Pac 10

The guys out west tried to make the bold move by grabbing Texas and Oklahoma and making the first mega conference. It didn't pan out, but that sort of realignment is bound to happen in the next year or two.

USC is in a pile of trouble with the NCAA and they hired Lame Kiffin to replace Pete Carrol. The Trojans are stockpiled with talent and have Lame's dad running their defense, but the NCAA sanctions will keep them from being ranked or playing in a bowl game this season. They MAY have the best team, but since they are disqualified, lets take a look at the real contenders. Oregon repped the Rose Bowl last time, and lost to Ohio St. They have a lot of kids back, but lost the QB. The Ducks have to be the front runner, but cross state rivals, the Beavers of Oregon State have the Rogers brothers back. The thing I like about the Pac 10 is that they play exciting offense, and you have to have good QB play for that. The Pac has Barkley at USC, Andrew Luck at Stanford, Jake Locker at Washington and the kid from Arizona is pretty good too (Nick something). Stanford and Washington have to be in the PAC conversation, because of their great QB's and great young coaches. This may be the hardest conference to pick in 10. Oregon is so well coached that they will overcome the loss of Massoli. Stanford and Oregon State will fight it out for 2nd, while Arizona could surprise. Don't think Wash has enough around Locker, Wash St is hopeless and Cal will down IMO. UCLA and Arizona State are the interesting teams. UCLA is improving, but it is a tough conference and they play at Texas. Arizona State seems to take 2 steps forward and one back under Dennis Erickson.

Big games out of conference include:

USC vs Notre Dame
Arizona hosts Iowa (upset alert?)
Oregon State opens this weekend against TCU in Dallas Cowboys stadium
Washington plays at BYU to open the season and hosts Nebraska on 9/18
UCLA plays K St, Houston and Texas...
The Sun Devils go to Wisconsin

prep recap

A great weekend of high school football action. My oldest son and I went to Daytona Friday night and watched West Point, Mississippi beat DB Mainland. Mainland is over rated and the 14-0 score could have been much worse. While we were at that game, on ESPN Tampa Plant played Bradenton Manatee in what was expected to be a great game between nationally ranked squads. Well Plant (ranked as high as #2 nationally) lost 18 starters from last years FL 5A title team, and got the snot beat out of them 48-10, on ESPN...yikes!

Last night, we went back to Daytona and took pals Mark and Gary with us. Little 2A Cocoa, FL beat another 6A Mississippi power, Olive Branch. It was a great game and could have gone either way, but the smaller Tigers just scrapped all game long. Cocoa plays Thomas Jefferson, PA next week and goes to Abilene, Texas on Sept 16th. Talk about not dodging anyone!

The games in Daytona were part of a "Florida vs USA Gridiron Challenge" and the Florida teams went 3-1. Better than I expected.

Hoover, Alabama beat Byrnes, South Carolina 14-0. Good Counsel, MD beat St X of Cincinnati 21-6. South Panola, MS beat Colquitt County, Ga like a DRUM!

For Florida teams, games against out of state teams count on their record, even if it was this weekend, which is reserved for the Kickoff Classic games, which do not count. Next weekend, everybody plays for keeps! The Boys of Fall :)

More College Previews

The Big 12 will be interesting because it will be Nebraska's swan song. Next season they will move over to the Big 10 (which has 11 teams now, and will have 12...). The Cornhuskers have a classy group of fans and have been known to give an ovation to the opponents who play well and courageously. I like that. I don't like Nebraska however. May be because of the extreme beat down they put on the Gators in the national championship of 95. But I digress.

