NCAA Football FanHouse

Ducks' Blount Returns, Doesn't Play

Brian Grummell — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Oregon, Pac 10

Saturday was to be the college football return for embattled Oregon tailback LeGarrette Blount, but a funny thing happened along the way -- the Ducks never found a need for him in an impressive 44-21 victory over Arizona State.

The 44 points marked the fourth straight game Oregon's red-hot offense has scored 42 or more. Meanwhile, the cold night at Autzen Stadium seemingly prompted the Duck coaching staff to give Blount -- suspended since Sept. 4 for punching a Boise State player and refusing to leave the stadium peacefully -- the cold shoulder.

One Duck tailback after another -- four in all -- notched carries Saturday, none of them Blount. Perhaps there was a message to him in that, or perhaps it was a reflection of his backfield mates' efforts. LaMichael James went over 100 yards for the fifth straight game, gobbling up 149 yards and claiming three touchdowns. Overall the Ducks rushed for 266 yards, more than enough to put away the struggling Sun Devils.

After replacing ineffective starter Danny Sullivan last week with freshman Brock Osweiler, Arizona State saw Osweiler suffer a mysterious injury that brought sophomore Samson Szakacsy into the game. He was mostly ineffective but did stuff two touchdown drives between the bookends of mediocrity in all other possessions.

Meanwhile, television cameras repeatedly found a smiling, ready, benched Blount. Teammates surrounded him throughout the game, perhaps anticipating that moment he'd get the call. That proved elusive, as coach Chip Kelly went in a different direction. Oregon fans roared at one point, confusing back No. 5 with Blount's No. 9, clearly hoping for a made-for-TV moment.

His next opportunity to play, and perhaps redeem himself, will be against Arizona next Saturday. It is a huge conference battle, with a loss dangerous to Oregon and probably fatal to Arizona if they want to get to Pasadena as Rose Bowl participants.

Ducks' Blount Returns, Doesn't Play originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Blanket Coverage: For Pete's Sake

John Walters — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:33:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Cincinnati, Florida, Louisville, New Mexico State, Ohio State, Oregon, Temple, Texas

Halloween in Eugene began with Oregon coach Chip Kelly disguised as the Duck mascot and ended with USC masquerading as Cal. Pete Carroll's Trojans are not exactly immune from defeat in the Beaver State (0-4 since 2006) but they never lose to a fellow highly ranked Pac-10 foe and they most certainly never get waxed.

That's Jeff Tedford's domain.

Hands continue to wring in the Southland -- the Orange County Register declared that "USC's complete dominance of the league, a dominance unmatched in conference history, is over" -- but I believe that Pete Carroll, much like Michael Myers, will haunt the Pac-10 for many Halloweens to come.

Also, I'd like to suggest a more salient reason for Troy's desultory play of late, one that has nothing to do with the freshman QB, the eight defensive starters lost, or the two new coordinators: jet lag (and that's not a Mark Sanchez reference).

This Saturday, the Trojans will fly to Phoenix to face Arizona State in neighboring Tempe, which will mark their sixth flight of the season. No school among the top dozen in the BCS rankings (USC is No. 12) will play six of its first nine games away from home. And only Boise State, primarily because the Broncos visited Hawaii on October 24, has accrued more frequent-flier mileage.

The Trojans are lax because of LAX. They've covered more miles than Les Miles. They've made two across-three-time-zones treks already (Ohio State and Notre Dame), which equals the total of the other 11 top-12 schools combined (Cincinnati at Oregon State and Boise State at Ohio State).

Below is a table ranking the top 12 in terms of mileage covered, with their actual BCS rankings in parentheses. Distances were rounded off to the nearest hundred miles:

1) Boise State (7)......................................13,400 miles

2) USC (12).............................................11,700

3) Cincinnati (5).........................................9,200

4) TCU (6)................................................8,200

5) LSU (5)................................................5,600

6) Texas (2)..............................................4,900

7) Florida (1).............................................3,800

8 (Tie) Iowa..............................................2,800

Georgia Tech....................................2,800

10) Oregon...............................................2,700

11) Alabama............................................1,800

12) Penn State.........................................1,300

Granted, it's not as if the Trojans were traveling by sleeper car back to South Bend. On the other hand, I'm beginning to wonder if safety Taylor Mays begins pep talks with, "This is your captain speaking."

Maybe Carroll's greatest nemesis may not be the swiftly surging Ducks. Maybe it's his athletic director.

THE ZACH ATTACK
He has only been the starter for 2½ games, but Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros has been outstanding in leading the No. 5 Bearcats to victories against South Florida, Louisville and Syracuse. Since taking over for injured starter Tony Pike, Collaros has completed 75 percent of his passes (47-of-63) for 749 yards and nine touchdown passes versus just one interception. That's the same TD-to-INT ratio that Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame, second in the nation in passing efficiency, has.

Asked when Pike, who himself is currently seventh in the nation in passing efficiency, would play again on Monday, Bearcat coach Brian Kelly offered, "It's hard to say."

STEIN SHINES
Louisville, led by 5-8 walk-on quarterback Will Stein, beat Arkansas State, 21-13. Stein had last seen game action at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium as a local high school senior when he led Trinity to a defeat of St. Xavier in front of 37, 550 fans. Saturday's attendance at the same venue was 21,497.

TRUE BROMANCE
I cannot decide whether Riley Cooper is the Jordan Shipley of the SEC or whether Shipley is the Cooper of the Big 12. Cooper is the Gator wideout with the Head & Shoulders mane who is not only Tim Tebow's primary target, he's also his roommate.

Shipley is the childhood best friend and roommate of Texas quarterback Colt McCoy. He is also the Longhorn quarterback's favorite target. All four are straight out of "Friday Night Lights" (it's Jason Street and Tim Riggins come to life). Should Florida and Texas meet in Pasadena for the BCS championship, it'll be a question of whether Brent Musberger utters the term "bromance" during the broadcast or if he'll just refer to them as "pardners."

HMMMMMMM
Ohio State beat New Mexico State 45-0. The spread in Vegas was 44. If only everyone worked as diligently as oddsmakers.

TEMPLE IN NEED OF WORSHIPPERS?
Congrats to Temple for beating Navy. In earning their sixth straight victory, the Owls also became bowl-eligible for the first time since 1979. And so it would seem that their next home game would be an ideally opportune time for the fans in Philadelphia, and not just the Cos, to show their pride.

There's just one small problem. Temple's next home game, versus Miami of Ohio at Lincoln Financial Field, is Thursday night. That also happens to be the scheduled date for Game 7 of the World Series between the Phillies and the New York Yankees ... if necessary.

Blanket Coverage: For Pete's Sake originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pac-10 Predictions: Can Rest of League Finally Bear Down on USC?

Gary Washburn — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10

So is this the year someone besides USC wins the Pac-10 title and gains the automatic BCS bowl berth?

If there is ever a year for USC to get chased from behind and caught, this is this year. The Trojans are breaking in a new quarterback in Aaron Corp and replacing several departed starters to the NFL draft.

So who's it going to be? Cal? Can the Golden Bears overcome early-season trap games and win the games they are supposed to and make it interesting? Can Oregon beat USC at home and win difficult road games and take the title? And how about Oregon State? Do Mike Riley teams always have to start 1-3 before getting into high gear?

And what about the rest of the field? Is this Stanford's breakout year? Is UCLA ready to become a Pac-10 factor again? And is Arizona really the third worst team in the conference as it was picked by the media? These are all intriguing questions that will be worked out in the coming weeks.

Our standings preview and records predictions are after the jump.

1. USC (10-2 overall, 8-1 conference). You have to knock out the champion to take the title and the Trojans are vulnerable but still strong enough to retain the crown. They may trip with an early season game at Ohio State. There are three difficult conference road games (at Cal, at Oregon and at Arizona State) and the Trojans will lose one of those, likely at Oregon.

2. Cal (10-2, 7-2). Cal tailback Jahvid Best said the team is ready for the opener at Maryland, but the question is whether the Bears will be prepared for the Oct. 4 matchup against USC followed by a road game at Oregon. The Bears still split those two games but will lose at Arizona State, a place where they have never played well. And the final two games at Stanford and Washington are trap games. The Bears will have to be careful.

3. Oregon (9-3, 6-3). The Ducks may be 0-1 before anybody else if they lose to Boise State in the opener. The good news is that all of their difficult conference games are at Autzen Stadium, a place they play extremely well. If you would ask any top-tier Pac-10 team, they would lose a road schedule of UCLA, Washington, Stanford and Arizona. So the Ducks, behind bruising quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, have a chance to grab the title.

4. Oregon State (8-4, 5-4). The Beavers have a chance to be 3-0 going into their conference opener at Arizona, but you know with Riley's team, matters won't be that easy. Oregon State plays at Arizona State, at USC and at Cal in a five-week span, all teams they were beaten at Reser Stadium last season and looking for payback. So it maybe rough for the Beavers to compete with the big boys, especially with an uncertain situation at quarterback between Lyle Moevao and Sean Canfield.

