North Carolina State Team Breakdown

Returning starters: Offense: 7, Defense: 5, Punter/Kicker: 1

QB Russell Wilson back to slinging the pigskin.

Quarterback – Starter Russell Wilson (pictured right, SMI) missed all of spring football to play baseball. In his absence, Mike Glennon impressed coach Tom O’Brien and completed 21 of 38 passes for 423 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in the Pack’s spring game. As long as Wilson picks up where he left off in 2009, it should be his job to lose. Wilson had nearly three times as many touchdown passes as picks (31 to 11) last season. He also threw 379 passes without a pick, which broke the old mark of 325. I think this team is going through some turmoil with all of the offseason distractions (arrests) so watch for them to have a slow start and then pick up their performance about midseason. Wilson will not come close to 30+ TDs this year.
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The 2009 season saw a broad toning down of scoring and offensive statistics in the Big 12 compared to the frenzied shootouts of 2008 and to some extent 2007. 2010 looks to be a continuation of that trend, as the conference has lost its top two quarterbacks and most of its top receivers. Additionally, the defenses that improved in 2009 appear to be similarly strong in 2010.
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Northwestern

The biggest concern here is how to replace Kafka. It won’t be easy but it looks like QB Dan Persa is the front runner for the job. Persa is an accurate and mobile quarterback which is good news for Wildcat fans.  Let’s just say he might be scrambling at times.

The running game is still unclear for the Wildcats. Last year Arby Fields got the bulk of the carries. Now we have RB Alex Daniel returning from injury. Mike Trumpy and Adonis Smith both should contribute some to the running game this year. There may not be a clear front runner or fantasy starter in the bunch but Adonis Smith is worth watching to see how he does on the season. He could be the future of the Wildcats.

The receivers Sidney Stewart and Drake Dunsmore return but with concerns at the QB spot it is hard to expect a lot from these receivers this year. Neither receiver caught over 600 yards last year but with both Brewer and Markshausen gone they should see an increase in yardage this season. Just don’t draft them expecting 800 yard seasons.

The defense is a weak spot and should be drafted with great concern. Kicker Stefan Demos is one of the top kickers in the Big Ten and will get plenty of field goal chances with this offense. Read the rest of this entry →

After three years and three consecutive national championships, the SEC has one heck of a resume to hang their hat on.  However, all that bling serves as a shield toward a pretty awkward couple of issues: the league only runs two deep at the top right now and fantasy players tail off in a hurry down south of the Mason Dixon.  Attrition caused its own mess, so …now what?  Now we have a couple of guys who are impact players, a few guys who could be, and then a heck of a lot of hope.

Big arm, big body, big-time coach - yes, Arkansas' Ryan Mallett looks like the real fantasy deal (Icon SMI)

At least we have trophies…

QUARTERBACK
1.  Ryan Mallett, Arkansas
2.  Cam Newton, Auburn
3.  John Brantley, Florida
4.  Jeremiah Masoli, Ole Miss

Let’s start with the obvious: Ryan Mallett is as close to a fantasy QB beast the SEC is likely to get for the near future.  He has a system designed to maximize his talents, he has a quality crop of WRs, and he’ll get the opportunities.  After that …. yikes.  Sure, Stephen Garcia is still floating around, and Greg McElroy is a great real-life QB, but they have systemic issues – McElroy isn’t in an offense that lets him pass enough, and Garcia is going to be yanked out of at least 3-4 games (plus is still playing behind a swinging gate of an offensive line).

Instead, we’re left with what systems are likely to produce.  Newton, Brantley, and Masoli are all untested in SEC play, excepting Newton’s garbage time as a Gator his freshman year.  However, they’re all in systems that can maximize their talents (and to be brutally frank, I flipped their order a few times writing this).  For now, I trust Newton more than either of the two guys ranked below him.  Brantley has all the tools, but after what happened to Florida’s offense under Steve Addazio last year, I’m a bit gunshy.  Masoli by all rights should be going to an offense that will let him run – Matt Jones in 2004 as a good example of Masoli’s potential – but there’s the simple matter of, well, not trusting that Houston Nutt has any idea how to coach QBs.  At all.  Couple that with Ole Miss breaking in three new guys on the line and there are some red flags here, even with Masoli’s production last season.

Don’t get me wrong – Newton, Brantley, and Masoli all have a chance to be the best fantasy QB in the SEC.  But in the absence of any history, we’re left to fall back on what we’ve seen guys like them do, and the production potential of those three guys doesn’t outweigh what we already know about Mallett.

On to the feature backs… Read the rest of this entry →

Although there are only 3 Division I-FBS Independents left, there will be plenty of fantasy talent available at those schools.

The Independent school that has piqued the most interest is Notre Dame, as they bring in new head coach Brian Kelly (photo, thanks, Scout.com).  Kelly has produced potent offenses, and winning teams, while at Central Michigan and (most recently) Cincinnati….and could put some spark into a Fighting Irish offense that could use a little more consistency.

Meanwhile, Navy and Army will continue to run their option offenses, giving fantasy players some running, fantasy-worthy QBs Read the rest of this entry →