NCAA Football FanHouse

Jahvid Best Injured, Taken to ER

Brian Grummell — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:55:00 EST

Filed under: California, Oregon State, Injuries

Cal's electric wizard of a tailback Jahvid Best, once a Heisman Trophy candidate, took a significant spill against Oregon State Saturday night. Best rose high into the air on the way to a touchdown but fell onto his back and neck and was left immobile from the play.

Best's helmet flew off from the impact with the ground and his arms immediately went stiff.

According to Cal coach Jeff Tedford on the Cal Radio Network, Best suffered a mild concussion and has movement in all his extremities.

Video of the play after the jump.

Best's score with 6:07 left in the second quarter cut the Oregon State lead to 14-7, but the Beavers took a 21-7 lead into halftime.

This was the second violent impact Best has been involved with. Maryland's Kevin Barnes leveled a brutal hit on Best last season that forced the tailback to vomit on the field.

Jahvid Best Injured, Taken to ER originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:55:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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USC Bores, Excels In New Identity

Brian Grummell — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 01:23:00 EST

Filed under: California, USC

When in doubt, play defense. That seems to be the philosophy right now at USC, which has taken an offense with nine returning starters and the nation's best offensive line and driven it into a ditch for large stretches of this season. And so it was on the road Saturday, the USC Trojans steadily outplaying the Cal Bears on the way to a 30-3 victory.

Mirroring last week's performance against Washington State, USC came out firing offensively in building a 20-0 second-quarter lead, eventually cooled, and still cruised to victory behind yet another dominating defensive performance. Strange days considering that defense was one of the best of this era last year and graduated the bulk of its talent to the NFL.

That style of play is part of a new reality for USC this year. Despite explosive elements all over the offense, and the occasional scoring outburst, the Trojans seem more content to grind things out and take what comes while letting their underrated defense do the heavy lifting. It's a winning combo but as we've seen already, 1) it won't win every game and 2) doesn't do much for the public that understands offensive efficiency isn't an impossible task in college football. Except for USC.

The defensive numbers all lined up -- three points allowed, Jahvid Best held to just 47 yards, Cal held to a mere 285 yards overall. USC perfectly emulated Oregon's successful strategy from last week, shutting Best down and harassing the increasingly erratic Bear quarterback Kevin Riley. Riley went just 15 for 40 for 199 yards and an interception. With Best hemmed in, USC closed in on Riley and guided him into a 5 for 17 effort in the second half before a helpless home crowd.

This game and the pattern of games before it makes perfectly clear that despite his ability to build a successful running offense year in and year out, Cal coach Jeff Tedford simply cannot compete with USC coach Pete Carroll without an elite quarterback. The closest games between the two have been when Tedford trotted out Kyle Boller and Aaron Rodgers. The math simply isn't there to hang with USC led by the Nate Longshores, Joe Ayoobs and Kevin Rileys of the world.

The inevitable fallout: Cal's Rose Bowl hopes are now dashed, extending the longest Rose Bowl drought in the conference.

Saturday's matchup with Cal is the beginning of a tough stretch for the Trojans. They'll have a bye week to recuperate, but then travel to rival Notre Dame, host Oregon State, then travel to Oregon and Arizona State before hosting Stanford (3-0 in Pac-10 play) and rival UCLA.

The Trojans' success will rest largely with the performance of the defense, but also with the development of freshman quarterback Matt Barkley. Barkley once again showed excellent poise and command of the offense Saturday, but has a tendency to throw rockets -- lots of them. He clearly has a big arm, but if he cannot develop some touch in the short passing game he endangers a significant portion of the Trojans' bread-and-butter looks. It's worth monitoring. Regardless, he survived his second tough road test, completing 57 percent of his passes for 283 yards against a quality Bear secondary.

Teammate Joe McKnight was spectacular, rushing for 119 yards and two touchdowns, including a four-yard trek in the fourth quarter that should temper some fears of a weakened short running game in the absence of Stafon Johnson after his lifting accident earlier in the week.

USC Bores, Excels In New Identity originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 04 Oct 2009 01:23:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Heisman Situation Suitably Uncertain

Brian Grummell — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: California, Florida, University of Miami, Oklahoma, Texas, Heisman

Crazy as it sounded but a few weeks ago, there is a chance neither Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy or Sam Bradford will win the 2009 Heisman Trophy. Maybe that's a good thing. Their journey of inevitability has taken on some water surprisingly early this year.

When BYU's Coleby Clawson slammed Bradford to the turf causing a shoulder injury, Bradford's repeat hopes were finished. He has still yet to play a down since then. Last Saturday against Kentucky, Tebow also sustained a concussion injury while being driven to the ground. It is unclear whether he will play Saturday against LSU in Florida's first real test this season.

Meanwhile, Colt McCoy already has five interceptions although he completed 80 percent of his passes Saturday against UTEP as the Longhorns appear to have turned a corner offensively in pouring 64 points on the Miners.

If Tebow can't go or he struggles and the Gators drop a game or two, McCoy will certainly be the clear favorite. He has the added benefit of widespread public sympathy being the only member of the fabled trio without a Heisman Trophy. Mix in a little awareness that Texas was left out of last year's BCS National Championship game and there's the data necessary to build a sympathy coalition.

All that said, neither Tebow or McCoy are inevitabilities at this point. Their cases aren't runaway trains and a field of competitors is emerging. The most obvious choice would be Cal running back Jahvid Best. Many are writing him off after he fizzled against Oregon, gaining just 55 yards as his Bears were humiliated 42-3. But he should rebound and get into that 1,500- to 2,000-yard range by the end of the year. He has a great redemption opportunity this upcoming Saturday against a USC team that while weakened, has been almost impenetrable on defense. That story writes itself if he goes off.

It is an opinion shared by Heisman Pundit, who also notes, 'Heisman sentiment is extremely fluid and will remain so until the outcome of the October schedule'. That October schedule, by the way, includes a date between McCoy's Longhorns and the Oklahoma Sooners who may just have Bradford behind center again. A poor McCoy performance or upset loss could do significant damage to his otherwise sparkling credentials.

A McCoy slip is unlikely but in any event it takes two to Tango, meaning other candidates have to be positioned in a manner to take advantage. Whether that is Best, or Miami quarterback Jacory Harris (who also had a rough Saturday against Virginia Tech), Notre Dame's Jimmy Clausen, Houston's Case Keenum, USC's Joe McKnight, Alabama's Greg McElroy or whoever, they too have to be scintillating from here out.

A recent example that comes to mind is that of Wisconsin tailback Ron Dayne. Before the 1999 season he was expected to set the NCAA career rushing mark, but stumbled in one game early in the early going. The opportunities were there to unseat him but a reliable challenger never emerged and by the final weeks he was once again the favorite on the way to winning the award.

So we see something similar here, with Bradford out, Tebow possibly missing a game and/or playing ineffectively against a solid opponent, and McCoy possibly staring down upsets to Oklahoma or even Oklahoma State.

Bottom line is McCoy's a slightly vulnerable favorite but like his peers Tebow and Bradford not a runaway favorite. This is the best that could be asked of the Heisman race for folks bored by the seeming inevitability of the three major preseason candidates.

Heisman Situation Suitably Uncertain originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Starting 11: Seeing Crimson

Clay Travis — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:12:00 EST

Filed under: Alabama, California, Florida, Penn State, General CFB Insanity

On Saturday, I got Comcasted. Chances are, if you pay Comcast for anything -- I pay them almost $3,000 a year for cable, two DVRs, internet and home phone -- you've been Comcasted too. You know the feeling, something isn't working and it's impossible to get them to take care of it. In past years, my wife and I would literally fight over who had to call Comcast to rectify an error.