5. Stanford (6-6, 4-5). Cardinal coach Jim Harbaugh knows he's close to producing a winner and Stanford could be 4-1 heading into a two-game road stretch at Oregon State and Arizona. Stanford has to win the early conference games because the Cardinal ends with Arizona State, Oregon, USC and Cal back-to-back. So it will be Stanford's first trip to a bowl in years but with a .500 record. Can Andrew Luck withstand the brutality of the Pac-10 as a redshirt freshman? Harbaugh is banking on that.

6. Arizona State (6-6, 4-5). Danny Sullivan takes over at quarterback for Rudy Carpenter, but the Sun Devils were really average last season with a lot of talent, so someone is going to need to respond to prevent another disappointing season. They will get their chins checked in week 3 at Georgia but like Stanford, the Sun Devils don't face the meat of their conference schedule until the end. So Sullivan will get a chance to gain experience before the really rough games. Look out for receiver Kyle Williams, the son of Chicago White Sox general manager Ken Williams. Kyle could be a first-team Pac-10 selection this season.

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Latest College Football Photos

Louisville receiver Trent Guy spins a football on his finger during the team's media day for the upcoming NCAA college football season in Louisville, Ky., Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Latest College Football Images

Nebraska's Kyler Reed (25), and J.T. Kerr work on blocking drills Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, during the first day of fall football practice camp in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Nebraska's Menelik Holt catches a football on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, during the first day of fall training camp in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Texas senior quarterback Colt McCoy speaks during a media availability Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Nebraska quarterback Cody Green, a freshman from Dayton, Texas, throws a football on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009. during the first day of fall training camp in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh runs Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, during the first day of fall football training camp in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Texas senior quarterback Colt McCoy speaks during a media availability Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Nebraska's Brandon Kinnie catches a football on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, during the first day of fall training camp in Lincoln, Neb. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Nebraska quarterback Zac Lee throws the ball on Saturday Aug 8, 2009, during the first day of fall football training camp. (AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

Texas head football coach Mack Brown speaks during a news conference Saturday, Aug. 8, 2009, in Austin, Texas. The Texas football team reported to preseason training camp Saturday and received a message from coach Brown: Forget the BCS. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

7. Arizona (6-6, 3-6). It would be beneficial for Mike Stoops' team to nab early wins at Oregon State and Washington because the schedule gets no easier, and maybe that's why the media picks the Wildcats to finish eighth. Stoops has still not made a decision at quarterback - either Matt Scott or Nick Foles - and the Wildcats have never been a great offensive team, so there are some major questions. Arizona will have to rely on a tough decision and likely a ball-control offense.

8. UCLA (5-7, 3-6). The Bruins are getting closer but not quite ready yet for prime time. They have five conference road games, including four of their final six. Coach Rick Neuheisel named Kevin Prince as the starting quarterback, but the Bruins don't have any proven offensive compliments to help him out. They are still very young, so UCLA will take its lumps, but the pain is all means to an end. Look for the Bruins to pull off a Halloween Night stunner at Oregon State.

9. Washington (3-9, 2-7). We just don't know enough about Washington's talent to pick the Huskies in any games besides Washington State and Arizona at home. But that may change soon under Steve Sarkisian. The schedule starts with LSU and includes Notre Dame on the road. USC comes to Seattle in Week 3, so the theme may just to try to stay healthy in the early going to survive the season and make positive strides.

10. Washington State (3-9, 1-8). Second-year coach Paul Wulff has had to put out more fires off the field than on the field, which is a major issue in Pullman. Has he had enough time to concentrate on improving the Cougars or has he spent so much time ridding the program of bad guys? Who is the quarterback? Who replaces Brandon Gibson as their best offensive player? The Cougs have five road games in seven weeks, so their lone win may come in the opener against Stanford.

Pac-10 Predictions: Can Rest of League Finally Bear Down on USC? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 09 Aug 2009 10:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pac-10 Media Day Notebook

Gary Washburn — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:15:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10

LOS ANGELES -- USC was picked to win the Pac-10 football title for the seventh consecutive year by the media, and yet the coaches from all nine competitors -- including Arizona's Mike Stoops (right) and even USC coach Pete Carroll -- touched on the uncertainty of the Trojans this season.

USC received 28 of the 32 votes with California receiving three while third-place Oregon collected one vote. The Trojans will be breaking in a new quarterback and several new defenders since 11 players were taken in the NFL Draft. Perhaps this is the year another school emerges and takes the crown out of Los Angeles, but they approached Thursday precariously and with respect. There were no declarations that USC is going down or the reign is over -- not even from UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel.

"Eighteen months later, from the time I got the job we are athletic, stronger and more physical," Neuheisel said humbly after a 4-8 debut season in Westwood. "We're still relatively inexperienced. But I think great things are in store for our program."

Humility was the theme of the morning. There is a quiet confidence in many coaches that their programs have improved, but the proof will be on the field, and in the past seven years, USC has proven that it is superior -- winning many games with ease -- other than a couple of hiccups against Oregon State.

Has the rest of the field caught USC? Perhaps fans will see on Sept. 12 when USC visits Ohio State or maybe when Oregon kicks off the season at Boise State or UCLA faces Tennessee in Knoxville.

The uncertainty is apparent amongst other Pac-10 coaches because their teams -- like USC -- face inexperience at key positions. There is no team that appears loaded for a title run. Clubs such as Cal, Oregon and Oregon State will have to rely on newcomers immediately to puncture the USC aura, and the quest won't be easy.

Here are notes from each team's discussion with the media Thursday.

ARIZONA
Coach Mike Stoops said he could use two quarterbacks -- Nick Foles and Matt Scott -- entering the season and they will battle it out in fall camp. Stoops was not pleased being picked to finish eighth in the conference: "I think our lack of respect in this conference is built around maybe our ability to replace a very quality player in Willie Tuitama. I believe that we will be able to replace Willie with a couple of very able players."

Tight end Rob Gronkowski is a beast of a player who has drawn raves around the conference and could be a first-team All America this season.

ARIZONA STATE
The Sun Devils were picked fifth by the media but will use redshirt senior Danny Sullivan to replace the graduated Rudy Carpenter and will rely on gifted receiver Kyle Williams, bruising fullback Dimitri Nance and cornerback Mike Nixon. The question is whether Arizona State can respond from a highly disappointing season with games at Georgia, Oregon and UCLA. ASU does get Cal, USC and Arizona at home.

CAL
Coach Jeff Tedford said quarterback Kevin Riley is the starter heading into fall camp, but that doesn't mean Brock Mansion doesn't have a shot at the job. Tedford played roulette with his quarterbacks last season, benching both Riley and Nate Longshore. With the latter gone, Riley is the favorite, and Tedford would like to see one quarterback seize the job instead of a committee.

"I don't think there's any question if we achieve our goal, we need to be more consistent in the passing game," Tedford said. "Kevin has matured a lot. His experience puts him a step ahead. I am not a fan of quarterback by committee but I don't regret how we handled the quarterback situation last year because the bottom line is we have to be consistent. I don't know if we had one guy step up and handle it like they should. Hopefully we do have that this year."

OREGON
New coach Chip Kelly is excited about his potentially high-powered offense but the question is whether his wide receivers -- all relatively new -- will respond and catch passes. Rory Cavaille and Jamere Holland will be depended on to replace Jaison Williams and Terence Scott. The former duo have combined for six catches, but Oregon has reached a point of reloading, not rebuilding.

"Two years ago, people said we weren't going to recover after losing Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart and all of a sudden Jeremiah Masoli and LeGarrette Blount show up," Kelly said. "So we are excited about our guys and they have an opportunity to step up. If people are going to deploy themselves defensively to take Ed (Dickson) away then that's going to free up some of our other guys. So if you've got to devote two people to Ed, then someone else has got to win."

And Kelly made it clear that he and cornerback Walter Thurmond III voted for Tim Tebow for first-team All SEC.

OREGON STATE
Coach Mike Riley said the Rodgers brothers -- or Brothers Rodgers -- Jacquizz and James -- are healthy and will be 100 percent going into fall camp. Jacquizz Rodgers, the conference's offensive player of the year as a freshman, missed most of the final three games with a shoulder injury. His healthy return will be essential to the Beavers' success. Riley also revealed that quarterback Lyle Moevao is not completely recovered from right shoulder surgery, leaving the door open for Sean Canfield to perhaps be the starter when Oregon State takes on Portland State on Sept. 5.

Canfield was instrumental in wins at Arizona and the critical win over then-No. 2 Cal in 2007.

STANFORD
Redshirt freshman Andrew Luck is the starting quarterback entering fall camp but coach Jim Harbaugh doesn't expect incumbent Tavita Pritchard, who led the Cardinal to its program-changing victory over USC two years ago, to give up the job.

"Tavita has started 19 games for Stanford and he is just not going concede to Andrew," Harbaugh said. "I would say this is far from settled but Andrew will be given the first chance to win the job and start at Washington State."

