While a good number of teams settle into conference play around the country, we still have a few marquee non-conference games that will grab everyone's attention. As for the game of the week? Pick your poison. Right now, nothing really jumps out at you. There are some very good, and very important games, but there isn't one that rises above the rest. Maybe that changes if the season's first four weeks play out differently than we expect.
While some schools avoid those early season non-conference showcase matchups like the plague - think 80 percent of the Big Ten - give Tennessee credit. The Vols have a built in excuse to play a soft non-conference schedule before their SEC slate kicks in, but they'd rather not take it easy.
Two of the biggest stories to emerge this week out of spring practice have nothing to do with quarterback battles, new coaches or schematic changes. Rather, it's injury news to two big name offensive stars that are grabbing the most headlines heading into April.
Finally, we'll have our answer this week. Terrelle Pryor, the most hyped and heralded quarterback in the history of high school football, will make his decision on where he'll be attending school this fall. Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Oregon were Pryor's four finalists when he told the college football world on National Signing Day that he wasn't prepared to decide. But he's been down to two for some time. But which two?
Oklahoma is in the middle of spring practice right now, but the 2008 season will be put on the backburner for Tuesday as the Sooners host their pro day for all prospective NFL Draft selections to make on final impression on scouts.
Auburn needs a new quarterback and Kodi Burns was the logical choice to replace Brandon Cox as the Tigers starter with spring practice starting last week. But heading in, new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin wasn't about to give anyone an edge. Yet after a few practices, and one scrimmage over the weekend, it sounds like he's singing a different tune.
Don't overlook the NCAA's ruling that LSU DE Kirston Pittman can return for a sixth year of eligibility. For all the publicity and double teams that Glenn Dorsey received last season - which he rightfully deserved - because he was able to stay healthy Pittman created the most havoc for opposing offensive lines over the course of the Tigers 14 games last year and now he will anchor the LSU defense next season.
The speculation came to end Thursday when word arrived that Ryan Mallett had found his way to Arkansas from Michigan after one season in Ann Arbor. And with the good news, Razorback fans can dream about what will be when Mallett's eligible to play in 2009. And those should be some sweet dreams considering who Mallett will learn under.
Everyone knows the SEC is the best conference in football. And in the middle of its 75th anniversary, the league celebrated another BCS Championship with LSU's victory Monday, putting the finishing touches on what could go down as the SEC's most successful year ever - just look at the stats the conference rolled out at the end of the week.
Georgia president Michael Adams, and chairman of the NCAA executive committee, has been outspoken this week about the need for a playoff in college football. In Adams' eyes, the NCAA should create an eight team playoff, seed the teams into four bowl games and eventually crown its first football champion in the organization's history. And as he goes about trumping for big change, he's picked up one prominent supporter in Athens.
Few, if any, would have picked Ohio State to be playing for the BCS Championship after losing so much talent from last year's national runner-up squad. But lo and behold the Buckeyes, thanks to some good fortune, find themselves playing in their third BCS Championship Game in six years. And with the memory of their drubbing at the hands of Florida still fresh on so many minds, Ohio State faces an SEC team with speed, power and strength - just like the Gators. So with that in mind how does Ohio State matchup with LSU and will the Buckeyes prove their many doubters wrong this time out?
Illinois has been in this situation before. Big underdog, in an environment that's going to be anything but friendly, against one the best defenses in the nation. And the last time Illinois found itself in a game like Tuesday's Rose Bowl they did the unthinkable.
One team's happy to be bowling after a 2-10 2006 campaign. The other team, well, let's just say a trip to Shreveport isn't going to cut it year in and year out at Alabama.
There's a first time for everything. And for FAU, tonight is their first bowl game as the Owls, led by Howard Schnellenberger, take on Memphis in the New Orleans Bowl, the second of our 32 postseason games. But just how magical will the Owls first taste of the postseason be?
Les Miles is a gambling man and he proved that this year by having his Tigers go for it on fourth down 15 times, almost always with the game hanging in the balance. So where did he get the impetus to go for it so often? Maybe it was high school.
It's been just about two weeks since the pairings for the BCS bowls were announced and the sting that Georgia felt, having been left out of the BCS Championship game, is long gone.
