Home of the Halfass Heisman

Bumps in the Road for the Undefeated Teams

JDawg1447 — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:15:47 GMT

    We are now into November and there are currently seven teams in FBS that are still undefeated. As most people would assume, there will definately not be seven undefeated teams come January. So, where's the best chance for each of these seven teams to slip up? Here's what I think. (It's important to note that this is regular season only)

#1 Florida (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: November 14th at South Carolina Why It's the Best Chance: Let's face it, it pretty much looks like the rest of the Gators schedule prior to the SEC Championship is a walk in the park, playing the likes of Vanderbilt and Florida International. However, one can never underestimate the coaching of Steve Spurrier, especially at home. South Carolina is 6-3 this year, including an upset 16-10 victory over then-#4 Ole Miss. Will It Happen?: No. The Gators are too good to be beat by this Gamecocks team. I think it might be closer than most Florida fans will like, but in the end the Gators leave Columbia with a W.

#2 Texas (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: November 21st vs Kansas Why It's the Best Chance: Much like Florida, Texas has a cupcake of a schedule to end the year. They play UCF, a Robert Griffin-less Baylor team, and then a Texas A&M team that got beat 19-47 against Arkansas to end the year. It's all up to the Kansas Jayhawks to ruin Texas's undefeated dreams. Things have been going downhill for Kansas lately, dropping three in a row after starting the year 5-0. This game all depends on the play of Kansas QB Todd Reesing, who's starting job seems to be in serious question lately. Will It Happen?: Absolutely Not. In two of the three games Kansas has lost, they've been manhandled by less-than-stellar teams (13-35 loss to Oklahoma, 21-42 loss to Texas Tech). Just imagine how Kansas would fair against a great team. I wouldn't be surprised if Texas put up 50 on the Jayhawks' defense.

#3 Alabama (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: This weekend vs #9 LSU. Why It's the Best Chance: The Crimson Tide's last game was against a inferior Tennessee team that without the lackluster kicking of Daniel Lincoln would have pulled off a huge upset. LSU has played with a fire ever since the 3-13 loss to Florida, throttling the two opponents they have faced 73-10. Alabama's offense has been in serious question as of late, as QB Greg McElroy has been less than stellar and Heisman favorite Mark Ingram put up only 99 yards against Tennessee. Alabama must make corrections on the offensive side of the ball to survive the Tangle with the Tigers. Will It Happen?: Yes. Prior to the season I predicted Bama to go 11-1, with their lone loss coming to LSU. Based on the play of both teams the last few weeks, I'm sticking with my prediction. I believe that this will be a defensive struggle, just like the Tennessee game for Alabama and the Florida game for LSU. When it's all said and done, I believe that the Tigers will have just enough offense to sneak out of Tuscaloosa with an upset. I say LSU by 3.

#4 Cincinnati (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: December 5th at #14 Pitt. Why It's the Best Chance: I can't help but admire the Bearcats underdog of a season. Returning only 1 defensive starter this season, I expected Cincinnati to struggle. Boy, was I wrong. The Bearcats have won all but one of their games by double digits (a 28-20 win over Fresno State). Coming down the line of the year, I see only two possible slipups for the Bearcats: November 13th vs West Virginia and December 5th at Pitt. I believe that they will find a way to slip by the Mountaineers. However, I'm not so sure about the Pitt game. Pittsburgh is currently 7-1 (not sufficiently ranked in my eyes) with their only loss coming from a 31-38 slip-up against a 3-5 N.C. State team. Still, Pittsburgh is undefeated in conference play. The way I see it, the final game of the regular season between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh will determine the Big East Champ. Will It Happen?: Yes. I see these teams basically being even, so I just have to go with my gut. I expected big things out of Pitt this year, and other than the N.C. State game they haven't dissappointed. Even though they may fall short of an undefeated season and a Big East Championship, I still tip my hat to Brian Kelly and the Cincinnati Bearcats.