Toby Gerhart, a redshirt junior, could be Stanford's most physical runner since Tommy Vardell and is coming off a school-record 1,136-yard season.

UCLA
Neuheisel endorsed Kevin Prince as the team's new starting quarterback and he seems to be well adjusted for a redshirt freshman. Prince excelled during spring drills and appears to have won over his more experienced teammates.

"I think being a redshirt freshman, he was very composed out there (at spring practice)," linebacker Reggie Carter said. "We talked a lot of trash and said some crazy things to him. He did what he had to do and make some smart decisions. Once he gets the ball to where he needs on time, he will be a great player."

Also, running back Christian Ramirez, who missed last season because of academic ineligibility, will be the starter.

USC
Coach Pete Carroll said he has not given up on trying to find a way for freshman Frankie Telfort to play football. The freshman linebacker was advised to quit football because of a heart condition.

"We aren't going to give up on him," Carroll said. "We talked with his family about it. He's a good kid. He was unusually gifted as far as understanding football. I can't tell you we had anybody who knew so much about football as Frankie did."

Carroll revealed that weakside linebacker Malcolm Smith had surgery on his esophagus and is not 100 percent while strongside linebacker Luthur Brown may not be academically eligible.

WASHINGTON
Coach Steve Sarkisian was brimming with enthusiasm during his first media day as a head coach and said the Huskies are going to be "excited" for the season opener against LSU at Husky Stadium.

"I'm 35 years old, I'm crossing the 520 bridge, I'm staring at Husky Stadium and I'm the head coach at the University of Washington football program. This is an unbelievable honor," he said. "There's an aura about that place that is exciting. We're not the same football team [as eight months ago]."

Running back Chris Polk, highly touted before missing most of last season with shoulder surgery, should be back in the mix. Sarkisian said he still is waiting on the status of five junior college transfers.

WASHINGTON STATE
Quarterback Marshall Lobbestael is recovering from knee surgery but will compete with Kevin Lopina for the starting quarterback job. Weakside linebacker Louis Bland hurt his knee in spring drills and is still not completely healthy. Coach Paul Wulff said the Cougars wants to play a no-huddle offense to prevent injuries and increase depth.

2009 Pac-10 Preseason Media Poll:
1. USC (28) 316
2. California (3) 277
3. Oregon (1) 250
4. Oregon State 216
5. Arizona State 155
6. Stanford 150
7. UCLA 145
8. Arizona 142
9. Washington 74
10. Washington State 35

Pac-10 Media Day Notebook originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Will Year of Transition in Pac-10 Lead to USC's Ouster?

Gary Washburn — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10

LOS ANGELES -- Perhaps there was a reason Pete Carroll pleaded with Mark Sanchez to return to USC for his senior season. He knew his Trojans would lose their gorilla grip on the Pac-10, and that is the enduring theme entering the conference's media day Thursday at the LAX Sheraton Hotel.

The Trojans are not the prohibitive favorites, but the precarious favorites with a slew of teams chasing them. But there's one major catch in their pursuit, most of the conference teams -- outside Washington -- are breaking in a new or less experienced quarterback. USC should be voted the favorites Thursday, but who is second?

Cal? The Bears have talent, including Heisman Trophy candidate Jahvid Best, but will quarterback Kevin Riley play consistently enough to lead them to big victories?

Oregon? The Ducks lost immense talent to the NFL draft and need a No. 1 wide receiver.

Arizona State? Rudy Carpenter is finally gone (didn't he back up Jake Plummer?)

Arizona? The Wildcats will be breaking in a quarterback who tossed 11 passes last year. Assuming he holds off the other candidate that tossed seven passes two years ago.

Oregon State? The Beavers have a dynamic running game but not much to pass.

So it will be a wide-open conference race, and this may be the year USC is brought down. Carroll named Aaron Corp the starting quarterback heading into fall camp and his responsibility will be to manage games and allow the superior rushing attack and defense win games.

Also, there has been no decision on the NCAA investigation regarding Reggie Bush, and that may be hovering over the program, but Carroll has overcome adversity before and the Trojans, who, with their perennial top-5 recruiting classes, reload, not rebuild.

California has to shake the tag of being a pseudo-power that shrinks in big games. The Bears haven't beaten USC in six years and were soundly beaten by Arizona on the road last year. Best is a brilliant running back but has durability issues and Cal will have to replace a trio of productive linebackers.

Oregon bullied Oklahoma State in the Holiday Bowl and found its quarterback in the process, Jeremiah Masoli. The Ducks have a new coach in Chip Kelly but lost a group of key players on offense and defense -- including Jeremiah Johnson, Jaison Williams and Patrick Chung. LeGarrette Blount turned in a rather quiet 1,000-yard season but will be depended on to thrive in Kelly's offense. The question with Oregon is the offensive line and a defense that returns just five starters.

The Beavers have the brothers Rodgers at running back but a quarterback controversy with Sean Canfield and Lyle Moevao and have to replace productive wide receiver Sammie Stroughter.

Arizona is coming off a job-saving bowl win for Mike Stoops but lost four-year starter Willie Tuitama and will counter with sophomore Matt Scott and top-notch tight end Rob Gronkowski. The Wildcats will be a dark horse team but will have to mature fast.

Arizona State is coming off a disappointing losing season and will hand the quarterback reigns to Danny Sullivan, but Kyle Williams -- the son of Chicago White Sox GM Ken Williams -- is an all-conference candidate and will be depended on to spark the offense.

Stanford is making great strides under coach Jim Harbaugh and has a shot at a bowl game. Tailback Toby Gerhart is a tough runner who will set the pace for the offense, and the Cardinal hope newcomers Andrew Luck is more consistent than Tavita Pritchard.

UCLA is going to take some time to challenge USC but quarterback Kevin Prince could be a future star. The Bruins have to find a starting running back and more talented skill players than in recent years. Senior defensive back Alterraun Verner is the best in the conference.

Latest College Football Images

Texas quarterback Colt McCoy answers questions during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Texas quarterback Colt McCoy presses his lips together as he listens to a question during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Texas Tech offensive lineman Brandon Carter is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Kansas State quarterback Carson Coffman is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford talks to the press during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

MCT

Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops signs his autograph on some commemorative footballs during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

MCT

Baylor head coach Art Briles autographs a commemorative helmet during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

MCT

Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops talks with the reporters during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

MCT

Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

That leaves us with the Washington schools, both of whom are in major transition. The Huskies have new coach Steve Sarkisian and returning quarterback Jake Locker, and have to be better than last year, when they finished 0-12 under Tyrone Willingham. Locker is an improving quarterback with great skills but he will need help for Washington to be competitive.

WSU coach Paul Wulff has dealt more with off-the-field issues than on-the-field since his tenure began, and the Cougars may not win a conference game.

Will Year of Transition in Pac-10 Lead to USC's Ouster? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Party On, Football Schools

Clay Travis — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Indiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas, ACC, Big 10, Big East, Pac 10, Campus, Fans, General CFB Insanity

Penn State garnered top party school honors this year in the annual Princeton Review's ranking of top party schools. The top 20 schools are listed, and as I wistfully scanned the list and daydreamed about a time when all I had to worry about was whether the kegs would make it through the night or whether we'd have to scramble for more cases of Natty Light, I came to a startling conclusion: It's almost as if major college football and partying go together.

Shocking, no?

So in honor of college football's apparent impact on the most important ranking this side of the Harris Interactive Poll, let's run through the 20 party scenes -- including one college you've never heard of, ClayNation style.

1. Penn State

People have already started drinking in Happy Valley because they think it will make their arguments better as to why an undefeated Penn State team should get to play Texas over a one-loss Florida team.

2. Florida

I've had a lot of fun with Gator girls and their bingo wings. But the school knows how to party. Except on football Saturdays when the cops turn into fascists and will arrest you for having an open container on University Boulevard.

And if you get arrested you have to spend the night in jail. Talk about a kick in the ass. This is definitely going to happen to several SEC fans this fall. They're going to roll into Gainesville, get put in jail, and listen on the radio as their team loses by 50.

Come to think of it, I just hope this doesn't happen to me.

3. Ole Miss

Anyone who has ever been to Ole Miss is jealous that they aren't on Ole Miss's campus right now. Even at this exact moment when it's 438 degrees in the Delta and all the coeds have decided to spend the day drinking by the pool in their bikinis ... I can't go on.

I'm already plotting my trip to Oxford this November. This is something you have to do since there are only 14 hotel rooms in the entire Oxford area. So we're compromising by staying in a Tunica casino. Basically I'm trying to lump all my sinning into the same weekend.

How wild is it at Ole Miss? They have raves at the library.

4. Georgia

I've called Athens the Cleavage Capital of the South and suggested that the tagline for the city should be, simply, Athens: Where Boobs Are Fun.

I don't know how any football recruit in the country visits Athens on a weekend and ends up going to another school.

Honestly.

It's that much fun.

Now imagine if Bulldawg undergrads could drink for enjoyment instead of to dull the pain of another collapse by the Georgia defense under Willie Martinez.

