by Brian McDonald of College Fantasy Football Insider

For this week’s Big East mock draft we invited a fellow college fantasy footballer to partake in the fun, and Vince Mullins of Fantasy College Blitz was happy to oblige. Vince and his amigos at the Blitz know their stuff, so well-aware that he’d certainly be up to the task I anxiously began my draft preparation; after all this is the conference that has provided the likes of Michael Bush, Steve Slaton, Pat White and Ray Rice in recent years.

Then it quickly became apparent that this is not your older brother’s Big East. In fact the 2009 version of the conference bears little resemblance to the league of even a couple of years ago. And even before the drafting commenced I couldn’t help but think back to strolling through a video store (remember those?) years ago on a Saturday night, when all that remained was a copy of Beverly Hills Ninja and a robust selection of films starring C. Thomas Howell.

Slim pickings to say the least. Read the rest of this entry →

My research suggests that the fantasy college football picture in the Big East is more unclear than Ron Zook after a doubleshot latte.

Donald Brown? Gone. Pat White? Gone. LeSean McCoy? Gone. My goodness, is Matt Grothe the safest pick at #1 overall? (I am a Grothe Investor…)

Nonetheless, I will be guesting on our new friend’s live podcast on BlogTalkRadio at 9pm on Thursday.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/CFFinsider

Interesting technology – you can actually call in live! Not sure how I feel about that…come join the fun!

PS – I am researching new ways to syndicate the podcast – any experts out there, I would love to hear from you.

Miami faces Mediocrity yet again in 2009!

Former Cane hero Russell Maryland remembers the old days with the Ibis.

Miami faces a steep mountain to climb in 2009. Probably more steep than the mountain they had to climb last year Having one of the youngest teams in the nation last year, they went 7-6 in 2008 and that was just about where most analysts had them pegged, considering the enormous infusion of youth into the program. But here is the problem: Can they beat that this year?

Miami is another year older, but still extremely young. The majority of the returning members on offense are still only going to be sophomores. But I think Miami’s return to success this year depends on 2 factors: Can they overcome a brutal schedule (especially early on) and how well are they going to take to yet another new offensive scheme?

Anyone who watched the NFL’s Washington Redskins last year knows that a constant change in schemes is hardly a good thing for a team, especially for one as young as Miami. Jason Campbell struggled last year because he was learning his, I don’t know- 100th new offensive playbook since he entered the league? No wonder why they never really took off last year like some had hoped. The same thing is happening down in Coral Gables. Mark Whipple is coming in and installing the 3rd offensive scheme in as many years and John Lovett is taking over the defense. I am not by any means saying that he can’t be successful in doing so. I just know it is going to be tough getting a bunch of 18 and 19 year old kids to try and learn yet another new playbook and grasp it well enough to demonstrate a firm understanding early on.

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Spring Fling – MAC Football Spring Game Update

AKRON

QB Chris Jacquemain moved the ball effectively early going 10-of-13 in the first half for 139 yards and a TD. He finished the day completing 16-of-27 for 189 yards. While the offense had its struggles in the second half, Matt Rodgers had some success. After a 1-for-7 start, he finished completing 10-of-22 for 115 yards with an interception and a TD.  While Nate Burney led the rushing attack with 36-yards on 11 carries, DeVoe Torrence, a four-star recruit by Rivals.com two years ago, averaged 10-yards per carry on just three attempts.  Mike Thomas, Brian Wagner and Almondo Sewell had big days for the defense.

BALL STATE

Kelly Page solidified the #1 QB spot after Nate Davis bolted early for the NFL.  True freshman Aaron Mershman may have knocked Tanner Justice out of the backup role after impressing during the spring.  MiQuale Lewis and Briggs Orsbon will each be counted on to continue their leadership roles along with production.  Torieal Gibson moved from receiver to DB.  Both lines received a lot of attention especially with four graduated players gone from the offensive trenches.

BOWLING GREEN

The BGSU run game, which finished the afternoon with 221 yards on 56 carries, continued to roll later in the first quarter, capped by a 25-yard run from Steven Dunlap. Dunlap finished the day with 106 yards on 15 carries.  Chris Bullock finished the game with 88 yards on 22 carries, while Ray Hutson had four catches for 65 yards.  Defensively, Andrew Johnson led all defenders with five tackles and two sacks. Ryan Crowe had the defenses lone turnover, an interception. 

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It is not unusual for college athletes to play more than one sport while in school.

However, it is unusual for a college athlete to play different sports…at different schools.  Enter former Duke point guard Greg Paulus (photo, thanks GoDuke.com)…who will suit up for Syracuse football this fall.

Although this is one of the more intriguing stories in this college football off-season, do not think this is just a publicity stunt or an ego-trip…Paulus has some very good football credentials…and could wind up starting at QB for the Orange in 2009.

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