NCAA Football FanHouse http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com NCAA Football FanHouse http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/media/feedlogo.gif NCAA Football FanHouse http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Dramatic Pac-10 Is Nation's Besthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/22/dramatic-pac-10-is-nations-best/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/22/dramatic-pac-10-is-nations-best/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/22/dramatic-pac-10-is-nations-best/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

OregonTUCSON, Ariz. -- Here's hoping SEC fans stayed up to watch Oregon beat Arizona Saturday night. They got to see a few things their league hasn't had enough of this season.

Drama, bedlam, theatrics, tension, hilarity and near-riotous fun. And that just begins to describe the Ducks' 44-41 double overtime win.

It finally ended as the clock struck midnight back East. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli slithered into the end zone to crash what would have been the biggest football party Tucson ever threw.

All of which settled one thing. The Pac-10 is the best conference in America.

Before SEC fans gag on their grits, allow me to clarify. Best doesn't mean the Pac-10 has the most outstanding teams. It has the most outstanding competition, which is even better.

Out West, you never know what's going to happen. Down South, you know what to expect.

Florida will win. Alabama will win.

All meaningful drama has been on hold until the SEC Championship Game Dec. 5. Otherwise, the season's been a sideshow where fans just wait on Lane Kiffin's mouth to rev up or Les Miles' brain to freeze.

That stuff is amusing, but I prefer a death match for the league title. The Pac 10's quality depth was never more evident than Saturday when California beat Stanford 34-28. That would have been the Game of the Day (Non-Charlie Weis Death Watch Division), until the Ducks and Wildcats put on their pinball show.

"It was just good, hard football with a lot of emotion," Oregon receiver D.J. Davis said.

That's what you've gotten all year in the Pac-10. That's why four teams still had realistic shots at the Rose Bowl going into Saturday. And that's why 57,863 fans showed up Saturday night, most of them wearing red.

I know, 57,863 Alabama fans would show up to watch Nick Saban eat breakfast at Waffle House. I've lived in the South most of my life. I ate Golden Flake potato chips because Bear Bryant told me to. I plan on naming my first-born son Tebow if he's virgin birthed.

In other words, you'd have a hard time convincing me anything's superior to the SEC brand. Watching Masoli do his Doug Flutie impersonation melted my prejudice.

Masoli threw for three touchdowns and ran for three more. He led a fourth-quarter rally that led to one of the most satisfying and bizarre scenes of the year.

As the clock wound toward 0:00, fans spilled over the rails and flooded the sideline.

Cue LeGarrette Blount and Boise State flashbacks.

We all remember how Oregon's tailback responded the last time the Ducks lost a close one on the road. The Most Dangerous Man in College Football has since been reinstated, though he's stuck on the bench behind redshirt freshman sensation LaMichael James.
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Thousands of fans surrounded the Oregon bench, waiting to turn the field into a wild red sea. Talk about a target rich environment for Blount's right cross.

Fortunately, Masoli was not ready to be swept up in a red tide. He calmly drove the Wildcats 80 yards and hit Ed Dickson with an 8-yard score to tie the game with six seconds left.

"He's just incredible," James said of his quarterback. "He never got down out there."

The Ducks should finally crack the BCS top 10 now. They'll be the only Pac-10 team that high, but the league had five teams in last week's top 25.

The SEC had only three, though all were in the top 10. You can be sure LSU won't be after Miles frittered away a win at Mississippi.

That qualified the Tigers as the SEC's most disappointing team. Or is it Georgia or South Carolina or Auburn or Arkansas?

Let's face it, boys. It's a down year for almost every team outside of Gainesville and Tuscaloosa. The Pac-10 doesn't have a super team, but it has a half-dozen good ones. And if you want to get technical, UCLA thumped Tennessee and Arizona State almost beat Georgia in Athens.

And lest we forget, Pac-10 also-ran USC (how funny is that?) beat Big Ten champ Ohio State on the road. Let's see the fifth-place SEC team do that.

The SEC is like an auto company that has two great cars and a bunch of clunkers. The Pac-10 can roll out a line of impressive models. Oregon is the flashiest, but it still must beat Oregon State in two weeks to win the league crown.

The only bet I'd make on that game is that it won't be as amusing as watching thousands of fans have to slink back to their seats.

"I saw it and I actually smirked," Masoli said of Saturday night's gathering storm of humanity. "It was kind of funny."

Funny, decisive, chaotic and a mystery until the end.

SEC fans may finally experience those things two weeks from now. Pac-10 fans have been getting them all year.

Dramatic Pac-10 Is Nation's Best originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>David WhitleySun, 22 Nov 2009 02:30:00 EST Stanford Passes on Victory Over Calhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/21/in-big-game-stanford-passes-on-victory/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/21/in-big-game-stanford-passes-on-victory/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/21/in-big-game-stanford-passes-on-victory/#commentsFiled under: , ,

StanfordSTANFORD, Calif. -- Jim Harbaugh talked a little bit about hubris early this week, the danger of thinking you are more than you are.

Did Stanford think that putting up 106 points in consecutive upset victories over Oregon and USC would guarantee another flurry of points and touchdown celebrations?

Did they think that being ranked nationally and favored in the 112th Big Game - unheard of occurrences since Tyrone Willingham left The Farm for Notre Dame after the 2001 season - gave them an advantage against California's Bears?

Did they think that throwing the ball on 2nd down at the Cal 13-yard line with 1:36 to go was a better option that giving it to Toby Gerhart?

Cardinal redshirt freshman quarterback Andrew Luck dropped back less than 15 yards from an epic comeback victory and tried to get the ball to tight end Coby Fleener. But the redshirt freshman quarterback, who has shown remarkable poise and impressive accuracy all season, instead threw it into the arms of Cal linebacker Mike Mohamed and the Bears hung on for a 34-28 win Saturday at Stanford Stadium.

Cal celebrated its seventh win in eight years in this longstanding series.

The 14th-ranked Cardinal jogged off the field still bowl eligible, though eliminated from the Rose Bowl race, and with a great sense of the reality about who they are - a very good team, but not yet a great one. But not good enough to go away from what has worked for them all year.

Harbaugh said the game was filled with should-haves.

"[Luck] should have thrown it higher," Harbaugh said. "We should have given him a better play at the time, a better play on fourth-and-nine [when the Cardinal turned it back over to Cal on the Bears' 38 with 3:28 to go]. A lot of should-haves, offensively and defensively."

The offense should have kept its momentum after moving out to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, instead of stalling out and forcing the defense on to the field for long stretches that allowed Cal to score on five of six possessions and take the lead with a 30-7 rally.
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The defense should have tackled better, made a few more plays, instead of allowing Bears sophomore tailback Shane Vereen to rack up 193 yards on 42 carries with three touchdowns.

Luck should have hit a few more receivers instead of missing short, long and wide on passes he'd been hitting much of the season, and certainly in the last two weeks.

And if he wasn't hitting, then the Cardinal should have handed off to Gerhart, the player who has taken Stanford to this place of renewal and excitement.

Gerhart, who finished the game with 136 rushing yards, a huge 29-yard pass reception on the play that preceded the interception and four touchdowns, admitted he would have liked the chance to carry the ball into the end zone a fifth time.

"I would've liked to have it," Gerhart said. "We had some time, it was second down, it would have been nice, but that's the way the game goes. They made a good play and things turned out the wrong way."

Harbaugh said his team was going to "go down swinging", but they way it worked out, the Cardinal might not have had to go down at all.

"We should have run the ball a couple of times when we got the ball inside the 15," Harbaugh said.

The fact is, Stanford was a longshot for Pasadena. The Cardinal settle into third-place in the conference standings, are in a bowl game and have a chance to finished the season with eight wins with the regular-season finale against a reeling Notre Dame team.

But there was a chance for something truly seismic to happen on Saturday evening. Stanford had the chance to cap its remarkable run of the past month with a huge win in its rivalry game, to put an exclamation point on the end of a memorable season.

If only the Cardinal had run the ball. They should have.

Stanford Passes on Victory Over Cal originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Andrew LuckJim HarbaughShane VereenToby GerhartMichelle SmithSat, 21 Nov 2009 22:33:00 EST Blanket Coverage: Create November Saturday to Rememberhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/16/blanket-coverage-create-november-saturday-to-remember/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/16/blanket-coverage-create-november-saturday-to-remember/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/16/blanket-coverage-create-november-saturday-to-remember/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

BCS logoA playoff? No, thank you.

That said, please do not think for a second that I ravenously slurp the Kool-Aid that the BCS is attempting to serve. I don't want to see a playoff because I love the idea that you have to show up every Saturday, that each week the stakes get higher and the opponent, no matter what their record, gets tougher for an undefeated team. And I hate the idea of neutral-site playoff games in NFL cities in December and January (there's a reason that the SEC and Big 12 title games never have any juice).

It would not be a panacea, but the most effective step toward improving the current system would be to compel teams who are seriously interested in playing for the national championship to play 12 meaningful games. Which brings us to Saturday's slate.

Florida, the No. 1 team in the nation, hosts Florida International (3-7), which boasts the nation's 118th-rated total defense. No. 2 Alabama hosts Chattanooga, an FCS school. I agree that the SEC is the nation's toughest conference. I realize that Florida plays Florida State out-of-conference in two weeks. And I am aware that the Gators and Tide are not the only schools to schedule guaranteed victories in order to garner another home date and the booty that it entails (see, Washington State versus Notre Dame).

Think, however, how much more interesting the season might be if the NCAA were to designate either the second or third Saturday in November as a play-in weekend. Imagine if the FBS agreed that on that date the top eight schools would be required to play one another. On that weekend no intra-conference games would be scheduled (you could move up the beginning of conference play one week earlier in the season). The eight teams that would be dropped (e.g., FIU by Florida) would fall into a pool and play one another.