The South has ruled the Big 12, with Texas and Oklahoma taking turns winning the title. Last season Nebraska came within 1 second of upsetting the Horns, but it was not to be. This season it appears Nebraska's momentum may take them back to the top of the North, while the Red River Shootout should again determine the South representative. Most predictors are taking Oklahoma and Kirk Herbstreit is picking the Sooners to lose the BCS championship to his Buckeyes. I like Texas. Mack Brown does a great job and it may just be a hunch (or indigestion), but I'm going with the Hookem bunch. Texas actually plays AT Nebraska during the season, so if it goes like I think, they will have a rematch (see SEC for another similar situation). Of course, if Oklahoma does win the South, it will be pretty cool to have Oklahoma vs Nebraska in the Huskers last season in the conference. Growing up, Oklahoma vs Nebraska was one of those handful of great games each season, that we watched. We only got one or two games per weekend...in black and white :)

Missouri is a good team and could upend the Nebraska party. Kansas hired Turner Gill, but will need a few years. K State and Iowa State are just not legit enough. Colorado has decided to bolt to the Pac 10, but I hear they may delay that until 2012 now. Back down south, Tommy Tuberville has replaced Mike Leach at Texas Tech and while he may upgrade their defense, I expect him to down grade their offense. Oklahoma State may get a 3rd tier bowl and A&M might too, but I'm not buying Aggie stock. Baylor is weak, but has a great QB. Not the most exciting conference, but when I lived in Kansas, I did enjoy their basketball conference tournament :)

The Boys of Fall lyrics

The Boys of Fall Lyrics

When I feel that chill, smell that fresh cut grass/
I'm back in my helmet, cleats and shoulder pads/
Standing in the huddle listening to the call/
Fans going crazy for the boys of fall/
They didn't let just anybody in that club/
Took every ounce of heart and sweat and blood/
To get to wear those game day jerseys down the hall/
Kings of the school man, we're the boys of fall/

(Chorus:)
Well it's turn and face the Stars and Stripes/
It's fighting back them butterflies/
It's call it in the air, alright yes sir we want the ball/
And it's knocking heads and talking trash/
It's slinging mud and dirt and grass/
It's I got your number, I got your back when your back's against the wall/
You mess with one man you got us all/
The boys of fall/

In little towns like mine that's all they got/
Newspaper clippings fill the coffee shops/
The old men will always think they know it all/
Young girls will dream about the boys of fall/

(Chorus:)
Well it's turn and face the Stars and Stripes/
It's fighting back them butterflies/
It's call it in the air, alright yes sir we want the ball/
And it's knocking heads and talking trash/
It's slinging mud and dirt and grass/
It's I got your number, I got your back when your back's against the wall/
You mess with one man you got us all/

The boys of fall/

(Chorus:)
Well it's turn and face the Stars and Stripes/
It's fighting back them butterflies/
It's call it in the air, alright yes sir we want the ball/
And it's knocking heads and talking trash/
It's slinging mud and dirt and grass/
It's I got your number, I got your back when your back's against the wall/
You mess with one man you got us all/
The boys of fall/

We're the boys of fall

We're the boys of fall

ACC Preview 2010

The ACC preview is next, not because it is the 2nd strongest conference (not even close), but because my Seminoles reside in the Atlantic division. There are some really good teams in the ACC, but first let me weigh in on the Bobby Bowden situation. Maybe I can get it out of the way and not have to “go there” anymore this season. Bobby is whining to the media that he was pushed out as head coach last December. Duh! He should have been pushed out about 5 years ago, before he let the program slip to mediocrity. He always said he would quit when the losses piled up, but he just stuck around and embarrassed himself. Kudos to T K Wetherel for having the nads to give Bobby the pink slip. Now Jimbo Fisher has a chance to make FSU relevant again. Don’t know if he will do it, but it is his chance.

