View From Bennett Avenue

Now that I am finished complaining about something SI did I can turn my angry gaze toward ESPN. Of the many stupid things that network does on a daily basis, one of the biggest is the discussion of the NFL draft during the college football season. Today, draft experts Bozo 1 and Bozo 2 had to debate the draft potential of the top college QBs. They both are enamored with Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck and predict that he would be the first QB taken in next year's draft and would, therefore, be in the hunt for the no. 1 pick overall.

This type of debate annoys me on many different levels. First of all, it is SEPTEMBER. The f'ing draft is seven months away. These guys are wrong most of the time in the spring build-up to the draft. Who cares about what they have to say now?

Secondly, Luck is only a sophomore on the field, junior in the classroom. Constantly talking about underclassmen as the top pick usually forces the issue with these kids. That probably will not happen in this case as the family is incredibly, almost annoying, smart and therefore are probably fully aware of Luck's potential. His father Oliver also combined academics and athletics at West Virginia, graduating magna cum laude after starting for three years as the team's quarterback. He then played four years as a Houston Oiler and is now the athletic director at his alma mater. So, the family does not need the two bozos influence, but they do affect others. Either way, let the kid continue to develop as he has only started 16 games and has yet to perform under the pressure he will be in this Saturday against Oregon.

The final reason this stuff drives me crazy, and I have complained about it before, is that like the Bednarik reference in Sports Illustrated, discussions like this make college football a secondary sport to the NFL game. The time they devoted to Luck's draft status should have been devoted to the upcoming game. From what I saw of Luck against Notre Dame, he is very good but is not a finished product yet. Let's enjoy his college play against the no. 4-ranked Ducks in a hostile environment. If he continues to play well and comes out for the draft early, we can then devote the months and months available leading up to the draft to discuss his pro potential. Until then, let's enjoy his contributions to the glorious game of college football now as they happen.

View From Bennett Avenue

I am here to scold Sports Illustrated. And no not for the usual issues. But in reading last week's issue I came across an article by Kelli Anderson on Stanford FB-LB Owen Marecic, who is certainly worthy of a profile. Marecic was the starting fullback for most of his first three seasons at Stanford and his crushing blocks helped make a Heisman contender out of Toby Gerhart. Now he is both the team's starting fullback and a starting inside linebacker in the Cardinal's new 3-4 defense. That's right--he is a two-way player and nobody loves a two-way-playing throwback like Sports Illustrated (see Gordie Lockbaum).
But Ms. Anderson stumbles when gushing over Marecic's ability to play two positions known for toughness--as opposed to two-way players like Champ Bailey and Chris Gamble who were speed guys--as she uses Jim Thorpe, Bronko Nagurski and "more recently" Chuck Bednarik, "the so-called Last 60-Minute Man." She clarifies Bednarik a bit by mentioning that he played at Penn in 1940s. While I will not chide Anderson for her use of players like Thorpe and Nagurski who were the focal point of their team's effort on both sides of the ball each Saturday (receiving shots while on offense), my main complaint is with her use of Bednarik. Bednarik's 60-minute tag comes from his 1960 season with the Eagles when he led a veteran team to the championship. So do not reference a pro player when making an analogy for a collegiate star, especially when there were thousands of players playing on both sides of the ball in the 15-year period after Bednarik left the Quakers. Dick Butkus, for example, played center and linebacker for Illinois in splendid fashion after Bednarik retired from football.
Am I sensitive to the reference to the NFL when discussing college football? Yes I am. There is a notion that the NFL so completely dominates the college game, a notion that is not true and that does not need to be alluded to in an article about a college player. Anderson is even stretching the perceived domination to an era when the college game outdrew the pro game. Why not reference Lockbaum, who was a runner and safety, in the Thorpe mold (but not talent), of such skill for Holy Cross in the 1980s that Anderson's own magazine trumped up his Heisman candidacy?

Bruins Rebirth

I have never been considered a big fan of Rick Neuheisel the coach. The guy who walked on at UCLA and then became their starting QB I liked, but the coach who has brought on NCAA scrutiny at his two previous stops, Colorado and Washington, and then got his dream job without warranting it (something that has become the trend in Los Angeles) is not someone I care for. So when Neuheisel, who only won 11 games in his first two years in Westwood, apologized to the crowd after the Bruins got hammered 35-0 at home to Stanford in week two, I rolled my eyes. Once again the Bruins were going to be an afterthought in both the Pac 10 race and in the national picture.

But then something clicked with the new offense brought in over the summer in an attempt to improve the team's poor rush attack. Despite having passing game wiz Norm Chow as offensive coordinator and being in position to recruit from the great stable of California high school quarterbacks, the Bruins decided to take a look at what Nevada does with their founding version of the "Pistol" attack. Nevada coach Chris Ault--who is already a college football hall of famer--developed the formation in 2004. Ault took the spread attack and added a power run game dimension. His offense in 2009 became the first in college football history to produce three 1,000y rushers in QB Colin Kaepernick and RBs Luke Lippincott and Vai Taua. Alabama is now using the offense at times with success while James Madison used the Pistol to upset Virginia Tech on the same day that Neuheisel was apologizing. For the Bruins it took a few weeks to master the attack and get their offensive line healthy enough to block quality defenses. Beginning with game three they bounced Houston from the top 25 with a 31-13 win and then last week shocked Texas with 34-12 beating, wearing down the Longhorns defense in the second half. The win was the first over a ranked opponent on the road since 2001. Soph RB Johnathan Franklin has been the breakout star of the Bruins ground game in rushing for 409y. He led the Bruins last year with just 560y total. Meanwhile QB Kevin Prince averages just 71y passing per game as UCLA resembles the old days of coaches Pepper Rodgers and Dick Vermeil, when their offense featured backs like Kermit Johnson, Wendell Tyler, Theotis Brown and Freeman McNeil.

Lost in the praise for the Pistol offense has been the play of a young and aggressive defense. Coach Chuck Bullough's stop unit held Houston to 360y, more than 200y less than their average, and then gave no quarter to the Longhorns. The Bruins allowed short passes, but hammered the receivers upon completion. And, of course, Texas could not run the ball but UCLA cannot get credit for that--the Longhorns can't run the ball against anyone. Not one of the top seven tacklers for UCLA are seniors, while the offense is also loaded with underclassmen. There should be no reason for anyone to apologize for the rest of the year and in 2011.

What we saw Saturday

A theme for the weekend began Friday night with the SMU-TCU battle through late last night when Oregon outlasted Arizona State. And that theme is, while there are some good teams in college football this season there are no great teams. Now do not misunderstand me. I love a competitive season and hate that three to four teams have a stranglehold on the BCS title game. But many of the usual suspects--like Florida, Oklahoma, Texas and USC--have multiple flaws and the teams bunched at the top of the polls--that would be Alabama, Ohio State, Boise State and TCU--all have a weak spot or two.

