bc scrolling through 300+ replies on a phone is annoying.

Spring workouts are over...

recruits are attending various camps at different schools and independent ones as well (Elite 11, Nike Football Training Camp, etc)

Starting rosters are beginning to take shape...

Get at it.


_______________________________
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

http://recruiting.scout.com/2/1192312.html

Murrieta (Calif.) Vista Murrieta safety Su'a Cravens and Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne quarterback Troy Williams have both made their choices and will announce Wednesday and Friday respectively.
Cravens will be first to announce and plans to do it June 6, the date of his mothers’ birthday.

“This process has been crazy but I’m looking forward to getting it over with,” Cravens said. “I’m excited to make my decision and feel really good about it. I’m not doing anything big, just going to tell the coaches and let the media know.

“I don’t have a press conference scheduled or anything and to be honest, I’m still not even sure when I’m going to do it. It could be in the morning or afternoon, I don’t know yet but it will be tomorrow for sure.”

Cravens, the No.1 safety nationally and overall player in the region, has been a big USC lean for months and it would be a surprise if he ends up anywhere else. He had planned to unofficially visit Nebraska and Michigan but wasn’t able to make those trips and that only seemed to solidify his standing with the Trojans.

Williams, the top rated signal caller in the state and No. 14 nationally is set to announce his decision Friday at Narbonne.

“It’s going to be 1:30 outdoors on the stage,” Williams said. “It will be Washington or Arizona and I had good visits to both. They’re both great schools and I’ve enjoyed the recruiting process but I’m definitely looking forward to putting it behind me.”

Williams just returned from a visit to Seattle last Friday and the feeling right now is the Huskies are in a good position for the standout quarterback. Williams plans to graduate early and will be able to enroll at his school of choice in time for spring ball
_______________________________
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

not that you can say anything lol

Would he be a good fit in Dick Rod's system?


_______________________________
Killer Mike - R.A.P. Music
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

I mean he's a dual threat QB... not sure what else to say about it lol

just wondering if Williams has that Pat White/Denard breakaway speed..

(although Pat White was more of a strider in the VY/TP2 mold)

he's super athletic....but he's a throw first guy.

honestly he wanted to go to Oregon..but as the process unfolded...and he got feedback from all of the coaches from across the country who came and visited him....it became obvious to him that he was not limited to being a spread option guy. He would be great in the system.... but the best option for him would be to go to a school where he would be a passer first, and then use his athletic ability..

similar really to Keith Price...

Coolidge Rotation:


Adrian Younge presents the Delfonics
Bilal A Love Surreal
Mario Biondi The Sun
Jaime Lidell

...that sounds like some nonsense rival coach speak right there. You can be a pass first QB with Chip Kelly, we've just been stacked at RB, lacking in WR talent, and quite frankly, lacking effective passers. But the GOLD standard for this offense has been and continues to be Dennis Dixon, and that dude was a PASSER.

And how hard did Oregon really recruit your man? I really like what he offers and I took all of your endorsements to heart, so I'm disappointed he won't be a duck, but every indication I've seen is that Kelly and Co. are really trying to get some height back into that position, not to mention bulk, based on our recent struggles with elite D-lines.

Good luck to him, with all of that said, and I'm pleased for you that you are happy with his decision.

a couple young QBs...not that Troy was averse to competition ... but the opportunity to play behind Keith Price for at least 1 season...and play under a coach with a proven record for developing QBs for the next level....and to play in a system that would have their QB pass first....all of those things played in his favor...

the other thing too....he would have had to wait to committ to Oregon or somewhere else...being that he's going to be graduating early to get to college in time for spring practice....but next season he's trying to repeat as Los Angeles player of the year....repeat as City Champion....and be only the 2nd city team to make it to a state title championship game.... That's a lot of stuff...and to get his decision out of the way was going to take a lot of pressure off him.

this last month has been craaaaazy...as far as the number of coaches who have visited campus. A lot of people were saying how much that is for such a young man to deal with. The new Auburn O-coodinator came and worked him out.... dude had a crazy pedigree..worked with Mathew Stafford, Tom Brady..... I was like damn...that would be huge opportunity too.... But the thing was the kid's head was really spinning with all this.....so they narrowed the choices early..and once Sark really got to talk to them...and they looked at the opportunity he had there....plus talk to his former teammate Sean Parker who is a starting safety for the huskies...... it was a wise move.

Coolidge Rotation:


Adrian Younge presents the Delfonics
Bilal A Love Surreal
Mario Biondi The Sun
Jaime Lidell

because there aren't any QB's for Troy's class yet. But it's safe to say Marcus Mariota is about to become the guy for a while.

the last big point of contention is *how* the four teams should be chosen. I'm cool with some sort of NCAA selection committee to do that. the "only conference champions" idea doesn't work for me, since you're still relying on rankings to decide which champ deserves the spot over another.

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http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/stewart_mandel/06/04/big-ten-playoff/index.html

The Big Ten held a conference call Monday morning, and Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman took the opportunity to make sure the most unflattering stereotypes about the venerable conference remain in place for many years to come.

By stating that his fellow league presidents' official preference for college football's postseason is "the status quo" just one day after his Pac-12 equivalent, Oregon State president Ed Ray, said "no one is talking about the status quo," Perlman ensured that the rest of the country will continue to view the conference of Legends and Leaders as a stodgy, out-of-touch band of cigar-smoking reactionaries.

This is an embarrassing development for Big Ten fans, the great majority of whom embrace change and couldn't view the college football world more differently than their leagues' overlords. It's also a disservice to the conference, which has actually been a leader in innovation, from popularizing the spread offense in the late '90s and early 2000s, to creating the landscape-altering Big Ten Network five years ago, to forming a forthcoming scheduling alliance with the Pac-12. The Big Ten's own athletic directors were the first to propose holding semifinal playoff games on campus sites, an idea so radical that other conferences rejected it. But thanks to comments like Perlman's, most of the country will go on viewing the Big Ten as the one conference still using dial-up modems.

Worst of all, the inevitable backlash will result from something we already know is an empty gesture. In the ongoing turf war over the future of the BCS, the Big Ten presidents wanted to get their official preference on the record: "If we were to vote today, we would vote for the status quo," said Perlman. Yet in nearly the same breath, Perlman acknowledged, "We're also realistic." As in: We know no one else feels this way, so we know we'll end up making compromises; and despite commissioner Jim Delany insisting a plus-one, our second preference, is very much "on the table," we know we're still heading toward an inevitable four-team playoff as soon as we get through a summer of posturing and grandstanding over the details.

"We have tried to not put a stake in the ground and say, 'Over our dead bodies,'" said Perlman, which is so considerate of him given his conference's proud legacy of winning one-and-a-half national titles in the last 40 years.

To that end, the more important details that emerged from Monday's call related to the conference's preferences for a playoff: The league wants semifinals played within the bowl system and a championship game bid out to other cities, just like everyone else. That no longer seems a point of debate.

More notably, commissioner Jim Delany made the surprising comment that "I totally agree we should have the four best teams" in a playoff. To this point we assumed the Big Ten was in lockstep with the Pac-12, whose commissioner Larry Scott is pushing the hardest of anyone for a conference championship requirement. Instead, the Big Ten is now apparently more in line with the SEC and Big 12 -- to a point.