Home field among the top eight would be determined by higher ranking. Paul Johnson, the coach at No. 7 Georgia Tech, might not relish the idea of traveling to Tuscaloosa but he'd probably prefer that to not having a shot at the national title at all.

Sure, there are wrinkles that would need to be solved. What if the two schools had already met that season (switch the matchups)? Would the picture be any clearer after such a weekend, for instance, would an unbeaten No. 5 Cincinnati, having toppled No. 4 TCU, be any closer to a shot at the national championship game?

Ludicrous? In college football, something can never be done (e.g., games after New Year's Day, African-Americans on SEC rosters, instant replay) until someone decides that it can.

A mid-November winnowing of the contenders? I'd be thankful for that.

Hanging 50 on Troy ... that Was His Deal

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, when USC's Pete Carroll and Stanford's Jim Harbaugh met for the post-game handshake following the Cardinal's 55-21 de-pantsing of the Trojans, the conversation went thusly:

Carroll: "What's your deal? What's your deal?
Harbaugh: "What's your deal?"

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I'll take a wild guess and assume that this was not an impromptu dialogue between the two to compare contracts. What I cannot understand is why anyone who has seen Harbaugh operate the past few seasons is the least bit surprised that he went for the two-point conversion up 48-21.

The Cardinal had just scored and only 6:47 remained in the game. Harbaugh was likely figuring, When's the last time anyone hung 50 points on princely Pete (answer: never)? So he went for the deuce. Guarantee if the score were 47-21 at the time he would not have.

Stanford and USC compete for the same players in the same fertile Golden State breeding grounds. How much farther can Harbaugh puff out his pecs when he struts into a recruit's living room having not only beaten USC at the Los Angeles Coliseum but embarrassed them?

No punking of USC by Stanford could be complete, though, without a cruel and clever halftime performance by the Stanford band. They did not disappoint, performing a tribute to USC alum -- "Girls Gone Wild" creator-tax evader Joe Francis. I can only imagine what they are devising for Charlie Weis when the Irish visit Palo Alto in two weeks.


Records Are Made to Be Broken ... or Digitized and Sold on iTunes

A few weeks ago, when Florida's Tim Tebow was on the verge of breaking the SEC rushing touchdowns record of 49 set by Herschel Walker, fellow FanHouse scribe Clay Travis argued that the standards were unfair. Because the NCAA now includes bowl game statistics in overall stats, something that it did not do in Walker's era, Travis argued that the scales were unbalanced.

Either give Walker (the greatest college football player many of us ever saw) the five touchdowns that he scored in bowl games, making the record 54, or subtract from Tebow's total the two he has scored in January contests. Seems reasonable, which of course is why Clay's proposal was ignored by the SEC.

Now along comes a new stats controversy involving Tebow. Two years ago when he won the Heisman (which, by the way, he will not do this season), the Gator QB rushed for a single-season NCAA-record 23 touchdowns. On Saturday, Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs pulled to within one score of Tebow's mark when he ran it in five times against Delaware in the Mids' 35-18 win against Delaware.

Never mind that Dobbs' five touchdown runs went for a total of 10 yards. That's irrelevant. However, Delaware is an FCS school. If victories against FCS programs do not count toward a team's minimum number of wins required for bowl eligibility, should the statistics accrued in those contests count?

Dobbs is a terrific player, but five of his 22 rushing touchdowns -- nearly 25 percent -- came in what amounts to a glorified scrimmage. When he unseats Tebow, perhaps as early as Navy's next game at Hawaii on November 28, how will the Gainesville groupies react?

Distant Replay

Earlier this season a prominent college football writer on the web (that is no longer an oxymoron) told me that he'd be happy if every play were reviewed in the booth because he was all for getting the call right.

If only it were that simple.

After Pittsburgh beat Notre Dame Saturday night, assisted by an overturned call late in the fourth quarter, Irish coach Charlie Weis said, "It seems like the replay officials recently, every game you watch, they are the stars."

In their brief history, instant replay officials have become the most despised men in a glass booth since the "Deal or No Deal" banker. It need not be that way. A few suggested changes:

1. Unless these men can demonstrate that they understand the concept of "indisputable evidence" before overturning a call, then instant replay itself should cease to exist.

2. Instant replay officials need to get younger and fast. The majority of them are retired or near-retirement officials. We're not looking for Wal-Mart greeters here. We're looking for people who are at the peak of their powers in terms of scrutinizing a play.

3. I've noted this before, but there is absolutely no reason a replay official needs to be in a glass booth watching a second-rate television. When every Hooters' waitress has a better view of the play than you do, something's not right.

That play, by the way, did not doom the Irish. Their feckless first-half performance, a chronic shortcoming all season, did.

From First-Round to Fifth-String

Oregon head coach Chip Kelly reinstated tailback LeGarrette Blount for the Ducks' game with Arizona State. He just failed to play him.

"We didn't get to our fifth running back," Kelly said, referring to Blount with a complete lack of chalant. "Andre (Crenshaw, the third-string tailback) had one or two carries, Remene (Alston, the fourth-stringer) got in for one or two carries."



The Ducks' best player heading into the season, Blount was considered a first-round caliber draft pick before he decked Boise State's Byron Hout following Oregon's 19-8 loss in the season opener. While Kelly has shown compassion and mercy by rescinding the year-long suspension imposed on Blount in the immediate aftermath of the Hout punch, every so often he jerks the leash, as he did on Saturday, as if to test Blount's resolve and contrition.

This is terrific theater out of Eugene. Watching the drama between Kelly and Blount unfold is a little like watching the bathroom scene in Jerry Maguire. It's as if Kelly is Rod Tidwell, and he's telling Blount, "You are hanging on by a very thin thread and I dig that about you!"

All-Name Team

From the same people who introduced you to Central Michigan's Tommy Mama and Marshall's Darius Marshall, meet center T-Bob Hebert. With a name like that, it should take no more than one guess as to the state in which he plays and no more than two guesses (for the benefit of a few Ragin' Cajun reading this) as to the school.

And, yes, the former NFL quarterback is his daddy.

You can call me Al ... Golden ... Tate ... Forcier

Speaking of names, this is my favorite moniker chain of the season. From the up-and-coming thirtysomething head coach at the school located in the town where "Thirtysomething" was set, to the lone player at Notre Dame who each week reinforces the vestigial notion that the Irish really do have Fight, to the freshman quarterback at Michigan, which last beat an FBS opponent in September.

Overheard...

Matt Millen, while doing the broadcast of the Iowa-Ohio State contest, stressed that he "could not underemphasize enough" the importance of Ohio State's dominant defensive linemen. Everyone makes errors on live television (we even do in dead print), but for the future Millen should remember that it's "overemphasize."

The best way to not underemphasize enough a point is to remain silent.

Flighting Irish

In the biggest aviation story related to Notre Dame football since Knute Rockne's plane landed about 1,400 miles short of the runway, the school has found a way to block the university plane's registration number (N42ND) from appearing on the flight-tracking web site flightaware.com.

Shrewd tactic by the Irish. It will compel the legion of scribes covering the program to go Anton Chigurh on athletic director Jack Swarbrick and, like Chigurh, they will track him down. It's the nature of the business.

Alive ... and Kicking

If it feels as if once a year you come across the story of some grizzled Rudy type finding his way onto a Division III roster, that's because you do. This fall's middle-aged Walter Mitty is Austin College kicker Tom Thompson, age 61, who successfully converted the point after in the Kangaroos' 44-10 loss to Trinity (yes, that Trinity). It was Thompson's first kick of his college career.

Thompson is just 35 years older than Ohio State kicker Devin Barclay, 26, the retired pro soccer player whose overtime boot versus Iowa sent the Buckeyes to the Rose Bowl.

Blanket Coverage: Create November Saturday to Remember originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>John WaltersMon, 16 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST Stanford Whips USC in Record Fashionhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/14/stanford-drops-double-nickel-on-usc/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/14/stanford-drops-double-nickel-on-usc/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/14/stanford-drops-double-nickel-on-usc/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Like a star collapsing under its own weight, USC's football program is rapidly collapsing in on itselft under coach Pete Carroll.

For the second time in three weeks, USC was beaten. Badly. This time by Stanford, which walloped the Trjoans 55-21. The point total was the most ever surrendered at home by the Trojans; Pete Carroll's unbeaten November win streak went by the wayside.

Of course, the points surrendered record wasn't exactly something out of the yellowing pages of history. That record was an august two weeks old. Oregon beat Carroll by 27 on Halloween, 47-20 (tripling the previous record loss, 11 points, to Notre Dame in 2001). Saturday, Stanford did the Ducks eight points better.

What happened?

A flurry of turnovers certainly contributed to the mess, but Stanford was unstoppable behind the bruising runs of Heisman candidate Toby Gerhart and the scrambling and guile of quarterback Andrew Luck. Gerhart rumbled for 178 yards and three touchdowns, while Luck ran for 61 of his own to go with two passing touchdowns. The Cardinal punted just twice in one of the greatest offensive performances ever against USC.

USC's streak of seven consecutive Pac-10 crowns was speculatively over before Saturday, and confirmed early in the fourth quarter. Stanford gave the men of Troy their third conference defeat, the second most in a season under Carroll. After making the Rose Bowl a reliable season-ending trip, USC will now participate in some unimportant bowl, perhaps in El Paso or San Francisco, miles away from the real parties.
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Meanwhile, Jim Harbaugh has revived Cardinal football, upending conference favorites Oregon and USC in consecutive weeks on the way to a 7-3 record and an outside shot at a Rose Bowl battle with Ohio State. Harbaugh even added significant color to the game, opting to go for two in the fourth quarter with Stanford leading 48-21. He was clearly angling for 50 points, but fell short on the conversion attempt.