What should also be intriguing are the conference races. In the Big Ten, Ohio State has looked very good this year but still has road games at Wisconsin and at Iowa. In the SEC, Alabama needed to rally to pass their first test yesterday in Arkansas. Up next? Florida on Saturday. Meanwhile Auburn won another barn burner yesterday, nipping a game South Carolina (and for the first time in my life I actually felt bad for Steve Spurrier). With their favorable schedule--they play both Arkansas and LSU at home--the Tigers just need to keep on chugging to become a top ten team. The SEC East may be decided on November 13 when the Gamecocks travel to Gainesville. Nebraska has now become the team to beat in the Big 12 with the winner of the Texas-Oklahoma game next weekend needing to make some improvements before being up to the task of handling the Cornhuskers defense. Miami may be the class of the ACC but that does not mean that they will win it. Oregon and Stanford have played the best of the Pac 10 squads with Arizona and USC also looking capable. UCLA is suddenly surging thanks to beatings administered to two old Southwest Conference teams Houston and Texas. TCU, and to a lesser extent, Utah have dominated the news out of the MWC but look out for both Air Force and my San Diego State Aztecs. Conference USA and the Big East are both wide open while Nevada is doing its best to become a challenger to Boise State in the WAC.

Got it? Enjoy.

Bob’s picks

Bob's Picks for Sept. 25, 2010: This week, Point Spreads are based on Danny Sheridan's Friday spreads in USA TODAY.

Bow-wow: interesting and somewhat overhyped SEC dogs.

Perhaps it is wishful thinking. Plenty of people have hyped three SEC underdogs as possible winners this week. Hmmm.

Alabama (-7) at ARKANSAS (3:30 p.m. ET): A lot of people are fired up about Razorbacks QB Ryan Mallett being able to hit some big passes against no. 1 Alabama's defense. What makes me wonder is why the same people envision Arkansas' defense stopping the Tide attackers. Pick: Alabama -7

Kentucky at FLORIDA (-14) (7 p.m. ET): Florida's offense seems to be going through some growing pains with a significant switch from running QB Tim Tebow to passing QB John Brantley. Still, Kentucky hasn't got the horses. Kentucky has a chance to beat a 2-TD spread but has little chance of winning.

South Carolina at AUBURN (-3) (7:45 p.m. ET): The Gamecocks are the most interesting dog. In their South Carolina's favor, Auburn comes off a bruising overtime win over Clemson, ironically Carolina's biggest rival. That could help the Gamecocks, but much of it comes down to how Carolina handles the grief over the suicide of all-time leading receiver Kenny McKinley, who was loved by many of his former teammates. I think they might win, but I lean slightly to Auburn. I'd leave this game alone.

--Bob Boyles

Paul's Picks

Another week, another round of agonizing choices. The biggest hurdle to overcome in selecting winners of college football games is the reality that it is impossible to see enough college football each week to truly know the teams. You can only gain so much knowledge from highlights or the Internet. But, one must plunge into the unknown to become a better person. And with that I present my selections for the week. I am using today's odds from The USA TODAY. My won-loss record to date is 7-8.
Temple at PENN STATE (-14)
Am I picking on the Nittany Lions by picking against them for the second time this month? Not really. This spread is based on a quick look at history in that PSU has beaten Temple 27 straight times since 1952, when Joe Paterno was a young assistant. But the Owls are an improving program and have not been this good since the 1970s when the pesky Owls lost to the mighty Lions by 1-pt in 1975 and '76 and by 3 in '78 (game was Penn State rout in '77). This time it will be by one score only with RB Evan Royster of Penn State narrowly topping Temple's Bernard Pierce in battle of talented backs. Pick: Temple +14.
North Carolina State at GEORGIA TECH (-8.5)
I have been waiting for three years now for coach Tom O'Brien to have his breakthrough season with the Wolfpack after his successful run at Boston College. With a 3-0 start to 2010, this might be the season but a fine showing in Atlanta is needed. QB Russell Wilson will put points on the board against a Tech defense that surrendered 3 TD passes to inexperienced Kansas QB Jordan Webb and then allowed UNC QB Tyler Yates (18-24/209y, TD) to look like an All American last week. Meanwhile the Wolfpack defense has played on a high level in this early season, inspired by return of LB Nate Irving from injury that robbed his 2009. Pick: North Carolina State +8.5
Ucla at TEXAS (-16)
In this age of scheduling a couple of layup games against little-known opponents, you have to give credit to UCLA for booking Kansas State, Houston and Texas for its non-conference slate. Credit, but not your hard-earned money. This is bad, bad match-up for a Bruins squad that is struggling to keep its offensive line healthy. The new Pistol Offense will look more like a pop gun, while the game UCLA defense will eventually be worn down. Pick: Texas -16
New Mexico at UNLV (-10.5)
With buzzards beginning to pick at the carcass that is New Mexico coach Mike Locksley's career as a head coach (he'll be scooped up for his recruiting skills...the latest rumors have Mike Leach landing here), the Lobos will have a tough time even matching last year's win total of 1. The Rebels will not win much more but they have a veteran defense that will shutdown the visitors and a much more relaxed situation with its new coaching staff. Pick: UNLV -10.5

Remember When

The death of Denver Broncos WR Kenny McKinley, South Carolina's all-time receiver with 207 receptions for 2781 yards, has prompted a special Remember When. McKinley's death--he reportedly committed suicide because his latest knee injury jeopardized his pro career and he felt unprepared for a life without the sport--highlights the need to develop a range of interests and skills in young athletes.

Said his college coach Steve Spurrier this week: "He came to the Georgia game (earlier this season). He seemed in good spirits. Great smile likes he always had. I don't understand it if it happened the way they say. It's hard to comprehend. Kenny was certainly one of my all-time favorite players. He was a wonderful guy. It's hard to figure out why this happened. It's a sad day."

Here was one of McKinley's finest days as a Gamecock:

Liberty Bowl (Dec. 29/2006): South Carolina 44 Houston 36

South Carolina (8-5) coach Steve Spurrier, long considered O wizard, enjoyed his D making big plays in 2nd H in Memphis. After trailing 28-27 at H, Gamecocks held Houston (10-4) to 63y in 3rd Q when Carolina took lead for good on K Ryan Succop's 45y FG. QB Blake Mitchell (19-29/323y, INT), who tied Liberty Bowl record with 4 TD passes, connected twice for 43y TDs with WR Kenny McKinley (3/112y, 2 TDs) within 5-min span of 4th Q to launch South Carolina to 44-28 edge. Cougars sr QB Kevin Kolb made his 50th start and threw 26-39/386y, 3 TDs, INT, while RB Jackie Battle ran for 42y and 3 TDs.

