More NFTM: Big 10, Pac 10 and SEC
November 29th, 2008 by Jason Roberts
Disappointed as we were in the non-entity that was Texas v. Texas A&M last night, we at Fantasy College Blitz woke up reinvigorated for a second, stronger dose of rivalry games this afternoon and so far, have yet to be disappointed after a heck of a showdown in the Backyard Brawl between West Virginia and Pittsburgh and what is ending up a shootout between Colorado and Nebraska out in Lincoln . . .
That being said, however, we still found time during the day to squeeze out a few more attempts at turkey sandwiches and cranberry sauce (opted moreso for the pumpkin pie) and conjured up these second-helpings of newsworthy entrees out of the Big Ten, Pac-10, and SEC.
Big Ten
Illinois Fighting Illini
The Herald & Review writes this week that Illinois Fighting Illini offensive coordinator Mike Locksley has confirmed interviewing for the head coaching job at Clemson, but is rumored to also have talked to Syracuse University about their vacancy as well. Should Locksley be named to either position, the loss to the University of Illinois would be significant, particularly given that he doubles over as the quarterback coach as well. Yet this isn’t the first time the offensive coordinator’s hat as been thrown in the ring when it comes to a potential coaching spot; last year, after the publicity that surrounded Locksley after taking Illinois to a 9-4 season and a trip to the Rose Bowl, he was interviewed for the job at West Virginia.
Iowa Hawkeyes
With 22 carries going for 144 yards and two touchdowns last weekend, junior tailback for the Iowa Hawkeyes, Shonn Greene, set the single-season school record for rushing yards in a 55-0 win over Minnesota. Greene did so by eclipsing the mark previously held by Tavian Banks, who in 1997 ran for 1,691 yards, with the junior finishing with 1,729 yards on the year. Greene too ended with 17 touchdowns on the year, a mark which ties the one previously also set by Banks, this according to the Globe Gazette.
Michigan Wolverines
Despite suffering through the worst season in the history of the storied Michigan Wolverines football program this year, fans of the university have plenty to look forward to with the approach of 2009; after all, as The Detroit Free Press writes this week, a number of outstanding young athletes return to Ann Arbor next year and will be joined by at least five participants in both the Army All-American and Under Armour All-American high school all-star games to be held the first week of January in San Antonio, Texas and Orlando, Florida, respectively. In the former, Wolverines’ faithful will get the chance to check out defensive end Anthony LaLota, wide receiver Jeremy Gallon, and kicker Brendan Gibbons. Meanwhile, in the latter, Michigan’s future recruiting class will be represented by safety Isaiah Bell and defensive end Craig Roh. Several high-tiered targets for the Wolverines in offensive guard Quinton Washington, offensive tackle Taylor Lewan, and linebacker Jelani Jenkins will also be featured.
Meanwhile, the website MLive.com notes that in a post-season news conference held Monday, head coach for the Michigan Wolverines, Rich Rodriguez, told reporters that he fully expected freshman running back Sam McGuffie and defensive end Brandon Graham to return to Ann Arbor next season. Rodriguez acknowledged that McGuffie has been dealing with family issues back in his home state of Texas, but felt it wouldn’t impact his overall standing with the team. Graham, on the other hand, has yet to declare whether or not he’ll declare himself eligible for the NFL Draft, but Rodriguez commented he felt confident that the junior would return for his senior year with the Wolverines.
Michigan State Spartans
The Detroit Free Press on Thursday comments that with the regular season now over for the Michigan State Spartans, Mark Dantonio and the remainder of his coaching staff are now hitting the road in order to finalize the class of 2009 and begin searching out potential recruits for the class of 2010. Previous head coach John L. Smith, the paper notes, regularly utilized players transferring from junior colleges to bolster the ranks of his incoming classes; Dantonio, however, hopes to tap talent coming out of high school as a means of better stabilizing the Michigan State program. This isn’t to say that the current coaching staff doesn’t find value in JUCO players, however. The Spartans, for instance, are looking at defensive end Travis Stephens of Blinn Community College in Texas as one of the top rated prospects in the nation coming out of junior college this year. Still, the entrance standards for JUCO transfers are generally higher in the Big Ten than for most BCS conference schools, and make it difficult to get players in mid-year such that they can participate in spring practices as a means of integrating themselves with a new team and playbook.