In the same way that the Gators benefit from being in the weaker side of the SEC, the Noles are in the weaker side of the ACC. The Coastal will be a knock down drag out brawl between Va Tech, Georgia Tech, Miami and maybe North Carolina. Frank Beamer is a terrific coach. He has built the Hokies into a national program. They were not on the map before he arrived in Blacksburg. Georiga Tech’s Paul Johnson is another terrific coach. His option oriented offense is scoffed at by pundits, but it works. Miami has sick (really hip term) athletes and Randy Shannon has instilled discipline in Coral Gables (a small miracle). Shannon is tapping into the south Florida talent pool, which has no equal, and landed loaded recruiting classes. The problem is that I don’t think Randy is a good game day coach and I expect the Canes to lose a game or two that they should not. I will add that his OC (Whipple) is a serious play caller! The Tarheels are stocked with NFL defensive players, but I’m not “buying” UNC stock. Butch has built them into a contender, but I don’t see them elbowing the Jackets, Hockies or Canes out of the picture. I should mention that David Cutcliff is a great coach and Duke should be thrilled to have him. He just has an uphill battle to get football players to Durham. NC State has disappointed me in that they progress has been slower than I expected when Tom O’Brien took over. Virginia is a mess and now Mike London gets a chance to try to build them back up.

Miami and Va Tech have the horses and the hype, but I just get the feeling that Paul Johnson will find a way to win the Coastal! No real crystal ball, but my gut. Miami and Va Tech could clearly win the coastal and probably should…

Now for the Atlantic, since Tallahassee is right on the ocean . Boston College is solid and well coached. Clemson got a gift when Kyle Parker put off MLB to play another season of football, and Wake Forest may have one of the best coaches in the country. Maryland started off great under Ralph Friedgen, but have regressed for several seasons now! Even with great coaching, I don’t expect Wake to make noise, so it comes down to BC, FSU and Clemson. I think it is FSU’s division to lose. I know “homer” rides again, but the Noles get BC and Clemson in Tally. If they have ANY defense to go with what I expect to be a potent offense, then FSU should find a way into the poorly attended ACC championship game.

Key non conference games for ACC teams include:

Virginia Tech opens with Boise State on Labor Day night.
Miami goes to the Horse Shoe to play Ohio State in week 2, and like the Gators, play South Florida’s Bulls this year.
North Carolina opens with LSU in Hotlanta and plays Rutgers later in September
Georgia Tech plays at Kansas in week 2 and closes with Jawja
Duke plays Alabama and Virginia plays Southern Cal. They should call in sick…
Florida State goes to Oklahoma in week 2 and then hosts BYU the following week, and of course closes with the Gators at Doak the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
Boston College hosts a revived Notre Dame team on Oct 2.
Clemson tackles two SEC teams, at Auburn and hosting rival South Carolina.
Wake Forest plays Stanford (great QB) and Navy.
The NC State Wolfpack come to Orlando to visit UCF at Brighthouse stadium and then host the offensive minded Cincinnati Bearcats.

College Football - SEC Preview :)

My 2010 College preview will start with the kings of the mountain, the SEC. Over the last 4 seasons, Florida, LSU, Florida and Alabama have won the BCS national championships. Certainly conference power can be cyclical, but the SEC is building upon the momentum they have and I just don’t see them backing off anytime soon.

The West appears to be the division with the stronger teams to challenge Alabama. Arkansas, Auburn and LSU have legitimate shots, and with Jerimiah Massoli now chunkin it for Ole Miss, they will be a tough out. Dan Mullen is building Mississippi State, but he just doesn’t have the “dogs” for the SEC West fights yet. I have seen some experts pick Auburn and Arkansas to upset the Tide to represent the West in the SEC title game. Auburn under Chizik is really improving and former Gator Cam Newton should shine in Gus Malzon’s rapid fire offense. Arkansas has future NFL QB Ryan Mallet and so they will score a bunch of points and have a chance to win any game. LSU is super talented, but I have zero confidence in Les Miles. So, while the Hogs and the War Beagles are getting some love, I can’t not pick Alabama. Saban is a top shelf coach and has all his offense back from last year’s championship team. The D lost quite a bit, but the shelves are stocked with serious ball players ready for their turn. Not sure if Bamer runs the table, but I sure see them in Atlanta…playing…the Gators…again.