As the nuts in Arkansas felt so inclined they got a hold of Bobby Petrino's contract the he just barely finished signing a couple of days ago. And the contract has a few interesting provisions.
Just when you think the "Les Miles to Michigan" talk is a thing of the past the LSU coach issues a statement Tuesday declaring that the rumors about supposed conversations with his alma mater are nothing to get all hot and bothered about.
Back in the summer I tried predicting - as accurately as possible, not just a bunch of stabs in the dark - the matchups in each of the 32 bowl games. So now that we know who's playing who, I figured I'd look back and see if I got any even half right. The results, I have to say, are pretty. Pretty pathetic.
Few things in life are easy. And predicting, analyzing and understanding college football is not one of those things because Saturday night we saw more of the unexpected and more of the chaos that has come to exemplify the 2007 season.
The coaching carousel seems to have slowed down as the week comes to a close with no one getting the ax the past few days. But there's been plenty of other activity around the country with coaches contemplating moves to other jobs and there's one in particular that should really take a hard look at what the future may hold.
Tim Tebow is likely your 2007 Heisman Trophy winner, but after what we saw from Chase Daniel Saturday night, I'm sure some people are going to give the Missouri quarterback more than a second thought after what they saw out of the junior.
So I guess this makes Les Miles' decision to potentially become the next head coach at Michigan a little easier considering he doesn't have to worry about missing out on his team playing for the national championship.
Lose your quarterback and you're going to lose. It was as simple as that for two teams this extended three day football weekend after watching No. 2 Oregon fall on the road Thursday night and then watching No. 3 Oklahoma follow suit Saturday.
Is this going to be Lloyd Carr's final game on the sidelines of the Big House? That's the big question on everyone's mind entering Saturday's Michigan-Ohio State meeting with the Big Ten title up for grabs in college football's premier rivalry.
Think you never have enough time in the week to get what you need to done? Welcome to the world of a college football head coach. Mandated by the NCAA, coaches have exactly 20 hours each week with their team to prepare for Saturday's opponent - including the game - and for all it's a rule they've adjusted to, but a rule many wouldn't mind seeing tweaked.
Tim Tebow's seven touchdown performance last week brought him back into the spotlight that is the ever changing 2007 Heisman Trophy race. Throwing for two scores, and rushing for five more in the Gators dismantling of South Carolina, Tebow continues to carry the Florida offense. And continue his chase for history.
So where do we find ourselves after another highly ranked team - in Saturday's case No. 1 Ohio State - lost to an unranked team for what seems like the 50th time this season? We find ourselves with a drastically altered BCS standings, one that will be void of the Buckeyes as national title contenders after Illinois ran roughshod over the Ohio State defense when they are released later Sunday.
Kansas is 9-0 for the first time since 1908 and has their sights set on not only a BCS bowl, but the national championship game if they win their remaining four games and things break right. But the first step toward the improbable starts Saturday in Stillwater where the Jayhawks take on a dangerous Oklahoma State team. Is this where it comes crashing down for Kansas? Possibly, but most especially if they play defense like they did last week against Nebraska.
Rules changes have become the norm in college football, most especially those involving tweaks to the clock the past few years. So after the NCAA's attempts to speed up the game last season were met with dismay and disgust from many of the nation's coaches, the NCAA changed the rules again this past off-season in an effort to drive down the times of these marathon-like games. But after 10 weeks it looks like it's time for the to go back to the drawing board.
So who's the best defensive back in the country? According to the people at the Jim Thorpe Association, there are 12 of them right now. But that number's about to change.
Apparently there's something bad about being No. 2 this year and we saw the second ranked team in the nation go down yet again Saturday, severely shaking up the national title picture.
We got a week off from the wild and shocking upsets, but if we came away with anything from this weekend it's that we have ourselves a legit No. 1 team in the nation.
Anyone remember the last time USC was an underdog in a Pac-10 game? Try seven years ago in their regular season finale of Pete Caroll's inaugural season in L.A. Well that 45-game streak comes to end Saturday when the Trojans - three point underdogs - head north to Eugene where high-powered Oregon awaits in a BCS make or break game for both squads.
Another week, another set of upsets. And we had more than a few in the Top 10 again. We saw No. 6 South Carolina lose, along with No. 10 Cal and No. 8 Kentucky Saturday. But in all actuality, we only had two upsets because Kentucky's loss was not an upset.