Minnesota Golden Gophers
In the wake of a 55-0 thumping at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes last Saturday, the website TwinCities.com reports that the offensive line coach for the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Phil Meyer, has resigned from his position in order to pursue other opportunities. Rumor has it that Alabama’s director of player personnel, Tim Davis, is strongly being considered as Meyer’s replacement. Whomever takes over the role, however, will face a difficult task in further strengthening an unit that left the Gophers finishing last in conference with 77.8 yards a game rushing and gave up 27 sacks over the span of 12 games this year.
Pac-10
California Bears
The website InsideBayArea.com writes this week of the hoax pulled by the University of California - Berkeley student newspaper which centered on the publication of a “special edition” on last Saturday morning - the day of Cal’s “Big Game” matchup with Stanford - that claimed star running back, Jahvid Best, had injured his ankle and was no longer scheduled to play. In reality, Best was healthier than he’s been in quite some time, did take the field versus Stanford, and, in a career-best performance against the Cardinal, ran for a career-high 201 yards rushing and three touchdowns in a 37-16 win for the Bears in Memorial Stadium.
Oregon Ducks
The Billings Gazette reports this week that former University of Oregon redshirt freshman wide receiver, Elvis Akpia, has signed a letter of intent to play football at Montana State and plans to transfer in January as a sophomore. He is, according to the paper, the third such football player to transfer to Montana State in the last six months, joining quarterback Cody Kempt and defensive end John Laidet.
Oregon State Beavers
The Ashland Daily Times writes that this weekend’s Civil War showdown between ranked opponents the Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers may very well be a game absent of the Pac-10’s leading rusher, freshman Jacquizz Rodgers. Rodgers, in last week’s game against the Arizona Wildcats, injured his shoulder at the end of the first quarter with what head coach Mike Riley referred to as a “second-degree sprain,” and though Riley states that the freshman is “feeling better,” he does not want to put the young star at risk. In his place, look for redshirt freshman Ryan McCants and Jeremy Francis to keep the Beavers’ moving on the ground and in the short passing game, with the former netting 52 yards rushing and the latter 61 yards receiving in OSU’s win over the Wildcats last week in Tucson.
UCLA Bruins
The Los Angeles Daily News makes quite a big deal about the comments made by head coach of the UCLA Bruins, Rick Neuheisel, this week in light of criticism level against him by quarterback Kevin Craft’s father, Tom, in an article published in the News earlier in the week that Neuheisel was being too had on his son. Neuheisel took the opportunity to respond to such claims, commenting, “I’m a big fan of Kevin. Much has been said about my antics on the sidelines. I wonder where we’d be without him.” The coach continues, stating, “He’s been terrific in terms of not making excuses. He’s taken a lot of hits and keeps getting up. He’s a very resilient kid and very tough-minded. I hope good things for him. If he keeps working at it, there’s no reason to think he’s not going to improve.”
Washington Huskies
The Seattle Times attempts to sort out the rumors surrounding potential candidates for the soon-to-be vacant coaching job at the University of Washington this week, noting that Jim Mora, Seattle’s coach-in-waiting seems to be near the top of the list. Other names being mentioned in conjunction with the search? Texas’ defensive coordinator Will Muschamp was in the mix, but announced that he will instead wait to become the next head coach at the University of Texas. FootballScoop.com claimed this week that former Alabama and Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione was “a leading candidate,” but so too are some saying that LSU’s Les Miles might be being considered. Notre Dame offensive coordinator Michael Haywood has been included in conversations, but is considered a long shot. Missouri’s Gary Pinkel and Boise State’s Chris Petersen might too have been rated as excellent options for the Huskies, the Times writes, but just recently entered into discussions for contract extensions with their current employers, so scratch them from the short list as well. That leaves outside shots at Fresno State’s Pat Hill, ex-Raiders coach Lane Kiffin, and interestingly enough, Kyle Whittingham of Utah.
