Your 2008 Pac-10 Preview

by Amy Lamare of www.gridirongoddess.net

I can make this real quick football fiends: USC will win its 7^th straight Pac 10 championship and head to a BCS bowl game.

And that concludes your 2008 Pac-10 Preview. UCLA, Stanford, Cal, Washington, Washington State, Oregon, Oregon State, Arizona and Arizona State – all y’all might as well stay home. Rey Maualuga, Mark Sanchez, Joe McKnight and the boys have got this one sewn up.

In all seriousness though, the Pac-10 does not back down from a challenge when scheduling its non-conference games. This year teams in the Pac-10 face: Ohio State, Georgia, Tennessee, BYU, Boise State, Oklahoma, Penn State and Purdue, just to name a handful. No 1-AA cupcake rivals here!

ARIZONA WILDCATS:

It’s do or die time for Coach Mike Stoops. He’s going to have to get his Wildcats to win 6 games to at least have a shot at keeping his job. If he can do this, Arizona will get to Bear Down for their first bowl game since 1998. I’m betting in Stoops’ favor since his non-conference lineup is fairly easy with games against Idaho and Toledo and at New Mexico.

Senior QB Willie Tuitama is going to have to step it up and generate some scoring this season for the Wildcats to be competitive in the Pac-10. The defense returns only 3 starters, and that’s not the only bad news for the Wildcat D. Their most experienced defensive lineman, Jonathan Turner, was suspended from the team’s summer practices after being charged with sexual assault last spring. He is awaiting his trial.

Junior college transfer Nick Booth hopes to boost the Arizona running game. This 225 pound running back joins Nic Grisby, Xavier Smith and true freshman Keola Antolin on the Wildcat depth chart.

Arizona‘s Non Conference Schedule: Idaho, Toledo, New Mexico

Arizona reports to pre-season camp on August 4^th

ARIZONA STATE SUNDEVILS:

ASU was picked to finish 2^nd behind USC in the pre-season Pac-10 poll. The Sun Devils are prepping for their second season under Coach Dennis Erickson and they have one MAJOR issue: The Offensive Line. They don’t have one. Seriously, last season QB Rudy Carpenter spent so much time on his back that I started to wonder if those were not linemen lined up in front of him, but rather, Fatheads.

Dennis Erickson is incorporating a quick release spread offense this season to help Carpenter’s protection. A good portion of his 55 sacks last season were due to him holding onto the ball too long. Five players have left the team since the conclusion of spring practices, including tight end Dane Guthrie. (Academic reasons for former defensive end Guthrie.)

ASU plays a doozy of a non conference game when it faces Georgia on September 20^th. If the Sun Devils do not solve their offensive line woes before then, they will not get out of that game alive. Ditto for their conference games against USC and Oregon.

If Carpenter gets the protection he needs either from his O-Line or the new offense, look out Tempe, your Sun Devils could crack the AP/USA Today top 10 with potentially their only losses coming at the hands of Georgia and USC. A Holiday Bowl berth, or should USC play for the BCS title, a Rose Bowl berth is yours for the taking.

ASU’s Non Conference Schedule: Northern Arizona, UNLV, Georgia

Arizona State reports to pre-season camp on August 4^th

CALIFORNIA GOLDEN BEARS:

Last season Cal went from #2 in the country to losing six of its eight final games to end up 7-6. A QB controversy rages in Berkeley, and it’s looking at the moment like we have a Sam Keller/Rudy Carpenter ASU flip flop of QBs brewing.

At the Pac-10 Media Day, Coach Jeff Tedford said:

“We’ll pick a starter probably the week of the first game… It may take both of them to help us reach our goals…They are both going to get some game time.”

Really Tedford? Look I know Longshore flailed around a lot in the second half of last season while he battled his ankle injury. And Kevin Riley lit it up in your Bowl Game. Against Air Force. Air Force. Is Riley really the guy you want facing USC and Oregon, or is seasoned senior Longshore your guy? Just remember Arizona 2006, Coach Koetter, Sam Keller and Rudy Carpenter and what a mess that whole situation was.

It seems from all I’ve heard and read that Tedford is leaning towards Riley. And sure, he knows things we do not know. Whoever gets the nod as QB has a whole new group of WRs to throw to. Juco transfer RB Javid Best comes with hype, but he’s also undersized.

Tedford and Co have a lot to address offensively. That said, they should finish in the top ½ of the Pac-10s final standings.

Cal‘s Non Conference Schedule: Michigan State, Maryland, Colorado State

Cal reports to pre-season camp on August 4^th

OREGON DUCKS:

Oregon lost their star QB Dennis Dixon to the NFL, but expect to reload quickly with new QB Nate Costa.

Oregon has a powerful defense with one of the best secondaries in the nation. Last year, Oregon ended up 9-4, largely due to Dixon’s season ending injury against Arizona, sending the Ducks into a 3 game losing streak.

Three Ducks are recovering from off season knee surgeries and are expected to be good to go by the first game. (QB Costa, TB Jeremiah Johnson, LB John Bacon) Tight End Na’Derris Ward, a UGA transfer joins juco transfers Jeremiah Masoli (QB) and Ellis Krout (WR) as new Ducks this season.