Game commentators said Carroll then stared him down from across the field. No matter, Stanford added another late touchdown to get to 55.

Gerhart deserves strong Heisman consideration after his tour de force against Oregon and USC. Tacklers simply fall off him for the greater part of an afternoon, reminiscent of some nature special documenting the futility of say, lions attempting to drag down an elephant. He's too big, too powerful, too angry, and he'll leave a mark if you get too close.

Put plainly: send him to New York.

And if Oregon or Arizona stumble, send these guys to Pasadena.

Stanford Whips USC in Record Fashion originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 20:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Andrew LuckJim HarbaughPete CarrollToby GerhartBrian GrummellSat, 14 Nov 2009 20:25:00 EST Stanford's Gerhart Battering Oppositionhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/12/stanfords-gerhart-battering-opposition/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/12/stanfords-gerhart-battering-opposition/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/12/stanfords-gerhart-battering-opposition/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Toby Gerhart spent so much time submerged in the cold tub Sunday that a Stanford athletic trainer joked Gerhart needed a snorkel. Thirty-eight carries and a school-record 223 rushing yards a day earlier against Oregon left Gerhart beaten and bruised.

He couldn't have been happier.
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Gerhart's physical style has set the tone and pace for the surprising Cardinal, who are back in the national rankings and need a victory at USC Saturday to likely end one of the great runs in the history of college football -- the Trojans' seven years atop the Pac-10. But there's so much more to this story.

Bowl eligible for the first time since 2001, beating the Trojans could thrust the Cardinal into the Rose Bowl hunt. And Gerhart, raised in Southern California, will also get his Heisman Trophy stage in the Coliseum against Tailback U, a program that recruited him as a blocking back and frowned on him playing baseball.

"So I told them I wasn't interested," Gerhart said.

All eyes are certainly on Gerhart and the Cardinal following last Saturday's 51-42 win over then-No. 7 Oregon.

Gerhart's old-school, hammering running style set a school single-game rushing record and it has also put together one of the best seasons in the country. The senior has rushed for 1,217 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and 16 touchdowns, placing him second in the nation in both.

Considering Stanford has scored 84 points the past two games against two of the nation's better defenses in Oregon and Arizona State, it could be an interesting afternoon for the Trojans. And let's not forget what happened last time Stanford waltzed into Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2007. The 40-point underdog beat USC 24-23.

Talk to us, Pete.

"[Gerhart] would be like playing the Bus [Jerome Bettis] the old days at Pittsburgh where you just knew you had a big war daddy coming back there at you down after down after down," said USC coach Pete Carroll, whose team has won six of the last seven games in the series after the Cardinal posted three consecutive wins from 1999-2001.

"Gerhart would be like playing [Jerome Bettis], where you just knew you had a big war daddy coming back there at you."
-- Pete Carroll, USC coach "There is a certain style to his running and all that and certain things you want to do to try to defend against that. I don't think there are many guys that had that kind of presence off-hand other than going all the way back to him [Bettis]."

Thick and sturdy at 6-foot-1 and 237 pounds, Gerhart has had an enormous impact on the Cardinal's success. He might not be a household name nationally and is considered a Heisman long shot, but he's not a secret on the West Coast. When Gerhart receives more than 20 carries, Stanford is 6-1. When he doesn't? Stanford is 0-2.

"They have a real obvious core of their offense in Toby Gerhart, just a hammer back there running the football," said Carroll. "They've built their style around his physical nature, and it's working very well for them."

Gerhart is just the second player in Stanford history to rush for 1,000 yards in consecutive seasons, and he has pushed his career total to 2,868 yards, good for third place on the program's all-time career rushing list.

Gerhart has carried the ball an astounding 233 times in nine games this season (about 26 carries per game), which is easily the most in the country and more than some entire teams.

Not bad for a California dude who might have more potential as a professional baseball prospect. The outfielder from Norco, Ca., southeast of L.A. off I-15, has hit .275 with 16 home runs, 24 doubles and 68 RBI over three seasons.

"Toby's been our shining star all year," Cardinal coach Jim Harbaugh said.

"He's a man. He's a true warrior."

He's a team player, too.

The affable Gerhart might be slow when he lugs himself off the ground after a carry, but he's quick to spread praise to his offense line. The unit is a big reason why Stanford is averaging 520.6 yards (1,562 total) a game in total offense over its last three games against Arizona (584), Arizona State (473) and Oregon (505).

The Cardinal currently rank second in the Pac-10 and 14th nationally in total offense, averaging 443.0 yards per game.

"They do everything, and if it wasn't for those guys I wouldn't have any yards and any of this publicity," Gerhart said.

"Those guys just get after it -- the 'Tunnel Workers Union' as they call themselves. They all have their beanies or skull caps and their motto is they go to work every day and make holes. They get after it week in and week out, no matter how many guys are in the box trying to stop us or what kind of scheme the defense is throwing at us. They play physical and move people.

"They are solely responsible for the success we've had in the running game these last two years."

After stumbling to the finish line in past seasons, Stanford is determined (6-3, 5-2 Pac-10) to sprint across it this year. The Cardinal are ranked 25th in this week's Associated Press Top 25 poll, marking the program's first national ranking since the end of the 2001 season when it was 16th.

Stanford is also 3-2 in its last five games against ranked opponents, including 2-0 this season after wins over No. 24 Washington and No. 7 Oregon.
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"There wasn't that feeling after the Oregon game, 'Oh my gosh I cant believe we won, this is one of the most exciting wins we've ever had.' It was more of a feeling that this is what we expected to do, it was just another win out of our last four, and this week is just another huge opportunity," Gerhart said.

"I didn't sense any extra sort of satisfaction in beating Oregon and being bowl eligible. The Pac-10 race is there and in our sights. If we win these next two and some teams beat up one each other, we could be in the Rose Bowl."

Gerhart also received an insider's tip on the Trojans from his brother Garth, a center at Arizona State. USC escaped from Tempe, Ariz., last Saturday with a 14-9 victory.

"He said they should have beaten them," said Gerhart, who hails from an athletic family. (Dad was an all-conference running back at Cal State Fullerton and played professional football, while Teagan and Kelsey, a pair of triplet sisters, are freshman softball players at Stanford).

"He said, 'their defensive lineman get off the ball pretty quick but I think you guys are going to be able to pound the rock on them, you'll be able to have your way running the ball.' "

That's just the way Gerhart wants it.

In fact, as he spent last Sunday submerged in a cold tub, Gerhart remembered one of his carries last season when he was stopped cold at the line of scrimmage by USC's Rey Maualuga and Taylor Mays.

"It was the first time my momentum was completely stopped, and put backwards on my butt," Gerhart said.

"I was, 'All right, this is what these guys are supposed to do.' It kind of got me excited. They were whoopin' and hollering. It makes it more exciting, I want to get back at them.

"It gets me fired up."

Stanford's Gerhart Battering Opposition originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>jim harbaughJimHarbaughPete CarrollPeteCarrollToby GerhartTobyGerhartJim HenryThu, 12 Nov 2009 18:30:00 EST One Week Later, Oregon Not So Rosyhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/one-week-later-oregon-not-so-rosy/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/one-week-later-oregon-not-so-rosy/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/one-week-later-oregon-not-so-rosy/#commentsFiled under: ,

STANFORD, Calif. -- What a difference a week makes for Oregon.

The Ducks looked invincible and unbeatable a week ago, taking apart USC like they were ... Stanford?

They spent the week answering questions about letdowns and hangovers. No way. Not going to happen. Not us.

But by sunset at Stanford Stadium, the No. 7-ranked Ducks were walking off the field after a 51-42 defeat and there was no doubt they felt the letdown.

"We didn't focus on the past, didn't look to the future. We got beat by a better team," said Oregon coach Chip Kelly. "If you say that we got caught looking behind or ahead, it takes away from Stanford. Stanford is a heck of a football team."
More Upset Saturday: Hawkeyes No Longer Perfect | Navy Sinks ND


Ducks quarterback Jeremiah Masoli acknowledged where the postgame conversation was headed.

"People are going to talk about (letdowns) and I guess we kind of did because we didn't win today and that's the bottom line," Masoli said.

Oregon hadn't lost since the now infamous season-opener against Boise State, a run of seven straight wins in which the margin of victory was 22.7 points a game. In the last five games, nobody had gotten closer than two touchdowns.

And then came Stanford, the hard-nose team whose defense didn't look up to the task.

But it turned out the Cardinal, which secured bowl eligibility for the first time in eight years with the win, certainly were. They put up 51 points on the scoreboard, more than Oregon had given up all season. Tailback Toby Gerhart was, as coach Jim Harbaugh called him, "a warrior", rushing for 223 yards on 38 carries with three touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Andrew Luck threw for 254 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

And the Cardinal defense, which has surrendered the game in pressure situations before, held up just long enough for the victory after Oregon cut a 20-point fourth-quarter lead to six points in the final minutes.
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Oregon's defense couldn't stop Stanford and while it might not have cost the Ducks their Rose Bowl hopes, their inclusion in the national championship conversation would seem to be out the window. He said the team felt no pressure after the USC performance, no additional weight after becoming the darlings of college football, the fashionable powerhouse of the week.

"I have never heard any person on this team talk about the national championship," said senior tight end Ed Dickson.

Stanford led from start to finish, quickly going up 10-0 and holding on despite being out-gained by the Oregon offense, 570-505.