If you're not running the spread these days, you're as old school as "Blue." But just because it's become the in vogue scheme doesn't mean it's necessarily here to stay, if you ask one of the coaches whose success has been so closely tied to the offense.
CBSSports.com came out with its College Football Halfway All-America Team this afternoon, and while the CBSSports.com staff did a pretty good job putting it together, here's a case for a few who maybe should have made the team over a few who did.
The Buckeyes and the Bulls are sitting pretty after the BCS standings were released Sunday and if you had those two teams pegged as your first week leaders in the controversial ranking system then there's only one place you belong: Vegas.
It's officially The Year of the Upset. We've had a few wacky weekends and just when you think things are about to return to normal, we have the top two teams in the nation lose on the same day for the first time since Sept. 21, 1996 and scramble up the polls yet again. Just in time, of course, for Sunday's season premiere of the BCS rankings.
For a while there it was looking like Florida was right back in the thick of things. Leading the No. 1 Tigers on the road, Florida was only a matter of minutes from leaving Baton Rouge with a gigantic win and jumping right back into the national championship picture. But LSU would have none of it.
Urban Meyer remembers his first loss as Florida head coach quite well. It happened two years ago to the same team his Gators face Saturday - LSU - and it was game that left Meyer humbled unlike any before.
It may not be the marquee matchup in the SEC this weekend, but Thursday night's game between No. 8 Kentucky and No. 11 South Carolina is just as important as the one that kicks off Saturday night in Baton Rouge.
Just two measly points separate LSU and USC in the newest AP Poll, but the difference between the Tigers and Trojans five weeks into the season is much greater.
If you saw this weekend coming, a weekend in which half of the Top 10 lost, then you made yourself quite a bit of money because the odds against it happening anytime soon are slim to none.
He was the No. 1 player in New York coming out of high school in the Syracuse area back in 2003, but little did Joe Paterno know the kind of player Mike Hart would turn out to be at Michigan.
So does anyone have any doubts about USC, most especially the Trojans running game, after their performance in Lincoln Saturday night? Tough to find a whole lot that's wrong with Pete Carroll's squad after the Trojans let everyone know they don't plan on handing over their No. 1 ranking anytime soon.
Swagger is something that's been missing from the Washington sidelines for some years now as the once mighty Huskies have fallen on hard times. But the tide seems to be turning in Ty Willingham's third season in Seattle with the Huskies off to a 2-0 start.
Oklahoma and Miami haven't played each other in 20 years, but that all changes Saturday when two of the top programs in college football, who just happen to be in very different positions this season, meet in Norman.
Week 1 of the college football season is usually forgettable thanks to all the blowouts and otherwise boring games that flood the schedule. This year, however, it was anything but thanks to one team from Boone, N.C. that pulled off an upset for the ages.
Jeff Jagodzinski certainly isn't easing into his head coaching career at Boston College and Philip Fulmer has a doozy of game to kick off year No. 16 at Tennessee.
Despite it's undisputed status as the premiere conference in the country, the SEC hasn't been immune to criticism, especially when talk has turned to the league's non-conference schedule.
A few weeks after coaches around the country submitted their ballots for their own Preseason Top 25, it was the writers' turn as the Associated Press released its Preseason Top 25 poll Saturday and there's practically no difference between them.
Let Les Miles speak his mind and apparently he's going to be pretty candid, especially when the topic of conversation turns to the best team in the nation, USC, and its Pac-10 counterparts.
The highly touted, highly recruited, much ballyhooed lightening rod for controversy, and, most importantly, former Arkansas quarterback Mitch Mustain is now officially a USC Trojan. So now that his highly publicized divorce with the Razorbacks and the Houston Nutt regime is over and done with, it's time to get to the important question at hand? Will he actually play in L.A.?
The Atlanta Sports Council has broached the idea of having Duke play its game against Alabama in 2010 in the Georgia Dome. The experience of playing in an NFL stadium is one thing, but why would the Blue Devils even think about losing a home game against the Crimson Tide when they need all the support they can get?
Perhaps the biggest race in college football these days doesn't involve a fight for a division title, a battle for some recruit or sprint to raise more funds. The biggest race may very well be the race between cities bidding to host future ACC Championship Games and it seems like a new entrant is emerging every week.