5. Ohio University

Long overshadowed by their neighbors in Columbus, the Bobcats of Ohio toil in comparative oblivion in the MAC. Which explains why they party so hard.

If you drink enough you can almost convince yourself that you're a student at Ohio State.

6. West Virginia

The Deadwood of college campuses. Remember how Yoo fed all of Swearingen's victims to pigs? At West Virginia they do this if you can't finish an entire bottle of Maker's Mark before a football game.

WVU: "We put the riot in party."

7. Texas

Austin is purportedly the greatest city in America that doesn't lie on either coast. I don't know, I've never been. But I have seen the girls in those chaps and orange shorts on the sideline of games. Which does enough for me.

If Texas and Florida end up playing in the BCS title game this fall, doesn't this just seem unfair? How much better does any college kid's life at Florida or Texas deserve to be? It's warm all year round, your teams never lose, and both teams are going undefeated?

8. Wisconsin

True story, one of alcohol's many great powers is that it makes you feel less cold. That's important in a place like Madison, Wis.

Second true story, if your parents want to buy you a beer in a Wisconsin bar, you're allowed to consume it with them. Even if you're 11 or 12.

It's such a surprise that kids raised like that end up liking to party in college.

9. Florida State

Remember when the cameras panned to the crowd and landed on Jenn Sterger wearing a bikini in the student section? And even Brent Musberger, Brent Musberger!, couldn't avoid commenting on her. That's what life is like in Tallahassee. All those girls who don't have good enough test scores to get into UF anymore, yeah, they're here.

10. University of California-Santa Barbara

Have you ever been to Santa Barbara? You can't live in the city for less than a million dollars. It's probably the last place on earth where you need to dull the pain of college with alcohol. You live in paradise and you're in college. The people are so good looking in this town, and this is true, that when you apply for a job as a waiter, most restaurants ask if you have a head shot.

How much better can your life get?

Can I re-enroll and major in PE?

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Kansas State quarterback Carson Coffman is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Wednesday, July 29, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford talks to the press during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

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Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops signs his autograph on some commemorative footballs during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

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Baylor head coach Art Briles autographs a commemorative helmet during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

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Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops talks with the reporters during the Big XII media day in Irving, Texas, on Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News/MCT)

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Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops is shown during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Missouri football coach Gary Pinkel gestures as he speaks during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Kansas coach Mark Mangino gestures during Big 12 Media Day in Irving, Texas, Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Donna McWilliam)

Oklahoma State University head football coach Mike Gundy answers questions from reporters during media day at the Dallas-Fort Worth Westin Hotel in Irving, Texas, Monday, July 27, 2009. (Brandon Wade/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT)

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11. Colorado

Boulder is kind of like utopia. Everyone is rich, everyone is nice, and everyone parties all the time. So what if their athletic teams always lose. Your life ends up pretty nice anyway.

Now if only LenDale White hadn't gotten away to USC ...

12. Iowa

Iowa is another state I don't know much about. I've never been. I get the impression that everyone drinks here because they wish they were somewhere else.

Also, they always have white wide receivers. Iowa seems to breed fast white boys. I don't know why.

On the positive side, the state's unemployment rate is one of the lowest in the nation. Maybe everyone's drinking to celebrate ... and to create more jobs for people who pick vomit out of things.

13. Union College

Old fraternity training teaches me that the first fraternities in America came from Union College. Our first school that doesn't have major athletic programs. Outside of UC-Santa-Barbara. Let's be honest, 95 percent of the drinking associated with this school is based on how much fun it is to attempt to pronounce Schenectady after six beers in an hour.

You try.

It's impossible.

14. Indiana

You'd drink if you had to put up with the Kelvin Sampson era as well. Point of demarcation here, this represents the first BCS-level basketball-first school to make the list.

Either that or Indiana football fans (don't those three words together make your skin crawl with discomfort to read?) are dulling the pain of the early fall by whiling away their time ignoring the team.

15. DePauw

Several of my friends went to DePauw which is not to be confused with DePaul in Chicago. DePauw is a tiny college in the middle of nowhere Indiana. What do they do for fun?

One of my best friends once walked into his fraternity house to see a fraternity brother who was involved in a sex act while watching ... wait for it ... Major League. It's unbefitting a family Web site like this to go into further detail, but let's just say that, like Pedro Ceranno in a fit of frustration with Jobu, he did it himself.

He, of course, blamed alcohol.

As well he should.

16. Tennessee

Tennessee leads the nation in the number of women who wake up in the morning and think, "Wait, I went home with him?"

Which means if you're looking at colleges and you're male, UT should be on your list.

17. Sewanee: The University of the South

My best man went to this school. About 1,200 kids go to college on top of a mountain surrounded by a 10,000-acre campus. Once I showed up to visit him and found him cutting strips of old dark brown shag carpeting in the front yard outside his dorm room.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Making clothes for the viking party," he said. "Everyone makes their own outfit and you have to wear it there to get inside."

Some girls made Viking bikinis.

Needless to say, the party was awesome beyond words.

18. North Dakota

I don't know a single thing about North Dakota that isn't Mount Rushmore related. And I just Googled Mount Rushmore and found out it's actually in South Dakota.

Who knew? Other than South Dakotans?

19. Tulane

Remember in the wake of hurricane Katrina when everyone worried that Tulane would vanish as a school that anyone wanted to attend?

Wrong.

They buckled down and did what they had to do, kept shutting down the school for Mardi Gras and battening down the hatches for drinking. Good for them.

20. Arizona State

The Daily Show referred to Arizona State as "the Harvard of date rape." That was unfair.

A football player who shall remain nameless informed me that they had to institute a no tanning rule on the quad near campus because there were too many car accidents from drivers ogling the women.

Party On, Football Schools originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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San Jose State Is Tired of Cheap Pac-10 Dates

Chas Rich — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:06:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Fresno State, Pac 10, WAC, General CFB Insanity

The Pac-10 has now been stood-up twice by San Jose State for dates in 2010. The Spartans are one of those programs that are willing to go out with one of those studly BCS programs and not expect a second date at home.

Just because San Jose is willing to go anywhere for a one-nighter, though, does not mean they are cheap. The Spartans have realized that their popularity with the big programs means it should be a first-class evening, one that makes it worth their while.

San Jose skipped out on its picnic with Stanford when Alabama came in with nearly $1 million for the night. Now the Spartans have decided to break off plans with Arizona State.

The Sun Devils' mere $450,000 for a one-nighter was no match for Wisconsin's full wine-and-dine of around $900,000. Even with the $250,000 buyout, San Jose State comes out ahead. Arizona State, however, is now looking for someone else to come to their place.

San Jose State Is Tired of Cheap Pac-10 Dates originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 20 Jul 2009 12:06:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How to Program the Pac-10 Network

Clay Travis — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:19:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10, Fans, General CFB Insanity

Pity the poor Pac-10; its revenues are barely half of the SEC, Big Ten, and, shudder, the ACC.

As a result, the Pac-10 is exploring a route that has already made it rain on the SEC and the Big Ten, starting their own network. The Big Ten started their own network in conjunction with FOX and netted $66 million from the network last year. Rather than start their own network, the SEC partnered with CBS and ESPN. Beginning this year the SEC will bring in -- wait for it -- $205 million a year just from television rights. Why does that matter? The Pac-10 conference had revenues of just $88.78 million in 2007. Yep, by 2009, the SEC will triple the Pac-10 in sports revenue. That's a huge deal in the arm's race that is major collegiate sports.

Fortunately, as a lover of all things college football, I'm here to help the Pac-10 ensure their network is a hit. How do we do that? Programming, baby, it's all about the programming.

Some people think Pac-10 fans don't care about football. That's a shameful stereotype. People in the Pac-10 care an awful lot about football. If they didn't care a lot about football, would 77,715 people turn out to watch spring games? That's an average of almost 8,000 per game! And it's just 18,007 fewer people than the 95,722 who showed up to watch Ohio State's spring game. So there. Pac-10 football rules. Face. End of argument. Except, you know, at Washington State. Where just 400 people showed up. Seriously, 400? I've had more people at one of my book signings. And that's in the South, where most people can't even read.

Plainly, people aren't showing up for Pac-10 spring football because the conference isn't selling itself well enough. There needs to be more zest, more verve, more feeling ... in short, Pac-10 network, better programming.

With that in mind, I've drafted a series of can't miss shows for your network to be.

1. Pete Carroll shirtless -- Watch as Carroll tweets, adds Facebook friends, talks on the phone with recruits, and goes for jogs in Southern California. All shirtless.

2. LenDale White's Taste of the Town -- Piggybacking on the insane popularity and extreme awkwardness of Todd Blackledge's Taste of the Town segment during ESPN football telecasts, White brings the experience to the Pac-10. Opening video montage shows LenDale trying to squeeze a live, wriggling octopus between two giant Oreo cookies, explaining that the best fish tacos feature twinkies, and closing with his catchphrase, "If I won't eat it, it ain't food."