Masoli threw for a career-high 334 yards. Freshman tailback LaMichael James rushed for 125 yards and a 60-yard touchdown. But the Ducks were forced to play catch-up, Stanford held more than a 15-minute margin in time of possession, and time ran out before they could.

The Cardinal have twice finished seasons with five wins (2004 and 2008), failing to reach the postseason every season since Tyrone Willingham left for Notre Dame after the 2001 Seattle Bowl.

This win marked a huge breakthrough in the rebuilding efforts under Harbaugh. Before the game, Harbaugh said that a win in this game would mean more to the program than the 2007 upset over USC, that came in a 4-8 season, his first on The Farm.

Following Saturday's game, Harbaugh again acknowledged the significance.

"This is the best opportunity that Stanford football has had in the past 10 years to express who this team is, and they expressed it and I couldn't be more proud of them," Harbaugh said.

Harbaugh said the goal has always been more than bowl-eligibility.

"Our goal has been to win the Pac-10 championship and we're still alive for that," Harbaugh said.

One Week Later, Oregon Not So Rosy originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Michelle SmithSat, 07 Nov 2009 22:05:00 EST Stanford Runs Over Oregon in Upsethttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/stanford-shocks-oregon-in-shootout/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/stanford-shocks-oregon-in-shootout/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/07/stanford-shocks-oregon-in-shootout/#commentsFiled under: ,

STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Toby Gerhart bowled over the Oregon defense to make the Cardinal bowl eligible for the first time in eight years.

Gerhart ran for a school-record 223 yards and three scores, Andrew Luck threw for two touchdowns and Stanford held on to beat No. 7 Oregon 51-42 Saturday for its all-important sixth win of the season.

The loss by Oregon (7-2, 5-1 Pac-10) just a week after beating Southern California 47-20 opened up the conference race and cost the Ducks any shot at a berth in the Bowl Championship Series title game.

Oregon rallied with two late touchdowns to cut a 20-point lead down to six, but Stanford (6-3, 5-2) recovered an onside kick with 2:38 to go and tacked on Nate Whitaker's third field goal with 11 seconds left. The students rushed the field as the game ended.

The Cardinal snapped a seven-game losing streak against Oregon with perhaps its most meaningful win in coach Jim Harbaugh's three seasons on The Farm. Stanford had lost in its past five games with a chance to become eligible for a bowl and now are in position to play a postseason game for the first time since Tyrone Willingham's final year in 2001.

Luck took advantage of vast open areas in the middle of the Oregon defense, completing four passes of at least 20 yards in the first half alone. Even when the Ducks had good coverage, Luck managed to connect with his receivers downfield.

He finished 12 for 20 for 251 yards, throwing an 8-yard touchdown pass to Jim Dray in the second quarter and a 31-yarder to Chris Owusu after Oregon cut the Cardinal lead to 10 points early in the third quarter. Owusu had four catches for 111 yards and two long kickoff returns.

The Ducks got the lead back to 10 on a 3-yard keeper by Jeremiah Masoli, before Gerhart carried Oregon defenders into the end zone on a 17-yard run that made it 45-28 late in the third quarter.
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Gerhart had 38 carries, punishing Oregon defenders on each run. He broke the previous record of 220 set by Jon Volpe in 1988 and also broke his single-season rushing record set last year with 1,217.

On a day when the teams combined for 93 points and more than 1,000 yards, Stanford did deliver one big defensive play to end the third quarter.

With Oregon trailing by 17, coach Chip Kelley decided to go for it on fourth-and-3 from the Stanford 40. Michael Thomas, who played the role of Masoli in practice, blitzed from his cornerback position and the real version Masoli for no gain. The Cardinal tacked on a field goal to take a 48-28 lead.

Masoli was 21 for 37 for 334 yards and three touchdowns. He added 55 yards and a score on the ground. LaMichael James added 125 yards rushing, including a 60-yard score in the first quarter.

The Cardinal got off to a fast start when Owusu returned the opening kickoff 77 yards to set up a field goal. Stanford's offense didn't slow down. A 25-yard pass from Luck to Owusu set up Gerhart's first touchdown run and Gerhart scored again on the next possession to make it 17-7.

Luck added the TD pass to Dray and then threw a 39-yarder to Ryan Whalen that set up Owen Marecic's 2-yard run that gave the Cardinal a 31-14 lead. Marecic had a busy day, starting at fullback as usual and at middle linebacker in place of the injured Clinton Snyder.

Marecic was out of position on Oregon's first touchdown as James burst up the middle untouched for a 60-yard score. The Ducks got their other first-half score on a 29-yard pass from Masoli to Jeff Maehl one play after Gerhart lost a fumble.

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

Stanford Runs Over Oregon in Upset originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:27:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>andrew luckAndrewLucktoby gerhartTobyGerhartFanHouse NewswireSat, 07 Nov 2009 19:27:00 EST BCS Title Could Be an All-SEC Affairhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/12/lanket-coverage-sec-squared-for-the-bcs-title/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/12/lanket-coverage-sec-squared-for-the-bcs-title/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/12/lanket-coverage-sec-squared-for-the-bcs-title/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

Blanket Coverage is a weekly rewind of all the action of Week 6, from the big opinions, to the small news, and, of course, coverage of all players named Ju-Ju.

In the second half of Florida's 13-3 win at LSU Saturday night, CBS color analyst Gary Danielson opined that a one-loss SEC team would play in the BCS Championship Game. Danielson's forecast seems fair enough, particularly considering the teams playing in front of him in Death Valley.

The Gators lost one game in both 2006 and 2008 and won the national championship. The Tigers lost two games in 2007 and beat Ohio State in the BCS title game. What Danielson failed to consider, though, was whether a one-loss SEC team with the second-best record in the conference might advance to Pasadena come January.

There is -- and I cannot emphasize this enough -- a lot of football remaining to be played. Still, let's imagine that the No. 1 Gators and No. 2 Alabama both advance to the SEC Championship game in Atlanta undefeated. The winner is a lock for a date at the Rose Bowl, but would voters ever allow a rematch between the two 33 days later?

What other BCS contenders might emerge? Let's look at the unbeatens:

-- Boise State and TCU are both undefeated, but neither non-BCS team will play for the national title.

-- In the Big Ten, Iowa is undefeated, but the Hawkeyes have won three home games versus three unranked teams by a total of six points. Visits to Madison, East Lansing and Columbus do not augur well for Kirk Ferentz's team.

-- Cincinnati and South Florida are unbeaten in the Big East, but they meet Thursday night. The winner will emerge with a more respectable resume, but there are too many one-loss teams with more cache and neither the Bearcats nor the Bulls will have a win against a Top-10 school this year.

-- The ACC and the Pac-10 have no unbeatens remaining.

-- Which brings us to the Big 12, where unbeatens Kansas and Texas will meet in Austin Nov. 21. Although who is to say that both, or even either the Jayhawks and Longhorns will be beaten by then? The cleanest result would be an undefeated Texas, currently No. 3, facing the SEC champion on January 7 in Pasadena. And there's nothing that ESPN covets more than a duel between Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy in the final game of their storied careers.

What if Texas loses, though? Here's an even more intriguing scenario: What if Alabama loses one SEC West game to a one-loss opponent such as Auburn or LSU? Could the Tide fail to play for the SEC championship but remain the most viable, and highly ranked, candidate to face Florida, a team they would not yet have played?

The feeling here is no. Which is why all of a sudden, the most fascinating tilt of the year for my money will take place on Halloween night in Eugene: USC at Oregon. The winner of this glamour game just might leap ahead of one-loss Virginia Tech in the polls and, should the Longhorns fail to finish undefeated versus a rough Big 12 field, be in the driver's seat.

Just think ... a national championship pitting Florida and Tim "God Bless" Tebow versus Oregon and resurrected rusher LaGarrette Blount. The player who absorbed the most talked-about blow to the head this season on one sideline and the player who delivered the most notorious such hit on the other. That would be a ... knockout.

One monstrous, blow-up-the-BCS caveat: Would there be any way to justify sending Oregon to the Rose Bowl over an undefeated Boise State team that defeated them?

Keeping Up With the Hawkins

Try being Misti Rae Ann Hawkins this week. On Saturday, she watched her oldest son get benched in a nationally televised game in primetime. And she saw her husband bench him.

Cody Hawkins, Colorado's 5-foot-11 junior quarterback, has actually played in three nationally televised games in primetime this season: at Toledo, at West Virginia and this weekend, at Texas. In those three games, all losses, Hawkins has accumulated the following numbers: 63-134 passes (47 percent), eight touchdowns and eight interceptions. The defeats are not Cody's fault alone, but his 102.4 passer rating does not put him among the top 100 passers in the FBS.

On Saturday, with the 1-3 Buffs driving for a go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter against the No. 2 Longhorns, Hawkins underthrew a pass into the right flat. Texas cornerback Earl Thomas picked it off and returned it 92 yards for a score, the Longhorns' longest interception return for a TD since 1938.

On the ensuing Buff possession, Colorado coach Dan Hawkins burned the redshirt of sophomore Tyler Hansen, inserting him at quarterback in place of his son. It's the second time in as many years that Hansen's redshirt status has been erased at midseason. After the game Hawkins named Hansen the starter going forward, saying of his son's costly interception, "He's gotta make that throw."

Temperatures have been in the teens along the Front Range this weekend, but it's about to get even chillier at the Hawkins household.

Incredible INT

You may never see a stranger interception than the one UCLA linebacker Akeem Ayers had against Oregon. Duck quarterback Nate Costa, falling out of the back of his own endzone, tried to force a bullet over Ayers' head. Ayers leaped in the air and caught it, then had to worry about getting one foot in bounds himself without landing past the back line. He did.