Once more the old Maroon, waves on high

Yes this is a shameless plug for Long Trail Ale, the preferred brand of beer for Sunday Morning Quarterbacks (at least until we get free beer from another source). Longtime reader of the blog, and renowned area eccentric, Tim McManus is enjoying the cool, crisp flavors of the Ale before attending the recent Fordham-Columbia football game at historic Baker Field (we here at Sunday Morning Quarterbacks will continue to refer to the Columbia football stadium by its original name and ignore the reality that the wooden stands are long gone and that neither the field or stadium are now named for Robert Baker).

The game and its prize, the Liberty Cup, were captured by the Rams of Fordham for the third time in four years. This contest was evenly matched and produced a down-to-the-wire finish as Fordham RB Darryl Whiting scored on a 1y TD run with five minutes remaining for a 16-9 lead. Columbia QB Sean Brackett then marched his charges to the Rams 4YL before being unable to secure a high shotgun snap. Rams DE Anthony Lubischer pounced on the loose ball to seal the win, the team's second in three games this season. While the defense largely played well and RB Xavier Martin is the go-to guy on offense, rushing 16 times for 105y, the best player on the field for the Rams may well have been K-P Patrick Murray. The soph kicker booted three field goals and placed all six of his punts within the Columbia 14YL with five of them being downed within Columbia 10YL.

The game was a good one. The price was right ($10) and the Columbia coeds seemed blonder than I remember. Of course, the coverage in the NYC papers the next day was abysmal. Sadly that was expected.

Remember When

The Tennessee Vols are down at the moment so I thought it best we remind their faithful of the good ol' days. As covered in The USA TODAY College Football Encyclopedia:

TENNESSEE 20 Florida 17 (OT): Volunteers (2-0) delivered much-anticipated win over Florida (2-1), their 1st in last 6 years. Gators outgained Tennessee 213y to 99y in 10-10 1st H, but lost 3 FUMs, all induced by Vols LB Al Wilson. TB Terry Jackson was headed into EZ on Florida's 1st possession when he lost FUM. Tennessee FB Shawn Bryson raced 57y to score in 1st Q. In 3rd Q, Vols WR Peerless Price made leaping TD catch for 17-10 lead. Gators tied it late in 3rd Q on QB Jesse Palmer's 70y TD pass to WR Travis McGriff (9/176y). In OT, K Jeff Hall's 41y FG gave Vols 20-17 edge. Florida, which lost 13y rushing all night, countered with 1st down at 15YL, but 3 misses by alternating QBs left K Collins Cooper with 32y FG try, which he hooked.

Tennessee would go on to win the national championship that season, earning a visit to the White House.

After Midnight: The Pac-10 redeems itself

Pac-10 promoters looked at this weekend as a grand opportunity to prove a point about their football conference. Several big intersectional games were on tap, and icing the cake hopefully would be Arizona with a chance to beat no. 9 Iowa in the desert.

West Coast hopes went downhill faster than a runaway 18-wheel truck charging off the Continental Divide.

On Friday, California was crushed 52-31by Nevada from the WAC. Pac-10 tail-dragger Washington State started well at Southern Methodist until losing 35-21. Arizona State acquitted itself rather well on the road against Wisconsin and had a good chance to win until a late-game tying extra point kick was blocked by the Badgers in their 20-19 victory. The Washington Huskies, a team considered by many of the west's wishers and hopers to be considerably better this year, got tattooed 56-21 by super-fast Nebraska. Huskies poster-boy Jake Locker hit one dandy touchdown pass, but otherwise passed disastrously: 4-20 for 71 yards and 2 INTs.

This Pac-10's weekend was turning as bad as Locker's stats. And then clocks in the east reached midnight, and the Pac-10 stunningly redeemed itself.

UCLA, bitterly destroyed by the media all week after two losses, out-charged, outhustled, and out-thought Houston's well-regarded Cougars in a 31-13 romp that showed off aggressive lines on both sides of the ball, the shifty running of soph TB Johnathan Franklin, and the maturing play of QB Kevin Prince. Houston suffered a second quarter knee injury (while chasing a UCLA interceptor) to QB Case Keenum. Don't simply chalk up Houston's loss to the loss of its top-drawer passer; UCLA already was well in command when Keenum went down.

Stanford dropped a surprising 68 points on visiting Wake Forest. QB Andrew Luck, a veteran O-line, a committee of young running backs, and dangerous WR Chris Owusu make the Cardinal a squad capable of scoring 68 on almost everybody.

Late at night, Arizona delivered the Pac-10's knockout punch. But, it wasn't easy. After jumping all over Iowa with a blocked punt, a long interception TD off a tipped pass, and a coast-to-coast TD return on a kickoff, Arizona gradually sunk into second half trouble after leading 27-7 at halftime. In the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes trimmed the deficit to 27-21 on QB Ricky Stanzi's third TD pass, and DE Broderick Binns soon followed with a shocking TD run-back of an interception. Even though Iowa's go-ahead extra point was blocked, it felt very much in quiet Arizona Stadium like the Cats trailed by a touchdown at 27-27.

Wildcats QB Nick Foles directed a winning TD march, and when the Hawks got the ball back, the Cats got their crowd reignited with four straight sacks of Stanzi. Case closed; the Pac-10 was back.
--Bob Boyles

Boise State wins without playing

Much was made last weekend of Virginia Tech's loss to James Madison in regard to the BCS. Everyone was in agreement that the Hokies' loss to a team from the FBS was damaging to Boise's chances of reaching the BCS title game as Virginia Tech was expected to be Boise's signature win and an eventual 12-1 record would be a boost to the Broncos. And so even though we are weeks away from the first BCS standings, experts were poo-poohing the chances of the party crashers from Idaho.
But then a funny thing happened last night. Nevada, a WAC stalwart for years unable to achieve the national standing of Boise, whacked Cal. Remembering Fresno State's beating of Cincinnati week one, suddenly the WAC is not looking too weak anymore. Boise State finishes the 2010 regular season with a road game against an improving Idaho squad--and the two schools are already sniping at each other--a home game against Fresno, a road game against Nevada and a home game against the Utah State team that lost to Oklahoma in Norman by 7. If the conference can continue to accumulate scalps--say Louisiana Tech over Navy today--then all of the moaning about how bad the WAC is can end (just in time for the conference to implode with defections in the off season)
Of course, so too could the Boise domination of the conference. The lesson with all of this? IT IS TOO EARLY TO BE DISCUSSING BCS TITLE GAME IMPLICATIONS!