The East may not be as strong as the West this season. Florida, Georgia and South Carolina should duke it out for a spot in Hotlanta, but Kentucky will be pretty good too. Much is being written about replacing Tebow, one of college football’s most decorated celebrity’s. I honestly expect the Florida offense to be MUCH better with John Brantley taking the snaps. I’m not hating on Tebow, but he was always an unconventional QB, who did not distribute the ball enough for me. He sure carried the team on short yardage situations, but he does not throw the ball as well as John Brantley and he failed to get the ball to the guys who make the Gators special – the speed burners. Like Tebow, I was able to watch Brantley while he was in high school and he has all the tools then so it is a certainty that he has improved in his years at UF waiting his turn. UF lost some good players, but they have been stocking up on 5 star recruits and have Urban Meyer running the show. Just cannot see Georgia or South Carolina unseating them. A regular season road trip to Tuscaloosa will be a dandy and may blemish the Gator season, but it shouldn’t keep them out of a rematch of Orange & Blue vs Crimson & White. It is such a homer thing to do, but I’ll pick Alabama to win the game in October, but the Gators to claim the championship in December  The interesting battle will be between Georgia and South Carolina, who just happen to knock heads in week two in Columbia. Schedules are obviously a key factor, as each SEC team plays all the teams in their division, plus three teams from the other side of the conference. Georgia plays Arkansas, Miss St and Auburn. South Carolina gets Auburn, Alabama and Arkansas. The Gamecocks would trade the Tide for Miss St. if they could. That means that South Carolina has to beat Georgia head to head. The problem is that under Spurrier you never know what to expect from SC. They have had great DEFENSES (go figure) under Steve, but no real offense. Mark Richt has been very solid and steady at Georgia, but also hard to predict. One writer picked Georgia to win the national championship. I sure don’t see that, but expect them to have a decent season. I am taking Kentucky to finish 3rd or 4th in the East, with Tennessee and Vandy bringing up the rear. Vandy is where my cousin Bryan played in the early 90’s and I admire their courage, but they are the one SEC team that really is not an SEC team…CUSA facilities and no athletic department. Repeat, no athletic department! During the inevitable mega conference alignment that will happen in the next year or two, the SEC should find a way to put the Dores on waivers.

One more point of discussion with the SEC and that is the non conference games of note. Alabama hosts Penn State and plays Duke (bully report!). LSU opens with North Carolina in Atlanta and also has a game with West Virginia. Florida still plays FSU and this season they also have the now dangerous South Florida Bulls coming to the Swamp. Auburn plays Clemson. Ole Miss plays Fresno St. Georgia always has the now dangerous Ramblin Wreck at the end of the season, but they also go to Boulder to play Colorado this season. Not that Colorado is awesome or anything, but it is quite scenic out there and pretty high altitude. Tennessee plays Oregon and if the Vols weren’t down, that would be a good one as the Ducks will bring serious offense to Neyland stadium.

High School Kickoff 2010

Right out of the gate, the big news for this season is the increasing amount of stellar inter-state match ups by the power teams. Also the television coverage of these games is on the rise as well. We could debate the pros and cons of the high school level “going big time”, but I’ll save that for another day. For the most part it is very exciting.

I’ll go into more depth regarding the upcoming season within Florida in a week or so, but for tonight let’s take a look at who the power teams are across the country and what the marquee matchups will be.

Folks will passionately fight for their own state and make a case for supremacy. I have been around the country and while I still have some bias, really try to be objective at some level. Without using absolutes, the best high school football is played in Texas, Florida, California, Ohio and Pennsylvania. There are also some amazing teams from Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Arizona and lately Utah. Texas, Florida and California have sheer numbers (high populations) and are well known for the athleticism of so many skill position players. Ohio has some Catholic league teams that are some of the best in the USA every year (primarily Cincinnati and Cleveland). Pennsylvania is highly regarded for a tough nosed brand of football.

