10. Quarterbacks in the SEC
With the departure of Georgia's Aaron Murray, South Carolina's Conner Shaw, LSU's Zach Mettenburger, Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel, Alabama's AJ McCarron and Missouri's James Franklin, there really is no longer a true "household" name quarterback in the SEC this season. (With all due respect to Auburn's Nick Marshall...I'll get to him in just a bit.) It will be interesting to see who takes over that role this fall. South Carolina's Dylan Thompson has been reliable when called upon and will be Spurrier's #1 guy this season in Columbia. If you're a gator fan (or Will Muschamp who finds himself on the hot seat) you can only hope and pray that Jeff Driskel will come back stronger than ever and lead the team to a rebound year. Last season the Gators started off the season 4-1 before losing the next 7 straight including a 26-20 loss to Georgia Southern at HOME...a game in which the Eagles did not complete a single pass. Yeah it got that bad in Gainesville last year. Finally, can't count out Nick Marshall who nearly led the Auburn Tigers to a BCS title last season, as a front runner. Joined by RB Tre Mason, Auburn had of the nations best QB-RB combination last season and an aggressive and powerful rushing attack. It will be fun to see who emerges as a start this season from a QB perspective in the SEC.
9. Iron Bowl Rematch
I remember the moment I heard about Auburn's Kick-Six that gave them the thrilling victory over arch-rival Alabama. It was something I had never even imagined happening in a real football game. I had spent the day in Columbia tailgating with friends and preparing for my Tiger's showdown showdown against the Gamecocks. It wasn't until about midway through the 3rd quarter that I had heard they (Auburn) had won and in such an exciting fashion. I had just assumed that Alabama would win and never even gave it much thought throughout the day to even check the score. I will never forget getting back to my friends place that night and seeing the highlights on TV and the celebration that followed as the football field became a sea of Orange and Navy. Plays and moments like that are what make me love college football so much. What a moment. I can only imagine how much fuel to the fire that game has added to this old school heated rivalry. Although both teams will look a little different this year, this game should be another classic when the two meet on the field this season. One thing is for sure...I'll be watching this year's game a little closer. Something tells me Saban definitely has this one circled in red ink on his calendar. It won't be an easy or fun trip to Bryant-Denny Stadium for Gus Malzhan and company.8. James Franklin and Penn State
If you know me, you know I'm Clemson through and through and don't really pull for any other team unless it benefits my Tigers. (That includes fellow ACC members) That being said, there are two new head coaches that I will be cheering on this season as they begin a new era at their respective schools. The first of those is James Franklin as he trades in the Black and Gold for the classic Blue and White up in Happy Valley. Franklin is a great coach and one that should be successful and fully supported at State College. I got to see Franklin up close and personal when I traveled up to Nashville with my PC Blue Hose for a game back in 2012 as a radio sideline reporter. He's a good guy that has the respect of his players and assistant coaches. Someone that I would love to play for. At Vanderbilt, he simply did not have the support and resources he needed to be successful and playing in the SEC didn't help his cause, either. Looking forward to him bringing back the proud tradition of Penn State football.
7. Clemson Defense
Clemson lost some important players on the defensive side of the ball heading into this season including linebackers Spencer Shuey and Quandon Christian and CB Bashaud Breeland but have some pretty reliable returners coming back and the Clemson defense is in shape to be the best it has been in the past few years. Brent Venables is a animal and has brought the swag back to this Clemson defense. Sure they got embarrassed against South Carolina and Florida State for the second straight year, the Tigers also made great strides and played a large role in the Tiger's Orange Bowl win over Ohio State to conclude the 2013 season. They return star DE Vic Beasley and have exceptional depth on the defensive line with the likes of Corey Crawford, Grady Jarrett, DeShawn Williams and Shaq Lawson to name a few, which should help support a talented but rather young and inexperienced secondary. The LB unit should also be rather solid as Tony Steward, Ben Boulware and Stephone Anthony should anchor that group. If they stay healthy, Clemson should not only be among the best defense units in the ACC but in the nation.6. PLAYOFFS!
After years of relying on faulty system that failed miserably time after time, (See Auburn 2004, Oklahoma St 2011, USC 2003 etc) we are now catching college football up to modern times and implementing a playoff system. It makes perfect sense, every other major college team sport has it! Not really sure what took it so long to come to college football but I absolutely cannot wait to see it play out and have a few more games to enjoy towards the end of the season. Surely there will be come kinks that will need to be worked out moving forward but this is a giant step in the right direction for college football. This years format includes a simple top four-team playoff. With the winners advancing to the National Championship game. In my opinion, that is the perfect number. Typically, there are anywhere between 2-4 teams that even deserve to be in the title game conversation and after that there is a fall-off of another 2-4 really good teams that just aren't quite there yet....four is the magic number. (at least for now) I would think Bama and FSU will be early favorites to make the four-team field but that is why we play the game! Buckle up football fans....is going to be a fun ride!5. Cole Stoudt
When the Tigers take the field August 30th in Athens, they will be led onto the field by a new face, Cole Stoudt. Stoudt has patiently waited his time and his time is now...and he's ready. Last year, he was 47-59 for 415 yards, 5TDs and no interceptions. He also had 58 rushing yards and 2 more TDs on the year. The 6'4 210 signal caller looked solid in spring ball and is a lock as the starting QB for the season opener. He has a pretty talented guy named DeShaun Watson that is right on his heels though and should keep him focused and working hard. I'm confident in Stoudt and think he will be just fine although he has quite an act to follow after Tajh Boyd. Should be fun to watch these two talented guys battle for/keep the starting job this season.4. Charlie Strong
I've been following Strong since his days at South Carolina and he's one of those guys that you just knew it was only a matter of time before he landed a big time job, especially after his success at Louisville. Like Franklin, Strong too has his work cut out for him and has to restore the faith and excitement for a program that was 3rd at best just in its own state behind Texas A&M and Baylor last season. However, I'm confident he will right the ship in Austin and bring back Texas football back to its history of a well respected powerhouse and the top dog in football in the state of Texas. He means business and although it may a take a few years, I hope the Longhorn family will give him a chance and I'm confident they will be rewarded in the future.
3. Alabama and Lane Kiffin
2. Jameis Winston
From rape accusations to "accidentally" stealing crab legs from Publix and soda from a Burger King can Winston mature and stay out of trouble so he can remain on the football field? There is no doubting his talent both on the field and on the baseball diamond, both of which have professional potential, but someone needs to pull this kid aside and have a "come to Jesus" meeting. Winston already has a Heisman and National Championship under his belt but if he can't get his head together he might soon be trading in the garnet and gold for orange...and I'm not talking about Clemson or Florida. I'm talking Seminole County Detention Center. Get it together, Jameis. If Winston does settle down and stay healthy, FSU will likely make a return to the National Championship and repeat as champs.
1. Opening Weekend
No comments:
Post a Comment