Paul's Picks

After our annual slow starts to college football predictions, Bob and I are blowing up the format. Bob will do a pregame run-through of a few games while I will hand in individual picks by Thursday/Friday. The spreads are based on the Friday USA TODAY.
Paul's Picks:
California (-2.5) at NEVADA
A very good California squad has yet to get much respect this early in the season. They do have a big game next week in Tucson, but being on national television tonight will prevent their looking ahead. As for Nevada, I have great respect for their program but they are a team that wins the games they should win but cannot pull off the type of win that could elevate the program. They have lost to Boise State 10 straight times and dropped games in recent years to Maryland and Miami in postseason action and Notre Dame, Missouri, Texas Tech, Northwestern and Nebraska in the regular season. Pick: Cal -2.5
Arkansas at GEORGIA (-2)
Everyone does understand that if Georgia wins this game it is not an upset even though Arkansas is ranked and the Bulldogs are not. While many of the folks at ESPN are jumping on the Bulldogs this week to bounce back from a poor offensive performance against South Carolina, I do not see it. Yes Georgia scored 52 against the Hogs last year, but that was a much different Bulldogs squad (who had scored 41 the week before versus South Carolina). An improved Hogs defense has circled this game to prove to the country that they can play tough. Their coaches had to be buoyed by the game film from Georgia's week 2 performance. Meanwhile, Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett will make enough plays with the Arkansas offense to keep the Hogs ranked. Pick: Arkansas +2
San Diego State at MISSOURI (-14)
As much as I think Missouri is a fine squad, I am picking the Aztecs in this game because I feel they are an under-the-radar program that could make some noise here and in the MWC race (e.g., Utah has to go to San Diego the weekend after they play Notre Dame). Run by offensive coordinator Al Borges, the Aztecs offense will score in Columbia. QB Ryan Lindley, RB Ronnie Hillman and WR DeMarco Sampson will all introduce themselves to Big 12 audiences this weekend. Game should be fun, but in a shootout take the 2 TDs. Pick: San Diego State +14.
Florida (-14) at TENNESSEE
You have to feel for the Volunteer players. Thanks to the train wreck that was the one-year visit by coach Lane Kiffin, Tennessee is undermanned. Then their current coach Derek Dooley, who won 17 of 37 games at Louisiana Tech, tells the nation that the team does not know how to shower. Now, after Oregon blew them out in the second half last week, the Vols face a Florida squad that has beaten them five straight times. And did I mention that Gators coach Urban Meyer is pissed for the tough game Tennessee gave them last year and because he has to answer questions this week about the arrest of slot receiver Chris Rainey? The Florida offense has made strides each week and welcomes back injured LT Xavier Nixon. They are due to bust out, while the Vols are just too weakened by a small roster and bout with staph infections. Pick: Florida -14.
Notre Dame at MICHIGAN STATE (-3.5)
Despite having a poor duo of backup quarterbacks give away eight mid-game possessions, the Irish nearly beat a Michigan team featuring one of the most dynamic players in the country. Now they get to visit the hard-nosed Spartans, who feature a completely different style of play. But Notre Dame is the more tested squad and will get to pick on an average MSU secondary. Also with the national attention on the Spartans star linebacker Greg Jones, look for Notre Dame's young duo of Mant Te'o and Carlo Calabrese to make some noise and a lot of tackles. Pick: Notre Dame +3.5

View From Bennett Avenue

One of the worst aspects of shipping something is finding a box that fits. And so I can empathize with Reggie Bush as he struggles to return the Heisman Trophy he won less than five years ago. Fed Ex, UPS or regular mail? How much insurance? The process is much tougher than the UCLA defenses he faced in the day. If he is really in a bind Bush can call Southern Cal and ask them how they shipped back their copy of the trophy, which they did back in July.
Should he have given it back? He really did not have much of a choice once the Heisman Trust--and no that is not the name of a failed savings and loan--announced that the award is meant only for eligible players. So once the NCAA declared Bush ineligible retroactively for what he and his family accepted from sports marketers, he was ineligible to win the award that he already had won. It is dumb, of course, but a rule is a rule.
You see the thing about the Heisman is that people in charge of maintaining its standing as the premier individual trophy in all of American sports feel that it is much more than a most outstanding player award. It is meant to honor the great player who best represents the sport. Bush is an interesting test of this in that he not only was a brilliant football player but an outstanding example of what is good about athletics--on the field at least. He worked hard and was the true leader of that record-setting offense (based on the pro careers of Leinart, White and Jarrett, Bush deserves two Heismans). Of course, he felt that his talents deserved compensation. That he accepted so much and then continued to deny responsibility despite overwhelming evidence against him was as much of a problem in the end for Bush as the technicality of him being an ineligible player the year he won the award. So while he was the best player that season--and that should not be questioned even if the runner-up easily won the MOP award in their bowl match-up--he cannot keep the trophy. It is rather cut and dry.
Bush also suffers from being the third winner of the award from USC to go on to embarrass the Trust. We all know about O.J., but even 1978 winner Charles White, the great tailback from the John Robinson days had to auction off his copy of his Heisman to pay off a tax debt.
Bush's failings coming on top of the problems of other winners should highlight the need to eliminate the sanctimonious element from the trophy. It is hard enough deciding who is the best individual in a team sport played by thousands without checking if a guy took cash or fit the profile of someone who will commit heinous crimes in the future. Most voters now just go with the best player approach. But a Trust is a Trust, especially when the trust is broken.

Florida at crossroads

This is it Gator fans. Is Urban Meyer a truly great coach? Are the Gators national title contenders? Will the latest bit of bad behavior by a Florida player damage the program?

Florida has looked pretty ordinary in the opening two weeks of the season, especially on offense where the absence of quarterback Tim Tebow seems pretty glaring as the whole unit is adapting to a different philosophy. These things take time. Meanwhile slot receiver Chris Rainey, who has been a disappointment this year after taking over the "Percy Harvin" position on the offense in the spring, has bigger fish to fry after his brutal treatment of his girlfriend this week. He has plenty of legal issues to deal with and should not be able to use his clout as a Gator to get away with the abuse and threats he showered on the poor girl. Unfortunately Meyer being Meyer he has not tossed the jerk off his team but just suspended him for an unknown amount of time.

But the fact that he has generated heat for yet another legal transgression by a Florida player under his watch (no. 30 in 5+ years) does not bode well for Tennessee this week. When Meyer has to defend himself against legitimate charges he gets angry. When Meyer gets angry he takes it out on his opponents (see Cincinnati in last year's Sugar Bowl or Georgia in 2008). Meyer was already mad with the Vols after last year's 23-13 Florida win and while the main target of his ire, former coach Lane Kiffin, has moved on he will take out his frustrations on the current Tennessee squad.

And if he wants to be considered a great coach, then he has to blow out an undermanned Tennessee squad this weekend. If not, he faces the charge as being only as good as Tebow was. If not, he has to deal with the lawbreaking by his team beyond phony suspensions (see Brandon Spikes in 2009). If not, he may have to milk his health issues for more sympathy.

Remember When

Opening week of school for my daughter wrecked my schedule last week, but I will make up for it for this week as there are plenty of topics to discuss. There were a number of big games to write up for our weekly Remember When series, so I will do one now and another for this week on Saturday. As always, there recaps can be found in our book The USA TODAY College Football Encyclopedia.