3. Washington State football highlights 2008 -- Watch as the band executes complicated turns on the field! Meet a ticket-taker who always rips perfectly along the perforated edges! Is that Ryan Leaf waving from the crowd? All of this leads up to the game of the century, Washington vs. Washington State for all the marbles.

4. USC Song Girls vs. UCLA cheerleaders-- Bikini quiz bowl. Opening question: Which of these is an oxymoron? A) A Pac-10 sellout, B) Spencer Pratt, C) Jumbo shrimp or D) everything but B?

Second question: What is the plural of boob job? Debate.

5. "ElimiPete," Pac-10 coaches discuss the biggest game from every year, the time they upset USC -- Watch as former UCLA coach Karl Dorrell, Oregon State's Mike Riley, and Stanford's Jim Harbaugh take us through upsets for the ages. Harbaugh: "I'm going to be honest with you, I'm not sure my team could have scored against air. Certainly not a strong air, like a bad wind that whipped up dust, no way."

6. How Bad USC Would Have Beaten You: Fired Pac-10 Coaches explain how bad you would have lost if you'd had to play USC -- Fired Washington State coach Bill Doba explains: "Your team would have lost 148-0. At least, maybe 248-0."

Latest College Football Images

In this Nov. 1, 2008, photo, Boston College's Mark Herzlich plays against Clemson in an NCAA college football game in Boston. Herzlich, the Atlantic Coast Conference defensive player of the year, has cancer. Herzlich said Thursday, May 14, 2009, he was diagnosed earlier this week with Ewing's Sarcoma after feeling pain in his leg and will undergo more tests in his home state of Pennsylvania. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Josh Halter is swarmed by family and friends after being named the drum major for The Ohio State University Marching Band in Columbus, Ohio, Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (Jeff Hinckley/Columbus Dispatch/MCT)

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Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, speaks to the media in Arlington, Va. on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Penn State football coach Joe Paterno speaks to reporters in Arlington, Va., on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, speaks to the media in Arlington, Va. on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Taylor Stokes wears his letter jacket on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, May 1, 2009. Stokes was the first black scholarship football player at Vanderbilt, and has returned 40 years later to finish his degree. He will graduate on May 8. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Taylor Stokes wears his letter jacket on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., Friday, May 1, 2009, in front of a statue of Cornelius Vanderbilt, the founder of the university. Stokes was the first black scholarship football player at Vanderbilt, and has returned 40 years later to finish his degree. He will graduate on May 8. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner and Bowl Championship Series coordinator John Swofford, left, and West Mountain Conference Commissioner Craig Thompson, right, are sworn in before giving their testimony before the House Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection Subcommittee hearing on the football Bowl Championship Series on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, May 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner and Bowl Championship Series coordinator John Swofford, left, testifies before the House Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection Subcommittee hearing on the football Bowl Championship Series on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, May 1, 2009. Also testifying on the panel are, from left, West Mountain Conference Commissioner Craig Thompson, President and CEO of Valero Alamo Bowl Derrick Fox and Boise State Athletic Director Gene Bleymaier. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Boise State Athletic Director Gene Bleymaier, right, testifies before the House Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection Subcommittee hearing on the football Bowl Championship Series on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, May 1, 2009. Also testifying on the panel are, from left, Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner and Bowl Championship Series coordinator John Swofford, West Mountain Conference Commissioner Craig Thompson, and President and CEO of Valero Alamo Bowl Derrick Fox. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

7. The Sellout -- Coaches reconstruct exactly what it was like to play in front of a sell-out crowd (Stanford and Arizona State excluded). "I remember I looked into the stadium, and there were no seats empty. I couldn't see a single seat! And I thought, my God, everyone on Earth is in the stadium. Right now, the whole Earth."

8. The Civil War starring former Oregon right tackle Geoff Schwartz and Civil War Journal's Danny Glover -- A fantastical melding of football with history. For 14 minutes, Schwartz, the self-professed largest Jewish man on Earth, takes us through the annals of Oregon and Oregon State. Then, just as you realize you don't really care, bang, Glover arrives and we all go on a walk along the sunken road at Antietam.

9. Cheat Like a Pro, Starring Reggie Bush -- Bush: "Some people say cheaters never win. I say, look at me, b***h." In each episode Reggie explains how to cheat in every sport, from spitballs in baseball to lead weights in the toe of your shoe for kickball. In the end it's all about making sure your family can live a life of luxury in Southern California.

10. Arizona State explains that they are, in fact, a member of the Pac-10 Conference -- Dennis Erickson takes us on a tour of campus. Included highlights: the football stadium and a Pac-10 banner flying from the upper deck, "I'm telling you, they don't just let you fly a Pac-10 flag for fun. You've got to be in the Pac-10."

11. "Back When I was Awesome," starring Lane Kiffin -- "Okay, I want you to be still for just a second, okay? Do you even know how awesome I was? So awesome I didn't even call the plays and got all the credit, okay. So awesome that if Clay Travis was calling the plays we would have averaged 40 points a game, okay. So awesome. A, okay, W, okay, E, okay, S, okay, O, okay, M, okay, E, okay..."

12. The Mountain West Conference Owns Us: Paid Programming -- Watch as MWC teams that the Pac-10 won't allow to join their conference, explain what it was like to go undefeated against the big, bad, Pac-10. As a special bonus, BYU gives 59 reasons why UCLA is godless.

13. It's Hard Out Here For An Asian: Norm Chow hustles his way to a head coaching job -- Opening monologue features Chow talking about his strengths, "I have the greatest calves of any offensive coordinator, I wear glasses, my voice is impeccable and deep, I sound like the whitest man on Earth. I don't understand why no one will hire me to coach."

Then Chow raps:

You know it's hard out here for an Asian
When he tryin' to get that money for the head coach
For the Philip Rivers' and the Carson Palmer's
Cause a whole lot of b***hes coachin' Tennessee

14. What football seems like under the influence of weed laced with other hallucinogenic compounds, starring the students of Cal-Berkeley -- Watch as drug-addled Cal students attempt to describe the best running plays of the year featuring Jahvid Best. "Best is like the best. He takes the football, and for just a minute he stands still, and then he's like, he lifts the football to the sky and all these scorpions are coming to take the football and Best is like, 'No, scorpion, you can't have my football. I'm going to run with it and then if I get hungry I might eat it and use it to feed all the people in Africa without food. Or I'm going to take a nap and curl up in the football, and then when the ladybugs knock on my door, I'm going to let them come inside too and we're all going to roll around in the grass where everyone touches down."

How to Program the Pac-10 Network originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 18 May 2009 16:19:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marve Might Walk on With Vols, but How Much Will He Matter?

Clay Travis — Thu, 14 May 2009 13:15:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, University of Miami, Nebraska, Purdue, Tennessee, ACC, SEC, Prospects

As a high school senior in Tampa, Fla., in 2007, Robert Marve passed for 48 touchdowns and over 4,000 yards. The final pass of his prep career was a touchdown with 17 seconds remaining in the state title game. With big numbers and clutch performances, Marve was one of the top quarterback recruits in the country, fielding scholarship offers from Alabama, Purdue, Miami and Michigan State and a host of others. Initially Marve committed to the Crimson Tide, but after Mike Shula's firing, he reopened his recruitment and ended up signing with Miami.

Less than six months later, Marve was a passenger in a car driven by one of his Miami teammates. The car slammed into a guardrail on I-95 after the driver fell asleep, and Marve's left hand was badly injured, leading him to redshirt his freshman season. This past season, Marve returned to start 11 games for the Hurricanes, throwing for nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. But in December he decided to transfer. Which leads to an interesting question, how often have college football quarterbacks transferred and actually been successful at their new destination?

Initially, Miami announced that Marve would not be granted his release to transfer to any SEC, ACC, or Florida colleges. After a hearing, those restrictions were amended to include, from the SEC, only LSU, Tennessee, and Florida, schools that Miami believed improperly tampered with their player. Marve withdrew from school for the spring semester in order to make a decision, now the Tampa Tribune is reporting that Marve plans to walk on at Tennessee. Why walk on? Because unless Miami releases him he can't accept a scholarship to Tennessee.

While paying tuition at Tennessee rather than accepting a scholarship from Purdue, South Florida, Nebraska, or Arizona State (the other schools Marve visited) might not make financial sense, it makes an awful lot of football sense. The quarterback depth chart at Tennessee features just two scholarship quarterbacks, senior Jonathan Crompton and junior Nick Stephens. Having three years between quarterbacks is virtually unheard of at a major college program, and Lane Kiffin has hit the recruiting trail attempting to turn this lack of depth into a major selling point for potential signal callers.

If Marve were to enroll at Tennessee, he'd be eligible beginning with the 2010 season (with an additional year after that) and would find himself competing with only Stephens, whichever freshmen Tennessee might sign in the class of 2010, and former pro baseball player Mike Rozier for the starting job. As far as major programs go, those odds are pretty golden. Not surprisingly, when reached for comment by FanHouse Tennessee officials were mum on the potential transfer, but it appears that Marve's decision has come down to Purdue and the Vols.