Even Costa was in awe. "That was just a flat-out great play," he said. It was also the Bruins' only touchdown in their 24-10 loss.

Now This Is a White Out

Seven inches of snow fell on Friday night in Laramie, Wyo., and the temperature at kickoff was 15 degrees, yet 14,502 hearty (foolhardy?) fans huddled in War Memorial Stadium to watch the Cowboys defeat New Mexico, 37-13, on Saturday. How brutal were the conditions? The winless Lobos spent Friday evening at a hotel in Cheyenne, 50 miles east, and on Saturday morning needed a two-snowplow escort across a closed Interstate 80 in order to make it to the game.

A Man for all Seasons

Give Stanford credit for knowing how to promote a Heisman candidate with subtlety and a sense of humor. Tailback Toby Gerhart entered the weekend fourth in the nation in rushing (130 yards per game) and even ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit said that Gerhart was among his top three Heisman nominees. Gerhart also happens to be a MLB prospect as an outfielder, which prompted the Stanford athletic department to put together this video of the studly senior trying his hand at other sports.

Sly, Stanford. Promoting Gerhart while also promoting your non-revenue sports. My only question is how someone who lives year-round in California be that pale?

An Education

Michigan's true freshmen quarterbacks, Tate Forcier and Denard Robinson, are learning the ups-and-downs of late-game heroics. In consecutive road losses each has accounted for a late touchdown only to follow it up on the ensuing drive with an interception that cost the Wolverines the game. Forcier led the Wolverines on a 14-point fourth quarter comeback at Michigan State two weeks ago, then threw a deflected pick in overtime of the 26-20 loss.

Robinson, who entered Saturday's game at Iowa with Michigan trailing 30-21 midway in the fourth quarter, calmly led the Wolverines on a scoring drive, capped by his own three-yard TD rush. On Michigan's next drive he missed two wide-open receivers and instead tossed a prayer into double coverage as the Maize and Blue lost 30-28.

JJ, Jo Jo and Ju Ju

BYU's JJ DiLuigi caught a 15-yard touchdown pass while teammate Jo Jo Pili added a one-yard rushing TD in the Cougars' 59-21 win at UNLV. Meanwhile, Virginia Tech backup quarterback Ju-Ju Clayton threw an 80-yard touchdown strike in the Hokies' 48-14 demolition of Boston College.

Stats Incredible

A smattering of bizarre statistics or eye-popping numbers from Saturday's games:

-- Florida's defense has only allowed two touchdowns in 61 opponents' drives (3.3 percent) this season. As coach Urban Meyer told ESPN's Chris Fowler in the midnight hour from Baton Rouge, "You can't be a great team unless you have a great defense."

-- Bowling Green wideout Freddie Barnes caught 22 passes in the Falcons' 36-35 win at Kent State. Barnes leads the nation with 12.5 receptions per game, a full 33 percent more catches than the No. 2 receiver, Jordan Shipley of Texas (9.4 per game), grabs. Shipley's circus-quality highlights do show up on "College Football Final" an awful lot more, though.

-- Georgia's offense failed to get in the red zone in the Bulldogs' 45-19 loss at Tennessee. It was the first time in 38 meetings that neither the Dawgs nor Vols entered the game ranked.

-- Arkansas held Auburn scoreless in the first quarter of their 44-23 win against the No. 17 Tigers. It marked the first time in 21 quarters this season that Gus Malzahn's offense had failed to put a point on the board.

-- Boston College quarterback Dave Shinskie, a 25 year-old freshman who had previously pitched in the minor leagues, was 0-for-9 passing with two interceptions in the first half of the Eagles' 48-14 loss at Virginia Tech. Shinskie finished 1-12 for 4 yards.

-- How good is Oklahoma's front seven? Baylor's leading rusher in Saturday's 33-7 defeat, Terrance Ganaway, ran four times for 8 yards.

-- Wisconsin's offense doubled up Ohio State's in yardage, 368 to 184, but a pair of pick-sixes by Badger QB Scott Tolzien helped the Buckeyes to a 31-13 win. SEC Squared for the BCS title?

BCS Title Could Be an All-SEC Affair originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Akeem AyersJohn WaltersMon, 12 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST Pentagon Toilet Seat, Meet Stanford's Private Bathroomhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/28/pentagon-toilet-seat-meet-stanfords-private-bathroom/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/28/pentagon-toilet-seat-meet-stanfords-private-bathroom/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/28/pentagon-toilet-seat-meet-stanfords-private-bathroom/#commentsFiled under: , ,

To poop in private or not to poop in private, that is is the question. Whether tis nobler for Stanford's Jim Harbaugh to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous public urination or oppose them. Such is the ruminative monologue racing through the minds of Stanford supporters in the wake of this announcement: a Stanford booster built a $50,000 to $70,000 private bathroom for coach Jim Harbaugh. Why was this private bathroom necessary? According to Harbaugh, "It cuts down on drag."

Already public indignation has poured in regarding the exorbitant cost of the bathroom. Some have pointed out that twenty athletic department employees have been fired in the past year due to budget constraints at Stanford. Others have wondered whether a private bathroom for a football coach sends the wrong message. I say, bully for Harbaugh. So what if at least one, and potentially two employees, could have been kept on for the cost of the private bathroom? Is Jim Harbaugh supposed to walk all the way down the hall, twenty full steps, and use a public restroom like a common peasant? Of course not, is he a barbarian? In this column, we come not to bury Harbaugh's private bathroom, but to praise it.

Some people might hear about a bathroom that costs between $50,000 and $70,000 -- how do we not know the actual cost, is there a toilet to be named later included in the contract? -- and think it's yet another sign that major college football is devouring the educational interests of colleges. Those people are idiots. They're probably the same people who had an issue with the Pentagon's $640 toilet seat or the luxurious bathrooms that corporate CEO's built themselves as their companies crumbled around them. These bathrooms aren't evidence of a colossal lack of perspective; they're the tangible and delectable fruit of well-deserved respect.

Only losers use public bathrooms.

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These bourgeois critics are so short-sighted. They get me so angry I almost knocked the caviar off my cracker just thinking about them. Plainly they don't understand the importance of a throne-like isolation, the zen state that can come from being able to stack your own (slightly) pornographic magazines on the back of the toilet and the warming feeling of burning an incense candle while you sketch out gameplans to beat Pete Carroll, who doesn't, by the way, have his own private bathroom at USC.

In the high stakes war of collegiate football, the 13 seconds a day that Harbaugh saves by not walking 20 steps to the public bathroom in the Stanford football offices could be the difference between beating Cal or losing to Cal. Al Pacino asked for an inch in his final speech in Any Given Sunday. An inch ... please; Harbaugh just gained twenty steps. That's 240 inches! If Pacino can win a fictional championship in a fictional football league in a movie (that features a memorable guest turn from Jessie Spano playing a whore) with an extra inch, Harbaugh can hang 70 on Oregon this fall with an extra 240 inches.

That's a bona fide fact.

Something that people with private bathrooms get. Something that the rest of you losers, those of you using the public bathrooms, just don't get.

Here's another fact, I'm about to bust up in your face.

Do you know what Jim Harbaugh's record is at Stanford?

Nine and 15.

Bam.

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    Tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, center, of Denmark, poses with members of the Yale University college football team as she visited their practice Friday, Aug. 28, 2009, in West Haven, Conn. (AP Photo/Bob Child)

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    Tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, center, of Denmark, poses with members of the Yale University college football team as she visited their practice in West Haven, Conn. (AP Photo/Bob Child)

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    In this photo taken on Tuesday, Aug,11, 2009, Ohio State running back Dan Harron (3) runs in a drill during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photo taken on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, Ohio State running back Brandon Saine (3) runs in a drill during NCAA college football practice Tuesday, Aug,11, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photo taken on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow is shown posing during NCAA college football media day in Gainesville, Fla. Despite working with prostyle quarterback coaches, Tebow is expected to show little changes on the field. Coach Urban Meyer said "the guy has a 60 plus percent completion rate. Enhanced, yes. It's not going to be like all of a sudden, 'Look at this guy.' It's going to be Tim Tebow." (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    In this photo taken on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow (15) throws a pass under the eye of new quarterback coach Scott Loeffler, left, during the NCAA college football practice Gainesville ,Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    In this photo taken on Aug. 9, 2009, Notre Dame wide receiver Shaquelle Evans makes a catch during NCA college football practice in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/Joe Raymond)

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    In this photo taken Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009, Texas head football coach Mack Brown is shown during the Longhorns team practice in Austin, Texas. For a guy who started the speculation of when he would retire, Brown acts and sounds like someone who plans to keep coaching at Texas for a long time. Why would he? His Longhorns are ranked No. 2. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

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That's only six games worse than even. Do you know what that means? When Jim Harbaugh has been coaching at Stanford for 100 games, he's on a pace to have 38 victories against just 62 defeats. At this pace, if he coaches for 22 years, he'll almost have 100 total victories. Do you know how hard that is to pull off? Losing that many games without winning hardly any and still being so popular that you can get big boosters to ensure you defecate in private? Can you imagine what Jim Harbaugh could have done with his extra 240 inches during his first 24 games?

I can: he'd probably be 10 and 14.

Plus, and let's be clear about this, Jim Harbaugh is a Michigan man. Michigan is a football factory and Michigan men, like all football geniuses, deserve to be treated differently. Did you complain when Fielding Yost had a private outhouse constructed in 1917? What about in 1978 when Alabama gave Bear Bryant running water in his office to replace his slop jar? Of course you didn't. My point is, football factories play by their own rules.