1981 Orange Bowl: Oklahoma 18 Florida State 17

There were quarterbacks with bigger reputations tossing pigskins in college ranks in 1980, but Oklahoma (10-2) coach Barry Switzer would not have wished to replace his QB J.C. Watts with any of them before team's final Orange Bowl possession. Watts ended his collegiate career with heroics, needing only 46 secs to march OU 78y to TD on 11y pass to WR Steve Rhodes. Watts, who finished with 128y passing and 48y rushing, then threw winning 2-pt conv pass to TE Forrest Valora with 1:27 left. On final drive, Watts (7-12/128y, TD) completed 4 passes for 73y, including 42y strike to Rhodes that took Sooners to Florida State 35YL. Seminoles (10-2) had taken 17-10 lead with 3:53 left when CB Bobby Butler pounced on flub of snap by K-P Michael Keeling in Sooners EZ. Game had been scoreless until final min of 1st H when TB Ricky Williams (19/99y) gave Noles lead with 10y TD run. Sooners had time for quick drive to 53y FG by K Keeling as time elapsed in 2nd Q. Oklahoma took its 1st lead at 10-7 by cashing in opening possession of 3rd Q with 78y march to 4y TD run by HB David Overstreet. Florida State K Bill Capece kicked tying 19y FG at end of 3rd Q. Florida State surprisingly won rushing battle 212y to 156y, which happened infrequently in victories by Oklahoma. Sooners had now notched 3 straight Orange Bowl wins, while Watts had pair of wins and 2 Orange Bowl MVPs.

Weekly picks

Bob's Picks for Sept. 11, 2010: This week, Point Spreads are based on Danny Sheridan's Thursday spreads in USA TODAY.

Bob's picks this week Against-the-Spread (ATS) this Season: 1-3-1 (I'll a bit ashamed to claim my LSU win of last week because I picked the Tigers when they were listed at -4 points against North Carolina. After multiple suspensions of Tar Heel players came down late in the week, the spread jumped to 11, and underdog UNC covered when it lost only 30-24. Still, I'll take it.)

Here are this week's picks:

THURSDAY:

Auburn (-1.5) at MISSISSIPPI STATE: Coach Dan Mullen has the Maroon Bulldogs playing far better, but Auburn is one of those teams destined to pile up lots of points with their superb new QB Cam Newton. Where the Tigers need to improve is defense. Home team status gives Miss. State too much credit here because to win the Bulldogs will need to slug it out in something like a 45-41 game. I can't see it. PICK: Auburn -1.5

SATURDAY:

Duke at WAKE FOREST (-4.5): These are two teams going in opposite directions: After several fine years, the cupboard is a bit bare at Wake. The Devils' David Cutcliffe is one of the best coaches in the country who gets little notice. PICK: Duke +4.5

Georgia at SOUTH CAROLINA (-3.5): No other early season conference match-up will shape the rest of the season as this game should. The winner very likely will become the sole contender with Florida for the SEC East title. The Gamecocks looked great against Southern Miss last week, but Georgia really has the superior talent. PICK: Georgia +3.5

Miami (Florida) at OHIO STATE (-8.5): So much depends on Miami QB Jacory Harris and how he handles the noise and pressure of Ohio Stadium. There is more pressure on the no. 2 Buckeyes, so Miami will be free to play with defensive abandon and hjave Harris fling it all over the field. Ohio State is likely to prevail, and so it is simply a hunch that the loose Hurricanes can keep it close. PICK: Miami +8.5

Stanford (-6) at UCLA: The Bruins looked fairly inept on both offense and defense against Kansas State last week. This is no time to take on Stanford and star QB Andrew Luck, not to mention a pretty good run attack that will replace Heisman runner-up Toby Gerhart with three able bodies. Play a little defense and Stanford could be bound for the Rose Bowl this year. PICK: Stanford -6

Paul's Picks:

My overall standing is too poor to report. Meanwhile the NCAA has halted their inquiry into the North Carolina program to investigate Bob's picks for the season, which include the LSU win mentioned above and a win Thursday night that we are listing today.

Georgia Tech (-14) at KANSAS: New coaches, like Kansas head man Turner Gill, prefer road games the first year because the pressure is lessened. Add in an opening loss to North Dakota State and Jayhawk fans may be soon be clamoring for a return of Mark Mangino. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets went 5-1 on the road last year including romps over Virginia, Duke and Vandy (i.e., teams in Kansas's stratosphere). Pick: Georgia Tech -14.

Florida State at OKLAHOMA (-7.5): The Sooners defense will have to look a lot better this week than the one they trotted out in the opener against Utah State. The Seminoles defense, meanwhile, must prove that it can cover this strong a group of wide receivers. This should be a shoot-out and I think the better quarterback (Ponder of FSU) tops the home advantage. Pick: FSU +7.5

Colorado at CAL (-9): I am still not buying Colorado and will continue to pick against them, especially on the road where they have lost seven straight versus non conference BCS teams. The Bears feast on non conf visitors and have the talent to blow this game open. Pick: Cal-9

Penn State at ALABAMA (-11.5):This spread has gone up, and for good reason. Penn State has a teenager at quarterback and questions on the offensive line. Enough said. Pick: Alabama-11.5

God forbid a coach accused of being too conservative

Two factors make football coaches—especially new head coaches—cringe when the ugly words "too conservative" get thrown their way.

First of all, football is a game of aggression, and a big part of aggressiveness is playing with reckless abandon, as coaches like to say. Reckless abandon is a long way from being conservative, and a coach understandably doesn't wish his players to feel he doesn't believe in them. But there is a worse way to be called conservative, and it is being labeled by the media, which then influences the fans.

Michigan's Bo Schembechler and Ohio State's Woody Hayes were labeled "too conservative" when they lost 11 of 15 Rose Bowls over a 22-year stretch because their basic strategies were run-first offenses. Never mind that Michigan and Ohio State frequently were deceptively overrated because of easy wins over an awful Big Ten and their faster Pacific-8 and Pacific-10 opponents were underrated because of better balance in the league out west. No, according to the media, Bo and Woody lost because their offenses were "too conservative."

So Friday night there was Doc Holliday, new coach at Marshall, with a 21-6 lead with a bit more than eight minutes to play and on the verge of beating in-state rival West Virginia for the first time in school history. Marshall has first down at the WVU 5 yard-line. Any score, even a field goal, will clinch the win because it will push West Virginia three scores behind, and the Mountaineers will be lucky even to see the ball three times in the time remaining. Marshall hands off to freshman running back Tron Martinez, who loses a fumble.

From that moment on, everything that could go wrong for the Herd goes wrong. West Virginia drives 96 and 98 yards and tacks on a two-point pass to tie the game 21-21 with 12 seconds left in regulation. The Mountaineers win 24-21 in overtime.

Coach Holliday could have played it safe, taken a play by senior QB Brian Anderson to center the ball in the middle of the field and have his kicker win it for him. But that would have been "too conservative," and, God forbid, any coach be accused of that.