Will Marve turn down a scholarship at a Big Ten school to pay to play at an SEC school? The decision could come as soon as Friday. In the meantime, it's important to keep in mind that the Marve family isn't exactly struggling for cash. His father, Eugene Marve, played 12 years in the NFL. And, in a key move, Marve has already spent a semester out of school since leaving Miami. So the Marve family would actually only have to pay for one semester of tuition, the fall of 2009, before the one-year scholarship limitation runs out that is keeping Marve from transferring to any school of his choice.

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Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, speaks to the media in Arlington, Va. on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Penn State football coach Joe Paterno speaks to reporters in Arlington, Va., on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, speaks to the media in Arlington, Va. on Tuesday, May 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner and Bowl Championship Series coordinator John Swofford testifies testifies before the House Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection Subcommittee hearing on the football Bowl Championship Series on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, May 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

I can think of a couple of other examples of players who have transferred to schools they weren't released to and gamed the system like this. Brent Schaeffer, who started for the Vols as a freshman in 2004, did it. Tennessee refused to grant him a release to transfer in conference, as is typical, but Schaeffer played for a year in junior college and then enrolled at Ole Miss with two years of eligibility remaining.

Marve could have also done what Luke Recker did, and transfered out of the conference for a semester only to transfer back in, though the circumstances of Recker's return might've had more to do with personal circumstances than gaming the system. Still, Recker left Indiana, transferred to Arizona for a semester, and then transferred from there to Iowa without playing a game for the Wildcats.

The point is that Marve and his family will probably only have to pay for one semester of tuition at Tennessee, which isn't the huge barrier that some have made it out to be given the relatively limited cost of attending Tennessee and his family's financial status.

But here's the real question. For all the attention paid to Marve's transfer, how many quarterbacks transferred from one big school to another big school and won a conference championship? Troy Aikman led UCLA to a share of the Pac-10 title in 1987 after transferring from Oklahoma and Colt Brennan left Colorado to lead Hawaii all the way to the Sugar Bowl in 2007-08, though Hawaii isn't a BCS-level school. Surely there are others, but my point is a quarterback leaving and finding success in different college football pastures is pretty rare.

But maybe all the Marve transfer frenzy isn't so much about winning the SEC as much as it is a sign of how desperate every single one of us is for college football season to return. In the meantime, Marve is on the clock.

Marve Might Walk on With Vols, but How Much Will He Matter? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 14 May 2009 13:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sam Keller Is Right: EA, NCAA Cash in on Players' Images

Michael David Smith — Thu, 07 May 2009 08:30:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Nebraska

In the above video, taken from the official YouTube channel of EA Sports, a quarterback for Oklahoma who wears No. 14 is referred to as a "Heisman winner." EA Sports and the NCAA would try to tell you -- with a straight face -- that they're not cashing in on the name and likeness of Sam Bradford, the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback who wears No. 14 for Oklahoma. Sam Keller is calling their bluff.

Keller, a former quarterback at both Arizona State and Nebraska, is suing EA and the NCAA over the use of players' names and likenesses in EA video games. Whether the courts eventually rule in Keller's favor or not, there's no question that Keller is right about the simple fact that EA and the NCAA make big money off college players' images, without the players getting a dime.

EA and the NCAA seem to think they're complying with the letter of the law by not including players' names in video games. But the truth is, every college football or basketball fan can easily identify all the players in the EA NCAA games. As Keller's lawsuit says:

"With rare exception, virtually every real-life Division I football or basketball player in the NCAA has a corresponding player in Electronic Arts' games with the same jersey number, and virtually identical height, weight, build, and home state. In addition, Electronic Arts matches the player's skin tone, hair color, and often even a player's hair style."

Darren Rovell of CNBC reports that the players in the game are so similar to the players in real life that no one could possibly say with a straight face that EA and the NCAA aren't using the athletes' images. Take the case of Kent State running back Eugene Jarvis:

Jarvis is 5-foot-5, weighs 170 pounds, wears number six and is a redshirt junior from Pennsylvania. In EA's NCAA 2009, the Kent State running back is 5-foot-5, weighs 170 pounds, wears number 6 and is a redshirt junior from Pennsylvania.

Reading that description, does anyone doubt that EA and the NCAA are making money off Jarvis's image? If not, why shouldn't EA and the NCAA have to compensate Jarvis, the way pro athletes are compensated when they appear in video games?

Keller's class-action lawsuit aims to get a satisfactory answer to that question. If you're in favor of fairness, you should be in favor of EA and the NCAA having to share the video game proceeds with the players.

Sam Keller Is Right: EA, NCAA Cash in on Players' Images originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 07 May 2009 08:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Steven Threet Reportedly Transferring to Arizona State

Bruce Ciskie — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:05:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Michigan, Big 10, Pac 10

A couple months ago, Steven Threet decided to leave Michigan. The quarterback started eight games for the Wolverines a year ago, but was obviously not a good fit for new coach Rich Rodriguez and the spread offense he brought from West Virginia.

Threet took his time looking over his options, and he found some potential suitors who still ran some sort of pro-style offense.

Threet made up his mind, according to ESPN's Joe Schad. After visiting Arizona State over the weekend, he's going to transfer there.

Threet also considered Oregon State but developed a relationship with the Arizona State coaching staff and had an excellent visit over the weekend.

This is a good spot for Threet, who will be eligible for the 2010 season, when he'll be a fourth-year junior.

Michigan just wasn't going to work out. While Rodriguez appears set on using a freshman quarterback in 2009, Threet would have wasted a year of eligibility on the bench. Yes, he loses a year by transferring, but he has a better chance of playing in Tempe than he ever would in Ann Arbor.

Steven Threet Reportedly Transferring to Arizona State originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pac-10's Nine Dwarves Aspire to More

Brian Grummell — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10

College Football Spring Storylines 2009 looks at the key developments and big news from spring ball.

Since 2002, the Pac-10 has been derisively called USC and the nine dwarves. Its more than a little unfair, but that's the prevailing wisdom. Although the conference is consistently among the deepest and most competitive around, USC's monopolized that top spot. Any chance of that changing this year begins with decisions those programs make this spring.

For Arizona, the spring challenge is finding a quarterback to replace longtime starter Willie Tuitama. Athletic sophomore Matt Scott has a narrow lead over the heftier Nick Foles while trying to master Sonny Dykes' high frequency pass attack. Seven starters do return on defense but they failed to find any strong vocal leadership among the returnees.

Up north in Tempe, Arizona State is also working to replace a departed quarterback. Thanks to a pair of recent transfers, the job has gotten easier for coach Dennis Erickson who is now down to three scholarship passers. The candidates are senior favorite Danny Sullivan, sophomore Samson Szakacsy and 6-foot-8 freshman Brock Osweiler. Fans are drooling at the novelty of Osweiler and he may have scared away two other competitors but the veterans obviously appear to have the lead.

Whoever emerges, he'll have this guy to throw to.

Sticking with a winning theme, Cal must also replace departed quarterback Nate Longshore. Incumbent Kevin Riley has the deep experience edge having started several games with occasional fits of brilliance like his off-the-bench bowl rescue job against Air Force. However, he has been unable to completely fend off the awesomely named Texan Brock Mansion or Beau Sweeney.

The position has been dodgy at best ever since the departure of Aaron Rodgers and Cal fans are itching for a return to the kind of play that had them nearly atop the college football world in 2004.

At stuffy Stanford, yet another quarterback battle is going on with what appears to be a mild upset. Incumbent Tavita Pritchard beat USC in 2007 but has been far from consistent or dominant to the point where Stanford followed a Woody Hayes styled run attack model last year. Enter redshirt freshman Andrew Luck who has folks buzzing after his 352-yard showing in their recent scrimmage. Coach Jim Harbaugh said he would be their starter if a game were played tomorrow.

Another team, another quarterback battle. UCLA remains unsatisfied with last year's emergency starter Kevin Craft and has mulled pulling the trigger for redshirt freshman Kevin Prince or true freshman Richard Brehaut. Prince pulled ahead last week only to fall back in several practices and scrimmages.

The Bruins are looking for improvement over the entire offense after the 2008 disaster and must now replace skilled defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker who left to coach New Mexico State. At least two performers -- defensive tackle Brian Price and cornerback Alterraun Verner -- could be Pac-10 first-teamers but openings abound nearly everywhere else.

Across town, juggernaut USC returns anywhere from three to five defensive starters but like nearly everyone else they have a quarterback battle getting most of the attention. We'll say quickly that the defense is loaded with stud recruits who ballhawk like its going out of style in reserve time and have impressed beyond expectation.

The offense simply needs to replace quarterback Mark Sanchez and things appear to be going smoothly with sophomore Aaron Corp all but securing the job at least through the summer. However, true freshman Matt Barkley may actually meet the hype, exceeding expectations and likely pushing the competition into at least the early fall particularly if he can cut down on turnovers.