The problem, said Delany, is the method for determining the four best teams. The commissioner whose league is purportedly fine with the BCS status quo proceeded to rip the very polls and computers synonymous with the current system. "Everybody recognizes the present poll system is not a good proxy," said Delany, calling the system biased and non-transparent. It's hard to argue with either description.

The Big Ten, like pretty much everyone else who has weighed in on the playoff, wants a new method that rewards strength of schedule, but feels "strongly that champions ought to be honored," said Perlman.

There's really only one way to accomplish both in a more transparent manner. "We would feel comfortable with a selection committee," said Perlman.

The more the conferences bicker, the more likely it seems a committee may be the way they find common ground. As Death to the BCS author Dan Wetzel wrote last week, a selection committee would render the "top four" issue moot, because there'd be no official top four from which the members would deviate. And they could place emphasis on conference championships without a hard-and-fast requirement. As our own Andy Staples wrote, a committee could employ common sense to diffuse potential controversies like Stanford finishing ahead of Oregon in last year's standings despite trouncing the Cardinal and winning the Pac-12 North. And, just like the NCAA basketball committee, a football panel could be instructed to reward teams that challenge themselves out of conference. This seems to be the primary concern in the Pac-12, where teams like USC not only play nine conference games, but also face traditional rivals like Notre Dame and no FCS foes.

Sure, there are potential concerns with placing such weighty responsibility in the hands of so few. All humans have biases, and whichever administrators or former coaches are brave enough to take on the challenge (insert Witness Protection joke here) would be no exception. That said, it's easier to find 10-12 knowledgeable and professional people to serve on a committee than it is to enlist 115 such folks for the Harris Poll. They won't hold the same blatant conflicts of interest as the current Coaches' Poll voters. And by simply taking the time to explain their selections publicly, they'll enable us to know more about how they arrived at the result than we do about the mostly secret computer formulas.

The Big 12 also came out in favor of a selection committee last week. The SEC was more wishy-washy at its meetings, with some figures (Steve Spurrier) endorsing the idea, others (Nick Saban) opposing it and the guy who matters most, Mike Slive, remaining non-committal. Of course, Slive's is the one league that would benefit most from keeping the current selection criteria intact. At this point the SEC champion could play two FCS foes, a Sun Belt school and a WAC team and still be assured a spot in the national title game. Which is exactly why the other conferences are pushing for change.

That includes the Big Ten, which, once we get past the presidents' status quo/plus-one posturing, is actually pushing for meaningful change. In fact, Delany and Perlman made a point of highlighting their flexibility. "Not everybody is trying to have their cake and eat it too," Delany said. "Not everybody is making demands." Delany is obviously trying to show that the real obstructionists here -- like Florida president Bernie Machen, who said of the SEC's top four stance: "We won't compromise on that," -- live in the South.

We've reached Phase 3 in Playoff Mania 2012. Phase 1 saw the commissioners coming out of four rounds of meetings from January-April with a set of four-team playoff proposals. Phase 2 included the conference meetings these past few weeks, where the various constituencies relayed their preferences and positions. Now, in the next round of commissioner meetings June 13 and 20 in Chicago, they'll try to find middle ground.

When they do, they'll find they're not as far apart as it might seem. The Big Ten presidents know they're not going to get their preferred time warp back to 1968. So long as the Rose Bowl is protected (which it will be if the semifinals are played at the conferences' anchor bowls), they'll ultimately endorse a four-team playoff. So too will the Pac-12 if it knows its champion will be rewarded, and so too will the SEC and Big 12 if they know they can still place more than one team in the playoff.

It may just be that a transparent selection committee capable of employing both freedom and logic is the bridge that ultimately brings everyone together.

i want Michigan to beat ND, MSU, OSU, and win the Big 10

i want GT to beat VPI, Climpsun, U(sic)GA, and win the ACC

then beat 2 other conference champions in bowl games

i want to watch intriguing matchups stylistically in bowl games

beyond that idgaf. the 2006 debacle, followed up by the 2011 debacle, followed by the ridiculous "negotiations" of the playoff...all these things have combined to really make me not care. the season ends for me after the 5 traditional power bowls are over.

non-conference game against a BCS conference opponent since 2003?

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/stewart_mandel/06/06/top-four-playoff-mailbag/1.html

That's nuts.

-----

12 play and 12 planets are enlighten for all the Aliens to Party and free those on the Sex Planet-maxxx

XBL: trkc21

http://www.landgrantholyland.com/2012/6/6/3067170/ohio-state-overall-e3-ncaa-football-13-team-ratings

I'm somewhat offended that UCLA is a 2 in prestige and somewhat amazed that they gave our offense an 88. But Texas as a 99? Really?

according to Texas insiders, Mack Brown said "hell no" to him playing hoops at Texas... lol

-----------
Ricky Seals-Jones, the nation's No. 1 wide receiver recruit, has decommitted from Texas.

The five-star recruit from Sealy, Texas, confirmed his decision to back out of his pledge in a text message to HornsNation.

It is believed that this decision could have something to do with his desire to play both football and basketball in college, which LSU and Baylor Bears both have given him the option to do. When reached by phone Tuesday night, Eric Thomas, Seals-Jones' AAU basketball coach, had no comment on Seals-Jones' decision.

A 6-foot-5, 220-pound receiver ranked No. 7 in the ESPN 150, Seals-Jones originally picked Texas over LSU on Feb. 22.

Prior to his decision to decommit, there were no signs Seals-Jones was wavering in his decision. He joined the rest of the Longhorn's 2013 recruiting class in attending Texas' first summer camp on Sunday.

ESPN 150 member and Texas commitment Jake Raulerson was in Austin at the camp with Seals-Jones. He said the versatile receiver, who will play quarterback for Sealy next season, has told him that Texas is still his No. 1 school.

"He said he is just trying to make sure," Raulerson said. "This is a big decision and he is just trying to make sure."

Texas four-star quarterback pledge Tyrone Swoopes (Whitewright, Texas/Whitewright) has perhaps the strongest relationship with Seals-Jones of the Longhorn commits, and he reached out to Seals-Jones on Tuesday evening to offer his support.

"I'm a little surprised," Swoopes said. "I told him I would respect his decision if he does want to decommit, but it would be good for him if he would stay just because we can do great things at Texas with our recruiting class, and he's a big part of it.

"He said Texas is still No. 1 but he just wanted to see what other schools had to offer. I told him I respect that."

With the loss of Seals-Jones, Texas now has 14 verbal commits for its 2013 class, including pledges from receivers Jacorey Warrick (Houston/Cypress Falls) and Jake Oliver (Dallas/Jesuit).

The Longhorns also have offers out to receivers Robbie Rhodes (Fort Worth, Texas/Southwest) and Ra'Shaad Samples (Dallas/Skyline).
_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

*sips coffee, casually reading the paper*

Hope we can pry Redfield away... then I won't care so much.

GA's Anthony Jennings

fuck shit god damnit.

I wouldn't be too upset. If we have learned anything about Kellys systems, it is that just about any half way decent QB can step into that Oregon offense and win.

and Anthony qualified there.

I'm pretty sure the reason we're not after Troy Williams is that we want taller kids, for example.