Oregon’s secondary is scary. Three Ducks are on the Thorpe Award Watch list: Patrick Chung, Walter Thurmond III, and Jarius Boyd.

Oregon was voted #3 in the Pac-10 pre-season poll. Look for them to challenge ASU for #2 behind USC.

Oregon‘s Non Conference Schedule: Utah State, Purdue, Boise State

Oregon reports to pre-season camp on August 4^th

OREGON STATE BEAVERS:

Oregon State’s program has put up an impressive 19 wins in the past 2 seasons, including a 2006 upset of USC. Their strong defense has been the key to their success of late. The Beavers face a challenge going into this season as they have to completely rebuild the front seven on their D, including S Brian Payton. Payton left the program this summer with no explanation. Beavs and Trojans alike may remember him as the player who had the key interception in the Beavers 2006 upset of Troy. So, good news for Trojans! (Like we need more good news, eh?)

Big things are expected of true freshman WR Jordan Bishop from West Salem (OR) H.S. Ditto to DE and juco transfer Simi Kuli, he is being touted as the key to making the new D-Line gel.

Good news for the OSU Squad: Guard Jeremy Perry is expected to be ready to play by the start of the season. He is one of, if not the best guards in the Pac-10. Perry missed most of 2007 with a broken leg and is recovering from knee surgery this spring.

The Beavers have a tough schedule, not only do they face conference rivals USC, ASU and Oregon; they have a rough non-conference schedule this year as well. I expect the Beavers to finish near the middle of the Pac. (Pun intended)

OSU’s Non Conference Schedule: Penn State, Hawaii, Utah

Oregon State reports to pre-season camp on August 1^st.

STANFORD CARDINAL:

Yes I know. We were 41 point favorites. Yes I know, biggest upset in college football. (but? Really? Michigan-Appalachian State comes to mind as being a bigger upset.) But I point out that John David Booty should have sat out when he broke his finger, not thrown 4 interceptions.

Bygones.

The Cardinal has some questions in this second season under showboating Coach Jim Harbaugh. Sure they return a conference high sixteen starters from last year’s squad, with seven of those on offense, but who is their QB? And let’s not forget that despite their (fluke) upset of Southern California, this is the offense ranked last in its conference in yards and points per game. So yeah, the Cardinal, he has some questions to be answered. Such as will injured starters Allen Smith (OT, kneecap) and Jim Dray (TE, knee) be ready to play at some point this season. Cardinal blogs report that we may not see either of these players in 2008.

Notre Dame transfer Konrad Reuland is expected to take on the Tight End duties this year; Oct 4 should be interesting for him. (Stanford faces the Fighting Irish on this day.)

The QB slot is a three man battle between Tavita Prichard, Jason Forcier and Alex Loukas, but highly touted freshman recruit Andrew Luck could be the man the Cardinal needs at QB.

This program faces an uphill battle with the high academic standards required just to achieve admission to Leland Stanford Junior University. Can Harbaugh bring wins to Palo Alto? Sure he can-but he’ll need several years of recruiting to do it. After all, he’s not just looking for explosive athletes, he’s also looking for exceptional academics as well.

Look for Stanford to finish 7^th or lower in the Pac-10.

Stanford’s Non Conference Schedule: TCU, San Jose State, Notre Dame

Stanford reports to pre-season camp on August 1^st.

UCLA BRUINS:

High up in the hills of Westwood, offensive to the lumberjack’s eyes, Lies the Cal extension campus known as Westwood High. Fight! Fight! Fight! Home of all the Bruin bear cubs, UGLY is its name. The student body’s vile, The campus is a pile, and the football team’s a shame! Fight! Fight! Fight! U. G. L. Y, UGLY Eat my shorts!

At least that’s the way we sing it at USC. In all seriousness though, this is not looking like a good year for those Bruins who wear the powder blue jerseys. It could be considered a successful season if UCLA is bowl eligible at season’s end.

I mean, what are you going to do without a QB or an Offensive Line? Or, more accurately, a just coming off his umpteenth injury QB and no O-Line? Norm Chow may be the guru that helped Coach Carroll resurrect the storied tradition of Trojan football, but you’ve got to have PLAYERS to build a football team.

I am biased, that is not a secret. There is not a lot of love for the Bruins from this Trojan. So let’s just look at some of the facts.

• They have the 10^th ranked offensive line in the Pac-10
• Both Ben Olson and Patrick Cowan were injured on the same day in Spring practice. Patrick Cowan is out for the season with his injury.
• Olson is insanely injury prone himself.
• Rick Neuheisel is in his first year as Head Coach in Westwood. Norm Chow is in his first year as Offensive Coordinator in Westwood (traitor!). Much of the rest of the coaching staff is brand new.
• The pitiful O-Line needs to replace 4 starters from last year’s so-so squad.
• Projected starting RT Sean Sheller is out for the season with injuries sustained in an ATV accident. That’s 5 Offensive Linemen needing replacement now.
• Junior tailback Christian Ramirez will miss the season because he did not meet NCAA eligibility requirements.
• If QB Olson somehow remains healthy all season and makes it to the USC game, he will most assuredly be Maualugaed.

Do I need to go on? Neuheisel, Chow and co. walk into a bit of a mess over there in Westwood. Do they have the chops to turn it around and return UCLA to glory? Yes, they do. It’s just not going to happen THIS year.