But this time it was personal, this time their incompetence cost me watching my team play on pay-per-view.

On Friday evening, I ordered the Tennessee's game against Ohio. The game was supposed to cost $24.95 since I was ordering it a day in advance. It cost $29.95, according to the ordering screen. So be it. no big deal. If Comcast only screws me out of $5, I consider it a blessing. I watched college football games all day, the prelude to one of the 12 chances I'll have all season to watch my team play.

Then, came kickoff of Tennessee and Ohio, nothing.

There was nothing.

To say I was furious does the word injustice.

Every sports fan knows the feeling. Especially those with Comcast. You're sitting in front of the television, hitting refresh over and over with the remote and getting nothing in return. Your blood pressure rises, you realize that the kickoff has come and gone. You want to break something, anything. But then you calm yourself and turn into a television doctor, attempting to diagnose the problem.

Initially, of course, you expect that maybe you're making an error. If only.

Because that would be easy to rectify. I went downstairs, turned off my son's Sprout Television Network -- he was watching Zobamafoo, one of the most terrifyingly uncomfortable creations in the history of children's television. He squealed when Dad changed the channel.

Nope, no game there either. The game wasn't anywhere to be found in the Travis household. I sighed, turned on Gamecast, picked up my cell phone and dialed the local Comcast number.

A busy signal.

I called three more times while walking back upstairs. The busy signals continued. Then my cell phone went dead because I forgot to charge it.

On online message boards, University of Tennessee fans came undone, the entire city of Nashville proceeded to rend their garments when Jonathan Crompton threw an interception and we had to follow it on the radio.

What follows is the typical ClayNation Starting 11 with a bonus screed against Comcast mixed in. It's a tragic opera, Madame Butterfly meets Comcast and football.

1. Julio Jones finally scored a touchdown for Alabama on a well-designed trick play in the second quarter against Arkansas. This ends 11 consecutive games without a touchdown for Jones.

Having watched all of Alabama-Arkansas, I'll tell you this: Alabama is the best team in the nation one-third of the way through the football season.

At my wit's end, I sat down on my couch and picked up my Comcast digital phone service to call them. No dial tone.

Yep, my home phone doesn't work either.

2. With Penn State's loss to Iowa, the Big Ten is eliminated from BCS Title contention. Book it. Yeah, yeah Iowa and Michigan haven't lost yet, but they will. And even if neither did, I'm sure they wouldn't get the nod over one-loss teams from the SEC or Big 12. Not to mention Boise State.

By the way, how tough were the Daryll Clark interceptions for Penn State fans to relive after last year's loss? Especially with the gauzy ESPN feature where Clark talked about spending the entire offseason thinking about those mistakes? Then he goes out and does it all over again. Only worse, three interceptions this year and only 12 completions out of 32 attempts. If you're a Penn State fan, what percentage of the blame do you place squarely at ESPN and ABC's feet simply for running this story and getting those quotes from him? 30? 40?

I then walked around to all three phone jacks and checked to make sure the phone was correctly plugged in. It was.

Meet Comcast irony: I can't call Comcast to tell them that the cable isn't working because the telephone I would call them from doesn't work either.

Comcastic!

3. Bobby Petrino required eight police officers to escort him to the locker room during halftime Saturday. Eight! On Twitter, I quipped this was because Arkansas was afraid Petrino might bolt otherwise.

Now, I think we need to start a ClayNation analysis of officers assigned to a coach. Here's the working hypothesis: The more officers, state troopers and the like assigned to your coach, the better job security he has.

Let's keep track of this and see if it holds up.

My inability to order the Tennessee game is the latest issue we've had with Comcast in the past month. Two weeks ago, our cable went out downstairs without warning. I called Comcast. One technician arrived, replaced my DVR, and pronounced the set fixed. Later, I checked the channels.

Yep, Comcast blocked the HD ones.

4. My friend Neville, a 31-year-old Indian man currently living in his parent's basement while he seeks employment, called me this week. "Have you ever considered the latent homosexuality of Southern male football fans?" he asked. "They shake pompons, wear short khaki shorts, and spend all their free time rooting for muscular black men to triumph over other muscular black men."

After the HD channels went out, I called Comcast back again and requested a new technician.

He arrived and fixed the stations.

But now the television remote doesn't work.

5. Gene Chizik has almost won as many college games after four games at Auburn as he won in 24 at Iowa If you ever doubted how much the job impacts the perception of the coach, this is perfect evidence that it does.

By the way, Auburn is 4-0, yet not ranked in the Top 25. How is this possible? Second question: How is Tennessee favored over Auburn this weekend?

I told my wife that the remote wasn't working, but that she had to call Comcast this time. She refused. We've both decided to change the stations by hand because we don't want to call Comcast again.

6. I had several friends who are Kentucky fans heading up for the Florida game. They lost 63-5 last year. On Saturday both of them swore that the Cats had a 20 percent chance of winning this year.

If you've ever questioned what fan base has the most irrationally optimistic fans in America, it's Kentucky. Here's a stat for you, in the Rich Brooks era they are 1-24 against teams in the SEC East not named Vanderbilt.

Last month the alarm company telephoned me to report that when they switched us to digital phone service, Comcast turned off our home alarm. Yep, our alarm hadn't been working for a month.

7. Georgia defensive coordinator Willie Martinez should rename each of his children, A.J. Green.

The Georgia-Arizona State game snuck up on a lot of people. It was on ESPN U, it didn't get a lot of hype, but it was an amazingly competitive game that Green singlehandedly won for the Bulldogs. First, he blocked a short field goal attempt Arizona State that would have given the Sun Devils the lead, and then caught a 36-yard pass on the final drive.

Put it this way, if Green doesn't play for the Bulldogs, they are 1-3 right now. Can you say that about any other receiver in the country, that he's responsible for three wins alone? I don't think so.

You know what you would get if Comcast ran college football? The BCS.

8. How many more ways can Les Miles find to defy probability and win?

Mississippi State had two tries from a football-length outside the goal line to win the game and the Tigers still win? On third down, your safety makes an amazing play and then on fourth down, quarterback Tyson Lee chooses not to extend the football over the goal line on a quarterback keeper. Why? I have no idea. The only possible answer is because he's playing against Miles.

Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen didn't even seem that surprised that all probabilities ceased to make sense against LSU. After the Chad Jackson punt return for a touchdown -- fielded inside the 10-yard line with an over-the-shoulder catch, Mullen sort of nodded 93 yards later. You could almost see him thinking, "Now I get to see up close and personal what it's like to coach against the luckiest man in America."

I'm waiting for this to happen.

Les Miles strides out to midfield for the overtime coin toss after converting 14 consecutive fourth down plays to tie the game at 38.

"Heads or tails," the ref asks.

"Neither," Miles says.

The stadium goes bonkers.

The ref shrugs his shoulders, "That means if it lands on heads or tails, (insert opponent here) wins the toss."

Miles nods.

Then the ref flips the coin and it lands standing up.