SEC
Alabama Crimson Tide
Al.com tells readers this week that head coach for the Alabama Crimson Tide, Nick Saban, has confirmed that former Georgia Tech tight end Colin Peek, who applied for a hardship appeal to the NCAA earlier in the year but had it rejected, will be eligible by the time the Crimson Tide play their bowl game. A 6′6″ junior that has “drawn raves for his performance in practice,” will have served his first year of residency as a transfer after the end of the fall semester and, as such, will be able to suit up for Alabama for an early January bowl appearance.
Arkansas Razorbacks
The Advertiser reports the news out of Little Rock, Arkansas this week that head coach of the Razorbacks, Bobby Petrino, has decided to go with Nathan Dick as his starting quarterback for Arkansas’ game Friday against the LSU Tigers. Dick will replace his older brother, senior Casey Dick, who was benched last week for the Mississippi state matchup after collecting 10 consecutive starts this season. The Razorbacks lost the game to Sylvester Croom’s squad, but saw the younger Dick pass for 333 yards and three touhdowns, while also rushing for gains of 11 and 15 yards on broken plays. The freshman says that despite replacing Casey, “We’re still brothers. He encouraged me every time I came to the sidelines, patting me, saying, ‘Good job,’ or when I threw that pick he said, ‘You can’t worry about that.’ He’s just really encouraging me right now.”
Florida Gators
The St. Augustine Record raises the question this week over whether or not Florida Gators senior tight end Cornelius Ingram might be healthy enough at this point in the season to play in UF’s bowl game - a game which may find the Gators playing for a national championship in Miami. Three months removed from reconstructive knee surgery, head coach Urban Meyer told reporters recently that Ingram is starting to look “pretty good,” quibbing in light of the fact that the senior jogged a 40-yard dash onto the field during Senior Day last week in the Swamp, “We were going to throw him a pass there.” Ingram has already resumed running, yet still needs to be cleared for cutting and full contact before any real consideration to a return could be provided. “If we happen to get to a bowl game and Cornelius is able to play and he’s healthy enough and he feels comfortable to go play, that would be an unbelievable boost,” offensive coordinator Dan Mullen commented on the subject. Still, Ingram does not want to hurt his chances going into next year’s NFL Draft as one of the most highly regarded tight ends in college football today, so that would have to play into any such election to return to the field as a Florida Gator.
LSU Tigers
The Advertiser confirms this week what many LSU faithful have been hoping for all season-long; true freshman Jordan Jefferson will start for the first time at quarterback when the Tigers take on Arkansas in Little Rock on Friday. Regular starter Jarrett Lee practiced on a regular basis this week, but was injured in the Tigers’ game against Ole Miss. Jefferson then came in and went 10-of-20 passing for 129 yards and a touchdown in place of Lee, while also rushing for 51 yards on 10 carries. “I think,” head coach Les Miles told reporters, “Jordan gives the team a lift, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do.” Jefferson will be the third quarterback to start for LSU this season, a circumstance that has not been repeated since 2002 when Matt Mauck was injured and replaced by Marcus Randall and, for one game, Rick Clausen.
South Carolina Gamecocks
The St. Augustine Record informs readers this week that head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks, Steve Spurrier, has decided to use just one single quarterback in this upcoming weekend’s matchup against Clemson, with sophomore Chris Smelley getting the nod in the in-state rivalry against the Tigers. Spurrier also added that fans should expect little, if any, of freshman Stephen Garcia, adding, “He may go in there occasionally. But it’s Chris’ game. There might be a run play or something in there, whatever. But it’s basically Chris’ game. We’re not shuffling them in and out.”
Vanderbilt Commodores
The Tennessean this week relates the news that fifth-year senior tailback Jeff Jennings is likely to get the start for Vanderbilt this upcoming weekend in the regular-season closing game for the Commodores against Wake Forest. Jennings will play in place of leading rusher Jared Hawkins who last week strained ligaments in his foot against Tennessee. “We have no choice,” head coach Bobby Johnson told reporters. “We have to get Jeff and Kennard Reeves and Gaston Miller and Ryan van Rensburg ready to play.”
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