In Texas, you have your Trinity (Euless), SouthLake Carrol, Abilene, Katy and Judson as the names that always seem to be near the top, year in and year out. Most polls have Trinity and Abilene in the national top 10 for 2010.
Florida’s top teams do not always come from the highest classification. There are always 2 or 3 giant schools in Miami who are over loaded with inhuman athletes. The Tampa area has Lakeland, Plant, Jefferson and Armwood, with Bradenton Manatee a few miles down the Gulf coast as well. F.L. St Thomas Aquinas is one of the largest private schools in the state, and drawing from the Dade and Broward talent pool, gives them a small college caliber lineup most season. Class 4A has had some teams that may be better than the 5A and 6A boys, with Palm Beach Dwyer, Niceville, Pine Forest, Lincoln and Nease among the teams that can take on anybody.
In South Carolina, Byrnes and Dorman are the elite teams.
Georgia boasts Lowndes County, Camden County, North Gwinnet and Warner Robbins as some of their annual big dogs.
In Alabama, it us usually either Hoover or Prattville that rule the prep world.
Next door in Mississippi, South Panola, Olive Branch and West Point are some of the power programs.
Louisiana has some good teams, but nationally, it is usually John Curtis River Ridge or Evangel Christian, private schools willing to take on powers across state lines.
Ohio boasts St Xavier, Moeller, Colerain from Cinci, Glenville and St Ignatious from Cleveland, and these guys can play with anybody, period.
California is so big that there are lots of great teams. Concorde DeLaSalle is the most famous, going several years with out losing. Servite, Matre Dei, Grant, Long Beach Poly are big schools that dominate, and Oaks Christian is the lil private school with sons of famous fathers all over the roster.
Oklahoma often comes down to Union vs Jenks.
In Kansas, Olathe North and a couple of the Wichita schools have had some notoriety, while in Missouri the top squads are often Blue Springs and Rockhurst.

Tennessee has some decent public school teams (Maryville went a few years without a loss) but it is the private schools that are more renowned, like Brentwood Academy, MUS, and Montgomery Bell Academy..

I get carried away sometimes, but I really do follow football in these states and several more…

OK, the biggest interstate match ups for 2010 are only a few weeks away.

The weekend of August 28th, we have a big event in Daytona! That Friday night Daytona Beach Mainland will play West Point, Mississippi and the on Saturday it is Cocoa, Fl against Olive Branch, Mississippi. Cocoa is a small school, but have been on a roll the last few seasons, and in addition to this match up against a 6A power from the Magnolia state, Cocoa also goes out to Texas to play Abilene in September! Mainland is a solid 6A team, but not a top 10 Florida kind of team. They could change my mind this year however, if they beat West Point, and Miami NorthWestern! That same Saturday, Glades Central, another small school power from Florida, will go out to Texas and play Dallas Skyline. I like GC in this one, but have to editorialize that while the best football athletes may come out of south Florida, the teams down there are not usually well coached. In fact, the Miami Northwestern vs Miami Central contest last year was embarrassingly sloppy, despite the fact that some 20+ D1 players were on the field.

Again on that opening weekend, the top team from Mississippi, South Panola – Batesville will take on Colquitt County in Moultrie, Georgia. Colquitt is coached by Russ Probst, famous for his days at Hoover in Birmingham and infamous for his scandalous personal life.


Big interstate match ups opening weekend:

Fri Aug 27: DB Mainland vs West Point, Miss
South Panola, Miss @ Colquitt County, Georgia

Sat Aug 28: St X (Cinci) vs Good Council Maryland
Cocoa, Fl vs Olive Branch, Miss
Hoover, AL vs Byrnes, SC
Glenville, Ohio vs Warren Central, Indiana
Tulsa Union, OK vs Evangel Christian, La

Key Kickoff Classic games in the sunshine state:

Plant vs Manatee
Nease @ Deland

Boys of Fall

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlXDo5WhQXI

IF this link works, great. If it doesn't, just go to YouTube and search for Boys of Fall and select the 8 minute version. It does a nice job of explaining why I love high school football so much.

I am way too swamped at work the next few days, but I am determined to start waxing eloquent on the upcoming season. Some fantastic inter state match ups at the prep level and of course the college season is less than 4 weeks away!