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Baylor sophomore quarterback Robert Griffin is examined after sustaining a torn ACL in his right knee during an NCAA college football game against Northwestern State on Saturday Sept. 26, 2009 in Waco Texas. Griffin is out for the year. (AP Photo/Waco Tribune Herald, Rod Aydelotte)

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In this photo taken Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, Penn State tight end Andrew Quarless is tackled by Iowa's Pat Angerer, upper right, and Tyler Sash, bottom, during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in State College, Pa. Iowa's defense handed the Nittany Lions their first loss for the second-straight season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

In this photo taken Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark (17) throws the ball away and was charges with intentional grounding as Iowa defenders Christian Ballard (46) and Jeremiha Hunter move in and clear Penn State offensive lineman Nerraw McCormack (72) out of the way during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in State College, Pa. Iowa's defense handed the Nittany Lions their first loss for the second-straight season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

In this photo taken Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, Iowa running back Adam Robinson leaps over Penn State defender Navorro Bowman during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in State College, Pa. Iowa's defense handed the Nittany Lions their first loss for the second-straight season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

In this photo taken Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, Penn State running back Evan Royster, left, is taken down by Iowa defenders Pat Angerer, center, and Karl Klug, right, during the first half of their NCAA football game in State College, Pa. Iowa's defense handed the Nittany Lions their first loss for the second-straight season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

In this photo taken Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, Penn State tight end Andrew Quarless is tackled by Iowa's Pat Angerer during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in State College, Pa. Iowa's defense handed the Nittany Lions their first loss for the second-straight season. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Texas senior quarterback Colt McCoy, right, talks with head coach Mack Brown, left, on the sideline during the fourth quarter of their team's 64-7 NCAA college football victory over Texas-El Paso Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in Austin, Texas. McCoy passed for 286 yards and three first-half touchdowns for the No. 2 Longhorns and now has 1,145 yards passing with nine touchdowns. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

Texas senior quarterback Colt McCoy is shown on the sideline during the fourth quarter of his team's 64-7 NCAA college football victory over Texas-El Paso Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009, in Austin, Texas. McCoy passed for 286 yards and three first-half touchdowns for the No. 2 Longhorns and now has 1,145 yards passing with nine touchdowns. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

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LOS ANGELES - SEPTEMBER 23: Young USC Trojans fans yell in the game with the Washingotn State Cougars on September 23, 2009 at the Los Angeles Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

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A few years back a Comcast representative memorably told me that my internet wasn't working because, "When it's hot the Internet doesn't work as well." I asked her if that meant the internet never worked in Africa or Florida. "Umm hmm," she said.

9. Is there any conference in America more unpredictable than the Pac 10? And when favorites get beat, how do they get beaten so badly? Cal loses 42-3 to Oregon?

Cal was favored by seven. that's a 46-point swing against the line. That might be the biggest differential relative to expectation that happens this year.

I'm genuinely interested in how this happens. Pac-10 fans please e-mail me and explain this. I don't get it. I could see if upsets happened, but not cataclysmic, Earth-shaking upsets where one team simply gets destroyed.

Much to my relief, I received the link to a pirated feed of the Tennessee-Ohio game via Twitter. So I pulled it up on my computer and watched it there.

10. If I were ranking the top five teams in America, here's my poll: 1. Alabama 2. Texas 3. Florida 4. Boise State. 5. Cincinnati

That's changed since late Saturday night for anyone following me on Twitter. Here's my rationale. To begin, Alabama's dismantling of Virginia Tech is now the single best win by any undefeated team in America. Their body of work is the most impressive and they haven't played a truly close game yet. I think they have to be No. 1.

Regarding Texas and Florida, I think Florida's offensive explosiveness is truly in question. Not to mention that Florida is having to ride Tebow too much. (Was anyone else really uncomfortable with the idea of Tebow screaming to Urban Meyer that he needed to ride him like a horse?) Next, I think Boise has the second best win among the undefeated teams with their beat down of Oregon. That looks a lot better now that Oregon has won three consecutive games.

Finally, Cincinnati, as we've been talking about in the ClayNation column for a couple of weeks, will be favored in every game for the rest of the season. I think they're very under-ranked right now.

Despite checking throughout the entirety of the game, Tennessee-Ohio never came on my television. Right now, I'm calling my Comcast shot, there is going to be a $29.95 charge on my bill for the game that I will have to dispute.

11. Kentucky fan optimism often turns to massive consumptions of bourbon.

Received text from my Kentucky friend Tardio at the end of the first quarter as Florida went up 31-0. "Good things about today's game. A.) It's not raining B.) They undercharged me for a Coke." From my friend Weatherholt, who was also at the game, "Most embarrassing quarter of my life."

At that point, Florid had outscored Kentucky, wait for it, 94-5 in the past five quarters.

At the end of the Texas Tech- Houston game, well after midnight, as I went to turn off my television a notation flickered on my screen, "Tennessee-Ohio is now replaying."

Comcastic!
...
Clay Travis is the author of three books. His latest, "On Rocky Top: A Front Row Seat to The End of an Era" chronicles the 2008 Tennessee football season and is on sale now.

Starting 11: Seeing Crimson originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 27 Sep 2009 22:12:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Battle for Respect Turns Into Cal-amity

Lonnie White — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 23:16:00 EST

Filed under: California, Oregon, Pac 10

Take a big thick red marker and draw a line through California on the list of top Pac-10 football teams looking to gain some national respect this season.

Isn't that what you do to fraudulent programs that fail to show up in statement games?

Well, that's what happened to Cal, who entered the weekend undefeated and ranked sixth in the AP poll but got hammered by unranked Oregon, 42-3, in a game that wasn't even that close at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore.

While Cal blew a chance to step up in the national landscape, the Ducks took full advantage of their opportunity.

After basically being written off at the start of the season following a disappointing loss at Boise State, which was overshadowed by LeGarrette Blount's post-game punch and season-long suspension, Oregon has now won three games in a row, which include back-to-back wins over ranked teams (Utah and Cal).

"The rankings don't matter to us," Oregon coach Chip Kelly said after the Ducks accounted for 524 total yards and held Cal to 206. "We knew we were going to win this game, we just made it happen. It's all about preparation."

To say that the Ducks gave Cal coach Jeff Tedford's mysterious team a beat down would be a major understatement. It was the Bears' most lopsided defeat ever under Tedford and the program's worst since USC beat Cal, 55-14, in 2001.
"The rankings don't matter to us ... We knew we were going to win this game, we just made it happen. It's all about preparation."
-Chip Kelley
"It all came down to us executing," Cal offensive lineman Mike Tepper said. "We'll take a look at film and learn from it. I've never been shut out before. This is definitely a huge learning experience.

"[Oregon's] guys were lighter and faster. But in the end, we shot ourselves in the foot left and right ... we just got beat. We got beat bad."

The Bears, who dropped to 3-1, looked good early when they forced an Oregon fumble on the opening kickoff and capitalized on the turnover to take a 3-0 lead.

But then everything seemed to fall apart for Cal on both sides of the ball and the player who hurt the Bears the most was Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.

Starting with his struggles at Boise State to open the season, Masoli's stock had dropped considerably heading into Saturday's game: the Ducks had the Pac-10's worst passing offense, averaging 128 yards per game, and Masoli had completed less than 50 percent of his passes without a touchdown this season.

Masoli and the Ducks' offense rediscovered their game against the Bears, who looked confused and unprepared for most of the contest.

Masoli completed 21 of 25 passes for 253 yards with three touchdowns going to tight end Ed Dickson, who finished with 11 catches for a career-high 148 yards. Oregon also ran the ball well with LaMichael James rushing for 118 of the team's 238 yards gained on the ground.

"On offense the sky's the limit for us," Masoli said after the game. "We're the only ones who can hurt us. These last couple of weeks we've been in a funk, but today we moved past that."

Getting the ball to Dickson early and often played a key role in Oregon's passing attack. Listed at 6-5 and 243 pounds with 4.5 speed in the 40, Dickson is a matchup headache for any defense. But until Saturday, Dickson had been missing in action this season.

That was not the case against Cal.