There's been some discussion between Ole Miss and Texas about the possibly entering into a home-and-home series. Officials from both schools reportedly have been in negotiations for the two game set that would take place in 2012 and 13. The two haven't played since 1966 and Texas owns the all-time series lead with a 5-1 record.
LEXINGTON, Ky. - Kentucky's defense wasn't its strong suit during last year's 8-5 season. In the SEC, they were last in total defense, last in rushing defense and last in passing defense. And coach Rich Brooks knows the Wildcats have to be better if they want to improve on their 2006 mark this fall.
Florida president Bernie Machen has been outspoken recently about the need for some kind of postseason playoff in college football and you can count his football coach among his backers.
To see Jeff Samardzija go the route of professional baseball - over professional football - shouldn’t have come as a total shock. For the sake of health and money, he made a smart, smart decision to go with a career in baseballl. The Cubs signed the former Notre Dame wide receiver for $10 millions over 5 seasons Friday, putting an end to his football career that was destine for the NFL.
The Red Zone is coming live from the CSTV Green Room at Chelsea Piers where we're taking in the game with Crystal Ball's Brian Curtis, Brian Jones and Trev Alberts. Already the comments are flying left and right and talk has veered from football to politics with pot shots at John McCain.
NEW ORLEANS - It was a decidedly pro-LSU crowd in the Superdome. Even before kickoff, the Tigers fans were deafening with their chants and boos, especially when the Irish came onto the field to warmup. Entire sections of the stadium were filled with purple and yellow with some spare Notre Dame. The Superdome was packed to capacity with an announced crowd of 77, 781, the fourth largest crowd for the Sugar Bowl since 1984.
NEW ORLEANS - The news of Nick Saban's hiring at Alabama isn't sitting very well with the LSU fans here in the city for tonight's Sugar Bowl. From disappointed to surprised to shocked, the emotions were different but not the universal feeling of "anywhere but Alabama."
Surprising how Wisconsin got it done today. If you have said that Wisconsin was going to have so much trouble rushing the ball in the first half, yet still have a 10 point lead at the beginning of the third quarter, you would have never believed it. P.J. Hill and the rest of the running game did absolutely nothing all day and John Stocco had a little trouble taking care of the ball. But he threw a couple of TDs and the team persevered. The defense played very well, as usual, to hold on at the end.
All tied at the half between Tennessee and Penn State in the Outback Bowl. Anthony Morelli is throwing the ball a lot and that’s always fun to see. And how about that stiff arm from Tennessee’s LaMarcus Coker on that touchdown run?
As far as suspense goes, this year’s Heisman Trophy race has been about as dull as a butter knife. The quarterback of the No. 1 team in the nation, who performed his best in the biggest games, is on the verge of collecting one of the most prestigious individual honors in all of sports. We've basically seen this coming since September.
Sometimes you leave a movie theater feeling high. Sometimes you leave a move theater feeling low. And sometimes you leave it emotionally drained, but smiling as you make your way to the exit. That was the case for me Thursday evening after I had the chance to catch a special screening of Warner Bros. new release, “We Are Marshall,” in Midtown Manhattan.
To say Lloyd Carr was perturbed Sunday night would be putting it lightly. Relegated to the Rose Bowl after Florida jumped his Michigan team in the final BCS standings, Carr was as ornery as ever with the media. Peppered with questions about the fallout of Sunday’s BCS rankings, Carr was brief with his answers and refused to say how he really felt.
Charlie Weis isn’t concerned so much about Notre Dame’s bowl destination. Nor should he be. His team is going to wind up in the Sugar Bowl despite not deserving the honor of playing in a BCS bowl.
There was a reason why USC came in as an 8.5 point favorite Saturday. And they showed it, in a big way, against the Irish. Simply put: USC showed that it's in a different class than Notre Dame, one that's right next to a team from Columbus, Ohio.
Chris Leak finally played well in a big spot this season. Going 7-for-8 on that game deciding drive was impressive. Leak did a great job with Dallas Baker on the drive, calling an audible at the line that resulted in a 25-yard completion to Baker and then hooked up with him for a touchdown in the back corner of the endzone that Baker made a nice adjustment to catch.