And Stanford, by God, is a football factory.

You probably snickered at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new bathroom. Rolled your eyes when Harbaugh shut the door, opened up the newest Maxim magazine and took aim at the Cal logo on the bottom of the white porcelain bowl. That's because you don't get it, never will, football coaches are special. They're like Einstein with pigskins, Mozart in running sneakers and shorts, Gandhi with bigger food budgets. If Martin Luther King were alive today, he'd be a football coach.

So would Jesus.

Those men would get it; football coaching is a higher calling. One that can't be answered with all the clatter that comes from a public bathroom. Jesus may have been born in a manger, but if he was coaching football, he'd go to the bathroom by himself. So don't judge Harbaugh. Like the Bible says, Judge not lest ye be judged. Stop the criticism now, you're just making yourselves look stupid.

Jim Harbaugh needs a private bathroom. He's cut down on drag. And now his football genius has got 240 inches to spare. I think I speak for everyone when I say, it's time for miracles -- all fertilized by Jim Harbaugh's magic poop -- to germinate and blossom in Palo Alto.

Pentagon Toilet Seat, Meet Stanford's Private Bathroom originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 28 Aug 2009 23:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Jim HarbaughPete CarrolClay TravisFri, 28 Aug 2009 23:30:00 EST Harbaugh Doesn't Need Rocket Science To Win at Stanford, but His Players Mighthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/27/harbaugh-doesnt-need-rocket-science-to-win-at-stanford-but-his/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/27/harbaugh-doesnt-need-rocket-science-to-win-at-stanford-but-his/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/27/harbaugh-doesnt-need-rocket-science-to-win-at-stanford-but-his/#commentsFiled under: ,


LOS ANGELES -- The same guy who led Michigan to the No. 2 ranking in 1985 as a quarterback and nearly brought the Indianapolis Colts to the Super Bowl a decade later has that same fervor in rebuilding the Stanford football program.

Jim Harbaugh realizes it is quite an undertaking to consistently compete in the Pac-10. Stanford is one of the elite private schools in the nation, and attracts and accepts different athletes than Arizona State or Washington State. Harbaugh, who led the Cardinal to a 5-7 record in his second season in 2008, is trying to bring Stanford its first bowl game in eight years, but replenishing the roster has been difficult.

In the process of turning over the roster, Harbaugh scored with his 2009 recruiting class, ranked third in the Pac-10 by Scout.com. The jewels of the class are wide receiver Jamal Patterson and quarterback Josh Nunes.

Harbaugh seeks to make more future recruiting splashes and has figured out the key to compiling talent under such difficult academic standards.

"For us to build our pool, we have to identify earlier the youngsters that can play BCS football," he said at Pac-10 media day. "It's not just a haphazard strategy. We have to identify who can get into Stanford and we have to do that earlier, because the earlier we can get to him, get that message to him that other schools might have told you the bar was here, but at Stanford the bar academically is up here. Go take an [advanced placement] course, go take an honors course, here's what you have to do for the SAT. Here's what your grade point has to be, here's your application, start writing your essay."

Harbaugh is a master motivator. He goes into homes, woos parents with the benefits of a Stanford education and then convinces athletes of the promising future of Stanford football. A Stanford degree is a great accomplishment, but it's even better with a bowl game. So Harbaugh has to persuade blue-chippers that Stanford football can, and will be, a factor. Of course, the Cardinal don't make as many television appearances as USC or even BYU for that matter, so Harbaugh has to sell to potential recruits that worthy football occurs in that sometimes half-filled stadium in Palo Alto, Calif.

Many Stanford recruits don't come from powerful high school programs but private schools with stringent academic standards. Harbaugh has to approach a different type of athlete, not the one who has adequate grades and barely a passing test score. Harbaugh realizes the admissions department will snuff out those athletes like Dwight Howard in the playoffs, so his strategy has to encompass those who have paid special attention to schoolwork, as much time as catching passes.

"It's a huge evaluation," he said. "We got every transcript of every kid that's in the realm of being a Division I player. We got a guy named Tommy Steiner who sits at his desk and he calls high schools all day long and requests transcripts. So we know where they are at. We request the tape and we watch it and we got to identify them early. And then it's a matter of getting to the kid, their parents, their counselors, their teachers. To find out who are you?

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    New Orleans Saints wide receiver Adrian Arrington (87) goes through his stretching exercises at the start of the practice session at the Saints football training camp in Metairie, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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    New Orleans Saints safety Pierson Prioleau (31) catches a ball at the Saints' NFL football training camp in Metairie, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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    New Orleans Saints wide receiver Robert Meachem, left, talks with quarterback Drew Brees (9) during a practice session at the Saints' NFL football training camp in Metairie, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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    New Orleans Saints wide receiver Adrian Arrington (87) and New Orleans Saints safety Pierson Prioleau (31) watch the special teams practice at their NFL football training camp in Metairie, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009. (AP Photo/Bill Haber)

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    In this photograph taken on Monday, Aug. 24, 2009, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor throws a pass during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photograph taken on Monday, Aug. 24, 2009, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2) and running back Dan Herron (1) wait to participate in a drill during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photograph taken on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2) pitches the ball during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photograph taken on Monday, Aug. 24, 2009, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor watches a drill during NCAA college football practice in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Terry Gilliam)

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    In this photograph taken on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009, Nebraska's Marcus Mendoza catches a pass during their NCAA college football practice in Lincoln, Neb. Mendoza will move from wide receiver to running back after the departure of Quentin Castille last week .(AP Photo/Dave Weaver)

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"Are you a guy who wants to accomplish as much as you can academically, then you are our guy. If they are that kind of guy truly, it's a no-brainer: they want to come to Stanford. If they don't know they are that kind of guy yet, we can encourage them, we can motivate them and their parents can hear the message and they get a message from the faculty and then they get the bug, they go "Man, I didn't know this existed. I didn't know I had this in me. I didn't know I had a license to be a great student as well as a great athlete.'"

Harbaugh estimates that there are a maximum of 400 players nationally who fit the Stanford model, and his recruiting team must investigate every crevice of the country for talent. Of course, the Stanford model is merely a toy version if the Cardinal does not produce victories. Stanford without victories is merely Duke on the West Coast. That isn't lost on Harbaugh.

"Every kid knows Stanford academically. They know it's a top school in the world," he said. "We want the BCS ass-kicker football player and the top student. The kid we really want, he wants to know what's under the hood of Stanford football. Again, they don't see us everyday. (Tailback) Toby Gerhart is not going 6-6 (record) type of guy. This is something brewing inside of the hood of Stanford football. This is going to be good. There is thunderstorm brewing that is Stanford football and they want to get in on it. And then they realize they can get the whole pie. Why do they have to settle for just a slice or half the pie somewhere else? Our kind of kid, academic, ass-kicking BCS type of football player, it's a no-brainer. "I am going to Stanford. I wholeheartedly believe in the Stanford model.'"

Harbaugh Doesn't Need Rocket Science To Win at Stanford, but His Players Might originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 27 Aug 2009 12:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Jamal PattersonJamalPattersonjim harbaughJimHarbaughJosh NunesJoshNunesGary WashburnThu, 27 Aug 2009 12:30:00 EST Pac-10 Predictions: Can Rest of League Finally Bear Down on USC?http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/09/pac-10-predictions-can-rest-of-league-finally-bear-down-on-usc/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/09/pac-10-predictions-can-rest-of-league-finally-bear-down-on-usc/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/09/pac-10-predictions-can-rest-of-league-finally-bear-down-on-usc/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , ,

Aaron Corp, USC quarterbackSo 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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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)
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    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)

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    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)

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

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    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)

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    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)

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

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    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)

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    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)

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    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)

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    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)

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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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]]>aaron corpbrandon gibsondanny sullivanjahvid bestjeremiah masoliJim Harbaughkyle williamslyle moevaomatt scottMike Rileymike stoopsMikeStoopsnick folessteve sarkisianGary WashburnSun, 09 Aug 2009 10:30:00 EST Pac-10 Media Day Notebookhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/31/pac-10-media-day-notebook/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/31/pac-10-media-day-notebook/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/31/pac-10-media-day-notebook/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , ,

Mike StoopsLOS 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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]]>andrew luckAndrewLuckbrock mansionBrockMansionchip kellyChipKellychris polkChrisPolkChristian RamirezChristianRamirezdanny sullivanDannySullivandimitri nanceDimitriNancefrankie telfortFrankieTelfortjacquizz rodgersJacquizzRodgersjaison williamsJaisonWilliamsjamere hollandJamereHollandjeremiah masoliJeremiahMasolijim harbaughJimHarbaughjonathan stewartJonathanStewartkevin princekevin rileyKevinPrinceKevinRileyKyle WilliamsKyleWilliamslegarrette blountLegarretteBlountLouis Bland LouisBlandLuthur BrownLuthurBrownlyle moevaoLyleMoevaoMalcolm SmithMalcolmSmithmarshall lobbestaelMarshallLobbestaelmatt scottMattScottMike NixonMike StoopsMikeNixonMikeStoopsnate longshoreNateLongshorenick folesNickFolespaul wulffPaulWulffpete carrollPeteCarrollreggie carterReggieCarterrick neuheiselRickNeuheiselrob gronkowskiRobGronkowskiRory CavailleRoryCavaillesean canfieldSeanCanfieldSteve SarkisianSteveSarkisiantavita pritchardTavitaPritchardTerence ScottTerenceScottToby GerhartTobyGerhartwalter thurmond iiiWalterThurmondIiiwillie tuitamaWillieTuitamaGary WashburnFri, 31 Jul 2009 10:15:00 EST Will Year of Transition in Pac-10 Lead to USC's Ouster?http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/29/everything-in-transition-in-pac-10-this-season-including-uscs/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/29/everything-in-transition-in-pac-10-this-season-including-uscs/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/29/everything-in-transition-in-pac-10-this-season-including-uscs/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , ,

Pete Carroll, USCLOS 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)

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    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)

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

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

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    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)

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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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]]>aaron corpAlterraun Vernerjahvid bestJaison Williamsjake lockerjim harbaughkevin princekevin rileyKevinRileylegarrette blountpaul wulffPete Carrollrob gronkowskisean canfieldsteve sarkisianGary WashburnWed, 29 Jul 2009 23:00:00 EST Stanford Quarterback Andrew Luck Setting High Expectationshttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/11/stanford-quarterback-andrew-luck-setting-high-expectations/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/11/stanford-quarterback-andrew-luck-setting-high-expectations/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/07/11/stanford-quarterback-andrew-luck-setting-high-expectations/#commentsFiled under:

Many believe Stanford is primed for its first bowl game since 2001. The Cardinal features a veteran team and a manageable schedule of seven home games. And, better yet, Luck just might be on Stanford's side in the Pac-10 this season.