"I think he is the best tight end in the Pac-10," Kelly said about Dickson, who had only four catches in three games prior to Saturday. "He is a game-changer at that position."

Cal's game-changer, Heisman Trophy candidate Jahvid Best, was never a factor against the Ducks. After rushing for a career-high five touchdowns in Cal's win at Minnesota last week, Best was limited to 55 yards against Oregon, which limited him from any breakaway runs.

And with Best held in check, the Bears turned into an average team with a suspect quarterback in Kevin Riley, who completed only 12 of 31 passes for 123 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

Fortunately for the Bears, they will not have to wait long to redeem themselves because they host USC next week in Berkeley.

"I still have confidence in our guys," Tedford said about his team. "We'll go back to work this week with a good attitude and a lot of focus. I love this team, and I love our kids. It's one loss. It's a tough loss so we'll make sure we work extremely hard next week."

Battle for Respect Turns Into Cal-amity originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 23:16:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Duck! Oregon Dismantles No. 6 Cal

Brian Grummell — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 20:43:00 EST

Filed under: California, Oregon, Pac 10

Cal might've been looking ahead to next week's showdown with suddenly vulnerable USC, but they certainly sucked all the excitement out of it after getting whipped by the throwback jersey-wearing Oregon Ducks, 42-3.

They probably did just as much harm to Jahvid Best's Heisman campagin. The Ducks shut down the star running back, holding him to 55 yards and also battered Bears' quarterback Kevin Riley into a feeble 123-yard outing.

Saturday's victory is part of a stunning turnaround for Oregon, following its opening night embarrassment against Boise, a game marred by offensive ineptitude and LeGarrette Blount's sucker punch heard 'round the world. Since then, Oregon has beaten Purdue, Utah and now California. Amusingly, the Ducks dominated Cal in a manner similar to how Boise State handled them.

The takeaway here is that Cal's shaky passing game was thoroughly exposed, with Riley looking like another link in the chain of suspect Cal quarterbacks since the departure of Aaron Rodgers after 2004. The Duck defenders harassed him all afternoon and he made little headway in connecting to a mostly anonymous group of receivers.

But it all started with shutting down Best. His afternoon wasn't a complete flop but 55 yards on 15 carries just won't cut it when he's such a critical part of the Bear offense. Most will likely write his Heisman hopes off, but he still has a shot. Much depends on the other candidates, however and both Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy have done little to suggest they won't be in New York.

The Ducks have clearly moved past the Blount situation, riding freshman back LaMichael James to a 118-yard afternoon, his second 100-plus yard outing in as many games. Even more impressive, quarterback Jeremiah Masoli went off, hitting 21 of 25 passes with three touchdowns in an extremely efficient effort. Oregon's passing game was supposedly exposed by Boise State, but perhaps it was merely dormant as Masoli struck early, before the run game was firmly established. His main target was versatile tight end Ed Dickson who had a career outing, catching 11 balls for 148 yards and all three of Masoli's touchdowns.

He shredded the Bears defense, reminiscent of recent USC tight end Fred Davis, who had several 100-plus-yard games of his own his senior year on the way to the Mackey Award.

The trio of name victories should be sufficient to launch Oregon into the polls this week, as the Ducks look forward to games against Washington State, UCLA, Washington and USC in October.

Duck! Oregon Dismantles No. 6 Cal originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 26 Sep 2009 20:43:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jahvid Best Leads Cal to Key Road Win

Bruce Ciskie — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 15:35:00 EST

Filed under: California, Minnesota, Big 10, Pac 10

There aren't many superlatives that accurately describe the kind of day California running back Jahvid Best had Saturday. If he wasn't already considered one of the top running backs in the country, he must be now.

Cal needed this game against Minnesota. The Oct. 3 showdown with USC wouldn't mean as much if Cal already had a loss. The Gophers were looking to make a serious statement, playing for just the second time in sparkling new TCF Bank Stadium. Thanks to Best, the Gophers were left wondering what might have been.

The Heisman Trophy candidate had a major breakout game Saturday. Best ran for 131 yards and scored five touchdowns as the eighth-ranked Golden Bears were able to beat Minnesota, 35-21.

Last year, Cal started a game at Maryland sluggishly, and their late rally fell short. This year, there was no such slow start, except to the second half.

Best made sure that the Golden Bears would get out to a lead, as he ripped off two touchdown runs, including a 68-yarder, in the first eight minutes of the game. Cal took leads of 14-0 and 21-7, but the win didn't come without a few bumps along the way.

The Gophers rallied from their disastrous start, thanks largely to the hands and left arm of wide receiver Eric Decker. It was Decker's outstanding 26-yard score that got the Gophers on the board in the first quarter, then his seven-yard touchdown pass to backup quarterback MarQueis Gray on a trick play tied the score for Minnesota. Decker caught eight passes for 119 yards and two scores, along with his touchdown pass. With his performance Saturday, Decker is now Minnesota's all-time leading pass-catcher.

However, starting quarterback Adam Weber had trouble with his accuracy, and the Gophers struggled mightily to run the football against the Cal defense. Weber threw three interceptions, including a killer in the fourth quarter as the Gophers were trying to rally from a seven-point deficit. On the ensuing drive, Best scored his fifth touchdown of the game to ice it.

The Gophers were held to 37 yards rushing, just a 1.8-yard average.

Cal quarterback Kevin Riley threw for 252 yards and avoided any turnovers. The Golden Bears move to 3-0, while Minnesota falls to 2-1.

This isn't a good thing for the Big Ten, but Minnesota can take solace in the fact that they were competitive against a team ranked in the top ten. For a Gopher team still in the building stages at a few positions, it's something to build on.

Jahvid Best Leads Cal to Key Road Win originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 19 Sep 2009 15:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pac-10 Notes: USC and Cal Up, Everyone Else In Holding Pattern

Brian Grummell — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:05:00 EST

Filed under: California, Ohio State, Tennessee, UCLA, USC, Pac 10

Pac-10 teams begin their second week of play on Saturday, highlighted by No. 3 USC's trip to Columbus to play Ohio State. It means nothing but consensus leans heavily towards the Trojans despite it being a cover of darkness road game before what Eleven Warriors calls 105,000 of college football's best hooligans, despite starting a true freshman quarterback in Matt Barkley and despite Ohio State having the tiebreaker of all tiebreakers in Terrelle Pryor.

Yeah, USC's loaded. The rest of the conference lineup Saturday is a mixed bag filled with one big road trip to SEC country, a couple middling names and a handful of regional cupcakes. Mmm, cupcakes. Wait, no, bad Pac-10. Time to bag some fresh game out of say, Knoxville? Hmmm, maybe not.

So, USC. We last saw them romping over Dick Why In The Heck Did Arizona Fire Him Tomey's San Jose State kids, 56-3 behind a ridiculous 342 yard rush effort that was the fifth best rush total of the Pete Carroll era. Their defense played lights out as well, allowing a little over 130 total yards while mixing in some talented youngsters. The names to know this year beyond Taylor Mays are middle linebacker Chris Galippo and defensive tackle Jurrell Casey.

Obviously on Saturday we'll see them on the road against Ohio State with all kinds of intrigue as people see if USC can continue its ridiculous streak of big early season road game kills. Notable: Taylor Mays has likened Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor to a Pterodactyl.

Oregon -- The first rule of Blount-gate, nobody talks about Blount-gate. Or Boise State. Oregon is going to press the refresh button on its season this weekend as it hosts surprising Purdue. The Boilermakers smashed Akron to the tune of 315 rush yards, 234 of them coming from previously anonymous Ralph Bolden. Drew Brees would roll over in his grave at that news, er, um, anyway. The Duckies' big problem is their pass game was horribly exposed last week as something insufficient if they can't get that run game going. They have to, or this year's over.