(Also consider this a thread bump for WC hah)

If Bama and LSU has taught us anything, as well as past NC teams like Miami with Dorsey or Oklahoma back in 2000( I believe) is that a great defense or OL is much more important than a QB.

Oregon has a great offensive system that doesn't need a super star QB and has proven it can win without one, yes having one is nice but not necessary with Kelly. What Oregon needs is more big OL and DL prospects.

Now Cal and Tedford clearly need that big super star QB just to compete.

That's it.

the horror of it all, when UNL started recruiting this kid too I thought there was little chance he was leaving the south

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

No reason we couldn't get him...
His HS coach had been very impressed with Oregon's approach to his recruitment, and I believe Oregon had also been on him way longer than the other programs that made his final 4 list.

>the horror of it all, when UNL started recruiting this kid
>too I thought there was little chance he was leaving the
>south

and of course not in the SEC footprint...and no chick-fil-a?....lol jokes

you had a lot working against you, much like Lincoln, no matter how good Oregon is or how many bells and whistles Phil pays for to make the Ducks the envy of most schools the odds are never going to be good pulling kids from Atlanta or most of the south

I just don't see it

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

holyshit the nearest one is in boise?

phil knight needs to holler at them christians.

i blame hip-hop.

http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/9514/dscf0008lv.jpg

Last week during his unoficial trip to UW, Troy Sr. called me from Coach Sarkisian's office regarding details about when the fall semester will be over next school year. (the district is changing his school calendar so we'll be done with the fall in december).

That's pretty much told me that Troy was headed to UW. Coach Sark is a very engaging coach and the reason why he has the inside track to our players is because he obviously knows and pays attention to our program.

for Troy this is a solid pick. Sark is a QB guy.... Keith Price has already bubbled into a really good QB, but will probably be a heisman candidate, as well as competing with Barkley to be the top QB in next year's draft. (montana's son left uw also). It's a perfect opportunity for a young QB to come in. I would not be suprised if Troy starts as a redshirt freshman in 2 years.

we got him set up to finish high school early after the fall sememster to he will be at UW for spring football ready to roll.

for those not familiar with Troy..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmUR1uE0rdI

he was the high school player of the year last year as an 11th grader...he should repeat that in his senior year..as well as we're very much the favorite to repeat for the city title..and if can finish the season and playoffs undefeated, the timing is right for us to get a birth in a State Championship game...something that very rarely happens for a Los Angeles City team...

Coolidge Rotation:


Adrian Younge presents the Delfonics
Bilal A Love Surreal
Mario Biondi The Sun
Jaime Lidell

per Nevadabuck...


Hoke---the ethical Michigan Man----has just informed JARON DUKES the 4 star wide receiver from Columbus that committed a while ago--- that "his service will no longer be required".....


these days even a public commitment to a school, no grade issues, and no problems off the field does not equal a scholarship up in Ann Arbor....



stay classy "m"




_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

‏https://twitter.com/#!/JoeNo_Boxer

@JoeNo_Boxer
I'm still with Michigan and I'm here to stay. Who evers making up stuff come on now and grow up. #Team134 #GoBlue!!!

------------------------------------

_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

im not buying it. if this were true someone on mgoblog wouldve been talking about it

I just thought I'd share that bit of news with the rest of you...

either ways, It wouldn't surprise me to see michigan try and make some sort of room to land Treadwell...

let's wait and see.

_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

Michigan wont fill #23 and #24 until they have heard from Treadwell and Kendall Fuller (who is probably headed to VPI)

Michigan has a "if you're visiting other schools, you arent committed to us" policy. that would be super shady for them to rescind offers after a kid has been committed for 9 months

OSU and mich recruiting fans have become the equivalent of two annoying, petty ass children sitting in the back seat during a long ass car ride to some god awful summer destination...and both kids deserve to be smacked.

lmao @ any buckeye fan thinking hoke is now going to be permanently blackballed by ohio HS coaches. or if any future ohio recruit will give two fucks about dukes.

both fanbases need to watch some baseball and the olympics and wait for some actual football to start.

>both fanbases need to watch some baseball and the olympics and
>wait for some actual football to start.

--------

its jsut that outside of...well no one...OSU and UM have the biggest buzz so everything is gonna seem like a huge deal even when its not

oh well

better than no one caring i guess

>better than no one caring i guess

People care about the big things (Tatgate, RR being fired, Michigan losing to App State, Tressel getting fired) but no one cares about all this little ticky-tacky shit. It's like watching two kids call each other names on the schoolyard during recess. It's funny the first few days but then it just gets annoying.

(they're testing this out first with basketball, before seeing if it will be applied to other sports)

http://www.toledoblade.com/College/2012/06/10/New-text-rules-set-by-NCAA.html



"R U interested in our school? Our facilities are gr8!"

A text message reading along those lines might appear on cellphone screens of basketball recruits starting Friday, after a new NCAA rule takes effect allowing college coaches to send unlimited text messages to players who have completed their sophomore year of high school.

Coaches also will be able to make unlimited calls to those recruits under the new legislation.

A move aimed at weeding out superfluous bylaws in the NCAA manual, the game-changing measure is a departure from current rules that forbid communication via text and limit coaches to one phone call per recruit in a month.

"I would have a concern with the word unlimited and I certainly think a parent would be uncomfortable with the word unlimited," Whitmer coach Bruce Smith said. "As a college coach you have to have common sense to know when you're recruiting a kid actively and when you're quote-unquote stalking a kid."

Text messages were outlawed by the NCAA five years ago amid concerns of excessive use and athletes accruing astronomical charges. Advancement in technology and the rise of unlimited text plans create an atmosphere to revisit the issue, with men's basketball set to be the guinea pig. No other sports have adopted the reform, although women's coaches could follow by next year.

"I think a lot of women's coaches want to sit back and watch and see how that goes before they jump on the bandwagon," University of Toledo coach Tricia Cullop said.

Preliminary returns are mixed, with coaches standing to benefit the most, and recruits being rendered a standing duck in an onslaught of 160-character missives.

"I'm kind of curious to see what it brings in those first couple of days," said Napoleon's Jordan Lauf, who counts UT and Bowling Green State University among his six scholarship offers.

Some theorize the change could result in quicker commitments, a recruit's way of surrendering to the constant buzzing of his phone. A reduction in transfers is another possibility, as coaches and recruits are granted more time to size up each other. About 425 NCAA Division I players transferred after last season, according to CBSSports.com, a figure that exceeds the number of teams (347).

"This allows the recruit and the family the ability to build a better relationship," BG coach Louis Orr said. "It helps in the long run because you know who they are and they know who you are."

UT coach Tod Kowalczyk advocates the change, believing the deregulation of minor rules makes it easier for the NCAA and for university compliance officers to "go after the truly important violations." He recognizes dangers, though, such as a coach disrupting the life of a 16-year-old.

"I really hope that families put up parameters of when college coaches can call or text and hold those coaches accountable," Kowalczyk said. "The last thing I want is for my staff to burden a family in their family time."

Minimized is the role of high school coaches, used previously by college coaches to circumvent rules restricting phone calls. Instead of navigating back channels to set up a meeting with a recruit, coaches will proceed unassisted.

