cajun
01-05-2009, 04:23 PM
Really predictions for next year already...:eek:
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=schlabach_mark&page=predictions09/ncf
2. It will be Mack's last dance in Texas
Quarterback Colt McCoy and a big offensive line will lead the Longhorns to a Big 12 championship after they beat Oklahoma (the teams will be tied, fittingly, at the end of regulation). Texas will take advantage of its soft nonconference schedule (Louisiana-Monroe, Wyoming, Central Florida and UTEP) to finish No. 2 in the country. After losing to the Gators in the BCS title game, coach Mack Brown will retire and turn the reins over to defensive coordinator and coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp.
3. Notre Dame will be a Top 25 team
The Fighting Irish showed how explosive they can be in their 49-21 victory over Hawaii in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. Thanks to its watered-down schedule in 2009 -- it has only four road games (Michigan, Purdue, Pittsburgh and Stanford) and one neutral-site game (Washington State in the Alamodome) -- Notre Dame will finish 8-4, which will be good enough to save coach Charlie Weis' job.
7. Oklahoma won't match its 2008 success
Quarterback Sam Bradford will return to school for his junior season, but the reigning Heisman Trophy winner won't be as effective in 2009. The Sooners lose four starters from the country's best offensive line, as well as receiver Juaquin Iglesias. Junior tight end Jermaine Gresham also is expected to enter the NFL draft.
13. Taylor Potts will throw for 4,000 yards at Texas Tech
The Red Raiders won't be national-championship contenders after losing quarterback Graham Harrell and receiver Michael Crabtree, but they'll still be a tough out in the Big 12 South. In his first year as the starter, Potts, currently a sophomore, won't miss a beat in Mike Leach's spread offense, and will throw for more than 4,000 yards. Leach will spend most of his summer trying to figure out who shot J.R.
20. LSU will bounce back
After a disappointing encore to its 2007 national championship, LSU will once again be a title contender. Former Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis will make the Tigers more fundamentally sound, and quarterback Jordan Jefferson will stabilize the offense. LSU's 38-3 demolition of Georgia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl showed us Les Miles can coach.
22. The Big 12 South will finish in a three-way tie
Once again, the Big 12 South will be a jumbled mess at season's end. Texas will beat Oklahoma. Oklahoma will beat Oklahoma State. The Cowboys will beat the Longhorns. Texas will get the nod over the Sooners because the Longhorns will be the highest-rated team in the BCS standings. Under the league's new tiebreaker rules, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State receive a consolation prize: They get to play Missouri's defense again.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=schlabach_mark&page=predictions09/ncf
2. It will be Mack's last dance in Texas
Quarterback Colt McCoy and a big offensive line will lead the Longhorns to a Big 12 championship after they beat Oklahoma (the teams will be tied, fittingly, at the end of regulation). Texas will take advantage of its soft nonconference schedule (Louisiana-Monroe, Wyoming, Central Florida and UTEP) to finish No. 2 in the country. After losing to the Gators in the BCS title game, coach Mack Brown will retire and turn the reins over to defensive coordinator and coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp.
3. Notre Dame will be a Top 25 team
The Fighting Irish showed how explosive they can be in their 49-21 victory over Hawaii in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. Thanks to its watered-down schedule in 2009 -- it has only four road games (Michigan, Purdue, Pittsburgh and Stanford) and one neutral-site game (Washington State in the Alamodome) -- Notre Dame will finish 8-4, which will be good enough to save coach Charlie Weis' job.
7. Oklahoma won't match its 2008 success
Quarterback Sam Bradford will return to school for his junior season, but the reigning Heisman Trophy winner won't be as effective in 2009. The Sooners lose four starters from the country's best offensive line, as well as receiver Juaquin Iglesias. Junior tight end Jermaine Gresham also is expected to enter the NFL draft.
13. Taylor Potts will throw for 4,000 yards at Texas Tech
The Red Raiders won't be national-championship contenders after losing quarterback Graham Harrell and receiver Michael Crabtree, but they'll still be a tough out in the Big 12 South. In his first year as the starter, Potts, currently a sophomore, won't miss a beat in Mike Leach's spread offense, and will throw for more than 4,000 yards. Leach will spend most of his summer trying to figure out who shot J.R.
20. LSU will bounce back
After a disappointing encore to its 2007 national championship, LSU will once again be a title contender. Former Tennessee defensive coordinator John Chavis will make the Tigers more fundamentally sound, and quarterback Jordan Jefferson will stabilize the offense. LSU's 38-3 demolition of Georgia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl showed us Les Miles can coach.
22. The Big 12 South will finish in a three-way tie
Once again, the Big 12 South will be a jumbled mess at season's end. Texas will beat Oklahoma. Oklahoma will beat Oklahoma State. The Cowboys will beat the Longhorns. Texas will get the nod over the Sooners because the Longhorns will be the highest-rated team in the BCS standings. Under the league's new tiebreaker rules, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State receive a consolation prize: They get to play Missouri's defense again.