#5 Boise State (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: November
27th vs Nevada Why It's the Best Chance: Boise State belongs to the WAC, or Weak **** Conference. There is nobody that has the caliber to beat the Broncos this year. Although the Broncos did beat an Oregon team that has since went undefeated, I believe they should not be BCS eligible. But that's beside the point. Nevada is a team that I felt could be a Darkhorse WAC title contender. After starting the season 0-3, the Wolf Pack have since won five in a row to give them a shot at going to 5 consecutive bowl games. Nevada has lost 9 straight in this series. Maybe they are due for some good luck. Will It Happen?: Heck No! Boise State will most likely beat Nevada by at least 17 points. Following a win against 3-6 New Mexico State, Boise State steps up to be the initial cause of the collapse of the BCS.

#6 TCU (8-0): Best Chance to Lose: November 14th vs #17 Utah. Why It's the Best Chance: TCU is in the exact same boat as Boise State. They really haven't proven to me that they deserve to make in into the BCS. Excluding the Utah game, TCU's remaining opponents have a combined 8-16 record. Not really a hassle for the #6 team in the entire nation. Although many thought that Utah would have a bit of a rebuilding year, Utah has amazingly only lost one game, whcih was to the #7 team in the nation by seven points. Will It Happen?: Not quite. I imagine this to be a back-and-forth game with the Horned Frogs prevailing in the end. If indeed TCU does beat Utah, expect them along with Boise State to be the only unbeaten schools that are not in a BCS conference.

#8 Iowa (9-0): Best Chance to Lose: November 14th at #15 Ohio State. Why It's the Best Chance: Let's face it: Iowa is without a doubt the luckiest unbeaten team. They started the season with a "Whoops" Moment, needing two back-to-back blocked field goals to beat Northern Iowa. Six of Iowa's 9 wins have been by 10 points or less, and they are coming off a win against a then-4-4 Indiana team that led 24-14 after three quarters with the help of 5 INTs thrown by Hawkeyes QB Ricky Stanzi. Iowa then went on a 28-0 run to win 42-24. Sure, Ohio State has been a huge disappointment this year (highlighted by an embarassing 18-26 loss to a Purdue Boilermakers team that lost to Northern Illinois), but Ohio State still has a 10 win-caliber team. With all of this in mind, this game will prove if Iowa is for real. Will It Happen?: Yes. Really, how can any team that had to make a huge comeback against a mediocre Indiana team expect to walk in the Horseshoe and expect to be able to beat the Buckeyes? If Iowa is to have any chance at all in this game, Stanzi has to play absoutely perfect. Even if he accomplishes this, Iowa will need their luck to keep up if they wish to stay undefeated after this one. If somehow Iowa does beat Ohio State, chances are good that the Hawkeyes will go undefeated.

Message to Mr. Spikes: "You'll Put His Eye Out!"

JDawg1447 — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:11:39 GMT

     In an odd turn of events, Florida LB Brandon Spikes has been suspended for the first half of the Vanderbilt game after video of Spikes trying to gouge Georgia RB Washaun Ealey was shown to Gators head coach Urban Meyer. The SEC issued a statement saying it reviewed and accepted the discipline handed down by Florida. The Florida vs Georgia game was full of questionable behavior, leading to five personal-foul penalties in the game--three against Georgia and two against Florida. At one point it was getting so rough that the referees brought Tim Tebow and Georgia LB Marcus Dowtin aside and warned them that things were getting out of hand. Although it might be due to my bias against any Florida Gator, I truly do not believe that the punishment is enough.

     Let's face it: With or without Spikes, Florida is going to run over Vanderbilt on Saturday. So why not suspend him the entire game? That way it makes Florida look as if they won't put up with "unsportsmanlike behavior", therefore making more people applaud Urban Meyer's coaching style. Plus consider this: Spikes has been injured the last two games. If you don't let him play Saturday against Vanderbilt, a 2-7 team that lost to Army this year, it gives Spikes another break as the Gators make yet another run for the National Championship.