What we learned from watching TV last week

Whatever happened to the Wildcat?

Wasn't counting, but I believe only five or six times all weekend did a running back take a shotgun snap and threaten a defense with a run-pass option. Where did the Wildcat go? Just last December it was part of nearly every team's arsenal.

Why are coaches still permitted to call timeout during a play?

At the end of regulation time of the sloppy Utah-Pittsburgh game last Thursday, Utes coach Kyle Whittingham kept whispering "timeout" into an official's ear to turn plays into "do-overs." Consecutive tying field goal tries by Pitt K Dan Hutchins were cancelled after the ball left his foot. Whittingham went 1-for-2, wiping out Hutchins' successful three-pointer the first time but also cancelling a missed kick the second time. The coach decided not to play a third hand. It didn't matter; Utah won in OT after Hutchins had tied the game on his third FG try.

Can't this idiotic rule be changed? How about disallowing any timeout calls—other than by a player on the field—once the offensive center touches the ball, or the place-kicker tees up a kickoff?

Can't highly-paid announcers read a rule book?

It looks as though this is the year Brent Musberger and Kirk Herbstreit will be facing a bundle of difficult rules interpretations. There's always one TV announce team that gets burned every year.

Brent and Herbie didn't seem certain LSU's Alfred Blue could be hit by a North Carolina player once he touched Carolina's on-side kick attempt that failed to go 10 yards. They also were confused by the non-whistle on Virginia Tech's Tyrod Taylor keeping himself off the ground with the back of the same wrist with which he held the football.

I'll accept some credit for knowing the first call was correct: once Blue stepped across the 10-yard restraining line to try to recover the short kickoff he was fair game to be clobbered. But I didn't know the Taylor near-tackle situation: Steadying oneself with the back of the wrist is awfully close to using the forearm, which would have ended the play. I didn't know the back of the wrist was considered the part of the hand, which along with the feet are the only parts of the body a ball-carrier may place on the field and still keep the play alive.

These were odd situations, but Brent and Kirk earn way more money than I do through college football, so maybe we can expect them to bone up on the rule book while lying on the beach next July.

--Bob Boyles

View From Bennett Avenue

Well it is a new infraction for me. Star Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green was caught selling his game-worn jersey from last season's Independence Bowl win over Texas A&M for a cool $1,000. To a sports agent. I am unsure if this is better or worse than accepting benefits to go party down in Florida, which Green is not being accused of doing. But Green got hit with a four game suspension, while Alabama defensive end Marcell Dareus, who was caught accepting $2,000 worth of plane tickets and hotel rooms, etc, to go to the now infamous party was hit with a two-game suspension.
Making matters worse for Green and the Bulldogs is that Georgia's September schedule is more difficult than usual this year as the Bulldogs will not have Green--unless they win an appeal--for games against East rival South Carolina and two good West teams in Arkansas and improving Mississippi State. Dareus will not miss any SEC action, although this Saturday's Penn State game is an important one. So the punishment for Green seems at first glance much more harsh than the one Dareus has had to deal with, although anyone who saw the ending of the Georgia-LSU game last year will come to expect that Green will be punished harsher than other SEC athletes.
Don't get me wrong. I am all for the NCAA's attempt to clean up this aspect of the sport. I just want consistency. Giving them both six to eight game suspensions would be fine by me. Even tossing them for good would be a great way to begin dealing with this problem. We saw this last year with Oklahoma State and Dez Bryant, where the NCAA appeared much harsher in that incident than they do with other forms of cheating. Clear up the gray area in the rulebook--Dareus could have attended the party if he paid his own way for example--and start banning the players. As North Carolina's second half effort proved this past weekend, the sport of college football will be exciting with or without pro prospects. The game is much bigger than any individual.

Do you believe in “National Champion” Boise State?

For those of you who love the underdogs and think Boise State should advance to the BCS national title game if it—I hate this catch-phrase—"runs the table" the rest of 2010, permit me to pose a couple of questions of perception.

First, Boston College, an 8-5 team from 2009, will likely stand at 2-0 when it hosts Virginia Tech (Boise State's last-minute victim on Monday night) on September 25. Already a victor over Weber State, BC presumably will also have beaten Kent State prior to the Hokies' arrival and thus own wins over the kind of third-rate opponents that make up the bulk of Boise State's schedule. If BC beats Virginia Tech, should the Eagles jump into BCS consideration?

Here's the second question: Let's assume the NFL's San Diego Chargers were to survive unbeaten through six games against their long-time AFC division rivals Denver, Kansas City, and Oakland this season, and (through an imaginary scheduling glitch) also win against two semi-pro teams from the San Fernando Valley, two Arena Football League teams, and sweep home-and-home series against the Toronto Argonauts, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, and Saskatchewan Rough Riders. Should the 16-0 Chargers be promoted to the Super Bowl past the Indianapolis Colts, who let's say are at 14-2 against a full NFL schedule, just because San Diego is undefeated and had an excellent preseason ranking?

If you answered no to either question, then you must admit Boise belongs nowhere near the BCS championship.

As great as Boise looked at times against Virginia Tech, there is a big argument against the Broncos. They didn't blow out what might turn out to be only the fifth-best team in an average-at-best BCS conference. Case closed!

Boise fans, enjoy your big victories over New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech later this year. They ought to earn you a trip to the Poinsettia Bowl.

--Bob Boyles

Is LSU the Worst Coached Team in America?

Can any football fan imagine a team coached by Mack Brown, Joe Paterno, Nick Saban, or Jim Tressel coughing up a holding-the-football-like-a-loaf-of-bread fumble when all a running back—LSU's Stevan Ridley, in this case—has to do to clinch a big win is to fall down with possession of the ball?

For all their speed and skill, the Bayou Bengals of coach Les Miles often seem in over their heads when strategic adjustments are needed, when gambling defenses are a bad idea, and when a subtle feel for game situations is called for?

In LSU's fortunate 30-24 win over North Carolina on Saturday night, Ridley was guilty of bad ball security after he burst for a first down that should have locked up the game.

Earlier, freshman back Alfred Blue, in on the so-called hands-team to defend an anticipated on-side kick by the Tar Heels, hesitated in going for the ball. Blue touched the bounding ball, was wiped out by a charging Tar Heel, and Carolina gained possession. One wonders how well a frosh is schooled on the rules of such kicks.

Lastly, give credit to maligned UNC QB T.J. Yates, who pitched lots of good passes in the second half. But the LSU defense is still waiting for coaching adjustments to Carolina's slant-in pass strategy, and while a corner blitz created a big play for LSU at the right time, the Tigers might not have been in such a nervous mess had earlier such gambles not burned their defensive unit.