Oregon State -- Just call them the Twin Mice of Terror, as the Rodgers brothers returned for the Beavers in rolling up 253 combined yards in a 34-7 victory over Portland State. Heaven help that offense is they're not on the field, as we saw what happened in the Sun Bowl against Pitt, an ugly 3-0 victory with absolutely zero spark. Sean Canfield replaced the injured Lyle Moevao and went 8 of 11 for 158 yards and appears to have found his mojo -- and accuracy. Next up: UNLV as the Beavers try to shake a history of slow starts.

Stanford -- Everyone's sleeper Pac-10 pick and with good reason, Stanford got the Pac-10 party started early with a 39-13 victory over improving Washington State last Saturday. Freshman quarterback Andrew Luck was solid if unspectacular but added 53 rush yards including a high of 31. The team's identity will mirror that of its coach, smash mouth football, little depth (we kid, we kid) and bulldozer back Toby Gerhart. Speaking of which he had 121 rush yards as part of a 288 yard team total. The defense chipped in a goal line stand from the one for good measure.

Of some intrigue, this week's game is at Wake Forest and Stanford coaches enforced a mandate that players not sleep on the flight. Mirroring Maryland's early start time against Cal last year, the game will kick off at noon Eastern, 9 AM Pacific time. The endlessly annoying Stanford Tree will most certainly not be recovered from its hangover in time to give its full effort on account of that. There will be retribution, oh yes, there will be retribution.

UCLA -- As expected the Bruin offense was so-so under redshirt freshman quarterback Kevin Prince, but an overall team effort speared a surge of 30 unanswered points after training San Diego State at home 14-3 last week. A return of a blocked field goal, three interceptions from defensive back Rahim Moore and a few timely runs plus a stout defensive effort after a shaky first quarter paved the way to a 33-14 final total. Next up is a trip to Knoxville, Tennessee to play ... Tennessee, a trip that tripped up northern rival California a few years ago.

Tennessee is well familiar with UCLA, as both coach Lane Kiffin and assistant Ed Orgeron were USC assistants. Orgeron gets particularly animated about UCLA and is certain to make clear losing to a team with powder blue colors is a crime against all of the Volunteer state. Bruins' offensive coordinator Norm Chow will be opposite sidelines of the man who replaced him at USC, almost certainly carrying a grudge. Good times.

Arizona State -- The Sun Devils battered cupcake Idaho State 50-3 last week, holding them to just 37 total yards. Kicker Thomas Weber nailed five short field goals on the way to a 20 point afternoon. Nobody will pay attention to them for at least another week with Louisiana-Monroe on the docket. Deservedly so. Schedule better, Sparky!

Arizona -- The Wildcats were 19-6 winners over Central Michigan, effectively shutting down one of the FBS's more versatile quarterbacks in Dan LeFevour. Matt Scott got the nod at quarterback, performing modestly beyond the 83 rush yards he totaled. Next up is Northern Arizona.

Cal -- The Bears have jumped out as the prime candidate to take down USC after stomping Maryland 52-13. Quarterback Kevin Riley tossed four touchdowns and the defense swarmed Maryland's quarterbacks in cruising to the revenge win. Next up is Eastern Washington before a brutal stretch at Minnesota, at Oregon, home against USC and then at UCLA. There's gold in them thar' proving grounds.

Washington -- The surprise team of the weekend, although I anticipated they'd put up a good fight against LSU. The Huskies are a bit like Stanford, with several very good players but lacking much overall depth to sustain themselves over 60 minutes. Husky Stadium was rocking in making an unwelcome host to the visitors from down south before inevitably falling 31-23. Moral victories are worthless but Washington gets a great shot Saturday for a real one against Idaho which would snap their 15-game losing streak.

Washington State -- Well, at least they showed some life in losing to Stanford 39-13. Quarterbacks Kevin Lopina and Marshall Lobbestael rotated but by every account Lopina was the clear superior. Yet, it looks like the rotation is in effect for another week when the Cougars host Hawaii.

Our Pac-10 Power Rankings

1)USC
2)Cal
3)Stanford
4)Oregon State
5)Washington
6)UCLA
7)Arizona
8)Arizona State
9)Oregon
10)Washington State

Pac-10 Teams In The Rankings

Rushing Offense (7) USC 342 yards/game
Total Offense (4) USC 620 yards/game
Scoring Offense (6) USC 56 points/game (9) California 52 points/game
Passing Efficiency (5) USC 212.83 rating (7) California 204.6
Time of Possession (2) Arizona 37:45 (7) Washington 36:52 (9) UCLA 35:59

Rush Defense (1) ASU -5 yards/game (2) USC 9 yards
Pass Defense (4) ASU 42 yards/game
Total Defense (1) ASU 37 yards/game (6) USC 121 yards
Scoring Defense (10) ASU 3 points/game TIE USC 3 points
Pass Efficiency Defense (1) ASU 22.64 rating
Sacks (1) California 6/game (4) USC 5/game
Turnover Margin (1) ASU +5 (10) California +2

Pac-10 Notes: USC and Cal Up, Everyone Else In Holding Pattern originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With Another Heisman Hopeful, Cal Hopes This Is No Case of Deja-Blue

Gary Washburn — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:00:00 EST

Filed under: California, USC, Pac 10, Heisman

LOS ANGELES -- The enthusiasm in Berkeley is muted because the California Golden Bears have been here before, possessing the opportunity to seize the Pac-10 crown from a vulnerable USC team, loaded with returning starters and gifted skill players, including a potential Heisman Trophy candidate.

It was 2006, and Marshawn Lynch was being billed as a Heisman candidate and the Bears were ready to unseat their hated rival from the south. Instead, they were blown out by Tennessee on national TV to open the season and then lost their Rose Bowl chance with a brutal loss at Arizona in November. Cal was relegated to the Holiday Bowl, and relegated once against to second-tier status in the college football landscape.

Jahvid Best is entering his junior season as perhaps the best returning tailback in the country. Cal took its lumps last season with a young receiving core and an unenviable situation at quarterback. But those issues have apparently dissipated in the offseason and the Bears are again ready for another run.

"The biggest thing we're going to have to do is execute," said Best, the nation's leading returning rusher at 1,580 yards. "When you look at the top teams in the country that consistently stay at the top level, they execute. I feel like that's something we need to work on as a team. We'll get over the hump if we execute."

The key for Cal is to avoid pitfalls in the schedule. Last year, the Bears were soundly beaten at Maryland and also dropped games at Oregon State and Arizona, diluting the importance of a late-season game at USC. This time, the Trojans come to Berkeley on Oct. 3, meaning the Bears' fate still could be determined four weeks before Halloween.

Any early-season trip-ups that have plagued the Bears in the past could prove fatal for their Rose Bowl hopes, and that is not lost on Best, who averaged a whopping 8.1 yards per carry as a sophomore.

"It's going to be a good thing for us, beating Maryland hopefully and get rolling by the time we get to [USC]," he said. " We should be rolling, playing at a good level. A lot of guys are coming back more confident. I am excited to see how we do in camp."

Kevin Riley entered fall camp as the starting quarterback after being unable to secure the position away from senior Nate Longshore last season. Coach Jeff Tedford never could decide on a permanent starter and it affected the team.

"As far as the running back is concerned, we really didn't get affected by the quarterback situation," Best said. "The receivers, some of them were telling me it was a little bit more difficult to get acclimated to one quarterback and then have the other one come it. That's a little less of a distraction for us."