     I can say I'm honestly disappointed in Tim Tebow's response to this whole situation. When asked about Spikes behavior, Tebow said "I don't think that we did anything in that game that they didn't do. "If you go back and look at it and study it, you can see it in the film, too. It was an intense game, both teams were very passionate about it. [Spikes is] very intense and very emotional and very passionate. I think that's what makes him part of the great player that he is because he brings that fire. People look at him and the defense wants to play for him. The offense, they want to score so it makes it easier on him." Really, Tim, Really? I expected a response of something like "I'm truly disappointed in the actions of Brandon. He's a great player and he knows better than that. It was a hard fought game, and he let his emotions get the best of him." Is this all because one of Georgia's players wouldn't help you up during the game? Sorry Tim, it's called a rivalry. Georgia players will almost never help a Gator out. Heck, I'm shocked he didn't start to help you up and then push you back down.

5 Coaches Who Need to Shape Up or Ship Out

JDawg1447 — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 02:11:08 GMT

We're now past the halfway point in this college football season, and everyone's pretty much figured out which teams are contenders and which are pretenders. At this point in time decisions about coaching changes are beginning to be made. Who's staying, who's going? Although it is often difficult to predict the future of most coaches by just looking at their record, here are 5 coaches that without a doubt must have a turnaround if they wish to be the leaders of their respected teams next year:

Dan Hawkins, Colorado - One of my most disappointed teams this season has been the Colorado Buffaloes. A team I predicted to go 10-2 and win the Big 12 North had already lost 2 games after playing non-BCS schools Colorado State and Toledo to start the season. Colorado is currently 2-4, giving Coach Hawkins a 15-28 record in 4 seasons in Boulder. This is a far cry from the 53-21 record he put up as the head coach at Boise State. Of course, the competition Boise State faces weekly doesn't compare to who Colorado must play. At this point in time it appears that Hawkins' head coaching career in a BCS school will end much like his predecessor at Boise State Dirk Koetter, who was fired after six seasons at Arizona State.

Ron Zook, Illinois - Illinois is a team, much like Colorado, that I expected was an upset away at an undefeated season. However, things have went horribly in Champaign, as QB Juice Williams has been unreliable, resulting in his benching last week. Illinois is 0-5 against FBS schools this year, and the only win they can brag about is a 45-17 win over Illinois State. Illinois has struggled against real competition, posting nine straight losses against FBS opponents. For the second time in his head coaching career, I say that Zook gets the hook.

Stan Parrish, Ball State - Last year's 12-2 season for the Ball State Cardinals seems so far away at this point in time. The Cardinals are currently 0-7, including a 17-23 loss to I-AA New Hampshire. I believe that the promotion of offensive coordinator Stan Parrish to head coach last year was a knee jerk reaction to head coach Brady Hoke leaving for San Diego State, and so far this year it looks like it's been a huge mistake. If the Cardinals go from 12-2 to 0-12, I strongly believe that Stan Parrish will not get another year as head coach.

Neil Callaway, UAB - Callaway, who was formerly the offensive coordinator at Georgia before taking over as the Blazers head coach, has basically taken UAB from being contenders to a team that basically win against all I-AA teams and win 2-3 conference games each year. By this time in his tenure, Callaway should have his players and his systems should be in full effect. However, it doesn't appear to be this way. The Blazers are currently 2-4, and I think it's highly possible they could finish 2-10. that would mean five straight losing seasons for UAB, and three under Callaway's lead. I never thought that any college football team would miss Watson Brown, but UAB definately is. If they really want to, I think they will have a chance to bring back the man that built their program this offseason.

Steve Kragthorpe, Louisville - Kragthorpe's tenure at Louisville has probably been the most surprising of any head coaching hire I can think of since I've started watching and blogging about college football. Kragthorpe, who turned a Tulsa team that had went 1-10 the year before he was hired into an 8-5 team and a team that would become yearly contenders in the C-USA, has done nothing but struggle as the Cardinals head coach. Prior to his arrival at Louisville, the Cardinals worst record since 1998 was 7-6. That's better than either of Kragthorpe's two full seasons as head coach here, and the way it looks it will still be better than this season's final record. Three losing seasons won't cut it, and I think Kragthorpe might be calling up the Buffalo Bills and asking for his old job as QB coach once the season is over.