The key to any projected success for the Cardinal is at quarterback, where all eyes will be on redshirt freshman Andrew Luck.

Luck, the son of former Houston Oiler and West Virginia quarterback Oliver Luck, demonstrated enough potential last year that many believed he should have been given an opportunity to compete for the starter's role. Luck, however, made the most of his sideline time and emerged as the team's frontrunner during spring drills, chucking five touchdown passes in the spring game.

Luck and the Cardinal don't have to dig too deep for motivation. Of Stanford's seven losses last season, three came by a touchdown or less, including a pair of last-second defeats to UCLA and Oregon that knocked it from bowl eligibility.

"It was heartbreaking, especially for the guys who graduated," Luck told FanHouse.

"And I think we have a lot of guys here who don't want to end up without a bowl game, that don't want to end up without winning seasons and championships. Anything less than a Rose Bowl is going to be a disappointment, that is how motivated we are for this season."

Luck, a 6-foot-4, 235-pounder, is playing for another former NFL player -- just like his father -- in head coach Jim Harbaugh. In two short years, the fiery Harbaugh has instilled a new sense of passion and energy into the Stanford football program. Luck says those qualities have filtered down to the players during their summer workouts.

"There's been a lot of energy from everybody, lot of excitement," said Luck, a graduate of Stratford High School in Houston, Texas, where he was ranked the No. 4 quarterback in the nation by recruiting analysts.

"Guys are really pushing each other. Coach Harbaugh stresses competition in everything, and I really feel like the team buys into it and we come out here and compete every day."

While Luck outplayed incumbent Tavita Pritchard, who started all 12 games last year, during spring drills to emerge as the favorite behind center, he realizes he must continue to progress to meet juiced expectations.

That's never been a roadblock for the soft-spoken Luck, who passed for 7,139 career yards and 53 touchdowns in three prep seasons. He completed 488 of 824 passes (59.2 percent) and added 2,085 rushing yards. And, by the way, he served as the valedictorian of Stratford's graduating class of 2008.

"I don't think about that at all," Luck said when asked if there was any change in his approach since emerging as the starter. "Maybe I am a little more comfortable, because I have been here for a year now. Other than that I don't think about it. I know anything can happen."

Fans expect plenty to happen. They say Stanford, if the planets align, could be playing to become bowl eligible by the second week of October. The Cardinal opens with road games at Washington State and Wake Forest before it returns for three consecutive home games against San Jose State, Washington and UCLA.

"The confidence has been building the past two years -- it has been a quiet confidence but it's present," said Rick Jones, publisher of CardinalReport.com. "Attendance for the team's voluntary summer workouts has been great, and the enthusiasm has been sky-high."

While Stanford's offensive line was reshuffled during spring practice, the Cardinal return star running back Toby Gerhart -- he gained 1,136 yards and scored 15 touchdowns last season -- and a veteran receiving segment.

"It's great to have [Gerhart back], it takes a lot of pressure off of whoever is behind center because he is an amazing athlete and a great runner," Luck said. "And with him we have a great line, don't forget about that. And the wide receivers, some chances out there, maybe the focus is less on the wide outs and they get a chance to have great years."

Stanford's defense is anchored by a line as good as any in the Pac-10, yet it must replace three starters in the secondary -- the Cardinal ranked ninth in the Pac-10 in pass defense last season. Overall, punctuated by 17 returning starters, this might be the most athletic Stanford team in nearly a decade.

While Luck wasn't born when his father played in the NFL (1982-86 with the Houston Oilers), he said his father never pressured him to play football, let alone quarterback. Oliver Luck was named president of the Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer in 2005 and was appointed by West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin to the West Virginia University Board of Governors in 2007.

"He never pressured me at all, he was great about it," said Luck, who grew up a fan of Peyton Manning. "He never called a coach or had said anything about, 'Play my son.' He told me that coaches coach, I'm your father and I'll be your dad and support you no matter what and will always be there. He never pressured me to play football, he just encouraged me to do something with my time and not just sit around."

Luck isn't one to sit around either.

In addition to preparing for the upcoming season, he has been an intern in corporate sales this summer with the San Jose Earthquakes of the MSL. While Luck joked he was going to be the next striker for the Earthquakes -- "Nah (laughing), I don't have the skill or the leg," he said -- Luck knows what's at stake on the tackle football field.

Getting to a bowl should be easy, as long as stability, and a little Luck, is brought to the quarterback position.

Stanford Quarterback Andrew Luck Setting High Expectations originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 11 Jul 2009 08:01:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Andrew LuckJim HenrySat, 11 Jul 2009 08:01:00 EST Stanford Football: We Workhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/06/26/stanford-football-we-work/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/06/26/stanford-football-we-work/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/06/26/stanford-football-we-work/#commentsFiled under: ,

Stanford helmetRecently, Stanford University unveiled its imaginative new slogan for the upcoming football season. Are you ready? Hold your breath. It's astounding, it's going to rock your world. "We work."

That's it.

The sum total of Stanford's distilled brilliance, the essence of sports. Shakespeare said, "Brevity is the soul of wit," so somewhere he's laughing. Everyone else? They want the athletic department to get a refund check.

What's the only thing dumber than this? Some people in the Silicon Valley think the slogan is offensive to people who are unemployed -- I only wish I was joking. Not offensive to anyone with a working brain, but offensive to the unemployed. Because, let's be honest, the unemployed among us often look to football slogans to offer solace in their time of need. Who among us hasn't been dragging their possessions in a shopping cart, when we've suddenly looked up and seen an athletic billboard that makes everything better? Welcome to the outskirts of Pac-10 football, where stupid and inane marketing slogans are a way of life.

You know what I'm offended by? A smart school being so stupid. Can I retroactively withdraw my Stanford Law School application? The one that got rejected 25 seconds after it arrived on campus? I've visited Stanford, the place is heaven on earth -- perfect weather, gorgeous campus, easy access to San Francisco, Tiger Woods, girls who will sleep with you because they think it's cool that you can name 76 of the 100 United States senators. So the Stanford brand is pretty strong. Now, the school isn't a football behemoth by any stretch of the imagination, but the football players do tend to graduate and do something with their lives that doesn't include turning their toothbrushes into shivs.

So I'm offended by the idiocy. (In addition to being offended by the fact that anyone could be offended by anything other than the idiocy.)

"We work" is the kind of slogan a school that doesn't actually graduate its players should have. Because the sentence doesn't end, right now it just sort of floats on air, away into the distance. We work ... it begs to be finished. You can easily imagine someone from a rival school showing up late one night and appending a variety of additions to the billboard. Maybe "at McDonald's" or "at the halfway house." But "we work" standing alone and unadorned? It's just nonsensical.

Jim Harbaugh
Getty Images

Look, I'm no marketing guru. I can't use words like paradigm shift and user-generated content and poonhound magnet and make otherwise astute businessmen cough up cash like they're paying ransom for kidnapped family members in Colombia. But I can tell you when something is dumb ... really dumb.

I still remember watching CNBC one afternoon when they got a hot tip about Coke's new marketing slogan. "Taste it all." Seriously, that was it. The host announcing it couldn't even keep a straight face. If someone uttered this phrase in a late-night Cinemax movie you wouldn't be able to keep a straight face either. But pair it with a beverage and the geniuses in Coke marketing believed it was unassailable brilliance.

So forgive me if sometimes I wonder what exactly advertising people do all day, especially when they produce slogans like "We work." I truly want to know how this happened. I'm picturing eight people in turtlenecks of different colors sitting around an Ikea table brainstorming. Idea after idea is rejected and then one person comes up with "We work," and everyone stands up and starts giving discreet fist bumps. Then everyone takes a month off work.

Think about this, what if you came up with another slogan, any other slogan, "Football American: Catch It!," it was rejected, and then your boss unveiled, "We work." Wouldn't you just quit on the spot?

Right about now, someone is thinking, yeah, but it's advertising, you're writing about it, Clay. They win. Not true. All publicity may be good publicity. That's true when it's free publicity. When you pay someone to make you look dumb, you lose. Period.

Put simply, I don't believe that most advertising sloganeers are actually very good at what they do. Most of them are like real estate agents, they don't do much but they end up costing you lots of money. I've never owned a large company, but I picture it as being the equivalent of sitting down to sign the sales contract for your house. You're happy, thinking about how much of your new house you're going to have as an equity down payment, and then a woman who applies make-up with a paint-roller takes ten grand from you. For showing the house four times and typing up a listing.