Other changes include the regulation of workouts. Coaches now can put a recruit through a tryout on his official visit as well as give instruction to freshmen in the summer.

Gone will be many inadvertent recruiting violations. For instance, UT was assessed a secondary violation when an assistant replied to a text message sent by a recruit expressing condolences after the coach's father died. Another assistant phoned a prospect twice in one month, forgetting to make record of the first call. In either case UT reported the violation and avoided penalty.

Under the old set of rules, Kowalczyk didn't respond to congratulatory texts from numbers he didn't recognize, fearing the note might have been sent by a recruit or his parent.

"If I don't recognize the number, the last thing I do is reply," he said.

Those concerns, come Friday, will be over. A new era is under way.

"That date has kind of been in my head for a couple of months," Lauf said.

Contact Ryan Autullo at: rautullo@theblade.com, 419-724-6160 or on Twitter @RyanAutullo.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/recruiting/football/story/_/id/8047097/urban-meyer-ohio-state-buckeyes-irked-high-school-athletes-pay-travel

If anybody is interested in broader NCAA compliance issues, I follow John Irfante on twitter who blogs about compliance for ncaa.org. He made the comment earlier that the "5 visit" rule is likely not sticking around much longer. It will be interesting when kids can visit as many schools officially as they want. (Each school theoretically only able to host each prospect once.)

Lol @ Urban Meyer being the featured speaker, while the fat boy and the cry baby clean up after him.

-------------------
Urban Meyer is heading north.
http://www.freep.com/article/20120612/SPORTS08/120611069/ohiostate-urban-meyer-sound-mind-sound-body-michigan-wolverines-michiganstate-spartans

The first-year Ohio State football coach will be the featured speaker Wednesday morning at the start of the eighth annual Sound Mind, Sound Body Football Academy at Southfield High School.

Meyer will bring most of his staff, according to camp director Curtis Blackwell, as 600 players from across country will come to Southfield to train and learn about how to be successful at the next level.

“The last couple of years, Michigan and Michigan State have been coming down here talking at the camp and Michigan was kind of dragging their feet a little bit about doing some instruction,’’ said Blackwell. “So it was open. The new coaches were saying at Ohio State, ‘Hey, we’ll come up there and do whatever.' ... We always give (Michigan and Michigan State) the first right of refusal.

“In the afternoon session, we had some spots open where the coaches can do some leading in the classroom and on the field, and we said also the keynote on opening day is open, and (Ohio State) said Urban is going to fly up here and the other coaches will spend the first day here helping at the camp. ... So after that, Michigan and Michigan State are running down saying, ‘We’re going to be there.’ We said you have to treat it the same every year. The Ohio State coaches said it’s a priority to be in this area. They said they know the 2013 class is locked up, but for every year moving forward they’re going to be in on it."

Meyer is scheduled to speak from 8:35 to 8:50 a.m. Wednesday on the factors impacting college success.

U-M coach Brady Hoke will speak later Wednesday and MSU coach Mark Dantonio is scheduled to appear Thursday.
Also on Thursday, with the help of Lions rookie cornerback and former camp participant Chris Greenwood, there will be a rookie symposium with the Detroit Lions rookie draft class, including first-round pick Riley Reiff, Ryan Broyles and Tahir Whitehead, Ronnell Lewis and Dwight Bentley.

“It has progressed far beyond what I ever expected," said Blackwell. “We started out doing this camp to let the boys get some football instruction and expose them to the whole recruiting process and academics, and it had blossomed to something where we have college coaches leading the sessions and the boys are getting direct instruction from the guys they want to play for one day.

“It’s not recruiting because the coaches wouldn’t be able to attend. It’s an instructional program. Every boy that comes to this camp wants to play college football. Having more than 200 college coaches here over two days is beyond our wildest dreams."
_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

lol @ UGA/Richt...Guess hiring his high school coach didn't work out as planned huh?
-------------------
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/recruiting/blog/eye-on-recruiting/19353710/nations-top-recruit-robert-nkemdiche-commits-to-clemson


When Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney came out with a strongly worded stance saying rumors of the school going to the Big 12 hurt recruiting, perhaps he was just laying a red herring for Thursday afternoon.

In a big surprise, the top recruit in the country and consensus No. 1 prospect Loganville (Ga.) defensive end Robert Nkemdiche committed to the Tigers, TigerIllustrated.com reports.

According to MaxPreps:

He compares favorably to Jadeveon Clowney, the consensus No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2011. Nkemdiche is not quite as tall or fast as Clowney, but he's got a much bigger frame that could potentially allow him to play on the interior in college.

"Clowney was the better pass rusher, but Nkemdiche might be the better all-around lineman," Lemming said, likening Clowney to Chicago Bears defensive end Julius Peppers and Nkemdiche to NFL Hall of Fame legend Reggie White.

The 6-foot-5, 270-pound defensive end has a unique blend of size and speed that makes him a terror off the edge. He could play outside linebacker or even defensive tackle at the next level but will likely stay at end where he can utilize his polished pass rush skills.

With scholarship offers from just about every school in the country, many had considered Alabama the favorite to land Nkemdiche followed by Ole Miss, Clemson, Georgia and several others. One key selling point for the Rebels was that his brother, Denzel, is a freshman cornerback for the program. Nkemdiche's high school coach was a former player for the Crimson Tide -- coincidentally with Dabo Swinney.

Clemson has put on the full court press for the five-star player for months and added Nkemdiche's good friends and Greyson teammates running back Wayne Gallman and cornerback David Kamara. While it appears the Tigers' efforts paid off, most experts still expect Nkemdiche to wait until Signing Day or later to make a final decision and actually sign.

_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

just wondering.

proximity is definitely in bama's favor and im not sure how many michigan fans are gonna want to travel to texas for this one.

maybe 65/35 in favor of bama?

I think a lot of UM fans and alums will fly out to Texas for this.

What's up with OSU only giving Cal 1200 tickets for the game this season? Is OSU typically this stingy with tickets for their opponents?

maybe delusionally so.

i blame hip-hop.

So this will be a huge game for UM, they win this and a lot of fans will start thinking possible NCG and Heisman for Denard.

3 starters on the DL gone...

starting center gone

a midget qb that still cant throw, or stay healthy

and a much tougher schedule...

Most reasonable UM fans are expecting 2-4 losses, including one the last week of November.


_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

>including
>one the last week of November.

.

I must be out of the loop because I missed it, makes sense with young Stoops coming back to Norman

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

venables was going to be co-defensive coordinator, but under the circumstances, it had to feel like a demotion, and i can't blame him for leaving.

especially considering he has to be on some head coach potential lists anyhow.

i blame hip-hop.

considering how putrid Clemson's defense was last year...

giving up 70 points is just ridiculous..no matter how good the offense.


_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

the SEC

i blame hip-hop.

2011 Ohio 50 PA 14

2010 Ohio 18 PA 15

2009 Ohio 38 PA 21

what's it gonna be this year?





http://ohiostate.scout.com/2/1195320.html

The state of Ohio will take on its neighbor Saturday evening in Hershey, Pennsylvania as part of the Big 33 Classic. Four Ohio State-bound players will partake in the game. For the full preview, check inside.