It's Time to Set the Record Straight

JDawg1447 — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 22:11:59 GMT

       After 5 games in the 2009 season, the Georgia Bulldogs sit 3-2 and unranked for the first time since 2006. Both the offense and defense have been unreliable, as Georgia currently ranks 86th in total offense, 60th in points scored, 64th in total defense, and 85th in points. These averages put Georgia near the bottom of the SEC, and many believe that the Tennessee game this weekend will make or break this season for the Dawgs. With a win, Georgia could go on a run and at least win 8 games. With a loss, Georgia might struggle down the stretch and could possibly be looking at not going to a bowl game for the first time since 1996. However, some see this as much more as just a season on the line. Some Dawg fans feel like that Mark Richt's time in Athens should be ended due to this season. In the word's of Lee Corso, NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND.

      If we fire Mark Richt after this year, I'm jumping off the Bulldog bandwagon. This is a man that took over a Georgia program that could not compete with rivals Tennessee, Auburn, Florida, and Georgia Tech year after year. Fast forward to 2009, and only Florida has had the edge on Richt's Bulldog teams over the years. How about final standings? During Jim Donnan's era, Georgia's highest final ranking was #8. Georgia has been ranked in the Top 10 at year's end 6 out of the 9 seasons that Mark Richt has been the head coach. Now let's talk about rebuilding years. During Donnan's tenure, the Dawgs had one losing season in four seasons. Then go back to Jim Donnan's predecessor, Ray Goff (not Goof). In Goff's 7 seasons as the Bulldogs head coach, Georgia finished .500 or worse 4 times and only appeared in 4 bowl games during that time. Now fast forward to Richt's tenure. The Bulldogs have went to a bowl game every year that Richt has been head coach, with their worst record being an 8-4 mark his first season.

   Every coach is bound to have a down year. For it to come this late in Richt's tenure is incredible in my eyes. This shows me that Coach Richt has dealt with losing starters efficiently and has built Georgia up to be National Contenders each season. If you'll look closely, I believe that in truth, their are only two people that could (not should, could) be blamed for Georgia's irregular start to the year.

   First off, let's put Senior QB Joe Cox on the spot. Sure, Cox has been a loyal Bulldog, waiting in the shadows when he could have transferred elsewhere. But once I think back to the Cox vs Stafford situation in 2006, I should have realized that Cox was not the man. I mean, after all, Cox had more time at Georgia, yet the coaches felt more comfortable with a freshman QB playing. If you'll watch Cox's eyes and body language prior to the start of a play, it's evident that he has already made up his mind on who he's throwing the ball to. If Cox struggles against Tennessee, I think that it wouldn't be a bad idea to try either Logan Gray or Aaron Murray at the QB position.

   Now the next man who's going to be my scapegoat. In 2005, Georgia Defensive Coordinator Brian VanGorder left Athens to become the Jacksonville Jaguars LB coach. To replace VanGorder, Coach Richt promoted DB Coach Willie Martinez to the DC position. Sure, much like Joe Cox, Martinez could have went elsewhere, but he turned the other schools who were offering him the head coaching position down to stay with Georgia. However, for the last 2 or 3 years his coaching has been questionable. I believe that Martinez really needs to change up his style of coaching in order to better Georgia's defense. You might think that I'm suggesting that Coach Martinez should be fired. I don't really believe this is even possible. Coach Richt seems like the type of guy who is loyal to his assistants. Unless somehow Richt is convinced he has no other choice, I believe that Willie Martinez will be the Defensive Coordinator at Georgia as long as he wants the job.