I agree wholeheartedly with Urban Meyer. There shouldn’t be a rematch between Ohio State and Michigan. We should see some other team in there, whether it winds up being USC, Notre Dame or Meyer’s own Gators.
So the question now is are we going to get a rematch? There’s no doubt that Ohio State and Michigan played an amazing game Saturday, one that’s going to go down as a classic in the series and will be talked about for the rest of the year. But if you ask me, the prospects of seeing a rematch are looking ever more probable. The answer, however, we should get to rematch question is no.
If there’s one thing you’re going to come away from yesterday’s Rutgers-Louisville game is that the Scarlet Knights have one heck of a defense. Their speed and tenacity at pressuring Brian Brohm was the reason Rutgers earned the biggest win in school history.
So Michigan and Ohio State got their scares today against two unlikely opponents. I guess what we saw was a case of Michigan and Ohio State simply overlooking their opponents. Troy Smith didn’t have a huge day and the Wolverines basically won thanks to their defense making the late stop that it did.
Just when you thought it would be JaMarcus Russell who would cost the Tigers their game against Tennessee (and he nearly did), the enigmatic QB was the catalyst for LSU’s 4th quarter comeback and its big road win over the Vols.
Wisconsin has basically assured itself of a third place finish in the Big Ten with its win over Penn State today as the Badgers quietly continue to have a very successful season that no one is paying attention to. They got it done, thanks to P.J. Hill who ran for 148 yards and toughing it out after not playing much last weekend against Illinois.
For those who subscribe to the idea that SEC offenses are struggling this year, there’s a perfectly good explanation. It’s those stacked defenses and a glut of new, relatively inexperienced QBs manning the posts at several schools, that’s bringing the conference’s offensive numbers down.
It was a great game to watch and dramatic as can be, but we shouldn’t be overly surprised that USC finally lost a game. Let’s face it. They’ve been playing with fire these last few weeks, just waiting to get burned. Saturday, they got burned.
Mr. Williams Has Landed (In The Competitive Western State Conference)
Willie Williams has apparently surfaced in California, playing for West Los Angeles Community College. In the enigmatic linebackers first game of the season (he sat out the team’s first five games of the year because he wasn’t eligible academically) he had a blocked punt,13 tackles and two sacks as his team lost 28-0.
It was a pretty wild Saturday that saw some history, another incredible comeback and a plethora of performances that helped sort out the national picture a little more. Here’s what I think we’ve learned and what I come away from Saturday with. . .
After their tough loss to Auburn last week, the bye week is coming at a pretty good time for Florida and coach Urban Meyer. The Gators, owners of arguably the nation’s toughest schedule, just got down with a gauntlet of a run through SEC play that featured five straight games against Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, LSU and the Tigers.
I don’t think I could have been more wrong about two of the biggest games Saturday. I thought we’d see USC’s A game against ASU and I expected Florida to beat on Auburn. It didn't exactly pan out that way.
Can we officially say that Auburn has been exposed? Florida is doing a number on the Tigers defense, running through Auburn because the Tigers have missed tackle after tackle. Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville says his defense is confused. I guess it thinks its good or something.
Another weekend full of upsets? It could be shaping up that way. Several early afternoon games have given us some scares and close calls. And we’ve gotten a few nice upsets as well.
A lot has been made over the past several weeks about USC and its seeming lack of domination and calls from many that the Trojans should be dropped in the polls.
Despite some closer than expected victories over the likes of Washington State and Washington, USC has hung steady at No. 3 in the AP poll since Week 4.
A big day of college football and there’s a lot to take it. But there are certainly a number of things that I think we learned today and a lot of it comes out of the SEC.
Georgia is not anywhere close to a Top 10 team. Despite scoring as many points as they did against Tennessee in their loss, they still have questions on offense and apparently their defense doesn’t stand up much against some actual competition.
JaMarcus Russell has to be the focal point for LSU to pull off this win at The Swamp. But Russell has a fumbled a snap right at the goal line and an interception, accounting for two of the Tigers three early turnovers. These mistakes are hurting LSU in a game they easily could have been leading at halftime. Just too many penalties and too many mistakes.
So Wake Forest and Auburn are no longer undefeated after suffering losses earlier this afternoon. Is it shaping up to be one of those days? I think so.