Given the new rule changes for the Big 33 Football Classic mandate both teams to pass the ball at least 1/3 of the time, Ohio head coach Bill Albright is happy two of his team’s most promising players reside on the defensive side of the ball.
Cornerback Najee Murray and linebacker De’Van Bogard – Ohio State-bound defensive players that will serve as two of the Ohio team’s five captains – have shown prowess in pass coverage during the week-long practice sessions leading into the game.

Two other future Buckeyes, wide receiver Frank Epitropolous and running back Warren Ball, will represent the Ohio team at Hersheypark Stadium at 7 p.m. on Saturday with similar hopes to lead the team to its fourth consecutive victory in the 55th annual edition of the rivalry. Epitropolous, however, pulled his hamstring during practice and will not be available to participate in the game.

“Our goal is to keep our string alive,” Albright told BSB. “We have won the last three, but Pennsylvania, they’re geared up. They want to stop that streak and it is going to be tough. It is going to be a hard-fought football game.”

Ohio won last year’s game by the score of 50-18, but it wasn’t long ago when Pennsylvania was in the opposition situation. From 2006-08, Pennsylvania won all three contests and seemed to be trending upward in the rivalry.

Backed by the four future Buckeyes – and four other Big Ten-bound prospects – Ohio hopes to continue its dominance in the rivalry. Albright noted the team has come together quite quickly in just a short amount of time.

“The players that we have are tremendous,” he said. “They’ve given us everything that we’ve wanted. Practice has gone really good and we’ve kept it short and sweet. You’re coaching All-Stars, so there isn’t a whole lot you have to do as far technique with them, but we have them in the right places and we’re excited to see what they can do.”

Despite the fact that every player on both rosters were perhaps the best players on their respective teams, Albright said it is a challenge to form things together in a week in preparation for a football game.

The team, however, has come together quite quickly after some troubles hindered Ohio’s travel plans to Pennsylvania.

“Everything came together on Sunday on our trip down there,” Albright said. “We had bus troubles and a six-hour trip turned into an 11-hour trip. The kids bonded really well together, we got to see their psyche and their attitude and they were absolutely tremendous during the week. It has been great. These kids have bonded together and everybody is all a part of the same group. It has been fantastic with how well they’ve gotten along and everything.”

Along with the four Ohio State players, there are nine other players headed to BCS schools in Jermaine Edmondson and Tyler O’Conner (both Michigan State), Terrell Jackson (Pittsburgh), Andrew Jones and E.J. Junior (both Cincinnati), Nana Kyeremeh and Tony Matteo (both West Virginia), Mason Monheim and Joe Spencer (both Illinois).

Albright has been impressed with what he’s seen out of all of his players, but acknowledged the Ohio State-bound crew could be a special bunch as their approach their collegiate careers.

The future Buckeyes will travel to Columbus on Sunday – the day after the game – to enroll at Ohio State and begin their trek toward Big Ten football. Before that, though, Albright hopes for final standout performances from the players as high schoolers.

“Unfortunately we lost Frank Epitropolous, he pulled a hamstring a couple of days ago, but Warren Ball at running back, is outstanding,” Albright said. “Ohio State is getting some great athletes and we aren’t only looking forward to seeing them play Saturday, but we look forward to seeing them play on Saturdays for the next couple of years at Ohio State.”

Follow Me on Twitter and find us on Facebook.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-06-17/news/32282972_1_fingertips-overtime-touchdown


HERSHEY - Pennsylvania came within fingertips - oh, so many fingertips - of winning its first Big 33 game over Ohio in four years Saturday night.

There were Skyler Mornhinweg's fingertips, which didn't get enough air under a fourth-quarter pass. There were Desmon Peoples' fingertips, which muffed a kickoff and led to the second of Ohio's two touchdowns in a matter of 20 seconds.

And there were the fingertips of Rushel Shell. Mornhinweg's overtime pass bounced off those fingertips and into the hands of Ohio's Nana Kyeremeh to seal the victory for the Buckeye state.

Ohio scored the final 17 points, capitalizing on back-to-back Pennsylvania mistakes and five second-half turnovers, to capture their fourth straight Big 33 contest, 24-21, in overtime at Hersheypark Stadium.

Ohio's Tyler Grassman kicked a 39-yard field goal in overtime, and then Pennsylvania had its chance to put points on the board.

A touchdown to win it. A field goal to force double overtime. Anything else, and Pennsylvania would lose.

On Pennsylvania's first play in overtime, Mornhinweg's pass bounced off Shell's fingertips and into the hands of Kyeremeh.

"I forced a couple throws," said Mornhinweg, a Florida recruit who quarterbacked St. Joseph's Prep as a senior last season.

"There's no excuse. I made some passes I shouldn't have. I'm just glad to have had the opportunity to play out here."

Midway through the fourth quarter, Pennsylvania recovered a fumble to stop a marching Ohio offense and had the ball with a two-touchdown lead and less than seven minutes to play.

That's when things got crazy.

On Pennsylvania's first play from its own 22, Mornhinweg threw an interception that was returned to Pennsylvania's 11. Four plays later, Tyler O'Connor punched in a quarterback sneak to cut the lead to a touchdown with six minutes left.

Pennsylvania was still in control. It had a touchdown lead and was about to get the ball.

When Ohio kicked off, though, Peoples, of Archbishop Wood, muffed the kick on the 1-yard line, went back into the end zone to take a knee, but realized it would have resulted in a safety and didn't let his knee touch the ground.

Peoples tried to make a move to his left, but fumbled the football at the 1 and Jimmy Rousher bounced on it and took it in for Ohio's second touchdown in less than 20 seconds.

Just like that, a 21-7 lead had turned into a 21-21 tie.

Mornhinweg threw a first-quarter touchdown strike, but ended with four interceptions.

Nate Smith, of Archbishop Wood, and Kiser Terry, of Neshaminy, led a stingy Pennsylvania defense.

"We can't harp on things like that," Terry said of the six Pennsylvania turnovers. "In this game, you just have to go out and move on to the next play."

Even despite the turnovers, Pennsylvania had a good opportunity in overtime with single coverage on the outside. But the pass bounced off one set of fingertips and into another.
_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

APR rankings: Coach by conference

Posted on: June 15, 2011 1:32 pm
Edited on: June 15, 2011 1:39 pm



CBSSports.com compiled the APR averages of 109 of the 120 coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) using data provided by the NCAA. CBSSports.com's study is based on the NCAA's available data between 2003-04 and 2009-10 so 11 coaches debuting this season were not included. Brett McMurphy's latest column shows that the ACC is getting it done.