"We work," she might say in response to your query about how the hell she ended up with so much of your money.

Just to show how disappointed I was with the new slogan, I spent ten minutes jotting down more interesting slogans for Stanford football. Here goes:

1. Subject + verb

I actually like this a lot better. It cuts to the essence of "We work" and casts it in a post-modern light. Of course it also gives me chills because it takes me back to 7th grade English class when our teacher, Ms. Treherne, used to make us come up to the front of the classroom and do sentence diagramming races on the blackboard.

I don't know where she is now, but I think if she heard I'd come up with "We work" she would slap me in the head with an eraser and make me take another one of her sentence diagramming tests where you got either a 100 or a 0. Seriously, perfection or failure, the ultimate English crucible.

I can think of an advertising agency that could use her right now.

2. USC's Worst Nightmare

This works pretty well as a shot across the bow at the most dominant Pac-10 team of the decade. Plus, it's accurate. Jim Harbaugh took his Stanford team into USC in 2007 and ended the Trojans 35-game home winning streak with an unbelievable upset. You know Pete Carroll still wakes up drenched in sweat thinking about this game.

3. HarBalls

Image: Harbaugh standing on a field holding several footballs near his waist.

Yeah, it's a bit crude but it also conveys that the coach is fearless, that the team will play with swagger. And every college football fan on earth would know about this slogan.

4. The Cardinal Rule: Win

A much more traditional slogan, but one that is, conservatively, four billion percent better than the chosen slogan.

5. Stanford Football: Better Than Your High School (except if you went to De La Salle)

Okay, this one isn't likely to make the cut.

6. Clay Travis Wasn't Smart Enough To Go To Law School Here

Upside: It's true.

Downside: My name recognition in the Silicon Valley rests at .0001%

Also, it doesn't really involve football.

7. Two-Time Defending Rose Bowl Champs*

Just make the asterisk so small that no one can actually see it.

*1971 and 1972

8. Palo Alto Attitude

Let's be clear, crossing out words in ads is the new pink. Alto has a very effeminate connotation. It's hard to imagine a football team being very good if they played in a town named Palo Alto. But Palo Attitude? How could they not be good?

9. Remember Buddy Teevens? We don't either. His era is over.

Evidently, Stanford's coach from 2002-2004 was this guy. Honestly, you've never heard of him either. He replaced Tyrone Willingham and went 10-23. But he was 3-0 against San Diego State.

10. Wine Country With Cleats

Granted, wine country is about 80 miles away, but can you imagine if you could hit that market? Rich, discretionary income, frequently drunk but unwilling to admit it. Plus, you can't spell wine without w-i-n.

I kindly donate all of these suggestions to the soon to be fired advertising execs behind "We work." Please, Stanford, make me feel better about the rejection of my application.

Stanford Football: We Work originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Jim HarbaughJimHarbaughPete CarrollPeteCarrollClay TravisFri, 26 Jun 2009 14:30:00 EST How to Program the Pac-10 Networkhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/18/how-to-program-the-pac-10-network/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/18/how-to-program-the-pac-10-network/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/18/how-to-program-the-pac-10-network/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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)

    AP

    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)

    MCT

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

    AP

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

    AP

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

    AP

    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)

    AP

    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)

    AP

    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)

    AP

    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)

    AP

    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)

    AP



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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]]>bill dobakarl dorrelllendale whitepete carrollClay TravisMon, 18 May 2009 16:19:00 EST Tyrone Willingham Apparently Won't Coach in UFL After Allhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/14/tyrone-willingham-apparently-wont-coach-in-ufl-after-all/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/14/tyrone-willingham-apparently-wont-coach-in-ufl-after-all/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/14/tyrone-willingham-apparently-wont-coach-in-ufl-after-all/#commentsFiled under: , ,

On Tuesday we noted a report that former Stanford, Notre Dame and Washington head coach Tyrone Willingham had accepted a new job as an assistant coach in the upstart United Football League. But now it appears that Willingham won't be a UFL assistant after all.

The original report came from the Seattle Times, citing the web site FootballScoop.com, but now the Times and FootballScoop.com both say Willingham was not able to reach an agreement to work for the UFL's San Francisco franchise.

Willingham moved back to the Bay Area after he was fired at Washington, and he's good friends with San Francisco's UFL coach, Dennis Green. So it wouldn't be unreasonable to think he'd take a job with the team. But apparently he's not planning to do so.

The UFL, a four-team league, is planning to start play in October. In addition to Green coaching the San Francisco franchise, the UFL has Jim Fassel, Ted Cottrell and Jim Haslett lined up as head coaches.

Tyrone Willingham Apparently Won't Coach in UFL After All originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 14 May 2009 14:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Dennis GreenDennisGreenJim FasselJim HaslettJimFasselJimHaslettTed CottrellTedCottrellTyrone WillinghamTyroneWillinghamMichael David SmithThu, 14 May 2009 14:30:00 EST Tyrone Willingham Reportedly Set to Be Assistant Coach in UFLhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/12/tyrone-willingham-reportedly-set-to-coach-in-ufl/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/12/tyrone-willingham-reportedly-set-to-coach-in-ufl/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/05/12/tyrone-willingham-reportedly-set-to-coach-in-ufl/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Former Stanford, Notre Dame and Washington head coach Tyrone Willingham has reportedly found a new job, as an assistant coach in the upstart United Football League.

The Seattle Times, citing the web site FootballScoop.com, reports that Willingham will be the special teams and running backs coach for the UFL's San Francisco franchise. It will be Willingham's first job as an assistant -- and first job coaching professional players -- since he was the running backs coach for the Minnesota Vikings in 1994.

Obviously, that makes this quite a step down for Willingham, who not long ago was considered one of the most promising head coaches in football. Now he's going to be an assistant on a team that doesn't exist yet. But by taking the San Francisco job, Willingham is reuniting with his old friend (and boss) Dennis Green, who was the head coach of the Vikings when Willingham was a Minnesota assistant.

And it's impressive that the UFL is continuing to sign accomplished coaches. The UFL says it its four teams will be coached by Green, Jim Fassel, Ted Cottrell and Jim Haslett. We don't yet what caliber of players the UFL will sign, but we do know the UFL will have some impressive coaches.

Tyrone Willingham Reportedly Set to Be Assistant Coach in UFL originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 12 May 2009 14:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Tyrone WillinghamTyroneWillinghamMichael David SmithTue, 12 May 2009 14:50:00 EST Pac-10's Nine Dwarves Aspire to Morehttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/04/21/pac-10s-nine-dwarves-aspire-to-more/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/04/21/pac-10s-nine-dwarves-aspire-to-more/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/04/21/pac-10s-nine-dwarves-aspire-to-more/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , , ,

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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]]>Aaron CorpAndrew LuckBeau SweeneyBrock MansionBrock OsweilerChip KellyCollege Football Spring Storylines 2009Danny SullivanDarrell CatchingsDeWayne WalkerJacquizz RodgersJake LockerJames Rodgersjim harbaughKevin CraftKevin PrinceKevin RileyLyle MoevaoMatt BarkleyMatt ScottMike BellottiMike RileyNick FolesNick HoltPaul WulffRichard BrehautSamson SzakacsySonny DykesSteve SarkisianTavita PritchardBrian GrummellTue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 EST Jim Harbaugh Is Trying to Take Himself Off the Market With Extensionhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2008/11/18/jim-harbaugh-is-trying-to-take-himself-off-the-market-with-exten/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2008/11/18/jim-harbaugh-is-trying-to-take-himself-off-the-market-with-exten/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2008/11/18/jim-harbaugh-is-trying-to-take-himself-off-the-market-with-exten/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Stanford football coach Jim Harbaugh is a hot commodity these days after turning the moribund Cardinal program around into a respectable Pac-10 outfit. Meanwhile, the coaching change season has started particularly early and particularly bloody this year, raising the profile and earnings potential for coaches like Harbaugh.

All of which makes Harbaugh's impending contract extension with Stanford so puzzling. Stanford isn't a bad job, but the program has its limits while bigger opportunities may await him at any price he names. The usual coach-speak was offered at a press conference this week before the Big Game against Cal:
"Let me be clear on this. I'm 100 percent committed to Stanford University,'' Harbaugh said. "I love my job at Stanford. I have a great wife, a new baby, I love my job, I love the guys I coach for. I could not imagine coaching anywhere else.'


We get it, life is good and he's doing well at a program just a few clicks off the radar of being high profile. You can't put a price on happiness and whatever the talks are between Stanford and Harbaugh, they may add seven figures a year to it, but ...

There's the Tennnessee job out there. Maybe Auburn. The Raiders. Maybe even dear old alma mater Michigan in a year or two if Rich Rodriguez continues to look miserable.

It's clear coaches can get out of their deals nowadays, usually at a steep price. Harbaugh isn't truly locked into any extension he signs, but it makes it a lot harder when and if he does start looking around and makes for inevitably sore feelings as fans watch their school deal with the divorce and headache of finding a new coach hoping he isn't the next Buddy Teevens or Walt Harris.

Hopefully he's considered all of that.

The upshot is the Pac-10 retains, at least for a few years, a quality coach who has helped resurrect one of the conference bottom feeders just a few years ago. Harbaugh also clearly has a feel for how to challenge Pete Carroll and USC after toppling them last year and making USC look stupid for nearly three quarters last week before the dam burst and USC's running game and talent overwhelmed Stanford.

Hey, maybe UCLA would take him?

Jim Harbaugh Is Trying to Take Himself Off the Market With Extension originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 16:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brian GrummellTue, 18 Nov 2008 16:30:00 EST