--Bob Boyles

View From Bennett Avenue

I must admit that I was happy to see Mississippi lose Saturday. The recent whining over the status of quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who coach Houston Nutt brought in mercenary style to help save the season, was the last in a series of moves by the Rebels since they forced out respected coach David Cutcliffe after the 2004 season that have conspired to have me root against the program (save for the upset over Florida two years ago--that was fun). Nutt and his predecessor Ed Orgeron, have proven time and time again that their sole focus is on wins and losses and they could care less about the classroom or the development of the athletes outside the playing field.

And so as the Gamecocks of the FCS division--coached by Nutt's old boss Jack Crowe who was once fired as head man at Arkansas (with Nutt as his WR coach) for losing to the FCS program The Citadel--rallied from a 3-TD deficit by scoring on the final six possessions, I had to laugh. The Rebels are reaping what they sowed. "I told them that this is when we find out what everybody is about," said Nutt after Saturday's loss. Houston, we know what you are about.

Remember When

I have always enjoyed the under the radar rivalries played early in the season that mean a lot to regional areas, if not the entire nation. The battle for the fine state of Colorado is just one of those rivalries, pitting teams from different conferences and different levels of expectation, but similar desire to win state-wide bragging rights. Here is a barn-burner from the recent past, as presented in the USA Today College football Encyclopedia (brand new edition now available!):
September 2, 2000
Colorado State 28 Colorado 24 (Denver): Buffs outgained rivals 532y to 392y but could not stop Colorado State (1-0) QB Matt Newton from throwing career-high 4 TD passes, 2 to WR Frank Rice (4/113y). Newton (19-30/327y, 2 INTs) got off to hot start, hitting 7-9 with 2 TDs in early stages. Buffaloes (0-1) roared back with 24 straight pts, with TDs on 5y run by frosh TB Marcus Houston, 15y reception by WR Javon Green, and 1y keeper by QB Bobby Pesavento (20-31/250y), subbing for injured QB Zac Colvin. Rams QB Newton was not done, leading pair of 2nd H TD drives for victory, with game-winner coming early in 4th Q on 30y TD pass to TE Jose Ochoa. "I guess there's a new sheriff in town," said Newton after game. TB Cortlen Johnson rushed for 121y to pace Buffs ground game.

Week One Picks Continued

Bob's Picks for Sept. 4-6, 2010: This week, Point Spreads are based on Danny Sheridan's Thursday spreads in USA TODAY.

Bob's picks Against-the-Spread (ATS) this Season: 0-0-1

Go East, Young Man

I'm watching Big East teams this weekend.

Pittsburgh at UTAH (-3): My Thursday pick of Pittsburgh, a 27-24 OT loser to Utah, turned up as a tie, or "push" in the vernacular of Las Vegas. (I think Sammy Davis, Jr. coined the phrase.) Big moment everyone will forget: While Utah was a deserving victor, Pitt made a bad blitz decision just when it was seizing control in the fourth quarter. A simple slant-in pass turned into a Utah TD that created a 24-13 deficit too big to overcome by the Panthers.

SATURDAY:

Connecticut at MICHIGAN (-3): Underappreciated coach Randy Edsall could have UConn as a top-25 team by season's end for the first time ever. The key is the passing accuracy (only 53.2% last year) of one-time Notre Dame top recruit Zach Frazer. UConn has 16 starters back. Michigan will likely qualify for a bowl this year, probably with six or seven wins. The hungry yellow-clad (Ooo, sorry, Michigan fans, I mean maize-clad) crowd will be fired up. But I suspect they'll be throwing their hands on their heads again: remember Appalachian State in 2007 and all of 2008. This should come out something like Uconn 30, Michigan 27. PICK: Connecticut +3.

Louisiana State vs. North Carolina (+4) at Atlanta: North Carolina has 15 of its best players sitting this one out. That might inspire the Tar Heels or totally disrupt them. Here's the bottom line: How is an upper-tier SEC team—is LSU third-best?—only a 4-point favorite over an upper-tier ACC team—is Carolina third or fourth-best? PICK: LSU -4.

Cincinnati at FRESNO STATE (-2.5): The Bearcats as a distant road team get no respect—wins at Hawaii in 2008 and Oregon State in '09—and still are underdogs at Fresno. Remember the Bulldogs were the original BCS-buster more than a decade ago but only once got past nine wins in a year. Fresno also has been good in home openers under veteran coach Pat Hill, but Cincy has the most talent. PICK: Cincinnati +2.5.

MONDAY:

Boise State vs. Virginia Tech at Landover, MD: Here comes a Boise pop quiz. In eight games against BCS teams since 2005, the Broncos own a record of (a) 7-1, (b) 6-2, (c) 4-4, or (d) all of the above. You wouldn't believe it with all the hype but the answer is (c) 4-4. And it is 1-3 on the road, and believe it, this "neutral site" really is a home game for Virginia Tech (half a day's drive from Landover). Interestingly, a Hokie loss here won't necessarily ruin their season, while this game is everything for Boise State. It could be a great one. Boise is very well-coached and has fewer top-level studs than you might think. PICK: Virginia Tech +2.

 

Paul's Picks for Sept. 4-6, 2010: This week, point spreads are based on Danny Sheridan's Thursday spreads in USA TODAY.

Paul's picks this week against-the-spread (ATS): 1-1

I split the other night with a win with a Hawaii team that gained 588 yards against USC and a blowout loss by Southern Miss against a rejuvenated South Carolina team. The Gamecocks will disappoint their fans at some point this season. They always do.

I like a number of games the rest of the weekend, so I will cut right to the chase.

Illinois vs. Missouri (-12) in St. Louis. The Illini were blown out in this game last year and that was despite having a huge advantage in experience at the quarterback position. But now Tigers QB Blaine Gabbert is the experienced one and he will light up Illinois. Sure leading rusher Derrick Washington has been suspended, but Mizzou has experience at that position and the type of offensive line that will make subs look like stars. Pick: Missouri -12.

Colorado vs. Colorado State (+11.5) in Denver. I am going with the Rams in this game—I must admit that I pick them every year in this game and they have rewarded me handsomely for my loyalty—and there is a theme developing with my first two picks. Both Illinois (Ron Zook) and Colorado (Dan Hawkins) are coached by men who are barely hanging on to their job. Embattled coaches almost never inspire a job-saving season from their team. Hawkins does have a host of starters back, but CSU is pledged to win this year with a powerful run game and defense—staples of the fine years enjoyed by former coach Sonny Lubick. Pick: Colorado State +11.5

Northwestern at VANDERBILT (+4): I mentioned respect the other day and this is a classic case where one team is not getting enough. The Wildcats gave Auburn all it could handle in the Outback Bowl last year and while the Tigers are looked on as a trendy pick to have a great season nobody has said boo about the boys from Evanston. Sure QB Mike Kafka is gone, but replacement Dan Persa has plenty of talent. They have a big advantage in experience and skill against a Vandy squad that has to be reeling from their coach's decision to retire in mid-summer. Pick: Northwestern -4.