        As much as I respect Mark Richt and hope that he remains at Georgia, there is once aspect of his coaching style that HAS TO CHANGE: Penalties. Georgia is annually one of the most penalized teams in the nation. I've always wondered "Wow, I guess Richt's guys just aren't listening." I always imagined Richt the type of guy who wouldn't put up with stupid penalties and would refresh his players' thoughts on penalties by running them come Monday. According to CBS's analysts for NCAAF, this thought is wrong. During last weeks Georgia vs LSU game, it was said that Richt doesn't stress penalties because when he was at FSU, they were heavily penalized and they still found a way to win week after week. Are you serious? I bet that Georgia has lost about 7 or 8 winnable games over the years due to stupid penalties. YOU HAVE TO STRESS PENALTIES!!! That's what keeps good teams from becoming great teams. Uh oh. I might see where some of these riled Dawg fans are coming from now.

The 5 Most Surprising&Most Disappointing Teams (Week 1)

JDawg1447 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 22:04:04 GMT

   I came up with the idea for this blog over the weekend, and hopefully I will be able to make it a weekly (or at least bi-weekly) blog. Let's start with the 5 Most Surprising Teams from the first week of the college football season. (Note: these teams are in no particular order)

                                                          Most Surprising

Navy - I can guarantee you that nobody saw this coming. Navy, a 22 point underdog, was within a 2 point conversion of tying then-#6 Ohio State at the Horseshoe with 2:23 left in the game. Unfortunately, the 2 point conversion was intercepted, and any chance of a Navy upset was eliminated. It seems like almost no one around can stop this kind of option offense, and it's working well at both Navy and Georgia Tech. Many thought that Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo could not fill the shoes of Paul Johnson, the current GT head coach who went 45-29 in 6 seasons at Navy. However, the 2008 season and the start of the 2009 seems to have proven the skeptics wrong, and it is beginning to appear that Navy can compete with the top tier teams on a regular basis.

BYU - How could you not put the Cougars on this list? Let's summarize the game just in case someone missed it: BYU travels to Arlington to play #3 Oklahoma in the new Cowboys Stadium, Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford gets hurt at the end of the first half, and BYU decided to sneak away with a 14-13 upset victory. Sure, if Bradford were healthy, the outcome would have been different, but for some reason you would think that a team that was #3 in the preseason polls would somehow find a way to overcome it. I originally thought that BYU would suffer a slight dropoff this year, but after Saturday's win, I think they could potentially be BCS busters.

Notre Dame - Very rarely will you hear me commend Notre Dame, but this will be one of those times. Sure, they beat a mere WAC team in Nevada, but this WAC team has a lot of talent of offense. However, their pass defense is literally the worst in FBS. Still, the Fighting Irish didn't make any mistakes, did not turn the ball over, and it resulted in a 35-0 thrashing. Former Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz predicted that Notre Dame should go to the National Championship, and I believe that if they can sneak out of Ann Arbor next week with a win and can somehow find a way to upset USC they should be able to do so.

Syracuse - Going into the Syracuse-Minnesota game, I believed that the Orange would strugggle, just like the entire 2008 season, and that Minnesota would roll. This wasn't the case, as new QB Greg Paulus threw for 167 yards and one TD on 19 completions out of 31 attempts. This was enough to led the team into overtime. However, the Orange's drive ended when Paulus threw an INT (his only INT of the game) on Syracuse's only drive in OT. The result was Minnesota 23, Syracuse 20. Even though they have started the season off with a heartbreaking loss, I think that things are looking up for the Syracuse Orange.

Missouri - In the offseason, the Missouri Tigers lost QBs Chase Daniel and Chase Patton, plus WR Jeremy Maclin. Many (myself included) believed that this year would be a rebuilding season in Columbia. However, the Tigers took control against their Arch rivals, the Illinois Fighting Illini, early and never looked back. In a Big 12 North division that is less than stellar, don't be very shocked if they pull a few upsets and make their way to the Big 12 Championship game once again.