Cal is ranked in the top 15 in many preseason polls, but college football pundits are waiting (and expecting) the Bears to eventually fall. That sentiment is not lost on Tedford.

"I think our program is at a point now where they learn how to handle that expectation," Tedford said. "It's not a big deal. We embrace it and we welcome it. I don't think there's any question that if we want to achieve our goal, we have to be more consistent in the passing game. Consistency at the quarterback position is really what we're looking for."

Best is the unquestioned leader of the offense and those lofty Heisman expectations are warranted given his performance in his first two years. But this may be his final season at Cal. Like Lynch before him, Best is considering entering the NFL draft following his junior season. Right now, however, leading Cal to its first Rose Bowl in 51 years is his foremost thought.

"I just kind of ignore [the Heisman hype]; I don't pay too much attention to it because then you'll start to feel satisfied as a player," he said. "Once you satisfied, that's when you stop getting better. So I just kind ignore it and realize that I still have work to do. I'll just take this season like a normal season and I'll play it and focus on the season. But when the season is over, I'll sit down and have a conversation with my mom and my parents and see what kind of options we have. But as of right now, I have no idea. It's definitely something to think about."

With Another Heisman Hopeful, Cal Hopes This Is No Case of Deja-Blue originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:00:00 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.

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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)

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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)

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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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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Hypesman Watch: Cashing in on Fame

Clay Travis — Sat, 09 May 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: California, Florida, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Big 10, Big 12, Pac 10, Fans, General CFB Insanity, Heisman

Christmas decorations begin in late August, and now the ClayNation Hypesman Watch (CHW) is here in the first week of May. It's part of a new term, I just coined: Heisman Creep. (And it has nothing to do with Maurice Clarett). We're going to try something radical here, every other week or so we'll drop in and give you a top 10 list for Heisman candidates. Even though most of them are finishing their spring finals right about now. The goal is to ridicule the Heisman obsession, keep us entertained, and write about the Heisman in a way no one else is.

And, plainly, it's never too early to start debating the most over-hyped award this side of a kindergarten valedictorian.

I'm not sure exactly when the "Hypesman" terminology came into popular use, but I first heard it back in 1997 when Charles Woodson stole the Heisman from Peyton Manning. At that point it became clear to me that most voters selected the winner based on emotion, the way the name made them feel, and upon which player had the "hype" at the right moment. Actual statistics, on-field performance, and even, at times, length of stellar play gave way to a sensationalistic rabble of middle-aged, fat white men sitting in a press box agog over one big game or one big play that they'd actually seen. Namely, they bought the hype.

It's important that I bring us the Hypesman because I am a "Heisman Expert." We know this because CBS Sports labeled me one two seasons ago. While I don't have a vote in the actual Heisman, or really, a vote in very many things in my life -- after all I'm married -- being a Heisman expert changed my life. Especially because I was a Heisman expert of international renown (my family's foreign exchange student, Audrey from France, is a big fan of football American) This renown helps to assuage the grief over seeming to be the only writer at FanHouse whose picture is yet to be on the site. (And let me tell you, my picture is fabulous. I'm a cross between a less-athletic, better-groomed Pau Gasol and Jim from The Office with a bigger nose. So you've got that picture to look forward to ... someday) As several readers have already pointed out, I was the pregnant antebellum daughter of CBS Sports. Now I'm the pregnant antebellum daughter of FanHouse. It's nice to know some things don't change.

What we're quantifying here in the CHW is the hype associated with college football. As my NFL training partner, Frank Okam of Texas, taught me, "It's all about the hype. Sometimes you got the hype, sometimes you don't. You don't change yourself." Our goal is to be bowled over by the hype, rendered mute by the spectacular nature of single plays. So if you have a preferred candidate, send me along information about them to increase their hype standing. It may influence me. Or I might be distracted trying to justify what was, admittedly, one of my most shameful moments ever. (The one that didn't involve being seen reading John Jakes' historical Civil War novel, Love and War, without any pants on at the age of 13.) Last week I confessed to believing that if an airplane was about to crash, you would be fine if you opened the emergency exit door and stepped off just before the plane crashed. I believed this to be the case until I was 25. I kept wondering why no one miraculously survived plane crashes using this theory. There, that's my confession. You can share yours via e-mail and if you're fortunate we'll all laugh at you as well.

This week in addition to our top 10 list, in honor of the Teebow panties, I'm also coming up with products that I think each player should endorse to perfectly burnish their Hypesman street cred. Let's roll.

10. Dez Bryant, wide receiver Oklahoma State -- "Dez White, don't you mean Desi Arnaz?" (Kornheiser'd) Dez Bryant is the best returning wide receiver in college football not named Julio Jones or A,J. Green. Fortunately for Bryant, unlike the other two receivers, Bryant has an established quarterback. Last year Dez Bryant caught 87 passes for 1,480 yards and 19 touchdowns. Here's his bio. at Oklahoma State. Unfortunately Oklahoma State has those horribly boring player biographies where all they do is list their statistics. I like the personal section where the players share their favorite things. Unfortunately, we have to surmise what Dez Bryant actually likes. And I know.

Wind turbines.

Just like his boy T. Boone Pickens. (By the way, over/under on percentage of people who use the first initial in their names and are Southern. Gotta be 90 percent, right?)

We should get a nice poster of Dez standing in front of wind turbines. With this catchphrase, "Oklahoma blows."

9. Jimmy Clausen, quarterback, Notre Dame -- I have a theory on the Clausen brothers, their quarterbacking ability peaks, like young female gymnasts, at the age of 14. I believe it is hair-related. Namely, both Casey and Rick Clausen became infinitely worse quarterbacks as their hair continued to fall out. By his senior season at Tennessee, Clausen was spiking his combover and frosting the tips of his hair. Which led to the heretofore unseen frosted blond tips spiked combover hairstyle.

Now Jimmy is losing his hair and rebelling by growing it long in the back. Pretty soon he's going to look like an uglier Macho Man Randy Savage. But he's a Notre Dame quarterback so you have to include him on the list. Primarily because the East Coast media doesn't realize that Notre Dame is awful. At least not until the end of September.

But at least we know the perfect product endorsement: Rogaine.

Latest College Football Images

MCT

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)

8. Max Hall, quarterback, BYU -- Hall has to overcome the notoriously difficult BYU quarterback angle, plus the Mountain West connections. Seriously, how many touchdowns would a BYU quarterback have to throw for to win the Heisman in the present era? 65? And play for an undefeated team, right? Max has a much better profile because we learn that he's A) already married to a woman named Mckinzi and B) an Eagle Scout. My wife argued that being an eagle scout was really cool the other day. She was terribly wrong.

What should hall endorse?

Max Hall's Mormon Underpants. By the way, I'm not being derogatory here, I'm just fascinated that a religion has special underwear. And by the fact that no one outside of Utah seems to know this. I think Morman Underwear is awesome. I grew up Baptist. And Baptist underpants are iron chastity belts. But only for women and midgets. Hall's Mormon underpants have a large red U on the seat.

7. Sam Bradford, quarterback, Oklahoma -- Bradford, last year's winner, is going to fall victim to the returning quarterback curse. He's old-hat, he's already won the award and thrown for 4,720 yards and 50 touchdowns. His hype is dead. Recall that last year Tebow improved his passing stats over his Heisman year, played for a much improved team, was a much better leader, and still lost. The same was true of Matt Leinart the year after he won the Heisman.

