrote: »

If your willing to stay up all night USC v Hawaii could be interesting. USC shoud roll them over but with no post season to look forward to I wonder what the motivation levels will be like. Long shot but woudl be one hell of an upset if it happened

USC wins 49-36 over Hawaii, with Matt Barkley showing more QB maturity in this, his 2nd Trojan season, with 5TDs and 257 yds passing. Seems that there may be an O-combo with Barkley to Johnson for 3TDs. But the shocker was the huge failure of the Trojan-D allowing the Warriors to stack up 588 yds against them, which would certainly cause SC to lose against a stronger team if the D does not tighten up fast this season.

eagle eye

Blue_Lagoon wrote: »

USC wins 49-36 over Hawaii, with Matt Barkley showing more QB maturity in this, his 2nd Trojan season, with 5TDs and 257 yds passing. Seems that there may be an O-combo with Barkley to Johnson for 3TDs. But the shocker was the huge failure of the Trojan-D allowing the Warriors to stack up 588 yds against them, which would certainly cause SC to lose against a stronger team if the D does not tighten up fast this season.

I wouldn't worry too much about it, its a very strange place to play. There have been some huge shocks and close calls over the last couple of years over there.

The Utes get off to a flyer by beating Pittsburgh in a great game that went to the wire with a field goal in overtime being good enough.

D3PO

eagle eye wrote: »

I wouldn't worry too much about it, its a very strange place to play. There have been some huge shocks and close calls over the last couple of years over there.

The Utes get off to a flyer by beating Pittsburgh in a great game that went to the wire with a field goal in overtime being good enough.

Not sure if you stayed up to watch it Eagle Eye (I did pulled an all nighter to watch Pitt - Utah then the USC - Hawaii game)

But if you did you would have to be worried with the USC D. They were terrible especially in pass coverage. Christ even when Hawaii ran the ball they made progress.

Lots of missed tackles. lots of wide open recievers. Now granted first game of the year but if thats a sign of whats to come it will be a long year.

Being an Hawaii fan Ive got a reasonable perspective on how USC matched up compared to some of the other BCS teams that we have played in the last few years and they were miles behind Florida, Wisconsin & Georgia's performances against us.

Other worrying thing for USC is their big Defensive Front put feck all pressure on Moinz and we had a new O Line including having to play our 3rd string centre. If USC's defense doesn't improve significantly it will be at least a 4 loss season for them