FanNation - The Republic of Sport

I love summers in western ny...when it isn't raining that is.  But when the weather is crap (or if i have a sunburn i could cook bacon on like i do now) I try to pretend to care about baseball, tennis, golf, and think about fall and the start of the best sport in the world...college football.  So like last year, I'm going to plan out every weekend from september until december with the games you MUST SEE first...the games that seem like they should be close and that have possible BCS implications.  I'll also give you the games you SHOULD SEE being big college football fans and the games that might look good but DON'T BOTHER.  The 1st week starts off with a bang.  It looks so good on paper that I can see it being billed as one of the best pre-conference saturdays ever.  It might be that good.

 MUST SEE

Oregon at Boise State     9:15     ESPN     Thurs Sept. 3rd

Boise State has been dominant in the last 10 years especially in home games against BCS oppenents.  Oregon finished strong last year with a bowl win against a well respected Ok State and returns its awesome backfield.  Boise State lost a couple important lineman to injury and has to replace most of its WR core.  Despite this most of the pundits have Boise winning 11 games and making another BCS push.  For ths to happen, beating a well matched Oregon team for respect is necessary since the WAC won't offer much quality again this year.  A big Oregon win might set up the stage for an actual contender to USC's Pac10 dominance.       

Georgia at Oklahoma St.     2:30    ABC     Sat Sept. 5th

This is one of the huge non-conference matchups of the 2009 season.  Georgia will appear on this blog for their non-conference schedule again with maybe the toughest non-conference schedule in the country.  They loose their all-world backfield but replace it with a stable of solid tailbacks and veteran qb Joe Cox.  The D will be great and the O-line has as much talent as any in the country although they have some summer injuries.  Ok State returns Robinson at QB, Hunter at RB, and Bryant at WR and there won't be another oppurtunity for a banner year from OK State in the near future.  A potential great season last year was derailed by playing in the toughest division in recent memory and its up to the Cowboys to have a banner year in a similarly loaded Big 12 South. 

Alabama vs. Virginia Tech (Atlanta)     7:00    ABC    Sat Sept. 5th

If possible, both these teams seem under the radar this year.  Last year, both teams were pointing to 2009 as the season when everything came together, and both teams were top 10 BCS teams last year.  Enough said.  Look for the winner here to jump into  Florida-Oklahoma-Texas territory as a national title contender. 

SHOULD SEE

South Carolina at NC STATE     6.00     ESPN     Thurs Sept. 3rd

If this game was at any other time I wouldn't mention it in the blog.  However this is the first game of the season and a great appetizer for the Boise-Oregon matchup later on.  Both teams have some holes and are expected to finish somewhere in the middle section of their conferences.  One note of interest...this is Spurrior's 5th season at (the original) USC and there are no more excuses for Old Ball Coach with a team full with his recruits.  Any game pitting similary projected teams in an ACC v SEC matchup is important for the ACC to prove its depth in the region. 

Illinois vs. Missouri     2:30     ESPN     Sat Sept. 5th

This was an underrated matchup of BCS teams that no one expected 2 years ago.  Last year this was an overhyped matchup of teams who both were solid but were not as good as expected.  This year both teams will have lower expectations but this is the game to show both parts of this previously pathetic riviarly are here to stay.  Illinois returns duel threat QB Juice Williams and a ton of talent including WR Benn, while Missouri loses most of its offensive skill players including former Heisman finalist Chase Daniels. Both teams have recruiting well over the last couple years with super-recruiter Ron Zook heading the charge for Illinois and the Chase Daniel era of success paying dividents for Missouri.  This is a huge rivalry game to continue the momentum for both teams trying not slide back to their b-ball school roots.   

Maryland at Cal    ESPN    10:00     Sat Sept. 5th

Cal for not the first time this decade seems loaded with talent to contend for the BCS.  Like Cal, Maryland had a Jeckle and Hyde season last year beating Cal amongst some awful losses.  If Cal wants to show its team is as talented as its players, it gets revenge against Maryland in convincing fashion. 

 DON'T BOTHER

Navy at Ohio State     9:00 AM     ESPN2     Sat Sept. 5th

I love to watch our country's armed services do well.  Ohio State loses a slew of defensive stars and heading into the first game of the season you might think the triple option Navy attack might knock them back on their heels.  Especially with an OSU v USC battle next week on the Buckeye's mind.  However, Navy looses the 2 tailbacks that made their attack one capable of putting up some serious yards against any team not prepared for it.  Navy will be replacing their stars on offense and I don't see how they can overcome the talent difference to make this a game. 

Nevada at Notre Dame     2:30     NBC     Sat Sept. 5th

I love to see Notre Dame lose to anyone.  But as much as sportswriters see Nevada as a WAC contender, they were the worst in the country in pass defense last year.  Terrible secondary and weak pass rush = Jimmy Clausen having a huge confidence building blowout. 

Western Michigan at Michigan     2:30     ESPN2     Sat Sept. 5th

I don't want it to look like I'm hating on Michigan, but his matchup just doesn't matter.  Western Michigan has been good enough to beat Illinois last year and Iowa the year before but in the grand scheme of college football it doesn't really matter if they beat the Wolverines this year.  Sure I would be happy if Michigan lost to all of the               *cardinal direction*-michigan teams but it doesn't matter enough to merit watching with the other games on. 

BYU vs Oklahoma (Alrington)     6:00     ESPN     Sat Sept. 5th

BYU has been one of the top 5 non-BCS teams in recent history.  Oklahoma is a top 5 team this year and has been one of the top 5 teams in recent history.  BYU had terrible secondary problems last year which doesn't bode well for keeping the Sooners under 5 touchdowns.  This is blowout city.