JaMarcus Russell is one of the hottest quarterbacks in the country right now after his performance against Mississippi State last week. And heading into LSU’s critical matchup against Florida, Russell figures to be the key to the Tigers ultimate success. But the question on many people’s minds is whether the junior can get the job done?
Should we now look forward to a winner take all, Armageddon-esque game between Michigan and Ohio State Nov. 18? I think so. With Ohio State’s easy schedule from here on out. Michigan’s slate is more than manageable until the season finale meeting. So the only teams that are going to defeat Ohio State and Michigan is Ohio State and Michigan. It only seems inevitable - considering the way these two teams are playing - that the winner is going to play for the national championship. Consider:
There was no official moniker for this Saturday, but Survival Saturday was more than fitting. I think it’s safe to say that we saw that there really isn’t an overly dominant team out there right now.
The top unbeaten teams - Ohio State, USC, Michigan, Florida and Auburn - didn’t have particularly inspiring performances today. And some other top tier teams hung on in their respective games after facing some stiff competition from their opponents early on like Virginia Tech, and most notably, Georgia. But they all survived, and national championship and BCS berth hopes are still intact for nearly all who entered the weekend with big time postseason hopes.
Well, was that 37-yard TD from Troy Smith to Brian Robiskie a Heisman-caliber moment, or what? That was some play Smith made – with his feet – during an otherwise less than stellar performance out of the Buckeyes offense. It was a weird game.
Talk about dodging a bullet. Georgia barely beats Colorado. Colorado, the worst team in the Big 12. Colorado, the team that dropped its opener to Montana State. This from one of the country's best defensive teams, but it certainly wasn't their fault.
It’s no surprise that the best conference in the country is also home to the best defenses in the country. The SEC has four teams in the AP Top 10 and the same four teams among of the top 21 defenses in the nation.
Where to start on a Saturday like this, I’m not sure. There was measuring stick game after measuring stick game all over the country and several teams rose to the occasion in the seven games that featured ranked teams against each other.
It should be pretty clear now who the No. 1 team in the nation is. Ohio State, behind quarterback Troy Smith, showed the country they are the best team with a 24-7 win over the Longhorns on the road and I think it's safe to say we learned some things from this game.
The rules changes went over without any major gripping or complaining from the majority of Big East coaches Monday. No one felt the rules were a hindrance or a pain, but some noticed more of a difference than others.
Well, a win’s a win and that’s what the Irish got Saturday. It wasn’t pretty and the offense wasn’t firing on all cylinders, but Charlie Weis’ squad got the job done. They won and survived, lived to face Penn State next without a loss hanging over them and still one of the favorites to make it to the national championship game. For that, they should be satisfied. For other reasons, there should be concern.
Since the season is officially here, I figured it was time to do what everyone else around the country has done: make the obligatory predictions. This way, I’m on the record and I’ll be able to look back in amazement about how poorly - or precisely - I predicted things would pan out.
And so the 2006 SEC Media Days here in Birmingham, Alabama have come to and end and SEC fans, players, and coaches can look forward to the start of practices next week.
As we wrap up the 2006 SEC Media Days, Jean Neuberger and I have comprised a list of our own awards for some of the performances over this three-day event. Enjoy!
Mississippi State head coach Slyvester Croom and Florida coach Urban Meyer shared much different opinions on the issue of bringing back athletic dorms with the media.
Florida head coach Urban Meyer discussed the relationship between senior quarterback Chris Leak and Tim Tebow during part of his address to the media. "There's a very good relationship between Chris and Tim. Tim has a great advantage because he's learning from Chris Leak," Meyer said, adding that when Leak didn't have that luxury when he came into the program.
Mississippi State quarterback Michael Henig steps into the starting role this season. Only a sophomore, Henig has a very young look about him, but when speaking to reporters, Henig had a very mature and confident tone about him. When asked about his small size - Henig is just 6-0 and 185 pounds - the sophomore quarterback brushed away any doubts about his size.
When Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville was asked to reflect on his thoughts about two years ago when the Tigers were shut out of the national title game despite a perfect season, Tuberville said he felt his Tigers deserved a spot in that game.