One final quarterback battle is at Washington State who is looking for someone, anyone, to pilot them after a wasted 2008 for now second-year coach Paul Wulff. We have no idea whats going on there and it won't likely matter if the Cougars cannot piece together better lines to secure the trenches.

For those counting at home, that's seven quarterback battles among ten teams. It is both frightening and hope-filled for all these programs in a conference where teams quite often live and die with quarterback performance.

Apple Cup rival Washington is also looking to put an even worse, winless 2008 behind them. New coach Steve Sarkisian and defensive coordinator Nick Holt are bringing a ton of energy and enthusiasm (local columnists are rightly groaning) but nothing saves coaching souls like warm bodies. They've got quarterback Jake Locker and some decent linebackers to work with while little else is secure.

I'm not sure Sarkisian's program will be a winner there, but anything will surpass the malaise that followed good guy former coach Tyrone Willingham.

The always-lurking Oregon State Beavers have been at their best sticking to the program with coach Mike Riley. Less sizzle, more steak, the focus is probably on continued development of the overlooked talent on campus. That said, offensive understudies have had a bonanza of opportunities with the departure of both starting receivers and injuries to quarterback Lyle Moevao, tailback Jacquizz Rodgers and back/receiver brother James.

Unknown receiver Darrell Catchings put together a monster scrimmage recently with six catches for over 250 yards and two touchdowns.

Finally at Oregon, the Ducks are finishing the first spring under new coach Chip Kelly who moved from offensive coordinator to head coach after Mike Bellotti's retirement. Bellotti is still on the field serving as quarterback coach through the spring while Kelly sorts out the entire program.

Pac-10's Nine Dwarves Aspire to More originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ex-Miami QB Marve Still Looking for a Home

Chas Rich — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:35:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, University of Miami, Nebraska, Texas Tech, ACC, Big 12, Recruiting

He's still looking. The disgruntled and apparently very slow Robert Marve is still looking for the right fit as far as where to transfer. Marve decided to transfer before the start of 2009, and got his release shortly after wards. He got most of those transfer restrictions that had him and his family so righteously fought eliminated.

Marve chafed against being told that he could not transfer to ACC, most SEC schools or any Florida-based D-1A program. Yet the only program that he is considering that was on the restricted list appears to be South Florida.

Otherwise, he has chosen to explore schools that Miami would be happy to see him attend. Purdue is on the list along with Texas Tech. He's visiting Nebraska today to take in their spring game set for Saturday. From there he intends to continue his nomadic wanderings to the Arizona desert for a visit to Arizona State. Plus he still wants to consider UCLA.

Over four months of gathering information and taking visits. Clearly, Marve is a very deliberate and meticulous planner. Someone who must be carefully weighing information and thinking long and hard about his choices.

"Robert's a gut-feel type of kid," [Marve's high school coach Robert] Weiner said. "He'll kind of know as he goes along which schools are attractive to him and which ones he probably won't go to."

Oh.

So Marve will ultimately go with his gut. He's missed a semester of school, and has to sit out a season. All this for a guy who while a top recruit in high school looked clueless at Miami.

Yes, the offensive line at Miami was poor and the receiving talent was unimpressive. Marve, though, showed very little to distinguish himself as being a special talent trapped in a bad scene.

Maybe that's why the process is taking so long. He's trying to enjoy the attention and recruiting love one more time before obscurity and disappointment.

Ex-Miami QB Marve Still Looking for a Home originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 17 Apr 2009 13:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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YouTubesDay: Kerry Taylor's Behind-The-Back Catch

Brian Grummell — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 11:51:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Video

Kerry Taylor has some set of stones attempting this kind of grab in the middle of practice. During a recent Arizona State practice, the receiver pulled off a ridiculous behind-the-back catch (video after the jump). Its the kind of stunt that results in either a dropped ball or dropped jaws. Fortunately for Taylor, it was the latter.

He probably still got chewed out by his coach, but only after getting a pat on the back. Unfortunately it was only practice, we're talking about practice, and not a live game. Still awesome, but do it against an all Pac-10 corner and we've really got something here.
(Via Wild West)

YouTubesDay: Kerry Taylor's Behind-The-Back Catch originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 14 Apr 2009 11:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Former ASU Coach Bruce Snyder Dies

Brian Grummell — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:38:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, California, Utah State, Coaching

Sad news out of Tempe where Arizona State has announced that former football coach Bruce Snyder has died at the age of 69. Snyder was diagnosed with cancer last June. Snyder coached nine seasons with the Sun Devils (1992-2000) and 20 overall. His 58 victories at ASU are second only to Frank Kush's 176.

Snyder also coached at Utah State and California before joining the Sun Devils. His signature season was in 1996 when ASU held a 17-13 lead over Ohio State in the Rose Bowl before surrendering a last-second touchdown that spoiled their chance at a national championship. He left after 2000 but was remembered for coaching a slew of NFL players, All Americans and ASU greats Pat Tillman, Jake Plummer and Terrell Suggs.

Since his departure, ASU has struggled to reach similar heights as that 1996 team with coaches Dirk Koetter and Dennis Erickson.

Snyder is survived by his wife and three daughters.

Deaths in Sports

Harry Kalas, April 13: The longtime Phillies announcer dies at age 73.

George Widman, AP

Mark Fidrych, April 13: The colorful former All-Star, who was known as "the Bird" during his playing career, was found dead underneath his pickup truck.

Carlos Osorio, AP

Bruce Snyder, April 13: The former Sun Devils coach dies at his home after a 10-month fight against cancer.

Tom Hauck, Getty Images

Nick Adenhart, April 9: The pitcher was killed in a hit-and-run car accident just hours after pitching for the Angels.

Eric Risberg, AP

Marvin Webster, April 6: "The Human Eraser" played nine seasons in the NBA. He was 56 years old.

Rogers Photo Archive/Getty Images

Jobie Dajka, April 7: The former world champion was found dead in his home.

Michael Kienzler, APF / Getty Images

Lou Saban, March 29: The 87-year-old Saban coached the Patriots, Bills and Broncos in his NFL career. He also coached at Miami, Army, Northwestern and Maryland.

NFL / Getty Images

Gus Cifelli, March 26: The former offensive lineman, here in a handout photo from Notre Dame, helped win three national titles for the Irish. He died of natural causes.

Courtesy Notre Dame

Shane McConkey, March 26: The legendary big mountain skier and BASE jumper, pictured here in October 2007, died Thursday in a ski-BASE accident in the Italian Dolomites.

Alfredo Martinez, Red Bull Photo Files

Alysheba, March 27: The winner of the 1987 Kentucky Derby, seen here being ridden by jockey Chris McCarron, was euthanized following a fall in his stall.

Bob Daugherty, AP

Former ASU Coach Bruce Snyder Dies originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:38:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Quarterback Jack Elway Leaves Arizona State Football Program

Brian Grummell — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:16:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State

Jack Elway, son of NFL great John Elway, is leaving the Arizona State football program. In a bit of a 'he's just not that into you' moment Elway has left ASU's football program but will remain in school. Quoth coach Dennis Erickson, "He's just tired of football and wants to do something else with his life."

If that involves opening car dealerships his old man's already cornered the market. Regardless, he was considered a longshot for the Sun Devils' starting quarterback job, trailing senior Danny Sullivan, sophomore Samson Szakacsy (dude your mom's hot) and potentially a sophomore and incoming freshman.

This will inspire rumors he was one of those guys who simply couldn't hack it, but in a believe it if you will statement Erickson says "He would have played here eventually." Well, he certainly had the bloodlines.

Quarterback Jack Elway Leaves Arizona State Football Program originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 07 Apr 2009 18:16:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Signing Day: Nation's Top Linebacker Vontaze Burfict to Arizona State

Brian Grummell — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, USC, Pac 10, Recruiting, National Signing Day 2009

In the first real shocker of signing day 2009, Corona (CA) linebacker and No. 9 rated player by Rivals.com Vontaze Burfict has decommitted from USC to play for Arizona State. The Riverside Press-Enterprise reports that a representative of the all-everything linebacker phoned USC on Tuesday to inform them of his change of plans.

Burfict is a monster get for coach Dennis Erickson and the Arizona State Sun Devils -- assuming they can get him in school, a major concern for all parties. Burfict (seen above mauling some poor high school running back) has long been rumored to have a difficult grade and test score situation that may not pass muster with the NCAA Clearinghouse or the colleges themselves.

Symbolically, however, landing Burfict is huge. Arizona State gets a ferocious defender with offers from the biggest schools. It helps that several of Burfict's high school teammates are committed to or play for the Sun Devils.

This also counts as modest revenge after USC plucked Arizona natives center Kris O'Dowd and defensive end Everson Griffen from Arizona State's clutches two years ago, and defensive end Devon Kennard this year.

Grades are the real story here, and Arizona seemed more willing to accommodate and assist Burfict lest he go the junior college route.