Below is a list of each coach by conference:

Atlantic Coast

1. Dabo Swinney, Clemson 988
4. x-Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech 980
7. Frank Spaziani, Boston College 978
8. x-David Cutcliffe, Duke 976
13. Jim Grobe, Wake Forest 969
29. Jimbo Fisher, Florida State 959
30. x-Mike London, Virginia 958
33. Butch Davis, North Carolina 956
41. x-Randy Edsall, Maryland 951
(tie). x-Tom O'Brien, N.C. State 951
59. Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech 943
83. x-Al Golden, Miami 931

Big East

4. Greg Schiano, Rutgers 980
21. x-Paul Pasqualoni, UConn 964
26. y-Bill Stewart, West Virginia 960
50. Doug Marrone, Syracuse 948
54. x-Todd Graham, Pittsburgh 945
62. x-Skip Holtz, South Florida 941
74. x-Butch Jones, Cincinnati 936
109. Charlie Strong, Louisville 869

Big Ten

2. Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern 986
13. Bret Bielema, Wisconsin 969
17. Joe Paterno, Penn State 967
18. x-Danny Hope, Purdue 966
19. x-Jerry Kill, Minnesota 965
21. Bill Lynch, Indiana 964
26. z-Jim Tressel, Ohio State 960
31. Bo Pelini, Nebraska 957
41. Kirk Ferentz, Iowa 951
51. x-Ron Zook, Illinois 946
59. x-Brady Hoke, Michigan 943
68. x-Mark Dantonio, Michigan State 939

Big 12

39. Gary Pinkel, Missouri 953
45. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma 950
48. x-Tommy Tuberville, Texas Tech 949
57. x-Art Briles, Baylor 944
62. Mack Brown, Texas 941
74. Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State 936
80. Mike Sherman, Texas A&M 933
94. x-Turner Gill, Kansas 926
95. Bill Snyder, Kansas State 925
102. Paul Rhoads, Iowa State 919

Southeastern

11. Mark Richt, Georgia 972
19. Dan Mullen, Mississippi State 965
34. x-Nick Saban, Alabama 955
41. x-Les Miles, LSU 951
57. Kentucky's Joker Phillips 944
66. x-Bobby Petrino, Arkansas 940
68. x-Derek Dooley, Tennessee 939
71. Steve Spurrier, South Carolina 937
78. x-Gene Chizik, Auburn 934
(tie). x-Houston Nutt, Ole Miss 934
James Franklin, Vanderbilt n/a
Will Muschamp, Florida n/a

Pac-12

31. Kyle Whittingham, Utah 957
34. Jeff Tedford, California 955
45. Rick Neuheisel, UCLA 950
62. Chip Kelly, Oregon 941
66. Mike Riley, Oregon State 940
71. x-Paul Wulff, Washington State 937
82. Steve Sarkisian, Washington 932
92. x-Lane Kiffin, USC 927
95. x-Dennis Erickson, Arizona State 925
98. Mike Stoops, Arizona 924
Jon Embree, Colorado n/a
David Shaw, Stanford n/a

Independents

3. Ken Niumatalolo, Navy 981
23. x-Rich Ellerson, Army 963
80. x-Brian Kelly, Notre Dame 933
89. Bronco Mendenhall, BYU 928

Mountain West

6. Troy Calhoun, Air Force 979
9. Chris Petersen, Boise State 975
16. Gary Patterson, TCU 968
26. Mike Locksley, New Mexico 960
37. Steve Fairchild, Colorado State 954
71. x-Bobby Hauck, UNLV 937
83. Dave Christensen, Wyoming 931
89. x-Rocky Long, San Diego State 928

Western Athletic

34. Greg McMackin, Hawaii 955
48. Pat Hill, Fresno State 949
54. x-Gary Andersen, Utah State 945
(tie). Sonny Dykes, Louisiana Tech 945
70. Chris Ault, Nevada 938
86. Mike MacIntyre, San Jose State 930
92. DeWayne Walker, New Mexico State 927
95. Robb Akey, Idaho 925

Conference USA

12. Bob Toledo, Tulane 970
39. George O'Leary, UCF 953
45. x-David Bailiff, Rice 950
59. Ruffin McNeill, East Carolina 943
77. Doc Holliday, Marshall 935
88. Larry Fedora, Southern Miss 929
89. x-June Jones, SMU 928
99. Kevin Sumlin, Houston 923
100. Mike Price, UTEP 920
106. Neil Callaway, UAB 904
107. Larry Porter, Memphis 903
Bill Blakenship, Tulsa n/a

Mid-American

14. x-Dave Clawson, Bowling Green 969
24. Tim Beckman, Toledo 961
(tie). x-Pete Lembo, Ball State 961
51. Dan Enos, Central Michigan 946
(tie). Frank Solich, Ohio 946
62. Bill Cubit, Western Michigan 941
103. Ron English, Eastern Michigan 918
(tie). Jeff Quinn, Buffalo 918
108. Rob Ianello, Akron 900
Steve Addazio, Temple n/a
Dave Doeren, Northern Illinois n/a
Darrell Hazzell, Kent State n/a
Don Treadwell, Miami, Ohio n/a

Sun Belt

10. Rick Stockstill, Middle Tennessee 973
37. Willie Taggart, Western Kentucky 954
74. Mario Cristobal, Florida International 936
83. x-Dan McCarney, North Texas 931
86. Larry Blakeney, Troy 930
100. x-Todd Berry, Louisiana-Monroe 920
103. Howard Schnellenberger, Florida Atlantic 918
Hugh Freeze, Arkansas State n/a
Mark Hudspeth, Louisiana-Lafayette n/a

APR rankings by conference

1. ACC 961.7
2. Big Ten 959.4
3. Mountain West 954.0
4. SEC 947.1
5. Big East 942.9
6. MAC 940.0
7. WAC 939.3
8. Pac 12 938.8
9. Big 12 937.6
10. Sun Belt 937.4
11. C-USA 932.5

x-NCAA's APR data was from coach's current and/or previous schools between 2003-10
y-Stewart resigned from West Virginia on Friday
z-Tressel resigned from Ohio State on May 30
_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

but i don't think i respect it too much.

i blame hip-hop.

I mean two problems right off the bat...

1 - Schools are penalized considerably for transfers, and NFL early entrants that don't graduate

2 - These athletes are not all taking equally rigorous course loads from one institution to the next.

_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

ranking.

didn't realize it was academic ranking.

i blame hip-hop.

Charlie Strong is in a heap of trouble, I've never noticed it that low

expecting people to walk and chew gum at the same time might be a chore

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

@ the Kids & Kamp Against Cancer Gala

http://www.elevenwarriors.com/blogs/alex/tressel-surprised-by-former-players-at-charity-event

and cie grant can carry a tune.

he killed "carmen, ohio"

pretty cool.

also, I had no idea they were playing a game in Ireland. That's kinda cool actually.


CFN Preview



2012 Schedule
Sept. 1 Navy (in Dublin, Ireland)
Sept. 8 Purdue
Sept. 15 at Michigan State
Sept. 22 Michigan
Sept. 29 OPEN DATE
Oct. 6 Miami (in Chicago)
Oct. 13 Stanford
Oct. 20 BYU
Oct. 27 at Oklahoma
Nov. 3 Pitt
Nov. 10 at Boston College
Nov. 17 Wake Forest
Nov. 24 at USC



CFN Preview

What's the point of being an independent if you're going to put together a schedule like this?

Notre Dame has been building and building well talent-wise under Brian Kelly. He has improved the speed and athleticism across the board, especially on defense, and he has enough returning starters and enough talent to ask for more production from a potentially high-octane offense to go along with more toughness from a decent defense.

The problem, though, has been being able to take a next step forward with too many self-destructive moments proving costly. Last year the Irish would’ve beaten USF and Michigan if they didn’t do everything humanly possible to give the ball away at the worst possible times, and it’s not like they were blown out by USC, Stanford or Florida State. This was a good team with a mediocre record, and in 2012 this could be a great team with a lousy record.