SUNDAY

SMU at TEXAS TECH (-13.5): With the drastic change in coaching style from Mike Leach to Tommy Tuberville, Texas Tech has to be vulnerable early in the season. Now Tuberville is not changing too much of the Red Raiders system, but he has such a different mindset compared to Leach that has to be an adjustment period. For the Mustangs, they enter this season with a lot of confidence and expect to gain more national respect—there is that word again—with good showing here and against TCU later in the month. Pick: SMU +13.5

MONDAY

Navy vs. Maryland (+6) at Baltimore: Maryland's Ralph Friedgen is another coach on the hot seat. While he is optimistic about his offense, the defense will be the downfall in this game. His team has also started poorly in each of the past two seasons. For the Midshipmen, they are used to playing under the radar and will prove to be more than 10 points better than what has become the second best program in the state. Ricky Dobbs for Heisman! Pick: Navy -6.

There are quite a lot of games this week pitting top ten teams against woefully undermanned opponents. If you have to pick one of these games, go for Alabama to beat San Jose State by at least 10 points more than their spread (37).

The Big Ten Blows It

When it comes to how not to divide a football conference into divisions for a championship game, the ACC wrote the book. So when the Big Ten divided the other day, what league did it emulate? It was the ACC, of course.

The addition of Nebraska for next year left the Big Ten with a nice geographic split with Chicago at the center: Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, and Wisconsin in the West with Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, and Purdue in the East.

The Big Ten chose to split as such: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, and Wisconsin in an unnamed division, let's call it the "Eastern Indy Dells Division." Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Northwestern make up the other unnamed group, which we'll call the "Big-shouldered Corn Motors Division."

Instead of following the logic of geography, commissioner Jim Delany (pictured) sought "competitive equality" in divisions. Oh? How does he anticipate the long-term quality of any football member other than Ohio State? Every other team has had at least one season with five or fewer wins during the decade just ended.

The mistakes the ACC made are three-fold:

It chose out-of-the-way pro stadia for its half-attended title games

It wrongly anticipated Florida State and Miami would top the league every year and thus were split despite their neighboring status

It ignored geography, so hardly anybody outside ACC athletic offices can remember who plays whom for division titles.

The Big Ten:

Chose a pro stadium (Indianapolis' Lucas Oil) in its weakest football state for the first title game in 2011

Long-time, influential kingpins Michigan and Ohio State were placed in separate divisions. Do Delany and Friends project those two in the title game every year? Michigan might have to start all over with a new coach and system by 2012 and might not see success for years.

Without looking above, what division does Indiana play in? Nebraska? Wisconsin? There is nothing worse for national credibility—which every BCS-era league needs—than muddled division groupings.

The Big Ten's new alignment could have been worse. Windy City rivals Northwestern and the University of Chicago might have gone to separate divisions. Chicago's Maroons left the Big Ten in 1940, you say? Perhaps current-day leaders didn't know that; they knew little else.

--Bob Boyles

What We Learned From Day One

The beginning of the college football season is always full of mistakes as teams continue to prepare for the upcoming season. But the games do count and the big loser yesterday was Pittsburgh, who blew a big opportunity for a nice early win. The Panthers did not deserve to win, mind you, but they could have easily escaped Rice-Eccles Stadium with a victory as they drove from midfield in the game's late moments, down three points. But questionable play-calling doomed the drive that ended on a made field goal by Dan Hutchins--the third attempt with this ridiculous icing the kicker crap that deludes the end of games these days. He actually missed the second one but Utah coach Kyle Whittingham had called timeout for a second time, hopefully learning a lesson for future games. Do it once and then let the kid kick. In overtime we enjoyed a pure college moment as true freshman Brian Blechen--who played quarterback and linebacker in high school last year--picked off new Pitt QB Tino Sunseri. Blechen turns 19 at the end of the month. The Utes then sliced through a demoralized Panther defense to end the game on a chip-shot field goal by the always-reliable Joe Phillips.

That was the big game of day one, but Ohio State opened in fine fashion with a rout of Marshall, South Carolina looked impressive in blowing out a Southern Miss team that spent way too much time yelling at each other and the young USC secondary was exposed by a game Hawaii squad. With so many top quarterbacks remaining on the Trojans schedule, Monte Kiffin will have to continue to force feed those kids. And the way QB Matt Barkley and WR Ronald Johnson carved up the Warriors defense did not bode well for Boise State QB Kellen Moore's Heisman chances as they exposed the WAC defenses that Moore faces for what they are--substandard. Of course Moore can eliminate some doubt with his performance this weekend against Virginia Tech.

Week One Picks: Chapter One

Bob's Picks for Sept. 2, 2010: Point Spreads based on Danny Sheridan's Thursday spreads in USA TODAY.

Bob's picks last week Against-the-Spread (ATS) Last Season: Let's forget last season

Go East, Young Man

The always under-appreciated Big East Conference has three attractive underdogs in the first weekend of college games for 2010. I'm only going to pick one game at a time, so here goes for Thursday.

Pittsburgh at UTAH (-3)

Over on http://www.philsteele.com/, our favorite football preview magazine author has a question: Which ranked team is most likely to lose to an unranked team this week? By far, Pitt at 51% is the choice, presumably with potent Utah playing at home. Afraid I don't buy it: The Panthers have improved greatly the last two years and been very good as an underdog—10-3 over the last three years. It should be a close game. Pick: PITT +3.

Paul's Picks for September 2, 2010: Point Spreads are based on Sheridan's Thursday spreads.

A Matter of Respect

The key to winning in week one is to spot which teams are getting too much love and which teams are not getting enough based on your own projections for the upcoming season. Which teams are being treated with too much respect for past glories? Which underdogs will prove to be better than expected?

Southern Miss at SOUTH CAROLINA (-14)

The theme tonight is to take dogs playing anyone named USC. Is it me or are the Gamecocks the most overrated team this preseason? USC under coach Steve Spurrier has always underperformed when expectations are high. Sure they have returning starters, but so too the Golden Eagles defense—who have nine returnees including the top three tacklers—who will frustrate a Gamecock attack that topped 16 points only once in the last seven games of the 2009 season. And on offense, Southern Miss will attack an improving USC secondary with dynamic wideout DeAndre Brown. I expect the Gamecocks to win, but by single digits. Pick: So Miss +14

Southern California (-21.5) at HAWAII

This is a classic week one opportunity for two reasons: too much respect for past glory for USC and a match-up problem for the Trojans. This spread is treating the visitors as if they are a top five team, which they are not. Plus the Trojans will not be able to run up the score on offense behind an inexperienced offensive line that will tangle with a solid defensive front for the Warriors. But the best match-up for Hawaii is when they drop back to throw as returning starting QB Bryant Moniz will be targeting any of four WRs against a Southern Cal secondary that lost all four starters after last season and then some depth this spring due to transfers, injuries and suspension. Look for senior Greg Salas, who caught 106 passes for 1,590y last year, to make a splash on the national stage. Pick: Hawaii +21.5