UCLA’s Non Conference Schedule: Tennessee, BYU, Fresno State

UCLA reports to pre-season camp on August 5^th.

USC TROJANS:

Look for USC to meet Georgia for the BCS Title. We were anointed the pre-season #1 at the Pac-10 media day today and we are a favorite to win the Nat’l Championship. Not only do we face formidable conference rivals Oregon and ASU but we’ve got a September 20^th date with the Buckeyes of Ohio State at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum too.

Do it better than it’s ever been done before and never stop competing. Win Forever. Always Compete.

These are but a few of our team mottoes.

Consider these facts. Under Pete Carroll, USC has:

• Six Consecutive Pac-10 titles
• A record Six straight BCS bowls
• A record five BCS bowl wins
• Three Heisman Trophy Winners
• Two National Championships
• A Nationwide high 10 players drafted into the NFL in the 2008 Draft
• An NCAA record of 63 straight games scoring 20 or more points
• A national record of 33 straight weeks as the AP #1
• Six consecutive AP finishes in the top 4.
• A 76-14 (84.4%) record

The question is not: Will USC be good? The question is: Can USC be beat? And if so, how?

Mark Sanchez, the 6’3″, 223lb junior takes over as QB this year. Coming out of high school in 2004 he was everybody’s All American. One Pac-10 coach said Sanchez was the best QB he’d ever seen on film.

Now he gets a chance to show the Nation how good he is.

Folks, not much needs to be said about my Trojans. We will dominate if we stay focused. And focus is not something Pete Carroll’s teams lack.

In Pete We Trust.

Fight on!

USC’s Non Conference Schedule: Virginia, Ohio State, Notre Dame

USC reports to pre-season camp on August 6^th.

WASHINGTON HUSKIES:

Tyrone Willingham is another Pac-10 coach on the hot seat. He meets his former team, the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame on October 25^th at Husky Stadium but the discomfort of that is nothing compared to the November 15^th date the Huskies have with the Bruins. See, Rick Neuheisel is the Anti-Christ to Husky Nation. His very existence reminds U Dub fans of how elite their program once was and what his role was in dismantling it.

Washington has been slow in improving under Willingham’s tutelage. And slow is not what Husky fans want. They want a return to the days of glory. To winning the Pac-10-which they haven’t done since Rick Neuheisel’s second season in 2000. To winning the National Championship-their last was in 1991. Not to another 4-9 season and bottom of the Pac-10 finish.

This is the program Neuheisel destroyed in the eyes of Husky Nation. I hope he has bodyguards for the November 15^th game in Seattle.

Look at it like this: Willingham is going into his third season and is 9-16 overall. When Pete Carroll ended his second full season at USC, he was 17-8 overall and coming off an 11-2 season and top 4 AP finish. In his 3^rd season USC won a share of the National Championship with a 12-1 record.
This is the sort of thing Husky fans expect from their Coach. Miracles.

For Willingham to be successful at retaining his job-which we’ll define by a 6 win season and bowl berth-he will have to instill confidence in his squad. He will have to imbue them with the will to win. That’s going to be hard to do if he starts off 0-3 which is very likely considering the first three teams the Huskies face are Oregon, BYU and Oklahoma.

Ouch.

On the one hand, you’ve gotta respect a guy with a program trying to battle it’s way up from the doldrums of the conference who goes out and schedules BYU and Oklahoma as two of his team’s three non-conference games. (The third being his date with Notre Dame.)

On the other hand, you’ve got to wonder if he’s drinking some spiked Kool-Aid that makes him think his 2-7 in the Pac-10 last year team can post a winning season with these kinds of odds stacked against them.

It’s going to be interesting to sit back and see how it unfolds this season. Husky fans, you have my sympathy-after all, USC Football in the 1990’s was very painful, I know how it feels.

Washington‘s Non Conference Schedule: BYU, Oklahoma, Notre Dame

Washington reports to pre-season camp on August 4^th.

WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS:

41 year old Paul Wulff is new to the Wazzou coaching job. He’s inheriting a team with issues up the Wazzou. (pun intended.) What Cougar fans will like is that Wulff is a former Cougar player himself. He played offensive line for the Washington State Cougars from 1986 to 1989.

The Cougar’s have a stellar receiver in First Team All Pac-10 senior Brandon Gibson. They have a new QB in 6’7″, 233lb Gary Rogers. And Coach Wulff is bringing a new offense to Pullman. Will Gibson and Rogers be up to Wulff’s no-huddle attack? We’ll know soon enough.

Wulff also has inherited a team with a bunch of off-field issues. They lost eight scholarships when they failed to meet the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate Standards. 25 Cougar players have been arrested in the past 18 months. Safety Xavier Hicks is spending 45 days in jail, and missing the first 3 games of the season after pleading guilty to 2 gross misdemeanors. Defensive lineman Andy Roof’s troubled past has left his fate as a Cougar player up in the air.

But signs of change are already apparent. Coach Wulff cut QB recruit Calvin Schmidtke from the team because of a number of controlled-substance violations.

With the kind of problems this team faces, a former Cougar may just be the man to clean up the face of the program while steadily improving the team. The Cougars were 5-7 last year. I don’t expect much of an improvement this year, though it could be said that maintaining a 5-7 record would be an improvement with all the changes that need to be made and questions that need to be answered in Pullman.

