It’s harder to roll the NCAA than Vince Dooley.

Michael Adams is denied his short term moment of triumph.  In fact, the buck got passed to the group full of warm and fuzzies for Adams’ proposal:

Instead, the NCAA’s Division I board of directors decided the proper place for addressing the issue is at the conference level. The conferences operate the Bowl Championship Series, the system Adams says is broken.

Does Adams have a Plan B?

Advertisement

Win some, lose some.

Bobby Petrino gains a quarterback and loses two running backs in the same day.

Matt Hayes knows Matt Stafford.

At least he thinks he does.

I’m probably just trolling for excuses to post video clips from this past season, but once again, Matt Hayes shows his ass…

Talented ‘Dawgs need QB Matt Stafford to take the next critical step in his development: the ability to carry a team in big games.

… and I feel the need to respond.

It’s fair to criticize Stafford for being inconsistent, and his mechanics could still use some polish, but how can you fault him for not stepping up in big games?

Take notes, Fox.

Watch this video of Knowshon’s TD run against Auburn to get a feel for the right way to broadcast a college game:

Here’s a few pointers:

1. Your play by play guy doesn’t have to sound like a robot.
2. There’s nothing wrong with immediately showing a replay of a big play. And showing it more than once.
3. Color commentary can be enhanced with replay.
4. You don’t have to show endless shots of the bands to impart the flavor of a college game.
5. Best of all, no mention of this: Jumpers 2.14.08.

And, no, it’s got nothing to do with the fact that this was such an exciting play – there were plenty of those in the Sugar Bowl, too. CBS just does a better job. I hope the SEC keeps this in mind when the broadcast contract comes up in a year’s time.

This is a beautiful piece of Auburn Football History!

I don’t know what amazes me more about this ebay auction:  that Jason Campbell needed to sell his ring, or that Auburn actually emblazoned the 2004 ring with “National Champions”.

Wait a minute – you think maybe Campbell was just too embarrassed to keep it?

(h/t AOL FanHouse) 

Recruiting the triple option

The Macon Telegraph has a couple of articles up on how the ’08 recruiting classes are shaping up for the two in state D-1 schools. On the surface, there aren’t any surprises. Georgia, coming off a seven game winning streak, a #2 spot in the final AP poll and high hopes for next year, is doing swimmingly well in recruiting.  (Just ask Zebrie Sanders.)   Georgia Tech on the other hand, with the hiring of Paul Johnson, is looking at a sea change in offensive philosophy that’s reflected in how its incoming class is shaping up.

Yet there’s something in the Tech article that’s intriguing. Here’s a point that Johnson’s new running backs coach made about Tech’s recruiting:

… Monken said more traditional, straight-ahead rushers likely won’t fit well in Georgia Tech’s new scheme.

“This position is unique because we ask them to do so many different things,” Monken said of his backs. “Running backs in our offense won’t be like your traditional runners. When they’ll have the ball, they’ll mostly be taking it to the outside.”

Because speed is important in getting those backs to the sidelines in the triple option, the players’ size is one variable Georgia Tech’s staff may find less important than at other schools, Monken said.

“With our offense, you don’t require guys to be as big as some other running backs who run in between the tackles,” Monken said. “We may look at a guy who may be undersized but has speed. But, of course, if you’ve got a kid with size who can run fast, you certainly want to do what you can to recruit him.

“But everybody wants those guys, and sometimes there’s just not enough of them to go around.”

That’s sort of a Moneyball approach to talent: figure out what the market is undervaluing, take that and make it work in your system. Given the limitations of the Georgia high school educational system and Georgia Tech’s curriculum, there is some logic in the Jackets avoiding pitched battles with UGA over the recruiting pool available to Tech. And from Johnson’s perspective, this approach doesn’t have much downside. Any way you look at it, the talent pool he has access to now is bigger that what he had either at Navy (easier sell now, believe it or not) or Georgia Southern.

Will it work? That’s the $64,000 question. He’ll get better talent than he’s had – but he’ll be facing much better defenses week in and week out than he’s played, too. I’m really curious to see how this experiment turns out.

Of course, remember that this only applies on the offensive side of the ball.  On defense, Johnson will have to fight for the same kids Tech’s always gone after.  And he’ll have to do it without Tenuta.

The Dust Bowl

No, it’s not a new BCS game. It’s a concern raised by the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Terry Pluto, namely that the demographics of the Midwest and the Sun Belt don’t favor teams like Ohio State over the long haul.

For several years, my theory is it will continually be harder for Ohio State to contend at the elite national level because of population shifts. More people keep leaving the Midwest and moving South and West. That means there simply are more good athletes in warm-weather states and that gives schools in those regions a great advantage. Part of the reason OSU has been able to compete at such a high level is the kids in the Midwest generally receive very good high school coaching. But the trend is working against the Buckeyes.

I went through the list of the top 50 high school senior football prospects on ESPN.com, supplied by Scouts Inc. Not a single Ohio kid was on the list. Nor was anyone from Michigan or Indiana. There were three from Pennsylvania. The highest rated Ohio kid on a longer list of 100 was DeVoe Torrence, the Massillon running back at No. 64. He is committed to the Buckeyes…

I can’t wait to hear what Jim Delany proposes to do about this.

(h/t First and 10 Inches)