Bradford would probably have to throw for over 6,000 yards and 60 touchdowns to repeat. And that's probably not going to happen. Probably. But you never know with Oklahoma's offense. Also, how come Oklahoma quarterbacks don't get criticized as "system quarterbacks" like every Texas Tech quarterback does when it comes to Heisman voting? Have you ever heard this pejorative comment lobbed their way? This is a system that got Jason White the Heisman. Jason White! If that's not a system, I don't know what is.

Anyway, Bradford should endorse Native American dream catchers. He's got the Cherokee connection, he's a swashbuckling risk-taker on the field who dreams of the double Heisman. It's a no-brainer. Think of all the weird dudes you knew in college who had a Native American dream-catchers above their bed or hanging from the rearview mirror of their cars because they thought girls would be impressed by them. Which, by the way, they weren't. And that was all without a spokesperson. The sky is the limit with Bradford's help.

6. Eric Berry, safety, Tennessee -- Some small part of me is convinced this is when Tennessee fans get repaid for Charles Woodson winning the Heisman. As a sophomore Eric Berry outperformed Charles Woodson in virtually every statistical category. You can see the breakdown here. Of course Berry didn't get a single Heisman vote or even win the Thorpe Award. Because, of course, he didn't have the hype.

This year Berry is going to have the hype. And he'll have Monte Kiffin as his defensive coordinator. Can this translate into an invitation to New York or, more impressively, a ridiculous hype machine to justify his becoming the second defensive player ever to win the award? I think so. Especially if UT's favorable schedule (Five of the first six, and seven of the first nine are at home) gets the Vols off to a decent start.

Berry's product is fairly easy to identify: Mortuary Services. Pose him beside a grave holding a shovel. Toss a few different colored jerseys onto the ground six-feet below. Yep, you're about to get Berry'd.

5. Terrelle Pryor, quarterback, Ohio State -- Right now Terrelle Pryor reminds me of former Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones. (Stop gasping, I know I've just upset the space-time continuum by comparing a black player to a white player.) Pryor moves with the same upright running style, a glide that makes it look like he isn't running that fast. But then no one can quite seem to catch him. And Pryor does that thing where he always scampers out of bounds while defenders are diving at him.

But right now Pryor seems like he can't throw that well. I say seems like because he completed 60.6 percent of his passes last year. That's amazingly impressive for a freshman starter. But you and me both believe he isn't an accurate passer. We're wrong. Especially when you compare Pryor with the man he is most often compared with, Vince Young. (space-time continuum not broken by this comparison). Young didn't start until his redshirt freshman year, and he completed 59.6 percent of his passes then. If he's anything like Young, Pryor is going to explode on the college football scene in his second year as a starter.

Which brings me to his endorsement product, hearing aids. Let's be honest, there are only two kinds of people left in the Midwest these days: A) people who have moved to Chicago B) people who are too old to have gone anywhere else. Why haven't hearing aid manufacturers tried to market their product like prescription drug companies have? Namely, via an insistent advertising campaign that makes it seem normal for young people to consume the product. Is there a hipper hearing aid spokesman than Pryor? Especially one that's already known for his ears? Of course not. Bang, marketing gold.

4. Jahvid Best, running back, California -- Last year Best became the latest Cal back to take the nation by storm. Only you didn't notice. He rushed for 1,580 yards and 15 touchdowns. Including, wait for it, a 311 yard rushing day on just 19 carries against Washington. That's an average of 16 yards per carry. Seriously, 16. Of course your grandmother could have averaged 12 against Washington last season, but let's not take anything away from him. Sooner or later a Cal player working out of Jeff Tedford's offense is going to win a Heisman ... right?

Best is currently recovering from foot sugery. Why did he have foot surgery? Let's go to the Cal athetic site: The foot surgery was performed Jan. 23 to relieve irritation of an extra bone on the right side of his foot caused when Best bruised the foot midway through the 2008 season.

How do you have an "extra bone" in your foot? Is that even fair?

Best needs to pose with a gallon of milk, "Thanks to milk, I've got bones to burn, baby."

3. Zac Robinson, quarterback, Oklahoma State -- Robinson is ultimately going to fall victim to the same disease that felled Graham Harrell's candidacy: His top receiver is just too talented to give him credit for the success. He threw for 3,000 yards last year, and after early success against Willie Martinez's Georgia defense in the opening weekend, Robinson will surge to the top of the list. But then people will start questioning him and Bryant's star will become ascendant. Then vice-versa. Eventually neither will get invited to New York. But in the meantime Robinson, known as "Z-Rob" on campus, which makes me want to stab my eyes out with cattle branding irons, went to the same high school as LenDale White.

That seemed likely, right?

Anyway, given that connection, there's only one product that Robinson can endorse while posing shirtless: Mounds candy bars. Tagline: Just because we gave one running back man boobs, doesn't mean we give them to everyone.

2. Colt McCoy, quarterback, Texas -- One of the weirdest things to come out of the state of Texas recently, and that's saying something, is Governor Rick Perry's endorsement of secession. Even stranger? Half of all Texas Republicans favor this course of action. Let me repeat that, half of all the Republicans in Texas want their state to secede from the United States.

I have no idea why more people aren't paying attention to this. Anyway, McCoy was born in New Mexico, but his dad brought dirt from Texas so he'd born above Texas soil. Seriously.

Can you imagine what would happen if the secessionists actually managed to secede? I'm picturing McCoy sitting up all night in his Austin dorm room, pacing from one side of the room to the other, the Robert E. Lee of modern college football. On the one hand, he has the nation, on the other hand he has Texas. And you know what, I think McCoy would pick Texas.

Assuming Texas stays in the union, McCoy should endorse arm floaties. He saved a man from drowning before he even took a starting snap at Texas, the least he can do is protect everyone on Lake Travis from making him save them again.

1. Tim Tebow, quarterback, Florida -- Tebow shot an 82 playing with Phil Mickelson earlier this week.

Per that report: "But during a dream round with Phil Mickelson, a fellow lefty, Tebow tore up the Timuquana Country Club in West Jacksonville. I spoke with Robby Tebow, Tim's brother, who said Tim shot a 10-over 82 at the par-72 course while playing with Mickelson (who shot a 6-under 66) and two other PGA Tour players whose names weren't known. Robby said Tim usually shoots high 80s on a good day. Tim got to play with Mickelson because, well, he's got it like that."

Yep, right now the Hypesman is Tebow's to take home because things he does in other sports don't even impress us. He can become the first player in college football history to receive the most first-place votes for three consecutive years. Then he can become heavyweight boxing champion. Without training. While circumcising indigent children between rounds.

In the end, I want y'all to help build the hype. E-mail me candidates, send me links, overwhelm me. In the end, the Hypesman will be glorious.

(You can email Clay at clay.travis@gmail.com. He prefers [Ed. legally] young boob shots, but will take old boob shots if that's the best he can get.)

Hypesman Watch: Cashing in on Fame originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 09 May 2009 12:00:00 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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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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Signing Day: Byron Moore Back to USC

Chris Burke — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 10:44:00 EST

Filed under: California, Notre Dame, USC, Recruiting

A few days ago, defensive back Byron Moore pulled his verbal commitment from Southern Cal -- his family even saying that the Trojans were out of the running for his letter of intent -- and began considering Notre Dame, California, LSU and Colorado.

At least, that's what everyone was led to be believe. On Wednesday, Moore reverted back to his initial decision and signed with Pete Carroll and the Trojans.

"My relationship with the coaches - coach Carroll, coach Norton and coach Seto was great," said Moore. "Every time I met with them, they always laid out a plan for my next four years.

"I just felt the most comfortable with them. I want to just stay home and play in front of my family and friends."

Moore is a Harbor City, Calif. native.