Wazzou’s Non Conference Schedule: Oklahoma State, Baylor, Portland State

Washington State reports to pre-season camp on August 5^th.

And that concludes Your 2008 Pac-10 Preview my football fiends. Next up is the Big 10. Give me a couple of days, this one took 2 days to do. (I’m betting because it is MY conference. I’m HOPING because it is MY conference. And because it is over 3,000 words maybe?)

-Your Gridiron Goddess

A Harem of the Gridiron Goddess Post: ByronVolFan on SEC Preview 2008

Gridiron Goddess is happy to welcome back ByronVolFan, our resident Tennessee Volunteer Alum and official SEC previewer!

Your SEC Preview

by ByronVolFan

Hello, once again, from the banks of the Mississippi River and the Bluff City. It is getting to that time of year when the sandstorms of the sports year have us crawling through the wasteland of the summer in search of the Promised Land…there it is…COLLEGE FOOTBALL!!! It’s juuuuust around that next dune, my friend. We will soon make it there…fear not.

This heat has begun to suck from my memory the idea that a cold fall morning calls for getting the grill ready for the BBQ and a strong and spicy bloody mary. I have forgotten how, no matter how crazy the night before may have been, all God-fearing sports fans are up in time for ESPN’s College GameDay. There are very few excuses for missing this and the only REAL excuse you have is that you are en route to an actual SEC game. [This year, I learned, that your roommate will chastise you if you miss GameDay because your fiancé wants to talk on the phone. There is no purgatory big enough for such crimes. We may miss church tomorrowbut Herbie and Corso demand our reverence…even if they malign our beloved alma mater. And, they probably will even as we slam down our red Dixie cups, sloshing our Bloody Marys on the table, and call them every 4-lettered word we have ever heard. In fact, we probably make some up just to let those Yankees know we mean business.

Your Gridiron Goddess says: A commitment to GameDay is no small feat on the West Coast. It starts at 7am out here. And yet, it is my 2^nd favorite time of the week. College Football Saturday is my Holy Day.]

Your humble Southern correspondent also learned some other valuable truths this year. Do NOT assume that your team will not make the conference championship unless it is mathematically impossible to do so. I made the mistake of planning the proposal of marriage on the day of the SEC Championship. When I bought the ring and set up all the necessary surprises, I would not have bet that UT would have made the game. However, we did but to watch that game at a surprise party in honor of your new fiancé…was disheartening, at best, for this Volunteer. Thankfully, my soon-to-be bride loves football as much as I, was equally as disheartened, and was distracted by the wedding magazines her friends had brought her. So, up yours, Football gods!!! You tried to ruin my impending marriage by letting her see me lose my mind over Ainge’s “play”, however, I outsmarted you with those wedding magazines…the first, last, and only time those things have ever HELPED a guy in need!!

On to football news…last year, I humbly submit to you, that I I was pretty dead-on. Got the championship game right and was fairly close on most teams, with some notable exceptions. So, gloating aside (as this is a new year and ample opportunity to get my butt handed to me) here’s the “down and dirty” breakdown of the SEC in the 2008 season.

SEC East

Florida (9-3, 5-3). Tebow is the man. I know that I’m supposed to hate him as the Florida QB, but I can’t. However, I’ve heard the same song and dance out of UF about RB’s and D. I’m sorry, but I just don’t see the improvement to win the title here and the rest of the conference is figuring Florida out. Good year, close games…but no Atlanta.

Georgia (11-1, 7-1). The hottest team in football last year–well in the 2^nd half of the year at least. Moreno will be in New York at the end of the year and Stafford will prove much better. The Georgia/Florida game will make/break the division…and probably the conference. I’ve got Georgia beating them again as Moreno will just kill the Gator D. A good deal of pundits are worried about the schedule. Really? Their road games are South Carolina, Arizona State, LSU, Kentucky, and Auburn. So, they lose at LSU and play one INCREDIBLE game at Auburn…but where’s the BIG scare here? Other than Richt’s inability to close the deal when highly rated, I just don’t see it. Conference champs and SEC rep to the Sugar Bowl.

Kentucky (5-7, 1-7) Kentucky’s back to their doormat status. Loss of their star athletes and a coach who probably secretly wishes he could run the Full House triple option every game with players with no facemasks…makes for a hard rebuilding process. (Note: It would be cool, however, if someone pulled out that kind of BS consistently…I mean, it works on NCAA Football on PS2!!!)

South Carolina (8-4, 5-3) Spurrier’s QB’s…Spurrier’s QB’s…blah blah blah. First, in the interest of full disclosure, I have them beating Tennessee. This is not biased, but I’m just still not sold on them…never have been. The Ol’ Ball Coach is slipping. The program will never usurp Georgia, Florida, and UT in the East on a consistent basis (and yes, I know that in my 2008 rankings, they are ahead of UT…I’m talking about the program level). New QB, loss of some key players…mid level bowl and more “aw shucks” from Darth Visor himself.