Without a conference title to play for it’s BCS or bust for all the independents. It’s different for Notre Dame as opposed to BYU because it’s Notre Dame, but if you’re going to beat your head against the wall with an unmanageable slate, then why not join a league?

Notre Dame already makes a ton of money as an independent and with its own deals, but there’s lots of dough to be had as part of a conference, too. It was announced earlier this summer that all the Big Ten schools are getting a fat check for more than $250 million. The TV money from the SEC and Big 12 is about to go from silly to ridiculous once the dust settles a bit on expansion and realignment.

The prestige of being an independent is sort of nice, but does it really make Notre Dame special when it’s not going to the BCS on a regular basis? Notre Dame wants to be different and doesn’t want to be just another program in a Big Ten with Ohio State and Michigan the biggest names, and it doesn’t really want to play third banana in a Big 12 with Texas and Oklahoma - but it might do just that - or be a yearly also-ran in the brutal SEC. But by being part of a conference also means that Kansas, Indiana or Kentucky is on the slate – depending on the league – to help take some of the heat off. This year, Notre Dame doesn’t get any break whatsoever.

Wake Forest might be the worst team on the slate, and it’s good enough to possibly go bowling. Pitt is going to be stronger, the Boston College game is on the road, and the Navy showdown starts off the season in Dublin, Ireland.

And those are the cupcakes.

Purdue isn’t a world-beater, but it’s going to be dangerous against a jetlagged Irish team coming back from the Navy game. Michigan is probably the best team in the Big Ten. Oklahoma is probably the best team in the Big 12. USC might be the best team in the count,ry and Stanford isn’t going to take a huge step back. Michigan State is going to be terrific again, Miami isn’t awful, and BYU is loaded.

To make things worse, 2013 doesn’t appear to be any better with Oklahoma, USC, Michigan, Michigan State, Arizona State, Stanford and BYU to deal with, and with games against Pitt and Purdue on the road.

With these schedules, it’s almost as if Notre Dame is trying to do everything possible not to succeed, and the sad part is that this year’s Irish team could be a player in the Big Ten or Big 12 title chases. It would have had an honest shot at winning the Pac-12 North; it would’ve been the favorite in the Big East; and it probably would’ve been a good challenger to Florida State for the Pac-12 title. In other words, 2012 Notre Dame could’ve been deep in the hunt for a BCS slot if it was part of any conference other than the SEC, but instead it might go 9-3 and be happy to get there.

Yes, the coaching staff has to decide on a quarterback, but when the No. 1 prospect in the nation – freshman Gunner Kiel – is probably the fourth-best option, the isn’t really a problem. The O line is experienced and effective, and the running backs are going to be terrific with a nice blend of talents. The receiving corps might need some work, but Tyler Eifert should be the best tight end in college football to help ease the loss of Michael Floyd.

The defense should be great against the run with Manti Te’o leading a big and nasty-looking front seven. There might be issues getting into the backfield without top pass rusher Aaron Lynch to rely on anymore – he transferred to South Florida – and the secondary doesn’t have a ton of depth, but overall it’s an athletic enough D to get by.

But none of the improvements made by Kelly are going to matter without a few monster upsets and no slips. Notre Dame made its own scheduling bed, and if it manages to get through it with a 10-2 record it deserves a BCS slot without question, along with all the credit in the world for challenging itself each and every week.

It’ll also deserve all the blame if the Irish come up with yet another 8-5 campaign under Kelly.

What to watch for on offense: The backfield. The running game never got enough credit for being effective last year, with Jonas Gray averaging 6.9 yards per pop with 12 scores and Cierre Wood rumbling for 1,102 yards and nine touchdowns averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Gray is done, but Wood should be in line for another 1,000-yard season. Receiver Theo Reddick and kickoff returner extraordinaire, George Atkinson III, will be in the rotation to help provide more flash. Of course, the big story all season long will be the quarterback situation with four good young players all battling for the gig. Even when a No. 1 guy is named, that won’t settle the issue with the other three options good enough to step in and produce if needed.

What to watch for on defense: Where’s the pass rush going to come from? Aaron Lynch came up with 5.5 sacks last season and Manti Te’o made five. The rest of the defense nickel-and-dimed its way up 14.5 more sacks, but it would be nice if one of the linemen could replace what Lynch provided. Kapron Lewis-Moore is a nice all-around defensive lineman, but he’s not necessarily a pure pass rusher. Stephon Tuitt could be main man on one end, and tweener linebacker Ishaq Williams could blossom into a superstar, but they haven’t done it yet. The defense that couldn’t come up with enough big plays needs to be active enough to force the game changers.

The team will be far better if … Notre Dame fans, altogether now … STOP TURNING THE BALL OVER. The Irish gave away 17 picks and 12 fumbles with ten of the turnovers coming in losses to South Florida and Michigan to start the season. Just when it seemed like the problems slowed down, the picks kicked back in late in the year. On the plus side, the fumbling all but stopped, with just two lost fumbles over the final six games, but with a defense that couldn’t seem to come up with the big takeaway at the right time – with just eight picks and six recovered fumbles on the season – the offensive mistakes were a killer.

The schedule: What kind of sick and twisted sadistic joke is this? Again, it’s as if Notre Dame decided the schedule wasn’t quite difficult enough, so it kept on finding new and creative ways to make it even harder. It’s by far the nastiest schedule in America that doesn’t include a team from the SEC.

Even the supposedly easy games have issues with Boston College on the road and Wake Forest coming a week before USC. The opener against Navy is in Ireland, and then the Irish have to get past the long flight home to deal with Purdue at home before gearing it up for a road trip to Michigan State and a showdown against Michigan. The week off before going up the road to Chicago to play Miami will be desperately needed.

BYU should be even better than the 10-3 version of last season, making the first half of the season a bear, and then comes the real fun with a brutal trip to Oklahoma to follow. If all of that wasn’t enough, there’s still the road game at USC lurking as the final act. In all, it’s not a stretch to project that the Irish will end up playing at least ten bowl bound teams, two of the preseason top five teams in America in OU and USC, and four possible conference champions in OU, Michigan or Michigan State, Pitt and USC.

Best offensive player: Senior TE Tyler Eifert. The Irish really needs one of the four good quarterback options to become the star of the show, but whoever is under center will end up relying on Eifert early and often. The 6-6, 251-pound senior should’ve been off to the NFL early after catching 63 passes for 803 yards and five touchdowns, but instead he should be the nation’s best all-around tight end and a lifesaver for an offense that needs a No. 1 receiving target.

Best defensive player: Senior LB Manti Te’o. Talk about living up to the hype, everyone wanted Te’o, and it was a bit of a shocker when he didn’t choose USC, and he has shown why with 324 career tackles with seven sacks and 36 tackles for loss. Big, strong, consistent and fast, he has all the tools and all the potential to break through and with the Butkus as the nation’s top linebacker. At the very least he’ll be the leader of a good front seven that was good against the run last year and should be dominant at times this season.