This has been an odd recruitment from the get-go -- originally Moore committed to UCLA, then switched loyalties to USC after receiving a scholarship offer from the Trojans.

Moore wants to play safety at the next level, but scouts tend to project his 6'1", 190-pound frame out as a perfect fit at cornerback.

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: Byron Moore Back to USC originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 04 Feb 2009 10:44:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Randy Shannon's Clock Management Skills Could Use a Little Improvement

Ryan Ferguson — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 08:27:00 EST

Filed under: California, University of Miami, Coaching, Bowl Games

San Francisco's Emerald Bowl: not known for highlighting college football's best teams. But the bowl has been the lucky recipient of some formerly great ACC programs hitting the skids and adding some marquee value. Florida State won in 2006 against a terrible UCLA team. And in 2008, 7-5 Miami showed up to face a pretty marginal Cal squad led by Nate Longshore, a quarterback with "issues" to say the least.

But unlike FSU, Miami found a way to lose the game. They lost despite Longshore's utter ineffectiveness (10-21, 121 yards). They lost despite getting good play from freshman quarterback Jacory Harris -- the over-enthusiastic ESPN commentors were calling it his 'coming out party' which might warrant an excessive celebration penalty -- and good running from Graig Cooper, who averaged 5.3 YPC, but received only a mystifying 12 carries.

It came down to turnovers and terrible clock management. At the end of the first half, down 14-7, Miami was intercepted at their own 43-yard line; Cal promptly went four and out. Getting the ball back with 1:18 remaining and three timeouts, Shannon appeared to be running out the clock: fair enough, given that his freshman quarterback had just turned the ball over in Hurricane territory. But wait... no! After three passes resulted in a first down, Shannon called a timeout with :04 remaining. Hail Mary time, right? Nope: Harris completed a 3-yard pass to Graig Cooper. Miami walked off the field with two timeouts remaining with the ball on Cal's 49-yard line.

No harm, no foul. But the happened at the end of the second half was far more inexplicable. And inexcusable.

Tied late in the 4th with a chance to win the game, a Harris fumble was recovered by Cal's Cameron Jordan at Miami's 9-yard line. Two plays later, Cal was celebrating a 24-7 lead. Miami went back to work with 2:41 left on the clock and two timeouts.

Here's what Miami's final possession looked like:

-1 yard rush: Miami 31
6 yard pass: Miami 37
4 yard pass: Miami 41
3 yard pass: Miami 44
5 yard rush: Miami 49
Incomplete pass
Timeout Miami, 0:12 remaining.

Explain that one to us, Randy. We especially enjoyed the timeout called after an incomplete pass.

Miami took one final shot downfield, then ran Graig Cooper 14 yards downfield for the inevitable tackle, ensuring Cal's victory. Surely Miami's inability to effectively work the clock cost them any chance of coming back to tie or win this game.

What the stats don't show is Miami's inability to do the basic stuff: you know, quickly spike the ball or at least run up to the line of scrimmage and get the pass off. The ESPN commentators were absolutely dumbfounded as Miami took a good 35 seconds to set up after their 5-yard rush to get to their own 49-yard line. It was incomprehensible. Timeout should have been called immediately, or better yet, a spike.

Would Miami have scored? Probably not. But Randy Shannon's complete and total lack of clock management skills removed any chance of a successful final possession, and in fact ensured a Cal victory. Can the head coach for the losing team win a bowl MVP award?

Miami wraps up the season a disappointing 7-6, losing three straight to end the season... and Randy Shannon is officially on the hotseat. It seems unlikely he could survive another season like this one.

Randy Shannon's Clock Management Skills Could Use a Little Improvement originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 28 Dec 2008 08:27:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bowl Season '08: Jahvid Best Is Good

Brian Grummell — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 01:05:00 EST

Filed under: California, University of Miami, ACC, Pac 10, Bowl Games

FanHouse gathers around the TV to bring you insights from Bowl Season '08.

This much we knew -- speedy Cal tailback Jahvid Best rushed for over 500 yards in his last two games. So, too, did Miami. So, too, did his coaches. Among the two parties, only his coaches were able to hold him back at any point Saturday evening in a 24-17 close-fought Cal victory over Miami.

Best strung together a series of highlights runs among his 20 carries totaling an Emerald Bowl record 186 yards and two touchdowns. Cal's offense and oft-booed quarterback Nate Longshore was helpless without him, but Cal's coaches seemed reluctant to ride their star. The game's announcers got a gem of a quote from Miami's defensive coordinator basically calling Best Cal's entire offense. He also said backup quarterback Kevin Riley outperformed declared starter Nate Longshore this year, but that's for another time.

The suspension-addled, heavy underdog Miami Hurricanes win this game if Best hadn't played as he had.

Longshore's performance was particularly brutal. He missed open receiver after open receiver particularly in the first half when Cal had a chance to pull away. Cal's coaches kept trying to rev that engine, but to no avail.

Only when it was clear he wouldn't be much a part of the game plan just before Cal's winning drive did Longshore perform, tossing a high degree of difficulty scrambling touchdown pass with under three minutes to go. The play was set up by an impressive defensive stand punctuated with a third down sack and forced fumble of suddenly inspired Miami freshman quarterback Jacory Harris. Cal's defense recovered the loose ball and took it back inside the Miami five to break the 17-all tie.

Meanwhile, Best did his ahem, best, sparking several drives with countless fascinating carries that stalled thanks to a dysfunctional pass offense. Best's three-game burst propelled him into second on Cal's single-season rushing charts, topping 1,500 yards. Fortunately for college football he's a sophomore and we'll see him around for at least one more season.

On the other side of the ballpark, er, field, Miami played solid defense and smart offensive football but was undone by its limited explosiveness. There are some young talents on the Miami offense, but they haven't figured things out. Miami played it safe and nearly rode the strategy to victory thanks to an intelligent showing by true frosh quarterback Jacory Harris who was named the starter when the team suspended Robert Marve. Harris made a small handful of dumb decisions but otherwise managed the game well, made just enough first downs and put points on the board against a tough defense until the game-changing sack also knocked the ball out of his hands.

He'll learn. The entire game was a learning experience. Hopefully Cal learned something as well, after tempting fate with an offense that too often went away from its one productive piece and likely chose the wrong starting quarterback. They needed all they could get out of that homefield advantage and Miami's limited offensive chances.

In the end it really was just enough as Miami's final efforts with under a minute left stalled in an egregious time-wasting drive near midfield never sniffed the end zone.

Bowl Season '08: Jahvid Best Is Good originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 28 Dec 2008 01:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bowl Season '08: Last Saturday of Bowls in December Live Blog

Brian Grummell — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 22:20:00 EST

Filed under: California, University of Miami, ACC, Pac 10, Bowl Games

Christmas is over, Hannukah's coming to a close, its not quite New Years Day but Saturday remains the traditional day of celebration of college football and we're here to discuss this special Saturday, a real holiday for college football fans everywhere.

We've seen West Virginia and North Carolina in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, Wisconsin and Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl and we're now watching the day's headliner, Cal and Miami clash in the Emerald Bowl. Oh, happy day! Cal's electric tailback Jahvid Best, who piled up 500+ rushing yards in his last two games, is the headliner here. Miami will be without co-starting quarterback Robert Marve but it should be a blessing as Jacory Harris can play an entire game and maybe find a real rhythm and take over the Hurricane offense.

Grab some popcorn or reheat some leftovers, tune your television to ESPN and direct your computer to our live blog starting at 8 PM Eastern. Live blog after the jump.

Bowl Season '08: Last Saturday of Bowls in December Live Blog originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 27 Dec 2008 22:20:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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