Tennessee (8-4, 5-3) Bias Alert! Gonna be an ugly year. I’m sorry, Amy, but I just don’t see us going back to the Coast and leaving with a victory against UCLA. , I wouldn’t put money on that game if I were you. New OC and QB and the same inept banana hammock calling the defense. However, we’ll be better than expectations. Crompton is mean as a snake at QB. I like him a lot and the new OC could really take us to the “next level”. Also, I wouldn’t be super fan if I didn’t point this out…there was another time that we lost a superstar QB, had a new QB coming in a great OL, experienced RB’s and WR core, and a ready-made-tough-as-nails D…that was in 1998. It’s a stretch, I know…and I’m not predicting it! Back to reality, close games but coaching and inconsistent play at QB will eat us alive.

[Your Gridiron Goddess says: UCLA is going to STINK up the joint this year my friend. They barely have a QB that can even WALK right now But they do have Norm Chow, grrrrr..]

Vanderbilt (4-8, 2-6). The only good thing about Vanderbilt being so bad is, as I’ve spent more time in Nashville for work and personal, the Vandy fans make me laugh. There’s always next year. Personal highlight of my Vandy picks…beating Ole Miss!

SEC West

Alabama (8-4, 4-4). But wait, didn’t Saban walk on water and bring sight to the blind and cure cancer and find Jimmy Hoffa and figure out what Bob Dylan’s “Desolation Row” was about? No. Good QB…but inconsistent QB…will lead you to the Liberty Bowl every time. Just ask South Carolina and Miss. State. Wilson’s got the talent and the fire in his gut, but damn, that boy looks stupid sometimes. That, and a ridiculous schedule this year makes it tough for me to find a much better path.

Arkansas (5-7, 2-6). I have to admit, that when I got to Arkansas on my picks sheet, I couldn’t believe that they, by default, had this many wins. The latest stop on the Petrino Boat to Nowhere is pretty bare. Casey Dick? Really…a Petrino-style QB? I’m just not seeing it. Thank God for Western Illinois!

Auburn (9-3, 6-2). Year in/year out the toughest team to call but this seems to be about right given the schedule and the fact that, apparently, I’m drinking the Georgia Kool-Aid this year. The only interesting call I’m making here is that Alabama beats Auburn in the Iron Bowl. They’re just due for it and I smell something like that brewing in the last month of this year. Incidentally, the month of November will be ridiculous in SEC football. Jobs will be secured and lost in those four weeks.

LSU (11-1, 7-1) SOMEHOW, once again, LSU benefits from a ridiculously great schedule. They’ll lose to either Auburn or Florida on the road (my money’s on Auburn) and they’ll have to play South Carolina on the road (yawn). The rest of the games are at home (or neutral site against Arkansas…yawn). I mean, I don’t care who’s at QB, they’re still loaded and all of those drunk Cajuns (not a term of derision!) provide an incredible home field advantage. Still great on D and have great skill players and one BIG OL.

Ole Miss (5-7, 1-7). As has been noted, I’ve never been impressed with Houston Nutt. I always thought he was overrated as a coach. All I’ve heard is “Snead will save the day for the Rebs”. Ok, but Snead is not Tebow…who else do you have? Riiiiiight, that’s what I thought. Not convinced, here, that this is the year that Houston Nutt sends the Rebs to Atlanta (the only SEC West team never to have done so…tee hee hee!).

Mississippi State (8-4, 5-3). Bias Alert! WOW! Ok, so I should have sent my beloved Bulldogs bowling last year. 8 wins though? Byron, are you crazy? Yes. Sure, they lost some people, but they’re stacked behind them. A coach like Croom seizes momentum in his program and uses it to get his guys back in the game. I’m betting on a one game improvement? “8 wins Byron?”. Yes, remember, that if Arkansas didn’t have one of the greatest RB tandems in football history last year, State would have crushed the mighty Arkansas. They only lost by 2 touchdowns…which for MSU standards vs. a Heisman candidate…pretty dern good! This year, there’s no Heisman in Fayetteville and State has a chance to beat up on the new guy, Bobby Petrino.

Championship Game: Georgia vs. LSU…Georgia gets revenge on LSU and heads to the Sugar Bowl.

On a side note, for those of you that like your football to be fun and crazy…pay attention to New Mexico State. Hal Mumme, disgraced former coach at Kentucky who makes Mike Leach look like a run-first coach, and Joe Lee Dunn have teamed up down there. Dunn is notorious for having some of the most odd-ball defensive formations imaginable. Ever seen 2 down linemen on D? He’ll show it to you. That combined with Mumme’s 158 passes/game, it’ll be funny to watch.

So, that’s the preview from south of the Mason-Dixon line. I’m not even going to pretend to forecast the nation this year. There’s just too many variables and changes this year that it’s going to be a toss-up year. Good luck to your teams. If you’re a Big 10 fan, can’t wait to see OSU be overrated and shown up in the post-season. HA!

(Your Gridiron Goddess says: Sept 13 is the day the Buckeyes dream of another trip to the BCS Championship game dies)

Good luck everyone and continue to check out The Gridiron Goddess for all of your football needs!