Key player to a successful season: Junior QB Tommy Rees ... or redshirt freshman QB Everett Golson ... or junior QB Andrew Hendrix ... or freshman QB Gunner Kiel. It doesn't really matter which one ends up holding down the job - they can all lead the way to wins. But if the Irish are going to get through its nasty slate, and if they can go from eight-win good to ten-win great, then the starting quarterback has to be more than just a decent choice among the flock. The QB has to be fantastic and has to be the reason the team is ale to win. Most of the key pieces are in place, and now it's time to find the right guy to run the show.

The season will be a success if … The Irish win ten games. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the schedule is a nightmare. However, broken down, if Notre Dame really is good enough to think about going to a BCS game, it should be good enough to win at least nine regular season games. Chalk up the road games at Oklahoma and USC as losses, but the Irish should be favored in every game the rest of the way with the possible exception of the road trip to Michigan State and the date with Michigan the week after. Notre Dame is better than Navy, Purdue, Miami, Stanford, BYU, Pitt, Boston College and Wake Forest, so if it wins the games it’s supposed to, and splits against the Spartans and Wolverines, there’s a chance to go into the bowl game with a shot at a double-digit win campaign.

Key game: Sept. 15 at Michigan State. The Spartans are going to be really good, but it’s going to take a little time to fill in a bunch of the key pieces. With Michigan coming up next for the Irish, coming out of East Lansing with a win might be vital or else the pressure will be on to beat the Wolverines to stay alive in the hunt for a BCS game. Notre Dame can get in at 10-2, but it’s asking for way too much to get at least a split on the road at Oklahoma and USC. The Irish throttled MSU 31-13 last season in what has turned into one of the most thrilling rivalries in college football over the last several years. Before 2011, nine of the previous 11 meetings had been decided by a touchdown or less, with some of them turning into classics.

2011 Fun Stats:
- Turnovers: Notre Dame 29 – Opponents 14
- 1st Quarter Scoring: Notre Dame 114 – Opponents 53
- Punt Return Average: Opponents 10.7 yards – Notre Dame 3.7 yards


_______________________________
Oddisee - People Hear What They See
Casual - He Still Think He Raw
Oh No - Ohnomite

@ Louisiana Tech
Florida
@SMU
South Carolina St.
Arkansas
@Ole Miss
LSU
@ Auburn
@ Mississippi State
@ Alabama
Sam Houston State
Mizzou


ND might have some bigger names overall and no I-AA cupcakes but the 4 game stretch of LSU and @ Auburn, Starkville, and Tuscaloosa is tougher than anything the Irish have

good thing Sumlin is recruiting well because he is going to need the depth

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvglfwwzEew

<-textbook blocking fundamentals

http://espn.go.com/colleges/georgia/football/story/_/id/8111289/georgia-bulldogs-isaiah-crowell-faces-felony-weapons-counts


ATHENS, Ga. -- Georgia running back Isaiah Crowell, who was in and out of Bulldogs coach Mark Richt's doghouse as a freshman, was arrested on weapons charges by Athens-Clarke County police early Friday morning.

Crowell, from Columbus, Ga., was arrested and charged with two felonies and a misdemeanor, according to the Athens-Clarke County Jail Booking report.


Crowell was charged with a felony count of possessing a weapon in a school zone, a felony count of altered identification mark and misdemeanor count of possession/carrying a concealed weapon.

He was arrested around 2:20 a.m. ET after being stopped at a vehicle checkpoint near the Georgia campus and booked at 3:37 a.m. His bond was set at $7,500.

Under UGA Athletic Association policy, student-athletes charged with felonies are immediately suspended from the team.

Georgia senior associate athletics director Claude Felton said the school was aware of Crowell's arrest. Felton said Richt was out of town.

An Athens-Clarke County Sheriff's Department official said Crowell, 19, was still jailed later Friday morning. Police said the altered ID-mark charge stems from a tampered serial number and that the gun in queston was a 9mm Luger.

Athens-Clarke County Police spokeswoman Hilda Sorrow told ESPN.com on Friday morning that officers at the checkpoint say they smelled marijuana inside the 2005 Mercury Grand Marquis that Crowell was driving. He had four passengers in the car, whom police would not reveal before the official arrest report was finished.

" consented to a search of the vehicle, and officers didn't find the marijuana," Sorrow said. "There were other occupants inside the car and they consented to a search, but the marijuana wasn't found. During the search of the vehicle, officers found a gun under the driver's seat. After discovering that the ID number had been altered , Mr. Crowell was arrested and charged. Marijuana was never found inside the car."

Crowell, who was ranked as the country's No. 1 running back and No. 4 prospect overall by ESPN Recruiting in 2011, had a rocky first season with the Bulldogs.

He ran 185 times for 850 yards with five touchdowns as a freshman but was dogged by disciplinary problems throughout the previous summer.

Crowell was benched for the first quarter of the Bulldogs' 33-28 victory over Vanderbilt on Oct. 15 for disciplinary reasons and then was suspended for UGA's 63-16 victory over New Mexico State.

Crowell was hampered by an ankle injury late in the season and ran only 15 times for 31 yards in the Bulldogs' last four games.

He was booed by UGA fans after limping off the field with an ankle injury in the first half of the Bulldogs' 42-10 loss to LSU in the SEC championship game at the Georgia Dome on Dec. 3.

Georgia signed two of the country's most highly regarded running backs, Keith Marshall and Todd Gurley of North Carolina, in February to help take some of the load off Crowell this coming season.

Marshall, who enrolled at UGA in January after graduating from Millbrook High School in Raleigh, N.C., offered support for his Bulldogs teammate on Twitter on Friday morning: "Pray for Isaiah & that he will learn from his mistake."

This is fucking nuts.

There's like a bit of good news, and then more significant bad news... rinse. repeat.

also, ya'll see clowney er... clownin?

JadeveonClowny: I don't wanna make too much fun of Florida or Georgia cause I don't want Janoris jenkins or crowell pulling a gun on me.


smh lol

Yeah. Same ole same ole at UGA. I don't even get mad anymore.

I just look to depth and hope we'll be okay, which we won't.

We'll have an EXCELLENT team that will take half the year to gel AGAIN.

"Slaves got options...cowards aint got shit." --PS
"Once upon a time, little need existed for making the distinction between a nigga and a black—at least not in this country, the place where niggas were invented" -- Donnell A

It's that simple. I don't know why they can't see that he's the problem.

Sure we catch kids, sure we get rid of them. But what does that do to the program?

Either be dirty or STOP recruiting these idiots.

"Slaves got options...cowards aint got shit." --PS
"Once upon a time, little need existed for making the distinction between a nigga and a black—at least not in this country, the place where niggas were invented" -- Donnell A

straight from Saban's mouth...

"That guy refuses to buy in to what we teach and what we value to be succesful. He will not play for this football team. Period." (247sports.com - via @tomorr4)

would be a spoiled a-hole.

I think his pop is a tremendous player and 4 times the WR Moss was. But still.

He was a fucking prick. You gotta figure the coddled son of a prick would be worthless.

"Slaves got options...cowards aint got shit." --PS
"Once upon a time, little need existed for making the distinction between a nigga and a black—at least not in this country, the place where niggas were invented" -- Donnell A

he got knocked for it in Columbus, and he had to go to a juco bc he flunked out,

then to squander a second chance at another great fb program...

that's all on him.

dude is talented as hell too, the way he plays, body control and hands, good blocking WR...a chip off the old block.
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