LSU head coach Les Miles is up at the podium right now and in his opening remarks, the second-year head coach mentioned how the question most posed to him has been who he's starting at quarterback this season. Well, Miles wasted no time answering that question.
The SEC has released the media's predictions for the SEC standings this season, as well as the media's pick to win the SEC championship. Here is the predicted order of finish and the media's pick to win the SEC:
The third and final day of the SEC media days is underway, as Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville is up at the podium right now - the first of four coaches to speak today. Besides the Tigers, LSU, Mississippi State, and Florida are here today to talk to the media at the Wynfrey hotel in Birmingham.
While my colleague Jean Neuberger was in the television room here, he came across Ole Miss head coach Ed Orgeron discussing retention among SEC coaches over the past year.
Don't tell Arkansas wide receiver Marcus Monk anything about taking easy college classes such as Matt Leinart's ballroom dancing course. While Leinart may have overwhelmed Monk and the Hogs on the football field last season, Monk has outclassed Leinart in the world of academia.
South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier spoke to the media on Thursday. Spurrier said his biggest concern going into this season is stopping the run, as his Gamecocks were near the bottom last year in run defense. Spurrier also said how he feels the commitement level throughout the team is not good enough, adding that five to seven guys on the team don't understand what it takes to be a winner. Spurrier is heading into his second season at the helm for the Gamecocks.
South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier was the last of the coaches to speak at today's media day and he got the crowd in the room to break out into laughter several times. In what at times seemed like a mix between a press conference and a stand-up comedy routine, here is a sampling of some of Spurrier's humor when he spoke with the media:
Arkansas linebacker Sam Olajubutu told the group of reporters assembled around him to "buy their tickets" for the Razorbacks' first game of the season against USC in a rematch from last year's blowout loss.
Arkansas coach Houston Nutt spoke about new offensive coordinator Guz Malzahn, saying he was going to "turn him loose," as far as running the Razorback offense goes.
Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer is not taking anything for granted and knows that just because they are Tennessee doesn't mean that it'll be a piece a cake to turn it around and return to their old form after a 5-6 record last season.
Tennessee offensive tackle Arron Sears talked about the dissapointment of last season, saying "it was a sick feeling to not be in a bowl game last year. That doesn't happen very often at Tennessee."
Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer is talking to the media right now and just got finished talking about how different it felt not qualifying for a bowl game last season - the first time in 18 years since the Vols did not make a bowl game.
In his address to the media, SEC Coordinator of Football Officials Rogers Redding went over some of the rule changes taking effect this upcoming season.
Hello and good morning from Day Two of the SEC Media Days from here in the Wynfrey Hotel in Brimingham, AL where my tag team partner Jean Neuberger and I will have all the news and action covered from start to finish.
While the coaches today did express concerns over player injuries or having to cut down practice time or not work the players quite as hard because of the new 12 game schedule, don't tell that to Kentucky's Keenan Burton. The junior wideout is thrilled to just have the opportunity to play another game.
Kentucky head coach Rich Brooks - the final of the SEC coaches to speak today - began his address with a bit of humor, saying he was glad to be back this year, and that he hopes to be back again here next year. Meanwhile, Brooks talked about college baseball as a means to draw inspiration and comparison for his team as the Wildcats look to climb the ladder in the stacked SEC Conference.
Georgia head coach Mark Richt took to the podium after Vanderbil, and shared quite a different outlook than Vanderbilt's Bobby Johnson on the NCAA rule allowing players who have graduated but have eligibiility remaining to transfer to another school and be able to play immediately.
In what has been a widely debated rule in college football recently, Vanderbilt's Bobby Johnson has no problem with the rule that allows athletes to transfer to another school and be able to play immediately as long as they are doing graduate work. And why wouldn't he be? One of his own quarterbacks has done exactly just that.
Vanderbilt head coach Bobby Johnson is up at the podium now and was just talking about former starting QB Jay Cutler and how much he'll be missed. And with the career that Cutler put together at Vandy, who can blame him?
Day One of SEC Media Day is well under way from the Wynfrey Hotel here in Birmingham, Alabama. Tons of media are here right now, and they just saw Alabama head coach Mike Shula wrap up his address to the media a few short moments ago. Shula should feel right at home here, as not only are we in the state of Alabama, but there is a "Shula's Restaurant" right downstairs in this very hotel.