                                                  Most Disappointing

Rutgers - Some college football magazines predicted Rutgers to run the Big East and possibly be darkhorse National Title contenders. However, the Scarlet Knights did not like look like any type of horse; in fact, they made the writers who came up with the predictions mentioned above look like jackasses. The Scarlet Knights could not stop Cincinnati's offense. After a 15-47 thrashing, the QB battle has still not been settled. While Senior QB Domenic Natale struggled (8 for 12 with 3 INT's), Freshman QB Tom Savage looked impressive, going 15 for 23 with one TD. Although things look tough right now, I think that the Scarlet Knights will be competitive as soon as their QB situation is settled.

Georgia - Wow, where do I begin on this one? Georgia looked strong on their first drive, going 75 yards in 5:13 and capping it off with a 4 yard TD pass to Michael Moore. Then that was it for the Bulldogs' offense. To summarize the rest of Georgia's offensive drives for the rest of the game, QB Joe Cox fumbled, RB Richard Samuels fell down all by himself, wide open WR's dropped catchable passes, or punter Drew Butler was sent out to the field after 3 plays. It was believed that Georgia could be a surprise contender due to their offensive line finally being healthy, but that has already went out the window, as offensive tackle Trinton Sturdivant is out for the season for the second consecutive season with a knee injury. Hopefully Joe Cox's play in the Oklahoma State game was affected by the flu he had during the week; otherwise, it could be a long year for Dawg fans like me.

Iowa - Iowa needed 2 (count 'em, 2!) blocked field goals in the closing seconds to escape with a victory Saturday. "Well, that's no big deal, right?" WRONG. This wasn't a FBS team that they almost got beat by, this was Northern Iowa of the Missouri Valley Conference. If you come within 2 points of losing to a team like Northern Iowa, there's no way you can beat the likes of Ohio State or Penn State. This could possibly be the beginning of the end for Kirk Ferentz's tenure at Iowa.

Oklahoma - Like I mentioned in the BYU section, I understand that QB Sam Bradford's injury had a lot to do with the Sooners getting upset on Saturday. Still, a team that many felt had the capability to make another run at the National Championship should have at least a couple of players who should have been able to step up. Instead, Oklahoma faltered, and it lead their current losing streak to 2. Although this loss hurts Oklahoma's National Title chances, at least they are still very much alive in Big 12 play.

Illinois - I think that the Fighting Illini's situation is a lot like Rutgers in several ways. Like Rutgers, I believed that Illinois could shock people and would be one or two upsets away from an undefeated season. However, I knew it would all depend on the play of Senior QB Juice Williams. Well, so much for that. Williams was 18 for 28 for 179 yards with an interception in the 9-37 loss to Missouri. You may think that's not too bad, but consider this: Last year, Williams passed for 451 yards and five touchdowns and set an Edward Jones Dome record with 461 yards of total offense. The plans seem to have quickly changed for Illinois, and I wouldn't be surprised if we start hearing about http://www.fireronzook.com/ once again.

So, what did you think? Should this be a weekly blog, or should I just do different stuff each week? Any teams that I left off that I shouldn't have? Any teams you think I included that should not have been? Leave a comment expressing your thoughts.

Sun Belt & I-A Independents Predictions

JDawg1447 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:15:44 GMT

This is it: My final conference blog. This will feature the Sun Belt and the Div I-A Independents. There are two simple reasons why I decided to combine two possible blogs into one. #1: The Independents Blog would be so short that it's just a waste of time pulling up a different post.
#2: The Sun Belt blog would have so few views that most would forget about it.
Let's start with the Sun Belt:

1. Florida Atlantic 9-3 (7-1)

2. Troy 9-3 (7-1)

3. UL-Monroe 7-5 (6-2)

4. Arkansas State 6-6 (5-3)

5. Florida International 5-7 (4-4)

6. Middle Tennessee 4-8 (4-4)

7. North Texas 3-9 (2-6)

8. Louisiana 2-10 (1-7)

9. Western Kentucky 1-11 (0-8)

Now onto the Independents:

1. Notre Dame 10-2

2. Navy 6-6

3. Army 4-8

MAC Predictions

JDawg1447 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:05:54 GMT

Second-to-last blog concerning conference predictions. We now move to the MAC, which now seems to be the place where QBs are born. It seems more and more the Mid American Conference quarterbacks are given a shot an the NFL than ever before (Example: Ben Roethlisberger). Nate Davis seemed like he could sneak up and become a mid 2nd round draft, but it all fell apart and he wound up being taken in the 5th round by the 49ers (real good call in leaving college early, Nate). So, will we now add Central Michigan QB Dan LeFevour to this list? We'll just have to wait and see. Enough about that, here's my predictions:

MAC West

1. Central Michigan 8-4 (7-1)

2. Western Michigan 7-5 (6-2)

3. Toledo 5-7 (5-3)

4. Northern Illinois 5-7 (3-5)

5. Eastern Michigan 2-10 (2-6)

6. Ball State 5-7 (2-6)

MAC East

1. Akron 7-5 (6-2)

2. Buffalo 6-6 (5-3)

3. Ohio 7-5 (5-3)

4. Temple 7-5 (5-3)

5. Kent State 5-7 (4-4)

6. Bowling Green 2-10 (2-6)

7. Miami (OH) 0-12 (0-8)

MAC Championship Game: CMU def. Akron

WAC Predictions

JDawg1447 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:53:34 GMT

Many people wonder which non-BCS conference will ever have a shot of becoming BCS National Title Busters. Some look at the C-USA Mountain West year after year, and now some are looking at the MAC after the recent years that Central Michigan and Ball State put up. But without a doubt, there is one conference that has the best shot, and that is the WAC. So, will there be a BCS Buster out of the WAC this year? Let's check my predictions and find out:

1. Nevada 9-3 (7-1)

2. Boise State 12-1 (7-1)

3. Fresno State 7-5 (5-3)

4. Utah State 5-7 (4-4)

5. Louisiana Tech 6-6 (4-4)

6. San Jose State 6-6 (3-5)

7. Hawaii 4-9 (3-5)

8. Idaho 1-11 (1-7)

9. New Mexico State 2-11 (1-7)

ACC Predictions

JDawg1447 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:44:41 GMT

Now the 8th of 12 blogs full of my conference predictions, and now I feel stupid. I try to publish my blogs in order of conference strength (for example, the SEC was 1st; Independents will be last). Then I counted up how many conferences I had left, and I was missing one. The one I somehow skipped over? The ACC. Well, here it is now:

ACC Coastal Division

1. Virginia Tech 10-2 (7-1)

2. Miami (FL) 10-2 (7-1)

3. North Carolina 8-4 (4-4)

4. Georgia Tech 7-5 (3-5)

5. Virginia 4-8 (2-6)

6. Duke 3-9 (1-7)

ACC Atlantic Division

1. Clemson 9-3 (6-2)

2. Florida State 8-4 (5-3)

3. Boston College 7-5 (4-4)

4. N.C. State 6-6 (3-5)

5. Wake Forest 6-6 (3-5)

6. Maryland 5-7 (3-5)

ACC Championship Game: Clemson def. VT

C-USA Predictions

JDawg1447 — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:34:04 GMT

Blog 7 of 12. The first game of the college football year comes on in about 2 1/2 hours, so I think I have time to get all my predictions in. Still, no time to waste. Now let's look at my Conference USA predictions:

C-USA East

1. East Carolina 8-4 (7-1)

2. Southern Miss 10-2 (7-1)

3. Marshall 7-5 (5-3)

4. Memphis 5-7 (3-5)

5. UAB 1-11 (1-7)

6. UCF 3-9 (1-7)

C-USA West

1. Houston 7-5 (6-2)

2. UTEP 8-4 (6-2)

3. Tulsa 7-5 (5-3)

4. Rice 4-8 (3-5)

5. SMU 5-7 (2-6)

6. Tulane 2-10 (1-7)

C-USA CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: Houston def. ECU