In an interview last week, Burfict said he preferred Arizona State because the school has provided an academic map of what he needs to complete in order to become eligible.

USC dearly wanted Burfict, but at the same time, it makes sense that Arizona State would step in here and go that extra mile to convince him they can not only most assist him, but feature him on the field earlier.

FanHouse takes you into the belly of the college football beast that is recruiting. We'll be around before, during and after Signing Day '09

Signing Day: Nation's Top Linebacker Vontaze Burfict to Arizona State originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This Week In Schadenfreude: It's Chemical Burn Time in Ann Arbor

Brian Cook — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:56:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Auburn, Clemson, LSU, Michigan, Oklahoma

scha·den·freu·de

-noun

satisfaction or pleasure felt at someone else's misfortune.

[Origin: 1890-95; < G, equiv. to Schaden harm + Freude joy]

On This Week In Schadenfreude we explore the sputtering rage, gibbering condemnation, and resigned ennui of the college football fan who has recently undergone humiliating defeat. Because even in your darkest hour, someone else is suffering too, and probably worse than you. Unless you are a Michigan fan who has just finished watching the Appalachian State game.

It was sort of like The Horror last year: Michigan takes on a ridiculously overmatched opponent, finds itself trailing late, gets a last-second chip-shot field goal to redeem themselves, and blows it. Also bloggers started posting mushroom clouds.

But they didn't stop there. The Hoover Street Rag busted out this scene from Fight Club:

What is this?

This is a chemical burn. It will hurt more than you have ever been burned, and you will have a scar.

Uh... yeah. Michigan, you are the Tears of Unfathomable Sadness award recipient.

The rest of the week in spleen after the jump.

BIG TEN

Michigan. I guess I should mention the chaos and strife going on on the homefront: MGoBlog currently has a Civil War painting foremost, describes the Wolverine-on-Wolverine violence currently engulfing the Michigan internets, and then perpetrates some of its own:

I assure you that every Michigan fan was angry on Saturday, and every one had second thoughts about this New Era thing. Some of them chose to swallow that anger, and some chose to give it to someone else. What's the adult thing to do? What would those people in hats have done in 1935?

They would have sucked it up. So suck it up, you pansies. It hurts. Act like a man about it.

Elsewhere, Genuinely Sarcastic calls Michigan fans "gutless" and Varsity Blue declares M fans to "really really really really suck."

I expect a minor ethnic cleansing in the next six weeks.

PAC 10

Washington, mercifully, had an off week, so we must turn our attention elsewhere. How about 2-4 Arizona State, fresh off a 28-0 loss to USC? The mood on the ASU boards is decidedly mean:

Any more Rudy apologists out there???

He is a an absolute joke. All talk, no play. Don't even try to blame the line, no pressure and he throws is right to a defender.

I can't believe he is going to be the statisical leader of ASU's Qb's. He has no place anywhere near Jake, Danny White, hell even Andrew Walter.

Nothing like a random dude on the internet calling a starting D-I college quarterback a "joke." Unless that's Sam Keller, that's probably unwarranted.

Actually... is that Sam Keller? If I was him I'd certainly run around Arizona State message boards posting "lolcarpenter" as fast as humanly possible.

Also: there is a thread titled "hyper-obsessed rat loser," which immediately became a popular name to bestow on your Rock Band outfit.

Aaand let's check in once again on UCLA, losers to Oregon. Bruins Nation, what say you?

And no matter the result, I'd take that [a surprise onside kick Oregon recovered] over a coach that called plays even a 6 year old could've predicted.

Aw, hamburgers. I miss Karl Dorrell.

SEC

Auburn fired its offensive coordinator midway through his first season and then lost to Arkansas after losing to Vanderbilt and beating Mississippi State 3-2, at which point the Joe Cribbs Car Wash had a bonafide psychotic break:

Welcome to ahotpictureofBritishactressLucyGriffiths.com? Would you like to see a hot picture of British actress Lucy Griffiths? Here's one!

[Picture redacted so we don't get sued; hit the JCCW for, well, a hot picture of British actress Lucy Griffiths.]

We hope you liked it! Please check back if you would like to see the hot picture of British actress Lucy Griffiths again!

Football? No, at ahotpictureofBritishactressLucyGriffiths.com we don't know anything about any football.

When I get around to writing my book Ways In Which Football Bloggers Deal With Humiliating Defeat, "pretend you're living someone else's life and post a picture of a hot chick/kitten" will get its own chapter.

LSU lost to Florida, prompting completely reasonable things on LSU message boards like "Saban's players gone=Mediocrity" and "We shouldn't be happy with Mediocre." What is it with LSU fans and big-m Mediocrity? I don't know. I do know this, uh...

I love Les Miles... with that said we should not be happy with thrashings like that of saturday. We should not be happy with 9-3 seasons. Yes it wasnt too long ago that we were 3-9 but i lived through the nineties and was diehard lsu even then, but it hurts to see a schalacking like saturday. We deserve better as fans than to witness the lack of spunk and discipline that is a staple to LSU defenses for the last several years.

...is... uh. YOU WON THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP LAST YEAR. SHUT UP. SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP.

BIG EAST

Syracuse 6, West Virginia 17. Cue the crying child:

Later, rinse, repeat.

BIG TWELVE

At this point Oklahoma boards are mostly filled with anti-schadenfreude backlash instead of the actual stuff. The best item was from some guy on Soonerfans with a kickin' bald eagle/american flag icon giving it to the whiners. This is also a variety of reverse schadenfreude:

Much to the happiness of a few of you losers, this is my last post in this place. Too many whiney *** losers here. You cry like little babies and make all kinds of excuses for why OU loses a game. ...

So have fun playing with yourselves. Some day, you'll have to step out from behind the keyboard. And then someone will throat punch you little babies back into oblivion.

Throat punch!

Tell me you haven't wanted to do that to people on the internet. If there was a throat-punching virus you could install on people's computers that would be rad.

We've also got some examples of schadenfeud, wherein the anger is directed at some incompetent media hack. In this case it's the Oklahoman's near-illiterate Berry Tramel:

One of the first lines in the "article" was: "This was an historic game from which you couldn't avert your eyes."

Is it just me or does this sound like the opening line of a 10th graders english exam about his favorite sports team. ...

They have the nerve to even video this guy...I dont want a guy that looks like he just rolled out of a dumpster after taking a bong hit representing Oklahoma.

Dude, I'm with you on that one.

ACC

Ding, dong, the freude is dead at Clemson, as the Tigers have just sacked Tommy Bowden halfway through the season. Reliable TWIS feature blog Block C will presumably be taking the rest of the year off and speculating wildly about who will take over.

But let's get one for the road, huh?

I think it's sort of like pissing yourself and being all angry and confused at first and then just settling into resigned melancholy, being like "Hey, yeah, I pissed myself. Oh, well. Here I am, all pissy and smelling vaguely of popcorn. Aw, now it's starting to get cold. Well, here I am."

Thanks, Block C. Your service to the cause has been appreciated, and good luck with whoever the next guy is.

Oh, what the hell, let's do one more, this from Sporting Gnomes:

Me: How would you like to suck my balls?
Tommy Bowden: What did you say?
Me: I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Actually, what I said was...
[picks up a megaphone]
Me: HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO SUCK MY BALLS, TOMMY BOWDEN?

Bowden's new answer is "somewhat, depending on how much you'll pay him."

This Week In Schadenfreude: It's Chemical Burn Time in Ann Arbor originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:56:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pac Ten Refs Need Two Extra Fingers

Brian Cook — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:51:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Georgia

Midway through the fourth quarter of the Arizona State-Georgia game, Arizona had a stirring goal line stand:

Said goal line stand was made with twelve guys on the field, but it was still pretty stirring. The screwup had minimal impact on the game since Georgia kicked a field goal to go up three scores and ended the game there, but Jebus Pac Ten refs can't win.

Georgia fans aren't looking forward to the return trip:

I hope Georgia gets to insist on SEC officials in next year's game in Athens. If those Pac-10 clowns show up and do that poor a job again, it'll get very ugly, very quickly.

Buy stock in Athens Torch and Pitchfork.

Pac Ten Refs Need Two Extra Fingers originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 23 Sep 2008 19:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arizona State Game Provides Foolproof Georgia Fan Detection System

Brian Cook — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 20:42:00 EST

Filed under: Arizona State, Georgia

If you walk into your local liquor purveyor and wander over to the brown section and see this:

Where "this" is "enormous holes where Jack Daniels and Maker's Mark normally go," you have scheduled a game against Georgia. Please be aware large NASCAR fans clad head-to-toe in red are in the area; it is not the apocalypse.

Potential utility of this advice? Low, since the Arizona State-Georgia game was the first time UGA had played outside the secession zone since the Flintstones were alive. But just in case.

Side note for Arizonans: according to the comments of the Georgia Sports Blog, that Knob Creek is quite a deal. Buy accordingly.

Arizona State Game Provides Foolproof Georgia Fan Detection System originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 22 Sep 2008 20:42:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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