A Harem of the Goddess/Goddess in Training Joint Venture: Bama vs Tennessee

Goddess in Training and Bama Alum Kristen:

Well, what can I say other than Roll Tide? Tennessee came to town and Alabama played its most complete game yet. QB John Parker Wilson and WR D.J. Hall lit it up all afternoon, and we came away with a 41-17 win at home. The “Third Saturday in October” is Alabama’s biggest rivalry to some (to others, it’s in-state rival AuBARN), and you can definitely count me among the UT haters. Auburn doesn’t bother me so much — they’re the redheaded stepchild of the state anyhow.

Saban is happy, the players are happy, the fans are happy, and I am still a believer in Bama being a national contender in the next two years. Bama’s got 4 games left, and I predict a loss to LSU and wins to Mississippi State, Louisiana-Monroe and AuBARN! Even if AuBARN gets away with a win, we’ll still be 8-4 and looking at a decent bowl berth. But oh how a 9-3 or even a 10-2 season would make me smile!

Sorry to all those SEC teams in orange, but BAMA is definitely back! ROLL TIDE!

Harem Member and Tennessee Vol Alum Byron:

To summarize the game from the Tennessee perspective…ouch!  I have never really seen us consistently play bad in big games this year.  Is it our historically conservative offense?  No.  Sadly, it isn’t.  Our offense has improved and been modified partially because we have someone with at least half a brain (i.e. not anyone from the Clausen family).  I could say our defense, and on the surface, that is the problem.  Our D hasn’t had a coaching change since 1999.  1999!

However, here’s what kills me…the SEC is improving…the top tier of the conference is narrowing and we are being left out.  Florida, Alabama, UGA, LSU…all of these schools have moved ahead of Tennessee as far as the premier teams in the league?  Fulmer in the same league with Meyer?  No.

What kills me about the most recent ‘Bama game is how glaringly obvious this gap between the 1st and 2nd tiers of the conference is.  Tennessee, one of three SEC teams to have won a national title in the past 15 years, got out coached/out-classed/out-manned by their deepest rival.  That is embarassing.  Our coaching staff has allowed the program to be embarassed by our two biggest rivals.  THAT is unforgivable in the SEC.

In short, the game was embarassing and our fans/teams/coaches should be ashamed of what UT has become.

A Harem of the Gridiron Goddess post: Byron’s midseason look at the SEC

Alabama–Too lucky for too long. You may beat UT next week, you may not, but don’t get too excited about this year. You still don’t have the talent you need to compete.

Arkansas–Goodbye Houston Nutt…Goodbye Heisman Trophy…Hello upset by an upstart SEC West team.

Auburn–That Byrum kid is spooky good…but #2 in the West is not a bad place to be this year.

Florida–*gags on words* dangit, y’all are good but you need to go ahead and beat this Kentucky team before the Apocalypse comes and Kentucky wins the East. *shudders at the thought*

Georgia–Sorry dawgs, Stafford just isn’t there yet. Alabama may have been a fluke.

Kentucky–yeah, nobody saw you coming…congratulations…but you haven’t beaten Florida yet. It may come down to a 3-way tie for the East after you beat my Vols like a stepchild.

LSU–tough loss and I hated it…but didn’t I say at the beginning of the year that I questioned Miles’ X’s and O’s? 4 plays up the middle…and 4th down was the backup…not your stud RB? Uuuuhhhhhhh…ok.

Ole Miss–get over it. ‘Bama beat you. It was the right call. Enjoy going 0-8 in the SEC. Maybe next time you’ll get a real coach.

Mississippi State–-The positives: Good game…over the next 2-3 years, you’ll get better and better. It’s coming. Stay with Croom. He’s the best guy for the job. The negatives: Tell your fans to shut the #$%^ up. Comments like “hope the Music City Bowl likes that call” should not be uttered from fans who haven’t played in December since 2000. Biased Upset Call here….State’ll beat either ‘Bama or Arkansas.

South Carolina–Spurrier won’t go all the way with the Special Ed offense he has now. It’ll bite them…possibly October 27th.

Tennessee–Look guys. Just win, ok. Win out and we go to Atlanta. You can beat ‘Bama. South Carolina doesn’t have the offense this year…pull something out of your butt for Kentucky (because that’ll take a miracle). Oh yeah…and when it’s 2nd and 6 and the other team only has one decent receiver…don’t line up 7 yards from the line and then start backpedaling. It’s called a hitch route…they will use it and get the 1st down…everytime. We learned this in Jr. High football.

Vanderbilt–dangit, guys, I want to believe…I want y’all to go to a bowl (but not beat Tennessee) so bad…but you just manage to be…Vanderbilt. Sorry guys…not happening this year…but, there is always next year.

–Harem Member Byron

Goddess in Training: Kristen on Bama vs Arkansas

Let’s talk about Bama. The hiring of Nick Saban in January of this year was heralded by Bama faithful as proof that Bama will return to national prominence, and at this point I have to believe it myself.

I’m not one of those Bama fans who worship the Bear and talk a lot about the past, because let’s face it, I was born a week after Bryant died. I’ve never witnessed Bama as a national power, unless you want to count the ’92 national championship, during which time I was probably skipping rope and playing with dolls.

But as soon as I decided where I was going to school and stepped foot on the University of Alabama campus in 2001, I’ve been Tide faithful. I was in school during the (very short) Franchione era, then he decided he would do the reverse Bryant-from-A&M-to-Bama thing. Though Fran’s had yet to show any real progress over there at A&M. Then I witnessed the Mike Price debacle. No stripper jokes, OK? Then we hired former Tide quarterback Mike Shula on the fly. His honeymoon lasted a mere four years, and now he’s back in his home state of Florida coaching the QBs at Jacksonville, which is probably the only position he was any good at coaching in the first place.

So. Saban. So far this year, he coached us to an easy win over Western Carolina, and a pretty easy turn over Vandy. Then there’s last night’s game at home vs. Arkansas. Really, I think the game was vs. Darren McFadden and that’s about it.

I’ll admit I lost faith in the second half. I said to the boyfriend, “They’re not going to pull this off, are they?” But the boyfriend said kicking the field goal with 4:20 remaining in the game to put the score at 34-38 was a smart move by Saban. Luckily, we held off the gargantuan McFadden and co. near the end, and Alabama QB John Parker Wilson passed 4 yards for a touchdown to Matt Caddell with just 8 seconds remaining. 41-38! I couldn’t believe my eyes. I danced around the living room and our neighborhood erupted in shouts of “Roll Tide!” (We live just 45 miles away from Tuscaloosa, so there’s a lot of Bammers around).

To put the icing on the cake, Alabama’s two biggest rivals, Auburn and Tennessee, suffered bad losses to Miss. State and Florida, respectively.

At 3-0, I believe that Alabama can hold off Georgia next week, Florida State the week after, and continue on with no losses until LSU. Oh the irony! The team that Saban built could be Alabama’s downfall this year. We’ll see. Until then, Roll Tide!

-Your Goddess in Training Kristen

Indy vs Nawlins: It is SO ON!

Less than 24 hours to go until the official start of the 2007-08 NFL Season football fiends and fans!

I’ve been sitting here for hours now, mulling over this game tomorrow night. Colts or Saints? Saints or Colts? I just can’t figure out what my pick is. My heart wants to go with the Saints, well my heart and my irrepressible Trojan pride. I am a Drew Brees fan. A Reggie Bush fan. I think there is magic in that combo yet to explode for football fans to delight in. And my first instinct, oh so many weeks ago was to say Saints, definitely the Saints.

And yet… it is so hard to bet against Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison, Tony Dungy, Reggie Wayne and Joseph Addai… Hmmm. What to do, who to pick…

I am sure many, if not most of you have seen the amusing NFL on NBC promo spot with Peyton Manning and Reggie Bush. I am putting it in the post anyway because it makes me giggle every single time. It is so ON, people. More after the vid….

heh heh MOO. I giggle every single stinkin’ time that cow is led into Peyton’s room.

I tend to think that the Colts, having the home field advantage, will roll on out onto the gridiron and look poised to make another Super Bowl run, on offense at least. Manning is a composed, controlled offensive leader, and with the monkey of not being able to deliver wins in the post season off his back, I expect his composure to be even stronger this season. He’ll be hungry to prove the Colts were not a one season wonder. Dungy’s coaching and experience is clutch for this team.

And yet…

Hey, do y’all remember how funny Peyton Manning was when he hosted Saturday Night Live? Let’s have a look back while I ponder a bit more, shall we?

hee hee Not only a Super Bowl winning QB, but a comedian as well. har har. Yes, I’m stalling.

Look, the Colts have all the pieces, on paper they look like the team to pick to win the opening game of the 2007-08 NFL Season.

But I’m going with the Saints.

-Your Gridiron Goddess

Trojan Wire’s John David Booty, the video

hey fellow football fiends and fanatics,

So sorry I’ve been light on the content this past week… I was and am crazy busy and sick with stupid sinus infection.

With College football kicking off this weekend and NFL Regular Season next week, this is the last week until post Super Bowl 2008 that I will be lite on content.

So check out this kick ass video of USC QB John David Booty courtesy of Trojan Wire’s Rory MacDonald!

After watching the video, you can clearly see why so many, including The Heisman Pundit have Booty at the top of the list of 2007 Heisman contenders.

ETA: Many thanks to Rich “Dirty Sanchez” Rodriguez for helping me figure out how to get the video working on this post.  Rich and my Harem member Byron are Tennessee Vols and I am rooting for them to beat USC’s Pac-10 rival Cal Bears this weekend. Crush those Bears Vol Nation!

-Your Gridiron Goddess

A Harem of the Gridiron Goddess Post: ByronVolFan on the SEC

Hey ya’ll!

 

Hello and welcome to “The Gridiron Goddess: SEC Preview” brought to you from south of the Mason-Dixon line, the home of Elvis Presley, Sun Studios and the world’s best BBQ, the heart of SEC country, and, judging from the temperatures outside, the part of the world that is hotter than the hinges of hell!!  The only saving grace for this time of year is College Football…more precisely, Southeastern Conference Football. 

 

Very few schools/conferences have the same atmosphere that an SEC school has in regards to football. (and yes, Amy, I am including USC as one of those schools.  USC is a misplaced SEC team…as is Penn State, Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Ohio State.  Also, we do not consider Notre Dame as such.  A true SEC’er is raised to pull for the Communists over Notre Dame.)  Consider Mississippi (Ole Miss).  The Grove has been named, by several writers, as the ULTIMATE tailgating experience.  First, let me say, I hate Mississippi with a fiery passion.  However, The Grove is incredible.  Families have tailgated in the same spot for generations.  They bring out the family silver…the ones that Great-Great Grandfather shimmied up the chimney with to hide from the Yankees in the War of Northern Aggression.  Have you ever seen a chandelier at a football game?  Have you ever seen a chandelier at a football game powered off the same generator as a 48” Hi-Def TV alongside of a satellite?  Have you ever seen all of this in addition to some of the most beautiful women in cocktail dresses and immaculate hair/makeup?  This is SEC football.  This is the pageantry.  Every school has their own traditions and stories that are told every Saturday in the fall.  True, every school has these as well, however, I would say that SEC football cannot be felt in the head…it is felt in the same place we touch the Almighty.  These traditions are as sacred to us as the stories we heard in church growing up.  “Thank you for Jesus and Bear Bryant” has probably been uttered more times than we care to admit. 

 

While I am an SEC apologist, I do not defend some of the crazies that occasionally peek out from their cages and find a forum for crazy talk.  As a University of Tennessee alum, the degree that hangs on my wall decreases in value every time some idiot blasts his “Rocky Top” car horn.  I get embarrassed whenever these idiots get on the talk shows or national message boards with such lunacies as “The SEC Champion should automatically play for the national title each year…because they won the SEC and the other conferences suck”.  While, I do tend to agree that the SEC does cannibalize itself and sometimes our champion does not get the recognition it deserves…*cough Auburn 2004 cough*, this guy should be thrown into the same loony ward as the guy that keeps calling to defend Jeff Tedford as a genius! (sorry, Pac-10, had to take a little jab there!)  Please know that I am not one of those people.  I do believe that we have the best conference in college football.  I do believe the BCS and the designated hitter was sent from Satan himself and that college football will become the last pure amateur sport when we have a playoff.  I am a red-blooded American college football nut, who just happens to talk a little slower and a little more like Kevin Spacey in “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” than the rest of the country.  So, allow me to refill my mint julep, light a good cigar, and sit on the patio swing and I will tell ya’ll how the SEC will finish the 2007 year.

 West:

LSU (12-0, 8-0)

Auburn (10-2, 6-2)

Arkansas (9-3, 5-3)

Alabama (8-4, 4-4)

Miss. State (5-7, 2-6)

Ole Miss (4-8, 0-8) 

LSU: Easy schedule and loaded with talent.  I’m still not convinced that Les Miles is a great X’s and O’s coach, though.

 

Auburn: Usually the most underrated team in the SEC.  They always seem to quietly win 10 games without anyone noticing.  Good play at QB could make up for green RB.

 

Arkansas: McFadden, McFadden, McFadden.  If they figured he could play linebacker, they’d have him play that as well.  However, there’s very little passing threat.  Even the great McFadden can’t run through a 9 man defensive front.

 

Alabama: Saban is better than Shula, yes.  This year…not by much.  Lots of close games though.

 

Mississippi State: BIASED ALERT: This is my second favorite team in the conference.  I grew up watching them.  That being said…consider this…MSU was 3-9 last year.  4 of those 9 were lost by within 3 points.  One play…ONE PLAY in each of those games and poor little Mississippi State would have been bowl-bound.  Let us not forget that there were games when they were on 3^rd and 4^th string QB’s.  However, I’m not stupid enough to send them bowling.

 

Mississippi (Ole Miss): Walk-on QB…loss of 1^st round draft LB…loss of another great LB…only saving grace is one RB and one lineman.  Sorry, Pac10 fans, they’ll be sending you back Orgeron.

 East:

Tennessee (10-2, 6-2)

Florida (9-3, 5-3)

Georgia (8-4, 5-3)

South Carolina (7-5, 3-5)

Kentucky (5-7, 2-6)

Vanderbilt (5-7, 1-7) 

Tennessee: BIASED ALERT: My Vols have the best returning QB in the league in Ainge.  The D-line and LB corps is among the nations best.  Great 1-2 punch at RB.  New offensive scheme and the best OC in college football (he took the title when Chow went to the Titans).  WR’s are new…but this is Wide Receiver U.  Also, the rest of the East is on a downtick.  UT’s Atlanta bound.

 

Florida: Tough to rebound from supplying the NFL Draft with so much talent.  Tebow’s going to have to learn how to do more in a game than run off the left tackle.  Too many green players to win the close games.

 

Georgia: My biggest question mark in the league.  Probably beat UT, but not Florida…and end up dropping one or two more along the way.  Not sold on the QB play despite showing SOME moments of satisfactory play last year.  Defense could save them from embarrassment.

 

South Carolina: Though their coach has sold his soul to Satan more times than Robert Johnson and Faust combined, I still can’t drink the Gamecock Kool-Aid yet.  The loss of a big-time receiver, a D that’s never really lived up to the hype…I’m just not willing to supplant the top-3 in the East with THIS group of ‘Cocks (Amy, that one was for you!).

 

Kentucky: One superstar QB does not a great team make…especially with UK’s D. 

 

Vanderbilt: Do I even really need to go here??

 

Thank ya’ll for reading this and wasting your time here.  Special thanks to Amy, my dear online friend, for the opportunity to waste time this week telling ya’ll what I think about everything. 

 Good luck to everyone’s team this year and…GO VOLS!